Smiling Man

Up ahead, Hito could hear all sorts of disgruntled talk amongst the mercenaries. It seemed that they were nowhere close to finding the target. Good, he thought. If it was that easy, this would be a waste of time.

It was then that Hito decided to step out of the bushes and greet the troops the way he always greeted others.

“Oh-hay-ou, every-” Hito stopped, realizing dozens of crossbows were being pointed at him. “Ah. Jumpy, I see.”

“Who the hell are you?!” asked one man.

“He looks like a noble. Maybe a mage?” said another.

“Hold on,” Captain Bowen finally stepped forward. “I think I’ve heard of this man.”

“Captain?!”

“You’re that traveling eccentric from Ulfrank, right?” Bowen addressed Hito.

“Yes I am. Here,” Hito slipped the letter from Wallack out of his sleeve. “From a dear friend of yours.”

Bowen gestured for the others to lower their weapons and took the letter. After inspecting it, he turned to the camp and said, “He’s on our side.” The nearby mercenaries relaxed, and Bowen continued, saying, “Inspector Hito? I’ve heard stories about your exploits. I hope at least some of them are true.”

“I’m sure most of them are,” Hito continued to smile. “I heard you’ve been having trouble tracking down your man. I’ll be taking over the tracking part.”

“And you’re sure you can do it?”

“Yes, but I do have one condition as part of our joint effort.”

“What would that be?”

“That I don’t have to fight when the time comes.”

“But you’re a mage, are you not?”

“Yes, but my particular talents lie in tracking, finding, and revealing, good sir! You and your men however are scholars of the blade! Practitioners of polemology! It’s only in our best interest if we put our respective talents to proper use... Don’t you agree?”

“More or less... So, now that you’re here, when would you like to start?”

“Now is as good a time as any.” Hito then raised up his staff, and its handle shortened to be no more than the length of his hand. The floating blue gem transformed as well, spreading throughout the circular portion of the staff’s end until it was round and thin like a lens. Once the staff had reshaped itself, Hito crouched down and inspected the soil. “Hmm. Hmm. I see.”

As Hito studied the ground, Bowen and his men observed from a distance.

“I see, I see,” Hito nodded along. “All right, I know where he went.”

“Already?” Bowen exclaimed. “What did you find?”

“Quite a few unusual things. Copious footsteps, wagon wheel trails... But not just that. There are dozens of illusory signatures, each meant to redirect an observer’s attention elsewhere. Not only are Jabez and his fellows disguised, they’re also in a kind of anti-scrying barrier. However...” Hito continued to smile, “By nature of moving, they’ve revealed the path they’ve taken.”

“I’m not sure I understand,” said Bowen. “If they’re using magic to redirect attempts to observe them, wouldn’t what you’re using also be redirected?”

“This much is true, BUT this trick only works when such magical barriers are observed in an... Ordinary fashion. When this same barrier is observed from multiple angles, you can see everywhere they are supposed to be but are in fact not. In other words...”

“You can form a circle around where they should actually be,” nodded Bowen.

“Exactly! And thus, they are going...” Hito pointed down the northeastern road. “That way.”

Alech, who was nearby for this speech, threw his hands up. “What? That’s it?!”

“What seems to be the problem?” asked Hito.

“We already figured out they were heading this direction!” Alech stomped over. “Jabez has been targeting high-ranking officials from Duke Sigard’s court, so since Wallack told us Sigard was heading to Leonia, that means Jabez was probably chasing after the duke himself next! Besides, there have been lots of disappearances along the road! That has to be them!”

“Ah, but Alech, you’re using words like ‘probably’ and ‘has to be.’ You’re speaking in hypotheticals whilst I’ve confirmed your suspicions! Does that not bring us one step closer to our goals?”

Alech glared at Hito. “How did you... No matter. Is there anything else you’d like to share that isn’t immediately obvious?”

“Well, if you insist.” Hito began pacing back and forth in front of Alech. “You dragged your left foot instead of raising it while walking just now, a sign of injury and sensitivity. You have a partially cleaned yolk stain on your tunic from breakfast this morning, smudged from an effort to wipe it off. Your right arm is more muscular than your left, indicating that it’s the arm you use to pull the bowstring. You also have fresh stitching on your clothes, an attempt to repair recent damage. In addition, I spotted a small piece of meat stuck between your teeth colored a faint orange. Judging from some of the bones in the camp’s refuse pile, I can deduce that you went hunting this very morning and encountered a wild yag bird. But... You bit off more than you could chew. When it gave chase, you ran, twisting your ankle, and it got on top of you, slashing your clothes with its talons. However, your comrades were able to slay the beast, saving you from real injury. You took the bird, as well as its eggs, back to camp, and you all enjoyed a sumptuous meal of egg and orange yag meat together.”

