Chapter 22: Discussions

"So what’s the name of this town?" Leon asked as they rode a public carriage through the forest path that led to their destination.

"It’s called Mera, and like I said before, a farming town that focuses on farming potatoes and yams for the most part. Goblins like those, quick sustenance for them." Roger explained. He leaned back into his chair and glanced outside the window for a moment.

"Are the both of you really ready for this? I know goblins are monsters, but you will be taking lives, and you are only five years old." He said and then glanced at Snow. "I think."

"She is five," Leon said.

"Yes, I read that Vampires keep growing until adulthood before their growth slows down." Snow explained while having a book in her hand that she was reading.

"You managed to turn her into some study alcoholic like you." Roger said.

"Books are the path into the soul, they tell stories and give information." Snow said while not looking up.

"Haha, she gets it." Leon said and threw her hand over her shoulder, leaning in to see what she was reading. Her face went bright red, and she looked away in a panic.

Roger noticed it. He had been noticing it all this time, and he was beginning to feel that Snow had a mind far more matured than even Leon, which was surprising because Leon has a very mature mind.

The journey continued calmly with no issues until they arrived at the town. They saw it from a distance, a small town. It comprised houses that barely reached a hundred, surrounded by vast land.

The carriage stopped at the entrance to the town, a small wooden gate that connected to the wooden wall around it.

"I’ll be waiting until you are ready to leave." The coachman said.

Roger tipped him a bit extra with a silver coin and then led them inside.

"Sir Roger, we paid the man before, why have you given him more?" Snow asked. She placed her book down inside the carriage because she knew they were going to have serious business here.

"Well, it’s called tipping. When someone gives you a service that you feel they did really well, you can tip them a bit to show them appreciation," he explained.

"Tch, tipping culture made it here as well." Leon muttered.

"Hmm, but I thought the payment was the appreciation." Snow added.

"It should be, but somehow people make the fact that they can’t earn enough the problem of the customer. It’s a whole thing." Leon said while waving his hand and walking forward.

Roger looked at Snow. They both shrugged at the same time and kept walking.

A few steps into the town, a few figures came out, men dressed like farmers, and then an old man who was hunched over with a walking stick, where he placed both hands and used it to stand. His eyes could barely open fully, and his steps were slow and heavy.

"Good day, we are the adventurers that have come to handle your goblins case." Roger said.

The men looked at Leon and Snow and then looked at themselves.

"I’m sorry, we know our pay was low, but does that really mean we get children rather than better adventurers?" One man asked. He was the tallest here and looked to be middle-aged, with a bald spot on his head. He looked distraught and heavy-hearted.

"I lost my only son to those goblins. Please, this is a case that hurts us deeply and not a joke." He continued, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Hey, hey, don’t judge a book by its cover." Leon spoke.

"This man here is a swordsman that’s about to become a sword master, and as for me and her, we are good enough mages to handle things." Leon explained, but they had all stopped listening to him the very moment that he called Roger a swordsman.

Their eyes lit up, and they began celebrating.

"Please, our saviors, come with us. We have prepared a place for you and something to eat." They said eagerly, leading them inside the town to the chief’s house where they would stay.

When they got in, they sat on a mat in a round circle. The man that had lost his son was here as well, and so were two other men and the chief.

"So tell us about the situation." Roger started.

"The goblins come at night. We have not been able to sleep for days. The children are scared. No one comes to play or even till the farm, all in fear that those monsters would come and attack." The man spoke. He clenched his fist.

"During the early attacks, my son stayed out a bit late as the skies turned dark and the attack started. He ran but was hit fast enough."

He sniffled and sobbed, tears dropping down his eyes. "Those savages tore him apart limb from limb until he was nothing more than a stain on the floor."

He looked up at Roger with a savage look in his eye. "You have to kill them, you have to kill them all."

"Micah, enough." The chief spoke. "We know that you are in deep pain, but we have our saviors now, and you must allow them to take care of things." The elder spoke.

"We understand you have been through a lot, and we will handle it. We are going to have to stay till night and see if they attack so we can track them back to their home after we drive them away and destroy their nest. Goblins have nests, and if we do not destroy them, we will have the same issue in a few months.

"So when night comes, everyone should ensure that they go inside and stay inside. No one should be out when night comes, no one at all." Roger said.

While he said that, Leon noticed that Micah’s eyes were moving around in some sort of discomfort.