By this time the line had moved forward, but only a little.
Around them, people were talking and muttering things like how long their journey was or how the guards seemed to be so slow in processing the line. At the mention of guards, he looked towards the town gates and noticed that there were indeed a few guards wearing some sort of leather armor. They were holding up the line at the gates of the town while questioning a man with a wagon who was standing next to them.
"Do you know whatâs taking them so long?"
Gorsazo, who was well accustomed to this world, unlike Kivamus, was quick to answer, "Theyâre just making a fuss over that merchantâs goods for no reason, my lord. It seems that the merchant doesnât want to hand over a few coins to smooth things over. He really should though, or guards can hold the line for hours. All they have is time."
"Ah, corruption and bribery. I guess thatâs one thing that will be the same in every era," muttered Kivamus.
The sun had only set recently and it was getting dark on the eastern side of the town. Kivamus squinted towards the gate, where a single flickering torch cast a meager light.
Eventually, the merchant seemed to be fed up with the guards and just shook his head in resignation while handing over something to them. Kivamus strained to see the exchange happening beneath it, but the shadows made it impossible to see the number of coins changing hands.
Soon enough, the line started moving again and Gorsazo and Kivamus sat back inside their carriage. The rest of the wagon drivers were quick to hand over some money to the guards on their turns, who didnât seem as thorough in checking the goods of the merchants after they had gotten their due from them.
Then it was their own turn and after their carriage driver dropped a few coins in the hands of the gate guards, they passed through the shadowed wooden gates and emerged into the unknown town of Cinran.
The first thing that Kivamus noticed after passing the heavy wooden gates was how dark it was already. Unlike the fading twilight outside, the town inside the walls seemed to be covered in darkness. His first thought was that it must be a blackout, before remembering that there had to be no electricity in this era. As their carriage moved further, he saw that at least there was a single burning torch lit close to the first intersection that they seemed to be moving towards.
"Itâs quite dark inside the town, isnât it?" he asked Gorsazo.
"It is true, my lord. Even though Cinran is not a village, most of the towns are like this at night. I know that you have lived in the Palace of Ulriga all your life, and it was considerably more well-lit there, but this is how the rest of the places are, outside of the palace," Gorsazo told him, having no idea that Kivamusâ comparison was with London and not Ulriga.
As their carriage moved further and turned left at the first intersection, he could smell more of the unfamiliar odors of the town. It was a heady mixture of the smells of smoke, sweat, and feces. It was intoxicating, and not in a good way. While he could still hear the creaking sound made by the wheels of the carriage on the packed dirt street and the hushed sound of conversations coming from the wagon ahead of them, it still seemed very quiet.
"Should it be this quiet?"
"As I said, my lord, itâs a town, not a city like Ulriga. Itâs quite common for people to stay indoors after dark. I donât know whatâs the norm in Cinran, but the town patrol usually has a curfew soon after dark to prevent robberies and other crimes. Even so, I do think the last time I came to Cinran, it was more lively here." Gorsazo continued, "Having lived in the palace, you probably donât know this but the previous yearâs harvest in the duchy was not good, and it doesnât look like this year is going to be any better. Work is hard to find these days for most people. The smithies, tanneries, and the like, operate fewer hours these days, even in Ulriga. So the conditions are likely the same here too, if not worse."
"I had no ideaâ¦" Kivamus breathed. "All this time, nobles have lived in blissful ignorance, while the world suffered." As their carriage moved further, thoughts about how bad the lives of common people were, kept echoing in his mind.
Their carriage continued moving on the streets for a while, making turns here and there, and soon enough he saw that while most of the houses had no lighting, one of them had a small earthen lamp mounted outside the door on a wooden post. A few people seemed to be coming and going from the place and he could even hear the sound of many people talking from inside the place.
As they reached in front of the place, their driver stopped the carriage and stepped off his seat. He walked towards the rear of the carriage. "We are here, my lords. This is where I was told to drop you off."
Before Kivamus could think of what to say, Gorsazo spoke up, "Thank you for bringing us here. I assume you were paid for this trip in Ulriga itself?"
