Restart Again: Volume 1 by Adam Scott (pocket ebook reader TXT) 📕

still empty as far as we could see in both directions. I motioned down the road towards our destination with a small bow. “Shall we?”

***

17. WHO YOU REALLY ARE

Our day on the road was enjoyable, due in no small part to the wonderful weather and beautiful scenery. The sun was shining brightly, but just before it began to feel stifling a gentle breeze would sweep across the road to cool us down. The trees began to change around midday, shifting from mostly coniferous evergreens to a mix of brightly colored deciduous looking trees. Along the way we crossed paths with a few horse-drawn wagons, most likely trying to reach Yoria before nightfall.

I learned a lot about the surrounding area from my casual conversations with Lia. Remembering my thoughts from the night before, I had broached the topic of potentially dangerous wildlife and was met with a hearty laugh. According to her, the most problematic animal in Kaldan was the brown bear, which generally kept well away from human settlements. The stories of wildlife grew more fantastic as she described areas closer to the border mountains, reaching to the point of old wives tales about fantastic beasts like chimeras living in Doram or direwolves in Lybesa.

On the topic of weather, Lia taught me about the seasonal patterns of Kaldan. The country had a very temperate climate which had helped to establish it as an agrarian powerhouse compared to the neighboring nations. We were currently in the autumnal season with winter fast approaching. Snow wasn’t uncommon near Yoria, but Lia said it never seemed to last very long.

Between the pleasant weather and interesting conversation, we made it to the outskirts of town in what seemed like no time at all. Passing by isolated homesteads at first, we had to continue for about an hour before we finally arrived in the town proper. It looked to be a small one-crossing town with a single populated drag of storefronts and stalls before the land quickly turned back to farmland and scattered houses.

Lia led me to a building which apparently was marked “Inn, Food and Drink” along the front in large, faded print. The wooden two-story building was obviously old with weathered planks and battered shutters clear across its face. Upon entering I was pleasantly surprised to find that the interior was well furnished, with plush rugs along the floor and comfortable looking chairs at the bar and tables in the common room. The large space was devoid of patrons, populated solely by a young woman sitting behind a counter directly ahead of us.

At the sound of the door the woman looked up from a book on the counter and eyed us through a thick pair of glasses. “Welcome to The Roadside, travellers. Are you looking for a place to rest for the night?”

“That, and a hot meal if you can manage it,” I replied as we approached the counter. “One room, just for tonight.”

She looked back and forth between Lia and me in silence for an uncomfortably long time. Eventually she pushed a lock of pale yellow hair back behind her ear and jotted something down on a scrap of paper. “Of course, sir. A room with dinner will be 7 crowns for the two of you.”

I pulled up my purse and fished through the contents for the required payment. The money from the dungeons won’t last us much longer, I thought with a grimace. I’ll have to look through what Marten gave us before we left. I slid the coppers across the counter one by one.

“Very good, sir. You’ll be in room…” Fishing around underneath the desk, she pulled up an oversized key and slid it to me. “Room 14. That’s up the stairs in the back corner.” The woman made another note on her paper as she gestured lazily to the right. “Help yourself to some stew whenever you’re hungry.”

Taking the key with a curt nod, I turned and headed towards the staircase. “Thank you!” Lia said politely before jogging to catch up to me. When we had put some distance between us and the attendant, she chastised me in a low voice. “You know, it wouldn’t kill you to be polite sometimes.”

“Oh really? I’ll have to try that someday.” I frowned. “Come to think of it, aside from you, everybody I’ve met since I got here has tried to screw me somehow. I’m not sure my attitude has been the deciding factor in all that.”

Lia pouted. “Well...even so. Maybe if you put out some positive energy, you’ll get some in return.”

I shook my head with a low chuckle. “You’re all the positive energy I need, Lia. Maybe I should let you handle the talking from now on.” Having reached the door with a matching symbol to our key I unlocked the room and pushed the door open. Although it wasn’t as lavishly furnished as the entryway to the inn, our accommodations looked comfortable enough for a single night’s stay; a table with three chairs, one chest of drawers, and a generously sized bed fit snugly within the room’s relatively small confines.

“With that in mind, how would you like to head out and replenish our road supplies? I’d like to stay behind and try to get a little extra rest in.” Sitting down at the small table in the room I pulled out another handful of copper coins from the pouch at my belt. “This should be more than enough, so try not to spend it all, okay?”

Lia nodded vigorously. “Can do!” I handed her the money and the room key, which she slipped into a pocket in her tunic. “I’ll be back soon,” She said, turning to leave.

“Lia, wait,” I called out, standing to go after her. She spun in the doorway, looking back at me with worry. “Just...uhm, be safe, okay?” After spending the entirety of the past week with her I had a strange sensation of discomfort when I thought of her going out on her own.

Her face