I Reincarnated into a Single-celled Organism! - Chapter 201

Lucky adjusted his armor.

“Will you quit playing with it?” I hissed. “You need to look comfortable in it.”

“Well, I’m not comfortable in it!” Lucky growled. “It was tight in the wrong places and loose where it matters! It won’t protect me at all.”

“You don’t need to fight in it.” I sighed. “You just need to look like you belong in this camp.”

The pair of us had already passed the perimeter of the mercenary camp and were now walking among the tents. No one even looked twice at two mercenaries entering the camp late at night. It took nothing more than a nod from a half-asleep guard, and we were there. Yet, Lucky continued to fidget with it, which might draw an eye or two if anyone was looking our way. I knew I should probably cut him some slack. I was able to reshape my body to match my armor. Of course, I didn’t do it in any noticeable way, but it was enough that the armor fit comfortably. Of course, Lucky couldn’t reshape parts of his body at will.

The hills surrounding Stormhollow were crawling with tents, bonfires, stables, and storage crates. Although it was nighttime, the camp was still fairly lively, with groups of people gambling or arguing around the various bonfires. As long as we remained away from those, none of them gave us a second glance. We were just shadows passing in the night.

Of course, I didn’t know where I was going, so I planned to just wander around aimlessly until we saw something that looked like it might be the captured prisoners. Lucky seemed to have a different idea, though. He reached out and pulled on my arm.

“Do you know where you’re going?” He asked.

“Toward… the prisoners?” I offered.

He gave a hesitant smile and shook his head. “No military structure would set their prisoner tents near the command center. They’ll be in the east section, furthest from the city. Quieter, out of the way, easier to guard.”

“You sure?”

“My family used to manage camps like this. Trust me.”

I decided to trust in him, since it was still better than my original plan. I let him take the lead, and I followed. As we headed forward, we moved confidently, acting like we had some place to be. Nobody stopped us, but that didn’t mean we could move too confidently. Two men suddenly emerged from a nearby tent, and before they could see us, I pulled Lucky down behind a supply wagon. This was in part because I noticed the insignia on one of their arms designated a higher-ranking officer. He might be more likely to ask questions.

The two men were walking toward the supply wagon we were hiding behind, so all we could do was hold our breath and hope they didn’t notice us.

“What is it you needed again?” An old mercenary asked the officer.

“You should have some Lustblossom Elixir.”

“Isn’t that the aphrodisiac?” The old man asked.

“Shhh!” The officer looked around. “Just give me a vial of it and forget I was ever here.”

“Oh?” The old man smirked. “Are you having some performance issues? The boys are going to love to hear about this one…”

His smirk froze as a knife flashed and stopped at his throat. “This request is to remain discreet. If it gets out, your tongue is the first that will be removed. Understand.”

The old man stiffly nodded, and he pulled his knife away. The old man rubbed his throat.

“I was just teasing. However, all requisitions must be reported to the commander. I don’t dare break that rule.”

“Who do you think wants it?” The officer narrowed his eyes.

“Commander?” The old man’s mouth fell open.

“The Commander is enjoying the company of a fine lady, but due to certain circumstances, he can’t make the first move. He wants to encourage her to be a bit more proactive. That is all.”

The old man watched him carefully. “I see.”

He turned to the carriage and, after a little bit of rifling, pulled out a vial and handed it to the officer. The officer quickly hid it up his sleeve, looking around to make sure no one saw him.

“Do I need to sign anything?” The office asked.

“No need, I’ll make this one disappear in the books. Ain’t no one come and claimed no vial of aphrodisiac.”

The officer nodded. “Good man.”

“Wait!” The old man spoke up as the man turned away.

He looked back with a frown. “What?”

“That vial is potent. One drop makes her wet, two drops make her insatiable. Three drops and she’s consumed with lust. Don’t give her more than three drops.”

The officer frowned. “What happens if she gets more than three?”

He licked his lips. “Her mind will break, and she’ll become nothing but a toy to play with.”

The officer slowly nodded. “I’ll make sure the commander is properly instructed.”

He continued on his way. The old man watched him leave, and then shook his head and walked back into the tent he had emerged earlier. When they were both gone, I nudged Lucky. Lucky jerked slightly and then turned to me.

“Let’s go,” I said quietly.

We moved again. I could hear Lucky’s heart pounding. I had to admit I was a bit anxious, too. Even though my life was in much danger, there were innumerable ways this could all go wrong. We made our way to the eastern section of the camp. As Lucky had predicted, it was quieter, with more soldiers and narrower spacing between tents. Guard rotations were frequent. They were guarding something, and it was likely prisoners.

