The Bureau grew cold as the name "Tata" hung in the air. That city was a sprawling, chaotic hub of trade to the east, a place where the lines between law and lawlessness were blurred by greed. It was a haven for demi-humans and beastkin, but its heart was rotten. Bernard Callus, the man who ruled Tata, didn't just tolerate the Bronze Coin Guild… he fed them. And somewhere in those crowded, smog-filled streets, Dominik was waiting, nursing his wounds and his hatred for me.
I heard that ruler before, after I saved Mya from the forest. Caco, the grandfather of Mya, mentioned that same exact ruler, he is despicable and handling his corrupt town.
I looked down at my hands… one pristine, the other a stiff, scarred mess… and then at Lord Phillip. A bitter, edgy laugh escaped my lips, devoid of any warmth.
"You want me to go to Tata? To face a corrupted ruler and an entire guild?"
I stepped closer into the candlelight, my voice dropping to a low, dangerous hiss. I raised my left arm, the skin mottled and the muscle twitching uselessly, and then I pointed a trembling finger at the black leather patch over my right eye.
"Look at me, Phillip. How am I supposed to fight like this? I'm half-blind and one-armed. I'm a broken tool."
The room was silent for a heartbeat. Then, to my surprise, Lord Phillip let out a soft, dry chuckle.
"You've certainly changed, Roxy. The bittersweet girl I once knew has become a cold, sharp blade. But even a blade needs a hilt." he said, his eyes reflecting a mix of pity and respect.
He reached beneath his desk and pulled out a long, heavy box made of dark mahogany, bound in silver filigree. He slid it across the wood toward me.
"I have a present for you. A peace offering for the girl who gave everything."
With a wary frown, I flipped the latches and opened the lid. I froze. Resting on a bed of black velvet was a limb made of dark, matte-finished steel and intricate clockwork. It was a prosthetic arm, but even at a glance, I could tell it wasn't a common tinkerer's toy. The metal shimmered with a faint, ethereal blue light.
"It's an artifact, recovered from a ruin in the Old Kingdoms. It responds to the wearer's mana." Phillip explained, his voice hushed.
I didn't say a word. I sat down and began the grueling process of fitting the harness to my mutilated left shoulder. As the cold metal met my skin, I winced, but as soon as the final clasp clicked into place, I felt a jolt. I closed my eyes and pushed a thread of my mana… dark and heavy with the hand… into the prosthetic.
The gears whirred with a sound like a drawn sword. The fingers flexed, one by one, snapping shut into a powerful, metallic fist. It moved with the fluidity of flesh and blood, but with a strength that felt like it could crush stone.
I looked at my new hand, the moonlight glinting off the dark steel. For the first time since the manor burned, I felt a spark of something other than grief. I felt dangerous.
"Thank you, Lord Phillip," I said,
My very own voice regained its edge, but this time, it was backed by the weight of iron.
I stood up, the prosthetic arm hanging at my side, ready for the weight of a blade. The road to Tata was long, and the city was a nest of vipers, but I was no longer just a survivor. It was a reimagined nightmare.
"Dominik is waiting for me, It's time I show him what happens when you don't finish what you started." I whispered, the black eyepatch casting a shadow over my face
The realization hit me like a cold splash of water. Tata wasn't just a den of thieves or a corrupted trade hub. It was the place where I had first found Mya, trembling and starving in a gutter, discarded by a society that viewed beastkin as nothing more than living property. I remembered the way her ears had flattened in terror back then, and the haunted look in her eyes that took years to fade.
I hadn't just rescued a friend that day; I had stolen a life back from the jaws of Bernard Callus's mercantile machine.
I looked at my new steel hand, flexing my fingers. The whirring of the clockwork was the only sound in the room. My revenge against Dominik was personal… a blood debt for my eye and my friends… but this? Stopping the ruler of Tata was for Mya. It was for every demi-human currently suffering under his shadow while he lined his pockets with the Bronze Coin's blood money.
"He's still there, Bernard Callus is still sitting on his throne of bones, and Dominik thinks he's found a safe harbor." I murmured,
Lord Phillip watched me, his expression grim.
"He believes he is untouchable because of the wealth he generates. He thinks the crown will look the other way."
I stood tall, the weight of the prosthetic arm balancing the emptiness in my right vision. I wasn't just a victim of a manor raid anymore. I was a storm gathering strength.
"Let him think that, let him believe his walls are high enough. Mya deserves a world where she doesn't have to look over her shoulder. The maids deserve a world where men like Dominik have nowhere to hide." I said, turning toward the door.
