[I’ve taken care of what I needed to do here so I’ll be setting off. Hopefully next time we cross paths I won’t find you in such a tight spot so I can collect on two favors you owe me.]

[Who knows, maybe you’ll be the one in need of help next time and I’ll be the one to swoop in and save the day.]

[That’s a vivid imagination you’ve got there. The only time you would be able to help me is if I become an enemy to the kingdom or people on the whole, and even then I won’t need help.]

Walking out past the knights Jellal slips into the forest and out of sight before taking off. Although it’s possible for him to take off while protecting his clothes long enough for the lightning to obscure him, doing such wouldn’t be ideal.

By leaving their field of vision before flying away he protects the air of mystery around him. The knights may have seen the lightning accompanying him twice now, but they’ve never seen how he arrived.

The first time he came across them he waited in the crater created by his landing, letting them know he was responsible for the destruction on the surroundings. This time he snuck behind Freya before they had a chance to see him together with the lightning bolt, hiding how he randomly showed up.

Whenever he’s had to leave in front of people he’s done so without revealing his lightning style flying magic. People have always sought power and what has a more powerful image than someone who’s able to fly via lightning?

If news of his magic leaked it would be inevitable for some big shots to try to flex their influence to get to him. Whether the try to force him to hand over his secrets or they simply want to force him to work for them, it’s a path which leads to trouble. Depending on how much clout the big shot has it could even lead to him being enemies with an entire country or worse.

Since he doesn’t have to look for a village he’s never been to anymore Jellal can go full speed on his trip back. He sets his initial direction close to Pavise before changing his course when he flies over familiar territory.

When his cave is in sight he drops down and lands in front. Since he’s going back to the city he can save an extra trip by refilling his bag now, instead of just going back right away.

It only takes a few minutes for him to go to the treasure room, fill his bag, and leave. Not only can he save a trip with this, but he can also extend his time away making his speed slightly less suspicious. Going to the village and coming back so quick will naturally catch the peoples’ attention so taking some extra time may help cast away peoples’ greed and fear with regards to power.

On his way to the city he follows his standard entrance procedure to make onlookers less startled by his speed when he arrives.

Thanks to his deal with Aegis he can bypass the line without having to throw an excuse to the guards. They quickly go through their procedures while he’s walking up, making things nice and convenient.

Back inside the city he cruises along the main road, going with the flow of the crowd. Passing through the plaza he heads for the adventurer’s guild. Instead of stopping at a desk he walks directly to the stairs and goes up to the second floor.

He makes a quick side trip to drop off his junk in his designated room before leaving for the third floor and the guild master’s office.

When he gets to the giant doors he doesn’t bother knocking and strolls in like he owns the place. Since there’s only one person who would disregard common curtesy and treat the guild master’s office like their property, Aegis and Dirrale can easily figure out who walked in without looking up from their paper work.

[I’m back, and you owe me extra!]

[So it was like I feared. What’s the situation like over there?]

[The village was in ruins by the time I arrived. Actually the smoke rising from it made it much easier to find than I originally anticipated, so I’m pretty grateful. There was also another horde coming up on the village when I arrived so I wiped out the group that commenced the attack along with the horde coming in as reinforcements.]

Aegis’ face sinks as he listens to Jellal’s report. He had pushed hard for the nobles to treat the situation as an emergency, but their stubborn pride caused them to look down on the encroaching miasma.

It’s already a miracle he was able to secure the little funding he did to fight off the hordes near Pavise. In the end he only managed to convince them to bend by convincing them it would improve their image among the population if they provide financial support to aid the guild in stopping the miasma.

When all was said and done he could only gain a small amount of financial support. None of the nobles were willing to let their men join their battle, claiming the surrounding kingdoms are waiting for them to show their vulnerability.

The village may have been wiped out but at least it didn’t fall for nothing. Hopefully a village being wiped out without having a chance to send for help should be a big enough incident to put the miasma on the nobles’ radar.

[Also there was a group of knights there protecting the civilians outside of the village. Since you specifically requested I intervene if the village is under attack I went ahead and helped them out.

More importantly, there’s an extra fee associated with the assistance I lent the knights. I may not need anything now, but don’t forget you owe me one now. When the time comes for me to collect the debt I hope for your sake you don’t “accidentally” forget.

