The trio began looting the corpses, no way they were going to let this wealth go to waste.

*Slap, Slap, Slap*

They turned as they heard a slapping sound, feet could be heard slapping the wet earth of the hill, quickly approaching them.

"Oh no!"

They all paled as they realized what the sound must be. That damned ghost was coming back!

"Hey! I forgot!" The ghost yelled as it approached them, high pitched voice searing itself into their ear drums.

"What's the name of the town? Haha." The ghost stood smiling sheepishly, scratching its nest of hair as the trio cowered on the ground.

"Sh-sh-Sherisford, sir!" The girl squeaked out.

"Sherisford, eh? Okay, okay... hmm..." The ghost pondered as it looked down at its bloody, torn clothing. "None of this will fit me..." Dead bodies were flipped and tossed around as the ghost mumbled to itself, obviously looking for something.

"Oh, I know!" The ghost said merrily, standing up, "Okay, you guys stay safe out here! That forest is a real bitch." The ghost smiled and saluted, grabbing two of the dead corpses and lifting them by their shirts like they were sacks of vegetables, before speeding off down the hill once more.

As Torrin ran, he thanked Stix mentally for reminding him of his appearance.

'What a good friend! I knew he wouldn't let me go into public looking like this on purpose, haha'

Torrin felt relieved that he had forgiven Stix, it was depressing thinking your only friend had betrayed your trust.

"Just gotta take these bodies with us, then we can say that we were travelling when we were attacked, the bodies are going to be proof! Hehehehe!" He giggled at his plan ominously.

Anyone would believe his story even without the bodies, but Torrin didn't want to take chances.

After a long week of travel, Torrin was cursing that trio with every other step he took.

"If I hadn't of found a small stream, I would definitely be dead by now! Those fucking assholes! There wasn't a town just two days away! I can't believe they lied to me! Probably just wanted time to run away cause they thought I was a damn ghost!" Curses could be heard ringing out for a mile around, flying left and right as Torrin ran across the hilly plain.

Torrin may have gotten lost... He didn't know if he was even following the direction they had pointed to anymore. He was so distracted when he'd left the trio that he'd just started running. But cursing those idiots made him feel better.

"And these stupid ass bandits stink!" He spat out.

An hour later, he finally saw a blob on the horizon. As he approached, he realized it looked far bigger than Velin Village, promptly becoming excited.

"YES!" He shouted, throwing one of the bandits in the air before speeding off, now only carrying one corpse.

A line could be seen extending from the wall of the village when Torrin arrived. Almost immediately shouts of alarm began sounding out from the poor people trying to enter the town. Around twenty people were yelling and running, stampeding toward the gates to get away from the fiend that was known as Torrin.

"Hey! Stop that!" Torrin shouted at the people, waving the hand that held Stix, looking like a grandpa shooing kids off his property. The thought made Torrin laugh maniacally.

Guards were on the scene in an instant, weapons pointed at Torrin. Sharp points of steel spears were directed at Torrin's chest, a man stood in full plate armor with a sword and shield directed his way as well.

Two mages in robes flanked them, one had a staff in hand and the other stood with hands raised.

"Uhh... What the fuck, guys?" Torrin asked, head tilted to the side.

"STOP! Lower your weapon now! Or you will face the consequences with a swift death!"

"What? I don't have a weapon!"

"The artifact in your hand! Drop it now!"

"Artifact? What artifact? This guy? It's a dead ass bandit, man!" Torrin shouted, tossing the bandit towards the guards.

A crack sounded out; A flash of lightning roared towards the corpse, incinerating it on contact.

"Damn it! That was my proof!" Torrin was dismayed at the scene.

"If you attack again, we will be forced to kill you! DROP THE WEAPON!"

Torrin stared blankly at them. 'What fucking weapon? Attack?! That was a dead body and you already destroyed it!'

His gaze finally lowered to his hands, eyes narrowing, looking for a weapon. The only thing he held was a stick.

"This?!" He asked, waving the stick around in the air, causing the guards to visibly stiffen, "This is just Stix! He's my friend, haha! He's not a weapon!"

The guards stood still as boards.

"That's... Your friend?"

"Yup, his name's Stix."

"But... That's an artifact weapon."

"Eh?" Torrin looked at Stix incredulously, it was a basic piece of cylindrical wood, adorned with three runes engraved on it in a triangular pattern, strung together with fancy line work.

"Sir, please put away your, ahem, friend... And allow us to speak peacefully. No need to be aggressive." The burly guard with the spear said awkwardly.

Torrin was shocked by the statement. 'Me be aggressive?! You're all pointed weapons at me! That guy even sent a fucking lightning bolt towards me!'

"Sure, sure..." Torrin said mildly, just wanting to get into the god forsaken town. He strapped Stix to his backpack and held his hands out as if to say 'see? nothing in my hands now. the almighty stick has been detained'.

"Thank you, sir. Please, allow us to apologize for the start of this interaction, there clearly is some sort of misunderstanding. We saw the people running to the town in fear, so we obviously thought there was some sort of threat." The guard tried to excuse his actions thus far.

