"To our respectable Lord Goblin:
How are you guys doing? I was doing fine until the moon came up. There were wars going on everywhere, but I was always fine. This is the last day of the Dawn Adventure Group's stay in Fangpai City. They will set off to Sun Sea tonight. This is all because a big shot died during the day, and the gate card will not let people go until the next day. I had to go with them to see how the locals hunted fish. The junction of Burles and Eastman was occupied last week by a certain Duke, and this morning I heard that he himself had been assassinated. Maybe he is the Duke of a small place.
The border war has stopped, and there are deserters and marauding bandits everywhere, as well as private mercenaries working for the nobles. Even for Gao Huan, it is really troublesome to walk alone. I hope that the Dawn Adventure Group will leave Sun Sea as soon as possible and go straight to the west.
By the way, I heard that some people saw drow in the Sun Sea. If you see Dalton, please inform me of news about his kin. With the return of Garvash, the Ash Temple of the Underworld has also returned, and the arrival of the Glitter Pool is not far away. The day is approaching for me to go home.
My traveling companions and I get along very well, but you may not. It's hard to find a more suitable squad leader than York Chaine, and Boss Calder must be quite troubled. Tell him that I will be back at the end of the coming year and don't give my seat to anyone else. But I can recommend to you a dear friend, the great beer pharmacist and the chief potions advisor to the Duke of Diamond City, the "King of Foam" Brenanin. He is an adventurer I met in Fangpai City. He is calm-minded and has a very interesting behavior. Unfortunately, he is always in trouble.
Now this friend is heading to Eastman at my request, evading the pursuit of his former employer along the way, facing the hospitality of the city's nobles wherever he goes, and the continuous harassment of road bandits and demons. But this small obstacle is nothing. I believe he can solve the problem, refuse the temptation along the way (this part is doubtful), and take my armband to Yotsuba City to find you within a week. Bonin will become a good brother to everyone, and Boss Calder might like him.
Also, please help me ask Dalton, does he have any kin with fish tails? The unsubstantiated news is really confusing.
Attachment: Please give three hundred black city coins to the person who sent the letter. Anyone can pay, but be sure not to issue an IOU, otherwise this will be my last letter.
York Chaine wrote in Brestatik. Everything here is good, but there are no pansy seeds for sale.』
The dwarf looked down at the letter, then looked up at the guy in front of him. "Within a week", eh? He counted them on his fingers and found that the extent of the timeout could not be calculated at all. The applicant smiled awkwardly.
This wasn't the worst candidate Painter had ever seen. When Sita York Shain from the Twinkling Pool joined the "Knox Mercenaries", she excitedly lit everyone's hats and gave every woman within reach a passionate kiss.
He thought that was the worst case scenario, but just two years ago in the Fire Moon, a certain tower messenger burst into the tavern and talked nonsense to everyone, claiming that he came by train and wanted to occupy Knox Bar. , and finally almost kidnapped his old friend's daughter.
Now that York has left Eastman and gone to the north to find his true kin, Uriel has disappeared. No one has seen or heard from him for a long time. Some said he was dead, some believed he had joined the Demon Society, and some claimed to have seen him on the battlefield at the Fulcrum of Order. Painter couldn't tell the truth, but he dared to say that the kid was still alive. There were some people in this world who didn't die so easily.
I should also meet new people. Painter thought. New things can always wipe away the haze of the past. Although this Brenanin was a year late, he finally came. Maybe something really stopped him. The mercenary group is short of manpower recently, and there is still a war in the west. It is a good thing if someone joins us. Moreover, since he is a person that York admires... he must be another disaster star. This has been changed from the time when he was late. reflected. Painter couldn't convince himself. This stranger whom York met in the Bures Empire chose such a sensitive time to come to Eastman. After staying in the northern part of the kingdom for a year, he came with a token from a friend who had not received any response for a year. Among the mercenary groups, they hope to fulfill their past promises. How can I trust him?
