It was well known that lending money was a very sensitive issue. Add the complexity of the personal ties, the depth of the relationship, and the amount involved, and the situation grew several times more complicated. In some cases, decades of friendship could collapse overnight.
My respected mother had a very strict policy on lending money. In her words, "Be careful when lending money, no matter how close the friend is. One mistake can cost you both the money and the friendship. If you do decide to lend it, be prepared not to get it back. Thus, only lend an amount that won't cause problems in your life."
Now a complete stranger was asking for something that even a longtime friend would hesitate to raise.
Absurdly, I could sense an aristocrat's dignity in his attitude.
As I was speechless, Chain Scythe Lorcan spoke first. "What do you mean by that?"
"Ah... It is like this. I enjoyed a great meal at this restaurant, but it turns out that I forgot my wallet."
I narrowed my eyes.
Then the young man continued in a flustered voice, "I-I swear, I can pay you back right away."
I can pay you back right away. By my standards, that claim ranked high on the list of excuses that debtors loved to use.
"How do you expect us to trust you?" I asked.
"Uh, that..." The young man rummaged through his pockets and took something out. "How about this? I'll leave this as a guarantee!"
He stepped closer and handed us the item. Surprisingly, it was a Hero Badge. However, what caught my attention was its material.
As I had mentioned, the material of a Hero Badge varied by class. The one in his hand gleamed even from a distance. It was gold.
This means...
"An A-class hero," Lorcan muttered, finishing my thought.
The young man turned the badge over and showed us the back, where his name was engraved: Lanfero Nosferatu.
"Lanfero?" Lorcan narrowed his eyes, as if he was recalling a name he had heard somewhere before.
Of course, I was hearing it for the first time. Unless the hero was a special case like Chain Scythe Lorcan, I only knew S-class heroes and a handful of A-class ones.
Lanfero smiled faintly. "You don't know who I am? That's sad."
"Do you know who we are?" I asked.
"I do," he replied. "Chain Scythe and Luan Badniker."
Um? I tilted my head in confusion.
Lanfero continued, "I watched your promotion battle yesterday. You both fought well. Especially you, Luan Badniker. You did something unprecedented, didn't you?"
At that, Lorcan's vigilance eased a little, since only heroes could observe the promotion battles held the day before.
"Then why doesn't an A-class hero have any money for food?" Lorcan asked.
"I forgot my wallet..." Lanfero muttered in embarrassment.
"Can't you start a tab?" I pressed.
"We don't do that." A voice suddenly came from the kitchen. The owner stepped out from behind the curtain, holding a butcher's knife.
Had he been cooking? I wondered.
"We don't do tabs here. Never," the owner said, his face serious. Then he slipped back through the curtain like a ghost.
Lanfero shrugged.
I turned to look at Lorcan, and he asked, "Do you want me to pay for him?"
"You said you were buying," I said flatly.
"No. I said I was only paying for you..." Eventually, Lorcan sighed. "How much?"
"Oh! Are you going to lend me the money?" Lanfero cried. "Thank you! Thank you so much! It is ten silver coins!"
"Ten silver coins?!" Lorcan was stunned.
The reaction made sense. Even considering the high cost of living in Teper, ten silver coins could buy ten luxurious meals.
Lorcan stared at Lanfero in disbelief. Lanfero was slim and young, the type who looked full after half of this restaurant's signature steak, yet he had eaten food worth ten silver coins.
Lanfero ignored Lorcan's stare and left the restaurant.
Finally, Lorcan pulled out his wallet with trembling hands. I patted him on the back and went outside.
Lanfero waited by the door, grinning at me. "Hey! I was saved. I was seriously wondering if I'd have to wash dishes."
I told him, "It isn't like I was the one who paid."
"Still, isn't he your friend?"
"Not really. It is somewhere between a friend and an acquaintance," I clarified.
Lanfero nodded. "Ah, I see."
Just then, Lorcan came out and glared at Lanfero. "You can keep your Hero Badge."
His tone had changed, which showed that he now acknowledged him as an A-class hero.
"Really? Can I do that?" Lanfero asked, sounding uncertain.
Lorcan nodded. "Yes. I doubt an A-class hero would refuse to pay me back."
"Of course not. Thank you." Lanfero quickly snatched his Hero Badge back, as if he feared someone would steal it.
