Strangers From Another World 14 The Rise And Fall Of Joseph Lavender

It began when he was but a lad, when Joseph was at the age of thirteen. It was at that tender age, did Joseph fell in love with a girl close to his age. Griselda was her name, and Joseph knew her since he was very young, and after spending their early childhood together, Joseph's feelings blossomed upon hitting that difficult age of thirteen.

However, between them, there was an inexplicably tall wall, one in which Joseph at the time could not even come close to overcoming. Griselda was a daughter of a rich merchant, and Joseph was but a son of a lowly hunter. Even at that age, it was clear to Joseph that Griselda's father would never allowed the hand of his beloved daughter to someone such as he. And so, by the time he was fourteen, Joseph decided that he'll leave his town to find his own riches. On the day he decided to leave, Joseph made a vow to Griselda that he'll one day return, wealthier than ever, and that he hopes that she will wait for him. Griselda agreed.

That day, Joseph's heart was set, he was determined to return a man rich enough for Griselda's father to allow him to take her hand. Heck, perhaps he'll be an even richer man than her father. But how? That was the question. All Joseph knew was the hunting skill taught by his father, and the trade was by no means lucrative, at least, not lucrative enough for Joseph's ultimate goal. Joseph thought long and hard about this, and then, as he was scratching his head in frustration, he remembered a tale, the one about the Six Mortal G.o.ds.

The Six Mortal G.o.ds, it was said that they were mortals in origin, who are so skilled in what they do that they in the end became vessels for G.o.ds. Among them, there was the one called the Hunting G.o.d, the vessel of the G.o.d of nature and balance.

Joseph decided to seek out the Hunting G.o.d, thinking that if he could find him and learn from him, then he'll surely be the greatest hunter there ever is, he could become a legend, and following that, he thought, are naturally riches beyond imagination.

After leaving his home behind, Joseph went and signed on with the Adventurers' Guild, taking mostly work that involved hunting beasts. Like so, he traveled from branch to branch, taking jobs and earning his keep whilst traveling the continent, searching for traces of the semi-mythical G.o.d, chasing rumors after rumors.

As fortune would have it, and it may very well be the greatest fortune in his entire life second only to his meeting with Griselda, Joseph found the dwelling of the Hunting G.o.d in the depths of a dark forest, far away from civilization. At last, he had found the Hunting G.o.d, or more truthfully speaking, the Hunting G.o.d found him, starving and lost.

By her mercy, the Hunting G.o.d took the boy in, she fed him and treated his wounds and when he was well enough, she sent him on his way. However, Joseph was persistent, and he refused to leave, continuing to pester the Hunting G.o.d to teach him.

In the end the Hunting G.o.d relented, saying to the young Joseph: "Very well, I'll teach you all I can teach, but be warned, if you can't keep up, you won't survive."

The Hunting G.o.d taught him more than simply hunting, but also the ways of the wild, to survive without civilization. Hunting was no longer a job anymore, it was now the matter of survival, of life and death. Under the tutelage of the Hunting G.o.d, Joseph hunted creatures from ones small as a rabbit to the ones as large as a wyvern, watching and studying them, patiently waiting for a moment of weakness, before striking them down.

At one point during his days under the Hunting G.o.d, another boy arrived, this one younger than he is. He was brought in by another one of the Six Mortal G.o.ds, the Sword G.o.d. The Sword G.o.d wanted the Hunting G.o.d to teach the boy the ways of the hunt as well as that of the wild. The boy was called Yu by the Sword G.o.d, for he was Eugene, and as he was introduced as such, both the Hunting G.o.d and Joseph had gotten around calling him that as well.

Together with the new boy, the days continued within the dark forest, and the two stuck together like wolves of a pack, eating, sleeping, and hunting together. Joseph, as he still is, was an energetic and cheery child, whilst the new boy was mostly docile but ferocious when baring his fangs. The days pa.s.sed with the two training together, and for a while those days seemed to be the only days they knew.

Soon, it was time for the new boy to return to the Sword G.o.d and it was just Joseph and the Hunting G.o.d again, and a little time after that, the Hunting G.o.d told Joseph that he had learned all that she could teach him, and the rest of his path he will have to find it on his own.

So Joseph left the forest, no longer a boy but a man. He returned to the Adventurers' Guild, got himself a Master Huntsman certificate, and began hunting all manner of beasts, taking jobs with dangerous marks to hunt, and little by little, he saved up money. However, Joseph soon realized, that no matter how dangerous a mark he hunts, or how much he hunts, it is never enough, that if he kept this up, even by the time he's an old geezer, he'll never have enough to satisfy Griselda's father. And so, in a desperate bid, Joseph began gambling for money. Naturally, it didn't world out.

Sometime down the line, he met with the boy he had trained with in the forest again, he's a young man now and those around him call him Gene. They began forming a party, taking on the most dangerous of jobs, building up their fortune. However, to Joseph, it was never enough, and he made it even worse when he gambled it all away time and time again, and each and every time, it was Gene who bailed him out.

