“He said he was a herbalist, wasn’t he?” Edgar’s eating pace had significantly decreased compared to a few minutes ago. “To think he was planning some crazy stuff… What do you think?”
“Well, he never really talked much,” Fabby looked a bit unsure. “So what’s there to think? We can only feel glad that he didn’t pull anything nasty with us.”
“Mm… you’re right.”
Fabby looked toward Vino who was now writhing in pain next to the stage. Like a cockroach struggling on its back, he looked totally vulnerable, enough to raise pity in other’s hearts. (What was that beast-burdening thing they talked about? That man, Vino, was carrying a gel, and we asked him, hoping it’s good at repelling mosquitoes, but he told us that it was something he needed to eat to cure his health problem. So, he was lying back then, after all. But if he wasn’t eating it, then what did he do with a whole box of that gel?)
“Hey, Sorry Duo,” a man, who just arrived at their table said, in a blatant manner. “Madam Raha is calling for you.”
“It’s you!” Edgar narrowed his eyes to a slit upon looking at the bald henchman of Raha. “Who’re you calling a Sorry Duo?”
“Who else but you two,” he turned and started to walk. “Follow me.”
“Hmph! Why would I follow you?” Edgar didn’t even care, but Fabby stood and walked behind the bald man. “Oi, give my words some face, Sis!”
“Shh!” the bald man turned his head, his finger resting on his mouth. “Keep your voice under control. This isn’t your house.” As he was saying, his feet ended up striking a chair’s limb, and he fell forward. However, he landed on his hands and quickly got back to his feet and acted like nothing happened.
“Shh!” Edgar looked at Fabby. “Keep your eyes ahead, Sis.”
Fabby was trying not to laugh.
Though a vein bulged in the bald man’s forehead, he controlled himself.
Soon, they arrived at one of the tables that were close to the central stage. This table was much bigger compared to the other tables, and food was being brought by waiters. The Four Masters were busy discussing something on one side of the table. On the other side was Raha and two of her children, Hornie and Lulu.
“Madam, they’re here,” the bald man bowed upon reaching the table.
“Ah,” Raha cleaned her mouth with a kerchief before turning her head and a bit of her torso to look, and her eyes stopped on Fabby. She then smiled. “Did you like the food?”
“What’s there to not like?” she replied.
“Haha, right,” she nodded. “You might be wondering who invited you to this event. It’s me.”
Fabby had to act like she was surprised. “W-Why?”
“Well, what you said the other day was right,” Raha looked to be getting a bit angry, but not at Fabby. “Those quality seeds from the capital are not the perfect choice to cultivate. I should’ve realized sooner that the corporations do their best to make their customers constantly depend on them.” She made a hard face for a few seconds, but then lightened up. “Anyway, I’ve taken some seeds from local farmers, and they are growing into spectacular plants. So, you have my thanks. Now, you should know why you were invited here.”
“Mm,” Fabby slightly nodded.
“You are young and smart,” Raha said and then looked at Edgar, “but your brother has been leeching off our clan for many days without any shame.”
Edgar was startled. “What? When did I leech off?”
“Well, you are making use of the contests that our clan conducts to earn money instead of using them to increase your strength. You’ve earned hundreds of bronze coins, but let me ask you…” she intensified her gaze, her eyes still locked on Edgar. “How many coins did you spend for the Zha clan?”
Edgar was puzzled. “We are barely getting by with what we—”
Fabby stopped him by raising her hand up to his chest. “I apologize in his stead.”
“It’s okay. It’s nothing big,” said Raha, snorting. “I’m only warning because if your brother doesn’t stop, then someone will beat him up. You should get what I’m talking about.”
Fabby didn’t say anything, but she lowered her head a bit.
“Why do you care about some random leeches, mom?” the young curly red-haired girl sitting next to Raha spoke out. She was a year older than Fabby. “You should just squash leeches, not discipline them.” She glanced at Fabby but then averted her eyes. “Ew, a bald female. The worst thing you can come across in the world. So repulsive. Someone, please put something to cover her head.”
“Sister is right,” Lulu, who was silent till then, also voiced his mind. “We shouldn’t spare our valuable time for nobodies.” Saying that he chugged from a wooden bear pint and then looked at Edgar. “What are you still standing here for? Are you maybe feeling jealous of my beer?” he spit some saliva in it and put it forward. “There. You can enjoy it now.”
The bald man was snickering from the side, further aggravating not only Edgar but also Fabby.
Edgar clenched his fists and looked at Fabby. “Want to still try?”
Fabby squeezed her lips and shook her head.
“Try what?” Lulu snorted, derisively. “The beer?”
“Pfft,” Hornie burst out into laughter.
Edgar didn’t care about them and just talked with Fabby, “Let’s go. I’m sure we can get into a sect without their help.”
She nodded, and they both started to leave.
“What a joke. Trash like you are dreaming to join sects?” Hornie said in a deriding manner. “That’s an insult to every sect in the Tituka Province, much less the empire. You won’t even be fit for becoming foot disciples in the lowest of sects. Stop dreaming!”
Edgar stopped, but he didn’t look. His hand was still clenched, but he tightened the fist. “When you stop dreaming, you stop living.” His words didn’t get a reply, and in fact, shut some mouths. “No one in this world is worthy to tell me or my sister to give up on our dreams.”
