The barge was empty.

Well, not exactly empty. There were crates stacked in haphazard rows, coiled ropes, and the air was thick with the reek of mildew, sweat, and something metallic—probably blood. But the humans were gone.

"Too slow," Lila said.

QUEST UPDATED: BREAK THE CHAIN

Mr. Blithe, his gang, and their victims have disappeared. This barge may hold clues to their whereabouts.

This quest is time-sensitive. Proceed accordingly.

[You have gained 500 experience points. Your total experience is now 17,825/29,000.]

Justin nodded. This wasn't the full 5,000 experience reward, but a breadcrumb—an incentive to keep digging. The final line about the quest being time-sensitive worried him. It meant no fetching Alistair, no regrouping. He and Lila were in this alone.

"You good to keep going?" Justin asked.

"We're already in this mess," Lila replied. "We have a saying in Daeloria: never crush someone halfway."

"I agree. Time to finish the job. Let's start hunting for clues."

"Might be traps," Lila pointed out.

It was a good point. Justin focused on his Ring of Hygiene, issuing the mental command. In a shimmer, his Dapper Adventuring Set replaced his Founders' Regalia. He immediately felt the subtle shifts: less presence, more awareness. His Cock of the Walk enchantment was gone, but it was worth it for the trap detection.

"All right," he said. "Let's move."

The barge's above-deck section was small—a flat transport vessel designed more for bulk cargo than luxury or speed. Two low-slung cabins sat near the rear, their warped doors half-open. Crates lined the walls, stamped with half-legible merchant sigils; some were cracked open and empty, while others were stuffed with straw, filthy linens, or broken equipment.

Justin led the way into the larger of the two cabins. The interior was little more than a glorified office—a bolted-down desk, a few rusted lanterns, and an open cabinet containing scrolls, half-spent ink bottles, and a ledger.

"Looks like he left in a rush," Lila murmured as she rifled through one of the drawers.

Justin picked up a loose parchment from the desk. His jaw tightened.

It was a bill of sale. The victims had been purchased from a Calidonian merchant named Jharzul. The list was clinical, almost coded: sixteen "red ewes," twenty-three "pale calves," twenty healthy sows—all "unbranded stock" with no identifying tattoos. It was clear they were referring to human beings disguised as livestock, a thin veneer of plausible deniability.

"They call them by animal names," Justin said, his voice low.

"Sometimes they use those terms to skirt laws," Lila replied, reading over his shoulder. "You can't prosecute someone for moving 'sheep.'"

Justin exhaled through his nose. "It takes a twisted mind to turn people into a spreadsheet."

"You sure you're only figuring that out now?"

He didn't answer.

In the second drawer, under a scatter of soot-smudged parchment, Justin found something else—a folded flyer, printed in gaudy red ink and stiff with wax sealant. It advertised a place called The Red Lantern. The rest was suggestive but vague:

"EXOTIC DELIGHTS FROM ACROSS SERENTHEL, ATELINAR, AND BEYOND! PRIVATE ROOMS, NO QUESTIONS ASKED. ASK FOR BLITHE."

Justin showed it to Lila.

"Looks like we found our next stop."

But as they turned to leave, Justin's enchanted map pulsed in his coat pocket. He pulled it free. A golden light glimmered on the barge itself.

"Wait," he said. "There's something else."

He followed the signal to a crate behind the forward mast—a mundane-looking box with false sides. With Lila's help, they pried it open.

Inside was a velvet-wrapped sphere of gold, laced with circuitry. As Justin touched it, text scrolled before his eyes.

"A companion core," Justin said, pocketing it. "Atlas will like this."

They stepped back onto the docks, ready to head toward the Red Lantern, when Justin caught a flicker of movement from the corner of his eye. A figure—a boy, maybe, or a small man in a hood—was watching them from a nearby produce stall.

As soon as Justin turned, the figure slipped away into the crowd.

"We've got a tail," Justin muttered.

"Then let's catch them," Lila replied. "But maybe it's a trap to draw us away from the women?"

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"Good point. It shouldn't be too hard to locate this Red Lantern. Let's check on the women first."

They took off, not in pursuit of the obvious tail, but toward Atlas. Even if they wanted to chase him, they had little hope of catching someone who knew the Floating Market far better than they did.

When they reached the platform where Justin had left Atlas and the women, his interface flashed a warning, courtesy of his Dapper Set.

[Danger lurks ahead.]

Justin paused, holding up a hand with his cane at the ready. Lila moved up beside him, knives already in hand.

From a narrow alley ahead, four men emerged. These weren't street thugs. They moved like professionals. Their mismatched armor bore painted insignias: a mercenary company, likely either hastily hired or long on retainer with Blithe.

Justin's monocle flickered, tagging them: a Level 11 Socialite in a peacock-feathered hat wielding a rapier—Duelist Focus, then. Beside him stood a Level 10 Lancer gripping a cruelly pointed pike. A Level 12 Vanguard with a tower shield and hand axe rounded out their frontline muscle. But the real threat might have been the Level 9 Elementalist at the rear, staff crackling with arcs of static. A lightning mage?

From the widening of their eyes, it was clear they were just as surprised to see Justin and Lila as Justin was to see them. This party had clearly been dispatched to reclaim the women while the two heroes were distracted by the decoy tail.

"A gold crown per man to switch sides," Justin offered without lowering his cane.

The Duelist flashed a yellow smile. "Your Socialite charm doesn't work on the likes of me." He drew his rapier with a metallic whir. "Stand aside or get stuck with the pointy end."

