It was the brief, unguarded look of someone who had just heard something that didn't fit neatly into place.
"No class," he repeated slowly, as if testing the words for weight. "At all."
Albin shook his head. "None."
Rondris said nothing. The sounds of the town continued behind him – voices, footsteps, the creak of wood and iron – but the space between them felt oddly isolated. The guard scratched his beard, eyes narrowing not at Albin, but somewhere past him, as if searching through rules he had learned long ago and never expected to question.
"Hm," Rondris finally said. "That's… inconvenient."
Shadow's tail twitched once. He stayed quiet.
Rondris straightened, professional again. "Doesn't matter. You're here now. Just don't make it my problem. You should find a bed in the Badger. Tavern near the well."
He took a firm grip, pulling his halberd closer and straight. "Maybe, you want to keep your situation to yourself… Also, when you find the Badger, tell Maya I sent you. Have a good day, Albin."
And with that, Rondris freed the way for Albin to enter the town.
Albin and Shadow kept quiet for a long time as they walked through the streets. The scent of freshly baked bread still present, Albin soon realized, it was only part of the whole picture.
As they walked the road of dirt into the inner city, he could smell fish being freed of their guts and also dung that covered the streets here and there. It was not a busy town, but there were people wandering the streets as he made his way past buildings, leading into the inner part of the town. Someone beside him pushed a cart full of what looked like green carrots past Shadow. The child he saw from a distance was a boy. And the parent he freed himself from was his mother. That became clear as he watched her crudely educate the boy, never to do something like that again.
Observing the buildings – mostly consisting of dark brown wood – Albin could see some shops. Blacksmiths. Bakeries. Stalls with vegetables and meat. The sight made his stomach grumble once more.
Of the few people in the open, some mustered him, but the people of Mistelbrunn mostly kept to themselves. He was just a stranger in this city. Albin felt relief. "So, that didn't go too badly, did it?"
Shadow walked by his side, not looking at him. Now in the city, he was just a normal cat.
"Could have gone worse. Maybe it will go worse, who knows."
Albin took the next step, passing an older man who had a bow around his chest, a quiver of arrows at his waist, and some hide above his shoulder.
The two eventually reached a place with a big well in the middle. Around the well, the dirt road became wide, trampled flat, and it almost looked smooth. It created space for marked stalls or just for people to gather. He saw a woman pulling a bucket of water out of the well and spitting onto the ground next to it.
More houses, here in part, with small gardens, where plants grew, attached to them. Some looked like cabbage, others like potato plants. A notice board on the side. A bigger house next to the blacksmith.
Albin looked at the sign next to it:
The Cheeky Badger
Stew, beds, and ale
That must have been the place. Albin looked at the sky and saw the sun ready to settle by now. He hesitantly knocked on the door. Nothing happened. Judging from the sound coming outside, it was a place to just enter. He put a handle on the big, wooden door and opened it.
Warmth hit his face. A large common room, filled with people who chatted happily. Some singing. Others drank out of a mug in silence, enjoying the view of people just being happy.
Albin took a moment and entered the Cheeky Badger.
He closed the door behind him, and people turned around to look at him. A man and his friends who sat close to the entrance nodded at him as he entered. He nodded back.
He looked at the counter where a tall, blonde woman stood, busy filling mugs, handing them out, and taking some coin in return. Albin moved closer and sat down on one of the barstools that stood at the counter.
He waited patiently for the woman to notice him, but every time she had finished serving one customer, another came, shoving his way to the counter and getting another mug.
"Maybe you should start saying something?"
Albin cleared his throat. "Hello… Uhm, I'm looking for Maya."
The woman nodded in his direction, but her attention was soon drawn to a woman who shouted, "Ye got some more ale?"
He took a deep breath in, waited for the woman to return, and said. "I… I'm looking for Maya. Have you seen her?" This time, he was louder. His voice unsteady.
The woman pulled her hair and formed it into a ponytail after wiping off a bit of sweat from her forehead.
"Yes, you have found her. What can I do for you?"
Calm, blue eyes that narrowed and formed wrinkles as her lips thinned, forming a soft smile. "You must be new here?"
"Yes… I am. So, Rondris sent me here. I need somewhere to sleep."
A soft laugh escaped her mouth. "Well, Rondris sent you? Can't say I'm surprised by the looks of you," she turned her head toward a door behind the counter and shouted, "Geric! Can you take over here for a minute!?"
He could hear iron tools being laid aside, and a middle-aged man appeared out of the door.
