Single Spell Sorcerer-Chapter 78: Oak Valley

After waiting for the red-haired young man for as long as he could, Jax walked out of the registration hall and arrived somewhere else.

The place he arrived at was in the bright of the day, with crisp air bringing in freshness. It lacked the smell of salt that Jax had gotten used to smelling back in Seacrest City.

"What is this place?" he thought, looking around.

Greenery filled his vision everywhere he looked, with wooden houses built all around. Some were on the ground, but some were built right onto old trees. The roads before him were not paved with stones, but rather worn down through people walking all around.

Jax turned around and looked at the place he had walked out of. It surprised him to see that it had been a large tree trunk, hollowed out on the inside, with a door placed on it. What surprised him even more was that the tree was still fully alive.

"Oh, that’s quite the bad luck," Gemma said in his ears. "You arrived in a rather remote location."

Jax whipped his head around. "Bad luck? Why? What’s wrong with this place?"

"Hmm? Nothing. You wanted a place where you could sell your spell and staff, didn’t you? This just isn’t the sort of place that will have a lot of money. That’s just it."

Jax thought for a moment. "That’s alright. I can sell it later. I’m not in need of money right away." Even as he said it, he felt a strange sense of urge to make more money. He looked down at the name ’Carlton’ and realized that the deal he made with the young man was forcing him in subtle ways to not relax about making more stones.

Jax ignored that part of himself at the moment and looked around for more. Few natives walked on the street here, with the majority for now the newcomers to this place.

"There were thousands of people back in the room," Jax said. "And now, there are barely 2 dozen. How many different cities were they transferred to?"

"It’s all random, so no one knows," Gemma said.

Jax frowned. Finding the red-haired Carlton might end up being harder than he had imagined. "Is there any way to contact someone who is in another city?"

"There is a way," Gemma said. "People with clairvoyant spells can help you. But they do cost a lot sometimes, and it’s not even that helpful a lot of the time. Higher Carriages have fixed this issue."

"I see. Then I suppose I will search for him once I have his money ready. For now, I have to spend everything on myself."

Jax finally walked out into the street and began walking in a certain direction to find more information about this place.

The natives of the village didn’t wear any colorful clothes, and were usually carrying around something, so they were easy to recognize. The one Jax found was carrying a large pot in her arms. Jax stopped her and asked for the most basic help.

The woman stopped and looked at him. "Oh, are you a newcomer from the 10th Carriage?" she asked.

Jax nodded. "You could tell?"

"It’s known. The others should have started today, so you were bound to have arrived today as well. Come, I can help you."

Jax followed her curiously, and began asking her questions to get answered.

The woman turned out to be a server in a tavern nearby. She had been on the run to restock some wine. She walked with him to the tavern all the while explaining to him where he had come to.

The village was called Oak Valley, named after the large oak tree he had to come through to come to this village. It was in the middle of a large forest in the Skyedge Mountain range, with multiple monster fields surrounding them on each side.

The nearest city was over 5 days away, and could only be reached on foot.

"So far away," Jax couldn’t help but say. "Are all cities that far apart in the 9th Carriage?"

"No, this one is just an exception," the woman said. She gestured up front at that moment. "That’s the tavern I work in. Come in. If you’re lucky, we’ll still have a place."

Jax nodded and walked into the tavern. There were people on the inside, some drinking wine despite it being the middle of the day. The tavern was filled with a low murmur all around as people appeared busy talking among themselves.

"That’s the owner, Serin."

Jax walked with the woman until they arrived at the end of the tavern where an overweight woman sat behind the counter.

"Hyela, hurry! The newcomers have arrived. Get back to work quickly."

"I know. I’ve come with one," the woman said. "Sister Serin, have all the rooms been taken already?"

"How could they? Most haven’t found their way here yet," she said. "Are you the one looking for a place to stay, young man?"

"I am," Jax said. "May I ask for the rates?"

"We’ve got rooms that cost from 1 Opal stone to 5 a day. Food is included based on which price you choose."

"I’ll go with 2," Jax said. He didn’t want the most expensive one, but he also didn’t want the cheapest one. On top of that, he needed to save some money.

"Just to let you know, if you choose the room that costs 5 stones and pay for the whole week up front, it gives you access to another service," she said and whispered something that only he could hear.

Jax immediately blushed upon hearing it and failed to hide it.

"Do you still want the 2 stones one?" the old woman asked.

"I’ll... I’ll take the most expensive one," Jax said. "For the whole week."

The old woman smiled. "The payment is up front, kid."

Jax took a deep breath and pulled out the 35 stones before handing it over to the old woman.

"Wow!" Gemma spoke in his ears. "Men are so easy to manipulate, aren’t they?"

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