Elven Legacy

Chapter 41

Dharkan

Two days after Tessa's lets-ditch-everyone-and-fuck-off-on-my-own episode, they sold her blonde mare Dawn to a countryside stable master for some extra traveling money.

Jaden had been hesitant, but Dharkan told him, 'Hey, if your sis wanted to keep her goddamn horse, all she had to do was stick with the group.' Which Jaden had deemed fair enough.

Honest truth, Dharkan was a bit sore about Tessa just scampering off like that. She'd become something of a late-night drinking buddy. Or at least, she'd had the potential for the role. Sure, sometimes she took drugs instead of drinking but hey, where he was concerned, same fucking difference.

Tonight they'd hit the small town of Tensei, pretty deep into the Central Empire. According to Kitera, who was generally their go-to map girl, they were maybe four, five days away from Azuria.

They chose to stay at a modest inn called The Lone Wolf. Dharkan quite fancied that name, and he'd told the innkeeper as much earlier, in his best Azurian. He was proud to say, he was starting to pick up on a few words, by now.

'Like . . . uh, name . . . inn!' Dharkan had said. Or something. The innkeeper had frowned uncertainly.

Now the evening was late and rainy, with a brisk, fresh draft sweeping in whenever someone opened the front door. As per his routine, Dharkan was the last of the gang still up and about. Moira and Kitera had retired a while back. The two women shared a room now, it was easier. Mostly because Kitera didn't want to share a room with Dharkan. Which . . . sucked.

Jaden had left a few moments ago, after strumming one last tune on his lute. Locals and travelers alike had really enjoyed his music. Actually, Dharkan's drinks were free, thanks to that. Which he wasn't entirely sure was a good thing.

Oh, plus they got friendly prices on the rooms. Jaden was a good king like that. Trying to save as much money as possible.

You had to respect that.

That soldier . . . war hero guy. What was his name again? Matt. He'd had the right idea, Matt, wanting to put Jaden on the throne. Too bad he was too dead to see it happen.

Dharkan experienced a random surge of sadness about it. Probably because he was slightly drunk.

Fucking again.

So, Dharkan had decided to drag his horny, lonely, bored self to a gambling table, just as Jaden finished his last song and went to sleep. He figured, nothing much to be done about the horny part – the room was devoid of ladies at this unseemly hour – but maybe he could take care of the lonely and bored part.

Two of the players were Laethi travelers, so they could actually communicate with words that all three of them knew, which was pretty neat. They were brothers, about Dharkan's age – Estehan and Derio, they were called. Raven-haired and green-eyed, kind of like Noah, but less nice-looking around the face. Not their fault, not everyone had a gorgeous mother like Alexa.

Thinking of the madam made him horny. More than before, that is. Let's just never tell Noah, though. Probably best.

He shrugged it off. Focused on his cards. Took a sip of his pear cider – the local specialty – as if that would help things. When he complained about The Lone Wolf's unfortunate lack of Laethi rice liquor, the brothers laughed.

"Why the fuck would you want to drink that?" Derio, the short snickery one, jeered.

"Least it gets you drunk without all the sugary cider bullshit," Dharkan grumbled.

"The man has a point," Estehan conceded.

Their fourth player was a tough, sturdy Azurian guy with a far-receding hairline. He put down his cards, shaking his head. Folding. Estehan's turn to play.