Ice Cream Monologue
Roland’s Authentic Ice Cream. This was where Bryant’s lead led him? I took my spear off of my back and stared at Evelyn. Who did she think she was fooling? How could this dingy ice cream shop in a village backwater possibly be the location of the Godking’s legendary treasure?
“H-hey,” Evelyn said and took a step away from me, hiding behind her group of five guards. “I’m starting to question my information as well.”
“It’s possible.” Everyone turned to stare at the speaker. Gae Bulg wasn’t perturbed. “The Godking’s name was Roland. And he was obsessed with ice cream.”
Is that something you find out by fighting someone? You learn their favorite food? Was even Gae Bulg in on this conspiracy to have me killed? Disregarding the coincidental name and favorite dessert, all of us knew before coming here that we weren’t going to the treasure trove. We were going to a trap placed by Algar to dispose of Bryant.
“We should at least check it out, right?” …show more content…
Evelyn asked, sending a glance at my weapon spirit. My hand tightened around my spear. Gae Bulg wouldn’t betray me. That glance meant nothing.
“You first.” I wasn’t going to be the first one to walk into a trap. I didn’t even have an entourage of guards with me. Act like a savage, be treated like a savage. I think a lack of guards was a fair exchange for my brothers’ wariness of me to drop. Besides, guards are one more form of asking to be stabbed in the back. A little bit of gold goes a long way.
Evelyn wrinkled her brow, but said, “Fine.”
Oh, did I ruin your plans? Sorry. I waited outside of the decrepit shop with Gae Bulg keeping watch behind me. My spear was raised, ready for anything. I was always ready—living while knowing someone can assassinate you at any time does things to a person. Maybe I have become a bit paranoid, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t people who want to kill me.
“Should we go in?” Gae Bulg asked. Twenty minutes had passed, but we hadn’t heard a single sound. Was this part of their plan? I picked up a rock and threw it through the window. Glass didn’t shatter because it was already broken.
“Ow!”
Well, at least I know they’re still inside. “Lan! You could’ve just said something! You didn’t have to throw a rock at me.” Evelyn sounded a bit miffed.
Other than her aggrieved cries, there were no other sounds. I didn’t hear any extraneous footsteps or movements. Either the door was trapped or the ambushers were top-notch experts. I took in a deep breath and kicked the door. It groaned before flying off its hinges and landing in the middle of the shop. How old were those hinges? I didn’t even kick that hard.
I was greeted by the sounds of chewing. I motioned for Gae Bulg to enter first. He carried a heavy steel spear—not his weapon body—and marched inside. He froze, and a strange expression appeared on his face. What was it?
“It’s safe,” he said. His voice sounded confused.
I stepped inside the shop and followed my weapon spirit’s gaze. Evelyn was sitting in a corner, eating an ice cream cone. Her guards were standing on line behind a counter. In front of them was a chubby bald man wearing an apron. He raised his head and looked at me. One eye was higher than the other, and his nose and mouth were lopsided like someone grabbed his face and turned their hand. His smile was crooked.
“Welcome!”
The hairs on the back of Gae Bulg’s neck stood erect, and my body involuntarily shivered.
“Gae,” I whispered as slowly reversed my grip on my spear.
“If you fail, I’m ready.”
I inhaled through my nose, and let out a shout as I threw my spear as hard as I could. It flashed through the air like a lightning bolt and stabbed into the chubby man’s forehead. His feet were lifted off the ground, and his body flew backwards until it crashed into the wall. The spear entered his forehead, suspending him on the wall like a painting. Evelyn screamed. The guards drew their weapons and turned to face me.
“Just because you’re a prince doesn’t mean you can kill disabled people! You really are a mad dog!”
I pointed at the chubby man. “There’s no blood.”
Evelyn and her guards froze before turning their heads. The dead man’s body really had no blood on it. In fact, his body was deflating like a balloon. His skin turned grey as he continued to shrivel up like a prune. His legs merged together and formed a vine while the rest of his body transformed into a dead leaf-like structure. The vine led towards a door behind the counter.
