Holden slipped out of the police station without drawing any attention to himself. He decided to keep up the disguise while he returned to the tavern so anyone who witnessed him going inside wouldn’t be suspicious.


    Holden went straight toward the tavern cellar and searched the place from top to bottom. What he was looking for were signs of another person being in here before Durik walked in, or signs of a secret passageway that would allow someone to sneak in unnoticed.


    Seeing as there were no obvious signs, Holden reluctantly resorted to using another method to identify potential secret passages. He took an eye dropper out of his bag. These were a special type of eye drops which used fairy dust, along with other ingredients, to allow the user to see hidden passages. They were expensive, so Holden had to use them sparingly.


    “I hate having to resort to magic,” Holden said. He put the drops into his eyes, quickly shut his eyelids, and counted to ten while he patiently waited for them to take effect. When he opened his eyes, the world started to look a little hazy. However, he could see the magic permeating throughout the air. It looked like light-blue gas which swirled around the room. Additionally, some of the magic was flowing toward the back of the cellar where it condensed in the shape of a doorway.


    Holden put his hands on the wall where the magic was gathering. It felt like an ordinary wall, leading Holden to conclude that there was some kind of barrier meant to keep people out. Most likely, it was a barrier that would both keep the passage hidden and prevent anyone but the spellcaster from passing through.


    Holden pulled a stone out of his bag and tossed it at the barrier. The stone he tossed was called a dispel stone, which was a simple stone that was enchanted with a spell that could dispel other spells. Unfortunately, the dispel stone he had wasn’t strong enough for this barrier.


    Holden gnashed his teeth in frustration. This meant he would have to hire someone to dispel this barrier for him, and there was only one mage in the city that would be willing to work with him. Just the thought of having to ask that mage for their help irritated him, though.


    Meow! Right in the middle of Holden’s contemplation, a black cat appeared out of nowhere.


    “Ah!” Holden jumped and glared at the cat. “Geez, cat. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” Holden looked into the cat’s eyes and then realized something. “You can pop out of nowhere without even someone as aware of their surroundings as me noticing you. I was a spy after all. Are you some kind of magical creature? Maybe you’re the one who knocked out the minotaur and killed the tavern owner.”


    The cat started rubbing Holden’s leg and purring, causing Holden to feel like an idiot. “Maybe all my time as a spy is making me paranoid. A cat that can knock out a minotaur and lift a giant warhammer is preposterous.”


    Meow! The cat cried out once again. This time, Holden picked it up and took it with him upstairs. He found a carton of milk and poured it into a wooden bowl that he left on the counter for the cat before leaving to go find the mage he had been thinking about.


    This mage always hung out in a tavern on the other side of the city. The neighborhood where Holden’s office was and the tavern where Durik worked was on the west side of town. The neighborhoods on the west side were decent, but they weren’t particularly lavish. The east side of town was a different story.


    The eastern neighborhoods of Chrimoria housed some of the wealthiest residents in the city. It was also full of high-class restaurants, hotels, casinos, and other businesses. Among all the glamor was a single tavern located in the basement of a municipality building. This tavern catered to people with great influence. It didn’t look all that impressive, but the food was good, and the drinks were to die for.


    The building above it was a twelve story office that housed the Mages Union, which was a governing body within Chrimoria that regulated the use of magic within the city. This included what spells could be used in the city, under what circumstances they could be used, what magic items could be created and sold, and what types of services mages could provide using their magic. The elf Holden was looking for was a member of the Mages Union, hence why he had to go all the way to the other side of the city to find them at this time of day.


    Holden took a carriage from the west side to the east side and arrived at his destination around noon. He had been here several times before, and knew the elf he was looking for would be in the tavern beneath the Mages Union building at this time of day.


    The stairs were located behind the building, which was perfect for Holden because he wanted to drop his disguise where no one would be able to see him. After removing the mask and changing his coat back to its usual brown color, Holden made his way down to the tavern and was let in. Usually, the bouncer at the door would be more selective about the clientele, but he was familiar with Holden, who had been here many times before to meet with his elven contact.


    Holden went inside and looked behind the counter. There was a large, muscular dark elf standing behind it, mixing drinks for a couple of young human women dressed in mage robes.


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    The man turned to Holden and said, “Welcome to Jarl’s Brews and Elixirs. What can I- Oh. It’s you.” The dark elf frowned and returned to mixing drinks.


    “As friendly as ever, Jarl,” Holden quipped. “Where’s Elliandra?”


    Jarl, who was the owner of this tavern, pointed at a table in the far corner, then started chatting with the beautiful women once again.


    Holden shuffled over to the table Jarl had pointed out to him, and sat across from a beautiful, tall elven woman with crimson hair tied up in a bun, fair skin, and red eyes. Red eyes were a rare trait among the elves, making her even more alluring to her own kind, which valued bloodlines and purity. Even the black trousers and button up shirt she wore showed off her figure well, catching the eye of every man in the room.


    The woman was in deep thought while sipping away at a mixed drink Jarl had prepared for her. Her beauty was ethereal, but Holden hardly noticed it anymore.


    “Elliandra, I need your help,” Holden said curtly. “I need a barrier removed. One stronger than what a simple dispel stone can take care of.”


