Small encounter

"Apples, oranges, tomatoes, potatoes, and all kinds of totally fresh vegetables and fruits at a very cheap price!"

"Buy barbecue ribs!"

"Hey, do you think we could make it to Rivira this time?"

I could hear different voices coming from the bustling market full of all kinds of people. I thought I could clear my mind by walking through the streets of Orario, but it's a bit annoying. I don't like big crowds.

There's also the fact that I get a little nervous and have to be careful that nobody tries to pull my hood and sees my wings.

I started to smell something quite delicious and walked until I came to a stand that sold sausages and potatoes cooked on a skewer.

"Excuse me, can I have two?" I asked the man, who was bald and a bit old.

"Sure, two grilled sausages and very tasty to order," he replied with a smile.

"How much do they cost?" I asked him when he handed me the sausages.

"54 valis," the man answered me with a little enthusiasm.

"Thank you very much." I handed over the valis and continued walking.

I think it's a bit annoying, my impulse to buy food even though I'm not hungry. But these sausages are very good, and I couldn't resist.

I stopped in my tracks. "Resist," I murmured to myself.

It's true. In the dungeon, there is a room that attracts monsters. I remember a scene where Bell and Welf found a room full of monsters. I think it was called... dispenser or... pantry? Whatever, right now, the name is not important.

It will be a bit dangerous, but I don't think it's as risky as exploring the deeper floors because with my portals, we can escape whenever we want. Also, I think it's very efficient because fighting in a place full of monsters will make us better prepared for the intermediate floors, improve our coordination, and help us prepare for tense situations.

But wouldn't that be too dangerous? One mistake, and we would be surrounded by monsters with no escape.

If I buy a lot of Mind-restoring potions and tank a lot of the damage from monsters with a shield and casting Tunda in case I get hit, I could improve my Endurance a lot.

As I kept thinking about the pros and cons of this method...

"Get out of the way!" I heard a shout, and suddenly I felt an impact on my back. I turned my gaze and saw a girl a little bigger than me lying on the ground.

Although I was a bit surprised to see her appearance, with her purple hair and purple eyes, what stood out the most were her tattered clothes with broken parts.

"I finally caught you, little thief," I heard the voice come from a man who was standing behind the girl. He was quite obese and looked somewhat agitated.

It's not my problem what happens to that girl, and the people around are watching the situation, so getting involved is too troublesome.

I thought about walking away and ignoring what was going on, but when I saw the man lift his foot up in a kicking position, I yelled, "Stop!" in an attempt to intervene. It was successful, but he looked my way.

"Do you also belong to his little gang?" he asked me with a rather angry tone.

I just shook my head a bit and replied, "I don't even know her." But when she heard my answer, she got even angrier and yelled even more, "Then stay out of my way and stop looking at me with that horrible face and scary monster eyes!" He seriously must have anger issues, was my first thought when I heard the first thing he said, but what he said next really annoyed me.

He annoyed me even more when he tried to throw a fist at my face, although I only had to open the palm of my right hand to block the blow, which was not very difficult. He must be a civilian or an adventurer who received the falna until recently, although I don't really have anything to compare it to because this is the first time someone else has attacked me.

I just hope my sausages don't fall off.

"Stop," I repeated what I had already said before, while I kept holding his fist which was quite difficult due to the difference in the size of our wrists, so I grabbed the wrist of his hand instead.

Why had no one started to stop this situation? This place was supposed to be full of adventurers, but when I looked around a bit, I saw that everyone was watching the situation as if it was somewhat entertaining. I could only sigh at the ridiculousness of the situation, and it reminded me a bit of my previous world. I guess some things never change.

"Okay, I won't hit the girl anymore, so stop," he said, struggling and trying to get me to let go of his wrist. When I finally released him, he tripped and fell to the ground.

The girl struggled to get up and wobbled a little.

"What did she do to make you chase her and try to hit her?" I asked, hoping for a quick answer so I could leave this situation and get back to my meal.

He looked at me with fear, but still managed to answer, "She's been st-stealing the br-bread I sell for a week. And it's affecting my business a lot!" He stuttered a bit at first, but his voice quickly filled with anger again.

I turned my gaze to the girl and noticed that she was holding a large loaf of bread with both hands.

Sighing, I reached into one of my pockets, pulled out a small bag, and counted the valis inside. There was a total of 1446 valis, so I removed 946 valis, put them back in my pocket, and threw the bag next to the man.

"Take it," I said, and he quickly picked up the bag. When he saw its contents, he just nodded and got up from the ground before leaving.

I wanted to get away from this place as quickly as possible. But when I turned around, I felt someone lightly grab my clothes.

When I looked in that direction, I saw that it was the girl who hadn't moved away yet.

"I won't give you my sausages," I said as seriously as possible. But she just shook her head. "Thank you very much," she said softly, but her voice sounded a little harsh.

If I look closely, she seems quite malnourished. It is amazing that an adult cannot even reach someone with this type of condition.

I sighed again and used my right hand to retrieve the valis from my pocket once more, while I kept holding the sausages with the other.

After counting out 300 valis, I gave them to her. Since she was using one of her arms to hold the bread, I took the hand she wasn't using and placed the 300 valis in her palm.

She was taken aback by my gesture and when she looked at what I had given her, she exclaimed, "I can't accept this."

"Don't worry, you can keep those valis." I turned around again, trying to get away from this place as quickly as possible. When I didn't feel her grab me again, I felt a great sensation of relief.

I know that those 300 valis won't solve her life, and it's not like I'm thinking of getting involved with people I just saw. But I'm not going to meddle in other people's lives.

I looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to me anymore. I'd better go to a quieter place, I decided. After all, places without too many people are much better.