CHAPTER 32: RUNNER

Smiling, Hadrian narrowed his eyes at the mage who’d been groping Alia.

It was high noon and the market area was full of loud activities. The mage didn’t know it, but he was currently in the centre of Hadrian’s range as the Hadrian vessels followed him.

The rats moved below ground in the sewers, hawk Hadrian in the sky and the others stretched out.

If the rat vessels did reach a blockage and had to be left behind, he would abandon them.

Sadly, he couldn’t call at the mage’s essence from his rat vessels since it was only the vessels that peers into the essence sea that can call it.

While it is true that after making contact with the essence tendrils a vessel that gets out of sight won’t break it, the condition was that they were in sight in the first place. And Hadrian could only switch the call instantaneously between his vessels that had sight of the target.

The mage walked like he owned the air. Now and then, he’d take payment from people. He did not go looking for them, they ran to him. Sometimes the mage looked surprised and you could see his rough face struggle trying to remember what he was being paid for.

I wonder why they haven’t gone for hunts like the hunters. I don’t know how many soul cores they would need, but a group of mages should be able to kill the kritas.

His three new skinny men vessels walked while talking to each other, laughing. It was kind of hard but more so embarrassing. He felt like everyone around him could tell he was a fake, talking to himself.

Actually, through the fake laughs, Hadrian’s heart was racing with anticipation. On one hand, he did not want to start attacking, harming innocent people, while on the other he could not resist himself.

The conflicting emotions were gnawing at him.

Eh, it must be the Alia vessel keeping me in check.

He’d like to think the new three thieves’ vessels were polluting his mind with the disregard for others, but in his previous life, he had stolen more than a few times.

Of course, he never threatened anyone directly for their possessions or food. He did it in the silence of late night when people were asleep.

After deciding his target, it would take him a day or two of planning.

If I had been strong, or in a group, I wonder if I would have been the same. It is easy for those weak and incapable to judge the strong.

I had walked into an uncontrolled situation the other night and had to fight my way out. If I do get more powerful and have to face more powerful mages, I wonder if it’ll still be capable for me to control the fight to not harm others.

He cut the thought off when he realized he might be making excuses for Truston and Haldon.

A murder is a murder, and unlucky for you two, I don’t plan on letting you get away with it.

The officials will for sure not do anything about it. Especially for a case about a random street kid and rank two Mages. He doubted his death even made it past the street he died in.

After an hour of following, an opportunity finally arose, the mage made a turn into an alley with few people passing through.

Horse Hadrian walked up blocking one end while his three vessels blocked the path behind the mage.

Seeing the horse, the mage’s eyes narrowed. Looking over his shoulders he saw the passage blocked as well. Remaining calm, the mage smiled.

The four other random people who had been caught up in between sensed the atmosphere change and ran to the end they had come from and lucky for them, the three skinny men let them through.

"I have to say." The mage said. He didn’t seem to speak with too much effort of being loud but the Hadrians on both ends of the alley heard him fine.

"When they said you people can transform into rats, I didn’t believe it." The mage’s eyes focused on the horse as he spoke. "To think, even a horse.... "

Hadrian peered into the Mages essence sea. His face, the skinny man’s face, took a look of surprise. In the essence sea there were miniscule illusory dust particles flickering into his vision.

"Bagdona had made some guesses, and we were fortunate to land on opportune assistance."

Hadrian knew there was no way for this rank one mage to sense or know what he would see when looking at his essence sea.

A script? So, they already know I affect the essence sea and soul cores.

Well, every mage could enter their own soul cores.

Hadrian, like he had several times, called at the essence tendrils.

The mage held his back straight and head high with a smile on his face. The kind of smile a man has before getting punched in the face.

Immediately Hadrian made contact with the essence tendrils, a twitch on the Mage’s eye muscles told him the mage had sensed it.

The essence had a crushing effect on Hadrian. As if his muscles were being strained and a mountainous boulder dropped on his shoulders.

Distracted by the effect of the essence, Hadrian didn’t even see the Mage charge at his vessel.

The skinny man vessel calling at the essence tendrils was struck in the jaw, breaking it and tearing it off.

"We have our orders." The mage said, "but I don’t mind having a taste first."

Just like last time, Hadrian’s plan was to have two vessels attack while one kept its distance and calls at the essence.

This meant he had focused the core on the other two vessels, leaving this one without channeling essence.

Fast. He’s too fast. Faster than the other mage.

"Breakable." The mage grinned, "just like everything else."

A force path mage.

Hadrian came to the conclusion.

Releasing the steamy mist from the skinny man vessel on the right, the vessel with the space path core, on the left of the mage, dodged a swing that had come straight for its head.

Air was dispersed and the first dug into the wall, sending a lightning of cracks across the wall.

As the mist started spreading and before Hadrian could make his response, the mage’s grin widened and he bolted past Hadrian.

He’s.... He’s running?