"What do you mean?"
"Every year, a distinguished Spellcaster arrives in town with Lord Mel's caravan. They use magic to protect the Star Plums, ensuring they don't rot on the way."
Catherine reminded him,
"If you're going to use a spell to pass off ordinary fruit as something better, you'll need to be careful."
"I'll try to draw their attention when the time comes, so Kuru won't stand out too much."
As a sustained First Ring spell, maintaining an illusion required the Spellcaster to stay nearby and remain focused.
If anyone noticed them, there was always a chance their cover would be blown.
But if they could deliberately draw people's attention elsewhere with a performance, the plan seemed reasonably promising.
The ordinary Star Plums would be hidden at the bottom of the "Shining Star." Unless someone let slip that the Star Plums had been stolen, no one would think to rummage through the fruit at the bottom.
"If you already have a plan, then I wish you luck tomorrow."
Catherine said sincerely,
"For now, though, it's time to enjoy some good food—"
They went downstairs together. At the familiar long tables in the tavern hall, Anbi deliberately left several tables between herself and Black Snake, taking seats diagonally opposite each other.
Her eyes were red-rimmed; she had clearly been crying not long ago.
Children cared a lot about saving face, which was why Catherine had insisted Tang Qi leave them alone.
He couldn't guess what had happened, and had the good sense not to ask.
As for the two mercenaries, they had washed the blood off their clothes.
Perhaps to celebrate the festival, Black Snake had even changed into a silk shirt and tied his hair into a little ponytail. The scruffy middle-aged man in his forties looked considerably more presentable.
Catherine set the food she'd prepared down in front of him with a thud, her expressionless face betraying no emotion.
"Hey, hey. It's not every day we get to celebrate a festival. Couldn't you be a little nicer to me?"
Black Snake laughed teasingly.
"What kind of nice treatment do you expect when you're eating and drinking for free?" Catherine didn't even glance at him.
"I never said I wouldn't pay!"
"But this meal's on me."
Black Snake froze for a moment, then exchanged a look with Gravel.
"Getting a free meal from Catherine? We've really hit the jackpot, haven't we?"
After their adventures together, Tang Qi had greeted Gravel, but for a moment he didn't know who to sit beside.
Fortunately, Anbi waved him over to her side and quietly apologized:
"Brother Tang Qi, I might have to break my promise."
"Oh?"
"That cup of Star Plum Wine I promised you... You won't get to drink it."
Afraid Tang Qi would be disappointed, yet also afraid he might get angry, she hurriedly explained what had happened.
"I'm really sorry I couldn't let you have your first drink, Anbi!"
Only then did Tang Qi realize why she had been crying. Instead, he felt he'd found some good material, and shook his head.
"We can't judge things by appearances alone, can we?
"I've already had a taste of your first drink.
"It was a little bitter, but I'm sure the aftertaste will be sweet.
"If we had to give it a name, perhaps it should be called—
"'A Lesson'?"
Catherine arrived with the food just then. Hearing those words, she met Anbi's eyes, and the two of them blinked at each other.
After a moment, the little wolf-eared girl's eyes lit up with understanding.
"Right! 'A lesson'... Anbi will remember this lesson for the rest of her life!"
Catherine let out a sigh of relief.
"Thanks to you. Otherwise, I'd still be trying to think of a way to comfort her enough to eat."
Tang Qi's gaze fell to the table.
"Pork chops, mashed potatoes, and fried ham... You don't usually eat things like these, do you?"
"We only let ourselves indulge like this once a year."
Catherine sat gracefully opposite Tang Qi and took the necklace from around her neck, holding it in her palm.
It was a silver ring set with a ruby, hanging from a thin cord. The gemstone glimmered with a wine-red sheen—
"Almost as dazzling as your hair," Tang Qi praised without thinking.
"Thump—"
The sound of a hand hitting a table came from nearby. Tang Qi turned and found Black Snake glaring at him, making him break out in a cold sweat.
But perhaps because he knew Tang Qi would be useful tomorrow, Black Snake only warned him with a look.
