The old magician instantly bolted upright at the mention of Xzavier's name. Admittedly, he hadn't been expecting him back so soon. Immediately, he began to bombard Tacy with a barrage of question;
"How is he? Was his mission successful? Damn it answer me woman!"
But Tacy was still trying to catch her breath. She wasn't exactly the athletic type so it had been a while since she last ran.
"USE YOUR WORDS TACY!"
But she was taking too long to pull herself together.
Kadin decided he didn't have time to wait on her answers anymore. He could just simply got see his new young hunter himself. So, Kadin hurriedly got up from him table and gently shoved her aside as he headed for the door.
Kadin emerged in the waiting room/lounge in a jiffy. He didn't need to look too far before he found Xzavier.
Clad in black as always, the radically regal Xzavier sat by himself at one of the tables as he stared off into space. A cold chill passed over Kadin as he saw again the extraordinary blood red aura that enveloped Xzavier as he sat down alone.
What Kadin saw was like a sea of blood in the form of a thick fog encircling round about the young man. It was almost as if Xzavier's bizarre aura had been enhanced since the last time they saw each other.
It was extraordinary. In other not to seem too excited by Xzavier's arrival, Kadin slowed his initial pace and waltzed over to where Xzavier was.
A couple of hunters hailed the old magician as he walked across the room but Kadin ignored them all. He arrived at Xzavier's table and greeted him.
"Hello again Xzavier. Back so soon?"
Xzavier nodded.
Kadin chuckled softly.
"Still chatty as always huh?"
Not waiting for a reply, Kadin pressed on to the real issue at hand without any kind of foreplay whatsoever.
"What's this I hear about you killing all the Goblins? Is this true?"
At this point, Xzavier had grown tired of all the incessant bickering surrounding the killing of all the Goblins.
First it had been Tacy, then the other hunters and now the old man was interrogating him on this very subject which he had already admitted to doing.
His tone curt and super direct, he confronted Kadin saying;
"Look here old man, if you want to confirm my claim, you are very much welcome to visit the Goblins' territory and verify the truth for yourself.
"But do not sit there and doubt something that I have already been taken care off!"
Completely taken unaware and surprised at the young man's outburst, Kadin could do nothing but sit in the chair opposite Xzavier with a befuddled look on his face.
He then proceeded to apologize to the younger man and showered him adulations in light of his recent accomplishment. The other hunters soon began to shoot respectful glances at Xzavier in honor of his success.
The whole mood soon changed as it began to get more celebratory. But Xzavier boycotted the hero's treatment. It wasn't his style to seek out glory. He was a soldier first before all things. And soldiers obeyed orders and accomplished missions.
Annoyed, the sleep deprived and exhausted Xzavier excused himself from the company of the old man and the other hunters. His first priority at the moment was securing a decent accommodation from which he could base his operations.
But he didn't know the town all that well. Fortunately for him, fate provided him with a resourceful source of prime information. Just as he was headed out of the establishment, he saw the waitress from earlier on.
"What is your name?" he asked.
She replied shyly;
"I am called Tacy."
"Tacy, do you know where I can find a decent hotel in this town?"
She opened her mouth to speak but held back her tongue as she took more time to further deliberate on the ideal answer. Finally, her eyes brightened and she answered Xzavier gleefully.
"This hotel in particular is called Orion's Belt. It's one of the best in the town."
She noticed Xzavier's lingering look, and she quickly added;
"Oh and it's perfect for strangers who are just visiting town so the whole package is guaranteed."
Xzavier waited for her to give him directions but it seemed that key detail had slipped through her well prepared elaborate review of the hotel. Xzavier coughed uncomfortably.
"Can you point me in the direction of that hotel please?"
Tacy's face flushed with embarrassment as soon as she realized she had skipped over the part where she was supposed to give him the directions. She quickly tendered her apologies and did the needful.
"A thousand apologies for that oversight sir…"
She then proceeded to give him concise directions on how to locate the hotel. Satisfied, Xzavier thanked her and bid her goodnight.
Xzavier wandered through the streets of the town and followed the instructions he had been given on how to locate the hotel. He had two sweet silver coins burning in his pocket, so he hoped it would be enough to secure him a decent room at the hotel.
Sure enough, Xzavier found the hotel the young girl had so aptly described. True to her word, the hotel had the elegance one would expect from the best hotel in a city. It was riddled with fancy art and medieval age architecture.
Even in the day time, it sparkled with the glitter and glamour of a top rated hotel. Xzavier wasn't interested in the aesthetics of the hotel. He simply wanted a decent place where he could retire and analyze the results from his recently completed mission.
Xzavier had no trouble checking in. He suspected that the hotel attendant had cheated him because he sensed that Xzavier was a stranger. Also, it didn't quite help that Xzavier had told him that all he had in his pocket was two silver coins.
Xzavier caught the avaricious gleam in the hotelier's eyes when he told him how much he had. It was at that moment Xzavier knew he had messed up.
The greedy hotelier wasted no time and immediately declared that two silver coins was the exact fee for a night and a hot meal. Xzavier wanted to protest but he was too tired to negotiate. All he wanted to do was simply rest. So he shrugged it off.
After the fat man collected his coins hungrily, he beckoned to a porter to show Xzavier to his quarters. A small cocky eyed wimpy lad emerged and whispered nervously to Xzavier;
"Please follow me sir. May I carry your baggage?"
Xzavier grunted 'no.' He had seen this hustle one too many times before. The porter was simply trying to create a legal ground on which he could ask for a tip subsequently.
But Xzavier was already tapped out and he wasn't going to entertain any shenanigans anymore. After ascending a flight of stairs, they finally got to his room.
The porter then proceeded to unlock the door and handed over the key to Xzavier.