It was like my senses came back online slowly. As consciousness returned to me the first thing, I notices was the smooth feel of grass on my skin, a cool breeze and a warm sun. A moment later, my brain still lagging, I could smell loamy dirt, tree sap and the damp scent of still water. It was then that I groaned and realized that I could hear. Sight and hearing came right on the heels of one another. It was as I opened my eyes and rolled to my side that I noticed the sounds of unfamiliar birds and the sounds of a breeze through trees. The first thing my blurry eyes picked up were a pair of pale hands laying a top lush, bright green grass.

I wasn't sure if it was because my brain still hadn't kicked in or if I was just disoriented, but I spent what seemed like too long a time just staring at the hands before it clicked that they were most likely my own. They were thinner than the hands I was accustomed to and missing the freckles. The oddest thing though was the black nail polish. Another minute passed before it registered that my nails were painted black, but they were black. The thick, pointed nature of them telling me that they weren't really nails, but claws.

Right, I was supposed to be a demon now. With another grunt I got myself up to a kneeling position. I wasn't in pain, but I did feal stiff and awkward. Like my body wasn't moving the way it normally did. I assumed that was to be expected, however. It was a new, unfamiliar body after all. Suddenly curious as to what I looked like I ran my eyes over pale, toned arms. And, yup, I was naked... two large breasts partially blocked my view of a pale skinned belly. My last body wasn't fat. I didn't get to eat enough for that. But this one was toned and muscled. I could just make out a feint six pack.

A weird sensation on my back side had me confused till I saw the thin, whip like appendage wiggling next to white thighs. I had a tail. This was so weird! I reached out and lifted the thing. It was surprisingly thin, maybe the width of my thumb. And it was long. Id bet it would drag on the ground even if I was standing. I noticed that it wasn't furred like I would have thought a demon tail would be but covered in small, sharp, serrated scales. If I ran my ands along it the wrong way I bet, I could have broken skin and drawn blood. At the tip of the tail was an arrow shaped, black boney plate. Like the scale it was sharp and serrated but appeared to be made of some sort of horn like material.

So distracted by the tail was I that I failed to notice the long black hair fanned out around me. No, not black, I saw at once. It was red. But a red so dark that it looked black unless the light hit it just right. Not a natural color from earth. And there was a lot of it too. I was used to my hair being long but not to my knees long. I was impressed I wasn't sitting on it right now.

I shook my head to clear it, then took in my surroundings. Kradiff said he would have a bag with cloths near by and I needed to find it before someone found me. Bad enough to come across a demon much less a butt naked lady demon. I seemed to have awoken in a forest next to a small lake. The trees were moderate in size and the water was a clear deep blue, reflecting the clear sky above. It was truly a picturesque view. It took only a second before my eyes landed on the bag. It was small and made of some sort of sack like material with a rope draw string.

Still feeling awkward in this new body, I stumbled to my feet and wobbled toward the bag. It wasn't large and whatever was in it was taking up the whole bag. I reached down and lifted it up. At the top of the bag was my new Grimoire. I really wanted to read the thing, but I should probably be dressed first. Beneath the book was the cloths and I wasted no time pulling on the thin pants and grey shirt. I slipped on a pair of leather-bound sandals and wrapped a long cloak around my shoulders. It was nothing fancy but at least I wasn't naked or running around the forest barefoot.

The bag was a great deal lighter without the cloths, but it wasn't empty. Besides the grimoire there was also a small pouch that contains some kind of ointment I assumed was for treating wounds, another pouch lined with wax paper and holding a few strips of some kind of jerky and yet another small bag that held a handful of copper coins. It wasn't much but it was still more than I had before I got killed. Life was already on the up. Now to keep it that way.

I walked over to the lake, my gait a little less jerky now, and bent to put my hands in the water and drink. Kradiff hadn't left me with any sort of canteen so I would drink what I could now encase I didn't find any water any time soon. Just as I was about to dip my hands in, I caught my reflection and stared. I looked nothing like my old self. The person looking back at me was round faced and pale with silky black-red hair. My ears were slightly pointed, but it was the red eyes that were most startling. That may be hard to explain once I got to town... it took a second before I noticed the horns. You would think they would have been the first thing to notice but they were dark as my hair and to be frank- puny. Like just barely visible through my hair. I kind of felt a little embarrassed. Kradiff didn't really mention what a demon looked like, so I was probably just going off what earth described demons as... but even Kradiff's little demon marble sported long, curved horns.

