Before going back to their apartment, they took a quick lunch first at the nearest eatery around them.
Then they spent the whole afternoon buying essential things like toiletries, umbrellas, medicines, and other raw ingredients for their food, which mostly included eggs, salt, spices, other condiments, and some vegetables.
The sky was tinted with peach hues when they finally finished hopping from one store to another. Lucian offered to just eat soup at a small restaurant as their dinner. Eugene agreed.
After they finished eating, they rented another carriage to go back. Lucian was sleeping quietly while his head lay on Eugene's shoulders. Eugene still rubbed the younger man's shoulder like he did back on the locomotive. He was slightly worried about Lucian. Unlike him, who's an only child with no parents or friends at all, Lucian had people around him who were constantly worrying for him.
It took them 45 minutes because it was peak hour. Eugene paid the driver first before he gently woke up Lucian. This time, Lucian woke up without whining. He was even sensible enough to pick up his own suitcase while going out of the carriage.
However, when they entered the door of room 22, the young man suddenly dropped his suitcase without a care before plopping his body heavily on the sofa. Lucian groaned in delight after feeling the sofa's softness beneath his skin. He was lying face-down on the sofa, his back facing the ceiling.
Eugene helplessly shook his head. He hung his coat and hat first on the rack before he walked towards Lucian. He then carefully removed the young man's leather shoes, his coat, and the extra layer of clothes beneath, leaving him with just a white dress shirt, his black slacks, and his black socks. He was hesitating whether or not to go further or just let him be.
"Lucian? Lucian. Wear a nightshirt first. You'll feel uncomfortable with your clothes," he whispered with a nudge.
Lucian's golden eyes peeked through his fluttering eyelashes. "Mmm...?"
"Dress up first before going to sleep." Eugene caressed Lucian's black hair that was slightly covering his eyes. "Come on," he urged.
Lucian frowned. "I don't wanna..."
"Wanna?" Eugene echoed with furrowed eyebrows. 'What a foreign word.' He chose to ignore it, though. He focused his attention on the younger man's eyes, which were slowly closing again. "Lucian, please? Dress up first for me."
Lucian opened his tired eyes again, glaring at Eugene. He pouted. "Hmph, okay!" He sluggishly walked to the bedroom and slammed the door shut.
Eugene knew that he was probably sulking. After all, he interrupted the sleeping beauty's rest.
...
When Eugene finally finished wearing his own nightshirt, he entered the bedroom with quiet steps. As expected, Lucian was already lying there, clenching his blanket closer to his chest.
Eugene chuckled at that. "So adorable," he murmured under his breath before gently joining the young alpha on the bed. "Good night, Lucian."
No one answered.
Eugene smiled at the silence. His eyes slowly closed as his breathing turned lighter.
...
The two proceeded with their morning tasks, with Eugene preparing his morning tea and Lucian cooking their breakfast. He was cooking a delicious kedgeree.
Eugene can smell its fragrance in the living room. He put down the tea pot and strode towards the small kitchen. Lucian's broad back entered his vision. The younger alpha was already wearing a white shirt with its sleeves rolled up and beige slacks. He also wore a white apron.
"Mmm, something smells so good coming from this kitchen that my stomach started to rumble from intense hunger, Lucian," he said with a hint of teasing. Eugene leaned on the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest and his legs crossed as well. His blue eyes glinted with delight as he stared at the busy man. "When will you finish cooking?"
Lucian did not turn back to look at Eugene. He was so focused that he gave a nonchalant reply, "Yeah. Just wait for a while. I'm almost done, Eugene."
"Fine, if you need help, just tell me."
"Yeah."
Eugene chuckled at Lucian's soft and careless 'yeah' before settling back in the living room.
Lucian soon finished cooking, the smoky, hot dish filling the big plate. He carefully delivered it to the living room's square table. Sadly, there's no dining room in the apartment, so they could only make do with this.
"Wow!" Eugene exclaimed after staring at the mouth-watering food. The kedgeree looked so appetizing. "Since when did you buy the extra ingredients?" he asked while preparing his own plate of kedgeree.
Lucian sat on his usual single chair, fixing his sleeves first before answering Eugene, "I woke up earlier than usual to buy them at the local market. Rest assured, I cleaned them well before cooking."
"Thank you, Lucian. I'll try cooking for us next time," Eugene offered after realizing that it was mostly Lucian who cooked for breakfast.
"I'm looking forward to it," Lucian said with a smile.
Utensils clinked to make up for the silence between them. It was always like this. No one would force the other to converse just for the sake of avoiding awkwardness. In fact, they find it peaceful when they're like this.
They were almost done eating when Lucian suddenly broke the silence. "Eugene, where are we going today?" He nearly forgot that they were supposed to investigate today.
"The border's printing press," Eugene answered while sipping on his tea with the gracefulness of a nobleman.
Lucian squinted his golden eyes at Eugene. "Why the printing press, though?"
"Aside from the guise of inquiring about their publishing fees as an 'author', I would also like to see if a journalist is involved in this conspiracy. After all, there were no newspapers about the lady's birthday celebration. We only knew of it through the files."
