Chapter 4

  To Tibaut's surprise instead of striking to kill him, she had just cut the ropes binding him to the bed.

"You could have just told me I was free to go. Those wouldn't have been that difficult to escape from." Tibaut remarked.

"Who said you were free? From this moment onward you work for me" she responded. Before Tibaut could even make a run for it Elizabeth grabbed him by one of the many holes in his clothing. "Listen, I can slit the tendons in your heels and drag you back with me or you can be a good boy and follow me on your own."

Tibaut weighed both his options and decided the latter might be a hair bit better. Elizabeth begrudgingly healed his injured leg as it would make their journey easier. "So, what are you gonna do with that kid? Seems kinda rough to have lost her whole village" he asked

"Oh, apparently she wasn't from here. She was just visiting her relatives since their villages were so close," she responded.

"You sure her place wasn't ransacked?" Tibaut said with a mild sense of concern.

"Considering I passed through there on my way here, I'm pretty sure." she responded slightly annoyed.

"Sure we shouldn't walk her back?" Tibaut insisted.

"She'll know her way back. Now if you keep talking, I'll cut your legs. Now follow me. And keep your distance that smell coming off you is making my eyes water." She said as she held her nose for dear mercy. They now had a long journey ahead of them.

***************************************************************************************

"Huff, huff, my God do you know what a break is" Tibaut pleaded.

"Quit complaining, we'll be there soon enough," She told him.

"Complaining? We've been running for over a day now." Tibaut complained.

"If you're complaining about something as simple as this, I'm honestly starting to question your value," she responded.

Then Tibaut's face seriously straightened and started to worry about his predicament.

("Wait, she couldn't possibly know who I am? Shit, we are still talking Akumian so she might. Damnit is she thinking of pawning me off!?") 

"What, starting to get scared? For killing me, you'll be lucky if you're ever out of work" she said with a grin.

("Ah I see, I'm not getting pawned off, I'm just gonna be enslaved. Honestly, at this point, I think that might be the better fate.")

"By the way" he asked.

"What is-eugh, let's take a break," She said with her face holding nothing but abject disgust. They came to a stop.

"What's with the change of heart?" he asked

"It's amazing how a small amount of sweat has made your odour so much more unbearable," She says before running to a nearby tree to vomit.

("Way to go bruise a guy's ego").

She returns in view of him while ensuring she's facing windward. "So what were you asking again?"

"What country are we in?" As soon as those words exited his mouth words could barely describe the face Elizabeth was making. A college professor who specialises in math being asked by one of his students what the answer to 3 x 3 is would make a kinder face. A woman being told by her boyfriend that he cheated on her with a dog would make a kinder face. Immediately sensing the verbal onslaught that was about to take place, he started talking before she had a chance. "Okay, listen I've been travelling for about 4 years now cut me some slack alright"

"What kind of half-brained excuse is that, are we not speaking the same language right now?"

"Yeah but, it's not like there's only one country that speaks this language," he said, praying he was right.

She took a deep breath in and replied "Sure, even though you would have had to have passed a whole country to get here, let's just assume you were too busy admiring the wildlife and trees to notice."

"So where ar-"

"We're in Anglia you cockwomble"

Tibaut, now feeling like a complete and utter idiot, decided to hold off from speaking to her until they reached their destination. 

"We aren't far now, let's walk there so we don't have to worry about you sweating."

("Wasn't it really that bad?") He thought while sniffing himself. They continued their trek in the forest until they encountered a clearing. 

("Now that I think about") Tibaut mused ("I haven't seen a single road or path on the way here. Is she gonna take me to some secret coal mine or something?")

"We're here." She told him.

When Tibaut snapped back to reality he was pleasantly surprised by the sight in front of him. It was a large 3 story mansion. As Tibaut was admiring the sight, Elizabeth suddenly spoke up.

"Stay right here for a minute." She then immediately ran inside. Tibaut then began to examine his hands. "Man, what the hell is she?" He said exasperated. "She can regenerate back from the point of death, heal wounds with ease and to top it all off she's an absolute brute. I had no idea people like her existed. If the bastards who killed my family are on her level, what the hell do I do?" He moped. "Well, I'll figure out what to do eventually, a change of pace doesn't hurt every now and again." 

"HEY!" Elizabeth shouted from a window on the second story. "Get up here."

("Why is sh- Eh, whatever I'll go up there and see what's up."). Tibaut then quickly climbed up the side of the mansion and proceeded to enter through the window. 

"So why am I up here?" he asked

"Take your clothes off."

("No way! I mean it's not like I don't want to but I can't just say yes to the first woman who offers. I mean a first time's gotta be special, plus she tried to kill me yesterday.") "Sorry, bu-"

"What are you dawdling for, get in the bath. I'll be waiting outside, I have something I need to talk to you about" She said before leaving the room.

"Oh, okay" Tibaut replied like his soul had just left his body. A few minutes pass. In the room next to the bath, Elizabeth silently waits for Tibaut to make his appearance. 

("He had none of the blue cubes on him, so he's not a cultists, so what did she mean he's more trouble than he's worth?")

Let's rewind back to about 20 hours ago when their battle was at its end.