Stranger From The City

"You know you could always let me start a normal fire and cook our meals instead"

"Wuu"

"Come now, don't be so stubborn, I bet even you don't want to eat charcoal- err I mean over roasted meat"

"Wu Wu!"

"Haah..."

Unable to convince the stubborn wolf Yu could only take another bite out of the blackened meat that once belonged to a deer

"We have been travelling for nine days straight and there is still no trace of anyone following us, I think we are in the clear now, don't you?"

"Wu wu wuu wu wuuu"

"Mm, so I was thinking, since we are about to arrive at the villages maybe we could buy a house there? I certainly want somewhere that belongs to me, even if I won't stay in it for long, I am kind of tired from renting rooms"

"Wu wuuu wu"

"Get some room to move around if you understand what I mean"

"Wu"

He spoke to Lyra as if he understood what she was saying, and he didn't, but in order to cope with the loneliness he decided it was best to talk to her, it also helped that she understood him and was always an active participant in the conversation

The duo kept chit-chatting in their own way until they felt the fatigue slip away, when it did they started walking toward the villages once again, while both could use some sleep and he was almost sure no one was giving chase he still decided it was best to make it to their destination first and get some rest in the comfort of a house

Five hours later they finally chanced upon some light in the distance, in the dark of the night it was very noticeable which made its owner look confidant in themselves

"They are probably humans"

Still, he didn't walk up to them all willy nilly, he climbed the nearest tree instead and used a spyglass to peer at their small gathering from above

Seven figures sat around the fire, each barely illuminated by the swaying flames, their equipment was that of bows and arrows along two with pikes, none of them held swords it seemed

"Probably hunters from one of the villages, I will go up and talk to them, perhaps they could guide me to the village, if anything goes wrong I will call out my shield and you can kill them all, just make sure none of them escapes lest they report me to the authorities"

Done informing Lyra how to proceed he left the sneaky wolf to skulk in the surroundings while he came out into the open

Hearing his steps one of the hunters instantly aimed at his location, this alerted the others to take other their weapons and do the same

"Hm? Its a human?"

Seeing as it was not a beast everyone looked a bit more relaxed but they didn't lower their weapons, he could still be an enemy after all

"Who are you, what do you want"

"Greetings hunters, I'm a traveller seeking the Foesk village"

"Traveller? Your way too far off the road then"

"Indeed, but this is much faster than taking the road, and much more entertaining"

"Hoh? I guess you know your way around a fight then, well, Foesk village is that way, I won't be escorting you there if you can take care of yourself like you say you could"

Everyone had lowered their weapon now but still held it in hand, they didn't want to fight him but didn't trust him either so they only showed him the way and hoped for no trouble

"Thank you, I will be on my way then"

Waving at them once he went back into the cover of the trees under the hunter's watchful eyes

"Wu?"

"It didn't go so well, guess they're not keen on taking a stranger there, we don't really need them but I would have liked some help getting into the village without too many questions, oh well"

Walking in the direction he was pointed at the two began their journey again while dispatching any beast on the way, it added to their time but if she used her flames to scare the beasts away then surely someone would notice, it would be troublesome if his arrival came shortly after the appearance of the flames

"Finally, that took longer than I thought"

By the time the sun had come up the tired duo made it to the village just in time to see carts filled with goods hitting the road, there were men dressed in leather armour escorting the cart on foot while woman and kids waved at the leaving group goodbye

'That should be the trades they conduct between the city and their villages, I might be able to sell the stuff I looted after all'

"I will call for you as soon as I can, until then rest well"

Rubbing his hand across Lyra he chanted, unsummoning her before walking into the village with a tired gait

"Hmm? Whos is that?"

"I've no idea, never seen him before"

"I'll talk to him!"

The woman and children were cautious seeing the strangely dressed man come out of the forest just when most of the village's men left, one of the remaining young boys didn't think too much about it and chose to walk up and try to be the man

"Oh no you don't, go call your grandpa and leave this to me"

Yanking back the young boy the woman ordered and started walking to greet Yu herself

"But mom.."

"Listen to your mother lad, bring your grandfather quickly"

The boy could only kick the ground after being told off by the women nearby, he didn't delay in calling his grandpa though since he didn't want to miss the conversation with this strangely dressed person

"Hello there young man, may I help you in some way?"

"Hello, I was wondering if this was the Foesk village by any chance"

"It sure is"

Right off the bat he could feel the friendly yet tough attitude of the woman, even though she seemed cautious she was also trying not to look rude at the same time

"That's a relief, I was wondering when I could get some rest"

"You were travelling on foot?"

"Indeed, all the way from Risterg to here"

Risterg was a small city a few days walk from this location, he just named it off the map since he didn't want them to know where he really came from

Even though Restirge was closer than Halferg it was still a shock to the woman that he crossed all that distance on foot, through the dangerous woods none the less, it made her give him another appraising look

First thing one would take notice of was his expensive clothes, they had markings of tear and wear but were otherwise unharmed which meant he was strong enough that none of the beasts could lay a paw on him

Then came his pale skin and soft features looking nothing like a man who spent years training himself, it made her wonder just how he was supposed to the adventuring type

'Wait, something's not right, where is his weapon?'

Noticing the lack of any equipment other than the clothes on his body she couldn't help but frown, this man was very very strange and possibly very dangerous as well

"What are you all doing here still? Food won't cook itself, get working women!"

A loud rough voice came yelling at the people in the square who wanted to know who this strange man was, everyone was reluctant to miss the much-needed drama their boring village life lacked but they dispersed nonetheless, even the kids couldn't stay and watch which made the young boy kick the innocent earth again

"Now who might this kid be eh?"

The old man came to Yu with an annoyed look on his face, he didn't take it to heart though as the look seemed to be etched on the fellow's wrinkled face, he probably had a rough time growing up

"I-" "Father, this young man has come here from Risterg all the way on foot, perhaps we could offer him someplace to rest"

The woman interjected turning to the old man who Yu came to know was her father, what he did not know was the serious look she was giving the old man after she gave him her back

"Huh? Well..whatever you say girl, I will get one of the ladies to prepare some food for him, he can use the guest house in the meantime"

"Umm, I'm truly thankful for the hospitality you're showing me, I could pay for the expenses though"

"Let's speak of that later, I will show you to the guest house and you can get a break there, we should be visiting you in the evening for a talk"

"Well, I will take you up on your offer then"

The overflowing hospitality of the woman did not go noticed by Yu but he wasn't too worried about it, whatever they really wanted from him couldn't by something he wasn't capable of handling, unlike the city where there were strong guards and many people who could swarm him to death the village couldn't achieve the same result, it was easy to wipe out their small population if he had to, not that he would ever need to...