“This is my short break,” the man said, and filled his lungs with smoke from his pipe again. “But, I really do like telling the tale. It’s about a man like any other. His name was Jake or John. Maybe Mike or George. It doesn’t really matter.”

The man now slouched back and took another big hit from his pipe, exhaling the smoke upward with a smile before continuing.

“This man was loved by everyone because, at a time when people were thieves, he gave back to his neighbors,” the strong-looking man continued. “His neighbors were becoming poorer by the day because someone was stealing their chickens. No one knew who the thief was, but this man alone would help those who suffered by giving them gold.”

“I see where this is going,” Kai whispered, but I hushed him as this was not the point of the story.

“He was loved by all,” the man started once again, “because they thought the money he distributed to the unfortunate people around him was what little he made repairing shoes. But one fateful night, his lies were discovered.”

He pushed himself up with his left hand while still holding the pipe in his mouth with his right. He went on to exhale a thick stream of smoke from his nostrils.

“They found him sneaking around in the early hours but still nobody thought to ask him what he was carrying in his satchel because everyone trusted him. However, on that night, he had stolen a rooster instead of a chicken. The cloth of his satchel was not thick enough to prevent the light of dawn from arriving at the cock’s eyes, and soon enough he started his daily routine.”

“They caught him because the rooster saw dawn was breaking and started crowing?” Kai asked.

“They caught him alright, ya,” the man said. “At first, he tried to talk himself out of the situation but then they found all of the stolen chickens in the basement of his house, laying eggs for him to sell.”

“What happened to him?” I asked, eager to appear interested in his story.

“Same thing that happens to all dishonest people,” he said, and stretched his hands upward, towering over us while keeping his pipe between his teeth. “He was hung as the thief he really was.”

“He got what he deserved,” Kai said while I was showered with guilt over all these things I had to steal to survive.

“Damn right he did,” the man said. “Your turn now, ya? A tale for a tale.”

“We were actually born in Fjalhun but have been living near Yubna for most of our lives,” I replied, confident my lie was foolproof. “We’re returning to our homeland.”

“Sounds like an interesting tale,” the man said, and half-turned his back to us to look at the door. “Food is not going to cook itself. Come in and we can talk more later. I have an offer for you, since you are disciples of the God of the Forge.”

We agreed and followed him in even though disciples of the forge was an unknown notion to me. The establishment was quite large, with many tables on the ground floor and some stairs leading up to even more tables on another level.

I scanned the place for a place to sit. Somewhere too small to fit more than just the two of us but placed so that we could listen to many people’s conversations. I found one which was quite central and moved toward it while the big man headed over to what looked like the kitchen.

“You didn’t tell us your name,” I called after him.

“Jaha is his name, Miss,” said a young man who was carrying a tray full of mugs filled with what looked like ale. “Fancy a drink?”

***

We spent the next two hours drinking colorful juices made of fruits we’d never heard coming from places we’d never been to. The drinks kept coming, but not nearly as fast as the alcoholic ones our neighboring tables were ordering. The atmosphere was getting warmer by the minute and people were shouting in disagreement, laughing in comradery, and above all eating and drinking.

The food was coming at a steady pace out of the door the innkeeper had entered and, of course, we couldn’t resist. We had dinner while talking about the people surrounding us.

There were people from Yubna, their little monkeys chomping on grapes and bananas while sitting on the shoulders of their human companions. Even though the Yubnans were deeply religious, they were also merchants like everyone else in Leka An. They were sitting with all sorts of people and drank only moderately, though some of them did not hold back at all when it came to the food.

We concluded that the women and men who looked like farmers had to be from the lands of Fenira. They were the loudest ones and the drunkest ones, many of them wearing jewelry resembling a scythe, the crest of their nation. They were a happy lot and the first to start singing as the day became older.

We were paying close attention to the conversations taking place around us, even though most of them held little to no value for us. Trading partnerships were being discussed between drinks, old friends shared stories, and new ones shared drinks.

Some trading routes were discussed, but nothing that could help us understand what the line of squares on our map could mean. Moreover, Ferrumheim was not even mentioned once in any of the conversations. We were starting to think that we might need to retreat to a forest and spend the night in our chest before returning to gather more information in the coming days.

“You coming or what?” Jaha said, appearing out of nowhere with his pipe in hand. He looked to be heading for the exit.

We followed him outside the inn where he was already sitting on the steps, lighting his wooden pipe. He put the small metal box he used to produce fire back in his pocket and turned to us while inhaling.

“Nifty little thing, ya?” he said tapping on his pocket while exhaling a cloud of smoke. “A Guldan engineer made it for me when he saw me using the cooking fire to light my pipe.”

“Fascinating,” I said, even though in Elysia something like this would not even be considered a worthy exercise for a child just taking up magical crafting.

“No need to lie, girl,” he said, as he produced a small loaf of bread from a pocket of his apron. “I know this thing is nothing for you magical crafters, but people from Guldan go to extreme lengths to produce things without using magic.”

“Why?” Kai asked.

“Because they can, I guess, ya?” Jaha replied and bit off a small chunk of bread. “I asked this question to my engineer friend once. He said all magical crafters believe in their gods and create things. But people in Guldan believe in themselves.”

“They do sound persistent,” I said, and I meant it.

“They are,” he replied and swallowed his bite. “They also are slow, ya? I have an issue needing a specific item crafted for me and can’t wait. And this is where we can help each other.”

“I understand how we can help you, Mister Jaha,” I said, “but I fail to see how you can be of assistance to us.”

“You can consider what you’ve eaten and drunk today,” he replied, “as well as a night’s sleep, paid for.”

“We don’t actually plan on staying,” I replied, but immediately I recognized the opportunity before me. “However, we would appreciate some traveling directions and information. That is, if your request is within my powers.”

“Directions and information I can give you in abundance,” the large man agreed. “As for my request, it is pretty easy, I reckon. You see, I used to have this kid running around the fields, ya? You know, keeping the damned crows away from my produce. However, the little bugger left and I can’t find anyone else willing to do it.”

“You want us to scare your crows away?” Kai asked, visibly confused.

“Well that wouldn’t be an efficient use of your skills now, would it?” the man retorted. “No, I’d like you to build me a scarecrow. One that’s good at shooing away the birds and that will hopefully last me a long time.”

Quest Name : Crows be Scared

Availability : Single

Rarity : E Grade

Description : Jaha, the owner of the Rooster Thief tavern is having trouble with crows harassing his fields. He needs a scarecrow to get rid of this problem.

Success : Craft a scarecrow that will get rid of the crow-problems effectively and efficiently.

Failure : No failure conditions applicable

Status : 0/1

Time Left : Unlimited

Reward : Food, drinks, and beds for 2 for one day. Additionally, any information that might prove useful to your travels.

Do you accept the quest? Yes No