Midnight Droplet

Chapter Three

Stella and Lyla watch as Harold, in his Wolf form, runs past down and onto the first level of the mountain. Bruno was also present and saw Shun, Zhong, and Lan all go after Harold.

After the pursuit party goes down the second level, Bruno approaches the girls. "It was obvious that Harold was being chased by those people. He probably went back to the inn and transformed back into his human self. Let's meet him there."

With that said, Stella, Lyla, and Bruno all went back to the inn. To no one's surprise, Harold was there.

Stella smiles. "Harold! Glad to see you safe and sound!"

Harold frowns. "This is me we're talking about here."

"What happened?" Bruno asked.

"Alright," Harold began. "The girl's name is Shun and I think she's someone important. The guy is Zhong and he seems to be her number two."

Stella looks surprised. "Shun was the one who showed us where to buy these coats."

Lyla nods. "Yeah, I didn't think she would be involved with the Jade Cat."

"I think she is the village chief's daughter," Bruno said. "I overheard one of them in the hot spring earlier."

"That explains her authority over the other two guys." Harold said.

"The other guy is Lan. He seems to be clumsy."

Harold turns to Stella and Lyla. "When you were with Shun, did you say anything to her?"

Stella thinks for a bit. "No, Lyla and I only introduced ourselves and that's it."

Lyla's eyes light up. "Oh, no! We joked about how Harold and Bruno will be jealous of our new coats. Remember?!"

Stella gasps. "Yeah, I forgot about that!"

"It's fine." Harold said. "It means they know our names. The good thing is they don't know what I look like."

After a few minutes, there is a knock on the door.

"Hey, girls," Harold whispered to the girls. "It's probably those guys searching for us. Pretend Bruno and I aren't here."

"Okay!" Stella said, walking to the door. "Hello?"

There are two people at the door. They are Zhong and Lan.

"Hi!" Zhong said and raised his right hand. "I'm with the security guards at this village. There was a white Wolf earlier. Did you, by any chance, see it?"

"Oh, no!" Stella said. "I didn't see anything."

"Yeah," Lyla said, walking up behind Stella. "We were here the entire time."

Zhong cracks a smile as if he knew something. "Okay, then! Sorry to disturb you."

Both Zhong and Lan left and Stella closed the door.

"If he's smart," Harold said. "He'll know that you were lying to him."

"Huh? How?!" Stella asked.

"You were with Shun at the clothing store, right?" Harold said. "That Zhong guy will report this to Shun. She will know that you weren't at the inn because you were with her. It's fine, though. They'd figure it out eventually."

"And," Bruno said. "That Lan guy probably saw you on the second level when Harold ran through."

"Those guys are probably questioning everyone in this inn." Harold said. "We should wait until they're done. When they leave, Bruno and I will follow them."

Everyone in the room just sat down and talked for about ten or fifteen minutes.

"Alright!" Harold said. "Those guys should be gone by now. Bruno and I will leave to track them down."

"I'm sleepy," Stella said. "I'll stay and take a nap."

"Me, too!" Lyla said.

With that said, Harold and Bruno leave the inn to go after Zhong and Lan. After a few minutes, there is a knock on the door.

"They're back already?" Stella said and walked to open the door. "Oh,Shun!?"

Shun just smirks and walks inside. "Hey, Stella!"

"How do you know we were staying here?"

"Who are Harold and Bruno? Is one of them the Wolf from earlier?"

Lyla, while laying down on the bed, notices that Stella has not come back from the door yet. "Lily? Something wrong?" She gasps when she sees Shun.

Shun gives a half smile. "Lyla! Hi!"

Lyla stops in her tracks and doesn't know what to say. Stella has the same issue.

Shun clicks her tongue. "I'll ask again. Who are Harold and Bruno?"

Once outside, Harold and Bruno walk around the first level looking for Zhong and Lan. After searching, they did not find their targets, so they went to the second level.

"That's where the girls bought their coats." Bruno said, nodding to the clothing store. "You want to question the owner?"

Harold nods. "Yeah, I want to see if Shun stopped by again or anything."

Harold and Bruno both enter the clothing store. There are currently no customers. Bruno remains at the door while Harold walks to the receptionist.

"We're about to close for lunch," said the owner. "Please come back later."

"It'll only be a minute." Harold said.

The store owner scoffs. "Tsk! I said we're closed."

"Just a question and then I'll leave."

The owner stops whatever it is that he's doing and stares at Harold.

Harold pulls some money out of pocket and puts it on the counter. "Only a few minutes of your time."

The store owner sighs and takes the money. "How can I help you?"

Harold smiles. "Earlier, there were two girls, both blonde, with the village chief's daughter. Do you remember?"

The store owner thinks for a bit. "Yeah, they bought coats based on Shun's suggestion."

"Yes, Shun! Did she come back after the two blonde girls leave?"

The store owner looks nervous. His eyes start to look elsewhere away from Harold. "Fine… When Shun and the two girls first came here, Shun asked me to listen to the girls' conversation and tell her what I learned. After the two girls bought their coats and left, Shun came back later. I only told her that the beautiful blonde bragged about Harold and Bruno being jealous of their new coats. That's it!"

Harold smiles. "Okay, that's it! You can keep the money. And don't worry, Shun won't know anything."