Lynga clenched her fist. “I’m worried about my men, but we have our own hostage too, so the playing field is even.”
“Shh! Stupid!” Zophia admonished her. “You weren’t supposed to tell yet!”
“Oh! Crap!”
“What’s this about?” Zenos asked, puzzled.
Zophia replied apologetically, “Well, yesterday, after we were attacked on the mountain path, we knocked out and captured this big guy who looked like their leader. The fate of the slums is at stake here, so we wanted an ace up our sleeves too.”
Loewe nodded in agreement. “The puppets were small fry, but the bigger guy was pretty strong. I would’ve made short work of him if I hadn’t been on a diet, though.”
“Oh, but doc, don’t worry. We didn’t kill anyone,” Zophia said, waving her hands as if to defend their actions.
Zenos sighed. “Did he say anything?”
“He hasn’t spilled a single bean, of course. Just threatening him a bit won’t do it; the guy wouldn’t crack that easily.”
“I could’ve made him talk if you’d let me,” Lynga protested.
“You’d go too far,” Zophia retorted. “The guy’s from the Black Guild. We knew he wouldn’t talk easily. If we can use him as a bargaining chip, that’s good enough.”
Lily looked at the healer anxiously while holding a tray. “Zenos...”
“Looks like a lot has happened behind the scenes while I wasn’t all there. Sorry, guys.”
The demi-humans shook their heads. “She was pretty crafty, so it makes sense,” Zophia said. “Just seems we need to get ready on our end too, doc.”
“I hear people from the Black Guild are only loosely associated, so factions act independently,” Lynga remarked.
“But since they lack centralized leadership, it’s hard to predict their actions,” Loewe pointed out.
“Complicated indeed,” Carmilla chimed in.
“Yeah,” Zenos murmured. “But... What I’m worried about is...” He trailed off, staring blankly into the void for a while before eventually unfolding his arms. “Can I have a chat with this ‘big guy’ you mentioned?”
***
In the far depths of the slums lay the underground sewers, its many twists and turns intertwined in a complex pattern like a den of tangled snakes.
“I’m disappointed, Liz.” A man’s voice, heavy and chilling, echoed from one of the sewers’ countless corners. “I waited because you asked me to wait until you had the ruler of the slums under your thrall, but you failed at that. Is this how you repay my generosity? Betrayal?”
Liz dropped to her knees before the darkness and lowered her head. “My apologies.”
“And he’s not even a ruler, just an ordinary healer? What a joke.”
She said nothing to that.
“Now I may need to reconsider my stance on our little matter.”
Still facing the ground, Liz shuddered. “Please! Give me another chance! Just one more!”
The man scoffed. “Very well, then. I am simply that magnanimous when it comes to you, after all. You have one more opportunity to redeem yourself.”
“Th-Thank you!”
“But there won’t be a next time.”
“Yes, sir.”
In the darkness, the man crossed his legs as he fiddled with a knife, the blade flickering with light. “We currently have several of the slums’ demi-humans locked up in the dungeon. Use your power to get them under your control.”
“You’ve captured demi-humans? I thought you were waiting for me to make the leader my thrall—”
“Insurance, in case you failed,” he interjected. “I’m always ready for anything. That’s how I climbed up the ranks and became a Black Guild executive in only a few years.”
Liz remained silent, keeping her head bowed. After a few moments, she spoke up. “What do I do once I have them under my control?”
“That useless lackey of yours is currently being held by the demi-human leaders, correct?”
“Y-Yes.”
“Propose an exchange of hostages.”
“You’re helping Gaion?”
“Don’t be foolish,” he snapped. “I have no use for blundering trash.”
Liz pursed her lips for a moment, then asked, “So what’s the purpose of the exchange?”
