The Prince of Prophecy and the Bladeless Sword

6. Summer Village

The summer village had characteristics like the seasons they recognized in the real world. Where in the summer people would dress a little open, go on vacation, or sunbathe on the beach. In that place it was not much different, only every building they saw was different. There were no tall buildings or luxurious houses, there were only traditional houses or buildings with natural materials from wood, bamboo, or even leaves. Very unique.

                         

"First, let's find a place to stay," Leon said with a busy look looking for a place.

They walked among people wearing summer clothes but strangely each of them was wearing a black robe, like the one they were wearing.

"Excuse me," Leon stopped a woman wearing an open dress, showing her long white shoulders under her black robe.

"Yes?" The woman answered but was not friendly at all.

"Is there an inn here?" Leon asked.

There was no answer from the woman. But the woman's hand was raised.

"Just go straight, then turn from that big tree. There is an inn there." The woman explained and then left without waiting for Leon's response to her instructions.

"So arrogant," commented Gio watching the woman leave.

Leon ignored his friend and moved to follow the woman's instructions to find an inn so they could rest.

"We have a compass, why are you asking?" asked Viona.

"To get information, you have to ask the locals and make sure there are things we can and cannot know," answered Sean on behalf of Leon who chose to continue walking towards the inn.

"It seems like the people here don't care at all," said Zenata. "They are only busy with their own business," continued the girl.

That's how it is. The residents of Summer Village only care about their own business, tending not to care about anything around them, whether they are newcomers or not.

Arrived in front of a building with teak walls woven bamboo and a roof covered with vines. In front of the building, there was a sign that said Poisonous Rose Inn.

"The flowers are like balloons," commented Gio while observing the vines on the roof of the inn that were red like roses.

“If you touch, you will die.”

They were shocked, especially Zenata who screamed when a man dressed in black suddenly appeared in front of them. But the man just laughed.

“Are you looking for an inn?” asked the man, ignoring the surprise of the five young men.

“Yes,” Leon answered briefly.

“Follow me,” invited the man who turned out to be slightly hunched. The man was quite old with white hair. He walked slowly while holding one hand.

Leon was the first to follow the man followed by the others. Zenata was back beside Leon which made Viona and Gio furious because of her spoiled and fearful behavior.

The inn building was quite nice from the outside. The large yard was overgrown with many flowers of strange shapes and various colours. There was also a pungent fragrance. A pool of water in the middle that contained nothing, only clear water.

“Well, for five people?” asked the man again while looking at the five people as they entered the inn and stood at the registration desk.

A woman dressed very revealingly and sexily was guarding the desk but her expression was cold.

“Yes,” Leon replied again.

“Hm. Unfortunately, we only have one room left,” the man said.

“One room?” Zenata’s voice answered loudly, causing the others to look at her in annoyance.

“What do you mean?” Leon asked.

“Well, as you can see. This building is small, so the other rooms are already taken. There’s only one room left but –”

“No. I don’t want to share a room with them. Give me another room that I can use by myself,” Zenata interrupted before the man could explain further.

Viona and Gio glared at the talkative Zenata, while Sean and Leon just stared at the girl blankly.

The man laughed instead.

“Miss, should I chase them away just for you?” the man offered.

“It’s okay. That would be better. So give me a suite,” Zenata said.

The soft laughter was replaced by a piercing cold gaze that made Zenata, who had initially raised her face arrogantly, immediately fall silent at that moment.

“If you can compensate five times as much, that’s okay. However, I think, for a newcomer like you, that’s impossible. I don’t want to lose,” said the man who this time looked colder and darker. “If you don’t want to, go to another inn,” he continued with a humorous expression like before and then turned his back on the children.

Viona and Gio looked back at Zenata in annoyance. Meanwhile, Leon seemed to be discussing with Sean. They didn’t even know the rental price for the room there yet.

“We’ll rent it for a week,” Leon said confidently. “So how much is it?” he asked then.

The man turned around again with a big smile on his face.

“500 Len per day, just calculate it yourself,” the man replied cheerfully.

Leon looked at Sean for his opinion.

“Len is the currency of Thousand-Apparitions. 100 Len equals 100 points.” The system explained.

500 points might be a little for Leon who had 10,000 points. However, they had to pay since the room would be shared.

“Can’t the price be lowered?” Sean offered.

The man laughed and shook his head.

“No. This is a special offer for you guys, especially since there’s only one room left,” the man replied.

“Alright. We’ll take it. Show me the room,” Leon said.

“Deal. Then, you guys fill out the list first. One person is enough,” the man said.

