Chapter 320: 95. Medley
“Clop clop clop!”
On the icy and snowy road, several speeding carriages swiftly crossed the gap between the port and the city. In the middle carriage, where Fisher was seated, both he and Felis lifted the curtains on either side inside the carriage to observe the situation outside, although they were each looking at different things.
Fisher was gazing at the distant Sema Mountain Range. They had now arrived at the northern tip of the Northern Region, where the massive silhouette that seemed far away, like a shadow, was finally magnified and presented before the living beings observing it in an extremely shocking way. The enormous mountain range, sharply defined like a spine and completely covered in pale frost and snow all day long, towered skyward, with each peak seemingly higher than the last, displaying its ferocity and mystery like a gaping, endless maw.
This was the most mysterious and dangerous natural landscape of the Northern Region, Sema Snow Mountain. Such a majestic and grand landscape held Fisher’s gaze for quite a while. Although he had been to many places, Sema Snow Mountain was undoubtedly one of the most impressive sights.
Felis, on the other hand, did not look at the spectacular Sema Snow Mountain but kept her eyes fixed on the city in the distance. To her, the smoke rising from the city represented not just a gathering place for humans but also a significant concept—consumption!
Yes, Felis, though an expert at loving money, was quite generous when it came to spending; she would purchase all sorts of desired items, decorations, and treasures. This was also why Heidi Lin had previously mentioned that her room was filled with a huge pile of things that were difficult to clean.
She wagged her tail in the back, and her muffin-like ears shook. Suddenly, she shrank from the windowsill back to the middle of the carriage, appearing somewhat restless, eager to fly to the city and shop. However, as she moved, the rushing wind and snow from outside flooded into the carriage, blowing into Balzak’s face, who was reading.
His expression darkened as he wiped the snow on his face with the red sleeve of his gown and pointed angrily at Felis, shouting, “You bumpkin! Why open the window if you’re not going to close it again? What’s so great about a lousy city anyway? We’re not there yet; why look at nothing?”
Felis crossed her legs, reached up to scratch her ear, and smiled, “Oh, he’s looking too; why don’t you say anything about him? Besides, I’m just a bumpkin from the Southern Continent; what are you, a fallen noble driven out of Shivali? Do you have a slave mark on you?”
“You!”
Balzak felt as if Felis had hit a painful spot, disregarding the rank disparity between humans and the Lion Race. He slammed the book on the table, ready to roll up his sleeves and fight. Felis nonchalantly beckoned him with her hand, just about to mock him a few times when another window suddenly emitted a crisp sound.
“Smack!”
Felis’s beckoning action instantly turned into a defensive posture, and Balzak’s rising motion froze in place. He glanced over at Fisher, who was now sitting back in the middle of the carriage. Fisher lightly stretched his hand, and the Fluid Sword hidden in his sleeve deftly closed the window Felis had left open, restoring warmth to the carriage.
“.”
Fisher didn’t say much to them but gently placed the sleeping Emhart on the table. Watching Emhart roll over on the table and continue sleeping, he couldn’t help but chuckle softly as he laid him down flat again.
Felis and Balzak first exchanged a glance at the book on the table, then glared at each other defiantly, each crossing their arms as they returned to their spots, refusing to look at one another again.
“Didi!”
The distant whistle of the steam train mingled with the lively city noises, signaling that Miya was about to be locked down, meaning this train would be the last one allowed to enter Miya properly.
In the city, the buildings in Miya were rather tall; even the residential buildings reached six or seven stories, significantly larger than Fisher’s four-story cottage in Saint Nali. This was naturally because there were few cities in Miya, most of which were autonomous settlements inhabited by subhumans. Cities like this one, evidently industrialized by humans, attracted many people and subhumans, leading to increased land usage by elevating building volumes.
A luxurious carriage formed by the Turan Family, escorted by the Miya army, sped through the city, attracting quite a bit of attention from passersby bundled in thick clothing, including three strange figures draped in black robes sitting by the roadside.
The three figures, hiding their bodies beneath black robes, sat shiveringly on the roadside near the train station exit, their front containing a broken bowl, while a colorful cloth painted with some clowns and elephant-like images hung against the wall behind them.
