Deal With The Enemy 2

"It's almost been 5 days, why haven't I heard from him," thought Ron as he struck the rock with his pickaxe.

For the past few days, he could feel the soldiers' gazes on him, making him feel like a prisoner more than a slave.

Ron continued to strike the rocks with his pickaxe, his mind consumed with thoughts of why Raze had been silent for the past five days and whether the information he had read in the book was wrong.

"Yo man, does it feel weird to you too, like someone's watching us?" Bob asked Ron while they were mining.

"Nah, it's all in your head dude" said Ron to Bob.

"Yea, maybe it's just my imagination," Bob said with a chuckle.

[After a few minutes of silent ASMR mining session they decided to take a break]

"Hey, you never told me why we were supposed to look for that tattood guy," Bob asked Ron as they were eating bread.

Ron shrugged, taking a bite of his bread before answering. "Well, Bob, you know what they say - ignorance is bliss. And right now, you're one blissful miner."

"Bitch!, what do you mean I am blissf—"

Suddenly a soldier came near to their table.

Other slaves bowed their head down pretending they didn't see the Guard.

"Both of you come with me" said the soldier looking at both of them.

Bob looked at Ron with a confused expression on his face, breadcrumbs falling from his mouth. "Huh? Follow where?" he asked, not quite getting the situation.

"Come with me," Ron said to Bob.

After going through the alleyway, they finally arrived in front of the soldiers' quarters.

"The captain's waiting for you inside," the soldier informed Ron leaving them Both alone.

"Ron why is captain looking for you, and why me?" said Ron to Bob.

"Well Bob, looks like you're finally getting popular. Maybe he heard about your amazing bread making skills and wants to recruit you as his official personal baker," said Ron.

"Aww man, fuck you" replied Bob.

Upon opening the door, Ron found Raze writing something with his glasses on.

"Oh, you're here," Raze said with a serious tone, his eyes still fixed on the paper in front of him.

"Did you... find what you were looking for?" He couldn't help but feel a sense of fear and unease, wondering what Raze's answer might be.

Raze put his pen down and looked up at Ron. His expression was neutral, lacking any trace of malice.

He looked at Ron with a slight smile on his face. "Yes, we found it," he said. "I don't know how you knew where it was and I won't ask about it, but because of you, we were able to successfully perform one of our mission."

Bob on the other hand, had no idea what was going on. He was so terrified that he thought he might soil his pants.

He came close to Ron, with his voice shaking, "Bro, can you please tell me why am I here? I don't think I did anything wrong honestly, I barely can make a sandwich."

Ron gave Bob a puzzled look, then turned back to Raze. The room fell into an awkward silence, broken only by the sound of Raze laughing so loud that the whole camp could hear.

"Your one weird kid you know that?" said Raze with a grin as he walked towards Ron.

"Time to hold up my end of the deal. Follow me," said Raze, as he strode towards the door.

Both of them followed behind Raze towards the training ground.

The ground was covered with lush green grass, and at the end of it, there was a basket filled with weapons.

"Pick any weapon from the basket," said Raze as he picked up a wooden sword that was lying on the ground.

"Ron, what is all this? what's the deal with the weapons and the grassy field?" Bob asked, looking around in confusion.

Ron turned to Bob and asked, "Do you want to get out of this place?"

Bob remained silent.

"Okay, well, if you want your freedom, you better pick up a weapon," Ron said with a stern tone. "Otherwise, you can go back to mining for the rest of your life."

"Well it's not like some training is bad for me or anything," Bob replied after a breif silence.

Both of them approached the basket, scanning the various weapons it contained. Long swords, knives, chains, and granules lay in front of them. However, nothing seemed to catch Ron's interest until he laid his eyes on an axe.

"Looks like this one hasn't been used much," said Ron as he picked up the axe, noticing the rust starting to form on it. Most of the other weapons looked well-maintained, but the axe seemed neglected.

Bob took a long sword from the basket, examining it carefully to make sure it was suitable for his use.

"Alright, the first step of your training is to learn the basic moves," said Raze said as he pointed the wooden sword. "Both of you come at me together, and don't worry, I won't be using my magic."

Ron and Bob exchanged a quick glance before nodding and stepping forward towards Raze with weapons in hand. Raze stood in a defensive stance, waiting for them to make the first move.

Ron stepped forward, his grip tightening around the handle of the axe. He dased as he swung it in a wide arc towards Raze, aiming for his left shoulder. Raze didn't move an inch as he raised his wooden sword swiftly blocking without any effort.

As Ron recovered from his swing, Bob lunged forward with his long sword, aiming for Raze's torso. However, Raze quickly kicked Ron in the stomach, sidestepped Bob's attack with ease, and swung his wooden sword towards Bob's legs, knocking him down with a swift strike.

Both of them got up and decided to give it another try.

Bob lunged at Raze again, aiming for his chest to turn his attention towards him. Suddenly Ron saw his chance and swung his axe again, this time aiming for Raze's head. But Raze was ready and expertly deflected the blow, knocking the axe out of Ron's hand and sending it flying across the training ground.

Now disarmed, Ron backed away from Raze, while Bob continued to engage in a flurry of strikes. Finally, he saw an opening and swept Bob's legs out from under him, causing him to fall to the ground.

The fight went on for several more minutes until both Ron and Bob were panting and sweating, their arms heavy with exhaustion. Raze called a halt to the training.

"Looks like you guys need to hit the gym before you can handle a sword," Raze said with a smirk. "Your swings are weak, and your stamina is pathetic."

"Listen up, fellas. If you want to make it as a fighter, you gotta eat like one too. Head to the soldier's quarter every day and they'll get you something better to eat," Raze said before striding back into his office.

As the sun began to set, painting the sky with a warm orange glow, Ron and Bob trudged wearily back to their quarters, their bodies aching, and their minds lost in thought.

Ron couldn't help but feel frustrated with himself. As they walked, Ron couldn't help but replay the fight in his mind, analysing every move he and Bob made and how easily Raze had countered them.

Bob let out a groan as they stumbled into their quarters. "That guy sure gave us a workout," he said, rubbing his sore muscles. "I don't think I've ever swung a sword before in my life."

Ron let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, I don't think mining builds up the right muscles for this kind of thing."

They both collapsed onto their beds, exhausted but determined to keep training and getting stronger.