RETURN OF THE SHADOW - Chapter 202

He got back to the second floor of the prison without a hitch after which he made his way back onto the roof. He had been concerned about someone entering the prison periodically. It is common for the guards to make rounds to deliver food. Even the prisoners who are being starved would be checked upon. So, after hearing the missing guard’s words he suspected someone to enter the prison soon. Usually such quests would have a timer to finish them. Luckily, he went out of the prison without any issue.

He quickly got down and made his way towards the coastal guard station. It was already dark, and it is very dangerous to go along the beach at this time. Though he didn’t want to use the fireglows to light his path, he could use the nighthawk to check for monsters. He didn’t want to kill any monsters but avoid them. So, his nocturnal pet bird was enough for him to get him enough of a look to provide a path to the coastal guard station.

Along the way, he did see that the monsters like crabs were further into the coast and also a few of the coastal guards riding a few boats in an attempt to kill them. They were moving along the waters of the coast and raining spells on the monsters. Even the boats had a few weapons affixed on them that could attack the beasts, but these were mainly trained towards the bay on guard against the beasts in the waters. Only a few were clearing the ones on the coast.

He carefully made his way towards the coastal guard station, where the guard who had previously welcomed him from top of the ladder was also holding a wand and attacking some monsters. “Get to the lieutenant. He is at the main hall,” said the guard as he noticed him.

Shadow went and delivered the video and the inventory list. The lieutenant seemed to be angry but was also thinking of something else. “Did vita-nova get stuck or have any serious glitches,” during the starting days thought Balthazar as he saw the NPC was not moving.

“This is ridiculous. We can’t have a quarrel with the town guards at this time. I just had received a notice to recruit them in our efforts because the number of monsters are increasing. The town head holds sway over the people of the town. It would only get worse for us, if we escalate this.,” said the lieutenant as he punched on the wall beside him. Apart from him, there were a few other members of the coastal guard in the main hall. There was a healer who was looking after an injured guard and also another one who was continuously receiving transmissions from other guards and managing the forces along with the lieutenant.

“We can’t let our man stay there, lieutenant Bloom,” said the guard helping the lieutenant. “If we neglect this, our men will lose their trust in the military. You would also be blamed by the higher ups,” continued the NPC.

“The deacon supports you. He has a considerable sway over the NPC. You can talk with the town head and come to a compromise. Ask to borrow his forces for a few days in return for not prosecuting his son. You don’t need to tell him of the notice, right now,” said Shadow. It was clear to him that the NPCs would have a small conversation or more before getting to a similar result and decided to speed it up.

“That would go against the ethics. The kid should be punished. Usually for unlawfully putting a military man in such a condition, he would be court martialed to death or prison for a long time,” said the guard who was being healed.

“But that would destroy whatever relationship we have with the town. The town head is not a weak man and he loves his son very much and even used to pamper him quite a lot. He is known to be a well-known nuisance of the town. Even his father wants to set him straight but is unable to,” said the healer who was along with them.

“Then, the best option is to let him be treated leniently in return for the services of the town guard,” said Shadow. “Think about it. You would probably not be just to you man, but you could probably save many others.”

“Fine. This is a hard decision. I have decided to spare the boy and treat him leniently in return for the services that he could provide, but he can’t be completely spared,” said the lieutenant. “We need to decide on a punishment that will satisfy the guards.”

“Make him a trainee,” said Shadow.

“What?”

“It is simple. The kid is a brat and needs discipline. You will find no other place that will teach a man discipline better than the military. So, we ask him to join the force under your supervision. Tell him that the coastal guard had already been informed of his offence and this was a compromise that you have negotiated with your superiors. The town head might even provide more forces once he comes to know about the current situation so that his son is safe. He might even join your efforts if he considers it necessary,” said Shadow.

“But none of that is true,” said the soldier. “The lieutenant can’t say any of that. At most, he can agree to the brat joining the military and train him, but he can’t say that he had already sent the information to this superiors.”

