Convergence Point

Tunaust’s guards were still searching the streets when Haruto finally made it back to his hideout in the basement of the ruined house.

He set his backpack on the floor before collapsing onto his straw mattress, completely exhausted.

“That was a close call,” he whispered.

He’d managed to lose his pursuers in the maze of narrow, stifling alleys in the slums. And since the authorities rarely ventured there, the locals had no desire to cooperate with them.

After a moment, Haruto calmed down, and his breathing returned to a normal rhythm. He then pulled his backpack toward him and took out the stolen items.

His eyes immediately fell on the cell phone. The sight of the device still seemed surreal. He thought it had been lost in the rubble of Pauweik or, worse yet… fallen into the hands of the Church. Yet there it was, right before his eyes.

Haruto stared at it for a long time, confusion written all over his face.

“I just can’t understand it…”

The fact that this woman and her companion had gone to the trouble of stealing his phone was incomprehensible to him. Did they even know what it was?

That last thought made his chest tighten. Because if they truly knew the nature of this object, things would very quickly become dangerous.

“What if they were here on behalf of…”

Haruto winced and shook his head.

“No, no! I can’t believe they’re in cahoots with the clergy,” he thought in horror.

Because if that were the case, he was already doomed.

Haruto spent some time weighing every possibility in his mind. Finally, a dilemma presented itself.

“Flight… or confrontation.”

Fleeing meant he could disappear before the guards got their hands on him. He could then leave for somewhere else, under a new identity.

“But staying… might give me some answers…”

Haruto weighed the two options for a few more minutes, until his eyes drifted to the notes scattered across the table.

“If things get dicey, I can always slip away. On the other hand… I have to finish this first,” he decided.

The next morning, a gray sky hung over Tunaust as Haruto made his way to Eksmid’s shop.

The familiar warmth of the forge greeted him the moment he stepped through the door, along with the blacksmith’s hoarse voice.

Eksmid was hammering a bar of Damascus steel on the anvil, swearing like a sailor with every blow of the hammer. Misshapen pieces of metal were piled up at the foot of the forge.

“I see he hasn’t quite mastered the technique yet,” Haruto muttered.

Eksmid caught sight of his movements out of the corner of his eye and looked up. A half-smile stretched across his beard.

“Ah… Tanis, it’s ya…”

The craftsman rummaged through a nearby pile of scrap metal, then pulled out a small canvas pouch, which he handed to Haruto.

“I’ve finished what ya asked me to do. It wasn’t easy… but I think ya’ll be happy with it.”

Haruto unfolded the pouch. All the requested components were inside, carefully wrapped.

He nodded with satisfaction. Yet something about the man’s demeanor caught his attention. He avoided Haruto’s gaze.

“What’s wrong, Eksmid?”

The old blacksmith lowered his eyes and clenched his fists. He sighed loudly, then replied in a low voice:

“The day after you left… a woman came here…”

Haruto froze. A woman?

“She had blue eyes… the kind that could freeze ya in your tracks.”

Haruto swallowed hard. Was this the same person he’d seen? Was he already in danger?

“And what exactly did she want?” he asked cautiously.

“To show me somethin’… a weird piece of black glass… It was about this big,” Eksmid said, miming a small rectangle.

Haruto felt his throat tighten. He was definitely talking about his phone. The one he was carrying on him that very moment. He nevertheless tried his best to remain impassive.

“And then?”

“I told her I didn’t know anything and that I couldn’t help her any further. She didn’t look at me for another second before leavin’ just as quickly,” Eksmid admitted.

Silence fell over the workshop. Only the crackling of the fire in the forge broke the stillness as the two men stared at each other.

Haruto finally broke the stalemate. He took off his backpack and pulled out the signet ring and the golden badge, which he handed to Eksmid with trembling hands.

“Do you recognize either of them?”

Eksmid barely glanced at them before looking at the young man suspiciously.

“This has to do with her, doesn’t it?”

Haruto nodded, his eyes darting away. Eksmid took the items and briefly examined the ring before focusing on the insignia.

His expression changed immediately.

“I don’t recognize the ring, but the other thing… You shouldn’t be carryin’ that around… it’s dangerous.”

“Why?”

The blacksmith lowered his voice.

“It’s the insignia of the Nerfeldfer Royal Guard.”

“The… the Royal Guard!?” stammered Haruto.

He stood speechless at this revelation. His mind was already weighing the implications.

If the man accompanying and “guarding” this woman belonged to that unit… then she must surely be close to the royal family.

