Victory!XP Gained+ 500XP: 3 800 -> 4 300

  “Thank you, Adam,” Vonda said, reag out to hold his hand.

  “For what?”

  “For not killing.”

  Adam frowned. “Am I the kind of guy you o thank for not killing?”

  Vonda iwiheir fingers, brushihumb along his. “You also spoke with the Iyrmen.”

  “Yeah?” Adam gowards his wife, whose smile shone shtly. “Of course, anything for you.” He turned a deep crimson, reag up to hide his smile behind his fist. ‘Whoa. My wife is s and so beautiful! I’m defihe luckiest guy alive! I really want to not kill a draght now! Damn it!’

  Vonda kept brushihumb along his, before the ander approached the pair, noting how intimate they were.

  “Are you two married?” the ander asked.

  “Yes,” Vonda replied, noting how her husband waited for her to speak. ‘Have you truly matured so much?’

  ‘Of course,’ Adam’s eyes replied.

  “gratutions. A Priest of Life and a Priest of… Death?”

  Adam smiled. “Lord Sozain and I are quite close, yes.”

  The ander’s brows raised in arm. ‘Quite close?’ “I wish you good fortune. I have to thank you for your mercy, it must have been difficult to go against your tenants.”

  “As I said, Lord Sozain and I are close, even if I don’t follow his tenants, he won’t bring his fury upon me,” Adam stated fidently, as though it were true. ‘Teically I’m not even a Priest of Death?’

  The ander looked to Vonda for support. ‘This young man is so dangerous.’ “I have to thank you for asking the Iyrmen to step back too. Did you say you were the Iyrman’s brother?”

  “Yeah, we’re brothers.”

  “You are no Iyrman?”

  “No, I’m not.”

  “How did that e to pass?”

  “His family helped me in a previous life, and we formed a e through that.”

  The ander noted Vonda’s look of surprise, and though he had inally thought it was an offhand joke, he gathered there was more truth than he inally realised. “The reputation of the Iyr seems to stand up, even after all this time.”

  Adam’s lips formed a small smirk. “What kind of reputation is that?”

  “They’re a bunch of savages who want for death, and want to fight whatever they ,” the ander began, reag up to brush along a faint scar across the side of his neck. “They’re damn strong too.”

  “Yeah, they are. I’m gd I have so many Iyrmen around me, even if it does brirouble sometimes.” Adam could feel the look from his side. “Of course, I’m pretty troublesome too, but of course I am, since I’m my daughter’s father.”

  “You have children already?” The ander recalled how retly the wedding had been. ‘Is it Mother Soza’s doing?’

  “I had a few children before.”

  “Ah.”

  “Of course, some of them take after Vonda too.”

  “Ray Vonda,” the ander corrected. “Even if she is your wife, you should speak of her title.”

  “What are you, a noble?”

  “I’m the third son of a noble family. It’s not a noble family which exists any longer.”

  “What happened?”

  “The Rockhill Massacre.”

  “Oh,” Adam replied, feeling his leaf ears burn. “Just to let you know, I have nothing to do with that.”

  The ander slowly nodded his head. “I’m aheodore Barrenhill.”

  “Executive Adam Fate, of the United Kindom.”

  “I’ve heard the name in passing. What is the United Kingdom?”

  “United Kindom, it’s the busihat we are a part of. We trade magical items, ons and such.”

  “What kind of magical ons?”

  “Basic, Basihanced, Greater, Greater Enhanced.”

  “Who have you sold such to?”

  “The Iyr and various Aldish nobles, and the Order of Life’s Rose.”

  The ander slowly nodded his head. “You received a token from the Duchess?”

  “I did,” Adam replied, narrowing his eyes slightly. “How did you know?”

  “The Iyrman who passed held the token.”

  “Ah, right, we did hand it to them.”

  Theodore remained silent for a moment, gng between the pair. “Do you have any iion to sell to the military?”

  “United Kindom has wares if you have ,” Adam said, his voice shifting slightly lighter and higher. He smiled towards Vonda, who tilted her head questioningly, before his smile dropped. ‘ht, only I get that.’

  “I see.”

  “If I ask a question…” Adam gnced around. “I remember there being a Sergeant st time, but now there’s a ander?”

  “I was requested to step out of retirement to assist the fort,” the ander replied, saying no more.

