White Ravens: Advent of War

The Merchant of Merseto

It had been a week since the incident in Loveria, and Sigil and the rest of the squad had already been there for three days. Rune had promised to meet them at Merseto, but it seemed as though the chances of him fulfilling that promise was becoming slimmer by the day.

Yelena hadn't spoken much in the past few days, and Tatiana had been keeping her company. As for Gust and Zeke, they had been taking on odd jobs and selling a few personal belongings to earn some coin for their upkeep.

Sigil had been trying to locate Dreyfus, but nobody would tell him anything regarding the man. Any person he tried to talk to on the street or even taverns always backed away at the mention of Dreyfus' name.

One night, while the squad was resting at an inn, they heard a commotion downstairs. Sigil nodded at Gust, and the latter understood that he must check what was going on.

Downstairs, Gust saw several armed guards holding up wanted posters and asking for information from the locals. He approached one of the guards to look at the poster and noticed that the image of the wanted man. This man's hair was dark, wavy, and well-kept. His steely gaze showed strength of character, and his chiseled jawline made him all the more attractive. But Gust was surprised at how this man didn't have his usual impish grin or mischievous look in his eyes.

"Say what you will about Rune, but he looks surprisingly good if he could be this serious all the time," Gust muttered.

The soldier looked at him and seemed to have heard his remark. "Oi! Do you know this man?"

Gust waved his hands and shook his head in denial. "Of course, not good sir! I'm just a local militia man. But if I hear anything about him, you'll be the first to know. I must say, though, that man looks like a total scumbag!"

The soldier grinned. "You're damn right he is! He attacked the Mirean soldiers about a week ago, and not a day after, he turned his sword against his own comrades! But don't worry, boy! We'll get him for sure!"

"That sounds reassuring, sir. Good luck on your manhunt!" Gust bowed before he went back upstairs.

Once he was back in the room, he found the rest of the squad preparing themselves to depart. It seemed as though Sigil didn't want to waste his time. Gust told him that word of Rune's betrayal had already reached Merseto, and that there were soldiers looking for Rune.

"If they still hadn't found him until now, there's only one explanation," said Sigil.

Everyone's eyes fell on him, waiting for him to speak further.

"He's in Regalian territory," Sigil continued.

Yelena's eyes widened in horror. It was as if she had heard a disheartening news. Tatiana tried to console her, but it seemed as though Yelena couldn't hear anything at the moment.

"If he's in Regalian territory, then I think he'll be safe for now," Zeke remarked. "I may not be his biggest fan, but I do think that he can handle himself out there. If he managed to escape Mormont's clutches, then he can survive wherever he is right now."

"Zeke is right, captain," Gust concurred. "So, what do you want us to do now?"

Sigil opened the door and before he left the room he said to them, "Rest. I'm going to look for Dreyfus. Now that there's news of Rune being hunted, he'll surely talk to me this time."

Later that night, Sigil went to the docks and spoke to one of the sailors. It seemed that he had not been idle during his stay in Merseto, and had garnered a few informants in the area. The sailor told him that Dreyfus happened to be checking one of his shipments tonight, and that the man was in the smallest cargo ship in the port.

After paying his informant, Sigil searched for the cargo ship mentioned by the sailor. There, he found a group of men stocking the ship with boxes and crates of unidentified objects. Somehow, Sigil could hear the faint howl of a beast coming from one of the boxes, but that wasn't his concern right now.

He noticed a man, who seemed to be in his early fifties, instructing the other men what to do. This man's clothes weren't that extravagant, but they were luxurious enough to display he was a merchant. Sigil figured that if that man wasn't Dreyfus, he could at least lead him to Dreyfus.

The moment Sigil approached the merchant, everyone's eyes fell on him. He could feel that those men were wary of his presence, but they still carried on with their jobs.

The merchant looked at Sigil and asked, "What is it, boy? As you can see, we're quite busy here. If you're not here to conduct business, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave."

Sigil took out a crest from the back of his pocket. It was House Thorn's insignia. "My adoptive father is..."

Before he could even finish his sentence, the merchant suddenly embraced him. "You're Sigil, aren't you? You've grown up, boy!"

Sigil was taken aback by the merchant's reaction. "W-who are you?"

"Ah, of course! You were too young to remember me, but I'm your father's good friend, Dreyfus. Tell me, how fares Bellamy?"

Suddenly, Sigil's eyes lit up. A spark of hope returned to his heart. "You're Lord Dreyfus? I need your help! Rune is..."

Dreyfus pressed his finger against his lip to shush Sigil. "Hush, boy. I already know what's happening. We can't talk here." Then, he slipped a paper into Sigil's pocket, and held his shoulder. "That's my address. Come to my office at noon, and we'll talk about what happened."

Sigil nodded before walking away and going back to the inn.

He told the rest of the squad about what happened, and that they were set to meet Dreyfus tomorrow. Hope returned to their hearts, and Yelena finally regained her smile. But for some reason, Gust didn't seem all too happy about this.

The following day, they went to Dreyfus' office at the western corner of the town, past an inconspicuous alley. There, the guardsmen let them in without any problems after Sigil showed them the address he had been given.

Upon entering, they saw Dreyfus dressed in colorful robes, and there were several beautiful women around him on the sofa. He spread out his arms and greeted them with utmost enthusiasm, especially Sigil.

"Greetings, wayward knights! I am the merchant, Dreyfus. Please, sit down, and make yourselves comfortable," he said.

"Captain, I'm going out for some fresh air. Just tell me the rest of the details once you're done," Gust said to Sigil. Then, he turned to Yelena and said, "Yelena, why don't you come with me? I could use the company."

Yelena was confused, but she noticed the way Gust looked at her, so she didn't refuse. "Alright." She then bowed to Dreyfus and Sigil before leaving with Gust.

Once they had left, Sigil cleared his throat and went straight to the point. "Lord Dreyfus, you already know my purpose for coming here. Rune has gone into hiding, and he said that you're the only person that will agree to help us. I'm not sure what kind of help he was trying to tell me, but I do assume you may have some idea."

"Ah, yes, of course." Dreyfus took out a document. "Your brother knew what kind of business I operate under the table, and so does your father. It's not necessarily illegal, but I do like to prevent prying eyes from meddling with my affairs."

Sigil glanced at the document and realized that it was a contract for mercenaries. It would seem that Rune wanted them to work under Dreyfus, though Sigil couldn't figure out how this would help Rune. "I... don't understand. This isn't the help I was exactly helping for, Lord Dreyfus."

Dreyfus raised his hand as a means to reassure Sigil somehow. "That's not all. I'm only asking you to work for me as a means of compensation. As I've already mentioned, I am a businessman, so you'd understand why I'd want something in return for my help, yes?"

Sigil nodded, implying that Dreyfus should continued talking. "I've already sent out spies throughout Regalia in search of Rune. I'm sure you've already figured out by now that your brother isn't in the queendom of Wisteria anymore. If he were, they would've already found him."

Dreyfus chuckled and remarked, "Your brother doesn't show it often, but he's actually a cunning boy. Bellamy would be proud if he were alive today..." He suddenly trailed off and lowered his head.

Sigil looked at Tatiana and Zeke, in hopes of asking for their opinion. They both nodded firmly, indicating that they had no problems with this deal.

"We accept your offer, Lord Dreyfus. We are at your command," said Sigil.