Before I... rather, we progress to the continuation of my journey, we head over to the first town I find along my journey. The extensive walking that I did yesterday seemed to have hit my initial stock of supplies too much, so while we're still here, we'd stock up for another walk we don't know how long will take. One thing's for sure though: I can count on this town to be my initial 'base' of sorts; I think I can keep coming back here when I need to. Walking all the way back to Shimizu or Kasu Village just isn't worth the re-visit, plus I don't think I can get that much supplies there anyway... they're just villges.

Hm... what if I do make this place my actual base instead? Just for sleeping quarters.

"Hey Kiluna." I turned to her while we were walking toward the town.

"What?"

"No one's living in that house that you let me sleep in yesterday, right?"

"I thought you would have figured that out by now."

"I was just wondering whether I can just make it temporarily mine for a while?"

"Make it yours?! Uhm, uh..."

Hm, is there something I overlooked? Considering the fact that she already let me sleep yesterday, I figured that she doesn't care that much about that house. Looks like she's still reluctant to give it to me. What I think is that she may have been taking care of that house for too long, she may have grown attached to it. Many people find that trait of being attached to inanimate objects weird, but as one who has encountered quite a number of people (even with my kinda silent personality...), I won't find anything new as weird. Heck, I've grown attached to my own cape. However, if she was truly attached to the house, she would have said "no" outright. I wonder what's keeping her...

"Uh, I'll think about it, oK?"

She can't even spew out an answer right now. Well, guess we should keep moving toward the town then.

We eventually arrive at Ugoshi Town. As this is actually the first time I've been to a town (remember that I'm a village boy), I'm amazed by the sheer number of buildings there are here. More than that, I'm surprised how modernized things can get around these places. Electricity in our village is just used mainly for basic appliances, like lights. If this is what a town looks like, what more if I see an actual fully modernized city? It would probably be very astounding in my eyes.

"Here we are! Ugoshi Town. Man, why don't I feel excited anymore when I come here...?"

"If these are your origins, I think I won't wonder; your teamma... no, the bandits might actually be around here, according to what you describe."

"True, but it's not that... I'm pretty sure I can handle them on my own."

"Yet you were pretty much helplessly cornered yesterday night..."

"...can we drop that event for a while, please?"

"Actually, I'm under the impression that you're just excited to go out on the journey."

"...you know what, that's actually kind of true! I'm not 'not' excited to come here, in fact I can't forget my origins; bottomline here is I can finally go places and solve that big myster of mine!"

"So before we get to that, could you please show me now to the markets or whatever you call them around here?"

"Markets... hahaha, an evident village boy right here. You may have to get used to calling them shops, as they're kinda defined differently."

"Moreover, I do not have any monetary item with me right now, so uh..."

"Well, if we're going to stock on much, I don't have that much with me right now. So let's go visit my 'office' first..."

"Office...?"

Kiluna dragged me over to some building in the middle of the town. It appears empty, and assuming from the name of the office "Don't Cut", it's probably hers.

"Okay, wait here."

So I was just outside her 'office', waiting for her to come out. Eventually she did, and she was carrying a subtly sized bag. Of course I had to ask:

"What's in that?"

"All the office stuff I leave inside it. Since I figured I wouldn't be going back here for a while, I took everything as it might help us on the trip.
And since I don't actually do this job anymore..."

She pulled some almost invisible lever near the grass that was surrounding her office. And as soon as she triggered that lever, the building suddenly collapsed. Of course that startled me so much, seeing as how such a well-structured building would just break down into pieces. This also made all the townsfolk suddenly look at us, what with all the racket that caused.

"..." was my only reaction.

"Nothing to see here, guys! Go on!" Kiluna commented, which actually made some of the people move along, despite the building just destroyed. Then someone approached Kiluna.

"Yep, I'm shutting the place down for now, so you can take that off the townmap. However, I still claim reservation of this lot, so no touching it." Kiluna said to that other guy.

"Alright, we'll cover the lot in a few.
Alright guys, we got another one here!"

I assumed that this person was somehow the one managing the land around these parts. You have to wonder if it's actually just a town, or it has the potential to be a full blown city.

