The Innkeeper



It did not take long for Lex to find his way to the fort which was acting as a refugee camp. He was half expecting to find it destroyed, and the surrounding region embodied in war. After all, when did he ever encounter things that were simple? Moreover, with Alexander's long silence, and his communication device not working, a full planetwide war was only the natural assumption one would make, right?

As it were, no such event was taking place. The fort was operating as usual, and when he tried to enter he was given no extra attention. After all, his casual attitude and overall 'clean' appearance had attracted enough attention last time to make an impression.

He was not even secretly followed as he entered the fort! Spreading his spirit sense carefully, he listened in on the conversations taking place around him to see what the current situation was.

The situation was not exactly ideal as there was still a war going on, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Fernando, the rebel leader Alexander wanted investigated, had once again led a very successful strike against one of the local garrisons, strengthening their own position while weakening the official governments.

While he was here, Lex considered trying the investigation again. Sure, his 'stealthy' suit that he had manufactured after his defensive suit on its own probably wouldn't hide him from high leveled cultivators, but he was willing to give it a try. Learning a proper stealth technique was still on his agenda.

He decided to try and investigate the very same night. He was also curious to see if the rebels knew about the hidden dangers under their walls. Maybe it was a failsafe they planned in case the fort was ever taken over.

He returned to the same tavern he was staying at earlier, and decided to get some food while he waited.

Lex appeared completely casual, as if he was still getting used to his new realm and had no intention of getting involved with the war. He saw a few familiar faces from when he had previously stayed there, and began catching up with them. Keeping up his covers' identity and relations as important, as he never knew when they could come in handy.

A few hours later, as evening was coming to a close, Lex was sitting at a table with a group of locals, playing a card game. It was both entertaining and relaxing, and could be considered 'work' at the same time. How ideal was that?

All was normal, until Lex felt something strange. It was not just his instincts that picked up an anomaly, but the very energy within him.

The new nameless cultivation technique had explained his existing affinity to him, so he now knew that besides an affinity for 'space' he could interact with laws in general as well. That did not mean he had an affinity for all laws, just that he gained the ability to somewhat interact with them. This in itself was a tremendous ability, as it was something he should not have attained until he became an actual immortal. At the same time, what he could do with it was also very limited and situational.

But, as it happened, Lex encountered just such a situation where his affinity was triggered. Laws were not rare, and existed across every inch of the universe, as far as Lex understood it. He was not too clear about when or how he would be able to interact with laws, but it was definitely not with the laws embedded in the fibers of the universe he encountered everyday.

Yet at that moment, he encountered an anomaly in the laws surrounding where he was. It was that disturbance he felt, using his affinity, that was weakly triggering his instincts.

He looked across the tavern towards one of the walls. Nothing special seemed to be happening there, but as it happened, behind the wall in that very direction a short distance away, two men appeared.

One of them was holding a clipboard, and taking notes, while the other was smiling and pleasantly chatting with the man. They were not doing anything unusual, and Lex could not detect them entirely either.

But his instincts were definitely picking up something, and the feeling was quite ominous. He frowned, and put down his cards. At the table, everyone turned to look at him, curious about what he was doing, but Lex could not be bothered.

"Something is wrong," he warned softly, before quickly departing. The feedback from his instincts was unusual and he could not decide if it was danger or something else he was sensing. He decided to investigate carefully.

*****

In space, above the planet Polebitvy, Jeffery was standing inside a small, invisible ship. He was smiling widely as he looked down on the planet, and whatever he saw made him feel even happier. He wanted to smile even wider, but he physically was limited from doing it!

Suddenly his face distorted, and the grin became even wider as his lips fell off his face. But instantly he returned back to normal, and began patting his face, making sure it was okay.

He couldn't give up his identity as a human just yet, and it took quite a bit of effort every time he disguised himself, so he had to restrain himself.

"Ah, the hubris of the powerful. I love taking advantage of it," he spoke to no one in particular. Then, with a look of reluctance, he turned away. As much as he wanted to continue watching, things were about to get heated. He had to leave this galaxy before someone tracked him down.

"The VIPs are in place. Deliver the welcome present," he continued to speak, though no one else was on the ship with him.

A few minutes later, the ship teleported far away. At the same time, one of the barrels of Void wood hidden under the fort wall cracked.

"Holy shit!" Lex could not help but curse as his instincts screamed death. Teleporting back to the Inn, ironically, was not quick enough since his return was always slower than that of guests. Using his complete strength, and then some, Lex bolted in the opposite direction of the wall.

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