Xiao was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn’t notice that he had arrived at a crossroad written in a language he wasn’t capable of reading. It wasn’t until an elderly man called out to him that he noticed where he was at. According to the brochure, he was apparently able to speak the language that the people in this world use but not read it. Which in Xiao’s humble opinion was a load of shit ‘-What kinda half-assed ability is that?’

“Hello, sir!” Xiao greeted the old man, though upon closer inspection he noticed the bruises on his face and blood on the tunic. “Are you okay, I have some bandages.” -Well, scraps of fabric but still. “Do you need any help, sir?” 

The old man chuckled though the way he clutched his ribs and the labored breathing made it clear that he was in pain while doing so. “I’m fine, just a bunch of cowardly thieves. They took my coin pouch which had little to nothing on it, so their thievery was more of an inconvenience than anything.”

“Still.” Xiao frowned, it seemed that scum was bred everywhere, even in another world. He placed down his Rattan Bag and got the fabrics he was using and his hand grazed on a bottle of ointment, it was labeled in the language of this world though he had recognized the medical logo from his world. He was also confused as he didn’t notice this before when he had packed but there were more pressing matters to attend to.

“Sir, hold still, I’ll pat this into your wounds, Okay?” Xiao gently said as he patted the hopefully sterile ointment-soaked cloth into the elderly man’s wounds. The faint scent of something akin to mint wafted near his nose as the wounds started to close up. Whatever the ointment he just used was definitely out of this world.

‘How does that even work?’

This was yet another question that had to be left unanswered for now, luckily (or unluckily depending on who you asked) a stressful work environment made sure that Xiao was prepared for compartmentalizing his anxiety and stress into little boxes until he had the time to properly express it. He decided to pack up once he deemed the old man to be better, though decided to give him some parting advice about checking himself with a local doctor. Although the old man seemed to have been confused about the title, he understood the gist of what Xiao meant.

“By the way young man, if you’re ever around the area in Agyl, you can ask around for me. The locals will help you out.”

“Ah, okay! I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you so much” Xiao gave a short respectful bow, hoisting the makeshift sling around his shoulders as he shifted from side to side to gain a more comfortable posture. He stood indecisively in front of the signs. The old man decided to give him some parting advice before he left, telling him that the capital, Bahandi, was south of where he was and that Estoru was more welcoming to lost traveling merchants than his own village.

Xiao once again thanked the old man before doing a brisk sprint toward Estoru. The Rattan box hit his backside with a light rhythmic thump as he jogged. He decided to gather some food on the way, however leaving some enticing but unrecognizable fruits and fungi that he didn’t recognize from his own world and on that mini-food guide the brochure mentioned.

Eventually, dirt-trodden roads made way to clean gray brick roads and pathways. He made his way to the village’s center, quietly marveling at Estoru which was full of bustling activity. He made sure to walk with purpose, eyes not lingering for more than a few seconds lest he outs himself as a naive, easy target for money-hungry merchants. Walking around, he tried not to look too shocked at the colorful humanoids flying about and creatures that looked straight out of fantasy novels his Zǔmǔ told him about during her visits.

He was painfully aware that he didn’t have any of the local currency on him. Unfortunately whoever sent him here didn’t feel the need to include currency as part of the care package. Even though they included this world’s different economic conversion rates. Xiao was starting to get pissed off at the half-assed system that he had no choice but to work with. Thankfully, it seemed as though time in this world went slowly so even though he was certain that hours had already passed and that the sun should have been set by now, it still hadn’t. Meaning that he had time to earn some cash, hopefully, enough to rent a room at an inn or something.

He moved around a bit more, noticing that there wasn’t much policing on who was allowed to create a merchant stand. There were local guards patrolling the area but it seemed that they were probably just there to make sure that the public was safe. After seeing a couple of kids set up a weird drink stand, he decided to check his own inventory, as he was filtering through what he could sell or make, his fingers felt the rough cover of the cookbook from earlier.

‘Why not cook something?’ He had gathered a substantial amount from his trip and already had basic ingredients in the rattan bag. He decided on making Jian Dui, it was his Zǔmǔ who first taught him how to make it and call him sentimental but thinking of her a lot lately has made him nostalgic. He had red bean paste but decided to go with less than traditional fillings. A Chocolate Truffle paste, Yǔbù and Cheese filling, and finally his Zǔmǔ’s Lotus Cream filling. He went back to the outskirts of Estoru to gather firewood, collecting dry leaves and foraging food that could be used later. 