In particular, there was one tent that was larger than the rest and had two guards standing in the front. I wasn’t a betting man, but I’d be hard pressed not to take a bet that this was the place the prisoners were being kept. Lucky motioned toward the back, and we looped around and found a section of the tent facing a stack of crates. I pulled a dagger and carefully sliced a vertical slit in the canvas. Warm air and the scent of sweat drifted out.

Lucky held the flap open as I slid my way into the tent. As soon as I stood up, I could see six figures that were huddled together and chained. They were familiar faces, and I couldn’t help but breathe easier now that we had found them. They were mostly asleep, so they didn’t notice our presence until Lucky entered the tent as well. That’s when Fortune’s eyes snapped open.

“Lucky?” he breathed.

“Shh!” Lucky knelt, picking up the lock holding the chain. “Spirit, we need the key.”

“No problem, I’m on it.” I lied as I took the lock from him and turned so he didn’t get a good look at what I did.

I stuck my finger in it, changing the shape until I was able to push the keys inside. With a twist, the lock came open. Thankfully, the way they were chained, one lock was enough to free them all. The rest began to wake up as Lucky carefully removed the chain without making too much noise. As they all finally came to terms with their rescue, murmurs of relief spread among them, and the hope in their eyes grew as they looked at us.

“Spirit,” Fortune looked at me. “You came.”

“I’m part of the expedition as well. It’s the least I could do.” I responded.

“You could have walked away.” He shook his head. “We left you behind. There was no reason you couldn’t have done the same to us.”

“Do you know who’s behind this?” I changed the subject, not used to seeing a face filled with gratitude.

Fortune’s smile faded. “No. They were careful when they captured us. They didn’t let a single clue slip on who hired them.”

“We’ll find out who did this and get revenge.” Lot spoke up, his expression dark.

“What about Felix? Is he keep watching?” Fortune asked.

I froze, and then sighed. “He-“

“We’ll talk about Felix later,” Lucky said quickly. “He saved all our lives, but now isn’t the time.”

“Alright.” Fortune’s frown deepened with suspicion, but he didn’t push the issue.

I looked around. “Where’s Fate?”

I hadn’t noticed at first, but there was still one person missing among those from the expedition, and that was none other than Fate. The mood shifted as the group exchanged glances.

Fortune’s jaw tightened. “They took her. Said they needed to interrogate her separately. That was an hour ago.”

“Interrogate? Where?” Lucky asked.

“It’s not like they tell prisoners these things.” Lot grimaced. “We can pretend we’re still captured, wait for them to return with her.”

I couldn’t help but recall the conversation I overheard about aphrodisiacs. A chill ran down my spine. I had a feeling that Fate wasn’t going to be brought back tonight. I had a feeling she wasn’t going to be brought back whole either.

I shook my head. “You need to escape immediately. You can’t afford to wait. There is too much risk in staying here.”

“We can’t leave her!” Lucky hissed.

“No.” Fortune lowered his eyes. “He’s right. We have no clue where she is or when she’ll be back. The best thing we can do is escape now. We’ll have to work on a way to rescue her later.”

Although he said this, his hand was clenching tightly. I had a feeling he already knew exactly what the commander had in store with her. I also couldn’t help but think of Fate. She was Abigail’s friend, and she had even protected me on my first day at the academy. I technically owed them nothing, but I couldn’t just stand by and let her be ruined by someone’s nefarious plot.

I stood. “Lucky, take them. Guide them out. Keep low, use the path we took.”

“What about you?” Lucky looked at me in shock.

“I’m going to the command tent,” I told him, and then added. “I might be able to discover who hired these mercs.”

“I-I’ll go with you…”

“No, you’re needed here. Some of us are injured and need help escaping.” Fortune’s expression grew serious.

Lucky looked like he wanted to argue, but after seeing Fortune’s look, he stopped himself. “Spirit, just be safe.”

“I’m always safe.” I chuckled as I turned to leave.

“Spirit…” Fortune spoke up, giving me some pause.

“What?” I looked back to see him holding out his hand.

I reached out and took it, and he grasped it firmly. “Thank you.”

Although it seemed like he was thanking me again for rescuing him, I knew that wasn’t it. He was fairly bright, and he knew I wasn’t going to the commander’s tent to look for clues. Rather, I was going there to save Fate. It seemed in that moment, we had come to an understanding with each other.

I let go of his hand and then slipped back out into the night alone. I was best on my own anyway.