— “Finally, I reached the Kingdom of Azale! Silven, after two days, we’ve reached Azale!”

I said joyfully as I scanned the area. Finally! After two days of travelling!

I continue on leading my land dragon, Silven, to the gate of the kingdom. 

— Halt! Reasons for entry?

The two guards said in unison whilst looking directly at me.

— I’m uh… I’m a travelling merchant!

— If so, can we see your permit, hm?

— There have been multiple cases of merchants duping and tricking adventurers and the common people into the worst deals.

I then rummaged through my backpack to get my permit parchment. I then got off the carriage and handed it to them. Geez, security and skepticisms around merchants are getting tighter and tighter each day! The Black Market sure is making the rounds..

— Owens Windward, huh. So you’re that travelling merchant that’s famous for his wares, huh.

Said the first guard as he intensely stared at my permit with narrowed eyes.

I swear, I’ll never get used to this. Guards always ask for my permit nowadays with the rising demand for the Black Market. I need to figure out what’s behind this whole shenanigans–Wait! I’m not a hero, why would I ever do that?!

— I said, aren’t you Owens Windward, the travelling merchant famous for his wares, huh?! 

— A-Aren’t it supposed to be natural for merchants, though? To be famous for their wares, I meant

— Are you being a smartass, hm?! Look! We’re only doing our jobs here, buddy! If you ever pull another joke out of your ass, I’ll break your arms like a twig, got it, hm?!

— Y-Yes, sir…

After that whole commotion, they reluctantly opened the gates for my entry. 

I then stopped to set up shop in the town square. I lay out my wares. I haven’t seen the old man in a while, so I should pay him a visit. Hm… Wait, I’m stopping by one of my orders later so I’m bound to stop b–Someone snapped me out of my thinking.

— …And also the- wait, are you even listening?

I then looked at the person who snapped me out of my thoughts. Damn. She’s quite the catch. Although, she has the air of being high and mighty around her.

— No. I wasn’t listening at all. Could you repeat what you wanted?

— Sigh I will repeat it once more: I want to buy that Magic Tome from you and also the artefact that is on display. 

She then hands me a pouch of gold coins then takes off with the items she bought from me. People sure are weird but who am I to judge? I’m just a travelling merchant. 

The day went on as normal, many people bought my wares. And not long after, I had to leave because it’s almost twelve o’ clock in the afternoon. 

Azale wasn’t as majestic as the people say, in my opinion. I have to hit the roads again or the forest trail, I should say—wait, I have to stop by my first order this month. I have to drop by the old man to say hi anyway.

After a while of rocky travelling and diverting from the forest trail, I still haven’t reached my destination. This just sucks, I’ve been a travelling merchant since I was fourteen and I still haven’t fixed my habit of being lost.

Well, it’s just me and the greenery again—the green trees, the green plants, and my green clothes. I can’t say I’m not enjoying this, though. The atmosphere is quite serene and in my opinion, it's beautiful.

After a while—and what I meant by a while is four hours. I can already hear Silven groaning. Oh well, we’ve reached our destination anyway.

I then stopped by the gate of the manor. Wow, has it been this big or have I not stopped by in a while?

— Excuse me, Young Merchant. Are you here to drop your wares for Ms. Florenza? I also have special instruction from Ms. Florenza, now that I remember it; She wants to talk to you about special matters. And I also have a special instruction: Please do not cause a scene like last time.

— …I’ll remember that.

I normally don’t suspect anything with special instructions and requests but this is different, I can feel the tension in the air of the manor as I step inside with the small crate of requested items in my hands. If I’m being honest with you, this manor is like a maze. I don’t know where I should drop this crate. Now’s a good time to try and annoy one of the maids!

— Can you help me out? This manor is like a maze and I need to drop this and talk with Ms. Florenza.

I said in an innocent tone of voice, which clearly won’t work since her eyes are so narrow that I bet it could pierce through my soul.

— You again, Owens? It has been five months since you have stopped, you know that, right? Don’t act so casual now, Owens. And as for the package, you can just drop it at Ms. Florenza’s room.

She reluctantly led me through the maze that is this manor. Why do I feel like she doesn’t like me? Is she that upset that I haven’t been in here for a while? I guess I kind of understand—No! I don’t understand, actually. Maybe she likes me? I don’t need to get my hopes up.

We’ve both reached the right room after walking for a solid minute. How does she know the rooms in this large as hell manor? At any rate, that shouldn’t be my concern.

— I will leave you two, Ms. Florenza and you two, to it.

— Thanks for giving us privacy, Amaelia.

— It’s good that you still remember my name after five months, Owens.

Amaelia walked out of sight and I entered the room, still carrying the small crate of packages.

I then see Ms. Florenza sitting by the window of her room with a serene expression on her face.

I may be too shy and reluctant to break the silence between us. Or maybe she’s just engrossed in watching the outside world or other reasons that I don’t know.

Anyway, I gently placed the crate of packages on the ground to create a small sound and snap her out of her day dreaming.

— O-Oh, Owens. Forgive me, I was just thinking about some things.

— It’s fine, Ms. Florenza. I don’t judge, you know that. 

I said jokingly to possibly lighten up the air. Although… She had a small sad smile as she looked at me.

— Owens, the reason why I wanted to talk to you is to tell you to go back to The House of Windward. I know you hated your parents for keeping you in such a horrible living condition but it has been five years and your parents have stopped looking for you.

The sudden revelation about my parents having to stop caring about me missing made my expression darken. I don’t care about my parents because of what they’ve done but why do I feel bad?

— I don’t want to talk about it, Ms Florenza. I know you took me in when I was only fourteen and I’m still grateful for the old man’s and your help. If it wasn’t for you both, I wouldn’t be the travelling merchant I am today. But I have other plans than going back to my parents.

— I know that your parents are cold towards you, Owens. I really do understand. I understand that even if their hearts are cold and the only warmth that you felt was the blanket of warmth from the fire in the chimney. But I still stand by my words previously, Owens.

I can’t stand this. I don’t want to go back home. I hate my parents. They’ve already stopped caring after a few years of me missing. I hate them. I hate my own family. My siblings have always been so lucky. And I knew that I would soon follow their footsteps; being married off to another aristocratic family.

I reluctantly ignored her words and walked out of the room.

As soon as I did, the old man, Edward, was behind the door listening to us the whole time.

— Owens, it’s been a long time, hasn’t it?

— It really has, Old Man Edward.

— Let me ask you the same question I asked you five years ago: Do you think you regret what you’ve done?

This again. I’m tired of people “caring” about my decisions. I’ve run away from home because I want to become what I’ve always wanted.

— I’ll never regret anything. I haven’t. I’m not. I never will.

— So be it, Owens.

— Thank you for believing in me, Old Man Edward. I’ll never forget the favours I’ve asked.

I was so tense and somewhat saddened that I navigated the manor without any trouble, talk about luck, huh.

I was able to get out and ride off to go back to the high forest trail. I’ll need to stop by and camp sooner. The sun is setting.

The sun slowly got out of view as it slowly settled to the west. 

Hitting the road again. Back to the greeneries after a somewhat sad encounter—I don’t need to be sad, though. I wanted to live like this and they’ve supported me.

What bothers me is the fact that I felt sad. Maybe it’s because Ms. Florenza told me that my parents have given up on finding me or another reason that is lingering in my mind.

The skies darken, I have to set up camp for today by the river.

It’s not so bad being alone… I hope I’ll never regret saying this.