It was then that I remembered that the little ball also had wings. A glance over my shoulder showed nothing and it wasn't till I made to reach back and feel for them that it clicked that if I had them they would have gotten in the way when I put the shirt on. A little disappointed I sighed. It was fine though. No need to complain. This new body was fitter and, in my opinion, better looking than my old one. It seemed to be healthy and more than a little in shape. Not everyone got this toned of a body without having to put in the work.

I had my drink, slung the bag over my shoulder and pulled my hood up over the horns. Better safe than sorry. There were beast men, right? So, if someone saw them maybe I could claim to be a goat lady or something. The tail was the biggest give away. For now, I wrapped it around my waist under my shirt. The eyes would be a problem too though. Not sure how I would explain those away. Oh well, that was a problem for future Cindy, I guess.

Cindy hu? Kradiff was right about it sounding odd. Cindy the demon? Yuck. Then again, I was never found of my name. It made me think of pink sports cars and vacations in the Bahamas, and that was so not me at all. Most people just called me Cinn anyway. Oh! I liked that. But not Cinn, rather Sin. Yeah. New life new identity. And I was already used to the name, just had to change the spelling. Sin the demoness... I liked that.

With a smirk I turned toward the trees. Time to start my new life of Sin.

Kradiff hadn't seen fit to tell me where the nearest town was, nor did he leave me a map. Was it safe for a god to be so forgetful and absent minded? Either way I had no clue if I was headed toward civilization or not. All I could do was keep going and hope I hit a road or something. I hoped I'd come across something before nightfall. I was used to camping out but that was back on earth. I had no clue what plants or animals would be safe to eat, nor what basic things like weather was like here. And that was not even considering potential monsters.

I'd been walking for nearly an hour now and the only wildlife I'd seen so far was some birds that looked like one's I'd seen on earth, and I could have sworn I saw a rabbit dash across my path that had a horn on its head. It was fast, however, and it may have just been my imagination going haywire.

The trees here looked like earth trees. I saw birch and oak... no conifers yet though. Several pretty flowers that were close enough to ones on earth that I couldn't tell the difference. But I was not botanist so I could have been wrong. I couldn't hide my wonder and curiosity. Even though it all looked so close to Earth everything felt different. I wasn't sure if this sensation was produced by the world around me or if being a demon came with a new sense that I had no way of recognizing.

The truth was that I was flying blind here. What I was most anxious to do was find a town. Then see if it had some kind of library. I was never a book worm but even I could see the value in knowledge, and I was sadly lacking in that area. Even the simplest of questions by a stranger could out me as an outsider and I could hardly use "I am a demon" as an excuse. No doubt that would get me in even more trouble than admitting I was from another world. I needed information. Information about everything and anything. So, unfortunately, I'd have to hit the books.

I did have one book on me that I could look at. I could feel the little grimoire in the bag against my back and I was itching to look at it. But that would have to wait. First find an inn or something to stay in, then I could read in the comfort of a bed. Maybe the money Kradiff left me would even be enough to get a room and a meal. Either way I would have to make it work for me. I also had to see about how people made money in this world. No doubt I could get a job... but if this was like a video game that I may have better luck collecting materials or taking out monsters or something.

A noise suddenly had me stopping in my tracks. It wasn't that it was loud. It was simply that it was a sound I hadn't ever heard while strolling through the woods before. A sort of squelching followed by a soft thud. Like a foot being pulled from a swampy muck and then planted on firm ground. I stood, frozen, as I tried to pinpoint the sound. My ears twitched, an odd sensation, and I instinctively pulled air into my nose, scenting the air.

I turned to my left and narrowed my focus on the short dark bushes blocking my view there. Had there of been anything large I would have been able to see it over the green leaves so what ever was hidden there couldn't be any bigger than an average dog... throwing caution to the wind I decided to co check it out. If it was a powerful monster in a tiny body than now was as good a time as any to see how strong a newbie demon was. Besides, Kradiff was absent minded but surly he wasn't so unreliable as to slap me down next to a big bad monster, right?

Walking slowly, I approached the bush in question. It took about one second for me to feel both embarrassed and amused. Mostly I was indignant. It was, without a doubt, a... slime. Literally. Just as every RPG video game ever, described them as. It was about the size of a fat cat and seemed to be made completely out of some sort of blue, gelatinous, matter.

