It was loud. There was a tavern made of stone in the town of Rihona, the north-most town of the Alethani Kingdom. The inside was made of quality wood and had a big fireplace against the backside wall. The tavern was full of people. They were drinking and talking, most of them were roaming adventurers. This town was always attracting adventurers because of the wild Malargo Forest near the town. Strong and valuable monsters were lurking all over the forest. So, the town had its share of all that ‘monster hunting tourism’.

There was an adventurer party in the middle of it, celebrating their successful dungeon clearing. The Band of Steel. They were showing off their loot and bragging about how they slew all those monsters in the dungeon. And they had a giant egg in the middle. They were saying it was a Stone Dragon egg. It was like a gem made of metal, shining like full-plate armor.

And there was a young woman, way back at the tavern, sitting in the dark. The hood of her cloak was covering her face, like she didn’t want to be seen. Some parts of her well-made armor were showing underneath her cloak. She had a keen pair of eyes, sparkling with the fire of youth, observing the tavern. And two things had caught her eye.

First, there was the egg in the middle. She was sure it was a Dragon egg; she had seen one before in one of her father's books. But how did they get one, she thought? They were bragging about how they slew the Stone Dragon in the dungeon and took her egg. But she was sure they were lying or at least exaggerating.

Lots of adventurers, mostly newbies, seemed to believe and admire them. But some veterans were not giving them friendly looks. They knew something was off, no one could fight a Stone Dragon and come back without a scratch, especially with a party of four.

Between the excited talks and questions among the newbies, she also heard the veterans’ disapproving talks.

“What liars they are.” They were saying. “I don’t believe they slew any Dragon in that dungeon. No one can slay a Dragon without a serious scratch.” “Look they even brought it here to show off. I don’t know what it is, but it does not look like a Stone Dragon egg to me.” The young woman was trying to listen to everything around her.

The second thing that caught her eye was the man sitting at the counter in front of the door. He was sitting alone and eating tavern owner Mama Millio’s signature pumpkin pie with a drink. The season was Autumn, and it was the best season for these fruits, so the pie and juice were delicious. Now he was at the sixth plate. He sure liked them a lot.

The young woman observed him with curiosity. He had long brown hair messily tied on top of his head and a messy short brown beard, both had red-yellowish parts in them. He looked middle-aged, maybe in his early thirties. His clothing was strange; it was like stripes made of ivory-colored rags layered on top of each other all over his body. Some parts were tight, wrapping around his body, but most were loose, almost like they were going to fall off. He also had loose pants of the same color but had no shoes. All looked messy but surprisingly clean.

He didn’t seem to carry any weapon or equipment with him, as far as the young woman could see, which was strange in a place like this. The town was safe but outside was full of monsters. A traveler without proper protection or equipment could die easily out there. That got her thinking, is he hiding things under his clothing? Maybe he was a magic user? But even a magic user needed equipment for some spells and rituals. Although her knowledge of magic was limited, only the things she read in her father's library.

The young woman was curious, there was something strange about this man. She couldn’t take her eyes off him. She knew he wasn’t from this town; no one knew anything about him. Everything about him was out of place and that got her adventurous side itching. She needed to know, she had to talk to him and learn about him. Who was he? How was he traveling like that? Where was he going? The questions were filling the young woman's head.

She got ready to stand up and talk to him. But then, one guy approached the counter. The leader of the Band of Steel, greatsword wielder Jacky. "Hey Millio! Honey mead to everyone, from me!" A cheer rose from the tavern except the man next to him.

“Hey, why are you not having fun old man?” Jacky approached the man. He was so drunk.

“I am having fun eating this delicious pie, thanks for your concern.” Said the man, with an empty tone. He didn’t even look at the boy that approached him.

“Oh, come on, you don’t look like you are having fun. You are only eating that shitty thing and chatting with that fat old lady. Come, have a drink, enjoy yourself!”

“Hey, who are you calling fat and old? And my pie is one of the best around here!” Mama Millio was not the thinnest person around but saying that to her face was a different thing. “Didn’t your mother teach you any manners boy?”

“Boy! Who are you calling boy!” Said the boy with an angry tone. “I am a man! Me and my friends slayed thousands of monsters like flies.” He was so drunk. Other members of the Band started to gather around him. They were also drunk and ready to back their leader up.

“Taking lives is easy,” the man said, he didn’t seem to be intimidated by the Band. “The hard thing is sparing lives when you can. And you should learn some manners as the beautiful lady said. Boy.” The man’s voice was a little joyful this time, almost like he was making fun of him. Maybe he was trying to taunt them, the young woman thought, if he was, it was a stupid idea. They were drunk and young, ready to fight.

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

If he was, it was working. The boy with the great sword tensed up. The young woman thought he was going to draw his weapon for sure. She got ready but hesitated, why was she even getting ready? She didn’t know the man and had nothing to do with this situation. Did she only want to beat that annoying drunk guy? Maybe. But the boy didn’t draw his sword. Instead, he got his other hand up, the one holding his beer, and started pouring the beer on the man’s head.

“Oh, sorry my hand just slipped. I am deeply sorry for what I have done, it was an accident.” Said the boy, with that annoying smirk on his face. “How was it, was it good enough manners for you?”

