The morning sun filtered through the high windows of the guild's infirmary, but Shin's eyes were fixed on something far darker. He walked silently into the patient's room—the one where the cloaked figure had escaped. The broken window still hung open, the curtain fluttering gently in the breeze. The room smelled faintly of blood and disinfectant, but Shin's focus was entirely on the window frame and the alley outside.
He stepped over to the shattered ledge and looked down.
The alley behind the guild was narrow—barely wide enough for a person to squeeze through. Just a tight gap between two stone buildings, dim and damp. An ideal escape route for someone who didn't want to be seen.
Shin crouched, his sharp eyes scanning the sill and wall. Then he paused.
A faint sheen clung to the bottom of the window frame. Something slick. Unnatural.
He took out a small cloth from his inner coat and wiped it gently across the residue. It was sticky—tinged with a faint blue hue. A poisoned coating. The same was used on the dagger that had injured the patient's husband.
"Got you," Shin muttered.
He placed the cloth into a sealed glass vial, tucked it into his coat, and quietly left the alley. A few minutes later, he was walking through the stone corridors of the guild's research wing, where the labs hummed with quiet magical energy.
At the far end of the corridor, he knocked on a door labeled Alchemical Research – Authorized Access Only.
The door opened to reveal a woman in a light gray coat, her raven-black hair tied in a high ponytail, glasses slipping slightly down her nose. She looked up from a desk piled with sample flasks and scribbled papers.
"Shin?" she said, surprised. "Haven't seen you down here since that mana thread experiment."
"Lyra," Shin greeted with a small nod. "I need your help. Shuri's busy, so I came to you."
Lyra raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Intrigue already? What've you got?"
He handed her the vial.
She sniffed it, cautiously, then used a dropper to place a bit into a thin brass dish, as the liquid changed its colour she leaned in.
"Hmm… interesting. This is a toxin, alright. Fairly common. It's called Hearth's Sting. Fast-acting muscle disruptor. Causes spasms, paralysis, sometimes hallucinations depending on how it's introduced into the bloodstream."
"Common?" Shin asked.
"Well, yes. You can find this in most alchemy stores. It's used in very diluted forms for medical anesthetics or sometimes in poison testing simulations." She tapped the side of the dish. "But here's the kicker: this version is fresh. Unstabilized. This kind of solution only lasts a few hours at best. Any longer, and the compound breaks down."
"So it can't be stocked long-term," Shin said.
"Exactly. Whoever made this—or bought it—had to use it within hours. And there are only two alchemy stores in the city that carry this in unstabilized form. One in the East Market, the other just north of here, near the edge of the research quarter."
"That narrows it down."
Lyra handed him the vial back. "Good luck, Shin. And be careful."
Shin nodded. "Thanks, Lyra."
The streets of the northern district bustled with foot traffic and the occasional passing carriage, but Shin moved like a shadow. His coat fluttered slightly as he turned into a smaller lane lined with specialized shops. He passed a potion vendor and a scroll binder before arriving at a narrow, glass-fronted store with a worn iron sign swinging above the door: Nedrin's Arcane Apothecary.
Inside, shelves were lined with vials of every hue, stacked books, and the lingering smell of dried herbs and metals. A middle-aged elf stood behind the counter, polishing glassware.
Shin stepped inside, silent as ever.
The shopkeeper looked up. "Good morning, sir. Looking for anything specific?"
Shin held up a guild token. "Adventurers' Guild inquiry. I need to know if anyone bought unstabilized Hearth's Sting here last night."
The elf stiffened. "I… I might need to check my records."
"I'll wait."
The shopkeeper fumbled with a large leather-bound ledger behind the counter, flipping through entries. Shin waited patiently, arms folded, eyes unmoving.
After several minutes, the elf looked up. "I'm sorry, sir. There were no purchases of Hearth's Sting yesterday—not in liquid form or otherwise. Our last transaction involving that toxin was two days ago, and it was for a stabilized variant used in potion testing."
Shin nodded slowly. "Understood."
Without another word, he turned and exited the shop. The bell above the door gave a soft jingle as it closed behind him.
Outside, the morning bustle had only grown louder—merchants barking out prices, children laughing as they chased each other past carts of fruit and vegetables, and the clatter of horses pulling cargo through cobbled streets.
But Shin's mind was far from the noise.
If no one bought it here… then the intruder must've gone to the East Market. That's the only other shop in the city that carries it. And if they purchased the toxin there just before the incident, it was likely they were staying close by.
"I'll need to contact someone from the East Market district…."
His pace quickened.
Within minutes, Shin was back at the guild gates. He stepped through the entrance, passed a pair of adventurers chatting about their next assignment, and made his way straight to the front desk. The receptionist gave him a nod of acknowledgment as he strode past the lobby and into the inner hallway.
He didn't pause until he reached the carriage station at the rear of the guild.
"Ready one for the East Market," he instructed one of the drivers. "Fast."
"Yes, sir!"
As the driver scrambled to prepare the horses, Shin stepped inside the small carriage, sitting back with arms folded. His gaze was locked on the city skyline outside.
Whoever this intruder was… they were careful. But not careful enough.
The wheels rolled forward, and the carriage cut through the morning streets, heading east—toward the next piece of the puzzle.