Youkar, Walite - Chapter 6. On a journey

Late in the night of Cross town, a lively scene unfolds tonight. The lord, fatter than a pig, lies prostrated on the ground, clad in a robe, his fat jiggling with his sobs.

“You can’t take it away! You can’t!” He squeezes his three chins, wailing incessantly.

The soldiers were busy transporting the ill-gotten gains accumulated by the lord over the years, while Youkar stood outside the door, watching the soldiers bustling about. These soldiers wore sincere smiles on their faces, with greed shining in their eyes.

Youkar watched coldly as the money was neatly packed into boxes, and as many soldiers reached into the boxes, grabbing a few dozen gold coins, considering it a small fortune. Afterwards, they would take this money, live it up for a while, and squander it all away.

Youkar couldn’t be bothered to engage in meaningless condemnation because she had also participated in filling her own purse. Of course, the messenger was no exception. After he finished punishing the lord, Youkar clearly saw his belly had grown a layer, his pants also bulging with large lumps.

The plundering frenzy continued all the way until dawn. While this happened, Youkar left with her spoils, found an inn, and enjoyed a good night’s sleep.

……

When dawnbreak lifted and the dust was still settling, Youkar headed straight to Dr. Faust’s clinic to collect her reward.

She didn’t expect, however, that arrived at the clinic, she would find a huge crowd surrounding the building.

“People of Cross town! Goddess Marika has never abandoned you!” shouted a middle-aged man in the center of the crowd, dressed in black robes, holding a Sun Wing talisman.

Youkar squeezed through the crowd and saw that this middle-aged man was not just any thief, but in reality, he was even more vile than any thief or bandit. Describing him as oozing filth and corruption from every pore would not be an exaggeration.

This is a priest of the church, and behind him, a group of workers were dismantling the clinic.

“Now, the grace of the Goddess^[1] finally shines into this dark and filthy clinic!” The priest raised his hands high and declared, “Now, the lair of this evil heretic is finally eradicated! This despicable individual, who defiled the radiance of the Goddess, will now be driven out by us. This is the sanction of justice! The judgment of light!”

Youkar looked around but did not spot Dr. Faust. Was he sent to the stake and turned to charcoal, or was he cast into the iron maiden and sunk into the sea?

Youkar would be pretty sad if Dr. Faust were to die. After all, even though his reward might be but a few coins, every little bit counts.

“Praise the Goddess! Praise the light!” The priest continuously urged the crowd, “Now, faithful followers here, the Goddess is willing to bestow her grace upon us. Embrace her teachings, let our souls step closer to the Goddess! Or donate your worldly wealth to seek forgiveness for sins! Ah! May the grace of the Goddess shower upon each and everyone of us.”

“May the grace of the Goddess shine upon us.” The surrounding residents bowed their heads in prayer, while some, dressed in tattered clothes, knelt on the ground in even more devout postures, praying.

Youkar looked at this group of hopeless fools and felt it was pointless. Her reward seemed to have gone down the drain. As she turned her head, she saw Doctor Faust standing a distance away, hands in his pockets, clearly waiting for her.

The doctor handed her a small coin pouch and proclamed, “Of course I didn’t die. I still have some savings on hand, enough to exchange for a pardon voucher.”

“Let’s go.” Dr. Faust shrugged, looking at his clinic, the annoying priest, and the ignorant crowd. He said to Youkar, “Do you want to waste time here watching a circus?”

“Where are you planning to go?” Youkar asked.

“Me? I plan to travel, miss. I’ve been in Cross town for too long,” Dr. Faust said, his waxen eyes suddenly gleaming with an inscrutable light. He continued with a meaningful tone, “The world is vast. Why not wander and see what it has to offer?”

“What do you mean? You’re as good as dead now. Are you saying you still have money on hand?” The ghost frowned, unsure of what to make of the peculiar man before her, and she was curious to find out.

*Cough.* Dr. Faust cleared his throat. He squinted, his face harboring a kind expression with a touch of an hypocritical smile. “If you don’t mind, I can be your guide. I’ve traveled to many places in my youth, and I believe I can be of assistance to you.”

“Not interested.” Youkar turned and left. Dr. Faust, carrying his medical bag, advised, “The price is also very reasonable. I only need twenty-five copper coins per month.”

Youkar snorted and retorted, “Twenty-five copper coins? An average citizen in any normal city needs at least ten silver coins to get by. Aren’t you afraid of starving?”

Dr. Faust raised his medical kit and shook it in front of Youkar, saying, “Of course not. I’m still a doctor. I can patch up some wounds for those stingy adventurers at the adventurer’s guild and make a living off of it.”

Youkar rolled her eyes, thinking that the notebook he provided was indeed quite helpful, and he perhaps knew even more that could be useful. With that in mind, she decided to give it a try first.

She took out twenty-five copper coins and handed them to him: “Twenty-five, then I’ll hire you for a month and see how it goes.”

“Thank you.” Faust pocketed the money and asked, “So, where are we going first?”

“Trunk city, where the wind is said to blow first, and where an adventurer’s guild settled. I plan to go there first and see if there are any valuable tasks.”

“Oh, I heard it’s been a bit turbulent there lately. Tomb raiders have been quite rampant, and many graves have been dug up.”

Youkar paid no heed to the information provided by Doctor Faust, instead following him straight out of the northern gate of Cross town. Unlike the south, the north opened up into a vast plain, with forests to the east. The wind blew freely from the north, sweeping across knee-high grasslands, bringing the freshness of dew and the unique fragrance of soil.

In the middle of the tall grassland, there is a stone-paved road stretching into the distance.

Following this road will lead right to Trunk city.

As they walked, Youkar suddenly smiled and asked Doctor Faust, “Oh, by the way, doctor. I remembered something.”

“What?”

“If you’re willing to address me as ‘master’, I can bump up your pay to a silver coin,” Youkar said with a slightly mischievous tone. “Won’t you consider it?”

Dr. Faust closed his eyes and replied nonchalantly, “I’d rather starve to death, at least it’s cleaner.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. Don’t come to me for help if you’re starving,” Youkar replied, turning her head forward again and continuing on.

Soon, the sunny expression on her face disappeared, a somber mood taking its place.

“I will definitely find you…”

“Sister…”

[1] I thought a long time whether to adopt reverential capitalisation (the practice of capitalising when referring to dieties, when one would otherwise not have), and finally chose to match the speaker’s perspective as a preacher. I made a choice and will stick to it for stylistic reasons, hope everyone can take for what it is, fantasy.

End of volume 1 (introductory arc) and the start of something more! This is the end of where I’ve read so far, so the rest is just as much a surprise to me as you.