“Tanis? Oh, Tanis, can ya hear me?”

Haruto blinked. Eksmid was waving a hand in front of his face anxiously.

“I don’t know what ya’ve gotten yourself into… but be careful, okay?”

Haruto slowly packed the items into his bag.

“I’ll be careful, Eksmid. I promise.”

He shook the blacksmith’s hand one last time, then quickly left the forge.

As soon as he stepped out of the workshop, Haruto felt his shoulders slump, as if a weight had just been placed on them. His mind was racing. He thought back to the woman, the Royal Guard’s badge… and the Church. Yet one piece of the puzzle still eluded him.

That was when he passed one of the boards displaying the wanted posters. He slowed down, then stopped. His eyes fell on a specific poster. The one with the girl and the thousand gold coins.

He immediately tore down the parchment to examine it more closely. The shape of her face. Her delicate features. That cold gaze.

“Wait a second… don’t tell me that—?!”

His heart skipped a beat. The woman in this poster and the uncanny resemblance to Valnaya…

“No, no… That’s impossible,” he thought.

Haruto looked at the portrait again. Then he understood. It also matched that of the mercenary woman. Except for one detail.

“Her hair is white… whereas this woman’s is short and black.”

Haruto felt a shiver run down his spine. The rumors, the nickname, the confident stride… and that burly man standing guard at the door. Everything seemed to confirm his hypothesis.

The rattling of objects in his bag suddenly interrupted his train of thought. The signet ring and the badge. The blood drained from his face as a realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

“Shit! If they realize I have them…”

These items could easily compromise their identities. Therefore, Haruto was a threat to them. He then realized that the pair would do anything to get them back.

He shook his head to pull himself together.

“I need to get ready and stay one step ahead of them… otherwise, it’s game over,” he concluded.

After all, secrets were better kept with a corpse.

Haruto resumed his walk, his mind still racing.

The young man then spent the next two days working like a maniac to finish his project. The completed device rested on the table that served as his makeshift workshop.

At thirty centimeters long, the pistol looked more like a sawed-off shotgun. Two short barrels mounted on a roughly carved wooden stock.

“But does it work?”

Haruto grabbed the pistol.

He cocked the mechanism, then raised his arm to aim. The pistol was heavy, and the effort made his forearm tremble. But it didn’t matter.

Haruto pulled the trigger. A sharp click rang out, followed by a shower of sparks bursting from the flint.

A weary smile stretched across his lips. “It works!”

He then grabbed the container holding the black powder mixture and checked its contents.

“Just enough for a few shots… but it should be enough for a safety net,” Haruto sighed.

With reluctance, he loaded both barrels. A tiny amount of powder, a wad, then the bullet.

Haruto then figured out how to carry the weapon. After a few attempts, he finally strapped it to his back, parallel to his hips. Hidden beneath his cloak, it was still easy to draw.

“Well… that’s one thing taken care of…”

With his weapon now ready, Haruto set out to track down the mercenary and her companion.

The plan was simple: use the signet ring and the badge to bargain for information… then disappear from the city.

The young man kept watch around the guild and the Wandering Cat. However, the exercise proved to be pointless. He found nothing. Worse yet, it was as if they’d vanished.

“Damn it! Where could they possibly be?”

Then an idea crossed his mind. The room. He could go back there and take a look. Maybe there were clues waiting for him there.

At dusk, Haruto returned to the Wandering Cat. He was nervous but determined. His pistol was loaded and concealed under his gray cloak.

He took one last look around, pulled his hood down, and walked around the back of the inn.

He spotted a few wooden crates lying around near the back entrance. He hastily stacked them under a window to make a makeshift ramp. In two swift moves, Haruto reached the windowsill and hoisted himself inside.

The young man found himself at the top of the staircase, facing a row of doors. Luckily for him, the hallway was deserted.

Haruto didn’t waste a second. Making use of what he’d learned during The Darkness with Askondal, he moved silently toward the room in question.

With one hand around the grip of his pistol, he carefully opened the door and stepped inside.

The place was plunged into complete darkness. There was no one there. When his eyes adjusted to the dark, he noticed that the bed was untouched and that the broken window had been boarded up.

“They’re not here anymore,” he muttered in disappointment.

Haruto was about to turn back when he spotted something on the floor, a small ball of paper lying under the table. He picked it up and unfolded it. A few words had been hastily scribbled on it.

