Jidsin slathered a green, translucent paste onto Aodhán's wounds, then applied it a bit more sparingly to 'Ri', which was the name Wylaena had insisted animatedly be the name Aodhán gave the dog that had been accompanying him thus far.

Ri clearly liked the name, especially after Wylaena had come over and begun to pet her and scratch her belly. Aodhán decided that it was a decent name and didn't really want to ruin Wylaena's fun, so he gave in and let it be.

The paste that clung cooly to his wounds had been harvested from a plant that Jidsin grew in the infirmary. They gathered a sample of his skin and did some test to it and some kind of seed before planting it in a little pot.

Within minutes, the seed had grown into a decent sized flowering plant. Then, the flower closed up and grew into a round, green fruit. Jidsin plucked it quickly, punched a hole into the fruit, then squeezed the green paste out. That had been a minute ago, and now Aodhán could feel the stuff already working.

He watched in amazement as the paste moved into his open wounds filling any gaps before changing into new, soft tissue. It only took a few seconds before it had finished and he felt at his sides where the wounds used to be. Not even a residue remained, and it felt as if he had never been injured in the first place.

"That's incredible!" He turned to Jidsin, who had just finished applying Ri's plant paste to her. "I don't feel any pain or anything!"

The petals on Jidsin's face fluttered as they nodded in a self satisfied motion. "Yes, my techniques are quite effective. If you wish to have it packaged for reuse in case of future bodily harm, come and visit my stall on the north side of the city when I'm not on duty."

He nodded. "If I ever get hurt again, I definitely will, Thank you!" He reached out to shake Jidsin's hand and had to fight off a shiver as the weird, cool texture of their skin brushed against his own.

Mumiora opened the door and beckoned to him. "Alright, let's get you to the interrogation room and figure this out."

Ri hopped off the infirmary bed and trotted after him as he followed the two Spears out the door and down a new hallway away from the common area.

"Interrogation? Are you sure you're not arresting me?" His words came out with a bit more confidence than they had when he asked before. He had the sense they didn't mean him any ill or harm and that he'd probably be alright as long as he cooperated. Mostly, anyway.

Mumiora stopped at a heavy looking door and opened it, ushering the rest of them in. "No, not unless it turns out you did something bad." She hesitated just for a moment before reassuring him. "You don't give that kind of impression, this room is just for privacy."

He gave her a nod and stepped in. There was a single square table in the center of the room with three chairs on one side and a single chair on the other. Wylaena had already sat down on the side with three and motioned for him to sit on the opposite side.

He sat and Ri joined him at his side, nudging his hand and giving it a few licks. He chuckled and scratched behind her ears before focusing in as Mumiora joined Wylaena's side of the table.

"Alright, no need for formalities in this situation. This is just going to be us figuring out what is happening, so let's all just relax. No one is in trouble, and no one needs to be." She relaxed in her chair slightly. Wylaena had already been fully reclined in her chair, leaning it back on two legs and pushing her feet against one of the table legs. Aodhán simply sat up straight.

"Aodhán, you seem unfamiliar with a lot of things that are obvious to any regular person. Maybe you are from someplace far away and things are just different there, or maybe not." She continued. "Regardless of why you don't know these things, we should start there and build an understanding. First, can you tell us why we find it odd that you came to Triel by walking through the forest?"

He blinked. Memories of his short adventure through the woods played in his mind; His sudden and terrifying arrival, Ri finding him, getting attacked in the night, and carrying Ri out of the forest and into Triel.

"I mean, aside from stumbling out of the woods and up to your gate unannounced, not really. For me, this whole experience has been odd, so I don't know if I can distiguish between what is or is not weird. Honestly, I was hoping you two could make send of all of this."

Mumiora folded her arms. "See? That right there is what is odd. You don't know. The forests around Triel are UnLands, minor though they be. Without special Curios to navigate through, you would be lost forever, incapable of leaving except by the smallest chance." She leaned over the table, carefully observing him. "I wonder, do you even know what the UnLands are? What dangers they pose? You even have a Curio in your possession, and it is probably what saved you but you don't even realize it. No one, anywhere in this world, would be as clueless as you are right now. That alone is reason enough for me to be suspicious."

