Vitmori POV

A couple of hours had passed since we had reunited with Basti; if it hadn't been for Krys and his team reaching out to me, I'm sure we would have easily talked for a few hours more.

There was just... So much to talk about. A month was a long time, and so much had happened since Basti had left the mountain and Haven, not even considering everything that's happened since I set out.

Regardless, we left the Tranquility Cafe before long and returned to the streets, heading for the Ocean's Mist Inn to meet Riley, Lostrill, and Krys and his team.

While I wasn't sure where we needed to go, Basti was apparently familiar with the place. She had eaten there a week ago in her quest to try all sorts of cooking from various places. It had a quality menu that used ingredients sourced from Crimzeal's coastal floor, and according to Basti's research, the Inn got these ingredients for a particularly good price due to its relationship with the Merchant's Guild and how often it puts up VIPs who come into town.

Regarding Crimzeal, Basti still didn't know all that much despite how long she had been here, considering she had been focused on other things and was doing her best not to alert the dungeon of her presence in the first place. So, Crimzeal will have to be a topic for Riley and Lostrill to look into for me since they're the only ones I can rely on who have no tangible bond to me.

We still had a long way to walk. The Merchant's Guild office was apparently two whole sectors away from the Cafe Basti had been waiting for us in. Basmori and Freyli decided to hitch a ride with their mother. Freyli happily perched on Basti's shoulder while Basti carried Basmori in her arms as a cub himself.

I admittedly did feel a little lonely at the fact that neither of them wanted to walk with or ride on my shoulders, but then again, they no doubt missed their mother and deserved to be spoiled with her company—even if, in doing so, they occupied both of her hands. Well, it's not like I specifically wanted to hold hands with Basti while we walked, or did I?

It's clear to even me that the feelings Basti and I have for each other have only grown during our time apart. I've wanted to see and be around her just as much as she wanted to see and be around me, but what would that entail in practice? What sort of expectations does she have, and what should I expect in return?

I stole a glance over at Basti, only to catch her glancing at me in return as I couldn't help but offer a small smile, getting a smile in return as she looked away before stepping closer to me as our shoulders now brushed against each other while we continued along our walk.

I couldn't help but smile at her gesture, though a few sets of eyes burning into the back of my head caused me to glance behind me at Fester, Wither, and Legosi. Fester was giving me an encouraging thumbs up, much to Wither's vague amusement, while Legosi seemed to be all around pleased by the circumstances for whatever reason.

The minutes trickled by as we walked, and before I knew it, we had entered what looked like a temple district, if I had to put a name to it. Carriages now appeared to be a rarity as the foot traffic bled onto the roads, making the crowds around us appear less dense as they had more space to move around.

Looking at the buildings around us, the architecture vaguely reminded me of a sort of Greco-Roman style, with large commanding temples with symmetrical fronts and mighty pillars decorating the various structures. The temples themselves were also lovingly decorated and maintained, often with massive murals that spanned walls and pillars depicting the nature of the gods or goddesses that the respective temples worshiped.

With only passing glances through the massive doorways that most temples seemed to have, I got the feeling that most temples weren't dedicated to any one deity but to general domains that the deities represented, like intrigue, music, war, or nature.

We had almost crossed through the temple district when I felt a set of eyes pass over me before suddenly looking at my chest or perhaps my clothes as they focused on me. Looking around at my surroundings, I soon spotted an excited-looking rabbitkin girl dressed in simple vestments with several shades of blue and gold accents. The girl in question practically scampered across the street to reach me before standing confidently in front of me as she spoke up. "Excuse me, sir, I am on an important quest which was granted to me by the Head Priest of my temple. May I take a moment of your time?"

Shooting a curious look at Basti, she merely shrugged as I looked back to the girl who couldn't be older than nine or maybe even ten years old. "Uh... Sure? What is this quest of yours?"

The girl practically hopped in place, reaching into a pouch on her hip and procuring two copper coins. "I'm supposed to approach human men wearing black shirts and give them these." She said while holding the coins up in her palm. "In exchange, you just need to let me hit you in the leg." She explained while waggling an appropriately sized quarterstaff in her other hand that she had been walking with from the outset.

