A new man in town

After riding for a while, Jay got to the crossroad with the path leading north to the Alexton's farm, straight towards where the road got broken apart and south towards Millshire.

He took to the right, leading south and traveled on.

Down the barely paved road, Jay passed a broken down mill to the side of the road. Though it was still a bit further away, it looked like it had been set aflame some time ago.

The meadows surrounding it had no such traces though, so the fire had either been erased in time or it happened quite some time ago.

A mile further down the rode, Jay came across the first fruit tree plantation. The apple trees reached until the feet of the adjoining mountains, so he remembered he had seen this place from the Lighthouses top.

Grabbing one of the Apples that looked ripe, Jay bit into it and relished in the sweet and fresh taste.

A bit down the road, the only thing that changed for Jay was the type of trees he rode through.

There he saw the first people in a while, plucking the fruits that looked like oranges and storing them in big baskets. He greeted them but got no reply from the shabby looking men and women.

Plucking one of the oranges from up his horse himself, Jay peeled it while he rode on. The taste was similar but not the same as he knew, more sour and with less juice, but it still tasted pretty good.

The travel continued for most of the afternoon as Jay didn't hurry too much and even took a small break to eat the care packet he got from the Lighthouse keepers wife.

But as the sun slowly began to set in his back and he passed another hill, he finally saw the silhouette of Millshire peeking out of the surrounding sea of trees.

It was not hard to recognize as the biggest mill he ever saw was already easy to distinguish even from miles away.

Speeding up his horse and galloping for the next miles, Jay arrived at the city only a short while later.

The mill he had seen from afar only looked bigger the closer he came and presented itself as a real masterpiece of engineering and craftsmanship.

The city itself was surrounded by a high wooden wall and the road he rode on led to a guarded city gate.

The soldiers positioned there had a different uniform than the protectors from Sentinel. It was colored not blue but in a greenish yellow, close to the color of freshly growing crops. Combined with the dark breastplates, helmets and arm protectors, it looked like a practical veteran armor.

Checking on the two guards from still a bit of distance, Jay saw both of them were of level 20.

Not too low for a mere guard.

They halted him and asked where he came from and what his reason for the visit was. A bit irritated, Jay took out his order certificate after a long time and held it towards the guard.

Reading over it the man tried to grab it but Jay pulled it back in time.

With a little angry glare, the guard declared he needed to check on the paper or else he couldn't let him pass the gate. Jay dismounted and dismissed his horse, startling the two men a bit.

He then declared that the Guard could check on the order there if he really needed to.

Threatening him that if he tried anything funny, Jay would simply ride back to the Captain of Sentinel and report about it.

If he had to make the military march out just to enter a measly city, it would surely bring questions as to what goes on there and soldiers would get stationed there…

Without any further check the guard stepped to the side and had his companion run to their leader and inform him.

Jay only nodded to him and walked through the gate. He was sure the duchess would get word of this and would be available for a talk in due time.

Behind the city gate, Jay found a not too big city. It was more of a bigger town and not even the size of Sentinel once it would be finished.

The houses along the road where pretty run down and as Jay strolled off from the main road, it looked even worse.

Where he had set foot in was nothing other than this city's slums. All buildings there were nothing but shags and provisional huts, not to mention the shabby and ill looking inhabitants.

Back on the main road after his short excursion, Jay got to the vicinity of the giant mill and the closer he came, the more broken down and rotted it looked.

But the worst building he came across looked like an old church at one corner of the towns plaza.

It had a small clock tower over the big entrance door, but the planks had all grayed out out it was in an overall bad shape.

Arriving on the plaza, it looked way better from the other side.

Thinking if only the side facing the wind and elements could have possibly weathered away, Jay double checked the directions and dismissed this thought.

His general idea of what was going on in this city turned out most certain when he looked around on the spacious and well paved towns square or plaza he stood on.

Even a small fountain in the middle of it was running there, though water was sparse on the fields in the north.

On all sides of the plaza, Jay only saw houses in good shape and size and on the far side, a big mansion, constructed of wood and stone on a slight elevation towered over the town. Down the road next to it, a really wide one, Jay saw a big structure built into the foot of the mountain that bordered the city.

He guessed it to be the mines mentioned to him by Stoutmantle.

Directly adjoining it was a warehouse on the right and some more even closer to the plaza.

A bit further back to the right side, hidden by those warehouses, stood the giant mill that had been the name giver of the City, even though it seemed out of business.

The only other bigger street connecting to the plaza led to the east and though it made a light curve, the other city gate could be seen even from the place Jay stood at.

Each and any building in that direction looked neat though some were quite old.

While the biggest one was by far the mansion, the second in size was a building at the corner of the plaza and the main street to the east.

It was the towns Inn and three stories high, with balconies on the first and second floor.

As the sun had by then hit the horizon and was only minutes from setting completely, Jay marched over and entered the building.

The scene inside was the same as in any inn. A couple of soldier sat in one corner of the dining hall and was having a drink while most tables were occupied by all kinds of guests. Crossing the room and standing at the bar, Jay found the Innkeeper named Farley bartending there.

