SWDnovel Chapter 7 The Loach's First Trial
Chapter 7 The Loach's First Trial
"Hey kid," a drunken voice rang out, reeking of alcohol, "this lady said 'not happy,' are you deaf?"
The man blocking the way was a dead drunk cowboy with a scraggly beard and cloudy eyes; he looked nauseating.
"Get out of here!" Tom said in a low voice, not wanting to cause trouble.
"You with..."
"what!"
boom! ! !
The hotel door was violently slammed open with a loud crash as the door frame shattered!
A bluish-gray shadow rushed in like a cannonball!
Tom reacted incredibly quickly, grabbing Elsa and spinning to the side of the wall.
Boom!
The meddlesome cowboy was sent flying like a tattered sack, crashing heavily against the wall before sliding limply down, lifeless.
Tom only had time to catch a glimpse of a blue hoof.
Oh no! His mind went blank: he knew he was going to have to pay for the compensation for those tables and chairs!
Screams erupted in the restaurant as everyone stared in disbelief at the blue mule that had barged in, pawing the floor and snorting heavily.
Tom quickly stepped forward and gently stroked the coarse mane on the mule's neck with his large hand.
The mule raised its head, its wet nose affectionately touching his face, and then... it lowered its head, curled its long tongue, and began drinking the half-finished glass of whiskey on the table next to it, oblivious to everyone else!
Glug, glug.
Its eyes widened suddenly, as if it had tasted some unparalleled delicacy.
The owner of the glass of wine, a man with an unfriendly expression, gave Tom a cold glance.
Tom's face flushed, and he quickly tightened the reins to try and pull the guy away.
The blue mule raised its head, its golden vertical pupils filled with confusion and dissatisfaction, as if asking: What? You won't let me try the good stuff?
It suddenly swung its neck so hard it almost knocked Tom off balance, then stubbornly buried its head back down, its gaze turning to another glass of wine on the next table.
Tom pulled on the reins with all his might, his face turning red, but the blue mule remained motionless, its four hooves rooted to the ground, focused solely on the amber liquid, and worked diligently.
"Pfft!"
No one knew who couldn't hold back first, and then, the entire restaurant exploded like a lit powder keg, bursting into deafening laughter! Tom felt his face burning with embarrassment.
To prevent his disgraceful ancestor from ruining other people's drinks, Tom gritted his teeth, rushed to the counter, bought the cheapest, lowest-quality whiskey, and poured it into an empty glass.
He used the cup as bait, taking small steps until he finally coaxed the greedy ancestor outside the inn and tied him securely to the hitching post.
"This is...your horse?" Elsa followed her out, leaning against the door frame, laughing so hard she was almost in tears.
Anyone with eyes can tell that it's a mule.
"Hmm," Tom replied irritably, "its name is 'Loach'!"
"Pfft—hahaha!" Elsa laughed even louder, clutching her stomach and unable to straighten up.
Tom waited until she finished laughing before slowly speaking, his voice low but with a hint of chill: "Did you see its temper? Don't provoke it. When it gets protective of its own, it doesn't care if you're my sister or not."
Elsa's smile froze instantly.
The drunkard had to pay for the mess he made, but Tom didn't let the muddy guy off easy either.
Under the watchful eyes of the diners, he squatted down and quickly ransacked the cowboy from head to toe.
"You're so broke, yet you still look good in that denim outfit!" The coins and steel found were barely enough to cover the cost of the hotel room door.
The two turned and went upstairs.
In James's room, Margaret was playing with little John, while next door came the soft humming of Claire's daughter, Mary.
"Done?" Margaret tossed her giggling youngest son onto the bed.
Tom's eyes lit up: "You're right! I've found my best friend in the world!"
The moment Margaret's lips curled into a smile, Elsa's shrill voice exploded:
"You bet! A mule! A drunk mule that's passed out on the street!" She laughed so hard she was gasping for breath, pounding the bed.
Margaret's smile froze, and Tom glared at Elsa.
"It's much stronger than a regular mule..." Tom tried to make amends.
"Yes, yes, yes!" Elsa wiped away tears of laughter, drawing out her words, "So strong that she could throw a little dwarf two miles away!" Little John was amused by her and rolled around on the bed.
Margaret chuckled.
She ruffled Tom's messy hair: "What's the rush? One day you'll tame the wildest horse."
"Did you hear that, little one?" Elsa, clutching her aching stomach from laughing, sat up. "Mommy meant your legs are too short to reach the stirrups right now!"
The next round of laughter almost lifted the roof off.
"Elsa!" Margaret glared at her reproachfully, but only saw her eldest son's back as he slammed the door shut with a livid face.
boom!
The laughter in the room abruptly stopped amidst the lingering sound of the door trembling.
Tom spat, determined to teach that stupid sister a lesson in being sidelined.
He squatted down at the inn's entrance and poked the green mule lying lifeless in the mud: "Pathetic! A few cups of wine and you're down?"
The loach let out a loud, whiskey-smelling burp and snored loudly, attracting the attention of passersby. What a drunken mule sprawled out on its back!
A figure blocked their way.
"These are the horses you bought?" James's voice rang out, and he knew who it was without even looking at Tom.
"Hmm!" Tom didn't look up.
"good!"
Tom could hardly believe his ears and looked up abruptly.
"really?"
"Indeed," James nodded, his gaze sweeping over the sleeping blue mule, "but we have to go now. I wonder if it'll be of any use?"
"It'll work perfectly!" Tom vouched for his friend without a second thought.
James patted Tom on the shoulder and said nothing more.
It wasn't until everyone carried their luggage out of the hotel that the "loach" slowly opened its eyes, its gaze dazed.
"Are you sure it will work?" James frowned.
"Alright!" Tom yelled into the mudfish's ear, "Let's get going!"
The loach jumped up with a start, but its body swayed and its eyes were still dazed.
Tom didn't care about any of that; he grabbed the reins and followed the group.
First, go to the carriage company to pick up your carriage.
James had just driven his car out when he discovered that Tom had vanished.
Where's Tom?
Elsa pointed behind her, "Look."
Tom was sitting smugly in a dusty, dilapidated carriage.
"Hey!" He tugged at the reins and grinned.
Four horses! The whole family was stunned.
"You...bought it?" Margaret asked, her face full of suspicion.
"Yeah, it looks pretty good, doesn't it?" Tom patted the car dashboard.
"Not bad," Claire said with a rare smile, glancing at James. "Better than James. At your age, he hasn't even made a living."
James stared blankly at the carriage. "You can drive it?"
Tom's excitement faltered for a moment, then he stiffened his neck and said, "Easy! I can do it!"
"Then you can drive yourself!" Margaret jumped into James' car first.
Everyone got into the car.
Tom shrugged and muttered to the loach beside him, "Mom's angry."
Strangely enough, Tom's car didn't have a single problem on the way to the grocery store!