Chapter 164: Interference

Nick stared at Jaxir for another few seconds before his eyes drifted toward Niri. "So that’s it, then? You’re actually going to do their test?"

Jaxir shrugged as though the answer hadn’t required much thought at all. "Why not?"

Nothing Nick had told him made the Gasini sound particularly good, but none of it made them obviously evil either, and even if they were, Jaxir still viewed most of what happened inside Divinity through the lens of a game. He wasn’t planning on dedicating himself to their cause just because some shadow in a tree had handed him an oversized coin.

The whole playing-them-to-death part came from two much simpler problems. First, Jaxir was almost certain the other players connected to the dark cult would become interested in him the moment they realized he’d been recruited, especially once his fight with Maelis made his connection to the Mage Gods difficult to ignore.

Second, Niri had looked like someone had ripped the warmth straight out of her body at the mere mention of their name.

Jaxir’s personal moral compass had never been particularly complicated. He did what he wanted until something involved the people he cared about, and then the rules changed according to whatever he felt those people deserved.

Little Niri happened to be an irritating troublemaker who had nearly gotten him arrested within hours of meeting her, but she was adorable, which was enough for him.

If she didn’t like the Gasini, Jaxir didn’t like the Gasini.

He lifted Niri from his lap and placed her back on the chair beside him, then gave her a few pats on the head until some of the tension finally left her shoulders.

"Nick, you’re on babysitting duty while I’m gone."

Nick’s face scrunched up immediately, though Niri somehow managed to look even more offended by the arrangement.

She stared at him with open disgust before sticking her tongue out. Nick looked between her and Jaxir as though he couldn’t decide which one had offended him more, then finally gave up and leaned back in his chair.

"So you’re really going tonight to fight that Mage creature?"

Jaxir nodded while glancing toward the window, where the light outside had already begun dimming toward evening. From what the Gasini representative told him, the creature should be somewhere around his own Level, which made waiting another day feel pointless. He had enough enemies circling around him already without voluntarily leaving opportunities untouched.

Besides, Jaxir had seen what an Elite could do when he fought the pirate on the river, and that hadn’t even been some special boss hidden behind a quest. The pirate had simply been an ordinary enemy with an exceptional foundation. It had been a useful reminder that Jaxir wasn’t the only person or creature in Divinity capable of growing beyond what its Level suggested. B

ack then, however, Jaxir had only been an Archmage. Now he was a Grand Archmage.

His understanding of Light Mana had improved considerably as well, especially after everything he had learned about building his own Path instead of blindly following whatever the game handed him.

With the String Quintet on one side and the Gasini’s people potentially appearing on another, taking the cautious route and slowly preparing himself no longer sounded all that safe. Jaxir needed strength faster than that.

If the Mage killed him, there were worse places for it to happen than some forest in the middle of nowhere. Assuming nobody happened across his dropped equipment before he returned, he might even have a chance to recover whatever he lost afterward. Maelis, on the other hand, would probably loot him down to his socks and then complain those weren’t valuable enough.

More importantly, enough time had passed since their fight that the one-hour cooldown on the L3 ability stored within his staff had long since ended. Unmaking was available again, which gave Jaxir an answer if the Mage creature turned out to be considerably more ridiculous than the Gasini had implied. He’d already accomplished his goal of reaching Grand Archmage today anyway, so there was nothing wrong with adding another.

Defeat a Mage quickly enough to still get a decent night’s sleep.

Jaxir watched the last orange edge of sunlight disappear beyond the roofs outside before looking back toward Nick.

"One thing, though. This house is registered under my name, so I wouldn’t put it past the String Quintet to try something while it’s dark."

Nick’s expression tightened as Jaxir continued.

"Maelis doesn’t exactly strike me as someone built for sneaking around, so the security system should notice her before she gets inside, but I don’t know how strong Marr Town’s guards actually are." Jaxir nodded toward Niri. "Can they handle her?"

"The proper town guards are at least Level 40, so I doubt anyone who isn’t specialized in stealth is stupid enough to start something inside the walls." Nick scratched at his jaw as he thought about it. "If they really want to come after the house, they’ll probably send their other Melee Class member instead."

Then Nick’s mouth twisted. "That being said, everything I know about Maelis tells me she’ll want to deal with you personally after what happened today." He glanced toward the darkening window. "For all we know, she’s standing outside the gates waiting for you right now."

Jaxir chuckled as he rose from the table and stretched his arms above his head. "I guess that means I’ll have to take another way out, then."

Niri looked up at him with obvious concern, but Jaxir only ruffled her hair again before turning away.

**

Captain Rell stood before the same large oak desk as before, his hands folded behind his back while the town lord remained seated with his chair angled toward the windows. Night had settled over Marr Town, leaving the streets below lit by Mana lamps and the occasional glow spilling from shops that remained open after dark.

Rell waited until the man behind the desk stopped looking over the city before speaking.

"They’ve made contact with the Archmage." Rell paused, then corrected himself as something faint shifted in his expression. "Though it appears that description is already outdated, because he has advanced to Grand Archmage."

The town lord’s eyes narrowed. "He accepted?"

There was no surprise in the question, only a sharper focus than before.

"It appears so." Rell nodded once. "He has their token on his person."

Silence settled over the office as the town lord looked back through the windows, one finger tapping against the arm of his chair. Jaxir had advanced faster than even their earlier reports suggested, and now the Gasini had noticed him as well. After a long while, the tapping stopped.

"Let us continue to observe for now." The town lord leaned back, apparently content to leave the matter there. Rell remained where he was.

"Lord, there’s been movement elsewhere." That earned his attention again. "Someone paid a considerable amount of money for several of our patrol units to avoid one particular section of Marr Town tonight."

"The boy’s home?" The town lord didn’t sound surprised.

Rell nodded.

"Yes." Rell waited for an order while the town lord’s expression remained unchanged. "The payments were accepted less than an hour ago."

The town lord nodded once. "Kill the guards who accepted the bribes and replace that patrol section with men you trust." His gaze returned to the lights of Marr Town beneath the window.

"I don’t want any outside interference while the boy makes his choices."