The group closed in on the forest, they realized that there was a wall and gate that separated the forest from the buildings.
"My home is just through the forest. Best to be careful, animals could be around there." Myo calmly cautioned.
The closer they were to the gate, the fewer people were walking in the streets, with most of them focused on heading towards the market or cathedral.
They jumped on the wall, quickly getting down before anyone could spot them.
The forest trees were large and tall, the area beyond was shrouded in darkness as the leaves and branches made a thick blanket to block any sunlight from going through.
A pathway was made that connected the forest and the gate entrance, but nobody was present.
"I noticed you climb and run well, are you a thief as well?" Myo asked, clearly talking about Celestine despite not turning around to look at her.
"No, i just- lived somewhere that needed climbing and running." She quickly replied.
The group went deeper into the forest, everyone was on edge, Colton looked around carefully like the library, waiting for something to pop out and attack them. But Quill was just calm, silently walking forward, looking at the forest with a small smile on her face.
The light above started to dwindle while they walked on, with only a few spots that the sun managed to pierce through. The group could hear the sound of birds chirping or movement in the bushes, leading to nothing other than just wandering rabbits or deer.
"We should be close by now. Barely anyone really goes here apart from a few hunters." Myo explained. While walking, Colton could see a light through one of the thick bushes ahead.
Myo moved away the shrub leaves with his hands, revealing the destination they were heading to.
Built on a tree was a home, brightly lit by lamps with a spiral staircase that led up to it. A balcony rested on the side with a table and chair to sit on.
The area around the tree was clear but dark, and the tree he had used was bigger than normal.
"Well, this is my home. Follow me." They all looked at the house in awe while heading up the spiral wooden staircase, they felt the warm atmosphere hit them, feeling calmer and more relaxed.
Once at the top, Myo opened the door to the interior. A single room with a table, a cooking station, bed, table, and a chest filled with jewelry.
The familiar smell of meat caught Colton's attention, on the stove, a pot was cooking something inside it.
"Feel free to sit down on the table, it's nearing lunch so I just got a recent kill to make a stew." The group dispersed around the place, all examining different parts of it while Calliope, Colton, and the Clerics sat down on the free table.
Quill was standing next to the pot, taking in the smell with a slight drool on her mouth. Marcus knelt near the chest, resisting the urge to take a handful of coins and other jewelry to bring with him.
But Celestine was outside on the balcony, observing the dark forest.
After waiting for a while, Myo placed a few wooden bowls in front of the 4, filled with the stew and a spoon in each of them.
"Go ahead and enjoy." The clerics reluctantly started eating the stew while Colton and Calliope stared at Myo, eating from his own bowl. Behind him, Quill was already busy eating her own stew, wolfing it down quickly.
"Why are you offering hospitality to us like this?" She asked, the joyful face of Myo quickly shifted to seriousness as he looked back at her.
"You're not from this world are you?" Calliope's eyes widened at the response.
"How did you know?"
"Well," He pushed the stew forward and put his hand on the side of his cheek. "I never saw anyone in that city wearing what you all wore. The most normal is that girl with the red cloth. "
"You came from elsewhere, those portal rituals I reckon." He leaned back on his chair.
"Portal rituals?"
"Yeah, portal rituals. Just a few steps and poof, you're somewhere else. Now." He leaned forward, clasping his hands on the table.
"What are you here for?" He looked straight to Calliope, she was unsure whether to give a genuine answer or lie. In the end, she decided.
"We're here for a few books."
"Books hm?" Quill stood up and went to the chest, he thrusted his hand through the pile of gold and jewelry, surprising Marcus who was still kneeling next to it.
After moving his hand around for a few moments, he plucked out a book and looked back at Calliope.
"These types?" He threw it towards her direction, the book landed on the table, startling the twins and Colton. She started to inspect it. She was shocked by Myo just having a knowledge book lying around.
"To be honest I don't have much use for those things anyway, I prefer money and such."
"Where did you get this book?" Calliope quickly questioned.
"The Cathedral. There's a small room full of those things in the bell tower. Oh," He sat back down and leaned his head closer, wanting to whisper something.
"I heard there's more books in a secret place beneath the cathedral, even though I'm a thief, I have yet to find anything." He sighed.
Calliope stared at the book for a few seconds, trying to process all the information she had just heard. A man who not only knows about knowledge books, but also knows that they aren't from the world.
"So you're just here for those books. Hmm, I won't pry any further than that for now. Since all of you aren't from here…But elsewhere, I'm willing to make a deal."
"What kind of deal?" Calliope asked, Myo smirked. He took out a map. It detailed the city and the forest they were in, made with extreme detail as well, street names, house names, establishments, and other places, all written on the map.
"I understand you know as well about the book worlds?" She nodded, now at a loss of words as Myo calmly spoke of information she didn't expect for him to know.
"You want the books, and I simply want to map out more details of the city. Perhaps you may help with that. It benefits both of us in the end."
Calliope looked back at Myo, considering her choices with her hand grasping her chin, thinking if she should accept the deal or not.
"As another thing, you can simply rest here if you accept the deal, people in the city would most likely see you as a threat since none of them wear their clothing. Even the red cloth girl would stand out."
"And what if we disagree?" He sighed and looked straight towards her.
"Then I won't tell you where the other books are hiding in this place. The cathedral isn't the only one you know."
The room had gone quiet, Quill, Marcus, and Celestine stopped what they were doing and looked at the two talking.
"I can give you time to consider with your team, i do need to rest outside." Without waiting, Myo stood up and made his way outside, pulling something out of his pocket while walking.
The other three walked to the table, sitting down on any vacant chairs.
"What's the plan boss? I'd take up on this guy's offer, so much money." Marcus commented.
"I agree, the deal is simple enough anyway, simply mapping things out in exchange for giving the locations of some books? Not to mention the fact that he makes good food. And we can just live here as well, a home for us to stay in." Quill added.
"I'm unsure if we can trust him, mainly because he is a thief and he did steal from me. It was only fortunate that I managed to get it back." Celestine disagreed with the deal, speaking with a clear and obvious dislike of Myo.
"Eh, I mean you can just get another cloth when we come back right?" Marcus responded. The room had gone silent again afterwards.
Calliope looked down at the map, focused heavily on it and her wish to finish the task already.
After a few more minutes of deliberation to herself, she stood up and headed for the balcony.
Outside, Myo was smoking something while gazing at the dark silhouettes of the trees. He turned around.
"Have you decided?" He asked, holding a smoking pipe in his hand.
Calliope extended out her hand.
"It's a deal." With a smile, Myo shook her hand enthusiastically.
"Excellent, well. Feel right at home, you and I will discuss what to do with this deal later. I'm sure all of you are tired or hungry.
The group soon went back inside, going back to what they were doing earlier. Calliope sat back down on her chair and took in a deep breath.
"We better get those books…"