"Geric, can you please serve the guests? Rondris sent another one over."
The man nodded silently and proceeded to clean mugs and refill them.
Maya came out of the counter and led Albin to a tiny, free table. It had a wooden bench next to it. A stool on the other side. Suitable for two people to sit at, but not more.
"I think you'd like some stew?"
Albin's eyes looked to the table, trying to avoid Maya's gaze when he said quietly. "Yes, I haven't eaten the whole day…"
"Well, your wish shall be fulfilled! You just hang tight, and I'll be back soon."
The woman stood up, pushing the stool aside, and with some unknown elegance, made her way through the other visitors of the tavern.
"Why are you sitting on the ground?"
"I'm a cat here, not a familiar, remember? You wanna explain a familiar to those people?"
"Dumb question, got it."
While waiting, Albin took another look at the common room. People were talking about their harvest, their sick animals, and how their children are doing. Their everyday topics.
After a while, Maya came back out of the kitchen, holding a large wooden bowl with both hands, a spoon out of wood sticking out of the side, slowly walking toward Albin.
She placed the bowl on the table carefully. Then pushed it closer to Albin and laid the spoon next to it. "Here, eat."
Albin took a breath and sank the spoon into the stew. It was hearty, smelled of herbs and salted meat, was warm, and most importantly, filled his stomach.
She continued the conversation, sitting on the stool again. "Glad you like it," she smiled again, "so I am Maya, as Rondris maybe mentioned. Only question remaining is who are you?"
"Albin. I came a long way, from down the river."
"Nice to meet you, Albin. Are you into water, tea, or ale?"
"Water, please." Albin was already halfway done. It was good.
Maya fetched a mug of water and placed it next to the stew.
"Take your time. We will have a bed for you as well. But I do have to ask – you are paying up, aren't you?"
Albin stopped eating, the spoon hovering in between bowl and his mouth when he swallowed the bit of stew already inside his mouth.
"Just be normal," as Shadow looked up at him from the ground.
He put the spoon back into the stew and said. "I have to admit… I'm out of change at the moment."
"Eat. We will find a way. Two coins of copper for the stew, and the water is free. You can pay up tomorrow. But I have to tell you…"
Albin expected to be thrown out, creating a picture of himself sleeping under a cart while Shadow warmed his feet.
"… The bed will be another coin of copper. And if you do not pay up tomorrow, Geric will throw you out."
The poor man glanced over at Geric. Middle-aged, maybe, but the arms of a man who has visited the gym regularly. Not a match he wanted to face.
"I… I'll do my best. I must sound like an idiot, but how do I earn money?"
Maya laughed. "You sound like you are from another world! Most of the shops need help throughout the day. Carrying things from one place to another. Or if you're up for a challenge, just take a look at the board at the well."
Albin nodded, slowly raising the spoon to his mouth and taking another bite. "Thank you, I'll do it."
"You better do! You know, Rondris is the oldest guard in this town. He knows who's in need of help and who isn't. Lucky for him, the best beds in town are administered by his little sister! I wouldn't let you pay your tab tomorrow otherwise."
Albin's lips formed a smug smile.
"I know what you may think, but underneath his bush of a beard is a kind man who knows his craft."
"I'm sure he does."
"Now, keep on finishing your meal. If you need anything, I'll be at the counter. You'll find a prepared bed upstairs. Just take one."
With that, Maya left their table, dancing her way back to the counter.
The two were alone. In the middle of a tavern full of people who enjoyed their time. The only thing Albin enjoyed was the last spoonful of stew.
He kept on watching different kinds of people talking while drinking the mug of water he was given. Probably from the river he took a bath in, the mug's content tasted cold and clear. All the while, Shadow was on the ground, sitting in silence.
After some time, the tavern began to empty. The fewer people there were in the tavern, the more glances Albin got. He tried to avoid eye contact by looking somewhere else.
With only a few guests remaining, he made his way to a staircase, leading to a floor filled with beds made of wood, straw, and a few sheets.
He undressed and slipped underneath the sheets of a bed in the corner of the room, from where he could watch the door. Shadow lay next to him. The room was empty, and finally, Albin closed his eyes, enjoying the emptiness. Normally, when falling asleep, he would have either cuddled against Celine's arm on the good days or plugged his earphones in and listened to a podcast on the bad days. Here, the only thing to listen to was a mumbling sound from the floor underneath him and Shadow's soft purring.
