Luke glanced down the wide paved road. The air had become colder by now, with the sun nearly set. A few torch bugs began to buzz about. When Luke paid additional attention to detail, he noticed chopped trees around the town.
“There’s no monsters or beasts in sight, Argel. Even the nearest trees have been cleared out. Why is that?”
Argel, with the goal so close, instead shook his head. “Let’s get inside some walls; I’ll fill you until we pass the inspection.”
Luke and Argel nodded at the patrol passing them by as they trudged onto the town's entrance. Unlike before, with Luke not inspecting the Kelpies, they let them be. They only gave a curt greeting.
Argel began to answer Luke’s question. The man certainly had patience, “The trees get cleared out regularly around any large settlement. The town guard and many monster hunters want ample notice if anything aggressive is coming to town.”
“Hunters and guards clear out the beasts and monsters so regularly they learn to stay away?” Luke said.
“Glad you understand; you’ll always have the occasional exception outside of the ‘event,’ but most monsters and beasts learn to stay away from anything town-sized or larger. Can’t say the same for villages, though; those poor bastards suffer the most,” Argel said.
Argel turned away from Luke and got into the short line outside the town. Sooty messed with Luke while they waited, picking on his hair with her beak. Luke let his bird do as she will, as long as she didn’t hurt. He suppressed the urge to talk to Wayfinder or Xera. They’d have a place to go over what they knew now later. It’d just have to be private.
Luke tapped his foot as they waited. He kept each hand near one of his swords. The people in line were visibly uncomfortable around him. A little self-conscious, Luke whispered to Argel, “Hey, Argel, is it just me, or is everyone trying to avoid the two of us?”
Argel didn’t turn around this time, “Of course they’re avoiding us. We’re two well-armed men who are caked in dried monster blood. And one of us smells too high heaven, why wouldn’t they?”
Luke placed his right hand on his face, “Right, been stuck around monsters so long this became my new normal. I must look like a serial killer, with two swords, torn gear, and blood all over me. I’m nose-blind by now, but the smell must not be entirely pleasant either.”
The temporary chaperone eased up, “I’ll show you a cheap bath-house once we’re in. I could use a wash myself. After that, we go straight to the assignment center.”
The Reaver looked over his gear and asked, “Anywhere they do magically inclined laundry? I’ve no idea how to properly wash all this cloth and leather or maintain a sword.”
“That front will have to wait. You’ll be minimally presentable after a proper bath. For the rest, the center will point you in the right direction.”
The conversation paused as the gate guards began their inspection, not too close, as they didn’t want to be near Luke more than necessary. They took a carved crystal out, and a beam of light enveloped Luke, Argel, and even Sooty.
“They’re not wanted for any crimes, captain.” One of the gate guards said.
Another guard responded, “Good. On to the next point, what is the purpose of your visit to Kelser?”
Argel said, “Here to escort this ferus to the assignment center. He chose to register over being exiled.”
The captain didn’t betray any particular expression, “Right then, keep yourself clean, or in your case,” he pointed at Luke, “get yourself clean. As a ferus, I’m sure you aren’t completely civil, but citizens, provisional ones included, must maintain a minimum of hygiene.”
Luke became embarrassed but ultimately didn’t debate. People hadn’t been too rude about it. He likely wasn’t the first case of being in a monster zone for too long without a shower.
The captain continued reading the young man’s expression, “Seems you’re aware enough. Now, after you clean up, maybe those pretty ladies over there will go from avoiding you to being all over you, eh?” The captain pointed toward a small group of relatively pretty women, trying to lighten the mood.
Luke let out a small laugh. He hadn’t thought about that part of life at all since he came here. He said, “I appreciate it, captain.”
With that, the two were let into Kelser. As promised, Argel immediately guided him to a public bathhouse. Along the way, Luke noticed various individuals, some tora or elves, but mainly humans. A few stood out; he could tell they were like him, people from Earth. There wasn’t any discernible difference, at least not to him, but his intuition knew.
Luke shelved going up to any of them for now; people avoided him like the plague in the town. Argel came up to the reception of the bathhouse and handed over some silver to pay for a bath. The guard was kind enough to pay for Luke as well. To Luke’s surprise, he sensed the woman at the counter was also someone from Earth.
