Aveyond: Rhen's Quest

Chapter 5

Rhen's feet were sore and stinging as she entered Veldarah, but after three months as a slave, the soles of her feet had grown tough with calluses. Even from what little she could see through the city's gate, the streets clearly brimmed with activity.

Surprisingly, the guards barely gave Rhen a second glance as she walked through the gate. With how strict Ghalarah had been in ensuring that slaves couldn't leave, she had assumed that Veldarah would be the same... Though perhaps the city was simply too big for anyone to care much about that. But as Rhen looked around, no one stood out to her automatically as a fellow slave. There was a noticeable difference between the rich and poor, to be sure, but if there were any slaves, they blended in perfectly.

Rhen couldn't help but gape at the vast city as she stepped foot onto the cobbled stone roads; compared to Veldarah, Ghalarah was practically shabby. Even Clearwater paled in comparison, seeming more like a quaint, forgotten hamlet than the vibrant village that Rhen remembered it as.

Veldarah's expansive streets were disorienting, winding and weaving through the buildings and the bustling marketplace that Rhen stepped into. The cobbled streets were so different from the worn, wooden pathways of Ghalarah, and among all these people, Rhen felt like a tiny fish swept into a vast ocean.

Rhen gravitated towards the first store she saw, hoping that she might find some directions to Shadwood from there. The sign bore a symbol of a key, suggesting that it was a junk shop, so perhaps some of that "junk" would prove to be maps of the area. The store's tile floor was a cool, soothing contrast to the hard cobblestones outside, and Rhen was immediately grateful for the respite it had on her weary feet.

"Good day, miss. If you see any goods that you'd like to buy, let me know," the shopkeeper greeted her, surprisingly polite despite Rhen's obvious griminess. "You are a slave, I reckon? From which house do you come?"

"None. I've recently been freed," Rhen replied, absently looking around the shop as she drew closer to its keeper. "I'm on my way to Shadwood Academy. Do you know where I can find it?"

To his credit, the shopkeeper actually looked embarrassed at his assumption, his posture immediately straightening as realization washed over him. "My most humble apologies! You are a new student, then? The empress will be very pleased indeed."

He walked around the counter to pull out a map of the city, pointing out a spot in the upper left corner. The area was marked by a flower, a small banner denoting it as the Flower District. "The academy is here in the northern part of the city. You can't miss it. Here, take the map," the shopkeeper insisted, rolling up the map and handing it over.

"Oh— Thank you," Rhen said, surprised by how eager the shopkeeper had been to help her as soon as she mentioned Shadwood, even though she was dirty and clearly still looked like a slave, based on the shopkeeper's initial assumption.

The sun's heat bore down on her as Rhen stepped out of the junk shop, the cobblestones warm beneath her feet. She weaved through the crowds as she made her way towards the city's northern district, the signs thankfully making it easier to navigate.

The houses here in Veldarah were noticeably cleaner and better constructed than those in Ghalarah, built from stone and fenced in with tall metal spires. As she took in the sights, Rhen felt a sense of disgust recalling how Lars's mother had behaved. Rona had always acted as if she were above everyone else in Ghalarah, but she was only a small-town noble. What right or reason did that woman have to act like she was anywhere near this kind of rich?

Although she was clearly, dirty, grimy, and still dressed in her threadbare dress, Rhen was surprised to find that most people here just... ignored her. Some people – obviously the nobility – gave her judgmental looks, but other than that, they didn't bother to call out insults or go out of their way to otherwise degrade her. It was admittedly a nice change of pace from Ghalarah's townspeople.