Oh my God, I can't believe my eyes.
Are they deceiving me?
The band of heroes was dealing with the criminals with such ease that I had never seen before in my life; it was unimaginable to me, at least until now.
I watched them for a few moments until the Japanese man got my attention, asking for my name.
"Jacob Smith, and you are?"
"Shin Furukawa, a pleasure to meet you, fellow Earthling."
Fellow Earthling, you say.
Heh
That was oddly comfortable.
I looked at him, reaching out with my hand.
"I must admit, it feels nice to meet another person from Earth in Paneria."
We shook hands until he turned to his left and saw something that must have caught his attention.
"I will be right back with you in a moment. Vrisht, keep the man safe, will you?"
I looked to my right as the wolf, whom I now knew to be named Vrisht, just sat down beside me.
Then I realised I had failed to properly greet the wolf before, so I decided to correct that mistake. "My apologies for not greeting you properly, Mr... Shall I call you Mr?"
"You do not have to call me anything; just Vrisht would be fine."
He replied in a monotone voice.
Well, at least he was honest about it. Feeling the conversation die out, I said something that came to mind.
"I must admit, talking to a giant wolf anytime soon was not up there in my list of things."
He seemed to think for a moment before replying to my admission. "I can understand that. We rarely come in contact with society anymore."
Now, what did that even mean? Was he some kind of mythical beast? Certainly not, they are mythical, or maybe that's just my imagination.
"So, you travel with Raghav?"
Vrisht's face lit up at the mention of Raghav as he nodded. "I do, I am one of his closest companions, the other being Gati, a white horse; she must be around here somewhere, I smell her, she can tell us where Raghav is."
They are looking for Raghav. I guess he did not tell them where he was going and is yet to return.
"Last I saw her, she was with Lord Galreid. Raghav had left her with him, but I am certain he knows where Raghav is."
Before I could add anything else to the conversation, a hand landed on my shoulder from behind, and I jumped.
But before I could look back, I heard a familiar voice. "Jacob."
"Chief Yamla?"
I slowly turned around and saw Chief Yamla, and beside him was Commander Opus.
Quickly saluting the two men, I pointed towards my Father's shop. "Chief Yamla, the evidence and Vasqe Jr are secure within my Father's shop. Shall I go retrieve them?"
Staying true to my words, I almost went towards the shop without their approval, but they stopped me in time.
I was confused, as the two of them seemed unsure of how to convey what they wanted to say.
"I will excuse myself and regroup with my party."
Vrisht informed us, politely making his exit.
Meanwhile, Commander and Chief looked at one another a few times, and Commander Opus patted Chief Yamla's shoulder and nodded, while placing a hand on his own chest.
"Jacob, you nearly died three times today. That can shake up a person quite a lot. You don't even have Mana. You must be tired. Go home, rest and come back tomorrow. We are all taking the night; the first day was expected to be the most random of all. But tomorrow we will be back with a fresh mind and body. Lord Galreid specially asked for me to escort you back home, so let's go."
This came at an odd time, but I was too tired to say no, and they were right. What truly drove the nail home was the fact that I saw the others arrive at the scene to apprehend the criminals, which meant that they were doing alright.
So I just nodded and went along with Commander Opus, who led me away towards my home.
As we walked away, I heard the sound of carriages arriving at the market plaza, but I was too tired to turn back.
"Commander, I apologise if I am overstepping any of my boundaries, but is it okay to leave the city unprotected for the night. I am afraid we'd lose valuable time."
My worries were heard by Commander Opus, as he nodded. "Fret not, we have soldiers for dedicated patrol throughout the night and a small team to investigate major locations. When we return tomorrow morning, we will pour our all into moving forward with what the night shift will leave for us. It is imperative that we don't exhaust ourselves too early."
They had a point there, one that I could not argue with.
There were some failed attempts at making small talk, but they all went nowhere and ended in one or two lines.
When we were under my building, Commander Opus patted me on the back and left.
I watched him walk away before heading to my house.
As I climbed the stairs, I began feeling uneasy. I guess my inner Spidey sense was tingling.