A deep silence fell into the tavern slowly. People started to notice what was going on and waited for what was about to happen. Everyone was waiting for the man’s answer. Was he going to get angry and attack or try to calm the situation? No matter who he was the Band was strong in numbers.

And he gave the worst answer.

The man just laughed and kept eating his pie. The beer that had just been poured on him left no trace of his robe or hair at all. But only the young woman had noticed that.

“Hey! Are you mocking me, old man?” His face twisted in anger. “That’s it, I am gonna wipe that smile off your face with my sword!” said the boy as he drew his sword.

The man looked at the boy with careless eyes. He didn’t look frightened from the sword in front of his nose. “I see you are willing to blow off some steam before you die tonight, boy.” Even though these words did come out like a threat, the man's voice and posture were not threatening at all. The boy who was blinded by the anger and alcohol was in no shape to notice that.

“We’ll see who is gonna die tonight old man.” The boy was ready to kill. He took his stance to take action. “Come on, draw your weapon!” The rest of the Band stood right behind him but didn’t draw their weapons. Instead, they smiled and started to cheer for their boss.

“Come on boss, give him a good lesson. Teach him who we are.” The rogue of the Band was eager to see some blood.

“Oh, no, no. You got me wrong. I am not the one who is going to kill you tonight.” The old man turned his eyes to the giant egg in the middle of the tavern. “That egg’s mother is the one who is going to kill you.”

Now that he turned his face to the crowd, the young woman could see his face more clearly. He had a strong chin and high cheekbones. Some could say he was handsome despite his messy appearance. He had small eyes, but those eyes had so much in them. Maybe not the man but his eyes were old, very old. Just one look was enough to understand that this man had been through a lot. The young woman couldn’t figure out what color was his eyes, there was something odd about them.

The boy seems to be irritated by the man’s words. He was afraid his lies were going to be exposed. “We killed that thing's mother. Weren’t you listening? Maybe you are too old to hear. We killed the Stone Dragon!” the boy yelled.

“It is not a Stone Dragon egg you idiot.” The man was having fun. “That is a Silver Dragon egg.”

The whole tavern was shocked by the statement. “A Silver Dragon!” “Wasn’t those some legend?” “No one had ever seen one before.” “They were only in some folk stories.” “Has this man been trying to get out of the situation by lying?” But the young woman didn’t think he was lying, his deep voice was serious.

“A Silver Dragon? What do you take us as? Some children live in fairy tales? Or did you already lose your mind because of your age, old man?”

“If you had someone with a proper education in your party, they would have known. Maybe you are not a child, but you are a fool, boy.” The man still didn’t seem to care about the boy’s anger towards him. “A Silver Dragon usually lives away from most intelligent creatures; they like their privacy. But you disturbed the mother's home and took her baby from her. Silver Dragons are clever. Not like their green or red cousins. They are ancient and strong. And you made her angry. You didn’t only kill yourselves. You killed the whole town by coming here and bringing the egg with you.”

The people in the tavern started whispering. They were afraid. The boy lost his standing against the crowd. And it made him angrier. He lost his cool. “It is obvious that you are lying. If you already knew that, why didn’t you warn us before?”

The man turned back to continue his pie. “You got into this trouble yourselves, it is not my concern. Mama Millio, is my package ready?” He already had lost his interest in the topic.

“I am not gonna wait here and listen to your nonsense. You are not going anywhere!” He swung his sword.

Everyone held their breath. The young woman, on the other hand, acted. She dashed in with an insane speed to block his attack. But she was too slow, too late. Why didn’t she get close? In that little moment of understanding, she got mad at herself. It was so obvious; the boy was drunk, and the man was too careless. Of course, a fight was going to start. She acted but couldn’t reach it in time.

But her help wasn’t needed. The man’s hand was holding the sword only moments before it landed on his neck, with only his index and middle fingers. Silence fell onto the tavern again. The young woman couldn’t believe what happened. How? How did he stop a great sword attack from a strong warrior just with two fingers? Even her master couldn’t make a move like that, it was too absurd.

The whole tavern was in shock. Mostly the boy who swung the great sword. He didn’t even understand what happened. He tried to pull back his sword, but he couldn’t. The man was still holding it. Then, a shattering sound filled the place.

With his two fingers, he broke the boy’s great sword into pieces. It only took a little movement of his fingers. Just like that, the sword was broken. It was too easy for him. And at that moment, the young woman decided, she needed to know. Who was he? And how did he get this strong? She was going to persuade this man to take her as his apprentice and learn the secret of his strength.

Everyone was looking at the scene with their open mouths. And then, another sound broke the silence. A wild roar was heard all over the town. And the town bells followed it.

“Ah, she is here.” The man reached the counter “Thanks for the pie, Mama Millio. It was delicious.” He took the package the lady had prepared and left some silver coins on the counter. He was ready to leave.

“Give back the egg to her boy. Maybe she will forgive you.” He turned his head to the door. Screams started to come from outside. “I doubt it though.” And he went outside.

Everyone was terrified and couldn't move for a couple of seconds. The young woman came to her senses before anyone and ran outside.

It was hell.