"Fresh Fish, and Muscles here! For a discounted price if you buy in bulk!" A merchant yelled from somewhere on the busy street.
"Spices, Bay leaves, peppers, and coriander! If you'd like to purchase all, we can make a custom bundle for ya!" Another shouted from across the way.
The street was bustling, with the sounds of merchants shouting sales and discounts, people talking amongst themselves, kids playing, and carriages rolling. Considering it was still some time in the morning, it was a surprise that people were already out and about like this.
"Hm, Eleos City is a lot busier than I thought it'd be, kind of makes me wonder like the capital is like," I muttered out loud, looking around as Sephtis, Lorenzo, and I trotted through on the horses the guildmaster had let us borrow.
Apart from the merchants' stalls sprayed along the side of the road, people walking through it without a care, and kids playing recklessly, there was still enough room for carriages and horses to travel through.
"Well, Eleos City relies on merchantry, especially trade and business, to thrive, so it's no surprise it's so busy so early," Lorenzo explained from slightly behind me. I could tell from his tone that he was smiling, not actually being able to tell from his helmet.
"I remember that the village elders often told me of their trips to Eleos, but it's much different in person," Sephtis commented, his ears twitching and tail wagging.
After the capital, Eleos was the second biggest city in the Silversun Kingdom. So, naturally, there were other beastmen around, meaning the Sephtis wouldn't have to worry about being called out as a werewolf.
In the original novel, it was often said that wolf beastman and werewolves were not only different creatures, but also indistinguishable. So even if Sephtis' features looked even slightly off, we could always chalk it up to poor eyesight.
"Haaaa, different, impressive, or whatever, we need to find loggings. Luckily for us, we got here in the morning, so there should be more rooms available with more accommodation than usual," I interjected, brushing off the comments about impressive business and whatnot with a sigh.
"True…But sir, are you sure it's all right for you to go around without your hood up?" Lorenzo asked, worried about someone recognising me and starting some issues.
"Hm? Oh, it shouldn't be a problem. As far as I'm concerned, nobody I know personally is visiting or residing here," I replied, shaking my head, then patting down my hair and brushing my fingers against my ears, my eyes drooping a bit.
Despite having been in this body for about half a year already, I still wasn't used to my own reflection or enhanced senses. Even now, I bet that if I focused hard enough, I'd listen in on a kidnapping.
"Then I suppose that's a good thing!" Sephtis suddenly interjected, bringing me out of those thoughts as he came up next to me, "Like you said, it's safer if nobody knows that a nobleman is vacationing in another kingdom without the kingdom's knowledge.
We chatted a bit more before finally deciding to look for an Inn or something similar, though we couldn't tell what one was and what wasn't due to all the stalls and people. Giving in, we decided as a collective that it was best to just ask someone for some directions and were given some good inns nearby.
***
"I-I thought you said you'd been here before," Sephtis said to Lorenzo, stretching his back after having been on his horse for the past day and a half.
We managed to get three rooms for each of us, and the inn we picked also had a stable free of charge, so I was quite happy, especially considering the state of my wallet.
"I have! Just, not this part," Lorenzo gave an awkward laugh, rubbing his neck under his armour, "If it hadn't been for Sir Kallisto's money, I wouldn't have ever even been able to get a room from an Inn like this, so I just avoided these kinds of areas."
"Oh…Apologies," Sephtis mumbled, ears drooping and tail remaining still. He looked as if he wanted to say something to me, but decided against it and instead looked at Lorenzo, perhaps signalling to him through expression.
"You don't perhaps still think he's annoyed from earlier, do you?" Lorenzo whispered to Sephtis, forgetting that I could still hear them.
"I don't know…I'd say most likely, I doubt anyone has ever been so rude to him to his face," Sephtis responded, also blissfully unaware that I could hear him too.
"..." I simply kept walking to my room, not controlling my expression. Unaware that people were flinching at me from my clearly angry expression and vibe.
Sephtis frowned deeper upon seeing my glare and frown, my eyebrows tilted in anger. I was currently going through the earlier events in my head, telling myself not to be so angry over it.
"Mmm, when I think about it, that receptionist was really rude, so I don't blame him for getting so pissed," Lorenzo continued, seeming to read my mind and current thoughts.
"True, she acted like he was a bug, looking down at him from her desk and everything," Sephtid nodded along, following me down the hall towards where our rooms were located.
To summarise the past events, when we got to the inn, we were all pretty exhausted since we'd been out all day. So, naturally, we also looked not presentable. Bits of Sephtis' hair were sticking up from the wind and sweat, Lorenzo's armour wasn't shining as much, and I had a little bit of dirt on myself from running my horse through mud.
And, when we got to the front desk, the desk lady was already looking at us with a disgusted face. The inn was on the fancier side, so I understood how you could be disgusted by a few dirty men walking through its doors.
