Chapter 25

I was hesitant to enter the town of Ebenfurth, for this was my first introduction to human civilization in my second life. Granted the place wasn’t truly modern judging from the plastered walls and wooden shingles on the roofing. But compared to the fair folk, this was worlds apart. I had surmised just by spotting the deterioration of the plaster, the wall frames from the two-story buildings around me were probably pleated from oak. But who am I to judge? I’m using grass in my Mecha.

Well at least in this town they did not have mudded paths, instead, it was paved with stone with its conformity. I took my first steps into following the veteran ahead of me, who had decided to guide me to the Mayor.

“You look worse for wear. Wearing a grass plumage with a mismatched armor kit.” He remarked, eyeing me so. “What happened to your sword.”

I slumped my shoulders inside the mecha. “Lost it when I fought the lizard,” I replied.

“Must’ve been hard...Is it dead?”

Because I did not have an answer to his question, I replied with silence as my response. “Never mind.” The guard muttered, observing my robotic movements. Relieved at the reprieve, I gathered that my mecha’s stiff movement was enough information to end his continued inquiries in that direction.

It was nearing afternoon when I had entered the town, a sparse amount of townsfolk walked past and ignored us, not wanting to be familiar with people with professions of violence.

“Why don’t you show your face.” He swiveled back, still interrogating me whilst walking through his town. We passed a few children, who had gawked and pointed at my unique appearance.

“Whose that?” One of the children spoke. “Why is he wearing grass hair?” another inquisitive child questioned. “What a stupid get-up,” a mentally disabled child remarked.

He wasn’t mentally disabled per say, but I had cringed at his comment and tagged him as an inept child indeed to call my Knight Mecha’s get-up stupid. Oona had gagged, holding in a laugh at the remark. Slumping my shoulders, I stirred Amelia to trudge on forward, ignoring my instincts to rant at the world at large.

“Oi, you kids! Skedaddle!” The Veteran hollered. Revealed in their commentary of me, they ran to the buildings behind. They then poked their heads out to see our backs retreating. I could hear them arguing, theorizing the reason for my being here.

I guess I'm today's new curiosity for the street kids of Ebenfurth. I shrugged at the notion. The veteran halted and turned to face me again, with the same repeated question.

“I suffered greatly…” I responded, hinting at a disfigurement. Giving him the proper amount of time to for him to envisage the scarring I left unspoken, made the veteran turn his glance away.

“Forgive me, I just thought--I am sorry.” The Veteran soberly apologized, as he turned to trudged on. Receiving the peculiar response I wanted, I feign magnanimity by forgiving him. But, I was not done yet.

To make sure, the veteran's inquisitive nature stayed in the backseat of his queries. I had described to him the burns that were riddled all over my face and body, describing vividly how it felt, the searing pain, and the stiffness of my joints and flesh. Throughout my telling though, the veteran had garnered information about the drake, who was not a drake but a green dragon, which was something I could not omit, adding veridity to my scarring.

"A dragon!" He said aghast, disbelief, and horror was plastered on his face. "Let's get to the Mayor quickly."

After reaching the Mayor’s house, which was three-stories tall built with a mix of polished timber and grey stones. The estate was iconic in contrast with the white plastered houses around. After a few knocks, the towering form of the Mayor opened the door. He appeared like a solid man, who had labored all his life to make his town prosperous. I admired his solid bearing as I witnessed the giant beyond Amelia’s visor.

“Yes, Marcus?” The mayor inquired with a strong timbre, after eyeing me for a moment then directing his attention to the veteran.

“Hamiln, this individual was part of the Teal Knight’s company.”

Mayor Hamiln eyed the veteran like a general with his officer, then turned to glance at me, inspecting my appearance. Accepting the statement, as a matter of fact, he had hustled us into his home, guiding us to his office. I had determined from the stacks of paper that were strewn upon his varnished desk, that this was the place where he did most of his civil duties.

The mayor had signaled me to sit upon the chair in front in which I shook my head in the negative, preferring to stand. I did not want to remove the backpack that held the sleeping baby at bay and also coordinate my mecha to sit upon the wooden chair, the difficulty of the procedure was akin to reverse parking.

Taking the hint, he sat down behind his desk and began his straightforward inquiry. “So what happened?”

After the interrogation was done, more like a grilling, I had exited the Mayor’s house. The mayor Hamiln was incredulous at first with my story. So I had to describe in detail what had occurred, omitting some certain facts, like Dravon’s betrayal, and that inside our armor was a rag-tag team of small folks. I also had to feign knowing the Teal Knight on a personal level.

Throughout the proceedings the baby kept asleep, anxious at the knowledge the child might spontaneously wake up and give it all away, I had to reveal the baby.