  “Are you as strong as Blue Sword?”

  “I wouldn’t lose so easily, but Blue Sword is a great warrior who match even the greatest across the nearby nds,” the ander replied. “My bde is great, but they sider me a Grandmaster, but Blue Sword is closer to a Paragon.”

  “Yeah, I heard he retty strong…” ‘I wonder if I should fight him.’ Adam felt Vonda’s hand against his for a moment. ‘You’re right, of course.’

  “That brother of yours…”

  “Yeah?”

  “Is he by any ce reted to The Kid?”

  “I’m surprised you used that niame and not Mad Dog, but yes, Jurot is the old man’s grandson.”

  “Is he yrandfather?”

  “He wishes he could be my grandfather,” Adam replied. “He’s happy enough to be my children’s greatfather.”

  ‘Your children’s greatfather?’ Theodore filed away all he had learnt about the young man into the back of his mind, to report it iure should he need. “It makes sehat he was so ferocious while fighting.”

  “The reputation of the Iyrmen really is pretty vicious,” Adam said, thinking about hoeople his brother had fought at once. “Well, once he bees a Paragon, I wonder if the Grand ander will be able to beat him.”

  “The Grand ander?”

  “Of the Thousand Hunts,” Adam firmed, smiling ily.

  “Does he have business with the Grand ander?”

  “The Grand ander didn’t want to step back, like his Viahey cshed together, but eventually stopped. Then, the Grand ahought better than to fight, I hope the Viander will learn that too.”

  Theodore reached up to his helmet and tipped it. “I wish you a good night, and great health to your children. Mother’s blessings upon you.”

  “Mother’s blessings upon you,” Vonda replied, and Adam nodded.

  ‘The Mad Dog’s grandson?’ The aepped away towards the tral building, his mind deep in thought. ‘It seems like the stories held more truth than I realised.’

  “Sometimes I fet how crazy Jurot’s heritage is,” Adam whispered. “He’s the old man’s grandson, but I heard his great…” Adam paused. “Wait, what’s before yreatfather?”

  “It is twice great?”

  “I don’t know… I’ve never heard of the Iyr use that. I guess his mreatfather? Anyway, yeah, his mreatfather retty strong too. Crazy to think he’s got monsters on both sides of his family.”

  “They are all proud of their aors,” Vonda stated. “I have heard that Amokan’s granduncle is still active in distant nds, and Timojin’s grandfather also fought to bee the Chief.”

  “I wonder why he didn’t bee the Chief.”

  “He didn’t want to know too much about the Iyr if he wasn’t the Chief.”

  “How do you know?”

  “He told me.”

  “He did?”

  Vonda nodded. “I have spoken with many of the Iyrmen.”

  “Oh…” Adam blinked. “I guess that makes sense.”

  “If you wish to spoil Majin and Tinajin, you should speak with their family more often.”

  Adam blinked. “That’s why you’re my wife, Vonda.” Adam smiled wider.

  “Ray Vonda.”

  “Well, the title does sound hot.”

  “Hot?”

  “Nothing,” Adam replied, gng down at her burn marks for a moment, befng aside. “I mean, you know… it sounds like… it makes me want to…” Adam hid his face behind his hand, feeling the ge ihrough every pore of his body.

  The ander was gd they left immediately the m. He watched over the Iyrmen, who had spoken so openly of their families and their stories. ‘It was too easy to obtain all that information.’ Yet, he knew of the Iyr’s retionship with the truth. ‘Do they think we aren’t a threat? Or are they assured of our alliance?’

  “Bill, it’s them again,” Gee said as the setting sun sparkled off the purple armour.

  “Not again.”

  “No wolves, though?”

  “Yeah?” Bill narrowed his eyes, squinting towards them all. “Oh, thank the Divine.”

  The pair of guards were adorned within the mail of the guard, and c their shirts were red tabard, the symbol of a tree imprinted against it. They wielded long spears in hand, a shield within arm’s read a pair of bdes at their side. They guarded the town, though one would be far more impressed with the walls, made of heavy stone, around three Adam’s tall, with several towers running along the perimeter.

  “Hello there,” Adam called, pulling up his visor to reveal his handsome, smiling, half fae face.

  “Hello,” Gee replied, gng between them all, taking note of their steel adveags. “Were you Steel st year?”

