“We can go and get some sweets after the baths if you want,” Lyreen said.

“Really?” Anna asked excitedly.

“Yeah, there are all kinds of sweets shops in the city. They even have one that just sells baked treats,” Lyreen replied.

“Even cupcakes?!” Anna asked.

“Even cupcakes,” Lyreen replied.

“We have to go now!” Anna said.

“Not before we get washed, child,” Barika added.

“Oh, right,” Anna said.

Her friends smiled at her sudden excitement, unbeknownst to them though, it was all just an act.

While she was looking forward to eating sweets again, especially cupcakes, the anxious feeling kept growing inside her since she’d been pulled through the portal and reunited with her friends. The feeling had gotten so bad after Lyreen’s simple statement about Anna not changing that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to scream, cry, or run away and hide in a hole somewhere. It was all she could do to keep smiling in the hopes that the others wouldn’t notice her inner turmoil.

I should be happy now, so why do I feel worse than I did in the Trade City?

They made their way to the baths, each of them paying the fee when they arrived before heading to the changing room. After they undressed, she used her cleaning ring to take care of the smell that had clung to their clothing and equipment.

Once finished, they went to get washed up and then went to the bath to soak. It was less crowded than the day before, though there were still quite a few people. The party found a spot away from the others and got into the steaming water, sitting close to one another.

“You know, hunting in the sewers isn’t so bad if it gives us an excuse to come here every day,” Lyreen said.

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Elaine replied.

They left the baths a few minutes later and went to the changing room. Anna went to the shelf her things were on, took her dress from the shelf, and pulled it over her head. Once it was on, she looked around and noticed that every man in the room was staring at her. They all looked away when they noticed she’d caught them and went back about their business as if they hadn’t been gawking a moment before.

She turned back to the shelf and put her belt back on before taking her sword from the shelf and sliding the baldric strap over her shoulder. She adjusted it until the scabbard hung at her hip. She waited for her friends to get dressed, and then once they had, the party left the changing room and then headed out of the building.

Once they were back on the street, they headed off towards the sweets shop that Lyreen had mentioned previously. The sweets shop was located in a nicer part of the outer ring. She assumed it was where the more well-to-do commoners lived, and while it didn’t hold a candle to anywhere on the inner ring, that wasn’t really a fair comparison considering the vast difference in wealth between commoners and nobles.

Anna smelled the sweets shop long before they arrived, and the anticipation managed to drive back her anxiety, for the moment anyway. The front of the shop was different from the buildings that surrounded it. There was a large lattice window to the right of the entrance with a flower garden below it. Despite being so late in the year, there were still a multitude of colorful flowers blooming, their sweet scent mixing in with the aroma of the treats that lay behind the brightly painted door.

Voekeer pushed the door open, and a bell chimed. They walked into the sweets shop, and she looked around. The walls were lined with shelves that contained clear glass jars, each full of candy or some other confectionery. There was a large counter along the back wall that had a glass front built into part of it. On the other side of the glass were the larger treats, which included a large selection of cupcakes. The sight of her favorite treat caused her to shiver with excitement. Thokri chuckled and patted her on the back.

“Come on, lass. Let’s get you a few,” he said.

“Aye!” Anna replied.

The others chuckled at her response as they walked up to the counter. A young man, or older teen, she couldn’t tell, was standing behind it. He watched them as they walked up.

“I’d like one of the cupcakes with the pink frosting,” she said.

“Sure thing. Do any of you want something while I have the case open?” he replied.

“Aye, I’ll take a pink one, too,” Thokri added.

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The rest of her friends picked out treats from the case. She took out a silver coin and handed it to the young man.

“I got it,” she said.

“Thanks, lass,” Thokri replied.

Her other friends thanked her as well. The young man got a few coppers and handed them to her to make change for the silver coin. Once she stuffed the copper into her belt pouch, she took a bite of the cupcake. The frosting was sweet and flavored with berry juice which complimented the light and fluffy cake that it sat upon perfectly.

This is soooo good! I think this is the best cupcake I’ve ever had! Well, that or my taste is still off. Either way, I like it!

She nibbled at the cupcake as they walked out of the sweets shop.

I’ll have to go back there for some candy later.

They started back towards the inn. She finished her cupcake as they walked down the main street and started to look at the shops as they walked past. There was a wide variety of businesses with everything ranging from clothing shops to places that sold magical tools.

“Mind if we look in there?” she asked, pointing at the magical tool shop.

Her friends all shrugged, and they walked over to the shop. It had a large glass window like the sweets shop but lacked the windowsill garden as well as the bright paint on the door that the other establishment had.

