6: Baron Slake

“Silence.”

A wizened voice rang through, cutting through the murmurs of the crowd.

Eliza saw him. Sorin. The man who had taught her about sword intent and aura…

‘Is… he here to punish me for killing the guards?’ Eliza wondered.

Internally, she was panicking, knowing that Sorin could easily overwhelm her in a fight, even if she had just awakened to sword aura moments ago.

Eliza could see Sorin smirk, looking at her.

“Now, residents of this village. The lord of this place sent out his soldiers to their guaranteed deaths, even forcing them to take hostages to complete a dishonorable task.”

Eliza paused, confused at Sorin’s words. Was he not here to punish her? He was sent here from the city, right?

“And worse yet, even with all of those advantages, all of you failed.”

Sorin spoke fluently, loud enough for the entire crowd to hear, and didn’t use his normal drawl when speaking.

His tone made Eliza tense. She was hearing someone she knew was stronger than her speak that way. Though, if it came down to it, she would still fight to protect Lily.

“And therefore… There will be no adventurer’s hall built in this town. I cannot in good faith allow the lord of this town to send out orders to adventurers when he willingly sends out suicidal orders to his own guards.”

Eliza breathed in and out, slowing her heartbeat as much as she could. She didn’t know whether this was a good or bad thing for her yet, since she hadn’t actually made the effort to understand why her situation in this town was so awful.

Sorin looked at her and then nodded sagely.

“And you… Come with me, back to The Shelf, sword expert. Oh, of course, you don’t have to, if you’re willing to deal with all the chaos that lord Baron Leopold Slake would bring your way, now that he knows he can’t have you like this.”

Eliza was hesitant, but approached Sorin while holding Lily in her arms, who was still looking at the blade of ice that now no longer fit in its sheath.

“Tsk.” Sorin said. “Follow me. Theodore! I know you’re here too, we’re leaving!”

Sorin motioned for Eliza and Lily to follow, looking back for only a short moment. Soon, Theodore appeared out of the crowd, much cleaner than before, and returned to his master’s side.

“Are you kidding me?” Theodore whined. “I only just now managed to get clean and we’re already leaving? We haven’t slept on an actual bed in three weeks!”

After a moment of hesitation, Eliza walked forward. She still felt like she was somehow going to be in trouble for killing the guards, but seeing that nothing was happening yet, she felt her chances were better with Sorin than with the Baron that was mentioned earlier.

Looking at Theodore, Eliza realized that his natural hair color wasn’t brown, but instead blonde. She felt a confusing cognitive dissonance looking at the clean hair on him, whereas before it had simply been overwhelmingly dirty.

She ignored her current thoughts and began walking with the two men, who were arguing. Lily in her arms seemed dazed for a moment, as if she was about to fall asleep at any moment.

Sorin, who spotted this, smiled and laughed.

“Interesting girl you have there.” He said, grinning. “She can’t be more than a few years old, yet she’s got some smarts in her. She’ll grow up to be just like you, I’d bet.” Sorin said as they continued to walk.

“Thanks… I guess.” Eliza said. “I… want to know. Am I in trouble for killing those guards?” She asked.

At that… Sorin burst out laughing. They had moved far away enough from the town that he didn’t think his normal tone could be noticed by the villagers anymore.

“Hehaha!” He laughed, halfway coughing as he did. “No, you aren’t in any trouble, little missy. It’s the law of the land, of Atlan, that if someone points a weapon at you, your kin, or friends, you kill em right away. Though, it might be a good idea to avoid the kingdom of Erast from now on.”

Eliza paused.

“I… don’t quite know much about the political situation of Tiola… could you explain a bit to me?”

“Oh?” Theodore said, getting a cheeky grin. “I know even more than my master does! I can explain this one to her.” Theodore said, feeling excited at his chance to be useful.

“Really? Thank you! The only thing I know of is we’re in Tiola, which trades with other countries, and we have the kingdom, the empire, and the union.”

Theodore grinned even wider.

“Well! The first thing that you need to know is that the empire and the kingdom are in a massive war.”

Eliza was shocked already by the explanation, but she let Theodore continue while she thought about his words.

“Nobody really knows why it started, but the only thing we know is both countries hate each other, and want the other to suffer as much as possible. But between the two is the union, where the adventurer’s guilds are from! And we work for the adventurer’s guild, so we therefore work for the union.”

Eliza listened intently, but she was truly confused.

“If the adventurer’s guilds are from the union, why was one going to be built in that town?” 

“That was an adventurer’s hall. Not a guild.” Sorin corrected her. “The union is where we build the guild buildings. The empire and kingdom get halls.”

Theodore smiled, then continued.

“He’s right. Basically, the union doesn’t have as much military might as the empire and the kingdom do, so they make themselves useful to both sides, so much that for as long as the war is going on, neither side can offend them. They trade weapons from overseas, food supplies and more. The union makes sure the war never ends by trading weapons on each side to ensure that neither side gets one up on the other. After all, if there was a winner in the war, they’d likely look to the union next afterwards.”

Eliza felt like she understood.

