We exited one of the Vale's postern gates twenty minutes later. During this stroll through the town, I got to see alot more of it. Most of it was what I would call rural. It mostly had the appearance of an old English suburb, but one that stretched for miles and miles. Only a few streets had the look of a medieval city setting, with most areas being these condensed neighborhoods with an equal sized swath of land separating each district.
I also learned more about my company during this twenty minute stretch. Rogers introduced me to his raptor, a pride of his family ranch that goes six generations back, who let out a sound that was more a squawk than the bestial roar I was expecting. The rest of the time, Rhoady chirped like a little bird would. It was fascinating to listen to the chain of sounds he made.
Rogers himself was from a long line of ranchers that raised these raptors. From the sound of it, crested raptors like Rhoady are not commonly used as mounts in the more human-centric areas of this world. That beast of burden is still the horse, but the Rogers breed were a group that had long been known for their domestication. Meaning, a Rogers raptor would not likely tear your guts out.
What's more - the carriage ride itself was rather comforable, all things considering. Its overall appearance was akin to a cyclo and it could comfortably seat two. It even had a little canopy to block out some of the sun and harsher weather effects. And my escort was quite proud of his little 'pony' and went into some detail on its make. Its base construction was of ironwood material with silver imbued iron railing enchanted with a Fortification spell. Rogers was especially proud of the two large wheels, almost as tall as the cab. The rim was of Carbonite, here I learned the common name given to the end product of a magical process that turns iron into a steel variant. The spokes were of a steel that had been naturally 'rippled' to have great flexibility yet retain its shape. He then went into great detail in how his were made thiner so he could use more (28) in the wheel's setting, creating a better balance to absorb shock and reduce the tensions of travel.
But, it was the tire Rogers was the most proud of. It seems most wheels in this new world share in its more medieval counterpart. Ergo - wood. Although, my escort explained the wheels of his 'pony' was outfitted with a dense cover harvested from the sap of a rubber tree. I recognized the tire immediately as it was, but I did not stop him from going over its practical purposes. It was interesting hearing it all from a fantasy perspective. This is supposedly very rare in the new world as it takes an alchemist class to synthesize it into its more modern finish.
It was right about the time Rogers got done explaining why the 'tyre' makes his wheels spin better that we had gotten past the gate and into the clear green countryside. There was a clear dirt road going into the far distance. However, the sounds of clinking interrupted my attention as I glanced over to see what my taxi was running over.
"What is that noise?" I was worried since I saw what looked to be small and dull objects scattered all about the entry path. Some were planted so deep into the ground that it looked like a pebbled road.
Rogers took a quick glance back and just scoffed to it, "Those are just pennies."
"Huh? Why would people throw money away like that?"
The rider laughed as he said, "You never heard the saying, 'Tossing Pennies'?"
"Like the kid's game?" Was he talking about 'Pitching Pennies'? My escort laughed even more.
"Nay. The expression of good fortune. You know - tossing a handful of pennies. To mark good times had." I was still a little confused but Rogers went on, "Merchants do it all the time, like after they leave a town after a successful run. So finding pennies at the gates became a telltale the area is a good place to do business. Visiting merchants here do it all the time before they even enter the Vale, thinking it will grant them good luck to sell their wares."
Interesting premise there. "So why don't poor people just... pick all that up?"
"Because they're just pennies," Rogers said with a shrug. "But if you suddenly find them missing at your town gates, then it is an omen," here he looked back to tell me, "bad things are brewing in its walls."
Rather odd custom, if you ask me, but I didn't voice it. I can see the merit of its lore, so I left the discussion there while I took a better view of the change in scenery.
"Okay, hold on." Rogers said after we made it about a hundred feet from the gate. "We gonna pick up the pace now, the first ten seconds of this can be a little jumpy." I had the little harness his cab provided strapped, so it could not be that bad right. Well, I was wrong when his raptor mount bolted after the sound of a crack.
For the most part, we had been travelling at a brisk pace. No more than 6 miles per hour. Now we were pushing 30. The first couple bumps nearly lifted me off the seating but the harness kept me in place. Then everything seem to settle down as the cab adjusted to the raptor's speed and the axis with the wheels stabled out.
"WWHEEWWW!!!" Rogers shouted loudly after the first couple seconds of it was over. He looked back at me to make sure I still alive. I was probably frozen in a white expression.