The dwarf considered hiding the letter, lying that he had not received it, or simply sending it away.
Go, but the young man opposite looked so pale and haggard that Painter couldn't speak. Am I really destined to raise children? He couldn't help but think.
Latecomers look nothing like children. He was thin, his shoulders were hunched, his eyes were unfocused and dull, he had no energy, no expectations, no initiative, and seemed completely useless. He dressed up a little, shaved, and polished his boots, trying to look fresher, but Painter recognized the look in his eyes, and his efforts to dress up were in vain. This person has nothing to do with the "calm" and "interesting" mentioned in the letter.
However, this effort on his part was expensive. Wearing a gold and green, wide and wear-resistant thick leather and down-based cloak jacket, the hat, undershirt and trousers are in a harmonious style, most likely a complete set, and the materials are silk and some kind of fur. The collar and cuffs have been carefully ironed, and some perfume has been sprayed on the armpits. A row of beautiful metal buttons are regularly arranged on the left side, as if to declare to everyone the past glory of its owner.
For someone who was about to become one of the adventurers, Painter thought to himself, this guy was really an amateur. He could only continue to observe the other person's expression. After all, judging people by their appearance would inevitably lead to mistakes.
As a result, the dwarf failed to get new feedback. The applicant seemed to have no confidence in himself. When speaking, his hands and feet had no place to rest, and his long face was frowning, and he looked completely down and out. In fact, he looks like a loser who has lost all his chips, is living an ignoble existence under the pursuit of his creditors, and is in urgent need of a home to ease his livelihood.
"This is a letter from last year," Painter told the travelers in front of him. "At that time, we left the position idle for a week, but no one came. Boss Calder had to choose someone else."
"I encountered a lot of things on the way, which delayed me a lot of time. And it's always dark here in Eastman, so it's difficult to travel." The other party immediately explained.
Well, for the unsurprising reasons. If I had taken the token and applied for the same company last year, I would have prepared an explanation in advance.
Although there is no good weather in the south of the kingdom every frost moon, the calculation of the date is not wrong at least. However, Painter was just an adventurer, not a detective. He only looked at the token.
"That's right," the dwarf muttered.
The applicant breathed a sigh of relief. "I try my best to...use various means to save...uh, haha." He finally remembered how to smile. "I must admit, there is indeed some time-"
Painter wasn't interested. "Since someone guarantees it, I will act according to the rules, but the letter mentions some of your... requests, and I cannot guarantee it."
"Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I can pay for it—"
What a ghost. Is he pretending to be confused, or does he really not understand? The dwarf frowned. "I'm just reminding you. I'll take you to meet the brothers tomorrow. Oh, what's your name?" It won't be "Bubble King", right?
"Bo Ning. Just call me Bon Ning."
The weather is bad and the temperature has dropped again. The business hours of the commercial street were getting shorter and shorter. He arrived too late and even the lights were out. From Sonbigler Street to the Hekli residential area, there was not even a single open shop, so customers had to go home.
"It's all because of the Duke." Painter once said to his adventurers. "She rebuilt the streets of Hercule, toppled the monuments of honor that our brothers had erected at their own expense, scraped away the bones - both those of our enemies and our own, and finally she forgot to build night lights. What a wonderful woman! I don’t understand.”
"The Duke went to find her sister." Jet was already half drunk. His brother died at the Battle of Hercule two years ago. At that time, a plague of undead broke out in Yotsuye City, but compared with the chaos in Knox today, the battle at that time was just a minor conflict. "The nights in the Four Leaf Territory are getting longer and longer. If it were me, I would go north for vacation."
"No, her sister is sick," Xin said.
"The old man is always sick. He is too old." Lotta from Deepwater Port sighed. "The queen is not a mysterious creature. I am worried that she will not survive this frost moon."
"It's not her fault. The frost moon is getting longer."
"Worried about the Eastman owner?" Painter laughed. "We guys just care about the boots. I have a hole in the sole."
