224 Battle Plans I (1/2)
”We should get back quickly,” said Li. Tia licked her lips in her sleep with a smile, no doubt dreaming of food. She had to get some sleep in a proper bed, too. ”Rivieran knights will be crawling up here soon, and though I do appreciate them, I really am not in the mood to talk to them and assuage their worries.”
Sindra nodded. ”Agreed.”
She made to walk away before Li asked her one more question.
”As for what happened before, with the elf and all, you have no qualms?”
She did not break her pace at all. ”None at all. I will see you tomorrow, seer.”
Li nodded, watching her snake her way through the night. She almost crawled, using her bestial agility to its fullest extent, clawing her way up a rooftop and then leaping into the darkness with the silent prowl of a panther.
He made his own unique way out, casting out his obsidian wings to obscure his form and conveniently fly over to one of the inns beside the Farmer's Guild unseen. He landed gently in an isolated street corner beside an old building fashioned from hardy and weather worn wood with a gaudy painted sign that read 'Pierre's Place'.
The inn that Old Thane had been temporarily assigned to until the walls were opened again. Li made his way through the inn's rickety door and closed it quietly behind him, not wanting to wake the low tier mercenary sleeping on a chair that Pierre, the inn's owner, could afford to hire.
Overall, the inn was not a bad place. It had not an ounce of the luxury of the Pearl, but possessed a down to earth, firelit and stuffy warmth that spoke of a place that had been family owned for two centuries. It was an inn that had seen mothers cook pies for guests from ordinary walks of life for countless years, and that kind of feeling settled into an almost welcoming familiarity.
Li made his way through the first floor and stepped into Old Thane's room, taking the utmost care not to let the squeaky wooden door awaken the old man. The room was surprisingly spacious, having two beds and its own fireplace – the nicest room in the whole inn.
Old Thane was not sleeping. He was sitting on a chair beside the fireplace with Zagan lying down nearby, though it was evident the old man's frame dwarfed the chair underneath him. It really was interesting to see how imposingly large Old Thane was compared to the average man. He must have been nearly as tall as a Blood Legionnaire. A fact that consistently escaped Li.
”Lad,” said Old Thane with a wide grin. ”Welcome back. I'm to hear good tiding of your journey, aye?”
Old Thane laughed. ”I'd never doubted that. To be sure, I worried as I always do, but moreso that your journey would not have borne fruit.”
”Well, old man, if you want good news, I have plenty. I've found a cure to the demonrot, and with it, I'm going to have our people back out in the fields.”
”Oho, now that is certainly heartening to hear,” nodded Old Thane as he faced the fire, the dim light illuminating an expression of faint concern.
”Something wrong?”
”I've heard tell from the demon that you've decided upon marching West.”
Li looked to Zagan, and the demon sat up, about to enter the conversation and defend his action of telling the old man.
Li raised a hand to stop Zagan. ”It is fine. I would have told the old man tonight anyway. It is better that he has had time to process it.”
”Process it, lad? Why, I've had hours by now.” Old Thane stood up and took in a breath, growing still, and for a moment, Li was concerned about the old man. Surely, the old man would be to see Li, the man he considered to be his heir and bearer of his legacy, heading straight to the jaws of danger.