“What the fuck?” Evelyn asked with a pale face, forgetting her status as a princess. Her hand trembled. Was her acting that good? Or was this really not an attempt on my life?
A guard asked me, “How did you know?”
“How did you not know?” I looked at the ice cream cone that Evelyn had dropped in the corner. “I wonder if that was really ice cream you ate.”
Her face turned even whiter than it already was, and she promptly vomited onto the floor. Maybe this really wasn’t an attempt on my life. Gae Bulg kept his eyes on her guards as I climbed over the counter to retrieve my spear. The leaf disintegrated when I pulled the spear out. I pointed at a guard. “You. You’re first.”
His face paled when I gestured for him to enter the door behind the counter. No way was I going to risk my own life first. They’re the ones who wanted to kill me after all. Might as well make it as hard as possible for them to do that. The guard didn’t move.
I pointed my spear at him. “Are you disobeying a prince?”
“N-no,” the guard said and lowered his head. “I’ll go.”
I climbed back over the counter and stood behind the guards and Evelyn. It may have been a bit shameless, but there’s no point in pride if I die. The guard I picked opened the door, revealing a stairwell heading down. Evelyn turned her head to look at me. Like little ducklings, the guards mimicked her action.
You really think I’m going down there with you behind my back? “Ladies first.”
Evelyn’s eye twitched. “Go,” she said to her guards. They seemed a bit reluctant, but they followed her order. I entered the stairwell after them, but not before stabbing the vine to make sure it was truly dead. It was.
We arrived at a metal door. The vine had snaked through a crack between the floor and the metal. A guard copied my earlier action and jabbed it with his sword, but there was still no reaction.
“Open it,” Evelyn said. Her hands gripped her dress as she took a few steps back. I made sure to be behind her at all times. Metal creaked as the door opened. The smell of carrion assaulted our sense of smell, and one of the guards vomited. Limbs and butchered bodies lay scattered across the ground. The first thing I did was track the vine back to its source. It was connected to a single black rose that grew out of a severed head. I recognized the face even though it was rotting and filled with roots. It belonged to Bryant.
Evelyn screamed. I turned around and was about to leave, but I saw an expression of excitement on Gae Bulg’s face. I was curious—nothing excited him. “What is it?”
“Durandal,” he said. “I can smell his scent.” His hands opened and closed, his claws scratching the armor covering his thighs. “But it’s faded. He’s not here anymore, but he was.”
“How are you so calm!?” Evelyn glared at me. “Bryant’s dead!”
I ignored her. “Do you know what that flower is?”
Gae Bulg shook his head. I kicked one of the guards in the back, pushing him towards Bryant’s severed head. There was no reaction from the flower. Seems harmless enough. I wandered around the area, keeping my spear at the ready. There was nothing unusual—unless you counted the flower and dead bodies—and there were no treasures. However, there was a library, but the covers of the books were so faded, I couldn’t make out any letters.
Evelyn followed me and kept quiet, but I had Gae Bulg watch her in case she tried to kill me.
“Is this really the Godking’s treasure trove?” she asked. After getting over the initial shock of Bryant’s death, she became curious.
“It should be.”
A guard screamed from outside the library, and Evelyn and I dashed outside with Gae Bulg behind us. A flower had bloomed from a severed hand, and a vine had entangled one of the guards. I looked up and saw three motes of purple light descend from the ceiling. When they touched the severed limbs, flowers began to take root.
Gae Bulg and I made eye contact. We both ran away at the same time, shutting the metal door behind us and running up the stairs. Evelyn and her guards had been left behind.
“Should you have done that?”
I shrugged. Not only was Evelyn a professional alchemist, she was also an apprentice mage. She’d live. Probably. I was starting to feel a little guilty. I suspected she wanted to kill me, but the whole time, she hadn’t made any attempts. “We’ll wait for a
day.”
Gae Bulg grunted, and we both waited outside of the ice cream store. The smiling face embedded in the ‘O’ of Roland seemed to be laughing at us. A few hours later, the doorknob turned. I had my spear ready—Gae Bulg had alerted me of footsteps beforehand. I took a step forward and lunged, thrusting my spear at the opening gap. Evelyn screamed and ducked. I checked her feet during that time. There weren’t any vines.
