NOVEL SIMPLE B2—Chapter 23: What Did I Get Myself Into?
When I woke up in the morning, as always, I checked the archive to see if Lyura had answered. There was still no answer, but there was something else. I looked at the Map and saw a new Gate in Austria.
I went to the suite’s living room and said, “Guys, you need to see this. Open the Archive and look at the second message from the top.”
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Tr. AHM To all my esteemed fellow Travelers, I am in need of your assistance regarding an urgent matter. I guarantee a substantial recompense to anyone present in the world named Gaia who is willing to come to my aid. My current whereabouts are in the village of Johnsbach, situated within the kingdom of Austria. |
“There is also a new Gate in Austria that wasn’t there before,” I said.
Lis hummed, his brow furrowing slightly as he nodded. “Yeah, we should help. They might be in trouble if they were desperate enough to call for help.”
“You don’t think it’s something dangerous?”
Lis tilted his head, considering the question for a moment before replying. “You tell me, you know this world better.”
“I don’t think it’s physical danger,” I said, mulling over the possibilities.
“Write them a message to stay put. Let’s add the Gate here to our count and go see what the pressing matter is,” Mahya suggested.
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Tr. AHM To all my esteemed fellow Travelers, I am in need of your assistance regarding an urgent matter. I guarantee a substantial recompense to anyone present in the world named Gaia who is willing to come to my aid. My current whereabouts are in the village of Johnsbach, situated within the kingdom of Austria. |
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Tr. JR Stay in Johnsbach. We will arrive to assist you in a day or two. |
We rented a car and drove to the Gate.
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Travelers Gate #482136295 |
“This can be another option for our next world,” I told Mahya.
“Another? I don’t remember a medium mana before,” she said, tilting her head.
“I know of three Gates that lead to mana level 32. I don’t remember the name; let me check.”
I took out the old notebook I used before leaving for Shimoor. After flipping through quite a few pages, I found it.
“Here it is, Lumis. Have you ever heard of it?” I asked, looking up from the page.
Mahya shook her head. “No.”
“It’s mana 32, and the threat level to humans is moderate.” I read out the details.
“That’s the usual threat level for this mana level,” Lis said.
“Why?” I asked, frowning. “Isn’t it supposed to be low?”
“Monsters in the wild or mana beasts,” Mahya explained with a casual shrug.
“Oh,” I murmured, processing the information.
“Don’t worry; it’s less threatening than it sounds. You can stomp them like bugs with your level, even without your new class,” she reassured me, smiling. “In this case, the threat level applies more to a baby Traveler. You aren’t a baby anymore.”
“I’m not that experienced either. Shimoor only had those annoying, bitey level one monsters called Jurbers, and once I got burned by a level two fire-spitting toad with a sticky tongue,” I admitted, wincing at the memory.
“Yes, but in Tuonela, you didn’t even twitch from level three and four cats,” Mahya pointed out.
“True. I’ll trust you on this one,” I said, nodding as I closed the notebook, feeling a bit more confident.
My red light was blinking.
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Class: Gate Traveler Level 4 |
I added the free points to Strength, which was the lowest, together with Agility.
We flew from Marseille to Graz, Austria, slept one night in Graz, and then rented a car in the morning. The drive through the winding roads was beautiful, and I admired the scenery as we approached Johnsbach. As we neared the village, I glanced at Lis, who was also looking at the scenery.
“Any idea how to find them?” I asked, keeping my eyes on the road.
“We’ll go to the center; if we don’t feel them, we’ll write a message through the Archive to meet us there.”
I was glad we were driving here in the summer. The place looked like it would be under meters of snow in the winter. It was a very picturesque area, with high mountains and next to a beautiful national park. At least we arrived at a fun place to visit and see the beauty of nature.
When we reached the center of the village, we felt the Traveler. We parked the car and followed the feeling. As we got closer and saw his pointy ears, Mahya and I stopped.
“It’s one of the monsters from Tír na nÓg,” she said, sounding angry.
“No, he’s not.” Lis said, “Use your senses; he is stronger than Lyura but weaker than John. The denizens of Tír na nÓg were stronger than me on many levels.”
