We arrived at the meeting spot without bumping into many people. It seemed like they were all out somewhere, looking for us or preparing an ambush. The meeting spot was at an abandoned warehouse, just like the one we were hiding in earlier. Unlike that warehouse, it looked a bit newer and less worn in appearance, with some tracks in the snow leading up to it. Come to think of it, how did those guards not track us down before with the snow providing a clear trail? It was best not to think too deeply about it.

Of course, we shouldn't just waltz right in and instead camp out somewhere. The best place would be a building right across from the warehouse, especially if it was another warehouse or a business we could loiter at for a bit without suspicion. Upon inspection, it was but there was a problem. There was a dead body in front of the building and it was a bar. It was the bar where this damn quest started and the body of the snitch we killed was still lying on the cold, hard ground. It turns out this place was already being used by the tyrant to keep on eye on the rebellion.

"That's the best place for our purposes. At the same time, it holds quite the risk. The people inside may know of our identity and that dead body is sure to attract attention. What do you guys think, should we go there anyways?" I asked the rest of the group.

"I don't know about this. I'll go with whatever you guys think is best until I regain contact with the gods," said Claris.

"The dead say it should be fine. Ironically, I trust the dead with my life," said Chad.

It seemed like everyone was fine with entering the bar. Even Foa let out a yip as though she was agreeing with everyone's decision and took the lead. Other than the bartender, nobody in there seemed to react to our entry. However, that was all that was necessary to ruin everything. He looked at us with shock then started shouting for guards to come. What did we even expect? He barely tolerated us in the situation before. In return for his kind warning, he got a few arrows in his wall and a dead body in front of his bar.

I didn't wait for the guards and ran out of the bar with the rest of the group in tow. A few of the people in the bar stared at us due to the bartender's shouting. Thankfully, when we got outside, there were no guards in the area. We couldn't just stay there with the bartender screaming his head off about us. At the same time, we should stay in the general area.

"What should we do now?" I asked.

"I don't know. I've just been going along with what you've said so far," said Claris. She kept her head low and seemed a bit distant.

"This was your plan. You tell us what to do. The dead don't have much to say and neither do I," said Chad.

The decision fell upon my shoulders completely and I had no input from my comrades. What to do? Should we just find another building to hide out in or just enter the warehouse directly? There was several choices and several ways this could go wrong. We originally decided to stay nearby but we didn't need to keep to that plan. In fact, it might be a good idea to distance ourselves after being detected by the bartender.

"How would you guys feel about not sticking around for the meeting?" I asked.

"Don't we need their help for the mission? If we don't stick around, then isn't there a chance they'll be wiped out?" asked Claris. She seemed to oppose this plan.

"I see. We'll use the resistance as a distraction while we strike the tyrant. If we stick around the resistance, we'll just get wiped out ourselves. The dead feel that this plan is reasonable, but Adrian feels we should try to complete this plan before the meeting so we can rescue the resistance afterwards," responded Chad.

Striking the tyrant while his army is dealing with the resistance? It was a great idea and it was being attributed to me. In reality, I was just being a coward, using one slip up as an excuse to run. I didn't deserve the position of leader. At the same time, he said Adrian. The dead he has been talking about were Geld and Adrian, not general dead spirits lingering about. My old comrades were trying their best to help us even post-mortem. I could not disappoint them.

"Isn't that just using the resistance as bait? How cruel," said Claris and she was right.

"All we have to do is accomplish the mission before they're wiped out as Adrian said before. Which means we should move out now. The only thing left is how we can get to the tyrant," I said while looking towards a manor. It was the only two-story building in town and was situated on a hill so it was hard to miss. It was the lord's manor, the place where the tyrant lied.

"Well, if the guards are distracted with the resistance, couldn't we just walk right in?" asked Chad.

"That's crazy talk. No noble would leave themselves unguarded just to wipe a resistance out. If the manor is unguarded, then the tyrant isn't there," said Claris.

"You both have a point. Let's walk up to the manor from the front and scout things out," I said, compromising between their two decisions.

Claris opened her mouth to say something but stopped herself. Chad took the lead and we started heading towards the lord's manor. I took the opportunity to walk beside Claris and chat with her.

"You alright? It seems like you're not too happy with the group right now," I asked.

"Of course I'm not alright. The gods haven't said a thing since they gave me the mission, Chad is pretty much a heretic, and you keep treating a priest's staff like a tool. To make things worse, we're killing people. Why can't we do this mission without killing our fellow man?" said Claris.

So that was what was bothering her. I sorta guessed some of them already, but it seemed to have stacked up a bit. Her stress was rising and it might cause an issue. At the same time, I couldn't do anything about it. Chad was a valuable member of our group, I needed to use the staff as a crutch, the gods weren't something I could influence, and we might have to kill more. Promising otherwise would just be lying.

