“Alright, I’m just going to die, thanks,” Arylos mumbled after he flopped onto the couch and shoved his face into a pillow.
“Come on,” Iris teased while unable to contain her laughter. “That can’t be what does the big bad Titan in. Shouldn’t you go out fighting some big monster? Not breaking your back moving furniture?”
“You’re forgetting this body is three thousand years old,” Arylos returned, unmoving from his spot on the couch. “Breaking my back is quite a possibility.”
“Come on now, old man!” Iris continued her teasing and started to poke Arylos’s side.
Arylos rolled over so his voice wasn’t muffled. “Hey, can’t be old if you don’t have an age,” he mocked, his tone going from a light-hearted joke to a sombre ‘I’m too old for this’ tone. “I freaking HATE moving,” he lamented as he rolled back over, burying his face into the couch pillows again.
“It’s not that bad,” Iris said after sitting down on the floor seiza-style in front of the couch. “Sure, it’s a lot of work, but it’s also refreshing.”
“Yeah, the work is the problem,” Arylos complained, his voice muffled by the pillow.
“Hey, it could be worse,” Iris snapped. “I don’t have any possessions of my own anymore and the house is mostly furnished.”
“There’s still the beds,” Arylos jumped in while pointing towards the two beds in the foyer, not moving the rest of his body. “We have to get them upstairs. And we only got one out of the three upstairs.”
“I told you I didn’t mind sleeping on the floor,” Iris shrugged.
“And I told you I’m not letting it happen,” Arylos snapped back.
“A two storied house isn’t all that good now is it?” Iris laughed, a part of her enjoying Arylos’s suffering. “Probably should have thought of that before suddenly buying the first house you see.”
Arylos growled and lifted his head from the pillow and glared at Iris. Suddenly his eyes shone red and the air hummed while a strong force pushed Iris backwards onto the floor. She laid where she landed for a moment before jumping back up.
“And there’s that!” she exclaimed. “You can move stuff with your mind; just do that with the beds!”
Arylos sighed and sat up normally on the couch. “I keep telling you. One; it’s not moving stuff with my mind. Two; there are people next door watching and I’m not about to let them in on what I am.”
Iris sighed and got up from the floor. “Well, we got one upstairs. You don’t sleep and I don’t think we’ll need the guest bedroom for now. We at least got the others into the foyer so we’ll move them upstairs tomorrow, probably with that creepy magic of yours. Sound fair?”
Arylos grumbled something incoherent and Iris took it as agreement. She got up and headed for the door.
“I’m going to take a walk through the city,” she told Arylos while opening the front door. Arylos gave her a thumbs up but otherwise did not move from his spot.
Iris took the message and headed outside, basking in the afternoon sunlight and the sounds of the city around her and all in the shadow of the massive mountain. She looked around to the other houses in the neighbourhood and they all had a similar style to the one Arylos bought. Contrasting modern walls with traditional wooden accents and small gardens. All bordering a clean road lined with more gardens and small streams.
Mutsukanai really felt like a rich person district. Fine houses, quiet roads, and so far friendly people. Arylos had a point in his justification; this may not be a small and quiet city like Iris likes but it has everything she needs.
She decided for the first time in her life that she would properly socialise. She walked down the street, taking in the sights and the peaceful sounds as she walked two houses down where a man stood digging in his garden. She came up to the man, a middle aged man with a completely bald head and darkened spectacles adorned with a long and thick black beard. The man was about as muscular as Arylos; a big man, a true strongman through and through and muscles bulging from under his simple grey shirt.. He was diligently digging holes in a flower bed with the focus and determination of a glass blower but the power of a blacksmith.
He set down his tools and turned around, surprised by Iris’s presence. “Oh, hello there!” he called out in a booming voice.
Iris swallowed a lump in her throat. “Hi there,” she returned with a shy wave. “I’m sorry, I’m new to this area.”
“Oh-ho?” the man’s interest piqued. “Where are you from?”
“The southwest, near Kajisho,” she replied while finally working up the courage to properly approach the man. “My friend and I recently moved here. To be honest, this is my first time in Sentoraya.”
“Ahh, you’re the new neighbours just up the road, aren’t ye?” the man replied as he dusted dirt off of himself. “The name is Dariki Rikio, but you can just call me Rikio.”
