Although Musashi had completed the task Caesar had asked of him, Caesar was in no position to know or celebrate, as he was currently busy running through the forest with three figures on his back, staring at him vigilantly.This was, of course, Symphony, Seraph, and their mother. Once their mother had woken up, she surprisingly didn"t resist in the slightest. Instead, she simply remained calm and observed Caesar.
Her piercing gaze caused the hairs on Caesar"s back to raise, however, he didn"t mind the fact that he was under scrutinization, and simply observed her back. She had weathered facial features, bright yellow eyes, and a sharp countenance. It was clear that she was once a beautiful woman, alas, after years of stress and hard work, her appearance was average at best.
She appeared to be, at the very least, mid-thirties. Although Caesar didn"t care much about her outward appearance, he thought it was tragic that such a woman suffered such a fate.
Thinking to here, the fox-kin stronghold finally came into his line of sight. The strong and st.u.r.dy walls dazzled the two children on his back, the only thing they"d seen bigger, was the troll walls.
Their mother"s reaction, however, was vastly different. Her mouth open agape and her eyes dilated. It appeared as though she knew where Caesar had brought them. Caesar wanted to question her, but he held himself back and decided to just scale the walls.
The three people on his back held him tightly as he ascended the wall, They were flabbergasted at the fact Caesar could climb the smooth walls whilst carrying three people, albeit, two of them were children.
Soon, Caesar made it atop the walls, and before the guards could spot him, he jumped down. The strong winds a.s.saulted him, and the family on his back, fluttering their hair wildly as they fell.
A loud crashing sound echoed out as he landed on the ground. A small crater formed and Caesar could feel his feet sinking into the ground from the extra weight on his back. He then proceeded to take the family of three off of his shoulders.
"As you may, or may not know, this is the fox-kin stronghold…" Caesar said while glancing at the middle-aged woman, "I"ll offer you protection, food, and shelter, that is if you want it" Caesar"s words continued, and the two children got visibly excited.
However, their mother simply frowned and looked at Caesar warily, "you have no chance to win against the trolls… staying here would be courting death" she replied with deeply creased brows, it was clear that she had no intention of staying.
Caesar was not surprised by her words in the slightest, in fact, he figured she would say something similar, "you are correct, this is no place for children to stay during war… I can give you a small carriage and minimal supplies if you want to leave" Caesar replied calmly.
"But, why? Is there not something you want?" she ridiculed while looking at her daughter, whose beauty was just beginning to bloom. She knew that the handsome man in front of her had no reason to help them, and since she was no longer beautiful… she figured the man was after her daughter.
Her words and implications caused Caesar to nearly laugh out loud, fortunately, he just let out a chuckle, "I am not interested in a flower that has yet to bloom. It appears that you have mistaken me for some kind of sc.u.m. Fortunately for you, I am not yet offended by such sarcastic remarks, but if they were to continue... " Caesar said with squinted eyes. He didn"t save the two children for any kind of merit, however, constantly being labeled as some kind of pedophile or evil man, has somewhat annoyed him.
Caesar generally didn"t help people without gaining any merits, alas, he decided to save the two children, because they interested him. But instead of thanks, they constantly treated him as they would a troll. Although understandable, it was still quite vexatious.
Symphony"s mother didn"t immediately reply to Caesar, but her furrowed brows eased a tad bit, "I apologize for insinuating such filthy things, but if your words are true, then would you please let us leave…" the woman said whilst bowing, though she still didn"t trust Caesar, she figured she might as well be respectful, if she wanted her children to have a chance at life.
Caesar, of course, knew that the woman still didn"t trust him, thus, he merely shrugged his shoulders and nodded his head, "very well, but as I said before, I can only give you a minimal amount of supplies… our men can not march on empty stomachs after all" Caesar said with an exasperated sigh and started walking towards the fox-kin mansion.
The trio didn"t respond and promptly followed after him, they quietly walked by the many tents and ragged shacks on the way. The two children couldn"t help but look everywhere curiously, it was the first time they had ever traveled.
They continued walking in a similar fashion until they reached the inner gates. Once the guards caught sight of Caesar, they didn"t hesitate to immediately open the doors. Although they were interested in the ident.i.ty of the three people following him, none of them dared to ask. Caesar"s position in the clan was now only second to Musashi, they weren"t qualified to speak to him.
As such, Caesar leisurely walked by the gate guards, and in response, they saluted respectfully. The three following behind Caesar, more specifically the mother, marveled at the guards" respectful gesture.
Caesar didn"t bother explaining, and the family didn"t dare ask. Soon, they pa.s.sed the guards and walked into the large and luxurious mansion. The huge wooden halls and elegantly painted walls entered into their sight.
While the trio behind him was still in shock, Caesar stopped a nearby maid, "please prepare a carriage, dried food for a week, and a temporary room for tonight" he ordered, to which the maid bowed and answered, "as you command"
The maid then walked towards the family of three to guide them to their room, while Caesar departed and headed towards his room. He, by no means, wanted to enter into his room with another family, while Ahri was waiting for him. In fact, he was already planning on apologizing, for leaving at such an important time.
With this in mind, he didn"t even glance back before leaving the small family in the dust. He trusted that the maid would treat them nicely and give them what he had ordered. If there was anything that the fox-kin impressed him with, it would be the maids.
Thinking to here, Caesar soon arrived in front of his door. He hesitated a moment before turning the doork.n.o.b and entering. Once he entered the dark room, he stripped his still wet and b.l.o.o.d.y clothes and entered into his undergarments.
Caesar walked towards the bed and laid down on the right side, he put his arms around the sleeping Ahri and held her close.
Suddenly, she turned around and wrapped her arms around Caesar as well… "you reek of blood" she said softly, but the relieved smile plastered on her face showed her true thoughts.