Dear diary, we have a problem.

I wake up in the bed of the inn we somehow managed to procure. I am no longer curious about where Kuro gets the money from after seeing him pickpocket a noble-looking fellow. I also don’t really care. It's just a few coins, and it’s not like I can suddenly leave this city to find food and shelter somewhere else.

Kuro and I spent most of yesterday trying to find more information on the survey. Apparently, it has been going on for only a little while now, so most of the citizens are still rather positive food stores are holding, and morale seems to be high. Which is great having desperate people panicking in a confined area is not the type of problem I know how to deal with.

I quickly get out of bed, ready to head out again. I could stay in the inn and just wait out the timer, but I really don’t feel like doing that. I am here in the past anyway, so I might as well make some use of this opportunity to look around. See the sights and all that.

Also, I really want to carve my name into some of the buildings. If they survive till my time, that will give a lot of people things to wonder about. Sure, it is a bit immature, but what would you do given a chance? Anyway, after eating some dry bread, I headed out to explore the city some more.

It is truly a wonderful sight to behold the ancient style of dress and architecture. It makes you truly feel like you are in the past. As I wander around on the squire, Kuro suddenly jumps on my shoulder and points in the direction of a soldier. I look in the direction and see them whispering and pointing at me. I turn around to go back to the way I came, but that entrance is being blocked by guards.

“Okay, Kuro, any clue on what is going on?” I whisper to the cat.

“Not the faintest clue, but it looks like they want to trap us.”

“I can see that, but why?”

“Well, you said that this city was under attack, and you clearly look like an outsider, so they might think that you are a spy.”

“Right, fuck let's get out of here,” I say as I start to run.

I run into a temple that opens up into this plaza, hoping that it has a back entrance or something like that. As soon as I start running, I can hear shouting, and as I look back, I can see the guards following me. Inside the temple is a big open circle with all kinds of statues at the edges. In the middle, there is a big statue of a man on a chariot. I ran past it to the space beyond. I read the name on it: Apollo. That name does ring a bell, but I'm not exactly sure where I heard it before, but I can’t recall where. Not that it is important.

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I open a random door and run through some hallway that seems to lead to sleeping quarters. As I keep running, trying to find a way around, I see some stairs and practically rise up them. The second floor is small, with barely enough room to stand. I started hearing some of the guards behind me, now catching up quickly.

I keep going forward, finding myself at some kind of altar that has an access hatch to the roof. I look back, trying to see if there is a better option, but the soldiers have already made it up and are now coming towards me. The roof is stable enough, not exactly flat, just slanted enough to become difficult to walk on.

I quickly reach the edge of it and look forward, only to find the abyss of the street lying beneath me. Don’t get me wrong, most buildings are packed closely together, but somehow, people have decided not to build next to this particular piece of architecture. I turn around, planning to head to the other side of the building, only to spot a soldier behind me.

“Make this a lot easier for everyone and surrender, will you?” he says.

I frown. Yeah, there's no way I am doing that. I gather my magic, getting ready to cast a spell. I turn and start running to the edge.

“Sun step!” I shout as I reach the edge, two magic circles coming underneath my feet and releasing a torrent of fire, shooting me forward towards and even over the next roof. Not good.

I smack into the next building wall and tumble down to the ground. I am in a bit of a daze as I slowly stand up again; it is a wonder that I have not broken anything yet. I stubble into the alleyway as I try to get even further away. I understand that blending in would be my best bet, but it still stands out a lot.

My clothes are not even close to what is currently in fashion, and the material is not much better. The only thing I have going for me is that my slightly tinted skin is close enough to what the people around here look like, so I can at least blend in somewhat if I try my best.

“Kuro, find me a cloak”, I say. My shadow suddenly gets larger as he disappears to who knows where.

I kept running through the streets, my new improved stamina more than enough to keep up with the pace, that is, until I hit the outer wall of the city and have to turn slightly following its perimeter. I take a little break in an alleyway, trying to see if any of the guards are still following me.

I wait for a few minutes, but as I still don’t hear anything in that time, I breathe a sigh of relief. As I try to come up with my next course of action, the shadows grow darker as a little kitty appears dragging a cloak. I smile and grab the piece of cloth.

“Good job. Did you see how bad it was out there?” I ask as I put it on.

“It is not great they are searching for you all over. Luckily, they are focusing mostly on the strange clothes that you are wearing and your sword,” Kuro explains.

I nod as I hand the cat my sword. It is disappearing in his shadow. “How do I look?”

“As you belong more in this time period, your skin is still too clean, but that can be fixed”, he says as he throws a mud ball at my face.

I frowned but conceded the point, “Okay, then, let’s get going then.”

“Where are we heading?” Kuro asks as he falls into step beside me.

“Apparently, there is a scholarly district in this city with smart men from all over the place. I am hoping it is easier to blend in there among all the foreigners.”

“I see that makes sense.”