An Odd Commission and Old Friends

Roderick followed Gerard's instructions over the last few days to help bring life back to his plants, and gradually, they saw improvement.

"Hey, Roderick?" Gerard asked.

"Yes?"

"Who could I commission to make a rather unique item?"

"You might have to ask Scarlette, the blacksmith. She has contacts in Solares, and I wouldn't know the first thing about what you're asking."

"Thank you."

---

"So, you're the one who got their hands on my husband's sword!"

A redheaded woman burst through the door of the blacksmith's workshop.

"Scarlette, I presume?"

"You presume? You won't get far with me using educated words like that."

Scarlette grabbed Gerard in a headlock and laughed heartily.

"You are Scarlette, right?"

"The only one in this village! Named after the colour of my hair and the fire in my bones."

"How could your parents have..." Gerard sighed.

*If I thought Rena was headstrong, it seems she got it from her mother.*

Scarlette released Gerard from her grip.

"I've got a blueprint for something interesting I'd like you to look at. I'm told you've got contacts in Solares?"

"Why didn't you say so? Come on in!"

Scarlette grabbed his arm and pulled him inside.

*Truly. Like mother like daughter.*

Gerard stood before Scarlette and Rena in their workshop. He set down a sheet of parchment with a detailed order for a human-sized mannequin on the table in the centre of the room.

"It's a mannequin. It needs to be made of sturdy material that could handle combat situations if it came to it." Gerard stepped back from the table.

"There is someone who could make this..." Scarlette examined the document more closely.

"There is?!"

"But I'm afraid they don't come cheap. How much can you afford to spend?"

"Can you give me an estimate for how much I need?"

"I would say one platinum coin and twenty gold coins, at the very least."

"I can do that. Is there any chance you could get this commissioned, and I'll pay you back in a few days?"

"It will take more than just a few days to rework this design and hear back from my contact in Solares. It will also use up almost all of my current savings. Can I trust you?"

"You can, Mother! Gerard has been protecting the entire village!" Rena nodded energetically.

"Protecting?"

"Rena, stop. Scarlette, I promise you I will return. Hold on to your late husband's sword while I'm gone if you must."

"That's not necessary. Since you've convinced my daughter, I will put my trust in you as well. But if you break our trust, I'll hunt you down." Scarlette caressed the hammer at her waist.

*She has abnormal strength for being just a normal villager. She was the wife of a famous adventurer, so maybe there's more to her story.*

"Thank you. I will be back."

"I'll work on the blueprint for the mannequin before sending the order and money with our merchant. Our merchant will also require a five percent handling cost. Is that okay?"

"Of course. Everyone has to make their money, and I'm no artist or engineer; surely you know more than I do."

*There aren't a lot of technological advancements in this world, but I'm glad they still understand mathematics.*

Gerard bid them farewell, left the workshop and walked to the edge of the village. The miners tied the logs together with rope to form the protective walls around the village. Only two gaps remained; one at the entrance and one at the exit.

"Heading out?" Willam looked out into the distance and returned his gaze to Gerard.

"Just going to collect some money I left somewhere, and I'll return."

"Safe travels. You've done so much for us already; we'll make sure there's a place for you to return to."

"Thank you, Willam. One question, though."

"Of course. What do you need?"

Gerard looked at the rising sun and turned ninety degrees to the right.

"Do you know of a ruined city somewhere that way?" Gerard asked, pointing towards the horizon.

"South? Might you be talking about the ruined city of Oldergrah? Nothing but undead there, now."

"Sounds like the place. I'm looking for a village near those ruins. Can you point me in the right direction?"

"Of the ruins, sure. Just head south-southeast until you see a forest." Willam pointed in a general direction.

"Thank you. That's should be more than enough information."

Gerard pat Willam's back and started his journey.

*They'll be fine without me for a few days, right?*

[You've done all you can for them.]

*I suppose so.*

[It seems like your humanity is shining through more these days.]