The sun had begun to set when he finished everything as he trudged back into Estoru, the merchants had started lighting lanterns, from where he was, the town appeared to be a warm fire in the face of the frigid air that had settled in. He found a place with relatively active foot traffic and set up shop.

A young girl skipped over to his stall, intrigued by the cloying scent of something sweet. “Kuya, ano yan?” she questioned, peering over the colorful desserts. Chen Xiao was lucky that he had an inkling of understanding Filipino, though, the brochure did mention that he had the ability to speak any language easily so which made his rudimentary Filipino much easier in this world. He cheerfully explained to the young girl, who seemed enamored by his tales and asked how much the dessert was. “It’s 15 aurum, young lady.”

“Ah, Okay!” She cheered as she carefully counted the coins to give to Xiao. He smiled as she did so, taken in by her jubilance and childish innocence. An older woman appearing to be the child’s relative appeared beside her.

“Ah, Leyna, what are you buying?” 

“Mama, it’s called Buchi and the trader says it’s his grandmother’s recipe!” She exclaimed, biting into the fresh dessert and giggling as the treat energized her. The mother looked skeptically at the foreigner, he looked too handsome to be peddling desserts in their small village. He looked like he would do much better living amongst the people in Bahandi. Xiao felt the pressure under her gaze. Feeling nervous, wondering if he’d somehow missed a social cue that wasn’t visible from his people-watching earlier. Though, a day spent watching how the village interacts is hardly enough to accumulate a whole town’s worth of social cues, culture, traditions, and customs. Anthropology might be seen as a rather useless course in a business-oriented culture but Xiao had found it refreshing eventually, he had to set aside his passion for a job that kept the lights on and his grandparents' medical bills paid.

Still, 8 years of hard work had left him nothing but weary bones and a body that had all but lost his youthful vigor. Back then, those days blurred into a bleak mosaic and when his grandmother died, it stood out because it was a warm sunny day. The smell of blooming flowers and the distant laughter of children.

Everything about it was beautiful and yet all he could think was how much he hated life for daring to be beautiful while the earth swallowed his grandmother into the ground.

He gave his best customer service smile and prayed that the lady would move, which after receiving her order walked past the stand. The little girl waved him goodbye. He turned back to his stand, fanning the stoked fires, and slowly a crowd formed from the foreigner selling weird food.

He eventually ran out of Buchi to sell so he had to close his stall and count the coins he had on hand. ‘I think this should be enough for a room at a lower-end inn.’ He strolled through the marketplace, in awe of the bubbling cauldrons selling potions, flying dragons, and faeries lighting the streets.

He eventually reached a relatively quiet part of the town, where humanoids were smoking colorful cigars and relaxing. 

A beautifully etched sign caught Xiao’s eye. Caelum’s Inn and Bistro it read. Xiao adjusted the straps of his bag and limbered into the inn. He made his way to the front desk, admiring the southeast Asian aesthetic of the place which reminded him of his grandparent’s home. 

“Good eventide, traveler! Are you looking for a room or a meal?”

“I’d like to secure a room and then a meal, is that alright?” Xiao asked as he dropped his bag in between the front desk and his legs.

“Of course, our rooms are 9 aure per night, food and drinks cost an additional 2 aure.”

“That’s fine,” Xiao stated, giving the man the appropriate amount and accepting the keys and meal voucher. “Thank you.”

Climbing the wooden stairs was an interesting throwback to his grandparent’s house. The decor also held the same feeling. The flickering flames contained within a thin paper frame, the shadows dancing throughout the dimly lit hall. Xiao inspected the Asian-reminiscent architecture and design, the varnished complex engravings on the pillars. To the dream-like quality of the artist’s brushwork, light blue hues akin to that of the early sea waves, to the scattered rosy reds like the delicate blush on a beautiful woman.

He stretched his tense shoulders, weary from travel. Despite his light load due to the magic of the world, Xiao felt the unseen burdens of his current predicament. He unlocked his room with little fanfare, an unbidden yawn escaping his lips.

Tossing the pack somewhere in the room, he unclasped his heeled boots, the silver metal buckle glinting under the light, along with his belt and other unnecessary accessories on his person he threw it in the general area near the pack. Hearing a satisfying muffled thud of his bundled articles of clothing hitting the wall, he flopped on the bed and sunk into the arms of sleep.