The flasks and bottles ligtly clinked against each other as I placed a small wooden crate on the counter.

“Please feel free to check if anything is missing,” I said to the woman across me.

Silently, she reached out her thin and wrinkled arms and partly pulled on the flasks and bottles sealed by corks, checking the labels plastered around them. After going through each, she took out a purse and placed several pieces of silver and copper coins on the counter.

I counted the coins and confirmed the amount was correct. Afterward, after locking the coins in a nearby drawer, I ducked and went through a small opening underneath the counter and grabbed the crate’s handle.

“The same place, right?” I beamed a smile as I glanced at the woman.

“Yes.”

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Promptly, we left the store through a door laden with two glass panes. As we exited, a series of wooden fences and slabs of rock welcomed me. However, having no time to admire the lush trees behind the fences, I turned around and waited for the woman to follow.

“Sarah, I’ll be out for a while. Please take care of the customers while I’m away.” I shifted my sight to a girl sitting on a bench beside the store’s entrance. She had a hazelnut colored hair tied to a side-tail. She wore a white blouse topped with a brown leather vest tightened around her waist.

For a moment, her clear-brown eyes blinked. “It’s not like there will be that many customers at this time of the day, but fine.” She raised her right arm and waved it. “Anyway, come back sooner and make breakfast.”

“You better learn how to cook. It’ll also raise your chances of finding a man to tie the rope with.”

“It’s fine, Clyde, you’re here anyway. You can always take my hand anytime.” She flashed a cheeky grin.

“Don’t worry; I haven’t seen myself taking your hand in the future, near or far.”

A soft laugh came from the side. “You’re as lively as ever.”

““We always are.””