Chapter 90 - Grandmother...?

The two wasted no further time and went on in different directions. 

They were clearly going so that they can get the work done as soon as possible, however, whether they were actually going to seriously work or not was a question that could not be easily answered. 

Raven had joined the guild because he found an odd interest in Hecathe, thinking that the two were alike and he had agreed to this mission because of that man as well, so with this fact considered, it could be stated that he was clearly the least bit interested in actually helping out in this mission. 

However, this wasn't exactly true since this rumor had definitely piqued his interest even before he got this mission so he hoped to really find the truth. He wanted to know who spread this ridiculous rumor and he also wanted to know who the powerful man requesting this mission was. 

Hecathe, on the other hand, already had the answer to the first question since he was the one who had given Zather the job of spreading the rumor, but like Raven, his main purpose was to fish out the whale in hiding. 

So although he was acting as if he was doing what Kelly had tasked him to do, whether he was doing it sincerely or not wasn't a difficult question to answer. 

It hadn't been long since Hecathe had been in this city, however, with each passing day, he had managed to learn more things about this city and although the addresses written down on the file were hard for him to understand, with a little help from the strangers he had asked for directions, Hecathe was soon able to get to the first destination. 

Hecathe had a small amused smile on his face as he looked at the old lady who opened the door to the little house. 

He really found it a bit hard to believe that someone actually thought this old woman was the person behind the rumors. 

With her frail bones and bent back, she could hardly even walk and from the way that she squinted at Hecathe, the man could be sure that the woman seemed to also have a problem with her eyesight. 

"Who er you?" The old lady asked as she squinted at Hecathe and from the way she talked, it could be concluded that she had an accent which probably meant she was a pure native from Ocasia. 

This was also one of the things Hecathe had randomly come to learn about this city. The people who had an accent were most probably natives whose ancestry has deep roots inside the city. 

"Good morning," Hecathe politely greeted the woman first before he answered her question, "I work for the Golden fire guild. My name is Hecathe and I just wanted to ask you some questions. Would that be alright?" 

Hecathe had certainly never done something like this before but he had a lot of experience watching sales executives talking to people like this so he tried his best to copy a good salesman as he spoke a generic line. 

"Golden fire eh?" The woman repeated before she nodded her head slightly and opened the door wider, "Come in, whatcha gonna do if ya just stand there?" 

Hecathe smiled as he heard this and nodded as he stepped inside the small house and calling the house small was really not an understatement at all as the house was really just that small. 

The woman was barely four feet tall and the house was made according to her, which led to the roof and all the doors being lowered. 

Hecathe, who had a height of more than one ninety centimeters couldn't help but feel like a giant inside this small house. 

"Sit down eh," The woman spoke as she gestured over to the sofa that looked to be old but was still well maintained. 

Hecathe nodded his head as he made his way to the sofa and sat down. 

The woman left him alone for a minute as she went inside the kitchen and at this moment, Hecathe couldn't help but wonder that it would be pretty easy for someone to fool this trusting woman who didn't even question him further after hearing the name Golden fire. 

Hecathe had never seen her before this and the same could be said for her as well, but after hearing that he was from the golden fire, she simply let the stranger enter her house and even left him alone. 

He didn't know if she was naive or just a bit too trusting. 

After a few minutes, the old woman came back with two cups of coffee and she handed one over to Hecathe before taking a seat opposite to him as she took her time and asked, "Why ya here?" 

Hecathe smiled as he placed the coffee down on the table and spoke, "As I've said before, I'm just here to ask a couple of questions. If you don't feel comfortable answering them, you are more than free to skip them or tell me, but I hope you'll be able to answer them. I'm not going to be asking anything hard." 

"Whatcha wanna ask?" The woman sipped the coffee leisurely as she casually responded and waited for Hecathe to ask her the question that he was here to ask. 

Hecathe nodded his head with a smile as he took out a pen from his pocket and asked, "First question: Have you heard about the recent rumor that has been spreading? The rumor of Orgon still being alive?" 

"Eh?" The woman looked to be confused as her forehead creased together, "Who the hell is Orgon?" 

Hecathe didn't know why but he wanted to laugh as he heard this response that was to be expected, but Hecathe did his best to not laugh at the woman's face as he muttered, "I see. So you are unaware." 

"Er."

"Do you live alone?" 

The woman looked around before she pointed at a certain picture that was hung up on the wall and spoke, "He lived here too. Kept me good company for a long time, but died just last year." 

Hecathe gulped as he pursed his lips and looked at the photo of the man that looked to be the woman's husband, "I see... I'm sorry for your loss." 

"Don't be," The woman chuckled softly as she waved her hands and reassured Hecathe that it was okay. 

"So you live alone at the moment?" 

"Eh? No," The woman frowned as she shook her head and pointed at the same photo, "Ya see the young boy hiding behind him. He's my adoptive son and he lives here with me. 

"I see," Hecathe nodded his head as he immediately understood why he was here. 

It was probably this adopted son that was suspected to be the one who spread the rumors. 

"Is he not home at the moment?" Hecathe asked without missing the beat, trying his best to not act as if he was a threat, and rather, the man forced himself to act friendly and open so as to make the woman speak honestly and openly without any fear. 

"That boy comes er to eat, sleep and poop." 

"..." 

"Are ya looking for him?" 

Hecathe nodded his head as heard this question and confirmed it, "I would like to ask him some questions as well." 

The woman looked over at the clock and squinted as she tried to read the time but eventually gave up as she turned her head to look at Hecathe and spoke, "What's the time ya see, eh?" 

Hecathe sighed as he looked at the clock that had a missing pointer. This clock was broken and the woman had such bad eyesight that she couldn't even see that it was broken. 

Hecathe lifted his hand and looked at his watch before he spoke, "It's almost twelve p.m." 

"That late?" The woman frowned as she nodded her head slowly and seemed to be thinking about something before she spoke up, "If ya go to the gambling den across the street, ya will be able to find him. He usually stops playing around lunchtime so ya have plenty of time right now. If ya hurry, ya will be able to catch him." 

Hecathe tapped his thigh as he stood up immediately after hearing this, "Then I won't disturb you further." 

"Eh? I paid for the ingredients!" The woman exclaimed as she pointed at the coffee that was left on the table, "Drink that at least. Don't go around wasting money." 

Hecathe gulped as he suddenly felt that this woman was much alike his own grandmother who would often scold him about spending his money recklessly. 

Hecathe smiled as he picked up the coffee cup and gulped it all down in a single go before placing the empty cup down, "The coffee was good. Thank you for your hospitality." 

"Er.. Now get outta my house," The woman responded but although her wordings were pretty rude, Hecathe couldn't help but chuckle as he felt some warmth in her response.