With a stomach that didn't ache thanks to eating the food Fernand had stole everyone fell into a deep sleep, in the morning, Arat woke up and saw the others whispering with each other a few meters away from him, the underlings of the Bald man he had wounded yesterday swept a look at him with stern eyes.
Tch, its all thanks to me that you ate all those delicious food last night, well Mr. Fernand did most of it, but it was I how freed him and let this all happen, yes without me you had to stick to eating those moldy bread's of creepy Mackenzie. You should learn to be thankful.
Ignoring the group of ungrateful men, Arat tried to get closer to the others to see what they were talking about. They tuned back an looked at him, but none of them made a move or said anything for quite some time. With such a reaction, Arat's smile under his iron mask who thought they had accepted him vanished.
Just then, an old man with a familiar face moved and made some space for Arat to sit, inviting Arat, who was a demon child to sit next to him. Seeing this the hope that was almost faded in his heart returned as he happily came close to sit, his excitement clear by how fast he moved. Once he sat down, he saw Fernand and Conrad in the center discussing with the others.
"It's insanity to do this in the first place, and now you want to do within three day? Have you lost your mind?"
One of the men said to Fernand who per usual kept his cool and listened to what they had to say without interrupting them, once their complaints finished, he twitched the end of his mustache and said
Making things clear
"As I said, they will come to the us to the city in three days considering they did so every time, at best will bring fifteen of us along with themselves, then we can't beat the ones remaining here."
"We still have a chance to flee while they are taking us to the city."
A wide smile identical to that of a charlatan's appeared on Conrad's face.
"Mate, flee to were? Jungle is full of bandits, wild and mystical animals and devils? You may as well try out your luck in the lead mines."
The man fell silent, he couldn't object what he has said, just then another man spoke up
"What if we kill all of them and take their horses, that way we can make it."
"Once they take us outside, they will put iron cuffs and chains not ropes."
Conrad said raising his hands showing the rope bound around his wrists.
"There will be about fifteen of you guys there, chained up as the bandits ride their horses, if you think you can beat them, good luck."
Fernand backed Conrad by saying this. Then came closer and started drawing something on the dirt using a small twig.
"This a rough outline of the camp, this is us, this here is the tent they use to store things and here are the main tents."
he explained by pointing the twig at the said locations.
"Once they wanna disturb the food at knight, four of them will come inside, one of you has to act to get the other two guards to come inside too, then we jump at them and finish them off without making a sound."
"That will leave about thirty of them remaining, how you want to beat them with some petty hatchets and knives?"
"We don't, two or three of you will climb outside and get the weapons out of the tent to us. After tha…"
"We can't fight them head on just like that."
One of the men blurted out, Fernand glanced at him with a heavy meaningful stern look in his gray-green eyes and continued.
"As I was saying, after that we don't do anything, after sometime some of them will come to check why the four responsible for disturbing the food hadn't returned. We surprise them too."
"After that we use the torches to lit up their tents one by one, then we wait, once they are busy filling their buckets with water and putting out the flames. We will charge at them."
"What if they come to check on us during that time?"
"Two of you can wear the guards' clothes while we sit here quietly."
Everyone looked at the source of the voice, at the same time Arat saw all their gazes directed at him. He felt he had said something he shouldn't have, he wanted to become a worm and dig the ground and disappear from all the stares.
"That can be done, on second though it is a good idea."
Fernand said, praising Arat.
did he figured out how uneasy I was under the pressure of being stared at and said that to make me feel better? Is he actually that kind and considerate to do something like this? I had a complete understanding of him, I thought he only helped me since he needed me to escape.
After sometime Fernand and Conrad discussed what they needed to survive, and from which road they should go to the city, since Arat didn't know much about these things he could hardly understand any of it, so he just listened carefully.
All he could understand that the name of the city they were supposed to go to was Gabsigel. After the end of the discussion, Fernand instructed everyone their roles, until Arat's turn came as the last one, he took him away from the others and spoke to him in a low voice only audible to themselves.
"How is your leg?"
"I closed the wound using the ants again, I found out that I had to let them bite me and then separate their bodies, its a lot easier than clenching their jaws myself."
Fernand nodded.
"Clever kid. Now listen carefully, your role in the plan is this, we are not the only salves in this camp, they have captured women too, they keep them in a large tent some where, once we are busy fighting the bandits you should go and free them too."
Women? The ones with long hair, like that girl in the woods that knight. I almost lost my control from her scent, if I go were they keep a large number of them I may really lose it. I have to let Mr. Fernand know this.
"Um. Mr. Fernand, there is something important about that."
Fernand raised his eyebrow and scratched his beard.
"I may kill them."
His calm expression disappeared, looking at Arat with his dead serious gray green eyes.
"What do you mean? Explain yourself."
Arat looked at the ground, preferring to not look him in the eye, feeling his sudden anger.
"It's about their scents, I can't control myself around them, I may lose my control and attack them, some thing like what I did to that bald man."
Hearing this Fernand frowned, he fell silent and couldn't know what to say. He then returned to his calm state took a heavy breath, and sat up to stretch his legs.
We will talk about your role later, aside from that what the items you have look like?"
Arat hesitated, to answer.
He is after them for the reward? I had to lie to him about that so he wouldn't think about handing me to the church, I need to know what is written in those books, and there is also Mr. Stranger too, I still have to find that metal he wanted. I can't let him take those items away from me. But wait, if he doesn't get them there is no way I can do it myself. I have to lie to him.
"There are four books, a slab of iron and a neck-lace, but you shouldn't touch the items or talk to them. There is a man inside the iron slab, you better not talk to him."
Fernand froze in place from what Arat had just said and nodded, having a rather worried look on his face.
"I understand."