When Ezekiel opened his eyes, his first glimpse of the new world was a view filled with a blue sky with lots of clouds scattered about, slowly moving without a care in the world. Ezekiel took a deep breath, and to his surprise, realized just how clean the air was. The scent of spring filled him, and it was a rather pleasant scent. Ezekiel stayed still for a moment, deciding to take it all in. After a few moments, Ezekiel slowly sat up and realized that he was in the middle of a field of flowers that was mainly populated by roses, lilies, and magnolias. When Ezekiel tried to get up from the flower bed, his right hand landed on what felt like a leather cover to something. He looked to where his hand had touched the strange object and realized it was a leather cover to a book. He curiously picked up the book, which had no title to speak of whatsoever, and opened it to the first page. The first page contained the words, "As requested by Ezekiel Clark, this book of knowledge has been granted by Tone." So she did grant me something like this, thought Ezekiel. He quickly thumbed through the book, and it had lots of information. Lucky for him, the different sections of the book were also split by small tabs sticking out of the book, so quickly finding information related to this world would be much faster than flipping through every page individually. Ezekiel estimated the book was about 300 pages long, which sounded about right due to his request of only common knowledge in this world. Ezekiel put the book down in his lap and suddenly realized that his outfit had changed drastically. Taking a closer look at himself, he realized he was wearing different clothing than what he had come in before. In the Palace of the Gods, he was in jeans, wearing a red t-shirt which was underneath a gray hoodie, and normal sneakers. Now, he found himself wearing strange clothing which seemed to consist of a medieval white shirt made from a fabric that felt a little rougher than wool, strange brown medieval shorts that were somewhat uncomfortable but manageable, and medieval leather pointed shoes that were surprisingly comfortable.
Ezekiel, after inspecting himself, decided to start progressing things in this new world. He slowly started to get up onto his feet when he heard the jingling of something attached to the right side of his waist. He looked down at what was causing the noise and realized that it was a decent sized pouch filled with something. He untied the pouch and took a look inside, and to his surprise, he found lots of coins inside. It might be for the best if I took inventory of my money first, thought Ezekiel, as he sat back down and began pouring out the contents of the pouch. There seemed to be three different coin types: copper, silver, and gold. After counting, he had 100 copper coins, 50 silver coins, and 1 gold coin. Hopefully, this is a hefty amount that will last for a bit, thought Ezekiel. He took a look through his book, arriving at the tab labeled "Economy" and began reading. The first bit of information the book gave him was information on the exchange rates of the coins. 50 copper coins equal 1 silver coin, 100 silver coins equals 1 gold coin, and vice versa. The book also provided examples of prices of different items one could buy with the different kinds of coins. Average food appeared to range from 3 to 5 coppers, a new sword that is custom made appeared to range from 5 to 10 silver coins, and a mansion costs anywhere from 5 to 10 gold coins. The book also made a note, saying these prices depended on the vendor from which he bought his goods, as they could potentially lower or raise the prices of what he wants. After looking at more examples in his book and doing some quick conversions of his own, Ezekiel estimated that 1 copper coin could be thought of as a 1 dollar bill, a silver coin could be thought of as a 50 dollar bill, and a gold coin could be thought of as a 5000 dollar bill. Ezekiel honestly wasn't sure what happened when the economists of this world were deciding on the conversion of gold coins, but he decided not to question it any further. He put all of his coins back in the pouch and closed up his book.
Ezekiel took a careful look at his surroundings, attempting to decide where to go from here. Looking around, he quickly noticed that there was a dirt road a little ways from where he was standing. His eyes followed the path of the dirt road, and they stopped at the huge walls of a town not too far away that he figured might make a good starting point. Ezekiel walked out of the flower field and began walking down the dirt path towards the town. Along the way, many people were also on this dirt road. He saw many people smiling and laughing, carrying goods and other items with them. Ezekiel also saw many people with horse-drawn wagons and carriages, which he assumed was this world's main form of transportation. Ezekiel also noticed that all of the people that he passed by that were talking were speaking English, which came as a surprise to him. He was relieved when he discovered this since he was worried about a possible language barrier between him and the people of this world. After about 10 minutes of walking, Ezekiel finally reached the main gates of the town and was greeted by a sign that read "Welcome to the prosperous town of Wolfwater!" Two knights dressed in armor were standing guard at the entrance, but to Ezekiel, they just seemed bored. One knight was even close to falling asleep standing up. Security is pretty lax if they can just sleep on the job, thought Ezekiel.
