Game Master in Another World

As we walked through the village, we drew fearful stares. Several people retreated inside their homes as they saw us looking in their direction.

“Why is everyone scared of us?” Juliana asked.

“That would be because of the rumours about you, I’m afraid,” replied Igasnov.

“What are these rumours?” Toby asked.

“I don’t think you will want to hear them,” Igasnov responded.

“Oh, I would like to decide for myself,” Juliana said.

“Fine, don’t say I didn’t warn you, then. Firstly, they call you a devil that transforms into a man-eating, evil dragon.”

“I can see that, apart from the evil part,” Juliana replied.

“So you do eat men?” Igasnov asked, his voice laced with worry.

“I have eaten a couple, but only in the midst of battle, and as a dragon,” Juliana responded seriously.

“They also say that you can summon thousands of demon wolves at your beck and call.”

“Partially true. I have been known to summon two thousand wolves, but I had no control over them.”

I mentally thanked Juliana for lying on my behalf.

“Okay, so the rumours were closer than I expected, but you seem very reckless. I hope those thousands of wolves were able to be unsummoned,” Igasnov remarked.

“Well, no. They are now terrorising the lands.”

“I’d bet. What you need is someone like me to help you maintain some common sense,” Igasnov offered.

“Hmm, what do you think, Toby?”

Toby looked at Igasnov closely. “I think he could be valuable, and you are strong enough to manage him if he proves untrustworthy.”

Igasnov laughed. “You are certainly an astute young lad. I don’t suppose you have crazy powers too?”

“No, just the power of helping Juliana with strategy.”

Igasnov ruffled Toby’s hair. “Good lad. I bet she needs a lot of help.”

I did not like the insinuation that she was foolish, but I did see his point.

We walked up to a larger house, and Igasnov knocked on the door.

An older man opened it, eyeing us up and down.

“Who's the Nhalyri, Igasnov?” asked the man.

“This is Juliana, the saviour of your village,” Igasnov responded.

The man held a hand to his chin. “What’s your angle? Your lot never do anything for free.”

“I merely did not want to partake in slaughtering the innocent,” Juliana replied.

“Be careful, Igasnov. Her kind cannot be trusted; they’ll kill you in your sleep just for fun.”

“Oh? So far she seems fine, though I don’t know much about her kind,” Igasnov said, smiling.

“Many of my kind may be evil, but I am one of the few who is different. Therefore, you are quite safe around me,” Juliana replied, grinning.

“Well, since we have to reward you, we can feed you and your friend, but I would ask you to leave by this evening. A former soldier of the enemy cannot be trusted; I hope you understand,” the older man said seriously.

“Come on, Frederick, you should be more welcoming than that to your saviour,” Igasnov protested.

“If she hadn’t saved us, we would be exiling her immediately, so this is as good as she is going to get, I’m afraid.”

The level of distrust seemed extreme to me, not something I had expected.

“Fine then, but I will be going with them; your village will need to fend for itself,” Igasnov replied, defeated.

“I would rather that than have a Nhalyri here; we’d never be able to sleep. Anyhow, go see Vallorie. She can fix you up with a meal.”

Juliana nodded.

“Don’t worry, I’ll show you the way,” Igasnov said.

We walked away, with Frederick glaring at our backs.

A few doors down, Igasnov knocked on a house. A kind, middle-aged woman opened the door and smiled at us.

“Hello! Please come in. I imagine Frederick sent you all my way for some food?”

Toby smiled. “Yes, please, if you will have us.”

Vallorie smiled back at Toby. “My, you are a polite young boy. Please, make yourselves at home.”

We entered the house. It was a simple home with a sturdy table and a hearth; a pot of stew was cooking, filling the room with a rich aroma.

A young boy was playing with a crude wooden horse on the floor.

“This is Sean, my son. I’m hoping he gets to be a farmer, like his dad was before he went off to war,” Vallorie said while preparing the plates.

“You have a lovely house,” Juliana said.

“Why, thank you. It seems to work for Sean and me.”

Vallorie placed the plates on the table, each with a generous helping of soup, then set a warm loaf of bread in the middle.

“Please sit. Today we can celebrate our survival,” Vallorie said, taking her seat.

We all joined her at the table.

“May Solvarn’s grace continue to protect us this day, and Halwen provide for our future,” Vallorie prayed softly.

We started eating. The food was quite enjoyable, despite its simple flavour. “Thank you for sharing a meal with us today,” Juliana said.

“You’re most welcome; this wouldn’t have been possible without you here.”

We continued to eat in silence, listening only to the sounds of spoons scraping against wooden plates.

Once finished, Juliana sat back in appreciation.

“That was amazing. Thank you for that, Vallorie,” Juliana said.

“Yeah, as usual, you are a great cook. It is a shame this will be the last time I can enjoy one of your meals,” Igasnov remarked while wiping his mouth clean.

“Oh, are you leaving?” Vallorie asked.

“Yeah, unfortunately, Juliana isn’t welcome after today.”

“I’m not surprised she has some nasty rumours going around about her. I’m sure they aren’t true either,” Vallorie said, sounding concerned.

“Ah well, you know how people are. I’ll be joining Juliana on her journey; I feel like she could do with some help to hopefully talk some sense into her,” Igasnov said with a grin.

“Well, you be safe. I don’t want to get word of your death.”

Igasnov laughed, a giant smile growing across his face. “I haven’t died yet, so the odds are in my favour after all.”

Vallorie sighed. “You know what I mean. Anyhow, best of luck out there.”

Juliana, Toby, and Igasnov got up to leave.

“Thank you for the meal,” Toby said shyly.

We headed out the door; being unwanted in this village was reason enough to leave.

“So, Juliana, where are we headed?” Igasnov asked.

I took control.

“To secure peace, we need information—something that won’t be public knowledge. Where is the nearest major city that might contain records regarding the origins of this war?” I asked.

Igasnov was a little taken aback by the sudden change in tone and mannerisms, but he recovered quickly.

“That would be Tyre, I reckon. It’s about a month’s ride from here, but they will certainly recognise you there and refuse you entry at the gates; you are fairly distinctive, after all.”

“I don’t think that will be a problem. I can shapeshift into a bird and fly over the walls, then remain in that form for some time within the city. I will, however, require you to escort Toby inside for me.”

Igasnov nodded. “I think I can manage that. Protecting the innocent is what I do, after all.”

I laughed. “You know you sound quite silly.”

Igasnov grinned. “Yep, but that is what makes me who I am.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted our old horse approaching. “Ah, Griffold, I’m pleased to see you return.”

Griffold trotted up alongside us and stopped, indicating that we should climb on.

“Your mount seems quite fond of you, Juliana. Have you known him long?” Igasnov asked.

“Only a few days, but he seems to have taken a liking to me.”

I released my grip on Juliana. We climbed into the saddle before pulling Toby up behind us. “I’m afraid you might be too heavy for Griffold to carry. I’m sorry,” she told the paladin.

“Oh, that’s fine. I enjoy walking, and I suspect my long legs mean I can keep a faster pace than the average man.”

We set off down the road, leaving the village behind, pressing deeper into Forlinth territory where Juliana was a wanted woman.

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