The streets were quiet as Nikolai stood in deep shadow, his mana reaching out and wrapping them around him. The brothel a few streets away had seen a lot of activity over the last hour or so, plenty of people coming and going.

  Now, however, it was quieter, the few people leaving, did so stumbling furtively into the street or departing in carriages. The clientele here were wealthy patrons almost exclusively, both male and female.

  Nikolai had decided to enact the next phase of the plan, and had planned how to proceed. It was going to be a grim night…

  Kaelith would be at the guild by now, presenting the ledgers and letters, and handing over the detailed description of their findings that he had Sevrin write.

  It was time. The guild would be having their meeting that night, and Nikolai wanted to help motivate them a bit. You know, start things off with a bang. Just in case they weren’t taking things seriously.

  He crossed the street as a moving shadow and rematerialized close to the brothel. He moved on silent feet to the back of the building, then, once the spell was ready again, melted into the shadows to appear on the roof of the building.

  Sevrin had scouted the place out for him, and Nikolai knew exactly where he was going. A roof entrance led to an attic, from which stairs descended into the building proper at each end. Nikolai made his way inside, then took the stairs at the back of the building and made his way down.

  Despite his fine suit and dress shoes, his feet made no sound.

  Once on the top floor, what Sevrin had named the living quarters, he located the largest and richest room among them. Without missing a beat, he once again melted into the shadows and crept beneath the door and into the room beyond.

  He found a man in his bed there — a pudgy, balding man with a bristly moustache, wearing nothing at all. Chained to the wall was a young woman; Nikolai guessed she was no more than fifteen. He felt fury instantly begin to bubble inside him, his mana churning in tune with his emotions.

  Nikolai increased the effect of Soothe a bit, ensuring he wouldn’t completely lose himself to his anger, and materialised right behind the man.

  The man turned, shock painted across his face. What he saw was a smartly dressed figure with black gloves, a black, almost featureless mask, and a black cane.

  Nikolai wanted to pummel the man, to break a few bones, but he needed silence for the time being. He cast Mind Wipe, and the man crumpled to the floor. Nikolai raised a finger to where his lips would be beneath the mask and looked at the girl. Then he touched his ring, and created a bubble of silence around them.

  She was bloodied, her clothes ragged and no longer hiding much of her form. Tears had carved lines down her face, and the look in her eyes was a mix of terror and desperate hope.

  Nikolai looked down at the filthy excuse for a human being and took rope from his spatial pouch. He began tying the man up, but he started to wake before he was finished. That wasn’t something a brutal strike to the head didn’t fix. His cane was good for other things than magic, it turned out.

  Once tied up, gagged, and bundled into a corner of the room, Nikolai walked over to the girl.

  She tried to lean away from him, but he moved slowly, gently. He didn’t touch her, only pointed to the manacles holding her against the wall. “I am removing those, stay still…” he said gently.

  Before she could answer, he used the key he found on the bedside table and released her. She collapsed against him as the supports holding her released, and he gently lowered her to the floor. Then he cast Healing Grace on her, and she gasped, her body trembling with the release of pain.

  The many minor cuts and lacerations from the bastard’s whip began to close, but Nikolai held back from healing her completely. He would likely need his mana for what was coming next. The residual healing from the spell would also do much of the work anyways.

  From his pouch, Nikolai produced a knife and handed it to her. Then he took out a simple grey robe Sevrin had prepared and wrapped it around her. He pointed to the brothel owner. “Do whatever you want with him. He cannot hurt you any longer.”

  Then he stood. The girl’s eyes were locked on the man, and Nikolai saw hate burning there now.

  He deactivated the ring, then left the room the same way he had entered and began moving through the hallways like a ghost. His list of targets was clear. He wouldn’t go after the clientele — although frightening them a bit wouldn’t hurt. The guards, however, needed to go. He was there to send a message after all.

  As he walked down the living quarters, he found the guardroom at the end of the hallway. It was a resting room, and a few men were playing dice and laughing. Nikolai entered the room like a terrible ghost of vengeance.

  He was on the first man before the guard knew he was there, his gleaming blade cutting cleanly through the man’s neck. The other three men were frozen in shock, but the first to recover didn’t even manage a word.

  Nikolai cast Mind Wipe before charging and stabbing the second man through the chest. He gasped and began clawing at the sword in a vain attempt to pull it out, so Nikolai obliged him.

  He took three quick steps back as the final man began to shout, and Nikolai knew he had to act fast. He wrapped the shadows cast by the candlelight around himself and activated Shadowmeld.

  The next moment he appeared behind the man, his arm locking around the guard’s neck. Then he used the full power of Essence Drain, and the direct touch effect was immediate. Against someone stronger there would have been resistance, but this man was likely around the same stage as Nikolai, with nowhere near the same amount of power from runes or skills.

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  As the man Nikolai had mind-wiped began to stir, Nikolai finished his current target with a stab through his back, then used his cane in his left hand to strike the stirring man hard in the temple. With casual ease, he drained him almost dry of essence, taking most of what he had.

  He wouldn’t be getting up anytime soon. If he survived, it would be weeks of recovery. Essence Drain was a horrifying ability when used like this, especially against those without the strength to resist. Nikolai knew from his innate understanding of the ability that the strength of one’s soul was a major factor. There was also the stage and natural resistance of course, but the key point here was that these men were simple goons, profiting on the pain of others.

  Someone like Kaelith or Simi would be far harder to drain, and even if he succeeded, the amount taken would be nothing like this. It would be little more than a trickle, easily stopped by attacking Nikolai directly.

