NOVEL NEXT Chapter 26: Nina's Dangerous Tantrum
'Get stronger, no politics and I can also keep my sister safe…' Lukas repeated the offer in his mind as he nodded slowly while he looked past the open door to see the body guards standing still with their eyes closes and their heads hanging.
"I… will hear it."
Amon nodded as he snapped his finger and a plain wooden chair appeared beside him. As he sat down, he smiled at the siblings, "Like I said, I came here on the orders of one of the princes. I'm not allowed to say his name or give you much information about him apart from this, so I apologise in advance.
"Firstly, there is huge island that's inhabited by ancient tribes. No one knows how the prince knows about this but his goal is to steal the knowledge that these tribes have amassed over the past years. We have already sent a small team of three and while they are trying their best, it looks like they've come across a road block. We want you to go to this island and infiltrate one of the tribes there. This might take some time but your mission is to learn whatever you can about the magic of their shamans and something else.
"I'll tell you about this once you accept. Since you'll be in that island, you won't have to deal with the politics here and the nobles will mostly forget about you by the time you're back. Next, we'll provide you with various books that contain information on how to get stronger, various classes and the requirements of swapping them and a lot more. As long as you agree, we'll give you some magical and cursed items along with a skill that you choose from the options we have.
"Next, you can ask for anything and we'll do our best to satisfy your needs. Apart from that… we can send your sister to a far away village with a bodyguard who can keep her safe."
Once Amon finished he looked at Lukas so seemed a little conflicted while Nina barely hid her animosity towards him as she glared at him openly. This only lasted for a few moments before she grabbed her brother's arm.
"If you're going, I'm coming too."
Lukas let out a soft sigh as he had no plans on taking her on such a dangerous mission. In fact, even he wasn't sure if he wanted to do it.
"It's a dangerous mission but think about it. Do you want to stay here and cook food for someone else while you sleep in fear? Anyone can kill you as long as they wish to do so. Of course, I'm talking about professional mercenaries and assassins. Most nobles do not lack any of these and this also applies to our neighbouring kingdoms. The prince sees a lot of value in you but his main goal is to see you be able to defend yourself. To reach that level… you know what to do."
"Indeed…" Lukas muttered as he stopped hesitating and nodded, "Fine, I'll go. But my sister… where will you take her?"
He barely considered taking her with him and the moment he finished speaking, he felt the soft hand holding him let go. He couldn't help but turn to his side.
Nina sat there with tears in her eyes as she tossed away the cloth that covered her nose. Immediately, her hand reached out for a knife on their dining table and brought it to her neck.
"If you don't take me, I'll… I'll… cut my own neck!! I don't want to lose my only family and even if I do, I'd rather die with you!" she yelled as she pulled the sharp edge of the knife against her throat.
Before Lukas could say a work, Amon spoke, "If your brother wishes to take you with him, no one will stop you. The prince wouldn't mind having another person helping with the mission."
Seeing the knife getting closer and closer to her neck, Lukas couldn't help but yell, "FINE! But you're listening to me no matter what I say. Fuck!"
Frustrated, he banged the table with his fist while he rubbed his temples slowly, "Let me think…"
"You said that you'll give me a magical and a cursed item right? Can you tell me more about this?" he asked as he saw Nina put down the knife.
"Sure. The magical item is a steel canteen that can produce water on it's own. Per day, you'll get a hundred litres. Since there's two of you, we'll provide two. As for the cursed item, it's a black cloak made from a material that feels like silk. It's almost indestructible. It can make you blend into the shadows but the side effect is that if you have it on for more than two hours, you'll start forgetting things. The safest option is to use it once a day." Amon said and took out a thin book.
"Here's a book that has information on various skills and jobs. You can only choose one skill each but if you need help with changing jobs or getting a secondary one, feel free to tell me about it. Though, I recommend getting the warrior, berserker, apothecary, hunter, craftsman or shaman. The requirements for shaman is pretty high though…"
Lukas nodded and went through the book, taking his sweet time to understand everything while reading it aloud for Nina.
After five minutes, Amon stood up and walked towards the door, "It'll be safer to leave now. You can leave the money here since the tribes use a barter system and once you come back, the prince will reward you with a lot of money. If you manage to bring back the information required, it wouldn't be surprising if he can convince the king to make you a Baron or a Viscount."
Lukas looked at Nina but she seemed to not care about the money at the moment. All she did was keep her eye on her brother so as to not lose sight of him, lest he tried to run away.
'…. I've never seen her this determined in my entire life, be it on earth or in the memories of the old Lukas.'