One of the ladies would work the day shift, while the other would handle the night.
Silas wanted to make sure the shop was protected at all times. During the day, one wizard would be on standby in case any customer tried to act funny. At night, the other would be there to deter thieves or anyone thinking about breaking in.
The payment wasn't extravagant, but it wasn't cheap either. Hiring capable wizards wasn't something you could do without opening your wallet.
"100 gold coins per week. Does that sound good?" Silas asked.
Both women stared at him, wide-eyed. "A hundred… per week? That's… incredible!"
They hugged each other, unable to hide their excitement. For a job like that—just sitting around and making sure nothing bad happened—that kind of pay was absurdly high. Not even the most luxurious shops in the city would offer that.
"Good. You start tomorrow. The shop isn't fully set up yet, but that's actually the perfect time for thieves to try something."
"Understood. Thank you so much for this opportunity! We won't let you down."
After the brief interview, the girls left, practically skipping with joy.
Thomas grinned. "Man, it's so cool that you hired them. They seem pretty strong…and, uh, beautiful too…"
Silas shot him a warning glare. "Don't try anything stupid with my employees. Got it?"
"Of course, of course. I'd never."
Silas wasn't fully convinced. The last thing he needed was Thomas making the girls uncomfortable. They were the perfect hire—he didn't want to risk losing them.
But that was a problem for another day.
Right now, the focus was the basement. The workers were handling the upper floor, but the basement? That was on him—and Thomas.
Together, they headed down the narrow staircase. Silas pulled out the shop's key as they reached the heavy metal door. The key wasn't just for opening the shop; it also deactivated the traps and magical barriers protecting the basement.
The basement was, by design, the most secure area. That was where Silas would store valuable items and conduct private business. No one was allowed down here. Not even employees. Not yet, at least. Maybe in the future… if they proved trustworthy enough.
The moment they stepped in, they were greeted by dust, cobwebs, and the stale smell of a place left untouched for years. A few pieces of old, rotten furniture sat scattered around, and plenty of spiders skittered away as they entered.
"First step is cleaning. We toss all this junk and set up proper lighting," Silas said, glancing around.
"Got it. I'll grab the tools… and the lights too. Wait here."
Thomas hurried back upstairs.
Silas sighed. Hopefully, Thomas was actually fetching what they needed—and not just trying to sneak out of doing real work.
The tools and the lighting needed to be bought, which meant Thomas would be gone for a while. Silas figured he might as well explore the basement in the meantime and check every little detail.
It was a surprisingly large space. No extra doors or rooms, just one big open area. At first glance, nothing really stood out.
Silas stood in the middle of the room, quietly imagining how it would all look once it was properly set up. His desk could go over there… maybe some shelves along that wall… perhaps a reinforced cabinet in the corner for the most valuable items.
It was a peaceful kind of thinking. Planning. Dreaming. And doing it alone made it even better—no one around to interrupt with unnecessary chatter.
As he paced around, Silas ran his hand along the cold stone wall. "I could put a cabinet here..."
And then—click.
A low rumble echoed through the basement as the stones in the wall shifted. Slowly, a section of the wall slid upward, revealing a dark, narrow passage.
"…What the fuck?" Silas muttered, taking an instinctive step back.
That was not supposed to happen. If the agency that rented him this place knew about something like this, they would've definitely mentioned it. Which meant… this was a real secret. Something even the previous owners—or the city officials—might not know about.
His heart pounded. A secret tunnel. Right beneath his shop.
Part of him wanted to bolt upstairs, grab one of the wizards he'd just hired, and come back with backup. But... no. If anyone else saw this, the secret wouldn't be his anymore. And secrets? Well, secrets were often more valuable than gold.
"…Screw it," he whispered.
With slow, cautious steps, Silas entered the tunnel. His eyes darted around, hyper-aware of every sound, every shift in the air. His gaze constantly flicked down, scanning for pressure plates, wires—anything that might trigger a trap.
The tunnel was narrow, built from the same rough stone as the basement. But if the basement felt dusty and neglected… this tunnel was something else entirely.
It wasn't just abandoned. It felt ancient. The air was thick, heavy, and smelled of damp earth and something else—something old, almost metallic.
Cobwebs hung in heavy sheets. Dust floated in the narrow beam of light from the basement behind him, which grew weaker the further he stepped in.
Whatever this place was, it hadn't been opened in a very, very long time.
It was reassuring in a way—if this place had been sealed for so long, there was a good chance something valuable was hidden inside. But that also meant it was dangerous. Very dangerous.
Silas pressed forward, forcing himself to ignore the creeping unease gnawing at his gut. His curiosity burned brighter than his fear. Whatever lay ahead... he had to see it.
He walked. And walked.
Minutes stretched endlessly. Time felt strange down there, like the tunnel itself warped reality somehow. At one point, Silas glanced over his shoulder, half-expecting the entrance to have vanished.
"How big is this thing?" he muttered under his breath.
This wasn't just some hidden storage. This was... something else. He had imagined a small crawlspace—maybe a stash where the previous owner hid valuables, or contraband, or something shady but mundane.
But this? This was a full-fledged underground passage. A secret network, maybe. Something far beyond what any normal shop should have beneath it.
His steps slowed when, finally, the tunnel ended at a door. A metal door—heavy, solid—the same design as the reinforced entrance to his basement.
Silas reached for the handle and pulled.
Locked.
Of course.
But instinct told him to try the shop's key anyway. And to his surprise… click. The lock yielded with a smooth turn, as if the key had been meant for it all along.
The door groaned open.
Silas stepped inside—and his breath caught.
It was massive. A cavernous chamber stretched before him, with high ceilings supported by grand marble pillars. The stonework was pristine, polished, and far too elegant to belong to anything mundane. It resembled the architecture used in the noble district of New Castle—the very stones used in the castle where the rulers of the city lived.
Soft, ambient light filled the room. Strange—there were no visible lamps or torches, yet everything was perfectly illuminated. Magic, surely.
But none of that was what truly seized his attention.
At the center of the room… chained to a large stone dais… was a woman.
No—not entirely a woman.
Her hair was long and silver, cascading like liquid metal over her shoulders. Her skin was pale, but patches of it shimmered with an almost iridescent texture—scales. Silvery-blue scales, catching the light as she shifted ever so slightly.
She wasn't unconscious. Her eyes were open—piercing, cold, and sharp like the edge of a blade. They tracked Silas the moment he stepped inside.
For a second, Silas forgot how to breathe.
"Who...?" The question barely escaped his lips.