Reunion - 3

Whoever refuses to shake hands is just petty and cowardly.

Arlo’s provocative intent was obvious, but it was a challenge that could not be ignored. Gannet ground her teeth in resentment, lifted her chin, and, with a stony expression, extended her right hand.

Their hands drew closer and closer, fingertips nearly touching.

In that instant—crack!

A soft, sharp snap sounded; cool sparks flared as invisible forces collided head-on.

Before their hands could make contact, both were flung apart.

Everyone present was startled—everyone except the captain and vice-captain themselves.

After all, they were both mages. The witnesses quickly realized: the commotion was the result of protective spells clashing. Both Gannet and Arlo, wary of a magical attack during the handshake, had silently cast shielding spells, forming a barrier around their hands.

So, when two spells of the same nature met, their hands rebounded without ever clasping.

Once enlightened, the expressions of the team members became subtly amused, especially the mage who had just banged her staff on the ground in protest; her face remained stern, but her gaze toward Gannet grew notably more complex.

“Wow—such exquisite control over magical power! I probably couldn’t master that in a hundred years!” Finn exclaimed, grinning as though oblivious to the awkwardness, voicing the awe and envy others dared not confess.

The protective ward was the most basic of spells—magical apprentices began their studies with it. Yet, neither had spoken an incantation, wielded a staff or spellbook, or even made a gesture; both had managed to conjure magic that enveloped only a specific part of the body. To ordinary mages, it was a display of inhumane skill.

Gannet, however, felt no satisfaction at this show of prowess.

She was deeply annoyed—furious, even. She shouldn’t have cast a protective spell!

Had she not acted so unnecessarily, only her hand would have been bounced by Arlo’s shield, and Arlo would have exposed his own pettiness before everyone: he’d been the one to offer the handshake, yet still suspected her, how narrow-minded and ridiculous! In that scenario, Captain Ossini would have been the more generous and mature one.

What a perfect chance to embarrass Arlo, and she’d just let it slip away!

Struggling to keep her expression in check, she happened to catch Arlo’s mouth curl in regret—he, too, was clearly ruing the same mistake. Her frustration only deepened.

How had she sunk to the point of caring about the same thing as this man?

At that moment, their eyes met.

Arlo immediately masked his frustration and offered her a cordial smile that made her teeth itch.

“Mr. Fuller,” Gannet said, deciding to ignore Arlo, whose very presence irritated her. She turned instead to the baby-faced young man who had treated her with relative politeness. “I haven’t had time to learn the details of the operation. Could you brief me?”

Finn began from the basics. “You probably already know, the so-called ‘drift objects’ from other worlds that we’re collecting are—”

“I know what drift objects are,” Gannet interrupted, frowning.

This continent was called Boreia. Occasionally, ‘doors’ appeared, connecting it to other worlds.

These interdimensional portals opened at unpredictable times and locations. Over the years, objects—even living creatures—from other worlds occasionally crossed through, ending up stranded here.

Most drift objects were harmless, but some were dangerous—at worst, they could even become seeds that might hatch twisted worlds. The primary duty of the Thirteen Towers Guard was to retrieve these drift objects and prevent them from causing havoc in this world.

Finn scratched his nose awkwardly. Gannet pressed on: “Where’s the drift object this time?”

Finn was about to answer when Arlo cut in, “It’s in the tavern over there—the one with the mermaid sign.”

Gannet turned slightly at the sound of his voice, meeting Arlo’s gaze for several seconds. She didn’t understand why he’d suddenly shifted his attitude, volunteering information instead of pointedly excluding her from Guard affairs.

But it didn’t matter. If he was willing to set aside their enmity, so could she. She pressed, “Are you sure it’s a drift object? Did the detector react?”

Arlo’s magical device could sense auras not native to this world—how it worked, Gannet wasn’t quite sure, nor had Arlo ever made it public. To her knowledge, Arlo always used this detector to confirm the general location before retrieving drift objects.

Hearing the newly-arrived captain drop an internal term so casually, Finn and the three other members were visibly taken aback. Only Arlo remained unmoved, answering coolly, “Confirmed. The detector reacted. It’s somewhere near this square.”

Gannet felt a surge of irritation. Was this what Arlo wanted her to see?

It seemed all the Guard members thought she was just some ignorant outsider parachuted in due to her family background. Every time she showed a hint of knowledge about Guard operations or recovery procedures, it drew looks of surprise.

For heaven’s sake, she really had only just arrived back in the City of a Thousand Towers today, but that didn’t mean she was unprepared.

She’d spent the past three years on an island so remote that even fairy couriers couldn’t reach it—utterly cut off from the world. But as long as she wished, anything could be delivered to her monastery.

