In the morning, Bartlett arrived at a small tavern called "Fortune, Fortune!" in Pig Bay, which was the agreed meeting place with Old Will. The team from the "Vulgar Novel" didn't stay in Pig Bay's chaotic Adventurer's Camp last night, but instead headed to Mist Castle, next to Pig Bay.
To the north and south of Mist Castle stood the towering Cavis Mountains, which formed a semi-arc enclosing the entire Foggy Forest.
Originally, the Cavis Mountains was a continuous majestic mountain range stretching for thousands of miles, but for some unknown reason, a massive gap appeared in the middle, splitting the range into North and South Cavis Mountains.
Because of the gap, whenever there was an intermittent beast tide erupting from the Foggy Forest, countless bizarre magical beasts and creatures would pour out, invading the Griffin Kingdom's territory and causing devastating disasters.
To solve the beast tide invasion once and for all, the Griffin Kingdom built a massive Mist Castle in the gap of the mountains with the help of mages and stationed a knights corp of about a thousand - the Golden Clover Knights - within the fortress to fend off the magical beasts and creatures invading from the western Foggy Forest.
Now, the once-disastrous source of the Foggy Forest had become one of the Kingdom's most critical economic sources.
...
The tavern "Fortune, Fortune!" was the most "luxurious" building in Pig Bay. It was a three-story wooden and stone building with a semi-circular dome on top. The tavern owner was undoubtedly a smart man who, when naming the tavern, took into account most of the adventurers' comparatively low literacy and fondness for good omens.
Bartlett ordered a bowl of pigtail soup, a chunk of aged cheese with ham, two boiled eggs, a piece of salted fish, and a glass of rye beer. Although rye had a bitterness that was difficult to eliminate, it was perfect for brewing beer.
When the salted fish was served, there was a small bowl of fig vinegar on the side. The pigtail soup had several pickled olives floating in it. Bartlett always ate a full meal before going on adventures, especially the last meal at camp...
Breakfast time was quiet, with no other adventurers entering the tavern. As the barbarian adventurer finished the last bit of his pigtail soup and ate the cabbage at the bottom of the pot, the tavern's door was pushed open again—Old Will led three non-human creatures inside.
"A good appetite is a prerequisite for an excellent adventurer," Old Will said with a smile. "Food not only provides you with the energy you need for adventure but also brings a pleasurable experience. I remember the Legendary Mage, 'Super Magic Dancer' Adrian Lucius, once wrote in his memoir, 'The joy of eating is the most primal emotion of living beings.'
"Oh? I remember the Legendary Mage Quinton didn't agree with that," The half-elven mage beside Old Will expressed doubt, "Mage Quinton said, 'The urge to reproduce is the most primal emotion of living beings.'
The half-elf wore dark green tight-fitting leather armor, with a uniquely designed scimitar hanging on each side. Bartlett remembered that dark elves in the Underdark typically used this type of scimitar. He looked at the half-elf's skin, which was not black or dark gray, but the unique fair complexion of a forest elf, with golden hair and bright, spirited green eyes—it was a handsome appearance.
It was the kind of appearance that ladies from noble families loved. Bartlett thought maliciously, perhaps out of jealousy.
"But the urge to reproduce cannot be considered an emotion." The 200-year-old wandering mage countered, "That's just one of a creature's instincts. And instinct shouldn't be considered an emotion; it's a regular function of a living being, like the formulas used in alchemy.
What's the connection? Bartlett was speechless about the argument between Old Will and the half-elf. This kind of 'meaningless' debate was undoubtedly unpleasant.
Fortunately, I've finished eating, he thought.
The ogre stood beside Bartlett, bent over to examine the food scraps on the table. When the ogre's massive body cast a shadow over Bartlett, it gave the barbarian a feeling as if the Cavis Mountains were collapsing.
"Roast quail is even better! And roasted clams!" The ogre told Bartlett, "Especially roasted clams! You should eat them with their shells, and with lemon!" Its Common Language was fluent, even bearing a bit of the accent unique to the Holy Kingdom of Alaso on the eastern continent; Bartlett wondered who taught it.
Eat with the shells? No, I don't have that strong of teeth, "But I like salted fish more," Bartlett replied.
The ogre straightened up and sneered, expressing disdain for Bartlett's dietary preferences.
