Chapter 10 : Fyr!
In the ancestral manor of the Dracarys family, Grealf was bidding farewell to his grandson.
"…I'll miss you, kid."
"OLD MAN, I'M JUST GOING TO TOWN!"
"Oh, right. Well, don't come back!"
"MAKE UP YOUR MIND!"
Grealf approached Shame and placed a heavy hand on his shoulder as they stood in the hallway by the front door.
"Shame, take Fyr and start with the market," said Grealf in an authoritative tone.
"Alright… but, uh, where's the town exactly?" asked Shame, having completely forgotten the detail.
Fyr's voice suddenly echoed down the hallway. "I-I can guide you!" she exclaimed, adding softly, "Although… it's strange that you've never been to town."
"Ah… that's because I come from—" Shame began, but Grealf abruptly placed his big hand over the young man's mouth, stopping him from speaking.
"Ahaha… my foolish grandson lived in solitude for his training! He lost his parents, so I adopted him."
"I see… that's a tragic story…" murmured Fyr, sympathetically.
Shame, perplexed, wondered why his grandfather was so intent on keeping his identity as an Envoy a secret. Was it really such a terrible thing to reveal?
"Alright, kids! Go play in town, and get OUT OF MY MANOR!" the old man bellowed, bursting into laughter.
With that, Shame and Fyr left the grand manor and set off. Fyr walked ahead to guide Shame.
"By the way, we haven't even properly introduced ourselves, have we?" Shame suddenly said.
"That's true…" she murmured, hesitating. "I'll fix that right now!"
"No need to feel oblig—" Shame started, but he was cut off by Fyr's bright voice.
"I'm Fyr Palacia, daughter of Threae Palacia, your grandfather's best friend during his journey to claim the Crown Fragment! Nice to meet you!" she exclaimed, her tone filled with enthusiasm.
"I'm Shame Dracarys, Grealf's grandson…" muttered Shame, embarrassed by her unbridled excitement. But he froze, thinking, "She's the daughter of one of the old man's friends? So how old is she to be the daughter of an ancient guy?"
"Fyr? Doesn't that make you, like… super old or something? I thought you were my age."
Suddenly, a hand shot out and slapped Shame's cheek with a resounding smack. A bright red mark appeared on the boy's face. Fyr had slapped him.
"I-I'm 15! You jerk!"
"And your father, how old is he?"
"...Are you more interested in my father than in me?"
"Yes—No," Shame replied, thinking, "Oops, almost betrayed my real intentions. If I want to become her friend, I have to be professional."
At his hesitant answer, the girl gave him a skeptical look but turned away to resume walking, leading him through a path lined with plains and woods until a town finally appeared in the distance.
"So, this is what a town in this world looks like…" Shame murmured.
"You've never seen one, Shame?"
He turned to her, recalling how Grealf had sealed his mouth earlier to prevent him from revealing who he really was.
"Me? Oh, yes, yes, I see them every day! I love towns, yes indeed, the old ma— my grandfather tells me about them all the time."
[ Star of: "Guilty"!
Alignment Level: 2 -> 3 | Level up! You've just lied to an innocent girl!
Skill: {Guilt Lv.2} {Determination} -> {Determination Lv.2} {Bad Seducer} (new!)
Condition for alignment improvement: Unknown. ]
"Aah… 'bad seducer'? What kind of lousy skill is that…"
"Did you say something, Shame?"
"Nothing, I was just talking to myself, don't mind me," he replied, annoyed.
After walking a bit more, they finally reached the town gates. The town stretched out as a large medieval citadel, more modest than a capital but imbued with a simple charm. Walls surrounded houses and noble manors of human scale, giving off a warm, welcoming atmosphere.
"It's been a while since I last came to Fostbourg," murmured Fyr as she passed through the large gate embedded in the walls.
"Fostbourg?"
"Shame, do you really leave your manor…?" She continued, "Fostbourg is a small country town in the kingdom of Izerack, the kingdom where you live with your grandfather. Just in case you didn't know…"
"I knew that."
"Are you sure—"
"I knew that."
"Alright, sorry for doubting you. After all, you're Grealf's grandson."
After this exchange, they continued to weave through the city's alleyways until they reached the market.
A long shopping avenue stretched to the town center, bustling with stalls selling meat, food, jewelry, and all kinds of magical items.
"Here we are!" exclaimed Fyr, placing her hands on her hips, proud to have guided him.
