“I’m still a little hesitant here.” I said, spinning the coin in my hand. “It still feels like you’re just trying to get me to work for you.”
The Guild Master winced. “We know… you showed us nothing but good will, and we exploited that goodwill for our own convenience. I’m sure you had your own reasons for doing what you did, but the results still should have been properly rewarded. First, we want to guarantee you that everyone here is happy with your spirit friend. Actually, you may notice the groups a bit large right now.”
I nodded. “Actually, yeah, there seem to be more people than I remember the city having.”
The Guild Master nodded. “We used that 50 gold and spared about 3 dozen slaves from Figuro. As we incorporated them into our city, a lot of the older ones had some pretty interesting stories to tell. According to them, your foxgirl friend often helped those that were passing away find peace. She was the only one who would sit with the sick and the ill, and it is said that anyone who sat by her died with a smile on their faces
“For those that weren’t sick, that story was warped to her bringing them to death herself, but the elderly were determined to set the record straight with everyone now that they weren’t stuck in cages.”
An old man stepped forward, he was a bunnykin just like the innkeeper who had scorned Miki a week ago. He suddenly bowed down, his old bones creaking as he did, the action clearly painful for him to do. He also had tears in his eyes.
“My wife and I were both slaves. They considered me still healthy when my wife became really ill. She was taken away from me and moved to your wagon, Miki. They tell me that you gave her your blanket at night so she wasn’t cold, and told her stories. They say just before she passed away, she whispered something into your ear. Do you, by chance remember what it is?”
Miki looked out from behind Lydia and then nodded. “Yes… I remember. Her words were, ‘The stars are always beautiful when you’re around.’”
The man shook and started to tilt over, unable to remain bowed. Two men quickly caught him and straightened him out. He looked up at Miki, with tears in his eyes, and smiled.
“Thank you. On our first date, nearly 50 years ago, I planned a date to go star watching, but the weather turned bad and it ended up storming us out. I was really upset that our date went bad, and those were the words she told me. They mean that she died at peace, and wanted me to know it. Thank you… Thank you, Miki!”
More people started stepping out, also shouting their thank you. Miki was bright red, her body shaking slightly. I smiled and reached over, patting her head affectionately. People started coming up and shaking her hand passing the barrier to do so, one at a time. Her tails were visible now with her current level of spiritualist, and some people complimented her. At first, she was frightened, but as more and more people came to wish her good will, a small smile formed on her face.
While this was going on, the Guild Master also stepped past the barrier and stood next to me. He pulled out a bag and then dropped it in my hand. I looked down at it, it was very heavy.
“What is this?” I asked.
“One hundred gold coins.” The Guild Master coughed. “The merchant caravan seemed to be a bit early this season. We wanted to get a message down to you, but we weren’t certain where you were in old Chalm. This is what we owe you, what we truly owed you. I said that we honor our debts. I mean it. Take this and pay off your girl. Let us reclaim this city with a clean slate.”
“Eh? Does master have man tears again?” Lydia asked.
I wiped my cheeks. “No, just something in my eye this time.”
Although I was happy with Lydia and Miki by my side, it was a bit lonely being in this ghost town alone. It’d still take months to reclaim the city on my own. However, all of these people here could speed up the reclamation project to a week or less. As I looked around and more townspeople walked into old Chalm, it truly felt like a family that had broken apart coming back together. Even the traumatized adventuring guild secretary took a step past the barrier, and while she looked uneasy, she was smiling too.
“Are you ready to rebuild this city?” The former Mayor asked, joining the pair of us. “Don’t worry, if you need help, I’m good with logistics.”
I looked around and the couple hundred people around me. Some of them I knew well, some of them I had never met.
“Alright… Let’s begin.”