So we head on to the gate of the village. The stone gate is build like the old architectures of Rome. It has a stone bow at the top and as gate doors there are two very sturdy looking, dark colored, wooden door wings, with each a black forged metal shed on them. In, the middle of the closed gate wings is a blazon showing a bear eating a skeleton. The skeleton is carved into the left wing and the bear into the right.

The nearer we come, we can see a few guards waving towards us. They seemingly recognize Peter, because they look relaxed as they see him.

The guards were really good equipped. They wear, black colored chain armor with the same blazon as the gate has on it and they all are armed with swords and halberds.

Right in front of the gate are 4 guards stationed and on the left, also as on the right there are a pair of 2 guards standing on small defense towers, to overlook the surrounding.

“Ah, ser Peter, you are back? Why isn´t sir Schneider and his escort with you?” Guard 1

“Well things turned out to be more difficult, than we thought. We found those two here in midst of the forest, so sir Schneider told me to bring them here.” Peter

“Wow, in the middle of the forest??, what were you doing there you two, its very dangerous out there. You aren’t from here, right?” Guard 2

The second guard now walks towards Mia and looks at her closely. And it seems like he also wants to check if we are some kind of enemy. They all seem really on guard as they heard that we were found in the forest.

“Ahh..., yes that´s right. I and my attendant got lost in that forest, we are traveler from near the demon kingdom.” me

“Mhh, so you are refugees running from the war and the disease there? " Guard 1

"Yeah, if you want to call us that way, we are." Mia said a bit sulky

" Is this a problem?" me

"No, but its rare too see refugee who get here alive. It must have been a hard trip until here. I am impressed that you´ve managed it here without any injury." Guard 1

"So enough of the chatter!, please let us in by now captain of the guard." Peter raised his voice a bit more authoritatively

"Uhh yes ser Peter, I am sorry to hold you back that long, but you know we have to check all traveler about their backgrounds." Guard 1

(Authors note: Inner dialogues now are distinguished from dialogues with ° as character and dialogues continue to use " as characters, also the Guard 1 now is known as captain of the Guards)

The captain of the guards gestured towards the guards on the tower and right after that, the big wooden gate wings swing slowly open. So we can enter the village. We ride through the gate, Peter ahead and come to a small ring of an inner defense wall. There is a small shed with horses and a house with the impression of the guard post and right next to it is another gate, but this time its a quite smaller one and guarded with two persons.

°But its odd that the people here don´t react to the word demon kingdom, normally I would have expected demons to be some evil race as they were put in RPG´s. Mhh I really have to learn a bunch new things and much more about this world° me

"So here we are, haha. From here on we must walk, please get of the horses and wait here for a moment. I´ll be right back." Peter as he jumps of the horse and grabs the reins of our horses

Mia and I got of the horses and peter walks to the shed with them. While looking around I see that this is a collecting point for all newcomers in the village. It looks like the guards have perfect control over the safety here, its easy to get an overview for them in this point here. This place is all together pretty big in this collecting place were over a 100 people to fit, I would guess.

From the inside the village walls look like a good 75 meter high and the ground here is made of cobblestone. The smaller walls of this inner defense are about 40 meter high and we can see some roofs behind them. On the walls itself are old canons positioned targeting the inner circle of the collecting place. From farther away we could also see that on the high walls some kind of artillery is build.

After a few minuets Peter comes back already.

"Ok you two, lets go. I´ll bring you to a good tavern nearby. I´ll treat you to a meal and a place to rest" Peter

"Yay, something to eat! " Mia happily shouts

"Thank you Peter, but why are you so kind to us? I mean you just meet us and we are totally strangers to you and this country... and we also have no money to remunerate you." Me

"Hahaha, there´ll be no need to reimburse me. Isn´t it only natural to help each other, especially in times like these? So now let us go, I am starving by now." Peter sounding a bit too friendly

"Well spoken, Peter you have my and Mia´s gratitude." Me

°I dont know why, but something about Peter and this whole village seems off to me. I have a strange bad feeling about being here.° me thinking about how Peter and especially the guards reacted about and with us

Suddenly while I was thinking, a voice appeared in my head.

