Chapter 165 – Girls’ Shopping Trip

Deirdee - Earlier That Day

‘It has been a while since I have been inside a city,’ Phosi rasped when she and Deirdee entered Ror-Bhyk. ‘I have forgotten how loud they can get.’

‘Will you be able to handle it, Phos?’ the former assassin asked, looking at the sconryoll with concern in her eyes.

‘I just need to readjust. Don’t worry, morsel.’

That appellation was a bit of a red flag for Deirdee. She didn't interact with Phosi enough to get used to her various quirks, but using dehumanising nicknames seemed to be her way of showing strong emotions.

I just hope she won't go on a rampage.

The city wasn't what Deirdee expected judging by its thick stone walls and what she had seen in other parts of the province. The architecture of the buildings was a bizarre mix of Heimatstil, Gothic, and lime-covered brick buildings.

She supposed it was to be expected of a centuries-old city located at the ass-end of the world.

Likewise, you could easily tell apart various social strata based on the quality and modernity of the clothes people wore. This wasn't unique to Ror-Bhyk, however, as you could see people wearing linen shirts walking next to people in expensive suits all over the old Empire. Still… There was something very wrong about such a massive divide between haves and have-nots.

‘This is a travesty,’ Phosi muttered. ‘It always pains me to see how far the Empire has fallen.’

Right. Phosi remembers how things were.

‘Can you tell me stories about the old Empire?’ she asked, scanning the area for any potential threats and noticing a brown-haired man in a green shirt and a black vest doing his best to pretend he wasn't observing them.

‘Sure,’ Phosi smiled.

Their first stop was the goldsmith that Ren recommended to them, as Phosi wanted to sell some of her gold. As it turned out, she overestimated how much cash the old man running the store had on hand, as he was able to only buy a quarter of what she had brought in, and given that they got over twenty thousand divines for that, Deirdee suspected the man had heavily shortchanged them.

As Phosi was packing the gold back into her Greater Satchel of Holding, Deirdee noted that the goldsmith was intently and greedily watching that. He has shown an even greater interest in the places where they were hiding money.

So as they headed over towards the alchemist’s store, Deirdee, under the guise of stopping at various stalls and shop windows, examining their goods and actually buying some knick-knacks, noted that their tail grew from one person to three. The question was whether they were the friends of the first schmuck or extras tipped off by the goldsmith. Ren warned her that someone had likely already filled in the void caused by the collapse of the Yamaoka Clan in Ror-Bhyk, citing the Ghosts of Old Vanderstadt as most likely candidates.

What initially surprised the former assassin was how little Phosi cared about any potential threats, but then she realised that attacking the sconryoll would probably be someone's last mistake.

Still… as someone with fleshy bits and who wants to keep them… I’d rather she weren't that nonchalant.

As such, when they passed a street food vendor, Deirdee approached it, ordered some sausages in buns and fried potato slices for the two of them and as they sat down at a dirty outside table, whispered:

‘We have three people tailing us.’

‘Four actually,’ Phosi responded. ‘We’ve passed the same beggar at least three times.’

‘So, you have been paying attention.’

‘Hard not to. The one in the green shirt is probably meant to draw attention from the other three.’

That made sense to Deirdee. The other two wore more sensible clothes: one wore a simple white linen shirt and brown pants, while the other wore a dark red doublet and white hose.

‘Could the other two also be lures?’ she asked.

‘Does it matter?’ Phosi asked back. ‘If they try anything they will all die. No matter how many of them there are.’

Note to self: Never have Phosi run errands on her own.

It disturbed Deirdee that not that long ago she was exactly like Phosi. She would have killed the bandits or whoever those people were without a second thought. Even now she wouldn't lose any sleep over that, but she viewed slaughtering them as a last resort.

I really am developing a conscience.

As she and Phosi ate their lunch, Deirdee noticed that their three tails appeared to have moved on. But there was a shockingly healthy-looking, clean-shaven, black-haired man in rags watching them from the opposite side of the street. The false beggar was sitting on his haunches and begging passers-by for alms, but whenever there was no one by him the man would unerringly turn his gaze back at the two of them.

This definitely is an organised group we are dealing with. Professionals too.

