Chapter 16: The wandering painter (1)

Have you ever wondered about what you could achieve in your life? About the legacy you would leave behind to the world after your passing? Especially when you were supposed to be some kind of Chosen One. When you wielded strange powers that surpassed the common understanding and disrupted the natural order of the world, one would expect great things to happen in their lives. Yes, there would be sorrowful memories as well as thrilled moments. Such was the fate of a protagonist of an epic fable. But how would you feel if someone flatty told you that you had no talent in the most wonderful thing in the world, magic? How would you feel if the first creation you brought to the world was a freaking spoon that poisoned your own food? Not to mention the thing had “Failure” in its name. The answers to those questions resided in our young heroine who, at the moment, was left speechless at her first result of the transposition. Sure, it was her first time. Sure, the ingredients were rubbishes. But still, a spoon???

“Well, this is…refreshing. I never thought I would see a spoon come out of a transposition ritual.” The old woman cackled at the dumb-founded girl.

“A Champion with a spoon? This is the birth of the Spoon Champion!!!” Sona the female android laughed loudly from the other side of the room behind the counter. Even old Durin could not hold back his sneaky laughter.

It was a public humiliation. The frozen girl holding an elongated spoon in her hand wanted to shout with all her might to make it stop. But she herself was defeated by her own supposed achievement. What was she supposed to do with a spoon? Smacking people in the head like it said? If this was a video game then this thing would be one of the “joke item” that existed purely for the amusement of the player. However, so far, Astora had yet to be amused. On the contrarily, it was driving insane.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS???” Astora battered the floor with her elongated spoon. Surprisingly, the new weapon was much more durable than it looked. Instead of a spoon, it now looked closer to be used as a club.

“Don’t throw a tantrum now, scrub!” said the old woman. “Ridiculous it might be, the thing has its uses.”

The old woman was right. A weapon that could paralyze people upon physical contact would be no joke. While it could not be used as a conventional weapon, combined with its venomous but awkward property, the thing could be quite useful in some specific situations. The girl knew that. But that alone could not ease her disappointment. Even though it was her first time, the girl expected something a bit…more. Something that seemed more Champion-like. A holy sword, a legendary item but certainly not a spoon. Whatever the case, it was not like she could do something about it. She had no choice but to accept the situation as it was and tried to make use of it as much as possible. Although, a spoon certainly would not make it easy.

“Do you think I can try again?” the girl asked with a beaten tone.

“No one is going to stop you but you don’t really have any more material to perform another decent transposition. Instead of going blindly with your experiments, it will be better for you to gather much better materials and learn their properties in order to improve the quality of the creations.” Explained the old woman.

The old woman was right. Astora just had to accept her loss this time and moved on. With only the essence of horned wolf being the last material, it would be impossible to create something decent and imagining going through such humiliation again for a trash item would kill the girl internally.

“Hey!” Sona called the girl over. “I have something to tell you. Come over!”

“Go on! You have nothing else to do here, don’t you now? Your adventure is in the real world, not here.” The old woman said. “When you find some good materials over there, bring them over here and you can proceed with your experiment.”

“Thank you for your lessons! I will. By the way, how should I call you? The other two have already given me their name but you didn’t. And it is hard to call someone without knowing their name.” inquired Astora.

“You may call me…..Cailleach, the Hag. I will be the one in charge of the transposition process. Although in time, you won’t even need my help anymore.” Cailleach spoke in a soft tone, yet hiding some deeper meaning behind her words. A recalling of the past, of the Champions before Astora.

“Alright, I will be going now, grandma Cailleach.” Astora spoke joyfully as she dashed to the other side of the shop, leaving a bewildered old woman behind.

“Grandma huh?” the old woman smiled.

“So congratulations with your first ….” Sona looked at the spoon in Astora’s hand while trying to hold back her laugh. “….weapon. Since you already know a bit about essences and souls from G.R.A.N.D.M.A Cailleach.” The female android glanced at the annoyed old woman who clearly did not like Sona’s way of saying it. “I thought I should show you my amazing role in this shop.”

