Chapter 433: Tracking

The day long had turned away and gave way to the pale crescent moon to shine like a silvery claw in the clear and dark night sky.  The thick crowd of interested or perhaps just meddlesome citizenry have long been mostly dispersed, making their way back to their homes with dejected, slumped shoulders.

Still, there were a few that kept their vigil and were awaiting some news, any sort of information they could get their grabby hands on. They were mostly servants of either some lords, patriarchs of some households, or bosses and leaders of a variety of groups. Merchants or in some cases with shadier occupations… They all kept their vigil for a colorful mixture of reasons so they could report back something worthwhile and hopefully earn some rewards for their perseverance.

It was unknown how much time had passed when finally the door to the barracks slowly creaked open and the first person finally walked out. Unfortunately to most of the eager crowd's dismay, the one that left first was a young man, with a long, slightly disheveled crown of matte, black hair. His exotic, golden eyes could barely be seen as the protective cover, his eyelids grew heavier by the minute. 

For the first time in quite a while, Aiden felt the exhaustion of the last couple of days piling up against his soul and weighing it down. Even though he could exchange most of his sleep time for a nightly session of meditation and increase his power even further, there were times when the woes of the mortals caught up to him as well. 

He wanted nothing more than to get back to the tavern and crash into his bed. Like the rotting fleshy heap of body that a freshly initiated necromancer has miraculously reanimated, he slowly sauntered forward, not even registering the outside world.

He could hear garbled, muffled sounds of questions, inquiries that reached his ears, but his brain was too spent to process such junk. 

Ignoring everyone he slowly made his way through the ring of people and relying mostly on his own muscle memory and the system's map, made his way towards the direction of his temporary home.

Luckily for him, the crowd quickly gave up on trying to pry information out of him, as soon the door creaked open once again, and the rest of the elders, -with the exception of Captain John, who remained to handle the processing of the new political prisoner-, have emerged from the stale aired building.

As the busy bees quickly swarmed around them, forming a tight ring, Aiden could comfortably slip away, mostly unnoticed.

As almost everybody ignored the tired, yawning youngster, there was one shadow emerging from the corner that followed his steps, trailing after him as he turned around the corner.

The figure, a master of stealth, made no sounds as he dashed after the boy, making sure to keep a reasonable distance while, at the same time, not lose track of him. His mission was only to scout and learn as much as he could and not to interfere. He couldn't really understand what made the Young Master so crazed, so enraged that he would call for an urgent mission immediately, even before he made his way back to the Family Mansion. 

Regardless, as being a servant of the Davenmere Family, and most importantly under the direct care of the Young Master, he had no other choice but to acknowledge the call and after being told of the mission and been given a description of the target, would accomplish it to his best knowledge.

He couldn't even imagine what could this innocent-looking lean young teen had done to irate the Young Lord to such an extent, though he didn't care too much either. It wasn't his job to bother with such details, anyways.

As he slipped through the shadows and dark corners of the mostly empty suburban streets, the man followed after the youngster, ignoring the peculiar, strange choices he had made along the way.

Unbeknownst to the man, no matter how stealthy, how careful he might have been unless he had some inner power and sensitivity of his own, he would be naked under the all-powerful scans of the [Dark Gaze] skill.

Even before he had made the choice to uninvitedly tag along, Aiden was long aware of his presence, though he just chose to ignore it. His nameplate, along with the orange-colored dot, meaning he was a potential hostile entity was long since marked on his map. His nameplate appeared almost instantly as Aiden took a quick glance over it.

[Source: Ranulf

Power: Stealth, Ambush, Ambidextrous, Agile, Dagger Master, Poison Master

Threat Level: Minimal

Affiliation: Hostile, Davenmere Family]

Interestingly, he either didn't have a family name of his own, or the system just didn't waste resources to scan it from his soul. 

Once Aiden saw the details, he relaxed almost instantly. Although a surprise attack from a Master of Stealth, Daggers, and even Poisons could be fatal for many, to Aiden, it was nothing. 

Though he wasn't completely immune to poisons and all kinds of toxins, he was fairly certain that after a bit of effort his body could deal with most kinds, varieties.

Besides that, Ranulf, the Scout would stand no chance against a single attack of his.

Despite that, Aiden didn't want to reveal his destination and potentially bring danger to his friends and family. After confirming that the man was indeed on a mission and was following after him, he slowly made his way through the streets. After crossing through the already closed up and empty marketplace he chose mostly the sidestreets, and back alleys for traversal, luring the unsuspecting man deeper and deeper into his trap…

—

A strange, uncomfortable feeling slowly began to set in Ranulf's mind. He couldn't really place it, but as he kept following the boy's trail, he began to squirm and fidget. Though all of his senses were telling him that everything was fine, his heart was beating with a chaotic, fast-paced rhythm, pushing his guard to the maximum. 

The hairs on his arms were standing at attention, a foreboding warning that never failed him before.

Still, he didn't want to turn back, without anything to report. The Young Master wasn't known for his leniency and acceptance of failure. Even though he was a respected master of his arts among the ranks of Davenmere forces, he still wasn't immune to punishment.

The dungeons beneath the mansion were a place of nightmares, and not without reason after all. The people that were led down there rarely came back to see the light of day ever again…

He had seen servants, unlucky commoners, and even members of other families carried away, never to be found, not even their remains would be left to mourn.

With these thoughts in his mind, Ranulf pushed his growing anxiety to the back of his head, and with determination, stepped into the back alley, following after the boy once again.

Unfortunately for him, this choice of his, though a commendable resolve, would be the very last mistake he would ever make in his life, and before the sun would rise once again his lifetime of memories would serve a much greater cause…