Chapter 21

  It took a couple of days of travel before they finally arrived in Raging Rivers.

  Unlike when Drakkel was last there, the road to Shadowy Ridges was bustling with people heading back and forth with different types of goods.

  They originally planned to arrive in the morning, but with the business of the roads, it was dark by the time they showed up.

  Because it was an outer town, Raging Rivers was small like Waterfall's end. But, it was also located closer to Shadowy Ridges, so it had more people inhabiting it.

  The popularity of outer towns, unlike inner towns, was never guaranteed. Even if Shadowy Ridges recently gained more attraction no one dared to assume it would last forever. After all, an oasis could easily become a desert. New businesses weren't built, so despite the amount of people, like Waterfall's end, Raging Rivers didn't have many inns.

  Aurien Wavel asked a local and they found out there were only two inns within the town.

  Surrounded by a wooden fence and with stones lining the path, the town didn't actually look too bad. Although there were no new major businesses, the locals still built small stalls along the path of the town, selling goods even at night. So a decent amount of people were walking around.

  Of the two inns they were told about, one was located near the west entrance which led to Shadowy Ridges, and another near the center. Because Raging Rivers was located near the center of the inner towns, it had a North, South, East and West Entrance that each led to different towns and villages.

  When the group went to the inn located near the West entrance, they found that it was full. So, they were forced to visit the one near the center.

  Raging Rivers and Shadowy Ridges were close, with Shadowy Ridges being located West of Raging Rivers. With many of the visitors to Raging Rivers being from Shadowy Ridges, it wasn't surprising that the Inn that was closer to the West of the town was fuller than the one located at the center.

  Although the Inn was open, there were still only three rooms left. It was three stories tall and there were two on the second story and one on the third. So the group could only do what they had done at Ri'en and Lady Secily’s residence. Aurien Wavel would stay with Font Seig and Antin Jerio, and Piral Bifa and Winfra Loul would share a room, leaving Drakkel and Rillian Adore to room together.

  Actually, Drakkel was worried that someone in the group would think this arrangement wasn't fair so he asked if they wanted to change how the rooms were divided. Yet, not only did no one have any objections, they even insisted that he and Rillian Adore share. They added that they should take the one room on the third floor specifically.

  When he inquired about it, they said that they didn't want to make Rillian Adore uncomfortable sleeping with someone he didn't know and since Drakkel knew him the best, it was better that they shared.

  Drakkel was skeptical about this explanation, but he couldn't do anything about it. They all already agreed so what was the point of fighting?

  So, now he sat in the room with Rillian Adore. The room they had taken was so small there was only one bed in it.

  One small bed.

  He sighed.

  This wasn't the first time they had to make due with a small bed. The bed in Taliyah Raven’s home was even smaller and yet, Drakkel felt like something was different now. The thought gave him some embarrassment.

  He stole a glance at Rillian Adore to see how he felt, but his expression didn't change at all.

  Instead, he casually walked over to the bed, laid his items down on the floor, and took one side. Then he looked up at Drakkel and patted the spot next to him.

  Drakkel wanted to shout, I will not! But then he thought about it. Why was he so nervous? It's not like anything was going to go on. As long as he thought nothing of it, wouldn't it be the case?

  Besides, Rillian Adore always acted this way. If he wasn't bothered, why was he?

  Drakkel breathed a small sigh and sat next to Rillian Adore, putting his stuff down as well. Sadly, the inn was so small they couldn't even separate themselves with a barrier of pillows, so they just had to make do.

  Drakkel said, “Let's sleep now so we can start our journey to Nevermore early.”

  Rillian Adore nodded. Then he settled into his pillow and fell asleep.

  But the walls were thin. He had only closed his eyes for a few minutes when he heard two people yelling from a room right next to theirs.

  “Ril Lita! Did you really have to insist on coming along?! Now look at you! You’re already tired! It will be even worse if we come across a Sacred Beast. I'll be held back protecting you!”

  Drakkel's eyes shot open.

  He really couldn't sleep now.

  Rillian Adore was up too and said to him, “Let's wait it out. Maybe the yelling will stop in a couple of minutes.”

