Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Sleepless Night
"Ah, it is me, uncle Gon, the mage in the red robe remember?" Says the mage from the other side of the door, Alex immediately frowns at this. He doesn't understand the specific goal this man has.
"Hm?... oh yeah… I am sleeping…" *yawn* Alex says all that and yawns at the end. Making himself sound like he was sleeping. Alex is extremely nervous at this, he knows that the middle-aged man is unlikely to believe him.
"I see…" Says Gon, a strange tone on his voice that creeps out Alex. He can feel his instincts scream at him, he doesn't feel at all safe in this place. It's not his territory, he doesn't have the home advantage, plus he knows almost nothing about his opponents.
Alex doesn't hear anything else, he almost breathes a sigh of relief. But he can't as sweat rolls down his brow and he is quite stressed out by this, he doesn't know what to do next.
'So... it seems like I mustn't sleep for the whole five days.' Ponders Alex, he can hear his heartbeat. He looks at Lily sleeping and frowns a little. He wonders if he can trust the girl. 'Definitely not, she joined me for money. Someone gives her more money and she will most likely switch sides.'
His trust in Lily doesn't go deep, he bought her loyalty, so that same loyalty can be bought by someone else.
Suddenly the ship rockets, Alex's heart skips a beat at that, but he knows that it is just the ship setting flight.
He understood that this journey would be hard, but he knows that this is the only way that is even remotely safe for him. He clutches the Dragon Horn in his hand and decides right then and there, that if anything goes wrong, he is using the weapon no matter what.
....
Six hours later and Lily wakes up, as she opens her eyes, she sees Alex looking through some different books and building magic items.
"What hour is it?" Asks Lily slightly sleepy.
Alex gives her a side glance, seeing her cold dark eyes staring right back at him. His suspicion immediately flares up once more, this girl could betray him, so he makes notes on his mind to be careful.
"Six in the evening." Says Alex, his tone calm, not expressing any emotion in his voice.
Lily nods and stands up from her bed, she is wearing a dark skin-tight outfit, which has a lot of hidden pockets. The outfit is usually accompanied by a dark cloak, that way a myriad of hidden weapons can be hidden in them.
This is what affects Alex the most, her assassin class is for assassination. Perfect for an enclosed space, and against a mage. He can't fight her in any way that would not end with him either dead or with a heavy injury.
He could sneak attack her, but even then, as a Hero, her perks make her very resistant to sneak attacks and other shady tactics. As a Blood Mage, he doesn't even dream of challenging an Assassin Class on who is sneakier.
He can feel the nervousness crawl through his skin and his mouth feels dry. He is unsure, for the first time he is unsure if having Lily with him at this moment was a good idea, he won't even be able to feel comfortable in his room. 'Damn… am I gonna die so soon?'
In the end, he has to forcefully calm himself down, he has to accept that what he has done is the best decision that he could make with the knowledge that he had at the time. He knows that he wouldn't be able to get Lily ever again if he missed that chance.
Lily looked at him strangely, as if she could sense that something is bothering him. She starts walking towards him but stops immediately, she could sense a chill down her spine, the closer she gets to him the more dangerous it felt.
"Alex, what is wrong?" Asks Lily, unsure of what to do next.
Alex looks at Lily, his dark eyes staring at her, a chill runs down her spine, she feels like she is in front of a dangerous creature.
"Nothing is wrong...." Says Alex, he then gets up and goes towards Lily. As he gets closer Lily frowns, she is about as tall as him and as he gets close he extends his hand and pats her on the head. Alex, unbothered by the disparity of the situation. His mind was strangely calm, his control tendencies seemingly not appearing at all.
"Can I trust you, Lily?" Asks Alex suddenly. Lily feels a strange feeling in her stomach, as if she answers this question wrong there will be consequences.
Her answer, of course, was a resounding: "Yes, Alex, you can trust me."
Alex didn't say anything after that. He just looked at her by the corner of his eyes and went back to sitting on his chair. The debate on his head is frivolous, but he still has a calm outside look.
He takes some food from his bags and starts eating. He doesn't plan to eat anything in this boat as it could easily be poisoned.
….
Evening comes about, and when Lily asks Alex to sleep, so she can take the night shift. He looks at her and shakes his head. "There is no need for it, you sleep, I will be the lookout."
Lily nods at this, not knowing what to say, not understanding the severity of Alex's words.
….
The next time she opens her eyes, she still sees Alex standing in the same place as before. But her eyes widen as she sees a cut on his hand.
"What happened?!!" Questions Lily, her eyes wide with worry. She immediately goes towards Alex and takes a look at his hand, who had been sewn back together.
Alex looks at her and says with his usually calm face. "Nothing happened…"
Lily didn't believe him, so she got up and looked at him. "Alex, what is going on?!! I don't know anything! Everything you have been doing since we have boarded this ship has been so weird!"
Alex's mind was fatigued, he hadn't slept all night. Due to his young body, he had almost fallen asleep once, and he stabbed himself in the hand for it. The pain kept him awake for the rest of the night.
One should always attack when the enemy is unaware and at their weakest. That is one of the most basic rules of battle.
In the end, Alex didn't care if anyone was listening anymore, so he says. "An enemy is likely to attack while I am asleep."
Lily frowns at this. "Then let me keep on the lookout while you sleep!"
Alex only gives her a glance at this, not saying anything. Lily sees this and her face morphs into one of anger. "You think I am too weak to protect you now?"
Alex shakes his head. "No… not necessarily…"
He winces slightly as he says that, his mind feeling the fatigue already and he couldn't even form straight thoughts. His intelligence stat was almost useless at this time.
'I could have given a better answer than that.' Ponders Alex, criticizing himself.
Lily's frown deepens even more, and that is when she realizes what Alex means by that.
===============
AN:
Alex doesn't trust Lily because he has no reason to at the moment. He bought her loyalty, he knows that her betrayal can be bought too.
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