Evil

New Acquaintances

"Shellsby is known for our seafood cuisine! Oh you must absolutely head to Rocking Boat Restaurant later! To enjoy a beautiful night out at sea, feeling the breeze as you eat and converse-It's one of the most romantic thing without a shadow of a doubt!"

"Thank you for your recommendation Gale, I will definitely it later. As for..." I was stirred awake by the excited chatting between some people.

"Nngh..." I yawned softly as I opened my eyes. My surroundings got clearer. White seagulls flew overhead, the ground was sandy. The streets weren't overflowing with people like in Juniper city but it seemed to add to the charm. A vibrant place with a mix of vibrancy and quietness. It reminded me of a more bustling Maldives. Very obviously, we had arrived.

Lucius was walking alongside two unfamiliar men. They seemed to be chatting as if they were close. The one with azure blue hair was quiet whilst the dirty blonde haired one was like a chatterbox.

"Lucius, why didn't you wake me up?" I asked as my eyes finally adjusted to the sun.

"Ah? You're awake Artemis?"

"Mm. Sorry for troubling you," I reluctantly got off and dusted off my dress before turning my attention to the two people,"They are?"

"Ah! Artemis, meet Gale Roderick and Sage Orion! I met them a few minutes ago. They are bringing us to a good inn!" I'd forgotten that Lucius had a gullible nature and was easily trusting but looking at them, they didn't seem to have any bad intentions though the azure haired one had a weird expression on his face.

"Pleased to meet your acquaintance, Mr Gale, Mr Orion. I'm Artemis." I greeted politely.

The blonde haired one, Gale, waved his hand dismissively,"Oh no need for formalities if that's fine with you! We're both very easy-going people, isn't that right, Sage?"

The boy was probably no older than eighteen. Technically two years' my elder. My as in my body. He nodded his head awkwardly,"It's nice to meet you, Artemis."

Following our greetings, they brought us to a place called Sea Conch Inn. The place was quite high class but wasn't as good as Songbird's Retreat. At the reception, an energetic girl with a head of seafoam green hair waved her arms wildly. She was dressed in what appeared to be hotel uniform,"Sage! Gale! What's up? Ah? You brought customers! Oh, Miss, you're very pretty! Mister! Are you a fiend? Lola has never seen a fiend before! Handsome! Charming!" The rathe girl named Lola was very open about her thoughts.

"They're travellers from afar, coming to our city to try the food and see the sights!" Gale replied,"Oh! I forgot to ask, is the price point too high for you? I bet Sage could-"

I gave an easy-going smile,"Price isn't an issue. How much will it be for three weeks in the suite?"

"Ehh? The suite?" The girl's eyes widened before looking down and penning a few calculations,"Let's see here...A night is fifty silvers so ten gold and fifty silvers miss!"

I passed her eleven gold,"Keep the change."

"But fifty si-"

"It's nothing. No worries, consider it a tip then." I reassured her, refusing the change adamantly.

"If big sister says so then Lola will keep it." The girl cradled the coins as if they were some elixir of immortality, carefully sliding them into a sack.

"Do you have any luggage big sister? Lola will bring it up for you!"

"Ah, no worries. My luggage is stored and I doubt anyone could carry it."

"Lola is rather strong, she is dependable, Miss Blythe." Sage, the quiet one spoke up.

I shook my head,"It's not that I'm looking down on you but rather, I've hunted a beast about a hundred metres tall? We just came from the Ypogeios Tundra and wanted to take a break by the seaside is all." I casually dropped a bombshell.