It was early afternoon when I left Luskaine Castle to walk the streets of the Upper District.

A full belly and mostly fresh air had done wonders for my mood, and despite the murders and arson, the streets were more crowded than ever.

In a strange way, it made sense. No one wanted to be alone with a murderer loose, and no one wanted to be inside in case their building burned down. There was safety in numbers, in hiding in a crowd.

But that wasn't for me.

I walked with my hands in my pockets, my chin held high as I ignored looks from bystanders who gave me a wide berth. A red bundle of cloth was secured under my left arm, drawing the curious stares of the city's guards. They stood on every street corner and walked in patrols of two or three. The capital was on high alert, but life went on.

The smell of ash wafted on the wind, and I knew I was almost there. My feet moved by themselves, walking the familiar route until I reached my destination: Sin's mansion.

It was a ruin of blackened rubble with burnt wooden beams that stabbed the sky at odd angles.

It was also my home.

I stepped under the wooden beams and hopped over loose bricks, leaving footprints in heaps of ash that the wind had not blown away.

"I'm back," I muttered, running my fingertips against a half-collapsed wall. They tingled at the touch.

Still no answer…

My face twitched with irritation.

I sighed and crouched on my haunches, picking up a handful of ash.

What now?

I rubbed the coarse soot between my fingers.

What should I do with this land? What would I make it become?

With my share of the reward money, I could build anything. But what?

It was something Isla asked me when we started this journey, and like before, nothing came to mind.

It all came down to legacy, how I wanted to be remembered.

For Isla's great-grandfather, his legacy was Luskaine Castle: A monument to his unification of the country.

But for me…

I turned my head from side to side, taking in the destruction around me.

What better legacy than this?

A monument to someone who never appreciated what they had.

My lips twisted in a bitter smile.

It was the truth. It hurt, but not as much as it used to. The long journey home had softened the blow. It gave me time to think… and time to feel.

I pushed myself to my feet.

"I'll come back and visit soon. I'm sorry…"

"Hey! Hey, you! What are you up to?!"

I turned to the new voice. Two guards on patrol were shouting at me from the street: One man short and round, the other tall and slim. Both wore the grey gambeson of the city guard, with matching steel helmets and breastplates. They pointed their forked spears in my direction.

"You! Get over here. Nice and slow."

Great... This was the last thing I needed.

I raised my free hand and walked back to the street, ducking under a wooden beam.

"An elf!" The tall one said, tightening the grip on his spear.

The shorter guard's eyes narrowed.

"What were you doing in there?"

"Enjoying the scenery."

The shorter guard turned his head to the side and spat.

"Funny. Didn't anyone tell you about this place? It's cursed."

"Cursed?"

I gave the guard an incredulous look, a smile creasing my face.

The shorter guard sneered.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"You ain't from around here, aren't cha? Everyone knows about this place. A good, kind family took in an elven child, and then it turned around and burned their home to the ground. They all died in the fire, but that elf…"

He paused, looking at me again with narrowed eyes.

"You're him! You're the elf!"

"That's what I just said!" The taller guard shouted.

The shorter guard levelled his spear at my chest.

"Drop what you're holding! Slowly."

I sighed, crouching down and laying the red bundle of cloth off to the side. Slowly, I stood up, raising both hands and waiting for the next instruction.

My time on the street taught me how to deal with the city guard. You indulged their egos. Made yourself small so that they felt big. Usually, they left you alone.

"Hugh, tie him up!"

Usually, but not always.

"Y-You should do it, Phil," the tall guard said. "My hands are full."

"So are mine!"

"If you have some rope, I can tie myself up."

"Shut up!"

I shook my head.

I should have gone straight to Elmer's shop. Instead, I was going to get arrested by the worst guards in the capital. And to make things worse, they were drawing a crowd.

Men and women of the Upper District gathered around me. Children gawked and stared, pointing and looking up at their mothers. I was used to it, but this time something was different. Over the guards' bickering, I made out whispers from the crowd.

"Is that him?"

"Couldn't be."

"No, I think it is."

Eventually, a middle-aged man in a fine green coat stepped forward.

"Boy, what's your name?"

"Jacob."

"I said shut up!"

The shorter guard turned his spear to the side, swinging the blunt wooden end into my nose.

My movement was instinctual.

I twisted to the side, letting the butt of the spear land a glancing blow on my left wrist. The weapon slid up the side of my hand. I crossed my wrists, chasing the spear with my right hand until my fingers wrapped around the wooden shaft. Grip secured, I yanked the spear forward, pulling the guard off balance. Before he could react, I stepped into him, willed Last Laugh into my left hand and pressed it against his pudgy neck.

