Chapter 99: Road Trip


    Arthur''s Point of View


    _______________


    "It''s nothingpared to what you did for the kingdom," the chief replied, while looking at us three. "It seems that it''s time for your party to go. We will miss you, Arthur, Merleen, and Fenrir."


    But before we could end our discussion, Galehaut nced at the side. He squinted his eyes and lifted his forefinger, pointing at the group of people running in our direction. Merleen and I prepared our stances, thinking that the crowd was also an enemy. Fenrir did not bother preparing herself, since she already knew what was happening.


    "Those people you think of as opponents are the mercenaries. They may havee here to say theirst goodbyes."


    As soon as Galehaut ended his speech, Green and his fellow mercenary friends arrived. Green went towards me and unsheathed his bastard de.


    "Before you leave, can we spar! I want to challenge you!" said Green.


    I shook my head and rejected his offer. "Maybe next time, Green. I am not up for challenges right now."


    "Oh,e on! I''ve tested the system you gave me! And I already shared that system with my teammates!"


    This man studied the power I had given to him within minutes before leaving Green in the castle. It took me a couple of hours before refreshing myself to use this power. I could even bet that Green never shed a sweat after wielding the system.


    "Are you sure you could trust these people having their own systems?" I asked, while looking at all the seven mercenaries beside Green. "I am not saying that they cannot be trusted. But I will leave that judgement to you, Green. This power is not something that can be shared with anyone else."


    "Then why are you giving it for free?" Fenrir butted in, while looking into my eyes."


    "Because I trust you guys. I am not giving out my power just because I want to. It''s because I know Green would protect those who need him the most." I gazed at Green and continued, "But if you trust them, it''s fine by me."


    Green gave me a nod and answered, "I trust them, Arthur. These mercenaries are like a family to me. I would never doubt them, even if it costs me my life."


    I told Green that the mercenary group would act as one fighting against viins or bad people, especially those who stir trouble inside the kingdom. These mercenaries can never share the system with anyone else but the eight of them.


    I invited Galehaut and asked him if he also wanted the system. That man shook his head and rejected my offer, saying that he was old enough to fight. He yearned to help the injured vigers in this shelter.


    Galehaut reminded me of a physician that wanted the betterment of the people without asking much from them.


    "Green. Now that you''re free from Albion, all the kingdoms might attack you. The king who created this contract would have eyes on you, monitoring everyone in this kingdom. Before that could happen, I want you guys to prepare a counterattack. If you need to evacuate the citizens, please do so," I eximed, while staring into Green''s eyes. "And if that happens, do not kill any soldiers whoe in your way. Just render them unconscious. But never take any life unless needed."


    I never wanted these mercenaries to be a killer against other soldiers. These warriors have the power to protect the vigers, not to harm others. The mercenary group could only kill people if they deemed it necessary.


    "I will try my best to meet your expectations, Arthur. You know, you should rece my position and be king of Caerleon."


    "I am far under qualified to be a king of a kingdom, Green. I am just an adventurer who protects those who need me. And right now, I need to get that sword from the demon''s hands. The only one who could stop the demons is my rent sword and me."


    I ended the topic, since we concluded. As soon as all parties had said their fill, my group walked to the caravan. But Merleen and Fenrir did not go inside, since they did not want to enter without me.


    "We''re going now, Galehaut Green... And mercenaries. I don''t know all of your names, since we haven''t talked. But all of you are awesome and powerful, okay?! Don''t let your guard down, even against bad people. And don''t underestimate them just because they''re weaker than you. It doesn''t mean that you be more powerful since you have a system. You guys just have a slight advantage over your enemies. Always remember that there would be someone out there who would kick your ass for that," I said, and waved my hand. "Take care, you guys. We will return when the timees."


    I offered him my hand for him to shake, since we would not see each other for a long time. But Green stared at my fingers for a while before reacting to it. He did not even shake my damn hand. Green just watched me extend my arms, unsure of what to do.


    "Am I going to?" Green asked, while tilting his head. "I am not sure what to do."


    "In my culture, you have to shake my hand before leaving."


    "Oh"


    Green realised my intentions as he finally grabbed my hand. He shook it the way I expected him, while looking into my eyes. When we finished shaking our hands, I turned around and walked away.


    After our exchange, Merleen, Fenrir, and I went inside the carriage. The horse red a neigh as soon as we entered the carriage. The kingdom only had a healthy horse that I could use for our travel.


    We nned on heading out as soon as possible without further dy, especially after what we heard from Fenrir. That demon lurking around the borders would be the biggest threat that we would face for this battle.


    Galehaut taught me to handle a horse before leaving the kingdom. He showed me the ropes and told me tips and tricks about riding a cart. After a few minutes, I acquired a skill. That ability allowed me to control the horse''s movements, making me a level 1 coachman.


    Without dy, I whipped the ropes and ordered the horse to progress. The four-legged animal heeded my instructions and kicked its feet. After a few minutes, we were finally on the road, heading forward towards the site.


    Merleen and Fenrir waved their hands at our rear and told their goodbyes to the people. I could not do the same, since I was currently the coachman on this trip. If I did that, we would all fall to our inevitable doom.


    ording to Fenrir, the magic aura she felt earlier was around a few hundred miles away from the Kingdom of Caerleon. It would take us a few days before reaching that area. If my guess would hit the nail, we needed a week to arrive at that ce.


    But before we could even reach a mile, Fenrir groaned at the back and threw some cursed words. And when I nced behind, the wolf girl went to the window and threw up. A river of lime green liquid cascaded from her mouth as she continued spewing her meal.


    "There goes Fenrir''s lunch."


    After a few years, I finally got to say those lines. I had to share it, since it was the perfect scene for me to tell it.


    "Is she going to be okay, Arthur?" Merleen asked in a worried tone.


    Merleen glued her eyes on Fenrir, who kept vomiting everything inside her body.


    "She''s going to be fine... I think. It''s just motion sickness! It will be over once we arrive at our destination....," I said, and stole a glimpse from behind. "Just tell her not to excrete every food she ate, or else we have to hunt our meal."


    "What do you mean ''I''m going to be okay''? I might die here, Arthur!" Fenrir eximed, while hurling at the side. "If I''m going. to die.. I''m going to take you with me."


    "Woah, Fenrir. Easy there. Motion sickness won''t kill you from where I came from."


    Within a few minutes, we had to stop by the nearestke. Fenrir demanded to get down as she surrendered riding the carriage. I did not mind a thing, since we just started our journey. But if we idled around, the demon could notice our presence.


    "After two minutes, we will resume our journey. I will try to speed up the pace. So you won''t feel nauseous. Will that be okay with you, Fenrir?"


    "NO!"


    "Okay! That would be great!"


    As soon as we hit two minutes, Merleen and Fenrir returned inside the caravan. I also hopped in the coachman''s seat and whipped the rope once again. The horse screamed when it felt the ropes pping against its back.


    It was just like I said before. I sped up the pace and hurried towards our goal.