Meanwhile, Grey sat by the fireplace on the inn's upper floor, staring intently at the flickering flames. His mood, already somber after hearing the town crier's announcements, had worsened even more after their mother explained that they would have to say goodbye to Kaguya, Aika, and Chris the next day.
He barely cared about parting with the latter two, but the thought of leaving Kaguya behind was unbearable. To Grey, Kaguya had become his first and only friend. A friend he could confide in and tell about his worries and impressions. Over the past weeks of traveling together, she had become an important person in his life. Even though she still didn't know his real name. His mother had forbidden him from telling her, and he understood why.
Grace had taken the news much better. She was sad, of course, but like with the little donkey before, she understood that such partings were inevitable. What pained her more was watching her brother withdraw into his own world again, sitting by the fire and sinking into his gloom.
She ran up behind him and hugged him tightly.
"Brother, don't be sad. We'll see them again."
"Really? You think so, little big sister?"
"Of course. You heard the stories Mama told us. Friends always meet again after a long time apart. Mama wouldn't lie."
"I know... but I still feel so sad."
"Then why don't you think of a gift to give Kaguya? Something she can look at and remember you by."
"That's a good idea. But I don't have anything."
"Look. I have this shiny thing. I think it's one of those silver coins Mama always uses."
"Where'd you get that? Mama said we don't need money."
"I picked it up from the bandits' camp when Mama wasn't looking. But shhh! Let's go out into the city and find something to give Kaguya."
"But Mama said we're not allowed to go out alone."
"What are you scared of? Big sister is with you. I'll protect you. Let's go! Just a quick adventure—five minutes tops. We never even got to see the city while we were riding in the wagon."
"Okay. But let's be quick."
The children slipped out of the inn unnoticed. It was unclear what Katarina was doing at the time, but she didn't notice their escape. They donned the black cloaks their mother had bought for them back in Danmoor and headed off to explore the surrounding streets, searching for the perfect gift.
Moving from stall to stall, the cloaked twins didn't draw much attention. In a city this big, it wasn't uncommon to see street children wandering around looking for food. Usually, this ended with them swiping an apple or two from a kindhearted vendor who would "pretend not to notice" the theft.
At one stall, the children spotted a small, spherical blue stone. Its color matched that of their own eyes. It didn't sparkle, but it drew both their gazes nonetheless. When Grace saw that her brother agreed this would make a good gift, she approached the vendor.
"Mister, what's this stone? How much is it?" she asked, imitating their mother's polite manners.
"Ha-ha-ha, little miss, that's a blue pearl. They say it helps preserve youth if worn as a necklace. But it's not cheap—five silver lyres at least."
The twins' eyes lit up with even more desire to buy it.
"But we only have this. Won't you sell it to us anyway? We want to give it to a friend. Please," Grace pleaded, holding out the silver coin.
The vendor almost felt bad for trying to swindle such an innocent little girl. Almost. But money was money.
"Alright. Just because you asked so nicely. I'll even throw in this string so you can wear it as a necklace."
He quickly pocketed the coin and handed over the stone and the string.
"Brother, we need to get back. Mama will notice we're gone and punish us—just like that time you went into the forest without asking," Grace urged, remembering all too well the sting of their mother's sandal, which had left her unable to sit comfortably for three days. She could still feel its phantom ache.
"You're right. Let's take a shortcut."
They darted down the streets, occasionally slipping into alleys to shorten their route. Unfortunately, they didn't notice the group of older boys trailing them.
As they passed through another alley, two boys stepped out to block their path.
"Let us through. We're in a hurry," Grace demanded without hesitation. She tried to push past, but Grey pulled her back. He glanced over his shoulder and saw three more boys blocking their escape route. Grace quickly put two and two together but couldn't figure out what these thugs wanted.
"What do you want from us? We don't have anything."