Although he had learned the language spoken by the inhabitants of this world, Haruto was not yet comfortable with the writing system.

But the words were simple, which allowed Haruto to slowly decipher them.

Tomorrow at noon.
In the chapel, near the central bell tower.

A new wave of questions flooded his mind. Who had written this message? Who was it meant for? Was this a coincidence or not? Was it a trap?

After several long minutes of hesitation, Haruto folded up the parchment. It didn’t matter. Trap or not, he had to go there.

❖

Five days earlier, Lena painfully pulled herself up in bed, rubbing her eyes. Morning light filtered through the boards nailed over the broken window.

She had barely slept since the theft of her father’s signet ring and the other items hidden under the floorboards. The sounds from the street reached her, muffled and drowned out by the exhaustion and anger that consumed her.

A thought suddenly sent a chill down her spine.

“This theft puts us in grave danger,” she whispered.

If the Church were to discover their location, it would all be over. Hilde would likely be executed on the spot, a fate far more enviable than her own.

Lena slowly shook her head.

“No need to imagine the worst.”

As unlikely as it might be, finding the culprit might allow them to regain some control over the situation.

She stood up and began to get dressed. Just as she finished lacing her leather boots, someone knocked on the door.

“Hilde?” she asked in a low voice.

Lena froze in place, her hand suspended over the doorknob.

“What if it’s not him?”

Her heart was pounding so hard it made her dizzy.

The touch of the cold metal finally brought her back to her senses. She finally opened the door to find Hilde standing there.

A wave of relief washed over her. She noticed that the guard was already wearing his gear, but his features seemed more drawn than usual.

The princess motioned for her guardian to come in. As always, he remained standing by the door. Lena took the opportunity to gather a few things before turning to face him.

“Hilde, we have to find that thief.”

The man was silent for a moment, then sighed.

“My duty is to protect you, Lena, above all else. It would be best to avoid trouble… so I don’t think that’s smart.”

She frowned.

“Do you think this could be the work of the Church?”

“No. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

Lena clenched her fists.

“Maybe Skotto is seeking revenge? We should have cut out his tongue,” she growled.

Hilde flinched and had to suppress a grimace at his mistress’s words.

“I doubt it. Skotto would have too much to lose… No, it’s more likely that a third party is involved.”

The former guard watched Lena nervously, gauging her reaction. She remained silent for a moment, then shrugged before stepping toward the door.

“Well, then, let’s go find that scoundrel!”

Hilde nodded, swallowing hard.

“Let’s take our cloaks. It’s better to stay inconspicuous.”

The next few days consisted of a series of investigations that yielded mixed results.

Lena and Hilde questioned the locals, merchants, and anyone passing by the inn. Their accounts were vague, sometimes contradictory. Every clue seemed to lead them down a dead end.

On the second day, they went to see the blacksmiths and showed them the mysterious rectangular object. Once again, no one seemed to know anything.

The third and fourth days were just as fruitless. The pair seemed stuck back at square one. And the young woman’s frustration was becoming increasingly noticeable.

“What a damn waste of time! It’s as if this whole town is making fun of us!” she growled.

When the fifth day arrived, Hilde, too, was beginning to lose patience.

“We’re going in circles… Maybe it’s time to go back to the inn. Who knows, maybe we missed something there?” he finally said.

Lena sighed, then nodded reluctantly.

Back at the inn, Lena immediately set her things down on the table and flopped down on the bed like a little girl. Hilde shook his head in disapproval.

Then Lena noticed something unusual sticking out from under the pillow.

“Lena?” Hilde asked.

Intrigued, she reached for it and discovered a small piece of parchment folded in half.

Lena unfolded it and read a few handwritten words:

Tomorrow at noon.
In the chapel, near the central bell tower.

Lena’s throat tightened. The world began to spin around her.

It all stopped when she felt pressure on her left wrist, anchoring her in the present moment.

“Lena, Lena! For heaven’s sake, are you all right?”

“Hilde… look at this,” she finally blurted out, still shaken.

The guard snatched the parchment from her hands and stepped back to read it himself. His expression hardened.

“It’s a trap.”

“Maybe, but it might be our only chance…” Lena replied.

Hilde shook his head.

“To me, it looks more like a great way to get us killed foolishly.”

The young woman jumped to her feet and stepped within a few centimeters of the guard.

“We’re going to that meeting, period,” she said in a commanding tone.

Hilde stared at her for a few seconds… then yielded.

“All right. But let’s leave this inn for the night.”

