42 The Grasshill Village

While travelling through the night, I heard a few more howls in the distance, but didn't get close to them. I did have a close encounter with a bear, but thankfully, it was alone. The bear was much stronger and sturdier than a wolf. A single bear could probably take out three to four wolves. Not without an injury perhaps, but it was dangerous nonetheless.

I threw a few of my daggers, and then dodged it's attacks to the best of my abilities. A few times there were close calls, where my arm or leg would be broken, but that didn't happen. During the struggle, I managed to stab my dagger right into it's head. I was lucky due to bears anger, and inability to think like a human. With it's back turned towards me, it was the golden opportunity.

I decided to butcher up the bear as well, but didn't take most of the meat. 'I'll make a fire and roast this. After all, I've been running for a while now', I figured before leaving the area of our battle. Staying there and roasting the meat could spell disaster. Wolves or other bears could be attracted to the smell as well as light. I travelled for another half an hour, before setting up my small camp.

My bag contained no spices for the meat, but it didn't pose an issue to me. I've learned to eat almost anything edible at that point. After my meal, I rested for another hour or so. 'I'll probably arrive at the Grasshill Village in the morning or noon. There's no need to rush, the wedding is in two days anyway', I thought while staring at the fire. Money was of no issue to me, since I earned quite a bit over time. Hence the reason for my journey through the night. Once at the village, I could rent a room, eat a proper meal and rest. Of course scouting the mansion itself was important too. After all, I'd have to sneak inside somehow.

I didn't encounter any other animals on my way through the forest. These parts could be considered hunting grounds, therefore animals weren't that common between villages. I didn't make it to the village as the sun rose, but I wasn't far off either. With regular brakes, I arrived at the Grasshill Village early afternoon.

"Hmmm... I didn't expect the gate to be so busy though", I said to myself. I could see the village and it's gate, even though I was standing at the fringes of the forest. There were a few guards there, and although they didn't really check people much, I saw a poor bastard being thrown out. His clothes were pretty much rags, which of course meant they didn't want such people in the village. Especially a day before such joyous occasion.

My clothes were a bit dirty, but mostly fine. Besides, they wouldn't throw me away if they saw money. 'Just for fun, I can try and copy someone's mood. Who knows, maybe it will work', I thought before heading towards the gate. Besides the usual people coming in and leaving, merchants could be seen with their carts attached to horses.

I decided to copy some of the regular people. Their mood seemed rather easy going, sometimes happy, and chatty. I didn't have another person to chat to, but being happy and easy going wasn't that difficult to copy. No one paid attention to me really. Whether that was thanks to the number of people at the gate, or my mood, I wasn't sure. Nonetheless, I made it inside without any issues.

I decided to get a room first, which wasn't as easy as it would seem. A lot of people arrived for the wedding, and a lot of rooms were already occupied. Some people rented out a room inside their houses, of course for a price. I had no choice really, and such arrangement was the only way for me to get a good night rest.

The people who were willing to rent their rooms, gathered around the village's square. I looked for someone either old or decent looking, as to give me the best chances of that room being fit for sleeping inside. An old woman seemed to be renting her room, but she didn't shout like the others.

"Hello, are you perhaps here to offer a room for travellers?", I asked the old woman. "Yes, youngster. I'm simply too old to shout like these people. I'm not asking for too much, a few silvers per night", she replied. "Sure, I'll rent the room for one night. I'll give you three silvers. Is that fair?", I asked. "I'm happy with three silvers. Come then, I'll show you your room", she replied before motioning to follow her.

We headed to some houses closer to the wooden walls of the village. They were actually wooden walls, not just logs arranged into a wall like in the Horseplain Village. One could tell how much more prosperous that village was, compared to the one Rand was responsible for. "Here we are. Come in, I'll show you the room", the old woman invited.

The house looked clean, with nice oak and teak furniture. She even had stuffed animals on her walls and dresser, which made me wonder whether her close one was a hunter. My room was located upstairs, together with two other rooms, but she didn't show them to me. "I only ask you to not wander around the house. Especially at night", she added with a bit of implication. "I'm not a thief ma'am. I'd like to ask you whether it would be possible to get some meals from you? I'll pay more of course... If it's too much trouble, I'll eat elsewhere", I asked.

"You can eat with us, if you don't mind my cooking. I don't think you need to pay me more, after all, how much can you eat... You should eat more, now that I'm looking at you", she replied. "Hehe, I do eat a lot, it's just my body sort of looks that way. I don't want to feel bad, here take a few more silvers... You had a lot of stuffed animals downstairs. Does your husband hunt?", I gave her some more money, then asked.

"...My husband used to hunt, but he's no longer around. It's just me and my granddaughter now. She should be back from work in a few hours", she replied. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked", "No, no, boy. I'm not mad. He passed away a long time ago. You can get some rest now. If you need anything, I'll be downstairs", she said before walking down.

I felt like that grandma was a bit too naive. She seemed kind hearted, but something like that could be easily exploited. An old woman, and her grandchild living alone. Even if they didn't have anything valuable, it was still a bad idea to invite strangers to their homes. 'I'm thankful for a quiet place to stay, but this sort of generosity can come back to bite them one day. I'll talk with her granddaughter about it', I figured.

I wasn't close with these people, but a word of advice didn't cost me much. I found out first hand how people could treat others. After a quick look around the room, I headed back downstairs. "Thank you for letting me stay. I'll go out for a bit, and return for the dinner. I should be able to find my way back here", I said. "I'll be home, you go have fun", she replied from the kitchen.

My main objective before resting properly, was to scout the mansion. I decided to do it during the day, as the night would make me look more suspicious. I wasn't familiar with that village, therefore it was better for me to act during the day. 'Hopefully, Rand and others will be inside the mansion, not roaming the village', I thought.