“I’m Nashonaru Iris,” Iris replied and offered her hand for a handshake to which Rikio accepted. His grip shouldn’t stock Iris but it still did; an iron grip not unlike Keratos.
“Nashonaru, an interesting name,” Rikio wondered aloud before letting go of Iris’s hand. “You really are from the Kajisho area.”
“Around there, yeah,” Iris replied with a nervous chuckle. She wasn’t comfortable opening up that she’s from Nageki.
“Darling!” Rikio called out to the house. “One of the new neighbours came to visit!”
Stomps could be heard running towards the door as it opened with the force of a gale. A woman with a similar build to Iris stood in the doorway with long blonde hair and chestnut brown eyes and delicate features and wearing an orange and gold yokui.
“New neighbours?!” the woman called out with the light of excitement in her eyes as she approached Iris and clapped her hands with a pleasant smile.
“This is Iris,” Rikio introduced, “she came here from Kajisho and recently moved in. Iris, this is my dear wife, Subaya.”
“It’s so nice to see a fresh face!” Subaya practically hummed with excitement. “Most people who move here are usually from one of the nearby holds; never as far as Kajisho.”
“I know that feeling,” Iris responded with a nervous chuckle. “To be fair, this is all still new to me; new people, new places, new everything.”
“You said you moved here with your friend?” Rikio asked, stroking his mighty beard.
“Yeah, he’s currently resting at home,” Iris answered while taking a glance back towards the house. “He hates moving and I kind of worked him to death.”
Rikio and Subaya let out a laugh that could trigger avalanches. “It sounds like the man of the house knows his purpose.” Rikio commented, wiping a tear from his eye.
“Why don’t you two come over for dinner?” Subaya suggested with a clap of her hands.
“I don’t know how he would feel about that,” Iris chuckled nervously. “I’m pretty sure all he wants to do right now is lay on the couch to rest his back.”
“Nonsense!” Rikio bellowed. “I’m sure he’ll be fine, and we must welcome the new neighbours properly!”
“That means convincing him to get off the couch,” Iris grumbled.
“Then tell that man we have Kuroshobi to drink,” Rikio explained with a wide smile. “Any man worth his salt will come running from miles around for a taste!”
“I’ll tell him that,” Iris chuckled before waving farewell to the duo.
She decided to at least let Arylos rest a while longer before collecting him for the dinner party. She really wanted to go to the markets, but she still had only the 150,000 marks on her that Arylos gave her and she didn’t want to blow it all at once and she knew she would. She might bring Arylos along later for collateral.
She continued down the Mutsukanai streets and followed the stream along the road. It reminded her of the stream she followed in Nageki. The one that ultimately led her to Arylos. Quiet and peaceful yet bubbling with currents and fish. She took in the sound of the gardens and the stream. It felt like this district was made for her; contemporary yet with enough nature to keep her happy.
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Iris continued down the road until she came to a small market stand selling tapestries. She figured it would be a good place to find some decorations for the house so she walked inside the small shop.
All around her hung tapestries of many different designs and styles. Some of gods, some of warriors, some of beautiful landscapes. Others bore marks and runes of unknown origins. She scanned through the ones on offer, trying to think of what would be a good one to bring back. Maybe one as a gift for Arylos.
She looked through a stack of neatly folded pieces and found one that caught her eye; red and decorated with the design of flames. She removed it from the stack and began to unfurl it to get a closer look.
The tapestry depicted the dark silhouette of a man with red eyes standing atop a mountain of corpses, both man and wyrm alike. In his hand, a burning blade adorned with blood. The man had four wings upon his back, blacker than night, enshrouded by another two wings formed of flame. His taloned hand reaching for the sky and blood running down his arm and a wide smile, as if delighting in the destruction.
Iris realised just what the art was depicting and she felt her heart sink a little. She felt sad to see Arylos depicted like this, but sadly it wasn’t far from the truth in her experience.
“Interested in that one, young lady?” a male shopkeeper asked while coming up beside her. “It rarely catches anyone’s interest so I didn’t expect it to catch your eye.”
Iris thought about it for a moment. Did she want it? Why did she want it?
“How much is it?” she asked the shopkeeper.
