Ball of Nothing

Chapter 545 - En Route Altear

After leaving the western gates of Smargdas, Zero and Truen took their time to stop by multiple towns along the way. The outskirts of Smargdas near Altear wasn’t doing too well. Most of the people here were farmers. Zero noticed that many farmers preferred to rear animals instead of growing crops because the soil wasn’t as good but there were many pastures. This made Zero curious how the farmers got the other essentials they needed.

Similar to the cacti folks, the farmers and villagers were wary of strangers and didn’t welcome them. Zero thought that the villagers looked slightly different from the people he saw in Smargdas. They didn’t look like farmers despite working with animals and in the fields.

"Half-elves," Truen explained. "Some of them aren’t completely human but they have watered down elven genes."

Now that Truen mentioned it, Zero thought that these people looked strangely young. Having mixed blood would explain it. The farmers were also talented in herding animals without the use of wolf dogs. Zero never thought that it would be possible to control large groups of animals just by singing or whistling but it was a common technique used by farmers around here.

Zero found the culture interesting and asked if they could stop by a more welcoming town or village. He wanted to learn a little more about the elves if he could and these people might have stories to tell. He wanted to know more about the different kinds of elves even if Altear only had high elves now. More importantly, Zero wanted to know about Spriggan Alex’s taste in women.

After getting turned away at several villages, Zero and Truen took a detour and decided to travel a little more towards the main road. The pastures were not very welcoming towards adventurers and even if Truen was a wood elf in appearance, these farmers didn’t like them.

They found a small bustling town with an adventurer’s outpost and decided to ask around if they could rent an inn to stay for a few nights. Unlike the villages, the town welcomed them warmly and Zero noticed how there were many kinds of people in the small but bustling town. Here, it was more obvious that people were from elven bloodline. Zero had to admit, those with some elven blood in them looked better than the average human. No wonder Altear was able to hoard the Weeping Willow’s abilities for themselves! With so many beauties, they didn’t need to pay any of the Weeping Willow’s exorbitant prices for a future-telling. They had plenty of bribing materials and the corrupted spriggan could exploit the tree’s abilities in exchange for pretty elven folks. If Zero was the Weeping Willow, he would be frustrated too. This was bad for business.

"A room for two or two separate rooms?" the innkeeper lady asked and Zero looked at Truen. He was about to say one room because they could save some money and spend the night talking together when Truen beat him to the punch and asked for two separate rooms close to each other instead.

The innkeeper smiled slyly as she ushered them upstairs and handed them the keys to their rooms. Zero found it odd and Truen didn’t bother clearing up the misunderstanding. The more people thought that they were a couple, the better it was for Zero. At least the pesky flies at the adventurer’s outpost wouldn’t be so bold to openly harass Zero if they knew that Zero wasn’t travelling alone.

"Is there anything else I could help you with?" the lady asked and Zero thought about it. They didn’t need baths because of cleaning magic but dinner would be nice.

"Any local speciality that your inn has to offer? We came from Smargdas and are on our way to Altear."

"In that case, I would recommend some of the pine nuts stuffed pigeon and green mushroom soup. It is something popular among the high elves and something unique to our area. You won’t find these anywhere else because there are not many high elves outside of the forests."

Not one to turn down a gastronomical adventure, Zero readily agreed. However, he didn’t let his information cow go just yet. The innkeeper said that there weren’t many high elves out of the forest but that also implied there were at least a few around and the innkeeper smelled like she knew a thing or two.

"Did you learn this recipe from a high elf?" Zero smiled charmingly and the lady blushed. She couldn’t even be mad at this voluptuous beauty because she radiated a kind of innocence despite her suggestive appearance.

"N-no, I didn’t but my mother did. I simply learned from my mother."

Zero nodded and pursed his lips. "Do you think you could introduce me to a high elf? I’m really curious about what else they know. I saw a lot of farmers singing and whistling along the way. The way they handled the animals was simply magical! I asked around and they told me it was an elven thing."

The innkeeper nodded. Many people who passed by the smaller villages tended to notice the odd gathering methods and elvish songs. This young couple was no exception. Wood elves did things a little differently from high elves.

"If you go to the next street and turn left, you should be able to find an apothecary. There is a high elf there who has been selling elven potions and medicine for the last fifty years. We don’t know how old he is but he looked exactly the same from how I remembered him to be as a child. He was also the same when my other was a child so be respectful. He’s a lot older than we think he is."

Zero thanked the lady and gave her a hug. Truen had to admit, Zero was very good at acting. His natural childishness added to the charms and if Zero wasn’t deliberately trying to look innocent, he could be rather adorable.

Now that they had information about where to find a genuine high elf, Truen and Zero knew how they were going to spend their afternoon before dinner.