A Gunslinger’s System in a World of Magic

"Three?" Ralph Gribbo asked in a cold, calm tone. The very next second, Kayla's eyes bugged and she clutched at her neck but there was nothing there to grip.

"Ack—" she choked as her knees wobbled and she struggled for breath. She was unable to get a word out to plead for mercy as she got forced to her knees where she continued to clutch at the non-existent noose around her neck.

"Three," Ralph Gribbo repeated, his tone even colder. Nothing on his face hinted that he was the one squishing the life out of Kayla but it was him. The only other person in the room capable of such was Marcus who was impassively arranging chess pieces without even the slightest bit of interest.

Aura.

Kayla knew why Ralph was capable of choking her without moving a muscle and she also knew she could lessen her burden with Mana but, besides the fact that that would only make her Lord more angry and invoke a worse fate upon her, she also believed she deserved this punishment. She had been useless and a precious capture was lost.

"So it's all gone?" Ralph asked, "Even the Werewolf?"

He let the question hang in the air and only when he angled his head did it become obvious that he was seeking an answer.

He furrowed his brows when Kayla continued to choke and with a cold roll of his eyes, he reined in his Aura and let her gasp for air as she slumped to the ground.

"Speak," he said before she had even regained proper command of her voice.

"The Werewolf's cage was still intact when I left, My Lord," she managed to say in a single breath even if her voice did sound very hoarse.

Now Ralph became thoughtful.

"Tonight is a Full moon. To open that cage now would be misguided. Despite my means and planned negotiation of services with that beast, reasoning with their kind, after they shift, is near impossible. They'll only be focused on the hunt.

To unlock the Cage would likely spell disaster for the hijackers. It's what they deserve.

However, I cannot dispel that this could have been the work of someone who knew of the Werewolf. They might have sought to capture it instead."

Ralph mused mostly to himself and Kayla dared not pay attention even if she continued to rub her hand around her neck still feeling the discomfort of the earlier choke.

And then Ralph looked at her and nailed her with cold black eyes,

"So you returned in failure and your first instinct was to report it?"

"No, my Lord," Kayla said and shifted into a low bow on the floor,

"I spoke with Gareth. We'll lock down the City in case the hijackers happen to come here. We're also sending men out to the site in case we can still track them down and get the Werewolf back."

Ralph Gribbo still looked dissatisfied but he nodded.

The Werewolf was the main cargo in the Caravan. More slaves to be slapped with Control cuffs and forced to work his various businesses was fine enough but a Werewolf, if tamed could be such a game changer in so many ways, and these incompetent fools lost it!

"Well, then what are you waiting for?" Ralph asked after a second or so passed.

The Mage raised a brow, at first not understanding, and then her Lord's voice rose,

"Get up and get after it with them. It's your mess, so you'd better clean it up!"

Kayla sprung to her feet and winced at the pain that action caused her unhealed injuries.

"Right away, my Lord," she said and backed away so fast, that she was out the door before her words were completely out of her lips.

Silence…

"Not a word," Ralph said to break the silence. His eyes still glowered coldly but they were on the chess board instead and on the pieces Marcus had arranged.

"I was only going to say it's your move," Marcus said gently with a smile playing at the corner of his lips. A smile he didn't try at all hard to smother.

"Hmph," Ralph said but the intensity of his glower lessened a smidge as he reached for a piece and moved it.

"Three…" Marcus said in a mumble.

"Marcus, I swear…" Ralph said with a bit of a growl.

"All I'm saying is my squad of Knights won't fall to three nobodies," Marcus said, unbothered by the growl or the intensity of the words.

"Who says they're nobodies?" Ralph asked. As disappointed as he was in Kayla and the dead Mercenaries, he did understand that numbers were hardly a defining factor in a world where impossibilities were so possible.

It was embarrassing that they'd lose to three but for all he and Marcus knew, the three were powerful experts who put Kayla's talents to shame.

"Bah. Against the Citadel's Knights, everyone is a nobody."

Marcus sounded very confident and he had fairly good reason to be. He had spent decades at the top hierarchy of Alvareen's Citadel of Knights and while he had seen talents come and go and seen many prosper, the current batch were some of the most promising in decades. Chapter Read:

Ralph snorted,

"Right," he said before announcing silently, "Check."

Marcus was unbothered and blocked the move in a manner that forced Ralph to retreat lest he lose an important piece.

"You know I'm right," Marcus insisted, "We have great talents in the Citadel. Aurelius has been very promising and he's not even the best we have. And then there's his partner; Eloise the Mage Knight. Powerful fighter and a beauty too."

"Marcus, just stop," Ralph said.

"You could have used our help is all I'm saying," Marcus said with a shrug and a tone of finality that made it appear he'd drop the matter.

A few moves later, Ralph sighed,

"You're right. Clearly, we could have used a Squad of Knights. I miscalculated."

"You were overconfident," Marcus corrected.

"That too," Ralph said and managed a chuckle before he added in a very mellow voice,

"Checkmate."

"What?!" Marcus asked and stared hard at the board but indeed, his King piece had no route of escape.

"Marcus my friend, we might have to get those eyes of yours checked. The score is now Seven to None."

"Again!" Marcus announced.

"Set them up," Ralph answered with an easy smile.

Marcus did and they played again.

He lost seven more times that night for an even 14 matches and declared a rematch for their next 'very-important' meeting.

***

—Outskirts of Alvareen—

Henry, Louis, and Andor rode at an even pace back to Alvareen. Not too slow and certainly not too fast. They hoped they'd meet no more dangers on their way but Henry, leading the party, kept his Perception spread to detect the slightest inclination of someone —or someones— in their path.

"Snow," Louis mumbled suddenly.

For someone who was keeping an 'eye' out for the path ahead, Henry had been so spaced out that Louis mentioning it was the only reason he realized the flakes were indeed falling.

The Brieme mountains were a strange terrain in the North. While Alvareen and most of its immediate surroundings were usually covered with snow in a light sheet or sometimes in heavy piles, the mountain path was far drier.

But a snowfall had started now.

"Could be a storm," Andor said as the snowfall increased. Creating a curtain in front of them.

"I don't think it is," Louis said in a low wheezing voice, "It'll pass, I'm sure."

"Hold!" Henry said suddenly in an urgent voice. He pulled on Nyx's reins and his call-out caused both Louis and Andor's horses to stop as well.

"What is it?" Andor asked.

"People up ahead," Henry said, and 'Violent Retort' was suddenly in his hand.

"They're coming?" Andor asked.

"No, just standing in place. They seem to be waiting… Wait, one is coming."

"Do we run?" Andor asked and he glanced at Louis wondering if the Mage's weakening body could handle an intense gallop.

Henry opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted before he could get a word out.

"Don't run," a voice called out gently as the speaker walked close enough for all three to see who it was. But the voice already made it clear who it was.

"Eloise?"

"Yes," Eloise said with her hands folded beneath her breasts and her grey eyes glowering at them.

"I can't believe you did it!" She said in an irate tone.

Henry didn't even think to deny it. They looked like they had been through hell so there was very little —if any at all—, he could say to assuage her accusation.

"It was better you didn't know about it," he said, "I didn't want you implicated."

"Idiot," Eloise said.

"Why are you here anyway?" Henry asked. He looked her over. She was dressed in a blue-stripped white shirt with her hair braided so it fell over her shoulder and down over her left breast. She had on cotton pants with leather boots; Casual wear like she was just out for a nightly walk. Or maybe a nightly ride.

"I came for you," she said with a deep frown,

"You have no idea how much trouble you're in."