"The sole of your shoe is just a hole," Lotta said.
"It's not even midnight yet, and the craftsmen don't want to open the door to welcome guests."
People complained, "Is it possible that the sole of a shoe is as big as your chin? I don't believe it."
Lotta reached out and touched her face, making a clicking sound. This man was originally a fisherman. One day he encountered a big fish with sharp teeth in the river. According to his own boast, he struggled with the big fish for a day and a night before finally dragging it aboard. During this period, the big fish swung its tail and gave him a scratch on the ear. Not only did half of his face drip with blood, but his jaw was also broken. Later, Lotta sold the catch to the deep-water port nobles, and took the reward to go to a craftsman to install a wooden chin.
The Knox Mercenary Group has many members with such extraordinary backgrounds, which scares many newcomers away. But, there may be another reason why people are reluctant to join Knox in recent years... As he approached the station, Painter pulled out the letter. "A new brother has been recommended to join," he told them. "A man from Bures, a traveler from afar. This is the recommender's letter."
Jet's expression seemed to remember that such a thing had happened, but Lotta had completely forgotten about it. After the dwarf finished reading the content, he chuckled: "Mermaid? If I had caught a mermaid, I would have said she gave me a kiss."
"This happened during last year's Harvest Moon." Painter didn't hide it. "It turns out this kid just showed up now and hopes to join us."
"Appeared suddenly?" Xin asked softly.
"The token is real. There is also news from York to prove this. I plan to give him a chance."
Jet snorted and said nothing. He is an old man in the mercenary group, married and has children, and his wife is his former teammate. Their daughter is just a toddler. Although Jet doesn't care about trouble, he obviously won't welcome "friends" from unknown sources.
"Of course it doesn't matter if you are an ordinary newcomer." Rota pointed out, "But I heard you right, is this kid going to take over York's original position? Lead a whole team, like you? This job is not that easy to do. Besides, no matter what Anyway, he came too late."
"Why are you late?" Xin Ye asked.
The dwarf could not answer for Brenanin. The Knox Mercenary Group is just a group of adventurers, and logically they shouldn't get to the bottom of it. However, there are also leaders in the gang. If he wakes up the next day and suddenly finds that Boss Calder has handed over the position of leader to an unknown newcomer, Painter will definitely not accept it.
After York left, Captain Calder Reiler arranged for Sheen to temporarily take his place, to everyone's satisfaction. Xin is the leader of the Four Leaves, and he is also a mysterious creature who has changed his profession. He may not have joined the mercenaries as long as Jet and Lotta, but he is reliable in doing things, and his subordinates also believe in him.
"I asked about Brenanin's name." The dwarf said as he walked. "It's not famous. But along with the portrait, some people said they saw him serving a certain business guild in the north of the kingdom."
"King of Bubbles? Is this guy a wine merchant?" Jeter remembered the records in the letter.
"It is indeed related to wine. He is an alchemist in medicine, who specializes in improving brewing recipes for nobles, and is their guest. There is a beer that was very popular in Yotsuba City for a while."
"Brewing wine?" Xin paused in his steps. "It's a lucrative trade. I probably know why he was late," he added.
Lotta let out a sigh. Due to the material of his chin, his voice was a little weird: "Then this kid should be quite wealthy. Why do you want to be an adventurer?"
"Maybe it's squandering, maybe it's bad luck. There are wars everywhere now, and it's hard to do any business. Anyway, he's here."
"You came to seek refuge because you couldn't survive anymore? There really is a way." Lotta muttered.
The dwarf gave him a hard look. "Brennanen came to apply for the job with a token and is still a friend of York. I will explain this matter to the leader. No matter what the outcome is, it is best to make some preparations. Don't blame me for not reminding you!"
"Ha, anyway, I have nothing to prepare for." Rota himself is Painter's team member.
