Don’t Run Away My Lord

14 – Salt Delivery Chaos (1)

Baphelt examined the ring closely and then handed it back to me, as if it was nothing special.

“Well, it might fetch a good price if you sell it, but it doesn’t look very expensive.”

“Really? Then it won’t do… Eruga went through so much trouble to retrieve it…”

Rianna looked crestfallen, and Baphelt scratched his beard in confusion.

“Hmm… If you meet an honest jeweler or pawnshop, they might give you a decent price… I’m not sure if such a place exists, though…”

Baphelt then pointed to the protruding wyvern egg in the bag.

“What’s this? Why is the egg so big?”

“It’s a wyvern egg.”

“I see. Wait, a wyvern?! Are you crazy? Why would you bring something like that?”

As I explained that I planned to raise it and ride it, Baphelt brought his index finger to his temple and spun it around.

“You’re completely insane, brother. Taming a wyvern? You must be out of your mind. We’d better break it and fry it.”

“Why? It would be so convenient and fun to ride around on.”

“Oh, yes… You have a valid point…”

Baphelt chuckled awkwardly at Rianna’s words.

“Anyway, you came at a good time. We were just about to have lunch. Come this way, Lady.”

We sat down with the shepherds and finished cooking the leftover lamb meat from yesterday.

Rianna had a huge appetite and seemed to eat more than anyone else, including the other shepherds.

To maintain such a body, you must eat a lot.

After finishing their meal, Baphelt lit a fire at the beginning of the year and asked.

“Did you say you were going to Yeongjuseong?”

“I was thinking of going there.”

“Great. Since we’re going that way anyway, let’s go together. Is that okay?”

“I’m fine with it, but is there a reason for us to go together?”

“Wouldn’t it be more comfortable to have only a stubborn person like you and the saint go? It seems f*cking uncomfortable otherwise.”

“I agree with that.”

Baphelt laughed heartily, blowing smoke into the air.

I carefully took out the wyvern egg and placed it near the bonfire.

Rihanna saw that and asked.

“Won’t it get overcooked if it’s placed so close?”

“The wyvern’s body temperature is just right, so it should be fine.”

“hehehe… You really know a lot about demons.”

With a satisfied smile, Rihanna gently stroked the egg.

“hehehe. Grow up well.”

* * * * *

We continued to move with the shepherds, and several hours later, we arrived at a place called Tucenneu Castle.

On the outskirts of the castle, we bid farewell to the shepherds.

“Now what are we going to do, my friend?”

“Well, I haven’t thought about it yet, but I should continue wandering around here and there.”

“Well, let me give you one piece of advice. Stick close to the Saintess.”

Baphelt said seriously.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’m really worried, you know. If you wander around alone, you’ll definitely get into trouble.”

“Got it. Thanks for the past few days.”

Baphelt also exchanged greetings with Rianna.

“Goodbye, Saintess. Please take care of this reckless human.”

“I will! I’ll tie a leash on him so he won’t cause any accidents!”

“hahahahaha!”

Baphelt laughed heartily and mounted his horse.

Then, after waving his hand once, he immediately turned his horse around and galloped away.

I hope those rough but good-hearted shepherds can safely bring the sheep back home without any major problems for a year.

Once Baphelt was completely out of sight, we finally entered the Lord’s Castle.

Toosenne Castle was more like a large village than a castle.

The only thing that could be considered a castle was a simple wooden structure on top of a hill in the middle of the city.

The wooden structure was surrounded by a double layer of wooden fences, and a city where people lived was formed around those fences.

And on the outskirts of the city, there were quite large farmlands, but it seemed like they weren’t being cultivated as it was early winter.

Despite that, there were still quite a few people walking around the streets, and the numerous unique shops made it look quite lively.

Upon seeing this, Rianna made a short comment without much enthusiasm.

“It’s a small town, isn’t it?”

“This is considered a small town?”

“If you go to the capital or the marquisate, you’ll probably faint.”

“Well, I wouldn’t know.”

Liana, who had been watching passersby for a moment, spoke up.

“But that ring, though.”

“Oh, right. I should divide it. And the things I took from the slaves too.”

“Shouldn’t we exchange them for money first?”

“Exchange them for money? Weren’t we just going to divide them by weight?”

“If we want to use them conveniently, it’s better to exchange them for gold coins. It’s difficult to calculate with pieces of gold sticking out.”

She had a point.

Humans solve everything with gold coins.

It’s better to exchange them for standardized currency instead of inconveniencing ourselves by evaluating each item separately.

“Then let’s go to a jeweler.”

We asked around and found the jeweler.

The old man with white hair looked at us without even greeting us.

Liana confidently spoke as she took out the ring and pieces of gold.

“How much can I sell these for?”

“Hmm… jewelry… and this is… a ring, huh…”

The owner took out a magnifying glass and rolled the ring around.