Alech, as well as many others, were left speechless by the verbal assault. Others seemed impressed and applauded the inspector.

“What in the...” Alech put a hand to his stitching. “Well that’s... Pretty accurate. Strange, too. But what does my dominant bow hand have to do with your story?”

“That, my dear Alech, is quite simple. You see,” Hito pointed, “You still have a mark on your left arm from when you accidentally struck the bow string against it, distracting you enough for the yag bird to get the drop on you!”

Alech pulled down his rolled-up sleeves. “All right, I get it. You made your point.”

“What Alech is trying to say,” Bowen spoke up, “is that your skills will be a great boon.”

“Indeed!” Hito nodded. “Now unless there is any more fuss to be made, we must get back on the road as quickly as possible!”

“You heard the man,” Bowen turned towards the camp. “Start packing up, everyone. We’re back on the hunt.”

““Yes sir!”” the mercenaries shouted.

With the most annoying part out of the way, Hito was prepared to get a move on with his allies of the moment. While the mercs packed up their things, Hito looked around, quietly observing them all. Most seemed impressed by his little display, if a bit unnerved. That was often the case... But to make simple observations about a man a few feet away from you was child’s play to Hito. It didn’t prove anything, but it was a good way to capture the imagination of others. Such people were useful enough pawns. What really interested him, though, were people who had strong survival instincts. Hito had a way of blending in, even when standing out among others. No matter how strange or annoying he came off as, he was largely disregarded as a threat. This suited him just fine. But the rare few who did see him as a threat, even unconsciously, were far more interesting to him. Of the mercenaries in the crowd, only one person passed his test.

“You there,” Hito approached a woman with auburn hair in a ponytail. “What’s your name?”

“My name? Aurora... Sir.”

“Oh please! You can just call me Hito. Or Inspector. Whichever you prefer!”

“I see... Good to meet you, Inspector.”

Hito glanced down, noticing Aurora had passively moved her hand to the sword on her hip. This pleased Hito greatly.

“Aurora, if I may, I heard rumors that you had personal dealings with Jabez. Is this true? If so, any information you have would be appreciated.”

“Heard about that, huh?” Aurora rubbed the back of her head. “Let’s talk later once we’re back on the road. I’ll tell you what I can.”

“Thank you kindly,” Hito bowed his head. “I look forward to it.”

After that exchange, Hito returned to his business of quiet observation. Once the time came, he and the mercenaries continued their travels northeast. While walking, Aurora spoke to Hito about her interactions.

“Goblins, you say? He was bothered by that?”

“It sounds strange, I know, but it’s true. I always chalked it up to Jabez having a big heart. After all, feeling remorse over creatures like that, you’d think he’d be as compassionate as a saint! But then... He did all those other things...”

“I see, I see,” Hito jotted things down in his journal. “And you said he had killed two of your comrades near a supposed goblin cave, yes? I believe I see the issue.”

“What is it?”

“Jabez has allied with some goblins, perhaps out of a sense of guilt.”

“What? Why would he do that? That’s like saying he allied with the river gar because he felt bad about eating fish.”

“I cannot begin to explain his mentality, but his actions tell me much. Has he shown empathy towards any other unusual things?”

“Hm... He did start questioning me about slaves. And he even stole a bunch... Killed that Ramvic fellow too. I couldn’t fathom why, though.”

“You... Couldn’t?” Hito had to pause. He sometimes forgot how Ramthians viewed the world. “Aurora, I think I see the problem.”

“You do?”

“Yes, quite so,” Hito nodded. “You and the others seem to lack a fundamental understanding of how Jabez thinks. To you, he must seem like a true madman, an insane killer lashing out at random, even towards his fellow brethren. But based on what I’ve been hearing, he probably never saw you as brethren at all.”

Hito watched the girl’s expression change as the truth dawned on her. It was clear to Hito how little she understood. Ever since arriving in this realm, he had learned that Ramthians were a stubborn lot. Even the kindest of their flock struggled to see things from another’s perspective. Small wonder, then, that they couldn’t catch an outsider like Jabez. To another like himself, the facts Hito presented should be painfully obvious, even laughably so. The ignorance Ramthians shared suited Hito just fine, though. Despite their inherent paranoia and xenophobia, it made walking among them... Effortless.

The inspector and mercenaries continued their journey through Norwyn, eventually reaching a small town named Lurick. While Bowen and his men focused on questioning the locals and bringing attention to themselves, Hito quietly separated from them, following the faint trail of otherworldly energy in the area. And when he tracked it down to an ordinary-looking man in steel armor with a blonde ponytail, Hito smiled once more.