B3 Chapter 9: New Digs (Patreon)

"You and Teddy are ungrateful brats who can't appreciate the majesty of those items." Isaac pointed to Teddy, who was scratching Arturous' fur. "At least he knows what those orbs mean for the kingdom!"

I shrugged and leaned back. "It's not like I can't understand why they are amazing. It's just that I don't care. They don't affect me in the slightest, so I'm good."

"And that is why you are ungrateful. Someone like Uncle B at tier three getting the chance to upgrade their skill? Or even the king? Too important to waste."

Does that mean they automatically confiscate the orbs? What incentives exist for people to hand them over?

"Hey, the guild doesn't answer to the kingdom, right?"

Celanae frowned. "No, they usually keep themselves a separate entity. They follow the rules and restrictions of the kingdom, but officially, it doesn't answer to Solunaria."

"Alright, so that means any public record of your skills would be kept private. And since the guild doesn't answer to the kingdom, only they would know if your skill suddenly evolved. So what prevents people from using the orbs themselves or selling it?"

"Ah, that's what you mean. Well, the answer is nothing. These things are nearly impossible to acquire, and when they appear, most adventurers use them immediately. Sometimes, the promise of fame and money will stop the item from being used, but that's a harder sell than most people think."

"Because adventurers are people obsessed with power, and to ascend requires one to become stronger than they already are."

"Exactly."

It made sense. Even the allure of gold would be a hard trade for direct power. If you were able to acquire something that'd stay with you for the rest of your immortal life, then why wouldn't you go for it? You can always make more gold, and respect can be fleeting.

For the rest of the night, we relaxed and enjoyed ourselves again in the comfort of civilization. The guest room provided to me for the rest of our stay in the capital was just as nice as the inn in Helio. The room was a bizarre mix of purples and greens with yellow gloworbs lining the ceiling.

Thankfully, the bed was normal, and I let the soft pillows take me to dreamland.

Come morning, I woke up and enjoyed another delicious breakfast with the rest of the house. Nathan and Anastasia were exhausting but refreshing.

How did you stay normal, Teddy?

"So, Cyrus. Isaac let slip that you have a cute, new familiar," Anastasia started.

"And we've been dying to meet them!" Nathan finished.

I closed my mouth and wiped it away with the napkin on the table. "Sure, but be warned, his personality is a little strong. He's sti-"

My words died when I noticed the blindfolded couple grin with excitement.

Never mind, these two will love Sturmrorex.

I pushed my chair back and stood up to move a few feet away. With a thread of mana connected to my skill, I let the skill activate.

Sturmrorex appeared in a gust of wind, just like I knew he would. He shot upwards and raised his head high. "You have called the great Sturmrorex!"

The others snickered, and my eye twitched. "Sturmrorex, come down here and say hello."

He complied, but he used some mana to flare tiny tendrils of lightning down his scales. It was incredibly showy. Admittedly, he did look cool with the lightning, and his magic was harmless to me as he wrapped himself around my neck like a scarf.

"Greetings, humans. I am Sturmrorex."

Teddy's parents made a squealing noise and clapped their hands.

"Oh, your scales are such a lovely shade of blue! And that mane is so vibrant!" Anastasia complimented.

"And the lightning and wind? Such a fine display of creative thinking. You should add a fine water mist in the air so your lightning can jump around. It'll really add to the 'Wow Factor' of your entrance," Nathan added.

Through the connection, I felt Sturmrorex's bafflement, along with a touch of embarrassment.

Are they too much for the dragon? That'd be funny.

Sturmorex nodded as he followed Nathan's advice. A fine mist appeared around my head, and the lightning began to fork and split across the cloud.

It does look cool.

"This is excellent! Thank you, humans, for the suggestion. What are your names? I must remember them."

"Sturmrorex, you already know their names."

He turned towards me, lightning tickling my nose. "It is for respect. I have given my name, and they shall give theirs. I will forever remember them by learning their names directly."

That was surprisingly thought out.

I let Sturmrorex distract Teddy's parents for the rest of the morning as I coordinated with Celanae. Thankfully, the little dragon was a perfect match for the two.

The thing that didn't go unnoticed was how they treated my familiar. They spoke to him directly and used his name, treating him like a person. It was a subtle, small detail that I noticed whenever people referred to my spirits.

It made my opinion of the two even higher than before. They seemed like genuinely good people.

When it was time to leave, I had to wait because Sturmrorex wanted to hear the end of the story. Anastasia and Nathan were regaling him with a tale about their rift delve that forced them into the roles of ruling monarchs. It lasted over a year inside the rift and sounded like a nightmare.

The amount of backstabbing and political intrigue would have made me burn the kingdom to ash if I had to endure it for a whole year.

As the tale came to an end, Sturmrorex's mind was buzzing with thoughts. I tried to ignore the flashing images of him in different positions, wrapped around a large castle. In some of those images, the castle was a stereotypical fantasy castle in white and blue; other times, it was a dark wizard's spire that crackled with lightning.

