"Zefir!" Antonio Pitti was pleased to see the boy. "Yes, I killed two of them.. Unfortunately, one escaped.." He sighed. "But I don't think that one will bother my chickens anymore." He said with his chest held high.
"That's good." Zefir nodded. "It's lucky they were really just foxes and not some kind of beasts huh?"
"What?" Antonio's expression turned into confusion. "What in god's name are you talking about?"
"N-No no, it was just a thought." Zefir replied wryly before inquiring again. "Mr. Antonio, what would you do if they were really beasts instead of foxes?"
"What would I do?" Antonio scoffed. "I'd run back to the house and begin praying to god! That's what I would do!"
"Ahem.." He coughed and suddenly turned weird. "Although you and your mother don't visit the temple, you should know about the stories of the beasts. Everyone knows how dangerous they are.."
Realizing the change in the atmosphere, Zefir changed the topic. "Uh, where's Belle?"
"She went to school." Antonio replied. "Why?" He squinted.
"Ah right.. No, I just didn't see her here." Zefir replied. "I forgot she had school."
"Right.." Antonio smiled. "You don't go to school after all. Don't you feel like you're missing out?"
"Nah.." Zefir shook his head. "School is not for me. It's too much work. Besides, my mother is a great teacher."
"Right, Mr. Antonio. Could I borrow your rifle and some bullets? I'm afraid of running into that fox in the forest." Zefir asked with pleading eyes.
"Ah?" Antonio was not expecting the sudden request. "Ohh.. Alright. I'll lend it to you, but I hope you don't run into that fox. Be careful, it's dangerous in that forest." He chuckled and remembered their previous conversation. "Some beast might even find and come after you huh?" He joked.
Come after me? Sir… this idiot in front of you is preparing all this to go after a beast himself.. Zefir mocked himself as he smiled wryly with a nod.
Antonio went towards the back of the shop and took out the rifle and some bullets from a storage. Walking back to the counter, he handed them to Zefir.
"You do know how to use it right?" Antonio asked.
"Yes, mom taught me." Zefir replied casually. "You can't learn that in school right?" He chuckled.
"….Right.." Antonio also laughed dryly. "Speaking of, why didn't you ask your mother for her rifle? Or her revolver?"
"Uhh…" Zefir scratched his head. "You know how protective she is of her weapons… And I didn't want to hear her nag.."
He checked the rifle and the bullets and nodded. "Alright, thank you Mr. Antonio, I'll return these to you later. See ya!" Without waiting for Antonio's response, he quickly turned around and ran off towards the south of the town.
In no time, he reached a worn out shop, with only one floor. At the front of the shop, there was a wooden board with "Brew Pawn Shop" written on it. Zefir entered the shop to find a man in his 40s behind the counter. He was wearing a worn out white shirt, black pants, and had a black jacket on. Most of his black hair and full beard had already turned white, and he was wearing a black flat cap to match his jacket.
"Old Man, I need some things." Zefir reached in front of the counter and spoke to Khom Brew.
Dissatisfied by how Zefir addressed him, Khom Brew frowned, but he didn't correct him. "What do ya need?" He asked in a gruff voice.
Used to this personality, Zefir just smiled and replied, "I need a shovel, and I need something sharp and sturdy.. Maybe a crowbar?"
"Hmm…" Khom scratched his beard. "Yeah I have them. Wait here" He went to the back of the shop and brought out the two items. "Here, Its 500 Crests total."
"500 Crests!?" Zefir exclaimed. "C'mon Old Man, for 500, I can get a brand new shovel. And that crowbar looks bent! Give them to me for 150!"
"Hah! A new shovel? Dream on kid!" Khom scoffed. "And crowbars are meant to have bends. Well, since you're a loyal customer, I can give them to you for 450."
"Not at the middle!" Zefir responded. "200!"
"400."
"225, the items are worth only that."
"Tch.." Khom clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"Okay, I'll give you 255.." Zefir said with a resolute gaze.
Throwing both his hands up, Khom sighed. "Alright, alright." He pushed the shovel and crowbar towards Zefir. He examined Zefir thoroughly and glanced at the snake ring on his finger, then noticing the rifle on his back, Khom asked in his gruff voice, "Hunting something?"
