I picked my jaw back up from the floor. “Thanks for the advice. But why even tell me about your competition?”
“It’s simple, really,” the man said. “Many can’t afford the comforts of our lodgings on their first night. But after they earn coin hunting the monsters of Galia, many of those same people return. Think of it as a show of kindness with an ulterior motive. In any case, I look forward to seeing you again in the future.”
“I see.”
This man was quite the salesperson. He didn’t brush people off because they didn’t have the money; he enticed them into a potential future sale. Very smart. It seemed the people of Babylon approached things differently from what I was familiar with.
“Thank you for the information,” I said. “Until next time.”
“We humbly await your return.” The man bowed deeply as I left.
I continued west. As I proceeded deeper into the district, the city changed before my eyes. The magnificent red-brick lodgings faded into dilapidated, older white-brick buildings, dirtied and darkened with time. These inns didn’t have the money to invest in renovations, which required deliveries from outside Galia and were therefore expensive. All in all, the farther west you traveled, the lower the prestige of the lodging.
Currently, I only had four gold and thirty silver to my name. Once upon a time, I’d had more than forty gold coins, but I’d lost most of them traveling with Myne. It felt like my savings were practically vanishing from my coin purse. I’d spent them all way too carelessly. From now on, I’d have to be more cautious.
Eventually I found myself standing before a collection of inns cobbled together from fractured bricks. Where do I even start? These all look the same…
A woman’s voice roused me from my thoughts. “You there, young man! You seem like you’re looking for a place to stay, aren’t you?”
A lively woman, about middle-aged, walked toward me with a hearty, full-throated laugh.
“I am,” I said.
“I thought as much. Stay at my inn. I’ll make it cheap. Well, how about it?”
“How much is cheap?”
“Fifty silver a night!”
Hm…
When I considered that the prices in Babylon were about five times what I was accustomed to, that didn’t seem like a bad deal. Now that I didn’t have to worry about Myne eating all my money, I could fill my coin purse back up as soon as I started hunting again. Plus, I liked this landlady’s frank, straightforward attitude.
“Okay, you’ve got yourself a deal,” I said.
“You haven’t even seen the inn yet!” The woman laughed. “You sure?”
However, I’d seen the food the woman carried—I’d scanned her basket with my Identify skill, and I knew it was all fresh. That made me sure of my decision. Anyone with an eye for ingredients knew their way around preparing them.
“I am,” I said. “But I’d appreciate it if you could get me a meal as soon as possible.”
“You got it!” the landlady replied cheerfully. “Follow me.”
I kept up with her easily. “Let me carry some of that for you.”
“Oh, really? Thanks! But don’t expect any discounts!”
“That’s okay. All I really want is to get some food in me soon.”
The woman laughed again. “In that case, I’ll cook up the best feast I can!”
I really couldn’t wait. My stomach felt no different. It was right there with me, on the verge of grumbling with familiar hunger.
Then it really did growl in impatience.
“Wow, you aren’t kidding, are you? Want to eat this bread on the way?” The landlady offered me a loaf.
“Are you sure?”
She nodded. “I’ll add it to your tab. You’ll pay for it later.”
She was pretty shrewd, but I didn’t have a reason to refuse. I took the bread. It was warm and freshly baked. With the first bite, my mouth filled with the sweet, delicious taste of rye. The flavor quietly washed away my exhaustion.
“This is delicious,” I said around my mouthful of rye bread. “I’ve never had anything like it.”
“I’m glad you like it. My little sister makes it. Stay at my inn, and you can eat your fill of that and much more!”
“I have to say, I’m intrigued.”
“Us small-timers can’t wow you with the fancy facades of those bougie joints. We have to make the service really count. Ah, here we are. Welcome to my inn!”
The exterior was about what I expected, just an old sign hanging in front of a building of cracking, fractured bricks. The ancient structure had crumbled over many long years, and I couldn’t say it looked appealing, even if I wanted to.
