Rise of the Horde

327 Chapter 32“That would be two coins, kind sir.” Apis held up two fingers towards the cloaked man who sat on the bar then proceeded to clean one of the few mugs that he had under the bar with a piece of cloth, not that he wanted nor he cared much about the accumulated dirt on the mugs but because he had nothing else to do at the moment.

The Hissing Rope Tavern doesn’t usually have many customers but with the looming threat of war, all kinds of people would be found among the taverns. Men would try to numb their fears with alcohol and seek momentary freedom from the woes of the world as they stumble in their way with their drunkenness.

For more than four years, Apis had served many customers and seldom would he not remember the face of his usual patrons but with the sudden recruitments, he had more patrons that frequent his place— not that he wants to complain since more customers means more money for him but the frequent brawls are becoming a common occurrence already that he had to frequently replace his stools and tables since in every brawl, only few of them would remain untouched.

Apis kept an eye out on the newcomer since he was wearing a cloak and stayed within the dark corner away from the torches— he didn’t care who the person is or the reason why he is here but if he is a fugitive being chase down by some bigshots then his place would be turned upside down if they turn up.

“Put that down!” Apis shouted towards his drunk customer who was trying to leave the pub with one of his chairs with unsteady steps while mumbling something about how she is the most beautiful lady he had ever encountered. “Can’t you see that I am talking to this beautiful lady…hiik…” the drunk man replied then proceeded to caress one of the arms of the chairs the continued to walk out of the tavern.

Laughter echoed inside the pub as the men enjoyed the scene that unfolded.

“Aye! There goes one of my new chairs…” Apis face palmed in helplessness as he can’t leave the bar unattended since he was the only one who works in his own place. He never bothered much about employing others to help him out since he didn’t want others snooping around his place, he prefers being alone and he enjoys it unlike others.

His place doesn’t look like a proper tavern unlike other places because he never bothered in arranging the tables and stools in any way since his customers always tend to rearrange them as they like.

“You seem to be new here?” he tried to strike a conversation with the figure that was hiding in one corner of the bar.

.....

The cloaked man didn’t reply and continued to stare at his mug of ale.

“Not much of a talker are we…” Apis shook his head then ignored the silent figure but still kept an eye on him just in case.

A few moments later, the cloaked figure stood from where he was sitting at then left the tavern without any word.

Apis stared at the retreating figure of the mysterious person then headed towards the corner where he left his mug. He took the mug and dragged it towards him to wipe it but he felt that the mug in his hand seemed odd… it was still heavy. He shifted his gaze towards the mug then saw that it was still full almost to the brim… It was kept untouched by the cloaked figure.

“What a strange guy…” he mumbled and was about to throw away the contents of the mug since he is not sure if ale inside the mug was still safe for consumption. Being poisoned to death because of his stinginess would do him no good.

*****

After sending out the last of his customers out, Apis began locking the door to his place. It was already early in the morning, just a few hours before light would arrive to drive away the darkness.

“Still working alone I see…” a sudden voice alarmed Apis as he turned around while tracing the hilt of his dagger on his waist.

“Who’s there?” his voice had a hint of panic in it as he tried his best to try and locate the source of the voice. The few torches didn’t help much in his search as there were a lot of dark places inside his place that didn’t know light even during daytime.

A light chuckle came which further agitated the nerves of Apis who was trying his best to try and locate the person who was toying with him. A sudden glint in the dark forced Apis back as he leaned back against the door which he just closed a few moments ago.

A black dagger was embedded on the old wooden floor a few feet in front of Apis with an audible thud.

“The shadows need a place to gather and I prefer the usual place… Go prepare it for tonight.” The voice in the dark said which confused Apis at first but then when he saw the hilt of the dagger that was in front of him, he finally realized who was messing with him.

“I’ll prepare it for tonight.” He nodded his head then picked up the dagger and threw towards where he thought the owner of it was at. The sound that he wanted to hear didn’t come as the dagger that he just threw embedded itself upon the dark corner of the bar where the cloaked man was at before.

Shaking his head in disappointment, Apis went forward to retrieve the dagger but it was no longer there except for the mark that it left after being embedded against the wood. This was the main reason why Apis didn’t want to employ others to help out in his place since he had things that needed to be kept hidden from others.