"Speaking of the files, I've been wondering this for quite some time now. Where did you get it?" Lucian asked while tilting his head like a puppy. "Aren't the investigators gone? I mean, they dropped the case, right?"
Eugene nodded. "Yes, that's right. They dropped it and handed it to the border's local police, but an infiltration by some bandits happened years ago, causing the files to be gone from the police's hands. I acquired this through the underground market."
"Then if they found out that we have this...?" Lucian trailed off.
Eugene smirked. "We'll end up in jail, if that's the case. Maybe just for some questioning first, and then we would stay there until our lawyer can prove that we are indeed innocent."
Lucian gulped. 'Damn, this protagonist in front of me is badass!'
The breakfast ended with Lucian overthinking again and Eugene coaxing the other that he would take care of it as much as possible.
'Even if I own a bank, I just can't bear to pay for a bail!' he cried in his head while walking downstairs. The receptionist was not around, so they proceeded on their way to board a public carriage. The two were thankful that the printing press was just near the station where carriages drop their passengers, so the fee they paid was lower than yesterday.
Lucian was still conscious of the transmission of 'parasites', so he avoided physical contact with anyone in the carriage just to be safe. Eugene was the only exception.
Every time they would cross a bumpy road, Lucian would hold tight to the carriage walls so that he wouldn't fall off. There are times, though, that his hand will slip off, so he has no choice but to cling to the alpha beside him.
"Eugene," he whispered the person's name in frustration as their bodies pressed together. "Why has the road been like this for too long now? Are we going to the mountain or something?" His low voice made his complaints sound more like a coquettish whine.
Eugene took a deep breath to calm himself, but it only served as torture for him as he accidentally inhaled Lucian's fresh scent. He gripped the younger man's waist to keep him from sliding off his seat. "This road is under construction. Bear with it for a while," he murmured to Lucian's ears.
Lucian grunted but did not voice his opinions anymore. Thank goodness the bumpy road turned smooth sooner than Lucian expected.
The two passengers, together with them, felt awkward seeing two alphas so close inside a carriage. It was actually rare for an alpha to get along with another alpha since alphas are generally territorial. They were oblivious that Cheng Ge, in Lucian's body, does not actually recognize gender roles in this world as something so significant.
The silent torture of the two passengers being fed dog food finally came to an end as the carriage reached the station. The two betas scrambled to get out of the carriage as if a monster were chasing them out.
Lucian sighed in relief as he peeled himself off from Eugene's embrace. He lifted his suitcase and was about to go out first when Eugene suddenly went out. Lucian thought that Eugene would start walking ahead or that he hurried out because he wanted to pee or something.
Thus, Lucian was so surprised to see the alpha waiting for him outside. And like a gentleman, he held out his hand for Lucian. The younger alpha didn't know what to say, but it would be insulting if he ignored Eugene's kind actions, and so he placed his own hand on Eugene's fair one.
Eugene reflexively gripped Lucian's warm and soft hands tighter before letting them go as Lucian came out of the carriage with ease.
"Thank you, Eugene," Lucian said with a bright smile. He really appreciated Eugene's kindness toward him. It's rare for an adult man to be as affectionate to a friend as Eugene is.
Eugene smiled back. "You're welcome, Lucian."
The reason for Eugene's advances was because he reached a conclusion last night. And it was to make his crush like him back, for his crush to get used to his touch. Eugene won't force Lucian to like him, but if Lucian did feel something for him, Eugene wouldn't shy away and would take Lucian's affection with all his heart.
His interest in Lucian turned out to be deeper than expected.
"Eugene, lead the way," Lucian reminded the lost-in-thought Eugene with a gentle tap at his shoulder. "I'm a foreigner here, so please be my guide," he added with a laugh.
"Then, please follow me," Eugene grinned as he followed along Lucian's role-playing.
Lucian was relieved that the walk was not long as they stopped in front of a building. On top of it was a signage saying "Papirus Printing Services".
Eugene walked towards the front door before twisting the doorbell's handle. Lucian watched as a male beta opened the door with a bow, letting Eugene in. Lucian immediately followed upon seeing Eugene's confirmed glance.
"How did you manage to let us in?" Lucian asked in a whisper as they walked through the corridor.
Eugene snapped his fingers at him. "I have my ways."
"It's a secret?" Lucian raised an eyebrow.
"It's a secret. You have to offer me something first that's worth the price of telling my secret to you." Eugene tempted Lucian like a sly fox.
Lucian, however, was not a dumb young bunny. He waved his hand nonchalantly at Eugene's seduction. "No, thank you. I'm fine as it is."
Eugene laughed and did not comment any further.
The short corridor led them to another door. Eugene knocked first before twisting the doorknob open. The smell of paper entered their noses once they stepped inside.
What came into their view was a mechanical printing press, also known as Gutenberg's Press in Cheng Ge's world. He was so in awe that he stood there, unmoving.