“Hmm… Gold and rubies… Hmm…”

“It’s something I’ve inherited from my great-grandfather, so it’s precious.”

“Hmm… I see…”

As I stared at Rihanna, who lied without a care, she also turned to look at me.

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“Huh? No.”

With a sigh that seemed like a clue, the owner continued to examine the ring and weighed it on a scale.

“Hmm… Hmm…”

In the meantime, I looked around the jewelry store.

Surprisingly, there weren’t many things inside that could be considered jewels or valuables.

I thought that a jewelry store would be filled with precious things on the walls and display cases.

“It seems like all the jewels have been sold.”

“It’s not that. I hid them in the safe in case thieves or robbers came. I only take them out when someone is looking for them.”

“Oh, I see. Humans are greedy, so it’s possible.”

The owner of the jewelry store sighed and shook his head as he glanced at me.

He muttered something quietly, probably something like, “What’s wrong with this guy’s head.”

The owner’s emotions continued after that.

Feeling impatient, Rihanna asked sharply.

“How long are you going to keep looking at it?”

“Well, should I just sell it for a cheap price?”

“No, please take a closer look.”

The owner set aside everything else and examined the ruby-studded ring for a long time.

Is that worth a considerable amount?

As the anxious Liana began to sweat profusely, the owner finally spoke up.

“It’s genuine.”

“hehehe. Of course.”

The owner rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a small stack of papers.

Taking a pen, they quickly wrote something on it and handed it to Liana.

“A receipt.”

“Where should I look?”

After carefully reading the receipt, Liana suddenly threw it away.

“This is ridiculous. Is this all the ruby-studded gold ring is worth?”

“Hmm…”

Upon seeing that, the owner wrote down a different amount next to it with the pen.

Seeing it, Liana finally felt satisfied and signed it.

“Look, Erka. Humans are so greedy, just as you said. They always try to haggle…”

“hehehe… Who said that to whom?”

The owner chuckled and opened the safe, putting the ring inside and taking out two gold coins.

Liana’s face shone as brightly as the gleaming gold coins.

“hehehe. It’s money…”

Liana exchanged her gold coins for silver, giving me half of them.

“As a token of gratitude for saving me. I can’t give you any more. I’m also penniless…”

“hahahaha. It’s okay. Thank you.”

We, who had come out of the jewelry store, looked at each other for a moment.

I asked Liana first.

“What are you going to do now?”

“Well, I don’t have anywhere to go.”

“No family or habitat?”

Liana smiled bitterly.

“I don’t have any family. No mom, no dad, no one.”

“Are you an orphan?”

“Yeah. It’s nothing special. I only got into college because I knew how to use my divine power, otherwise I would have been a beggar.”

So, in the end, Liana had nowhere to go.

“What about you, Erga? What are you going to do?”

“For now, I’m thinking of finding a suitable place to settle down. Like… a home, if you will, in human terms.”

“I see. So you’re planning to settle down? And then?”

“Once I establish myself to some extent, I’ll live freely. Doing what I want.”

“Wow… that sounds like a life to envy…”

Liana nodded her head and trailed off at the end of her sentence.

I looked at her for a moment and then spoke.

“There’s a story we talked about when we were out of the desert, right?”

“You mean the guide?”

“Yeah. Since you don’t have anywhere to go, and I still don’t know much about the world, it would be nice if we could travel together and help each other.”

“But when I was young, I went to the Shrine University and have been living as a saint ever since. So, I don’t know much either.”

“But you must know more than the dragon who ran away from home, right?”

Upon hearing that, Liana let out a small laugh.

“I understand. Eruga-nim is also my benefactor in a way. I’m glad you say that traveling together will be helpful.”

In this way, I managed to find a decent guide to accompany me during my journey.

Somehow, I’ve been really lucky since the beginning.

“Well then… Shall we start with a meal? It’s almost lunchtime.”

“Sounds good. I was just getting hungry.”

“But, Eruga-nim.”

“What?”

“Since I’m going with you as a repayment for saving my life… Could you give back that silver coin from earlier?”

“hahahahaha!!”

Laughing loudly enough for the passing humans to turn their heads, Eruga returned the silver coin to her.

* * * * *

We wandered around the city and found an inn.

Luckily, we had some money, so we could have a meal and, most importantly, take a bath.

Nana, Liana, and I had been traveling through deserts, fields, and outdoors, getting really dirty while going up and down valleys.

In particular, it was even more so for me, as I had inherited Wyvern’s blood.

If it were my true form, I could simply shed my skin or take a dip in the lava lake.

“Ugh… the smell… What if they don’t accommodate us at the inn?”

Riana anxiously asked, pulling at the collar of her shirt and wrinkling her nose.

“Surely they won’t refuse when we’re paying, right? For humans, money is the most important thing, whether you have it or not.”

“That’s true… but… I think both of us are complete paupers. Ah, let’s just go for now.”

We opened the inn door with a sign depicting glasses and a bed.