Jade exited the cluttered shop behind Luis and Naomi, the three of them emerging back into the sunlit thoroughfare. 'Thoroughfare' wasn't the best way to describe the chaotic network of bridges connecting the various shops of the treetop market district, but Jade couldn't think of a word that encapsulated the bustling crowds better. She'd had no idea that the village had so many residents. From the outside, Lysara looked too small to be home to the hundreds of elves pushing past her on the narrow walkways, but the vertical nature of the town made it deceptively large. Each tree functioned as a natural high-rise, with several buildings worked into and around the trunk and branches at various levels.
"Is it just me, or is magic really expensive?" Naomi asked, tucking away her newly purchased spellbook.
"Did you expect it to be cheap?" Luis asked. He was also holding a spellbook, which looked quite a bit smaller in his hands than Naomi's did in hers.
"Not the impressive stuff, no." Naomi shook her head. "But my book only has a basic cleaning and short-range messaging spell. It's only 'D' rank, isn't that as low as it gets?"
"You don't think the ability to clean a pile of clothes with a few words and a wave of your hand is impressive?" Jade asked, bemused. "It's probably the most useful spell we have in our party."
"I guess you have a point." Naomi conceded. "But it's not very flashy."
"It'll save us a lot of time." Luis pointed out. "Definitely worth the cost."
"Says the guy who was fine with not washing any of his clothes at all." Naomi rolled her eyes.
"It's a simple effort to reward ratio. When washing our clothes means spending hours scrubbing them in a river, and only getting them kind of clean in the end, why waste the time? Especially since we'll just get them dirty again right away."
"How about, because we'd smell better?" Jade suggested.
"Also, I don't recall you being the one washing our clothes." Naomi reminded him.
Luis waved his hand, flashing one of his trademark grins.
"That's because I'm the team cook. Now that I have some proper supplies, we won't have to live off bland sanctuary food anymore."
Jade had to admit that sounded appealing. She glanced down at her own newly acquired spellbook. It was a small black tome will golden patterns threaded through the cover. The proprietor of the shop they'd just left, a rather bookish looking elven woman, had taken the time to help them 'link' to their spell books, and now they were ready for use.
Jade had seen Aylin and Siora use similar items to expand their magical repertoire, and planned to acquire more when she had the means. The 'soul-link' required to use them turned out to be a simple process, requiring only that they place their hand on the tome in question and a few minutes of concentration. Other than having to touch the spellbook when channeling magic through them, casting the spells they contained was functionally identical to using the soul-imprinted ones granted by the Labyrinth system.
Most 'D' rank spellbooks were limited to one or two simple spells. Unlike Luis and Naomi, who had picked up basic utility enchantments that had few field applications, Jade had selected a tome that had some adventuring potential. It contained the spells 'Phantom Sound', which allowed her to create a noise of her choice in a nearby area, and 'Static Image', a versatile illusion power. The illusion couldn't move, had strict size limitations, and wasn't especially long range, but she was confident that the abilities would prove useful.
Despite her propensity for engaging in close combat, Jade stood by her decision to select the 'Shadow Witch' class over the more martial 'Blade Dancer' class the Labyrinth had presented to her at the start of her journey. Fighting skill was important but having more than one way to approach a challenge felt like a safer bet. Selecting this spellbook over more combat-oriented ones that contained basic attack spells was an extension of this philosophy.
Now I just need to stop charging into groups of enemies at the first opportunity…
Many of her powers were deceptive or coercive in nature, and it was time to start learning how to use them more effectively.
As they explored the rest of the market together, Jade grew increasingly aware of the crowds around her. She'd never been a huge fan of large groups of people to begin with, but this was one of her first experiences in something akin to an urban environment since her transformation. The longer she spent near so many people, the more she sensed the sheer amount of emotional energy infusing the area. The majority of it was mundane, nothing that would normally catch the attention of her succubus hunger, which favored darker emotional energy like fear and anger. In this instance, however, there was just so much of it that it was growing hard to ignore.
"Hey… You alright?"
It took Jade a moment to realize that Naomi's question was directed to her. Her friend was looking at her in concern and… amusement?
"I'm fine. There's a just a lot of emotion floating around."
"You sure? You're kind of…" She glanced down, and Jade suddenly realized that she'd been subconsciously shifting her hips together. Her face felt hot, and she was slightly out of breath. Embarassed, Jade shook her head to snap out of it, feeling her cheeks heat even further.
"Maybe you should take some time off to… ah… relax." Naomi suggested, turning a little red herself.
"Isn't that what we're doing?" Jade asked, desperately trying to think of a way to steer the conversation somewhere else. Literally anywhere else. They stopped on a broad bridge between two enormous trees, stepping to the side to allow a larger group to pass. She took a drink from her water bottle, more to buy time than anything else.
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"Not like this." Naomi rolled her eyes. She lowered her voice, leaning closer. "Maybe getting some action would help." She said, exasperated.
Jade spit water over the side of the bridge, coughing and lowering her bottle. She stared at Naomi incredulously, noting a few passersby curiously glancing their way.
"W-where is this coming from?" She hissed, flustered. Did they really have to be having this talk out in public? The general clamor was loud enough that she was pretty sure no one could overhear them, but still…
Beside Naomi, Luis had suddenly taken a great interest in the decorative carvings set in the bridge's wooden handrail and was studiously avoiding looking at either of them.
"Jade, I've been sleeping next to you most nights for the past couple weeks. I can tell when you're getting 'bothered'."
Jade slumped against the railing, hiding her face in her hands.
"Can we talk about this later? Or, preferably, never again?"
"Fine, fine." Naomi said, hiding a smile. "Just trying to help. Nothing wrong with blowing off some steam, though. You're the one who said you had 'needs' yesterday."
