-Yenva-
After finishing off Recen, and after Yenva witnessed the final beheading, Kuro had taken up a post near the edge of the courtyard, where Xeron had pulled himself over before allowing himself to fall unconscious. Kuro stood, arms folded, watching as Yenva mourned her sister, surrounded by an indifferent council of business partners and associates, who chattered nervously.
He’d only been waiting a few minutes when he saw Oroske, followed by Ensaru and a visibly injured Ari, enter the stone clearing. Oroske first saw Yenva and the late Recen, before looking over and making eye contact with Kuro, who raised a hand in greeting. The group came to him first. Ari looked incredibly shocked at the sight of Xeron, unconscious on the floor.
“So, how did your end go?” Kuro asked Oroske as they got closer.
“Pretty well, Ari put up a better fight than I’d have expected, but she was still no match for Ensaru,” Oroske said. Kuro raised an eyebrow at the mention of Ensaru fighting, but Oroske continued before he could ask about it, “How about you? Did you encounter much trouble?”
“Not too much, Xeron put up a good fight, but I think my strategy ended up being a big part of why I won. I’m disappointed Recen was as weak as she was. After the way she ambushed me the other night, I expected more from her.”
“Were you able to get any information out of her before killing her?” Oroske folded his arms, “And that besides, why did you end up deviating from the plan?”
Kuro shook his head. “She refused to give up any information even after I disabled her, I figured she wasn’t likely to give any at all. As for why she’s dead and not Yenva, I decided I wanted to get back at her for surprising me. And, I guess, I don’t really think Yenva’s done anything to deserve being killed.” He said that last part with a shrug. It was the truth, he didn’t really have a reason to kill her. He just also didn’t have reason kill her. Other than money, at least.
Oroske simply sighed. Ensaru wordlessly left the group, walking over to Yenva. Kuro looked to Ari, seeing her feel conflicted on where she should be. It seemed she decided to stick by Xeron for now, she’d have to check in with her employer another time. Kuro, for one, wanted to hear the conversation between the two company heads. He guessed Oroske felt the same, as the two walked closer together, stopping just close enough to be in earshot.
“I am sorry for your loss, Yenva,” Ensaru said softly as he crouched down, and Kuro was surprised to hear sincerity in the man’s voice.
“Like hell you are.” Yenva snapped, “It’s your fault she’s dead, you’re the one who put out the hit on her.” Even from a distance, Kuro could see an intense rage in her eyes as she looked up at him.
“I assure you, that isn’t the case. I had hired the boy to kill , not her. I had nothing against Recen, the boy’s actions were his own.” Ensaru paused for a moment, before extending a hand to the woman. “Let us put an end to this feud, Yenva. I don’t know about you, but I for one tire of it. Let us work together, as we used to.”
He waited a couple minutes, before reluctantly retracting his hand and standing. “Please think about it, at least.” He walked away, remaining silent and stoic as he disappeared from sight. Yenva remained on the floor, clearly still in shock.
“Let’s give her a few minutes to process before we talk to her,” Oroske whispered to Kuro, before walking over to Xeron and Ari.
Xeron was starting to come to when they arrived, and within a minute he was sitting up groggily. He saw his sister first, “Ari? Did you win?” She shook her head, and recounted her battle against Oroske and Ensaru. Kuro listened especially intently to the Ensaru portion of the story, curious to see how powerful the old man really was. The idea of this “reality bubble” Ari mentioned really piqued his interest. That seemed a very powerful ability to have, especially in the way that he was able to control it. He decided he would have to ask Ensaru if he could learn how to use it when they returned to the J’alyr.
After she finished her story, Xeron finally looked around his surroundings, taking note of Oroske and Kuro’s presence for the first time. He also saw Yenva, still mourning next to her sister’s corpse. He looked at Kuro with a question clear on his face. “You killed Recen instead? Why?”
Kuro gave the same response he did earlier, shrug and everything. Everyone’s surprise at his actions only served to deepen his doubt regarding whether he did the right thing or not. Well, he would live with his actions regardless.
“Well, that besides, I must say I’m impressed,” Xeron continued, “You’re a lot stronger than I gave you credit for.” He paused, and his next words carried with them an intense mixture of emotion, “Oroske must be a really good mentor. He’s turned you into a very skilled fighter in such a short time.”
