2 - 5. I Don't Pay Property Taxes ( So It’s All Disposable Income ).

“Summoner. Noel. I have some good news.” Jun looks up from his hands and turns to the two women lounging in the room. It’s strange to see him look up from his empty hands, Nyx thinks, but sits up on the couch. All three of them look like that, staring into space and navigating interfaces. Noel is messing with her own menu and turns her head up, letting out a tiny noise of acknowledgement.

“We don’t pay property taxes.” Nyx blinks, scratching her head. It’s been a little while since her amnesia had gotten in her way, but this is definitely one of those moments. She closes her eyes, trying to remember, but it feels so far removed from her that she can barely grasp it. Funny, she can clearly remember what a government is.

“We are the law of the land, so of course we don’t, Jun.” Yes, of course, because why would the government tax itself? They’re not a government though. Nyx’s eyebrows furrow down even further.

“Yes, because normally taxes would normally be used for maintenance and public services.” Nyx turns her head to Jun who has the most peculiar gleam in his eyes. “However, we are not paying taxes.”

“Jun… Aren’t the ‘points’ we’re getting our taxes?”

“Who is paying them?”

“No one.”

“No one. Whether you see it as profit for the business or taxes in the treasury,” Jun begins, when Nyx crosses her arms and puffs up. They’re not a business or a government, she insists with her gaze, and Jun coughs and continues.

“The point,” the skeleton continues, “is that we do not pay taxes. We do not have an overhead.” Noel blinks and tilts her head, then jumps onto her feet.

“Hey, what about water or electricity?”

“We have no utility bills. Not for the magically powered lights or the water.” Jun’s blue flame eyes tremble as Nyx turns her eyes between her two companions, watching each of them grow more and more excited.

“And what about food?”

“We don’t eat.” Neither does Nyx, thanks to her passives.

“Then… Could it possibly be true…?”

“Yes, Noel.”

“Endless vacation time…” Noel begins.

“Only disposable income…” Jun continues.

The skeleton and succubus join hands for a moment, then hug each other tightly as Nyx stares on. What sort of life have you two been living before this, hey… And hug me too!

“It’s the start of our slow life!” Jun and Noel cheer, jumping up and down.

・

What part of this is slow! Nyx huffs as Jun rolls his robe up above his knees and ties it off at the thigh bone. As Nyx gets an unwitting lesson in skeletal construction, Noel is rolling up her own sleeves and stretching out left and right. She gives both Nyx and Jun a beaming smile and points towards the mountain.

“We’re going on a run! Going out and exercising is good for mental health, we can’t enjoy our slow life if we only lie around.” That logic sounds both twisted and irrefutable, so Nyx just places her hands on her hips and lets out a long, heavy sigh. Noel’s happiness is infectious, but Nyx sighs another two times for good measure then steps forward. Waving, she gestures at the top of the mountain and raises an eyebrow.

“Yes, all the way up the mountain.” Nyx sighs a fourth time for good measure. Jun is getting into it too, even pulling his hood back so his shiny bone head - his skull is visible. He’s not a bonehead. Not at all. It’s not like watching a skeleton try to stretch his muscles makes her want to call him a bonehead.

“Alright, let’s go.” Noel cheers and begins jogging, so Nyx begins to run right behind her with Jun to her side. She knows the path well enough, having climbed up the mountain quite a few times already. There aren’t any dangerous animals either, so she focuses entirely on jogging and keeps her eyes on the peak. One hand comes up to shield her eyes from the sun as twin moons float above her. After a few minutes, she realizes something is off.

She doesn’t hear Noel or Jun anymore.

Turning around, she squints and stares down the path at the two figures wheezing and holding their sides, stumbling up the hill. It’s only been five minutes since she started jogging. Blinking in surprise, she jogs in place and shifts her weight, waiting for them to catch up.

“We’re fine,” Noel calls out, her voice somehow even and relaxed despite the sweat dripping off her brow. Jun’s head is shinier than ever, if that was even possible, and he’s wheezing despite his lack of lungs. Nyx stares as they both slowly drag themselves up to her spot. Once they catch up, she takes her right index finger and taps her wrist, then moves her hand in a slow circle, tapping her wrist again, giving both her friends a sharp glare.

“We’re going to do this again?” Jun, who has no idea what a wristwatch is, is completely clueless to what she means. Noel, however, smiles gracefully. “Lady Nyx, surely we don’t need to do this every week,” she begins.

“She wants us to do this again?” Jun stares between the two women as Nyx brings her hand up and stretches her thumb and index finger apart, then makes a squeezing gesture. The two of you forced me into this to start with, do you think you can get away now? Now that I’ve seen you can’t run even five minutes?

