17 – Salt Delivery Commotion (4)
At first, I didn’t think much of his gaze.
Probably just looking at Rihanna.
It’s hard to ignore the chest that’s (supposedly) placed on the table, it’s just too big to pass by without noticing.
The wide hips and plump buttocks, compared to the slender waist, were enough to attract the attention of males, no, men.
And on top of that, he had a pretty and cute appearance.
But even when the waiter asked if he would like to order, he continued to stare at our side.
Finally, I realized that he wasn’t looking here because of Rihanna.
I looked down at myself, just in case, but there was no place where the polymorph was undone.
If even a part of the polymorph had come undone, Rihanna sitting right in front of us would have caused a scene.
Then, what on earth…?
“Rihanna, don’t turn your head, listen.”
“Why?”
“The human sitting at that table keeps staring at us. Isn’t it a significant breach of etiquette in human society?”
Rihanna was taken aback, but she didn’t take her eyes off the map as she replied.
“Yes…? Why is he looking…?”
“Did you do something wrong?”
“No…? I didn’t…?”
“Hmm…”
Their gaze was uncomfortable, but it felt awkward to confront them and ask why they were staring.
Feeling uneasy, I glanced at the map with Rihanna and spoke up.
“Should we stop here and rest on the bed?”
“Sure. Let’s go.”
Feeling bothered, Rihanna immediately rolled up the map and got up from her seat.
As we climbed the stairs, I glanced back and saw that the humans were still watching us.
What’s going on? Are they really…?
* * * * *
I took out the bag I had put under the bed and checked if the wyvern’s egg was safe.
As expected, the egg was perfectly fine, without any scratches or damage.
I moved the fur around and gently wrapped the egg to keep it warm, then tried to put it back under the bed.
“Give me the egg, Erga.”
“What for?”
“I need to keep it warm. What’s the point of leaving it under the bed?”
When I took the egg out of the bag and handed it to Rihanna, she carefully placed it on her own bed and smiled.
“hehehe. I’ll keep it warm like a mother would.”
Rihanna lay on her side and embraced the egg tightly.
The egg snugly fit between her chest and belly, looking quite cozy.
“If we do this, it will hatch soon, right?”
“It’s not a bad thing to do. But that doesn’t mean the hatching time will be brought forward.”
“When will they come out?”
“Let’s see. It’s winter now, right? Usually, wyverns lay eggs when the weather gradually gets colder. And the hatchlings are born around the time it transitions to autumn next year.”
Liana, who had been rolling her eyes for a moment, spoke up.
“I guess I’ll have to wait a little longer.”
“That’s true, but it doesn’t really matter if we just leave them outside when the weather gets warmer.”
“hehehe. That won’t do. If we want to ride them, we have to take care of them with love from the moment they hatch.”
“They won’t be able to fly right after they’re born. It’ll probably be around the year after next for both of us to grow big enough to ride them.”
Liana hugged the egg and wriggled around, and I also lay on the bed and fidgeted.
The human bed felt quite soft and gave a feeling similar to lying on a dense jungle.
Lying in the jungle and enjoying the breeze makes you feel drowsy, perfect for taking a nap.
“Eruga-nim. Eruga-nim.”
When I opened my eyes, Liana was standing next to the bed, shaking my shoulder.
I must have dozed off…
“Why?”
“Do you want to play Mancala?”
Looking towards her bed, the wyvern egg was rolled up in the blanket and pushed towards the edge.
Seems like she got bored of holding it.
Without waiting for a response, Liana took out the Mancala from her bag and spread it out on my bed.
There were twelve circular hollows, with long grooves above and below on each side of the wooden board.
Riana placed colorful pebbles, four each, into the twelve slots.
“It’s simple. Let me explain how.”
Riana taught me how to play Mankala.
Hold four pebbles in one hand and continue placing them to the right, slot by slot… And when there are leftover pebbles, put them in the big slot… Huh? Um…
And then… When you put the last pebble in an empty slot… You take all the pebbles from the opposite slot? What does that mean?
“Why do humans even play this?”
“Well, why not? It’s fun. I heard that in some places, the winner becomes the chief and even makes decisions about wars.”
“So, important matters are decided by moving these pebbles around?”
“I don’t know, really.”
Riana took her purse out of her bag and placed it on the side of the board.
“Wanna bet money? Even though I’m already poor.”
“It’s okay. I’ll lend you some if that happens.”
“Alright… Let’s give it a try.”
I lost the first two rounds.
It was only natural. It was my first time playing the game, so I wasn’t familiar with the rules.
Riana giggled and put a few coins she won into her pocket.
