The Kassakchel Kingdom was bustling with people. As the trading hub for all races across the entire continent, it saw an endless stream of visitors every day. Walking down the street and seeing adults and children with tails was as ordinary and normal as could be. It was Alice's first time seeing people of other races; she pressed her face against my back, looking around from side to side, her eyes filled with curiosity.
"Daddy, look quickly at that uncle with scales on his body!" Alice pointed a chubby finger at a middle-aged reptilian man walking toward us not far away and shouted loudly.
I hurriedly grabbed Alice's little hand, turned around, and gave her head a light tap, scolding her in a low voice, "Alice! That's very impolite!"
"Ow~" Alice clutched her head, blinking her eyes at me with a somewhat aggrieved look. "I... I know I was wrong, Daddy."
"You should properly apologize to him," I whispered, turning my head just in time to see the middle-aged man extending his hand toward me with a kind smile on his face. I hastily spoke up first, "I'm so sorry, my daughter has no manners. Let me apologize to you on her behalf." I scratched my head awkwardly, thinking to myself that this little ancestor certainly knew how to cause trouble for me.
The middle-aged man's smile paused momentarily, as if my sudden remark caught him off guard. He blankly paused for a brief moment, rambling vaguely, "Uh~ It's fine... Oh right, you must be Mr. Arthur, right? I am Lawrence, and Lord Sutton asked me to wait here for you. Lord Sutton places great importance on you as an honored guest and specifically instructed me to make sure I treat you well, hahaha."
I smiled politely and dismounted from my horse. Lawrence made a "please" gesture toward me, and I replied with a smile, "Please wait a moment while I help my daughter down." With that, I scooped Alice up and brought her down from the horse's back, but when I raised my head, I noticed Lawrence's expression was a bit odd, and the smile on his face had frozen. I was completely baffled, thinking I had done something impolite, so I asked, "Is something the matter, Mr. Lawrence?"
Lawrence seemed to snap back to his senses suddenly, and with a trace of awkwardness, he said, "Ah... It's nothing, nothing at all. Please, go right in." As he spoke, he even helped me push open the tavern door.
I nodded politely and thanked him, then pulled Alice along as we walked into the tavern.
Lawrence stood outside the tavern for a moment, his expression turning odd once again, and muttered softly, "What's wrong with this guy? What daughter? ... Total nonsense... Whatever, whatever, none of my business. Maybe these big shots all have some peculiarities that set them apart from ordinary people."
Just outside the tavern earlier, I had seen a large banner hanging over the plaque, bearing the words: "Warmly celebrating the return of our hero, Lord Sutton—all drinks are completely free today." I had to admit, Sutton was indeed generous. Having him pick up the tab for drinks throughout the entire place was no small expense. However, given his financial clout, buying the entire tavern wouldn't be a problem at all; this pocket change was practically a drop in the ocean for him.
The tavern was bustling and packed with people. Groups sat scattered around their respective tables, chatting idly, occasionally accompanied by the cheers of those enjoying their drinks to the fullest, and sometimes even the heavy snoring of those fast asleep. I also spotted a few familiar faces; these drunks turned up here like clockwork every single day. When the tavern opened at 9:00 AM every morning, the first batch of customers was invariably them. Most of these people were vagrants without steady jobs, soaking in the tavern for an entire day at a time. Fortunately, they only drank and never caused trouble, so the owner simply let them be.
When Clara was still around, she deeply resented me coming to places like this. If she knew I had brought Alice to such a spot, she would probably be furious. Actually, I didn't want to bring Alice either, but if I came alone, how could Alice stay home by herself? Given this little one's temper, if I went out to eat something delicious without taking her and she found out, she would practically tear my bed apart. I was truly terrified of this little ancestor now. Back before she was born, I was afraid of Clara; now that Alice had arrived, I was afraid of her instead. My family status had dropped to rock bottom.
"Hey, hey, hey! Arthur, over here, over here!" A trademark voice came from behind me, and I didn't even need to turn around to know it was that fellow White.
"You're a rare visitor indeed! How long has it been since we last saw each other? Five years? How did you end up in such a state? When you first walked in, I didn't even recognize you. Oh right, what have you been up to lately? I went to your house several times, but the door was always locked and you weren't home." White's face was flushed completely red; he looked like he'd had quite a bit to drink.
I scratched my head and said, "I've been home the whole time, just haven't been up to much these past few years. When did you come looking for me? How come I didn't know?"
"Well, maybe you just didn't hear. Say, what about Clara? Haven't seen her in a while. What's she up to?" White raised his wine bottle for a gulp, his gaze somewhat hazy.
I fell silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "My little golden canary—is she someone you're worthy of seeing? You're so ugly I'd be afraid you'd scare her."
