Rage (Part 2)

Romon watched the furious druid turn and leave without sparing him another glance, then gave a bitter smile.

What was this supposed to be? He was being expelled just because of that?

As he watched Jefa reach the corner and rub the hair of the girl waiting there, the sense of loss in Romon's heart deepened.

Though he was someone who had transmigrated and possessed this boy's body, with an entirely new soul, the memories he had inherited showed that the former Romon had treated Jefa, his teacher, with the utmost respect. Not only had he often helped with chores while studying, but his respect for this teacher had truly come from the heart.

Yet in those memories, this teacher had always treated Romon with neither warmth nor coldness. No matter how hard Romon worked, Jefa had only offered a few casual pointers and never taught him with any real dedication. The one Jefa had truly devoted himself to teaching was that little girl instead.

He had to admit, this really was a world of rigid hierarchy! Before gaining a certain level of status and strength, even earning a bond between teacher and student was this difficult.

Romon then let out a cold breath through his nose. It seemed there was no way to salvage this now. He could no longer set foot within Jefa's domain? How broad was that supposed to be? Did it mean Jefa's hut, or did it include the forest outside as well?

If it only meant Jefa's hut, then he could accept it. At worst, he could look up materials himself and study on his own. It would be troublesome and take a great deal of effort, but it was not impossible.

But if he was forbidden from entering the forest too, then all his previous plans would be thrown into chaos.

At that thought, a trace of gloom surfaced in Romon's eyes. After standing still for a moment, he shook away certain thoughts and headed for the library to look through some books.

But just as he stepped onto the library stairs and reached out to push open the door, a figure suddenly blocked his path.

"Romon, so you violated Jefa's teachings and the laws of druids?" A cool voice rang out. It was Priest Tennis, who had followed behind him and witnessed the entire incident. He spoke as if regretful. "In that case, I think you should go back and reflect properly. There's no need for you to come here anymore. It won't be too late to return once you've earned Mr. Jefa's forgiveness."

When Romon looked up at him, the young priest was also observing Romon's reaction.

To his disappointment, he saw not the slightest trace of despair, confusion, or panic on the boy's face.

Either Romon had hidden those emotions deeply, or the boy had not been brought down by what had just happened. Neither possibility allowed Priest Tennis the amusement he had hoped for.

That realization made Priest Tennis's expression grow even darker.

Romon sized him up as well. He more or less knew why this priest was hostile toward him. This priest had been assigned to the Temple here at the age of nineteen. In ten years, he had reached the Fourth Level as a priest—not particularly fast, but not particularly slow either. This had extinguished Priest Tennis's hopes of gaining greater wealth and status through his own abilities. Now twenty-nine and still unmarried, he naturally had his sights set on Baron Rokas's second daughter, Eileen, the Temple's First-Level Priest.

Almost everyone in the Temple knew about this, but no one found it particularly surprising. After all, priests in this world did not inherit their positions. Though they enjoyed respect and prosperity, they could not guarantee that their descendants would share that prosperity. Only nobles could truly pass down glory for generations. Another reason Priest Tennis remained hopeful and persistent was Baron Rokas's attitude. The baron should have noticed that Priest Tennis was pursuing his daughter, yet he had never explicitly objected. That gave Priest Tennis, who desperately wanted to attach himself to the nobility, room for fantasies.

Unfortunately, Eileen had no interest in Priest Tennis. Aside from work matters, she normally had virtually nothing to say to him.

Even though Priest Tennis had arranged countless coincidences and chance encounters in an attempt to win her heart, Miss Eileen remained neither warm nor cold toward him. Yet this girl, who showed no closeness to Priest Tennis, laughed and chatted with Romon—a boy who had once worked as a shop clerk and whom Priest Tennis considered lowly.

How could Priest Tennis not be jealous? Though he still barely maintained a calm expression, the coldness and delight in his eyes could no longer be concealed.