“Oh, so you are not just a stand for the shop anymore?” Astora asked with doubtful eyes.

“How rude! Anyway, as you know, this is a shop so…what do you do at a shop?” Sona threw back the questions with heavy expectations. It would be better if Astora just went along with her charade.

“To buy and sell things ?” answered the girl.

“Exactly! We have all sorts of items, from the most legendary amazing unique items to the downright trashes piling up in the back….I mean more humble items with low demand stored in the most perfectly secure durable place.” Sona spoke grandly. “In short, it is a super mega useful convenience store.”

“Sound more like a bazaar to me.”

“Now now let’s not dwell on useless detail! Anyway, you tell us what you need and we will bring it to you. Though it will cost you.”

“Cost? Like money?”

“Nope. Not money. What are we going to do with money in this place? It is not like there is another shop here. No, we need souls and essences.”

“What for?” asked the girl.

“To eat of course. Don’t you know how delicious soul and essence are? The soft bouncy texture with that exquisite taste in your mouth…I can never forget it. In exchange for a certain amount of souls and essences, I will bring you an item of equivalent value. A good deal right?” Sona said excitedly. Her one and only camera eyeball even displayed a star of hope.

“I don’t know why but this sounds incredibly suspicious. Where do these items of yours come from in the first place?”

“Fine. They are what the previous Champions have collected but never got to use them. Back then, we didn’t have the idea of creating the pouch Cailleach gave you so every time a Champion found something they deemed precious, they brought it here for storage. A bunch of hoarders, the lot of them. And like every kleptomaniac out there, they eventually forgot about what they even stored here and just went on with their lives, ignoring the piles of trashes I have in my home. All I want is to have a clean place with some side dishes to snack. Is that too much too ask???” Sona ranted.

So basically, the android wished to use Astora to get rid of the rubbishes while still getting some profits out of it. Now that she spoke about it, Sona did bet with Durin initially about who had to organize the storage area. There must be a lot if they had all these free times and still did not finish that task. But then again, whatever these items were, they were what the Champions considered useful. Perhaps there were indeed some legendary items or such left behind. It would not hurt to take a look at.

“Fine fine. I will. But I only have a horned wolf essence on my hands right now.” Said Astora in a tired tone. So aside from transposing them, Astora could also trade essences and souls for potentially useful items. She would have to calculate carefully whether to spend everything on some unknown creation or on a fixed item. In other words, Astora had to manage her resources carefully. It all felt like a video game down to the core.

“A horned wolf essence…let me see…” Sona showed a dissatisfied expression. It must be because of the low quality of essence. “Ah here is one.”

Target: Champion’s Undergarment

Type: Armor - Rare

Description: An used underwear that once belonged to a goddess of beauty but ended up stolen by a certain Champion. The once sweet aromatic perfume has now turned into a disgusting smell of sweat and mold. Offer no additional protection.

A Champion’s mission is arduous and grueling. To relieve their pain, a certain Champion indulged in perversion and developed a habit of stealing underwear of beautiful women. But instead of keeping it a secret, the man wore it as a protective helmet as he charged into countless battles. It heightened his spirit and kept him on his toes until the end of his mission.

Special Attribute: Perversion - Can intimidate enemies and create a sense of disgust from female foes.

“A man must not be ashamed of his outfit. Only when his mind is clear of all unworldly desires, will he find his true calling, whether or not it will distance himself from the mass. Such lonely path is the way of a Champion.”

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“WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?” Astora threw the underwear with strawberry design at Sona’s face. “SERIOUSLY???”

“Calm down! I have something else…maybe…let me see…ah maybe this?” Sona smiled awkwardly.

Target: Champion’s (leftover) sandwich

Type: Consumable - Common

Description: A half-eaten sandwich made by a Champion. It is just a rotten sandwich.

Special Attribute: Stomachache - Guarantee an infection upon eating the sandwich. Can potentially cause death.

“DEATH BY SANDWICH!”

“….”

“….”

“…..”

“Ok, I will give you both of these for the horned wolf essence. Great deal right?” Sona smiled.

