Page 13 of The Anointed's Paladin

Last stop

Talon

Ipulled out the envelope I’d prepared that morning.

Hulm, I scribbled on the front. I wasn’t sure where exactly he was, but if I sent it to the House of Oaths, it’d get to him, eventually.

I sighed. I was supposed to be meditating somewhere, trying to understand myself and figure out what core belief could give me back my magic. And maybe trying to find someone to fuck me.

Instead, I was trekking through filthy backwater villages, about to enter an unmapped forest. Without my navigation spells, or most of my other magic. I couldn’t count on discovering a new oath in time to get it back. A week wasn’t enough time to rediscover yourself after everything you had previously valued had crumbled to dust around you.

I stopped at the general store to mail the letter and see if there were any last-minute supplies worth getting. I had probably overstocked already, but I wanted to be prepared. I’d never gone anywhere so… remote before. I preferred to stay near the cities and towns, where a soft bed and a shower were never too far away. There were plenty of monstersonthe beaten path.

An older dwarf hurried from behind the counter as I entered, wiping his hands on his apron. “Anything I can get for ye, son?”

I smiled at him, deciding to buy something here, even if I didn’t really need it. “I’ll just have a look around.”

“No problem. I’ll be o’er here if ye need summin’.” I nodded and moved to the back, looking at a collection of cloaks.

The door opened again, more people coming into the shop.

The dwarf went over to greet them, then came back to sit next to his counter. “Been busy as of late,” he said, scratching his beard. “Lots more outsiders than we usually get this time o’ year.”

One of the new arrivals came up to the counter. She was tall, with polished armour that bore the crest of Mothar. She had a pretty face, with a round nose and green eyes. Her glossy brown hair was pulled back in a neat ponytail. She flicked me a look of disdain as she approached, and I got the message, turning back to the cloaks.

“Excuse me,” she said impatiently, and I stepped aside, keeping an iron fist on my temper.

It had been a couple of days since the rush of killing the nagai, and Mirilith’s curse was starting to itch again, desperate for a fight. I shut it down firmly.

“There any boats that will take passengers south, dwarf?” she asked the shopkeeper. Her accent marked her as from the eastern provinces, and her tone marked her as an asshole.

“Now, you ain’t the first folk to ask that neither. I’ll tell ye what I told the others. No one’s crazy enough to sail south this time o’ year. Dangerous sailing, even in fair weather, and it ain’t fair weather.”

“It’s not bad if you sail from the bluffs,” she said, tapping a finger on the counter.

“Aye, yer right, the waters there ain’t bad. But ye’d have ta walk through the woods an’ cross the little mountain to get there.”

“Are there boats on that side?”

“Aye, there’s a small clan that lives down there. Keep to themselves, but they got canoes.”

“Looks like we’re hiking, after all, lads,” she called back to her companions.

I glanced at her companions—two men. One had dark skin and a large beard and frame. The other looked more spindly and, judging by the robe, was some kind of magic weaver. I saw a flash of gold on one of their palms, which confirmed my suspicions—these were champions of other Gods.

“Don’t you know it’s rude to stare, devil?” asked the bearded man.

“Didn’t mean any harm.” I raised my hands in peace, pushing down the anger. Nothing good came of letting that out. His eyes narrowed as he saw the gold branded there.

“Nora, he’s got one too,” said the smaller one. “Nora” turned to me, looking me up and down suspiciously. Her eyes stopped on the Guild insignia on my shoulder.

“A Paladin of Lydes?” she said, eyebrows raised.

I hesitated, deciding it wasn’t worth explaining that, even though I was a Guild paladin, he wasn’t my patron. Instead I grunted.

“Apologies for my companion. He meant no harm.” The disdain had disappeared from her face, now that I was useful, apparently.

I shrugged, turning back to the cloaks. Her hand reached out and touched my arm. I looked back at her again. She had stepped closer, and I noticed she had freckles on her nose. She smiled, offering me a coquettish look. Her toned figure and multiple blades on her back promised there was at least a chance she could take me in the way I’d like. Too bad for her, she’d already shown her true colours.

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