Kuro nodded, “I don’t think I could ask for better. Don’t sell yourself short, either. It was mostly luck that allowed me to win.”
Xeron chuckled, he clearly didn’t buy Kuro’s claim that he won by luck. Kuro mentally shrugged it off, and sat down on the ground, letting himself relax for a few moments.
His relaxation only lasted a few minutes before Oroske motioned for him to follow. It seemed Yenva had been moved inside the office building, and Oroske wanted to talk to her.
Upon entering, they spoke to the same person Kuro had interrogated when he first arrived. Oroske handled the conversation, asking after Yenva’s location. The man said he’d track her down, and that she may need a few minutes before she’s ready for any meetings. So they were made to sit down in the lobby to wait. Kuro hadn’t had time to appreciate the building’s interior earlier. He was a tad preoccupied trying to track someone down and kill them. It was neat, orderly, and almost clean. He preferred the homely feeling of the J’alyr’s offices for sure. This place reminded him too much of the lobby of the Hunter’s HQ in Tsumi’din.
Thankfully they didn’t end up waiting for very long, as the young man from earlier came up to them only ten or fifteen minutes later. “Master Muwal is ready for you,” He said, pointedly only speaking and looking at Oroske, though he’d occasionally give a weary glance at Kuro. “If you would follow me, please.”
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He led them to a small office on the second floor, with a window overlooking the facility’s inner courtyard. There a visibly very shaken Yenva sat, holding her head in her hands, a folder filled with papers between her elbows and chest.. She was accompanied by two bodyguards, a man and a woman, both quite intimidating in stature, wearing slick, black suits.
“Well? What do you want?” Yenva asked, not looking up from her hands, “Have you just come to rub it in? Was killing my sister not for you?”
“I wanted to offer my condolences,” Oroske stated as he sat down.
“Condolences?” She spat, “ is the one who killed her, and you want to offer Don’t make me laugh.”
“This is something I take quite seriously, I’ll have you know. It’s something I do for all families affected by my work.” He said flatly, leaning back in his seat. Kuro simply stood awkwardly near the door, not wanting to speak. He knew Oroske wasn’t lying, he’d sat in on a couple of these conversations now. One for a young child who was lost because they didn’t arrive on scene fast enough, another for a man who fought alongside them but didn’t survive. “Even if I myself am not the one who killed her, Recen’s blood is at least partially on my hands.” He paused for a long moment. “Unlike many of my fellow Hunters, I take no pleasure or pride in the work of killing people. That said, I stand by and support my apprentice’s decision. Given all the evidence we have, I would have done similar in his shoes. The only difference is you would likely be dead as well.”
Another long pause. “I also wanted to ask after your internal investigation, regarding Recen’s involvement with the Mienr and New Spire Empire.”
“See for yourself,” she muttered as she grabbed the folder next to her arms and tossed it to him, some of the papers spilling out as it landed and slid across the smooth table.
Kuro couldn’t see the papers well from where he stood, and was not keen on moving from his spot by the door, so he let Oroske read through them.
Oroske didn’t even make it through half of the folder before sighing and setting them down. “She must have been in deeper than expected, that explains the loyalty she showed to them at the end.”
“I can’t believe she hid this from me for so long,” Yenva said, sounding as though she was choking back tears, “I can’t believe I didn’t find this evidence before. These records have been in this building the entire time, that folder came straight from her drawer in my office. We only found them this morning, maybe two hours before her killer arrived.”
“Do you mind if I take these records to present to our boss? They may also be escalated to the Guardians.”
“Go ahead, we already made copies for ourselves as well.”
“Thank you, for your time, and your cooperation.” Oroske stood, scooping the papers up, straightening them against the table before sticking them back in the folder. He took a deep breath before speaking again, “I truly am sorry for your loss. May the future be brighter for you and yours.”
He motioned to Kuro, who opened the door and walked out, ahead of his mentor. Kuro thought he could hear Yenva start crying as they left.
They arrived in Tsumi’din late that night. Ensaru still gave them a portion of the promised paycheck, but as the contract wasn’t entirely fulfilled he couldn’t give them all of it. He did treat them to a veritable feast that night before sending them off. It had been a long time since Kuro had a meal that large.
