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Now it was done. I opened the curtains and stepped outside. Daniela’s eyes were sparkling, the clerk assessed me with folded arms, some other female clerk sighed. Who was she?

 

“I knew it, it is so much better with the waist mantle…”

“Ah, are you from the clothes store then?”

“Oh, yes! And as you can see, I was not wrong with my judgment!”

 

She gave me a thumbs up. You could tell that she really took her craft seriously. In fact, she must have been incredibly talented, as she had finished this embroidered mantle in one night. It was hardly believable. I remembered that my friend Yasuda had said ‘the difference between professionals and amateurs is speed.’ Anything could be made well with enough time. It was pros that did it quickly.

 

“I like it very much. Thank you.”

“Do not mention it! I just did it because I wanted to. It was nothing!”

 

What a generous person. I thought, just as Daniela stepped forward. She looked at me hard before nodding with a big smile.

 

“Very dashing! I am smitten all over again!”

 

She was nice enough to say. That made me happy. It was a great smile that almost made me forget about the incident this morning. I wanted so bad to hug her then, but I had to control myself. I would be able to do that as much as I wanted come nightfall. Cough-cough.

 

“Hmm, maybe I’ll do a little questing now.”

 

I say, allowing myself to get carried away in the moment. Knowing when to do this was the trick to living while having fun doing it.

 

“Then I will escort you outside.”

 

The male clerk said, and so he went with us to the entrance. On the way, I saw a certain empty case. I was sure it was the case that had contained the AGI x 2 t-shirt.

 

“Ahh, the shirt you are thinking of was put on auction. And it was a great success. It sold for one thousand gold pieces.”

 

Wasn’t a wyvern only about a hundred gold with all materials from it combined? So that’s the equivalent of ten wyverns… You wouldn’t be able to make that kind of money unless you raided a nest of them… It was not a sum I would have any time soon. Well, I wasn’t confident in my ability to use it well, anyway. With the shirt, plus the AGI enhancements from the wind dragon materials, and ‘Legs of the Forest Wolf’ on top of it all, I was sure I could break the sound barrier. But that would likely result in my body exploding in all directions

 

“Most of it went to the enchanter, but I received some as a commission as well. Indeed, things have been going very well for me of late. I could not be happier.”

 

I had a feeling something horrible would happen to him soon, but I wouldn’t mention it. We continued to walk until we were out of the store. Several passersby looked at me. It was slightly embarrassing, but I couldn’t exactly hide.

 

“Thank you for your purchase. It was great doing business with you!”

“It’s I who should thank you. And I’m sure that your store will be even more successful after it is advertised across the land.”

“Oh, I do indeed hope so!”

 

We firmly shook hands and parted. The way that he waved until we had turned the corner reminded me of my grandmother who lived in the countryside.

 

The city was as lively as ever. Everyone who walked the streets seemed to be smiling and enjoying the peace here. The smells from the street stalls whetted your appetite. You could hear the loud cries from merchants as they competed on the main road. I saw a young boy running with a wooden stick, saying ‘I am Silvergreen!” While another shouted, ‘No, I’m Silvergreen!’. Damn it. I was very susceptible to verbal assaults.

 

“It sure is peaceful here…”

“It is… The city is alive. The food is delicious. And I have you by my side, Asagi.”

 

She wrapped herself tightly around my arm. She seemed very happy as she then leaned her head against my shoulder. While she had calmed down now, she would sometimes almost convulsively cling to me. I could feel eyes being drawn towards us, but it couldn’t be helped. She was so adorable. There was a lot I would forgive.

 

“Peace is good Asagi, but I wish to go on an adventure.”

“Haha. Right. We are Adventurers, after all.”

 

She declares, then tangles herself in me even further. It was an almost impossible feat to remove yourself from those plant-like arms. I could not do it.

Walking the streets with Daniela was always fun, regardless of where we were. Even when we were headed for the Adventurer’s Guild, it was at least fun until we reached it. The closer we got, the more Adventurers appeared around us, and their stares sometimes felt like daggers. But I couldn’t be bothered by them. And so we entered the guild. And then the most dangerous stare of the day caught me.

 

“Asagi, it has been a while.”

 

Fiona stood with her hands on her hips. Her face had the biggest smile, but it did little to hide the blue veins that were popping out of her forehead.

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