The Sixth Chapter of

Aarni’s Story

I slept well in the village of Maahinen’s, and when the sun started to go down in their world, it was my time to return back to ours, where the morning sun was about to rise.

The Soldiers Set Rotten Key Miniatures — The Soldiers 2 Rotten Key Miniatures

I thanked Emma for the chance to see their world, and she hoped we could meet again some day. She told me that I could get back to the upper world the same way we came from. After walking up the path to the forest, I felt the same weird feeling in my stomach as I did when I arrived to the village. I knew I had returned, and soon I saw the morning sun of our world shining through the trees.

The Soldiers Set Rotten Key Miniatures — The Soldiers 3 Rotten Key Miniatures

My travel through the forest took about two days, but finally, I started to see a clear path and shoe prints in the soil. The next village, Lehto, was close. And soon I saw it, a little village on the edge of the forest.

The Soldiers Set Rotten Key Miniatures — The Soldiers 1 Rotten Key Miniatures

The first thing I did was to buy more rations and book a room from the inn. As I was talking to the innkeeper, some soldiers marched in. Apparently they were from a town north from here and they were bringing new wanted posters. Some bandits were making a ruckus in the area and they asked if anyone had seen them. Luckily I hadn’t bumped into any bandits, I thought as I watched the soldiers. They were really well equipped, so I assumed the northern town was a big place, if they could keep their military in a good condition.

The Soldiers Set Rotten Key Miniatures — The Soldiers 4 Rotten Key Miniatures

When the soldiers left, I asked about the northern town from the innkeeper, and he said the name of the town was Laakso. It was a big place with a bustling market square, many local artisans and travelers around the world. Of course a place like that attracts a lot of people, so there were always some criminals around, but they were more of a problem to the nobles than the common folk. I decided that was my next destination. I had never been in a big town before.