Chapter 2 Master Zhao (2/2)

After he finished speaking, Master Zhao made a sharphirew blurry When it cleared up, Arran was baffled to find that Master Zhao had taken on the appearance of Adept Song

”On your way out, try to look like you just failed the test” Master Zhao, noearing Adept Song's face, took a look at Arran's distraught expression ”Perfect Now off with you”

With that, he waved Arran out of the office, cutting off any questions Arran had

Outside the office, a treh Arran's body as he tried to steady his nerves The encounter had left hihly shaken

”I said off with you!” Master Zhao's voice sounded through the door

Arran hurriedly began tohi off noould certainly draw attention, and so he forced hi step

Head held low, he finally exited the Testing Hall, doing his best to ignore the thought that at any ht burst forth and capture him

When he entered the square in front of the Acade that had seeer, as if the Academy itself had branded him an enemy

With a shudder, he walked away

Once he had gotten enough distance between himself and the Acade whether he should follow Master Zhao's instructions

If the ht away Yet if thethe truth, his only chance would be to do exactly what he had been told

After giving it soht, he decided to do what Master Zhao had said While he did not fully trust the man, just the abilities he had displayed in the Academy meant that he would not have to resort to cheap lies to catch Arran

Having decided, Arran set off toward the city's outskirts

Soon, he began to feel somewhat more at ease The croere thicker here and the people dressedit easier for Arran to blend into the inally entered the city from the east, but now he noticed that the southern part of the city see swords and axes at their sides Evening had not fallen yet, but already, the ood business

He spent soel, but instead, he soon found himself lost within the maze-like streets At this rate, he would be lucky to reach it before nightfall

Eventually, he sao a plain but well-fitting brown dress She reminded him of the women froel was

”Excuse me, miss,” he said ”Could I trouble you for directions?”

She gave him a wary look, but still stopped to reply ”Where are you heading?”

”I'el,” he answered

Instantly, her face turned sour She gave him a scandalized look, then walked off without a word

Arran was puzzled All he had done was ask for directions to an inn, yet the woman had reacted as if he had propositioned her Froel wasn't theso on his own, he finally approached a beggar He tossed the man a copper and asked, ”Can you tell el?”

”A rin that revealed several ave Arran directions in an accent so thick he could only barely understand what the ar another coin, then headed tohere he thought theafter, he arrived at a stone building with a large sign with a crude painting of a blue woel” scrawled underneath In front of the building a bald, broad-shoulderedhis nails with a knife that looked far too big for the task

The lanced up for a second as Arran approached, then went back to tri his nails

As soon as Arran stepped inside, he understood the scandalized look the woe, filled with over a dozen wooden tables, with a handful ofscattered across the room What drew Arran's attention, however, were the women

Within the roo next to the men at the tables, while the others sat in the back, their eyes turning toward Arran as soon as he entered

Their clothes were unlike anything he had ever seen before, necklines so deep they revealed ht as well not have worn any at all

Arran felt his face turn red as he tried his best not to look at anything scandalous, a task he only partly accomplished He had heard of places like this, but he had never thought he would actually visit one

Trying to keep a straight face, he made his way to the bar Behind the bar stood a plu neckline

”How , ”Just to stay” It took him some effort not to let his eyes wander below her face

”Two silvers for the week,” the woman answered with a smirk ”Three if you want clean sheets”

Arran handed her three silver ht now, but a lack of coin was not a them

”Do you have any baths?” he asked

”Two coppers for a bath,” the woman replied After a irls to join you” She cast aaround the room

”Just the bath is fine,” Arran said hastily

An hour later he was lying on a soft bed in a s the street, bathed and fed The meal had been much better than he would have expected in a place like this, and after the bath, he felt cleaner than he had in hts turned toward his situation If Master Zhao could be believed, a group offor Fulai City at that very ht of it was terrifying

Worse, froer than he could ever have ied to escape for the tianization like that seemed nearly impossible

And could he even trust Master Zhao? The iven him a small fortune in coin, that much was true Yet, ould he help Arran?

No ht about it, Arran could not find a satisfactory answer

It ell into the night when he eventually fell asleep, his dreaes