Lanette rolled her eyes. “Great, now it’s going to smell like pork in the house.”
Gam cackled. “More for me!”
“Well, Pixie knocked out. I’m going to take a nap too before we head out for Umi.”
“Smart choice. It’s our last destination on that list, anyway.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Gam. “Gam, what you said about Clave, you didn’t mean it, right?”
He chuckled sheepishly as he collected some spices from the cupboards. “Heh, of course not!”
“You’re not just saying that to save your skin from Pixie, are you?”
“No!”
“Okay, good. Because Clave is a great guy. He’s done a lot for us, and he wants this just as badly as we do.”
“Right, right… but… ugh, never mind.”
“What? Tell me.”
“It’s just… the whole curse business, I don’t know if he’s telling us all he knows about it.”
“There’s no such thing as curses, just bad luck.”
Gam paused for a second and then shook his head. “Yeah, you’re right! Forget I even mentioned it!”
Lanette smiled. “See you later, Gam! If you’re going to eat him, please make sure not to save any body parts in the fridge, mkay?”
Lanette walked out, and luckily for me, Gam didn’t stop by the pantry for any ingredients before he made it to that junkyard behind the kitchen.
Once the coast was clear, I left the pantry room and peaked my eyes over to the window of the kitchen’s back door, watching as Gam pull a huge round metal grate before he searched the area for wood. Rufian over an open fire? I didn’t feel a lick of guilt for smiling at the thought, but I needed the bastard alive. So I snuck out of the back door while Gam was preoccupied with rummaging garbage, my side dagger to my hip as I crept closer to him.
With one arm around his throat, I scooped him off his feet, pressing my blade against his back. He gagged, ready to yelp, but with one line, I shut him up real quick, “Scream, and I’ll kill you. Got that?”
“Y-ye-eesss!” He struggled, his fingers scratching at my arm. He was in between Pixie and Lanette level wise, but I wasn’t an ounce bit afraid. I had him at a rough spot right now, and even if he had items he could use defensively, they’d be hard to reach without me snatching them up.
Plus, I was positive I was stronger than the guy.
“Please, d-d-don’t kill me!”
“I’m not going to, as long as you free Rufian from the wall. The Scrabe spell, can you use it?”
“Of course! I am fae!”
“Half fae.”
“I have mana!”
“Then make it happen.”
“Wh-h-wh-w-whhat?! Pixie would have my head!”
“And you think I won’t?!”
Gam writhed, the hybrid struggling to breathe. I tightened my grip on him and hissed, the guy starting to sweat. I could tell he was weighing his options. He didn't want to die, but he also didn't want to incur Pixie's wrath. There was no reason he should take my word for it, but I didn’t care. Gam didn’t have a choice.
Finally, he let out a deep grunt and nodded. “Fine, fine! I'll do it. Just don't hurt me.”
“Good choice.”
“But I gotta know… are you with the council?”
“Like I told Lanette, I’m not.”
“L-lanette? Oh, wait, you’re… you’re Syodas, right?” He chuckled. “I can’t tell, my system didn’t register your name with you having me in a headlock and all. Man, I thought I was done for sure.”
I glared. “What the hell does that mean?”
“Oh, no insult to you, of course! Heh! Pixie told me you were one heck of a challenge! But, from what they told me about you, you’re not a hunter. Which means that you’re not a killer, right?”
“Don’t think I’m not going to—”
“Hey, relax. We are after the same thing, right? You’re looking for the codex?”
“Hell, you’re doing a lot of talking for a guy with a fucking knife in his back!”
“Listen, I’ll free your friend. I just want some answers.”
