Chapter 30: CH. 30 | Tuvei and Tulu Village

Thalia ended up paying forty copper total for four passengers. The carriage rolled out of Aluric City, heading south. Thalia sat beside Theo, while Lily and Aya sat together across from them.

The woman beside Theo walked Aya through joining Theo’s party, showing her the party number and everything else she needed. Theo himself was busy allocating his attribute points.

[Attribute Points successfully allocated]

[STR: 20 || AGI: 15 || MAG: 10 || CON: 15 || DEX: 10]

[Attribute Points: 0] [-10]

He made sure to prepare everything, worried his abilities might not measure up to whatever monsters they’d run into on Nador Hill.

Even though the mission description sounded simple enough, this was still a D-Rank mission, and the guild surely had its reasons for classifying it at that rank.

On top of that, Sara had already warned Theo about the consequences of failing a mission. All of it made Theo determined to stay cautious about whatever might happen out there.

The attribute allocation panel vanished, replaced immediately by a notification panel confirming Aya had joined Theo’s party. He could clearly see Aya’s class and individual level right there on the party panel.

[Congratulations! Aya has joined the party]

[Party No.: AGP94500178]

[Name: Theo’s Party]

[Leader: Theo (None || Lv. 3)]

[Member:]

[1. Thalia (Mage || Lv. 3)]

[2. Lily (Priest || Lv. 6)]

[3. Aya (Archer || Lv. 2)]

Aya, an archer, only just level 2. Looking at the current members of Theo’s party, they really only needed one or two more members, ideally with one being an assassin.

But what struck him as fairly rough was how low everyone’s individual levels were. Theo let out a small laugh, realizing his party was truly a rookie one, not a single member above level 10.

"Y-You... don’t have a class?" Aya asked, turning to Theo in reflex.

"That’s right," Theo answered, "Seems like every new member who joins ends up asking me the same question."

Thalia laughed, crossing her arms, "Isn’t it only natural they’d ask? Someone without a class is just plain unusual."

"E-Even so, your level’s higher than mine," Aya said.

"Thanks."

"That’s honestly the only thing I can feel proud about looking at our party panel."

Theo turned and slid open the window cover, talking to the carriage driver. He asked for an estimate on the trip to Nador Hill, and the middle aged man told him they’d reach the village by midday, roughly a five hour trip from Aluric City.

He nodded, thanked the man, and closed the window cover before settling back into his seat. He had Thalia hand out HP and mana potions to everyone, one HP potion and two mana potions per person.

While she handed those out, Theo pulled out the mission sheet and read through it. Written on it were the name and profession of the person they needed to escort.

"We’ll be arriving at Tulu Village, it’s close to Nador Hill."

"Once we’re there, we’re looking for someone named... Tuye or Tuve, I’m not sure how it’s spelled," Theo said quietly.

Thalia leaned over and looked at the sheet, "Tuvei."

"Right, him. He’s the one we’re supposed to escort. According to the mission objective, a man named Tuvei is heading up the hill to gather herbs."

"Since this is an escort mission, Nador Hill must hide something mysterious and dangerous. So stay close together and don’t do anything careless."

Thalia and the others listened closely to what Theo said, nodding obediently as he laid it out. Theo tucked the sheet away again and told Lily and Aya to get some rest, since they still had a long way to go.

Once the two had drifted off to sleep, Thalia leaned in and whispered to Theo, "What about Aya? I’m worried if she joins this mission, she won’t end up getting anything for it."

"Remember those bubble acid slimes from before? I still have some saved up."

"Once we get back from this mission, I’ll sell off a few of them to cover Aya’s pay," Theo answered, "We can also see just how useful she turns out to be on this mission."

"If she shows real promise for us, I’ll make sure to keep her around," Theo said.

Thalia listened and smiled, then turned to look at Lily and Aya, sleeping soundly leaning against each other.

"Do you think we’ll actually pull this mission off?" Thalia asked again.

Theo gave a slow nod, resting his head back against the carriage wall behind him, "We’ve got this!"

***

The sound of knocking rang out clearly enough. Theo slowly opened his eyes and turned to the side. He noticed the carriage had stopped moving, a simple sign that they’d arrived.

"We’ve arrived, Sir."

Theo answered with a short nod, then glanced sideways and found Thalia still fast asleep on his shoulder. Her face looked strikingly beautiful, radiating a natural glow without a hint of makeup.

He raised his hand and gently tapped Thalia’s cheek, and she jolted awake instantly. She opened her eyes and turned to Theo, and he let her know they’d arrived.

The young man asked Thalia to wake Lily and Aya, while he stepped outside to talk with the carriage driver.

"Lovely village, isn’t it?" the carriage driver asked.

"It really is," Theo said, "A village up on a hill like this, nothing quite compares."

Theo’s eyes took in the sight ahead of him, the gate to Tulu Village standing right in front of where the carriage had parked.

Beyond the village gate, he could see the villagers’ houses built like terraces, with farmland and orchards stretching wide across the hill valley.

Before long, Thalia and the others climbed out of the carriage. Their eyes went wide at the sight of the village’s peaceful, unspoiled beauty.

"Would you like me to come back for you later?" the carriage driver asked.

"Would that be all right with you?" Theo asked.

"Of course," the man answered, "I’ll come back whenever you set time for me."

Theo turned to Thalia, and she told the driver they could come pick them up in two days, just in case they ended up spending longer than expected up on the hill.

The man nodded in understanding, climbed back onto his carriage, and headed back down the hill. Theo led the group into Tulu Village.

They walked together through the gate of Tulu Village, passing several villagers along the way, with children showing up to watch them curiously, more than a few asking Thalia to show off some magic.

Their excitement only grew once Theo and his party reached the village square. He glanced around, having no idea where to even start looking for a man named Tuvei.

Thalia turned and waved, calling over one of the many kids who’d been watching them the whole time.

"Do you know where Tuvei lives?"

"Physician Tuvei? Of course I know!"

"Great," Thalia said, "Could you take us to him?"

The boy nodded, then called his friends over to help lead Theo and his party there. As they walked, Thalia introduced Theo and the others to the kids.

One of the boys kept staring at Theo, then asked him briefly about the sword he carried, "Is that an iron sword?"

Theo blinked in surprise, then smiled and didn’t hesitate to show off his black bladed sword to them. Their expressions lit up with excitement, probably the first time any of them had seen a real sword up close.

Before long, they stopped in front of a house. Theo felt certain it belonged to Tuvei, given the sheer number of herbs planted in the front yard.

"Uncle Tuvei," they called out, "There are adventurers here looking for you."

The door opened, and a middle aged man stepped out, walking toward the fence in front of his house. His face broke into a warm, welcoming smile.

"Oh, you must be the adventurers from the city, right?" Tuvei asked.

"That’s right," Theo said, "We’re here to help escort you to Nador Hill."

"Good to hear. I’ve been waiting for you since this morning."

"I’m planning to head up the hill tonight to gather a certain herb. Would you all be okay heading out tonight?" Tuvei asked.

Theo shook his head, having no objection at all. They’d be ready to go whenever Tuvei wanted to leave.

"All right. Glad to hear that," Tuvei said, "Please, come in. I’ll get some drinks ready for you all."

"Thank you."