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Chapter 64

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Reaching into the village at this time, they saw that most of the residents were outside for the daylight. They can already smell the faint scent of the delicious aroma of breads, meat, and spices cooked through the heat of fire in the early morning.

Along the road that led to the entrance of this humble settlement, where its villagers wore plain clothing reminiscing of medieval clothing of the 12th century, consisting of tattered shirts, pants, dresses, cloaks, and hats, their facial features mostly resembled Caucasian and middle eastern descent.

Seeing strangers coming to their homes, some of the villagers observed their visitors with a varied mixture of fear and wariness, notably the witch who is leading a group. Everyone who saw them stayed out of their way, despite not knowing any of them except her.

Glancing at her sides, she forced herself to remain stoic despite how much Morgan despises these people for betraying her. They are well aware of who she is, and none of them has ever apologized or greeted her in the slightest since her return to their abode.

She wants any warm welcome coming from them. After what they had done, Morgan appreciated their apprehension towards her because she had no intention of forgiving their transgressions in the slightest, and the betrayal they had committed still lingered in her soul.

Of course, one of these brave people will try to cast her out again, but so far, nobody seems to even dare try. Which is a great thing for her because she doesn't want to waste her precious time trying to befriend them ever again.

Meanwhile, Guan Yu and Billy scanned around their new surroundings; seemingly different compared to the main city they were in before, "why are these people look different compared to the empire's city?" The curious boy compared this village to the capital, "and what's with the vibes, they seem to not like us," noticing their expressions and their actions of staying far away from them.

Sighing in understanding of what he is implying, she explains to him in vague details, "In this land, most of the wealth and progress are strictly focused on the Heartland than other places," explaining why anything outside the city is more underdeveloped in comparison, "the rest of the communities are treated fairly but nonetheless, not on equal grounds."

Frowning at this information, Billy knows it is common to be discriminated against due to the different views and opinions of others. He has lived an outlaw life where they are normally outnumbered and hated by all of society. He knows what it feels like.

"What about their avoiding part?" Noticing how even the children were running away in fear from them, "everyone here seems to be afraid of us," wondering what their problem was to react in such a manner despite having never met each other.

She kept her mouth shut for a few seconds before finally revealing the reason, "because I am with you," answering bluntly but didn't elaborate more as she continued walking in the center of the street. "Nearly everyone despises anyone who practices or uses magic after the dark lord revealed himself," stopping before glancing to her side at him, "including me, although, unlike everyone here, I don't hate magic altogether."

Once he heard that, the American let out a long sigh of annoyance, "Yeah, I can see that," understanding what she meant in terms of the reason, "but hey, at least they realize to never mess you, huh?" Smiling confidently, the woman smirked, "better than seeing you get hunted down by these losers," telling the truth that he genuinely believed in.

Sharing a chuckle with him, "Yes, it is certainly better than being harassed." Admitting this, she raised her arm outward to stop her comrades from advancing. "Let us take a break here first and decide who to ask," pointing at the many wooden tables and chairs in the middle of the public space they had stopped.

Guan Yu was the first to comply with her suggestion as they went to sit down in one of the free seats at a specific table available before responding to the woman's inquiry, "I shall remain standing," refusing her offer to sit, "the journey to this community hasn't tire me yet," saying his reasoning for remaining guard.

Nodding his head in acceptance of his answer, "Alright, suit yourself, old timer," he let out a soft yawn in his mouth while sitting down at her side. "So, where is the nearest tavern here?" Billy said with a bored expression, seeing that there aren't many activities to do aside from watching and listening to the people around them.

Shaking her head of the boy's ridiculous assumption, "I doubt any of them would want to speak with us after seeing me occupying with the both of you," she reminded the teenager of the obvious situation: "Besides, it wouldn't help of us asking the others; we must speak to someone who will likely lead us to a reliable individual capable of checking Seth's possible injuries," explained the magician while gazing at the black-haired boy who is still asleep behind the warrior's back.

