Suikoden VI

Chapter One: Part Five

Note: When deciding on the casual clothing of Nagareans who were not Clerics, I drew inspiration from Eastern medieval styles from Persia and India.

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Part Five

K'alak'i Patieba. A town with a population of roughly two thousand people. They were just outside of town, but Daunte could hear the bustle and excited chatter of the citizens. While many people were discussing their day, the Nagarean religion was a popular topic of conversation. Bitterness rose in him briefly, wondering how the people of the town could carry on with their lives while children suffered under a misguided Decree just sixteen kilometers away.

Ultimately though, what could these people do? Would they ever have the strength to rise up and take a stand? It probably wouldn't stop the Theocracy from sentencing them under Original Sin, would it?

"Okay," Surya said quietly. He knelt down on the ground. "Let's empty our pockets and find out how much money we made from the battles. We also have a couple things we can trade in for extra cash at a trade post, if necessary."

Daunte carefully laid Arin down and pulled out all the bits he had stashed in his pockets. He was astonished to see a rather large pile form on the ground between the four of them as they tossed their coins down. Then they quickly used the waning sunlight to count the money they had.

"It looks like we have 5,000 bits," Felicity said softly, looking up. "This should be enough for a few rooms at the inn, right?"

"We should be able to buy you guys some clothing, too," Surya said. He looked up. "Why don't you guys head to the inn first and I'll go and get some outfits for you? I scouted the inn earlier, and it looks like it's run by a woman and her two daughters. They don't have any guests there, so that should draw less attention to you guys. Sound like a good plan?"

"Make sure to get me a veil, though," Felicity told him. "And it must be a thin veil, not a solid one."

"I saw several women wearing veils in town," Surya said, looking over his shoulder. "What's the difference between the two veils?"

"A solid veil means I'm married," Felicity said. "But a thinner, see-through veil means I'm not. I'm not married, so please make sure to get me a thinner veil."

"All right, all right." Surya counted out some bits and shoved them into his pockets. "Be careful, guys."

"Do you really know what style of clothes to get for our age group?" Roen asked him.

"I saw enough people in town that I can hazard a guess."

"But will you know the right styles?" Felicity asked. She had a bit of a teasing tone to it. "I can't imagine a Queen's Knight like you having much interest in fashion."

Surya shrugged. "I've grown up in a matriarchal society with girls as my primary companions, so I've picked up a few things. I'll see you guys in a bit."

Surya hurried off, and the trio collected the remainder of the money and stood. "Hopefully we beat the guards to the town," Roen said softly.

They kept to the outskirts of town as to not draw attention towards themselves. Daunte held onto Arin and he was holding his breath. He was unsettled by the unending praise the townspeople were showering upon the Theocracy. Please, please let us make it to the inn without any problems! And PLEASE let the innkeeper not report us!

They found the inn in the center of town. They'd successfully walked the perimeter of town behind houses, but they knew they would have to go to the front and into town itself in order to get inside the inn. They tried to act as nonchalantly as possible, but they felt overexposed with their prison attire and unhealthy appearances. But they reached the front door with no problems and Felicity swiftly knocked on the door.