The Players and the Protagonist Want to Kill Me – Chapter 45

Chapter 46: Little Fatty’s Home

“Why didn’t you ask a priest?”

As soon as Xi Wei asked this question, he felt foolish.

Little Fatty looked at Xi Wei with a strange gaze. After a moment of hesitation, he continued, “Lord, don’t you remember? You killed all the priests… And even if the priests were still alive, we couldn’t afford them. It costs a hundred gold coins for a priest to cast a healing spell.”

“They never intended to cast healing spells for us.”

Hearing this, Xi Wei awkwardly rubbed his nose. Those priests weren’t very useful, and his reasoning at the time was simple.

These priests were unwilling to serve the common people, let alone heal Loli, and they even disdained him, their lord.

It was better to send these shepherds to meet their gods.

“Alright, I’ll go buy medicine with you now. After we’re done, you can take me to your home.”

“As the lord, if the knights under my command make a mistake, I will naturally take responsibility.”

Little Fatty’s eyes widened in disbelief. He was already so plump that his eyes were mere slits, but now Xi Wei could actually see his eyeballs.

“Will you really help us?”

Xi Wei nodded affirmatively.

…

There was only one pharmacy in the entire Winter City, and almost everyone who got sick or injured came here to buy medicine.

Priests’ healing spells were something only nobles could afford, although even nobles couldn’t enjoy them now.

The owner of the pharmacy was an old man with white hair. His face looked weathered and worn, rough and dark, covered in deep wrinkles.

However, in contrast, the old man’s eyes were very bright.

According to Little Fatty, this old man, who made a living selling herbs, was once an alchemist. However, his magic source was shattered, and he could no longer make magic potions.

But Xi Wei noticed thick calluses on the old man’s palms and wrists, and he secretly guessed that this old man’s identity was probably not that simple.

“Grandpa Parker, I want to buy some herbs to treat external wounds.”

Little Fatty trotted to the old man’s pharmacy, saying nervously.

This wasn’t the first time he had come to the old man’s pharmacy to buy medicine; he had come a few times before to buy wound medicine for his father.

He had always been a little afraid of this old man with bright eyes. Under those eagle-like eyes, he always felt like he had nowhere to hide.

Old Parker had already noticed the two approaching directly. He sized up Xi Wei and recognized Xi Wei’s identity at a glance.

“Good day, Lord.”

Xi Wei nodded at Old Parker without speaking.

Old Parker bowed to Xi Wei with neither servility nor obsequiousness, then looked at Little Fatty, who was still shorter than the table, and said with a smile,

“It’s Aubrey, huh? You seem to have gotten fatter again? What happened to your father this time? Did he get hurt hunting game for you again?”

Little Fatty’s expression fell at this. He shook his head, his voice choked with emotion,

“Grandpa Parker, Father can’t go hunting game for me anymore, because he died in battle three days ago.”

Upon hearing Little Fatty’s words, Old Parker’s expression was surprised. His smile gradually faded, and then regret flashed in his eyes.

He quite liked the young man who occasionally brought him a cup of sour beer. He hadn’t expected that after not seeing him for a while, he would never see him again.

“I’m very sorry, Aubrey, I…”

“Grandpa Parker, my father was a glorious warrior. I am proud of him, and I will be like him in the future.”

Little Fatty shook his head, sniffled, and continued, “This time I’m here to get medicine for my mother. She was injured by a bad guy.”

Old Parker didn’t press further about why Little Fatty’s mother was injured. He simply turned around to find herbs that could treat external wounds.

For those who are injured, every meaningless question is torture.

Unless you can help them solve the problem.

“Here, Aubrey, this is hemostatic grass, and this is stargrass. I’ve already portioned them out for you. Take them back and boil them for an hour before giving them to your mother.”

Old Parker expertly packaged two bags of herbs and placed them in Little Fatty’s hands. Suddenly, he patted Little Fatty’s round head, and said with a complex expression,

“You must grow up healthy… and protect your mother for your father.”

Little Fatty nodded obediently. Then, he took out more than ten copper coins from his pocket.

He carefully counted them, took out two, and placed the rest in the winnowing basket on the old man’s table.

This money was certainly not enough to buy these herbs, but Old Parker didn’t say anything. He ran a pharmacy not to make money.

He chuckled, took one copper coin from the winnowing basket, returned the rest to Little Fatty, and waved his hand, saying, “This is enough.”

After bidding farewell to Old Parker, Xi Wei, led by Little Fatty, meandered through a long time before arriving at a low tile-roofed house in the outer city.

This was Little Fatty’s home.

Xi Wei felt some doubt in his heart. Although the pay for Sword Shield Soldiers was not as high as that of knights, they shouldn’t have to live in such a simple place.

“Mother, I’m back.”

Little Fatty knocked on the door. A weak female voice followed from inside the house.

“Cough, cough—Aubrey’s back? You can open the door yourself, Mom is a bit inconvenient to walk right now.”

Xi Wei didn’t enter the house immediately with Little Fatty. Only when Little Fatty came out again to invite him in did he follow.

As soon as he entered the house, he was hit by a strong smell of herbs mixed with the foul odor of festering wounds.

In the dim light, Xi Wei could see a frail woman lying on her side on the bed. She looked very haggard and tired.

Little Fatty had already explained the cause and effect of Xi Wei’s arrival to the woman, but her expression was still somewhat fearful, and she struggled to sit up from the bed.

“Lord, your humble subject…”

“Just talk while you lie down. Don’t be formal, this is an order.”

Xi Wei reached out and gently pressed the woman back down. A trace of Qi also probed her body.

Xi Wei couldn’t help but frown. Little Fatty’s mother not only had external injuries, but she also suffered from severe lung disease.

This explained why their living conditions were so poor. It was likely that Little Fatty’s father’s entire salary was spent on treating his wife.

This illness was beyond the help of even priests. It could only be cured by baptism with holy water condensed from faith.

However, in a remote place like Winter City, where could they get holy water? It was a precious resource that could only be found in the Royal Capital.

But it wasn’t entirely hopeless. Xi Wei had a premonition.

Yesterday, when Loli was comprehending, the aura she emanated corresponded to an ability that could definitely solve the current problem.

It seemed he needed to hurry up and help the little maid awaken.

Xi Wei didn’t waste time with pointless pleasantries and got straight to the point, asking,

“I heard your pension was stolen by a group of people, and there was a knight supporting them?”

The woman’s expression turned bitter upon hearing this, and tears immediately welled up. She tearfully recounted,

“…Lord, can you help us? It was Bolt’s gang. They are thugs from the outer district who usually make a living by collecting protection fees.”

“Soon after the knight who delivered the pension left that day, they came, robbed the pension, and beat me like this, woo woo…”

“They even said that they could retaliate at any time, and that they had knights and lords behind them…”

“Insolent Bastards!”

Upon hearing this, Xi Wei’s forehead veins bulged, and he clenched his fists in anger.

Not only had these scoundrels committed evil deeds, but they were also using his name?

He wanted to see who the knight behind these thugs was. If such a person truly existed, then that person would receive the most severe punishment.