"And that's why you don't get close," the tall guard named Hugh muttered under his breath.

The man in the green coat nodded.

"That proves it. The red jacket. The magical dagger. You're him. You're Jacob the half-elf: Hero of Luskaine."

Gasps and murmurs rose from the crowd.

"Hero of what?" Hugh asked.

"Haven't you heard the song?!" A woman holding a toddler asked. "He fought next to the Prince's sister to save the country!"

"The Prince has a sister?!"

A boy a few years younger than me spoke up next.

"My cousin saw the Crown Prince speaking to him at the hospital. They say he fought off a horde of stone men sent by the Dahlgeshi."

Another man spoke up.

"No, the elves made the stone men, and they were behind the curse, too!"

"That's not right! The way I heard it is-"

My head turned to every new comment from the crowd. Each explanation of our journey was more bizarre, more elaborate and more incorrect than the last. The King's bards had done their work, but the story had taken on a life of its own. Looking at the animated faces of the crowd, I knew why.

We were a distraction.

The destruction of Maker's Row, the deaths of some of the city's most powerful mages and rumours of Dahlgeshi so close to the capital.

People were terrified, but our story gave them something else to think about. It gave them the hope that no matter what happened, Luskaine would survive.

"Mind moving that knife?"

I blinked.

I'd forgotten about the guard I held at dagger point.

"Are you going to arrest me?"

A bead of sweat trickled from his neck and down the flat of my blade.

"No..."

I pulled the dagger away and sheathed it in the pommel of Gentleman's Jest. With a twist, I locked in place.

"Why didn't you tell us you were a hero?" Hugh asked.

"Someone told me to shut up."

I glanced at the shorter guard.

His name was Phil… I think.

The man grumbled, rubbing the spot where my dagger grazed his neck.

"What were you really doing in those ruins?"

I flashed a coy smile.

"Hero business, you wouldn't understand."

My smile faltered as I took in the crowd surrounding me. A wave of paranoia raised the hair on the back of my neck. I didn't think I would ever get used to this kind of attention.

My gaze shifted from them to the guards, and an idea popped into my mind.

Well, there was safety in numbers…

"I have one more stop to make before I go back to the Castle. Do you want to come?"

# # #

Phil and Hugh cleared a path through my growing crowd of admirers. The people of the Upper District flocked to me, watching to see what their famous hero would do next. I was grateful to my improvised guards; they were surprisingly good at crowd control, shooing away the last straggler as I approached the front door of Elmer's shop.

"Need anything else, your heroship?" Hugh asked.

"No, I should be good for now. Thanks."

Hugh turned to leave, but the shorter guard, Phil, lingered. He looked down, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Apology accepted," I said.

Phil's head jerked up. He stared at me through narrowed eyes and then nodded.

"Be careful out here... The streets aren't safe."

I nodded back.

"I appreciate that. I'll keep that in mind."

He turned away, walking faster to match his partner's longer stride.

I sighed, shaking my head in disbelief.

Respect from the city guards?

It was one more thing I would never get used to.

I turned back to the door of Elmer's shop, running a finger on the hawk's talon carved into the frame. I balled up my fist and-

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Come in! Come in! It's open!" Elmer shouted, his voice muffled through the closed door.

I paused, considering whether this was a trap. Last night, Sin planted the idea to go to Elmer's shop.

What if she was waiting for me? What if she found out I told Isla and the others what she was planning?

The hairs on the back of my neck rose.

Someone was watching me.

I shook my head, wiping away my paranoia.

Of course, someone was watching me. That's what it meant to be a half-elf in the capital. Yet ever since I left the ruins of the mansion, the uneasy feeling had followed me.

I cracked open the door of Elmer's shop and breathed in the familiar musk of dust and aged wood.

I waited two heartbeats and pushed it open, walking in with one hand on my cane.

At the counter, Elmer sat next to a lantern, reading from a giant tome. His head jolted up as the door smacked against the wall.

"Oh?! You're back."

My eyes darted around the small shop. Little had changed since I left. The lantern on the counter was the main source of light in the room. Shelves lined the walls, stacked end to end with dust-covered objects.

I walked in, closing the door behind me.

"I am. Didn't Sin tell you?"

"No one tells me nothing."

I believed him.

"So, what do you need?" Elmer asked.

"I wanted to pay back my debt, and I wanted your help with something."

I took slow steps across the room, untucking the red bundle of cloth under my right arm and pulling the string that kept it wrapped up.

The fabric unfurled to reveal my old coat.

"Sin told me you can enchant this."

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