The two men entered into a changing area. “Argel, are you able to tell if someone’s a farworlder at a glance?” Luke said.
“You transfers stick out. Especially recent ones, or if they’re like you, a ferus. Eventually, it becomes difficult to tell, takes a year or two most times.”
Switching topics, Luke said, “There a safe place to keep the gear?”
“Place it all in your box, farworlder. They have a rudimentary laundry service for free here. It’s the main reason I took you to this one instead of the others.” Argel gestured, “Put your dirtied items in the black box next to the gray one you’re assigned, and a worker here will come by to wash out the worst of the blood and dirt over your gear. Leave your swords, too.”
Luke became worried, “They won’t steal it or something, right?”
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“What? No, did you see those crystals at the reception?”
“No. Frankly, I paid too much attention to the pretty receptionist.” Luke said, “Although, it was more the fact she was from Earth, more than anything.”
“A good sight, sure, but don’t let it blind you. Anyway, those crystals blare and mark anyone who tries to leave with items not their own. This town has a few tier-two guards; I doubt you have anything worth stealing from someone at the 3rd tier or above. The guards can take down anyone weaker than that quickly.”
Oh, how wrong you are, Argel, my friend. Luke thought.
Luke compromised; he kept Wayfinder on but left the rest of the gear, including Xera, in the black box. He also had Sooty keep watch. There was a small water source in the bathhouse meant for companions; Sooty took a quick bird bath, then stood guard around the unequipped gear.
“Do they take care of swords too?” He said.
“Not particularly well. They’ll wipe off anything dirtying your weapon. You’ll need to learn or find a blacksmith for high-quality maintenance.”
The Reaver didn’t want to chance it, he attempted to put Whispering Edge, Xera, the rare shoulders, rings, and neckpiece into the Inventory. Whispering Edge and the other items went in without suspense. The Interface informed him of Xera’s decision.
[Xera, The Sword Wand, has refused to enter into your Inventory]
Luke gave Xera a meaningful glare; he whispered as low as he could audibly manage, with Xera right up to his face, “Remember, don’t talk; I’ll be back soon.”
The Sword Wand was left in the black box, containing all Luke’s gear. He kept his jewelry on regardless. As for poor Wayfinder’s nonexistent eyes, he just hoped the compass could control what it saw.
“Keep an eye on everything, Sooty; let the workers wash the gear, but make sure they do nothing else,” Luke said.
Coo. Click. Sooty responded.
“Good to have someone you can trust.”
Both men wrapped themselves in white towels and stepped out into a hot bath; this particular bathhouse was separated by gender. When Luke came in, he was relieved that he wasn’t the only one unwilling to part with gear. Most of the men inside had a ring, necklaces, or other pieces on them in the bath. Wayfinder was similar to Xera in that he refused to enter the Inventory, so the compass was still around his neck.
Luke didn’t dally. He took off the towel and quickly dipped into the bath. The relaxing, warm water did wonders for his morale. He took a nearby scrubbing stick and began to grind away all the caked-on material over his body.
Argel joined him, a bit more reserved. Luke had long gotten over any potential embarrassment. He had to shower with fifty other guys in basic training, and he was way too unclean to let such a small thing prevent him from enjoying a real bath.
“Ah, this feels damn good. I missed you, hot water,” Luke said, repeatedly scraping away the dried blood and whatever else had found its way onto his skin.
The two enjoyed the steam, well-maintained soap, and warm water. Argel had wanted to leave earlier, but Luke wouldn’t hear it. The man tried to strip any ounce of dirt off him. Luke even took out the gear in the inventory and practically pressure-washed them with the physical power he now possessed from the strength stat. Wayfinder remained steadfastly silent and accepted Luke dipping the compass in a soap bucket.
Luke did hear a few muffled complaints, however. The Reaver spent nearly half an hour, and his quest against dirt prevailed. He quickly jumped out, wrapped the towel around his waist, and walked toward the changing room from before. Luke and Argel came into the tiled room and witnessed Sooty pinning a terrified worker to the floor with her nails.
“Luke, why does your crow have someone against the floor?” Argel asked.
