Tales of Vyscher Book 2

Chapter 29

Daybreak found Vic and Rek at the outskirts of Greenglade, a charming little walled town within the border forest. They could have entered the previous night, but they thought that the prospect of entering and finding a room to stay in late at night was a risky proposition. This was much safer after a good night of sleep and a passable breakfast of smoked fish. So it was that they were waiting at the gate to the town when it opened in the morning.

As they hoped, there was no issue heading into the town, there were enough travelers up and down the trade way that the guards posted at the gate merely looked them over a bit to make sure they didn't seem threatening on their way in.

Most of the buildings were set well back from the road, which was no longer paved at this point, as the duchy had only paved up to the edge of the forest and Ordence never took the time to finish it. There was always a lot of traffic though as the caravans got moving every day, and it was easier to have the houses set back in case two caravans heading in opposite directions needed extra room to get around each other.

Wood was the common building material, since they were in the middle of the forest after all, but there was a good amount of brick as well. Luckily, one of the buildings made of brick was a good sized inn with the sign of a large green tree, and it was nice and close to the gate. Rek pointed it out and the girls hastily made their way inside.

A warm fire on one side of a common room beckoned, as there were several empty chairs and tables in that area. Vic pointed that way to Rek, and they settled down to let the fire warm them from the morning dew. Both groaned in relief to be seated upon real furniture again after several days of hard ground. The scent of cooking food was in the air, and their stomachs growled in response. Evidently cold smoked fish wasn't enough for breakfast.

Sitting back in her chair, Vic looked around the room. There were quite a few merchants and their guards, wagon drivers and the like, but not too many locals that she could see. That made sense, since it was early still, and they would still be in their homes. Maybe they could find a market later, where more locals would be congregating.

It was their first real visit to a town in another country and they were trying to take all the sights in. When they went to visit Bawnia, they never got to look around, it being at night, so this was a better experience. There wasn't much wood construction in Vysher, as it was conserved with the limited supplies and most construction was done with stones from the mountains instead. They used their precious wood for furniture mostly, as well as some of the weapons. Here, almost everything was made from wood. While the inn itself was brick, most likely made from clay from a nearby river, there were many wooden supports, and an immense wooden bar for drinking.

"Excuse me, can I get you girls anything? I'm Frellya, the innkeeper here." said a gentle voice from beside her. Gentle or not it almost made her jump out of her skin, as she had been looking around too much. A kindly looking older woman had approached from the other side, looking to be of service. While older, her eyes were bright, and she had a wide and kind smile.

"Good morning, ma'am! Do you have any food for a pair of travelers?" Rek saved her with a nudge.

"Why yes dear we do! There are some nice sausages and eggs that we can heat up, or there is some leftover venison from last night. How hungry are you?"

"We'll take the eggs and sausage please, and some bread if you have any." Vic replied, having recovered her wits.

"Of course, dears, it will be right out."

"Oh, and preserves for the bread if you have any!" Rek called after her.

"Preserves? You and your sweet tooth!"