Capítulo 1182: Chapter 1180: Visitors from the North
The end of dusk is approaching.
Richard stepped forward, entering the only tavern in Gray Wood Town.
With a creak, Richard pushed the door open and walked straight to the counter. The bartender behind the counter noticed him and looked over.
Realizing it was Richard, a familiar face returning, the bartender raised an eyebrow, flashed a smile, and picked up an empty wooden cup with a shake. “So, my dear friend, has your luck been remarkably good? Have you found the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb and taken the treasure from the tomb? Now, would you like to buy a beer as a token of appreciation for the information I provided earlier?”
The bartender’s smile was bright, but Richard’s expression was calm and unperturbed.
After a couple of seconds of staring, the bartender sensed that things were not as he expected. He awkwardly set the cup down, scratched his head, and said, “Or… you haven’t found the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb? It’s alright, because nobody else has found it either, so it’s quite normal. You seem like you’re in a bad mood. How about a beer to cheer you up?”
Saying this, the bartender picked up the wooden cup again.
Richard glanced at the bartender a few tis and frowned. “It’s not that I didn’t find the tomb. In fact, I did find it, but soone else beat to it and took everything from the tomb.”
“Ah?” The bartender froze for a mont but wasn’t too shocked. To him, the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb was from a different world entirely, and its only relevance was that it might help him sell more beer.
Moreover, he was quite skeptical about whether Richard was telling the truth. After all, Richard had been gone for just half an afternoon, which seed insufficient ti to find the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb easily. Perhaps he was making excuses for his failure.
“Is that so—” As the bartender pondered these things, he yawned and figured today’s beer might not sell well. Setting the wooden cup down, he sowhat brusquely said to Richard, “So the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb has already been visited by soone. What are you back for now?”
At this point, the bartender thought of sothing, his expression becoming slightly guarded: “You’re not trying to take back the silver coin you gave earlier, are you? I admit you gave a bit too much, but I have already consud the beer, and the money has been given to the boss, so there’s no refund possible.”
“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to ask for the money back,” Richard said to the bartender. “However, I would like you to tell sothing else.”
“What?”
“I rember you told before that last night, a group of people ca to look for the Tangka Wizard’s Tomb just like and stayed in this tavern?”
“Yes,” the bartender nodded.
“Then can you tell where they went after leaving the tavern? Did they return, and in which direction did they finally leave the town?”
“Well—” The bartender’s tone stretched out hesitantly. His eyes flicked around before he finally picked up the empty wooden cup, filled it with beer, and pushed it towards Richard. “Buy a glass of beer, and I’ll tell you.”
“Bang!”
With a sound, Richard slamd a silver coin on the table, speaking up: “Let’s keep it the sa as last ti. I’ll pay; you handle the beer. Just give the answer.”
“Fine.”
The bartender said, unhesitatingly pocketing the silver coin, grabbed the beer, and raised it to his lips, gulping it down “glug, glug” in rapid succession.
After a dozen seconds, he finished the beer, his expression contorted, wiping his tongue vigorously with a cloth as he looked toward Richard.
Richard waited for the bartender’s response, eyes on him.
After a few seconds of eerie silence, Richard spoke first, sowhat puzzled: “Hmm?”
“I don’t know.” The bartender spread his hands, speaking with genuine sincerity.
Richard’s eyebrow raised: “What do you an by ‘I don’t know’? Surely you’re not serious?”
The bartender continued to spread his hands: “Yes, that’s exactly what I an—I don’t know. To be honest, when they left today, I wasn’t in the tavern. So, I don’t know where they went, if they returned, or from which direction they left the town. Not knowing, that’s my answer.”
Richard’s eyebrows subtly tightened.
Seeing this, the bartender quickly added, “Hey hey, don’t be upset. I really don’t know; otherwise, I would have surely told you. That said, while I don’t know how they left, I do know how they arrived. I heard where they ca from while helping them carry luggage and feed the horses. That might help you understand them a bit, right?”
Indeed, that might be of reference value… Richard thought for a mont, agreeing: “Alright, tell where they ca from.”
“Hold on.” The bartender now displayed a smile reminiscent of a cunning rchant, pouring another glass of beer, “This counts as a new question, so you’ll have to buy another beer, and I’ll tell you.”
Richard squinted slightly, examining the bartender but without getting angry, just finding it sowhat amusing: “You’re going to such lengths just to sell an extra beer?”
“What else?”
“If you channel your smarts in the right direction, you could surely earn more than selling beer.”
“Perhaps, but right now, I’m just a barkeep, and my cleverness can only be put to use here.” The bartender shrugged and, while speaking, shook the nearby beer barrel, hearing the “splash, splash” sound from inside.
“After the boss brewed this beer, he required to sell at least a whole barrel daily. If it doesn’t sell, there’s no dinner and no paycheck. What can I do? I can only try to sell it.”
“Kind-hearted sir, if you sympathize with , please buy one more. No need for a silver coin; I wouldn’t be able to keep it. I can only give it to the boss, so just three copper coins will do. Three copper coins, and I’ll tell you everything you want to know. This deal won’t put you at a loss; how about it?”
“Alright then.” Richard uttered, placing three copper coins on the counter, stopping the bartender’s movent to drink the beer, and spoke, “Tell the answer first, and then you can drink the beer.”
“Okay.” The bartender reluctantly said, “Since you want to know where they ca from, I’ll tell you: They ca from the north, traveling along a small path in the forest, passing through Black Nail Town, Sandstone Town, Baron Knox Castle, and Green Water River—I heard all this while they were chatting when I helped them with their luggage and fed their horses. It’s absolutely correct, you can rest assured.”
“The north, the forest trail, Black Nail Town, Sandstone Town, Baron Knox Castle, Green Water River…” Richard murmured, and a path automatically ford in his mind.
“From the north, then.” Richard said, nodding, not saying much more, turning and heading out of the tavern.
The bartender watched Richard’s back, shaking his head, picked up the wooden cup full of beer, and began to drink.
At this mont, as Richard walked, his pace slightly halted, turning his head to remind the bartender, “I think you might want to try another thod of selling beer next ti. Otherwise, if you encounter soone with a bad temper, your conditional sales approach might get you beaten.”
Having said that, Richard turned back and walked out the door.
Several seconds later, the bartender downed the beer in one go, set the cup down, looking in the direction where Richard had left. Because it tasted dreadful, the muscles in his face twitched a bit, sighing aloud: “You think I don’t want to? But I’m just a bartender, and with the boss’s beer tasting this awful, what can I do? What can I do?”
…
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