The princess turned away from the man, then gathered her belongings. She crumpled the parchment and tossed it into a corner of the room.

“Let’s go.”

Without waiting for a reply, she opened the door and left the room.

❖

The sun was already high in the sky when Lena and Hilde reached the chapel mentioned in the message.

The building was in disrepair. The damp wood gave off a pungent odor, and chunks of mortar were crumbling between the stones. Although the chapel was just a stone’s throw from the central bell tower, the surrounding area was bathed in an almost unreal stillness.

Hilde already had a hand on the pommel of his sword.

“Stay on your guard, Lena. I don’t like this,” he ordered.

The young woman nodded and gritted her teeth as she slipped in behind him. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins, sharpening her senses even further.

The man pushed the door open cautiously. The rusty hinges screeched with a shrill squeal.

Lena shot him an angry glance. Hilde sighed and stepped into the chapel. Lena followed him inside.

The air in the sanctuary was cold and stuffy. The shattered stained-glass windows let in long streaks of dusty light that cut through the darkness.

Lena closed the door behind her and let her eyes adjust to the dim light. Hilde gave her a gentle nudge.

“We’re not alone. Look.”

Lena followed his gaze. A figure stood there, behind the altar. It was a man wrapped in a long, gray cloak. He stood motionless, holding a book.

The young woman’s fingers tightened around the handle of her sword. From this distance, the stranger looked ordinary. Too ordinary.

Hilde then began to move slowly toward a column on the left in order to go around the altar.

Lena took two steps toward the stranger. Alerted, the man suddenly looked up at her, and their eyes locked.

The princess froze, rooted to the spot. Her pupils dilated, and her mind was overwhelmed by the shock.

Those eyes. Steel gray, and that determination… She had seen it once before. Lena felt dizzy, and the world seemed to sway around her.

A flood of images overwhelmed her. The summoning chamber, the blinding light. But also the mysterious world she’d glimpsed on the other side. And above all, that man…

Her heart tightened so much it hurt.

“The ritual… could it have worked?” she stammered.

Haruto, on the other side of the chapel, was just as surprised. He was breathless.

The young woman standing before him had short, dark hair. But the midday light revealed white roots and a bluish sheen. And those azure eyes…

His mind was suddenly taken back months to the day of his Arrival. To the boarding platform. To the crowd. And to that strange girl dressed as if she were in a fantasy game.

For a moment, neither Lena nor Haruto moved. The rest of the world seemed to have vanished.

“Wait…”

Haruto narrowed his eyes.

“Valnaya…?” he said at last, his voice uncertain.

Lena frowned at the sound of that name. It meant absolutely nothing to her.

A boot scraped the floor behind Haruto as Hilde rounded the altar. His hand was resting on the handle of his half-drawn sword.

“Who are you?!” he demanded to know.

Haruto jumped and dropped the book before pivoting toward the speaker. His right hand frantically searched his pants pocket as his heart pounded wildly. His fingers finally found his phone, and the flashlight illuminated the darkness.

Hilde immediately turned away, blinded by the light.

“Step back!” Haruto shouted.

The warrior growled but remained rooted to the spot. Lena still hadn’t moved. Her eyes remained locked on Haruto, who swallowed hard.

“The signet ring… and the golden shield… You’re connected to royalty, aren’t you?”

His eyes then drifted toward the door behind the woman. His only escape route.

Hilde gritted his teeth.

“So, it was you after all! You vermin!”

The guard pulled once more on the handle of his sword.

“Who sent you? Answer me!” he roared.

Haruto frowned.

“What the hell are you talking about?!”

“It’s the Church, isn’t it? They must have offered you a fortune to set us up with that message,” growled Hilde, as he finally drew his weapon.

“Huh? The note? Don’t tell me that…”

“Hilde, wait!” Lena shouted at the top of her lungs.

Her voice echoed through the chapel.

“I think we’re making a mistake.”

The guard turned his head slightly toward her. Haruto opened his mouth to reply when he was interrupted by a violent crash coming from the door.

The echo reverberated throughout the building. Then a second “boom” rang out. Dust fell from the beams as the three figures froze.

A commotion rose outside. Footsteps, lots of them, along with the clatter of weapons and armor.

Hilde immediately stepped in front of Lena, sword raised. Haruto turned off the flashlight and slipped the phone back into his pocket. His rested his hand on the grip of the pistol tucked behind his back.

Outside, the footsteps were getting closer. And they were coming from all directions.