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	This was Mistress Vertti's thirteenth disappearance, and she's been gone now longer than she ever had. She never told Grisaia where she'd gone, at least not an answer he's willing to believe. She had no enemies that anyone knew of, and her wealth was nothing other nobles would be after. She didn't have any serious vices that anyone knew about. she use to practice magic. In her very prime she use to utilize magic on a regular basis, but an accident had lead to her vowing to never do such ever again. Grisaia was rather light on the details, but it was an important clue, she suspected.  And then there was the matter of her uniform, which was always wet, scuffed, or torn near the hem of her dress.  And Grissa, being her adopted son, wasn't someone who she would lie to without good reason. He was the one who called the guild for help after all.

	Aer didn't notice much when she inspected her bed room, but it seemed like she still had all of her suitcases. A servant told Aer that she typically left with a pocketbook that might carry extra clothes and other necessities. But she always came back dressed exactly as she had when she left. She also learned that she was formerly married, but her husband left her once she decided to dedicate her life to helping the humans and demi-humans. It seemed like she spent a lot of time trying to help people after the war, and used a lot of her own money to do it. She also works an artisan's guild, which is where her money comes from. 

	Aer had some working theories. It was possible that Mistress Verri had found someone she fancied and was sneaking off to meet with them in secret. It was scandalous, but didn't really explain the clothes. Another theory she had put mistress Vertti in some secluded place where she could practice her magic. If she was conducting rituals, it would explain the condition of the bottom of her dress. But then she needed a motive for it. She had a lot of small details, but nothing that added up to a coherent whole. 

	But all was not lost. Aer just needed more information, which meant she needed to do some more investigating. After talking with the servants, she knew the mistress was known for visiting the Cham. Apparently she was very well known by the locals, which meant there was a possibility one of them  had seen her. At the very least, there were more people to talk about her.


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[center][h3]Starting location, Priestella [/h3][/center]

        The trio wandered deeper into the building, doing what they could to avoid facing the knights again. Except for father whisky, who was just following because he believed it was part of some game. The door opened into a long corridor, with barely any light. Behind them they could see two knights coming in, and aparently a girl fell on the ground. If one had to judge, she leaned on the door thinking it was a wall. I'm just a narrator, so don't ask me how that happened. Regardless, the trio pressed forth. Determined to not get killed this time.

	But as they walked down the corridor, they noticed a pair of tail lights turn on at the end of the hallway. While none of them were extremely familiar with this new world, they knew that the inside of a building was no place for a car. But when it growled, they quickly realized it was indeed, [url=https://78.media.tumblr.com/5a42a76da2c0a9469277dbdd852d2c9e/tumblr_pdu6zqULST1w6599so1_1280.jpg]Not the back of a car[/url]. The trio only had a moment to duck into a side room as the creature came barraling out of the darkness. But it ran right past their door, and straight towards the knight and hapless woman on the floor. It seemed the knights would be in for a fight soon.

	Even though the beast had run past the trio, they could hear more growling deeper in the building, where the first beast had come from. This would provide a good distraction, but now they needed a way out. The room they were currently in was a bedroom. There was a dresser, adorned with a vanity mirror, a bed, and a chest at the foot of the bed. Though the dresser and chest would be empty.  There was also a window, but it had been boarded up for a very long time.

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[center][h3]Center Ally , Suttling's Basin, Priestella [/h3][/center]

	[color=gold]”Uh, um...”[/color] Vasilis tightened his grip on his ax. He wouldn't speak up if Irene didn't want him to.

	As Hiro and Chieko ran through the pathway where they were initially ambushed, they created quite a stirr. The woman who stood by the window on the lowest floor didn't look like she was sure if she should open or shut the sutters. But ultimately decided to slam them shut. Only one of the bandits were ready, and ready was being very generous. He was still looking for his target when he looked out the window.

	[color=gold]”There!”[/color] Vasilis wasted no time diving into the second story window. He did seem to really love his “rocket” propelled jumps. As soon as he landed inside, everyone could hear the sounds of bandits shouting, as well as bolts and ax flying through the air. The bandits on the other side of the street opened their shutters and tried to aim across the street at Vasilis. But the only time he showed himself was for the brief moment he jumped from his side of the street to theirs. The crossbow bandits weren't going to be a problem.

	The doors on either side of the street opened up, and the mob spilled into the street. But their prey wasn't conveniently positioned in the center of the street this time. They turned to the running  Hiro and Chieko, seemingly oblivious to the others, and chased them down the street. Though in their malnourished state, they wouldn't be able to keep up with the people they were chasing.

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[center][h3]Center road, The Golden Quarter, Priestella[/h3][/center]

	This time, Mono arrived in a street free of cultists. He glanced around, but all he saw were the panicked merchants and guards. [b][color=royalblue]”I do not have time for this.”[/color][/b] Mono Mono bent over to pick up the spilled cup of ice tea. After examining it, he spun on his heel and pointed down  several alleyways. [b][color=royalblue]”Duo, Trio, Quatro. Bring them to the old guild hall when you find them.”[/color][/b] Three of the soldiers departed to go down different alleyways. [b][color=royalblue]”The rest of you, let's haul ass!”[/color][/b] With a wave of his hand, the rest of his troops followed him.

	One of the soldiers bolted down the dead end street that lead to where Eiko, Hilda, and Aki were. Due to Hilda's position, she wasn't in clear view behind the broken boxes. [b]”Excuse me ladies, but did you see any of the supposed cultists come this way?”[/b] The soldier had perfect posture, a polight tone, but his helmet completely obscured his face.

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[center][h3]””Near the docks”, Cham, Priestella[/h3][/center]

	Ashton and Yuuki were both being pulled along by Aaron, who seemed to have successfully avoided detection. The gamble that Mono wouldn't send any men this way seemed to have paid off. Though they were still getting odd looks from people all around them. It was probably too soon to say they were out of danger. 

	[color=FFDEAD]"Excuse me."[/color] As attention grabbing as their own outfits might have been, the girl that stood before them might have had them beat. She was wearing a red cloak, and where it parted she seemed to be wearing lots of lots of golden trinkets. And if the jingling was any indication, she was wearing a lot more than what was visible. [color=FFDEAD]"I must apologize if you're not from around here, but I'm looking for a Mistress Vertti. Have you seen her recently?"[/color]