Mendax straightened his back as another man fell. The piece of ice in his neck would melt. There had been seven men when he'd first counted. Now there were four.
Dealing with the unsuspecting thugs was quick. Getting to them was not. From jumping up to the roof only to jump down on them, it was a hassle. Not to mention the first street had people walking by. Which meant he couldn't directly jump on the man without a commotion.
He still caused a bit of a scene, dragging the man into a smaller alleyway before leaving him there. Just not cries of murder. At least while he was in hearing.
Luckily, no one had tried to get involved.
He didn't know where Aureum was. He did know how many thugs there were. The surest thing he could do was deal with them. As he jumped onto the next roof, he worried he wouldn't be quick enough.
———————————————————
Aureum's first inkling of danger was when she saw a woman rushing past her. She could have just been late to work, or wanted to get home, but the woman's hunched demeanor gave her a bad feeling.
A moment later, she felt someone else come up around the bend behind them. When the figure pivoted for them, her inkling turned into a warning.
She looked over her shoulder.
A scarred face and cold eyes faced hers. He pulled a long dagger, inches of shining metal pointing towards her.
No chances of trying to hide this out.
"Aquila, take her!" Aureum said, shoving Passer onto him.
She faced the newcomer down.
He had less mana than a lordling like Benedic, but there was no way they would be able to deal with him like that fool. By appearance alone, he looked practiced with that knife.
He held it menacingly.
"Viti, can you lead them to the inn?" Aureum said.
"Yes."
Vitreum's voice was uncharacteristically small.
The man laughed, a cackle that touched a chill to Aureum's spine.
"Heh, hah, ahahaha! Woman, do you think you can stop me?"
Aureum had private doubts on that point as well. She widened her stance and leaned forward. A pointless display.
She had nothing to fight with.
"Sure, why wouldn't I be able to? I beat your boss!"
She could feel Aquila carrying Passer away, but Vitreum hesitated.
"My boss?"
Confusion made the man frown. Then he snapped his fingers in understanding.
"Ah! The lordling is not my boss. But alright!"
The man leapt forward. Breathtakingly fast. He trained in mana to infuse his body.
Aureum turned as he flew by her towards Vitreum.
Of course!
Why wouldn't he go after the weakest target? It made no sense for him to have an honorable duel with her.
Aureum sent out her mana as she ran, the wind the only thing that would make it there in time.
What should I try to cut?
The usual method for wind sorcerers in fighting was their signature blades of wind. She was familiar with it, but Aureum was still a far cry from gathering the necessary mana for that. As the man was a sorcerer himself, the best she could hope for was a paper cut.
She went for the eyes. She had to estimate where they were. Neither sight or her sense of the wind gave her a clear view.
"ARGH!"
He grabbed at his face, but was still rushing toward Vitreum.
Now he would crash into her.
"Viti, MOVE!"
The girl looked back instead.
Aquila came around and shoved the man so he ran into the wall instead. He fell into it with a solid thud and fell to the ground.
The disadvantage of great speed.
It wouldn't stop a man with an infused body, but the thug twitched and moaned on the ground, still holding his eyes.
Aureum caught up to Vitreum and shoved her ahead.
"Aquila, can you carry Passer alone?"
Passer leaned against the wall, sweating.
"What are you expecting to do by yourself? What will you do if there are more up ahead?"
Aquila sounded angry. Aureum looked behind him at Passer. She was coughing now.
"I'll figure something out! But you need to go now! What if there are more coming? I need you to take Vitreum and leave!"
"The girl," he said, looking at Vitreum.
Vitreum was trembling. He nodded.
"I respect your choice," he said.
He thinks I'm going to die.
He grabbed Vitreum's arm and hurried her along. Aureum could feel the brute rising again from the ground.
She turned to see his eyes clenched shut.
"What did you do to me?"
The voice was mangled by pain.
I'm not ready to die. Not anym
"What did you do!"
This was a growl of pain.
"I cut you," Aureum said, fear crawling up her arms.
