Spectre of the Sinner - Chapter 5 part 5: Welcome to Vest Schëld

POV: Freida von Wagner, quinta hora vesperi, Vest Schëld, Mellanphalia Kingdom

“Geez, barely the first day alone and you’re up to your mischiefs again,” with a pouty look on my face, I proceeded to use my left arm to lightly hit the foreigner, eliciting a wry chuckle from his lips.

“Hey, there’s a saying in my place: the first impression is important…”

“Yes, indeed you left a very unforgettable first impression, Mister [An],” I snarkily rebuked his words, “I maybe was the one who suggested you harvest the [Ravenous Ogre’s] [Magic stone], but presenting the sacred [Fleur de Miracolo] is a move too far!”

“At least now I have enough money to comfortably treat you, am I correct? Besides, I got admitted as a three-star adventurer because, according to Mister [Bokor], even the most promising applicants start at two-star, so I see it as the biggest win of the day,” a contended smile formed on Mister [An’s] face, which somehow made my heart skip a beat, “so without further ado, let me repair my pride, shall we?”

The black-clad outlander called out to the uncle manning my favorite sweet stand as he half-forcibly dragged me along, earning me a half-pitying half-envious stare from other ladies. Knowing that he wouldn’t back down otherwise, I could only weakly muster a dry smile toward them, silently thanking them for their sympathy, which for some reason, sent them swooning like starstruck.

“An extra sweet candy apple for this lady, please! How much does this cost?”

Wait, how did Mister [An] figure out my favorite treat even though I haven’t told him yet?

“My, little tomboy [Freida] now has a fine man huh? Congratulations on…”

“Wait a moment, Mister [Olaf]! We are still not… yet…”

Feeling the heat rising on my face, I inadvertently shouted at him in embarrassment, only to meekly trail off at the keywords, earning a hearty chuckle from the confectionary seller. If only there was a convenient spot for me to hide in…

“Here’s your favorite treat, Miss [von Wagner],” the man was about to hand me a delicious-looking candy apple before a teasing grin curled on his veteran-like face as he saw my hesitant face, “It seems that our lady today’s not in the mood for some sweets. And I’m not too fond of wasting this tasty-looking piece of confection. Hmm, what should I do?”

Even though I knew that I was playing into his hand, I couldn’t help but receive the overly sweet candy apple from his hand, but not before pouting and lightly kicking his shin. Bursts of laughter and teasing remarks from the kids came at this inopportune moment, driving me further into shame, thus I ended up forcibly dragging him out of this place in a hurry.

“My apologies for the teasing, I went too far with that one,” an apologetic Mister [An] begged for my forgiveness as we continued to stroll toward the recommended inn, “you were so cute that I couldn’t hold back. I won’t do it again, I promise.”

Hold on for a moment, did he seriously tell me that I was… cute? Right? How could I, the tomboy of the [von Wagner] family, be called adorable and beautiful, from the same man no less? I was already drowning in bliss and embarrassment when he called me pretty, now he called me like that…

As I stewed in my thoughts about his words, I silently nibbled on the candy apple. Its overly sweet taste seemed to be much better than usual, perhaps because of Mister [Olaf’s] consideration. The familiar streets that I had walked since forever now seemed to be much longer than what I had been accustomed to, giving our stroll the feeling of a date between couples.

“If only we were a couple,” a silent, wistful mutter disappeared into the air.

“Now that’s interesting,” a mutter from the black-haired culprit jolted my thoughts back to reality just as I was becoming aware of the implications of my earlier murmurings.

In front of us stood the inn that the [Guild] had recommended for Mister [An], an establishment named [Aunt May’s Roost Inn]. Said to be one of the newer businesses that had opened recently, its exterior exuded a warm atmosphere thanks to its textured stones with intricate carvings, showing that a considerable amount of money was well spent. While the signboard, a metallic frame that depicted a smiling kind-looking middle-aged woman, was similar to what other businesses, what made this enterprise different was the employment of a particular device that was embedded in the metal framework.

“What’s the matter, Mister [An]?”

“Ah, I was impressed that they have managed to figure out the equivalent of a neon sign this early…”

Hearing the strange words, I reflexively tilted my head quizzically.

“Within the next few years, I’d wager that every shop in this town and beyond would hitch the bandwagon,” the foreigner made his prediction with a matter-of-fact tone, “and maybe someone will make some improvements to this piece of invention along the way. Anyway, we should head in to get a room.”

As I was semi-forcibly dragged inside through the wooden entrance, the inn’s entrance hall cozily welcomed our footsteps. A tint of luxury tinted the air, for the furnishings were tastefully chosen and arranged accordingly, which was a far cry from the cringeworthy sight of this town’s town hall. While the level of extravagance could not be compared to either my household or the residence of other aristocrats’, the owner of this place cleverly arranged and utilized the few excellent ornaments to their fullest. Well-to-do patrons could be seen comfortably lounging around in plush chairs and sofas, either engaging in lively chats, enjoying a game of cards, or appreciating a drink in relative quiet.

As we made our way toward the reception stand, nosy gazes and chatter from the guests started to pour in over our looks, with most of the contents being speculation about the menacing-looking black-clad stranger accompanying me. Various emotions could be felt swirling around, and most of them would have broken a weak-willed spirit in a matter of moments. And unfortunately, for a very brief instant, the weight of such sentiments started to weigh down on my shoulders.

