A few minutes earlier:

Chuma just the door behind him, reeling from the utter disgrace that was that social interaction.

“ ‘don’t need underwear’, why by all God's graces did I think to say that?!?” Chuma chastised himself.

To make matters worse he was pretty sure he left his glaive inside.

“Rather fitting that I look like a dumbass after acting like one” Chuma derisively thought as he chuckled to himself.

“Right, no more mopping. You’ve got a chance to fix your life and all you have to do is help out a statue and her egg!” Chuma hyped himself up.

Earlier, while he was talking to Viola about the god that made her and her sister, a box appeared directly in front of him with a well-known starting phrase.

_________________________________________________________________________

Grasp Your Fate!

Quest:

Help Viola Free her sister from her ‘Egg’.These strangers Have an interesting journey ahead of them and you may join them if you help them and gain their trust. Together your dreams will finally be open to you, a mistake from youth remedied and a path to your future opened!

Goal:

Assist Viola the |Race Name missing| in freeing her sister by feeding her inorganic items.

Generally, be helpful and assist the two in getting their bearings

Failure:

Evict them from your home before they have a replacement set up or in some way chase them out.

Rewards:

Your fate will be open to you.

The hidden curse “Pointless struggle” will be purged from your soul.

_________________________________________________________________________

At that moment he zoned out. It was a Fate Quest! Like the ones from the stories!

Thanks to one of the quest’s rewards, the cause of all, if not most, of his problems was due to a curse called “Pointless struggle”. While not explicitly said, just by the name it is quite easy to guess what it does. As for its source…

It seems that by completing the first part of his Fate, his life would no longer be haunted by that stupid deal he made with that damned tokoloshe.

“I should have known,” Chuma thought.

Then there was that other reward.

“Your fate will be open to you.”

There was something odd with the way that was worded. Of course, he had listened to the storytellers and how most “Grasp your fate” quests lead to grand adventures ranging from the comical, tragic, and heroic, but they never included such a vague reward. Not to mention the fact it implies that his own fate wasn’t open to him.

“What's the point? You probably already lost. Again.” the pessimistic side of him whispered.

He’d heard that voice many times in his life. And last night...Last night he dulled with Kasese before he made a mistake.

Chuma shook his head “No more of that. Positive, Just be positive” Chuma thought to himself while walking to the market.

Chuma’s perspective:

Ah, the market; hundreds of stalls with vendors shouting out their goods and prices, children running around porting things from A to B, while mothers and wives carrying their purchases with large head baskets. Lastly, the common display of market construction workers and slaves taking full advantage of the merchant guild’s ‘Economic Facilitation Break’. To this day I find it funny that this is somehow both the laziest and most busy place in the city was created by the market interrupting the construction of the market.

*Short laugh* “Ah Mafanikio. May the gods never change you” Chuma commented under his breath.

“Ay, brother. don’t whisper, SHOUT! Ah haha!” A nearby binadamu construction worker encouraged me.

“Oh, my aching back. Oh merciful gods hear the pleas of this youth!” another binadamu worker added while overexaggerating a great pain that conveniently appeared on his back.

I smile back “If I were to do that you all might become the fattest workers in the city” I jokingly warned.

“Then scream it at the top of your lungs, ah hahaha!” Both men happily Joked as I walked away.

They act happy, but everyone knows how dangerous construction work usually is, but due to the merchant guilds and the Opambwa wanting the market to operate despite the work the Marketplace became the safest construction site in the city. You can’t sell when hammers are falling from the sky after all.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

I continued my search for women's clothing, approaching the fabrics area of the market and browsing their wares.

“I have no idea what I’m looking for,” I thought to myself.

It seemed my ignorance was painted on my face because, after a short while of looking around, I was assaulted by the offers of opportunistic merchants and seamstresses,

“I see you looking for the perfect garb for the fairer sex. Come! I have wondrous silks from lands afar!” A strange bald brown old man called

“Don’t let that old stone lie to you. Here, over here you can get the best nature has to offer, and the best is all ‘she’ deserves!” A lady with red dreadlocks offered while tailing behind me.

Chuma: “No I really don’t need to get anything that grand-”

“Grand? My child you must ALWAYS be grand with those you love” a portly woman wearing gaudy jewelled robes and several gold beaded necklaces “The more expensive the better.”

