Autumn Draper left, as calm as though she was leaving the local farmer’s market .

She was a young girl of seventeen . By the looks of her, Autumn had yet to even begin really experiencing life . But what normal person would walk around with a bundle of eboncrys to go shopping? That would be conspicuous in Skycloud city, to say nothing of the lawless and unstable borderlands .

There were only two sorts of people who were so brazen . The first had something cracked in their brain, and those folks deserved whatever came to them . The second were strong enough to fear nothing, like prowling lions who did not fear the prey .

Was Autumn the latter? No!

From the moment she walked in to the instant she left, Cloudhawk hadn’t sensed the vibration of relics around her . A demonhunter without relics was like a tiger without claws, and was more likely to hurt themselves than anyone else . It was hard to say whether she was a demonhunter or not, but if she was a demonhunter without relics she wasn’t a threat .

What if her innate capabilities lay in her physical strength? She could be like Instructor Cutter from h.e.l.l’s Valley, relying on pure force and physical ability . That didn’t seem likely, either . On the one hand, she was too young to have any credible training . On the other, skills like that were honed only from living in extreme harsh conditions .

Based on her posture, rate of breathing, and att.i.tude, she was maybe only slightly more capable than an average citizen . Definitely nothing special . He didn’t sense any danger from her or any threatening aura . Based on what he saw, Autumn was as deadly as a cage-raised canary . An over-inflated porcelain doll .

But that just made him even more suspicious . She had no coin, but the parcel of stones she readily showed them was staggeringly valuable . Where did she get it? It seemed Autumn Draper was a name he would have to study .

Between the wastelands and the Skycloud domain, names were markedly different .

Most wastelanders didn’t have a family name . h.e.l.l, many didn’t have families . They got by with nicknames or designations . Common names were things like Boulder, Grit, or Cloud . Or animal names like Lupus, Tigra or Leopard . Things you saw often in the wastes . Cloudhawk, Mantis, and Wolfblade were textbook examples . Next down the list were ancient names picked out of antiquity, like Roste . Pathfinders spent their days combing through old ruins and excavating the past, so they picked names that brought them closer to that long-dead culture .  

Now the elysians, they were a people divided into families and clans . Whether from n.o.ble stock or common lineage, everyone had a family history . Given names were chosen by how flowery and dignified they sounded; Selene and Arcturus Cloude, Frost de Winter, Raithe Umbra, Claudia Lunae and so forth .

Autumn Draper was definitely not a wastelander name, but it didn’t seem very elysian either . Wandering around with the equivalent of ten thousand gold coins in a little sack… back in Skycloud, you would have to have come from a family everyone knew . Before coming back to the borderlands, Cloudhawk had gathered as much intelligence as he could about who the big players were . There was definitely no family that would fit the way Autumn was acting .

But the most confusing thing of all? What did she need with five hundred sets of weapons and armor? Was she actually looking to outfit a small army?

A few of the patrons had watched the whole exchange, and the look in their eyes were less than wholesome . While she and the others were distracted, they slipped out and followed her . Gabriel noticed this . “It seems your girl has garnered some attention . Do you want to do something about it?”

But Cloudhawk shook his head . “It’s fine . ”

He was always a curious sort, so it was uncharacteristic for Cloudhawk not to be interested in the result . Since his boss seemed uninterested, Gabriel made no further motions to get involved .

The Sandbar was head and shoulders above the condition of most other wasteland outposts . However, it was still a rough and foul place for someone like Autumn, who was used to living in the lap of luxury . After wandering for some time she chanced upon a hotel that seemed pa.s.sable . It happened to be the nicest lodgings in the Sandbar, run by a middle-aged man of some affluence . He was known for his friendliness and hospitality .

“h.e.l.lo miss, are you looking for a place to stay? We offer three packages . The cheapest is fifty copper a night, then eighty, and finally two silver . Which would you like?”

Autumn plucked the smallest cube of eboncrys from its sack and placed it on the counter between them . It was worth ten gold, easy . “Is this sufficient?”

“This… this is eboncrys?” The friendly smile he wore like a mask froze and he s.n.a.t.c.hed it up . He fumbled with a pair of dirty gla.s.ses and slipped them on so he could take a closer look . In truth, he’d never seen this treasure, but he knew of it . Elysian coin and other trade goods often pa.s.sed through the borderlands . “Very pure,” he said excitedly . “Such high purity . ”

Autumn pressed him . “I’d like a room, please . ”

“Yes, yes . Of course!” The hotel owner clutched tight to the tiny cube, worth enough to rent out half his establishment . His customary smile returned wider than ever, eyes bright . “Stay as long as you’d like!”

He brought her to the innermost room on the third floor . It was forty or fifty square meters in size and had its own showers . It was the best of the lot, and clean at least . Autumn looked over the lodgings with a nod of satisfaction, then closed and locked the door . Once alone, she removed her veil and revealed a beautiful face .

If there was one word to describe her, it was ‘ethereal . ’

She was flawless . There wasn’t a single blemish on her . Autumn allowed her hair to tumble free down her shoulders, which revealed a pair of pale white ears that were unique from others . They were longer, perhaps some sort of mutation, but they did not detract in the least from her enchanting looks . If anything, the peculiarity made her even more attractive .

