BXBX NOVEL Chapter 156: Moving Forward
"Do you think they'll recognize you?" Samira asked, seeing him mounted on Apocalypse, looking at the convoy line with a somewhat complicated expression. He indeed had these thoughts ingrained in his mind, but... it wasn't just that... "I have a bad feeling," Strax commented, feeling as if he was being watched by something... or rather, by someone.
"Don't worry so much, even if they find out it's you, I don't think it'll interfere with anything," Samira replied, but Strax shook his head. "By now, the spy must be keeping an eye on and aware of all the city's problems. He's provoked someone far too powerful for him. There's no way he's not watching the flow of people in and out of the city.
At least, I would if I were him." Strax said as he looked ahead, the convoy finally stopping at the small management post.
Strax remained silent, standing beside the carriage where the girls were, while he watched Lyana getting out of the main carriage from afar. She looked as tense as Strax, her face set in a serious and bitter expression. She stepped out of the carriage, and the first thing she did was turn toward Strax and start walking. She was rigid and clearly unhappy...
"It's not enough to deal with two tigers and a golden lion; now I have to deal with this very angry lady," Strax muttered, and the girls heard him and looked at each other, wondering what he was talking about. That was the question they asked themselves as they saw his less-than-happy expression.
Strax already had some strong opinions about Lyana, though he didn't know how true they were. He also didn't help much with his actions. From the beginning, he made mistakes with her several times, and spying on her bath was definitely the worst of all his errors. Not that he wanted things to be that way, but she was contributing to the animosity between them.
Although, of course, Strax was someone quite understanding, even with strangers...
She approached him as he sat on Apocalypse, watching the scene. Her steps were long and firm, and her face was serious. The enraged Lyana didn't exist; it was just the serious Lyana he had met inside that carriage.
"Lady Evelyn asked me to deliver a message to you," she said neutrally, no longer resembling the woman who had been screaming at him in embarrassment, though there was a slight blush on her face. Her serious and disciplined gaze completely hid that discomfort from knowing that after so many years of taking care of and hiding herself, a man... had seen her immaculate body in such a defenseless state.
"What did she say?" Strax asked, calmly analyzing Lyana's expressions to catch any subtle signs.
"She asked if she could consider your carriage and your companions as part of our convoy. Since you don't even want to say your real name, I assume you want to remain anonymous, right? She wants to put you down as one of our hired mercenaries," Lyana said without blinking or changing her expression. Besides that... "I didn't lie about my name," Strax said, looking deeply at her. Well...
it was true. Even though he was using his mother's surname, he wasn't lying. In a way, his name was indeed Strax Antares.
"It wasn't me who claimed that, those are Lady Evelyn's words. If you want to explain and discuss yourself, seek her out. I'm just passing on the message I was given. So, do you accept or not? I need a quick answer; there are still two carriages ahead of us, so I need a clear response," Lyana said again, showing herself to be completely different... Was she angry?
It was as if nothing else mattered now, and she was focused solely on attacking Strax with class, without lowering her head or yielding to his words... She was...
"Alright, tell her we accept," Strax said, realizing it was pointless to argue. Lyana nodded in agreement, but Strax didn't let her leave before saying something. "I'm sorry about that, but I can't stay quiet without knowing who I'm dealing with, Elf," Strax said, not to provoke, of course, but simply stating the truth.
He needed to somehow understand who he was dealing with, and despite it being quite immoral on his part, he couldn't just ignore this information.
Lyana stopped with her back to him, many thoughts racing through her mind as if everything had slowed down to a crawl, and for a moment, she thought about something... something Evelyn had said to her a few hours earlier during the journey...
"I believe he saw your ear, but don't worry too much... For some reason, I feel like we're dealing with someone who is far more than just a stupid pervert. And as you know, I have a gift for understanding people easily and directly. I don't sense any malice coming from him... I just feel that he's in a situation he needs to resolve quickly, or at least he thinks so.
He reminds me of you when you found out about my illness... I think he's searching for something with this journey, just as I am. So... try to be more understanding, okay? I know you're upset about what he did, but if it were something you were seeking and needed to do, you would do the same, wouldn't you?
So try to be a little more forgiving." Evelyn had said this to her, and she had been thoughtful, trying to understand how she could not be so affected by it. That's why she had this change in demeanor; she was genuinely considering what Evelyn had told her. She glanced at him from the side, without fully turning her body.
"I hope you understand why I'm hiding this," she said, then continued on her way with controlled and calm steps, seemingly relieved by something. With that single statement, Strax had achieved something... "She didn't deny being an elf," Strax thought, watching the woman walk away in the distance while he petted Apocalypse's head, who seemed to want a bit of attention...
"She seemed pretty calm..." Monica murmured. She was sitting by the window, having overheard the entire conversation. "Especially after what you did..." Monica added, almost as if cornering him. "At least now we know she really is an elf," Strax said, looking ahead. "Do you still think we can handle this?" Beatrice asked.
"I'll try to be more friendly with them; I at least want a lead to find an alchemist. We still have the issue of Xyn to resolve. I don't know why, but I feel like we need to do this quickly; I have a bad feeling..." Strax said, looking toward the horizon, where he saw the knights checking the first carriages as they approached his.
Carlos, who was just watching the situation, couldn't help but think about how this gang of crazies was... Everything they did somehow worked out, and even when they caused problems, they still came out on top. Their power was simply against the whole universe.
Just thinking about how this man spied on the immaculate bodies of two maidens and suffered no consequences was already too much, even for him. He couldn't help but sigh as he pondered all the events of the journey.
Strax remained silent after thinking about what he would do next. He needed to find the man Samira had mentioned, then locate Christine to get his bearings. With her, he would help get into the auction and find the spy he needed to capture and bring to Diana...
"Ah... this journey has already been problematic... I can only imagine what's going to happen in this damn city," Strax said with a sigh as the knights approached, checking the luggage in the carriage ahead.
"Stop grumbling to yourself; the problems won't just disappear, you know? We just need to finish this and get back home. You also need to cultivate, or you'll stagnate and won't be able to advance. I believe you'll reach Grandmaster level in six months," Samira said, interrupting his complaints.
She usually stayed quiet at times like these, but the amount this man had been complaining was driving her crazy!
"Yes, yes, alright, I'll keep quiet," Strax said, surrendering, realizing she was growing impatient.
As they continued their calm conversation, a soldier approached to check if there were any issues with the carriage, from drug transportation to anything involving the city's illicit activities. And well... "Nothing here?" he asked, seeing that they didn't even have luggage, since everything was in Strax's inventory... "They're in the convoy ahead.
These lovely ladies didn't want the carriage to be cramped," Strax said with a smile. The knight didn't quite understand, but he knocked twice. "You may go."