Chapter 13: Trouble with the guards!

Ron took Lucian into the middle of Dragonfront as per his request to show him the town.

Lucian had no idea just how big the place was and tried to make a mental note so he could remember where everything was.

"Alright, so that way is the market area. To the right will take us to the town centre and to the left... Well, best we don't go left for now." Ron said as he rubbed the back of his head.

Lucian nodded and decided to leave the questions till later.

"Alright, this way!" Ron shouted as he marched off through the crowds of people heading towards the town centre.

The streets were packed full of humans and other races. Elves and dwarfs mainly with only a small handful of beast-men.

The beastmen came in all sorts of shapes and sizes. However, they mainly resembled whatever animal they had evolved from. They just had more human tendencies.

The Elves seemed to hold themselves very high, walking around like they were better than everyone, while the dwarfs appeared to be very outgoing and loud.

Lucian pushed and squeezed through the crowds as he followed Ron into the large open town centre, where there was a lot more space to move around.

It reminded him of a vast market stall like something he had visited back on Earth. They were all over the place selling everything and anything.

Lucian could also see that shops lined the circular centre and had a range of almost everything.

"Impressed?" Ron said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Lucian nodded.

"I've never seen anything like it." He said.

"You'll get used to it. By the way, is there anything you need while we are here?" Ron asked.

"No, I think I'm all good for now," Lucian said, trying to think.

"Alright, well, I need a few things. Why don't you take a look around while I run some errands?" Ron said.

Lucian nodded.

"Yeah, sounds good." He said.

Ron gave him a wave as he turned around, heading off to start his tasks.

"Oh, and try not to get lost!" He shouted through the crowd.

Lucian watched as he disappeared into the mass of bodies and took another look around at everything.

His senses were going haywire as his ears picked up every sound around. His nose was also going crazy, from all the sweet smells of food to the nasty odours of human waste that ran beneath the streets in the sewers.

Suddenly little red popped her head out from Lucian's cloak and started pointing and chirping at one of the stalls.

Of course, it just so happened to be a food stall, and Lucian couldn't help but laugh.

"Hungry again?" He said, not surprised as little red climbed her way onto his shoulder.

Lucian noticed a few dirty looks he was getting from others, mainly humans, as he walked over to the stall.

It was an older man behind it and a young girl, most likely his daughter. Lucian could see they were preparing some sort of sweat smelling pastry.

"Hey, how much for two of those?" Lucian asked.

The girl looked Lucian up and down, feeling a little intimidated, especially when she clocked little red.

She didn't do well to hide her reaction, and suddenly, her father stepped in to take his order.

"Take five, Chenna." He said as he almost pushed her to the back.

"Please forgive her rudeness, sir. What can I get for you?" The older man said.

Lucian nodded to him.

"Please don't worry. I would like two of whatever these things are, please."

The older man smiled.

"Good choice, these are a special pigs meat deep-fried and wrapped in pastry. That will be ten copper coins." The vendor said.

Lucian nodded and pulled out his coin purse, and counted out ten copper coins. It turns out he had been given 80 coppers from Everkeep for saving the girls.

"Here you go," Lucian said as he handed over the money and took the food.

The shop keeper thanked him for his business.

"May I offer a word of advice, young adventurer." He also said, leaning a little closer.

"People around here don't like to see monsters on the streets. Some might take offence. I'd keep that little goblin hidden if I were you."

Lucian nodded and thanked him for his advice.

"I'll keep that in mind." He said, bidding him farewell.

Lucian handed little red her food and told her to stay hidden under his cloak as he tried to find somewhere to sit down so he could enjoy his food.

Lucian had managed to find a free bench that overlooked the town centre with a water fountain not far ahead of it.

It was a lovely hot day, and lots of children were playing in the water with their friends to keep cool. The town seemed very peaceful so far, and Lucian felt as if he could relax for a little bit.

"You there!" A voice suddenly barked, catching Lucian's attention.

He turned to see three armoured guards walking over towards him, each holding their spears in hand.

Lucian looked around and sadly realised they were talking to him.

The guards stopped in front of him and cleared his throat.

"Hey you, stand up when we address you!" The one in the middle said, clearly pissed off.

