"Brooding over the lack of marriage proposals?" Cole teased.

They were on the way to Roche, about a three days journey. They were still under the disguise of farmers, as Xiao was still considered an outlaw. George had offered to report the matter to the king, but neither Xiao nor Cole thought it wise for George to expose his link to vigilantes and outlaws so soon after deeming the concubine a criminal. 

The wide dirt road encapsulated by dying, yellow grass offered no protection from heat nor any consolation on the somber mood they were in. The sky had no trace of clouds, only a span of unforgiving blue. Even birds and insects didn't flock around them but hid in the depth of the vegetation.

Xiao looked over, startled by the sudden noise, then smiled. "It's all your fault," he said.

"My fault?" Cole sounded positively alarmed.

"If you weren't such a promising candidate, I would have had more wives than the king by now," Xiao said, grinning.

Cole rolled his eyes, internally chastising himself for a choice of topic.

"How did you even know about this marriage proposal thing?" Xiao asked.

"Your brothers gossip."

It was Xiao's turn to be exasperated. "One could always depend on them to leak out such vulnerable information. But Cole, I can't believe you haven't gotten a single one."

Cole raised one thin eyebrow, unsmiling. "Can't you?"

Xiao laughed. "Right. I forgot how you could be intimidating."

Cole broke into a grin. "Glad you remember now."

Xiao looked at Cole being so carefree and happy and he knew he would only remember Cole like so, and not the insolent creature he had first associated Cole to be. He didn't say anything though. He knew Cole wanted to lighten the mood, and perhaps he did so, but it was rather a bad choice of topic. How could he joke around when the weight of Bradley's death still pushed down on his shoulders? Quite naturally, he reached for his flask and drank half the contents, though not really tasting it.

Cole felt it too, and shut up. Seeing a lines fade away on Cole's face, Xiao pouted and nudged him lightly. "Hey, let's keep up our storytelling tradition."

Roche would have been a better place, fit for a king. The sea wind just about reached the region, bringing with it a cooling current that they all needed. The eucalyptus and palm trees lined the broadways and avenues, a different type of beauty when compared to the willows of Sunfall or the pines of the depth of Mount Huai. 

However, it wasn't so populated as one would think it to be, with a plight of abductors on its land. Though still quite populated, the atmosphere was one of nervousness and fright. Cole and Xiao felt it more and more clearly as they neared and grew more and more alarmed by it.

Sitting in a restaurant, Xiao sipped on a fruity alcohol. "Haven't Steph and John arrived yet?" he wondered.

Cole shrugged. "We will find out tonight." 

Xiao beckoned over a waiter. "Waiter-ge, what's something fun happening around here?"

The waiter sighed. "There is nothing going on around this place," he said. "We have a bunch of abductors around here. Who would want to host any sort of activity?"

Xiao tilted his head and widened his eyes in interest. "Abductors? But pray, aren't there vigilantes who hunt down those bad guys?"

The waiter wagged his finger at Xiao good naturedly. "Young man, it's almost like you can predict things! There are a bunch of vigilantes around here. They always eat here too. In fact," he looked outside the window, "they are coming right now."

Xiao turned to look. Sure enough, he could see a group of ten walking down the street, talking loudly and excitedly. Among them, he could see a young man in light blue holding court. He smiled wryly as he saw Stephanus. It wasn't that he disliked his brother, but rather hurt that while Jason had spread the rumour about him, Stephanus had believed it. He was also reminded of the time when he had been the center of attention back on Mount Huai, all the others flocking about him.

"Do you want to leave?" Cole asked him cautiously. Cole had never known how to talk about Xiao's brothers.

"They won't recognize me," Xiao said. "Let's keep on eating." With that said, he prodded his noodles and took a small bite. Cole pursed his lips.

The door opened and a sonorous boom greeted the restaurant. The ten knights came in and shuffled towards the back, near Xiao and Cole's table of two. 

"Steph-ge, you really think we can overtake Morris' fortress tonight?" one asked.

Steph waved it away. "Of course. With us here, John will have no problem."

"Hubristic," Xiao muttered, a tad bit too loudly on purpose. The whole group heard him and he felt stares burning into his side. Smirking a little, he kept on talking. "You know, ge, I was just saying, there is a kind of people who just think they are so deserving, just because they've trained for a long time and have a bunch of sycophantic friends."

Cole's eyes narrowed in amusement. "Right. Going around talking about avoiding marriage proposals yet bragging about them every chance they get."

Xiao gasped and pouted. "That is because some people naturally pull others in. And dare I say it, they actually have some real talent. I'm talking about those who just eat all day, brag about - "

"Hey!" one of the knights interrupted. "What are you implying?"

Xiao ignored them. "Thinking everything is about them. Every insult targets them." He shook his head and sighed dramatically. "That just shows how insecure they are."

"Who are you, throwing shade here and there?" another one said.

Cole played along. "Being so rude too, even though the chivalry code mentioned something about gentlemen-like manner."

"Farmers!" Stephanus muttered. "They think they are so knowledgeable."

"Let us go and demand what they are on about," one knight suggested.

"Why should we lower ourselves to their level?" another countered. "They are probably drunk and talking nonsense."