“I’m willing to part with it for 25,000 Marks,” the shopkeeper replied. “No one’s been interested in it so it has sat on my shelf for what feels like years.”
Iris clutched the tapestry. She knew exactly why she wanted it now.
Iris bought the tapestry and made her way back to the house as the sun began to set after a pleasant walk while clutching the rolled tapestry close. She’ll handle the tapestry later; she was not about to forget the dinner plans she made with the Darikis.
She opened the door to the house and stepped into the foyer. To her left, Arylos was still in his spot on the couch as if he had not moved at all. She quietly closed the door and set the tapestry down before coming over next to Arylos.
“Psst, are you alive?” Iris asked quietly while poking Arylos’s side.
No response.
“Helloooooo,” she kept going while continuously poking Arylos’s side.
No response.
Iris grunted and grabbed one of the pillows from the couch. “Get up bitch!” she shouted as she threw the pillow on Arylos’s head and it bounced off with all of the force she gave it.
Still no response.
She knelt down and saw Arylos’s face was exposed but he looked asleep.
“There’s food waiting for us,” she said while poking Arylos’s cheek.
She saw an eye twitch.
She smiled. He was definitely awake, just ignoring her. She knew her final weapon. “And I think they said something about ‘Kuroshobi’ or something like that.”
Arylos’s hand snatched Iris by her wrist faster than she could have detected. Arylos’s eyes shot open and she knew his eyes of hunger instantly.
“Did you just say Black Rose?” he asked in a growling voice and his face stern.
Iris smiled and nodded, unafraid of this threatening facade.
Arylos lifted himself off of the couch, his old bones cracking under the movement. “Where?” he called out like a predator.
“The neighbours down the street invited us over,” Iris said with a smile as she got up.
Arylos gave Iris the face of a man on a mission as he ran his way up the stairs, likely headed for the bath.
Iris couldn’t help but laugh. Arylos may be all intimidating but dangle the right carrot in front of him and he’ll come running. Whatever this Kuroshobi is, it must be something to get this response from him.
Iris collected the tapestry from the foyer and laid it on her bed while she waited for Arylos to finish. Arylos spent ten minutes in his bath and left for Iris to take one. Iris took a little while since she wanted to wear her black and red yokui from Kajisho to look her best.
When Iris made her way back downstairs to leave, she saw Arylos with his hair neatly brushed and wearing a solid black suit with red trim and lining with gold buttons under a flowing black jacket with red lining. She had never seen this side of Arylos but he cleans up well.
“Why the formality?” she asked, admiring the suited up Titan.
“I figured you would want to make a good first impression,” he answered while centering a necktie. “This suit is old, but I keep it around for the odd occasion, even if I don’t wear it often.”
Iris smiled as she tied her hair up in a bun and struck a pin through it. “You should though; it actually looks good on you.”
Arylos couldn’t hold back his fanged grin and laughter. “As if I don’t normally?”
Iris thought for a moment before responding. “When you don’t look like you’re going to rip someone’s head off.”
Arylos laughed to himself as he made for the door. Iris pointed out where they were going and the duo walked down the twilight streets, lit by lanterns and the faintest sunlight that remained in the red sky.
A couple of paces and the two arrived at the Dariki house. Iris knocked on the door a couple of times. The door swiftly opened and Sabuya stood in the doorway wearing a blue and gold yokui of her own.
“Oh Iris! It’s good that you came!” Sabuya called out with a cheery smile.
“I wouldn’t have missed this,” Iris responded with a smile of her own before gesturing to Arylos. “This is my friend, Arylos. He’s the one I moved here with.”
“A pleasure, madam,” Arylos greeted with a bow at the hip.
“Oh my, a man of manners isn’t he?” Sabuya admired and returned a bow as she invited the duo in.
“‘Madam’?” Iris whispered while nudging Arylos. “Where’s the asshole I know?”
“I have to be nice, don’t I? They’re our new neighbours so I have to look good,” Arylos whispered back.
“Don’t tell me this is just for that Kuroshobi, isn’t it?” Iris accused.
Arylos simply tilted his head, not really trying to deny it as he stepped forward to follow Sabuya. The duo entered the dining room with a large spread of various foods on the table.