“It’s ok now, Miss [von Wagner], we’ll be out of their sight soon,” a soft, slightly raspy whisper reached my ears, which was accompanied by a gentle rub on my left hand, “so please hang on for another moment, is it ok?”

As my mind became at ease thanks to his words, the man addressed one of the available receptionist girls. It was clear that the chestnut-haired girl, who was roughly my age, was momentarily spooked by my Eastern-looking companion’s appearance before calming herself down.

“Excuse me, I’m referred to this establishment by a Mister [Markovic]. I’d like to reserve a single room for 2 weeks here.”

Surprised by his planned duration of stay, my mind slowly filled with swirling thoughts. While I understood that he was a stranded foreigner, far from home and his friends, a part of myself wanted otherwise. But why did it want to do so? Would Mister [An], the one who saved me from a certain death, be happy with what the other part of me wanted? Was I being…

“Thank you, and have a good day Miss. Miss [von Wagner],” the slightly raspy voice called out to me, waking me up from the poisonous stream of thoughts, “I’ll explain to you soon, so please come with me.”

As we parted ways with the chestnut-haired receptionist girl, I felt an indescribable emotion emanating from her gaze as her face was dyed a shade of red. As much as I wanted to ask her about her incoherent mutterings that I could faintly hear, the black-haired outlander half-dragged me toward his assigned room, forcing me to give up and follow him obediently.

My lead-ladened legs finally arrived at the room, a simple-looking yet elegantly carved wooden door whose room number, [113], was inscribed on a metallic plaque. The moment I was led into the room, Mister [An] silently guided me toward the single bed and, after giving me a glass of water, started to put down his weapon and dark-colored rucksack and take off his armor. A sense of dread suddenly clouded my heart, and soon I found my palms sweating profusely, causing me to desperately try to wipe it off.

“My deepest apologies, Miss [von Wagner],” the man offered his handkerchief as he started to apologetically explain his earlier words, “I cannot bear leaving you alone down there, so I took the liberty of forcing you into my room like this, creating undue stress for you in the process. Once again, I apologize for my rash decisions.”

Seeing my savior bowed down with his arms crossed like that, I flusteredly waved my hand., frantically finding words to spin.

“Please don’t say such a thing! I’m grateful for your consideration, so please raise your head. Besides,” as I was about to run out of things to say to him, I suddenly recalled my dear mother’s words before I headed out to meet him, “I almost forgot, tonight my family intend to invite you over for dinner to thank you for your actions, so… Could you come and join… Us?”

After hearing the rest of my nervously stammering words, the foreigner briefly glanced at his left wrist before nodding lightly, which somehow saddled another weight in my heart.

“Then I would love to. And please don’t fret over the other appointments with the adventurer crowd,” seemingly anticipated my worries, he winked at me reassuringly, “I’ve told them beforehand already, so please rest assured. So anyway, it won’t take much time, so please bear with me. My apologies in advance for not having anything to entertain you in the meantime. By the way, does my formal set look fine enough?”

The change of clothing that he had just pulled out from his sack was put back in. After rummaging for a short moment, he produced a neatly folded set of what looked like a dark olive-green formal uniform alongside the associated headgear that bore the emblems of his army. Seemingly understanding my intention, Mister [An] gently handed me his headdress with a teasing wink.

“It’s not like… I’m interested in your,” as I weakly squeezed out a protest, I could only watch him heading into the room’s bath stall before settling on studying the formal headgear.

The dark olive-green headwear was modest in size, with its slightly pronounced crown being stiff and flat. A small unit badge was adorned at the front of the crown, featuring a pair of stylized wings positioned below a creepy-looking human skull stabbed by a long-bladed dagger. The hat’s muted red band featured a white cockade at the center front, upon which the emblem of his home country was located: a dark red star encompassing a hammer and a sickle, which piqued my interest. Further down at the bottom of the band laid a string of golden woven metallic cords, whose appearance suggested that it should be used to secure the headgear on the wearer’s head, no traces of usage could be found. The most prominent feature of the item, the rigid black peaked brim was seemingly made from a similar material to his gun, albeit felt slightly softer.

As I turned the headdress upside down to study the item further, what greeted me was a fabric patch sewn at the bottom, written in a foreign language that superficially looked like the script used by the [Holy Empire]. It seemed that the numerical parts of the texts referred to the year this particular hat was made, as it was inscribed as [2057].

“So that’s how they count the years, huh,” I mused over the number’s meaning while comparing it to our current calendar year, which was [257].

A temptation started to whisper in my ear, and soon enough, I found myself staring at the lining inside. Just taking a whiff only, I thought to myself like that. After all, it was to better understand the materials involved in making this exquisitely sewn article, not for some deviant purposes. Having successfully convinced myself, I started to lift the headwear while feeling my heart beating loudly.

Suddenly, a faint creaking sound echoed, greatly startling me, and causing me to almost throw away his ceremonial hat. As I hurriedly put the headwear down on my lap, I glanced in the direction of the sound to find that the door leading to the bathroom was slightly ajar. Perhaps Mister [An] unintentionally did not close it properly, so I decided to sneak toward it and close it properly for him. But something felt amiss here, for the interior of the stall was strangely quiet, as ordinarily there would be sound echoing in the space. With my heart gripped in trepidation, just as I was about to push the door to investigate, a voice called out to me from the least expected direction: the single bed where I had been sitting for a while.

“I’m already finished so, please… Oi oi oi!”