The Potion of Life

Oudenhuysen

He still couldn't believe it. At this moment, he was in possession of the gemstone from the realm of Batavia. If he delivered this to Randar, he would secure a place in his council chamber. He would have his own chamber in Clarus Castle. From now on, he could begin to govern Borgon according to his will. It wouldn't be difficult to gradually infiltrate more and more spies into the court over the years who would be loyal to him. Eventually, he could even overthrow Randar from the throne and begin to rule Borgon himself. Pivanu would grow faster from that point on, and eventually, their organization would have control over all of Midbad. It was a beautiful prospect, all thanks to five adventurers.

After freshening up, putting on new clothes, and eating something, it was time to leave Uzés. Eugene had already loaded most of the belongings into his carriage. Oudenhuysen only had to retrieve the gemstone from his desk, and they could depart. Despite knowing Eugene for years and never catching him doing anything wrong, he didn't trust him with this gemstone. He trusted no one with it. Randar wanted the gemstone for a reason, very eagerly. If Eugene were to give it to him behind his back, Eugene would receive a huge reward. Everyone who knows Oudenhuysen is greedy, so he trusts only himself to transport the gemstone. Too much is at stake now; this is the moment he can move the Pivanu organization to the next phase.

Then the smile abruptly disappears from his face. The box containing the gemstone is no longer on his desk. This can't be true, could Eugene have kept the gemstone for himself after all? Oudenhuysen rolls up his sleeve and touches his tattoo; Knijster appears immediately. 

"Bring Eugene to my desk immediately!"

Less than ten seconds later, Knijster is back in the office with Eugene. 

"Search him, Knijster!" After this command, Knijster snaps his fingers, and all the items Eugene was carrying fall out of his pockets. The box with the gemstone is not among them. Where could he have hidden it then? Eugene has his own space in this villa, but they are leaving immediately; it wouldn't make sense for him to hide the gemstone there. 

"Ask him if he stole the gemstone, Knijster." "Did you steal the gemstone from Mr. Oudenhuysen, Eugene?" 

"No, of course not. I would never steal anything from Mr. Oudenhuysen. I am loyal to the Pivanu organization."

So either Eugene managed to speak untruthfully to Knijster, or he didn't steal the gemstone at all. To lie to Knijster, Eugene would have to have a very high magic resistance. So Eugene had nothing to do with it. Then who? Knijster himself? Or was it the group of adventurers who were here just a few hours ago? Oudenhuysen immediately walks to the front door of his villa and begins to inspect it. His suspicions are confirmed; the door lock has been tampered with. At first glance, it's not noticeable, but upon closer examination, it's clear.

So, they had broken into his place and stolen the gemstone. Did they find out that it was the gemstone from the realm of Batavia? Would they deliver the gemstone to Randar? Or did they steal it simply because it was a valuable gemstone in their eyes? Probably the latter, but regardless, he needed more information about these adventurers. 

Where are they from, who are they, do they often travel together? He had to find them because the gemstone was too crucial for the future of Pivanu. They were in his villa about two hours ago, and at this moment, they could be far away, maybe not even in Borgon anymore. To find them, he needed the resources of Pivanu. Working alone would take too long. The longer it took, the higher the chance that they wouldn't have the gemstone with them anymore. 

Oudenhuysen saw only one solution: to go to Pivanu's headquarters. He walked back to his desk where Eugene and Knijster were waiting for him. 

"It seems those adventurers have stolen the gemstone. We need to get it back as soon as possible. Eugene, contact Bertoldo Vasiri and have him ensure that the criminal underworld of Uzés searches for these adventurers. Describe to Bertoldo in as much detail as possible what the adventurers looked like. Tell him that if they find anyone from the group, they will be rewarded with 500 ducats. Meanwhile, I'll leave with Knijster to the headquarters. I'll stay there for a while, but I'll return here. Eugene, in the meantime, I'll leave you in charge to take care of my villa. Is that clear?"