The Eatery (2)

When Vivian stepped out of the eatery, it was already dark outside and the street lamps were lit.
 
Where do I go from here…?
 
It was still early. She didn't want to lie down right away after eating and wanted to walk around for a bit.
 
And plus, I rarely get a chance like this…
 
Back in her previous world, she was a very busy person who rarely took any breaks.
 
The reason behind that was because she came from a normal family and was a 24-year-old man.
 
The world she was from was super competitive due to decades of globalization and the advancement of technology, making it a system where only the top 10% of people in the world takes all while the rest fight for the scraps.
 
And just like 99% of men in their 20s, she was at the bottom of the barrel in the eyes of society. As far as society is concerned, she had no real-world skills and knowledge to offer. The only advantage she had was her youth.
 
She had her job, a business on the side that she was trying to grow, her workout and diet routine, the amount of sleep she needed per day, the courses and audiobooks she had to watch or listen to, the clothes and things she had to buy for social currency, and her mini-hobbies or what she liked to call timeouts where she can just shut her brain off for a short amount of time from all the stress.
 
If she were to slow down or neglect what needs to be done, it would cost her a lot in the future so she rarely takes any breaks.
 
The only time she would take a break was when she was sick.
 
She also have "psuedo-vacations" which come from her having to take work trips from her main job and the burnouts she experiences every 3-4 months which requires her 2-3 weeks of recovery.
 
As for dating, she would occasionally date once every 1-2 months and sleeping with them wasn't even a guarantee.
 
And as for friends, she had workmates and customers whom she had to interact with on a daily basis whether she liked it or not and deemed it as a sufficient substitute for friendship and socializing.
 
Basically, as far as she was concerned, she was a beggar and beggars can't be choosers so she had to bite the bullet for now in exchange for a brighter future.
 
She turned to the side and began walking.
 
***
 
Vivian was walking down a street and she swept her gaze around like a tourist on a holiday.
 
Even with the street lamps, it sure is still dark…
 
Also, most of the establishments are closed…
 
There were a few people outside and most of them were adult men -- civilians, Adventurers and Guards, but a majority of them were civilians.
 
So this city doesn't have a huge nightlife…
 
She shook her head.
 
What am I even talking about…? 
 
This is the medieval period…
 
Or at least similar to it…
 
Hmm…
 
So how do the Adventurers deal with quests at night or in dark places…?
 
How do people, or the cities to be specific, deal with night attacks here…?
 
Can they change the weather or time…?
 
I mean, there's magic here…
 
Do they summon a large ball of light…?
 
But what about for single individuals…?
 
Is there some kind of night vision skill or equipment…?
 
Yeah…
 
I should definitely try to find out if there's a skill or equipment for that…
 
But I wonder how much will that cost me…
 
Or perhaps I can learn that as a Thief…?
 
If there's a Bukaroo tail quest tomorrow, I'll use that extra time to visit the Temples…
 
Vivian continued walking until she noticed a small crowd.
 
There was a small group of people, old and young, surrounding a pair of good-looking street performers who looked like they could be siblings -- a boy in his late teens and a girl in her early 20s.
 
The boy was playing an instrument that looked like a cross combination of a harp and guitar about 1ft long and only 8 strings.
 
The girl, on the other hand, was singing.
 
“Oh Shi’an~~
 
“Your love and talent for dance and music was unmatched~~
 
“Everyone that saw you dance and sing was charmed by you~~
 
“Even the Gods themselves couldn’t help but fall for you~~
 
“And so they blessed you and you became the first Bard~~
 
“And with that power you birth the Temple of Bards and helped save the world~~
 
“Centuries later the people and your followers still dance and sing about you~~” 
 
The song ended and there was a round of applause.
 
Vivian’s eyes blinked a few times.
 
So there are still street performers at this hour…?
 
After the boy and girl bowed, some of the audience rushed over to them to have a chat.
 
Well…
 
From the looks of it, they seem to know the people they’re performing for…
 
Relatives…?
 
Friends…?
 
Vivian shook her head and continued walking.
 
***
 
A couple of minutes later…
 
Vivian opened a door and entered the room she was renting at The Silver Wing Inn.
 
She immediately headed to the bed and checked the item lying on top of it.
 
All are still here…
 
She turned away and went to the corner to check the Bukaroo tails.
 
No ants, no bite marks, nothing missing…
 
She returned to the bed and pushed the items to the side before lying down.
 
Her eyelids felt heavy.
 