°Hohenheim... we must be careful here. I felt a small tendency of evil intentions from Peter° Mia´s voice in my head

°Mia??... Woow. don´t surprise me with an ability like that. And yes I know what you mean, I also felt a bit suspicious about this. But for now all we can do is to wait how it goes.° me

°Yes and I am with you so there should be not that of a big problem. I can use all of my spirit guardian powers, so I can protect you. ° Mia

°Ahh, that’s good, but man I really want to know about my ability´s too. By the way Mia what can you do with your powers?°me

°I´ll tell you when we arrive at the inn and have time for us alone.° Mia

While we communicate in mind, we´re walking towards the smaller gate and the two guards open it.

We walk trough it and now can see the real village.

It really looks like a medieval town, only bigger, a lot bigger. We are on a street with many stalls at the left and right side, straight ahead we can see a big castle with another defense wall, it looks like the whole village is separated in the inside by different defense circles and we are by now in the lowest circle, so it seems. The street is full of shady looking people and every 2 meters a beggar is to see.

Peter points towards a tavern sign, which says “The stupid Djinn” and opens the door as we reach the Inn.

“Welcome. What can I do for … Ohh ser Peter, welcome back! So what can I do for you this time?” The barkeeper asks Peter, as if they know each other for a long time

“Hello Thomas how´s it going? And I need a room for two and a good meal for three” Peter

“Ahh everything is like always. You know hard times need hard work Haha, here you go” the barkeeper answered peter while showing us to a table in one corner in the back of the inn, where a table and bench are standing.

The barkeeper hands me a rusty key.

“Here this is the key for the room upstairs, its number 3, contains 2 beds and a wonderful sight in direction of the castle. Enjoy you´r time here. I´ll bring your meal in no time.” The barkeeper said and turns around and for a moment it looks like he is smirking towards himself

We go to that table and sit down. Mia and I are sitting together on that old wooden bench and peter places himself on a shabby looking chair.

“So you two now tell me, how did you managed to survive this far? It must have been really a hard trip here.” Peter now calmly asks us

“Yes it was not easy to manage it this far, we had a lot of hardships on our journey, but in the end isn´t it only of worth that we got this far?” Excuse my rudeness ser Peter, but there are things we just can´t tell you if you understand what I mean.” I now carefully in my words try to explain why we cant tell Peter the truth

“Yes it was really hard for us in more than one ways and its even harder to talk about it.” Mia supports my statement

“Ok,Ok Hahaha, its fine if you don´t want to talk about your journey here, but at least tell me one thing, how did you manage to cross the Vilscard field?”Peter asks

“What is the Vilscard field?” Mia bluntly asks

“The Vilscard field? Haha and there I thought even the demon kingdom locals would now the Vilscard field. The Vilscard field is that volcanic lava field near the border of the baharl continent and our finsterfir continent. You must have crossed it, because there is no way around it. Here let me show you” Peter says and pulled out a folded map from his backpack

He unfolds the map and places it on the table so Mia and I are able to look at it.

I took my view on the map and in one moment to another I was utterly surprised, it feels like I have knowledge about the whole world were are in at the moment at least about the geographic of this world.

There are four continents and three of them were connected via a promontory and the last continent is also the smallest its an island like Australia is. The continent we are on now is called Finsterfir and has a landscape like Russia, its very cold and nearly only fir´s are growing here it seems to be a whole fir forest. A continent only made from forests and mountain ranges. Its main economy is the mining of rare and good metals and minerals. There are only 3 Big city’s in Finsterfir and one is called “ The village” the main population is human, but there are a 30% of other races represent.