Still, it only looked like that from the outside. I walked in, excited. If a single piece of bread had brought me such delight, what other joys did I have to look forward to?
Chapter 3:
Where Wild Things Gather
THE FOLLOWING MORNING, I woke with a yawn to the chirping of birds. The landlady had prepared me a welcome dinner, and I’d had more to drink than I expected. Those drinks went on my tab, of course, meaning my wallet was in serious trouble. I’d have to start monster hunting right away if I wanted to spend another night at this inn.
Over dinner, the landlady had told me about her past. Her husband had died and left her to raise three kids alone. Her eldest son, now an adult, worked as a mercenary here in Babylon, while her two daughters were fourteen and eight and growing up quickly. Her daughters ate together with us as the landlady talked. However, they were shy and quiet. They didn’t speak to me, and they barely replied when I tried talking to them. It was almost like they weren’t there at all.
I yawned again, got out of bed, and started getting dressed. Then came a knock at the door. It was meek, so it couldn’t be the landlady. Probably one of her daughters. I put my skull mask on and gave the okay. The door opened gently.
“Good morning, Mr. Fate.” It was the landlady’s eldest daughter.
“Morning,” I said.
“Breakfast is ready. Please head to the dining room.”
“Okay, got it. Thanks.”
The girl couldn’t shut the door fast enough. Her face had gone red, too. I wondered what had happened—and then I realized. I was still in the middle of changing. Being half-asleep when she’d knocked, I hadn’t even put my shirt on. It was so careless of me to do that to a fourteen-year-old. I had to find her and apologize.
The truth of the matter was that my clothes were in bad shape. They’d been with me all the way from Seifort and suffered countless battles, so I shouldn’t have been surprised that I’d worn them out. However, the real damage had come from the fight against the chimera. That beast’s blue fireballs had done a number on my armor. I sighed and picked up the black sword Greed from his resting place against the wall.
“No saving these,” I said. “I’m going to have to buy some new threads.”
Greed responded with an arrogant laugh. “You’re an embarrassment to the blade you wield,” he said. “Now get out there and make us some money! And while you’re at it, buy me a new scabbard.”
“The scabbard’s all you care about, huh?”
“Obviously!”
Greed responded in his usual flippant manner, but he did have a point. His scabbard had taken a beating, and it was just as shabby as the rest of my gear. I could still use it, but it seemed about time for an upgrade. New equipment would mark the start of our new adventure.
However, to buy that equipment, I needed money. I made mental calculations through my light hangover—the lodging fees, the new armor, the new scabbard—and realized I needed to start hunting no later than today.
“First things first, though,” I said. “Let’s get some food.”
Greed grunted approval. I attached the sword to my belt and exited my room. Out in the corridor, the landlady’s youngest daughter stared at me with suspicion in her eyes.
“You…” she said, “you…you talk to your sword…
”
She backed away from me step by step.
Great. I bet I looked like a crazy, talks-to-his-weapons weirdo. I have to fix this misunderstanding!
As I approached the girl, intending to explain, she backed away again. As I moved, so did she, always maintaining the same distance between us. Abruptly, she burst into tears.
“Mama!” she cried.
The girl bolted down the hall in search of the landlady’s protection. I had really hoped I could stay here for a while, but if I ruined my relationships with the family bright and early on my second day, I had no hope.
Greed burst into a high-pitched cackle. “Did you see that? They hate you, Fate!”
“And whose fault do you think that is?!”
“I can tell you for certain, not mine.”
“What?! It was all your fault!”
Wait, Fate. Wait, I thought. Any more of this talking to your sword, and you’ll only attract more suspicion!
I glanced down the corridor and, to my chagrin, found the landlady’s older daughter staring at me. I saw in her eyes that she’d developed entirely the wrong idea. She was convinced I was dangerous. Untrustworthy. First, I’d bared my naked chest to her, and now I was muttering at my sword again! At the very least, I had to say something to try and salvage my reputation with this family.
