Sneaking back in proved much easier than sneaking out. The first thing that Dallion did was curse himself for closing the door in such a way so that the bar would bolt it from the inside. The second was to knock directly on it and wait for someone to open.

Dallion’s parents turned out to be sound sleepers, so it came to his younger brother to do the honors. The naivete with which the boy opened the door without even asking who was knocking, was borderline surreal. Back in his previous world, the first thing children were told was not to trust strangers, and definitely not answer the door when alone. The worst part was that according to Dallion’s memories, he had been no less trusting than his brother.

“What are you doing up so early?” Linner asked with a yawn, then rubbed his eyes.

“I wanted to practice a bit.”

Strictly speaking that wasn’t a lie. Of course, he added nothing about Gloria, the shrine, or the fact that he had gained a second skill. Thinking about it still made Dallion slightly annoyed. If it wasn’t for the village chief’s insecure pettiness, he could have had a rare crafting skill. Then again, if it hadn’t been for that pettiness, he wouldn’t have learned about the shrine in the first place.

“I’m going back to sleep,” Linner grumbled half-asleep, then zombie off back in the house.

Dallion followed, closing the door behind him.

The bed felt scratchier than before. The cloth was rough, every wrinkle felt like a sliver of fabric biting into his skin, and the grains of dust felt like pebbles.

I’ve become like the princess with the hundred mattresses, the boy said to himself, then shivered thinking what Gloria had been going through. No wonder she upgraded all her clothes. With the perception she had, normal clothes probably felt like wearing barbed wire.

Morning came at the worst possible time. Just as Dallion was starting to doze off, the sound of his family walking about the house made the task impossible. With a yawn and a sigh, he got up and went to get washed.

Breakfast was the first moment of dread that the boy faced. Fortunately, it turned out that his mother’s cooking had become tastier than before. As the morning progressed, more people came to the house.

A few neighbors were the first to drop by. Cracking jokes as usual, they grabbed Dallion’s father for the start of their workday on the field. The usual gaggle of children soon followed. Too young to be given any real chores and too old to remain in the house, they spent several minutes staring at Dallion—or the newly awakened, very much to Linner’s pride—they rushed out to play with Dallion’s brother. Lastly, elder Seene arrived.

“Hello, grandpa.” Dallion waved enthusiastically. This was the moment he’d been waiting for had finally come.

“You’re in a good mood today.” The old man smiled as he made his way to the dining table. “Is your training going well?”

“I’ve been keeping an eye on him,” Dallion’s mother said, bringing a mug of steaming tea to the elder. The aroma was pleasant, although almost overwhelming. “He’s been doing fine. If the Seven are willing, he’ll be ready for tomorrow.”

“That’s all we can hope for.” The elder put up a brave front, but Dallion could clearly see he was worried.

“Grandpa, there’s something I want to ask you.” The boy leaned forward. “Can you tell me something about the cities?”

“The cities?”

“Yeah. You mentioned that awakened with rare skills got to go there. I’m just curious what they are like.”

“This is quite sudden.” His features moved into a deep frown. “You've never been interested in that before.”

“I wasn’t awakened before.”

“Right, right..” For a moment it almost seemed that the question saddened Seene. “Well, the cities are very different from everything you know. A lot of people are either awakened or related to one and everything is made to reflect it.”

“Are awakened a ruling class there?”

“Ruling class?” The elder laughed. “Yes and no. The noble running the city is always awakened, as are many of the nobles and guild masters. However, awakened also keep the city in order. Blacksmiths, carpenters, masons, even tailors can be awakened. In the cities even the gift isn’t always a guarantee for success.”

“So, you’ve been in one?”

“Oh, yes. Many times. When I was young, I was much more reckless than I am now. I thought that I could make a name for myself there..” His daze drifted away, looking at something Dallion couldn’t see. “You’re thinking of going there, aren’t you?”

It would have been easy to say yes. Dallion wanted very much to go there. If the city was even a fraction the way his grandfather described it, it would be much closer to the boy’s old home than this village. Although, why was everyone so terrified when given the prospect?

“I’m considering it.” Dallion chose the diplomatic reply.

“Considering is good. Just be sure that’s what you really want to do. Sometimes people go to the cities and find they don’t really want to be there. A miserable life awaits those..”

Everything suggested there was more to the story. The elder, however, chose not to continue. Finishing his drink, he stood up, gave Dallion a hearty tap on the shoulder, and then left. It was almost as if he had guessed the boy’s next question and chosen to leave before he was asked to answer it. That created something of a problem for Dallion, since he had exhausted all his options. He could possibly try to ask the remaining village elders, or even people from the Luor family, yet something told him the result would likely be the same.

Why doesn’t anyone leave this village? Dallion wondered. Why didn’t I want to leave it?

It was said that an overabundance of coincidences always led to a hidden pattern. All one had to do was keep track, and eventually the truth would be uncovered. Until then, Dallion had another day of training before him.