Halted Before Arriving

Makalov: "Hold up, let me take this from the top. They always had a plan to sacrifice me to the wolf-beasts if they were ever too much for us?"

Ryan sighed.

Ryan: "Yea."

Makalov: "And even if things went well, the leader and the gang were already planning on taking all of the rewards for themselves and running away after that?"

Ryan: "Yup."

Makalov: "And when you interfered, they changed their plans on the spot and also tried to steal your things at the same time?"

Ryan: "Yes."

Makalov: "And then you found out last night and took it all back before you beat them up and hung them on the wall?"

Ryan: "Uh-huh."

Makalov: "Lastly, you also used magic items so they couldn't be let down for a long time. That's why no one was doing anything and just staring."

Ryan: "You got it."

Makalov dropped his fist on his palm

Makalov: "So that's what happened. It all makes sense."

Ryan: "Now do you get it?"

Makalov: "Uh-huh. But I have another question. How did you find them last night? How did you find out about their plans in the first place? And where and how did you get magic items in the first place."

Ryan sighed again and slapped his forehead.

Ryan: "I've already explained the whole thing 3 times already, so stop it with the questions. Just understand the end results and be thankful that you're still alive."

Makalov: "All right. All right. No need to get so moody."

Ryan: 'How is this guy even alive being as dumb as he is?'

It had only been a couple of hours since they left Luria, but those hours were mostly spent on Ryan trying to explain the whole situation to Makalov. Although he was an honest and pretty funny guy, he was fairly dumb, gullible, and had the bad habit of drinking and gambling away his life.

Both of them were currently on their way towards Persis. Ryan was the coachman of the carriage/wagon and although it took some time for him to understand how to steer the horses, he was able to get the hang of it after some time.

Makalov was riding next to him on his own horse, the one that Ryan had bought with the carriage. He was keeping up with Ryan's pace, riding the horse almost like a professional, like he was a natural. If he had spent the same amount of time training as he did gambling, he probably could have been one of the best horse riders in all of Tellius, up there alongside Titania and Geoffrey.

Ryan had seen Makalov ride once before, during their way to Luria, and he was quite surprised by what he saw. There was a good chance that that moment was the first time Makalov had ever ridden a horse before, but he was still able to steer one quite naturally.

It turns out that he was quite the genius when it came to horses, although he himself probably had no idea about how good he was. Knowing him, Makalov would not think about and/or probably could not afford to buy a horse in the first place. This prevented him from ever realizing his potential for mounted combat.

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The trip to Persis would take only a couple of days, one week max, but that didn't stop Makalov from constantly talking along the way. He would usually talk about his past, about how he was raised and about how he lived his life when he became an adult. Sometimes he even mentioned Marica, stating how serious she was all the time and also very naggy.

Although Ryan found him annoying, he felt that it was nice traveling with someone. He also talked a little about his past, about how his parents died when he was just a baby and lied about how he had been pushing himself ever since he discovered the truth. Of course, he made sure not to reveal anything about Hatari or his knowledge about his previous life.

This continued on for a few days. They would frequently talk to each other and Ryan would feel annoyed half of the time.

On the fifth day, when they were only a few hours away from Persis, Makalov finally remembered something.

Makalov: "Oh yeah! I forgot to say this before but thanks for the horse."

Ryan gave him a weird look.

Ryan: "You just remembered that after all this time!? It's been four days since we left Luria!"

Makalov: "I can't help it, I was very confused at the time."

Ryan: "Didn't stop you from constantly questioning me that whole day."

He tried to laugh it off.

Makalov: "Haha… My bad."

Ryan sighed. He had been sighing a lot these few days.

Ryan: "Anyways… Don't worry about the horse, I was given a good deal and thought why not. There was additional gold from the wolf subjugation request since it turns out that the request was underestimated so that essentially covered the cost of thing you're riding."

Makalov: "Wait! So the reward was actually that high!? Why did you get this horse!? Do you know how much mead that could have bought me!?"

Ryan: "You really want your sister to see you act like a drunken lard?"

Makalov felt quiet at that question. If Marcia ever saw him doing anything that would make a mess of himself, she wouldn't let him hear the end of it.

Makalov: "I-I-It's not guaranteed that she'll be there. T-There's a chance that she'll still be at Sienne training."

