"Do you know what he meant, Merchant Lady?" I asked, my tone innocent but my eyes sharp. From the way she flinched, I knew I'd hit the mark.
She knows something.
But she wasn't looking me in the eye. Oh, this just got interesting.
"Alright, time to investigate!" I declared dramatically, pointing a finger in the air like a detective in a crime drama.
The adventurers nearby raised their eyebrows at my theatrics, but I didn't care. Embarrassment was for the weak. And besides, if I acted shamelessly enough, they'd be the ones embarrassed instead.
"Hey! Hey! Merchant Lady~! Hey! Tell me! Tell me! Please?" I pestered, skipping up beside her like an overexcited puppy.
Her shoulders sagged under the weight of my relentless enthusiasm. "O-Okay, fine! Just stop that and walk straight already, woman!"
I smirked. "I would, but I'm not straight!"
She froze mid-step.
Her wide-brimmed hat dipped forward as she tried to hide her expression.
Heh, got her (￣ω￣)
"Hm~? Come on, spill it already!" I teased, stepping closer. With a mischievous grin, I gently placed my index finger under her chin, tilting her face toward mine.
Her doe-shaped eyes looked up at me, shimmering with what I could only describe as adorable frustration. I felt a grin creeping up my face. Oh, she's going to be so much fun to mess with.
But then, something shifted. Her expression turned fierce, and she took a step back, yanking her chin away.
"Keep your hands to yourself, Miss Aria," she said, her tone icy and professional.
It might've worked, too, if her ears weren't redder than the ripest apple.
I almost laughed. Almost.
"A-Anyway," she stammered, clearly trying to regain her composure. "Yes, I've heard something similar before."
"Go on," I prompted, pretending not to notice how she tugged at her hat again to hide her face.
"My sister once explored a dungeon," she began, her voice steadying. "And she came back with a stone tablet. It had a warning etched into it—the same warning those ogres gave us."
Now she had my full attention. "And what did it say?"
Merchant Lady hesitated, then sighed. "She had the tablet decrypted by an expert, but all they could manage was... well, a riddle. It went like this:
'In times of need, they rise with might,
A being of old, cloaked in light.
With magic thread, they weave the way,
To bind the lost and save the day.
From distant lands, they shall appear,
Multiple hearts, devoid of fear.
Through trials vast, their courage strong,
They'll right the world where it went wrong.' "
She paused, letting the words sink in.
"That's what my sister said the decrypter told her," she finished. "But it sounded far-fetched to me."
I blinked. Wow... That sounds like something straight out of an anime.
One of the adventurers snorted and agreed with her, I guess they know about it too. "She's not wrong."
"But what does it mean?" I pressed. "Does it have anything to do with the ogres?"
Merchant Lady shrugged. "I think it might. Or it might be unrelated. Either way, my sister believed it was a prophecy of some kind. Maybe you should ask one of your... uh, friends about it? They might know more."
She hesitated on the word "friends," glancing at me suspiciously. I chose to ignore that.
I know she doesn't trust Scarface and the others, and I'll let actions talk rather than words for that.
"Scarface might know something," I mused aloud, referring to the monsters she scammed back in the village. "He's old and grumpy enough to be a walking encyclopedia."
"Just don't bring this forest's curse back to my caravan," Merchant Lady muttered, crossing her arms.
"Aw, worried about me?" I teased.
"Hardly," she shot back, but her ears betrayed her again, turning a delightful shade of red.
Hehehe~(*^▽^*)
---
As we continued down the forest path, the tension eased somewhat. I couldn't resist poking fun at Merchant Lady whenever I caught her stealing glances at me.
"Seriously, though," I said, tossing a pebble into the bushes, "why didn't you tell me about this tablet thing sooner?"
"Because I didn't think it was relevant," she replied, her tone exasperated. "And also because I knew you'd be like this."
"Like what?" I asked innocently, batting my eyelashes.
"Annoying," she said flatly.
"Rude," I gasped, clutching my chest in mock offense.
The adventurers chuckled, and even Merchant Lady's lips twitched upward for a brief moment.
"Fine, fine," I said, raising my hands in surrender. "No more teasing. For now."
The rest of the way passed uneventfully, though I couldn't shake the lingering questions about the ogres' warning and the strange prophecy. Who—or what—was this "being of old" cloaked in light? And what did "multiple hearts" mean?
"Ugh, this is going to bug me all day," I muttered, kicking at a rock.
"Then stop thinking about it," one of the adventurers suggested.
"Can't. It's like an itch I can't scratch," I replied.
Merchant Lady sighed. "Maybe if you stopped goofing off for five minutes, you'd figure it out."
"Harsh," I said, but my grin didn't falter.
The truth was, I'd figure it out eventually. And when I did, I had a feeling it would lead to something big. Something game-changing.
For now, though, I'd enjoy the company—and keep teasing Merchant Lady at every opportunity.
Little Theater
Merchant Lady: "Stop calling me 'Merchant Lady'—I have a name, you know!"
Aria: *smirking* "Okay, Merchant Lady~"
Merchant Lady: "...I walked right into that."