Dance of the Damned

Rematch

Carvill looked at the six people in front of him and the remaining four on the balcony, staring down at their peers.

Six people. He thought, remembering with Micah told him.

"Just enjoy the moment, Carvill. Otherwise, it will pass toy by and you will never get it back again."

That would be easier to say if I have as much of an insight as Micah has. He sighed.

"I need you all to know this." He said, looking at the six in front of him. "I do not know what job you will be asked to do. I do not know what will be demanded of you. You can still back out, if you want to."

"I won't," Clover said, Division Five, stepping forward. "After all, the only reason I am here in the first place is because of him. I would do anything he asks me to."

"Even murder?" Key, Division Nine, asked, stepping forward as well.

"Well, if he asks us to murder, it would be for a good reason wouldn't it?" Dorit, Division Ten asked, shrugging.

"I would commit g******e if he asked me to." Main, Division two, said with full seriousness in her voice.

"So would I." Worth, Division Four stepped up. "But ... I would like a good reason for it. You know?"

"Conscience is a problem sometimes," Juliet said, laughing. "Well ... I would do whatever he asked me to as well. And I KNOW I am made for this."

"Someone's confident." Clover teased.

"After winning three times in a row, why would I not be?" She retired, the two glaring at each other.

Carvill stared at them as a chuckle escaped his lips.

To think a kid would be able to do something like this. Where people are fighting just to be able to get a job from him, even if they know nothing about it.

Well, it is not like I am any different from them.

"Alright, everyone! I am sure you know the rules so I am not going to repeat them anymore! You all have five minutes to get your object into its place.

"Remember! If you are even spotted by the people on the balcony, you are out!

“Your mentors will be the ones to hide the other halves of these objects so pay very close attention!

"You can play dirty if you wish to! Do whatever it takes to not be spotted by anyone. Ready! Go!"

________________________

Clover stared at the hexagonal thing in her hand. Heris handed this to her.

“You will know where this is to go.” He had said, full of confidence as he left.

She never saw what the other side looked like and couldn’t help thinking about it. What if she made a mistake?

What if she was able to get the thing but it is the wrong one?

She is currently hiding behind a bunch of crates. While determining her next course of action.

Clover shook her head, pinching her cheeks. No. I can't think of defeat now. Let’s see what I can do first.

To the right of her is a crate very similar to hers that she decided to jump behind just as someone announced.

“Division Ten. Dorit.”

She leaned against the crate, breathing a sigh of relief as the man stepped out.

“Again?” he chuckled. “Well, it was fun while it lasted.”

“Don’t be discouraged, Dorit.” She could hear Lian shouting. “You did an excellent job!”

“Thank you, Division Master!” The man declared brightly.

“Four minutes!”

Good for you, Dorit. Clover thought, peeking through the crate. But … I cannot be happy with just … ‘doing my best’. I have to win this.

The warehouse does not have many things or places to hide, but there is a way to turn their direction from her. Though, the first thing she needs to do is to find where the holder might just be.

Heris said that he would put it somewhere she knows. But what does that even mean?

She only met that boy six months ago but he has this ability that makes people remember him. Perhaps it is just the way he conducts himself, she couldn’t tell.

But he had an interest in Roshi, just like she did. That is the reason why the two got along. Frooch just tagged along with them, listening to them talk about the same guy he never met.

_________________________

Unlike Heris and Clover, Frooch is a part of the other group of people that only joined this guild for a place to sleep and food to eat.

They all have potential but there were a wide variety of people, from orphans who have been kicked out of their homes to immigrants from other kingdoms.

They are sent out by the Division Masters to take care of some work but it is not always for the benefit of the guild. It is more so for the people.

That is why, in the three years she had been there, she saw people come and go, once they have established themselves, they leave.

Division Five, also known as Lacuna in the common world, mostly specialize in trade, especially overseas. So many people in the guild join, are given work and leave.

They are, however, to sign a contract to keep everything about this guild a secret. In exchange for that, they got a place to live, food to eat and even jobs they would not have gotten otherwise.

So the people are not afraid of the contract. While many leave, many more stayed behind. They wish to see where this guild will go and Clover shared this sentiment.

Most of them have not seen Roshi but they have heard about him from people that joined just to meet him and, every time, their interest grows.

But, while they are satisfied with just hearing about him, Clover and some others are not. They want to talk to him face to face. To repay what he has done for them or to just meet him.

Something everyone shares is that they wish to be used by him somehow and they do not care how.

There is no one in all of the Fifth Division that has as much stealth as I do. Clover thought. It is something I have perfected from when I was a child.

And … it was because of this that I was able to meet him in the first place. Wait. I know where it is!

________________________

"Do you think the Duchess is going to allow this to happen?" A manservant asked.

"She was the one that told us to do this." Another man chuckled as they turned to the little girl on the bed staring at them blankly. Her auburn curls falling over her face.

Life was one pain after another pain. Clover thought, remembering what happened that night. I never was happy. Until that night I ran away from home.

It was cold and it was snowing and I … I just ran out of my house without proper winter attire. But I did not even think of going back. I could not care for it.

I would rather die in the snow than have to live with them for another day. That was my thought. So I continued on in the snow.

Everything got colder and colder. Everywhere there was the sound of people, I would avoid that path completely, terrified that they would find me.

I don’t know how long I walked nor how far, everything soon was only white and it was getting colder and colder.

No one would come out at a time like this. I thought. I am going to die here. Well, at least I get to die free.

As I was walking, deep in my thoughts, a ball of snow hit me on the head, knocking me unconscious.

This is it. I thought.

Waking up, I was in a house, wrapped in a blanket as a boy who looked like he was glowing with the fire in front of us, sat with a book in front of him.

I found out that he was blind that day itself. When I asked him if he was really blind.

Then I noticed his eyes. There was this man with him, that I now know as Carvill, he served us tea and I told them everything that happened.

“Life is pointless,” I said, staring at my cup. “I would rather live as a commoner than to live like this. Why was I even born? I can't even run away properly.”

I will never forget what he told me that day. So … this time, let me be of use to him. Please.

_______________

She ran through the crates, passing them in the split second that everyone turned their face away from where she stood. One by one, the others were found and she took that opportunity to make it closer to her goal.

Slowly, she approached, Carvill, hiding behind the crate just in front of him.

Carvill is the answer. I will just have to grab him.

As Carvill made his way around, she followed him with her eyes and, taking in a deep breath, tore a bit of her cloth, throwing it in another direction.

“Mine! Division Two!” Someone shouted as they turned to the place the sound came from.

Taking a deep breath, Clover ran to Carvill, reaching out to his hand as he slowly turned in her direction, almost being spotted when.

“Done!”

Clover could have heard something shatter as she saw Juliet holding the item in her hands while sitting on the balcony.