The blunt burned slowly, it was nice, it meant it would st long. Isran spotted a few other people smoking as well, a few with pipes and some with blunts of their own. It seemed most people didn’t mind others smoking in the cramped streets.

  As they walked, Isran noted how the streets opened into slightly rger roads with wagons and carriages passing by, people stayed at the sides of the road, still very cramped for pedestrians but it was nice to see the foot traffic didn’t cause vehicle traffic.

  The thing that surprised Isran the most was seeing a crosswalk. It didn’t look like a crosswalk at first gnce, but she saw a white line breaking up the gray cobblestone of the road and a guard in a white tunic standing in the middle of it, directing vehicles and people.

  As they crossed the road Isran thought about Elysi saying reincarnations were common knowledge in the world—Neos. She wondered if the crosswalk was something from a past reincarnation. As she puffed out some smoke she wondered if the blunt was also from a previous reincarnation, she wondered if she would leave a mark on Neos as well.

  Then again the dungeon had a lot of earth objects so maybe the people of Neos inferred their use and implemented them.

  They moved through a few more narrow streets before arriving at a rge shed with several wagons parked under it. A few food stalls were next to the structure and several people exchanging money and conversing. Elysi walked them up to a carriage with a few people in it and spoke to the the driver as Isran continued to look around.

  She spotted a dog that was barking lightly at it’s owner, a tall man with wolf ears and tail. Huh. Isran didn’t want to think too hard about stuff like that. It was a bit goofy and reminded her of the funny notion from earth that most people look like their pets.

  Elysi finished paying and they got into the wagon, it seemed they had filled it up and as soon as they were settled the driver got into his seat and pulled out of the shed.

  Isran wondered if when it rained they would just have to deal with an open top wagon. There were a few wagons with top covers but Isran was sure they were more expensive. Elysi might have been trying to not over spend. Or maybe Neos had a very clear weather system that never acted unexpectedly… maybe.

  The ride was much the same as the first wagon ride with the exception of having to leave the town they were in. Isran wondered if they were going to another simir town since they seemed like rest stops, she decided to ask. Elysi was her pseudo tour guide anyway.

  “Oh, yes we are. There are four stops on the road to Kestin… the capital. They are religious districts.”

  Isran tilted her head. “Why are they called religious districts?”

  They weren’t far enough from the town to not see the rge building in it. Elysi pointed at it. “It’s a temple, the major temples in Elvencarth decide where to pce them and build a few buildings, offices, the temple, free inns for people who have lost their things in the dungeons stuff like that. Then nearby vilgers build around them over time, they used to not build walls but dungeon breaks started happened a bit too frequently so…”

  “You know a lot about this kind of stuff.”

  Elysi shrugged with a reminiscing smile. “I knew someone who did, always talked my ear off.”

  She tossed the bud of her blunt out of the wagon and hoped littering on the road wasn’t a punishable offense. She did not feel the floaty high that usually came with weed but she was definitely feeling the calm seep into her bones.

  Isran decided to pass some of the time by inspecting the mirror she got and looking over her reflection. She opened the folded item and was surprised to see words appearing on the surface, the middle seam disappeared.

  “Hi! Nice to meet you, my name is Roch!”

  Seeing the punctuation was a bit hirious. She gnced at Elysi, who was staring down at a small noted book she had gotten herself and scribbling stuff down.

  Isran brought her head closer and whispered to the mirror.

  “Uh… hi Roch.”

  “Hello! What can I call you master?”

  Isran winced a bit. “First of all certainly not master.”

  The text changed immediately. “Noted!”

  “My name is Isran.”

  “Isran! Amazing name. What would you like to see today Isran? I can extend to a full body length if you please.”

  Isran gnced at the wagon, that probably wasn’t a good idea. “No just my face is fine… it’s pretty cool you can do that though.”

  “Thank you!”

  The text then faded and Isran was met with a sight she did not recognize but very much appreciated. In her first life she had been skinny most of her life, tall and nky, she struggled to put on any form of muscle or face for most of her youth making her look a bit malnourished at times. It wasn’t until much ter that she started finding the right resources and that transted into her form filling out, lean muscles and a tall frame. She had greasy brown hair and brown eyes.

  She knew she was a bit of an eyesore at times and when she put in the effort she was average at best. Her looks were not the reason she had become a leader and she knew that.

  Looking at herself in the mirror-Roch, she had a feeling that was going to be different in Neos. Her hair and eyes were a blonde almost golden color and her facial structure was what people on earth probably would compare to being sculpted by the gods. She had haphazardly cut her hair in the dungeons because it was way too long but looking at the ends, having it better trimmed would be much better.

  She would ask Elysi ter.

