Dallion didn’t respond. He agreed with the notion, but knew from personal experience that it was better not to meddle in the affairs of nobles. As the saying went, one tended to easily lose his name and head in such circumstances. At present, there had been two cases of nobles making their objections known publicly on the matter. No one knew who they were, for the archduke had used his awakened powers to erase their names from the entire province. No person, creature, or book could remember those names since they had been stricken out of reality itself.

Upon nearing the village, Dallion slowed down, giving the guards a chance to spot him approaching. It was stupid, but if he didn’t the people would be alarmed as he had seen the previous few times. And just to make sure he waved in their direction. A short while later, the guard on the village wall responded.

Ok, there’s that, Dallion thought. Now to business.

The village gates opened widely, however, instead of a grateful crowd, only two people emerged. Both of them were awakened—probably the most powerful people in the village—and both had mixed feelings about Dallion’s involvement. Thanks to his music skills, Dallion could feel their internal conflict. On the one hand, they were relieved that the last of the creatures ravaging their crops had been caught. On the other hand, Dallion had cost a lot, even if he were only an apprentice hunter.

“Here’s the last one,” Dallion raised the creature in his hand. “You should be good from here on.”

“Not unless some other plague hits us,” the village chief grumbled. She was old enough to be Dallion’s grandmother, but her awakened powers made her appear in her mid-forties. By Dallion’s estimate, she was a double-digit level, though below twenty. Not bad for someone in a village, strictly speaking.

The woman glanced at the tall slender man next to her. Getting the hint, the man took out a small pouch from within his vest and tossed it to Dallion.

“What we agreed upon,” he said. “The guards will bring the basket with the rest shortly.”

“Much appreciated,” Dallion smiled.

“I still don’t know what you need with those pests. They are a blight. Nothing good will come from them.”

“Even creatures like those deserve to live,” Dallion replied. “Don’t worry, I won’t set them free anywhere near. You have my word by the Seven Moons.”

“By the Seven.” Both the village chief and her assistant nodded.

“I still don’t know what good they’ll be. If I were younger, I’d hunt them down myself.”

“And you would have managed, given a bit more time.” Dallion smiled, adding a note of cooperation in his voice. One of the best advantages of knowing music skills was that he could see and affect the emotions of others. The trick was to be subtle about it and never abuse his powers. “You’ll let the rest of the villages know?”

“Of course.” The woman crossed her arms. “Although if you’ve done your job well enough, they’ll notice without my help. I just hope we manage to stock up on food before the poison plague hits. From what I heard it’s moved further north, but who knows. You can’t trust anyone these days.”

“You can say that again.”

It had been half a year since the plague had appeared and still no one knew anything about it. The Academy of mages denied any involvement and refused to look into the matter with the excuse that it wasn’t their problem. The Order of the Seven Moons had tried to help the affected population—within the empire and beyond—but even they hadn’t progressed much. The cause for plants suddenly becoming poisonous remained a mystery; all the clerics and followers could do was to take safe food to the people who needed it. Even the large cities were getting concerned. So far, there was no case of one being affected, but everyone whispered that it was a matter of time. Even Dallion had to rely on his bowl guardian to be sure the food he was eating was fine.

“Any other jobs you have for me?” he asked.

“No, and even if I did, I wouldn’t be able to afford you. No offense to you hunters, but you cost more than half the buildings in the village.”

“Hunter’s code,” Dallion replied. As much as it pained him, there were some things he couldn’t go against. Hunters remained mercenaries, and mercenaries had to stick to firm prices. “In that case I’ll be on my way. The Seven be with you.”

The village chief nodded, then briskly turned around and returned back to her village. A few moments later four guards emerged, carrying a large backpack and an even larger basket made of metal. The sound of squirrels was coming from the basket. When Dallion approached though, all the noises died out.

“It’s fine,” he said as he split into a dozen instances and gently removed the cover. Surprisingly, none of the creatures made any attempts to escape, leaving him to release his final capture inside. Once the cover was closer and secured again, the noises continued. “I’ll take it from here,” Dallion told the guards as he took the backpack with the rest of his gear. With a swift action, he put it on his back, then grabbed the metal basket with one hand. One of the many advantages of being awakened was that he had the strength of a dozen oxen.

I had to say this, dear boy, but the woman was right, Nil said. What will you do with all those creatures? Start a carnival?

I’ll learn to talk to them for one thing, Dallion replied, suppressing a chuckle. After that, we’ll see.

Well, you’ll have to learn on the way. There’s been a development in the Icepicker guild.

Dallion paused. The Icepicker guild was the one which had taken him in after he had left his home village for the big city. Certain events had caused him to leave them, almost breaking ties with a few people. Even so, he kept informed of what was going on thanks to Nil, who was an echo of one of the captains there.

What happened? Dallion asked.

I can’t tell for certain, but it seems the guild master has asked to see you. And so has March.