That was until she greeted us with an "eugh," did the usual desk lady spiel, and said something along the lines of "well, that's what I say to everyone. If poor plebs like you have anything to say along the lines of begging to get a room discounted because you are broke, get out!" then proceed to argue with me because I called her attitude out.
"Can you blame me? That rotten bitch stunk of snob from the moment I first saw her, then when she assumed we were broke and then got absolutely pissed when I corrected her and decided to fight me, oooo, shes lucky I'm too tired to fight today!"
"Hahahah! Yes, yes. But, in the end, a higher up came and apologised and even got us a suite with three separate rooms and a common room for the price of three separate rooms, so it all worked out in the end, no?" Lorenzo laughed it off, pretending like the interaction was no big deal.
"I guess, still, it's surprising she wasn't fired on the spot, was I her boss, I would've thrown her out right then and there," I muttered, opening the door to our suite, then dropping my luggage on the floor and plopping down on the couch.
"Eh, well, what happened, happened, so let's move on," Sephtis concluded with a nervous voice, sitting down beside me, patting my back as I sank my face deeper into the couch cushions.
"Pfft!- Whatever. Hey, this place is pretty nice, aye!?" Lorenzo beamed, placing his trunk down on the floor and walking around the couches to the balcony.
"Hmph, for an inn, yes, it is. I suppose you two haven't had many chances to be in places this fancy? Not to sound derogatory…" I replied, sitting up straight and rolling my sore neck.
'Damn, how old even is Lev at this point in the novel? Has to be at least a couple of hundred years for his bones to be cracking like this…I wouldn't be surprised if he was actually a thousand or something.'
"Hehe, it's fine! I realise to you that what is a marvel of decor to us is normal for you," Lorenzo said with sympathy, taking off his helmet to reveal a matching smile as he sat down on the chair next to the couch.
"I guess…Welp, I'm going to go rest now, call me if you need anything," I sighed, realising my new normal isn't normal for everyone else.
'Hm, I should probably try to call Victor on a communication device. He's probably worried about me. Ugh! I don't want to tell him about Sephtis and Lorenzo.'
***
"Arwan, could you go to the kitchen and get us some tea?" Victor asked, shuffling papers at Lev's desk. Currently, the two of them were going through documents, getting each other's opinions on current matters.
"Sure, any kind in specific?" Arwan replied, putting the papers in his hands back in their respective files.
"Hm, any is fine, it's only the late afternoon, so whatever you think is best to help us work better," Victor assured with a nod, scribbling something down as Arwan left the room.
It'd been the same way ever since he returned from the Alkmene Kingdom, other than the occasional visit from Duke Oryn Casilda, wondering if there was any news of Lev's return.
'Hmph, I swear! What is up with that man and his obsession with his lordship? Seriously, I just don't get it.' Victor thought, his eyebrow twitching from annoyance.
And as if someone were reading his mind, the magic communication device on the desk lit up, signalling someone was calling.
'Huh, who could that be at this time of day? I haven't had any requests for a meeting, not even from his Majesty or that bastard who keeps on barging in like this is his estate!' Victor thought, picking up the communication device and setting it in the middle of the desk.
"Good afternoon, to whom do I owe the pleasure of-" Victor started, the usual prectised greeting for when answering a call from someone unknown, but stopped upon seeing who was on the other end.
"Ah, Victor! I'm so glad you picked up! You seem to be well. How are things going over there?!" Lev exclaimed, his disguise removed and in place a bright prince-like smile, befitting of the fiancée of a King.
"M-My Lord!? Wh-what's with the sudden call? Is everything alright?!" Victor questioned, worry flooding his face, though he was glad to see his liege in one piece.
"Hm? Oh, yes, I'm perfectly fine! I suppose you are the same, no?" Lev answered, tilting his head, happy to see his most trusted subordinate in one piece.
"Yes, yes, I am! And the city is doing well, there haven't been any problems…" Vitor started to say, but trailed off when thinking about Oryn's actions, eyebrows furrowing into a frown.
"Ho? What is it?" Lev asked, then, as if a light bulb went off in his head, his expression matched Victor's, "Let me guess, the Duke is causing trouble for you all?"
"Mmmm, yes, kinda sort of," Victor answered, his gaze shifting slightly away, "But that's not of importance! What's with the sudden call? Is there a problem you are hesitant to tell me?"
"Oh, of course not! I simply just wanted to update you on a few things!" Lev replied with a smile and nod, messing with a piece of his clothing.
"Alright, feel free to share as you please! Even if it's nothing important, I would still like to know!" Victor exclaimed, his eyes lighting up at the thought of being useful to his lord.
"Hahaha! Then I suppose I'll have to lay it all out for you!" Lev laughed with an even brighter smile before suddenly getting serious, "First, there are a few things you should know."
Following Lev's actions, Victor's face also straightened up, nervously nodding along. He was worried about the troublesome things that were about to come out of his lord's mouth, but decided to listen to them sincerely.