Chapter 9 - Preparation

Back at the inn, I ask the oracle where I can take a shower. She directs me to the bath stalls on the second floor, on the opposite side of my room.

I enter through male entrance, of course. I'm the only one inside at the moment. In the steam heavy room, I pour a bucket of warm water over myself and pick up a rag to start scrubbing. Grime seems to be just rolling down my water soaked body. I definitely needed that shower, but that's enough about my body. After applying soap and everything, I finished up, geared up, and went out. The shower was hot and refreshing. Possibly one of the best I've ever had.

Outside the bath, I see Fiona's worn out body limping upstairs towards her room.

"Hey, are you okay?"

I call out to her and follow her to make sure she doesn't fall halfway. She turns a bit and trips on a step. Thankfully I am there to catch her in time. Her tired body slumps in my arms. She glances up at my face and shrugs me off.

Fiona: "...Thanks... I'm...fine."

Her voice feels weak and frail, contrary to the cold and hard personality that she displays. She proceeds to walking to her room. But she stops after taking a few steps. She turns around once more to have another look at me. Her blue eyes carefully examine my face to every detail.

Fiona: "...Lethita...?

"Yes? What is it?"

She shakes her head in response. She seems confused about something.

Fiona: "...No... It's nothing..."

I guess she thought that it wasn't anything worth mentioning. Fiona slowly wobbles back to her room, probably for rest.

I head back downstairs for a good meal from Ernmass. I found him behind the counter serving drinks to a couple of seasoned veterans. They seem to be the ones that called me over from a few days ago when I was still recovering. They notice me standing beside the stairs and signal me to join them, just like the previous time. The first thing they do when I sit down is apologize.

"Sorry about last time. I wasn't quite sober when we got all rowdy. Anyways, I forgot to introduce ourselves. I'm Lucas. Seated behind me are Ivan, Rocko, Felix, and Zenni."

In turn, they each greet me in order. They have a more relaxed atmosphere this time around when they're not drunk.

Ivan: "Greetings, rookie."
Rocko: "Hey there."
Felix: "Sorry for last time."
Zenni: "Haha, things got a little out of control. Sorry about that."

It seems like they are a friendly bunch, so I sit down and order food for my hungry self. I give them my self introduction as well.

Lucas: "So, we would like to hear about the bell tower in more detail. You are still the talk of the town. What you've done was extremely impressive. You have to tell us. How'd you manage to take something like that down?"

The others nod in agreement, their curiosity peaks through the top. They give excuses here and there about no confidence in their abilities to take down anything that big, which was why they were not present in the bell tower. Since I'm still waiting for my food to arrive, I guess I can kill some time by recalling events from the bell tower.

By the time I finished, the food has already arrived. Hoping the veterans would be satisfied, I pummel through my plate of food. Ernmass did a really good job of cooking. The veterans voice their disbelief at the ballista shot that grounded the spider but I can simply stand firm on to the truth. The stray shot saved me from death. That critical moment allowed me to live. I will never forget that. Wait... Now that I think about it...

"What happened to the other mercenary that went up with me? I never saw him again. He had a helmet on so I don't know what he looks like. I want to thank him for the help."

Puzzled, the group looks at each other before turning back at me.

Lucas: "Wasn't that the other rookie?"
Zenni: "Yeah. And if I remember properly, I think that mercenary was a girl. A strong one too."
Ivan: "Not sure what happened to her though. Probably still healing up? Everyone who went up were heavily injured."

"I see. The other rookie, huh?"

Is that not Fiona? That certainly sounds like Fiona. I wonder why she made no mentions of it. We chat for a bit longer before they eventually get up from their seats.

Lucas: "Anyways. Thanks for that, Lethita. We gotta go complete our rounds 'round town. I'll catch you later."

One by one, they bid their farewells. I get up to head over to my room. I think I'm going to call it a day here.

I find myself on top of the bell tower again. But this time on a path made of wooden planks. The floor creaks loudly and unstably as I stand carefully in the middle. Falling down into the misty abyss is not what I want to happen. A giant golem crashes down to the wooden planks. It is the same one from the training site. Does that mean I'll have to fight this now? The golem crouches down, preparing to charge. Due to the narrow path, there is nowhere for me to dodge. I need to either take the hit and pray to not fall or find a way to get on top and over it. I weigh my options and decide to jump over the charging golem. Wait... Charging? Oh SHIT! My body gets bashed off the path and I fall down into the unknown abyss.

