Chapter 76: Wanted
She finally walked up to you. Her slender hand reached out, and her fingertips gently picked up a strand of black hair from your forehead. She examined your eyes again, then softly praised, "This golden color... it's truly beautiful."
Your heart suddenly skipped a beat, and you instinctively wanted to retreat. Aglaea, however, seemed not to notice, and extended her other hand, gently stroking your cheek with her fingertip. "And this skin... Though there are some traces of wear and tear, it is still incredibly delicate." She murmured to herself, as if evaluating a rare treasure, her eyes filled with enchantment.
You felt your cheeks getting hotter and hotter, and your heartbeat quickened uncontrollably. "Aglaea... Sister?" You called her softly, trying to break the overly ambiguous atmosphere.
Aglaea then came back to her senses, realizing her slight lapse in composure. The blush on her face flashed and disappeared, and her fingertips quickly left your cheek. She lightly coughed, recovering some of her usual composure. "My apologies, when I see beautiful things, I always get carried away."
Aglaea took the golden tape measure from the side. Her movements as she measured you were still extraordinarily gentle and meticulous. Her breath, carrying that unique fragrance, lingered around your nostrils in wisps. Finally, Aglaea completed all the measurements. On her face, there seemed to remain a lingering appreciation and satisfaction.
"Alright, I already have the fabric and style in mind." "It should be ready by tomorrow."
Aglaea returned to her usual elegance; the brief enchantment and distraction from earlier were gone. "Hmm... then I'll go." You responded somewhat awkwardly, then hastily opened the door and walked out.
Returning to the guest room, you pushed open the door, but the room was empty, with no sign of Cipher. Your heart skipped a beat, and your gaze quickly swept across the room, finally settling on the desktop. A folded piece of paper lay quietly there, with a half-eaten honey cake pressed beside it. You walked over, picked up the paper, and unfolded it.
The handwriting on it was crooked and a bit childish.
"Little Cat:
This godforsaken place is too boring! I'm going back to Dolos first to sell a few of those beautiful clothes we got from Tailor Woman for some money to buy food for those poor Little Wildcats in Dolos. Don't worry, I'll be back for you tomorrow, or the day after at the latest. Wait for me!
—Your loving Cifera (Dolos's number one Rogue!)"
Looking at the triumphant signature and the scribbled cat paw print at the end of the letter, your taut heartstrings relaxed slightly. Since she asked you to wait for her and promised her return, you figured there wouldn't be any major problems. Dolos was, after all, a place she was familiar with. You carefully folded the letter, put it away, and decided to wait for her return with peace of mind.
However, Cipher didn't know that Dolos City, at this moment, was no longer the same as when she had left it. Eternal night still enveloped this city of thieves, but the atmosphere on the streets was tenser than ever.
Cipher, relying on her familiarity with Dolos, avoided several patrols of city guards and, after many twists and turns, arrived at the entrance of a black market that was usually quite lively. She planned to sell a valuable coat she had gotten from Aglaea here first, to exchange for some Liheng coin.
Just as she was about to blend into the crowd of the black market, the corner of her eye caught sight of a brand new notice posted on the wall at the alley entrance. The paper of the notice was rough, but the writing on it was printed very clearly, and it was even colored.
Driven by curiosity, Cipher took a few steps closer, wanting to see what new things had happened. When her gaze fell upon the two roughly drawn but barely recognizable portraits in the center of the notice, her cat eyes instantly widened. Below the portraits, a high bounty for their capture was written in striking large characters.
One of the portraits depicted a girl with short gray hair, cat ears on top of her head, and small fangs at the corners of her mouth. The other was a boy with delicate features and a pair of unique golden eyes.
It was her and Orion!
Cipher gasped, instinctively covering her mouth, her cat ears perked up in alarm. She quickly scanned her surroundings, confirming that no one was paying attention to her. Then she swiftly tore the wanted poster from the wall, crumpled it into a ball, and stuffed it into her pocket.
