Chapter 113 : Chapter 113

Chapter 113 - My Herb, Your Rescue (1)

“What are you going to do now?”

“…”

Walking down an alley, Artier remained silent despite Collie's question.

“Master, just walking around won't solve anything, you know.”

“I know that too.”

Artier stopped walking and let out a deep sigh.

‘I can't believe I'd be blocked from even entering the guild.’

He had thought that even if something got blocked or a problem arose, it would be after meeting the guild master. His plans were to prepare for that time.

But now, those plans had become meaningless.

“What on earth is your tribe thinking? No matter how much autonomy they have, blatantly ignoring a guest of an imperial noble will lead to big trouble!”

“…As I said before, I don't know much about my own people either.”

“Hah, right. That was it.”

Simon didn't understand it either.

The beastmen could maintain their autonomy because the Empire wasn't interested.

No matter how brave and strong the beastmen were, they had no way of standing up to the humans.

“What do we do now…”

“I will ask them.”

Collie said confidently, tapping his paws.

“Given the reaction people showed earlier, they will surely open the way for me, sir.”

“Hmm, I don't think that'll work.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“If you were right, they wouldn't have chased me away in the first place.”

Artier recalled a few guild members behind the one who had shouted at him, whose gazes were fixed only on Collie.

Collie was certainly a cheat key for the beastmen, but there was a definite limit. They also distinguished between public and private matters.

“In that case, I will request to enter by myself.”

“That certainly sounds like a good idea, but…”

Artier looked around.

There was an ominous feeling that this wouldn't be resolved easily.

“Master… I was rejected at the entrance, sir.”

And that premonition soon became a reality.

“They said the Guild Master is absent. They said I might have to wait for a long time, so I just came back.”

“What? So they chased me away saying I couldn't meet someone who wasn't even there?”

“I don't think that's it.”

Simon was fixing his gaze on a building far away.

“I can feel a sound from the highest room. It seems he is intentionally avoiding us.”

The senses of the beastmen are truly amazing.

Anyway, the problem was back to square one.

“It seems they're wary because of me. I need to ease their guard before I do anything.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“Well, it's simple.”

In <Cross Destiny>, there were three main ways to build intimacy with NPCs.

Talk to them often, give them gifts, or do them favors.

“First, let's gather information. Can you two look for a place that smells of food?”

“Understood.”

Artier first went around the market to check what kind of ingredients the beastmen mainly used.

‘They look like a nomadic tribe, but their staple food is monster meat. Why are they raising cows and sheep?’

A minor question arose, but he decided to let it go for now.

“I think I get the gist of it. Let's go outside.”

Once outside the village, he found traces of a monster every five steps, and after another ten steps, he could find the monster itself.

Swish!

Artier found a suitable monster and felled it with a single stroke. Its level was low, so it was easier than splitting an apple.

“Simon, do you happen to know how to butcher?”

“I do… but are you going to do this alone?”

“Of course not. If you teach us, Collie and I will help too.”

Butchering the giant monster whole yielded meat far exceeding 100 servings.

Artier put them in his inventory and went to every place where beastmen were gathered, offering it to them.

“Here's a gift from Collie to all of you.”

“Pardon?”

Collie's tail shot up. Naturally, this was the first he'd heard of it.

“…Thanks.”

The beastmen accepted the gift, albeit with suspicious expressions.

They didn't have the guts to refuse a gift offered by a Spirit Creature.

“Isn't this a scam?”

“I'm trying to save these people.”

“Does everyone become like this after joining the Papal State…”

“What was that, Simon?”

“It's nothing.”

It took exactly 30 minutes for all the prepared meat to run out.

“It seems to be having an effect.”

“That's a relief!”

“Hmm…”

However, despite their positive reactions, Artier wore a subtle expression.

‘The effect is too small.’

There was certainly a change.

But at this rate, he couldn't guarantee anything even after two months, let alone 20 days.

“I think we need a more effective method.”

The next method Artier found was helping out.

In short, quests.

“Simon, if you see anyone who looks like they need help, let me know.”

Artier told Simon to wander around the village, and he and Collie also searched for people in need of help.

‘This is difficult.’

The process was not as easy as he had thought.

Normally, NPCs who give quests have an exclamation mark above their heads, but the beastmen of Ker Tupa all had clean heads.

Artier came up with two hypotheses about this phenomenon.

The first was that his favorability was too low, so the quest markers weren't appearing. If so, that was a relief. It just meant they were hidden, not non-existent.

The problem was the second one.

‘I think I remember reading a post a long time ago that there might not be any prepared quests in Ker Tupa…’

If this were the case, it would be dizzying.

The easiest way to raise favorability would disappear entirely.

Artier could only hope that the post was a baseless rumor.

