Mana System Chapter 168: A town on the edge (Patreon)

It soon became clear to Fiona that something was hunting the citizens of the town. It's why they avoided dark alleys, looked about in trepidation, and jumped at noises. It seemed like the Chief was trying to keep this information contained but rumors had spiraled out of his control after people started going missing.

Seeing as she was in a unique position, she decided to float over the city for a night to see what showed up.

Most people were smart and locked themselves in at night, not braving the uncertain streets. But there were always a few fools. On this night it was a drunk man. She watched him stumble past the mouth of an alley and something dark reached out and pulled him in with a scream.

She was already racing to that alley to see if she could stop whatever this thing was but by the time she arrived the man and whatever had taken him was gone. The only thing that remained was a few drops of blood to show what had transpired.

Fiona decided she may be over her head alone so she raced out of town to locate Paul and the fortress.

***

“I know you told me about the issue but can you explain this creatures to me again?” I asked as we walked toward the town.

I went a bit overkill with hiding the fortress and we were over days flight from the town in a small forest. I hadn’t seen any roads on my way south from the town so figured it was safe enough for a few weeks, seeing as I had activated the defenses.

“Not much to tell, I was quite a distance away when it struck. Dark clawed hands reached out from an alley and pulled the man in and by the time I got there it was gone.”

I scratched my stubble in thought. “Fair enough. What about this Chief or the Spear person?”

“The Chief is a typical politician as far as I could tell. He seemed more concerned about keeping up appearances than trying to resolve the issue. But I could be wrong from the few minutes I was able to listen in. As for Mugat the Spear, which I assume is something like a guard captain, he seemed a bit out of his depth.”

“What do you think their response will be when they see us coming?”

“They are on edge with the attacks within the city, so probably pretty aggressively. I couldn’t tell you what level any of them were but you might want to take a soft touch when we approach,” she stated directly.

“I can have a soft touch,” I argued back.

She just snorted.

***

It took two days of walking before the town appeared on the horizon. There had been a few monster attacks but nothing above level ten. Certainly nothing like the gorlophants that lived below the hills. From my experience, the surrounding ecosystem was usually a good indicator of average level.

Our approach didn’t go unnoticed for long as a group of five men rode out to meet us. I still had my second class hidden and my main class set to eighteen but with Fiona beside me, there wasn’t any way of hiding her current level.

We stopped and waited for the men to approach, my new armor was stored and I had my old set equipped, which still sported some damage from previous fights. I figured it would make me look a bit less intimidating.

The men circled around us, coming to a stop after they had us surrounded but at quite a distance. They were all wearing some boiled leather armor with plates of metal riveted over sensitive areas of the body. The design more closely resembled my Mantle of Oroboros armor than my Mage Bane armor that I was currently wearing, with its more brigandine style made from small fingers of metal.

“Who are you and why are you coming toward Huran?”

Fiona had described Mugat to me so I knew the man talking was him.

“We were traveling through the area and spotted the town. We figured we could stop for supplies and rest a few days before we continue,” I replied.

The man looked dubious at my statement but didn’t call me on it. His eyes did widen a bit at seeing Fiona and I figured he was checking her level. I chose to do the same.

Mugat | Huranian Spearman | Level 15

I was surprised at his level, expecting something closer to ten. His other men weren’t far behind ranging from thirteen to fifteen to match him.

“Well, far be it from me to turn away travelers. Where do you hail from if I may ask?”

“I’m Paul, and we come from a town called Saint June,” I replied, technically true.

“Hmm, I’m not familiar with that city are you a local from this world?”

“I am, but my friend, Fiona, here is not,” I added, gesturing to Fiona.

“Well met, my name is Mugat. Our town doesn’t have much to offer but hospitality is not among the things we lack. Our Chief may summon you to meet with him as you are the first travelers we have encountered since we were transported to this world. I hope this is acceptable.”

“That will be fine,” Fiona replied.

The man nodded slightly and his men put up their weapons but kept an eye on us as we moved as a group toward the town in the distance. A few were eying Fiona with a bit more than weariness. I wanted to laugh at that, picturing one of them trying to make a move on her but thought better of it with how tense these people were.

As we rode through the gate, the atmosphere inside was even worse than Fiona had stated. Going by her expression it had changed dramatically in the few days we had been gone.

“Please follow me,” Mugat beckoned after he had dropped off his horse at the stable. “We do not have an inn, so you and your traveling companion may stay at my house.”

“That’s kind of you but we couldn’t possibly impose,” Fiona replied.

“Nonsense, what sort of host would I be if I failed to find adequate lodging for guests. You need not worry about a wife or children bothering you, as I am unmarried.”

I wasn’t surprised at that seeing as the guy didn’t look much older than twenty. With the system in place, there wasn’t a rush to marry as you could live a long healthy life in almost peak condition.

