X-3: Trail

Under your feet, you hear the satisfying crunch of dew coated grass, the morning sun reflecting off of the liquids to make them sparkle like tiny gems. You march up the small incline with ease, not a hint of exhaustion shown in your movements despite several days of nonstop travel. Once you reach the top, you can see your destination in the distance; Nolrin, a relatively wealthy village which was remarkable for being the meeting point for architects and woodworkers. You pull up your hood and double check that your blade is hidden under the cloak before increasing your pace towards the village.

You swiftly pass through the front gates, quietly sticking to the outskirts; despite it being early morning, there are a few who are already roaming the streets, prepared for another productive day of work. The judgemental eyes of men and women with sharp tools doesn't seem particularly enjoyable or helpful. After a little over ten minutes of dodging behind cover and quickly pacing between across streets, you reach the largest building in the town. With a little bit of force, you manage to break the flimsy padlock with your knife and head into the community hall from the rear entrance. You quickly locate what looks like an office and open the door to see an elderly man sitting at a large oak table, his eyes closed and rocking himself into a daydream.

"Don't move or call for help if you want to keep your life."

Your command is simple, but it gets to the point. The elderly man quickly opens his eyes and his hands bolt upwards, palms open and facing you. After a quick inspection, it seems he doesn't have any hidden weapons on him, so your hand lowers from your dagger and towards your cloak. You pull up the cloth to reveal the branding inscribed upon your skin, pointing your shoulder towards the elder.

"I'm sure you know what this means."

Almost immediately the elder calmed down, sitting back down in his chair and yawning loudly as if to spite you.

"Can't you royal baboons have a bit of decency."

"It's just standard procedure."

The elder glares for a moment before sighing and reaching for his pipe. He stuck the smaller end in his mouth and lit a match with another, not even attempting to hide the grumble of discontent in his voice.

"So, what do you need."

"Information. Have there been any unusual incidents around this town recently?"

"Unusual? Do you mean town unusual or kingdom unusual. I'm sure you castle folk don't get shocked by the odd religious sacrifice or two."

You remain completely silence, staring into the elder's eyes. He lits his pipe and took a long hit, blowing the smoke to the side.

"I suppose there was one. A connie was killed by Biju bug. Pretty rare for anyone to be carrying those around these days."

The elder shrugged before raising a hand to shoo you out of his office, but you quick come closer and bring out a bottle of wine from your bag, both cheap and mediocre in taste.

"More detail."

The elder eyes the bottle of wine before continuing. You silently suspect that it would be his first time in years to taste wine and are quietly thankful for the privileges of working under the kingdom.

"Witnesses say she was about to have lunch with somebody, but they disappeared by the time she was recognised as being dead. The poison was injected directly; we found small markings on her leg. The bugs weren't found, so we're considering it a murder."

"Perfect."

With a gruesome grin on your face, you hastily place the bottle onto the table before turning around prepared to leave instantly, but before you leave you hear a voice call out to you.

"Hey."

"What."

You look back, slightly annoyed that you were being stopped in your tracks.

"What happened to your voice? It sounds even worse than mine."

For a moment, you pause, not sure what to say. You haven't ever met someone with a voice like yours; raspy, croaky and unnatural. Quickly scrambling to find an answer, you quickly latch onto the first thing they had taught you in training.

"It's just standard procedure."

Without another word said, you swiftly leave the room to escape into the forest, a new potential trail under your belt.