Sheira didn't know what had happened.
One moment, she had been watching her guards fight the ambushers. The next, she woke in a bandit camp, bound inside a small cage deep within a damp, foul-smelling cave.
Several torches lit the cave, though some had already been choked out by the moisture.
Her protective items were gone. So was her dress.
A strip of cloth gagged her mouth, and chains bound her wrists and ankles to the cage. Her captors had given her only ragged human peasant clothes, coarse enough to make her skin itch.
They had not even given her shoes. Splinters bit into her feet whenever she shifted.
Sheira struggled against the chains, but they barely moved. Her thoughts went to Azure and the rest of her guards. She tried not to follow that thought too far.
If she were here, then her friend was dead.
Grief overcame her, and tears slid down her face. The chains barely let her move. All she could do was watch her tears fall onto the wooden floor of the cage.
She wondered why anyone would go through so much trouble for her. Deep down, she already knew.
They wanted her holy blood.
Sheira didn't know how long she had been captive, but it certainly felt as if it was forever.
She was not allowed to grieve the loss of her dear friend for long before she heard footsteps coming closer and closer to her cage.
From the corner of her eye, she noticed three men approaching her. She could make out that they were talking about something, but she couldn't hear what, and she did not care much.
Her mind circled back to Azure, then to the future waiting for her. She expected to become cattle for some rich noble who wanted her blood.
And Sheira was certain no noble would stop at only that.
She shuddered at what these people had in store for her; she didn't want to think about it, and yet that was all that went through her head.
All she could do was close her eyes and pray they would lose interest.
Her prayer went unanswered.
The three men stopped in front of the cage. The old man carried a cane and wore expensive clothes.
She curled in on herself as much as the chains allowed.
"Master will be quite pleased with your work; he has spent so many decades trying to obtain this kind of specimen." The way the man looked at her disgusted her; he looked at her like she was just an item to be traded.
The man tapped his cane on the ground before turning to the two men. "You two, get out of here. I would like a moment alone with this specimen," he said, turning back to Sheira with a wicked grin.
"My master has already sent a carriage with a reward to your headquarters. Go and arrange transport for this specimen to the City of Razul," he said as he placed his hand on the cage.
Two men bowed before disappearing, leaving the infirm man alone with Sheira.
The man stared at her without emotion, only scanning her as if she were an ingredient.
The man let his cane fall and gripped the bars of the cage.
He pressed his face between the bars as he stared at her before whispering, "You will be put to good use, elf. But, let's deal with the Golden Rose first, shall we?" he said, cackling like a lunatic before catching himself and coughing into his hand.
"Anyway, your new home is already waiting for you," he said while holding onto the cage with one hand and grabbing his cane with the other.
Sheira just couldn't deny it to herself anymore; she was truly going to become someone's slave, and once again, like every time before, she was helpless.
The man poked her with the cane, causing her discomfort, before nodding and reaching into the cage. He touched her head, and Sheira's consciousness faded.
***
Golden Fang was still worried about what had happened after he left his fighters to deliver the princess. One moment, they had executed the ambush flawlessly. The next, one of the defenders had turned into a monster.
He pulled back his hood and mask, allowing himself to breathe some fresh air after all this time. As he removed his hood and mask, he revealed a face that was full of old battle scars.
His men had called it an Argus. Golden Fang refused to believe that. If an Argus had truly appeared, none of them should have returned.
A Bauk, perhaps. Besomar, maybe. Some malformed greater beast.
But none of those explanations fit.
A Blessed Child, then. That was the only answer that made sense, and even that made no sense at all.
It was a terrible loss, but the reward would cover it. Every life had a price, and this one would be enough to set the survivors up for generations.
For many monsters, he trusted his ability to win, even against lesser dragons. Against an Argus, though? His confidence was thin.
His client's Observer had already gone into the holding area to check on the princess. He had been there for a while, making Golden Fang worry a little, considering the Observer's obvious frailty.
He didn't know what he was doing down there for so long, but as long as his master paid up, it would be fine.
All they had to do was deliver the princess to the city of Razul.
He didn't want to waste time, so while his men were preparing to continue the mission, he decided to scout nearby woods. The sun couldn't reach through the thick canopies, making the entire place almost as dark as it would be at midnight.
However, even if the forest were dark, it wouldn't matter to him; the Lady of Night granted him night vision.