"Gramps gave me a bag with 923 adamantite coins. That should be enough to buy a few things, right?" Shame asked suddenly. Fyr's face froze instantly, her mouth agape. Slowly, she turned her head toward Shame.
"H-Hey! What's with your weird movements? Stop it, it's gross!" protested Shame, troubled.
"Nine… Hundred… Twenty… Three… a-a-adamantite coins…" Fyr stammered. She knew this sum was colossal, enough to buy ten entire kingdoms. The currency in this world consisted of copper, silver, gold, and finally astral coins, each level multiplied by a hundred before reaching… adamantite.
"S-S-Shame!"
"Y-Yes?!" Shame cried, flustered.
"I'm so glad I didn't turn down this date!"
"And why's that?!"
"Because you're RICH!"
"I'm rich?!"
"And you're handsome too!"
"…That's true."
"No shame at all, huh…" she murmured, ending this strange conversation.
They continued to walk through the market, side by side like a young couple. Their youthful beauty didn't go unnoticed, and passersby easily took them for lovers. Fyr, blushing, looked timidly at the ground, while Shame, totally oblivious, kept his gaze fixed on the magical items displayed on the stalls.
"Fyr, Fyr!"
"A-Ah! Uh, yes? What is it, Shame?"
"What's that for?" he asked, pointing to a stall piled high with dusty trinkets.
"It's just a bunch of rusty junk—" She abruptly stopped, realizing too late that she had just uttered the one word not to say: rusty.
Suddenly, Shame darted toward the stall, leaving Fyr standing there, gaping. Without wasting a second, he bombarded the vendor with requests, a wide smile on his face.
"Excuse me, I want this, that, that, and then, oh, that too, let's go with some of this, and that too!"
Shame was amassing rusty knick-knacks, no matter how useless or mismatched. Fyr, standing behind him, watched with a horrified expression.
"Is this really the man who's going to be my fiancé…?" she thought, feeling dejected. He's handsome, sure, but he seems totally clueless. Can he even fight? I thought he was a gentleman, given how he talked to me at the manor…
A few minutes later, Shame returned, his arms loaded with a mountain of rusty trinkets, ready to collapse. All the passersby had stopped to stare at him as he walked, a radiant smile on his face. In front of him, Fyr greeted him with a smile… just as wide, but upside down.
"Shame… did you really buy all… that junk…?"
"They're beautiful!"
"If you say so… but I thought our date would be a bit more romantic…" she murmured.
Shame briefly felt guilty, but his level of guilt didn't rise. Trying to look away, he suddenly noticed, among the displays, two small heart pendants, covered with a light, elegant rust.
Without hesitation, he dropped his entire pile of items on the ground, causing a loud metallic avalanche.
"S-Shame, what are you doing?!" Fyr asked, staring at the enormous heap of junk he'd just abandoned.
Without answering, Shame approached the vendor, pointing at the pendants.
"Can I buy those, sir?" The vendor nodded, and Shame grabbed the pendants.
He turned to Fyr and handed her one of the two pendants.
"They're beautiful, aren't they?"
But instead of answering, Fyr froze, trembling. Shame thought at first she was angry.
"I-I understand…" she murmured, her cheeks slightly flushed.
In her mind, everything made sense: Of course! The man whom Shame bought all these trinkets from seemed clearly in need. No one wanted his goods because of the rust. In reality, Shame had helped him by buying his entire stock, allowing him to start over!
"Understand what, Fyr?" Shame asked, confused.
Without a word, Fyr grabbed the pendant and hung it around her neck, all the while thinking: And this pendant… it's no ordinary one. It's a talisman to ward off bad marriage spirits and ensure a harmonious relationship. Could he have really planned all this? No… that's impossible…
"Shame, do you know what the pendant you just gave us is for?" she asked timidly.
Oh, crap! I just picked it because it was rusty… I have no idea what it does! But if she finds out I'm not from here, the old man will kill me. I have to improvise!
"Me? Of course I know. And that's exactly why I gave it to you," he replied, trying to sound confident.
Fyr's cheeks immediately flushed a deep shade of red. Mortified, she lowered her head to hide her face, but despite herself, a timid smile was starting to spread across her lips.
"So… you really planned all of this after all…"
"Planned all of what? OH! Yes, of course, I planned everything for our… date!" Shame added with a wink, still convinced this was just a casual outing between friends.