The Chronicles of a Scalebound Sage: Wandmaker Vol.2

WM [25] He didn't get far

There was a cold breeze in the air in the town. The guards were on full patrol now that skinwalker was confirmed to have infiltrated the settlement. Monster hunters were being called in from the Jackrabbits' camp to bolster the patrols. From atop the roof of the building, guards down were muted. Tanisha felt the terror and fear Bjorn was going through and knew, without a shadow of a doubt, nothing would keep her from him.

"Now that you are collared, don't do anything regretful," Adelheid said, her tone and body language relaxed. "We were told to kill you if your mind had already been poisoned, but you seem lucid. It should be over soon, and then you will never see us again."

"This was a boring hunt," Falko said as he held the chain to Tanisha's suppression collar, "I thought she would at least put up a fight or something."

"The hunt is not always about fighting. If you do it right, you won't have to fight at all," Adelheid said.

"That makes it boring."

Tanisha stopped listening to them as she tried to look inwardly towards her core but found that she couldn't. All of her connection to her magic was cut. She felt vulnerable and powerless but not at all broken. Feeling inadequate was how she felt most of her life. People with magic, influence, or strength were always dictating her life until very recently. So instead of focusing on what she couldn't do, she decided that above all else, she needed to get to Joha.

"What happens after you kill Bjorn, are you all just going to leave? What about Sabec?" Tanisha asked.

"Sabec is your problem. As for us, what does it matter?" Adelheid said, "We are monster hunters. We go where there are monsters that need killing."

"You are the first werewolves I have seen in Yuhia; what brought your people here? We aren't exactly known for our monsters."

"It was luck. Our pack travels all over, but we just so happen to be in the right place at the right time to find Sabec collapsed out in the wilderness."

"Our pack? I am the one that found him," Falko interjected.

"That is beside the point, Falko," Adelheid said.

"No, it's not. I am the one who found him, and I am stuck here with you when everyone else gets to hunt the hydra," Falko walked around Tanisha to Adelheid's side, the chain dragging along the ground as he did. He was looking out into the dark forest beyond the wall. "If only they let me join the hunt tonight," Falko added.

"And what let you get in the way? A puppy like you is not ready to face a hydra, even if it is just a pup too," Adelheid said.

"I am not a puppy!" He stopped a foot, "So, let me guess, I am not ready, but you are?"

"Of course I am. The only reason I am here is because someone has to look after you."

"I could have done this by myself!" Falko said.

The two started to argue, so Tanisha focused on her storage items. The bracelet and the necklace that she wore were both storage items. The necklace was given to her by the Isi family, and that was where she stored the majority of her personal potions as well as her weapons. The bracelet had a much larger storage capacity, but because of that, she needed her mana to take things out or put things in.

The necklace used ambient mana, meaning she should be able to take things out at will, even with the suppression collar. While the two werewolves continued to argue, she stealthily took a copper coin from her inventory and put it back in before they saw it. The coin flicked in and out of existence in a flash. It worked, so she was pleased with herself.

Only going to have one chance at this.

Tanisha took a deep breath to center herself. She pulled a draught of strength from her inventory. The potion was usually used by laborers to aid them in picking up heavier loads or working that much harder. It wouldn't increase her strength by much, nowhere near the boost she got from her mantle, but every little bit helped. In a single motion, she raised her hands, stepped on the chain so that it was taut, and summoned her bardiche.