I froze on the spot. I was tired and too surprised to react before the man repeated his question with a bit more pronunciation, as if he was thinking that I didn’t understand his language well enough.

“So… who might you be, girl?” — Sounded the question once again. It managed to shake me out of my stupor.

“Ah, hello… I am called Selora. It’s nice to meet you all.” — I said with a thin, but genuine smile and a quick wave of my hand.

The inside of the covered cart was quite dim compered to the outside where a bunch of people were still running around with torches and similar magical lights like the ones equipped on our mounts.

There was a pair of candles placed on top of a wooden case that seemed to serve as an improvised table placed into the middle of the compartment.

I couldn’t help but glance at it, as the dancing light naturally drawn my eyes in. Almost immediately, I noticed a few pieces of glinting coins, along with a handful of dice upon the surface of the box. Were they playing some sort of gambling game? Interesting, I wasn’t a gambler in my previous life, but I loved playing cards.

I did rarely play it for actual money, and when I did, it was with meager stakes. It was the thrill of the game that seemed to catch me. Of course, winning was the goal, but I preferred not to ruin my carefully built friendships over a simple game. Therefore, I played in friendly contests with fake chips.

When I was young, we tended to sit together and play such games almost every weekend. I really enjoyed those times. Unfortunately, I couldn’t quite remember the last time I had the opportunity to play such a game. It was years, if not decades, prior.

It was not the time to reminiscence over old memories, as the conversation continued after a short pause.

The human man from before spoke up again. It was strange to see someone as tall as him, even in a sitting position after getting used to all those dwarfs. — “Selora, is it? It’s a nice name. Are you coming along with us? Back to the northern kingdom, I mean.”

I nodded, as that was pretty much the plan.

“Alright, allow me to welcome you among our little circle. We are part of the adventurers who were hired as extra guards for the caravan. Why don’t you come closer and take a seat on the bench? You look tired, you can put down your gear wherever you find an empty spot.” — The man beckoned me over with warm gestures, and I didn’t have to be told twice this time around.

Soon enough, I plopped down on the bench, my backpack placed next to me, as there was a lot of free space. I stretched out my tired legs while leaning against the side of the carriage with a relieved sigh. There was a limit to how much healing magic could alleviate a strained body, no matter how miraculous it was. I suspect that using healing magic tends to drain the body’s vitamin reserves. Resulting in a lack of effectiveness after frequent exposure. It was only a hypothesis at this point, though, and I could be wrong.

Sitting next to me was this human man whose name I still didn’t know. Nor did I know the other’s name, come to think of it.

I glanced over at the trio with a thoughtful expression, one hand still resting on the chiseled shaft of my staff.

There were two dwarfs and one human.

“So… what are your names?” — I asked, but before an actual answer could be formed, another person jumped into the cart parting the dark textile material with quick wide hand-movements.

For a second, I thought that it was Emrum finally joining us on the ride, but I swiftly dismissed the idea, remembering that he went to deal with other matters, and it was unlikely that he would finish so soon.

My suspicion proved well founded. It turned out that another human, this time a young woman, stepped into the compartment.

“Hey guys!” — She spoke with excitement. — “I heard that we are finally heading out, and so suddenly! I was half asleep when I got notified and barely had enough time to pack up my stuff! Damn, I thought that we will spend one more night in… and who is this girl?”

The young woman’s gaze suddenly focused on my form in the middle of her rant and her eyebrows creased as her eyes quickly moved between me and the staff that was still held in my grasp while simultaneously being leaned against the side of the bench.

The man sitting next to me answered with a bored tone while throwing a few more copper coins into the bet. Which movement was soon mirrored by the dwarfs sitting opposite to us. — “She is Selora. She will be traveling with us back to the northern capital.”

The man paused for a short time, rolling the five dice under the shadow of an upturned metal cup. His eyes glinted with excitement the moment he lifted off the cup and saw the three-six, one-one and one-five on the table.

The other two dwarfs merely grunted in annoyed acknowledgement as he took the bet with agile hand movements before continuing his previous explanation.

Making the woman’s annoyance at least double in the meantime.

“You were just on time for the introductions, Camilla. You can go right ahead, since you are clearly eager.”

She didn’t need to be told twice, either. The woman once again turned back to me with a scrutinizing glance, and I couldn’t help but gulp under the intensity of her look.

“Are you a mage?” — She asked right away.

It seemed that the game stopped as the question sounded through the air. Both dwarves and both humans were focusing on my answer, creating a slightly suffocating pressure in the small compartment of the cart.

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My fingers unconsciously tightened around my staff, as I remembered Emrum’s reaction the first time I told him that I was a witch back in the chamber not long after my appearance in this world.

Still, there was no reason to deny it, since too many dwarves knew that I was a magic caster, anyway. It was completely impossible to hide such truths for long.

Therefore, I decided to be forthcoming, while carefully exempting the fact that I was a witch. I heard from listening to the conversations between the dwarves in the outposts that witches among many types of spell casters had quite a bad reputation overall.

“Ah… well yes…” — I stated, a bit still surprised by the direct questioning.

To my further surprise, the young lady’s reaction was quite different from her initially harsh tone.

Her expression blossomed into a wide smile, as she stepped closer to me with an excited glint mirrored in her dark green eyes.

“Fantastic!” — She exclaimed with an outstretched hand which I reflexively shook.

“My name is Camilla. I am overjoyed to meet you! It was getting on my nerves to be the sole woman among an entire outpost of men. It’s a relief to see another girl at last!” — She chuckled heartily while taking a seat next to me after pushing my backpack out of the way.

