The Soul Keeper

I flinched as a middle-aged man smiled and invited me in. He looked human, for the most part.

He was tall, though not quite as tall as me. He looked quite dignified with his greying hair. His green eyes watched my every move as they twinkled with intelligence. He wore a white suit and tie. All in all, he was the most normal looking person I'd seen in this world.

I hesitated, unsure of what to say. Was I here under disguise of a normal customer or was I here to outright challenge the person spying on us. I decided on the latter.

"I'd like to talk with the owner of this place." I said with an emotionless voice. A smile flashed across his face as he nodded.

"Of course. Please, follow me, sir." He said with a deep bow and led me inside. I followed the middle-aged man while staying wary of my surroundings. I couldn't help but feel like he'd accepted way too easily.

The inside of this place was also white and golden, just like the rest of the city. I was getting sick of this colour combination.

"Oh, before we head up, sir." The man spoke. "Would you be interested in any of our wares?"

I glanced at the weapon racks and armour stands lining the walls. There were some really beautiful pieces there. A smile flashed across my face as I shook my head. I would have loved to get my hands on some on those weapons, but I had no money at all.

"That's a shame, sir." The man said with a saddened tone, then gestured me to follow him. We walked up a set of light brown wooden stairs to the second and then the third floor.

There was a door at the very top of the staircase. It was white, just like everything else in here. The middle-aged man opened the door and stepped onto the third floor. I followed him and entered the room before stopping in surprise.

The floorboards were a dark brown colour. It wasn't a large room, but I couldn't see a single white or golden thing in here. The walls were a dark grey, the ceiling was wooden, and the furniture were either black or wooden.

"Did you miss seeing colours already?" A female voice sounded. I looked around to see a tall, slender woman. Her long, maroon hair flowed freely. She wore simple, back clothes that created a contrast with her pale skin. "I hope you find this room relaxing then." She said as she turned to face me. I flinched as I looked into her bright green eyes.

"What?" She said with a bewitching smile. "The Ereth don't know about this place, so you can relax. They won't swoop down the sky if you say you miss colours." She chuckled, the glanced at the middle-aged man. "Thomas, would you bring us some tea and snacks please?"

"Of course, ma'am." He said with a bow before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.

My eyes met hers as my whole body tensed up. "Who are you?" I asked, clenching my fists beneath my cloak.

"Why don't you have a seat first?" She said as she lowered herself onto the black couch. I hesitated; I didn't trust her one bit. Not with that face.

"I'd rather hear your answer." I replied with a cold voice. It took quite a lot of effort to keep a steady voice. "Who are you?"

A smile flashed across her face as she crossed her legs. "Good question." She said softly. "You can call me Thera."

"How about you give me your real name instead?" I said as I rolled my eyes.

She chuckled and gestured towards the couch. "Have a seat." She said again. I hesitated, then finally lowered myself onto the black velvet covered couch. "Now we can talk," She said with a bewitching smile. "Now, allow me to ask, why did you come here?"

"You see," I said with a cold tone. "I met a woman named Astrid a few days ago." I said as I glared at her. "She said she was sent by someone from the city."

"Oh, really?" The maroon haired woman said as if it had nothing to do with her. "And that is significant because...?"

"She was sent as a spy." I said coldly. "And I'm fairly sure it was you who sent her."

She chuckled, but before she could speak, a knock on the door sounded. Then, Thomas opened the door and stepped inside, balancing a rather full silver tray with only his left hand. He quickly set the table, then bowed before leaving.

A moment of awkward silence followed. Then, the woman before me showed me a smile before taking a sip of her tea. "Thomas' tea is absolutely perfect." She said almost as if we were having a completely normal conversation. "And his cookies are just as delicious, if not more."

I sighed. "Stop it." I had no patience to deal with this. "Just tell me, why are you spying on me?"

She chuckled and placed her cup back on the table. "Oh, dear. It seems you've misunderstood something." She clicked her tongue. "I'm not spying on you. The person I'm keeping tabs on is Erik." A wicked smile flashed across her face. "The son of the man who trapped us all in here."

I flinched. How did she know who Erik was?

"Tell me, young man." She said, leaning forward. Her dress stretched a bit, revealing some of her skin. I could swear I spotted a green spot near her chest, but she quickly tilted her head, allowing her long hair to cover it. "Do you not want to get out of here?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Of course I do." Then, I shook my head. "But I don't see how that has anything to do with Erik."

"You'll know when the time comes." She said, leaning back again. I shook my head. "I don't think I want to wait that long." Our gazes met. My purple eyes were locked into her blue eyes. We remained like that until she averted her gaze.

"Maybe you were the one I should have been keeping an eye on." She said with a sigh, then she looked back at me. "You have the gaze of a demon."

I laughed out loud. "And you're comparable to a succubus yourself."

A few seconds passed in silence before she chuckled. "Well, I'll take that as a compliment." She paused for a moment before taking a bite of a cookie. "Let's exchange our names then." She said with a bewitching smile.

I nodded. That was a good enough trade.

"Kai." I said carefully as I opened my status panel, making sure only my name was visible. She did the same and stared right into my eyes.

"Victoria Kestler."