She pushed the door open and went inside to find a space that was laid in a similar fashion to the sweets shop with shelves lining the walls and a counter along the rear wall. The shelves in this particular establishment were filled with all manner of magical doodads and thingamajigs with the more expensive-looking ones locked inside the glass case built into the rear counter.

Sparks of mana floated around the room being emitted from some of the tools and sucked into others. A straggly-looking young woman with while hair and thick glasses stood behind the counter. She was currently examining the inner workings of a mana lamp while another woman looked on.

“Looks like the focus crystal was cracked when it fell,” the woman behind the counter said.

“Dammit! Can you fix it?” the other woman replied.

“Sure, no problem. It will only take a few minutes,” the woman behind the counter said.

“Great! So, how much will it cost?” the other woman asked.

“Two silver,” the woman behind the counter replied.

The other woman sighed, took two silver coins from her coin purse, and handed them to the woman behind the counter. The woman behind the counter took the coins and pocketed them.

“It won’t take long. You can wait here if you like,” she said.

“Great! Say, do you have anything that can help with mice?” the other woman asked.

“Sure do, they are right over there,” the woman behind the counter replied.

“Thanks,” the other woman said.

The other woman walked over to the shelf the woman behind the counter pointed to and started to look at the magic tools sitting there.

Anna started to walk around the shop, looking at the items for sale. She found a dizzying array of magical items, more than she’d ever seen in one place, and many of which she’d never seen before.

She wandered over to one of the shelves, picked up a box, and looked it over. It was made from thin metal and had a tight-fitting lid covering the top. She took off the lid and looked inside. Finding nothing more than empty space, she put the lid back on, flipped it upside down, and discovered a complex spell engraved into the bottom with a tiny bead-sized focus crystal embedded into the center of the spell.

“I’ve been wanting one of those,” the other woman said.

“What does it do?” Anna asked.

“Oh, it preserves food,” the woman replied.

“Really, for how long?” Anna asked.

“It depends on what you put in it. I’ve heard that even fresh meat can last a few months in one,” the woman replied.

That sounds really useful. I wonder how much they want for this thing?

She looked around and noticed a paper tag attached to the shelf just below the box. On it was what she assumed was the price for the preservation box. After reading it, she carefully put the box back on the shelf.

Yikes! It’s not worth that much.

The woman laughed.

“Yeah, that’s what I did when I first saw the cost! Still, the thought of eating fresh strawberries in the wintertime does make it tempting,” she added.

“It would probably get old after the first year. I mean, if you had them all the time, they’d just be normal after a while,” Anna replied.

“I never thought of it that way, but I still I don’t see how fresh strawberries could get old,” the woman said.

“It would for me. That’s all I was saying,” Anna replied.

“Well, everyone is different,” the woman said.

That’s the understatement of the century there.

“You’re right about that,” Anna replied.

“Well, I’m going to go and check to see if my lamp is done. Have a good day, miss,” the woman said.

“You, too,” Anna replied.

The woman walked away, and Anna went back to looking over the shelves before finally reaching the display case at the back of the room. She crouched down and examined the contents through the thick glass.

Fancy, but I don’t really need anything here.

She got back up and walked over to Elaine who was fiddling with a small metal rod.

“What’s that?” Anna asked.

“Supposably it makes hot tea,” Elaine replied.

“So, it’s like Thokri’s flask?” Anna asked.

“It’s similar,” Elaine replied.

“So, why’s it a rod and not a tea pot or something?” Anna asked.

“It’s easier to carry this around than a tea pot,” Elaine replied.

“That makes sense,” Anna said.

Elaine grabbed her by the jaw and squeezed her cheeks.

“Open up!” she said.

“Why?” Anna asked.

“I want to know what it tastes like, but I have no idea how hot it’s going to be, and I don’t want to burn my mouth,” Elaine replied.

“Fine, but just be gentle. It’s my first time,” Anna said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll just put the tip in,” Elaine replied.

“That’s what they all say,” Anna said.

Elaine chuckled and then tilted Anna’s head back. Anna opened her mouth, and Elaine stuck the tea rod in and activated it. Hot tea gushed out, filling Anna’s mouth. She swallowed it down quickly and then pulled away from Elaine making a face.

“That bad?” Elaine asked.

“No, it’s actually pretty good. It’s just not sweet at all!” Anna replied.

“Ah, well, that’s not a problem. I can always pack a little sugar,” Elaine said.

“So, are you going to get it?” Anna asked.

“Yeah, it’ll be nice to have some tea whenever I want,” Elaine replied.

They walked to the counter at the back of the building where Elaine paid for her tea rod. None of the others had found anything they wanted, so the party left the shop and headed back to the inn.