"Indeed my lord, one of Dukeâs sons himself gave me the coin for this. I couldnât believe my luck meeting the future Duke in person!" the driver said, seemingly awed by the memory.
"Good for you!" said Gorsazo and he beckoned Kivamus to get out of the carriage first.
Both of them got off the carriage and since they didnât have any luggage apart from the few pouches and satchels that Gorsazo was carrying, they bid the carriage driver farewell, who bowed toward them and turned around the carriage, returning the way they had come from. For the moment, it was only the two of them outside the wooden establishment, which seemed to be an inn. While it looked far from being dilapidated in the feeble light of the lamp, it still seemed like a place to stay away from, according to his modern sensibilities.
"Where would the carriage driver stay?"
"He canât possibly afford to stay at such a pricey inn my lord, he will likely know a barn or some similar place where he could stay and park his carriage to save money."
"This is pricey? I thought we were in a run-down part of the town!"
"You will have to become used to this, my lord. You might not see the luxuries of a palace anytime soon."
"Youâre indeed right. Well, we might as well go inside now."
As he turned towards the entrance, Gorsazo pulled him away from the door and gestured to follow him.
"What are you doing?"
"My lord, did it not strike you as odd that your brother himself gave the money to the carriage driver?" asked Gorsazo in a hushed voice after taking both of them a little farther from the lamp.
"Well, I didnât think about it at the time, but now that you say it, yes, it does. Do you thinkâ¦"
"Yes, my lord. There must be at least one person inside who would be sitting there just to recognize you. And we donât know who they will give this information to. Thatâs why we need to go to a different place."
"Thatâs a good idea. But do you even know this locality? How will we even find a place in this darkness?" Kivamus glanced at his surroundings, but couldnât discern one house from another in the darkness. "It doesnât seem like a good idea to stay outside for long."
"Indeed, my lord. Even though itâs been a few years since my last visit to Cinran, something about the route the carriage driver had taken sparked a memory. Thankfully, I do recognize this locality, and there is another inn nearby where we can stay. I know the owner there from a previous visit. It is smaller and gets fewer visitors, so there shouldnât be anyone there who can recognize you, I believe." He continued, "Also, try to speak as little as possible when there are others around, my lord, since it would not be difficult for a person to surmise that you are a noble by your accent."
"As you say, Gorsazo. I am counting on you to keep us both alive in this place."
Gorsazo looked at him for a second, seemingly thinking of something, but didnât say anything out loud. He gestured again to follow him and started walking in a particular direction.
Despite his eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness, Kivamus was completely lost in this town. He had no choice but to follow Gorsazo blindly, unsure of where they were headed. Soon, Gorsazo beckoned him to enter a smaller alley and pointed at a similar lamp lit in front of another wooden building, located not too far inside the alley. They entered the small street and walked towards the inn. While walking, his boots seemed to squelch something but preferring not to think about what it could be, he kept moving.
They reached the building and he followed Gorsazo inside. There were only a few small earthen lamps kept inside, keeping the room in semi-darkness. A few wooden tables with empty chairs around them were kept on his right, while on the left side, a single person was standing behind a wooden bar. The perpetual stench of the town was less noticeable inside the inn, but it was still present in small amounts, making him grimace about the hygienic standards of the place. But having no other option, he could only keep enduring the smells.
He noticed that Gorsazo had started talking with the innkeeper in hushed voices. While he wanted to listen to what they were saying, the consistent threat of someone recognizing him and reporting to his brotherâs agents in the town made him stay close to the shadows.
Soon, Gorsazo passed a few coins to the man he was talking to and gestured to Kivamus to follow him. They climbed the stairs near the bar in the light of an earthen lamp the innkeeper had given to Gorsazo and went to the upper floor. It was quiet enough that it seemed the place was empty. Or nearly empty, anyway, since they passed another man walking down the stairs, dressed in a tunic.
Gorsazo looked around the short corridor and soon unlocked a room with a key he had and they entered inside.
