4 Chapter 4: The Explorer and the Burnt Wine Inn_1

By this time, the sky had darkened, and Ivita couldn't tell exactly what time it was.

Since there were no watches or clocks, Ivita couldn't be sure of the exact hour.

But then again, most people of this time couldn't either, only being able to judge by the sun whether it was morning, afternoon, evening, or night.

Ivita glanced at the old witch and found her to be very old indeed, far older than he had anticipated anyone could live.

Over two hundred years old, yet still spry and ambitious.

This made him even more eager to learn magic.

As the three of them trod through the forest, they stumbled upon a four-story wooden house, its rooms aglow with light and a wonky signboard hanging from its rooftop.

[Burnt Wine Inn]

Upon seeing the light, the Black Wolf, accustomed to danger, reflexively unsheathed his great sword. But upon realising it was an inn, his features relaxed.

"Phew, finally we can rest for a bit."

The old witch's eyes also lit up. "Your Majesty, we can conduct the ritual there."

"It will be relatively safe."

She had been eager to confirm Ivita's identity all along.

Witches are both suspicious and cruel.

Baffled, Ivita wondered, "Why would anyone build an inn in the middle of a dense forest instead of along a major road?"

"Wouldn't that mean missing out on most potential patrons?"

The Black Wolf hacked through obstructing undergrowth with the back of his sword. "Ah, your Highness, you really sound naive, as if you haven't spent much time in the outside world."

The old witch stiffened at his comments, glancing apprehensively at Ivita.

The Black Wolf continued, "The owners of these sorts of establishments prefer to cater to a more... unique clientele, separate from ordinary folk."

"Inns like these are for adventurers."

"There isn't much land left for distribution among the kingdoms. Thus, many nobles and capitalists' sons become adventurers, seeking opportunities, serving as mercenaries and bandits in various regions."

"So, over time, there has developed a full range of facilities to cater specifically to these adventurers."

"Inns situated deep within forests, away from the main thoroughfares, are one such example."

Although Ivita only half-understood what he was saying, according to his predecessor's memory, the rebels and imperial guard that overthrew his kingdom had hired quite a few adventurers.

These adventurers, like bandits, wreak havoc over the Black Forest. Wherever they go, they don't tend to leave prosperous towns behind.

In fact, many towns have been sustained with a professional patrol team to fend off these wandering adventurers.

Ivita recalled that in his previous world's Middle Ages, there were many examples of such wandering adventurers either seizing territories or even whole kingdoms.

The most famous would be the Normans from Duchy of Normandy and the Seven Kingdoms of England, and the House of Auterville from the Kingdom of Sicily and Antioch Country.

Presumably, the adventurers of this world also belonged to such dangerous factions.

The three knocked at the door of the inn, and an old man, bent with age and face hidden by a dark hood, opened it. "How many rooms?" he asked brusquely.

"Need food?"

The Black Wolf replied casually, "Get me a beef stew, heavy on the rosemary and centaurium, and add a slice of lemon and a touch of wine for seasoning. Plus your cheapest wine."

"We will need three rooms for a night."

Seeing the witch and Ivita had no intention of ordering anything, the old man gruffly stated, "Three beds, six pennies. Three separate rooms, three pennies. Three cupboards, three pennies."

"Hot water for bathing and drinking, three pennies."

"Hay for the cattle, two pennies."

"With the meal you've ordered, four pennies."

"In total, twenty-one pennies!"

The old hunchback paused before adding, "Of course, you also have the option of paying one shilling and nine pennies."

The Black Wolf looked speechless. "Why do we need to pay for the beds, cupboards, and hot water separately when we've already rented the rooms?"

The hunchback remained unflustered, sounding as monotonous as a robot, "Those are the rules of our establishment. You are free not to pay and then spend the night outside in the freezing cold."

The Black Wolf rolled his eyes. "I spend about the same for my armor maintenance."

"Your inn is indeed very expensive."

The old hunchback remained as impassive as ever, while the patrons inside could be heard jeering.

Ivita turned to the hunchback and proposed, "In that case, sir, we shall not require a bed or a cupboard in the rooms that we book."

