I groaned in enjoyment as the stroganoff hit my tongue. "This is amazing." We were at dinner with Anna-Marie, and Callie and I were sharing a local dish called Plazkish. Which was stroganoff. Like...almost exactly. It was also amazing, with fresh juicy mushrooms, smooth handmade pasta, and a delicious creamy sauce so well made it felt like the noodles were almost slithering down my throat without me needing to do anything.

They WEREN'T doing that, obviously, because that would be horrifying, but they were so easy to eat they almost gave that impression. Callie was just as enamored with the dish, and moaned her agreement as she slurped her own noodles, neither of us caring that the others were staring at us. Well, some of the others. Abel, Mel, Jessie, and Benny had all eaten with us before so they didn't much care.

Looking up at the horrified and fascinated face of the princess I swallowed and cleared my throat. "Sorry. I'm weirdly hungry after gaining that extra point of Impact. Did you say something?"

She giggled a bit at that, and Callie finished her own bite and washed it down with a sip of wine, looking embarrassed. "I said." Repeated the princess. "That I was wondering exactly what you're looking for in terms of preparations for the next trip. We're going to be staying out much longer next time, right? Did you get a good grasp on what we're going to need for the journey? We'll most likely need to get deeper into the core this time."

I nodded thoughtfully. "We still have the herbs to sell, so that should get us a bit more money. Just the sheer volume should get us a decent chunk of coin. What we can get should vary based on how much we have, but I have a few specifics in mind. First is shelter. I'm hoping to pick up some portable housing. Maybe tents at worst, though I' hoping for something a bit sturdier."

That got a beaming smile. "That sounds like a wonderful idea." Said the princess cheerfully. "I'll most likely acquire some lodgings of my own. You can accompany me to the shop I'll use. I'll make sure the owner knows you're good friends of mine and to treat you with respect."

Giving her a grateful nod, I smiled internally. I figured she'd do that. Part of the future considerations she mentioned. If possible I wanted to find some kind of portable cabin or bunker, specifically one that had defensive enchantments on it. A portable and stable home base was invaluable, the latter having been made clear during the scavenger hunt. Sadly an invented building wasn't likely to be viable in this instance. Too likely to end up in enemy hands.

Nat took a bite of her chowder, nodding along. "My suggestion would also be to buy some sort of mapping item. Something to show us where we've been and where we're going." She raised an eyebrow at Anna-Marie. "Do you know if they have anything like that in town?"

"Of course!" Said the princess brightly. "And that's a wonderful idea. Returning home would be so much simpler with a nice map to rely on."

"It is." I agreed. "As well as having some sort of emergency defensive measure. Some kind of portable shield spell we can trigger. I'm curious, are there any E-rank items in here? I mean, I know people can bring them in. I...saw some people wielding them." I decided not to mention my own E-rank weapon. It seemed like information they didn't need, especially since it was suppressed most of the time. Maybe they'd noticed it in battle, but no reason to help them along.

Anna-Marie nodded gravely. "There are, but they're in the treasuries. E-ranked items are considered national treasures, and they can only be redeemed for extreme merit. Even that only happens at wartime usually. We have powerful spells made by those with higher than standard Impact though, and we usually call them half step E-rank. No one like my father, of course, but some powerful crafters can trade for or gather god Dew between awakenings like the royals do."

"They don't just take it?" Callie asked in surprise. Which made sense given how closely they controlled the stuff.

"Well, sometimes." Admitted the princess. "Not all of it though. It's a similar setup to yourselves. If they seized it all the finders might hoard it and never let anyone know what they'd found. By rewarding them a share it makes them more likely to come forward. Usually not half, usually more along the lines of a third. But still, it's a tempting reward. Mixed with the fact that it's detectable when you use the Dew, and it's common practice to come volunteer your supply."

Celine looked dubious. "Isn't that just forcing them though? Since you can tell when it's used, what possible way would there be of keeping it secret."

"Defection." Said Anna-Marie flatly. "Before it became common practice to share it, people who found a stock of god Dew would defect to other kingdoms. They would use it all up before arriving. Since the Dew can't be retrieved once used, the other kingdoms had the option of turning away a perfectly good Ascendant with higher than normal Impact, killing them out of spite, or letting them stay."

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I nodded in understanding. "And since any powerful fighter for their side would be a benefit, they had no problems taking them in. I can see why you would do things the way you do. Anyway, I'd love to see some crafting from some of those half step E-rankers. A stronger defense can only be a benefit, and maybe we can find some other spells to suit us."

She gave a cheery nod. "Of course. Giancarlo Spirella was going to be my first stop in any case. He's the most well respected crafter in Ladrigan. Some people claim he's already a Master." Which was interesting, because it meant Master Candidates existed here. Though I didn't know what you'd call one that had already reached mastery. Still, it was useful information, especially about a crafter.

