After their lightning-fast escape through the streets, evading the guards’ pursuit, Ye Chui, Debbie, and Green could not return to their lodging at the Dustsand Inn. They needed to find a new place to stay.
Fortunately, Green, with his knack for gathering information, quickly thought of a suitable location. Having scouted Windrock City the previous day, he suggested, after a brief rest by the ditch, “Let’s hide in the slums. The guards rarely interfere there, so we’ll be safe.”
“The slums? What’s that?” Debbie asked curiously.
“I heard that decades ago, the lord managing Windrock City planned to expand eastward, but the plan failed due to a barbarian invasion. The half-developed area was abandoned and became a haven for beggars and the poor,” Green explained, scanning their surroundings. “If I’m not mistaken, the slums aren’t far from here.”
“Let’s head there, then,” Ye Chui decided cheerfully. As for the wrecked carriage, they left it behind. The two horses, exhausted and terrified, trembled as Ye Chui, Debbie, and Green approached.
After years of pulling carriages, this was the first time they had been dragged by one for such a distance.
After some discussion, Green untied the horses’ reins, setting them free, and sighed, “Since our guild started its missions, I’ve rented three carriages, and all three ended up wrecked. No chance of getting the deposit back.”
Ye Chui chuckled. In movies, the hero’s vehicles rarely survive. Even Transformers get destroyed. A blockbuster wouldn’t be complete without a few ruined carriages.
The trio cautiously avoided passersby, heading toward the slums Green mentioned.
Windrock City was encircled by high walls, but the slums lay outside, beyond the eastern gate. A poorly constructed outer wall enclosed a chaotic, filthy area, far worse than the border town of Stan. Rundown houses, muddy ground, stagnant pools of unknown substances, and a nauseating stench reminded Ye Chui of medieval Europe, where chamber pots were reportedly emptied onto streets.
Green explained, “I heard that when the city was being expanded, the lord hired many craftsmen. When the barbarian invasion halted the project, their wages went unpaid, so they settled here. Over time, the slums grew, attracting the city’s vagrants, beggars, and poor.”
“Tch, Windrock City looks so grand, yet it hides such a filthy place,” Debbie remarked, shaking her head.
As they walked down a relatively wide street in the slums, residents eyed them warily, some with cold hostility. If not for Ye Chui and Green’s mage robes, they might have been robbed by those who saw the trio as unwitting intruders.
While searching for a place to stay, they heard hoofbeats behind them. Turning, they saw several guards on horseback approaching, questioning a ragged young man by the roadside.
Ye Chui quickly pulled his companions into a nearby cluster of trees. “They might be searching for us.”
After the guards questioned him, the young man fearfully pointed in the direction Ye Chui’s group had come from. The guards spurred their horses forward, scanning the area vigilantly.
“We need to deal with them,” Ye Chui whispered.
But then, footsteps approached from behind. Turning, Ye Chui saw a boy of about fifteen or sixteen standing there. The boy had blonde hair and wore tattered but clean clothes. His handsome, clean appearance stood out starkly against the disheveled slum dwellers. Meeting Ye Chui’s gaze, he quickly waved, signaling them to stay quiet, glanced at the guards, and pointed to a nearby alley.
Was he offering to help them hide?
Ye Chui exchanged looks with Debbie and Green. They didn’t want a serious conflict with the guards. After a moment’s hesitation, Ye Chui summoned his iPad spellbook, opened the [Map Navigation] function, and confirmed the boy harbored no hostility. He nodded to his companions, and they followed the boy into the alley.
The narrow, maze-like alleys twisted like a spider’s web, easy to get lost in. After several turns, the boy led them to a dilapidated but tidy house, clearly old but well-kept.
“Why are you helping us?” Debbie asked warily.
“Those iron-clad guards are no good, always bullying the slum folk. You all look young and don’t seem like bad people. You must have been framed,” the boy said with a pure smile, pouring them each a cup of water. “Don’t worry, you’re safe here.”
Ye Chui, Debbie, and Green exchanged glances. Was he really that kind-hearted?
Ye Chui asked cautiously, “Aren’t you going to ask why we’re being chased? Aren’t you afraid we’re bad people who might rob you?”