He wanted to make sure that the monster that attacked his men wouldn't sneak up on them.
The forest gave him no answers. No tracks. No mana trail. No monster hiding beneath the trees.
That unsettled him more than a corpse would have. At least a corpse could be named.
"Nothing suspicious," he said, rubbing his chin. The lack of monsters was normal, as the Ebon Forest was very scarce with mana, which made the creation of greater monsters impossible.
If it had been a Blessed Child, then none of it made sense. Why had so many defenders died before the blessing appeared? How had they still managed to take the princess?
The only answer was the one he liked least: something impossible had happened, and his perfect plan had almost been ruined by it.
Luckily, they still had the princess, and their crowns would be delivered and given to them once the princess was in their client's hands.
He still didn't know what his client wanted with her, and it wasn't his place to ask that; he would be paid, and he would finish his job, that was all there was for him.
He gave the dark forest one final scan before rushing back to the camp. They had to prepare transport and get the princess to Razul.
Golden Rose couldn't afford to fail this job; he had already lost too many men. If he had to leave some acting as decoys so that they could fulfill this job, so be it.
As he arrived in the camp, he walked slowly toward his tent before being stopped by the Observer.
The Observer tapped his cane to get his attention. "Excellent job, Golden Fang, you truly live up to your reputation."
He coughed before continuing to speak, "I checked on the specimen, and it was completely untouched and in great condition, my master will surely be pleased."
Golden Fang wasn't sure why this man kept referring to the elf as a specimen, but he didn't care. Golden Fang had more important issues to take care of, such as transporting the princess before she was found by the blessed child.
He bowed before the infirm man. "You honor me. Any job we take on will be carried out perfectly."
The Observer tapped his cane before answering, "And you proved so, I hope the specimen will be delivered soon."
Golden Fang nodded. "Yes, I was just on my way to prepare transportation for the prisoner."
The Observer smiled. "Excellent, I will be traveling with you to make sure the specimen is delivered. Please don't let me distract you."
Before Golden Fang could even answer him, the man disappeared from his sight.
An infirm man disappearing from his sight like that was worrying, but everyone had their secrets, and it was not his place to ask questions.
He went into his tent and started drafting transportation plans.
After hours of preparation, the plans were complete.
The transport was ready, a carriage with the cage containing the captive elf was fully loaded, and horses were fed and rested; in mere moments, they would be on the road to the City of Razul.
The elf prisoner had been sedated and secured.
"The Blessed Child still hasn't come after us?" Golden Fang muttered.
The thought gnawed at him, but he forced it aside. The mission came first.
It was decided that before midnight struck, Golden Fang, the Observer, and four Thorns would escort the carriage while a small detachment carried out another part of his plan.
He instructed the remaining forces to prioritize their survival if possible and escape in case of the Blessed Child's attack.
Everything was ready. Only the Observer was missing.
Golden Fang could not afford to wait much longer.
Golden Fang walked past the cage and shouted to the escorting unit, "Cover the cage and move out!"
Four Thorns would ride their horses, making sure to cover each flank as they traveled.
At his order, the unit moved like a well-oiled machine. They covered the cage with cloth, hiding its contents from view, while Golden Fang climbed onto the carriage and took the reins.
He was just about to shout an order to go before noticing the Observer right next to him sitting on the coach box.
The old man's smile widened. "To think you would just leave me here."
The Observer shook his head before tapping his cane on the wooden floor of the coach box. He turned back to the covered cage before casually speaking to him, "You did succeed where many others failed, so I'm not overly disappointed, but do not try to get rid of me again, it would make my master quite unhappy."
A chill ran down Golden Fang's spine every time the Observer opened his mouth. It was clear to him now that this man might look like an old man, but he was something more.
Before, the Observer had sounded like a weak, frail old man. Now, Golden Fang could hear power beneath his words. Worse still, the man had appeared beside him without being noticed.
Few people could sneak up on him so easily, especially given his own specialty in stealth. And yet the man was here.
He did not wish to speak to the Observer more than necessary, so he only nodded. The man unsettled him too much. He was far too large an unknown. Once they delivered the prisoner to the City of Razul, they would never have to interact again.
Golden Fang urged the horses forward as they started the final phase of their mission, the delivery of the prisoner to the client.