“This should cover the price of some horses… and I guess I should buy some things for Mom as well, to make her calm down once I tell her the news,” Gaius thought. "This isn't bribery, this is something akin live pre-medicine. All women across all the multiverses, cosmos, and realities like gifts, after all. This is one of the few real truths of the cosmos."
Everyone left the platform, and things got even noisier. It was rare for the villagers to get their hands on some wine, so they enjoyed themselves. Gaius and his father left the place and then cleared their tents before heading to the city to buy some horses.
Once they crossed the gates, they confirmed that things there were very different from all the places they had seen. All the houses were made of brick, and even in the streets, there were no signs of the ground. Moving around was easy, but there were too many people as well.
Gaius felt that he was back in society again. He felt a bit bad for thinking like that, but the village was far too… archaic. Gaius also thought that he shouldn't get too attached to the money he received by killing people, so he might as well go and use all the coins. He certainly had a bunch of options since he saw bookstores, weapon shops, clothes shops, accessory shops, and restaurants. There was even a red-light district. It was close to that time of the day, and Gaius was too young for that currently…
"I wonder if Mom will be happy getting all this… knowing that we had to dirty our hands to get the money," Gaius asked and ended up saying it out loud.
"It would be stupid to throw away the money, so it will be fine," Zairus said. "Anyway, you seem a bit loose with money, so I worry about your future… you are going to accept the training, right?"
"I probably will…" Gaius didn't mince his words. "We aren't living in isolation anymore, so I think I should learn more about the world outside the village to avoid dangers and problems."
In the end, Gaius bought some dresses for his mother and cooking utensils for her. She didn't like expensive things, but women are women in all parts of the cosmos; they will always like to dress up, even if they are from Pandora or from Earth.
Aside from that, Gaius bought some history books. He couldn't read them, but he was planning to learn. Learning about the past of that world might come in handy, and being literate might help as well. There are problems that can't be solved with a weapon, even though Gaius wanted to think that those kinds of problems could be solved with some more brute strength.
"We know how to read, so we can teach you… but I guess it will take some time," Zairus furrowed his eyebrows when he finally found a stable that was selling horses.
"I just need to learn the basics, and I will learn the rest by myself," Gaius declared.
Zairus wanted to sigh. His son was way too dependable. Even though he didn't like the idea of letting such a young boy live away from his parents at his age, he knew that he would be fine. He had a good head, and it wasn't only good for combat.
In any case, they had the chance to buy the horses for fifty silver coins, and while Gaius had never mounted one, he learned quite fast. It had been a while since Zairus had one, but he was a good teacher. By the time they crossed the gates, Gaius had already learned the ropes.
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"The others will take their time to return home… some of them will take extra time since it will be hard for them to bring some bad news to their mothers and sisters," Zairus declared. "We should go and at least inform them of some details and put your mother at ease."
Gaius silently nodded. The trip was going to take five days if they didn't put too much strain on the horses, but they took the first few days slowly since Gaius had to get used to his butt hurting like hell from all the riding. Still, after three days, he was completely fine. It helped a bit when he increased his endurance, though.
In the end, the trip lasted six days, and with their arrival, a commotion started with those who were left behind. A lot of women surrounded Zairus, asking a ton of questions, but Gaius just went home and soon found his mother waiting for them at the entrance. Returning home like that made him feel pretty good, but he also felt guilty imagining the anxiety that his mother felt in the last few weeks, and now Gaius alone would make her feel like that for an even longer period... that was tough.
Kaira sighed in relief and then dashed to hug her son. Even though her thin arms were the same as ever, Gaius felt like his ribs were being crushed by her bear-like hug. After she confirmed that she wasn’t dreaming, Kaira checked Gaius’ body, and he confirmed that he was fine. He didn’t have a single scratch on his body.
“Kyaahh… don’t take off my clothes,” Gaius said while covering his chest.
“It seems you are fine… even though your behavior is a bit out of the norm,” Kaira said and then sighed in relief. “By the look on your face, your father must be fine as well.”
“I guess so…” Gaius wondered if his mother was the type who liked men with scars. Another one in his life that likes bad boys... Gaius felt like sighing since it seemed like they were everywhere.
While Zairus avoided any serious damage, he still got several cuts on his arms and chest. Before Zairus could return, Gaius gave his mother the things that he bought for her. He had decided to pass the bad news a few days later. Revealing that now would make her receive a bucket of cold water.
“My… thank you, Gaius,” Kaira said while her eyes were shining as she checked the dresses. “You sure know how to invest your money. Try not to give too many gifts to too many girls, though.”
“Hahaha…” Gaius forced a laugh while recalling a bit of his past when he was a teenager on Earth, being broke while also trying to impress girls.
Gaius also laughed because he knew that his mother would feel more than a little bit worried about that once she heard the truth about his departure. Nevertheless, that was a problem for the future…
In the end, Gaius was only able to hold the truth for a couple of days instead of a week. The reason for that was that the other villagers returned, and he realized that rumors were going to start spreading. It would be better if he told his mother directly what was going to happen.
Zairus omitted those pieces of information as well since he wanted his son to deal with that. Convincing Kaira that it was for the best wasn’t his job; it was Gaius’s since the choice of going was his as well. Unfortunately, when Gaius told her that, she passed out.
“Well, I saw this coming…” Zairus said while he and Gaius were watching over Kaira. “Don’t feel too bad about it. She was always like this when she heard some heavy news.”
“Yes…” Gaius said with his head down.
Gaius wasn’t planning to change his mind, but he felt more than a little bit bothered now. His choice made his mother feel like that—completely shocked—so it was only natural. Most people would need a week to go to the city and another week to return…
Gaius probably could cut the time a fair bit using his Hawk, the desert wolf, or even his summoned horse, but he couldn’t reveal that directly. Besides, he would only have a few chances every year to return home. His mother wasn’t ready to let him go to the world yet. That was a problem, he didn't have much time to deal with that situation, so he wondered what he should to make sure that his mother wouldn't suffer a lot. Even with his skills and power, the trip would at least take three days to return to the village.