Chapter 35 - Drenched Rizako

Shaheen and his enforcers carried the Red King into their carriage.

"It's going to be a tedious ride back. Try to get him to an apothecary and heal his wounds, and then place him in the dungeons. Think you can handle it?"

He asked his subordinate.

"I'll get to it at once, sir!"

With that, the Enforcer got on the carriage to ride back through the rainy night.

His dark, hazel brown eyes locked on to Stein's Restaurant.

Shaheen now glanced at Gavin.

Gavin nodded his head.

"Move!"

The remaining Enforcers left in Rizako opened the door and went upstairs.

Villagers were now prancing about outside.

"Ma'am, you have to stay indoors, it is still not safe."

Shaheen told them.

"D-Did something happen to Dinah and George?"

"We don't know for certain yet, but trust me, I'll make sure that we take and discover all necessary clues and information and distribute what happened the public. You have my word."

The villagers went back inside their own homes. They were now oddly at ease.

Perhaps they realized that now that the Red King was caught, maybe, just maybe, nighttime will not be as terrifying as it was.

As the Six Blades and Shaheen stood outside, still being poured on by the never ending rain, a lady went outside.

"T-The Red King, did you people get him?"

Her voice cracked and her eyes definitely had a few nights full of tears and sleeplessness.

She was a middle aged woman wearing fine regal clothes.

This lady's black ebony hair was worn down by the rain.

Her golden skirt was soaked by the puddles of rain at the ground.

Shaheen simply bobbled his head up and down.

This confirmed it for the woman.

She fell to the ground and cried.

Her shrieks were truly soul-crushing.

A boy with covered in a yellow raincoat ran outside to her immediately.

"Mother, let us go back inside. It's going to be alright now."

Gavin was seemingly surprised.

He squinted his eyes open as he shot a glance at the boy.

"How fascinating…"

He said.

Shaheen whispered something to the Six Blades.

"From the looks of it, that grieving woman's Lydia Lancaster, the wife of the deceased chief. We speculate that he was killed by the Red King's lackeys or the Red King himself."

"How horrible."

Yin frowned.

The dead chief's wife approached them closely.

"P-Please wait here!"

She ran back inside their gigantic house and came back instantly, carrying a small pouch of what seemed to contain a thousand zennies.

Madam Lydia handed the pouch to Luken's hands.

"W-What's this for, ma'am?"

Please just take it, think of it as our humble gratitude for you and your group.

Luken turned to Shaheen.

He thought the officer would not allow such an exchange because Enforcers nor Slayers should not accept payment from the citizens, for they are just doing their jobs.

"It's fine, you can take it. It is not bribing or money extortion if you actually did your job, even if what you did was technically something that an Enforcer should have done long ago. We're also at fault here, we responded too late."

Luken bowed his head at the woman.

"Thank you. I am sorry for your loss, I really am."

"Life goes on, young man."

Her smile was pure and blinding.

"Do you know where you will be going this late in the night?"

The Six Blades all collectively shook their heads in unison.

"Well, after you've settled everything out in here, you can stay with us for the night. It's only me and my son and a couple of servant workers in that big spacious house, it is the least we can do. Our door will be open."

Gavin stepped in instantly.

"Then we will be glad to take you up on your offer, kind madam."

Gavin shook her hand gently while smiling.

The boy's appearance was still covered by the yellow raincoat he wore.

"Thank you for everything, sirs."

He then helped his mother back inside.

Everybody in Rizako that night was drenched to the bone.

Shaheen and his Enforcer squad brought out Dinah and George. Or what remained of them at least.

They covered it with a white sheet of cloth which immediately soaked up the blood from the bodies and turned red with no delay.

Luken slammed the wall nearby with such force that it shook Stein's Restaurant for a bit.

Shaheen approached him.

He placed his hand on Luken's shoulder.

"We have not always been able to see eye to eye with each other, even before we rose up in ranks. Even so, trust me when I say that you've done more than anyone else here to avenge these people. Even more than me. Hold your chin up."

The Commander was silently biting his lower lips.

"Yin, did that boy seem familiar to you at all?"

Gavin asked Yin, pointing to the young boy helping his mother walk back home in the rain.

"N-No, sir. Not at all, why do you ask?"

"Nothing, I was just curious."

Gavin said while maintaining a half-smile with the aura of confidence.

Yin knew Gavin knew something, even someone as kind and polite as the Serpent Summoner is able to be mischievous sometimes.

"Say, Gavin, you think you could teach me how to summon monsters and stuff soon?"

Yin asked.

Suna scratched her head.

"Have you been paying attention to your practice lessons and spars or not?!"

"I-I'd like to think I have!"

Suna let out a sigh.

"You're a Lightning Summoner, Yin. You can't summon anything, only Summoners like Gavin can do that, but the drawback is that they don't have an affinity and have to rely on grimoires."

"Suna's right, Yin. But still, I'd like to think I am very proficient at close quarters combat, that is what it means to train your weaknesses."

Luken gazed at the three of them going back and forth about the most trivial things ever.

The Commander could not help but smirk.

Shaheen bid farewell to the Six Blades and rode off into the night while having five different carriages come in to carry the mountains of unconscious bodies as a result of Gavin and Luken's rooftop battles.

"Now then, let's go to the chief's house!"

Luken exclaimed.

"Why are you being that excited? They're still grieving you know?"

Suna corrected his behavior.

"S-Sorry."