"A bird…" Zefir replied promptly while grabbing the shovel and crowbar. He put the bent crowbar on his belt and hung the shovel on the end of his bag. "Alright, thanks old man." He was about to turn towards the door, but he stopped.
"Say, old man, what do you know about beasts?"
"Beasts?" Khom asked in surprise. "Well, just the common stories. Why?" He asked Zefir warily.
"Umm, I was just at Mr. Antonio's and he was joking about there being beasts in the forest.." Zefir replied. "If I really encountered a beast in the forest, what should I do?"
Khom's wariness didn't decrease as he answered, "Well, if you were a believer of Viridis like us, I'd say pray and let yourself become a part of nature as god intended. Since you are not, I'll say run as fast as you can, don't look back."
With a nod, Zefir asked again, "So I can outrun a beast?"
"No." Khom blurted out with a shake of his head. "I just think no one should die without hope." He let out a grating chuckle.
"Tch.." Zefir clicked his tongue. "So I have no chance? What if I try to fight it with the rifle and this crowbar? Would I have a chance?"
"Haah…" Khom sighed. "How can you kill beasts with these common items? But I have heard about some magical items wielded by priests of the temples and hunters of the churches that makes one able to stand against beasts. Of course by churches I mean Luminaire Churches."
He glanced at Zefir who was listening attentively.
"Ahem.." He continued with a cough, "Well… I have also heard that there are different kinds of beasts with different kinds of strengths. And there certainly are some stories where normal people like us kill beasts with items like these.. So maybe there is some truth to that too.." He sighed, "But for the most part, I would not hold out any hope of surviving.."
"….You just said no one should die without hope…" Zefir replied flatly.
"Hah!" Khom let out a harsh chortle. "I did, didn't I? Hahaha!"
"Alright, thanks for your wisdom old man. I'll see you when I see you." Zefir had already turned around, waving his hand as he headed to the door.
After he was gone, Khom suddenly stopped his laughter and turned to look at the door, deep in thought for a long time.
Getting everything he wanted, Zefir quickly went to the eastern exit of the town and entered the forest. Since it was already afternoon, he didn't think about collecting any herbs today. The only thought running through his mind was about the cave he saw in his dream and the bird beast.
He quickly made his way through the forest, across the small river, and arrived at the red mud patch from yesterday. Opening his bag, he dug out some of the red mud and collected it in the small sack. After he was done, he closed the sack and put it inside his bag again, before looking at the trees deeper in the forest.
"Hooh.."
After letting out a breath to calm himself down, he then proceeded on the path from his dream. He made sure to preserve his stamina, but he moved quicker than he did in the dream. Because of this, he reached the entrance of the cave quicker than he anticipated.
Good.. He nodded slightly in satisfaction and examined the entrance. These are the same bushes I saw in the dream… If not for that dream, I would never even imagine there is such a cave entrance here.. He moved in front of the bushes and began smacking them with his crowbar. Making enough space for him to enter, he nodded his head in satisfaction and entered the dark tunnel.
Crap… I didn't think about this.. In the dream, he could see clearly even within the dark tunnel, but this was reality. When he went deeper in the tunnel, he couldn't see anything due to the darkness. I should've brought a lantern or something… He reflected with regret.
It took a few minutes for his eyes to get used to the darkness and see fairly well. Then, he proceeded through the cave tunnel for a while before suddenly stopping.
If I remember correctly, this must already be the mid-point..
He put his bag and the rifle down on the ground, picked up the shovel and began digging a fair sized hole. It was almost as big as me.. He thought while digging the hole. As he was focused on minimizing the noise as much as possible, it took some time, but he successfully dug a hole which was almost his height.
He got out of the hole, opened his bag and brought out the sack with the red mud in it. He poured the red mud down the hole, and left his bag and shovel right there. Grabbing the rifle, he jumped across the hole and gave it one last glance.
He then looked at the rifle and the crowbar on his belt. "Can I kill the bird with these items?" He whispered. The red snake ring on his finger squeezed once softly.
With an understanding nod, Zefir continued deeper within the tunnel.