“Every few days?” Noel stares at Nyx’s fingers as she makes the squeezing gesture again. “Every day,” the succubus asks, gulping. Nyx crosses her arms and nods. Every day.

“My Lady, be reasonable. You know our strength, we are low - “ Nyx holds her finger up, cutting off Noel’s attempt to hide behind being discount summons. They have room for growth. She’s sure, she’s seen the underlying skill system with its near infinite complexity. Growth is possible.

“Very well, Summoner. If all we must do is reach the top,” Jun begins, standing back up. He takes a step around the corner, disappearing from Nyx’s vision for a moment. She vanishes as well, teleporting to the top of the mountain and perching on a rock as Jun appears in a flash of light a moment later.

“Ah.” She points at the bottom of the mountain, glaring at Jun. Noel’s appearance a second later doesn’t help matters at all. Both of them wanted to cheat, huh? Nyx levels her best disappointed expression on the two of them. Then, sighing, she shifts to the base of the mountain again. Even if it had been Noel’s idea before, Nyx couldn’t force either of them to do it if they didn’t want to.

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“Summoner, I have no muscles to build. If it is about growing stronger instead of exercising and going outside,” Jun begins, arms crossed as he stands behind her. They had gotten somewhat sidetracked, hadn’t they? She nods and leaves Jun behind with a wave, walking off towards the hill.

He’s right, of course. She can’t make them do anything, nor should she. She was just trying to give them a push, but maybe she had approached it the wrong way. Walking alone up the mountain, she catches a glimmer of light to her right side and backs up.

“Lady Nyx. Shall I accompany you?” Nyx gives Noel a wry smile, then gestures at the path in front of them. Walking in silence, the human-demon pair ascend slowly. After several minutes, Nyx turns her head towards Noel.

“Hmm? What is it, my Lady?” Nyx licks her lips, suddenly feeling nervous, then begins to gesture.

“Me? And Jun?” Nyx nods at Noel’s guesses, then hooks her pinkies together. “Are we together? Whatever gave you that impression? We’ve only known each other for four days, after all.” Because you call him dear, because you both sleep in the same room and the same bed, because you both hug each other and don’t even touch me, Nyx wants to explain, but she only gives Noel a deadpan look.

“Ah, sorry. I do not believe office romance is forbidden though?” Nyx furrows her eyebrows and stops walking, crossing her arms tightly. That flirtatious tone bothers her immensely, causing her to lean forward and raise an eyebrow.

“Jealousy isn’t cute, my Lady. I’m in no more a relationship with him than I am with you.” Noel responds suggestively, winking and continuing to walk along. Nyx stays still, however, and closes her eyes. Sighing, she runs forward to catch up and stands in front of Noel, then dips her head in apology. Noel, despite introducing herself as a succubus, has always been sweet but never intentionally flirtatious, suggestive, or erotic. Nyx tags the ‘intentionally’ on for her own sake.

“It’s fine, really,” Noel mutters softly, smiling. Nyx pops her head back up and returns to walking, intertwining her own fingers nervously. What if she hadn’t caught that? That it was off? She could have really hurt Nyx. Frowning, she turns her attention back to the hiking trail. The murky, sludge-like feeling in her chest grows heavier with each step, but she tries to keep her composure and not let on. Self-pity isn’t cute. Isn’t helpful. It’s her own fault anyway.

Noel is staring at her out of the corner of her eye, but Nyx just turns her head towards the endless desert to her left. A small sigh escapes Noel’s lips, but she doesn’t comment. Nyx is grateful for that. For letting her stew, rather than being her emotional crutch. As they move through the greenery of the mountain, Nyx finally nods her head and takes a deep breath.

Waving at Noel to get her attention, Nyx puts her hand out as if there’s something in it. Tilting her head, Noel flutters her eyelashes, confused, then puts out her hand as well to receive whatever it is. Something shimmers before three pieces of black cloth land in Noel’s hands.

Holding the smaller black cloth in one hand, Noel spreads out the first item. It’s a simple shirt, too large for Nyx, with a simple inscription across the front. Bad to the Bone. Noel bursts out into giggling laughter as she moves to the next item, a pair of black pants to match the shirt.

“You got this for Jun? He’ll like it,” Noel giggles, folding the garments back up. “Much better than that purple robe he never leaves.” Nyx nods, but it’s not as though he has much of a choice. That’s the only clothing he has, and it’s not like he can walk around bare bones. Nyx snickers as Noel moves onto the last item - a black headband with a deep stripe across the center.

“Hot as Hell? Lady Nyx… Isn’t this sexual harassment?” Nyx flinches, turning around ready to apologize, only to see Noel’s grinning expression as she slides the headband into place. “I’m joking, I love it. It’s cute. Thank you.” Pouting a bit, Nyx smiles a moment later. Whistling softly, she turns her attention back to the road, only for Noel to wave something in front of her eyes.

