It was already night time in the forest
Auel's party had been completely defeated by the bandits
Then one bandit came out from behind the bushes, carrying Erin over his shoulder
"Hey that one looks cute" said one of them said as he slowly walked toward Erin's body
He reached his hand toward the face, but before he could do that
"Hey, don't you dare touch her" Rikka still conscious even after beaten up by the bandit several times
"Or what?" the bandit stopped his hand and walked toward Rikka's body on the ground
Rikka was still bound by the golden ring around his body
"You can't do anything"
Then the bandit grabbed Rikka by the hair and lifted his head
Standing directly in front of him was a middle-aged man with brown hair styled to one side and a scar beneath his left eye
The bandit noticed Rikka's headband and pulled it from his head
"Hey… is it Homura crest?"
He looked at it for a moment
"You're quite a guy, huh…?"
"Wearing this crest out in public"
"Hey give that back!" Rikka struggled against his restraints "Don't you dare say anything about them!"
"Calm down… I remember that time"
The bandit slowly ran a finger along the scar beneath his eye
"They are the best flame wielder"
"But at the same time, they were really troublesome as hell too"
He smiled bitterly
"They even gave me some present on me"
Rikka froze, his blood boiled up after hearing that
"You son of-"
BAM!
The bandit slammed his face on the ground and then he stood up
He stood up and turned toward the others
"I'll deal this guy myself, take the other to the cells" he commanded
"Boss, what about this guy?" one of the bandits pointed at Auel's body on the ground
"Meh, just put him on the cell too"
He glanced at Auel
"He got a pretty face, maybe someone will pay for him"
Then he felt something
A drop of water fell onto his hand, it was raining
"Tch… quick take them in"
"And what about them boss?" said the other bandit pointing at the other bandit that were knocked out
"Just buried them, they are useless"
"And make sure it's somewhere far away, we don't know when the royal patrol will pass by"
"Yes boss" the bandits immediately began carrying out his orders
Inside the cave Auel, Erin, and Sylffie were put into separated cells
Not a single sign of Rikka around that area
Only the sound of rainwater dripping from the ceiling could be heard
Erin still knocked up, while Auel and Sylffie had already regained conciousness
Sylffie still struggled against the ropes binding her hands
"Tch… this is useless"
Then she stared at Auel, siting silently inside his cell while staring at the floor
Water dripping from the ceiling right on top of his head
"Hey did they hit you too hard that you become insane?"
"Come on, do something!"
No response, Auel just silent
Not long after that, two bandits came toward their cells
They stood in front of Erin's cell
One of them tried to open the cell with several keys
"Hey are you sure its fine?" said one of them
"It's fine, boss also said it's fine"
"Also, you cannot hold your urge too, right?"
"But will people buy used slave?" one of them unsure
"Nobody will notice"
The cell door opened and they walked toward Erin which still unconscious
"Besides… look at her"
He raised Erin's face and licked her cheek
"She'll fetch a good price"
"And if nobody buys her…"
His eyes slowly moved over Erin's unconscious body
"Then she will be ours"
Sylffie's expression immediately changed
She understood exactly what they were planning
"Hey, stop!"
One of them stared at Sylffie and laughed
"Or what? There is nothing you can do"
"Yeah, just wait there for a minute, we will play with you after we have fun with your friend"
"Hey, stop, don't touch her, please" Sylffie desperately tried to stop them
But they didn't stop and continued their action
Until-
"Hey" Auel finally stood up and walked toward the bars of his cell "I want to talk to your boss"
The bandits stopped and looked at Auel in his cell
His hair was completely soaked from the water dripping onto his head
"Talk with our boss?" one of them asked
"Yes" Auel looked at them calmly "I want to buy slaves, you won't waste a customer, right?"
The bandits stared at each other and then they burst out laughing
"Are you out of your mind?"
"Know your place boy"
"You're our slave, and you wanted to buy another slave"
Their laughter grew louder
"We already take all of your belongings and you want to buy slaves"
"How could you possibly pay for one?"
Auel remained calm
"Are you sure you take everything?"
