Porlifi was visiting the smithy as promised when she noticed the door was closed shut. The smoke wasn’t fuming from the chimney and the windows were as shut as the door. This was peculiar and the first thought that came to her head was that the fool had finally lost the nerve to stay in this town. He had run in hopes to never meet Porlifi again. But then she remembered that it was getting late and perhaps this was his closing time.
She pushed that thought aside when she heard voices from the smithy when she had pretended to continue walking by. She looked around before stepping close to the window and carefully drawing a spell circle at her feet. Immediately, she was covered in a faint cloak that hid her from the naked eye. She pressed her ear against the window and listened in on the voices.
“Why can’t you tell me where you got these? Did you commit a crime?” This person’s voice had depth and sounded like it came from a rich gentleman. It made her wonder why this noble was hanging around these parts of the town. And what was his connection with Japlir to visit him after dark…?
“I keep telling you it’s nothing like that…”
“Japlir, you can’t keep lying like this. We have an agreement and I need to be able to trust you in order to uphold my part. Where did you get these?”
“All you have to know is that it wasn’t anything dangerous. I didn’t bring any attention to myself.”
“That’s the problem. There’s the possibility that you’re in deep and you don’t even know it. Trust me and tell me where you got these.”
As the noble spoke, Porlifi couldn’t help but feel like she had heard his voice before. As if she had at some point knew of him but couldn’t put her finger on it.
“Fine, I got it from a deal."
“What? What deal? From who?”
“It doesn’t matter who. I finally have proper materials to benefit our side. We finally have a chance now that we don’t have to depend on cheap weapons.”
Silence from the noble. Japlir must have hit a sore spot or something because he quickly corrected himself.
“Look, I know you weren’t able to provide more expensive materials because of your current position, but this will help us in the long run. Trust me.”
The noble seemed to hesitate, as if carefully choosing his next words. “What did they ask for in return?”
Porlifi heard the soft crunch of dirt meeting with the weight of a step that dissipated slightly. She heard the small screech of metal hitting stone then the return of the steps.
“What is this?” The noble asked. Porlifi cursed under tongue knowing that Japlir showed him her tongue.
“It’s incomplete at the moment but… it’s meant to be a tongue.”
A thud met with the floor and she heard someone fall to the floor. She heard Japlir’s frantic voice.
“Careful! This will cost me my life!”
Porlifi rolled her eyes at Japlir’s exclamation. She wasn’t planning on killing him anytime soon. There was no need for him to be so afraid.
“Your life? Japlir, what have you gotten yourself into?”
“I made a deal… with the devil,” Japlir mumbled under his breath.
Porlifi rolled her eyes at Japlir’s choice of words. She was no devil. A devil would have severed a limb if he made them wait as long as she had to. She considered herself an angel in comparison.
“What? Who is this person? What have you done? They can reveal everything we worked so hard for—you worked so hard for.”
“It doesn’t matter who, just know that for now they are helping us.” Japlir responded.
“Are you sure…?”
“We’re doomed if we make them our enemy.”
“Our enemy? A person who lacks a tongue?” The man had a tone that seemed close to mocking Porlifi. She rolled her eyes at the audacity of this nobleman. How typical.
“Trust me when I say this…,” Japlir said sheepishly.
“Very well, I understand. Finish making the thing and cut off all ties with them,” the nobleman demanded.
“How can I when we can gain so much for this? And it would be impossible for me because—,” Porlifi’s eyes widened thinking Japlir was going to expose her to this nobleman. He would report to the Emperor of her whereabouts. She would be sent to the prison again. She couldn’t do that.
Luckily for Porlifi, he stopped himself.
“Is this a person who sees you frequently? Are you safe?”
There is silence as Japlir seems to find some kind of answer that would relieve the other party of some of their worries. Then he speaks, “Yes… and I don’t know. At the moment, I think I’m as safe as I’ll ever be, but I’m not sure how long that will last.”
“Damnit Japlir, what are you thinking?! How could you go on with this?”
“Enough, I get it. But I already told you that this is good for us–for the movement.”
The mention of a movement confirmed Porlifi of her suspicions. They must be planning a rebellion against the Empire for reasons she still was not sure of. Maybe it was because of something related to the way she was tossed aside as she was.
The stranger sighed before saying, “I won’t be able to help you if things go south, you understand, right?”
Japlir was silent and didn’t say a word, but the clanging of his hammer hitting metal gave Porlifi her answer. She shook her head then decided she had heard enough.
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