In Rovert, most of the townsfolk had the same occupation, mining. The great iron mine adjacent to the town provided nearly one-third of the whole queendom's iron supply. Erhan also worked in these mines.

The sun reared its red, bald head over the horizon, painting the tops of rocky hills and the sparse greenery covering them a brilliant shed of red and gold. The mine's overseers were getting ready, wiping the spades and pickaxes, taking the carts full of pieces of ore from last night towards the piles and heaps of ores at a clearing on the west side of the mines, bringing back the empty carts to fill them up again with ores that would be mined today. New guards came to relieve the guards who protect the mines at night. Their numbers were less during the day. It was safer when the miners were working after all. No need to worry about thieves or dangerous animals that might make the mines their home. Erhan walked the rough red dirt path heading towards the mine alongside the other miners.

The Queendom of Robera had abolished slavery, unlike the other three kingdoms, so the miners were all paid workers. The wages were average though, five talents, seven for those who did overtime, paid daily at the end of the day. It was enough for an average family to spend on daily necessities, not enough to save up if you went to the tavern though, especially not for Erhan who had a dozen mugs of ale each night.

A green garbed overseer nodded off in front of a table in front of the mine entrance. A stack of papers lay on the table in front of him. The names of every miner were written in those in messy handwriting. Erhan walked over to him and ticked the empty box beside his name. The scratching noise woke the overseer up and he peered at Erhan from below his half-opened eyelids.

“oh, it’s you,” he said and continued to stare at Erhan for a moment. “You seem different today. Did something happen?” he shook his head immediately after asking that. Who’s he asking. Not like the man in front of him will answer. If it wasn’t for the few times he actually heard him saying a thing or two, he’d have thought Erhan a mute person.

“I’ll be leaving for capital with the trading caravan next week,” Erhan said, nearly jolting the other man out of his chair in shock, and then under his surprised gaze, he walked towards the cavernous entrance of the mine.

The overseer stared at his back disappearing into the darkness and gave a long sigh. “I... think I have to check the west sky. The sun should be rising from there.”

Round lanterns made of murky glass Lit the deep cavern on intervals, wooden scaffolding holding up its structure to prevent sudden accidents. They succeeded for the most part, except when they didn’t, that was the path Erhan took, walking deeper into the mines. The outer edge of the mine had already been picked clean over the years, but the wealth of iron was still abundant in the depths. Still, that wealth wasn’t without its own set of troubles. Transporting it out was a particularly bothersome chore.

Loud echoes of pickaxes falling on hard stone bounced around the dim cavern in the glow of torches and lamps. Some miners had already started their work. Erhan usually didn't mine with others, opting to go deeper in the mine where most miners were afraid to venture. He liked working alone away from prying eyes, working at his own pace. But today he chose his spot with the other recent arrivals. he didn’t have much time to waste moping around now as he usually did. choosing a vein of ore, he lifted his pickaxe and swung it down.

The last glow of twilight faded away when Erhan took the returning path from the mine. The small bag on his waist dragged more than usual, although the increase in weight was negligible, it was still a whole two talents more than his usual pay. The sky was clear today. But a few plumes of grey clouds still floated around like bunches of cotton. He looked up at the evening star twinkling into the horizon over the tops of the town building, hoping it was the sign of a brighter future.

because from today on, there was no more going to the tavern for him.

As Erhan passed by the streets before the tavern on his way home he looked up in surprise. It was quite here noisy today. Many people must be inside to make such a ruckus. Even now folks hurried towards the tavern from all sorts of places. Even folks that don’t usually go there headed for its door. He hadn’t heard that much noise from the White weasel since he arrived in the town. Was there some kind of celebration going on? It was a good thing he decided not to go there then.

However, as he neared the tavern, his brows creased. The noise inside didn’t sound celebratory. Shouts of anger and outrage spilt onto the streets, even the sounds of a woman crying. He recognized the voice. It was the barmaid. What happened? Should he go in?

Inside the White weasel was quite a mess tonight. Chairs and tables lay scattered and broken around a crowd of angry townsfolk. In their centre was a clearing where Sena Moras sat on one of the whole chairs, pinching her forehead. She had a headache. The situation had escalated to a point she didn’t expect. At one side of her stood her knights proud and unwilling to back down, at the other the townsfolk of Rovert.

All this problem started from Erina, who was crying, sitting on a patch of bright red blood on the wooden floor, holding her father the tavern master. His plump body lay unconscious in her arms. His left leg below his knees was bleeding from a horrible wound. And the perpetrator, a square bodied knight of the Moras, Alanis Scarva stood facing the crowd. The drawn sword in his hand dripping with blood.

