The mysterious man from the north keeps coughing nonstop.
'Wa-water," said the man in between his coughing.
Bered moves from the room to pick a glass of water. The man drinks the water in a beat.
"Thank you very much," said the man as he put the glass down.
"Are you okay?" I asked the man after he calm himself down.
"I am okay. Thank you very much for saving me." The man looked at me when he said his thanks.
"It is not me… The villagers here and this man is the one that helps you," said me pointing to Bered.
Bered also answered, "It is okay… We will try to help if someone is in trouble."
*growl* The sound of an empty stomach can be heard in the room.
"It is still early but do you want to have lunch?" Bered smiled and said to the man. "Lord Aquila too, please eat together."
"Can I?" I asked, to which Bered replied with a nod.
"Please wait a bit," said Bered as he comes out of the room.
"Sorry, where is this place?" the man in weird clothes asks me.
"This place is Lothpine village."
"Lothpine? How far is this place to Forleik kingdom?"
"Forleik? It is Forleik kingdom here. Is something the matter?"
"So, I am now at the south of the Berran mountain?"
I never heard about Berran mountain. Is it what north people call the northern mountain? "I don't know what the Berran mountain is, but you are at the south of a mountain range. We in the Forleik kingdom called it the northern mountain range."
The man showed a happy expression and a big smile emerged on his face. "Finally… Forleik kingdom."
At this time, Bered showed up and said the lunch is ready.
…
"I am sorry… This is all that we can serve in a short time," said Bered. Other than me, the mysterious man, and Bered, there is another person here sitting with us at the table. She is Bered's wife. I have seen her since the last time I came to this village.
"No. It is more than enough!" said the man as he pick up the plate from the table. "Then, I thank you for the meal."
I also started to eat as I see the man start to eat at a rapid speed. We finished the early lunch in a small amount of time.
"Can I ask you something? Where are you coming from? And where is your destination?"
"Oh right… Well, let me introduce myself. I am Zael, an envoy from Tinia kingdom."
"Tinia?"
"Tinia is a kingdom north of the Berran mountain.
"From the written record in Tinia, there is a place called as Forleik kingdom at the south of Berran mountain. I don't know if the written record still holds true or has been outdated.
"Now for the reason, I come to the Forleik kingdom to deliver a message to the king. This is the letter of introduction from our king," said Zael as he pick a paper from his belonging.
I looked at the paper and it is indeed written that Zael is an envoy from the Tinia kingdom. I can't determine if the letter is real or fake but I decided to believe him. I nodded and decided to also introduce myself. "Nice to meet you Zael. I am Aquila Lockway, the Count of Northwellen. As you expected, this is the Forleik Kingdom."
"So how far is this place to the king's city?"
"Well… Two weeks if you use the fastest horse, or a month if you take the journey slowly."
"A month? That is further than what I imagined."
"Can you tell me what—"
I wanted to ask about the message when a loud voice looking for Bered can be heard from outside of the house. "Bered! Bered! This is Mazug! Is Lord Aquila still here?"
* * *
"How is it? What is your choice?" I asked Mazug that is now standing in front of the door.
"Deal! One apprentice of mine wanted to become independent. He decided to take this chance," said Mazug in loud voice as usual.
Mazug then pointed at the young man he brought, "He is the one that wanted to come with you. His name is Ernin."
What Mazug pointed to is the young man that received me in his house this morning. I remember him as he is trying his hardest to speak in a polite way.
"Nice to meet you, Ernin. Are you sure you want to come to the manor?"
"Yes, I have wanted to go—to move from this place," Ernin said. "I have no family left here. So I have wanted to move to another village and start a new life there."
"And you decided to take this chance?"
"That's rig—! Yes, that is right!"
I smiled and replied, "There is a house with a blacksmithing room so you don't need to think about that. Just prepare all your belonging. When do you think you will be able to move? I will bring a carriage that time."
Ernin said he needs a week to prepare so it is decided that next week I will go to this village again.
"So, about the upgrade. When is that?" Mazug grinned ear to ear.
"I will ask the person that will do the upgrading. But are you sure about this? Ernin is your apprentice right?"
"He is the one that wanted to move! In a few years, he will move nonetheless! I only granted his wishes earlier!" Mazug paused, "Anyway, with this all three of us can have what we wanted. I get the mithril processing smithy, you get your blacksmith, and Ernin gets his wish!
"I will wait for the upgrade!" Mazug left with a satisfied smile on his face.
"Then I—Ah! Then, Lord Aquila, I will go back first!" said Ernin as he followed Mazug.
With this, my job for today is finished.
Or so I thought until my eyes meet Zael. Ah… I need to bring him from this place.
"Zael, you want to go to the royal capital right?" asked me.
"Royal capital? Do you mean the King's city? Yes, as soon as possible."
"Then follow me, I will bring you to Northwellen Manor. You can rest in my house tonight and continue your journey tomorrow. I will tell you the general direction tonight."
"Is that really okay?" asked Zael in a loud voice.
I nodded and answer him, "Yup, it is also my responsibility as a noble to direct and welcome a foreign nation envoy."
With that, I said farewell to Bered and bring Zael back to my house.