“It’s not what it looks like,” I said quickly. “This sword, it, uh, has a soul…”
“I’ve never heard of a sword with a soul before,” the older daughter said.
It seemed that, like her mother, she had a way of cutting right to the point. No ordinary person would believe Greed’s existence possible, or that I regularly used Telepathy to converse with him, no matter what I said. So long as I stayed at this inn, I had to accept that I would be “that creep who mutters at his weapon.”
Still, I wanted to clear up at least one of these misunderstandings while I still had the chance. “Anyway, I’m sorry about before,” I said.
“What do you mean?”
“Next time I answer the door, I promise I’ll be fully clothed.”
“Oh. I…that, uh…I, um…” The girl suddenly stumbled over her words.
I tilted my head in confusion just as the landlady arrived. “What’s going on here? All the other lodgers have already eaten, you know.”
She’d come to find me when I didn’t show up. I explained the situation, apologizing for putting her daughter in such an awkward position.
To my surprise, the landlady flashed a smug look at the girl. “Well, well. You never usually open a customer’s door for such a reason. What’s all this about?”
“Mama…I…that…”
The girl was again at a loss for words. She dashed off, red-faced, for the dining room. I scratched my jaw in confusion. I hoped everything was okay.
“Sorry about that,” said the landlady.
“Huh?”
“Goodness. I guess she’s really that age already, huh? They grow up so fast!” The landlady nodded and chuckled to herself as she pushed me toward the dining room. Then she leaned in and whispered in my ear. “By the way, she helped you back to your room last night. You know, when you were so drunk that you couldn’t walk straight? Anyway, when she did, she saw what you look like under that mask of yours.”
“What?!”
You must be joking… I haven’t even been here for a whole day, and already somebody’s seen my real face?! Ugh.
More than anything, I wanted to punch me from yesterday.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be just fine,” the landlady said. “As long as you’re a good customer, your secret is safe with us!”
“Uh, thanks…” I mumbled.
In other words, if I wanted to keep my secret safe, I wouldn’t be staying at any other inn. It really made me think; you don’t drink alcohol—alcohol drinks you. Then you lose control of yourself. Nothing good comes of the result.
The landlady grinned as I stood there, my shoulders slumped. “What’s done is done,” she said. “No use regretting the past! In any case, it’s time for breakfast!”
“Well, yeah, I guess you’re right. Let’s eat.”
“Then let’s get going already!”
“You don’t need to push me!”
“Come on! A little shove never hurt anybody!”
Even though the landlady was a bit pushy, there was something I liked about this inn. It had a warmth to it. I felt sure this was similar to the feeling I’d had with the family I’d nearly forgotten.
***
The landlady’s older daughter piled my plate high, and I ate until I was completely stuffed. Then I left the Residential Sector for the Merchant Sector to do a little pre-purchase scouting. I wanted to buy a lot of equipment, but I had to hold back until I had more funds.
The Merchant Sector was designed similarly to the Residential Sector. The prime real estate facing Babylon’s main street belonged to a collection of huge, grand shops lined up one after another, but as you went deeper, the grade of the shops dropped.
I had a feeling that in my present rags, I wouldn’t make it a step into any of the big shops before they threw me right back out. So back I went until I found a tailor’s shop, only to learn even simple tailored clothes were at least a gold coin apiece.
“Whoa! This is all so expensive.” The surprise slipped out of my throat before I could catch it.
“You lousy cheapskate!” said Greed, clearly annoyed with my naivety.
“Shut up,” I mumbled.
I could read the impatience in his tone: Quit the aimless wandering and go hunt some monsters! Earn us some real money!
I intended to do exactly that after I made my first purchases. Maybe I’d start with orcs.