Wolfing down my food, I got prepared to leave as the others finished, and once everyone was done I gestured for Anna-Marie to go ahead. "Lead the way to this Giancarlo guy." I paused. "Wait, can he buy the herbs?"

She nodded. "He buys basically everything. He's an enchanter but he does some work Inventing as well." I shot Benny a look. My best friend looked intrigued. I knew he was always looking to make new gear, though he'd already made some that I hadn't even seen yet. I resolved to set some time aside to talk to my best friend. It had been a while since we'd really hung out.

"Of course!" Anna-Marie seemed thrilled to share more about her city with us, her cheerful demeanor already pretty infectious, helped along by the fantastic meal. Leading us out of the bistro, she walked us back onto the main thoroughfare. "Giancarlo's studio is in the oldest district in the city. He's got one of the treehouses, and there's no ground access." She led us to a seemingly innocuous if huge silver tree, knocking on the black bark in a specific spot and smiling widely as the trunk slid open to reveal a too large shaft with a spiral staircase.

As we climbed, I was forced to marvel at how...integrated, the city was. So many different moving parts, so to speak, all working in harmony. This setup must have been incredibly difficult to put in place. Between the external defenses, the cylinder, the islands, the trees, and all the walkways, this place was basically a complicated ecosystem.

When we reached the top we stepped out onto one of the walkways, which seemed to have much more room than one would expect based on the ground view. I wasn't sure if that space was more spatial manipulation or if it was just the angle and distance, but seeing the city from up here made it even more striking. Sparkling gems of light polka dotting a sea of silver leaves, buildings peeking from behind the cover intriguingly.

She led us in a seemingly random direction as she smiled happily around us. "Most of the popular shops are up here. Ground level tends to be reserved for residential places. There are so many trees around that there's always room for another building in one if needed. Houses on the ground level get exceedingly difficult to acquire as you move inward. The central district of the Grove is the oldest, and where we're headed."

It was hard to keep track of things like directionality when surrounded by nearly identical foliage, but when she mentioned that I did kind of notice we were heading inward. It didn't take us long to reach the interior, and once we did the foliage started to thin, revealing more treehouses grouped close together and creating almost a second city above the treeline.

We stopped at an extremely intricate house made of white wood, seasoned with age but still extremely sturdy looking. The wood presented a strong contrast to the bark of the tree, though it blended well with the silver leaves. Anna-Marie strolled up to the front door and knocked politely, waiting for a minute before a polished older man in a crisp suit opened the door looking politely disinterested.

When he saw the princess his expression got a lot more polite and a lot LESS disinterested. "Your grace." He said with a bow of his head. "An honor to see you. Please, come inside." He stepped back, gesturing us in, and Anna-Marie gave him a winning smile.

"Thank you Humphrey." She said sunnily. "It's wonderful to be back, and I brought some new friends. I assume Gio is around?"

He nodded solemnly. "You've come at the perfect time. Miss Zelda was sick today, so Master Giancarlo arrived late. Lady Sandra was otherwise engaged, but she was able to relieve him just an hour ago."

Her sunny demeanor dimmed. "Oh. I do hope Zelda feels better." Glancing at us, she clarified. "Zelda is Giancarlo's daughter, she's twelve. His wife, Sandra, is a healer at the local hospital, so Zelda is in good hands. Zelda is a lovely young lady, and it's a shame to hear she's unwell. Her curiosity and intelligence always brightens my visits."

Humphrey smiled softly. "Which is why you are his favorite customer. So often they simply ignore or dismiss her. You always make time to talk to Miss Zelda."

"Yes." Rasped a high pitched voice, clearly rough with disuse. "She does at that." We turned to see a tall, tan man with wild brown hair sticking out in all directions. He gave us a wild smile, eyes wider than a normal person's. "Anna dear. Lovely to get a visit from my most loyal customer. And you've brought friends. What can I help you with today?"

The sunshine was back on Anna-Marie's face. "Gio. It's good to see you. I was just telling Humphrey to give Zelda my well wishes. My friends and I are actually here for a few things. We have herbs to sell, and then we were hoping to look into some defensive spells. Something powerful and portable."

It was impossible to miss that the man was radiating the same kind of Impact I'd sensed from the king. Perhaps not quite as much, but he was head and shoulders above all of us.

"Well then." He cackled excitedly. "I suppose I'll need to break out my best." He turned, gesturing us back through the door he'd come through. "Please, follow me. I'll take a look at what you have, and we can find the best fit for all of you for your magical needs." Looking at Nat and Callie uncertainly, I shrugged. At least she hadn't brought us somewhere boring. I had a good feeling about finding what we needed.