I jumped out of the carriage and waved my hand towards Ross and Ann.
"See you around, Mister Troy!" Ross shouted as their carriage continued.
I nodded and watched them disappear. Now, where do I start?
Behind me was a huge white fountain in the middle of a roundabout where countless carriages were passing by. Based on what the adventurers I was in the carriage said, this kingdom is called Korra. And also, according to them, this kingdom was a free one. Everyone was welcome here to stay or to trade.
This is the perfect place for me to start. I'm a little bit confused, but hopefully, later on, I will have my grasp on this world. Like the game I play, should I become a merchant or an adventurer? Earning money is my priority for survival.
As I walked towards the other side of the road, I could hear the sound of the carriages and the voices of the people walking down the road with me.
The people around me were wearing tunics or kirtles made of wool, and I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with how they were staring at me.
Suddenly, a man walked toward me with a smile on his face. He looked like he was in his late twenties.
"Excuse me, young man, are you looking for a place to trade your clothing? It seemed like your clothes were standing out here. I buy some stuff from otherworldly for a reasonable price," the man said, wearing a head turban, famous for a merchant back in my world and probably here too as I saw some wearing it too.
"Otherworlder?"
The man looked at me and smiled.
"Of course, I know. If you please, let's go to my shop and talk there. We can't talk in an open space like here, and someone might listen to us," the man said.
I went along with the man. We took a few turns on the asphalt road before arriving at his store.
Well, I don't know if this place was a store or not. The building was different from its neighboring building. It's an ordinary house made of sliced bamboo as the wall and some nipa grass as a roof.
The man opened the bamboo door, and I was greeted by several merchandise neatly arranged in rows of shelves. Some messenger bags and backpacks were hanging above, and some things I was unfamiliar with were displayed near the cashier counter.
"Wow! The inside was not the same as the outside," I commented.
The man chuckled.
"I intended to," he replied. "I don't want to catch any abusive knights' eyes, so I came up with this better idea," he added.
"You sell a lot of stuff here," I said, looking around.
"Yes," he replied. "And oh, where was my manner? My name is Rudolph, an otherworlder like you," Rudolph added.
I looked at him in surprise.
"Thank goodness someone from Earth! Please explain everything you know why I was summoned here," I said despite the initial knowledge of those middle-aged men's club summoning me.
Rudolph called someone named Lila to bring out a chair. When the Lila he called came out from the back counter, I almost wanted to pee when I saw who this Lila was.
She was a Lamia! She has a half body of a woman and a red scales snake below. She had a chair with her and a child following by her side.
Lila smiled at me as she put down the chair behind me.
"Please sit down-"
"Troy. Troy Hercules," I cut Rudolph off.
"Troy," he finished as he stood at the cashier counter. Lila and the child exited through the back door behind the counter. Although the child looked like Rudolph and had a body like Lila, I didn't dare to ask the obvious.
"I'm utterly confused as to why I was summoned here by some evil fanatic men at some old-looking castle," I opened up.
"Oh, those men again?" Rudolph asked as if he was expecting what I was going to say.
"Do you know them?"
"Yes," Rudolph replied. "Actually, they were very famous here," he added. "They create havoc not only here but also in the other kingdoms. Those men have a group called The Sharqiaa, a fanatic and occult of the famous King Daimon, who disappeared a long time ago, who was a famous tyranny."
"Are they bad news? Seeing the knight had raided their cult venue?"
"They are," Rudolph said in a serious tone. "Rumors said they were summoning otherworlders to form massive armies that answer only to them. They were also why otherworlders were executed and killed upon summoning here for some reason only the higher-ups knew."
I gulped at what he said. Does it mean if I was caught the night I tried to escape, I'd be facing the same death? Oh no.
`That's why, in order for you to survive in this world, you have to hide your identity. Never tell a single soul about your existence. So be careful and trust no one, Troy," Rudolph said.
After exchanging the costume, I wore a pair of ordinary black harem pants with a wide-leg design, a simple white shirt, and a pair of gladiator sandals. Rudolph also gave me a magical hooded cloak that, according to him, would adjust fine to any weather of any kingdom I was in.
Although the outfit was kind of off, they were surprisingly comfortable to wear.
"There, good to go. You won't stand out anymore. Remember, keep your identity to yourself," Rudolph said as I thanked him for going outside his store.
I waved him goodbye and stepped out, gaining new knowledge about the world I was summoned to.
Rudolph said he won't give any more information regarding this nameless world. He said I should embark on my journey and discover this world's beauty despite how dangerous it is for someone like me.
As I wandered around, I realized that the buildings here closely resembled the medieval buildings I read about in some books and, of course, from the setting of the anime I watched back then.
Scattered around the area were numerous knights patrolling the place.
After a few minutes of aimlessly walking, I found the marketplace and bought food in the stalls.