Gates of Eldaria (Part 3)

Ren pat my back and picked up his bag. "Come on let's go in."

"Sure," I replied as I got my bags as well.

I turned back to see Elaina frowning as she tried to carry all her bags. Poor girl only had two arms.

I walked over to her and pointed to the heaviest-looking bag, then looked at her for permission, "May I?"

Elaina looked at herself for a moment, clearly struggling with her luggage, then sighed. "Sure..."

I picked up her bag and carried it over my shoulder. I waited for her for a second as she readjusted her bags and then we both walked together. Sylvie had already long gone ahead with Ren.

"Hey, Liam?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For this?" I pointed to her bag over my shoulder, then continued, "Haha, you are welcome. So you didn't exactly lug around all this luggage across Asella..."

She shook her head. "No, not really. I have been traveling by cart, caravan, or even on horses with other adventurers but didn't exactly have to pull around all of this."

"And I suppose all of these are essential stuff? Or something more?"

She glared at me. "Don't be like Luca. I only carry along what's important. Unlike you guys, we girls have more basic necessities."

"I see." I nodded clearly having no idea what more basic necessities girls had, but I had enough experience with Sophia to know that I am not supposed to ask further or judge any of it.

By then we had already reached the front desk where Sylvie waited for us while Ren spoke with the lady across the desk.

I approached them and Ren noticed my arrival turning back to me. "Yeah Liam come over."

I went to the front desk and to the lady. She was a bit on the heavier side, probably in her thirties, and wore a simple brown tunic.

"Mr. Liam Everhart, yes?" She looked at me with weary eyes but managed a smile.

I said, "Yes, and this is Elaina Evreux. I believe we are both already registered here for stay."

"Yes, may I see your adventurer tags?". She asked.

I showed her my adventurer tag as Elaina stepped forward and showed hers as well. The woman touched our tags and her fingers glowed blue. Instantly our names and adventurer registration numbers showed up on a piece of paper which she then passed to us for our signatures.

She was an advanced scribe mage. She could be working someplace else and earning big money but I guess she had her reasons for working here.

She nodded as she checked our papers to see if everything was done right then gave us our room keys. "Your rooms are on the second floor, by the end of the hall on the left."

"As for your luggage." she took a deep breath and yelled out at the top of her voice. "ADELE GET HERE RIGHT NOW!"

We were all shocked, but the people around us gave no reactions nor did she explain anything.

To break the awkwardness among us, I asked her instead, "And... Uh, what about the cost of staying per night?"

"It's 10 copper pieces per night, but all your rooms have already been paid for by Lord Everhart's household, so the rooms are yours for the next 54 years.", She replied without batting an eye.

Once again, everyone was shocked... Well everyone except me. Knowing my father, he must have just sent Lance or Sebas to Eldaria with a random sack of gold coins with instructions to get some rooms at an inn for us. Could have just bought a house instead though.

I'll have to earn my own money through adventuring and worry about my own stuff, but at least now lodging won't be one of those worries.

Just then I noticed a young boy, probably around the age of 12, staring at me awestruck and speechless.

I beckoned at him. "Hello there."

He slowly walked towards me. "Are you... Are you the Hero?"

I smiled and ruffled his hair. "No, I am his son. Liam Everhart."

His eyes were shining and he was beaming at me as if that was even better. "Hello, Mr.Everhart. Welcome to the Silver Swan Inn. My name is Adele Bonnocks. How may I help you?", Then lowering his head and smiling nervously. "I... I... practiced that... all night."

"That's great! I'll surely rely on you"

He grinned and then ran up to the woman at the desk. "Mom! I am here!"

The woman pointed to our bags. "Get those to their rooms and come back down quickly."

Adele scurried over to our bags. He touched the bags for a moment which soon started to glow dim orange, apparently making them a lot lighter as he picked up two of Elaina's bags with ease. This family was blessed with good magic.

I picked up my own bag and as we were leaving, the woman by the counter said to us. "Mr.Everhart, I would like to inform you, that your breakfast is complimentary on the house."

Just then a shabby half-drunk man overheard us and came growling. "You fucking with me, Mary?! Where is my complimentary breakfast?!!"

She slammed the desk with her hand and yelled back at him. "Come back when you pay a 100 gold coins! You can't even pay for that drink, you stinking piece of filth!"

"Bitch, I'll pay you back I said!" Then the man turned to us with a smile and tried to touch Elaina's face. "Rich kids huh? How about I beat some cash out of you? I'll spare this pretty thing if she makes me happy tonight."

I dropped the bag and instantly drew out my sword to cut off his arm, but before I could, Ren grabbed him by the throat to lift him up in the air and choke-slammed him straight to the ground so hard that shock went all through the wooden floor boards and knocked over a vase off a wall on the other side of the room.

Adele went laughing over to the guy now left coughing on the floor. "These are the Hero's son and his friends. Don't mess with them haha."

All of a sudden the man recovered and reached to grab Adele. Out of nowhere, a knife came flying and stabbed through his palm, pinning his hand to the floor.

It was Luca. He quietly and calmly walked over from the entrance, stepped on the man's arm, who screamed painfully, and pulled out the knife. He then wiped the blood off the blade on that guy's clothes and came back to stand beside us with no reaction or expression on his face as if nothing happened.

"Are you alright?" I looked back at Elaina who had a murderous glint of hatred in her eyes and her knife ready for it.

After a moment, she sighed and smiled back at me. "Yes, I'm fine."

I then walked over to the guy. "I like this place a lot, I think I am gonna stick around. You cause any trouble, to my team, this nice lady, or her son..."

Ren joined me and continued,"...and we will kill you."

He looked at us with scared, bewildered eyes. "I... I was just joking. Haha..."

With that, he crawled/scrambled away holding his hand.

After a moment of silence and a sigh, I looked back at Elaina, Sylvie, and others. "Let's go to our rooms."

I smiled at Adele. "Can you lead us there, kind sir?"