I did not want to tell the mayor about the baby's heritage, so I fabricated a noble origin for the baby. I told the Mayor that the baby was a young scion of my house, my nephew, who had recently been separated from his parents by a bandit attack in the fae forest. Being split up from my party, I found the squire and my good friend the Tiggart of Tigmont in which we trek together into the Artolian mountains. I describe the dragon ambush and a vivid recollection of my heroics, but in the end, I told him of both Tiggart and the squire’s passing.

The Mayor was somber at the knowledge of the Teal Knight’s death. Sir Tiggart must have been a famous figure to have garnered such sympathies from such a solid man such as the Mayor.

“So you’re called the Grass Knight?” Hamiln asked as we stood at his porch balcony.

“I am.” I conceded. Aware of how strange the naming was.

“Oddly fitting.” He remarked. “Marcus…”

“Yes, Hamiln?”

“Guide our visitor to the Tawdry Inn.”

The veteran nodded to the Mayor’s request, leading me away from the somber man standing at his porch. The mayor had cursed at the knowledge of the dragon’s survival and the death of the company that was sent to kill it. The mayor had confided to me that the village was in dire straits, apparently, a goblin horde had infested the Artolian mountains for a while now, but recently they were displaced by a drake, now revealed as a dragon. So the goblin horde went down from the mountains and had sequestered themselves in the forest I had just skipped into, they had harassed the human inhabitants of this town.

The mayor, not wanting a full-scale war between the inhabitants of the town and the horde of goblins camped out at the forest, had sent a message to the Duke, requesting aid on killing a drake. So in came forth the Teal Knight and his merry band.

After backtracking near the gates on whence we had entered, we found the Inn that was suggested by the Mayor. The Tawdry Inn had a sign of a tankard spilling atop its double doors, with letters at the side, stating the name of this fair establishment. I could not fathom the symbols, for I was never shown the written letters of the common word.

The common word was the universal language that the majority of the races spoke in this mother of worlds. The mother of worlds, was one world, invented by the gods, who decided to undertake the Great Experiment. From what I recalled from Elandris and her sermons to the Grove, the Gods of each race had agreed upon each other to share their magic amongst their created races, but with a few stipulations, one of them was restricting them all in the boundaries of one world.

“This is where I leave you,” Marcus said, still somber at my telling.

I tilted Amelia to give the Veteran a nod of thanks for the guide. He gave my mecha a salute of farewell, then retreated back to his gate where his underling stood alone in the afternoon shade. With the double doors still closed off to the growing dark of the outside, I heard a sound of a string instrument strumming alongside a familiar song, sung by small vocal cords.

“I know that song!?” Sera said at the back, in the furry pack alongside the baby. Curious on its familiarity, I opened the double doors into the orange glows and hazing fog of an interior condensed in the shelter. There were multiple crowds sparsely spread out amongst a wide tavern room. A group of humans had converged at one corner, sitting and watching a man in a leather green duster atop a stool with a lute near a table that was tented with small individuals inside.

My eyes had widened to the sight of the small folk atop the table, inside that makeshift cotton tent. They were grass folks singing a song for the grass to an audience of humans. At the end of their harmony, the human audience clapped, merry at the pleasures the song had given them; some through their appreciation even had thrown a few coins into the opened leather case below the feet of the bard.

For some reason, the sight disgusted me. Having the grass folk singing their songs meant for the grass to a crowd of humans as a side-gig, felt wrong. I tilted the analog twigs of Amelia to ignore them by continuing on to the bar of the tavern Inn. There was a tall man behind, overweight in his profession, rubbing the interior of a wooden tankard with a dry clothed rag. I approached him.

Noticing my approach, he swiveled his head to inspect my attire, noticing the polish of my plates and the golden furs of my backpack, he placed down the wooden tankard to give me a warm greeting. “Hello, Sir. What can we do for you?”

“I’m looking for a room for the night.” I inquired, my voice graveled by alterations.

“Play another!” A jubilant man, inebriated with alcohol, hollered at the leather duster bard.

“We have a spare room.” The innkeeper said to me.

“Play us a ditty!” The same man hollered, this time, energizing the crowd with his jubilant mood.

The innkeeper's eye twitched at the volume of the man’s voice, destroying the haggling mood he displayed to me.

“We can give you a room for 1 silver bit. We will also give you a discounted price of 3 copper bits if you want today’s mutton stew with a tankard of ale, as the dinner with your lodgings.”

I looked at him through my visor, picturing the thought of mutton and ale. 'Alcohol! bless civilization for alcohol.' I then turned to Oona who had her teeth gritting at me, knowing what I was about to ask her.

“Oona?” I whispered.

“Don’t even say it!”

“Come on?” I got off my stool and closed my palms together in prayer as I knelt to her trying to mimic puppy eyes.