Aodhán was speechless. He didn't know anything about what she just told him. His phone, or rather his 'Curio', did have a map on it so that part could be true. For all he had been honest about his predicament, it was like she saw right through him. He felt his heart beat quicken and he paled slightly. He hadn't done anything wrong, but what if he said something normal to him but bad to them and they decided he was a risk and kicked him out of the city? If he truly was in some weird other world, he had no idea how to survive against whatever was out there. Worse yet, they might think he was an immediate threat and lock him up and execute him.

Aodhán's swell of anxiety began to show as cold sweat began to bead on his forehead and neck. "No, no! I swear I'm not out to do anything bad! I don't want to hurt anyone, I just-"

"Just?" Mumiora raised an eyebrow as she added pressure to the interrogation this had quickly become. "Just what? Are you a scout from some far off place? A barbarian from beyond the The World Embrace? A horror in disguise from the UnLands?" She hadn't said it aggressively or raised her voice, but there was a serious edge to her tone that wasn't there before and it was focused on him.

Wylaena shifted, ever slightly so that her spear fell into her grip and her legs tucked under the chair as she braced to move. Her laid-back and casual demeanor was gone now, replaced with an expression even the toughest around would think twice about provoking.

In no time at all, Aodhán had gone from relative safety to fearing for his life. The two guardswomen now seemed to loom over him, their every move intent on finding him guilty of some evil. All of the events leading up to this moment, all of those bottled feelings had reached a limit long ago, and now the cork on the bottle was finally about to give.

The swirl of panicked emotions blazed into an out of control inferno that quickly spread from his chest to his head and limbs.

"No!" Unable to control himself any longer, he exploded. He choked down a sob as he began to plead. "No! I promise, I'm not evil, or some- some horror or spy or anything like that! I-I-I- was just out for a walk, getting dinner for my folks and then there was this weird performer and smoke and I passed out and when I woke up I was in the middle of the woods and it was weird and I don't know where I-"

"Again, you don't know, but you still haven't explained where you are from and what your plan has been since you got here." Mumiora sounded frustrated now, clearly she wasn't going to buy anything but the truth.

Aodhán felt the last of his composure crumble as the world around him faded. "I don't know where I am!" He screamed. "I don't know why I'm here, or why things are different, or what to do! I don't even know what I fucking want from all this!"

The inferno raging within him consumed all of his fear and pain as it all turned to anger and rage. He knew that no good would come from what came next, but there was no stopping it now.

His voice trembled as the adrenaline still in him fed his anger. "I tried. I tried this whole time to keep myself calm and reasonable but every time I get past one problem two more take its place, and now I'm here, pathetically begging you to believe me, because I need help! I know I'm overreacting! I know that any reasonable person wouldn't have their emotions flip a switch and go out of control, but I can't help it, damn it all!" His fist had slammed into the table hard before he even realized he had started to move it. "I'm just as confused and suspicious as you are! I don't know you people, I've never heard of Thylvens or Kiher or whatever random fantasy species exist in this place! I'm not from this world! I'm not supposed to be here and I don't want to be either!"

His outrage cooled with each word, slowly settling into a simmering frustration. "I nearly died last night, had to kill a living creature, and then I find this city and think I have answers and safety only to find myself on trial with no way home and no way to talk to anybody I know. You can ask as many question about what I know as you want, but the answer for them all will be the same. I do not know. I don't know anything! The things I do know probably aren't relevant to any discussion we could have, so just stop and listen to me!"

The world came back into focus and Aodhán looked up at Mumiora and Wylaena. Their faces were surprised, but he didn't detect any real anger. He immediately felt ashamed. His cheeks flushed.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have exploded like that. You're right to make sure I'm not a potential threat to the city." A long sigh escaped his from his mouth. "If you don't trust me or believe me, I can accept that, but I want you to give me a chance. I'd rather be friends than enemies. You can monitor me or whatever, but until I figure out what the hell I am going to do going forward I'd like to ask for help. Will you help me?"