She was shaking now too.
"What's so surprising about that?!" She shouted.
Vitreum and the others were leaving behind her. The man could no longer see them to follow.
"urRRAhhh!"
The man charged again. The charge was easy to step aside. He caught himself at the wall and turned.
"Do you think this is funny?"
Aureum hadn't laughed.
"I'll kill you! I'll cut you up and I will kill you!"
He rushed her again, this time putting his dagger out and slicing at her. He had never let it go.
She still felt the ache from the punch that had landed last time. How she'd woken up.
The fear made her slower. She twisted out of his reach.
I should just run.
But if I run, he might go after everyone else.
He turned from the wall and came for her.
But what do I care for Vitreum? For those two runaways?
Do I care this much?
She pulled herself out of the way.
This much?
Instead of charging past her, he twisted and took another swing. She barely avoided it, his blade cutting a few strands of her hair.
Remarkably quick at adjusting his senses. Aureum could fault his personality and his career choices, but not his skill.
She had been right in stopping him. He might have been able to keep chasing them. She felt herself calm down.
At least it wasn't in vain.
Now, she went through the tedious task of buying them time. Dodging wasn't something she hadn't done before.
But she could only buy time. As he became more accustomed to his new state, she lost ground. She had nothing to stop him with.
How long has it been?
It was difficult to focus on anything other than the madman and his knife. Telling time was difficult. She didn't know if she had given them enough.
Those three weren't going anywhere too fast. Every moment counted.
Her breathing became ragged. If anything, her opponent came at her with increased ferocity.
She dodged another close swing of the knife and nearly tripped. She felt the breeze from his knife on her face.
"I can hear you tiring," he said, with a smile.
She took a swing and slapped him. It connected.
As pointless as hitting him with a pillow. She was too tired to deal much damage to a normal man, let alone one reinforced with mana. At least the sound of it rang out.
She pulled back as he went to grab her arm.
"So are you," she said.
He didn't look like it. She was hoping. Yet he held his face, more insulted by the slap that didn't even mark him. His face twisted.
"I'm really gonna make you pay—
Aureum didn't feel it, but something clear and shining shot by her and sank into his neck. The next words came out as incomprehensible gurgles.
He tried to look down, but couldn't see it. He grasped at his neck, only to slowly sink to his knees.
"…dead…?"
He wheezed something, but Aureum didn't understand most of it. Then his face fell forward.
Aureum didn't move. She tried to sense what was behind her.
A man?
"Aureum—
"AHHHHHH!"
The voice came closer than she expected.
She turned around.
"Don't scare me like that!"
It was Mendax. Just Mendax. Aureum stomped down as her fists clenched.
"Why are you here now?!"
She shot her words at him.
"I've been watching their boss. When I saw they were after you, I helped."
He raised his hands as if for peace. Aureum half-turned as she put her hand on her hips. Mostly to stop them trembling.
"So what. You gonna deal with the leader next?"
She pulled herself from looking at the man on the ground.
"Best time for it."
It's like he's discussing whether we want biscuits or soup.
Her stomach turned.
"Guess I should go ahead then? Leave you to it."
"Not so."
Mendax kept his distance. He could see her nerves were frayed, and the last thing needed was her screaming again.
"Why not so?"
"These might not be the only ones around. I'd hate for you to run into some stragglers after all this. Do we need to risk it?"
Aureum rolled her head in frustration. Then clenched her jaw as she tried to get a handle on it.
"What's your plan then? Vitreum is still out there you know!"
He stepped towards her again. She didn't flinch so he took another until he closed the distance.
"To deal with this quickly. I'm going to pick you up."
"What? Wait!"
With an arm secured around her waist, he lifted her and jumped. Aureum grabbed onto his clothes and bit back a scream.
It wasn't like her cloak had been, or flying with the wind. As soon as they went up, they went down. They landed on the roof with a thud.
She pulled away from him once they landed, furious. He spoke before she could.
