Chapter 15

It was already noon . Everything seemed to be melting under the scorching sun . Trees and houses further down the road were slightly distorted by the hot air .

Roland returned to the temple on the mountain along the trail . He saw that Falken was treating a plump woman . Surrounded by a white pillar of light, the woman laughed in relief a few seconds later and soon left quickly .

After it was done, Falken cast Language Proficiency at Roland before he asked, “How much have you earned?”

“Twenty-eight coppers . ” Roland took out a coin from his pocket and asked, “This is copper, right?”

With his hands on his back, Falken approached him and smiled . “You earned more than I expected . I thought you could make no more than ten coppers as a beginner . Twenty-eight coppers are enough to keep you full for several days . ”

Roland smiled but did not explain . He said, “Where can I have food in town? I’m a little bit hungry . ”

2“Take a right turn down the mountain and walk along the trail . You’ll find a tavern on your right after you pass a pier . The food in the tavern is abundant and cheap, but of course, I wouldn’t say it’s delicious . I don’t know if it agrees with you . ”

“Any food agrees with me right now . ” Roland shrugged and left the temple after thanking Falken .

According to Falken’s instructions, Roland found the tavern under the scorching sun .

There were three pictograms on the door of the tavern . Language Proficiency could only influence the mind and allow people to talk with each other; it could not enable the recipients to understand written words .

7The tavern was not very large, with a coverage of no more than two hundred square meters . The door was a short wooden one, making it possible to see what was going on inside from outside .

There were several old but clean round tables, surrounded by round chairs . The fragrance of bread and the smell of sour alcohol spread everywhere . Roland also saw several men chugging big gray cups and clamoring as if they were drunk .

Roland pushed the door and walked in . The waitress, who had been standing at the counter, immediately called earnestly, “Sir, welcome to Lake View Tavern . What would you like to order?”

So, the three words on the door meant “Lake View Tavern . ”

While the waitress gazed at him in surprise, Roland backed off to the door and took a photo of the four pictograms, before he put a note of their meaning on the photo .

Although Language Proficiency could not teach him a language instantly, he was able to learn the language if he used the spell in a roundabout way . Also, the spell seemed applicable to all languages, which made it quite useful .

Roland was rather happy to realize the trick . He entered the tavern again, only to notice that the waitress was eying him strangely . He knew that his odd behavior just now must’ve surprised her .

“Do you have anything cheap and delicious?” Roland sat on a chair before the counter and asked with a smile, “Don’t recommend anything too expensive . I don’t have a lot of money . ”

The waitress was not exactly beautiful, but she was young and lovely, with freckles on the sides of her nose . Her eyes were big and blue, and her smile was sweet and comforting .

6“I recommend honey bread . ” The waitress was also wearing linen clothes, except that hers were cleaner and more fashionable . “I know you are the hero who saved three kids . I would’ve sold honey bread to you at half-price if I were the owner of this tavern . ”

“A piece of honey bread it is, then . ”

“All right, please wait a moment . ” The waitress went to the kitchen and soon returned with a plate that had a piece of long bread covered in golden honey . “This is the bread you ordered . Two coppers . ”

The honey bread looked pretty huge . Two coppers was a fair price, at least for Roland . He handed over two coppers . Then, the waitress stared at his hands in a strange way .

Roland looked at his own hands, only to discover a couple of huge, appalling blisters there . He pressed them but felt no pain although they seemed scary . It must be because the feeling of pain had been reduced to one-tenth .

It was the result of mining, but it didn’t matter since it was not too painful . He could continue digging and making money tomorrow morning .

Roland had a bite of the bread . Then, his expression changed subtly . The honey was good, and the bread was also good, but the honey bread was not exactly tasteful . It was too hard and even had an inexplicable smell .

8No wonder Falken said that the food in this tavern might not agree with him .

The waitress could tell what was going on from his subtle expression . She smiled . “It’s not delicious? But our bread is the best in this town, although it may be shabby for big shots like you . ”

“Big shots? He’s just a brat . ”

One of the few men who were drinking turned around and shouted, flushing, “He has no advantages except for his pretty face . It was only because of luck that he saved those kids . I could’ve done the same . Why do you think so highly of him?”

3Roland knew that he was probably famous in the town, but he did not know that he was very famous . Children were the future of a family, a town, and a country . Offspring always mattered most in every place .

Saving a child could earn more gratitude than saving an adult on many occasions .

Of course, while some people admired heroes and extraordinary figures, some people did not see eye to eye with them . Most of the time, their hostility boiled down to one simple reason: jealousy .

Roland looked at the three drunkards, only to discover that there was nothing worth mentioning about them . They were all middle-aged men without any attractive qualities .

1Have I triggered a certain quest? Roland thought for a moment . In the spirit of experimentation, he said provocatively, “Cut the crap . Do you want to fight outside?”

3The few men tossed their cups to the floor, splashing bright yellow ale everywhere . While the waitress screamed, they flipped over the table and walked toward Roland aggressively .