Mr. Morrison rushed inside the room after Bodrick and his men."Your Lordship," he said, "this man is my guest. I had sent him to hunt the Song-folk this morning. If someone is to be punished, it should be me."
Bodrick has those tired eyes that come with the responsibility of governing others. He looked as though he was always tired, as though he"s been through similar situations countless times. His eyes landed on the tavern owner and beckoned him forward.
"Your name is Gerhard Morrison, is that right?" he asked.
Morrison nodded.
"I heard you employed that fanged creature that attacked my men in your tavern," the lord went on.
"Yes," Morrison confirmed the statement, unblinking.
"The villagers here fear them," Lord Bodrick said. "I heard there"s a tribe of them not too far off from here. Why didn"t you point him the right way?"
"Villagers tend to drink a tad too much during the festival," Morrison said. "With your men"s presence, I figured a Child of the Forest would keep the villagers from creating unnecessary trouble for them."
"Do you think my men wouldn"t be able to defend themselves?" Bodrick asked, squinting at the tavern owner.
"No, your Lordship," Morrison said. "I was afraid the villagers would stir trouble. It always results in property destruction. I"m the one who gets to deal with it later. I was just protecting my business."
Lord Bodrick chuckled. "You"re a smart businessman," he said. "Why haven"t you settled in a big city? You"d make a better living there."
"They"re too expensive, noisy and not to mention dirty," Morrison said. "I"m a widower. I enjoy the calm and serenity of small villages."
"You know what happens to those who cause me offense, do you not?"
Morrison nodded then gulped. His hands were slightly shaking. I saw him clench on the hem of his wool jacket.
"When I took this man and his companion in," the tavern owner said. "I wanted to offer them refuge. They were just pa.s.sing by. They weren"t looking for trouble."
"Yet, here we are," Bodrick said. "Discussing the trouble they caused."
"I don"t believe they"re the ones who started it," Morrison said. "I heard villagers speak about the Child of the Forest before sunset. They wanted to banish him."
"Is that true?" Bodrick let out a vicious smile, looking down at the tavern owner. "Then why didn"t you report them?"
"I didn"t think they"d actually act on it. I hear them talk about too many things. I figured they just wanted to vent their frustration," Morrison said. "To tell you the truth, my lord, villagers here are cowards. That"s why the mayor usually recruits bounty hunters to take care of monsters that roam about."
"Are you suggesting that my men allied themselves to the villagers?" Bodrick asked.
"With all due respect, my lord, I don"t see how they"d be outside the village otherwise."
"Franz!" Lord Bodrick turned to the black haired guard. "Why was this young man outside the village when the attack took place?"
"The young lady was missing," Franz replied. "I ordered him to go look for her. She likes sneaking out to the woods by herself."
"And how did you," Lord Bodrick turned to Johann then, "decide to ignore your orders and attack a Sebyan?"
"He threatened us first," Johann replied. "We asked them about the lady, they responded with violence."
"How convenient," Lord Bodrick scoffed, "that you say that after the culprits have disappeared. We"re lucky this young man"s still alive. Let"s double check the facts, shall we?"
I saw Johann turn to Franz, silently begging him to intervene. Franz glared at the guard then switched his gaze toward me.
"How are your injuries?" Lord Bodrick asked.
"I think I"ll survive," I said.
"I"m about to ask you some questions," he said. "Speak true and speak fast. I will be merciful if you speak the truth. If not, and believe me I will know if you lie, your head shall roll for all the villagers to see. Do you understand?"
I nodded.
"Did you provoke that man?" he asked, pointing at Johann.
"No, my lord," I said.
"How did the attack begin?" he asked. "Make it brief."
"I was injured from my fight against the monsters," I said. "On our way back, villagers ambushed us. They required that Nag, my companion, leave the village. Nag protested, that"s when your men showed up."
"What happened after that?" Lord Bodrick urged. I could tell he wasn"t happy to hear my first account, meaningless details in his opinion I guess.
"I may have insulted this young man"s mother," I said, wincing. "He didn"t take it too well so he kicked the crutch I was using as support. I fell. When I woke up, everything was dark. I couldn"t see, and your men were screaming, fighting in the dark. I crawled away, and reached the village."
"It was dark, you say?" Franz intervened. "As in night time?"
"No," I said. "It was darker. I could barely see my own hands. I thought I had gone blind."
Lord Bodrick turned to his men. They both exchanged worried looks. Bodrick looked at Johann then. I couldn"t see his face anymore, but I saw his shoulders slightly shaking.
"Why didn"t you report this?" he asked.
His voice was now louder. I shuddered at hearing it. I felt slightly embarra.s.sed for Johann now. He was staring at the floor indefinitely. Words got stuck in his throat. Franz nudged his companion, but the latter looked like he lost the speaking function.
