It's dark.

There should be no more guests.

In fact, in the past month or so, as one of Zudasa's famous painters, Bangka's shop has only received a few orders.

Outside the city, a life-and-death war was going on for Zandalara, and no troll with a big heart was in the mood to paint a portrait in Bangka's gallery at this time.

Unlike the trolls in other places, the cultural atmosphere is well developed, and the long-standing Zandalar trolls generally have some artistic pursuits.

Leaving a portrait of yourself during your lifetime for future generations and other trolls to look at is something that many Zandalar trolls are willing to do.

It doesn't cost a lot of money to paint a portrait, and there are many painters like Bangka in the Golden City.

Bangka was the only one of these painters who was lame, and everyone called him "Lame Bangka".

Bangka was also able-bodied before, and this sentence is nonsense. With the exception of deformed children, no one is born with imperfect limbs.

Until he was hit in the knee with an arrow, a poisoned arrow with the corrosive blood magic of a blood troll.

With such an injury, the troll's terrifying recovery power and the treatment of Zandalara's sacrifice could not make it all recover.

His life was saved, his leg was saved, but he became lame Bangka from then on.

Disheartened, Bangka had no choice but to return to Zudasa, pick up the skills he had learned as a young man, and become a painter.

Relying on passable portrait painting techniques, Bangka can still mix a bowl of rice in Zudasa's lower city.

The lame Bangka sighed as he stood in front of the shop, looking down the street with few pedestrians.

Since the war, business has become more and more difficult. The merchants are gone, and the trolls are panicking.

Look at the silence of the bustling city, which is obscured by the smell of war.

Lame Bangka sighed softly and shook his head, ready to close the door. Since a month ago, at the behest of the Regent Prophet, Zudasa has enforced a curfew in the evening.

Trolls who don't get permission are not allowed to go out at will, otherwise they will be caught and squatted in prison for a few days.

The lame Bangka didn't want to go to jail, so he prepared to close the shop and go back to his house to pray to Loa.

As soon as the door of Bonka's shop was closed, he had just turned around when there was a sharp knock on the door behind him.

"Please, open the door. I want to paint a portrait of myself. ”

The voice of a young female troll came in from outside.

"It's closed. Come back tomorrow. "The lame Bangka was a little tired, and he was going to pray, to pray to Loa.

"Please, open the door. Bangka, it's me, Kakina. Said the troll outside the door.

Lame Bangka knows Kakina, a young female troll who just got married three months ago.

She and her husband also painted a picture of their marriage with him, and it should be said that Kakina and her family are regular clients of Bangka.

For more than a decade, her family and her husband's family have patronized dozens of businesses here in Bangka.

Is a loyal customer of lame Bangka.

Bangka had to turn around and open the door, muttering as he did, "It's so late." The curfew is about to start, Kakina, do you have something to do with me? You can't be drawing, are you? Your father just drew one yesterday. Not...... Your husband also drew one in the morning. ”

"These two paintings will be given to you in two days, and I need to work on them. This allows them to last longer. ”

"Speaking of which, in the past few days, I have opened these two businesses."

I don't know if it's old, but the words of the lame Bangka have become a lot.

The door opened.

Bangka, who was muttering, saw Kakina outside the door with a serious expression, and her eyes were red.

"What's wrong with you?? Kakina. Lame Bangka asked in surprise.

He saw young Kakina take a deep breath and walk straight in.

Bangka stepped out of the way and let her in.

"Draw a portrait for me. Please, Bangka. ”

She came in and said directly.

"It's so late. Do you want to draw? Poor vision at night may not be as perfect as during the day. And ......"

Lame Bangka was interrupted in the middle of his words.

"Please. Bangka. ”

"Draw me a portrait."

"I don't have time, only half a night." Kakina, who interrupted the lame Bangka, pleaded.

Having never seen such an expression on young Kakina's face, Bonka was stunned.

Maybe it was a quarrel with her husband?

That's why the eye sockets are a little red?

Lame Bangka guessed to himself.

Her father was a former friend of Bangka, and her husband's father was also a friend of Bangka, both the friend's daughter and his loyal client.

He couldn't refuse.

"Okay." Bonka muttered. "It may not be perfect, and it's not a good time to paint at night."

"It doesn't matter. I believe in you, Bangka. Kakina sat down on the stool in the shop, which Bonka had prepared for the customers who came to the shop to paint portraits.

Bonka didn't know why Kakina became the way she was, but after more than a decade as a professional painter, he quickly packed up his tools and got to work – painting a portrait of the young Kakina.

When painting portraits of guests, the lame Bangka likes to chat with them.

This will allow the guests not to get impatient, and painting a portrait will require the guests to sit there for an hour or two.

It's easy to get upset after doing this for so long, and talking to them can make them feel better.

The lame Bangka has good skills, and his service attitude in painting is also the reason why he is a cripple and can live well in hundreds of art galleries in Zudasa.

He chatted with Kakina.

"Why do you suddenly want to paint at night?"

"Keep it as a souvenir."

"Your husband, brave Cass. Why didn't he come with you? Did the young people quarrel? ”

"He'll never come with me again."

"So serious? Young people quarrel, look away. Trust me, you'll be reconciled in two days. ”

"We didn't fight."