“You don’t look like bad people. Besides, I’m dirt poor. There’s nothing here worth stealing,” the boy replied, his smile still genuine and disarming. “Oh, my name’s Jacob.”
“We’re adventurers from out of town. We had a minor run-in with the guards,” Ye Chui said, withholding their names.
Noticing Ye Chui’s caution, Jacob smiled unbothered and headed for the door. “It’s just me here. Feel free to stay. I have to work and won’t be back until evening. If you’re hungry, there’s some bread in the cabinet. The slums have some thugs, so best not to wander.”
As he prepared to leave, Ye Chui frowned but let him go. His [Map Navigation] showed Jacob’s dot as white, indicating no hostility, unlike a red dot for enemies. This suggested Jacob was genuinely kind.
After Jacob left, Ye Chui closed the door and surveyed the room.
Once Debbie and Green confirmed through Ye Chui that Jacob meant no harm, they relaxed slightly, aware of Ye Chui’s ability to detect hostility. Debbie sat on a rickety chair, ignoring Jacob’s water and instead taking a big gulp of sweet wheat ale from their supplies.
“Not drinking his water is a smart move. We should stay cautious, even if he seems kind,” Ye Chui said, nodding approvingly at Debbie.
Debbie wiped her mouth. “Huh?”
“Never mind,” Ye Chui said.
Apparently, she just wanted the ale, not out of caution.
“This trip has been such a mess. It’s your fault, Ye Chui, for ruining the invitation. Now we’re stuck hiding here,” Debbie grumbled.
“Blame me? You flashed those invitation scraps in front of that fat guard. If anyone’s at fault, it’s you,” Ye Chui retorted.
“If you hadn’t wrecked their guild, would the guards have come?” Debbie snapped, slamming her bottle on the table.
Ye Chui stepped closer. “Panal called those guards, not me. If you’d been nicer, that fatso might not have tried to arrest us.”
“I was defending our guild’s dignity. I’m the vice-president, you know,” Debbie shot back, standing up to glare at him.
Green panicked. “President, Miss Debbie, please don’t fight. We’re fugitives now.”
Ye Chui and Debbie looked at Green oddly.
“We’re not fighting,” Ye Chui said.
“Yeah, this is just how we talk at home,” Debbie nodded.
They then slung their arms around each other, inspecting the house. Debbie even planned to summon their all-purpose maid, Afu, to clean the place, as they might be staying for a few days.
Green was speechless. Since joining the guild, his heart had been racing constantly.
…
In the dilapidated slum house, Ye Chui, Debbie, and Green stayed for a day. Ye Chui monitored the surroundings with his iPad spellbook, and no guards came searching. Jacob hadn’t betrayed their location. Meanwhile, they discussed how to infiltrate the wedding through the kitchen.
In this world, forging an identity wasn’t too hard, but competing for a chef position required credentials, like recommendation letters, which were tricky to obtain.
At around nine in the evening, Ye Chui heard a commotion outside. He, Debbie, and Green grew alert, cautiously opening the door to peek out.
By the faint torchlight, they saw Jacob in the narrow alley, carrying a large lunchbox in one hand and a torch in the other. A group of ragged children and elderly surrounded him as he distributed food from the box—vegetables, bread, ham, and even some roasted meat.
Confirming no danger, Ye Chui stepped out. Jacob finished handing out the food, wiped his brow, and noticed Ye Chui. Smiling, he pulled half a ham from the box. “You’re still here. I saved some food for you. Hungry?”
“Where’d you get all this food?” Debbie asked, poking her head out curiously.
“From the lord’s kitchen,” Jacob replied with a smile. “I work there as a kitchen hand.”
“What? You work in the lord’s kitchen?” Ye Chui exclaimed, a spark of excitement in his eyes.
Jacob carried the lunchbox toward the house. “My mum was a maid in the lord’s mansion. Before she died, she got me a job there through a contact. The kitchen discards tons of food daily, so I bring some back for the hungry kids and elderly here.” He paused, noticing Ye Chui’s expression. “What’s wrong?”
“Jacob, I haven’t introduced myself properly,” Ye Chui said, stepping forward with a grin. “I’m actually a chef from a mysterious eastern land. My name is Stephen Chow.”
