Chương 208: (203) 3.68. Behind the Scenes

The last time Vin had paid Golrim a visit with the intention of pulling answers from the cunning man, Golrim had thrown him for a loop by revealing his entire skeleton had been turned into a conglomeration of runic objects, allowing him to bypass their truth-gem, among other things. This time, Vin wasn't going to let himself be distracted or awed or given half-truths. He was going to get some answers, and by God, Golrim better hope they were good ones.

Despite everything he'd done for them over the last two weeks and not showing a single sign of having ulterior motives, Golrim still had a guard assigned to him at all times. It seemed at the very least, even with how much work Spur entrusted the man with, Spur wasn't quite ready to let him off the leash just yet. Unlike with Kym, Vin didn't bother knocking this time around.

The guard Spur had put in place, a woman Vin didn't recognize with an axe hanging from her belt, must have known from his expression trying to stop him would be pointless, as she took one look at him and carefully stepped to the side, motioning for him to go on through.

"Thank you," Vin said gruffly, before throwing the door open and storming in.

"Golrim! You and I need to have a quick chat!"

"Oh? What about?" Golrim's voice called back from the kitchen area, sounding more curious than anything. Vin stepped further into the small apartment, finally spotting Golrim leaning against one of the kitchen counters with a glass in his hands. Swirling the brown liquid inside, Golrim shot him a smart grin.

"Are you here to ask about the supply ratio on Witherson's behalf? I'll tell you the same thing I told her, I've run the numbers, and-""What's your relationship with Curash?" Vin said bluntly, cutting off the cheeky man before he could get started.

"I just spoke with Kym, who informed me that Curash, leader of the Red Dawn, Curash, pointed him toward our camp and paved the way for him to make the journey safely when he left your fragment. You told me before you wanted to form a good relationship with me, and that you'd tell me the truth. So give me the truth now, Golrim, are you secretly a member of the Red Dawn or something?"

Vin stared at the man that seemed to hold more secrets than the rest of the town combined as he slowly placed his glass down and turned to give Vin his full attention. The broad smile on his face diminished a fraction, but didn't quite leave entirely. He didn't answer right away, and Vin could practically see the calculations and odds flying through his mind before he finally came to a decision with a tired sigh.

"You may want to take a seat for this," Golrim said softly, nodding toward the living room.

"I'll admit I predicted I'd have more time before this came to light, but I promised I wouldn't lie to you. I just ask that you allow me to fully explain before you go storming off or anything."

"Gonna be honest, that's not a great start," Vin frowned, taking the offered seat and watching Golrim carefully as he sat across from him.

"Yes or no, do you work for the Red Dawn?" If the Red Dawn managed to get an inside member this deep into our town in preparation for a frontal assault or something…

"No, I don't work for the Red Dawn," Golrim said, shaking his head and eliciting a sigh of relief from Vin. Though it seemed he'd reacted just a moment too soon, as Golrim wasn't done.

"…Technically, the Red Dawn works for me." Vin could only stare at the former advisor who sat there, watching him carefully. He knew he should probably feel rage, or betrayal, or a whole host of powerful emotions, but frankly, he was so caught off guard by the man's honesty that the only thing that went through his mind was a stupid bet Scule had whispered in his ear weeks ago.

"Where am I even going to find ten gold coins?" he muttered, actually getting a rare confused glance from Golrim in response.

"Alright, start talking. And you better have a damn good explanation for everything that's happened up until now."

"The reason why I said they technically work for me, is because I've never actually met them myself," Golrim explained.

"However, Curash is my man. And I don't mean that in a figurative sense, I mean that literally. He's soul-bound to me. He's forced to follow any order I give him."

"That sounds kinda evil, Golrim," Vin warned, already not liking where this was headed.

"What have I told you about letting your old world's morality bleed into Edregon?" Golrim frowned, motioning for him to let him speak.

"Back on our world, Curash was a Hunter, and a damned good one. He was capable of sneaking past the king's guards and would poach in the royal forests. He ended up forming the largest band of poachers our kingdom had ever seen, and when they were finally captured, the king demanded that they all be executed. Naturally, as I've said before, there's nothing I hate more than wasting talent."

"So rather than kill him, you forced him to become your soul-slave, or something?" Vin drawled. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"I didn't force him to do anything," Golrim shrugged.

"The choice was his, and when I offered him a chance to do some good for the kingdom, he willingly became my soul-bound. Part of the deal included that I help provide for his family, and I can honestly say I made sure they were well taken care of. Right up until I was imprisoned myself, at least."

"Wait, how did Curash get in the prison then? Did you order him to break you out or something?"

"Nothing quite so exciting," Golrim chuckled.