Right next to Finsterfir lies Baharl, which is known as the main and biggest continent in the moment. Baharl itself is separated into 4 kingdoms a mountain, a seaside, a plain and a meadowland kingdom. The promontory that separates Baharl from Finsterfir is the Vilscard field and its said to contain a bunch of dangerous monsters and creatures, as well as the volcanic landscape which makes it nearly impossible to pass through that terrain. The travels between the Baharl and the Finsterfir continent is made possible by great Portals, which were build in each city. The travel through those portals is very restricted and you need a special trading pass for using those.

Behind the Baharl continent lies the Demon Kingdom and a surprise the main population of the Demon Kingdom are humans, but it is to say that the demon kingdom is called so because in the ancient times it was really filled with demons and other dark creatures. Nowadays all the human/animal hybrids date of the demon kingdom and so it also contributes to its name. The Demon Kingdom is to be imagined as the Asia of the human world.

All this knowledge suddenly appeared in my head just from taking a look at the map.

Suddenly Mia jumped up and overthrows Peter, while I just start to recognize why Mia did this, they both go to ground and Mia lies on him. I start glowing and a white light appears around me and not a second later the Oracle lies on the table and the shining dissolves.

“Kyaa... I am sorry ser Peter. I thought I felt a rat or something tingling between my legs, so I couldn’t´t hold myself back.” Mia tries to excuse herself while still lying on him

“Ah ähhm... dont worry to much miss Mia, but would you mind going of me for now ?” ser peter says seemingly embarrassed

“Ah... yes for sure, I am very sorry” Mia says perfectly in her role as shy lady

While they both stand up I take the oracle and hid it under my Kimono

°Man I am lucky this Kimono is so comfortable and big° me

I look around in order to check if someone else has seen me and that shining light, but for my luck we are the only guests in the moment and the barkeeper can´t see us here in the corner. So the only one who might has seen it is Peter but it seems like he hasn´t.

“Well so for now I know that you are afraid of mice and rats? Haha, that gave me quite the surprise miss Mia. I even saw a white light for a moment haha.” Peter says as he was hit by something very heavy

“Aha-ha” Mia laughed with a faked smile in a slight sarcastic voice as if she just got offended by Peters joke with the white light

“Well ok, where did we stopped? “ peter asks

“You´ve shown us that map and wanted to know how we managed to cross through the Vilscard field” I answered him

“Ah right, right. So how did you manage to ?” Peter remembers and asks again

“We.. ähh just...” my unfinished sentence as I see the barkeeper coming with our food

“So here you go. The best our tavern has to give, three times roasted bear and a tankard for you sir and for you Peter and for the young lady a delicious wine.” The barkeeper says while he serves us the dishes

Unlike the city and the tavern look from the outside and inside the food really looks delicious and smells great. We got a big plate in the middle of the table, after Peter removed the map,with an even bigger meat club on it. Each of us got a plate with salad and cocked potatoes on it.

“It seems our conversation has to wait. Lets eat up first.” Peter says as he see how Mia impatiently wriggles around the food with her cutlery

“ Yes, thank you ser Peter, for this irresistibly delicious looking food, hahaha” I say while also looking at Mia

“Ähh...YES thank you very much ser Peter, ok lets eat please” Mia now even more impatient looking says

°how unladylike of her, but well she does look very cute while playing with her food, as if you would look at a cat° me in thoughts.

Oddly enough I am not very hungry, no exactly I am not hungry at all. I don’t feel any hunger nor thirst. I didn´t realized it earlier, but by now when I think about it its kind of strange I just don’t feel the need for me to eat or to drink something. This must be a result of being a deity by now.

But anyways, it would seem rude of me not to eat now. So I just follow mia and peter and eat and drink something. And really the food is very delicious and so is the beer too.

A good hour went past us while we eat and talked a little about the here ongoing political things, but it was not very instructive for me, I think I just have to ask directly about the things I need to know.

