Chương 103: Book 2 Chapter 55 - Unexpected Help

Kiara began pulling her sword from her soul space, reading herself for a fight. Dustin's plea echoed in her mind at the last moment before her sword appeared, and she cancelled the action. She had promised him she wouldn't do anything stupid. Could she really fight an entire room of powerful mages by herself? Even if she could, she wasn't equipped to fight the entire faction that was backing Lord Goren. She knew how many guards were outside the building, blockading the streets leading in and out of the area.

Regardless of how she fared, she would be jeopardizing the future of House Yountal. Dozens of wealthy families in Easton would come after her, or at the very least refuse to treat with her house moving forward. No, this wasn't the right place for a fight. She raised her hand to ward off the two approaching guards.

"Don't touch me!" Addressing Lord Goren again, she said, "Lord Goren, you really must reconsider. If anything happens to any of those families, I will hold you personally responsible. Be reasonable, and let me take them to shelter." Lord Goren stepped towards her, a sneer on his face now. As he spoke, his voice rose slowly in volume, building to an indignant crescendo.

"Lady Yountal. You come in here, uninvited and unannounced, begging a moment of my time, which I so graciously allowed. I've stated the reasons for my actions, which are perfectly reasonable, and now you have the gall to accuse me of this? I've already given you my assurance that no harm will come to them, your repeated insistence is a challenge to my honor, and is bordering on a threat!" She again considered pulling out her swords, but once again decided against it.

What really mattered right now was getting those families to safety, and she couldn't do that with a hundred powerful mages hot on her tail. She breathed deeply and exhaled, glaring at Lord Goren.

"Very well, Lord Goren, but when this whole thing blows over, you and I are going to have words." She turned on her heel and walked toward the door, the two guards accompanying her. Behind her, Lord Goren called out, "Gentlemen, see that she is safely escorted all the way out." True to his command, they followed her out of the room, down the stairs, out of the building, and to the edge of Lord Goren's locked down area.

The guards holding the line on that street parted to let her out, and the two bodyguards from Lord Goren's command center turned and left. She huffed in displeasure, but kept walking, moving until she was once again out of sight. She reactivated [Invisibility 2], then immediately turned and headed back. She worked her way back to the Horton's house, knocking lightly on the door. The window shutters parted a crack, and a hesitant whisper sounded out, "Who's there?"

Kiara realized she still had her invisibility active, so she dropped it, earning a startled gasp. The door was quickly unlatched, and she slipped inside. Notably, she hadn't seen any changes in the guard patrol patterns after her talk with Lord Goren, so he either didn't know where these families were, or didn't truly intend to try and keep them safe should any fighting break out.

"Lady Yountal!" Bryce Jensen greeted her as she slipped inside.

"You're back much sooner than we expected…" The look of hope on his face grew stronger.

"Did you secure Lord Goren's permission for us to evacuate?" Kiara sighed deeply.

"Not officially." Bryce's face fell.

"I see. No worries, my lady, you've already done more than anyone could have asked of you. The fact that you're even here to check on us is… unusual, and appreciated." His face grew ashamed and nervous.

"We… didn't mean to abandon the shop, my lady, it was just - " She cut him off, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"You did the right thing, Bryce. Keeping your family and neighbors safe is a much higher priority than anything inside that shop." A look of relief washed over his face. The other two families were both surprised and confused at her seeming generosity and concern for their well being.

"I still don't think it's safe for you all here," Kiara said after a moment.

"We'll wait for the cover of darkness, then I'll sneak you all out and back to my estate. You'll be safe there." The families exchanged nervous looks.

"Do you really think we can make it out?" Mister Horton asked. Kiara looked at each of them in turn.

"I'm not sure. If you're going to take this risk, you deserve to know the truth. But I also don't think you can stay here any longer. If you don't run out of food, you'll likely be caught in the fighting. I think it's worth the risk to try and sneak you all out, and I'm willing to give it a shot if you all are. That being said, I won't force anyone to come with me." Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

More nervous looks were exchanged, and Kiara knew they needed time to both process what she was suggesting, and perhaps to discuss it with each other. She excused herself to the other room, giving them what privacy she could. By the time night fell, the three families had made up their minds. They would all come with her, and attempt to sneak out of the lockdown. There simply wasn't enough food for them to stay here any longer, and the duration of the lockdown was unknown.