  After turning her head this way and that a few times and slowly closed the mirror. She would try to enjoy the scenery for the rest of the trip.

  About an hour into the journey the wagon slowly came to a stop, there was a man in the middle of the road, he appeared to be wounded and the wagon driver as well as two other passengers were dismounting and approaching him. Isran's eyes flicked over to Elysi and that was when she caught it, a faint glint in the dense forest surrounding the path. She gnced back at those who had dismounted and then at Elysi who was frowning at the scene ahead.

  "Get down, slowly."

  Elysi blinked up at her but didn’t question the request, slowly she id her head on Isran's p, a small dagger clutched in her hand.

  As soon as they were close to the wounded man an arrow found the neck of one of the passengers and Isran immediately dropped over Elysi.

  A strangled cry came from close to her and one beastkin dropped to the wagon floor, an arrow in his neck.

  "Fuck." Isran mumbled.

  She had no idea how many people were attacking them but she knew the carriage driver was a goner. She had to get to the driver's seat but with archers that was a death wish. They were sitting ducks.

  The passengers still alive had all ducked as well each one unsheathing their weapons, as Isran shifted to give Elysi more space on the floor she felt Roch in her pocket. With a little bit of shuffling she pulled it out and flipped it open. She hoped it would be good enough for what she had pnned.

  "Hi! I'm Roch--"

  "Can you full length Roch? And shield my right side!"

  "No problem!"

  Isran breathed a sigh of relief and as soon as the mirror expanded she stumbled to her feet, her sword unsheathed.

  An arrow hit Roch as it followed her tightly and Isran was pleased to find no gss shards from the impact. A sturdy sentient mirror. Magic was truly mind boggling.

  All three who had dismounted y dead and the "wounded" man was busy robbing him while three other men approached the carriage, swords raised. When they saw Isran scrambling for the driver's seat they began to sprint and with a curse Isran stepped over the other passengers, nding irregurly in the seat.

  She had no idea how to ride a carriage, but her intuition from movies would have to suffice.

  With a snap of the reigns the two horses neighed and set out in a frenzied gallop. Maybe she had been too fierce with that but Isran couldn't bring herself to care. An arrow hit Roch again as she pulled against the reigns, willing the horses to go around the dead bodies. Another arrow.

  The strange calm from her smoke was still there, though the urgency of the situation was still very much potent. It made her clear headed.

  "If anyone knows how to ride this thing I'd appreciate the help!" Isran yelled over the wind and sound of galloping hooves.

  No more arrows came but with one problem out of the way they had bigger fish to fry, there was a fork in the road and the horses were going to lead them down whichever path their fear filled minds decided was best.

  "Left!" A Scottish accent yelled from behind her and with great strength Isran pulled on the reigns, willing the horses to turn.

  The carriage tipped slightly before smming down on the ground spooking the horses further.

  "Pull on their reigns!"

  With all the strength her new muscles could provide Isran pulled as hard as she could, the leather of the horses' reigns creaking in her hands, digging into her pale skin. With one more indignant neigh the horses' front legs lifted before smming down, pulling at the reigns for a few more seconds before calming down.

  Isran sighed relief helping her adrenaline filled heart to slow down just as an arrow passed near her ear.

  She whipped around and grit her teeth at the sight of the bandits. One on a horse loading up to fire another arrow at them.

  Elysi stood tall as she pulled back her bow string and fired, the archer of the bandits leaned away just narrowly but he was evidently not the target, it hit the "wounded" bandit in his eye and he fell of the horse he was on. His body hit the horse beside him bringing down two bandits with him.

  A beastkin with scrawny limbs and goat ears shuffled up to Isran.

  "I can get us to the next religious district." Isran recognized the Scottish accent and immediately got up, stepping into the carriage with Roch still following her, the mirror moving to still shield her right side.

  The carriage began moving again, the horses galloping but not at the same frantic pace they had been when Isran was controlling it.

  Elysi was the only archer on the carriage, and with two more bandits still rapidly approaching she had to help her to make sure she took both of them down.

  "Shield us from the arrows!"

  Roch spun around and text appeared on the screen "I'm sorry, I don’t understand that request! Could you--"

  "Oh for-- shield in front of us!"

  "Certainly!"

  An arrow hit Roch just as it positioned itself and Elysi fired one back, barely missing the moving feet of the horses. Isran didn’t think her skill applied to daggers but she hadn't been half bad at throwing things in her first life so she hoped Elysi's dagger wasn't expensive as she grabbed it and chucked it at the archer.

  The man dodged but by dodging her throw he positioned himself in Elysi's line of fire. The arrow sunk into his neck and as he fell his friend stopped the horse, immediately turning to help his wounded friend.