"Hu!" I huffed out loud. Figures. I mean, of course there were slimes here. So stupid. Still, this did provide me with a relatively risk-free way to test my strength and also se what happened if I defeated a monster. I held up a hand and looked at it. I didn't have a weapon, but I did seem to be sporting a set of claws. Besides, as a demon, even a weak one, I should have many times the physical strength of an average human male, right? And in video games slimes were, like, the easiest monsters to beat. I should have this, no problem!

I did feel kind of bad. The slime seemed to take no notice of me at all and I was planning on just murdering it. Still, I needed to know more about this body, and this seemed to be the best way now. Better slash a slime than wait for something nastier to show up and have my ass handed to me because I didn't know my limits.

I glared down at the blue blob as it hopped in zigzags, oblivious, making those squelching, slapping sounds. I flexed my fingers and took aim. There wasn't anyone here to see me, but id rather not fall flat on my face while attempting to slay my first monster. I drew my hand back then slashed downward at the blue goop.

Pretty much the second my claws touched the membrane the little guy just popped. And apparently, I underestimated my own strength, because not only did my claws pass clean through the slime but my fist sunk a good four inches into the soft soil beneath it. I hadn't even been trying to use full strength! Yikes... best to be careful from now on. I've been known to punch things when mad and at this rate there will be holes in brick walls.

I pulled my fist out of the dirt and shook it off. It didn't even hurt. I punched a hole in the ground and didn't even bruise my knuckles... Scary. I looked back at the hole and saw that there was some kind of little white pebble next to it. It was too perfectly round to be an actual stone. I tentatively reached out and picked it up. I felt a slight tingling in my fingers, but it wasn't painful at all. Looking at it closer, I saw that it looked like a pearl, with a sort of milky translucence. Maybe it was valuable? It would look nice in jewelry. If I could sell it like they do with monster drops in games than all the better. Hearing more squelching sounds near by, I smiled. Might as well get some more of these things and see if I could get some coins for them.

I didn't really have any way of telling time, but I would guess that I spent about two hours tracking down and squishing slimes. I didn't find any other types of monsters, but I did manage to collect nearly two dozen little white pearls. I stashed them in my bag and decided that I had used up enough of the day on the task and that I really needed to find some place to stay. Maybe I could even sell my loot. Humming a tune, I continued, hoping I was heading in the direction I needed to go.

I was beginning to worry that I was, indeed, going to have to spend the night in the forest when I finally broke through the tree line. I heaved a huge sigh of relief when I saw that I was next to a well warn dirt road. I could see the ruts made by wagon wheels and even what looked like the hoof prints of what was probably horses. Not only was it a road but a frequently used one. Good. I had no idea witch direction would be the fastest to get me to town but at least I found the road.

The forest was behind me and on the other side of the road seemed to be rolling green hills. Maybe someone was using them as pasture lands? If so, it could be likely that I will come across people If I just stick to the road. Farmers or merchants maybe. Well, standing around wasn't doing me any good. I could tell the sun was getting low on the horizon now that my view wasn't blocked by trees.

Turning toward the setting sun, taking the bright ball as a sign of good fortune, I made my way down the road. It was by no means a smooth walk. The road was mostly dry but there were puddles in places, telling me it had rained some time in the last couple days. All the potholes told me that though it was well used it was likely not a main road. That or who ever was responsible for the road was too poor to keep it up or too negligent. Most likely it was just a main throughfare for farmers. This was mostly confirmed when, about half an hour later, I came across my first fenced off pasture. I saw no animals but the fence itself seemed well maintained.

Finely finding signs of people was comforting. I may not be a social butterfly, but I liked being near people better than being all alone. Surly the town wasn't far off. I was starting to get hungry, but I didn't want to break into my only food stores just yet. I'd hold out till night fall at least and see if I could get myself a hot meal in a town Inn or something.

"Hellloooo!" called out a small voice, startling me out of my musings.

"Nella!" Admonished another voice and my eyes landed on two children sitting on a fence a little way up the road. Had I not had such good hearing now I don't think I would have heard the older boy's admonishment of the little girl. "Momma said not to talk to strangers!" He seemed to be about ten while the girl look maybe half that.

I did not take down my hood has I approached the pair, but I did try to put a pleasant smile on my face, hoping my eyes didn't freak them out. "Evening!" I said, only now realizing that the word I thought and the word that came out of my mouth were different, even though my mind also translated the word for me. It was a little disorienting, but I hoped to get accustomed to it. At the very least I'm sure that I would naturally pick up the native language and Kradiff's spell wouldn't need to translate for me anymore.

