The afternoon sun was shining over the town of Rath. Its narrow streets were full of children who enjoyed their summer while their parents were busying themselves either at the marketplace for groceries or at the tavern to laze away the remainder of their day with bellies full of cold beverages and food. Rath was a small town, an endpoint for the traveling merchants as it was next to the Bleakpeak Mountains. However, this town had an unusual characteristic to it.

Unlike other small towns, it was fortified with thick stone walls due to the constant monster attacks. People suspected that rather than protecting them, it was to protect the constant stream of supplies going to the Settre Outpost, which guarded the mountains.

While the townsfolk were minding their own day-to-day dealings, an astonished Lila was observing the town from afar, with Crystal on her side. She could barely see the bustling interior of the town from that distance but that was enough to make her decision.

Having checked the view, Lila turned her attention to Crystal with her eyebrow raised, smirking, "Do you see any other floating crystals?"

"No, I'm not doing that. I. am. not." Crystal protested.

"We talked about this. You're going into the bag," Lila said.

Furious, Crystal answered in kind, "How about we put you into the bag?! I'm not doing that."

"You either do or we can't go in. You'll draw too many eyes on us Crystal. You always tell me to be reasonable, now it's your turn."

Knowing that she was right, Crystal eventually surrendered. It opened the flap of her backpack and floated inside. Satisfied with Crystal's compliance, Lila set on her way toward the gate of the town. As she kept walking, she couldn't take her eyes off the magnificent stone walls. She was so amazed that she didn't notice the two guards clad in metal armor, standing in front of her, their crossed spears blocking her way in.

With a loud warning, one of the guards addressed her,

"Halt! Who are you and why are you entering Rath from the eastern gate?

This suddenly snapped Lila out of her amazement. Now faced with two burly man and their spears in front of her, she was left speechless.

The guard continued, "Speak! Or you will be forced to leave!"

Lila managed to compose herself a little bit. This was bad, she didn't think of this situation, at all,

"I'm... lost. I came from far away... to trade," she barely managed to blurt out, stuttering.

The hesitation in her voice made the guard suspicious. Merchants don't get lost that easily, especially if they are visiting Rath.

However, after noticing the young girl's weak physique and gaunt face, it didn't take long for him to soften up. She truly looked as if she got lost and barely managed to find her way back to civilization.

With a softened expression, "Where did you come from? How did you get lost?" The guard probed further.

Noticing the guard's change of heart, Lila began to tell her story, with slight alterations of course.

"I'm from Meadowside, sir. It's far away from here, beyond the mountains. My father is a crystal worker so I'm here to sell his latest work,"

She added, "Four men chased me into those woods from the main road. I managed to lose them but I got lost me'self, I thought I wouldn't make it out alive!"

After listening to her story, the guard decided that she was indeed telling the truth. Although he never heard of this "Meadowside" before.

"I have a daughter almost your age, a bit shorter than you. It's a miracle you've made it here. But we still need to search you."

Lila's eyes sparkled, "Aye sir, please go ahead," she said, playing on her innocent young girl role even further.

"Stop calling me "sir", lass. I'm neither a knight nor a noble, just a guard doing his duty. Okay, let's get this over with, shall we?"

After a thorough search, the guards didn't find anything out of the ordinary. Just like she said, the only thing that was unusual was the crystal in her bag.

Relieved that the girl wasn't lying, "Okay, all seems normal. Welcome to Rath! Enjoy your stay... And what was your name again?" The guard asked.

With a face akin to a trusting puppy, "It's Lila! Nice to meet'cha."

Now with a fatherly tone, the guard said,

"Enjoy your stay, Lila. Don't forget to visit the tavern for a room. And when you're there, say that Aranth sent you. The barkeep will know what to do."

Seeing her confused look, he continued, "Continue straight ahead, the tavern will be on your left. It has a sign with a red mug, you can't miss it."

Before Lila departed, Aranth added, "By the way, the town alchemist is out so I doubt you'll be able to have that crystal appraised. Nosdramo is probably the only one around here who could have given it a proper appraisal."

This sudden revelation was a gut punch to Lila. The alchemist Aranth mentioned was the very same man whom she left for dead back in the forest.

Her expression suddenly soured, and her pale face went even whiter. In the end, he didn't make it... Aranth noticed Lila's sour expression. Poor girl, all that trouble for basically nothing. Feeling sad, he reached for his pouch and took out 20 bronze pieces.

He handed the money to the confused girl, "Go buy some food, Lila. Come on now don't be shy, take it. Don't worry about it, okay?"

