The Stranger's First Outing
It was late evening—an hour when everyone ought to have been asleep—yet the pier where the airship came to rest blazed with light as bright as midday.
“This is…”
I peered past the glowing airship. A long avenue stretched ahead, lined with countless hanging lanterns that filled my vision. What unfurled before me was not the Western civilization I had grown used to, but a sudden, unexpected Eastern one.
The buildings themselves carried a deep Eastern air: long, sweeping eaves and, at their tips, strange animal ornaments I had never quite seen before.
Of course, they only resembled what I remembered. They were not identical.
“We’re finally here.”
Wendy stepped up beside me without hesitation, wind still curling around her. She looked out over the pier and the city beyond with a familiar smile.
“You’ve been here a few times, then?”
“Yeah. This is my third.”
Once the airship was fully docked, the mages began to bustle about. It looked much like any ordinary trading vessel putting in—except the stevedores were mages.
Those of us with little luggage, like Wendy and me, simply gathered our light packs and started down from the airship. I mounted Nightmare and descended with him.
A cool night breeze brushed my cheeks. The thick scent of grass rode the wind, mingled with something unfamiliar.
Strange air wrapped around me on strange soil, as if the land itself were welcoming my arrival.
“Those people…”
From a large building at the corner of the pier, figures in flowing garments poured out in a rush. Every scrap of fabric looked soft and smooth.
Odd clothing I could accept. Their appearances, however, were far from ordinary human. Horns rose from their heads, ears stood pointed and sharp, and long, fur-covered tails swayed beneath them. Some tails were even scaled.
Had I dropped here alone, I might have mistaken them for monsters and drawn my sword. In the dark street their blue-green eyes flashed exactly like a monster’s.
“Beastmen. The people of this land.”
Wendy’s light explanation followed. This was the land of the beastmen, she said.
I knew nothing of this place. Everything was new. I had become a stranger who had just set foot on foreign soil.
Naturally, we could not speak with the beastmen. Their language was different. Wendy, at least, knew enough of it that simple communication went smoothly.
“What a fascinating place.”
“Everyone who comes here says the same thing.”
Wendy and I walked the bright night streets. Lanterns hung in long rows, lighting the way.
The stalls beneath those lanterns were a delight to browse. Tops and kites were for sale, and masks shaped like animal faces.
“Ah, Wendy.”
“Hm?”
“Where do I exchange money? There’s something I want to buy, but I don’t have the local currency…”
I pointed to a small fox mask. Wendy let out a soft “Ah” and smiled.
“You really don’t know anything, do you?”
“I told you—it’s my first time here.”
“Don’t worry so much! Just trust me!”
Wendy laughed like a fresh breeze. She bought the fox mask for me. It was the first souvenir I purchased in this land.
A week had passed since I set foot on this soil. Wendy had stayed close the whole time and helped me with so much. She found me a teacher so I could learn the beastmen’s language, and she showed me where to exchange my money.
Of course she could not stay with me all day. She had her own business here, so after that first week I only saw her late in the evenings.
“Lady Ceris. It’s Sobaek.”
I turned from the window and spoke.
“Come in.”
The door opened and a neatly dressed fox beastman appeared. Pointed ears twitched atop her head, and a lush tail swayed gracefully below her waist.
Sobaek was a teacher who instructed visiting mages in writing and culture. Wendy had arranged for her to teach me. I had grown used to our lessons. Naturally I unfolded the small desk and opened a book.
“Lady Ceris is quite □□.”
“Pardon…?”
I tilted my head. A familiar sentence had contained one word I did not understand. Sobaek often mixed the local tongue—“Beast Speech”—with the language I used, “Kalim.” She smiled lightly and continued.
“Ah, forgive me. That was a word you haven’t learned yet. It means ‘diligent.’”
“Are the other mages different?”
“Some of them run away, you see.”
Study sessions with Sobaek were a feast for the eyes. Watching that lush fox tail dance from time to time, I lost all sense of the hours.
“You learn so quickly. Were you perhaps born here?”
“Mm, no.”
“Strange… I feel a familiar aura somehow…”
We had been studying for some time with the book open when Sobaek, still scanning the pages, rose with a light smile.
