“She’s quite a nice lady,” Lar said with an evil smirk. “You’re quite a fortunate fellow to be treated with such kindness in a city such as this one.”

“Am I to assume that kindness is a hard-to-find thing here?”

“That and among other things. Liall may look beautiful on the inside and outside not only with its marvelous architecture and its many varied people, but it is a cruel place. Do not ever be mistaken by its mere appearance of civility from its inhabitants. You may not find the same cruelty we encountered out in the lands covered with that fog, but Liall is undoubtedly cruel nonetheless as I imagine you will discover the longer we’re here.”

“You know I was feeling quite pleased and now it’s like you’re purposely trying to bring me down.”

“What is your dearest familiar to do but to warn you of the dangers that exist? That is my job after all.”

He gave her a skeptical glare. “Even so. I’d like to not think about such sordid thoughts at least for the rest of the day. Just do me a favor and let me be at peace after our long travels.”

“If you say so, but I suggest always keeping an eye out. Danger may come when you least expect it.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he said with an offhanded wave. “Now I have a question for you. When and how did you get in here? Were you here the entire time I was talking to Della?”

Lar nodded their head. “I have my methods and yes, I was here for all of that.”

He was unsure of how he ought to feel having his companion snooping onto conversations he had with other individuals. He supposed it wasn’t necessarily the biggest deal in the world so he tried to not feel too bothered by it.

“In the meantime, I shall grant you your sought-after privacy. I can tell you would prefer it to be that way so farewell for now. However, I would suggest remaining here at this inn while I go about my own personal business.”

“Assuming I’m not kicked out, that shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll try to stay around this area either way.”

“Good. Be well while I’m gone.”

With his companion leaving to go do their own thing, he could enjoy the bit of peace he had managed to achieve after months of a long and harsh journey. To finally be surrounded by people and away from fields full of monsters and treacherous landscapes really put things into perspective with how good things can be. Della had made it clear that she had never wandered outside of Liall. He imagined that was the norm for the average person here whether they be rich or poor.

He tried on the clothes her father no longer wore. He felt a bit strange putting on the clothes of the person who had thrown him to the ground earlier. But he wasn’t one to dwell on such things.

The clothes were quite large on him. The brown trousers were the right length but they were loose and far too big around his waist. He was given a bit of rope however to tighten it to keep it from falling constantly. The last thing he needed was for people to wind up catching him with his pants down.

As he looked down to observe the state of his shirt it stuck out on all sides and it was made for a taller man in mind. Still, he was happy to have anything but that burlap sack that he had long ago outlasted. He tucked the shirt in which helped quite a bit and all that was left to do was to put on some old worn sandals. Once he had done that he readied himself to go.

With a new appearance and a body cleaned of all that filth, he strode out of the room and made his way towards the front of the inn. As he did so, many of the same people he had seen earlier had left. The pipe-smoking folk were still lounging about, however. One of them even had a big book open while several others played a game of dice.

“See father? I told you there was a handsome man being hidden beneath all that dirt.”

Her father had his arms crossed and gave him the same nasty glare he had earlier. “So you thought it appropriate to hand him over my clothes now did ya?”

She let out a heavy sigh. She came to his side to back him up. “You weren’t going to be wearing them again anyways so what does it matter? And besides, like I said earlier, we can afford to be charitable from time to time.”

“And if it pleases you, sir,” he began to say, “I would honor your kindness by offering my labor to your establishment. I’m a hard worker and more than reliable. I even have a few tricks beneath my sleeves if I say so myself. But here, I’ll make it an even better offer. You won’t even have to pay me in coin. All I need is a single warm meal every day I work and nothing more.”

“All you want is a warm meal? How exactly is that going to work? You still need a place to live, don’t you? Without money, I doubt you have your own place to call home and I can’t have someone working here who lives right off the streets. You’ll be stinking my place up once more.”

“What if he stayed in the basement temporarily?” she said. “We have enough space down there to set up a place for him to rest at night.”

“Oh my sweet Della. Your desperation to help this lout is testing my patience.”

“You said just the other day that we needed more help around here. Can he not assist in our operations?”

“He wasn’t what I had in mind!”

An argument that got the attention of nearby patrons continued for a while between Della and her rambunctious father. He chose to sit it out and take a seat by a nearby table. While he crossed his arms and whistled a little to himself, he saw a few younger girls who wore similar attire as Della. He waved towards them which caused them to smile and wave back. More of his daughters I imagine.

“Fine then! Just fine.” The old man gave up. Della had the most devious smirk on her face as she knew she had won against him. “He’s your responsibility and if I smell even a whiff of him ever again he’s gone for good, you hear?”

Della made her way over to him and put her hands on her hips. “You’ve earned yourself a job.”

“And you’ve earned my admiration for your argumentation abilities.”

“He would never admit it, but I win every argument between us.”

“Is that so?”

“He just can’t help fight against the one who knows his heart the best.”

“You’re a dangerous one.”

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

She smiled. “Just don’t tell anyone.”

He ended up following her down to a basement. It had a few shelves and a storeroom to keep a fresh stash of vegetables, fruits, and spices. They made it towards the back of the basement where a more open space existed beside the wall.

“I’ll have some cushions and blankets brought here. I realize it’s not the most pleasant place to sleep but it’s only temporary. You’ll also earn a wage that should allow you an opportunity to rent a place in the city eventually.”

“That’s not necessary. All I need is a good meal as my payment.”

“You say that but my father won’t stand to have you sleeping here every night. Not for long anyways. And he’ll only be able to tolerate you working here so long as you work hard and not do anything that irks him too much.”

