It was already noon. Everything seemed to be melting under the scorching sun. Trees and houses further down the road were slightly distorted by the hot air.
Roland returned to the temple on the mountain along the trail. He saw that Falken was treating a plump woman. Surrounded by a white pillar of light, the woman laughed in relief a few seconds later and soon left quickly.
After it was done, Falken cast Language Proficiency at Roland before he asked, "How much have you earned?"
"Twenty-eight coppers." Roland took out a coin from his pocket and asked, "This is copper, right?"
With his hands on his back, Falken approached him and smiled. "You earned more than I expected. I thought you could make no more than ten coppers as a beginner. Twenty-eight coppers are enough to keep you full for several days."
Roland smiled but did not explain. He said, "Where can I have food in town? I'm a little bit hungry."
"Take a right turn down the mountain and walk along the trail. You'll find a tavern on your right after you pass a pier. The food in the tavern is abundant and cheap, but of course, I wouldn't say it's delicious. I don't know if it agrees with you."
"Any food agrees with me right now." Roland shrugged and left the temple after thanking Falken.
According to Falken's instructions, Roland found the tavern under the scorching sun.
There were three pictograms on the door of the tavern. Language Proficiency could only influence the mind and allow people to talk with each other; it could not enable the recipients to understand written words.
The tavern was not very large, with a coverage of no more than two hundred square meters. The door was a short wooden one, making it possible to see what was going on inside from outside.
There were several old but clean round tables, surrounded by round chairs. The fragrance of bread and the smell of sour alcohol spread everywhere. Roland also saw several men chugging big gray cups and clamoring as if they were drunk.
Roland pushed the door and walked in. The waitress, who had been standing at the counter, immediately called earnestly, "Sir, welcome to Lake View Tavern. What would you like to order?"
So, the three words on the door meant "Lake View Tavern."
While the waitress gazed at him in surprise, Roland backed off to the door and took a photo of the four pictograms, before he put a note of their meaning on the photo.
Although Language Proficiency could not teach him a language instantly, he was able to learn the language if he used the spell in a roundabout way. Also, the spell seemed applicable to all languages, which made it quite useful.
Roland was rather happy to realize the trick. He entered the tavern again, only to notice that the waitress was eying him strangely. He knew that his odd behavior just now must've surprised her.
"Do you have anything cheap and delicious?" Roland sat on a chair before the counter and asked with a smile, "Don't recommend anything too expensive. I don't have a lot of money."
The waitress was not exactly beautiful, but she was young and lovely, with freckles on the sides of her nose. Her eyes were big and blue, and her smile was sweet and comforting.
"I recommend honey bread." The waitress was also wearing linen clothes, except that hers were cleaner and more fashionable. "I know you are the hero who saved three kids. I would've sold honey bread to you at half-price if I were the owner of this tavern."
"A piece of honey bread it is, then."
"All right, please wait a moment." The waitress went to the kitchen and soon returned with a plate that had a piece of long bread covered in golden honey. "This is the bread you ordered. Two coppers."
The honey bread looked pretty huge. Two coppers was a fair price, at least for Roland. He handed over two coppers. Then, the waitress stared at his hands in a strange way.
Roland looked at his own hands, only to discover a couple of huge, appalling blisters there. He pressed them but felt no pain although they seemed scary. It must be because the feeling of pain had been reduced to one-tenth.
It was the result of mining, but it didn't matter since it was not too painful. He could continue digging and making money tomorrow morning.
Roland had a bite of the bread. Then, his expression changed subtly. The honey was good, and the bread was also good, but the honey bread was not exactly tasteful. It was too hard and even had an inexplicable smell.
No wonder Falken said that the food in this tavern might not agree with him.
The waitress could tell what was going on from his subtle expression. She smiled. "It's not delicious? But our bread is the best in this town, although it may be shabby for big shots like you."
"Big shots? He's just a brat."
One of the few men who were drinking turned around and shouted, flushing, "He has no advantages except for his pretty face. It was only because of luck that he saved those kids. I could've done the same. Why do you think so highly of him?"
Roland knew that he was probably famous in the town, but he did not know that he was very famous. Children were the future of a family, a town, and a country. Offspring always mattered most in every place.
Saving a child could earn more gratitude than saving an adult on many occasions.
Of course, while some people admired heroes and extraordinary figures, some people did not see eye to eye with them. Most of the time, their hostility boiled down to one simple reason: jealousy.
Roland looked at the three drunkards, only to discover that there was nothing worth mentioning about them. They were all middle-aged men without any attractive qualities.
Have I triggered a certain quest? Roland thought for a moment. In the spirit of experimentation, he said provocatively, "Cut the crap. Do you want to fight outside?"
The few men tossed their cups to the floor, splashing bright yellow ale everywhere. While the waitress screamed, they flipped over the table and walked toward Roland aggressively.