"What's the problem?" Walking up to Laura's side, Haruki asked the receptionist.
Shifting her hazel eyes to Freya, the woman looked her up and down trying to judge what kind of person she was. Having never seen her around before, the receptionist was dubious about the woman standing in front of her in muddied clothes and torn-up sleeves. Not realizing the state of his attire from the trip to the forest, Haruki slammed his fist on the desk before asking the same question.
"What's the problem here?" He demanded, shocking her with the noise.
Astonished, the receptionist jumped up on her feet. Laura, on the other hand, clutched onto Freya's sleeve to get the attention back on her.
"She's not taking the demon horns as proof of the job!" Placing the pouch of horns on the desk, she spread them all out for everyone to see. "I need the subjugation money for my companion's medicine!"
'That's it? It's about money?' The receptionist shook her head, annoyed. Tired of Laura's complaint, she placed her hand over her hips and began shouting just like she was being shouted at.
"I can't take it because it's in a hundred pieces! For all I know you cut the horns of a single demon so you could claim that you killed a horde!" Slamming her fist on the desk, she gave Freya an angry side-eye before shifting her attention back to Laura.
"Stop lying! It's because I'm an elf, isn't it?!" That single complaint from her made loud gasps shoot up from the adventurers around her. "You always give me less gold than the rest of the adventurers and now y-"
Realizing that the situation was escalating a little too much, Haruki grabbed Laura by the shoulders to stop her from speaking anymore. As she turned around to look at Haruki, he directed her gaze with his eyes to the numerous parties looking right at them.
'Don't start this thing, you're outnumbered.' Relaying those words through his eyes alone, Haruki warned her not to make it a matter of race. 'If things escalate further, none of the humans around would side with her, and the guards won't listen to any of her cries even if they knew her to be the victim and not the perpetrator.'
Recognizing the threat, Laura gulped down her emotions and decided to let the matter go. Leaving the demon horn pouch on the desk, she didn't wait for Freya and headed straight for the exit. Swaying in the air, her tears glistered like the stars, and although she tried to drown the cries, a few pained hiccups managed to slip out regardless.
"Keep the horns," telling that to the receptionist, Haruki rushed right after Laura.
'Who was that anyway?' Thought the receptionist watching Haruki following Laura out of the front door.
Outside the building, Haruki quickly caught up to Laura who was just storming down the street. Her eyes still a bit numb, she gave Freya a weakened smile and tried to leave her behind once again. However, given the disparity in their abilities, Haruki was easily able to keep up with her. And after finally being chased around the streets for a while, Laura stopped to tell Freya off.
"Can you please leave me alone now? I know I need to keep my promise and not tell anyone about your strength, and I will, so please?" Standing at the edge of a dark alley, Laura gave Haruki a troubled gaze.
"Shut up," Surprising her with his words, Haruki reached into his pocket and took out a handful of gold through the dungeon portal. "Here take this."
With no clue as to what he was holding in his hand, Laura looked at him confused. Shaking her head from side to side, she tried to refuse whatever he was trying to give her. But having expected the response, Haruki knew what had to be done.
"I'm not giving you charity," opening his hand to reveal the glistering gold, Haruki made her an offer. "I need your help to find the Library of Heroes, consider this payment to that end."
Dazzled by the sight of gold coins, Laura didn't want to look away from Haruki's hands. It was much more than what she needed for the medicine, in fact with the amount Freya was offering she could've easily upgraded her party's equipment.
"Wait…" Recalling a rumor about a royalty showering gold over the citizens, she shot Haruki a sharp gaze, feeling utterly dumbfounded. "Did you really shower gold coins in the city yesterday? I was too busy taking care of my companions, and by the time I tried to check every coin had been swept off the ground."
"No surprise there, I doubt anyone will admit they picked up the gold either since it'd make them an easy victim to theft," with that said, Haruki grabbed Laura's hand and placed the coins on her palm. "Anyway, if you agree to help, I can provide you with more gold than you can spend in your lifetime."
Even though she had never chased wealth in her life, the offer felt too tempting, especially since her friends were in dire need of that money. Biting down on her lip, she huffed out a sigh and nodded.
"Okay, I can't promise that we can find it since it's supposed to be a myth," circling up her fingers over the gold coins, she placed them into her pocket. "But if you think it's real and want to find it, then I'll do my best to find you any hints to get to it."
"That's fine by me," offering his hand forward, he had Laura seal the deal with a handshake.
Assured of riches and any other kind of help, Laura led Haruki through the markets for the medicine, and then to the church of Atlas. Standing outside, Haruki waited until Laura came out with a vial of holy water clutched tight in her arms.
'I should keep my hands off those things.' Although he wanted to help her carry it, doing so was bound to bring more trouble. 'Even Serena had to get rid of all the holy water while she was still hiding her identity at the church.'
A mere drop was enough to burn through a demon's flesh, but given the scarcity and high cost, it was far from being considered an effective weapon against demons.
"They're at a nursery, we should get there quick," leading the charge once more, Laura led Haruki away.
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