We left that lot alone shortly after that, and proceeded with these places she called 'shops'. And my first impression? It's just like a market, only way better... The environment of one will actually enable you to think clearly, and the stuff here are actually organized. It makes looking for things easier, and the shopkeepers actually seem approachable. Well, the market owners back at Kasu and Shimizu are too, but still... Must be nice, living in a place where the environment is peaceful like this. I proceeded to get a good stock of necessities for the journey, which I was actually able to quantify nicely this time. As I was paying up on the counter (I've actually kinda learned already, heh), Kiluna picked up an antique-looking piece of folded paper from some container located on top of the counter. She gave the paper to me.

"We will definitely find this handy."

"What is this?"

"Open it. Oh and by the way, you're holding my cash."

Hm, for some odd reason, her bag of money somehow ended up in my hand, so I gave it back to her. I then open up the paper she just gave me.

"It's a copy of an old map that depicts the area for a good how many miles around the town. We could use it to get an idea where we'd want to go first."

Very helpful indeed. I took out my own map and started to draw on it, adding locations based on this new map that we got. The map, like any other good map, also has the NESW symbol, so it was pretty easy redrawing everything onto my own map. After I was done, the transaction of the items we ordered were also done, so we head out. I think we're ready to get out of the town.

"So, we should probably get going now..." I recommended Kiluna.

"Not so fast! You're going to leave so soon, but you've forgotten something that wandering travellers always do!"

I'm no wandering traveller... well, at least I don't call myself one. "And that is...?"

"Info gathering! Walking aimlessly usually gets you nowhere, causing you to walk for at least six hours straight..."

Hm, it's true... I didn't have any sort of information prior to leaving Kasu Village, leading me straight here, when I probably would have encountered a nearer town or something...

"Alright, information gathering. However, I'm not really sure if which of these people could give us the information we need...?"

"The only pub around here is usually brimming with tons of info, even those that seem so unreal. You might be able to eavesdrop on some people on what you need, or just read the articles around there. In Ugoshi, almost everything within knowledge come across the pub, so it's worth a shot."

"Guess we don't really have much of a choice for that, so let's go."

We head over to the place. For some reason, it doesn't look as different as the organized drinking stations (...alcohol drinking stations), so it felt pretty comfortable here. Hell, there were actually some bottles over here that had familiar labels. Is drinking really that popular? Well I must say, it's kind of a great hobby, though it hasn't been that much of a good entertainment source lately in the village...

And what's the best way to eavesdrop than to sit in a place where you can pretty much hear everyone and pretend that you're spacing out? Kiluna prompted the... bartender, I think what they were called, to get a drink for me. Seems like Kiluna is actually kinda popular around the town and usually get these things for free, or whatever...

"He's just a newcomer, so we probably should go easy on him for now." I heard Kiluna comment. I just had to reply.

"Hey. I may be a foreigner here, but that doesn't mean I'm a weakling with these kinds of stuff."

I'm quite the drinker back in Kasu, actually. And I don't regret it at all: this stuff is good, real good. It also, believe it or not, helped me to develop stabilization of my mind; as the alcohol tries to mess around with your nervous system, you'd want to condition your body to be ready for it. I've developed various techniques to keep myself sane for the most part, and those techniques also help in normal life, allowing me to think deeply even in the most chaotic situations. Drinking is kind of my meditation supplement, if you can put it that way.

"At least hit me up with something original here." I said to the bartender. The selection over at the village kind of gets repetitive after a while of being there, so I'm not letting this opportunity of having something new pass up. Of course, I couldn't just forget what I came here for; as soon as I got my bottle, I proceeded to sit down just there in front of the bar. It should be a good enough spot to hear the entire place. Oh, and before I forget to mention (author's note: yes I forgot to actually mention this earlier), the other people over at Kasu Village said that the size of my ears contribute to my ability to hear. Now unless I entered someone else's brain, I wouldn't really know if it's actually true. Anyway, time to concentrate on a spot to eavesdrop on.

"Just curious, what topics mainly interest you anyway, Ryougen?" Kiluna asked me.

"...new places. Faraway lands. Basically anything that I haven't heard of. I'm pretty sure these people wouldn't know anything about this mystical objective of mine, so I'll start with the most basic concept of 'heaven is right there'." I replied.

"Fine by me, I'll eavesdrop on my own concerns as well."

So here I am, sitting in front of the bar, trying to overhear conversations from within the entire place. Let's see which conversations I can whip up...

"But that was totally not my intention! I seriously didn't think it would be too much!"
"You got one of the more classic sounds, THEN put in something that doesn't even resemble it's tune! What do you think you're doing?!"
"Well, I was trying to soar... soar high..."
"...you seriously have to stop drinking, BHM."