Well, I really should be going. I have a tight schedule to keep. I’ve already dropped a couple loads of items in my room so I’ll be back here when it’s time to collect your payment.]

Leaving the office while giving a shady debt collector-esk speech Jellal meanders down the stairs to the first floor of the guild. Due to his uncertain, yet busy schedule today he doesn’t stop to pick up a quest or mentor.

Because he wasn’t gone for too long the old leatherworker shouldn’t have finished taking care of the mutant wyvern he left at the shop. It should also be a bit longer before the former captives make it to town since they weren’t in sight when he returned.

Having a bit of free time he strolls along the main road to meet up with the dirty woodcarving runt. The pair of kids were still there when he passed by to go to the guild so he doesn’t have to worry about finding a new person to make his chair.

As expected they’re still sitting with their tattered blanket trying to sell sculptures when he steps into the plaza.

[Hey runt, I’m back. Let’s talk chairs. I want a durable rocking chair that won’t have any problems whether I use it on a rocky hill during a downpour or in the city on a sunny day. Style is a must. I don’t want to be seen in a chair your grandmother might sit in for her afternoon naps. Don’t be afraid to make it a little big since I’ll be the one using it.

Design wise I’ll leave it up to you. A true craftsman does their best work when things are left up to their interpretations after all. Just make sure you don’t leave it plain or I’ll have to test its value as a blunt object on your skull.

If you can’t handle it you’d best speak up now. I don’t take kindly to people intentionally wasting my time, after all.]

Hearing Jellal’s unreasonableness the youngster nervously gulps down his saliva. After taking a moment to consider the proposition he gives his response while lowering his head.

[I could do it if I had the right material, but I don’t.]

[Then we’ll get you the materials first. Let’s go. You should know where to get the things you need so lead the way.]

Since the kid only needs materials Jellal decides to buy them so he doesn’t have to look for someone else to make his chair. Besides, dealing with this kid is easier than finding some seasoned craftsman who’s free to take the job right now.

He had good luck with the tailor since her business wasn’t doing too well, and the old leather worker is easy to deal with by throwing out some insults and money. The chances of him getting lucky three times in a row with top notch craftsman are pretty low.

On the other hand, some random kid who’s skilled at carving is much more likely to do things quickly. It’s more risky, but based on the kid’s raggedy getup he isn’t well off. A little money can go a long way to motivate someone who’s down on their luck financially.

Jellal walks along the main road with the pair of dirty kids. Their first stop is a small shop with various knickknacks covering the shelves. At the back of the store they find a leather case housing a litany of wood carving tools. There are chisels, gouges, carving knives, sharpening instruments, mallets, and a small saw in the pouch; just about everything you could possibly need for wood carving.

They take the leather case to the counter at the front of the store to check out. The total comes out to four silver and fifty copper. For a one time investment in his chair it’s a bit steep, but since it’s a good way to get rid of a bunch of copper coins there’s nothing to argue about.

As they leave the store the runt protectively squeezes the leather case into his chest, afraid it’s going to be snatched from him. Jellal can’t be bothered to waste time with a kid desperately clutching at his new possessions so he turns to look at the girl.

Thankfully she gets the memo and starts leading the way to their next destination. With the tools necessary out of the way the only thing they’re lacking is the wood for the chair. To that end they head for a lumberyard located along the wall near the gate.

Since wood is one of the primary building materials used in the city there is a constant flow of it coming from the outside. To prevent carriages carrying logs from slowing down the traffic in the city a lumberyard was built near the gate. This way the people bringing in the wood can stay off the main road and traffic can move along at a normal pace.

Upon arriving at the yard the foreman gives the trio a dirty look before walking over. The man’s burly physique and beard gives him a classic lumberjack look. The knit beanie and flannel jacket he wears solidifies the look. His rolled up sleeves reveal a pair hairy, yet muscular forearms as the cherry on top.

[What do you want brats? I thought I told you, you’re not welcome here. If you want to pick up scraps of wood go beg someplace else.]

[Wow! This is my first time meeting a talking bear. Do you do any other tricks, like riding a unicycle perchance? If you’re working at this place I regret to inform you you’ve missed your true calling. A bear of your talents should be working in a circus. If you do a good job you might even become the main attraction and get on the posters.]

[What’s your problem kid? You think I won’t pummel you just because you’re a kid? Scram before I have the guards drag you back to whatever hole you crawled out of.]

