Acquiring Information

Lucian followed the wooden houses and got to the house before the last one on the left side from the Inn. He looked at it and knocked on the wooden door, thinking not much of it.

10 seconds passed and a man with buzzed like hair and a black mustache who was shirtless, only in trousers, opened the door.

"Can I help ya?" he asked, smoking tobacco from the pipe.

"Are you Uldric?"

"Whose askin'.." being skeptical, he was ready to slam the door shut in Lucian's face.

"Richard sent me. I'm helping him find Isolde and Perrin, but first he sent me to you to gain more information."

The man's hand released the grip from the door as he opened it and took another puff from the pipe. "Shoulda said so son, come on then, come inside!" 

Lucian walked inside his house and it looked like an average house with wooden furniture yet empty and smelling of the tobacco of the pipe.

"Feel free to sit anywhere ya like!" Uldric said, sitting down on a wooden chair that creaked upon him sitting on it. "Well then what is ya name son?"

"Lucian, sir."

He sat down on the chair at the table, opposite of the man he intends to ask for information.

"Well, Lucian, It's nice to meet ya. And I'm grateful ya are willin' and tryin' to find the missin' ones. Let's get to business quick 'fore I'm as high as a churches bell! Ask away."

Lucian nodded and leaned back into the chair, having it creek more from how old it is. "Richard mentioned your sister went missing. Can you tell me what she looks like, her name, where she went and when you last saw her."

Uldric took a puff, thinking about it and breathing out the smoke. Thankfully the window was wide opened because it'd feel like they'd suffocate just from how big his puffs were.

"My little sis' Aeliana. She's about 19, brunette hair and I think a leather tunic and some blue trousers or perhaps was it a dress. I don't remember, it's been about 3 at least weeks when she went into the woods to collect some specific herbs for a special soup or something."

"From what I gathered, multiple other people have lost someone too in the woods beside you and Richard? So why hasn't no one left looking for them?"

He finished his puff before answering "That's right." Uldric said "There have been a few, but never came back, so people wanted to leave but they vanished too.."

The room was silent for a moment, Uldric not taking any puffs and Lucian expecting him to continue speaking, and after a few moments he did.

"After me parents died, I was left to take care of my sister. Me! A constantly stoned 30 year old idiot to take care of a 6 year old girl. It was tough, especially with my addiction... But thanks to Anika and her now deceased husband, Roderic, helped me. God they saved me and helped make Aeliana right in the head, to grow up smart, wise and brave."

"I will find her, you have my word. But I need to know the history here. When was the first time someone vanished like that?"

"Hm.. Now when I think about it, it's been going on for about 10 years, every year around this period someone vanishes."

A black dog with yellow eyes walked in from the next room and Uldric petted it as it walked by and lied down on the floor.

"Cute dog, how long have you had it?"

"Somewhere around a decade I think." he took a puff from the pipe between lines. "Aeliana found it in the woods one day and brought it here."

"Odd. It doesn't look old. Anyway, is there anything else you can tell me such if Valoria has had monster problems?"

Even though Lucian knew he was no match for a monster, especially since he has the functions of that of an NPC and no actual training, he still had to know what he was getting into.

"During the course of my life, there hasn't been any. You think that a monster could have nabbed my little sis'?"

"I'm no expert, but I'd need to see for myself. I truly don't know. For the chance it's a monster, is there anyone in this village qualified and capable of killing one?"

Being a bit high now, Uldric let out a quick laugh "No one. Those who had any fightin' skill vanished like all the others in attempts to find those who originally vanished."

"Shit.. Is there any more info you can give me? Like is there anyone else who might know more about anyone who left?"

Uldric waved his head and took a gulp of the drink in his cup on the table.

"All they know is the name of whom they lost and approximately when they lost em. Aside from any complex questions no one knows nothin'. Hell! At this point, I might be the one who knows the most! How hilarious is that!" Uldric burst into laughter.

"Aeliana, does she hate your addiction? Forgive me for intruding asking that."

Uldric hesitated to answer, looked at the tobacco pipe and put it down on the table, sitting normally and getting serious.

"I let go of it. 11 years I was clean, but after she went missing.. I..I.."

"-It was easier to cope. I understand."

The dog stood up and got close to Lucian who pet the dog. "What's her name?" he asked Uldric

"Rune."

Lucian pet the dog and gazed at it's eyes, finding them unusually yellow but didn't think much of it. After all, this all looked extremely realistic now unlike when he was sat at a desk with a monitor in front of him for hours.

"You pick that name?" Lucian asked him, noticing that he's not reaching out for the pipe anymore after he put it down.

"Aeliana did. Listen, Lucian, I'm grateful for your willingness but I don't have much to pay you."

"It's fine, Richard and Anika are already paying me and that's plenty. Well, it was short, but nice speaking to you Uldric."

Uldric nodded "You too, Lucian." 

Lucian got up from the chair and left out through the door, closing it on the way out.

"Okay.. Now to meet with Richard."