They got back to the Weildenbach exactly three days after they set out, just like Quinn said they would. They then walked into Silver Grove late at night as the tower bell rang. It had been three grueling days since she had regular food and not hardtack and jerky, so she was quite happy when Mikeal said he would pay for it.
The tavern was stocked full of people drinking away their night, as it was normally. Almost every table was full, forcing the two to sit at the bar. The atmosphere was quite warm thanks to the ever-burning fire on the side of the Silver Grove.
There were quite a few more people than normal and there were some people that looked different than the others. They were flamboyant clothing with plenty of thrills underneath their sagen. And their sagen were so brightly dyed, it almost hurt to look at them. She figured they were a mercenary group that had moved into town.
While they were waiting on their food to arrive, Quinn idly drummed on the table. “So… my pay?”
“Right; right.” Mikeal pulled his coin purse from his waist. From it, he withdrew nine silver pieces. He then held out his bracelet and ten gold appeared in his hand. Their shine was quite attractive. “As we agreed; ten gold and three silver per day.”
She swiped the coins from him before anyone else could see. Although everyone in the town had been quite nice - aside from the butcher - she didn’t want to give anyone any ideas. It was better to keep an honest man honest after all.
Quinn looked down at the nineteen coins in her hand. This was the most money she had in this world. She had been fairly poor with only copper to her name, but she was quite happy to have become rich in an instant. “Pleasure doing business.” She didn’t slip them into her coin purse along with her five copper, instead, she plopped them into her quiver. This way it would be much harder to steal from.
Elena dropped off their food. Its scent was simply divine to her nose even though it was just a simple soup and some bread. It was pretty cheap too; four copper for both servings. “The pleasure, I assure you, was all mine, my faithful guide.”
Quinn used the wooden spoon to drink a bit of the broth. “So, uh, what are you going to do now?”
Mikeal nodded over to the fruity group. “I’m taking the caravan out of here first thing in the morning. I’m glad they got here today… I was really worried that we would miss them.”
“Why not take a caravan? It would be quicker to walk, no?”
Mikeal grimaced. “I originally thought so too, but lone travelers are more likely to be targeted by monsters and bandits. They aren’t much of a problem around here, but the far northern side of the grove has a high population of badgius.”
What are badgius? They sounded like badgers almost… and why not just go out the southern side of the Veiled Grove? Although her sense of location was still quite bad since she hadn’t seen a map, she did know that there wasn’t much civilized land on the northern side of the Halis Empire. Most of the population was on the southern side and the capital itself was a port city on the far south of the country. “Why not go out the southern side?”
Mikeal visibly shuddered as the blood leached from his face. “D-don’t even mention that place.”
“Why not?”
Mikeal pushed away his half-eaten soup. “There is a swamp to our south, separating the rest of Halis from the Veiled Grove. It's part of the reason the population here is so low. The swamp is nicknamed the S-shattered Keep. An ancient city from the eighth era is in that swamp. Nothing living has ever returned.”
Quinn was taken aback. She had never heard of this from Ada. “Is it that dangerous?”
“Of course it is! When I said they never came back alive, I didn’t mean they never came back at all. Without exception, all who die in that swamp are turned into undead. There are so many undead in the swamp that it would take an alliance of Halis and Magin to wipe it out, but they would suffer heavy losses.”
Quinn froze. Undead. She had, of course, speculated about their existence since she was in a magic world. They were almost a staple in every fantasy book and game she read, so it only made sense that such things would exist. But undead....
Although it had faded significantly, she was terrified of the undead in her youth. Just the thought of it would freak her out. And that was in a world without magic! Would she even be able to move if she saw one? The way they unnaturally slunk about, seeking to devour all forms of life... She felt ill as she pictured one lumbering after her with its sluggish gate. Quinn sincerely hoped she would never have to meet one, much less fight against them.
“S-so, anyway, what are you going to do?” His attempts to change the topic weren’t subtle in the slightest.
She hadn’t really thought of it. All Quinn knew was that she needed to leave the Veiled Grove. It was like a burning desire in the back of her head to be free of this place. The caravan seemed like the best opportunity to leave. “I’ll probably join you on the way out. Then? I haven’t thought about it. I don’t really have anywhere to go…”
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“Well, you are quite young… have you thought about joining an academy? From what I’ve seen you have at least a bit of talent in magic with how often you cast Cleanse and Compass. Or the military is a good idea… I’m pretty sure the Halis Imperial Army has a ton of benefits for their officers.”
An academy sounded like a really good idea. It would be the perfect place to learn and research. And they might have books on spatial magic. If she could just return home… Even if the academy didn’t have anything on spatial magic, it would be quite handy to attempt to branch out and use different magic than lifestyle. The thought of slinging electricity sounded quite nice.
