Alain, Renald, and Rostav were sitting on the living room sofa after they all woke up in the morning. Marika’s absence implied she was still asleep. Rostav had come home last night with the giant egg of an avian giant. It was so big that just one egg was enough for multiple meals for several days. The old, bald, bearded man had cooked omelettes for breakfast with morning dew droplets for the beverage.

Rostav put down his wooden mug after taking a long gulp. “A blue crystal that could control giants…” He muttered.

“Not control! Tame! Snow still has free will! We just became friends.” The pale boy with the medium hair, Renald, interjected.

“Right,” Rostav sighed and turned to Alain who was still eating his omelette. “And a mysterious, secretive organization belonging to The Sanctuary with a sword emblem who knew about the crystal’s existence?” He asked while frowning.

Alain’s eyebrows tilted upwards. “We’re not lying,” He said firmly.

Alain had made the decision to come clean to Rostav about everything that had happened. After some reflection last night, he came to the conclusion that doing this alone may be detrimental to his goal, especially when he’s dealing with unknown forces. So he needed all the help he could get from his immediate connections.

“I know but,” Rostav scratched his beard. “This wasn’t really what I expected when I suspected you were still hiding something from me. I was the Giantslayer guild’s receptionist in my younger days, you know? I only retired and became a blacksmith because my late wife was expecting my late son. I had seen things and know about the inner workings of The Sanctuary. From all my years never have I heard the existence of that blue crystal and that secretive organization you mentioned.” He said.

“They’re real,” Alain repeated with conviction.

“You said he wore a black robe? Was it made of leather?” Rostav asked.

“I’m not sure, but it flapped around as he moved so I would assume it’s some sort of fabric,” Alain replied.

“Then it may be made of silk from the rare Katuns. And you need the roots of Fingereye plants to make black dyes, it’s quite expensive to get Giantslayers to hunt for those. So either he or his benefactors are very rich then. But who…” Rostav scratched his beard, deep in thought.

Most of the clothing that people in the Sanctuary wore were made of leather or sometimes processed dried leaves. Even Giantslayers’ armors were mostly repurposed giant bones, fangs, and other body parts. One would see an ocean of brown and tan if they were to stand in the middle of a busy Sanctuary street. Actual fabric was rather expensive as there was no dedicated textile industry in the entire settlement, and any clothing with intricate colors that needed some type of dyes was rare and expensive. And there was also a matter of character, people of the Sanctuary, or ‘Sanctuarian’ as some may call themselves were a practical group of people, and an excessive display of wealth was frowned upon.

“Rostav, you just have to take my word for it. I am only coming clean about everything because you are family to me. You can choose to believe it or not. Anyway, let’s put those two issues aside for now,” Alain turned his head to Renald. “About his nectar initiation test.” He mentioned.

“Ah, right,” Rostav frowned. “Poor kid, what terrible parents he has.”

Renald’s eyes drooped down.”I...just want to be free and becoming a Giantslayer would help me greatly. Please help me,” He said softly.

Alain put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “We will.” He turned to Rostav, pleading him to help the boy.

“But this is not easy. Both of his parents are still alive with no other relatives around.” Rostav said.

“Can we take them to the high council court for judgment? They have been abusing him after all.” Alain proposed.

“This is just my perspective but...the boy’s profession might be a problem here,” Rostav said.

“My profession?” Renald’s eyes perked up.

“You’re an actor in one of the local theaters, a fantastic one at that from what I’m hearing from you. Summoning your parents to the high council court will give them time to prepare so they might just claim you’re simply acting and that they are actually caring parents who never mistreated you.” Rostav explained.

“What! What does that gotta do with anything! They really did abuse me! Look at this!” Renald suddenly ripped open his flimsy shirt made from dried leaves to reveal various old scars and wounds on his chest and back. Some were even still drying, still in the process of becoming a permanent scar. It was a horrible sight, especially on the body of such a young boy.

Alain’s eyes widened in disgust.

Rostav’s face turned red and his fists were clenched white. “Those horrible parents!” He growled. After losing his son, his fondness of children had grown exponentially and after taking care of Alain, who also had a troubling past, his soft spot for the young'uns was sensitive.

Suddenly, the three of them could hear footsteps coming down the stairs. Marika had finally revealed herself after sleeping for a long time. Her brown short hair came down to her shoulder and her olive skin was highlighted beautifully with the sliver of morning light coming in from the house’s windows. Her clothing would make her stand out in The Sanctuary, as her clothing was made from some sort of fabric that was dyed purple.

