As the trio made their way back to Vargstam, the sun was just barely over the horizon. There was little time with sunlight left, especially thanks to the mountains that surrounded the town.

It was not a surprise that the townspeople were glaring in their direction as they entered Vargstam. What was surprising though, was how now the glares were also directed towards them. It seemed their friendship with Damon was far from appreciated by them.

Kazius would have been willing to humor the Tribes people enough to listen to their grievances if they had the decency to at least strike up a conversation. With how they acted though, Kazius honestly felt nothing but contempt towards them. It almost reminded him of his days in Ratier, especially The Orphanage.

With how kind Damon had been to them, Kazius was willing to pick sides, even if he did not know the full story.

As things were, Kazius already considered him a member of their odd little group.

Due to this, when he received the nastiest glare and sneer, he had ever gotten in his life… Kazius could not help but let out a small laugh. The source of the glare, Luna, was far from amused at his reaction. She was standing there in the town square, next to the Vind statue. His laughter earned him only a worse look from the Half-Elf, something he did not even think possible. She looked livid.

Any sense of happiness Damon had shown from earlier was gone the moment he saw his sister, his grin quickly melting into a frown. His gaze resembled that of a cornered animal as he looked down, trying to avoid eye contact. He began to struggle to keep his hold on the Svinfant, his hands wobbling a little.

“You should pick your friends better. You should not be spending time with him. You will still be welcomed into the town if you abandon him, you know? I can help you… So can the rest of the Tribe.” Luna stated with a scowl.

‘She is so unhinged… Earlier she was nasty with us, but now that she sees Damon happy… She wants to be friendly with us? Just so we will leave Damon alone and miserable again… What is wrong with her? She is crazy.’

Before Kazius could respond, Alice would speak up.

“Who we are friends with is none of your business. Honestly, what are you even doing here? Were you just standing here next to the statue of the Goddess you worship… Waiting for your brother to pass by just so you can harass him? For someone who can’t stand Damon, you sure are acting like some creepy little stalker obsessed with him. Honestly, it is a little sad.” Alice told her with a scoff, clearly fed up. It was surprising how personally she took Luna’s actions.

At her words, Damon seemed shocked, but said nothing.

Damon was their new friend, but Kazius had a suspicion this was about more than just him. Kazius grew up dealing with The Church… And Alice had done so as well, especially with Edicts… She probably had a lot of people she had wanted to stand up against, but never got the chance to out of fear. Kazius himself never got the chance to ever stand up against High Priest Jordan and he regretted it.

At Alice’s words, Luna’s face would grow red with rage and perhaps also embarrassment at being mocked. She began to approach, getting in Alice’s face, clearly trying to intimidate her. Still, Alice did not waver, her violet eyes narrowed, not once looking away from the intense yellow gaze in front of her.

“You… You will regret this… He is scum… He shouldn’t be alive… But I guess it seems like you are no different… All equally as disgusting… You all really do suit each other… I will remember this. I have a good memory for grudges.” Luna warned, her threat sounding far from empty. Still, Kazius was not afraid of her, and neither was Alice.

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They were done bending over for people that thought they could control everyone… And Kazius was not about to allow her to act nasty with Alice like she had done with Damon.

“And if you touch Damon again, you will regret it. We have good memories too. I don’t know why you don’t like him and honestly, I don’t care. All I know is that you are insufferable, and he is kind to even strangers like us. You overestimate how much your friendship is worth. This Svinfant was more agreeable than you could ever be.” Kazius responded coldly, standing firm as he dropped the heavy head for emphasis, blood splattering slightly due to the impact of the heavy head hitting the floor. It was very much a threat that Kazius tried to leave as unspoken as possible for Damon’s sake. After all, she was still his sister.

Damon seemed surprised when Kazius also seemed to defend him but did not say anything about the threat like he had for Caleb when Azanor had threatened him.

Luna seemed to hesitate a bit, clearly aware that she was very much being threatened right back with the gesture. She was practically shaking with rage. Kazius expected her to say something, but instead she left, but not before narrowing her eyes at them in a firm yet calculating glare… Kazius was not sure what she would do… But he knew they should keep an eye on her from now on… In case she tried anything.

Scared or not of her… She was Zelphar’s child… She was likely capable of frightening Magic… Even if she didn’t seem to study as much as Caleb, who spent all day locked in his room reading.

Once she was gone, Kazius and Alice would finally allow themselves to look away from her fleeing form.

“You… Defended me…” Damon managed out in disbelief with an unreadable expression on his usually goofy face.

“Of course, we did. You are our friend… And an outcast just like all of us. I’d say you fit in quite well with misfits like us. It might come to you as a surprise… We all probably understand what it is like to feel alone… And to be hated.” Kazius told him with a laugh and smile, trying to cheer him up.

“You… Do?” Damon questioned in surprise. After all he had no idea why the group was even there to begin with. He knew very little about them. Sure, he knew about as much as they did about Azanor, but he didn’t know who Alice and him were. Then again, other than the fact he was related to Caleb and Luna… And that he was The Chief… They didn’t know much about him either.

It was odd hearing Damon be so quiet, especially for so long, but he would soon speak up again.

“I… I am sorry you are getting in trouble because of me… You know… The townspeople… The one they don’t like is me… I’m sorry for not telling you sooner…” Damon finally admitted.

Kazius chuckled a bit, even Alice laughed lightly.

“We know.” Alice admitted.

“I have no clue how… But I can understand and speak every language… I overheard the towns people our first day here… I told the others what they said, when we first got here.” Kazius decided to clarify.

“WHAT?!” Damon exclaimed in shock.

“That is amazing!” He exclaimed only to then settle down, seeming to realize something.

“So, the things my sister said… You heard all that, huh?” He sighed out, looking deflated. He clearly felt guilty.

“I hope you aren’t mad… That I lied… I just… Didn’t want you to hate me… Like how everyone does…”

“We aren’t mad. I figured you had your reasons…” Kazius assured with a shrug.

“Did you… So… You are my friends despite… Knowing… Everyone dislikes me?” Damon decided to ask. After all, as outsiders, it would have been more beneficial to take up Luna’s offer.

“Of course, we do. I know there is clearly something is bothering you… We will hear you out. When you are ready. We won’t force you. Azanor is super secretive, but he is still a friend.” Alice assured, knowing she had her own bad experiences in her past. When she opened up to Kazius, it had likely not been easy.

“I know what it is like to have people you care about think poorly of you… At least that I cared about. I don’t know your story… But you saved us, are going to help us train, and even welcomed us in your home. Whatever it is you want to tell us when you are ready to say it… We won’t judge… You are our friend now.” Kazius assured only to then smirk a little.

“You will soon learn that I have some dangerous secrets myself.” Kazius admitted with a grin. Of course, he could not be angry at Damon keeping secrets… Considering how he had some big ones himself… What he saw at The Oracle being the biggest of them all.

Damon would look at both, seeming touched. He would give them a wide grin, clearly happy to hear them so earnestly call him a friend.

“I will… I will explain soon… Thank you…” Damon stated, surprisingly softly.

“Good, take your time… Meanwhile… How about we catch you up on what we have been up to? You should know who your new friends are… Come on… We can tell you during dinner, but first we need to actually cook it.” Kazius suggested. Azanor and Eve were probably already waiting for them.

“Buahaha! That sounds great to me!” Damon laughed out, seeming back to his usual self, excited to learn more about them.