The Innkeeper

Chapter 1390  The chosen one II

Although Lex had not meant that as a serious response, it gave the others pause. It seemed like bureaucracy was a problem regardless of country, planet or race.

"Jokes aside, the Treehouse tavern is not like any other," Lex said, deciding to skip his amazing jokes. It wouldn't be funny if those who he was speaking to couldn't understand them to begin with.

"The Treehouse tavern is associated with the Midnight Inn, and as such travels from planet to planet, every so often. Even I cannot predict when the Treehouse will go to another planet, so don't miss out, and enjoy it while it lasts."

"You're from another planet?" Freman asked, for some reason surprised by that fact more than any other. "The Empire will not like that. They like to strictly control access to and from the planet. Perhaps you should hide the tree, and not display it so blatantly. Such a treasure should be protected, not exposed to the dangers of the Arra-kiss."

Lex smiled amusedly.

"I assure you, the Treehouse tavern is more than safe. I do not think we will be having any problems with any empire. Anyway, if you guys wish to come up, you can come through the reception. You can stay in the garden down below if you want, but only as long as it doesn't bother any guests."

Technically, Lex had no guests right now, but he would eventually. While the garden was a great way to attract attention, and passerbyers, he wanted to establish from the beginning that he wouldn't tolerate them causing a ruckus.

With that said, he retreated to the other side of the garden, tending to the still growing plants. He did not want to unnerve the new possible guests, as he could see his presence greatly unnerved them for they were too cautious.

"Come Freman, we must leave immediately, and send word of this development to the shaman," one of the elves called, still unwilling to step into the garden.

"Tell them what? We have barely begun to explore the place? Let alone the treehouse, we have not even explored the garden entirely. Moreover, touching this grass feels way too good. I don't want to go just yet. It's like, for my entire life, this is what I've been missing."

"Freman, you are not a child. We do not understand the dangers of this place. How can you be sure you've not been bewitched? We need to check if you've been influenced by any kind of magic. The Shaman will be the one to decide."

Freman looked reluctantly out at the garden, and felt the longing his body felt towards all that greenery, but eventually turned back. It was not that he doubted the genuineness of the treehouse of the garden. Instead, he knew the others would not trust the tavern unless the Shaman confirmed he was fine. If they did not trust it, they would be deprived of it.

It was literally only for his own teammates that he put a heavy stone on the longing in his heart and turned to leave.

"Since you guys did not come in, you don't understand," he said as he left, having put his boots back on. "I think this is the paradise from prophecy. 'The chosen will fight the oppressors from the shade of paradise, and bring forth a change in the ways of the world.'"

The others fidgeted upon having a line from their prophecy read out, and could not help but glance at the tree one more time. They too felt the attraction from it, but resisted out of fear.

Instead of approaching the garden, they climbed back onto their moles, which began to dip down into the dirt.

Just before they left, they saw a vague figure on the horizon, running towards the tree.

Tetsuya also saw the desert elves, but ignored them as he continued to run towards the tree.

He was dehydrated, exhausted, and running out of options.

He was being hunted - he was always being hunted. He didn't know what it was about his luck that caused him to make enemies wherever he went, but this time, he was truly at the end of his rope.

Running towards the tree was actually a really bad idea, as everyone would come to investigate it sooner or later. It was the opposite of where he wanted to be. But he was hoping that near the tree he could discover some treasured fruit that would help him recover to his peak condition.

He didn't even care for any improvements or upgrades. Just removing his fatigue would be enough. After all, he had a big fight in front of him soon enough. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Fifteen minutes later, a severely burned Tetsuya finally reached the garden. As soon as he smelled the fresh grass, the flowers and the trees, Tetsuya nearly broke down. Originating from a farming planet, being transported to a desert planet was especially torturous on him.

He never thought he'd be able to enjoy these simple pleasures ever again so long as he did not leave Arra-kiss, and he would never be able to leave this place as long as the Empire ruled it.

That momentary weakness quickly passed though. He could not allow himself to relax. Instead, he raised his guard as high as he possibly could, and then carefully began to wade through the garden.

While appearances may make it seem like this place was a paradise, especially on a planet such as Arra-kiss, he knew better. For this massive tree to suddenly just appear out of nowhere, it must be hiding an immense secret, greater than any he had ever seen.

He used a number of techniques to scout the area for any dangers, and at being unable to detect any obvious threats, he cautiously collected all the dew gathered on the grass, and drank it in one big gulp.

Although the amount of water he drank was barely anything, he suddenly felt a rush of energy pour through his body, healing his deepest wounds and helping him recover. Yet instead of feeling glad, Tetsuya was horrified. What kind of place was this if even the moisture on the grass was high enough levelled to heal him?

Cautiously, and with great doubt as if he was double minded about this, Tetsuya broke off a single blade of grass, and bit it.