Mumiora and Wylaena stared at him as he met their eyes, their expressions stupified as they processed the sudden outburst and information dump. The two exchanged a long look in the ensuing silence.

Wylaena cracked a smile. "Woooow, he broke under the pressure real quick! Must be a new record! Did you use any Traits on him? You must have not held back." She turned to Aodhán, beaming with a glint in her eye. "And you! You are absolutely crazy! What was that outburst! Ha! You've got a lot of passion burning in you, I can tell. Now I gotta know, is it true? You came from another world? Is everyone there like you? I gotta visit sometime if so!" She laughed heartily without any care for the mood.

The tension in the room immediately dissipated. Aodhán felt the relief and found himself grateful for her irreverant response. Mumiora settled back and she answered Wylaena's question. "I was prepared to, but he seemed to do it all himself. I did use my [Truth Sense] ability and everything he said is at least true to him."

Now that Mumiora's intensity was gone, everyone in the room seemed to breathe again, her included. She seemed to reflect and the slightest hint of regret flashed across her face. "Aodhán, I apologize for the discomfort. It's part of how my ability works, and using it was necessary to reveal the truth without leaving room for doubt. I did not know it would have such an effect on you."

Ability? Like a useable skill in a game? He did not like that at all. There was too much he didn't know about this world, and the amount he realized he didn't know kept growing faster and faster.

Still, he was torn. Here was someone who oozed a sense of honor bound duty, willing and ready to do right by the law and the people regardless of her own feelings and attachments. She was a rare breed back in his world. At the same time, she had used… something on him that he still didn't fully understand and it felt a lot like coercion. It wasn't right, and he didn't know if he should let it go or call her out.

He decided that there were more important things to focus on right now, like securing his immediate future until he could figure things out. For now, he would cooperate. Besides, they didn't seem to be malicious or evil in any way, just a lot different than what he was used to.

Mumiora looked at him with realization. "So if you aren't from this world like you say, and you aren't familiar with Classes, did you not have one until today?"

"No, nothing like that at all. Concepts like Classes only exist in fiction where I am from, and the concept is very new, only going back five or six decades." He pulled out his phone and showed them the app that displayed the [Indomitable] class on it. "I woke up in the woods with this thing. We call it a smart phone where I am from. It's not magic, but instead a carefully engineered device that's capable of long distance communication, mathematics, capturing images, playing sound… a whole lot of things, actually." He scrolled through the app not bothering to read any of the details present from when he first noticed the class earlier. He closed the app and showed off a few of its other features. "But this thing is different. Normally, we use something called a screen to display the information like this. It's really just a lot of extremely tiny lights arrayed in a grid that can change color. They work together to form images."

He locked the phone's screen, revealing the smooth stone-like surface and running his fingers over it. "This thing looks like a smart phone, but it's made entirely out this weird material. It feels like a mix of metal and stone. It also has similar functions to what I'm used to, with some major differences of course."

He turned it back on and pointed to the map and system apps. "These two, for instance. The map app… Oh, apps are what we call these different functions. Anyways, the map normally already has a full map that you can see with different routes and locations already marked for you. You can give it a destination and it will guide you to it, even telling you how far away you are and how long it will take to arrive."

Mumiora and Wylaena's foreheads scrunched up as they processed what he was saying. They were nodding along at various points in his explanation that made sense so they were following along, though it clearly was either baffling or difficult to keep up with.

Aodhán smiled as a memory of his mother holding her phone at the furthest length she could extend her arm, trying desperately to see the online slot machine before letting out a shriek of excitement, yelling for him to 'get his tucus over there' and helped her figure out how to collect her winnings. It was only a few dollars, but she was happy, and that made him feel good.

