Lad then opened the door, ignoring the closed sign.

Inside, they saw a large room, with all the walls filled with shelves from top to bottom. All were full of jewels, ornaments, and shiny weapons. Lia had met many rich people and been in many great households but the merchandise here was only rivalled by the treasury of the Imperial Palace. There were even two sets of full plate armour completely made of Yrridian steel, standing hauntingly on the armour stand. The dark steel was shining like obsidian, unlike the usual matt darkness. The original forging method used by the masters before was lost in the crimson sands during the doom of Nevra. Those armours had to be at least a thousand years old. They could even be worn by the warriors fighting alongside the Lord himself.

Perhaps, that was the reason Lia suddenly felt chills in her bones. Or it could be the voice waking her up from her daydream.

“We are closed.” A tall woman with silver hair behind the counter welcomed them, working on the piece of necklace in her hand. She kept her wavy silver hair in a ponytail, but a piece broke loose from the rest and rested on her face. She raised her head, with a monocle on her left eye and tucked the strand of hair on her face behind her ear.

“Even to me, Liedhae?”

“Uncle Lad?” She raised her eyebrows in surprise, dropping the monocle and letting it swing like a pendulum which eventually hung over the collar of her white silky shirt.

“Uncle? I haven’t gotten that old yet, you know.” He wore a wide smile with open arms and hugged the woman rushing at her but no matter how convincing it was, after the talk in front of the shop, Lia doubted Lad’s sincerity.

“Look at you! The last time I saw you, you were a lively little girl climbing over the walls like a little spider and now working on a jewel? I might be getting old.” He chuckled. “Your mother wouldn’t let you touch anything back then.”

“What can I say? A lot has changed.” The woman laughed, giving his arm a bump with her elbow. “How can I help you? And your friends? Would you like something to drink?”

“Later dear. They are fine. We’d like to meet your mother. Is she around here?”

Liedhae wiped her monocle with a small yellow cloth and then put it on, studying the young trio.

“Yeah, must be in her study but I supposed if you waited a few minutes we are going to have lunch. Would you like to join us?”

“You know I’m never full, but we have no time. I’ll just ask her a few things.

“Alright then. You remember the room, right?” The woman put on her monocle and picked a golden thread as she seated herself on her desk. “Help yourselves. I need to finish this as soon as possible.”

After Liedhae’s suggestion, Lad went up and the others followed. He climbed the stairs, his hands gliding over the railing but not touching.

No creaks on the wooden ladders, no scratches or cracks on the stone walls. Not a spec of dust lying around. The place not only looked new but also abnormally clean, other than thin strands of spiderwebs on the ceiling that Lia could barely notice.

Lad stopped in front of a door on the second floor and knocked twice, opening it without expecting a reply.

“To what do I owe this pleasure old friend.” A sinister voice welcomed them as the door opened, without seeing the visitors.

The room was like the others, clean and obsessively meticulous. It was packed with statues jewels and various shining objects, but they were all neatly packed on the shelves and on or around the study desk of the woman that welcomed them.

The woman wore a white shirt, the first few buttons undone, revealing a cleavage. She wore a golden choker made from tiny golden threads woven into covers for sapphire stones. All her fingers were full of rings with shining stones of various sizes and colours. Short black hair, and a small face with a mole next to the edge of her lip. A single earring was on her left ear, emerald stone etched to dark metal. She played with it as she talked.

Of all the rings and chokers and earrings, what shined the most was her crimson eyes, looking straight through her soul. They were unlike Lad’s. His eyes were almost brown. These were as red as blood.

“Nothing much. I was just travelling with my friends here and wanted to drop by.” Lad sat on the chair, right across from the woman.

“You never travel for pleasure, Nephî.” The woman behind her desk slightly leaned forwards, looking above her big round glasses. “And not to offend you but you have no friends.”

“I have friends. Strong, dependable, and very loyal.” Lad smiled. “In this very room at that!” He looked at Lia and the others and continued. “Oh. I’m not talking about you. I was referring to them.” He pointed at the two statues behind the woman. Two men with agonized looks on their faces, covered with a silvery thread that shined like metal.

