Gleam [Karma Cultivator Isekai] - Chapter 86: Wolf with a sheep's smile

Jade stared down into her yellowed reflection in the beer on the table before her. The village around her was alight with cheer and laughter, but she couldn’t untwist the tight knot of unease that had bound around her heart.

She swirled the beer around in its wooden mug, not having touched it since the barman had served her. Jade hadn’t even ordered it – he’d just shoved it into her hands and ran off to join his fellow villagers in celebrating another day of life.

It wasn’t like Jade could blame him. There was a reason that villages this far away from the Scholar Cities didn’t get names. Names were a privilege, as was life. Survival was worth celebrating.

“You look dour,” a man’s voice said from behind Jade.

She raised her gaze, looking over her shoulder. Jade’s eyes widened and she jumped from the chair.

“Officer Shae! I didn’t realize you’d arrived at the village,” Jade said, stumbling over her words slightly.

“You were gone for too long,” Shae replied, pulling out a stool beside Jade and sitting down. He gestured for her to do the same. “I thought you might have had difficulty with the monster.”

Jade’s hands clenched at her sides. She sat back down and pushed her mug to the side. “I did.”

“It appears to be dead, so you clearly didn’t have much.” Shae glanced around the empty inn, then reached over the counter and grabbed a bottle of wine from the wall behind it. He snagged an empty mug and poured himself a glass, then took a long draw from it. “You aren’t injured either.”

“Another cultivator was here. I wasn’t alone.”

Shae finished his drink and pursed his lips in mild distaste. “Not the best I’ve ever had. And that’s quite a surprise. Someone else actually bothered to come out for such a low paying job?”

Jade just nodded. The two of them sat in silence for a few uncomfortable moments. Jade picked her own drink up and stared into its fizzy depths, swirling it around again.

“Something is troubling you.” Shae tapped his mouth dry with a napkin. He picked up the wine bottle and refilled his drink. “Didn’t perform how you expected without a team?”

“That’s part of it,” Jade admitted. “Officer Shae, I know I was the one that sought you out when I heard you were also on this mission, but… are you certain we got all the details?”

Shae raised the mug to his lips, draining it within seconds. He set it gently back down on the table and refilled it once more. “That’s an odd question to ask.”

Jade squirmed under his sharp gaze. She picked her drink up, largely just to have something to turn her attention toward other than the Shikari officer. “I was just thinking about it. Chance – our target – he’s not even a Knight rank, and even though I wasn’t at the tournament he won, I had friends that were. Apparently, he seemed really friendly. Why would he just kill a Shikari and go on the run?”

“Ah, Jade, you’ve stumbled into something that many Shikari do in their line of work, especially as we grow in strength.” Shae gave her a small smile. “There’s a fundamental misunderstanding, I’m afraid.”

“About what?”

“Your role. You are a Knight. You lack the strength or experience to truly understand why Gleam’s council would issue a quest like this. The world is still painted in black and white for you, when it is in true a mirage of greys. Perhaps our target was indeed a joyful person, but that does not matter. We are Shikari. Our task is to eliminate the threat, and that is what we will do.”

Jade looked back down at her drink. She slowly raised it to her lips and took a sip, then grimaced and set it back down on the counter. “But what if the council was wrong?”

“It is not your place to question the council. You exist to execute its will. If you wish to question your jobs, then become strong enough to demand such a privilege. You were the one that chose to take this on. Nobody forced you,” Shae said. He poured the last of the wine out of its bottle and straight into his mouth, then set it back down on the counter with a sigh. “Backwater swill.”

“Isn’t it our duty as Shikari to make sure justice is upheld?” Jade pressed.

“It is our duty as Shikari to make sure that the laws that enforce justice are upheld,” Shae corrected. He rose to his feet and tossed a gold coin onto the counter. “We’ve spent time enough here.”

Jade stood as well. “Where are we going?”

Shae gave her a cold smile. “You tell me, Jade. You’re the one that met the boy and let him get away.”

Jade’s eyes widened. “You knew?”

“That was the least obvious line of questioning I’ve ever seen,” Shae replied flatly. “A bumbling fool would have known. I have entertained your questions for long enough. He clearly defeated the monster with your help and escaped. How?”