Ezekiel stepped through the entrance of the town and was greeted by an atmosphere he had not experienced that often: waves of high spirited people swarming the markets, music that sounded like it could fit well in an MMORPG, a mix of different kinds of people that were dressed in a variety of ways, and shops and places to live all around him. It truly was a lively city. Ezekiel decided to wander around the city to get a feel for the town. He made his way up and down busy streets and over a bridge to cross a canal that had many boats traveling underneath it. He wandered the town like this for a while, stopping at stalls that were selling foods unknown to Ezekiel, like cooked orc meat that was going for 2 copper coins for a quarter pound. Out of curiosity, Ezekiel decided to buy the orc meat. Wanting to sit down and eat it, he sat at a nearby bench that was empty. As he ate, Ezekiel began taking a look at some of the townspeople. Ezekiel noticed that there were many different races and species in this world. He saw mainly humans in this town but also got a glimpse of some dwarves and elves now and then. He made a mental note to check out his book for more information on the different races that were in this world. Ezekiel continued to wander around the city and soon found himself in a quieter part of town. After eating his orc meat, Ezekiel realized that he was lost due to him getting too absorbed in the big city of Wolfwater and not paying attention to where he was going. He sighed to himself silently and sat back down on a bench outside to think about what to do next. Ezekiel also lost track of time, and by using the sun's position, he estimated that it was around 6:00 PM. It would get dark soon, so Ezekiel decided to find a place where he could stay. Usually, towns have inns that players can stay the night, thought Ezekiel. As if the gods heard his thoughts, Ezekiel looked down the street at the other shops and saw a sign that caught his eye. The sign read, "The Crimson Tankard Inn," and Ezekiel decided to check it out.
Ezekiel opened the door to The Crimson Tankard Inn and was greeted by a loud commotion of activity within it. There were people seated at the tables, and the bar was filled by people as well. Waitresses dressed in maid outfits appeared to be very busy serving the customers food and drinks. Ezekiel noticed two large signs that were hanging above the bar. The first sign read, "Please go upstairs to purchase a room to stay in," and the second sign read, "Help Wanted. Want to hire a cook." Ezekiel stared at the "Help Wanted" sign, as he considered that working here might be a good way to make money for the time being. Ezekiel decided it would be best to get a room first, then worry about food later. Ezekiel quickly made his way up to the second floor, where a young girl greeted him behind a desk counter. The young girl had short brown hair, blue eyes, and was dressed as an everyday townsperson, almost like a typical NPC from an MMORPG. The young girl smiled, then said, "Hello! Are you interested in renting out a room?" Ezekiel nodded, then the young girl's smiled beamed even brighter, saying, "That's great! It's been quite some time since we've had anyone rent out our rooms!" Ezekiel then asked, "Why is that?" The young girl then turned serious, saying, "Let's just say that people get the wrong idea of an inn. They believe it's a damn brothel that just happens to be serving food alongside with it!" I better invent a black light to make sure there aren't any questionable stains on my blanket and sheets, thought Ezekiel, and he shuddered at the possibility that he might find something. The young girl then sighed in disappointment, put on a small smile, then continued speaking. "That's how it was, at least until Whiskey started noting the regulars that came here for that purpose and banned them from renting rooms." The young girl leaned closer as if inspecting Ezekiel, and Ezekiel just blinked a couple of times out of surprise. "You don't seem like the kind of guy that would fool around like the others, so I'll offer you a room for 5 copper coins a night," offered the young girl. 5 copper coins a night doesn't sound too bad, thought Ezekiel. He did some quick mental calculations and decided that he could stay a maximum of 19 days if he didn't use coppers for anything else, but decided on 10 days so that he had enough copper coins for other things he may need. Ezekiel gave the young girl 50 copper coins, leaving him with 48 copper coins left, and the young girl led him to his room and gave him the key to the room. The young girl then cheerfully said, "We hope you have a wonderful stay at The Crimson Tankard Inn! If there is anything you need, please feel free to let me know!" The young girl then walked back to the front desk, and Ezekiel opened the door to his new room.