"We aren't supposed to talk to strangers." Wined the little girl. She had short, brown curls, big green eyes and a round face. Immediately I would put her and her taller, equally brown haired and green-eyed brother, as humans.

I chuckled. "That's true. You shouldn't speak to strangers. But maybe you could answer just one thing for me?" I directed my question at the boy who looked warry and held firm to the little girl's hand. Shame my own brother wasn't ever as diligent as this boy. "I'm afraid I got turned around in the woods. You wouldn't happen to know how much longer it is to get to town do you? I just want to know if I'll make it there before night fall."

The boy looked me over for a second while Nella just watched me, open mouthed. He sighed, then nodded. "Bellana is farther than momma will let us go on our own. But if you are walking, I think you should be able to get to the gates before the sun sets."

"Good. Thank you so much for your help. Have a good night." I said with a small smile. I gave the little girl a wave as I walked on, and she returned it cheerfully.

It was great news. So, the town was called Bellana. I didn't want to make my question too specific as I was sure it would reveal my ignorance. Even if they were kids, it could have meant trouble. So, I didn't risk asking any questions about the town. I was curious though. It occurred to me then that I could probably run there. I had been walking and fighting- even if it was just slimes- all day and I wasn't even slightly tired, therefore I assumed that running would probably not drain my stamina much. Plus, given the strength in my arms, it was a safe bet my legs were just as strong. No doubt I would be a fast runner...

But I had no idea if strange women doing 40 miles an hour on foot would be considered odd. It would to me. I couldn't risk it. For all I knew I may just get arrested for being a demon. Kradiff said that it wasn't supposed to happen, but he also said that just because demons weren't supposed to be killed on site didn't mean that it didn't happen anyways. Best not to risk it. Especially since Bellana wasn't too far away anyways. So, I would just have to continue to trudge along.

The boy was right though. The dirt road only went on for another fifteen minutes before it connected to a loosely cobbled road that was clearly the main road to and from the town known as Bellana. I was worried at first that I would go the wrong way but just as I was about to throw caution to the wind and pick a direction at random, a wagon came into view. I introduced myself as a disoriented traveler and the man leading the wagon seemed amiable enough to escort me to town.

"Now, I know that there are little ladies like your self that can hold there own even without a man's protection...," said the man. He seemed to be an older human male with a lined face, grey hair and laughing eyes. He eyed me sideways with concern as he pilled on the reins of the white and grey mare he was leading. "But still. Any lady should at least have a man or two with them, even if only to avoid the swine that would pick a fight just because they think they can..."

I laughed. "I appreciate your concern. I can hold my own though. Besides, I am new to this area and have yet to make any comrades." Comrades? This auto translate was weird. I can't say I ever said the word 'comrade' out loud before. At least not with a straight face.

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"Hmm." He said, not sounding particularly convinced. I supposed I couldn't blame him. With the cloak on I did look like a tiny little thing after all. He hadn't mentioned my red eyes either. Maybe they were more common here than I had originally guessed. "New to the area you say? I take it that you haven't been to Bellana before than."

"Never." I said, not wanting to supply anymore information that would give away just how ignorant I truly was.

"Well as the second largest town in the kingdom it's a busy place. If you aren't used to the city life it may be a bit of a shock for you at first. Most the small towns in this region are mainly populated by humans after all. You will see a lot more races in Bellana than you are likely accustomed to." The last sentence was almost a question. No doubt he was fishing for hints about myself. Likely he was just trying to be friendly, but I had learned from a young age to never hand out any sort of personal information too freely.

As such I just shrugged and said, "I haven't seemed much of the other races, true. But I must admit I am curious about them." There that was non-committal and sounded like a personal tidbit, right?

"Well, you will definitely see your fair share of them there." He chuckled heartily. His mare's ears twitched but other wise she just continued with her job of bulling the cart. "A goodly number of the beast-men either live there or come to trade in from the wilder parts. They are a good sort mostly, despite the prejudices and such. Best to be careful of the wilder looking ones though all the same. I once had a good pal of mine get in a bar fight with one of them wolf types. Fellow nearly chewed his arm off before six other folks pried the furry fellow off." The story sounded drastic but the amount of laughter coming out of the mans belly said that it probably was more of a swift bite and less of a mauling.

