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It's the dead end.
After half an hour of running, they have reached the edge of the cliff, there's nowhere to run since what's waiting for them down there are big rocks that can be the cause of their deaths.
Alucard fought a rising tide of panic as the hurling in the wind gets louder, indicating that a certain assassin is coming to get them. Having no choice, he faced his client. "You stay at the back, I'll do my best to hold her down."
"You should. You were paid for this!" Alice snarled, rolling her eyes.
He shut his mouth, just settled on cursing at the back of his mind. Arguing with her is one thing that he, as much as possible, should avoid.
The leaves rustled, Alucard turned to see someone jumping, flying rather, through the forest, she swiftly moves from a tree to another, with the help of her cables. He watched,
fascinated, as she gracefully landed on her feet with a silent thump, her cables automatically pulled back to the gear that were attached on her waist. He almost clapped at how magnificent that scene was—if not for the anger that glinted in her eyes, they looked ten times sharper than the swords in her hands.
"Hey, look, Annie, I don't want to—"
"It's FANNY." the woman cut his words, making him frown. "Step aside."
Crossing his arms, Alucard tried his best to look relaxed, while he thinks of a way how to lure Fanny's attention away from Alice so she can escape. "Haven't you heard, Miss Fanny." he emphasized her name.. "I don't take orders from other people unless they pay me. And in our situation, my client here did. I'm sorry but you are the one who needs to step back."
Her emerald green orbs flashed in amusement as he finished talking. She squinted at him, her pursed lips twitched slightly.
Becoming nervous than a second ago, his hand fisted. He knows with certainty she's annoyed with the things he said, but he couldn't simply give up upon this job. Alice provides him all the basic needs to survive in exchange of doing a simple task, guarding and keeping up with her attitude.
Again, her little mouth opened to speak, "Well, I hate to break it to you, Mister Guardian, but I don't care about your—"
She momentarily got distracted looking at those bright golden hair that framed his grim face, they're neatly combed. He can be mistaken for a noble because of his perfectly shaped nose and beautiful pair of blue eyes, though he looked a little menacing.
And above all, he does seem to be the fighting type.
"Just give her to me and stop wasting my time."
"No." he unsheathes his sword and prepared to fight.
In her years of experience, she can clearly say he's pretty skilled, judging by his fighting stance. He sure knows how to hold a sword but against her, he would be no match. But then he was up there charging at her, with the great sword he swirls with ease.
"I don't have time to play with you." she uttered as she dodge his assault, her cables are back to work once again. If she wasn’t fast enough to glide towards the other side, he would have slashed her in two, that’s when she knew it wasn’t just a warning, he was dead serious about this fight.
Thinking it wouldn’t be a quick one, she focused on her target, but then, Alice is missing. That little witch may have gone to run away while she's distracted.
"I can't get her killed while I'm around. As I said, she is paying me well. If you wanted to get your hands on her so badly, then you have to beat me first." Alucard shrugged, lifting his sword for another attack.
Fanny closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The tiny thread of her patience is on the brink of breaking. As she let out a sigh, she placed her swords back in their sheaths. "You don't seem to be a bad person. Do you even know what kind of monster you were protecting?"
Alucard once again got surprised as Fanny showed no plan or interest in fighting him, but not to the point that she's retreating. She took something out of her pocket and threw it on Alucard.
"How much is considered enough?" Fanny asked, her face shows impatience as Alucard looked at her, puzzled.
He examines the thing she's thrown at him; it turned out to be a pouch full of gold coins enough for him to afford an apartment in the capital, and a month's worth of good meal, three times a day.
"Actually, Alice doesn't pay me this much. You may go ahead." He happily placed the pouch inside his pocket, whistling as he put the sword back in its case.
Fanny gave him one last look, a glare to be exact, then prepared her cables. "You had no shame."
"Ah, she went that way, Miss Annie." Alucard pointed to the right side which, the lady assassin took, and soon afterwards, her dangling figure disappeared from his sight.
"It's Fanny, you idiot!" her voice echoed in the forest.
-
For a committed Queen’s guard- well not that fully committed since he has yet to take an oath- which sole responsibility was to keep her safe at all times, Alucard dropped the task and completely burnt his bridges.
He was disappointed with himself but the precious coins the lady assassin gave him did a life changing shift of job reference. From being a self proclaimed guard, then returning to a full-pledged hunter.
He settled in a place away from the city, away from anyone who would recognize him. Chosen to live in isolation, to ponder about a crime he's partly responsible of.
Sometimes he wonder what could have happened if he stood up for what is right. For sure, either him or Annie -or whatever the name was- ended up dead.
If he died, so does Alice. But what if he won against that assassin? Will he be granted a reward much better than a pouch of gold? Or will he ever get a permanent job?
He clicked his tongue. Of course not.
There's no way he'll survive that assassin's attack. Judging by the murderous look in her eyes, she must have taken a lot of lives with her hands. Fortunately, he was lucky that day, the woman was being generous.
He closed his eyes and pulled the blanket to cover his body, he can use sleep to shake off the guilt that's been hauting him for months he lose count.
The heavy rain is deafening, he shuddered under the sheets and as usual, he spent the next few hours counting sheeps.
-
How he ended up making a coffee for a not-so-random stranger at this time of the night? Who knows?
