Finding Lisa 2

"Are you sure that was your friend?" Nash followed Aran through the main road until they passed down a couple of vendors.

The street lamps illuminated the narrowed areas of the street giving them more visual of where they are going. Aran kept on running as he chase down the girl in the alley.

"Yes! I saw her turn left on that side of the street. It is like a dark alleyway of some sort."

"What else did you see?"

"I don't know. But my instincts are telling me that I'm right. Her golden hair, blue dress, are all similar to Lisa's. And I also saw some bloodstain on her clothes and I can't help but get curious." Aran explained the details clearly.

After turning to the left pathway, they have reached the Cordera road that leads to the dark alleyway.

"Here?"

Nash saw the alleyway as well. Both of them stopped on their track as soon as they reached the entrance. The whole area was not illuminated with the street lamps so it is hard to see the inside. They need to go further inside to see the whole space.

"Yes! Let's go!" Aran started the lead.

He took the first step inside. Instead of walking, he tried to jog down to catch up with Lisa. Nash, on the other hand, kept his distance and tried to monitor the whole area first before going in. It is pretty dark but the ample amount of the street lamps on the other side of the wall illuminates the outer part of the alley. Lots of purring can be heard as well from the crows that visit the area. It is definitely a perfect place for doing a crime.

"I have a bad feeling about this. Why would she go to a place like this? This is really uncharacteristic of her." Aran questioned the weird act quietly while scouting the area.

"There are numerous reasons, but I don't want to assume. Let's just keep on looking for her." Nash responded.

They kept on going in until they noticed a few stacked boxes that are scattered. The area was wide enough for a group of people and there are trash everywhere which gives a nasty smell. Not to mention, the holes on the walls and branches of trees falling within the right side. The alleyway was abandoned for a long time and the buildings that were built within the site don't seem to be occupied.

After a few seconds, they've heard a rustling and a conversation between shady men. Both Aran and Nash stopped their movement and went on hiding behind the boxes.

"Shhh..."

Nash signaled to be quiet. Aran moved his head a bit further to see what is happening on the other side of the alleyway, and there he saw Lisa with a bunch of men who carries a metallic weapon of some sort. He remembered that Nash once told him that even if the capital is safe from the Dhekaids, there are still criminals and thugs lurking around the city. And it is not uncommon for them to live on narrow alleys.

"Damn it! Is this all you have gathered for us!?"

A shout from one of the guys. Lisa fell to her knees, she was bewildered by the sudden shouting. Her movements are erratic and she is proposing evidence of illness and a weakened body.

"I-I'm sorry, this is all I can get from that store, there's a lot of people there and I won't be able to–"

Before she can even explain herself, the guy slapped her face causing her to flinch through the corner. Her clothes are messed up and her face is full of scars. Both of her arms are bruised and her legs are wounded.

"Shut up! I don't want to hear an explanation from you!" The punk said.

Aran staggered after seeing the scene and immediately caused his body to heat up from the tension and his strong anger. He gritted his teeth while flaring up a strong intent to save her. But before he can even shout, Nash covered his mouth with force and tried to calm his nerves down.

"Don't... If you are seen by them, they'll hurt that girl and bring you into their group as well. You won't be able to save her just like that. We need to think about this thoroughly and stop rushing." Nash said while looking at the scene. Aran cooled down upon hearing his word but his whole body was still shaking.

He was able to calm Aran down and they both continued on monitoring while moving slowly on the other side.

"Leave this to me, I'll let you go wild after I take care of those three. It is my job to handle crimes as well as part of being a Knight." Nash assured Aran that he will save Lisa and he nodded.

Lisa coughed multiple times after getting slapped. Her weakened state prevented her from standing up. As a result, she was only able to bring her back up and lean on the wall. She pushed herself to move backward using her legs but the punks are closing in on her every step.

"Look here, if you want to save your father then you should do a proper job for us! You won't be able to bring him food or money if you can't do such simple tasks!" The punk continued to shout at her. It was obvious that Lisa was frightened by the intensity of his tone and his large build.

