Oresus didn't restrict his servants freedom during the day, as long as they told him where they were going, he would allow them to leave the inn and even give them pocket money.
Only at night did he restrict their movements. While, he, himself would go down to the main hall below to drink and listen to the latest rumours and events happening in the region.
That had become his main source of information since he had come to this world.
When he sat down at the counter, he noticed there were much more people than usual. A dozen mercenaries sat deeper in the inn, talking to each other. 3 people, he identified as merchants mingled with them at their tables.
[Your usual?]
The bald bartender and owner of the inn spoke to him in a warm voice. He appeared glad to see him tonight.
[No, give me the same drink I was served at lunch.]
[You took a liking to it? It's called vervene fruit juice. I bought it from a merchant, the stock won't last long, better enjoy it while you can.]
With those words, he went to the kitchen behind the counter and brought back a bottle of dark green liquid.
It smelled of plants and refreshed his mind whenever he had a taste.
He didn't know what vervene was, but he assumed it was a top-grade 1 fruit plant from its taste and effect.
He slowly drank his cup while listening to people's conversations.
He paid the most attention to the mercenaries since they had information about the outside world.
[Is it interesting to eavesdrop on drunkards?]
Suddenly, a female voice coming from beside him interrupted his train of thought.
When he looked at who it was, he was surprised to discover that it was the mercenary who had shared Castiane's carriage when they reached the town.
Her clear blue eyes stared at him, an amused expression etched into her face.
[Is it interesting to mock simple men enjoying their drink?]
He responded with the same derision, a thin smile appearing on his face.
Her smile widened, showing her teeth.
[I've seen simple men before, but they didn't look like you. Simple men would be among them, not here drinking by yourself.]
She pointed with her hand at the crowd of men drinking merrily behind them.
Only, Oresus didn't look behind, his eyes wandered across her body when her breasts shook with her movements.
He was taller than her, allowing him to peek at what should have been hidden.
[Well, I'm no longer drinking by myself aren't I. And since you aren't a simple man either, we'll just be odd strangers for a night.]
He didn't know what she was drinking, but he still requested the bartender to serve them two cups of vervene fruit juice.
She raised her eyebrows but didn't answer. She gently took the cup and brought it to her lips. After a few seconds, she opened her lips to talk.
[It's been a while since someone bought me a drink without being forced to.]
[Well, you are a beauty so it shouldn't be so uncommon, how come you would force people to...]
He spoke to her with a laugh, only to be looked on funnily by the mercenary woman.
[Me, a beauty? Are you making fun of me?]
Only now did he seems to remember how people viewed women in this kingdom. The slimmer the better!
And this woman had abundant curves that did not fit with the vision of a beauty.
[Is it weird for an odd stranger to find you pretty. After all, I'm not one of them.]
She glared at him for a long time without touching her cup. He did not shy away from her eyes, looking back with a warm smile.
[A weird man indeed. I am a mercenary, it is common for us to bet on everything, from little things to big battles. I happen to win a lot of these bets, so from time to time, I ask the loser to buy me things, including liquor.]
[Oh, that seems like an exciting life. You like the liquor here?]
She had just finished her cup, letting her red tongue out to lick her lips. She turned on her seat to face him directly.
[Why, what do you intend to do by making me drink alcohol, are you one of those odd strangers aiming to take advantage of a lone woman?]
Her smile was gone, instead, she had a fierce light in her eyes. The twin peaks on her upper body were showing all their glory, along with the twin swords on her waist.
Oresus gulped down the rest of his cup, licked his lips clean and faced her. They were sitting close enough for their knees to touch. Oresus kept his trademark smile, then moved his hands to hold hers.
[Taking advantage of you? That's still to be determined. I would rather bring you away willingly, it's not every day an odd stranger like me meet a woman I took a liking to.]
He played with her hands, entwining their fingers together then releasing them to put his hands on top of hers.
She did not resist, only staring blankly at the warm hands caressing hers.
Suddenly, a devastating explosion rumbled in the distance, making the whole inn tremble under its influence.
Oresus stood up hurriedly, still holding the brown-haired's woman hand, but his expression was no longer easy going.
She also reacted quickly, heading straight to the front gate with Oresus.
They stood together, hand in hand, as they watched the clouds glow red. A fire a distance away burned brightly under the dark sky.
Oresus noticed something was wrong when the woman by his side started cursing.
[My client is 'resting' in a brothel there. I have to go!]
His head turned back to the fire. Hidden from her sight, both of his eyes changed colour. His crimson iris didn't have to search hard to notice the exuberant aura of fire coming from there.
[What's your name?]
Oresus asked her with an odd voice when she was about to leave.
[Kali, a bloodrainist mercenary.]
Right before she ran out of his reach, he caught her arm.
[What?! I have to go!]
She shouted with irritation and unease all over her face. She didn't notice the strangeness of the young man near her due to her agitation.
[It's too late. Leave the town immediately, the whole town will disappear under his flames.]
