To trust, or not to trust. (2)

That had been a lot of social interaction. Enough for a day or two. Enough for a life time. At the very least, he was sure the ambush wouldn't be occurring for a few days. So he could laze around for a while.

"Are you sleeping again? Don't you wanna play?"

"No," came the curt reply.

"Fine then...we shall just head out and play with Hansworth."

James yawned, and didn't bother to cover his mouth.

"Yeah, whatever. Just don't forget to transform back into human form and put on your clothes."

It wasn't until two days into the journey that he was able to rouse himself from the carriage. It was hot outside, so a light shirt was preferable.

"Hey Nino. We need to talk. Come over here and ride with me."

He couldn't carry her up onto the horse with his tiny musculature, which he was aware was exposed in the shirt he wore. He carried her up with one arm anyway (cheating with his divine treasure's ability). He could feel the mercenaries' eyes tracking his every move.

"Hey," Eno pulled on his pants, "I want to ride too."

"But we can't all sit on the same—"

"But If I trans—"

James shushed him with a palm straight to his mouth. Was this kid trying to raise the target on their backs.

"We have two extra horses. Hans, why don't you ride with Eno over here for a while?"

"But I can't ride."

"You don't know how to ride?!" James didn't know if his expression was as disbelieving as his voice. He stopped himself short of saying 'then what do they teach at warrior training camp these days?!'.

Instead he sighed and called Hansworth over.

"Just mount up. I'll lead your horse along. Make sure you're holding on tight."

Which might have been the wrong thing to say because the way Hansworth's grip tightened on the reins was... scary.

He tied the lead of Hansworth's horse to his saddle, and led them forward at a trot.

"Where are you going?!" Talia demanded.

"I just want to range forward a little. I won't go too far. And if I run into any trouble, I have Hansworth with me."

When they were a good distance from the rest of their party, the conversation he needed to have with them started.

"Our lives are in danger."

The kids both whipped their heads around to stare at him. The horses were plodding side by side now, the pace unhurried.

"I'm not surprised you know, young master. I've been picking up on a lot of malicious intent lately."

James acknowledged Hansworth with a shallow nod. 'Danger sense, huh? An ability the highest ranked warriors achieved to better protect themselves.' James wondered if he'd ever manage to break through this body's lethargy and train to become a great warrior. Somehow, he doubted it. But it couldn't hurt to try.

"Aside from the two servants, we should assume everyone else is an enemy. Of course I knew who they were before I sent you to hire them."

"So why'd you do it then?"

"It was a whim more than anything else." 'I can't tell him I'm very interested in these kinds of wasted characters. They have potential. It's definitely not because if their fanatic hate for nobles. Or how those so called rebels are exploiting them.'

"They are strong. And Hans can't handle them on his own. Plus, they'll have more troops whenever they do decide to attack us."

"How many?" a determined look crossed Hans's features.

"I'll find that out in due time. In the mean time, I want you to be ready when they make their move. And I mean the two of you too."

The kids startled and looked at him, both white in the face.

Hansworth smiled at their shocked faces. "Yes, the young master does seem to know a lot of things."

"Im curious, why didn't you use any of your abilities when you attacked me that one time?"

"Didn't want to kill you," Eno mumbled, but Nino was the one who really scared him.

"How do you know we didn't? I mean why are you even helping us? Are you sure it was your idea to?"

James looked at the back of the girl's head, then he giggled awkwardly. No one joined. He cursed internally, second guessing everything he'd done since he'd met them. But no, he'd felt a kind of reasonance. Even the old James would have felt it, at least according to the vibe he got from his instincts.

"I'll take that as a joke. You'll be training with Hans, and make sure no one sees you, for as long as you are not in your village."

Eno mumbled something incoherent about trust and the like.

"What's that, Eno? Oh, nothing, alright then. I too have my own training regimen to follow, so I'll use the resting periods to prepare. Don't strain yourselves, especially you Hansworth. You are our main safety net."

"What kind of training will you be doing?"

"Hmm? Oh, remember that one fire spell that almost—"

"Yeah," Nino shuddered from where she sat in front of him.

"One day I hope you guys will show me your true abilities."

"Yeah..." the girl's voice trailed off.

The rest of the day James had his nose buried in a book. He'd brought half his mother's collection with him, but he'd smuggled in a few grimoires. He hoped his parents wouldn't find out.

At night, Hans nodded as he led the children away from the fire. There were two fires burning. One for the mercenaries, and one for James and his meager party. The mercenaries were roasting a wild animal they'd hunted during the day. James had seen the kids salivating over it the whole meal. They hadn't wanted to share though.

Once the meal was over, the servants had excused themselves. Then Hans had taken the children. Now James sat by himself and contemplated the crackling logs. His plan was a whooping success though.

"What troubles your mind, lordling?"

He wasn't surprised to find Talia standing over him. The rest of the mercenaries were still sitting around the fire, jocking with each other about something or other.

"Oh, you know, life..."

The woman burst out laughing.

"You're a funny one, you know that?"

James smirked. "I try my best."

"Don't let a little praise get into your head. What's a noble like you got to be worried about anyway?"

He looked her straight in the eye, motioned for her to occupy the log right next to him.

"You. And your crew. But mostly you."

"Oh?" her eyebrows quirked up as she took the seat he'd offered.

She was a fair distance away, and he closed it off. She didn't move, which was promising. He studied the crew in the distance, and looked all around. No one was watching them. Good.

His hand moved slowly, snaking around her. For her part, she eyed him in amusement, and curiosity. His hand landed on her waist, and he pulled her in a little closer. Their bodies, so different, one soft and slim, the other slim too, but tough and muscled.

"This how you got your reputation as a play boy?"

James moved his head closer to hers. She didn't seem phased. None of this was new to her. He hadn't expected it to be.

"I don't play with hearts."

"Yeah?" This time it was her turn to push her head closer.

James didn't back down either, though his hand might have tightened on her waist. From the way she was smiling, she'd definitely noticed.

His hand strayed downwards, and her breath hitched, though she tried to hide it. Then it started upwards, their eyes still locked in a battle of wills. As his hand got closer to her chest, he could see a hint of pink start to suffuse her cheeks.

He brought his face closer, and he could now feel the way she was wrestling her breaths to keep them from giving her away. His lips brushed hers, and his fingers brushed soft flesh. Her eyes flew wide, and she scrambled to get away from him.

She pushed herself backwards with her hands and landed on her ass somewhere behind where she'd been seated. James's hand stayed frozen in space, and his head was slow in turning to regard her. She was wide eyed, breathing heavily and staring at him with a most alarmed expression.

He stood up, and she stayed on the ground, her upper body supported by her elbows. He walked around the log and stood over her. She swallowed, but didn't move. He only offered her his hand, she reached up to take hold of it.

Then he heard death hurtling towards him, and he saw it in her widening eyes. He dived to the right and rolled. This time there was only mild pain from his body. But he had bigger problems to deal with.

Mania was running towards him, and her face was nothing but pure murder, and Talia wouldn't be able to stop her, and Hansworth wasn't even here. Perhaps making sure Hans and the others weren't here for this had been a bad idea.