Chapter 195:
Druid’s Master Is Seething
The sight of the crowd spilling out over the main road struck me with awe. I had known this was a big town, but I didn’t realize just how many people lived here.
It was midday, four days after Druid’s announcement that the quest had been successful. And, though it was one day late, his old mentor’s party was to return today. The people had been decorating the town since sunup and a festive atmosphere was already buzzing in the air. The only thing that was different this time was the absence of drunks in the street. I wasn’t sure why.
“Boy, what a crowd. Mr. Druid, are you sure it’s okay for you to be away from your post?”
“Yeah, there aren’t any drunks out today, so they’re fine with the normal number of people on patrol.”
“Oh, really?”
“Most people consider it very disrespectful to drunkenly greet our heroes if they’ve just returned from a deadly battle. The only drinkers today are going to be the heroes in question and their families.”
Ah, that makes sense. That’s why there aren’t many patrollers.
“They sure went all out this time, didn’t they?”
“Did they?”
“Yeah, I hardly ever see the main road decorated like this. That goes to show just how big an impact the gurbar crisis had on this town.”
I looked at the main road. It was adorned with flowers, many of which were wildflowers I’d seen in the forest. A bunch of people must have gone there early this morning to pick them.
“Oh! Hey, kid! Kid!” a familiar voice sounded from behind me.
I turned around and saw… Oh! It’s the slave trader. Unfortunately, I couldn’t remember his name.
“Um, long time no see, sir.”
“I’ve been wanting to see you.”
“Huh?!” Oh! That’s right, he was going to look for a possible slave who fit my guidelines, and I never told him the deal was off. Oh dear, what should I tell him?
“I’m terribly sorry, but I haven’t been able to get any slaves because of the gurbar crisis, so I’m still looking.”
Oh, so that’s all it is. Thank goodness. “Yes, about that, I’ve actually found a travel companion.”
“Oh, really? Well, that’s good news. I was worried I was making you wait too long.”
Argh…what a careless thing for me to do. “I’m so sorry, sir. I forgot to cancel my order.”
“It’s fine, kid. We were all on edge there for a while. Well, let me know if you ever need my services.”
“I will, sir. Thank you.”
The slave trader didn’t seem particularly bothered. And thank goodness—if he’d said he found me a slave, I wouldn’t have been able to turn him down.
“That was Golga the slave trader, right?”
Golga? Was that what he was called? “I’d forgotten his name.”
“Ha ha ha, that’s unusual.”
“Oh, no, it happens now and then with me. Sometimes it’s very hard for me to remember a person’s name.”
I’d had a really hard time with Dolgas’s name…though I somehow managed to remember it now.
“Interesting… Maybe you have trouble remembering names that don’t seem to fit their owners?”
Is that my problem? Well…maybe it is.
As Druid and I walked and talked, we started to hear cheering coming from the gate. The adventurers had returned. The cheering gradually spread all throughout the town, and I felt funny inside as I watched it unfold.
“Don’t you want to get a little closer to them?”
“No, I’m fine here. What about you, Mr. Druid?”
“Yeah…I’d rather stay here. I don’t do well in noisy crowds.”
Druid and I both stayed a bit away from the celebration. It looked lively and fun, but there were just a few too many people for comfort, so watching from the sidelines was perfect for us.
“Master doesn’t like noisy crowds like that, either.”
“He doesn’t?”
“Yeah, he doesn’t like how you can’t complain if you get squished in the mob of people.”
It was actually easy for me to imagine the old mentor yelling, “Get offa me, cockroaches!” at people in the crowd. When we saw the old mentor emerge from the throng, we both chuckled a little. I could clearly see the strain in his face. He was smiling, too, in a way that made all the veins stand out on his neck.
“Wow, what a sight…” Druid laughed. “Oh! Did he just glare at us?”
“Yes, it did look like a glare…”
“He’s definitely seething. I wouldn’t be surprised if he called us traitors later for laughing at him.”
“Ha ha ha! Still, I’m really amazed by all those people reaching out to touch him.”