The other men had gone their separate way after the stable, so I chose this time to spring my question on Mugat.

“Mugat, is there something you aren’t telling us? The people of your city seem a bit… tense.”

I saw Mugat’s eyes flicker over to me but he kept his head facing forward. It took him a minute to respond, uncertain if whether he should tell us. “We have been having some issues in town during the night.”

“Oh, what sort of issues?” I inquired further, hoping he would tell us himself.

An even longer pause followed that question as he glanced around.

“Perhaps I will tell you over dinner,” he politely replied.

I nodded, keeping an eye on the townsfolk as we walked. It was weird watching people walk in groups, but avoiding any shadowy corner. Even Mugat wasn’t immune to the fear as he crossed over streets instead of crossing in front of alleys. I glanced into one of these dark alleys but saw nothing out of the ordinary. I was starting to build a hypothesis about what could be snatching people though. Some form of shadow creature seemed the most likely culprit but it was too soon to tell. It had to be at least intelligent as it would ambush people from what Fiona was able to discover.

Soon our walk ended in front of a modest building sharing the same Japanese style décor as the rest of the town sported. I had never been to Japan personally but I had seen the buildings in books and on TV and the design looked slightly off. Maybe it was the way the locals dressed in a more old roman toga style than Japanese Kimonos. I guess it made sense since this wasn’t a Japanese building. It did tell me that this region was relatively warm year-round. At least before the merging of our world with part of theirs. But we had to be closer to the equator so it probably would stay that way.

Then again I had no idea if the entire continent was shifted from its previous position. The farthest north I had been was where I was camping when everything went to shit. I knew North was still North as my compass in the fortress worked properly. It gave me a lot to think about and an itch to find out. Still, I had commitments at the moment that I couldn’t just shove off on my friends. Once those were taken care of, then perhaps.

Mugat’s home was pretty spartan. There was a kitchen with a dining table that could fit four if you didn’t mind being elbow to elbow. A bedroom, separated by a linen sheet as a door and a central area that contained the kitchen and dining room were the only two rooms in the dwelling.

“I apologize for the lack of amenities. I have bedding that both of you can use. It doesn’t get very cold at night so a light blanket should keep you warm. The outhouse is out back and if you don’t mind eating outside we can sit at the table in my back yard while we dine.”

“That will be fine Mugat, you have been more than generous,” I offered.

The man gave a slight bow, “very well, I will prepare dinner.”

It didn’t take long for Mugat to cook a stew-type dish, pulling fresh ingredients from a storage ring on his hand. His yard wasn’t as ostentatious as Fiona said the Chief’s was, but it was well cared for, with a circular table in the center of a rainbow-colored rock garden. A small stream ran through the back, separating his house from the one across.

“You have quite the lovely house,” Fiona stated.

It was true, while small and simple, it put my old house back north to shame.

“You are too kind. I only wish I could spend more time relaxing here. Sitting outside and enjoying a meal is one of my favorite activities. But being the Spear, I have other responsibilities.”

“Spear?” I inquired.

He smiled, “a fancy name, but I believe most cultures just refer to it as a guard captain or commander. It just means I will be the tip of the weapon defending our city. But enough about me, as a local from this world, I am much more interested in your journey so far. Judging by both of your levels it must have been quite harrowing.”

I relayed a couple of the stories of our adventures together. The man seemed genuinely interested in what happened beyond his small town. Well, it was small in comparison to Houston or Saint June, but it was larger than Arman had been.

“That is fascinating. I wish I could explore this new world.”

“Why can’t you?” I asked in confusion.

He let out a sigh. “My position is for life, to give it up is to be labeled a traitor and a coward. Plus I would be leaving the people without a Spear. The knowledge of that alone would eat at me.”

“… Ok, fair enough. So about these issues, your town is suffering?” I asked, changing the subject.

It seemed he was about to tell us when his eyes widened and he stood up. “Silent One, what do I owe the honor of your visit?”

I turned around to see a slight woman walk gracefully from the house, holding a rolled parchment. Without saying anything she handed it to Mugat with an imperceptible bow, before turning to Fiona and me, handing one to each of us in turn.

I was curious to see what sort of person made Mugat so deferential so I used Identify.

Silent One | ??

I raised an eyebrow at the obviously hidden information and received a smirk from the woman in reply, that disappeared almost instantly.

“We are being summoned to the Chief’s to attend dinner. I apologize, I should have seen this possibility happening tonight.”

“That’s fine, Mugat, we would be happy to meet with your Chief.”

“Yeah, Mugat, no worries, your dinner was lovely though,” Fiona added.

It seemed our time pumping Mugat for information was over, time to see what the Chief was willing to reveal to us.