Have You Heard?

Two men both sit down on their side of the table putting their chairs down and setting up their plates. One man lights a single candle slightly lighting the room they had both come to.

Even though it had only been midday the room they were in was dark enough to make a by-standard think otherwise. All other ammunition besides the candle had been covered.

They were about to spend their time like most people did now. They were going to talk about the hooded man.

Even though it had become the favorite pastime of all the people that didn't mean it was allowed to be discussed.

"Have you heard..?" The younger of the men is the first one to speak.

"Of course, I've been informed by many other people already…" The older of the men responded coldly.

"So who do you think it is?"

No clue... I did meet him once though

"No way don't you know how!-"

The older man gestures for the younger to calm down and then speaks.

"Of course I do."

"I see you must have really needed to then. I hope everything went well."

"Haha even though I did everything people said, I was still terrified, even if everything went fine."

"Wow. You didn't get a chance to see his face did you?"

The older man takes a moment to remember back to an event he hoped he could forget. After a moment it seems like he remembered something.

"Now I can't be sure but I think I recall"

"Go on…"

"Well, you see as the rumors said I met him where I was supposed to. The room was entirely pitch black so I can't be sure but I believe his eyes were as pitch black as the void."

The young man drops the spoon he had been using not a second ago. He couldn't help but show his shock at his statement.

As it turns out there had been rumors spreading about the man that he was also the demon wanted on the posters.

The man almost feels like yelling his next question but knows he cannot so speaks in a whisper still expressing his shock.

"Black?! Are you sure?!"

"Positive… They were as black as the night itself…"

"No way that's crazy… I had heard that other people have seen it before but to hear it from you too."

The older man seeming much calmer on the outside takes a sip of the wine that was in front of him.

"I couldn't believe it either but it's true…"

"What about the other things? The horns? Scaly skin? Tail? Sharp hands?"

The older man shakes his head.

"The room was too dark for me to see but from what I could see that didn't seem to be the case"

The younger man lets out a sigh.

"Terrifying…"

"Truly. However, no matter how scary it might have been, it was something I must have done."

The older man took the gem that he had in his pocket and held it out.

"This is what will give me a future."

After putting the gem away both men sit in silence eating the low-quality food they had set up for this event. After a while, the young man finally speaks.

"Maybe I should try and get a request…"

The man shakes his head.

"Unless you really need it that badly I can't recommend it. It's not something to play around with."

"Heh, I know that."

After that, the two men start talking more about the hooded man. The younger man had much interest in the rumors going around, more than a normal person.

This interaction was one of the many talks he's had. The reason behind this is not due to any higher meaning but his rebellious nature naturally steered toward this man that was so wanted.

Throughout the entire town, there were conversations similar to this one. The new figure that had popped up in their town had rejuvenated a small amount of life that had been sucked out of it before.

On the other hand, the people that were becoming less lively were the authorities of the town. Not only the duke but the people working under him were getting more and more scared by the day.

Instead of cooling down the situation only got worse. The duke had already confirmed that everything would be handled, however, that was a lie.

The duke didn't know who to be more scared of. The one ruling above him or the man hiding in his own territory. Even the other authorities were terrified to act.

The heroes had already gracefully visited the town to try and help but due to a lack of help from the duke they failed to find anything. It was only a matter of time before they reported back.

The town's future was in jeopardy anyway it went.

Either it went under the rule of the hooded man or the other authorities would determine this small town's fate.