Oona stared at me with utter revulsion at my plea. “Fine! Just don’t do that thing you did with your eyes, ever again.” She remarked, horrified at my prostration.

“I’ll take it!” I said out loud.

The innkeeper hearing my shout inside the helm, said “Good, bathes will cost you extra.”

Oona’s coins were placed safely in the furry backpack underneath the wicker basket inside. I had whispered to Sera through the metal behind to go and retrieve the purse. After a few moments, I got the clang at the back to retrieve it with Amelia’s gauntlets.

Oona had cringed and scowled when I used Amelia to parse through the glitter of coins within the bag for the right denomination. The Innkeeper peered greedily at the pouch laden with coins after I tallied the selected amount. After placing them on the bar, the Innkeeper gathered it all up to then dropped it down his dirtied apron, where his pouch was hidden.

“Suzie!”

“Yes, Uncle?” a feminine voice replied behind the walls that were behind the bar.

“Girl, bring today’s larder, and guide this--?” The Innkeeper eyed me and the polished steel that my mecha wore with consideration. “Guide this lordling to a room, up above.” He ended.

“Play us another!”

The innkeeper scowled at the volume again from the same man who kept hollering for another. He then left me to cater to other individuals asking for another tankard. The girl named Suzie entered the tavern room from the back door behind the bar, with a platter in her arms. She was buxom in curvature, pretty in a broad sense, but that wasn’t the alluring part of her, it was her welcoming personality when she peered up at me.

Placing the platter on the bar table in front of me, she brushed aside the brown strains that had annoyed her eyes from inspecting me closely.

“I’m in love.” Wink said aghast, as he looked through one vision slits that were arrayed in the chest compartment.

The volume was enough to be audible for Suzie to hear. She blushed, tearing her eyes away from Amelia’s helm. I cursed Wink for his loose tongue.

In my horrification, Wink without forethought exited out from one of the hatches that were underneath the hollowed section of the pauldron; to then get out and greet the lady properly to everyone's surprise.

“Hello, beautiful lady.” He called out with a bow and wink. Suzie stared at Wink who was standing atop Amelia’s pauldron with surprise.

“My name is Wink, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Oh my god,” I whispered.

“Is he?” Oona agape looked outside the vision slits, then turned at me flabbergasted. I was reflecting the same expression upon my stool.

“Beautiful Maiden, so fair, in curvature and form. Your radiance is beyond comparison to the nature of whence I came.” Wink marveled.

“Thank you, kind sir.” Suzie smiled down at Wink, a bit red at the praise. She then turned to face my helm. “I’ve never been hit on one of the grass folk before? Is he yours?”

“Yes.”

‘Oh god, I wish he wasn’t.’

“Play a diddy!” The drunk man hollered, this time a few more of his friends chanting as well.

“Fine! Fine!” The bard finally conceded. “This song is new, requested by the Regent to play throughout our fair country.”

The bard brought back his lute at the forefront, holding down the right strings, he strummed.

A wizen looking grass man began to sing, in a deep timorous tone. Three grass maidens began to follow in a chant to give melody by their echoes to the old grass man’s song.

“Warriors and Kings, strummers we sing, a hero has come, with summer he brings. He downed a legend, the youngest of kin, so warriors and kings, watch for the summer he brings.”

As the song continued on, few individuals already knowing the lyrics to the song began to sing as well in their jubilant. The atmosphere was merry with the music the bard and his little troubadour brought into the room. But it did not affect a small group of strangers at the far corner, who were all garbed in padded leather armor, with blue streaks dyed on each of their hair.

I shrugged them off as they sipped their tankard of ales, watching everyone in the room, with the calm idleness of men familiar with travel and song. What piqued my interest most was the lyrics of the song.

“Who was this hero they speak of?” I asked Suzie who was eyeing Wink, who was currently in the process of climbing down the arm of my mecha and heading to the bar table below.

“Oh, you never heard of him?”

“No?”

“Oh, I can’t recall his name.” Suzie's face contorted, trying to recollect. “But, I remember that the hero is a boy, who is the son of the Duke Seamour Lockhart, who is currently Regent of Armont, to Duke Agenchord’s displeasure.”

“I see…” Prompting her to continue.

“Apparently, the young boy, not even 8, went and slew a legendary wyvern, all by himself with no classification, as the song goes.”

Killing a legendary creature is no mean feat unless you're as brilliant as me. But, for some reason though, my curiosity was peaked at the story of this young man’s achievement. Pondering why this is so, I tried to listen more carefully to the song.

‘A hero huh…?’

Suddenly, behind me, the baby woke up with a cry. I cringed at the sibilant noise, again distracted with my charge. Some of the audience around the establishment was annoyed by the baby’s cry. They were glancing at me with peeved expressions.

Not wanting to display the child’s wailing in front of the crowd any longer. I asked Suzie if she could guide us to our room. Wink declined to tag along with me but instead asked Suzie if she was willing to carry him.

