Assassin's Chronicle

"Don’t worry?" Anfey asked, smiling. "Then why did you make Fernando leave his men?"

"He’s right, my lady," Ozzic said. "Just send them away. We need some peace around here."

"Fernando promised to take care of the zombies and the necromancers, but we cannot leave our security in someone else’s hands," Alice said sternly. "We have to have some priests and Knights of Light here in order for Moramatch to become a stronghold against the necromancers.

"You are a count appointed by Yolanthe himself, but you still rose up in rank too quickly. I am sure that you are not as well loved as you think you are. You will be fine if you never lose a fight, but the moment you do, those who are jealous will rise up against you."

"Are you threatening me?" Anfey demanded.

Alice smiled, staring at Anfey. "I’m not threatening you, my lord. I am merely stating the truth."

Anfey sighed. He knew she was right. "Fine," he said, "I see your point."

"Good," Alice said. "As long as Fernando’s men are here, we can ensure that we have decent protection should any zombie or necromancer break through the frontline. If anything goes wrong, we can always blame Fernando."

"And Fernando can blame someone else," Orsie said.

"Which is why I requested those priests," Alice said. "We can easily blame it on them."

Anfey nodded.

"You heard what Fernando just said," Alice continued. "The number of zombies is off. Mauso is called the Observer for a reason. He is not only a wise man but also a powerful druid. He could see through disguises, including magical ones. If he couldn’t find the zombies, something must be wrong. Just because we can’t see them, doesn’t mean the necromancers are gone. If Fernando gained an upper hand, they will likely ambush Moramatch. We have to be prepared."

"You have a good plan, I see," Anfey said.

Alice shrugged. "I’m not a mage or a swordsman. I cannot even fend for myself. If Moramatch falls, I fall with it. I have to plan for my future." She paused and glanced around, then lowered her voice and said, "Fernando is too careless. Makes me think maybe he is feigning ignorance."

Anfey nodded. "I will keep an eye on him. Do you want Shinbella here?"

"No," Alice said. "Other than Lady Suzanna, Shinbella is your biggest asset. You need her."

"You’re right," Anfey agreed. "As long as you have Ernest with you, you will be safe."

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"Suzanna!" Shally exclaimed when she saw her sister. She dashed towards Suzanna and threw herself at her sister. Suzanna held Shally close to her, happy to be reunited with her sister. When Suzanna left Sacred City, Saul had advised her to take the long way around and relax, since Moramatch had Shield of Light legion. Suzanna had accepted Saul’s advice and agreed to spend more time traveling. However, this was all part of Yolanthe’s plan. He knew the conflicts in Country of Mercenaries very well and needed to avoid conflicts.

The others gathered around in surprise, Riska and Zubin at their head. Urter appeared as well. Suzanna’s trip to Sacred City was a secret, and the only one who knew was Urter. Not only did he know that she had returned to Sacred City, he also knew that she had just buried her mother.

Suzanna forced a smile, but her acting was too forced and her friends knew her well enough to know that something was bothering her.

"What’s wrong?" Zubin asked, unsettled. "Did something happen in Moramatch?"

Riska frowned. "Don’t curse it," he said, poking Zubin. Then he turned to Suzanna and asked, "What’s wrong? Are you alright?"

"What happened to Moramatch?" Niya asked as she pushed through the crowd.

"Nothing," Suzanna said, shaking her head. "Moramatch is fine. I am on my way there but I wanted to see you guys."

"On your way there? Where were you?" Zubin asked.

"Sacred City."

"You were in Sacred City?" Niya asked, surprised.

Suzanna nodded. "I don’t want to talk too much about it," she said. Zubin opened his mouth and wanted to ask something, but Niya poked him on the shoulder and shook her head. They all knew that there was no use pressuring Suzanna into doing something she did not want to do. All they can do was wait for Suzanna to be ready to explain what had happened.

"Why don’t you come in and rest for a bit?" Riska asked. "You don’t have to rush. The mansion’s construction is almost done. You want to check it out?"

Suzanna shook her head and tightened her arms around Shally. She was very sad, and the only thing she wanted to do was stay with her sister. She did not care about mansions and rooms.

"Suzanna," Niya asked quietly. "Did you...did you..."

"I did," Suzanna said. She was very sad, but still smiled when she saw Niya’s hesitance.

"Is he angry?" Niya asked, nervous. She had run away from home and wouldn’t blame Saul if he was furious.

"No," Suzanna said, shaking her head. "Don’t worry. I think he expected this."

"Thank god," Niya said with a long sigh. "I was so worried that he would send people to fetch me."

Suddenly, something burst through a nearby door. A few moments later, Hagan appeared, panting. "Wait!" Hagan called. "Goddammit, stop!" He froze when he saw Suzanna. "Hey Suzanna," he said. "When did you arrive?"

"Just now," Suzanna said. The unicorn galloped over to her and nudged her with its head. It had a vial in its mouth. The vial had some red liquid in it, and some of the liquid was leaking onto the floor.

"What is this?" Suzanna asked, taking the vial from the unicorn.

"It’s my new potion," Hagan said angrily. "I should have known better than to trust this thing. Why are you all standing here? Let’s go inside."

"Suzanna’s leaving in a bit," Zubin said.

"So soon?"

"I’m worried about Moramatch," Suzanna said. The unicorn pranced around Suzanna and glanced around, whinnying. Suzanna smiled and scratched the unicorn’s neck.

"How is Moramatch?" Riska asked.

"It was good when I left," Suzanna said, handing the small vial to Niya. "Do you need me to send any messages to Anfey?"

"We’re good," Riska said. "Just a bit bored. When are we heading over?"

Suzanna shrugged. "Anfey and Alice make the plan. I just execute it. I can ask them for you, though." She stood up and smiled. "I have to go. I will see you all soon, hopefully."

Shally grabbed Suzanna’s shirt and said, "Are you leaving already?" She knew that she couldn’t keep Suzanna with her, but she was too sad to think about that.

Suzanna stroked Shally’s hair and left a kiss on her forehead. "I’ll see you again soon, I promise," Suzanna said. Shally sobbed but did not try to stop her again.

Seeing that Suzanna was about to leave, the unicorn whined and grabbed her shirt with its teeth, trying to stop her. Suzanna gently pulled her shirt out of the unicorn’s mouth and hugged Shally again. Then she turned and mounted her horse.

"Bye, Suzanna!" Shally called. Suzanna turned and waved at her sister, then she rode down the road and disappeared around the corner.

"What do you think happened?" Riska asked. "She’s acting strange."

"Who knows?" Niya said with a sigh. "But I know she is strong. Whatever happened, she endure it." She paused and glanced around. "Where’s the unicorn?"

Riska glanced around and said, "Wasn’t it just..."

"It’s not chasing Suzanna, is it?" Sante asked, anxiously.