Chapter Ten
Whispers Beyond The Firelight
Later that night, when everyone else was asleep, Kael sat at the edge of the camp, his arms wrapped around his sword, eyes lifted toward the velvet sky. The three moons hung above like silver sentinels, casting their glow over the quiet landscape. Crickets whispered in the grass, and the cool breeze stirred the edges of his cloak.
A faint shuffling of feet echoed from the direction of the village—not loud, but deliberate. Kael's gaze sharpened. From the shadows, he counted nine figures, all cloaked in hooded robes. Moonlight caught a glint of metal—seven of them wore chains around their ankles. Slaves. Hidden in plain sight. And on the backs of their robes, a noble crest, unfamiliar but clearly of high standing.
Kael crept from his post, slipping between carriages and barrels. A fire had been doused in this area earlier, leaving enough darkness to hide him. As he moved closer, he spotted Vorn—chatting with one of the unchained figures. A heavy pouch of gold changed hands. There was no mistaking the secrecy of it, or the weight of the transaction. This wasn't a casual meeting. This was a deal. A quiet one.
He lingered a second too long. Vorn turned, as if sensing something. Their eyes met for a heartbeat. Kael froze.
Then ducked, heart pounding, behind a carriage.
A soft rustle from behind. Zerai.
Kael almost reacted, but Zerai lifted a finger to his lips, urging silence. He motioned Kael back to the main camp. Once they were far enough, he spoke, low and firm.
"Don't get involved. If your goal is clear, best you stay away from things that veer you off it. Some things are better left unknown. Just do the job you're paid to do."
---
The next morning, the camp stirred with routine. Vorn greeted everyone with the same performative cheer, as though nothing had happened. Kael kept quiet, watching him closely.
Their breakfast was interrupted by a sudden wail. A woman appeared at the edge of the camp—her hair wild, her clothes ragged. She might've passed as a beggar, yet something in her features retained an eerie beauty. Her voice cracked as she pleaded for help, begging them to find her missing daughter.
Vorn's guards moved fast. They brushed her off with practiced annoyance, warning everyone she was a nuisance.
"She's crazy," one guard muttered. "Been pestering us since last night. Her daughter vanished a month ago when this village was raided. Bandits took her, that's what the locals say."
Kael and Mara exchanged a glance.
---
After completing the caravan escort job, Kael and Mara returned to Velmora with the rest of the group. The city welcomed them back with the usual noise of ironclad gates, merchant calls, and glowing streetlamps that hummed with faint magical light. They handed in their report and received payment for the completed quest.
A few hours later, the pair quietly slipped into the guild once more. They didn't ask questions aloud, only picked a side quest listed on the lower board: "Collect Mutant Slime Essence – Eastern Outskirts."
It was the perfect cover.
While the job itself took little effort, the route conveniently brought them back near the trading village. By the time they finished collecting the essence, the sky had begun to shift to warm pastel hues. Orange and lavender stretched across the horizon, painting the landscape in a sleepy glow.
Kael and Mara returned to the outskirts of the village and found the woman again. She sat by a dying fire, cloaked in the same ragged shawl, her face lit by flickering embers.
She greeted them as though she'd expected them. Her eyes were tired, but hopeful.
She spoke in detail now, her voice steadier. Her daughter, Ilya, had vanished when the bandits came during a trade summit. Some people were taken along with goods. She'd tried everything—begged, screamed, pleaded. But no one listened.
Kael listened carefully and finally asked if she had any leads.
"There's a camp," she whispered. "Far east of the forest. They keep what they steal. Goods, people. They sell them in secret."
Kael nodded.
---
Back in Velmora, after Kael and Mara had departed, Vorn stood near the guild stables.
Zerai appeared beside him in silence.
"You saw them leave?" Vorn asked, not looking.
Zerai gave a small nod.
"You need to keep those two in line," Vorn muttered, his tone low and sharp. "They keep sniffing around where they shouldn't. I told you, didn't I? If you want this deal to finish, keep them focused. Or they'll ruin everything."
Zerai didn't answer immediately. His eyes narrowed.
"We've been through too much to lose it now," Vorn continued. "After all these years. You remember what's at stake."
Zerai's gaze drifted to the east, toward the woods. A spark crackled briefly in the air near his boot.
"I'll handle it," he said.
---
Later that night, Kael and Mara reached the edge of the eastern forest. Bushes rustled around them as they crouched atop a ridge, overlooking the bandit camp. Fires blazed in the valley below. Laughter and drunken songs echoed off the rock walls. Guards slouched near the camp's perimeter, some asleep, others drinking.
Kael's eyes narrowed. One of the structures at the center—built into a cave—had a symbol carved above the entrance. A familiar noble crest. The same as the ones worn by the cloaked figures.
He exhaled slowly.
Behind them, the old woman stood quietly. Kael turned to her.
"You need to stay back. Wait for us in the village."
She nodded, tears in her eyes, but didn't argue.
As she disappeared into the woods, Kael turned to Mara.
"You really want to go through with this?"
Mara stared down at the camp, her face lit by the moonlight. She said, voice calm and cold. "I just hate seeing people treated like things."
Kael looked away briefly. Her words didn't sound like Mara's. There was steel in her voice now, and something distant.
Far off, hidden atop a distant slope, Zerai observed the two figures through a polished shard of crystal—a dungeon relic that let him view specific targets across great distances.
He clicked his tongue.
"They don't listen," he muttered.
A faint crackle sounded as the lightning around his feet began to spark. Then, with a soft hum, Zerai vanished into the trees—his body moving faster than the eye could follow, the forest lit for only a moment by his silent electric trail.
He was going to reach them before they did something stupid.
And maybe—just maybe—he'd have to make a choice he wasn't ready for.
Continue to chapter XI...