“Haa… Haa… I think I managed to escape in time.” Balthazar said to himself when he had arrived in an open field. The sight of a purple late afternoon sky, almost made him think that everything would be fine.

As long as two or three archers could get away with some thieves, the old thief believed he could round up more misfits to complete the gang.

However, he heard the bushes behind him moving and then heard a loud noise. Fluuush! In a few seconds, Luke managed to catch up with Balthazar.

“Easy, easy! I’ll give you all my money!” Balthazar exclaimed in fright, as he backed away.

The half-wolf didn’t answer him, after all, he wasn’t doing it for money. Luke was only preventing the number of thieves in Oukiwa from increasing, which would draw the attention of the noble families and the adventurers. This was necessary to help and protect his gang.

Luke, as he had done with the archers, killed Balthazar with ease, for he was just an ordinary thief. The thieves he had encountered on the way back required a little more effort, but all three were eliminated as well.

It was not Luke’s intention, but he managed to profit eighty pieces of silver from these thieves, which was good. He also managed to recover all the throwing knives he had used to kill the archers.

Although he knew he had let one get away, he did not regret this, because it was a child. Zeld ran so hard that he felt his lungs would explode. This was surely the biggest scare he had ever been through.

When the half-wolf returned to the carriage, both coachmen were terrified, but they were alive. The two horses carrying the carriage, which were already frightened in the presence of a half-wolf, became even more so when the bull appeared, luckily both carriage drivers were quite experienced and managed to calm them down.

“Can we go to Vasconcelos now?” Luke questioned, after getting into the carriage and closing the door.

“Y-yes, sir.” said the chubbier coachman. The other, skinnier one, just nodded and gave an inaudible groan.

The half-wolf realized that he needed to try to be more polite from then on, as he was going to live in a mansion and didn’t want to create antipathy with anyone, not enough for them to suspect his loyalty. “What are your names?”

“I am Albert Jognart.” The fat man spoke and soon set the horses to go again. Thwack! The whip cracked.

“I am Alonso Jognart.” The thin man said. He seemed to be a little more relaxed. “And you, Luke?”

“Do you wish to know my full name?”

“Y-yes.”

“You can call me Luke Lange.”

“Nice name your family has.” The fat man, who was sweating profusely, complimented.

What he didn’t know was that Luke had copied that name from a missing woman he saw on a billboard. In a way, he envied that woman, because his mother and father never looked for him, however, that didn’t affect him today, not as much as a child.

“Are you two from Vasconcelos?”

“Yes…we didn’t use to do this kind of service, but we broke our little market, and now we need to work.”

Luke was surprised because he could have sworn that both coachmen were quite experienced. As the half-wolf was not very accustomed to making conversation, he soon closed his mouth, and this silence lasted for a few hours.

When night fell, the carriage drivers braked and changed direction, and now it was easy to understand why they were working in pairs. While one rested, the other continued the journey.

If it were not for the road built six months ago in a partnership between the Oukiwa and Vasconcelos guilds, this kind of carriage trip would never be possible.

Since the Matriarch of the Strogueher family had plenty of political and industrial competition in Oukiwa, with the recent discovery of Dungeons in Vasconcelos, she chose to expand the business to this other city.

Several members of the Strogueher family were irritated by this, because it risked the market-leading position they had in Oukiwa, however, Ayumi was already thinking about the future.

Nathalia Strogueher, the Matriarch’s daughter, had been eager since she was eighteen to enter a Dungeon. As she had not yet finished learning all the main skills, her mother asked her to enter only when she had completed her training.

So, she learned everything that the old swordsman Class-B had to teach. Since she could not attend a school like the Academy of Nobles of Oukiwa, she would have to start from Class-F, which was disappointing to Nathalia, considering that she was rated as Class-D by her own instructor.

That was why, in order to help her reach Class-D faster, Ayumi decided to hire someone. Several famous names crossed her mind, but none pleased her enough.

It would have to be someone who would not only sacrifice his own life but would also not be bold enough to hit on Nathalia.

When Luke appeared in her vision, Ayumi believed she had found the perfect candidate. A scowling boy, strong enough to catch the eye of Oliver’s sharp eyes and too serious to be a gallant. Ayumi only feared that her daughter would fall in love with this half-wolf.

***

From the top of a small hill, the three men in the carriage could see, in the middle of a huge valley, a shining city. It might not have huge walls like Oukiwa and no polluted streams, but it still looked like a city where industries had already established themselves.

As it was dawning, Luke predicted that it would take them less than half an hour to arrive, considering the twelve-hour estimate. Since he hadn’t slept all night, fearing more attacks by thieves or worse, cannibals, he just wished he could get to the city soon.

When very close to Vasconcelos, the Strogueher mansion could be easily identified. A house set apart from the others, with a beautiful labyrinth in the front yard.

‘Is this a palace?’ Luke thought as he approached.

The house had at least a hundred windows that looked as large as the front door of Oukiwa’s bank. On the panes of glass, there were several drawings of people that the half-wolf couldn’t identify who they were, if he could kick, he would say they were saints or family heroes.

The carriage stopped in front of the huge staircase, and the carriage door was opened by a kindly smiling maid, who had soon volunteered to carry Luke’s bags. He did not allow her to do so; after all, his luggage was only a few clothes, weapons, and money.

With his watchful eyes, the half-wolf could see out of the corner of his eyes that a girl with white hair and dark circles under her eyes was watching him from one of the windows near the main door.

For some reason, just a glance at her was enough for Luke to feel his heart flutter.

——

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