The road to Gret town took only one day with horses, and it was surprisingly calm without any surprises, looking how they thought they would be followed. Steve hadn't done any traveling until then, so he was in shock when he saw the large wooden wall. He needed to look high up to see how long the logs were.

"Why is this wall here? Wooden?" Steve was gazing from top to bottom in amazement.

"Because of the close location of the Cave, Gret is constantly in danger. You see, all the magic comes from imagination. The stone of the enlightenment is surrounding the whole area with its magic. It is a really powerful artifact. And due to this fact, it can accord on its own. Monsters released from the stone sometimes go to this place." Said Archibald.

The closer they approached, the more corpses they saw. Many of them were normal animals like wolves, bears, or even huge bees. But some of them had shapes that Steve couldn't even imagine.

They were walking to something looking like a gate when suddenly someone stopped them.

"Stop where you stand!" The vigorous shout came from the inside of the fortress.

When they stopped, a tall young man stepped out of the gate. He was wearing leather from foot to head. Even his helmet was made from leather. Moreover, all of his armor was made with animals attacking Gret. He was holding a circled shaped sword. Its blade looked like a snail shell. Steve wondered how it is possible to fight with this thing.

"We're just wanderers." Steve replied.

Whirl nodded and added, "And we want to buy some supplies."

"I need to verify your humanity before I can let you in. What is the kingdom you are in now, and what is the name of the prince?" The soldier asked.

Steve and Whirl were stunned. They never came across such situation.

"If you know the rules of imagination, then there is nothing to be surprised of. Imaginations of humans are always incomplete. Numerous unknown facts always surround all stories. Stone has an even bigger problem with this, so monsters from its imaginations won't have this." Explained Archibald only in their heads.

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They both accepted this explanation without any arguments.

They quickly answered the guard and were able to enter Gret City. Their sleep was interrupted, leaving them exhausted. They also traveled with big haste. Whirl asked the soldier about a tavern where they could spend the night. He told them about the tavern called Two Eagles, so they headed that way. The city was really well organized, with wide roads. It was probably made this way for soldiers to quickly run in the face of danger. Here and there stood security posts. They had already been overwhelmed when they were stepping into the tavern.

The big woman behind the bar greeted them and said, "Hey, my name is Joe, how may I help you on this lovely day."

"We just want to eat something and go directly to sleep." Said Steve after a loud yawn.

Whirl was suspicious and asked, "Why are there no people here?"

"Oh, this… Don't get this situation wrong. Most of the rooms are occupied. All the guests went to the walls to see the Imagination Battle."

"Imagination Battle?"

"Yes. When the monsters attack, most of the people are going to watch. This sounds ridiculous. I know. But we never lost. It's more like an entertaining show." The bartender explained to the friends.

"Can we go to this Imagination Battle too?" Steve asked.

"Yea, Sure. Monsters attack usually every two days. After attacking today, the next time should be at that time. Will let you know beforehand."

Joe prepared meat stew, which they ate immediately even if it was boiling hot. After the meal, she showed them their rooms. It was nothing much, just a bed and a chest to hide personal belongings. But they didn't care. Both of them lay on the bed and fell asleep right away.

In the morning, they met before the tavern, with a plan to buy necessary supplies for further Stone adventures. Things like food supplies including meat, cheese, bread, and long-lasting fruits were obvious. Protective accessories on Steve were non-existing, and that was the most important thing to buy.

They stood before the shelves with leather armors when Steve asked, "I don't have money to buy anything. I can't afford any of these."

"Don't worry. I'll pay for you. I have a lot of money. Choose the one you like." Answered Whirl.

Steve chose white leather armor. It looked like it was torn from a snow tiger, popular in southern kingdoms.

"This one suits you. Hopefully, it's as tough as the animal it's made of." Summed up Whirl.

They spent the rest of the day shopping. After the meal Joe prepared, they went to their room and Archibald explained what to do to receive the right to wish from The Stone.

"Like I said. I can not give you an exact path how to receive the Stone Wish, but I have a feeling that it will have something to do with Imagination Battle."

"But you heard Joe," interrupted Steve, "we will only watch. The hunters never lost."

"This time will be different since I am around. Imagination Creatures will try to get to me."