  Drakkel nodded, but sadly, the yelling didn't stop and only increased in fervor.

  “I didn't want you to go alone to such a dangerous place! My Sword Fighting skills may be weak, but it's not like they're non-existent! Besides, His Majesty permitted me to go when I asked. If he thought I would be a problem, wouldn't he have kept me away?!”

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  “I taught you these ‘skills’ so I know best! A little sword step and some finger strikes don’t count! Besides, you're his Majesty's brother-in-law! Of course he let you go!”

  “Well, we’ve already come this far!! What's the point of arguing about it now? You’ve done so every night since we left the capital!”

  “Ril Lita!”

  “Lior Gaunlet!”

  Drakkel wanted to bang his head on the wall and die. Did he really have to go?

  Rillian Adore looked at him and got off the bed. “I’ll go talk to them.”

  Drakkel shook his head. But Rillian Adore still went out and so he reluctantly followed, not wanting him to face the two alone.

  When they reached the front door of the room Lior Gaunlet and Ril Lita were staying in, Rillian Adore knocked on it.

  The two were yelling loudly so the first knock was hard to hear.

  Rillian Adore followed it up with a louder and harder knock and then the two immediately stopped arguing.

  “Who is it?” Lior Gaunlet shouted.

  They heard the shuffling of footsteps as someone approached the door. When it opened, Lior Gaunlet was standing there looking annoyed and angry.

  “What do you want?” He asked.

  “For you to stop talking.” Rillian Adore answered abruptly. "People are trying to sleep."

  Lior Gaunlet could be polite, but he held a certain level of self-confidence. If it had been a normal person who asked him to quiet down nicely of course he would have said sorry and went on his way. But the one in front of him was clearly no ordinary person. He held a sturdy demeanor and the way he spoke was curt and improper. If he didn't teach the man in front of him a lesson, would he still be Lior Gaunlet?

  He scoffed. “I’ll consider it if you ask more politely. You were too disrespectful just now.”

  “Why should I?” Rillian Adore responded. “You didn't care when you and your companion were yelling loudly enough for the whole inn to hear! If anyone was being disrespectful, it was you!”

  Lior Gaunlet’s face scrunched up in anger. “I’ll take no advice from people I don't know. You and your companion cover your faces under veils. So far into an outer town without revealing your identities, isn't it clear that you’re up to no good?”

  Rillian Adore’s eyebrows furrowed as the corners of his lips turned down. “I guess this disagreement won't be settled with just talking.”

  “I guess not…” Lior Gaunlet replied.

  Lior Gaunlet opened the door wide and dashed at Rillian Adore.

  Within the small hallway of the inn, the two exchanged several finger strikes. With neither giving ground to the other.

  At the same time, Ril Lita ran out of the room and stood next to Drakkel, watching the fight with concern.

  Drakkel wanted to stop them, but doing so could reveal his identity, so he watched and waited trying to glean which of the two would win.

  Rillian Adore was at the Pinnacle of Sword Master and Lior Gaunlet should have been close. However, what Lior Gaunlet lacked in Sword Energy, he made up for in experience.

  He was around ten years older than Rillian Adore and began cultivating at a younger age than him as well. So the winner of the fight couldn't clearly be determined yet.

  Because they had no weapons on them, they were forced to fight with their hands. Lior Gaunlet dodged a finger strike from Rillian Adore and jumped into the air, subsequently angling his body downwards. Rillian Adore jumped backwards and Lior Gaunlet’s finger went right into the ground before he recovered his stance and faced Rillian Adore again.

  Ril Lita covered his face with his hands and Drakkel immediately understood why.

  This Lior Gaunlet; no wonder he needed Drakkel's assistance with the merchants. He was a talent at Sword Fighting, but when it came to controlling his emotions when they ran high, one could say he had hardly any talent at all!

  But this was one of the benefits of a Sword's Clan, this type of wild behavior would never have been tolerated and would have been promptly rooted out by a master or Clan Leader. Seeing him like this, Drakkel could only shake his head. If he kept it up, the winner of the match would be easily decided.

