Carefree

"Hm, this is quite the place," Ceren grunted, his eyes taking in the hotel-like suite. Everything looked very expensive.

"Of course, master Ergo. Only the finest for you, sir," the concierge bowed, closing the door behind him as he left the room.

As the door clicked shut, Ceren's face spread into a wide smile. Now this was more like it. The suite was almost as large as his old penthouse.

It had turned out that the squat, fat man who had mistaken Ceren for the hero, Ergo, was actually a rather wealthy merchant. It hadn't taken much convincing on Ceren's side to get the man and his entourage to bring him to the nearest town, Able.

Unlike the wasteland he had appeared in, Able had actual signs of life. Even nature seemed to thrive in the town, much like an oasis.

Ceren let out a gravelly sigh as he threw himself on his new bed.

The merchant had put him up in a lush hotel, generally only intended for royalty. He had even provided Ceren with new clothes after being fed some lies about his armor being stolen.

Ceren let out a hoarse, barking laugh.

This wasn't bad. No bad at all.

He couldn't stay here forever, though. Word of him would surely spread until someone who actually knew the so-called hero found out. Unless...

Ceren's grin widened until his wrinkled skin seem to curl up in fear.

Unless, of course, Ceren could take his place. If he could convince everybody that he was truly Ergo, he could live the rest of his life just like this. There'd be no need to follow that Phi woman's wishes.

Though, of course, the real hero would have to go. One way or another.

He had seen the statue that the merchant had talked about - the statue of Ergo, the hero. The resemblance really was uncanny. True, Ergo's statue was wielding a sword and wearing highly decorated armor, but the face was the same. The build, too, from what he could tell.

If Ceren cut his wild hair and trimmed his beard, he would be a near doppelganger for Ergo.

His smile dimmed slightly as he recalled something the merchant had said during his initial presentation of the town.

"-- a-and just past the fountain there, you can see the guild building. If you want to practice during your stay, I'm sure they'll be more than happy to lend you their testing grounds, master Ergo."

"I see," Ceren had said offhandedly in an attempt to get the annoying little man to stop talking.

"Oh!" the merchant said, seeing Ceren's expression, "You don't have to worry about your magic destroying anything in there, sir! They have excellent protective spells on all the walls."

Something in the otherwise dull, one-sided conversation peaked Ceren's attention. Magic. He knew the concept from stories, of course, but just how did it worked?

It intrigued him, yet he felt an uncomfortable sense of foreboding, which he had not experienced in a very long time. As far as he knew, he was far-and-away the most powerful person in the world. Or, rather, he had been.

This was a new world with new rules. With magic. If he could figure out how it worked, he could surely become even more powerful than he already was. On the other hand...

What if he had to go up against someone with magic? Or some thing? Were there more monsters, like the 'orcus' he had which? Could they use magic?

His face darkened.

Such a severe lack of information made him uneasy. It had almost been his downfall once. Never again.

Never again.

*Knock-knock knock-knock-knock, knock-knock*

"Huh," he growled, "I guess that rhythm is universal. Come in."

The door to the suite creaked open and the frightened face of a young woman peered in. Carefully, she moved the door open to reveal a metallic tray with a variety of platters. At the sight of the young woman, Ceren pushed himself up on the bed and looked her over.

She was wearing something like a Victorian maid uniform. It was somewhat old-fashioned, especially with all the frills, but he thought it suited her quite nicely. His dark expression shifted to a smile.

Right, this wasn't the time to brood. While he was here, he should at least enjoy himself.

"Say, what's your name, dear?" he asked, a note of long-unused charm in his voice.

"Huh?! Oh, S-Samantha, master Ergo," she stammered.

"Samantha, hm? You--"

But at that moment, loud footsteps came hurrying down the hall and the half-open door burst wide.

The maid squealed and jumped back.

"E-Ergohhn-!"

Ceren was caught off guard for a moment. Had he already been found out? Looking over at the squat man who had burst through the door, he realized that it was the merchant. The man's face was pale and he looked completely out of breath.

"T-There's a pack of cobolts!!! Th-they're attacking the town!"

Ceren started upright. More monsters? Here?

"P-please... help us..."

With that, the man fainted and collapsed onto the floor.