One sheath, two swords

If Aric had heard those words, he would have been surprised. The guard was quite attentive for his job, and maybe in modern times, he would have been a good detective. The first thing to strike him was the atmosphere of bustling activity that enveloped the narrow cobblestone streets.

The air was filled with sporadic sounds of hagglers at their open-air shops, a few horses clip-clopping, and the chatter of townsfolk. The city seemed like a maze of tightly packed buildings, their timber frames and thatched roofs leaning precariously over the streets below.

Few houses had colorful banners hung from the windows and balconies with sigils that Aric had never seen before. Above them, laundry flapped in the breeze.

Aric could see a couple of bakeries, a blacksmith shop, an extravagant cloth shop, an armor shop, and various others which seemed to be in sync with the times. Aric didn't expect the city to be so big, but it was a breath of fresh air for him. There was an odor around which Aric had never experienced before.

Though the odor wasn't very pleasant, as there was a small portion of horse poop mixed in it, he could also smell the air being fresher than the ones he experienced in his previous life. After a bit of appreciation, he started walking around the city pointlessly. He wanted to understand from people what this place was all about. As Aric walked through the bustling streets of the medieval city, snippets of conversation floated to his ears.

"I swear, the price of grain keeps rising every week. Soon, we'll be eating nothing but scraps," spoke a man who seemed to be more ragged than the others around in general.

"It's because of the barbarians. The soldiers of the empire are dealing with them. Hopefully, in a week or so, the borders will return to peace."

"The church has issued a memorial for the dead soldiers tomorrow. I think we should go."

....

Aric missed having a GPS here, but he would have to do what he had gotten. Thus, he decided to approach a bakery. The shopkeeper was a man who seemed to be in his 50s. Clusters of white hair in his beard and the receding hairline were enough to say that the man had seen struggles in his life.

"You seem new, son? What do you need?" The man asked with a smile.

"I just arrived in the city, uncle. Can you give me some bread?" Aric asked cautiously after thinking about his words. He didn't want to raise his suspicions.

"Sure, son. Here. Free for your first purchase." The man took out bread and handed it over without a second thought. Of course, Aric was having none of it and asked.

"How much is it, uncle?" Aric asked.

"Your ragged clothes don't scream gold on your body, son. Take the bread. You will need it." Though Aric felt grateful and also a bit surprised at such generous behavior, he didn't want to owe someone any favor. He had seen in his past life how 'favors' came back to haunt him later.

Aric took out a copper coin and placed it near him.

"Son, I told you that I don't need..."

"Uncle, I might be in this city for quite some time, so I am new to this place. I do have some money saved, so you don't need to worry. I might not be as poor as I look." Aric said while giving a happy smile. The uncle looked at Aric closely and then laughed out loud.

"Hahahaha.. Right! For this copper coin, you will get two loaves. Here you go," the man said.

"Thank you, Uncle. Can you also tell me if there is any library here?" Aric asked.

"Library? You know how to read? Seems like you are not really poor. You fooled me, son," the man said.

"Uncle, I never said I was poor. You assumed that," Aric replied.

"Hahaha.. Yes.. yes.. My bad. I like you kid, you have a good head on your shoulders, but don't go around telling this to people. The library is...." The man gave him a general direction, and after repeating, Aric left the shop and took long strides towards the library. While going to the library, he also found a silent alley to change his attire to that of a more average child of the city and not some hillbilly from the villages.

Aric soon reached the library. Nestled modestly among the other buildings in the medieval city, its two-story structure blended seamlessly into the bustling streetscape. Constructed of sturdy stone bricks, the building's exterior bore the weathered marks of age, softened by creeping ivy that wound its way up the walls. Small, rectangular windows dotted the facade, their wooden shutters occasionally creaking in the gentle breeze.

A simple wooden sign hung above the entrance, bearing the inscription "Distant Wind Library" in faded lettering. Aric was glad that he found the place and walked in, only to be stopped by the librarian.

"Library plaque," the librarian spoke in the lowest volume possible.

"I don't have one," Aric could only reply.

"New kid in town? Whatever. One copper coin for a monthly plaque and 5 for a year-long plaque." The librarian showed a small board where it was written. Aric nodded and took out 5 copper coins. She turned around and brought out a silver-colored plaque and handed it over.

"Don't lose the plaque or else you will have to buy another one. The library closes at 8 pm and opens at 11 am. Don't come crying to me the next day if you get stuck here and I close the library," the librarian said.

"Yes.. yes.."

Aric thanked her and walked away. She was quite upfront and rude, totally different from the shopkeeper of the bakery, signifying a place could have two kinds of people. But at the moment, Aric didn't care. He needed answers.

And thus he started working towards his journey of flipping pages in the fastest way possible.