The young archer from Baharuth and the cleric girl walked along the street, strolling side by side. They occasionally stopped at roadside vendors, browsing and buying small items.
Three days had passed since the Warrior Captain tournament finals, but recalling it still filled the two with lingering dread.
They had not taken part in the perilous Warrior Captain tournament; their captain, EeDechi, was the one who competed in the finals. After winning in a miraculous way when her opponent conceded defeat, EeDechi was summoned by the king of Re-Estize.
The old king, upon realizing that EeDechi was an eccentric with terrifying combat prowess, became interested in her teammates. Without a moment's hesitation, EeDechi dragged the two of them and Barrett along to have an audience with the king.
Two adventurers from Baharuth paying homage to the king of Re-Estize... What kind of experience was that? One that could cost them their lives!
The two countries were bitter enemies with a hundred-year history of war. At the peak of the conflict between Baharuth and Re-Estize, Baharuth had seriously considered how to assassinate the king of Re-Estize to plunge Re-Estize into chaos over the succession of power.
But they had never found a good way to get assassins close to the king. Unexpectedly, two adventurers had achieved such incredibly close contact in this unbelievable manner.
The two of them were probably the closest any Baharuth citizens had ever come to the king. Thanks to the king's trust in the Warrior Captain and the solemn guarantee from Grand Knight Wade Bolton, they were even allowed to keep their weapons on them.
If Sean had drawn his bow and fired an arrow straight at the old king on the throne back then, he would have become a legendary hero forever etched into Baharuth's history books.
Fortunately, Sean was a level-headed guy. Between carving his name into the annals of history and saving his own neck, he chose to lie low and stay alive. He and Stella played dumb, and with Barrett backing them up, they barely managed to bluff their way through without giving away their nationality.
"Ugh, I think the captain can be so unreliable sometimes," Stella sighed.
"On the day of the tournament finals, weren't you saying the captain was 'a bit cute'?" Sean teased.
"The captain really is a bit silly sometimes," the cleric girl said with a worried look on her face. "But she never listens to what anyone else thinks or suggests. She's kind of... headstrong."
"Yeah," Sean agreed. "If it weren't for her ridiculously strong power, I really don't know how she's managed to live this long."
Stella turned around, carefully glancing around the street and said, "Better not let the captain hear that, or she'll definitely blow up."
She walked with her head down for a moment, kicking a small pebble with her deerskin boots, and asked the young archer beside her, "Do you miss home?"
"Yeah, of course I do," Sean answered without thinking. "Adventurers are supposed to make the world their home and all, but I never imagined I'd end up in a place this far away. I promised my parents I'd go home three times a year, but it's already been almost eight months since the last time."
Stella tilted her head up to look at Sean. "So will you keep being an adventurer forever? Like veteran Barrett?"
"That's what I used to think," Sean replied, until I met you. "But now I plan to save up some money and head back to Baharuth for a stable life."
"What do you plan to do once you're done being an adventurer?" Stella asked next.
Sean gazed into her bright hazel eyes, his cheeks flushing involuntarily. "I want to build a water mill and become a mill owner."
"Why do you want to be a mill owner?" Stella asked curiously.
Sean seemed a bit embarrassed, but he answered honestly, "When I was a kid, I heard fairy tales from my parents. The mill owners in those stories were all wealthy people, like The Miller and His Son and the Donkey, Rumpelstiltskin, Little Hans and the Miller, things like that. Back then, I got the idea that when I grew up, I wanted to be a mill owner too."
"But aren't the mill owners in those stories usually the villains?" Stella said with a small smile, pursing her lips, and the gloom on her face vanished completely.
"I'll definitely be a good mill owner!" Sean declared, patting his chest. "I won't oppress anyone, and I'll use the bow in my hand to help the villagers drive off goblins and other monsters."
"Everyone will be really grateful to you," Stella said, imagining the young mill owner drawing his bow to shoot arrows, a sense of longing stirring in her heart. "Who knows, maybe bards will base stories on you and write fairy tales about how mill owners can be good people?"
"I'm not holding my breath for that," Sean replied. Seeing the cleric girl no longer frowning, he felt happier too.
"Look, there are fresh goji berries for sale." Stella pointed toward a corner of the market.
"Didn't the captain say recently that she's short on goji berries to craft that 'health preservation' potion? We could buy some and give them to her." Sean's eyes lit up.
"That's exactly what I was thinking," Stella said happily.
Recently, EeDechi hadn't been able to soak goji berries in her tea. She'd searched the nearby markets but found none, leaving her in a constant bad mood. Goji berries weren't grown locally and weren't a popular spice, so there were few sellers and even fewer buyers.
Now that they had finally found someone selling goji berries, Sean and Stella immediately spent every coin they had, buying up as many as they could.
They strolled down the street with their bundles in hand when, from some hidden corner, an old woman holding a crystal ball suddenly popped out. She thrust the crystal ball right up to Sean's nose, spitting as she spoke in her excitement:
"Know the past, foresee the future! Reveal your fortune, dispel the mists! I see longing for home in your eyes, and uncertainty about what lies ahead. The crystal knows your fate! Come, let me read your fortune!"
Sean and Stella exchanged glances. The fortune teller's wrinkled face scrunched into a beaming smile as she said earnestly, "This pretty young lady is a cleric who worships Gaia, isn't she? My crystal ball has been blessed by the temple bishop himself as a holy relic. By Gaia, I shall guide the Eye of the Gods and reveal the unknown dawn!"
Stella hesitated. Sean looked at her and said, "Let's get our fortunes told once."
"Okay," Stella nodded, thinking there was no real harm in having their fortunes read.
Seeing the customers agree, the old woman was overjoyed. She half-dragged, half-pulled them into a tent by the roadside.
Inside the tent the light was dim. Several yellow candles burned slowly, giving off a faint blue glow. An unknown incense filled the air. Crystal balls, cards, and scrolls covered in six-pointed stars were piled haphazardly everywhere, creating an eerie and mysterious atmosphere.
The old woman produced two porcelain cups and a pot of tea from somewhere, filled them, and handed them over eagerly. "Aromatic tea from the western Elf Country. One sip and it will refresh your mind and spirit."
The two of them didn't want to refuse. They glanced at the clear tea in the cups and drank it down.
The warm liquid flowed down Sean's throat into his stomach. He set the cup down and was about to speak when a wave of dizziness hit him. Everything in front of him blurred and doubled. He turned to look at Stella and saw her collapse to the ground.
He tried to help Stella up and get out, but his body went limp against his will. His eyelids grew heavy, the world spun, and his throat felt like it was filled with lead—he couldn't make a sound.
He fell onto his back. In the final moment before his eyes closed, he saw the tent's rough ceiling and the old woman's fleeting, sinister grin.