The Last Primal

In just a few steps of time, Aiden arrived in front of the inn they were staying at. He casually, calmly approached the figure standing in front and matching his gaze.

The Guard Captain looked at him, with a collected, unafraid, and neutral gaze. From the system, he remained yellow, meaning he was not hostile, but at the same time, he wasn't friendly either. 

Still finding it quite perplexing, as to the Temple Guards, being the High Priest's choice of arms, should be represented by a deep, vibrant shade of red. Just like how the occasional patrols appeared around his system's map. 

As he walked towards the skink man, Aiden tried to recall if he ever checked the color of his marker before. Unfortunately, he couldn't remember at all, just that he spoke very arrogantly, and was full of self-righteous just. He wanted to attack the Archbishop right there as soon as he connected the dots, and realized that he must have visited the prisoner. 

Could it be that he never forgot the humiliation from then? Since his conjecture later turned out to be true, and that their prisoner, Aiden have indeed vanished from his cell he could have come to them to find trouble, or bring them to justice. 

Still, if that was the case, his color wouldn't be the neutral yellow but would match the hostile crimson instead.

In the end, Aiden could only push his thoughts to the back of his head and look at the middle-aged skink man now standing in front of him. 

Arriving in front of him, Aiden stopped only a few steps of distance. He did not speak at first but looked deeply at the man from under the cover of his light gray hood. The Guard Captain also kept silent initially, and just returned the gaze. 

The two men looked deeply into each other's eyes for over a minute, trying to pry open the other's secrets if possible.

Eventually, Aiden was the first to speak. His voice, matching that of the Archbishop's growled in a low tone and volume.

"[Reptilian] What does a respected Guard Captain of the city guard's would want with our humble selves?" He asked, flashing a friendly smile in the process.

The Guard Captain did not respond instantly but took a few seconds to gaze at the face hidden behind the large hood. In the end, he squinted his eyes, trying his hardest to see through the dark shadows.

"[Reptilian] Who are you people? What are you doing here?" He asked, still looking stern, and focused. 

Aiden noticed the probing of the man and did his best to keep his gaze lowered, and shrouded from the piercing eyes of this man.

He coughed lightly, playing the role of a weak and tired refugee of a war.

"[Reptilian] Mighty sir… W-we are but the dark side of a war between two big tribes from a few days of distance." Aiden explained, sounding humble and even slightly shaky in his voice. He gazed at the dirty ground, as he heaved a sigh and continued.

"[Reptilian] W-we have suffered a lot… L-lost our loved ones, our f-families, our homes… We had no choice but to pack up what we had left and try our luck. Luckily we have found shelter with the owner of this great establishment."

The Guard Captain frowned as he listened to the robed man's words. For some reason, he couldn't shake this feeling he had since yesterday… He felt that he knew these people, that they might be related to Him… 

"[Reptilian] Do you have money for the services? How long are you planning to stay, and what are your plans?" He asked with a cold tone and a frown after a bit of silence.

"[Reptilian] W-we had but a few coins left from our savings, that we used to pay for the generous owner. He had allowed us to stay for the night and rest up. He even offered us breakfast so that we could gather up our strength and set out to find some work to earn some coins." 

Aiden took a moment to catch his breath before continuing. He humbled himself even further by deepening his bow, looking respectful to this 'mighty' being.

"[Reptilian] G-good sir, mighty warrior sir,  w-we are but humble merchants and farmhands, we bring no danger. We only want to find a place where we can survive and live. Please, sir… we do not want anything bad."

The Guard Captain's frown only deepened the more he listened to this ragged-robed man. The more he spoke the more confused he felt. Even though he could not hear any foul play from his tone, it was steady and felt honest, the feeling he felt yesterday never subsided.

He couldn't shake this feeling that he knew this man, this group… 

What if his hunch was correct? What if they were indeed related to the archbishop? What if… what if they could help him get in touch? He needed to speak to him, he needed to understand… He needed to find out the truth from this web of lies they were forced into.

Gritting his teeth, the Guard Captain finally made up his mind and stepped forward. 

"[Reptilian] Stand up." He said, reaching out and grabbing the man's shoulders. Straightening him up, he then reached for the hood wanting to push it back, to finally see the face hiding underneath.

However just as he was about to grab the hood, the man suddenly stepped back, escaping from him with such ease that made the Guard Captain turn stunned for a moment. 

'[Reptilian] What just happened? Was it just luck?' He wondered, looking at the man standing just a step away. 

"[Reptilian] Hey you! Move back your hood and show me your face!" He ordered.

Aiden however shook his head, as he remained hunched-down, keeping his gaze covered by the darkness of his hood.

"[Reptilian] Apologies good sir, but I sadly cannot do that. I ask for your forgiveness for this."

The guard captain obviously didn't like this answer, he harrumphed with annoyance.

"[Reptilian] What do you mean by that?! Do you not understand that the words of a Temple Guard are basically law to your lawless rabble? You are seeking shelter in Ugburg, but refuse to comply with the commands of your would-be protectors?!" He cried with anger in his tone. 

Taking a step forward, he wasn't about to wait for a counterargument from the hooded merchant. The Guard Captain's arms shot out, aiming for the cloth hanging over the figure's head.

Yet, just as he was about to reach, the man suddenly stepped away again, making the Guard Captain miss yet again. 

The movement once again seemed rather simple, and as if it was merely a lucky incident and nothing more.

----

>>>Check out my latest : The Strongest Demon Lord in the Modern World<<

It's an urban modern-day styled story, with a reverse transmigrated ('Banished') immortal entity from the fantastical world of Nova!

Planned Tags and Genre:  # CULTIVATION  # R18  # BETRAYAL  # TRANSMIGRATION  # URBAN  # ACTION  # ANTIHERO  # OVERPOWERED (romance maybe at some later point)

---

Just a friendly reminder, that from wherever you are reading , you can reach out to me using any of the below methods!

Links:

https://discord.link/Shaele

Ko-Fi:

https://ko-fi.com/shaele

62d67767f92eb560e77c9100