107. Broken Men, Broken Words

107. Broken Men, Broken Words

"Are you even worth fighting?” Adam asked, eyeing up the Half Elf. “You are just an empty husk of a man. If I fought you, I’d feel like I was bullying you.”

The Half Elf stranger sneered, pointing his spear at Adam. “You are but a coward! I am Iron Rank, not so far from you. You are all talk, like I said, nothing but a coward.”

“You might not know this, but I’m a lot stronger than I look,” Adam said. “Isn’t that right, Vice Master Paul?” Adam glanced over at the Vice Master and winked, though Jurot and the others probably knew his true strength.

“You aren’t wrong, Adam, but your cousin is much more powerful,” Paul said. Though Paul could easily deal with the stranger, but Adam would have a much more difficult time. “He’s an Expert.”

“Is he?” Adam asked, before glancing back at the other Half Elf. “Is your spear magical?”

“No,” the man replied. “Where would I find a magical spear?” His arm guards and shin guards were of decent make, and his spear was fine too. However, that was all which was decent, as everything else was shoddier, his clothes well worn. He, a Half Elf, probably wasn’t able to gain much wealth, and considering he hadn’t been an Adventurer for long, he probably had more pressing matters to attend to.

“No magical spear,” Adam said, nodding to the spear of decent make. “And you’re wearing furs, which provides a decent amount of protection but nothing compared to my puthral plate mail. You’re a Guardian, so you know, what, Second Gate spells?”

The Half Elf Guardian nodded his head slowly, his eyes narrowed.

“Just like me,” Adam said, smiling. “I have a magical sword, this puthral plate. I think if I was a smart man, which I fancy myself as, I’d bet on me, dear cousin.”

“Then let us fight,” the Half Elf said, gripping his spear tighter in hand, wanting to deal with the rage and envy swirling within him.

“Why?” Adam asked. “What’s in it for me?”

“To show that you aren’t a coward,” the Half Elf said.

“Jurot knows whether I’m a coward or not,” Adam said. “I’m sure many have heard of my tales. Why do I need to care about some pathetic husk of a man’s opinion of me?”

“If you win, I will swear myself to you,” the Guardian said.

Adam raised his brows, blinking at the Half Elf. “For real? You’ll swear yourself to me?” Adam’s lips coiled upwards.

“Yes,” the Half Elf Guardian replied.

“And if you win?”

“You will give me that sword by your side, and your armour,” the Half Elf said, who was slimmer than Adam by a fair amount, but it was nothing some padding wouldn’t fix.

“My sword and armour for some empty husk of a man,” Adam said, tapping his chin.

The Half Elf narrowed his eyes at Adam’s words, but remained silent, waiting.

Adam looked to Jurot. “Am I allowed to trade away these items?”

“They are yours to trade,” Jurot replied.

Adam hummed quietly. “You’re more experienced, but I have better armour and weapon,” Adam said. “You’ll swear yourself to me, for the very same better armour and weapon. You won’t ask me to drop my armour and weapons, will you?”

“That is fine. I am much stronger than you think.”

Adam narrowed his eyes. “Give me a second.” ‘Hey, Bell, how much for the ability to smite?’

[1000XP]

‘That’s a steep price, but give it to me.’

XP: 1020 -> 20

“Will you fight him?” Jurot asked, staring at the Half Elf.

“I am,” Adam said.

“He is strong.”

Adam smiled. “So am I.”

“You lost,” Adam said, squatting down, trying to hide his smile. “So? Are you going to swear yourself to me?”

“Would you have given me your sword?” the Half Elf asked, squinting his eyes.

“Of course,” Adam replied, simply. “Blade and armour, right? That was the deal.”

“I doubt it.”

“Ah, so you are someone who likes to break their word, huh?” Adam chuckled, rolling his eyes.

“I am already an Oathbreaker,” the man said, staring at the others around him, noting their looks of disgust.

“And? Are you going to choose to live your life like that? You have your chance now, to swear yourself to me as you had offered, and to change your path in life.”

“Are you good enough for me to swear myself to?”

“Well,” Adam said, glancing back to Jurot and the others for a moment, “I beat your ass, didn’t I?”

The Half Elf remained silently, clutching at his side.

Adam pulled back. “Well, if you don’t want to keep your side of the deal, whatever.” Adam retreated back to the group, humming to himself.

“You say you didn’t swear an Oath yet?” Dunes asked, noting how the Half Elf had definitely used the Divine Smite of the Guardians.

Adam nodded. “Jurot, did you see?”

“I saw,” Jurot replied.

“Don’t you think that’s a great story?” Adam asked. “I can’t wait to return back to the Iyr. Will you tell Aunt Sonarot and our little sister?”

“I will.”

“You aren’t going to kill him?” Paul asked. “You duelled and his life was on the line.”

“No,” Adam said. "Why would I kill him? He broke his word, but it wasn't like I was hurt or anything." Adam shrugged his shoulders. "Since I would have given him my sword if I lost, I have the moral high ground."

The downed Half Elf remained staring at Adam, unsure of who or what he was. He had every right to kill him, one of the only ways that he could find the sweet release of death. ‘You won’t even give me that, boy?’

“Don’t you feel ashamed?” Dunes asked. “You made a deal and broke it. I didn’t expect that from a Guardian. You bring shame to your Order.”

“I’m an Oathbreaker,” the Half Elf said. “That Order and I have nothing to do with one another after they abandoned me.”

“They gave you a chance to live and you squandered it.”

“Leave him,” Adam said. “You shouldn’t beat a man at his lowest.”

“If you let him go like this he won’t learn,” Dunes said. “You need to at least shame him so he does not forget.”

“As much as he should be shamed, you and I don’t know his story. You and I would be the same as him in his shoes, so leave him be. He’s done nothing wrong, even if his actions are shameful. He has an opportunity now, and if he doesn’t want to learn from it, then that’s how it is. If he does learn something and he decides to turn his life around, naturally he’ll come to find me.”

Adam glanced over towards the stranger. “I’ll wait for that day when he comes to me with life in his smile and purpose in his eyes, and hopefully, words that would bind him to me, but I won’t hold my breath.”

“You can say manly things sometimes,” Dunes said.

"If you compliment me too much, I might end up with a bigger ego than I currently have,” Adam said, chuckling.

The group made camp for the night, taking watch as they had. The stranger remained by himself, wrapped in his Grey Tiger skin and sorrow.

Sir Frederick and Sir Enna kept a suspicious eye on Adam, wondering just exactly who he was, and why he was here.

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Adam bullying this Half Elf, but he kinda deserves it.

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