"Huh...... All right. By the way, how is Souls. When he came to paint yesterday, he said that he had received a call from His Majesty Tonna and Tiu to go to war with those hateful orcs. ”

"Father went to the front yesterday."

"Oh! May the gods Tonna and Tiu protect Suls. Seeing his serious look yesterday morning reminded me of the time when we were fighting in Nazmir more than twenty years ago. ”

"Father also values his friendship with you."

"Haha. Don't lie to me, Kakina. We used to have a bad relationship, and we had fights in the army. It was after I was lame and retired from the army that he probably felt sorry for me, so he became on good terms with me. ”

"You're not pitiful."

"Hmm...... Kakina, you don't have much to say tonight. I remember you always liked to talk when you were a child, and when you grew up, you were a pretty girl with a lot of words. ”

"I've been talking."

"Okay, okay. Probably you think I'm nagging, I can't help it, I'm old, and my legs are still lame. I'll admit that my words are a little bit more. ”

"You don't talk much."

"Hey...... Hmm, wait, the painting will be almost ready. ”

“……”

When the lame Bangka worked, time passed quickly. After about an hour or two, Kakina's portrait was seventy percent complete.

He needed to polish the rest later, and in a few days he could return it to her along with the portraits of her husband and father.

"Alright."

Bangka put down his brush.

He picked up a colorful rag from the side and wiped some of the paint off his hands.

Kakina got up from her stool and walked over to Bonka, looking at herself in the portrait with a little distraction.

"The light was a bit dim though. But it's not bad, is it? "Bangka is a little proud of his skills.

"Your portrait is the best in Zudasari." Kakina praised.

"Huh. Don't say that, Kakina. Old Bangka will be proud. ”

"Here's for you."

Kakina took out a small bag from her waist and handed it to Bangka, "Remuneration for painting." ”

Bangka took it, and he almost didn't catch it because the bag was heavy and it was rattling.

"Why are there so many? Even if you add your husband's and father's paintings, it only costs six Rastakha coins. There are so many, even silver and copper coins are more than six Rastaha coins! ”

"It's all for you."

Kakina didn't take the bag of money that Bangka wanted to give her back.

"I don't need them anymore."

Lame Bangka was in a bad mood, and looking at Kakina's determined expression, he realized that something might have happened to her.

Lame Bangka wanted to ask.

At this time, there was a knock on the door outside the store, which was supposed to be empty after the curfew, and two trolls about the same age as Kakina were standing outside.

"Kakina. Okay, we're going to report. One of the trolls shouted.

"Right away." Kakina said without looking back, then turned to plead with the lame Bangka, whose expression was beginning to grow solemn.

"Dear Bangka. All this money is given to you. I don't need you to do anything, I just hope you can keep the portrait of our family well. Please! ”

"Kakina. What the hell is going on? Bangka looked at the two trolls outside the door, his face solemn. What are they forcing you to do? ”

"Nope. There was no coercion. Kakina smiled wryly. They are about to become my comrades-in-arms. ”

"Comrade-in-arms?"

"That's right. I answered the prophet's call and signed up for the army in the evening. Wait a minute, you're going to get out of the city and fight the orcs! ”

"How can this work?!" The lame Bangka cried out. "You're a good hunter, but you're not a warrior, you're not a soldier. How can you put such a young troll on the battlefield?! What about Souls? What about Cass? What about Cadog? ”

Souls is the name of Kakina's father.

Cass is the name of her husband, who just got married three months ago.

Kadogh is her husband's father's name.

All are lame Bangka's regular customers.

Kakina insisted on shoving the heavy bag of money into Bonka's hand, and said as she walked outside.

"Kadog, my husband's father died a month ago while protecting Zulga."

"My own father, I received news of his death this morning. He died on the battlefield as a warrior. ”

"As for Cass, my dear, my husband. Before the evening came the news of him from the army, he joined the army yesterday evening, and at noon rolled down the cliff with two orcs in his arms. ”

"He's dead, too."

The huge bad news made the lame Bangka unable to react for a while.

"Please keep my family's paintings. Bangka, please. ”

"I'm going to fight for my family, for Zudasa, for Zandalara, for the trolls."

"Trolls live forever!"

"Zudasa will never fall!"

Kakina walked out of the door of Bonka's shop.

Bangka tried to stop her, but he couldn't stop her.

He saw two of Kakina's companions, also two young female trolls, whose eyes were red in the clear moonlight.

Three young female trolls resolutely enter the curfew-filled street, leaving only their backs behind.

Peng!

The heavy bag of money that Kakina had left behind fell to the ground with a muffled sound.

Bangka silently closed the door.

Turning around and walking into his bedroom, he didn't even pick up the money bag on the floor.

The lame Bangka sat quietly on the bed in his dorm room, his eyes glazed over.

I don't know how long it took.

The lame Bangka suddenly stood up.

He walked to one of the wardrobes in the room and opened the closet—a pair of well-maintained Zandalar soldier leather armor, hanging quietly in it.

Bangka reached out and rubbed his hand against the leather armor.

The troll muttered to himself.

"Kakina. You may be disappointed. Even a young troll like you is on the battlefield, can an old guy like me sit still? ”

He took out the equipment that he had been in the army more than twenty years ago, and he put it on.

After a while.

The heavily armed lame Bangka closed the door of the shop, and like the three young trolls, he walked out.

Limping back.

It's very long under the moonlight.