    Elliandra didn’t respond. It wasn’t because she didn’t hear Holden, or because she was ignoring him. It was simply because she wanted to finish her current train of thought. After sitting in silence for a few moments, Elliandra finally responded to Holden’s request. “That’s such a cold way to greet an old friend.” Her eyes then wandered over to a group of human men who had been staring at her from the table next to her. “Especially a beauty like me. You could at least use a little class.”


    “Okay. Hi Elliandra. How are you? You look ravishing today. Can you help me with a barrier that’s preventing me from helping an innocent man escape an unjust fate?”


    Elliandra sneered at Holden’s uncouth attitude. “You’re always like this. So rude. Not the best way to ask a woman for a favor.”


    Holden rolled his eyes. “Would you stop acting like you''re some seductive enchantress or something? I know it’s fun to mess with those loser guys. But you should really stop these silly games of fooling men for your own amusement.” Holden’s eyes then wandered over to the men who had been staring at Elliandra, causing them to turn away before he continued. “We both know you’re a tomboy. There’s hardly anything classy about you.”


    Elliandra clicked her tongue. She then slouched in her seat, crossed her arms, and put her feet on her table. “Fine. I’ll stop pretending. You’re a real killjoy.”


    The men at the next table gasped when they saw Elliandra’s drastic change in demeanor. She just glared at them. “What are you idiots looking at?”


    The men’s faces became beat red. They turned away, but continued watching Elliandra out of the corner of their eyes.


    “That’s the brash woman I know and love,” Holden jeered.


    “Oh, shut it! What’s this about some barrier you need me to remove?”


    “A tavern owner was murdered in my neighborhood. The tavern guard is being accused, but he’s innocent.”


    “Is that so?”


    “Yes. The owner was killed with the guard’s hammer, but the guard was unconscious at the time of the murder, at least according to his testimony.”


    “And you trust his word?”


    “Enough that I think it’s worth looking in to. Minotaurs are usually pretty honest, albeit barbaric in some people’s opinion.”


    Elliandra took a few moments to think about everything Holden had said before responding. “Fine. I’ll remove this barrier. But I want thirty percent.”


    Holden’s jaw dropped. She was asking for thirty percent of his commission. That was outrageous. “Thirty percent? Really? I don’t even know if this barrier will turn up any useful evidence. Why so much?”


    “Because you ruined my fun.” Elliandra then looked over at the men at the table next to her and smiled.


    “My god. You are so petty. How about ten percent?”


    Elliandra ignored Holden and winked at one of the men. The man’s smile widened.


    Holden just shook his head. “Stop messing with the poor guy. He looks desperate. Don’t get his hopes up just to crush his heart.”


    “But those are the most fun to mess with.”


    “Are you sure you''re an elf and not a demon? Or a witch trying to seduce a man only to sacrifice him to some old god?”


    “Fifteen percent,” Elliandra demanded while not breaking eye contact with the man she winked at.


    Holden sighed. “Fine. I can do fifteen. Now let’s get out of here.”


    Holden stood up to leave. Elliandra took her feet off the table and landed them firmly on the floor. She then held her hand out expectantly toward Holden.


    Holden sighed once again. “Really?”


    Elliandra nodded. Holden then grabbed her hand, helping Elliandra to her feet. She then put her arms around him, and whispered in his ear, all while teasingly eyeing the same man from before. “Consider this the other fifteen percent.”


    Holden and Elliandra then left the tavern and waved down a carriage to take them to the west side of the city. During the ride, Holden filled her in on all of the details of the case, then the two of them continued chatting.


    “You know,” Holden said, “one of these days, you’re going to pay for leasing all of these men the way you do.”


    Elliandra chuckled. “Relax, Holden. It’s not like I ever get physically intimate with any of them. We never even go out. It’s just some harmless flirting.”


    “When are you going to finally find someone and settle down? Honestly, you do all this flirting, but you’re never serious.”


    Elliandra put her hands on her hips. “Look who’s talking. You don’t have anyone either.” She then looked out the window of the carriage at the people who were walking to and fro on the cobblestone sidewalks. “I don’t want to be tied down by anyone. I’m also not floozy enough to go sleeping around with any hot guy I see. I just want to be free. I want my time to be my own. Don’t want to have to share it with anyone. It’s kind of nice, you know. I can leave whenever I want, move whenever I want, be whoever I want, and I don’t have to worry about taking care of someone else. It might seem childish, but living this way makes me happy.”


    Holden shook his head and laughed. “How someone like you got a position in the Mages Union is beyond me. You’re way too carefree to be a stuffy bureaucrat, or a lawyer.”


    “Hey, you''re talking to the greatest magical crimes prosecutor in all of Chrimoria. Show a little respect.”


    Holden had to admit that Elliandra was speaking the truth. Her job for the Mages Union was to prosecute those who violated the law and abused their magic. No one in the city was better at it than her. She was a genius in the courtroom, but she always acted like a child outside of work. It was because of this childish side of hers that Holden was reluctant to work with her. “Maybe I would treat you with some respect, if you didn’t act like such a child all the time.”


    Elliandra lightly kicked Holden in the shin.


    “You little brat,” Holden said.


    Elliandra stuck her tongue out at him, then continued staring out the window as they rode through the city.