Water spat from the shower head, and she washed off the dust that had acc.u.mulated from the last few trying days .

Moments after putting her clothes back on, a knock came from the door . The voice of the hotel owner called to her . “n.o.ble madam, I’ve taken the liberty of preparing our finest supper for you . ”

Autumn pulled the door open without a second thought . On the other side was the owner, standing behind a simple serving trolley . She offered a gentle thanks and pulled the cart inside . Mutant animal meat, primarily . This wasn’t her home town, so she couldn’t have expected much in the way of wild fruits or vegetables .

“Please enjoy . ”

He bowed and sc.r.a.ped, never allowing his smile to falter as the owner took his leave .

Autumn preferred vegetarian meals . Although the hotel proprietor had prepared the meat with expert care, she only took a few bites before setting it aside . She spent dinner sipping at a tepid beverage and brooding .

So far things had been going smoothly . She’d only just gotten to the settlement and already found the equipment she needed .

Perhaps the high-quality goods would give them a chance . A solution to her people’s troubles . But perhaps not . Five hundred sets of armor and weapons did not seem near enough to deal with that monster .

Autumn was clear on the purpose of her expedition . The equipment she purchased was important, but her main aim was to return with the ancient treasure of her people, gone for so many years . The best means would be to recruit people who could help her . The people she’d brought to a.s.sist her had been scattered through the wasteland from beast attacks and sandstorms, leaving her alone as she reached the Sandbar . Could she complete her mission with no one to rely on but herself?

She wasn’t given much time to reflect . An intense dizziness came over her .

Her vision doubled, everything started to swirl and warp . Before she even knew what was happening she hit the ground with a thud . The food trolley was tipped and sent its contents tumbling across the floor .

“n.o.ble madam? Do you need some help?”

The hotel owner called out but there was no answer . The door’s lock slowly began to turn .

He poked his head on with that honest smile spread across his face . However, clutched in the hand behind his back was a gleaming knife . Autumn lay p.r.o.ne on the ground, unmoving after ingesting the drug . There was a note of surprise on the owner’s face . He was surprised it’d been so easy .

He placed the knife down and found the satchel of eboncrys . He lifted it up with a grunt . It was heavy . He pulled it open and his eyes s.h.i.+mmered l.u.s.tfully as the contents were revealed . Scores of them . He couldn’t believe it .

Excellent!

He could reach in and pull one out at random and it would be worth man than his whole hotel . He wouldn’t need to run this s.h.i.+thouse anymore . With this bag he could just run away and live out the rest of his days in enjoyment .

The owner selected one from the bag and raised it to his eyes . However, he’d only just begun to appreciate the beauty of his ill-gotten goods when a pair of blades punched through his back and jutted out from his chest . The steel was a glossy dark green, obviously tempered in poison .

The hotel owner immediately went rigid, eyes wide as saucers . The only thing that moved was his mouth, which opened and closed grotesquely like a fish out of water . Finally, the world went black .

“Go to h.e.l.l . ” A lean and rugged-looking man violently pulled his daggers out of the corpse and returned them to their sheaths . He shoved the body to one side with a grunt and waved over his shoulder . “All set!”

A sinister looking man walked in, followed by another with a repulsively scarred face . The three men had trailed Autumn here from the emporium . Without even a glance spared for the slain hotel owner, the dangerous-looking one picked up the eboncrys cube that had been dropped . It felt moist and warm in the palm of his hand . It was soaked with the dead man’s blood and stained the thief’s fingers red .

“Rich! We’re f.u.c.kin’ rich!”

The thin, monkey-like one who killed the owner dropped his eyes to the p.r.o.ne woman . A dark and obscene light glimmered in his beady gaze . “That’s one tasty lookin’ b.i.t.c.h there . I haven’t tried one like her yet, but I’m about to correct that . ”

He reached out his hand and pulled . Autumn’s clothing was ripped half off .

Her long, pale legs were revealed to their l.u.s.ty eyes . The desire to pull her legs apart and explore what lay between raged inside them . The skinny one was almost mad with excitement and started to fumble with his pants .

The ugly one barked at him . “Hey, Gibbon! Are you f.u.c.kin’ stupid? A bunch of people saw her today, they’ll be lookin’ to score too . I know your little worm works quick, but every second we stick around is trouble . We aren’t gonna risk it because you wanna get your d.i.c.k wet . ”

The one called Gibbon flushed red . “f.u.c.k your mother! You’ve got the f.u.c.kin’ worm .  You work quick!”

“With all this money you think you can’t get women?” The ugly one pulled out a knife . “Stop wasting time and kill her!”

The malicious one who’d so far been silent stopped him . “If she was walking around with so much money, she’s gotta have access to more . Keep her alive, and when we get to a safe place we can question her . There might be more to gain if she stays breathing . ”

“Good point . He’s right!” A grin stretched across Gibbon’s face . “The three of us can take her together . I’ll show you the real meaning of ‘wasteland manhood’!”

The scarred one didn’t waste anymore time with nonsense . He pulled a sheet off the bed and wrapped Autumn up . Their leader took the sack of eboncrys, then put his foot through a window . “Hotel workers will be here soon . We’ve gotta go . ”

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