"Good afternoon, do you have by chance a room left?" J.

"*Sigh* I wish I'd ever get this booked to turn someone down… Of course I got some free rooms. You're even mostly free to chose!" F.

"So business ain't running that well?" J.

"Oh, the bar and canteen runs well, but we don't have many visitors since a good while. I won't complain though, most of the farmers and even the mine workers are off worse…" F.

"Then a nice room please, how much is it?" J.

As he asked for the price, Jay shoved the coin over for Farley to see it. But the man only shook his head and waved him off.

The price of two big coppers was set and no discount possible at that time, but at least a dinner on the house was included. Taking the offer, Jay chose a free table and waited for the waitress to arrive.

From what he had seen it was the Innkeepers wife that was serving the drinks and meals. The soldiers where a bit rude to her, but neither her nor Farley seemed to mind it, at least not outwardly.

Ordering a mug of ale to his meal, Jay got everything served only ten minutes later.

It was a hotpot with different vegetables, based on okra shoots and even a bit of meat was included, though the taste was pretty bland.

The dark ale though was to Jay's liking and he was about to order seconds as he heard a woman coming closer from behind.

Feeling a soft hand on his shoulder he looked up over it and saw a smiling face he knew.

Her eyes though looked haughtily and Jay suddenly felt something poking his back about the height of his heart.

The woman was Agent Kearnen who had a disapproving look on her face.

Snorting a bit, she leaned the short distance down and held her mouth next to his ear.

"I'm a bit disappointed of someone who already made himself known in this county…" K.

Pressing her small dagger a bi forward she had Jay feel it for sure, when suddenly something cold tapped on her inner thighs.

Jay had taken out his dagger instead of turning around the moment he noticed her and simply held it covered.

Looking down towards the weapon he was pointing at her without her even noticing, a slight blush got visible on her face. Pulling back her dagger from his broad back, Kearnen walked around the table and sat down on a chair opposite to Jay.

The black haired beauty had an approving look in her eyes by then and leaned back with a smile as the waitress came over with a big

"It seems you really can take care of yourself... But you getting well known might still not have been that good of an idea…" K.

"We'll see about that… What about your end of the deal? Have you found out something about the things going on here in Millshire?" J.

"What things going on?" K.

"Let's start with the appearance of the town. Like the neat and well look if you enter from the eastern gate ...and the run down look from the western gate, as well as the slums there? There has to something seriously wrong happening here!" J.

"I can't tell you more than what you already saw, but you can ask the Duchess herself in two days time! I had made an appointment for you beforehand, though I had thought you'd arrive only short before that…" K.

"Thanks for that, however you made that possible… So, anything planned for the next two days?" J.

"You do get that it is a trap, do you? She normally doesn't receive visitors that easy and you really caught a lot of eyes..." K.

"Yep, no question about it being a trap, still our best option, right?" J.

"I'm starting to get you… Next round is on me!" K.

As both their beverages had been emptied in no time, she ordered seconds like she stated and they continued their silent talk.

Some of the guards looked over and seemed really interested in them, but no one interferred.

Their talk went on for some time and they exchanged theories of what was going on in Millshire, and as it was time to get some rest, Kearnen told Jay to meet the next morning outside the city.

She set the mill closest to the gates their meeting point and asked him to get up early, so he should suppress his urges for nightly endeavors.

A bit irritated what she had meant with that, or more exactly how she knew about it, the two of them wished each other a good night and left to their respective rooms. Jay had his room on the second floor while the agent had chosen one on the first. Ascending the stairs he went down the hallway until he found the right door and entered.

The room was nothing special with a double bed in the middle of the far wall and a small desk next to the door. A closet on the side of the room and a small oil lamp completed the rusty but still somehow cozy look of the room.

Only the big window leading to the balcony directed to the west was noteworthy.

Taking off his armor and storing it, Jay laid down on the bed and closed his eyes. He really needed some rest after the long travel and all the fighting in the morning.

Closing his eyes he drifted into a deep and dreamless sleep in no time.

.

.

.

Waking up at his normal time, Jay got ready and went down to the dining hall. Kearnen was no where to be seen so Jay guessed he was a bit early and ordered his breakfast from the Innkeeper who was already working again. He had been a bit surprised Jay was already up, but served him without asking questions.

The meal was sparse and simple, some bread and fruits, as well as some marmalade Jay hadn't come across until then. As he inquired about it he learned that the man's wife made it herself.

He had been surprised Jay had asked about it as it was common in Millshire and the surrounding areas.

After he finished his meal, Jay took his leave and went down the road leading to the eastern city gate. This time he had no problems passing the gate and the guards had even been really friendly.

Summoning his horse, he saddled up and rode along the main road.

As he came to a crossroad with a smaller but still paved road leading southeast not even half a mile later, he could already spot a mill in a bit of a distance behind the fruit trees that were planted next to the fields he was riding along.

Passing the first trees and reaching the last treeline before the clearing the mill was built on, Jay heard a silent and sharp whistle coming from up in the tree...