What's going on? How could she and Little Cat be wanted? "Is it because... the few jobs we pulled before we left were too over the top? Did we offend some powerful noble?"
Cipher's heart pounded; although the portraits on the wanted poster were roughly drawn, her and Orion's features were captured quite well. Especially the high bounty, which was enough to make any cash-strapped person envious. She quickly pulled her hood lower, almost covering most of her face, leaving only a pair of vigilant green cat eyes exposed.
Dolos City was indeed not a place to stay long. She suppressed the unease in her heart and cautiously blended into the crowd at the edge of the black market. The clothes she had gotten from Aglaea were of excellent quality, and even in this mixed black market, they quickly attracted the attention of a seemingly discerning middle-aged merchant.
Cipher focused all her attention, engaging in a battle of wits with him, and finally managed to sell a coat at a relatively fair price. With the heavy Liheng coin in hand, she didn't waste a moment, immediately threading through the familiar alleys of Dolos's slums, distributing the money she had exchanged to the children who, like her, had once struggled to survive on the streets.
Watching the smiles on the children's faces as they received food and money, a warmth welled up in Cipher's heart, but the unease still lingered. She missed Orion a bit, missed that Little Cat who, though seemingly cold, would always stand in front of her at crucial moments.
"I must hurry back to Ohema."
However, just as she was about to quietly leave and head towards the city gate, a sharp shout came from behind her: "It's her! The cat-eared girl! The thief on the wanted poster!"
Cipher stiffened, turning her head sharply. She saw the middle-aged merchant she had just traded with pointing in her direction, shouting loudly at several patrolling city guards. Around him were several burly men with greedy expressions.
"Catch her! Don't let her run away!" The city guards and those burly men shouted and howled, pouncing like wolves and tigers.
Cipher cursed under her breath, her cat ears twitching alertly, and she turned to flee into the depths of the complex alleys. The streets of Dolos, at this moment, seemed to have turned into a giant spider web, and she was the startled prey.
"Stop! Little thief!" "Everyone, catch her with me! The bounty will be split fifty-fifty if you catch her!" Shouts, footsteps, and the clanging of weapons intertwined behind her, growing closer and closer.
She ran with all her might through the narrow alleys, nimbly flipping over low walls and leaping over piles of debris. Under the eternal night, only sporadic torches illuminated the grim faces of her pursuers. She ran past a slightly wider intersection, where a crowd of people had gathered, listening to a well-dressed fellow loudly proclaiming some nonsense about "eliminating the Chrysos Heirs scourge and protecting Dolos's peace."
The eyes of the populace were fanatical and blindly obedient. When they saw the golden scars on the chased Cipher, many of them also joined the pursuit.
Cipher's heart sank, feeling as if all of Dolos was against her. In the chaos, a stone struck her arm, and a burning pain shot through her. She gritted her teeth, not daring to stop. But soon, in her haste, she reached a dead end, a high wall blocking her path. The footsteps of her pursuers were already close at hand.
A glimmer of despair flashed in Cipher's eyes, but her survival instinct kept her from giving up. She noticed a half-open iron grate in the corner of the wall; below it seemed to be the entrance to the city's sewer system. A foul stench wafted out from within.
No time to think about it! Cipher used her last ounce of strength, slammed open the rusty iron grate, and leaped into the dark, foul-smelling sewer. Cold, murky liquid instantly submerged her calves.
"Where is she? Where did she run off to?" "Search! She can't have gone far!" The voices of her pursuers echoed overhead, accompanied by the flickering light of torches at the entrance.
Cipher held her breath, curled up in the dark corner, letting the sewage soak her clothes, with only one thought in her mind—get out of here, and get back to Orion. After an unknown amount of time, the commotion overhead gradually receded. Only then did Cipher dare to cautiously peek out, and after confirming it was safe, she dragged her exhausted body, trudging through the foul-smelling sewer, searching for another exit.
She had to leave Dolos as soon as possible... this place could no longer accommodate her.