As Elias and his group prepared to push open the door and leave the tavern, which was thick with the scent of sweat and alcohol...
The resident singer on stage, whose throat was practically parched, finally brought that seemingly endless Northland Epic to its conclusion.
He gave the strings of his lute a sharp sweep, his voice turning mournful and ethereal:
“Firelight warms the world of men, and so the stars return.”
“The maiden cried her eyes dry, then trod upon the wind and snow to reach the sky.”
“She became a pale orb of solitude, but found the heavens too high to see the peat fires on the ground.”
“So she went mad and flipped the entire night sky over!”
“So, children of the North, do not wish upon the stars.”
“Hang your iron lanterns upside down from the frozen eaves.”
“To give some light to the lovesick moon...”
...
The echoes lingered in the air.
So that was the origin of all those star lanterns hanging upside down in the streets.
As the final note faded, Elias pushed open the heavy oak doors of the tavern.
The cold night wind of Hope County rushed in.
It made those who had just stepped out of the sweltering tavern shudder involuntarily.
“Doesn’t that guy get tired?”
Elias popped the collar of his trench coat to block the wind while an existential question echoed in his mind.
That damn song went on for a full twenty minutes!
Is his lung capacity infinite?
“Ancient epics are just that long,” Old Ed replied lazily with a yawn from the depths of his mind.
“Back then, people didn't have much in the way of entertainment, so they had the patience to listen to the whole thing.”
“Anyway, watching you youngsters socialize is boring me to death.”
The old man complained shamelessly.
“Boring, my ass!” Elias retorted irritably.
“When I was drinking that pretentious prick George under the table earlier, you seemed to be enjoying the show quite a bit!”
“You were practically cheering from the sidelines!”
“Ahem.”
Old Ed gave a dry cough and quickly defended himself.
“We old folks with one foot in the grave only have a few hobbies left!”
“Fortunately, no matter how much time passes or how the era changes, the taste of alcohol and the fun it brings never change.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Elias muttered inwardly.
“And then there’s that blonde girl,” Old Ed added, his tone shifting to one of gossiping delight.
“I think she’s quite nice. She looks completely devoted to you.”
“Elias, haven’t you thought about... just settling down here in Hope County?”
“Oh?” Elias walked along the cobblestone road, responding with interest. “Are you saying I don’t need to haul your old bones all the way back to Arlington anymore?”
“Bullshit! I mean after you take me back!” Old Ed snapped.
“I don’t think we need to go to all that trouble.” A wicked smirk tugged at the corner of Elias’s mouth as he began to fire back in his mind. “Since you like this girl so much, it shows you two are fated. Why don’t the three of us just make it work? Making a life together is better than anything else.”
“Get lost!!!”
Old Ed was thoroughly disgusted by the suggestion.
Elias thought to himself that this was just the beginning. This old ghost who had never experienced the internet era still had a lot to learn about how to handle elders pressuring someone to get married.
Having successfully annoyed the old ghost in his head, he felt much better. Walking down the street, he began to observe the massive Great Torchlight Parade moving through the center of the road with renewed interest.
The procession was enormous, carrying a sense of frantic and mysterious religious frenzy. Many people within it were holding strange instruments he had never seen before.
Some resembled bagpipes and hurdy-gurdies from his previous life.
Behind the eerie and noisy musical troupe were four heavy-armored black draft horses pulling a massive iron brazier that looked like a small mountain.
Raging flames burned within the brazier, casting a light that made the entire street as bright as day. The scorching heat could be clearly felt even from a dozen meters away.
Surrounding the brazier was a group of performers dressed as ancient ancestors and various gods. They wore exaggerated masks and twisted their bodies wildly in the firelight.
While Elias was watching intently, he suddenly felt a gust of fragrant wind from behind.
Immediately after, a warm, soft body pressed against him without the slightest reservation.
“Hey! What are you looking at?”
A female voice, tinged with a hint of alcohol and heavy perfume, whispered in his ear.
It was Victoria!
The hair on Elias’s body stood on end instantly.
