As soon as I put a foothold inside the building, a strange smell kinks me.
A mixture of luxury incense, strong alcohol ... and sweat.
The walls were decorated with massive gold frames, but what was displayed inside slightly raised a eyebrow.
Portraits of Darius Venmorm, in absurd and megalomaniac postures:
On a throne, a foot on a pile of corpses.
In golden armor, looking at the horizon as if it dominated the world.
Surrounded by chained women, a carnivorous smile on her face.
This guy loved himself a little too much ...
The columns of the corridor, on the other hand, were decorated with intertwined snake patterns, symbol of its influence.
Employees wandering through the villa all had the same empty look.
Tired, exhausted servants. Completely crushed by a system that they could not flee.
Some women bore traces of blows on their arms, others immediately looked up at my way.
This asshole was not content to be a dictator ... He reigned with fear.
But good ...
It was not my problem.
While we advanced through the long corridors decorated with purple curtains, one of the murderers of black fangs, the one who seemed to be their leader, turned to me.
"Listen well, foreign."
His tone was cold, but a bit mocking.
"Those who fail Darius contracts finish either in pieces or in slavery."
Another assassin adds:
"And those who succeed ... he had a sneer. "Are never paid."
I folded my eyes.
"How so ?"
One of the black fangs crossed arms.
"Darius pays only those who are entirely loyal to him."
"The others, he eliminates or exploits them to the marrow."
They may have thought of discouraging me ...
But basically, I didn't care about their warning.
If he thought he could roll me ... He was going to quickly understand that he was playing with the bad mercenary.
We crossed a last corridor.
This corridor was wider, flanked by statues of giant snakes with the eyes embedded with ruby.
Torches lit the walls of bloody reflections, giving the place an oppressive atmosphere.
It was a cut decor to impress visitors ...
But I was not impressed.
At the end of the corridor, two large solid wood doors stood up.
One of the assassins pushed the door.
Welcome to the lair of the black snake.
As soon as I entered, the first thing that struck me was the grotesque spectacle in front of me.
In the center of the room, on a gigantic red leather armchair, Darius Venmorm was sprayed like a pork in a heap of silk.
Around him, servants in small outfits served him wine and food.
One of them, a young woman with short hair and resigned gaze, was trying to give her a bunch of grapes.
But instead of taking it normally ...
Darius violently slammed his buttocks.
"Hurry up, drag! You're slower than a slug!"
He laughed when the servant hugged her teeth but did not answer anything.
What a scraping ...
He was exactly as I imagined.
A man with a fatty and arrogant face, dressed in a black kimono embroidered with gold.
His chest exhibited a snake tattoo wrapped around a skull, and his well -cut beard was probably the only thing that gave him a semblance of nobility.
His gaze posed on me.
Light grin.
"Here, well ... he gesture with his hand, and the maids led. So this is our mystery mercenary."
The black fangs bowed to him.
"Lord Venmorm, he claims to be there for the private contract on the Holy Knights."
Darius frowned for a moment, then shrugged.
"MMH… It doesn't matter who it is. The only question that interests me is..."
He straightened slightly, his smile becoming more carnivorous.
"Is it up to the task?"
One of the assassins slid a dagger between his fingers and gave me a piercing look.
"TSK… Loyalty test, huh?"
I had already seen this kind of situation before.
And I knew exactly how to react.
I smile slightly ...
And made a step forward.
A lead silence settled in the room.
The assassins of the black Fangs, still in a defensive position, observed me with palpable tension.
Darius, meanwhile, had frowning, clearly upset by my attitude.
He expected me to curl up and accept his ridiculous little game?
I crossed my arms and declared in a posed voice:
"I'm going to be direct. I don't need a test."
Darius hausses an eyebrow, but I continued:
"Think like a real leader, not as an eight -year -old child who plays the king in his court."
Darius face twisted.
"What are you insinuated, miserable?!"
I swept the piece of the gaze before postponing my attention to him.
"If I managed to cross your three safety layers - the control of mercenaries at the entrance, the magic barrier and access to this room - then imagine what I could do ..."
I took a step forward.
The murderers instinctively tightened their captures on their weapons.
"If I wanted it, the black fangs would only be corpses at the time it is."
I let a slight smile take shape on my lips.
"But I have no reason to do so."
Darius remained silent for a moment.
