Chương 89: The Bud that Refused the Sun

Avid's voice came rapidly, understanding the urgency of the situation, "Run to Albert. I'll send him a message, but in case he doesn't see it, tell him the Mayor is after you. He'll know what to do next." Evel didn't waste a second. He exploded out of the room, carrying the weapons and potions in his pocket and holding the cups in his hands. He broke out into the streets, the musty smell of metal washing over him. Metal like that of the Ferrum badge. The badge of his pursuer.

He ran west on a familiar road, his body mustering the fruits of all of his training of the past months. Every ounce of strength he had, every bit of energy, he needed now. Habitually, he checked over his shoulders, almost expecting the cruel, uncaring gaze of the Mayor to greet him back. He tucked and weaved between pedestrians, ignoring any curious glances. He didn't know how Albert could save him, but at this point, it didn't matter. It was somewhere for him to run, something for him to do.

Nothing was more excruciating than waiting in an empty room, the outcome of your life no longer in your own hands. At least now, he had a lifeline. Hope. No matter how little he could do, he could still improve his own chances. What Albert had was likely knowledge. Some sort of leverage Agent had on the Mayor. Some terms the Mayor would agree to. Whatever it was, Evel needed it desperately. The escape of the storied buildings was the first sign of approaching the house. At his speed, maybe a few minutes at most.

Evel checked over his shoulders. Still nothing. Wait… Something peculiar was floating far off into the distance in the sky. Something… small. Something getting larger. Something… facing him. Evel's entire body tensed as he slammed the cups into his ears, drowning out the sounds of the forest and the rushing of the river. Only a constant, piercing ring created by the careless impact resounded in his mind. At the same time, he summoned Eth and continued to push forward. Albert's house was close. He was close.

Then came the strike. An enormous weight slammed into his spine from behind, flinging him forward. He slammed chest-first into the ground, his grip giving out, and the paper cups tumbling to the ground. Clenching his jaw, he tried pushing himself back up to his feet, but his spine couldn't provide the support he needed. Dammit! Releasing a low growl, Evel brought his arm forward, dragging the rest of his body. Then, he reached out with his other, crawling desperately, a small pull at a time. He was so close.

Safety was so close.

"Stop." Evel's blood turned to lead. A horrible foreign voice sounding much like his own entered his head. Why was he even crawling in the first place? It was quite a laborious activity that wasted his stamina for no reason. It would be just so much easier if he stopped. So he stopped.

"Face me." Evel blinked. A person was talking to him, and it would be awfully rude to ignore them. Although he didn't care too much for such niceties, if he was planning on getting stronger in the future, he couldn't afford to make enemies for no reason. Evel pushed himself off the ground, his spine feeling a little lighter. He turned to face the gentleman who was talking to him. A middle-aged man with short white hair and kind, obsidian eyes that bore right into Evel.

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"Escaping my undirected speech was impressive, I'll give you that." The man spoke gently.

"But in the end, you're just a Core." A small fraction of lucidity returned for a brief moment, causing Evel to gasp for air. His shoulders tensed up as the cruel eyes dug into him, but he still couldn't bring himself to move.

"Who do you work for?" The Mayor demanded. His shoulders slouched, and his lips quivered as strange words exited his mouth.

"A-agent."

"Tch. I figured it'd be a class B Banner." The Mayor spoke with great disdain.

"I'll admit you did a pretty good job of hiding your tracks. Can't believe I wasted so much time on someone of your calibre." Evel's mind suddenly cleared, and his rush of thoughts returned. With them came fear. The domineering white-haired demon stepped towards him with cold, unfeeling eyes. A shrewd smile spread across his face.

"Unfortunately for you, the largest purchaser of information about myself happens to be me." He took another step, reaching into his hidden pockets and pulling out a familiar small black bag. An ender bag, the same kind Bremin had. Then, the Mayor reached deep into the bag, much further than it should have been possible, and pulled out a long, imposing glaive.

"My meeting with Grave was far more valuable than it was being sold for. Especially at that time. Only someone unfamiliar with the city, like Anonymous who facilitated the sale, or a newcomer would sell it for so cheap." He took another step.

"Still, anybody could have simply overseen or overheard our conversation. Waiting to sell the information was an annoying little trick." Another step.

"Present your neck." This time, the Mayor's aura was unrestrained, crushing Evel with a sheer, overwhelming force. One of Evel's knees slammed to the ground, as the rest of his body stood perfectly upright. His head remained held high, giving the Mayor a clean area to strike.