He stiffly raised his eyes and looked ahead.
Charlotte was walking in front, chatting and laughing with Mary, both of them holding caramel apples they had just bought.
Beside them, George was acting like a rooster in heat, desperately trying to get Charlotte’s attention.
Seeing this, Elias felt a massive headache coming on.
Just then!
He clearly saw Charlotte, in a gap between her conversation with Mary, steal a glance back at him through the crowd!
She definitely saw!
Elias was a hundred percent certain! And knowing his mischievous little sister, that smirking look of hers definitely meant: “Go for it, Brother! Take her down!”
Dammit! Is this what it’s like to be pushed into a fire pit by your own sister?!
“Ahem... the parade is quite lively every year!” Elias squeezed out a dry, utterly meaningless sentence.
It was the equivalent of blurting out “The weather sure is nice today” to break an awkward silence in his previous life.
In his mind, he was frantically chanting a golden rule: As long as I don’t take the initiative, she definitely won’t dare to make a move!
The problem was, he forgot that this wasn't the subtle culture of his past life. This was the Kingdom of Velen, where the people were bold and direct!
“Is it?”
Hearing this, Victoria didn’t back off; instead, her eyes lit up. Using the crowded street as cover, she boldly pressed even closer to Elias.
Her full chest was almost brushing against the edge of his trench coat. Her sapphire eyes shimmered in the firelight, looking like a siren ready to devour him.
Holy crap!
At this moment, Elias’s mind had completely lost its capacity for rational thought. All that remained was a voice screaming in his head:
“Begone! Begone! Begone!”
Accompanied by a roar of despair: “Don’t come any closer!!!”
Just as Elias was breaking into a sweat and desperately praying to the Moon Lord for anyone to save him, George, who was walking ahead, suddenly spoke up like an angel.
“Let’s try this!”
George’s excited voice sounded like heavenly music to Elias’s ears!
Elias immediately looked toward the sound.
Not far ahead of them was a street performance stall illuminated by steam lamps. The owner was a burly man with a large beard.
Beside him stood a machine over six feet tall. It was a complex mess of brass pipes, gears, and pressure gauges.
In the center of the machine was a heavy leather punching bag. Next to it was a striking, low-quality poster with large letters:
“Strongman Power Meter! One hit to the soul—prove your manhood!”
Wasn't this just one of those street machines where you punch it to measure your strength in kilograms?!
“I studied professional boxing for a while,” George said, standing before the machine and beginning to explain to the girls with an air of importance.
He rolled up the sleeves of his expensive suit, revealing the forearm muscles he considered solid. Of course, his burning gaze was fixed primarily on Charlotte.
“This kind of machine tests explosive power and instantaneous muscle contraction. You can’t get a high score on brute force alone.”
Everything about this kid’s words reeked of a humblebrag. Finally, George seemed to remember that he had just suffered a narrow defeat to Elias in their drinking contest.
Yes, a narrow defeat—at least, that was how he saw it. George stubbornly believed that if he wanted to win the favor of his sweetheart, he had to prove he was stronger than her brother. Otherwise, how could he take care of her?
He suddenly turned his head, looking at Elias with a hint of fanaticism in his eyes.
“Mr. Rockland. Why don’t we... have a little competition?”
To Elias, these words were a ray of salvation in the darkness! He seized the perfect opportunity while Victoria was distracted to slip away like an eel, instantly escaping her suffocating advance.
He stepped up to the machine, putting a safe distance between himself and Victoria.
The way he looked at George now was filled with a paternal sort of affection!
Good brother! To save me from this fire and water, you didn't hesitate to offer your own face for me to slap!
I’ll remember this kindness!
Thus, he made a merciful decision in his heart. For once, he wouldn't bother with the boring game of playing the pig to eat the tiger.
He was going to play the tiger and slaughter the sheep! All to repay Brother George for saving his life!
Elias’s lips curled into a wicked smile as he agreed readily.
“Sure!”
“It just so happens that Lottie said I’ve filled out quite a bit since I became a sailor.”
Rate on N.U.
