The farmer’s market was booming a little more than usual making it seem as if the season was being good to most people. The girls were talking and laughing the entire way since the weather was more than enough to put anyone in a good mood.

Raisa was always the one to walk while holding onto Kamaria’s arm. It made her appear very adorable if a person hadn’t seen what she could do with the whip. They were greeted by a few of the stall owners as they walked.

“Old Man, I’m back,” said Kamaria to an aged, long bearded man in rather weathered dull clothes standing behind a vegetable stall. The man finished attending to the customer and then put the pipe back in his mouth while adjusting his vegetables.

The pipe was interesting as it looked like a flute of gnarled wood with carvings but had a small metal bowl and an ivory mouthpiece.

“It’s the Doctor. To what do I owe the trouble?” asked the man.

“Trouble? there’s no such thing when I’m around,” commented Kamaria.

“In this world, there are things some of us will never believe,” he said while puffing away at his pipe and Kamaria took a seat next to him. He slightly picked up the wide brim of his bamboo hat to glance at her.

“Young people ought to get married instead of running around the streets and beating up others.”

“It’s hardly our fault if they interrupted us while eating. We’re gone for a little while and some small hoodlums make trouble on our streets,” haughtily commented Raisa.

“Because you three are the big hoodlums, aren’t you?” he asked and puffed away at his pipe again.

“Old Man, I’m a government certified physician. What hoodlum are we talking about?” kindly asked Kamaria.

Old Man wasn’t sure about the origins of these girls. They had helped him one day when someone was making trouble at his stall and injured him, and he later heard that they were not people to be trifled with especially the young lady with a whip and explosive temper.

From what he had picked up, the young woman who was their leader was a physician with a few questionable connections.

Besides food, she loved nothing more than developing new drinks so much so that she always had a flask hanging on her belt every time they saw each other.

“So, are we getting in another batch of those purple plums? I’m almost out of my drink,” said Kamaria.

“Bring me a flask of the wine and I’ll get more of those plums for you.”

“A whole flask Old Man, it takes me at least two months to make the three jars. Luckily, today I have just the gift for you. It’s even a bit medicated and good for your health,” she insisted with a smile.

Lili looked around in the satchel and took out a hard leather flask and handed it to the man.

After taking out his pipe, he opened the flask and took a whiff. It did indeed smell different to other types of ciders and wines that he knew. He took a small satisfying sip and nodded. There was even a flowery aftertaste in the drink.

“Good stuff, I have some stock arriving in two days so send someone to get it for five silvers.

“A flask of rare gold standard wine and five siglos. Isn’t that daylight robbery?”

“Not if you want quality fruit.”

“Alright then, I’ll send someone. There’s no bargaining with you. I’ll be seeing you Old Man.”

The old man nodded after receiving his money, and the trio left with a new destination in mind. He shook his head and smiled at their innocent sense of adventure.

Little troublemakers that they were, he was still glad that they were enjoying the peak of their youth as young people should.

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The girls picked up a few more snacks on the way as navigating through the district was exercise on its own. At some point, they dipped into a smaller alley where there was a crowd of excited people gathered.

They made their way through the small crowd only to see that people were noisily betting on some rat races.

Everyone was especially enthusiastic, so Kamaria barely took it seriously when someone bumped into her since the crowd was gathered closely. It was fun watching a few races before they walked out of the alley.

When one side of her belt felt lighter, she looked down at the empty space and smiled. One of the hanging belt ornaments was missing. The accessory was part of a pair which each featured a spider lily carved from red jadeite, giving the flower a luminous bloodlike appearance.

Since the material of the pendant was rare and the craftsmanship even more so, the accessory would find its way back to the owner sooner rather than later, so she wasn’t too worried.

After visiting a few of their regular haunts, lunchtime came around and they found themselves at a tavern near the river.

The tavern which also functioned as an inn was popular but only to the rowdier and rougher crowds and there were no aristocrats or gentry to be seen there.

It was a good thing they tended to stick to higher class places. Even commoners did not care much for this place which gave Kamaria all the freedom she wanted. Even if powerful people had informants in such a place, none of them could be sure what she looked like.

“It’s been a while since the Doctors visited,” commented the owner with a bow after seeing them.

A few people quietened down when they saw the owner bow. The man hardly ever showed such respect to anyone. Was this the physician they had heard about on a few occasions? Unexpectedly, she looked very young for someone with such a reputation.

“It’s certainly been a while, I can’t wait to try the menu today,” said Kamaria.

Although they couldn’t see her entire face but the kohl-lined eyes indicated the smile in her words.

“Let’s get the Doctor a proper table then,” insisted the owner as he called over one of the waiters and led the young women upstairs.

The three were not affiliated with any syndicate but had no trouble with them either. They were often seen in the company of one of the most brilliant but eccentric physicians known to those who frequented darker alleys.

“Why are pampered-looking little girls hanging around here? They think this is a little teahouse?” asked a young man sitting at one of the tables with his feet on the chair next to him.

“Ask someone who thought those weapons they carry are just for play,” commented another as he took a sip of his drink.

“I can almost feel that whip all over again and it’s been more than a year,” said someone else as he rubbed a spot on his shoulder.

The one who had been having a drink started laughing at the comment. The young man that spoken first now looked at the girls as they climbed the stairs. He rubbed his eye patch while thinking.

They were confusing to decipher, naturally walking with such grace but dressed rather roguishly, handy with weapons and had a reputation in their circles. It hardly made sense. The capital really had all kinds of interesting people.

Since they were familiar with the place, the girls chose a table on the covered balcony, and someone quickly rushed in with a pot of water for them while the other waiter stood for their order.

“Give us the whole smoked duck platter with the roasted vegetables. We’ll have bisarra, meat stuffed steamed buns, plain baked buns, one bowl of savoury millet porridge and then a pot of berry tea,” said Lili.

Kamaria undid the flask on her belt and jiggled it to hear the contents.

“Also, add a jar of your best fruit cider.”

The waiter wondered if someone would be joining them considering their large order, but he proceeded to taking down the order and disappearing down the staircase at the corner of the room.

The flask was near empty from Kamaria taking sips the entire day, so she drank down the rest of the contents.

It wasn’t unusual for her to drink so much but this time the small buzz helped with numbing the physical discomfort. Lili worriedly glanced at her but could only pour out some water for her in the end.

“I guess our Lady should enjoy this while she can, in case we’re making bridal preparations in the next few months.”

Kamaria smiled at Raisa’s comment before looking out at the river.

“Maybe, we’ll see how it goes,” she replied.

Although she was smiling, the vague tone made Lili worried. She couldn’t understand why Urien was being so leisurely about things, but she was hesitant to comment.

She could tell that the uncertainty was getting to the usually calm Kamaria and saying anything might make things worse.

Urien was a popular gentleman with a noble family that was respected but not too powerful politically. Both had not been arranged with other people yet and the families were on good terms cutting a lot of the politics that came with noble matches.

This meant they would be free to make their relationship official without having to worry about offending anyone.

From the perspective of society he fulfilled the list of a perfect husband. He was gentle and well-mannered, a childhood acquaintance, and a young nobleman from a decent titled family with government ties.

Even with him marking off all the right things on the list, something made Lili worried about Kamaria when she was with him. She wasn’t quite the same.