"That's, uhh... a rather unique quest." She wasn't lying to me and didn't seem to have any underlying motives, so why not? "Sure, go ahead." I offered after a moment while plucking the coins from her palm with my gloved hand.

"Really!? Thank you, sir. With this, you'll be the last one I must hit." She mused sincerely before stepping back and swinging the quarterstaff with surprising proficiency, which clacked audibly against my knee.

Even though she was small, the force of her swing would have likely brought most men to their knees from the mere shock of the hit. Thankfully, I didn't feel anything. I just smiled at the girl and quirked my brow in curiosity. "There we go. Was that all?"

The girl looked especially thoughtful, staring at my leg with furrowed brows as she lightly tapped it with the staff she wielded. "Your leg... Is it made of wood, sir?"

"Yes, it is; why do you ask?" I asked in return while bouncing the two coins in my palm.

The girl hummed in apparent consideration before reaching into her hip pouch again and procuring a small, folded slip of paper and what looked to be some kind of golden coin with a side profile of a blindfolded head on the face and a sword with old-fashioned scales imprinted on its back. "I was told to give this to the man with a wooden leg." She stated with a simple smile.

"What is this?" I asked, taking the token and looking it over before passing it to Wither, who had come over to see what was happening.

"It's a token with the mark of our order; it allows you access to the inner courtyards of the temple." She explained helpfully while still holding up the slip of paper. "Head Priest Siodric would like to speak to you about something."

"Really? He wants to speak to me specifically?" I asked while gently plucking the slip of paper from her hands.

"I dunno. All he told me was to give that token and the note to a human man in black with a wooden leg." She said with a cheerful bounce, clearly pleased at completing her assigned quest.

"I see..." Now, unfolding the slip of paper, I can't help but be taken aback at its contents. 'Aspect of the Trio of Divines, please meet me at your earliest convenience. I have been tasked with paying you a favor that will aid you going forward.' Not only does this individual know I'm an Aspect, but this letter is written entirely in English. "Say, can you read the writing on this note?" I asked, playing it cool as I showed the contents of the slip of paper to the girl.

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The girl hummed thoughtfully while squinting at the writing, leaning forward on her staff as she animatedly bobbed her head from side to side. "Hmm... Nope! I have no idea what it says, sir. Sorry!" She exclaimed with a sincerely energetic smile, still happy she had found the one she had been looking for.

"It's fine. Well, good work finding me. You should probably get back home or um... Something now that you're done." I suggested before looking around and looking back at the rabbitkin girl as I pretended to tuck the slip of paper into the collar of my armored coat and stashed it away. "Though, before you go, where can I find your Head Priest? In fact, where is your temple?"

"Oh, right. You'd probably need to know that," the girl reasoned as she scratched behind one of her fluffy ears. She then stood taller before pointing down the road with her staff. "Look for the temple with the people who are dressed like me. The priests will all be wearing blindfolds, which should help you find us."

"Blindfolds? Do a lot of temples have people wearing blindfolds?" I couldn't help but think about the Cafe we had just left and wonder if that was a common trend around these parts.

The girl idly bounced up and down, standing on her toes before rolling back to her heel as she considered my question. "A few temples use blindfolds, yes, but for different reasons." She said, though it soon became clear that she wasn't planning to expand on that particular thought.

"Alright, well, I'll visit this Head Priest Siodric later. I'm actually kinda busy with something else, so if you'll excuse us." I vaguely explained while gesturing to my entourage.

"Oh, of course, sir, I do hope you have a good day now; bye-bye!" She declared enthusiastically before dismissing herself and hurrying back to her temple.

As she left, Wither went about handing me the token back, and we started walking again. Basti glanced back at the girl curiously before regarding me with a quirked brow and a twitch of an ear. "So what about that letter threw you off? Is something wrong?"

"I'm... Not sure." I admitted as I stashed the token away before pulling the note from my storage and showing it to her. "Can you read this?"

Basti's ears twitched as she leaned over to look at the note; Freyli and Basmori also craned their heads around to peek at the paper's contents. After a moment, Basti merely shook her head before standing tall again. "I know it's written in one of the languages of your home, but I'm not sure what it says."