Sena shook her head. Yeah. Quite a mess.

Alanis was the heir of a merchant noble family serving under the Moras household. He was impulsive and hotheaded, but Sena never expected him to do such a stupid thing. Sure, the barmaid girl was quite a beauty by peasant standards, but he should have controlled his libido better. His assault on the girl had been quite rough. He also nearly cut off the limb of the girl’s father who had come to get her away from him. Insufferable fool.

They really shouldn’t have taken the guy with them. He was too lacking for a knight of the Moras, and only became one because of the connection the Scarva family shared with some of the important personages within the Moras household. They had even gotten him in this team with those connections. Everyone in the team was an elite of the younger generation, except for him. His family had indulged him too much, spoiling him rotten.

Now how would she fix this situation? The angry townsfolk were glaring at them like they wanted his head. they had demanded to process him according to the law, but she simply couldn’t give up someone who was under her responsibility. She also wanted to beat him up herself. Wanted to break his legs. But that wasn't something she could do without facing consequences. If she could somehow ditch the idiot taking this chance, that would be perfect.

The angry townsfolk surrounding the knights also seethed with rage. They wanted justice. However, even with their superior numbers, no one believed they could match the knights in a fight. any careless action might cause more harm than good, and god forbid, facing those madmen holding weapons someone might end up dead. They could only hope the knights would be reasonable, otherwise, it’d be a frustrating experience.

the situation was at an impasse.

Harris who was at the edge of the gathering, first noticed Erhan come in. he walked up to him “You’re here," he said and grabbed Erhan's wrist, dragging him towards the crowd. "Come on, we need as many people as we can get to put the pressure on them.”

Erhan craned his neck and took in the situation at a glance. He frowned and asked Harris, “What happened?”

The other man explained the situation in a frustrated voice. “We need to pressure them into punishing the boy," he pounded his palm in anger. "Can’t just leave it be. Do they think our life is so cheap? What do they think we are?”

Erhan shook his head. “That’s not the main priority.” he pushed through the crowd and arrived at the place of the incident.

Sena looked up at Erhan. She had seen how the people in the tavern reacted to this man yesterday. There must be something special about him. was he perhaps someone like a leader among them? If he was, then he was quite a messy looking one. Though she had to admit, regardless of his looks, he had an inexplicable charm surrounding him.

She stood up wanting to introduce herself and discuss the situation. Maybe he would be a more reasonable person, willing to work with her and find a solution to this mess. But someone else was faster than him.

Alanis Scarva was a man who liked showing off. As he watched this poor looking man, wearing a patched cool cloak full of dirt and dust from the mines, his innate desire to flaunt himself in front of the beautiful lady Moras sparked back to life. He stepped up to Erhan, blocking his way as he glanced back to Sena, “don’t worry my lady, I’ll take care of the beggar.” he turned back towards Erhan puffed his chest out and shouted, “you! Beggar. What are you here for? If you take one more step forward, I’ll cut you down with my blade."

Sena's hand itched. Oh, she really wanted to slap him. She opened her mouth and scolded, “Alanis, stand ba—”

The loud sound of a slap killed the words in her throat. It was careless looking action Erhan made. He raised his hand and backhanded Alanis. The force of the slap was enough to send the knight crashing down to the floor.

The townsfolk stopped their grumble and mumble while Sena and her knights stared dumbfounded at the scene. the latter was the first to regain their composer, their eyes narrowing with a hint of vigilance as they looked down at Alanis. They knew he was weak for a knight, but he shouldn’t be weak enough to get knocked down with a slap from a beggar. This so-called beggar wasn’t as normal as he seemed. with smooth sounds of meral sliding out of the leather scabbards, they drew their swords intending to surround Erhan.

“Stand down,” Sena said to them. She glanced once at the fallen knight and skirted around him, stopping in front of Erhan as she introduced herself, “I am Sena Moras. Child of Robert Moras, heir apparent to the house of Moras.”

Erhan ignored her and kneeled beside the wounded tavern keeper. He looked up at the man closest to him. Jack, a miner like him. Erhan had seen him around the town, though he never really talked to him before. he asked jack, “Why haven’t you stopped his breeding yet? Do you want him to die? Bring me some clean clothes and hot water.”

There was a sense of command in his voice that Jack couldn’t refuse. “Yes, right away,” he said and turned back. The townsfolk who were standing around made way for him.

Erhan pressed his palm against the wound, blood seeped through his fingers as he muttered a mantra under his breath. His voice was barely a whisper, and no one noticed his act. Although he lacked his staff, due to the time spent learning to heal during the plague had made him very proficient in it. So stopping the blood temporarily was something he could do.

