Peaceful Life System: I only need to live peacefully-Chapter 171: Falco Family (1)

Riku focused his will. He channeled a sliver of dark, hungry magic into the newly carved runes.

The sword did not blaze with light. It did the opposite. It seemed to drink the surrounding shadows. The runes pulsed once with a deep, violet light. Then they settled into a faint, almost invisible thrum. The air around the blade grew cold.

The demonstration was over in less than ten seconds.

Riku held up the newly created artifact. It was identical to the Soul-Drinker he had sold at auction.

The Violet Emissary let out a sharp, audible gasp. Her professional calm shattered. She took a single, sharp step backward, her hand dropping to the hilt of a dagger hidden in the folds of her violet robes. Her knuckles were white.

Kaelith made a soft, gagging sound. His face, already pale, turned a sickly, ashen grey. He stumbled back, his hand flying to his chest as if to keep his heart from beating its way out. "Gods above..." he wheezed.

Rudolf stared at the blade, his mouth slightly agape. The casual confidence of a Darklord’s aide was gone. It was replaced by the wide-eyed disbelief of a man who had just seen a law of nature being broken. A new, dawning fear began to creep into his eyes.

Before any of them could find their voice, Riku simply placed the new sword on the table. The soft click of steel on wood was deafening in the sudden, absolute silence. The shock had not yet turned into questions or accusations.

"Keep it," he said. "A gift."

He turned and walked towards the door. Sherry, a look of grim satisfaction on her face, fell into step behind him.

"Wait, Master Riku..."

Rudolf tried to give chase, but by the time he reached the corridor, they had vanished.

"They are... gone? Is that guy really just a Battle Mage?" the Violet Emissary spoke as she came near Rudolf.

"Who knows?" Rudolf said, still in deep thought.

"How about you give me the extra Soul Drinker? My master will be very pleased..."

"In your dreams...."

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Riku and Sherry stepped out of The Shadowed Gavel.

Sherry let out a long breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. "Gods," she muttered, pulling her cloak tighter. "Let’s hope we never have to go back to that place."

"Yeah. We already have all the information we need. Looks like this House of Flaco should have Rennan as a prisoner." Riku said.

"Well, then let us go there immediately!"

After asking around the city, Riku and Sherry soon reached the Falco Estate.

The Falco estate was literally a fortress of new money. freewebnσvel.cøm

The walls were high, built from polished black stone, but the mortar was still fresh. Opulent, but without the ancient authority of the Gavel. A pair of guards in gleaming, ornate armor stood before the iron gates, their expressions a perfect match for the snarling gargoyles carved above them.

This was not a welcoming place.

Riku and Sherry approached the guards who stood at the main estate gates.

"We have business with Lord Falco," Riku stated, his battle-mage voice a low rumble.

The lead guard looked them up and down. His gaze lingered on their practical, unadorned gear with open contempt. "The Lord doesn’t meet with street mages," he sneered.

Sherry bristled, stepping forward. "And who are you to decide the Lord’s business?"

The guard’s sneer deepened as he looked at her. "I am the one who keeps gutter-rats like you from bothering him. Know your place, shadow-weaver."

He took a step forward, his hand dropping to the hilt of his sword. "Now be gone, before we make you."

Riku moved, placing a calm hand on Sherry’s shoulder before she could retort. He met the guard’s hostile gaze with an unyielding one of his own.

"We are not leaving," Riku said. His voice was quiet, but it held a weight that made the guard pause. "Our business is with Lord Falco. We will wait."

"Wait?" the guard laughed harshly. "You can wait in the dirt where you belong. This is your final warning." He began to draw his blade from its sheath.

"Now, now, is that any way to treat potential guests?"

A new voice, light and melodic, cut through the tension. A young woman stepped out from a side gate in the garden. She was young, dressed in an opulent and elegant dark gown, and carried herself with an unmistakable air of authority.

The guards immediately straightened, their hostility vanishing. "Young Miss Marci!" they both exclaimed, bowing their heads.

"Honestly, Joric," she said, her tone chiding but not cruel. "Must you threaten everyone who comes to the door? It’s terribly uncivilized."

The guard, Joric, looked up, his face a mixture of deference and stubbornness.

"But Young Miss," he protested, gesturing towards Riku and Sherry. "These are...poor vagrants. They are probably looking to beg the Lord for money and food. Lord Falco’s orders were clear. No disturbances."

Marci’s smile did not falter, but her eyes grew cold. "And my orders, Joric? Do they carry less weight?"

Joric flinched. "No, of course not, Young Miss."

"Good," she said, her voice still light, but with an edge of steel that cut off any further argument. "Then be civilized." She turned her bright, curious eyes back to Riku and Sherry. "My apologies for their rudeness. My father has them on high alert. Please, come in."

She gestured for them to follow her. The guards, now silent and thoroughly chastened, opened the gates.

"Thank you, Miss Marci." Riku thanked the young girl, given that she had stood up for him.

"No Problem. I am the one who should apologize. Our family has been very rude." Miss Marci spoke with a soft smile.

Riku and Sherry followed the girl into the manor’s gardens.

The grounds were immaculate. Perfectly manicured lawns stretched between beds of strange, glowing flora. Shadow-blossoms pulsed with soft purple light, and moon-lilies unfurled their silver petals despite the twilight. The garden was strangely silent. There were no birds, no insects.

As they walked down the path leading into the main building, Riku felt a known presence.

Grazing contentedly on a patch of unnaturally green grass was a familiar, sturdy donkey.

"Clover!!"

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