The tall man who had just arrived spoke briefly to Master Horsling at the bar and ordered a drink. He then looked left and right, as if searching, in a way that did not attract the attention of those around him.
William almost called out to him, but Rogas grabbed his arm.
"What else?" said William impatiently.
"Let me see first." Rogas' face turned serious. It must have been because he had just smelled money. "I don't want to deal with poor people."
He was greedy and arrogant. William muttered.
Across the room, Mornitz sat behind one of the tables. His face was unsmiling, as usual. His eyes glanced again in every direction, but he could not find William who was still in the darkest corner of the room. William grew impatient. He didn't understand what Rogas was waiting for.
It was only when two large bottles of wine reached Mornitz's table that Rogas grinned happily. "He has good taste. Okay, you can call him, William. Ah, no, you go there. I will follow you."
William hates being told to like that. But if in this way he could settle all this matter quickly, he would not hesitate to do so. He got up from his seat and crossed the room, squeezing his way among the people still engrossed in watching beside the gambling tables.
As soon as he saw William coming, Mornitz looked up haughtily, then stared at him for a moment.
"So you brought your friend?" asked the man.
"Yes. He's in—"
Before William had finished speaking, Rogas came and greeted Mornitz.
Rogas' wide smile spread out. "I heard you need help, sir?"
Mornitz didn't answer right away. He studied Rogas, as if trying to convince him of something, then nodded, "Only from the right person."
"I'm the right person." Without hesitation, Rogas sat in front of the man in the black robe and immediately told him at length about himself, about his experiences with the royal army, and so on. In essence, promoting himself.
Mornitz seemed quite patient with the ramblings. The black-robed man remained silent, but his eyes stared unblinkingly at Rogas.
William felt bored and neglected. The young man glanced at the corner of the room where he had been sitting. Muriel was already standing waving. The girl's face scrunched up again. William understood.
He said, "Sir, I'll go first."
Mornitz nodded curtly, without a smile, and only glanced briefly at him.
While Rogas grimaced. "Thank you, William. We'll meet again later."
William nodded. Just as he turned around, Rogas had resumed his ramblings. This time it's about how he once beat up a gang of criminals in the south and killed them mercilessly. William could only mutter. To him, Rogas' boasting sounded increasingly full of bullshit.
William and Muriel rushed out of the Horsling Tavern filled with raucous laughter and the smell of liquor. They were both relieved because outside it turned out to be quiet compared to the commotion inside. It felt more fun. William led Muriel down the cobbled streets beside the hill. Not many torches were installed on the left or right of the road. Fortunately, the moonlight made the darkness of the night a little less.
During the walk, William didn't say much, until finally, Muriel said, "Brother, you look upset."
"No. Hmm… yes, maybe. A little."
"Why?"
"I don't know," William remembered, at exactly this same time last night he still had time to talk with his mother, where his mother finally told him many things about their past. He felt sad again.
Muriel smiled, seeming to know what was on William's mind. "I think your mother is calm now and happy in heaven."
"I know." William smiled back.
"If you're still sad, why go to a place like this?"
"Rogas said, when we're sad, we should have fun first so that later we can feel better."
"Are you feeling better now?"
"Not really."
"Huh! I told you Rogas is annoying, and a bad influence on us. You don't want to believe it!"
William chuckled. "Yeah, I think you're right. So if I ever see him again, I'll beat him up."
"Good! I want to join too!" Muriel raised his fist.
Both laughed.
"Then what business did you guys have with the black-robed man?" asked Muriel.
"Mornitz? He's looking for mercenaries, and Rogas is willing." William was silent for a moment. "And at first, I wanted to come too."
Muriel's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"I wanted to come along. But Mornitz only needs one person."
"If you leave, how about your job at the workshop?"
"I won't be working in the forge forever, Muriel." William looked at the little girl beside him. "One day I will go."
Muriel gaped, apparently not expecting it. "You mean… you're going to leave us? Leave me and my father?"
"There are many things I want to do. I've told you before. I want to go to other places. To other countries. From the stories, they all seem interesting. But I'm not leaving now." William tried to laugh.
But Muriel didn't laugh. Her face was grim. "If you go..." she said hesitantly, "... can I come with you?"
"That's not possible. Your father will beat me first."
"Yeah, but when I grow up, I'll do it!"
"Your father needs you here. Do you want to leave him?"
"We both need you here, but you still want to go!"
Both fell silent.
For a while, the two of them walked without words, until finally, William said, "We'd better talk about something else."
"Anyway I'm glad you didn't go with Rogas!" said Muriel. "I have a bad feeling if you go with him!"
William laughed. "Why? If I can get some money from him or Mornitz, I can give some of it to you."
"I don't want your money!"
"At least, I should have got those three pieces."
"What three pieces?"
"Mornitz said if I could bring Rogas to him I'd be given three pieces of sazet," William replied.
"And he didn't give it?"
"No."
"Why don't you ask?" asked Muriel in a high voice.
"Yeah… looks like he forgot about that." William thought to himself, is it true that Mornitz forgot? "Never mind, I don't need the money."
"Three sazets is pretty good!"
William smirked. "Yeah, it is. We can use it to book a room here, if you want, hm?"
Muriel growled and immediately punched William's arm hard. The young man grimaced, then laughed again.
"But you're right." William froze. "Why didn't I ask him?"
"Yes!"
"That money is my right!"
"Yes!"
"Alright, I'll go back to the tavern and ask Mornitz for the money." William immediately turned around.
"What?" Muriel was taken aback and quickly grabbed his arm. "You want to come back there? No! What I meant earlier, next time something like this happens, it's better if you tell him, and don't hesitate! Only that!"
"I'll go there," William answered stubbornly. "We're not far from the tavern yet. Why? You're not coming and want to go straight home?"
"Oh, of course, I'm coming with you!" said Muriel. "Once again, to make sure you don't do anything stupid."