Takes Like Home

Upon stepping out, her gaze falls in the direction of Hinata's home. The little emotion that showed in Mizuki's eyes is now gone, neither fatigue nor relief or much of anything else. Stepping her heel against the ground a bit too loudly, she turns away, "The Union should have extra rooms for travelers, surely." So that's where she goes, anywhere but not back to Hinata.

Right next to the Headquarters of the Union is the pub Mocha mentioned earlier, filled to the brim with adventurers of the same burgundy uniform. Mizuki's eyes linger, having to muffle laughter upon seeing grown men reduced to fools under alcohol's influence. The pub must get a lot of business.

"Good evening, Ingrid. I don't think we've spoken properly before. I apologise for my previous actions," Mizuki clarifies. Ingrid stands, taking Mizuki's hand and cupping it in a handshake, reassuring her that she didn't think much of it. "Oh, aren't you with Hinata?"

Mizuki's grin is thinned into a small, forced one. "Ah, no. I was wondering if you have any extra rooms here."

"Oh, of course! If you have energy left, you could climb all the way up to the seventh floor and reserve yourself a room there. It'll be yours permanently," Ingrid clears her throat in an attempt to resolve the awkwardness between them. Mizuki flashes a smile in thanks, letting out a huff once she turns, only to hear Ingrid's voice behind her.

"Hinata might be a cold person but he's a good person, deep down. Whatever he did, please don't hold it against him forever."

Mizuki doesn't stop, not once. Even so, with the feigned ignorance and filling her mind with random observations of the stairwell and hallways, the words continue to ring in her ears. They're loud, excruciating, and unwanted. With the little energy she has left, she wills every last strand of her muscle to move, trudging up the staircase. The stairs up are steep and hard to walk up when tired, she hopes she'll be able to teleport up there once she marks it as hers.

[Achievement Unlocked: Reliable Beginning - Claim an apartment]

Eternity passes and Mizuki's finally on the seventh floor. With achy calves, she runs her hand along the spruce doors until she finds one that glows blue. She taps on it one more time with her palm, and a door plate with her name embossed in gold appears on it. It's a pity that it's all the way in the corner, tucked so far away that it's almost invisible. Mizuki pushes it open and then closes it with her back. She slides until she's in a squat, burying her head into her knees.

She looks up, eyes teary from exhaustion. "I don't really want to get up at this point," her chest tightens, invisible chains fettering her down. By right, fatigue shouldn't feel like this. Standing up, she trudges to the bed, throwing her satchel around her chair and then her daggers, letting her body get enveloped by the sheets of the bed. Her wrist falls on her forehead, shielding her heavy-lidded eyes from the ceiling lights.

They fall shut. Mizuki, like Hinata, is gone again.

[Hirashi Mizuki has tucked into bed]

Mizuki opens her eyes and the first thing she does is to stare. It's one of those mornings where she's very much awake and yet she can't manage the energy to pull herself up. It then dawns on her that she doesn't have the option to stay in, especially with her filthy, torn-up clothes and wounds on the verge of becoming septic.

Of all things to die from, Mizuki couldn't die of sickness - that being said, she couldn't afford to die at all.

The room is small, resembling the structure of a hotel bedroom rather than a single-bedroom apartment. In front of her bed is a wooden desk and chair with a stack of papers and feather pen followed by counters for storage and a mini stove. In her bedside drawer, she finds bandages which can boost her health points (HP).

"I should finish the remaining two commissions for this week and get better armour," Mizuki organises her thoughts. Propping herself up, she undoes her cloth bandages and analyses her wounds.

"Hrk, I've never gotten as badly injured as this," she whuffles as she catches the pungent metallic stench of her blood. It's a bright, sticky crimson, gash opened up so wide, Mizuki has to wonder how deep it is. Biting the edge of the bandage with a canine, she wraps it around her wound tightly. The off-white is stained in red, substance bleeding and spreading onto the wool of the plasters.

She looks into the mirror ahead of her, slowly undoing the cloth around her head. There's no obvious cut, only a couple of bruises which would be fine with a bit of washing. "I'll eat something to heal up the rest of my HP."

Gathering her satchel, she slips downstairs. Ingrid is seated there, expression bright as ever. It's almost unsettling how she could be awake throughout the night and work all day without having a differing expression. "Good morning, Ingrid."

"May the stars guide you, Mizuki. Do note you can only take one more commission before you hit your weekly limit," she reminds. Mizuki steps out into the open world, the sun a bright yellow orb in the sky. For morning, it's awfully humid, even with the clouds high. I should explore the rest of the town, she fixes her mind, recalling the map. If she manages her time well, she might even be able to finish her last commission.

"Oh, Garden and Olive aren't here?" Mizuki inquires with an unfamiliar woman who's at Garden Olive's counter. "They were taking care of the place while I was off on business. How may I help you today?"

She's a tall, humble woman with black hair tied back into a netted bun. Old age leaves creases on her forehead, smile lines ingrained by the corner of her lips. Mizuki scans the menu, looking past the different dishes. There's not a wide variety and in fact, there are more ingredients for sale instead of food itself.

"Carrot and Fowl Soup Dumplings!" Mizuki places an order enthusiastically, surprised at spotting her own cuisine in the game.

"Oh, Garden!" Mizuki stops her. Upon noticing the large stack of dirty plates in her hands, she feels guilty for interrupting, letting her continue with her work. Promptly, sliding a few piping hot dishes on tables, she dusts her hands and jumps towards Mizuki.

"Hi! You're back here again," Garden waves. "Did you get yourself food?"

"I did," Mizuki chats. "I'm surprised you have, uh… food from other traditions here. The dumplings didn't seem like they'd be from around here?"

"Oh yes, they aren't," Garden chirps. "You see, we're the capital so merchants from other regions like to visit us and sell us recipes and special ingredients! I think it's special that we live here. Carrot and Fowl Soup Dumplings are Sigmane dishes."

"Ah! Good to know. Thank you for talking to me."

"Happy to serve," Garden giggles, taking her leave. Mizuki turns and in front of her, is rounded boul with her dumplings, accompanied by a set of chopsticks.

[x1 Carrot and Fowl Soup Dumplings received]

Picking it up, she scans around for an empty table, dropping her satchel on the ground. She eyes her food lustfully, eager to dig in.

'Mmm!' Mizuki hums as she bites into a dumpling, the rice paper skin breaking open and releasing a light vegetable soup onto her tongue. The foul, likely wild birds or chicken if they have those here, tastes gamey and more flavourful than she expects for a soup dumpling, enjoying it with the earthy flavours from the carrots.

One by one, she pops the food into her mouth, chewing with her cheeks puffed in satisfaction.

At the end of the meal, she feels refreshed and ready to live the day, sitting back against the chair with her hand caressing her stomach. Her eyes skyward, she notices a cloud pass in the shape of a leaf and then another which vaguely resembles a rabbit. She chuckles under her breath, standing, "Reminds me of home."