“Err…” 

Lukterasia shot me a ‘what should we say’ look, and after a moment’s hesitation, I came up with a place that sounded convincing enough. 

“Rientshire,” I replied, managing an innocent smile at Mysyn. “East of the Enchanted Forest. We travelled to the Hinterland in the search for, uh, for the…”

“The Holy Sword of Eltshion?” he filled in helpfully, gesturing at the scintillating sword in my hand. “I’ve seen my fair share of fakes on my travels, but this is the first time that I’ve beheld such a glorious weapon. Did you find it in the heart of the Prophet’s Stone just as the legend has prophesied?” 

I panicked slightly at his question and gave a sheepish cough. “W-well, this isn’t the real deal either, so I’m not really in the position to say…” 

“Then, I must remark that this is the best fake Holy Sword that has ever crossed my gaze,” he said. “The bearings are immaculate, the blade is exceptionally sharp and sturdy, and it is even imbued with a special magic just as described in the legend. Perchance you can tell me where you acquired this weapon from?”

“That…”

“I made it myself,” Lukterasia answered in a boastful voice, her ego evidently getting the better of her. 

“Is that so?” 

Mysyn nodded his head at the dragon’s corpse behind us. “That beast swallowed my sword, scabbard and all. I would like you to make me a replacement sword, and in exchange, I’ll allow you to claim the full commission reward.”

“What exactly is the commission reward you mentioned?” I asked.

“Ten kronen.”

“And uh…what can that buy us?”

He scratched his head with a puzzled look. “You don’t know the value of a krone?” 

I shrugged in response, and Lukterasia quickly added, “We don’t use this currency in our homeland, you see.”

“Oh, that’s right! I forgot that you aren’t from these parts. Please forgive me for my rude comment earlier,” he quickly said. “To give a simple explanation, an iron sword of respectable quality is worth about half a krone on the market. Ten kronen is an amount that ordinary people won’t be carrying on them unless they are going to the pawnbroker.” 

“Sounds like a good deal to me,” Lukterasia whispered in my ear. “Making a sword costs me next to nothing anyway.”

“Too good, if you ask me,” I whispered back and faced Mysyn. “What about yourself? Are you really willing to walk away with just a new sword?” 

Cocking an eyebrow, he chuckled.

“Not exactly,” he said, spreading his arms in a shrug. “But I don’t really care about the money. Not many people possess knowledge about this, but the real value of a dragon-slaying commission lies in the parts that you can harvest from the dragon’s body. So, do we have a deal or not?” 

“To be fair, it’s not as though we know how to harvest a dragon ourselves,” she whispered. “Seems easier to just give him a sword and take the money.”

I nodded my head. “Alright, we have a deal.” 

Mysyn reached into his cloak and tossed me a roll of parchment. 

“That is the certificate of commission to defeat the dragon,” he explained. “Mark this with the dragon’s blood as proof that you’ve completed the commission, and present it to the guild in the town of Nachfeld. The prepossessing lady at the counter will give you the promised ten kronen.” 

“Uh-huh…” I hesitated. “And how do we get to this Nachfeld town?” 

“I suppose the same way that got you here in the first place?”

Lukterasia shook her head when I gave her a questioning look. “The teleportation spell will only work when I have the precise coordinates of our destination. Besides, teleporting us into the middle of a busy place will only attract unwanted attention.”

“Wait, doesn’t that mean that we’re stuck here?!”

Mysyn interrupted our exchange with a light chuckle. 

“As a matter of fact, I am headed for Nachfeld too,” he revealed. “So if you don’t mind my company, we can journey there together.” 

There wasn’t a reason to reject his invitation, so we both responded with a nod of agreement. 

“Incidentally, how did you get here?” I asked out of curiosity. 

He pointed towards the direction where he had come from. 

“There’s a trade route between Oase and Nachfeld that passes through the Hinterland desert somewhere over there. I hitched a ride on a merchant’s caravan from Nachfeld two days ago, then arrived at the sand dragon’s lair after half a day of walking.”