"Did this man, or his companion, provoke you?" Lord Bodrick asked.
Johann stubbornly looked at the floor, mute.
"It is clear from this young man"s silence that he and the ones who followed him are to blame. Not mentioning the darkness puts you in a dire situation, Johann Becker."
Bodrick nodded at the dark haired guard. Franz pulled Johann from the elbow and led him outside. Bodrick walked toward me, put a hand on my shoulder then spoke.
"When you recover, I want you to visit me at the Two Flower Inn. You handled yourself pretty well against the Song-folk, and you somehow got out of the darkness alive. You may be able to help me with a particular matter. I pay better than the mayor."
I nodded. I didn"t seem I had a say in this anyway. The way Bodrick spoke didn"t leave you any room for argument. You just nod and hope for the best.
The man turned on his heels then headed for the door. Before leaving, he cast one last glance at the tavern owner.
"Mr. Morrison," he said. "I respect your bravery, but speak to me in that tone again, and you"ll lose your tongue."
"Apologies, your Lordship," Mr. Morrison said then bowed. "I didn"t mean to offend you. I"m not used to speaking to n.o.bility."
"Clearly," Bodrick said. He turned around then left, his black cape fluttering behind him.
"That was intense," Wanda said after everyone, except for Morrison, left.
Mr. Morrison jumped in place. He turned to look near the window, where he spotted Wanda. His eyes widened and his jaw fell.
"What the h.e.l.l are you doing here?" he asked. "And how long have you been sitting there?"
"Since last night," Wanda said. "I"ve been taking care of this one, remember?"
"I thought you left the room this morning;" Mr. Morrison said. "How do you that?"
"Do what?" she asked.
"You just sit there, as though you don"t exist. It"s scary."
"I guess I have one of those faces," Wanda said. "People rarely notice me."
"I was also surprised to see her beside me," I said. "I"d even forgotten she was here when Bodrick came in."
Mr. Morrison chuckled. "You"re a lucky one," he said. "Bodrick isn"t known for being merciful."
"I"m not sure about the lucky part then," I said.
"What do you mean?" Wanda asked. "You still have your head."
"I"m still alive yes," I said, sounding a bit too exasperated, "but this man wants me to run some errands for him. I don"t like working for others. Their agendas might drag me along for longer than I wish to."
"Have you got anything better to do?" Mr. Morrison asked. "You were looking for a job, you got the best there is. Lord Bodrick pays really well. You don"t know how many people are fighting to win his good graces."
"Any news of Nag?" I asked.
I had to change the subject. I didn"t know what that lord wanted from me. Besides, that darkness thing was bugging me. It looked very similar to the Aeon"s darkness, but it felt different. Something told me Bodrick was pursuing it as well. Something also told me I"d end up chasing it.
At the mention of Nag, Morrison"s shoulders slouched. He got closer, grabbed a chair and sat next to me.
"He got in touch after the attack," he whispered. "He says it"s not a good idea for him to stay around, not if it puts you and Zoey in danger."
"Where is he staying?" I asked.
"He didn"t say," Morrison replied. "He said he"ll get in touch. He said to look for him in the woods if you need him. He"ll approach you."
"Glad to hear he"s alive," I said.
"He was injured when I met him," Morrison said. "He said he"ll be fine, but I"m not sure about it. He didn"t look too good to me."
"Don"t worry about him," I said.
I threw the blankets that covered me and jumped out of bed. I didn"t even give time for Wanda to protest. Morrison looked incredulously at me.
"How did you?" he asked but couldn"t finish his question.
I took my right shoulder for a spin. It moved just fine. My leg was no longer perturbed by my weight. I smiled.
"I recover quickly," I said. "Don"t you have a business to run?"
"You recover too quickly," Wanda protested. "Are you sure you"re just a wanderer?"
"What does it matter?" I said. "I got rid of those monsters by the lake. It"s high time I got paid for it. It"s also time for you two to take care of your business. Thank you for taking care of me though, and standing up for me."
"Oh," Morrison stood, looking at me as though he looked at his own child, "don"t mention it my boy. Are you sure you"re fine?"
"Yes," I said. "I"ll make sure to repay you for your kindness."
"It"s nothing," it was Wanda who spoke this time. "Just stay away from the villagers. They don"t like you."
"I saved their wives, didn"t I? They should worship me."Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
Morrison snorted. Wanda scowled at me.
"Do you know why their wives went to the lake?" she asked in a patronizing tone.
"Yes," I said. "I have a pretty clear idea of what the "men" in this village are "not" capable of."
Morrison started laughing, and so did Wanda. I joined in. Little did I know, that village I landed in held a terrible secret. Wanda and the tavern owner were laughing for different reasons, maybe to hide their fear, or to forget about it for a fleeting moment. I couldn"t tell then. I still can"t tell now.