While Aoko was busy scouring the streets for goods, her loyal servant, the clever and adorable Stark, flew above the towering and magnificent Neverwinter Castle!
Of course, this castle had measures in place to monitor flying creatures. But Stark wasn't just under the effects of a shared Invisibility spell—it also wore an anklet inscribed with concealed runes, blessed by the Third Magician, Touko, allowing it to hide itself by supernatural means unknown to the locals of Faerûn.
However, Neverwinter Castle was simply too big and tall for a crow like Stark. Avoiding everyone's sight and finding Aoko's two teammates in such a huge castle was truly difficult.
But this wasn't reason enough for Stark to give up. It maintained its patience and interest, carefully searching the castle.
Fortunately, after two hours of careful searching, Stark finally found the two people Aoko had shown it in an illusion. However, the two didn't look to be in great shape.
Edgin and Holga were being led by a group of soldiers into an alley behind the Neverwinter barracks. The two had their hands tied, were kneeling on the ground, and an executioner was weighing an axe, apparently considering how to chop off their heads.
Stark landed nearby, kicking away two small animals fighting over food to claim the best observation spot.
Then it tilted its head, seemingly confused—why was the lady barbarian chatting with the executioner? Weren't they about to be beheaded?
Even though Stark was a very clever crow, it still needed to report this situation to its superior. So, it contacted Aoko, who was haggling with a wizard shopkeeper in the Arcanist District, via the mental link between master and familiar.
"...What's going on?" Aoko asked telepathically. "Did you find the two of them?"
"Found them, caw," Stark replied after a slight hesitation. "But there's a situation. You'd better see for yourself, Lady Aoko, caw."
"Please hold this scroll for me," Aoko suddenly told the shopkeeper. "My familiar has run into a problem; I need to deal with it."
The shopkeeper immediately understood and placed the scroll Aoko wanted into a temporary container. As a high-level mage himself, he could tell at a glance that this young woman was an 8th-circle caster; he didn't want to lose such an important customer over a trifle.
Aoko entered the shop's guest lounge and closed the door. The owner even thoughtfully hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door for her. Then she projected her consciousness into her familiar.
Through the crow's eyes, Aoko immediately saw Edgin and Holga's pitiful condition, making her speechless. How could you two look so dejected when facing execution?
"Don't look up," suddenly came Aoko's voice in Edgin and Holga's minds. "I'm using Message to talk to you."
Since the Message is one-way, Holga and Edgin couldn't reply to Aoko.
"In a moment, close your eyes," Aoko's voice said. "My familiar is on the beam above you and will use flash powder to blind the soldiers. Take the chance to finish them off."
Edgin barely nodded, and then he and Holga closed their eyes.
Executioner Blackwood, seeing the two finally shut up and close their eyes, thought they had given up. He raised his axe—crafted by Gaelin Foehammer—intending to start with the talkative lady barbarian.
"Flash powder!"
A burst of pale golden powder sprayed from Stark's beak, instantly enveloping the soldiers. Except for Edgin and Holga, who had closed their eyes, almost everyone was blinded. Executioner Blackwood even dropped his axe to the ground.
Holga immediately opened her eyes, used the edge of the fallen axe to cut her bonds, picked up the axe, and chopped down the executioner who had just tried to kill her.
She then turned and cut Edgin's bonds, before charging at the soldiers clutching their eyes.
Freed, Edgin looked up and saw the big black crow tilting its head at him—realizing it was his savior, he couldn't help but give Stark a thumbs-up.
Holga, being a kind-hearted barbarian, understood that these Neverwinter soldiers were just trying to make a living. So, she didn't kill them but used the flat side of her axe to knock them out one by one.
With swift action and her enemies blinded, Holga quickly knocked out a streetful of soldiers, even retrieving Edgin's lute in the process.
As Edgin was about to speak to Stark, it fluttered down to perch on his head, his messy hair becoming its nest.
"Hold hands," Aoko's voice came from Stark's beak. "I'll teleport you out—hurry!"
Edgin and Holga had no objections. They quickly grasped each other's hands. Stark's eyes flashed with strong magical light, and the two and the crow vanished from the alley.
…
"Where are we?" Edgin looked around the guest lounge of the magic shop and asked, "Are we still in Neverwinter?"
"A guest lounge in a shop in the Arcanist District."
Stark flew back into the familiar pocket as Aoko spoke. "What happened to you two?"
"You guessed it," Holga replied dejectedly, "Forge the bastard tricked us all. He was with Sofina from the start. The Tablet of reawakening is in his hands. Even Kira was fooled, thinking you left her for money."
"We have to bring Forge down," Edgin said with a frown. "At least we have to rescue Kira."
"I can help," said Aoko, "but I'm not enough alone. Sofina is a 9th-circle archmage—I'm just an 8th-circle, no match for her. We'll need more people."
"I know someone who can help," Edgin suddenly said. "Let's leave the city to find him."
"You don't mean Simon, do you?" Holga exclaimed, incredulous. "If even Miss Aoko can't do it, how could Simon the rookie?"
…
A moment later, Aoko led two people with completely different faces (from Edgin and Holga) out of the lounge—their appearances temporarily changed by illusion magic. As long as they didn't run into Sofina herself, Aoko didn't think ordinary soldiers could pierce her spell.
The magic shop owner glanced at Edgin and Holga, then gave Aoko a meaningful look. Aoko returned a "you know" expression and began discussing the scroll from before.
Aoko had hoped to buy a Sunburst scroll from the owner, whose skill was similar to hers, but he insisted on a spell trade instead of gold. After several rounds of negotiation, she agreed to trade a Maze scroll she had made herself.
"Come again soon!"
After bidding farewell to the shopkeeper, Aoko and the others teleported back to their horses at the North Gate and rode out of Neverwinter at full speed, heading northeast toward Triboar Town.