Troublesome Encounter

The crow flew into the distance, far away from the tower, and dropped the mouse into an alleyway, an escape route that Theodore had used the crows to scout out days prior. The mouse hit the ground with a splat before reforming into its original shape and darted into the shadows of the alley. It would take many twists and turns, at times circling back around as it slowly made its way to its predetermined destination. It was done so in order to throw off anyone that might be trailing the mouse.

Meanwhile, the crows watched from above, spotting and guiding the mouse’s path. Eventually, the mouse undead arrived upon a relatively quiet alleyway and hid away in a crack in the wall.

Approximately six hours later, a figure approached the same alleyway, a white-haired young girl wearing a thick jacket and newsboy cap. It was Albatross.

As she approached, Albatross cast her sight onto the rooftops, where she spotted a crow perched atop the downpipe. The crow met her gaze and watched her calmly, making no fuss whatsoever. This made Albatross cautious as this meant that someone was in this very alleyway. It was a signal that had been decided beforehand. The crows being quiet meant that there was someone else around to hear them while making noises meant that it was safe and free of dangers.

Wary of what could be ahead, Albatross turned down another path as she walked, casually avoiding the alley. She would return at a later time, or so she thought.

"You there, the courier! Stop right there!"

From behind, a voice, rude and without regard, called out.

"Is there a problem?" Albatross responded with a calm tone as she turned around, suppressing her distaste for the owner of the said voice.

The one who called out as a young boy with broad shoulders, around Albatross's age or older. He had a head of neat, short hair and a pair of thick, black eyebrows. He was a brutish-looking boy and he was wearing a proper robe, signifying that he was a true apprentice of the Mage Tower.

"We're looking for something. I want to know if you've seen it," said the boy as he came closer.

Internally, Albatross began to panic, suspecting that Theodore's undead had messed up somehow and now there are people on his trail. Outwardly, however, Albatross managed to maintain a facade of composure.

"Excuse me for asking, but what is this 'something'? I can't say whether I have seen it or not if you don't describe it to me."

"W-well, it's..." the boy stammered and stuttered upon becoming the one being interrogated. "I can't tell you what is it, alright! Just tell me if you've seen something odd!"

In the end, the boy chose not to answer yet, at the same time, demanded Albatross to do otherwise, something she found rather unreasonable and preposterous. If it weren't for the difference in their position, Albatross would have already walked away by this point.

"What goes on, Barnaby? Did you find it yet?"

Perhaps drawn in by the ruckus, another boy emerged from the alleyway. This one had a slimmer frame, fair skin, and hair like silk. With a mole beneath his left eye, the new boy had a refined look.

"No, afraid not. But I think this girl here might have taken it," said the boy with the broad shoulder, the one called Barnaby, as he pointed his finger towards Albatross.

Now Albatross was getting upset, the brutish boy went from being unreasonable to accusatory.

"Maybe there's a misunderstanding? I did not take anything, I swear," Albatross plead her innocence while hiding her anger.

But Barnaby did not address Albatross and her pleas. Instead, he turned towards the refined-looking boy.

"She's suspicious. From the moment I saw her, I knew something was going on."

A sense of dread began to sink into Albatross when it became apparent that the boy before her was out to get her from the very beginning. Did he have some ulterior motives, thinking that he could just do whatever he wants because she was a mere apprentice-in-name? Or did he simply assume that she was a thief when he saw her as he claimed? Either way, Albatross had no intention of simply letting them step all over her.

"I am sorry, but I truly do not have time for this. Currently, I am running errands for Elder Kalman and he's expecting his package to be on time," Albatross declared with a soft tone so as to not provoke her opponents.

It wasn't exactly a lie, as she's currently running a delivery for Kalman's apprentice. Though, in a twist of irony, said delivery was stolen goods, which meant that Barnaby was technically correct in calling her a thief.

"So what?" Barnaby said dismissively. "If you're late, it's your fault, I don't see why that has anything to do with us?"

Albatross was hardly in disbelief. In her nine years in this city, she had met unreasonable mages like this one before.

"Pardon? You're the one holding me up with your unfounded accusations are you not?" Seeing no point in playing nice, Albatross's tone became more aggressive. "When the elder hears of this, he'll-"

But Barnaby was hardly listening, not even when threatened with an elder's wrath.

"We're only doing this because you stole from us. Now hand the stuff over or we'll have to get rough."

Flashing a big, ugly smile, Barnaby approached with his fist smacking into his palm.

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End of Chapter 58

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