Katya's anger disappeared and a wide grin took its place. "That's right! It's nice to deal with intelligent people. I have no desire for you to undertake this task under duress. Instead, I'd like you to do so willingly. And perhaps, in the future, we can make more of such deals…"
"Until you finally agree to become my apprentice, anyway. Because I still haven't given up on that," she finished with chuckle.
"Ignoring that last part for now," Erik began as he rolled his eyes. "You basically want me to be your mercenary, correct?" Erik eyes suddenly lost much of their caution, and lit up with interest instead. "I don't mind that. In fact, you might even color me interested. But what exactly are you offering here?"
This was essentially no different from the mercenary work he and Elora had done on Söl, and its not like he disliked Katya. In fact, he liked her. So there was really nothing stopping him from doing a little work for her, so long as the reward was good.
If you like my novel, I would love some more reviews right now! (But obviously, any support is welcome and greatly appreciated)