Release that Witch

Yorko lamented in silence.

”Hell, didn’t they agree not to meet each other ever again? It’s just a courtesy to say ’please feel free to contact the ambassador if you come across any difficulties’!”

He exchanged a look with Otto. After hesitating for quite a while, Yorko said, ”Send her in.”

If it was not because the real buyer was here, Yorko would rather make up some excuses such as ”The ambassador was currently not available. Please come again later” and shut her out.

No. 76 soon led the girl to the room. As he had expected, it was the 10th item in the ”Black Money” auction, Amy.

The witch grasped Yorko’s arm anxiously as soon as she came in. ”Sir, please help us. Annie and the others are in danger!”

”Danger?” Yorko feared that it was not a good sign. ”Slow down, slow down. Take a seat first.” Yorko patted her on the shoulder. ”Tell me what exactly happened?”

”We’ve... been found!” Amy uttered a series of broken words breathlessly. ”A large number of... patrol team surrounded the orphanage and blocked off the roads in the vicinity. I saw more than one platoons of knights... They’re searching for witches one block after another. The other witches are still stuck in there... Please, help them!”

”Are there other witches apart from you and Annie?”

”Yes, Hero and Broken Sword. Hero lost her legs, so Annie has to carry her on the back.”

Yorko gasped. One was already enough for him to worry about, and there were four! ”How did you escape?”

”Our food is running low, so I went out to buy some groceries. By the time I came back... by the time I came back, they had been everywhere!” Her voice trailed off into a barely-suppressed sob.

Yorko found himself in a very difficult position. Although titled with Ambassador of Graycastle, he did not have any actual executive power. Therefore, it was impossible for him to stop the patrol team. Further, the operation was commanded by the King of Dawn, whom he had just vexed a great deal during the court meeting. If he now stood out to protect the witches, he would probably face a more severe consequence than being expelled from the palace.

”Don’t worry. They’ll be OK.” No. 76 consoled Amy while gently stroking her back. ”Sir Yorko must know how to bring them back safe and sound.”

”Not at all!” Yorko snapped in silence. If Amy could have sought Roland for protection as he had suggested earlier, nothing of these would have happened.

”What about that Mr. Hill?” Otto questioned.

”I don’t know. He never reports to me, and often time I can’t find him anywhere.” Yorko frowned. ”If you want to see him, I’m afraid it has to be after dinner.”

”I see... I’ll look for Earl Quinn first. He’s the king’s prime minister and is in charge of the patrol team. Perhaps he can help them escape.”

”Hang on. Will he listen to you?”

”I’ve no idea, but it’s worth giving it a shot.” Otto gave a look full of mixed feelings. ”Do you still remember the witch friend I talked about earlier? Her name is Andrea Quinn. She’s the daughter of Earl Quinn.”

...

Time slowly slipped away. Yorko could do nothing other than looking out of the window while waiting.

Meanwhile, No. 76 did an amazing job in comforting Amy. The agitated girl finally calmed down and fell asleep in the recliner. Yorko could tell that the long journey had cost the witch a great amount of energy. Having said that, it was still pretty... gullible of her to sleep at a place like this.

By evenfall, Hill Fawkes was back to the ambassador mansion.

”Where did you go...” No sooner had Yorko finished his sentence than he found three people followed Hill to the room.

Actually, it was two and a half people.

One of them was even half a head taller than Hill, her face stained with blood and her bright eyes observant. It was the same Annie who had taken away Amy from ”Black Money” the other day. She was carrying a purple-haired girl on her back. Out of convenience, the girl was closely attached to Annie with two straps clutching her waist and her shoulders.

From the dangling pants, Yorko knew she must be legless Hero.

The person who entered last was about the same height as No. 76. She had shoulder length silver hair, gaunt and frail, with her hands at the waist, as though she had sustained severe injuries.

Awakened by the patterings of footsteps, Amy was stunned for a second before throwing herself to Annie. ”You all escaped... Thank God! Did those knights hurt you?”

”I’m fine, but Broken Sword... She consumed a lot of magic power.”

”I’ve been so worried about you...” Amy could not hold back her emotions anymore and broke out into tears.

”Annie’s here. Nothing to fret about now.” Hero offered her solace.

Yorko gaped. ”How did you meet them?”

”It’s a long story. They must leave here as soon as possible.” Hill grabbed the ambassador’s hand and pulled him aside to the bedroom. ”Listen, you guys must leave the city of Glow before the city gate closes. Our wagons are ready, five in total. The first two will carry wheat and fruit, and you’ll get on the other three...”

”Hold on for a second,” Yorko interrupted. ”You just said... ’you guys’?”

”You and the witches, not including me.” Hill stressed each word with due strength. ”In order not to obstruct His Majesty’s plan, we have to keep in touch with the Kingdom of Dawn.”

”But I’m the ambassador!”

”That’s exactly why you need to leave.” In a critical moment like this, Hill appeared to be even more self-collected than usual. ”Look, I didn’t save these three witches.”

”What?” Yorko was shocked. ”Not you?”

”My birds are always hanging around the Tourney Square. If I can’t find the witches, it would be a better idea to see how my rivals locate them. I received the news right after the knights set out. Unfortunately, by the time I got there, the block had been under a siege. Only Rats from the Black Street know how to get in there.”

”So you bribed the Rats?”

”I’ve been keeping in contact with local Rats since I arrived at the Kingdom of Dawn. Although it has cost a big chunk of money, they do sometimes help me in the event of a crisis.” Hill said in a low tone, ”But the three witches had already fled by the time I found their traces with the help of the Rats.”

”Isn’t that perfect? I’ll ask Denise to get them out of here. Let’s pretend nothing has happened...”

Hill shook his head. ”It isn’t that simple. The King of Dawn already knew where the hiding place of these witches exactly is. He has manpower sufficient enough to turn the whole block inside out. How did they escape? There’s only one possible explanation: they let the witches go. Perhaps Appen wants to expose more hidden witches in this way... or rather—he wants to find out the person who supports them.”

Yorko swallowed hard.

”If that’s indeed the case, it would be too risky to linger in the city of Glow. The best option is to leave as soon as you can.” Hill continued, ”If you can bring four witches to His Majesty, the payoff of that would be significantly greater than fulfilling your duties as an ambassador.”

”What about you...” Yorko asked hesitantly. ”If you get caught...”

”They can arrest a person with a legit name, but not a nameless man who secretly hides in the darkness. In their eyes, I never exist.” Hill chuckled. ”Nobody will ever notice one guard in the delegation is missing, and Lord Otto will also cover for me. Do you remember what I said? I’m just an ordinary acrobat. Next time you and His Majesty visit the Kingdom of Dawn, you’ll probably see a brand new acrobatics troupe in this prosperous city of Glow.”

...