“Oh Arylos,” Sabuya called out. “You should meet my husband.”
Rikio came out from the kitchen wearing a simple grey shirt. Simple tastes or just because they fit? Iris wondered.
The two big men stared at each other with piercing eyes. Silent and unmoving. Before long, their staring contest turned into glares as the men eyed each other, waiting to see who would move first. Once again Iris felt fear; she knew what was going on between these two. Iris went over to grab Arylos and tell him to stop but Subaya put a hand on her shoulder.
“Let them have their fun,” she told Iris with a smile.
Let them have their fun? Iris thought to herself. If I let Arylos have his ‘fun’, he’s going to tear this whole place down!
Rikio inhaled sharply and struck a pose, letting his bulging muscles ripple under his shirt and veins pop out of his skin, like they would bust open entirely all the while growling intensely. While holding the pose, he glanced towards Arylos with a look that begged him to try something.
Arylos sighed and took off his jacket and shirt underneath, revealing his massive torso covered in scars and tattoos. Looking at him, he was less muscular than Rikio but still big all around. He handed his jacket and shirt to a flustered Iris to hold onto.
Arylos popped the joints in his arms and shoulders and took a similar pose with a bellowing growl. Muscles under his skin bulged to life and pulsed with strength as his veins stood out from his skin. His pose complete and his body raging with power, he returned a glance to Rikio; a look that said ‘what else do you got?’.
Rikio chuckled and the two men relaxed and they shook hands with warm smiles as the raging masculinity faded away.
“What just happened?” Iris asked, not quite understanding anything.
“They’ve earned each other’s respect,” Subaya answered. “The muscles did the talking for them.”
“...That’s just odd,” Iris said after a pause trying to understand this.
“It’s not every day I find someone on my skill level,” Arylos explained while collecting his clothes from Iris and putting them back on.
Rikio nodded as he took a seat at the table. “And I know he’s holding back on me.”
The two men laughed as they exchanged names. Iris sighed in relief, realising that she can’t take Arylos anywhere. Everyone sat at the table and began to eat.
“I believe we’re missing something here,” Subaya called out in a happy tone. She then presented an obsidian black bottle with red highlights and a label adorned with a black rose on it.
“I was about to say,” Arylos responded with a wicked smile Iris had only seen a couple of times before.
Subaya popped the cork and poured glasses for everyone. Iris examined the glass of dark red liquid handed to her. She admired it’s black appearance but the red shine when light passes through it and a hint of bubbles in it; a sparkling drink. She took in the aroma and it smelled pleasant and sweet, like a nice cake with some earthy tones. Just in appearance and smell, this is the most complex liquor Iris had ever seen. The group gave a quick toast and Iris drank some of the liquid.
It hit her like a punch out of nowhere.
The flavour was intense yet sweet. It had a rich earthy flavour to it that had layers as it went across her tongue and the small bubbles exploded like a foam in her mouth; rich carbonation that almost brought her to tears. The drink went down smoother than silk all the while revealing more of the rich and contrasting flavours.
Iris stared at the glass in awe; this was rich and delicious, probably the most Iris had ever had. Was it really okay to drink this? This felt like something Sentarus should be drinking, not her.
“How was your first experience with Black Rose?” Arylos asked Iris after finishing his glass.
Iris could only stare at Arylos, tears forming in her eyes. The little girl from the southwest was completely taken aback by this.
“Just what is this?” Iris finally asked.
“It’s a mead brewed with a secret recipe,” Arylos explained as he was receiving a refill. “I don’t know the recipe, but I can’t help myself when I find it.”
“Something like this has to be really rare,” Iris wondered aloud.
“Not entirely if you know what you’re looking for,” Subaya jumped in to explain. “It is a rare treat, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to find so we normally save bottles for special occasions.”
“Eh? You shouldn’t have wasted this on us,” A flustered Iris called out.
Subaya and Rikio laughed before Rikio responded. “This is a special occasion; you two just moved here so this is a welcome to the city and the neighbourhood.”
Iris’s fears were calmed a little and Arylos rested a hand on her shoulder with a reaffirming smile. She got the silent message and decided to relax. They’re no longer on the road and away from the fighting for now. They can now live a normal life, at least for a while longer.