A Promise at the Crossroads

An hour after Wolf had finished his meal and Mrs. Bobin had enjoyed the food as well, he dedicated some time to help the traveling cook store everything she’d used for cooking and also cleaning up the pots, bowls and mugs they used.

They took to the road again, but this time Richard was riding beside Mrs. Bobin’s wagon.

“You told me you’d left the Kingdom of Alcainez recently, Mr. Wolf?” Mrs. Bobin, driving her wagon, called out to Wolf who was picking his teeth with a toothpick after he had enjoyed two bowls of the stew.

“Yup. Let’s just say I had run out of good bounties to hunt. The place runs dry, and I gotta find somewhere else to make some money, find a posse, get a good place for a headquarters and then start lookin’ for the Demon Lord.”

“Got any place in mind to get you started?” Mrs. Bobin took out her pipe and lit it. Taking a puff from it, she glanced at her traveling companion.

“Not yet. I’m still pretty new to this world, so I’m not too sure which territory might be good for me.” Richard recalled the maps he’d been studying since he arrived but hadn’t been able to gather much information about the other nations in the world. “If you got any suggestions, I’m all ears, Mrs. Bobin. A woman as well travelled as you would certainly know where’s the best place to start.”

“Hmmm… Well,” Mrs. Bobin tapped her temple for a moment, “when it comes to the main countries and places you could go to, I can tell you of a couple of places that could be helpful for you to start.”

“First, there’s the Western Beastlands. Home of the Beast Folk Clans and one of the largest territories in the whole world. Back when I was an adventurer, I travelled there along with a powerful warrior from the Bear Clan - part man, part bear. He used to tell me of the days when the Clans all fought to try and assert dominance in the land. Those wars were just what the neighboring human countries needed to start invading the Beastlands and stir up trouble.

The Beast Folk had no choice but to unite under an uneasy alliance to fight back against the invaders and keep them outside their borders. To this day, the alliance is fragile to say the least, and human slavers still plague the Beastlands, looking for ‘merchandise’ for their despicable business. Humph! Disgraceful children…”

Mention of slavery made Richard’s face darken for a moment.

“Another place you could consider is the County of Lioncœur. This county isn’t as large as the other places I’m talking about , but this lot produces some of the finest warriors and healers in the world!

I remember taking my late husband there when he got seriously injured during a dungeon crawl. I saw a member of the Lioncœur family cleaving down monsters and saving our bacon - that man fought like a lion! Then, his lady companion used her powerful healing magic to stabilize my husband so we could escape the dungeon. After we arrived at their mansion, the lady healer continued to use her powers to mend our wounds and save my husband’s life back then.

Last I heard, that warrior has become the Count of Lioncœur, and the lady became his wife and Countess! Seems they also have three beautiful children - two of them are twin sisters, can you believe that?”

Richard continued to listen to Mrs. Bobin and took note of this place. If he needed to recruit a frontline warrior and healer, he’d pay a visit to the Count of Lioncœur, and ask for his assistance.

“Now… if you don’t mind being seen with distrust or in a condescending way, you could always try finding one of the elven sanctuaries. One in particular shouldn’t be too far away - the Elven Sanctuary of Gallad.

As it is with most high elves, these folks keep to themselves and really don’t like it when people encroach into their sanctuaries. But, if you earn their respect and trust, you won’t find a more loyal group of people to aid you. They’re honest when a deal is struck and I’ve never seen anyone beat them in their use of a bow.

I once traveled through one of their sanctuaries, as part of an adventuring team from all countries and got to see ‘em up close. Not the most friendly of children, I’ll tell you that much. But they did their duties and completed the tasks without complaints. Still… a bit too stuck up, for my taste.”

Mrs. Bobin noticed that Richard had actually smiled when she mentioned all those things about the High Elves. “I know how to deal with the High Elves…” He said.

"Also!," Mrs. Bobin began, her voice softening with a clear note of pride, "there's Baruk-Thulin. My home.”

“Baruk-Thulin,” Wolf repeated in the Dwarven tongue, “Axes of the Mothers?”

“That’s right! If you don't mind being judged for not knowing your way around a forge, you'd find no better people in this world. My father's people, the dwarves of the Obsidian Forges, are a sight to behold.”

Richard raised an eyebrow. "I thought the dwarves in this world were all about the mines and the gold."

Mrs. Bobin laughed, a hearty sound that echoed across the plains. "Ah, that's what those silly human books tell you! In Baruk-Thulin, our greatest treasure is skill. It's a matriarchy, you see. A woman earns her place as a leader, a smith, a High Matron - not by her blood, but by the skill in her hands and the wisdom in her words. We hold our oaths as sacred, and we believe that a well-made object speaks more of a dwarf's character than a bag of coins."

She went on to describe the towering, multi-level forges of her home, where the women commanded the heat and the metal, while the men, stronger by design, were their most trusted miners and warriors.