Personnel files on the Thirteen Towers Guard, for example. Or the many investigative reports on their predecessor, the Silver Cloaks.

—Ossinis never come unprepared.

Gannet was almost certain that Arlo was thinking that famous proverb at that very moment. A strange, almost disappointed feeling welled up inside her.

She had expected hostility from the team, and was ready to confront Arlo head-on, but she hadn’t anticipated that Arlo would tacitly accept false rumors, using them to make everyone lose hope in her and thus force her into retreat.

Even for Arlo, that was a low, underhanded move.

But if he’d already gone so far as to sideline her as captain, what else was he capable of? She’d vanished from everyone’s lives for three years—over a thousand days and nights, more than enough to change many things and people forever.

“What kind of object is it, specifically?” Gannet’s tone was icier than before.

Arlo caught her change in mood, narrowing his eyes. “A box said to allow communication with the dead.”

Gannet looked at the tavern’s mermaid-shaped blue metal sign, its bright color standing out in the night, hard to associate with darkness or evil. She abruptly shifted her gaze, sweeping over the four team members Arlo had brought, and snorted, entering a fault-finding mood again: “You initially deemed the risk low, so you only brought four people?”

Not only that, he’d tried to stop her from coming, only to find upon arrival that things were more serious than expected, and had the team hurriedly set up all sorts of protective spells?

Serves him right, she thought. If she hadn’t come, there might have been a disaster.

Magic related to the domain of death was usually strictly controlled by certain families and academies. If word got out, all sorts of factions would rush to seize or destroy the drift object.

As if hearing her silent accusations, Arlo shrugged and retorted, “Anyway, I don’t believe it’s really necromantic magic.”

Gannet curled her lip. “Believe? That’s your basis for assessment?”

Arlo stopped smiling. “I have evidence.”

“Such as?”

He sighed at length, as if explaining why it had to rain. “Finn checked around—this week’s biggest news in town is an affair in the mayor’s family. No one’s died mysteriously, not even a single funeral. If necromancy were involved, this town wouldn’t be so peaceful.”

“And the townsman who reported the drift object never saw it themselves. We only learned more when we arrived,” Finn interjected, confirming Gannet’s earlier guess. “Arlo didn’t think it’d be dangerous, but still had us cordon off the square to protect the townsfolk.”

Gannet instinctively wanted to argue more, but seeing the looks on the team’s faces, she immediately lost interest in continuing to debate Arlo. In their eyes, she was clearly in the wrong anyway.

With a swish, she turned away, the hem of her black robe flaring like a blossom of formidable intent.

“Where are you going?” Arlo’s voice followed her—he’d forgotten to use the formal address.

Gannet quickened her pace, heading straight for the Mermaid Tavern. “Even if it is necromancy, I have ways to handle it.”

※

Gannet fell silent, staring at the large leather trunk before her. Arlo stood at her side, a full arm’s length away.

The owner of the trunk—also the proprietor of the Mermaid Tavern—fidgeted anxiously. He picked up a rag as if to wipe the counter, then set it down again. He looked back at the four mages guarding the exit and stairs, then at the two higher-ranking mages, white-haired and black-haired, his gaze flickering between them, unsure which of the two was truly in charge.

The elderly tavern-keeper wore a simple charm around his neck, given to him earlier by Arlo’s team when they left to set up protective spells, to prevent key figures like him from falling asleep with the rest of the townsfolk. In some matters, Arlo’s meticulousness was infuriating.

“The object is in there?” Gannet asked. “Have you used it?”

The tavern owner nodded quickly, then his face fell and he muttered gloomily, “I take it out every day, but I’ve never heard any voices from the dead. That merchant said... it had to be left in moonlight for three nights to regain its energy, and I had to recite the name, birth star, and so on of the person I wanted to contact. I don’t know why I believed him at the time!”

“Thank you for explaining. We’ll open the trunk now for a brief inspection. For safety, please wait outside—over there, behind that lady.” Her tone toward the tavern owner was noticeably gentler than with Arlo.

Seeing his hesitation, she added, “No one will punish you for possessing an object from another world. If we need to confiscate it, you’ll be fully compensated.”

That was exactly what the tavern owner wanted to hear. He visibly relaxed and left the room.

Gannet turned and met Arlo’s gaze. He was watching her with a strange expression. Her face immediately cooled. “What?”

He looked away at once, shrugged at the trunk. “Nothing.”

She pursed her lips and reached to unfasten the trunk’s latch—only for Arlo to reach out at the same moment.

Caught off guard, their hands collided.

In fact, Arlo caught hold of Gannet’s hand.