" Come her lil kitty, pspspsps, come here boy!"

  " What are you doing Markok? "

  " Shhh Eixien, you're gonna make it run away. I was sent on a quick errand in town a week ago and this lil one was so weak and starved, so I took him back with me but ever since I brought it back it's been avoiding me. "

  Eixien came across the giant man who was kneeled down trying to coax the kitten, slowly but surely the small fur ball was coming closer. Suddenly, Felix opened the door of the hallway and the noise made the kitten run away. Annoyed, Markok got up and stared at him.

  " Are you proud?! I was finally taming him! "

  " Like I would care about you or this little shit. We already have the little puppy next to you as a pet anyway. "

  Used to the derogatory terms Felix had for him, Eixien kept his head down.

  " Oh look, he is well disciplined, he can stay silent. You two should go back to doing your actual jobs instead of caring for kittens, maybe I'll throw it to the hounds so you would stop being distracted. "

  Markok walked up to Felix, grabbed him by the collar and pinned him against the wall.

  " You better shut up before I decide to seperate your head from your fucking neck. "

  " Oh go ahead, I would love to see you try. "

  Felix used his hands against the wall and his feet against Markok's chest to push him off him. Markok stumbled backwards but regained his footing quick enough. The two men stared at each other in what seemed an eternity. Eixien was standing there watching the two men. " I knew they did not get along but it was never to that point... "

  " Humm, please can we not fight he- "

  " Silence puppy! Or I can tell your mistress how much you love to watch her change in her chambers! "

  Eixien became red with shame and anger. Markok walked backward to retrieve his battle axe, his knuckles turned white from clenching on it. Felix smiled and put his hand on his sword handle. A few seconds passed and the both men walked towards each other with the intent to fight with their weapons raised. Eixien tried running between the two of them.

  " Please sto- "

  He got interrupted when a mysterious figure appeared out of thin air between the two men, stopping their swings like they meant nothing. A woman's voice came from the hooded figure.

  " Gentlemen please, keep the peace within the castle, we have important people here. Is the duchess available to see anyone? "

  Both men backed off and Markok decided to speak first.

  " I haven't seen her in weeks, she barely leaves her chambers anymore, only people allowed in are her personal handmaiden and for some reason this glorified scarecrow over there. "

  " Scarecrows are actually useful, can't tell this much about you cat whisperer. "

  " I'm gonna split you in two!! "

  The woman turned towards Markok and somehow her look made him rethink what he was about to do next. He decided to simply walk away in search of the little kitten. Felix readjusted his cloak and watched the woman slowly walk up to Olivia's bedroom, he stopped her by putting his hand on her shoulder before she could enter.

  " I don't know who you are and I don't really care, like our pachydermal fellow here said, only me and her handmaiden are allowed in. "

  She had a slight giggle and took his hand off her.

  " Darling you know me, you just forgot, call it my ... 'talent'.

  She entered the room, quickly followed by him. Olivia was sitting in bed looking out the window that topped the city. Felix walked faster than the woman to be able to kneel down next to his lady's bed.

  " Milady, this woman would not listen and I got interrupted in trying to stop her by the young Eixien and the incompetent Markok. "

  " There there Felix, you may raise, and I trust this woman, and so do you. "

  He tilted his head to the side and scratched it.

  " But ... I don't know her. "

  " She made you forget that you know her. Meet Eliza, my very special informant, If I ask her to find something about someone she does..usually. "

  The woman removed her cloak and it revealed a young blonde woman with short hair and purple eyes. Felix suddenly remembered bits of their previous encounters, like his memories had been locked away.

  " I'm very sorry Milady but this man Richard is a true mystery, he left the city two weeks ago. His little redhead left too. All I have about him is that he was a soldier but no information on family or past since he came here almost a year ago. His friends are interesting, I have had the occasion to speak to most of them and none of them have any suspicions. "

  " Good work Eliza. "

  " How are you feeling? "

  " I'm feeling perfectly fine, just organising the Circadium and hoping everything is ready for the end of the month. Can you leave us? I need to speak to my dear guard. "

  " Of course lady Olivia. "

  The woman put her hood back on and exited the room. Felix sat down next to Olivia and looked at her, even though her hair was unkempt and her face was paler than usual, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes on.

  " Felix? "

  " Yes milady? "

  " I have a question for you. "

  " Ask away my lady. "

  " Do you love me? "

  The question stunned him." Why would she ask me this all of a sudden? " . He leaned more against her and whispered into her ear.