Ezekiel stepped inside, and he immediately noticed that it was a small room, but it was about what he expected it to be. A bed that looked nice and tidy was off on the left side of the room, pushed up against the wall. He hesitated to sit down on the bed due to what the young girl said previously to him. Ezekiel just prayed that the covers and sheets were washed regularly, and took a quick seat on the bed. In front of Ezekiel after sitting on the bed, there was a small dresser for clothing and personal belongings. Curious, Ezekiel looked at the dresser. Inside of the dresser, upon further inspection, he found that there was a secret compartment hidden on the inside of the middle dresser slot that he could store small items in. Using this to his advantage, he put his 1 gold coin and 25 silver coins in it, just in case he needed money to fall back on. Besides, he felt that he didn't need to be carrying around that much money. Carrying that much would only make him more likely to be a target of robbers and pickpockets. With that settled, he decided to go get some food from downstairs.
Ezekiel reached the first floor and sat down at an open seat at the end of the bar. He noticed that the bartender was busy cleaning crimson-colored tankards, which Ezekiel assumed was their trademark and what made them stand out. Behind the bar was an opening where he could see the cooks working on food, and it seemed like only two cooks were working on this busy night. Perhaps they truly do need another cook to be hired to help them out, thought Ezekiel. Ezekiel then shifted his gaze and looked at the bartender a bit closer. The bartender was an older man of sorts, but he had a gentle look on his face that displayed warmth and kindness. The older man noticed Ezekiel looking at him at the end of the bar, and walked over to him, saying with an Irish accent, "'Ello there, lad! I ain't seen you around here before! You must be new in town!" Ezekiel just smiled and said, "That's correct. I am new in town, and I just purchased a room here actually." The older man's eyes lit up, saying, "Excellent, lad! That's always good to hear! My name is Pito, but just call me Whiskey! I'm the owner of The Crimson Tankard Inn." Ezekiel did remember the young girl mentioning someone named Whiskey, and now it made sense to him. Whiskey asked, "So, did the young lass at the front desk offer you the room for 5 copper coins a night?" Ezekiel, confused by the question, simply nodded. Whiskey chuckled, then said, "Aye! I had a feeling that might've happened when you told me you rented out a room. Our normal rates are actually 10 copper coins a night, but it seems she took a fancy for you, so she purposely dropped the prices of the rooms for you. I won't change the price on ya, lad, since that would be pretty brutal, but the young lass should know better!" Ezekiel thought about that and smiled, and one would assume he was thinking, "Wow, she's a very nice girl, and she's even attracted to me! Maybe I could get to know her better?" Ultimately, this was not the case, as Ezekiel simply thought, "Wow! Thanks to that girl, I'm saving quite a lot of money!"
Whiskey then asked, "So, what can I get ya to drink, lad?" "Water, please," responded Ezekiel. "Coming right up, lad," replied Whiskey, and began filling up a crimson tankard with water. While Whiskey was getting the water, Ezekiel pondered over what to get for his first dinner in the new world. They had options that seemed familiar to him, such as cooked fish, shish kabobs using different meats, steak, and a few other things. Deciding that the orc meat from earlier was enough to satisfy his curiosity of new foods just for today, once Whiskey brought Ezekiel his water, he decided to go with a steak that came with a well-cooked potato. About 15 minutes later, the steak and potato were brought to him. The steak was cooked well-done, and it was juicy but quite tough to chew. The potato was cooked well, and Ezekiel had no problems with it. Ezekiel then finished his dinner, and Whiskey came over to take his plate away. Ezekiel, not a huge fan of well-done steaks, asked, "I forgot to ask, but do you serve steaks that are medium-well or medium-rare?" Whiskey had a puzzled look on his face, asking, "What do you mean by 'medium-well' and 'medium-rare?'" Maybe that's a concept these people haven't found out yet, thought Ezekiel. "Never mind, it was just a cooking practice that was common in my home country," said Ezekiel, attempting to dismiss the question. Whiskey, intrigued by the young lad, suddenly asked, "Listen, lad, are you a chef?" Ezekiel thought about this for a moment. By no means was he specifically a food scientist, but cooking in and of itself is a science, and that was something he could work with. He also did have previous experience cooking specific items, even though it may not be enough to have him be considered a great chef. "I am," replied Ezekiel in a confident manner. Whiskey then offered, "Would you like to be hired here as a chef, lad? The pay is pretty good compared to most inns, as we pay you 1 silver and 20 copper coins per day of work that you do. I would also be most interested if we could improve our menu with dishes from your country." I wanted to get hired here anyways, so this works out even better than I had hoped for. The pay here also isn't too bad, since it's about 70 dollars a day in the currency for my world, thought Ezekiel. Ezekiel replied, "I would like to work here! When do I start, boss?" Whiskey laughed, then said, "You start tomorrow, lad! However, I would like you to grab some items for me before you officially start." Whiskey looked at Ezekiel's clothing and said, "First thing's first, lad. We need to get you some work clothes. These clothes won't do it, lad." Whiskey handed him a pouch that contained a hefty amount of coppers, stating, "I've got enough coppers in this pouch for you to get what you need. Get yourself some new clothes, specifically a nice shirt with dress pants and nice shoes. All my cooks must dress nicely since they can see you cooking from here. Then, get whatever else you think you'll need, lad!" Ezekiel, a little stunned at how generous Whiskey was, smiled brightly, thanked Whiskey for the meal and coppers, and headed out to find a shop that sold clothes.
