"Mode Village Chief, Mode Village Chief..."
From afar, Mode could hear the shouts of the blacksmith Mora at the village entrance.
At this moment, Mode was preparing breakfast for Moranxiu. It was still early, and besides the hunters heading into the mountains, most people weren't awake yet.
Mode opened the door and saw Mora rushing towards him from the direction of the village entrance, calling out for the village chief. It seemed like something significant had happened.
"What's wrong, Mora? What's going on?" Mode's expression changed slightly. Mora was one of the most stable individuals in the village, so it was unusual for him to be this agitated.
"Chief, the mayor sent word that a prominent figure will be visiting our Algu Village soon. You need to prepare to welcome them," Mora said, panting heavily, his voice urgent and fast.
Algu Village was home to over two hundred hunter households. Mode, the village chief, used to be one of the best hunters in the village. However, five years ago, during a hunt, he was bitten by a sudden appearance of a level one magic beast called the 'Drill Mole,' which severed his finger. Since then, he couldn't hunt in the mountains anymore. However, from that incident, Mode not only brought back some game but also a baby just a few months old.
No one knew why a baby would be found in the dangerous territory of the magic beast forest, but since then, Mode had a clever child.
In his younger years, Mode had a wife, who was also an excellent hunter. However, during a hunting expedition, she was attacked by a level two magic beast called the Wind Blade Wolf and didn't return alive. Since then, Mode lived alone and never remarried, let alone having his own children.
So, Mode treated the baby he brought back as if it were his own son.
"A prominent figure?"
Mode looked at Mora with confusion. Algu Village had never hosted any significant figures before, not even the mayor of Qinghe Town, Gaimer. Now, suddenly, there was a notable figure coming. Who could it be?
"Chief, I heard it's a mage, sir. A mage is coming to our village," Mora said, wiping the sweat from his face, his eyes filled with excitement. It was indeed an honor for a mage to visit the village.
Algu Village was just one of the many ordinary villages on the edge of the magic beast forest. Normally, it was very difficult for the hunters in the village to see a mage. Now, with a mage coming to the village, it was naturally exciting.
"So, the mayor is accompanying a mage sir to our village?" Mode's eyes lit up with excitement. This was indeed a big deal, explaining why Mora was so anxious.
"It seems so. The messenger just said that and left. He said the chief should accompany a prominent figure to our village in an hour," Mora said, calming down a bit, recalling what the messenger had said.
"Alright, I'll organize the villagers to greet them at the village entrance." Mode nodded, his long beard trembling with excitement.
"I'll head back to the village entrance now. See you later, Chief. A mage is coming to our village, haha." After speaking, Mora turned and ran towards the village entrance.
Mode quickly returned to his room to change into more formal attire. By "formal," it simply meant newer clothes made of animal skins. Hunters preferred not to spend the hard-earned money from selling skins on the silk clothes from the city.
"Moranxiu, wake up. Come with me to greet the mage, sir, at the village entrance." After changing clothes, Mode went to Moranxiu's small room and called out.
"Hmm?" Moranxiu lay in bed, opening his eyes and pouting at Mode's call.
It was still early, with an hour until their usual waking time, so he was somewhat reluctant.
"Hurry up. Don't you want to see what the esteemed mage, sir, looks like?" Mode called out again.
"A mage?" Moranxiu's young face immediately brightened up. He had heard his father, Mode, mention mages before, but he had never seen one. He was very excited to finally meet a real mage, especially when his father was asking him to come and meet one.
And now, his father was asking him to get up to meet the mage, sir.
"I'm coming..." Moranxiu shouted and jumped out of bed, quickly getting dressed and rushing to freshen up.
"Father, where's the mage?" The five-year-old Moranxiu stared with curious eyes, searching for the mage's figure, but there was no one besides his father, Mode.
"Silly child, the mage will arrive later. Have your breakfast first. I'll take you to the village entrance to meet the mage, sir, soon. But, you must behave yourself. Don't anger the mage, sir, or he might kill you. Understand?" Mode said seriously.
In the eyes of ordinary people, mages had peculiar temperaments. If anyone annoyed a mage, they might end up dead. It was normal for mages to kill people in the kingdom, and even the lord of Sopher City couldn't offend a mage, right? Mode thought to himself, not entirely clear on these matters.
"Father, I, Moranxiu, know what to do." Moranxiu took a bite of the pancake in his hand, patting his chest with a serious expression on his small face.
"Hehe." Mode smiled faintly. Moranxiu was a clever child.
After breakfast, Mode gathered a few knowledgeable elders from the village and went to the village entrance, waiting quietly for the arrival of the mage, sir, and the mayor.
Two hours later, there was still no sign of the mage and the mayor, making everyone somewhat anxious.
