Chapter 3: Ch.3: First Impressions

"Where...did you come from?"

Although strange as it may be, I was aware that this language was not native in my past life. Even so, I could understand every word to perfection and it resonated back into my mind with a clear translation as if I had known it for all my life. It was a strange and odd experience at first, but this blessing was greatly appreciated since it would make communication a lot easier on my end of things. Taking a deep breath, I wore my best confused expression and spoke with honesty.

"I...I woke up in the middle of the forest but...I don't know how I got there." It was a bit of a lie, but there really was truth to it.

And the guards seemed to buy that so far. They looked at each other with the same worry in their eyes, as if they were looking at an odd animal that could not stand on its own trying to walk but failing time and time again. It was an oddly specific look that I couldn't really translate into words, but I could certainly feel the confusion and sheer loss of words in their minds.

"I don't remember....almost anything....Now that I think about it." That was a full truth, and it appeared to clear out their confusion a little, as they turned back to me.

"Well, I don't really know how you ended up in there but come with us. I think the elder can help you with this memory problem." One of the guards, the oldest one by looks, said so.

"First thing I agreed on with you all day." The youngest one replied, not quite as worried about the situation since a clear path was laid out for him. "Say, what's your name, Miss?"

A name. I didn't have one but not knowing the actual words of the language would make things harder in case I wanted to choose one for myself. Since I couldn't even respond with my previous name, I should be honest about this matter. At least that was my reasoning behind my response at the time.

"I.....I don't remember..." I said, a bit of a break at the end in my voice. Totally unprompted, but it fit well with my carefully crafted response so it worked like a charm.

"Oh....I'm sorry, let's just get you to the elder before you forget how to talk too." Ouch. That was a bit rude, and the oldest guard seemed to think so too.

In any case, leaving these introduction antics aside, they guided me towards the village. Now that I could get a glance at the people around me, I could tell we were in a somewhat Japanese situation when it came down to clothing, architecture and general layout of things. Even if I knew what Japanese culture was like, I probably couldn't pin-point those details at first sight, but it seems my past self was a little more knowledgeable than forgetful me, so that was a nice change of pace.

It seemed more practical than ornamental. Thatch roofs built on top of wooden structures mixed in with clay and rough cement for the walls. The roads were still composed mainly of dirt, but at the very least the main street seemed to be in the process of being replaced with actual bricks and cement so things seemed marginally better than what I expected from a rural village in such a setting.

Some people looked at me weird, others smiled to me, and a few men even lingered their eyes for a little more than I was comfortable with. It seemed my appearance was a little odd, not in a bad way, but the intriguing kind. I was a bit taller than the two guards I was following, so it was normal for some people to look up at me, not so much that I would be a giant considering the difference, but I was above the average that's for sure.

Leaving appearances aside, I could also notice a few strange buildings that were different from the smithing workshops, general good stores and the inn that was still halfway built on the side of the main street. There was no sign on them, but their construction seemed a bit better than the norm, even though they were clearly not our destination. Out of sheer curiosity, I decided to ask about them.

"Excuse me, what are those buildings over there?" I pointed to both of them, which laid front-to-front across the street.

"Oh, those'd be the Mercenary Association and the Adventurer's Guild. They look familiar to you?" The oldest one responded, maybe a bit interested since they caught my eye. Maybe he thought I belonged to either of them due to my size.

"I can't say for sure, but I think I recognize something similar from somewhere....It's a little hard to track where from though..." He seemed a bit disappointed with my response, but he simply gave me an understanding nod before we kept walking.

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As we did so, they didn't really bother to show me around. They probably thought it wouldn't really matter for some reason, maybe they expected me to just get to this elder and get booted off the village but...That'd be a little cold, wouldn't it?

With that faint worry at the back of my mind, we finally arrived at our destination. A big house, or what I'd call a small manor, that was constructed at the very beginning of the new road. The starting point of it, it would seem. The walls were made from bricks and it seemed like some sort of white paint was applied to the exterior. Like so, the roof was built from actual ceramic, which indicated this building was either really new, or it had been renovated not too long ago. Both options seemed a little selfish considering the state of the other buildings, but maybe it was just a remodulation in progress for the entire village.

"Give me a second, I will call for him." The younger guard walked up to the door and knocked on it twice, before getting no response. "This old man..." He seemed a bit angry, and so he knocked three times really loudly.

"Should he be this....What's the word..."

"Disrespectful? Maybe. The old man's his grandfather so I think he got used to it already. The elder is not a bad man but he does enjoy his luxuries quite a bit."

Ah, his response left me worrying a little bit. An old man using his people's taxes to build himself a manor is something I really didn't want to find as my first connection. Still, the older guard didn't seem too bothered by his own words, so maybe the elder was someone of actual respectable reputation and not just some crazy senile old man living in the outskirts leeching off the village people's work.

"Geez! This is the reason why we should install some kind of door-alarm so I can be reminded my grandson comes to visit!" An older voice seemed to exclaim on the inside of the building before the door was opened. And yeah, what appeared was an old man with the most majestic of beards, wearing nothing but a loincloth.

"Old man! I told you to wear your robes properly before you open the door!"

"But it's such a bother~! Leave me alone, will you?"

I somehow couldn't help but think the roles should've been reversed in this situation.

"You just thought they are the opposite to what they should, right?"

Ah, the older guard read my mind. I simply nodded and he gave just smiled with a tired expression on his face. That was enough to tell me everything about this weird custom that must've been happening for a while now.

"Even though I've been here for less than a day, I think I can imagine how hard it must've been. I'm sorry for causing even more trouble."

"Apology accepted. Come, we should take this talk inside before the old man goes running out of town again."

"Again?...."

This certainly was going to be more tiresome than I thought it would ever come to be.

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