“I believe they would argue otherwise. They swore that they would kill you until their last breath, just before the threads fully claimed them.”

Lad shrugged the remark off with a nod, a face of half-hearted approval. “Fair enough. I still have these then.” He continued and Lia shivered. Were they Lad’s previous companions? How deep of a trouble were they in?

“I’m doing a little errand a very, very important woman.”

“Hmm…” The woman studied Lad. “Business? Welcome to the humble shop of this Aridrae. How can I help an old friend and his very important friend?”

“I am looking for a certain…” Lad tried to find the proper adjective but failed shortly. “someone.”

“There is a few certain someones, Eilarî. More than a few actually. There are a few on the run, a few hiding, and a few hunting. You need to be more specific.

“A man then? A little blue, a little old.”

“He must be a very unfortunate old and blue man then, especially with you on his back? Does this man have a name?”

“The fool calls himself Viran.”

“Oh.” The woman gasped, but her face told that she knew what name was going to be said already. “A fool indeed. Quite charming though.”

“I heard he had yellow teeth and half a face. You should reconsider your tas…” Lad realized. “Handsome? Of course, you met him already.”

The woman smiled as she caressed her earring for an answer.

“This makes it a lot easier then. I want to know everything you have on him.”

“I don’t think that would be possible old friend. Not even for you. Also, don’t judge a book by its cover. He was quite the eye candy. Scrumptious even.” She licked her lips.

“You made a deal, right?” Lad sighed. “Why does everything have to be so complicated? Can’t the bad guys just leave me their addresses and invite me to a nice dinner for once? Why deal with all the hiding? I’m telling you; I’d be a lot nicer if they invited me first before I found them.”

“I am sorry Lad.” She shrugged her shoulders “First come first served, nothing I can do.”

“Ahh, cut the crap.” Lad slapped the table and a few mages and jewels dropped off the table. “You are not sorry. You aren’t even trying with that smile. You are just trying to make another deal.”

“This is why I like him.” Aridrae laughed, glancing at her daughter, peeping behind the slightly open door. “He never pulls punches, always cuts to the chase.”

The jewels, however, and the pages started floating back to the table and to their places. Lia saw tiny threads lifting them, as the sun shined through the window. They were so thin that if it weren’t for the light reflecting, she wouldn’t notice them

“Still, I can’t give any information on a client. You know privacy means everything to the people I work with. I’d run out of business the moment I tell you.”

“Come on Aridrae! For how long we have known each other? Just tell me what he wants. And where he is. And how can I drag him to Levis’eus in chains. Preferably with a gag. I’m not asking you to backstab a client, do I.”

“You ask me to give you the knife. I can’t. You know what promises mean to us. It must mean a lot to you too. Our friendship is one thing but this…” She played with her dark gold earring. “This is business.”

“Then business it is old spinner. Tell me what you want in return.”

“Hmm…” “I am in need of a certain stone. I have been actually telling this to a lot of people, but they keep failing to return. If you could bring it to me…”

“You asked him the same thing, right?”

“My lips are sealed.”

“And if we bring it before he does, he no longer has a deal with you.”

“I suppose if that were to happen, I would have a few less clients. Hypothetically of course.”

“Great.” Lad clapped in joy. “Who are we robbing?”

“Lad.” Lia gave him a serious look. “We are not robbing anyone.”

“Oh, and how do you think we are going the find him? Knocking on every door? What if he is hiding under a rock? How do you even knock a rock?”

“You don’t.” Yel joined. “Just roll it over.”

“What if it is really big? I mean really.”

“Lad.” Lia gave him the look again. “We can search. There are certainly other people who have seen him.”

“You very well can darling. But I should warn you, you have time until sunrise. After it, you may not have the offer on the table. If anyone gets it before, they’ll be under my protection.”

“See? Time is of the essence.” Lad laughed. “For the sake of completing our holy duty in time, who are we robbing? Oh, please tell me it’s a big shot.”

