The tavern was a raucous mess, the smoky air filled with waves of crude language and laughter.
A crowd of mercenaries in leather armor were huddled in a corner gambling with dice, the clink of copper pennies sharp and clear.
At the bar, a few smallfolk sat nursing clay mugs, taking small sips of ale.
Don Quixote's gaze swept over the crowd and soon landed on a figure in the left corner.
Lady Wylla was nearing fifty, thoroughly entering her twilight years, with little trace of the charm she still held seven years ago.
She wore a clean linen dress and sat quietly in the corner, drinking alone.
Don Quixote walked over.
Lady Wylla looked up and saw Don Quixote standing before her.
She paused for a moment, then smiled:
"Well, if it isn't our little Don Quixote.
"Where's that old knight of yours? Why didn't he come along for a drink?"
Don Quixote was silent for a moment before sighing:
"He's gone. I've already buried him in the Wolfswood."
Lady Wylla's hand, in the middle of pouring a drink, stopped for a long time. The smile vanished from her face, and she too sighed:
"Old Valentine... he was a tough old bird.
"If I remember correctly, he must have been over sixty.
"Few men live to that age. He had a full life."
After another long silence, Lady Wylla continued:
"How did he pass?"
Don Quixote gave a bitter smile:
"Caught a chill, and never recovered."
Lady Wylla nodded, then suddenly raised her cup and downed the ale in one gulp.
"Cough, cough."
She coughed several times, composed herself, and then looked up at Don Quixote:
"Little Don Quixote, are you here for a drink today?"
Don Quixote shook his head.
After hesitating for a moment, he took a deep breath and said directly:
"My Lady, I wanted to ask if you know of any way to make a living.
"I'm on my own now, and I need to find a path for myself.
"It doesn't have to be anything fancy, My Lady, just enough to put food on the table."
Lady Wylla raised an eyebrow and looked him over, her gaze landing on his worn mail and the longsword at his hip:
"You want to follow in Old Valentine's footsteps and become a hedge knight?"
"Yes, My Lady," Don Quixote admitted.
Lady Wylla shook her head, not optimistic:
"But you haven't even had a formal knighting ceremony. Which lord would hire you?"
Don Quixote said helplessly:
"But knightly skills are all I know. I can't do anything else."
"Actually, I wouldn't recommend you become a hedge knight."
Lady Wylla looked him over for a long time before shaking her head again:
"With those skinny arms and legs, you really aren't cut out for that kind of dangerous work."
After a moment of silence, Lady Wylla suddenly said:
"If you don't mind, you can work here at the Iron Axe Tavern for a while."
Don Quixote was stunned, but his eyes quickly lit up.
He was incredibly lost right now.
As long as the job wasn't too ridiculous, he would accept it.
Although working as a servant in the Iron Axe Tavern didn't fit the ideal of the knight riding off into the sunset that he still held onto...
It was acceptable.
After all, finding a job in this world wasn't easy.
Then again, being a cog in the machine at the bottom of society—it's hard to find a decent job in any world.
Don Quixote hurriedly said:
"I don't mind, I don't mind at all! Thank you, My Lady!"
Lady Wylla nodded and said seriously:
"Don't worry. You were Old Valentine's squire after all, and you've trained in knightly skills for years.
"I won't make you do menial chores. Just help me keep watch over the place every day.
"Sigh, I'm getting old. My health isn't what it used to be, and I can't come to the tavern as often.
"To start, I'll give you 10 copper pennies a day, plus two meals. We'll see how you do after that.
"If you can keep things in order, I can consider giving you more."
Just then, a cold, mechanical voice rang out in Don Quixote's mind without warning:
[Ding! Host employment detected. Conditions for activating the Knightly Quest System met. System officially binding!]
Don Quixote froze, his eyes widening in shock.
System?
A cheat code?
Holy shit! He actually had one!
He suppressed the wild joy in his heart, though his body trembled slightly.
Having read so many novels in his past life, he knew exactly what this meant.
This would be his greatest asset for survival—and even rising to the top—in this brutal Game of Thrones world!
In that instant, the confusion in his heart vanished completely.
He—Don Quixote—would no longer fear anything, would no longer cower!
Seeing that Don Quixote hadn't said anything for a while, Lady Wylla assumed he was dissatisfied with the pay and frowned slightly.
But thinking of Old Valentine, her brow smoothed out a bit.
Lady Wylla said plainly:
"13 copper pennies a day. That's my final offer."
Hearing this, Don Quixote snapped back to reality.
He realized Lady Wylla had misunderstood him.
He suppressed the trembling excitement in his body, tried to steady his voice, and immediately said:
"Thank you, My Lady! I will definitely do my best!"
Lady Wylla nodded, pouring herself a drink as she said:
"When can you start?"
"My Lady, I can start right now!" Don Quixote smiled.
Lady Wylla took a sip of her drink, stood up, and said as she walked:
"Follow me. I'll introduce you to the others at the Iron Axe Tavern so you can get acquainted."
"Yes, My Lady."
Don Quixote quickly followed.
---
At the bar.
Lady Wylla approached.
A sturdy middle-aged man was wiping a clay mug. Seeing her, he quickly nodded:
"My Lady."
"This is Don Quixote, a squire."
Lady Wylla pointed to Don Quixote behind her:
"From now on, he'll be helping me keep an eye on the place. Explain the tavern rules to him."
The man glanced at Don Quixote, his eyes showing obvious surprise at the skinny young man before him, but he didn't say much.
He nodded to Don Quixote and said directly:
"I'm Ronan Fletcher. Just call me Ronan.
"I'm the barkeep here. The rules of the Iron Axe are simple: don't let drunks smash things, don't let customers skip out on their tabs. If someone causes trouble, either throw them out, or..."
He pointed to an iron bar under the counter and grinned savagely:
"Knock 'em out then throw 'em out."
Don Quixote: "Understood."
Next, Lady Wylla took him to the back kitchen.
The cook was an old woman named Nadine Henderson.
Then there was a runner, Cole Henderson.
Don Quixote briefly got to know them, acknowledging their existence.
He then returned to the main hall, standing at the bar to survey the entire Iron Axe Tavern.
The day passed quickly.
The customers in the tavern seemed to be regulars, so there was no trouble.
Don Quixote ate dinner at the Iron Axe.
Three pieces of black bread and a small saucer of salted meat.
Since the gates of Castle Cerwyn closed at night, Lady Wylla let him finish work early.
"Finally done!"
Don Quixote rode quickly out of Castle Cerwyn, returning to the house left to him by his parents in this world.
As soon as he walked in, he couldn't wait to stare at the System interface.
...