It would have been easy for Deirdee to dismiss them as amateurs, but the men clearly expected her and Phosi to be “normal” travellers. And the beggar disguise worked even on her, despite her being trained in using the very same trick. No one paid attention to the destitute wretches living on the streets of every city and while Deirdee had her suspicions as to why Phosi noticed the man, she decided not to dwell on the matter.

‘Is that him?’ she whispered to confirm.

Phosi shook her head almost imperceptibly.

Deirdee's heart sank at that.

They will make their move soon, I think.

She took out one of the [Shadow Weapon] scrolls Lilyth made for her and hid it under her shirt as she was told that she could channel the scroll so long as she was touching it. Deirdee just hoped her stunted magical abilities would not cause issues with that method.

I really understand Aki’s complaints about not having Darksight now.

The mess was made worse by Lilyth spending the past two days in some sort of “stick trance” rather than being available to do something actually useful, like making more scrolls for her.

Okay, Deirdee focus. A spiral of blame is the last thing you need right now. You will have time to be mad at the stupid fox later.

Luckily, no matter the outcome there would be a later for her since, after they returned from the aborted expedition, Ereshkigal did come to offer her a place in the Tenebral Order and she accepted immediately upon hearing that was the only way to escape the Blood. Learning that the Sanguine were not even afforded the luxury of a normal afterlife horrified her and made it the easiest hardest decision of her life.

It was also sickening to realise that she was “born” to be a disposable tool and conditioned to commit suicide after her pair-bonded one died.

The unfortunate part was that it put into question her ability to free Zvirvil. Because the job was becoming incredibly complex. She had to find him, incapacitate him, convince him to abandon the Blood AND get him to swear himself to Ereshkigal AND get the goddess to accept him into his service to begin with.

When discussing the issue before sealing the pact, the goddess had no opinion on the first four hurdles.

‘You are free to try,’ she said with a shrug. ‘He’s your brother after all, though whether I will accept him… that depends on his usefulness to me. I am not turning the Tenebral Order into a Sanguine rescue service.’

‘There must be some way to help him even without that,’ Deirdee protested.

‘Right now, there isn't.’

Deirdee's ears perked up at the phrasing.

‘Right now?’ she asked, expecting to be snapped back into her body.

‘Things are happening behind the scenes,’ the goddess explained. ‘I hope Blood’s treatment of your people will be among the subjects raised, though this particular issue goes deeper than the Great Game. ‘

‘Am I allowed to know that?’

‘Things are happening behind the scenes,’ Ereshkigal repeated. ‘And some of those things impact you directly. Me making a deal with someone and lying about what they can expect from that pact would be a massive no-no.’

Ereshkigal didn't elaborate on that and Deirdee didn't press. The goddess was likely already pushing the envelope of need-to-know.

Still, Deirdee didn't feel like beginning her eternal service to Ereshkigal that particular day, so when, after a surprisingly tasty meal, they resumed their shopping trip, she walked under the assumption of every passerby being a potential threat.

‘Relax, sister,’ Phosi laughed. ‘We’ll be fine.’

‘Easy for you to say,’ Deirdee growled through clenched teeth. ‘You can’t be hurt by them.’

‘All it takes is overconfidence and a single magic weapon. I had my own share of close-calls, so I never underestimate an enemy.’

‘And yet you said we would be fine.’

‘That’s because they are underestimating us. Only you are visibly armed and I am dressed in what they probably view as high court fashion.’

‘A noblewoman and her bodyguard rather than an assassin and a man-eating vengeful spirit?’ Understanding began to dawn on Deirdee.

‘Yes. That means their first impulse will be to rob us. Maybe take me hostage. In their eyes, I could be worth a pretty penny.’

‘Still doesn't make me any less expendable.’

‘You are a pretty girl. That makes you valuable. Or at least… usable.’

Phosi spat at the last part in a decidedly unladylike manner.

Oh. Oh, right.

‘How do you know so much about street thugs?’

‘Remember, sister - I was a noble lady. “Noble”, anyway. There were things expected of me, and since my family couldn't afford fancy bodyguards, I had to learn street smarts. I am shocked that you, of all people, are as clueless as a Finvih in the mist here.’