He knew I was right. He knew it very well.
But rather than recognizing his error ...
His fist crashed violently on the armrest of his throne.
"Small insolent vermin ..."
His face deformed under anger, and he roared:
"Black fangs, neutralize it immediately!"
Black fangs in action ... and their failure
Immediately, the eight murderers set in motion.
They drew their blades into a fraction of a second, their silhouettes multiplying in remanent images.
An advanced illusion technique.
The air vibrated around me, and in a beat of eyelashes, I was surrounded by moving copies of my attackers.
A basic but effective technique against an average opponent ...
But I was not an average opponent.
Rather than warning myself, I let my energy flow freely.
My omni-charm cape sparkled slightly, emitting an invisible wave.
Their behavior changed instantly.
Their movements slowed down.
Their expressions are fixed.
Then, one by one, they lowered their weapons.
The triumph of absolute charisma
Darius observed the scene with disbelief.
"What is…?"
One of the assassins knelt down, hand on the heart.
"Darius-master, we can't ..."
Another nodded.
"We feel… an inexplicable admiration for this man."
"Hehe ..."
I slightly touched my cape, and a slight thrill crossed my spine.
This artifact was a real gem.
The Omni-Charm cape was not content to increase the attraction of the opposite sex ...
She reinforced my influence on anyone exposed to her aura.
In other words:
They were under my control.
Darius, red of anger, rose brutally from his chair.
"Bunch of idiots! he yelled. Are you under a fucking spell?!"
But the black fangs were no longer his dogs.
At that moment, they were mine.
I retreated slightly, arms still crossed.
"Darius, forget your stupid idea of testing and focus on the mission."
I leaning my head slightly, a glow amused in the eyes.
"Unless you prefer that I replace you?"
His gaze flickering a fraction of a second.
I had just humiliated him in the heart of his domain.
And he knew it.
Once the tensions have been dissipated, Darius finally invited me to take a seat.
I settled on a luxurious armchair in front of him, while he was bearing to one of his men.
The man returned with a thick binder, which he placed on the solid wood table.
Darius opened it slowly, leafing through a few pages, before shooting a jaunie photo by time.
He slid her to me.
"This is your target."
I seize the photo and observed it carefully.
Two faces frozen in the shadow, hooded, but still carrying the damaged armor of the holy knights of Solaria.
Fallen knights, therefore.
I frown slightly.
I don't recognize them ...
I leaned my head, studying the features of their faces.
These two were to be newcomers, having joined the ranks of the fallen shortly after my own departure from the Holy Knights.
However…
My gaze moved involuntarily to a detail in the background of the photo.
A familiar face.
Selene Moon.
The same woman with whom I had shared my bed last night.
And who had emptied my wallet before disappearing.
A slight smile stretched on my lips.
Well, what a surprise ...
Darius' explanation
Darius noticed my expression and asked:
"Do you know them?"
I put the photo on the table, crossing my arms.
"No. Finally, not the two main ones."
I designated Selene Moon the finger.
"But she, yes."
Darius' face darkens slightly.
"Selene Moon ..." He almost spat his name. "A hell of a bitch. She and her group keep hindering my things."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Your things ?"
He put his elbows on the table, crossing his hands in front of his face.
"These fallen knights rot my plans."
He marked a break before detailing:
"I set up a contraband network. Weapons, artefacts, slaves ..."
His gaze hardens.
"But these bastard strive to dismantle the circuits one by one."
He struck his fist violently on the table.
"I had engaged in an entire mercenaries to eliminate them, but they could not do anything."
I listened to him in silence, analyzing the information he gave me.
If even an army of mercenaries has failed to neutralize them ...
So these fallen knights were far from amateurs.
Darius released a frustrated sigh and set me straight in the eyes.
"This is where you, you enter the scene."
I tapped the edge of the photo with my finger.
"And where do I find them?"
Darius had a carnivorous smile.
"I have a landmark. A place where these bastards are dragging regularly."
He leaned against his file and slammed his fingers.
Another man approached, depositing a card on the table.
Darius put his index finger on it.
"Here. This old abandoned bastion, on the border of the City of Pleasures."
I took a look at the card.
The bastion in question was away from the main roads, in the middle of a remote area.
A strategic choice for fallen on fleeing knights.
I looked up at Darius and smiles slightly.
"All right. I will see what I can do."