Colt didn't need to roam much before he could find an inn that was far enough from the Vera mansion.
Since nobles rarely visited commoner districts, there was no need to change cities, which would take too long, right away.
When he saw the inn's signboard, the sun was fully up. But when he entered, he was surprised. He hadn't expected it to be this crowded so early
The first floor doubled as a restaurant, so there were a lot of people having their breakfasts.
The smell of freshly baked bread hinted that the inn's quality wasn't bad.
However...
Weren't commoners too poor for breakfast at this time?
When he was growing up, his father had always told stories about how people who weren't nobles were so poor that they could only have two meals a day before the world had changed.
Was he lying? Colt wondered as he sat at the only empty table. Or maybe this city is richer...
A wave of warmth compared to the morning chill outside seeped into his fingers.
He hadn't eaten anything since he regressed in time. So, he was hungry enough to ignore his father's possible exaggerations, especially since his body was less trained at the age of 15 and more prone to hunger because of it.
But when he raised his head to talk to the waiter who came to take his order, Colt realized that everyone was looking at him. The waiter seemed especially nervous.
Even though she appeared relaxed, Colt could see the stiffness in her body.
He realized the reason the moment he looked down.
Shit, it is the clothes I'm wearing.
Since they were taken from a noble's wardrobe, they attracted attention.
But more than that, people worried about why a noble was here.
I can't gather anything useful if this continues.
He looked back at the waiter, who was also wary, and asked, "Can I have a piece of bread?"
Colt was too hungry, so he wanted to eat more. But he realized he didn't know what to order in an inn.
He was a noble before he regressed, and he never needed to stay at an inn. Even when he traveled, people opened their homes for the son of the Hero.
And asking what the options were would make the other people even more wary.
So, he decided to suppress his hunger with bread for now.
"Also, do you know where I can sell clothes?"
This was a deliberate question that caused people to sigh in relief and turn back to their initial conversations.
The waiter told him about some of the second-hand clothing shops before leaving to bring his bread.
Good. They're not wary of me anymore.
He intentionally asked about a place to sell clothes. This way, people thought that either he had come across these clothes and wanted to sell them for money, or he had stolen them and was looking for a way to get rid of them quickly.
Of course, if he were a thief good and courageous enough to steal from a noble, he would already have a buyer and wouldn't go around asking people how to sell them.
Either way, he wasn't a noble since nobles wouldn't sell clothes, especially in these parts.
He even ordered bread so people would assume that he was poor rather than a noble who didn't know what to eat at an inn.
And that was exactly what Colt wanted them to think. Now he could listen to their unfiltered conversations.
I need to learn more about the year I landed in.
Even though he knew the exact year, 735, he didn't know what it meant.
Obviously, he had seen many things about what happened before he was born in the history books.
Also, his parents were the two members of the Hero party mentioned in these history books. So, he had heard many stories from them or the people around them, and he knew what events to expect.
But they were only the epic tales. He didn't know about the politics of the age, nor what happened in people's lives.
What counted as normal — and what didn't...
By burning all his power to escape, he'd destroyed any chance of returning to the future.
He had no way back, and for the second time since he regressed, he felt the weight of that truth. Whether he liked it or not, this era was his new starting point.
But maybe that didn't matter. This era held answers — and a chance to become stronger than the Hero.
Now, all he needed was learning. So, he started listening to the not-so-silent whispers.
"Did you hear about Duke Carlen's son? He has awakened his sword energy!"
"No way! Isn't he barely 25? It must be a lie."
"They say he used it in a competition, so it must be real. And his sword energy's color was rumored to be red."
"Man, some people are lucky. He is the son of a Duke and has talent. On top of that, he has red-colored energy?"
"People like us are here to watch others live..."
At one table, two people were discussing the Duke's son's talent.
But I had never heard of Duke Carlen or his son. He must not be someone noteworthy...
Coming from the future gave Colt an advantage—he could instantly sort rumor from nonsense.
For example, there was no "strongest color" when it came to sword energy, though it wasn't known at this time yet.
Every color mirrored its owner's character. Red mirrored a fierce character.
Since those with fierce tempers often grew stronger more quickly, they believed it was the strongest color.
They thought my father's purple color belonged to demons... But it is for people pursuing strength.
Colt stopped for a second, thinking about his father's last moments, before he came back to the past.
Can it really be related to the demons?
Then he shook his head. It was just superstition and was proven to be untrue. So he tried listening to the other tables.
"-ere is no way to heal a cut arm..."
***
"We are safe from the monsters, but..."
***
"Avrea Dimension is obviously stronger than the Qin Dimension!"
"Something must be wrong with your head! Qin Dimension has masters..."
***
"I am sure they are hiding something. Otherwise, why would all the elders gather in one branch?"
"Come on, we are talking about the Luminous Order. If all the elders gathered, they could go to war."
Finally, something worth listening to...
"I am telling you. My niece works as the assistant to one of the tailors. He himself told me that all thirteen elders had gathered in the Order's headquarters."
"The peaceful times must be coming to an end. It lasted too long anyway."
I see, it must be time.
There were only a few things that could cause the Luminous Order to gather all its elders.
The seer must have spoken.
It was 13 years before the Hero saved the world. But the strongest demon would appear in a few years, dominating the world for around ten years.
But that wasn't the only thing that could gather the elders...
Either that, or the prodigy must be appearing. It should be around this time… Then I shouldn't cross paths with her. Otherwise, I might affect her training.
Gathering all the information he needed for now, Colt found a room to stay for the day after paying for the bread.
He didn't mind the innkeeper's look when the man saw the gold coin Colt gave him. It didn't matter what people thought of him anymore. He wouldn't stay in the city for long anyway.