Return to Jorgaldur

The rest of the journey was pretty uneventful, as they were a large and well-protected caravan. The prisoners were handed over in one of the towns along the way, and Goldmi was forced to accept part of the reward for her pet’s actions. She repeated the word more than once to try to annoy her sister, but she only succeeded in the beginning.

The elf sometimes regretted introducing them. Not that she was bothered that Darigla ignored her when the adventurer was near. She didn’t even mind that they were so lovey-dovey. No, the worst was when they weren’t together.

“You know, Leo as a young boy… You know, once Leo… You see how well the armor suits him… You know, he lives in the capital. He agreed to come see my parents and… You know, he seemed arrogant at first, but it’s just that he’s shy and…”

She sighed. Her friend wasn’t talking about anything else, only about Leo. She met the gaze of the tamer, who was caressing the snake. The woman only smiled at her and shrugged, like feeling for her. Apparently, she too had suffered something similar in the past.

In fact, along with the other tamer, she often spoke to the elf and the human. However, when the merchant started talking about her Leo, coincidentally, they had to tend to the wolf and the reptile. Goldmi was looking at them with some resentment and envy. She wished she could escape as well.

Even if her friend was a real pain sometimes, she was happy for Darigla. The elf just hoped they did well. She also remembered Elendnas. In a way, she felt some envy. At least, they were together. On her part, she didn’t even know if she would have a chance. However, Goldmi couldn’t get him out of her head, much less her dreams.

Occasionally, the merchant talked about other matters, such as her father, who worked in the Goltrak library, or her younger brother, who wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps. She even laughed that he claimed he had met a visitor in the past, and that the visitor had even given him a ball.

The elf said nothing, but it reminded her of something Eldi had commented on in the past. He had asked if there was any quest related to meeting a child on Goltrak. Gjaki had investigated it, but she hadn’t found anything, and she hadn’t been able to reproduce it either.

They had come to the conclusion that it was a bug in the game, or some test they would have done. There had been nothing to suggest that it was a unique mission.

However, now the elf had another perspective. She wondered if it was a coincidence, or if it had just been real. However, if it had been, it only confirmed that some interactions had been real, nothing more. She still didn’t know what her relationship to the elf had been. Maybe, it had only existed in her imagination.

Some carts parted as they reached their towns, and others joined on their way to the capital, just as some adventurers were replaced when they reached their destinations. It wasn’t the case of Leo or Darigla, who were going to the capital, and who offered to invite the elf.

However, she rejected it, by assuring that she had urgent matters to deal with, and that she wouldn’t be in the city more than a few hours to do some shopping. She wasn’t lying. The call was getting stronger, so she felt more and more anxious to reach it, although she tried not to show it. However, it was evident to the others that she was somewhat nervous.

The lynx was also restless. Even if she didn’t say anything or show it, her sister could sense it.

Thus, she said goodbye shortly after arriving. Goldmi assured that she would visit them if she passed by again and had time. The elf witnessed how the adventurer helped the merchant to get off the cart, and carry her things. They did it without stopping looking at each other, flirting. She sighed.

She also said goodbye to the tamers, and other people she had met on the trip. The adventurers were the ones who treated her with the most respect. She and, above all, the lynx, who was obviously able to understand them.

After that, her objective was the library, because there she could consult various maps of the area.

They had arrived in the morning, so she hoped she had enough time. However, she was forced to go to the tamer guild first. Otherwise, it would be very difficult for her to move with the lynx. Luckily, in the past, when the group had created a second adventurer identity, she had chosen that of a tamer.

It had been Gjaki’s suggestion. She mainly wanted to have a different guild that they could go to if needed. Now, that decision was quite useful to them.

She made sure no one saw them, after which she wore the costume that Gjaki had created for her at that time. The lynx protested and growled, until she finally accepted the magic that turned her into a kind of black panther. It was offensive to her to hide her “beautiful fur” and disguise as a “lesser feline.”

So, panther-woman and panther entered the guild to register the feline. They were tended to by a robust demihuman with bull-like features. He was intimidating.

“Good morning, how can I help you?” he asked her, with a friendly tone that contrasted with his presence.

“I want to register my pet,” she said, so irritating that pet a bit.

“Your badge?”

She handed it. He picked it up, and placed it in a strange device.

“You have a message. Between five and ten years old. It is in Misitu Mji. We can transfer it, it would take approximately a month. It would be fifty silvers,” he informed her, helpful.

“Oh, a message? Can I pick it up directly there?” she asked, somewhat surprised.

“Of course.”

“Then I will.”

“Very well. Here’s the badge. This collar is for your pet.”

Although reluctant, the disguised lynx had no choice but to let her sister put on the collar, although she considered it an outrage. Only when her sister promised her some cream cakes did she calm down. Maybe, that was what she intended all along.

Then, they left on their way to the library, while the elf was thinking about who had sent her that message.

“Maybe it’s from the game? From Gjaki before they closed it?” she wondered.

It seemed most likely, and yet she wanted to go check it out. If her friend had sent her one last message before the game closed, she was more than willing to do whatever it took to read it.

For a moment, nostalgia washed over her. She missed them.