Chapter 19

It's a bustling evening in the town of Grant.

As I walk through the lively streets, I I realized that I haven't really had any opportunity to explored the town on my own all that much, so this is a good time to do so.

I decided to take a walk around town. And while I'm at it, I'll look for a good place to have dinner before heading back home.

(Hay, where are we going?) Piccy speaks into my head.

Oh yeah... I'm not alone. I forgot she was here with me.

(I'm trying to find a place to eat dinner. What do you want to eat?)

(Hmmm... we fairies usually eat fruits and sweet nectar, but I'm not hungry right now. Thanks to the berry you gave me, I won't be hungry again for days since it has so much magical energy. But I didn't know it was so valuable, I'm sorry.)

(It's ok. And what do you mean you won't need to eat for days?)

(Fay folk like me and miss elf back there can get lots of sustenance from eating plants with a lot of magical energy. The more magical energy the plant has, the more sustenance we can get from them. It's also good because it doesn't make us gain weight.)

Why do I feel a smug aura of superiority coming from behind me?

(I see. So if you won't go hungry for days, why didn't you try to find your village? I'm sure your family is worried about you.)

(The forest at night is scary.)

(Hah?)

(Lots of scary things come out at night. It's dangerous you know.) I can't see her, but somehow I can imagine her making a pouty, crying face.

She's right though. For me, the forest at night isn't that dangerous. But for a small being like her, sleeping in the forest all alone at night. You never know what might pounce on you.

(Alright then... you can stay with me for now.)

(Hah!) I can imagine her face lighting up right now.

We continued walking around town for a bit, just exploring. I even went to check out mister Kolos' place to see if I could get the tusks made into something, but his shop was already closed at this hour.

During all this, I realized that it might not be so bad having Piccy around as a conversation partner. This is her first time in any kind of human settlement, so she's asking a lot of questions. Some I can't even answer, as I'm also new here.

She's a curious one. That's good.

We kept walking around, until something catches my nose.

A familiar aroma. A rich smell. The smell of stew and roasting meat.

Like a hound, I followed it through the streets and turn the corner in to one of the smaller streets.

One side of the street is decorated with tables and chairs and bright lanterns. Leaving the other half pedestrian commute.

There are a lot of people eating here. Most of them I recognize as the construction workers who were working on the walls.

I walk over and take a seat on one of the few empty tables. And almost immediately after, a waitress is already here to take my order.

This place works fast. With this amount of customers, they have to.

She has short green hair and green eyes and a bit tan. She's wearing a black and white outfit that almost looks like the maid outfit.

As she smiles and ask me for my order I can see that she has fangs. Like, real sharp fangs.

"Hello there, what can I get cha tonight." She says with her arms crossed behind her back, slightly leaning forward.

"Hmmm... can you tell me what you have here? Do you have something I can look at? Like a menu?"

"We don't really have a set menu. The boss cooks based on what he can get his hands on that day. Tonight we have rabbits, Kojo birds and of course the boar you hunted yourself yesterday. If you have something in particular in mind, just tell me. The boss can make you practically anything." She flashes another smile, leaning closer.

Now that I can see her fangs more clearly, I'm sure she's not human. I'm really curious as to what race she is, but I'll refrain from asking for now.

But the boar I hunted yesterday? "How did you know it was me? I thought the guild was suppose to protect an adventurers private information."

"Oh no, the guild didn't tell us. But seeing a little boy carrying that huge boar around town yesterday was something you had to see to believe. And after getting the same huge boar from the commission we put in the guild, we just put two and two together. Hehe. You even brought another one in today, so thanks to you we'll also have a boar to serve tomorrow." She leans even closer, flashing me a big smile along with a wink, her fangs on full display.

Ahh... I guess I did catch a lot of eyes yesterday, I'll have to be more careful next time.

"No problem, it's my job anyway. Then, I guess I'll be having that boar tonight."

"I thought you might say that. How do you want it?"

"Hmmm...roasted would be nice, surprise me."

"Any drinks?"

"Get me something nonalcoholic."

"You got it." She heads off to tell the chef, who is currently cooking behind a window, on to the side of a stone building.

Moments later she comes back with a wooden mug in one hand an a tray of food in the other. Not even giving me the time to take in the scenery.

"Here you go. Enjoy. If you need anything else, just give me call k." She winks. I flash a smile back.

Anyway, the service here is fast. It hasn't even been 3 minutes yet.

What I see on the table is a big slice of roasted boar stake, a light brown opaque soup with what looks to be intestines and vegetables, and three big slices of nut bread.

The drink is a slightly murky white liquid, I asked for something that won't get me drunk but I wonder what this could be...