"Sounds bloody. I hope he was alright?"

"Who, Jackson? Ha! He and the wolf were back in the fields the next day thanks to old Lindy and her potion skills. Lucky our little village has such a good Alchemist to be sure. Don't see them much anymore."

I didn't ask why. No doubt it was something most natives would know. Though the ability to make potions, or what ever it was that healed Jackson, seemed like a very handy and profitable skill to have. Something that could heal something as drastic as a nearly torn off arm in a day. Even if it was just a bad bite that would be impressive. Surely someone could even make good money off such skills. I wondered why such a skill would be let to dwindle like that.

It also struck me just then that all those 'professions' in video games, the ones I saw as just another way to pass the time, were probably very essential when used in real life situation. I could only imagine how useful something like a 'max potion' would be on a battlefield or even during a natural disaster... crazy helpful. It sounded like it would be hard work to learn, but maybe I should investigate it? Not just to heal myself during sticky situations but also to heal any partners I may make. Would a potion even work on a monster? I needed to look that up.

I pulled my attention back to the conversation at hand and smiled at my new traveling companion. "Okay, so besides the people, what's the city like? You've been there a few times, right? Is it as big as they say?"

James laughed again. "Not nearly as big as the capital city. That place would shock even those used to Bellana I'd wager. But it is many times bigger than any other place in the kingdom. Lord Godric Stellos runs the place fairly, for a Nobleman. I have met ones I liked a lot less. Not that I have ever met Lord Stellos... But he keeps the city clean and orderly, the soldiers there in line, and poverty in check as well as any lower born citizen could hope for."

Ah, so this world, or at least this part of it, had a clear class system. That may be hard for my little wise ass to get used to. Coming from a place where democracy and freedom of speech was a thing, I'm sure I was bound to have some unfavorable run ins with the snobby elite. Mind you, even back on Earth that happened. The snobs just couldn't, legally speaking, flog me in the streets. I had a feeling that wasn't quite as true here.

"And the city itself is a sight to see. The Market has a massive statue of Lect! Pretty amazing to these uncultured eyes. How he and the other Heroes managed to defeat the Demon King 300 years ago I will never know. I'm sure there are books galore written about it, but my Pa only saw fit to teach me my numbers. Said reading was for those who could afford books... Anyway, they have smaller statues of all the heroes of the last summoning at the cathedral if you wanted to see them."

"Really." I spoke. The excitement was feigned in my voice, but I was curious. So, the last summoning was three hundred years ago? I wonder if that meant three hundred years ago on earth too. Clearly time flowed a little differently, that or the seasons. Then again maybe I was just in a warmer part of their world. Either way it was going into winter when I left Earth and here it felt more like mid to late spring. Lect? It was a weird name, but I couldn't pretend I knew what names were being used on earth and when. To me it sounded like a made-up screen name. Not that I had any room to talk. "All of them are there?" I wanted to keep him talking as best as I could. I just hoped he didn't get too suspicious of me.

"Oh yes. I suspect there will be new heroes soon enough though." He said with a put-out sigh. "All the signs seem to point to the Demon King coming back after all... I suppose we shouldn't complain, however. Three hundred years between his rebirth was a long stretch. Almost double the last time he was defeated."

Wait. This Demon King issue was a recurring problem? What the heck! So, every 150-300 years the kingdom just goes and kidnaps five people form another world, slaps a sword in their hands, and says 'good luck, thanks for solving our problems for us for another century or so!', and that's that? Wow. And why would they just kill this Demon King fellow? Why would he just get sealed away?

"There have been signs?" I pushed.

He laughed good naturedly again and gave me an incredulous look. "You must have come from way out in the sticks if you don't know that! Yes, the signs have been cropping up steadily for the last couple years. Monsters have been getting stronger in the higher tiers... so much so that adventures that once could handle level A monsters now find themselves struggling with level B ones. I hear it's been a real pain for the guilds when it comes to handing out requests and the like. And even merchants like me have had to start hiring guards if we want to sell our goods over any sort of distance from the big towns."

"Sounds difficult. Sorry you have been having a hard time of it." And I was sorry. No matter what world you came from it seemed there was no escaping some hardships.

"Awe, I haven't been having it too bad. Mostly I just haul the surplus produce from a few of the communities south of Bellana to the city and get as good a price for them as I can for the farmers. Its rare you see any monsters above D rank. Its probably how such a large city could be built here in the first place. Any sort of major monster attack is unlikely."

