After tidying up the fallen items, Otto and the old man got back up, a slightly awkward silence hanging in the air.
"So, are you on vacation, sir?" Otto asked, his tone friendly.
The old man's lips curved into a slight smile. "That's right, lad. Just enjoying the time. Are you two as well?"
Otto glanced at Eliana, ensuring his companion was ready before speaking again. "We're traveling too. This city is marvelous; we love it. Right, Eliana?" Otto gently nudged Eliana's arm, a signal demanding a response.
Feeling the nudge, Eliana took a deep breath, forcing the surge of emotion in her heart to subside, then put on her best smile. "Absolutely! It's a very beautiful and lively city!"
The old man observed them from head to toe. His eyebrows furrowed slightly, his gaze sharp and assessing. Otto and Eliana exchanged puzzled glances.
"Why are you wearing such strange clothes?" The old man then focused his sight on the bunny mask on Otto's head.
Otto immediately burst into laughter. "Hahaha… This is our style, sir! Our outfit!" Otto then struck a dramatic pose, proudly showing off his brown cloak. "Isn't it cool, sir?"
Seeing Otto's strange behavior, the old man chuckled softly, his laugh dry but genuine. "Yes, lad. That's quite cool. What are your names?"
Otto turned back to the old man, standing straight. "My name is Steve. And this quiet girl is my friend. Her name is Felicia."
"Steve… Felicia…" the old man murmured, trying to remember. "Let me introduce myself, my name is Synel, lad." He extended his hand, a warm gesture of introduction.
Otto accepted the handshake enthusiastically, his grip firm. "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Synel."
"Yes. Well, I must be going now, lad. See you later." Synel began to walk away, his steps relaxed.
"Take care, sir!" Otto waved cheerfully until Synel turned the corner.
Once Synel was completely out of sight, the atmosphere immediately changed. Otto and Eliana continued their journey. A thick silence enveloped them. Otto walked quickly with no clear destination, while Eliana just followed a few steps behind, a look of exhaustion on her face.
Eliana finally broke the oppressive silence. "If you keep walking aimlessly like this, we'll never find the Boss, Otto."
Otto didn't stop, his voice cold and emotionless. "We? You could just go look for him yourself. Why are you stubbornly following me instead?"
"I already told you, it's because we're a team." Eliana paused for a moment, her lips curving into a cynical smile she was sure Otto couldn't see. "There's no way a Right Hand would abandon his other subordinates."
"You are the Left Hand. Master Iago is the organization's only true leader. Eldric is just the Right Hand and merely filling a vacant seat." Otto spoke sharply.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whether it's the Left Hand or the Right Hand, you're still a subordinate, Otto. Don't forget your place."
They arrived at a narrow alley near an inn, a place familiar to Eliana. It was the spot where she had killed the lodgers and met Iago. Now, the alley was clean, with no trace of blood or bodies. The environment had swallowed it back up.
"Why are we here?" Eliana asked, confused.
"This is the alley you told me about, right?"
"Yes. So what?"
"Nothing. I just wanted to see it." Otto answered offhandedly.
Eliana immediately let out a long sigh, her patience wearing thin. "Otto, what exactly do you want to do now? Because if you truly want to wander around aimlessly, I will be forced to leave you."
Hearing the threat, Otto instantly turned around and walked away, his shoulders shrugged indifferently. "I don't know."
Controlling Otto was incredibly difficult, even for Eliana and Eldric. The man was too obsessed and fixated on his Master, Iago, to the point of neglecting all other tasks and rules.
Seeing Otto walk away just like that, Eliana took the deepest breath she could, trying to cast aside all her frustration. She then walked in the opposite direction from Otto, heading toward a tall building. Nimbly, she scaled the house walls. The girl reached the rooftop, enjoying the stunning morning view of Citywon—a far cry from the gloom of Optherra.
Satisfied with the beautiful atmosphere and the refreshing cool air, she immediately leaped from one rooftop to the next. Her movements were so agile, fast, and graceful, like a shadow dancing beneath the dawn light. Birds perched on the roofs were startled and flew away in a panic when her foot landed.
As she was leaping to the next roof, Eliana finally spotted Boss Eldric and his subordinates. She immediately stopped and observed them from afar. They were sitting at an outdoor table of a food stall. Some were busy eating, while others stood watching the surroundings, keeping guard. Certain of her target, Eliana smoothly jumped down, then approached them.
"It's Eliana!" exclaimed one of the subordinates.