Only then did I realize the hour was up. The sun that had hung high was now slipping downward; it was time for her to leave.
“Ah, thank you for your hard work today.”
“I’ll see you again tomorrow.”
After our farewells, Sobaek smiled softly and padded out. Watching that splendid tail recede was genuinely disappointing. I smiled lightly and gazed at the street dyed in sunset light.
Even after arriving in a strange land, spending an entire week shut up in a room had grown unbearably stifling. I had roughly grown used to the culture and Beast Speech, so it seemed the time to leave had come.
I slipped on the red long robe I had bought at the market. Golden flowers were embroidered across it in splendid fashion; it was quite a flamboyant garment.
Staying put for long never suited my nature. That I had endured a full week with a whole new world right before my eyes was, for me, an impressive display of patience.
I packed roughly and left the room.
“Ah! Where are you going?”
Just as I came down the stairs and was about to pass through the first floor, a man’s voice called from behind. I glanced back and saw one of the inn’s staff—someone I often met at meals.
“Somewhere unfamiliar.”
“Unfamiliar…?”
I had studied Beast Speech with Sobaek for a week, yet awkwardness remained. Apparently my meaning had not quite gotten through. It did not matter. I smiled lightly and waved.
The staff member stood with his mouth open, then waved back as if answering my farewell.
“Take care.”
“Ah… yes…”
When I reached the stable, a massive form rose with a start. Nightmare.
He began to complain about how late I was, snorting roughly and kicking the stall walls.
Thud—! Thud—!
The heavy kicks shook the stable as if an earthquake had struck. I rested a hand on my hip and scolded him with a stern look.
Whicker…
At my gaze he hung his head, looking dejected—until my next words made him brighten and burst out of the narrow stall.
“Come on out. We’re leaving this place.”
I mounted Nightmare and started down the road. The streets, where the sun was sinking, were steeped in sunset glow. People strolling the market stared wide-eyed at the great horse’s appearance.
The red long robe fluttered lightly in the wind. I shook the flowing sleeves this way and that as Nightmare and I left the great city behind.
Leaving without a proper goodbye weighed on me a little, yet that was the life of an adventurer. Meetings were spontaneous; partings were light.
Past the long avenue and out through the great gate, a dirt road opened before us.
Nightmare lowered his long muzzle and sniffed the earth as if testing the scent of this new land. His tail began to sway in a cheerful dance. He was in good spirits.
Come to think of it, Nightmare had not run freely for quite some time. After a long stay at the Magic Tower, he had been cooped up in a narrow stable for another full week upon arriving here.
“Shall we run for the first time in a while?”
Hiiih—!
As if he had been waiting for those very words, he snorted roughly and stamped his hooves. He was ready; I need only give the word.
“Let’s go!”
I pulled on the reins. In that instant his legs struck the ground and he shot forward like an arrow. The scenery around us stretched into long lines.
I had not bothered with a map. I was not familiar with the geography here. We simply raced without hesitation toward everything that was unknown.
The long dirt road led toward a great forest. The moment the thick scent of grass grew stronger, a towering bamboo grove opened before us.
Swaaaah~
A cool wind shook the bamboo. The hard stalks clacked together, weaving a strange melody with the breeze.
Being near the pier, quite a few people walked the bamboo paths. Yet even at full speed Nightmare avoided every obstacle that crossed our way.
Whoosh—!
The instant we burst free of the bamboo, a vast world steeped in deep sunset light unfolded. Wind from every direction stirred the grass and trees, making a pleasant sound.
Clatter-clatter-clatter—!
Nightmare’s powerful legs leapt a small pond. Sunset light shattered across the water’s surface. The golden embroidery on my robe caught the glow and scattered brilliant sparks just as Nightmare’s hooves stepped upon empty air.
Clack—!
Sunset dust scattered beneath his feet. Transparent crystal footholds shattered, reflecting the evening light. It looked as if the sun itself were breaking apart.
As always, there was no destination. To go wherever one’s feet led—was that not the essence of adventure? Expectation for this strange land spread a smile across my lips.