That was more than I anticipated as I simply bobbed my head at her words. "It's written in English, and somehow they know about the three beings watching over me and that I have or rather am their Aspect."

Basti's brows rose briefly as she listened and thought back to our conversation in the cafe. "Your Handler and Sponsors, right?"

"Yeah, and besides knowing what I am, this Head Priest Siodric wants me to meet him so he can do me a favor or something." I explained as I looked the note over before stashing it away again. "At the very least, I can take my time with it since he said I can show up at my earliest convenience."

Basti nodded along before flashing a toothy grin. "Why wait? We could always pay him a visit on our time... How about tonight? We could get the drop on him if you want."

I couldn't help but do a double take at Basti, and her suggestion, but something about it brought a smile to my face, and I just chuckled a bit. "You know what? Yeah, it sounds like fun. If he can get away with blindsiding me like this, it is only right to return the favor."

"Then it's a date." Basti said pleasantly, bumping her shoulder into mine as she maintained her confident grin before focusing on the path ahead of us.

"A-A date? Are you sure?" Even given my age, if I were flesh and blood, I wouldn't be ashamed to say my cheeks would have flushed at the sudden turn in this conversation. "Wouldn't you want to do something proper? Like a dinner and a show or something like that?"

Basti could only scoff at the suggestions as she glanced back at me. "What even is a 'proper' date? This sounds like so much more fun! Besides, I've learned that the real fun around these parts happens at night." She enthused as she walked ahead of the group, her tail swaying and lashing with excitement behind her.

Well... I guess it's official, then. Our first date together will start off with some light B&E and surprising an unsuspecting Head Priest... Even I can't deny that it sounds like the makings of some rather good fun. If that's how things are right out of the gate, I can't help but wonder how the rest of the night will go...

Regardless, there wasn't much else to say as our group strolled through town until we eventually came to Ocean's Mist Inn and went inside. From the outset, the Inn was a much larger affair than the one I had stayed at back in Sunspot Keep. It was about five floors tall and had a floor plan nearly twice as wide as the other Inn. Despite being that gray area between the afternoon lunch rush and the evening dining crowd, the Inn's dining area was quite busy, with a number of full tables and even occupied seats at what looked to be the main bar.

We only had to wait a couple of minutes as we approached the dining area before a hostess made their way up to us with the most professional of customer service smiles on her face. "Greetings! Welcome to Ocean's Mist Inn. Are you here to dine in or perhaps looking for a room?" She asked before noticing Basti as her eyes seemed to light up in recognition. "Ah! Miss Basti, welcome back." She expressed with more sincere warmth and delight. "I took your advice and bet on your last run in the daily tournaments and came away with quite the generous coin purse, so you certainly have my thanks. Would you like a table or perhaps a private room for your party?" She asked, giving the rest of us a proper couple of glances.

Basti flashed the woman a charming grin as she spoke up. "You and me both, I'm glad to hear it. Hopefully, you can get that matter of yours settled soon." She said before tilting her head in my direction as if to gesture at me. "As for why I'm here today, you should ask my partner here; I believe we're supposed to be meeting someone."

The hostess turned to look at me, the word 'partner' curiously bouncing around in her head as she wondered what that made me to Basti. It was then that she finally noticed the elite pin on my armored coat's collar.

"Right, well, my name is Vito." I start to say while gesturing to myself. "I was supposed to meet a couple of my workers here, a rabbitkin woman named Riley and a lizardkin man known as Lostrill."

The hostess nodded as she recalled Lostrill and Riley, as she had been the one to guide them to a private room in the last hour. "Oh! The party for Vito, and of course, you're Vito." The woman surmised before nodding to herself. "Very well, sir, if you all will follow me." She said as she turned on her heel and led us further into the Inn's dining area.

Our group drew quite a few looks as we made our way through the room, but nobody distinctly lingered on us as many were simply curious about Legosi or the Plague Doctors, though a few of them seemed to recognize Basti. For once, I appeared to be the most mundane individual in the group, at least at first glance.

Approaching a set of nicely carved double doors, the hostess opened both doors for the group while holding one door, in particular, open for us as we approached Riley and Lostrill in mid-conversation.

