Mistaken for a Returnee

The cake was in the icebox...

Faeyra had 'allowed' Aldritch to glance at the cake before sealing it away in the icebox until morning: it was dark through and through, with small chunks of chocolaty goodness oozing from gaps between the four layers.

The tantalizing smell still lingered in Aldritch's nose. A scent that was sweet and light, while also bitter.

It was mouthwatering perfection, held together by a carefully constructed cream that was both sticky and cloudlike in its presentation, and the entire thing was topped by a thin layer of cocoa powder.

"Aldritch…" Oakairo whined. "Please, let's go back for just one bite, just one and I'll be satisfied." He muttered in a breathy voice.

"No. Faeyra said it must cool for twelve hours before it could be eaten- you know that, My Lord." Aldritch replied, shaking his head.

"Oh, come on… Who's going to know? What harm could really come from trying one little piece? You know you want to. Why fight it?" Oakairo replied in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

Aldritch ignored the dragon god and continued his moonlit stroll through the city with Synne.

With the full moon's light to guide them, the wanderers were free to explore the city till their hearts were content.

Synne led the way: her nose to the ground and her fluffy tail flapping back and forth, Synne investigated every sight, sound, or smell to catch her attention.

No matter how loud the sound or how potent the smell, the puppy was fearless in her pursuit of knowledge- especially when the giant was following eight steps behind her.

Aldritch watched her dart after strange looking rodents and other small critters, stick her head in abandoned boxes, and attempt to climb over anything she could get her paws on top of.

A small part of his mind wanted to pick her up and carry her everywhere. To protect her from the dangers of the world, and most importantly, herself-

Crash!

She fell off a small box and landed on her head, but she was up and trotting along in only a few seconds. If he hadn't seen her fall, he never would've known she'd almost hurt herself… Which was exactly why he let her explore on her own.

Willful ignorance of a child's activities is bad parenting but protecting them from adventure can be just as bad.

Especially for something like Synne.

If the mangy demon could be believed; he'd bred Synne and her siblings to be demonic warhounds- a special kind of dog used to run down enemy combatants, the same way hunting hounds chased down animals.

Synne needed to be able to stand on her own, to trust in her own strength and instincts… Or the demonic blood would destroy her mind and drive her feral.

He possessed neither the knowledge to remove the blood from her body or the desire to end her life before she devolved into a monster.

Unlike thralls: the willing servants of the Devils, Synne didn't choose to imbibe the black blood.

So, he was willing to give her a chance.

A chance to fight the corruption caused by the black blood, and instead, use that power to fight the very things attempting to corrupt her.

It would be a while before she was big enough, possibly even years. But one day, he would allow her to follow him onto the battlefield- To seek her rightful vengeance against the demons who tormented her-

A hairless cat hissed at Synne from a second story balcony, and Synne immediately attempted to climb up the wall after it- which ended with the puppy slipping backwards and landing on her head.

Again.

Synne quickly rolled to her feet and growled at the cat, as if it was the cat's fault she'd fallen.

"Leave the cat alone, Synne. It's guarding its home and is no threat to you."

Synne went silent at Aldritch's command and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. After a few seconds of this, she puffed out a breath and then sneezed… Then she walked over the wall attached to the cat's balcony, cocked her leg up, and urinated on the building.

"How petty: I love it."

Aldritch chuckled, "Of course you do."

"Not to ruin your mood or anything, but… Have you thought about what you're going to do with the remains?"

"After I adjust it a bit, I plan to give the sword to Sulika- it'll be far better than that mass market sword she's using now. Not sure what I'll do with the gauntlets yet. Suppose I'll hang on to them until their true owner reveals themselves." He replied before following Synne down a narrow alley.

"You could always give them to the Guild Master."

"Unlikely. While I don't have any problem with his character, the guild master's will leaves something to be desired. He'd be as likely to trade them away as use them."

"They are a tool, no? Should they not be used for whatever purpose is most useful?"

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Aldritch laughed quietly and his voice bounced strangely off the alley walls.

As the sound returned to his own ears, he couldn't help but smile. In an alley this size, with only himself in it, his voice should've bounced from one end to the other without interruption.

In other words, it should've echoed… And yet, it didn't.