He wondered if maybe there would be a time when he wouldn't be bending over backwards just for the chance for things to work out, the way he'd always dreamed they could. Those few memories of making his parents happy, of those short lived friendships in school, the meaningless conversations he'd have with total strangers in an online chat room or at the end of the rare victory in a battle royale.

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Such a life was a world away now. Each realization of that fact nearly caused his brain to crash and sent him reeling. He knew he would have to face that sooner or later, but for now there was simply too much to do.

"Uhm… Aodhán?" Wylaena's voice nearly startled him and her hand waved uncomfortably close to his face. "You okay there? Do I need to poke you with something?" She grinned as she lifted the blunt end of her spear over the table and play jabbed at his torso.

Reflexively he leaned back, more in annoyance than anything. "Y-yeah! I'm fine, I just got distracted by a memory from home, that's all." He gingerly pushed the end of the spear away from him and forced a smile. "Where was I?"

Mumiora waved her hand at the phone. "You were just explaining this 'map app' and how the one on this Curio differed from the devices in your world."

"Right, the map. The ones from my world showed everything around you and could tell you how to get from one place to another. This one seems to work by updating a blank map with my surroundings whenever I go places. I haven't investigated it enough to know if it does more." The similarity to maps in video games crossed his mind briefly, but explaining that would be too much all at once so he tucked that thought away for later. He closed the map app and opened the one labeled 'System'.

"This app seems to have information about Classes and the like. I think it's supposed to list them out so I can track them." He set the phone down, screen still on. "But you weren't aware of what I was talking about when I showed the phone at the gates, and one of the guards laughed at me when I said I could check my Class on it. Do you have some other way of checking?"

Wylaena put her hand over her heart, like a salute from his world but far more casually. There was no reverence at all to the gesture. Then, she traced a straight line on the table with her finger. Where her finger touched the table a near imperceptible arc of energy burned the table, leaving behind a line of words and a number; [Warrior - Rank 14].

A few moments later, the text faded until there was no sign of it ever being there. "It's just something everybody can do, sorta like breathing." Wylaena dropped her hand. "I know what Class I have, what Traits and Abilities I have, and what I need to do to get to the next Rank. Just like I knew how to cry when I was born, it's something that's inherent. Most people don't give much thought to why, but a few people who have clearly spent too much time in UnLands are obsessed with why the world is the way it is. I say, don't go poking around in the workings of existence, or you'll likely find answers you aren't ready for."

Aodhán lifted his hand over his heart like she had done. "And this? Is this important somehow?"

"It's how you can share your Class and the like with other people, like how I wrote it on the table." She pointed to the blank spot where her Class had appeared a moment ago.

He sat back and thought about it. He knew what his Class was because it was on his phone, but he hadn't explored what the rest of his Classes and Traits were yet. He closed his eyes and focused, trying to reach out for the knowledge.

But, nothing came to him. He sighed. "It didn't seem to work for me, but I'm not from this world and don't have anything like that where I'm form, so I can't tell if I inherently knew my Class before and I just don't have anything else to know or if it doesn't work that way for me."

The startings of a plan clicked together in his brain as he put the phone away. "There isn't much more I can tell you that you don't already know, but I think it's in both of our interests to find out. For me so I can find a way home, and for you so that you can stay ahead of whatever might happen next."

Mumiora placed her hand under her chin and motioned for him to continue. Wylaena just leaned back looking half interested.

"We should experiment with whatever differences I might have from you, since we're from different worlds. it might give us some clues as to the nature of the situation and hopefully a direction to start looking in. First I'd like to gain some Ranks in this [Indomitable] class, then see if I can recall the new changes without checking the phone. It would also be helpful for me to have some Ranks in case I get in trouble without realizing it and need to defend myself."

He bit the inside of his cheeks before continuing, unsure what response he might get.

"If you are willing, in exchange for feeding me and a place to stay I will assist in uncovering why I am here and will offer my knowledge and whatever this [Indomitable] Class lets me do as a member of The Spears of Triel, temporary or otherwise until I find a way back home". He paused a beat before adding a final thought. "If I find a way back home".

