When the stranger asked the question, Lev thought for a while then matched the stranger's tone, "I don't know. When I woke up, I found myself here in this place."
The wolf started growling as if he just mocked his master. The stranger who just got on his feet swiftly grabbed Lev's neck, kicked his leg, and dragged him down to the ground.
"Lie once more and I'll end your life."
Before everything happened, Lev saw the stranger, that was 5 meters away from him, instantly zoomed and grabbed him by his neck then kicked him on his leg, making him lose balance, and finally, dragged him down.
Everything happened in just a second!
"Please, I'm telling the truth!" Lev begged while he felt his airway closing.
"How did a 'Peregrius' set foot into this place?" There was no mercy in his voice, if he wanted, he could break Lev's neck in an instant.
Lev's face started to become pale as he hardly answered the stranger.
"Alt...ar."
The hand that was wrapped on his neck slowly loosened. By then, Lev was finally given the luxury to breathing by coughing and wheezing.
The wolf also stopped its growling as if it understood his answer.
Upon saying that, Lev added, "I can't remember much how I ended up here. The only thing that I remember is my name."
The stranger took off his hood and revealed his chiseled face. He wore a contorted look, confused and shocked at what Lev answered, and his short streaked hair was color grey, almost the same as Lev's but much lighter.
"The altar?" The stranger stood and looked at the direction of the forest path. His grey eyes were suspecting something.
My head feels like being stabbed, my legs ache, and now my throat hurts... Lev groaned and coughed as he slowly got into his feet.
He lifted his arms and pointed at the altar's direction.
"I'm telling the truth, mister."
The strange man started to advance to the direction Lev was pointing and the huge wolf followed its newfound master towards the altar.
They were quick! In just a matter of a few seconds, they were almost out of Lev's sight. He inwardly complained and began to run after them.
It took him almost 3 minutes of running before he reached the altar.
Ah, here we go again... Lev inwardly mumbled.
The strange man was inspecting the altar while the wolf sniffed the surroundings.
From what Lev could see, the wolf was so huge that he could jump on its back and ride it around, but of course, he wouldn't do it. He wouldn't risk his life for such a childish thought.
But if he was allowed then maybe he would grab the opportunity.
"What can you remember?" The strange man inspected the cocoon-like and the symbols in the altar.
" Only my name."
"I see. You may have lost some memory when you were teleported here." The stranger looked at Lev after he finished inspecting the altar, his eyes were full of curiosity.
Lev couldn't remember a single part of his past. His parents, his childhood life, and his friends, none of them rang a bell. He didn't even know what he was like when he was young or what was his attitude, likes and dislikes, hobbies, none. It was like he was suffering from almost total amnesia! Almost, because he could still remember his name.
Lev held his chin and thought for a while. "I recognized one symbol on the altar, though."
The strange man's grey eyes squinted a little bit. "Which one?"
Lev went closer at the altar and pointed on a symbol that looked like a square with an incomplete line underneath it and a swirling circle inside.
"The symbol of loyalty." The man's voice sounded astute.
Now that he had a clear view, Lev noticed that the stranger in front of him had broad shoulders and a fit body. Even though the cloak tried to hide it, but the fact that it was all worn out made it just barely hiding it.
Phew. Besides remembering my name, fortunately, I still know how to read and write, and how to communicate, which is the most important fundamental in living... Excluding food, of course. Food is life... Lev chuckled inwardly as he reined on his thoughts. "I have nowhere to go."
"And I have none to give you." The man donned his hood and started to walk away.
The wolf followed him, recognizing him as his saviour, master, and his alpha. He was forever indebted to him, not by force, but by choice.
On this point, Lev quickly racked his brain. He knew that this forest was dangerous, and based on what he saw a while ago, his best bet was to stay beside the strange man to stay alive.
"Please take me as your servant!" He would do anything to survive. For some unknown reason, a strange feeling inside his chest was pushing him to follow that stranger.
"I don't take servants nor strangers," The man started to quicken his walking pace.
Lev pushed on. He started to follow him.
"Then please teach me how to defend myself," Lev pleaded.
"No."
"But mister, maybe it's fate that brought us together."
The stranger abruptly stopped. He spoke to Lev without turning around. "Don't talk to me about Fate."
Lev also didn't even know why he said Fate. He was so busy thinking that he was subconsciously talking and trying to convince the stranger to take him with him.
"I just want to survive in this world too. I don't know where I am. Everywhere I look around, it just feels different. The trees don't look right. The fear of the unknown and the fear of dying, it scares me a lot. Please, I just want to live. I will try my best not to disturb you. I'll be silent like a shadow."
Wait... Why am I talking about trees? Lev inwardly facepalmed.
The stranger was puzzled about what the boy was saying. Of course, the tree looks different here, everything actually looks different in here. The place itself was a mystery.
The stranger sighed as his low voice reached Lev's ear.
"Fine. I'll accept you as my squire, if you could keep up with me."
The stranger started jogging, but for Lev, the strange man's speed was a bit too much for a jog. He saw it as if he was already running.
The fibers on his leg muscle screamed when he started to run. He was already 10 meters behind the stranger and it kept increasing.
How could I keep up with that speed? Lev started to run at his top speed, ignoring the screaming muscles.
And here begins his new life.