I put my gear on before following Clara outside. Seeing her fastening her gear, I do the same and follow closely behind.
"I see a town up ahead. It's different from the one we went to before." She points in a direction. "That's the one we went to before, so we should head this way."
She does a 90 degree turn and starts marching. I follow closely behind her, making sure to keep my senses sharp. We keep slowly walking through the cold as I take a closer look at Clara. She's shivering despite having a layer of warmth. Well, that's what she gets for wearing a tank top.
I take my cloak off and tie it around her neck from behind. She tries to turn around to look at me, but I follow the path of her back and end up in front of her. Man I'm so cool, I think smugly to myself. Thank god my mask is hiding my face right now.
"What gave it away?" She asks while falling into step next to me.
"You were shivering slightly when I was walking behind you."
"Oh? So does that mean you were staring at me?" She teases.
"I'll be taking my cloak back." I demand, teasing her back.
"No! I want it!" She wraps it around herself and clings to it. I heave a sigh and turn back around to continue walking.
After what seems like an hour, something moving in the distance catches my eye. Upon closer inspection, I can clearly tell that it's another person wearing a cloak, but he has a huge backpack on him. He keeps walking through the snow, slowly but steadily.
Me and Clara notice, and we decide to make our way towards him. As we get closer, I set my hand on the hilt of my sword. I can't let my guard down for even a second.
Clara steps back behind me.
"Put up a barrier around yourself," I tell her.
She draws the water from the snow and puts up a bubble, shielding herself from external danger. I approach the man, hand still on my hilt. He stops walking as he turns to face me.
"You have quite a big backpack," I say to him.
"Indeed I do. It gets quite tiring carrying it sometimes." The voice of an early adult catches me off guard.
His hood billows in the wind, lifting up slightly to reveal a pair of dark blue eyes peering back at me. He draws his katana from his back and gets in a defensive stance.
"I am only a wanderer, I assure you. Here merely to witness." He gestures to his weapon. "This blade I carry only to protect myself. I avoid violence if I can."
"You lie. You have the stance of an experienced fighter." I replied. Even though he speaks like he's defenseless, there are no openings in his position.
"Just because I avoid violence doesn't mean I'm naive."
After pondering for a moment, I unsheathe my sword. He watches my movements closely, and squats down slightly, as if he's preparing to lunge. I stab my sword into the snow near my feet. Looking up at him, he's clearly speechless.
"If you won't attack, then neither will I," I sit down on the snow and turn around to signal a gesture to Clara to come over. "That being said, I still find it hard to trust you."
"Fine by me. I mean, who would completely trust a guy they just met?" He follows my example and sits down in front of me after stabbing his katana in the snow. He also takes off his backpack and sets it down next to him. Clara soon comes and sits down beside me.
"H-hello there," she hesitantly says.
"Greetings to you too, lady." He begins ruffling through his bag before pulling out a paper. "Do you know what this is?"
"No, what is it?" I ask.
"Is it a piece of paper?" Clara asks. I hit her on the head for asking a stupid question, making her clutch it and look at me with a pout, clear as day even though she's wearing a mask.
"A map. It's a map."
My eyes light up as I hear the words come out of his mouth.
"But how did you get your hands on it so fast? It's been less than 3 days since we got here." Clara has finally asked a good question.
"Trader's secret. Can't tell you." He opens the paper up to show us the contents.
Indeed, it was a map made with extreme detail. It had every town marked on the paper with a total of ten, as well as other landmarks such as the tower where I got my sword and the mountain range. Before I could memorize the contents as quickly as I can, he rolls it back up.
"If you're willing, I'll trade you the map for some food supplies."
"How much?" I ask.
"Seven canned foods, and the map is yours."
I hesitate and look at Clara, waiting for her response, but she just stares at me blankly. It's like she's as clueless as a rock.
"Deal, but it's quite a hefty price in this situation." I take out the food and set it down in front of me. He puts the map out in front of him. We both reach out and take the other's items, although he takes a few tries to get all the food in his bag.
"A pleasure doing business with you guys." He gets up and prepares to leave, packing his bag and katana.
"Wait, why haven't you expanded the map more?" I ask him. Although it isn't a good question, I have a feeling I'll get valuable info.
"There's a barrier preventing me from expanding more. No one can pass it, and it's invisible to the naked eye."
"I see thank you for the map and info." I open up the map to view it closer. He steps in and points to a spot.
"We are here, and the closest town is here," he says while pointing to another spot.
I nod in affirmation. He holds his hand out, like he's waiting for a handshake. I grabbed it.
"Safe travels friend, may your journey be safe." He says with a warm smile.
"Likewise. I hope to see you in the future."
"Thank you mister!" Clara gleefully adds.
After waving goodbye, we head our separate ways. What an odd man, I think to myself. Then again, why am I talking?
"So, where are we going," Clara asks.
"Where do you think we are going? Obviously, the nearest town." I bonk her in the head once again.
"Hey! Why do you keep hitting my head!"
After about thirty minutes of walking, the buildings become viewable through the snowy wind.
"What the hell is this?" I ask myself.
"Hey Xyle, I'm not sure this is a good idea." She hesitantly adds. "I think we should go around it."
"No, we must go through it. We might find some good things there." We begin walking again. "This isn't a town, it's a whole abandoned city."