Chapter 663: "Hello Traveler" (1/2)
”Hello traveler, are you new around these parts?”
”Greetings,” replied Igna, ”-I'd say I'm quite accustomed to the surroundings. Have matters changed?” Rough-edged benched paired by constant shakes of the rocky paths had many of a lesser plumb bottom sneer.
”Not really,” said the elderly-looking woman, ”-Glenda's become quite the talk of the province. Let me tell you, in my old days as a housewife, I never expected the war to have such effects on our daily lives.”
”Don't worry about my granny,” interjected a younger boy, ”-we're all residents of a nearby village.”
”Everyone here is related?”
”How did you know?” returned a motherly figure. He took a moment to think of an answer, '-I can't be rude and say they're bear similar features.'
”Call it a hunch,” said he behind the mask of nervousness.
”Are you a single father?” presumed the mother, ”-the attire's quite fit for a traveler, are you perhaps rich?”
”I'd say my father's a prominent trader. The little gloom-ball is my daughter.”
”Must be harsh,” sympathized the grandmother, ”-to raise a kid at such a young age.”
”No, it's easy,” added Vanesa, ”-pops very rich, we get what we want.”
”Very rich,” a sparkle lit the obvious greed, ”-might I ask thy name?”
”Do forgive my daughter,” he patted her long oily hair, ”-she's a bit dazed from the travels. I'd say I'm fortunate, and not rich. Being completely honest, life outside of Arda is easier.”
”True that,” sighed the granny, ”-back in my days, us demi-humans were prosecuted without justification. Part of my ear was chopped before their grandfather swooped in. He was a mage from the Order or something, a very wealthy man.”
”-Granny…” sighed the bystanders, the grandson hid his face into his mom's back. The latter signaled to be silent. ”-the good ol' days. I remember it as if it was yesterday. The Dorchestrian war raged the land, my sister and I were on a trip, it was the first time we ever went abroad. The walk lasted months, until the cheapest carriage. We were allowed passage to Dorchester only; thankfully, my brother at the time served the royal family, his skills in battle made us a somewhat prominent family, maybe not prominent, we did better than the other families. One of the granted favors was an expedition outside the border. Father thought to start a trading business, and I was sent to negotiate. War had been rampant for decades, the province decided into aggression and non-aggression sectors. Sadly, our carriage was ambushed by masked men. Our supplies and the passengers were killed, only women and children were allowed to live. Those times were rough, I can't tell how long we endured. Our bodies grew skinny, and my sister somewhere along died of starvation and diseases of vulgar nature. My beastwoman appearance didn't turn men on like she did, in a way, this ugly face of mine made it on shock horror value. Strangely enough, instead of a lady, they saw me as a replacement for a warrior. My tiger blood and carnivorous tendencies changed my persona into a warrior. In time, our band of mercenaries became well-known around the region, the highest point was 5 thousand men. We occupied the border between Arda and Dorchester. In time, I realized the reason my sister and I were sent. Father and brother lied, we were supposed to be pleasant gifts for the men, distraction for their hard work defending the border. Our carriage contained supplies for them, and never us, we were doomed from the start. Let me tell you son, the war in those days was rough. Still, this ol' granny made it alive through countless battles. I ripped, ate, and slaughtered to survive, Then, the last battle I ever fought arrived, we were ambushed by a party of mages, the leader, someone by the name of Josiah, or whatever. I couldn't believe my defeat at the hands of a kid your age named Tempest something. Whatever, we lose, and I was set free by a stranger from that mage team, he found me attractive and I figured why not. If I was to die, I'd at least know what the world had to offer. Color me
'I get why the boy didn't wish to hear her story. The granny, despite her appearance, is very graphic in the details. Even I cringed at her tactlessness.'
”-anyway, the Empire's invasion was news to me. Here I thought we had a humble king and strong queen ruling our continent.”
”No grandma, the rulership changed a few years ago,” added the grandson.
”Oh yeah, the king died on an expedition to the Empire?”
”Granny,” slipped.
”You called me granny?” her fiery eyes dimmed, ”-come here,” she wrapped his head under her armpit, ”-you're a gentleman, aren't you,” she laughed.
'Her grip is strong,' he tapped her elbow, ”-I yield, my lady!”
”Let her go, mother.”
”Fine, whatever,” the grip eased, ”-boy, where are you from?”
”The world plays various tricks, I'd never imagined such a chance encounter.”
”What you mean, don't be a vague boy.”
”The man Tempest Haggard is actually my uncle,” he leaned and to watch the road ahead, ”-the mage party was probably him and his teachers. Josiah's an instructor at a prestigious academy in Oxshield.”
”Oh,” the mother's eyes came to a pretty astute conclusion, ”-you're related to the royal family?”
”Yes,” said Igna, ”-Staxius Haggard, the king who died, was my uncle.”
”The Devil of Glenda,” said the grandson, ”-are you him?” he watched in wonder.
”I suppose my name's pretty known around here,” a nervous scratch of the cheek sold the relatable young noble story.
”You're experienced in battle too, son?” fired the rider, ”-believe it or not, I was an adventurer too until I took an arrow to the knee. The undead archers from the Azure walls are no joke.”
”Isn't life hard in Arda?” inquired he.
”Not so much as Hect would make it believable,” said the mother, ”-true, it's hard to come across food.”
”-Ignore them,” gestured the granny, ”-food's abundant at Glenda, the villages are striving hard to make the accommodation of victims viable. There are jobs to be had, a new dungeon was found at the location of an ex-castle. Adventuring's pretty effective. Their possibilities are endless. If not for that dungeon, I doubt the faction to handle the influx.”