Then, the moment I stood outside my door, there was an eerie silence around me. I reached for the doorknob, keeping my ears open for any possible sound that might find its way through the silence.
When the door opened, I was greeted by the empty living room that was colder than normal.
Probably because the balcony door was open and the curtain flew in the wind. Once the door was locked, I looked around the room, making my way to my bedroom.
Peeking inside, I found nothing out of the ordinary; my wife and son were on the bed, asleep.
"That puts me at ease."
"This soon?"
A cold breath landed on my neck as I flinched reflexively, striking the person behind me in the solar plexus with my left elbow.
That, however, did nothing as I only managed to hurt myself.
But despite the pain, I somehow recognised the voice, but it couldn't be. He couldn't be here.
"How did you figure to do that?"
The man behind me asked as he grabbed me by the neck and folded my left hand behind my back. He guided me to the dining table and seated me.
"Be a good boy and do as you are told."
The way he said boy was nerve-racking. I could feel the disdain in that one word; it also felt racially motivated in its own twisted way.
It reminded me of the way Mikael talked down to Klaus.
Then the man walked around the table and sat across from me, and my blood went dry, falling to my feet, my heart sinking along with it.
The man across from me was my Father, not the one that I found after getting married, but the man who fathered me.
My lips quivered as I repeatedly gulped the saliva in my mouth to rehydrate my throat.
I gripped the armrest on the chair and leaned forward; the chair creaked loudly in the quiet night.
"Drop the act, you are not my Father, and I am not your boy. Wizard."
The smile dropped, as did the eyes, and a cold expression found its way onto the man's face.
"I guess it was by no fluke, you found the stash. However, refrain yourself from calling me a Wizard. I think of myself as a mage, that is what I am."
"A Mage without any ties to the royal forces or the adventurer guild is a Wizard or a Witch, and that is what you are."
I watched as the right side of his face scrunched and relaxed in a series of microexpressions. I seemed to have struck quite a nerve there.
"I will tolerate you for now, as I have been asked to do. My employer is someone who values talent, especially talent such as yours. From beyond this world."
Someone who knows me? This does not seem to be a local party, probably someone who had ties with the Plieders, perhaps?
My chain of thought was short lived as a small suitcase-like metal chest was placed on the table to my left.
"Five Kilograms of gold and precious gems, all yours, if you dedicate yourself to our Lord and Saviour."
As if to prove his words, he opened the chest, and there was indeed gold and very, very expensive gems in there.
I felt a tinge of vomit at the back of my throat on being offered a bribe, essentially. That too from a man wearing the face of my own Father, a man who I knew would rather beg on the streets for scraps than to live like a king by selling himself, so I stood up and turned around, unable to face that chest or that face.
"You seem to have the wrong judgment about me, my morals, my ethics and I myself are not up for sale."
Facing away from him, I could not tell what expressions he made; all I heard was the thud of another chest on the table, and I scoffed in amusement.
"I did not sell myself in five kilos of gold, I am certainly not doing it for ten."
In an instant, I received an answer this time. "Ohh, donkey, look back this one's empty."
That certainly caught me off guard as I turned, and lo and behold, it was indeed empty.
"You see, everyone has a price that they are willing to sell everything for; however, I am not here to bargain. I came here to present a choice."
The man simply gestured towards both chests. "Take the gold and be of use, or I will fill this other chest with your mangled corpse, and that will be all that your loyalty, morality and all those petty little things will get you."
Without permission, my hand reached for my mouth, and my fingers rubbed over my lips as I stared down into his eyes.
"In for a penny, in for a pound."
I guess this is it, I would have liked to live a little longer, but oh, well, at least I die on the right side.
Farewell, Leanor, my priye, I apologise for leaving you so soon.
Farewell, Nathan. I hope you grow up to be a good man, an honest man.
A mental image of my family was something that I wanted to see in my last moments.
With that, I closed my eyes, preparing for the worst, and a gust of wind did strike me, but I felt nothing after that.
"You alright?"
What?