He placed the cup down then slumped on the chair across the lady assassin, who was apparently lost in the woods, amidst the blinding rain and just happened to pass by his house, which she said to be conveniently standing in the middle of the forest.
But of course he didn't buy it.
He gave a suspicious look at the woman, face wrinkled with fierce concentration as she dries her shoulder-length blonde hair with a towel he halfheartedly lent her. Oh, and she stared back at him, her eyes has a magical spark as the light from the flickering candle reflected on those green orbs. "You have something in mind, Mister-"
"Alucard." he mused, not even bothering to blink. "How did you find me, Annie?"
"Alucard." she huffed. "For the nth time, it's Fanny. F-A-N-N-Y. Why can't you get it right?"
“Does that matter? I have no intention of crossing paths with you again, unless it's you who comes to find me."
Surprisingly, she averted her gaze. She took the cup of coffee to her lips and sipped from it.
“That’ll be two dollars.” He wanted to joke since the coffee is pretty expensive and he doesn’t want to share it.
But for some reason, he held back because even if her blades are quietly hanging at the back of his door, who knows just what her hands can do?
He heard her snort, the she puts the cup back down on the table, "Alucard, your anxiety is giving me the creeps."
"Your presence gives me the creeps as well. I have to watch my back knowing there's an assassin in my own home." He honestly stated, earning a laugh from her.
A table must have been made to serve as a barrier between them but he can feel her feet stomping against the floor as she obviously tries to restrain herself from the hearty laughter that escapes her mouth.
Alucard took a sip from his coffee, mentally cursing her. She enjoys the fact that he's somewhat intimidated or scared-immensely, for sure.
"That’s some sort of misconception right there, I don't kill good people.” Her eyes darting on her surrounding, absorbing each and every details of it, she looked contented and happy with the smell of life seeping through her. Her gaze stopped at the fireplace. “But I’m not saying you’re a good person though.”
He frowned at the way she managed to be at home in his house as if this place is hers and not his.
"You’re pretty judgmental. So what brings you here, Miss Assassin?”
"Well, I just have few questions."
“I should be the one asking. Did you kill Alice?"
She once again averted her gaze, a sign of wrecking nerves, though she wouldn't budge. "Why would you want to know? You fled right after I paid you."
Alucard threw the cup across the room, sending tiny drops of coffee on her face in the process, she flinched from the hot liquid, though it didn't hurt. The glass shattered into pieces rendering her silent. Both of his palms cracked against the table. He wanted to know, either she tells him willingly or he forces her in doing so.
"I’ve been haunted by guilt, I’m getting nightmares. Until now I’m still thinking of what could have been if I didn’t sell her off.. I.. I was hoping she managed to escape.”
"You’re right. I’ve lost her." she smiled at him as if nothing earth-shattering happened between them. “What do you know about her?”
“She told me she is a Queen somewhere. I don’t know, I don’t ask questions on my clients as long as they can afford my service. She just asked me to be her bodyguard while she’s in the capital. We hadn’t known each other for a long time, just a couple of weeks.”
“For a queen to be wandering around in an unfamiliar place all by herself, you didn’t find it suspicious? Are you ignorant or something?”
Alucard hissed. “Of course I found it odd. But it’s not the first time I’ve encountered a crazy client. I don’t buy her story, I just pretended I do, as long as I get my job done. Thanks to you, I failed it.”
“Thanks to your interference, too. Now my progress is back to zero since she seemed to completely erase her existence after our encounter. Part of her story is true though, she is indeed a queen, but from Abyss. She’s committed alot of crimes all through-out the Land of Dawn. We’ve been trying to trace her whereabouts for years and when we finally get to corner her, you...” Fanny took a deep sigh.
Stunned by her words, his breathing hitched as he tried to digest and comprehend the information she just spat. “No way..I could have been considered the Nation’s hero if I was the one who captured her! That’s a real deal I just missed!”
Fanny continued. “The main reason I came to find you, is to make you an offer you can’t refuse.”
“Wow, that’s so original.” He remarked sarcastically.
“I thought that would sound cool, but kidding aside, would you like to join the Lightborn squad?”
“Light what?” He tilts his head in confusion, for sure he heard the name before but he can’t recall from where.
“Princess Silvanna’s Lightborn Squad, from the empire. Ring a bell?”
The moment he heard Silvanna’s name, his face turned paper-white. So, all these time, has he been cluelessly messing with the empire’s elite knights?
“What on earth did I get myself into? All along I thought you were a hired killer.. Please forgive my rudeness.”
Fanny just smirked, “So, will you join us? Since you’re familiar with her face, I know you can recognize her no matter how many times she disguise herself.”
“Yes.” Without hesitation, he accepted the job.
Who would have thought that a fateful encounter will lead to a new career for an ambitious man like him? He’s done too many mistakes, and he will add one more if he just let it pass, for sure.
“Good. You may come to the headquarters to report tomorrow. I’ll see you there.”
“Why are you recruiting me easily? I mean, I’ve threatened your life, I’m the reason why Alice escaped, and I’m also easily swayed by material things. I wonder if I’m actually worthy of a place in the squad.”
“As I said, we’ve been keeping track of Alice, and those who were affiliated with her. It’s just natural that we have ran a background check on you. Consider this a chance for a change. The empire is quite generous, but above all, the Princess values trust the most.”
Just like that, Fanny leaves without bidding farewell.