Chapter 4
1234 Words
“What?!” Jaune exclaimed in disbelief as they finally reached the first town on their journey.
The town was small, with makeshift houses made of wood and scrap materials. People were selling all sorts of things that Jaune couldn’t even begin to understand. The residents looked like vagrants, and the streets were thick with mud. Horses trotted by, splashing mud onto the vendors’ goods—though the owners didn’t seem to care.
The word "tidy" clearly didn’t exist in this place.
“I was expecting grand wooden buildings,” Jaune muttered, frowning.
Destine, trying not to laugh, replied, “Jaune, you didn’t really think we’d find a beautiful city right away, did you?”
“I was hoping for a picturesque town with huge stone buildings,” she grumbled.
“Towns here don’t look like that. Those are cities. Most towns are like this.”
“Filthy, you mean?”
“Not all of them. It’s just like back home—some places are poor,” Destine explained.
Jaune said nothing and just glanced around. “Ugh, what’s that smell?” she asked, just before a horse galloped past them, splattering mud all over her.
“Gross! Seriously?!” she shrieked. “Watch where you’re going!”
“Jaune,” Destine said, grabbing her arm and pulling her aside as people started to stare.
Jaune looked down at herself—her clothes were covered in mud. “Ugh! We really need a change of clothes.”
“You think?” Jaune scoffed, pointing at her now filthy outfit.
“It’s not just the mud,” Destine said. “We’re dressed too differently. We stand out in this world.”
She scanned the area and spotted some clothes hanging nearby. “There,” she said.
Jaune followed her gaze and widened her eyes in horror. “Oh no. No way!”
“Oh yes,” Destine replied with a grin.
Hanging there were strange, questionable clothes—so dirty it was unclear if they’d been washed or just left to air out. “No. I’d rather wear these muddy clothes forever than put that on.”
“Jaune, we have to blend in. That’s rule number one when you get transported to another world.”
“Rule number one? What, is there a handbook for this?”
“Come on,” Destine said, trying to pull her.
“No way, Destine! We were raised better than this. We don’t steal! And have you seen how poor these people are? We’d be taking clothes from those who already have so little!”
Destine sighed, clearly losing patience with her twin’s theatrics.
“Rule number two—no being fussy.”
“I don’t care about your rules. I’m not stealing!”
Destine looked around and spotted a worn cloak. She grabbed it and tossed one to Jaune. “Fine. Just wear this to cover up.”
Jaune grabbed the cloak with a grimace. She gave it a sniff and nearly gagged. Destine, on the other hand, just threw hers on without hesitation.
“Seriously, Destine?” she groaned.
“Stop complaining and just wear it. We don’t want to attract monsters because of our clothes.”
With a long sigh, Jaune finally put it on, still grimacing. She couldn’t understand how her beautiful twin was handling this so well while she was on the verge of a meltdown.
“Well, at least this hides everything,” she said, clutching the cloak. “I’m not even wearing a bra.”
Destine’s eyes widened.
“I always take it off when I sleep. Don’t you?”
“I forgot to take mine off.”
“Lucky you.” Jaune placed a hand over her chest. “Good thing we’ve got these cloaks.”
Destine smiled. “Don’t worry. We’ll find proper clothes once we get the chance.”
“This is why I hate getting dragged into other worlds in the middle of sleep. We’re never prepared! In the movies, people always look ready. And why does it always happen when I’m in my most vulnerable sleepwear? Thank goodness those tiny people didn’t notice. And I’m pretty sure bras don’t exist in this world, right?”
“You talk too much. Let’s ask someone where exactly we are.”
Jaune sighed and followed her sister, trying to ignore the squishy feeling of mud beneath her bare feet. Of course, they weren’t wearing shoes—they were asleep, after all!
They looked like beggars wandering through town, but thankfully the ground wasn’t too rocky. Otherwise, it would’ve been more painful.
They approached a woman selling vegetables.
“Excuse me,” Destine said politely.
“Yes?” the woman responded.
“We’re lost. Can you tell us what town this is? We’re trying to get to the city of Andalania.”
“Andalania? Oh dear, you’re very far away, young lady.”
“What? Where are we?” Jaune asked.
“This is Mandalu.”
“Mandalu?” Destine glanced at her confused twin.
“Is that far?” Jaune asked.
“Thank you very much,” Destine said quickly, pulling Jaune away from the stall.
“Okay, Destine. How far is Andalania from here?” Jaune asked.
“Very far,” Destine said, stopping once they were out of sight. She bent down, picked up a stick, and drew on the dirt. “We’re here—Mandalu.” She pointed. “And Andalania is way over here, across this island.”
“What?!” Jaune’s jaw dropped. “It’s on another island?! Are you saying we have to swim across that?!”
“Of course not! There are ships we can take.”
“Are people here kind enough to let us ride for free?”
Destine stared at her. “We’ll just have to hope they are.”
“But that should be easy for you, right? I mean, you’re the one who defeated the evil king. You’re the hero! Surely people recognize you.”
“It’s not that simple, Jaune. Everyone heard about the king’s defeat, but that doesn’t mean they know who did it. Here, we’re just ordinary people.”
“So, what do we do now?”
Destine glanced around and spotted a man loading sacks of rice onto a cart. She pulled Jaune with her.
“Excuse me, sir,” she said.
“Yes?”
“Where are you delivering these?”
“To the next town. Then they’re sending the rice off to Bundura.”
Destine smiled and turned to her sister. “Bundura is near Andalania,” she whispered.
“Sir, would it be possible for us to ride with you?” Destine asked.
“Where are you headed?”
“To Andalania.”
“Andalania? That’s a long way. And it’s dangerous to travel these days.”
“Dangerous?” Jaune asked.
“Ever since the dark king was defeated, strange creatures have been appearing and attacking towns. We’ll be lucky if the rice even makes it to Bundura, especially with how risky it is to sail these days.”
The sisters exchanged a worried look.
“Do you still want to go?”
“Yes, please. We don’t have money, though.”
“No worries. Hop on—I’m leaving now.”
Destine climbed up the cart and sat near the back. Jaune hesitated for a moment but followed.
- Writer
