"After a very one-sided loving yesterday and you still don't trust me?"
She scowled. "You are no more than an associate to us, outsider. You've proven yourself an effective warrior and saboteur. But as a person? Not yet."
Not like I expected much, anyway. We'd only known each other for roughly a week. It'd be weird if she trusted me right away, seeing how much she – or every single lizard in this jungle – loathed outsiders. If not for my skills and status as the Champion I would've been sacrificed to their gods already.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve elevated my status from a mere outsider. How about you call me Caesar?”
“What is this ‘see-zur’ now?”
“My name.”
“Then so be it, Caesar. But you must retain your respect for me.”
“Sure, Elder Atala.”
She nodded. "Now if you have no more business with me, I suggest you inform your girl about our deals. She is at the outsiders’ fort."
"What’s she doing all the way there?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "Ask her."
What could she be doing there? I thought they’d already burned it down. How did she even make it there in the first place? All sorts of dangerous creatures wandered about in the jungle. I doubt she found the monster ward I left behind – hell, I’d already forgotten where I dropped it.
I guess Atala’s scouts kept her safe. I gotta thank them for that.
I went to the fort. Acquiring the lizards’ racial trait made it easy navigating the jungle. It was like running down a slope. And after a minor scuffle with the local wildlife slicing down tiny insects and outrunning larger monsters, I arrived at the destination. The sun had began to set, tainting the lightly-clouded skies with orange, and the sea glistened of the same color.
I didn’t have to search for Amea. She occupied one of the watchtowers, gazing far towards the horizon. I made sure to inform her of my presence by my loud footsteps. She shot me a quick glance, before returning her attention to the paint-like scenery ahead.
All I could do was stand behind her as soon as I ascended the tower. No proper words came to mind. I just stood, leaning against the pole. Not like I knew what she was going through anyway. But her running off to here was probably my fault. I should've realized it was arrogant of me to assume I knew what she wanted from those slavers.
The seagulls squawked and the waves slapped against the rocky beach. It had calmed my mind enough that I discovered what I should say next.
“...I was inconsiderate. Sorry.”
It was difficult to say so sincerely. But if I were to survive in this world, I should keep people I could trust closer. That was one of my flaws back on Earth – I didn’t trust anyone thinking I was capable of handling my own affairs.
I wanted Amea to be the first person I trust. I didn’t know why, I just knew I could.
She let out a slow sigh. “You just didn't understand.”
I took a step forward. Never in my life had I consoled anyone. But someone told me that if I had no clue what to say, best shut up and stay still to let them know they weren’t alone. So I did just that.
It wasn’t too bad because the ocean was loud. The sun slowly descended behind the sea, tugging with it the remaining orange rays. Darkness patiently shrouded the skies, revealing a silver crescent on the horizon. Bright stars clustered above the crescent as if it was a hammock.
“I’m a sorceress," she said, breaking an hour-long silence.
“I think I know that very well.”
“In my country, sorceresses come from noble houses. I was a noble, but not a normal sorceress.”
I leaned closer to listen to her.
“I did nothing wrong,” she said, her voice shook as she slowly clenched her fists, “but they turned everyone against us.”
Her voice broke into quiet sobs. Although I couldn’t see her face, the tears that drip from her face glistened.
“They sold me to the slavers. I suffered in their hands, but I escaped. As if the gods aren’t done with me they tossed me to those cultists.”
Amea glared at her brand with contempt. It was full of scratches and slash scars as if she attempted to remove it. Some wounds still looked fresh.
Shit.
My arrival in this world must have worsened this girl’s situation. I thought she was in on it during her “initiation.” Was she coerced to do that? Now I felt really guilty. Sure I was a criminal, but I could never resort to sexual assault.
“I shouldn’t have—”
“You’re not at fault. You were bound.”
“But I wanted it. I enjoyed it.”
“I made my choice. I thought I'd gain enough power from you to escape... but I was stupid.”
I didn't really know what to say next. But the first thing that came to mind was to offer help.
“I can help you get your revenge.”
“I don’t want revenge. Not anymore.”
She turned her face at me. Her eyes were flushed. Her lips pursed tightly, the edges trembled as she held herself back from crying again. But her tears fell anyway.
“I… I want to see my home for the last time.”
***
I let Amea sleep alone. But I stayed awake all night. Not to watch out for any monsters or anything. I just couldn't sleep no matter how long I shut my eyes. Her revelation hadn’t left my mind since I heard it. I’d have no problem recalling the whole scene with clarity as if it just happened a minute ago.
I never bothered hearing people's life story unless it helped me figure out their personality. I acted like a caring person for the sake of transactions. To me, stories of people merely revealed who they were and that was advantageous for me.
