The velvet laced room was shimmering with noise and activity. The innkeeper set up a line of beverages and drinks on the counter. A disembodied skull was sitting on one of chairs, eying each one with great excitement. The couch contained a young woman, mug in hand, talking to a humanoid lizard about her life experiences.

This was the sight laid before me, sitting in a nearby of stool. The skull took note of my unsatisfied grimaced expression.

“Come on, Eren, can't you take it easy for once and join the fun?”

I frowned and looked like him.

“Sorry, Calvar, but this is not my idea of fun. If we're talking about enjoyable activities, then I much prefer exploring dungeons and defeating monsters.”

The skull sighed.

“Yeah, I bet that's fun too, but you need a change of pace. It's good to take time off and relax with some friends. If you keep doing the same thing over and over again, you'll just break down eventually.”

“Maybe normal people would, but I'm different.”

The skull frowned. Then its expression changed, its eyes bearing a shadow of sadness. It pleaded at me with its melancholic eyes.

“Please, Eren, do it for me. You might feel okay, but that doesn't go for the rest of us. I just want one last chance to do something like this. Surely you can suffer through that, right? We are bros, we made a promise to each other.”

I didn't have the heart to deny his request. I knew his time in this world was limited, and he wasn't asking for much. I resigned myself to this fate and jumped onto my feet. I bumped my fist into my hand for determination.

“Alright. Lay it on me, I'm ready.”

Both the innkeeper and the skull joyfully laughed at the sight. The man passed me a mug filled with a frothy drink.

“I don't know if drinks affect adventurers the same way as normal people, but you should try a sip. You're tabbing the bill, after all!”

I gave it a try, and as expected, it tasted disgusting. I always hated these sort of drinks. The skull, however, looked quite jealous. Most likely because he can't consume food or drink even if he wanted to.

“Oh, how I miss being alive. I'm pretty grateful for being undead, but in comparison, it's a bare-bones experience.”

The bearded man laughed loudly.

“Wow, that's hilarious! Did you make that up on your own? I didn't know skeletons told jokes!”

Calvar's eyes shone. This was it, he found his true life's calling. This is the audience he was looking for the entire time. His mouth began to shake, not being able to hold back the mountain of possible responses he could muster.

“Eren. Take this drink over to the ladies. This is something I need to do alone. This is... my destiny.”

The skull now singularly focused on his goal, I nonchalantly rubbed my head and left them to their whims. I brought the mug over to the pair of ladies sitting on the coach.

“So when you were younger, there were many humans around?” asked the lizard.

“Yeah, but they all left a long time ago. Now the only ones remaining are Toberno and I. If you wanted to observe human society, then this place is not the best choice. The only populated city these days is the capital.”

“Have you been to the capital, Ms Ferra? How was it like?”

Ferra smiled in embarrassment.

“Nah, I never left this town. Couldn't leave this place even if I wanted to. Too many things that need to get done. I was told it's a beautiful place, though.”

The lizard noticed my presence and waved at me.

“Welcome, my knight! I was just conversing with this nice lady going by the name of Ferra. She had so many interesting stories to tell!”

The woman deflected the compliment.

“Please, it's nothing special. You only think think it's interesting because human experience is so fresh. I'm just some poor woman who does what little she can.”

Ferra was notably more self-depreciating than normal. I remembered her as somebody confident and easy-going. But perhaps that was something I assumed because of her initial attitude. I never got a chance to talk to in any depth, or as someone other than a common customer.

“But Eren, I am impressed. It's not too long ago that you walked into my store with little more than hope and the skin on your back. But now you have friends like these, and you even made this whole party possible. If feels like there's nothing you can't do. I'm quite jealous.”

“Jealous?” I asked.

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The woman turned away and nervously laughed.

“Did I say that out loud? Never mind it. I see you brought another drink over. Hey, Lacerta, want to give it a try?”

The lizard eyed it with curiosity.

“Is it... apple juice? Going by the smell it seems to have gone bad. Is it truly safe to drink?”

The woman joyfully reassured her.

“Of course! Even Eren here will vouch for me.”

I shrugged. The lizard seemed to take it as an agreement and took a sip. She then stuck her tongue out and scowled.

“It's... sour. And bitter. It's not exactly tasty, but it does have some sort of appeal. I see, it's quite interesting!”

The curious kobold was engrossed with the drink and began sampling it in various ways.

“Ha. She's so new to everything, she's like a child. I can see why you adopted her.”

The kobold interjected.

“Excuse me, I am not his child, but his future wife. One day we will get married and have many beautiful children together.”

The woman put on a deadpan look.

“...what?” she said.

Oh no. This meant it was most likely new information to her. I hoped Calvar already cleared up this matter.

“Yes. My knight in shining armor arrived at my greatest time of need and saved me. I owe my life to him, and thus also my heart. Though we are destined to be together, I know it's not yet time to settle down. For now we are companions, my body sworn to protect him and his desires. We already shared many tender moments together, and soon I know he will love me just as I love him.”

The woman closed one eye and gave me deviled look.

“It's not what it sounds like. I didn't touch her.”

The lizard brought her hands to her cheeks.

“But my knight, what that time in that mansion? I can't deny that my heart skipped a beat when you embraced me against your chest. It's as if I fell in love with you all over again!”

Ferra stared at me again.

“I-I swear, it's not what-”

She suddenly sighed.

“Whatever. What you two do in private is no matter of mine. There are more important things to worry about in this world. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me.”

It was clear anything I would say now would be further dismissed. I dropped to my knees and punched the ground in frustration.

“Damn it. This is exactly what I wanted to avoid!”

The lizard walked over and placed her hand on my shoulder.

“What is wrong, my knight? Whatever it is, you can share it with me. I will use all my skill as a mage to take it down!”

Her eyes sparkled with compassion and valor.

“...never mind, Lacerta. Let's move on.”

Ferra took note of my words.

“I agree, we should move on to the next phase of the party. Better to get it done before it gets dark out. Hey, Toberno! Get the second phase ready!”

The glass-eyed man heard her words and headed to the back of the inn. As before, I was clueless as to what they were talking about.

“There's multiple parts? What's the second one?” I asked.

“You don't know? You should ask your skeleton friend. After all, he helped come up with the whole thing.”

I left the two ladies on their own, who seemed to be examining another drink. I walked over to Calvar who was sitting on the counter. He really did seem to have an intricate part in this whole arrangement.

“Lay it on me, Calvar. What's going on.”

He smiled.

“Oh, you're going to love this one! It's a real rare experience around these parts, and especially for one in the peak of their youth. Just peek behind those curtains on the far wall to see for yourself.”

I did as he told, but could not see much. The window behind the curtain was fogged up. Going by the temperature, it seemed to be caused by steam. There was pool of water outside with steam bellowing out of it It was a sight I've seen in video games before, but never in real life or Spirit of Darkness. It seemed completely out of place in this setting. Still, I had to confirm my suspicions.

“Is that... a hot spring?”

He nodded.

“Yes! Isn't it amazing? This inn used to be a pretty popular tourist destination in the past, and this was the primary attraction. We'll be the first one to use this baby in years!”

I was left speechless. This was pretty much the last thing I was expecting.