It was now noon, the sun was shining as bright as it possibly can, and the men and women of the city were starting to look exhausted from all the heat, the stalls and booths were slowing down and as the minutes ticked by, the people coming to the carnival became sparse. Between all that, Jacob and Asya sat on a bench placed directly underneath a tree eating crushed ice mixed with sweetened fruits and condensed milk.

The last one wasn't really a surprise to Jacob anymore because between Horos and Alchemy already existing, he didn't doubt that there are also people out there who don't do anything other than try to invent new foodstuff, so by this point, he decided to just accept things as they are.

And it's not like he can justify complaining about it, not when the food tasted as good as it does. He took a bite of the ice mixed with sweetened bananas and sugared turnips, "there is food like this back in my old world," Jacob started talking with his mouth still full, prompting Asya to give him the stink eye, which he ignored since by his estimates, he was speaking just fine, "and honestly, they all taste the same." He stopped talking, thought about what he just said, then decided to explain himself, "Not that it's bad obviously, tasting the same as proven food is good, always."

"Fair enough," Asya said while murmuring something about culture under her breath. "Where do you wanna go after this?" She questioned.

He thought about it and then a memory of people talking about a giant fountain that continuously spews "revitalizing" foam went to the front of his mind.

"Wanna go play in the water?" He asked back, which got a smile from Asya.

"I would love to, but I don't think my clothes and hair would... go well with that?" she replied.

"It would be fine-"

"You know the last time you said that, my hair got messed up from running too fast,"

"- Because we'd stick to the fountain that makes the skin smoother," Jacob retorted.

"... Fine." Asya said as she took another spoonful of ice, "but if you drag me to the waters and get my clothes wet, I'm calling this entire thing off."

"I know," Jacob replied.

"I'm serious," Asya said, her tone mirroring her words, "once, I can forgive, but twice? Jacob, you're either not willing to listen to me, or have a big enough head that..." Asya paused and her sentence shifted words halfway through, "I honestly don't think if I can accept that last one, I'd be too disappointed."

"I know," Jacob repeated.

She looked up at him, "I trust you, okay?"

Jacob nodded, "I won't disappoint you,"

And so on they went, though the moment that the two of them finished eating, Asya suggested that they should take a small rest before running around and playing with foam which Jacob agreed to, he didn't really feel like running around after eating something so cold,- especially in this heat, - that's just asking for a heatstroke to strike them when they least expected it.

But when they did finish "resting", the two of them stood up from the bench and headed for the direction where the fountain is supposed to be located, when they got there, Jacob stared at it in shock, "They didn't tell I'd look like a sea serpent," he commented.

The fountain, or rather, the Sea Dragon- Asya had corrected him as for what it actually was, - that the fountain is pretending to be is this long, blue thing with the head of a viper pointed upwards and a body that ran in circles across the ground, arrow-shaped scales carved from stone ran across body, and on the very tip is a tail that looked like the sail of a boat.

White foam with a sweet scent erupted out of its mouth and holes were found across its body, spreading white foam across the gray concrete like viscous snow, wetting it as well as the people playing around the snake.

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Jacob opened his mouth to speak but Asya was already dragging him around the spiral body of the snake so that they can reach the mouth, and when they got there, the small holes which foamed them as they ran to the center of the Dragon didn't hold a candle to the foam cannon that was its mouth- white, soft foam descended upon them like rain the moment that she and Asya stepped below the shadow of the Dragon, tickling the two of them, though Asya had it worse because the blonde didn't stop giggling while they were buried underneath the foam.

When they got out, they were soaked to the skin and had their clothes stuck to their body, Jacob pretended to not look like he wasn't staring at Asya's curves and did so by covering her face with the hood of his mage's robe the moment that he covered her up with the damn thing.

A bath under a [Heat Wave] spell later from the fountain's stand by [Fire Mage] and the two were silently staring at the other kids playing around the fountain. Afternoon usually meant that the sun's glare had considerably gone down but for most people, that just means that they can play more out in the open now that things aren't as hot.

