Chapter 44: Sought After, Part 4

"I'm back," I said, surprising the elder. He recoiled, his wrinkled face pale as if he'd seen a ghost.

"Who are you—" he mumbled, putting a hand on the chest. When the merchant began gasping for air, I realized how serious things had become. I walked around the table, lightly grabbed his arm, then lowered him into the chair.

"Are you all right?" I asked, unsure of what the appropriate response should be in such circumstances.

After calming himself down, the merchant looked at me in recognition with a sigh and said, "It's you, isn't it? The young man with whom I struck a deal? Your tone is the same..."

I nodded, and I could see the fear in his eyes fading away.

"You almost gave me a heart attack... but are you okay? Did something happen to you, my boy? You even changed your clothes..."

When I heard his concerns, I almost smiled. I'd rather not go into detail about how I was beaten and nearly killed in an alley, or how I've been pursued throughout the entire Underworld. Instead, I took out the sheath and set it on the table. "Is this what you were looking for?"

The elder's bony fingers trembled as he gripped the sheath in one hand and the dagger's handle in the other. Yanking its sharp blade out, the cerulean runes glowed right beneath his chin.

All he could muster to say was a faint, "You kept your word..."

"I did," I replied. "We had a deal, after all."

"A deal, yes! Take whatever you wish to have, my boy."

His reaction was somewhat unexpected. On one hand, I wanted to try him and see how much he meant by 'take whatever you want.' On the other hand, since I didn't want to disturb the elder any longer, I took the clarinadryl and dropped the case. Let's just say he was so excited to get his hands on the dagger that he unintentionally blurted that portion out.

"Is there anything else you wish to have? I don't have much, but—"

"No, sir," I responded. "This is more than enough."

There wasn't any need for pleasantries. No need for goodbyes, either. We simply had an agreement, and both of us kept the end of our bargain. It was all over now. As a result, neither of us felt the need to say anything else.

I moved closer to the tunnel. It looked a bit different compared to the one I came from. It was rougher, with cracks all over its entrance, but I was fairly certain it was my way out of the Underworld.

"Wait," said the merchant.

"Is there something wrong?"

Anxiety spread through my body. Is it possible I grabbed the wrong dagger?

"No," he muttered, shaking his head and revealing his toothless grin. "The panel in that exit is shattered. Even if you used the badge after climbing all those stairs, you wouldn't be able to leave, my boy. It's been out of commission for a while, but no one bothered to fix it. This area isn't as frequented as the rest..."

Elevator? So you're saying there aren't just staircases that lead to... If it was the only way in, it would be difficult for merchants to bring big quantities of supplies. There must be others that I'm not aware of yet. This meant that, out of all the entrances, I happened to pick one of the worst...

"I see..." I sighed, rather stunned by the realization as I spun around. "Thanks for telling me that."

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Embarrassment aside, I guess I'll have to look for another tunnel...

Lost in my mind, a piercing shrill right next to me brought me back to the present.

When I turned to see what was making that noise, I was greeted by a golden beak reaching towards my leg through the torn cloth covering a cage.

The gryphon opened and snapped its beak shut as if to frighten me. I took a step back and unconsciously slipped the clarinadryl into my inner pocket, prepared to react to whatever happened.

"I'm sorry!" apologized the young man as he yanked the cage away. A bit of his dirty blonde hair peeked out of his hood as he did that. Someone around my age, I thought. "Melody's been acting this way ever since she was born, so..."

"She's a gryphon," I muttered as I stared at her eagle-shaped head before dragging my gaze toward her lion-like paws. "She appears to be quite small... How old is she?"

"Born a while ago..." answered the beast tamer, patting her head with the tip of his finger. She appeared docile, almost enjoying his touch.

From what I've read, a gryphon's supposed to be much larger than this when hatching from its egg... Perhaps she wasn't pure-blooded.

I leaned a bit closer, admiring her brown, yet unpreened feathers. Some were on the cage's floor, mixing with the white ones that had fallen from and above her neck.

"Is the meat that you're giving her cooked? Or are you giving her, by any chance, something sweet?"

He took a step back, perturbed by my interest. "I know what I'm doing, sir."

"Really?" I probed, my fingers grabbing my chin as I hid my bemusement regarding the way he called me. "If the problem isn't with her diet, it could be something else. Maybe she's ill..."

"Ill? Are you even listening to what you're saying?" he scoffed, squinting his eyes at my complaints. "Thank's for your concerns, however; she's a gryphon. Her immune system is very strong, so the chances of her becoming sick are fairly low. I appreciate the help, but what you're saying is ridiculous."

So you know a thing or two about gryphons.

"Don't confuse a gryphon with a vulture," I said, my voice trailing into a chilly tone. "They're a lot more sophisticated than that. And since you're wandering around here rather than visiting an actual veterinarian, it's safe to assume something fishy is going on."

Perhaps he didn't have enough money to pay for her treatment, so he decided to gamble in the Underworld for an answer. That seemed somewhat plausible.

"No," denied the beast tamer, panicked—but that was enough for me to realize everything. "Why don't you just leave us alone? What we do is none of your business."

"That's something I could do," I replied, crossing my arms. "But perhaps a being that's meant to soar through the skies shouldn't be confined in a cage like a parrot. If the issue isn't physical, it could be psychological. Melody may pluck her feathers as a result of the stress you're putting her through."

His lip quivered as the thought that he was the source of Melody's sorrow entered his head. At the end of the day, what this man does with his gryphon has nothing to do with me. But, surprisingly, I found myself showing more interest in other people's problems than usual.

And what made it worse, I wasn't sure why.

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