They approached a small walled village that lay at the crossroads between the major route north and one of the many smaller routes that ran east to west.

The walls were short and had been repaired many times over the years. Whether this was due to warfare or simply time, Anna really couldn’t say. Aesthetics aside, it was clear that the wall was structurally sound, and by the appearance of the guards posted at the gate, it was well-defended.

Each member of the party took out their guild badge and held it up for the guards to see when they arrived at the gate. They waved the party through but stopped Prince Arthur and his men at the gate.

“We’re with them,” Arthur said.

“Unless you’re an adventurer, merchant, or nobleman, you got to pay the toll,” the guard replied.

Arthur sighed.

“I suppose there’s no getting around it then. Very well, how much do I owe you for me and my men?” he asked.

“Ten coppers each,” the guard replied.

Arthur paid the guards, and they waved him and the others through. They rejoined the party and headed into the town.

“So, why didn’t you just tell them you’re a prince?” Anna asked.

“A foreign royal traveling in secret through the empire would cause a scandal, which is the last thing my homeland needs right now,” Arthur replied.

“Why would it cause a scandal?” Anna asked.

“I’ve been meeting in secret with various powerful groups. It would be easy to assume I’m up to no good,” Arthur replied.

“Why? I mean, have you done stuff before that makes it so people don’t trust you or something?” Anna asked.

“No, I would never! It’s just that other royals and high-ranking nobles have done so in the past, and often enough, that’s just what people expect,” Arthur replied.

“Why would they do that?” Anna asked.

“Wealth, power, a better position in court, or in the case of royals, a younger son could even gain enough power to usurp his older brother as the heir, or the crown prince might even be able to force his father into abdication,” Arthur replied.

“So, it’s just plain old greed then?” Anna asked.

“Yes, I suppose that’s what it boils down to,” he replied.

“You know, greed isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s just that sometimes people take it too far and let it turn them into monsters,” Anna said.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone say greed isn’t bad before,” Arthur replied.

“Well, greed is usually what makes people do the kind of things they wouldn’t normally do, so if you want adventurers to hunt monsters, explorers to explore, miners to mine deeper, or merchants to sell their goods in distant lands, you need them to be a little greedy,” Anna said.

“Ambition drives men to do such things, not greed,” Arthur replied.

“It’s the same thing,” Anna said.

“What makes you say that?” Issac asked.

“Well, they are the same thing if you think about it. Both words just mean you want something you don’t have. I guess you could say ambition is the good version of greed, but I don’t think it really matters,” Anna replied.

“Words do matter. Calling someone ambitious is usually a compliment, but calling someone greedy is always an insult,” Issac said.

“Okay, but if you just explain that you didn’t mean it as an insult, then it’s fine,” Anna replied.

“Simply explaining yourself might not be enough. The insulted party might want some form of compensation for the slight,” he said.

“Yeah, well, they can suck my ass,” Anna replied.

“You know, some men might find that aggregable,” Issac said.

“Until she eats pickled eggs,” Voekeer added.

“Or cabbage,” Lyreen said.

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

“Or monster meat,” Elaine said.

Her friends collectively shuddered.

“You forgot unfiltered ale,” Anna said.

“That doesn’t cause the problem, child. It just adds fuel to the fire,” Barika replied.

“But that’s the fun part!” Anna said.

“What are you all talking about?” Arthur asked.

“You’ll find out, lad,” Thokri replied.

“And may the goddess preserve you when you do,” Barika added.

“What does that even mean?” Arthur asked.

The party just chuckled and walked off with Arthur and his men scurrying along after them.

They headed further into town, selected an inn at random, and went inside. It wasn’t anything special, though the food did smell good.

Voekeer and Arthur secured rooms for three days for their respective parties before everyone went upstairs and placed their belongings into their rooms. Anna summoned an eye and a tentacle to guard her things before leaving her room and meeting back up with the others downstairs.

Once everyone had gathered there, they left the inn and searched for the town market. As with most smaller towns, it was located near the center and was filled with merchants hawking their wares. They walked around awhile before Thokri paused at a leather goods stall run by a dwarf.

“Know where we might find some horses, lad?” he asked.

“Aye, there’s a good place just outside of two to the east,” the dwarf replied.

“Thanks,” Thokri said.

“If ya get yerselves some horses, come on back and I’ll get ya saddles and tack,” the dwarf added.

“Aye,” Thokri replied.

They walked away from the market heading for the eastern gate.

