I see the exit! I grab the side of the hollow with my hands and pull myself out.
"I arrived in the to..." Top? I climbed, I'm sure of that, but why did i still come out at the base of the tree?
I look around and notice that I am no longer in the forest but in a city, and people walking down the street are looking at me strangely.
I'd better get back, I have a feeling that something's wrong here.
I turn back to the tree but I can't find the hollow.
"What's going on?" How did such a big hollow disappear in less than a minute?
I need to talk to someone, maybe they can help me.
I keep walking forward, jump the fence surrounding the tree and stop in front of an artesian fountain.
Now that I take a closer look at the people passing by, I see that most of them have weapons on them.
There are people who hold a staff in their hand but don't use it to walk.
"-!- #- $.% *_ ! *_+ $ -*_-.-*_ * %^.-(%) @ %. #- @ -*_- *_+.-!- *._$_ ! !-^"
"_# $ %"
What language do they speak? Come to think of it, the forest isn't in other kingdom, so what's with this language.
I sit on the edge of the fountain and try to think about where I've ended up.
There's no way this village is in the woods, I look at the surrounding buildings and on one building there's a sign that has the writing from the book.
Is this another dream? As I remember, the houses from the dream look a lot with this ones.
"#- $ _#._# * #.-(%) @ (%) -!-.-!- *.(%)_ @ _$_ $.@.!- @ -*_ _# -*_- ! (%) -!- #-.-(%) ! -!- #-.(%)_ $"
A kid older than me came in front of me and said something, I don't understand anything, so all I do is look at him puzzled until he leaves.
If I don't do anything, clearly I won't find an answer.
I get up and walk straight to the building with the sign that says -!- #- $.*_- # ! !- *_+.* !-_.* (%)_ * -(%)- $ *_+ on it, maybe I can find someone who speaks my language.
I open the door, enter a huge room filled with people of all ages, from children to adults and even old people sitting at tables filled with food and drink.
I try to make my way through them to get to the counter what is on the opposite side of the door.
What is this place? Everybody's carrying a weapon with him.
It was a recent war probably, which they won and now they are celebrating.
I got to the counter, but didn't hear anyone speaking my language.
I hope the lady behind the counter understands.
I gesture for her to come to me by raising my index finger to the level of my head.
At least people understand the signs.
"Hello, can you understand me?"
"-(%) #- @ -!-"
I can tell by the way she's looking at me that she doesn't understand anything I've said.
"Off, damn it!" I see an empty table in the corner of the room, walk over to the table and pull up a chair to sit on.
I put my elbows on the table, cross my fingers and rest my forehead on them.
What can I do now? Of all the people talking I can't hear my language, not to mention I'm afraid to talk to more than one person.
If the forest was in a neighboring country and I entered the city where the army is gathered to start a war with my kingdom.
"Ahh!" Too many things I don't know the answer to.
Suddenly the table begins to move, I lift my head from my fingers and see a man sat down at the table.
He looks quite old, with white hair, silver eyes, a wrinkled face and a rounded moustache at the ends.
"Hel-lo."
He spoke my language, the first person I've heard speak my language since I got here.
Finally! I have a chance to get an answer.
"Hello, do you understand what I'm saying?"
"No."
My happiness completely disappears when I hear his answer.
"But how did you answer if you don't understand the language?" He reaches his right hand across the table, grabs my hand and gets up from his chair.
"Co-me wit h me."
Should I go with him? What if he wants to hurt me? But what can I do after all?
I have only one option, and that's to go with him.
He's an old man after all, if he tries to do anything to me I can defend myself with my sword.
I get up from the table and let myself be led by him, at the same time holding the sword handle with my left hand to be prepared for the worst.
We exit the building, and walk down the street next to it.
Lots of people pass through here so I'll be safe, but what a strange place, it's full of stalls with items I've never seen.
"* * *.-!_ @ %^ ! # %. _# * # -*_- $.% -!- ! !-^.#- * !- *_+ ! (%) *_-.* # -!-"
"_# $ %"
"! %.-!- #- ! %._# * # -*_-.-!_ #- ! !- *_+"
"(%) *. (%) *"
A lot of people greet him, maybe he's known?
Walk a little further and the stalls disappear, and more buildings with signs on them appear.
I don't know what it means but they're probably inns and taverns by the looks or some people's homes.
We left the village, but the road still continues.
-8 minutes later-
We walked up the road until we climbed a hill and came to a straight area with a few houses built here.
I wonder why the road was paved with stone all the way here, there are at most 20 houses and nothing in the rest, maybe the people living here are important.
The man drags me after him to the first house, it's a one-storey house, made mostly of wood and has quite a big garden.
"We 've arri-ved."
"This is your house?"
"Ye-s."
"What are we doing here?"
"Come."
We enter the house and the first thing I see are the stairs leading to the upstairs or basement and on the right is a door through which we enter.
This is kind of a living room and kitchen.
"Ta ke a sea t."
He gestures to me and I sit down at a small table that is against the wall.
It's next to a window that allows you to see all the landscape outside.
"Stayy heere."
"Ok."
He comes out of the room and I hear him walking down the stairs.
What a strange place, everything seems so real that I can't believe it's a dream, but I can't explain how I got here so I find it hard to believe that everything that happens here is real.
He came back, but this time he's holding a book in his left hand.
He comes next to me and puts his right hand on my head.
"What's this?"
"D on't mo-ve. *_- # ! *_+ $.-!- #- ! %.% * # !-.* (%).-!- #- $.*_ @ -!- #-.* !-_._$_ (%) * -(%) !- $ *_+ *_- $"