When I woke up and turned on the dim light that was the standard in the mornings, the elf was still sleeping happily with a large smile on her face. My clapping had not even caused her to stir. She must be quite comfortable…
I couldn't resist…
I brushed her hair behind her long ears and kissed her. Her reactions made me wonder if she was truly sleeping. She kissed me back but continued snoring.
How odd.
I carefully let go of her frame and stepped out of the hammock to do my morning routine. While brushing my hair, I took some strands in my hand and held them under my nose. The smell of the shampoo was still strong, and I closed my eyes to simply enjoy the smell.
When I brushed my hair after cleaning my face, the elf seemed to awaken.
"Hmmm. Morning, El," She said, while I worked.
"Morning sleepyhead," I responded.
"How are you feeling?" She asked as she walked up to me and sat down behind my human body. She hugged me while putting her nose in my hair.
I stretched my arms. "Slightly sore from yesterday."
"Should have known you'd push yourself too far."
"Yeah, well, at least I know how far I can go now. Here." I handed the brush to her and she started working on her hair as well.
"What do you want to start with today?" Velariah asked.
"Let's have breakfast first. After that, we should get those spools finished."
"Yeah, good point."
"We could make a stop at Dworag's after and see what the possibilities are… armor wise," I added.
"Sounds good to me so far. You want to delay your strength training until your arms feel better?"
I nodded. "Yes."
They didn't hurt too much per se, but I didn't want to make things worse.
Elly walked down the stairs the same moment we entered the dining room.
"Velariah, your father has returned. He is currently resting. I thought you should know."
"How is he?" The white-haired elf asked.
"He's fine. He was just tired."
Velariah turned to me. "I hope that means there are some answers."
"I hope so too."
Elly set the table for breakfast and joined us.
"By the way," She started, while sipping on some coffee. "I've bought some lemons from Duskleaf's traders. What were your plans for them again, Miss Elania?"
"If I am correct, you can squeeze the juice from them, then slowly evaporate it and have some powder remain." I thought for a second.
"Maybe the peels work too. Technically, you can eat the peels, but nobody does it. I guess if you wash them properly, and then dry them, you can pulverize them into powder. Maybe that works, too? Anyway, this powder is a powerful preservative. If you add a teaspoon of it to your bread dough, you should get bread that will stay fresh for much longer."
"Very interesting…" Elly continued sipping her coffee.
"Got to admit, this kind of stuff is crazy convenient," Velariah admitted.
"I did a bit of baking back on Earth. This was a powerful life-ha— I mean, a great trick to make it better in an easy way. I never made the powder myself, but I know citrus fruits contain a lot of the powder that I'm talking about."
"And is that common knowledge in your old world?" Velariah asked.
"Uh, how to put it. Most people know that the substance is found in citrus fruits but they wouldn't bother to do what I just suggested. If people want that substance specifically, it's instead sold in small capsules or pills separately."
"Very interesting knowledge, indeed," Velariah let out once more.
We finished our breakfast. I didn't take any tea, because Velariah would have to work on my behind. I didn't want to mess around with caffeine and have the properties of my silk change or become uncontrollable.
Velariah had a cup of the drink of the gods as well. My jealousy knew no bounds…
Once secluded in our bedroom, Velariah started filling the spools with thick strands of silk. I was resting my arms on the bathtub and simply relaxed while Velariah slowly pulled out the threads.
Elly was walking Gray at the moment. I wouldn't need to fear him sticking his nose into my business, quite literally.
"You know, this whole process is quite fascinating…" Velariah said as she worked.
"The process of creating silk or the process of you pulling it out?"
"Both, I guess. To see the process from up close, magnified over a thousand times, I never knew it could be this intriguing to watch spiders create silk."
"That's some next-level flirting you're doing there behind me." I smiled.
"What can I say? Having a spider girlfriend is interesting in itself, wouldn't you agree?"
"Heh. To me, an elf girlfriend is in the same category: impossible. At least, until a month or so ago."
Velariah chuckled at that.
"You're not afraid of spiders, at all, are you?" I asked.
"Nope. The kinds that live around here, well, minus the ones outside the dungeon, aren't dangerous at all."
"What about me?" I asked with a grin.
"You're even less dangerous."
"That's not what your eyes said when we first met." I fired back.
"I would have loved to see your eyes the first time you found out you turned into… this."
"Probably worse than yours," I said.
"I can imagine."
She continued for a bit before she spoke again. "Though, I do think you could have been turned into things worse than a half-spider. You could have been a slime. Imagine."
"I don't even want to think about it… can they even see?"
"Who knows? I don't think anybody has information on how they perceive their surroundings."
"It took me a while, but it's quite interesting how I can perceive certain things that I was never able to feel before," I said. "I can feel the slightest tremors in the ground. On top of that, there's the 'I don't know how many extra sets of limbs' I can now control."
"I don't see how it's a bad thing." The elf spoke. "I'm done here, by the way. Seven spools, ready to be sold. We'll have a grand total of slightly over sixty gold with these."
