The woman then said, "You don't know what it is? Didn't you come to town to see the water temple? It's the main tourist attraction in town."
And Gen said, "No. I have other plans in town, I didn't come for sightseeing. However, my friends did come for a bit of a sightseeing trip. Can you explain to me what this temple is?"
"Of course. The temple appears once a year in front of one of the city's beaches. Every year, several adventurers of all ranks enter the temple intending to find something valuable, and many of them succeed. Some of them even awaken essences while they are inside."
"Awaken essences? Really?"
"Yes, and most of them have something to do with water. Because it comes out of the water and helps awaken essences related to it, everyone calls it the water temple."
"Wow, that's interesting, but from what you said, this seems to be a place that only adventurers enter. How can this be considered a tourist attraction?"
"It's because to enter the temple, everyone has to pass a series of tests, and these tests take place on the sands of the beach and in the water in front of the temple. So it has become a custom to gather on the beach where the tests take place to watch the adventurers trying to pass them."
"I see. It really looks like fun. When is this temple going to appear?"
"Well, we're already at the time when it appears. It could appear any day now. If you plan to watch it, I can recommend some places I know that have a good view of the event."
"I don't plan to watch."
"That's too bad, but you did say you didn't come as a tourist."
"No, I didn't finish speaking. I don't intend to watch because I want to participate."
"Really? Are you an adventurer?"
"Yes."
"What is your rank?"
"Well, the ring I have on me is platinum rank."
"Impressive. Platinum is pretty high for your age."
"Thanks, but I haven't updated my current rank yet."
"Are you diamond rank now?"
"No, I'm an awakened."
"What?! Is that serious?"
"Yes, here, look."
Gen then showed the Dehji essence rune, which was a diagonal line made with two dashes, and then the woman said, "Wow, it's true!"
And Gen said, "Yes. Do I have to sign up to be able to enter the water temple or something?"
"Well, the adventurer's guild has their application, but it's not required to join. It serves as a record of who has participated and a means of evaluating their performance during it."
"Hmm, I see. Can you tell me where the adventurers' guild is? I was going to need to go there anyway. I'll take the time to apply."
"Sure. It's in the central part of town, on top of the dome."
"Dome?"
"You've never heard of the dome?"
"No."
"Well, you better see for yourself."
"Okay, thanks for your help."
"You're welcome."
Gen then started to walk back in the direction where Lina and Raja were waiting for him, and then he said, "I'm back. Come with me. There's a clothing store right near there."
And Raja said, "Okay, but I didn't expect that from you, Gen."
"What? What do you mean you didn't expect it? Did you think I wouldn't be able to get information?"
"That's not what I meant. Of course, you can do something so basic. What I didn't expect was for you to start flirting with that woman."
"What do you mean flirting, Raja? She was just saying-"
"No, Gen! You don't have to say anything. I don't want your help. I'd rather gather information on my own."
"Listen to me! I wasn't flirting. She said something about a water temple, and I got curious and decided to ask."
Lina then said, "Water temple? What is that?"
And Gen said, "Let me explain it to you."
Gen then started to explain everything the woman had told him to Lina, and she said, "That's nice. Let's all sign up."
And Raja said, "I'm sorry, I'll pass. I may even go watch, but I won't participate."
Gen then said, "Why Raja? I'm sure it will be fun, and it may be that this temple has something to do with the ruins I'm looking for."
"I'm sorry, Gen, but you're making me choose between you and women from all over the world in bikinis. The choice is obvious.
"Fine, do whatever you want."
Lina then said, "Well, let's go to this clothing store. I can't bear the one I'm using anymore."
And Gen said, "Okay, let's go."
The three then headed toward the store, and on the way, Lina said, "This city is very crowded. I've never seen anything like it in the desert."
And Gen said, "Well, that's to be expected. Tólis is a huge city if you compare it to any city in the desert."
Raja then said, "Still, it's very crowded. It must be because of that water temple you mentioned."
And Gen said, "That's right, the town must be packed with tourists because of it. After all, from what the woman on the beach told me, it only appears once a year. So it's to be expected that many people want to see it."
They then continued walking, and after a while, they arrived at the store.
Lina then said, "Wow, this store is huge!"
The building in front of them had five floors and covered the space of three houses. In front of the door was written the name of the store, Crystal Threads.
Lina then said, "Let's go in!"
And Gen then said, "Lina! Wait a minute, please!"
"What is it, Gen?! You know I want to change clothes as soon as possible. You better have a good reason for stopping me."
"I do. After you walk into this store, you probably won't pick out just one or two pairs of clothes to buy, right?"
"Obviously not. I don't have any clothes on me. I'm going to need at least seven different pairs."
"Really? Do you intend to buy seven pairs?"
"What kind of question is that Gen? It's like you don't know me. I'm going to buy at least twenty pairs of clothes and with a strong emphasis on at least."
"That's what I thought. Well, from the size and name of this store, I can imagine that the clothes here won't be cheap, so I wanted to explain-"
"Gen, stop wasting my time and get to the point. What if someone takes an outfit that I would like."
"Okay, I'll get right to the point then. I only have three silver coins."
"What?!"
"That's what I have left after going to the oasis and buying the supplies we used during these two days of travel. So, it's not like I don't want to buy all these clothes that you want, but I don't have enough money at the moment. So I'm going to need you to save as much as possible. After all, we still need to eat and find a place to sleep."
"Fine, but before we leave this town, you're going to have to find your way to get some money!"
"You got it."
Raja then said, "Well, on that note. I will also need some pairs of clothes."
Lina then looked at him with a frown, and Raja said, "Two pairs will do so that I can change from one day to the next and mix them up sometimes."
And Lina said, "... That's fine. Fair enough."
Gen then said, "Well, I'll also need about two pairs of clothes."
And Lina said, "You too?! We came here inside your home. Don't you have any clothes there?"
"I do, but I forgot to bring them in the heat of the moment, hahaha ..."
"You ... are unbelievable!"
"T-Thank you?"
"Shut up! Let's just go inside already!"
"Okay."
Lina then went towards the door of the store with Raja and Gen right behind her, and as they reached the door, before they could open it, it fell apart into water opening the passage.
Lina then said, "Wow, what a great way to use the essence of water."
And Gen thought, 'Damn, this store gets more expensive by the second ...'
They went in, saw that the place had clothes everywhere, and then heard a woman say, "Good morning, how may I help you."
She was about their age and had long blonde hair that went a little past her shoulders. She had blue eyes, must have been about Gen's shoulder height, and was very well dressed for someone who was working.
Lina then said, "We need some clothes, but if possible, nothing too expensive."
And the woman said, "Sure, come with me."
Gen then thought, 'Great, they have someone to guide us around the store, and from her clothes, it looks like we'll have to economize on lunch.'
The woman then said, "My name is Briny, but you can call me Bri.", and then she turned and winked in Raja's and Gen's direction.
Raja then said, "My name is Raja. It's a pleasure, Bri."
And Gen thought, 'That's all I needed! Now, this idiot will buy anything she pushes on him.'
Briny then said, "The pleasure is mine. Come on, I'll take you to the cheapest part of the store."
She then led them to a staircase, and Gen said, "Aren't the cheap clothes on the first floor?"
And Briny said, "No, they're on the fifth floor."
"On the fifth floor?!"
"Yeah, but don't worry, time goes fast in here. We'll be on the fifth floor before you know it, hahaha.", Briny said with her hand covering her mouth as she smiled.
Lina then thought, 'She's so cute!'
Raja then thought, 'She's so beautiful!'
Gen then thought, 'She's so evil!'