Ambush

Next morning, just as Mayton was getting ready to make a trip to the House Maiken, he heard one of the hunters call his name.

''Mayton there is a guard with the governor's crest at the gates who wants to meet you. He says you know him as Charles.''

The hunter sounded panicked from getting visited by a guard, fearing that he was here to arrest Old Mert. But Mayton's answer calmed him down.

''Charles? So he is alive at least! That's good news!''

Last night Mayton felt so much guilt even his sleep was affected by it. He especially felt guilty about his reading teacher, since he already knew that the young woman was still alive despite getting caught.

Mayton hurriedly went to the gate to meet the guard. When he saw him, at first he was surprised to realize that Charles was, in fact, Charbel but he already knew he was hiding his identity, so his surprise was short lived. What he really felt after seeing this man was pity.

He was an old man when Mayton met him for the first time, but he now looked like he had one foot in the grave. His hair was completely white as a bald spot could be seen at the top of his head, combined with his loss of weight made him seem more like an old man wasting his days away while waiting for his end, than the valiant warrior who braved countless dangers in a bid to change the fate of the House Maiken.

There was only one indication showing this man still had some fight left in him. It was the determination hiding deep in his eyes, ready to burst forth in a moment of need. He was obviously prepared to depart this world in a blaze of glory.

Mayton hurriedly went to the gate to meet the guard. When he saw him, at first he was surprised to realize that Charles was, in fact, Charbel but he already knew he was hiding his identity, so his surprise was short lived. What he really felt after seeing this man was pity.

He knew that the worst insult for a man like that was pitying him. Thus, as soon as Mayton' eyes met with Charbel's, all the pity he felt for him vanished without a trace, replaced by the solemn respect reserved for only those who were ready to pay any price for their ideals.

After greeting each other and clearing the misunderstandings between each other such as Charbel's true name, without waiting for Mayton to mention anything, Charbel said;

''Don't worry, I know you didn't betray us. I hate being forced to work for the governor, but I can't deny that it has its perks. I already know what happened to you at the fair of souls. As for the incident from yesterday, you don't need to worry about it at all. Even the governor won't dare to offend someone like the mysterious person who saved you let alone Aras family.''

Mayton knew that 'the mysterious person who saved him' couldn't care less about the hunters' dispute but he decided to not mention such irrelevant details.

''Old man, obviously you have something more to say. We can be counted as acquaintances already. Stop beating around the bush and say what you want from me.''

Mayton said after some more small talk.

''Then I will be blunt with you. We need help. I need you to meet with Lady Herdis, but I can't arrange it myself since I now work for the governor. Late at night, someone will come to pick you up if you agree.''

After Mayton assented with a nod, Charbel left, saying goodbye.

Just like the last time Mayton broke through, his qi reserves were exhausted and the perfect time to refill them was when the sun shined brightly in the sky. Mayton decided to make the best use of the time before he went to visit Herdis by consolidating his cultivation in the mid qi gathering phase, so he started to cultivate under the sun as soon as Charbel left.

The day passed uneventfully with the young merchant from the shop across the street not doing anything other than throwing a few threatening glares at the hunters.

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''Boy, wake up. My time is too valuable to waste on you.''

A sinister voice woke Mayton up from his meditation. He looked around to locate the origin of the voice, but except for realizing it was already night, his effort was wasted.

''Herdis sent me to bring you to her. I'll wait outside. Don't make me wait for long.''

Mayton gave up looking for him after another successful attempt to locate the person. He was already ready to go meet Herdis with his qi reserves being close to full, so he took his dagger with him and after saying Old Mert that he is leaving, went out.

Outside the courtyard, at the street, Mayton saw a thin man in black robes which hid his silhouette. Actually if not for his voice, Mayton wouldn't be able to guess his gender at all.

''Follow me.''

The black robed man said as he began to speed towards the slums. Mayton followed after the man without asking any questions. He couldn't locate the man when he spoke, but he learned from Old Mert that the strongest cultivator in the Flaming Heart City was in the mid qi gathering phase, the same as Mayton. This gave him confidence in being able to run away if the necessity arises.

Just when they entered one of the narrow streets of the slums, they saw dozens of icicles coming toward them from above. Despite the element of surprise, the icicles were too slow to present a real threat to Mayton as he easily dodged them. The black robed man looked at him, clearly surprised, as he also dodged the icicles. He was not as fast as Mayton though and as a result, got a few light scratches.

When they looked up, they saw a blue robed man looking at them indifferently.

''Cut off their escape routes!''

