Druid’s Grove was a massive city that made no sense to the eye. From the medieval weapons he was given at the start he thought it would be a dirty, smelly manure ladled city but this was different. This city was surrounded by several villages of people and all of them seemed to be some flavor of humanlike.
He saw humans that looked like elves, dwarves to gnomes, and half giants. What shocked him was that they were all working together using what looked like magical tools comparable to modern day. Almost every house in the villages he passed looked like either well made wooden bungalows or stone houses but weren’t made out of brick and mortar.
All of the people looked decently dressed and no one looked poor or starving at all. They didn’t look what he imagined wealthy but looked like good working class folks.
As he walked past them none of them even looked at him hard or stopped as he reached the line waiting to enter the city. As he looked at the walls of the city with a better eye he was shocked. The walls of the city were massive trees that were interwoven together forming a massive 200 foot wall.
He was astonished to see people using peculiar magical carriages that moved without the need for horses or oxen, ranging from wooden to metal versions. It was a massive flow of five lines of people with 2 lines of people leaving and 3 lines of people coming in. Everyone dressed in versions of heavy tunics and boots. As he waited in line he looked and saw that behind him was a group of what he considered half giants.
These people looked to be anywhere from 7-8 feet tall with massively strong builds, arms and legs like tree trunks and skin that also ranged from light gray to ebony. As he turned around he looked at each of them and smiled.
“Hey, This is my first time here. Do I need anything to get into the city?” As he looked at them. The older one with several notches in his arms from what he imagined were previous injuries spoke up.
“Hail Traveler. You need to pay a toll to enter and leave the city. If you don’t pay it on entry you are given a mark on your skin that only glows when near a toll master. Once it is paid it is removed. You can also trade goods that are considered fair for entry. “
“What is considered fair for entry?”
“You need a silver mark to enter and leave the city.” Marcus thought for a second and asked.
“What's the going rate on beverage and food boxes?” The group looked at each other and spoke.
“Around a Gold Mark give or take. Which is around 100 Silver marks.” Marcus closed his eyes and chuckled to himself as he realized that he gave the highwaymen what he could only imagine was a large chunk of change.
“Would you like to trade for one?” The members looked at each other and nodded as they started counting out silver marks until they reached 100 silver marks. Marcus pulled out a food box from his bag and gave it to them and they smiled at each other and nodded back to each other. Before turning around another man in the line turned to him and called out.
“HEY! Do you have any more? I’ll buy them from you. This guy has food boxes! How many do you have?!?!” As others in the line turned to face him, each holding out marks trying to buy boxes from him. He undid his cloak and relieved his old fully functional half plate and his shortsword as he turned around and looked at every one of them, their voices piped down as they returned back to normal in the line.
As he looked at the silver mark in it looked just like the coins he had taken from the dungeon.
At least I won’t be poor.
As he made it to the Tollmaster he looked at him and handed him a silver mark before stepping into Druid’s Grove fully.
The city was unlike anything he had ever encountered, a marvel of nature intertwined with human ingenuity. At its heart stood an enormous tree, its towering presence commanding attention from every corner. The tree's colossal roots sprawled across the ground, rising to the height of two to three stories, creating a labyrinth of natural architecture.
People had ingeniously carved their homes and businesses directly into these roots, creating a seamless blend of nature and habitation. The roots formed a living network of structures, with various dwellings and edifices intricately sculpted into the inner sides of the inside of the wall, each nook and crevice bustling with life and activity.
As he made his way deeper into the bustling market, he observed a lively array of street vendors, their stalls brimming with colorful fruits, sizzling skewers, handmade trinkets, and vibrant textiles.
The air was filled with the aromatic blend of spices and the clamor of haggling voices. Amidst the hustle, a group of children caught his eye; they were energetically singing and dancing, their laughter rising above the crowd.
He approached a child with almond-shaped eyes and a cheerful demeanor, crouching down to meet his gaze. “Can you tell me where I might find the tavern or inn?” he asked, pressing a gleaming silver mark into the boy's small palm. The child nodded eagerly, pointing down a narrow, cobblestoned path, a wide smile spreading across his face.
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“You have several choices sir. What exactly are you looking to do in the city?” He smiled and looked at him.
“I am a warrior of sorts. I am looking to rest and clean myself before taking on a job to maybe hunt or deal with monsters.”
