Chapter 4: Bloody Cheese (Edited)

The night came, and the faint light of the moons shimmered down on the city. When the three moons rose in the sky as the light of the sun faded, the silence of the night began to dominate the slum. Murmurs and vague echoes of noise were the sole sounds heard in the slum.

Franswift stood outside his tent with a pale face as if he were facing a terrifying beast. Shivers ran down his spine and his body was full of sweat. He anxiously looked around as he ran towards another house made of scraps and stones.

He shouted aloud at the doorstep, “Old Lee! Old Lee!”

“Patience, I am coming.” A middle-aged man with a regular build, a scanty rough grey beard, and a bald head walked out of the house. He had a dissatisfied face, clearly pointed at the rucks Franswift was causing.

“Why the hell are you... , “ Old Lee stopped in the middle of his sentence when he noticed Franswift’s pale face.

“Old Lee, how long have you been living here,” Franswift asked in a hurry.

“Franswift calm down first and talk a...”

“Please, just answer me quickly.”

Old Lee apprehended Franswift and started long at his face before sighing.

He said, “Have been living here for 17 years.”

“When you arrived here at first, were the slums this crowded?”

“Not at all, when I came, the slums were at most, one-twentieth of the current number.”

The terrifying thought continued to germinate in Franswift’s mind.

With a trembling voice, he asked, “Do you know how most of the slums population originated, according to their age?”

“What I know, is that most of the people above the age of 20 at that time came from the villages and gathering points outside the city.”

“Do you know since when has the city has been allowing outsiders inside the slums?”

“I don’t know. But when I was a child and learned about the city, I learned it has been permitting people into the slums from ages ago.” Old Lee answered with a bewildered face, but quickly his eyebrows came together.

It doesn’t add up. His terrifying thought was becoming more and more of a reality than he wanted.

He did not doubt old Lee was lying. Almost all the people of the slums knew old Lee. As long as anyone in the slums could remember, old Lee was always in the slums. And during his time of staying here, all the people recognized his trustworthiness. This was all old Lee could sell about as he got old, and it paid off since no one has as much knowledge and experience in the slums as him.

“Franswift why were you asking these questions?” Old Lee interrupted Franswift’s train of thought with a worrisome face. As it seemed, he has realized something.

With a bitter face, Franswift said, “I am not quite sure of the cause, but I certainly know that something extremely dangerous will happen in the slums. Old Lee, a suggestion if you will. Find any weapon and hide, hide very well, and you better do it now before it’s too late.”

“What do you k...”

“I’m sorry, I can’t answer your questions now. I am in a hurry too,” Franswift quickly turned away and bolted towards the gate.

Seeing the back of Franswift, Old Lee entered his house right away to prepare. Even if what Franswift was saying was all false and he was over exaggerating, he felt it would not hurt to do this. He also felt something was not right after the series of exchanges that just happened.

Franswift’s heart was getting more desolate with each thought. I really hope I will discover some clues at the gate. Currently, he was walking on thin ice, one mistake, or one misjudgment, will cost him his life. He did not know whether he should incite the masses to fight, whether he should find an escape route and flee instantly, or if he should fight alone. One wrong move and it would be his end.

When Franswift reached the gate, he stood there stunned, at a scene he had never seen before. He starred and gritted his teeth at the now shut gate. Do not mention forming plans, right now, he cannot even be sure what is causing the danger, or when it will come.

Rage and frustration built under Franswift skin but none surfaced over his face, he knew that emotions never lead to a good thing. He saw there was a commotion around the gates, and a few guards were surpassing it. The first thing he noticed was the current guards were not the ones that always maned the gates. The most notable difference was the current ones wore black leather armor and held a spear in one hand and a shield in the other. They were wearing cloaks that covered their body, with hoods over their faces.

Franswift walked to the nearest guard at the gate and tried to be as polite as possible to squeeze some information. “Excuse me, why is the gate closed?”

One of the guards jerked his head and coldly said, “A guard drill is conducting, it requires the gate being closed.”

“Can there be any way to get out of the city? It’s urgent.”

“The gates will not open unless the drill is over. Any other matters can wait until then.”

Franswift realized he would not be able to get through even if he talked to them till the morning. He turned around, and just as he was about to leave a thought came to his mind. Could try that.