As I wandered farther into the sector, I noticed a crowd and found myself drawn toward them. I expected to find them gathered around a stall or a shop selling rare merchandise, but instead, it turned out to be a saloon.
The saloon was by no means pretty or clean. The dirty red brick certainly told the story of the building’s history, but it was a stretch to say it had a rustic charm. From the outside, it looked about ready to go out of business. I couldn’t believe the dive had attracted such a crowd, especially this early in the morning.
Were people in this part of the city really bored or something? Did they all start drinking before lunch? That didn’t seem right. Everyone in Babylon dreamed of making it big. At this hour, adventurers were preparing for the hunt. Merchants were opening their shops.
Hm… So what makes a run-down place like this so appealing, then?
As I watched, the saloon’s doors opened and a young woman emerged. When she stepped out, exuberant voices shouted to her, excited, one after another.
She was beautiful. Certainly pretty enough to draw anyone’s gaze. Her face had just a hint of naivety. Her hair was a lustrous, shimmering blue, like flowing water. In fact, I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off her. Even putting my ordinary feelings aside, something compelled me to stare. It was a compulsion well outside of the ordinary.
Instinctively, I stepped away from the crowd. Apprehension rang in my head like an alarm. Unless that was the hangover. Don’t get closer.
“Ah, looks like you finally get it,” said Greed.
“Wait, do you mean—could she be…”
“I mean exactly that,” he replied. “You and she are two of a kind. You both bear Skills of Mortal Sin.”
I gulped, my mouth suddenly dry, and looked back over at the young woman with hair the color of a mountain stream. We’re the same?
The woman turned to me as if just noticing my gaze. In truth, I felt she’d been aware of me even before I noticed her.
She seemed to appraise me as she stepped out from her crowd of admirers. She smiled, and she spoke with a lovely charm that seemed to twine fingers around my soul.
“You, there. I’ve been waiting for you. I’m Eris. I’ve had my eye on you since Seifort. I knew you’d make your way to Babylon eventually, so I
arrived a little early and just waited for you to catch up.”
The woman beckoned me to enter the saloon.
Would I follow?
I supposed I might as well test my luck. Ever since meeting Myne, it had become clear to me that, regardless of our wishes, we who bore the Skills of Mortal Sin were drawn to each other.
Chapter 4:
The Guardian of Lust
THE SALOON WAS JUST SHY of opening its doors for business, and there wasn’t a customer in sight—only me and Eris. She took a seat at one of about twenty chairs surrounding a large, round table. She turned her sweet purple eyes to me with a smile.
“Are you…the owner of the place?” I asked.
“Oh, no. I just work here part-time in return for board. The owner is away purchasing supplies. By the way, he says he’s forty and still hasn’t been lucky in love, poor thing. He’s all in on looking for a wife, however.”
“I don’t need the details. Why were you waiting for me?”
I didn’t care about this absent barkeep’s life story. I’d come to get an answer to my question. I needed to know how she’d come to bear her Skill of Mortal Sin. However, Eris only tucked her long blue hair behind her ear and stood.
“There’s no need to rush,” she said, walking over to the bar. “We’ve only just met. Let’s toast to the occasion.”
She took two glasses from the shelf and filled them with wine. Judging by the label on the bottle, this wasn’t the cheap swill I was used to, but an extravagant, top-shelf vintage. Eris returned to the table with the two glasses in hand.
“Here,” she said. “I saved the bottle for this very day. Saved it a long time, just for you. I hope you’ll forgive me if the wine’s too old for your taste.”
“Thanks…”
“Take off your mask and drink.”
I did so; if she already knew about me, there wasn’t much point in pretending to be the adventurer Corpse.
There was something heavy and tragic in the expression on Eris’s face as she gazed at me, as if the wine were full of old memories. However, here she was, serving it to me on the day of our first meeting. What did this gesture mean? Confusion smothered me. Again, there was too much I just didn’t know.
Berserk of Gluttony Vol. 3 Page 2