Chapter 189: Ridiculous

Elara’s fear lasted only until Maelis took another step toward Niri. Then, something in her expression hardened, and the hand hanging at her side curled into a fist.

She could already hear people whispering around them as more spectators gathered at the edges of the street. There was no way the commotion hadn’t reached the city patrols by now.

The only reason the guards hadn’t stepped in yet was that Maelis still hadn’t actually broken a rule.

"Stop being ridiculous." Elara moved fully in front of Niri and glared at the armored woman. "We’re standing in the middle of Marr Town, and the moment you touch either of us, every guard in the area is going to come down on you."

Maelis looked around at the growing crowd and snorted.

"You think I give a shit about the guards? They won’t make a single move until I actually break a rule, even if I stand here and tell you exactly what I’m going to do."

"Then do it."

Elara’s staff appeared in her hand as she lowered her stance. The fear in her eyes had been replaced with enough anger that Niri stopped clutching her robes quite so tightly.

"Let’s see how far you make it."

Maelis laughed and finally looked at Elara, as though she’d only just remembered she existed.

"You’re a Healer. What exactly do you think you’re going to do to me?"

Niri peeked around Elara’s leg.

As soon as Maelis’s attention left her, the frightened look on her face disappeared.

"If you’re trying to make Jaxir come out, you’re stupid." Her little mouth twisted into a sneer. "He’s not even in the city."

Maelis’s eyes snapped back to her.

For the first time since she’d shown up, Maelis stopped looking amused. Niri knew right away that she had caught her off guard.

A Level 11 NPC child shouldn’t have been paying enough attention to understand what Maelis was after. Let alone realize that taking her hostage only mattered if Jaxir could actually respond.

Maelis studied her for another second and came to a different conclusion. The little girl really was important. Only NPCs that were actually important would be given intelligence on this level.

Waiting for Jaxir outside the city would’ve been easier, and Maelis had thought about doing exactly that. However, the last time she’d tried to finish him, someone had interfered.

She had no intention of letting another video of a Level 9 player humiliating her spread around while she sat on her hands pretending it didn’t matter.

If killing an NPC tied to some hidden quest forced Jaxir to respond? Then her Alignment taking a hit was a price she could live with. Marr Town could ban her afterward for all she cared.

"Fine."

The coldness in Maelis’s voice made Niri’s eyes go wide.

Elara understood a moment sooner.

"No!"

She moved in front of Niri with her staff already rising. But, Maelis vanished from where she stood before the word had even finished leaving Elara’s mouth.

The spear punched through Elara’s chest with enough force to lift her feet off the street. Her HP was gone before any healing Ability could form.

An instant later, her body broke apart into motes then her equipment clattered onto the stone around Niri.

For a moment, Niri could only stare at the spot where Elara had been standing, guilt flooding her face as the basket of gifts rolled onto its side nearby.

She had told Maelis that Jaxir wasn’t here and it was hard for her not to believe it was because of that Elara had died before she could even understand what an answer like that would make Maelis do.

And now, before Niri could even come to terms with that, Maelis’s armored hand swept toward her.

Niri vanished from its path.

Maelis’s fingers closed on empty air. The little girl reappeared a couple of meters to the side, stumbling once before catching herself.

"HELP! HELP!"

Niri screamed as loud as she could, then sprinted for the nearest gap in the crowd.

Maelis stared after her. A Level 11 NPC had just dodged her?

Her surprise only lasted long enough for the first guard to arrive.

An arrow ripped across the street toward Maelis’s neck. Her spear jerked upward, the shaft blurring as she knocked it aside, and then she lunged after Niri.

Her hand reached down again. The little girl ducked, covering her head with both arms, and Maelis’s fingers nearly caught the back of her dress before another arrow forced her to pull away.

By the time she drove forward again, Niri had rolled under a startled spectator’s outstretched arm and was already running.

"Stop!"

Niri had no intention of listening.

Another burst of speed carried her across an intersection. Then, her legs seemed to lose some of their strength, and she stumbled down into a slower run while several guards closed in on Maelis behind her.

Niri’s strange agility came in short flashes, nothing she could keep up. Each sudden burst bought her a few meters before her body dragged her back down.

Maelis caught on to the rhythm after the third one.

A guard’s spearhead swept low and shattered the stone where Maelis’s foot had just been. She twisted around him and slammed the butt of her own weapon into his armor, hard enough to send him sliding across the street.

She didn’t bother trying to kill any of them. Every extra violation would only make the response worse.

Instead, she used the smallest openings she could make to keep following Niri. The guards were strong. However, none of the first few could keep up with how fast Maelis changed direction once she committed to a move.

Niri looked over her shoulder and saw her gaining and her next burst unfortunately came too early in the panic. She shot around the corner before her legs had fully recovered, nearly fell, then caught herself on a wall and kept running with one hand dragging along the stone.

Maelis was watching the pattern now instead of rushing blindly after her. She waited out the little girl’s fast stretch until Niri slowed down again.

The next time she closed in, Niri wouldn’t have another burst ready. But then, Maelis recognized the neighborhood and her expression changed.

Jaxir’s house was only a short distance ahead.

Niri saw it too. She forced another surge out of legs that were already shaking, but this time, Maelis sped up with her and started eating up the distance.

A guard came in from one side and thrust a spear at Maelis’s ribs. She spun her own weapon in a tight circle and knocked it away, losing no more than a step.

But then another attack came from behind.

Maelis twisted. A heavy blade struck her spear and shoved her sideways, far harder than any of the earlier guards had managed.

Her boots carved two lines across the road as she caught herself, and her eyes narrowed as three more guards stepped out from between the houses.

These weren’t the patrolmen who had first responded near the city center. Their armor was heavier and their movements were cleaner. Every one of them gave off enough pressure that Maelis finally had to start treating their attacks seriously.

The town lord’s replacement patrol had found her and Niri was already halfway down the street.

Maelis roared and drove forward anyway.

Her spear became a blur. She knocked aside an arrow, caught a sword strike on the haft, then used the other end to force another guard out of her way.

But the attacks just came flooding in, coming from both sides to swallow up the gaps Maelis had only just opened. Each one cost her another fraction of a second, while Niri’s tiny figure got closer and closer to Jaxir’s front door.

Maelis could feel her chance slipping away.

"GET BACK HERE!"

Niri reached the steps.

Another guard crashed into Maelis from the side. She swung her spear across her body to take the hit, then shoved him away hard enough to crack the street under his boots.

She looked up just in time to see Niri throw herself through Jaxir’s doorway. The security system flashed once as the door slammed shut behind her.

Maelis stopped in the middle of the road while more guards closed in around her from every direction.

Niri was gone, safe inside the house.