Lila begrudgingly took the money, feeling much worse about the situation. She stepped inside the town with a heavy heart. Crystal, on the other hand, was surprised throughout the entirety of the encounter. This young girl was a natural at lying.

Whispering to her mind,

"Were you always this good at lying, lassie?"

Lila took offense to Crystal's words. She didn't lie, did she? No, she just bent the truth a little, that wasn't lying.

Her face soured even further with Crystal's statement, "I didn't lie Crystal... I just changed the truth."

Annoyed with her feigned innocence, Crystal answered,

"We will have a long talk about what lying is, girl." It continued, "Just find the tavern first before you drop dead."

Dismissing the crystal in her bag, Lila kept on following the instructions given to her by Aranth, finding the tavern soon after just like the guard had said. Standing in front of the tavern's door, she hesitated about going in. Wanting to see more of this place before locking herself in a room again, her curiosity got the better of her. Crystal, although annoying, was also speaking the truth, a loud growl constantly hounded Lila since her food ran out yesterday.

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Thus, Lila journeyed deeper into the town.

Though her hunger was getting worse, it was soon forgotten as she laid her eyes on the architecture of this extraordinary town. Houses made out of stone, roads made out of slabs of rock, a fountain in the middle of the town with water spraying on top... If someone had told her of a town like this in Gladeside, she would have probably dismissed it as a fairy tale.

Having walked for a while, admiring the sight before her eyes, she suddenly found herself surrounded by people in a square full of stalls and goods, with their owners yelling their lungs out to attract customers.

"Fresh fruit! Get your fresh fruits here! No finer fruit in all of Rath folks!"

The stall owner was immersed in his business as usual. However, a young girl approaching the stall with a silver coin in her hand immediately drew his attention. His eyes opened wide in surprise, did this girl intend to buy out whatever was left of his stock?

Barely hiding his excitement, he greeted this esteemed customer with the utmost respect, "Welcome, welcome! How may this humble vendor help you, ma'am?"

Lila couldn't get her eyes off the apples on the stall's counter, "I want apples. Can I get three of your juiciest ones?"

Disappointed, the vendor's face immediately fell down. If you're going to buy apples worth 15 copper coins, you better hand copper coins. Don't play with a man's feelings by showing him something worth 200 copper coins!

The vendor took the silver coin and let her have the apples, though he did give the juiciest ones.

Placing the coin in his personal pouch, he crouched to reach the bag behind the counter, full of copper coins.

Almost emptying the entire thing, he got back on his feet with her change,

"Okay missy, here is your cha..."

No one was there. She... left? The vendor was confused, did she actually leave without her money? No, that can't be it. No one would spend a silver coin on three apples. Maybe she was rich? Yes, that must be it, she's probably a rich girl, feeling generous. Bah, the nerve of these rich types...

Still, the vendor was more than happy to accept this act of charity. She may be rich enough to give a silver coin for basically nothing but he wasn't that proud to reject such a gift.

Whilst this was going on, a satisfied Lila was gorging on the juiciest apples she ever had.

With a huge smile on her face, "See Crystal? I'm getting the hang of things. I just spent money to buy something, like how you said it works!"

In contrast to her delight, Crystal was abhorred, "You just gave a man a silver coin, for three apples... Those apples better be good kid."

"Why? Is that bad? You said people use these coins to buy things. I gave money to buy something I needed. Did I do something wrong?"

"Yes, you got it correct. But imagine this, would you give someone a sheep's pelt for a couple of apples?"

"No, why would I? That would be a scam—"

Lila's thoughts were cut short. It finally struck her, she overpaid for the apples! And that stinking vendor didn't correct her at all!

Furious, Lila rushed back to the fruit vendor.

With her usual fiery eyes and furrowed eyebrows, she stormed the marketplace and approached the stall.

"Give me back my money!" Lila yelled.

The sudden yelling made the Vendor acknowledge the girl's presence.

"I have no idea what you're talking about kid. You gave me 15 copper coins and I gave you three apples. Now shoo, before I call the guards."

"FINE, CALL THEM! JUST GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY! I GAVE YOU A SILVER COIN, NOT COPPER ONES!"

Noticing that the girl wasn't willing to let go without a fight, Vendor decided to take things up a notch. Raising his voice to produce witnesses when the guards arrive,

"You? Look at you! As if you'd have a silver coin. You're just a poor beggar trying to hustle an honest fruit vendor out of his money! Now go away before I make you kid."

