The journey

Patience

The company made a detour on their way to a little town, where they needed to restock their supplies. When they got close, Scythian got excited.
'Look, my friends,' he said, pointing at a big sign hung up between two buildings. 'There's a festival in town! What a joy. We could certainly use some fun and relaxation.' One could already tell from his face that he was planning the whole night right  there.
'There is no time for that,' said the wanderer. 'I'm sorry, Scythian, but too many things need to be done. We are here to get supplies and then move on. It will still take too much time as it is to get ready. We can't afford another detour.' In his head, he was already going over the places they needed to visit and what they needed to get from them.
'Oh come now, lad, one night is not the end of the world. You need to refill your soul as well as the supplies. Look, even Wolf does not argue with me!' He made a pointing gesture toward the veteran.
'It is true that we need to focus on the journey and cover as much distance as we can. But this time, the old man might be onto something. We've had eventful days. And I could use a beer,' said Wolf, a little pained that he had to agree with Scythian on something.
'See?' Scythian turned to the man. The ranger sighed and answered his old mentor.
'No. We do not have time for it. If I want to find the treasure, I need to do it as soon as I can.' He went into the town at double speed, cutting a path for himself through the crowd. His companions followed, but Scythian caught his attention with a sentence before one of the shops.

'Honestly, if you were my age, I would start to think that your memory is in decline. First, you forget the lessons of Wolf, and now, you forget mine. Remember how we met, my friend? It was a similar situation then.'
The traveler, while not stopping, started to remember. He thought back to his to-do list back then, which he made in a little town not unlike this one, and his way out.

The man was in a hurry on this sunny day. He stumbled into this town by accident. He was happy and sad at the same time. On one hand, he managed to get some food and water for a low price, even making some extra money for monster trophies slain on the way. On the other, getting all this done slowed him down. Now he needed to run to make up for the lost time. He could not afford to slow down. 'I should be there by now,' he thought. 'I'm already behind everyone else; I have to hurry!' He did not want to stop for anything. That's why he bumped into an old man at the edge of the town. In his hurry, he said something resembling an apology, but it was no more than an automatic response of a golem.

It only came to mind because the man was somehow in front of him on the road.
'Ahoy, my young friend,' greeted the old warrior, while simultaneously blocking his way. The man had to stop, which irritated him.
'Hey. Could you move a bit? I'm kinda in a hurry.'
'Oh yeah, I felt that just now,' said the old fighter. The man just wanted to be on his way.
Still, he took a moment to analyze him. He wore dark blue battle armor over his whole body (with no helmet attached). From his face, anyone could tell that he was not young, but for his age, he was clean. Clearly, he liked to be presentable at all times. His beard was nicely shaved, his hair was brushed, both were grey. Something the man noticed though was his stance. It was elegant, and he looked like someone who could fight at a moment's notice. His spear on his back reassured that also. The man responded.
'Ah, so it was you. Look, I'm sorry that I bumped into you here.' He took out two gold pieces. 'Take this as an apology. Then I shall be on my way. Deal?' He wanted to avoid a fight. Avoid using the sword.
'Oh, I'm not here because of that, lad. It happens, no worries.' waved the old hero. 'Where are my manners? My name is Scythian. Pleasure to meet you.' He reached for a handshake. The traveler shook it but then asked again.
'Nice to meet you, but now I really need to go.'

He tried to move out of the way, but Scythian moved with him. Then he moved the other way, but again, with the elegance of a dancer, the old man blocked his way. Then the man took a feint move and did a spin around the fighter, getting behind him. Only to find that at the end of the maneuver, the old warrior was still before him.