The Lightning Mage

32 | The Crimson Witch, Part III

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"Hey, Lyn, can we have a moment?"

"Hm?" Lyn said as she rummaged through her wallet. "What's up?"

"There's something I want to tell you. It might be better if I tell you in pr—"

"Ah shit." Lyn cut him off when she noticed two bright red cards jutting out of the side of her wallet. She looked around the restaurant. It was bustling with customers, but the group that had been huddling behind her (while brimming with excitement about the fact that Lyn was treating them) had reduced in size. Only Irene and Neil were here.

"Wait, where's Raph and Millie?"

"What do you think?" Irene snorted. "Millie saw a sale going on and bolted, then Raph followed."

Lyn groaned. "Okay, I gotta find them and give them something before I forget again. Could you pay first?"

"What? You said you were treating-"

"I am, I am, I'll pay you back later." Flashing an apologetic grin, Lyn dashed out of the restaurant.

She spotted the Indian man in the streets, all alone with a bashful look. He was standing outside Elizabeth's Secret, a lingerie store. Lyn had to stifle a laugh as she approached him.

"Too embarrassed to go in with Millie?" She leaned her head next to Raph's ears, causing him to jump up in shock.

"W- What the? Oh, god, Lyn, d- don't pop up like that..."

"Sorry, sorry." Lyn chuckled before handing him the cards. "Anyway, I have these new supplementary cards for you and Millie. I know the previous ones were deactivated 'cause I was gone for too long, so I got you guys new ones. Now you can use it to buy potions and stuff, and Millie can use it for any quest items, and also to pay for her storage unit. I hope she still has that storage unit?"

"She does." Raph nodded. "Thank you."

"You got it. Although..." Lyn glanced inside the store. A giant '50% off everything!!' sign was propped up everywhere in bold, neon pink letters. "Could you try to remind Millie that the card is for quest expenses only, not for personal... stuff?"

"Ah, I'll... I'll try... No promises though."

"I believe in you, dude." Lyn winked before turning to the burly man who had followed her. "So, Neil, what did you want to talk about?"

Neil cast Raph a wary look. "I found out about something, but we should probably talk privately a—"

Once again, the fighter was cut off when Irene appeared out of nowhere and pounced on Lyn's back.

"Argh! Get off me, Irene!"

Despite Lyn's struggle, Irene's arms clasped firmly around Lyn's neck. "Shut up, idiot, don't think about running away! Answer me, why didn't you show up for that date I set you up with last night?"

"I- I wasn't f-"

"Don't you dare say you're not free! I checked your schedule and you were extremely free yesterday."

"Erm, well, s- something important came up..."

"Bullshit, Manda told me you went out to bar-hop with her and Ivan. That is not important."

"Wow, Manda's such a little snitch..." Lyn muttered under her breath as she thought of a new excuse. "Well, that girl you set me up with is not my type at all, so..."

"What do you mean, not your type? She's totally your type!"

"What is Lyn's type?" Neil chimed in, his eyes twinkling in amusement.