“Heroes, we summoned you because we are in need of heroes such as yourselves. There are demons that are ruthless attacking our villages. Massacring them with no survivors. We have found no traces with our attempts.” He glanced at the door. “Our ancestors said that we could use this ancient summoning magic to summon a hero in a time of our need. Thus we had the assumption that only the willing would be summoned. Thus we ask for forgiveness if this has caused you anger.”

The hero looked at me and I shrugged.

“You use magic. What do you think about the circle?” I asked, half-heartedly.

“My name is Cecil, what is yours?” he said, while looking down at the circle. Studying it while tapping his chin.

“Hazel,” I replied.

His gaze shot to me, carving over my body before he returned to the circle. “Named hazel because of your eyes, right? Mother must have had a lacking imagination.”

I started pickpocketing the wizards of anything valuable, slipping them into storage-cards. “Father actually. He was an assassin trained since young, to logic and rationale. He named my brother, Brun, which is short for brunette.” I chuckled.

He burst out laughing, slapping his knee. “Really?”

“Really.”

We both turned to the door that burst open. A row of guards came and I turned invisible, walking towards the ceiling as people flooded in.

“The summoning circle is old as he said.” Cecil stood up straight, slipping one hand into his pocket. “It’s also a one-way trip, so no way he will be able to return us home. However, there are benefits to this type of summoning circle. The first being that it will give you a boost to your lifespan, natural ability, and you will gain the ability to understand the summoner language. The one they know when they summon you.”

“The bad news?” I asked, after seeing his eyebrows furrowed.

“The bad news is that we are basically enslaved to the little prick with the crown. If he dies by our hand, our life is instantly forfeit. Plus it's best to make sure he doesn’t die within ten years of our summon.” Cecil muttered. He turned to the young man and sighed. “We are like Guardians of his country, so we might as well leave. Unless you wish to stay and defend him from foreign threats?”

I tilted my head and stepped down behind the young king. He had a clean smooth smell, like apple wood smoke. “I get easily bored. So we can handle their request.” I paused.

The young king jumped. He spun around but did not see me. The old man never took his eyes off Cecil. A great choice but I saw the vein in his forehead flexing. He had swallowed several gallons of saliva by now.

Scaring them is so fun.

“Well, I’ll work with them. I would prefer not being hunted by powerful wizards.” I laughed.

Cecil merely grunted in accordance.

The old man's shoulders relaxed. “Men stand down. The situation is over.”

The knights lowered their weapons and the wizards disengaged the spells they had at the tip of their tongues.

The old man dropped the useless barrier. “If you two will follow me, I will show you to rooms you can stay at. Then when you are ready, you can check out the situation at the command center.”

Cecil nodded and gestured for them to lead. The young King's legs looked a bit shaky as he walked in between his knights and wizards. I couldn’t help chuckling.

But I had to say this place was a little amazing. The floating lanterns gave it a magical feel, the moving paintings or sculptures with the moving heads added a mystical feeling.

“You are inside of a magic tower, right now.” The old man spoke with a hint of pride. “This place was built with blood sweat and tears of my forefathers. Enchantments renewed or rebuilt every five years..”

He went on until we reached our destinations.

“Just ring the bell and a servant will come to see to your needs.” he said with a friendly smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

We both waited until they left before turning to each other.

Cecil spoke first. “How about you come to my room?” His gaze wasn’t friendly.

I snorted. “You should be worried about them killing you.I doubt that little kid would be able to resist trying to kill you.”

Cecil rolled his eyes. “You are the one who made him piss himself. At most, he would send assassins or give me harder missions. You, he would want to have you beneath his body. Squirm with that cold look in your eyes turning to despair.” He licked his lips and went into his room with a laugh.

I rolled my eyes, such generic prick.

Time to see what this city has to offer.