-Callia-

  It was probably a bad idea, but I started tuning out the conversation between Eland and the slave boss. Too many weird economic details about plans that didn’t really make sense, and with being so close to Eland, I could easily feel the complete lack of any sincerity he had going into the talks. Instead, my attention was caught by a rather heavy feeling of mana located on his wrist, likely some kind of runic bracelet. The guy clearly liked to extensively utilize runes.

  My patience, however, was soon rewarded as Callen reached over to check up on me while confirming he had disabled the slave crests on the people in the lower lobby. Now was the question of how many of the bar employees were marked and if they were at risk if something happened to the boss. I leaned on my gut feeling and landed on the answer no. Likely employees were managed by whoever was waiting in the backroom to punish me, but the mass slaves who were being prepared to sell likely had a separate enforcer. Still, any mistake here would have consequences that could potentially ruin the lives of many people.

  I quietly communicated my findings with Callen, and he shared back his regarding the runes. So long as mana wasn’t cut off from the linked runic device, none of the slaves would get caught in the crossfire. Conveniently, I already identified a bracelet that was most likely the key to controlling the slaves. I focused back on the conversation, noticing the words being exchanged had gotten heated. A big argument regarding the down payment for a large order. Suddenly I stood up and sauntered over to the slave boss while looking back at Eland.

  “Talia, honey, if you can’t give the boss an inch, how can you expect to get what you want from him?” I wrapped my arms around the slave bosses while winking back at Eland. My provocation seemed to encourage the boss as well.

  “See, Talia, even this toy thinks you're being unreasonable. How about this: take my price, and you can have her with the rest.” I felt the bracelet in his robes as I held his arm but froze when the man grabbed my ass. I blink in shock before swallowing my murderous rage. I controlled my mana and found it easily usurping control of the bracelet. Good, that meant playtime was over.

  I grabbed the bracelet in one hand, but the other grabbed his hair. In a swift movement I slammed the man's face into the floor while ripping off his arm. I slid the bracelet on and summoned a small flame wand. Eland’s jaw dropped, and even the secret security didn’t move, unable to comprehend what had just happened. I pointed the wand down, searing the gaping wound where the man's arm had previously been attached. Then I turned toward the security tunnels as they finally jumped into action.

  “I wouldn’t do it if I were you.” I gave the men one warning, knowing they likely wouldn’t care. However, to my surprise I felt the bracelet activate. All the security team dropped to their knees without any resistance. “Huh,” I looked down at the bracelet. “Seems like I won.” I turned over and gave Eland a smile as he tried to piece together what just happened.

  “No time to stand around gawking. There's a whole bunch of goodies hidden in the room and some documents that might interest your fellow guards.” I moved over to the first safe but stopped when I noticed the runes protecting it. Seems like something Callen might have a better chance of cracking. “I suppose there is some time to gawk. It might be best to wait for my brother to get here so he can evaluate how easy these safes are to crack.” I gave Eland a confident smile while he finally seemed to get his composure.

  “A brilliant takedown. I’m not sure how you did it, but this may be the smoothest criminal bust I’ve had since I started. If you weren’t a visitor and were actually a resident, I would be worried about having my job stolen. Could you please provide me with an explanation of how you accomplished this? It’ll help with my after-action report. I can’t really take credit for this one when you did all the work.” I ordered the guards to stand by while I took a seat on the boss’s couch. Looking down at his ass in the air after I knocked him out, I remembered how shamelessly he grabbed me. Hearing him groan signalled time for punishment. With a swift kick I ensured the end of his lineage and his continued compliance while we waited for Callen.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  -Callen-

  I looked from the staircase out the door leading into the bar. The only problem being that while Sis had a whole wardrobe of fine clothes to wear to any occasion, I didn’t. The suit I was lent by the Viscount was only lent; Callia’s dresses had been a gift from Jasmine. I put on my nicest clothes and pushed into the crowd. Immediately as I entered the crowded room, I bumped into a patron who recoiled in disgust. I apologized quickly while trying to cross the room, but now a scene had formed with people shouting slurs at me the whole way back. It’s weird how creative some people could be with tallness slurs. There was some kid (I really don’t know why someone would bring a child to an adult bar) that called me a "Foreign Treeman.” Still nobody stopped me as I entered the private room.

  Entering the room gave me a clear understanding of the inner workings. The most disgusting part was the living battery. Skipping the other issues, I got to work deciphering the runes. Ironically, while I used English extensively, I was also fully fluent in the Earthkin runic language. I never personally used it, but understanding it was still essential in understanding the lessons Yoren gave me.

  I wanted to get the earthkin sealed in a box out first, but it would have to wait since several of the secret vaults were rigged to destroy their contents should any issue be present in the system. Luckily I only needed to get the contents, so I didn’t even need to open the vaults. Instead, I used a void gate inside the vault and scooped out the documents, presenting them to our new friend. Anyone who can put up with Sis’s antics as long as he did while I retrieved the documents could be considered a friend. Though I was still leery of anything more than that.

  “So what should we do about the bomb explosion that this building is rigged to trigger?” I sat down next to Callia and opened up with the most concerning thought on my mind. When I removed the dwarf, it wouldn’t just be this room consumed. The whole building was set to blow the moment it lost power. Maybe a long-term piece of revenge in case they had to leave?

  “What do you mean?” The guy looked a lot more alarmed than I assumed. The proficiency of the runes used to destroy the building suggested it was a common strategy, so they must have a means of disarming it. I pointed it out, but the man seemed even more panicked.

  “You mean they are regularly rigging these special rooms to explode?” Considering the alarm in his voice, it seemed they did not in fact disarm any previous rooms and likely had evicted (imprisoned/executed) the previous tenants who would know how to have the trapped earthkin cared for.

  “There is an earthkin powering the runes in this room, but it is set to explode the moment power stops from dying or removal.” I barely finished my explanation as he jumped up and barreled out the room. Sis was giving me a disappointed look for interrupting her conversation, but I felt no heat behind it. An emergency was an emergency, and from the urgency with which he left, it seemed he had some trouble to deal with. However, since he left, I had to figure out how to disarm the abomination of an runic container rigged around what I’ll call the slave box.

  Wisdom?

  Grandmaster Slate sifted through the various reports he had been swamped with ever since his visit to Port Town. Such visits took a toll because every grandmaster couldn’t stand the idea of remaining idle when something could be done. On top of that priority regarding any other inventions from the boy, which inevitably led to significant distraction, he investigated new concepts. Particularly was the massive research and timesink the entire community had put into battery development. However, news regarding Callen the past several weeks had been notably absent. He dug into old reports that he set aside to review later and found one from his apprentice Yoren.

  “Callen has been chosen to succeed Mayor Hew and is travelling to the capital for the official transfer.” Slate nodded as the information sank in, but then an old memory jumped up to the surface. Many years ago the Power faction among humanity was assuming control, and the council needed a countermeasure in case humans went the way of the savage. They offered allies among the humans custom runic work as well as “Mana Generators” made by sealing a prisoner in stasis. These gifted items helped the Wisdom faction restore balance with the Power faction, but it also let the earthkin community smuggle and distribute a large number of high-yield explosives into the human capital.

  Callen wasn’t just any master runesmith; the boy had nearly perfect magic sense and a sharp perception. He wouldn’t just identify a bunch of earthkin sealed in boxes; he would identify the underlying weapon. Urgently he checked the date of Yoren’s report. It was several weeks ago, which meant the boy was likely still waiting for convoys on the route, but there was no time to spare; he needed to hide the generators from Callen before the boy realized their true purpose and nature. Otherwise a political and potentially military shitstorm unlike any prior would erupt.