The kid beamed up at him and smiled. “You should check out Takanaka’s Rest. Its just a small walk east from here. My older sister runs the place. Tell her Kenny sent you and she will give you a very fair price on a room. Anywhere from 30 to 70 silver marks per room per night. She also has a small bathing house included in that fee as well though any clothes washed and food is not included. She doesn’t really deal in quests and stuff but so you may want to check out The Slayer Corps. That is near the Eastern Trunk of the city.” As he pointed directly behind him.
“They offer monster hunting quests for freelancers though the best quests I have heard tend to be for official members.” Marcus gave the kid another silver as thanks and made his way to Takanaka’s Rest.
Upon reaching Takanaka’s Rest, he observed that the establishment was perched on the sprawling, above-ground root of the central tree. The enormous root, elevated to about three stories high, featured expansive ceilings that appeared to stretch nearly nine feet overhead.
A young man, who appeared to be of East Asian descent, stood guard at the entrance. He had a muscular build of average height and exuded a sense of quiet strength. As he approached, the mouthwatering aroma of the food wafted through the air, enticing and almost divine. With the enticing scent guiding him, he walked towards the entrance, where the young man stood vigilant, ready to greet newcomers.
“Welcome to Takanaka’s Rest. We are out of basic rooms but we do have business and executive rooms available with them being 50 and 70 silvers respectively. We do have a table ready if you would like to eat. We have no specials today but the food is always good. Does any of that interest you?”
Marcus looked the man in the face and nodded before speaking again. “I would look to buy a business room along with a meal, a bath and somewhere to wash my clothes. A child told me to say Kenny sent me as well if that matters. “ The man smiled before speaking again.
“That’s my little brother and yeah it seems like you are getting the full service so we can knock a few silvers off your total bill if you would like to take a bath we can watch and dry your clothes before you get out. Fanny! Lead this man to the bathhouse and take his clothes and wash them. That will be 10 silvers. “
Marcus reached inside and handed the man 11 silvers and nodded at him before a red skinned woman with Latin features with horns and long black hair led him to behind the root before he noticed a large basement like door as she told him to follow her in as she opened it and his jaw dropped. There were several dozen men and women sitting in large wooden individual tubs washing themselves and others getting out.
Before Fanny spoke and lead him to an empty tub as she pointed to the empty tub and pulled out a two strange wands as she pointed one at the tub and a torrent of water began to spread out from the wand quickly filling the tub before she pointed the other wand at the tub and said a strange word and a wave of heat left the wand and headed towards the tub.
“This is your tub. You have 1 hour here. If you need soap, that's an additional 2 silvers, same for shampoo and conditioner, if you need deodorant then an additional 2 silvers as well. He handed her 5 silvers and she handed him a bar of soap and a bar of what he imagined was deodorant. Please hand me any clothes you want to wash. Anything considered more than a load will be an additional 1 silver per load. “
“You want me to remove my clothes in front of you? Like completely nude?”
“Yes, sir. Don’t worry I won’t tell anyone what I see.” He quickly pulled out several pieces of clothing that he looted from the underground castle that were in decent condition. Then took off his half plate and looked over at her curiously?
“Yes, we wash armor but we don’t clean weapons. If your armor has any properties that would harm me or anyone else let me know but so far this will be an additional 2 silvers if we include what you are wearing. “
He slowly took off his clothes in front of everyone and handed the woman everything. Despite it being well over a hundred pounds she didn’t have much of a problem at all as she walked away with everything except his duffle bag. As he stepped into the large wooden tub he smiled as it was nice and warm and began to properly clean himself as he soaked in the tub as he put his duffle bag where he could see it after about 20 minutes Fanny came back with all of gear and clothes.
“Some of these clothes seem very old but held up to cleaning well. Here is all of your gear. I will put it on top of your strange looking bag. “After she did he handed her an additional silver which she smiled at before saying he had about 40 minutes left.
After about 20 more minutes in the tub and washing himself he stepped out and put on his deodorant. He noticed there was a towel here as well. He soon dried off then put on the socks and leather boots he took from the tunnel along with a long tunic that stopped before his knees before wrapping his waist in a thick leather band that held his shortsword as he stepped out as he stuff all of his gear inside of his duffle bag.
I guess we are freeballing.
He went back to Fanny and handed her back the towel as he left the basement and went back to the front door and walked inside.
Let’s see what this place is all about.
