**Read Authors Notes at the Bottom, very important.
***
The target was a slender man in his thirties. He had a tall and slim figure with dark circles around his eyes and rows of caluses along the palm of his hands, proof of his hardworking nature.
His overall demeaner even from a single glance was that of a gentle soul, one that could not make anyone have any negative feelings towards him.
It would be unfair to not mention that he was quite a handsome man even without all these other characterstics which only added to his charm.
An affable smile bloomed on his face as he walked through groups of chained native slaves towards a cordoned off area with a row of neatly placed wooden cabins left of the gate.
It looked like all the guards and cultivators that were in charge lived here.
Any other guards that came across him lowered their heads as sign of respect, some even merrily yelling out his name like a bunch of fangirls.
"Brother Tomas!"
And Tomas responded in kind with his unchanging smile and a nod in return.
But just as Tomas was about to enter the area, a native broke away from the ranks and ran towards him. The cultivator nearby who was in charge of this group quickly raised his whip from afar but was stopped by a single look from Tomas.
Although the native man looked like a raisin with his shriveled skin and emaciated body, it wasn't hard for Hao Xuan to tell that he must have been quite a well off man before being brought here.
His eyes were much brighter than the rest of the slaves with relatively good skin as compared to others as well. And he was much cleaner than the rest.
When he was four feet away from Tomas, his feet tripped over nothing and he fell forward, impacting face first with the ground with a loud thud.
Tomas hurriedly ran over with a look of concern and picked him up, dusting his clothes for him.
"Are you okay sir?" he spoke for the first time, calling the native slave sir.
His voice was soft and sounded quite melodious.
The native man bowed several times from the waist in quick succession to show his gratitude, ignoring the blood that had started to seep down his face.
"Great Lord, I thank you for your help. Please forgive me for dirtying your hands!" as he said that, the native man tried to get on his knees but was stopped by Tomas.
"We are all creatures of light. There is no need for this. I am just a mere vessel like you all," Tomas said with the same warm smile as before.
The native man's eyes started to water and he didn't know what to say. Holding back the tears, he bowed from the waist again and took a step back.
"My lord, this slave will never forget your kindness. All the things you have done for me and my family. Please, if you ever need anything call on me and I will be there! That is all I wanted to say."
Soon as the native man finished speaking he turned around walked back to his spot. All the other slaves that were watching from the sidelines had much the same looks of affection and gratitude when looking at Tomas.
Almost all of them started working with a newfound vigor, carrying heavier loads and moving faster than before.
Tomas sighed looking at them. He gestured for a nearby guard to come over.
"Give them more food. I told you not to skimp on it. If their conditions aren't improved by tomorrow then you will have to answer to me. Understand?"
"Y-Yes sir," the guard replied with a hint of apprehension and moved aside.
Tomas entered the settlement and walked straight to the last cabin, locking the door behind him.
It only had one window, a bed, and a chair. An extremely simple layout without any other decorations other than one painting.
The painting was of parted clouds with the sun shining its light down from the middle.
The first thing Tomas did was take off his shirt and wash his hands before bending down in front of the painting with clasped hands.
"Another day has passed and my love for the Lord's light is deeper than ever before. I pray to the 'Old Ones' to be shown the right path. To always be in your favor until it is time for me to come to you, either in body or soul."
He started with that and continued praying for different things. From the slaves to the guards, everyone was included.
He only stopped after a little more than ten minutes had passed, A gust of wind blew in from the open window, gently caressing his half-naked form.
He opened his eyes and looked up at the painting.
"How long do you intend to wait for me, friend?"
Behind him, a figure slowly walked out from the shadows and sat down on the chair.
"Don't turn around, I don't want to hurt you," he warned with a weary sigh.
The intruder was of course Hao Xuan.
He had seen everything from afar and entered the cabin beforehand.
Hao Xuan obviously wasn't sure if this was Tomas's cabin but judging from its better position and a much cleaner condition as compared to the other cabins, it was an educated guess that paid off.
Tomas did as told and stayed on his knees with his hands clasped together in the praying gesture.
"In that case, how can I help you, stranger?" he asked as the same old kindly smile slowly crept upon his lips. But for some reason under the limited light, it bore a more sinister tone.
*****
Authors Notes:
I finally created the official discord for the novel: https://discord.gg/AHdSBFQ
If you are a reader and especially one that uses coins to unlock chapters, please head on over at least once and check the announcement section.. Some very important news and regular updates there, plus you can contact me at any time.