"I've only seen slimes so far myself..."

"Ha! Yes, this close to the city you won't see anything more than an E or F rank. Adventurers just starting out in Bellana tend to clear out anything that would drop a Magistone worth a silver before you could say 'slime'. I've been traveling theses roads for years and the worst I ever saw was a group of goblins once. They are a nasty bunch to be sure and had I have been alone I would have been a goner, but they aren't anything an average ranked adventurer couldn't handle."

Magistone... that must be what the little white pearls the slimes dropped were. Well at least I had a name for them now. I wondered if I could handle a band of goblins on my own. Also, Adventure guild huh? So, this world really did have much of its culture and make up set up like what would be considered a video game on Earth. If that was the case than I may have to sign up with the guild at some point...

"I bet slime magistones don't go for much..."

"Not at all. Last I bothered to check it was something like three for a copper. You don't need a guild license to farm them though, and as you said there tend to be a lot of them around. Its why you always see the drunkards at the guild handing them in. A couple hours of slime farming get them a few pints of ale if they are lucky. You ask me, the reason the guilds don't require licenses to hunt E and F rank monsters I because the adventures wouldn't bother with them. Let's the common folk keep their numbers in check with out having to send the guards out on useless missions to hunt slimes when they should be guarding the city."

"That sounds like a sound theory to me." I admitted. Plus, he was giving me good information now. So, I could hunt low level monsters without one of these licenses and the stones I have on me know I would have to bring to the guild to sell. I was a little bummed that I would only be getting a handful of coppers for the magi stones I had now. Still, any amount of money was welcome. "Are you part of a guild?"

"Nope, not me. Was never one for adventuring. The thought of fighting monsters when I don't have to, scares the ghost right out of me." He laughed, giving the mare's reigns a little tug to get her to pick up the pace. "I don't do any of the other more specialized jobs either. But I hear the other guilds do pretty good here in Bellana, even without old veggie merchants such as myself helping."

"All of that aside, you wouldn't happen to know a good, cheap inn, that I can find a room at this late in the evening in Bellana do you?"

"Oh sure, there a couple that aren't too pricy but still are clean and not likely to see you mugged through the night. The one nearest the East gate that we are just about to come up on would be the Birch Tree inn. The land lady there makes the best bread of any inn in town, I guarantee it!"

"Will you be heading there as well?"

"No, not I. I had been hoping to get to Bellana much earlier than we are getting there now. Unfortunately, my sweet Netta here went a little lame on me. Hence why I am walking her rather than Sitting on the bench." He said petting the mare's nose affectionately. She flicked her ears but otherwise ignored her master's touch. "Originally, I was going to take my haul straight to the warehouse to have it auctioned off but that will have to wait till morning now. It will lose me a little coin but luckily most of the merchandise is root vegetable, so they wont really loose any freshness. Ill must take the whole cart to my brother's house. He has a small stable and so I shouldn't have to worry about my wares being stolen."

"Oh, you have family here?" I asked. I could now make out the walls of the city up ahead of us as we came over a slight hill. It appeared to be about two storeys high with a wooden gate fixed into the stone entrance. I could tell that there seemed to be a small crowd gathered outside of it.

"Sure do. My bother is a small-time clothier in town working with the merchant's guild. He does well for himself. I have an aunt in town as well but she I am bit batty. My brother looks out for her when she allows it but from what I understand she mostly keeps to herself in a small house on the seedier side of town. I tried to visit here there once only to have her come at me with a cooking pot! Now I just wait to see her during the times she is at my brother's house."

He and I shared a laugh as I pictured an elderly woman hefting a pot and chasing after the large, sun bronzed merchant. It had been a while since I laughed without it just being for show. I was glad that he was pretty much the first person I met here in this world. With any luck most people I came across here would be much like him. I had no illusions that all would be that way but I aloud myself a little bit of wishful thinking.

"An awfully big crowd outside the gate." I commented at we reach the end of the small line. I counted at least fifteen people, several having carts or wagons with them.

"A bit more than currently most nights. I guess we weren't the only ones cutting it close today. The city has a curfew you see. No one in or out of the walls after night fall."

