2 The Baron

Upon reaching the top floor, Chains spotted what seemed to be a very small window located in the corner of the hall. I proceeded to look through the window carefully. Through the window, I saw a depressing scene. The sister is dead, she has already been violated and killed. Words could not describe the horror of the sight.

"Red what do you see?" Chains whispered.

"The sister is dead, we need to move on to the baron."

"Despicable, I am going to be very happy after torturing this son of a bitch." Chains said under his breath.

The next room has already been confirmed as the baron's bedroom, in there he will die. I quietly opened the door to find a dimly lit room. The room was filled with candles and what seemed to be skeletons. There was definitely something off here. And then I heard a scream.

"Kyaaaaah! Do not touch me!"

"Fufu... why don't you just submit, slave?"

I looked towards the bed which was occupied by a fat man and an elf girl around my age. The word 'submit' invoked a few terrible memories in my mind. But now the objective is within our grasp.

"Hi there mister! I am sure you are enjoying yourself there, but we have business with you." Chains spoke.

"Fufu... so you are here to kill me? If you let me go, I will give you twice the amount-"

SWISH

My blade cut through the layers of fat like it was butter. With this, the mission is now complete. I pulled out my communications crystal and announced the completion of the bounty.

"This is Red and White Chains, we have completed the bounty on the baron." I plainly spoke.

"Red! Come on, at least check to see whether the girl is Okay first." Chains complained.

"Baron's death has been confirmed, you may collect the reward at the guild." Said the receiver.

"Thank you for saving me, are the others safe?" The girl asked.

"Yes."

"This may be a rude thing to ask, but how old are you sir?" She asked me.

The girl had narrowly escaped the fate of the elf before her, yet still had just enough composure to speak. The resilience she possesses is admirable.

"Not old. What is your name?"

"Violet, Violet Pixy." She responded.

"Chains, why don't we proceed to the guild?"

"Yep, lets do that."

After handing over the Demi-humans to the proper channels, we travelled back to the guild. As usual, I walked through the door and went straight to the middle counter.

"Red, collecting the reward for the baron bounty." I spoke.

"Here are the gold pieces, thank you for your hard work."

The receptionist smiled at me, but something did not feel entirely right. Her smile hid a small frown, she was definitely hiding something important.

"What are you hiding" I whispered into her ear.

"..."

"What are you hiding?" I asked again.

"... you may be in for trouble, the Capital has had a royal decree made."

"And what is that?" I asked impatiently.

"Every person from the age of 16-18 must enrol in the Royal Academy, they have been pulling kids off the streets lately. I don't think you can run from this, Red."

So that is what's happening, educational conscription. I never thought that this would happen in the Capital, but trying to avoid this may be counterproductive.

"Where do I enrol?" I asked.

"The front steps of the Royal Palace."

"They said that all enrolled students must have their magical aptitude's checked." She said.

"I can already use magic." I sighed.

"Well not many 16 year olds are specialist bounty hunters, Red." The receptionist laughed.

"Anyways, you better get into a good class, otherwise you will be bored for the next 3 years."

"3 years?" I asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes, we will miss you at the guild, Red." She said with tears in her eyes.

"Well then, I will see you all again in 3 years."

I walked out of the door and proceeded to the Palace. To this day I still haven't gone to the palace, so this will be my first time. I have seen the palace from the outside of the gate when I first arrived at the capital, but never from the inside. Perhaps this will be an enlightening experience.

***

It is now noon, the sun is at the top of its arc and I am now at the Royal Palace. There is a large line of people my age, all waiting for the chance to find out what aptitudes they possess.

After 30 minutes of waiting I have finally reached the front of the line. A priest and a finely dressed girl awaited me, with a set of 3 crystal orbs.

"Name and age please." The priest spoke.

"Ren, age 16." I said without a hint of hesitation.

"Alright, put your hand on this little stone, we will record your aptitude's on these 3 orbs here."