I opened my mouth in astonishment. “It took you almost three days to get here?” 

“We are in the middle of the largest desert on Eltshion, above all.” 

Mysyn stretched his neck and walked past us towards the dragon. “In any case, I’m feeling peckish now, so I’ll be making some delicious roasted dragon meat for an early dinner. Care to join me?”

-

With the help of Lukterasia’s magic and my sword, we managed to remove the tough scales and cut away slices of succulent, tender flesh from the carcass. A smoky, tantalising aroma wafted through the air as Mysyn fashioned makeshift spits from dried branches and offered us a skewered cut of meat each to hold over the fire.  

“The trick is to score the skin in a crisscross pattern and roast the meat skin side down,” he said, demonstrating it to us with his own skewer. “The skin helps to retain the moisture within while allowing the fat underneath to baste the meat at the same time.”

“Why do you have to score the skin then?” I quizzed. 

“To make it look more aesthetically appealing to the beholder,” he said pointedly. 

“Oh?”

He stifled a laugh. “In addition to that, it’s to cook the meat evenly and give it a nice crispy texture. You can also season the meat better this way, but alas, I didn’t bring any seasoning with me.” 

Lukterasia perked up. “Hang on, I think we can use this…” 

Summoning her magic, she reached her hand into the air and produced three cans of baked beans. 

“What did you just take out?” Mysyn remarked, looking at the cans in bewilderment. 

“Baked beans,” she replied truthfully. 

“You mean these contain beans that have been simmered in an oven?” He picked up a can and studied it through half-curious, half-apprehensive eyes. “Howbeit, I have never laid eyes on such a small pot before…” 

“It’s called a can,” I explained, cracking open my can of beans. “You open it by lifting the tab and peeling back the lid, like this.” 

“Huh, what an interesting way of storing food.” 

He tried to copy my action, but accidentally yanked on the tab too hard and snapped it right off.

“Do I dare inquire if this is supposed to happen?” 

“It’s alright, everybody makes that mistake on their first try.” I chuckled and gave him my can instead. “Here you go, try eating the meat together with the baked beans.”

He took a careful peek inside the can and brought it up to his nose to smell it. Then, tearing a small piece of meat from his skewer, he gingerly dipped it inside the can and put it between his teeth. 

“Mhm?” 

“Does it taste better now?” Lukterasia asked eagerly. 

Mysyn took a while to chew and swallow before coming up with a response. “It is undoubtedly novel to the palate, but incontrovertibly, I am betwixt and between on the matter as a whole. Perchance you can tell me the origins of this exotic dish?”

“It’s just tomato sauce, though…”

“I don’t think tomatoes exist here, to be fair,” I said, choking back my laughter.

“You mentioned that this is pomado sauce?” he asked in a befuddled voice. 

“To-ma-to,” she corrected.

“Pray tell, what’s a tomato?”

“How do I even describe it…” 

“It’s a kind of red fruit that grows in the Enchanted Forest,” I said a white lie. “It looks something like the apfel that’s grown in the Mithelhoan region.” 

“That is hitherto unbeknownst to me,” he murmured. “Verily I shall seek this ‘tomato’ when I have the hour.”

“By the way, if you don’t mind me asking,” I said hesitantly. “Why do you speak in such a funny accent? I don’t remember the beastkin normally saying words that are this complicated…” 

“Ah, forsooth, this is not the norm for my race,” he said readily. “But after I swore myself to the life of an errant, I undertook the decision to fully adopt my own tongue in order to distinguish myself from the other wayfarers. Is it not to your liking?”

“I wouldn’t say that I dislike it, but…”

“It’s pretty hard to understand you sometimes,” Lukterasia said bluntly. 

“I see,” Mysyn muttered. “In that case, I will refrain from talking in this fashion whilst I am engaged in your company.” 

“You are still saying confusing words, though…”