“I miss the Mercenary Guild at times like this… I could just look at the request board.”

“That's what I'm saying.”

“Damn it, who was it!”

“Huh?”

Did something finally happen?

At the loud voice coming from nearby, Artier stopped in his tracks.

“The tail hair bandages are all gone!”

The owner of the voice was a general goods merchant.

A brown fox beastman who looked quite old was fuming as he looked at his empty stall.

“Are there pickpockets in this village too?”

Artier mulled over the situation for a moment.

A quest to catch a thief…

‘It shouldn't be difficult.’

A petty thief couldn't beat Artier, who was over level 30.

“Collie, let's go.”

Artier took Collie and headed to the general goods store.

Like any other beastman, the shop owner's face scrunched up as soon as he saw Artier.

“What is it?”

“Is it common for bandages to disappear?”

“No, they'd get a new one if they just gave me their tail hair, so why take the one for sale?”

The tail hair bandage was also in Artier's memory.

It was better quality than a normal bandage, and above all, it had high mana conductivity, so when combined with a potion, it had the effect of healing twice as fast.

‘To think it was actually made from tail hair.’

“Would it be alright if I found the missing bandages for you?”

Artier suggested carefully with the friendliest smile he could muster.

But the shop owner just snorted.

“How can I trust you?”

“…”

Artier was at a loss for words for a moment.

To have to prove his trustworthiness just to find some bandages.

“If you don't trust me, shall I go and tell the guards?”

“Forget it. Do you think I don't have hands and feet?”

The shop owner closed the shop door and went to the guard post.

Suddenly abandoned, Artier couldn't understand the situation.

“Did I commit some great rudeness to them without knowing it?”

“I don't know either…”

After that, Artier approached a few other beastmen and spoke to them cautiously, but all he got back were questions like 'Why are you trying to help me?'

Among them was even a beastman who had received meat from Artier.

Soon, Artier realized something.

‘The beastmen have a habit of doing things themselves if they need something… That's why there are no common quests.’

Cruelly, the second hypothesis was correct.

Artier felt all the strength drain from his body.

“Isn't there another way?”

“There isn't. Giving too many gifts in a short period of time is counterproductive, and talking frequently is a method that takes too long. Unless some special event occurs…”

Simon and Collie fell silent.

They came to prevent a major incident from happening in Ker Tupa, but now they had to hope for a suitable incident to occur.

“For now, let's take a little break and cool our heads.”

“That's right. We've been walking around for about half a day now. Maybe something will come to mind if we get a bite to eat.”

“Then shall we look for a nearby restaurant…”

It was just as the three of them were about to move.

Collie's and Simon's ears perked up at the same time, and they stopped walking.

“What's wrong?”

“I hear footsteps. Quite a few.”

“I have a bad feeling about this.”

As soon as the two finished speaking, what they saw were beastman guards carrying spears of the same shape and wearing helmets made of monster skulls.

It seemed they had come for Artier.

“Found him.”

“Huh?”

As the only shaman among them suddenly aimed his staff at Artier, Artier reflexively pushed back the sword he was about to draw.

“What is going on here?”

He asked, but no one answered.

It seemed they hadn't intended to have a conversation in the first place.

Still, Artier raised both his hands and tried to persuade them.

“No matter how much of a human I am, surrounding me like this without reason is a bit…”

“I feel it.”

“Pardon?”

“I feel a skill book containing dirty sorcery in your inventory.”

“Sorcery?”

He had an idea of what it was.

It was clearly the Shadow Pierce skill book that Ropa had dropped.

“I think there's some misunderstanding…”

“Shut up! You filthy black magician!”

“How dare you control the great Spirit Creature-nim with sorcery?”

Before he could even make a proper excuse, a spear flew at him.

Artier dodged the spear with a nod of his head and explained with all his might.

“I do have a black magic book, but I'm not a black magician, you know?!”

Wow, that's really convincing.

“There seems to be some misunderstanding.”

“Everyone, please calm down!”

Simon and Collie also spoke up, but it didn't have much of an effect.

Rumors were exaggerated, and anger destroyed reason.

The guards already saw Artier as a human who had to be torn to pieces.

‘I can't fight back, what should I do?’

Continuously dodging spears, Artier couldn't wipe the troubled expression off his face.

Holy Magic was counterproductive against different races. But dodging spears without fighting back was also reaching its limit.

Master, for now, please run away.

What? Me alone?

Anyway, these people have no intention of harming us. Simon-ssi and I will stay here and try to persuade them.

…If it gets dangerous, you have to move immediately.

Thwack!

After parrying a spear with his scabbard, Artier immediately kicked off a nearby wall and jumped up.

Injecting explosive mana into his legs, his body was instantly crossing the city wall.

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