As we finished peter suddenly stands up and goes towards the door.

“Ahh, I am sorry you two, lets have our talk tomorrow. I totally forgot to report something important, but its late anyways see you tomorrow and have a good night. Peter says while he pays the barkeeper and rushes out of the inn.

“So Mia want to go upstairs in our room? “ I asked her curious about what wil be written in the oracle

“Hehe, oki lets go” Mia says with a grin on her face

“No Mia I meant it not in a perverted way” I answered her in an instant

“Hihi, you thought that way now, hehe” Mia

We walk upstairs and go into the room number 3 it really looks shabby, but still better than a tent I would guess. Inside the room were a table and a pair of nearly rotten chairs. To the front of the room is a window which is so dirty that we can´t look outside. The two beds are barely ok, they look like they were used the last time a hundred years ago.

Because its getting dark we lit the candle which is standing on the table and I pull the oracle out of my kimono.

I open it and it pages itself to the page of my ability´s and next to the hidden ability notification of my rune powers another hidden ability notification appeared:

Hidden ability of the power Mythology, you are now able to gain basic knowledge about the worlds you visit and the monsters/creatures in those worlds by reading a history book or looking at a map or similar.

“Well that’s what I call a helpful ability. Nice and its also my second hidden ability wow that old god has indeed explained me that power “Mythology” but he has not told me about hose hidden powers.” I say in a glad way

“Yep, thats a pretty good to have ability. Just for you I´ll tell you a secret about your powers that I know. At least every of you ability’s has next to it main power two hidden powers or more” Mia says very proud

“That´s cool, but I can imagine just how hard it will be to unlock them for a power I dont even know the main function yet. So Mia you said that you would explain me your powers when we´ll have time for us, is this a good moment for telling me ? I ask her very curious

“Mhh, yes ok I´ll tel you, hehe. I am your guardian and so I have gained powers similar to your affinity´s.

Mia Tora-za´s ability´sShapeshiftingIncorruptibleGuardian EquipoiseHoly ObjectBlessed path

this is the list of my ability´s its easier to explain it to you when you see this.” Mia says while she summoned her oracle

“At first we have the power “shape-shifting”, I think this explains itself pretty much by name, I can transform into anything with this ability and due to the power “holy object” I can also transform into any objects but later more to that power.

My second power is “Incorruptible” this ability allows me more than one thing, with this it means that no one can ever manipulate me or my way of thinking, so mind control is impossible and it also binds me to have loyalty, which can never be destroyed to you the one deity I must protect. Dont worry I really like you hehe, so there is no point in worrying that I just follow you because I must.

Than there is the ability “guardian” this is a really good to have power, with this I am able to summon and create barriers shields and it also gives me some spiritual sealing ability´s also I am able to sense your whereabouts and if you are in a danger, with this you can summon me anytime and where you want by just calling my name.

“Equipoise” this is the one power I dont understand how to use by now, I would guess this is the affinity of your main power as deity of equilibrium, so maybe I´ll be able to use this power when you are able to use yours. Mhh what comes next... ah right “Holy Object” this is the power that states, that I am a spirit guardian as well as a spirit weapon. With this ability I can transform into any object of my will or your will. It makes me indestructible because I am created from a holy stone. And I have a few weapons as form which are stated as so called “god-weapons” one of those forms for me is that wagasa I appeared at you first, when I am in one of those “god-weapon” forms I posses special powers you can use when wielding me.

Aaaand the last one hehe, this one is special its called “Blessed path” and with this one I am able to become one with the nature surrounding me, its to understand like a special mode to activate. When I activate this I am in my spirit form its like my trump card. I can use natures power and everything I touch or walk on will become blessed and must follow my will, in exchange for giving me the permission to command those things they will gain a fully recovery of all damage and time, they will become blessed objects or blessed creatures. For example when I want to command a stone bridge it must depart if I order so but when I am finished with it it´ll regain new health like the stones of the bridge were untouched by time and mankind. The same goes for creatures if a human is to be touched and ordered by me in that form they mus obey but when I am done they gain the power to regenerate or heal very fast or something similar. So its my trump, but I also need to be cautious in its usage.