The bewildered and amused expressions he was expecting never appeared. Instead, Mumiora seriously considered his suggestion. Wylaena's eyes went wide with interest. "Training?! Oh, Unknowns! I love training, you gotta let me get you into the courtyard! You're fresh, just one measly Rank to your name, I can forge you into a power house in no time! Seriously, I'll take you out there right now if you want." A mischievous, determined grin spread across her face.

"You want to be a Spear of Triel?" Mumiora considered it, thinking as she spoke. "I suppose it could be done, there is no restriction preventing anyone from joining so long as they have the aptitude. It would be a lot of work to get you ready for proper induction, but if you joined the recruits you may be able to gain enough Ranks in a useful Class to be fit for duty, or if this [Indomitable] class ends up being something desirable".

Aodhán decided to sweeten the deal a bit, just to be safe. "You'd be covering all your bases this way. You can keep an eye on me, continue to investigate, have me as an asset in your Spears of Triel, and I can offer you insight into some very interesting and lucrative ideas from my world."

He continued after a beat to let them register what he'd said. "Judging by how advanced technology and science is here, I'd be willing to bet even some of my basic knowledge could put you forward by leaps and bounds."

He left out specifics intentionally. Better to let them use their imagination to fill in the gaps so they would wonder what sort of things might make life better for them.

For a moment he wondered if he was getting ahead of himself. He was volunteering a lot, and being pretty aggresive about it. Not only was it very out of character for him to be this forward, but it might not be the most responsible thing to do. Still, he was committed and admittedly desperate to find answers and figure out what to do next. For that to happen, he needed relative safety, resources, and protection while he learned about this new world he found himself in.

Mumiora looked up and nodded. "I've made up my mind. You will be under our supervision as a recruit and potential inductee, as you have requested. We will arrange housing and necessities for you, but you will not receive standard pay. Instead, a basic allowance will be given that should give you enough to see the city and get to know how things work around here. However-" she motioned to Wylaena, "-you must not leave the city except under supervision by one of us. Additionally, Wylaena will be keeping tabs on you while you are here. You are to check in with her every morning and evening and follow her instructions. This is both to ensure your safety as well as make sure we know what you're up to, in case it turns out we do have reason not to trust you." She let out a long sigh and her posture hunched slightly as she relaxed and a pleasant smile showed on her face.

"Welcome to Triel, Aodhán. I hope all this goes well. For now, I suggest you go out and see the city. If anyone asks where you are from just say the continent of Kin-Kin. We don't get many visitors from there, and the people here don't know too much about it, but it's a fairly peaceful place from what I understand and it's inhabitants don't like to talk too much of their homeland. I will send for someone to fetch you once we have figured out your lodging."

With that they shook hands, something that seemed somehow universal across their worlds, and the two of them escorted him out of the building. Mumiora offered a farewell and walked back inside, but Wylaena lingered for a moment.

"Hey, training starts every morning as the sun comes up, make sure to be at the training yard before then." She pointed behind the miniature fortress they had just left. "It's behind the Spearhall, you can't miss it." She grinned wickedly. "If you're late, I'll make your conditioning a worse experience then a trip to Uun."

The puzzled tilt of his head after that last part wasn't lost on her. "You do know what Uun is, right?"

"Uhh, no? Is it like hell?" He guessed. This time, he was on the receiving end of a puzzled head tilt.

"I don't know what a 'hell' is, but maybe? Uun is the source of the unknown. It's a pretty unoriginal name, y'know. 'Uun' as in 'Uunknown'. Nobody has really been there, but some people claim to have seen it in visions or to have stumbled across it while lost in the UnLands. Based on what they say, it's a place so unlike here it messes with your head, like our minds can't handle it. Of course, all those accounts are by people who've totally lost their minds. Hard to say if their words can be trusted or if they really did have their brains scrambled, so it's really just a story you tell the kids to spook them into doing what they're told."

