Rufian turned my direction and cocked a brow at me, watching as I crouched at his side and swung my fingers inside the pool.
“And what, pray-tell, do you think you’re doing there, Silas?”
I grinned. “Doesn’t hurt to try.”
He chuckled. “My, you are one imaginative hero, I’ll give you that.”
“What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Absolutely nothing, and that’s what happened. Nothing.”
“Damn, this liquid is extremely cold, though. Wasn’t expecting that for a climate so modest.” I flicked my fingers, snapping the elixir off. Well at least it left my skin feeling silky smooth.
“Insufferable, you know that?”
I snorted. “Not as much as you. Now, come on, you got your plenty. Let’s head back home.”
Rufian stretched. “Oh yes, a short rest does seem to be in order,” he suggested, walking us outside of the cavern.
“Rest? We need to find the next ingredient.”
“We will have time for that after a quick rest. We need to rejuvenate the mind and the body, hero.”
“All right. But make it short. I don’t want to waste time we don’t exactly have sl—”
“HALT!” A squeaky voice pitched, two goblin girls standing before us bearing spears and knives.
“I knew it! I knew I smelt the stench of fae in our lands!” the other girl with the braided pigtails said bouncing up and down with her knives.
“Stench?” Rufian scoffed. “You’re one to talk.”
The both of them looked like bogburs, dressed in warrior fur and garments.
“I knew sooner or later you fae would sneak back here trying to take back your land! It was only a matter of time!” she hissed. The one with the brown braided pigtails was a level 50 warrior, Binti, and her comrade was a level 70 warrior, Tras.
“Bo-an! Bo-an!” Tras, the one with the red Mohawk cried, her spear still pointed at us as she turned over her shoulder. “Hey, Bo-an! Get over here!”
All of a sudden I heard horses clicking behind them, the fog opening up to a carriage made out of redwood. The carriage was drawn by four white horses, their long… styled manes flowing in the wind. On the top of the carriage, I saw a spiffy goblin in a blinding white suit, his slick black hair tied in a bun, and a cigar tucked in the corner of his big mouth. He had an aristocratic appeal to him, and a snobbish attitude to match as he looked down his giant nose at us.
“Is there a problem, girls?” he said, his voice light yet authoritative.
The goblin girls lowered their spears and knives as the man stepped in between them with his bearings.
“Just some fae trespassers," the one with the red Mohawk said, still eyeing Rufian and me suspiciously.
The goblin turned his gaze toward us, his piercing yellow eyes studying us carefully.
“I see,” he said, taking a drag from his cigar. “And what brings you to these lands, fae?”
“Errands,” Rufian said, stepping forward with his hands fixed to his sides and his palms opening up to retaliate.
I intercepted him before he painted this field in red. We didn’t need an unnecessary confrontation, especially with goblins we had no beef with. “We're just passing through,” I said to the level 100 goblin. “We mean no harm to you or your warrior girls.”
“Is that a fact? I wonder then if this is true, what are you doing in Kapata?”
“As Rufian, my associate had said, errands.”
“Errands? Here in Kapata? May I ask about the nature of your errands?”
“You may not,” Rufian retorted. “It is none of your business.”
“How dare you speak that way to Master Bo-an!” Binti hissed.
“Oh, but I could have said much worse,” Rufian taunted with a smirk on his face.
“We should beat some proper etiquette into their fragile bones!” Tras growled, her grip on her spear tightening.
“Enough,” Bo-an said, raising his hand to silence his warriors. “I believe these fae mean no harm. Let them pass through.”
“But Master Bo-an—” Binti started to protest before he quelled her.
“I said let them pass through,” Bo-an ordered, his voice firm. “We will keep an eye on them as they make for the exit, but they are not our enemies. Understood?”
The goblin girls reluctantly nodded, still eyeing us warily as we passed by them. Bo-an watched us go, his eyes never leaving our backs until I noticed what his wagon was holding. My eyes grew, my gait instantly slowing down at the sight of his cargo.
Human slaves…
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
