Judgement

However, to my surprise, the chieftain was not angry. Instead, he was smiling.

"Be at ease little one."

"That was not my judgement of you. It was just a simple test to see how you would react and I have to say, you have passed with flying colors!" he said.

I heaved a sigh of relief and also wore a smile. I guessed that I would be able to see tomorrow!

"You are now an official member of our tribe and obviously, you are permitted to stay here for as long as your heart desires."

Grald, who was behind Harold, let out a soft chuckle. He seemed amused at the situation.

"What is your name?" the chieftain asked.

"It's Luke sir."

"Luke Dravan," I added.

His eyes widened in shock, but he quickly masked his expression. However, even in that split second, I saw the change.

"Why did he make that face?" I thought to myself.

After thanking the chieftain for his generosity, I left the hall with all eyes still on me. The crowd appeared to have mixed feelings. Some were overjoyed with my response while others were angry that the chief did not punish me for my insolence. 

"Did I just put a target on my back?" 

Quincy who was outside with his ear glued to the door tried to hear what was happening inside. He only heard bits and pieces of our conversation. As soon as I exited the hall, he approached me with curiosity and without wasting any time started his incessant questioning.

"Are you crazy? Why did you say all of that?"

"What did the chief say?"

"What was Grald's reaction?"

"Will you be punished?"

"That much curiosity can be dangerous you know," I jokingly replied.

"Oh come on. Don't be such a killjoy," he said.

"I'll tell you on our way back."

"Before we return, we still have to get your stump checked out and we have to get you something to wear. Your bloodied clothes will not cut it anymore."

"If the doctor is as smart as you, I would much rather get treated by a child," I replied which prompted Quincy to slap the back of my head.

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"Wow that's quite a serious injury," the Doctor said.

"No shit, he lost an arm. Are you just telling us things that we can see?" Quincy sarcastically said.

"Fortunately, they did a decent job at patching it up or else you would have most likely died due to the blood loss. I am sure that Quincy did not help in doing this. With his mind, my brother could not tie a rope to save his life."

"Brother?" I asked.

"Did he not tell you? Quincy is my little brother," the Doctor said.

"Get on with it," Quincy said.

The Doctor prepared an ointment using several plants and other ingredients. The concoction was a fluorescent green and had a terrible smell. Using a generous amount, he applied it on the wound. A burning sensation spread around my body which caused me to scream. I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes. My whole face was scrunched.

"Bear with the pain," he said.

After an excruciating thirty minutes, the agony subsided and when I looked at the wound, it was now fully healed!

"Are you a doctor or a witch?" I said out of amazement.

"Thank you very much!" I said.

"Don't thank this quack," Quincy said.

I did not know that two brothers could be such polar opposites of each other. Thoughts of my sister crossed my mind and I was reminiscing about our good moments. 

The tailor was not too far from the Doctor's office and by then, I had told Quincy what happened in the hall.

"What! That's a cruel test! You did well. I am proud of you."

"I am glad that everything went well. The last time that someone opposed the chieftain, his decapitated head was rolling on the floor by the end of the meeting."

"And you chose to hide this very important detail..."

Inside the shop, Quincy explained to the tailor what I was looking for based on the clothes that I was wearing. The orc took notes while nodding his head. After a lengthy description, the tailor put his notebook down and began measuring my body. This step alone took thirty minutes as he made sure that every measurement was perfect.

"Did you know that even the king get his clothes made here. This is the best tailor around."

"Our establishment's clientele is comprised of the finest members of society," the tailor said.

"Shut up and keep measuring," Quincy replied.

"You can't be going around wearing orc style clothing. You would look ridiculous, that's why we will model them after your old clothes," he added.

-----------------

We were sauntering back to the house with our elongated shadows trailing us. The sky was now a canvas painted with shades of crimson and orange. The sun was slowly disappearing behind the horizon. we crossed paths with Grald who was all smiles. The orc was even hopping instead of walking.

"What's got you in a good mood?" Quincy asked.

"Father has sided with me against my brother. You should have seen the look on that brute's face. That made my week!"

"That's great then. Does that explain why you were laughing at me in the hall?" I jokingly asked .

"Father informed me of what he was going to do beforehand, so I was not worried for you. Instead, you left a good impression on the chieftain. He even complimented you after you left," Grald said.

"By the way, I registered you for the next school term which starts in two weeks. Before then, you will undergo training with us. Your body will need to be up to par to keep up with the rest of the students. We will also monitor your diet to make sure that you're on the right track," he added.

"You're currently as muscular as an ant and don't worry it won't be hard training," Quincy said.

"Not hard by your standards or mine?" I asked which elicited laughter from both of them.