Chapter 09: Of Boys and Men (Part 2)

Few hours ago….

“Claude, Sehanie. We will be leaving you both here. We will be in the market section of the district. We need to set our shop soon, so come and visit us later, alright” Jann said to us before he left both me and Sehanie in the middle of the town square.

“You are at the Southern district mini square. You can explore the whole district from here. You need to go through this district to the Knight’s district to get your pass and perhaps you can get enrolled there. I’m not so sure how, but you could try and ask some of the guards or even the knights there.”

Jann was giving me some headstart for my journey.

“Good luck, Claude. You too Sehanie. And thanks for everything” said Mili, who was now seated beside Jann, as she took over the duty to drive the caravan from her husband.

Nelia was looking at me from the back of the caravan as we prepared to see them off. She seemed sad. Perhaps she wanted to follow us, but she still was a merchant’s daughter. The shop must come first. Though before she left with her parents, I gave her the necklace with her figurine, which was crafted this morning, by yours truly.

“It’s a good luck charm.”

I said to her when I put the necklace around her neck.

She was definitely trembling, perhaps from being too happy, I guess. I don’t really know how women’s mind and emotions work, of which I hope I could learn in Elsivier, but Nelia seemed pretty happy anyway.

Well, it was because Jann and Mili said so anyway. As her parents, I should trust both Jann and Mili.

“In your darkest hour, when you see there’s no more hope nor salvation, rubs this figurine three times and say my name - and how much you loved me.”

I let out a smirk as I said that to which I was replied with a nudge from Sehanie to my side that came out of where. I glared at her a little and Sehanie just turned her face away while pouting. Ah well, just ignore that bratty Elven girl for a while. I turned and faced Nelia again and held her shoulder firmly.

“Do that and I’ll be there, right in front of your eyes in a jiffy. Get that?”

Nelia kept quiet. Did she get what I mean?

“Do you get it, Nelia?”

She nodded.

“I… I need to say your name…. and… and how much I…. I lo…ved you…?”

“Yeap. You got that right. That last part is very important you know. “

Sehanie looked at me as if she wanted to eat me. I should not lie to a kid but I don’t care. It’s my gift. I would do what I want, after all. Jann and Mili were smiling, perhaps they knew that I was teasing Nelia.

I gave a mischievous smile. Nelia sure was a good girl. She would grow into a beauty soon and will make a good wife.

“I… I will do that!” Nelia suddenly gave me a hug which was a pleasant surprise to me.

I thought I would kneel down in front of her. I wished I could kneel in front of her, but since I’m the shortest (curse my luck that I drew the short hereditary straw) here other than Nelia, I just bend down a little and gave Nelia a kiss on her forehead in return. She blushed and hugged me even tighter.

“Now, now Nelia. Ser Claude has something important to do. Don’t you, Claude?”

I looked at Sehanie. She seemed pissed. Was she jealous of this kid or something?

Sehanie jealous? No way.

However, I do have something important to do and somewhere important I need to go. Though I don’t know where was the place and whom shall I need to meet, but I needed to make my move soon.

“Nelia, honey. You can let go of Claude right now.” Mili pleaded with her daughter.

Nelia released her hug, albeit reluctantly. She then pouted.

Trying to reassure her, I told her she could come and visit me anytime and see me during the Parade at the end of the Festival. Immediately, she gained back her cheerful expression, though true to her shy girl nature, she immediately dashed off straight into the caravan.

“Hahaha. Don’t mind her Claude. We will be there to see you. Ain’t that right, darling?” Mili looked at her husband.

“We will be there. Surely.” Both of them nodded.

“So, shall we all be on our journey right now?” Sehanie inquired.

“Yah, kids. Thanks for everything. See you soon then!”

And off Jann, Mili and Nelia went towards their own goals. As both Sehanie and I looked from the back of the caravan, we waved at them goodbye.

“Thanks for the ride!” I shouted at them. However, I would not be too sure whether they could listen to me or not.

Thus, our party was finally separated. Now, only Sehanie and I were left. But that too, was only for a moment before Sehanie decided to be back to her true self, a selfish elven brat.

“Looks like this is the end of the road for me too.” Sehanie looked at me and then looked away.

“Huh? What do you mean it’s at the end of the road for you? Are you going somewhere else?”

Sehanie nodded without even looking at me. Perhaps she was feeling guilty.

“Ahh, alright. Alright. I thought I can travel with you a little longer, but an elf will be an elf. You folks ain’t the type to stick to a big bustling city like this for long anyway.”

I tried to act mature but inside me, I felt kind of lonely. And a little sad too.

“Not that, you stupid fool!” Sehanie shouted at me.

I was taken by surprised by Sehanie’s sudden burst of temper. I can feel that everyone was looking at us like a couple who in the midst of a heated argument.

