The next morning, I woke up and found Emeri’s bed empty. After some panicked searching, I found her atop the rock formation under which the cave rested. The sun was rising on the horizon, lighting up the vast savannah with its orange brilliance.
Dry, yellow grass… low-hanging trees, and great herds of animals traveling from one spring to the next. It was a magnificent sight. The most beautiful I could remember, even.
I approached Emeri but her mind seemed to be elsewhere.
“Good morning.” I tried.
She jumped slightly and whirled around, her hand reaching for her spear, until she saw me and calmed down. “Oh, it’s just you, Arthur. Don’t scare me like that!” she chastised, her cheeks turning pink.
“Sorry about that. I wasn’t trying to scare you, but you were distracted. It is a beautiful view, isn’t it?”
“Hmmm.”
“…What’s on your mind?”
“…Nothing.”
“If this is about yesterday…” I began, but stopped when I saw her shiver. Awkwardly, I tried another approach. “Listen, what happened to those people was nobody’s fault. They were misguided by Swahili, they misunderstood…”
“It’s not about that, Arthur! It’s about the way we killed them… The way I did…”
“…”
She sobbed quietly. “I just… just wanted to…”
“…Had you ever killed before? …A person, I mean.”
She lightly shook her head, before resting it in her hands and breaking down. Had I been any wiser, I would have said something comforting or talked about the choice to take a life or something… but no words came to me. Instead, I hesitantly put my hand on her shoulder. She leaned into my touch and cried.
As I stared at the rising sun over Emeri’s shoulder, I couldn’t help but feel betrayed. The sun promised happiness, as if nothing could go wrong. In reality, the savanna, no, life itself, was far crueler than the sunrise let on.
A few hours later, once we had both calmed down a bit, we packed our things and set off. The city wasn’t far now, and we didn’t want to linger around our previous battlefield, even if the chances of us being discovered were astronomically low.
We spent the rest of the day traveling, not even stopping to eat, and by nightfall, we had reached our destination, the border city Agratos.
Its sandstone walls rose high above the horizon of the savannah, which had become more luscious the further south we travelled. Agratos was known as the jewel of the country of Alterian. This was in part because of its beauty and visible wealth, but mostly because it was a known fact that the city had built itself on top of a large gemstone mine, which even dug up the occasional mana crystal.
As we approached the city itself and passed through its simple yet robust walls, we quickly found out that its reputation was well deserved.
Instead of the smaller townhouses we were used to finding near the walls of any city, we were greeted by giant palaces and expansive manses on either side of the road. The city was filled with greenery which, to look as healthy as these plants did, would require an ungodly amount of water and care to maintain.
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I had thought it weird when the guards had only let us through the gate once they had seen Emeri’s identification as a member of the church, but when I saw how few people traversed the city on foot, their motivation became clear. They didn’t allow just anybody into the city. Especially not poor people…
Since night had already fallen, it wasn’t so strange to be greeted by nearly empty streets, but this was a bit extreme. Apart from the occasional carriage that was pulled through the streets by any random combination of rare animals and monsters, the city was deserted.
It didn’t take long for us to find an inn which, thankfully, didn’t require registration beforehand. That being said, it cost us a few gold coins each just for a week-long stay! You could get tier 1 and 2 artifacts for that price!
Emeri and I were too tired to argue or look for another inn, so we just accepted the fee and paid upfront. The room we were assigned had two beds and a bath that was attached to a magical heater, so at least we got out money’s worth. Helios knew that after a month of travel, we both needed it.
After I had washed myself, I collapsed onto my bed and bid Emeri good night. It took less than a minute before I was out like a light.
The next morning, we both rose feeling a lot better than the day before. Emeri, especially, had perked up a bit, though I could tell she was still bothered by what she had done. To try and distract her from her thoughts for a while, I struck up a conversation.
“So… the second place of pilgrimage is in this city, right? Strange that they were so hesitant to let us in. I figure they must get pilgrims knocking on their doors all the time, right?”
“I find it strange as well… Perhaps something happened that put them on guard?” Emeri speculated.
“You don’t think…” I wondered, my eyes going wide. If they had gotten scared by the statue changing in the last place of pilgrimage, we could be in trouble.
“No, I don’t think so.” Emeri denied. “But it wouldn’t hurt too snoop around and see what’s going on. Let’s stick together this time, in case something happens.”
I agreed with a nod. We packed our necessities for the day and set out into the city, in hopes of finding an area that was a little busier.
It turned out that our hotel was located in one of the richer parts of the city, go figure. We eventually managed to find a busier area, where more people lived. Their houses were still extravagant, but no longer as ridiculous as the neighborhood on the edge of the city. Here in the center, affluent people lived amongst each other, setting up shops and services. In just this street alone, we had come across an enchanting emporium, a private library that required a paid membership, a high-end smithy and a rune-theorizing club for the elite, all packed up next to each other. Each shop had a series of windows along its storefront, displaying some of their better work to passersby. As a result, the street was packed with people, all wearing expensive garb.
More importantly, the crowd allowed Emeri and I to listen in to passing conversations.
“The mine…found…”
“Ancient…”
“All kinds… artifacts, they say…”
“The fellow that dug into it…”
“Couldn’t find the lower half of his body…”
Eventually, I leaned down and whispered into Emeri’s ear. “Some kind of accident in the mine that led to artifacts, it seems. Whatever it is, it sounds interesting.”
Emeri smiled but shook her head. “Who cares what they found? It’s not like they’ll let any random stranger…” before she could continue her sentence, she was interrupted by a loud town crier. This lady was standing on top of a raised platform, while a large crowd was gathering below her.
“Hear me, fair folk of Agratos! The magister, appointed by his holiness himself, has declared that the ancient ruins found within the mines of the city last week will be opened to all interested parties! Adventurers, archaeologists and curious folk alike, all are welcome to scour the ruins for treasure and excitement, with the sole condition that everything found within the ruins is sold to the city at 80% of market price. This is your chance to enrich yourself and gain a story to tell, people! Sign up at the town hall to participate!”
I looked at Emeri with a teasing smile. “You spoke too soon, it seems… Up for a treasure hunt? We arrived at just the right time, it must be destined!”
Emeri sighed, but I noticed the corner of her lips twitch upward.
“We can’t, Arthur. We’re here for the pilgrimage, remember? Besides, I sense something sinister going on. Why would the city let random strangers explore their ruins for them? Even with that price-gauging condition, they’re making a loss for no apparent reason. It sounds like something within those ruins scared them off…”
“Helios, I hate it when you’re the voice of reason…” I muttered under my breath.
“If I’m not, then who will be?”
I gave her an expectant look, before pointing toward myself with both thumbs. She just shook her head in disappointment.
“Fiiinnee. Let’s go visit this church of yours. So much more interesting, right?” I finished, exasperated.