"Hey, hey, don't panic. It is me. Your favorite partner, the guy who always shows up right when things get interesting. Yeah, that guy."
"Look, I know what you are thinking. How did I get here, right? Funny story. Apparently, the big guy upstairs, the Storm God himself, decided to play messenger and pass along your little situation. I mean, what is he running now, a delivery service?"
He then spread his arms. "Anyway, good news. You've got me. And when you've got me, things tend to work out. Eventually."
It was Arminius.
"How?" Rohan and Edmund asked at the same time.
"Simple." He stepped closer and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I know a thing or two about advanced disguise spells. Took me years to get it right. Not exactly beginner stuff."
He leaned back, looking between them with a crooked grin.
"What? Why are you two so shocked? You think I'm an idiot? Just walk into a city full of humans looking like myself? Come on. I may be charming, but I'm not suicidal."
Rohan frowned. "But why did you disguise yourself as me?"
"Well," Arminius said, "let us just say we are going to be stuck together for a year. So I figured, why not upgrade the arrangement? I will be your big brother. Built-in authority, instant credibility. From now on, you call me Bro. Got it?"
Rohan went silent for a moment before he turned to Edmund. "So, can he join us now?"
Edmund did not answer immediately. He studied Arminius for a brief moment, then let out a quiet breath before nodding.
With that settled, the three of them headed deeper into the southern part of the city. Along the way, they also prepared a plan on how to get closer to Sollo.
As they moved deeper south, nearly two hours later, the surroundings began to change. The buildings were no longer painted red, and more colors appeared, giving the streets a wider range of variation.
They also began to notice the people around them. Many of them had white hair and golden eyes.
Edmund, as if sensing the question forming in Rohan's mind, spoke up. "Yes, they are the Light People, the indigenous inhabitants of this city. Before it was conquered by the Belithorian Kingdom nearly three hundred years ago, this city used to be full of them."
Arminius let out a low whistle, his eyes flicking from one white-haired passerby to another.
"Well," he muttered. "White hair, golden eyes, tragic backstory written all over it. Let me guess, conquered, displaced, and now quietly judging the rest of us?"
Edmund replied, "Rather than judging, it would be more accurate to say they are afraid. They have been oppressed by the Octavian family for hundreds of years."
Rohan did not wait for further explanation. One look was enough. The way people kept their heads lowered, the way their eyes avoided even the slightest contact, told him everything. This was not just fear. It was something deeper, something ingrained.
They did not even dare to look at them.
Arminius, this time, said nothing at first. His gaze lingered on the passing figures.
Then, under his breath, he muttered, "Oppressed… huh."
Not long after, they were stopped by one of the Light People. With just a glance, Rohan could tell this man was a mage. Indigo, perhaps.
The man studied them with quiet interest. And unlike the others, he didn't lower his gaze.
"Well… this is unusual." His eyes flicked between them, sharp and calculating. "You don't look lost. So tell me… what exactly is your business here?"
According to the plan, Edmund should have been the one to speak. However, Arminius stepped forward instead, flashing an easy smile.
"We're looking for money, my friend. Let us not pretend otherwise, that is our business." He spread his hands casually, as if it were the most reasonable thing in the world. "And lucky for you, we are very good at it."
His gaze sharpened just slightly.
"We are offering protection. The mines Sollo controls, beneath the city and down south. Dangerous places, right? Accidents happen. People disappear. Things go missing."
He took a small step closer, lowering his voice.
"We make sure none of that happens. Efficiently. Quietly. No headaches for you."
A brief pause, then a faint smirk.
"So the real question is… can you afford not to hire us?"
The man studied Arminius for a moment before speaking.
"We have work," he said calmly. "Not the kind most people ask for."
His gaze lingered, measuring.
"The pay is good. The mines, however, are… problematic. Mutated Ratrilla infest the area. Persistent creatures. Violent."
"If you are still interested, then maybe we can continue this conversation."
Without hesitation, Arminius and Rohan agreed.
Edmund, however, remained still for a moment.
As someone born and raised in the city, he knew exactly what Ratrilla were. Cursed creatures, the result of a mad mage's experiment over a century ago. Worse still, they had mutated.
Naturally, he knew how dangerous this job would be. However, he kept the concern to himself.
As they walked, the man spoke without slowing down.
"Gorlov," he said, almost absentmindedly. "That is what they call me."
He did not bother looking back at them.
"Now, let us not waste time," he went on. "You are not with the Octavian family… right?"
"No, not even close," Arminius cut in. "We don't work for the Octavian family. We have a… complicated relationship with them. Heavy on the 'we despise them' side."
He then casually patted Rohan on the head. "Right, little bro?"
Ignoring the annoyed look he got from Rohan, Arminius kept going without missing a beat. "You are going to love this. Just yesterday, they tried to slap our church with a tax. One hundred gold coins. A month." He let out a short laugh. "I mean, what is that? A donation or a robbery with paperwork?"
Gorlov glanced at Arminius. "Good," he said with a faint hint of approval in his voice.
Along the way, they did not speak any further.
Soon after, Rohan noticed that nearly everyone was holding a small, uneven, translucent stone. Some rubbed it in their hands, while others, even children, tried to chew on it.
After a while, his attention shifted to old, broken statues that appeared from time to time along the street, as if they had been built hundreds of years ago.
After walking for nearly twenty minutes, they arrived at a building. Gorlov simply urged Rohan and the others to go inside.
Without hesitation, they did exactly that. Once inside, Rohan saw a woman sitting behind a table across the room.
She looked at them with her single visible eye, as her left eye was covered by an eyepatch.
Then, with her index finger, she pointed at Arminius and gestured for him to come forward.
Once Arminius sat across from her, she started questioning him about the mine and the job.
After he was done, Edmund went next. Eventually, it was Rohan's turn.
As soon as he sat down, the woman glanced up at him.
"Name?"
"Rohan."
"From?"
"Rivia City."
She gave a small nod, scribbling something down.
"Okay, Rivia City. Fancy." She tapped the parchment lightly. "You know what a Light Stone is, or am I wasting my time?"
"Yes," he said. "A translucent stone used by the kingdom as a resource for various purposes."
"Good, you passed basic knowledge." She did not look up. "Ever worked in a Light Stone mine?"
"No."
She paused, finally meeting his eyes. "So what can you actually do?"
"An Indigo mage. But in extreme cases, I can hold my own against an Azure mage for a few moments."
She let out a soft breath, somewhere between impressed and skeptical.
"Mm. 'A few moments.' That is usually how long people last before things go very wrong."
She scribbled a few more lines, then flicked her gaze back to him.
"Have you ever fought a Ratrilla before?" she asked.
"No."
What the hell is even that? Rohan wondered.
"Mmm. Okay, picture this. If a rat and a gorilla decided to get freaky one night and then nine months later… that is how Ratrilla were created."
Rohan just stared at her. That… sounds so wrong.
"They are huge, they are mean, and surprise, they think humans are the new all-you-can-eat buffet. So, because I'm such a giving, generous, totally selfless kind of girl, I'm doing you a favor and warning you. Unless you are really into the whole 'being ripped in half by a giant rat-headed gorilla' aesthetic, you might want to rethink this whole job."
"Buuut… if you are still feeling brave, come back tomorrow. We will let you know if you made the cut."
Without hesitation, Rohan assured her that the three of them would return the next day.