Chapter 144: Chapter 127 – The Bounty Hunter

"The origins and nature of the figure known only as The Bounty Hunter has always been an enigma. What is known and recorded in the history books was that The Bounty Hunter's first activity dated to approximately seven and a half centuries ago, and that the figure in question has a preference for personal bounties that targeted scum and nobles who abused their powers, on top of official guild-issued bounties.

 

The figure themself was always clad in enigma, so completely covered others only ever saw their eyes, and a voice that was clearly magically altered. Not even the gender of the figure is known. Speculation had been rife about the exact nature of The Bounty Hunter, with the most popular theories being either that the figure was a name passed on to successors, or that they were an unliving who had been the only bounty hunter throughout the ages." Agatha Kristoffur, Historian for the royal court of the Kingdom Down Under, circa 650 FP.

 

Jarl Karli Angbadd's hospitality came in the form of a lavish dinner that night. A young goat was butchered for the feast, and was roasted whole. The sight of a whole roasted goat carried by four servants on a massive platter impressed Elaina and Sidonie quite a bit, and the Jarl invited them to the feast.

 

It looked like plain roasted meat at first, until the sauces were brought out. Cal counted five different sauces. One was a thick, brownish-grey sauce with slices of mushroom in it, while another was a yellowish paste of mustard. Also served was a creamy emulsion with many herbs mixed in, what looked like a sweet sauce made from berries, and one she pegged as sour cream mixed with slices of onions and grated shards of hard, pungent cheese.

 

The Jarl himself showed them how to enjoy the feast, as he sliced some meat with a long knife and speared it with his fork, then generously dipped it into a sauce before he enjoyed it. Cal and her nieces followed his example right after.

 

Also with them in the dinner was the Jarl's wife, a matronly middle aged woman named Cornelia who hailed from neighboring Ptolodecca, as well as Sigvald and his family, his wife Inge, son Sigmund, and twin Daughters Dana and Nadia. The Jarl mentioned that he had another child, a daughter, who was married in another Jarldom.

 

They all enjoyed the food with minimal chatter - it was not a Jötunbergian habit to chat while eating, unlike in Al-Shan where people lived to do that - and focused on the feast. Each of the sauces imparted a different flavor to the succulent, tender goat meat, and Cal noticed that everyone on the table seemed to have their own favorites.

 

Sigvald's young children unequivocally preferred the sweet berry sauce, while Elaina and Sidonie preferred the mushroom one. The Jarl and his son favored mustard, while the ladies of the house favored the herby emulsion. Cal herself was most fond of the sour cream with onions and cheese, as the tinge of sourness and pungency matched well with the freshly roasted meat.

 

Served along the feast was horns full of sweet meads and hard apple ciders, the latter a local specialty made with a local breed of apples that somehow grew despite the cold of the tundra. It had a pleasing aroma full of the fragrance of ripe apples to go with its sweet flavor, if accompanied with a strong alcoholic kick.

 

Late in the night Cal made small talk with the Jarl and his son as they traded news and stories of their pasts. Her nieces had gone to bed already, half drunk from too much cider, to the point that the ladies of the house helped escort them to the guest rooms.

 

They said their goodbyes the next day, and the Jarl also showed Cal where he had the Wendigo's skull proudly mounted - on a wall where many other stuffed and preserved monster heads were mounted - before she left.

 

On their way out of town, Cal decided to follow the Jarl's advice for the next leg of the journey, and to her nieces' delight, she rented a sled for two and a team of ten dogs to pull it. This time the dogs were somewhat smaller from the ones that had pulled the sleds for the adventurers, with thick, fluffy fur coats as white as snow.

 

Elaine and Sidonie were quickly smitten with the friendly dogs, and played with them for a good while before they went on their way. Despite their smaller size, the dogs had no issue as they pulled the sled with both girls riding on it, and quickly went on a run towards Eyjafjord, the largest city in Jötunberg and their next destination.

 

They stopped a bit earlier that evening, and Cal looked warmly as her nieces played with the dogs while she prepared dinner. She had also grown quite fond of those dogs as well, and gave them chunks of meat to feast on while she and her nieces had their dinner under the stars.

 

Later that night, Cal was awakened when her keen ears - and her habit of sleeping light - caught the sound of the dogs growling and barking. She walked out of the tend quietly and saw why, as a mountain lion had approached the camp, and the dogs had braved the beast to dissuade it.

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Sadly the mountain lion didn't seem to be wary of the dogs, and leapt up to pounce on one. It likely would have landed on the dog and easily killed it, except it was suddenly halted in midair, then the next thing it knew the world seemed to spin around before its head met the ground with brutal force that sent it into eternal darkness.

 

Cal just looked at the corpse of the mountain lion she just killed - its skull broke when she slammed it headfirst against the stony ground -, and released the tail she had grabbed in her hands. The animal couldn't be more dead, with its brain matter scattered all over the place. Cal then grabbed the dead beast by its rear legs and threw the corpse away into the forest so it wouldn't attract more predators to them.

 

She petted the dogs as she passed by, which the dogs returned with affectionate licks, and smiled as she went back to her tent to catch some more sleep.

 

It was a week's travel between Hagenbadd and Eyjafjord, and her nieces were a bit reluctant to part with the dogs when they returned them to the rental company. Even so, their moods perked up as they took in the sights of the city around them.

 

That is, until Cal noticed the dreadful aura that approached.

 

The aura was not something just she felt, as her nieces had clear trepidation on their faces, while passersby hastily made way and hugged the walls to allow the hooded, cloaked figure that walked in the center of the street through.

 

Cal couldn't tell whether the figure was male or female, as whoever they are, they dressed in loose clothing that completely concealed their figure. With their hooded cloak and mask, only the eyes of the figure were visible. What Cal saw was a pair of predatory, bluish-green eyes with pupils that resembled those of a feline, hard eyes that belonged to someone well acquainted with the darker side of the world.

 

She also felt a strong sense of danger from the unknown figure, her instincts honed from years of war warning her that this was likely not an opponent she could handle.

 

The figure stopped only five steps away from them, and Cal had placed her nieces behind her for protection as she looked at the masked figure eye to eye, still unaware what brought this person to her.

 

"Celeysria Ambervale, the Blood Demon of Al-Shan, I presume?" Asked the figure, their voice through the mask seemed to echo, and could have been a high toned male voice or a low toned female one, it was impossible to tell.

 

"Yes?" Cal replied cautiously to the figure.

 

"I am known as The Bounty Hunter," stated the figure. "And we have business to discuss."

 

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