Romulus : The Rise Of The Demon

Chapter 37 : The Reasons

"What do you want to talk about, Mr. Duncan?" Mr. Grinverr asks as he gets down from the cart. I look at Axel only to see that his face has a blank expression. Suddenly, air around us shifts. A portal opens up and a group of Warriors walk out of the said portal. Axel turns towards them and exclaims, "When you told me to hold the fort, I expected you guys to take at least four hours to get here. That was surprisingly quick!"

"It is convenient to have a spatial mage around. And since you had a communicator, it was easy to pin-point your location", says the Warrior who seemed to be leading the group. Then, he turns towards his subordinates and says, "Take the convicts in", and they comply with his orders. The captain walks up to us and asks, "What exactly happened here?"

"We were on our way to Gritery when we got ambushed by them. My partner and I managed to apprehend them. They were after our client", Axel says as he points to Mr. Grinverr. The Captain subconsciously pulls out a small book and says, "Will you please state your names? I have to file in a report for the higher-ups".

"Name's Axel Duncan. My partner's name is Cassie Morgan and our client's name is Yokus Grinverr", says Axel.

"Duncan? No wonder you knew Vice Commander Lafollette and Commander Duncan! I bet you are the Phoenix and the lady behind must be the Gale Sorceress", exclaims the Captain.

"Well, they used to call me the Phoenix. And sorry for making you come all the way here even if this area comes under the Gritery Branch", says Axel.

"No problem, Mr. Duncan. In fact, I believe something shady is going on in the Gritery Branch. Thus, contacting us was actually a good call on your behalf. If these bandits went to them, I seriously doubt that they would stay in for too long", says the Captain as Axel shakes hands with him. The Warriors take the ambushers into the portal one by one and before they leave, the captain says, "Mr. Duncan. Apparently, I heard a rumour that one of Dragon-Heart's field mages is around in this area. I think you should contact him once you reach Gritery".

"Thanks for the heads up, Captain. And sorry for the trouble", says Axel as the latter enters the portal, which closes after he enters.

"That was some cool magic!" I say as Axel turns towards us.

"I agree with you", says Mr. Grinverr.

"Shall we continue from where we left off?" Axel asks, to which we both nod. Axel digs his hand into his pant pockets and removes a flyer. "Mr. Grinverr, according to the request we got, we were supposed to escort you till Gritery, act as your bodyguards for a few days and leave. Am I right?" Axel asks with his eyes on the flyer.

"Yes", says Mr. Grinverr. But I observe that he has begun to sweat.

"And since this quest is an A-class one, it meant that the biggest problem we would face were thieves and bandits. Am I right, Mr. Grinverr?" Axel asks again, his gaze still on the flyer.

"Y...you are right, Mr. Duncan", says Mr. Grinverr. Axel suddenly lifts his gaze and looks directly into Mr. Grinverr's eyes. His onyx eyes not holding​ any hint of warmth it usually has. Our client shivers under his gaze.

"Then, may I ask you why there's an assassin's guild after your life? That too, not a normal one, but the Shadow-Leopards!" Axel asks in a calm voice, which came out a bit terrifying if you ask me. Mr. Grinverr remains quiet at his question.

Assassin's guild. They are a category of fallen guilds which mainly deal with assassinations. A bill had been passed by His Majesty of Solumra Empire, along with all the monarchs of the world, about 200 years ago that the Assassin's guilds should be considered illegal and are therefore ordered to be abolished. In the present time, an order for assassination can be given only by His Majesty and by the Warriors, with the permission of His Majesty.