His eyes returned to their original colour. He looked at her one last time before dashing inside the inn.
After banging on the girls' door, it was quickly opened. They were already awake thanks to the tremor felt earlier.
[Gather all your possessions. We're leaving.]
Maybe it was because of the fire that could be seen outside the window, or because of the tremor they felt, but neither of them asked him any question and obeyed.
He took all their items into his treasury chest before leaving the inn.
The regulars in the inn treated the fire as another criminal activity, they didn't panic, instead, they only cursed at the guards for their incapability in catching the arsonist.
When they left the inn, he noticed the elf girl appeared unsettled.
[What is this abomination?]
Her shoulders quivered slightly, she tried to calm herself by crossing her arms on her chest.
[You can feel it?]
Oresus was surprised she could feel the anomaly in the town.
She stared back at him with fear etched on her face.
[What is this, why does it feels so wrong, why is there so much anger in the air?]
He ran with the girls in the street, hauling the first carriage he came across. The middle-aged man intended to help fight the fire by carrying the water inside the carriage.
Only for Ocelio to buy his late-night service for a few darkiron coins.
[To the town's gate, as quick as you can, or we shall all be buried in this place.]
He then responded to Castiane inside the carriage.
[This abnormality, what you can feel is called a Wraith. It is rare for a spirit to evolve into one. Whenever one is born, chaos and destruction are all that follows. The fires in the city were his doing. He was cultivating its power to break through the elemental barrier. This place is done for.]
Only now did he seems to remember something.
He took a piece of paper with tiny markings from his treasury chest, he wrote a single line of words in the free space and threw it outside the carriage's window.
Mysteriously, the piece of paper flapped its wings in the air before flying in the direction of the slum.
[Hopefully, he is sitting in front of his house. That's all I can do for you.]
Castiane remained silent, the unease growing stronger with each passing minute. Maia, on the other hand, didn't seem to know what was going on. She kept stealing glances at Oresus, before gathering the courage to open her mouth.
[You said...abnormality. Is it that monster, does he really exist?]
[You've heard of it before?]
Oresus was genuinely shocked that the uneducated, shy little girl he had picked up would know of these esoteric creatures.
[Uhm, my mother would tell me and my siblings that if we did bad things, the abnormality would come to eat us. Everyone in our village knows about it.]
He shook his head but didn't answer.
By the time the carriage reached the town's gate, the sky had completely become red, the air felt warmer and any person with a strong spirituality could feel the fire elementals swarm inside the town.
But what welcomed them was a closed gate with two guards standing by it.
It was late at night, the guards refused to open the gate before tomorrow morning.
Normally, it would have been fine since it was the rule. However, they couldn't wait. A disaster was coming and only by fleeing the town could they escape with their lives.
At the same time, a group of mercenaries came running to the gate.
He could hear them talk to each other and complain about the lost remuneration, and what bad decision it was to follow a woman's instinct.
He noticed Kali among them. And surprisingly, her mercenary team came straight to them.
A middle-aged man with grey hair led the group, stopping right in front of him.
Oresus could sense the sharp sword aura emanating from him. It was as if the tip of a sword was pointed at his throat, trying to pressure him.
[Are you the man who warned Kali to leave the town, why did you say that, and why is it too late. I would appreciate if you told us more.]
Even though it sounded like a request, from the hostile looks from the group of men, he knew that they were angry with him.
However, he did not pay them attention, nor did he answer their questions.
His head rose to the sky, feeling the aura of the creature hiding in the clouds.
[Leader, it's my responsibility. I'm the one who asked you...]
Kali was stopped in the middle of her sentence. Two bright balls of fire fell from the cloud, slowly falling in the air.
When they touched the ground, an explosion so loud occurred, it made the whole town experience an earthshake.
A blaze appeared in the middle of the town, burning a whole residential district.
But it wasn't the end, countless ashes made from fire, like snowflakes fell from the cloud, burning anything and anyone that came in contact with it.
Only now did the group of mercenaries realise what was happening. A look of terror appeared in their leader's face as one word left his lips.
[Abnormality.]
[Hurry and open the gates!]
They screamed at the town's guards who were petrified by fear.
Forcing the mercenaries to operate the gates by themselves.
Oresus and the girls returned to their carriage. The coachman, having seen what happened to his home town, wanted to go back to pick up his family, however, Ocelio stopped him with one look. The frightened man did not try to fight with Ocelio for the control of the carriage, instead, he jumped out of it and ran deeper into the town.
Oresus was forced to drive the carriage by himself.
When the gate was opened, the mercenaries ran to the guard outpost nearby to steal horses.
By then, people had already taken to the streets to flee the town.
Yet, only a few hundreds managed to make it out in one piece.
The thousands who used to live there were either killed in the explosion or burned to nothingness by the flying ashes.
Thankfully, old man Nectas was among the group of survivors. As soon as Oresus spotted him, he invited him in the carriage.
But after seeing his driving technique, Nectas kindly offered to drive the carriage in his stead to thank him for saving his life.