Chapter 42- Day 6- Martial Law

Chapter 42: Chapter 42- Day 6- Martial Law

After a day’s rest for Skydancer, the pair took to the sky again.

Alaric was munching on a bag of plain chips inside of a boxed lunch. Even as he snacked on the salty chips, his eyes were glued to the cookie that was resting on the right next to half of the same sandwich.

"No one’s here to tell me how to eat right...?" He whispered to himself before reaching out and grabbing the chocolate chip cookie from the box and took a bite. He felt his body shiver at the sweet and savory chocolate... he could taste each and every flavor inside of it, the melted dark chocolate, chewy chocolate chips and even a hint of salty almonds!

He began to sway on top of Skydancer, sparkles floating near his head, "Sooo goood..." he whispered as he took another eager bite of the cookie. In only a few seconds he had devoured the cookie and wiped his mouth, scattering the remaining crumbs to blow away in the wind.

He was a little disappointed that the cookie and experience ended so fast... He simply reached over and grabbed one of the half sandwiches and boxed the rest up to shove back into his backpack, along with the other boxed lunches. He sighed and took a reluctant bite of the sandwich, which was a simple ham sandwich topped with lettuce and tomato, between a simple toasted white bread. He lifted his eyes and stared ahead, and surprisingly, there were no trees! At least... not only trees this time.

No, it was a mountain. While that wouldn’t spark his curiosity normally, this was different. The mountain was not only high enough to reach the clouds, but the forest began to pile away, leaving room for roads and other ways to reach the mountain. He took another bite of his sandwich, before tapping Sky, "...Fly closer buddy." Sky nodded and flew faster to circle the mountain. As they got closer, Alaric saw it... A town!

Lower down the mountain was a rather large town, housing multiple tall buildings and smaller wooden built ones. Alongside them was what looked like a commercial district, which housed workshops, restaurants, inns, and market stalls. People were calling out to passing customers, ready to make a sale. Others were transporting carriages of supplies and marketable goods. Even the faint sound of a blacksmith at work added the ambience of the town.

But along with everything, there were multiple training grounds, which were neighbors by martial arts schools, students practicing their fighting styles and stances, or battling with wooden swords and staffs. Others had sparring matches under the shade of trees.

But even further up on the mountain seemed to be more martial arts schools and training grounds, which were accessible via wooden platforms that lined the mountains alongside staircases.

Nearby was a pretty waterfall from atop of the higher peaks, steam rising from the burning water stream.

Alaric felt a faint smile grow on his face and continued flying up. Once he was up on the edge of the mountain town, he stood and stepped off Sky, landing on the ground. He quickly killed off his sandwich and wiped his mouth. He punched his chest faintly before walking through the city. He made sure not to get close to anyone, the last thing he needed was to be embarrassed... he hasn’t exactly been able to shower in a few days.

So, first things first was finally a place to stay for at least a day. When he was on top of Sky, he spotted a few inns. He walked through the town, slipping past the stalls and sales people trying to sell him their newest product. He politely turned them down and had unconsciously quickened his pace.

He lifted his gaze and swept over the buildings, using their sign to hopefully point him into the right direction. He glanced at the first building, and its sign had a man on the front, breathing fire with a box of noodles next to his head, an empty bowl resting on a table.

Definitely a spicy restaurant or store. Not what he needed.

He took another look and spotted a bigger building, which was also wider. There wasn’t a sign on the front that might suggest its use. But, people were coming in and out of it. Perhaps this was the inn?

As he walked towards it, he jumped slightly. Right, he doesn’t even know where he’s at right now. He looked towards his right, where his system map lingered. He leaned in and used his fingers to zoom in on his current location...

"...Yamachi Town?" He whispered softly. But, something was wrong. He lifted his head and looked around, and suddenly people around him were staring at him.

He blinked and his face flushed red, rushing off towards the direction of the building ahead. He wasn’t sure why they were staring at him... did he do something weird?

He pushed open the door and stepped inside, the sudden smell of sweat and alcohol crashing into his senses. He looked ahead and chairs and tables lined the establishment, people chatting or in the middle of their drunken ramblings.

Alaric almost thought he was in the wrong place, but when he looked to his right, he noticed keys hanging in the wall, about six rows of eight. There wasn’t a reason to believe this wasn’t at least a hotel. He walked forward, maneuvering past full tables and struggling not to knock over a patrons drink.

Once he finally reached the front desk he leaned against it, "...Can I get a room?"

The lady at the desk lifted her eyes, peering from behind her glasses. She closed her eyes and sat forward, "Name?"

"Alaric Vandale..."

The lady turned towards her computer, "Age?"

"Nineteen..." he whispered and he felt sweat begin to build, partly because it was hot inside of here due to the number of people and partly from nervousness. The lady continued before glancing over, "How long will you be staying?"

"Just a night." She nodded and stood from her desk, suddenly towering over him, causing him to slightly shrink back. She walked towards Alaric’s right, heading for the keys and pulling one from the rack. Once she came back, she placed the key down, "Here. Your room is the first one on the second floor." She leaned forward, "Since you’re only staying a night, it’s free, but room service will cost you."

He blinked and swiped the key, "T-Thanks so much..." he quickly thanked before she turned and continued on with her work. He turned and walked off, looking down at his key. He lifted his head and looked to his side to make sure Sky was still nearby. He slowly scaled the stairs and looked ahead, spotting two rooms adjacent to each other. He looked down and located the key number... he turned towards the left door and stuck the key inside of the hole. With a gentle turn, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The room was... not bad at all. It was small, a bed at the corner of the room along with blinds and curtains hovering above it, a large fan hanging over the bed and a small dresser next to the bed. Next to him was a small bathroom with an actually nice looking shower with a glass cover. It didn’t seem to have a kitchen... which was fine, he didn’t need one. He walked further inside and let his backpack slip off his shoulders. He grabbed the straps and sat it down on the bed. He unzipped the bag and looked inside, and sure enough his food was still good and intact.

But, first things first, he needs a shower. He walked past Sky and towards the bathroom. He slowly clicked the door shut and looked around. The room was white, bright white lights bathing it in a pretty glow. Above the toilet hung fresh white bath towels. He walked up and pulled one off the rack. He glanced back, and looked into the wide screen mirror across from him.

Yup, he was a mess. His face was a little stained, his hair was strung all over the place and his clothes had dirt lining them. He needed this...badly. He pulled the clear screen back and switched on the water, turning it up until steam rose from the water.

He stripped his clothes and stepped inside, letting out a breath as the burning water washed over him, helping his muscles relax perfectly. He exhaled and felt his eyes droop, this was so relaxed he felt like he could fall asleep right there.

He never realized how much he needed this...

...

Eventually his shower ended, and he was beyond refreshed... it felt like he just got down with all expenses paid spa day... he was drying off before walking out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around his waist. His bare feet began to pad against the ground, a slapping sound echoing through the empty room. He sat down on the bed and leaned back on his arms. He sighed softly and looked towards the window.

He’d do better to just stay inside for today, and tomorrow he can explore the town. He was pretty interested in all of the martial arts schools around this town... along with those mountain top training grounds and waterfall. He was still curious why the people outside stared at him like that when he was looking at his system... he knows people can see another person’s system, but when they see you squinted at something that isn’t there, they know that it’s what you’re looking at. Yet, they were acting like what he was doing was foreign or something... oh well, maybe he’ll find out more tomorrow. He should also see if they have some kind of library, that’s where you’ll find out the most about an unknown location.

He obviously wasn’t going to be here for long, might as well take advantage while he was here. He sat up and decided to finally get dressed since he was cooling down.