Ring, ring. The innkeeper sitting behind the counter raised his head as Liam walked in; he briefly observed Liam before returning to his book. Ignoring the innkeeper’s inhospitable attitude, Liam walked over and placed a nickel coin in front of him.
“I need a room for the night.”
The innkeeper glanced at the coin before holding up three fingers.
“It’s three nickel.”
One nickel per night – that’s what Liam remembered being told by the clerk after exiting the tutorial. There was always a chance the clerk lied, but since he had confirmed the information with Scott’s group, he knew it was true. It was evident that innkeeper thought Liam was a naïve Earthling, fresh out of the tutorial, easy to rip-off. Unfortunately for him, he chose the wrong target this time.
“Listen, I know it’s only one nickel, so just-”
As Liam was pushing the coin closer to the man, urging him to drop the charade, he was cut off.
“Sure, that’s normally the price, but can’t you see what time it is?”
The innkeeper gestured with his chin towards the window.
“It’s night, what’s your point?”
There was a tinge of annoyance in Liam’s voice. After the events of today, it would be an understatement to say he was exhausted. Every inch of his body ached; the only thing on his mind was going to sleep; he didn’t want to waste time arguing.
“Right, so isn’t it normal to charge more? After all, people look for lodging at night. It’s basic business to charge more for a service when there’s a demand for it. What kind of business owner would ignore these profitable opportunities? Certainly not a good one, that’s for sure.”
Liam wasn’t going to bother arguing with him. If the innkeeper was going to be difficult, he could just go elsewhere. Liam pulled out the map, smacking it down on the counter.
“Show me where another inn is… You can at least do that, right?”
The innkeeper nodded and held out his hand, showing a surprising willingness to cooperate. Liam felt a bit suspicious; still, he handed him the map, but the man shook his head.
“Three copper – information fee.”
Liam sighed; he expected something like this. At this point, he couldn’t even get mad. Liam was reaching into his pocket to pull out the money when the bell to the entrance rang.
Ring, ring. A man wearing linen clothes walked inside. The innkeeper leaned to his side, peeking his head out from behind Liam. Upon seeing the new customer, he gave a friendly smile and waved.
“Welcome! How can I help you?”
‘What the hell…’
His attitude was completely different towards the newcomer. Earlier, he had just assumed the innkeeper was being ornery. Now though, it appeared that wasn’t the case.
As Liam was staring at the innkeeper still trying to wrap his head around the blatant mistreatment, the stranger spoke.
“Yes, I’d like to rent a room for the night… Is this enough?”
He placed a nickel coin on the counter, which the innkeeper quickly swept up.
“That’s plenty! Thank you for your patronage!”
The innkeeper handed a key to the man.
“Here, you go. It’s room seven, down the hall on the left. If you have any questions or need anything, let me know!”
After sending the stranger down the hall with a wave, he plunked down back in his seat. Before returning to his book, he grumbled at Liam.
“What? Something wrong?”
“I thought you said it was three nickel.”
Liam answered flatly, his dissatisfaction apparent. The innkeeper clapped his hands together, acting as if he had just realized something.
“Ahh… Did I forget to mention that fee only applies to Earthlings?”
‘Bullshit.’
There was no way such a ridiculous fee existed. At least that’s what Liam wanted to think, but after hearing the scummy business practices in the church, it was hard to rule out the possibility. Either way, it was a scam.
‘If it’s gonna be like this, then screw it!’
Shoving the map back into his pocket, Liam made up his mind – he would stay here for the night. He was too tired to find another inn, and the innkeeper probably knew that.
“One nickel and five copper.”
Liam’s cold eyes fell on the innkeeper as he began to bargain. Raising one eyebrow, the innkeeper responded.
“Two nickel and five copper.”
“Let’s meet in the middle, two nickel.”
The innkeeper grumbled before accepting Liam’s offer.
“Fine.”
Taking out two nickel, Liam placed it on the counter. The innkeeper grabbed the coins as soon as they touched the table and tossed Liam the key.