Jett is the leader of the other team, and he has never liked this kind of thing. "We all know the result, Painter. If this wine merchant wants to change his way of life, it is better to learn from scratch. You are like this, Xin and I are the same, York has no idea how late Brenanin is, Those boys themselves are full of problems... At this point, why put this desperate poor man on the fire?
"
"For the sake of the gods, it's not my pleasure!" cried Painter, who was fed up. The Big Candle Yorke Shayne probably didn't think about these things when he wrote the letter, and this guy never did! Whether in Clover City or in Burles, Sita can still cause me trouble. He might as well let the mermaid from the Sun Sea give him a slap in the face. Sita doesn't have to worry about her chin anyway.
"The leader doesn't know about this yet?" Xin passed them at some point and walked in front. As he walked into the station, the stop sign flashed but did not light up.
The dwarf glanced at his back. Xin didn't seem to be bothered by this. Presumably for him, his team was just helping little brats who caused trouble everywhere. It was not a good job to lead them. I would think so too. After all, Xin is an experienced adventurer, not a newbie, and he has nothing in common with the imps. Captain Calder entrusted the newcomer to him because of his reliability, and Xin himself did not need it at all.
"I'll tell the leader tomorrow." It was evening when Brenanin found him. There is no need to disturb others' rest. "That kid is generally a newcomer, so he will most likely be assigned to your team."
"Do you mind if I talk to him in advance?"
Painter hadn't reacted yet. After taking a few steps closer, I discovered that there was another person in the shadow of the stop sign. Judging from the costume, there was no doubt that it was Brenanin. For a moment, he began to recall how loud he had just been.
Xin waved his hand and motioned for him to take a look. Only then did the dwarf realize that the other party had actually fallen asleep leaning on the street sign and hadn't woken up at all. What is Brenanin doing here?
The answer seems obvious. "Is this kid homeless?" Painter couldn't help but mutter.
"It's almost like a real adventurer." Lotta let out a weird laugh, "But at least we have a tent to live in. It seems that he has adapted to life in the wild in advance."
"It's snowing tonight." Jet frowned.
"Can't sleep here." Xin agreed. He stepped forward to wake the sleeping traveler. Brenanin shivered and climbed up from the package.
"Uh, who are you?" The boy looked frightened, as if a nightmare had caught up with him.
"Ranger," Painter said irritably. "You can't stay overnight at the station, out-of-towners."
"I had no idea about this!" Brenanin explained immediately. "I just wanted to rest for a while, but I missed the train. I just arrived in this city, and everything... uh, I'll leave right away, sir."
Lotta laughed again, her jaw cracking. "He's not looking at you, Captain."
"It's a problem with the light," Xin said seriously.
"Shut the damn mouth!"
Brenanin finally lowered his head and saw our dwarf adventurer. "My lord." He was visibly relieved.
"Come on, I'm not an adult. Painter Molten Iron, this is my name." The dwarf was no longer bothered to keep accounts over the heads of his overjoyed companions, "Don't you have somewhere else to spend the night?"
"I'm just waiting for the bus." Brenanin coughed and glanced at Lotta. He ran his hand through his hair, but felt snowflakes. "Snowing."
"There is indeed a bus." Xin nodded, "I'm here to wait for the bus too. Are you going to Beicheng?"
"The mercenary group's camp is in the North City?" Brenanin asked.
"We're not going there," Lotta explained, "we're just passing by the station and seeing him off. This is Xin, and Jet." He tapped his chin. "I'm Lotta. Don't look at it. The mermaid left me a hickey that couldn't be wiped off. I still wanted a wife, so I had to change half of my face."
Brenanin's eyes widened like a fool.
"It was bitten by a fish and had to be removed due to infection of the wound." Xin described it succinctly.
Unexpectedly, Lotta was more surprised than Brenanin at this moment: "How do you know...?"
"Is he right?" the dwarf smiled. Brenanin smiled a little too.
"To hell with you and your fish," Jet said. He looked Brennanen over and nodded to Xin. "We're going back first. If we really don't have anywhere to rest, we can go to the Gaia Church, which takes in passers-by for the night."
