Assassin's Chronicle

Moonlight City was the capital of Moro Province and was densely populated. Even though the war had caused some of its residents to flee, it was still very crowded.

Anfey walked through the streets, observing the city and its people. He was dressed in common garments in order to blend in. It was a large city and its inhabitants did not pay much attention to him.

Know thy enemy, know thy self. Anfey knew better than to underestimate his enemies, which was why he just had a long conversation with Saul about the dragonborn.

He was deep in his own thoughts when he saw a familiar face. He looked up and saw Shinbella getting off of a horse. She gave her horse to a stable hand and disappeared into the building that housed the garrison. A few moments later, shouts were heard from the building. Anfey watched curiously. What could Shinbella have been doing with the garrison? He narrowed his eyes and used his mind power. With his mind power, he saw that there were a few dozen women gathered behind the building. Most of the women were young but there were a few who were older. A few women stopped their practice and hurried over to Shinbella when they saw her. However, their conversation was clearly not very friendly. Shinbella was frowning and one of the women had her hand on her sword.

Anfey frowned and hurried towards the garrison building. One of the guards stopped him and asked, "Who are you?"

"Stand back," Anfey said in a low voice. The guards frowned but did not stop him. He hurried through the door and towards the back of the building.

"Let our swords speak!" Before Anfey could reach the back of the building, he could already hear Shinbella’s voice. He hurried over and called, "Shinbella, wait!"

Shinbella was clearly surprised by Anfey’s presence. Before she could say anything, however, the other woman snorted and said, "You don’t have the confidence to defeat me, so you brought your boy toy as a backup?"

Shinbella spun around and drew her sword angrily, ready to fight the other woman.

Anfey grabbed Shinbella’s arm and shook his head. Shinbella stared at him but did not say anything. Then, she lowered her gaze and returned her sword to its sheath.

The other woman frowned. Clearly, she misunderstood Shinbella’s action. "Why, don’t tell me you’re afraid to fight because your little lover is here!"

"Who is she?" Anfey ignored the woman and asked Shinbella. The woman was dressed like a mercenary but he had never seen her before.

"You want to fight for her?" the woman raised her voice and asked.

"You’re crossing the line," a young woman nearby said. "Lady Shinbella earned her position. If you have problems, why don’t you take it up with Lord Anfey?"

"Stay out of this, Julie," the woman spat. "Who are you to this woman and her boy toy? Keep your mouth shut."

Julie rolled her eyes. "Will you stop saying ’boy toy?’ Do you need a man that desperately? Please, if you are angry that you can’t get laid, take it out elsewhere. Don’t make a scene here."

The woman spat and raised her sword. "Do you need me to teach you some manners?"

"You don’t like Lady Shinbella, well, I don’t like you," Julie said. She walked out of the crowd and drew her sword. The woman glanced at her, then raised her sword and summoned her combat power.

Before the woman could do anything, Anfey walked over and grabbed her shoulder. The woman turned around angrily and waved her sword, sending its radiant light towards Anfey.

"Be careful!" Julie called. She jumped up and dashed towards them. Anfey hesitated for a second, then jumped to the left. Julie waved her sword and her combat power crashed into the woman. The crash caused a puff of dirt, obscuring the two women.

A moment later, the two women reappeared and were already engaged in a fight.

"Wait!" A sudden call distracted both of the women. They turned and saw Anthony dash towards them. The two women stopped fighting and stood still, watching Anthony. Julie had several holes and gashes in her dress from the fight and the other woman was panting heavily.

Anthony stopped in front of them. He was still limping from his wound. Before he could say anything, he saw Anfey and frowned. "What are you doing here, sir?"

"I saw Shinbella," Anfey said. "How are your wounds?"

"My shoulder will be fine," Anthony said. "My leg will take a few more weeks."

"What are you doing here?"

"Lady Alice assigned me to come here," Anthony said. "She wants me to train them. But, it’s a hassle."

"A hassle?"

"They argue too much," Anthony said, shaking his head. The women around remained silent. They respected Anthony too much to say anything.

"Did you talk to Alice about it?"

"No," Anthony said. "It may be a hassle, but they still need a trainer."

"I can get Suzanna to train them," Anfey said.

"Lady Suzanna is occupied during the day," Shinbella reminded him.

"You’re right," Anfey said, nodding. He thought about it, then turned to Anthony and said, "I’m free during the day. I can train them."

Anthony and Shinbella both frowned. Anfey smiled and asked, "You think I’m not qualified?"

"Of course not," Anthony said. "But you’re the leader of the League, sir. Are you sure you want to waste your time training them?"

The women turned to each other and muttered among themselves. They had all heard of Anfey’s accomplishments and were excited by the thought of training with him. Julie’s eyes were wide and she was practically shaking with excitement. The only person who did not appear excited was the woman who challenged Shinbella.