It was the second day already since I started travelling alongside Kael and the others. And just as the afternoon sun reached its highest point in the sky— we came across the outskirts of a small village.
We had been traveling for hours without much of a pause, so it was definitely time for us to take a break anyway. Under Kael’s lead, we decided to settle there for a short while to stretch our legs and rest the horses.
From what I could see, this village was roughly the same size as the one where Hans and the others lived. It was protected by a set of sturdy wooden walls and a large timber gate that kept the local monsters out.
As our group approached the entrance, led by the unmistakable golden carriage, the guards on duty didn’t even hesitate.
They recognized the emblem of the church immediately and opened the gates wide for us to pass through.
’Wow, it must be nice being treated with this much respect and importance everywhere you go.’
I thought to myself as the heavy gates creaked open.
We managed to get through the initial inspection without any trouble or delay, and just like that— we were inside the village within a matter of minutes.
*****
Once we were inside the village walls, the local chief came out to greet our group; she was an old woman with a face full of deep wrinkles. The Saintess herself, Elianna, stepped out of her carriage to greet the woman personally.
"We are currently in the middle of a journey toward the City of Zore, and we have stopped here specifically to replenish our stock of food and drink."
She explained our situation to the chief with a calm and steady voice.
"It would be a great help if you could find some surplus resources to sell to us."
Then she followed that up with a polite, yet commanding tone.
"Ohh, that is absolutely no problem at all— we are not currently tight on any of our resources, so it would be our absolute pleasure to help the Saintess and her group by selling some supplies to you."
The chief replied with a warm and welcoming smile on her face. After that brief exchange of small talk, she invited all of us to the local church to find some rest.
"Uhh, I really don’t think I should come along with you to the church..."
I mumbled that under my breath, whispering the words to Kael while we were both still sitting on our horses.
"Huh? Why not? I think it will be perfectly fine for you to join us."
Kael reassured me with a casual shrug, brushing off my concerns as if they were nothing. I looked over at the other knights, and they were all looking back at me with neutral expressions; they eventually nodded their heads to tell me it was fine for me to tag along as well.
’I mean, I suppose it is a good thing that they are actually being welcoming to me now... but I just really don’t feel like resting at the moment.’
I thought to myself, then turning to Kael—
"You guys go ahead and rest at the local church, but I think I will just take a little look around the village for a bit."
I said that.
"Huh? Are you sure about that?"
Kael asked, looking a bit confused.
"Yeah, I’m not that tired yet anyway... I also just want to do a little bit of sightseeing while we are here."
"Hmm, okay then... just make sure you meet up with us back at the gate again after one hour."
"Got it."
I said.
And after my short talk with Kael was finished, I separated myself from the rest of the group.
I watched as they all followed the village chief toward the center of town, and I could see Kael looking back at me and waving his hand.
I just waved back at him for a little while and then went on my own way to explore the surroundings.
*****
"Hmm, I really have nothing to do right now."
I whispered that under my breath as I walked slowly down the dirt path, pulling on Bong’s leash to keep him moving with me. Our break was only going to last for an hour, so trying to start any serious training during that short time would just be a waste of effort.
But the problem was that except for training, I don’t really have anything else in my life that I actually do for fun.
As I was walking aimlessly through the quiet streets—
-Arf! Arf! Arf!
I suddenly heard the sound of energetic barking coming from behind me. I turned around to see what it was, and right there on the ground, I saw a very small puppy with fur that was completely black.
"Oh? Well hello there, little one."
I said that as I took a knee and extended my hand out toward the creature. The puppy walked over with a curious tilt of its head and started smelling my hand, and soon enough... it started licking my fingers.
’It’s cute.’
Just as I thought of that—
"Ah, there it is!"
I heard a deep, manly voice calling out from not very far away. I looked up and saw a man running toward me with a bit of a huff.
"Is this your dog?"
I asked that as soon as the man finally arrived in front of me. He was quite big and bulky, and I noticed he had very hairy arms.
"That’s right, he’s mine."
The man responded to me while nodding his head to catch his breath.
"I am the owner of that sick little dog."
He added that with a bit of a sigh.
"Is it really sick?"
I asked.
At my follow-up question, the man nodded his head again before opening his mouth.
"It has been four months since it was born, but compared to the rest of its brothers— it has remained very small. That dog barely grew up at all; a guy like that won’t ever be able to help with the hunt even when it grows up."
He explained the situation with a frustrated look.
I immediately concluded that the man standing in front of me was likely a hunter just based on what he had said about the dog’s future. I looked down at the puppy again— it was busily wagging its tail as it continued to smell my hand.
"Hmm..."
I thought about things for a short while, then I pretended to scratch the back of my neck with my right hand— PPSK!
I secretly grew several [Black Scales] in that spot and quickly took five of them into the palm of my hand. I looked up at the hunter in front of me, and then I showed him the shiny scales.
"Would you be willing to sell me this dog in exchange for these?"
I asked him that directly.
"These are scales taken from a monster called a [Dark Serpent]— they usually sell quite well in the markets."
I followed up with that piece of information.
"Huh?"
The hunter was clearly taken aback by my sudden offer, but then he started smiling widely as he looked at the scales.
"If you had just asked for it, I probably would have given you the dog for free!"
He exclaimed that with a loud laugh.
"It is not going to be able to help me at all in my job, it is just going to be another hungry mouth for me to feed. I was actually planning to give it away to someone soon anyway."
He followed up with that while shrugging his bulky shoulders.
"Though, I certainly won’t decline the scales you are giving me— they are actually real, right?"
The hunter asked, looking at them closely.
"They are much better in terms of quality than most, so go ahead and take them."
I just gave him a small smile and told him that.
The hunter immediately snatched the scales out of my hand, and after giving me a quick thank you— he immediately left the area; he didn’t even bother telling me the name of the dog before he disappeared.
-Arf! Arf! Arf!
As I was standing up and watching the hunter walk away, the puppy started barking at me again. It was standing up on its tiny hind legs and holding onto my leg so it wouldn’t fall over.
I looked down at the puppy for a moment, then I lifted it up into the air— I saw that it was a boy.
"Hmm, I think I will just call you Onyx from now on."
I mumbled that to the little creature.
-Arf!
And it really looked like he liked his new name.