“We got you something too. What a delightful coincidence,” Noel hums. Taking the book into her hands, she turns it over.

[ Skill: Sign Language ]

[ Learn Skill? ]

She waves the interface away before it continues, eyes fluttering as she stares at the book, then at Noel. Her right hand twists back and forth, their shared gesture for ‘how’. This book hadn’t been in her own shop, no matter how often she checked.

“It was in my shop,” Noel responds, her expression cramping slightly. She understands by now, at least a little bit, just how prejudiced and persecuted Nyx is by the system. It was wrong that it was labeled a ‘useless skill’ for the both of them who could speak, but it was only because of that that they could pass it onto Nyx.

“Jun and I both bought a copy. We’ve been practicing a little,” Noel continues. Nyx holds the book to her chest as it shimmers and turns into motes of starlight. Each speck of light floats for a moment, then sinks into her. When she reaches for the knowledge she wants to have, it’s somewhat smothered. It feels like her own memories, the way they were impossible to grasp when she woke up in the cave, yet grew clearer and focused the more she built up on them. Right now, she can reach for the entire alphabet and the very basics without any problem, but complex constructions still seemed distant. Wringing her hands slightly, she signs slowly.

“Noel. Thank you.” Nyx signs slowly, somewhat timidly, and Noel responds by signing back and showing her a warm, composed smile.

“You’re welcome, sweetheart.” What was that last word? She doesn’t understand it, but before Nyx can question it, they’ve crested the mountain. Stepping further forward, Nyx glances left to right. Endless sand greets her, with only the chasms and the small speck of a destroyed village to break it up. Her eyes shift to the dilapidated village and the well as she sighs.

There’s one more person that needs help.

・

- | Shuren Kingdom | -

===================

The click of heels carries through the halls as a woman brushes strands of black hair behind her shoulders. She pulls her cowl a little lower over her face as she looks this way and that, frowning deeply. Walking into the gardens of the castle, the woman wrinkles her nose and walks forward to one flower patch in particular. She scowls deeply, bright blue eyes glowing slightly.

A moment later, she walks out of an alley in the market district. Flipping open a compact and glancing at her glamour, she nods to herself. Stepping briskly into the street, her towering height immediately attracts attention. Walking up to the first person she sees, she calls out sharply.

“Oi.” The baker she calls out to glances towards the woman. Although the hooded figure is certainly stylish, she’s also a little suspicious, the baker thinks to herself. If not suspicious, then dangerous. She turns her eyes back to her stall.

“Oi, you.”

“It’s not you. It’s Marlene.” Marlene sighs, turning her attention back to trouble.

“Miss Marlene then.”

“You got some manners on you at least, but if you’re not gonna buy something… I got mouths to feed. You’re scaring everyone off,” Marlene quibbles, tapping her hairline where the other woman’s cowl sits. The hooded stranger folds her arms, then pulls the cowl back, revealing her face completely.

“Better. Maybe look less like you want to kill someone.”

“Hmph. Quite the attitude towards someone who might want to kill you.”

“Guard’s right behind you,” Marlene shoots back, pointing to two armored patrolmen. “If you’re not buying, let the next customer forward.”

“There’s no other customer who wants to buy from you.”

“Oi.” The woman sports a cocky smile now, as Marlene sighs.

“I’ll take three of the chocolate chip pastries there.”

“Good eye. Local specialty.”

“I know. Willing to talk now?”

“Alright,” Marlene grunts, glancing around this strange woman to see if anyone else is there. They aren’t. She puts forward her hand for payment, to which the woman tosses forward a few Shuren coins. With her looks, Marlene had taken the strange woman for an adventurer, yet she hadn’t paid with her guild card. Definitely suspicious.

“Keep the change, Miss Marlene. Got a question for you. I’m looking for a woman, Aura.”

“Who’s asking?”

“Estelle.”

“Aura, eh? Never heard of her.” Marlene shrugs and gestures for Estelle to move as the taller woman flinches.

“You sure?”

“I’m sure. Unless you want to buy more food, can you move along?”

“...Mm, fine. Thanks, Miss.” Taking her three pastries, Estelle’s long fingernails scratch against the back of her neck. She walks down the market, eating as she walks. Her nose wrinkles again as she dips into an alleyway and vanishes, reappearing back in the castle. Estelle throws her cowl back up, grumbling. She should be here, but she isn’t. Is she somewhere else already? Estelle folds her arms tightly, walking through the halls shamelessly. She shifts to the dungeons, peeks into the third princess’ room, checks the royal hall, and finally teleports a final time back to the flower gardens. Nothing.

“Just where are you hiding, Aura?”

End of Arc 2 - I Will ( Not ) Lose Something Important.