“How arrogant,” said Gregor, a tall black-haired knight. He was one of Sena’s close friends as well as an admirer of hers. He simply couldn't tolerate the audacity of this peasant. He walked toward Erhan, intending to teach him a lesson in humility, but Sena raised her hand, gesturing him to stop. “But Sena. this peasant insulted you,” he said.

She stared at Erhan’s hand pressed against the wound. The blood had stopped, and some colour was returning to the unconscious man’s face. “He’s right,” she said, “the wounded must be prioritized.” She looked at the unconscious Alanis sprawled on the ground. “Take that fool to his room. He has embarrassed us enough today. He’d be sent back home tomorrow.”

Although she was a little displeased Erhan’s behaviour, if the matter could end with just that, she wouldn’t complain. Rather, she looked back at Erhan’s hand, the man stopped the bleeding so easily. That was some great work. Only great healers could do that without the help of medicines. If he was that special, then she didn’t mind the small act of disrespect. Besides, it was the fault of their people anyway, so it wouldn’t hurt to give way a bit.

Time passed as jack brought water and cloth from somewhere in the tavern. He was quite an intelligent fellow. While Erhan was cleaning and bandaging the wound, he ran back to bring the town doctor.

Erhan didn’t take long to finish up his work. When he was done, Erina, who had stopped sobbing, bowed and said, “thank you for treating my father. I don’t know what would’ve happened if you didn’t arrive.” a look of anger flashed in her leaf-shaped eyes. “That bastard wouldn’t let anyone come and help us.”

Erhan gave an awkward nod. Seeing her red crying face reminded him of her daughter. Although she was a decade older than his daughter, Erina also was a daughter of someone. He looked at Sena. the golden-haired girl was looking at him with expectation in her eyes. Was she expecting him to introduce himself? He wasn't in the mood for that. The loss of his own blood to stop the bleeding exhausted him. He wanted to give her a piece of his mind too, but he'd rather go home and sleep now. He said to Erina, “I’ll be taking my leave then.” He turned back and pushed through the crowd and walked towards the exit.

The townsfolk gawked at his back, confused and dumbfounded. Seeing him slap the vile man, they had thought he would represent them and bring them justice, but they didn’t expect him to leave like that. Some of them sighed. Well, he was an odd man, after all, so expecting him to act as they want might have been foolish on their part. Still, they were a bit disappointed.

Sena also couldn’t believe the man was going to leave like that. He was insulting her! She couldn’t tolerate that.

“Hey! Stop this instant!” She shouted.

Erhan sighed. He just wanted to go back and fall asleep. Was that so difficult? He looked back at Sena asked, “What do you want?”

“You’re quite rude.” She glared at him. “I introduced myself to you. But not only did you ignore me, now you’re leaving without even introduce yourself to us? Do you have no manners?”

“Manners?” Erhan narrowed his eyes. “Do you think you deserve manners from me?”

“How dare you?” Gregor drew out his half his sword from the sheath as he took a step towards Erhan. “You dare insult the lady? apologize this instant or I’ll cut you down.”

Erhan tilted his head and gave him a calm stare. "I didn't see your chivalrous spirit burn this high when your compatriot insulted the barmaid, sir Knight." his last word was like a vicious bite that struck the Knight.

Gregor took a sharp breath and drew out the rest of the blade.

"Stop!" Sena said and gave Gregor a hot glare. “Did I ask you to interfere? Stand down and let me handle this.”

“But my lady—”

“Enough! Stand down!.” Sena’s voice was unquestionable. She looked back at Erhan. “Excuse the rudeness of my knights, but why would you say we didn’t deserve manners from you?”

Erhan gave a derisive smile and said, “Don’t you know the answer?” He glanced at some of the people carrying the wounded tavern keeper towards one of the rooms where the doctor who had already arrived with Jack waited.

Sena followed his gaze, taking in the view and sighed. “I understand you must be upset because of the incident, but holding grudges wouldn’t serve any of us,” she said, “and although Alanis was a bit… rude, you already taught him.”

“Was it my duty to teach him?” Erhan Looked down at her grey eyes. “He is your subordinate. And it should be your duty as a superior to control him.”

Sena gave an exasperated shake of her head. Although she was the leader of this expedition, it was mostly in name in front of these young, proud knights who were the same age as her. Especially someone like Alanis, who was not only arrogant but had the connections to back up that arrogance. Also, her being a woman in a position to lead men tickled these knight's pride. So they saw her as someone they should protect rather than obey. But she wouldn’t expect Erhan to understand her difficulties.