“Just checking.” I looked past her. It didn’t seem like any of her guards made it. She started to cry.
“H-hey,” Evelyn said and took a step away from me, hiding behind her group of five guards. “I’m starting to question my information as well.”
“It’s possible.” Everyone turned to stare at the speaker. Gae Bulg wasn’t perturbed. “The Godking’s name was Roland. And he was obsessed with ice cream.”
Is that something you find out by fighting someone? You learn their favorite food? Was even Gae Bulg in on this conspiracy to have me killed? Disregarding the coincidental name and favorite dessert, all of us knew before coming here that we weren’t going to the treasure trove. We were going to a trap placed by Algar to dispose of Bryant.
“We should at least check it out, right?” …show more content…
Evelyn asked, sending a glance at my weapon spirit. My hand tightened around my spear. Gae Bulg wouldn’t betray me. That glance meant nothing.
“You first.” I wasn’t going to be the first one to walk into a trap. I didn’t even have an entourage of guards with me. Act like a savage, be treated like a savage. I think a lack of guards was a fair exchange for my brothers’ wariness of me to drop. Besides, guards are one more form of asking to be stabbed in the back. A little bit of gold goes a long way.
Evelyn wrinkled her brow, but said, “Fine.”
Oh, did I ruin your plans? Sorry. I waited outside of the decrepit shop with Gae Bulg keeping watch behind me. My spear was raised, ready for anything. I was always ready—living while knowing someone can assassinate you at any time does things to a person. Maybe I have become a bit paranoid, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t people who want to kill me.
“Should we go in?” Gae Bulg asked. Twenty minutes had passed, but we hadn’t heard a single sound. Was this part of their plan? I picked up a rock and threw it through the window. Glass didn’t shatter because it was already broken.
“Ow!”
Well, at least I know they’re still inside. “Lan! You could’ve just said something! You didn’t have to throw a rock at me.” Evelyn sounded a bit miffed.
Other than her aggrieved cries, there were no other sounds. I didn’t hear any extraneous footsteps or movements. Either the door was trapped or the ambushers were top-notch experts. I took in a deep breath and kicked the door. It groaned before flying off its hinges and landing in the middle of the shop. How old were those hinges? I didn’t even kick that hard.
I was greeted by the sounds of chewing. I motioned for Gae Bulg to enter first. He carried a heavy steel spear—not his weapon body—and marched inside. He froze, and a strange expression appeared on his face. What was it?
“It’s safe,” he said. His voice sounded confused.
I stepped inside the shop and followed my weapon spirit’s gaze. Evelyn was sitting in a corner, eating an ice cream cone. Her guards were standing on line behind a counter. In front of them was a chubby bald man wearing an apron. He raised his head and looked at me. One eye was higher than the other, and his nose and mouth were lopsided like someone grabbed his face and turned their hand. His smile was crooked.
“Welcome!”
The hairs on the back of Gae Bulg’s neck stood erect, and my body involuntarily shivered.
“Gae,” I whispered as slowly reversed my grip on my spear.
“If you fail, I’m ready.”
I inhaled through my nose, and let out a shout as I threw my spear as hard as I could. It flashed through the air like a lightning bolt and stabbed into the chubby man’s forehead. His feet were lifted off the ground, and his body flew backwards until it crashed into the wall. The spear entered his forehead, suspending him on the wall like a painting. Evelyn screamed. The guards drew their weapons and turned to face me.
“Just because you’re a prince doesn’t mean you can kill disabled people! You really are a mad dog!”
I pointed at the chubby man. “There’s no blood.”
Evelyn and her guards froze before turning their heads. The dead man’s body really had no blood on it. In fact, his body was deflating like a balloon. His skin turned grey as he continued to shrivel up like a prune. His legs merged together and formed a vine while the rest of his body transformed into a dead leaf-like structure. The vine led towards a door behind the counter.
“What the fuck?” Evelyn asked with a pale face, forgetting her status as a princess. Her hand trembled. Was her acting that good? Or was this really not an attempt on my life?
A guard asked me, “How did you know?”
