Chapter 3, The Deal

While standing, Jerome took the wine gourd and gulped it down, trying to calm his anger. "That was quite an unpleasant sight, I guess," Jerome said in an embarrassed tone after downing the whole gourd. After the tense atmosphere lightened, Oliver let out a sigh of relief.

While being a proud individual, Oliver understood that he wouldn't be an opponent in a one-on-one fight with Jerome, as he was not suited for such kinds of battles, while the former excelled in them. While still feeling irritated from his jealousy, Oliver replied, "I felt like that wrath wasn't directed towards me, so it's alright, I think."

"Of course not!" reaffirmed Jerome as he sat down again and looked straight into Oliver's eyes. "Your family isn't participating in the guild's power struggle, and the Guild elder, Aldis, belongs to your family after all, and he has always been just to our family. It's in your nature to be good-willed, after all; that's why your family specializes in Healing and Nature magic."

Hearing such things coming from Jerome's mouth and feeling his honesty, Oliver reevaluated his opinion of the man who often bullied him in the past. "Quite strange hearing such flattery coming from you."

"Actually, now I regret that I made myself your enemy. After all these years, I began to understand and appreciate mages like you. While you lost almost all solo fights in the academy, real life is way different. Without supportish mages like you, fighting in a true battle would be literally impossible," Jerome said with a disappointed face.

"You are creeping me out, did you hit your head or something?" Cringed Oliver.

"Hahaha, I'm not surprised you would react like that, but that's my honest thoughts. So, do you think we could make up? But don't misunderstand this, I'll still try to make fun of you from time to time," joked Jerome as he stood up and gave Oliver his bulky hand for a handshake.

"And here I thought you just called me here to make yourself feel better," Oliver also stood up and raised his head to look into Jerome's black eyes. "Though also, don't misunderstand me. Right now, we don't have any choice but to cooperate. This should have been an easy mission, but we almost all died, including my wife. So, I won't stay silent in this matter and sit back and do nothing. Our guild should not be losing innocent lives just because of an internal strife between families!" Declared Oliver with a resolute look in his eyes.

After a slight pause, he accepted Jerome's handshake and added, "We will team up with you to solve this matter, even though I can't trust you fully after everything you did."

"I can't blame you for that, can I?" Laughed Jerome as a light smile crept up his face. "Also, how is your little witch doing?" He asked.

"She's fine, though that's none of your business," responded Oliver with some irritation in his tone.

"Come on, we are a team right now, aren't we? It's only natural that I would be worried about a fellow member," Jerome joked as he could see Oliver getting angry at him.

"You? Worried about somebody? Don't joke with me, and don't think I haven't noticed how you look at Sigrid. Better keep your eyes off her," Oliver snapped as he remembered Jerome visibly ogling at his beloved wife.

"It's not like she finds it offensive, so why not?" Jerome smirked. "Actually, I could bet she's enjoying the attention I'm giving her, as almost every woman in the guild does." He bragged in a taunting manner.

"Oh, really?" mocked Oliver. "Well, yeah, I'm pretty confident in myself. Why don't you ask her while making love tonight?" He provoked.

"Sure, I will!" Oliver accepted the challenge while fuming with rage.

Looking like he already won the battle, Jerome let out a victorious laugh. "Okay, that's enough. We have to conserve our strength for tomorrow," with a cheeky smile he added, "Just don't get too tired pleasuring your little witch tonight."

Oliver snorted, gave him one last stare, and while still feeling angry, left the tent.