I figured that that was probably for the best in a world with magic and monsters. No doubt the bad and nasty preferred the night in this world just as much as on Earth, but the ones here had many more ways to make peoples lives miserable. Not that I could really cast any shade on the matter. I was what one would consider one of the 'baddies' after all. Not that I saw myself that way at all. I did bad things from time to time, but I didn't think that that necessarily made me a bad person.

At the gate the people gathered didn't seemed to be in any duress, so I figured that there wasn't any major trouble on the road that had held these people up. I decided that since I had a group here to observe then I would do just that. I could tell that most of these people were human. Or at least to my untrained eye they were at least. One person was, without a doubt, a Beast-man. He was nearly seven foot tall and he literally looking like a walking leopard. One wearing a leather jerkin, black pants and brown leather boots. Every inch of his skin was covered in yellow, spotted fur and he literally had a cat's head. I was fascinated but I did my best not to stare. One, it was rude, but it would also draw attention to me. I hadn't thought about it till just then but what if those like Beastmen could smell that I was a demon.

I knew that my own sense of smell seemed to be greater than it had been. Enough that most smells around me were too strong. But just because I had a better nose did not mean I knew how to properly use it. Unfortunately, it would take time to work out all my bodies new abilities. Once I got settled in a little it would be one of my top priorities.

I saw that what held up the group was that the guards- two men dressed in leather armor and some kind of blue uniform with swords strapped to their hips- had to check the carts before their owners could go through. No doubt making sure that there were no stow aways or illegal contraband being brought into the city. It all seems lay back. More so than any search iv seen cops back home preform at least. Not that the guards looked negligent, just less formal than I would have thought.

Our turn came up and my friend told me to just go on through. "As I said, I will be headed to my brother's hose and its opposite the way you will be heading." He spoke. "Just keep walking down East Street and you won't miss the place." He waved me off with a smile once the guards took a better look at my face and said I was good to go.

I felt worried for the city folk that a demon could just walk into town uncontested. Though, now that I think about it, I guess that would be racial profiling against my own race. Hmmm. Though even as a demon I found I couldn't really blame most people for being fearful and distrusting of my kind. I mean, if people like me were what an average demon was like that, we weren't the most trustworthy of people.

I passed through the stone gate way without trouble and came to a small-town square of sorts. Though it was more a half circle in shape. Basically, it was just a soccer field sized open cobbled space with a handful of people milling about. There were a few planter boxes in the center filled with sweet, scented purple and red flowers and what appeared to be the towns notice board. As it was getting dark, I decided that I would check out the notices later and would go find the inn for now.

I noticed that the left side of the street and the right side of the street seemed quite different to my left appeared to be mostly what I would call apartment buildings. Mostly they seemed to be row houses about two or three storeys high with large wrap around balconies. Judging from the state of the people milling around and socializing near the many buildings and the laundry being hung up between them I assumed that this was the lower income side of town. I saw mothers calling their children in for the night, two men holding each other up as they drunkenly sang their way down the road past me, and two women arguing up on one of the balconies.

The right side of the road also had large buildings. These ones were much cleaner however and mostly made of stone rather than the shabbily painted wood on the other side of the road. These building felt more like businesses to me. May the guild offices I was told about? Or maybe its just where the middle class went to work being bankers or what have you. This place may look like a fantasy RPG, but it was a real world with real needs. Unlike video games, real worlds needed city workers and bankers and lawyers.

I let my head swivel between the two sides, my eyes a little heavy and my belly now very empty. It was only a few minutes later that I saw the smaller building wedged between two larger ones on the right side of the road. A small sign above the clean white door read: Birch Tree Inn in stylised lettering. It was skinny compared to the behemoths next to it, but the Inn wasn't too small.

Feeling a little nervous I reached out and opened the door. Even before the white painted wood swung open I could here the happy sounds of satisfied people coming from within. So, I wasn't too surprised when I stepped into a warm dining room lit by a nice size fireplace on one side and candle chandelier throughout the comfortably sized dining area. Along a back wall next to a pale wooded staircase was a long bar with several men seated at it. The tables were about half full and everyone seemed to be chatting happily enough. No one even looked as I entered. I wasn't sure why I half expected the room to go silent and everyone to turn my way. My brain still half thought this would turn out to be a comic book or something, I guess.

Some what self consciously, I made my way up to the bar and stood before the woman on the other side. She was a bigger lady wearing a pale green dress and a white cotton shawl. Her eyes danced with a vibrant happiness, so much so that I almost didn't notice that they were topaz coloured and had slits for pupils. Once I noticed that I also saw that she had rosy colored scales on her cheek bones and that the color wasn't just a blush. He hair was a mas of bouncy blonde curls right out of a fifties film. She looked like a cherub without the wings, and I found myself smiling at her.

