Xal smirked at the small grimace the man tried to mask. Quickly composing himself, he spoke.
"So…If you don't mind, you know, since you are looking for a job and all, and you said you were a bodyguard, I have a proposition." Xal glanced up at the man, who seemed to be a bit nervous, unlike the mischievous aura he had held before. But he was trying his best to stay collected.
"The thing is, I may or may not have made some people angry while fulfilling my services. But I swear, it's nothing shady. Honestly, my work is piling; it's hard to keep up. If I offer you a position as my bodyguard and personal assistant with a good salary package, of course, you will consider it?"
Through all of that rambling, he could tell the stranger wasn't just asking.
He was hoping.
No, he knew Xal would accept.
How?
For a moment, he felt proud of having convinced a man to offer him a job just by catching a punch. But he was also well aware of scams and liars.
For years, Xal had been trained to observe, wait, analyze, and respond, not to trust his gut.
He shouldn't let his guard down.
So, obviously, he wasn't about to blindly trust someone he'd just met, regardless of what his instincts whispered.
Not that anyone needed to know about it.
"I could consider the offer. But first, I need more information about your business and about you," Xal said, shifting to his professional persona, his words carefully chosen with an altered, slower pace.
"Hmm… this is the tough part." The stranger rose from the chair, massaging the back of his neck, and stood awkwardly before Xal.
With an extended arm, the stranger finally introduced himself.
"The name's Kian Vaeloren. I'm who most people call a medium or a shaman. I heal the living from spirit illness. And for the dead, I guide them to the afterlife."