Soul Knight - Chapter 35 (Patreon)

Kaya and Eirwen snuck through the tall grass, their bodies covered in camouflage paint. Using the skill of the same name, essence and mana slowly drained from them as they moved slowly.

There were a few sentries remaining after the army arrived up front, but they had not invested in the same watch towers as Nagduros.

The archers patrolled along the wall, and their party found the right moment to slip into the city. Kaya, Eirwen, and the wolfling girls scaled the wall easily, providing a rope down to the orc scouts.

They managed to slip into the city unnoticed. There were people milling about in town, so they sought a proper way to move about safely. Unfortunately, the safest and simplest option became known quickly.

Kaya pinched her nose as they moved through the sewer, her ears drooping naturally. There was a small walkway that required even her to crouch, their feet submerged in the gross, slowly moving waters.

Eirwen whispered from behind her, “It’s not that bad. Besides, I think this might be the best place to search for the children anyway. The people don’t know there are children captive, right? Other than a secret entrance in the church or some sort of warehouse, this is the most likely place.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You don’t have as strong a nose as I do. Still, you’re right. Let’s keep moving.”

They journeyed through the sewers slowly. The space was narrow enough that they could only move in a single file. At each major grate, they stealthily looked around to observe the area, looking for any hints of the missing children. So far, they had only seen villagers moving about their days.

They reached a fork in the way, the sewer splitting in three directions.

Kaya offered, “Perhaps we should split up into three teams? We can send one wolfling with each group, and they can howl if they run into resistance. It could take hours or days to search the city otherwise, and we’ll cover more ground this way.”

Eirwen sighed. “But then we’ll give away our position. Still, if we find enemies hiding down here, it’s likely because they are up to no good.” Eirwen looked back to where the three wolfling girls were following with a frown. “How do we tell them? Nick is not here. I suppose I should try to feel over our connection what he’s even doing.”

Eirwen closed her eyes, and it seemed she was delving into her connection with Nick. After a moment, she smiled. “Looks like they are searching above, they found some helpful people–the daughter of the Bishop, Nick seems to have a good impression of her. We’ll have to do our best to not run into him or get caught, or it might make things difficult for him.”

They spent some time gesturing to the three wolflings, the orc scouts looking on with amusement. But eventually, it seemed they understood.

The three girls would split up, and call for the others if they ran into trouble. Kaya knew that a wolf’s howl could be heard for miles on the open plains, but should be able to be heard from a decent distance within these narrow channels.

Each party had five orc scouts and a wolfling, though their group had three with Kaya, Eirwen, and Fang. From what Kaya could tell, their sewer was heading straight to the center of the city, while the others were branching around toward the other main boulevards.

The other parties would continue along the outskirts for a time, before they reached the next boulevard, where they would then head toward the center. If they found nothing, they would search the next paths together.

They had observed the city before entry, and the large cathedral was near the center of the city, not far from the Ordeal. In Kaya’s mind, those two felt like the most likely locations to her. They would continue their search, hoping to find a lead to the missing children.

Kaya had confidence in Nick’s group doing their job, but still, she worried about him and Eirwen. This enemy was duplicitous, willing to attack with treacherous methods.

***

Nick marched down the outskirts of the city, the two dozen orc warriors, shamans and scouts in tow. They wore their armor, but were forced to remove their many blades and shields. In truth, their thick skins with essence were quite good against arrows and daggers anyway, and Nick thought they still would be more than formidable against the many humans.

He also managed to bring four wolflings along, in addition to the ones heading underground. He figured it would be helpful to have the trackers along, just in case he needed them to sniff out something.

The Archpriestess and an assortment of monks and priestesses followed, a small guard contingent with them. There was a near equal number of them, and they flanked the orcs and helped disperse the crowds as they went through the city.

The people in the streets scowled at the orcs, and barely wanted to give way as the orcs marched through. Many of the people were dressed quite conservatively, not looking all that differently from the nuns and monks in their outfits.

Nick was reminded of quakers or the amish in how they dressed. They wore muted colors, simple rough-spun garments that didn’t stand out.

He almost imagined that if Rebecca wasn’t there, that they just might be having fruit and garbage being thrown at them.

