Just before dawn, Akun and Aizen's eyes snapped open. They left the sleeping servants and went outside to get a good look at the papers they stole from Murdia’s room. Akun scanned their surroundings with his eyes as Aizen revealed the first message.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡTahmhsNC5J
“This is from two years ago.” Aizen flipped the paper to read what was written on the back. Then he moved on to the next message. “It first started off with simple tasks, like getting this and that.” He looked through two more.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡhvhm82oBun
“How often are the messages?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡJEceo0SmLf
“At first they were once a few months. Now they’re once a week, or whenever she has anything new to report. There are no plans discussed in these. She will be charged for is treason, but we haven’t uncovered anything like a battle plan. Perhaps the Chief just wanted us to find the spy within the Vanson household.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Eqk1HNPkT
“No, it must be more than that,” Akun said as he read the latest message. He crouched and Aizen took his place as lookout. “This one has ‘Happy Halloween’ underlined. Then it says, ‘it starts soon’. What could be starting?” Akun frowned. “Who is writing these messages? The handwriting is very neat and the grammar is near perfect.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡzBoQYxSm9n
“Not just any old person is using Murdia to send messages then. I can't imagine a servant writing it.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡKT2W7qXZMI
Akun stared at the paper a bit more. “I might have seen this handwriting before.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPnFapmYeG
Aizen snapped his head to Akun. “Have you? Where?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNigEgNwDW
“I don’t remember.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡUoPWlXniWa
“That’s helpful. Look, someone’s coming.” Aizen pointed to the road.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1c0oRaOd92
Akun looked up as he folded the papers and handed them to Aizen. “That can’t be Leal, could it? The sun is barely up. I didn’t know nobles were awake this early.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡU0Qdgut417
“It doesn’t matter. We need to get changed. Breakfast will be starting soon.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1VvQSQNf9K
Luda met them in the mess hall. “Did you enjoy your first night?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡpbWpAOAo2J
Akun grinned. “Yes, thank you. It was much better than sleeping outside in the cold!”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWKg90KD5L
Aizen nodded in agreement for the sake of it. He was more focused on the documents he had tucked under his shirt. There seemed to be a lot more going on here than he first thought.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6HgXz7LOh
“I saw someone coming in this morning,” Akun said casually.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡwessE2heqj
“That would be Leal, the Duke’s son. He is Lady Arala’s dear cousin. He visits a few times a year.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡYQfI7pJS3O
Akun's eyes widened. “Have you met him?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡDOVl5SUdDJ
Luda bit into his bread. “Yes, I have. A few times, actually. You see a lot of visitors when you’ve been working here for as long as I have. He’s a handsome fellow who is kind to the servants.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡu9XWCBYTQo
“Does he have any brothers or sisters?” Aizen asked.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOfsxmSgeW
“No, not a one,” Luda said. “He is the only heir to his father’s estates.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5SL0dQS73w
“Do you think we will see him?” Akun asked.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyFOuiqsbg
“So many questions in the morning, young Akun,” Luda said. “And yes, I believe you will meet him.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡRo56RCtKTH
“Don’t mind Akun. He asks way too many questions. I sometimes wonder how I put up with him.” Aizen nudged Akun’s head until Akun had to lean over to avoid a bruise from forming. copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYArZNiSVl
It was then that Akun saw an unknown figure standing outside in the hall who was speaking to Arala’s older brother, Honslau.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡoMT4Bom1Ry
“Hey, isn’t that him?” Akun asked and brushed Aizen’s arm away. “The tall one with the sword at his hip and is wearing a cloak,” he said.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIXmPPZizS
Luda turned around and smiled. “Yes, that is him.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fRAHQoZIk
“Looks friendly.” Akun downed his mug of water and watched Leal move through the different tables the servants occupied. They all stood to greet him and only sat when he waved his hands. Each time, he was smiling and laughing as though enjoying a good joke.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡl77fbIDyKu
