Chapter 75: Exposed
Irwin looked at Bron, unsure how to start. The arrival of Trimdir had removed a lot of his worry, but now that he was looking at the Lord of Degonda, he realized he still had no idea what to say.
"Orwin."
Irwin turned to Trimdir, whose wide smile had changed back to his regular hard-to-read stare.
"I don't know why you don't trust nobles, nor what you are hiding, but you can trust Bron," Trimdir said. Then he turned to Bron. "I think you should tell him a bit about your history. I already told him a few things."
Lord Bron didn't respond right away, simply staring at Trimdir until Irwin was starting to get uncomfortable. Finally, there was a weary sigh.
"Fine, fine."
Lord Bron leaned back and looked at Irwin with a sudden weariness.
"So, Orwin, you don't trust nobles?"
Irwin gazed back, uncomfortable both by the question and the way Lord Bron emphasized his name. Had Lord Bron figured out his real name wasn't Orwin? He should have known that the Lord would figure it out at some point, even with trade being stifled due to the surges and portals. Seeing the Lord's eyes narrow, he tried to focus on the question. It wasn't exactly true that he hadn't told anyone just because they were nobles. He hadn't told non-nobles everything either, Trimdir being the prime example. Still, he did feel more reluctant to open up to nobles. Those from Malorin and what his mother had told him showed they usually only acted in their own interest, caring little about who they had to harm to get what they wanted.
Lord Bron had been staring at him as his mind spun, eyes narrowed, and his frown deepening until he finally seemed to lose his patience.
"I could tell you about myself," Lord Bron finally said as he stared at Irwin, "but before that, Irwin, why don't you tell me about yourself?"
Irwin jolted out of his thoughts as he stared at Lord Bron.