- VOL 1 – THOSE UNITED BY THE FATE -

Chapter 3: Final Preparations (7/10)

----------------------------------------------------

"Huff... Huff..."

The young man, who had been running in a certain direction without slowing down, collapsed when he got tired. He was trying to regulate his breathing while thinking about what he should do next. The day had started quite fast for him and he couldn't comprehend what he was going through.

‘What's going on, I don't understand anything! I'm about to go crazy, everything is out of control! What the fuck am I going to do now!’

The city had woken up long ago. As people were walking around, the young man approached a nearby building and leaned his body against it. He thought it would be pointless to run any further and decided to wait here for someone.

‘There is no longer a way out of this situation. Both roads end in a cliff. And I'm pretty sure the decision for me is sealed from now on anyway...’

He tried to console himself as a great concern washed over his face.

‘I couldn't have chosen the other path! If I disobey Shin, Yumi-san will find out everything!’

He stopped his thinking for a moment. The thoughts in his head escaped from his mouth as a small smile spread across his face when something else came to his mind.

"He said we'll make money. Hehehe, a lot of money."

From this point on, his worries were replaced by dreams. But he was soon awakened from his happy reverie.

"There you are, Minato!"

As he came to his senses with this voice, he noticed a boy approaching. His chestnut hair shimmered in the midday sun and his amber eyes matched it. The boy approached him with a carefree and relaxed demeanor as if nothing had just happened.

Seeing him like this, Minato felt a sense of dread. He swallowed nervously as his face turned serious, answering the boy.

"Are you okay, Shin-san? She's not coming after you, is she?"

He was starting to speak with a lot of respect for the boy in front of him. Shin was also surprised by this change.

"Wow, I'm Shin-san now? Don't worry, I won't bite you, Minato."

He smiled warmly at the young man and continued walking past him. Seeing that he didn't stop, Minato followed the boy. He answered the boy with a fake smile.

"Hehehe. As you wish, Shin."

After a few seconds of silence, he hesitantly asked.

"So how did you escape from the inn? I can't believe you were able to hold Rina-san, she's like a monster! No one at the inn can restrain her but Sana-san."

"I don't know, I just dodged her and ran away from the inn. Maybe she wasn't too hard on me."

There was no further conversation between them as they continued walking. The auburn-haired young man wondered where they were going and what their important business was. He had heard from the boy that he had to run to the herbalist and went to the first place that came to his mind, but he did it without thinking.

‘Wait, what herbalist? Are we going to Riki-san's herbalist?’

With that thought, he was even more curious about what was going on, but he didn't dare to ask the boy walking in front of him. Fortunately, it wasn't long before they reached their destination and Minato was able to confirm his thought on his own.

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Don't say anything unnecessary, okay? Just follow my plans. I assume you've already accepted the job."

The auburn-haired young man could only nod in response to what he heard. He followed Shin silently as the boy entered the building in front of them.

-

"Welcome."

A familiar voice greeted them and Shin responded warmly.

"Hi, Riki-san."

In front of them stood a bookshelf that hid their arrival for the woman. Shin quickly passed this bookshelf and went to the back of the room. The owner of the voice was there, sitting at the counter and wearing a bored expression. When she saw the intruder approaching, she raised her head and looked up at the boy.

"I've brought a guest."

This time, however, the person she was expecting did not come alone. The young man next to the Shin also greeted her.

"How are you, Riki-san? When I found out Shin was here, I thought I could tag along."

When she turned to Shin with puzzled eyes, he was already seated at the table in front of the counter. Without waiting, he began to explain the situation.

"This friend of ours will be helping us."

Neither of the two people present understood exactly what he was saying. Riki's face became very serious and her lips curled upwards. She narrowed her eyes and asked with a smile.

"About what?"

Shin turned to face the young man and nodded for him to sit down. Then he stretched on his chair and began to speak.

"About the fruit, of course, Riki-san. Nothing else has happened between us, has it?"

He replied to the woman across from him with a smile. The woman at the counter threw back the long hair that had fallen in her face, revealing a disappointed expression.

"Huhh... So that's how it is. You seem to be pretty bad at picking people to assist you."

The auburn-haired young man stared at her but said nothing. He sat next to the boy and waited in silence. Then Shin continued his speech instead.

"Do you think so? He actually seemed like a pretty good pawn to me."

Insulted a second time, the young man turned to the boy next to him and glared at him. But when he met the boy's eyes, he could not open his mouth to him either.

"A pawn?"

The woman looked at the boy suspiciously. She couldn't understand what exactly he was talking about. Seeing her like this, Shin continued his explanation.

"Yes, a pawn. A pawn that will be of great importance if you succeed in developing it, a pawn that seems weak but is the heart of the board."

The man was intrigued by what he was being told about himself. He was already surprised to learn that Riki was involved in this, but now something important was being said about him.

He had no idea about the business they were going to do, nor about the mission he was going to be given. So he decided to break his silence.

"Excuse me, you can use me as a pawn or whatever, but can you first tell me what our business is?"

The black-haired woman sighed and repeated her suspicion, then let Shin do the talking.

"Huh... Are you sure? I've left the planning entirely up to you, so I won't interfere but don't forget that you can get ideas from me too. I won't take on anything if I know it's going to be a failure."

"Hahaha! Don't worry, I didn't come here just to show Minato, but first I think we should give him an explanation."

The auburn-haired man was waiting excitedly. Although he was filled with fear at first, he thought it might be good for him to listen to the words of the boy next to him and work with him, especially when he found out that his friend Riki was also in this business.

"There's not much to tell. The short version is that we will prepare a mixture and sell it. But it has to be kept secret from everyone."

Minato nodded confidently at the word secrecy. He seemed to confirm what he had heard, but there were still a few things on his mind.

"I won't question everything if it's not important for me to know the details, but what is this 'mixture'?"

Riki stepped in and explained.

"It's an elixir. A strengthening medicine made from a mixture of herbs that will aid the user."

"We are going to make a medicine? Aren't medicines for diseases? I've heard that some medicines are quite expensive, but do you really think this will work?"

The black-haired woman's emerald eyes flickered as Minato questioned what he had heard. For some reason, she seemed a little annoyed.

"How clueless you are, Minato. You say you won't question and then object when I tell you."

The auburn-haired man scratched his head with a fake smile. Despite her protest, the woman continued her explanation.

"I suppose you know Bavan City?"

"Of course! I may be clueless about herbs and medicines, but I know a lot about cities, trade, and maps!"

This time Minato was angry. It was as if Riki had predicted that he would get angry, so she said those words deliberately.

"Sure, sure. So tell me, do you know about the power potions in Bavan?"

"Of course I do! Those potions are made by the royal alchemists to help in the search into the Dragon's Lair."

He paused for a few seconds and then continued in surprise.

"Wait a minute... Is it?"

With a big smile on her face, Riki confirmed what the other man was trying to be sure of.

"I think you've figured it out, genius. That's exactly what the potion is."

The auburn-haired man rose abruptly from his seat and raised his voice.

"B-but something so valuable that the kingdom is keeping the recipe secret!"

The woman interrupted him, causing him even greater astonishment.

"This potion will be completely different from them. Much more powerful and valuable!"