"Do you plan on ruling a kingdom?"

"For a time. You will be the grand ruler, and I shall be the king of my kingdom. When we ascend to godhood, we must be prepared. Our subjects will need to fear and respect our majesty!"

I chuckled and followed Celanae to the door. "You're right; our kingdom's aesthetics will be very important. I'll be trusting you to steer me in the right direction."

"Of course."

I hugged the dragon and returned him to my soulspace. As much as I enjoyed having my familiar's company, he'd raise too many questions for a simple trip through the city.

Then again, considering the outfits on display in the district below us, I could probably pass him off as an exotic scarf. "Only the finest of enchantments will give such realistic movements!"

I laughed to myself and exited the bizarre mansion. Except for Teddy, who was staying back to enjoy time with his parents, the entire gang was heading into the city for one thing or another.

Celanae was my guide for the day, and I'd get to meet the tailor they used.

It took us nearly an hour of moving through the busy street to arrive at a small shop tucked into the corner of the noble district. Some assholes had crashed into another asshole sparking a whole fiasco that ended in a very amusing but exhausting shouting match between two idiots.

"Are you sure they're not all like that? Everyone seemed invested. The one lady dropped her weird pudding cup to point and laugh," I said.

Celanae sighed. "It's... hard to explain. But yes, most nobles aren't like that, just the ones who spend their lives socializing in the square. They're all sycophants and socialites who spend their days trying to get enough social respect to be important."

"That's sad."

"To an adventurer, maybe. For them, it could mean anything. Their clothes are a business expense, and the time spent making connections is an investment. Even something as wasteful as stopping to gossip during an overblown fight is a calculated action."

"I've always hated politics, even in the old world. The backstabbing, conniving, plans on plans, the inability to know if someone likes you or are they using you? Sounds tiring as fuck."

"It is. It's why I'm adventuring for as long as I can. Thankfully, my father understands the need to distance oneself from that chaos." She sighed and gave me a strange look. "But you know, Cyrus, you should prepare yourself."

"Wait, why?"

"A single look at your status sheet is enough to answer that question. I'm sure Uncle Brelten warned you about your 'you know what' when you met him."

"He did, and I thought he was mostly joking."

She laughed and shook her head. "Not in the slightest. Teddy and his parents have been fending off the marriage requests for a while now. Luckily, we stay in the capital seldomly enough, and his parents are always off to adventure themselves. I'm sure he's going through a mountain of marriage proposal letters as we speak. There is always a pile when we return."

"And he can't simply toss them into the fire?"

"Nope. Maybe a few, but Teddy has to play nice. Such is the burden of being a Lightcrest."

"Hold on, Teddy isn't a true noble, though. Right? I thought Dawnebornes like Isaac were the nobles."

Celanae pushed open the shop's door and began walking inside. "Yes, but Teddy's mother is Isaac's aunt. She is a dawnborne, even if she gave up the name. And Lightcrests are almost still nobles since they have an official surname."

The entire conversation was starting to hurt my head. It was wise to know the finer details of things, but I didn't care for them at the present day.

I wonder if Cal has a last name. I should ask him.

With another thing added to my 'Ask Cal list,' I took in what the little shop displayed along the walls. At first, I thought I had stepped into a modern clothing store. After a second look, I realized that what I had mistaken for modern items were actually enchanted items mimicking that appearance.

The sewing machine was slightly off, and I saw runes lining the needle attached to it. I knew the black thread connecting the gloworbs I had mistaken for lightbulbs wasn't necessary to keep them on the walls.

Beyond the room's design, the real star of the show were the outfits. Some were simple and snazzy, while others were more intricate and detailed, like the long mesh dress on the wall.

"I'll be with you in a moment."

Celanae stood patiently as she admired a dress made of deep blue silk. I had little time to look around before the owner of the voice appeared.

I blinked a few times. She was an elf but unlike any of the people I've seen before. Her skin was a muted shade of lavender, while her hair was pure white.

She looks sad.

Her outfit was beautiful, and she looked amazing herself, but she looked sad. When she saw that she had customers, she tried to smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Welcome to the-" She stopped and had enough time to stare as Celanae leaned forward in a hug. "Celanae?!"

This time, when she smiled, it was one of real joy. Her eyes lit up, and her whole demeanor changed.

"Noira! It's good to see you," Celanae responded as she ended the hug.

"When did you get back?" Noira asked, still flustered. "Surely not today?"

"Oh no, we arrived yesterday. Spent the time with Teddy's parents. You know how they are."

"Oh, yes. They're not here with you, right? You wouldn't do that to me."

Celanae laughed. "No, they are not here. But I brought a new customer instead."

I waved hello and introduced myself. "Hello, I'm Cyrus."

