Chapter 43 : Home Sweet Home

The heavy fortress made out of black iron caught their attention of Ajel, as his eyes wandered off to the mesmerising architecture and the might that could be felt from it even though he was quite far away from it.

"Stop daydreaming," Roheen muttered. "Your identity is that of our security detail, and you should act like one. Push comes to shove, and you may be seen as a spy from a country and killed on the ship. You need to play your part, Ajel." Roheen had lost his playfulness, as he spurred his horse down the bank.

Following and mimicking his movements, Ajel imagined himself to be a confident knight, one like the countless fairy tales he had read when he was a child.

Ajel set eyes on the ship in the distance, just off the shore.

All kinds of goods were loaded onto the ship, as the peasants loaded in what seemed to be gold, iron and runic iron that had been extracted from the Delverhold and is most likely getting imported into Ionia to support the war efforts.

Ajel maintained a tight posture, as much as his clumsy experience with a horse could give him, and slowly started to go down to the ship.

"Halt, travellers." Two guards speaking fluent Runeterrian stopped them. "Identity and papers."

Ajel stayed silent, as he remembered something that he had got told from an idle conversation with one of the caravan merchants.

Noxus guards are a merchant's worse nightmare if not properly prepared, as they value loyalty and efficiency more than anything. They would thoroughly check papers and the caravan for drugs and smuggled items, and the worse part is...

they couldn't be bribed.

Roheen has travelled from different parts of the world, and he has slipped up a coin now and then to some guards to make their eyes turn the other way, but there are countless horror stories about what happened to those with the Noxians.

Roheen handed each of them papers, which the guards inspected.

Ajel kept his cool, knowing that Roheen had created papers for him through a trusted source.

"Give the ferry fee." The Noxian guards were abrupt and didn't say more than they had to.

"Here you go, Ekwah." Roheen passed them a pouch of coins, with each coin inspected to make sure it wasn't counterfeit.

"Very well, travellers." The Noxus guard shook their head. "Here is the list of rules in the ship, and your "security detail" over there has to read it, with no exceptions, as it affects him the most."

Roheen grabbed the sheepskin, before putting it behind him in the Caravan.

Ajel didn't know if the stress had gotten to his nerves, but he could feel the extra emphasis on "Security detail."

but he reassured himself that even if they found his suspicious in the slightest he would have been sent to the gallows, never mind getting passage into a warship.

"We will now inspect your Caravan." One of the guards said while another stepped up into the large wooden house-like shape that had the "goods" that Roheen was carrying into Ionia.

This was just a distraction, however, as they were not going to Ionia to trade simple goods.

And he didn't think that the Noxian guards would care too much, as it wasn't their business what they were trading, but what they were carrying in the caravan, such as if they were carrying illegal drugs or human trafficking, which probably wouldn't be uncommon.

After getting checked for around a reason, the solemn attitude Ajel stood as still as a pool of water, as only after the caravan was given the green light did he start to breathe out and return to his normal relaxed self.

"This is for you, Ajel." Roheen passed the sheepskin that had the rules on it, before he opened it with a scrunched brow.

"Pay the guards no heed. They look down on you because you're young, and are meant to be our "security detail." Roheen muttered.

"I am though, aren't i?" Ajel had a bitter smile, with a hint of poison in his tone. "I defended you from 4 bandit attacks on the way here, and non-live to tell the tale."

"Of course, you are our trusted guard!" Roheen laughed, ultimately defusing the situation.

"Weapons to this side, horses and animals over there." The guard blocking the entrance to the ship said as Ajel handed in all the weapons, as Roheen went and placed all the horses into the stable.

The Caravan was carried by several people as it was loaded onto what seemed like a holding station of the ship they were staying in.

The size... he had seen several ships in his lifetime, and none of them could compare to this one. It looked as big as the sky from his angle!

Although Ajel had these thoughts in his head, Ajel kept his poker face as he removed all of his weapons, including his senbon.

He had the advantage of a latent weapon, an incredibly honed magic bullet that had been heavily practised over the past two years.

Now he could conjure the magic bullet faster than a blade could swing, and the size and lethality had been greatly improved.

Waiting for Roheen and the other 4 members to catch up, Ajel mounted the ship and was led to his quarters.

It was a classical military room, with several bunk beds and a private room attached to it where a bathroom was present.

Looking at the bunk bed's that look like rock , Ajel sighed.

"Home sweet home." Roheen jested.