Buying Groceries

After resting for two days, Alicia's condition had significantly improved, but she still lacked strength. However, the food supplies within the castle had run out.

Therefore, the procurement task fell to Shaya and Arthur.

Stepping outside, Eagle's Horn Town was bathed in another bright sunny day. Gentle sunlight pierced through the white clouds, casting a golden radiance upon the seaside town. The distant azure sea sparkled under the sea breeze.

Ever since Shaya first arrived, he had noticed that the weather in this town seemed to be good every day, with very few cloudy days.

Shaya turned his head, his gaze following the town's slope upwards. On the hillside far from the town, rows of neatly arranged grapevines could be seen covering the mountain.

However, these grapes were not for eating but for winemaking. Although their sweetness was high, their acidity was also high.

The warm, humid climate and abundant water sources made this town an excellent place for growing grapes. The hillsides and trees also provided good protection against the winds from the Westerlies.

Although the town was near the sea, its pillar industry was actually wine production, not fishing.

Because the town's harbor was a deep-water port, it was used by the armies of Britannia as a naval base. This prohibited much large-scale fishing and net setting. However, fishing was permitted, and one could fish a bit further out, so fish were also cheap.

The gate in front of them opened, and a woman holding a broom swept dust towards the street. Upon seeing Arthur beside Shaya, she greeted them warmly.

"Good morning, little Arthur. Where is your grandmother?"

"She's sick," Arthur replied. "She's not feeling too well."

"Oh, that's terrible," the woman said sadly. "She was so energetic just a few days ago."

After a pause, she asked, "Is there anything I can do to help? I know a very good doctor."

"No need, she's almost recovered today," Shaya interjected.

Hearing this, the woman looked up at Shaya. She examined him closely, then asked with some confusion.

"You are..."

Shaya's main activities these days were within the Imperial Capital, and at other times, he usually sunbathed on the balcony, rarely leaving the confines of Eagle's Horn Town. Thus, the locals were not familiar with him.

After a moment, she seemed to realize something and said, "I see, you must be Grandma Alicia's son!"

"Yes, my name is Shaya," Shaya replied calmly, nodding.

"I knew it!" the woman exclaimed happily. "I didn't expect she had such a handsome son. Why have I never seen you before?"

"I just arrived," Shaya said. "We used to live in the Imperial Capital, but the environment there was truly too poor, with heavy coal smoke and excessively cold winters, which were not suitable for the elderly.

So, I bought a house here and had her move in first."

"I see," the woman said with emotion. "I had thought that an old lady of her age cleaning such a dirty house all by herself meant her descendants were unfilial, and it was quite pitiful.

I didn't expect she had such a filial son."

Shaya sighed. "I originally planned to hire a couple of people to clean the house, but I figured the old lady wouldn't want to spend the money, so I came and did it myself without telling her."

The woman understood and empathized, saying, "Yes, some elderly people are just that stubborn. My own mother was like that before she passed away. They still think they're young."

"See, she got sick from overexertion," Shaya said helplessly.

"Once the elderly recover, they need to replenish their nutrition," the woman said. "I'll have my husband send you over a cod later."

"Oh, you shouldn't trouble yourself," Shaya said with a smile.

"Oh, we're neighbors, we help each other out," the woman replied. "Besides, it's by the sea here, so fish are much cheaper than in the Imperial Capital."

Shaya smiled and didn't refuse her kindness any further. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small item, handing it to the woman.

"Here, please take this as a token of my gratitude."

The woman took the item curiously. It was a red string bracelet with a small bell tied to it, very finely crafted.

"This is a little trinket I made," Shaya said. "In the East, it symbolizes health, peace, and good fortune in all endeavors."

The woman looked very pleased, smiling as she said, "Thank you, I really like this gift."

Shaya nodded at her, then led Arthur down the slope towards the market.

The woman watched Shaya's retreating figure, touched her slightly flushed cheek, and sighed, "What a handsome young man."

