An Interesting Encounter

Isaac usually loved his morning as he wakes up in his cottage and have his favourite brew of coffee.

But for some reason, today felt different.

Isaac exited his home to see his lovely hometown, a small village a few kilometers outside the walls of Leadun Kingdom. The kingdom itself is one of many within the Sovereign Empire, the biggest faction in the world.

When he stepped outside of his house, a merchant cart was being pulled by a horse passed by in front of him.

"Morning sir!" The merchant waved as he passed. Isaac just waved back with a smile. The Leadun Kingdom was a popular place for commerce, so people and merchants frequented the place a lot.

And since Rost Village, the village that Isaac's living in, is close to the kingdom, merchants visited here a lot for temporary and cheaper accomodation. So the atmopshere in Rost very rarely gets old, because of all the new people he meets.

Isaac strapped on his toolbelt and went about to the village and its rocky path. He had a reputation of being the village's handyman and people often look for him to get things fixed. He had no talent for farming nor fishing, but he had a knack for fixing things until they work.

He turned a few corners and greeted a few passing villagers before he arrived at the local tavern. The place where everything happens.

Despite being early in the morning, the tavern was almost full. It gets crowded at night, so the scene came as a surprise. Maybe it had something to do with the festival in Leadun, but Isaac wasn't complaining.

The rustic design never gets old. Wooden floorboards that creaked with every step, old stone walls that looks weathered, and lanterns that has seen better days.

Despite that, the place holds strong, even with the lodging on the second floor.

Isaac sat on one of the wooden stools and leaned against the counter. "Hey, Big Bob."

Big Bob was the bartender of the place. He was bald, has a scruffy beard, and a figure that could snap a person in half. If Big Bob wanted to, he could probably join the Sovereign Knights because of his strength. But instead, he chose to be a bartender. No one knew why, but no one cared. Big Bob was a nice guy, and people weren't really keen on making the big dude angry.

Because if that happens, no one is going to serve them drinks again.

"There's my favourite customer." Big Bob grinned.

Isaac rolled his eyes. "You say that to everyone."

"Yeah, but I only mean it to you." Big Bob winked. "So, the usual?"

"You know me."

"Gotcha." Big Bob said. "One White Root Ale, coming up!"

Despite his massive hands, Big Bob handled drinks well, even though he could crush the bottles with one hand. Within minutes, his drink was ready. A milky white drink that smelled like lemons. As Isaac gulped it down, he felt the familiar sourness of White Root, pounding at his taste buds before settling down.

"That hits the spot." Isaac sighed in satisfaction.

"I swear, only you drink White Root." Big Bob said.

"Cause it's good for you." Isaac said. "You got anything for me?"

The local tavern is often the most social place in any village or town. Naturally, it's also the place where tons of information flow in and out of. As the bartender, Big Bob often hears news from other people and from the villagers.

If there's someone who knows anything about their town, it's the bartender.

"Some outsiders at the outskirts of the village." Big Bob said. "Came in last night and wanted a place to stay. I was fully booked, so I sent them to the old house at the edge of the village."

"That doesn't seem safe." Isaac said.

"Hey, they needed a roof and I gave them one. Plus, I didn't even charge them."

"That's fair, I guess?" Isaac doubted that it was fair considering the old house could collapse on them at any moment.

"I want you to check up on them. The house is pretty banged up and I don't want to have any outsiders show up dead in our village." Big Bob said. "We don't want another Relia Incident."

The Relia Incident was something that happened in their village a few years ago, when a prince mysteriously died when staying in their village. Needless to say, the whole kingdom suspected someone from the village to be the murderer which led to uncomfortable situations with the Sovereign Empire.

"Fine. I'll check up on them." Isaac sipped his drink. "Anything I should know before going?"

Big Bob shrugged. "Word is they're from Nastaya." He said in a whisper. "Can't tell for sure. They didn't talk much, but they're filthy rich."

"Royalty?"

Big Bob shook his head. "Too few guards. If I had to guess, they're probably from the Three Coins."

Isaac inhaled sharply through his teeth. "That's some serious heat."

"Yeah. Better be quick with your work then." Big Bob said. Isaac gulped down the last drop of his drink before tossing a gold coin to Big Bob as payment. He waved the bartender goodbye before heading out of the tavern.

Isaac made his way to the edge of the village, where the scenery changed from a village to a farmland. Acres of land here are tilled and planted with crops. Plenty for sustaining the village and enough to get them through winter, which is coming soon.

Here, the houses are fewer and more spread out because most of the land are tilled. As he greeted some passing farmers, he spotted his destination. A small abandoned house made out of stones and straws. It's not as if it's not livable, but it could be better

Outside, tied to a post, were two horses. From that, Isaac knew that these people were important. Because normal horses wouldn't have armor and banners on their backs, carrying the Sovereign Empire's colors and insignia.

Isaac cursed under his breath. If it was just someone from Leadun or the Three Coins, Isaac wouldn't have had much trouble. But someone from the Sovereign Empire can't be handled recklessly.

Unless you want the whole Empire as an enemy.

Plus, nobilities and royalties from the Empire are . . . difficult people. It's kinda hard the empathize with people when they think they're a descendant of God.

Isaac made his way to the abandoned house and knocked on the door. Instantly, it swung open and Isaac found himself staring at the tip of a blade.

"Who are you?" The knight in front of him growled. At least, Isaac assumed he was a knight. His silver armor glinted in the sunlight. He looked big enough to wrestle a bear. His face showed caution instead of anger. His brown hair gave out a warm color thanks to the sun, as his blue eyes glared onto Isaac.

Behind him, were two figures draped in black hooded cloak. Isaac couldn't see anything under their garments, save for the unmistakable fancy dress. One of them was wearing what looked like a wedding dress underneath and the other was wearing a black and white outfit with frills all over the dress.

A castle maid, if Isaac had to guess.

"I'm, uh, Isaac, the village handyman." Isaac managed. He found it to be difficult to talk when there's something sharp being pointed at him. "Big Bob asked me to check up on you guys and the old house."

The knight looked wary, but the hooded figure behind him gently put their hand on his shoulder. "It's fine." The figure said with a female voice.

The knight looked wary, but he lowered his weapon. The woman who spoke previously stepped in front. "Thank you, for your hospitality. The place is a little bit run down, but not so much so it's unlivable."

"Ah, great!" Isaac managed a nervous smile. Anything to keep the big fella from pointing his sword at him again. "Well, you can just call me if you need anything. I'll be happy to help, uh, milady." Isaac bowed slightly.

The woman chuckled. "You noticed?"

"Well, you look like you're from royalty, and he looks like a knight. It's not hard to put two and two together." Isaac knew that they were from royalty, but he just didn't know which royal family.

"Seemingly so." The woman said. "I would appreciate it if you could keep it a secret, since I don't want people to come snooping around."

"Oh, don't worry. No one will know." Isaac said again with a nervous smile. "Well, I'll leave you to it. Have a good day." Isaac was about to leave when he saw the cavalry of horses charging into the village.

Above them, their gold and black banner flapped violently against the wind.

It was hard to see, but the vertical sword over shield insignia was unmistakable. Isaac was very familiar with that crest. It was the same one he saw on the horses outside.

The Sovereign Empire.

"Shit." The knight cursed. "They've caught up to us."