All the members were instantly surprised and turned their heads. Some who were eating even choked from the shock.
"Yo, Eliana!" Eldric called out, raising one of his hands. A wide smile was etched on his face.
"Yo, Boss!" Eliana replied.
Realizing that Eliana was alone, Eldric told his subordinates to continue eating. Then, he signaled Eliana to follow him away. After their distance from the other members was far enough for a private talk, Eldric began to speak.
"Where is he?" he asked in a low, urgent voice.
"As usual, Boss. He's wandering around right now," Eliana answered honestly.
"What?!" Eldric's voice rose, muffled, before he took a breath and composed himself. "Why did you let him?"
"That man is incredibly difficult to control, Boss. You know how stubborn he is, right?"
"Tch… That man…" Eldric's eyebrows furrowed sharply and his eyes narrowed with hidden anger. His hand clenched into a fist, thin veins visibly protruding on his arm.
"I'm sorry, Boss."
"It's alright, Eliana. He's a stubborn bastard. Forget about Otto for now. What were the results?"
Eliana was slightly surprised by the change of topic. Her eyes slowly avoided Eldric's gaze, but she quickly composed herself, suppressing her nervousness, and looked back at her Boss.
"We didn't find Master Iago," Eliana said, trying to keep her voice flat.
Eldric immediately let out a long sigh, as if he had already anticipated the answer. "I see." He looked up, staring at the bright blue sky. "Where is he now?"
Eliana felt a slight relief that her Boss didn't ask further about Iago's whereabouts. Although she disagreed with Otto's decision to leave Iago with the red-haired girl and her brother, she chose not to tell Eldric about it. In her opinion, it would only escalate problems and internal chaos within the organization.
Thinking about the internal issues of Organization IV made her feel stressed and tired. The cool morning breeze managed to relax Eliana for a moment. This time, she wondered what Otto might be doing while wandering alone.
When they split up, Otto took a route heading toward the Valemira Kingdom district. He entered a bustling black horse tavern, ordered food, and sat at one of the corner tables. There, he finally removed his bunny mask. His silver hair fell softly on his forehead, and his sharp blue eyes stared blankly out the window.
While he was enjoying the view outside, a loud sound of breaking plates and glass suddenly erupted from beside him. He immediately turned his head. There, the old man named Synel was confronting a group of large, fierce-faced men.
"I apologize, lads," Synel said in a pleading tone.
"Apologize? No, no! Don't you see my expensive clothes? Huh?!" The largest man bellowed. He immediately and roughly grabbed the old man by the collar.
The man's friends just stood behind him, laughing gleefully and looking very excited to witness the confrontation.
"You need to be taught a lesson for being clumsy, Old Man."
Instantly, Synel was hit by a hard punch from one of them. The blow made the old man stagger and fall to the wooden floor with a thud.
Otto's order was ready. When his food was placed on his table, Otto thanked the server and quickly stood up. The shop owner, who had placed the order, stopped Otto.
"Don't, lad," the owner said with a worried face.
"Why? Do you want me to enjoy my meal while watching him get beaten?" Otto asked, his voice cold.
"No. Those men are from the Church of Light. The one torturing the old man is their elite soldier, his name is Lavernus. If you interfere, you could get into serious trouble too."
"The Church of Light? How pathetic…" Otto muttered cynically. With a swift movement, he grabbed and put his bunny mask back on. He pushed aside the shop owner's hand blocking him and walked calmly toward the group of thugs.
They were kicking Synel, who now lay defenseless on the floor, nearly unconscious. "Die, die, die," they mocked repeatedly. Otto arrived near them, standing calmly and motionless.
"Huh?" Lavernus glanced at Otto beside him, annoyed. "Do you want to die, Kid?"
"What kind of fool wants to die?" Otto retorted, his tone mocking.
Lavernus's eyes immediately narrowed and his brows deeply furrowed, his face red with suppressed anger. He left Synel whimpering on the floor and walked menacingly toward Otto, his steps threatening.
"Listen, you damn bunny-masked brat, I'll give you one chance to apologize to me, provided you lick my boot."
"How stupid. Who would apologize to an ugly, power-hungry person like you?"
"You bastard…"
With lightning speed, Lavernus drew his long sword. Otto was just as fast, pulling two daggers from beneath his brown cloak, tossing the sheaths aside.
"You're endangering yourself, Bunny," Lavernus hissed.
"I'm terrified," Otto said with a distinctly mocking tone.