As Grey darted across the street, Fallen Star attempted to dissuade him, but nothing worked.
- Do you have to? -
'Yes.'
- Really, are you not just letting your emotions get the better of you? -
'I'm sure.'
- Lies. -
'Of course, I'm lying. Doesn't mean I'm not going to go.'
With that, Grey reached the door to the church. He took a deep breath, calming himself and activating his demon's side, removing his emotion. Once he was a blank slate, he opened the door.
The inside was much like what one would expect from a church, there were rows of chairs, a path in the middle that led to an altar, and large glass murals. Above the altar stood one huge mural, its size dwarfing the rest. Below it, a Sister prayed.
Step Step-
His footsteps echoed in the hall, and the lady praying turned her head.
"Welcome to the Church of the Sun God. How may I help you?"
Hearing her words, Fallen Star sighed a breath of relief, and Grey took a moment to calm himself. However, he remained suspicious. The Sun God could be Him.
He had avoided researching religion, not wanting to know anything about it, and had never seen a church as he traveled through Arkusia. Even the Border Town had no church.
Because of this, the mere sight of one church had infuriated him due to its links to Him, leading him to think of doing something he may have regretted.
"Oh, no. It's nothing, Sister. I just came to give my regards."
"Oh? Well then, you came at the perfect time, mister..."
"Grey, please... Call me Grey."
"Of course, Grey. Well, we're just about to pray, so come join us."
'We?'
At her words, two doors that lay on either side of the altar opened, revealing several children.
"You see, the church is tied to the local orphanage. The children love to come and pray. Since they started more than 100 years ago, the adoption rates in the orphanage have gone up by more than 30%. The Sun God truly watches over us." She said as she walked toward the children and the altar.
- See. Isn't that definitive proof? He would never do this, He's too self-absorbed. He'd just lay in the praise and do nothing about it. -
'That is... fair.' With that, the last of Grey's doubt dissipated, and he followed.
'''Hello, mister. Do you wanna play?''' Several kids asked as he neared.
A smile bloomed on his face at the words, and he replied. "After we pray, alright?"
'''Yay!''' The kids cheered.
- I'm glad that you saw this, Grey. There is more to the world than training and pain. Please, don't let rage consume you. I won't always be here. - Fallen Star thought to Itself, smiling at the sight of Grey and the kids.
---
After Grey played with the kids, he left the church a lighter man than before. Whilst he was still weighed down by his past, it was a little easier to breathe.
He resumed his walk deeper into the heart of Novis Sanguis. The sights of the city fascinated him, but he ignored them. He could always come back at a later date.
Soon enough, he arrived at the only hotel that didn't require a reservation and was good enough to be called a hotel.
He entered swiftly, eager to put down his bag and explore. He also had to sign up for the royal duel, so there was that too.
He walked over to the receptionist, asking for a room for 1 for a month. A detail he learned on the plane because Kim Jaehyun forgot, was that he would be there for around a month, so Grey had to accommodate that.
The receptionist complied, handing him a key.
---
"Ah, that's much better," Grey said as he stood outside with both of his hands free.
'First things first, let's sign up.' Grey began to walk to the castle, taking mental note of the shops he wanted to visit on the way.
He soon arrived at two massive doors, similar in design to the border, which left him confused, similar to then. 'What needs such massive doors?'
Before the gate sat a man behind a desk, who Grey figured was the person in charge of sign-up.
He walked up to him, greeting the man who responded by nodding toward a code.
Scanning it with his hologram, Grey read through the digital sheet.
'Yeah, it's just a regular sign-up sheet. Glad I made it in time.' The sheet said that the deadline for the sign-up was that day, so Grey had barely made it.
He inputted his data and forwarded the sheet to the man. The man once again nodded, signaling to Grey that he had received the form.
With that done, Grey walked off to make the most of the lingering sunlight.
First, he visited an alchemy store, finding himself wowed by the delights inside.
'Tier 1 to 5 Health potions and syringes, Tier 1 to 5 Stamina syringes and potions, miscellaneous Magicks. They've got everything!'
