For the scarred man, that legendary thief who came and went like a dragon in the mist—as elusive as they were skilled—was someone Durandal found remarkably easy to identify.
One had to wonder: was this the same person who, in the original timeline, dared to pilfer even from Fire Moth?
Though, as it turned out, that very caper was what inadvertently led to Pardofelis becoming a Flame-Chaser.
Having identified the local kingpins of Sundown Alley, Durandal knocked the scarred man unconscious and tossed him into a nearby side alley. She had no intention of killing him, but if one of his many enemies decided to settle a score, well, that was no longer her concern.
"Elysia, please keep an eye on Eden. I have some business to handle."
Walking back to the pair, Durandal spoke briefly before turning to leave.
"Is the leader going to…?"
Eden watched Durandal's retreating figure, slightly bewildered.
"Eden, you've heard the story of how Connie joined us, right? Bianka is going to find others like her in this neighborhood. We'll be staying here for another half-month, and while we aren't relocating the sanatorium, our increasing aid might attract unwanted attention. While we'll certainly have guards posted eventually, it's better to avoid trouble before it starts. Giving them a heads-up is necessary."
The sanatorium had managed to coexist peacefully with the major factions in Sundown Alley, largely thanks to Aponia's intimidating presence and the fact that the place was so dirt-poor there was nothing to plunder—just a horde of dependents that anyone with a brain would avoid.
However, as Elysia pointed out, the sanatorium was now receiving funding from Schicksal, which changed the equation entirely.
Rather than having the future Schicksal personnel constantly playing a game of cat-and-mouse with the local gangs, it was better for Durandal to pay them a visit first and beat some sense into them.
Eden had never dealt with such matters—her upbringing had been quite sheltered—but she understood the logic. After listening to Elysia's explanation, she nodded in agreement.
"Well then, let's head back to the hotel, shall we? If two beautiful, flower-like maidens like us just stand around on this street, aren't we basically tempting people to commit crimes? Bianka doesn't want to kill, and neither do I!"
With that, Elysia signaled for Eden to follow, and the two picked up their pace, heading toward their hotel.
Perhaps the sight of Durandal disciplining the scarred man had been witnessed by the watchful eyes of the neighborhood, for Elysia and Eden's journey was smooth. No one dared to block their path, and they returned to the hotel safely.
"Until Bianka gets back, I'll just hang out in your room, Eden!"
Elysia took Eden's room key and handed it back to her with a wink. "Eden, you don't mind having me, right?"
"Of course not! Let's have a girl's night and talk over tea."
Eden took the key, opened the door, and invited Elysia inside.
--+--
On the other side of town, Durandal followed the leads provided by the scarred man to the territory of the area's top local thug.
According to his information, she walked into a hardware store and headed straight for the back door.
A fresh face like Durandal walking through the shop, ignoring a group of shirtless, burly men, naturally drew their ire.
Before long, a man appeared before her, blocking her path.
However, before he could utter a lewd comment or ask what she was doing, Durandal materialized Abyss Flower and used the side of the lance to send him flying with a single, brutal swing.
Her tone was icy. "I'm here to see your boss. Out of my way!"
As she spoke, she glanced at the surrounding men who had begun to crowd around.
Under her gaze, the hulking men turned pale and quickly looked away, pretending they hadn't seen a thing.
The display was just too eerie—and too violent.
Never mind the fact that she had manifested a heavy-looking lance out of thin air.
The man she had just swatted aside was their top enforcer—a brute who had blood on his hands, always stood at the front of every turf war, and weighed nearly two hundred pounds.
To see him launched across the room so effortlessly? Even if these thugs were lent ten times their courage, none would dare step forward to get their ribs broken.
They didn't even dare to help their enforcer up or take him to the hospital.
Even the skinny informant in the crowd, usually the first to go running to the boss, was frozen in his tracks, terrified to slip into the back room to deliver a warning.
Thus, the gang leader was sitting in his room, happily counting the loot from his recent robberies, when the door was kicked open and a lance was pressed directly against his throat. Only then did he realize what was happening.
"M-mercy, my lady! Please!"
The gang leader's eyes bulged. He hadn't even seen Durandal move before his life was in her hands.
Terrified that a slight tremor of her hand would make him a ghost under her lance, he begged frantically, pushing the cash he had been counting toward her. "Money! I have money, it's all yours! Just show mercy and spare my life!"
Was it true that like attracts like? Because he was a robber, he assumed anyone who came knocking must be doing so to steal his money.
Though Durandal had once worked with Elysia as a "Pink-Gold Thief" to rob the rich and give to the poor, she had long since washed her hands of that life.
Regardless, Durandal casually tossed a bag onto the table and signaled for him to pack the loot inside.
Ahem. She kept several bags on her at all times—not for convenience during raids, of course, but because Elysia loved shopping, and one had to be prepared!
Besides, this was all stolen money. Rather than letting it be squandered by this scoundrel, it was better to take it back to the sanatorium to help those poor children.
Terrified for his life, the gang leader packed every cent into the bag with lightning speed, then looked up at Durandal with a sycophantic grin. "My lady, it's all here!"
"I didn't come here for this money."
Durandal finally spoke, informing him that Schicksal would soon be operating out of the sanatorium.
"I'm here to warn you: you had best keep yourself and your underlings in check. Don't you dare lay a finger on the sanatorium or my companions. Otherwise, this will be your fate."
With that, Durandal gave the Abyss Flower a slight flick, and the solid wooden table the gang leader had used to count his money disintegrated into fine powder.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL