Chereads / (On hiatus) Do Not Anger the Black Cat / Chapter 12 - Meeting people

Chapter 12 - Meeting people

The four of them stepped inside the wagon, leaving the soldiers' line of sight as they disappeared behind the white canvas top that covered the cart. At both openings, there was a piece of tattered cloth fluttering in the wind; it served as a door to give a semblance of intimacy, and they also hid the new recruits from the impetuous stare of the soldiers.

Until they entered the wagon, Mo'an had suppressed her anger, but now that she was out of the soldiers' sight, she stopped to hold back. Like the predator that had been eying his prey, she pounced on Nael, who was weaker than Tiel, and pinned him down on the wooden floor with a loud thud.

Alerted by the noise, a soldier asked what happened, and Nael answered that he had dropped his luggage, his voice calm and unhurried. Back at the public square, the moment he had raised his hand, he knew he would have to face his friend's anger sooner or later. Therefore, he wasn't surprised by her sudden attack.

Baring her teeth, Mo'an growled with a low voice, "What were you thinking!? Why the hell did you apply for the recruitment!? Does your mother even know? F*ck, who is going to take care of her in your absence!? Go back right now!"

Immediately after saying her piece at Nael, she glanced at Tiel, who pretended not to notice her gaze. "And you too! Go home! You know how your father is! If no one monitors him, he's going to do stupid things."

Without a word, Nael put his two hands on each side of her face, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs. He gently forced her to turn her head so she would look at his face, interrupting her tirade. With a weak yet reassuring smile, he whispered:

"It's already too late for that. Don't worry, we had discussed it with our parents beforehand, and yesterday, I took the time to instruct my uncle on how to handle my mother's outburst, just in case he had forgotten how to. He promised me to take care of her, no matter what. And also, your father is going to keep an eye on La'en, when it's not your mother."

The young man paused slightly, then added, "Everyone in the tribe had long known about our intention to follow you to the military, and they have made preparation for it. Now, there is no turning back."

Mo'an stared into her childhood friend's eyes for a short second, and when she was about to scold him some more, she heard someone cough, making her instantly forget what she was about to say. With stiff movement, she lifted her head and met the piercing eyes of a teenage girl. She didn't say anything, but the icy expression on her face was enough to convey her annoyance, which didn't help to calm down Mo'an's irritation.

When they entered the wagon, the teenager hadn't paid too much attention to the two female recruits sitting in the corner. At the time, Mo'an only had her ire on her mind and couldn't care less about them. Now that they had made their presence known, she couldn't exactly ignore them.

The two girls were sitting in front of each other, each taking a corner for themself. The one who had coughed had an aloof appearance with elegant facial features and long, silver hair. Even her eyelashes were somehow pale, almost white. The girl's purple eyes looked at them with a bit of annoyance but mostly indifference.

As for the second girl, she had a round face and a small body frame. Her eyes were a dark red with shades of orangey brown; the vivid color made her iris appear as if they were on fire. Her short hair was pinkish brown with golden hues here and there. Those colors were unusual on a human, and the beastmen couldn't help but scrutinize a while longer, wondering if she was a hybrid born of a human and something else.

They each had their own charm, but both seemed unfriendly in their own way. One looked at them as if they were not there, and the second one seemed to want to tear them to shreds. One look or another, they both were extremely unpleasant, especially for Mo'an whose mood was already quite low.

Remembering that she was sitting on top of Nael, Mo'an decided to stand up first. Although she was unhappy with her friends' decision, she couldn't exactly kick them out of the wagon, and thus she had to push aside her anger for now. The next time the four of them were alone, she would thoroughly reprimand them and stop only when they began to cry for their daddy.

With a friendly smile, the teenager walked up to the girls and bowed slightly as she presented herself, "Nice to meet you. I'm Mo'an of the Towering Trees Jungle Tribe. You are?"

"Hmpf. There is no need to tell you our name," scoffed the smallest teenage girl. Her intriguing eyes were filled with scorn and disdain. In fact, her whole being was draped in gloominess, which made the beastmen feel a little awkward. They hadn't done anything to provoke her, right?

"Well, I don't mind, but in this case, I will just give you a surname each. How about Cough-Cough and Gloomy Girl?"

"You have no manners!" said Gloomy Girl through her gritted teeth.

"Well, I am but a mere beast, dear."

"Mo'an, enough!" hurriedly said Shi'an before his sister went too far, gripping her wrist as a warning. She definitely needed to learn to think twice before opening her mouth. Venting her frustration on the very first persons she met wasn't the brightest idea, especially when those said persons were recruits with whom they would pass the next five years.

"I'm sorry about my brother. He has a bad mouth," stuttered Shi'an, not daring to look at the girls in the eyes. Instead, he stared at the floor, fidgeting a little.

"Are you shy because you're talking to strangers or because these two girls are as beautiful as the moon?" teased Nael with a charming grin while Tiel found a place to lay down and sleep, deciding that it was better not to get involved in this. He didn't want his already low IQ to drop even more.

"Oh, so that's your type of girls!" smirked Mo'an. "No wonder you never dated anyone back at the tribe. And here I thought it was because of your bad personality."

"What are you saying? I'm a very charming, kind, and generous person, you know?"

"Is it me or your lies are getting worse by the day? If you actually find someone naive enough to believe in your sugar-coated words, I think the world will end the very next day."

"Is it a challenge?"

"What's the bet?"

While they were busy bickering, Shi'an peeked at the two girls and whispered in a shy voice, "I'm so sorry! They are country bumpkins with no manners. I hope you won't take offense."

"You're the country bumpkin!" said the two at the same time, pouting slightly.

Their interaction made the aloof girl crack a smile. However, she quickly hid it by propping her chin up with a hand, her slender fingers resting on her lips. The purple-eyed girl turned her head, looking outside through a slight opening between the clothed door and the canvas. After a while, she said with a silvery voice that stunned all people present (and awake), "I'm Violette. She's Autumn."

"Violette, Autumn. Nice to meet you!" slightly smiled Mo'an after recovering from the shock. Then, she presented her friends one by one. "The pretty boy is my brother, Shi'an. The shrew man beside me is Nael, and the one who's snoring is Tiel."

"Nice to meet you," reluctantly said Autumn, glancing at Violette with uncertainty. However, the girl didn't say anything more, and everyone respected her silence, even Mo'an.

Soon, the convoy set out for the next village, and Mo'an obediently sat on the floor, closing her eyes. Because she had talked for a long time with her parents last night, she hadn't slept. Thus, Mo'an took the opportunity to rest a little while she still could. Her friends were near, and she knew they would watch over her.

****

Inside the carriage.

Nonchalantly sitting on the leather cushioned bench, Greyson stared at the man sitting in front of him without an ounce of politeness; there was even a smirk on his lips.

Before his eyes was a handsome young man whose purple eyes looked similar to those of Violette's. However, contrary to the girl, his short hair was a deep black, and the expression on his face wasn't as icy. He was wearing an exquisite garment with lacing on the side and golden rims, steel armor gauntlets, and knee-high black leather boots. At first glance, he didn't look like a soldier, yet he still had the bearing of one.

"What is it?" said the man after a while, unable to bear with the piercing stare any longer.

"Nothing. I just thought that you seemed worried."

"And why would I be worried?"

"I don't know..." grinned Greyson, making the man want to beat him a few times. That grin was truly annoying.

He sighed, "She's the one who refused to travel in the carriage, saying that new recruits should stay together and all. Just because we're related, I shouldn't give her preferential treatment. I can't believe she prefers to stay with those stinky beats than me. She is so pretty, what if they harass her?"

"So, you do worry about your little sister," hummed Greyson, amused.

"What are you saying? I'm not worried at all! Anyway, isn't your granddaughter with her? What could happen to Violette with Autumn around?"

Smiling, Greyson looked at the young man meaningfully, then chuckled, "Could you remind me who exactly scrambled for months to obtain the right to conduct this year recruitment?"

The man's cheeks flushed a little, and he grunted, "You helped them quite a lot, so you should know. There is no need for me to remind you." Without waiting for a reply, he changed the topic of the conversation. "From what I have heard, the chief's children weren't the only ones who were recruited, right?"

"You have good ears, as always. A jaguar and a snow panther, both male. They seemed to be friends with the chief's children. That's probably the reason why they applied."

"No matter the reason, it's the first time people from the Towering Trees Jungle Tribe volunteer in ten years. It can only be good for my reputation, and it will also shut up the higher-ups' mouths a little. They won't be able to complain about me taking this task if the results are better than ever, isn't it?" scoffed the young man, a mocking smile on his lips.

"It's only our second stop. We still have to visit a dozen of tribes before going back to the Academia. If we can't recruit more people, those old geezers will find faults with you, dragging you down in front of your father."

"I know, I know," sighed the man, gazing out of the window. "You won't be able to be as nonchalant as you have been for the next speeches."

"Don't remind me. I've never been good with speeches," grimaced Greyson, making the young man smile slightly.