The Elf Journey In The Western Fantasy World-Chapter 100: The Last Map and the Empty Room

After a long pause, his lips finally moved and he began to speak, "Wait, you can’t—"

Before he could finish, Eoryun cut him off, suddenly enlightened. "Ah, I get it. I can’t do this. This isn’t the right way."

Thinking Eoryun understood what he meant, the vendor sighed in relief.

But before he could finish exhaling, he nearly choked—because what came out of Eoryun’s mouth next was completely unexpected from someone with such a sincere-looking face.

Eoryun said, "Highest bidder wins, right? I understand. So, anyone else want to bid? I’m putting down two gold coins!"

After making his declaration, Eoryun straightened up and glanced around, trying to see if anyone would challenge him for the final map.

After a sweep of his surroundings, he was satisfied to see that no one dared compete with him. With a joyful smile, he took out another gold coin, placed it in the vendor’s hand, and without hesitation took the last map.

Then, he leisurely walked away from the scene.

The map vendor stared at the gold coins in his palm in a daze, then lifted one to his mouth and bit down. The solid, metallic resistance finally snapped him out of his stupor.

He muttered under his breath, "Oh, Goddess of Luck... there really are fools with money in this world. My grandma was right—today really is a great day for business."

He looked down at the two gleaming gold coins in his hand and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.

"Gold coins don’t lie. That wasn’t a customer—he’s my lucky star!"

Eoryun relied on the map he had purchased for two gold coins to successfully locate the inn where he and his companions had stayed before their departure. Now, all that remained was to ask the innkeeper for some information about their room.

Carefully stowing away the two-gold-coin map, Eoryun patted the imaginary dust from his clothes before stepping confidently into the inn. His target was clear: the innkeeper who usually sat in the corner of the first floor.

He walked quickly, almost in a half-run, until he reached the innkeeper and immediately asked with anticipation, "Good evening, sir. I’d like to inquire about the room number my companions are staying in."

"You see, I was a guest here just yesterday. I checked out because of some matters I needed to take care of, but my friends should still be staying here. We agreed to meet back here after I finished my business."

The innkeeper furrowed his brow in thought after listening to Illiya’s explanation. He pushed the glasses perched on his nose up with one hand.

After a moment, the innkeeper slowly responded, "People are always coming and going in this inn. How could I possibly remember every single person clearly? If I had the memory to recall everyone who ever passed through here, I’d be a genius. And if I were a genius, would I still be running an inn?"

"Don’t be foolish," the innkeeper concluded flatly.

Despite the sarcasm embedded in the man’s words, Eoryun remained unfazed. His cheerful expression didn’t change in the slightest. As if he hadn’t noticed the dismissive tone at all, he continued to ask politely, "My friends are very memorable. I think you must recall them."

The innkeeper let out a soft snort but gave no reply.

Nevertheless, Eoryun continued with calm confidence after carefully observing the man’s face. "Here’s the thing. I have four friends staying here. Two are elves, and two are humans."

"One of the elves has golden hair and golden eyes. He dresses in white. The other elf has black hair and black eyes, and he tends to blend into the background."

"As for the humans, one looks quite noble—well, to put it bluntly, he looks rich. He has black hair and black eyes. The other one has red hair and carries a large broadsword at his waist. I’m not sure why a swordsman would use a broadsword instead of a regular sword."

After rattling off his lengthy description, Eoryun fell silent and carefully watched the innkeeper out of the corner of his eye, afraid the man might suddenly say, "I don’t remember any of them."

The innkeeper stared directly at the tall young man standing before him. His eyes narrowed slightly, though it was unclear what exactly he was thinking.

Eoryun began to feel uneasy under the man’s prolonged gaze. Although his questions had been perfectly reasonable, he suddenly felt guilty, as though he had done something wrong.

At last, the innkeeper looked away.

Instead of giving an answer, the man asked an entirely unrelated question. "Oh? You seem very close to your friends."

Eoryun blinked his eyes in confusion and nodded slowly.

The innkeeper went on, "Let’s just say, hypothetically, if your friends abandoned you and left without saying a word—what would you do?"

A faint sense of dread began to creep into Illiya’s heart as he heard those words. Pushing down the rising unease, he seriously considered the question and gave a thoughtful reply. "I believe my friends wouldn’t leave without a word unless something important came up. I’m sure they had a reason and couldn’t help it."

"I wouldn’t be angry at them!" Eoryun declared firmly. "That’s just not who I am."

A fleeting smile appeared on the innkeeper’s face—but it vanished almost immediately, as if it had never existed at all.

Eoryun started wondering if he had just imagined it.

Did the innkeeper actually smile? Or not?

He wasn’t sure, and the uncertainty left him feeling oddly unsettled.

Then, without warning, the innkeeper said flatly, "Well, whether you’re angry or not, the fact is, it already happened."

Eoryun froze.

Seeing the young man’s stunned expression, the innkeeper helpfully "explained," "There’s no use getting upset now. Your friends checked out of their rooms around noon today. It looked like they left the city entirely. I don’t know where they went."

And as if his words weren’t cutting enough, the innkeeper added with deliberate weight, "Anyway, you’re the one who said you wouldn’t be angry with your friends. If they left without telling you, it must have been for something really important."