Somehow, I cared enough about Amea. It was a foreign feeling. Maybe because I’d already thought of her as a companion after all the things we’d been through together. Although we’d known each other for months, I only discovered who she truly was yesterday.
I wanna help her, but I had to respect her decision. I just hoped she safely deals with it.
The next day, Amea decided to return to the lizardfolk settlement. I informed her about having to stay in the jungle with Atala, and she wasn’t really bothered by it. In fact, she said it was for the best, at least for the time being. Her eyes were still puffy, but she could smile. Not a fake smile, but a genuine one. How did I know? She rarely smiled.
“How long will you be away?” Amea asked while she was preparing to leave.
“I’m not sure. Maybe the sooner I get Atala’s weapons.”
“It seems Suhkadis never forget their greedy nature”
I remembered Suhkadis being a race of traders. Was it a coincidence to be reincarnated as one?
“What can I say? I like money.”
“Does it bother you that you’re profiteering from war?”
I thought about that, but I ended up agreeing with Mihan. Wars break out and innocent people still die regardless of who participated in it. But with much better weapons, it shouldn’t prolong the war, which could lead to less casualties… I hope.
“It does. A bit. Someone else would’ve taken my place if I declined the opportunity, anyway.”
“Opportunity, huh?” she said, “well then, I’ll be off.”
I bid her farewell and watched her vanish into the jungle with lizard scouts that appeared out of nowhere.
I thought back to the reason why hell didn’t take me. What was the principle that even an archangel recognized? By not victimizing the elderly? Even if I only scammed criminals I still indirectly caused harm to innocent people.
I shrugged these thoughts off my head. “I’m already here. There’s no use overthinking it.”
Just like Atala and I agreed on, I’d be hitching a ride with the ship. I’d already prepared my story so I wouldn’t be affiliated with any factions whatsoever.
Since the lizardfolks barely damaged the fort, I had fun doing a bit of destruction. It didn’t look besieged enough considering everyone died.
I remembered the doctor. He wasn’t too bad, but then he made a bad choice of coming here. I wished I could’ve personally buried him, though.
I piled easily portable valuables into a leather bag. Something like gems, coins, and small jewelries that didn't bulge much while tucked under my shirt. I didn’t forget about the gold-hilted cutlass. I kept it in an old scabbard and wrapped the hilt with a rag.
Days passed. Mihan came to check on me. They gotta make sure I fulfilled my end of bargain, after all. Obviously I would. I wasn’t stupid enough to leave a gold mine untapped.
"Here," Mihan said, giving me a short knotted hair tied to a carved wooden snake brooch.
"What’s this, a lucky..." then I realized whose hair it was. Not like any lizardfolk had hair. "The hell did you do to her?"
"Ease your steps. The human girl asked us to cut her hair. She said it will be more comfortable that way."
Her hair was already short, but I guess it could get a bit annoying having strands sticking on your sweaty neck if you're in a hot and humid environment.
I accepted the Amea charm anyway.
"It will serve as a reminder not to abandon your companion."
“And the snake brooch?”
“A ward against evil spirits.”
Of course.
"Okay..."
She tilted her head. "I've heard you say that word a few times. What does that mean?"
"It means fine. Okay, okay. Okay?"
She nodded. "O... Kay."
"Good."
A bell rang loudly from the horizon. I climbed the watchtower to see a blot bathing in the sun's afternoon heat. I squinted my eyes for better clarity but it didn’t do shit. I had to get back inside and grab a spyglass.
"It's the ship."
Mihan immediately fled the fort, leaving me behind. As I watched the wooden ship grow in size, ringing its bell to alert everyone of its arrival, my heart raced in excitement.
It took until late afternoon for the ship to arrive. The size wasn't really something to boast about. It was just a small sloop. And an old one, at that. Barnacles clung to the hull and some planks were rotting. The smell of old soggy wood mixed with the salty air.
I rushed down the tower, waving my arms to the crew onboard. The captain leaned against the bow to view me, then cast his eyes to the fort.
"Where's everyone?"
"The lizards got ‘em! We have to leave quick!"
"Lizards?"
After realizing what I just said, they forgot about docking and tossed a rope. Without waiting for me to make a full ascend, they pulled the anchor, hoisted the sails, and made a sharp u-turn right away.
"We're leaving!" the captain yelled.
By the time I got aboard, the ship was already on its way back. The crew was on full alarm, swords drawn and guns steady. The cannons, which were simply an over-sized version of their guns, were being loaded, too.
The captain, whose one leg was made of wood, approached me. He looked the typical captain. Rugged tricorn, eyepatch, and a full beard. Add a parrot and he'd be perfect. Unfortunately there was no parrot around.
"Boy you best tell us what happened back there!"
The crew gathered behind him. And so I told the story I'd been crafting for days.