Finvihs were large territorial felines infamous for their terrible navigation skills. While the stories were mostly exaggerated, a common joke was that if one ever ended in a foggy area, it would get so lost it would somehow end up several hundred kilometres away.

‘We don’t really operate in mortal cities all that much. Why would we? Remember, we have wings, so we would be spotted instantly. If we have someone mortal to take down, not being seen is key. Though that extends to most of our targets really. Especially among the Sanguine. Running into a Serrated Blade during a mission tends to shorten someone's life expectancy quite a bit, so if you do that the best course of action is to ensure one of us is never seen again.’

Phosi winced at that.

‘I can see why you first assumed murder then. Not saying that isn't on the table, but likely not immediately.’

‘Which gives us a window of opportunity.’

They struck when Deirdee and Phosi were leaving the alchemist’s store. The establishment was in a small square accessible only through a side-alley, so it was a painfully obvious ambush spot. So obvious, in fact, that Deirdee had to stop herself from making an exaggerated eyeroll.

There were six of them, armed with dirks and clubs. The two “beggars” and a man wearing a good-quality white dress shirt and black suit pants were waiting for them in the alley. His head and face were shaven and there was malice in his cold blue eyes. As soon as Deirdee and Phosi stopped their three tails emerged from a house behind them.

‘Afternoon, ladies,’ the well-dressed man said in a faux-pleasant tone. ‘I am afraid this road belongs to us and you have not paid your toll for crossing it. So we will have to collect our fee twice and the penalty for trying to avoid our collectors. I think all your money and gold should do. We will also take the potions you just bought.’

‘I will make you an alternative deal, morsel,’ Phosi rasped and started approaching him. ‘Leave now and your families will get to see you alive again.’

‘I am not sure if you have counted, my lady,’ the man continued, a bit unsure,’ but there are six of us and only two of you.’

‘Yes,’ Phosi laughed. ‘The odds are hardly favourable, but we have places to be, so I don’t have time for you to get more snacks for me.’

Deirdee noticed that the other bandits were looking at each other uneasily. They had no idea what was going on. Neither did Deirdee, for the matter, but she wasn't the one threatened to be eaten so she was happy to see what Phosi’s plan was.

The well-dressed man pointed his dirk at Phosi’s chest.

‘S-stay back,’ he said. ‘Or I won’t hesitate to kill you.’

‘Go ahead, morsel,’ Phosi answered with a predatory smile and took another step forward.

All credit to him, the man followed-up on his threat. He lunged forward in stabbing motion and moments later his dirk emerged out of Phosi’s back. The an blade was badly corroded and the man’s hand red from chemical burns.

As the air filled with acrid smell, the sconryoll stepped forward again and the well-dressed man began to scream in pain.

‘What the fuck?!’ the man in the green shirt shouted, reminding Deirdee of his presence.

That issue had to be rectified, quickly. She gripped the hilt of her smallsword and focused on the scroll. She felt it turn to dust, so she whirled around, drawing the weapon and plunged the tip of the blade into the man’s throat. As he started to crumple onto to the floor, drowning in his own blood, she ripped the sword out and used it to pierce the chest of the linen-shirt. Red-doublet lost all stomach for fighting it seemed, but as turned tail, Deirdee hamstrung him and ran him through the back.

Phosi

Watching the snack’s growing horror as she digested more and more of its body was as pleasant as always. It tried to pull its limb out of her chest, but she gripped it on the arm near the shoulder and shook her head.

‘It will be all over soon, morsel,’ she whispered as her fingers burned into the snack's flesh.

That only caused the man to renew his struggles so she desolidified back into liquid and engulfed it, quickly digesting its body down to the bone.

The fake-weak prey decided that being on the receiving end of their own methods was not as fun as on the giving and, having both soiled themselves upon the sight of the gruesome end of their leader, started to run away. This just wouldn't do, so, still in liquid form, Phosi shot forward like a jet of water and cut off their way.

‘Sorry, little snacks,’ she laughed as her real head emerged from the mass of acid. ‘As you can probably understand, no witnesses.’

Their terrified screams were abruptly cut off after soon nothing but bones remained of them.’

‘Told you we would be fine,’ she told Deirdee after reforming her body. ‘Now let’s get out of her before someone comes to investigate this racket.’