Alastor considered using the cane—wherever he'd end up, it would certainly be better than being in the hands of this… person. He had coughed up quite a bit of blood and had lost almost all of his energy, thanks to that Priest's spell.
"Daemira Expellus."
Alastor understood the phrase well enough.
'Demon Expel.''Expel Demon.'
Such a simple spell, yet its effectiveness was tremendous. He reached into the old present box and pulled out another vial filled with that light-green liquid. Downing it, he instantly felt better—yet somewhere deep inside, his soul still ached.
'Speaking of souls…'
He glanced at the revolver—the bullets it fired had bypassed the Templar armor and seemed to immobilize those struck. He hadn't seen any blood leak from their wounds.
'The revolver causes soul damage.'
The most insidious type of damage. 'The thing is, the revolver was first manufactured a year ago. Enchanting it with such a powerful effect would take even the most skilled enchanters years…'
'The Couple of Despair was enchanted with the Hellfire effect by Uncle Ebenezer himself. The dagger's origins are unknown—it always had the ability to inflict depression and the side-effect of ravings and hallucinations, but it never had the Hellfire ability until Uncle enchanted it.'
Alastor glanced up at the orange sky. The sun had just risen, and he was currently lying on a haystack, being carried by a horse—the rider, none other than Kios.
Sitting up and poking his head out slightly, he saw the usual common folk of Lamberg going about their daily affairs. Some were commuting to work, others were hanging clothes from balconies. He could smell fresh bread baking, along with hints of tobacco and smoke.
Alastor noticed the present box sitting beside him on the haystack. 'That box… it serves me well.'
He had picked it up from the family treasury when he was much younger. Back then, he had an obsession with shiny objects—not that he didn't now, but in those days, anything shiny he found would go straight into the box.
It seemed able to disappear into thin air and reappear whenever he willed it. Alastor had once placed a mouse inside; the next time he opened it, the mouse was gone.
"The Templar will come looking for us. They don't take kindly to having their sworn brothers killed."
Kios sighed. "The Church of Light is a powerful entity. That's why we're fleeing the city. However, if they send a Saint after us… it's over."
"Where are we going?"
"Away, Mammon. Maybe we should uncover the mystery behind this book. Get excited—we're about to embark on an adventure."
'I fcking hate this guy.'*
'Though he's right, we should get out. They might raid the estate, but they'll never get to the treasury.'
"Since you know who I am, I think it's fair if I ask who you are."
"I'm a nobody. Hurts to say, but I'm a bit of a loner. Travelling the lands—it's good fun though, except for when you get captured by a Ghengz tribe. As for my name, it's Kios."
"So, Kios, why were you travelling the lands?"
"A long story. Basically, I w—"
Kios paused.
Suddenly, Alastor felt a spike of impending doom.'A premonition!'
Kios pulled the reins. The horse neighed, panicked. Alastor's head snapped up. A low rumble shivered through the earth.
Then, without warning—BOOM!
A massive explosion tore through the eastern side of the city.
A blinding orange flash lit up the morning sky, followed by a deafening crack that split the air. The ground jolted. Windows shattered in a chorus of breaking glass. People screamed.
A thick column of black smoke and fire erupted upward, swallowing rooftops as it rose. The force of the blast sent a shockwave sweeping across the district. Alastor ducked instinctively as it slammed into them. The horse reared in panic, neighing wildly, nearly throwing Kios off.
"What the f*ck was that?!" Alastor yelled.
Kios steadied the horse, looking toward the explosion. A strange expression crossed his face—slightly dazed, slightly panicked, and also...
A hint of excitement.
"Oh sh*t, Mammon. Someone just blew up the Palace."
Alastor stood up. Sure enough, the explosion had come from the East—home to the suburbs of the nobility…And the Palace.
His eyes widened. He turned to Kios. "Listen, they won't let anyone leave through the Gate now."
Kios nodded. "Yeah, they won't. Seems the start of our adventure begins here, Mammon."
Alastor's eye twitched. "I have a name, you know. No need to call me by my surname."
"Who do you think did it, Alastor?"
"I don't f*cking know."
Kios frowned. "I thought King Richard was loved by the people. A spy, perhaps? From Rosto or Creno. Could be an inside job, or maybe a noble House did it. Or…"
"Our good old friends at the Church."
Alastor sat back down on the haystack. He could hear shouting, wailing, and moaning in the distance.
"We can't go back to my house, and we can't leave the city. Many used to get in through the sewers, but those spots are supervised now. We could try to sneak onto a boat."
"I thought they'd stop ships from leaving?" Kios asked, turning his head.
Alastor shook his head. "Most of them, sure. But the really important ones? They can't stop those. Of course, it'll be much harder to sneak onto one."
"Or we could stay here and wait for it to die down. Know any good hotels?"
Alastor smiled darkly. "Oh, I have one in mind."
The Pink Palace was a two-storey building painted bright pink. The wooden walls were in terrible shape—the paint was peeling in several places. The windows were all cracked, and the entire building reeked of cheap perfume.
Kios looked at Alastor for a long time. Eventually, he sighed."I'm seriously considering whether or not I should kill you."
Alastor shrugged. "You would, could, should. But you won't."
"No, but I'm considering it."
Alastor hopped off the carriage and patted Kios on the back."Cheer up. At least I didn't take you to the Brown Building."
"What's the Brown Building?"
"Guess."