The military wasn’t too bad of an idea either. It would be a good place to gain experience using magic and fighting. The skill to fight would especially help her if she had to stay in this world for the long term considering how often she heard about the dangerous places and beings. And that wasn’t even including the danger she herself had faced.
There was just one thing that was a bit off… “Why are you helping me so much?” It was true, Mikeal - for all his annoyances - had been nothing but helpful to her since she had met him. He had paid double for a pair of antlers, he had kindly shared knowledge, and he was even trying to help her now.
A blush rose to his face, but it quickly faded into a sad smile. “You reminded me of my sister… I don’t know. Perhaps it is just a fool-hardy attempt to make up for… I don’t know.”
She could see the sadness in his face. Although it was quite hard to tell emotions from people most times, there was so much sorrow radiating from his eyes it was hard to miss. “Well, no matter the reason, thank you.”
He shook his head as if to rid the sorrow that was leaking from his eyes. His bright, full-of-charm grin returned. “Of course! I will always help a lovely lady in need!"
And now he was back to his normal self. Just great.
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They finished their meal and then approached the vibrant group of people. There were so many of them that they took up half of the room. Their approach was instantly noticed as a couple of the less drunk ones shifted to show off their weapons. The majority of which were heavy two-handed swords of some sort, though there were a couple of halberds and a spear.
Mikeal showed them no mind as he approached the middle of the mercenaries. She hadn’t seen them before, blocked by the mercs, but six people sat around a table in the middle of the pack. They were the only ones in the group wearing normal clothes-tunic, trousers, and sagen- though they also had shoes.
Shoes! How she missed them. She never realized how much she had taken footwear for granted. Now that she had been walking around without them for nearly two weeks, she desperately wanted a pair. She missed the famous shoe brands she used to wear for no other reason than she could. She missed not feeling every pebble that sliced her feet... The first thing she would do after leaving the Veiled Grove was find a shoe vendor.
Two of the six perked up as they walked to their table. The other four were too busy playing some game using wooden cards to care. Of the two who noticed them, one was an old man and the other was a teenager of about fifteen years. Their similarities were easily noticeable. They had the same broad chin, sharp blue eyes, and broad noses. The young one had dirty blonde hair and the older one had silver. If the old man had blonde hair and the lines around his eyes and forehead disappeared, she would've thought they were brothers.
The old man spoke, his voice deep and gravelly as if he had smoked most of his life but stopped before his lungs degraded too much. “Ah… honored customer, I take it you found what you were looking for?”
Mikeal smiled broadly, though it lacked his typical charm. “Arnz! I have indeed found it. When is your caravan leaving next?”
“As soon as the fog lets us tomorrow… and who is your new companion?” The old man’s eyes flickered to Quinn.
“M-My name is Quinn.” She tried to smile.
The old man kept a smile on his face, but it was more courteous. “Well met, Miss Quinn. I am Arnz Schel, the merchant leader of the Shell caravan. And this,” he pointed to the younger man, “is my grandson Torrence Schel.”
Oh, they have a last name? Only a few people she met had a last name. The captain of the guard was one of them. She assumed it was something to do with nobility like in her old world, but maybe not since the merchant had a last name.
Mikeal slapped three silver onto the table. “I’d like to join your group and head back to Strumgard.”
Torrence, the grandson, snatched the silver and pocketed them. “Pleased to have such a capable mage along.”
Quinn reached down into her quiver and deposited three more coins with a shaky hand. It was a lot of money, but it was worth it for protection, right? If even a mage that could make himself practically invisible needed an armed escort, she shuddered to think what might happen to her by her lonesome. “I, um, I-I’d like to join too.”
Once more the coins disappeared, but this time it was the older man. “Done. Though may I ask why you want to leave? Are you running from your parents?”
“N-no. My parents aren’t… around.” Smooth. She internally beat herself up as she stuttered once more. It was just too difficult to talk to strangers! Part of her rebuked herself for even wanting to get better at it since that would involve practice.
“I see. Well, are you any good with that bow of yours?” Arnz asked.
Mikeal laughed his annoyingly slow laugh. “Is she? This is the hunter that took out a Rain Deer!”
A look flashed through Arnz's eyes as he flicked back a silver coin. “Then if the time comes, how about you shoot a couple of arrows and I’ll give you a discount?”
Quinn caught the coin. She already had the money, so she couldn’t exactly refuse him. She didn’t know if she could actually shoot if something attacked her. It was entirely different from hunting. “S-sure. I'll try, I mean.”
“Great! We leave first thing in the morning! No refunds if we leave without you.” Arnz laughed merrily and joined back into the game his companions were playing. It was an obvious dismissal.
She parted ways with Mikeal as he headed to the bar and she left the Silver Grove. She stepped out, the storm raging as it always did, but it seemed darker today. Maybe it was because the sun was already down, but she got a bad feeling as she looked around the town. She squashed that feeling down and continued on her way, ignoring the pelting rain as she did.