Chapter 47 #2
“Of course it’s good,” I cut in with a low grumble, shifting my weight. “Everything Moe does is good.”
“That is true,” Lis agrees without hesitation.
But she doesn’t even look at me.
Not once.
Her entire attention remains on Moe, unwavering, intense in a way that makes something cold coil in my chest.
I will find out what you truly want, Lis, I vow silently.
And when I do… I’ll show Moe exactly why you can’t be trusted.
The moment we leave Lis behind, her gaze still lingering on Moe in a way I don’t like, I know I’m not done with this.
Not even close.
“I’ll meet you back at the room,” I tell Moe once we’ve put enough distance between us and that fancy little corner of Aimaxion Lis calls home.
She tilts her head. “Where are you going?”
“Just… something I need to check.”
Her eyes narrow slightly, suspicion flickering there, but she doesn’t press. “Don’t take too long.”
“I won’t.”
I watch her go until she disappears into the crowd, then turn back toward the market, my jaw tightening as I push through the throng of bodies moving between the stalls.
The place is as alive as it ever gets—if this can even be called living. Warriors drift from one vendor to the next with that same restless edge, bartering tokens for food, weapons, scraps of armor. The air hums with tension, thick and restless as everyone waits for their next battle.
I may not know anyone around, but it’s not hard to get some people talking once I start asking questions about a certain suspicious female.
“Lis,” I say to a man leaning against a stall, his arm wrapped in bloodstained bandages. “You know her?”
His eyes widen, then he releases a sharp, annoyed laugh.
“You mean the ghost?” he says.
My brows knit together. “What?”
“She shows up when she feels like it. Disappears the same way.” He eyes me up and down. “Why?”
“Just asking.” I shrug.
“Don’t,” he says flatly. “That’s my advice.”
“Is she that infamous?”
His gaze intensifies. “It might get you killed.”
That’s one way of saying she’s dangerous—thank you for confirming!
I move on, hoping to get more details.
The next group doesn’t hesitate to talk.
“Oh, Lis?” one of them says, smirking. “Hard to miss her.”
Another snorts. “Yeah. First thing you notice is that face.”
“Face?” a third cuts in. “Please. It’s the rest of her I noticed.”
They laugh at their own ribald jokes.
I may not like the female but I also don’t particularly appreciate this crude way of talking about her.
“She walks in and suddenly every idiot forgets where they are,” the first one continues. “Seen men lose fights because they couldn’t stop staring at her.”
“Seen worse,” another adds with a grin. “One guy thought he had a chance. Tried to get close. Thought maybe she’d be… receptive to his advances.”
“And?” I ask, unable to mask my curiosity.
“He’s alive,” the man says. Then pauses. “Well, technically.”
They burst into laughter again. My jaw clenches.
“What happened?”
“He didn’t even get a full sentence out,” the third says, mimicking a slicing motion across his throat. “She shut him up real quick.”
“Another one tried to corner her,” someone else adds from behind them. “Thought he’d be clever about it. Flirting, touching—”
“Touching?” I repeat, not liking the direction of this at all.
“Yeah.” A smirk. “Didn’t keep that hand for long.”
More annoying laughter and I have to stop myself from cutting their tongues out.
Realizing I’m not going to get more out of them, I leave. They continue with their lewd jokes, their guffaws echoing through the stalls.
Fuckers! I wouldn’t mind encountering one of those in my next fight and see how they react to being cornered.
I continue asking my questions, but somewhere along the line the tone shifts. It becomes more cautious…almost afraid.
“She’s been here too long,” a woman mutters when I bring her up. “People at her level don’t stay unless they want something.” In a quiet voice she continues, “It’s said she almost reached one thousand points multiple times, but she always spends them on tokens so she doesn’t have to leave.
“Why? What do you think she wants?” I inquire, thinking I’ve finally gotten somewhere.
She glances at me, then away. “You shouldn’t ask too many questions.”
That’s…ominous. And it makes me all the more interested. What the hell is Lis hiding? And why is she so focused on my Moe?
I move on. It becomes harder and harder to find people willing to talk about her, some even demanding payment before saying anything.
“Top-tier,” a man says. “Untouchable.”
I keep walking, but the earlier comments stay with me.
The way they talked about her unsettled me—like she was something both coveted and lethal, the kind of temptation that destroyed anyone foolish enough to act on it.
And yet every story they told had one thing in common.
Men.
Every failed attempt involved men who desired her.
My steps slow as an unwelcome thought begins to take shape.
If she has no interest in men… then what does she want?
My jaw tightens. The memory of her intensity toward Moe flashes through my brain.
Is that why she remains here, despite being strong enough to leave this place whenever she wishes?
Because she found something worth staying for? Because she found Moe? My Moe?
Jealousy slithers through me—cold and ugly in its intensity.
I drag a hand through my hair and turn back toward our room, my pulse beating harder with every step.
Whatever Lis wants—whatever she thinks she sees in Moe—she won’t get it. I don’t care if she’s the strongest in the entire Aimaxion. If she dares to mess with my girl, I will find a way to bury her. I don’t care what I have to do, or the sacrifices I have to make.
I just got Moe’s regard—something I’ve been dreaming about for so long. I’m not about to let anything stand in the way of our happiness. Especially not that damned Lis.
My expression hardens as I shove through the crowd.
I was right that there is something suspicious about Lis. Now I just have to convince Moe about it too.