Chapter 19 – The Hidden Price of Kindness
Kai snored louder than anyone should at ten years old.
The tiny room beside mine echoed with his uneven breathing.
I smiled to myself.
Just a few days ago, he had been running through the streets, stealing bread to survive.
Now…
He complained whenever Master Borin woke him before sunrise.
Children truly adapted faster than adults.
⸻
“Wake up!”
Master Borin’s voice thundered through the tavern.
“I am awake!”
Kai shouted back.
“You answered three seconds too late.”
“…Does that count?”
“No.”
I laughed quietly while sweeping the floor.
Kai stumbled downstairs with his hair sticking in every direction.
He glared at me.
“Why are you laughing?”
“You look like a bird built a nest on your head.”
He immediately tried flattening his hair.
It only became worse.
Even Master Borin failed to hide his smile.
⸻
Life inside the tavern became busier.
With Kai around, the work was lighter.
He served customers while I washed dishes.
When he forgot an order…
I reminded him.
When I carried heavy barrels…
He opened the doors.
Without realizing it…
We had begun working as a team.
⸻
Several regular customers noticed.
Captain Daren chuckled.
“So the tavern has two apprentices now.”
Master Borin shook his head.
“No.”
“Two disasters.”
Kai protested immediately.
“I’m useful!”
“You broke three bowls yesterday.”
“They slipped.”
“You slipped.”
“The bowls were innocent.”
The tavern burst into laughter.
For the first time in many years…
Master Borin laughed so hard that tears formed in the corners of his eyes.
⸻
That afternoon…
An unexpected visitor entered.
Merchant Hallen.
The old merchant calmly removed his hat before taking his usual seat.
“Tea.”
Master Borin prepared it personally.
After taking a single sip…
Merchant Hallen looked toward me.
“You.”
“…Me?”
“Come here.”
I walked over.
He placed a small cloth pouch onto the table.
It jingled softly.
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“Open it.”
Inside were twenty bronze coins.
I looked at him in confusion.
“…Why?”
“I have a job.”
Master Borin remained silent.
Apparently…
He already knew.
⸻
Merchant Hallen folded his hands.
“A caravan carrying medicinal herbs will arrive tomorrow.”
“I need someone honest to unload the cargo.”
“You’ll be paid.”
I hesitated.
“I’ve never worked outside the tavern.”
“Everyone has a first time.”
I instinctively looked toward Master Borin.
He simply nodded.
“Go.”
“You need to see more of the world than these four walls.”
⸻
The next morning…
I followed Merchant Hallen to the northern gate.
For the first time…
I witnessed a merchant caravan entering Ashfall City.
More than thirty wagons rolled through the gates.
Massive horned beasts pulled them effortlessly.
Unlike horses…
Their hides were covered in dark scales.
Each animal stood nearly twice my height.
“What are those?”
I whispered.
Merchant Hallen smiled.
“Ironhorn Oxen.”
“They can pull ten times what a horse can.”
I stared in amazement.
This world never stopped surprising me.
⸻
As workers unloaded crates…
Merchant Hallen quietly observed them.
He wasn’t watching their strength.
He was watching their honesty.
One worker secretly slipped a handful of herbs into his pocket.
Merchant Hallen said nothing.
Another hid a silver spoon beneath his sleeve.
Still…
He remained silent.
I frowned.
“…Aren’t you going to stop them?”
“No.”
He replied calmly.
“I’ll wait.”
“Wait for what?”
“For them to finish.”
⸻
By sunset…
The unloading was complete.
Merchant Hallen gathered every worker together.
His expression remained gentle.
“Before payment…”
“I have one announcement.”
The workers looked at one another.
He slowly unfolded a piece of paper.
“I keep detailed records.”
“Every crate.”
“Every herb.”
“Every spoon.”
Silence spread through the yard.
Then…
He began reading names.
Three workers.
Each had stolen something.
None denied it.
How could they?
Merchant Hallen already knew exactly what each had taken.
“You are dismissed.”
No shouting.
No violence.
Only disappointment.
The three silently left.
Merchant Hallen turned toward the remaining workers.
“Honesty saves me more money than locks ever could.”
He finally handed me my wages.
Twenty bronze coins.
Exactly as promised.
⸻
As we walked back…
I couldn’t stop thinking.
“You knew from the beginning.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you confront them immediately?”
Merchant Hallen smiled.
“Because temptation reveals character.”
“If I had stopped them early…”
“I would’ve learned they were thieves.”
“But by waiting…”
“I learned who could be trusted.”
⸻
When I returned to the tavern…
Kai immediately rushed over.
“You got paid!”
His eyes sparkled.
“Show me!”
I placed the coins on the table.
He counted them twice.
“So much!”
Master Borin quietly looked at me.
“What will you do with them?”
I thought for a moment.
Then…
“I owe you.”
He frowned.
“You owe me work.”
“I’ve already been working.”
“You owe me respect.”
“I already have that.”
I pushed ten bronze coins toward him.
“For the food.”
“For the room.”
“For everything.”
Master Borin looked at the coins.
Then…
He pushed them back.
“I fed you because you were hungry.”
“Not because I expected payment.”
I tried again.
He refused again.
Finally…
Merchant Hallen, who had just entered behind me, laughed.
“Borin.”
“You’re still as stubborn as ever.”
Master Borin snorted.
“And you’re still too rich.”
The two old men looked at one another.
Then unexpectedly…
Both laughed.
It was the laugh of old friends.
Friends who had argued for decades.
⸻
That night…
Master Borin knocked on my bedroom door.
Without saying anything…
He handed me a small leather pouch.
“What is this?”
“Your savings.”
I opened it.
Inside were all twenty bronze coins.
“I told you…”
“They’re yours.”
He looked toward the moon outside the window.
“A man should always keep enough money…”
“…to choose his own path.”
Then he quietly left.
⸻
Far beyond Ashfall City…
Inside a mountain hidden by endless clouds…
An ancient man sat beneath a waterfall.
His hair was as white as snow.
His eyes remained closed.
Suddenly…
The waterfall split in half.
Not from wind.
Not from magic.
But from the pressure released by his opening eyes.
A young disciple immediately knelt.
“Master.”
“The Imperial Inspection Division has begun searching.”
The old man slowly stood.
“They’re late.”
“The sword has already awakened.”
The disciple trembled.
“Should we intervene?”
The old man gazed toward the distant south, where Ashfall City lay unseen beyond countless mountains.
“No.”
His ancient voice echoed through the valley.
“Steel forged too early…”
“…breaks.”
“Let the child suffer.”
“Only then…”
“…will he become worthy of carrying the world’s greatest curse.”
The waterfall reunited behind him.
And somewhere, far below…
A quiet tavern continued serving soup to tired travelers.
Unaware that forces capable of shaking continents…
Had already begun moving.
End of Chapter 19