The first thing he did after entering his room was placing the things he was holding on a small table beside the bed. Then, he looked around the room. Fortunately, it has a bathroom.
He decided to take a bath first. Although he had that spell the same as Wendy, taking a bath was still better. It gives a refreshing feeling.
Inside the labyrinth, there were places like falls and lakes. But, he couldn't enjoy them because his attention was always around him.
After taking a bath, he wore his newly bought white shirt with x print and paired it with the newly bought pants.
While waiting for his hair to dry, he opened the window and gazed at the sky. The bright blue color it had a moment ago was silently disappearing, turning the sky darker and darker every beat of a second.
Following it, below the dimming sky, the house's lamps or even the street lamps started to light up to bring brightness in their vicinity.
'It was truly the real world, huh,' he thought again. Even until now, it was still hard for him to believe that he was finally outside that place.
It was truly unbelievable. It was a very long journey. He felt like he was fighting for eternity against those creatures.
However, who would think that he would succeed in the end? And to think that it was only four months. Even Jem himself could not believe it.
"What do you think, trader? Does the labyrinth have a different time flow?"
Jem suddenly opened up the question.
<That must be the case, host.>
Hearing the trader's reply, Jem surmised that even the trader was not quite sure about it. But, Jem believed that it was the only possible explanation.
As he was gazing outside while pondering, he lost track of time. He only noticed that it was already time for dinner when his stomach had made a growling noise.
Jem decided to go down. He would be going to use his free dinner perks.
He went to the restaurant that the counter lady told him about a while ago.
When he entered, he saw rows of tables and seats. Some people were occupying most of those. They were happily conversing while having their dinner. Some were having their dinner alone.
He went directly to the counter to take his order.
Jem ordered Pressure-Fried Lesser Bear Meat with sauce, Lesser Beef Soup, bread, and cheese.
It was a random pick.
He went to an available table while waiting for his order to be served. Though, it didn't take long for his order to arrive.
Looking at the food in front of him, Jem could not help but gulp. There was a longing feeling when he was staring at the food in front of him. In his mind, finally, a properly cooked food.
Honestly, he had no particular favorite food, but having been stranded in a place in which he had to devour everything consumables just to quench his hunger, made him crave food that was cooked properly.
He took a fork and knife, then sliced a piece of Pressure-Fried Bear meat.
When the taste of meat and seasoning entered his mouth, there was no change in his expression. Deep inside, he was disappointed. His expectation shattered to pieces in that instance.
It wasn't because the dish was badly cooked, but because there was no response from his sense of taste.
Even the apple he ate a while ago had the same blunt taste. His mind was telling him it was sweet, however. In truth, he was just fooling himself. He lost his sense of taste inside the labyrinth.
All that was left to him was an empty taste.
Jem forced himself to devour the food in front of him. He needed to satisfy his protesting stomach after all.
Around him, he heard someone talking about the appearance of a dungeon in Seaside City. But Jem did not listen further. He concentrated on finishing his food.
Meanwhile, in the orphanage, located in the northwest suburb of Mauve Town, Hope and Meir were sitting around the rectangular table along with ten children who were pestering them with questions in front of their meals.
"Big sis Hope, how is your visit to the Ex Soul Academy?" One of the children suddenly asked the question.
"Uhm, all is fine. There will be more events between the Ex Soul Academy and the Ex-Human Institution in the coming semester," replied Hope.
"Is that so? Did you fight against them in a duel?"
Another child asked.
"Meir did."
"Really!?"
Everyone was showing excited expressions when they saw Hope nodded. Also, curiosity was apparent in their faces.
The orphan children's heads simultaneously turned away from Hope and now they were staring at Meir.
"Big sis, how is the duel!?"
"Who's your opponent!?"
"I heard the Ex Soul Academy is the most prestigious school in the East District!"
"I heard it's the gathering of talented students from most of the noble families in the East District!"
"Hey, did you win!?"
Hope and Meir were being pressed with questions from the children.
"Uh eh---" Meir was taken aback at the sudden rain of questions.
"My, my, everyone, don't go so far as bombarding your big sis with questions. Your big sisters are still not in good health."
A nun came and said those lines.
"Eyyyy…" the children responded in a somewhat dispirited tone.
"Alright, everyone. It's time to fix up yourselves and prepare to sleep. Sister Ann will come to check on you later on, you know."
Hah~
The children sighed.
"Okay…"
They replied in a less enthusiastic tone. Soon, they stood up from their seats, then reluctantly followed the nun's words.
Only Meir, Hope, and the nun were left behind.
"Thank you, Sister Jane," Meir said, thanking the nun.
"Fufu, don't mind it. Oh, by the way, thanks for the donation money from both of you."
"It's nothing, Sister Jane," said Hope with a smile.
Meir also nodded in agreement to Hope. She had a relaxed smile on her face. "Once I reach my first level, I will join a guild and donate more money." Suddenly, Mier declared.
"Yeah, me too."
It looks like Hope had the same thought as Meir.
"Fufu. You two, don't be so rash, you know. Your safety is the most important thing. Right. you must go to sleep early as well. You still have to go to the institution tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah, next week will be the end of the first semester. So, from tomorrow onward will be a busy day for me and Hope," said Meir.
"I see. By the way, Sister Ann instructed that you are prohibited from training tonight. You have to sleep early. Remember that a woman's appearance decides her future."
"....."
The two girls fell silent with a troubled smile.
Hope suddenly clapped her hands. "Right, what is Sister Ann doing?" She asked.
"She's currently talking to an officer from the law enforcer."
"Could it be…" said Meir.
"Yes. It seemed like the people who tried to abduct you were members of the new rebel group."
"I see…"
Meir and Hope fell silent afterward.
"Be careful next time. The federation is currently at risk against those rebels. Their numbers are increasing every moment."
"O-okay!"
The two girls nodded at the same time. In their minds, the figure of a boy appeared.
When morning came,
Jem checked out of the hotel after lunch. He rode a carriage back to Seaside City.
In the federation, carriages were the main source of land transportation. However, when it comes to city-to-city trips, especially the longer trips, the locomotive train was the better option.
There were also other methods of transportation besides the carriages and trains. One example of it was the Airboats.. Another example was animals and tamed beasts.
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