Nick turned to Rebecca, as they walked side by side. “Thanks for escorting and giving my people the opportunity to search, Archpriestess. I was told the previous emissaries were sent away.”

Rebecca frowned. “That is odd–I had not heard about that, until Frederick mentioned it. But settling this Conflict is important! Even this minor Tribulation was hard on our people. We’ve had several deaths, and our people have been run ragged. It has been a good opportunity for growth, but a normal Tribulation targeted at our leader’s strength would be catastrophic. Dozens will die. We must do what we can to prevent this.”

They continued their walk, and Nick did notice the people looked at her with reverence. “I can see you are a big help in keeping the peace here. The people all respect you, I can tell.”

Rebecca blushed. “I–Yes. I work hard for the people of Zura, and I am blessed to be appreciated. I see the orcs treat you with respect as well–even the…wolflings? I thought these were the orcs of Nagduros, how did you, an outsider, obtain this position of leadership?”

Nick chuckled. “What do you think? How could one get honorable orcs to follow them? They–hang on.”

They were walking in front of a seedy-looking bar, when Nick’s Advanced Soul Sense felt something odd. A grouping of souls was beneath the building, in what appeared to be some kind of basement.

But also, a grouping of his followers, in the sewer. He sighed in relief that they had made it in without issue–but there were only six of them, still working their way through the sewers. He guessed that they must have split up, but their enemies were likely still unaware.

Nick called at a halt as he looked at the building, finding it to be a mixture of a bar and an inn, with rooms in the upstairs. However, it was clear that the bar provided other services, with a few women in the windows up above.

He was a little surprised to find such a place, after being told about the purity of Seraphara. Of course, lust was a negative emotion for seeking enlightenment, and normally chastity was a virtue for both priestesses and priests until they reached a certain stage in their life.

Rebecca asked, “What is it? This place is…”

Nick raised his brow, taking on a joking tone, “The people of Zura seek enlightenment here? This seems out of place, to me.”

She blushed. “T-The people of Zura are not only those that live here. We allow many merchants within our bounds, trade is important for a thriving community. Many were here when the Conflict began, and continued to stay into the Trial. Our people should not be common proprietors. Still, this place is a lawful establishment. What appears to be the problem?”

Nick thought for a moment. He felt several criminals below, people that had definitely committed various sins, along with several groups of people packed tightly together–Nick imagined they must be in cages.

However, he doubted these were the children or adult orcs. There simply were not enough of them, and this didn’t quite seem secretive or well-guarded enough.

He thought he could win some good will, if he discovered some bad activities within their city. Criminals were often connected, and perhaps the captives could even have more information. Most likely, these would know something about where the children might be being kept, or might be able to substantiate the orc’s claim.

The question was whether this woman would allow him to interrogate the criminals.

Of course, Judging them was right out, unless he could get alone with them. Perhaps they could lock them up, for him to get all that juicy essence later?

Nick sighed. This Trial was annoying as hell. It was supposed to make him more or better, but this just felt exhausting. Still, this might be the only opportunity he had to help these people. A Hero would definitely save them, now that he was sure something wasn’t right here.

He looked for a good excuse. Taking a deep breath through his nose, he caught the smell of something that just might do it.

“I smell blood, Archpriestess. Lots of it.”

“B-Blood?” She paled. “I don’t smell anything, and this is also a restaurant–surely they would have meat. But…”

Nick shook his head. “It’s not animal blood. It’s coming from the basement.” Nick pointed toward the sewer.

A monk nearby scoffed. “The Sinful Sanctuary doesn’t have a basement.”

Rebecca turned to him, an angry look on her features. “And just how would you know that, Frederick? It sounds like you should spend more time doing your duty in the library, transcribing more books and seeking your own peace and enlightenment.” She glared at him for a moment, and he visibly shrunk under her gaze, but she turned to Nick in question. “But he is right, Zura does not much have basements. The earth beneath is usually too wet, our city too close to the lake outside of this Trial. If it has a basement… What would you like to do? Search the bar?”

Nick shrugged. “It’s a start. How else are we going to find the children? We’ll have to search a few buildings, right? It’s not like they’d all be out in the open, or you’d know about them. I don’t know if the children are here, but what I can promise you is that something sketchy is going on in this building, and the city’s keepers of the law should know about it.”