Jade swallowed. For a moment, she didn’t respond to Shae’s question. Then she shook her head. “I have no idea. He reached into his pocket and vanished. I tried to get him to stick around and speak to me for a little while, but he refused.”

“Did he suspect your identity?”

“I don’t think so. He–”

Jade pressed her lips together, then shook her head. “Never mind, it’s not relevant. He just vanished after reaching into his pocket.”

Shae rubbed his chin. “A teleportation token, I suspect. One that belongs to a sect in the area, because this town wouldn’t have reach to get their message very far. That narrows things down significantly, and explains why it’s been so hard to track him down.”

A smile formed on Shae’s lips and he strode out of the tavern. Jade rushed after him, jogging to keep up with his long stride. Shae wasted no time in walking straight up to a group of guardsmen who were laughing amongst themselves.

“Greetings,” Shae said, raising his hand. “I am Shae, a Shikari on a job from Gleam.”

The guards scrambled to their feet. One of them stepped forward and gave a small bow.

“Is there something you require of us, Shikari? I will do everything in my power to aid you.”

“Nothing so grand,” Shae said with a chuckle. “I was just wondering if there was a Sect your town had any ties to.”

The guard’s eyes lightened. “Ah! Yes, the Dancing Cloud sect. They’re the ones that sent one of the cultivators to help us.”

“Fantastic.” Shae clapped the man on the shoulder. “Please, don’t let me interrupt your celebrations any longer. I wish you a long life.”

“And you a longer one,” the guard replied, giving Shae a salute before turning back to his friends. Neither the guard nor the other men said anything else until Shae and Jade were well out of earshot.

“And there we have it,” Shae said. “The Dancing Cloud sect. We know where our fugitive friend has run to.”

“I’ve never heard of it,” Jade said.

“Then it is a good thing you came to me and asked to work together.” Shae pulled a small metal rod out from a pouch at his waist and knelt, drawing runes in the packed dirt on the side of the road. Jade peered over his shoulder to watch him work.

All the villagers gave them a wide berth, giving respectful nods and small smiles whenever they made eye contact with Jade. Within half an hour, Shae had finished his work. He tucked the rod away and examined the circle he’d drawn on the ground.

“You know where they are?” Jade asked.

“A floating city,” Shae replied. “I did not think that Chance would have the resources to get there, but they must have been recruiting or Chance made friends with one of their members. Luckily, I can get us onto the island.”

Jade chewed her lower lip. After a moment, she just nodded her understanding. “I guess that’s the easy part. Actually finding him will be hard.”

“Hard?” Shae let out a low chuckle. “This was the hard part. I have the scent now. We’ll be on him before the sun rises in the sky tomorrow.”

Jade cleared her throat and, after a brief moment of deliberation, spoke. “About the job – is it possible to capture Chance instead of killing him? I know it’s not my place to question the role, but I think we could avoid needless bloodshed. He seems more reasonable than I expected.”

“I’m sure the Shikari he and his group killed thought the same thing. Be wary of the wolf with a sheep’s smile,” Shae said. He nodded to the runes on the ground. “Get in the circle. If you’re adamant about this, we can discuss it once we arrive on the floating island.”

Jade stepped into the ring. She opened her mouth to ask a question, but never got the chance. There was a sharp crack and she vanished, swallowed by a cloud of black Essence. Shae watched it for a moment, then nodded.

“Always good to make sure the circle works before you use it yourself,” he muttered, striding in after Jade. He disappeared an instant later, swallowed by the same cloud. The Essence slithered down into the runes, burning through them and leaving nothing but faint scorch marks in the dirt and the scent of sulfur hanging low in the air.

Unbeknownst to the two Shikari, a shadow in the alleys of a nearby building rippled. A man stepped out from it, a pensive frown on his face as he rubbed the back of his neck and approached the remains of the circle.

“Well, that’s not good,” Brent said. He knelt beside the circle and pressed his hand into the dirt. “I think the Boss is going to want to know about this.”

He straightened back out and reached into a pocket, pulling out a small wooden token. It had the insignia of the Dancing Cloud sect emblazed into it, surrounded by a small ring of runes. Brent snapped the token between his fingers and Essence swarmed around him. When the wind blew the last traces of it away, there was no trace of him.