The temperate forest was still as pleasant as it was the day before. I took the opportunity to collect more mushrooms. I haven't encountered any poison yet, but it was a fairly common status effect in SoD, so I felt I needed the security of more antidotes. I wondered if I could collect the spores and farm the mushrooms on my own. That would be especially useful for acquiring more of the rare white mushroom variety. After considering the amount of time and effort it could require, I dismissed the idea. I knew nothing about fungiculture and learning the process through trial and error did not sound like my cup of tea.

“Are we heading back to town now?” asked the skull.

“Yes. Why are you asking?”

The skull seemed reluctant to answer.

“I've just been wondering. Eren, what do you think of the townspeople?”

It was a fairly curious question to come from Calvar. The town really doesn't have too many citizens to worry about. I have only met two, and all evidence points to them being the only ones there. Though, one could argue there used to be three.

“Toberno seems like a friendly fellow. More than anything else, he seems very lonely, and happy to have me there to keep company. I can't trust him fully just yet, but have so far encountered no evidence of wrongdoing.”

“What about that woman, Ferra?” he asked.

“The lazy shopkeeper. She didn't seem to think too highly of me, but it seems to be improving. It's hard to convince her to get off her chair, but she does seem quite talented and knowledgeable about many subjects. She did, after all, construct that bed for a commission. If she gets compensation then she'll be glad to do some honest work.”

The skull seems unsatisfied.

“That's it? That's all your noticed? Well, it's not like it really matters. We should move on.”

I couldn't help but feel that Calvar was hiding something. He was leading me on to ask further.

“What's wrong, Calvar? Are you saying that I missed something important? Do they compose a threat to us and our safety?”

He face stayed calm in response to the question.

“Oh no, it's nothing that grandiose. It won't concern our journey; it's just a personal matter.”

I wasn't going to let him off the hook so easily. If someone says something doesn't matter, then it usually means the opposite.

“Calvar, if there is anything on your mind, please share it. You are an important companion on my journey. Any thoughts or advice you have, no matter how minor, are important to me. I won't dismiss any of your comments.”

The skull pointed its eyes downward.

“I've been wondering what kind of relationship those two have.”

“Calvar, are you suggesting they are conspiring against us in secret? I see, that is an interesting proposal. I have consider the possibility of them plotting against us, but I always assumed they would do so on their own. If they joined forces, then the level of manipulation would b-”

“What? No, that's not what I meant. I just wondered how close they are. Like, if they're married.”

I couldn't follow Calvar's line of reasoning.

“I've seen no evidence that they are. But why would that matter? I don't quite understand.”

After saying it out loud, I began to understand Calvar's intentions. I thought it couldn't be something so petty and adventitious, but I had to confirm.

“Calvar, could it be that you have a crush on Ferra?”

The skull seemed to blush and look away. I had no idea how he did so, since he was only bone.

“I-it's nothing like that. Look at me, Eren, I am a skeleton. Who do you take me for? I was just curious because she reminded me of my wife.”

I was surprised by his comment.

“Calvar, you had a wife?”

He pouted angrily in response.

“Hey, I may look like this now, but I was once alive, you know? Sometimes the undead carry over memories from our old life. I don't remember much, but I know I had a wife, and she was similar to Ferra. I just felt very nostalgic when we talked to her.”

“I get it. At the very least, you want to talk to her yourself, right? I'll see if I can get something arranged.”

The skull looked away in embarrassment.

“Thank you, Eren. You understand a man's pain.”

That said, I was not sure how normal human would react to a talking skull. If she did remind him of his wife, would he make moves on her? Imagining a romantic relationship between a human and a skeleton was far-fetched and absurd. However, some fantasy settings had pretty ridiculous scenarios of this nature. It did make me curious about a certain subject.

“Calvar? Do half-breeds exist? For example, is there such a thing as an half-Elf?”

“What the heck is an Elf?” he asked.