“Would you like to continue? You might end up penniless.”
“Let’s give it a shot for now.”
But from the third round, the atmosphere changed.
Because I had completely grasped the rules after losing twice, I kept sweeping Riana’s pebbles.
“Uh…?”
As Rianna watched the money slowly shifting into her purse, her expression became increasingly rigid.
“Oh… this can’t be right.”
Rianna desperately continued playing the game, but the only thing accumulating on my side was a pile of bricks.
“This can’t go on like this!”
Rianna exclaimed, her trembling hand pulling out money from her purse.
“Should we stop? It seems like we’re going to end up broke.”
“Sob… This is strange, really… I definitely didn’t suffer like this back when I was at Sacred University.”
“Maybe it’s because you were playing against opponents you thought you could beat?”
In the end, Rianna gave me the last of her money and finally stopped playing Moncala.
I smiled and returned all the money I had won from her.
“What’s the point of us winning money from each other?”
“hehehe! Thank you!”
Rianna laughed gleefully as she poured the money back into her purse.
“Promise me you won’t gamble anywhere else. Can’t you quit until you’ve hit rock bottom?”
“Really? Maybe I have an unknown gambling spirit.”
“As far as I know, ‘gambling spirit’ doesn’t seem like the word to use in that situation.”
“Well, whatever.”
Looking out the window, I noticed that the sun had already set and it was getting dark.
I had been so engrossed in the game that I hadn’t realized how time had flown by.
We went downstairs alone to have dinner.
The unidentified person from earlier was nowhere to be seen.
We called the waiter and asked if she knew anything, but she shook her head.
“I’m not sure. Lately, a lot of out-of-towners have been coming, so I don’t really know.”
“I see. By any chance, do you have stew for dinner?”
“Shall I bring it? We have other options too, but if you like stew…”
“No, no. Please give us something else.”
I gestured with my hand, making it clear how picky I was, and Rihanna chuckled softly beside me.
Fortunately, instead of that beggar-like stew, roasted chicken was served on the table.
“This is quite delicious.”
“If you sprinkle salt and roast it, it’s usually tasty.”
From Noble mtl dot com
Rihanna said as she picked up a chicken leg and started tearing it apart.
“While we’re at it, please remind me to stop by the grocery store before we leave. We need to buy spices and rations.”
“What are rations?”
“Food that doesn’t spoil easily. We have jerky and hard-baked bread and various other things. We eat them when we travel.”
I see. It seems like the fresh ingredients will definitely spoil within a few days.
“Let’s eat well and sleep tight tonight. We’ll have to walk from early morning tomorrow.”
“How many days did it take to walk to Byukka again?”
“If we walk all day, about two days? If we take it easy, maybe three. So, three days.”
“It’s either two days or three… If it’s short, it’s short, and if it’s long, it’s long.”
“If I’m lucky, I might find some work in the middle. It seems like small towns often have something.”
With that, Liana stuffed her mouth with chicken legs, her nose wrinkling.
She really has a good appetite.
At that moment, the inn door opened, and the human I had seen earlier in the day walked in again.
But this time, he was accompanied by armed men behind him.
Judging by their armor, they must be the soldiers of the lord’s castle…
“Hello! Are you here for a meal, or… oh? Aren’t you from the lord’s castle…?”
The waiter hurriedly approached, but the man stepped aside, flicking his finger.
“I have something to discuss over there, so stay put.”
“Oh, yes…”
The waiter, pressed by his forceful manner, stepped aside.
The gazes of the guests sitting at the tables all turned towards us.
Whether they liked it or not, they approached us and surrounded the table.
Among them, the man in front looked down at me with a piercing gaze.
Terrified, Liana couldn’t even move and hunched her shoulders.
I looked at him with a fork in my hand and asked.
“What is it?”
“This.”
The man tossed something onto the table.
A gold ring with a red ruby rolled half a turn on the table and came to a stop.
This is a ring that was brought from the Wyvern’s nest and sold to a jeweler.
Why does this human have it?
And why did they come to us and suddenly take it out like that?
Perhaps… it seems they have some connection to the owner of this ring.
“Where did you get this?”
“The Wyvern’s nest.”
“Wyvern…? Did you just say Wyvern?”
“Yeah. It’s a guy who lives in a valley far from this city. Known as a dragon. I found it on a corpse in his nest.”
The man chuckled and glanced back at the soldiers behind him, as if to say, “Look at what this guy is saying.”
“If you don’t believe me, I can show you the evidence right now.”
At my words, the man gave a mocking smile.
“Fine. But show me in the prison of Yeongjuseong, not here.”