Chapter Eleven

As nightfall arrived, Will crawled out from under some bushes he had slept under. He was fully rested and had a sharp look in his eyes. Today was the day! After so much hard work, it would hopefully pay off. Will was excited, this was a new chapter in his recently acquired life.

Will approached the village the sides, the front and the back of the village had roads coming out, so he decided to go from the sides. Once the patrolling guard past by his point of entry, Will immediately sprinted towards the village. The village itself looked empty, but it wasn't quiet. He could hear people conversing and moving around inside their houses. No one was poor enough to not have candles lit in their houses, which was a good sign for Will. This meant that the powers at be had allocated enough resources to this village for it to be worthwhile settling in.

Will moved toward the center of the town, however there was an increased presence here which halted his steps. There were guards here, no doubt guarding the village chief or governor. The guards here had better equipment than the border patrols. Will decided against moving forward, it was too dangerous. Since this part of his plan was a bust, he decided to find the second best thing after a rich person's house. A church! He had seen a big building from the outskirts of town, it was made out of brick, but wasn't as fancy as the rich folks house. He had also seen a small statue on top of this building, so he ȧssumed it was a church.

From what Will knew from his history, churches was a place of knowledge and learning, at least before separate schools were created. So he had high hopes to find information here. He quickly and stealthily headed towards where he thought the church was, passing through alleyways and small nooks between the houses. He reached a small wooden fence, it was sturdy, but short. Even Will with his small stature could easily climb over the fence, so he did. On the other side there was a beautiful garden, plenty of green grass and flowers of all colors Will could imagine. The garden surrounded a big brick building with a sturdy and large door. The windows were open, and didn't have glass like Will thought they would. However the windows were very high up, so he had no chance of sneaking into the building.

Will took his time observing the area, he walked a couple of rounds around the building trying to find a way in. The only thing he found was an outhouse behind the church, and a small opening that lead to the foundation of the church. The opening was more like a crack, and could at most fit a mouse or insect in there. Will tried loosening the opening and found that the wooden panel covering it was rotten. He pried it off completely and went inside. He was under the church, the wooden floor panels above him didn't have any space between them, so he couldn't peek through.

Will kept investigating his surroundings, it was actually quite spacious. He could almost completely stand here. The only thing he found unsettling was a rats nest in the far corner of the foundation. There were some cobwebs but he didn't mind those. He grabbed his stone dagger from his waist went towards the rats nest, he kicked the nest and four rats came scurrying out. One was as large as his foot, he decided to stab it as it passes by him. This scared the other rats even more, they fled outside and didn't come back.

The decision had been made, Will decided to live here for now. It wasn't safe at all, however, Will had very few options. He couldn't risk sneaking in and out of the village all the time, and if he stayed quiet he could avoid any detection here, at most they would think he was a rat in the walls. Another reason was that he could take his time and gather the things he needed.

It was still early in the night, so Will decided to grab some more things from his supply and come back. This process took less time than he thought, he was lucky and arrived at the border just as a guard passed, giving him a clear window. He didn't want to bring everything, as it would only slow him down and he didn't really need it all. He brought his water skins, all the food he had left, and only left the weapons, the leather scraps he had gathered and some odds and ends. He dug a hole by the tree he had marked earlier, and left the things he wasn't bringing in the hole. He rushed back to the village and managed to sneak into the church foundation again without a soul noticing, hunting hat taught him how to move fast but silent, so it got easier every time he did it.

Once Will got everything inside and closed the opening behind him, he collapsed to the ground exhausted. Looking up at the floorboards above him, he noticed a sweet and calm voice singing, it calmed him to the point that he fell asleep right then and there.

The next day, Will felt fully rested, he hadn't slept like this since the cave before the attack. He got up and immediately knocked his head on the floor panels above with a large *thunk*. He heard a loud shriek from above him and immediately panicked. [Shit!]