Chapter 45: A Horse Seller

After the awkward moment with Samira's former subordinates—now ex-subordinates—they simply stared at each other for a while and ate their food quietly.

"What should we do now? Do we really need an escort?" Jason questioned, and Strax began outlining his plans again. He had already been preparing for something like this to happen.

"It won't make much difference, really. The strength of Samira's guild was just her alone anyway. You saw for yourself, they couldn't even kill wolves with just one blow like I did, they weren't really reliable. She even let them kill each other first because she would solve everything with little effort," Strax said, and Samira, who had been quite silent lately since...

well, she was caught in a passionate moment with Strax, looked at Jason confirming.

"Yes, he's right. Most of those men weren't really important or strong enough to sustain themselves. I only took them in because I needed to create a name for myself and stay in minimally good places with the money," Samira confirmed. Now it seemed like she had regained her natural position as a leader. Although...

"My wife is very competent, trust her," Strax said, leaving her completely uncomfortable again. However, did he care? Of course not.

"S-stop it!" She stuttered, while Jason looked at the situation. His thoughts were in the clouds, and he really wanted to say something, but he didn't have that right. In fact, he even tried... "Young Master, are you really going to take her as your wife?" Jason questioned a bit uncertainly. After all, theoretically, Strax had only met her a few days ago and he already fell in love?

Isn't that too much? It took him ten years to get married!

"Don't look at me like that, love knows no bounds," Strax said laughing as he held the woman's hand, which quickly turned away ignoring him, but she didn't let go of his hand or push him away. In fact... "So good..." she whispered to herself, feeling the warmth of the man's hand... "Damn it..." she thought.

"I'm sure Lady Xenovia won't like this..." Jason thought... Although he still couldn't tell Strax some things... he was already afraid of what might happen in the future. After all, he didn't even believe in what Xenovia had asked for...

"Well, we lost a carriage and it was expensive. What will we do now?" Strax questioned, and Samira told him. "There's a stable of a friend of mine. If we still have money left after paying for such a luxurious room, we can buy horses and hit the road," she commented as she wiped her mouth, but she hadn't removed a small stain. Strax saw that and quickly smiled, advancing on the woman and kissing her.

She was surprised by Strax's sudden advance and quickly pulled away.

"W-what was that!" She said angrily. After all, she was doing this in front of her beloved's subordinate, and that was extremely embarrassing. "Oh, I was just cleaning the dirt off your face," he said with a lecherous smile. Then he advanced again, and Samira closed her eyes, but she... didn't feel his lips, just his thumb. "Looks like I missed..." he said, wiping it with his finger.

Samira stared at him until he commented again: "Don't tell me you wanted another kiss?" He teased, and she huffed: "Idiot!"

Jason, on the other hand, was ignoring the lovey-dovey couple and more concerned with practical details. "And what about the price? Do we have enough money to buy horses and supplies for the journey, and are they of quality?" Samira nodded, confidently. "We have enough to ensure a comfortable journey. And, as I mentioned before, prices here are lower due to the fishing season.

We shouldn't have trouble negotiating a good deal with Malik."

"Malik in..." Strax murmured seeing some of the horses, observing them with interest. "Looks like we have a good selection here," he commented, examining a majestic black horse that neighed as it saw the group. "This one looks nice..." Strax said.

"I'm sure you wouldn't want to ride on this one, Young Master." Strax heard the gruff voice coming from the side, a middle-aged man with a friendly smile on his face approached them. It was Malik, the stable owner.

"Samira, my dear, it's been a while!" exclaimed Malik, warmly embracing her. "And who are your friends?" He asked as Strax's face... turned quite dark... "I'm going to kill him." Strax thought upon seeing him hugging his woman... Jason quickly put his hand on his shoulder before he pulled his sword from his waist. "Calm down," he whispered, and saw Samira turning around.

"This is Jason, a new friend I made during a Guild venture." Samira introduced Jason first. "Oh, he seems like a nice guy, it's been a while since you've hung out with nice guys, especially Knights," Malik commented laughing, and Samira huffed, "For your information, I've always hung out with good people!" She commented quickly, a second later "And this guy?

Who looks like he'll kill me just for breathing near you?"

Samira shrank slightly, feeling a bit embarrassed to say what she was about to say, but she knew it was necessary to clarify things. "This is Strax," she began, feeling Strax's piercing gaze burning into her back. "He's... an acquaintance of mine from a long time ago." She lost the courage...

Malik raised an eyebrow, observing the tension in the air. "An acquaintance, huh?" He murmured, his mischievous smile hitting Samira like an arrow.

"Yes, an... acquaintance," Samira replied, struggling to find the right words. She still couldn't bring herself to utter the words; she was too ashamed.

Jason, sensing the problem escalating, decided to intervene. "Mr. Malik, we're just passing through," he began, trying to calm the moment. "We need some horses and supplies to continue our journey."

Malik nodded slowly, understanding the unspoken message behind Jason's words. "I see," he said, wiping the mischievous smile off his face, he already understood Samira and Strax's situation, but it was still comical. "Well then, let's talk about those horses and supplies you need." He smiled and led the way.

With a sigh of relief, Samira felt the embarrassment gradually diminish, but as she stood next to the man, she heard a whisper pass by her ear, "Didn't know you had fallen in love, naughty child." It was Malik's voice,

who laughed lightly... Seems like Samira got caught...