Chapter 97: I’ll Do You a Favour.
Chapter 97: I’ll Do You a Favour.
There was no satisfaction in his expression, nor any joy.
It was simply something he believed needed to be done.
After making sure the flames were burning properly, Osborne turned around and left the cave.
He didn’t look back.
---
The forest was quiet when he stepped outside.
The sun had already moved considerably from where it had been when he first entered.
Osborne looked toward the sky.
’That took longer than expected.’ He had originally planned on completing the goblin quest quickly before dealing with the other two missions.
Instead, he had spent most of the day tracking down the nest and clearing it out.
Still, the mission was done.
That was what mattered.
Osborne began walking toward the road.
It didn’t take him long to reach the path he had used earlier.
Once there, he waited until a carriage came into view before raising his hand.
The driver slowed down.
Osborne climbed aboard and paid for the trip back into town.
The journey was uneventful.
Osborne remained silent as the carriage moved through the streets, occasionally looking outside while thinking about his next step.
He still had two missions left.
The herbs could probably be gathered tomorrow.
As for the missing person, he needed more information before deciding how to approach it.
But before doing either of those things, there was something else he wanted to handle.
The carriage eventually arrived near the center of town.
Osborne stepped down and immediately began walking toward the monster parts shop he had visited earlier.
He remembered the location easily.
After walking for several minutes, the familiar wooden sign finally came into view.
Osborne pushed open the door and stepped inside.
The woman from earlier was still working behind the counter.
She looked up.
Her expression changed slightly when she recognized him.
"You’re back?" Her eyes twitched for a moment. She wondered if she was seeing things.
Osborne stopped in front of the counter.
The woman looked at him curiously.
"Did you need something else?" She asked with an impatient look.
Osborne didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he placed his hand into his pouch, at the same time opening his sub-space and retrieving one of the goblin corpses.
The body appeared on her counter with a heavy thud.
The woman’s eyes widened.
"What the..."
Osborne looked at her.
"I have goblin corpses."
The woman stared at him.
’How come he has a spatial artifact?!’ The woman was taken aback. She believed him reaching into his pouch was to make contact with his spatial artifact, but nevertheless, she was still stunned. After all, she knew how expensive such items were.
Osborne saw her expression and realised his plan worked, meaning he could make use of the sub-space this way going forward.
"Do you want to buy them?" He asked.
The woman suddenly paused, only now realising what she had in mind.
Osborne was caught off guard when she suddenly burst out laughing.
He frowned beneath his helm, wondering if he made a mistake.
Osborne chose to remain silent rather than speak for the moment.
The woman covered her mouth while trying to control herself.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry." She wiped the corner of her eye.
"But why would I want something like that?" She pointed toward the goblin corpse with a disgusted expression.
"Goblin corpses are practically useless."
Osborne remained silent.
’Useless? But I bought those ears–’ His thoughts paused as he came to a realisation of his own.
The woman shook her head.
"You’d be better off throwing them away." She shook her head lightly.
She then looked at him again, amusement still visible on her face.
"The fact that you had no idea must mean you’re a rookie adventurer, am I right?" She smirked.
Osborne didn’t respond.
She continued speaking.
"Don’t tell me you actually thought someone would buy an entire goblin corpse from you just because you managed to kill it." The woman chuckled.
If she knew he came with a pile of them, who knew how she would react.
"I can understand bringing back their ears if you need proof for a guild quest, but carrying around their bodies is just a waste of space."
"You’ll only be tainting that storage artifact of yours." She said, only to be met by silence once more.
The woman finally noticed his silence.
Her smile slowly faded.
’Did I go too far?’
She looked at the armored knight standing in front of her, who hadn’t uttered a single word throughout, nor had he reacted to anything she said.
The woman suddenly felt slightly uncomfortable.
"Ahem~" She feigned a cough. "But since you went through the trouble, I guess I could help you just this once." She said.
Osborne simply retrieved the goblin corpse and stored it back inside his sub-space.
Without saying another word, he turned around.
"....?"
The woman watched him walk toward the door.
For some reason, she suddenly felt that she might have gone too far.
---
Osborne raised his hand and hailed the next carriage that passed along the road, waiting patiently until the driver slowed down before climbing into the back.
He didn’t say much during the journey, simply giving the driver enough coins to cover the fare before sitting quietly and watching the town gradually disappear behind him.
The carriage eventually reached the outskirts of town, where Osborne stepped down and continued the rest of the journey on foot.
Along the way, he was wondering whether he should’ve gone to the guild to collect the goblin reward, but at the thought of the adventurers badmouthing him, he decided he wasn’t in the mood today. Perhaps the next.
The road became quieter as he moved farther away from the town, with the busy sounds of merchants and travelers slowly being replaced by the natural sounds of the countryside.
Osborne had already memorized the route to Nicholas’s home, so he didn’t have much trouble finding his way back.
He continued walking toward the house.
Not far away, Vivian was busy working around the farmland, carrying a small basket while occasionally stopping to inspect the soil.