Ch 73 – Ungro-Habsburgian War

"No need to feel apprehensive." The man gave her a small dark piece of parchment. "Information is, after all, my specialty." Necro relaxed after hearing such reassuring words, but it only further deepened her worry.

"What is it about us and me, then?" She asked, while Ace dozed off entirely, scraping the last bit of soup with a piece of toast.

"Yes, I'd advise both of you to take extreme care when going deeper west, the church has issued an order."

"An order? About what happened in Wallachia?"

"No, worse." He cleared his throat. "His Holy Highness approved the creation of non-institutionalized inquisitorial armies."

"HE WHAT!?" Necro hopped on her feet, only to realize her blunder and sit back down, clearing her throat. "Sorry, I got surprised. What is going on with that?" She asked, interlocking her fingers and putting them over her face as she rested her chin on her hands.

"He~... Serious Necky is hot." Necro ignored Ace's comment, but couldn't avoid slipping a smile, before becoming serious and hearing the man's explanation.

"The King d'Aragóe e Sicilae requested the creation of a national inquisitorial army to drop the hammer on... enemies of god. His highness Innocentius issued the Summis Desiderantis Affectibus, and we have been warranted to pursue the acquiring of the Malleus Maleficarum for our small Lord over there." He said, looking over at Ace. "You should be extremely careful, and get yourself a form of identification as soon as possible. And always beware of the church. They have eyes everywhe—"

"Attention all populace!" A man barged through the door, yelling. "In the name of His Majesty, Cornelius, and the power bestowed upon him by the church, all men are thereby summoned to make a front against the invasion of Wallachia by the Heiliges Römisches Reich. Made public for thee on this date, His Majesty lays claim on his bloodline, as the Duke of Österreich, as per the law of God and Men." And, with the same haste as he came in, he left, leaving the two girls staring at each other, agape.

"Did he just...?"

"I guess so..."

"Did my uncle just declare war against...?"

"My father? Yeah..." Ace looked down, apprehensive, as she saw Necro put her hand on her temple. "Are you not angry at me?"

"What for?" Necro looked up, confused.

"I mean... It was my father who sent those people..."

"Ah... I had already guessed that from those guys we fought on the way here... Rather, this only proves you told me the truth." Necro put her hand across the table, touching Ace's hand.

"Sorry..." Ace muttered, starting to cry.

"Ma'am... should I...?"

"Yes, please. How much did this amount to?" Necro asked, swallowing the rest of the strong drink while looking at the silently sobbing girl across from her.

"There's no—"

"How much was it?" The man gulped as Necro's tone hardened.

"37 silver coins."

"Here." Necro pulled the coins from the ring covertly, laying 7 coins on the table.

"Thank you for the patronage, please take care of my Lord."

"I will." Necro nodded as she saw him take the coins. Six gold coins for a meal was very expensive by all standards, but she realized this was not any place. Aside from that, the piece of parchment he gave her was worth almost as much as the meal. 'An introduction letter, huh.' she thought. 'Such an interesting person to meet.'

Necro rose from her seat, sitting down beside Ace and kissing her wettened cheek. "It's fine. Come, let's go somewhere else."

Necro left the restaurant, pulling Ace by the hand. She walked back the way they came from, without looking back. Until they reached a place Necro had spotted before. A small alley, hidden from most eyes.

"What are we—"

"Shh!" Necro put her finger on Ace's lips as she pushed her against the wall, only to change her finger's place with her own lips. He felt Ace's hands pressing on her waist for a second, only to relax right after. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah..."

"Don't blame yourself for what they did, okay? I still love you, no matter what your parents did." Necro wiped Ace's tears, making her blush.

"Right..."

"Now, wanna go to the Guild, get my stuff and find the boys?"

"Sure." Ace shook her head, getting back to her usual self, and the two walked out from the alley and back into the street, unaware of three sets of eyes now following them.

The Adventurers' Guild was not much far from where they came. In fact, they had actually passed it on the way to the restaurant. Near the middle of the city, just one street away from the church, was a large two story building, bustling with people. There were all kinds of men and women, but most adventurers looked quite a bit dodgy. It was not a profession seen with kind eyes, being one that men and women were equal, aside from the whole travelling and abandonment of ties. Most adventurers either wanted to leave a dark past behind, or simply didn't have one to begin with. The very least you could become before turning into a thug, thief or bandit, an adventurer. Yet, the world needed adventurers. As cities grew and expanded into wild territories, beasts and monsters began destroying crops and killing herd animals. Adventurers were those who were hired to fix the issues the army couldn't, except when it came to warring, then, mercenaries were the norm, but only the Reisläufer were valued, the ones from Switzer, hired as the Pope's personal guard. As such, adventurers were often paid better than cheap mercenaries.

"We're here." Ace said, as Necro stopped in front of the building she directed her to.

"Can you see them?" Necro asked, searching for Mary and the boys.

"No, should we go inside?"

"Sure, if they're not there, at least I can get myself registered.

DarkGodEM