Chapter 28: Chapter 27: an angry wolf

He just lays on the ground for a while after accepting my proposal. I think it’s early afternoon, so it is probably a suitable time to head back. George’s body would probably have started to complain, had it had to walk this far, but this body has no problems with it.

While I wait for him to properly catch his breath, I simply close my eyes and relax. The rain is still warm and it sort of feels like taking a shower. I haven’t actually used water to clean myself since I figured out I could use magic to do it. A bath would probably be nice, though I don’t know where to do it.

He breaks me out of my musings by saying “What is that green thing flying above me?”

I open my eyes and look at him, almost in confusion. “It’s a mana barrier. Have you never seen magic before?” I had assumed everyone in this world at least knew about magic, but apparently this one might not.

“I have not. People have told me that it’s a thing, but I have never seen it.” he answers. Before I could ask a follow up question, he continues to speak “If you can make a cover for me, why haven’t you made one for yourself?”

I wasn’t really expecting that question, so it takes me a moment to answer “Because I like the feeling of the rain…”

After that slightly odd interaction, he seems to have gathered enough strength to get up. The first thing he does is to look at the sleeping wolf, probably not entirely convinced that it’s safe. Seeing as the wolf chooses this moment to stirr, maybe he is right to think that. It groggily stands up and looks around. Eventually it spots us, and starts to stare. It growls for just a moment, before charging towards us.

He immediately panics at the wolf, though it doesn’t bother me at all like the time James petted one of them. Had I been fully George, I probably would have panicked as well, though now I don’t quite know how to deal with it. I would just put it back to sleep, but seeing how aggressively it is charging him, It might just follow us later when it wakes up. I could also just kill it, which might be for the better, since it can pose a threat for people traveling this road. I probably will feel guilty for it though since it is so weak compared to me. I settle on trying to scare it away. 

To accomplish this, I fire a mana bullet into the ground in front of it. It explodes and creates a crater in the road, which causes the wolf to come to a halt. The wolf still stares and growls at the man, which prompts me to fire another one at the ground next to the wolf. This time it gets the message and starts to walk away, still occasionally turning and looking at us, at me with something akin to fear and at him with unadulterated rage.

This interaction has me puzzled, so I ask him “What did you do, for it to be so mad at you?”

He responds “I taunted it. I was with my team, hunting wolves when it appeared. It was much stronger than the others, so I taunted it so that the others could get away. I had intended to climb a tree once I got enough distance from it, but I never got the chance. The others should be back at the village by now, safe behind the walls.”

There were taunt abilities in the game, both stamina and mana ones, so that makes sense, though I would not have been able to chase it away in the game. This is slightly different than in the game. It might have been better if I had killed it, but I don’t care enough to chase after it.

I slowly start to walk towards the city, which causes him to follow. I ask him if he would prefer to follow me to the city, or to head back to the village. He responds that he doesn’t feel safe enough to walk alone back to the village, so my protection would be appreciated. He hopes to get someone to escort him back tomorrow. That might be a suitable beginner quest for Jo, actually. 

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As we walk in the rain, I inform him that I know someone that might be willing to escort him tomorrow, which he seems to both like and dislike. Good, because he doesn’t have to be alone, bad because it isn’t me, who easily scared the wolf away. Though I don’t tell him that if she accepts, me and James would tag along to ensure her safety.

I also learn a few more things about him and the village he is from. Like Ulmsville, it’s about two days travel from Draumr, though it’s called Sigsville. The ‘ville’ suffix means that it is likely a filler town. He has never seen anyone use magic, so there probably aren’t any public mages there, though with its proximity to Draumr, the people that can use it probably probably emigrated to Draumr. 

He normally uses a sword and a shield, which he preempts me by saying is not ideal for hunting. He is training to become a guard for the village. Unfortunately he had to drop them to get away from the wolf, and he hopes to be able to reclaim them on the return tomorrow. He is big, so I can see a world in which he becomes a feared guard, even if he never gets really strong. If I hadn’t seen him run away from a lone wolf and collapse on the muddy road, he might have been a bit intimidating.

The walk back takes a few hours, and by the time we reach the city gate, the rain has gotten slightly colder. He seems impressed by the guards and the general size of the city. 

I ask if he has any money so that he can get a bed for the night, and he answers that he doesn’t bring his money when hunting. That is actually a perfectly sound decision for someone who doesn’t have an inventory. Taking a bit of pity on him, I lead him to the inn we are staying at, intending to treat him to dinner and a room for the night.

After walking through the city for a bit, we come before to the inn. I cast cleanse on the both of us, mainly because my boots are muddy and because the rain didn’t do a good enough job of cleaning him on the way here, though that might be my barrier’s fault. The sudden cleansing causes him to freeze for a moment, before I becon to him to step inside. Too bad I don’t have a spell to dry myself, but at least it’s warm inside. I see Jo and James sitting at one of the table playing a card game of sorts. There is also a third person sitting with them. 

I magic away my cloak, and just as I am about to introduce him to them, I realize that he never gave me his name. I look at him, to which he responds “not giving you my name so that you can steal it.” leaving me a bit confused.

James on the other hand finds it hilarious and starts to laugh. The only thing I can gather from this whole debacle is that apparently fae are known for stealing names. Luckily James informs him that I am not actually a fae, but an elf that’s skilled with magic.

The conversation goes fine after that and I learn that his name is Hans. After paying for our food and a room for Hans, we start eating. I even tell Jo about the escort quest, and after some convincing, she agrees. James also agrees, partly because Hans has a little more stamina than a new player and because he has seen most of the city at this point.

With our plans settled, our evening continues as normal, though I never learned the name of the man that played with them.