Chương 106: Chapter 066 A Mask Torn Away (Part 1)

The courtyard door across from Jack's hiding place opened. Four beastkin guards, an inquisitor he didn't recognise, and his father stepped out onto the cobbled street. Jack clenched his dagger in rage as he noticed the blood and bruising on his father's face.

"I'll fucking kill you all!" Without thinking, he pulled his bow from his shoulder, nocked an arrow with a shaky hand, and drew back the bow while activating [True Aim]. He aimed at the male inquisitor who shoved his father as he was led down the street. As he waited the six seconds for the skill to activate, sanity took root in his enraged mind. There are five of them. They'll… kill him. He lowered the bow and relaxed the draw.

"Fuck." Jack checked his father's mark. Superficial injuries, confused, no armour, no protections. His fists clenched in anger; the arrow shaft snapped in his right hand. He discarded the broken arrow and slung the bow back over his shoulder. As the guards, the inquisitor, and his father turned a corner, he stepped from his hiding place. He followed the group for a few streets before the inquisitor and his father entered another property.

The four guards remained outside, with the two guards already standing outside. Jack placed [Assassin's Mark] on one of the guards. Healthy, bored, major armour, no protections. He ducked into a side alley before any of the guards saw him and allowed [Shadow Veil] to hide him. Are all my family being held there? It didn't make much sense for the inquisitors to only move his father from his home.

"Probably more inside." He calculated his odds of saving his family. It was close to zero. He headed back to his home. After scaling the wall, he found the courtyard empty and the front door ajar. With his dagger drawn, he entered. He headed straight to the kitchen to find a mess. Many of his mother's precious pots and pans were strewn across the floor. There were over a dozen dirty plates and bowls left in the sink or on the table.

"Did the bastards eat here?" The idea that they'd sullied his mom's kitchen enraged him further. He checked the rest of the house. Every room was a mess; the guards and inquisitors had rifled through every cupboard and drawer, leaving most of the contents on the floor. In his room, he found all his books had been removed from the bookshelf and placed in a neat pile on the floor. Jack searched through the books and found that anything he'd written in was missing.

Not that it mattered, but he sighed with relief that he'd destroyed anything he'd written down since awakening in his young body. On the floor, beside his upturned table, PenDragon lay smashed to pieces. It looked like someone had stamped on the child's toy. Jack gripped his dagger in anger. The memories of his little sister stealing his crayons were linked to that toy. He headed back downstairs, and as he entered the kitchen again, he stopped dead at the sound of a man's voice.

"The young ones always return home." The man chuckled.

"Hello, Jack. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." Jack spun on his heels to find an older man dressed in inquisitor robes. He was leaning against the kitchen wall. He's alone. He tightened the grip on his [Assassinate] empowered dagger and lunged at the inquisitor. The old man didn't look surprised at the attack; he didn't even move. The inquisitor smiled as Jack's blade was thrust towards his chest and was stopped by a red shield.

"[Shield]." The inquisitor widened his arms and smiled.

"Take a seat or…" Jack aimed the blade at the man's throat, interrupting the inquisitor. What do I do? The blade was again stopped by the [Shield].

"Fuck!" He turned and ran towards the kitchen door. The old man laughed.

"We have your family." Pausing in the doorway, he considered his options. He couldn't fight, and he couldn't leave his family, but he'd be killed once they knew he was a blood mage. The older inquisitor chuckled.

"Take a seat… or a member of your family dies. Let's start with the young girl, shall we? Zia, I believe her name is." He sighed.

"What a sad story that child has. It would be a shame to end it just as she found a new home." Jack's rage spiked. I have to protect her. She's important. He spun around and almost lunged at the inquisitor again.

"I'll fucking kill…" Logic took hold as he heard more people enter his home.

"Don't hurt them! It-it was only me; they didn't do anything wrong." The old man smiled.

"I have no interest in your family." He gestured towards the table.

"Cooperate, and your family will be freed to go about their pointless lives." The inquisitor walked past Jack and took a seat where his father normally sat. He pointed at the seat in front of him.

"Sit down. Now!" Jack hesitated. [Assassin's Intuition] triggered, he turned to find a foxkin guard standing in the hallway behind him. Still holding the dagger, he sat down. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. The inquisitor smiled.

"I knew you'd be a smart one." He pointed at Jack's mask.

"Remove it, now." He heard more people enter his home. I'm fucked. After a short pause, he removed the mask and placed it on the table before him.

"What have you done to my family?" Recalling his father's bruised and bloody face, rage engulfed his thoughts. He checked on his father's [Assassin's Mark]; it gave no information beyond direction, but it confirmed he was still alive. The old man frowned and put his hand forward.

"Give me your hand, boy." Jack's eyes narrowed at the request; he couldn't allow the inquisitor to scan him. He considered cancelling the mark on the beastkin guard and placing it on the Inquisitor. He might have blocking skills. He was remembering how the older blood mages blocked [Assassin's Mark].

"That wasn't a request." The inquisitor looked at the guard who was now stationed at the kitchen door.

