When I headed back towards Blacksmith, I noticed that the marketplace was a lot livelier than when I arrived.
Looking around, I could see a few students milling about as well as some travelers.
It seemed like more time had passed than I anticipated. It would probably be bad if I didn't head back soon. Judging from the position of the sun in the sky, it wasn't far from noon and lunchtime.
I sighed. Hopefully Stella wouldn't be too bothered. Though she had been fast asleep when I left. Maybe she was still sleeping?
I could only hope.
Carrying my bags of coffee beans with me, I made my way past the merchants towards Blacksmith's workshop.
A few students glanced my way as I did, curious as to who the person carrying around an armful of coffee beans was. Of course, since most of the students in the Officers Academy were my own, the few that did glance my way immediately looked away when they saw my face.
I didn't know whether to be satisfied or annoyed that it had become a self-preservation instinct to look away from me. But at least it saved me some trouble.
It didn't take long to reach Blacksmith's workshop. While Anna's shop had been on the other side of the marketplace and out of the way, the marketplace itself wasn't 'too' large. Before long, I was once again approaching Blacksmith and her workshop.
Everything was the same as when I left. The forge was fired, various scrapped weapons lay along the ground by the anvil, and all the other blacksmithing tools that a blacksmith used were scattered about.
However, there was something different.
I stopped a short distance away from Blacksmith's stall and muttered, "Another customer?"
There was a man standing in front of Blacksmith's workshop. He was tall, at least a head or two taller than me. His hair was curly and wild, but slicked back, kind of like a greaser in the old days. In addition to that, there was a wild look about him, his eyes sharp and his smile more like a wolf's grin than a human's.
In short, he was a dangerous looking person, one familiar with the underworld.
But strangely enough, he had a student uniform on. Granted, it was silver and his shirt was open, exposing a toned body, but there was no mistaking the design.
I frowned.
It was odd. From that uniform, he should be a student. But I didn't recognize him. And at this point, I would definitely recognize him if he was a student considering how much I had been teaching. Garreg Mach was fairly small, after all.
The strange student was talking to Blacksmith about something.
Curious, I moved a little closer to listen in.
The strange student placed his hands behind his head and said, "Can't thank you enough for this, Pal. I'll pay you back. Promise."
Blacksmith rolled her eyes. "Just tell me how long this latest pair lasts. I already know you guys are dirt poor, but I'll consider the feedback as payment."
The strange student laughed. "Alright. I'll remember." At that time, he noticed me standing there. "Hm?" He turned around and lowered his arms. "Who are you?"
I raised an eyebrow. Before I could say anything though, the strange student smiled.
"Wait. I know who you are!" He grinned, a wolfish expression, and said, "I think Yuri talked about you a bit. You're that new professor, right?" He laughed and crossed his arms, holding his head up high. "You must have a lot on your plate if you've come all this way to recruit the King of Grappling."
I frowned. "King of Grappling?"
The self-proclaimed King of Grappling froze and then said, "Hold on. You don't know who I am?"
I carefully stared at the man, scanning through both sets of my memories. But after a while, I shook my head. "I don't think so."
His face didn't ring a bell. While it looked vaguely familiar, it was the sort of familiarity that you had when seeing a person that suited an archetype than actual familiarity.
The title 'King of Grappling', on the other hand, I did recognize. But only in passing. Apparently he was a guy who was infamous in various fighting rings across Fodlan. But for the guy in front of me to be that person… was a bit unlikely, right? After all, this was Garreg Mach Monastery, esteemed academy… or so Seteth said.
There was no way riffraff like that would be hanging around.
"Sheesh." The King of Grappling shook his head and said, "Guess I need to try harder to get recognized by the Ashen Demon." He sighed and said, "Well, whatever." He reached down to the ground, picking up a bag that had been sitting there and slung it over his shoulder. That done, he waved at me and said, "See you around, Professor. If you need me… Hm. Guess you wouldn't know where to find me." He shrugged. "Well, maybe I'll catch you later."
Like that, the man left.
I stared after him for a bit before walking up to Blacksmith. "Who was that?"
"Him?" Blacksmith shrugged and wiped down her hands on her apron. "Just a regular. He's not good at paying, but we've got an arrangement worked out between him and his friends."
"…I see."
I didn't, but I suppose some information was better than none.
Blacksmith walked back over to her anvil and said, "I suppose you're back to check on your sword?"
I didn't follow her back, but I nodded. "That's right. I don't want to rush you, but an estimate would be appreciated."
Blacksmith sighed and pulled a blazing orange sword out from her forge before placing it on the anvil. She stared at it for a bit and then shook her head. "Sorry, Professor. It'll be a bit longer than I thought. The diamond you gave me is really pure, so I underestimated how strong it was." She looked back at me and said, "Not that it's a challenge, but it might not be done for a couple of days."
"I see."
That made sense. After all, it was essentially crystallized mana. And something that defied the rules of mana, according to Stella.
Blacksmith rolled her shoulder and picked up her hammer. "Don't wanna keep you here all day. You also look like you've got some things to carry back." She glanced at the bags of coffee beans and said, "You go on ahead and back to your professor things. I'll send someone over to get you whenever I'm done."
