The next few days consisted of Solomon trying his hand at a few minor jobs to earn himself coin.
Most of these jobs were related to chores; however, he did take one monster-hunting job. It seemed that another zombie had appeared in the temple and needed slaying.
The zombie was as weak as the last, which meant that he didn't struggle at all.
He was taking these jobs in order to save for a horse; however, he found that the animals were much more expensive than he would have expected.
The average annual salary in Redsham City was 500 gold coins. The cheapest horse for sale in the Redsham Stables was 350.
He stood in the location now with the stableman in front of him, running him through the various prices. None suited him.
Perhaps I could ask Lucy to loan me money...
No, that doesn't fit my image as a god.
Should I steal a horse then?
As he ran through the ideas in his head, the old stableman let out a sigh. A thought seemed to have suddenly plagued his mind.
"You seem broke despite your fancy look, white-hair, but if it's a horse you're looking for, I can offer you a much cheaper option."
Solomon's eyebrows rose at this, though he didn't like being called broke... Even if it was true!
"I'm definitely interested in this 'cheaper horse'"
The stableman let out another long sigh and gestured with his hand for Solomon to follow.
He led him towards the corner of the room, past the great horses of various colours and sizes. All of them were marvellous looking and well tended to, as if they could only be ridden by noblemen.
And then they reached the stable in the corner. At first, Solomon thought it was empty, as he could see nothing inside.
"You might want to stand back." The stableman warned as he opened the hatch on the stable door.
"NEIGH!!!"
Suddenly, a small, devilish-looking horse charged forward, before being held back by chains wrapped around its four legs.
Solomon wasn't startled. He simply looked at the creature as it tried to... escape?
Its fur was a black-ish purple, and its eyes were a frightening red. Its body was bony, suggesting that it had been severely underfed, and it seemed to carry a sadness in its eyes, despite its evil appearance.
"Neigh..." The horse sounded quietly.
"I call this horse the four-legged devil," the stableman began to explain. "It used to be a normal brown horse, until one day it started to take on this ghastly look. If I'm honest with you, I think it's possessed, which is why I've been hiding it, but I'm tired of all that. I just want to get rid of the bloody thing!"
Solomon reached out a hand and gently patted the purple-furred horse's head. At first, it's snarled, its nasty teeth, but then it seemed to warm up to him, allowing the man to run his hand through its surprisingly soft fur.
"How much are you selling it for?"
The stableman shrugged. "How much you got on you?"
Solomon removed his coin purse and threw it at the stableman. Shortly after counting the golden coins inside he nodded his head and smiled.
"Not much, but I'll take it. She's all yours." He then replied.
The stableman handed Solomon the key to the chains; however, he told him to leave the horse here until midnight.
He intended to ride the horse straight to Vodengaard, but he would wait until night so as not to draw attention to his strange-looking beast.
The stableman accepted this, and Solomon left the stable, returning to his tent and working on his magic until the sun began to set.
Solomon received a brief prayer from Lucy. He told her that for the next few days, he would be busy.
As he was unaware of whether the tent would follow him on his travels, he would have to wait until he returned home. He mentioned that she could still pray to him, but he might not respond.
The orange-haired princess was fine with this, as most gods didn't respond to prayers anyway. It was already a miracle for her to have met the God of Information in the first place.
With all said and done, Solomon stepped out into the night once again.
He was dressed in a long black coat that he purchased, as well as black pants, boots, and a white scarf that he wrapped around his head to provide him warmth.
Once he arrived at the stables, he found the horse he had purchased in the corner.
"NEIGH!"
It was startled at first, before recognising that it was the man from before. Instantly the purple beast calmed down. It seemed to have already warmed up to Solomon.
"Good boy... Good boy!"
Carefully he unlocked the shackles, letting the horse free. It let out a sound of joy, as if it were a slave finally being released from captivity.
Solomon had purchased reins and a cheap saddle with some of his leftover coin, as well as provisions for the journey. To his surprise, the horse allowed him to equip all of the gear onto it.
"You're going to need a name," Solomon said, as he climbed onto the horse carefully. Horse riding was common where he was from back on earth, so it was hardly a task for him.
"Neigh..."
"How about Lavender? I believe it suits your purple fur."
"Neigh!"
Solomon took that as a yes.
With a new pet horse and a destination in mind, Solomon set out for the streets of Redsham, travelling at a slow trotting pace.
The few villagers who were still outside shot him strange glances. The horse's red eyes glared at them through the darkness, striking them with fear.
"Sorry Lavender, but we should probably speed up."
Solomon gently kicked the horse into speed and felt the wind blowing against his face as he travelled down the cobblestone road.
It was time to travel to the Valanian Kingdom and complete a mission given to him by a princess, and a goddess.
It was time to kill a prince.