Guard

Chapter Sixteen: Secret

XANDER

Thankfully the time for Lord May to leave the town had arrived. The atmosphere amongst the people of Celia considerably lightened, as if a big weight had been taken off their shoulders.

I was surprised he even stayed this long; four months was quite a long time.

Elena had received a reply from Her Majesty the Queen and was able to write back mentioning all the acts of Lord May over the last four months.

I hoped it would expose just how evil he actually was.

Since Lord May had left, I felt it safer to roam the streets without having to worry about anything. As I took my late afternoon walk around town, I decided to change my route. By now I knew the ins and outs of the town, which places different roads would lead to, what kind of work was going in a certain place, and other things; so it was easy for me to figure out if something was off.

And that was exactly the feeling I felt as I walked past the back of one of the houses.
I heard hushed tones of two men, whispering harshly to eachother. I stopped in my tracks and walked as quietly as I could towards the two voices.

"You sent everything right?"

"Of course I did you imbecile. If I didn't, Lord May would have us both dead!"

I frowned, wondering what on earth they could be talking about.  I took one step closer, but accidentally stepped up a small puddle causing it to splash.

"Shh! Someone's there!" I heard one of them whisper in panic.

Unfazed, I simply walked away, on the path I was already taking, and acted as if I wasn't eavesdropping on a conversation a few seconds ago. As I did though, I thought about what they were talking about.

What could possibly have so much value that Lord May would kill someone over? And what was everything? It sounded like something of great quantity, so it couldn't have been just one valuable thing.

I kept on walking, deep in thought. It took me a while to realise I had already gone around town and was about to pass our blacksmith shop. As if on cue, Leon came out of the shop with a spring in his step, looking very excited. He turned back to lock the door before he saw me approaching.

"Ah! Xander! Just the person I wanted to see." Leon grinned with his hands on his hips, waiting for me to near him. I wondered what had gotten him in such a good mood this late in the day. "This is for you." He said, holding out a small pouch as I stood in front of him.

I eyed it cautiously before looking back at him. "What is it?" I asked, not wanting to take it.

"It's a bonus. Extra wages for everyone my boy." He told me, a grin still on his face.

Extra wages? There was no special occasion coming up, nor had we asked for more money. "I don't understand." I stated, confused.

Leon laughed and took my hand, placing the pouch in my palm. "No need to thank me, thank Lord May for rewarding you for your efforts in making all those swords for him."

I moved my hand so the pouch fell from my hands and onto the ground. If it was from Lord May I felt it dirty. I didn't want to accept anything from that man.