The Beginning After The End novel Chapter 173

Chapter 173

Chapter 173: Conducting Business

“Nice to meet you,” Olfred said with what little courtesy he could muster up. “My name is Cladence from House—”

Sebastian held up a palm, interrupting the masked lance. “Let me stop you right there. House names aren’t necessary in ordeals like this. I’ll simply refer you to as Cladence and you can call me Sebastian.”

“Very well,” Olfred replied. “Sebastian.”

“Good.” The beady-eyed conjurer nodded in approval. “Now. Before we get down to business...”

Sebastian muttered a chant as he waved his arm ostentatiously. After a few moments, a translucent shroud covered us, dampening the clamor of the tavern. An obvious but not very impressive demonstration of wind-attribute magic. Still, I played along as the naive slave and let out a breath of amazement.

The conjurer’s gaze shifted from me to Olfred, but seeing that his masked guest didn’t show any discernible sign of awe at this demonstration, Sebastian’s lips curled slightly into a frown.

“It’s a little rowdy in here and the folks present aren’t the most well-mannered,” he said, leaning forward to grab one of the mugs filled with beer in the center of the table. “Excuse me for my subordinates’ behavior. Bothering you like that when you’ve finally sat down to rest, I’ll have to reprimand them.”

Olfred reached forward, his large hand gripping the handle of the mug tightly. “It’s not a problem. Thank you for the hospitality here at the inn.”

“Hospitality?” The balding conjurer looked at the masked lance incredulously before letting out a snort. “You and I both know that this sort of place is fit for mud hogs.”

The masked lance let out a chuckle before taking a swig from his mug.

It was obvious that Sebastian was staring at Olfred’s head, trying to get a peek at what his face looked like underneath the mask.

“Is something the matter?” the lance replied after noticing.

Sebastian shrugged nonchalantly as he sipped from his mug as well. “Just curious about the story behind your mask. I’ve seen adventurers wear them from time to time but never nobles.”

Olfred scratched his head. “Is it very obvious that I’m a noble?”

“Well, it takes one to know one,” Sebastian said proudly.

“I figured,” the lance nodded. “Judging by your kempt appearance and magical prowess, you seemed out of place here as well.”

Compared to the nasty men, most of whom were dressed in rags, Sebastian really did look off with his richly-dyed doublet and hose.

Sebastian’s eyes twinkled in delight at Olfred’s flattery. “Indeed. I’d take it to offense if you had thought of me as the same as those imps.”

The masked lance banged his mug back on the table. “I’d be a fool if I did!”

Throughout the rest of the conversation, it seemed as though the two of them had really hit it off. Whether Olfred was really good at acting or he actually found Sebastian amiable I wasn’t sure, but after a few more mugs of ale, Sebastian was a red, hiccuping mess. That’s when his true personality came out.

“So... what kind of girl ar-are you looking for?” Sebastian asked, his eyes glazed.

“What makes you think I’m looking for a girl?” Olfred responded with one had practically glued to a mug of alcohol.

The balding conjurer let out a giggle as he pointed a finger at the masked lance. “Please. My subordinates told me how you practically lit up when they mentioned I had elves and dwarves in stock.”

Olfred paused for a moment, and I was almost afraid the lance was going to say something he shouldn’t.

“And what if I am?” Olfred replied, his deep voice coming out slurred.

Sebastian held up both his hands in a placating gesture. “I don’t judge. What’s the point of having money and power if you can’t splurge it on what you want.”

“Of course!” Olfred slammed his mug on the wooden table but then let out a deep sigh. “It’s because of those damned entitled noble women looking down on me.”

Where is he going with this?

Leaning forward on the table, Olfred pointed at his mask. “Do you know the real reason why I wear this stifling mask? It’s because I have scars all over my face from a house fire.”

“Oh really now?” Sebastian asked, intrigued.

“Yeah, and the worst thing is, that incident happened to me when I was still a teen. The injuries I got to my leg stunted my growth, so not only is my face disfigured, but I’m now even a head shorter than my own damned slave!” Olfred shot a finger at me as I stood there, baffled.

Even while knowing Olfred’s true identity, I couldn’t help but second guess whether this incident had really happened at some point in the lance’s life.

‘He’s very believable,’ Sylvie commented, overhearing their conversation.

I’ll say.

“Don’t even get me started!” Sebastian finished off another mug of ale and set it down before wiping the foam around his lips. “When I was serving the royal family, women rushed at the chance to get in bed with me, but after being relieved from the position, those same tramps treated me like some sort of insect!”

“You served the royal family?” Olfred exclaimed. “Why did you retire?”

Sebastian gnashed his teeth, his knuckles turning white from how hard he was gripping the mug. “Because of that damned brat.”

“Brat? What brat?” Olfred asked.

The beady-eyed mage threw his mug on the ground, which shattered upon impact. This drew wary gazes from the nearby tables. The rest of the tavern that was once blurred from Sebastian’s noise-dampening spell grew clearer because of his inebriated state.

“I’m a dual-attribute conjurer, almost at the solid orange stage, yet the only respect I can get is from these dirty primitives!” he exclaimed, waving his arm at the vile-looking men and the few women who didn’t look much better inside the tavern.

Olfred raised his glass in the air. “To those shallow and wretched snakes! May they wrinkle and sag like the loose rags they are!”

Sebastian snorted gleefully as he laughed at the lance’s toast. “I knew I found a good man when I saw you coming in through those doors! Now let’s get you some brand new toys to play with!”

The two of them staggered out of the tavern. Sebastian was barely able to walk with the limp on his leg that I had broken when I was still a child.

“Hey, you. Come over here.” He gestured at me as he leaned against the wall of the tavern.

I silently abided and walked over to the intoxicated conjurer when he suddenly flung his arm around my shoulder, leaning heavily against me. “You don’t mind if I use your slave as a walking stick, do you Cladence?”

“Of course not. That’s what slaves are for,” Olfred replied as I swallowed the ever-growing urge to break Sebastian’s other leg.

‘This man is really testing my patience,’ Sylvie said with a simmering anger that matched mine.

The three of us walked out of the tavern with the portly woman and bearded man trailing closely behind. I practically had to carry the lanky conjurer as his limp leg dragged on the ground.

“You know... it took me months to be able to tolerate this tawdry outpost, but I don’t miss my old standing,” Sebastian droned as we made our way down the dim streets of Ashber. “The people here, they do more than just respect me—they fear me. I’m a god to them.”

The drunk conjurer patted my cheek condescendingly as he gazed upward to see my face from within my hood. “You saw my magic earlier, right? I can kill you with the snap of my fingers.”

Endure it, Arthur. Just for now.

I guess I’ll find out just how many slaves he’s holding here soon enough, I thought as I lugged Sebastian in through the entrance with Olfred just beside me.

‘Something doesn’t feel right,’ Sylvie warned.

I feel it too but then again, if you think about where we are, it’d be weird for it to seem normal, I replied, taking another step. My chest tightened and the hair on my skin stood on end, but I ignored my body’s protest. If I was going to come back and save the people held here, I had to know its layout and approximately how many were imprisoned.

Don’t look, I sent to Sylvie as she rustled up from the inside of my cloak.

‘It’s that bad,’ Sylvie replied, more so as a statement than a question.

I grit my teeth. They’re treated worse than livestock.