"Huh, that is surprisingly similar." He said, now wondering what other similarities or analogues he might run into. "Hell is definitely a place people don't want to go. Well, most people anyways. It's supposed to be super hot and filled with demons that torture you for all eternity. You go there if you are a bad person after you die. Not everyone believes that though."

He'd closed his eyes while recalling the details, and when he opened them the first thing he noticed was how pale, though it really was more of a grey color, Wylaena's face had gone.

"You mean you keep going after death, and they torture you forever?" She shook her head vigourosly. "I know some people believe in an afterlife, but they are rare and do weird things. They aren't part of regular society at all, and I think I see why! Aodhán, don't tell anyone about that kind of stuff. You'll get run out of the city."

"Wait, really? I mean, it's supposed to sound awful, we use it the same way you use Uun. Well, some people believe it's real, and there's a whole bunch of religions that believe in different versions of it, but there's also plenty of people who just don't believe in that kind of thing."

Wylaena's tone turned concerned and serious as she leaned in, lowering her volume. "Just listen to me on this, belief in an afterlife and related things isn't good. I don't know how it works where you are from, but large groups of people who share belief in stuff like that can accidentally manifest horrible things, stuff you don't want to know about. Whole nations have been destroyed and countless lives lost. Sometimes, it's benign or small enough to not have a big impact, but it's not worth risk. If anyone hears you suggesting those kinds of thoughts might report you to us, or worse, deal with you themselves. Understand?"

Oh, he thought, Oooooooh. He felt very wary in that moment and looked around to see if anyone had heard them talking. What would they have done to him if he had talked about religion openly? They wouldn't go as far as hurting him or killing him, would they?

He slowly moved his gaze back to Wylaena. "O-Ok, I'll make a point not to talk about that kind of stuff. What should I do if-" He began to ask, but he'd finally focused on Wylaena's face again and the expression of barely contained laughter made him realize he'd been totally had.

"PFFFFT, you should have seen how scared your face looked! Let me guess, you thought if you talked about believing in the afterlife you'd get mobbed? Ha!" She proceeded to unapologetically laugh at her prank. It wasn't a pleasant laugh either, it was raucous with no shortage of snorts to puncuate each desparate gasp of air as she went on. She attracted more than a few funny looks from people passing by.

"Ok, very funny, you got me!" He tried to look serious, but something about the laughter and the situation tickled him and he soon joined in with her, laughing loudly and getting a few weird looks from those passing by. He needed a reason to laugh after the rollercoaster of events so far. Especially if the ride hadn't ended yet.

When they finally settled down and Wylaena was able to breath again, she continued. "No, no one is that serious about it. But it's true that those who hold beliefs like that are outcasts, and it's true that when enough people believe something like that it can cause powerful and often terrible things to happen. You won't be kicked out or anything, but people will think you are very weird. It's best not to chance it."

"Well, thanks for the warning. Seems like I've got a lot to learn before I can feel comfortable here." He smiled and turned, but stopped as he realized he'd forgotten something. "Hey, have you seen Ri?"

Wylaena's eyes widened as she too was reminded of the dog. "Your beast? Well, I think I saw it back in the room, and I'm pretty sure it walked out with us, so it must be nearby. If it's anything like other beasts people keep, it probably smelled food or got curious and took off."

He asked her to help find Ri and after a half hour of running around the nearby streets they found her happily performing tricks for one of the serpent looking people who was running a kind of food cart.

He hadn't had the chance to get a good look before since there were so few of them around, but now that he was up close he could see how massive they were. A long serpent body nearly three feet thick coiled up under a much smaller humanoid torso. Their whole body was covered in scales and patterns, lacking any body hair or other typical characteristics of humanoids. It was eery in that although they had a human shaped face and upper body, they couldn't feel any more different to look at. Something about the way they moved around felt off, like they didn't have the same kind of bone structure.

