Luc opened his eyes to a beaming sun and clear blue sky. Birds perched overhead sang their songs, filling the midday air with a melody of chirps. Breathing in, Luc could smell the earthy scent of dirt, mixed with a bit of flowery fragrance, carried by the slight lulls of wind.

I’m alive.

Sitting up, Luc extended his arms and stretched. He felt good. Surprisingly good for nearly dying a half dozen times in one night. Remembering the gash he had gotten from the giant spider’s leg, Luc reached around and massaged his back. He frowned.

There’s no wound?

His fingers could feel the large tear in his red robes, but the skin underneath was smooth and unmarred. Thinking back, he had definitely felt pain after the spider’s blow. Maybe it had been a trick of his mind. Luc didn’t think too much of it, as he was simply happy to be alive. But the thought of the wound did remind him of the dragon whelp.

Glancing around the clearing where he laid, Luc saw that it was just him at the edge of the forest. There was no sign of the dragon whelp anywhere. It probably ran off as soon as it was free, thought Luc. But at least I know now that my [Kneel] skill isn’t all that useless after all.

Luc clambered to his feet and wandered over to the place where he had exited the tomb. Dried leaves of every different color were scattered across the clearing, hiding the presence of any hole. Extending a foot, Luc gingerly moved aside the dried leaves. Beneath the dried leaves were rocks, cracked and clumped together. If there had been an opening before, it was now sealed after the entire tomb collapsed.

“Good riddance,” muttered Luc.

Content that the tomb was sealed for good, Luc walked past the edge of the forest and glanced out over the cornfield in front of him. From the political lessons he had received from tutors, Luc knew that Tosa specialized in raising horses due to its great natural grasslands. A cornfield meant that he was probably on the edge of Tosa’s territory.

Regardless, my father should’ve sent a search party out for me by now, thought Luc, scowling. That money I lost can’t matter more than me, can it?

Luc’s thoughts were interrupted by his stomach grumbling. Cursing the search party for being too slow, Luc strolled out into the corn field. If there was a cornfield here, there would definitely be people living nearby. These peasants will be honored to serve a meal to the heir of Tosa!

After spending the better part of ten minutes wading through the cornfield, Luc was exhausted and irritated. The sun, directly overhead, beat down on him mercilessly. The corn plants, at the peak of their growth, were tall enough to block any form of wind. Sweat trickled down Luc’s face, and he was parched beyond measure.

“A noble like me shouldn’t be wallowing around in a peasant’s field like this,” muttered Luc, wiping sweat off his brow. “That search party had better be coming.”

Another few minutes later, Luc finally burst out of the cornfield. He collapsed to his hands and knees onto a dirt path, packed by the treading of feet. Panting, Luc closed his eyes and basked in the soothing wind of a slight breeze rolling through the air. Momentarily energized, Luc glanced to his left. Down the dirt path, probably a dozen minutes away, was a small cluster of wooden buildings. Looking to his right, Luc saw corn, corn, and more corn.

Guess we’re going left.

Luc peeled the red robes off his chest, trying to give his skin room to breathe. As he did so, his fingers bumped into the wooden pendant, which still hung around his neck. In the light of the sun, Luc could see that the pendant bore many scratches, giving it a very unprofessional look.

Probably isn’t even worth selling off.

Luc considered tossing the pendant into the cornfield, but he decided against it, tucking the pendant into his robes. If anything, the pendant could serve as proof to his father that he had been scammed and an attempt had been made on his life. Mood darkening, Luc’s hands clenched into fists.

I’m going to make sure that Ryko and Mina regret that decision for the rest of their lives.

Fueled by his desire for vengeance, Luc found the energy to force himself to his feet and continue on his way to the small town.

Arriving in the small town a short while later, Luc wasn’t sure if the cluster of buildings could even be considered a town. There were only ten or so wooden buildings in the town itself. Luc himself had never been in a town that had fewer than a hundred buildings. Furthermore, all of the buildings looked old and worn, with faded paint and patched up walls. As Luc trudged past the first couple of buildings, a group of men and women, all dressed in brown dresses or tunics, stopped their chattering in front of what looked to be a store, and watched him.

“Oi! Peasants!” said Luc, feeling his dried lips cracking. “Get me some water!”

The peasants just stared at him, eyes wide. All of them had tanned and sun-beaten skin, hands rough and grimy with dirt. Luc had never seen a less civilized group of people. The fact that they refused to respond to his demands irked him more than he would’ve liked to admit.

“I’m the heir of Tosa!” Luc shouted. “If you don’t give me water, my father will have you all beheaded!”

Silence. Then, a little boy, probably eight or nine years old, spoke.

“Mister, if ya want water, inn’s right there.”

Luc followed the boy’s pointed finger to one of the buildings down the street. The men and women had begun whispering amongst themselves.

I swear I’ll have them all punished!

Seething, Luc’s desire for water overcame his temptation to hurl insults at the group of people. He turned and walked down the street, stopping at the building that the little boy had pointed to. The inn, like all other buildings in the town, was a sorry sight. Made up of rotting wood panels, the front porch had several holes in its floor. The sign hanging from the roof was faded, with ‘inn’ being the only word that Luc could make out. Glancing to the side, Luc noticed several large wagons covered in white cloth parked to the side. Seemed like the inn actually had customers. Luc could resist his thirst no longer. He walked up the rickety steps of the inn and shoved the door open.

The interior of the inn, unlike its exterior, was surprisingly well put together. On the left was a bar, which was made of polished wood and lined with wooden stools. Across from the bar was the dining area, which held six rectangular tables, each with room for four people to sit. There were more than ten people combined at the bar and in the dining area of the inn, drinking beer and eating lunch. The smells made Luc salivate.

“Welcome to the Happy Farmer Inn!” said a young woman, walking up to him and smiling brightly. She looked to be a few years older than Luc and wore a brown dress and white apron. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail and her bangs were cut right above her eyes. As she looked Luc up and down, the smile slipped off her face. “Are ya okay, mister?”

“Give me water,” said Luc. “Now.”

“That’ll be one bronze,” said the woman.

Luc stared at her for a moment, not quite sure if his ears were deceiving him.

“I probably look a wreck right now, but even a peasant like you should recognize the red robes of Tosa nobility!” said Luc, trying to keep his voice level. “I am the heir of Tosa. Now bring me a cup of water, wench!”

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “Three things. First o’ all, this ain’t Tosa. This is Glia. Second, heir o’ Tosa is dead. Third. What did ya call me?”