???: "Sorry, but you cannot be allowed to pass."
Tatsu: "yeah, I get that one a lot."
City guard: "then you must know that thief-class individuals aren't allowed within city limits."
Tatsu: "Yep, but I'm not of the thief class, I'm Tatsu, an adventurer. Here's my guild card. The mark on my face is a scar I got a while back."
The guard looked at the guild card and apologized: "Sorry about that, must happen a lot, huh?"
Tatsu: "yeah, but I totally understand why, so it's all good. What's that saying about 'no harm, no foul'?"
City Guard: "you seem pretty lax about it, but I would suggest caution inside the city, some people can get really hostile if your appearance rubs them the wrong way."
Tatsu: "Thanks for the advice, I'll keep it in mind."
City guard: "alright then, go ahead on through the gates, oh and welcome to the demon city of Gallich! Safe travels, adventurers!"
△▼△▼△▼△▼△
The city is tall.
As in, almost every building in it was at least ten to fifteen stories tall. The roads looked freshly paved, almost every surface was bright and polished. A few meters in front of Tatsu was a sign that read "residential" meaning all of these buildings were likely lodging, things like hotels and apartments. The air was filled with a pleasant aroma, akin to the smell of freshly baked bread. Tatsu, however, was too somber to enjoy it. After trailing a ways down the road in the cart, Jim tried to spark conversation, hoping to break the tension.
Jim: "Alright then, what do we do now?"
Kori: "This is the part where I take my leave. Thanks for the ride, Tatsu."
Tatsu: "So this is it, then?"
Kori: "yeah, I'll see you guys around then… I guess"
Kori slumped out of the cart and walked towards one of the sidestreets on the left. Once she was out of sight, Irumina conked Tatsu on the head.
Tatsu: "what was that for?!"
Irumina: "You really are awful, Tatsu, treating a woman like that."
Tatsu: "What? We made a deal, and now it's done. What about that makes me awful?"
Jim: "Even I can see what's going on here, and i'm supposed to be the dumb one. You really are dense for being such an intelligent guy."
Irumina: "it's obvious she wants to tell you something! This is the part where your dumb ass goes after her to hear what she has to say!"
Tatsu: "Is it?"
Irumina: "Yes! Now go!"
Tatsu: "Umm. Right."
Watching Tatsu run after Kori, Jim sighed and looked to the sky.
Jim: "I wish she would just tell him how she feels. Honestly, she makes their relationship twenty times more confusing than it needs to be."
Irumina: "You know, that may be the very first time you've said something of actual value. Has the world gone mad at last?"
Jim: "yeah, yeah, hah hah. I can only tell what's going on because I used to watch a lot of medical and crime dramas with my mother."
Irumina: "I'm not sure what a 'medical drama' is, but I'm sure you're just spouting more nonsense at this point."
Jim chuckled and spoke in a low tone: "yeah, maybe. But if there's one thing I've truly learned from them, it's the side characters that truly have it rough. They never get together, their relationship always remains one-sided."
Irumina: "What was that? Sorry, I couldn't hear you."
Jim mustered a faint smile: "it's nothing, don't worry about it."
Irumina: "Sure."