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“Mathias, you say? Well, you can find him six feet deep underground in the town’s cemetery.”

That was the answer Siv got after asking around for the man who would ferry them upshore.

They had gone straight for the docks after they left the tavern. With Siv taking the lead, they first arrived at the supposed hut that was Mathias’ residence, the man that Siv vouched to had impeccable skills when it came to manning a ship or a boat.

Strangely, the hut was empty and it had been this way for a long time. It was then they began to ask around about Mathias’ whereabouts. Things took a strange turn from here on. Everyone they inquired, they would either feign ignorance or completely ignore the inquiry.

To hasten their inquiry, they decided to split into two teams. Siv ended up with Nivia and Amyra.

Not long after they split up, Siv stumbled upon an old acquaintance, a fellow sailor whom Siv knew from her past employment. The sailor, much like the others, was apprehensive towards their question but in the end, he told them of the fate that befell the old sailor.

“He’s dead…” Siv mused in deep thought.

“Looks like fate had made the choice for us,” Nivia said in an offhand manner. “Save us quite a bit of trouble.”

“Oh, well.” Amyra shrugged. “Off to the younger one, I gather?”

“Not so fast,” said Siv and approached the sailor again. “Pardon me but may I know how he died?”

The sailor cast a sidelong glance at Siv with a hint of annoyance and fear. His gaze faltered and slightly drifted in a certain direction but he didn’t look away. “He drowned,” answered the sailor after a brief hesitation.

“Drowned? Mathias? He’s an excellent swimmer. How did this happen?”

“He was drunk.”

“It takes a full cask of rum to get him drunk and he’s not that fond of drinking. So, just how did he get himself so drunk that he forgot how to swim.”

“Hell if I know all that. You’re asking a lot of questions, Miss.”

“I simply wish to know the truth.”

“I told you the truth. In fact, I have told you enough. Now, please, leave me be.”

Siv stared at the sailor for a while before deciding to back off. After thanking the sailor for his answers, Siv retreated into an alley with Amyra and Nivia.

“He was killed,” said Amyra once she made sure no one was eavesdropping on them.

“Evidently,” Nivia huffed. “Must have provoked the ire of someone powerful and now the whole town is afraid to even talk about his death.”

Siv shook her head. “That doesn’t sound like something Mathias would do. He had his pride but he never put his pride before his life.”

“Killed over a debt?” Amyra suggested.

“Unlikely too. It may not look like it but he has quite a fortune, enough for him to need not work for the rest of his life.”

“I reckon he doesn’t gamble either?”

“He doesn’t,” Siv affirmed with a nod. “He loves to sail. He spent his leisure hours on the water aboard his ship.”

“Now that he’s dead, what will happen to his fortune and his possessions?”

“That is an excellent question,” Siv said. “However, I do not have an answer for that. We checked his residence. It’s empty. His fortune, along with his other possessions, has been taken. By who, I do not know.”

“Well, whatever happened, it’s not our problem. Our own plate is already full enough and we have already garnered quite a bit of attention.”

Siv nodded solemnly. “Indeed, we have.”

Nivia picked up the nuance. “We’re being followed?” she asked as quietly as possible.

Amyra chuckled wryly. “Of course, we are.”

“This is becoming the norm for us.” Nivia sighed. “Where? How many?”

“On the rooftop across from this alley,” Amyra answered. “There’s only one of them. He ain’t much.”

“Amateur,” Siv muttered.

Nivia had her hands on her gear. “Expose or ignore?”

“Ignore,” Siv said. “If all they do is follow us, let them. We have no quarrel with them and we’re not looking for any.”

“The big lady sure would hate it if we took any action without consulting her first.”

“Just what have we done to even attract a stalker?” Nivia pondered out loud.

“We asked around for a deceased person whose death has strange circumstances, for one.”

“Having someone tail us just because we ask some questions, that’s an overreaction. They are only making this all the more suspicious.”

“As Siv said, we could be dealing with amateurs. Or…”

“Or?”

“Their business with the dead man isn’t over.”

“How so?”

Amyra shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s just a guess. Think nothing of it. Anyway, we got our answer. Let’s regroup with Erin and the rest.”

It was a unanimous agreement. They got what they set out for and it’s best for them to return as soon as possible. However, before they could step out of the alley, a large figure appeared at the egress. The large figure was a tall man with dark skin, wearing a sleeveless white shirt that showed off his two muscular arms that were covered in meaningful tattoos.

“Like a moth to a flame…” Amyra muttered with a regretful smile.

“Who are you?” Siv went straight to the point and prepared to draw her swords.

“I wish to ask you the same thing,” the man said with a thick accent. “You came into the town just this noon. And all of a sudden, you start asking so many questions about a dead man.”

“The man was an acquaintance and I had business with him.”

“Is that all there is?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your business with him?”

“Private and personal,” Amyra responded in Siv’s stead.

“Heed my words, you three. It will be best to not let your pride get in the way of something so simple.”

“Clearly, this is anything but simple and you are the one getting in our way. We don’t even intend on being in this town for long.”

“You are not going anywhere until you tell me why you are looking for Mathias.”

“And what? You will just let us go after we tell you?” Nivia snorted. “Do you take us for children?”

The man sighed. “It always comes to this.”