“Good morning, I apologize that I have only just woken up from my long slumber, ” She smiled and reached the first floor.

“Marika! Ah! I haven’t cooked anything for you yet! I thought you wouldn’t be up for a little while more.” Rostav’s anger subsided momentarily with the arrival of Marika, perhaps as to not show her an unsightly sight.

“Do not fret, I can hold on for a while longer, but thank you for the offer. My body is practically healed now. Maybe if you can direct me to the nearest restaurant, I can find some breakfast outside since I want to explore The Sanctuary as well,” She said. “Where is your altar?” She continued.

“Altar?” Alain said, confused.

“What do you mean by that, Marika?” Rostav was also confused.

“You know, an altar? To pray? I want to do my morning prayer.” Marika answered as she clasped both of her hands together as if to indicate something. But what she didn't know was that her gesture was virtually foreign to these people.

Alain and Rostav looked at each other bewildered. But Rostav’s eyes suddenly showed that he had an epiphany.

“Ah! You said you’re from The Domain, aren’t you?” Rostav hit his fist to an open palm to indicate his understanding. “I heard your people have some sort of religion there. I’m sorry, but my house doesn’t have an altar. Most of us Sanctuarians don’t really follow any religion, maybe only some odd cults here and there.” He said. Rostav scratched the back of his bald head and made an apologetic expression.

“Eh?” Marika’s eyes widened. “You guys don’t pray to Mother Yavi?”

“Fortunately no,” Alain snickered. His reply was noticeably sarcastic.

“Alain! Be respectful of other cultures!” Rostav fist hit the back of Alain’s head.

“That is quite alright! I am not offended. It’s just...I thought everyone worships Mother Yavi, it’s all I’ve been taught after all. I haven’t really visited any other places outside of The Domain. And even when I was there, I didn’t get a chance to visit a lot of different prefectures,” Marika said, flustered. Her face flushed with embarrassment for her mistake.

“I see,” Rostav said.

There was an awkward few seconds of silence due to the unexpected culture shock. Renald’s head looked down in utter embarrassment as he already ripped open his shirt so he sat there with his bare chest in front of a woman, he wished he could bury his head on the ground below.

“Anyway,” Rostav said. “Alain, take Marika to have breakfast and to do some shopping, her current clothing would make her stand out too much. Give her a tour of the city too.”

“What? Why me?” Alain said frowning.

“She’s our esteemed guest and she is not a native Sanctuarian. If she plans to live here, then she needs to know the area. Besides,” Rostav stood up and collected all the empty plates and mugs on the living room table. “I will take Renald to a friend of mine who might be able to help him, so you two should get to know each other better. Fuck knows when was the last time I saw you talking to a woman,” Rostav said with a sly face and walked to the kitchen.

Alain facepalmed and sighed. “Alright, Let’s go.” He said, motioning to Marika to follow him.

“S-see you later you two!” Renald said timidly. Marika smiled and waved back to Renald.

Alain took a leather robe from a coat hanger and gave it to Marika. She accepted the robe but looked at it questioningly.

“Put it on. Your clothes will stand out too much, it might reveal you’re here illegally,” Alain said.

Marika nodded and put on the robe. They both stepped outside of Rostav’s house.

The two walked towards the downtown area where the main road that was connected to the main gate was located. On the way there, Alain had explained what the chimney district was. It was a usual busy morning for The Sanctuary’s first floor with businesses opened and Giantslayers roaming about. Alain was wearing his civilian leather clothing for once so he did not stand out like the rest of his peers. They found a restaurant with seats set up on the side of the main road. Marika had insisted on choosing this place as she could both eat and watch pedestrians passing by.

“I did not expect this place to be so lively,” Marika said with her eyes twinkling as she watched the road.

Alain raised his eyebrows. “But you already saw these sights when we arrived right?” He replied.

“I was too tired then. Everything was a blur before I laid down on the bed of your father’s house,” She said.

Alain did not bother correcting Marika. Perhaps it was because he truly believed Rostav to be an important part of his life, or perhaps it’s also for his utter hatred for the real figure she was mentioning.

“Well, the first floor here is the central business district essentially since it’s connected to the main gate. Some Giantslayers actually set up their own stores or stalls here as some of them go on small hunts outside in the morning and sell giant parts or plants that could only be found outside here,” Alain explained.