"Fetch the little girl."

"Wait!" Jack offered his free hand to the inquisitor.

"I… I'll cooperate." He realised his pseudo [Rogue's Tongue] skill wasn't working. He'd been offered no insights into how to deal with the man before him. [M ultitasking] is still active. He thought of a page of a book he knew would trigger [Cross-Reference]. The skill worked. I s it only that skill? The old man smiled and nodded at the foxkin who remained in the doorway. He took Jack's hand, and his eyes glowed golden. A few moments later, his eyes widened.

"So you are a Novice Blood Mage… but also a…" He released Jack's hand and, for the first time, showed a look of uncertainty. He looked at the guard in the doorway.

"Clear the house, now! Send word to the others to treat the family with respect. Heal any injuries… Feed them. Go!" Jack breathed a sigh of relief and pulled his hand back as the guard left the kitchen and started shouting for the others to leave. The old inquisitor looked concerned, but didn't speak until the house was clear.

"Who are you?" Jack's grip on his dagger tightened, and the knuckles on his right hand turned white. He didn't know what to say.

"Who do you believe I am?"

"I'm the one who asks the questions, boy." The old man leaned forward.

"Who are you?" Jack took a deep breath.

"Jack, son of William the Expert Scribe at the Royal Library." The old man sighed.

"Don't try my patience, boy." He smiled.

"You have two paths. The easy path where none of your family dies." He sighed.

"Or the hard path where the orphan dies, so you know I'm serious. Either way, you will tell me what I want to know." Bastard. I'm going to kill you if you dare hurt her. He considered attacking again, but knew he'd fail. He considered all of his attack options, but none of them killed the inquisitor and got him any closer to saving his family.

"I'm a blood mage… part of Viscount Daelrath's circle."

"Yes, you are a blood mage, but you are not part of Viscount Daelrath's circle." The old man narrowed his eyes.

"Try again." Can he detect lies? Jack used the full capacity of his pseudo [Multitasking] skill as he considered various options and settled on partial truths.

"I recently became a blood mage, but I'm not part of a circle." The old man smiled.

"Unaffiliated. Well, that changes things." He gave Jack a discerning look.

"How did you become a blood mage, and how are you a level 50 Apprentice Scribe?"

"I don't know," Jack replied.

"I chose my class yesterday, Novice Time Mage. I plan to go to the Academy to study magic, and after choosing, I had the other classes." The inquisitor nodded, apparently not detecting the partial truths as a lie.

"My family is innocent and is no threat to you or the circles." Jack sheathed his dagger.

"I swear to you, they do not know I'm a blood mage and are no threat to the Kingdom." The old man smiled.

"How are you aware of Viscount Daelrath?" Shit. Jack took a deep breath and offered up a truth.

"A set of blood mage documents came into my possession…" He noted that the old man nodded. Can he discern lies? He needed to be sure.

"Viscount Daelrath was mentioned in the documents." The inquisitor interrupted.

"Lie. And we were doing so well. Try again." Jack concluded the inquisitor could only determine full lies.

"I heard his name mentioned by another blood mage." He frowned. Damn it. He's going to extract the truth a drop at a time.

"Which blood mage?"

"Baron Greaves," Jack replied. The old inquisitor frowned.

"Where did you hear Baron Greaves speak?"

"In an alleyway." He pointed in the general direction where Greaves had killed him a quarter of a century in the future. The inquisitor nodded.

"As tempting as it is to extract the full truth, this is circle business." He scratched his chin in thought.

"You will be handed over to Viscount Tides' circle for them to deal with." Jack nodded despite wanting to scream.

"What about my family? They haven't done anything wrong. They don't know I'm a blood mage or of the existence of other blood mages. I swear to the Gods they aren't a threat."

"I apologise for your family's treatment. Had we known…" The old inquisitor looked concerned.

"After we checked with Viscount Tides and the other circles." He frowned.

"They said you weren't one of theirs… We assumed you were lying." The old man looked at the messy kitchen and sat up straight.

"We will fix the mess we've made, and I will personally escort you to Viscount Tides' estate." He looked Jack in the eyes.

"We have a good relationship with the Viscount; if they take you as part of their circle… Again, I apologise for how you and your family have been treated." Is he afraid I'll seek retribution in the future? Jack wondered. He believes I'm going to join Tides' circle. He recalled how Baron Greaves and the others had welcomed him as a new blood mage. Damn it. He closed his eyes for a few moments to think. How do I explain multiple classes and that I'm a level 50 Apprentice Scribe? The inquisitor stood.

"I will take you to Viscount Tides now." Jack opened his eyes.

"I have to see my family… To explain." The old man shook his head.

"I will deliver you to the Viscount, and he will decide your fate. In the meantime, your family will be made comfortable under the care of the Inquisition." Jack's eyes widened in horror. The inquisitor rolled his eyes.

"We will place them in a local inn with guards. I assure you, they will be safe." Having no other choice, Jack nodded, retrieved his mask, and followed the inquisitor out of his home and back into the cool evening air.