Chapter 178: Wanton Witch
"Whoaaa! Keep that thing away from me!" Leon screamed as he ran dramatically from the small dragon. The ray of the morning sun shone down through the thick forest leaves.
Jacob and Xenia laughed loudly as they found it quite amusing that this grown man was running from such a tiny dragon. Understandable as it was.
Xenia was more intrigued than terrified at the new development, but after Jacob told her step by step how he had come to acquire such a thing, she understood and asked no further questions.
"Kree!"
"Kree!"
Raijin screeched as he pursed Leon relentlessly, spitting out tiny flames, which caused the man to scream out like an adolescent girl, making Jacob and Xenia laugh even more.
Eventually, when they decided that play time was over, Jacob stood up and brushed invisible dust from his knees, signaling to Leon that it was time to go.
"Raijin! Come here." A simple command from Jacob, the small dragon instantly let Leon be and flew over, perching obediently on Jacob’s shoulder.
"We no long we have any time, let’s be on our way." Jacob commanded, receiving a nod from Xenia.
Fortunately the two day command period for Xenia had ended and Jacob was reinstated to his rightful position as the incumbent young master.
Within minutes, the carriage was fixed up and pulled along the rutted road. With Jacob, Xenia’s and Raijin sitting comfortably in the seat.
Raijin was tired so Jacob used his powers to form a small, infant-sized bed for the dragon to sleep.
When Jacob noticed Xenia was staring at the creature, who was deep in slumber. He spoke up: "I really think he can help during this battle. Sure, he may be small, but his firepower is tremendous."
"I have no doubt." She responded, her dazed still fixed on the magnificent beast.
"Young Master. There is a group of people ahead, they are blocking the path." Leon announced from the box seat as the carriage seemed to slow down. The horses whinnied and snorted.
"Bandits?" Jacob asked., sighing as the thought of dealing with another group of bandits annoyed him slightly.
"No sir. They do not seem to bear any ill will. Surely if they were bandits, they’ll be hiding in the bushes and try to ambush us."
"Very well. I will speak to them." Jacob assured Leon as the carriage came to a brief halt.
The people standing on the road numbered about eight. Each of them wearing armor which consisted of red plate mail, and silver helmets. All were dressed this way, except the one who stood in front of them. He wore a regal redrobe with a purple broach in between. His dark brown hair was slicked to the side and he had a birth-mark on his chin.
"State your name and your mission." The man spoke. Jacob eyed him up and down as he stepped in front of the horses, his hands gracefully tucked behind his back.
For a sixteen year old, he carried the grace of someone well beyond his years, as though he did not belong to this particular time and age.
"I am Jacob Ironfell, son of Rhoarin Ironfell. The Patriarch of the Ironfell empire." Jacob said calmly, but loud enough for anyone within a 5 meter distance to hear.
The knights behind the man in the robe exchanged glances. Jacob branded them knights because that is what they were, nothing more.
"Ironfell? Prove to us that you are indeed Ironfell."
"I’m sorry what?" Jacob asked him.
"Prove that you are indeed of the Ironfell bloodline." The man said again, not budging, even when the rest of the men had lowered their guard.
Jacob made a confused expression, not particularly impressed with the man’s tone of voice, or his demands.
"Look, Grant, we only wish to pass. We have no business with your town." Jacob assured him, stretching out a hand.
Grant immediately pulled out his sword and pointed it at Jacob, his expression changed to one filled with surprise and mild anger. He could not understand how this young man knew his name.
"I never mentioned my name. How do you know it? Why are you hesitant to prove yourself as Ironfell blood?"
’Why are the people of this world so erratic? What trauma has befallen them?’ Jacob sighed as the thought crossed his mind. He realized that he had made an error in mentioning the man’s name with no prior introduction.
"You know what, I’ll show you. Everything mg around me is evidence, starting from this carriage—"
"How are we to know that you did not steal that?" Grant interrupted him, sword still facing directly at Jacob, who did not have time for this back and forth in this particular moment.
But Jacob didn’t want to harm him, he only hoped that he could reason with him as he only seemed to be protecting his domain.
Jacob was not irrational, he also wasn’t rash as to use violence to force his way through the blockade. Jacob paused, he wanted this to be over with as quickly as possible.
"You want Ironfell blood? I’ll show you Ironfell blood." Jacob said, he had come up with the most dramatic way to show them that he was not some regular thief or hijacker. "Tell me Grant. Have you ever heard of the Wanton Witch?
Jacob rolled up his sleeves slowly as the men watched, peeling them back from his wrist. He wanted to put on a display that they would not forget.
"The Wanton witch? No I haven’t heard of her." Grant still had his guard up, ready to respond in kind to any suspicious movements. A gesture which Jacob perfectly welcomed.
"A shame, you should read more books. You see, the wanton witch was seen as eccentric, by all. When really, all she wanted was to be left alone.
"Everyone demanded she conform to their rules, that she follow the set path. She was not particularly interested in that, she only wished to study her practices.
So what did she do? She scared people, she had this little ritual she practiced whenever people got close."
The men exchanged glances yet again, as they did not understand what Jacob was talking about.
Just before them, Jacob reached behind his back and pulled out two daggers, which made them flinch and stand on their guard.
They all had their blades out now, pointed at the young man, but he only smiled.
He put one dagger in his mouth, and with the second. He tightened his grip on the handle and sliced his wrist completely.