Kuro was exhausted by the time they stumbled into the Hunter headquarters. It had been a day, and despite his best efforts he couldn’t seem to rest at all during the ride home. Thankfully, they were almost done. Double thankfully, Danfis was waiting in the lobby for them, standing next to the reception desk, chatting with Venn.
“Oh, welcome home you two! I hope your travels were smooth.” The young woman greeted them with her usual warm smile, interrupting Danfis.
Danfis turned around, and gave the two Hunters a small smile. “Come, let us talk in my office. We’ll have to continue tomorrow, Venn.” She gave him a nod as he began walking, leading the way. The route to Danfis’s office was familiar to Kuro now, he’d been up there quite a lot with Oroske.
“Interesting,” Danfis said, setting down the last of the reports included in Recen’s folder. “If we are to believe in this folder is tied to the New Spire Empire, they’ve been working in the background a lot longer than we expected. These logs date back nearly six years. I’ll have Venn make copies of these, and deliver the originals to the Guardians at our next meeting in a few days.
“I have a feeling we’re much later into the New Empire’s timeline than we think. We’ll need to be ready for anything, anytime. Good work, both of you.”
“Thank you,” Oroske and Kuro said in unison.
“Oroske, how would you say Kuro fared in this mission?”
“I think he did very well. He’s proving to be a very capable fighter, he was able to best Xeron in one-on-one, all-out combat without any guidance. He’s also more decisive than other apprentices I’ve trained in the past, the decision to antagonize Recen, and subsequently to kill her, was his own. I would likely have made the same decision, even if our execution would be different.”
“Excellent.” Danfis said, writing down some notes, “I’m happy with the progress you’re making, Kuro. At the pace you’re going at, you’ll likely be ready for your Black Cloak certification exam within the next six or so months. That’s excellent pace for any Blue Cloak. Considering your untimely death and resurrection earlier this year, you’re doing very well.”
Kuro was stunned. He hadn’t expected to ever get outright compliments from Danfis. He wasn’t sure how to feel, but happiness and pride in himself ended up being what he felt the most. After an awkward moment, he finally stammered out “Th-thank you, sir! I will continue to work hard.”
“This was the first time you’ve killed a , right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How do you feel about it?”
Kuro took a moment to think. He hadn’t really thought about it, honestly. It was part of his job. Should he have felt any particular way about it? He wouldn’t say he it, but it’s not like he felt repulsed by the idea or anything. Eventually he shrugged, “Pretty normal. It’s part of what we do, right?” After a silent moment, he added quietly, “Should I feel something different?”
Danfis chuckled and gave a small smile, “No, that’s a pretty normal response for us Hunters. I try to ask all Hunters after their first time. As you said, it’s something we do, it’s part of our job. It’s not as common as it used to be, but it’s something you’ll be hired to do. I have to make sure it’s something you’ll be okay to do if asked. I think it’s good you didn’t say you enjoyed it, we have enough bloodthirsty Hunters as is.
“In addition to providing these documents to the Guardians, I’m also going to see about getting you paid for eliminating someone connected to the New Empire. They’re the ones who requested we investigate them, and I’d like to see my people paid for the results they provide.”
“I appreciate that, sir. Not getting the full paycheck from Director Ensaru isn’t going to hurt us too bad, I think, but I definitely won't complain about getting paid by the Guardians.”
“I’ll see it done, if they’ll allow it. You two must be tired, is there anything else you need, or would like to report?”
Oroske shook his head, then looked to Kuro, who thought for a moment. “Nothing related to the job, but what’s the latest from Jarou?”
“Ah, I thought you might ask. Unfortunately, I haven’t had a report from him in some time. Last I heard from him, he had been taken to the Royal City, and that they were leading him through some pretty intensive combat training, along with the other Clans’ Chosen. He seemed hopeful that they’d let him return home soon, but we will have to wait and see.”
“I see, thank you.”
“Of course, I know the two of you are close. I will keep you posted if I hear anything.”
Kuro thanked him again, and the two Hunters bid their leader farewell and good night.
Kuro, still incredibly tired and exhausted from the day, immediately went to his bed after arriving home, and quickly fell asleep.
https://youtu.be/VogVC5mHl9Q
massive