They didn't stop for him, and Brenanin didn't know whether to cry or laugh. I should beg
His, that short adventurer will definitely take me to the camp. Coming to this cold city alone, what kind of dignity do you still have? In any case, this group of adventurers is much friendlier than the nobles of the kingdom. York didn't lie to me.
"Are you going to Beicheng?" Xin asked.
There are still people left. Bonin thought to himself, if only he was not here, I could follow them. "That's what I planned, but the car didn't come for a long time..." I probably drove away early, just when I was holding my luggage and snoring. "Uh, are you on your way, this..."
"Xin. Don't call me sir." The adventurer raised his eyebrows, "Otherwise I will feel shorter than Painter."
Only then did he realize how ridiculous it was that he applied the so-called honorific title to the dwarf. "I hope he doesn't hold a grudge against me." Brenanin's headache returned.
"This is nothing. We usually talk to each other more excessively. This is the habit of adventurers."
No sense of proportion. In a sense, they are informal. Brenanin imagined a life like this when he came with the token. I didn't expect that I would adapt so quickly.
He created silence unintentionally. "Are you really York's friend?" Xin asked proactively, "According to my understanding, you seem to be two different types of people. How did you meet?"
"A banquet, in the lord's banquet. There were very many people, and we... happened to sit next to each other. A badger was performing the flute, and everyone was chatting about the music." Brenanin shrugged, "York provided me with Inspiration, creative inspiration. His whimsy is very helpful.”
"York loves drinks very much, and you are a famous bartender." Xin also said, "You two just hit it off."
Whether the compliment was genuine or not, Brenanin wasn't sure. Anyone would say this out of upbringing, pity, or simply perfunctory. He would rather believe it was the former. Needless to say, this is a way for the other party to express friendliness and has nothing to do with the person you are talking to.
Before those unforgettable things happened, Brenanin was proud of his talent and superb skills. Even if he was praised by the Duke himself, he would take it calmly. But now, the stranger's courtesy made him feel excited. You have no idea what's going on, he thought to himself. My glory days have long passed. No matter what field I was an expert in, I am now a novice adventurer.
Come on, what do I have to say to them? Brenanin kept his mouth shut. Telling adventurers these things is of no help. If the other person shows sympathy, it will only be worse for him.
"I don't drink much," Xin said.
Brenanin felt a surge of nameless anger. "It's a pity that I don't have much else to offer." He wished he was as indifferent as he said.
"Don't say that." Xin turned his head, "Adventurers have a lot of fun, Boning. I dare say you will be their savior."
Oh, really? "Sounds like good news. I really don't know you guys."
"Isn't it the same for us? No one here recognizes you, no one understands your past, unless you take the initiative to share it. Just like Lotta."
His words seemed to have deep meaning, but they were more likely casual remarks. Is he reminding me, or warning? Or do you feel threatened? Brenanin knew he couldn't reveal his guilt. "A new beginning." He answered vaguely.
"A new life." Xin pointed to the corner, and a bus with lights on was slowly approaching. "The car you were waiting for has arrived."
Brenanin turned around in surprise. He didn't expect there would be a car at this time. "how……?"
"I don't know what time it is, maybe you didn't sleep that long."
"Oh," he muttered, "I don't know." There were no passengers in the car, and the driver was yawning. This train must be late. Where is it going? He couldn't help but look at the huge alchemical creation in front of him.
The two of them worked together to drag the luggage through the door and brush the snow off the ground. Xin took back his hand and turned around to go to the station. "Aren't you coming up?" Brenanin asked confused.
"I'm not going to Beicheng. Good luck to you, Bonin. See you tomorrow."
I never have good luck and I just hope it doesn't get worse tomorrow. In fact, he didn't know if Beicheng could find a place to spend the night, but since a car really came, he couldn't change his mind immediately. Anyway, he can get rid of this adventurer who pretends to care about him.
Brenanin nodded. "See you tomorrow."
