章 229: 115: As long as he's useful to me, I'm going to let him stay by my side
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We have been on the road for several days now.
Three days ago we finally reached a village, where the aged orc bought everything I needed to camouflage myself, after which we set off again.
The outfit consists of a hooded cloak, a pair of leather gloves, and a smooth mask of fine steel with two holes for the eyes.
The whole outfit is dark in colour, including the mask. So when I wear it, I look rather grim and sinister.
But as long as it helps keep the orcs from insulting me for simply existing, I don't care about anything else.
The old orc's idea worked perfectly, though I'd rather not have to call anyone 'master' ever again in my life.
The only bad thing is that we had to use the aged orc's money because, although the money system is the same, the coins I carry with me are different from the ones used by the empire.
But, as the metal itself is the same, Kaelion accepted my coins in exchange for his, as he seems very enthusiastic about the unfamiliar designs of the money I carry.
"So… Why did you want to accompany me?" I ask suddenly, realizing that, amidst all the rambling about all the things he did, so far he hasn't told me why he wants to come with me.
At first, I didn't want to ask him directly, but it seems there's going to be no other choice.
"Its quite simple. Its just because I think that, by following you, I'll get some good stories to add to my collection, and because I have nothing better to do. I'm a storyteller, a musician, and a singer. That, as you can imagine, or maybe not, means that I travel from town to town, making a living in taverns and parties. That's why I heard about what you did in the tavern. I was about to go in when it started to get violent, so I stayed outside, hidden, while I observed the situation…" he says, and for the first time I see that he looks embarrassed as he speaks.
"... And when I saw that you weren't doing anything bad to those people, I thought I might try to follow you to find out more about the world's strongest slave... Or the wingless avenger.... I don't know; I haven't decided on a title for the story yet."
"What's so interesting about what happened in the tavern?" I ask, puzzled. "It doesn't sound like an interesting story to me."
"Oh boy, you have no idea. In a society where races other than my own are discriminated against and where everyone who isn't an orc is thought to be naturally weaker? This story will be somewhat revolutionary. Perhaps not many will find it credible, as people's minds are so skewed by so many years of history of being the oppressor race, but somewhere we have to start changing things..." says the orc, with a sad gleam in his eye.
I trust the old orc much more since that day when, in my stupidity, I got drunk and fell unconscious, as he did nothing to take advantage of my moment of weakness.
That is why I told him yesterday what I planned to do in the capital of the empire.
At least in part.
I only told him that I wanted to try to talk to the emperor, which in itself is not a lie.
The aged orc seemed very surprised by my intentions, but he didn't say much about them.
Another discovery I made that day, apart from the fact that I realized that I could trust the old orc, was that alcohol helps me sleep without nightmares.
So, since that day, I have been testing my limits to try to find out how much I have to drink to keep from dreaming and whether it is possible to avoid getting drunk to do so.
Which is why Azur is very aggressive towards me, as his conscience is also affected by alcohol, and the constant buzzing in my mind that he uses as a protest is becoming increasingly irritating.
Now I understand better what Sofia, the headmistress of the magic academy, warned me so long ago about the possibility of being in a fight with someone I can't stay away from in any way.
Luckily, drinking also makes the buzz go away, so I'm not just drinking alcohol before bed but pretty much every moment of the day.
Never going to the extremes of that first night, though.
"Come to think of it... You have never belittled me by calling me a birdie or any of that nonsense," I say, realizing a detail that, among all the nonsense the aged orc is always saying, had slipped my mind.
"Na... That doesn't suit me. For me, people are people, regardless of race... Besides, I don't think you're an avian without wings; am I wrong?" He says, looking sideways at me as we move forward at a brisk pace, me on foot and him riding his wolf.
"How do you know?" I say, suddenly annoyed at the possibility that this guy has some way of reading my mind or something.
'It's the only explanation I can think of for him knowing something I haven't told him...'
"Duh..." he says, while looking at me as if doubting my intelligence "Didn't you tell me you came from ANOTHER CONTINENT? Well, with that in mind, it seems quite reasonable to me to consider the possibility that you might be someone from a race we don't know about."
"Ahh... Yes, that's true," I say, relieved and irritated at the same time.
Firstly, because what the orc said was just due to a slip of the tongue on my part, which I clearly remember.
And secondly, because I can't stand being treated like an idiot.
Either way, I think it's best to set the record straight, so I tell him, "I'm a human."
"Good for you," he says in response to my revelation.
"Huh?" I say, very puzzled by the orc's apparent lack of interest.
"What? Were you expecting me to give you a prize for being a homan?" he says, looking down at me with a smirk from atop his mount.
"Hu-man." I correct him, growing increasingly annoyed at the elderly orc's smug attitude "And I didn't expect any prize, elderly orc. I'm just surprised you didn't start asking me questions all the time."
"Ahh... I already told you I don't care so much about people's races," he says, and his smile suddenly wipes away. "But don't worry about that, brat. I'll make you tell me everything you know on the trip. And it's going to be a long, long trip to the capital."
"Don't call me brat!" I say, raising a threatening fist.
"Well, don't you call me elderly orc then," says the elderly orc grumpily. "I didn't say anything to you at first because we were just getting to know each other, but I think I'd better teach you a life lesson. Heed the wisdom of these words 'Don't do to others what you don't like them to do to you.' I have a name, and I'd appreciate it if you'd use it"
"Agh, I don't know why I don't just leave you by the road and go on my own…" I say, irritated by the charlatanism to which I'm unfortunately getting used but, in spite of myself, seeing some sense in his words.
"You don't do it because you would surely get lost. The landscape is always the same, and there are hardly any landmarks, so the map I bought you is not going to do you much good. Besides, we've already agreed that you need me," he says, starting to look really angry.
"It all depends on the balance between how much I need you and how much you irritate me with everything you say. If at any point the balance ever goes negative, believe me, you'll be on your own," I say, surprised, because I've never seen Kaelion get angry until now, but reluctant to agree with him in any way.
'The fact that I needed you as a guide is ancient history. Ever since you bought me the map of the empire, you've crossed one thing off the list of utilities you have for me' I think to myself, but refrain from commenting because that would again give him more information I don't need him to have.
When we were in town, I asked Kaelion to buy a map of the empire, even though, according to him, it wasn't necessary.
But he has no idea how essential it was for me, because when I saw it, I was able to acquire on the map of my interface the geographical information of the empire shown on the paper, and with this, I will be able to move more easily on this continent.
The strange thing is that, while acquiring this information, I noticed a strange detail about my companion's behaviour.
But I'll ask him about it later if I see that his behaviour doesn't change.
"If it makes you happy to think that way, then keep fooling yourself..." he says, and suddenly reverts to his usual smug, mocking tone. "But the truth is, you like me, even if you don't want to admit it."
"I don't... Agh..." I say, picking up my pace to get away from this insufferable aged orc.
'I can't like him, because then it means he'd be affected by my curse. I have to keep my distance. Which isn't to say I can't use him to my advantage.... Yes... As long as he's useful to me, I'm going to let him stay by my side.'
"I know, I know. Don't worry. You don't need to say it out loud for me to know. It's hard for me for people not to like me." he says, laughing from behind me, not bothering to make his mount pick up the pace.
Which, after a few minutes, makes me have to stop to wait for him.
'What an insufferable old orc! if he keeps this up, eventually I'm going to end up hanging him.... Ha.... Just one more week... Just one more week and we'll get to the capital… at least, if we do not deviate from the most straightforward route'
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