For the two of them, the afternoon is the sign that the day is about to end and night is going to come, so, with nothing better to do, Asya took Jacob somewhere quiet, the carnival is as lively as ever but for the people who had spent their entire day inside, it's now kind of dull, tiring even.

So was it really a surprise that their afternoon outing led them outside the walls of the city?

Jacob and Asya looked out into the open field of the savannah before them, the grasses were tall enough that if they weren't on top of a low cliff, they wouldn't be able to see a thing. The entire carnival was clear for them to see, games and people alike looking like ants from the height that they were on, the wind was strong, and the scent was fresh, like it had just rained a day before. The two of them silently stared at the sun as it slowly moved downwards, a few hours more and they'd have to say goodbye to the day and welcome the night.

Asya was the one who broke the silence, "this is nice," the blonde said, voice calm. Jacob felt her hand grab his, "you know, I used to think that I would be able to see my Town from this height," she pointed somewhere far into the horizon, way ahead of the tall grass and the hills and forests, "but I guess not,"

"You haven't checked before?" Jacob asked.

"No, my parents didn't let me." She replied.

"Oh. Sorry." He peered across the savannah, trying to see if he can spot the Town that Asya is supposed to be ruling at, then, he sighed, "I didn't know."

"It's fine," blonde hair obscured Jacob's vision when Asya rested her head on his shoulder, he looked up, the strength of the wind was slowly picking up, "I still think that it's possible, though."

"Maybe." Jacob replied, a telescope popping into his head, "Do telescopes exists here?" He asked, glass making is pretty hard but then again, Horos and alchemy exist so telescopes might as well by this point.

"Yeah." Asya replied, answering his internal question, she sat up and pointed at their back, Jacob's gaze followed to spot a tower built on top of a tall cliff, even from here, Jacob knew that what he is looking at is a mountain based on the rocky terrain alone, "That tower over there has one,"

"Neat." He replied, "And you're right, this is nice."

Asya giggled, "of course I am," she said with mock-pride, puffing up her chest. "You should know that already,"

Jacob snorted, "prove it first,"

"Hmm." Asya hummed.

And then silence. Like most idle conversations without any real topic, the end result was silence with nothing but the natural sounds taking over the once lively talks, Jacob looked around, spotting no one other than him and Asya. Well, the winds are strong at this height but hey, maybe Asya agreeing to be led here means that what he's about to do is allowed.

Jacob ignored the feeling of fear and guilt on his chest as he raised his right hand to cup Asya's cheeks, the blonde didn't seem to mind and when he turned to look at her, she was already staring at him.

They locked eyes and before Jacob knew it, something soft was pressing against his lips, he realized that Asya wasn't really moving her lips so he was content with letting things be that way but then again, his first kiss was pretty disappointing because he and his ex did nothing other than press their lips together so he opened his mouth and started kissing Asya, which the blonde didn't seem to mind.

When they broke, she smiled and looked away, "thanks," she said suddenly, her voice was soft and barely audible, "for everything." She added, "But-"

Jacob sighed, "I get it." He said, oddly feeling disappointed, which is the opposite of the guilt that he felt earlier because he knew that he would do the same as what Asya is doing now in the end, "responsibility?" He asked, a wry smile wrestling against his lips, when Asya nodded, he returned the gesture, "Well, it's not like I wasn't going to say something like this too,"

"Then why'd you kiss me?" She asked.

The two of them weren't looking at each other, seemingly content on staring at the open fields, "I don't know." He answered, "The moment just felt right."

He heard a giggle, "...I love you."

"I love you too," he answered, adding, "I was glad that I met you in that library,"

"So am I," she replied, "those two weeks on the road had been the most I've talked ever since my parent's death."

He felt something land on his shoulder and a lock of golden hair struck his cheek, "I love you," she said again.

"I love you too," he repeated.