We sit cross-legged in a loose circle inside the damp stillness of the cave. Our breaths are slow and measured as we circulate mana toward our wounds to patch up our battered bodies in this moment of relative peace.

Beyond the stone walls, the hailstorm rages on with a ferocity that echoes through the mountains, each smoldering obsidian shard striking rock with a crack like splintering bone. The sound rolls inward, a relentless percussion that mingles with the steady hum of mana flowing toward us.

Han Ke and Kenae listen with closed eyes, as if treating the storm as a teacher, each impact a lesson in endurance. Enea seems nervous, though. She flinches at each particularly noisy impact, then frowns at the silence between blows, her body tense and alert as if wary of the next surprise.

"So why do you think those guys are following us?" I ask.

"It's probably because of me, sorry," says Han Ke. "None of you is important enough to catch attention or have serious enemies."

"Hmm," I mutter, frowning. That isn't true, but the boy doesn't know that. "But why?"

"They could be mercenaries contracted by some other Han scion. There is fierce competition to rise in the internal clan rankings. The higher you get, the more resources they invest in you," explains the boy. "Not all of them compete fairly."

Enea raises her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Yeah! It may not appear that way from the outside. But the clan's younger generation is like a nest of vipers," complains Han Ke. "Everybody only cares for themselves, and Linea is the worst of them all."

Interesting. Is the boy implying that he is different? Somehow, I don't believe it. Could it be that he approached us because his cousin sees me as a rival? He may be speaking the truth, or he may be spying on us for his cousin. Who knows? I'll have to keep an eye on his actions once we get out of here.

"Bad men say kill big boy, capture females," interjects Kylo. "Bad men say sell females for breeding, extra money."

"Awesome," whispers Han Ke. "Your cat really can speak."

I tilt my head, forgetting about my bruised skin for an instant. Hadn't he heard him before? I can't remember.

"So they want to sell us girls?" I mutter. "I wasn't aware that there are slave-traders in the city."

"Emm." Han Ke looks up at me, then down at the floor, a betraying flush creeping all the way to his ears. "It's shameful, there shouldn't be. However, with the war ongoing, the surrounding bandit tribes have become increasingly brazen in their actions. There aren't enough high-ranking clan members present to control them."

"I see."

"It seems that they do are after you, Ke-Ke," hisses Kenae, her jaw clenched so hard the muscles jump like a knot of stone. Her hands curl into fists. "We will have to get rid of those bastards sooner or later. I hope we can find them before we clear this dungeon."

Ke-Ke? I share a look with Enea, who seems to be suppressing a snicker of amusement, holding her breath. I see her cheeks getting increasingly red before she releases the air in a low whistle that none of the others react to.

"Well, Kylo said they have a tracking device. I suppose that it's they who will find us once the storm calms down and they find a way to cross the river."

"Yes, bad men tracking artifact."

We all cast furtive glances at each other.

"Who of us do you think they are tracking?" asks Enea. "And how?"

We sit for a few heartbeats in silence, listening to the storm, pondering.

"Well, it must be Han Ke. Right?" asks Kenae, even if there is some doubt written in her face. "They are after him after all."

"Yeah!"

She is probably right. But how are they doing it? Are they tracking him directly? How would that even work? Attuning something to follow his unique energy signature, between all the noise of the dungeon, seems far-fetched. Not something I would wager any reasonable artifact at our level would be capable of doing. They could always have some pricey clan treasure with them, depending on who is backing them. But that seems risky. What if they lose it?

No. Clans are supposed to be stingy with what they lend others. It must be something simpler, probably something they planted on scion that leaves a trail to follow, a signal to detect from afar. But where would they hide it? And when? He has so many artifacts on him.

My eyes wander over the runes on the boy's armor with envy, tuning out the whispered conversation of my companions. A dull, restless longing simmers beneath my ribs, unshaped yet constant, turning my attention away from everything else. My eyes keep drifting back to the runes on the armor, no matter how hard I try to focus on our current problem. I would love to have a closer look at them. I shake my head, trying to concentrate. This isn't the time or place for distractions. Or is it? Wait!

"Were you present the last time they did maintenance on your armor?" I ask, interrupting whatever my companions were talking about. Their heads whip toward me.

"No," answers Han Ke. "Our clan armorer does it. Well, him or some of his apprentices."

"Do you know if any of them could be bought or have a grudge toward you?" I ask. "With all those runes and active enchantments, it seems the most likely place to place a tracker discreetly."

"That can't be!" exclaims Han Ke, his back stiff like a rod. A sharp breath cuts his lips as if the mere idea were an insult to his clan. "Our runesmiths are loyal to the clan. If someone got caught doing something like that, they would get purged."

I raise my eyebrows. "You sure?"

"Emm." He scratches his neck, then his shoulders sag, and he seems to deflate. "Well. It could be an inside job. Some of the apprentices are new. I can see them risking it as long as they believe that they won't get caught," he admits. "I suppose that if they are sure that I will disappear into the dungeon, they could get greedy. They are too new to have loyalty instilled into them."