Astora, without a word, silently walked toward the door and opened the Nil Gate before escaping this nightmare. Upon returning to Valhalla, the girl collapsed on her knees and cried out of shame. She herself was not in anyway affected but she just could not bear the sight of her being in a store trying to buy an used underwear of a pervert and a half-eaten sandwich. By their names, Astora assumed that Champions were supposed to be some kind of heroic warriors or awesome legends. But this was definitely not it.

“Hey, mistress. Cheer up!” Grimora said. “At least you have the spoon.”

“That is not comforting at all!” the girl shouted.

* * *

Two days later, after a grueling battle between her sense of defeat and her willpower, Astora finally managed to reach Nadir, a well-developed town or some might call it a small city, located at the foot of the High Walls. The pouch given to her by Cailleach really did help her in bringing her supplies without having to wear that heavy backpack. In addition, while Astora didn’t want to admit it, the Spoon of Failure too was quite useful. Normally, against slow enemies, Astora could just use her spells combining the flames and the lightning bolt to obliterate them. However, faster enemies like wolves or others that hunted in packs would pose some serious problems. But with the spoon as a weapon, she could quickly paralyze them if they got too close instead of just running away and waiting for her chance. So the spoon was not that useless after all.

Upon arriving at the stone gate of the town, a line of people with their carriages could be seen lining up, waiting for their turn to be checked by the guards. Astora joined the line and waited patiently for her turn.

“Paper please!” the guard in armor holding a spear said.

“Yes, sir.” Astora politely replied and brought out the permit given to her by Alan.

“Hum…everything seems to be in check.” The guard said while closely inspecting the girl with his eyes. “You don’t really have a lot of luggage with you.”

“Ah yes, I prefer to travel lightly with as little stuff with me as possible.” Anstora smiled innocently.

“I see.” The guard said. “You can go. Next!”

“The permit Alan gave us really helped us out there.” Grimora whispered quietly.

“Yeah. I wonder what he is doing now.” Astora looked at the clear sky, imagining what sort of thing Alan must be doing right at the moment. She still hasn’t received any news from him. Even though the deadline of their deal was still five months from now on, Astora didn’t like the fact that she was on the receiving end without knowing when it was going to happen or what.

Anyway, her first task should be asking around for Karuma. If only she has asked more information about him from Gandolf. From her stay in Valhalla so far, the best way to gather info was to go to the tavern. While it was not exactly a reliable source of info since many were just rumors one person heard from another, more often, Astora could get info out of drunken men easier without being tracked down or revealing her true identity. Her short but flawless experience should do good this time as it did back in Brehem. Or supposedly, she could find another crazy old sage willing enough to tell her. There was that too.

At the tavern, Astora felt as if it was home. She just got too used to this kind of busy scene where men of all origins knocked alcohol down their throat nonstop while listening to the occasional passing by barbs.

“A full course meal please! For one person!” Astora sat down and told the waitress.

“Coming right up, honey! Full course meal for table three.” Shouted the waitress as she moved to the next table.

This tavern seemed very busy, despite it being still morning. Just a quick glance of the place could get you why. Unlike Brehem, the town of Nadir was a must-visit place if one wished to pass the High Walls from Angel’s Crown. Despite the other side being branded forbidden entry, many adventurers had the permission from their guild or requests to cross the Walls. The reason was because it was said that the Blighted Woods was once home of the elves, a kingdom known as Malatas. However, after the calamity struck, the kingdom fell to the dark mist and the elves, or rather those still alive, evacuated the remaining of their race toward the other kingdoms. Since then, there have been any attempts from extinguish the mist but they all ended in failure.

Today, the ruins of the kingdom have become an infamous site for excavation and treasure hunting. After all, the ancient elves were rumored to have possessed numerous treasures. But how did they gain access to such deadly location? The answer lied in a specific phenomenon that took place from time to time in the Blighted Woods. Occasionally, on certain days of the month, the dark mist would clear the way, allowing a safe travel. However, the event seemed random and no one really knew what path would it lead too. Furthermore, the mist would only stay clear for a day or two until it came back again, blocking all escape routes. Those unfortunate enough would never walk out again. So, it remained an incredibly risky task and reserved for only experienced adventurers.

