Blademaster Ascension

31- Scary Schemers

Rhea was sweating from the hateful glares aimed at her from the dozens of people standing sparsely all around the mouth of the ravine which was just meters from where she was standing. Things had been going perfectly before Turio got caught. It was a mistake on their part. They should've foreseen the presence of the hidden powerhouses of this town when the kids went inside the bunker with the aim to explore the core region. According to her master, all the powerful masters had come to an agreement regarding the exploration and decided not to intervene with the event, letting their offsprings and representatives, in other words, the kids, to resolve the matter of distribution of the legacies found among themselves.

Naturally, it had been a golden opportunity for the three mages from the empire of Triumvirate. The legacies were invaluable treasures. How could they let the opportunity pass? Master Fallspark made a big gamble and exchanged a lot of resources in his possession for informations and magical artifices so that Turio and she could explore the core region without much hassle. However, the leaders of the townsfolk seemed to have been suspicious about their presence here from the beginning and never informed her master about today's exploration plan. It was highly suspicious that their schedule clashed like this. But how could it be anything other than a co-incidence? It's not as if any of the three mages had the slimmest chance of co-operating with the hidden powerhouses of this town! But still, it was an extremely weird and unfortunate incident that both parties had decided to go for the legacies at the same day, nearly at the same time...

But there was no time to weave through the mysteries of the undercurrents of the present situation. Turio's failed escape had disrupted their plan and what follows next might not be something anyone wanted.
Amidst her chaotic thoughts, she remembered four certain objects in her pocket and took it out as everyone else focused their attention on Turio. They were four cards, each depicting a different scene.

Her hands trembled as she picked out the card with the painting of a storm of lightning.

The catastrophe.

Turio's knees were slightly weak from the assault of fear, agitation and anticipation. The man who was tasked to check his body for the legacies was just about to push his hands into the hidden pocket of his robe. Turio's eyes were slowly turning bloodshot from nervousness. 'Come on, come on, come on,' he muttered inaudibly...

BOOOMMM!!!

The sound was not very loud. But everybody heard it and jerked for a moment from confusion. It was a familiar sound, the sound of demolition. Collectively, their heads turned away from Turio and the man searching his robe, and their eyes became fixed at the direction of the town. A monster attack? Again? Right now when Turio was about to be frisked?

Too uncanny! It was almost with absolute certainty that everybody glanced at the two nervous mages and realized that it wasn't a monster that had attacked the town but a certain somebody who was trying to create a distraction to save the two young mages. As for who it could be...

No one doubted that master Fallspark was the one behind the curtain.

Darren's eyes darkened. As the leading councilman, he obviously couldn't ignore another monster attack on the town just when they were about to get up on their feet again after the previous disasters. With a scathing glance at Turio and Rhea, he yelled, " what are you waiting for? The town's under attack! Get moving!"

Few people moved actually. The allure of the legacy was too great. The man who still held Turio's robe in his hands frowned and said, " but we all know that's a distraction. The moment we run toward the town, these two sneaky bastards will try to escape."