“Room eight, down the hall.”
Liam took the key and headed off to his room, knowing he got ripped off. If it were the middle of the day, he would’ve gone elsewhere, but not now, it was too late.
Liam opened the worn wooden door and entered his room. The interior was simple; it had a single bed and a chest for storage. Liam collapsed onto the bed. The mattress wasn’t comfortable, but he couldn’t care less right now. Pulling a blanket over himself, he quickly fell asleep.
----------------------------------------
The next day, it was late morning by the time Liam arrived at the small weapons shop Ryan had told him about. It was tucked away in the shopping district; without the map, he never would’ve found it. He had decided to stop by before he headed to the Association for the training class. As the shop's door opened, there was a loud creak.
Creeeaaak…
Leaning back in his chair, the old owner peeked one eye open. He gave Liam a quick look before grumbling.
“I don’t do charity. If you don’t have money, then leave.”
Rude – was Liam’s first impression.
“Ryan Fores sent me.”
Hearing Ryan’s name, the man sat up and newly inspected Liam with a scrutinizing gaze. With a grunt, he pushed himself up.
“Huup.”
Slowly making his way over, he stopped in front of Liam.
“What’s your name, kid?”
“Liam.”
He nodded, seemingly satisfied.
“So, Liam, what do you need?”
Liam’s eyes searched the store. There were various types of weapons and sets of armor hanging on the walls and laying on shelves.
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“I need Ranger equipment.”
“I see.”
The old man held his chin in thought before walking through the store, gathering various armors, weapons, and supplies as he went. A pile slowly formed on the counter. Finishing, he called Liam over.
“Kid, come over here.”
Liam, who had been silently watching, calmly walked over and inspected the items laid out. There were multiple pieces of leather armor consisting of a basic chest guard, rugged boots, sturdy belt, small arrow quiver, and two hardened wrist guards. The weapons he had set out were three throwing knives, a sharp iron dagger, and a simple wooden recurve bow with ten simple arrows.
None of the items were luxurious; they all had a simplistic design. Even so, considering Liam still had to pay his daily living expenses, he didn’t think that the nickel he had would be enough.
“How much?”
Liam asked in a low voice.
“One hundred and twenty nickel.”
Liam’s brow creased. He thought he might be able to bargain a little bit for one or two items, but a single piece of armor would cost a large chunk of his entire fortune. Not to mention, the prices seemed ridiculously high. Was he being scammed again?
‘No, that doesn’t make sense. Ryan recommended this place to me. If he wanted my money, robbing me would be more efficient.’
There was no incentive for Ryan to send him to a scummy shop, so Liam spoke honestly to the old man; Ryan would’ve known Liam didn’t have much money, and since he recommended him here, there must have been a reason.
“I don’t have that much money.”
The old man let out a laugh seeing Liam’s stiff expression.
“I already know that.”
“Didn’t you say you don’t do charity?”
“I don’t. You’ll pay me back, though.”
The old man knew Ryan didn’t recommend people here often, especially not with his name. If Liam was telling the truth, then Ryan must have approved of his character. In that case, selling the goods on credit was fine, Liam was good for it. Otherwise, if Liam were stupid enough to use Ryan’s name and skip out on the bill, then Ryan would take care of him. Scott’s group could handle the people dumb enough to try that.
Liam looked at the items again. It was a good deal for him. He could get equipment that he otherwise couldn’t afford and pay it back over time. After thinking for a moment, Liam finally made his decision.
“I’ll pass for now.”
If Liam took the items now, he would just be robbed; he wasn’t prepared to defend himself yet. From what he had seen Orbis so far, people were a lot stronger here than on Earth.
The old man raised his eyebrows in surprise at Liam. Liam took one last regretful look at the items before leaving.
“I’ll be back.”
“Bye, kid.”
The old man grumbled as Liam left the shop. Once alone, the man began gathering up the items on the counter and putting them away.