"They make more sense than what you are saying, mate," Xiao said.

A quick tempered one jumped up and aimed a punch at his side. Xiao blocked it using his newly acquired rake offhandedly. "Be careful, young man."

Cole couldn't suppress his laughter anymore and a clear laugh escaped him. The knight hugged his hand to his chest and cursed loudly. Their two tables were causing a disturbance and attracting a lot of attention in the restaurant.

Stephanus came up. "Hey, who are - " he faltered as he saw Cole and then Xiao. Seeing uncertainty shown on his face, Xiao grinned widely. Cole, regretting in playing the prank, sat stoically. Stephanus' eyes were wide as he looked at Xiao. "Wait for me outside, will you?"

"Why can't we chat here, dear brother?"

"My friends - "

Xiao raised an eyebrow. "What about them?"

"Well, you have - "

Xiao sneered. "Tell me where John is," he said. "I have no business with you."

Stephanus' face grew dark. "He is at Yoongles Guesthouse. Though I recommend that you sit this one out, Xiao-ge." He stressed "ge" with a sneer worthy of Xiao's. 

Xiao looked away from his dismissively. "Cole-ge, when you're done, let's go."

Cole nodded. As they headed down the road, Xiao sighed. "I can't believe Stephanus could be embarrassed of me. Me! Because of Jason's rumours and some posters framing me."

Cole patted his shoulder once empathetically. 

Xiao shook his head again and again. "Well, John will treat me well enough - hide me, whatever." Sure enough, when they reached the place, John dragged the two in as soon as he saw them.

"Xiao! I've been so worried. What with Bradley - " he cut himself off. "Are you alright?"

"I've been better," Xiao said honestly. "But Cole here has kept me sane."

"He kept me insane," Cole supplied.

All three laughed. John shook his head. "Well, we are attacking the fortress tonight. A bunch of bandits are in there. This place isn't like the other places and we've engaged in some small combats here and there. Morris, the bandit leader, has help from the Anlang Sect - " He cut himself off again. "Sorry, Cole."

Cole shrugged. "It's what I have expected."

Xiao looked at him with wide eyes. Cole had expected members of his own sect to be here yet never mentioned it to him. However, he knew Cole didn't want to discuss in front of John so he stayed silent.

John led them into a spare room and told them to get ready for the night. Xiao looked to Cole. "So... "

Cole nodded curtly, knowing he wanted to talk. "It's a common feeling in the sect that we are being repressed. After all, there is a Gudu-Xue alliance that casts us out. Members of our own sect get sentenced by your people, and frankly - "

Xiao cut him off. "We? Us? You talk as if you are part of them!"

Cole looked away. "They came here to make a point," he said. "They want to overthrow this caste system in the knight world."

Xiao bit his lower lip. "What do you think is right?"

Cole sighed. "It's a hard problem to fix. Firstly, we have to address that not all Anlang Sect people are bad. In fact, the older generation is actually quite delightful. Our founder, who I have never met, of course, Geoffrey Quentin, is an amazing person. My mentor isn't bad. It's the lower ranked knights, the outcasts, who are commit crimes and ruin our reputations. Then, we need a council with all three sects and moderators that will ensure fairness in all judgements passed." 

Xiao listened and nodded along. He didn't think it was such a problem but as Cole talked about it passionately, he felt that there were many imperfections within the alliance.

When the night fell, John gathered everyone to the main hall of the guesthouse. Forty or so people gathered about, and Xiao saw Reece, Kun, and Hao in the ranks. As he and Cole walked in, he saw people whisper to each other. 

"Isn't that - "

"Killed his own brother - "

"Who's next to - "

"Anlang Sect?"

Xiao felt his face flush and opened up his mouth but Cole dragged him to the back of the crowd, his hand tightly clenching on his wrist. With that, Xiao knew Cole was angry too. John cleared his throat to get the crowd's attention. "Alright, everyone, listen up. Today, we will split into three groups, one on the left, one on the right, and one in the middle. We will attack the fortress from three directions. Stephanus has already scouted that they have the most force in the middle, and we have constantly been attacking them from the middle, so their defences should be shored up there. Thus, we will have two strong forces on the sides and one in the middle only after the assaults from the sides have been launched.

"There is also a small path that would lead to the back of the fortress. Frank Jung has already led some soldiers over there to block the escape route. In a worst case scenario, they will be our backup. Jonathan," he looked to a tall man about thirty, "you will lead the left group." He then looked at the man beside him, a stouter man in comparison to Jonathan, "Cory, you'll lead the right group. I'll be in the middle."

"You be in the middle, John!" someone shouted. "You'll direct us!"

Xiao smiled proudly as he watched John issue down the orders and called out people in each group. Soon, he and Cole were placed in the middle group. This got complaints as Xiao and Cole moved towards their room to grab the necessary stuff and change.

"A rapist and an Anlang Sect disciple!" someone said.

"Anlang Sect disciple is worse than a rapist," another chimed in.

Xiao suppressed his anger. Cole, beside him, were breathing irregularly. Xiao speculated that he was trying to control his breathing to no avail. They silently prepared for the oncoming fight as more insults were carried in by the summer wind.