In their arms, a couple of stained musical instruments bore witness to their identity as the pitiful street performers at the train station. Usually bustling with people, it was eerily quiet today due to the lock-down in Miya, meaning they had little business, and the broken bowl in front of them held scant few silver coins from the Northern Region.
“Over there, there’s a scent of high value.”
As the Turan Family’s carriage passed by, all three cloaked figures lifted their heads in unison. Once the carriage had gradually moved away, the foremost figure, a black-robed person, suddenly let out a feminine voice.
“Mom, I’m so hungry. I want to eat something delicious.”
Behind her, one of the hooded figures timidly spoke, clutching the instruments tightly against themselves, but this pitiful statement elicited no sympathy from the one referred to as “mother.” She merely glanced at the train station, which was now unloading passengers, and turned to scold her, saying,
“Well then, hustle a bit! Otherwise, today we’re all going to starve. Bring out your best skills!”
The two hooded figures nodded rapidly and raised their oddly shaped instruments. Upon closer inspection, the instruments resembled both flutes and organs, but as they simultaneously put those instruments to their mouths, a passionate and lively melody erupted.
It was the purest, most fervent, and joyous melody. Although the tune was stirring, it echoed in a daze, repeating three words continuously:
“Kexiening! Kexiening! Kexiening! Kexiening!”
Accompanied by the emergence of the singing, the leading black-robed figure began singing loudly:
“Dear passing guests! Oh, the icy skies and snowy fields, please pause for a moment to listen to this old woman’s song, to guess where you’re from. Let me gift you a song from your homeland, to warm you against the cold generated by your travels!”
At the train station, several men dressed in heavy overcoats, wearing gentleman’s hats and with stern expressions, walked out of the station, each carrying a suitcase. The leading man had golden hair, a glimmer of gold in his eyes. He surveyed the surroundings and quietly spoke in Nali:
“Your Majesty, we have arrived in Miya. According to intelligence from Pat Sulshen Island, Fisher Benavides has landed in the Northern Region and has some unclear entanglements with the Turan Family. Yes, operatives from the Nebarun Kingdom have seen him disembark at the port. We will pursue him immediately after we settle. We know his level of danger, but we have brought an artifact that will ensure his capture alive. Please rest assured, Your Majesty.”
The black-robed figure holding the instrument slightly trembled as if sensing something and quickly confirmed that the several people in front were from Nali. She immediately changed her voice and began singing a Nali folk song in Nali:
“Ah, the smell of sea fish, the tumult of the ocean, and countless gold are all for the great captain and the achievements that will last through history; none of these matter. Please tell my father, my mother, please tell my brothers, sisters, and wife that I will set sail tonight! I will set sail tonight!”
As her emotive song ended, the cold-faced Nali men suddenly turned to glare at the street performers who disturbed their conversation with the sovereign, causing the black-robed figures who just wanted to ask for money to pause for a moment, fearing they might draw guns.
Fortunately, the Nali men seemed to have other matters to attend to; they simply spat at the performers and left with a cold snort.
The leading black-robed figure quickly ducked back, avoiding the spittle strike, causing her robe to tremble slightly, revealing a thin, old body wrapped in her robe, with sagging skin. She glared fiercely at the retreating gentlemen in overcoats and then muttered under her breath,
“Hmph, if it weren’t for that ungrateful pup! A white-eyed wolf! He stole all my saved valuables. How could I, Kexiening, have fallen to such a state? Bah! These humans truly look down on others! Damn Nali guards, I will report you to the police in Miya, you spies!”
As Kexiening, the old woman, muttered angrily, the two hooded figures behind her gently removed their black robes, revealing two youthful and innocent faces of girls. They bit their lips, tugged on their mother’s black robe, and quietly reminded her:
“Mom, we just got out of prison last month for stealing, sentenced to seven years. We barely escaped; it’s already dangerous enough performing here. If we report them, they’ll definitely catch us first.”
This made the previously fierce Kexiening’s momentum stall slightly, her expression darkening as she turned to scold her two daughters.