Lorcan looked like he regretted his words, but I would've reacted the same way. Holding an A-class Hero Badge was burdensome.
"Then we will be on our way," I said, breaking the moment.
"Yes, yes," Lanfero replied cheerfully. "Goodbye, Chain Scythe and Luan Badniker."
I left the odd fellow behind and walked alongside Lorcan, asking, "Then Lorcan, do you know where the Origin is taking place?"
"Yes. If we head straight east from Teper, there is a large grassland. It should be near there."
"Is it far?" I pressed.
"It takes around two hours by carriage." Lorcan's expression darkened slightly. After all, riding a carriage cost money.
"Then let's walk," I suggested lightly. "We can digest our meal."
In fact, I could pay for the carriage, but I kept quiet. Lorcan's attitude was somehow amusing.
"I agree," Lorcan said with renewed energy. "I know a shortcut, so if we run hard, we can get there faster than a carriage."
"Okay."
"By the way..." Lorcan trailed off and looked back. Lanfero was following us, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Do you need something?" I asked, unable to hide my irritation.
Lanfero smiled at my tone. "Huh? You are here? It seems that we are heading in the same direction."
Lorcan and I exchanged a look. For the time being, it was hard to guess this sloppy-looking man's real intentions.
I asked in a low voice, "Does he have a grudge against you?"
Lorcan shook his head. "No way. This is the first time I've seen him."
"What about the Hero Badge? Maybe it's fake," I noted.
"I have never touched an A-class Hero Badge, but the material is definitely gold," Lorcan said. "Besides, no one would impersonate an A-class hero in Teper."
I nodded. "Yes, you have a point."
Lorcan added, "And I think I've heard the name Lanfero somewhere before."
"Really?" That suggested Lanfero wasn't just a strange or eccentric person.
I thought it over, then said, "Either way, there's nothing good about being entangled with him. Let's shake him off."
"How?"
I lightly tapped my thigh, and he nodded as if he understood. We kicked off from the ground and dashed at the same time.
"This way!" Lorcan knew Teper well and roamed its alleys with ease. I followed him.
Isn't he fast? I looked at Lorcan with quiet admiration. He lived up to his reputation as a famous mercenary and an active B-class hero. His physical prowess was impressive.
The narrow streets were cluttered with garbage, discarded furniture, and cleaning tools, such as buckets and mops, and even rats. Lorcan ignored every obstacle, never breaking his stride.
After approximately fifteen minutes of running through the alleys, I could no longer sense Lanfero's presence. Even so, we kept running after leaving the alleys. We decided to run straight to the test site.
After another fifteen minutes passed, we reached the outskirts of Teper. Then after thirty minutes, we arrived at the test site that Lorcan had mentioned.
"Is this where the test is held?" I asked.
"Yes."
How should I describe it? A broad, open field stretched before us, scattered with roughly fifteen tents. Each one displayed a banner with a distinct pattern. The tents resembled temporary wartime barracks, thrown together to house soldiers.
"Are they preparing for war or something?" I asked without thinking.
"Who knows? It is hard to tell at first glance," Lorcan replied.
At that moment, a voice cut through the air. "What? Have the two of you never been to the east?"
It was a voice that had no place here. Lorcan and I turned at once, and I saw Lanfero sitting on a sizable rock. It was very noticeable since he was gripping a black parasol.
Why did I fail to notice him until now? I wondered.
"You..." Lorcan's expression hardened, while I was quite confused.
I wasn't surprised that he had followed us. If he had been in the restaurant the entire time, he would've known our destination. What mattered was that Lanfero had arrived before us.
Lorcan knew Teper's layout quite well. By taking shortcuts and pushing ourselves hard, we arrived a full hour earlier than a carriage would have.
However, an hour of nonstop running demanded tremendous stamina. Even I was slightly out of breath, and Lorcan was gasping. Meanwhile, Lanfero wasn't gasping for breath, and even his hair looked unchanged. No, it was still messy, but no messier than when we had first seen him. It was as if he hadn't run at all.
Then had he walked here? That was even more unlikely, unless he used some kind of footwork similar to Senior Sister Tian's Ground Shrinkage Steps.
He used something else. In any case, I doubted that I would ever learn how unless he told me directly.
