Chapter 10: Chapter 8 – Bearings (Part I)

Sleep did not come easily to Keiran and it wasn’t just because of his lackluster beddings made of plant husks. Being a city boy, Keiran was used to the regular bustling of the city night life, the police sirens, the vibrations from the public transit system, and so on. Here, it was dead silence that was occasionally punctured by howls and screeches of the local fauna, whether they were insects, beasts, or the potentially other sentient denizens of the forest, Keiran did not know. Glad I decided to stick with the village instead of running away into the forest, thought Keiran ruefully. Something else had also kept him tossing and turning throughout the night, the nightmares. The faces of the people he killed kept flashing in front of this face, cursing him to a painful death. The faces of his parents and friends, blaming him for running aways and turning his back on them without a word. To add insult to injury was the notification he saw when he woke up.

He dismissed the notification and got out of bed. He had things to do and questions that needed answers. He opened the windows to let in light into the room and once again confirmed he was on another world. The pale yellow sun was hanging above the horizon while the gas giant hung prominently above it in the blue sky. The colors of the gas giant were not as vibrant in day as in the night sky. Still, the view was just as astonishing as it was at night to Keiran as it was in the day. A cool breeze drifted into the room and sent chills up Keiran’s spine, bringing him back to his mortal coil. He found a change of clothes outside his door, nothing extravagant, a simple tunic, trousers, and a vest. After a quick change of attire, he left the room along with his backpack. A passing aide spotted him and directed him to the kitchen so that he could satiate his hunger and quench his thirst. A casual conversation with the aide informed him that Tali and the rest of the household were already out and about, hours before he got up. After finishing his breakfast, which consisted of sausages, eggs, and a porridge of some kind, he got a surprising notification.

Keiran dismissed the notification and headed out of the estate and proceeded towards Nihata’s cottage. The villagers were already out and about doing their daily chores. Some politely greeted him, while others simply stared as he passed by. Every now and then, he would pass a group of 4 to 5 young children, no older than ten, playing around in the village as he made his way over to Nihata’s. Confirming he was at the right place with one of the neighbors tender to their vegetable garden, Keiran braced himself and knocked on the door. He didn’t have to wait too long, Nihata promptly opened the door and invited him inside. 

She was wearing a pale green gown underneath a sleeveless brown tunic, her hair was bound together by a white cloth. “I was expecting you much earlier,” she stated without betraying any emotions before Keiran could even exchange any pleasantries. “I had a rough night of sorts.” Keiran replied. The cottage was simple yet cozy, nothing extravagant like the head woman’s place. The walls were adorned with fabric with a variety of different patterns. An empty fire pit sat in the middle of the far wall underneath a hearth. There were a variety of herbs and what Keiran could roughly call birds hanging above the hearth. An iron cooking pot and stacks of charcoal sat besides the fire pit. Two long wooden benches, enough to seat 2 a piece, sat on either side perpendicular to the fire pit. A wooden table was pressed against the far wall with two sets of stools next to it, while a cabinet and chest occupied either side of a window behind one of the benches near the fire pit. Lastly, a closed door near the entrance led to the rest of the cottage. 

Keiran sat down on one of the benches Nihata gestured at. To say it was uncomfortable would be an understatement. The hard wood provided no cushion for Keiran’s behind. “How are you doing after last night?” Keiran asked. “I am alive and will recover in due time. I want to thank you for interceding before,” she paused, “it went too far” she said. “I owe you a debt and I plan on repaying it,” she added. “You don’t have to worry about it, I am sure anyone else would have done the same.” Keiran replied. He wasn’t comfortable with the idea of extracting some sort of benefit from a woman who was still coming to terms with a sexual assault. “Some would, but someone with your class or level, never! Which is why it is important for me to balance the scale of your courage.” she retorted. She sighed, “Allow me to be direct here, you are not from around here and I am pretty sure you are not even from any of the far flung corners of the kingdom.” she stated, directly meeting his eyes. “W-what led you to believe that?” stammered Keiran, suddenly realizing he was standing. If this was anything like the medieval era of earth, he wasn’t looking to be burned to the stake by some crazy fanatics. “Calm yourself and sit down, I am no threat to you. I owe you my life, which is why I have already helped you last night,” she replied, hoping he wouldn’t just bolt and doom himself. 

"What do you mean you already helped me?" asked Keiran confused, they were clearly helping each other when they took down the bandits. "I think it would be better if we head over to Landon, he is an Oath Binder and can set us up with an oath of secrecy. Unless, you didn't just learn Hattani last night and can read the terms of a standard oath of secrecy contract." she stated after withdrawing a scroll from the chest and handing it over to him with a raised eyebrow. Keiran knew his gig was up. He sighed, "Very well. Let's meet this Landon fellow." They made their way over to Landon’s. He was a middle aged man, in his early forties from the looks of it. He was balding from the top and clearly was compensating for it with a thick and long brown beard. He was by far the most well dressed man in the village, besides Xavier, he had met so far. A dagger in a decorated sheath hung across his belt and bulging stomach. While an air of pride and pompousness clung to Landon, he was entirely professional throughout the exchange. Nihata and Landon exchanged coins after finalizing the details, a standard level 2 oath of secrecy. Without wasting any time, Landon initialized the contract.

Oath of Secrecy (Level 2) Nihata Kazch would like to forge an oath of secrecy with you. Terms: Once invoked, any conversation between the two parties, for a duration of three hours, cannot be disclosed to a third party in any way, shape, or form without the consent of both parties. Penalty: All skills are disabled for 6 months

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