Chapter 179: Last Town At The Main Route

POV Eliza

The next morning, everyone noticed that I hadn’t slept well. Again. The others didn’t say anything about it, though, even though I could see the concern in Betty’s eyes. I assured her, however, that it wasn’t anything serious and that I’d feel better soon.

And that’s exactly what happened, because as the day went on, my anxiety turned into a fear and then into a fleeting memory. As a result, by that evening my mind was clear again, and I was able to have a carefree conversation with Betty. We didn’t talk much, though, because we preferred simply being close to each other and the unspoken connection. We held hands and gazed up at the stars in the night sky. It was shortly after the new moon, so the moon was barely visible. The thought of it caused a slight uneasiness within me, but I didn’t understand why. Since it was only a subtle feeling, I didn’t give it much thought.

The next morning, Hattar told us something we’d already been waiting to hear.

“Later this afternoon, we’ll come to a small fortified village. It’s the last village we’ll pass through on this road. After that, we’ll continue riding north. From the village, it’ll take us about another week to reach my tribe. If you want to buy anything, you’ll have to do it tonight. This will also be your last chance to get a bath. My tribe can’t afford to waste water unnecessarily.” Hattar

We looked at each other and nodded.

Toward late afternoon, we stood before a high palisade with a gate cut into it. A small line of carts stood in front of it, even though the day was already well advanced. It was probably because a second road led to the gate from the south, and there was heavy traffic on it as well. Presumably, travelers heading west toward Hartdome City were also using the village as a stopover to spend the night. The village must have been prosperous because of the many travelers. I was curious to see what it looked like inside the palisade.

Hattar led us past the line of carts and rode slowly toward the gate. The other travelers, who were either on foot or on horseback, did the same. At the gate itself stood several guards armed with long polearms. No one was being searched, but I noticed that two of the guards were holding a small number of slips of paper. The two guards kept glancing at the slips of paper and watching the travelers closely. At first, I couldn’t make sense of this behavior until I rode past one of the guards. From above, I could see that there were pictures on the slips of paper. Wanted posters?

In any case, our small travel group had no trouble entering the village. A wide road led from the gate through the village. At first, there were mainly stables filled with many horses. Alongside the horses stood several ox-like animals. Next came the first taverns and inns. The vast majority of the village seemed to consist of buildings where you could either eat or stay the night—usually both. The remaining buildings housed craftsmen such as blacksmiths and wheelwrights, as well as merchants who had settled there. General goods, weapons, armor, food, and horse supplies. In the center of the village, on the main square, there were a few more distinctive buildings.

Next to the main building—which served as both the town hall and a meeting hall—and the guard’s main station stood an unexpected structure. It was quite unassuming but solidly built. A sign hung above the entrance bearing only the word “Guild.” Guild? What kind of guild? From the outside, there were no clues I could make out as to which one it might be. We couldn’t hear anything coming from inside, and during the entire time we walked past it, no one entered or left the building.

“Does anyone here know exactly what this building is? The sign above the entrance just says ‘Guild.’ Isn’t that a bit vague?” Eliza

“That’s the Adventurers’ Guild.” Hattar

“Adventurers’ Guild? Is that different from the three guilds in Hartdome City?” Eliza

Hattar didn’t say anything. Typical of him—taciturn as always.

“I can answer that, but I’ll have to back up a bit. Before Bishop and I left the Empire, the only guild we both knew was the Adventurers’ Guild. We’d never heard of the other three before. They don't exist in the empire. We were both members of the Adventurers’ Guild and wanted to take on quests to earn money. So we were understandably confused when our membership cards didn’t help us, because none of the three guilds accepted them. They insisted that only their own members were allowed to carry out their quests. You know how the city is divided, but do you also know the background?” Duke

“No.” Eliza

“The city magistrate was afraid that the Adventurers’ Guild would become too powerful if it managed the labyrinth and all the monster-related tasks in the area. So they created their own guilds and divided the tasks into three parts. Besides, there’s a lot of money to be made, and the leading families wanted their share of it. Long story short, that’s the reason why there’s no Adventurers’ Guild in Hartdome City—only the other three. Apparently, though, everywhere else it’s the other way around: there’s only the Adventurers’ Guild, and the other three remain a local phenomenon.” Duke

“That sounds pretty complicated.” Eliza

“That’s politics, Leo. And there’s a lot of money at stake. People get creative when it comes to money, and it’s certainly no different with the other races.” Duke

“Seems so. But that means my ID from Hartdome City isn’t worth anything here anymore.” Eliza

“We have to assume that’s the case, yes. Are you interested in getting an ID from the Adventurers’ Guild?” Duke

“I’m not sure yet. Most quests involve fighting monsters, right?” Eliza

“Yes, but there are several others that can be completed without fighting. Gathering medicinal herbs, search missions, reconnaissance, and the like. There are also professions needed to process the items that adventurers loot and collect. Alchemists brew potions, butchers cut up the carcasses, and various other artisans craft the monster parts into weapons, armor, and other useful items.” Duke

“But surely you can do these jobs even if you’re not a member of the guild, right?” Eliza

“Partly, yes, but there are major advantages to being a member. For one thing, members get better prices, but the more important factor is that most jobs are only assigned to members. Many artisans work directly under the guild or have long-standing connections.” Duke

“I’ll check it out. Will you show me the guild tonight, Duke?” Eliza

“Of course. Do you want to come along, Bishop?” Duke

“I’d love to. I can’t let you go alone.” Bishop

“Then I’m coming too. You’re not leaving me behind all by myself!” Betty

“I wasn’t planning to, Betty. But if you’re so eager to join us, Leo will surely be happy about it.” Duke

Duke grinned widely, while Betty blushed. I looked at both of them and smiled slightly. The two of them got along really well. I was glad to have found three good friends in them.

Hattar had shown no sign of wanting to contribute to the discussion. Instead, he led us through the entire village to the other side. There, he headed for a smaller stable, a little farther north from the East Gate along the palisade. He led his mare into the stable and dismounted there. Inside, he turned to a stable boy and spoke quietly to him. He spoke so quietly, in fact, that not even I could hear him, despite my keen hearing. The stable boy nodded eagerly and ran through a door into the interior.

“Lead the horses into individual stalls, then unsaddle them. We’ll take care of the horses ourselves, since outsiders aren’t allowed in here anyway. Our tribe has been stopping here for many years, so they know us. They’ll provide us with everything we need. Once the horses are taken care of, you can do whatever you want. But we’ll be setting out again tomorrow morning, so don’t drink too much.” Hattar

I was amazed at how many words Hattar had just spoken. But when it came to horses, he became downright eloquent. It wasn’t the first time we’d witnessed this. Anyway, Hattar led his mare into an empty stall relatively far in the back. Then he tended to her just as he had every evening. As always, he expected the same level of care from us, and after he was finished, he went to each of our horses and checked our grooming. Only when we had all achieved satisfactory results were we allowed to enter the building.