### Chapter 6: Mayor Maiser
Stepping out of the secret room, I trudged up the long, winding stone stairs, pushed open the hatch above, and found myself in a shabby earthen house. It suddenly dawned on me that I had just crawled out of a cellar.
The little girl leading the way hurriedly bolted out through the door. I followed her outside, and the blazing sun overhead hit me like a brick, making it impossible to open my eyes for a moment.
“Ugh…”
With my eyes still shut, I could hear the wind howling past me.
A dry breeze whisked my way, the scorching heat sizzling on my face with a warmth that felt oddly refreshing.
It had been too long since I felt like this.
Rebirth…
Out of nowhere, this thought popped into my head.
I’m not dead…
I’m back in action!
Ha…
“Grandpa—”
The little girl stomped outside, her squishy shoes squelching with every step as she called out. Her little footsteps faded into the distance. Once my eyes adjusted to the brightness, I shielded my face with my hand and cracked one eye open—there, in the midst of desolation, a faded yellow town began to take shape before me.
It seemed twilight was creeping in.
The crimson sunlight was about to be devoured by the distant mountains, but it still blazed with a colorful intensity, casting orange rays across the yellow earth as it fulfilled its last duties of the day. Stretching endlessly, the yellow soil appeared barren, scarcely any green plants in sight, even the distant mountains looked like a bunch of bald heads.
Here and there, a few odd purple trees jutted straight up from this wasteland, resembling the perfect painter’s brushstroke that lent this dreary scene an unexpected charm.
This was a land steeped in poverty.
Amidst this wasteland stood a haphazard collection of simple, mud-built houses, some even had walls built high enough to form courtyards. Those walls, made of dirt, had mostly crumbled, allowing the sunlight to leak through the pockmarked depressions. I could just about make out a drying clothesline in one courtyard, draped with rough cloth.
Closer to me was a crooked dirt road snaking across my line of sight. The road was alive with chatter and bustling activity, people scurrying about, while an elderly man sitting in front of a house, puffing on a pipe, slowly stood up, wrapped his arms around his granddaughter who sprinted by, and bent over, his murky eyes looking at me filled with shock and confusion.
“You, you…”
The old man seemed at a loss for words. A group of stout men in robes and turbans gathered near him, calling him “Mayor” in dialect, while someone summoned the little girl again. Another waved at a woman across the road to move along, and the rest stared at me with a mix of vigilance and awe.
These folks looked like residents of this town…
I furrowed my brows.
A town… in the yellow desert?
That old man was just sitting in front of the mud house, clearly keeping an eye on me, but he didn’t seem hostile. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been let out so easily… Or do they think I’m some kind of man-eating monster, so they’re scared of me and too afraid to act rashly?
No clue what’s going on…
So let’s keep quiet for now.
My mind was racing. I deepened my frown, put on my best serious face, and swept my gaze over the crowd, finally landing on the old man’s face, staring him down without uttering a word.
I’m waiting for them to speak first…
And then I’ll gauge the situation.
“Uh…”
But they just looked at each other, unsure of what to say. The awkward silence stretched on until finally, the old man relaxed his guard. He glanced back at the little girl, then made a gesture with his eyes for everyone to step back, and then he limped his way toward me.
“L-lady… um, sir… young lady…”
He stopped a few steps away from me, a pipe dangling from his belt, changing his address to me multiple times, trying to bow before he suddenly switched to thumping his chest with a fist. The result looked a ridiculous mix of bowing and chest thumping; he was all flustered, uncertain, and utterly charming.
“I—cough cough—am Mayor of Meiser Town, Robert Palison. I have been waiting for your awakening… uh… we’ve all been waiting for your awakening. You’ve slept for such a long time. Um, do you… need food? Anything you want, just tell this old man, and we’ll do our best to provide… Oh, by the way, the little girl who guided you was my granddaughter, Betty. She’s a bit timid, so if she offended you in any way, please forgive her… I’ll punish her! I will!”
This Mayor Robert’s voice trembled a bit as if he had something stuck in his throat, probably due to his age, or maybe he was terrified.
He kept glancing at me, checking my reactions, and seeing that I wasn’t showing any unusual emotions and maintaining a poker face, he seemed to relax a bit, straightening his back, his weathered old face breaking into a somewhat stiff smile.
“Uh… do you need anything?”
I need delicious food! Bring me all your best dishes!
I almost blurted this out but managed to hold it back. I quickly processed what the old man had just said and feigned seriousness as I asked him, “Do I…?”
No sooner had I opened my mouth than it snapped shut.
Ugh, that’s annoying!
Why did I bite my tongue again?!
Must be because I’ve been asleep for so long and haven’t talked in ages! Ever since I woke up, my tongue felt foreign, as if I was just learning how to speak, and each word came out with incredible effort.
I’ve lost my dramatic flair too.
“…What is… here?”
Seeing Robert’s face turn blank, he shot a helpless glance behind him, as if hoping someone would understand my muddled speech. They obviously didn’t notice I bit my tongue; instead, they probably thought I was speaking some demonic tongue or Abyssal language, and they started whispering among themselves, eventually shaking their heads slowly.
“Cough cough!”
I cleared my throat and tried to regain their attention.
“What is… here… is Meiser… Town?”
I slowly spat out the words, enunciating each syllable with a low tone—but honestly, it still sounded pretty childish.
I felt embarrassed, trying to maintain my stern demeanor, but obviously, the old mayor didn’t dare show any reactions.
He candidly replied, “Yes, um, young lady, this is the Eastern Continent, Eborista, the Meiser Town near Sand Valley…”
…So it really is Meiser Town.
If that’s the case—
“Who… brought me… here?”
I had a rough idea in my head about what happened, but I wanted the old man to confirm it.
“It was Miss Ailna.”
Sure enough, the old man’s answer was just as I suspected.
The only one who could bring me here—and had the capability to do so—was that woman in my memory. How on earth did she escape the Land of Dragons!? No, wait…
That deity body tore open a rift again at the end. During the explosion, it seemed that rift hadn’t fully closed yet…
Robert paused, noticing I hadn’t reacted. He continued, “Miss Ailna instructed us to watch over… ah, no, she told us to take good care of you. She said that when you wake up, if you have any requests, we’ll do our best to accommodate… Of course, you’ve seen our town’s conditions are quite limited. We’re not wealthy, so if you’re looking for gold, I’m afraid we don’t have much of that to offer…”
Gold?
What do I need that for?
“She… where… is… she?” I cut the old man off.
“Uh…”
He pondered for a moment.
“Miss Ailna… will be back soon. She asked me to let you know to wait here until she returns. She will fulfill her promise to you at that time. Also… um…”
He seemed to choose his words carefully, trying not to provoke my feelings, his voice quivering, “She said… she wants to have an open dialogue with you, and hopes you can wait for her. Once she gets back, she’ll tell you everything… Before that, you can go to that cellar she told you about… um, it’s where you came out from. That’s Miss Ailna’s cellar. She has some important books and documents stored there. We hope you’ll take a good look at them.”