  " Of course I do. "

  " Then can you explain to me what love is? "

  " Humm, it's a strong attraction to someone ..? "

  She had a sigh that sounded like a sigh of resignation.

  " Hmm, I see." Her eyes were still fixed on the outside. " Thank you Felix, you may go now. "

  " Milady please, speak to me, we haven't had a proper talk in weeks, everytime you call me here to just stand around. I miss our interactions."

  While saying it he started fondling her body he missed for weeks. For the first time since he entered the room she looked at him and she seemed annoyed. She proceeded to shove him as far away from her as she could.

  " Can't I just request you for your company?! Is that the price of your 'love'!? Are you just interested in what is between my legs?! Is that all I am to you?! A HOLE TO FILL?! "

  " No of course n- "

  " GET OUT!! "

  " Olivia ... "

  " I said get out!!! Don't show your face to me again until I have requested it! "

  Defeated, Felix got up from the bed and walked towards the door, he looked back at her before exiting the room. Her eyes were once again fixed on the outside, he could see a small tear going down her cheek.

  " I'm sorry Olivia .. "

  " It is Mistress to you, don't forget it. "

  He sighed heavily.

  " Yes, mistress. "

  Once he was out of the room, his eyes met those of Eixien who had a smile of satisfaction on his face. Felix's sadness quickly got replaced by animosity towards the young man.

  " What are you looking at? Puppy."

  " Nothing, I'm just looking at one of my own kind, although you do bark more than me. "

  The guard walked up to the boy, they were now face to face but Eixien maintained his stance and stared at him in the eyes. " Who does this puppy think he is!? ". Felix was getting annoyed that nothing this morning was going as he pleased. Eventually he stopped staring and walked away from the young man.

  " You aren't worth it puppy. "

  Felix entered another hallway where a few maids and other servants were cleaning. Deep in his thoughts he did not realise one of the older servants coming from his right. The old man bumped into him and dropped the bottle of wine he was holding. Realising who he bumped into, the man instantly got on his knees to beg for forgiveness.

  " I'm sorry sir! I should have been more careful! "

  Felix stared at the man and slowly placed his hand on his neck. He was smiling at the man.

  " How long have you served us my good sir? "

  " Excuse me? "

  " Are you so old that your hearing is impared? "

  " No sir .."

  " Then. Answer. My. Question. "

  " I have served the Ellpa legacy since our lady was a small child. "

  " Then you know how to maneuver these corridors right? "

  " Yes but you were walking so fa- "

  The servant stopped himself as he realised he was now accusing Felix of being at fault. All of the others around them were frozen and holding their breath. Felix laughed and patted the man on the back.

  " Ahah it's true I was in my thoughts, clean it, I'm watching. Go on. "

  The old man stood there frozen, not knowing how to act.

  " Are you timid now? Let me help you then! "

  Felix kicked the man in the legs and he landed face first in the wine. Still with his hand on his neck, he maintained the man's face in the mess on the floor.

  " Have a drink on my behalf! Come on! LICK IT! "

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  The old man was struggling under the royal guard's grasp. Glass shards from the broken wine bottle were cutting his face.

  " I'm sorry sir, please let me go! "

  " How dare you garbage of a person tell me WHAT TO DO?! Do you know who I AM?! "

  He then grabbed the man's hair and slammed it back down on the floor, with each word he was slamming the man's head harder on the floor. The only noise in the silence corridor were Felix grunts of rage and the sound of the servant's skull on the floor tiles.

  " STAY! IN! YOUR! PLACE!! "

  He slammed the man's head one last time, his head was split open from the repeated hits and his blood was now mixed with the wine. Out of breath, Felix got up and looked around. Even some guards had come to witness the comotion.

  " Do any of you have a problem with what just happened?! "

  The room stood silent.

  " Now scram! And if any of you want to think they are above me and tell me what to do, go ahead and see what happens. Get him out of there! "

  Servants were already picking up the man's body and carrying him away. Before they disappeared Felix stopped them.

