Mouse in a Trap (Part 1)

Everything about Siegren felt emotionless and cold. Lumi felt a shiver run down her spine just by speaking to him.

Maybe this was the feeling of being close to danger.

"You do know where it is," he narrowed his eyes. "Don't you?"

Lumi nodded.

"...We'll go at dawn," he said as he began walking away from her again. Lumi followed him until they reached one of the stalls.

The stall had clothes hanging atop it and laid on the table in front.

"Change your clothes," he told her.

"Here," he said as he handed her a pouch of copper and silver coins.

**

Siegren leaned his back to the wall as he examined the place. He hasn't seen a single knight or a templar. They were a day ahead of them, but he cannot be lax.

As he waited, he pondered upon the people around the town. This was a normal town market, with no signs of malevolence that resonated with him.

There were faint traces of blood from different individuals, but none harbored it.

None had the numen.

It took several minutes of observation before he felt her presence approaching him.

"Siegren."

Siegren looked down, realizing the girl had finished changing clothes.

She was now wearing a white dress and brown loafers. Her pale blond hair was tied into a braid that fell to her waist, and in her hand was a neatly folded cloak.

"It cost about several coppers." Lumi said, "I guess it would be better if I wouldn't wear a cloak anymore. They're a day behind, after all."

Siegren only stared at Lumi. Instead of retorting, he began to walk away in which she followed.

---

They arrived at an inn where they planned to stay for the night. As per Lumi's request, they were in separate rooms.

It was not that Lumi was feeling coy.

"Finally,"

As the door sealed shut, Lumi unfolded the cloak where she hid the dagger she bought. She then lifted the hem of her dress and then fastened a belt and strapped it against her thigh. It was a good thing that the tailor sold such a thing.

She then cut the bedsheet and tied it to the blanket, forming a makeshift rope before she slid the dagger onto the belt.

Without looking back, she opened the window, allowing the moonlight to shine brightly on her face.

As she stepped to the windowsill, the breeze abruptly led her dress to flutter. In that short moment, Lumi held into her hood tightly before jumping down.

And in that fleeting point in time…

The room was empty once again.

**

--Earlier--

Lumi watched as Siegren slashed the guards and the knights that morning they were crossing the border.

His blade, which was a dark greatsword, had a red bandage wrapped around its grip. Lumi narrowed her eyes to the bandage. Everything around her was now surrounded by that same color.

The cloaked priestess watched as one by one, the guards and the knights reduced in numbers.

With every slash of his sword, she watched as red liquid spluttered mid-air, bodies dropping down and blood pooling to the ground.

Even for her, this sight was sickening.

Lumi snapped back from her thoughts as soon as she used her divine power on a knight, who convulsed as he fell.

That was the last of them.

As Siegren busied himself pillaging the corpses for scraps, Lumi headed to the young guard who whispered her name.

"Priestess…"

Lumi approached him, kneeling down to his side.

"I-I'm still alive, priestess…" The young guard murmured. "y… you've been k-kidnapped, right?"

The young guard's trembling hand, which tightly held a sheathed dagger, reached out to Lumi.

"T-take this, Priestess…" The young guard said in between rasped breaths. It seemed like he was injured somewhere Lumi couldn't see. "Protect y-yourself,"

Lumi took the dagger and unsheathed it.

The young guard smiled. He felt relieved, thinking he had done a noble deed.

But then…

The dagger he once owned pierced his stomach as deep as it could. Slowly, it carved downwards.

"Hmm, not enough," Lumi whispered, cutting vertically and deeply as she stabbed the young guard who was too shocked to even scream.

"Ah. That'll do. This will resemble his blade."

Lumi then slowly pulled the dagger out of the young guard and hid it in her cloak as she stood up.

"Priestess…" Lumi looked back one last time to the guard's face, before following Siegren.

The young guard closed his eyes, feeling helpless as he bled to death. He then remembered the girl's calm face as she stabbed him.

Her serene expression.

"…why…? Pries…tess…"

**

Lumi jumped out of the window, landing on one of the rooves of the stalls. She eased her way down slowly before landing in the alleyway. She then pulled her hood down and began to walk to the night market.

She easily blended into the crowd.

"Excuse me," Lumi said to one of the merchants selling wares on stalls.

The merchant looked up at Lumi. "What is it?"

"Do you know where they sell maps in here?"

--

There was nothing to do but to go to her next destination—Hescurg. According to the people she asked, to get into Hescurg, "I should take about two… uh, three carriages. Carriage must cost several silvers…"

Lumi whispered to herself as she wondered how much she will spend on her journey to Hescurg while looking at her map as she walked.

Perhaps it will take more than she thinks, or perhaps it will take little. She barely has experience in travels... No. She doesn't have any.

But! If she takes precautionary measures and be careful, she should be able to survive on her own.

"Oh right, they said that I should probably hire adventurers to escort me… but where to find one? Ah,"

Lumi then stopped in the middle of the road, and then went to a group of rugged-looking men.

"Excuse me," Lumi said. "Are you adventurers?"

The men then looked at each other before smirking.

"I'm looking for adventurers to hire." She said, "for a bodyguard job. For me. To Hescurg."