"Do you know him, Father?" Reynolds asked his father.
"Oh yes. I make it my business to know all the important people in my territory, and who's more important than the young man who saved Ekron?"
"Yeah, about that attack—" Reynolds began.
"Not now," The duke said, brushing him off. "You should go get changed. Adriana is waiting for you."
"Now come have a seat, let's chat," The duke said, motioning for them to sit on the couches in the room.
"I'll bring you some tea," Marline said, leaving the room with a bow.
"It's surprising that the very raiders I wanted to meet saved my son," The duke said.
"You've wanted to meet us, sir?" Sharone asked.
"Call me Philip," The duke said, taking a sip from the tea Marline poured for him. "I've been meaning to thank you for your service," he said.
"It was nothing," said Lin, also taking a sip from her tea.
Kojo brought the cup closer to his lips. He suddenly felt a strong pressure on him.
(I'm reading a strong aura coming from the Duke. Come to think of it, even though his form is plump, his build suggests he was once a fighter.)
Kojo smiled and released some of his aura. The atmosphere in the room changed, and the place began to rattle. Marline and Sharone cleared their throats. The two of them stopped but still eyed each other.
"Anyway, you shall receive a reward of 100 credits each for your efforts."
Kojo choked on his tea. They looked at him wide-eyed.
"Wow. That's a lot. But we didn't do it for the money," he said.
"No, but it's a token of my appreciation for saving my son. I insist. Besides, refusing a gift from a noble is... disrespectful," he said, mentioning the word "disrespectful" with a different tone. Sharone picked it up.
"In that case, we can't refuse," she said.
"Alright," Kojo said, following her lead. They got to their feet.
"Well, we'd better take our leave," Kojo said as they turned. Just then, Reynolds walked in with a change of clothes.
"Oh, Reynolds, could you show our guests out?"
"But they just got here," Reynolds said.
"It's alright, we have some things to take care of," Koniko said.
"Alright." Reynolds led them out.
A girl who had been hiding behind the door came out of her hiding place and watched them walk down the hallway.
"Kojo," she whispered.
"Come in, Adriana," the duke said from within the sitting room.
"Yes, Father," she said, entering the room.
"So... that happened," Kojo said as they walked away from the duke's manor.
"Still thinking about the money?" Lin asked.
"Yep."
"Well, he is a duke. They spend this much money normally, so you shouldn't worry about it," Koniko said.
"Yes, but 100 credits each is..." Sharone said, unsure of the word to use. "Where would he even get that money? Ekron is a big city, but it hasn't reached the level of development you'd expect from the capital of the province."
"Nevermind," Kojo said, putting an arm over her shoulder. "Hey, why don't we go shopping?" Kojo suggested.
"Yeah, I guess so," Koniko said, turning to look at her back, wagging her tail. Kojo thought she looked cute in that pose. Koniko noticed him staring.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You need to get a change too, Kojo," Lin said. "You've been wearing those clothes for far too long."
Kojo discreetly smelled himself.
"Let's go then," Lin said cheerfully, pushing them forward.
They headed into the city, moving around and looking for a place to get a change of clothes.
"Hey, why don't we check that store?" Koniko pointed at one.
"Yeah, that should be expensive. But we got the money. I'm sure we'll find clothes that will fit you. It is a shop that deals with ladies' wear anyway," Kojo said, looking at her chest. Sharone noticed and elbowed him.
(Nice going.)
"Yeah, and we have to get some underwear too," Lin said thoughtfully.
"Okay then, you guys head in there while I check this other store out," he said nervously, his face still red.
"Okay. Let's meet up here," Sharone said.
Kojo went in and got himself a set of clothes.
"You know, there are a lot of similarities between the fashion here and what's back on Earth,"
(Yeah) Sysia agreed. (It's not only the fashion but other aspects too. The bureau, for instance.)
"Yeah," Kojo agreed, walking out of the shop and out of the store.
"Hey guys," he said, meeting up with the others. "Sorry to keep you waiting."
"No, we just got out," Sharone said.
"Finding the right fit was kinda difficult," Lin said.
"Where's Koniko?" Kojo asked. He noticed her looking into a jewelry shop. He walked over and noticed her staring at an emerald ring.
"Sup, Koniko?" Kojo said, startling her.
"Oh, Kojo. It's nothing," she said, still staring at the ring.
"You want that ring?" he asked.
"Huh? No. I could use the money for something else. I just—"
"In that case, why don't I buy that for you?" he said, taking her hand and leading her into the shop.
"But why would you?" Koniko asked.
"Well, you said you'd use the money for something else, and I have nothing else I need to buy. It's no bother if I can do something for you," he told her. She blushed.
"Shopkeeper, how much for that ring?" he asked.
"That's a special ring, so it has a special price," the lady said.
"How so?" Kojo asked.
"It's a relic made by the Ril clan of the demihuman foxes."
"My people made powerful relics to house powerful magic that they themselves could not hold," Koniko explained.
"Your people made this? So that's why you wanted it. I guess it reminds you of home, huh?" Koniko held her arm shyly.
"This particular ring is said to house a powerful spirit that can be summoned once to protect its wearer in a time of great peril, aside from augmenting fire magic."
"That sounds cool. I'll take it," Kojo said.
"28 credits."
"That's expensive," he said.
"You don't have to buy this for me, Kojo," Koniko said.
"Nah. It's not like I'm gonna use the money for anything, so it's best I use it on you," he said, handing the shopkeeper the money. He turned and faced Koniko. Her eyes were on the ring. He took her hand and put it on her finger. It glowed before dimming.
"The ring has accepted her," the shopkeeper said.
He felt a strange pressure. He slowly turned and saw Sharone and Lin standing behind him.
"No one's given me such an expensive gift," Koniko said, looking down at the ring. "Thank you," she said, looking up at Kojo. "I'll cherish it with all my heart."
"It was nothing," Kojo said with a smile. The pressure on him increased. He turned and saw them glaring at him.
"What?" he asked. Sharone narrowed her eyes at him.
(You really are clueless. You don't know a woman's thought patterns.)
"I've been single for all my life. How should I know how a woman's brain works?" he thought.
(You're hopeless.)
"Like you know any better?"
(I do, actually. I was created by the head scientist of Eden Enterprise, Dr. Yume Hayashi.)
"How does that make you know any better?"
(I'm A.I. with all information from Earth.)
"Okay, I don't see how this conversation's gonna save me right now."
(I identify myself as female.)
"Why are you even bringing this up?"
(Because this is a need-to-know situation, and you need to know.)
"I give up."
"Kojo," Sharone said, bringing him back to the present.
"Yeah?" he responded cautiously.
"We want rings too," she said.
"Yeah, you can't buy one for Koniko and not for us," Lin agreed.
"That's it. Why didn't they just say so instead of giving off that death vibe?" he wondered.
(That's not how it works.)
"Sure, Miss Sysia the A.I."
(I think I'll have to lecture you this evening.)
"Whatever," Kojo said, going to look at the rings.
"I need to get them something that will complement their abilities."
He noticed a silver ring with a rune on it. He was getting a weird vibe from it. He took the ring and studied it.
SKAN.
His eyes widened.
"Where did you get this ring?" he asked the shopkeeper.
"It was found in some ruins and was brought to me for appraisal, but it turned out to be a worthless loop of metal."
"How much?" Kojo asked.
"It's worthless," the shopkeeper insisted.
"I'll take it."