In any case, Lanfero approached us and said, "That over there is a Great War."
"Great War?" I echoed.
"Yes. It is a form of territorial war in the east that can last for days or even weeks. The rules are simple. Three times a day, when the horn sounds, each faction will send out its strongest warrior to compete. The winner will claim the territory," Lanfero explained. "Well, they have probably modified the rules a bit for the Origin."
"You seem to know a lot," Lorcan noted.
"I am A-class." Lanfero smiled. There wasn't a single wrinkle on his face. He looked about the same age as Heero, but his speech and demeanor suggested that he was older.
Is he not human? I wondered. He isn't a fairy or half-blood. He doesn't resemble beastfolk, and he definitely isn't a dragon.
Lanfero asked, "Do you have companions participating?"
"Yes."
Lorcan hummed. "I see."
Lanfero nodded, then turned his gaze to me. What he said next caught me off guard. "By the way, Luan Badniker, I have a recommendation for you."
"What is it?" I asked.
"Would you like to join my clan?"
Could this have been his true purpose? I looked at Lanfero, confusion clear on my face.
He seemed just as flustered and continued quickly, "Wait. I know what you are going to say. I'm sure you have already received a lot of offers. I heard you turned down Desert Scorpion's offer in the restaurant earlier. Still, if you listen to me and give it some thought—"
"It won't change anything," a hard voice cut in as another man stepped forward. He was muscular, his torso exposed, and an impressive tattoo stretched from his face down to his collarbone.
"Ah, Senior," Lorcan said.
If he was Lorcan's senior, then he had to be a hero of Desert Scorpion.
The hero nodded slightly before fixing Lanfero with a cold stare. "Lanfero Nosferatu, haven't your spectator privileges for the Origin been revoked?"
"Yes, I'm aware. Isn't that why I am out here?" Lanfero pointed out.
"I am tired of your shamelessness." The hero of Desert Scorpion shook his head, then turned to me. "Are you Golden Fairy Luan Badniker?"
"Yes."
"Then I advise you not to join that clan, Golden Fairy."
My favorability toward this man plummeted. I looked at him and asked, "Why?"
"It is the Corrupted clan," he answered. "You have heard that name, right?"
"Corrupted!" Lorcan exclaimed.
I turned to him. "Lorcan, do you know it?"
"I've heard rumors. It is notorious for being the worst clan..."
What was the worst clan? Was there some kind of popularity poll among the Hero Society?
In the first place, I don't think it's right for the clan to be called Corrupted.
Lanfero, the person in question, stood perfectly still. He seemed to have abandoned the idea of recruiting me in an instant. The fact that he gave up this quickly felt strangely familiar.
The warrior hero said, "What do you plan to do by recruiting a young man into a clan that is about to sink? Do you want him to go down with you?"
"How could that be? In order to prevent it from sinking, I need to fix it first. To do that, I need manpower," Lanfero replied.
"You sure have a big mouth..."
"Forget it, forget it." Lanfero shook his hands. "Let's end it here. I'll just sit here. As you said, I don't have the right to attend the Origin."
"That is how it should be." The hero warrior snorted and motioned to Lorcan. "Let's go, Chain Scythe."
"Luan," Lorcan called out to me, as if we were leaving together.
I looked away.
Lanfero Nosferatu, an A-class hero and the leader of the Corrupted clan... He intrigued me in many ways, but curiosity alone was not enough to choose a clan. Still, I wanted to ask him one question. It was trivial, but it mattered to me.
"You said your name is Lanfero?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied.
"Can I ask you just one question?"
He gave a small nod. "Of course. You can ask as many as you want."
"Why don't you call me by my nickname?" This was the question.
For heroes, a nickname was another name in a literal sense. It reflected a hero's personality or defining traits. So even heroes who were quite close often addressed each other by their nicknames.
Meanwhile, my own nickname was the damn Golden Fairy. However, from the beginning, Lanfero had always called me by my full name, despite knowing my nickname. It didn't seem like his usual habit either, since he addressed Lorcan as Chain Scythe.
For the first time, Lanfero looked visibly confused. With a subtle expression, he said, "Isn't that nickname a bit lame? I thought you'd get angry if I used it."
My jaw dropped as I stared at Lanfero with new eyes. I liked this man!