Back at the inn, Sigurd entered the building and firmly closed the door behind him. He held onto the handle longer than a few seconds—out of an over-abundance of caution, with a pinch of paranoia over being followed, and an added soldier's sense for flavor.

“What are you doing, Sigurd?" a voice asked behind him.

Startled, Sigurd let out his held breath and turned to face her, “Nothing, just being careful, Mia. What are you two doing?”

His question was directed at both Mia and Nia who were sitting flagrantly on the reception desk. Behind it was Moe, taking notes.

“We were chatting with Moe," Nia replied in her usual deadpan tone.

Sigurd raised a brow. “Chatting? About what?" he inquired, stepping closer.

“Oh, you know. This and that," Mia blurted out quickly, her expression belying her intent.

“Your girls are quite smart, master Sigurd," Moe added. “In fact, I don't think I've ever met such dizzying lasses before.”

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Without taking his thinned eyes off Mia, Sigurd replied, “That they are, my special little girls.”

“Anyway, how'd it go with the Guild?" Mia asked in an attempt at deflection.

The question snapped Sigurd out of his hyper-alert state. His shoulder drooped as he sighed, “I'll tell you about it in our room.”

He motioned to the girls to follow him and also towards Moe to get dinner ready for them.

Once in their room, Sigurd proceeded to recall the events of the rest of that day.

“So tomorrow, bright and early, I plan to set out to start completing quests," he stated after all was said. “I'll hate leaving you alone for so long. And I don't know if Moe can be trusted.”

“Nyaa?!" Mia yelled out in shock. “On the contrary, he's a docile good guy.”

“We were bored of waiting so we drummed up a conversation," Nia added, chomping on a sandwich.

“If you gals say so, I'll leave it be," Sigurd said, caressing them both. “Still, it'll probably be several days of it. Maybe after I clean up town you'll be able to walk the streets freely.”

“About that," Mia stood and walked to the window, hand supporting her chin, pondering about her next words. Her silence lasted but a second as she turned and asked, shamelessly, “Can we have a thousand gold coins?”

Sigurd did a double take yet maintained his composure. “That's a lot of money," they both stared at each other. “What do you need so much for?”

“We want to help Moe out!" Nia broke their impromptu staring contest.

“What she said," Mia followed up, running at and hopping onto the bed. “You saw how crappy this place looks. We were talking with him about all the ways he can improve his business model to maximize his profits.”

‘Ah, that explains their shiftiness earlier.’

“There will be an assured return on your investment," Nia said nonchalantly. “You have our word as your cute daughters!”

“I wonder if you would have turned out this manipulative had I raised you from birth," Sigurd rubbed his eyes, concerned. “Alright, you've proven yourselves before and I trust you. Just don't go too overboard!”

The girls yelled out in excitement, sharing a mischievous stare among them. Meanwhile, Sigurd sat and stared blissfully, willing to ignore his better judgment, and hoping everything would turn out alright.

Thus ended their evening, on a high note, with Sigurd mentally prepared for the days ahead.