Eugene noticed the stunned Lucian, but he didn't wake him up from his reverie. Instead, he accompanied him in just standing and staring at the device and the busy people working on it.
Once Lucian snapped out of his trance, Eugene started striding towards the nearest person, who happened to be the one using the printing press. "Good day, sir!" he said the moment the man saw them.
"Good day, young Sirs. I'm Peter Wright, the editor-in-chief of this company. Is there something you need?" The man introduced himself as they shook hands.
"I'm Johanne, and this is Logan, my editor. I'm an author," Eugene said with a charming smile. "Indeed, I'm here to inquire about your printing services, particularly in the line of printing books. May I check the quality of your business? I'm currently in search of a good printing press to cater to my works," he replied to the editor-in-chief's question with a quick glance at the whole vicinity.
Lucian simply watched their exchange with pursed lips, his hands behind his back. Ever since he arrived at the printing press, it was always Eugene who would touch things and initiate a talk with the locals. It seemed as though he really took it to heart when Lucian told him to take care of him.
'It feels good to be taken care of,' Lucian commented at the thought of being in Eugene's precious care, warmth coating his heart like lava.
The editor-in-chief hurriedly nodded as he spread his right arm to show them the way. "Sure, sure. Come, come. Our printing services are the best! It's also the cheapest; you would save lots and lots of money!"
'Of course your printing services would be the best. You're the only printing press here, after all!' Lucian joked in his mind. He coughed lightly to hide the smirk on his lips with his fist.
Eugene took a quick glance at the younger man after hearing the small cough. After making sure that it was nothing serious, he signaled Lucian to follow him. The bronze-skinned alpha did not dawdle anymore as he walked at a fast pace.
"Our papers are made out of linen rags, so the quality is good!" Peter Wright boasted as he picked up a piece of paper and handed it to them.
Eugene was the first to touch it. He inspected every nook and cranny of the paper first before giving it to Lucian for him to try.
Lucian was ecstatic about it. To touch a different type of paper that's quite rare on modern Earth was just so exciting for him!
He gently caressed the paper's surface. It was smooth and straight to the touch. It also looked clean and nice. Lucian nodded in satisfaction. The paper made out of linen rags has this excellent tactile appeal that made Lucian relax a little bit.
"How is it?" Peter asked with an eager look on his face, as if waiting for us to praise his baby.
Eugene smiled. "We find it great. How much is it?"
"It's cheap, really! Six sheets for a penny!"
Lucian knew that a hundred pennies were equivalent to one pound. With one pound, Eugene can have 600 sheets of paper! The rich local tyrant was satisfied with the price.
"This is great; it's the cheapest price I've ever heard of out of all the printing services I went to," Eugene said with a smile, as if he just didn't lie about going to different printing services.
If Lucian wasn't his accomplice, he would have believed Eugene too. 'This man is dangerous!' he exclaimed in his mind as he shivered a little bit. He was thankful that Eugene was not his enemy.
Peter Wright was happy to hear about it. "Isn't it? I'm new here, so I'm glad that you came even though I'm not really known by the locals just yet. No one must have recommended you to come here, right?" When he saw the two nod their heads, he couldn't help but sigh in dismay. "Young sirs, if you decide to publish your work in our printing press and the said work gets famous, I hope our company will be credited for this too. You see, we're in dire straits right now. The previous editor-in-chief died two months ago, and as his replacement, I had to take care of all the things that he left off."
The talkative Peter revealed information to the other party without a care. Eugene smirked in his mind, as he was glad that the topic he wanted to talk about was served to him on a silver platter.
"What's the cause of his death, Mr. Wright? If you don't mind me asking, by the way." Eugene gave Peter a sympathetic look.
The new editor-in-chief shook his head at the loss of his senior. "I only heard that he suddenly fell sick. As for the details, I'm not really sure. I'm from the Eastern region, so I'm not really familiar with it."
Lucian exhaled as relief washed through him. 'Finally, someone who's still fresh meat like us!'
"Thank you for your time in catering to us, Mr. Wright. We will come back tomorrow, if it's fine with you." Eugene gave him a smile, his intention to leave clearly plastered on his face. He was satisfied with the information he gained, as it provided him with more opportunities to use this new editor-in-chief as a pawn and an eye at the printing press.
The oblivious lamb, Peter Wright, grinned back. "Anytime, young sirs! You're welcome to do so!"
They bid their goodbyes first before going out of the building.
Lucian chuckled. "I didn't even get to talk inside yet, but we're already out."
"Well, he's quite the chatty person. It saved us some time," Eugene replied as they rode the carriage back to their apartment. They were planning to have their lunch at the apartment instead.
Lucian nodded. He then turned to Eugene with a grin. "Does this mean we finally have the extra time to do workouts for today? I've been waiting for you to initiate about it."
Eugene's eyebrows furrowed. "I almost forgot about that." His eyebrows relaxed after. He gave Lucian a nudge. "Thanks for reminding me. You're quite the enthusiastic student, aren't you?"
Lucian shrugged mischievously, remaining silent just to add a bit of mystery to his drama.