Over the years, this whole thing became popular and was recognized as a legitimate business. So in fact, the Blighted Woods were not really forbidden after all. However, it was still illegal to come into the deepest part of the forest and some form of barrier has been erected to prohibit wandering travelers from entering. Working at the tavern really did pay off in term of info gathering for Astora.

But the expedition into the Blighted Woods and the hunt for treasures were not why she was here. The girl needed to find a man by the name of Karuma in hope that he would teach her how to fight despite the lack of magic talent. Now that she remembered it, was Karuma really a fighter though? From what Gandolf implied, he was. However, was he a good fighter? More importantly, would he be willing to teach Astora?

Meanwhile, at the same building but one floor above the tavern, inside a guest’s room, a man has just woken up.  Gasping his large mouth, the man scratched his furry head as he stared blankly at the wall, still half asleep. Compared to the rough common adventurer, this person took surprisingly a long time to prepare themselves. Not only did they use the comb to brush their head, they also used it for their fur and fluffy tail. The person was definitely not a human for they possessed a thick layer of golden fur with only a white patch on their chest and the white tip of their fluffy tail. Two pointy ears unlike the elves could also be seen. Standing on two foot with paws like a cat, the man dressed himself in a blue and white attire, one that was clearly not suited for battle. The worn cloth seemed to have seen better days, showing that its owner has travelled far to come here, in search of something or someone. A few stains of various colors could also be seen near the long sleeves and on the chest area on the outfit. But the person never cared for the dirty stains. To them, they were his pride, a testament of his profession. Finally, he grabbed his tools and put them in his bag before taking an unusually large straw hat and putting it on his head. Filled with determination, he was ready to continue his search.

“What a beautiful day! I wonder if I will be able to find her today. As if….” The man smiled to himself with his slanted eyes as if they were almost closed.

Taking the stairs to go down, the man was greeted by the waitress who finally got a moment to breath.

“Good morning, master Valanor! As late as usual!” the waitress waved at the man who also waved back awkwardly.

“Hey, be easy on me!” said the man.

“I am just joking. We all know you have been gazing at the moon quite late these days. Still can’t find your soulmate?”

“Like I said, she is not my soulmate.” The man tried to defend himself.

“Nonsense. No one is willing to go through this kind of journey just to find someone completely related to them.”

“It is for my art.”

“Alright alright. Just keep telling yourself that!” the waitress smiled together with the bartender behind. “So what are you doing today?”

“I don’t know actually. Maybe drop by the expedition team but I highly doubt the woman I am searching for would be there.”

“You know, you can show us the painting.” Said the bartender. “If we know what she looks like, we can ask around in your stead.”

“It…is fine. It is not like it is that amazing of a painting actually. And it has a lot of personal value for me so I can’t really show other people.” The man made some excuses.

“It is alright. I understand.” The bartender seemed used to people with secrecy and he respected that. “Though, it would be nice if we have some basic information. Like what her hair color is, stuff like that. Then again, a lot of people has the same hair color…”

“Hers I believe is quite rare.” Said the furry man.

“What color is it?”

“White as ashes and silver.”

“Oh you mean like the little girl over there?” the waitress pointed at a girl sitting together with two loud men who clearly seemed offended and spoke loudly in a threatening manner at the helpless girl. “There seems to be some commotion there. We should help the girl.” She turned to the bartender who already prepared his muscles for this. Drunken men fighting in a bar was a common sight but bullying a young girl in his own bar? Not a chance! “Master Valanor, will you help us too? …. Master Valanor?”

The furry man was frozen in place. His slanted eyes opened widely with awe while his arms rose forward, trembling.

“Master Valanor?”

“I…I finally found you.”

* * *

Just a few moment earlier, as Astora was enjoying her meal while listening closely to the conversations surrounding her, two city guards approached her and asked if they could sit in her table. It appeared that all other tables were already full due to the upcoming expedition. Surprisingly, one of them was the guard accompanying the captain that checked Astora when she crossed Nadir’s gate. And because of her being all alone while seemingly possessing no luggage, the guy remembered her clearly.

