The Way of the Blade Read Online Free PDF

your inflammatory threats, we won’t be able to control the situation.”
    “It’s not ours to control, and certainly not through such devious methods.”
    Canto’s muscles tightened. “Are you suggesting that I’m less than honorable?”
    Shual stamped his foot on the floor. “Jave, stop causing arguments.”
    “Isn’t that what this room is for?”
    “Don’t try to make me a fool. Sit down and conduct yourself with some dignity.”
    “How is it that you find fault with me when I’m the one who told the truth? He’s the one lying to the town. He’s the one that claims tolerance yet behind closed doors is telling us to be wary.”
    Shual stabbed a finger toward Canto. “It was his excellent handling of the situation that has kept that god from ripping us to pieces. It was his lie that allowed us to survive, despite your best efforts to have us all killed. And by lulling her into thinking she has us fooled, it will be Canto who rids us of this evil creature.”
    “That’s right,” Canto said. “We’ll kill them tonight while they sleep, and in the morning, we can tell the town that they left as they had promised.”
    “It is a wise choice. Simple, as I had instructed.”
    Javery shook his head and clamped his mouth shut for fear of saying something that would worsen matters. He caught an odd look cross Canto’s face and knew it at once — he had suffered that look on his own face too many times throughout his life. Shual had somehow danced around his original decision, whatever it had been, and manipulated Canto in the process. With these two playing linguistic knot-tying in order to accomplish what they wanted, Javery decided he would have to be equally cunning. And the first step would be taking the correct stance.
    He sat down, crossed his legs again, and placed a hand on his stomach. “I apologize. I failed to see the ingenuity of your approach.”
    Canto hesitated but Shual nodded. “Good. Then let’s return to the hall.”
    “There is one thing, though.”
    “What now?” Shual gripped his kneecaps, his knuckles whitening.
    “Only that you’re missing a great opportunity with this woman. The kind of chance that may never come our way again. And one that, if we fail to take advantage of, may turn around and harm us worse than when Harskill had come.”
    Shual jumped to his feet, his body quivering, his eyes blazing, all his muscles taut as he tried to control himself. In a cold, dead tone that prickled Javery’s hair, Shual said, “Nothing will ever be worse than when Harskill came.”
    An image of Ronnic’s face straining in agony flashed through Javery’s mind. He pushed it away, along with the sound of his brother’s tormented cries, and said, “One god came here and all our lives changed. We have powerful enemies where before we had none. We struggle for basic needs when before we had plenty. We have the face of Death watching over us when before we had the embrace of Life. All from one god.” Javery walked to the door and placed his hand on it. “On the other side of this, awaiting our decision, sit three gods. Three. What do you think they’ll do to us if we turn on them?”
    Canto scrunched his forehead. “Now you want to be friendly? You walked into the hall provoking her with anger and now —”
    “You coward and fool. I am trying to save —”
    “I am no coward, and I’m smarter than half this town.”
    “And humbler than none. You both have set up this woman to believe that you are friendly towards her. I tried to play the part of the lone angry voice that might turn people around, but you did a good job of negating that as well. So, what other options do we have? Our best move now is to be as friendly as you have pretended. If we’re lucky, she and her friends will take some more food and leave this place, never to return. If we’re unlucky, we’ll see how much worse things can get.”
    “You want to gamble with the lives of our people?”
    “You both