In another location, twenty-two kilometers from Miles and Elaria, a tent was erected at the forest's edge.
Inside,there was a table surrounded by chairs which were occupied by people in armor and robes with wands— those people were knights and mages working for the slave trader who had almost turned Miles and Elaria into slaves to sold them.
The leader of this group of pursuers wore silver armor, his face filled with frustration. He was really annoyed at the moment.
Bang!
Aaron slammed his fist onto the table. If it weren't made of special wood, it would have shattered easily.
"Still nothing?"
Nobody raised their heads to look at him, which only increased his frustration.
"Damn! That fat pig will have our heads if we don't find them. How can two people—one wearing mana-suppressing shackles and the other a weak young man—escape so easily after killing five of our men?" Aaron roared, seeking answers. Most of those present didn't respond, except for a woman wearing a witch's hat. She had deep green hair, violet eyes, and a mature figure. She was the strongest mage present, a Rank 4, like Aaron. However, as a knight on the threshold of a breakthrough, he was the strongest person there and one of the slave trader's most capable subordinates. The only one stronger was the trader's personal bodyguard, a demigod of Rank 5. Because their trade was illegal, they had to be prudent.
Elves were a commodity worth a fortune in noble circles, especially one of such beauty. Elaria's unusual hair and the mysterious blindfold—which she never removed—added an air of intrigue that increased her value exponentially. This was why the slave trader was desperate to get her back. They had been incredibly lucky to capture her the first time; they had caught her off-guard, and she had mostly given up, making it easy. Along the way, they had found another potential slave with unusual black hair and pale skin, as if he had lived his entire life indoors. These rare traits were also highly valuable. They had caught him by surprise, and his unusual black eyes had made the slave trader think his luck was turning. Having run out of mana-suppressing shackles, they had used simple iron ones instead. That had been a catastrophic mistake. The apparently weak young man had not only escaped but had taken the mysterious elf with him. Their pursuit had failed miserably, resulting in the loss of five men and leaving their master furious. Aaron shuddered to think what would happen if they failed; the man was too vicious.
"I think that boy used spatial magic: Teleportation. That's why we couldn't catch them," the mage with violet eyes explained to the group.
Aaron nodded, finally understanding their escape. Yet, from what he could infer, the young man was too weak—a Rank One mage at best. While spatial mages were rare, one of such a low level had limited mana and shouldn't have been able to use a teleportation skill repeatedly. The most troubling issue was:
"I've never heard of a Rank One mage capable of teleporting someone else with them, and repeatedly at that," Aaron voiced his confusion. The Rank 4 mage, whose name was Melissa, nodded, seeming to share his bewilderment.
"Maybe he's a special kind of mage. I don't know; I find it strange as well."
Aaron didn't pursue the matter and moved on to another intriguing point.
"And how could a weak Rank One kill five men stronger than him? What kind of weapon did he use to put holes in their heads and bodies? They were such tiny holes."
Aaron shivered, remembering the corpses. Of course, after losing five men, they had to examine the bodies. Every person who had inspected them said the same thing: it was an unusual weapon that shot condensed mana.
"Maybe he's a powerful man in hiding? Perhaps he's the elf's mysterious guardian and deliberately let us capture him to rescue her," Aaron hypothesized, though he had trouble believing it himself.
Melissa rolled her eyes, not buying this third-rate theory.
Aaron coughed, feeling embarrassed by his own conjecture. Some of those present were doing their best not to laugh. They knew their leader was an avid reader of fantasy books, hence his rich imagination.
"So, what do we do now to catch them? They must have hidden deeper in the forest. With our limited numbers and resources, searching the entire forest would be impossible."
Everyone present nodded, not refuting their leader's words.
One of them made a suggestion. "Why not use the hounds to track them?"
The hounds were special domesticated monsters used for tracking, which looked like a mixture between a dog and a wolf.
"And how do you propose we do that? Do you have something that belongs to them to use for tracking?" Aaron asked, annoyed. The man recoiled, lowering his head like a scolded child.
Aaron shook his head and looked at the others, waiting for a better proposal.
"Why not position men in the cities not far from here? They'll have to come out eventually. When they do, we can catch them off-guard," Melissa suggested.
Everyone's eyes lit up at the idea.
"Good suggestion. We'll do it. We'll divide into three groups, each with a leader, and stay in touch to share information. If one group finds them, they will contact the others, and we will regroup to capture them. Here are some teleportation scrolls to use for regrouping; you know how to use them."
Aaron distributed the scrolls and divided the group of fifteen into three teams of five. They immediately set out, each heading for a different city. They were certain the duo would eventually pass through one of them. They would stop at nothing to recapture them, especially Elaria. None of them wanted to suffer the wrath of that pig of master.