Before Justin could respond, the Duelist flickered forward in a blur—some kind of distance-closing skill.

[1 Advantage gained.]

Justin barely activated Gentleman's Sidestep in time, redirecting the strike with a flourish. He countered instantly, burning the Advantage to boost his speed. Meanwhile, he gave a quick thrust to the solar plexus followed by a backhand across the jaw. Ribs cracked as ice spread. The Duelist stumbled back, dazed, the ice along his jaw preventing his scream.

Meanwhile, the Lancer advanced with aggressive, arcing jabs that kept Lila pinned. She didn't flinch. Her song shifted—no longer her usual Coordination buff, but something airier and lighter: a Perception buff.

Justin understood the gambit instantly.

In time with her melody, Lila's Chromatic Knives began to orbit, glinting as they spun. The Lancer was forced into cover, ducking behind a fruit stand to avoid the deadly ballet.

The Vanguard stomped forward, tower shield raised. Justin waited until the last possible moment, then invoked Drake's Breath. The cane's drake head flared cerulean as a cone of shimmering frost erupted, engulfing the Vanguard and catching both the Elementalist and Lancer in its fringe. The Vanguard took the brunt, ice crusting over his limbs and shield.

The Lancer stiffened and fell, frostbitten. The Elementalist staggered but remained standing—arcs of blue-white lightning coiling up his staff. He had spent this entire time conjuring some spell.

"Watch out!" Lila called.

The bolt came fast—too fast. Justin barely turned before it struck his chest like a thrown anvil, knocking him back.

His Ring of Regeneration pulsed, releasing a surge of golden light that mended bone and sealed ruptured veins. Justin winced but stayed upright.

"Still standing," he muttered, swinging his cane around.

The Elementalist fired another arc of lightning, but Lila's Perception-boosting song had taken full effect. Justin leaned aside, the bolt sizzling past. Perception, Justin knew, aided in magical defense.

Lila hurled three blades in response. Two knocked against the Elementalist's staff, disrupting its charge. The third struck true, lodging in his shoulder. He dropped to one knee, growling.

Justin advanced and cracked the cane against the mage's skull. The Elementalist dropped.

Only the Duelist remained, bleeding and dazed. He tried to rise, but a blade flew from Lila's hand and finished the job, slicing straight through his skull and into his brain.

"Should've brought a fifth," she quipped.

Justin exhaled, straightening his collar and adjusting his fedora as he scanned the battlefield. "They weren't sent to kill us. They came to reclaim the women. We did the right thing coming this way."

Lila's smile faded. "Meaning that guy watching us was bait."

Justin considered looting the mercenaries' weapons, but with time pressing, he decided against it.

They moved to the platform, weapons ready. Atlas still stood watch over the women. A few had peeled off, no doubt afraid or seeking their own paths, but twelve remained. Lady Myrelle watched him, her eyes questioning.

"This market's too dangerous," Justin explained. "You need to go to the Golden Aurelius and ask for Alistair. Tell him Justin sent you."

She nodded, shaky but composed. "Of course. I know my way around Belmora, but I've never been to this... part."

"I have," one of the younger women said, with bronze skin and striking hazel eyes. "I know the Golden Aurelius."

Justin nodded. "Work together. With Atlas, no one will mess with you. That's a promise."

"I know a path that will support him," the younger woman offered. "It'll be a bit roundabout, but it should do."

For the first time, Justin noticed the floating text above Lady Myrelle, as well as the younger woman. Myrelle was a Level 15 Socialite as well; it seemed the class, which Justin had rarely encountered, was a dime a dozen here in Belmora. Despite being Level 15, Myrelle appeared to be in her late twenties or perhaps her early thirties. The younger woman was a Level 6 Enchanter, easily in her early twenties. Justin wondered what her story was.

Whatever the case, getting them to safety was the most important thing. Justin nodded as he turned to Atlas. "Can you escort them?"

Atlas gave a low chime, his form a bit hesitant.

"I know," Justin said. "But I trust you."

Before parting, Justin retrieved the Companion Core and held it out. Atlas shifted in excitement, then extended one metallic limb, absorbing the sphere with a ripple of light.

[Companion upgrade unlocked!]

[Please choose one of the following companion boons:]

Ethereal Scavenger: Upon defeating an enemy, absorb a part of its core as ether, allowing your companion to continue fighting for longer.

Storm Rebuke: Reflect 10% of all melee damage as lightning elemental damage.

Justin rubbed his chin. Both seemed like good choices. The first would be great in prolonged fights, where it would be difficult to keep him topped off with crystals. However, it didn't mention how much ether could be gained from defeated enemies—it could be substantial or not enough to be worth it.

The other option was more uncertain. It wasn't as powerful as outright damage reflection since it wouldn't help against enemies resistant or immune to lightning. But it would be effective against all other enemies, especially those vulnerable to lightning. It wouldn't work with ranged attacks, which was something to keep in mind.

"What do you think?" Justin asked.

Atlas tilted its head, its red eye pieces flickering. A sharp spark danced from its inner circuitry.

"Good choice."

[You have chosen: Storm Rebuke. Let lightning be your shield.]

"Take care of them," Justin said to Atlas.

Atlas clicked twice and turned to the women. Lady Myrelle gave a firm nod and ushered the group to follow, with the other unnamed young woman leading the way.

With that, Justin and Lila turned and made their way back toward the heart of the market. It was time to blend in, as best they could, and find out more about this Red Lantern.

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