I wiped the sweat off my forehead. The capital city of Mirxa, Cornera in front of me. I had reached the place in only three hours.
"Amazing, that's three days of distance."
"You flew here, that's like cheating on a lot of the distance, Eugy."
I got on my shield and dashed here, true. It wasn't really cheating though since controlling the shield was tough too. It was like second nature to me, so I also cultivated my Ki and learned more about the spirits from Titania.
"Communication with those critters really is the only way?"
"For you, yes."
That sucked.
I sighed and shook my head as I looked down at the city from up on a tree. Carriages would be making their way in and out not after long as the merchants would begin making their trades for the day.
In this place, we had to figure out exactly which carriage was carrying the materials or the drugs themselves as a consignment out of Mirxa.
Luka had called dibs on this being the work of a demon. While dense amounts of demonic energy could be seen by anyone like the summoning of a demon lord or even the assignment of an apostle like was the case with the crow's servant all those years back, items like these would likely have very faint traces.
Only a demon like me would be able to see them.
"Shouldn't you be telling that Mirxa guy? He could probably help."
I shook my head at Titania's words.
"That will have chances of tipping the Fonias off. We don't know anything about their trade except the fact that drugs are likely being made. Risking things in a wild goose chase is going to hurt us. And well, I have other uses for him."
"We have to find the best way to observe the carriages then, huh?"
"Hm…"
"Hm…"
"How about posing as the guards?"
"That could work, right Eugy?"
"It actually can… not that bad."
Titania and I blinked. And then turned to our side. There, with a black aura oozing behind her stood Irina Lester. I took a step back, not having noticed when she reached at all.
"Do you know how tough it is to move like this?" Irina tried to grab my collar, but I evaded. She reached out again, and I evaded again. In the end she gave up and only grit her teeth. "Enough of your tricks now. I am going to monitor you before you do something dangerous."
A sigh left me.
It seemed even my attempt to run away didn't work.
"Fine. Fine."
She was doing this out of worry.
"And I am going to annoy you like shit."
And out of hatred, yes, but worry still existed. Then, I could probably let her slide and take her along. She did persist for so long after all.
"Alright, fine. Let's do this together Miss Irina."
"Finally, ugh. I thought I would have to punch you to make you understand."
"I take it back—"
She tried to punch me. I dodged.
She punched again, I dodged again.
In the end, she gave up and only grit her teeth.
"Alright, enough. The ones on the west gate is where carriages with goods move. It could be possible they're smuggling through the passenger ones," Irina muttered. "But if this group is as well reached as you claim it to be, I doubt they would do that."
"That's right. But this is still territory that is under the Mirxa which does not relate to them. Others will drop the amount by a lot, considering this is something that has to be smuggled in the first place."
Irina didn't wait to hear more and jumped down the trees. She peered at one of the knights in the distance and pulled out her wand.
I keenly observed her as she moved. Sorcery was a derivative usage of spirit magic according to Titania. So while she couldn't move the spirits, from what I understood, she could nudge them to move in a way. That was why sorcery was something that only the chosen could do.
Chosen by the spirits that is, as someone that the spirits would consider listening to.
As she moved her wand and chanted her machinations, two spirits came near her.
"There's tens."
Tens, then.
The spirits looked at her with deep intrigue and then laughed out loud. Like children playing in a sandbox, the spirits shot toward the knight and circled him. In the blink of an eye, the two knights standing guard suddenly had all their clothes stripped off and were wrapped by leaves.
"This is part of it, spirits only do what they like. That's why sorcerers are all whack," said Titania. "Remember in hell that old coot mentioned how people in his place were dying of tummy aches? The spirits likely found that funny, or she convinced them to."
I was sure he mentioned no tummy aches.
"Psst!"
Irina called to me from below and pointed at the now naked knights. I sighed and snapped my fingers as my translucent shields smashed into the back of their heads and sent them sleeping. They fell on the shields which then carried them away.
I hopped down too and then Irina and I rushed over to the gates and changed into the knights' uniform.
It was crazy how, even in the armor of a knight, Irina's princess vibe was not gone.
"What? What are you looking at me for?"
"I was just thinking of how I can make you suffer back, Miss Irina."
The time to open the doors rolled around and many carriages came over to the western gate.
While inspecting them, the two of us engaged in a war.
Every chance she had, she would step on my toe. Every other chance, I would step on hers. We threw items from the carriages at each other and even threw an obviously illegal carriage entirely.
The intense battle continued for a while, before I opened another carriage.
All over the insides of the barrels, small wisps of black energy visible to no eye but mine floated around.
"Jackpot."
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