Episode 11: First Human Encounter (1)

******* Arthur's POV *******

Me and my people been following the signposts for a while. They starting to appear more often so it easy to follow them.

We have been walking for the whole day and the sun is about to go down.

I started giving orders to set up camp but I noticed something in the distance.

I quickly climbed the highest hill to see what it is.

There is a structure nearby that is made out of stone. I can't fully identify what it is but it is close.

"Break up camp! We have to keep walking!" I shouted to my people from atop the hill.

"What are you talking about?! We're tired and the sun is about to go down!" One of them shouted back.

"I can see something in the distance. We have to go there." I said quickly to them after coming down the hill.

I pointed my finger in the direction of the structure.

"It's there and it is close."

"Are you sure that you want everyone to go there?" said the village elder.

"Yeah. What if there nothing but monsters inside?" one of the people interjected.

"We no longer have food and we have nowhere to go. Is there anyone here have a better idea?" I ask them.

I waited for an answer but none of them spoke.

All of us are hungry and tired.

We have to constantly move since we are being chased so we can't forage for food.

We also have to stay alert at night in case of a monster attack.

The two injured men are slowly dying. I'm even surprised they can even walk in their conditions. They say they still got 5 hearts of health but I'm not buying it. There probably want to say that to not make everyone worry about them.

"What if we go there and there are only monsters?" said the elder after a short while.

"I will handle it," I said proudly.

I still got the weapon that is passed down in my family. It still has high durability so it is not going to break soon.

"Are you sure about that? I know you are strong. I saw you handle those monsters back then but you are tired and hungry right now." The village elder said to me while staring with his eyes that says 'We will all going to die'.

I'm not tired of walking and fighting monsters. I'm tired of looking at those eyes. Everyone here is starting to have that kind of eyes.

"Don't worry about it and let's just go."

It is breaking my heart that I can't do more for my people but I still urged them to move.

I turn around and started walking.

All of them is hesitant to follow me but after a moment they quickly gathered their things and started following me.

******* *******

"I WILL KILL YOU ALL!"

"I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL SLAUGHTER ALL OF YOU IF YOU DON'T SHUT UP!"

It is not a good sign when you come back home and started shouting at pigs.

They keep making loud noises even though I already fed them.

Spoiled brats.

They are lucky I didn't butcher them yet since I still have plenty of food in my inventory and storage in the castle. My inventory is starting to get full so I transferred some of the food that I think will not expire for a long time in the storage room.

I'm also starting to become a vegetarian.

I decided to eat only the crops that I harvested right now since I have plenty of bone meal to instantly grow them. I'm just saving the animals for emergencies.

I got out of the barn after scolding the pigs and notice it is almost night time.

I should return to my bedroom and rest.

As I'm walking towards the castle keep, I suddenly heard a voice coming from outside.

"Is there anybody in there!?"

I quickly equip my armor and sword and run up on top of the wall to see who is it.

I looked down on top of the wall and see a bunch of people standing in front of the moat.

They are humans.

There are about 30 of them. Men, women, old people, and even children.

They look tired. They are really dirty too. I also see two people who appear to be injured.

This is my first-time seeing humans in this world. I only met nothing but monsters for the entire time I was here in this world.

I'm really excited to talk to them. I have been talking to my animals lately due to lack of human interactions so this is an exciting moment.

They're not talking though. They just keep staring at me.

"Who are you?" I asked them to start a conversation.

I was surprised at how rude my tone was like I'm talking to a bunch of monsters.

******* Arthur's POV *******

We are standing in front of what appears to be a wall surrounding an area. We can't really see what's behind this wall since it is quite tall.

The wall is beautifully made and looks really sturdy. There is not a single moss on them like it been made recently.

It has a moat surrounding it and a really big iron doors with intricate designs. The gate is really sturdy looking like it is screaming 'Intruders are not allowed!'.

We are surprised to see this kind of thing in the middle of this forest.

We are really cautious about approaching this place. This might be a skeleton fortress of some sort. I don't know if those things actually exist but this is the Forest of Monsters so anything is possible.

I don't see anyone on top of the wall.

There also no bridges of any kind to cross the moat so I don't really know how to knock on the door.

"Is anybody in there!?" I shouted as loud as possible.

After a while, a man showed up.

He is wearing a beautiful blue colored armor. It has carvings and designs on them like they been made by the best craftsmen of the world.

He is also holding a blue sword with the same beauty as his armor.

