NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9: Potato Stuffed Buns
As Lukas turned to face the baron, he saw him dismiss his grand daughter and everyone else. Once the room was empty except for the two of them, he looked at Lukas seriously.
"I sense the mana heart in you."
Lukas's mouth opened slightly, 'You can sense that? I didn't sense anything when Nina awakened her mana heart. Hmm… an item or a skill?'
"My father was a knight." he said instead of giving him a direct answer, "I came to this town to live a better life and I have no interest in getting into fights."
"Oh, don't worry. I'm not recruiting you." the baron said as he twiddled his thumbs under the table nervously, "No matter what decision my daughter makes, I'll provide you with a place to set up your business. I'll take care of the investments and in return, I ask for 50% of the profits."
Hearing this, Lukas smiled as he took a few steps forward and extended his arm, "It will be my pleasure to be your business partner."
Baron Frascine watched as Lukas left the room and then, he let out a soft sigh. He took out one of his rings and played with it.
'Just one small core in his heart… he's a bronze knight but wants to cook food.' he thought as he walked over to the windows. Through them, he could see his men training and his eyes focused on one man.
He had managed to earn the loyalty of a single bronze knight after three whole decades of hard work and now, an extra just jumped onto his lap but refused to get involved in his matters.
"Let's just hope that he'll help in times of need. If things go well, I won't need any help." he muttered as he made up his mind on making sure that Lukas would stay in his area of jurisdiction.
Later that day, Lukas roamed the town with his sister in search of a house to rent and discovered a company named property renting association. Through them, the siblings managed to find a house that fit their requirements.
In reality, it only fit Nina's requirements as Lukas just went with her choice.
A weekly rent of just two silvers and an extra bronze coin per piece of furniture. With two beds, a dining table set for two, and a small wardrobe, the rental price came up to two silvers and three bronze.
Once the siblings were inside their new home, Nina glared at Lukas, "You paid two silvers for one night."
"I didn't know that it was above normal. I thought it was a cheap inn, sorry." he said, lying as he knew that it was a mid tier inn the moment his gaze landed on the building.
Nina let the matter go as she looked around. One bathroom with an attached toilet, a bedroom, kitchen and a large living room. Two beds were placed on two corners of the bedroom while the wardrobe stood in between, it's back touching the wall.
The kitchen was spacious for cooking purposes but it did not have enough to accommodate a dining table. Due to this, they had to keep the table in their living room but none of them had a problem with it.
"We don't have any relatives or friends here so we shouldn't bother with appearances." Nina said as she walked into the bedroom, "I like this."
Lukas stood by the door and shook his head, "Yeah…. we're buying mattresses, pillows, blankets and a few new sets of clothes. We also need new pots and pans for the kitchen."
Nina slowly turned around and then, she glanced at the wooden box that was resting on the dining table. The village chief had given it to her brother.
"How much money do we have and how much is all of this going to cost?"
"I haven't used a single coin from this box." Lukas said as he patted it, "Three hundred and fifty silvers. We had saved up twelve silvers before, so after the ride and the inn's cost, we are left with nine."
"And eighty bronze coins." she added and then frowned, "I… am okay with sleeping directly on this bed."
Lukas didn't buy it and simply took a few coins from the box and walked towards the door, "I'm buying two. Take some silvers and buy yourself some clothes. At least four sets."
With that, Nina was left alone in the house. She looked at the box and pursed her lips before picking up a few coins. They looked more like rings as they had tiny holes in the middle. She then took a braided cord, which was made specifically for the coins.
She pushed the cord through the holes and then put it in a small cloth back that was the size of her palm.
***
Lukas walked along the streets casually as he put his hand in his pocket and jiggled the coins once in a while. The shopping spree took three hours as he had to walk to stores that were far apart from each other.
By the time he had brought everything back home and set them up, it was evening.
'Nina's still not here.' he thought as he walked to the door and was surprised to see her standing still at a nearby shop. Wondering what was wrong, he walked over to see her staring at the glass display.
With a slight shake of his head, he pointed at a pile of buns, "These right?"
Nina broke away from her stupor and immediately shook her head, "No. Let's go home."
"Go home and do what? We don't have firewood to cook food." he said as he turned to the shopkeeper, "How much for these buns, sir?" he asked the burly looking man with short hair.
"It's ma'am for you, mister. These are potato stuffed buns, two bronze per piece."
Lukas smiled awkwardly as he placed ten bronze coins on the counter, "Sorry about that… we'll take five."
The woman took five coins and packed the buns with a large leaf before placing it on the counter, "It's late. I sell at discount during the evening since they'll turn bad by tomorrow morning. Here."
Thanking her for her generosity, Lukas headed back home with his head filled with thoughts.
Potato Stuffed Buns had inspired him.