“I’m sorry, Claude. I don’t mean to shout at you like that.”

“Nah, it’s ok. In fact, I’m really thankful that you are with me all these while. While you have been a nuisance and annoying to be with, but I’m glad it was with you. Thanks, Sehanie.”

Sehanie blushed. She walked over me and kissed me on the cheeks.

Now, it was my turn to get blushed.

“It’s public area you know. And everyone is looking at us.”

“Teehee… now, that’s more like you Claude.”

Sehanie will always be Sehanie. She did whatever she likes to me anyway. I’m used to it by now. Her moods could change faster than even a mad horse galloping at full speed.

“Claude, the next time I see you again, I’ll do right by you alright!”

“Huh? What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing. Teehee…” Sehanie stuck her tongue out as she then walked away from me. Without looking back, she then disappeared among the crowds as I see her off.

I don’t get her. I really don’t get her. But, she still was a great companion to have. I smiled as I thought of the previous days I spent my time with her.

Before long, I’m all alone, in the middle of the Southern mini square in an unknown area for the first time in my life. It hadn’t struck me before, perhaps I was being accompanied by Jann, Mili, Nelia and Sehanie, but once I’m alone, I could feel all the pressure, right here and right now.

Ahh… I hate it.

Being alone from the beginning was still alright with me, but being left alone was not much fun. I’m stressed. I still don’t know where I need to go or who I needed to meet or when I needed to meet them.

Argghhh…

Thinking about this gets me nowhere. And when I’m stressed, I tend to do one thing in particular.

I binge-eat.

And so, I began to scour for food.

It’s festival now right. If not mistaken, Jann said something that this festival was called Festival of Springs. To celebrate a bountiful harvest and being thankful for the fertile land that Elsigardia had been blessed. I don’t remember the deity’s name that Festival pays tribute too, but she would not definitely mind if I have some fun here. I’ll dedicate my fun to her.

Surely in a festival like this, there will be a ton of delicious foods that I never tried before in my life. And perhaps, served by beautiful girls with big-breast too. Hehehe.

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I checked my pouch for the money I have been carrying with me. I just brought about 15 gold coins with me. I haven’t been here before or anywhere in particular, alone and all, other than the guild-city, so I don’t really know how much was how much, though I would always haggle first before I purchased anything. However, little did I know that I was being observed by someone or something.

And I was right.

Before long, my hands were full of foods. On my right hand, I have with me a couple of kebab sticks, with succulent roasted lamb meats with roasted tomatoes, zucchinis and potatoes in between. The owner was kind enough to let me sampled one first before I bought it. It was super-duper delicious. And as he said, it was best in town. I believed him. I’m now a satisfied customer.

For the price of 5 silver pieces, I got two sticks. It was 3 silver pieces each, but I haggled to get it two for 5 silver pieces. It was pretty cheap. And on my left hand was a humongous piece of chicken meat and what’s more, it was my favourite part, the thigh and drumstick.

The chicken was marinated in a secret sauce with 15 blended herbs and spices before covered in flour and then fried. This fried chicken was the best I’d ever tasted. The owner that goes by the name Major Sarland Handers learned this recipe from his mother. Though he was not a knight nor ever been in the army, I heard his chicken elevated him to some sort of rank in the chicken frying communities. Thus, he was called the Major. Well, I didn’t care as long as his chicken would continue to be this big, delicious and juicy. It cost me 4 silver pieces.

And of course, before that, I had my fill of various snacks too.

Barbequed Elsivier sausages with black sesame dipping, roasted honeyed ham sprinkled with herbs, a piece of a tail of an unknown meat, stewed for 12 hours in a slow-cooked pot and last but not least roasted pork with five spices and laced with Elsiberry ale. However, all of that food I had consumed won’t be completed without a drink.

And when it comes to drinks, none beat Elsivier’s best, the Elsivier’s Sweet Ale. Less alcoholic but sweet and tangy with a tinge of bitterness.

Perfect!

Altogether, I’d spend less than 50 silvers. As I put down the last piece of my silver back into my money pouch, someone bumped straight into me.

“Hey, watch where you are going, kid! “

I reprimanded the person who bumped straight into me. It was a kid, way shorter than me, with baggy ragged clothing that resembled a beggar.

“I’m sorry mister” came the reply.

The kid wasn’t even looking at me. What manners. Were all the kids in this city act like this?

Before I can say anything more, the kid vanished. He disappeared amongst the crowd. He went off as fast as he came. I sighed and shrugged my head in disappointment. Kids nowadays were pretty damn rude. Well, whatever. At least I was not hurt in any way and I better get moving now.

As I took a step forward, I noticed something was amiss. I touched my belt and it felt light. Weirdly light. I turned my head and lo and behold, something was missing from my belt.