With his eyes closed, it took him a while to drift away.
XXX
Sometime this night, he woke up. He felt rested, and in contrast to his usual waking up in the night, he wasn't sweating. He could still hear the mumbling from downstairs. It was two voices. One deep and another higher-pitched.
"…swear he …"
"He told…class…"
"…mean…should care…"
"I…protect…don't know…"
"…is…strange…how?"
"May…let…dangerous."
Albin shuddered.
"Don't think about it. Can't change it either way."
Albin looked to the side of his bed, watching Shadow sitting there, eyes directed at the door.
"Are we in danger?"
Shadow's head slowly turned, his eyes catching Albin's. Even in the dark, he could see their green color. He tilted his head, narrowed his eyes, resting on the door for a moment, then "Sleep."
Albin had a hard time finding his way back into the world of memories and dreams again. He woke up to footsteps next to his bed. When he opened his eyes, he saw his clothes, folded neatly next to his bed. Cleanly.
XXX
When Albin made his way down into the common room, it was empty except for Maya cleaning up tables from the night before.
"Albin, good morning! I see you have found my little present!"
"I have. This would not have been necessary, thank you very much."
"Every one of my guests deserves kindness. And from what I saw yesterday, this was the favor that came to mind."
A favor. Something he hadn't gotten in a long time aside from his wife's.
"Now that I smell myself, maybe it was necessary… Thank you! I'll pay it back soon!"
"Oh, you should worry about paying me for a meal and a bed first," she finished cleaning the last table, putting the rag aside, "you're safe here, but if I were you, I'd keep my secrets to myself."
Albin nodded silently.
"So, I'd take a look at the board. Can't miss it, it's only a few steps."
Albin nodded and made his way over to the door, opened it, and then turned around. "This favor… Thanks!"
Maya smiled as Albin closed the door behind him.
Outside, there were more people around this time, chatting at the well.
It only took him a minute to find the notice board, which he had seen the day before. A big, wooden board that had lots of letters and notes pinned to it with a nail.
He stepped and checked some of them:
Looking for used Toys
…
Need carpenter
…
He flew through the letters until he saw one that seemed to hang there for a shorter amount than the rest:
Clearing blocked irrigation channel
Blocked irrigation channel near river bend. Water not reaching lower fields. Need someone to clear it. Five copper.
-Erdrin
Albin took the note and put it into his newly washed pants while mumbling. "That looks good… at least something …"
He turned back, opening the Badger's door again "Maya, one question… Where can I find Erdrin?"
She had a broom in her hand, peeking over to the door. "He's usually around the fields, taking care of the ones in the north. Taking his request?"
"Mhm, I'll be back soon!"
With that, Albin closed the door. Work.
When he had woken up yesterday, he was east of the town. He strode through Mustelbrunn's streets, looking onto the ground to not place his foot in a pile of dung until he reached another gate.
Another guard was on duty at this gate. He threw a quick "Good Morning!" in Albin's direction, who replied the same and kept on walking.
From this gate, there was a road leading into a forest that he saw yesterday. After following the road over a hill, he could already see a group of fields. The river was running next to the fields with smaller irrigation channels dug, leading from a bend in the river to the fields.
Leaving the street across a few more hills, he had reached the fields. From leaving the gate until arriving, it took him maybe ten minutes.
When he arrived, there were farmers tilling the fields, one of them ordering the others around. Not harshly, but with a tone of quiet authority.
Albin walked over the field, making this man his first target.
"Hello, I am Albin. I am looking for Erdrin – I read his…"
"Morning!" A hand sat in front of Albin, who took it and shook. It was the hand of a farmer. Big paw, rough fingers. Confident.
The man was bald, probably the same age as Albin, wide shoulders and an eager look in his eyes.
"Morning to you, too! So, I have a letter and thought, I'd come over to help."
"Good, good! Erdrin is my old man. I'm Harlik. You can speak to me. My words on the letter. See this?" He pointed at a wide irrigation channel, leading from the river to the fields furthest away from it. "Mud and gravel blocking it near the river."
"And you want me to go clean up? For five copper, right?"
Harlik reached down to pull out a shovel that stood in the field.
"Ye, right. Here, you can take this shovel. Should be done by midday. You'll get coin from me when I see water down there."
Harlik pushed a shovel into Albin's hand, who hadn't held one in a long time. From consulting to cleaning up dirt. His lips formed a smile as he looked down at the shadow, holding his new tool of labor in his hands.
"Ready to get to work?