Catherine glanced at Black Snake and sighed, then spoke up to ease Tang Qi's embarrassment.
"Then perhaps I should thank my mother for passing everything down to me.
"Come, let's pray to Gullagas and hope he blesses us with wine and a bountiful harvest again next year."
Seeing Anbi place her hand on the ring, Tang Qi and Kuru followed suit.
"Do you have to hold on to that staff even while you're eating?"
Tang Qi saw Kuru clutching his staff as if he never let go, and couldn't help asking.
Kuru shook his staff and said with conviction:
"Partner!"
Everyone had their own little quirks.
Kobolds were people too.
After a brief prayer, Catherine scooped up some mashed potatoes with her spoon. The purple Star Plum sauce drizzled over them tasted sweet, tangy, and smooth.
"By the way, perhaps we should discuss what you'll earn for singing at the tavern from now on?"
Tang Qi took a bite of pork chop. As it crunched crisply, rich, meaty flavor spread across his palate. He could hardly tell the difference between the juices and the saliva flooding his mouth.
"About that, I'm afraid I owe you an apology."
"Oh?"
"Actually, I originally planned to sing at the tavern to earn enough to live on, until I could catch a passing caravan and have them take me through the Twilight Forest someday."
The pork chops were almost too delicious. Beside him, Kuru seemed unused to using cutlery. Still clutching his staff, he stuffed food into his mouth with his slender claws.
"But I've already come into some money. If nothing unexpected happens, I'll try to hitch a ride with the caravan tomorrow and travel with them to Dragon Gold City."
"Brother Tang Qi is leaving?"
Anbi hadn't expected their parting to come so soon.
But Tang Qi knew that if he wanted to record more stories, he could never stay in one place for long.
Seeing that the little girl was feeling down, Catherine changed the subject at just the right moment.
"Anbi, we part so we can meet again.
"Perhaps one day, we'll hear the name 'Tang Qi' again from someone else, or read it in his journal?"
"Will you write about Anbi in your book, Brother?"
He'd already written about her.
But Tang Qi didn't mind making her a promise.
"Of course. I'll do my best to make sure everyone across the continent knows that the Golden Oak tavern has a sweet, well-behaved little girl and a clever, beautiful landlady."
The kobold suddenly looked up. "Kuru!"
"All right, and a 'wise' kobold who can talk."
"Then I'll be counting on you to become famous soon and bring more business to the tavern."
Catherine raised her glass of Star Plum Wine.
"Then let's raise a toast to the future 'legendary Poet Tang Qi'!"
Black Snake and Gravel watched it all without joining in.
But the atmosphere seemed to have infected them too.
Now they raised their glasses together and clinked them.
"Cheers!"
In the student dormitory of Bard's Song, several Poets were sprawled all over the room, dead drunk. Once again, they drained their mugs of ale.
Geya quietly covered her mouth and let out a tiny burp. After making sure no one had noticed her lapse in manners, she turned back to her friends with a bright smile.
Competition for the Academy's official Assistant Instructor positions was always fierce.
Building good relationships with her classmates to secure their votes was also crucial.
So Geya set aside time every week to attend social gatherings at the Academy.
She held her liquor well and was still sober, even this late at night.
The others, however, seemed to have lost all pretense of dignity—
"Damn it! All I wanted to write was a legendary ballad about a Commoner Hero who loses his family, trains under a master, and finally gets revenge on the Giant Dragon and saves his country.
"Why was it rejected because 'the protagonist isn't a Teren noble'? Are commoners only fit to be rescued?"
"Me too—I wanted to write a novel about a young nobleman who loses himself in a life of pleasure and indulgence, then hits rock bottom when his family falls from power, and finally redeems himself.
"They sent my manuscript back with the reason 'Do not slander the noble lords'!?
"Come on, I even gave him a redemptive ending to get it past the censors!"
"And me! I—"
Another person, still seething with indignation, slammed the table and stood up. Then—
"Urgh!"
He threw up.
Before you continue