Gleam [Karma Cultivator Isekai] - Chapter 109: Oh Jie

“It’s really easy to say we need a plan,” Chance mused, rubbing his chin. “But actually getting one seems considerably harder.”

They’d been sitting there for the better part of an hour, tossing out suggestions as to how they could go about freeing everyone from the Brackern Sect. And, for all their effort, their best idea was from Bella, whose suggestion was to just track down all the Sect elders and kill them in the middle of the night.

That didn’t quite sit right with Chance, and Jade wasn’t a fan of it either. Thus, they’d been stuck in an endless debate, unable to actually land on a plan that they all agreed on. Eventually, Jade put a stop to it.

“This is a complete waste of time,” Jade said, crossing her arms. “Stop already. Does anyone actually have an idea that doesn’t involve either murdering a bunch of people that may or may not be innocent or just doing the complete opposite and waiting until they’re an inch from killing us before we act?”

They all went silent.

“Then how about we just wing it?” Jade suggested. “Bella, you’re confident in Chance being really lucky, right?”

Bella nodded immediately. “Yeah.”

“And Chance is too?”

“It hasn’t let me down yet,” Chance said. He considered her words for a moment. “Though, I’m pretty sure it’s also pulled me into some less than ideal situations. I think luck might occasionally go in both directions.”

“And what about you?” Jade asked, turning to Quinn. “I know you don’t have a lot to go off, but are you comfortable relying on his chances – pardon the pun?”

Quinn nodded hesitantly. “I suppose. I saw him fighting, and I don’t know exactly what it was, but he was good. Good enough to hold his own against most of the sect members. We didn’t have that many Rank 3s, and Nimea was one of the most promising ones.”

“Then we’ll just trust Chance to get into that house safely,” Jade said. “He’ll pick up your friend and try to get them out here so we can speak with them and find out what are next steps are. If things end up going badly, then we do what we need to. How’s that work?”

They all looked at each other. Chance was the first to shrug.

“That works for me.”

“If you’re fine with it, then I am too,” Bella said.

Quinn nodded her agreement. “I’ll need to go with you across the street to point out where they are, though. It’s easier to see from the alley across from us.”

“Then let’s go,” Chance said. “Lead the way, Quinn?”

“Be careful,” Bella warned as they headed out of the alley. “If something goes wrong, make a lot of noise so we know you need help.”

“Will do,” Chance said.

He followed Quinn to the edge of the alley, where they paused for a few seconds. Chance glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. He drew on his Essence just enough to feel its comforting warmth within him body.

“Are we waiting for something?”

“The right moment to cross,” Quinn replied. “I don’t want to get spotted by someone I know as we walk in.”

There were a fair number of people milling about the street, walking in either direction. Most of them seemed completely preoccupied with their own days. Chance looked back to Quinn and put a hand on her shoulder. She glanced at him in surprise.

“The best way to get somewhere you don’t belong is to pretend like you do,” Chance advised. “Especially when I’m here. Let’s just go.”

Quinn let out a curse as Chance stepped into the street, dragging her along behind him. She quickly stiffened and increased her pace to catch up with Chance. They crossed across the road, stepping past several people that didn’t even glance in their direction, and arrived at the door.

“See?” Chance asked. Quinn just shook her head and stepped into the shadow of the house. Chance followed after her, and they headed deeper into the darkness. Quinn ducked under a window and Chance did the same.

They wrapped around the side of the house, reaching a stone wall that cut off their path. Quinn pointed up to the house’s second floor.

“My friend is named Jie. His room is on the second floor, and he’s the groundskeeper for the house. A bit taller than me, pale as a sheet of paper, and bright red hair. Hard to miss.”

“Okay,” Chance said with a nod. “Who owns the house? They might be there, right?”

“A man called Drayan. He’s an asshole. I’d try to avoid him if you can, but I still don’t know how you’re going to get inside without anyone noticing. Drayan is high up enough in the sect to have a guard. They won’t just let you stroll inside.”

“Leave that to me,” Chance replied with a smile. “Just stay over here and wait for me to come out. It won’t take long at all, as long as Jie is where you say he is.”

Quinn didn’t look too convinced, but she nodded and Chance walked back to the front door. He called on more of his Essence, then reached up and knocked on the door. Part of him was hoping that Jie would be the one to answer it and he’d get really lucky, but evidently that was far too much, even for him.

A weathered man wearing light leather armor and carrying a sword at his side pulled the door open. His eyes roamed over Chance, clearly not finding anything of interest there as he let out a tired sigh.

“What do you want?”