  Proving his point, Rillian Adore said something and Lior Gaunlet got even angrier. Ril Lita couldn't watch anymore and ran over to them.

  But the two were too focused on their fight and didn't see him coming.

  Drakkel dashed over to catch up to him and blocked the strike that was sent out by Lior Gaunlet before it could hit Ril Lita.

  Now that he was at the level of Sword Epiphany, a strike like this didn't mean anything. However, he was too fast and lost his bamboo hat in the process.

  Lior Gaunlet’s eyes widened for a moment as he gazed at him. But only a second later, he realized that there was someone else he should be more worried about.

  He shook his head and called out Ril Lita's name before rushing over to him. Because of what occurred, he had fallen down behind Drakkel.

  As Rillian Adore checked if Drakkel was injured, Lior Gaunlet was leaning down beside the fallen Ril Lita.

  “Are you ok?” He asked. His fiery temper was quickly quelled. What was left was a worried whisper of a concerned individual.

  Ril Lita had fallen on his butt, so he rubbed it as he said, “I’m fine, thanks to this good fellow over…”

  He gestured to Drakkel who had just picked up the bamboo hat and placed it back on his head; but not before he caught a glimpse of the face behind the veil.

  He recognized him well .

  “Syl…?” He shook his head.

  Since this man has left the capital he had already learned of his true identity.

  “Drakkel Fin, is it?” he said quietly.

  He got up and dusted off his pants before bowing his head lightly to Drakkel. “Thank you for saving me.”

  Lior Gaunlet was cautious and didn't like the way that Ril Lita treated Drakkel and yet, he had to admit that Drakkel was owed the thanks.

  He bowed as well, “Yes, thank you.”

  At this point Rillian Adore was quiet, seeming satisfied by the response of the two in front of them. He didn't show a hint of surprise upon Ril Lita calling out Drakkel's true name. But perhaps it was because he saw that Drakkel was calm about it, that he was calm as well.

  Now that everything happened, they could only leave as soon as possible. As Drakkel turned around without even saying a word, Ril Lita shouted, “Wait! Is that all? It's been so long since we’ve seen each other. Aren't we friends?”

  Lior Gaunlet looked at Ril Lita in disgust and Drakkel’s mouth twitched. In terms of having no sense of tact when their emotions were high, Drakkel could say these men were two peas in a pod! Really it was no wonder they got along so well. In fact, maybe the two only had each other and Xilto Jervis as friends because their personalities were like this!

  He turned around. “I’m sure you understand the situation. I have no time to hang around with you.”

  Ril Lita's face fell.

  At this Lior Gaunlet seemed to get over his previous grievances against Ril Lita and worked to support him instead. “Come on now. You two should join us. Wouldn't it be bad if Rulo Lita learned about how you treated her younger brother? What if she reports it to the Emperor?”

  Drakkel sighed.

  He saved Ril Lita from a strike that was coming from none other than Lior Gaunlet, but instead of being grateful, Lior Gaunlet was resorting to threats!

  If Rulo Lita heard of this matter and reported it to the Emperor, Drakkel would be placed in a tough spot.

  Ril Lita said, “Lior doesn't mean it. No one will know your location. But I would like to speak with you again, Drakkel. I want to know what you’ve been up to. Lior and I had a feeling that something wasn't right about Master Som’s death, so I want to hear the story from your side.”

  Drakkel's eyes widened.

  Did this man actually care? He thought that there would be no harm in the possibility of gaining another ally. Since Ril Lita bothered to make the offer, he probably wasn't being insincere.

  As he thought about it, the rest of the doors around them began to open. It was deep in the night when everyone was asleep and being seasoned Sword Fighters Lior Gaunlet and Rillian Adore used light steps to fight each other.

  The initial battle might not have stirred up too much attention, but it's not like they were whispering when they talked after the fact. People were probably wondering who was making all the noise.

  Seeing the situation, Ril Lita didn't wait anymore. He went over to Drakkel and grabbed his hand. “There’s no time. Let's talk more in our room.”

  Ril Lita dragged Drakkel to the room he and Lior Gaunlet were sharing and Lior Gaunlet and Rillian Adore were forced to follow.