Of course. I almost forgot that Spirit of Darkness did not have Elves. The game only had humans and a variety of monsters, some of which were more humanoid than others.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

“Sorry, what about ogres? Is there such a thing as an half-ogre?”

The skull was confused.

“Of course not. Whatever gave you that idea? Cats have kittens, and ogres have ogres. You don't see half-ogre half-cat hybrids running around. You have a sick mind, Eren, a truly sick mind. You should head to the capital and seek help.”

Hybridization in fantasy tended to be more all-encompassing than it was in normal biology. In reality, even very closely related species such as donkeys and horses had trouble interbreeding. It was comforting to learn this world did not stray much from my old world in this subject.

Putting that aside, we continued on our way and reached the town. My first stop was at the inn, where I was greeted by the usual glass-eyed innkeeper.

“Oh Eren, I was looking for you.”

I didn't expect to hear this again so soon. I hoped it wasn't another monster princess requesting me to wipe out her clan.

“Did another mysterious robed figure drop by?

“What? No, you got a letter in the mail. Mailman said it's for the adventurer who cleared out the undead cave.”

Toberno handed me an envelope sealed with red wax. The envelope itself was blank, with no information as from who or where it was sent from. I wondered about the reason for the secrecy. I curiously opened the envelope and unfolded the letter inside.

“To the bold adventurer who defeated the undead,

That was a very impressive feat. I would like to meet you face to face so we can discuss a compensation. Please meet me at the castle as soon as possible.

PS: try unlatching it from the back”

I was baffled by the contents. Couldn't the sender elaborate a little more on what he meant? I showed the letter to Toberno to see what he made of it.

“Hmm, very brief, isn't it? Only saying 'the castle' isn't descriptive at all. Tristaria has many castles, so that's pretty much useless. I also have no idea what the PS is referring to. Unlatching what? I'm afraid I can't help much with this.”

I looked over the back of the letter, but it was blank. Same for the envelope. My first hunch was that the PS referred to the letter itself, but that proved incorrect. It wasn't going to be that easy.

I headed outside and read over the letter once more. I needed to think it through logically. The sender did not appear to know my name, as it was addressed simply to the one who cleared the nearby dungeon. However, I only did so yesterday. How could someone learn of this fact so quickly? The only two people who were told of this were Toberno and Ferra. They rarely got visitors, so it's unlikely the information has spread very far in only one day. And even if it did, then they would certainly know my name.

No, they must have obtained the information from a different source. The wording of the letter itself was also quite suspect. When first read, the writer seems to be happy and simply congratulating me on a job well done. However, the second sentence of the main body was more ambiguous: “meet you face to face so we can discuss a compensation.” I first thought this referred to a reward, but then why not just say “reward” or something equally positive? Compensation can also be read in a negative context, such as compensating a shop owner for a broken window.

If we build up on that, then the earlier contents of the letter could be read in a semi-sarcastic tone. If I rewrote it to be more blatant it would say something like:

“To the foolish adventurer who defeated the undead,

That was an impressive feat. I would like to meet so can discuss my compensation. Please come to my castle as soon as possible, or else something bad might happen.

PS: try unlatching it from the back”

If interpreted like this, it almost could be a threat. It's not guaranteed, but if this is correct, then the sender would have been someone friendly with the skeleton mage. And we if limit it to that, there is one obvious name which rises to the top of the list of likely candidates. The feared Demon Lord.

Could it be this was an invitation from the Demon Lord? He might have noticed one of his generals had gone missing, and thus sent the letter to confront whomever killed him. That's an entirely likely possibility. If so, then he will be even more furious once he figures out the fortress matriarch is dead.

However, the PS note still left me stumped. Was he referring to his castle? Could I unlock a secret entrance from the back? That's very unusual wording if so, and could have easily been mentioned in the main body. I had a gut feeling he was referring to something else.

I began searching through my bag. Was he referring to something in my possession? Do I have something that could be unlatched from the back? I struggled to come up with a suitable object. But then I had an epiphany. If it truly was the Demon Lord who wrote that note, then there's one thing that comes before anything else. That must be it.