Amyra chortled. “That we can both agree.” She reached for her sword but before she drew it out, she stopped.

There was another man. He appeared the same way the dark-skinned man did. He also had dark skin but that was not all to his peculiarity. His ears were long and pointed like an Elf, but he was no Elf.

“An Umbrum,” Siv blurted.

The man didn’t seem surprised by the Umbrum’s appearance. However, he did seem baffled and astonished by what the Umbrum whispered to him. Whatever the Umbrum told him, it appeared to be related to Siv and the two as his eyes bounced between them and the Umbrum.

“Are you being serious?” the man asked.

“I am,” the Umbrum answered.

“What are the odds?” the man scoffed.

“Don’t try it. Mister Rhys will not be happy if you do.”

“Fine.” The man relented. He then glanced over to Siv and the others. “Consider yourself lucky this time.”

And just like that, the man walked off along with the Umbrum.

Silence loomed over the three for a while

“...What just happened?” Nivia asked.

Amyra shook her shoulders. “Haven’t a clue.”

“Rhys…” Siv mused. “Whoever this person is, they seem to be the one governing this town and they are… wary of us.”

“Afraid of us, I say. Or maybe afraid of Erin.”

“Erin’s in disguise.” Nivia pointed out. “How would he know?”

“Perhaps this Rhys person has heard of Erin’s exploit and he could easily put all the obvious clues together. I mean, we are a band of misfits. How many adventurer parties out have the same diversity as ours?”

“...I suppose you have a point,” Nivia groaned.

“Or maybe he could be afraid of His Grace.”

“Why would anyone be afraid of him?” Nivia scoffed. “We are aware of his true identity but I don’t think others would, especially those who are not under the grace of Aeryo.”

“As far as those who are privy to the affairs of faith are concerned, His Grace is still the Grand Apostle of Aeryo, even if they do not know of his true race.”

Nivia frowned. “The Grand Apostle?”

“The Apostle who stood above the other Apostles.”

“This is the first I have heard of such a title.”

“It’s a title that only exists in certain faiths. Having a Grand Apostle denotes inequality in the order. Apostles are, more often than not, extremely proud of their status. They would not have anyone above them other than their Divine.”

“But the Aeryons have one.”

“His Grace is the heir to the Divine Throne. Even if he’s not the Grand Apostle, he is still above all Aeryon. Might as well make him the Grand Apostle.”

Nivia rolled her eyes. “You mortal beings sure love your titles.”

Amyra smiled and walked out of the alley without refuting Nivia’s words.

Together, they hurriedly returned to the spot where they had agreed to convene after half an hour. They arrived five minutes later than the appointed time. Erin and the rest were already there.

“You’re late,” Lyra said with her arms crossed.

“Apologies. We were… tangled up in some complicated matters.”

“Oh, my.” Lilian gasped lightly. “So were we but we untangled ourselves pretty swiftly.”

“Rhys’ men?” Erin asked.

Amyra nodded. She then briefly recounted the incident that had just transpired.

“This is curious,” Aedan said. “We were confronted by Rhys’ men too but they merely warned us to leave this port at our earliest convenience. Although, they do look very… anxious towards us. More specifically, towards our lovely Erin.”

Erin sighed. “Whatever the reason is, it is not our concern. They are not bothering us. That’s good. So, we don’t bother them any more than we already had at the tavern.”

Amyra smiled wryly in response.

“Anyway, our first option is… unavailable. Let us move on to the second. Where do we find the boy?”

“Around this time of the day, he should be at the harbour.”

And so, the group headed for the harbour. They waded through the crowd of a variety of people and arrived at a lonely dock that was separated from all the hustle and bustle. This particular dock had a cabin perched right in the middle and it looked like it was in dire need of some fixing.

Siv walked up to the door and gave it a gentle knock. Not a moment later, the door creaked open and a pair of eyes peeked through.

“Yes? May I help you?” asked a feminine voice.

“Riki, it has been a long time,” Siv greeted.

The door swung wide open and a boy with oddly feminine features stepped through. “Siv?”

“Yes, it’s me, Riki.”

“Gods bless me.” The boy sighed and rushed out the doorway. “It's so good to see you,” he said, taking Siv's hand and shaking it.

“It’s good to see you too, Riki.”

“Where’s Wrev?”

“Wrev… Well, he’s… uh…”

“Ah, I’m so sorry, Siv.” The boy was quick to catch the signs. “May I know what happened?”

“A monster horde. He died defending a town from a horde.”

“I see… It’s a noble death for your kind, isn’t it?”

“It is but… I don’t think I agree with that.”

“Huh, r-really?”

“Enough about that, Riki. It’s the past now. The dead are at rest. The living continue their burden, which is why I’m here, Riki. We would like to hire you.”

“We?”

Siv stepped aside and showed the boy her companions. “These are my companions.”

“W-whoa…” Riki gasped as he feasted his eyes on the beauties that stood before him. He was absolutely dazed.

“And this lady here is my Mistress.”

“Huh, your Mistress?” Riki blinked. “You’re no longer working for Lord Hegan?”

“I have left his service. I am now pledged to this lady here, Erynthea.”

Erin stepped forward and undid her disguise, flourishing her elegant silver hair and her magnificent seven tails.

Riki’s eyes turned as wide as they could.