Torrin rubbed his chin agreeing, "Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. I could see why people might fear me, I look like shit..." Torrin replied, shrugging.

"Ahem, well," Clearing his throat the guard continued, "Would you mind explaining, uh... Said appearance?" The guard asked awkwardly, hand waving towards Torrin.

Torrin's face twisted in mock sadness, "My pa and I just wanted to trade at the town," he began, pointing towards the walled town, "When we were attacked by a group of bandits... He didn't make it. My pa was a strong man, and he took out all six of those bastards! But sadly, his own wounds were too much for him to handle. He didn't have none of them magics, so he just passed on quietly..." Torrin took up the mantle of a poor peasant, just lost his father, pity him. He didn't want the guards to think he might have something nice in his bags after all, just some basic goods for trade, uhuh.

"So I brought that dead body you all done burnt up, as proof that we killed them bandits. As an explanation for why I look like this. I've been traveling far and just want into this magnificent town, please sirs, let me in!" He pleaded, finishing with a flourishing bow, backpack nearly knocking him forward on his face.

The guards all looked between each other. With a look of obvious pity on his square face, the spear-wielding-guard said, "Of course, kid, if you don't have any coin, I can get you a place at an inn for one night, and you can look at maybe trading those skins on you for payment." He said, pointed towards the pile of rolled up skins on Torrin's back.

A successful entry to the town of Bolin was made, Torrin was brought through thick, high stone walls, soaring over 40 feet into the sky. The streets were neat and paved with cobblestones, there were sidewalks where people scurried to and fro, avoiding the streets that garnered laboring Mana Beasts and horses pulling carts and wagons.

'Woah, I never knew people would actually tame Mana Beasts and use them like that. No one ever came to Velin with that kind of mount.' Torrin thought, seeing the beasts moving through the town.

Most of the buildings were made of wood, but some more important buildings stood out, standing tall and wide with grey stone masonry. One such building was "The Merchant's Guild" and it stood 30 foot tall, with square architecture, the roof trimmed in gold and runes could be seen gleaming even in the daylight. The entrance was a large square opening with gilded double doors of a brass-looking material. Gold knobs adorned the door. Stone pillars rose to support the over hang above the doors.

People hurried out of Torrin's way, staring and whispering as he passed, being led around by Guard Captain Dane. A nice enough man, who introduced himself along the way, telling a funny story about his daughter who was Torrin's age.

Torrin nodded appreciatively to the tale, acting interested and keeping up the conversation, spouting random stuff that was mostly false in return.

"Well, here's the inn, The Playful Badger. Let me introduce you to the owner--he's actually my uncle--so there shouldn't be any issues," Dane said, using his towering frame to open the door.

As soon as they entered a broad smile broke out on Dane's face as he saw the innkeeper.

"Uncle Roland! It's been a while since I've seen you! Haha!" A boisterous laugh echoed from the guard as he opened his arms wide to greet his uncle with a hug.

"Little Dane!" The innkeeper rasped out from his rotund frame, "It's been a while, it has! You're looking great! How's the wife and kid?" the big man asked, backing away and looking Dane up and down.

"They're doing just fine, uncle. Little Lilly is growing up so fast, cutest little thing there is, as well. I hope you've been well!" Dane's smile vanished as he continued, "But, uncle, there's a favor I need to ask of you." Dane finished with a serious look on his face.

Torrin took in the scene with mild amusement. The two were clearly close, so he hoped he could get a room without issue.

"Of course, Dane. Whatever ya need, ya know I'll help out!" The innkeeper replied with a nervous chuckle at the look on Dane's face.

Dane pushed Torrin forward, Roland noticing him for the first time, inspecting him with a critical gaze. He didn't look terribly thrilled to have the dirty child in his inn as he hmm'd, eyes narrowed and hand gripping his chin as if inspecting new goods.

"Nothing too bad, I promise!" Dane placated, waving his open hands, "This is Rin Gram, he's a young boy from a farm some ways away. Him and his pa were heading for Bolin to do some trading and they were set upon by six bandits..." Dane explained Torrin's plight, using the fake name he felt so clever coming up with.

The innkeeper was shaking his head, displaying a sad expression, fat lips set in a frown, bushy eyebrows turned down.

"I'm sorry, kid. That's some tale. Ya look like you've gone through something most wouldn't experience in a lifetime, and you're still so young. Let's get ya set up with a bath and a change of clothes before anything, eh?" The innkeeper asked in a conciliatory tone.

"Thank you, sir." Torrin bowed slightly, "I can pay as well, I don't have much money but I should have enough to pay for my stay and a warm meal, if you could provide it."

Torrin's respectful words contrasted sharply with his reedy voice, but the innkeeper was impressed by the offer.

"A proper respectful lad, too. No need, son. I'll cover a week for you until you can get settled. If you need a place after that, we can talk about payment, eh? Just pay for meals and that's more than enough," the big man replied, nodding, losing a bit of his accent as he spoke solemnly, turning back to Dane he continued in a lighter voice, "Alright, Dane, I see no problem helping the child for a bit, none at all. Ya need anything? Food? Drink? Or are ya busy today?"