  " Wait! Where are you taking him? "

  " Th-The infirmary sir, we need to clean his body before burying it ... "

  " He was a dog! He doesn't deserve to - " He stopped himself when an idea popped into his head, he had a malicious and devilish smile, he turned around and before exiting the room he gave them one last directive. " Reunite him with his brethren in the chenil, the hounds haven't been fed yet. "

  " Richard, are we there yet? "

  " ... "

  " Are we there yet? "

  " No Kony, we still have a few hours of road ahead of us. "

  " How vast is the forest of milivelle anyway? "

  " So you see Ciscera right? "

  " Yeah "

  " Think twice the size of it. "

  " What?! How are we supposed to find her then? "

  " I dunno, we'll improvise. "

  Konnor sighed. They had been gone for three weeks now, they were approaching the forest of milivelle but decided to make a stop at an Inn before resuming their travel. The day was coming to its end when they finally arrived. Richard tied his horse's reins to a pole near the inn and grabbed his travel bag. After a quick look around he came to the conclusion that this place was secure enough. The two travelers entered the small inn and were instantly submerged by the smell of bad alcohol and vomit. " Well, that's about as good as we can get.'' thought Richard. Inside the inn was a group of three loud men playing dice and drinking, some waiters and waitresses and the inn owner. Richard and Konnor went to sit the furthest they could from the three men. One waitress came to take their order, the girl was younger than Konnor and seemed fidgety. She turned to Richard first.

  " We-Welcome to the Boar's den, here we serve the be-best grilled boar meat. Do you .. want anything? "

  " I will just take some bread and water, do you have any room available? "

  " Humm .. I can check with the owner." she turned to Konnor and froze at his appearance.

  " I will take some of that famous boar! "

  He was smiling at her to put her at ease but she was still stunned by his white hair and very pale complexion as well as his completelly black eyes. Without a word she turned around and headed toward the kitchen. Before she could reach the counter one of the loud men grabbed her wrist. He was wearing a red bandana, had a few missing teeth and also had a bandage on his nose that indicated it was broken recently.

  " Hey lil lady, how about you serve us some more wine? "

  " Su-sure sir, I just have to take care of the - "

  " I don't care who ordered just now I want MORE WINE! "

  Annoyed by the situation, Konnor started standing up only to be forcefully sat down by Richard.

  " Shouldn't we do something? "

  " No, we need to keep a low profile, she is gonna be fine anyway, he is drunk but not dangerous. "

  Konnor sighed heavily but kept his gaze on the rude man. Finally the young waitress broke free and kept walking to the kitchen. A few minutes later she was making her way back with Richard and Konnor's orders. Seeing his order finally ready, Konnor smiled at her and she catched herself smiling back only to fall to the ground right after. With a loud bang the plates and water carafe smashed on the ground. The man with a bandana bursted out laughing at the girl's misfortune he created himself by tripping her while she was distracted.

  " Ahah serves you right ! Now serve us, these fuckers can eat from the ground ahah! "

  This time Richard did not stop Konnor from getting up, he rushed over to the girl to help her get up.

  " Are you alright? Are you hurt? "

  " I'm good, thank you .. "

  " Hey you! Apologize to this girl! "

  The three men looked at Konnor and laughed. Annoyed by their attitude, he gave a kick strong enough in the table to shake their drinks and roll their dice. The three men stopped laughing and were now staring at him. One of the other men who missed an eye looked at the boy from head to toes.

  " Who is gonna pay for our spilled drinks? You? "

  " I'm not gonna pay for anything, just apologize to her for making her trip. "

  " And what if we don't hmmm? You gonna cry? Go back to sit with your dad, kid. "

  " He is not my dad. "

  " Just fuck off, looking at your mutant face is making me lose my appetite. "

  This was enough to set him over the edge. Taking a deep breath, he grabbed the man by the collar and headbutted him multiple times. His thick and hard skin was making the hits so powerful that the man was out in a matter of seconds.

  " How is my face now huh?! Bitch! "

  The two other men were up and ready to fight, the one with the bandana tried to throw a punch in the boy's direction but once again he used his head and blocked the hit with his forehead. A loud crack was heard followed by the cries of pain of the man. The third man had a moment of hesitation but tried to kick Konnor in the leg to make him fall. Noticing his approach, he kicked back and when their legs made contact, the man's leg made a twist around the boy's tibia and broke. In less than a minute the three men were out of commission. Richard was just watching the scene but was deep in his thoughts. " I wonder in what direction we could go now, her mother didn't indicate where exactly they lived and I can't know if they always stayed at the same place. " . He got interrupted by Konnor coming back to the table.