“That is why he won’t tell it nor will any member of the coastal guard. I will go and negotiate with the town head as a representative of the lieutenant and the temple. I am not subject to the code of the military and with my badge, it will look like the temple is trying to mediate between the pair of you,” said Shadow. “I will just need a token to represent you in front of the town head and also details of the amount of force that we need from him.”

“Hahahaha, that is the best I can ask for in this situation,” said the lieutenant. “It really does solve my problem and also helps us to get the town head actively help us, if the kid joins the training. Let us follow your suggestion. Here, take this,” he continued giving him a round metal token having the symbols of a boat and anchor with his name and post writing on its rim. It was clearly the token of the lieutenant signifying his military authority which Shadow put in his bag.

Quest Modified: Missing Supplies.

Quest Description: Negotiate the release of the guard with the town head, retrieve the supplies and secure more forces for the coastal guard.

Quest Item: Lieutenant Bloom’s token

“I would also suggest that you write a letter that you know of your man’s location in the prison and have sent me to negotiate on your behalf,” said Shadow to which he got a letter from the lieutenant.

“I will go ahead and handle it, then,” said Shadow as he went out of the station and went in the direction of the town head’s mansion. He went to the gate of the town head and announced that he had arrived as a representative of the coastal guard station of the town and wanted to talk to town head about something important while he showed the token of the lieutenant.

A couple of minutes later, the guard blocking the gate of the mansion welcomed him inside. The mansion was huge and made of strong basalt like stone. It had three stories with the first floor being the place of residence of most of the security personnel and the servants.

The guard made way made his way up the stairs directly to the third floor and led him to a study where the town head, Theodore was there with a couple of other NPCs and his son, Barnabus. “Of what service, may I be to you adventurer,” said Theodore as he signaled to Shadow to come closer.

“I would suggest that you get rid on any unnecessary personnel for this discussion, Mr. Theodore,” said Shadow as he handed him the letter that he got from the lieutenant.

“Who do you think you are?” shouted Barnabus from the side as he heard Shadow suggest his father to clear the room. “Men capture him and throw him in the prison,” he ordered the guards that led Shadow to the study.

“Shut up,” said Theodore to Barnabus as he began to read the letter. “Everyone, please leave me along with the adventurer, Shadow. Even you Barnabus,” he continued as he folded the letter and got up to return it.

“It might be convenient if young master, Barnabus remains for this conversation,” said Shadow before Barnabus could speak further. As the other went out of the study, Shadow began to indicate his intentions.

“We have a recording of the guard in the lower levels of the cellar. We already had someone infiltrate and provide the proof we need to attack you,” said Shadow looking at Barnabus. “But the coastal guard is busy and don’t have time to waste with attack the town people. So, the lieutenant had sent me to negotiate. So, I hope for the sake of both of you that I return safely with the guard by the end of this discussion.”

“You commoner, what does the lieutenant …,” started the NPC Barnabus, but Shadow cut him short as he wanted to wrap up the quest as soon as possible.

“Na, na na. Let me finish. First you send someone down right now to heal the guard and make sure that he is taken care of. Also, please return the supplies that were stolen from the guard. Then, we shall talk about the compensation for the coastal guards. The information about your son capturing a member of the military had already reached his higher ups, but to maintain the relationship with the town, the lieutenant proposed a compromise,” said Shadow.

“What do you suggest?” said Theodore as he called for a guard and then sent him down to get the guard from the prison to the study after healing and feeding him. All the things that they discussed till now were expected as they were just correcting their mistake. He was hoping that the compensation wouldn’t be anything severe.

“Well, it is like this. The lieutenant can’t actually be lenient towards your son without proper cause. So, I would like to suggest that he join the military as a trainee under the lieutenant,” said Shadow.

“No way,” yelled Barnabus. “Impossible.”

“Shut up,” said Theodore. “Barnabus, get out of the room for a minute.”

After Barnabus left the room, Theodore resumed the conversation. “What is his intention behind asking my son to join the coastal guard? What are the intentions of the lieutenant in calling him to join as his apprentice? He could simply join the military. There is no need to join under someone who has a conflict with him,” said the town head putting forward his suspicions.