"You stay here as I go deal with the rest."
"Really?!"
His head bent forward.
"I didn't think you wanted to come."
"I don't!"
"Then stay—stay right here—and hide."
Mendax took another jump before she could take back her words. Aureum watched him land, considering yelling at him to come back. Instead, she let herself sink down.
Underneath the anger she had mustered while around Mendax, there was only fear. By herself, she was stuck with the bones of it. Bones that beat her down.
Fear that she would fall like that man did before her, fear that Vitreum or Mendax would, and fear that she wouldn't die at all. Just be used and abused.
I need to learn to fight. Properly.
Luck could only get her so far.
To be fair, it wasn't luck, but skill that had saved her life on so many occasions. Despite her rushing into it.
But my skills have limits.
Running away has limits.
She could no longer pretend these occurrences were freak accidents she could shrug off.
It wasn't that I didn't want to fight, it's just that the necessity was on moving.
Then she got injured, and then injured again.
I'm not leaving this city until I have some confidence in surviving again.
Her shaking hands clenched into fists. She closed her eyes and tried not to think.
This mess? Mendax was welcome to it. As long as no one was going to die in front of her at the moment, she didn't care.
It's not that she didn't worry for Vitreum and the rest. She had eyes to see that Mendax would be more useful. She could let herself ache and breathe.
A ghost of a smile pushed at her lips.
What a luxury my life is.
———————————————————
The rest of them fell to Mendax with little trouble. He had layered his pearl for two decades. With his natural talent, and the bloodline of Nix pouring out what he needed to grow, there were few who would be able to compete. Even fewer when taken by surprise.
Only an ascended sorcerer would be able to deflect his attacks with mana alone.
They were focused in front, on hunting. They weren't looking back to what they had already seen.
When the last one he counted fell, he went back to where they would have reported. Caenum, the greasy-haired man in the luxurious velvet robes sat waiting for his men, Benedic lying at his feet.
The young blond man was gagged again.
He hadn't bothered to untie him. Caenum peeled a fruit, using a wooden box and the stone wall of a building as a chair.
A man went to turn down the street, but seeing this scene, turned back and passed this road entirely.
"That's how I ended up an orphan," Caenum said. "Age nine, all alone. Except for my uncle."
A smile wormed its way onto Caenum's face.
"That man, he only dipped his toe into what he wanted. He'd gamble till he was penniless but never cheat, drink till he was senseless but never beat me, and toss all his time and money away whenever he had a chance."
The smile vanished. Caenum stared into a memory only he could see.
Mendax walked along the roof, getting into a better position.
"I hated that man more than my father. I didn't even fear him.
He was worthless. Worse than a criminal, he was just a victim of his own life. I'd have stolen a better life from him, but he had nothing for me to take. Anything I did steal, he'd find. I had to finally run away penniless."
He shook his head. Then kicked at Benedic, who only curled up tighter.
"You see? That's why everybody hates you lordlings. You had everything handed to you on a silver platter, and then you still end up as criminals! I could have been a banker!"
Now in the best spot he could find, Mendax waited, watching for anything he had missed earlier. A hidden bodyguard, any ensorcelled item for protection, anything out of place.
There was a ring, but Mendax had noted that earlier. It wouldn't be enough to stop him.
This was far more familiar to him than all the shadowing and the stalking was.
"What could I have done? Age twelve and alone? It was either become a victim or become a criminal. And I'm much better at the latter. Wouldn't you say?"
These were the final words Caenum said.
Forming a long knife of ice at his fingers, Mendex held it between his fingers and tossed it.
Unlike Aureum's tosses, his was a work of art. From the moment it left his fingers, it would land its mark. Yet, he formed another one and threw it.
The first shattered in the air as the ring Benedic wore cracked off his finger. He looked up and saw his death without time to speak.
The second blade met no impedance.
The spot where Mendax had been was empty. He had to burn the inside of Caenum's office, after all.
Benedic remained, shaking with tears falling from his eyes.