CHAPTER 5: SETTLING OLD DEBTS.

After striking a good deal with the blacksmith and taking 1600 gold coins from him, Dorian headed to the barony’s tavern with the expectation of having a good monthly payment from the old man.

He did promise to keep paying until he completed the sum of 10,000 gold pieces.

Though truthfully, Dorian was not all that interested in it.

His main target was the barony’s angel, and he somehow managed to get his hands on her.

"Good morning, Maria."

"Maria, good morning."

"Maria~"

Dorian, who was walking right beside the infamous celebrity, could not help but turn his gaze several times to the side.

Almost every villager who was on the street would pause and wave at Maria, all with a smile on their faces.

For starters, none of them had ever smiled at him like that. Not once.

Not to mention Maria didn’t seem all that interested either; she was flat-out ignoring them.

Which, of course, led to suspicious gazes.

"Is Lord Dorian holding her captive?"

It was only a matter of time before rumors like that spread.

"Wow, you are more beloved than I thought," said Dorian as he walked.

"No, my lord, I am not as famous as you." Maria kept a straight face, walking right beside him.

’Sarcasm, eh? You’re certainly a tough nut to crack. I’ll handle you later; for now...’

Stop.

He was now standing in front of the pub house.

’I have a debt to settle.’

...

A moment later, Dorian had made his way into the tavern.

Without saying a single word, he sat down in a vacant seat, legs crossed and fingers tapping slightly on the table.

Maria, his current knight and bodyguard, stood behind him like a statue. She too did not engage in any conversation.

The tavern was quite large, and yet, almost every single person had their eyes focused on Dorian.

A mixture of fear and anger was etched on their faces, many of whom were already familiar with the young lord’s habits.

"Don’t tell me he has come to make a scene again?"

"Is that Maria? What is an angel like her doing with that demon?"

"I don’t feel good."

Their voices murmured throughout the entire place, despite the soft flute music playing in the background.

’Geez, it’s no longer gossip if I can hear you loud and clear.’ Dorian rested his chin on his hand before giving out a sigh.

Seeing this, Maria took it upon herself to lean down and whisper in his ear.

"Lord Dorian, I don’t mean to butt into your business, but I doubt you are safe in this place. I don’t even have my weapon ready to protect you, and these people don’t seem like they want you here."

Dorian gave her the side-eye. "Let them rage if they want to; they can’t touch me, unless they want to sleep in a cell, that is. I don’t intend on leaving here until the pub mistress comes to meet me herself!!!"

He made sure to yell the last part out well for the people behind the counter to hear.

Before Maria could hope to speak some sense into Dorian’s head, the pub mistress arrived.

"What is the young lord of the Aurelian barony looking for here? I thought you agreed not to come here anymore. Are you going against your words?"

Dorian calmly turned his gaze to his front, where he could see a muscular woman, dressed in a plain dress with her green hair tied in a ponytail.

’The last time I came here, I made a gamble and owed the tavern 1000 gold coins in total; adding to the other losses, it should come down to about 200 more gold coins.’

After getting an eyeful of her, Dorian pointed at the chair in front of him. "Sit; let us discuss."

Maria was rather confused about the situation; she assumed the reason Dorian was at the pub was to have a few drinks to spend the money her father gave him.

Why would he need to have a discussion for that?

Her eyes narrowed with suspicion.

The pub mistress did not argue. Actually, she too was curious as to why Dorian would ask her to talk, something he had never done before.

Barging into the pub to have a drink and then fight with the locals had always been the Dorian way.

Nevertheless, she wanted to see how it would go.

Thus, she sat down.

"To what do I owe this visit?"

"Well, the thing is..." Dorian had a finger right in his nose. "I want to pay back the debt I owe—"

"1479 gold pieces and 67 silver pieces."

The pub mistress muttered before he could complete his words.

Still, he was not fazed.

He reached into his clothes proudly, pulled out a sack of gold pieces, and placed it on the table.

"That is 1600 gold pieces; with this, my debt is paid. Use the change to buy drinks for anyone who wants; it’s on the house," he winked at her.

Smiling, the pub mistress grabbed the sack of gold and raised it to the sky.

"You heard the young master! Drinks are on the house!!!"

Everyone was shocked at first, silence taking over.

Was this the same man who was known to be irresponsible and heartless? How could he choose to do something so generous? Was he forced?

They watched as Dorian sat there, posing as though he was auditioning for a self-portrait.

Then came the waitress.

"Yes!!! Drinks on the house!!!"

They appeared with trays filled with cups of cold beers.

"Ah, who cares?! Hail the young master!"

Everyone scattered, grabbing a beer and rejoicing around Dorian.

In the blink of an eye, the tavern had turned lively, with men dancing around and bathing in the beer they were supposed to drink.

Dorian, who was right in the center of everything, laughed excitedly as well, leaving only Maria at the side, wondering what had gotten into everyone.

Dorian was having the most fun. Until—

...

"Ahhh! My hard-earned money!!!"

The moment he made it to the mansion, he ran straight to his room, crying with his face buried under his pillow.