"Feel free to have a seat and do not concern yourself with any formalities." Alex tried to be welcoming and not make them feel nervous about being in such an environment. "Since it's likely you are all hungry after such a traumatizing event, I will have Rhea and Rhiana bring dishes to sample from. There will also be meals made for you to enjoy as we make our way to the village." He said.
"M-my Lord, what's this carriage?" the mother, named Molly, asked him as she tried to take everything in.
"Hahaha!" He burst out laughing, covering his mouth and getting himself under control. "I apologize for laughing, but Eris had a very similar reaction." Pointing at the blushing woman, who was trying to be invisible due to the attention. "As I told her, I am just a simple magician. Please, just enjoy the ride and if there's anything I can provide do not hesitate to ask." Alex chuckled, finally controlling himself.
----
When everyone was inside, both Rhea and Rhiana disappeared to fetch what was requested. In a few moments, they returned with several dishes filled with roast beef, a variety of vegetables and additional drinks.
Placing the dishes on the dining table and preparing the dishes to be served, both of them began to serve each of the guests. The girl's nostrils flared as she smelled the delicious food and looked happy as she quickly consumed it all. It didn't even occur to Elizabeth how she may have appeared, devouring everything like a starving beast.
Seeing her daughter act in such a manner, the mother looked apologetically at Alex. Reprimanded her daughter, she tried to remind the girl about being proper in front of a noble.
"Miss, please do not concern yourself with such things as table manners. I am quite happy to see your daughter enjoying the food prepared. The chef, I am sure, would be quite delighted to hear that his dish is being lovingly eaten." He tried to pacify the mother.
The mother was only able to bow her head, looking like she still didn't believe the current reality. She nudged her daughter one last time before looking at Alex, giving him a small smile and started eating the food. Such things as appearance were forgotten as the mother realized how delicious the food was and picked up the pace shoveling food into her mouth.
"Father, this meat is so tender! How did the cook make the meat melt in my mouth?" the boy, Miguel, exclaimed. Miguel was eating the food so quickly, that Rhea was continuously going back to the table to fill his dish with more meat and vegetables.
The father, Tomas, was also eating at a fast pace and had Rhiana looking rather busy.
As usual, Brittania was cutting up the meat into bite-size pieces, feeding him. The meat was juicy, the grease sometimes leaking down the side of his cheek, which Brittania would lean down to lick it sensually from his face, before continuing.
He could understand how the family was reacting, considering even in his life on Earth, Alex wouldn't have been able to eat such quality food. Having to work hard throughout school, barely able to cover expenses, eventually finding a professional job... It felt like everything was accumulating towards a larger goal until it didn't.
"Master..." Elena, Reina, and Brittania said, looking concerned.
He hadn't noticed zoning out and not paying attention, to the degree of staring off into the distance while remembering awful experiences. Giving them a smile, to let them know that everything was okay, Alex focused his attention on Eris and the family.
They didn't seem to notice anything, and continued eating was chatting with one another. Eris appeared to form a friendship with Molly, maybe because their age was so close and they related to how crazy everything seemed. He wondered if it would be Alice meeting up with Dorothy, sharing their strange experience in a foreign land.
As things started to slow down, Eris and the family enjoyed their sweet tea. Looking content, they continued to marvel at the quality level of everything inside of the carriage.
"Where is your family from?" Alex asked them, moving on to some minor chit-chat now that everyone looked full and relaxed. Enjoying the soothing effects of the tea on their full bellies.
Looking up to address the question, Tomas said, "We come from a relatively large town, nearby the capital. My store is located there. Though the size of the business is not impressive, compared to others in the capital, we've managed to purchase various items from the guild, who receive them from adventurers that complete the quests and trade the raw material for money.
After taking the items, the employees convert the items into common materials which are then transported to the kingdom. We make a decent amount but not enough to hire guards to protect us. To keep expenses low, the decision to travel with other merchants towards Leaf Village was made." Talking about the other merchants, Tomas ground his teeth and clenched his fists thinking about what happened.
Being able to empathize with such experiences, Alex gave the man some time to push aside the thoughts swirling through his mind. Seeing Tomas's face made him remember his own expressions when he would look into a mirror after dealing with something that nearly pushed him over the edge.
"So there are adventurers and a guild in this world, huh?" Alex thought to himself as Tomas was being comforted by his wife. With the reveal of such elements, this world started to feel more and more like some giant MMORPG, and these people were NPCs, helping the main character to move forward.
At least he could find some interesting stuff if there are adventurers and guilds that hand out missions and quests. Maybe he should go to the guild and try his luck at being an adventurer, though he didn't know how difficult it would be with his abilities.
"These guilds, where are they located?" He asked Tomas, interrupting the moment the man was having with his wife.
"My lord, there are numerous guilds, for various professions, and they are usually located in larger villages, towns, and capital," Tomas answered looking grateful for the distraction.
"Yes, my lord. Guilds, like the Adventurer Guild, are very powerful and help provide a greatly needed service. The Adventurer Guild was there to help defend us against the increase in monster and demonic activity that occurs every couple of years. Without them, there would be many lives lost." Eris helped to supplement Tomas's answer.
Getting an unexpected tidbit of information, Alex asked, "Where do the monsters and demons come from?" The question was whether there was a demon realm or portal that allowed such creatures to invade this world.
Tomas and Eris looked at one another, and Elis replied, "No one knows where these two creatures come from. There are some theories about their origins, but there has been no proof to support such ideas."
"Yes, my Lord. The Adventurer Guild will sometimes have adventurers go out to locate the source, but one hasn't be found yet. This caused many to think that it's just a natural occurrence, like rain or snow." Tomas said.
"Reina, I want you to take your shadow assassins, and have them search throughout this kingdom to determine if there's a pattern to the demons and monster sightings. Also have them look into the various villages and towns, along with the capital, to see if there is anything that should concern us." I ordered Reina.
It seemed like there was too little information about this world without diving into his abilities. Thinking of something, he said to Reina through telepathy, "While gathering information about this world, keep tabs on various powers in case there are opportunities to create some mischief. These rulers and nobles likely think that they are untouchable, so it would be fun to knock them down a peg or two."
"Master, I will complete this task with all my ability." She communicated back.