"My people are as stubborn as a mountain," she finished with a fond smile, "and they don't give their trust easily. But if you were to prove yourself a worthy soul, you'd find no better ally in all the world."

Richard took a moment to ponder this. A country ruled by women, a society that valued skill over birthright, a people who held honesty as sacred as life itself. He’d certainly never seen that before.

"Sounds like a place I could get used to, Mrs. Bobin," he said, a genuine smirk on his face. "Seems there's still a few good people left in this world after all."

“Hehehehe! You’ll get your chance, someday. Now! There is another country I believe will help get you started, and it’s pretty close by too! The Grand Duchy of Hidalgo.”

“Hidalgo?” Richard could’ve sworn he’d heard that name before…

“That’s right!” Mrs. Bobin pointed out, “Of all the human settlements around the world, this one’s perhaps the most open and inclusive of them all. The Duke, a man of great vision and foresight has allowed people from every corner of the world to settle within his city, townships and settlements without demanding additional taxes, special laws or forcing non-humans into difficult circumstances.”

“Sounds like an ideal place to start.” Richard rubbed his stubbled chin thoughtfully.

“Well, just don’t go expecting things to be all sunshine and rainbows, Mr. Wolf.” The cook sighed heavily as she put her pipe away and grimaced, “It’s precisely due to the Duke’s progressive ideas that he gets the most backlash from the nobility and rival countries. The Duchy is one of the most rich and powerful countries in the world, but that only creates jealousy amongst the greedy and corrupt. There are some rumors going about that the nobility is looking to create a faction to remove the Duke from power and set a new regime… sounds like Demon Lord lackeys are making a move too.”

“The Grand Duchy of Hidalgo… you said it’s nearby, didn’t you?” Richard turned to glance at Mrs. Bobin.

“Sure is! If you keep riding down this road,” she pointed out to the same road they were using, “you’ll eventually reach a crossroads and a road that leads to one of the Duchy’s Border Towns. Just talk to the guards outside the gates and flash that Guild Card to ‘em. They’ll let you in without a problem.”

After a few hours, the road began to split into two different directions. The signs on the road told Richard what he needed to know - they were inside the Grand Duchy territory now and where each road led: to the left was Shae Village, and to the right was the West Border Town.

Both riders stopped and turned to look at each other.

“Looks like this is where we part ways, Mr. Wolf.” Mrs. Bobin smiled broadly and climbed down from her wagon.

“Seems it can’t be helped…” Wolf dismounted and approached Mrs. Bobin.

“I know you have a rough road ahead, Richard.” The cook’s voice changed, suddenly filled with concern. “But don’t go chasing that rabbit into a bottomless pit, you hear?”

“I hear you loud and clear, ma’am. As for you, Helen,” Richard’s tone of voice also softened, “Be careful out there on the road, alright? I’d hate it if I heard you aren’t out there cookin’ up something new for folks out there.”

“Oh, piss on that!” Mrs. Bobin laughed after she cussed, catching Wolf by surprise. “It’ll take a whole lot more than just a ‘dangerous road’ to take out Ol’ Mama Bobin!” She flexed her right arm showing the steel muscles held within.

“Hah!” Richard couldn’t help but laugh. “Sounds good, Mrs. Bobin. If you’re ever in a bind or need an extra gun when you’re out there, you send word to me through the Adventurers Guild. I’ll ride day and night to help you out. You have my word.”

The Bounty Hunter reached out and held his right hand towards the Traveling Cook.

“You’re a good man, Mr. Wolf.” Mrs. Bobin approached Richard and smiled. “Same goes for you. If Mama Bobin can help you out someday, I’ll be there. By my oath on the Obsidian Forge, my strength and my cookin’ are yours to call upon.”

Mrs. Bobin held Richard’s hand and both of them pressed firmly.

“Safe travels, Mrs. Bobin.” Richard let go of her hand and tipped his hat out of respect.

“Good luck on your hunt, Mr. Wolf! I’m certain we’ll meet again!” She climbed back to her wagon, got it moving again and waved goodbye to the bounty hunter.

The Goddess of Fortune’s golden orb appeared next to Richard who was smiling as he watched Mrs. Bobin’s wagon rode off to the opposite direction he was going to next.

“The woman’s something else! I like her even more now!” The Goddess’ voice rang out with her usual giggling.

“I recall you didn’t like competition, Darlin’.” Wolf spoke out as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

“Oh! I don’t have to worry about that one, Lover Boy! She’s the kinda lady that isn’t lookin’ to shack up with a guy she just met. That one’s lookin’ for a place to finally call home after such a long road. Sound like someone you know?”

“Yeah…” Richard mused. “Still, Mrs. Bobin is someone I can trust. Which is more than I can say of the people I’ve dealt with over the centuries.”

“And that trust is gonna pay off in the future, Lover! Just you wait!”

Wolf nodded silently, climbed onto his horse and rode out at full speed towards his next destination:

The Grand Duchy of Hidalgo’s Western Border Town.