It was Leon who stepped forward to fill out the list without hesitation and used his real name. Furthermore, the system didn’t warn anything about names which meant they could use their real names.

The man nodded his head several times and looked at the woman manning the desk then accepted the key and handed it to Leon.

"I guarantee you will like this room," said the man, chuckling at Zenata's annoyance.

"Thank you," said Leon, receiving the keys from the man.

“Azlan. "You can call me Mr. Azlan," the man suddenly introduced himself.

Leon looked at him in surprise. The man stepped closer to Leon and stood in front of the boy.

“Your aura is unusual. "You will see me often, young man," said Azlan then with a big smile on his face.

Leon fell silent.

"Have a good rest." Azlan walked past Leon after him.

However, just a few steps, there was a commotion outside. When Leon turned towards the door, the woman guarding the desk had already closed it.

"What is it?" Gio asked curiously but the boy looked at Leon.

Want to confirm what's out there. But the woman guarding the desk stopped him.

"Do not come close. Don't let them see you,” the woman said coldly. Unlike Summer Village, the attitude of the residents was colder.

Leon did not deny it, only directed his gaze forward, coincidentally the gap in the door leaf slightly showed the events outside although not very clearly.

"If you intend to stay for a week in this village. You must obey the rules and know something." Azlan suddenly spoke surprising Leon beside him.

From the gap in the door leaf, they could see the atmosphere suddenly dark. The commotion that had occurred had now turned silent. A black aura seemed to grip even inside. The woman closed the gap with a curtain.

Azlan invited Leon to enter the inn. The guests at the inn were also not visible, they preferred to be inside.

"You should know. Some rules must not be broken or you will die," said Azlan.

"Ugh!" Gio responded, while pressing his palm to his neck, surprised by what Azlan said.

“In addition, at six in the evening, all residents of Summer Village must enter their homes, and no one is allowed to leave until six in the morning. Darkness will envelop, taking everything indiscriminately, without any reason. "Recently the situation has become increasingly chaotic," explained Azlan in a serious voice and expression.

Leon looked at the others in turn. The only one who was still calm was Sean. Zenata had clung to Leon without the boy being able to move. Zenata's hand even held Leon's hand tightly. Viona shivered in fear, and so did Gio.

“Has this situation been going on for long?” Sean asked calmly.

"Yes. It had been around 300 years, since King Balckyn came to power, bringing down the Blue Light Tower. Until now, the entire city of Thousand-Appearances has always been shrouded in darkness.” Azlan continued with a tired sigh.

They walked hand in hand following Azlan's steps, who didn't know where to direct them because everyone, especially Leon and Sean, was busy listening to Azlan.

Azlan stopped, took the key from Leon's hand and put it in the keyhole then the door opened slowly. Apparently, Azlan took them to the room they had booked.

Entering the room first, Azlan then lit the candles near the door. The man lit one candle after another until the room became bright. Leon didn't ask or talk much, just watched and monitored Azlan's movements, who was now in the middle of the room.

"So, the tower visible from the end is Blue Light?" Sean asked after a moment of silence, trying to dig up more information.

Azlan's head nodded slowly.

"Yes." The man answered then but his gaze was fixed on a candle. "Since King Blackyn came to power, everything has become dark. No one can disobey that order, everyone, old, young, or whatever lives here must submit to the king. Dark times and long-suffering."

Leon's attention was drawn to Zenata who was walking beside him, distracting the boy.

"Disgusting," said Zenata.

All eyes were on the girl. Only Viona and Gio still looked at Zenata with disgust, even Sean. But a chuckle from Azlan brought their attention back to the man.

"Miss, I won't be surprised by your every comment and complaint because that's just who you are," Azlan said with a big smile. "But I'm sure there will be something that can change You," he continued with his gaze fixed on Leon. "You're not here for no reason." Azlan smiled then.

"Reason?" Sean snapped as he realized Azlan's words. "Does that mean we're here for a reason?" Azlan did not answer, he just looked at the five children in turn and then stepped forward one step.

“You will find the answer on this long journey,” Azlan said a little ambiguously. “Then, get enough rest. Let me know if there is anything you need,” he said then said goodbye.

Sean looked at Leon.

"How do I get to the palace?" Leon asked, stopping Azlan in his tracks.

Azlan turned around and just stared at Leon.

"Just follow the directions you get. Because you are the centre of all the reasons you are here," he said. Azlan smiled. “Good night.”

After saying that, Azlan left the room, and disappeared behind the tightly closed wooden door, making the five teenagers who had grown up look at each other, not understanding the meaning of Azlan's words.