Rebecca nodded. “I understand–and I would feel much better knowing something terrible is not happening beneath our village. Then, I will allow you to inspect while under watch of the town guard, so long as you keep to your Oaths. Please, do your best to not disturb this place of business.”

Nick chuckled. “Aw, you won’t be coming in with me, Archpriestess? What if folks require healing?”

She blushed. “I’d rather not go into such a place until we’re sure. If people who require healing are discovered, please call out to us, and we will be happy to help those in need.”

The guard was called, and Nick was satisfied when two men arrived and both were not sketchy people. When Nick went inside, there were not many people as it was not quite dinner time, just a few people having a drink.

There were stairs leading up on the far left, and an area for the kitchen in the back, with the floor plan mostly wide open. However, there didn’t appear to be any sign of a basement or cellar.

Nick actually wasn’t sure where to find the stairs leading down, but there weren’t many places it could be.

The barkeep was washing a glass, looking at Nick and the two town guard who stood at the entryway with interest. “Can I help you, guardsman?”

Nick smiled. “Hey, barkeep–You can help me out, I’m sure. Where’s your basement? Over here?”

The man’s eyes snapped to the wall, his eyes widening, before he chuckled awkwardly. “There’s no basement here, fellas.”

Nick couldn’t help but side-eye the two guards. They had picked up on his behavior, and were already looking at the barkeep like he had done something wrong. He couldn’t help but draw some parallels to Earth police.

“Aw, shucks, barkeep. Maybe you’re right. Tell you what, let’s play a game–it’ll be fun. I’m gonna stand here by this wall here, you see? Now, when I take a step in one direction, I want you to tell me if I’m getting hotter, as in closer, or colder, as in further away, to the entrance, or however you open it from this side. I’ll give this entire bag of coins if you just humor me, and play with me for a whole minute.” He took out the pouch he obtained from the bandits, and placed the decent sack of coins on the bar with a clank before returning to his spot.

The man looked amused, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, sure, I’ll take your money. There’s no basement, though…”

Nick nodded, and took a step toward the stairs. “You get your money if you just humor me. Am I colder or hotter now?”

“Colder.”

“Huh. Colder, you say?”

Nick went back and forth with the barkeep, and even played along with his lies, where he led Nick on a wild goose chase. Of course, the barkeep didn’t actually want Nick anywhere near the opening.

But near the end, he approached the barkeep until he began to sweat–Nick kept getting closer, ignoring his calls of hotter or colder.

Of course, the man didn’t want him to find the entrance, and was lying to throw him off, but that didn’t work on Nick. To his surprise, Nick kept getting closer to the barkeep.

“I…don’t want to play this game anymore.”

“Huh, now why would that be, barkeep? You are so close to getting all that money for nothing, but humbling me in my search for something that doesn’t even exist! What do you think, guardsman?”

They now had their eyes narrowed. “Keep playing, barkeep.”

The barkeep’s eyes became shifty, as if deciding on something.  “I don’t get paid enough for this! I don’t have any part in what goes on down there!” The man reached under the counter, pressing a switch. A door opened underneath the stairs, revealing an entry.

“Look at that. Now, guardsman, I don’t know if we got enough folks with us here. We might meet resistance from some seedy individuals.”

One guardsman ran out to go get reinforcements, the other guardsman watching the barkeep as Nick collected his money pouch. Thankfully, there was no additional movement downstairs. It appeared they weren’t aware when the entrance going down was opened.

Nick moved down the stairs with four town guards, finding a hallway with a series of doors heading into different rooms, almost like a hotel. At the far end, there was a guard. The man had a crossbow, and he loaded and fired at Nick and the guards nearly right away.

Using Harden Skin, Nick’s armor easily deflected the bolt as he charged. He crossed the room in but a single moment and struck him powerfully in the stomach. He doubled over where Nick threw him on the ground.

The guards were quick to tie him up, preventing him from moving.

What then followed was a series of encounters that went similarly. There were six rooms, three with cages, containing various races of people inside. No humans or orcs were held captive, and there were even two clergy participating in what appeared to be hateful torture with horrible instruments.