"I just don't understand why you insist on eating it raw when it's perfectly normal to eat it cooked. Aren't there health risks?" Riley asked, clearly perturbed by what she was seeing.

Lostrill, for his part, plucked a reddish-orange slice of raw fish and lifted it into the air while opening his jaws wide. He dropped the fish slice into his mouth and snapped his jaws shut before looking rather content and amused by Riley's reactions and replied while still chewing. "It's perfectly fine. They eat it all the time like this across the ocean and... and... Oh, hey, Mister Vito." He said while quickly swallowing and getting to his feet, doing his best to make himself presentable.

Riley quickly set down her cup of tea, wiping her lips as she stood as well out of respect. "Welcome Mister Vito, I trust your... meeting went... Well..." She said, trailing off as she spotted Basti, having to look up at her the way she would look up at me, considering our height difference when compared to the rabbitkin woman.

I could sense that Riley was not expecting Basti to be... Well... Basti. A big, physically strong woman with looks that could kill and looks like she could kill you. The general feeling I got from both Lostrill and Riley was a sense of nervous awe, which made sense since Basti seems to leave an impression on others around her, whereas people can't help but overlook me in general.

The hostess piped up during the pause, looking amongst everyone there before regarding Basti in particular. "Your server will be here shortly to take your orders." With that, she made her way out, shutting the doors behind her.

Basti decided to take the initiative and approached Riley and Lostrill, shaking their hands with a pleasant smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you two. I've already heard all about you from Vito; thank you for making the trip with him and helping him manage the business he'll be running during our stay here."

"Well, of course, Miss Basti, it's the least we could do after everything Mister Vito has done for Guildmaster Tilzim and The Miner's Guild. The foundry is the backbone of Sunspot Keep; if it weren't for Mister Vito, we would have had many issues and broken agreements, tarnishing the guild's reputation." Riley dutifully explained while discretely flexing and massaging the hand that Basti shook.

"Speaking of the business." Lostrill piped up as he procured a folder, a coin pouch, and a ring of identical-looking keys before sitting back down in his seat at the table. "Guild Master Tilzim arranged a weekly stipend for each of us, basically enough coin for necessities, room and board, and a little extra for our free time." He explained while gesturing between him and Riley. "As well as a tidy little sum for you to furnish your building."

"Right, my building! Have you seen it yet?" I asked eagerly as I took a seat at the table. Basti settled in beside me while everyone else found their place, and Basmori went so far as to shift into a beastkin as he took a chair beside Freyli.

"We have not, Mister Vito, though we have the floorplan here." Riley explained as she picked up the folder Lostrill set out, plucked out the schematics with the detailed floor plan drawn up, and held it out for me to see. "It's a three-story building with a basement with running water, light, and access to the city's communication hub. The first floor is already set up with a floor plan designed to be used as a store, with the second floor having the utilities for a kitchen space, bathroom, and what would be a living room, whereas the third floor is equipped with a layout fit for a couple of bedrooms and perhaps office space."

While this shop may be a front for a base of operations for me to work out of during my stay in this town, I can't help but feel the excitement of actually owning a piece of property, a piece of proper civilization. Sure, I have my mountain and the Haven, but this is a shop in the city. It just... It feels different if that makes any sense. "It looks perfect." I say after a few moments, taking up the schematics to look them over more closely. "And I just have to furnish it, you say? Is there a furniture store you can recommend? We'll probably need to shop for groceries, among other things, if we'll be living out of this place now that I think about it."

Riley bobbed her head dutifully. "I already made some inquiries and can show you to the more reputable of those sorts of shops, Mister Vito; you can count on me." She said proudly as Lostrill nodded along.

Before I could say anything else, the doors to the room were pushed open as a nicely dressed ratkin stepped into the room. "Here we are, party for Vito." He said, waving along Krys and his team as they filed into the room. "Terribly sorry for the delay; I'll be along with more menus and return to take your order." He explained apologetically before hurrying off and shutting the doors behind him.

Once the doors were shut, Krys stepped towards me with a vaguely strained expression on his face. "Boss, we've got a few things to talk about."