Lia wanted to argue, to refuse; but even though stealing something felt like every single principle she had, she couldn’t let this man have an opportunity to escape or harm others or even fail the quest Levise herself gave them. Levise’s will and the empire’s safety were above her principles.

“Oh dear, he is as big as it gets around here. It’s Elder Leran. He recently bought it in an auction. Outbidding me. A foolish mistake. That little blue stone is being wasted in his fat little fingers. A jewel that beautiful can only be worn by another jewel.” She smiled, crimson eyes glowing like rubies.

“Why don’t you just go there and simply pick it? Not like they can stop you.”

“Ahh… I would, dear. But my sister is in town as well. And you know how she reacts when she learns I involve directly with… you people too much. I don’t want anything that ties me into this. Other than a shining jewel in my hands of course.”

“All right. Have it your way.” Lad inched to get up but seeing Aridrae rising and moving around the desk he changed his mind.

“Be careful, Eilarî.” A pinch of amusement danced in her voice, almost kidlike. “He knows you are coming for him. Not just you.” She turned at Lia and moved around her. Lia felt like she was stuck on a spider web and a spider was circling her. “All of you.”

“He told me you would come here with three little pups, asking for him.” She stopped behind Lia, but Lia kept standing still, frozen. “A spark from Vitae,” She put her hand on Lia’s back and Lia felt like she was standing in the mouth of a beast. “A flame from Ruizar.” She then looked at Inni, her hands still over Lia’s shoulders.

“And a wayward wind from a land far away.” Finally, she looked at Yel but all this time she met no eyes. Everyone one still looking at where she sat a minute ago, unwilling to even glance at her. “No wonder you agreed on babysitting.” She smiled and watched the trio stand frozen in fear, enjoying the sight.

“He also asked for a favour. Wanted me to tell you he missed you a lot and not to make him wait.” Her grab on the shoulders tightened, and her eyes fixated on Lad.

The latter stood silent for a second, face flat. “Weird. Since when have you started doing favours for strangers?” He slightly turned back at Aridrae, ensconced in the chair, not even slightly disturbed.

“He didn’t seem like a stranger, old friend.” Aridrae leaned over Lia’s shoulder, her cheek touching Lia’s neck. “His face was behind a mask of illusion and his soul was shattered into pieces, but I saw something familiar in those fragments. Covered by filth and ruin!” An unexpected rage filled her lungs as he screamed but in a second, the woman stopped; still calm as ever. That second felt like ages for Lia. She felt no warmth, no breath even as their skin touched. The only thing she felt was darkness and cold.

“But beneath it, I saw something. Broken yet still purer than my brethren.” Her voice lowered with each word and soon turned into a whisper. “Viran, he calls himself and I could not say he lies.” She continued with rubies hidden behind her eyelids, but Lia was sure she could see them anyways “Yet to me he seemed like a…”

A name fell from her dark lips in a whisper so low that almost sound like a hiss. Lia could not understand it, but her heart did as it skipped a beat. Cold sweat on her back, her body was frozen. She must have told the true name of an Avran. Lia thought. Even in their graves, their names still held power.

“Thanks for the message.” Lad got up and grabbed Lia by the arm. She pulled Lia and the others out of the room, to safety.

***

“What the hell was that!” Lia shouted, trying not to raise her voice. They moved a few blocks away and were on a calm alley but still, she felt no safe.

“The Spider.” Lad fixed his clothes and hair, though it turned back to its messy state in a flash. It looked like his clothes and body refused to be tidy. “Was she more competent than I am?” He grinned.

“She looked like.” Inni nodded.

“There is no way we are following what she said.” Lia continued.

“And what do you propose?”

“We will go to the house of Elder Leran, and stop Viran from getting the jewel. We don’t have to bring it to the Spider, right? We only need to make sure he doesn’t do so. We can catch him while he tries to steal and go back to Levis'eus. Any problems?”

“Yes.” Lad raised his hand. “You are being too reasonable.”