How naïve. At least the boy admits the possibility.

"Can you take off your armor?" I ask. "I want to take a closer look at the enchantments."

"Yeah, sure," answers Han Ke. "I can use my spare armor. That one has been collecting dust inside my spatial storage for ages."

I suppress the urge to roll my eyes. Of course! The boy carries a spare armor on him, rich dude.

The clasps give a dull metallic snap as Han Ke undresses himself, followed by the slow rasp of steel plates sliding against another. Leather straps creak as they loosen, the sound sharp in the still air of the cave. A gauntlet drops onto the stone with a heavy thud, then another. Piece by piece, the armor surrenders, groaning in protest wherever the storm we escaped from has bent the metal, until only the faint rustle of cloth remains beneath the hushed weight of discarded steel.

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I take one of the greaves and start studying it.

"Do you understand runes, Minae?" asks someone, though the voice sounds distant, like a bell trying to pierce the fog that surrounds my focus.

I look up, startled. "What?"

Han Ke and Enea are staring at me, while Kenae's gaze doesn't leave the boy's abbs. Kylo sits on the side, observing us while he licks his paws.

"I asked if you understand runes," repeats Enea. "I didn't know that they interested you.

Shit! I can't give myself away. "Not really," I try to find an excuse for my interest. Think fast! "I'm trying to feel if there is some emission of mana somewhere." I look up at them. "There must be some kind of signal that the tracking artifact those guys have can pick up."

"Oh!" exclaims Han Ke. "That's smart! Wait, let us help you."

Phew, crisis diverted. I watch them kneeling around me, each taking a piece of the battered armor into their laps.

"So, what exactly are we looking for?" asks Kenae.

"I don't know. A regular mana-pulse, I suppose."

I already found the issue. There is a suspicious rune on the inside of the breastplate. I recognize the mana and the emit components, even though I don't understand the rest. But there isn't any hurry to tell them. Let someone else find it too. The longer it takes, the more time I have to study the other runes. I wish I could take notes, but that would look too suspicious.

I study rune design after rune design, comparing, looking for similarities, differences, components I haven't seen yet, trying to brand each one into my mind to sketch them later.

Time passes. Hmm. My companions aren't very sensitive to mana-flows. I'm surprised that they haven't found the emitter yet. Well, more time to study for me. The storm is still raging outside. I wonder if it will ever calm down.

I hear a sound, deeper in the cave, a surprised yelp. I look up into the eyes of a startled lizardman, another scout. Before I can react, Kylo pounces from the shadows, biting down on the lizardman's neck. Bones crack. The creature goes limp, sagging to the ground. The noise of the skirmish gets drowned out under the relentless roar of the falling obsidian shards outside. Kylo drags his prey deeper into the shadows, toward a row of suspicious-looking heaps. More dead lizardmen? Right. We can't forget that we aren't alone in this cave. How many of them has he killed?

Kylo shrinks into his cat-form before strolling back toward us. Nobody seems to have noticed him.

"Found it!" yells Enea, staring at the breastplate in her lap. "Look, can you feel that?"

The attention of my other two companions snaps toward her.

"Feel what?" asks Kenae.

"The pulse!" exclaims the younger girl, seeming excited.

Han Ke frowns. "I can't feel anything."

"Me neither," adds Kenae.

Curious, so Enea is the most sensitive to mana among all of us. I didn't really feel the pulse either; I just found the rune suspicious when I studied it. It makes sense. The tracker must be discreet so that the one tracked doesn't get suspicious.

"There, put your hand on that rune and wait," explains Enea.

Han Ke follows her instructions. Nothing seems to happen for a few heartbeats, then he frowns.

"Huh?" He looks toward me, then at Enea, who casts a beaming smile at him. "I think you girls are right. There really seems to be a tracking rune etched into the metal." He frowns. "When I'm not wearing my armor, all enchantments should be inactive to preserve mana, except the auto repair runes, but I know which ones those are, and it isn't this one."

"Traitors," whispers Kenae, a flicker of anger dilating her pupils for an instant.

An auto repair rune? Interesting. I want it. I think I remember which one he means. It's the only one present on every piece of the armor.

Han Ke clenches his jaw, pressing his teeth together. "This is outrageous!" he hisses. "We have a mole! When we get out of here, heads will roll." He stores the offending breastplate in his spatial storage.

"Wait!" I exclaim. "Pull it out again. If they can't track us anymore, they may get suspicious."

He stares at me, mouth half-open. "Right." The breastplate appears again.

"Now that we know about it, we could use it to set our ambush," comments Kenae. "Leave it somewhere, then retrace our steps to attack those bastards from behind when they don't expect it.

"Kylo like idea. Kenae smart hunter, sneaky, sneaky," comments the cat, reminding us of his presence. Enea strokes his head, making him purr in delight.