I want to sleep but I still have to take a bath and wash my clothes…
 
She suddenly remembered something.
 
“Shit!”
 
She got up, rushed to the door and opened it before stepping out and climbing down the stairs. Once she got to the first floor, she immediately headed for the toilets which were located on the first floor.
 
Vivian stopped when she got to the toilets.
 
There were 4 doors. And out of the 4 doors, 1 door farthest to the left was closed. 
 
However, that wasn’t her problem. Her problem was that they all had signs scribbled with this world’s letters and she couldn't tell which one was for male and which one was for female.
 
She didn't enter and peeked inside the toilets.
 
Each toilet had a large barrel and a bucket. And for the toilet seat, it was the same as the ones from Shirley's but cleaner.
 
They say that female toilets smell better…
 
But I can't tell…
 
The door farthest to the left which was closed suddenly opened and a man in his early 20s came out with a stick attached to a mop.
 
Both he and Vivian made eye contact.
 
Seeing Vivian’s beautiful face, he then proceeded to sweep his gaze up and down on her body.
 
Vivian, on the other hand, seeing the mop on the man's hand, quickly assumed that he was one of the personnel.
 
"Excuse me, this one here is for the females, right?" Vivian said as she pointed at 2 doors on the right.
 
"Yes."
 
"Thank you."
 
The man replied but Vivian already turned away and was heading back to the second floor.
 
Back inside the room, Vivian was sitting on the bed and checking the things that she bought.
 
At the moment, she held a simple white sleeping gown on her hands. The bust area covered the chest up to the collar bone and had 3 buttons on it, the sleeves covered the arms up to the wrist, and the hem covered the legs up to a couple of inches above the ankle.
 
Vivian originally wanted to buy something shorter, like a chemise or babydoll, because she was used to sleeping topless back in her previous world. But given that she lacked money and she wasn't yet sure about her safety as a woman sleeping in such places, she decided to buy this one.
 
She also bought other things, 2 pairs of bras and underwear, a white shirt and a small towel.
 
She also wanted to buy a new pair of pants but decided not to because not only due to budget constraints but she also lacked space in her satchel in case she had to carry all of her belongings around with her once she checked out from this inn.
 
If I wear this, do I sleep with my underwear on or not…?
 
I know that women don't wear bras with this…
 
But I'm not sure if they wear underwear…
 
Back in her original world, as a man, when sleeping, she only wears shorts with nothing underneath.
 
But what if someone enters my room while I'm asleep and then attacks me…?
 
If they saw my underwear, it would take them extra time to remove it, right…?
 
Yeah… 
 
I think I should wear one…
 
Just in case…
 
She put the nightgown down and grabbed 2 underwear -- one was red and the other one was black. Aside from the fact she liked the colors, in her head, she believes that it will be easier to wash in case she gets her red days.
 
Now which one should I wear tonight…?
 
Both look tight…
 
I hope I won't get itchy while sleeping…
 
Knock.
 
Knock.
 
"The bucket of hot water and damp cloth is here!" a male voice said behind the door.
 
Vivian's eyebrows knitted together.
 
Why is it a man delivering…?
 
Back in Shirley's Tavern, it was a woman who delivered. But after remembering that it made sense for men to carry heavy stuff, she relaxed her brows, got up and went to the door.
 
When she opened the door, the man was still standing there and it was the same man she met below at the toilets.
 
"Your bucket of hot water and damp cloth is here. Want me to help you bring it inside?"
 
Vivian glanced at the bucket.
 
It was slightly bigger compared to the one back in Shirley's.
 
She returned her gaze to the man.
 
"It's okay, I can carry it myself," she said with a cold and distant tone.
 
"Okay," the man said and then left.
 
Vivian carried the bucket and cloth inside her room before closing and locking the door.
 
She massaged her forehead.
 
What's happening to me…?
 
For some reason I can't help but notice I'm becoming more guarded against men…
 
Maybe I'm just under a lot of stress and combined with me being in an unfamiliar world, all the fighting and near-death experiences…?
 
Back in her previous world, Vivian despised interacting with poor, lazy and unproductive people. She never cared about things like gender and race. As far as she was concerned, only broke and lazy people would care about such things because they just want to blame others for their own misfortunes resulting from their own actions. 
 
She shook her head.
 
I still need to take a bath and wash my clothes…
 
I also need to get enough sleep in order to recover and then wake up in the morning… 
 
She began shedding off her clothes.
 

Chapter end