Gods above the amount of perfume on her body was overwhelming, as I looked around I could see the other money-hungry vultures were equally as repulsed, but they still approached. I was impressed by their greed, annoyed but impressed.

Chuma: “I really don’t have time or money to spend-”

Yet another damned salesman jumped at me with yet another proposal

“Function over form, yes? Well I have-”

Then another,

“Don’t listen to them, Your path to nobility should start with your wife-”

Chuma: “I don’t-”

Then another,

“A clan Head’s wife should have an Artistic statement attached, come with me-”

And, accursed, ‘nother,

“We can do much better-”, “With our style-”, “The female Dumuu form shines with-”.

Just more and more and more and more damned merchants hounding me as if I were a limping antelope. And what was all this “nobility” and “wife” nonsense they kept spewing?

“I need a way out” I thought to myself, but all eyes were on me as the greed of these merchants had also attracted the curiosity of nearby shoppers. I need someone unaware, preferably someone I know, to get out of this.

Chuma, mentally:” But the people I know are at the workshop or drunkenly sleeping at the pub.”

It was then I saw a familiar face, or rather fur, towering in the distance.

Winda’s perspective:

I swear the Prices for this new-fangled ‘Breast holder’ thing is ridiculous! 500 pesa just for one and that’s just the “small” size.

“there’s barely any space” I commented quietly while staring at these…’Bh’s.

Saleswoman, in a deadpan: “Madam, those are our training set, if you would like to see-”

“Training? You have to train for these?!?” I asked as a spark of understanding grew in my head.

The saleswoman, in a deadpan: “No Madam, these are for children so they can get used to-”

I cut her off with an explanation of my own “Wearing them as the sansation is noticeably different from both basic breast rappings and the complete absence of support. The unfamiliarity of such a grab would cause discomfort in itself. You're training the body to get familiar when using these!”

“Wow, I’m really impressed by your deductive skills, here you should have these as a prize!”

Shocked at the impromptu gift, I looked up at her smiling face ”Really?” I ask, utterly surprised at winning basically 500 pesa

Her smile instantly dropped to one of pure boredom “No.”

And just like that, 500 pesa, gone. I drop my head in shame, letting out a little involuntary whine as I do.

Saleswoman, in a deadpan: “Madam, if you're not going to buy anything I’m going to have to ask.”She briefly paused, a look of confusion coming over her face” What’s going over there?”

“Over where?” I look up and follow her eyes; Is that a man drowning in merchants?

Wait a minute is that?

???: “Ah my friend there you are!”

Oh gods he's looking at me!

???: “You’ve got to set up a better meeting place for our important dealings”

Oh shit, he's talking to ME!

People are mumbling about dealings, what the fuck is he talking about ‘Dealings’?!

People, the merchants mainly, are parting and making way for him “I must say leaving me to the merchants there wasn’t very kind, but I know you love a good joke.”

JOKE?!? HIS BLAMING ME?!? SUN KISSED PLANES HELP ME, WHAT IN ALL THE GODS GRACE’S IS HE TALKING ABOUT!?!

Oh no, the stress, it’s building up inside me.

I quickly grab my mouth, trying to hold it shut. AND HIS FUCKING SMILING! HIS FACE IS SCREAMING “Just as planned” But he could know… unless…It’s the Dumuu head.

I let go of my mouth out of surprise, only snapping out of shock in time to think “Fuck.”

I let out an uproarious laugh, my head pointing to the sky to lessen the sound, but I only got louder as the embarrassment of this situation added to my stress. Soon the sky is filled with the barking laugh of a hyena,

A Dire hyena,

MY Dire hyena.

Why me?

I feel an arm wrap around my back as I’m being led away.

Chuma:” Oh you sure do love your jokes”

Chuma, whispering:” I’m sorry but I really need your help”

I keep laughing, my eyes starting to water, I need to get out of here, I’m NOT crying in public.

So I simply grabbed him, put him over my shoulder, and ran.

Chuma:” Wait, not this Help!”

While carrying him and laughing my ass off I lock eyes with this ‘Ass’s ass’ and glare

Chuma:”...Yeah, I’ll shut up now”