章 24: Chapter 23 "Skye"
As the Barkeep confirmed their order once again and saw that everything was finally served, she returned to her place behind the counter.
"Do you have leads on the 7 Deadly Sins?" Absusbsj asked.
"Well, let's just say I have... What would I gain by telling that to you for free?" Ioki asked while he tasted the porridge.
"Oh! Now you started to be like a true Ashen Fantasy player!" Rikishi said as he patted Ioki on the back loudly, "Remember this, boy! Information is invaluable in this game. Someone would even pay fortunes just to get a lead of what turns out to be a farce!"
Frustration could be seen on Absusbsj's face as she heard Ioki's reply.
After seeing his girlfriend's mood, Nagao cut into the conversation, "Ah, how about this then! We will keep informing you about the other Hidden Stats that we are trying to figure out if you give us the information about The 7 Deadly Sins!"
"Well, we could work with that. But... How exactly?" Ioki asked.
Suddenly, a blue window popped up before Ioki's face.
"User Nagao has sent you a friend request."
Ioki pressed the confirm button, and soon after, another two windows popped up.
"User Rikishi has sent you a friend request."
"User Absusbsj has sent you a friend request."
Of course, Ioki accepted all of them.
"Great! Now we could do a long-distance communication called 'Whispering' or what you know better as Direct Message," Nagao explained.
Ioki nodded as he took another spoonful of the porridge and a piece of Kerubi nut.
"I thought this meal would be great... Only the Kerubi nut is decent while the porridge is so-so..." Ioki murmured.
"Shh! You shouldn't talk ill of any woman's cooking in front of them!" Rikishi warned Ioki.
Ioki looked at the Barkeeper, but she was talking with another customer by the counter, so there was no way she would listen to what Ioki had just said.
Suddenly, a slap on the table.
"I believe you will now talk about the 7 Deadly Sins?" Absusbsj asked with her eyes bearing a hole through Ioki's body.
"Ah yes... As you see, I have unlocked the Charm stats..." Ioki said with a bitter expression while remembering how he obtained it.
"Did you manage to ask some NPCs to do your job?" Rikishi asked.
"I won't get into detail with how I obtained it..." Ioki said while he shivered trying to remember what happened before, "but a blue window popped up notifying me that 7 Deadly Sins Lust had marked me... Not long after that, I got notified with a Curse of Lust..." Ioki explained.
The three stared at each other before having a heated discussion between them.
Ioki continued to eat his food.
Each time he put a spoonful of the porridge inside his mouth, he tried to look at the Barkeep's direction.
Once, he locked eyes with her, and she waved her hand.
He quickly looked away and ate the nuts.
As their discussion came to an end, they finished their meals and drinks as well.
Nagao raised his hand, asking for the bill.
"Don't worry, Ioki! Big brother will pay for you!" Nagao said with a big smile.
"Ah, no! No! My father taught me to always pay the good people that accompany you!" Ioki replied.
"You are lucky to have a great father, Ioki! He taught you the value of being a gentleman," Rikishi said as he patted Ioki's head.
The Barkeeper approached their table. Before she could give them the bills, Ioki went ahead and gave her a small purse containing 10 golds.
Upon opening the purse, the Barkeeper simply looked at Ioki and smiled. She returned the purse and patted Ioki on the head.
"This is too much! The bill only amounts to 96 Silver. Are you trying to buy the whole diner with that money, young mister?" The Barkeeper teased Ioki.
Ioki then gave a golden coin to her, "Keep the change."
The Barkeeper took the coin, "I thought all the Guided Souls know the value of the currency, so why is this young mister clueless?"
"Ah... That must be because you didn't enter Ruina when you should," Nagao explained while he put his index finger up.
"100 Coppers equals to 1 Silver, 100 Silvers equals to 1 Gold. It's that simple... There are other currencies like what the Holy City and the Pirates were using as well," Absusbsj explained.
"Ahh, thank you for the explanation! I went to the forest on the first day, and then when I tried to enter this town, the guards stopped me and forbade me to enter the town... So I don't know much..." Ioki replied, scratching his head.
"Ah, talking about that, how did you even manage to get inside the town if you don't have the Guided Identification?" Rikishi asked.
"Well, I paid them 15 golds, and they let me through. Hehe..." Ioki answered.
The three laughed while the Barkeeper put her palm on her face, "Seriously... I will talk to Captain Arden and ask them to return your money."
"No need! They were doing their job. I am the one that broke the rule instead," Ioki replied with an awkward smile.
Suddenly, the three stood up from their seats.
"I believe this concludes our first meeting, Ioki!" Rikishi said with a wide smile.
"Thank you for paying, let me return the favor next time, okay?" Nagao put a thumb up.
"Ah yes, don't worry about that. By the way, do you know a good place for me to go hunting? I mean, I just came out of the forest... I don't know much..." Ioki asked.
"You should go to the Haunted Ground, to be honest... But it's quite far from here..." Nagao replied.
"Then, go to the Iron Cave! It's just Nor---" Before Rikishi could finish his sentence, Absusbsj cut him off.
"You are out of your mind, old man! Have you seen how he fights? Even if he gets a job, it's gonna be Monk. I am 100% sure of it!" Absusbsj explained after scolding Rikishi.
"I'm sorry, but we don't know much about the area here ourselves that would fit someone that fights with their fists... It would be best if you asked Skye for the information on that," Absusbsj looked at Ioki with a worried expression.
"Ah, talking about that... Which one is Madam Skye? I believe I never saw anyone resembling an aunty after I entered this place. Usually, the one that owns a diner is that kind of character, right? Fat aunty with the kindest smile and personality," Ioki explained.
Even the stern Absusbsj couldn't hold her laughter back when Ioki finished explaining about his imagination of Skye.
The three laughed their ass off while the people near their table chuckled and started laughing as well.
"DID YOU HEAR THAT? THIS BOY SAID SKYE IS SUPPOSED TO BE A FAT AUNTY!" A man nearby shouted.
The bar erupted into laughter once again; even the guards were choking on their meals.
Ioki, of course, was confused at their laughter...
"Well, I'm not fat, but I do have a great smile and personality, according to others," The Barkeeper said while staring at Ioki with a sweet smile.
"I don't have any nephews as well, so you can't just call me Aunty. But, I would be willing to take you in as my nephew." She continued with a teasing tone.
Upon realizing what had just happened, Ioki covered his face with his hands. Not even the mask and cowl could cover his embarrassment.
From this, we learned no matter how they looked. If the person is just like Ioki, even if he used armor resembling the cruelest creature of other realms, in the end, what matters is the goofy boy inside it.
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