Chapter 158 – Foggy future.

‘Was that really the right decision…’

Elodia was standing outside of the adventurer guild. She wanted to hit her head against the wall after recalling what had happened not so long ago.

After having spent a whole day dealing with pesky adventurers that just didn’t understand how the prices of mana stones could change she was tired. Then a co-worker appeared out of nowhere asking her to stay a couple of hours more as she had something ‘important’ to take care of.

Elodia knew well that this was untrue and that the girl would be down at the local tavern having fun with her friends. This has not been the first time but Elodia always needed the money so she didn’t care much about the excuses. That is until a better deal arrived at her doorstep.

‘Why did I have to agree when everyone was watching…!’

She grabbed her hair while looking down on the ground while not knowing what got into her. The moment he walked over to her counter she had lost it. All the stress from this work that had been building up caused her to lose her composure for the faintest of moments.

So then she took him up on the offer while everyone watched. It would be hard to go back on her statement. The people from the guild had been there along with Solana that heard it all.

“Ms. Elodia, is everything alright?”

A manly voice that should not belong to a seventeen-year-old called out to her. There he was, the handsome Runesmith that was on the helm of her current troubles. While the offer that he was giving her was quite good she wasn’t sure if the man could deliver on the promises.

Elodia was quite aware of the debacle that he was going through with the dwarven union. In her opinion, the best move for him would be to either leave the city or find some common ground with the dwarves. No news of him ever attempting any diplomatic resolution ever reached the guild so it seemed that Wayland was quite stubborn just as the dwarves that he was going up against.

“Oh, I’m fine Mr. Wayland, glad that you waited for me to finish.”

“That’s fine, I understand that making such a decision wouldn’t be easy. I’m glad that you have decided to take me up on my offer, we can write up a proper contract in a few days, that is if you are fine with it?”

She spaced out for a moment as Wayland continued to talk. Things seemed that they were advancing rapidly and that was not something that she liked. Elodia wasn’t very prone to taking risks and while working for an aspiring runesmith could be lucrative, a steady job at the adventurer’s guild was much safer.

“Ah yes, the contract …”
She paused a little bit as contracts were kind of a specialty. There was a possibility of getting a good deal but she didn’t think Wayland would go through the trouble of signing a one-sided contract that favored her.

“Great, I’ve already got one ready, I’ll give you a copy tomorrow. Then I’ll be counting on you from now Ms. Elodia.”

Soon Wayland was off to go somewhere while Elodia was left standing beside the street. It was the first time that she said no to a co-worker that was now stuck working the longer hours. The shock on the young girl’s face was something new that she was not used to. While thinking about her own future she returned home to the orphanage.

As always it was quite loud and the kids were playing with some other young adults that came over from time to time. Lobelia and Armand had their own cliques that they tended to hang out with and these two were people that the half-elf knew.

“Renny, Jasper, thank you for keeping the children company.”

While she was grateful that there was some outside help, Elodia wasn’t so sure about these two young men. They seemed somewhat sketchy but Lobelia vouched for their morals so she let it be. She could only hope that they wouldn’t go down a bad road while taking a couple of her children along with them.

“Leave it to us Elodia!”

“I hope you weren’t teaching them anything strange though…”

Elodia glanced at something that looked like a lockpick in Jasper’s hand. The young man quickly moved it into his pocket while whistling.

“Don’t worry big sis, I’ll keep them in line!”

“I hope, for your sake…”

Elodia narrowed her eyes while glancing at Lobelia. These two half-beastmen were proper adventurers but she did not have the opportunity to glance at their adventure cards. Sometimes they joined Armand and Lobelia during their dungeon runs but she knew that the two were only here due to her younger sister.

“Uh… hey, I heard about the big news, are you really quitting from the guild?”

Lobelia was quick to change the topic as she was getting cornered in a spot by Elodia. It seemed that rumors were already spreading. Her younger sister had always been good at gathering information; it was as if she was doing it for a living.

“Who told you that?”

“Oh, a little bird told me~. But isn’t it great? I think working for Wayland might be a great change of pace, you have been looking tired lately… just look at those bags under your eyes, you must start taking care of yourself!”

Elodia was taken aback by Lobelia’s reply. She didn’t seem to be aware of the problems that may arise by her leaving her steady post at the adventurer’s guild. Before she could bring that up, Lobelia walked over and gave her a big hug.

“Don’t worry about us or the kids, we can take care of ourselves, do what you want to do … also stop being so stiff big sis!”

The two soon parted and it became quite loud as the kids zoomed in on the adults. The kid started chasing after Lobelia while laughing. Elodia could just smile and give it to her younger sister.

She still felt responsible for this whole house but the paycheck that Wayland was offering seemed enticing. Her only gripe was the uncertainty of him lasting in this hostile environment.

“Is it true, did that bastard really propose to you?”

“What are you talking about, are you drunk again?”

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After half an hour Armand decided to show his face. It was dinner time and everyone was ready to dig in. Apparently, the muscle brain had heard some rumors about Wayland proposing to Elodia in the guild and her accepting in an instant.

“I did accept but it…”

“You did? This can’t be happening … so it really was true… maybe if I get him when he isn’t wearing that blasted armor I can beat some sense into him…”

“Good luck with that, pea brain, I’d put my money on Wayland.”

“I second that.”

“Thirded.”

Renny and Jasper were still here while munching on some homemade stew. It seemed that for some reason they thought Wayland would not have much trouble in taking care of Armand.

“Why you little shits!”

“Calm down Armand, no one is getting married, Mr. Wayland just offered me a job at the new shop that he is making, nothing is set in stone and I haven’t left the guild yet!”

She had to slam her hand down on the table to break up a fight from happening. Most of the time when those two went against Armand the three ended up in a fight. The big brute always came up on top though so she was more worried about the two half-beast boys.

“Wouldn’t it be fine though?”

“Hm?”