Chapter twenty-one: The Two Faced Man

Chanyeol and Jihoon had soon after scrambled from the hill. Following the road that the black cloaked men had taken before them, leading straight into the busy town of Holstead. The townspeople were running about, trying to satisfy the needs of the ever growing mass of men outside their wooden gates.

In the centre of the town was a market, every building they passed was made out of wood and thatch and very flammable as Jihoon quickly  noted. There was a certain stench in the town that originated from the rotten rooftops, animals and the trash that littered the muddy pools in what should be a street. Jihoon looked over to his left where Chanyeol was walking, or more like sliding through the mud. He scrunched his nose in disgust when he saw a woman emptying a bucket on the street, supplying his nose with yet another disgusting scent. After traveling through nature for weeks he wasn’t quite used to the stench of civilization. If you could really call it that…

In Grenhil and Strenyard the streets were clean. Especially in his home he had made sure that the streets were cleaned regularly. He didn’t need his surroundings to smell like a dumpster. As they neared the building that functioned as a makeshift town hall he saw a flag hanging in front the door. The flag was surely eye-catching with it’s black background and beautifully embroidered red rose with white accents, it was stunning.

Chanyeol came to a halt as he stared at the same flag Jihoon had been admiring, his face emotionless. Jihoon felt a spark of fear settle in his heart as he continued watching the rose. Inside this building was yet another high ranking Exodus Twelve member. He felt his heart sink at the mere thought of the destruction that this pack brought and the task that still lay ahead of him. Chanyeol saw his hesitation and caught a glimpse of his inner turmoil. A smile softened his already youthful appearance as he ruffled a hand through Jihoons hair. His encouragement was simple but effective. Jihoon had never been a person to like skinship of any kind and normally his reaction would be to smack the hand away. But right now his inner omega was happy with the act of kindness and the corners of his mouth lifted upwards gratefully.

A guard walked towards them after eyeing them suspiciously. “Do you need anything?”

That was his first mistake. The other was that he pointed his spear towards Jihoon. His last mistake was urging them to move over. Jihoon had watched over Chanyeol closely and saw how his hands had started twitching, his neck reddened and lastly how his face showed immense annoyance. Little did the poor guard know who he had just offended. It was too late anyways because Chanyeols huge body moved surprisingly fast as he took hold of the spear, pulling it backwards harshly, lifting the poor guard of the ground before smacking him into the mud.

“Do not, ever, talk to me or any of my companions like that again.” Chanyeols voice was a mere whisper, but even if he had shouted the treat couldn’t have had more impact for his voice was loaded with venom as he spoke. His appearance and aura were menacing.

“Chanyeol stop it please. You are frightening my  men.” From the door of the town hall a man walked towards them, his appearance hidden underneath a black cloak and hood. Despite the shadows covering the man’s face Jihoon felt like he was being watched, as a pair of eyes locked on him, taking in every detail of his appearance. He felt uncomfortable and next to him Chanyeol was nervously skipping from one leg to another while never taking his eyes of the black cloaked man, but his hands still gripped the spear tightly. “Chanyeol. Let. Go.” The man spoke every word carefully, letting the words sink in before speaking further, yet still the alpha remained unmoving. The authority that the man possessed was a contrast to the fresh scent that lingered around him, telling everyone surrounding him that he was an omega.

“You aren’t supposed to be here.” Chanyeol finally found his voice. “You should’ve stayed at Elyxion.”

“I should’ve been near you, watching you! Making sure you don’t screw up again.”

“I am doi-…”

“Don’t even finish that sentence Park Chanyeol. I ing dare you.” The man harshly intercepted him. “If it weren’t for your stupidity we would’ve long been at the gates of Strenyard. However your idiotic alpha pride got the better of you. It was completely unnecessary to attack that stupid pack!” The omega was fuming and pacing around in front of them, stepping from one muddy pool into another. “You weren’t at Elyxion, so you didn’t see the reaction of the other Twelve. It wasn’t pretty I can promise you that much.”

“I did what I had to do.”

“Oh no. If you did what you had to do you wouldn’t screw up every time I leave you alone for more than ten seconds.” It was at that moment that he shifted his full attention to Jihoon who was still gaping at him.  “And who the hell is the midget next to you?”

Jihoon was about to start raging, angered by the stranger calling him that… that word, but Chanyeol was faster. “His name is Woozi and he is a bard that has been traveling with me.”

“A bard huh?” The stranger moved closer to Jihoon, shoving his hood backwards and finally letting the light hit his head as bright red hair sprung free from underneath the fabric. Instead of the frightening eyes that Jihoon had expected, a pair of warm golden eyes was looking at him curiously. “I think you are more than that.” His voice was suddenly rather sweet and laced with a youthful innocence.

Jihoon knocked on the bag that hung over his back, “Well I am no real bard, but I do travel and make music to lighten the mood.”

“And your name was Woozi…” The golden eyed stranger was testing the name on his tongue. “Woozi, quite an unique name you have there. Where are you from that they give you such names?”

There it was… To be honest this was the reaction that Jihoon expected when telling people his chosen name. Yet he wasn’t really in the mood to describe the origins of the nickname, Jeonghans mocking laugh was still fresh in his memory. He felt his face redden as he mumbled, “It… n.. name.”

“What?” The man was glaring at him, his previously curious eyes darkening and the innocence fading in a split second. The menacing aura was once again present, defying the peaceful scent that surrounded the omega.

Jihoon took a deep breath, it was better to tell the truth, “It’s a nickname… In my original language it’s shorter for our Jihoonie.” He was now bright red and he wished that the ground would devour him already, helping him out of his newfound misery.

“Aw how cute! You didn’t tell me that!” Chanyeol fawned next to him.

His embarrassment was quickly forgotten as he shot Chanyeol a glare that could kill, leading the tall alpha to raise up his arms in surrender.

“I take it back, not cute at all. Sorry. Pardon. Please spare me.” He pleaded to the sh