Seraphine and I followed Aiko to a quieter place near the window beside the main entrance. The firewood crackled in the hearth, keeping the adventurers warm and comfortable.
"Kaela, you're not from this city, are you?"
Aiko placed the plates on the table.
"Thanks for the meal, but we don't have any money."
"Don't worry. I put it on King Asterium's tab."
She wrote the following in her notebook: two servings of chicken and rice.
"Kaela, can we eat all of this?"
"Give me that!"
Seraphine already had a piece of chicken in her mouth.
"Aiko, I didn't ask you to write anything down."
If the King found out about this, I would be. . .
"Hahaha! Don't worry. That friend of yours, Donkey, said King Asterium would pay."
She laughed loudly and tied back her hair.
"CLINK! CLINK!"
"What are these three coins for?"
"They're for the bill."
There went my precious bread money.
"This isn't enough."
She took the coins and tossed them into the air.
"Why isn't it enough? We only ordered two servings."
"CLACK!"
The coins landed on the table and spun around.
"Those three over there have been drinking beer for half an hour."
"Here's to women!"
"Here's to women! HEE-HAW!"
Good thing I didn't know them.
Hahaha!
". . ."
"Aiko, I come from a very distant place."
I started eating.
The King was paying for it, right?
I couldn't let the food go to waste.
"A distant place? Oh, look!"
"What?"
The coin landed heads up.
"GULP!"
I swallowed the chicken without any water.
It went down surprisingly well.
"You don't have to tell me where you came from. Being a peasant must be difficult."
"Me? A peasant?"
Why was she looking at me as though I were a filthy floor rag?
"Kaela, do you see all these adventurers?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Some of them are peasants who want to change their lives and escape the countryside."
Archers, mages, priests, and crusaders were writing novels.
The wind whistled softly through a gap in the door while a guitarist played beside the counter.
"All these adventurers are writers?"
This chicken was delicious.
I was glad I hadn't refused it.
"Yes. Every one of them dreams of being recognized."
She picked up the coins and tucked them into her cleavage.
"I saw what you did."
She winked at me.
Could she be interested in me?
"Everything has been written down."
Why did I ever believe that?
"Aiko, if they're all adventurers, why do they need to write?"
"Poor thing. It must be so difficult."
Seraphine was wiping away her tears.
"Why are you crying? Does the chicken taste bad?"
The chicken wasn't that bad.
"We're eating as much as we want while Mortar is starving."
"Take the bones to her."
"I will."
She stood and carried away her plate.
"Is she serious?"
Aiko watched Seraphine leave.
"More than you can imagine."
"Hmm. . . To answer your question, the adventurers here are very weak."
If that man over there—a two-and-a-half-meter-tall giant holding a glowing sword—was weak, then what was I?
"So they became writers to earn more money?"
"No!"
"Hey!"
She took my plate before I could finish eating.
"They're writers because they're addicted to novels."
"Addicted? Give me back my plate."
"Yes. Many of them don't accept missions. They prefer to spend all their time reading."
She returned my plate, but. . .
"Wait. Where's the rest of my chicken?"
"Eat everything, Mortar. Those bones were hard, weren't they? Kaela thought you were a dog."
Shit!
"I understood some of what you said, but why does everyone in the guild spend the day staring at the mission board?"
"Everyone, tell Kaela!"
"SLACKERS BY DAY, WRITERS BY NIGHT!"
I wanted to go home.
The night was only beginning in this mysterious city.
"Hey, Aiko! Come back here! You haven't explained everything!"
I ran after her. . .
"Hey, waitress! Bring another beer for the nobleman over here!"
I saw Dorian without his pants.
He had already been shirtless before we even reached the city.
"Gentlemen, you've already had more than thirty beers!"
The waitress opened another bottle.
"How dare you slander a nobleman in front of his subjects? I. . . only drank one beer. Hic!"
"That's true. My friend drank. . . one beer. And as the King's son, I give him permission to drink all of them."
Edward had surrendered to temptation.
His life was over now.
"I understand, gentlemen. In that case, shall I bring another round?"
"Yes!"
They were drinking while I was stuck here. . .
"Who's going to pay for all these drinks?"
"Put them on my King's tab!"
"Not on my father's tab, you idiot Donkey!"
And here we go again!
"Fight! Fight! Fight!"