Two options. The first is that he’s a crazy high rank and being a Knight is completely irrelevant to him. The other, and more likely one, is that he’s weaker than Rank 3 and has no idea what Rank I am.

Chance extended a hand, sending a tendril of gold Essence down his sleeve and into his palm.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Chance said with the widest smile he could gather. “My dad sent me to look around your sect. He said it was good for relations, or something like that. I’m not really interested in that kind of thing, but I chose a house at random to judge the sect off. You don’t mind, do you?”

The guard’s brow furrowed, but the implication that Chance was from another sect was enough to give him pause. Chance had to hide a laugh as he saw a flash of panic flash across the man’s face.

If Chance was who he said he was, then it would be a very bad look for the sect to refuse entry. But, if he was lying, then he was just letting a random person into Drayan’s house.

The guard hesitantly reached up and took Chance’s hand. If he noticed the mist, he didn’t say anything. He just cleared his throat and took a step back.

“Well, I suppose a quick tour wouldn’t hurt. Drayan is in his office taking lunch right now. Would you like to speak with him?”

Chance tilted his head to the side, considering the request for a moment. “I’d love to, but it would be terrible to interrupt him. Maybe after he’s done eating?”

As Chance spoke, he stepped past the guard and into the house. The guard closed the door behind him, nodding thoughtfully.

“I suppose that’s true,” the man agreed. “It would be a shame. What sect are you from, young sir?”

Chance’s third eye opened and he scanned the guard’s karma. His features tightened imperceptibly. Several threads depicted the man slapping people not much younger than Chance, all of whom wore plain white clothes that were clearly meant for servants.

“Dancing Cloud,” Chance replied. “Have you heard of it?”

The guard’s eyes widened. “Of course. I had no idea we had an esteemed young man such as yourself visiting us today. Please forgive the mess.”

Chance resisted the urge to laugh. The room he’d stepped into was immaculately cleaned. It wasn’t nearly as rich as he’d been expecting, but the floor was well swept and the paintings that hung from the walls had clearly been dusted recently.

Several doors led into other rooms along the hall, but there wasn’t a sign of dirt or anything out of place anywhere.

“It seems like a lovely house,” Chance said, walking up to the first door and peering inside. It led into a small room full of crates and barrels. Faint traces of flour and rice were on the ground, but even this room was surprisingly clean.

“That’s just the kitchen supplies. Hardly worth your interest,” the guard said, stopping by the doorway. “If you come with me, I can take you to the waiting room so you can relax while you wait for Master Drayan to finish his meal.”

“But what about this?” Chance asked, pointing just behind the door. “It looks a bit out of place. I think you may have rats.”

The guard’s eyes widened. “Rats? We would never. Show me!”

He took a step forward, his head turning on a swivel to look where Chance pointed. He was so focused on the hand that he didn’t see Chance’s other hand as it whipped up, striking him in the side of the head with the hilt of his urumi.

The man’s eyes rolled up in his head and he crumpled to the ground in a heap. Chance looked down at him for a moment, making sure the man was still breathing, then shook his head. The strings of Karma told him that the guard had hit people a lot harder than Chance had just hit him.

Can give it out but can’t take it back. Oh well. Hopefully Drayan isn’t too pissed that you let a random kid into his house while you were supposed to be guarding it.

Chance chuckled to himself and stepped back out of the supply room, closing the door behind him. He called on his Essence and jiggled the handle slightly. On the other side of the door, Chance heard a barrel thump as it tipped over, blocking the door from opening.

He strode deeper into the house, his Essence pooling at his feet and leaving a glowing trail behind him. Now that he was well and truly inside, it wouldn’t matter if he was spotted. What he needed was to get lucky.

He chose a turn at random, heading down the hall. A door closed as someone entered a room a moment before he walked past it. Chance didn’t pause for an instant. The hall he’d stepped into led up to a stairwell, and he had no plans of sticking around to see if someone came back out. If that had been Jie, they would have run into each other before the door closed.

Chance headed up the stairs, arriving in a considerably plainer but still well kept hall. He chose a direction at random once more, then strode down the lines of doors. As he walked, one of the handles started to twist.

Tilting his head to the side, Chance stopped walking.

Good timing.

He took a step back as the door opened and a pale man emerged from within it. His white clothes were stained grey and brown from dirt, but his bright red hair stuck out like a wet paintbrush. Chance guessed the man was probably just a few years younger than he was.

That’s got to be Jie. Lucky me.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Jie said, inclining his head respectfully. “I didn’t see you there. I’ll get out of your way.”

“On the contrary,” Chance said, stepping into the room. Jie took a surprised step back and Chance closed the door behind him. “You’re exactly the person I’m looking for. Would you be able to answer some questions for me?”