"Hahh! Sorry bout that, bud. Just a little something I do lighten the mood." After a while, I too started to laugh with him as I relaxed to enjoy the sights. Though I did make sure I still had everything equipped.
The rest of the drive went on smoothly, save for one little stop twenty minutes in where the rider politely excused himself to go do some "relieving". I really did not want to think about this, the medieval bathroom, but I thankfully felt none of the same need thus far. I've been in this world for almost three hours now, and I wasn't even thirsty. I did eat that Mini-Ration, but I should have needed something to drink by now, right? As we got moving again, I brought this up my escort; in the off-chance he had prepared some snacks or refreshments for the road to which he replied-
"Of course. Never go anywhere without my kits." From his seat, he pointed to his large duffle bag.
Curious, I asked, "Is that one of those Explorer Packs?" It looked like it, but I had to be sure.
"Yep. Not as fancy as your ring, but it gets the cramming done." I bit a laugh at his description of packing for a haul. Just to confirm, I used [Scan] on the bag and it came up as an Explorer Pack with a 68 stone limit. There were also various cursive words in its window describing its make and style, add-on features, and even a tally of its current storage value being near 64 stones. That means Rogers is carrying almost 900 pounds of weight in his magic duffle.
"What the hell are you carrying man," but it would be too intrusive a question to ask. Instead I could only wonder what all he was cramming in there.
Rogers looked back to ask if I wanted to take a little snack break. "I got a canteen and some cups. And some dried jerky strips in there."
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"No, thank you. I was just wondering, just in case, you know," I answered in a way to leave the possibility open for later.
"Just let me know if you need a break. I can even make some tea later, if you prefer." I thanked Rogers for the offer while my eye went back to the scenic views.
About 20 minutes later, we passed a very handsome and big tree that was clearly being used as a road sign. It sat in its own fenced and plotted garden, with its bark having been carved and painted on with numerous pictures. One of its long branches even had hanging signs, not unlike those found in Japan. Of course, I could read the latter and not the scribblings of the former.
That was when Rogers turned back to say, "We just entered the Burg territory. We should be able to see that hill castle in a couple minutes." And just as he said, a nice sized castle started to come into view. I noticed that more ragged looking travellers were on the road here, but most of them were walking with what looked like old hobo sticks. You'd think in a world of magic, life would become more convenient for the masses, but I guess not.
Another minute later, the detail of the castle estate could be better seen. Here my escort explained this locale to me like a tour guide. Seems this Burg estate is one of the oldest country manors in the region sitting on some 8 square miles. The castle was built high and in the middle of four roads, each road being considered its own village line. Supposedly the local lords of this region date back to a famous Imperial knight.
"They say - three times in the past, the Burgs were ousted from this territory. Yet each new lord who claimed rights here met an untimely death. I think the last Lord-to-be choked on a fork. Story was he died hacking blood all over his lordship feast." I was told when I asked about the client's family history. It was a curious story to hear because the original Burg who settled here and made it some kind of feudal state, earned some kind of 'dominion' which was then passed onto his descendants.
"So only his bloodline could inherit?" I queried.
"That's what the stories imply," as Rogers laughed it off. "Probably a bunch of hooey though. Still the Burgs are good people."
As we entered the western village line, Rogers had his raptor return to a brisk pace as we passed through and turned back to say, "I heard about the accident here with the young Burg heir. Terrible thing."
"What happened?"
"Got thrown off his horse and tumbled down a wayside. Word is - only bone he didn't break was his neck."
"So... why is the guild request, just to cure his blindness then?" I was now confused to the aim here.
"Oh, I'm sorry Rikku-kun. The boy fell about a month ago. I hear the priests were able to mend his body, but they couldn't heal any of the lingering effects. That sometimes happens when you don't provide enough coin. Or perhaps he really was that injured." It didn't take him long to become overly friendly, did he. It caused me to smile though. But what was this about the 'coin'.
"Do you mean the priests charge alot of money for healing?"
"Well," Rogers thought about it for a long moment before saying, "they aren't suppose to. Technically everyone is suppose to donate to the Temples, and those proceeds are used to aid in their 'selfless service across the land'," the rider doing finger quotes for the last five words. "But the Order has alot of pull, because they control the Temples with an iron glove. And most of those with the gift for the Divine Arts join or get drafted into one of the Faiths when they are little."
"But, what about knights." In most fantasy settings, knights were those who swore their sword to God and country. Even in my world, knights were a 'thing' in Christian fables.
