Walking into a trap

The edge of Veland contained not many houses like the inner city. Only the poor, particularly the slum people, hung out here. As a result, the kingdom barely spent any coins on developing the area, which was why the canal looked ancient with so much garbage on the broken pavement.

Draven was cautious not to step on a slippery slope or the human feces lying on the pavement. A single misstep could make them the victims of the violent flood running beside them. Sarah could barely see a thing in the darkness. The only light source was a torch burning under the bridge.

While they were walking forward, the stench in the air entered their nostrils, making them twitch their noses. Finally, the torch illuminated the grill door leading into the sewers. Sarah couldn't help closing her nose due to the sweater stench.

"Where are we going?" She asked. She heard Draven telling her they were going to the thieves guild but wondered why he brought her to the canals and now walking towards the sewer entry.

"Why does this city stink so much?" Margoth also emerged over his shoulder. He looked around only to see the flooding and tons of trash making the canal worse than it looked.

"This is the doorway to the thieves guild" the rusted metal door creaked open. Before stepping into the dark sewer, Draven picked up the torch burning on the ground.

Her whole body squirmed, taking a step into the stinking sewer. If the stench outside was terrible, it was on another level inside. She felt she would throw up any second. The torch brightened their way forward. The moth covered ceiling had several cracks through which the water continually trickled down. She felt something running over her feet. She was sure that it was a sewer rat. After all, the creepy screeching sound of the rats was the only sound she heard apart from Draven's footsteps.

The sewer ran deep into the city, sprawling like a complex maze. So it was surprising to see Draven navigating this sewer maze without any maps or markings.

"They had to live in a sewer" Margoth rolled his eyes. He wished Draven would fly through the sewer. However, the pathway was too narrow for Draven to open his wings freely.

They walked in silence for almost thirty minutes. Eventually, they began to see several markings on the walls. Particularly the words 'Once a thief, always a thief' written in red caught Sarah's attention.

The pathway branched in two ways. The arrow painted on the wall pointed to the left, but Draven turned right and kept walking. The deeper they walked in, the more cobwebs and rats she noticed. Finally, when she thought the sewer couldn't get any creepier, she saw a mummified body hanging from the ceiling.

Draven continued to walk without paying any attention to the dead body. After seeing the body and the swarm of rats running away from them, Sarah quickened her pace to stay close to Draven. The last thing she needed was to get lost in the sewer.

They walked straight for a few minutes, then turned right to see another grilled gate. This gate wasn't as rusty as the one they came through. Behind this grilled gate was a cloaked figure guarding the door. When the figure noticed Draven approaching the gate, he unsheathed the dagger hanging on his waist.

"I am here to see Martiland," Draven said to the man, ignoring the dagger in his hand,

"Dude, I think you're looking for the wrong person in the wrong place. Turn back and leave while you still can."

"Tell him I have something of the Black Knight to sell" Draven took out the Black Knight's cowl from the sack and showed it to the man.

Sarah saw the man's eyes immediately open wide in shock. The man quickly turned back and ran deeper into the sewer, leaving Draven and Sarah behind.

"How do you know all these people?" Margoth asked,

"I put their leader in prison," Draven said simply. Everything he did as the Angel of Lotus seemed so worthless. Most criminals he put in jail were either broken out of jail or released by UFH due to their acceptable behavior. But, of course, after coming out of the prison, they caused more damage than before. So then, UFH would send a team of superheroes after these villains. It was a circle without an end.

A few minutes later, the man returned to them.

"Boss will meet you. Follow me but don't do anything funny. Got it?" the man asked before opening the gate.

"Hmm" Draven nodded and followed him behind.

The walls had torches to light the pathway. Still, Draven kept the torch in his hand.

[Ding! Legend increased]

[The host has earned 20 Legend Points]

While following the man, Draven heard the system in his mind all of a sudden. He did nothing, yet he received legend points, which confused Draven slightly.

