Someone in Danger

Screams and sobbing still conquered the breaking wills of the people watching the fire. Keagan remained staring at the dancing flames against the night sky. It was just that Gephardt pulled on her elbow again. When she turned, she noticed Gephardt looking in a different direction.

"Let's check that out." The man-cat pulled on Keagan again, and they walked toward the alley leading back to the streets. 

The place barely had any lights at midnight, and only the flames lit up this path. When Keagan looked deeper inside, she could barely distinguish which were walls and which was the ground.

As for Gephardt, he didn't have any problems seeing the place, even in complete darkness. He walked forward, and Kaegan found herself advancing into the pitch-black with only Gephardt's arm to hold. She didn't know why he wanted to go here, but she hoped they could have gotten a light to help their eyes.

"I can smell blood… Someone must have died here…" Gephardt hummed as he continued walking. However, he paused in his steps before leaning down to pick up something. It looked like burnt fabric. With a sniff, he could tell to whom it belonged. "That's strange. I didn't think to find this alone. It reeked of blood and water, but the body it should come with isn't here."

"What are you holding? I can't see anything." Keagan stepped forward and felt something crumble under her feet. However, it was hot as if she stepped on a piece of dying coal. She quickly pulled her feet back. "Ouw, what's that?"

"Don't move too much. You just stepped on shrapnel." Gephardt pouted before looking around again. "Someone didn't want anyone seeing what could have been here, but something already took whatever it was. Hmm, maybe I should look for a blood trail… but the Fox's scent is blocking my nose. It is even mixing with the Stag's odor. Did they fight here? Over what?"

Gephardt looked around some more, only to find a streak of blood on the wall. He then pulled Keagan in a direction, making sure she wouldn't trip from his action. His hand reached out to touch the dried blood, and his brows frowned. "No wonder I can smell them. The Fox got wounded, possibly by that grenade. Hm, what happened here?"

"Gephardt, look behind us. The light vanished." Keagan was scared of standing in this place, especially when she felt something sticky under her bare feet. She kept glancing at the light at the other end for protection, only for it to go off as if someone flicked the wick of a candle.

It was just that… the building couldn't be flicked to make the flames disappear. It didn't even weaken to convince herself that the firemen extinguished it instead. This made her grip on Gephardt's arm tighter.

Gephardt snorted and pulled Keagan into a carry. He brought her out of the alley using the exit leading to the streets. Instead of locating the black motorbike, Gephardt walked to a corner where a black car was parked. When the driver's door slid open, Keagan saw Otto waving a hand at them.

Right, Gephardt had to get here by car as well. Keagan only leaned against the man's chest. It was better to wait for Wren inside the car than around a burning building.

"Did you see someone escaping that alley?" Gephardt asked after putting Keagan down on a seat. He then took one at another row.

"Not while you guys are here." Otto was only looking for a good station on his radio. After all, most stations are signing off at this time. "Something definitely happened there minutes ago. I can still feel the discharged energy from a grenade. The explosion is too small for a bomb but too weak for a gunshot."

Gephardt sunk into his seat in boredom. "I also found traces of battle in the alley. Wren is not in danger, but someone in this city surely is."

At those words, Otto nodded. He started the engine as if making sure it could leave as soon as Wren arrived. "Let's hope it won't reach Madam before Master Lev comes home."

Even if Wren had not boarded the car yet, Otto had already driven off. It made Gephardt and Keagan flinch, but they saw how the peculiar black motorbike swooshed past the black car. Otto must have recognized Wren's motorbike and followed her back to the Pineberry Estate instead. Then again, a little heads-up would have been nice for his passengers.

…

On the top of the burnt building, a shadow pool rose into the shape of Haukur. He slicked his hand back and looked around the city that was supposed to be under Wren's feet. "Lev didn't lie when he said this place is best to be seen at night. Hmm, I wonder when he is planning to step foot on this sinking paradise once again. Let's look around, shall we?"

"It's funny to find another person lurking in the shadows." The voice of a young boy echoed behind him, and Haukur turned as if he was not alarmed at all. There was even a smile on the scrawny man's face.

"The fact that our paths converge once again like this makes my faith stronger." Haukur chuckled as he gave the boy a once-over. "Lev had spoken about you. You seemed to be eyeing this city as well."

The young boy was only ten years old in appearance, but he was wearing a white coat made for children. His hair was hidden under a red bucket hat, only his fringe gave a peak of his dark hair. However, his red eyes shone vividly under the moonlight. Behind him was a tall creature whose face was wrapped in bandages. Even his big hands appeared white and unusually thick from the dressing.

At the mention of Lev's name, the cold look on the young boy's face shifted into a sour one. "Lev left this place in search of other people, but no one bothered to tell him how the princess would show up next to the Wren. I thought someone else was looking after her."

"All of us have our own things to do." Haukur only stroked his chin. "Say, Crevan, would you like to watch this place with me? You must have enough with playing a lot of humans for so long."

"You wish. They keep entertaining me." The boy named Crevan chuckled and threw his arms in the air as if he were gesturing to the whole world. "Every time I think I've seen all of it, they come up with surprises that renew my amusement! Even today, people kept me all night. So sorry… I have something more interesting than people-watching to do."

Haukur nodded but still stretched his long-clawed hand to touch the boy's arm. Crevan quickly took his arm away. "Be more careful. Those guys don't reserve their strength even against their own kind. Heal first before you start playing again."