"Curash was actually in the middle of an undercover operation when I myself was imprisoned. I'd sent him into the prison to try and get critical information out of one of the other prisoners. A gang leader that had roots deep throughout the capital. It was sheer coincidence that when the kingdom was overthrown and I was thrown away that I ended up being tossed into the same prison he was in.

Naturally, with my power gone, what was supposed to be a mission lasting no longer than a few months turned into a lifetime sentence. Or at least it would have, right up until we were stolen away by the Gods."

"Okay, I'm following so far…" Vin said, waiting for the shoe to drop.

"So please, do tell how the two of you went from prisoners to forming a horrific band of merry murderers."

"When we finally escaped and realized we were on an entirely new world, I ordered Curash to keep our connection a secret. I realized almost immediately that our group of escapees, which consisted of about six hundred of the kingdom's worst, stood next to no chance at survival unless drastic action was taken. The simplest solution was rounding up the worst of the bunch and isolating them from those actually willing to put aside their pasts and start anew. I had Curash form the Red Dawn to give them just that."

"So you formed the Red Dawn… In an attempt to get rid of the deadliest of the criminals," Vin said, trying to wrap his head around the logic.

"…Why on Earth was that better than just killing them outright?!"

"Getting rid of the worst of the bunch was just the first step," Golrim sighed.

"I needed something to unite the rest. Something to get them to band together and ensure there would be some semblance of unity."

'Nothing brings people together like defending their homes against a common enemy.' Curash's words echoed in Vin's mind, and he started as he realized Curash was trying to explain himself even back then.

"Curash had simple orders to follow," Golrim continued.

"Simple, but nearly impossible. Threaten the residents of our fragment just enough to keep them together without doing too much damage, and slowly whittle down the Red Dawn as time went on. These last four months Curash has been walking along a balance beam suspended over a pit of hungry marauders. The fact he's managed to fulfil his last orders so well goes to show I made the right choice in turning him into one of my agents."

"So bringing us to the Red Dawn and then vanishing while we made our escape…" Vin said, putting the pieces together.

"He used us to trim the herd even further?!"

"That would be my guess," Golrim nodded.

"The last time we spoke was when I ordered him to help me ensure Kym made it to your people unharmed, and to lend me some of his more reasonable men for protection, in the event your people ended up being more aggressive than I expected. I went through all the trouble of allowing Kym to 'escape,' the last thing I wanted was for him to get harmed during his journey."

"Wait wait wait," Vin demanded, getting to his feet and glaring down at him.

"You're seriously claiming that Kym escaping and coming to us was all part of your plan? That's absurd! You attacked us to try and get him back!"

"People are far more willing to bargain with someone when they think they have the upper hand," Golrim explained, his small, knowing smile ever-present as he watched Vin react to everything.

"I never intended for that kidnapping to work. It was supposed to remove one more member of the Red Dawn, while making it seem like my plan had been foiled and I was in a difficult position. Though unfortunately, my calculations weren't quite as accurate as I would have liked," he admitted, his smile finally wavering for a moment.

"I hadn't quite figured out just how low level the majority of your people were at that point. I never intended for anyone to die, and for that, I truly am sorry."

"Why did you go through all this trouble in the first place? Why not just approach us and ask to join our camp?" Though even as the words left his mouth, Vin realized how that would have sounded. Golrim must have seen the realization on his face, because he nodded.

"Exactly. Who would be willing to take in a few hundred former high-security prisoners out of the blue? Showing you how useful we could be through Kym's knowledge and my own strategic planning was the first step. After that, the plan was to slowly warm your leadership up to the idea. Although you quickly joined the very short list of people that have managed to surprise me over the years," Golrim said, grinning at him.

"I can honestly say I didn't expect you to just take off into a fragment you knew was filled with dangerous criminals right after we spoke. I just wanted you to try and chat with Spur, not drag them back yourself! That was the moment I learned how powerful you truly were, and came to the realization that you were the most important person to get in good with. I predicted complete honesty and forthcoming would be the best way to tie myself to you, and so far, it seems to have been working."

Vin let himself flop back into his seat as he stared at the smiling man. He'd certainly gotten the answers he came for and more. Yet discovering that he and everyone else had been dancing to Golrim's tune all this time shocked him to his core. Rubbing his temples, Vin let out a world-weary groan.

"You realize I'm going to have to tell Spur all of this, right?"

"I figured. Like I said, I leave the decision of what to do with the truth up to you. The next phase of my plan is going to require his assistance anyway."

"Part of me doesn't want to know…" Vin began, knowing he had to ask anyway.

"…but pray tell, what is the next phase of your plan?"

"Well I thought that would be obvious now that my people have settled in and don't need something to rally against," Golrim smiled, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"It's time we finished off the Red Dawn."