After wandering around the city for a little bit, Ezekiel finally found a tailoring shop that sold clothes. However, the shop wasn't as he expected it to be. Ezekiel was expecting there to be pre-made clothes that were ready for sale as if he was walking into a shop in his world, but he did not find anything of the sort. The shopkeeper explained that all tailoring shops made clothes based on custom orders made by the customer. When Ezekiel explained the idea of pre-made clothing to the shopkeeper, she simply looked confused, but the idea of pre-made clothes reminded her that she did have an extra suit, dress pants, and nicer shoes. This was because someone asked her to make these clothes but did not have the required money for them, so the shopkeeper held onto them in hopes that someone would buy them. Ezekiel gladly purchased the clothing for 100 coppers total, and Ezekiel had a lot of coppers left. Not exactly knowing what to do with it, Ezekiel continued to wander around the city with his new clothing in a large brown sack until he stumbled upon a magic shop. Curious, Ezekiel entered the magic shop.
The magic shop was a fairly small shop, lined up with neatly organized rows of potions, books, and charms. At the counter, there was an elderly woman in a hat suited for a witch who greeted Ezekiel as he entered. "Hello there," said the elderly woman. "My name is Margaret, and if you need help with anything, please let me know," said Margaret with a smile. "Thank you," said Ezekiel, as he looked around the shop. Ezekiel looked around for a bit longer, then approached Margaret and asked, "This might be a stupid question, but does magic exist?" Margaret laughed and smiled, then said, "Of course! This magic shop is proof of that!" Ezekiel clarified his question a bit, "I haven't seen any actual magic being used. Perhaps you could show me an example of it?" Margaret nodded, chanted a few words, then a small flame appeared in the palm of her hand. Caught off guard, Ezekiel took a step back, and he was wearing an expression of bewilderment. Margaret chuckled, asking, "Satisfied?" Ezekiel couldn't make sense of it. The only other time he saw magic being used was when Tone used it to pop up a video projection in the Palace of the Gods, but he wrote it off as some kind of magic trick. One question appeared in Ezekiel's mind that he hadn't thought about before: does magic follow the principles of physics? Surely you can't just make something out of nothing, right? There has to be something behind it, thought Ezekiel. Ezekiel asked, "Just out of curiosity, have you ever heard of the Law of Conservation of Mass?" Margaret shook her head in response. I figured not, they may not have reached that point of thinking in terms of science yet, thought Ezekiel. Ezekiel explained, "It's a law of physics developed by Isaac Newton that states that matter cannot be created nor destroyed, but rather transferred since matter is conserved. Does this apply to magic as well?" Margaret looked so confused, you could almost see smoke rising from her head and her eyes becoming black spirals that were spinning. "Isaac Newton... physics... matter... Huh?" muttered Margaret. Ezekiel sighed, putting it in simpler terms, "When you cast that small flame just now, is that flame just created from nothing, or is there something that is transferred into magic to make the flame?" Margaret, no longer confused, easily answers this question. "Ah! You must mean mana particles! Mana particles are invisible particles scattered everywhere. Since this is a world that has magic, all living organisms absorb these mana particles, but not all living organisms can properly use these mana particles to cast magic." Margaret then quickly grabbed what appears to be a clear crystal ball from under the counter, then set it on top of the counter. Margaret explained, "This is a ball that will show you what I mean. If I put raw mana into this ball, you can see the mana particles." Margaret placed her hand on the ball, closed her eyes, steadied her breathing, and suddenly, little lights of all colors began appearing inside of the crystal ball. Ezekiel observed this, and he thought about it for a moment. These mana particles must be how magic takes on a form, transferring energy and matter from these particles into something new entirely, thought Ezekiel. Margaret took her hand off of the clear ball, and the mana particles suddenly disappeared. Margaret explained, "These mana particles are how magic takes on a form. However, using magic consumes the number of mana particles in your body. If you run out, you'll have to regain your used mana particles, which can take a while." That makes sense, thought Ezekiel.