“You think for too much about the situation, Mr. Theodore. There is not secret or untoward intention behind the lieutenant’s thoughts. First, it allow him to pardon your son if he is under him. Second, he doesn’t want a quarrel with you. It would just make things harder for his unit and they are having trouble with the seas as it is. Third, your son needs discipline and has been known to cause problems. If left alone, we can’t be sure that he wouldn’t persist to behave in such a way. He won’t join any organization willingly but a death threat over his head might be the right inspiration he needs. I am sure that you don’t want your son to continue in this manner either,” explained Shadow.

“Why would he be willing to do all this for me? You still haven’t answered the main question that I had,” said Theodore looking at Balthazar sternly.

“It is simple. Hard times are on the way. There would sure be a time when the coastal guard would need reinforcements. The town being quite close to the coast would be the first place affected if the guards fail. He just wanted a closer bond without wasting any resources in fighting for you. But there is a problem of his men being satisfied,” said Shadow.

“That is exactly what I have been afraid of,” said Theodore. “They would ask for justice and one can’t just consider pacifying such a large number with money. I doubt that all of them could even be bought.”

“It is hard to convince them to let go of your son’s offence. So, I suggest that you lend him some of your forces temporarily to help against the monster aggression that they are facing. Having your forces support them would calm down the other members of the coastal guard too. They may not consider your money, but your support would be well received if it helps save more of their brother’s lives,” said Shadow.

It was a hard task to convince, but he decided to make the town head assume that lieutenant is doing him a favor instead of the other way. The NPC Theodore would certainly be suspicious of the suggestion and believe that he owes the lieutenant a favor, but Balthazar was sure that the NPC would still accept it.

“Fine, it is a deal,” said Theodore finally getting up and shaking Shadow’s hand. “I will let my men lead you down to the guard who is being taken care of. You can return with him whenever you want to. I will lead my son down to the station tomorrow morning.”

“I wish that we have a successful cooperative relationship,” said Shadow shaking the NPC’s hand as he pulled out the numbers that was given to him by the lieutenant. “This would be an initial number of personnel we have determined that would pacify the coastal guards based on the current situation. It would be good if you would bring enough forces along with your son tomorrow.”

“System: Special Notice: Received Hidden Title ‘Negotiator’. This title would affect the NPCs behavior towards you but wouldn’t be noticed by anyone other than the its holder.”

“Murk Water Town Reputation +25;”

After that, he was led down to the hall of the first floor where the missing guard was being treated by a healer. “I expected a raid led by the lieutenant. I don’t understand the situation,” said the guard as he saw Shadow enter the hall.

“Let us get back to the station and meet the lieutenant. It is best if we discuss it with him directly,” said Shadow. He waited for a few minutes for the guard to be back in shape and then took the supplies and put in his bag before they made way towards the coastal guard station. The journey along the coast was much easier as he didn’t even have to go into stealth. The guard who accompanied him just blasted away any monster that was below level 15 and managed to come within his sights.

“Ah! You are safe,” said the lieutenant as they got to the main hall. He called for the healer to check up his man before turning to talk to Shadow. “So? How did it go?” he asked.

“He accepted to everything we talked about. He would be here tomorrow morning with his son and reinforcements for your men,” said Shadow as he returned the token to lieutenant Bloom. “I have informed him that the only way you are able to avoid his son’s punishment is to have him train under you. He was quite gladdened by the suggestion.”

“Good. You have been of great service to the coastal guard and will be considered an honorary member of the coastal guard,” said the lieutenant giving him a small token as a couple of notification sounded.

“Five Elements Empire, Coastal Guard Reputation points +10;”

“Five Elements Empire, Coastal Guard Contribution points + 25;”

Quest Modified: Missing Supplies.

Quest Description: Return the supplies to the deacon.

The token that he had received was a buckle that could be attached to his waist. It provided him an honorary membership to the coastal guard that would provide him access to the station and would also consider him a trusted member. It would allow him to take the forging services that he was sure was very advantageous.