Kobi glanced around, 'This village chief is too fucking shady!'
Taking another cold breath, he glanced around yet again, this house looked like paradise in comparison to what he had been living in the last few days.
'The brick made structure, the luxurious wooden furnishings, the...' Kobi's expression twisted for a second, 'The overwhelming scent that I can't recognise... It would be much better if it wasn't this oppressing.' Kobi frowned.
Reka glanced at him, seeing the suspicion dripping from his face, she smiled wryly, "The village chief... he was a friend of my parents, he knew them from the city I used to live in before being taken here on their quest of eliminating the wolves near this Village.
"Besides their sympathy for the village that no higher rank adventurer took the quest, the other half of the reason was that the village chief was their old friend. He used to be a Guard Knight in the city but a few years after his marriage, he came here. This is a rumor but people say its related to his wife being unable to bear kids.
"Anyways, he had quite some money and power in his prime, he built this house using that!" Reka explained.
Kobi puffed up his cheek and nodded, "That's all fine and all but... what's with this perfume?"
Reka laughed dryly, "It's a habit he has for a long time. If I remember correctly... he had an obsession for this scent after his wife died, some say it was her favourite perfume."
Kobi's expressiom twisted, 'Hey, hey! Why do I feel my happy and comedic life is being replaced with some real, morbid shit!'
Soon, villagers started coming to him, food in hand, to gave their goodwill.
A while later, the village chief who was nowhere to be seen for quite a while appeared as well from his bed-room. Which, in Kobi's eyes, he slammed shut more faster than he could retort to him.
Reka, sneaking next to him, muttered, "That's another of his obsessions. After his wife's passing. He never lets anybody wander his place. The most he lets is inviting visitors to the living room before kicking them out."
Jake smiled seeing Kobi and walked over, stamping his staff on the ground. Kobi blinked and gazed at his head.
(Village Chief: Level 8)
'No wonder, he's higher levelled than Reka, though in pure strength, Reka got him beat... like, I don't care what level physics people here use but... no way some old bones is stronger than a young lad like her!' Kobi smiled and waved towards him.
Seeing the elder's bright face, Kobi reminisced about all the good times.
With a bright, jovial smile, Kobi poked his pinky in his nose and after much struggling, successfully found his item.
He brought it out and in amazement, exclaimed, "So big!"
Seeing Kobi rolling it within his index and thumb, all the villagers gobbling down food immediately placed aside their plates and acceptantly smiled at Jake.
Heck! Some even patted their chests and rubbed their noses in a sacrificial way, Reka almost asked if they wanted to say, "Parting with our children will be hard, I hope you take good care of them!"
Shaking her head, she glared at Kobi, "Don't do it!"
Kobi gave her a gaze akin to as if she was joking. He took out a rag and carefully secured it inside.
Then, with a smile, he walked next to the Jake stiffened from joy.
He gave the old man a hearty bear hug, nearly ending his existence before separating, "My! You are so grateful you chocked up?" Kobi exclaimed seeing his pale, gasping face.
Kobi nodded his head with a smile as if he understood it all.
Then, with great care, Kobi placed the rag inside Jake's front pocket, the latter's whole body trembled as if he would faint any second, his staff quacked left and right, creating a clattering noise with the wood beneath.
"Oh! You... you're trying to resist tasting that delicacy right away? Tch! This pains me too much!" Kobi sighed heavily before quickly shoving his finger in his nose.
He shuffled left and right before taking it out with a disappointed expression, "I'm sorry old man! This seems to be the last piece!" Before quickly scrubing it on the rag he lent Jake.
'Last piece your ass you shit-hole!' Jake took deep breaths in order to calm himself down.
"Huh? Shortage of breath again??" Kobi bit his lips as if he was in serious ontemplation, before, with a sacrificial sigh, shoved his finger in the different entrance.
In all seriousness, he rolled around his finger before with even greater disappointment, he puller back, "Nothing old man! You mustn't lose heart! You must rely on the villagers after I am gone, I know you are shy about this, hence I know you won't ask yourself but I am certain the villagers will remember to send you daily gifts!"
All the villagers' ears perked up and with resolute expressions, they nodded. It was up to them now!
'THIS SCUM!!!' Veins buldged out of Jake's forehead, he felt as if he would faint seeing Kobi feel his nose from time to time before shaking his head in dejection.
After having his fill, Kobi went up to the groups of villagers and bid them farewell.