It was a simple room, with only a single bedding, perhaps made of straw and covered with a semi-dirty sheet. Kivamus thought there would at least be a bed, but perhaps it wasnât common in this place. It didnât look sanitary at all to him, but he didnât have any other options. Apart from the small earthen lamp that Gorsazo had kept near an empty corner, there was no other source of light. The room did have a closed window but it was made of wood with no glass pane on it, and it didnât offer any extra light in the night. There was also a wooden chest kept near a wall. It made him think of a medieval movie set at first before he sat down on the straw bedding and realized modern mattresses werenât nearly as uncomfortable.
"Can we talk here?"
"Of course, my lord, but try to keep your voice low." Gorsazo sat down nearby with his back to a wall. "Sound carries far through these walls and we donât know who might be listening."
"Thatâs true. Is this typical of beds in these kinds of inns?"
"Iâm sorry about that, my lord. The inn that the carriage driver brought us to would have had much better rooms which would be fit for a noble, or at least a rich merchant, but this place is far safer for you. I know this is not up to the standards of a noble, but thatâs the reason your brotherâs people in Cinran would never expect you to stay here. It doesnât hurt that the rooms are much cheaper as well."
"Thatâs true. But where will you sleep?"
"Donât worry about me, my lord. I will just rest a little like this. Someone has to keep watch anyway."
"Are you sure? Canât we ask the innkeeper for another such bedding?"
"I told him that I was escorting the son of a merchant, my lord and that I was your servant. And no merchant will pay to get his servant a similar bedding as him."
"You are not my servant, Gorsazo!" Kivamus exclaimed. "And I donât mind that at all. We are in this together and spending a few more coins wonât affect our money much."
"Thank you, my lord, and I know that. But while you donât mind that, it would still be very rare and the innkeeper or one of his servants will remember that. And we arenât in a position to be noticed in this town, my lord." He continued, "I have stayed in this inn before, but I donât know the innkeeper well enough to trust him."
"I didnât think of that," Kivamus said.
After a while, someone knocked on the door. Gorsazo got up and after checking who it was, brought back two wooden bowls with him.
"Food, my lord," he said while offering one of the bowls to Kivamus. "I told them to deliver it to our room, so you wouldnât have to sit in the open, where someone might still recognize you."
"Thank you." Kivamus took the bowl and saw in the little light available that it was a soup of some kind with small lumps of meat and vegetables floating in it. It didnât look very appetizing to him, but after eating dried rations for the past few days, it was at least a warm meal for a change. He tried it and decided that, while a little bland, it wasnât too bad. It didnât take long for them to finish it.
"You should sleep now, my lord. We have a long journey tomorrow."
"You mean longer than usual?" Kivamus asked. "Why?"
"Earlier I had thought that the journey to Tiranat would be three days long by carriage, my lord. But our previous carriage driver told me we could make it in two days if we left early tomorrow and didnât let up the pace. That way, we could make it to Helgaâs inn before it gets too dark. The inn is around the halfway point to Tiranat, my lord, and itâs the only inn on the route. So it would be much better to stay there overnight instead of sleeping next to the forests on the road. Then itâs another dayâs hard journey to Tiranat."
"It would certainly feel much safer inside the inn, compared to sleeping in the open on the road," Kivamus said. "As you told me earlier, there are no patrols by knights on the road to Tiranat, right?"
"Indeed, my lord. So, we would need to leave early enough tomorrow. If we canât reach Helgaâs inn by nightfall tomorrow, then getting there around noon the next day would be a wasted stop, since there would be no point in stopping there during the daytime. It would add an extra day to our journey as well, and weâd have to sleep in the open on both of the nights."
"Thatâs true. Well, have a good night, Gorsazo."
"You too, my lord."
Kivamus lay down on the bedding, which felt just as uncomfortable as before. He kept thinking about those slaves he had seen earlier and thought it could easily have been him if he had woken up in this world as one of them instead of finding himself as the third son of the duke. It still anguished him to be unable to do anything to help them.
Weariness from the long journey finally caught up to Kivamus, and it didnât take long for him to drift off to sleep.