Lisa was on the verge of breaking down and crying but she is thinking that it was hopeless. Even if she cries, no one will help her, no one would be able to hear her, and even if she screamed for help, she will be instantly silenced by one of the punks.

"Come on! Stand up! We have a lot of work to do! And you won't get your money for now." The other guy forced her to stand up.

Even after hearing the order, Lisa didn't bother standing up. Her lifeless facial expression indicated that she was tired of this mess and she is scared to prolong the ongoing nightmare she is currently experiencing. The thought of this crossed Aran's mind and they were both ready to go in.

"Hey! I said stand up!" The leader of the three ordered her one more time but she didn't respond. Her legs are shaking and she is enduring the pain.

"Didn't you hear me? I said stand up!" Another attempt to order her as he readied his pipe. This time, Lisa tried her best to stand up but her weakened state is overwhelming her. The fatigue she is taking is more than what she can handle.

"STAND UP!" The punk stepped in and tried to hit her with the metallic pipe but before it can even land on Lisa's face, the pipe flinched in the sky and a strong impact of wind blew the whole area.

It was Nash who deflected the attempted slam of the metallic weapon.

"What the—" The group was surprised by the sudden entrance of the knight. They all glared at Nash for stopping them.

"You! Who the hell are you? Barging in on this place. You have no business here!" the leader shouted. Nash was not wearing armor during the time and so they are not sure whether Nash is a normal civilian or a knight of the kingdom.

"I do have a business here..." He caught the falling pipe that he deflected earlier and gripped it so hard as he randomly swung it, giving such an intimidating aura.

"And that business is to put you in jail and beat the hell out of you." Nash pointed the pipe at their face but instead of fleeing away, they started acting hostile.

"You freaking bastard!" The first guy tried to punch Nash but he dodged it seamlessly. Using the metallic pipe he stole from them, Nash smacked him hard on the head giving him a concussion and falling down on the ground in one hit. The second punk goes beside him trying to give him a kick but Nash succeeded in grabbing his legs before they can even land on his face and then he twisted it, giving him a broken leg while screaming in pain.

The last guy seems to be the strongest but before he can even land a blow, Nash slammed the pipe on his stomach followed by a vertical hit on the top portion of his head, breaking his skull and falling on his knees. He eventually lost consciousness.

The fight ended well with a little bit of pain, the other two were conscious and afraid to fight him after what they have experienced.

"You guys seem to be lucky that the authorities haven't caught you yet. Using a child as a slave to get whatever the hell you guys wanted and then beating her up, that's a major offense for the whole kingdom's law. I'll have you guys taken in with my subordinate." Nash's strong words scared them. They all signed to beg but it didn't matter.

"Lisa!" Aran rushed through the scene to help Lisa. She looked at him with a surprised expression. She didn't expect him to be in this place.

"A-Aran!" She called to him but coughed very hard. She didn't have that much strength to move anymore.

"We have to take her back to the hospital! She has so many bruises and she's bleeding!" Aran panicked for a second.

"Calm down, go carry her," Nash responded.

Before picking Lisa up, Aran decided to tear a small portion of his clothes in order to stop the bleeding in her right leg. He tied to put the pressure and to prevent it from losing blood. After tying the fabric, he carried Lisa despite having such a small body.

"Can you hold her? Want me to hold her for you?" Nash asked with concern.

"No, I'll take her." Aran declined the offer and started walking towards the back. Nash gave him a smile in response.

He called a few guards near the building and they have arrested the thugs. It was pretty lucky that Aran managed to catch her while running around. If they haven't gone to chase after her, she would've died in the process because of the beatings.

Thugs and criminals inside the capital often take nobles and beat them up. It was a frightening crime for the rest of them but it was pretty obvious that it wouldn't end just because they were arrested. The discrimination towards commoners leads them to this point. It is common for crimes like this to exist because of that. No matter how high you are, there should be morals left, and respect the other commoners for their hard work for keeping the kingdom running.

The commoners are the one who was dispatched outside the walled city and so even if they held less value when it comes to social status, they are the ones protecting the front line and was being sacrificed for the sake of the kingdom. It would not be unreasonable to call them the Hero at this point.