"Well, well. What about that pendant you bought from Mister Wilson? Hand it over and you can go," said the boy standing in the middle at the back—clearly the leader.
"Why would you want a girl's trinket?"
"We'll sell it. Money doesn't smell, kid. Pity you wasted your silver lyre on that thing. If we'd known, we'd have come for it sooner."
"We bought it. It's ours. Go away! My dad's really strong. He won't let you get away with this!" Grey tried to sound intimidating.
"And who's this brave little guy? Let's have a closer look," one of the thugs sneered, pulling down their hoods.
"Derek, check this out. What a beauty. Mind if I have some fun with her?" another boy leered, rubbing his hands together. Meanwhile, a third boy shoved Grey to the ground.
"You idiot. She'd fetch a gold piece easy—but we gotta keep this quiet or the guild'll fleece us out of every coin. Let's do this fast."
The twins' eyes burned with anger. No one had ever treated them so cruelly before. Grace rushed forward and struck one thug between the legs with everything her mother had taught her.
The boy shrieked in pain. "The little brat's got magic! She burned me when she hit! Damn it—that hurts!"
The others closed in to help their wounded friend, surrounding Grace. Only one boy stayed behind to restrain Grey.
Grey watched helplessly as the thugs grabbed his sister, still struggling to break free. His efforts earned him a blow to the head that made his vision blur.
He couldn't see—only hear the faint shouts. Grace had trained with their mother, but she had only recently awakened her magical core and had no idea how to use it. She was stronger than most four-year-olds, but she couldn't handle four older boys.
Then he heard the tearing of fabric—and Grace's terrified scream.
"You little bitch. That hurt. Derek's never been with a woman before. Today you'll fix that. You're small, but so am I. If you don't fight, maybe I'll even marry you later," the boy sneered.
"No! Don't! Brother, help me! SOMEONE HELP!" Grace cried, tears streaming down her face. She didn't fully understand what they wanted to do, but she knew it was bad.
Hearing his sister's desperate cry, Grey thrashed even harder. Rage consumed him, threatening to swallow him whole. His struggles infuriated his captor, who slapped him on the back of the head again.
The boy didn't notice that after the blow, Grey's blue irises darkened, swallowed by his pupils.
Mistaking Grey's stillness for unconsciousness, the thug let his guard down—only to feel a sharp sting in his thigh. Before he could react, blood spurted from a severed artery.
He never realized Grey had cut his femoral artery—and that he had only minutes to live.
Grey, no longer himself, flipped the boy over and ended his life with a quick slash to the neck. He pounced like a panther, knife in reverse grip, leaping onto another thug's shoulders and driving the blade into the back of his skull.
His movements were smooth and instinctive—terrifyingly so.
As the remaining boys turned, they saw Grey launch himself off their dead friend's shoulders in a graceful flip. Mid-air, he made a fluid motion with his knife, slashing the throats of two more thugs.
Landing in a crouch behind Derek, the gang's leader, Grey didn't hesitate. He leapt up and dragged his karambit blade from Derek's thigh to his tailbone.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—Derek's pants were already down.
Doubling over in pain, Derek dropped Grace. As his back bent within reach, Grey plunged the knife under his ribs, piercing his heart.
Then Grey collapsed unconscious.
Grace opened her eyes to see six motionless bodies bathed in blood—one of them her own brother.
She rushed to him, sobbing, and checked if he was still breathing. His body glowed faintly with a familiar light.
Thinking for a moment, she realized she had seen that light before—at the altar when Apollo had appeared.
"HELP!" Grace cried, hoisting her brother onto her back and running toward the inn.
Soon after, a dark figure arrived in the alley, inspecting the five corpses and noticing a trail of small footprints.
Oh shit. If the mistress finds out what happened here, she'll explode. I have to find the children first—or something terrible will happen, the cloaked figure thought, hurriedly erasing any evidence. Even the fleeting thought of Katarina's reaction sent waves of uncontrollable panic through him.