"Nice," I said as I turned around. "And yes, these extra limbs are amazing," I said as I placed my pedipalps on her shoulders.
I then laughed slightly. "If I ever have to change my profession, I guess I could always offer massages." I spoke as I started kneading the elf's shoulders.
She closed her eyes and visibly enjoyed the touch."Hmmm. I'd pay good money for that."
"I know you would, and I'll do it for free to you." I quickly kissed her. "Let's see Dworag, shall we? Or do you want to have a look at the guild first to see what quests there are?"
"Let's see if my father is awake first."
"Or that."
We exited the bathroom to see Elly cleaning the table of a thin layer of dust that had settled down on the wood from the dusty books from yesterday. Gray walked up to me and I gave him the necessary attention.
"My father is still sleeping, I presume?"
Elly nodded. "He is."
"Right, let's get some things done. We will check again later."
I stretched my arms once more and helped Velariah with her armor. I decided to put on my chest piece and the two unbladed gauntlets. I reckoned that would be enough of a reference for Dworag to figure out what the rest of the armor around my arms would have to look like. I did not take my spear with me, either.
It didn't take long to reach Dworag's shop. I walked directly to his workspace, while Velariah entered the building. Seconds after I arrived at the dwarf's forge, he and Velariah walked out of the rear exit.
"Miss Elania, a pleasure to see ya."
"Hi Dworag, how's it going?"
"Not too bad… now." He winked.
Classic Dworag.
"I heard you're looking to cover up more of that body of yours. Shame, I would say, but understandable."
His flirting knew no bounds, did it? Velariah didn't seem all too pleased with it, but I think she knew the dwarf wasn't entirely serious.
"Yeah. I'm looking to get some proper defense. My arms are too exposed for my liking. A helm would be great, too. Lastly, I'd like to know if there is some way to armor up my front two sets of legs."
"Girl, ya gonna turn into heavy cavalry at this rate. I started working on that saddle of yours as well. I figured you'd want to try that someday."
I guess I was turning into heavy cavalry. What were those ancient cavalrymen called again? The ones with heavy armor. Cataphracts, I believe?
"Is it available to try yet?" I asked.
Dworag shook his head. "Not yet, I'm afraid. There are a few adjustments that need to be made before it will even fit."
He walked over to my legs and took one in his hand. He raised it and eyed it before knocking on it.
I could feel everything, but there was no pain.
"Are you sure you even need to armor these? This seems to be mighty tough as it is."
"Uh. I know it is, I just don't see it stopping swords or axes."
I didn't even have to mention a heavy mace. I already knew what that could do…
The leg that I got crushed by the troll's mace twitched as I relived the pain in my mind.
"And then there's this."
I turned away from the dwarf and stabbed the air in front of me with my first set, followed by my second set.
"Oh, I see what you're getting at. Ye gonna need Coldanus's hand in this as well, I presume?"
"I'd like to add a weapon to the armor if possible, yes."
I pulled up a leg in front of me and contracted the last joint.
"I was thinking to add a blade of some kind here, so that it extends beyond the last joint and it doesn't hinder my mobility. I can stab like this." I pointed to where I wanted the blade to extend.
I showed the dwarf how I could thrust my leg forward while keeping the last joint contracted.
"Hmmm." He rubbed his chin, took the leg in his hand, inspected it, and bent the last part several times.
"You don't want these claws obstructed by armor, is what you're telling me?"
I nodded.
"She can climb up walls with those." Velariah grinned.
"I see…" The dwarf continued his thoughts. "I think you already cut our work out for us. I think what you suggested would be the best option."
He took a few steps back and observed my leg from a distance.
"What did you have in mind, mail or plate?"
"What's best?" I asked.
"In your case, definitely plate. I don't believe the weight is an issue, is it?"
"Hah." Velariah chuckled. "Most definitely not."
"My only issue is that I can't say when it'll be done. I need to make something from scratch. It's going to be pricey and it's going to take some time before it's done. Is that an issue?"
"I trust you know what you're doing, Dworag. I want the best, so it's fine with me. What price range are we looking at for a helmet, leg armor, and vambraces?"
"Vambraces I have readily available. The same goes for helmets. It's the legs that will cost you the most. You want the best quality I can offer, it's going to be fifty gold for all three pieces. That price includes three enchant slots on each item."
Hot damn. This was an expensive business.
And I wanted armor for Velariah too…
"How much for the helm and vambraces?" I asked.
"Ten."
"Vel, what do you say? Let's get those two items and then have him start on my leg armor. Say, Dworag, how much would you charge for a complete set for Velariah?"
"Huh?" Velariah commented.
"Forty gold, same quality, same enchant opportunities. I can have it done in a day or two. I'd only have to make minor adjustments."
I was never going to financially recover from this…
Actually, I was. I just needed to eat a lot…
"Let's go for it," I said.
Velariah was still at a loss for words.
"Miss Elania, where do you get all that money from, if I may ask?" Dworag looked at me with disbelief on his face.
