Chapter 19 The Weight of the Fist

The sound of dragging echoed like a slow, grinding drumbeat through the winding cave. Then the woods. Then the grasslands. Then the dirt road that stretched into the edges of the capital. Kai never stopped walking. One hand gripped the ankle of the unconscious troll behind him, the other swung casually at his side. The trail behind them was lined with blood, bent grass, and disturbed stone.

The girls followed.

Fara carried the limp form of Revoli for the first stretch, her steps slow but steady. Her arms were scratched from earlier fighting, and her legs moved stiffly, but she didn’t complain. She just kept her eyes forward and held Revoli close. Skye took her from there, grumbling under her breath and muttering, "Wish we knew teleportation spells..."

"Next life," Fara responded, tiredly.

They walked for hours. Their clothes were covered in cave dust and bits of dried moss. They crossed miles without sleep. Through the outer gates, across the pasture where shepherds stared with wide eyes, past tradesmen who froze mid-transaction. When they reached the inner city walls, even the guards stepped aside without a word. The sight of the troll was enough. No one wanted to be the one who got in the way.

By the time they made it to the guild hall, the sun was sinking behind the stone spires of the kingdom, painting the sky orange and bleeding red. Their shadows stretched far behind them, long and quiet.

Inside, the guild buzzed with laughter and tankards. Members lounged about, swapping tall tales of monsters they’d never actually fought.

Until they heard the thud.

THUD.

The earth outside the guild shook. A low murmur spread through the hall. Lena rushed to the doors.

What she found made her breath catch.

A massive troll corpse lay across the cobblestone steps, its face slack and lifeless. A trail of dirt and dried blood led all the way down the main road.

At the end of it stood Kai.

He looked like he had just gone for a walk. Maybe a bit of dust on his coat. A shadow under his eyes. Nothing more.

Lena let out a small, stunned scream. It escaped before she could stop it.

Kai looked at her, nodded once, and said, "I’d like a word with Lockwood."

He turned to the girls, all three of them now collapsed on a bench nearby.

“Sit. Rest. I’ll handle this.”

Inside, Gerry Lockwood sat at his desk, a mug in hand, eyes barely masking the tension. He tried to smile as Kai entered.

“Kai. I hear you’ve been… productive.”

Kai closed the door behind him and walked up to the desk without invitation.

“I want to make something clear,” he said. “If you’re sending me and my group into places like that—dungeons full of monsters bigger than carriages—you don’t get to act like we’re just beginners playing fetch quests. We bleed the same as your veterans.”

Lockwood swallowed. “Of course. But you must understand, Revoli—”

“—didn’t choose to spy on us,” Kai interrupted. “She was scared. Wanted to impress someone. Maybe even you. But if you send someone else to ‘monitor’ me again, don’t expect me to be polite about it.”

His voice never rose. But it filled the room.

“I’m not asking for gold. Not even prestige. What I want…” Kai hesitated, his eyes softening slightly, “…is a home for the girls. Somewhere safe. So long as they work for the guild, they should have beds. Meals. Doors that lock.”

Lockwood blinked. “You’d take on more missions to cover that?”

Kai nodded once. “Give them the stability I never had. I’ll take whatever quests you throw my way. Just… make sure they have a place to come back to.”

He stepped back toward the door.

“Oh—and Revoli stays. She’s earned her place now.”

Lockwood could only nod. He didn’t know what kind of man Kai really was, but in that moment, he knew this much:

He wasn’t someone you wanted to disappoint.