Randidly’s smile faded somewhat Although it had only been about a month for Donnyton Randidly had been away for over 2 years Everyone at the town felt so far away although in a way it was his baby In his chest the Aether connections still were strong so they were all still alive He could send messages through the friend system but Randidly was still uncomfortable with the idea of too much interaction
Better to just wait and speak to them when he returned There was a thread of guilt in his heart too especially after Helen and he
And now they moved about their day as if it didn’t matter at all although there was some long looks sometimes from both of them But Randidly didn’t know how to bring it up and Helen didn’t seem to want to and also Randidly had no idea what he wanted So he let the issue drop inwardly a weird mix of relieved and disappointed
The sounds of angry voices attracted Randidly’s attention and he looked up from his sizzling patties
Make way Make way Merchant’s Association coming through
Two burly women followed by a squat fat man who waddled like a penguin more than walked pressed their way through the line to the front of the cheeseburger line When the arrived the man gave Claptrap a dismissive glance and then sneered at Teliph
Hehehe we are here investigating allegations that you bribed the resident official to obtain a stand even though the don’t have a merchant’s license
The penguin man made this reveal as though it were a revelation from the heavens but most of the people gathered just seemed annoyed and confused glaring at the penguin man with folded arms Honestly Randidly mused the only person who seemed scared was Claptrap who instantly paled
As such this stand is violation of the Merchant Association rules and it must be shut down Turn over your err Wares and profits if you wish to leave peaceably
The two burly women stepped forward producing jagged spears with strange spikes Teliph turned and looked at Randidly Although the man had bandages around his face Randidly instantly understood him but he had no idea what was really going on But then Randidly laughed aloud and nodded to Teliph
The only path for a spear was forward
Teliph calmly stepped around to the front of the stand and produced his spear Then he beat the two women bloody smashing them into the ground They were likely perfectly capable spear users but in front of Teliph’s brutal offensive within 30 seconds they were both broken on the ground Time in the prison environment produced a much more capable spear user
Unfortunately this exertion was already pushing a strained Teliph and he was then forced to return to the back of the stand and meditate controlling the tremors and weakness of Aether Starvation Which left the other male spear attendant as the only person to deal with customers while Helen was away fetching more meat Which wasn’t ideal due to his arrogance but he at least followed orders relatively simply
So the male spear attendant stepped forward and beckoned the next customer who stepped over the body of one of the burly women like this was the most natural thing in the world Perhaps violence was more common than he thought Randidly reflected
After staring at his two flunkies with bulging eyes the penguin man shouted that they would pay in a very cliche fashion in Randidly’s opinion and then waddled away in a hurry leaving the two women to groan on the ground
Claptrap breathed in and out his eyes wide Do you do you really need to offend so many organizations The Engraving Guild the Alchemist Guild maybe and now Qtal’s Merchant Association Maybe a little bit of diplomacy
Randidly snorted If there’s one thing I learned it’s that all most conflicts come down to power anyway Let’s skip the crap and just be honest about it Besides
Flipping a patty onto the bun he wrapped it up and handed it to the male spear attendant before saying Besides it’s not my fault they have such unreasonable rules If they weren’t just a bunch of bullies there wouldn’t be any problems would there
Randidly was surprised at how heated his voice had become and he paused For Claptrap’s part the merchant could only give Randidly a strange look then shrug helplessly turning back to his own customers
Perhaps it was foolish but Randidly refused to negotiate with these people who wouldn’t display even an ounce of respect and civility
Setting those issues to the side Randidly turned back to his cooking his lips curling up in a smile Humming slightly he made himself a burger and took a big bite Then he spat it out shaking his head That spice combination was definitely out Then he gave the people who were buying experiments like this a withering glance
Truly this world didn’t know fine cuisine All the better for him Randidly supposed Made for quite an easy way to grind skills while making money
Chapter 184
Shal sat up slowly carefully conserving as much energy as possible As if sensing Shal’s movement Divveltian appeared in the doorway looking down at Shal with glowing eyes
I need a favor Shal’s voice was light and breathy as he attempted to conserve energy anyway he can
Divveltian snorted Don’t you always From the day your father dropped you off with the Endless Heat Style to the day you came back to us bearing the spear of the one they called the Devourer you have always needed my help And I have helped you as much as I could because it is what my niece would have wanted
Shal’s eyes tightened If the woman Shal considered his foster mother Dorotyh hadn’t gone looking for his father finally fed up with the fact Aemont went to confront Haelthing and failed to return for Shal Shal might still be living peacefully with that Style content to forget about the father who pushed him and ignored him in equal measure But she had her own feelings and had gone
So Shal had pushed himself to the limit to train and then followed her The spear of the Devourer might be the most widely known treasure that Shal obtained in the dwelling of Haelthing but it was by no means the heaviest That honor went to the wizened and drained body of the woman who raised him
The silence stretched between them Shal unwilling to expend his energy to speak more Divveltian seemingly content to brood in his thoughts Luckily for Shal Divveltian eventually looked up fire in his eyes
I know there are many things about what you found in the lair of Haelthing that you are hiding Divveltian began slowly And I’m not going to demand answers But you must tell me Why are you pushing yourself so You seemed content to let yourself waste away in the aftermath I let you because I knew it was just how you needed to grieve but now what changed
A letter Shal whispered forcefully remaining loose and relaxed his body even as every muscle wanted to clench in fury at the memory From Lucrecia
Who is Lucrecia Divveltian’s eyes were serious and lined at the edges but there was something in his voice
Shal blinked slowly That sad note in his voice Shal had always known that Divveltian had adventures beyond the limits of the Spearman School’s land traveling through the other Schools learning his peculiar moves abroad But what that strange note told Shal now was that Divveltian recognized that name
He knew Lucrecia
Shal grinned his hatred overflowing so much that he couldn’t care about the Aether expenditure Lucrecia is a woman I must kill She cursed the fate of my family and made us all into monsters
Daital stood dutifully next to his father wondering what they were even doing
As a 14 year old man his father allowed him to accompany him when he went to the market day It was a very important day for his father because ever since they had earned the ire of Uncle Izzie his father’s business hadn’t been doing well and Daital had been forced to spend less time working with a spear and more time helping around the shop