Lucian stood to his full height, towering over all three of them, making them step back a little, so they didn't have to strain their neck to look up at him.

"Can I help you?" Lucian asked, not sure what was going on.

The guards couldn't help notice his size and gear, deciding to change their tone with him a little.

"We have had reports that you have been wandering around with a goblin. Is that true?" The guard in the middle asked.

Lucian nodded.

"Yes, I'm sorry. Is there something wrong with that?" He asked.

The guards didn't look impressed, and Lucian could see them grip their spears a little tighter.

"I'm going to have to see some form of identification. As well as proof you are that goblins master."

Lucian nodded.

"Just give me a minute." He said as he started searching around for his ID crystal.

"Hey!" A voice suddenly shouted from a distance getting all of their attention.

"Is everything alright? What's going on here?"

It was Ron. He had arrived back just in time to see the guards bothering Lucian and decided to help.

"What's the problem here, officer?" Ron asked as he showed up to save the day.

"We have reports of this guy walking around with a goblin. I've asked to see his identification and proof of ownership of the goblin." The guard said, looking at Ron.

A small crowd of people had also stopped to see what was going on now, and the guards realised they would have to handle the situation agreeably.

Little red suddenly popped out of Lucian's cloak and handed him his ID crystal. She was still small, and the guards didn't show much of a reaction other than disgust.

"Here," Lucian said as he handed it over.

The guard looked at it and could see all of his details, also seeing he was a member of the adventures guild.

"I see. Thank you for your cooperation." He said, handing the crystal back to Lucian.

"However, I will still need to see proof that you own that goblin." The guard said.

"We were about to go and register it, sir," Ron said, thinking on his feet.

"The guards didn't look impressed, and the one in the middle shook his head.

"As adventures, you know full well what the law says about unlicensed monsters being on the streets. I'm afraid we will have to confiscate the goblin from you." He said, extending his arm towards little red.

Lucian quickly grabbed the guards forearm, stopping it dead.

"How dare you!" One of the other guards said as he went to raise his spear.

However, the guard in the middle raised his hand for him to stop.

"Now, now. We don't want any trouble. Just hand over the goblin, and we can call it even." He said with a wicked smirk on his face.

Ron was outraged too and quickly voiced it.

"We are adventures. We have a right to bring unlicensed monsters into town! You should learn the laws before you start trying to enforce them." Ron said, putting his hands on his hips.

The guards instantly flinched as they remembered the rule. But now that their pride had been hurt, the situation seemed as if it would not end well.

"That might be so. But now you have laid your hands on a member of his Lordships town guard. I'd reconsider your options." The guard said, his smile not leaving his pig face.

Lucian wasn't impressed at all and could tell right away that these guys were corrupt. The crowd around them was not muttering and whispering among themselves as they waited to see what would happen. If he wanted to avoid a fight, he had only one option left.

"I have a meeting with a friend of mine. His name is Lord Gilbert. He's the one who contacted me to bring this goblin here. I'm sure you wouldn't want to upset someone so important, now would you?" Lucian said.

Ron's ears pricked up, and he couldn't help but smile as he decided to go along with Lucian's plan.

"That's right. You know Lord Gilbert. He won't be very pleased when he finds out a member of the towns guard took a monster he had paid for away."

The guard to the leader's right started whispering into his friend's ear, and his eyes quickly opened wide.

"Lord Gilbert, you say..."

"Well, this time, we can make an exception. But you had better report right to his shop." He said as he took his arm back from Lucian's grasp.

"And don't let me catch you doing anything you shouldn't be!" He said, clearly pissed off.

Lucian smiled and watched as they walked away before he turned to Ron.

"Man, those guys were pricks! That was smart there, thinking on your feet like that!" Ron said as he punched Lucian's shoulder.

The crowd also disappeared as everything calmed down, leaving Lucian and Ron to their own business.

"I wasn't sure if it would work," Lucian said.

He couldn't help think just who this Gilly or Lord Gilbert really was now that his name had had such an effect.

"Well, we had better get you and little red to his shop, come on. It's not far from here," Ron said as he lead the way.

Lucian nodded, and the two of them set off, heading through the town centre towards the monster shop.