"They have their own Knight corps too. The most actually." Rogers was sounding the most grounded now since we began our journey here but he put next, "I don't think you've seen it yet, but the Temple in the Vale is not like those found in the Empire. I hear those are like palaces in comparison to ours. See out here in the Frontier, we get the scraps. But at the same time, we are not under their direct authority."
This gave me alot to think about. It seems this Empire to the north is some kind of superpower nation in this world setting. I also overheard a topic in the Explorers Guild about the Beastmen Kingdoms they are constantly at odds with. But judging by the sounds of it, had I landed somewhere in this Empire, I'd likely be turned into a healing 'slave' by this Order. I think I saw a manga like that before.
During this discussion, we had reached the main gatehouse leading to the castle proper. From the distance, It looks like this estate has a winding road three levels deep leading to the entrance way. But what was more the surprising was to the see the rather tidy village laying on the road leading here. Going by appearances of those on the road, I would have thought this area would more resemble a slum, but the roads were wide and clean, and the buildings in good condition. Most were even made of rock and stone. It was a good feeling atmosphere.
Turns out I had to provide proof I was here at the behest of the Explorers Guild, which was easy enough to prove by handing the gate captain its request form that had been stamped. Then our raptor ride was let on through, though this time we had another escort of two guards following us on foot. I couldn't help but check them with [Scan], just to make sure they would not be a danger if they were to turn and start poking us with those pikes.
The grounds here in this castle estate was really something quite amazing. Living in a city all my life, I never had anything that could be considered a 'country' experience. The closest thing was seeing pictures of this on the net or watching some old European documentary. Courtyards like this may have been common enough in fantasy animes or even video games, but I'm finding it does not compare to the real thing. But it does make me wonder how they keep all this grass maintained without the more modern lawn care products. Was there a special magic used or a class system devoted to landscaping?
It took some ten minutes for us to circle around to the entrance area, since my ride had to slow its pace to match the walking guardsmen. Finally though we reached the main entrance area before the castle entrance way. It was a gorgeous setting. Here we had to stop, because the rest of the way was by an impressive stone staircase.
I stretched out my back a little as I finally got out the little cab with Rogers dismounting to stand by his raptor. The guards who followed us asked for us to wait here so they can go explain our presence to the lord inside, since ours was an unauthorized visit. In the meantime, I just kept taking glances at and around the beautiful exterior and castle grounds. From this higher vantage, it was quite the vista below and across the distance.
Another couple minutes later, the same two guards came down the stairs with the classical man-servant person. He looked almost entirely the same as those butlers found in your traditional fantasy anime. Elderly but spry, a full set of pale gray hair neatly parted, and a light beard with a curved mustache. Even the tips of his hairstyle and his eyebrows had a touch of a curl. His full garb was a full black button jacket, black trousers, slick black shoes, with a white undershirt you could barely see. The only colorful part about his apperance was a red-striped ribbon around his neckline. Everything about his appearance was clean and tapered.
I had to know if this old geezer was not hiding some badass ability, so I whispered [Scan] and breathed out a little sigh of relief. Nothing about him really stood out as 'dangerous':
Name: Morris, Wunderle (surname)
Race: Hume
Class List
lv.14 Steward
lv.30 Mage
lv.68 Villager
Stats
Strength - 42, Vitality - 55, Agility - 40, Dexterity - 42, Magicka - 60, Spirit - 60, Luck - 5
Skillset
Fire Magic: 4, Ice Magic: 3, Earth Magic: 3, Wind Magic: 4, Dark Magic: 2, Cantrips, Prestidigitation
Feats
MP Shave +15, Insight, Keen Eye, Extra Support
Titles
n/a
Going by this window, Morris seems to be a 'magic' butler of some kind. Seems I'm relatively safe here. The two guards stopped on the third to last step and stood vigil while Morris came up to me, did a little bow, and said-
"Burg-sama has granted your request." His voice was prim and proper as befitting his appearance yet went on, "But the lord wishes to know, if you would permit him a meeting with you first." I had no idea how to answer this, so I looked to Rogers who simply nodded at me. Perhaps that was the 'norm' here.
I gave Morris a nod and said the three lettered word. "Thank you. Then follow me young man," as he gestured towards the main entrance.
I took a couple steps forward before remembering something and looked back to Rogers, wasn't he going to come with me. My escort seemed to know what I was about to say and waved me off, "Don't worry. I'll be here when you get back."
So I turned around and followed the butler up the stone stairs.