Chapter 107: Uncanny Valley

Chapter 107: Uncanny Valley

Chapter 107

Uncanny Valley

Sylas stood at the front of the village, looking at the thatched roofs that were finally coming into light under the shine of the rising, morning sun. The eerily silent village seemed to wake at that moment, with the faintest sounds of the noise beginning to emerge out into the open.

He remained alert though not afraid. Above all emotions, curiosity reigned; as far as he could tell, there was no energy, no magic within the village. It could be that he was entirely unqualified to notice it, but he suspected that wasnt the case. Even if he had little faith in himself, he understood that he was hardly just a layman at this point.

Who are you?! an alarmed and cautioned voice broke out amidst the silence. Sylas looked to his right--a mail-worn man seemingly in his mid-twenties stood there, a brittle sword drawn out, shaking and pointing toward him. Though he was surprised that the man didnt raise any alarms for him, he dismissed it as he didnt seem to pose a threat.

Put that thing down, Sylas said. Youll cut yourself. Im just a traveler. Do you have a village chief or something? Id like to talk to em.

Y-you--

Its that different building, Im guessing, Sylas interrupted him. Cmon. Lead the way. Chop chop. Though the day is young, I aint. Im fuckin old. How do you know when youre old? When you go oh snap when you hear something snap. Its really a terrifying sound, right?

Under Sylas repeated barrage of nonsense, the young man seemed overwhelmed and actually followed Sylas instructions, leading him through the streets toward the brick-laden house. On their way over, Sylas saw many faces, most hidden behind the windows, staring at him with strange looks.

There was certainly something strange about the place, as he could really discern any of them through magic, only with his eyes. They all stood still and silent, watching him. Even the young man didnt speak, silently walking forward like a voiceless guide.

If nothing else, the place was strange and odd, even slightly more than whatever was happening underground. Then again, this was only odd for those who've never gone to a small town. Sometimes, those places to an outsider could even feel cultish, as everyone ended up staring and dancing around for the longest time. Experiencing this, though uncomfortable, wasn't all that strange; being an alien inside a tightly-knit community was usually a death sentence to social life.

Luckily for him, he wasnt here to necessarily socialize. He was hoping that hed begin to slowly unravel a story behind both the village and people living underneath it with the visit, even if, inevitably, hed have to come back to complete the full picture.

The young man stopped in front of the building, glancing back for a moment before running away. Though strange, Sylas shrugged it off and headed inside. A single corridor awaited him, leading into what appeared to be a lobby-like building where he saw a few people standing around. All turned toward him and stared intently, though nobody moved in toward him or spoke--at least not initially.

Forgive me, but do you necessitate any assistance? a womans voice spoke out, framed within a tiny, five-foot-one body of a middle-aged woman cloaked and hooded in damp brown.Updated from novelbIn.(c)om

Im a traveler, Sylas said. With some business proposals of trade. I was wondering whether I could meet with your Chief.

"Naturally of course," stumped for a moment with the ease with which the woman seemed to accept his story, he was forced to immediately follow her as she turned around and sauntered deeper into the building, toward its rear. "We shall accommodate travelers and traders naturally. We accept merchants."

Sylas looked oddly at the woman, namely questioning her education considering how she spoke, but didnt take it to heart; his exposure to largely relatively educated and well-lived people in the castle could have likely skewed the general outlook on education in this world.

I... I told them I had to go to the bathroom and ran, she said. What about you? Where were you?

Why did you run?

"Because it was creepy! The two women wouldn't leave me alone," she said. "And I never got to meet anyone else. That boy, too, would sometimes just randomly pass out and start having these spasms but nobody paid attention to it. Look, I may not be the most conscious person, but I can still see some things. Can you get through them so we can run? she asked as more and more rotted-looking men appeared, circling them.

Nope, he shrugged. I cant even use magic anymore.

You... what?! How?!

Dont know. Maybe some talismans? Or something else? Besides, why would we run? I can just reset it and well come back here, much stronger.

... she looked at him for a moment, a faint pang of pain emerging in her gaze. One he deliberately chose to ignore. Fine, she said. Reset it.

... you... you might, yknow, remember.

Just do it.

No, no, we gotta wait for the stars of the show; he said. Dont you know that the bad guys are notorious for expositing their plans when they think theyve got the hero cornered?

--of all the wrong things in that sentence, she said. The wrongest one is that you think youre a hero.

...

W-whats with that look of pride?!

"Because I'm proud," he said. "Finally. You're finally beginning to understand the classic art of shitting on others."

You... youre weird. Really weird.

Hush now, he said. Here come our stars to brag. God, I love these moments.

Really weird...