I planted my butt on the ground and created a thick thread of non-sticky silk, which I then picked up and handed to the dwarf.
"Here's how."
He tried to pull the thread apart but failed miserably. Spider silk was among the toughest substances there were if I recalled correctly. I knew a thread of silk of the same mass as an iron thread was far stronger.
"I sell these to the tailor, one gold a spool."
"I'm mighty jealous of you, Miss Elania," He said as he stared at the silk in his hands. "But I'm happy I can sell my wares to you. I'd hate to have anything happen to you and Lady Velariah."
He laid the thread on his anvil and told us to wait for a second while he grabbed his measuring tape.
He entered the building and walked out with said tape moments later.
He proceeded to extensively measure my legs, my arms, and my head. How he managed to remember all those measurements without writing them down was a miracle to me.
"I should have those two items done by tomorrow. If I have time left, I'll work on Lady Velariah's set or your saddle. Are ya planning on heading out anytime soon?"
"Uhm, we have some plans to travel to Zerdania. We're not sure when we will leave, though. There are a couple of issues we need to take care of in and around Dawnleaf."
"That's quite the trip. I'll see if I can get this done with some urgency."
The dwarf walked over to a jute bag filled with coals and added some to the forge with a shovel specifically made for it. He then stepped on the bellows to get the forge heated up.
"What are ya still staring at? Off with ye."
"Thanks, Dworag," I smiled.
"Not a problem, Miss Elania."
Velariah and I left the premises, and soon found ourselves in the center of the village.
"Those are some premium prices, aren't they?" I asked the elf.
"Well, it depends on how you look at it," Velariah said. "You're playing with your life, after all. Good armor makes all the difference in a fight. Yes, they are expensive, but nothing is worth more than your life."
I didn't have a reply to that.
"Thank you, though, El. I really appreciate you helping out."
"It's alright. You've given me so much as it is." I smiled. "Besides, I'm going to exploit this money-making machine behind me as much as I can, if I can protect you and the others with it."
"Just don't spoil us too much, El. Don't allow anyone to rely on you too much."
"Armor can be the difference between life and death, you just said it. Making sure you all have good armor is the least I can do."
"I'm not going to be able to change your mind, am I?"
I shook my head. "Nope."
Velariah chuckled. "Alright, then. Time to check the guild, shall we?"
We found the usual suspects at our table. They were looking over a piece of paper in Draco's hand.
"Thought you guys were gonna grab some coffee at our place," Velariah said.
"We thought about it," Draco said. "But we wanted to check out the available quests first. This one looks interesting enough."
"What's it about?" I asked curiously.
"Giant Borers have shown up at the forest's border. I have a feeling they were driven away from the forest where they normally dwell underground by a certain someone." Draco spoke.
"Giant boars? Are those like Saibon Boars?" I questioned.
"Borers," Seralyn corrected. "Some sort of underground maggots. If they reach the fields, they will ruin the crops. They are far worse than moles."
Giant maggots? That sounded nasty.
Wait, NOT THE COFFEE!
"We're taking this quest," I said, more determined than ever.
I wasn't sure if they had decided on it but I wasn't going to let anyone interfere with my glorious coffee empire.
Draco smiled. "I knew you'd say that. I have to warn you though, these things are not as innocent as you would think. Giant maggot is more of a comparative term. They are deadly when they are aggravated, and I'm pretty sure that's what we're going to do."
"Do they have, like, giant teeth or something, and do they react to tremors in the ground from running, or what?"
"How did you know?" Seralyn asked.
You've got to be kidding me.
That one 90's movie was real in this world?
I covered my face with my palm. "I can't believe this…"
"Better not to ask," Velariah said. "Some action sounds good though, but we do need to stop by my home again for Elania's weapons. My father is home as well but was asleep when we left. If he is awake now, I'd like to talk to him."
Seralyn stood up. "Let's get some coffee!"
"Addicted much?" I asked.
"It's perfect before a quest," She said.
She had a point, though.
"You think my father caused the borers to migrate here?" Velariah asked the lizardman.
"It coincides perfectly, wouldn't you agree? Your father uses his ultimate attack, and the next day we have a quest here to deal with Giant Borers," He replied.
Sounds plausible to me.
Draco and Nira stood up as well.
"Coffee doesn't sound like a bad idea." Draco continued.
I had the largest smile on my face. How could I not? I had converted multiple people to the coffee religion already. Who knew how many more would follow?
We walked over to Velariah's mansion. Elly opened the door and said Valtheril was awake and waiting at the table. Velariah asked the maid to prepare some coffee.
We entered the dining area where Valtheril was seated at the head, scribbling away on a piece of paper. As soon as we opened the door, he turned the document over.
"Welcome home, father," Velariah said. "How are you doing? We saw your attack yesterday."
"I'm fine. How are you guys? Please, sit down." He held up his hand to the unoccupied chairs.
"I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but I'm afraid I can't share much."
"How come?" Velariah asked.
"It's… classified."