Setting the Scene (1)

After a couple long hours of mindless wandering through the maze that was the royal palace, I had finally made it to the front gate. With a pant and a wheeze, I stumbled past the guards and into a small nook, where I promptly dispelled the teleportation illusion.

Whoever designed that castle was a sadist! Seriously, one door would lead to a small half-bathroom, the next to a catwalk in the throne room, and the one after that to someone’s private chambers. Even the stairs down were hidden behind doors. How did that make any sense?!? Eventually, I realized that I could trail one of the servants until they left the castle for one reason or another.

If only I figured that out a couple hours sooner… The white sun was about halfway above the horizon, leaving the brown one hanging in the sky. Or was the brown sun moving too? I couldn’t tell. It was an odd sight, one I would have to get used to.

Now, what did the queen say again? Oh yeah, take a right. After a quick break to catch my breath, I followed her direction, strolling down the sidewalk. No matter where you were, there were three things you needed to survive: food, shelter, and clothing. Sure, I could find a nearby forest and attempt to scavenge for all that, but as a dude reliant on modern technology, there’s no way I was going to pull that off. So, instead, I had to find a way to make money. As such, I made sure to take in my surroundings, looking for any opportunities.

First thing I noticed were the buildings. They were basically a mismatch of styles from the beginning of the industrial revolution to the mid-1950s. Some were little townhouses one or two stories tall. Others were apartments or brick structures reaching three or four stories. Interspersed were a few skyscrapers – one already complete, and the rest in the middle of construction. For a world that developed science before magic, everything was completely out of whack, from the general vibe to the colors of the buildings. Maybe my world would have been the same if our magical and scientific knowledge took a similar path.

Next were the people. Like the queen mentioned, my white t-shirt and brown shorts were not unusual in and of itself. The average person wore rather modern clothes, with a few eccentrics cosplaying from the Golden Age of French fashion – you know, those flappers hanging out in the bowels of speakeasies, drinking the day away. However, mine were much more vibrant compared to their clothings’ dull luster. I wasn’t attracting that much attention, but…

“[Creation (Illusion) – Disguise]” I (fake) dirtied my clothes, allowing me to blend in a bit more with the crowd. A temporary solution until I sold off the ring.

I hadn’t seen any phones or computers so far. As for cars, well, they were just weird. Oh here comes one now.

Clomp. Clomp. Clomp. Vrr.

People parted from the center of the street as a smoking sports car drove past. Maybe ‘drive’ wasn’t the right word; two spell-enhanced horses were hooked on like a carriage. Yes, the car’s engine was whirring and yes, said smoke was coming out of the engine. Did anyone call for help or spare it a second glance? Nope. The smoke had to be a feature or something, because the rich-looking woman kept driving without a care in the world. Let’s just chock that up to otherworld logic for right now.

Red building… Red building… ah! There it is. In-between two developing skyscrapers was a quaint, one story warehouse with one of those roll-up garage doors. Unexpectedly, the doors were shut, and I didn’t see any other entrances. Was it closed for the day then? But it felt a little too early, given the hustle and bustle of the street. Maybe I’ll give it a knock, just in case.

A resounding thunk echoed three times, followed by a clunk, and then a crrssh as the door opened just enough to squeeze under. That’s a bit sketchy… is this a red herring?

“What’re ya here for?” a low, growly voice sounded from the other side. A mirror attached to some kind of selfie stick snuck out of the entrance, reflecting my face. Half of my brain – the normal half – was throwing alarm bells, telling me to walk away. But the other half – the streamer brain as I called it – had already taken control of my mouth.

“Lookin’ to sell somethin’… pricey,” I repeated in his dialect. Why did I do that? Absolutely no idea. It was just a bad habit of mine. I wasn’t even bluffing this time, but I couldn’t help myself. Yes, I know I’m being stupid, but counterargument, shut up!

The person on the other side went silent for a few seconds before responding, “Come on in.” I waited for a bit, expecting the garage door to raise higher, but it didn’t move.

“Are you going to open it up more?”

“It’s open enough,” the voice growled back. Am I supposed to crawl? Inwardly cursing the voice, I got down on my knees and shimmied under. Of course, for some reason, both the entranceway and the building floor just didn’t exist, so my arms and legs got covered in dirt.

I stood back up, brushing off the dirt, and took a gander around the mid-sized room. Knick-knacks, thingamabobs, trinkets, and doohickeys were haphazardly lined up on wooden shelves wherever there was open space. Some of the items I recognized from my world. But the majority were things I had never even heard of, like a wooden slab called a Demi Opuscule or a ceramic pot called a Detritus Hole. Those were probably real words, but who knows what they meant. Or maybe this world was more articulate than ours, which would be extremely painful. Simple words good, not simple words bad.

“Are ya gonna keep starin’ around, or are ya here to actually sell y’re ‘pricey’ thang?” My eyes eventually fell on the source of the voice. He looked almost exactly as I imagined him to be: a muscular man with a tight fitting brown shirt, a red bandana tied around his head. The only thing off were his eyes, which seemed to emanate a bluish glow, like a certain robot antagonist from a famous, portaling video game.

“Yea, I’m lookin’ to get some cash for this,” I pulled out the ring and set it on the countertop between us. I hadn’t noticed before, but the gold-plated ring had the same colored gem as the queen’s dress: a sapphire. The man’s eyes narrowed immediately upon seeing it, his irises pulsing as though scanning the object. It seemed like some kind of spell, given the mana coagulating around his eyes, but I didn’t know what specifically.

Eventually, the man sighed, “Guess the rumors were true then.”