The old mentor’s face was spread tight with anger—with bloodlust, even—and yet some people were reaching out to touch him. I didn’t have that kind of courage.
“It’s a way of thanking him, really. But when he so clearly doesn’t like it, touching him comes across as plain harassment.”
Yes, I can see how everyone means well and wants to show their gratitude, but there’s just too many people. And with the adventurer party so exhausted…I actually feel a little sorry for them.
“Well, now that I’ve seen my mentor and the guild master both look well, it’s time to get going.”
Druid and I left the main road. Now that the gurbar crisis had been settled, we needed to discuss what our next move would be. Winter was just around the corner, so we had to decide where to stay until spring. And since we would be traveling as a group of two, there were extra preparations that needed to be made.
We returned to the plaza and spread a map out on the table along with some paper and pens.
“First, let’s make a list of everything we’ll need.”
“Yes, sir.”
Druid began to write down everything two people would need for a journey. “And we’ll need to travel light, too.”
“Good point.”
“Oh, wait! There was something I needed to ask you about.”
“What is it, sir?”
“It’s your tent. Do you think we could get one that holds three to four people? Or would you rather have another type?”
A bigger tent? If he wants it to hold so many people, that means he and I would share. I don’t really mind.
“I’m fine sharing.”
“Oh, good. I have a magic tent from my days traveling with my master. You can put up a patrician in it and it’s high quality, so I think it’ll serve us well.”
“A magic tent?”
“Yeah, it has a noise-canceling function as well as a size-altering feature, so it’s bigger on the inside than it looks.”
“Wow, that sounds really neat. Are tents like that common?”
“No, they’re pretty rare. I think it would be a safe place for Sora and Flame to bounce around in, too,” Druid chuckled.
“Well, I can’t wait to see it.”
“Yeah, I’ll take it out so you can have a look at it. I’ll probably be able to find it right away.”
Be able to find it? What does he mean by that?
“And Master already gave us a table, so we’ve got that. Oh, and I think I have some extra sleeping mats somewhere.”
“Sleeping mats?”
“Hm? Haven’t you heard of them?”
“No, sir.”
“They’re magic mats. I hear they’re very soft and comfortable to sleep on.”
“You hear?”
“Yeah, I’ve never actually used one. Now, where did I put them again? In that room?”
He’s definitely going all out to prepare for our travels. Is this really okay? I feel bad using all of his things.
“Um, sir…”
“I’m pretty sure I have four of them, so you and I can each have one. And maybe we should take the other two as extras just in case. They can be rolled up quite small, so they won’t take up much room.”
“Oh, uh, sure! Um, sir?”
“What’s up?”
“Are you sure you’re okay with me using all your stuff? It must all mean a lot to you.”
“I’d prefer that you use my stuff, actually. It’s all stored away collecting dust anyway.”
“Really?”
It sounded like everything he mentioned was either magic, rare, or both. If he’d kept them all these years without selling them, surely that meant they were special to him?
“I was holding onto them in case I ever needed something to sell, but you don’t really need much money when you live alone. And until you asked me to join you on your travels, I’d forgotten I even had a lot of this stuff.”
Keeping old things to sell if you needed money…what an idea. If I were in his shoes, I’d have already sold them and taken the money to the bank.
“Um, okay, then. Thanks for sharing your supplies with me.”
“Sure thing. Though, I have something to ask you, Ivy.”
“What is it?”
“Could you help me clean my house? I’m sure I have some other things that would come in handy for our travels, but I can’t remember where I put any of them. I’m using three rooms for storage right now, so they’re all bound to be in one of them.”
“Sure, I don’t mind. I’d love to help!”
“Thanks. Right, I guess I might as well sell the things I don’t need. We can use the money to cover our travel expenses… And while I’m at it, maybe I should sell my house.”
“What?! Sell your house, sir?”
I thought back to the one time I’d visited his house. It was a bit isolated, but it was a pretty big building.
“I bought that house to avoid being around people, so if I decide to come back and live here after our travels, I won’t need to live in my old place again.”
So that house was like a refuge for Druid, but he didn’t need it anymore. Now I see… Hee hee. Gosh, I’m so happy for him.
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