"Hot! This place is way too hot."

"Sis, look! The sand and the sea!"

One cold girl and one rowdy girl walked out of a house.

"She's as excited as ever."

Orion walked out of the house, followed by everyone else.

"That's what happens when you haven't seen the world for so long."

"Yes, I was shocked too when I saw the sand, and the blue sea. It's quite different from our greenish waters."

Amelia and Karteira also walked out.

"Dramia, Drania, watch out for the crowd. This place is choking with people, so try to stay near one of us at all time."

"What are we, children?"

Dramia's snarky remark toward Orion only made him smile.

"In a way, yes. Tell me, how much time have you spent out of human society?"

"..."

She turned her head away in shame.

"He got you there, sis."

With a cute laugh, Drania mocked her sister.

"I know your community is growing, but you can't compare less than a thousand fairies, to the numbers of beings living in just this city. There's at least four times more people here."

There was real danger of getting separated inside the crowd. It would not be the end of the world for them, but since they don't know the layout of the city, and that they were forbidden to show their fairy wings and antennas, they couldn't fly either to find their way.

"I'll be sure to lead everyone to the store. I know a few roads that don't have much people. If we avoid the marketplace, we won't find ourselves in a crowd."

A happy Kamala also walked out of the house. Her house, to be precise.

The brilliance of the white sand, the gleaming of the Palafas Sea, and a beautiful blue sky. With the heat that could make your head spin if you stayed in place too long, and the port that had many ships docked, this was definitely Hocride.

Today was the day Drania and Dramia went for new clothes, while Orion was going to buy a few pieces of furniture that Amelia wrote on a list.

While this wasn't necessarily planned by Kamala, she had quite a lot of free time recently. Some of the people she saved in Kaios decided on her behalf to treat some paperwork, with the guidance of Timothy.

She was truly grateful for that, and it was going exceptionally well. These people were already dealing with that kind of work previously, but compared to before, they were able to take breaks, and even get paid quite a lot.

Of course they would help in this situation. They also had a debt of life to this Apostle.

So when Orion appeared out of the portal in her house, and that he explained that he had a few things to do, mainly going to the clothing store she recommended before, how could she stay behind?

"I'm excited! I can already see a few outfits greatly fitting these two."

"Don't go overboard please. Also, don't forget, they need openings in the back for their wings. Even if you can't see them, they are still physically here. Same as Karteira's tail."

On Karteira's back, her shirt had half of a circle opening, showing some skin where the base of her tail was. It wasn't that big, and you could easily see that it was a peculiar design choice.

The same needed to be done for the sisters, so Orion gave her a few instructions.

"I'll talk about it with the clothier. Don't worry too much, they will look way more charming than before. Robes are great and all, but they aren't good if plain looking."

"Sorry for looking plain."

Dramia was on a roll today. For some reason, her mood wasn't that great.

"Sis, are you still angry?"

"It's your damn fault, so why are you asking?"

"I'm sorry, alright? I didn't mean to say it like that."

The usual banter between twins happened. They were so inseparable, and so different, that it was an obvious result at this point.

A cold, straight to the point sister, and an energetic sister who spoke her mind. This was bound to be.

Though, when you learned more about them, you understood that Dramia was quite bothered by others wellbeing, and Drania was quite insecure. Those two aspects came to be after they had lost Noah.

"Alright, you can stop right there you two."

Orion walked to them, and placed a hand on both of their head.

"I sense some stiffness in you. Do you want a massage? It has been a while since then."

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

After those words, that echoed in everyone's head except Kamala, shivers took over everyone, and even Amelia and Karteira shook their heads in unison to the sisters.

"No! No, we're good. Thank you."

With a trembling gaze, she stared inside Orion's eyes.

"I see. Then take care on the way. Find clothes you like, you are still women aren't you?"

He caressed their hair, and smiled, before turning around toward Amelia, Karteira, and Kamala.

"I'll be going my own way, once your shopping is done, let's rejoin here."

Orion was about to leave.

"Wait. Do you have the list?"

Amelia asked, before he turned halfway toward her.

With a quick move of his fingers, he went for his breast pocket, where the watch was. Behind it was a thin piece of paper folded on itself.

Having the piece of paper between his index and middle fingers, he nodded, and walked away, putting it back in the breast pocket.

"Why is he so cool all of the sudden?"

Karteira couldn't help but to blurt those words out.

"That sometimes happen. It's when he is excited about something. Kamala, do you know if this city have a ranged weapon shop?"

This was something she herself knew about Orion.

"There is one. A bit away from the marketplace."

'I knew it. Have fun, Orion.'

Knowing that this was his plan all along, she was happy for him.

'He never took me to one of those shop after I told him that I didn't care about bows, and crossbows. That was my mistake. After that, he only went alone, and completely stopped bringing it up.'

This was a little regret she had.

'Last time he went to one was on the road to Eogis. It's been a few months. No wonder he rushed away.'

Orion was already gone. But she knew that before going to the weapon shop, he was going to complete the errand first.

"Alright, should we go too?"

Amelia looked at everyone, before they all went another way, following Kamala.

~

"Amelia, I have a question."

"Yes?"

On the way to the clothing store, Kamala remembered something.

"Why did you four react badly when Orion said he would give you a massage? Is it bad?"