After cleaning up and taking the three guys on the nearby guards, Aran and Nash went back to take Lisa to the sanitorium.

"Hang in there, Lisa. We're almost there..." Aran mumbled as he stared at her.

Despite being a child, Aran has so much strength and it is really ominous. After he witnessed what those punks did to Lisa, he became agitated and nefarious like a hungry lycanthrope who's willing to sacrifice anything in order to hunt and kill an enemy. Nash has noticed this as well but he didn't pay any more heed to it.

Once they got back, Nash opened the front door and Aran rushed into the reception desk.

"Help me! She is injured. I need someone to treat her quickly, she already lost too much blood from her leg." Aran desperately shouted for help. The lady nodded as she quickly called someone to take Lisa to an empty room. Aran followed the caretaker to her room and Nash was left on the desk.

"How much will be the cost of a full-body treatment?" He asked.

"Judging from her injury, she has multiple bruises on her arms and face, and there's a large wound on her leg. And aside from that, she is dehydrated. It is possible that she hasn't been drinking or eating for a couple of hours or maybe a day or so. It will cost 10 silver coins for a full recovery and treatment. It also includes the food and medicine that she will be receiving." The lady answered.

Nash didn't pay any attention to the expensive price of the treatment. He opened his bag and gave the lady 2 gold coins. A gold coin for the kingdom is equivalent to 10 silver coins. It is enough to treat a lot of patients inside the sanatorium.

"Um... This is a bit too much don't you think?" The lady was surprised that Nash gave her more than what it should be.

"I don't need any change for that one. Use that to cover that girl's injury and her father as well. She is the daughter of the Alliere family. If I would make a guess, the Alliere family have no idea that these two were involved in the Moriville incident last time but it looks like her father is the only one who got injured. Provide them the healthcare they need and give them the correct medicine." Nash answered.

"Right away, Sir! We'll absolutely do our best to save her and her father. I can't believe a noble was involved! Do you know any details?" The lady panicked but she was able to grasp the situation.

"I don't have any information for that. But please keep in mind that they are very important and should receive the treatment first." He answered.

After a few exchanges, Aran returned.

"Her father, Vritta Alliere is on the fourth floor in the 2nd room to the left." Aran continued. The two were surprised by the information that Aran gave them.

Nash approached Aran and pat him on the shoulder.

"I covered the entirety of the bill that your friend and her father need to pay. You don't have to worry about the things you need to do. Just stay on her side and tell her the good news. Do not leave her alone and take care of her." Nash implied that Aran should stay where he is and wait for Lisa's recovery.

The fact that the whole sanatorium didn't know about the identity of Lisa's father when he arrived meant that he left the kingdom purposely without any permission and he should be punished for it. However, Nash kept that a secret in order to save them.

"Master, I... I'm so sorry... And thank you so much!" Aran was really grateful for the help.

"No worries. Anyway, Aran, you know your way back on our home right?" Nash asked.

"Y-Yes... Why?"

"I'll go check out the main street again for any additional crimes. I want you to stay at this place for a while and watch your friend. And after that, you two can go back home and stay there for some time. Do you understand?"

"Yes! I'll take you up on that. I'll absolutely do what you have said." Aran responded.

"Good. I will see you later then." Nash left the sanitorium and went on the main street.

The night sky was eventually illuminated by the stars and the moon. He passed a couple of buildings until he reached the central park.

"Sir Nash! Grand Officer Nash Sterling!" Interrupted by the sudden call, Nash stopped by. He looked back to see who was calling him. It was a scout from the east.

"What is it?" He asked.

"We have received a report from the grand commander!" the scout shouted.

"What? From the commander? Is it the Jurah again?"

"No. This time, we're dealing with a troublesome vampire. A group of them, ranging from 20-30 on the southeast. We need some help from the main force in order to drive them out." He reported. Nash's facial expression turned ill-natured and fierce as soon as he heard the report.

"Tell the Grand Commander that I'll be coming to help. Keep me posted." Nash responded with a serious tone.

"Yes, Sir!"