“How did you not know?” I looked at the ice cream cone that Evelyn had dropped in the corner. “I wonder if that was really ice cream you ate.”
Her face turned even whiter than it already was, and she promptly vomited onto the floor. Maybe this really wasn’t an attempt on my life. Gae Bulg kept his eyes on her guards as I climbed over the counter to retrieve my spear. The leaf disintegrated when I pulled the spear out. I pointed at a guard. “You. You’re first.”
His face paled when I gestured for him to enter the door behind the counter. No way was I going to risk my own life first. They’re the ones who wanted to kill me after all. Might as well make it as hard as possible for them to do that. The guard didn’t move.
I pointed my spear at him. “Are you disobeying a prince?”
“N-no,” the guard said and lowered his head. “I’ll go.”
I climbed back over the counter and stood behind the guards and Evelyn. It may have been a bit shameless, but there’s no point in pride if I die. The guard I picked opened the door, revealing a stairwell heading down. Evelyn turned her head to look at me. Like little ducklings, the guards mimicked her action.
You really think I’m going down there with you behind my back? “Ladies first.”
Evelyn’s eye twitched. “Go,” she said to her guards. They seemed a bit reluctant, but they followed her order. I entered the stairwell after them, but not before stabbing the vine to make sure it was truly dead. It was.
We arrived at a metal door. The vine had snaked through a crack between the floor and the metal. A guard copied my earlier action and jabbed it with his sword, but there was still no reaction.
“Open it,” Evelyn said. Her hands gripped her dress as she took a few steps back. I made sure to be behind her at all times. Metal creaked as the door opened. The smell of carrion assaulted our sense of smell, and one of the guards vomited. Limbs and butchered bodies lay scattered across the ground. The first thing I did was track the vine back to its source. It was connected to a single black rose that grew out of a severed head. I recognized the face even though it was rotting and filled with roots. It belonged to Bryant.
Evelyn screamed. I turned around and was about to leave, but I saw an expression of excitement on Gae Bulg’s face. I was curious—nothing excited him. “What is it?”
“Durandal,” he said. “I can smell his scent.” His hands opened and closed, his claws scratching the armor covering his thighs. “But it’s faded. He’s not here anymore, but he was.”
“How are you so calm!?” Evelyn glared at me. “Bryant’s dead!”
I ignored her. “Do you know what that flower is?”
Gae Bulg shook his head. I kicked one of the guards in the back, pushing him towards Bryant’s severed head. There was no reaction from the flower. Seems harmless enough. I wandered around the area, keeping my spear at the ready. There was nothing unusual—unless you counted the flower and dead bodies—and there were no treasures. However, there was a library, but the covers of the books were so faded, I couldn’t make out any letters.
Evelyn followed me and kept quiet, but I had Gae Bulg watch her in case she tried to kill me.
“Is this really the Godking’s treasure trove?” she asked. After getting over the initial shock of Bryant’s death, she became curious.
“It should be.”
A guard screamed from outside the library, and Evelyn and I dashed outside with Gae Bulg behind us. A flower had bloomed from a severed hand, and a vine had entangled one of the guards. I looked up and saw three motes of purple light descend from the ceiling. When they touched the severed limbs, flowers began to take root.
Gae Bulg and I made eye contact. We both ran away at the same time, shutting the metal door behind us and running up the stairs. Evelyn and her guards had been left behind.
“Should you have done that?”
I shrugged. Not only was Evelyn a professional alchemist, she was also an apprentice mage. She’d live. Probably. I was starting to feel a little guilty. I suspected she wanted to kill me, but the whole time, she hadn’t made any attempts. “We’ll wait for a
day.”
Gae Bulg grunted, and we both waited outside of the ice cream store. The smiling face embedded in the ‘O’ of Roland seemed to be laughing at us. A few hours later, the doorknob turned. I had my spear ready—Gae Bulg had alerted me of footsteps beforehand. I took a step forward and lunged, thrusting my spear at the opening gap. Evelyn screamed and ducked. I checked her feet during that time. There weren’t any vines.
“Just checking.” I looked past her. It didn’t seem like any of her guards made it. She started to cry.