Most frustrating was the fact that this man was right. It was her responsibility. “So what do you suggest I do?" she asked.

"That's something for you to decide, not me."

Sena sighed. "I'm sending him back home. He's the heir of a merchant noble family. Doing anything too harsh to him would lead to trouble, not only to you,” she looked at the townsfolk, especially at Erina and said, “but for them also.”

Erhan pressed his fingers to his temples to fight off the sudden bout of headache that came rushing in. he couldn't stay and talk anymore. “Then we have nothing to talk about,” Erhan said as he turned around. Pushing the door open he disappeared into the night.

Sena’s mouth opened in surprise as she looked incredulously at the door banging shut. She couldn’t believe the man! He turned and left just like that? He didn’t even give her a proper chance to converse with him. It was almost like he ran away from her. was she that detestable?

Gregor came forward with the other knights. “We should go and teach him a lesson,” he said, clenching his fist. “He’s trampled our dignity.”

Sena took a deep breath to calm herself down. She shook her head and said, “no need for that for now. We have a long journey ahead of us in a week. And the path isn’t exactly going to be easy,” she looked back at the people of the town helping Erina clean up the mess in the tavern, “and today you all have already given me enough headache to deal with. I don’t want any more.”

“But that wasn’t our fault.” Samuel, the youngest knight argued.

Sena glared at him. Well, well, looks like she found an outlet to vent some of her anger. “A knight doesn’t make excuses,” she said in a stern voice. “I just left for the restroom for a bit and you people let him make such a mess. It was your duty to maintain peace during my absence, Wasn’t it?" her eyes fell on each of their faces looking at the pride shining on them drop bit by bit. "Shouldn’t you people have at least stopped that fool from committing such an atrocious act? his act not only put our team to shame but made the whole house of Moras look like a fool. where was your pride of a knight then? where was your chivalry? Your act was disappointing and completely unbecoming of a knight,” she said in a low voice that only reached the four men surrounding her. Seeing the knight's faces turn red as their heads lowered filled her chest with a small amount of satisfaction. She turned around and walked toward Erina. “Now let’s go and deal with this mess as peacefully as we can.”

Erhan’s actions that day had made him something of a hero in the eyes of the townspeople. Before that day, they used to ignore the man who came to their town at the wake of the plague as Erhan ignored them too. But now they dipped their heads at him and smiled whenever they ran into him. Some even went as far as to ask him about his welfare, those brave souls. It frustrated and embarrassed Erhan. He actively avoided others as much as he could, Skirting around them, or turning back before they get the chance to greet him. He just wanted this week to quickly end so he can get away from this town. He wasn't alone in this involved in this cycle of frustration though, others were too. Albeit for a reason much different than his.

The tavern had closed down due to the serious injuries of the owner. And though Erhan had decided to stop going there, the other daily patrons were becoming increasingly grumpy without their daily dose of booze. No one blamed the tavern though, instead, the young Moras and her knights had become the subjects of their glare and criticism.

Sena found the experience infuriating. Though she knew as a knight and especially as the leader of their group she shouldn’t make excuses, it still didn’t help the fact that it truly wasn’t her fault. She had done what she could make amends on her part, even compensating a hefty sum of three golden crowns to the tavern. It stung her a bit, losing that much money so quickly. It was a fourth of the money she had earned through doing various duties for the house. Furthermore, She had sent Alanis back with Gregor as his escort. And if the strongest of their group didn’t manage to catch up with them again, it would affect the strength of their team. Of course, Gregor also disliked that, but someone had to explain the situation to the house. It wasn’t like they could trust Alanis to do that himself, no matter how regretful he might have looked at the next morning.

What frustrated Sena more was that man. She had thought of him as the leader of the townsfolk, but after asking around a bit, she learned he was a refugee who had come to the town three years ago. What was weird was that no one knew his name all this time since he rarely ever conversed with anyone. People of the town referred to him by various strange nicknames like ‘Mad hermit’, ‘That crazy guy’ or ‘Beards’.

she had tried many times to confront him. At first, she didn’t care much, she found him somewhat intriguing and simply wanted to talk to him, but the man was slippery as an eel. He would walk the other way whenever he spotted her, and although he looked to be walking normally, Sena had never been able to catch up with him in full sprint. Much to her knight's chagrin, she had entered the mines to search for him too. But the place was like a maze and the man knew how to disappear in its many dark passageways like a mouse. All her efforts to catch him had failed. While their cat and mousing continued, the end of the week sneakily caught up to them.

Erhan was relieved and Sena was disappointed. They both thought once they left the town they’d never have the chance to meet each other again. But the day of the departure was a surprise for both of them.