They heard an enraged shout coming from the roof of another nearby building. Hearing that, the blue robed man made an incantation gesture and pointed at the narrowest point in the street as a wall of ice materialized out of nowhere to block their way. As for the other side of the street, a dozen men wearing gray robes blocked it.

''Kill them!''

The leader of the assailants once again ordered loudly without showing himself. Gray robed men immediately charged forward, brandishing weird spears with a shining crescent shaped metal at their ends. While the blue robed man at the roof used another technique as a white mist enveloped Mayton and the black robed man.

Mayton felt the air around him become heavier and he founded it harder to move fast. But obviously, the blue robed man didn't have enough qi to continuously use one technique after another as he looked at Mayton as if to memorize him and left hastily.

With the threat of the blue robed cultivator's ranged attacks gone, Mayton, instead of waiting the gray robed men come to him, charged towards them. When he got near them, the crescents on their spears shined with a silvery light as Mayton felt his qi flow become sluggish, reducing the boost he got to his speed and strength from his cultivation. Combined with the mist technique used by the blue robed cultivator, Mayton's movements slowed considerably, but even after all that, he was much faster than the gray robed men.

If Mayton encountered this ambush before his break through, he would probably be forced to escape but unfortunately for the gray robed men, Mayton was already a mid qi gathering phase cultivator, and melees were exactly what he was good at.

''Arrgh!''

''Damn this kid is too strong, isn't he supposed to be an early qi gathering cultivator?''

''Cou- could it be his in mid phase?!''

Mayton, with his crude dagger, was making short work of the assailants. With his every slash, a limb was cut off as the gray robed men screamed in pain and panic.

''Kid don't waste time killing those weaklings. There are a lot more of them at where they came from. Their commander is setting up a formation if we give him enough time we will be in trouble.''

Mayton's black robed companion warned him. Hearing his warning, Mayton got startled for a moment as he realized that he was once again losing himself in the slaughter. 'I really should find a way to curb the effects of cultivating on my personality' Mayton thought and immediately disengaged the gray robed men and retreated towards the other end of the street.

There the black robed man was standing near a human sized hole at one of the nearby buildings. From the shape of the hole, it seemed like the black robed man used something to corrode the walls of the house to make the hole.

''Damn you Arlotto! Do you really dare to break our agreement? Do you think the nobles will let you off?''

The enraged bellow of the man on the roof reverberated in the streets as Arlotto and Mayton escaped from the place. After running side to side for a bit, Mayton suddenly brandished his dagger at Arlotto. Arlotto, seemingly waiting for such a thing to occur, parried it with a dagger of his own.

''Kid didn't you hear that old oaf? I already broke my agreement with them. What would I gain from betraying both sides?''

Arlotto asked with his usual sinister voice.

''Lead the way, but keep your distance.''

Mayton said icily. He saw Arlotto's dagger gleaming with a greenish light as he parried his attack. Even though Mayton wasn't too knowledgeable about poison cultivators, he heard enough about them from Old Mert to deduce that Arlotto was a poison cultivator. He had no desire to test himself against the treacherous techniques of a poison cultivator.

Arlotto shrugged his shoulders and continued on. After a ten minute travel, they arrived at a familiar place. It was exactly the abandoned house Mayton learned how to read from Charbel.

''It is me and the guest. Let us enter.''

Arlotto whispered to seemingly no one. But following that the air around him rippled and he disappeared. Mayton saw a similar formation used to hide the fair of souls so he wasn't surprised. Being not surprised didn't mean he would follow after Arlotto blindly though.

''Mrs. Herdis, if you don't show yourself I am afraid we won't be able to meet.''

''I am sorry for making you wait, Mayton. Please excuse me for my lacking hospitality.''

The soft voice of a woman was heard as Herdis appeared at the spot Arlotto disappeared a moment ago. Herdis, like Charbel, had changed a lot since the last time Mayton saw her but in a totally different way. That timid young woman went away and in her place came a determined woman, who not only knew what she wanted but also was ready to fight for it.

Her simplistic style accentuated the unyielding aura she was effusing. She wore tight white clothes with a pair of shorts swords strapped at her waist. Her hair was tied up in a simple ponytail to prevent it from being a nuisance in case of a fight. She looked casual and practical instead of the extravagance you would expect from a noble lady.

''It was my manners that were lacking Mrs. Herdis. Please, lead the way.''

Mayton answered politely, but his distant manner of speech did not escape Herdis' notice.

''This way, Mr. Mayton.''

Herdis forced a smile on her face and said.

In a few seconds, they disappeared together as silence returned to this desolate part of the slums.