Chapter 29 Go!

Isaac and Lenna had just walked out into the main hall of the Adventurers’ Guild branch in Sapphirestone. They were immediately met with a familiar man who looked frazzled to say the least. Hilton, the receptionist, looked like they had cut him off from seeing to an emergency. “Hey! What was going on up there?!” He demanded from Lenna who just happened to be in front.

“I fell.” Lenna told him and walked forwards. Hilton stumbled as he was forced out of the way by her stride. As Hilton stumbled, Isaac’s hand reached out and grabbed him by the arm. He yanked the smaller man into the stairwell and clamped a hand over his mouth.

Isaac’s gaze bore into Hilton’s very soul through his wide and exposed eyes. “You need to learn to be kinder to adventurers. Your customer service needs servicing.” Isaac looked down at the little man’s shadow. “Strangle him if he yells at one more person.” Isaac whispered with enough concentrated effort and intent that the shadow quivered under his focused attention. Isaac looked back up at Hilton who had gone deathly pale. “Now, go back to your post and do your job until your shift is done. Understand?” Isaac instructed him and let go of his face. Hilton fell backwards into the wall and landed hard on his bottom. “Well?”

Hilton nodded rapidly at Isaac. “Yeep” His voice cracked as he tried to reply. “I understand.”

“Well, why aren’t you returning to your post then?” Isaac questioned him. Hilton all but jumped to his feet and took off towards his station. Isaac smirked at Lenna as he walked out of the stairwell and closed the door behind him. By then, Hilton was out of earshot so Isaac was clear to speak softly to her. “That should keep what happened upstairs quiet for a little while.” He told her. “Maybe even long enough to get dinner.”

Lenna chuckled. “I hope so. We at least have to eat first before becoming public enemy numbers one and two.” She replied. “Let’s try that foreign restaurant near the slums.”

Isaac raised an eyebrow as he walked with her towards the exit. “You don’t want to wait until tomorrow?” He wondered. “We did say that we’d meet with him first.”

“We can wait for that, but the food did look nice, and we can use the opportunity to take a look around.” She told him.

Isaac nodded in reply and the trio headed off. Isaac had cloaked Shamesh in his shadows to save the retainer’s mana and allow it to regenerate for a while. It took them a while to reach the restaurant in question, which was more like a food stall built halfway into a building, but eventually they arrived and without complication.

The pair took their seats at the bar while Shamesh waited out of the way. The man behind the bar was not serving alcohol but raw fish and rice. They watched as he sliced up the fish and rolled thin cuts of vegetables into what looked like a scroll made of seaweed. He then wrapped the scroll in rice before laying each slice of fish across its top one at a time. Once that was done he pulled out a magically sharpened knife and chopped it into bite sized sections for the pair. “Eat.” The chef told them curtly.

Isaac looked around for utensils but didn’t see any. He was about to ask when a pair of thin wooden sticks were abruptly set in front of him. “Thanks.” Isaac told the chef and easily picked them up with one hand. He naturally cradled the one stick and pinched the other for control. With a smooth and practiced motion Isaac pinched one of the bite sized pieces and stuffed it into his mouth. Lenna and the chef both just stared at Isaac dumbfoundedly. It took him a moment to realize that they were staring at him because he was too busy savoring the perfectly balanced mix of textures and flavors. “What?” He asked them both after he swallowed down the bite.

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“How did you know how to use those? What even are those?” Lenna questioned him.

“You are the first in this land to use them properly.” The chef told Isaac simply. “How did you know? Who taught you?”

“I have no idea. They were just chopsticks so I just used them how you’re supposed to use them.” Isaac replied. “I didn’t realize it was a big deal.”

Lenna just shook her head. “Another forgotten skill then.” She said more to herself than to him.

“Chop, sticks.” The chef parroted. “They are not called that where I am from.”

“Oh?” Isaac asked. “What are they called, wherever that is?”

“KiKi.” The chef replied simply. His dark eyes and darker hair stood stark against his light skin tone and clothing.

“Neat.” Isaac said in return. “The food is very good by the way.” Isaac added and took another bite.

“How do I use those?” Lenna asked and eyed the sticks in Isaac’s hand.

“Most people use their fingers.” The chef told her. “He is the first to use the KiKi.”

“Oh, alright.” Lenna replied and picked up one of the pieces with her fingers and stuffed it into her mouth. After a long moment of silence as Isaac stuffed his face, and Lenna chewed the strange food, Lenna finally swallowed. “I don’t dislike it. It reminds me of cleshkav.”

“What is that?” Isaac asked her in between bites.

“Almost raw constrictor snake, it is baked just long enough to make it safe to eat, and then cubed and mixed with small noodles, mushrooms, and… I think the common name for it is, black cabbage.” Lenna explained. “It is lighter than you would expect because of the sweet sauce and leaves.”

The chef eyed her warily. “Is that night-one food?” He questioned her.

Lenna turned to look at Isaac. “What food?” She asked him.

“He asked if it was night-one food.” Isaac told her. Isaac looked back at the chef. “Who are the night-ones?”

The chef pointed at Lenna. “They look like her.” He explained. “At first I thought she was one too, but she is with you and not stealing children.”

Lenna’s face fell. No matter where in the world humans lived, they would always be living directly above a drow settlement or outpost. The drow empire was just that massive. Each area had its own slight shift in the culture but most existed purely to pillage the surface. Wherever the chef was from was probably just another place that was subjected to night raids by the drow in the area. “I am a night-one.” Lenna told him. “But I ran away. Isaac found me, and rescued me. Not all of us are like the ones that raid your people’s villages, but unfortunately, most are.”

The chef eyed her carefully for a long moment. “You pay?” He asked her and gestured towards the food.

“Of course.” Lenna replied. “How much?”

“Two silver.” He told her and she placed two silver coins on the bar after withdrawing them from her Bottomless Bag. “Then you are not night-one.” He told her and took the coins. “Want more?” He asked and eyed the empty serving dish, Isaac had eaten almost the entire thing by himself.

“Yes, please.” Lenna replied. “Two silver each?” She asked and the chef nodded. She smiled and placed four more coins on the bar. The chef nodded to her again and got to work making more of the strange food from a foreign land using only local ingredients.

Once Isaac and Lenna had finished their dinner they stepped into an alleyway. To anyone that may have been watching, it appeared as though the dark shadows cast by the new moon night sky had swallowed them whole. With an entire night to kill, the trio set off to explore the slums before their meeting with the duke.

An hour later, Isaac was grumbling. “The good stuff has to be hidden away somehow.” He told Lenna. “I can’t just throw my senses out into the dark, it’s too overwhelming, but every building we’ve seen has just been normal slums stuff.”

“Whorehouses, drug dens, abandoned buildings, starving families and orphaned children. Also, it stinks.” Lenna went on. “We are going to need a guide.”

Isaac was about to reply when he stopped. “Did you hear that?” He asked her.

Lenna tilted her head slightly to focus on trying to hear better. Suddenly her eyes went wide as an unmistakable sound rang out. It was a young girl’s scream and it was coming from just down the street. Lenna immediately took off in a run towards the sound and Isaac took off after her. Shamesh cast flight on himself even though it would dramatically shorten the amount of time that he would be able to keep Lenna’s Invisibility active. He had no delusions of being able to keep up with his master or mistress on foot. Isaac and Lenna had barely gotten up to speed when more sounds of a struggle reached their ears. “Go!” Lenna ordered Isaac and the dark mage didn’t hesitate. A blink later and he was gone.