Chương 138: You Made Money Off Me

The shops outside the Arena were brighter than in the daytime. The oil lamps hung under the awnings were being lit one by one. Red light and blue light that had not shown during the day spilled onto the road. The weapon shops had closed their shutters, but more people had gathered in front of the food shops. Kichan's group looked for an inn along the main road. Paul looked back every few steps.

The Arena's outer wall was still visible above people's heads, but the roar they had heard inside the passage had sunk under the noise of the shops and fallen away. Two low stone steps led up to the inn's entrance. When he opened the door, the clatter of dishes and warm air came out. Half of the lower floor was an eatery, and the guest rooms continued up the stairs at the back. Wet coats and boots lay beside the fireplace. Kichan claimed a table before a room.

The seats near the fireplace had been taken by customers drying wet armor. The owner squeezed between tables carrying a hot pot, and footsteps kept coming down the stairs, dragging boots. Kichan hooked an empty bench with his foot and pulled it out.

"Sit." So the money pouches would not knock together, Argaon unfastened his belt and set it on the table. One. Two. Three. Kichan watched the pouches keep coming. Each time metal touched the table, the sound of spoons at the next table paused for a moment. Argaon lined up even the last pouch.

"What is all this?"

"Money."

"I know that much." Kichan lifted one pouch.

"Why do you have this much money." Argaon leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.

"You earned it."

"Me?" Kichan had not even checked the participation fee he had received in the arena yet. The one small pouch he had been given was different in size from the pouches on the table from the start. Riphiel drank a mouthful of water first.

"It was when you went to sign up to compete." Argaon's eyes turned to Riphiel. Riphiel continued even with Argaon's gaze on her.

"Argaon took out a fist-sized lump of gold."

"What?"

"He asked a demonkin nearby what it was worth. He was told it would buy a house." Kichan's gaze fixed on Argaon. Argaon glared at Riphiel for a long moment.

"You asked."

"So you sold the gold?" If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"No." Riphiel answered.

"He bet it on you." Kichan stared at Riphiel with his mouth open. Paul started to set the rosary on the table and gripped it in his hand again.

"You mean you bet money on a person?"

"It was the official window." Riphiel added an explanation.

"Everyone bet on the opponent, so your odds were very high."

"How high."

"They said it came to more than one hundred and fifty times the original value of the gold lump." Kichan looked at Argaon.

"So you made money off me." Kichan pushed the pouches to one side.

"You pay for everything while we are in the Demon Realm." Riphiel nodded.

"I think that is right as well." Argaon looked at Riphiel, then at Kichan. Paul looked at the three of them in turn and picked up his water cup. The cup stopped halfway before it reached his mouth. The innkeeper brought the meal. The large bowl held a broth of root vegetables and meat simmered a long time. Beside it were thin, hard bread and roasted mushrooms. When the bowl touched the table, the talking stopped. Argaon picked up a spoon. Kichan pressed the back of his hand.

"Money first." Argaon pulled the smallest pouch from his belt and tossed it to the innkeeper. The innkeeper looked inside and raised his head.

"We will take rooms too." Argaon said.

"Enough for four to sleep." Paul cut in quickly.

"A small room is enough for me."

"You can share with me, Father." Kichan said. Riphiel looked at the two of them.

"I will share a room with the Father."

"Why?"

"I have to escort him." Paul raised a hand.

"I do not need an escort while I am asleep."

"We lost him once on the third basement level." Paul lowered his hand and closed his mouth. Only after the rooms were settled did the four of them begin to eat. The broth was rich, and the root vegetables were cooked soft enough to fall apart at a spoon's touch. The meat was more tender than what they had eaten at the eatery, but the smell of spice was strong. Kichan soaked his bread in the broth and ate it. Riphiel cut the edge of a roasted mushroom and checked the inside.

Argaon pushed the root vegetables aside first, then picked up one piece after seeing Kichan eat them. After the first spoonful, Paul lowered his shoulders a little. That night, Kichan fell asleep the moment he lay down on the bed. Wheel noise went on outside until late. From the eatery below his window came the clink of cups and laughter. In the middle of the night, one last roar burst from the direction of the Arena. When he opened his eyes, it was not morning but nearly midday.

When he went down the stairs, Riphiel was already there. She had taken off her hood, her long ears showing, and was tearing a warm loaf of bread. Paul was drinking tea across from her. Argaon sat in front of a large plate of meat.

"When did you get up?" Kichan asked.

"When the smell of grilling meat started."

"Tell me in time."

"I don't know." The innkeeper cracked eggs and poured them onto a wide iron griddle. An egg with two yolks stuck together sizzled. Beside it, a porridge of finely chopped meat and leaves was boiling. Kichan sat down in the empty seat. Paul pushed the bread basket toward him.

"You look better than yesterday."

"You too, Father."

"When I opened my eyes for a moment, I was startled that the ceiling was not Rome."

"It was like that for me at first too." The meal between breakfast and lunch went on a long time. Riphiel put an egg on the bread and laid one more piece of meat on top. The yolk ran to the edge of the bread. Argaon emptied his own plate and looked at the meat on Kichan's plate too. Kichan cut one piece of meat in half and tossed it to him.

"Eat this and let's go to the information guild."

"Do you know where it is?" Kichan called the innkeeper.

"Where is the information guild with the black glass marker?" The innkeeper flipped the egg on the griddle and pointed out the window with his chin.

"Go down the main road, and where the waterway splits, turn left. It is the building with black windows."

"Is it far?"

"By your stride, not far." After emptying their bowls, they went outside. The street in the daytime was different from the night before. The oil lamps were out, and water had been sprinkled in front of the shops to settle the dust. The laundry above the windows had been changed for different pieces. In the yard below the city wall, empty carts were filing in. Kichan recognized the road they had come along yesterday.

Using the upper part of the Arena as a reference, the bends of the main road became a little more familiar. The black glass marker was smaller than he had expected. A black plate the size of a palm hung above the door. Sunlight struck it, but the road across the way did not reflect in its surface. Kichan opened the door.