章 2: Opportunity
I ran a hand through my hair before pulling my hood up. It wasn't natural to have a two-toned hair color so It usually attracted too much attention when I wore it out normally, definitely considering how long it was. I wasn't really paying any attention to my surroundings when a group of men walked up to us and accidently bumped into them.
"Fuck- Sorry I didn't mean to-"
"Well, well, well look who it is boys!" The main man laughed out, interrupting me. I was a bit confused, saying that I've never met them before in my life but quickly realized that they were looking right pass me. I glanced over at Oliver, seeing the terrified look that crossed his face, before looking back at the men who blocked their path. I really didn't have enough patience for this at the moment.
"Im sorry but you guys are kind of in the way." I said, glaring at them. I wasn't sure how Oliver knew them or what made him so scared, but I wasn't going to allow them to push him around or keep us from completing our task.
"Ohh, are you guys on a date? You could do so much better~" He chuckled as he touched my chin. I gripped his wrist and yanked it back, smashing him in the stomach with my knee as hard as I could. It was a bit painful for me but effective nonetheless. The man fell over on his hands and knees, coughing.
"I could do so much better? I really hope that you aren't suggesting yourself. If that's all that it takes to take you down then you are honestly pathetic." I sneered at him, rolling my shoulders back a bit. I hated the thought of 'dating' a human, let alone one with such a nasty seeming personality.
"You're going to regret that slut." He hissed out, struggling to speak, I simply kicked him over on his side.
"Will I though?" I asked with a light smirk before looking back at Oliver.
"Let's go Oli." I hummed, walking pass them with Oliver. The men were laughing at the leader, causing them to get yelled at in return. My knee throbbed but it was 100% worth it. Oliver didn't say a thing as we walked the rest of the way to the merchant, and with the depressed expression that he wore, I decided that it would be best to ask him about those guys another time. I stopped walking when another man ran in front of us. I let out an annoyed sigh.
"What do you want?" I asked, the frustration clear on my face. Now that I looked at him, it didn't seem like he was with group of men from earlier and instead seemed to be one of the bystanders.
"Sorry for bothering you but..have you considered leaving to train for the royal guard position down at Kador? You are obviously skilled if you were able to take out such a large man with that size of yours." He mumbled out with a tilt of his head as he stared at me. He had bright red eyes that seemed to burn straight through my soul. Oliver became a bit uneasy by his presence but I was too shocked by the opportunity I was being given to take in the fact that the man was a bit sketchy.
"R-Royal Guard position?!" I asked, my eyes wide. This was my chance, right? If I could become a royal guard, not only would I be financially stable enough to protect both myself and Oliver, but I'd get one step closer to avenging my village. Staying here was getting me no where. The man seemed to have noticed my excitement because he handed me a flyer with details of the training.
"Yeah! Even if you don't necessarily become a royal guard in the end, I'm sure that a job will be found for a strong man such as yourself." He hummed out. I raised an eyebrow. A strong man? I was pretty sure that I was a girl. I didn't look that masculine....right? It wasn't as if I really cared about looks but that did hurt my pride a bit. I simply let out a deep sigh, not caring enough to explain how feminine and non-man like I was.
"I'll think about it." I mumbled out as I folded the flyer and stuffed it into my pocket. Despite saying that, I wasn't going to let this opportunity go. I walked past him, still hand in hand with Oliver. I felt bad for pulling him along everywhere but even if he had really good senses, it was safer to guide him. I knew that trying to focus and understand everything around him gave him headaches.
"...You aren't actually considering going to try out for the royal guard position, are you?" Oliver asked softly, using his free hand to timidly play with the strands of his hair. I raised an eyebrow but continued to walk.
"What do you mean? Of course I am. This is the best chance that we'll ever get to leave this place. " I said simply. Oliver bit down on his bottom lip nervously.
"B-But, you know how women are treated in Kador! Even if you happen to be the strongest one there, the best position that you'd be able to get is a maid, or worse! A serf! If anything you should let me do it. I'm like this but I am still somewhat strong.." He argued, obviously very worried.
"Oliver. You worry too much. I won't let any of that happen to me. Plus if it's that bad for females then I'll just pretend not to be one. Simple. I bet that those sexist bastards won't be able to tell the difference." I chuckled out, causing Oliver to stop in his tracks, forcing me to stop as well.
"Lena, don't you know how dangerous that is?! If you were found out you'd be publicly executed! What would I do without you?" He asked, upset with my carelessness. Though he faced me, his blind eyes stared right pass me.
"I care about you but do not forget that this is my choice not yours. I will train for the Royal Guard position and I'll do whatever it takes to get it. Don't get in my way." I said as I glared at him. Oliver could simply feel the burn of the glare that basically told him to 'stay in his place'. Yes, I felt bad, but I couldn't let him talk me out of this. The boy's shoulders slumped as his head tilted downwards.
"...Im sorry...you know that I didn't say that because I doubt your abilities. I'm just...afraid of being left alone. Don't be mad at me, okay?" He asked softly as he leaned against me a bit, resting his head in the crook of my neck as his own way of asking for forgiveness.
"Im not mad at you, don't worry. This is just really important to me."
"I understand.." He whispered out, his eyes closing a little as I buried my hand into his fluffy white hair. I could feel someone staring but when I looked, I saw no one. Oliver wasn't in a panicked state so it wasn't something that he had noticed either. I shrugged the feeling off as Oliver sat back up.
"Let's do our last task, get our money, and then plan for our trip, alright?" He asked softly, giving her a small smile. I simply nodded, returning the smile. I was glad that the other seemed to understand me. Though he wasn't my actual younger brother, he was still very important to me.
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