Second Time's a Charm (MxM)✔

Chapter 40 - Taking a Trip

Of course they'd be concerned. Cain hadn't been in the best health since returning from the battlefield, but he had to get this done.

"Shouldn't someone at least go with you?" Maxine asked.

Cain shook his head. "I'm going alone. It's best if I do. I need to draw as little attention as possible. Plus...I think it's about time I left the manor again. Don't you?"

The two servants exchanged worried glances but didn't argue. And when a horse was brought around to the front, it was Norton's turn to try and dissuade him.

"Let me at least come along!" He begged, with one of the little girls following behind him, hugging a doll. Anna, Cain recalled her name.

"No. I'll be fine." He mounted his horse, feeling only a little faint.

"You're being reckless!"

"I'm being careful. Going alone will draw less suspicion."

"No, it'll draw more suspicion! No one will know you, plus you haven't been sleeping well. What if you fall ill on the road?"

"I'll be fine." Cain refused to argue, knowing he was acting a bit irrational but ignoring that part of his brain. He needed to become more self-reliant anyway, otherwise how else would he escape his dependency on Maddox?

Just thinking of how many lucky breaks he'd gotten thanks to that man had him recoiling mentally. He had to prove to himself that he could get something done without his help. Something significant.

"Master Cain, please!" Norton begged, but Cain had already steered his horse and was heading for the trail. "I'll be back." He said, knowing the village was only a few days ride away.

He'd follow the roads and rest at each Inn he encountered. If at all. Unfortunately during the first night, he found it had been pointless to try and sleep. Flashes of fire and screaming had him up all night, and he decided to leave at dusk and ride throughout the next day.

When he finally did reach the village, he had saddle sores and sunburn, and once he was close enough, he pulled up his hood to hide his face, having left his mask behind so it couldn't be linked to his new identity.

He examined the locals. They were all quite dreary as they wandered the streets. A few lines of drying clothes were hung between buildings, with moss growing from the stone walls and dead bushes aligning what must have been a beautiful walkway once.

The place was pretty desolate, having been taxed into oblivion. Years ago it used to be a very prominent location with attractive landscaping. However, the Emperor decided he didn't want the village to grow into a city and started making ridiculous demands for those who attempted to start businesses there.

Around that time, the mages moved into the moors just a small distance away. This had driven out more people, who feared their magic but had too little of a population to do anything about it.

It wasn't that mages were problematic. They were just...Unknown. Magic frightened many peasants because it was so mysterious. And they tended to fear what they couldn't understand. Plus mages preferred to stick to their own kind. 

He thought to just call out to Catalina and have her summoned before him but knew the mages had most likely cast some sort of spell to prevent her from being called away. No, he had to find her the old-fashioned way.

Cain had no way of letting her know he was there. Instead, he began wandering the streets, checking out the small shops and stalls, and searching for a place to stay the night. The only place he could find was a tavern with very questionable people already drinking heavily.