Chapter 288 – Rumors and Lies

Chapter 288 – Rumors and Lies

 

The door to the Hall of Seekers swung open with an odious creaking that made Rain cringe. Everything was louder on the surface, sounds grated on his ears.

The way here had been tediously uneventful. No presence tried to spy on him, much less approach. A strange guilt poked him for visiting the Hall without his friends’ knowledge, even if it was for their sake.

I’ll tell them once I’ve confirmed what I’ve found.

It was more efficient to come alone.

The layers of clothes he was wearing made the Hall stiflingly warm. Rain untied his scarves, pulling them beneath his coat to store them away. Across the room, six human adventurers drank beers at a table, likely another group lured by the paltry bounty. Their suspicious gazes washed over him; they stopped to do a double take and stare at his face.

From the low sense of threat, they lacked notable skills despite reaching Yellow. Rain put them out of his mind and headed to the front desk. Flynn and Kai often repeated to be careful, but how could he be wary of humans weaker than his eight-year-old self?

“Hi.” The clerk—Belice—called his attention to her. “How may I help you?” She closed a notebook with a pen to keep the mark and smiled politely, adjusting her gold-rimmed glasses.

“Hi, I’m Oraine.” Resting one arm on the counter, he reciprocated the smile, quirking his lip slightly on one side. Perfect symmetry could appear cold or unapproachable, and he needed her to talk.

Sirens were considered mesmerizing by most races, a positive first impression or infatuation made sapient individuals more susceptible to swaying. While his gift had dried up with the miles from the sea, he couldn’t easily eliminate habits instilled since childhood.

“You’re friends with Matthew, right? Is he okay?” Her spectacled eyes studied him. There wasn’t the glimmer of attraction or even the surprise of finding a beautiful painting. She might as well have been looking at a fistful of sand. “You can let him know the contract hasn’t changed since he last checked.”

Any other time Rain would have found her lack of reaction delightfully refreshing, right now it was inconvenient. Did she have a skill to maintain composure? An artifact? Or had leaving the sea affected him more profoundly than he predicted?

It had barely been a few weeks, too soon for the rattles to manifest…

The impulse of pulling out a mirror swept him in panic. No. I’m jumping to conclusions. He wrestled his thoughts back under control. Something else was going on. The last time he had visited the Hall, he hadn’t spoken with Belice though he had gotten the impression her behavior was off. And he was becoming ever more certain.

“Mat’s fine. I’ll make sure to tell him about the contract.” Rain fidgeted with the shells on his bracelet. “I came to talk to you, actually.”

It was more direct than he had planned on being. His skills could pick apart the truth from the girl, but that would be rude and boorish—and no fun at all.

“What about it?” If Belice was alarmed, nothing in her demeanor gave it away, only appearing mildly curious. A privacy ward sprung up around them. “If it’s relevant to the Hall, I’ll do my best to answer.”

“Have you been in this town for long?” Rain asked, committing to his blunt ways. “Do you know Limgrell well?”

“I guess I do… I’ve grown up around here.” Belice took out a silk handkerchief from her sleeve and wiped her spotless spectacles. “Why?” She put the lenses back on her dainty nose. “Is there some information you need?”

“There is.” Rain removed his woolen hats and scrubbed a hand through his flattened hair. “You obviously know about the things moving in the mist. We’ve been looking everywhere for clues. I was wondering if you could provide a better lead.”

“Well… if I knew the culprits, I would have already stopped them.” Her dark brown eyes peered at him, a small crease between her brows. “I’m just good at gathering rumors.”

“So you think there is more than one person responsible? Do you know how many?” A faint flutter brushed his mind; Rain smiled brightly despite himself. The feeling reminded him of the social gatherings he attended as a child, rare occasions where his mother allowed him to measure his progress against other kids. Though he had never been this clumsy. “Rumors can be useful indeed. I’ve heard a few before coming here.”

She must have a profession for information gathering. That’s quite rare.

“What are you saying?” She pulled out her silk handkerchief again.

“Do you need a hand polishing those enchantments?” He raised a palm in offer. “Cramming so many arrays together must have made them finicky. You know, my sister taught me a trick for that. If you hold more mana around the engraving, that usually helps.”

Belice wasn’t smiling anymore. “What are you talking about—”

“Wait a second!” Rain leaned over the counter to stare straight into her hazelnut irises; he swatted the tingle away from his mind. Being subjected to an ability gave him the right to reciprocate, but he decided to be courteous. “It’s not the glasses, is it?”

It was a clever diversion. If anyone noticed the charm, they would suspect the enchanted spectacles only to find nothing. “The compulsion is in your eyes. Do you need the sound cue to use it?”

Belice pressed her lips into a bloodless line, breaking her composure.

Rain hadn’t exactly figured out what he would do if she refused to admit the blatant truth. It would turn awkward with so many witnesses around, especially the snoopers upstairs.

Humans can be so stubborn—

“Not here.” Her icy tone was a better admission than he could hope for.

He didn’t mind humoring her if it made things easier. “Where would you like to talk?”

She grabbed a pile of documents from a drawer, sifting through them as if he wasn’t there. “My shift ends in four more hours at noon.”

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“I see, I’ll wait here then.” Rain looked at the empty tables, they would give him a decent view of the front desk. He would cut close to Flynn coming back; he wasn’t used to having people worry about him.

I should have left a note.

“Wait,” Belice hissed before he could take three steps. Her hands gripped the desk as she stood up and raised her voice to the ceiling. “I’m taking my pause. I’ll be back in half an hour.” She slammed down a ‘Be back shortly’ sign, then turned to him. “You. Follow me.”

That sounded dangerously close to a command. Sixteen years of education urged him to respond to the repeated offenses. Rain clenched his jaw. He wasn’t Oraine Akeelise Ryuu any longer. He had left that identity behind when he breached the shore.

“Where are we going?” He forced his smile to remain light.

I’m just another adventurer here. I have to accommodate the land dwellers.

Belice gathered her notebook and strode toward the back of the Hall without answering; her face was an inscrutable mask that even his mother would have approved of.

Depths. She’s vexing.

Sighing deeply, Rain hurried to catch up. The last thing he wanted was to chase her down. A presence on the upper floor peeked at them, showing an equal lack of manners that chipped at his patience.

The backdoor opened with a brass key. They walked into a dark corridor, a spiral staircase on their left, and continued to a secondary exit behind the building. Stepping outside, the mist cooled his skin and temper.

The rude snooper followed them across one street before reaching the limit of their puny skills. “Where are we going?” he repeated in his colder tone.

“To a safe place to talk.” Belice gave a laconic reply, looking annoyed.

“No one’s spying on us here.”

“And how can you be sure?” She let out a harrumph. “Just because you can’t sense anyone, it doesn’t mean we’re alone. Or do you think you have the best Perception skills in all of Limgrell?”