My thoughts race. Pieces click together, and a plan shapes in my mind. "I have an even better idea," I say, smirking. "What if we leave it somewhere for those lizardmen to find?" Everybody looks at me. "They are scavengers. Right? Let them take it to their lair. Why should we worry about clearing the dungeon if those murderous idiots following us can do it for us?"

Han Ke laughs. "I didn't expect you to be so devious, Minae. I like it. Yes, let them do the work for us. Then we kill them once they are tired!"

"Like they wanted to do with us!" exclaims Enea, clapping her hands together. "I love it! Serves those bastards right, wanting to sell us as if we were cattle."

I pull out a notebook, a sharpened feather pen, and regular ink. "Let me copy the rune in question to have proof just in case we lose the breastplate," I say.

"Good idea!" exclaims Han Ke.

I suppress a smile, copying the design with care, glancing again at the auto repair rune below to refresh my memory of it. With a bit of luck, I'll get two new runes to study and experiment with. Complex runes with a lot of components each that I can try to combine in other ways, expanding my repertoire.

I should browse the academy's library again as soon as I can. Last time I did, I wasn't lucky. The free stuff I found was basic. You can borrow a more advanced book by spending contribution points on it. It isn't even that expensive, but it leaves a record of your interests that every teacher can check. That seems a bit risky. I didn't feel comfortable with the idea. Maybe in a few months.

The additional benefit of copying the tracker rune is that it could give me an excuse to accompany Han Ke into his clan compound if I play it right. Another piece that falls into place. I only need to destroy the breastplate or at least the original rune on it at the right moment if those lizardmen don't do it for me.

"Well. Where should we leave it?" asks Han Ke.

He has already stored all the pieces we don't need, only leaving the breastplate on the ground. Kenae is helping him dress in his second armor, which has a dull black color, almost like the obsidian outside. For some reason, she seems to fumble a bit too much with each strap.

"Somewhere those lizards will find it, of course," I say.

"Yeah, but where?"

"Kylo know," interjects the cat. "Party follow Kylo." We look at each other and shrug. Han Ke picks up the breastplate from the ground with a grunt. Kylo has already strolled toward a tunnel leading deeper into the mountain. He stops and turns his head, looking back at us over his shoulder. "Come, follow Kylo."

The cat guides us through a cavern, another tunnel, a third cavern. When did he have time to explore this far? From time to time, I see suspicious heaps hidden in the shadows behind columns and stalagmites. More lizardmen that he already butchered? None of the others seems aware of them, probably because they don't expect it. Kylo advances fast, rushing us to follow him. Well, if they don't stumble upon the bodies, I won't tell them. Let's keep Kylo's abilities secret. Smart of him to hide them.

Finally, he stops in the middle of a large cavern. "Leave by river," he commands. His ears flicker as if listening to something only he can hear. "Good," he praises after Han Ke leaves the breastplate on the ground with care, barely making any noise. "Boy smart, boy sneaky. Follow!"

He rushes toward the side of the cavern, following the river upstream, weaving between pearl white columns faintly illuminated by bioluminescent moss. "Hurry, lizard come."

We run with renewed haste. Kylo guides us through a labyrinth of tunnels until I lose all sense of direction. Then he makes us stop so abruptly at the entrance of another cavern that Enea stumbles into me from behind.

"Sorry," she whispers.

I give her a reassuring smile. She smiles back. Kenae pushes past us to get a better look, then gasps. Han Ke smiles, patting Kylo on the head for some reason.

"You must be the smartest kitty ever, mate," he mumbles.

Kylo puffs his chest. "Kylo smart, Kylo sneaky," he says.

I push closer to the edge to get a peek at what they are talking about. We are back at the cavern we left the breastplate in, but high up on a wall, hidden from view by a curtain of ivory stalactites. Down below, by the river, three lizardmen are poking and prodding at the breastplate with spears, chattering in their guttural tongue, even though the rushing water drowns out most of the sound.

As nothing happens, they get bolder and bolder. Until one of the lizardmen touches the metal with a hand, retracting it as if the armor would bite, before touching it again. He shrugs, almost human-like, before lifting the breastplate, swaying from side to side at the weight. They chatter again for a while, increasingly excited, before disappearing together into a tunnel on the far side of the cave.

I feel Enea tense at my side, ready for action, but I catch her by the shoulder.

She looks at me. "We need to follow them to find their lair!"

"Not really," I say. "That would undermine the purpose. We could get caught between our stalkers and the lizards," I explain. "Let's wait for those guys to follow the lizard's tracks, then we can shadow them."

"Oh, right," says Enea. "That makes sense, unless there is another entrance into their lair."

"There won't be," interjects Han Ke. "Dungeons might seem open-ended and labyrinthic, but this is clearly another zone. There aren't short-cuts between zones in low-ranked dungeons."

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