187 The Merchant

MEANWHILE

Ottis grunted as he miss an arrow on the sixth very swift young stag that he spotted. The animals in this area are too difficult to catch. Looking over Stellan who seemed calm and relaxed, Ottis wondered why he was taken to hunt with him of all the men in the group considering that his brother, Holden, is their ultimate gap. "I know I ain't the most likeable person here, and I'm far to be the best hunter in the group. So please enlighten me, why did you choose to hunt with me, Sir Stellan?", he asked as he wait behind the trees for another animal to arrive.

"You're too noisy, you scare them away", Stellan uttered while he look around.

Ottis has never been comfortable around Stellan. Whenever he sees the paladin knight, he breaths suffocating air with a reminder of how foolish he was back in Brandenburg. For a long time, he blamed Stellan for the death of Holden, where his grudge swallowed him whole. He learned his lessons. He learned them the hard way. "Is this about my brother?", Ottis asked as he nock another arrow.

"Your brother was a good man, Ottis", Stellan simply said.

"Sure, he is", Ottis fired another arrow and missed a slow fox passing by. He's not at his best hunting mode with Stellan for the paladin knight make him nervous. "Damn it", he grunted as he nock another one. Ottis glanced at Stellan with the faint light brought by his lamp. Stellan's silence makes him more uncomfortable, and the short words fuels his curiosity. "So what is it?", he asked.

Stellan spots a four legged animal and prepares to throw his knife. "He was an honorable participant. I would have been dead if not for him", he said as he hit an adult stag.

"Sir Stellan", Ottis grabbed Stellan by the arm and faced the high and lofty paladin. Stellan gazed at Ottis' grasp on his arm. "I hated your guts, before. But now, I see you ain't that bad.. My brother made stupid decisions, and I was wrong. So you don't have to clear the air or make things more awkward between us ", Ottis said once and for all. Then he removed his hand squeezing on Stellan's arm as the paladin knight appear to be annoyed.

"I'll keep that in mind. Actually, there's something else", Stellan took the lamp as he check over the stag he caught.

"Huh?", Ottis felt embarassed for overthinking. He followed the knight who caught an animal in just one hit, when Stellan could've easily catch one early on. 'So there is something bothering him', he thought. 

"If anything happens from this day forward, I want you to keep Helena safe. Take her to Caluso. Get her crest working", Stellan passed the lamp to Ottis as he crouch down and carve the stag's meat.

"Why would you trust me with that?", Ottis knew that Helena is somewhat valuable to the paladin. May it be on the way he looks at her, and the manner he put up walls around Helena. Ottis is absolutely certain that Stellan gives importance to her not just out of duty as a paladin.

"One, I know you'll protect her even if I don't tell you. Two, you know this place better than the others. Three, you don't do the same mistakes twice", Stellan paused and looked back at Ottis with darkened eyes. "And four, I'll cut your throat if you don't do as I tell you", Stellan hissed at Ottis before continuing chopping off the stag's flesh. 

"Geez! You paladins are scary", Ottis was horrified to hear Stellan's reasons, but he feel honored to be trusted, for someone who almost killed Helena before. "Haa.. But don't worry about that. I got the royal squirrel's back", he agreed.

"Listen, the leccy won't work in the Snow Mountain. Iaso have her soul anchored in that Wiccan's body. Find Helena ways to get her crest work", Stellan revealed while he slice through the bones of the stag.

"What?!", the first thing that came to Ottis' mind is... witches are damn cruel. "But that's what this journey is for. So what are we doing? Why don't you tell her that?", Ottis panicked. He understood that Helena is desperately hopeful that their journey ends with her soul traveling home. And now, they are leading her to a pointless quest full of false hopes. Stellan continued to pack the meat, taking just enough for all of them. He replied with nothing but silence. 

"You can't break her spirits, and you want her to stay...", Ottis spoke with his private thoughts audibly. "Is that it?.. Foolish heart you got there, Sir Stellan. I guess we need to make a detour to the merchant first", Ottis realized that's what Stellan needs help with. He wanted to find the merchant first before heading to Caluso.

Stellan have known the merchant ever since to be trading rare finds for the kingdom. He's a regular trader in Holy Land. It is also a silent rumor that the merchant is a soul traveler. In their several paladin rundowns, he come across the merchant's home just once in his life that he cannot remember where it can be found. Ottis, who has a good history of meandering the kingdom, is his rare chance to find the merchant. 

"I think that'll do" Stellan said as he stood on his feet and hand over the meat to Ottis. As they were about to leave, they heard voices of men laughing out loud, followed by an animal shrieking a painful cry. Ottis instantly killed the light of his lamp as they both lowered their heads. Hiding in the shadows, they followed the bothering man sounds. As they track the flickering glow of fire in the mouth of a wide crevice below them, they saw a group of eight rebels mercilessly skinning a winter wolf alive while they wildly cackle.

"They shouldn't be here", Ottis whispered. "Rebels aren't made in the cold", rebels never go in this part of the kingdom given that the cold temperatures doesn't give them a comfortable way of living. They prefer living in the rainforests, by the rivers and the streams, where it is more abundant and less cold. "This is not good", he gritted his teeth as he recall the awful torment in the hands of Evandrus in his band of rebels.

"Come on. It's not safe to camp around here", Stellan moved out stealthily. He can surely take all of them, but having Helena with him, he decided to feign ignorance on the battles that can wait.