Singer Town

"This is the Grimoire you wanted [the one that makes animals sleep more soundly]."

Zack smiled and took a thin, dusty purple book from the cupboard. He hadn't taken it out to read for many years and hadn't taken good care of it.

If Frieren hadn't mentioned the Grimoire that day, I would have completely forgotten about it.

He stretched out his wrinkled hands and gently wiped away all the dust.

He then handed it to Frieren, who looked on expectantly.

Is this really all you need?

Seeing Frieren accept the book, Zack still seemed a little guilty. After all, the group had not only helped him get rid of the monster parasitized by the [Chaos Flower], but also helped him fulfill his greatest wish of decades by eliminating his enemy.

This meant far more to him than a seemingly useless Grimoire. He was even willing to sell his entire farm to repay their kindness if they asked.

He now has no desires.

They didn't care about such material possessions.

"After all, the payment was agreed upon from the beginning, and we still have plenty of travel funds, so you don't need to worry about anything anymore."

Galan stepped forward and said he had seen through the old man's thoughts.

But I really don't have any desire for high compensation.

He didn't even mention that after selling off all of Zack's stockpiles from over the years, he had enough travel expenses to get the group all the way to the Royal Capital, and there might even be a considerable surplus.

Is that so?

Seeing that Galan was thinking of him, Zack simply smiled and then looked at Frieren, seemingly asking for her opinion.

"For me, this Grimoire is all I need."

A satisfied smile appeared on her face, as if she agreed with Galan's statement.

Seeing that everyone else was like this Zack sighed and didn't insist any further.

He pondered for a moment, as if remembering something, and walked back to his room. When he came out, he was holding a pair of gleaming, engraved silver rings. Galan examined them briefly. Although the craftsmanship of the silver rings wasn't particularly good, they weren't the kind of cheap, readily available items you could buy at a roadside stall.

It's obviously worth a lot of money.

"This is for you."

He stepped forward and placed the silver ring in Galan's hand, leaving Galan completely bewildered.

"This is...?""

He didn't quite understand what the old man meant.

Noticing the puzzled look on Galan's face, Zack grinned and said, "Hey! You, are you and that girl a couple?"

Seeing Galan suddenly seem a little lost, Zack also revealed a playful expression, a stark contrast to his previous demeanor. It seems that as people get older, they always develop a strange sense of gossip when they see the sweet moments between young people.

"Don't be shy, take it. It's not very valuable, but it should make her happy as a gift."

"This.

Seeing Zack's expression that left no room for refusal, Galan had no choice but to accept it.

Is it really that obvious?

Are the feelings between him and Lia so clear to outsiders?

He was completely baffled; he hadn't done anything overtly intimate so far...

"Galan!"

Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure out the reason, the door to the house was suddenly pushed open, and Lia rushed in from outside.

"Where did you go? I mean, I couldn't find you anywhere."

Seeing that Lia had been missing since morning, Galan was also a little curious.

"Hehe... I chatted with the old man about some flower-growing tips, and he told me to go to his flower shed and see if there were any flowers I liked, and just pick a few."

She pulled her hand out from behind her back, revealing a large bunch of golden Butterfly Orchids. "Grandpa Zack wasn't lying, they really are beautiful flowers! I even picked some for you."

Looking at the smiling Lia, he couldn't help but turn to look at Zack, who scratched his face sheepishly, seemingly having figured out the problem from before.

The old man stood calmly to the side, a slight smile playing on his lips as he looked at the two of them.

The deep nasolabial folds were also etched onto his face.

His expression was a mix of reminiscence and longing. "Zack, do you know what my favorite flower is?"

"Have no idea...

"You really don't know?"

"I really don't know... Is there a big difference between flowers? Are the only differences the colors?"

"You! You're punished by having to go and brush up on your knowledge of flowers!"

Next time, let's go check it out! "Let's go today!"

"Okay, okay, okay [Logue Town]"

Zack drove the carriage,

Before noon, he quickly dropped the three off outside town, waved to them, turned his horse around, and drove back towards the farm.

"It took us an extra day to get here."

"But in the very beginning, it was you, Frieren, who accepted this request."

Frieren nodded in agreement, dusted herself off, and looked up at the city.

Galan carried the suitcase, and Lia stood behind her.

A formidable barrier of greyish-black boulders stretched between the bricks, dark green moss creeping between the cracks. "I remember decades ago when I passed through here with Himmel, the walls weren't this thick..."

Frieren said thoughtfully, "It seems that the frequent appearances of Demons lately have caused considerable trouble for the people here."

At the foot of the city wall,

Two soldiers were standing at the door.

They carefully checked the identities of those who wanted to pass through here.

Please show me your identification.

After the person in front of her walked away, Frieren stepped forward and was sized up by the young guard. His gaze lingered on her long, pointed Elf ears for a long time, seemingly because it was the first time he had ever seen Elf.

A hint of surprise appeared on the guard's face.

"Hmm - is this okay?"

Hearing that she was asked to produce her identification, Frieren felt around in her pocket and pulled out a rusty piece of jewelry Staff of the Sage. "This is...?"

The guard looked at the pendant in Frieren's hand, momentarily confused.

"Frieren, what is this?"

Standing behind her, Lia curiously peeked over to Staff of the Sage in her hand. "You don't even know?"

"Hmm... I don't know much about human Mage organizations..."

Frieren looked at Lia with a surprised expression. She had assumed that Leah, being Elf herself, would surely know the origin of the pendant.

Hmm... speaking of which, when did I actually receive the Staff of the Sage?

She touched her chin thoughtfully, her memory of that period seeming somewhat hazy.

Having witnessed all of this, Galan clicked his tongue, marveling that even Lia didn't know the origins of the Staff of the Sage. Just how ancient was that?

In that case, the guards certainly wouldn't recognize him.

Sure enough, after a long silence, the young guard spoke to Frieren, "What is the meaning of this rusty piece of jewelry you took out?"

Seeing that the guard in front of her did not recognize the Staff of the Sage in her hand Frieren was somewhat embarrassed.

You didn't know?

This is the only thing I have that can prove I'm Mage...

"This is Staff of the Sage... You really didn't know?"

She still clung to a last glimmer of hope, looking at the guard with expectant eyes. But after a moment of thought, the guard still couldn't recall any information about this "Staff of the Sage."

He gave an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, I can't let you in unless you can produce valid identification."

Hmm:

Frieren:=w=