Volume 8 Chapter 3 Clarence Village
On the 4th day after leaving the border city of Lester, Al arrived at Clarence Village, a hot spring area with caves that had Alunite and connected to the Tempest graveyard.
At the village entrance, he saw two familiar faces, a young man and a boy: Ethel and Gabby, members of the self-defense team. They were sitting down, but quickly stood up when they saw Al coming.
"Hello, Mr. Ethel, Gabby."
Al greeted them with a smile.
"Hey, Al. Long time no see. Is that guy okay now?"
"That guy? Oh, you mean Orson. Yeah, he couldn't move for a while, but he seems fine now. Thanks."
Gabby greeted Al with a warm smile, a change from their first meeting. The deer meat he served last time likely helped improve their relationship. From what Al could see, Clarence Village seemed untouched by the civil war in the Tempest Kingdom and felt peaceful. The village was lively, almost like a festival was taking place. Al had heard that many refugees from the Tempest Kingdom were in the nearby border city of Parker, and Naresh had gone there. He wondered if this area was safe.
"The prices of wheat and such have gone up, but other things aren't too affected. It's a tough mountain pass to get from the Tempest Kingdom to this village. Even for me, I need to prepare properly."
Keeping his friendship with Naresh a secret, he asked Ethel a question, and Ethel answered honestly. The locals say that crossing the mountains is very difficult. Patricia likely managed to do it with Joanna's help, as Joanna has body enhancement abilities. This route also helped them avoid being caught by pursuers.
"But there was a time when we heard that the Tempest Kingdom might attack. At that time, our self-defense group was allowed inside the fortress."
Gabby said proudly. Although he previously claimed to be an apprentice, he now acts like a full member. Al recall him referring to him as "Sir Al" after giving him deer meat. He doesn't seem bad, but he might be a bit of a show-off. Al feels he has matured over the past six months, but he worries about how others perceive him.
The fortress Gabby mentioned was something the village head called a fortress on the mountain. It's probably where the knight group is stationed as a defense base for this area.
Ethel nodded at Gabby's words.
"About a month ago, the village head and the local self-defense group were invited to a fortress. They reported seeing tents that looked like they belonged to knights from the Tempest Kingdom at the foot of the mountain. This caused a lot of concern about evacuating the villagers. However, the tents disappeared about two weeks ago. The village head believes the knights may have given up trying to cross the mountain, but it's uncertain."
Al wasn't sure if this was a common thing, but it seemed like Ethel and Gabby thought it was.
"Hey, the village seems noisy. Did something happen?"
"Yeah, the caravan finally arrived yesterday. They probably figured there wouldn't be any trouble around here."
If a sharp-nosed traveling merchant thought it was safe, then it probably was. That's why the two of them were so relaxed.
"So, I came by since the village was nearby. I might as well check out what they (the caravan) have. Can I go inside?"
"Of course, go ahead." "You're good to go."
With permission from two members of the self-defense group, Al entered Clarence Village. In the village square, many people were gathered. Like Al's hometown, traveling merchants brought important goods in their carts. Peddlers set up wooden boards around their carts to display their products. Al saw many nice second-hand clothes and accessories, likely from refugees.
"Did you come from Parker?"
Al picked up some old clothes and asked.
"Are you an adventurer? Yeah, I am. I left the border city of Parker about a week ago. Things have calmed down over there."
According to the shopkeeper, a young knight called 'Brother' Naresh had come with merchants and started helping the refugees. As a result, issues like water, food, and garbage disposal in the camps were beginning to be resolved.
Al felt happy to hear that 'Brother' Naresh was working hard enough to earn a nickname. If possible, he thought it might be good to wrap up things here quickly and go offer some encouragement.
Al looked at the items in the store while thinking about such things. Among them, he noticed a pair of rings. They were about 5 millimeters wide and had wave-like patterns on them. When stacked together, they looked like even bigger waves.
"These were bought from a knight who served Count Senet. They say it's something passed down from ancestors. It's probably made of silver. It's a valuable item, so how about one gold coin?"
The rings were a bit too big for Al's fingers, making them loose. However, he felt drawn to their intricate design. A knight who served Count Senet might be known by Patricia or Joanna. Either way, it surely had enough value for one gold coin.
"What was the knight's name?"
Al asked, but the peddler shook his head, saying he didn't know that much. Al thought for a moment but decided to buy them. They could be a nice gift for Patricia. Then, he felt like buying something for Iris and Russ at the (Red-Faced Sheep) inn, who always took care of him.
"Well, show me more!"
Al's expression became serious as he started to look at the products.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)