"Was that Mrs. Foster, the one who gave us fish a few days ago?" Shaya asked.

Arthur nodded. "Her husband sells fish at the market."

After a moment, Arthur couldn't help but say, "Grandma Dean said lying is wrong."

"Well-intentioned lies are sometimes necessary," Shaya said with a serious expression. "Otherwise, should I tell her I'm a sorcerer?"

Arthur nodded, looking somewhat enlightened.

As they spoke, they arrived at the town's marketplace. It was a road extending along the coast. On the left were rows of buildings, each a shop. On the right was the sea, but many vendors had also set up stalls there.

It seemed that due to the port, the variety of goods was abundant, not just fish but also many products not native to the area.

Arthur watched as Shaya bought a pile of miscellaneous parts, some wire, leather, and the like. He asked in confusion.

"Didn't we come out to buy ingredients?"

"Yes, for lunch today, we're having sweet and sour wire and stir-fried leather," Shaya said seriously. "It's the sorcerer's special."

He looked at Arthur, teasingly. "Haven't you always wanted to be a sorcerer?"

Arthur's face turned a little pale. "I think... I might not be hungry for lunch today."

Shaya chuckled twice, "Although you can distinguish good from evil, you can't distinguish lies."

"Were you lying to me just now?" Arthur realized.

"I don't think even a sorcerer would like to eat this kind of thing," Shaya said. "This is the material for the Thousand Mile Flying Boots."

"Thousand Mile Flying Boots?"

Arthur cast the joke aside, all his attention shifting to this term.

"What is it for?" he asked, a little excited.

He was very interested in these matters and had been begging Shaya to teach him magic for some time.

Shaya seemed about to say something, but suddenly, he took a big step back, pulling a bewildered Arthur towards a fish stall.

"Don't make a sound," Shaya whispered. "And don't turn your head."

Arthur seemed to realize something, his body stiffening slightly. Although his eyes didn't move, his peripheral vision still curiously glanced to the side.

His perception was very strong, and he almost instantly noticed something was wrong.

In the passing crowd, there were two very special "people" looking around, searching for something. They were very tall, dressed in ornate coachman uniforms, wore eye patches, and their skin didn't look like normal human skin, more like rubber. However, no one around seemed to notice.

As they slowly approached, Arthur's body became stiffer and stiffer, his breathing even slightly halting.

Fortunately, those two rubber figures didn't notice them. As they were about to reach them, they seemed to be attracted by something and turned away.

Shaya quietly stared at the backs of the two figures as they left, silent, without a word.

"What were those?" Arthur asked.

"Servants of the Wilderness Witch," Shaya murmured softly.

Shaya wasn't surprised by this at all. From the moment Alicia arrived at the castle, the Wilderness Witch's arrival was only a matter of time.

"The Wilderness Witch!" Arthur's eyes widened slightly.

"Do you know her?" Shaya asked with some interest.

"Alicia told me," Arthur said nervously. "She said she's a super bad guy."

Shaya nodded, then suddenly said.

"How about eggplant for lunch?"

"Wha-what?"

Arthur was unaccustomed to Shaya's abrupt changes in topic and couldn't help but say.

"Shouldn't we be concerned about the Wilderness Witch right now?"

"So we're not eating lunch?" Shaya said with a serious face. "You need to be full to have the strength to deal with bad guys, don't you?"

Arthur's mouth twitched slightly, and he grumbled, "Alicia said you're a heartless person, and it really seems to be true."

"Then do you want to eat eggplant?" Shaya asked again.

"No!" Arthur shook his head. "Eggplant is the most disgusting thing in the world."

"Okay," Shaya nodded in confirmation. "Since you want to eat it so much, we'll have eggplant for lunch today!"

Arthur was stunned, thinking he had misheard. He said, somewhat exasperatedly, "Did you hear me wrong! I don't want to eat it!"

However, Shaya had already pulled him towards the vegetable stall to buy eggplants.