章 12: The Guard
As the first man reached their level, Arthur swiftly slashed his throat. The man had no time to react and collapsed, blood pouring from his wound and spreading over the cobblestones. The other man, panicking, screamed and stepped back, but he was quickly seized by Ruben. Theo struck him violently on the skull, knocking him out instantly.
The tall, slender man, accompanied by a shorter, stockier one, heard the noise and quickly approached the scene of the confrontation. They froze, their faces filled with terror at the sight of the two bodies on the ground.
Other customers and passersby, drawn by the scene, quickly backed away, shouting murder.
The slender man raised his voice to the crowd: "This man killed two of my friends for no reason, call the guard!"
The crowd, drawn by the commotion, grew larger. Arthur noticed a woman crouching on the roof of a building across from him, observing the scene. He focused on her, and she looked at him with interest, smiling. The woman, who was one-eyed, bore a deep scar running from the top of her skull, crossing her eye, and ending at her jawline. She wore a short, laced tunic and a wide leather belt at her hips, along with cotton pants reinforced with metal greaves.
Her body was slim, and she held a long curved knife in her hand. "A member of the Knife Faction," Arthur thought.
Her black hair cascaded over her face. Despite her one eye, a certain softness emanated from her features. Arthur was still mindful of the system's countdown, and this young woman seemed interested in him. "She'll do perfectly to start," he thought.
He flashed her a charming smile, but she looked at him incredulously. At that moment, he saw four settlement guards part the crowd and point their weapons at him, Ruben, and Theo. The leader of the guards, a burly man in his prime, shouted, "Drop your weapons immediately!"
Arthur slowly placed his weapon on the ground, followed by Ruben and Theo who dropped their knives and stick.
Arthur said loudly to the guard, "We were just trying to defend ourselves."
The burly guard cut him off sharply, "Shut up, we'll question you later. Also, remove your belt and bag slowly and place them on the ground."
At that moment, the woman leaped from the roof with agility and moved so quickly that Arthur's eyes could barely follow. She arrived instantly in front of the burly guard and raised her hand, commanding silence.
Immediately, the burly guard and the three others stepped back and straightened, their eyes fixed on the horizon, carefully avoiding looking at the Knife Faction woman. Sweat dripped from their foreheads.
The crowd quickly backed away, and everyone lowered their eyes.
Arthur was about to lower his eyes but reconsidered. He had already stared at the woman without consequence earlier; he just needed to present a good image of himself.
He decided to go all out and spoke, using his eloquence to give strength to his words, "I greet you and humbly thank you for your intervention. If your kindness is as sweet as your beauty, then I would wish to tenderly kiss your hand as a faithful servant before his mistress."
All sounds seemed to stop, and the faces of the four guards froze in terror.
The burly guard quickly declared, "Let me kill this insolent man, your grace."
The woman, her face red with embarrassment, raised her hand again, and the man immediately lowered his eyes, silent.
She looked at Arthur and declared in a deep man's voice, "I am flattered, my boy, but I am heterosexual."
"Damn, that's not a woman," Arthur thought.
The effeminate man continued, "I saw everything. I was impressed by your quick reaction and lack of hesitation with those men. But in the future, try to be more measured. You didn't have to slash that man's throat; he hadn't attacked you yet."
Arthur replied, "Of course, sir, I will try my best."
The effeminate man laughed, "Ahah! In this settlement, there are few men with such vivacity in their actions and even fewer who can speak so easily in my presence. We need men of your talent in our ranks. I am Orwin, the head of the settlement and patriarch of the Knife Faction. You will never be judged for your sexual orientation here. Would you be interested in becoming a member of my faction?"
Arthur wanted to correct the patriarch but didn't dare to imply he had mistaken him for a woman. He simply replied, "I thank you, but I am new to the settlement and for now, I prefer not to join your faction."
The patriarch nodded, "In that case, what do you think of joining the settlement guard with a salary of one silver coin per month?"
Arthur didn't have time for that; he needed to find women to seduce in the settlement to avoid dying. He was about to politely refuse when the patriarch added, "Your mission as a guard would be to help monitor my daughter's residence, alongside a dozen female guards."
The patriarch added, "You aren't attracted to women, are you?"
Arthur couldn't pass up such an opportunity and replied, "No, heaven forbid, I only love men."
The patriarch nodded, "Excellent. I want to avoid my daughter being harassed by men and their appetites as much as possible. You will report to the guard's garrison to receive your equipment."
With a quick movement of his legs, the patriarch disappeared from Arthur's view without a word, and the guards swiftly seized the unconscious body and the body with the slashed throat from the ground. The slender man and his last companion had discreetly slipped away during the conversation between the patriarch and Arthur.
The burly guard slapped Arthur's shoulder, laughing, "You've got some serious balls, my friend," before walking away with the other guards.
Arthur turned to Ruben and Theo and asked, "Will you accompany me to the garrison?"
Ruben and Theo guided him on the way. Arthur then questioned Ruben, "What does the patriarch's daughter look like?"
Ruben replied, "I knew it! That was your goal from the start."
Arthur, getting tired of these misunderstandings, didn't bother to correct Ruben.
Ruben continued, "Don't try anything with his daughter or any member of her guard, or the patriarch will know you deceived him."
Arthur smiled sadly, replying, "I just asked you to describe his daughter."
Ruben said reluctantly, "She's in her twenties, as muscular as a man, and only thinks about fighting and training. She has a strong temperament and has already killed many people in the settlement. There's even a rumor that she has killed members of other factions from other settlements."
Arthur then asked, "Do you have any idea of her skills?"
Ruben replied, "No, I don't have more information."
Arthur nodded. That was more than enough; he had to add her to his harem at all costs.
They quickly arrived at the garrison, where a guard asked, "Purpose?"
Arthur replied, "I'm joining you; it's my first day."
The guard smiled, "Ah, I've heard about you. And them?"
Arthur was surprised that the news had already reached the garrison, but he answered, "They're accompanying me."
The guard said, "In that case, you can enter, but not them."
Arthur slowly looked at the two men and said, "I thank you both from the bottom of my heart."
Ruben replied, "It's us who should thank you. Come see me; you know where I live."
Theo added, "Yes, come see us. I'm always with Ruben."
Arthur didn't wait any longer and entered the garrison. He headed towards a desk where an elderly man was sitting.
Arthur said, "It's my first day. Where should I go?"
The old man replied, "You're in the right place. I've been informed. I just need your first and last name, date of birth, and settlement of birth."
Arthur answered as cautiously as possible, "My name is Arthur. I come from a group of survivors north of the settlement. I don't know my exact date of birth and I don't have a last name."
The old man scribbled on a piece of paper, then got up from the desk and returned with a pile of clothes and a silver plaque: "Your service uniform and your guard identification plaque. You'll receive your service weapon once you've completed the mandatory training. Until then, you'll perform your duties without it. Any objections?"
Arthur didn't reply.
The man then took out some keys from his pocket and said, "You'll occupy room 478 in the building behind the garrison. Here are your room keys. A colleague will come to accompany you for your service in a few hours."
Arthur thanked the man and headed towards his accommodation.
He quickly found the door to room 478, slightly ajar. He pushed open the door and found two beds. One of them was empty, but his breath caught as he saw the other occupied by a young woman with short, chestnut hair, clad in nothing but black lace underwear. Her ample curves and toned thighs were on full display, the fabric hugging her curvy frame and accentuating her broad thighs and the hint of her overflowing breasts.
She hurriedly covered her chest with her hands and shot him a hostile look. "You're in my room," she said sharply.
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