Margaret grabbed the ball and put it back under her counter. She then noticed another ball next to it, a white ball this time, one that she hadn't used in a long time. Margaret put another ball on top of the counter, explaining its usage. "This white ball here can detect if you have the potential to use magic, as well as determine the certain types of elements of magic that you can use." Margaret motioned towards the white ball, then asked, "Would you like to see if you have magic potential?" Ezekiel asked, "This is free right? I'm not about to get scammed into touching a white ball that does absolutely nothing and then have me pay you for it?" Margaret laughed at Ezekiel's question. "Of course not! It is most certainly free," said Margaret. Ezekiel hesitated for a moment, then placed his hand onto the ball. Margaret then provided Ezekiel with some advice, saying, "To put mana into the ball, imagine a river that flows from the middle of your body to your hand." Ezekiel closed his eyes, and he imagined seeing a bright blue river flowing from the middle of his body to the palm of his hand. Oddly enough, he could feel a warm glow start to emit from the palm of his hand. "You're doing great," said Margaret, who was encouraging Ezekiel. After a few more moments, Margaret asked Ezekiel to take his hand off the ball. Ezekiel, still eyes closed, went ahead and took his hand off, and opened his eyes. The ball was shining all different types of colors, and he looked over at Margaret, who had a shocked expression on her face. "So it appears you can use all elements of magic," said Margaret. "This is very rare, indeed. The last occurrence of this happening was about 50 years ago," explained Margaret. Margaret then continued to explain more about the elements of magic. "In magic, there are 4 main types of elements: water, earth, air, and fire. These elements are what make up the foundation of magical spells. Most mages can use only 1 element type, but some can freely use 2. It's rare for a mage to be able to use 3, and extremely rare for a mage to be able to use 4 elements." Why does this feel oddly similar to Avatar: The Last Air Bender, thought Ezekiel. Margaret continued to explain, "The fact that you can use 4 elements is a great accomplishment of its own. However, without proper training, you will never be able to achieve greatness as a mage." Ezekiel thought about this, and he decided that is certainly true. Without proper training, Ezekiel will not survive as a mage if he decided to live his life as one. However, he quite literally just wandered into a magic shop out of curiosity, and now he's getting told he has the potential to be a badass wizard? Today has been pretty crazy if I do say so myself, thought Ezekiel. "I'm much too old to train someone with your potential properly," said Margaret. "Also, I currently have an apprentice studying under me, so it would be quite the handful to teach two students at the same time. She's right over there, actually." Margaret quickly pointed at a small girl who was dressed in blue robes, with light blue hair and brown eyes. Ezekiel didn't remember seeing her in the shop, so maybe she came in while he was talking to Margaret. She was holding a staff that had a blue orb on the tip of it, covered by what looks like blue waves, but Ezekiel wasn't close enough to be sure. The girl saw that Ezekiel was looking at her, blushed, and quickly looked away while occasionally sneaking glances at Ezekiel. "She's more or less the shy type, but she does love water magic. I've tried to teach her about buff magic, but I think it might be out of her capabilities as of now," said Margaret proudly. Ezekiel inquired, "What is buff magic?" Margaret explained, saying, "Buff magic is a certain type of magic that is not classified as elemental magic. It's its own class of magic that requires special training to master it. Buff magic increases the stats of your allies depending on what spell you cast. You could cast a buff spell that increases physical attack damage, defense, spell damage, and so on. Buff potions and magic papers can do the same thing, but both of them aren't as strong or don't last as long as the actual spell they come from." Margaret continued, "Healing magic is also its own special class of magic that also takes a lot of training to perfect, and my little apprentice over there knows a thing or two about it as well." Ezekiel looked over at the young girl and smiled, saying, "That's pretty impressive! Keep at it and you'll be a damn good mage one day!" The young girl blushed even brighter, attempting to hide her face even more. Ezekiel realized how late it was getting, and thanked Margaret for talking about magic with him. With that, Ezekiel left the shop and headed back to The Crimson Tankard Inn.