  " Did you see that Richard? "

  " Hmm? "

  " Well I won three on one! "

  " Your skin is as hard as steel and they were drunk peasants, that's nothing to brag about young man. "

  " You could say something nice for a change ... "

  " Also, did I ever tell you rule number three? "

  " No. "

  " Always be on guard. "

  As soon as he said that, the man with the bandana popped from behind and tried stabbing Konnor in the neck, the blade made a creaky noise as it grinded the mercurian's skin. Unfazed, he threw a punch backward that bashed the man right in the face and sent him backward.

  " I knew he was there! "

  " Sure ... it's not because your skin is impenetrable that you should be careless. "

  The man on the ground was groaning in pain while holding his nose that was broken again.

  " What is it with freaks these days?! First the redhead and now this fucking mutant. "

  Instantly, Richard got up and walked up to the man.

  " What did you just say?! "

  " What? "

  Richard kicked the man in the ribs.

  " Repeat what you just said! "

  " I'm sorry for insulting your friend here, we didn't know he was so strong, please spar - ! "

  Another kick to the ribs made him stop mid sentence.

  " You said something about a redhead! Was it a woman!? Young and pale!? "

  " Yes .. "

  " What did you do to her? What happened!? "

  " We saw her coming here on foot two days ago, she looked like an easy target, so at night we entered her bedroom and - "

  The man stopped because he could see the expression on Richard's face change. Pure bloodlust was now filling him. Without a word he grabbed him and dragged him outside. After pinning him against a wall he pulled out his dagger and applied pressure on the man's privates. Konnor came out of the inn to witness the interrogation. Richard's voice felt calm yet frightening.

  " Choose your next words very carefully. What. did. you. do? "

  " We entered her room but she knew we were coming! We didn't do anything to her I swear, she did some weird things and the room felt like it was spinning or whatever and we were all knocked out I swear! She even broke my damn nose! She apparently left that same night despite the storm! Please I swear we didn't do anything to her. I swear man please ... "

  Richard paused for a second and took his dagger off the man's crotch. He looked to the sky and sighed heavily.

  " May the creator have mercy on your soul ... "

  " Oh thank you man. I really thought u were gonna cut my di- "

  " .. because I won't "

  " What ?! No no no wai-"

  With a quick flick of his arm, Richard slit the man's throat and watched as life was sipping out of him. Konnor stood there in silence as Richard passed him to go back inside.

  " Keeping it low profile huh? "

  " There are some exceptions, she couldn't have gone too far on foot and in two days, first thing in the morning we go find her. "

  Konnor simply nodded and the both of them went back inside. After having apologised to the inn owner about the trouble, they acquired the room of the man Richard just disposed of and for free. They didn't know if they got this favour because the owner was scared of Richard or if he was grateful but decided to not question it further. They both could sleep under a roof for the first time in weeks.

  The next morning, after a small breakfast, the both of them set out back on the road. The weather was cloudy and the air felt heavy, another storm was coming. Richard was deep in his thoughts while he was riding. " Despite the fact there has been a storm already I should be able to find some tracks, I have to find tracks, please Bella be safe. "

  It was early in the night when they decided to set camp, they had not found anything and it seemed the forest of Milivelle had been deprived of life. Something was making Richard on edge in this place. As if every tree and every bush had a pair of eyes waiting for him to relax. Most of this part of the forest seemed dead, Richard gathered some branches to make a fire while Konnor stood guard and took care of the horse. Once the fire was lit, the two of them sat down and listened to the whispers of the wind that was shaking the high trees. Richard covered himself with his cape and stared at the flames, many worries were rushing through his head. His thoughts were interrupted by his young companion.

  " Hey Richard, what do we do once we find Isabella? "

  " Isn't it obvious? We bring her back with us. "

  " But ... what if .. she doesn't want to come back? "

  " She will. "

  " Rich' ... "

  " I'll knock her out and drag her back by force if I need to. I don't know Kony! "

  A long silence settled between the two of them. Kony stood up and stretched.

  " I'm gonna walk around a bit and take the first nightshift. "

  " Don't go too far. "

  Richard silently watched as he was getting further and further into the darkness of the forest until he could no longer hear his footsteps on the leaves and branches. He caught himself daydreaming about his reunion with Isabella. Realistically, there was no scenario in his head where she would be remotely happy to see him. He didn't know what to say.

  " 'Hey Bell'!' No you idiot this wouldn't work .. 'Hi Isabella, how are you?' No! It's even worse! ' Hey long time no see!' nahh it sounds sarcastic.. "

  He kept on trying to find what to say until he could hear footsteps coming in his direction. He kept his back turned to them and kept on talking.