I wake up in sweat, not feeling rested. I sigh in defeat. Today is going to be wonderful.

Tieve came in to drop off my meal as I finished changing into my gears: leather boots, leather pants, leather vest covered by a veteran cloak, and a pair of twin short swords. I left the helm behind. I find that I really don't like the feeling of having my vision obscured. Maybe I'll find something that works better in the future but for now, no helm. Tieve walks into the room in her usual grace. Upon seeing me, she almost drops the plate of food.

Tieve: "Leth? Is that you?"

Puzzled at her words, I reply honestly to her question. Of course I would be me.

"Yes. What's wrong?"

Looking flustered, Tieve quickly regains her composure.

Tieve: "Oh... It's nothing. You just look quite different."

Quite different huh?

"Better or worse?"

Tieve: "What are you trying to make me say?"

The oracle looks away, completely dodging the question. Her blushing face already gives away the answer I wanted. Well done on her part. I guess my shower made a big impact on my image. That's probably the reason why Fiona was staring at my face yesterday. After chatting for a bit, Tieve leaves to attend to her other duties.

I should stop wasting time around here. I need to go investigate the ruins. I quickly gulp down my food while staring at my two broken swords. I promise that I'll fix them up soon. Then I also leave my room.

I find Fiona about to knock on my door as soon as I open it. Her startled look immediately fades away which leaves room for doubt.

Fiona: "..."

"..."

Fiona: "..."

"..."

She had similar equipment on, leather pants and covered by a brown veteran cloak. Her sword and shield hung on the side of her waist. The sword seems to be the same one used in the bell tower. We just stare each other down again. Oh come on, not this again. This opportunity should be a good time to thank her. Unwilling to continue the stare down showdown, I open my mouth to break the uncomfortable silence that always happen to appear before us two. If only she wasn't so aloof, tons of guys would be going after her already.

Fiona: "...I got everything prepared. Let's go..."

Contrary to my expectation, she initiated instead while I stood there with my mouth half-open like a fool. She turns to leave, gesturing me to follow.

We arrive at the docks shortly after. We got on a boat with a bag of consumables inside. It held potions, whetstones, javelins, bombs, traps, and other sorts of extra equipments. Fiona explains that we're getting to Perilous Ruins through the river. The bag contains whatever we need in battle. I pick up a bottle of potion and examine the fluid. The red syrupy liquid swirls back and forth upon shaking. I unscrew the cork to get a good whiff but the smell hits me like a carriage. I immediate pop the cork back in before I puke.

"I'm not drinking that."

Fiona unravels the rope that held the boat to the dock and looks at me.

Fiona: "...That's not for drinking... You apply it on your wounds and they should help heal faster..."

Oh. That was dumb of me. I toss the potion back in with the rest. The bottle lands with a solid *thunk*. I grab a bomb that's about the size of a gnoll skull. Fiona noticed and glances over at the way I was handling it.

Fiona: "...Be careful with that... It might explode if you're careless..."

My eyes open wide as I chuck it into the bag and backed off to the other end of the boat.

Fiona: "...Just kidding... But you should really calm down... Everything will be fine...probably..."

She seems to have sensed my uneasiness. I can't help it. This was my first time on a boat so I'm unconsciously fidgeting around nervously.

I exhale slowly to calm my nervous self. Nothing will happen... Right? With that said, we row across the river efficiently to the other side where the ruins lie.

Upon landing on the shore, I plant my feet firmly on the soft ground. Traveling by sea is something I need to get used to. I puked a few times on the boat. Fiona watched me sympathetically.

We then walk a bit of distance past the shore and into the Perilous Ruins. No wonder it was called the ruins. All the cobblestone structures are about to crumble. They all seem breakable with the exception of the walls of the ruins. The pillars used to symbolize something. But now they are just simply meaningless structures. The walls still feel sturdy enough to withstand some impacts. It appears that the Perilous Ruins had been around for years but abandoned long ago. It would be no surprise that this place held some strategic location for humans and Fomors. This place makes a good camp for scouting. The enormity of this ruin deters enemies from seige. Fiona calls me over to reconfirm our objectives.

Fiona: "...We are here to scout the ruins for Fomorian activity...not to risk anything. Don't do anything reckless..."

I nod in response to her warning. Though it disappoints me that no fighting will be done unnecessarily, I agree that gathering information on Fomor movements would be taking priority. Thus, we enter the old Perilous Ruins.