Chapter 166 - Unwanted Fame (1)

I felt like I was in another world as the body of water reached my waist. When I opened the door, it was like I was inside the middle of a large lake. The only spot that was dry was our house since it was on the top of the hill and protected by a mana barrier.

The lake spanned like it was endless as I wondered how I would meet Olive at the village square today. I couldn't just get a boat and row my way there like they did in my previous life in a country that used to be submerged in water. Luke took his book out from his inventory as if he planned to stay inside the house for the entire day.

"How will I get to the village square?" I turned to him with worry.

"Walk?" Luke suggested as if he knew I would return home after giving up from my pathetic stamina.

I knew I couldn't depend on Luke! I took off my shoes since it would be easier to walk in water without them. I rolled up my long dress and tied them to the side since it would be heavier to walk with wet clothes. I could have used scissors to cut some of the length off, but I knew Luke wouldn't let me out of the house if I did.

I was starting to think Luke was right as I tried not to think of using teleport ten minutes in from trying to walk to the village square. That was when I found a canoe-like boat being rowed by the tax collector of the feudal lord. I waved my hand to try to get him to notice me as he soon rowed toward my direction.

The tax collector who worked under the feudal lord was pretty lenient towards the children. I found it was strange to have two tax collectors in the village. One was from the feudal lord and the other from the village chief. However, it was obvious the people preferred the one from the feudal lord as he allowed delayed payments and only collected a small sum, such as a small copper coin.

"Why are you all the way out here?" He reached out his hand.

"I was trying to get to the village square and this was the only way I knew," I lifted myself into the boat.

"You're Olive's friend? Are you not?" He asked me.

"Yes, did Olive also help you with your old metal?" I asked since there was no way the tax collector who travelled to many villages would remember all the faces and names of the people he met.

"I heard about Olive from the travelling villagers," He explained.

"There is a beautiful girl who resembles a noble following around another girl who has magical hands that can fix anything," he recalled the rumors.

I didn't think the news would travel so quickly. I guessed Olive really did have a valuable skill. But I was surprised about the part where I was included in the tale. All I did was accompany her while she fixed the junk into new, shining tools. I blushed as I didn't think I was beautiful as the rumors twisted the facts to be.

Luke was way prettier than me. The first thing I saw after I woke up every morning was his beautiful face which couldn't be less than an art of work. I was constantly surrounded by beautiful people who appeared elegant and neat like they walked out from a fashion magazine.

"The rumors must have spread alot," I asked the tax collector.

"I think everyone in the feudal lord's territory must have heard about it at least once," he smiled.

Was this really the medieval times? How did information spread so quickly at such a far distance? It was unlike what I knew from my previous life where information travelled slowly in the middle ages. I must have appeared confused as the tax collector decided to explain where it originated.

"There was a travelling bard who was thankful to have his metal flute fixed. In order to thank your friend who almost fixed his dear instrument for free, he decided to sing the tale of the two girls."

I recalled a struggling musician who had asked if his flute he had inherited from his old master could be fixed. His clothing was almost in rags, more so than the villagers who could not afford to support his performance. He carried around all his possessions inside a small sac while his beard almost reached his shoulder.

He had waited hours in line, unlike the others who gave up after waiting for the first hour. His eyes were desperate as he took out his precious flute for an appraisal. The flute was rusty and could not produce a single sound except for high pitched noise that resembled a child's scream. But I knew Olive could repair his flute within an hour.

Olive's dexterous fingers began to work on cleaning the instrument as she soon passed a brand new flute into his hands. His eyes glistened with gratitude as he repeated he would never forget this kind gesture.

"I will never forget your miracle and I will make sure everyone will know about it," He almost worshipped us.

"There's no need, we only hope the flute carries its beautiful sound for a long time," I tried to send him off.

The line behind him was increasing at an alarming rate. He was a clatterbox as he didn't move from his spot even though it has been ten minutes since we passed him his fixed flute. The people behind him started to show signs of being annoyed as they gossiped how inconsiderate he was.

"No, I will find a way to repay you somehow," He repeated the same words for the nth time.

"Next person please," I gestured to Mill to escort him to another place as my patience snapped.

I sighed as I discovered the way he tried to repay us. I never knew we would get famous from his performance based on both of us. I thanked the tax collector for the information as I hopped off his boat and landed near the edge of the village square.