Visit to Xeros Part-2

It was a bright and sunny day with a clear blue sky and a nice breeze. A there was a pleasant smell in the air.

"What's this nice smell? Can you smell it?" Asked Alex.

"Oh yes! This is the smell of the Evodis plant. This area specialises in cultivating the plant and then sell the flowers. The seeds are used for extracting oil which is also as fragrant as the flowers." replied Mr Hound.

Alex decided to buy the flowers for his mom when he would leave. The town was now visible from the hill which they were descending. It was a huge town and was surrounded by a colossal wall on all sides. Alex had learned in his lessens about Xeros and how it was constantly under attack by monsters. This explained the need for such a giant wall. This was the first time that Alex had visited a town in this book. He thought this is what fantasy should feel like.

As they reached close to the gate, he felt as if he had butterflies in his stomach. This was something that he had not felt for the longest time. This felt like getting an early Christmas gift. He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them to take it all in. The guard at the door was clad in armour and was carrying a long staff. There were watchtowers on either side of the gate. The guard asked for identification and upon seeing the card from Mr Hound, stumbled back in awe. He asked Mr Hound for an autograph to which Mr Hound agreed.

"It is such an honour to meet you, sir." Said the guard starstruck.

"The pleasure is all mine. Keep up the good work", replied Mr Hound smartly.

Alex had known that Mr Hound was powerful but hadn't expected him to be famous. Mr Hound had always boasted about his fame and how he was well known in the whole continent. Alex had not believed it but after seeing it firsthand he had come to terms with it.

They entered the town and they were greeted with a variety of smells and colours all at once. The tone was bustling with people of all walks, with different clothing and fashion sense all going about their day as usual. Alex was taking all this in and his curiosity had reached its peak.

"I know, I know, stop looking at me with those eyes. First, we will go to the inn and then you can go and visit the town." Said Mr Hound in a cheery voice.

They reached the inn, it was not what you would call a luxury place, but it had its unique charm. The carved wooden door was beautiful but rustic looking. The interior was pleasantly warm and cosy. There was a bar on the bottom floor and the rooms were on the first floor. They reached the counter and instead of a warm greeting Mr Hound was greeted with a punch to his stomach. Mr Hound was blown away to the wall, he slid down in a sprawl. This startled Alex and he instinctively took a battle stance.

"Hi, been a long time hasn't it Lionheart?", Mr Hound was barely able to get the sentence out.

"How many times have I told you to not call me that! and don't give me that been a long time spiel." Barked the woman.

"Alex, this is Rhonda Lock- I mean Rhonda Creed", Mr Hound introduced her.

Rhonda was a tall busty woman with strong muscles, she had dark skin and silky maroon hair which was messily tied in a bun. She was wearing a white tunic which was floating on her well-developed bosom showing her toned abdomen. She had a few scars on her arms and a very prominent scar on her left eye.

"Good to meet you, Alex", said Rhonda.

"Hi-yes, I mean yes, a pleasure to meet you, my name is Alex Greymore", Alex fumbled.

"Oh! So, you're William's son, a good thing that you don't look like him." Rhonda said in an overfamiliar tone.

"We just want to check-in, I have some work on behalf of Willaim at the guild. We can meet for dinner", Mr Hound said regaining his composure.

"Fine" Rhonda replied.

She nodded, went behind the counter and gave Mr Hound the key. Alex followed Mr Hound to the room and they put their bags took some essentials and left as fast as they could. Alex didn't even take a good look inside the room. He took out the map that Mr Hound had given him and located the bookstore.

"See you later, Mr Hound we can meet back here if it's alright", said Alex unable to hide his excitement.

"Fine! Don't cause any trouble and come back before dinner time." Mr Hound replied.

Both of them went their separate ways. The guild was near the centre of the town and the bookshop was in the opposite direction. Alex had thought that this would be a dull and old fashioned world with primitive technology but what he saw on the streets had surprised him. The shops were well built with a wide street a magic door and a stylised sign for each shop. Fruit vendors were selling some fruits which looked familiar and some that were completely new for Alex.

Alex had decided not to get distracted by the weapons shop or by the inviting smell from the bakery or by the shop that was selling some very colourful clothes. He headed straight to the bookshop. He stopped at the place where there was supposed to be the bookstore but what he found was not so much of a bookstore but a full-fledged book cafe. The door was made of what looked like glass. Alex entered the store and was greeted by a young girl, probably his age. She was wearing a white tunic with a brown skirt with an apron on top. She welcomed him into the shop and asked him what he wanted to do.

"I just want to look around and see what kinds of books there are", said Alex.

"Go ahead, the bookshelves are this way, sir." Replied the girl in an unexpectedly professional manner. She looked proud of herself while saying that.

She must have practised that a lot, thought Alex. She told him to take his time and sit wherever he wanted and pointed to the room at large. The seating arrangement looked very comfortable and reminded Alex of his past world. He took his time to look around the bookshelves. There were many books of different genre which were divided neatly and were sorted into sections based on the genre and alphabetical order. He saw books like- Quick Guide to Mana-pulation by Abner Shaw, Is Magic Evil? by Miranda Sawyer, Mr Deckory's journey through Acelfabia a History of Magic. Some were not at all related to magic and seemed like fiction books. This kept Alex busy for hours. He ordered a glass of milk to drink while reading the book by Mr Deckory.

During this time he talked to the girl who he found out was the daughter of the shopowner's sister. She was raised by her aunt, Mrs Addington after her mother's death. Alex did not talk about himself but instead listened to all the stories she told him about the monsters and the heroes. It was her dream to become a doctor like her late father.

"Marie, can you go to the gate and collect the delivery from the guard for Mr Crowe?" Called the woman sitting at the desk.

"Yes, of course, Mrs Addington", Marie replied politely.

"Can I accompany you to the gate?", Asked Alex.

She took him up on the offer. They walked slowly towards the gate when suddenly there was an uproar. All the people were running in the opposite direction of them. A giant wolf had attacked the town. Before Alex could do anything, he sensed a strong magical presence coming towards him. It was not a giant wolf but it was a Fenrir. It was dark grey with a white belly and sharp bloodstained fangs. It appeared to have been injured. The Fenrir snatched Marie and dashed towards the gate. It kicked Alex with great force and ran away.

Alex had guarded the attack by concentrating the mana around his arm and blocking it, still, the force had sent him flying backwards. He took a moment to regain his bearings and dashed towards the gate. He passed a blond boy with shiny blue eyes on the way. Alex had started using magic to run faster. He used his Air affinity to push air behind him as he ran. This was a training technique that his father had taught him.

With great speed, he caught up with the Fenrir and without warning kicked it with full force. This made Fenrir loosen his grip on Marie and Alex grabbed her. The Fenrir did not retaliate but ran towards the forest instead.

Alex placed Marie near the wall and told her not to move. He thought why would the Fenrir stop attacking now and run toward the forest. Alex decided to follow it but before he could leave he heard Marie speak something. Upon hearing this, he urgently ran into the forest.