My money pouch!!!

The money pouch that I kept hidden inside my belt was missing! No, come to think of it, I don’t think it was missing. It was here when I placed my silver coins inside until that kid…

I soon realized that it was no accident that when kid bumped me earlier. It was not because the road was crowded. It was a planned pickpocket. My money pouch was stolen by that damn kid. I was pickpocketed in broad daylight. If Blizzard Hawk or that old geezer got to know about this, I’ll bet my fingernails that I’ll be the Brotherhood’s laughing stock for a long time.

How careless I was. I let my guard down because I’m having wonderful experiences with the food and drink that I failed to notice that I have been followed. Perhaps since the beginning when I arrived here.

I did look a little out of place and maybe because of that, I became an easy target for a pickpocket. Feeling embarrassed and at the same time pissed off, I tracked the pickpocketing kid down.

I’m not letting him run away with all my gold coins. My pride was at stake here. And my hard earned money too.

Tracking a pickpocket in a crowded area with lots of people moving around was no easy task. In fact, it was made even harder because the pickpocket dressed like a beggar, a surprise for me that even a city this modern and lavish, were full of them. However, I’m a Senior Journeyman of the Brotherhood of Sun and I have been trained to track down my prey. And this time, the pickpocket was my prey. I’ll hunt him until the end of the earth. Even to the rabbit’s hole, I’ll not stop and continued to search for him.

I followed down the road where I first saw the kid vanished. It’s a linear road with no off-roads which made it pretty easy at first to track. However, when I exited the road, I was brought to what I think was the main city square of Elsivier.

There were hundreds, perhaps thousands of people – merchants, adventurers, peddlers, soldiers of fortune, farmers, or anyone else you can think off – congregated here. When faced with this kind of situation, normal people would despair. But then again, I’m not just any normal people.

I’m not giving up just right yet. Let me see what would go up against me and what’s not in this situation. Moving aimlessly would not help my quest in catching that pickpocket. I’ll waste precious time and energy, not to mention my money.

Against me – First, I’m not familiar with this area. Second, there were too many people around here. Third, the pickpocket was a small, short kid who can and will manoeuvre easily among the crowds. Much easier than me, anyway. Fourth, he had a head start. And fifth, there were too many kids who dressed like him. Was it some sort of uniform that these kids were wearing, to identify them of their own gang members? Was it an organized crime?

For me – I had been trained to track and hunt for the past 12 years and I could hunt even a rabbit in the forest down to its hiding place. And I can differentiate my prey from others. Once I get my eyes on something or someone, I’ll be coming like a homing arrow, and I won’t miss, ever. Tracking and hunting had been my saving grace in Brotherhood for all these years since I pretty much suck at everything else.

“Now, all I need now is a little bit of luck.”

Perhaps lady luck heard my pleas that in no time at all I heard a familiar voice.

“Hahaha, that short guy is pretty stupid. He keeps dangling his money pouch in the middle of the road. It’s like begging for it to be stolen. And stole it I did. Hahaha!!”

It’s the same voice of that pickpocketing kid.

Hah.

Like any hunters who think they have gained one over their prey, they became careless. Instead of waiting to show off their bounties, they bragged instead. Telling how much of a great person they were and the things they did. Pride and ego combined will create stupidity and carelessness. One of which I’m taking advantage of, right now.

The crowd served well to hide my presence. I was moving along without much problem, masking my movement until I reached directly behind the kid. He was pretty indulged in his rewards of his bounty which happened to be my money pouch.

“Hey, Ilvean, how much inside that money pouch?” A kid, dressed like a beggar, which all of them were dressing in that way anyhow, asked.

“Judging by its weight, it’s definitely no less than 12 gold coins” the pickpocket, which goes by the name Ilvean said.

He raised the money pouch, like how a victor would show his trophy.

“No, it’s not 12 gold coins. To be exact, it’s 14 gold and 50 silvers coins.”

“Wow, you are pretty specific about that. How did you know just by looking at it?”

“That’s because it is my money pouch, you damn thief!”

I grabbed his hand. The other kids that surrounded him, ran away in fear. From a pickpocket to a thieving brat. That’s how I see the one whom I grabbed right now.

“Hey, let me go!” He tried to wrangle himself away from me.

“You let go of my money pouch first and then only I’ll let you off.”

“No, this is my money pouch!”

Hah. Talks the thief who stole from others. I grabbed his hand tighter until he squealed in pain.

“Ouch, that hurts. Let me go!”

“If that little tightness hurts you, you will get much, much worse than this coming your way, thief! Now, let go of my money pouch or else…”

I grabbed his other arm and crossed both of it behind him, locking him into position. I then pinned him down to the ground. Kid or no kid, I’m not giving him any mercy. Struggle all you want but I ain’t letting you go. Told you I’ll get you.

