Chapter 13: The Hermit’s Haven
"Let us settle you in first. We can have our storytelling this evening." Jethru led the three people into his house.
As the door creaked open, Lara was welcomed into a spacious room that stretched approximately fifty square meters before her. The air inside was thick with a mix of earthy scents, coming from the dirt floor, which stood raised about sixty centimeters above the ground outside.
In modern times, Galeya's Throne was built upon a rugged natural platform hewn from resilient rock. This elevated structure rose 50 centimeters above the surrounding terrain and sprawled across an area of fifty square meters. It resembled a diminutive plateau perched atop a larger one, creating a striking visual that complemented the landscape around it. The sturdy surface, thought to have been shaped by the elements over time, offered a sense of majesty, inviting observers to marvel at its unique form and significance.
Lara's brow knitted as she absorbed the startling revelation. The legendary half-elevated platform, revered as Galeya's throne cushion, was not a natural formation but rather a creation of human hands!
She gazed down at the black ground beneath her feet, where, in a twist of time, the once soft clay soil had undergone a dramatic transformation over the course of a millennium, solidifying into hard rock.
Jethru coughed when he noticed that Lara was looking stupidly at the floor.
'What is wrong with this girl? Is this her first time seeing a house with the earth as the floor?'
Lara lifted her head, and her gaze roamed around the room.
On the right side of the room, a round wooden table crafted from a tree stump, accompanied by a single wooden stool, sat snugly against the wall. The walls were constructed from neatly stacked tree trunks and smeared with layers of clay, their natural texture adding a rustic charm. In the far right corner, an earthen stove sat on the ground, with a clay pot resting atop it. Beside the stove lay a pile of carefully arranged firewood.