*sips* Oh... it's just apple juice. I was expecting something else, but apple juice is fine too.

Lets try the soup next..

Hmm.. it's a bit salty, but other than that it's pretty good. The pig intestines are chewy and the vegetables are soft and infused with flavor from the intestines. I bet this would go great with the bread.

*ham* Yep, they go great with each other, the slightly moist and the nuts counters the saltiness perfectly, allowing you to taste the full flavor of the soup.

Now for the main dish. *ham*...

Oh... I can taste a bit of mustard, the gaminess is still there, but it's a bit suppressed. The meat is well done, but it's still juicy and I can smell the scent of the wood used to cook it. It's still a bit tough, but other than that, it's really good.

During the course of the meal I finished my drink and asked for something other than apple juice.

She brought me strawberry milk instead... I guess it was pretty good, but it's just... not getting me there.

After I finished, the waitress flashes me another wonderful smile, "How did you like your meal?"

"It was great, very filling. How much was it?"

"I'm glad you liked it. That will be 5silver and 5copper."

That's...pretty cheap. I take out 10 silver, put it on the table and give her a wink as I walk away.

"Oh... thank you. Come again."

Ok, on second thoughts, maybe I shouldn't have winked. I feel so... Uhh hu huhu...

…

A short walk down a dark and empty streets illuminated only by the light of the moon and stars. A scenery of streets and houses painted blue by the dim light. A peaceful atmosphere that I quite enjoy.

Piccy on the other hand… even without seeing her, I can feel her vibrations. Is it really that scary for her?

Fortunately for her, it didn't take long for us to get home.

I open the door and walk inside to a room darker than outside streets. Almost pitch black except for the moonlight dripping through the window slits.

There are candles on the walls but they are not currently lit.

Oh oh oh, I rub my hands together. I've always wanted to do this. I raise my hand to shoulder level, and with a SNAP! All at once the candles in the room light up.

Ahhh... I'm so happy. This is awesome. I can make fire just with a snap of a finger now thanks to my magic catalyst. And the best part is, since I'm not using a spell, my Spectral fold wings won't appear. Ha haa.

(Wow... what.. is this place?) The little voice in my head sounds astonished.

I know right. It's pretty cool.

I close the door. "Hu hu. Well my dear Piccy, this... is my house. And you can stop being invisible now. Nobody's here except us."

"Wow.. amazing... are these magic candles?" She flies towards the candles and leans in close to inspects them.

"Umm.. no. They're not magical. They're just normal candles."

"Heh? But they lit up just now."

"Piccy... that was me. I did that."

"Oh... you're amazing. I didn't know you could use magic." Hmm.. somehow I feel like her heart wasn't fully in that complement.

Oh well. I'll take it.

"A little. Make yourself comfortable, I'm going to go take a shower and then go to sleep."

... or not. I only asked Majorri to get me the out house and shower room this morning. Of course it would take more than a single afternoon to get here.

Hmm.... this is quite the predicament.

Well, I'm looking around and I don't see anyone, soo... a quick shower should be fine.

I start drawing water from the well then I realize. Hoh! Wait a minute.

I look at my hands. I switch my magic catalyst to water element and point my hand at the ground.

Ok now, slow and steady, not a jet of water, but a slow and steady flow. Slowly... slowly...

As I imagine this, from my palm, water starts to flow out.

Yes! A success!

I run the water along my arm as a test, and it does feel like water.

The water wets my arm, but it quick disappears, and my arm is dry again. So magic water is only temporary huh? It disappears after a short time.

That being said, this works perfectly for me. I can use this water to wash myself and I don't even have to dry myself afterwards! How very convenient.

I take another look around and after really confirming that there is no one around, I quickly take my shower and dress up again.

That took about 2 minutes.

Even though I made sure there was no one watching, it was still embarrassing standing stark naked in the open like that. I feel so exposed.

That aside. It looks like I can somewhat control how long the water lingers by tweaking the amount of Mp I use, up to about a minute. That's nice to know.

After getting dressed, I open the door back into the house to see Piccy on the dinner table adjusting the flowers in the vase. When she notices me she gives me a wave, "Hi. your done. I was just taking a look around your house, looks very cozy."

"He he, thanks. Do you need a shower?"

"I'd... like one. If it's not too much trouble."

"There's a well out side. Do you need me to draw the water for you?"

"Yes please, hehe. That would be great." She says shyly.

"Hehe."

…

After her shower, it was time for bed.

I told her that there was another bedroom, but she insisted that the room was too big for her alone and that she'd be fine sleeping in my room.

She's a tiny little thing so I didn't mind letting her sleep on the other pillow. But…

This feels a bit awkward…