“We have arrived,” Lusya said as buildings and people alike grew increasingly dense around them. “Now, what was so important?”

This was another decent-sized town, smaller than Deepwood, but still substantially bigger than most of the Elzen Valley’s villages.

“You’ll see,” Azure replied. “Just wait a little bit longer. Oh, there’s the inn!” Pointing at the two-story wooden building, she added that proclamation before Lusya could say a word. “You two head over there and wait for me. I’ll be with you in a minute.”

With no hesitation, she rushed off to parts of the town unknown at full speed, little more than a white blur. A few townsfolk had to brace themselves against wind and clouds of dust from her passing. Lusya had her mouth open, ready to ask what all the rush had been, but it did not seem that she was going to get the chance. She shut it and made her way to the inn. She could probably have chased after Azure, considering she probably wasn’t going to leave town, but Lusya could wait to find out what was going on. It was doubtful Azure would be forthcoming anyway.

The inn’s dining room was unremarkable, with plain chairs and tables and a few cheap decorations hanging on the walls, namely a shoddy landscape painting, two fake swords, and a board with some antlers mounted on it. Lusya could not tell if they were real. Once they arrived, she walked to a table and set Ariya down in one chair before sitting in another.

Although Lusya had carried Ariya much of the way in order to keep up with Azure, Ariya still somehow seemed fatigued from the journey. She yawned and rested her head on the table—which could not have been very comfortable—eyes half-closed. Lusya herself was fine, if a bit bewildered by the situation.

“Are you well, Ariya?” Lusya asked.

Ariya nodded. “Just tired.”

“I am unsure how being carried has made you tired.”

Lusya was not one to believe only physical exertion could be exhausting. Mental fatigue could be just as draining. However, she doubted that was the cause either. While she did not know what Ariya might have been thinking of while being carried, Lusya doubted it had been anything exceptionally complex or strenuous.

Ariya shrugged. “I don’t know either. It just did.”

“Perhaps we will stop here for the day, then,” Lusya said, “so that you can recover.”

“Really?” Ariya asked before letting out another yawn. “I think I’d like that.”

Lusya nodded. Ordinarily, it would have been a bit early to stop, and Lusya had not intended to give Ariya a break. She had had plenty of time to relax and enjoy herself since Azure had arrived. If Ariya was exhausted, however, that needed to be rectified before it facilitated anything more troublesome. Of course, it depended on Azure in the end. There was no reasoning with that woman, so her choice was often the deciding one. However, Lusya had a feeling that Azure would be in agreement this time.

“Hey, you two gonna buy something?” the innkeeper shouted across the room from the counter. “Or just take up valuable space?”

Considering there was no one else in the inn, the space could not have been that valuable by simple economics. The innkeeper drummed his fingers against the counter top, glaring as he waited for a response. He was a tall, muscular man, albeit one showing his advanced age, with a with a scar running down the right side of his face that just barely missed going straight through his eye, though the source of the scar was unclear. It could have been from battle, a barroom brawl, a kitchen accident, or all manner of things. Most would have found him an intimidating presence, but he would be disappointed if he thought Lusya would be among them.

“We are waiting for our companion to make a decision,” Lusya said.

“Don’t be mean,” Ariya added.

He clicked his tongue. “This isn’t a charity. Pay for something, get out, or I’ll put you out, kid or not.”

Lusya cocked her head just a bit. “Do not threaten her or me. I assure you we will at least buy a meal when our companion arrives. Until then, I suggest you be patient and stay quiet. Do not speak again until spoken to.”

“Don’t hurt him, Lusya,” Ariya said. “He wasn’t that mean.”

Lusya glanced at her and nodded. “Very well.”

The innkeeper’s face, meanwhile, had transformed into a crimson mask of rage. “You come into my inn and start threatening me?” He pounded a fist on the counter as he screamed. “Who do you think you are?”

“You should be prepared to be threatened if you are going to threaten others,” Lusya said. “The current location has little bearing on that.”

“You bitch,” he growled. “Get out. Now.”

“Our companion instructed us to wait here for her,” Lusya said. “If you no longer desire payment, we will leave as soon as she arrives.”

“Can you not hear right out of those demon ears, reltus?” he asked, drawing himself up to his full height. “I said now, not after your friend gets here.”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Lusya looked at him and climbed atop her internal tree. This man…irritated her. The way he spoke, his needless, toothless aggression. She did not find him frightening, nor was she angry. He was just distasteful. She found something else right beside that feeling. She did not want to move because he annoyed her. Spite. She would not have normally been aware of such an impulse, let alone acted on it. Perhaps it was worth a try. There was little point of her new awareness if she did not experiment with it a little.

“And I am refusing,” she said.

The man’s mouth gaped in shock, then he took a long breath in preparation for a great shout, but the door opened before he could say anything. Azure entered with a bright smile and humming a tune to herself, carrying a small bundle. Her smile faded as she looked from his beet red face to Lusya, then back.

“I’d say you could cut the tension in here with a knife, but it’s way too thick for that,” Azure said. “Are my friends giving you trouble, sir?”

The man’s eyes widened, his red face turning pale in an instant, his straight posture with chest puffed out melted into an obsequious, almost withdrawn one. “N-no, not all, Lady Knight.”

Azure gave a knowing smile. “That’s good to hear. They can be a handful sometimes.” She set her bundle down on the table, then produced a coin and tossed it to the man. “Three of whatever’s in the pot, please.”