----------------------------------------
Liam entered the Association Earthling Branch. The same pungent odor still lingered in the air. It was a little before noon, and mugs of beer were already flying. Dodging the flying glasses and stepping over the drunks passed out on the floor, Liam made his way to the request board in the back.
Papers with various missions and jobs were posted. At the top were the most difficult missions, involving the subjugation of entire monster settlements and even unique, named monsters. Down the board, the missions became easier. The ones in the middle asked for the materials from various monsters to be collected. At the bottom were the ones for new Earthlings, material-gathering requests. The only real purpose of these was to prevent new Earthlings from going broke as they adapted to this new world.
Liam searched the board for the notice regarding the training course that Scott mentioned.
It wasn’t there.
‘Guess I have to ask.’
Liam glanced at the receptionist. Laying on the counter, she was using her arms as a pillow, sleeping peacefully. It would’ve been a heartwarming scene if she wasn’t supposed to be working. Liam went over and stood in front of the girl.
“Excuse me.”
“Mmmm.”
The receptionist shifted her head as she stirred in her sleep, unwilling to wake up from her pleasant dream.
Liam shook her arm.
“Wake up.”
“Uggghhhh.”
She groaned and lifted her head. Still half asleep, she rubbed her eyes. She frowned and pointed at a stack of papers at the end of the counter, speaking with a displeased tone.
“If you’re here to make a request then-”
Liam cut her off mid-sentence.
“I’m not. Where is the notice for the new Earthling training course?”
“Oh, that. Where did I put it?”
She wiped the drool on the side of her mouth and rummaged through the papers scattered across the counter. Pulling out a paper, she handed it to Liam. As soon as he took it, she put her head down and returned to sleeping, not bothering to explain its contents. Liam’s eyes narrowed; he didn’t have a high opinion of this world’s inhabitants so far. He read the contents of the paper.
----------------------------------------
Earthling Training
Receive basic weapons training from a veteran Earthling.
Instruction will last one day and the training facility and weapons
will be available to use for up to two weeks.
Payment of 5 nickel per person. Due upon arrival.
Limited to new Earthlings.
Time: Morning of Month 6, Day 3
Location: Association Eastern Headquarters - East Kelm
----------------------------------------
Liam thought about asking for directions to the facility, but after glancing at the receptionist who was already fast asleep, he decided to find it himself. Since the training didn’t start until the next day, he considered what to do next.
‘I can find another inn and figure out where the facility is then-”
SLAM!
Suddenly, the door flew open, and the room fell silent. Liam and everyone else watched to see who was entering.
“SEE!! I knew you’d do it again! This is why I told you to be careful!”
“Ah, sorry, I’m still not used to my new strength yet.”
A man and a girl walked inside. The man, who stood a head taller than the girl, rubbed the back of his head and looked around. The room had already returned to its normal state after the patrons quickly lost interest in the two new arrivals.
Liam’s eyes stayed locked on them. He knew the man; it was Aaron. However, he didn’t recognize the girl. She had long reddish-brown hair; he would’ve thought it was Alexandra except their facial features were completely different. Her eyes nervously darted around as she inched closer to Aaron, grabbing his sleeve.
“Aaron, are you sure this is the right place?”
Aaron checked the map in his hand.
“Yeah, it’s the one on the map. But it looks a little dangerous, so stay close, Emily.”
Emily shuffled herself closer to Aaron and tightened her grip on his shirt. They walked through the crowd, heading in Liam’s direction. Liam stuffed the paper into his pocket; he didn’t want to waste any more time.
As Liam began moving through the crowd, making his way toward the exit, someone grabbed his arm as he passed by.
“Ehhhhh, Liam? Why are you here!?”
Liam tried to shake his arm free, but their grip was too strong. With annoyance, Liam yelled.
“Listen, I’m busy. I don’t have time-!”
Gulp.
Liam stopped himself mid-sentence after seeing the woman who was grasping him; she was someone he never wanted to get angry. With a flushed face, May tilted her head and spoke while slurring her words.
“Hic… What don’t ya have time fooooor? Come and sit! Listen, you gotta listennnnn to this!”