Marika’s eyes widened. “Anyone could do that?” She asked.

“Well of course,”

Marika’s looks were full of amazement, every little detail seemed new to her.

That’s odd. They don’t have that in The Domain? Alain wondered. He had only heard of that country from hearsay so it was also quite foreign to him. But he decided to put it aside for now as he wanted to finish this quickly.

“What do you want to order?” Alain asked.

“Anything you recommend,”

“Then,” Alain raised his right arm to call a waitress. “One skewered Krinci meat and two honey shake.” He quickly said to the waitress before she could even address them. She nodded and went back inside the restaurant with their orders.

“Since this is your first time here, this is on me. You’re lucky, Krinci meat is very delicious and honey is not exactly cheap,” Alain continued.

“Thank you. What’s the currency you use to purchase things here?” She replied with an inquiry.

“Shelings," Alain said. " I heard we used rocks in the past but a person from the university found a method to mass-produce money bills, it’s a production method she found while combing through records from before The Final Curse. So now we use these.” Alain presented Marika with a Sheling bill. It was a brown rectangular paper with some words and numbers on it. The various emblems of the Sanctuary’s institutions like the Giantslayers, the Shields, and the P.O.Bs were also inscribed into the bill.

“Wow!” Marika examined the bill with newfound curiosity.

Alain chuckled. “You’re like a little kid, gawking on everything you see,”

Marika blushed at his response and quickly returned the bill. “Can you tell me a little bit about The Sanctuary? I had only known this place from overhearing conversations and seeing some documents but I don’t really know that much.” She said.

“Where to begin?” He scratched the back of his head. “I heard that long ago The Sanctuary began as a colony of refugees who have all lost their home for various reasons. Some lost their homes to war with other settlements while others encountered strong giants capable of destroying a city. I heard some just simply got too tired with life wherever they were from and decided to migrate,” He explained.

Marika nodded. “Is that why the people here are so diverse?” She had noticed that unlike their monotonous fashion sense, the people of The Sanctuary carried many different shades of skin colors and facial structure.

“That’s right,” Alain nodded. “At first, many different tribes and groups tried to take the leadership position of the settlement. Conflict and power struggles were common at the time. After all, The Sanctuary’s location is quite ideal, the giant building that we are in is slightly elevated so it would not flood, there is also a forest nearby with giants and the river, while a little far, is still within reach. People with ambitions to build a nation would of course want to take control.”

“So what happened?” Marika asked, her face showed great interest in what she’s hearing.

Alain shrugged. “The records for this time period are vague, historical documents were probably destroyed with the many civil wars at the time. But at some point our current institutions that we have right now like Giantslayers, Shields, the P.O.Bs and others were created. More specifically, the High Council was created. Instead of having one leader, the High Council which consists of the leaders of each faction, institutions, and industries were created. They collectively vote on policies and work with each other for the good of all. At least, so far it has been like that.” He explained.

A waitress suddenly arrived. “Here are your food and drinks. Enjoy!” She said as she put down the meal and wooden mugs.

“This is more than I thought,” Marika said. In front of her was a wooden plate full of gigantic skewers of Krinci meat. “Where are the utensils? Are you supposed to eat with your hands?”

Alain snickered. “Yep. Do you use those fancy knives and forks over at The Domain? Only the snobby rich here like to use those.” He said.

Marika tried to hold back another blush on her face, “I see, then thank you for the meal!” She gulped and picked up one skewer and bit into it.

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Delicious! The spices in the sauce are strong but they do not overwhelm the juiciness of the meat, and using the skewer to eat actually allows your teeth to bite into the innermost layer of the meat directly!” She said.

“What are you, a food critic? Try the honey shake,” Alain smiled and pointed at a wooden mug filled with the beverage.

Marika complied with his words and drank the honey shake. “This is a shake, you say? I’ve never seen honey made like this! This is very pleasing to drink!” She flashed a wide smile.

They ate and drank in silence for several minutes. Marika’s eyes widened every few seconds as she continued to explain every new epiphany she had about the food she was eating. Alain just nodded every time and continued drinking his own honey shake. Finally, she finished all the Krinci skewers.

“Thank you, I had not eaten in several days and that was adequate. I will pay you back after I find a way to make some money here.” She said as she wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“You don’t need to pay me back but you do owe me something,” Alain replied.

“And that is?” Her eyes perked up.

“An explanation to who you are,” He said back.