"Are they not coming?" Mode thought to himself as he approached Mora's blacksmith shop.
"Mora, are you sure the messenger said it was today?" Mode asked with suspicion.
"Of course, Chief. How could I be wrong about this? Let's wait a bit longer. Maybe they'll arrive soon," Mora said confidently, standing straight. He couldn't have misheard.
"Well, alright, let's not rush," Mode nodded and turned to walk towards the village entrance.
...
"They're here! They're here!" At this moment, a villager Mode sent to gather information quickly ran back.
"Have the mage sir and the mayor arrived?" Mode grabbed the villager's animal skin clothes, asking anxiously.
"Yes, Chief, they're here, along with many people from Qinghe Town. Mayor and the mayor are there too. I didn't make a mistake," the villager gasped for breath.
"Hehe, good! Good!" Mode straightened his clothes and looked into the distance, waiting for the appearance of the mage, sir, and the mayor.
"Father, father, do you think the mage sir looks like us?" Moranxiu felt like his heart was about to jump out of his chest, beating uncontrollably.
Maybe the mage had two heads?
"Moranxiu, don't talk nonsense. Be careful not to let the mage, sir, hear you." Mode scolded.
Actually, he didn't know what a real mage looked like. Would they have two heads? But he
knew one thing: one must not speak nonsense in
front of a mage.
While hunting in the mountains, Mode occasionally saw adventurer teams, but generally, there were no mages in these teams. Even if there were mages occasionally, ordinary hunters wouldn't be able to see them.
Throughout the continent, mages had a noble status, which meant they didn't have to face dangerous magic beasts every day or worry about starving. Of course, becoming a mage was a very, very difficult task. Mode had never heard of a mage in Qinghe Town. Even if there were mages, they wouldn't stay in Qinghe Town for long.
Finally, some figures appeared in the distance.
"They're here." Moranxiu's voice was very small, his palms tightly held together.
He looked at the approaching crowd, desperately searching for someone different among them, but no matter how he looked, these people didn't seem to be very different. He didn't see anyone with two heads or four hands.
The crowd drew closer!
Mode saw a distinguished figure standing next to the mayor, wearing splendid clothes and holding a wooden stick, exuding an extraordinary air. Moreover, the mayor was chatting and laughing with him, showing great respect.
Mode went forward to greet them.
"Mode, the Village Chief of Algu Village, welcomes the mayor and the mage, sir," Mode greeted.
The other villagers also bowed, except for Moranxiu, the five-year-old child, who stood still, his eyes fixed on the wooden stick held by the mage, sir, without any movement.
"Well, Chief Mode, today, Mage Billi is here to discuss some business with your village," Mayor Gaimer said loudly.
"Business?" Mode was surprised. What business could a prominent mage have with their small hunting village?
"Hehe, hello, everyone." The old man beside the mayor spoke at this moment.
His voice was charming, kind! Yes, a charming and kind charm that made people feel not afraid at all. Moranxiu relaxed instantly, realizing that this man must be the mage, sir. He didn't seem as scary as he had imagined.
The villagers of Algu Village also realized that the speaker was the mage, sir. They were surprised and flattered that the mage, sir, greeted them.
"I came to Qinghe Town mainly because I need to purchase some quality animal skins. I know the villages around here often hunt in the mountains, so there must be some animal skins. Therefore, I want to buy directly from the village. Chief Mode, do you have any animal skins in stock? The price should be the same as the market price. Oh, it can also be a bit higher," the mage said, revealing his intentions. It turned out that he wanted to buy animal skins.
"Sir Mage, most of the animal skins in our village are usually sold in town, and we don't have much inventory," Mode regretted not stocking more animal skins. If only he could leave a deeper impression on the mage, sir, it would be a good thing.
"It's okay. In the future, when you have animal skins, keep them. I'll send someone regularly to collect them, so you don't have to go to town to sell them," the mage smiled and said.
"Yes, Sir Mage," Mode hurriedly said.
It seemed that the mage was not as scary as the legends said. Perhaps, he was a kind mage. Mode thought to himself, not noticing anything unusual about his precious son, Moranxiu.
Suddenly, Moranxiu ran out from the crowd and ran straight to the mayor and the mage, sir, not far away.
"Moranxiu..." When Mode saw Moranxiu, his mind went blank. His own son had run up to the mage.
"Mage, sir!" After running out of the crowd, Moranxiu looked at Mage Billi's wooden stick and called out in a childish voice.
"Hehe, little guy, what's the matter?" Billi smiled, seemingly not angry.
Mayor Gaimer broke out in a cold sweat. A great mage was not someone he could offend. If something went wrong with Billi in Qinghe Town, he, as the mayor, would be finished.