The Druid Wielder

Chapter 11

The next morning I found that the caravan had arrived. Some of the elders directed me what to do. I let myself be their tool.

Their short, wrinkled bodies were too old to do any of this hard labor. So even though the sun beat down persistently on my face, I did whatever they told me. It was a mix of chores ranging from lifting boxes of cabbages to bags of rice. There was one wagon that arrived, however, they did not let me unload. They kept me busy with sorting the other products while Bazel came and unloaded. He gave me a slight wave when he saw me but immediately went to work. It seemed to be several barrels filled with scrolls. Perhaps secret plans for Vermilion himself? Whatever they were, Bazel made sure to escort them personally.

About midday I found Rem waiting for me with a cup of water and food.

"Thank you." She nodded and scurried away.

I devoured the bread and fresh ham then continued unloading the wagon.

I caught a glimpse of Vermilion talking to the caravan driver a little bit away. As I worked, I could feel his glare burning through my back. It made me nervous to think that I was standing out. What did those prying eyes want to discover and what did they already know? I looked over in his direction hoping that he would look away if I caught him at it, but he didn't even flinch. He stared right back until I was the one that looked away. For the rest of the evening, I had to work with his eyes watching my every move.

It wasn't until late afternoon where I finally saw him leave with some other men. I took a sigh of relief. It felt like a huge rock had been lifted from my shoulders.

When I finally finished, I was sweaty and exhausted. I could feel my muscles shake from the work. I had never done such strenuous work before since that was the job of the servants. My body would have to adapt to the exuberant activities in this field.

Since I still had time before I was supposed to meet the others for dinner, I decided that a bath was due. I found a lady who easily directed me in the direction of the bathing stream. She was kind enough to give me a bar of soap and cloth too. For being assassins they were quite friendly. Honestly, I was expecting more of a cold shoulder since I was new. Perhaps not all of the townsfolk were stone hard killers. For all the stories I had heard of this place, Kalzr seemed to be a rather normal village, that just so happened to be protected by the largest group of assassins in the land. Thankfully I listened to Akyto's lessons about them. Akyto never believed I listened to him at all. He was only partially wrong. There were other groups of mercenaries throughout Galasia. The larger ones being the White Wolves, which were a group of bandits who would raid merchants traveling in the Ultr mountains, and then there were the Blood Brothers. The Blood Brothers were slave traders who raised abandoned slaves to fight, then sold them at a higher price. Though some say their entire operation was depleted by the King himself. Regardless, these were still organizations you did not want to get involved in.

A little bit into the woods I found a small stream like the lady had explained. I looked around making sure I had no followers.

Seeing that no one was around, I stripped my clothes and placed my small pocket knife close to the bank hidden in some tall grass. Since the water was a stream, the sun did little to warm it, and it was as refreshing as a cold cloth. My body relaxed as I sank into the water. A sigh escaped my lips. At home, I was blessed with two baths a day. Here I was going to be lucky enough if I got one every few. It was going to be tough adapting but I had no other choice. My thoughts seemed to drift with the stream.

"What am I going to do?" I said aloud. How was I going to accomplish my goal? I hated them with all my heart, yes, but deep down, I knew there was a chance that I wouldn't be able to do it. What do you want me to do, Debynn? There is no way I can just let them go without them paying for what they have done. I had to take revenge. Somehow I had to. I had to find the courage. Though since arriving at their camp I hadn't been able to locate Debynn's sword. Sometimes it was with Vermilion and sometimes it wasn't. I needed to locate it but with Vermilion's eyes on me I had to be careful. Laying low was probably best for now.