“If you say so.” As he looked into her eyes, he could see the candlelight coming off of the candle she held reflecting off them.

“You’re a bit of a strange one,” she said recognizing that fact. “I quite like you though.”

“I like myself as well.”

She playfully poked him. “You’re a really silly man. How does someone whose lived outside Liall become as you are? It’s like you’re so happy and content with everything. Most beggars and poor people who live out on the streets that I’ve encountered are completely unlike you.”

He wanted to tell her the truth about how things had been quite bad out there. Although strangely enough, even out there in that green fog that he traveled across, his spirits were quite high most of the time.

“I guess,” he began to say, “that it’s just who I am.”

“Hmm, now that I think of it. Who are you anyways? I would’ve liked to have known your name earlier but you never gave me one.”

“I have no name.”

“What? Everyone has a name. You mean to tell me you don’t have one?”

He supposed he did have a name. He simply couldn’t recall it.

“Well if you don’t have a name then surely you can come up with one. It’s a little awkward to refer to someone not knowing what name they have.”

“If you come up with a good one I’ll take it.”

“You’re leaving that responsibility up to me?”

“Sure, why not? I’ll take whichever one you think of first.”

“Wow, that’s a lot of power you’ve just given me. I could really choose a bad name in that case.”

“I’ll grant you that privilege and choice.”

Despite his carefree language he had in some way given her an important responsibility. Names had power and carried a lot of meaning. The name someone possessed could tell a lot about a person even if they weren’t aware of it.

Della for example, had a name that he found soothing whenever he heard it or uttered it aloud. It belonged to someone kind and considerate of others. That was how he interpreted that name whenever he thought of it.

Names were not a grounded thing however. If he had met someone named Della who had shown him nothing but anger and pain, he would interpret it in a more negative manner.

“I’ll have to think of an appropriate name for you then,” she said.

They left the basement and since the end of the day was soon approaching, he thought to take the opportunity to explore the city a little. He was going to start working the coming morning so he could do as he saw fit in the meantime.

The streets of Liall were quite crowded. While he explored a bit, his mind wandered. He then began to cross a bridge that had running water flowing beneath it.

“Hey you, over here!”

He looked towards the one who was trying to get his attention. It was coming from a young man working at a stall.

“You looking to buy anything? Come, come. Check out all of my wares.”

He browsed through their things looking through a variety of trinkets and pieces of used clothing that he had no need for.

“You going to buy anything?”

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and pulled them out showing he had nothing. “There’s not a single coin to my name. Sorry but maybe whenever I get paid, I’ll come by and pick up something. You can hold me to it by the way so if you see me walking by, make sure to get my attention.”

“Absolutely sir. I’ll keep an eye out for you. Thanks for browsing anyways.”

The young man was a good lad. He was just trying to make things work by selling things to people off the streets. He didn’t have much use for anything he was selling, but he’d come by again and buy something once he had some coin.

As the sun began to disappear for the coming night, the air grew colder and wind blew by.

Every time he looked up into that night sky, he expected to find stars but there were none. There wasn’t even a moon which made every night incredibly dark.

By the time the sun had completely disappeared a bright illuminating light caught his attention.

The giant pillar that rests at the center of the city far away from his current position, began to illuminate itself starting from the bottom. The runes etched onto its walls began to glow and move further up the pillar until eventually all the runes running across its outer surface were alight. It had a greenish glow and illuminated the city quite thoroughly.

He put his arms on a railing and watched the pillar as it pulsated and a green aura formed at the top. It grew in size until eventually, it snapped, causing all the glowing runes running over the surfaces of the tall pillar to go dark and a bright-colored aura coursed through the sky all around. It moved as a singular wave and in its eventual absence, the city became dark as it had been once before.

The arcane nature of the pillar was somewhat fascinating. However, his understanding of it and the arcane nature that existed in this world was limited. He possessed some arcane ability, but he only barely grasped it.

With it getting late at night, he decided he would go back to the inn. There were a few patrons inside at this time of the night. The pipe smokers had all left by now and a few other people came in asking for rooms.

He wandered down the stairs reaching the basement. When he reached the back wall, he saw that a basic mattress was there for him along with some blankets and even a pillow. Della might’ve not thought it was much to give him, but this was luxurious in comparison to sleeping against trees, sleeping on wet ground, and that one time he had slept inside a giant dead beast which was an experience he wanted to forget about.

Since they were going to pay him a wage, he supposed he would get even better accommodations soon. There was a lot to look forward to. Since coming to Liall everything was getting better. He still didn’t know who he was or many of the other questions he had, but he thought things would continue down this positive path.

He just had to not bring too much attention to himself. Avoid dealing with the powers who rule this place and would possibly want to do him harm. Simply take things slow and figure things out as they come and lay low.

There was also no reason he had to be in a rush even if that would be expected. He wanted to spend more time here at this inn and get to know the people who run it along with its patrons. Della of course was someone he had known for just half a day and already he felt an interest in specifically getting to know her more as a person.

She was unflinching and brave amidst her father who, somewhat understandably, hadn’t viewed him so favorably. He ran a nice place. Having some stranger coming in asking for work only to end up assaulting every nose around was probably the worst way to introduce himself. Even though it was a bit of a bad start, things had gone well all things considered.

He put a hand down to the floor and sat himself down on the flimsy mattress. He rolled over to his side and pulled a blanket over himself. He couldn’t help but smile realizing he had a roof over his head. He had wanted it again after not having one for so long. Could I ever return to those conditions outside of this city now that I have this? The answer was yes, but he wanted to do everything in his power to avoid it if possible. If Liall was humanity’s final resting place within the fifth domain, then he figured, it might as well be his.