For a moment, the atmosphere in the cramped house froze solid!
Abel swallowed. His body was still trembling, but his instincts as a man made him snatch the scissors from the table and bravely stand in front of Eliza and Med'an. Even his voice shook.
"Y-you... who are you? Outsider, you... you're not welcome here! There's no one named Med'an here, either! G-go away!"
At those words, a somewhat frustrated Dick scratched his head, then raised both hands in front of him to show he meant no harm. He quickly cleared his throat, pulled a badge from his pocket, and handed it to Abel.
"Uh... I think you've misunderstood something. All right, all right, put down the scissors, Gravekeeper. You'll only hurt yourself with those. Look at this! I'm a Paladin from Theramore, and this is my badge. Look, it has Lordaeron's insignia on it. You should recognize that!"
The big man standing in the darkness seemed friendly, and only then did Abel breathe a sigh of relief. Still, he remained on his guard. As a Gravekeeper, he had seen just how devious grave robbers could be! He carefully took Dick's badge and held it up before his eyes. In his youth, Abel had been an Apothecary's apprentice in Darkshire and a private soldier in Duke Ebonlocke's household, so he did recognize the badges of the Seven Kingdoms Alliance.
After carefully identifying the gilded insignia, Abel relaxed completely, but he soon grew frightened again.
One must not forget that this was, after all, a feudal age. A Paladin might not amount to much in a great city like Stormwind City, but in a remote, impoverished place like Raven Hill, he was already an extraordinary personage.
Abel's legs went weak. *Heavens, what have I done? I actually threatened a noble knight