"Then why did my pendant still in my pocket"
The bandits stopped laughing
"What?!"
They hurried over to Auel cell, one of them grabbed his clothes over the cell bar and searched his pocket
His hand touched something and pulled that thing out
It was a moon shaped pendant
It was made of crystal, with a clear white-blue color
"Heh, do you think this is enough to buy slave?"
"Why don't believe me?"
Auel looked straight at them
"Why don't you ask your boss right now?"
They stared at each other again, and then hurried away from there
"Hey, what the hell did you do?" Sylffie asked "And what was that pendant?"
"Just be quiet" Auel sat back down "I'll handle it myself"
On the other side of the cave, inside a private room
Rikka was tied to a chair while several bandits stood around him
His body was covered in bruises
The boss was also there, sitting on a chair while drinking a glass of wine
"You're quite amazing" the boss said toward Rikka "You still conscious after all this"
He stood up, took his dagger out and walked closer toward Rikka
"Well, let's see how much longer you can keep that up"
He raised his dagger and swung it toward Rikka
Until the door opened
"Boss!" two bandits rushed in and called the boss
The boss immediately stopped his dagger
He let out a long sigh
"Didn't I tell you to knock the door before come in?" he said gently
"Ahh… we're sorry boss"
"Yeah, we're sorry, but we have something important to tell you"
"Something important?" His voice remained calm "What kind of important thing do you have that is worth interrupting my fun time?"
The two bandits exchanged nervous glances
"S-sorry, but there is a slave that want to buy another slave"
The entire room went silent for a moment
Then everyone burst into laughter
"Hey, are you two idiots, a slave wanted to buy slave?" said one of them
"Hey, we're serious, he said he wanted to pay with this pendant" they shove the pendant out and showed it to the room
"Come one, do you two think a pendant is enough to buy a slave"
"Hey, we know that, but the person said to asked our boss about it"
"Asked me?" The boss stopped laughing
He took the pendant from the bandit's hand
At first, he looked at it casually
Then his expression changed
He examined the crystal
Looked at the shape
His fingers tightened around it
For several seconds, he said nothing
Then sweat began to form on his forehead
"Show me"
His voice had suddenly become serious
"Show me that person. Right now!"
The two bandits quickly led him toward the cells
"Boss, this is the person" one of them said while pointing at Auel inside the cell
The boss stepped closer
He held the pendant up in front of Auel
"Hey boy, where did you find this pendant?"
"Why should I tell you, what important is, do you take it as a payment or not?" Auel answered
"Stop messing with me" He grabbed the cell bar"answer my damn question"
"Normal people shouldn't have something like this"
His voice became colder
"And I think you know how dangerous it would be for someone like you to possess it"
Auel remained silent
"This pendant belongs to the royal family"
The boss stared directly at him
"If the royal authorities discovered someone carrying it…"
He paused
"They wouldn't simply ask where you got it"
"They'd want you dead"
The boss grabbed Auel's clothes through the bars and slammed him against them
"So, answer me, where the hell did you get this?" the bandit said with serious face
Auel looked at him calmly
"I never said I found that pendant"
The boss froze
"What?!"
The water continued dripping from Auel's hair
The boss stared at him
For the first time, his expression showed genuine uncertainty
"Who the hell are you?"
Auel didn't answered
The boss's grip slowly loosened
And then he noticed something
Auel's hair
The water dripping onto his head had soaked through the black dye
Beneath it-
A faint white color was beginning to show.
The boss's eyes widened
His heartbeat quickened
Sweat came over all his body
He stared at Auel's half-revealed white hair
But-
The boss forced himself to breathe
He forced his hands to stop shaking
He forced a bitter grin onto his face
"Yeah, I finally remember…"
His voice trembled for only a moment before he forced it steady
"I thought the rumor that you were dead was true"
"But I think I was believing in a wrong rumor"
"You were never dead…"
"You went missing…"
His bitter grin kept getting wider as if he was forcing it
"Yes…"
The boss stared directly into Auel's eyes
"You're the lost prince"