Unexpected Guest

"Frieren? Why would she come here looking for me? And how does she even know my name?"

A series of question marks popped up in Galan's mind, making his brain short-circuit for a moment.

He was still somewhat dazed by this sudden encounter. Although he indeed had the thought of wanting to meet her, this was just too coincidental; and by the way, had her travels run all the way here over all these years?

"Yo, Frieren...? Isn't she that elven mage from the Hero Party? Little bro, you really are famous! Even such a big shot came to find you."

Although Glenn was already drunk, he still reacted upon hearing Frieren's name, swaying as he raised his goblet to signal at him.

"How would I know..."

His head grew increasingly clear, and he began to ponder her intent in coming to find him.

The few middle-aged men at the door looked around after hearing Frieren's question, and finally locked their gaze onto Galan and Glenn's table.

"Hey, Galan is right over there."

An uncle who was a bit drunk from drinking casually pointed a finger, indicating Galan's location to Frieren, and then immersed himself back into his drinking session with others without recognizing her.

The tavern was bustling with noise, and everyone barely noticed Frieren's arrival, perhaps because she suppressed her mana year-round and reduced her own presence.

Yet this was also why she had been able to fool so many demons and earned the moniker [Frieren the Slayer].

"Truly an excellent mage... hic..."

Glenn let out a drunken hiccup and looked past Galan toward Frieren.

"Her presence is actually so low; if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'm afraid I wouldn't have noticed even if she walked right past me."

Indeed, when Galan looked toward Frieren, it was also difficult to sense any mana reaction from her.

Under Flamme's guidance, she had indeed become a self-sufficient mage, and after a long period of seclusion, she joined the Hero Party and left her great achievements in history.

Everything Flamme had entrusted to her, Frieren had accomplished.

"You are Galan?"

She walked toward the two of them, and after looking him over carefully, she spoke to Galan.

"It's me,"

Galan also turned back, with a calm expression, neither humble nor pushy as he replied.

To be honest, he was still somewhat nervous; after all, talking face-to-face with such a big shot for the first time, inexplicably, he even had the déjà vu feeling of chasing a star in real life.

"I wonder what business Frieren-dLord has with me?" -> "I wonder what business Lord Frieren has with me?"

"You know me?"

Frieren was slightly surprised.

"Hey hey, it's pretty hard not to know Frieren, the mage from the Hero Party, right? After all, you're the great hero who subjugated the Demon King."

Galan said with a helpless expression.

"Is that so, well, I suppose."

She replied flatly, seeming not to care much about the matter of defeating the Demon King.

"I'd like to buy some Wolf-Tail Grass from you... I've been studying a grimoire recently, and the spell incantations and magic arrays in it need some Wolf-Tail Grass as a catalyst, but I searched the whole city and only found one place selling it, and that happened to be you."

She pointed at the bag of Wolf-Tail Grass that Galan had placed on the table—he had originally planned to buy it back to use in concocting buff potions—this herb had a mild and nourishing medicinal nature, acting as a universal substitute in various formulas, and serving as a cheap alternative to many expensive and rare medicinal ingredients.

After all, if innate talent wasn't enough, technology had to make up for it; perhaps medicinal assistance was also a major magic weapon on a warrior's path of cultivation, although no one had any related records, Galan still wanted to try the feasibility of this path.

"Mm... I can sell just a little bit, since I still plan to use some to refine cultivation potions."

Saying it like this felt weird; Galan always felt that the path he was walking didn't seem like that of a proper warrior, but rather more like... immortal cultivation...?

"Oh, after all, you are a apothecary."

"You know this too?"

"Apothecary Galan's fame is so big in Rogley, I suppose it would be hard not to know, right?"

Looking at Galan, who had been turned the tables on, Frieren seemed somewhat smug, akimbo with the corners of her mouth slightly upturned.

Clearly older than Lia, how come she felt more like a child... Galan smacked his lips, feeling a nameless sense of emotion.

"Oh oh! Our little bro Galan is just that famous."

Behind him, Glenn was still acting crazy from alcohol over there, with two empty barrels knocked over beside his hand, and a small amount of liquor slowly flowing out from them like a narrow golden stream, dripping point by point from the edge of the table.

"Hey, how did you drink mine up too! And don't get this drunk, don't tell me I'll have to carry you home later!"

Glenn was dead drunk, and as a result, Galan really had to drag him back himself in the end.

A man close to one meter ninety tall, even though he wasn't wearing armor, that weight of nearly a hundred and ninety catties pressed onto Galan. Walking from the south of the city to the north, and then putting him on his own bed, still left Galan a bit out of breath from exhaustion.

"Oh mom, damn you, you promised to treat me to drinks and yet I still have to clean up your mess."

Galan cursed and swore as he took off Glenn's long boots, only to be kicked flying away by a foot from Glenn, who was sleeping soundly.

"Forget it, forget it, you bastard did this on purpose, right."

Listening to the snoring inside the house growing louder and louder, Galan covered his face reeking of stinky feet and walked out with full grievances.

"Why is there a smell on your face..."

Seeing Galan walk out from the room, Frieren, who had been waiting outside, suddenly pinched her nose and stepped back two steps with a disgusted look, which made Galan's heart even more broken.

Are you guys all this hurtful one by one?

Does it turn out that the only one getting hurt in the end is me?

"You'll have to ask the one inside."

"Buying half your Wolf-Tail Grass... hmm... how about forty copper coins?"

"Forty-five."

"Forty-one..."

Looking at Frieren before him, although he already had some understanding of her stinginess beforehand, seeing it in person still made him surprised at her penny-pinching when doing business.

"I have to make a bit of a profit, after all, you're the one begging me to sell it to you..."

"Mm..."

Seeing Frieren still trapped in deep thought, Galan didn't want to deadlock with her anymore either.

After all, from a certain aspect, he could be considered to be "chasing a star in real life", so he might as well give his idol a little discount.

"Forget it, forty-one then... What bad luck today..."

He had clearly been happily invited out by Glenn to drink, but in the end he didn't even get to drink to his heart's content, and the medicinal herbs he bought had half of them plucked away halfway by someone else—who wouldn't feel miserable?

"Oh oh, you really are a good person."

"Can you stop handing out cards randomly..."

Hearing that Galan was willing to sell at her price, Frieren couldn't help but reveal a look of pleasant surprise.

It seemed such a long journey had cost her a lot of money; if her budget had been sufficient, she probably wouldn't have haggled with him over these one or two copper coins.

Looking at Frieren examining the medicinal herbs before him, Galan thought to himself.