GLIMMER AND DECAY [COMPLETED]

CHAPTER 22

FLYNN RIDER RECEIVED A clear warning from Hook Hand, the current owner of The Snuggly Duckling pub and his boss, to not stray away from his task. He scoffed at himself as he remembered the way his boss said those words of warning.

He was one of the best mercenaries that they know, and yet they still doubt him? Sure. He did steal some jewels, gems, and gold from his targets. But who could blame him?

Flynn was underpaid, so he ought to keep the trinkets he finds during his jobs.

He ventured to the capital of Corona Kingdom, for the nth time since he accepted this task. Flynn wasn't looking for the woman who kidnapped a young lady. He was instructed to get a young lady back to the castle. And that was that.

Looking around the central part of the market made him tired right away. Probably because he had been seeing this view for the last three years.

Three years ago, when he first received the task, he had begun searching the forest. Then he traveled to Corona's neighboring countries to look for her. And for the last three years, she couldn't find anything, not even the witch that took her.

He just got back from his trip to Ingvarr and Hook Hand already pushed him to check the capital again, which was why he was here and which was why he was given that lousy warning.

"I should have taken the rooftop," he muttered to himself while having a bite of the red apple he got from an apple stand. "And I should check the forest next before I head back," he said as he roamed back to the entrance of the capital.

He was about to leave when a young lady caught his attention. She had extremely long, blonde hair that swept the dirty ground, and wore an old-looking lavender dress with a simple necklace that held a familiar stone as its pendant.

Besides her beautiful appearance, the young lady looked clueless, and what's more surprising was the way she looked around with her bare feet.

He instantly grabbed the portrait in his satchel. It was given to him by the lady that hired him. The portrait was a little old and crumpled because of how long it had been with him.

Flynn compared the lady in front of him and the one on the portrait. It was a child's portrait by the way, but the resemblance with their hair and eyes matched.

At last! He found the young lady that perfectly matched the child in the portrait! And she has beautiful green eyes, too.

Flynn folded the portrait back in his satchel then he leaned against the wall, one hand in his pocket while the other was still holding his apple. He was thinking of ways on how he could move closer to her without scaring her.

Surely, he couldn't mess this up. He'll definitely lose his arm or worse, his head.

"Lady, you need to pay first," said the fruit vendor when the young lady tried to grab an apple on one of his baskets.