Before she could continue, the argument was cut short by a short yet bulky lady loudly dropping a basket full of fruits on the stall counter.

Turning her head to the vendor, she began to scold the man, "Are you trying to scam a little girl? Just look at her! You either give her what you took, or I'll make sure you eat nothing tonight, you useless oaf!"

With his wife scolding him, the man suddenly took on a submissive stance. The vendor, with a soft voice, "But she gave me the silver coin and didn't even ask for her change. I thought she wanted me to keep the rest!"

Even more annoyed, "Maybe that's because she's starving? Why did you even ask for money from the poor girl?" The wife said. Now turning her attention to Lila, she asked, "How long have you been out there?"

Without skipping a beat, she opened her bag and began to tell her story, "It's almost been two weeks ma'am. I'm from Meadowside, far beyond the mountains. I came here to appraise my father's work but the town alchemist isn't here... I don't know what to do."

The Vendor's wife was touched by her story. This poor soul was starving and she came all the way here for nothing. On top of all that, she was scammed by a sleazy fruit vendor.

Slapping the back of her husband's head, she took the silver coin and gave it back to Lila, along with a small sack of apples.

"Here you go. Be more careful, okay? Don't forget to take the rest of your money next time." The wife said. "Also, don't go waving that crystal to people, not all folks down in Rath are friendly." She concluded with a big, motherly smile.

Lila returned the smile, her eyes brightened up, "Thank you, ma'am! I'll be more careful I promise!"

After saying her goodbyes to the wife, she took an apple out of the sack and took a big bite out of it while giving the husband a cold, dead stare before going away. With the marketplace left behind, Lila strolled through the streets of Rath before finally getting back to the tavern. Swinging the door open, she was instantly greeted with a thick fog of smoke and the smell of cooked meat. The interior of the tavern was dimly lit. Its patrons minding their own business, with a barkeep attending to his customers. After dealing with them, he walked back to the counter and began cleaning a mug. However, he finally took notice of the gaunt-looking young girl standing in the doorway.

Addressing her with a loud voice, "Are you lost, little girl? Where are your parents?"

It took a while for Lila to answer the man since she was still gasping for air. Gotten somewhat used to the smoke, she managed to answer him, "I'm not that young. It has been 19 summer solstices since I was born."

This answer caught the barkeep off-guard. The last time he heard anyone declare their age with solstices was when he asked his grandpa how old he was.

With a confused look on his face, "19 summer solstices? So you are 19 years old?"

"Yes. I'm 19 years old."

Satisfied with the answer, the barkeep gestured for Lila to come inside. She walked over to the bar and took a seat on one of the stools in front of him.

After sitting down, Lila took a good look and noticed that this middle-aged man had scars on his face with a couple of stitch marks on his big forearms. His brown hair wasn't well kept and his greying beard was rough.

An awkward silence fell between the barkeep and Lila.

The Barkeep, deciding to break the silence,

"So, does this 19-year-old girl have a name?"

"It's Lila, nice to meet you."

"Lila, huh? I'm Mardro, owner of this tavern. So Lila, what brings you here? Can I get you something to drink?"

Remembering the woman's advice from before, Lila explained her situation,

"I came from far away. Aranth the guard sent me here. He said you would help me settle."

Mardro's eye twitched in frustration. Slapping the counter with his broad hands, he roared, "HAH! Another poor traveler, another case of charity. That fool never learns... Sorry kiddo, business might be booming but I'm all out of charity. If you have money, you can stay. Otherwise, I'll just give you something to eat and something to drink but that's it."

Having listened to Mardro's rant, Lila quietly reached for her pouch and tossed the silver coin on the counter,

"How long can I stay here with this then?"

Mardro the Barkeep was shocked. His friend actually sent someone with money this time! His expression changed and he began to address her as a real client again,

"Okay, normally that would get you 3 nights with meals but Aranth sent you... 5 nights with meals included."

Lila nodded her head, accepting the man's offer. Mardro took the silver coin on the counter and showed Lila her way to her room. Going upstairs, they stopped in front of a large wooden door.

"This is where you'll be staying. I'll bring your meal too, wait inside."

With the barkeep going downstairs, Lila went inside, locking the door behind her. It was a spacious room with a large bed clad in soft sheets, a drawer for her clothes, and a window overlooking the main street. She even saw the fountain when she hung over the window frame.

After everything she's been through, she finally had a moment to rest. With hopeful eyes, she kept looking out the window, knowing that her luck finally turned around.