章 92: Tale
"Are you okay?"
Lucius glanced back at Borne, concern flickering in his eyes.
The three of them had successfully gathered the intelligence and drawn the map.
Now, they were preparing to return to camp.
Harley couldn't resist turning around to glance at Borne, who was trailing behind them.
This guy had been out of it the whole way, distracted and wearing a troubled expression.
Borne let out a heavy sigh. "I'm fine."
Lucius and Harley exchanged a look.
They could tell something was bothering him, but since he didn't want to talk about it, they decided not to press further.
"Let's go. We'll talk later."
Lucius spoke softly as he took the lead, continuing on the path.
Borne's mind was a tangled mess of emotions.
He kept thinking about the contract in his head—the cold woman, the mocking child.
Everything felt like an invisible web tightening around him.
Harley, walking ahead, kept sneaking glances back at Borne, clearly noticing his odd behavior.
"Watch out for magic beasts!"
Borne snapped to attention, quickly scanning the area, only to find nothing.
"Just kidding."
Harley laughed at Borne's reaction, his eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Lighten up, man. Stop looking so gloomy."
Harley laughed heartily, his tone teasing.
Borne could only sigh in exasperation.
"Harley, you're a real piece of work."
Harley clapped him on the shoulder, still grinning.
Lucius, walking ahead, shook his head.
"Harley, stop messing with him."
They picked up the pace, finally making it back to camp before sunset.
Lucius immediately handed over the intelligence to the captain, while Harley and Borne were sent to eat.
Borne took a bite of black bread, chewing mechanically.
The bread was hard as a rock, but he barely noticed the taste.
His mind was filled with agitation, and echoes of his earlier conversations with Moltenclaw and Aquafan haunted him.
Harley sat beside him, gnawing on the same black bread, glancing at Borne from time to time.
He could tell Borne was in a bad place emotionally.
"Man, what a day."
Harley sighed, breaking the silence.
Borne didn't respond, still chewing on his bread absentmindedly, his eyes empty as his thoughts drifted far away.
His mind was full of questions.
Why had Father Raphael arranged things this way?
Borne had always been fascinated by magic, but he never imagined gaining power through something like this.
He didn't want to sign some strange contract, and he definitely didn't want to be bound for life to a cold, dangerous woman.
He longed for power, but this forced contract felt suffocating.
Borne sighed again.
"Ugh..."
Hearing Borne's sigh, Harley frowned, scooting closer and staring directly at Borne.
"You're acting weird. Spill it. What's going on?"
Borne twitched, offering a vague, half-hearted answer.
"It's nothing."
But Harley wasn't letting him off the hook that easily.
He leaned in closer, eyes sharp and full of questions.
Borne, feeling cornered, tried to turn away, but Harley followed his movements, continuing to stare.
Finally, Borne gave in with a heavy sigh.
"Fine.
What if... someone forced you to live with a woman you don't know for the rest of your life?
And if she dies, you die too."
Borne blurted out his worries.
Harley blinked, surprised, and furrowed his brow.
"Are you joking?"
Harley asked cautiously, but seeing Borne's serious expression, he realized it was no joke.
"This doesn't sound right.
Who would do something like that?
Are you serious?"
There was uncertainty in Harley's voice.
Borne sighed again, frustrated.
"Just tell me what you would do."
Harley was stumped by the tricky question.
After a long pause, he finally spoke.
"Well, what can you do?
Staying alive is the priority.
But..."
His eyes flickered with a mischievous glint, and he smirked.
"What does the woman look like?"
"She's tall—she's a head taller than me.
Beautiful, but she's really cold."
Borne replied, his tone tinged with frustration.
Harley nodded, his sly grin widening.
Borne, mid-sentence, suddenly realized something was off.
He turned to Harley, only to find him trying to tease out more details.
"You sly dog! Keeping a woman to yourself, huh?"
Harley grinned cheekily, slinging an arm around Borne's shoulders, leaning in close.
Borne shoved him off, his face sour.
"Did you even listen to a word I said?"
Harley feigned seriousness, nodding solemnly.
"I know. I know. Those icy beauties are the hardest to crack.
You just need to warm her up with your passion, melt that icy heart!"
He spoke with exaggerated seriousness, as if he were some kind of romance expert.
Borne could only shake his head in resignation, ready to leave.
But then, he realized there were six people standing behind him.
Dillon, Victor, Albert, Dalton, Lucius, and Heywood.
They had appeared out of nowhere, silently, like ghosts.
Borne jumped, taking two steps back.
"When did you guys get here?"
Dalton raised an eyebrow, looking relaxed.
"Go on, don't mind us."
"Go on with what?"
Borne tried to act calm, but he could already sense trouble.
Heywood lowered his voice dramatically.
"Obviously, the story about you and that tall beauty!"
Borne was speechless, glaring at them.
These guys had been stuck in the camp for so long that any mention of women was like a spark to dry tinder.
Their faces were lit with curiosity and excitement, like they had just caught a whiff of some juicy gossip.
Albert, with the most mischievous grin, patted Borne on the shoulder.
"Come on, bro, don't keep it to yourself! We could use a little excitement—tell us the details!"
Lucius chimed in.
"Yeah, it's rare for you to have such an encounter. Give us some details so we can live vicariously."
Borne felt like crying. What started as a heart-to-heart with Harley had turned into a massive misunderstanding.
"You're all getting the wrong idea! It's not what you think!"
Victor chuckled.
"We don't care if it's what we think or not. We just want to hear your version!"
Dillon nodded in agreement.
"Come on, Borne, don't disappoint us!"
Borne was completely surrounded, with no escape in sight.
With a sigh of defeat, he sat down, preparing to spin a tale to satisfy them.
"Fine, fine, if you're all so eager, I'll tell you."
He raised his hands in surrender.
Immediately, all seven of them sat down, eyes gleaming with anticipation and excitement.
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