As Edgar and Fabby left, nobody said anything.
A good five seconds later, Hornie snorted. “Nonsense.”
Fabby was alone inside the room, looking dull. Even though it was around eleven o’clock in the morning, the humidity was high enough to make her sweat, despite the windows being open. She remembered the time when her mother once slapped her for beating her friends when they tried to bully her. And she still didn’t know the reason why exactly her mother slapped her. Compared to her mother, Raha looked insignificant all of a sudden. That woman didn’t say a word when her children were running their mouths, having a mouth-day, or maybe a mouth-night. “May be, I should’ve put my hopes on the baronet instead,” she thought. “If he didn’t mention the Zha family second…” She remembered the time when the old man from the cloth shop had mentioned the baronet’s name first and th
In the evening, Edgar and Fabby were aimlessly roaming the town, and there was cold wind blowing around. Even though the afternoon of that same day was like the hottest day they’ve ever experienced, thanks to the short but heavy rain, the atmosphere changed greatly. People of all ages came out into the streets. And they kept hearing different things. “Someone stole my duck’s eggs!” “Stop playing near the well!” “Oh, Damn it! The cow has got its head stuck in the fence again. It took me so long to get it out last time.” “Should I chop off the head then?” “That’s my water! Don’t drink it!” However, they had too many things running in mind to process everything their ears took
As night fell, the town guards dressed in black uniforms were patrolling in the streets and forced people who were sleeping outside their homes to go back in. They even went so far as to beat those who weren’t listening to them, starting with their legs. Even children weren’t spared. Some kids were especially stubborn, and they ran away from the guards, but after they got chased and beaten with sticks, they ran home, crying aloud.A group of four guards were roaming in a street, and one of them saw Edgar casually resting on top of a branch. “Hey, you!” he called out. “What are you doing up there?”The tone of the voice and that rashness dwelling in it reminded Edgar of the watchers back in Shushui, and his gaze darkened. “Mind your own business.” He didn’t even look as he responded in a cold manner.
At the crack of dawn, the poor women and children were going to bathe in the streams, and the shepherds led out cattle to graze in the fields.The jingling bells tied around the cows, buffaloes, and sheep brought Edgar out of his sleep and yawn from atop a tree branch. “Is it morning already?” he untied the rope around his waist, which was tied to the tree, so he wouldn’t fall during the sleep.The previous night, he got freaked out after entering another’s room and the lady there freaked the hell out. He ran out through the window he had entered. Afterward, he chose a tree in the backyard to sleep because the tree where he regularly practiced pull-ups was on the front-end of the inn, so there was the possibility of the guards bothering him again.Currently, the innkeeper’s wife was sin
Having worked in the fields, Edgar and Fabby knew exactly what they were getting themselves into, so they went in prepared. Wearing towels above their heads, full-sleeved shirts, and footwear, they came prepared to the job. The ragged clothes they wore gave off a strange smell because they applied perfume to it. The little perfume cost them three bronze coins. It was just too pricey, but they had no other choice, as they didn’t want to dirty their new clothes. And the perfume would last a few days, so it was worth it.As Fabby and Edgar wondered what kind of plants would grow in the heat of the late summer, they were taken to the buckwheat fields, which had mature seed crops grown in just eight weeks, waiting for them to harvest. They had never seen crops growing during such heat, so it was a mystery to them, until other workers told them that both earth and water were manipulated to fit the ne
About ten days later, on June 28th.In the morning, Edgar was near the counter, talking with the innkeeper. “We might extend our stay depending on how we do when the beast tide comes. So, can you keep our room reserved till then?”“I appreciate that you’re asking two days before your reserved limit reaches,” the innkeeper indifferently said, “but I’m afraid there are just too many customers that keep asking for rooms.” He then smiled cheesily.Edgar squeezed his lips. “So there’s nothing you can do?”The innkeeper shook his head and then smiled again. “But it should be okay. There are plenty of other places to stay in this town.”Edgar didn’t
Just what was this Beast Tide?Why do the beasts come out of the woods and attack the town in such numbers? This wasn’t something that started recently, but it was a phenomenon that happened in numerous places in the world at different times of the year. However, the end of summer always stood out compared to others.People began to call this battle between humans and beasts as the Burden War, which was more than just a struggle for survival, more than just shedding blood.Many people had different theories as to what led to this war.With the scarcity of water, the beasts got distressed over the summer, and by the end of it, they would break mentally and seek the nearby communities for water.Summer was the time when t
Edgar’s heartbeat raised as he witnessed the cruelty and the wickedness of war. This no longer seemed like a simple war between mankind and beastkind. A violent, lawless war it was shaping to be.Even though he was yet to raise his sword and put it to use, a strange burden was already weighing his heart down.But that didn’t stop him from unsheathing his blades and arriving at the eight-limbed bear. His blade deflected an avalanche of claw attacks from its eight limbs.“Flowing Blade Floating Flower Arts…” to the shock of those who were watching, he slipped past its numerous attacks and got to its side.The big bear violently swept its arm at him.He hopped over its fast-moving arm, and a blinding swift horizontal swing of the blade followed