The empire and kingdom of Erast were in a mostly equal battle, and whenever one side got an advantage, the union would come in and help the other side out.

“Wait, but… is it still safe for me to be going to the union, then? If they have a positive relationship with the kingdom, what if that baron Snake or whatever asks them to just send me over? Shouldn’t I go to the empire instead?”

Theodore shook his head.

“No, the empire only cares about the war with the kingdom. If you go there and Baron Slake offers weapons or something else to the empire, they’d gladly give you up. After all, they’ll take any advantage they can get. The union doesn’t have a direct hand in that war like that, so there’s no incentive for them to sell you like the empire could.”

Eliza shuddered.

“Why did he do this to me? What could I have possibly done to him?” Eliza asked, feeling as if the situation was overwhelmingly unfair. “Why is it? From the moment I moved into that town, nobody would even speak to me except for that one old lady?”

“That’s just how nobles are sometimes, be they from the kingdom or empire. They see something they want, and they take it… even if it’s the life of a beautiful maiden.” Theodore responded.

“That’s… horrible.” said Eliza.

She was silent for some time, so she looked around the environment, deciding to look for the flowers that Lily could eat. She did occasionally find some, to which Theodore nodded approvingly. It seemed that Theodore was the one in charge of meals for the two, seemingly knowledgeable about herbs and plants.

As they continued speaking while on their travels, Lily eventually woke up from Eliza’s arms. 

“Mommy… Where are we?” she asked.

Eliza felt her heart shudder for a moment, looking at her daughter in her arms…

But, she just smiled. She didn’t want her daughter to worry.

“Lily, mommy decided that we needed a bigger house, so we’re moving to a much larger place, where people will treat us nicer, and we’ll have nicer food, okay?”

At her words, Lily seemed to brighten up.

“New food? What kinds?!” She said excitedly.

Eliza smiled, and Sorin, acting as if he was a kindly grandfather rather than a drunken sword expert, grinned as he replied.

“Why, little one, in The Shelf, the place we’re headed, they have all the bread you can eat! Sometimes, they roast that bread in a flame and coat it in a delicious seasoning! They have fruits aplenty, and vegetables galore!”

Lily looked at Sorin, confused.

“What’s a galore?” she asked.

Eliza smiled. Lily always brightened her days like this... Even in times such as this.

A few minutes later, Lily was looking around and settled down, so Eliza decided to ask.

“How much is a house, there? In The Shelf.” she asked.

Theodore gladly spoke up. “Well, we have bronze sticks, silver flints and gold arrows. Each unit is a hundred times as much as the previous one. Most of the things you’ll buy will be bought with flints, but if you’re buying things like candy or things children love, you’ll occasionally use sticks. Most see them as a way to teach children about money without potentially letting them risk anything. For an adventurer like you, you could probably earn about 50 silver flints on one expedition… But I’d imagine you’d get more, once you have a bit more experience under your belt.”

Eliza nodded. Except for the names, which were a bit unusual, she understood most things about the currency just from what Theodore explained to her.

“Who… mints the coins, then? Is it the union?”

Theodore looked confused at her words.

“Mint? What does an herb have to do with coin?”

“Ah.” Eliza spoke up. “I mean… who is authorized to make new coins? Usually, it’s the leaders of an area, right?

“Ohh, I understand now. Yes, the coins are minted by the king’s treasury, the emperor’s council, or the union’s government. Though, you’ll find coins from all three in the union. You’ll have a hard time finding kingdom coins in empire territory, or vice versa, though.”

Eliza thought for a moment about the coins in her system… If she can use any type in the union lands, then the union might be a better place for her.

Sorin chuckled.

“Stronger an smarter than my disciple by far, huh? My disciple here can’t even get to the point of yer question through all his talkin. A house is worth around 75 gold arrows around The Shelf. It’s quite a bit to save up for, but you’ll probably get one in no time.”

‘That’s… nearly 10 times more than what I have now…’ Eliza thought. ‘Do I really have to wait around 9 more weeks to do this?’

Eliza thought about it, then realized that at the current pace, it would take far too long. But… she didn’t want to give Lily a small house, either. She’d like a large house, with room for all of Lily’s future friends.

“How much does an inn cost?” she asked.

“Don’t bother bout that yet.” Sorin responded. “I’ll see to it that you get a room for at least a month.” Sorin said, semi-seriously. “Can’t have a future swordsmaster be homeless.”

Eliza smiled, thankful that she wasn’t being punished, and even helped directly.

Lily, now awake in her arms, was looking at the path they were walking with awe, as if everything was new to her. The rough dirt road they were walking eventually led to the forest, filled with trees that she had never seen before. Each and every tree, every blade of grass, she was staring at, as if she wanted to take it all in.

Eliza smiled at her daughter.

Lily was still taking in the environment, so she decided to do something else with her time. If Lily was happy, Eliza was happy.

And then, she remembered the system. She had been mostly ignoring it, to be honest. It hadn’t been of much help to her other than for finding information, but… It could appraise herself and Lily, right? 

Maybe it could find the differences in herself now that she had become an expert swordsman… and find ways to help Lily become one sooner?

