The Armorer Ch 32 (Patreon)

"You're a Topaz addict," the constable uttered. His tone was bitter. "A debitor too?" He sighed, sniffing the air.

I sniffed the air too. For some reason, my body didn’t just smell like sweat and roadside dirt. There was a very distinctive smell of rotting eggs coming from me. Sulfur? Why was I smelling like god-damned sulfur?

"Yeah," I croaked. "So what?"

"Your tattoo smells like you haven't been making your Guild payments for months," the constable commented drily. "Don't expect charity from me, addict."

"I'm not here to beg for money," I said, examining the man's spotless uniform. A little silver plate on his chest declared him as [Inspector Lambert]. "I would like to report a crime, Inspector Lambert."

"Come to tattle on your colleagues?" The man asked, not moving from the gate. "I'm afraid I'm not authorized to give money to Topaz addicts, but I can give you… food vouchers. I hope you know that the Guilds don't take kindly to those that betray their interests."

"I'm not here to talk about Guild activities, inspector," I said in a serious tone. "If you would be so kind as to help me upstairs to your truth-sphere so that I might reveal to you exactly why I possess this sickly disposition."

After another minute of a judging me and pondering over my words, Lambert helped me up the stairwell. He wasn't gentle about it, grumbling about my heavy backpack. He led me into a fairly austere office at the top of the tower. A small, watercolor portrait of Emperor Bolsh the 2nd was hanging above a steel desk that held a pale, crystal sphere in its center.

Inspector Lambert went around the table and sat down on his plain, steel chair.

“Have a seat,” he said tiredly, pointing at the chair in front of the desk, clearly not looking forward to speaking with an addict. “Place your right hand on this sphere and speak one sentence that is the absolute truth. Start with your name.”

“My name is Grogtilda Lic Misem and I’m a level five human girl,” I said as I rested my hand on the sphere. Green swirls manifested within the dim crystal interiors of the artifact, blossoming into a vibrant, pulsating spiral.

“Now speak a sentence that is a lie,” Inspector said.

“I’m a giant, evil bug in disguise and I love staring into the Dungeon’s bottomless chasm. It absolutely doesn't give me nightmares and migraines,” I said. The green swirls died, replaced with blood-red foreboding, intensifying flashes.

“Very good,” Lambert nodded, looking serious. He tapped his silver spectacles and small runes flashed on the frames. “You are indeed a Level five. Thank you for being honest.”

“Please stop judging me, inspector,” I said, staring back into his gray eyes. “I’m not a Topaz addict. My body survived three months inside of a Folding Seed on level twenty of the Dungeon.”

“Three months?!” The inspector gasped as the green-tinted sphere confirmed my words. “Oh my poor girl, I am sorry for misjudging you! How are you still alive?!”

“My adventurers group funded by the Fighters Guild was captured by a LV 20 Folding Seed. I ended up wearing several protective artifacts and a hex-lantern on my body. They helped me survive longer than the others.”

“So, you were rescued by another party?” Lambert asked curiously.

“Yes,” I nodded. “With the exception of a single fact. I wasn’t rescued by… humans.”

The sphere flashed green. Lambert’s eyes grew wider.

“There are highly intelligent monsters that live in the Chasm,” I said. “They look… almost human.”

“Almost human?” The inspector’s eyebrows went up. “I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“My body was dying. The Folding Seed drained all magic from it. I managed to deceive the monsters that found me, made them think that I was one of them,” I explained. “The leader of these monsters healed me and taught me their language.”

“That’s incredible,” Lambert gasped. “Intelligent monsters that look like people? You must report your findings to the nearest Arcanarium so that the classification list of Dungeon Monsters can be updated.”

“No,” I shook my head. “I cannot. What I am about to tell you must not leave this room.”

“What?” My interviewer blinked.

“Like I told you earlier, inspector… I am here to report a crime,” I repeated. “Not just one at that. Crimes. What I had discovered is a... Threat against Humanity.”

My words hung in the air, the room bathed in green refractions cast by the crystal sphere. Inspector’s face grew pale. His mouth fell open in abject terror.

“No,” He looked at my face and then at the green-tinted sphere.

“Yes,” I said, hammering in another metaphorical nail into his peaceful, small-town world. I pointed at the portrait behind the constable. “The most trusted people closest to the Emperor Bolsh are actually Dungeon Monsters in disguise!”

“No, no… no… this cannot be,” Lambert looked distraught.

