After waiting for about ten minutes, the young boy they had seated in a corner with his hands bound sat cross-legged, his head lowered. His eyes still looked as if they hadn't fully recovered from the shock, yet his heart was pounding wildly. He was sixteen or seventeen at most. His face looked as though it had been smeared with mud, bruises darkened the corners of his eyes. The hood on his head had slipped back, and his black hair clung to his forehead. His cheekbones were sharp, his lips cracked. Dirt was packed beneath his fingernails, his palms calloused. Poverty, loneliness, and fear had seeped into his very body. He didn't know whether it was the city of Menas or Estelle that had reduced him to this state.
Kaelen crouched down, bringing himself level with the boy's eyes. He lightly touched him with one hand, then began to speak, softening his tone.
"What's your name?"
The boy didn't answer. He only averted his gaze. Kaelen turned to Estelle and gestured to her with a nod.
Estelle stepped forward. Her eyes were threatening, her face frozen like ice. She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head down slightly.
"Listen, brat," she said, her voice firm, with a barely restrained anger simmering beneath it. "I don't have time to play games with street rats like you. Either you talk now, or I'll make sure you can't talk at all."
The boy's shoulders trembled, yet he still avoided eye contact. A low mutter slipped from between his lips.
"I won't tell those merchant bastards anything…"
Estelle frowned, her eyes narrowing. She stepped closer and slammed her fist down onto the metal table with a loud bang. The wood groaned, and the boy flinched. Kaelen quickly stepped between them, his calm voice counterbalancing Estelle's threatening tone.
"That's enough, Estelle." His voice was gentle but authoritative. He turned back to the boy. "Calm down. We're here to get information, not to intimidate you."
Estelle stayed silent for a few seconds, then turned away, though she remained in the room. Her gaze drifted to the five other unconscious children behind her.
Kaelen turned back to the boy once more.
"We're not from a merchant family. My name is Kaelen. That's Estelle. We were both sent by the Council. We're here to eliminate the monster in the city. We're investigating the missing people, those who've lost their memories. People like you…"
The boy lifted his head and, for the first time, met Kaelen's eyes. His gaze was glassy, filled with exhaustion.
"You… the Council?" he asked quietly. For the first time, his voice didn't sound entirely fearful.
Kaelen nodded.
"Yes. And you can help us. What matters most to us is learning what happened to those missing people. The names in your notebook… why did you write them down?"
The boy looked away again. A brief hesitation—then a sigh.
"Because… we're trying to protect them."
Estelle turned her head sharply. "Protect?" she scoffed. "Since when does kidnapping count as protection in this city?"
"We're not kidnapping anyone!" the boy suddenly shouted. His voice cracked. "We… we bring them back. When they go missing, we find them. In the streets, at the forest's edge, sometimes just a few streets away from their own homes… We find them with empty eyes, unable to speak. We take them home ourselves. But no one hears us, no one notices. Because… because no one cares about them."
Kaelen listened intently. He asked slowly,
"Then why do you write down their names?"
"Because… later, they forget too. Their memories are gone. We keep notes to tell them what happened to them. Where we found them, on what date, in what condition… everything is recorded."
Kaelen lowered his head. Something tightened painfully in his chest.
"So Demirpençe follows these people. Your goal is to protect them."
"Yes. Everyone thinks we're just a street gang. But we… we gather the ones who are left alone, the lost, the forgotten. We protect those the city has thrown away."
Estelle let out a mocking laugh. "What a touching story. Then why do you run? If you're really helping people, why do you vanish without a trace the moment we get close?"
"Because the merchant families want us wiped out. They're afraid—not of our lies, but of the truths we might expose."
Kaelen stood up and looked out the window. Menas's fog-shrouded streets were still silent.
"Then what's your problem with the merchant families? They usually like street scum like you. As long as order is maintained, they can keep selling their goods."
"I can't give you information about that."
Crack.
The metal table split in two with a sharp sound, and the boy recoiled.
"I mean… I don't know. I'm not high-ranking enough. The ones at headquarters give us orders, and we carry them out."
"Would you take us to your headquarters?" Kaelen asked. "I'd like to hear the details. I want to know what's really going on… because some things don't smell right."
After a long silence, the boy nodded.
"But not today. I need to ask my leaders. They'll talk tonight. Let's meet here tomorrow morning, at the same time. Come alone. Otherwise, there will be no meeting."
Kaelen nodded. "I promise we'll come alone."
The boy stood up. He paused for a moment, then looked at Kaelen.
"My name is Merin," he said quietly. "I'll be here tomorrow."
Then he slowly turned away, gathered his friends, and disappeared into the fog. His shadow lingered for a few seconds longer before fading completely.
Estelle spoke immediately. "You're dragging this out, and it's setting us back. We could've found their headquarters right away. We might've been on a trail. Now we're waiting another night. They're not even mages—they don't know how things really work."
Kaelen narrowed his eyes. His reply was calm but firm.
"Sometimes running fast means taking the wrong path. You can't trust anyone in this city. But their goal might be the same as ours. At the very least, they're willing to talk."
Estelle nodded, unconvinced. As she looked at Kaelen, she asked,
"What if he's lying? What if this is just a trap?"
Kaelen didn't answer. He only looked up at the sky. The fog had grown thicker, as if even the heavens were sharing in Menas's weary sigh.
"Of course it's going to be a trap, Estelle. Do you really think they'd just take us to their headquarters? Do you honestly think things would ever be that easy?"
"Then why did you agree?"
"Simple. Tomorrow they'll probably bring along a higher-ranking gang member. All we have to do is make him talk. Besides, I kind of like this approach. You play the bad cop, I play the good cop."
"Bad cop? What's that supposed to be?"
"Ah… you did all that just because it came naturally to you, didn't you? Anyway, I can't blame you."
"We'll see tomorrow," Estelle said. Then they quietly left the area.
The street fell back into silence.
The fog merged with the city once more. Deep down, Kaelen knew this night was going to be a long one.
It was almost 7:00 p.m. He was extremely curious about what had forced Derick to leave so urgently.
Now, as he prepared to meet him, that curiosity only grew stronger.