The moon and stars were out once Ezekiel exited the magic shop, and Ezekiel wondered just how long he was in the shop for. The roads were dimly lit with lanterns that had candles in them, giving the road an eerie feeling. Along the way back, Ezekiel silently thought to himself about magic. It seems that the laws of physics from my world apply to this world as well, at least in this sense, thought Ezekiel. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the shouting of a woman, coming from a dark alleyway close to The Crimson Tankard Inn. The shouting was cut off quickly, and sensing danger, Ezekiel hurried over to the entrance of the alleyway where the voice came from. Peeking around the corner into the alleyway, there was a girl pinned down in the alley by one man, and another man was holding a knife and licking it like a psycho. Ezekiel thought about being a hero for a moment, but what could he do in his position? He had no physical advantage due to his lack of working out properly, and magic was something he only found out he had today. Plus, it's not my concern. I don't exactly HAVE to help her, thought Ezekiel, as he began walking away from the alleyway.
One step became two, two slow steps became four, and four slower steps became eight. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. Goddammit, I can't just leave her, thought Ezekiel, as he set down his sack of new clothes and dashed back to the alleyway, overtaken by the adrenaline rush of not knowing how to handle the situation he found himself in. Ezekiel shouted, "LET HER GO!" The man licking the knife accidentally cut his tongue a bit, surprised that someone would actually have the balls to come down here to interfere with their night of fun. The man with the knife said, "Listen, kid, don't you try to play the hero. I'll let you live if you decide to leave now." Ezekiel, attempting to calm himself down, took deep breaths, and then said mockingly, "How small of a brain do you have to have to gang up on a helpless girl?" The man pinning the girl down said, "Boss, I'll kick his ass, just say the word." "Relax," said the man with the knife. The man with the knife got closer and closer to Ezekiel, twirling the knife around to have it point at Ezekiel, then asked, "You're a human, right? Why should you care about what we do to some demi-human bitch that we're gonna sell to some slavers?" Demi-human? Does he mean the half-animal, half-human race, thought Ezekiel. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen any demi-humans in the city at all. Ezekiel's eyes adjusted to the darkness of the alleyway, and looking a bit closer at the girl who was pinned down, he noticed something on top of her head. It looked similar to animal ears, but he couldn't tell which animal. "You, a human, should know that humans stand above demi-humans. They're nothing but playthings and a source of free labor," said the man with a knife in a sadistic manner. They have a form of racism in this world, thought Ezekiel. He had a small memory of his old world, where racism was still a thing as unfortunate as it was, despite those racist ideals declining among his generation. He always hated it when some asshole tried to put himself above others and say that racism "keeps people in check." Ezekiel could slowly feel anger welling to the surface. However, Ezekiel just laughed, saying, "You really DO have the smallest fucking brain on the planet if you think you can justify putting yourself above others for something as stupid as that." The man with the knife scowled, saying, "We'll see who's laughing after I'm done carving you up!" The man with the knife lunged at Ezekiel, when suddenly, a small and timid voice shouted, "WATER BULLET!" A quick shot of water whizzed past Ezekiel's head and hit the man with the knife directly in the face, knocking him out before he even hit the ground. Ezekiel looked behind him, looking at where the water shot had come from, but all he could see was a quick glimpse of a blue robe and a staff with an orb on top of it before they disappeared. Ezekiel then turned his attention back to the girl and the other man. The man who was pinning the girl on the ground released his grip on her to try to pick up the knife, but Ezekiel grabbed him and threw the man away from the knife before he could grab it. The man quickly recovered, and Ezekiel considered picking up the knife to use it, but the man would most likely overpower him even if he could use it. For safe measure, he kicked the knife away out of both of their reaches. It's a one-on-one now, thought Ezekiel. He knew he couldn't win with physical force, since this man was quite strong when Ezekiel felt the muscles of the man when he threw him. His only choice was to rely on the magic power that he discovered he had today. The man rushed at Ezekiel, and Ezekiel quickly thought about the water bullet spell he just saw. He started forming his own water bullet by imagining the mana within him being compressed into the shape of a bullet but realized he did not have enough mana control to propel the bullet at a fast enough speed to do significant damage. Regardless, he shouted, "WATER BULLET," and shot the water bullet anyways, and it hit the man, who stumbled back a bit. It may not have enough power to knock him out, but it can at least keep him at bay, thought Ezekiel. Ezekiel continued to fire water bullets, desperately attempting to keep the man at bay. He walked closer and closer to where the girl was laying down while simultaneously shooting water bullets, and he reached out for her hand, saying, "We need to go NOW. Take my hand so we can get out of here!" The girl looked at his hand, hesitated, then grabbed hold of his hand, as they both ran out of the alleyway together.