Ooookay so I don't think that's actually that interesting. Let's try another spot...

"So that dude, he was... *jumbled up words* and I was like YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO... And and and... that girl saw them and then she was like *jumbled words* and then I was like YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

Uh, I don't think that's even of any sense... Moving on...

"Man, what... what the hell do you think this is?
"It's... IT'S...
IS NAHMKOW BABY!"
"Central *jumbled word* Coast, yeah baby!"
*some noises coming from some device...*
"Oops! That *jumbled words* say, DENIED."

...OK these conversations make me totally feel like an outsider now. Isn't there any serious conversation I'll hear here...?

"Hey, uh... question, if I may ask."
"What is it?"
"You know that girl across the street along *jumbled words* corner?"
"That weird girl that *jumbled words* potions and stuff? What about her?"
"I think she somehow stole something precious..."
"Something precious, you say...?"
"My precious thing..."

I don't even want to know what the hell they're talking about. To think I actually thought it was something of value this time...

"There's however, this one place on this stinking map I still don't know what's in it."
"What place? This sort of cave over here?"
"Yeah, this one over here. It's said to be filled with ca*jumbled sounds* , and I actually saw them just outside! The fog was kind of thick, and after a while I couldn't see anything... that's why I turned back before the ca*jumbled sound* were going to eat me, and just ran away... no way am I ever going back to that cave again!"
"Sometimes you actually have to wonder if it's all worth it... going to that cave and finding that special treasure, if it's actually even there..."
"I've had numerous scary moments in my exploring, but this one is kinda bit too much! I'm not going back there!"

Cave? I wonder what cave they're talking about. Is it somehow this unnamed cave in the Ugoshi Map I just got? Definitely looks like a place of interest...

"Hey, you heard of that guy? You know, the one that uses his giant bow-sword-whatever hell that thing is as a toothpick?"

What?

"Actually, all you have to do is count the number of *jumbles* and divide it by 4. By the time you get to *jumble* 100, it should equivalent to the amount of increase in that *jumble*."
"I actually kind of know that already. However, I still do not understand why different *jumble jumble* end up with different *jumble* even at *jumble* 100..."

Math? Not my thing, let's move on to somewhere else...

"Have you been to AC City? The one on *jumble*"
"No, actually. What's there?"
"Only the most improved technology to ever exist on the face of this world! It's unbelievably modernized so much, you'd think they'd be able to spy us talking about the city right about now!"
"What? How is that possible?"
"It's either that 'GPS' thing or the highly advanced 'satellite-driven' cameras or something... I have no idea how these newfangled things work, don't ask me! But basically saying, this place is AMAZING in terms of modernization."
"If you describe it to be that well, it actually seems like a place I'd go to."
"Oh, very. And if you get the chance, go look for the popular genius there named Aco*jumble* when he puts up a seminar... it sometimes actually looks more like a show rather than a *jumble*, and *jumble*"

Hm, interesting. Let's see...

"Hey you! Yeah, you there, moving your ears around with that drink rotting around in the 3 hours that it's been there!"

Uh, I think someone was actually calling me this time. I turned a few angles around to see that it was just someone sitting also at the bar. He had blue skin, blue cat-like ears that are smaller than Tenyou's, and... actually, I couldn't help but notice how weird he is clothed. He wores a miniature crown on his head, with what I believe to be some clothing that royalties wear that makes them look fatter than they are with some ruffles; rather than look like a prince, I'd say he looks stupid, in all senses of the word.

"Are you actually going to drink that or are you going to continue making an idiot of yourself there?" he shouted a bit.

"Excuse me? Who's the idiot?" I replied.

"I'm looking at him."

"Oh, is that so? I thought I was looking at him..."

"You're one to talk, outsider boy!"

"Whatever, my reason for being here is none of your business, so could you please just un-stick your nose out of what I'm doing, please?"

"Well, I'd normally let you continue being an idiot, but after calling me one, I think I can't let that slip away now, can we?"

I actually thought of replying "You mad?" to him, but I figured that would taint my outsider personality a bit, so I waited for the next thing he'd do. I didn't see what he actually did, but suddenly there were 2 bottles of the same drink in his hands. He slammed both on the table, one near me and one in front of him.

"Think you're up to it?!"