There should be a dwarf on the 'Vulgar Novel' team; where is that dwarf? Bartlett searched for him. He remembered that the dwarf liked to hide in the shadows, and out of habit, Bartlett didn't have a good impression of creatures that always hid in shadows. Moreover, the dwarf always had a sullen look on his face, making it hard for anyone to like him.
Bartlett found the dwarf in the shadows behind the tavern door, which relieved him greatly. If he couldn't find him, he'd feel an involuntary sense of uneasiness.
"Aren't you going to eat something?" Bartlett asked Old Will, "Although there's not much in Pig Bay in terms of good food, the pigtail soup in this tavern is pretty good." At least they used real pig tails in their soup, rather than other strange ingredients.
In Pig Bay, you should never carefully observe your food because you won't be sure what it is—lizards, peeled snails, pig uterus, spider abdomen, moth larvae, cheese that looks like vomit, and so on.
If you eat with your eyes closed, the taste is actually quite good, but you must control your curiosity and not delve too deep.
However, don't worry too much about it, as you won't find your own kind among the food, unless you're a goblin.
Pig Bay is a dirty and chaotic place, but not a morally degenerate one because mages do not allow such places to exist.
On this continent, everything must have rules. Although most people are poor, their lives are generally stable because the mages suppress everything with their powerful magic power, whether it be exotic species or humans themselves.
"No." Old Will refused, "We've eaten in the Mist Castle with tender beef stew, milk oatmeal, herring cooked with mint and coriander, and roasted onions soaked in meat sauce. Oh, that last dish was my favorite, you really should try it."
Meat sauce roasted pearl onions? That's also my favorite. But adventurers are not allowed in the Mist Castle, you're an exception because you're a mage. Bartlett thought bitterly.
"As for Morris..." The wandering mage Old Will pointed at the ogre and said, "He ate a whole honey-roasted suckling pig by himself."
"Suckling pigs are better than pig tails, and clams taste better than salted fish!" the ogre chimed in.
"Let's leave the issue of food aside for now; although it's an interesting topic, we have more important matters to discuss." Old Will sat down across from Bartlett, and the half-elf sat next to the wandering mage.
Old Will said to the ogre, "My dear Morris, you better stand. The chairs here can't bear your weight."
"Chairs are not as good as tree stumps." The ogre answered.
The wandering mage then looked at Bartlett, "We need a guide, someone familiar with the Foggy Forest. You already know that. But you never asked us what we're going to the Foggy Forest for. I can see that you have questions, but you chose to withhold them. I must say, silence is a good quality. But we already have a good companion in this regard."
Old Will glanced at the dwarf in the shadows and said jokingly, "Merrill is undoubtedly the best in this regard, so you don't need to compete with him. We need your advice, all kinds of advice to help us complete the mission. Communication is important, isn't it? That's what we need."
Bartlett indeed didn't ask much. In fact, he didn't ask anything. As a newcomer temporarily joining the team, he didn't want to foolishly ask questions. If there was anything he needed to know, he thought Old Will would tell him since he was a smart and good judge of people's hearts.
"It seems you've already agreed with my view, which will lay a good foundation for our cooperation." Old Will habitually talked to himself again, "First, let's get to know the specific tasks of this mission."
After the wandering mage finished speaking, he spread his palm flat and a delicate sheepskin scroll suddenly appeared in his hand.
Bartlett looked at the exquisite rings on the index and middle fingers of the wandering mage and couldn't help but feel envious. Those were 'Space Rings,' similar to Bartlett's leather bag, but more convenient to use and carry, with more space inside.
Such equipment can mostly only be used by mages. Because their mental power and soul strength are high enough, and they have powerful magic power as a trigger medium, they can easily use space and magic equipment.
If ordinary people were to use magic equipment without risk, the price of such equipment might be dozens of times higher.
Bartlett took the smooth sheepskin scroll, untied the blue ribbon on it, spread the scroll out, and looked at the mission details recorded on it.
However, when the barbarian adventurer just saw the first word on the scroll, a strange thing happened again:
Bartlett felt a sharp pain in his head like a needle prick, which disappeared in an instant. Then everything in front of him suddenly became blurred, like a severely nearsighted person trying to observe the world without glasses.
Immediately afterward, the strangely structured block letters jumped out on their own, surprising Bartlett.
Compared to the blurry surroundings, those letters were incredibly clear. The first four letters were especially large, and their meaning was imprinted in Bartlett's mind —
[Mission Log]
...