He was tall and lean, with long blond hair and very light blue eyes, glowing like all the Travelers.
We approached him, and he stood up and said something in German. I shook my head and said, “English.”
He sighed deeply and looked put upon, but I felt him spend the mana. We started saying random words in English. “House,” “chair,” “bird,” “sky,” “watermelon” ... after five minutes, we switched to complete sentences, “I’m reading a book,” “the boy wants to play outside,” “I saw a good show on TV” ...
Come on, buddy, what’s taking so long?
“Let’s go for a walk,” “The coffee spilled on the floor” ...
Finally, after twenty minutes, he said, “That will suffice. You have the honor of meeting Alfonsen Holerand Mirbit VII, heir to the throne of Mirbit, from the world of Leylos.”
Lis sent me telepathically in a cynical tone, “Oh, great, one of those.” And Mahya snickered. Rue walked up to him and sniffed his crotch.
I’ve never seen him do that!
Alfonsen screeched, “What are you doing?! You vile creature! Remove yourself from my presence at once!”
Rue scoffed at him, actually scoffed out loud.
Oh, boy!
I understood what Lis meant. Lis cast a Privacy Sphere. We introduced ourselves, and I asked, “What’s the urgent matter you need assistance with?”
“You are required to act as my guides in this perplexing environment and guarantee that I accumulate a significant number of ability points and fill my missing classes. When you arrive in the world of Leylos, my family will lavish you with tremendous rewards.”
“You sent an SOS because you wanted a tour guide?” I asked.
“I know not of the SOS you are speaking of. However, as I am the future monarch of Mirbit, you are obliged to help me achieve my goals.”
I just stared at him, and Lis and Mahya were making choked sounds. I turned to look at them with a giant question mark on my face, and they lost it. Both of them roared with laughter. After a second, I started laughing too.
Alfonsen looked offended and said, “This is an unsightly conduct.”
We laughed even harder.
After I managed to stop laughing, I said, “You’re right, sorry.”
I telepathically asked the three of them, “What should we do with him? I’m not sure leaving him here is a good idea.”
Mahya sent, sounding very pleased. “Let’s take him with us; he will be a great source of entertainment.”
Lis sent, sounding annoyed, “I hate nobles. Travelers or regulars, it doesn’t matter, they are all shitheads.”
Rue sent, “No! Friend!”
“Yeah, buddy, you’re right. He’s not very friendly, but maybe he will learn.”
I asked them again, “Take with us or leave?”
Mahya nodded enthusiastically with a huge smile, looking like a bobblehead. Lis thought momentarily and nodded, but still didn’t look happy. Rue nodded last.
I turned to him and said, “Well, Alfonsen, you can come with us and maybe collect some points and classes on the way, but we won’t be serving as your designated tour guides and specifically helping you collect what you want.”
He looked outraged and said, “I will thank you to address me by my full name, and I shall not follow you as a mere vagrant. It is incumbent upon you to serve as my guides.”
That pissed me off. “Listen, buddy, if you think that every time I address you, I will say that long and ridiculous name, you’re way off. Besides, we don’t owe you anything. You might be some heir to some country or other, but remember, the universe is huge, and your country is just a speck of dust in the big picture. So either get off your high horse and join us on our terms or stay here and find your own way. You got me?”
He just stared at me like I was speaking Chinese. Lis and Mahya lost it again.
I shook my head; they were of no help.
Finally, when he stopped laughing, Lis said, “Let’s add this Gate to our count and go to Germany.”
We checked the location, which was very close, so we walked there. We pretty much ignored Alfonsen; It was up to him now—I said my piece.
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Travelers Gate #568333259 |
We returned to the car, and Alfonsen followed us like a lost puppy. I felt sorry for him. I guessed he grew up with everybody catering to him, and suddenly, he faced a different reality. We got in the car, and he followed suit. At least he knew what was good for him.
“I traveled Muslar a long time ago, but I don’t remember there being a Gate to a technological world,” Lis said, rubbing his chin. “But maybe it was so long ago, on top of the time skips, that the technology level progressed.”
“The Gate I entered was previously designated for Leylos; however, it abruptly altered its destination,” Alfonsen said.
