After another day of traveling we have reached a village on a major road. I was told by Lya during the day that this place has an Inn because it is the halfway point between two major trade cities.
Currently both me Lya are wearing full rain capes with the hoods still covering our heads. According to her, humans and elves are at odds in this world, and half's are even more degraded, so we hide ourselves with the excuse of the rain. This town may be small compared to others but we separate from the guys, they are currently off 'working there magic' as Henry says getting us a room and information. we are tasked with getting provisions.
Since there is a small bazaar like tarp next to the Inn it shouldn't take too long for both of us to meet up after one is finnished. I decide to leave most of everything to Lya since this will be my first time in this world. Surprisingly it is not too different from bartering in my old world. Lya haggles back and forth with the low/high maneuver, if your wondering what it is, its where you as a buyer low ball the items you want as the merchant normally has scaled his prices. Eventually you end up, if you do it right, getting the goods for a much cheaper price then they wanted to sell it for. Then again this only works if they are willing to haggle and if your starting price or jumps are not insulting. What did amaze me was when she did the group sail tactic at the end. This is where you allow the seller to take a high price, as you don't haggle to much, then add in another item or two that is of much lower evaluation during haggles. Kinda like how you would try to buy some bread and say your would take it for x price if they add in some butter as well. what we ended up getting extra was a map, some packaging leaves, and voucher letter for my ID. That last one was from a larger scale merchant and for some reason I'm Lya's sister-in-law that just got freed from illegal slavers. Interesting lie for something that seems to be important to have.
After we gather the three bags of goods, I carry two of them, we end up entering the Inn by the Cafe/Bar entrance. Which is where we decided on as the meeting place. Both of us keep our capes on just like many of the patron here, but unlike them we keep the hoods on as well. We sit down at a table after telling the Barkeep a quick drink order. I keep myself to simple orders for now like how I just ordered whine, 'house's choice' as my drink. which made the tender smile and chuckle a little as he said something to a maid. Lya ordered something called Cambell juice, it ended up looking like apple juice. As for my drink, when it arrived I could see it bubble with carbonation. My first thought after seeing this was that Soda could be in this world. However it was quite delicious, I could easily see myself getting drunk off this whine.
Sensing what I wanted to ask for a while Lya pulls out the map and starts to show me where we are in relative to where we will be going.
"Currently we are at the road between Newbrook and Juno." Pointing to both cities receptively. "Not sure what this town is called, and it's not on the map, but it would be about here." She shows me about 2/3rds of the way to Juno from Newbrook. "The cemetery was about here, past the forest." what I did notice is that most of the features like forests, planes, rivers, ect. aren't named.
"does it have a name?"
"Only Elves name forests, dwarfs hills, and humans land masses like islands." Apparently every race names whats important according to them, and humans only care about nation and city names. It does make it easier to remember names of places, since all you have to say is that forests north of x town. However I feel slightly displeased. "however," she brings her finger to point up as if she is trying to make a one and shack it to emphasis a point. "Places that have important events, such as battles that end wars, or locations where hero's are named are the exception." After getting to know my surroundings with the maps help she rolls it up and hands it to me. "Keep this until you find a better one." words of wisdom indeed. Maps are god. After we enjoy whats left of our drinks in sudo peace.
Stolen novel; please report.
I cant help but overhear many conversations and the current one is even more interesting then the others.
Sitting across from us at there own table.
"At this rate we wont be able to make it in time."
"hold yourself bart, the only thing that will happen if we rush is destroyed goods."
"troops would rather have partial supplies then none."
It appears that they have been talking about some kind of fort near some mountains since our other two have arrived now I lower my attention on them and focus on my recent companions.
"wait long?" Henry smiles in his drenched self. Just to let you know the cape I am currently wearing was originally his, he lent it to me when me and Lya started our night watch since it looked like it would rain, little did I know he didn't have another one, I know I could have just used water aura to keep myself from having any detrimental status from the rain but he was adamant on having me wear it. And after Lya said it would be better to have something like this for today I merely borrowed it for the trip, still I feel sorry for him even now I am tempted to check if he has any sickness but refuse to embarrass him in front of all these people.
"Did you get another cape?" I respond in my agony.
He smiles to me yet again and I frown as I realize he didn't.
I don't know why but for some reason I feel like I'm an escort. and this team, no, Henry, mainly cause he is so incompetent in self preservation, is my client. Lya feels like a fellow hiree, and Amon is more of a capable friend to him. Thinking about this makes me smile, guess I really am attached to my old self. By the way, I have become completely accepted as a new person. My old self had died and my new body is my new self. Sure it is a game character, and I made it, but I felt myself die, and even after two days came to cope with everything as real. It may be fast or slow depending on how you look at it, but non-the-less everyone would eventually accept this type of scenario eventually.
Henry gives me another sly smile and I can tell he is trying to act cool, so I hit him dead between the eyes and forehead with a quick chop after lifting my hand slow both times before and after it and furrowing my brow to portray my distraught. Amon now smiles, "told you she would be mad." as he tries to comfort him into listening to better judgement in the future. We head to our rooms and I force Henry to go buy another cape before I let him sleep, since he most likely wont if I don't come down at least this hard on him.
That night however I had a dream about a past I knew nothing about, and woke up drenched in sweat without knowing much about it. Nothing but the fact that it was Vera's past and not mine. The dream, if I could call it that, was different but at the same time familiar. In fact even I'm not sure what I really saw.