  Pounding footsteps echoed from the hallway. Nikolai wiped his sword off on one of the men, then sheathed it. Then, with a surge of will, he cast Sacrificial Mana Blade, and a sword of pure, burning darkness materialized in his hand.

  As the first man came up the stairs and into view, he was almost bisected by the mana blade tearing straight through him.

  The next man shouted in alarm, but Nikolai moved freely through the plentiful shadows, appearing like ghost-like wraith in the poorly lit environment. Oil lamps were useful, but they left plenty of dark corners for him to exploit.

  He was among the five men on the stairs, moving smoothly between them. His blade left flaming streaks of darkness in its wake, and Nikolai cut through them in seconds. Doors were thrown open now, scantily clad men and women peering out, clients shouting for someone to explain what the hell was happening.

  Nikolai passed an older woman with disheveled hair and caked makeup. She screamed for the staff — then froze when she saw him.

  “Demon…” she whispered in terror before fleeing back into her room and slamming the door.

  More guards appeared, and one in particular stood out. Nikolai’s Discerning Eye identified him as a serious threat — a brutish-looking brawler.

  The guards charged, the brawler in front. He roared his challenge and rampaged down the hallway like a raging bull.

  Nikolai cast Shadowmeld and became one with the shadows once more, slipping beneath the charge and appearing in front of the guards behind him. These men were nothing but thugs — no training, no ability. As he cut them down in rapid succession, wood cracked behind him.

  The large man had slammed into the far wall but was already turning for another try, a look of confusion and frustration on his face.

  Nikolai spun as the brawler came at him. Shadowmeld was nowhere near ready, so a different tactic was needed. He cast Mind Wipe, but it had no effect!

  Surprised, Nikolai barely managed to crash through a door to his right as the man reached him.

  Inside the room were a young woman and a sleazy-looking man with long black hair and a sneer. Nikolai barely registered his actions as his cane smashed into the man’s head, knocking him unconscious atop the woman. She screamed, but Nikolai was already moving.

  He rushed back into the hallway, aimed his cane, and cast Curse of Torment.

  The large man roared in outrage as spasms rippled through his body. He advanced more slowly now, massive fists raised, spiked knuckle-irons gleaming.

  He swung in a wide arc, but he felt just a little bit slower now. Nikolai stepped back, and still only barely avoided the blow. It came with tremendous speed, and when the fist struck the wall instead, it tore a melon-sized hole straight through it.

  The man swung again. And again. Nikolai kept retreating. Nikolai just needed to keep him busy for a bit longer, until Shadowmeld was ready again. This man was better than him though, and a poorly timed dodge, left him open for a split second. The bastard didn’t miss it.

  Nikolai managed to create a barely formed mana barrier to cushion the blow, but didn’t manage to stop it completely. He was thrown back, bruised and hurting, but he was fairly sure nothing was broken. The man grinned viciously, ‘’time to die shadowman!’’

  He kept up his assault, and Nikolai tried to swing his mana blade at him. He blocked it with his fists, a soft green glow surrounding them. Some kind of skill?

  Nikolai was losing, he knew he was, but kept retreating as best he could, as the large man kept up his ruthless barrage of blows. He was grinning viciously now, smelling blood. Nikolai smiled back, as he felt the change.

  Finally, his spell refreshed, and as the man swung once more, Nikolai vanished into shadow and reappeared behind him farther down the hallway. The mana blade streaked through the air and struck the man’s back, dark flames erupting and lighting the room in an unnatural glow. The man screamed and hurled himself into the wall, trying to smother the flames.

  Nikolai aimed his cane and cast Healing Grace. What followed was not healing though. Forced to activate with his dark affinity, the spell sent the man’s body into violent spasms, greatly exacerbating the injuries. He collapsed after a few seconds, twitching uncontrollably, the wound left by the mana blade already turning horribly gangrenous.

  Nikolai cut off the spell, and drew his normal sword once more. Rather than prolonging the man’s suffering, he drove it through the man’s chest.

  Silence fell over the hallway. Nothing moved.

  A woman cautiously peeked out from one of the rooms, staring at the carnage. She met Nikolai’s eyes — the pale teal glow of his eyes. Nikolai gestured toward the fallen guard. “How many more?” His voice was distorted, sounding cold even to him.

  She shook with fear and didn’t answer. Nikolai didn’t press her.

  He nodded, wiped his blade on the man’s shirt, and sheathed it. “Once I am done cleaning out the rest of the filth, you are all free. On the top floor, in the owner’s private quarters, you will find him bound and gagged. What you do with him is up to you. I suggest you leave this place, scream and shout, make a lot of noise, then run to the Adventurer’s Guild. Do not trust the guards. Tell them Nocturne sent you — they will know what that means.”

  With that, Nikolai walked down the hallway, leaving the bewildered woman behind.

  Downstairs, he found some staff hiding in the reception area. The remaining guards had either fled or perhaps he had dealt with all of them. Nikolai dragged a woman out from behind the reception desk and locked eyes with her.

  “You knew what this place was,” he said coldly. “You knew what you were part of.”

  “N-no… I—” she stammered, but Nikolai cut her off.

  “Don’t lie. We know. We have been watching. I won’t kill you. You can live — and you can repent. Find another occupation, another employer. This is only the beginning, and if we find you again before it is done, there will not be another chance. Make very sure that we do not meet again.”

  The woman nodded haltingly. “I will… I-I promise…”

  Nikolai nodded. “Good.” Then he pointed to another woman cowering in the corner. “That goes for you too… Kendra.”

  The woman paled at the sound of her name and nodded desperately.

  Nikolai dissolved into shadow and left the building in a blur of darkness. He had done enough here.

  It was time to move on. He had more brothels to visit tonight.