10 miles away from where Tus disappeared, along the main road, sunrise.

In the forest near the road in between three trees, low rumblings emanated from beneath the ground. After five minutes of the continuous sound, cracks emerged and covered six feet. Then, golden sand flowed out, filling the space with a dehydrating air. The trees bulged toward the dehydrated air, causing their sides to become uneven. With the sound of a tree falling, water was ripped from them, making them burst from the roots to the canopy. The remnants became dust when they hit the ground and black pits were what was left of the trees. The water that came from them streamed through the air like snakes and formed a large ball in the middle of the floating sand. The water extended into the basic outline of a human and the sand conglomerated on the surface with some sinking into it. Bone, muscles, eyes… A basic human body was made in three minutes with the other details such as skin tone and hair color. Soon, Tus’s body was laying on the ground with his eyes rapidly fluctuated under his eyelids like he was dreaming.

Then they stopped and his eyes slowly opened. He said in a whisper, “Why am I so cold?”

He looked at his own naked body and his eyes widened, “Did that monster chase after me just to steal my clothes? Dammit! If I find that monster… I’ll give it money! Oh, wait I don’t have money… Why would I buy broken clothes in the first place?” After yelling out such things, he noticed that the injuries he had were gone. He patted his ribs, looked at his left leg, and touched his head. “Looks like I didn’t get hurt. Although, why am I clean and where am I?”

Looking around the surroundings, he realized he was right next to a paved road. He stood up and walked to it. He looked both ways to find that on one side where there was an intersection, a sign was posted on a pole. It was the standard arrow type, directing toward each road with a name.

Tus read them one by one and found the one was close to his destination. On it with bold writing was ‘Froir.’ Froir was a major neutral city, which was on the borders of Rul and Erkshem, two large forces that had significant influence on the surrounding areas, and held their lands like feudal lords. The position of Froir allowed it to be prosperous when he left as it worked with the Rul Family and the dictatorial Country on a daily basis.

The reason why the city of Froir was familiar to Tus, was because it laid in the same direction as his home town. In light, but excited footsteps, he quickly walked in that direction, not even bothering about his appearance. “There shouldn’t be any monsters in this direction, right?” He stopped for a moment, then shrug his shoulders ‘whatever.’ He was in the middle of nowhere with no one to protect him, so meeting an undefeatable monster would be possible either way.

“Might as well accept it.” Tus said to himself.

………

After 3 hours.

Tus walked along the empty road when he noticed something up ahead. His eyes had a glint pass as he stood in silent deliberation. The thing he saw was a moving horse carriage that had a good level of decoration; with a reddish wood as the frame and hand carved birds around the top and sides.

He hastened his footsteps while fixing his imaginary shirt, moved around the structure, and soon he was noticed by the drivers.

“That is indecent.” Sitting in the posture of directing a line of horses pulling the carriage, a black haired fifty year old man, wearing a suit with a cane strapped to his back muttered under his breath. He quickly stoped them from running over Tus with their slow but constant gait. Next the man was a woman who desperately looked in a different direction after seeing Tus’s astringent style.

“Are the laws of Rul becoming more lax?” The forty year old red-haired woman in traveling clothing asked.

“I don’t think so…” The man replied in a steady voice.

While the woman continued observing a random but interesting butterfly, the man kept watch of Tus who stood in their way with a broad smile on his face. He did an exaggerated bow, kneeled on both knees, stood up to salute, and placed a hand over his chest.

His strange actions quickly made the man furrow his brows. ‘What…’

“Excuse me.” After a moment of silence, while keeping his broad smile even after noticing the cramped gaze, Tus said “Would either of you be good citizens, allowing a poor, but upright traveler like me, to travel in some semblance of protection? Recently I was mugged of everything I had and left in the forest by a monster. Would you please be considerate?”

“Are we allowed to kill him for interrupting our trip to Froir?” The woman asked.

“I don’t detect any sort of lie coming from him or the common feeling that the regular people would have.” The man said as he seemed to notice something. “Maybe we could do something else.”

Tus then had the vague feeling like he chose the wrong couple to ask. It grew stronger as the man gazed at him, like he was appraising some object. Tus took a couple steps back and saluted once again, “Never mind, I’m sorry for stopping you…” He turned around only to find the middle-aged man standing in his way and silently groaned.

“Hold on.” The middle aged man said as he waved one of his hands that was covered by an immaculate white glove, “Don’t you want this?” After turning the palm up, a folded purple colored servants clothing appeared in it with a shimmer.

“Oh, I was thinking so until I noticed that both of your presences are too majestic for me to handle. So I’ll keep going on my merry way…” He stopped speaking as another feeling cropped up. A feeling like he was locked in place by ice.

The man with an indifferent expression walked forward with the clothing and looked at Tus straight in the eye, “All you have to do is follow us for a couple of days in Froir. Doing so will earn you some capital, earn you this royal clothing, and then you can be on your way if you choose to do so.”

His eyes became colder, “Or else you can disappear here, right now with your pathetic existence ceasing to occupy the world. What do you say?” The middle-aged man took the cane from his back with his other hand. He made it explicitly clear, one way servitude and one way death.

Tus thought about it for a moment in lamentation, ‘Who did I encounter this time! First, the stupid monster who stole my underwear and now this random weird person who also says he plans to kill me. If he has the same attitude as the monster, what else can he take in the same situation? I have no clothes or any money, the only thing I do have is…” Tus looked at the man in weirder manner, “He shouldn’t be planning to sell off my virginity, right?” Thinking up to here, Tus became very frightened at once. He started shivering as he then tried to come up with his best smile which was in reality, a twisted mess. He stuttered, “W-where do I s-s-sign up?’