The Knights of Grimm - Act 3 - Shattered Memory

Chapter 10 - The Assassination

"No thank you." She says sweetly.

Sun chuckles when he hears her say that. "Fair warning, Ruby? Being polite does not work here." Sun explains to her and Blake looks at Ruby. She raises her brow with curiosity at his words to understand what it is that he means about that.

"What do you mean?" She asks him, tilting her head.

"The best way to deny someone their products is to keep walking. Don't look at them, don't even speak to them." Sun explains, it might sound quite harsh, but the merchants here are not like the merchants back in Vale or Mistral, these ones are a lot more persistent and cunning than they are. Blake notices a young man who is selling what appears to be an assortment of watches on his desk. He stretches his arm out to Blake and she goes to shake his hand, until Sun holds her hand and pulls her back from him. "And don't fall for that either." Sun adds.

"Huh? Why?" She asks him curiously.

"Because that's a trademark method some of these merchants use to get people to buy their stuff." Sun answers.

"By shaking their hand?" She questions as they continue to walk onwards.

"As soon as your hand touches theirs, they will slap one of their watches onto your wrist and lock it on. No matter what, you have to pay for it otherwise they can get mercenaries on you." Sun warns and Blake's eyes widen with shock at the consequences that can be formed from it. And yet Oscar seems to be sceptical around the idea that some mercenaries would really go after somebody who failed to pay a merchant who tricked them.

"Why would mercenaries bother with some poor merchants?" Oscar questions, and Sun closes his eyes with a sigh as he looks down at the floor, thinking on the answer to this. An answer that he knows quite well.

"Ever heard of the Trinity Marshall?" Sun asks them and they all look at him with a confused expression.

"Trinity Marshall?" Ruby asks him.

"No, never." Blake agrees.

"Well...few know the identity of the man, but he has more power than the Headmaster does. A man who has a network of thieves, merchants, beggars, spies...you name it. He runs the criminal underbelly of Vacuo, and Mistral...probably even Vale and Atlas too. Scarlet and Sage were once part of it a long time ago." He reveals and they gasp, he always mentioned that they were both once mercenaries but they never suspected that they worked for a powerful Crime Boss.

"What...like a mafia?" Yang asks him as they walk onwards, Sun keeps his eyes on the people in this market area of Vacuo. The place is very dangerous, spies could be hiding absolutely everywhere.

"Not exactly, he controls them all. He deals with information and money, he is a form of Information Broker, but one that is extremely dangerous. He hears and sees everything...but nobody knows who the man is. The only times we have ever heard his voice, it is disguised." Sun explains as he walks.

"You've tried to search for him?" Weiss asks him.

"We were." Neptune agrees, remembering all those years back.

"What happened?" Yang asks them.

"Remember when we had the task to shadow that Huntsman when you went to Mountain Glenn?" Neptune begins as he looks at them and they look at the two remaining members of Team S.S.S.N.

"Yeah, I remember. You got junior badges." Blake says, looking at Sun and he pulls it out from his pocket with a smirk.

"You still have it?" Weiss questions as she plants her hands on her hips with an annoyed expression and Sun laughs.