“Okay, little cutie.”

I watched Sera lift Wink to place him atop her shoulder with my face agape at what's occurring right in front of me. The baby was wailing behind me, and the annoyed crowd around me were hollering for me to get out, and Wink...winked at me, he bloody winked at me! Whilst deciding to seduce a lady, 10 times his size and weight.

Oh the gods, have cursed me in the mire of my company.

As we left the tavern room, I spotted the bard eyeing Wink atop Suzie’s shoulder with a weird expression. Yeah, I totally understand what that expression means, dealing with grass folk would give me a similar expression. I then noticed at the background of the bard at the five huddled men in their corner, with their blue streaks on their hair, staring at me. As I looked closely, I realized they weren’t staring at Amelia specifically, but at the baby that was sheltered in the golden furs of the backpack.

Probably annoyed as well with the wailing.

Shrugging it off as that, I continued upstairs with Suzie leading. She giggled at Wink who was currently whispering into her ear. My face, burnt red from the utter situation I was currently witnessing.

“I just can’t,” I muttered.

Oona hearing my words turned to me. “Can’t what?”

“Can’t fathom the world.”

I ended, defeated by the situation I’m dealt with.

After we had reached the room Suzie halted us in, I had asked her to come back with milk, when she next returned with a tankard of ale. “I’ll have to charge you extra.”

Oona shrugged in acceptance after I had turned to her. Having that all decided, Wink had the brilliant idea to tag along with Suzie for the endeavor. Not wanting to deal with another wink from that peculiar grass folk, I acquiesce. Oona decided to fly down the helm's interior, and into one of the hatches that opened out from the pauldron, which happens to be the same place Wink had exited.

“I’ll tag along with Wink. See if he doesn’t do anything suspicious.” She suggested.

Understanding what she meant, by suspicious, I acquiesce. I felt crushed for some reason as a commander. I remember the defeated expression of my kindergarten teacher amongst the crowd of toddlers. I truly understand that expression now. That sad expression of someone who couldn’t grasp just one slither of the world into order.

When the door closed, I toggled Amelia to sit down on the cot at the side of the reasonable size room. As human rooms go to a fair folk, it was rather large in its comparison. Teka had stepped out from his plumage, a curious expression on his face.

“What’s up?” I said, with the visor opened.

“I’m going to scout the area.”

“Ahem?” Wondering why everyone was leaving me alone with the wailing child. ‘Oh right.’

“Fine, go do your thing.” I waved off. At least Peb and Sera are staying with me.

Peb had gotten out of his compartment to check on the platter atop the small chest next to the cot. He tested the taste of the mutton stew with his finger. Interest was on his face. Then he pulled out his bag and started throwing pebbles and gravel to mix in the stew.

Horrified on what he was doing, made me jump out of the visor to try and stop him from such a crime. “Noooo!!”

After a while, we split the meal between the two of us, I had to give him all the soup, now mixed with gravel and stone, but I took the mutton meat as my claimant. I was about to dig in and chew on the mutton, that had made me salivate. When the door knocked.

Cursing for the intrusion, I jumped into Amelia’s helm so I could open the door. I was so close to eating meat, so very close. But after this, I will be finally satiated. Opening the door, Suzie waited, holding two tankards, one had the luke froth of ale and the other had the white cream of milk. Wink was atop her shoulder giving me another wink, to my dissatisfaction.

‘A fair folk with a giantess fetish, what next? No, I don’t want an answer.'

Wink, with no surprise, opted to stay with Suzie to keep her company until her hours were finished for the night. When the door closed again, I uttered another invective. Putting both the tankards atop the flat top of the chest with the platter. I jumped off Amelia, ready to eat my mutton.

Peb looked into the ale, dipping his finger in so he could test the taste. His face had brightened from sampling it. He then took out another bag full of gravel and dirt to pour into the ale. I halted him.

“Nooo!”

“What?”

“How bout, when we finish putting the milk into the baby’s bota bag, we replace that empty tankard with ale,” I suggest.

Sagging his shoulders, Peb nodded at my reasonable plan. Relieved at this, we did what I had said. When it was all done, the baby was suckling on his pacifier that was giving milk, whilst I stood in front of my mutton and tankard of ale.

This was it, the culmination of my desires. I finally get to eat meat. Oh, bless the world, for this supper I was about to undertake. No more vegan meals for me, today and onwards, I’m going to enjoy my old carnivorous nature.

Teka ran out from a rat hole that was cracked out from the wooden frames of the room.

“We have a big problem! Come quick!”

I stared at Teka with disbelief, then at my mutton and ale, then back at Teka. My face was distraught at what was about to occur.

“Come on!”

I slumped my shoulders, acquiescing to the fates once more.