Chapter 28: Ch 28: A Wisp of Infernius
After Baldeur's group left the cathedral, they headed towards the Zeerous Trade Company world branch. Part way there Baldeur spoke up about the situation.
"Um.. Do I have to save this world or something?" Baldeur said.
Piaras and the rest looked at him with mixed expressions. Mostly towards thinking he's an idiot for asking that.
"Hahaha. Of course not." Piaras said.
"Don't worry too much about what that guy said. His uncle Abel basically gave the scam away." Sigurd said.
Even though Baldeur had an idea of what he was getting at, he still gave them a look of confusion.
"Telling us that we are a part of their prophecies in order to get us to do some free work is an old swindle for worlds, especially newly connected ones. Hence why you weren't the first he talked to." Haydn said.
"Though most of the time they have more evidence to back up their claims. I mean come on, who's going to fall for 'we can't show you the sacred texts.' Oh sorry Baldeur." Derbail realized he was looking a little down because of what they were saying.
"Don't worry about it kid. What I told that guy was true. Volundr put you on this team so that you can learn the ropes. You might have finished the official training but you guys have a long way to go before you'll be able to look after yourselves." Piaras said.
Baldeur changed his fake expression to give the impression that their leader's words had comforted him.
As they continued on their way, Baldeur was in the rear with Aisling and he noticed she was looking a little down.
"Something wrong?" Baldeur asked.
"Huh, no. It's nothing." Aisling gave him a fairly fake smile before becoming quiet again.
He didn't need his extra sensory perception to know she was lying.
"If you want to talk about anything, I'm here for you." Baldeur said.
He felt her mood lighten for a moment before realizing his words ended up having the opposite effect, as she started to get angry.
"Who'd want to talk to you about anything. Even if you were…" Aisling stopped before her rant could get fully started.
Baldeur felt what had pulled her attention but he couldn't let himself react.
"Is something wrong?" Baldeur asked about her change.
"No." Aisling had stopped and was watching a luxury carriage pass them by.
From that carriage there was the most subtle wisp of Infernius energy.
Just what was up with this world? Baldeur just encountered Divinus in that cathedral and now a carriage with Infernius.
If the locals hadn't reacted so negatively to Infernius he might not have thought anything about it. Not only that it felt like they were trying to hide their Source energy, just doing it really badly.
"Are you two okay?" Derbail asked as they realized that they had stopped while the rest of the group had continued on.
"Uh, yeah, we're fine. Just… talking." Baldeur said.
"Talking.?. Sure." Haydn said with a knowing smile.
Aisling's ears turned red and she hurried up to the group. The other two women gave Baldeur a wink and a nod, completely misunderstanding the situation.
As they continued on, Sigurd walked next to Baldeur at the rear of the group.
"If you have any questions about sealing the deal, just ask. I have a bit of experience in that regard." Sigurd then gave both Haydn and Derbail a certain look.
"I'll keep that in mind." Baldeur gave him an awkward smile.
It was close to supper time on Axendre so they gathered in a company's tavern. Sigurd seemed to have decided to give Baldeur some practical examples of how to talk to women, as he went back and forth between flirting with the two older women.
What was more surprising was that neither woman seemed to mind that his attention was switching between the two of them.
Throughout the evening, Baldeur noticed that Aisling seemed to be thinking deeply about something.
He wanted to say something but had a feeling she'd just snap at him, so he kept his mouth shut.
Once they were done eating they all retired to their rooms. They were the same small rooms that were in every world branch.
Baldeur was looking out his window, thinking about everything he had encountered today. He was wondering how much he should care about any of it. Getting involved wasn't exactly low key.
His thoughts were interrupted when he caught a fleeting shadow jump out of the window from the room next to him, Aisling's room.
'What is that girl up to?' He thought.
He let out a groan before wrapping himself in a number of spells and jumped out to follow her.
Since it wasn't too late in the evening there were still a number of people on the streets. Aisling blended in with them as she made her way towards the mark that she had placed on that carriage using her Wild Hunt aspect.
Baldeur found it rather easy to follow her inexperienced methods of blending in. Outside of the city, she'd be a lot better at hiding with Anodular but this worked to his benefit.
Soon she stopped as she realized that her prey was currently in the red light district of the lower part of the city. There were a number of women wandering the streets trying to entice the men to join them in their respective establishments.
A few men gave her lustful glances as they entered the district.
After a moment of hesitation, Aisling entered the area and ducked into a side alley.
Baldeur groaned once again, trying to figure out what she was thinking.
After weaving through a few back alleys, Aisling arrived where she felt her mark close by. With her back against the wall, she had her eyes closed trying to make up her mind about what to do next.
"I didn't know this was your preference. Don't worry I don't judge." Baldeur had dropped his stealth spells and was leaning against the wall next to her.
Aisling jumped for a moment letting out a little shocked scream. She quickly looked around to see if anyone had heard her.
Having expected this reaction, Baldeur had used his Winter aspect to muffle the sound around them.
"What are you doing here?" She angrily whispered.
"It should be obvious. I'm following you." Baldeur replied.
"Why?" She asked.
"Because you suspiciously snuck out. It was too tempting for me to pass up." He said.
"What?" She said.
"It just looked like the perfect opportunity to take you on a moonlight stroll." He said.
"Wh.. I.. There is no moon out tonight." Was all that she could think of as a response.
"Ah, then my plans have been foiled before they could even begin." He said.
There was a moment of silence before he went on.
"So, what are you doing here?" He asked.
"I'm.. It's nothing." She said.
Baldeur didn't say anything and just let the silence work on her.
"One of the carriages that passed us earlier had some Infernius coming from it. It just seemed really suspicious considering how those people reacted to me." Aisling said.
"And you had to check it out?..." Baldeur said.
"People like you wouldn't understand." She replied.
"Okay. Did you want to head back or were you thinking of sneaking in? I'd recommend going in through the back door if you want to be really sneaky. I could cast a few spells if you want some help." Baldeur said.
Aisling peaked around the corner and took a long look at the brothel that her prey was in.
"No. We can head back." She replied and headed into the alley back towards the Company world branch office.
Before he followed her, Baldeur dropped a small Laksulm device he had been working on for the past year. The device looked like a small rat at first, and even second, glance.
With his mind partially in the fake rat, he sent it towards the brothel around the corner, heading towards the back door.
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