May was drunk, very drunk. She stumbled as she tried to pull Liam towards her and force him to sit.
At the same time, Aaron was making his way towards Liam; his expression so stern that it might be mistaken as rage, maybe it was. When Aaron arrived at the table, Liam was sitting.
“Liam, we need to talk now.”
Hearing Aaron’s low voice behind him, Liam turned, but before he could respond…
“Huh, who the fuck are you!?”
May jumped to her feet, glaring up at the giant man in annoyance.
Towering above May, Aaron looked down at the fiery redhead glaring up at him. To him, she only looked like a young girl, but that’s because he didn’t know her; he hadn’t been in Orbis long enough to realize that appearances can be deceiving.
“Listen, I need to talk to him. Could you please move?”
Aaron reached out his hand toward May. At the same time, May, unsteady on her feet, wobbled forward, and Aaron’s hand accidentally brushed against her chest. May’s face warped into a look of rage.
“Did you just-!?”
“Ah, sorry it was an acid-!”
Snap! May grabbed Aaron’s hand and twisted it back.
“Aaaaaaaaaaahhk!!”
Aaron dropped to his knees, gripping his broken wrist, screaming in agony. His hand was unnaturally dangling from his wrist.
“Fucking perv!”
Hearing May’s angry shout, suddenly, the room broke into a cheer!
“FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!”
“Hey, what happened? I missed it.”
“Some idiot tried to cop a feel on May.”
“Last week someone tried to feel her ass too… I think he’s dead?”
“Mannnn, I don’t get it. What kinda guy would want anything to do with a crazy bitch like May?”
May’s head whipped around.
“Which one of you fuckers said that!?”
The entire room fell silent for a moment, and everyone looked at one man.
“Shit. Trev’s dead.”
“Rest in peace, Trev. It’s been a pleasure knowing you.”
“Fuck you guys! Don’t go acting all sad when you just ratted me out!”
After yelling at his friends, Trev turned to May, pleading for his life.
“May, I’m sorry! It was a joke!”
May’s attention had already shifted back to Aaron; she wasn’t finished with him. Grabbing his head, she pulled it down, kneeing him in the face. Then, she delivered a swift roundhouse kick to the side of it, sending him flying.
Thud!
Aaron hit the ground, and the crowd began chanting.
– MAY! MAY! MAY! MAY!
A smug smile appeared on May’s face. Proudly, as if she had defeated a villain, she trotted over to Aaron, who was lying unconscious on the floor. Crouching down, she began rummaging through his pockets. Finding his pouch of nickel, she grabbed it and stood up. She tossed it in the air, causing the nickel coins inside to jingle. Snagging the pouch as it fell, she turned to Liam and gave a thumbs up.
Liam wanted nothing to do with this troublesome woman anymore, but seeing Aaron’s state, he was petrified at the thought of accidentally pissing her off. Hesitantly, he held out his hand and gave a thumbs up. Seemingly satisfied, given the big grin on her face, May walked back towards Liam.
‘At least she’s simple-minded.’
After being dragged into this mess, the one thing Liam could be thankful for was that May’s attention span was like a dog; when she found something more interesting, her attention immediately shifted to that. At least, it made dealing with her easier. If he kept her entertained, then he didn’t have to worry about getting beaten to death.
May sat down next to Liam and pulled over a beer for him as she began to talk.
“Liam, can you believe that bastard!? Tryin’ta cop a feel on me!”
Liam suddenly felt a little sorry for Aaron. From his perspective, the entire fight was due to May’s misunderstanding. Liam questioned how she had reached the conclusion she did, but considering she was hammered and referred to as an idiot by her comrades, it was understandable. Liam sighed and faced May.
“So, what was it you needed to tell me?”
Immediately, May forgot her lingering annoyance and grabbed Liam’s shoulder, forcefully pulling him close to her.
“Ah, right! Listen, I’ve… I’ve…”
Tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.
“I’ve been abandoned!!”
‘What?’
As Liam stared at the drunken May, she began to tell him what happened.