In time, Joseph and Gene joined a larger party, forming a party of six. Those were their most glorious days, with the six of them there was nothing they couldn't do, no job too difficult to accomplish, and in time, each member began to accrue small fortunes of their own, all but Joseph, who gambled his away.

Eventually, the party disbanded, and Joseph and Gene went their separate ways. With Adventuring not working out for him, Joseph left the way of hunting behind and decided to become a merchant and build up his own business. With what he managed to save up, he brought some goods he thought would sell, brought a caravan, and began his new life as a travelling merchant.

"And then, let me guess, you gambled it all away," Gene interrupted the overtly long story.

"Well, yes, that's the gist of it," said Joseph.

"Then just say you gambled and lost everything, why the long story?"

"Well, I mean, if I tell it as is, it'll just sound like I did it to myself wouldn't it?"

"And yet it still sounded like you only have yourself to blame."

"Um, Gene, I don't know if that's true, I mean, I could certainly feel his desperation in that story of his. I don't think you should gamble of course, but still..."

Gene sighed, "Alex, you only say that because you don't know this man. He never learns, and he never will. The Hunting G.o.d will kill you herself if she saw you like this, Joseph."

"Look, Yu, I get it, I messed up, more than once I messed up. But I promise you, just help me one more time and I'll never do it again."

"And what of Griselda?"

"I'll go see her, I'll tell her I can't be as wealthy as I promised, and ask if she's willing to come with me despite that."

"And if she refuses?"

"Then I'll give up, plain and simple."

Gene looked Joseph in the eye. For the long time he knew the man, he was never the one to give up, and truth to be told, there are times when he and his old party were only able to break out of impossible situations thanks to his unyielding spirit and daring gambits. Will such a man truly be willing to give it all up without trying to find yet another potentially reckless path to take? Gene does not know, he hadn't seen the man in quite a while after all.

"Whether you give up or not," said Gene, "this will be the last time, the last I'll bail you out of anything. The rest lies entirely on you."

"Yeah, I got it," Joseph answered, knowing from Gene's cold tone that he was serious, and that the next time he comes to Gene with his problem, that'll be the end of their friendship.

"Alright, now tell me who is it this time," said Gene, leaning back on his chair, arms crossed.

'The Thieves' Guild," Joseph said plainly.

"Thieves' Guild? Wouldn't it be faster if you just go and beg Lady Grains? She'll work you till near death, sure, but that's better than just being dead, right?"

Knowing that this is an important conversation and that he shouldn't interrupt, Alex contains his surprise at hearing what would imply that the Lady Grains he met at the black market the other day may be someone important in the Thieves' Guild.

"You don't understand, Yu, this isn't the same upfront, play-by-the-rules, lame joke telling gang that loony Lady Grains of yours keeps on her leash. This is a through and through criminal guild, dealing from petty theft to kidnapping and drugs."

"Leaving the fact that I could easily get you to disappear into the night by reciting what you just said about the Lady, what do you mean by another guild? I thought this was Lady Grains' turf."

"She went abroad a while back remember? She downsized her guild to make it easier to manage from afar."

"And so these clowns came in and took over while she's gone did they?"

"That's about right, except these ones are no clowns. If I had to say it, the ones back at Atra, are more-"

"Joseph, I warn you, for the sake of both you and I, don't finish that sentence in front of me. I can't guarantee that I won't immediately sell you out when Lady Grains threatens to break my knees."

" anyways, I need your help to get my stuff back, mainly my caravan and Esmeralda, you remember her right?"

"Oh yeah, that demon of a horse you got, they got her too?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Did you know where they're keeping them?"

"Of course, you're talking to the direct disciple of the Hunting G.o.d here. I tracked them down and found their warehouse."

"But you couldn't get to your stuff by yourself, why?"

"The whole place is heavily guarded, and then, there's the Stranger they have in their ranks."

At the very mention of those words, Gene's glare sharpens. "Tell me more."

"I don't know much, but I've seen him summon men to his position out of thin air and he seems to be able to empower those fighting with him. I'd say he either has a Support Type [Gift] or a Minion Master Type."

"..."

"Yu?"

"Looks like this isn't just your problem anymore, Joseph."

"So you'll help!?"

"I will, but you'll have to do exactly as I say."

"Of course I will, you're the man with the plan."

Gene then turns towards Tina.

"You're coming too, right, Tina?"

"Huh? Why me?"

"Because the sooner we help out Joseph, the sooner we get to leave. The horse he's got, Esmeralda, that thing can outrun any other horses while carrying ten times the weight. On her, we'll never be caught."

"Oh, in that case, why didn't you say so? You can count me in, the sooner we get out of here the better I say."

At this moment, Alex raises his hand.

"Yes?" Gene answered.

"I... I like to come too."

For a moment, Gene was silent, considering if he should. In truth he didn't want to, but Alex has been a strong a.s.set in combat ever since he had broken him out, and he wanted to keep him where he could see him.

"Very well, but stick close and do as I say."

"Roger that."

With that being settled, the four swiftly ended their breakfast and went up to Gene's room. There, they began to formulate a plan.

***

End of Chapter 14