"Could we trouble you to have them removed from our rooms?"

"We won't be needing the services of a bed or a cupboard, nor will we be needing hot water."

The hunchback was taken aback. "But…"

The inn's patrons fell silent, for they had never encountered anyone so miserly and shamelessly frugal.

The hunchbacked old man wrinkled his brow. "Is that possible?"

Ivita nodded naturally and said, "Hmm, first of all, all three of us hate hot water, beds, and cabinets."

"If these services are provided to us, it would actually be detrimental to our interests."

The hunchbacked old man seemed to still be considering when someone behind him said: "Fine, that's acceptable, I agree."

"Camel, help our guests lead the cattle to the stable and give them some ordinary-quality feed."

"Please come in, guests."

"In that case, you'll only need to pay 9 pennies."

The speaker was probably the inn's owner, his face adorned with a scar running down half of it, looking quite fierce.

He stood behind the wooden bar, poured three cups of wine and called over a human woman dressed in a bikini and bunny ears who then brought the drinks over.

"This is my gift to you, free of charge."

"I hope you have a pleasant evening at our establishment."

"Dusser, take the guests to their rooms."

Black Wolf took the glass of wine that was handed to him and quaffed it in one go, wasting no opportunity to drink.

He pulled out money from his pocket and handed it to the waitress, then said to Ivita, "Your Highness, this should be charged to your account, I paid first for you."

"Also, you should compensate me for the weapons I lost when I protected you during the previous battle."

"But congratulations, Your Highness, you've just saved 12 pennies."

Ivita smiled awkwardly, fine then, she made a mental note of the debt she owed him.

How did the saying go again? If you owe someone a considerable amount of money, you become their god.

If she were to die, Black Wolf would never get the money he was owed.

As they walked past the wooden bar, Ivita thanked the bar owner, who returned the courtesy.

The adventurers in the inn were all looking at the owner in surprise.

When Ivita and the others had ascended, the guests raised their glasses and turned to question the inn owner.

"Cold-blooded Rayli, this isn't your style, you've never allowed this kind of behavior before!"

"There are no beautiful women among them! What's happening? Are you drunk?"

"Is cold-blooded Rayli trying to change his nickname? To dumb-ass Rayli? Hahaha…"

Rayli glanced at them indifferently. "Go drink your wine, you're all completely clueless."

"Those three who just came in, never mind the young kid, the two accompanying him have quite the reputation."

"That black-haired Demon Hunter is the renowned Black Wolf, who reportedly wiped out all his comrades in a dispute over loot at Fort Regen."

"That old woman, from my observations, should be the Great Witch of the Hearthstone Castle."

"I've got no intention of messing with these characters."

All the patrons were stunned.

One of them even dropped his wine glass without noticing and murmured with a horrified expression, "The Witch of Hearthstone Castle, she has a terrible reputation, countless people have died at her hands."

"We...we were so close to her just now."

A burly man beside him chuckled and looked at him. "So small-hearted, why are you even an adventurer. But I also didn't expect that we would be so close to these two important figures."

By the time the old witch, who had terrified a bunch of adventurers downstairs, was spreading a map out in front of Ivita.

"Your Majesty, we can commence the ritual."

"However, this ritual cannot be performed in the physical world, so we need to perform some steps."

"Moreover, the ritual will be quite lengthy and must not be disturbed."

Ivita said, "Let Black Wolf protect us."

"In case of accidents—I'm a bit uneasy about your Demon Hunter bodyguard, his ability seems somewhat inadequate."

The old witch thought back to how the previous Ivita had died at her hands.

She didn't trust Black Wolf.

To her, this Demon Hunter had a dark past.

The old witch said, "Your Majesty, I should ensure your safety."

Ivita furrowed his brow. "But don't you still have to perform the ritual for me? If so, how can you do two things at the same time?"

The old witch raised her remaining left hand to her chin, then forcefully pulled it, with a 'crack', her head separated from her body.

Holding her own head in her left arm, her body stood upright, and said, "Your Majesty, I only need my head to conduct the ritual."

"My body can guard our surroundings."

"This is to prevent the Wild Boar Knights from tracking us down."