In her mind, Astora would rather avoid the authorities in fear of what they might discover from her. Or perhaps she never really trusted any government official after her trauma with the CIA. Even though this was a different world, the last five years and the pains have been embedded in the girl’s mind. However, she was in no position to refuse and she did not want to antagonize anyone just yet. Lucky for her, the men were very polite in their approach and seemed quite friendly.

“Again, my apologies for disturbing your meal.” Said the guard.

“It is no problem.” Astora faked a smile as she continued eating her meal, trying to finish it quickly and leave.

“Are you here for the expedition?” asked the second guard.

“Oh not really. I am…hum…visiting someone. But I have never been to Nadir so I am still a bit lost.” Answered the girl.

“Is it family? We have worked as city guards for almost ten years now so we know practically everyone here. We can help you find this relative of yours. Is it old smith Baz? Or grandma Hellen? Both of them didn’t have their relatives visiting for years now.” The first guard spoke excitedly.

“Oh no, he is not my relative. He is more like a friend of my acquaintance.” The girl said.

“Oh really? What is his name?” asked the second guard.

“Karuma. Karuma is his name.”

The two guards who have been happily drinking and joyful suddenly turned sober with a sullen expression clearly shown on their face. Their nice attitude took a complete shift upon hearing the name as they started to look at the girl with disdain. A few other customers in the nearby tables also stopped drinking and put down their cups while paying close attention to the table next to them. For a moment, it was as if Astora found herself in some other worldly place instead of that elated tavern filled with laughter. A single name was able to shatter all of it. Just who was this Karuma? And more importantly, what did he do to have this kind of influence? Although whether this was a good or bad influence was another entirely different matter.

“Why are the young miss such as you seeking someone like Karuma?” the first guard changed his tone, holding his cup tightly.

“Why can’t I? Is there something wrong with mister Karuma?” asked Astora.

“OF COURSE IT IS!” the guard slammed his cup down the table. “Everything is wrong about that fucking bastard.”

“Hold on now!” Astora stood up. She certainly did not expect this kind of reaction. “Let’s all calm down! Why are you being like this?”

“Calm down? How about you tell us who you are and why are you looking for that son of a bitch?” the guard grabbed his spear.

The girl remained silent, probably due to the spear pointing at her. She never fought a person before and while she had confidence that she would easily win against this lowly guard, the girl didn’t want to have a warrant on her head. Especially when she was surrounded by this many people in such public place.

“Now, what is it?” the guard insisted loudly while the second one tried to grab the girl by her arm. If the worst has come, Astora would have no choice but to resort to violence.

*SLASH*

Something long and thin hit the second guard in the face, blowing him outside the tavern. It happened all so fast no one actually saw what the thing was. From Astora’s point of view, it looked like a whip but with hair. However, the way it behaved was not like any whip at all. After blasting the poor guard, it turned to the one holding the spear in the flash of an eye. Moving like a living snake, it wrapped itself around the spear and broke it apart with sheer pressure. As for the guard, he was frozen in place, knowing not what was happening around him. And then from behind him, a figure taped lightly on the back of the guard’s head, knocking him unconscious.

Astora was speechless. She could barely follow what just transpired. As the guard collapsed down to the floor, the man who saved her eventually showed himself while slowly walking toward her. To her surprise, he was no man at all. The body was covered by a layer of golden fur wearing a blueish pants with white traditional overcoat and a big straw hat that hid his face. A waving tail so smooth and fluffy. His hands and foot resembled paws like those of cats, only with more human-like fingers. Finally, he took off his giant hat and revealed his face: a fox. The man in front of Astora was a bipedal fox with slanted eyes while holding a giant painter’s brush. This was a beastman.

While the girl still did not utter a single word out of awe, the fox quickly got on one knee and took the girl’s hand without warning. His voice saturated with joy and pent-up emotions he has hold close to his heart all these years.

“What..what are you doing? Who are you?” Astora panicked.

“After all these years, I finally found you. To think I finally get the chance to touch you with my humble limbs…” The fox continued.

“What?”

“My lady Astora!”

“WHAT???”