My eyes shot open, and I saw Commander Opus standing behind the unconscious man.
"I am fine, Commander. Thank you for coming back."
"I never left, Beta. I never left."
This was followed by a moment of silence between us, before Commander Opus made an offer that I couldn't refuse.
"Do you need me to stay here?"
But I had to.
"It's alright, we can manage."
"He's right, City Commander."
The man spoke, raising his head, and within a moment, he was in a headlock by Commander Opus.
"You certainly woke up fast."
Haha.
The man laughed as Commander Opus peeled the fake face off his head and revealed a young blonde man with dark brown eyes.
Along with the mask, his attire changed from that of my father's semi-formal attire to one more akin to something from fantasy novels, with thin black robes and dozens of jewellery around his neck, ears, and fingers.
"Relax, I was not going to harm the young man, I mean, he looks charred enough already. I was actually leaving."
"Were you now?"
I watched the two of them talk as I sighed, taking a seat. The Wizard turned up to look at Commander Opus with a half grin.
"Yes, Professionals have standards. We do things differently from others. I was here to give a choice to Jacob Smith. To join us or not to. He said no, so I chose to leave. That was when you came in."
"Tell me, who else knows that Jacob lives here?"
"No one, other than me. I was on the lookout for possible recruits when I came across this young fella. But I feel my master already knows about him. Since he takes keen focus on those from other worlds."
Commander Opus moved his tongue along his teeth and whispered into the man's ears, asking something that I couldn't properly hear, and when the man answered, Commander Opus simply let go of the man's neck.
The first thing the man did was twist his neck in the opposite direction and crack it, letting out a moan of comfort.
"Thank you, now I will take my leave, but before I do. Let me tell you one thing, Mr Smith."
Finally, the topic of the conversation came back to me, and I nodded upwards at the man. "What is it?"
"The only thing good about organised crime is that it does not give in to emotions easily, and as a result. Families are not dragged into the mud as often as they used to when crime was a thing of passion."
He paused for a moment before grabbing the Lota of water on the table and raising it above his head, and poured some water into his mouth, from a distance of a few inches.
Once he quenched his thirst, he set the Lota back on the table and looked up at me with a sigh.
"However, that does not mean that the bystanders will always be the same; it just takes one sentimental man to lose his cool and hurt someone not directly involved in this mess."
It was hard to argue with him because he spoke truthfully. Organised crime generally avoided involving family members, whether they be the family of criminals themselves or soldiers.
That was one of the codes in the wicked world of crime. But we all knew that if someone got pushed too far back, they might break the codes to push back.
"Whether you keep your family here, or move them elsewhere. I suggest you keep in mind how dangerous the situation has gotten. The criminals have been pushed back to their last leg; they will lash out. Be ready."
With that warning, he began walking towards the balcony when Commander Opus called out to him. "Wait for me."
The man stopped and nodded. "Of course, I was certainly not about to make a run for it."
So he knows what sarcasm is, good to know.
"Jacob, I will see you at work tomorrow. Be there at the city hall in the morning, there is someone Lord Galreid wants you to meet."
Who could Lord Galreid want to introduce me to?
But before I could ask, Commander Opus was gone, and so was the man. But they had left behind the two chests.
I closed both chests and hid them in the kitchen cabinet. "I will surely turn them in to the City Hall tomorrow."
.
.
.
.
Finally, I was outside The Count's office, currently being occupied by Lord Galreid.
The anticipation was killing me; I had to know who it could be that the Duke wanted me to meet.
Knock Knock.
"Come in."
Lord Galreid spoke from the other side.
With great curiosity, I opened the door, and when I raised my eyes, directly before me, Lord Galreid sat in front of the glass window, and he gave me a smile before gesturing towards the man before him.
Who I could not see clearly due to the sunlight covering him; all I could see was his back.
"Welcome, Jacob. I am glad you could make it on time. Please meet your Hero..."
Somehow, as if the sun knew what it was doing, the sunlight dimmed as the figure turned around, and I came face to face with...
"Raghav Suryanshi."