The moment they stepped into the city, a denser scent of daily life washed over them.
Dilapidated wood-and-stone houses lined both sides of the street, their signs jutting out unevenly over the thoroughfare.
The cries of vendors, the neighing of horses, and the rhythmic clanging from a distant blacksmith’s shop merged into a wave of clamor.
The two paused in front of a tailor shop that didn’t look overly expensive.
Leo glanced down at the old maid’s uniform Lucrezia Sylvania was wearing—now so filthy its original color was unrecognizable—then at the gazes of the surrounding pedestrians. He decisively turned inside.
After a round of haggling, Leo used a combination of trade-in and purchase to spend one silver coin from the public fund, getting her a reasonably well-fitting set of coarse cloth trousers and a shirt.
"Hmph... I suppose it’s wearable. The fabric is as rough as a burlap sack, but at least it’s better than that dead woman’s dress."
Lucrezia tugged at the somewhat prickly fabric, muttering under her breath, though her expression was noticeably more relaxed.
Leo wanted to change his own outfit as well, but when he asked the price, a decent set of men’s clothing actually cost six or seven silver coins!
"Are you robbing me?" Leo cursed inwardly and decisively gave up on the idea.
He once again gained a clear and painful understanding of the price levels in this world.
Despite wearing ordinary clothes, their appearance and temperament—especially Lucrezia’s innate arrogance and curiosity—still made them look somewhat out of place among the drab, dusty townsfolk.
Next, Leo found a tavern along the main road called "The Sleeping Dwarf."
He stopped at the entrance, looked up at the greasy wooden price list hanging by the door, and only pushed open the heavy wooden door to enter after confirming the prices were within a barely tolerable range.
The first floor of the tavern was dimly lit, the air thick with the smell of alcohol and tobacco.
Behind the counter, a proprietress as round as a beer keg was wiping wooden mugs. Seeing them enter, she only lazily lifted her eyelids.
"Lodging? Or drinking?"
"Lodging," Leo stepped forward.
"Two—mph!"
Lucrezia had just started to blurt out "two premium rooms" when her shin was kicked hard. She glared at Leo in pain, her red eyes screaming 'What was that for?'
Leo remained unfazed, holding up one finger to the proprietress.
"One room."
"Hey! You guy!"
Lucrezia grew frantic instantly, forgetting to lower her voice like a bristling kitten.
"Why should I, I, stay in the same room as a small fry like you?! Do you want to die?!"
Leo ignored her protest and simply looked at the proprietress calmly, even offering a slightly helpless smile. "One standard room, on the cheaper side."
"You—!"
"We don’t have that much money."
Leo turned his head and leaned toward her ear, interrupting her in a voice only the two of them could hear.
"Besides, if something happens while we're in separate rooms, we're screwed without mana. Do you want to be stuffed into a sack and carried off in the middle of the night?"
"I..."
Lucrezia’s cheeks flushed crimson instantly. Remembering Lily’s previous words, a chill caused her to shut her mouth immediately.
"Small fry! Bastard! Who—who cares if you live or die!" She stomped her foot in anger and turned her head away, ultimately ceasing her opposition.
"Heh..."
The proprietress, clearly used to young couples who were short on cash yet still bickering, let out an ambiguous chuckle and tossed over a key covered in rust.
"Standard room on the third floor. One silver coin a night. Pay upfront."
...
Third floor.
When Leo opened the creaking door, a faint smell of mold greeted them.
The room was basic to the extreme.
Aside from a single wooden bed with a yellowing mattress that creaked at the slightest touch, a table with a missing corner, there was only a chipped chamber pot and a wooden basin for washing.
"Ugh... this place isn't fit for humans! Is this a pigsty?!"
As soon as she entered, Lucrezia pinched her dainty nose in disgust and rushed to push open the window for ventilation.
She turned around, looking at her dirty clothes and grime-covered arms; her endurance over the past few days had finally reached its limit.
"Hmph! I can't take it anymore! It's filthy here! I'm going to take a bath! I must! Right! Now!"
Leo also felt itchy all over and nodded. "Fine, go ask about it."
Lucrezia didn't wait for Leo to say anything else before clattering down the stairs.
However, a moment later, she came back up fuming, her face sagging like a deflated bun.
"That wretched woman! Profiteer! Vampire!"
She screamed in frustration the moment she walked in. "She said... if I want a hot bath, it costs one silver coin! Why doesn't she just go out and rob people!"
Lucrezia sat dejectedly on the broken bed, fiddling with the only three silver coins left in her small coin pouch. Ultimately, she couldn't bring herself to spend it and completely lost her spirit.
Without money, it really was impossible to move an inch in this world.
"Hmph! It's just money!"
Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and jumped up from the bed, rummaging through her tattered little bundle.
"Here!"
A small, exquisitely crafted mithril earring was pulled out, set with a tiny but high-quality mana shard.
"Sell this tomorrow! It should fetch a lot of money!"
She slammed the earring into Leo’s hand with a sort of desperate bravado. "Now I have money! I can wash, right?!"
Leo weighed the earring in his hand, looking at her with some surprise.
"It should be worth something."
Leo nodded, tucking the earring into his robe, and then looked at the darkening sky outside the window.
"But that’s for tomorrow. The pawnshops are already closed."
"Ah!?" Lucrezia let out a tragic cry. "Then what do I do tonight? Sleep while smelling like this?!"
"I saw the price list," Leo said slowly. "If it’s just a small bucket of hot water for a sponge bath, it only costs thirty copper coins."
"A... sponge bath?" Lucrezia blinked, her face immediately turning to one of disgust. "How can I get clean like that..."
"Having a way to wash is good enough, don't be picky." Leo turned to leave. "Wait here."
...
Not long after, Leo came up carrying a small bucket of steaming water and set it in the middle of the room.
"Alright, you go first."
"Hey!"
Lucrezia clutched her newly bought coarse clothes and jumped into the corner of the bed like a startled rabbit, her hands shielding her chest as she looked at him warily.
"How am I supposed to wash if you don't leave! Do you want to peek, you pervert?!"
Leo paused while sorting through their bags.
He stood up, gave her a look as if he were looking at someone with a mental deficiency, and then walked straight toward her.
"You! What are you doing... don't come over here!"
Lucrezia was startled, a flush instantly rising to her cheeks. She instinctively tried to back away, but Leo grabbed her wrist.
"Borrowing some power... just in case."
Leo ignored her struggling and skillfully drew a sliver of mana.
Then, he walked to the door and the window, his fingers tracing through the air as several nearly invisible 【Mana Threads】 were quietly laid down.
"This place is a mix of good and bad people; it’s better to be careful."
Having done this, he released her hand and stepped back, his gaze casually sweeping over her still-flat chest.
"And,"
As if sensing the girl’s nervousness from a moment ago, the corner of his mouth curled into a smirk of ridicule and disdain.
"Don't think too highly of your charms, brat."
"With a flat body like yours, no one would even have the desire to commit a crime. I have no interest in washboards."
After saying that, he didn't give Lucrezia time to react before opening the door and walking straight out.
Thud!
The door closed.
"You damn guy! What did you say!!"
Thump!
His answer was a hard piece of soapnut flung at the door, hitting the newly closed wood with a dull thud.
Leo rubbed his nose and whistled in a good mood, slowly wandering downstairs.
He found a corner on the first floor of the tavern, ordered a cup of the cheapest wheat juice, and sat down quietly.
The sky had just turned dark, exactly time for dinner.
The tavern gradually filled with people. Crude shouting, the clinking of mugs, and the subpar strumming of a bard’s lute mixed together, enough to give anyone a headache.
Rate on N.U.
