Abyssal Awakening

Getting dressed, she glanced out the window and saw that the street seemed to be crowded with guards.

\'Could it be due to what happened last night?\' Alice thought to herself as the issues in the slums were clearly unnatural.

Making her way downstairs, she noticed that Ria hadn\'t woken up yet and guessed that she must exhausted. Plus, she was always bad in the mornings.

"Can I get a simple breakfast please?" Alice ordered as she sat down by the counter.

"Of course. Also, I believe I have a shipment for you today for 10 bottles of mead. Would you like me to take it to your room later?"

"Take it to my room please." Alice yawned.

Hearing this, the woman nodded her head and called out to the kitchen to prepare the breakfast for Alice.

"So what\'s going on outside? Aren\'t there a bit too many guards for this time of day? Or was there a fight?" Alice asked, wondering if the Innkeeper had any news regarding the matter.

"I\'m not sure. There are a few rumours and speculations but the guards aren\'t saying anything. Some of the patrons said that the guards were making sure no one could approach the slums. I\'m thinking it must be the halves that caused the issue urg…" The woman groaned while walking away to attend to another customer.

Raising an eyebrow, Alice realised how disgusted everyone in this city seemed to act towards those that were suffering from Abyss Blood side effects.

\'My own hair and eyes look affected too yet everyone seems fine with me.\' Alice wondered to herself.

However, considering the fact that aside from a colour change, her appearance doesn\'t vary much from the normal human\'s. It seemed like she couldn\'t be considered a \'half\' yet.

\'Since this city seems to be Church of the Sun orientated, maybe it\'s a matter of religion as well.\'

Shrugging her shoulders, she finished her breakfast before making her way upstairs to wake up Ria.

Helping Ria get dressed and get some breakfast, the two made their way out of the Inn and roamed the city.

"So what\'s the plan for today then?" Alice asked curiously.

"Get a job at the Guild, get some money then gamble some more tonight. I want to get around 60 gold pieces before we hire a carriage to the next place." Ria sighed while stretching her body.

But once they arrived at the Guild, they noticed a crowd of angry Hunters gathered around the reception.

"What do you mean we can\'t leave the city?!" One of the Hunters shouted in anger.

"I\'m sorry sire but the city lord has ordered that everyone stay put within the city for the next 3 days. We\'re currently investigating issues that have crept up yesterday and no one is allowed to enter or leave the city." The receptionist replied helplessly as this was an order sent down by the city lord.

It was not something they could overrule no matter how influential the Hunter\'s Guild may be.

In times of trouble, even the Hunter\'s Guild needed to obey the city lord, especially when the danger could escalate to something beyond their control, hence the sudden lock down.

"Then you can at least tell us what\'s going on!"

"We can\'t do that I\'m afraid as we\'re unsure as to the reason ourselves. Please, there are still plenty of jobs within the city that you can do. We\'re not asking you to stay for long, just three days. The city lord has already deployed guards to watch over the city walls and the city is now under martial law.

Any action against the city lord will be seen as obstruction of duty and you\'ll be imprisoned." The receptionist sighed.

Unfortunately, she was just a worker and wasn\'t privy to the information available to the higher ups. She was merely their meat shield against the angry Hunters that could kill her with a single attack if they get annoyed. The best she could do is try to deescalate the situation.

Seeing that the receptionist wasn\'t able to tell them anything, some of the Hunters decided to see if the branch master had some information yet powerful five star Hunters were barring their way up to the second floor.

"Do you think it has something to do with the stench we smelled yesterday?" Ria asked curiously.

"Very likely." Alice nodded while making her way over to the job board.

With the lockdown suddenly announced, everyone was grabbing the jobs within the city and there were practically no jobs left for them to choose. It was a first come first serve situation after all.

"So we have no jobs and nothing to do until we gamble later tonight then." Ria sighed as the two of them sat down by a table.

"Then I suppose it\'s a free day for us." Alice smiled but her smile didn\'t last long as two guards approached their table.