Our scuffle created some unwanted attention from the people passing by. Perhaps, taking this to his advantage, the thief suddenly shouted.

“Rapist! Molester! He touched my ass!”

“Huh, what? What did you say?!”

“He tried to rape me, please help me!!” The scream had an immediate reaction. The people who had been passing by and looking at us earlier now stopped and surrounded us. I had attracted unwanted attention towards myself. How careless have I been today?

“Hey, you! What the hell are you doing in the middle of the road in broad daylight?!” came a shout from a man; a big size burly bald man wearing a leather armour, with axe and sword hanging beside him. Perhaps he was a mercenary of some sort.

“Yeah, pervert! Let her go already!!” Someone threw me a stone and it hit me on my chest.

“Ouch!”

Then another one followed immediately. Then another. One stone managed to strike my arm and I loosen my grip on the thief due to the pain.

I was stunned. The crowd reactions really got into me.

“I… I… that… thief…he…stole….”

I stammered.

“Boo…Boo…Booooo” the crowd booed at me. Taking the advantage of this situation, the pickpocket tried to escape. He bit my hand.

“Argghh… What the…”

I let go both of his hand, and without any hesitation, he sprung to his feet and escape.

“Hey, don’t you run away, thief!”

I tried to chase after him but unfortunately, I was caught first by the big burly mercenary.

“Where do you think you are going ehh, kid?”

“He stole my money!”

I screamed at him, with my eyes focused on the now escaping thief. Thinking that was the end for me, the whoreson pickpocketing thief stuck out his tongue, gave me an eyelid pull and then taunted me. I’m boiling with anger right now. But first, I need to get rid of this stupid mercenary.

“Tell that to the guard!” He smirked at my attempt at trying to talk away from his grasp. I have no time to deal with this moron. He thought he was being a hero by acting like this. A big bully who had no brain cells.

I bit his hand and gouged his eyeballs. He screamed and bend down, cowering his face. But before he can recover, I gave a kick to his nuts.

“Take that, you moron. That what happens if you don’t listen.”

He fell down, lying unconscious. I could see foams forming in his mouth. How unsightly. The rest of the crowd seems stunned and perhaps feeling nervous about what I’m going to do next, they were rooted to their spot. Most of them either turned their face away or gave a blank and cold stare.

Though I have no interest in them as I focused my eyes on the runaway thief. I have bought some time to myself to escape from the crowd surrounding me and I gave chase to that thief who now seemed surprised. Upon seeing my miraculous escape, he hurriedly ran away, afraid to be caught.

Well kid, be very afraid. You will know hell when I finally caught you.

I am now seeing red. Like a charging bull, nothing can and will stop me. Using my skills of tracking and hunting, I kept my speed and pace as I dodged all kinds of things that came my way either to stop or hinder my movements.

First, it was a flower pot. Then, a steaming hot meat on a skewer. A pot of boiling water came next. Then, there was bottles and plates. Next, he touched a woman’s ass and I got slapped as she thought I was the one who molested her. He then kicked a guy who was standing nearby at his balls and pushed him towards me so that poor guy can act as a human barrier, to which without hesitation and much delay and much more to his agony, I gave another kick to his balls. What a pitiful guy. He rolled over in hellish pain as I used his body as a stepping stone. Wrong time and a wrong place to be, pal. Sorry but it’s nothing personal. I got myself a thief to catch.

I chased the thief around the district, covering all the road there was, for as long as I could remember. Man, this little thief could really run. And what a stamina too. As I was catching my breath, I saw him exiting into an alley, off the main road from where I am now, about 100 yards away. Perhaps thinking that I finally gave in, he exited through that alley.

Perhaps he was going back to his hideout. This little chase was really tiring after all and maybe more than what he had bargained for. However, the golden escape rules said that when someone chased you, never ever lead them to your hideout. Perhaps this little thief was a newbie or perhaps he never thought about the art of escaping before.

And now, I’m standing in front of a house. A double story house, with somewhat of a funny crest in front of the door that resembles an unknown animal that I cannot identify and an “Enter at your life’s peril” sign.

Heh.

What a lousy threat. I’m positively sure that this was the pickpocket’s hideout. And there might be a bunch of pickpocketing kids that might stay here. Nothing that I can’t handle.

I kicked the door open. And as I enter, I shouted at the top of my lung.

“You effin’ thieving brat!! Come out now and return me my money before I burn this whole house down!!!”

Perhaps due to the carelessness of being pickpocketed, my pride at stake and the chase around town with that thief that I had failed to notice one single thing. A mistake that would nearly cost me my life. And that mistake was, what if this hideout did not only hide a bunch of kids but a bunch of mean looking adults; like the ones who were surrounding me, right now.