CHAPTER 41: CH 41: RESCUE MISSION - PART 2

The air underground was thick with damp rot. The stone walls wept moisture, and the stench of mold clung to everything.

Lucian walked silently, the faint glow of fairies floating beside him. Their light cast long shadows that shifted across the broken corridors.

He ignored the hollow-eyed beggars above. They were not his responsibility. His people were bound by contract—his protection was theirs, and theirs alone.

Everyone else was nothing but noise.

The pull of the contracts guided him like a thread. Each step carried him closer, until faint voices and the shuffle of boots reached his ears.

Guards.

Lucian moved like smoke, slipping into the shadows. Two men walked by, their weapons dragging, their voices bitter.

They cursed the settlement’s leaders, cursed the food rations, cursed the endless misery. They never noticed the predator watching them from the dark.

When their footsteps faded, Lucian continued forward.

The corridor opened into a wide chamber. Rusted cages lined the walls, iron bars sunk into the stone. Inside were the ones he came for—three men and their families.

Bruised. Beaten. Eyes swollen from tears and fists alike. Children curled into their mothers, trying to disappear inside trembling arms.

Lucian’s gaze hardened, though his face betrayed nothing.

A child gasped at the sight of him. Then the others followed, hope flashing in their broken expressions.

Lucian raised a hand. Quiet.

He gestured to the fairies. They fluttered upward, scattering glittering dust into the air.

The guards frowned, swiping at the faint lights. One opened his mouth, confusion sharp on his face—then his body slumped.

Another collapsed, then another, until the chamber was filled with the heavy rhythm of snoring.

Lucian stepped forward, boots crunching against damp stone.

"You came for us? But why?"

One of the men whispered, tears streaming down his bruised cheeks.

Her husband shook his head slowly, disbelief etched across his battered features.

"We didn’t mean to take this long. We weren’t trying to break our word. The higher-ups... they decided to make an example of us. Said they’d throw us into the wild, cages and all. Let the beasts tear us apart."

The words made the children sob.

Lucian crouched beside the cage, his voice low and steady.

"You’re still alive. That’s all that matters. I’ll get you out."

The three men exchanged uneasy looks. One swallowed hard, then asked.

"If you do this... won’t it put your valley in danger?"

Lucian’s lips curled into a humorless smile. His eyes burned faintly in the dim light.

"That’s my concern. Yours is keeping your families alive. When I whistle—run."

He said.

Behind him, the first of the guards groaned, beginning to stir.

Lucian rose to his feet. His shadow stretched long across the cages, sharp and unyielding.

From one of the families came a trembling voice. A girl.

"Who... who is he?"

A man answered her, quiet but firm.

"He’s the master of the valley. Don’t be fooled by his face. He’s cursed to grow up again, but he’s no child. He’s... the only one we can trust."

______

The air above ground was no less rotten than the depths below. The Everette Settlement looked like a corpse of a city, left to rot in the cold.

People shuffled along with hollow stares, skin stretched tight over their bones.

Lucian pulled his hood low as he slipped through the narrow alleys. He needed to prepare—supplies, timing, a way to break the cages without drawing too much attention.

His mind was sharp, already laying the pieces of what came next. But something gnawed at him.

Why did those people look at him like that? Calling him a good man. Trusting him. Praising him.

It was wrong. He wasn’t good. He wasn’t merciful. He only did what he had to. Clear the debt. Secure freedom. Live carefree. Nothing more.

As he turned a corner, a collision jolted him back to reality.

He had run into someone, knocking them flat on the frozen ground.

Lucian froze. It was a girl, about his age, though her body was nothing but skin and bones.

She stared up at him with wide, hollow eyes. Her arms and legs were covered in bruises and cuts that looked barely scabbed over.

Trouble. His instincts told him to walk away. To let the city eat her like it did the rest. She wasn’t his problem.

Then the system screamed in his ears.

[Warning: You have met the ’Herione of this world’ Luna Lunalight.]

Lucian stiffened. His jaw clenched as the name registered.

Luna. The heroine.

"Of course I did..."

He muttered, barely hiding his irritation.

From behind, shouts rang out. Heavy boots stomped closer, and the sneering voices of men echoed through the alley.

"There she is! Don’t let her get away this time!"

Slavers.

Lucian cursed under his breath. He didn’t have time for this. But ignoring the system wasn’t an option.

He grabbed Luna roughly by the arm and yanked her to her feet. "Move," he hissed.

She stumbled, too weak to run on her own. Lucian scowled, threw her over his shoulder, and darted into the shadows just as the men turned the corner.

Their torches lit the alley, searching, but they were too slow. By the time they reached the spot, Lucian was already gone, melting into the maze of the city with the frail girl in tow.

Lucian clicked his tongue in annoyance as he glanced at the unconscious girl slung over his shoulder.

She was far too thin, her breathing shallow, and her body covered in wounds. If he left her here, she would likely die before the night ended.

And if she died, the system would drag him down with her.

He didn’t care about being a savior, but he wasn’t about to risk his mission over one fragile girl.

With a sigh, Lucian muttered, "Guess you’re coming with me, heroine."

’The things I do to clear my debt.’

He adjusted his grip on her and slipped deeper into the shadows, making his way back toward the valley. Whether he liked it or not, Luna was now his responsibility.