The innkeeper began chatting with Dane, serving him a bowl of stew with bread, cheese, and an ale. Torrin's stomach growled seeing the food, but he was soon whisked away to a back room, past the stairs by a cute serving girl named Bell. She had long dark hair and a pale complexion, she looked around 18 or 19 years old and wore a modest dress that fell to her knees with her hair tied back.

"Do you need anything else, Mr Gram?" Bell asked kindly after showing Torrin the facility. The room had an actual toilet and a large wooden tub, with steaming water heated by runes. A floral scent wafted from the tub, obscuring the shelf that held soaps and shampoos.

"Just call me Rin, please." Torrin said, stepping into the room, removing his backpack, and examining the soaps provided, "That'll be all, Bell, thank you for helping me. And thank you for the change of clothes, they look nice and comfortable." He said with a smile as the girl bowed, shutting the door and walking away.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh... Just you and me now, Stix. Sorry I was ignoring ya, buddy, those guards kept flipping out about you for some reason," He was sitting in the hot bath, allowing the dirt and blood to wash away in the warm water, his stress seeping away...

*KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK*

*SPLASH*

Torrin jerked in the water at the sound. He'd fallen asleep in the warm bath and felt like a shriveled up prune, albeit a thoroughly clean one.

"Mr Rin, are you okay in there? It's been a while, so I wanted to check on you! Your dinner is ready as well..." Bell's voice trailed off from behind the door.

"One minute, just finishing up, haha" Torrin chuckled in embarrassment. The water was just too comfortable, like laying in the softest, most warm satin sheets.

Dressing in the clothing he'd been provided, he felt renewed. The top was a white, light cotton material that felt soft, and was thankfully not itchy like the clothes Little Lark used to run around in. The pants were a soft, brown material that clung to his legs nicely.

They had even provided a pair of underwear, socks, and boots. Bell had told him there was a clothing store across the street, so she'd been sent by kind old Uncle Roland to procure Torrin some new clothing.

Everything fit surprisingly well and was comfortable, he couldn't ask for more. His only issue as he looked in the mirror was his hair that fell into his eyes. His finger swiftly removed the excess hair with sword aura, and he felt much better.

"Alright, Stix, let's go see what they've got for dinner!" Torrin whisper-shouted excitedly to the stick just before opening the door.

"Right this way, Mr Rin, we've got a room a few doors down that you may use." Bell said, leading Torrin a short ways to a basic room sporting a bed stuck to one wall and a table and chair on the other.

He smiled seeing the simple living space, and quickly set down his pack and left Stix to lay comfortably on the bed so he could rest before following Bell to the main room, where she seated him at the bar.

"We've got a wonderful lamb stew tonight," Bell announced with a charming smile, her dark hair waving behind her as she turned around to enter the kitchen.

She soon returned, placing a bowl and plate in front of Torrin with a glass of milk. Steam wafted from the bowl, carrying a scent of spiced stew to his nose, causing saliva to instantly well up in his mouth.

"Thank you, Bell," He said, nodding respectfully with a huge smile on his face, "This smells so wonderful!"

The stew was the most amazing thing he'd eaten. He'd swear that even Grams' food was mediocre compared to the heavenly stew. He was soaking the dregs up with bread while shoveling cheese into his mouth rapidly.

Bell giggled seeing him wolf down the food in just a few minutes.

"Would you like more?" She asked, hiding her smile behind her hand.

"Yes! Please!"

His belly was distended as if he were carrying a baby, his eye lids were drooping to some unknown rhythm. The warmth of the room was like a soft blanket, as he sat at the bar, sipping his milk.

Bell giggled once more seeing the sleepy child.

"Mr Rin, allow me to escort you back to your room to be sure you don't need anything else."

In his room, Torrin took two silver coins from a pouch in his bag and handed them to Bell with a smile. Her eyes widened to a comical degree as she shook her head vehemently waving her hands to ward off the payment.

He burst out laughing, assuring her it was okay.

"Please, Bell, you have been wonderful and kind to me. Take this as payment for the food and keep the rest for yourself. Kindness should always be rewarded," he said sagely, nodding his head.

"Mr Rin... This is more than I make in a month, sir. Your meal was only a few coppers and this is worth 200 coppers!"

Torrin waved away her worries, insisting, "That's just how nice you've been. Wonderful service and amazing food! Take it, I won't hear otherwise!"

Bell felt she was taking advantage of the young child who'd been through so much already, but hearing the way he talked showed an unseen maturity, so she finally gave in and took the money, wishing Torrin a good night.

Torrin lay in the room with the small runelight lamp on, providing light to the dark interior of the windowless room. His drooping eyes were fighting off sleep, trying to study the Change Rune. It was the last one he needed to understand, but tonight was no better than before, he still couldn't understand it completely.

Sighing, he put the sheet away and gave in to the sleep tugging at his brain, putting off thoughts and plans for tomorrow.