Those words seemed to stun Vigil for a moment.
To him a deal like this was much too good to be true. It was so good, in fact, that it was teetering on the edge of insanity.
So Vigil couldn't help but question it.
What would Leonide get out of this? He already has at least one good bodyguard and Vigil was dead sure that there were plenty more just as strong, if not stronger, than Witch.
So before he got ahead of himself and blurted something out, he decided to try and dig a little.
"May I ask a few things before I give you my answer?"
In response to his question, the old man smiled and gave a small nod.
Seeing this, Vigil continued.
"What would you get out of this deal? Just based off of the quick fight between Witch and I, I could tell that I would be of little to no use for you. From my perspective, it seems like you would be losing out if I agreed to this."
Hearing his words made Leonide chuckle in amusement before answering.
"Quite cautious I see. Well, you would need to be in order to survive in this wasteland... Back to the question at hand. There are two reasons as to why I wish to hire you."
The old man grabbed the container of water that was sitting no more than a foot away from him, drank a few sips, and cleared his throat.
He then glanced at Vigil before looking out of the window closest to him.
Leonide then began to explain himself.
"The first reason as to why I wish to help you is because you are a Child of War. I find it much too cruel to leave a child to fend for themselves in a place like War Field. Not only that, but I am also a man of god, so if I didn't help you, this would go against both my religious beliefs as well as my beliefs as a person."
He then paused for a moment to turn and look at Vigil.
Plastered on his face was a small grin akin to a child's when they found something fun and exciting.
"The second reason is that I'm more than a little curious about you. I've heard plenty of stories about the things that you've done during your time as a Child of War and have been dying to hear and learn some new things about you-!"
Running out of air, Leonide paused for a moment and took one more deep breath before continuing.
"So when I was told that you were approaching with a monster in tow, I felt ecstatic! It was exactly like all of the rumors I've heard!"
Yeah Vigil was right. These people were much too eccentric for him...
The boy then sat in silence for what seemed like hours, but was only a few seconds, as the man went on and on about the "infamous Dread."
Thankfully it didn't seem like he was the only one that was getting tired of the man's whole spiel, as he was soon cut off mid-sentence by Witch.
"I think he's got the gist, sir. Anyhow... What do you think? Wanna join us on the way to Mercy?"
Vigil thought for a few seconds before deciding to answer her question with another question.
"Sir, you're from Lumarta correct? Then does that mean that everyone else in this convoy is too?"
Vigil still vividly remembered Maltena and the words she had told him.
People from Lumarta and Mercy could be trusted.
So the reason as to why he had asked this question was because he wanted to know if he could completely put his trust in their group.
However, Vigil wasn't naive enough to immediately believe that the people sitting before him were actually who they said they were.
This really made Vigil want to confirm their identities in any way that he could.
But he also felt as if there was no need to do so. Something told him that, if someone tried to impersonate a figure that was as important as Leonide was, then they would no longer be alive to tell their tale.
Besides, even if they were faking their identities, what was he to do? He already lost to the woman sitting beside him once and he knew that she could beat him again.
It was only a few moments after he had concluded his thoughts that a reply had come to answer his previously asked question. However, contrary to what he believed would happen, Leonide wasn't the one that had spoken. Instead, the reply was given by Witch.
"Nope. Only about half of the people here are from Lumarta. The other half are people like me, mercenaries from Mercy."
That was all that Vigil needed to know in order to come to an answer for the previously proposed deal. He didn't even care to ask the reason as to why a merc like herself was sitting in the same vehicle as someone as important as Leonide.
All that he did know, however, was that he had finally come to a conclusion on the subject matter.
But the young boy didn't want to be too quick to answer.
So instead he pretended to think on it a little bit before saying:
"...Alright then, I'll take you up on that offer of yours. But if I get even the slightest feeling that I am being deceived then I'm leaving, deal?"
Vigil fully expected for there to be at least some hesitation at the sound of his words. But, his expectations were completely crushed when he noticed the bright grin on the old man's face.
"I have no objections to your request, and with that being said, we seem to have struck a deal! Well then, young Dread, let's get along for the rest of our journey, shall we?"
After finishing up his sentence, Leonide held his hand out in Vigil's direction.
Seeing this action, Vigil lifted his hand up and reached it towards Leonide's, giving each other a firm handshake.
It didn't even take a second from when this scene had played out for the old man to start bombarding the young boy with even more questions.
"So Dread, tell me, how long has it been since you first started your trek towards Mercy?"
The question made Vigil think back to earlier that day when Witch had asked the same thing, and just like then, his original answer still persisted.
"I don't know... it's been too long for me to remember how much time has passed since I entered War Field."
He said in a tone that struggled to hide his melancholy.
Although Vigil couldn't understand why he felt the way that he did, he did know that it meant more than a small amount to him. After all, it represented his strength and will to survive, no matter the cost.
It was just that... The cost was quite high...
But soon Vigil's thoughts were abruptly put to a halt by the sound of Leonide's gentle voice.
"My child, there's no need to be so sad about not knowing these things... Besides, it's quite easy to determine the answer. All that I need is for you to answer my questions truthfully."
At first, Vigil was slightly weirded out by the old man's choice of words when he called him "my child", but after hearing the rest of the sentence, the young boy had perked up a little.
After seeing the child's reaction, Leonide decided to start questioning the boy.
"To start off, when were you born?"
Vigil was quick with his answer.
"April, 15th of the 373rd year of the Gravolta calendar."
His answer made Leonide pause for a moment and take back the next few words that he was going to say.
"...Alright... Umm, how about according to the Great Fall calendar?"
This question confused Vigil for he didn't know what the Great Fall calendar was. Well, he could assume what it was just not what it meant.
"I apologize but what is the Great Fall calendar?"
He said while using his hands to make quotation signs.
It was only then that Witch decided to chime in.
"Do you..? I mean really? Like you don't even know about the most commonly used calendar in the world?"
Vigil really wanted to sock her in the face, however, he had much better things to do at the moment.
But he will remember this...
Suddenly, Leonide spoke up once again.
"Wait a second, did you say the Gravolta calendar? You're a Gravoltan? ...Tell me... Did anything big happen right before you entered into War Field?"
As he said this, he pulled something out from under his robes and started to tap on it continuously.
While he was doing this, in response to his words, Vigil started to nod his head up and down at a slow pace.
"Yes, it was the day that I lost my home. I don't know what happened or why it happened, but what I can tell you is that my home town is now gone, probably along with the whole country too..."
Leonide continued to stare at the object in his hands as he was listening to the boy speak. When Vigil had finished, the old man said something quietly under his breath.
"... Only a day. Well at least this makes things a bit simpler."
He then looked up and stared at Vigil for a few moments before asking another question.
"Do you know how old you were when that happened?"
Vigil began to curl his hands into tight fists.
He hated remembering that god awful day when everything was burnt to ash. At the time he couldn't do anything at all, so he ran. To this day that was still one of his biggest regrets, running.
It took Vigil a few seconds to cool his mind before giving Leonide a response.
"The day it happened was the same day that I'd turned 9 years old."
Hearing those words come out of his mouth made the other two people inside of the vehicle's passenger compartment freeze up and look directly at him, eyes filled with a multitude of complicated emotions.
But they didn't say anything.
Instead they just sat there in silence, not knowing what to do or say.
That was until Leonide spoke in a soft, yet serious voice.
"Although I may be a month late in telling you this... Happy 11th birthday."