Chapter 14: Tavern

If you asked Tobias what a ‘Tavern’ would mean, he would tell you that it was the home of the village’s local brewer where villagers would drink themselves to celebrate for whatever reason, in exchange for favors. He would tell you that it was simply their house, but there would be tables and chairs set outside for any occasion.

Now, what Tobias didn’t know was that towns and cities had their own, dedicated Taverns which functioned on a larger scale. And instead of favors, it operated with coins and money. Then again, considering his roots, his description of a tavern was somewhat accurate, even if it wasn’t quite correct.

When Tobias entered the town’s tavern, he smelled the scent of earthly ale stored in barrels of wood, and the sharp, but roasted smell of beer. He wasn’t sure how people made alcohol, but he did know they smelled nice.

The tavern itself was different from his expectations – with a dark atmosphere dimly lit by lanterns here and there, a large space predominated by wooden tables filled with patrons who were either drinking, eating, gambling, or a mix of those activities. But no matter, he came here to find information about his destination.

And there – that large counter-like structure with the man serving glasses of alcoholic beverages must be some kind of owner, right?

While he was walking past the tables of patrons, his instincts flared. People stared at him for a moment, their expressions were either confused, indifferent, or curious to some degree. Then their gazes fell to his sword, sheathed by his side, and after shrugging, they began to mind their own business again.

Strange.

So he also minded his own business. Keeping to himself while trying to maintain a low profile, he managed to make it to the counter. The older man behind the counter was dressed with a black tunic, with a white apron on top of it. He had a great brown beard, but his head was shaved cleanly – to the point where he idly wondered if he can see his own reflection on it if it was bright enough to do so.

In his hands were glasses full of alcoholic beverages that Tobias couldn’t differentiate, as he handed it to a woman wearing a similar apron – she must have been a barmaid, then?

“What’s a kid doing here?” The man said, his beard moving up and down along with his mouth. It was mesmerizing to watch.

But Tobias recollected himself, and tried to stop himself from just looking at the beard. “I came here to look for information, yes.”

“Information?” The man who was most definitely the barkeeper said, as he prepared another drink from a barrel with a metal spigot in it. “About what?”

“I need to find where Ordbridge City is, and how to get there.”

“Ordbridge City, eh?” The barkeeper asked, and then he eyed the sword Tobias was carrying. His eyes narrowed. “You aren’t some kind of kid sold to a mercenary band, are you?”

“... No.” He shook his head. While he wasn’t correct, he couldn’t help but flinch at how eerily close it was to the state he was in a few months ago. “I just need to know where the city is, with a map preferably and how to get there. I’m going to be an adventurer, you see.”

“Oh, I see. That makes sense, people your age do be searching for their own fortune with adventuring and whatnot.” The barkeeper said, shrugging. “Anyways, don’t ask me where it is. I’m a barkeeper, not a cartographer. But I do know a friend of mine who can point you in the right direction. His name’s Raymond, and he can sell you a map or two. He’s in the marketplace, you’ll know him when you see him.”

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“I see. Thank you.” Tobias nodded. When he began to stand up, the barkeeper briefly looked at him.

“Not going to get anything?” He asked.

“Is serving alcohol to a kid a good idea?” Tobias retorted, with his eyebrow raised.

The barkeeper shrugged. “Well, if I’m sending you off to become an adventurer, it makes giving a drink to a kid look like something a saint would do, don’t you think? And besides, my treat.”

“... Fair point.”

In the end, Tobias tasted alcohol other than wine. Just the slightest bit – yes, don’t worry about it.

“That’s one hell of a liver you got there kid. You still alright? How many fingers you think I’m holding up?”

“S-sixteen...? What do you... hic mean I’m drunk...? I’m perfectly hic fine, see...?!”

...

He lied. In the end, he got drunk and walked over to the main office, before collapsing. The poor receptionist panicked, and had to let him sleep on one of their staff room couches.

***

Tobias bowed down as much as he could, while closing his eyes. His head pounded loudly, his vision swam, and his stomach wanted to empty itself unnaturally. But he ignored all of those. “I am terribly sorry. I apologize for my transgressions.”

“Honestly...” The black haired, black eyed woman huffed. “I told you to be careful, and that’s what you do?”

“... It will never happen again.” The back of Tobias’ upper legs began to ache from the extended period of his bow, but never stood up or let it show. “I apologize once more.”

“Fine, fine. Go stand up, what you’re doing looks painful to watch.” She said, casually waving a hand. In response, he stood up and turned to look at her with a grateful expression. “Honestly, if you weren’t just a kid, I wouldn’t have even bothered to help you.”

He nodded at her. “The barkeeper said it was for free...”

“That nerve of that rascal of mine...” She said, but she sighed and waved her hand as if to dispel her evil intentions. Tobias had briefly seen a wedding ring on her finger. “It’s been a long day, and I don’t want to get angrier than I already am.” Then she noticed him staring at her, then she let out a small noise of recognition. “Oh right, the reason you’re here is because of your traveler’s pass, right? Well, it’s here now.”

She presented him a wooden rectangle, about the size of a grown man’s palm, and was about as thick as a book with at least fifty pages. On it, he could see engraved letters, indicating that it was a traveler’s pass which belonged to him. The smaller letters which he couldn’t read must have been the finer details then.

“Well, well, impressive isn’t it?” She asked, her eyes glinting with pride. “This is the newest innovation that all of the town offices have developed. No longer do people have to deal with flimsy paper that could be destroyed by the weather and elements. Impressive, don’t you think?”

“It is.” Tobias said, as he ran his fingers across the card. It really was carved... and to do it within a few hours – this was truly impressive. “How is this even possible?”

“To be honest, it’s supposed to be a secret. I’m sorry I can’t tell you.” She apologized, as her hands moved to scratch the back of her head.

“I see, that’s alright. Trade secret and all, right?” She gave a nod of understanding. “I will be going now then.”

“Wait.” She raised her hand, and he blinked. “You aren’t going to stay here?”

“No.” He shook his head. “I need to get to Ordbridge city.”

“Ah.” She intoned. Then she smiled – a truly forlorn smile, as she seemed to reminisce to herself. “It’s quite far away, isn’t it?”

He shrugged. “I still have to find a cartographer. I think his name was Raymond.”

She looked at him. Then she blinked. Then she sighed. “Did he just send you to his friend...? Well, whatever. Just don’t get drunk and pass out here again.” She said, and moved her hand as if to shoo him away.

“Thank you for everything then. Good bye.” Tobias bowed again.

“It’s been a pleasure. And for legal reasons, what I said was a joke. Feel free to return whenever you want.” She said, waving him goodbye. He nodded.

And just like that, he went on his way to leave the town. When he went towards the gates, the guards asked if he got what he was looking for, and he presented them with the wooden card that the woman gave him (On hindsight, he never asked for her name, didn’t he? In response, he thought that he didn’t really need to).

They were impressed with the precision and craftsmanship of the thing, and they began discussing about it among themselves. When they returned it, Tobias bid them good bye, and they waved back, while still continuing to speculate on how it was made.

Then a few minutes of walking later, he realized that he forgot to find Raymond the cartographer. So he returned to the town, and the guards were still talking about the finely engraved wooden card.

“Ah, perfect timing good sir! Can I please borrow your pass for a few moments so I can prove this imbecile wrong?” One of the guards called out, which was met by a small glare from the other guard – the one that commented that he needed spectacles.

Tobias sighed to himself.