The woman's face changed entirely, and she straightened her outfit before standing straight. She held out her hand. "Hello, Cyrus. I'm Noira. Are you a friend of Celanae's?"

"I'd hope so. It'd be worrying if I wasn't." Her face drooped in concern. And I quickly corrected myself. "Yes, the answer is yes. Nice to meet you."

She resumed her smile and motioned to the outfits in the shop. "I have plenty to browse through that I can resize. If those are of no interest to you, I can have anything made in a day or two."

I wasn't concerned about how much it'd take to get a custom order, so I decided to splurge. With a thought, one of my drawing journals appeared in my hand, and I flipped it to the page containing the clothes I wanted.

It was simple stuff, merely hoodies and pants from Earth. As fun as it was to wear fantasy-style clothing, I missed the comfort of a good hoodie. And if I could get a high-end, handmade hoodie? Even better.

I handed over the notebook, and she began studying the design. Her expression changed again, and she seemed wholly consumed by what she saw.

"Interesting..."

That was all she said for the next five minutes. I looked to Celanae, but she smiled and kept silent. With a shrug, I waited for the seamstress to finish.

Another five minutes passed while she ignored us. When she finally snapped out of her hyperfocus, she blinked a few times and turned to face me.

"This, right here." She pointed to my design of a hoodie with a zipper. "What do you call it?"

"Uhm, a hoodie with a zipper?"

She frowned and then flipped through my journal again before setting it down and facing me. "Do you want all these made?"

"Yes, but for the hoodies and the jackets, I'd like one in black and another in a different colour, preferably red or blue."

"Do you know what kind of material you want? The price will change depending on that."

This time, I shrugged. I had zero information on what was available to me. "Not sure, what could you do with forty gold?"

Both Celanae and Noira froze and stared at me with a strange look.

"Cyrus... when did you get that much gold?" Celanae asked. She pulled out a journal and flipped to a page I was sure kept track of my general information. "You didn't have nearly that much before you entered the rift."

"About that—apparently, when the chosen of a goddess decides you deserve a reward, you get one, whether you want it or not."

"Cyrus, how much did you receive?"

In response, I summoned a massive sack of coins. "I'm not sure, but I know it's over forty. A few gemstones were inside, but I'm saving those to eat later."

"Did you say you were going to eat the gemstones?" Noira half-stated-half-asked.

Celanae was busy writing down new numbers while glaring at the bag of coins. Ignoring Celanae's weird obsession with data-gathering, I turned to Noira. "Is that too little or too much gold? I'm not sure what the general price is for clothing. Honesty, I'd never spend that much on clothes, especially in my current line of work, but I miss wearing things familiar."

Noira shook herself and frowned at the sack of coins. "No, no. That's a lot of money to drop on an outfit—especially something you'll use for everyday wear. However, you want several pieces made, so let me clarify real quick. You want four hoodies with the weird closing mechanism, two hoodies without it, two leather jackets, and four pairs of pants in a 'baggy but not too loose' kind of material?"

"That'd be correct."

She frowned again. She does that a lot.

"I think I have two materials on hand that'd work for that, but I'm not sure I have enough. My clientele usually prefers fancy-looking without destituting themselves for something they'd toss aside in a week. I take it you want stuff that'd hold up as an adventurer?"

"Preferably, but it wouldn't be the worst if it didn't. I could always keep it as casual wear outside of adventuring gear. With that said, if you have the material to make it useable in both settings, I'll pay extra." I stared at the sack of coins that I didn't want. "I'm not strapped for cash."

I realized as soon as I said that both Celanae and Noira's ears twitched at the word cash. A few days ago, during a conversation with Sereza, I found out that my English words were jarring to the Inorians the same way Eodyne's native tongue scratched my ears.

Noira looked like she wanted to ask something, so I put on a smile. "You can ask me anything. If I don't want to answer, I simply won't."

Her eyes widened but returned to normalcy after a second. She glanced at Celanae, who gave her a subtle nod. "I think forty gold will be too much, but I'm not sure about the materials' price. And your designs are great, but... would you like me to improve them?"

She seemed ready to flinch away as if I'd lash out at her for suggesting my designs were boring. She appeared not quite skittish, but a lack of confidence was definitely there.

"If you keep them relatively the same, sure. I'm assuming you meant how plain they are?"

"Yes. Sorry. I can weave some simple enchantments into the cloth with some of the materials used. It'll cost more money, but it'll come with a self-mending feature and tear resistance."

"Magic clothing? Hells yeah. Use the full budget if you need it. I'll gladly spend money on comfortable clothing."

She lost some of her skittishness and brightened at my acceptance. I left precisely forty gold coins on her countertop and promised to come back around noon tomorrow. We hadn't even left before I caught a glimpse of her skills.

Cloth and threads flew through the air at her beck and call, and it was possibly the coolest thing I had seen in the city so far.

Magical clothes made by a magic seamstress: pretty cool.