Romon did not want to offend Priest Tennis, but under the circumstances, he could only try his best to protect his own rights. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Does Miss Eileen know about this?"

At the mention of Miss Eileen, Priest Tennis's expression immediately worsened. "Miss Eileen is currently focused on her training. Besides, I believe she will agree with my decision."

As he spoke, he made a gesture for Romon to leave.

Knowing that there was no use staying to argue in this situation, Romon knew that a Level 1 druid like himself could hardly stand against an official Temple employee. So he said nothing more and turned to leave.

Watching him go, Priest Tennis stood where he was and revealed a cold smile.

As the saying went, good news never left the house, but bad news traveled a thousand miles.

By the time Romon returned to town, nearly everyone knew that he had angered Druid Jefa and been expelled.

The people pointing and whispering along the way gave Romon his first true taste of discomfort.

The moment he stepped through the doors of the Motte Inn, every customer in the room turned to look at him.

Unlike the last time, when he had earned the status of a Level 1 druid, there was no respect in their gazes now. There was only curiosity and schadenfreude.

"Romon, is that true? Did you really have a conflict with Druid Jefa?"

The first to ask was Haiwavi, a mercenary captain often seen around town. He curiously looked Romon up and down, clearly unable to understand how this boy had dared provoke Druid Jefa.

Romon gave a bitter smile. "Yes. My teacher was angry because I hunted a wild bull." Rather than let people speculate about other reasons, he might as well state the real one directly.

"The wild bull you sold me?" Motte came out from the back room and asked curiously.

Romon nodded.

The room immediately erupted into discussion.

But Romon had no mood to keep listening to their sympathetic or gloating remarks. He only wanted to find somewhere quiet and sort through his thoughts.

Just then, Fafier appeared at the entrance of the Motte Inn.

"Romon, come out for a moment." Fafier beckoned to him.

Romon took the opportunity to leave the inn. The moment he stepped outside, he let out a long breath, then saw Fafier looking at him with concern.

"Why are you making that face? I was only driven out." He patted his companion on the shoulder. "Even relying solely on the game we earn from hunting will be enough to support us for a while."

"Romon, that's what I wanted to talk about." Fafier's expression was complicated. "When I led the calves home just now, I happened to run into Lord Bakasi, the tax officer. He said... he said private sales of wild bulls aren't allowed in town. He'll let this time slide, but we can't do it again."

"What did you say?" This time, Romon was genuinely shocked. If he had not panicked when he was expelled from the Temple, then hearing Fafier's words now truly startled him. "Did he really say that?"

Romon's impression of Tax Officer Bakasi still came from the celebration after he became a druid. That middle-aged man, who always wore a smiling face, had left a fairly good first impression on Romon. Though he had heard Motte and his wife discuss Bakasi's harshness and snobbery, Romon had thought they rarely interacted with him, so what kind of person Bakasi was would not affect him much.

But things were different now. This tax officer was clearly making things difficult for them. But why? And don't give him that line about private trading in wild game being forbidden. Wild game was traded in town all the time, and Romon had never seen this tax officer stop anyone.

After considering this, Romon said to Fafier, "Then let's do this. Since he doesn't allow us to sell wild bulls, keep the two calves at your house for now. We'll see how things look after some time has passed. At worst, we'll give them to your family. He can't control that, can he? What we need to do now is deal with the hide first."

After thinking about it, Fafier felt that this was the only option for now. Taking the calves out to sell would draw too much attention, unlike a hide, which was easier to carry.

After discussing it, they decided to sell the hide at the town's fur shop. Romon persuaded Fafier to go home first, then headed alone to the fur shop. At a corner outside the shop, after making sure no one was around, he took the cowhide out of his space. He wrapped it in burlap and entered the store.

Romon was quite satisfied when the owner offered a very fair price. Just as they were about to make the transaction, someone suddenly walked in from outside.

"Romon, didn't anyone tell you that privately selling wild bull hides like this is wrong?" Tax Officer Bakasi walked in with a cold smile.