Interlude 1
Tavern Rumors, Part 1
Translator : PolterGlast
"Did you hear?
Apparently, [Level Knife] has left town."
"You mean [Level
Knife], that up-and-coming B-rank adventurer party? Why'd they leave town all
of a sudden?"
"Nobody has a
clue. Rumor is they took on a shady job and failed, then skipped town. Others
say they got their asses handed to them by a young woman and ran away, or that
they picked a fight with a rookie geezer and got beaten to a pulp. But none of
those have a shred of credibility."
In a noisy tavern
frequented by adventurers, the disappearance of the adventurer party [Level
Knife] was all anyone could talk about.
At every table, the
topic was [Level Knife], and as others overheard the talk, the vague rumors
spread and grew ever larger.
"Did you hear the
guys behind us? Sounds like the rookie geezer really was the cause, wasn't
he?"
"About that... I
actually saw [Level Knife] harassing that old guy."
"What!? Where'd
you see that!"
"At the
Adventurer's Guild. I don't know if the old guy was a rookie or not, but I
think I remember [Level Knife] saying something about him being one."
"Why'd you keep
quiet about such important information! When was this?"
"Wasn't it the
day before they fled? I don't remember exactly, but the timing fits
perfectly."
"Then the rumor
about the rookie geezer beating up [Level Knife] must be true! This is huge,
some incredible rookie has shown up! What'd he look like? This old
rookie."
"Nah, he was just
an unremarkable, ordinary old guy. Had a beard and smelled a bit, too. Oh, and
he was missing an arm."
The noisy tavern had
suddenly gone quiet, and everyone nearby was straining to hear the conversation
at this table, which seemed to hold valuable information. The two men,
realizing they were being listened to, raised their voices slightly and
continued their conversation.
"The fact that
he's missing an arm is new information! But an ordinary, one-armed rookie
geezer? There's no way someone like that could beat up [Level Knife],
right?"
"For the record,
I never said a single word about seeing him beat them up. In fact, I'm of the
opinion that there's no way a rookie geezer could beat them. I also saw him get
mocked by [Level Knife] at the Adventurer's Guild, and then he just left like
he was running away with a pathetic, polite smile on his face."
"What the hell.
Then that rookie geezer has nothing to do with it!"
"You're the one
who brought up the info about him beating them up. I don't know anything about
that."
"So we're back to
square one with [Level Knife]. Of all the rumors, them taking a shady job and
running is the least interesting, but it's probably the most likely."
The two men, their
mouths dry from talking so loudly, chugged their beers. The other adventurers
who had been listening in let out a sigh that it was all for nothing... but
after a moment's pause, a new interest, separate from [Level Knife], was
piqued.
"............Hey.
So, what's the deal with this one-armed rookie adventurer geezer!? You're
saying some ordinary old guy who's not even strong became an adventurer? Why
would you even try to become an adventurer if you're missing an arm?"
"I saw the old
guy with my own two eyes, so there's no doubt. I heard he was looking for a
party. You wanna let him in ours so we can hear his story?"
"Nah, no way!
Sounds interesting, but I'll pass!"
"Well, he'll
probably die soon anyway. It's cruel, but that's just how it is."
At that concluding
remark, almost everyone in the tavern gave a small nod. The rookie geezer had
been a brief, entertaining topic to go with their drinks, but as they drank
more, he quickly faded from everyone's memory.
That this comical
rookie adventurer, this old geezer, would one day make his name roar, with
Biodasdal as its center—not a single person in this place could have possibly
imagined it.
-----
Thank you for my Patrons !!
[Platinum]
Geral Aponso
MaxKne
[Gold]
B random
DavidA
Nepheos
ShitaiNoKootoRyuu
[Silver]
1EYED_SLOTH
Creris
Frédéric Bertrand-Hudon
Matthew Fraser
Anton Lim
Crushingon
Ctdela
Curious Panda
Joe Smith
Read Advanced Chapters only on my Patreon
-----