The thing that stood out the most were the two additional gigantic tree trunk arms that sprouted from where their shoulder blades would be. They were monstrous and had a powerful musculature, ending in a hand with two massive fingers and an equally massive opposible thumb.

Pinched between the terrifying digits in an almost comically gentle grip was a skewer of freshly cooked chunks of meat and veggies he couldn't recognize.

"You are quite the little entertainer, Suur-Ssang-A!" It spoke. Its accent wasn't quite like anything he knew, but it lingered on and drew out any "oo" sounds while mostly ignoring any sharp sounds like 'T's. There was a low growl behind the otherwise soft manner of speaking that added a strange dualism to its tone.

He tried to recall what Mumiora had called them from the brief few bits of information she had mentioned earlier that day. Was it Gravel? No, it had more flair to it.

Aodhán watched the serpent person playfully hold the skewer just out of Ri's reach, smiling broadly. Ri responded by performing tricks in response to hand motions made with its smaller human hands. They didn't seem to know which hand motions to use, so they kept trying random motions until the dog reacted and performed a trick.

Ri, despite the growing puddle of saliva at her feet, seemed rather happy to engage.

"Hey, Gryvol! Stop that!" The harsh and sudden command from Wylaena startled him. Then he remembered, Gryvol was what Mumiora had called the serpent-like people.

The Gryvol and Ri stopped in place and stared at Wylaena as she marched over to the cart. "Enough, you snake, this is not some stray animal you can lure over for a quick snack."

Aodhán blinked. That seemed rather uncharacteristic compared to how laid back she'd been up until now. And did she say something about Ri being a quick snack? He suddenly felt three different kinds of uneasy.

The Gryvol looked at her in shock, slowly looked to the dog, then back at her. "Nuur-Ssang-A, what do you mean? I am just playing with it, you see?" He turned back to Ri and made his hand into an upside down fist, pointing his index finger straight up. Ri reacted to the gesture by sitting down on her haunches and looking expectantly.

The Gryvol plucked a chunk of meat from the skewer and tossed it to Ri who leapt and caught it, devouring it in just three bites before turning her attention back to the cart owner.

The guardswoman eyed the Gryvol suspiciously. "That had better be the case, snake. That beast belongs to this visitor here, they are from another continent and would be very upset if anything happened to it!" She leaned towards the Gryvol. It looked like she tried to lean over them, but they were so massive it ended up looking a little ridiculous. Wylaena seemed to realize this and quickly stepped back.

As Ri's eyes followed her, she noticed Aodhán and bounded over, nearly toppling him as she jumped up against his chest.

"There you are!" He managed to get out between grunts as he struggled to stay upright under her weight. He wasn't used to how massive she was compared to dogs he was used to. Still, it was nice to have a familiar experience in this strange world. After plenty of scratches and belly rubs she was finally satisfied and sat back down. "You must have smelled the food and come running to get some, we haven't eaten since we ran into each other."

He realized how hungry he was as he said that, and looked up to the food cart to see if he could get some. Just as he realized he didn't have anything to buy with, he noticed the cart was gone. Aodhán looked up and down the street and could just make out the massive figure before they disappeared around a corner.

"Damn, I could really have used a bite to eat." His hand pressed against his belly, it ached now that he was aware of how long he'd gone without eating.

A hand grabbed his shoulder. Wylaena stood next to him and smiled. "You don't want what that snake is selling, trust me! We'll get you some proper food instead."

He nodded. Something about that last exchange didn't sit right with him. The Gryvol didn't seem offended by Wylaena's accusation. Rather, it seemed like a response they were used to. He wondered if there was a reason she had treated them that way and resolved to learn a bit more on his own time.

For now, he needed today to end. Too much had happened and it felt like it had gone on forever. Wylaena brought him to one of her favorite spots and eventually someone came to let them know his lodgings were ready, but he'd turned his brain off long before then and didn't even look around the small space he would call home for now. His body auto-piloted him to something like a bed and he collapsed into it, allowing him the first comfortable night of rest since he'd landed in this world.

End of Chapter 3