“And yet it is the truth, inspector,” I sighed. “Unless you think that both your truth-sphere and rune glasses are broken. A level five would not be able to deceive your artifact. What I discovered is a conspiracy against humanity that had been fermenting for hundreds of years, maybe even longer.”

“I’m… just a small-town constable,” Lambert uttered. “You need to take this… to someone higher. I can’t…”

“I’d love to, but I value my life,” I shook my head. “Your own Barony could be compromised!”

“Is it…?” Lambert whispered.

“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “You’re a constable. I’m just a thirteen-year old debitor who hasn’t made payments in months because I was trapped down in the Dungeon.”

“Damn it all,” the inspector rubbed his temples, looking away from me.

I let go of the truth-sphere, reached into my bag and pulled out a wooden arbalest that was far too large to fit inside it. “I need to be able to trust you, inspector. Place your hand on the sphere and tell me that you are an honest man that’s not working for monsters.”

Lambert looked at the arbalest pointed at his chest. His shaking hand moved to the crystal sphere. “I’m not working for dungeon monsters... as far as I know. I’ve stood up for justice and honor my entire life.”

“Thank you,” I slid the arbalest back into Saccy.

“You’re more resourceful than you look, girl,” the inspector commented, exhaling. “Not afraid of threatening a constable, either. Now, how can we tell these monsters apart from people?”

“You can’t. The conspiracy goes deep. From what I understand they’ve destroyed all artifacts that were able to spot them,” I said. “I am the only human that knows their language. I can pretend to be one of them and make a full list of the compromised nobles. I simply need resources and time. I came to you because you are someone who's far away from the palaces of Illatius, yet close enough to act when the time comes."

Lambert looked at me wearily.

"I didn't come here to attain a mere food voucher. I'd like a job with the Constabulary, inspector."

"You are a debitor," Lambert mulled, his moustache twitching.

"I was born into my family’s debt," I nodded. "I'd like to pay it off. I would like to serve as a free agent."

"A free agent?" Lambert raised an eyebrow. “How do you even know of such a title?”

"There was a precedent for it. One hundred and sixty years ago, an Undertown lowborn by the name Ignis Vox made a deal with a corrupt constable. He was made a free agent of the State. He had misused this privilege to falsify records, gained great wealth and was later executed for his crimes when the Illatius Constabulary finally caught up to his machinations."

I place my hand back on the truth-sphere. "Unlike Ignis Vox, I want to save people, inspector. These monsters… eat human souls. I suspect that they experiment on people, studying our magic, weaknesses and strengths. We need to stop them. It is unfortunate that the job of saving the Empire has fallen to the lap of a small town constable and a thirteen year old debitor, but life does not always hand us the best cards to play with. It might take us decades to weed out this infestation, but I am willing to do it. Are you in? Will you help me protect humanity, even if it means taking down a few Barons?”

“I am,” Lambert sighed. He readjusted his collar and walked to the window, looking out over the evening town of Lomb towards the distant spires of Illatius. “In the name of the Emperor, I must protect what is dear to me and uphold the law. I will not allow Dungeon Monsters to rule the Empire.”

He turned back to me and tapped a silver bracelet on his wrist. “Open new case file, number 6604. By the authorization of Lomb Township Constabulary, I, Inspector Lambert Cu Durer Archibal, I am hereby assigning… diver Grogtilda Lic Misem the status of a free agent of the Lomb Constabulary under my care and funds.”

“Call me Yulia,” I said, offering the inspector my hand.

“Yulia?” The inspector shook my hand, his grip firm.

“I’d like to be more than what my poor Undertown parents gave me,” I said. “I want to earn my place in Illatius, to rise above my birth name. I’d like to be… free from Guild ownership. The name Yulia is derived from Julius, a leader of a nation that stood long, long ago. It’s my declaration, the beginning of a path towards a dangerous, but fulfilling mission.”

“Noted,” Lambert nodded. “You can spend the night at the Station - there’s a small bedroom for skyship pilots to rest in the tower overnight. I’ll write you a check tomorrow morning and walk you to the bank so that you stop reeking like a debtor.”

I smiled. I had taken a single step towards paying off Grogtilda’s debt and made my first human friend. Work colleague? Whatever. A small town policeman like Inspector Lambert didn’t hold much sway or power compared to the Barons, but as an Urban explorer I knew that making friends with local law enforcement was always a great place to start before diving headfirst into local underground tunnels.

Where Thomas Cole aka Ignius Vox had used deception, bribes and trickery to shake a fortune out of the nobles, I would use the truth as a weapon to cudgel exactly what I wanted out of life.