Demonic Devourer's Development

I wanted to stay the rest of the night and move out to Tinaris with the first rays of dawn after asking Rosha the directions, but stopped me from putting on my pants with a hand on my hips.

"Is this time-sensitive, Voren?"

"Why do you ask?" I looked at where her hands were. We spent quite a while tumbling in bed, but if she wanted more, who was I to refuse? Sadly, instead of going that route, Rosha dropped her hands and moved away.

"Look, it's simple. There aren't many people in Glesk rich enough to buy the eggs, and if I sell it to the Guild, I won't get as much from the deal. Now Tinaris, Tinaris's a big city, with lots of trade and adventurers because of its closeness to Blue Mountains. Especially adventurers. Rangers, druids and pet trainers will buy them like hot cakes, and they will all be around since it's egg-laying season. So I need to get to Tinaris to sell the eggs, and what if bandits attack?"

I looked at her toned, naked body—she didn't bother to put on anything yet—and raised my brows. "Can't you beat them off?"

"Maybe I can, maybe I can't. Can't risk the eggs. What if I get robbed? And hiring a guard is just paying someone to do so."

She had so much trust in people. I snorted. "Fine, fine, but if you will have to make up for me for the time I waste on this."

"This isn't wasting time," Rosha scowled at me. "Plus, I have business ventures in Tinaris to think about. Keep bringing me money, and soon I will open a second store!"

"A second store?" My brows rose in surprise. "What about your debt for the first one?"

"I put a lot already towards paying it off, thanks to your spider silk. With the profits from griffin eggs, I can pay it off and start looking at people and property for the second place. It won't be right now, of course, but I want to test the field before I make any more plans."

Her business expanded awfully fast. But that didn't mean that she would be as fast to travel to Tinaris. "So when are you ready to go?"

"When?" Rosha blinked. "I have to arrange things with Risha first. Maybe she should come with us… I don't want to leave her alone."

I put on my pants in a single fast motion. "Decide that amongst yourselves. At least make me breakfast while I wait for you to get ready."

⠀⠀

It took two days for Rosha to finish all her current orders and come to an agreement with Risha, and that was, I was sure, only because I hovered behind their backs all the while. And that was despite Risha actually wanting to go with Rosha from the start.

Rosha found me a wooden mask to wear over my face—something from a festival long ago, she said. It was painted with white and red to imitate a pretty woman's face, but it was better than looking skinned. I added to that silk gloves and scarf to cover the rest of my skin without making me feel too hot. Like that, I could show myself to Risha, who had questions about it, of course, but wisely accepted it when I didn't give her an answer.

The next morning Rosha locked her shop, told all interested passersby she was leaving to Tinaris for a week, and we went. Or rode, to be more precise, on a back of a cart that moved in the same direction. The owner of it was the sisters' acquittance. Though he still asked them to pay for the privilege to sit next to his cabbages. He also kept staring at my mask, but I must've intimidated him enough that he didn't ask a thing.

The way that would've taken me on my own less than a day took two in that speed, and since we were all camped together in the night between them, I couldn't even have Rosha making it up to me in meanwhile.

My mood was pretty down when we finally got to Tinaris, and the sight of the city itself didn't improve it. It was just like Glesk, really, only bigger. Bigger and, as I found when I and the sisters got in, noisier.

There our ways split up. Rosha and Risha went to look for an inn, while I went straight to the local Guild. It was just like the one in Glesk and also stood right in the middle of the city. Four storeys, a sign with words "Adventurer's Guild" on top and a wooden cutout next to the entrance. This one, though, had a different adventurer painted on, and a different message.

Instead of a brawny warrior, this painting pictured a woman in robes that had a neckline low enough that her huge boobs were open almost to the nipples and a split in their hem that showed most of her leg. The woman had a sceptre in her hands, a halo over her head, and held her hands as if in prayer. A writing on the wooden cutout said, "All adventurers go to Heaven. Assure your eternal happiness today!"

I wondered if this was true, and even people like Yvenna were bound to end up in Heaven. It was entirely in the power of the bastards who called themselves gods. I scoffed as I walked past the cutout, even if my gaze paused for a moment at her assets, and walked in.

I didn't even have to search for Yvenna. She was right there, sitting alone in a corner with a quickly diminishing pile of steaming potatoes and meat on the plate in front of her. She didn't notice my presence until I was leaning over her.

"Stop blocking my light, weirdo! The place is taken, can't you see?" Yvenna snarled at me, poking with her fork.

"Can't you recognise me, Yvenna?" I remembered about my attire and snorted. "Ah well, I should've guessed you wouldn't."

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