  " Hey Kony, what would you say to her to get her to come with us? "

  " ... "

  " Konnor? "

  Richard stood still, whatever had come that close to him, was not his friend and was definitely standing still staring at him from the darkness. He remained still, trying to assess if what was behind him was human or not. Suddenly he could hear the footsteps staying at the same distance but making a sort of circle around him.

  " Come on out whoever you are! "

  The steps stopped, it seemed that whatever was there wanted to keep its distance. The fire being so close to him was hindering his ability to see well in the night but the fire may have been what was keeping it away. His best option was to remain vigilant and wait for Konnor to come back so they could both deal with it. The thing was now walking back to its original position, trying to intimidate it somehow, Richard kept his gaze fixed on its estimated position to let it know he could track it only by sound. A few more minutes passed and Richard could hear a second sound of footsteps coming from the direction Konnor went to. A few seconds later the young man was revealed from the light of the fire.

  " Hey, I thought I would find you asleep, everything alright? "

  Richard scrutinized the darkness and couldn't feel the presence anymore. Whatever it was, it ran away the moment it lost its advantage. He decided to not alert his companion and to let him rest.

  " Yeah.. my mind is just busy, take a rest, I'll take this shift and wake you up when needed. "

  " Fine by me, I'm exhausted. "

  He then enrolled himself into his cape and rested on his traveling bag. Richard climbed into a high tree and looked around. " If it is an animal, its smart enough and not starved to recognize when to attack. It's more likely to attack when Kony is deep asleep and if I start dozing off. Well, time to pull an all-nighter. "

  When the first lights of the morning touched Konnor's face, he opened his eyes to Richard leaning on a tree looking into the distance. The young man painfully straightened up on his elbow and scratched his eyes.

  " Hey. "

  " Hey."

  " Why didn't you wake me up? "

  " You said you were exhausted. "

  " It's a way of speech, I would have gotten up anyway. "

  " Get ready we are going hunting. "

  " Ok ... "

  Once they were ready, they set out to hunt whatever was there the night before. For security, Richard untied his horse reins, he knew it was smart enough to run away at the first signs of danger but also smart enough to respond to his whistle. Richard walked over to the spot where he heard the intruder from the night before. Luckily he spotted some footprints that looked like a set of boots. " Alright it's not a what but a who. ". Behind him, Konnor was still a bit sleepy and watching from over his shoulder.

  " So, what are we hunting? "

  " The scariest animal to hunt. "

  " And that is? "

  Richard stood up and started walking in the direction the footprints were going.

  "We are hunting a human. "

  For half an hour now they followed the footprints through the forest, Konnor was starting to get impatient.

  " So tell me why we are tracking these footprints again? "

  " They were walking around our camp last night, isn't that enough for you to figure out who they are? "

  " Who cares? They are probably some locals. "

  " They could have introduced themselves but they wanted to remain concealed, from my experience they were gauging us to see if they could take us on. But since they were outnumbered it's better to try to get the drop on them or at least have an idea or where they went. "

  " Maybe they were just curious."

  " Hmm. "

  At some point Richard stopped in his tracks and gave a quick sign to his companion to stop too.

  " Something's strange. "

  " What's wrong? "

  " The tracks stop here as if whoever was here just vanished into thin hair and there is no tree nearby to climb on. "

  " You think they can use magic? What if it was Isabella? "

  " No this can't be, these footprints are deep and they indicate the person was tall and heavy plus the boots seem big for a woman's feet. Whoever was there was an adult male. "

  " Well they could be a male magic user. "

  Richard looked back at Konnor and raised an eyebrow. The boy realised how stupid he sounded and decided to remain quiet. While looking back he realised another set of footprints to the side further away. " Why are there tracks over there too? It doesn't seem that these are turning... " After a few seconds of thinking Richard remembered how Ramos taught him that sometimes animals would do backtracking when they know they are being followed, they would walk backwards into their own prints to confuse their pursuers or ... to prepare an ambush. The seconds Richard realised he turned towards his companion.

  " Konnor, get down !! "

  " Wh-"

  Richard grabbed the young man and dragged him to the ground with him, he ducked just in time for an arrow to graze and open the right side of his head. Both of them started running in the opposite direction that the arrow came from but somehow every time they would find some cover to catch their breath, another projectile would fly near their heads. It was at this moment that they realised that they weren't the ones hunting, they were the ones being hunted.