“Are we actually going to go back to that dwarf for saddles?” Arthur asked.

“Aye,” Thokri replied.

They walked out of the eastern gate and a few miles down the road where a huge pasture was fenced off. Dozens of horses could be seen in the pasture, most of them happily chomping away at the grass while others galloped around, playing some sort of horse tag with one another.

They walked along the fence line until they reached a path that led to a large barn-like building. A few men were working out front. One of them noticed the party and walked over to greet them.

“How can we help you, folks?” he asked.

“We need good horses for a long journey,” Voekeer replied.

“Any horse here can do that for you. Come on. I’ll show you a few,” the man said.

They followed the man into the building and over to a large row of stable stalls. The man then started to tell them about each horse.

Anna looked around the room while he was talking to the others. An old man was leaning up against a post chewing a blade of grass.

I bet he knows more than the young man we’re talking too.

She walked over to the old man who tipped his hat when she neared.

“Ma’am,” he said.

“Uh, which horse would you pick if you were going up into the barrier mountains and maybe into the wildlands where you couldn’t get feed and such?” she asked.

“Wouldn’t get no horse. I’d get me a mule,” he replied.

“Really?” she asked.

“Yep, mules are more sure-footed than a horse. Got more stamina, too,” he replied.

“If they’re so good, then why do people use horses at all?” she asked.

“Cause horses are easier to train. In fact, you can train a horse so well he’ll ride right off a cliff if you tell ‘em to. Makes ‘em perfect for fighting. Mules on the other hand ain’t gonna do nothing that he thinks might hurt him no matter what you want,” he replied.

“Oh, I get it. Well, I don’t fight from horseback, so I guess a mule would be good for me,” Anna said.

“Follow me. I’ll take you to ‘em,” the old man said.

He pushed himself from the wall and started to saunter out of the building. She walked with him, heading to another fenced-in pasture a few hundred feet from the rear of the building. Twenty or so mules stood in the pasture. As soon as they spotted the old man, they trotted up to the fence. The old man started to pet the heads of the mules when they arrived.

“So, which one is the strongest and has the most stamina?” Anna asked

“This feller here,” the old man replied.

He gave the side of a large gray mule’s neck a pat.

“I’ll take him then. Uh, how much is a mule?” she asked.

The old man laughed.

“Just twenty silver,” he replied.

She started to pull the coins from her pouch.

“Whoa there. I can’t take your silver. We got to go back to the barn and fill out some paperwork,” he said.

“Okay,” she replied.

They returned to the barn, and the others were missing.

“I wonder where they got off to?” she asked.

“Out giving some of the horses a ride I’d guess,” the old man replied.

“We can do that?” she asked.

“Course you can. Wanna ride that grey before you buy ‘em?” he asked.

“No, I trust you,” Anna replied.

“I appreciate that, ma’am,” the old man said.

The old man knocked on one of the doors that was across from the stalls, and a man inside the room told them to enter. The old man opened the door and gestured for her to walk inside. She did and found a balding man seated behind a desk that was covered in papers.

“She’s gonna be buying the big gray mule,” the old man said.

“Good choice,” the bald man replied.

He gestured for her to sit down, so she walked over and sat in a chair in front of his messy desk.

“Imma go bring him around,” the old man said.

The old man walked way, closing the door behind him. She turned back to the bald man who was writing up a receipt for the mule.

“There we are now. I just need payment, and he’s all yours,” the bald man said.

She passed him the silver coins.

“Thank you, and here you go,” he said.

She took the receipt from the man. He stood up, walked over to the door, and opened it for her. She walked out of the room and waited for the old man to return. She didn’t have long to wait. He walked in through the back of the building holding onto her mule’s reins.

“Figured you’d want to ride around with your friends, so I put a saddle on ‘em,” the old man said.

“Thanks!” Anna replied.

“Don’t mention it. Need a hand getting on?” he asked.

“Sure,” Anna replied.

She walked over to the side of the mule, and the old man gave her a boost. She threw her leg over the mule and sat down on the saddle, turning to thank the old man. He had a wry smile on his face, and she puzzled over the look until she realized that her dress had flipped up when he’d given her a boost. She grinned at the old man who grinned back.

“Thank you kindly,” he said.

“Don’t mention it,” she replied.

His grin grew even wider.

“If you head out the back and take a right, you’ll get to the pasture where your friends are riding,” he said.

She nodded and spun the mule around before riding it outside.