They made the decision to go down the stairs.
No one said anything at first. The air was heavy and quiet. Only the sound of their steps echoed through the stone stairs. Aric was thinking about what they might find below.
Rune looked around carefully, holding his sword tightly. Ryn was next to him, hir face calm, but hir eyes alert. Elias and Kail stayed close, their hands already near their weapons.
On the way down, they talked a little, whispering.
"Why would they bring her here?" Rune asked softly.
"Maybe it's their hideout," Ryn answered.
"It's too quiet…" Elias said, looking over his shoulder.
"I feel something bad," Aric thought.
When they finally reached the bottom, they stood in front of a large metal door. It was old and rusty. They pushed it open slowly.
Inside, it looked like an old casino. Dust covered the round tables. Broken cards and coins were still on the ground. There were faded posters on the walls, and the smell of mold filled the air.
"What is this place…?" Kail said.
"A abandoned casino," Rune muttered.
They spread out a little and began to look around.
"There might be clues here," Aric said. "Let's check everything."
As they searched the casino, they found a hallway that led to another room. The door was half open.
When they walked inside, they found seven people standing there, all of them wearing cloaks and armor. They looked surprised for a second, then serious.
"Who are you?" one of the men asked coldly.
"We should be asking you that," Ryn replied.
Aric looked around. That's when he saw her—a young lady with black hair, tied to a chair. She was asleep, her head low.
"The lady!" the butler suddenly said behind them. "It's her!"
Aric looked at the butler. "You know her?"
"Yes… she's the one I was looking for. That's Lady Viorel."
"She's beautiful," Kail whispered without thinking.
Her long black hair flowed like silk, and her pale skin made her look like she was glowing. Even tied to a chair, even asleep, she looked graceful.
"They used magic to put her to sleep," Rune said, pointing to a small glowing symbol on her neck.
Aric's face turned serious. "So these are the kidnappers."
The moment he said that, the enemies drew their weapons.
"They're going to fight!" Elias shouted.
And so the battle began.
The strongest one stepped forward. He had a scar over his nose and dark eyes that looked down on everyone.
"I'll take you," he said to Aric.
Aric's sword was already in his hand. He didn't answer with words. He just rushed forward.
Their swords clashed with a loud sound. Sparks flew.
"This guy… he's strong," Aric thought. "An S-Rank."
Behind him, two other strong enemies came forward—both A-Rank warriors. Aric jumped back and took all three of them on at once.
"This is might be troublesome," Aric said. "But I've fought worse."
He dodged fast, blocked hard, and struck even faster.
Ryn ran toward one of the A-Rank warriors and a B-Rank mage. The mage tried to cast a fire spell, but Ryn threw a dagger and stopped it. He swung his sword at the A-Rank.
"I'll handle you!" he shouted.
"I won't lose to you!" the warrior yelled back.
Ryn moved like water, fast and smooth. "I won't lose either."
Rune took on the other B-Rank. Their swords hit again and again.
"You're not bad," Rune said, smiling.
"Same to you," the man said.
Elias and Kail fought another B-Rank together. Elias went in first, while Kail stayed back to guard.
"Don't let him hit you!" Kail shouted.
"I know!" Elias said, swinging hard.
They fought together, using teamwork.
The butler stayed behind, watching the fight. He was a adventurer, so he didn't move.
"This isn't my job," he thought. "I already asked for help. They can handle it."
One by one, the enemies fell. Aric's sword finally hit the S-Rank's shoulder, making him fall to his knees.
"You're… strong…" the man said, then passed out.
Ryn knocked his enemy down with a hard kick, while Rune disarmed his enemy and made him surrender. Elias and Kail tied up the last one.
The battle was over.
Aric walked over to the girl. He bent down and checked the magic symbol. With one slice of his sword, he cut the rope.
The glowing mark faded.
"Is she okay?" The butler asked.
"She's waking up," Rune said.
The girl opened her eyes slowly. Dark blue eyes like the night sky.
She blinked, then looked at them.
"You saved me?" she asked softly.
"Yes," Aric said. "You're safe now."
She smiled gently. Even tired and weak, she looked very beautiful.
"Thank you… all of you."
Then they returned to the place where Lady Viorel stayed.
She sat down in the main room, wrapped in a blanket.
"Do you remember what happened?" Aric asked.
She nodded slowly.
"I had just woken up, made my bed and everything else like I do every day. Then suddenly someone grabbed me from behind. They used sleep magic. I don't remember much after that…"
"You were lucky," Ryn said. "We found you in time."
"I don't know how to thank you all."
The butler stepped forward. He bowed.
"You saved my lady. For that, I want to give you something."
He gave each of them three golden coins.
"One gold coin is worth a hundred silver coins," said Kail. " I can't believe you're giving us this mutch!"
They all stared at the gold in their hands.
"This is a lot," Rune said.
"You deserve it," the butler said. "Thank you again."
Aric smiled. He looked at his friends.
They were tired, but they were all smiling too.
They left the house as the sun began to set.
"She was really pretty…" Kail said again.
"Let it go, Kail," Ryn said, laughing.
Aric looked up at the sky.
"We did something good today," he thought.
A quiet sense of accomplishment settled over him.