“Sooty has her reasons if I know anything about her,” Luke said.
Luke strolled up to Sooty and asked her, “What did you catch him for, Sooty?”
“Caw, Click, Rattle,” Sooty had become very verbal this time.
“He tried to do what? Are you sure?”
“Caw!” Sooty affirmed.
Luke dropped down and looked into the worker’s eyes. “Knew better than to believe Argel’s naïve words. Of course, someone like you would try to take Xera. Anyone with eyes can tell she’s valuable.”
“I didn’t dare do anything of the sort, sir. This is a huge misunderstanding.”
“As much as I’d like to believe you, I don’t. Sooty doesn’t lie.” Luke twisted to Argel, “I can’t kill him for trying to take Xera, can I?”
“Your sword, you mean? No, unless you’ve got irrefutable proof. Your companion who can’t speak wouldn’t be enough for that.”
Luke examined the rest of his gear. The worker, a young man like himself, had cleaned it well. For that, The Reaver lied to himself that the worker intended to clean Xera.
“Sooty, let him go. We’re here to register, not cause a blood bath. We just cleaned ourselves, too,” Luke said.
The worker scampered away, shuttering “Thank you” over and over again.
Luke put on the rest of his gear, including what he had in the inventory. All his items were clean, although still torn, especially in the chest area. It’d have to do for now. Argel waited for him in the reception area.
He entered the area, stopped by the reception desk, and began a conversation with the woman there.
“When did you vanish?” He said.
“About a year after it started, you?” She immediately realized Luke was also a transfer.
“Four days ago now, roughly.”
The receptionist laughed, “Good one, it’s been a year since the last of us showed up here. When did it really happen?”
“You caught me. It’s been a year. I’ve been meaning to ask you the first moment I figured out you were a transfer too.” Luke smiled, “How do you go about finding someone who vanished before you did? I was a ‘ferus’ or whatever you’d call it. I’m looking for my family.”
The receptionist was caught off guard, “You were a ferus? How’d you last so long out there? Were you in a group or something?”
Luke smelled a faint scent of mint, perplexed where it would come from until he realized it was perfume. “Ah, it’s not important. I’m no longer one of them. Now, I need to find my family.”
The receptionist was happy to help, “There’s an information broker in town for that sort of thing. You can always put up a notice, or a few particular classes can help track someone down. Although for most of them, the tracks have to be very recent.”
Luke figured a receptionist wouldn’t know anything more concrete. He started the conversation with her in the first place because she was the first approachable person from Earth he’d met here.
“Thanks,” Luke said as he turned away. Argel was shifting his weight and tapping his foot.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Argel.”
“I overheard the conversation. Kelser has a few resources that could help, but unless luck is on your side, you’ll have to go to Sylen, the city, to find the real professionals able to search for someone,” Argel said.
“Thanks, let’s get the show on the road. We're going where again?”
“The assignment center.”
“Right.”
Luke followed Argel through various twisting town roads, and now most people didn’t outright veer around him. A few people grew curious about Sooty on his way to the assignment center, but he told them he had somewhere to be.
They turned a corner, and a three-story, vast wooden building stood on a town plot. The ceiling was made of tile, and the entrance had two city guards posted there. Luke walked up, passing Argel, and the city guards crossed their spears.
“Official business only. Kelser’s assignment center is a busy place.”
“Isn’t this where we ferus go to seek enlightenment?” Luke said.
The two guards looked at each other in confusion. Argel stepped in, also giving Luke an odd glance, “He’s here to register with the Duchy, here to escort him in.”
“Oh, it's Argel; been a few weeks since I’ve seen you in town. How’s the Night Moon tower?”
“The sightings are getting worse every day, Jason. I’ll stay the night here, then be on my way. The farworlder was an unexpected event.”
“How much longer, do you think?” Jason, the guard, asked.
“Weeks, if we’re lucky, days, if we’re not.”
The guard grimaced, and the two spears were pulled back. “Get registered then, farworlder. You’ll be put to use soon. Hope you’re a combat type. We need as many as we can get.”
Luke felt he was missing something critical but came up blank. He stepped in, ready to get this registration over with. A gleam of calculation hid in his eyes.