*Shut it. Caring isn't a crime.*

[I never said it was. It's refreshing to see you care so much about others.]

*I don't feel I care as much as I did in my previous world.*

[Being half-vamypre will still dull your emotions somewhat.]

*One more question?*

[Go ahead.]

*Does the sun rise in the east and set in the west in this world as well?* Gerard scratched his head and smiled awkwardly.

[Yes.]

*Thank you.*

---

Three days after Gerard left Kilreath, he spotted a caravan with nearly two dozen people around three wagons. As the caravan approached, Gerard recognised two people walking in the front. Although older, Davik, the first person he compelled, and his wife, Martha, trudged forward.

Martha's body had become thin and malnourished, a stark difference from her once plump build and colourful complexion.

"Davik?" Gerard spoke up as they began to pass him.

"Who's that?"

Gerard pulled down his hood and smiled. He took a couple of steps toward his old friend, but the fierce look in Davik's eyes told him to stop.

Davik quickly took the sword from his belt and pointed it at Gerard.

"You! You killed many of my friends, our friends, that fateful night. Why? Why would you do that after we showed you so much hospitality?"

"It wasn't me. Bandits-"

"Yes, we discovered a couple of corpses back then. We assumed it was because of infighting."

"Well, that's not entirely false. But I didn't have anything to do with the attack on your village."

"For helping me in Solares, I'll let you go. We're even now, but I'll kill you if I see your face again." Davik lowered his sword and tapped the butt of the horse carrying the front-most wagon.

"Okay, okay. I don't know why you're all beaten up and leaving your village, but if you head north-northwest, there's another village that would accept you. They're good people, and I'll stay out of your way if you decide to settle there."

"We'll consider it. Maybe you'll have a chance to prove your innocence in the future."

"I'll do my best. Davik, Martha, good luck."

*What do you suppose forced them from their village?*

[Perhaps it has something to do with the increased monster activity as of late?]

*Well, we are heading there, so we'll find out soon enough.*

---

A few more days passed, and long before they arrived, smoke polluted the skies above. The wall around the village was completely destroyed, not by fire, but by blunt force.

*This doesn't look good.*

Gerard entered the village closest to the inn, stepping over shattered logs to do so. Beyond the first buildings, in the village square, piles of corpses emitted a stench, unlike anything Gerard had ever experienced. It took all of his willpower to keep his lunch down. Beyond the corpses, Gerard saw a black shadow appear, take a corpse, and then disappear.

*Demon?*

[I'm unsure.]

*We need to hurry.*

Gerard turned to the inn. Only half of it still stood, while the other half had become ashes. Gerard carefully climbed the stairs to the second floor, and the second-last step caved in, sending the rest of the staircase crashing down. Almost untouched by the fire, the hallway looked as he remembered it.

He took the sword from his waist and slashed through the lock before pulling the stairs down to enter the attic. The bedroll and lantern were no longer there, and more wooden boxes obscured the room, but within a minute, Gerard pried open the loose floorboard and his bag of coins, worn and eaten by rodents, sat just as he left it.

*Well, at least nobody found it.*

[Scarlette probably would have killed you if you couldn't pay her back, or you'd become her slave for the rest of your unlife.]

*Slaves exist here?*

[They're rare, but it's a binding magical contract that cannot be broken by the slave. Terrible magic, honestly.]

*I've got to figure out a way to become immune to that sort of magic at some point.*

[Are we going back now?]

*Yes. I don't want to deal with whatever killed all of those people and ran the rest from here.*

[Not even for the juicy experience?]

*You can't enjoy anything if you're dead.*

[Ah, you're growing.]

*I'm beginning to understand my limits; that's all. If I get injured here, there's a long journey back. I also need to eat and sleep now. I can't hunt or look after myself if I'm injured.*

[Yes. That's what I meant by growing.]

*Let's get back to Kilreath, then.*

Another dark shape moved from one pile of corpses to the next. Gerard silently left the village the same way he entered and ran once he was past the wall.