Wow this was a long explanation and I am really getting tired, are you satisfied ? Than lets seep”

Mia explains all her powers to me and nearly falling asleep as she finished

“Yeah that was a... Yaaaaawn... good explanation, but lets continue tomorrow” I barely finished my sentence as Mia and I both fall asleep immediately

There is no time for Mia and me to reach our beds, we just fall asleep on the ground were we stand.

It feels very odd to be that tired it was as if we couldn´t resist the urge to sleep.

As we wake up we find our selves in midst of a dark and cold room. I want to move but I realized that I am tied and I can´t even see my hands for eyes in this darkness.

“Mia are you here?” I whispered into the dark room

“Yeah I am, but I am tied and its cold and I cant see anything. Where are we ??” Mia whispered back

“I don´t know, but I think our feeling from yesterday has become truth. There must have been something in our food yesterday that made us fall asleep so urgently.” I say

“Just give me the order Hohenheim and I´ll do what you say.” Mia says in a none affected way

“ Ok, than by here I Van Hohenheim order you Mia Tora-za to get us out of this prison cell!” I order her in a quite tone

“As you wish, my deity.” Mia says proudly

And with a short “slice” noise she cut through our ties and we were free from our handcuffs.

“What now we can still see nothing Hohenheim” Mia asks me worriedly

“Yeah and also we are caged in here and its a real displease for me to be caged in here” I say while I get slightly angry about our situation and that I am not able to use any power right now

suddenly a bright orange light appeared next to me and as my eyes accustomed to that light I see Mia fire orb in her hand

“Wow thats soo awesome, but wait which ability of yours is this?” me stunned

“This is a normal magical fire orb, we both have an affinity for one kind of magic we can use and as the fortune wants mine is the fire attribute. hehe are you envious ?” Mia asks in a teasing voice

“Mhh man thats so mean, but well its helpful in this situation. Say Mia you dont know my attribute by any chance ?” Me desperately wanting a power

“Mhh I know that one of your ability´s names is “Void magic” so I dont really know if there is a another attribute for your magic. Sorry for disappointment you” Mia tries not to anger me

“Ahh very well you are awake” A man talks to us from behind some prison bars

“ Who the hell are you and what is this supposed to mean” I ask him very angered

“This my young friend, is my cellar and you are my estimate merchandise. And who I am is not relevant for the two of you.”

“ I know this voice, Hohenheim hes the barkeeper from before, even if we just heard you short. I am sure of it you are the barkeeper, what have you done with us? “ Mia asks him now also angered

“Hoh.. look at this, this young lady not only has an affinity for magic, no she has good ears too, well yes I am Thomas alias “The black baron” and I put some sleeping powder into your drinks so it was very easy for me to imprison you two hahaha, but that should be of no concern for you two now.” The black baron proudly tells us as if he achieved something very great by imprison two sleeping people

“You damn... Whats about ser Peter is he your accomplice?” I ask him

“Pah... this damn idiot? Not in a hundred years, he doesn´t even has a clue that I am the black baron this whole city´s best black market slaver. Dont put him into a pot with me.” TBB

(Authors note TBB is the black baron)

“You damn bastard, do you even know who I am, let us out or i´ll get really angry” Me now shouting very loud

“Zaito seal the magic in this cell here and then let us go prepare the next wagon for our delivery Hahahaha. See you later you two” TBB says amused to us

A man in a black coat and fully covered in his clothes comes near the prison bars and whispers something like a magical spell. No seconds later as he finished a black and blue shining circle appears on the ground in our prison and the fir orb in Mia´s hand immediately vanishes.

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this chapter is a 2 divider