"I'm sorry but I can't help you with this. There are things we have to do for this mission. It's best if you just keep to the back and not get into conflict with anyone. Don't be selfish," I said to her. It was harsh and could've been worded better but I had more important matters to deal with.

"That's bullshit. How am I being selfish? The reason the gods aren't talking with us is probably because of how we're doing this. We could do this mission without the killing just fine. And don't tell me about things we have to do. How would you know anything about that with how your last mission turned out? Your mission was a complete failure and then this one was delayed for months by your selfishness. Even if I'm being selfish, I'm fully justified in doing so."

That was too far. It didn't matter if she was right or not. She just hit my sore spot about this mission. I came close to leaving several times but chose to stay for them. Why did I even stay if I'd just get treated like this? I understood what I did was wrong, but I had made up for it. Even then, I was considerate enough to talk with her about problems she was facing and this is what I get in return. Sure, I didn't help much and she might be right, but that doesn't matter. I was angry. I slapped her in the face.

"Shut up! This mission wasn't voluntary. I was forced into this, just like you. I could've kept running, but I chose to stay. I didn't want you all to end up like Adrian and Geld. That's the only thing keeping me from skipping town and ignoring this mission. I don't want to be here, I don't want to lead you all, but I am. And I'm saying that your expectations are unrealistic. Hell, this entire mission is unrealistic and we might end up being wiped out just like the previous mission. Who's to say that isn't the gods' intention with these missions?"

"I'm done with us. I refuse to believe that you're the people picked out by the gods. A heretic who claims to speak to the dead and a crippled warrior who's a burden to the group yet plays as the leader. I will find a way to complete this mission myself. Goodbye," said Claris while running off and nursing her cheek.

Admittedly, I was harsh. I shouldn't have slapped her and I worded things badly. Unfortunately, with her attitude towards how we were doing things, this might have been inevitable. Perhaps this was for the best. She seemed to be heading towards the resistance meeting. If we ended up failing, then I hoped she would survive. I didn't like her, but I wished her the best in life since she was going through these missions just like me.

I felt something furry brush up against my leg and saw Foa below me. Wasn't Foa Claris' pet? It didn't matter since it was staying with us. The fox was the most competent of my teammates after all. I made eye contact with Foa and felt like the eyes held intelligence beyond that of an animal. However, that could've just been a glint from the dagger in its mouth playing tricks with my mind. Dagger in its mouth? What?

"I guess that means we're down a healer. Do we still keep to the plan of scouting out the front or should we go for the back to be safe?" asked Chad, interrupting my thought process.

"Err, if we need healing, you can just use Adrian's staff. Let's just stick to this plan for now. We can always change it later if a situation arises," I responded.

"If you say so. If something goes wrong, maybe we'll get lucky and Claris will get the help of the resistance. If we get captured, I do hope the tyrant is the type to flaunt instead of executing us on the spot."

"Please. Let's not talk about possible ways we could die."

"My apologies. It's a bad habit that comes with my line of work."

Soon we reached the base of the hill and started climbing up towards the manor. At this distance, we could see the overall state of the manor. Empty. Devoid of guards or servants. Were they just inside or was the tyrant out? Claris brought up that possibility and it might have become reality. I looked towards Chad and he seemed unfazed by this. He noticed me looking at him.

"Stop looking around so nervously. So what, the manor is empty. Isn't this a good thing for us? It makes it easier to infiltrate the place," said Chad.

"What if the tyrant isn't there?" I asked.

"It's his home, isn't it? We just infiltrate and then wait until he gets home."

"And the resistance?"

"Claris is taking care of them. It should be alright if we take our time."

"No, what if both the resistance and Claris get wiped out?"

"Not our problem. Claris left the group and is making her own decisions with her own consequences. It's best if we think of the best way to finish this mission rather than caring about stuff that may or may not happen to people unrelated to us. Besides, to me, death is not a big deal."

That shut me up. If he didn't mind, I guess it was best to leave it at that. At least he wasn't blaming me for driving her away. As for what to do, we hadn't even entered the manor yet so it was best to push those plans back. The manor being empty was still unnerving and suspicious.

It was comprised of a low wall, a courtyard, and the actual two-floor building. The wall was low enough that we could climb over it with some effort. There were also a scattering of trees, including a few that were awfully close to the wall. This place seemed easy to infiltrate. However, none of that was necessary as the gate allowing easy entrance through the wall was wide open. Was this a trap?

Chad took the lead and walked into the courtyard. Even now, there wasn't a single sign of life in the manor. We assumed this was the lord's manor, but there was a chance it wasn't. A lord's manor wasn't something left unguarded like this. Could we be at the wrong place, breaking into some abandoned house or poor sod's home?

My teammates didn't share my worries, both Chad and Foa approached the front door of the building. Chad touched the doorknob, intending to open it. Instead, he jumped back with a cry of shock. The next moment, the entire front entrance collapsed.