Billy whistled in fascination, "It seems like you are still bitter after what they did to you," reminding her of their reason for being here in the first place. "If neither of you fellas are going to do it, then I guess it is on me," standing up as he looked around until his eyes set upon a simple man wearing a red shirt, brown pants, a straw hat, and a yellow apron. "Hey, you, I need a favor here!"

Asking for this person's assistance, the man is hesitant when he realizes who occupies this visitor, already prepared to leave, but then changed his mind about helping when the blond adds, "It's not for me but for him," directing the man's vision towards the black-haired teen sleeping peacefully at Guan Yu's back, "My friend is hurt and needs a doctor right now. Do you think you can lead us to him or her?" Seeing his body language change when he saw Seth in an injured state, the man finally decided to assist them after a change of heart.

Nodding in silence, he approached them until they were standing a few feet apart. "There is an alchemist in this village that will solve most of your problems," he said, glancing at Seth again before returning his attention to them. "I will show you where it is, but please tell her not to do anything rash," he said, turning his eyes to Morgan, who coldly glared back at him, "especially her."

Trying to ease the tension in the air, he smiled lightly, being optimistic, "then lead the way, fellow," gesturing for him to do it. With that said, the man slowly started walking. Guan Yu followed in suit as Morgan and Billy moved at his sides, trailing behind the older man through the small community in which they will most likely rest for the time being.

Awkward silence was in between as everyone was quiet—too quiet to everyone's liking. Even Guan Yu, who is usually silent most of the time, is surprised by the uneasy atmosphere they are in. So seeing how the man is tense about being with them, the old warrior attempted to engage in conversation to lighten the mood: "What is your name, good man?" Asking him in a calm manner.

Reluctant on whether to respond or not, he responded in a low voice, "Thomas," the farmer introduced his identity, "me and my wife work in the fields to take care of our crops and to feed our family and everyone in this community," he pointed at the many houses at the side of the road with patches of farmland on the far side.

Hearing of his dedication, the elderly warrior admired this man for his courage, saying, "That is noble of you to support your family, Thomas," praising him with a sincere compliment, "few in this world would have the same strength as you in surviving, especially in this kind of environment," and showing his respect by bowing his head in reverence.

Seeing how polite he is, Thomas felt little more confident in speaking freely with this interesting elderly person, "we don't make much but I can say that we live happily and healthily," the man proudly announced before glancing to his right with smile at two young children playing a game with sticks, "unlike most of the others who live in the main city, I am more content than being wealthy."

Billy butted in the conversation after being shocked by what he heard in the farmer's last sentence, "Your content with what you have?" Finding it hard to believe in that claim, "Are you serious or are you just kidding?" I already knew how odd it sounded to hear it in a man's mouth.

"I'm serious," said the man who looked at him weirdly. "What is there to complain about when everything is going well for you and your loved ones?" The boy was speechless at this realization: "Money, wealth, power—those things are temporary; I learned that the hard way was when I lost the ones most precious to me," telling him the sad story of his life, which confused him more.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Said the upset Billy, "Those things aren't temporary; they stay for as long as you have them," feeling like he was being lied to by him. "They give you so many benefits; what part of that is bad?" He was perplexed by how anyone would think that way.

Power and status are everything in his life—everything that led to this moment, to this scenario that he is now in. Money, glory, prestige, popularity—everything is everything. Those are the words that have brought him to the top of the world after becoming an outlaw.

There is nothing greater than being the best of the best. It is the greatest feeling for one to have and a privilege that barely anyone can accomplish, let alone reach if one is still alive and well. It was something he knew since the moment he killed his first man.

However, Thomas didn't see what the boy meant and said instead, "Well, that might be true for you but not for all of us." The farmer defended his argument, "True, wealth and power might bring you all those benefits you claimed to have, but do they make you happy?"

Before Billy could reply to that, they were immediately stopped when the farmer finally led them to where the alchemist is. As he stood in front of an ordinary small wooden cottage with a sign that said "open", the man turned to face the three individuals and said, "Here is her home; all you have to do is enter and introduce yourselves to her; she will understand; trust me on this, good sirs," ending his short visit by swiftly walking away, leaving them by themselves without even saying goodbye.