My eyes widened a bit seeing how comfortably she acted with my stuff, but I didn’t have the heart to complain, as she was clearly excited to talk with me.

“It’s not enough that I finally got some more refined company, but it turns out that you are a spellcaster as well. Damn, it must be my second birthday after suffering their dull company for weeks on end. I mean, just look at them. They are doing this stupid game whenever they get some time off. It drains my soul even to look at it.”

One of the dwarfs snorted at that, causing Camilla to narrow her eyes at him. A reaction that said dwarfs shrugged off with a practiced ease.

Camilla, who was sitting next to me, rolled her eyes while pulling out a short but polished stick from her overcoat, showing me it with an expectant expression.

I took a hesitant look at the item. It reminded me of a magician's wand, the kind the illusionist used in tricks back on Earth. Then it finally set in.

My eyes widened with surprise as I pointed my own question to the energetic woman. — “Wait… are you a mage as well?”

The girl seemed to react quite sheepishly, seeing my genuine surprise. Which may or may not have been filled with a sense of disbelief.

She turned to the side with a sense of embarrassment radiating from her expression. It was the first time I had the opportunity to actually take in her form.

She was wearing armor like the others, but her armor was made from a mix of leather and heavy textile. It was a welcomed change from the overly metal based dwarven armors I have been seeing.

Aside from that, she had a pale white skin much like the dwarfs. A telltale sign of a person spending way too much time underground.

She had a bright red hair, that based on how the light reflected off of it could be considered blonde. Combined with her dark green eyes and energetic behavior, she looked quite sweet.

I also realized that my reaction to her showing me that wand was most likely inappropriate, and I quickly tried to save the situation.

“Eh… I was just surprised, because of the armor and all… It’s not that you-”

She smiled while clapping her hands. — “Ah, so that was it? I see, but it is quite common for mages to wear armor in the deep roads, though. I am more surprised that you don’t have one.”

She raised an eyebrow at me in a questioning manner. Before jumping to another topic.

“Anyway, Selora, right?” — I nodded. — “How did a girl like you end up in a lost section of the deep roads? Are you an adventurer as well? No, that couldn’t be. Even adventurers aren’t allowed to stay in conflict zones like this, aside from missions.”

I didn’t know about that.

“Oh, well… I am enlisted with the Bronze Company. Aside from that, it’s a long story that I would prefer not to talk about right now…”

One of the dwarfs whistled at that.

While Camilla turned towards me, surprise visible all over her face, she didn’t even bother to cover it up before saying with a teasing tone. — “Oh my, someone got friends in high places. The Bronze Company is one of the best armies this kingdom has to offer. Their ranks are filled with accomplished warriors and high-ranking nobles. I heard that the seventh prince of the Lavacoat family is currently enlisted in their ranks.”

She paused to take a breath before continuing.

“On top of that, he just led a charge into the deep roads with a small army and managed to capture an outpost that was guarded by an army of goblins and hobgoblins with almost no casualties. His military prowess must be out of this world!”

I couldn’t help but snort, listening to her talking about the prince like that. Some things didn’t change, no matter which world you are living in.

I didn’t see anything outstanding about that man aside from his ego. But that was something that shouldn’t be spoken out loud in my current company. Also… my opinion is likely biased since I am still pissed off at the guy’s attitude ordering me around right after he was saved.

I believe that he must be a talented warrior to be placed in such circumstances, and now that I think about it. I never saw him losing his cool. That couldn’t be said about me… then again, I was only here for a few weeks. While he had ample time to grow accustomed to this world’s cruelty.

I shook my head lightly, then cried out in surprise when I was unceremoniously elbowed into the side by Camilla.

“Ouch!” — I shouted, more surprised than in actual pain. — “What was that for?” — I turned towards the smirking woman, who was clearly enjoying my reaction.”

“I didn’t like that smug face you were making there. So why don’t you tell me how you managed to wiggle your way as a human lass into one of the most accomplished dwarven legions?”

She gave me a long look.

“Even if you are a mage, without official acknowledgement from shapers under the service of the king, you won’t be allowed to enlist in dwarven military without exceptional talent.” — Her eyes hovered over me up and down a few times before adding. — “Based on your look, you are barely of age. Are you telling me that you are some sort of prodigy, but if that is the case, why would you come to the dwarven kingdoms? Human kingdoms are better suited to train your magic. So what is it? I can’t accept being left in the dirt without a proper explanation, at least!”

Ugh… I rubbed the side of my ribs while listening to Camilla’s rant. A long lock of black hair fell into my face, reminding me that my hair came undone on the ride here, and I was yet to tie it up. Being too afraid that if I attempted such a thing in the saddle, I would end up face first in the dirt.

I pulled off my hairband that was currently hooked around my left wrist for safekeeping and started the process of tieing up my hair while thinking over my answer.

Just when I was about to finish the procedure and start talking, a sharp intake of breath caught me off-guard from the side.

I turned towards the desperate sound, only to be welcomed by the quickly paling features and horrified expression of Camilla staring at me wide eyed, like a deer caught in headlights.

I heard similarly exasperated reactions from the other side of the cart. When I turned around questioningly, I noticed that the human man was hiding his face in his palms while eliciting a long sigh. Even the stoic dwarfs sitting on the other side showed an obvious reaction while looking at me, no… at my ears with round eyes.

The cart had slowly started to move ahead. The familiar sounds of goat hooves clacking against the cold rock ground were gently filling the compartment while the silence stretched.