‘System… Check?’ She thought, realizing she had forgotten the words to call upon it.

‘Um… Status check?’ she thought, and the blue screen responded to her once again.

[Eliza: Age 24.]

[Physique: 523. Wisdom: 416. Emotions: 1229. Creativity: 470.]

[Body: 24. Mind: 47. Charm: 14.]

[Eliza’s goals: You solved the first major hurdle in your new life! If you wish to view what would have happened upon your failure, you may spend 10 silver flints to do so.]

[Advice: You should enroll Lily in a school once you get to The Shelf! Consider viewing your first ‘bad end’ to find a way to take revenge upon the one who troubled you!]

[Payment accrued: 2652 dollars, ~884 silver flints.]

Eliza was a bit stunned. How had her stats gone up so much within a mere week? Especially emotions… But yet, her charm had gone down?

She realized she didn’t know the criteria for what the system numerized its values by, and that there was no point in even trying to think about it. Perhaps her outburst at seeing those guards hurt Lily had made her emotion stat skyrocket…?

She thought about asking to view the ‘bad ending’ as it said, to find out what would have happened to her, but she decided to check Lily’s status first, to see if the better nutrition the past week has helped her grow any healthier.

[Lily: Age 4]

[Physique: 46. Wisdom: 20. Emotions: 80. Creativity: 28.]

[Body: 6. Mind: 7. Charm: 5.]

[Talent: Destined swordmaster.]

Eliza felt confused, once again. Much the same with her, her daughter had also had a high jump in stats, especially with emotion…

She shook her head… And then just decided to ask.

‘System, why did Lily and I have such a large jump in our emotion status?’

[Lily experienced a surge in emotion after seeing an expert swordsman swing her sword. As a destined swordsmaster, Lily will naturally experience enlightenment upon seeing one of the paths on the way to her destination.]

Eliza paused.

‘And me? Why did I have the same thing happen to me?’

[This system is a system to ensure the growth of Lily, not to ensure that Eliza grows stronger. Please figure out the answer on your own.]

Eliza almost wanted to sigh. She felt like swearing at the system, but considering it was holding probably enough money to buy enough food for her and Lily for quite some time, she decided against it. What if the system could wipe her savings due to her anger? It wasn’t worth risking it.

‘Fine.’ Eliza said, looking at the road around them. If she stopped suddenly here, she would likely be safe. They hadn’t yet entered the forest depths, so any monsters here could easily be handled by Sorin or Theodore.

‘Show me that ‘bad ending, then.’ Eliza demanded.

And then the scene darkened. Nothing could be seen… and then, a small light was lit up by a man dressed in a guard uniform.

Eliza felt she was hovering around, like a ghost. She saw the guard, holding a lit candle towards someone…

It was herself.

She could see herself, dressed in rags, locked up in a dark prison cell with her arms chained to the wall.

‘What… the fuck?!’ Eliza tried shouting, but she couldn’t speak. In this scene, she was nothing more than a spectator, trapped to just viewing.

Slowly, the prison gate opened, revealing quite possibly the most disgusting man she had ever seen in her entire life.

He was overwhelmingly fat, which wasn’t quite so bad on its own, but when his own subjects sometimes failed to put food on the table, it revealed his gluttony.

He wore gaudy gold jewelry, and much of it. His neck had several gold amulets and necklaces stacked up on one another, and his arms had golden chains.

And his clothes were deep purple, but were filled with such a disgusting stench that even Eliza, who was spectating, wanted to run away.

“W-Where is she? Where’s Lily?!” The illusionary Eliza shouted at the disgusting man.

The greasy and disgusting Baron Slake laughed at her words.

“If you ever want to see her again… You’ll have to do exactly what I say. You know what that means, right?” He said, laughing heartily, his fat jiggling against his numerous pieces of gaudy jewelry as he did.

Eliza, in the cell, cried. Tears ran down her cheeks as she quietly said 'Okay.' aloud.

And then… the Baron left. Eliza found herself no longer spectating in the cell, but instead following the Baron.

“But sir…” A guard nearby asked the Baron. “Won’t she… try to kill you, once she finds out that her daughter’s no longer here?”

The baron laughed again. His face began twisting and contorting, looking barely human.

“That just means we never let her know, moron!” He said with a smile on his face that could kill the faint of heart. “That child was slippery enough to run away from us today, but what of tomorrow? All we have to do is find a single child. How hard could that be? And then… when we find her, if Eliza is fighting me by that point? All we need is a single finger, then that bitch will do anything I want!!”

And then, Eliza was brought out of the scene, back to the road.

She saw Lily safely in her arms, reaching out towards a leaf on a tree.

It was just an illusion shown to her by the system. No time had passed, and everything was alright.

Lily was safe, and that was what mattered.

But inside, Eliza felt as if she should go back and kill that man right now.

Her heart felt a mixture of ice cold and burning hotter than the sun. She knew that she wanted to go kill him, but if she did, Lily might not be safe.

‘I swear.’ Eliza swore in her heart.

‘One day, I’m going to kill that man. Baron Slake.’