The Innkeeper

1575  The hero is the bad guys brother I

While the battle in front of the castle raged on, within the tavern the Reaving Dread were receiving some well-deserved care and attention. Almost 90% of them had laid down in Recovery pods, and many of those had even fallen asleep.

This behavior was as a result on the ingrained instincts of a soldier. Any time they received even the slightest hint of free time, they would either sleep, eat or heal themselves. This was not because they were lazy or had bad habits. Instead, all three of those helped them recover to their most battle ready state possible.

Within Recovery pods they could both sleep and heal, which was a two for one they would never waste. If they could somehow fit eating into that as well, they certainly would have.

The reason, then, that the number in the Recovery pod was only 90%, and not 99.99% excluding only Kaemon, was because of another rule that the soldiers abided by.

On a mission, regardless of the circumstances, they never fully lowered their guard. So while the most critically injured recovered and rested, those who were less injured stayed nearby to keep guard.

Of course, they did not make their intentions obvious, and even spread out so that it looked like they were actually enjoying the tavern's services. This could simultaneously be considered intel gathering. Such professionalism, despite being pushed to their physical and mental limits is exactly what made them the best of the best.

Of the services that the remaining members enjoyed, the one that got the most attention was, naturally, the bar. Regardless of race, regardless of gender, regardless of cultivation level, it was practically a law of the universe that soldiers loved their drinks.

Compared to the rest of the castle, the bar was only dimly lit, with blinds covering the windows, limiting the redlight coming in from outside. The thick scent of Void Agarwood filled the room, and there was actually a fairy in the corner playing the flute.

This fairy had originally been a music player within the first tavern Lex had built, back in the Crystal realm. Later on, he joined the Inn and became a full fledged worker, though what he liked most was playing music.

The sounds of hustle and bustle, of relieved laughter and excited chatter covered the gentle melody, yet the fairy didn't mind. In fact, it felt that the sounds of enjoyment were the ultimate compliment to its music.

Yet on a table on the far side of the room sat a small group, eyeing everyone suspiciously even as they drank warm vanilla flavored milk from their giant mugs.

"Don't be ridiculous Malfoy," said a bull, a milk moustache clearly evident on its face. "How can this be an illusion? We've received reinforcements before. The tavern fits the style of all the strange reinforcements we've gotten before. Heck, it certainly beats that group of cobblers who suddenly appeared to back us up. Though I'll admit, they made good shoes when they weren't busy dying."

"Trust me, Moo. This is one of Abaddon's tricks. Since it couldn't beat us in a fight, it's beating us by breaking us from within. The reason we can even talk like this is because they're focused more on Kaemon than us. That's why he's been separated from us. Trust me, if you try to meet him, they'll prevent you from doing it. We have to find a way of informing the others and mounting a rescue."

"I don't know… it seems pretty silly to try to defeat us by healing our wounds and restoring our strength," said Moo with a look of hesitation, yet Malfoy was insistent.

"Do you have any proof?" asked a third member on the table.

As the three discussed amongst ourselves, they didn't notice that sitting right beside them was a wolf, a Kun Peng and a Sol bird. Covered by Fenrir's stealth technique, the three of them were entirely undetectable unless someone could see through Fenrir's bloodline ability.

Though, at this point, Lex was certain that it wasn't that they couldn't talk, but that they refused to talk. Not that it mattered. Among immortals, verbal communication was one of the least efficient forms of speaking, and an exchange in spirit sense was more than enough to communicate.

After a round of chatting amongst themselves, they seemed like they came to a conclusion of what they were going to do. The three of them vanished from where they sat, as if they were never there in the first place.

Malfoy grit his teeth and was about to reveal the ultimate truth when he suddenly felt something. He felt like he was being observed. He turned around quickly, and saw a bird perched on the windowsill, staring at him ominously.

"I think we've been discovered!" he exclaimed, yet the moment he brought everyone's attention to the window, the bird was gone.

Chills spread down Malfoys back as he realized that he had been discovered, and had been warned. The others were still unconvinced, yet he was no longer in the mood to convince them.

"Excuse me for a moment," he said with a trembling voice, and quickly scurried out of the bar, his mind racing. Yet just as he was about to leave, he felt the same sensation. He turned around, and once again, on the same windowsill, the bird sat there, watching only him.

"I must warn the others," he muttered and ran out. Yet no matter where he went, or who he crossed, the feeling like someone was watching him wouldn't go away. In fact, he practically felt like there was someone right behind him, breathing down his neck. Yet whenever he turned to look, he was alone.

Startled, frightened and distraught, Malfoy went into the bathroom and washed his face. Even if he was being watched, at least no one was doing anything to him - yet! That meant he still had time.

As he was trying to come up with a strategy in his mind on how to tackle the situation, he heard a knocking sound. He looked up, and in the mirror he saw, instead of his reflection, a frozen statue of himself, crying out in despair, surrounded by a deep darkness.

Within that darkness, he could see a pair of wolf's eyes, staring right into his soul!