  “Bronze.”

  Gee nodded, gng across the group, noting the tattoos of all the Iyrmen, before his eyes darted to the charcoal skinned fellow with the red beard. “You one of them fire giants?”

  “Seventh Prince Morkarai,” Morkarai smiled politely.

  The guards stood at attention instantly. “A Prince, you say?”

  “A Prince.”

  “Bill, go call the Captain.”

  “Aye,” Bill replied, knog oe, before it opened enough to allow him to slip through. After a moment, there was a crash of against the floor, before the unmistakable sound of someorying to get back up before stumbling away.

  ‘I told you to stop drinking, you absolute prick.’ “Sorry about the bother, Prince, but we’ve got to firm the matter.”

  “You do not have to worry.” Morkarai smiled wide, waiting patiently outside of the walls.

  The gates opened up a moment ter, with the a dozen guards marg swiftly to p either side of the group, who paid little attention to the guards, their eyes glued to the woman ipte. Her breastpte was stamped with the sigil of Red Oak, at her side was a bde made of red oak.

  “Sir Robin Scarletwood, Sixth Branch of the Oakguard,” the woman decred before removing her helmet, revealing her long hair, as brown as an oak, her eyes as green as the first leaves of dawnval. Her beauty was only matched by the authority she exuded, not sidering any of them to be a threat.

  ‘Sir Robin?’ Adam vaguely recalled the name. ‘Don’t I know someone whose name is Sir Robin?’

  “Greetings, Sir Robin, I am-,” Ray Vonda began, before noting the woman inhaled sharply to interrupt her, only for her eyes to dart towards the Ray, and the knight froze. “I am Ray Vonda, of Life’s Rose.”

  “Mother’s blessings upon you, Ray Vonda.”

  “I am currently esc Prince Morkarai.”

  “May I see your amulet?” Sir Robin asked, before iing it with the Ray’s permission, feeling the ridges against her fingers, closing her eyes and pressing it against her cheek. “It is an honour to meet with a Ray.”

  “The honour is ours, Sir Robin of the Oakguard.”

  “I have been informed of uests within your pany.”

  “Which guests?”

  The Oakguards eyes gnced upon the demons. “I have been informed that Life’s Rose has taken responsibility for such guests.”

  “We have.”

  “We will escort you to the tess’ residence, but yuests may not e.”

  “I must stay with the guests,” Vonda replied, simply.

  “We will escort those who wish to apany the Prince,” Sir Robin go Morkarai. “Does such please you.”

  “I will not cause you trouble in this regard. May we take a moment to discuss who will apany me?”

  “As you wish, Your Royal Highness.”

  Adam winced visibly upon hearing the address, before catg Morkarai’s smirk. “Executives, would you wish to apany Prince Morkarai?”

  “I will remain,” Jaygak said, gng across the Aldish guards. “You and I should escort the Managers.”

  “I think you’re right, Executive Jaygak. Executive Jurot, Executive Kitool, could you apany Prince Morkarai? Amokan, Timojin, would you also be willing to assist?”

  “Until you leave Red Oak, we will apany Prince Morkarai,” Amokan firmed, fshing a charming smile.

  “Four Iyrmen should be enough.”

  “Are you sure you don’t wish to apany me?” Morkarai teased.

  “I think my wife’s wisdom is brushing against me, so I’ll choose to speime with other nobles,” Adam said, his voice full of a lightness he shouldn’t be using with royalty.

  “I almost believe you have matured,” Morkarai joked.

  Adam smiled wide. “Well, it is what it is.”

  “You should speak more politely to the Prince,” Sir Robin said.

  Adam narrowed his eyes towards the Oakguard. “Jurot, please greet Sir Merriy behalf if you see him.”

  “Okay.”

  “I won’t take the Oakguard’s rudeness as the tess wishing not to do business,” Adam stated, still gng aside to his brother. “Executive Jurot, please inform the tess of our offers.”

  “…”

  “You know, the ability to buy a few magical ons if she so requires, and we will send word to the Enter to make them.”

  Sir Robin’s eyes darted between Adam and Jurot, her eyes curious. ‘What are these fools talking about?’

  ‘We really need money for the road, and we should probably send some back to ease the worker’s worries.’

  “Okay.”

  I hate them.