The way to the blacksmith was not as peaceful as I wanted it to be. For good or worse, Verónica and Jasmine exchanged insults until I got tired of them and personally asked them to stop.
I had heard that people that deeply trust each other tend to be mean, but I can´t believe that right now, at least not with these two.
I also had taken off my school coat, it was not obligatory to wear it outside the academy´s hours, so I took advantage of the permission.
"It´s been a while since I have been to the market" said Verónica while staring at the posts.
"Well, if you have time to spare, we can get a snack or two"
"Really? Is that okay?"
"Sure thing, I was going to buy some things anyway"
Her face suddenly got brighter, it was adorable how much she had gotten excited by that suggestion.
Now there is no reason to not do it.
"How about you, Jasmine?"
"I´ll accept any gift from you, even food"
"That´s good to know, now let´s see what´s hot"
To get into the market I had to leave Twilight in a public stable, since she was not a very friendly drake I had to pay extra for a private room.
I need to train her to become more friendly with other drakes...
Once I paid the fee we walked to the market with Verónica and Jasmine making most of the talk. Maybe that little fight they had truly strengthened their bond?
It wasn´t long before the smell of food reached us.
"Mmmm~. What´s that wonderful scent?"
"That, princess, is the smell of a grilled stick"
Following Jasmine´s finger, we saw a post where a man wearing white clothing was offering a pile of cubicular pieces of grilled meat all joined together by a metallic stick. The food locked juicy and delicious, so we all thought it would be a nice thing to get as a first souvenir.
"All right, Jasmine, go and get us as a stick"
"Understood"
"What? Are you not going with her?"
"No..."
"Why?"
"Look around"
When Verónica moved her eyes away from me into our surroundings she noticed the way some people were looking at us. More specifically, at me.
They were suspicious, shocked, nervous, and angry. There was a good variety of feelings painted on their faces, all due to the fight that Isabella and I had with the nobles. These people had watched us, and they had witnessed my speech from our victory.
"They are insecure. The opinion of us irregulars is still not a good one, the speech of Dominique allowed a spark of doubt into their minds but is still too early for them to pick a side"
"Even something so simple as to sell us something can get them in trouble with the community, that´s why I´m sending Jasmine. Nobody knows her, and since she´s wearing her uniform, her actions will seem just like a request from her unknown master"
"... I see... You thought of everything huh..."
The face of Verónica was a bitter one, she agreed with my reasoning, but she also understood the sad implication of my actions.
"This kingdom needs to learn much from you, Dominique..."
"... Not only from me..."
"Right... There´s that girl too... Isabella..."
Yes. If there is anyone destined to change this kingdom for the good, then that person is the heroine, not me. I´m just here to be by your side, and for that, I need to do the things I do. I have my priorities very clear, and improving the opinion of the irregular population is just a must in my plans to get a seat by your side, nothing more.
"We´ll wait for you here, so hurry, I still need you to take us elsewhere"
"Right on it, master"
The good mood of Verónica took a hit from our conversations, I would have liked to see more of her smile for a longer time, but that was just too much to ask at this point.
Jasmine took the money and went to the post, it was a quick exchange of words with the vendor to get our food and she returned with our food in hand in no time.
"Let´s keep moving, I don´t want anyone to link us to that post"
"Where to?"
"You look like you know your way in here, take us somewhere we can get some clothes"
"Oh, you´re buying a new suit?"
"Just regular clothes"
"Then, by all means, let me pick you something nice!"
"Let´s get to the shop first, Jasmine?"
"Leave it to me, master, I know a good place"
She devoured her meat and disposed of the stick in a nearby trashcan, then she grabbed my arm and began to walk forward.
Before I could say anything, Verónica did the same thing with my free arm.
"... How am I supposed to eat like this?"
"Oh, let me help you with that"
Verónica took the meat from my hand and got it closer to my mouth with the motion of her arm.
"Here, open wide"
"Tch... You got some reflexes..."
She was feeding me.
I felt a wave of heat reach my face as I slowly gave in to her offer. The moment my tongue got to savor the meat a splash of juices and salt exploded inside my mouth. It was way better than I had anticipated.
"... Wow, this is great!"
"Fufu~. It´s simple, but that´s just part of its greatness"
"Simple things are the best things, right?"
"I´m glad you get it"
Jasmine and I smiled at each other. Verónica tightened her grip on my arm as her face adopted an awkward expression.
"My, my. Don´t you know that jealous girls are the worst~"
"I-I am not jealous!"
"And I´m as virgin as you"
"What?!"
"I thought we were telling silly lies, so I took my turn"
"Y-You!"
Verónica´s face got redder with each second, and the grin of Jasmine got wider in consequence.
"Please don´t make an escene here..."
My pleads landed nowhere near their brains, I knew so because they kept this act until we reached the store. Once inside I went directly to the hats, I picked a classical black so that I don´t stand out so much. Both Verónica and Jasmine went together around the store to choose the rest of my outfit.
The employees looked at me with curiosity and chitchatted here and there, but nothing to pay mind. After a short while they returned with some clothes, I went to the changing rooms to try them on, and after a short review, I decided to bough them all.
In the end, I had 3 new outfits with one of them right now on my skin. It was a brown leather jacket covering a grey T-shirt. I was also wearing grey trousers with black boots that paired with my hat.
"All right, this will do. Now let´s get you both something nice"
They looked at me with a quizzed expression, as if they didn´t know what I meant with those words.
"What? Did you think I would take your time just for free? I´m not that broke, so go wild"
Verónica seem reluctant to accept, but Jasmine convinced her, or rather, forced her to accept my offer and grabbed her hand as she ran to the women's section.
A short while passed when they returned to me with a pair of set of clothes in each hand.
"Which one you like the most?" Was the question that both girls asked me.
Verónica had a one-piece red dress in her left hand and a casual outfit in her right hand, if there was something worth saying about the clothes was that they looked quite similar to my actual appearance.
I of course chose the right hand since I had already seen her in a dress.
I´ll buy that later...
Regarding Jasmine, she picked some clothes that looked way too professional for her usual personality. There was a purple suit in her left hand and a set of purple and yellow formal clothes in her right hand.
I´ve already seen her in a dress too, and the variety of choices will increase with more clothes, so I also went with the right hand on her.
I need to get some money soon...
They both smiled and thanked me for the gift, the image of both of these beauties easily captivated the people around us. Me included.
While they were getting in their new clothes I went to the cashier to pay for everything. The man in charge gave me a look of 'Can you pay all of this?'.
I got a bit irritated by that, but nothing of that mattered since his face changed as soon as I pulled out the money he wanted.
With a bright smile, I received a ticket and a "Thank you for your patronage" when everything was said and done. Since Verónica´s face had to be hidden I also bought her a pair of sunglasses and a red cap. Jasmine not very discretely whispered, "What about me?" so, as to not look like an asshole, I got her some new earrings.
"How nice it is to have a man with money~"
"I´ll buy you something next time, so don´t worry"
My meals are going to be a bit more humble for the next weeks...
When we left the store we were able to mix a little easier with the crowd, we would still get some glances here and there, but those eyes were more about people astonished by the looks of the girls than anything else.
Nothing to really worry about.
"I still need to get some other things, so I´ll have to take you around some more, Veca"
"Oh I don´t mind at all, rather, I like being with you, doing this. It´s very fun!"
She immediately grabbed my arm when she said so and gave me a wide grin. My heart jumped at the sight of such a cute creature and I couldn´t contain the rising of my lips into a smile.
"Then, let´s go. Jasmine, lead the way"
My maid gave me a short bow and answered with a tender smile.
"As you wish, master"