They ran and ran until Ezekiel believed they lost the two men. They rounded the corner to where The Crimson Tankard Inn was, and Ezekiel, out of breath, sat down on the dirt road next to it to get his breath back. It was still somewhat dark on the side of The Crimson Tankard Inn, and Ezekiel was a bit curious about the girl he had just saved. They mentioned something about her being a demi-human, but Ezekiel wasn't sure if he believed the men. The girl silently stood there, out of breath as well. Ezekiel said, "You're safe now. Those men are gonna have a hard time looking for us in this area." The girl continued to stay silent. Ezekiel asked, "Are you gonna be okay? Will you be able to get home alright?" The girl nodded, but as Ezekiel began walking away, the girl suddenly latched onto Ezekiel's arm, causing Ezekiel to stumble back in surprise, and having both of them tumble onto the street, with Ezekiel's back hitting the floor first and holding the girl tightly to avoid her hitting the ground. Ezekiel and the girl both fell to the ground, and Ezekiel suddenly felt something big and soft on his chest. He looked down and saw that the girl ended up on top of Ezekiel. Realizing this, the girl immediately got off of Ezekiel. Ezekiel just chuckled and got up on his own two feet. There was plenty of light for Ezekiel to see that this girl was indeed a demi-human. This girl had cat ears, and she also wore all black clothes, specifically a black skirt and black kitten t-shirt, at least the medieval version of it. She had long flowing black hair, emerald green eyes, and one could describe her as a "gothic loli," except she seemed more, uh, "mature" in the front and back, if you catch my drift. Although the cat girl wouldn't look at Ezekiel directly, something was moving behind her. Ezekiel caught a glimpse of it and realized that it was actually her tail moving excitedly. Ezekiel asked, "Are you okay?" The cat girl responded in a shy and quiet tone, "Y-You're the new c-cook that Whiskey hired, right?" Ezekiel responded, "I guess I am. Do you work at The Crimson Tankard Inn as well?" The cat girl replied, "I-I do. My name is Z-Zoey. I, uh, s-saw you today while I was working and W-Whiskey was talking to you, and I, uh.. s-sort of overheard your conversation..." Her voice trailed off but picked back up almost immediately. "A-Anyways, nice to meet you! I look f-forward to working with y-you!" Zoey then bowed, and Ezekiel cracked a small smile. Ezekiel then said, "I look forward to working with you as well, Zoey. I'm Ezekiel Clark, but just call me Ezekiel, my friend." Ezekiel smiled as he said this to make Zoey a little less tense. Zoey stammered, "F-friend?" Ezekiel replied, "Yeah, we're friends now. At least I hope we are!" Ezekiel smiled, and Zoey seemed to appear less tense. Zoey exclaimed, "Y-Yes! We're friends! I'm friends with you, Ezekiel!" Ezekiel laughed, and Zoey, after a brief moment, joined in as well, laughing along with Ezekiel in the dead of night. After both of them stopped laughing, they both smiled at each other. Ezekiel said, "I start working tomorrow, so I'm gonna go ahead and head back so I can get some sleep. You be careful!" Ezekiel started to walk away, but Zoey then grabbed his hand, to which Ezekiel turned around. Zoey was standing there, smiling very genuinely, and said, "T-Thank for you saving me, Ezekiel!" Ezekiel smiled widely, and humbly said, "It's what anyone would've done for someone in need. Anyways, I gotta get going. See you at work tomorrow Zoey!" Ezekiel walked off, and Zoey silently muttered with a smile, "See you tomorrow, Ezekiel."
Ezekiel went back inside The Crimson Tankard Inn and immediately headed back up to his room. The front desk girl greeted him, but he was so tired from his first day in the new world, he could only think about crashing on his bed. The front desk girl put on a pouty face after not getting a response from Ezekiel, not that Ezekiel would've noticed. He made his way to his room, and he fumbled with the key to unlock his bedroom door. He unlocked the door and closed it behind him, then suddenly found himself swan diving right into his bed. Once his head hit the pillow, he was out like a candle that had its flame blown out.
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