Grey was a very thrifty person, buying only what he needed, so he had never been to an alchemy store before. Now, however, that he was working as a Hunter, and got hurt every time, buying better potions proactively instead of reactively seemed like a good idea.
In the end, he left having spent more than he would have liked, but with many things that he could use. The shop owner personally saw him out as well, a clear sign that he was a great customer.
Next, Grey visited a pastry shop. He had a chance to try the local delicacies, so why not?
He selected 3 different sweets that he thought would be nice, and left the shop, ignoring the aroma that tried to pull him back in.
Sitting on a bench, Grey looked into his bag.
'Let's see, you first.' Grey took out a simple croissant, finding it to be filled with nuts. 'Oh, damn, that's good.'
After scarfing down the pastry, he took out the next one. A crepe.
'This, I believe is a cake, not a pastry. Wonder how it tastes?' Inside the crepe were berries and whipped cream, which gave it a light and fluffy taste, with hints of sweetness. However, the taste of the berries was the delectable part. Grown within the Elven Domain, the berries burst with flavor, some being tart and some being sweet.
'Oh, my... I've wasted 17 years of my life.'
- Come on, Grey. How good could it be? - Fallen Star questioned. Again, whilst It saw what he did, that was it. If It wanted to access his other senses, It would have to look into his memories, something It had chosen never to do without permission.
'Go on then, look through my memory of it.' Grey challenged, confident that Fallen Star would agree.
Fallen Star fell silent for a few seconds, before returning.
- I take back what I said. Elves rule! -
'Okay, buddy.' Grey chuckled at Fallen Star's words.
- Grey. Can I go through all your food memories? -
'Uhh, sure bud.' With Grey's permission, Fallen Star dove into his food memories.
'Fallen Star'll take a while, so I will enjoy this.'
Grey took out a pastry in the shape of a swirl, with both cinnamon and mint in it.
After the first bite, he put it back in the bag.
'Cinnamon and mint, huh? Great on their own, but I don't like them together. Good to know.'
'What now?' Grey had a few more shops he wanted to visit, but the sky had darkened, and most were closing.
'I guess I'll have dinner.' Grey had seen many restaurants whilst traveling through Novis Sanguis, but only one had caught his eye.
---
Grey entered a restaurant, wearing the only fancy outfit he brought. A simple suit and tie.
He had gone back to the hotel to get changed and was glad he did. The inside of the restaurant was packed with people, and Grey worried he might not get a table.
What he knew, however, was that elves were passionate about food, and a rule one of the past kings had passed stated that no restaurant may take reservations.
'Funny.'
- Indeed. - Fallen Star had come back once Grey was finished changing and was now a massive foodie.
- Grey, you've got to try as many dishes as possible. - It commanded.
'Woah, hold your horses. I'll eat what I can, thank you very much.'
- ... Fine. -
Grey spoke to the waiter at the front, asking for a table for 1.
"I'm sorry sir, but we have no tables for 1 left. However, there are tables for 2. You just need to be open to having a guest." He informed.
"Yeah, that sounds fine."
"Okay then, sir. Please, follow me."
The waited led Grey to a table that seemed to be more for a couple, than for 2.
'Well, that makes sense. Only a couple or 2 good friends would get a table for 2.'
Grey sat down, ordering a glass of wine.
- Why? - Fallen Star asked. Grey did drink, his parents had introduced him to it, slowly of course, but he had decided not to drink outside of home, because of safety.
'Because it's a fancy place. I have to.'
- Oh. -
Grey was handed a menu by a waiter who came with his wine, so he began to look through it.
As he did, he overheard a couple talking next to him.
"Did you know? Apparently, the princess is coming here tonight." The woman said.
"Really? That explains why it's so packed." The man replied.
"Of course." The woman nodded.
"Would you like to hear a fact?" The man asked the woman. "Not even royalty is exempt from the law about reserving a table, so someone here might sit with her."
"Really?"
Hearing their conversation, Grey felt a little tinge of annoyance. 'This has happened before, hasn't it?'
Once the couple mentioned that not even royals were exempt, Grey was sure.
'She's gonna sit with me, isn't she?'