The faint blue glow of the system notification lingered in Noel's vision, its neat letters waiting for his attention:
[Mission: Find the 5th Pillar and deal with him. Completed, congratulations!!!]
Reward available — claim now?
He didn't move to claim it. As always, there would be time for that later — when things were calm. Right now, they were anything but.
Footsteps approached, and Nicolas emerged from the shadows of the narrow street. His sharp eyes moved from Noel to the figure sprawled beneath him. "What happened? I'm assuming this is Torwan," he said. "How did you manage to catch him?"
"Honestly?" Noel kept his tone even. "When I found him, he was already on the ground like this. I just followed Noir's scent… though she seemed to be chasing something else just moments ago. Do you know anything about that, Torwan?"
The dwarf below him let out a pained growl. "I don't know, you son of a bitch. Get off me."