"May I have a word with you? I believe yesterday you came into contact with a half, am I right? We had received a report and wanted to make sure if it was you or not." The guard asked coldly as Alice glanced up and furrowed her brows while Ria was confused.

"Yes, is that an issue? I\'m just a traveller and I saw people hitting the guy." Alice replied as the guard looked at one another before nodding.

"I\'m sorry but can I ask you to follow us? We need to do some checks due to the situation in the slums. If there are no issues with you, naturally nothing will happen." The guard asked politely however Alice knew that this wasn\'t a request but rather an order.

"Welp I guess I know what I\'m doing today." Alice chuckled as Ria furrowed her brows.

"Can I follow along?" Ria asked since she didn\'t want Alice to be by herself when there is something strange happening in the city.

"You may."

Following behind the guards out of the Hunter\'s Guild, Ria leaned over to Alice.

"What happened?"

"While you were doing your four star exam I was shopping and saw a few Hunters beating up a man. Turns out he was suffering from Abyss Blood side effects and what these people call a half." Alice replied honestly since she didn\'t think she did anything wrong.

"I see… Well I\'m sure it\'s nothing serious." Ria reassured while Alice nodded.

Following the guards, Alice noticed several others being escorted towards the castle as well. Within the group was even the Hunters that were abusing the man from yesterday as it seemed like anyone and everyone who came into contact with the people from the slums have been taken in.

Within these groups, Alice could see that some of the people being brought in were extremely pale.

\'Is it an illness? There\'s too many to be just a coincidence.\' Alice thought to herself with a slight frown.

As they were being guided through the castle, they were sent to a large open hall with countless guards protecting what seemed to be doctors, priests and priestesses.

"Line up and wait your turn." The guards ordered before filtering them through the different queues.

The ones that were showing signs of illness were places on the side while those without visible symptoms were separated from them.

Not only that, it seemed like the city lord was also present in the hall.

He was a tall muscular figure that seemed to be just as tall as Allura. Short black hair and a pair of cold black eyes overlooked the hall. He wore a simple black suit yet the power he radiated passively caused Alice to shiver.

Above him, six daunting Sigils hovered.

"I believe that is everyone that has encountered the half\'s from yesterday my lord." A retainer reported as the Lord nodded his head.

"Seal the room. Do not let anyone in or out. Maintain silence in the city and ensure that no one can sneak out." He ordered while reading a report passed onto him by a priest.

Narrowing his eyes, he glanced towards the side housing the patients that looked pale.

"Eric Helgo, merchant importing wares. Discovered to be smuggling illegal Abyss Blood through the slums. Verdict, guilty. Take that man away and interrogate him. All methods are allowed." He declared as Eric widened his eyes and prepared to reach into his jacket for a vial of blood.

However, the guards simply stood by as the Lord tapped down with his finger.

*BANG!!!!!!

A large blade struck down from above, severing Eric\'s arm while also taking a portion of his legs.

Hearing his cries echo through the hall, all of the people present felt a chill down their spine as the Lord was akin to a guillotine hanging above their heads.

One wrong move and he could end their lives with a single action.

Even Ria had a deep frown on her face as she barely reacted to the speed of the blade. Should she be declared \'Guilty\' it would take everything just to dodge the attack never mind fighting back.

"That was just his second Sigil." Alice whispered over as Ria widened her eyes and glanced down at Alice who was staring at the Lord.

She could see only two Sigils light up briefly in that moment he chose to attack.

\'I can only see up to six Sigils right now. There\'s a chance that he might be above the threshold…\' Alice thought to herself. The chances were low but not impossible.

With the city lord watching over the process, no one dared to make any unnecessary moves to invoke his wrath.

As they waited for their turn, the city lord would occasionally voice a verdict and have the guards escort them away. If they comply, nothing will happen. Yet if they dared to fight back, the lord would personally make a move.

The ones given a \'Guilty\' verdict weren\'t limited to just the side with those suffering from visible symptoms. Even those in the other queue were chosen and soon, it was Alice\'s turn to be questioned by the priest.