I adjusted my leather eyepatch, the black material sharp against my pale skin.
"I'm going to Tata. I'm going to tear down that guild, and I'm going to pull Bernard Callus off his throne."
I didn't look back as I left the Bureau. My heart was no longer bittersweet; it was iron and ice. I had a town to burn and a friend's past to avenge. The hero of Town Allure was coming to Tata, and this time, I wouldn't stop until the debt was paid in full.
I was halfway to the door, the rhythmic whirring of my new steel arm the only sound in the room, when Lord Phillip's voice cut through the silence.
"Don't be a lone wolf, Roxy. The road to Tata is a viper's nest, and walking into the lion's den with only one eye and a new arm is a fool's errand. The truth is, I've already prepared for your arrival. I've sent someone… well, several someones to assist you." he said, his voice dropping to a cautionary tone.
He gestured toward the shadows of a side chamber. Two men stepped forward, their footsteps echoing against the stone floor.
On the left stood a man clad in shimmering, light-reflecting armor. He was a Luminous Knight named Mochi, a demi-human whose presence was both calming and fierce, a golden haired cat. My heart skipped a beat as I looked at him… he had a bob-cut tail and the unmistakable traits of a cat beastkin.
He looked so much like Mya that for a split second, I felt a pang of nostalgia. He was clearly a master of combat, his movements fluid and precise.
In the middle stood a man who looked entirely out of place next to a knight and a butcher. Harold Ford wore the fine, sensible silks of a tax collector. He was a man of ledgers and gold, and Phillip explained that he was a close associate of Bernard Callus.
Harold would be our key, the friendly face that would lead me directly into the heart of Tata without raising the city's alarms.
Both men offered a respectful bow. Mochi's golden eyes flickered with recognition and respect for my scars, while Harold offered a polite, professional nod.
"We are at your disposal, Roxy. For the sake of our kind, and for the peace of the east." Mochi said, his voice a smooth purr.
I looked at my new allies. A knight who fought with light and a man who fought with coin. It was an odd trio, but perhaps that was exactly what was needed to dismantle a corrupt empire.
The room fell into a heavy, suffocating silence as Harold Ford stepped fully into the light. His eyes traveled from the black leather of my eyepatch down to the cold, mechanical gleam of my prosthetic arm. His face went pale, his jaw tightening as the memories of our last encounter rushed back… not as allies, but as predator and prey.
This was the same man who, months ago, had stood in my doorway with a sneer, threatening to seize the Rynd household. He had been the one to whisper that if I couldn't find the gold to pay my mounting taxes, I could always "donate" an eye to the black market to settle the debt.
Harold's breath hitched.
"You… The girl from the outskirts... Eirene. What in the gods' name happened to you? Your arm... your eye... you look like you've crawled back from the gates of hell." he stammered.
I didn't flinch. I didn't even give him the satisfaction of seeing my anger. I simply flexed the fingers of my steel hand, the clockwork whirring with a sharp, metallic hiss that made him jump.
"I've seen some things, Harold. But thank you for participating in this mission. I hope your skills with ledgers are as sharp as your tongue used to be. Also, don't call me Eirene, from now on, call me Roxy."
"Y-Yes, Roxy."
I watched him closely. The greedy, sneering man who had once threatened to sell me for parts was gone. In his place was someone subdued, almost desperate to please Lord Phillip. The shift in his personality was jarring… the arrogance replaced by a frantic, nervous kindness… but I knew better than to trust a snake just because it had shed its skin.
"Of course, Roxy. I... I was only doing my duty before. But seeing what you've endured... I am at your service. Truly."
Harold said quickly with a stammer, bowing his head so low I could see the sweat on his brow.
Mochi, the Luminous Knight, glanced between us, his feline ears twitching as he sensed the thick tension, but he remained silent.
"Save the apologies for someone who still has two eyes to cry with. We have a city to infiltrate."
I muttered, turning toward the window where the first faint grey of dawn was beginning to bleed into the horizon.
I grabbed my cloak, slinging it over my shoulders to hide the mechanical limb. The debt of the past wasn't settled, but for now, Harold Ford was a tool I needed to reach Dominik.
Lord Phillip stood up, the candlelight casting a long, final shadow across the map of the territories. His face was set in a grim expression of hope and dread.
"You have your team. You have your weapon. Now, go prepare yourselves." Phillip said, his gaze lingering on my black eyepatch.
He looked toward the window, where the stars were just beginning to fade into the deep indigo of the early morning.
"Your departure is set, Before sunrise."