“If I had the money to convert to value, I would have long wandered to other places. Aren’t you two just drain on my finances? You can’t even do something as simple as stealing! What use do I have in raising you?!”
The two girls shrank back, and when they leaned weakly against the wall, Kexiening angrily continued to curse as if a long-simmering resentment had finally erupted. She slightly swayed her body, stood up, and pointed at her trembling daughters huddled against the wall, shouting:
“Korya, Koni, you two good-for-nothing slackers, why don’t you go and escape with that white-eyed wolf Colin, who stole everything from me? You beasts!”
As the two girls retreated against the wall, they whispered,
“We… we wanted to, but he didn’t take us and just took your belongings and left. We couldn’t catch up…”
“You—! I’ll beat you to death!”
Kexiening was enraged to the point of spitting blood. She lifted her instrument to hit them but inadvertently bumped it against someone passing behind her. Just the thought of hitting someone with her heavy Boundary Pipe panicked her; it wasn’t a joke if someone got injured.
If the other party got hurt, didn’t that mean she had to pay again?
The instrument Kexiening held froze in the air, and she didn’t dare to look back. Sweat accumulated on her face, and her eyes darted around nervously. Suddenly, she dropped to her knees in front of the person and bowed deeply three times.
“Hero, spare my life! I didn’t mean to! If you get hurt, I won’t be able to pay—you know, I’m really sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!”
Her two daughters, also frightened and pale, didn’t have even a dime left; further compensation meant they’d lose everything, so they too hastily fell to the ground together, apologizing to the gentleman they had bumped into.
“Ah, it’s fine; it’s nothing serious. The paintings you have hung should be the images found in a circus, right? Why are you doing street performance now?”
“Um… It’s a long story.”
Before Kexiening, a calm voice of indeterminate gender spoke from the gentleman. Kexiening couldn’t see their motions but guessed he was looking at the artwork still not stolen by Colin—the last remnants of circus items.
“So interesting! Several Slime folk dressed in imitated skin selling performances in the snow is quite rare. I’ve heard that the legendary Slimes are wealthy enough to rival kingdoms. How did you all fall to such depths? And are you holding the Boundary Pipe for songs?”
Feeling slightly embarrassed from the attention drawn to her performance, Kexiening bit her lip. However, she sensed the other party’s interest in her performance; a customer like this was most likely to hand out some money. So, she promptly flashed a flattering smile and said, “I have been to many places. Without you needing to ask, I can guess where you come from and even offer a song from my homeland. You hail from Shivali, right? I’m proficient in Shivali songs, let me sing for you. The red flowers in the mountain, the general departing from the village~ I linger on the day you left, picking…”
As Kexiening eagerly tried to continue her song, glistening silver Northern coins clattered into the broken bowl in front of her. The more she sang, the slower her pace became, until her eyes were completely captivated by the silver’s shine, and she swallowed hard, barely containing her excitement.
“Ah, this is just… too generous! Thank you, thank you! Kind gentleman from Shivali.”
Fearing he might take back the coins, she quickly hugged the bowl brimming with silver and cautiously lifted her head to confirm the gentleman’s actions. To her surprise, the gentleman had already taken several steps away. Only then did she suddenly realize he was dressed rather peculiarly.
He wore a heavy black leather coat, his face obscured by a beak-like mask that left one unable to distinguish face from item. He donned a dark ship captain’s hat and waved dismissively at Kexiening as he walked away.
“Take good care of those silver coins. I’ve heard that the Slime folk can turn a tiny cost into a hundredfold profit; I eagerly await.”
That figure grew further away, soon disappearing into the crowd. Although he was such a unique person, he blended so easily into the masses, prompting many thoughts.
However, Kexiening didn’t mind; she merely stared blankly down at the bowl full of silver coins, greedily burying her face among the coins and taking a deep breath.
“Yes, we are indeed such a race.”
When she lifted her head again, her previously pale face was filled with a healthy flush, as if she had rejuvenated by thirty years. She looked greedily at the other direction of the street—the direction where the carriage filled with noble value had driven away.
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(End of Chapter)
