81 The Foster Gang
“Why are all demis so stupid!? Get rid of her and do it quickly. Our boss does not like to wait.” The leader of the group yelled out. On his words, three men charged at me. I could only try to protect Sophie while fending them off.
But I was naive. I did not take a good enough look around my surroundings. Right as the three men struck out at me, two more came from our back and grabbed Sophie! Before I could even react, I was surrounded. I quickly kicked one of them away while slapping the other two with my tail and went to try to break through the line, but I was quickly surrounded by earth magic.
“Get out of my way!” I yelled out while kicking the earth wall in front of me, smashing it to pieces.
“Girl, you are indeed strong, but you best stay out of this. I am saying this for your own good. Just forget about that girl. She belongs to the Count.” I heard the leader say.
The problem was not the fact that these men were surrounding me but the fact that I was in the city and could not kill. “I might be fined for flying but screw it. I will not allow you to take Sophie away.” I jumped into the air and flapped my wings, and flew off. I did not get far before sensing danger from behind. I quickly dodged to the side as a fireball came flying past me. I wrinkled my nose and put up a mana barrier before flying off as fast as I could.
The way I see it, I could not kill that man, nor could he kill me. Killing inside the city and getting caught was an instant death sentence. And this was a law that was upheld no matter what. With so many people, it would be hard to rule without such harsh punishments for crimes, which was why a list of crimes were slated for death without trial. As long as you were caught red handed or all evidence pointed to you, the guards and knights in the city could kill you without holding a trial. But evidence had to be shown. At least, this was how Adel explained it.
I flew off in the direction they took Sophie, but I had completely lost track of her. “Detection!” I scanned the whole area, but there was no sign of them at all. I kept trying while looking high and low, but I could not find them anywhere. Even the men I was fighting earlier all disappeared. I flapped my wings and landed down on the ground, and walked back out to where I was fighting those men and felt stumped. I quickly walked over to one of the stalls nearby: “Excuse me, did you see that large group of men here just earlier that kidnapped a fox girl!?”
“You mean the Foster Gang? Girl, I do not know what relationship you have with that fox girl, but I think you better forget about it. The Foster Gang has Count Freedman’s backing. No matter what they do, as long as they do not break any of the three major laws, they can practically do anything they want.” The man I was talking to was referring to the three major laws that can get you on the spot judgment was killing, rape, and arson. While there was more than this, these three were considered the worst of the worst, which was why they were called the three major laws.
“Where can I find this Foster Gang?” I had only this one clue. If I wanted to save Sophie, I had no choice but to go in. If I use some sleep magic, I can knock them all out without having to kill anyone. However, I did need to hit the one who tossed a fireball at me. It singed a few strands of my hair!
The stall owner furrowed his brow before letting out a sigh. “Little girl, I know you wish to help your friend. But it’s best if you do not go…. Just think of it as this old man trying to save your life.” ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
“Sir, please. I beg you. I will even pay for the information. Sophie is my friend and was already kidnapped from her hometown. How can I leave her alone now when she needs someone to save her? Plus. I am strong. I can destroy your stall if you would like me to prove it.” Yes, I used a threat! I have no choice. It is either he tells me, or I prove my strength!
The stall owner sighed once more before shaking his head. “Go down to the east side of town at the East Side Slums. There is a large building deep in the slums. If you hurry, you can make it there by nightfall. But be careful. I heard they have set up quite a few magic defensive systems in that place. Also, those bastards have someone who is able to set up teleportation points. This is probably how they disappeared so quickly.”
I fished out five silver and placed them on the stall counter. “To show my thanks, thank you.”
I turned and took off from there. The east side slums was not a place I knew about nor how to get there, but I figured with detection magic running over a great distance, giving me a view overhead, I should be able to find it with no problem. But if these people have teleportation systems, things may get tricky. If they have one to the Count’s territory on the floating island, then I might be in for a bit of a long flight. I just hope I can reach her before that happens.
I ran through the streets instead of flying this time. There was a law that kept people from being able to fly through the air. But I wonder why they would have such a law when from what I understand, there were not many who could fly on their own unless it was a demi human like myself with wings. Well, I guess there could have been a time when airships and those with wings would get into accidents. Or it could be to ensure the safety of the nobles living on the floating island. If I had to guess, the latter was most likely the case.
As I continued forward, I noticed a distinct difference in the quality of the buildings. They were becoming more and more run down the further east I went. It made me wonder just how much of this city was actually slums. I guess my perception of the quality of life of the lower city was actually nothing more than an illusion.
If that was the case, then I wonder what could be done to improve the lives of these people. Seeing the kids running around in rags made my heart feel bitter. Here I was being treated like a princess while these kids were barely living. And the deeper I went into the slums, the worse it got.
Crime seems to run rampant here. I had to restrain myself from helping those I saw. Sophie’s matter took precedence at this time. And even if I did help today. What about the next day? Or the day after? This was a place where the law of the city did not reach, it seemed. What meaning did the laws of the city have in this part of the city when no one came to police this section to keep crime low. And if they did, they were probably all corrupt. It is no wonder that the Count could have the Foster Gang hiding here doing all his dirty work for him.
I kept moving, speeding up as much as possible, whizzing by everyone who tried to stop me. I had no time to spare. Time was of the essence, and I still did not know if Sophie was taken to the floating island yet or not. If she has made it to the floating island, I would need to do one of two things. The first would be to beat the people in the Foster Gang until they tell me where the teleporter is, and the second would be to fly up there myself.
As I continued deeper into the slums, my detection magic finally honed in on the leader of the people I had just fought standing outside one of the buildings. I stopped off at a small alley not too far from the building and used my detection magic to scan the building. “Four floors above ground and two floors below? But no signs of Sophie…. Hmmm? A magic circle? Is this the teleporter?”
I was not sure, but since the boss man was standing there, I guess I could always ask him. I took a deep breath and walked out of the alley and towards the man who was smoking what I guess is this world’s equivalent of a cigarette. I stopped right in front of him and watched as his eyes went wide and the cigarette in his hand dropped to the ground. “You! How!?”
“Let’s talk shall we?” I smiled and reached out and grabbed him by the next. My smile slowly faded as my eyes became cold: “Where is Sophie?”