I yawned, hands reaching up to scrub the sleep from my face as I moved to stand. I was still rubbing them as I opened the door to see Sera, Aeolus, Azure, Helia, and Sky standing there and ready to go. Not a morning person myself, I seriously contemplated slamming the door and going back to sleep after one look at their bright and awake faces.
Sera smiled at my state of dishevelment. "Aeolus, Azure, Helia, and I are going to get going. When you're ready, Sky will take you to the library." Behind her, Aeolus gave me a blinding grin. My grip tightened on the door.
"Have fun!" He said, nudging a silent Sky forward.
"See you, Hayden!" Aeolus said as they gave their goodbyes and left Sky at my doorstep. I once again considered the merits of slamming the door shut. In the end, the risk of any opposition from the only people I knew here wasn't worth it. I left his awkward figure standing in the doorway as I gently slipped my boots back on over my wounded feet and re-attached the clasps on my new cloak, draping it across my shoulders.
Ani still slept calmly on the bed, and I crossed my arms as I considered what to do with him. I shrugged and gave up. We planned to return in a few hours, and he was a cat. He'd probably sleep the whole time.
"After you," I said, moving to walk past Sky. He blocked me, a strange expression on his face.
"Before you go…" he said, mumbling hesitantly, "did you say you're from Earth?" For once, he wasn't looking at me but was instead gazing at the floor. Some small flame of hope tangled with anxiety grew in my chest at the question.
Did he recognize the name?
"I did," I answered, expecting him to elaborate. He looked up at me, still with that strange expression, eyes sharp.
"I need to talk to you." More sure of himself now, he turned to shut the door and gestured toward the bed in a non-verbal ask for permission to sit. Seeing no real choice in the matter, I granted it, standing awkwardly above him. Ani, who had been sleeping on the bed, opened his eyes to peek at us with the shifting of the "mattress" but quickly went back to sleep.
"I-" He started, then cut himself off. He nervously licked his dry lips to moisten them before changing tracks. "Have you ever heard of the series Heirs?"
"N-" it was my turn to stammer as a memory flashed of the last book discussion I'd had with my sister before I disappeared. She'd said Heirs was an isekai….The hope in my chest flared, then turned to dread as I saw the inevitable train wreck this conversation would become for us.
"I have," I admitted, more anxious than ever to hear how he knew. My fingers tapped impatiently on my crossed arms. "My sister was telling me about it a few days ago."
Sky gaped, eyes lighting up as he registered my words. It was one thing to suspect someone else in this strange world was in the same situation as you, another to know altogether. I could see the moment he realized the weight of them, a spark lighting in his eye and questions falling from his mouth in a torrential downpour. Some part of me hoped I was wrong in my initial assessment of the situation.
I answered them best I could, informing him that yes, I was from America, I ended up here in my own body, and no, I hadn't read Heirs. His enthusiasm dulled a bit at the end, and I knew it wasn't much longer before I'd have to deliver the final blow.
"You haven't? I was hoping…." He trailed off, gazing at me with expectant eyes. I sighed, feeling a little guilty at the way he had deflated. I shoved that feeling down into my chest.
"I prefer to read classic novels. My sister is the one who reads isekiais." I explained, ripping the proverbial bandage off the wound. His expectant look turned to confusion as he contemplated my words.
My assumption had been correct.
"...iseaki? Are you sure?"
"Yes. Isekai."
"Heirs is an isekai in your world?"
"Yes."
"So then…" He couldn't bring himself to say the words.
I sighed."Yeah. That makes you…."
"...the protagonist?" He sounded like he couldn't believe it. I didn't blame the guy.
"Probably."
He looked like he wanted to say more, mouth opening and closing as he thought. I sat stiffly on the bed as I waited. Finally, he said "Do you know what happened? In the novel your sister read, I mean."
I grimaced and shook my head. "Just that it was an isekai. She didn't have time to explain it to me." I almost wished I had let her explain so that I would know more about my situation.
"Might be for the best. I'm not sure I want to know anyway." Sky admitted. Personally, I couldn't see many situations where I wouldn't want to know the future, but it was his life.
"If it makes you feel better, she doesn't usually like tragedies." I told him, thinking of all the times she'd announced she was 'rage-quitting' a novel after a character had died. Sky gave me a small smile in return.
"It does, actually. Thank you."
We sat there in silence.
"Library?" I asked.
He sighed. "Library."
We left the once-again-napping Ani in my room and wove through the crowded, smelly, and dust-filled streets to our destination. Whatever Helia had used on my feet yesterday had helped a lot, allowing me to walk on my still sore feet without feeling the urge to stop every few seconds.
Sky was careful to keep pace with me, informing me he knew where the library was from its description in Heirs, though he'd never been there personally before. Other tidbits about Heirs were offered up along the way, and I pretended to pay attention, though I didn't really care. If anything, waking up in an isekai made me hate them even more. If someone hadn't written it, then maybe I'd still be home.
Sky must have gotten the hint, as he dropped the topic of the novel altogether and began to complain about the differences between Earth and Stoicheion, glad that there was someone else around who'd grown up with the same standards of hygiene that this world lacked. I quickly jumped in. It was stress-relieving to get our complaints regarding the status of hygiene off our chests, though I felt even more disgusted by everything the more in-depth I learned about the processes than I had yesterday. I prayed my feet didn't get infected.
Our destination library wasn't the main library of the city–that was attached to the largest public bathhouse, apparently– but was instead attached to the red and gold decorated majestic temple of the Phoenix, nestled deep within the heart of the magic district of the city. As we walked up the gold-colored stairs into the temple proper, Sky explained that the Phoenix god, who the country was named after, is the god of fire, representing light and life, and one of the four gods who created the world. He also explained that phoenixes, like Millie, were descendants of the Phoenix and tasked with roaming the world and protecting the innocent.
The other three gods were the Dragon, the great Sea Serpent, and the Troll. They represented air, water, and earth, respectively. Not so coincidentally, the other four major kingdoms on this continent were named after their respective gods. Similarly, there existed wild dragons, sea serpents, and trolls, descendants of the original gods. Like Ani, they were magical creatures with the potential to become familiars. Unlike most magical creatures, however, only a ruler chosen by the country's god could bond with one. This did explain why the Phoenix country was ruled by a monarchy rather than by democracy, despite resembling pictures I'd seen of ancient Rome in the history books.
Supposedly, Sera's family were also descended from the gods, marked as such by their unnatural fiery red hair and eyes. Aeolus's family are marked by their god as well, their hair a pure gray such that it had blue shadows to match the gray and blue scales of the Dragon.