He saved Jake for last and made sure to touch his nose quite a few times, causing Jake to tremble from happiness.
The villagers all clenched their fists, if Jake could see the determination dripping from their faces, he wouldn't have stopped his barrage of curses for Kobi so soon.
Shaking his head, Jake nodded towards Kobi as he went off towards the door, 'Hmm! So he wasn't here for you after all?' His droopy eyes shifted towards his rock collection, at the blue rock with silver patterns in particular.
'Well, I am glad he went off anyways, he was danger in every sense. Besides... that brat is too vulgar and... I need to think about how to retain my reputation, before I die off.' Looking outside through the window, at Kobi walking beside Reka and Rio, Jake sighed.
As Kobi walked closer and closer to the clear cut boundary of the forests, towards the paved road in particular, Kobi felt slightly sad, 'It was fun here!'
"True!" Shik nodded besides him.
Then suddenly, a video played, something that only Kobi could see.
"I made a lot of memories! I can't ever forget this place!"
'Bitch!' Kobi's melancholic mood immediately melted.
"Oi! Junior Saint! Wait up."
Kobi's ears perked up, turning around, his eyes widened slightly seeing the villagers chasing after him.
"What's up?" Kobi took a step back in bewilderment.
The villagers panted heavily for a while, before taking a deep breath and looking up at him, "It's... it's not much, but we prepared these for you! Here! Please take them!" He forced out with a raspy voice.
Kobi's head tilted as he sized up the three sacks half his size. "Oi, oi!? What's all this for?"
The villagers glanced amongst themselves before gazing at him, with warm smiles, they said, "Well of course, it's a gift!"
"We can't possibly allow you to walk away empty handed!"
"It's not much anyways, we villagers all scurried together whatever we could and decided to give these to you."
"Just take it, consider it a reward for saving our protector Reka!"
Seeing the warmth oozing off of the villagers, Kobi stammered while muttering some incoherent words before a wide smile bloomed on his face, "Thank you!"
He stepped forward and hugged each and everyone of them, uncaring whether they smelt of sweat or hadn't bathed for weeks.
"But seriously, isn't this a lot?" Kobi glanced at the sacks tied with ropes and gazed at the villagers.
"Not at all!" The villagers shook their heads, before glancing amongst themselves and looking at his fair skin and slim body.
"Will you have trouble lifting them?"
Hearing the slightly shaky voice, Kobi's lips spasmed, 'Shit! They're doubting this master's musclarity.
Stretching his lips from ear to ear, he took the three sacks and lifted them all with a single finger, without a flinch.
"Humph! Anybody feelin' heavy? Need me to carry them home?" Kobi chuckled heartily.
"Hahaha!" The villagers laughed and patted him on the shoulder.
Kobi gazed at them all before smiling warmly, "Thank you all! I... I'll be off then."
The villagers smiled and nodded.
Kobi nodded again and turned around, his steps tremking into the shady and dark paved road leading into the depth of the forests crawling with a suffocating darkness.
Reka glanced at his departing figure with conflicted emotions, her hand reached to her pocket, she could feel something solid inside it, biting her lip, she stepped forward and yelled, "OI! JUNIOR SAINT! YOU AREN'T THE TYPE TO BE REMEMBERED FOR LONG! SO COME BACK SOON, KAY?"
Rio also stepped next to her and yelled, "YEAA! COME SOON OR I'LL SPILL YOUR SECRET!"
The kids also chipped in, supporting Rio, "YEA! WE WILL TELL IT TO EVERYONE!!"
Kobi paused, 'Oi, oi! Rio, Mart, Viu, Tina, Divl... didn't I tell you not to tell anyone?'
A chuckle escaped his lips, he wanted to look back... but he didn't. His father had raised him telling a single thing, 'To stand at the top, you must first forget where you crawled out from.'
He raised his hand and waved, "THE NAME'S KOBI! KOBI COLLS!!"
Reka's eyes flickered gazing at his unwavering back, 'Kobi... Colls!'
'What a jerk you are!' A smile appeared on her face, 'Come back soon, kay?'
. . .
Suddenly, somebody broke the sullen atmosphere.
"Hey... didn't those sacks feel rather empty?"
"Huh?"
"Umm... it does feel as such!"
Suddenly, the kids exclaimed at once, "THE SECRET!"
The adults gazed amongst themselves... just what was this secret?
Reka shook her head, a smile on her face, 'Truly, truly baffling! Hahaha!'