I haven't seen this type of weapon and armor before. What are they made of? They also shimmer which means they are enchanted.

Everyone is awed on what we are seeing.

Nobody was talking or anything. We just keep staring on the man.

"Who are you?" we heard him speak after a while and snap everyone out of their bewilderment.

His tone suggested that he is irritated.

"I apologized for bothering you, my good sir." I tried to speak as formally as possible.

"I and my people are nothing but refugees from a small village."

"Refugees?"

"Yes. Our village was attacked and we managed to escape to this forest."

"Escape to this forest? Don't you know that this forest is filled with monsters?"

"We have nowhere to run. May I talk to the person in charge of this place about letting me and my people stay? We can pay." I quickly got straight to the point and pulled a small bag filled with 20 emeralds in my inventory and lift it up to let the man see.

"In charge? If you mean the person who owns this place then you are talking to that person."

What? He own a place inside the Forest of Monsters? Who would want to own a place inside this forest?

"I'm sorry, my lord. I didn't know. Can you help us?"

I regretted showing him the small bag with only 20 emeralds in it since he is probably a lot richer than me but I still beg him for help.

He didn't answer.

He just stared at us. He scanned everyone one by one until his eyes settle on the children.

Then he just walks back and disappeared.

No! Don't go! Please help my people.

My people are suddenly gone into despair after seeing the man walked away.

I was about to start shouting to beg for his help when suddenly the water in front me starts shaking.

Everyone was so surprised and took a step back.

A beautiful bridge that is made out of stones suddenly appeared from the moat.

Then, the big iron door slowly opened wide and we can see a man standing in the middle.

"What are you waiting for?" He quickly spoke after seeing that no one is moving.

He is no longer wearing armor and holding a weapon.

Everyone was once again in bewilderment of the appearance of the man. He has an appearance that makes you think that the Goddess herself went down from heaven to this world and crafted this being.

"Come on everyone." I quickly urged everyone.

I started walking and everyone followed closely behind me.

The man steps aside to let everyone through.

When I get inside, I was shocked to see how beautiful this is place is.

The ground is all made out of stone. Most of the stones here have patterns I have never seen in my entire life.

I can see a farm nearby and also what appears to be a barn. There is also a horse stable beside the gate.

The place is also fully lit up. There is not a single block here that doesn't get touch by a light. I wonder how much they have spent keeping this place bright.

But what really caught my attention is the castle.

It is the most beautiful looking castle I have ever seen.

"Arthur"

It is really tall. It probably has about 3 or 4 floors in them.

"Arthur"

It is sturdy looking too same as the gate and wall. Like any projectiles launch from a catapult can't even scratch it.

"Arthur!"

"What?" I suddenly snap out from my admiration of the castle by the voice of the village elder.

"His lord is saying something to you." He quickly added.

The man is staring at me and I was really embarrassed that I'm not paying attention.

"Take this keys and head to the second floor. There are food and water in there." He ordered.

I grab the keys then he added something.

"I'm going to head south to collect some strings. I don't have enough wool to make beds and clothes for all of you."

He is saying strange things but I ignored it since I heard about food, water, beds, and clothes.

He quickly headed to the horse stable and got out wearing an armor. He is also holding a shield and a weapon. The horse is also wearing a shimmering blue armor.

He looks like a warrior from the legends that my mother used to tell me when I was a kid.

"Do you see that lever?" He asked me while pointing his finger into something.

I followed my eyes to the direction he was pointing and can see a wooden lever on the ground.

I nodded my head after seeing it.

"Lock the gate and pulled that lever after I got out. That lever controls the bridge and it is going to retract it. You will all be safe from rogue spiders since they hate water and zombies can't break through that gate. There is still a problem with skeletons since their a little smart but you'll be safe inside the keep."

"It is already night time, my lord. Are you sure you want to go out alone? Where are your guards?" I asked him worriedly.

I noticed something. There is no one here beside him. There are probably inside the keep.

"I lived alone and you don't have to worry about me." He just casually replied.

Wait. He lived alone in this forest? The way he is also talking about going out at night is like he's been doing it for a long time.

"Make sure you also lock the castle keep front door and Arthur." He paused for a moment then stared straight to my eyes.

"Don't let anyone go to the basement till I get back."

After saying those words, he kicked his horse to make it run and head outside then turn left towards the south.

He is gone.

There are a lot of things I don't understand. There are also a lot of questions I want to ask him.

I turned around and look at the castle.

'What is in the basement of that castle?'