“Granny Eija?” he asked. “What’s all the fuss about?”
“M-Master Galen!”
“Making deals behind my back, are we? How many times have I told you not to do business on your own?”
“B-But sir! Our valued customer here wants a slave we’ve already moved to the quarantine annex. He’s given us a two hundred million advance—in coin!”
“What? Two hundred million, you say?” The plump man studied us with suspicion, as if trying to identify us on looks alone.
“Hey, Galen.” Rashid raised a hand, grinning. “Been a while.”
The plump man’s frown quickly morphed into a look of surprise. “I-It can’t be! Young Master Rashid?!”
“In the flesh. I’m glad you still remember my face after all this time.”
“‘Young Master Rashid’?” Lynne and I repeated. We turned to our companion, who seemed not to mind all the fuss. He made his way toward the plump man, his arms wide and welcoming.
“It’s good to see you well, Galen. And your business too, from what I can see. This place has grown so large that I almost didn’t recognize it at first.”
“I could say the same of you, young master! I’m glad you’re in good health! But I thought you were governing the City Forgotten by Time. When did you return to the capital?”
“Quite recently, as it happens. Much has changed of late. Noor here is the new proprietor.”
“Th-This gentleman?”
“Nice to meet you,” I said.
“R-Right... I’m Galen, manager of this establishment. Pleasure.”
I shook the hand he held out to me. It was unusually soft, except for the many rings he wore, all inlaid with gemstones.
“Now, Galen,” Rashid said, “as your lovely receptionist claimed, we’re here to buy. May we continue with our business?”
“But of course! May I ask what you desire? A slave we’ve moved to the quarantine annex?”
“Yes, there’s a certain someone we’re looking for. This girl’s younger brother.”
“That slave’s...? I see. Her collar does indeed bear our emblem. In that case, why don’t I show you the way?”
“I appreciate your making this so easy for us, Galen.”
We followed the plump man—apparently the company’s manager—down a long hallway. He and Rashid must have been old acquaintances; they walked together at the front of our group, chatting with perfect smiles that appeared to have been plucked from elsewhere and pasted on their faces.
“Still, Young Master Rashid, I must say—you truly have grown. When I heard you were departing for the City Forgotten by Time, why, I didn’t know what would become of you. I can’t begin to express how grateful I am that we’ve had this opportunity to meet again.”
“You’ve always had a talent for exaggeration,” Rashid remarked. “My departure was just me running away. Although, I’ll admit, I’ve found myself pleasantly surprised; life as a resort manager and tax collector was more fun than I ever imagined.”
“You don’t say. I’m glad to hear it.”
Galen’s polite demeanor seemed notably different from his initial appearance. He kept rubbing his hands together, making his rings jangle, and would occasionally turn back to fix Rashid with a smile.
“Rashid,” I said, “you mentioned he’s an old acquaintance?”
“Yes, I made use of his services as a child. Though if you were to say that was all our relationship amounted to, you wouldn’t be mistaken.”
“Oh, no, perish the thought!” the plump man exclaimed. “It’s thanks to you, young master, that the Galen Company became one of the top businesses in the city! Without your patronage, I never would have made it this far.”
“You flatter me. Oh, but Galen—the slave? Have we still yet to arrive?” Rashid stopped. The hallway we found ourselves in faced a courtyard, on the other side of which was a large metal door. Several men stood before it, clearly armed. “I do believe we’ve passed this place already.”
“Ah, do excuse me. We’ve had so much extension work done that even I sometimes lose my way! Please—our destination is right through that door.” The plump man turned and barked an order to the armed men. “You lot. Open it.”
“Sir,” came a chorus of voices.
The heavy door opened with a low creak, revealing a dim, windowless hallway. I could see why they called it the quarantine annex—entering and exiting was no easy feat.
“This way, everyone,” Galen said. “It’s rather dark, so watch your step.”
The building’s stone hallways were moldy and decrepit, almost as if we had wandered into a cave. We continued down a series of long passages, the air growing more stagnant and choking with each step.
“You weren’t wrong about this place being dark,” I said. “The air’s pretty bad as well. Are there really people staying here?”
Lynne walked beside me, a grave look on her face. “It seems far from sanitary. In these conditions, curing even a treatable illness would be a challenge.”
“No need to worry—this is a storage area for goods on clearance, for which death is the only recourse,” Galen assured us, the corners of a smile peeking out from behind the gold-embroidered cloth he used to cover his mouth. “Quite the pitiable circumstances, but the law clearly requires a stringent quarantine environment. My hands are unfortunately tied.”
We continued to follow the plump man until, at last, we arrived at a miserable room that resembled a basement. If we had set foot in a cave before, then this was a chasm, the air more oppressive than ever.
In front of us, a single masked man guarded an enormous set of metallic doors. He pulled a black lever set into the wall, and a mechanism of some kind creaked as the entrance slowly started to open. Somehow, the hallway beyond it seemed even darker and more moldering than those we’d passed through already. No matter how you looked at it, this was less a quarantine area for the sick and more a waiting room for the dying.