Chapter 25. The first move
Dawn found the valley in an icy, motionless silence. I left the hut before Yuki woke up, leaving her sleeping with a short instruction not to come out. I barricaded the door from the inside with a heavy chest—she couldn't handle it.
I needed to check the traps and... inspect the perimeter. I knew they were already here. Somewhere out there, in the gray-white haze of dawn, they froze, pressed into the snow, holding their breath. They were waiting in the wings.
The air burned my lungs. I walked leisurely, pretending to be absorbed in the usual household chores. I checked the rabbit traps, but they were empty. I examined the boar trap, but nothing either. It was all a game, a performance for an invisible audience. My real attention was focused on the little things: the fresh scrapping of a branch, the unnatural pile of snow, the slightest hint of a violation of the natural order.
And I found it.
There was a small, worn leather strap near the stream, where I used to draw water. A battered, intentionally aged map was attached to it. It was neatly placed in a prominent place, but not abandoned — as if someone had just dropped it in a hurry.
Well, hello, Queen, I thought without any warmth.
I didn't bend down right away. First, I made a full circle along the shore, ostensibly looking for something else, then I sat down by the water, scooped up a handful of icy moisture, and only then, as if by accident, I noticed the strap.
- what is it? I muttered to myself, loud enough for possible listeners to hear.
I took it. The leather was of high quality, but artificially worn. The map... the map was expertly crafted. Old, half-abandoned trails and ruins of pre-war buildings were marked on it. And one marker is bright scarlet, like a drop of blood, away from the main routes. Next to it was a neat, elegantly written note: "Abnormal silence zone. Presumably, the crash site of the Genesis object."
The Genesis object. Cute. It's very tempting. It was just asking for some lonely adventurer to go check it out.
I tucked the map into my bosom, pretending to hide it carefully, and walked back to the hut, quickening my pace. I could feel dozens of invisible eyes on my back. They saw it. They were jubilant. The fish took a bite.
When I returned, I pushed the trunk aside and went inside. Yuki was already awake. She was sitting up in bed, as alert as her fox self.
—Nothing," I told her, taking off my outer clothes. — Everything is calm.
I sat down at the table, took out a map and unfolded it. Yuki walked over and stared at the scarlet mark.
"Don't look," I muttered. — This is bad. Danger.
She obediently looked away, but I could see her eyes returning over and over to the bloodstain on the parchment. The bait even worked for her.
I pretended to study the map carefully, tracing the lines with my finger, muttering something unintelligible. I had to play my role to the end.
And then I turned the card over. And everything fell into place.
On the back, in the very corner, almost imperceptibly, a small but distinct sign was stamped. A stylized drop of blood in a circle. The seal of the Crimson Clan.
They were so confident in themselves that they didn't even bother to hide their authorship. Or was it a hint? A challenge?
It doesn't matter. Now I knew for sure.
I carefully folded the map and put it in a crack between the logs of the wall. Let him lie there.
—Yuki,— I called to her. She came over. — Remember this paper. Don't touch it. It's poison.
She nodded, her face serious.
I've been acting natural all day, but I've been busy inside. I wasn't going to follow their lead. That would be idiotic. Instead, I started analyzing the bait itself.
They indicated a location away from their main domain. So they had to get me away from the cabin. What for? To search her in my absence? Or to set up an ambush on neutral territory?
Or... to be able to approach the hut while I'm gone and try to get in touch with Yuki? Introduce myself as friends? Saviors?
The thought made me clench my fists. It was dangerous. Yuki was smart, but naive. She could believe it.
I looked at her. She was diligently trying to tie a knot on the rope that I gave her for training.
The Crimson's plan was good. But they had one fatal mistake.
They didn't know that I knew them better than they knew themselves. And that I wasn't going to play by their rules.
In the evening, when it got dark, I didn't turn on the light. I went to the crack in the wall and pulled out a map. Then he took a knife and carefully, with surgical precision, cut out the area with the scarlet mark.
I burned a piece of parchment with the "Genesis object" in the stove, watching the fire devour their lies.
And I hid the clean, unremarkable part of the map back. She could still be useful. As a reminder. And as a trophy.
The first move was made. They challenged me.
And now they were waiting for an answer.
And I've already prepared it. Quiet, unexpected, and completely ruthless.
Did they want games? Well, they'll get it. But it won't be the game they intended.