Chương 25: Outer Walls
That unexpected sentence left Yoichi puzzled. Enatsu looked away, starting to walk again. Between the two adventurers, an unusually tense atmosphere was suddenly felt.
"All right, Enatsu. Whatever. I didn't think words of encouragement would make you so angry. Next time I'll bite my tongue, don't worry," Yoichi commented, disturbed by his merchant friend's irreverence.
Enatsu was struck by those words and continued to look at him from behind, slowing down the pace.
The dirt road beneath their feet stretched for several miles, entering an area marked by less dense vegetation than the Bronzeforest.
"Okay, I apologize!" Enatsu snorted alongside him. "I answered like an asshole. You were just trying to be nice."
"It's not a problem. I'm acting like I've known you for years, but I haven't. Maybe I'm just in a hurry to find out new things about this world... apology accepted," Yoichi affirmed coolly, without even looking at his companion.
The journey continued for about an hour without a hitch: dozens of travelers of all kinds crossed the road of Enatsu and Yoichi, coming from all directions. Some of them were on their way to Ambershire. Others were driving their carriages north, who knows for what destination.
Yoichi did not stop for a second to be fascinated by the incredible natural landscape surrounding him, marvelling at every glance. Curved trees and exotic flowers never seen before repeatedly caught his attention, infusing peace in his soul.
The persistent chirping of birds living in those woods was particularly pleasant, while the orange afternoon sunlight illuminated the street.
Here and there, modest farms similar to his own were scattered through the trees, joining the main road, to the east.
"Maybe I overreacted just because I'm scared of becoming a tamer," Enatsu confessed, out of the blue.
"Um? Are you talking about our conversation from a while ago?" Yoichi asked, who had almost forgotten that issue. "Don't worry. You were just nervous. I didn't mean to..."
"No, I mean it. We've known each other recently, that's true. However, you are the first person who truly believed in my potential, Yoichi", Enatsu admitted, looking at the ground before him. "From the first moment you saw me wandering in the rain, you were kind and friendly towards me. You hosted me under your roof without knowing me, and I thanked you with unpleasant words. I'm very sorry, for real."
"Enatsu, take it easy. You didn't say anything crazy, it can happen to be a little nervous. When it happens to me, I'm willing to bet you'll be patient. I know it may sound strange to you, but everything around us seems new to me. I feel like I've never been here, I've never seen these trees and these breathtaking landscapes up close," Yoichi explained, looking his friend in the eye and smiling.
"When we drank that good sakè, at the Sleepy Owl tavern... I... I saw something," he continued.
"What are you talking about? Oh, right. Now I remember. It looked like for a moment you were unconscious."
"Well, it was like losing my senses. As soon as I tasted that sakè and squeezed the glass in my hands, an avalanche of memories submerged my mind, preventing me from moving or talking. Many images appeared in front of me, glazing over my eyesight, and in each of them, there was me drinking sakè."
"Mmh... I don't think I got it, " Enatsu answered confusedly, scratching his head.
"Those pictures I saw were memories. Distant memories of a distant world, so much different from this. In that world, my hands were different, bigger, and wrinkled. Those very hands carried hundreds of glasses of that damn sakè to my mouth," Yoichi repeated, trying to explain himself to the best of his ability.
"A world other than this? You mean... that you're not from Lumya?"
"That's right."
"Wow. This is weird, brother! Are you sure they were memories and not just hallucinations due to alcohol?" the merchant chuckled.
As much as I try to explain what I saw, I doubt Enatsu will understand me. If I told him that I think I was reborn in this world, he'd think I'm crazy, and maybe he wouldn't talk to me anymore. Yoichi pondered before answering.
"It may be. Yes, maybe that sakè had a strange effect on me. I don't think I'm going to drink any of it for a while," Yoichi stated, pretending to agree.
"There are so many other tasty drinks I need to let you taste! Sakè is just the icing on the cake! Eheh!" Enatsu commented. "Oh, look over there."
Yoichi's eyes traced his companion's hand, pointed forward along the way. Besides the tall green trees, similar to conifers, huge white stone walls popped out.
"Is that Goldhaven? It looks like Ambershire, just bigger!" Yoichi joked. The sun was about to set over the woods, and the young tamer realized that speaking to Enatsu, time had passed faster than expected.
"Hahaha! I've never heard anyone say that! Well, maybe looking at it from the outside... yes, it may vaguely remember the circular walls of Ambershire. But I assure you that once you walk through them, you will be stunned", Enatsu affirmed, excited to have reached his destination.
The journey of the young black-bearded merchant, unlike Yoichi's, had begun four days earlier. Alone, Enatsu had crossed half of Tentochu, passing the Southborne Mountains, the great mountain range that split the region into two parts and entering the Bronzeforest.
The two adventurers accelerated the pace without wasting any more time, covering the distance separating them from Goldhaven in just under half an hour.
The white stone walls, dominated by tall cylindrical towers equidistant from each other, were even larger seen up close.
At the tip of each watchtower, a small lit bonfire helped the lookouts distinguish shapes in the darkness of the evening.
The pristine vegetation gradually faded, making way for an artificial road, tiled with lots of small rectangular stones. The natural elevations of the woods were also wiped out, smoothed by the great green plain on which stood the magnificent capital of the Tentochu region.
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