I was a bit disappointed to see that the sword wasn't finished and that I couldn't stick around to watch. After all, while she didn't say it outright, I knew a dismissal when I heard one. Still, she had a point. Instead of saying anything else, I nodded and said, "I'll leave you be then. Have a good day, Blacksmith."
"Yeah, yeah." She waved and then went back to her work.
Seeing that, I shifted my bags of coffee beans and headed back to the monastery.
This time around, I didn't get that weird effect. Whether because I had experienced it before or because the source of it recognized me, the trip back to the southern gate was uneventful.
Still bothered me that I couldn't figure out what was going on there, but I didn't dwell on it too much.
At the southern gate, as I approached it, the gatekeeper there waved his hand. Aidem. Of course, since he was on duty, he didn't do anything too enthusiastic. It was only when I arrived at the checkpoint did he smile and start speaking.
Aidem glanced at my bags and said, "Wow! Looks like you did a lot of shopping, Professor!"
I nodded. "It was a long overdue trip."
"I'll say." He smiled and said, "It must have been hard staying awake without any coffee. Glad to see that you managed to stock up on some."
"Mmhm… Ah, right." I dug around in my pocket for a bit… or tried to. My hands were full though, so I couldn't quite reach it.
"Oh, let me, Professor." Aidem reached out to grab my bags, but I shook my head.
"It's fine. Could you just grab the bag out from my pocket though?"
Aidem nodded and did so. "This?" He raised a smaller bag in front of me.
"That's the one."
It was something else I remembered to buy from Anna last minute before I left.
Aidem stared at it and frowned. "This looks like some smoked meat. Were you that hungry, Professor?"
"Well, I can't say that I've been eating well… but that's not for me." I shifted my bags and said, "I figured that you could use something to munch on while you were on guard duty. It's not much, but think of it as a small repayment for your help."
"Professor!" Aidem shook his head and said, "You didn't need to get me anything." He unwrapped the bag and said, "And especially not something this expensive. It's smoked Dagdan Ham, isn't it?"
"Is it?" I shrugged. "I just asked for what was good."
"Professor." Aidem got stern and said, "You need to be more responsible with your money! You might be a professor, but your salary will run dry really soon if you're not careful!"
"Relax. I've got a lot of savings stacked up. Helps when you don't have the usual vices as a mercenary, you know?"
Aidem paused. "…I suppose that's true. You don't seem like the type to go out drinking or spend it on women like the other knights and mercenaries."
I started to nod and then paused. "Wait. What does that mean?"
Aidem wrapped the bag back up and said, "I just say it like how I see it, Professor! And that's a good thing, isn't it?" He smiled and said, "You're the perfect example of an upstanding person!"
"…So you're saying I'm a prude?"
Aidem coughed. "Of course not. Just that… you're more serious than most people?"
I shook my head, a bemused smile on my face, and then said, "Well, I'll be heading back then."
Aidem gave a sheepish smile in return and rubbed the back of his neck.
As I walked away though, Aidem called out. "Ah, wait Professor!"
"Hm?" I turned around.
Aidem glanced at the surroundings and then reached into his armor before pulling out a rolled up piece of parchment. "Claude left this for me to give to you when he left the other day. I almost forgot about it."
I frowned and grabbed it. "Claude did?"
Aidem nodded. "He seemed pretty serious about it. Not sure why he trusted me of all people to deliver the message, but I'm glad to be of help."
"That's because you're a trustworthy person, Aid- I mean, Gatekeeper. But a message, huh?" I stared at the parchment for a bit before tucking it in my shirt.
If that guy went through the trouble of sending the message this way, it was probably best to keep it quiet until I was sure I wasn't being watched.
Though for him to have Aidem pass it to me… Did that mean that only this place wasn't being monitored?
Aidem nodded, surprisingly serious. "I'm honored, Professor. But take caution when opening that. I'm not sure what it's about, but Claude was unusually somber when handing it to me. I hope it's just good news, but you never know."
I nodded back. "Thanks again."
"It's my duty, Professor. Ah, and other than that, nothing to report! Take care on the rest of your day, alright?"
I waved at him and continued walking.
Author's Notes:
So lots of things happened again. .
First of all, I played through the new DLC. As I did, I saw that a good portion of it actually tied neatly with what I laid out and had planned, only slightly different. Because of that, I spent a while debating whether or not to use it in the story. I'm still iffy about it, but I might slowly start introducing things from it.
Second of all, I got accepted into law school. All three that I applied to. I only expected to get accepted into one, but now I have to weigh the options and pick. Not to mention campus tours, informational meetings, etc. Busy stuff.
Third, because of all that, I lost a bit of momentum in writing. I've had this chapter done for a while, but was unsatisfied with it. It's not getting better anytime soon though, so here it is.
Thanks for sticking around and waiting, as well as reading. I really do appreciate it.
I won't make any promises about updates again since my luck seems to be bipolar recently, but I hope to see you soon. Til then, take care and stay healthy.
