BXBX NOVEL Chapter 118. National Foundation Day (2)
Chapter 118. National Foundation Day (2)
Like any big event, it wasn’t just the tourists who eagerly awaited Foundation Day. Local merchants, restaurant owners, and shopkeepers could barely contain themselves as the most profitable days of the year approached. Among these businesses, it was the fortune-tellers who benefitted the most from the tourist boom. In Dresden, a huge number of people would line up to receive a consultation, desperate to learn their fate and luck for the year to come.
Of course, not everyone would completely accept what the fortune-tellers said, but they would still test their luck once or twice for fun. Banking on this tendency, many fortune-tellers had positioned themselves on available street corners. Davinachon, one of these fortune-tellers, had set himself up by the laurel tree. He had been traveling with his grandmother.
“There are trains running on steel railroads. Magicians commute by teleportation gates. What about us? We have nothing.”
His complaints fell on deaf ears; his words could never make a difference. His grandmother was very old-fashioned and wouldn’t travel using anything other than a horse-drawn wagon, made using the technology of their ancestors. Although he complained, Davinachon had given up on her long ago.
In reality, wagons were likely the perfect tool for fortune-tellers. Fortune-tellers were nomads that moved from city to city in search of customers. The wagons served as both their legs to walk on and their feet to rest on. When they found a good spot, they could stop their wagon and quickly set up business using the wagon as the base of their store. The only inconvenience was that due to the space that their wagon took up, they couldn’t set up shop in the middle of a city.
‘No, that’s not our biggest problem.’
They had no customers. The Foundation Day celebration was extraordinarily large, yet there wasn’t a single person in sight. The reason why was obvious.
Every street in Dresden held special events for the Foundation Day festivities, and the other merchants had already taken the best spots on the streets. Therefore, it was unnecessary for people to walk all the way to a run-down hut displaced from the rest of the festivities.
“I told you. We have to get rid of this relic and set up in the center of the city. Damn you.”
As he finished complaining, he began to hear a creepy song emanate from the other side of the tent. Goosebumps quickly spread across his body. Though he had heard it hundreds of times, it never failed to unnerve him. The low pitch of the song only served to heighten this effect.
“I already feel sh*tty today. Can you quit singing? If we’re lucky enough to have customers, your singing will scare them off…”
The foreboding song came to an immediate halt.
An old woman, her face filled with deep wrinkles, shook her head.
“Tsk, tsk, why do you blame the song? If people do not come, it is because you lack faith!” “Fine, so what if I lack faith? That song is unnatural! Every time I hear it, my body feels slick with sweat and my heart feels as though it’s been turned to stone!”
“Sacrilege! How dare you look down on our ways? Your ancestors have sung this song since long ago. Our fortune-telling is rooted deeply in this song.”
Davinachon couldn’t respond to her because he knew that she was right; it was not an ordinary song. The song’s lyrics were composed of mysterious, indescribable words and the strange melody shook the listener’s emotions. Although he hadn’t been travelling for long, Davinachon had visited a large portion of the continent. No matter where he went, nothing he heard came close to that wretched song.
“From the beginning, this song is a song that we sing when we tell fortunes. We were lucky enough to inherit this song from our ancestors. And it’s ridiculous that you, a fortune-teller, don’t want to hear this song just because you don’t like the melody. Tsk tsk, your fortune-telling is never complete without this song.”
Before Davinachon could respond, someone knocked on the wagon. He frowned in displeasure.
“Whatever you say. Just don’t sing it when a customer is here.” He spat out his reply and walked to the curtain.
‘I think that’s enough to stop her.’
Davinachon cleared his throat before addressing his potential customers. “Yes, come on in. The door is open.”
As soon as he saw the customers walking in, he smiled. It was a young couple. ‘Aha, they are Hebrion Academy students.’
Davinachon could tell that they were from the Hebrion Academy at first sight. Dresden was a special city because it had the school of Hebrion, the largest school in the continent.
Many magicians and knights had studied and trained there, and consequently, they had achieved great fame and power.
‘Students are still students, however.’
Their appearance hinted at nobility. They probably came in to entertain themselves. Davinachon was thinking that he could butter them up with some sugar-coated words. They should then happily pay a large sum of money. They were easy prey in his eyes.
‘They have their linked arms. Must be a couple.’
It was even easier to swindle couples. He simply had to encourage their relationship and heap positive comments onto them. Most couples would be satisfied as a result. Davinachon rubbed his hands together as his lips curved up into a big smile.
