“So, what kind of room do you want?” Lanie asked. She slid behind a heavy wood desk and pulled out a large ledger. An enormous picture window opened up behind her, giving a beautiful view of the gardens.

“First floor, please,” Mont requested. He smiled and laid a heavy pouch on the counter. “I don’t do well with heights.”

She nodded, gracefully accepting the pouch. “And you?”

Behind her, a pair of foxes tackled a black-robed mage to the ground and eviscerated him. Blood sprayed. Entrails spread across the garden. Another fox joined the fray, and the man vanished under red fur.

Wisp licked her lips. She took a small step forward.

Ike nudged her. He nodded at Lanie. “One room for both of us.” I don’t trust Wisp to not make a break for it and go eat some mages if she gets the chance.

“Excellent. Two hundred gold,” Lanie said.

Ike raised his brows. He called out two hundred gold from the storage ring and handed it over. Lanie smiled and passed him a pair of keys. “Second floor, center room.”

“Thank you.” Ike smiled and accepted the keys. He gave one to Wisp.

“Dinner is served at six. We like to have it on the porch, weather permitting. Breakfast is at dawn.” She nodded and waved.

Ike nodded back and turned, heading toward the grand staircase. About halfway up, he glanced at Wisp. “We don’t need to eat or sleep, right?”

“Nope.”

“So why does this place exist?”

“Because eating and sleeping are fun,” Wisp said.

“Fair enough,” Ike reasoned.

On the second floor, he came to a large wood door. The key fit into the slot, and the door opened smoothly. He stepped into a sumptuous room. Thick rugs covered a wood floor. Two large beds stood against the wall. Huge windows looked out over the mountain, providing a panorama of the surrounding area. Hills rolled down to a valley. A few farmhouses spotted the hills, and a small town hugged the river, down in the valley.

“Beautiful,” Ike murmured, resting a hand against the windowsill.

“I want something tasty!” Wisp demanded. She plopped onto a bed. “I thought I was going to eat so much, and instead, I’m starving, eating tiny little cookies.”

“They reformed,” Ike said.

“Bullshit.”

“That might be, but we haven’t seen any evidence of it. We can’t just kill them.”

“We caaaaan, though,” Wisp argued, rolling around on the bed.

Ike snorted under his breath. “What if we help Mont with his mana veins problem instead? I’m sure there’ll be monsters blocking it, or some kind of trouble for you to eat.”

Stolen novel; please report.

“I know. Yeah, we can do that,” she said despondently.

“You really wanted to eat those foxes, didn’t you?”

“I did. I do.”

Ike reached out and patted her head. “I’m sure we’ll find something else tasty.”

“Hmph.”

Leaving Wisp to sulk, Ike explored the rest of the room. A door near the entryway led into a large bathroom, complete with a claw-footed tub. Two taps glittered with enchanted stones. Ike turned the one with the red stone experimentally, and steaming water flowed out. He ran a hand under it. Hot!

He looked at the tub, then ran a hand through his hair. Suddenly, he saw all the grease and mud and blood congealed on his body. He looked at the tub again, then poked his head out of the door. “I’m going to take a bath.”

From the bed, Wisp waved him on.

He returned to his tub. Turning on both taps, he adjusted the water until it was just right. He set his clothes to the side and climbed in, relaxing into the hot water. Ah… so nice.

He leaned against the tub and zoned out, letting the water wash away all his aches and discomforts.

A knock at the door broke him out of a nap. Ike flailed at the water, almost falling under. He latched onto the edge of the tub and looked around, as beleaguered as a waterlogged puppy. “W-what?”

“The foxes brought clothes for us,” Wisp said, her voice muffled on the far side of the door. “Also, it’s dinnertime. Let’s go.”

“Right. Yeah.” Ike ducked his head under the water to wake himself up and ran his hair back. Giving his bandana a quick rinse in the water, he tied his hair back and climbed out. Peeking the door open, he found a pile of loose robes on the far side. Snitching them inside, he quickly dressed, then joined Wisp by the door.

She led the way out, walking at top speed. Like him, she wore the foxes’ robes. They were a cream fabric with tasteful accents of red and blue. The sleeves were wider than most mages’ robes, and the hems somewhat shorter, falling to the knee rather than the ankle. Loose trousers accompanied the robes, unlike the tight leggings that usually accompanied mage robes. Blue-and-red striped belts finished the look.

Even though the fashion was significantly different than the mages’ robes Ike had seen up until now, they were the most mage-like gear he’d worn. He straightened his back and walked tall. With fabric swishing around his legs and the gentle rustle of fine fabric, he felt more like a mage than he had at any moment before.

Wisp snickered. She shook his head at him. “One bath, and he thinks he’s a big deal.”

“Hmph. That’s right, small one. Hey, if you washed yourself, maybe you’d be a big deal, too,” Ike said, looking down at the very scruffy Wisp.

“I’m not falling for your tricks. Baths make you weak! They make your skin soft and they strip away all your protective dirt! You’ll take my filth over my dead body!” Wisp proclaimed.

Ike snorted. “Are you afraid of baths?”

“Only the healthy fear that should be shown to something that makes you weaker,” Wisp replied.

“Uh huh.”

Ike turned the corner and came upon an enormous dining hall. A polished oaken table took up the majority of the space, running from one end of the hall to the other. Matched chairs sat beneath the table. As with most rooms in the inn, large windows gazed down at the beauty around them and let in the natural light.

At the far end of the table, sitting at its head, Mont waited. He already had a full plate of food, and the scent made Ike’s mouth water at a dozen paces. He raised a hand as they arrived, and Ike waved back.

“Good afternoon. Or is it evening?” Mont asked, tipping his head.

“Probably evening,” Ike said.

“Probably,” Mont agreed. He gestured them over. “Come, sit, sit. The food here is top notch. Almost makes me not regret leaving seclusion.”

Ike took a seat. Wisp sat beside him. Bare seconds after they sat, the foxes appeared, bringing out plates, forks, knives, drinks, and the first course, a clarified soup with a few shallots sprinkled on top. A delicious smell wafted over his nose, savory and herbal at the same time. A faint pressure exuded from the soup. I bet it’s medicinal, or something that’ll help empower me, anyways. Awesome!

Ike picked up his spoon.

The windows shattered. A half-dozen black-robed mages darted in.

It’s okay. Mont will take care of them. Ike reached out for the soup.

A black-robed foot stomped the table, smashing his bowl to nothing. A blade pointed at his head. Ike looked up, slowly, his eyes blank.

“Move again, and I’ll kill you and all your friends before you can blink,” the mage promised, his eyes narrowed behind the cloth mask he wore.

“Wanna bet?” Ike asked. Lightning flickered around his body, and then he vanished.