"Get lost, get lost! You two have been an old married couple for so long, why are you still acting all mushy? Having a wife makes you feel special, huh?" White laughed and scolded, dropping the line of questioning.
Seeing that his table was completely packed, I said, "You guys go ahead and drink, I'm waiting for someone." White shouted, "Don't be like that, don't be like that! Just squeeze in, it's just a matter of adding a stool." Looking at White's state, I genuinely worried that if Alice sat at this table, she might pick up bad habits from him. So I shook my head and smiled, "Really, I can't. I have plans, you guys have fun." With that, I pulled Alice toward the front desk.
"Daddy, look, it's Uncle Gibbs." Alice stretched out her little finger to point toward an inconspicuous corner. There sat a "young maiden" dressed in a green windbreaker—who else could it be besides Gibbs? I really envied this guy; his appearance hadn't aged a bit, only filled out with more maturity and poise. He sat alone at a corner table by the window, guarding a small table. On it sat his favorite Manmei Fruit Wine—a very sour fruit wine. I had tried it once, but it certainly didn't suit my palate. He was fiddling with his harp, seeming to strum some sort of tune. The sunlight streamed through the window, casting a glow across half of his face and giving him an inexplicably sacred aura.
"Let's go say hello." I pulled Alice over to Gibbs. "Hello there, Gibbs."
Gibbs's intoxicated eyes suddenly snapped open. Seeing that the visitor was me, a smile curled at the corners of his mouth. "The great hero has arrived! Did you come to listen to my stories?" he said playfully, sticking out his tongue with a smile.
I hastily covered his mouth. Daring to say such things in a mixed crowd like this—if Sutton heard, he'd flip out. I made a "shh" gesture toward him and whispered, "Shh—you really dare to say that! Don't talk nonsense. Luckily Sutton isn't here yet; if Sutton were to hear..." Before I could finish my sentence, I suddenly felt a hand rest on my shoulder.
"Hear what if Sutton were to hear?" Sutton's deep voice sounded somewhat eerie. I hurriedly turned around, waved my hand awkwardly, and said, "Hey~ Hehe~ Sutton, when did you get here?"
"Right from 'if Sutton were to hear'. You two, when you talk behind my back, can't you pick a better place instead of letting me hear it in person?" Sutton smiled, cleared his throat, and shouted loudly, "Everyone! Drink to your hearts' content today, all expenses are on me!"
An uproar instantly erupted in the tavern. Everyone cheered in praise of the hero, and someone even shouted loudly, "All expenses today are paid for by Master Sutton! Let me hear you scream!~" Immediately, another roar of cheers burst forth.
I cast a stealthy glance at Gibbs behind me and said with a resentful tone, "This is all your fault!"
Gibbs playfully closed one eye, stuck out his tongue again, and said coquettishly, "Eh-heh~"
Sutton patted my shoulder. "Hope you enjoy your drink. I've still got some things to attend to, so go ahead and drink by yourself for now, I'll be right back." I thought to myself, I'm begging you, my dear ancestors, please hurry up and leave. If you don't leave soon, this is going to be painfully awkward. But out of politeness, I still had to exchange pleasantries: "You go ahead with your business, don't mind me."
After Sutton left, I finally let out a long breath, pulled out a chair at the other end of Gibbs's table, and sat down with Alice on my lap.
"Heh—who would have thought it'd be you, Arthur, sitting across from me? I was hoping some beautiful young lady would grace a drunkard's heart and start a romantic and sweet encounter with me. What a pity." Gibbs smiled and joked with me.
"Shall I leave then?" I smiled back, chatting with him.
"By the way, Arthur, have you ever heard of the 'golden owl'?" Gibbs suddenly turned serious.
"I've heard of it, but never seen it. Why do you ask? Isn't that a legendary creature? Could it actually exist?" Seeing his serious expression, I asked.
"I didn't believe it at first either, but I heard from the guards who went on this expedition that they saw the golden owl with their own eyes, and Sutton saw it too. It was near the 'Illusory Sea Lake' deep in the forest. They say the golden owl is huge, but after it saw Sutton and the others, it just let out a cry and flew away on flapping wings. Now it's the talk of the town everywhere, though who knows if it's true or false." Gibbs sighed as he spoke, then continued, "How much do you know about the golden owl, Arthur?"
"Only limited to knowing that such a creature exists; I wouldn't call it 'knowing much'. I just know it seems to be the ancestor of all birds, and that it's the first bird in the world that ever flew... As for anything else, I haven't the slightest idea."
"It looks like your knowledge really is quite limited—" Gibbs intentionally dragged out his tone, whetting my appetite to the utmost. "Then let me tell you a story about the golden owl..."