“Welcome! I’m Davinachon. I can sneak a peek at your future and foresee your destiny, measure the strength of your relationship, or whatever else you desire!”
* * *
Desir had already contacted everyone in the party using his communication pad. They agreed to all gather at the theater where the first part of the Chronicles would be presented. This was their original destination anyway.
Unfortunately, to take the most direct route to the theater, Desir and Adjest would have to cut through the center of town: the Dawn Star Plaza. When Desir saw the sheer size of the mob they would have to force themselves through, he felt his heart drop.
“I don’t wanna go through that again.” “I agree.”
“It’s impossible to go through that.” “Let’s make a detour.”
“I like that idea.”
It was a smart idea. The outer district of the city was practically devoid of all festivities. They could hear faint violin music drifting over the walls from the central district, and saw plenty of beautiful flowers that bloomed along the sides of the streets. This detour ended up being a rather scenic route.
“I like the emptiness.”
It was a long detour but they were able to get to the destination a lot faster without needing to weave their way through tons of people. As they walked down the street, Adjest suddenly stopped walking. “Adjest?”
There was no response.
Desir turned his head and saw two horses breathing noisily. Next to them was a very old, worn-out wagon with a sign placed out front.
‘Sneak a peek at your future and foresee your destiny and love relationships - Davinachon.’ ‘Futures of couples…’
A couple.
In a relationship.
Adjest sighed deeply. These words wandered through her mind and left her dazed. “Adjest, everyone is waiting for us. Let’s hurry up.”
Desir anxiously attempted to get her moving again. Sweat started to build up on his brow. “Wait… ”
Adjest pulled Desir’s arm. She did it without consciously realizing what she was doing. She calmly reasoned with Desir.
“I don’t think it’ll take that long.” “What?”
“That fortune-telling thing.”
And that’s how she calmly made her first step into the wagon.
* * *
The inside of the wagon was incredibly tiny. “I can already foresee what you are here for.”
The inside of the wagon was filled with strange scents. A huge crystal marble reflected clusters of light into a corner of the room. A skull with a big hole in the middle of its forehead and a broken sword… created a cheezy yet spooky vibe.
Davinachon addressed the couple standing in front of him. “You are here to get a reading on your relationship?”
A guy with dark hair laughed at him. “Sorry, but you’re far off the mark.”
The blonde girl quickly responded. She energetically nodded her head making the guy close his mouth.
‘New lovers. Shy, and embarrassed. This’ll be easy.’ “What’s your name?”
“Desir Arman.” “Adjest Kingscrown.” “Great names.”
In Davinachon’s mind, he planned to encourage their relationship to make them happy and take money in exchange for the over-the-top flatteries. For this, he needed to play his part well though, he needed to act things out a little.
“It will cost you one silver. Of course, you can pay more than that. It would be a great investment for your fortune.”
Desir handed over three silvers before crossing his arms in front of his chest. ‘This kid’s ballsy.’
Davinachon laughed silently.
“That’s indeed what I expect from a noble. I have a good feeling about you two.”
Davinachon mumbled in awe while he started shuffling the deck of cards. His hands moved quickly and skillfully. He was well known for fooling people’s eyes with his nimble sleight of hand. He snuck a quick glance to make sure the couple in front of him were staring at the cards. He then put the card that he ‘intended them to pick’ on top of the stack.
“Okay, I’ll read the fortune for your relationship!” Davinachon grandly exclaimed as he started his show. “How dare you try to fool your customers!” *Smack*
“Ouch!”
Something cracked Davinachon on his hands and the stack of cards fell out of them. “G… Grandma? What do you mean?”
“Stop the nonsense! You are the last offspring of our clan! You shouldn’t be faking a fortune-telling just because you’re tired or lazy!”
An old woman with silver hair suddenly barged her way into the hut and began shouting at the fortune-teller. She wielded a long stick in her hand as if it was a spear. Her swing made a loud noise, almost seeming to part the air.
“Who the hell is the one defiling the sacred art of fortune-telling by deceiving guests! Damn you! It’s you! This stupid tin head did it!”
She continued her verbal and physical assault without taking a breath. “Wa… Wait! Grandma!”
Davinachon tried to block the stick with his arms guarding up, but surprisingly the stick always managed to slip through his defences and strike him accurately on his head each time. *Smash*
“Urrggghhh!”