In total, they captured six men in these rooms, and freed over two dozen people meant for trafficking or just general slavery. All were bound uncomfortably, and they were all miserable.

Nick wanted to judge all those involved, each of them making him sick to his stomach just being near them. There were two rogues that he could feel from their sins that they were involved in many assassinations.

Rebecca and her priestesses and monks were called in, the torture victims requiring healing.

She looked over those harmed with wide eyes, tears pooling in her eyes. “T-This…is horrible. This…was happening in our city? Just what was Torvus doing…”

Nick was shocked at the efficacy of the sisters’ healing, they were even faster than the shamans that he had seen. However, while they were able to restore the people’s bodies, they were unable to restore their minds. Those tortured appeared to be outside of their own bodies, their eyes just staring into space as they were helped.

However, it appeared Nick could help a little. The Body, Mind, and Soul were linked. With their minds being broken through torment and suffering, their souls had become frayed. Nick used Soul Mend, which restored their souls.

In doing so, it was as if their broken minds had a scaffolding to be rebuilt. Within just a few minutes with the aid of some smiling priestesses, instead of staring off into space or curled up into a ball of despair, several of them were understanding of their situation and showing signs of relief.

Rebecca was shocked at Nick’s capability. “You’re a healer of the soul? What an astonishing talent. I had heard adherents of Seraphara could accomplish this eventually, but not until the second or third stratum.”

Nick felt good, having helped the half-dozen people who needed it more than the others. It was the first time, besides helping his wife, that he got to do something good that didn’t involve fighting.

Nearly all of the slaves were quite thankful, and it gave him a warm feeling inside having made such a significant impact on their lives.

He smiled at Rebecca. “Well, I was happy I was able to help. Your healing was something special, too, Archpriestess. These people need food and rest, for sure. What will happen to them?”

She gave him a small smile back. “Please, call me Rebecca.”

Rebecca continued, “These people…have suffered horrible trauma. The worst…the ones harmed by our own priests. I cannot believe they could justify their actions through Seraphara, and actually used their knowledge and wisdom to increase their ability to harm others! She professes love for all beings, to twist such a pure thing into something so wicked…” She sighed, pain filling her features.

Nick did his best to comfort her. “I suppose you’re somewhat in charge, so you can feel like it’s your fault. But is it really? There are a lot of people here in Zura, could you really keep track of them all? These men made their own choices, you aren’t responsible for them all.”

Rebecca sighed, and gave Nick a small smile. “I…you’re right. Thank you for your words. I could see you have a kind heart, that you enjoyed helping those people. Even if they weren’t part of your goals.”

“I’m glad we were able to help these people. We haven’t found the orc children, but you can see that there is more happening in this city than you’re aware of already, right?”

Rebecca nodded sadly. “You’re right.” She gave him a small smile. “Thank you, for helping us discover this evil and root it out.”

Nick nodded. “You’re welcome. I… do have a request. Allow me to question, or interrogate, the criminals–to see if they might know where the hostages might be. I’ll also try to get details about the slave trade.”

Rebecca frowned, more than a little unhappy about this idea. “Interrogate? You plan on…harming them, to make them talk?”

Nick noticed that him and Rebecca were mostly alone, the monks and nuns busying about to clothe and prepare the captives for moving, their bindings already removed.

He spoke quietly, “I would like to just question them, but I cannot make them talk without…encouragement. The truth is, thanks to my soul magic, I can pretty reliably tell if someone is lying.”

Rebecca’s eyes widened in shock. She responded quietly, “You can do that, without harming them? I have never heard of this. Most truth seekers and mind readers require harming those they investigate. But this is good news, thanks to that, I can help.”

Nick raised his brow, as he nodded. “I can do it without harming them. You can make them talk? How?”

“You saw how I silenced that monk. If it’s just getting them to respond, I can do that. I just can’t make them tell the truth. I may be limited to only a few answers per person, though.”

Nick gave Rebecca a feral smile. “It looks like we should be able to get us some answers. Are you ready?”

Rebecca nodded, giving him a look of determination. “Let’s do it. I would love to rid Zura of this evil, and if children are being harmed, I would like to help.”