Chapter 3 - Jean's motive

It's morning, and we somehow managed to get out of the forest. My back still hurts from sleeping on the ground, but Jean gave me a blanket and the fur coat kept me warm for the rest of the night. We came across a dirt road and Jean told me that we're going to the city from before to look for clothes and weapons, so I complied.

"Are you sure you don't want armor? " He asks as we march along the dirt road leading to the city.

"I'm immortal, Jean. By the way, what happened to the wolf?"

"That was... one of my spells. Magic is also hereditary, you see. My father uses summoning magic. I guess I kind of inherited it. Your immortality may also have something to do with it. "

"What about the part where you told me your magic depends on the environment ? Can you learn it or something?"

"Yes. Like I said, there's magic everywhere. You can get magic from anywhere at any time. You just have to harvest their Essence."

"How do you suppose I do that?"

"There's a lot of methods, and I only know a few ways. You can ingest its materials, wear it, learn it from a magic codex. I also think you can also do it by putting the materials on something capable of storing them . Some clothes can also store Essence, so let's look for that too. That fried lizard tail you ate when we first met was one of my favorites. It can replicate everything it touches. "

"So you can basically customize your arsenal. Is that it?"

"Yes. I was expecting you to freak out from the lizard tail, though."

"Why should I? It was delicious."

"You're darn right about that."

...

After what seemed to be an hour of walking, we finally made it to the kingdom. I can see buildings and shops from all angles, given the fact that this is a huge empire. Different races of species also came in all shapes and sizes. Aside from humans of different colors, there are those who looked like lions, snake men that slithered when they walked, small elves that skipped and a lot more. I follow Jean to a more secluded part of the area. We pass by a few alleys capable of blocking the sun and enter this shop that reeks of alcohol. I see someone sleeping on the checkout and Jean walks up to her.

...

He then wakes her up by smacking her on the back. The girl instantly wakes up. She looks up and sees Jean towering over her. Her face went from a savage to an angel in a second.

"Hello, Esmeralda."

"Oh, Jean! I missed you!" she gets off the counter and wraps her arms around him. "What brings you here?" she cooed.

"I'm gonna need some clothes for my friend over here." Jean slightly tilts her head, and she looks over to me. Me, wearing tattered clothes and all, looked away in embarrassment. She raises her eyebrows and continues to scan me. After a few minutes of shameful silence, she finally spoke. "Come with me. "

She leads me to a narrow staircase that's near the right of her worktop and takes a small golden key out from her chest pocket. I look behind and see Jean taking off his gauntlets.

Which reminds me...

"What happened to the sack you gave me?" I ask.

"I stored it here for a while. Along with your down payment."

"Then why did you leave it laying around in the first place? Why didn't you just put it there?"

"That's because I had to free up some space."

"There's a limit to that? "

"You ask too many questions. What are you, a kid?" he responds in a crisp manner. "We came here to get you some clothes. Now get going."

"You don't need to be so hard on him, Jean. Sheesh." Esmeralda frowns.

"I'm not. Go make him something that can store Essence, has healing runes and also put something that acts as an inhibitor. An insignia will do."

"Well, that's a first. Alright. I'll find something." she then turns to me. "Let's go?"

"After you."

The basement was filled with vivid layers of clothing stacked and hanged against each other. On the far end was a large wooden table that was covered with a huge mess of papers. What looked to be a large kiln stood proudly on its left, purple flames coming out of its mouth. Esmeralda grabs me by the hand and slowly shuffles to the table. Meanwhile, I unintentionally went and got a good look at her , mainly because I was surprised. Wow. I don't know if she's aware of it, but she could easily break hearts with that kind of face.

"What's your name?" she inquires while measuring.

"Sol."

"Okay, Sol. I'm Esmeralda. It's nice to meet you. Feel free to look around for clothes you may like, and don't hesitate to ask questions. I'll go and make what Jean ordered."

"Thanks, Esmeralda."

"Don't mention it." she takes a pen and a blank paper from one of the drawers and starts sketching. I try to look at it, but she blocks it with her right hand and squints her eyes.

"It's pretty embarrassing ." she bashfully says, her emerald green eyes still squinting at me. How could someone be this cute? This should be illegal. "S-Sol?"

"O-Oh, sorry about that." I avert my gaze when I realized I was still looking at her.

"No, I, uhh… apologize as well."

"I'll... go look around now."

"O-okay." she murmurs to herself.

...

THIS IS SO AWKWARD! SOMEONE PLEASE KILL ME NOW! JEAN SHOULD'VE AT LEAST BROKEN THE ICE BETWEEN US! HE DIDN'T EVEN INTRODUCE ME. YES! IT'S JEAN'S FAULT!..... Ugh, this sucks. I should look at the clothes now. See if I can get a good one. That should also keep my mind off of it.

I messed around the rows of coat racks that was on the right near the entrance. The clothes were sorted by color but are as unsurprisingly unorganized as her desk. A mixture of textures and tones filled the rack from left to right, and it honestly made my eyes hurt. Amidst it all, however, something caught my attention. It was a dark shirt that bears a close resemblance to the aesthetic design on Jean's armor. The only difference is that this had golden patterns and it somehow felt tribal. The way the golden streaks danced around the shirt is mesmerizing. So much, in fact, that I never noticed Jean opening the door behind me.

"Ah, yes!"

"Ack! Fuck!"

"That's perfect!" He exclaims. "We'll take this."

"What? "

"Go change. Let's walk around for a while. She does best when you give her some working space." I follow him as he walks upstairs and out of the shop, and I steal one more look at Esmeralda as I close the door behind her. She really is cute woman.

...

"What's this place called?" I question as we pass along the endless maze of buildings and alleys. More stalls came in to view and everyone was everywhere.

"This is the proud city of Stassi. It's known for having good food and being one of the best strongholds in the land. Watch your step."

"Is this where you're from?"

"No. I came from Haestes, but you don't know that place anyway."

"So, why did we come here?

"To get you some clothes and weapons, of course."

"I'm not convinced."

"Why is that? " he chuckled.

"Because you're carrying a lot of arms . I saw some inside your gauntlet thing at the campfire. Whatever it's called. You could've just let me borrow some of it. We wouldn't have to go all the way here, then."

He stops at a close stall and looks at the different varieties of fruits.

"You noticed, huh? That's smart."

I don't genuinely concern myself as an intelligent person, but hearing him say that made me feel so otherwise. It feels good when someone compliments you, but something deep inside me wants to brush it all away. I'm not a smart person. I'm just aware. That's two different things.

"Not really. So..." I casually smile as I pretend not to notice a slight tension forming between us.

"What's your real reason for coming here?"