We jumped off the buildings and decided to hide in some random alleyways. It was a lot quicker to get rid of them down in the streets. I think killing that mage terrified the hell out of them.

I haven't forgotten how Shera managed to kill that guy. It might be a taboo skill but I want it. That's power. Power, with the intoxicating reward of freedom around the corner. I want it.

"Do you have a healing spell?" Right now, we're camped in an alleyway. It's pouring rain right now and the darkness is cloaking us. The mist descended from the mountains to envelop us in a satisfying cloak.

The rain is a different story. The water is running off my body and my wounds hurt.

The worse part is my head. It's just pounding. Having it smacked against that wall multiple times wasn't healthy.

"Shera, " She's shivering beside me. "Do you have a healing spell?"

She nods. I don't know how I look but I don't think it's pretty. She places her hands on my head and casts something, "[Lesser Heal Skin]"

Cool energy flows down from the top of my head to my feet. It's there for a few brief minutes and in that time, every single nick and bruise on my skin is healed. The internal injuries and the pounding head are a different story but this is good.

"Thank you." I kiss her on the cheek and fall asleep right away. I think this spell exhausted a lot of my stamina.

...

..

.

Somebody is shaking me on the arm but I just want to shrug them off and keep on sleeping. There's a harder tug, this time and I start remembering a little bit of what happened last night. I killed that prison guard. My body drenches in a cool sweat and I decide to wake up. Ryland isn't going to be happy, a lot of people in that house won't be happy.

I open my eyes and it's dawn. It's Shera who woke me up. I'm about to say something but Ake ducks down behind some trash. A group of people marches past us. It's a bunch of old middle-aged aunties. Most of them are armed with rusty machetes, short swords, a bow or two without a quiver.

The smell is starting to hit me now. Last night during the rain we didn't notice it but this place stinks of shit, piss, and trash. There's no waste management in this city here.

I gag and am about to throw up but I stop myself, now isn't the time. Moon is a lot calmer in this situation. The singular absence of Kogo among our ranks doesn't escape me.

She got lost along the way, she might've been captured, or she might be fine. The other option is that she split off from us for some reason. Maybe, traveling in a group with us is going to be too conspicuous. Either way, it is what it is.

I shake my head at the prospect and think about what to do next. The main point is to get out of this city. It's being besieged as well and I don't want to stay here. Not one bit longer. Will we have a similar opportunity as last time. I don't quite think so.

"Ake, we need to get out of here. Do you guys have any ideas?" I turn to the other two siblings.

"We need to wait for a breach in the wall." Moon's the first one to throw in a suggestion.

"It was a lucky fluke last time, I don't think it'll happen twice." It's Shera who responds.

"Maybe, we can find a way to serve and get stationed on the wall. That's our best way out." Ake throws in another suggestion.

"Will they accept all of us we'll be split up. Especially if they check for a mage. Shera is going to be pulled into the Mage Corps." It's Moon, he's rubbing the back of his neck.

"Can we dig our way out of the city? What if we just went near a city wall and used a spell to dig through it?"

"I think they cast a large-scale enchantment on the city wall. It'll be very hard for us to dig through."

God, this is getting us nowhere. "Shera, you do have something like a digging spell right?"

"Um, I only have [Soften Soil] and [Harden Soil]. That's it."

"That's not ideal but it'll work. Moon, do you have any enchantments that'll help you conceal things?"

"I can't do anything about that. I stole a minimal amount of potions from that vat but they were taken away from me."

I almost smile at the thought of him stealing. It doesn't quite line up with my image of a naive Moon but at the end of the day, he's survived this long. It'll be a problem but we might have to steal some materials.

"Ok, we need a few shovels and a place to dig in."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's just dig out a hole, add some ventilation in, and hole ourselves in there until either side wins."

I can't tell if they think I'm crazy or not. It is a stupid idea, why don't we just hole ourselves in but I have to try everything to survive. "Okay." Shera's the first one to respond. "We're going to need to find somewhere private to dig."

"We only have until noon when the army will be outside. We should assume they'll attack us right away."

"Ok, let's find a house to break into. It'll be private enough and we can do our thing." We turn to the street and every single one of them is fair game.