At the entrance to Carne Village, the same flimsy wooden fence, offering little defense, stood unchanged since Adam's last visit.
His return, especially after helping Emmot's eldest daughter carry weeds, stirred a wave of attention. For the village women, starved for gossip, it was a juicy tidbit.
On the path, three figures walked deeper into the village.
"I'll have to trouble you again, Chief." Adam said politely to the village chief beside him.
"No need for such courtesy, sir." The chief replied, his dark skin creasing with a smile. Despite his surprise at Adam's return, there was no impatience, only a hint of deference. "The room's been cleaned, same one as last time."
Already cleaned?
Adam's steps faltered imperceptibly before he continued forward.
His peripheral vision caught the middle-aged man at the chief's side.
A bow was slung across the man's back. His right hand swung naturally with his stride, but his left, hidden from Adam's view, rested tensely on his waist.
Adam could sense the man's nervousness, his eyes occasionally darting to the Invisible Hound cub trailing behind.
Does he recognize a Invisible Hound?
If Adam recalled correctly, the only villager in Carne with a class was Latimon. The bow confirmed this man was likely him.
A few thoughts crossed Adam's mind before he shifted tone, addressing the chief with curiosity. "Have others visited the village recently?"
The chief couldn't have known Adam would return, so a cleaned room suggested other visitors.
"Indeed." The chief nodded. "Several adventurer teams stayed a night recently, then left in a hurry."
"Do you know what they were here for?"
Adam's eyes flickered with a guess.
"Adventurers are big shots. Not for the likes of us to question. Besides, we know nothing." The chief said, his wrinkled face breaking into a hearty laugh as he waved a hand.
Adam glanced at him, surprised.
A clever answer.
Likely a survival tactic for common folk.
Though lacking specifics, it wasn't hard to deduce.
For a remote village like Carne, rarely seeing outsiders, multiple adventurer teams suggested a link to Adam's recent forest activities.
The same room as before.
Entering, Adam found it spotless, even the ceiling beams free of cobwebs.
"Wrrf."
The Invisible Hound cub eagerly surveyed the room.
"No barking when outsiders are around." Adam said calmly, glancing at the cub.
"Woof."
The cub's lively movements stilled, its neck shrinking and ears drooping.
Magical beasts often possessed decent intelligence, and this cub, over their time together, proved sharper than Adam expected.
It understood simple commands perfectly.
Adam reached into the air, retrieving a goblin corpse from his item box and tossing it to the cub.
"Dinner."
Elsewhere, the chief and Latimon walked back along the village's uneven dirt paths after escorting Adam.
"Something happening in the forest lately?" The chief asked, his earlier joviality gone, replaced by worry.
When no reply came, he glanced at Latimon. "What's with you today? So quiet."
"It's a Invisible Hound!" Latimon's voice trembled.
"What?" The chief looked puzzled, not grasping his meaning.
"That creature following him, it's a Invisible Hound." Latimon said, lifting his pale face to the chief. "More dangerous than an ogre. In adventurer ratings, it's a terrifying 45 difficulty."
"It's clearly a cub. Invisible Hounds, cunning as they are, always guard their young."
Latimon took a deep breath, speaking gravely.
"Difficulty?" The chief remained confused.
"Difficulty" was the Adventurer's Guild's metric for monster strength, with an adult male rated at 3.
As the village hunter, Latimon not only gathered herbs and hunted in the Great Forest of Tob's outskirts but also hauled surplus crops like wheat to E-Rantel for sale, trading for basic supplies.
Thus, he knew more about adventurers than most villagers.
"Chief, he's no adventurer." Latimon said, lowering his voice and glancing covertly toward Adam's lodging.
"No matter their rank, adventurers wear metal tags indicating their level in a visible spot."
The man's jet-black hair, a clear outsider trait, and the Invisible Hound cub at his side heightened Latimon's unease.
No matter how he looked at it, this was a dangerous figure.
Tap tap~
Light footsteps approached.
Latimon, about to continue, shut his mouth and looked up with the chief toward the sound.
Enri approached, carrying a wooden tray.
Seeing her, the chief's face warmed with a kind smile. "Where you off to, Enri-chan?"
"Chief, Unc Latimon." Enri said, then blushed shyly. "Mother asked me to bring food to the adventurer as thanks for helping with the weeds."
Latimon eyed the tray: steaming bean soup with visible meat chunks and a plate of cleaned nuts.
"When did Emmot get so generous?" Latimon teased, whistling.
"Go on, Enri." The chief said gently, waving her off.
Enri nodded respectfully to both and hurried away.
"Chief…" Latimon began again as Enri left.
The chief cut him off with a hand, speaking softly. "Relax, Latimon. This is his second time here."
Latimon fell silent, then mused, "Should we visit E-Rantel? I feel something's happening in the forest we don't know about."
The chief didn't reply, turning to watch Enri's retreating figure, walking on in silence.
***
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