"Old sir, this is Ace, the youngest scholar in our city-state. Have you heard of 'logic'?"
Daina interjected.
"Never heard of it, never heard of it. You outsiders can't stay in our village. Go, go!"
Complex rune patterns suddenly surfaced in Ace's eyes. Sincerely holding out Silver Talers, he pressed them into the old man's hand and said, "Old Village Chief, the two of us don't look like bad people. The wilderness is so dangerous, and there are Demonic Beasts too. Please make an exception for us!"
Rune patterns surfaced on the back of the old village chief's neck. Though he had been unusually wary and principled before, he suddenly found the Silver Talers in his hand adorable, and the two people before him quite friendly. Thinking of making them spend a night in the wilderness made his heart ache.
So he nodded and said, "You really don't look like bad people. Stay at my house, then."
And so, with the Beguiling Spell, Ace and Daina finally did not have to sleep out in the wilderness. They successfully found lodging at the village chief's home.
Ace took out his medical kit and asked the village chief to spread the word. He set up a free clinic in the village threshing ground.
Thanks to the village chief's longstanding prestige, the villagers all came running over to watch the spectacle, but they were somewhat disappointed.
"This doctor is way too young!"
"The village chief has always been reliable. Maybe his medical skills are excellent?"
"Hard to say. Maybe this guy is just silver-tongued and tricked the village chief."
"Maybe he's a swindler!"
The villagers were half convinced and half doubtful, chattering among themselves.
At last, under Ace's repeated assurances that he absolutely would not charge money, several people tried letting him examine