He funneled a bit of mana into his eyes and scanned the space in front of him with Wisdom of the Great Sage- all the while acting as if nothing was wrong.

"You make a fair point." He muttered, "The purpose of a tool is for the master to determine, not me… That being said, I think the four of you should've found something better to do with your time."

Synne immediately reacted to the change in the air and rushed back to Aldritch's side with her teeth bared and her hackles raised in anger.

One by one, four hooded figures stepped from the shadows into the moonlight.

Three of them were of average height and weight and held a strange looking dagger tightly in their right hands. The last figure was much shorter than the other three and appeared unarmed; his hair-covered fists hanging limply by his sides.

"Where's Edward?" One of them said, a female by the sound of their voice.

Aldritch smiled, "Greetings, you have the honor of standing before Aldritch of clan Blackshield. Might I know your names?"

The four remained silent.

"No?" The smile fell from his face and Aldritch stepped towards them. "That's a shame."

The armed figures moved together with practiced ease and attacked.

"Aldritch…"

"I know, I smell it too."

One of the figures sprinted ahead while the other two fell into step behind him.

He thrust the dagger towards the giant's face- Aldritch twisted out of the way of the dagger and watched as dark droplets flew from the dagger's edge.

He grabbed the figure's hood, but instead of pulling it back and revealing their identity- Aldritch shoved them past his body and into the waiting jaws of Synne. While Aldritch stepped closer to the other two, she latched onto the figure's leg and dragged them to the ground with surprising strength for a puppy her size.

The other two assailants were now too close to stop their attacks, so they had no choice but to attack him together: One assailant going high, while the other went low.

Aldritch used his golden wristguard to parry the dagger aiming for his throat, grabbed the man's chest with his other arm, and shoved the attacker into the wall- Their back took the brunt of the damage, fracturing the wooden wall and almost sending the assailant inside the building.

Aldritch quickly cast Regeneration and Greater Heal on the figure before letting him fall to the ground.

Meanwhile, the other figure slid between his legs and slashed at both of his ankles- sparks flew from the dagger as it struck his metal-lined boots.

Aldritch left the first attacker to heal on his own and turned his attention to the one on his heels.

He reached out to grab her cloak- she countered by diving backwards and simultaneously throwing a black ball at his face.

Aldritch moved his head out of the way and watched it hit the wall behind him: the ball exploded into a dark red mist on impact.

"Spice balls- really?" He'd encountered these once before: they were a favorite of the dark-ops unit of an old human kingdom.

The ball was just a sponge covered in black paint, which was fine. But the irritating part came from the mixture of spices they soaked the balls in: they took the juice, seeds, and skin of a dozen or more hot peppers and mixed it all in a vat with a dead snake carcass.

Didn't taste half bad, but you wouldn't want to get any in your eye.

The woman's leap carried her well over Synne and her fallen ally, causing her to land near the mouth of the alley. The moment she hit the ground; she rolled to her feet and prepared to launch another attack-

"Enough…" The unarmed figure announced: his voice was familiar to Aldritch's ear. Even if Wisdom of the Great Sage hadn't already given their names, his voice would've given him away.

"Retreat." The figure continued, he melted into the shadows without waiting for his allies to respond.

"You heard the man- run away." Aldritch laughed, stepping over the unconscious man to grab Synne by the scruff of her neck- which prompted her to let go of the man's leg, albeit unwillingly.

She'd done a number on the leg too: rending the flesh almost down to the bone and covering her face and neck in blood.

"You need a bath." He muttered to the puppy, who shot him a sideways glance and slowly wagged her tail.

Aldritch cast Regeneration over the man's body and left the woman to tend to her fallen companions.

Just before he reached the other end of the alley, Aldritch stopped and looked back at the three assailants. "Hot or cold water for getting blood out of puppy fur?"

"Er… Cold?" The woman replied, utterly confused by the question.

"I thought as much. Thank you for answering my question, Lady Belna. And I apologize if I was a bit rough on your friend, but the next time someone asks you to test me… Do us both a favor and say no. I'd hate to kill one of Sulika and Faeyra's friends."

Emrid Belna went wide-eyed at the casual use of her name.

She immediately looked for the Giant's back… But he was already gone, returning to his moonlit walk through the sleeping city.