Chapter 4 Meeting Again

Jade paced up and down in the office, her mind fixated on the actions of the mercenary earlier. She was still fuming from what had happened, yet her mind was in turmoil.

What in the world just happened?

She rubbed her temple and stared up at the rafters above her.

“Senior Jade, are you fine?” A junior officer passing by inquired. She faced him for a bit, smiling pretentiously. Her cherry lips and rosy cheeks distracted him for a moment.

“I’m okay. I just need a break from things.”

He appeared concerned. “Was it that man earlier? I heard things were getting out of hand.”

She felt a blush coming over her cheeks. It was the first time a man had come so close to touching her, but she detested the man with all her heart! Still, he was the only one who had defeated her, though it made her embarrassed, and she had such use for his skills. The mission they would head out on wasn’t a normal one.

“I don’t wish to talk about it,” she turned away so that her junior wouldn’t notice the flush on her cheeks. She took a deep breath and inhaled and exhaled a few times, rubbing her face until she knew the redness on her face was gone.

Jade, you got this; she told herself a few times. Stop thinking about that idiot.

“Senior, if he bullied you, I can get the others to teach him a lesson.”

The younger man was so adamant about getting back to the unknown man, but knowing how adept the man was, it was futile. Jade shook him off firmly.

“I said I’m fine. Listen to my words. Go back to your work.”

The young man reluctantly obeyed and exited from the main door, leaving Jade alone in the office. She couldn’t fathom what was going on in her head right now. She assembled herself and shouted as loudly as she could.

She would never, in this lifetime, have feelings for the man, she swore. She reminded herself that she became a guard for a purpose. And that was to prove her worth and, as her childhood friend King Greyson said, to give her a whiff of the matters on the island. Greyson had believed that doing so, would enable her to understand further what an Advisor’s role was about.

She was still inexperienced, after all.

But to endure the ordeal of being stuck with that idiotic Chad throughout the trip? How could she even handle it? Even if his skills were what she needed.

King Greyson had given her the task in secret. Hence, the details of the expedition were to be kept as confidential as possible. She was to hire the most exceptional mercenaries possible because he needed her alive.

Because of this, he had insisted on this requirement. It made total sense to her. If any harm came to her, who was going to be the future advisor?

And then, there was that other reason she couldn’t allow herself to have feelings for anyone. She had a betrothal to another man on the island, Levi Stanson, the son of a minister. She hadn’t met him apart from a brief encounter when they were children, and she barely remembered how he looked now. But that wasn’t her primary focus.

Greyson had said that the mission was highly essential. When Xima cursed the island, she had spread her lackeys around the island, in fifteen different territories, with one in each. These demons, made of her blood and spiritual energy, threatened travellers on the roads, causing fear to whoever passed by. Greyson wanted her to exterminate them.

The demons wouldn’t go down easily without normal weapons. He had rewarded her with two unique weapons: the Demon-Flail and the Mystic Dagger. They created the flail from the bark of a tree that had sprouted from the grave of a holy man that had passed away some decades ago.

Greyson had the dagger commissioned from a sword that was used by a retired swordsman who had once encountered a demon and survived. They believed that the fallen demon’s blood strengthened the weapon.

As for the mercenaries, Greyson had prepared ammunition and weapons, enhanced with ‘holy’ water. This holy water was water used for prayers by the religious folk of the island. Every morning, these people, commonly women, would make obeisance to the gods by dressing in plain white clothes and offering water and fruits.

After the prayers, they would distribute the fruits among the residents of the island city. They used the water to bless items or even for drinking as they believed it to have miraculous properties. The water used for prayers originated from a clear stream far from the village. According to a myth passed down from generation to generation, the water had healing and blessing properties, also clean from any impurities.

Whether the myths were true, she just needed to come back from the mission victorious.

………………………………………………………………………

The day she dreaded eventually came. She was so occupied with training the juniors that she hadn’t realised how three days had just gone by like that. The next thing was, a junior guard announced that the two men had arrived an hour before the arranged time.

Hmm, so the man had heeded her words. Clearing her throat, she asked them to come in.

Chad looked charismatic in a dark-looking suit and trousers. Just as he had been the other day, he was calm and composed. As seeing him would only irritate her further, she directed her attention to his companion.

“Miss Gold, I, Chad, am here as promised,” the man bowed politely. “And this is my friend and sworn brother Sky.”

Sky bowed after him. His eyes seemed to light up like he had seen something that excited him. But then he remained silent, so she thought little of it.

Walking towards the large entrance, she made sure nobody was around to hear their conversation, then she bolted shut the main door and the back exit as well. Then she moved back to face the two men, appearing as authoritative as she could while announcing in a solemn voice.

“The reason you are here is that this is a very important mission. Listen up, because the mission is also perilous. I can’t predict what will happen on the journey, or whether we will end up coming back alive and in one piece because there has been no one alive to tell of their experiences. So, are you in or not? I don’t want cowards following me and running off halfway.”

She didn’t see the need to explain further unless they acknowledged their interest. It was a matter of whether they were willing parties. But judging by Chad’s character, he did not seem the sort who would leave his comfortable life to encounter risks out there in the wild. She, even with her high caste, had a strict upbringing. From a tender age, her father had raised her in such a manner. That was another reason she disliked Chad. He seemed to have his life so easy.

She paused. Were they going to decline the offer?

“We are in,” they answered in unison, astonishing her. Were they sure?

“You still have the last chance to decide whether to take this mission before I explain to you what it is all about. But once you have an idea about what it entails, I cannot let you leave.”

Chad coolly moved closer till he and Jade were just an inch apart.

“Miss Gold, I’m all ears. You can trust me. I’ll do a good job. After all, it’s a man’s part to keep his woman safe.”

She just wanted to kill him right now.