“And here he comes,” Luda said with a smile. “Master Leal, it is such a great pleasure to have you visiting the Vanson family again.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ61d4o2Tols
“I’ve been away for far too long,” Leal said when he was close. Akun had been pulled to his feet by Aizen, who for some reason had a very firm grip on the collar of Akun’s shirt. Luda did the introductions and they bowed.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡgmI8XpYlpH
Aizen’s eyes had hardened as he thought quickly of all the possibilities of Leal, the son of a Duke—the only son—having almost the same face as Jukely, the jerk he cut ties with just a week ago.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKON00wDyg
“Let me see your faces. There, no need to be shy,” Leal said to Akun. Akun tilted his head up and had a smile on his face, although the smile looked triumphant to Aizen’s eyes. He raised a brow in question.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8FilKHoD6K
“Welcome to the Vanson household. It is a good place to be.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n6Ov3eupE
“Thank you,” they said in unison. Leal nodded and went to greet others.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5o0To1q2A
“I have to find Murdia,” Luda announced after Leal was out of earshot. “There is some trouble with the well in the yard.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡHag0w0IVDO
“We’ll see you at noon then,” Akun said with the same smile still on his face.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJbMyGQNaf
“What are you so happy about?” Aizen asked when they began walking out of the mess hall themselves.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmlQnffpGh
Akun gave him a surprised look. “Don’t you see?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡZnsfoZf6VT
“See what?” Aizen was beginning to get irritated by Akun’s broad statements.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡUBD5ocMeZX
“Leal and Jukely.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡtqkPhI5w7L
“How do you know about Jukely?” Aizen demanded.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡO79gmxgCDb
“I saw you talking to him on Halloween. Talking about me, I suppose. He doesn’t know what he’s missing, having a rat as a partner,” Akun said in a monotone voice.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡwyM9Damqpl
“He’s not missing anything interesting or fun, that’s for sure,” Aizen muttered.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡnTMII3qOAy
“They must be brothers. I’ve got to hand it to the Duke, he is one sneaky man. He has two sons born in the same year. I wonder how the Duchess feels about it.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡzoFIE1gVET
Aizen stopped. “What did you just say? Aren’t you jumping to conclusions too quickly?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6arTk54Hwt
Akun shook his head. “Are you telling me that you haven’t thought of it yourself?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UmPC5T3Tt
“I have, but it’s one of many possibilities!”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡBtRgcwisrX
“Here’s how I figured it out. First, they look alike. Not only that, but the reason why the words ‘Leal, the Duke’s son’, sounds familiar to you, is because there is some relation to the name Jukely chose for himself.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡmy8NstTwap
“I thought Jukely’s name was too weird to be chosen by his mother,” Aizen mused. “Juke, for Duke. And Ly, for…”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cjn2WtVZm
“It must be a name he made for himself. Maybe he likes to have everyone call him ‘Duke Ly’?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡpAQhR2O9ug
“That self-centred bastard,” Aizen muttered.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QOfEhIxOS
Akun continued, “He must be jealous of his half brother, the one who will inherit their father’s estates because Jukely is not the Duke’s legal son. He is just a "mistake" the Duke made with a woman a while back.” They were in the shed where they collected their supplies. Akun spoke quickly now.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡXO5hc7dF3d
“But Jukely doesn't have anything to do with our errand. It's Leal. Leal has the scent of the afterlife about him. That could be dismissed for Halloween, since almost everyone brushed pass a ghost during one time or another that night. However, the scent on Leal is much stronger, even after a day and night of closure to the afterlife. There was also the scent of this on Murdia, which did not hit me until I faced Leal. Leal. He is trying to do something with the afterlife portals that are around the cities.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2sNSKFUyPo
Aizen cursed. “They should just destroy the portals.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡOWfDbTUTrI
Akun shook his head. “Long ago, they thought of doing that. Every night before Haloween, everyone banded together and destroyed all the portals to the underworld where the spirits came in from. But the portals just disappeared and the spirits came through another portal. Each time, the spirits always came out angry. Anger boosts their powers. Many people who had a hand in destroying the portals were haunted by ghosts until they died or were dragged forcefully into the afterlife by more violent monsters.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoxRGJYTo2
“How do you know this?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6qvUjfzdNo
“I read about it.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡCClRfwKaqc
Aizen scratched his head and shrugged his shoulders. “Go on.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡScBq3h92by
“When they gave up on destroying portals, the spirits came out of the same ones every year. But they were still angry at the people who destroyed the previous ones, so they hunted the descendants, thus the masks that everyone wears.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hZAciPMvD
“I know that part. But what does that have to do with the matter at hand?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡa7gvZv2KFs
“What matter? Ah, yes, you are to blame, Aizen. You made me explain why portals should not be destroyed. Now back to the ‘matter at hand’, as you put it, I suspect that Leal might have a portal open.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡWyExZIP8L0
“They only open on Halloween…and no human can control it.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQiGquYggu
“With magic, it might be possible. I suspect that he stopped one from closing. Although I don’t know where, I know it’s here, or near here. Murdia is his contact. I remember now. I was looking in Lord Vanson’s study and found a letter to him from Leal. It was the same handwriting.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡUrCaXBGZlm
I can’t believe he was able to piece everything together so quickly, Aizen thought and shook his head in wonder.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡriU6QTPF2A
“And the smell? Why is Leal keeping the portal open?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJrXqSsp8I
“Most likely he’s trying to bring something over to this side of the world. Maybe there is some sort of agreement, although I’ve never heard of a spirit making a deal with a human.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡT39wd67T6t
“Why would he want to do that? And what about the Ician letters?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡfyMaEC4uh7
Akun looked at Aizen incredulously. “What makes you think I know that? You’ll have to ask Leal himself about it! But my guess is that this is only a small part of a much bigger plan.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XRwVhonHx
Aizen’s arms rose above his head and came back down in defeat. “You were sprouting out answers to every question, so I thought maybe you had an idea of what Leal himself was thinking!”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5BBf7OlfIs
“Anyway, we should close the portal,” Akun said. He looked around. “We’ve been in here long enough. People will wonder where we went off to.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡJX0v8F8d9q
“We'll go back to head quarters tonight,” Aizen said. “We need to tell the Chief even if he’s not going to believe that Leal is involved. Do you think anyone else is?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡkenbLitaFa
Akun thought of that for a moment. “Possibly the magic user. He is rather weak, and I believe that Lord Vanson could have hired a much stronger one. He might be the magician who is keeping the portal open.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡILLj0T8m8Q
“Which might mean that Lord Vanson has a part in this, unless the magician is acting on his own accord.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSOOnXtwaD
“We don’t know that yet. But that’s it: the magician, Murdia, and Leal are part of some kind of conspiracy against Enzla with the Icians.” Akun stopped in his tracks, deep in thought. “Why would they want to betray Enzla?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡWuSjGEC9Oi
"We wouldn't know unless we stayed longer. But that's not what the Chief's looking for," Aizen said and bit his lip. "I wish we knew. It's important."copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡkx46Q40Yr9
Akun agreed wholeheartedly.copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡPg1D4pAyVK
“I haven’t exorcized any evil spirits in a while,” Aizen said. “This might be a good time to start again.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡcRf4bVIO5x
Akun looked at Aizen sceptically. “Are you sure you’re up to it? You’re not a magic user, after all. Exorcisms would be harder for you.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6q4axVfxTG
“Speak for yourself,” Aizen muttered as a servant holding a tray of food passed them. “You’re a rat no matter which way you look at it. How are you going to fight?”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJXHn17XA2
“Simple. You will just have to wait and see.”copyright protection236ＰＥＮＡＮＡINTYR5UAT0
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