"it's been a while since the boss turned you down, you know? Was all that thing about fighting for the sake of our race and going to this mission no matter what nothing but talk?" Myron asked as he closed one more book that he just finished reading.
He regretted having asked right after he did so. After all, he wasn't expecting that Mark would say those words, though deep inside he had the feeling that something was wrong with Mark as of late.
"Of course I am going to do it. You know that I am not the type to just spell fallacies. If I said I am going to do something, then I will do it. This case in particular is something that I cannot just leave aside."
Myron spun in his chair, looking at him with a complicated expression. His eyes had a different feeling than that impassiveness or annoyance that he had before.
"What are you even doing, Mark? Are you sure about it?" he asked, honestly concerned about him.
"Haha... after all those times just shrugging when I commented with you that I was going on a mission, you are worried about me right in this one specifically? Stop being a hassle, Grey!" he punched him slightly on the arm.
"Stop calling like this. It's Myron, not Grey. Also, this matter is completely different from the times you were going on a mission with a group of people to aid you and with a whole scheme made by all of you; a course of action with a high rate of success. This time around, you are going to do things differently, don't you? I bet that you aren't taking anyone with you since it is too dangerous; also, you aren't thinking about a plan beforehand due to lack of time; after all, that demon lost in the enemy territory might die if you take too long."
Mark smiled at his friend, a helpless smile. He nodded his head.
"If I am going to do something this reckless, I do better by acting single. Also, the boss may find a way to keep the paladins quiet even if they get unpleased about my invasion. Just disown me or something, I bet that anything like this will do."
Myron got silent for some seconds. It was frustrating how he did not have the right words to say or the right questions to ask at that moment. He felt like, intellectually, he was always prepared for nearly anything, but not for that crucial moment.
Mark knew that his friend was only trying to find excuses, justifications, arguments, or anything like that to keep him from going. However, nothing he had to say was something that Mark didn't think through before coming to that decision.
He turned his back to Myron and walked towards the exit. Probably that was one of the few times when he left Myron's room without the latter getting annoyed enough to expel him from there.
"Hey!" he called him out after he left the room, running to the corridor and staring at Mark's back as he continued to walk. He didn't seem willing to stop and talk to Myron any longer.
"Remember one thing, Mark: a soldier that gets out of the trench and runs mindlessly into enemy territory is a dead soldier that can't change anything. Be sure that you are really the monster that they think you are, otherwise, you will end up turning into this old quote that they always tell to the novices," he said, his voice echoing in that empty corridor.
Mark waved at him, nodding his head, but not saying a single word more.
"What are you even doing, you bastard?" Myron asked himself, taking a glance at his chessboard again. His eyes teared up as he gritted his teeth. "What type of pathetic departure is this?"
****
"Excuse me...", Mark said as he entered another room. This time he wanted to make sure that his departure would be slightly better. He felt like he would break the hearts of many people before he left. Many would only know what he was aiming to do when it was too late.
Mark was sure that his leaving would be a huge blow for his clan. It could even be harmful at some point. Anyhow, he would do his best to bring back his brother and show them that there was still hope. He knew that he was sacrificing much more there than only his own life, but also the life of all his friends and many other clans of the demon race that were spread in different regions of that city.
"You know you can enter without asking," a sweet voice sounded in the distance, making him smile. Maybe, after the harsh conversations that he had with certain people, her voice was the best thing that he heard in days.
"Hi, Valory. I was going to talk to you yesterday, but I couldn't find you," Mark said as he approached the chocolate-skinned beauty in front of him and hugged her tightly, feeling the warmth of her body and the scent of her long amber hair. She only let it loose when she was inside her room, she tied it in a ponytail always when she left there. Due to that fact, Mark always took his time caressing her silky hair and appreciating its scent.
She knew that he did it on purpose, but didn't care at all. Instead, she felt like she was the most beautiful and perfumed lady in the world when he showed such fondness for her.
"I was busy making a patrol, that's why I was absent last night. You know, there is always that relay in the scout. Yesterday was my day, so..."
He nodded his head while getting away by some centimeters, then looking at her in the eyes. Her dark amber eyes were mesmerizing and had a natural charm to them that was indescribable.
While admiring her diamond-shaped face and contemplating her eyes, he ended up smiling for no apparent reason. Instead of finding it awkward, she blushed and smiled a shy smile back to him, placing a lock of hair behind her ear.
"What's going on your mind?" she fondly asked as she temptingly licked her own lips, though she didn't make a move to kiss him just yet.
"I... just wanted to talk with you about something," he bitterly said. He knew that it may hurt her, but he couldn't hide it from her.
She gave another smile to him as she caressed his wide back with both her hands. In truth, her heart was in pain because she knew exactly what he had to say. She heard Myron talking about it, also as the boss. Also, since she was doing the scout in the previous days, she had access to some information.
Anyway, she wanted Mark to say it directly to her.
"I need to do something reckless, Valory. Something that will have huge consequences, both good and bad, I am afraid. And..."
"Shh," she softly interrupted him, placing index fingers on his lips, then kissing him. "I understand it. I understand everything," she whispered as she rested her face in his chest.
"I understand you, Mark. I am not as strong as you are, but I understand the burden of being the strongest, the only one able to do certain things that others can't do at all."
Mark was surprised for a moment. Valory was the type of person who would scold him as the others did. She was very caring, but she reserved a tough love for everyone she cared about. She wouldn't hesitate in saying the truth. However, at that moment, there she was, comforting him.
"Just promise me one thing, ok?"
For some reason, he felt a bad omen about that promise.
"What's it?" he hesitantly asked.
"Don't leave me here. Take me with you. Don't carry this burden alone," she looked up, staring at his eyes with a pleading face. "Promise me that we will do it together."
A flood of feelings and thoughts invaded Mark's mind for a brief moment. It was so much information that he even got a little nauseous. He felt like the ground was tearing apart under him and he was about to fall into an endless ravine of despair.
Nonetheless, all of that was just inside his consciousness, his imagination. Outside, he had the same passionate expression as before. A soldier knew how to hide his feelings, after all.
Still with that lovely smile on his face, though now it had lost a bit of its brightness, he nodded his head to his beloved woman.
"Yes. We will do it together, Valory. Me and you."
Without more words to say, he placed his hand on her chin, raised her head slightly, then kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck more tightly, pulling him closer and pressing her body against his.
Mark acknowledged that he committed many mistakes with Valory during the time they had been together. However, he never lied to her, and that was something that he could state proudly to anyone.
That was the first time that he would lie to Valory and break his promise...