Jade was saved from having to reply by Luis, who elbowed her and pointed.
"Hey, isn't that Nythis?"
Sure enough, the elven druid was shouldering her way across the bridge against the flow of people. She saw Luis wave at her and changed course.
"Hey you three!" she said cheerfully, bounding over to them. "Doing some shopping?"
"Just finished up." Jade said, glad for the distraction. "You?"
"Restocking on potions. I'm glad Siora is back! Nobody makes them like her."
"That's right!" Luis said, snapping his fingers. "We still need to stop by her shop."
"I can show you the way!" Nythis said, grabbing Jade by the arm and leading them back the way she had come.
"Do you know where I can find Master Rhysten?" Jade asked. It occurred to her that, despite multiple people suggesting she seek him out, she didn't actually know where he lived. "I'd like to speak with him later."
"Oh? Looking for training? Sure, I'll show you!" The fur-clad elf bobbed her head. "You haven't forgotten about your promise to spar together, right?"
"Not at all. I need all the practice I can get."
"That's the spirit!
----------------------------------------
A short while later, Nythis was leading Jade to the upper levels of the forest village. After stopping by Siora's alchemy shop, which turned out to be surprisingly organized, Luis and Naomi left to find Fenrin while Jade and Nythis sought out the retired wayfarer. The two of them made their way to a broad wooden platform where a gondola waited, hanging from a cable that extended to the top of the cliff that bordered the village. Jade followed the elf aboard, marveling at the view as the car lurched into motion, carrying them up the cliff.
"We have vehicles like this in our world, but I've never ridden one." Jade said, leaning against the railing and looking out at the waterfall cascading down the rock face.
"It's a lot faster than walking up and down the cliff trails." Nythis said, pointing to a winding path that rose alongside the waterfall is a series of switchbacks. "More fun, too."
"So, what's at the top?" Jade asked, looking up. She could see a handful of buildings nestled amongst the trees at the top of the overlook but couldn't make out details.
"The council chambers, the theater, and a few more homes. Most people live closer to the village center, it's more convenient."
Now that they were out of the market, Jade had a better handle on her emotional senses. She hoped that she could learn to filter out the massed emotional energy of crowds without awakening instinctive responses. Being aroused by protracted exposure to tempting emotional energy was more embarassing than actively harmful, but it was still unwelcome.
Jade caught Nythis glancing at her and met her gaze.
"What is it?"
"Oh, nothing." She said, a coy smile playing at her lips. "Just curious if you're really looking to, what was it? 'Blow off some steam'?."
Jade felt her face heating up again. "You heard that?"
"Most of it." The elf winked, gesturing to her pointed ears. "We elves have sharp hearing, and it only gets better as we get closer to 'C' rank."
"Wonderful…" She groaned.
"No need to feel embarassed." she said, sliding next to Jade at the railing and elbowing her playfully. "But I liked your moves yesterday. If you'd like to come over for dinner later tonight, my partner and I would be happy to have you."
Startled, it took Jade a few moments to reply. She could taste the elf's casual interest for what it was: A simple invitation. She sensed curiosity and playfulness from Nythis, but no anxiety. Apparently, this sort of proposition wasn't a big deal to her.
"Your partner?" Jade asked.
"Travay, he's my current-house-companion."
Jade got the sense that the Labyrinth's translation magic hitched at that last part, although she wasn't sure why. Even so, she got the gist of it.
"Wait, he'd be okay with that?" She asked.
"Of course. Why wouldn't he be?"
She appeared genuinely confused, and Jade had to remind herself that she shouldn't assume social norms from her world applied everywhere. For all she knew, Earth was some sexually repressed backwater compared to the rest of the universe.
Wouldn't that be funny.
Jade was about to politely turn Nythis down out of habit, she'd always been too busy to engage in much casual intimacy, but then she stopped to consider the idea. Was there any real harm in experimenting? She still had a lot to learn about how her body worked and what exactly her new needs were. Could this be a good opportunity to explore ways to keep her recurring urges better satiated?
Nythis was cute and high energy, which were appealing traits in anyone. For that matter, pretty much every elf she'd seen would be considered beautiful by any Earth standard, and she imagined her male companion wouldn't be any different. The chance to study the elven male figure a little more closely wouldn't be the worst thing in the world… For academic reasons, of course.
"You do remember that I'm a succubus, right?" She asked, uncharacteristically hesitant. "I drain life force by touch."
"What's life without a little risk?" Nythis grinned back, waving away her concern. "We know some healing spells."
"Alright." Jade laughed. "If you're sure, I'd be happy to visit tonight."
The gondola came to a stop at the top of the cliff, and an elven attendant opened the door and ushered them onto a wooden platform. A short distance away, a broad stream poured over the precipice, cascading down to the pool at the bottom of the rise. The view was even better from up here, the entire village visible through the trees.
"Great!" Nythis beamed at her. "I'll come find you later, then. Master Rhysten's home is just up the stream. It's the only building on the forest floor, you can't miss it."
She pointed along a path that followed the course of the stream, and Jade nodded.
"Thanks."
"See you later!"
She hopped back onto the gondola with a wave. Jade waved back, feeling a mixture of earnest anticipation and trepidation. Had she really just agreed to that on a whim? She reminded herself that it was just a dinner invitation. If it didn't feel right, she could always excuse herself.
Besides, learning more about her nature was important, and she'd have to explore this side of it sooner or later. That's right, this was all about gathering data. It could even be considered a valuable cultural exchange.
Who am I kidding…?
As she set off down the path, Jade was relieved that she'd just updated her wardrobe with fresh clothes. The thought of showing up to Nythis's home wearing what remained of her Earth attire made her shudder.
But that would come later, and Jade refocused on the task at hand. It was time to meet this retired wayfarer she'd heard so much about.