"Rude," the cowboy commented before shrugging his shoulders, "that Thomas guy really lacked some manners," stating the obvious, "still, the worst part is that I'm more confused by what he said," thinking back on what they talked about.

Morgan raised her brow from this peculiar response, "You also lack manners," mentioning this to him, which the boy awkwardly realized while smiling sheepishly at her, causing him to smile embarrassedly at this ironic circumstance. "And what is confusing to you about what he said?" I asked the magician out of curiosity, wanting to know his opinion in regards to his subject.

But Billy shook his head and said, "I'll talk about that later," moving to the door knob as he twisted it and opened the door. "Right now, we need to check on our pal first, alright?" I entered the small cottage with a light push. Following inside, everyone takes their moment in this shop and the unique sight in itself.

Scanning the whole room, they saw the shelves of books, glass jars of multi-colored liquids, chemicals, and minerals that glowed dimly, the various pieces of pottery with unknown plants in them, the stone desk with a pile of books stacked on top, the many pieces of equipment that resembled an antique lab, and many devices that they were unfamiliar with.

Standing behind the stone desk was a female alchemist in her late forties, wearing an brown vest, black sleeves underneath, black gloves, a purple scarf, and a skirt with her hair tied into a ponytail. The woman appeared to be busy mixing ingredients in her mortar and pestle before she noticed them right away.

"Welcome!" She announced without looking up to meet them in the eye, "Please don't take it the wrong way if I don't greet you personally; I'm busy with an experiment, that's all," saying her greeting while using the pestle to grind the herbs inside her hands.

The cowboy asked, "Are you aware that you have customers in here?" Annoyed by her remark, "This is how you treat potential buyers like us?" Wondering about her character and attitude when interacting with outsiders, she says, "Hello?" Trying to get her attention, she continued her task by ignoring him altogether.

Grumbling under his breath, Morgan was forced to bring herself into this situation by walking to where this shopkeeper is standing. "My boy is injured," she tried to get her attention with her current request, "Do you have medicine that could heal his wounds?" Finally, I managed to get her to listen to their purpose for visiting this place.

"Of course, honey, I—"

She immediately froze when her eyes met Morgan, "by stars," shocked upon recognizing the person before her. "I can't believe you're still alive," she said, staring directly at the customer's purple eyes. She quickly assumed, "Have you come to finish what you started, magician?" Readying herself to pull out a weapon if the situation requires it.

Hurt and surprised by this, "definitely not," honesty laced in the woman's words, "we came here to seek your services to heal someone that is injured," clarifying her intention while shaking her head, "not here to fight or to cause any trouble with you at all."

Just like that, the shopkeeper smiled in relief upon hearing this news: "Oh, thank the gods," laughing nervously in a slight panic, "I was really wrong about you," finally realizing what she was doing and to whom she was talking. "I should have recognized you, and I'm sorry for not doing that sooner." The notion completely took Morgan off guard, shocking her completely.

Guan Yu stepped into the conversation, moving to Morgan's side with the unconscious boy still on his back. "I apologize for the intrusion," he said, speaking in a respectful voice. "But I do hope you can check if his well-being is alright, ma'am," he said with concern in his voice for the black-haired youth.

"My apologies," she said, returning his apology for making assumptions about them. "I haven't introduced myself, have I?" The shopkeeper told them, in which the old warrior nodded in response, "Very well then," introducing her identity to them, "my name is Galil, but if that is too hard to pronounce, call me Gale," offering her hand for a handshake to Guan Yu, who gladly accepted it.

"Well met, Miss Gale," shaking her hand gently while smiling pleasantly at her, "my name is Guan Yu, and these here are my traveling companions." He gestured to his comrades behind him, "why don't you introduce yourselves to this kind lady?"

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by 3 Armored Kittens · Prodromos v.1.1 - World Anvil 0.9.15.042 © 2017-2024 [en] | Anvil Time: 17:53, Nov 8 2024