Is he seriously thinking of challening me into what I think he's going to? Maybe those times slacking off in Kasu may just pay off today. I held the glass I had, and literally threw the liquid in it all the way into my mouth, splashing inside my oral orifice (author's note: ?). Since I was pretty much challenged to something, I didn't get a taste of what that drink tasted like.

"We drink in bottles." I said confidently.

"Fine by me!" the other guy shouted, though there was this slight tremble in the one of his voice somewhere... I think it was on the 'fine' part. He kind of has the advantage here since he knows about the brands here while I don't, so after making sure that he's giving me the same bottle, I'll just chug it down.

Quite a number of bottles emptied out already, and my body was starting to feel different. It seems like his is also becoming unstable too.

"Alright, I think... this is where it all gets exciting." I got cocky enough to say that.

"You *hic* are not going to win this." was all he replied.

Time to fully use the techniques I learned myself back then. The next two bottles came on. Holding both of them up, gulping them like there was no tomorrow, I closed my eyes as I fully 'seal my sane self on my entire body system' so that my actual soul will never leave. This usually has me end up thinking of other stuff quickly, so that I don't re-enact them in the real world. Not being able to see helps a lot since it actually renders your imagination wilder.
For these bottles, for some odd reason, the image that formed in my head was Kiluna... and she was... never mind. I had to open my eyes all of a sudden and drop one bottle down on the table because of the sudden image that formed in my head. I saw that the other guy wasn't doing that much better either. I just hope that... those kinds of images don't form again the next time I try to do this. Finsihing up the current bottles, a few more were handed to us. The other guy still seemed strong, but I can feel that imbalance of his starting to kick in. However, this was also kind of a bad situation for me as I was feeling my nervous system dulling over earlier than usual... has it been that long ever since I 'practiced'? This will probably be the final bottle (author's note: wow, unintentional pun right there), and whoever keels over last will probably win it.

This next bottle however, was much different. As I gulped it down and closed my eyes, a pulse suddenly started inside my body... or how can I describe it? It's like this bottle worked like a magic potion, as I feel rejuvenized a few seconds after drinking some of this... is this really an alcoholic beverage or something? It's probably obvious that I had no problems gulping this one down, but it seems like I was starting again from my first bottle; it was that magical.

When I dropped the empty bottle down, I looked to see the other guy with his face on the table, quite literally here. Seeing as how it seemed to be over (without regards to whoever was watching us), I looked at the label of the bottle, only to find out that the label has faded so much that it's not readable anymore. And I was looking forward to getting me one of these for some other time...

While Kiluna was staring at me intently, with an "Wow, I'm impressed" face, I figured it was time to leave. Leaving the stranger behind, I walk out of the pub along with Kiluna without saying a word. Before I was able to leave the door however, I felt something pounced on my cape, but it was weak enough for me to just ignore and step straight out of the door.

"That was... some immense 'skill' there. Especially for a village boy." Kiluna commented immediately just after the door closed.

"I've got quite an experience. Anyway, he was really getting annoying anyway... I'm just glad that it didn't turn into something too drastic and it ended quickly."

"Wow, it's like you're not even dazed one bit! I could totally hang out with a drinker such as you."

"Why, you're not that proficient yourself?"

"Not really. I only drink for the taste."

"You and I the same, really. To be honest that was the first time I even attempted at a challenge like that."

"You've got to be joking me!"

"Well, the guy was pretty weak anyway... it was probably just a waste of time.
Anyway, what did you hear?"

"Nothing too interesting, except for some mysteries going around the town lately about the sudden influx of cats..."

"Influx of cats, huh. Didn't really hear that one... wait. I did hear one conversation that may have mentioned something about cats, but I couldn't make out their words exactly... Something related to that cave a few distances to the east of Ugoshi (facing North)."

"Cave? You mean this unnamed cave? Well, I haven't actually been to that place... and I don't think anybody has; it doesn't even have a name yet."

"Well, all the more reason to start moving."

"Wait, you plan on going there?! You're not scared from what you heard?"

"Well, how bad can the fog get? Exploring on things you can't see all just makes it more exciting."

"Yeah, but... well, okay, your call."

"Well, it'll probably be always like that.
So, let's 'officially' begin this adventure now, once and for all."

We proceed to walk toward the town's outskirts, but I have a feeling I probably might have forgotten something...

I'm kinda lazy for creating new maps, pal. xD