"'Evening miss!" She said in a bubbly voice and what I would call a slight southern accent. Though no doubt it had nothing to do with the southern states of America at all. "How can I help you? We have a nice pot of stew on the menu tonight! Martin did some of his best work on it I'd say."

I didn't know who Martin was, but id say it was a safe bet to assume he oversaw meals here at the Birch Tree. "Thank you, I would love some. But I was also wondering if you had any rooms available. I know its late, but I only just got into town."

"Not a problem at all Miss. We have several rooms available so its no issue." She whipped a glass with a clean rag, placed both behind the bar, then waved her hand to someone else in the room. I looked back in time to see a young lady hurrying over. She also wore a green dress but hers was shorter, and she wore a clean white apron over it. "Breena, cover the bar while I get this here young lady settled in. Tell Martin to get a serving of the stew ready too."

"Yes mame!" Smiled the waitress with a small bow. She hurried to the other side of the bar as the landlady made her way over to me.

"I hope you don't mind me saying miss, but you looked bushed! If you like I can just have Breena, take your meal up to your room." She said waving me toward a tight staircase near the fireplace. "A nice hot meal and a good sleep is what you need now I think."

I chuckled. "That would be most welcome, thank you."

"No mind, no mind. Now, I'm going to put you in one of the rooms on the second floor. They are three coppers a night. Cause you are staying with us the meal will only be one copper rather than the usual two. For another copper I can get my boy Fenny, to bring you up a hot tub of water and some towels so you can clean up." She was listing all this in a way that told me that she probably did it multiple times a night. I followed her up the stair to the next floor and she led me down the long hallway lined with doors. I could tell that the building was much longer than it was wide. "If the was tub isn't enough the public baths are a short five-minute walk away. They charge three coppers."

"The tub would be great." I spoke. I cleaned my self up with far more unpleasant things that a nice basin of hot water and clean cloths. Sometimes I had to go days without even a bathroom sink to wash up in. No need to waste the small number of coppers I had on me just to have a bath when I wasn't all that dirty anyway. Well, that was a lie. I was pretty yuck after a day of trudging through the forest, not to mention splattering all those slimes.

"Lovely. Okay, here we are! Room six." She pulled a set of keys tied to a rope out of her skirt pocket and rifled through them till she found the one she needed. She unclipped it from the bunch and inserted it in the lock. Opening the door, she showed me into the small room. "Here is the key. Make sure you keep track of that good, cause if you lose it, it's a ten-copper fee so I can get the locks replaced."

"Sounds good." I took the key and glanced around the room. It wasn't much bigger than a prison cell- yes, I have been in one of those- but far more inviting. A small bet next to a bedside table with a candle on top. Opposite that was a small table and wooden chair with a standing coat rack next to it. There was no window, probably because the Inn was squeezed between two large buildings. Instead, there was a pretty painting of a city square with a handful of children playing a game of tag by the look of it.

"Now, I'm gonna head downstairs but Breena and Fenny should be by quick enough with your stew and water."

I nodded and removed my bag to fish out my coin purse. I counted out five coppers and placed them into her work worn hand. "If I wished to keep the room for a few nights, would I be able too?"

"Oh absolutely!" She chirped. "Just be sure to pay who ever is at the bar before noon tomorrow for however many nights you like. They will be sure to mark it down in the registry. Just don't forget to tell them your room number." A knock had us both turning, and I saw that Breena stood in the doorway with a steaming tray. "Breena! Good girl. Alright young miss, my name is Sally by the way. You just come give me or Breena a shout if you need anything okay? And once you are done with the stew just put the tray outside the door and someone will come by to pick it up later."

"Sure, thanks a lot."

Breena gave me a little bow as she entered the room. As good a one as she could while holding a wooden tray with a small loaf of bread and a steaming bowl of stew anyway. She placed the tray on the table then excused herself.

"I'll tell Fenny to get that tub ready." Smiled Sally as Breena preceded her out the door. "He will probably be up in about fifteen minutes. Since its so late ill make sure he waits till tomorrow to come fetch it though. Please enjoy your stay young miss." And with that she gave me a little curtsy and vanished, lightly closing the door behind her.