They wore rough cloaks to help hide their clothing and faces, and followed Kiara out into the night. Miss Horton carried their child on her hip, trying to hush his soft whimpers. He could feel the tension in the air, and was scared by it. Kiara led them to the farthest side of the locked down area. If Lord Goren was suspecting her of trying anything, she figured they'd most likely be on the lookout for her on the side closest to where her estate lay.

After they were out, they could loop back around toward her estate. They walked quietly, keeping to the shadows, trying to avoid any attention. Before they could even make it to the edge of Lord Goren's claimed territory, they were spotted and accosted by a group of seven roaming guards, all tier 1. Emboldened by the cover of night, and perhaps by a bit too much alcohol, the guards approached them with unkind looks and words.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" one of them asked with a sneer.

"Lady Yountal, trying to sneak people out of the area." Another guard held up a rough sketch of Shian's face.

"Lord Goren spread the word, said to be on the lookout for any shenanigans from you tonight. What's the reward again, Vince?" Another guard, probably Vince, spoke up.

"Five gold coins! That's almost a full gold coin apiece."

"Does that paper say if they have to be alive, or uninjured?" one of the other guards joked, earning hoots from his fellows.

"It doesn't say!" The Jensens, Hortons, and Vellens all shrank back, fear apparent on their faces. Kiara narrowed her eyes. The guards earlier, in Lord Goren's command center, had just been doing their jobs, following orders. As much as she'd considered fighting that group, she would have aimed to incapacitate, not kill. These guards, on the other hand, were purposefully tormenting her and the three families she was escorting. A growl escaped her throat.

"If you so much as touch a hair on their heads…," she paused as a familiar aura washed over her. Kane was here. His aura filled the air just a split second before he registered in her [Magical Sense 4] ability. The danger sense she got from him was extreme. Compared to him, the guards in front of her gave off the danger sense of infants. This was her first time being around Kane since receiving the upgraded version of magic sense that let her sense the true danger someone posed, beyond just their tier.

Unlike the previous times she had felt his aura, this time it wrapped around her like a protective shield. The seven guards in front of her stumbled at the sudden pressure. She noticed also that the mortals hiding behind her were not affected by the aura the same way the mortal had been the times he'd been flaunting his strength in public. Was he protecting them from the guards? And then he was there. He stepped in between Kiara and the guards.

"Leave them alone."

"We have orders to arrest them," one of the men said.

"And I'm telling you to leave them alone," Kane replied calmly.

"We have direct orders from Lord Goren himself that she isn't to leave," one of the other guards snarled, pulling his axe off his waist. Kane looked at the axe and chuckled.

"As unwise as your current course of action is, I truly hope you pursue it anyways. Give me an excuse, I'm begging you." He locked eyes with the man, the pure nonchalance of his posture reinforcing the fact that he could wipe these seven men off the planet with a flick of his wrist. Kiara knew it, and she knew that the guards knew it. Her heart fluttered just a bit. The seven guards gulped and backed away in unison.

"We-we'll report this to Lord Goren!" One of them stammered.

"Very well," Kane replied.

"I'd be happy to discuss the matter with him directly." He stared the guards down until they ran off, then turned to Kiara.

"Are you harmed?" She wasn't sure why he was here, or why he was helping them. Was he… concerned about her? As thankful as she was for the assist, she knew they weren't out of the woods yet. She didn't know what Kane's true intentions were, and they were still within Lord Goren's locked down area of the Benson district. They were a long way from safety.

"We're okay," she replied, thanking him with a smile.

"Who are these?" he asked, gesturing to the people with her.

"Some of my employees, and their neighbors. I'm helping them back to my estate to wait out the danger." He nodded at the explanation.

"That kind of loyalty is commendable. You would do well in the clan. Come." She didn't get a chance to ask him what he meant by that, as he immediately strode off, gesturing for them to follow. He led them straight to the nearest road out, the one they had been heading towards originally. The guards there saw the group coming and moved to intercept.

"Lord Vondeer? Where are you taking these people?" the tier 3 in charge asked. A handful of tier 2s flanked him.

"I'm leaving," Kane said simply.

"These people are coming with me." The tier 3 shook his head.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that. No one leaves without permission from Lord Goren."

"I wasn't really asking," Kane said with a predatory edge to his voice.