[It seems like bears can learn to talk but they can’t learn manners. Do you look down on all your customers or just the ones smaller than you so you can feel like a big man?]

[Humph, you can take your business elsewhere for all I care. A bunch of twerps can’t afford anything anyways. This is the last time I’ll warn you: SCRAM!]

[Kekeke, alright have it your way. Since you want to act like an idiot it’s your funeral. We’ll find someplace else to get what we need. As for you, good luck dealing with the fire that’s been raging in the back of the yard since before we arrived.]

Even if he said the fire had been there since before they arrived anyone with half a brain could understand from his tone he’s lying through his teeth. Of course a wise criminal never leaves behind any evidence to trace the crime back to them.

The lumberjack got on Jellal’s nerves the moment they met, so he had been preparing a little present in secret on the off chance the bear pushed his buttons. Unfortunately for the foreman, he picked the wrong person to stubbornly refuse to do business with. If they had tried and failed to come to an agreement it would be fine, but outright refusing a walking disaster waiting to happen’s right to do business wasn’t the smartest move he could have made.

At the back of the yard the incinerator flares beyond its breaking point as the fire inside rages out of control. The fire leaks out and catches on the surrounding lumber causing a chain reaction throughout the yard. The cause of the incident is a broken ventilation system.

The closed door caused the fire to be starved of oxygen and burn down. When the vent swings open due to a random gust of wind (Jellal’s wind magic, cough, cough) oxygen is reintroduced to the combustion resulting in a backdraft blasting flames through the vent and into the yard. All it took was a little manipulation of the already busted incinerator to cause an “accident” in the yard.

To make things match his story he accelerates the burning a bit while he’s leaving. Unless someone was extremely familiar with fires they would never be able to tell it had just started due to the size of the blaze. Adding in the busted incinerator and all the evidence points to this being an accident which started before the trio arrived.

‘A little blaze like that won’t do too much harm to the surroundings, only the lumberyard. Throw a little water magic at it and everything will end in a jiffy. Besides this is a lumberyard with an incinerator to burn the junk they can’t sell. If they don’t have any precautions in place to deal with a fire they kind of have it coming.’

The trio turns to leave the yard right as a commotion starts to break out. The workers inside rush to grab buckets of water in hopes of extinguishing the fire, but it isn’t enough. Fearing they won’t be able to contain in they immediately send for help from the surrounding people.

Even though his back is turned to them, Jellal keeps a close watch on the events transpiring behind him. Seeing the complete lack of a fire protocol in a business where a single small fire could potential threaten the entire area is enough to make him shake his head.

As far as he’s concerned this is a valuable lesson they were going to learn one way or another. Instead of being upset they should be happy it happened at a time when everyone is up and about. If an accident like this occurred in the middle of the night it wouldn’t end with just the lumberyard being destroyed.

While they slowly make their way to another place to look for wood, crowds of people rush over to see what’s going on. Thanks to the trail of smoke leading into the sky most of the people in the area are already aware of the fire and are rushing to see it firsthand.

Moving along the wall the trio comes to another lumberyard. This one is much smaller than the other and has less activity around it.

The foreman sees them walking up and comes over to greet them. Unlike the bear they dealt with last time the foreman of this yard is a woman, she’s still a bear though. On the foreman’s head is a pair of round ears that blend seamlessly into her brown hair.

Her exposed arms and legs have poufy brown fur sticking up making her look soft to touch. Rounding out her bear physique is her broad shoulders holding up a round face with a pair of beady eyes and a button nose.

[What can I do for you? Most potential customers usually go to the other yard since it’s cheaper. Why did you come here?]

[Is there any reason to come to a lumberyard other than buying wood? I’ll give you a bit of free advice; don’t tell people it’s more expensive to buy from you as a part of your greeting. You’ll get a lot more customers that way.]

[But then I would be lying to them. Papa always said the shoulders of a true businessman bear the burden of the truth.]

[Are you sure he didn’t just have a guilty conscience after repeatedly lying to customers? Isn’t he telling you to lie while bearing the burden of knowing you did so?]

[But he said to bear the burden of the truth not lies silly.]

[Out of curiosity; you wouldn’t happen to be charging people the same price you paid for the lumber would you?]

[Huh? How did you know? Can you read minds? It isn’t polite to read someone’s mind you know; you really shouldn’t do that.]