"You cost me weeks' worth of time," The Mayor looked at him with distaste.

"This is the cost." The setting sun behind Evel illuminated the Mayor's face as he approached while spinning the Glaive in his arms.

"Th-the firearms!" Evel blurted out. The Mayor paused, narrowing his eyes ever so slightly.

"I-I know everything about them."

"Oh?" Evel controlled his breathing.

"A-and the danger zone too! A message will be sent containing everything unless I stop it myself. If you kill me, everyone knows."

"You're claiming I'm keeping secrets?"

"Not just the surface-level stuff. I've figured everything out." The Mayor's eyes narrowed further and lingered on Evel's face. After a few seconds, the passion in his voice returned.

"Tell me, are you speaking the truth?" An invasive feeling of compulsion washed over Evel, the foreign thoughts shredding through his defences in moments. Evel felt a pleasant smile wash over his face, unable to hold back his next words.

"I lied, of course. I was just attempting to stall for some time." Veins bulged out from the Mayor's forehead as his displeased expression transformed into a dangerous grin.

"Truly pathetic." The fog of Evel's mind began to lift. The sun's sharp brilliance reflecting on the Mayor's raised glaive pierced deep into his eyes. Evel's body quivered, unable to move or act. The Mayor was right. In the end, I accomplished nothing. Then, something unbelievable happened. A sudden bloom of flowers spread all around Evel. No, not just around him. The Mayor, and the rest of the area, too. Flowers were blossoming in the entire area.

"Phew, I made it!" The warm, familiar voice came from just behind him. The Mayor lowered his weapon, and both he and Evel turned to face the approaching voice. A muscular man wearing a neon yellow shirt, plain black shorts and flip flops walked out from behind a tree, covering the sun behind him. He rubbed the back of his head with an awkward smile. His chestnut hair glowed in the sun's golden light, but the brilliance didn't reach his face. The cool shade completely enveloped Evel, as his breathing slowly calmed.

"An Anvil bullying a Core… That's quite extreme, don't you think?" Albert asked, continuing towards Evel.

"And you are?" The Mayor replied coldly.

"Ah, I've been here a while, but I guess we never officially met." Albert placed his right hand on his chest and lightly bowed.

"I'm Albert, of Topaz. I'm also the representative of Agent stationed in Ichoris." The Mayor frowned.

"Topaz…" The Mayor muttered, looking at the plants growing fiercely at his feet.

"As the person responsible for his actions, I'd like to apologize for my foolish student here. Please find it in your heart to let him go." Albert reached Evel with a smile and helped him to his feet.

"An ability to cleanse Energy, huh?" The Mayor spun his glaive.

"So you're The Bud that Refused the Sun... I wasn't aware you were still active." Albertly chuckled.

"I'm honoured you've heard of me. Then there should be no doubt that I represent Agent, and we can avoid this meaningless infighting between Banners." The Mayor raised an eyebrow.

"Doubt? You misunderstand. Doubt was never the issue." Albert pulled Evel back and took one step closer towards the Mayor, now face-to-face with the overpowering man. Evel watched in awe as his teacher, who was a full stage lower than the Mayor — an Anvil, apparently held his ground. It should be almost impossible to jump a full stage, especially when the weaker party was so out of practice.

"So we've come to an impasse?" Albert asked.

"No, we haven't." The Mayor stepped forward, now within arm's reach of Albert and looking down on him.

"I'll take his life, and if you attempt to stop me, I'll take yours as well." Albert chuckled and grabbed the marigold pendant that always hung around his neck.

"I'm no match for you, that's for sure." His voice deepened.

"But don't think I won't be able to cause you some trouble."

"Kneel, Weaver." Albert's knee crashed down into the dirt.

"You left the Path. These are the consequences." The Mayor walked forward. Suddenly, a huge burst of aura exploded from Albert's body, and with it a vast bloom of flowers. The flowers climbed up his arms at an immense speed, wrapping around his head. Then, the aura compressed. Smaller. And smaller. Until all of it was centred around his right. He pushed back to his feet and wiped off the dust from his shorts.

"Are you aware of what this pendant does?" Albert asked, cradling the marigold around his neck. The Mayor didn't reply.

"Long story short, it puts a cap on the amount of Energy I can absorb, while stopping the natural leakage." The Mayor raised an eyebrow.

"It seems you also misunderstand something, Mayor. I'm not a Weaver because I hit a wall." Albert rolled his arm with the compressed aura.

"I'm a Weaver because I choose to be."