Ryan gazed at him lazily.

Ryan: "With your luck, would you really want to take that chance."

Makalov fell silent to that statement. Even he knew that he was extremely unlucky and that betting a 50-50 odd gamble was like a 90-10 odd gamble that was not in his favor.

Ryan: "That's what I thought. So as I said before, don't worry about it. Just be glad that you have something and that won't go away anytime soon."

Makalov: "I guess."

Ryan: "Oh. Just to be sure, don't go selling off that horse so you can go gambling or drinking. Do that, and consider that payment for me saving your life."

He was stunned.

Makalov: "What!? But you said that I didn't have to worry about it."

Ryan smirked

Ryan: "But I also didn't say that I wouldn't be receiving any form of compensation."

Makalov: "But..."

He was speechless seeing the look on Ryan's face.

Makalov: "Fine."

Knowing him, Ryan made sure to have some insurance.

Ryan: "Since you agreed, there should be no problem if I say that if ever find out that you sold, traded, or gave that horse away, I have permission to hunt you down and break your legs."

Makalov: "WHAT!!?"

Ryan chuckled after seeing Makalov's expression.

Ryan: "Don't worry about it. If you actually follow through on your word, nothing will ever happen to you. In fact, this may actually motivate you to drink less and spend wisely. I bet your sister would be very proud. I should tell her this when I meet her"

Makalov: "Bu-but-but..."

He just kept saying that word over again, not knowing what to say next, Makalov's mind was in disarray.

When he finally was able to say something and not stutter, Ryan interrupted him.

Ryan: "Alright, no need to respond right now, I can see Persis in the distance."

Makalov stopped trying to say something and looked towards the horizon in front of him. Although it was hard for him to see, he did see what looked to be a little dot many kilometers in the distance. As the two were slowly making their way towards the dot, it started expanding and taking shape.

After about a half-hour, Makalov was able to make out the large stone walls surrounding the city. They were larger and grander than the ones in Luria, almost nearing impenetrable. They were so tall, in fact, that he could not see the buildings beyond it.

For Ryan, the walls were not that awe-inspiring to him. He had predicted that they were somewhat similar to the walls in Culbert and he was not off track. The thing that caught his eyes was the creatures flying above the city, Pegasuses/Pegasi. These white beasts and their riders were patrolling the city and the region surrounding it, no doubt making sure the area was safe before the Empress arrives.

As the two were nearing the gates, a squad of Pegasus riders flew towards them. The one that spoke did not seem to be in a good mood.

Pegasus Rider Squad Leader: "You two, state your business."

Ryan: "That's certainly a unique way of introducing yourself."

Not wanting to deal with his behavior, the rider pointed her spear at him, followed by the rest of the squad a second after.

Makalov: "Woah! Woah! Woah! Ladies, please! We've just came here to check out the new Apostle. We're wandering mercenaries and we come in peace!"

He flashed his tag before Ryan flashed his.

Ryan: "Yeah. What he said."

The ladies were not really happy with Ryan's tone, but they withdrew a little.

Pegasus Rider Squad Leader: "We need to inspect your cargo before we let you go."

Ryan sighed and reluctantly let one of the girls into his carriage to check his things. After about a minute, she came out with one of the bags stored inside before revealing the contents.

Pegasus Rider: "Ma'am. Aside from the books and few high-quality weapons, there also are a couple of bags in the wagon, but they're almost all filled with magical items and herbs."

The squad leader turned to Ryan and Makalov.

Pegasus Rider Squad Leader: "How have you managed to obtain all these items?"

Ryan's patience was running thin.

Ryan: "Why do I have to explain myself to you? You've already inspected my things so give me my bag and let us go."

The squad leader pointed her spear and Ryan again.

Pegasus Rider Squad Leader: "Answer the question!"

Ryan was now a bit pissed by their overbearingness.

Ryan: "...Is that a threat?"

Although Ryan disliked boredom and annoyances, the thing that hated above all else was being threatened or having those close to him being threatened. Although there were boundaries to his anger, any person, that was not a bandit since he would just kill them anyway, directing killing intent towards him automatically made it on to his shitlist.

Seeing that Ryan had his hand was on his sword's handle, the rest of the squad took a stance on their Pegasus and prepared to attack.