They followed the man behind to a spacious hall filled with stacks of crates, people in dark clothes, and a mini tavern lit with candles. In addition to the piles of boxes, there were also benches and tables occupied by more cloaked figures. The red-haired bartender eyes them suspiciously, just like the rest of the people in the hall. Sarah heard about the thieves guild while she was working at UFH. This was the first time she saw their headquarters. The thieves guild was not a priority of the UFH, so they barely paid any attention to them and let the local authorities deal with them.

"I know that armor" Draven turned to see a blonde-haired woman cat walking towards them. She fiddled with an emerald green dagger and smelled like roses.

"I crossed paths with the Black Knight and you my dear, are definitely not him" the woman came closer to Draven and whispered in his ears,

"This is a dangerous place for you to be here with your girlfriend, sweetie" the woman ran her fingers over Draven's face with a seductive smile,

"Where did you get this armor sweetie?" she grabbed Draven's shoulder and asked,

"I hate this bitch. Draven kill her," Margoth ordered him,

"You want to know where I got it?"

The woman nodded,

"I got it from Scarface…"Draven paused for a moment before saying

"right after I killed him and his brutes"

[Ding! Legend increased]

[The host has earned 20 Legend Points]

[Ding! Legend increased]

[The host has earned 30 Legend Points]

[Ding! Legend increased]

[The host has earned 40 Legend Points]

[Ding! Legend increased]

[The host has earned 50 Legend Points]

…

As soon as Draven spoke these words, the people in the hall were startled. Soon afterward, the system continuously sounded in his mind for a few minutes before coming to a halt.

The seductive smile on the woman's face froze. She quickly took her hands off his shoulder,

"John, two one seven" the silence was broken by a calm voice.

Sarah looked over the woman's shoulder to see a long-haired man walking towards them accompanied by two alluring beauties. The two girls looked identical, holding a twin sai in their hand. The girls coldly stared at Draven for a moment before turning their gaze away from him.

"You killed Scarface and his men?" another voice sounded in the silent hall. This voice was not calm but rather a cocky one. Sarah turned to her right and saw a dashing young man with a neatly combed black-haired youngster walking towards them. He was extremely handsome, unlike Draven, a relatively normal-looking guy. Draven's charm and handsomeness came from his muscular physique and his attitude.

The black leather armor added an extra charm to the young man's already dashing look.

"Shit, this guy is a gifted one Draven" Margoth warned Draven, but Margoth didn't know that Draven knew him. This youngster was one of the reasons why Draven chose to come to the thieves guild. Draven needed his power if he was to survive Veland and the Black Knight.

It wouldn't be simple to get his powers. Nonetheless, Draven had to try.

"I saw what you did to them. You're a sick puppy, my dude. But you don't look like a gifted one to me; So intrigue me, how did you kill them?" The woman took several steps back when she saw the youngster coming towards them. Despite his appearance, they all knew how cruel and ruthless he was. He was one of the most feared thieves among them.

"I am to sell these, not to tell you stories," Draven responded in his cold tone,

He turned his gaze to the long-haired man before throwing the Black Knight's cowl at him. One of the twins quickly caught the armor piece and gave it to the man,

"Fascinating" Martiland examined the cowl inch by inch as the smile on his face grew more expansive,

"Definitely the work of a master craftsman. I can see you took everything except this cowl and the cape. Since it's not a complete set, I can't give you much."

"How much you can give me?" asked Draven,

The youngster who saw Draven completely ignoring him revealed a devilish grin as his eyebrows began to twitch.

"I can give you" Martiland took a step forward. He stood an arm reaching distance from Draven. Slowly, a devilish grin emerged on his face,

"A very painful death" Sarah felt a chill running through her spine,

Martiland put his hand inside his robes, taking out a parchment.

"The Clown will pay me triple the amount that armor is worth"

"Fool, we walked right into a death trap," Margoth shouted,

"Thank you for making our lives much easier, kid. Don't fight. It'll only make your death more painful."