Lis turned back to Alfonsen abruptly. “The Gate changed?” he asked, sounding worried.
“Yes.”
Lis cursed under his breath, running a hand through his hair. “Shit. I don’t think we’ll have time for Africa and China both. If Gates are switching, the speed of the mana rise will double and triple very soon.”
Mahya and I exchanged glances through the rearview mirror before speaking in unison, “China.” “China.”
“Why?” Lis asked.
I grinned, shrugging. “Cheap stuff to sell.”
Lis gave a quick nod. “Okay, let’s finish with Germany and fly to China.”
When we parked at the airport, I switched my vision to look at Alfonsen. He looked the same, except for the pointy ears and glowing eyes. That was good enough.
“Did you conjure identifications?” I asked him.
He nodded and showed me an Austrian passport.
“Earth is unfamiliar with magic, so please don’t take things out of your Storage where somebody can see,” I warned him.
He nodded again.
“Do you have local money?”
“No.”
“How did you pay for your stay in Johnsbach?”
In a proud tone, he said, “I bestowed a gold coin upon them.”
I took out a reloadable credit card with a thousand euros loaded onto it and handed it to him. “Give me ten gold coins and take this,” I said. “It has a thousand units of the local currency.”
He frowned, holding the card with two fingers as if it were dirty. “It is unbecoming for a prince to assume responsibility for expenses when escorted by his subjects.”
I let out an exasperated sigh, rolling my eyes. “Your princely ass can get out of the car, as far as I’m concerned, and go find some other subject to ‘assume responsibility for expenses,’” I shot back, my patience wearing thin. “I don’t owe you anything.”
What did I get myself into?
Lis and Mahya lost it again, and I wanted to strangle them, especially Lis. Mahya was a troublemaker, but I expected him to help me at least. I shook my head in resignation. I had no words.
Alfonsen looked offended and huffed, but he gave me the gold.
We flew to Germany and visited both Gates by train. Alfonsen trailed behind us, looking even more like a lost puppy, but he stopped assuming we owed him anything, at least.
I discovered online that US and UK citizens need a visa to go to China. I initially considered applying for a visa, but Lis suggested we conjure new European identifications.
We had three days in Frankfurt before our flight to Beijing, so I took the carrot approach for a change and registered the four of us for three workshops.
- High Heels Dancing in LaCalidad Dance Center
- Pole Dancing
- Handlettering & Brushlettering Workshop
We needed high heels for the first one. After a quick search online, I found a shop named The Drag Queen Closet, and we went there to buy high heels for the three of us.
When we walked into the shop, a salesperson greeted us. He/she—I wasn’t sure which pronoun they preferred—was in full drag but had a mustache.
Alfonsen started hyperventilating slightly, his breaths coming faster as his eyes darted nervously. Finally, he squeaked, his voice barely above a whisper, “I am uncertain about this endeavor.”
I placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “You want an ability point?” I asked.
He hesitated, then nodded, his voice still shaky. “Yes.”
“Then be certain,” I said with a reassuring smile. “Trust me, workshops are a lot of fun.”
The three of us had a blast in the workshop, especially Mahya, when she saw Lis and me trying to learn to walk in high heels before we even started the dance part. Alfonsen just looked mortified.
Ha!
He didn’t know yet what the next workshop was. I felt evil, but those were the only workshops the three of us could farm. We did so many that we were severely limited.
In the Pole Dancing workshop, when the instructor explained about being sexy and seductive, he turned and walked out—his loss. He came back ten minutes later, looking resolute, and joined the class, but he was stiff and looked mortified during the entire three hours.
The three of us had a blast in the workshop, trying to be as sexy as possible with plenty of ass wiggles, seductive hand movements over our bodies, and playful tongue flicks.
After the workshop, the instructor leaned in with a conspiratorial smile and said, “I wish all my students were as accommodating and easygoing as the three of you. But,” she added quietly, lowering her voice, “I suggest you lose the uptight prick.”
We laughed and thanked her again for an entertaining workshop.
The lettering workshop was sedate, and Alfonsen managed without losing his cool.
Progress!