The man caught the coin and nodded like there was a spring in his head. “Right away, Lady Knight.”

As soon as he disappeared into the kitchen, Azure pushed the bundle she had been holding across the table, toward Lusya. Lusya looked down at it and blinked. It was a rough rectangle covered by a sloppy wrapping of brown paper. She thought she could smell food from within.

“It’s for you,” Azure said. “Go on, open it.”

“Oh, a present?” Ariya asked. “Why don’t I get a present?”

Azure made a shushing gesture and winked at her.

Lusya unwrapped the paper to reveal the contents. On top was another wrapped rectangle. The packaging on this one was much neater, even tied with a string to keep the packaging on. Below that was a book. Lusya put aside the rectangle first. It was soft, warm, and definitely smelled like food. She examined the book, titled “Dragon’s Force.” A quick flip through the pages suggested it was a novel, though it was hard to tell what kind, outside of that it seemed to involve wizards of some kind. She was not familiar with the title.

“I skimmed, and it seemed like something you would like, based on what I’ve seen you read,” Azure said. “I hope I chose right.”

“We will not know until I have read it,” Lusya said, pushing the book aside to focus on the other article. “At the very least, it does not seem like something I will detest.”

She unwrapped the remaining good. It was a cake, about the size of the book, its golden brown surface glazed with honey. It wasn’t hot, but it was warm enough that it had probably come out of the oven quite recently.

“I got that from the bakery,” Azure said. “Lucky that we ended up in a town big enough to have a discrete one.”

“Indeed,” Lusya said.

“If we were in Seris, I would have gotten something fancier and personalized, but I worked with what I had.”

“I see.”

“You did a lot in that time,” Ariya said.

Azure giggled. “I’m fast.” She looked at Lusya. “So?”

Lusya cocked her head and blinked twice. “I am not objecting, but why are you giving me these things? Why were you in such a hurry to get here for this?”

Azure’s brow furrowed. “I thought it would be obvious now.” She smiled. “Happy birthday, Lusya.”

Ariya gasped. “It’s your birthday? Why didn’t you tell me? Happy birthday!”

“I suppose it is the first of Dexmon,” Lusya said. That also explained the tune Azure had been humming, a song often sung in celebration of birthdays in the west. “I do not always keep track of the precise date, though I do not think my birthday would be worth announcing anyway.”

“Of course it would be,” Ariya said, pounding the table. She was quite worked up considering it was Lusya’s birthday they were talking about.

Lusya blinked. “I see.”

“Well, then,” Azure said, “why don’t we eat that cake for dessert? Unless you want all of it, of course.”

Lusya shook her head. “That is not necessary. We may split it evenly.”

Azure smiled and tore the cake into three almost even pieces. One was noticeably larger than the other two, which she then handed to Lusya with a wink. Lusya did not feel strongly enough about sharing to point it out.

“Have a taste, I want to know if you like it,” Azure said. “I know you’ve never had a big sweet-tooth, but…”

“I do not mind sweets on occasion,” Lusya said before taking a bite of the cake. “It is good.”

It was nothing extraordinary, but it did taste good. The right level of sweetness, just doughy enough on the inside. It was well-made. She set it aside so it could serve as dessert later. Sweets after a meal were much more pleasant than a meal after sweets, for reasons Lusya did not fully understand.

Azure sighed in relief. “Good. Looks like I did a good job picking stuff out.”

“Indeed,” Lusya said. “Thank you.”

“You are very welcome,” Azure replied. “So, how does it feel to be twenty?”

“No different than it felt to be nineteen.”

“Really?” Ariya asked. “It sounds like a big deal to me.”

“Really,” Lusya said. “There have been substantial changes in my life in the last year, but they have little to do with my age.”

Azure shrugged. “That’s fair, I guess.” She paused “So, you often…” She shook her head. “I mean, did you often celebrate your birthdays with Romoro?”

Lusya nodded. “Yes. With varying extravagance depending on the circumstances.”

Most years had been fairly low-key affairs. Father had gotten her a present and Rahgrahb had baked her a cake. It had been a good recipe. It made what Azure had bought her look like a mud cake.

Some years had been different, though. Ten, sixteen, eight. Eight, in particular, had been a standout. The specifics had faded by now, but she recalled music, a feast, private performances, and more having occurred. She was not sure why eight, of all numbers, had…No, she did know. She had not yet adjusted to living with Father then. It had been an attempt to assuage her homesickness and longing for her mother. How things changed. Lusya could not imagine being desperate enough to see the woman to need comforting now.

“I hope it’s not too painful to think about now,” Azure said. “I should have been a little more tactful.”

Lusya shook her head. “No, it is fine.”

She rather enjoyed thinking on those celebrations, in fact.

“Well, if you were home, you’d have a party that wouldn’t lose to one thrown by a king,” Azure said. “But, we’re in the middle of nowhere, so this was the best I could do.”

“This is more than sufficient.”

Azure hummed in thought. “Well, you do seem pretty happy. Right, Ariya?”

“Yeah! Super happy!”

That was definitely overstating things a bit.

“Now, then, Ariya, do you know the song?” Azure asked.

Ariya scowled in confusion for a second before he face lit up in realization. “Only the words, and only in Fyemish. I think we sing a different one back home, so I don’t know the tune.”

“That’s fine,” Azure said. “Just follow my lead.”

Lusya cocked her head and blinked twice. “You do not need to si—”

They whirled on her in unison. “We’re gonna sing!”