I didn’t exactly know how to get information regarding Erazor. It would be weird if I just talked about him to a stranger. They could take me as a spy or something.

So, I dropped the idea and walked out of the inn, ready to go to this so-called tavern. I’d already paid for a few nights in Maria’s inn. The bed was so much better than my rocky floor one in the cave.

I stepped down the stairs and greeted Maria at the counter. She was cleaning a few wooden mugs.

“Good evening,” I nodded.

“Heading to the tavern this late at night?” she asked. She was a middle-aged woman with two kids. A boy and a girl. The boy was interested in my travels when I told Maria that I was a wanderer.

He told me that he wanted to be just like me when he grew up. His twin sister bonked him on his head afterward and I was able to flee to my room.

“Yeah,” I answered. “The guards wanted me to have a few drinks with them.”

“You have a good time, now. Remember to stay safe, all right?” She said with a concerned look.

“Will do,” I answered. “Oh, another thing. Please don’t disturb my room for the night.”

“Of course,” she said.

I didn’t want her to get into my room because I had Romano protecting my things in there. Romano was extremely great at being stealthy. He mastered Shadow Element and was able to use a few spells from it. He was hiding in the shadow in the room as of now. The only reason was to protect that mini-fridge.

People kept being impressed by that thing and I was worried it might get stolen.

I waved her goodbye before walking out toward the street. It was really hard to see during the night. Since it was winter, fires that were supposed to illuminate the street couldn’t stand the cold and blew out.

Since I didn’t bother to add Night Vision into this clone, I had to walk very carefully. I could still see people walking about on the street. A man was clearly heading toward the tavern and I just followed him from behind.

I wondered whether I could implement more skills to this clone even after its creation. I only had three skills now but what if I was able to give it more from long range? It was something that I could experiment with next time.

Now, I was inside the tavern. It was loud and bustling with chatters from adventurers and townspeople. I could see the two guards sitting on the table in the corner. They waved at me to come over.

“Hey! That’s the mage apprentice guy! Over here!” the bear fur man exclaimed, raising his tub of drink.

I smiled and approached both of them. I really didn’t know their names.

“One drink for this man right here!” he called out to a passing waitress.

“Thanks, but I should be the one paying you guys,” I said.

“Nononononononono!” the man said. He was clearly drunk. “It’s a gift from us for a newcomer!”

“We’ve never really introduced ourselves, right? I’m Kevin. Kevin Morren,” I said.

“I’m Denis,” the bear fur man said. “And this virgin blondie right here is Luka.”

Luka wasn’t having his joke and punched Denis’s shoulder. “Dude! Not funny! I’m just…saving it for the right person…is all.”

“Yeah, right,” Denis rolled his eyes. “You see, Kevin. This dude lost his first kiss to a frog because of a girl he liked but then dared to say he’s saving his virginity for someone. The same girl too!”

“What?” I laughed. “Is that true, Luka?”

“Ugh…” Luka had his chin on the table. He was also drunk but he was the burn-out type of drunk. Denis was the energetic one. “She said that she’ll marry me if I kiss a frog. I thought she was serious…”

“HAHAHAHAHAHAH!” Denis barked out. “Dude, just give up! Tamara’s going to marry a noble’s son! You’re just a border guard. It’s clear who she’s going to marry.”

Luka was clearly eating up his words because he was crying a few seconds later. Denis went in to hug him. I was actually enjoying this comedic duo. It was clear that these two were close friends rather than coworkers. I never had one before and it was a nice sight to see in this clearly grey town.

We had a few more rounds of drinks. I did find out that 90 gold coins were shitloads of currency. It wasn’t 30 bucks at all. More like 3000 bucks. So, I paid for their drinks, making sure they were drunk enough. I had a high tolerance for alcohol myself so it didn’t really affect me.

Plus, the beer wasn’t that strong. It tasted more like a ginger ale without the carbonated taste and alcohol. This world had weak alcohol.

After a few hours, we delved into a deeper topic. This was my chance to get new information. This was also why I made them drunker. Drunk people tend to reveal so much information without them knowing after all.

“Say,” I started. Denis stared at me curiously. “Do you have any idea on how to get money in this town?”

I started with a light topic first. Denis shrugged and leaned against his chair.

“Well, I don’t know,” he slurred. “You’re a mage, right? Why not do some quests for the adventurer’s guild? That’ll help you get money.”

I knew that he was going to say that. I didn’t want to go with this choice. I had plenty of time to hone my skills in the cave. What I wanted was more information. So, I had to stay in this town and get myself a job that would require me to interact with people constantly.

“Anything else?” I asked. “I’m here to get some rest and not do heavy lifting stuff. Something laid back.”

“Well, if you can cook, you can work at this tavern,” Luka replied. His head was still plastered on the table. “Or you can go to the merchant guild and asked for a temporary stall to open. You can use your magic and stuff to help people here.”

Hmm, that was a good idea. Opening a stall would help me to interact with people all the time. I decided to rent a spot next thing in the morning.

“Thanks, Luka,” I said. “Magic and stuff, huh? Why is that? Isn’t there a lot of adventurers who are good at magic in this town?”

It was the spot for adventurers because of how close Mageiros was to the Howling Jungle. However, Denis and Luka stared at each other weirdly at my remark.

“Is there something wrong?”

“No…it’s nothing,” Denis said slowly. “Say, Kevin. We’re quite impressed how there’s still a mage like you exist after the Great Darken War.”

“Great Darken War?” I asked.

“Whaaaaaat?” Luka slurred. “You don’t know? It’s the huge war between Erazor and the Demon King Kannech. There’s no way a person doesn’t know about this.”

“I heard about his defeat but I’ve been isolated since I was a child. I don’t really know about the society after his death,” I lied.

“Listen, Kevin,” Denis said, getting serious. “You are an apprentice of a High Archmage, right?”

I nodded while frowning. “Yeah…”

“Well, you don’t go around saying that stuff to people, you hear me? Good thing that you only told us.”

“Why?”

“Kevin,” Denis exasperated. He had this frown on his face as if he was weirded out by my question. Luka was also frowning at me. The next thing that Denis told me made me hold my breath.

“It’s been 200 years ever since the death of the Demon King Kannech.”

“And 50 years ago since Erazor Crimson went missing,” Luka added.

My eyes widened. “…what?”