Another shiver went down everyone's spine.

"W-Why do you ask?"

"I haven't been able to rest well for the past few days, I had not enough time to find a good person to help me. Since I heard him speak about massing, I thought that maybe he could help?"

A silence fell in the group.

"I see, he's not good enough. That's too bad."

"A- No! It's not like that!"

Amelia panicked for a moment. How could she let her stay tired, when Orion could solve the problem in less time than she would need to look for someone else.

"He is extremely good. That's not what made us stay quiet. There's... something else. You see,-"

"Amelia! Don't!"

Karteira suddenly stopped her from speaking by placing her hand in front of her mouth.

"Mhfgm!"

She whispered in her ear.

'Why don't you let her experience it for herself? It really do relax you, and it's not like it's awful. It's simply... overwhelming.'

After confirming that Amelia agreed, she released her mouth.

"Alright. I'll ask Orion later. He like massaging people, so I guess it's fine."

'Rest in peace.'

Dramia closed her eyes and sympathized with Kamala.

...

With that out of the way, the group finally arrived at the store.

"There really was not much people on the way."

Drania was intrigued, because the moment they walked on the main street, lots of people suddenly went past them.

"That's because these alleys are not the most attractive part of the city. Citizens, and tourists are most interested by the shops and crafters. Oh, I can't forget about the seafood. We don't have the same delicacies as Noctelagia, but I can guarantee the taste is great."

"I can guarantee that too."

Karteira agreed to the food part of Kamala.

"When we slept at the inn, I've ate quite a few plates of seafood. They are great!"

Hearing that, Kamala smiled happily. She was not interesting in competing with the food supplier that was Noctelagia. There was only the pride of having something good to eat.

"Thank you for the praise. I'll be sure to reward seafood makers of the city. I'm sure with more funds, they should be able to find new and interesting recipes."

With glittering eyes, Karteira was already excited to try those new recipes. She loved tasting new food.

"Oh. Now you have me fired up too. I am quite interested by those future recipes now."

The chef blood in Amelia began to boil.

'New ways to expend our diet, it is always welcomed.'

After laughing, Kamala turned to the sisters.

"What do you both like to eat?"

This was something Amelia asked before.

"I like vegetables the most!"

Drania spoke while lifting her hand in the air.

"Meat for me."

With a nod, and a satisfied smile, Dramia said.

'That's... peculiar. I would have expected the opposite.'

"You thought that the opposite would make more sense, didn't you?"

Reading her mind, Amelia continued.

"I said the same thing when I heard that. Drania likes most of the vegetables, but she prefers tomatoes, while Dramia can eat lots of meat, but tend to eat more chicken breasts than other types of meat."

Both sisters looked at her with wide eyes.

"How...?"

Flabbergasted, Drania asked.

"If I didn't understand what the ones I serve liked, you would be eating nothing but potatoes everyday."

After making a joke, Amelia looked at Karteira.

"You like fish. Crispy cooked fish."

"Yes..."

"And you Kamala, during the time you were with us, there was only one thing that made you smile. Cakes. It doesn't matter if it's a vegetable cake or fruit cake. So I think it's more the texture you like more than the taste."

"..."

Amelia was a master in knowing what others liked.

'Orion is more difficult to read. He likes everything I make, so I have no idea what he prefers. One day, I'll find out.'

He wasn't picky about his food. If it was edible, then he would eat it. Even his own cooking taste fine for him. Though, there's something different with Amelia's cooking. Something no other plates possess.

But there still was one type of food he liked, and it was one of the simplest thing in the world.

Until Amelia finds out, it will remain a mystery.

"Alright, let's stop the conversation there. If we take too much time, Orion will have to wait a few hours before even finish."

Breaking the weird mood of shock everyone had around them, they all agreed.

~

On the other side, near the marketplace.

Orion was humming happily.

He went to one of the stores already, and bought half of the things on the list. There was still two shops to go before he could enjoy some times looking at crossbows.

"Oh, isn't that Sir Orion?"

A familiar voice entered his ears.

He turned around and found Vincent, the guard that helped him when he arrived in Hocride.

"Vincent?"

"Yes. I am glad to see you healthy."

The man in full guard uniform approached and extended his hand.

"The same goes for you. How was the gift to your wife?"

Orion remembered the look of happiness he had after finding the right accessory in the past. He grabbed his hand and strongly shook hands.

"A-ahaha."

The man placed one hand behind his head, and looked a little flustered.

"It seemed to have gone well. Congratulations."

"No, without your advice, she would have never been this happy. Thank you very much for helping me at the time.

They discussed a little bit about the reason of Orion's visit and why he was alone for a bit.

"I see. I should notify a few of us that Lord Kamala has gone out, just in case. I will make sure no fuss would be made, and that she won't even notice us."

"She never notifies you all?"

Vincent shook his head.

"No. She's so strong by herself, we would be useless in most situations. But it is our job to maintain appearance at least."

"You have it rough."

With a smile, Orion extended his hand toward him again.

"I'll go finish my errand. Don't overexert yourself too much under the heat."

"I will ask you the same. Enjoy your time in Hocride."

Just when the men shook hand.

"HYAAAAAAA!"

The voice of a women echoed in the marketplace, coming from the harbor.

They both looked at each other, and nodded. Without waiting, they rushed toward the voice.