Even on the first day I arrived on Laxis. When I was in such a good mood I went shopping and basically did absolutely nothing productive for the whole day. I still fell asleep before midnight.
Routines were hard to break. And speaking of routine.
It was time to break my fast— time to go down and eat some breakfast. Or was it brunch? Whatever it was, I was hungry.
So I closed the book, and slid it into my bag. Then I hid my bag under the bed. It was not the most inconspicuous spot, but it was not like I had many options in the first place.
I left my room, and went downstairs; the inn was not particularly crowded. There were only a handful of people along with the innkeeper waiting in the lobby.
"Good morning," I greeted the man.
"Morning," he said, glancing up at me. "Sorry, you’re an hour too late for the free breakfast. Maybe if it was half an hour, I’d still let you have it. But unfortunately it was not, so you’ll have to pay if you want to eat here."
"It’s fine, I’ll pay," I reassured him.
Although I did say I was alright with it, free food was free food. And the fact that I missed it because I lost track of time annoyed me a bit. Not enough to sour my mood— it was a mild inconvenience at best.
"Do you want lunch or breakfast?" he asked, as he was about to head into the kitchen. Then he added in with a laugh. "Or both? I’ve seen you eat, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what you wanted."
I gave him a mock glare. "Hey! I don’t eat that much."
We both chuckled for a moment, before I gave him a serious response.
"But I’d like both, please."
His smile slipped, and he nodded. "Oh, uh, sure. Coming right up."
"Thanks," I said, a tiny bit embarrassed.
But what could I say? Their cook made some good food; it was not my fault I liked it!
I finished my meal, and held back a burp. I did not want to attract any more stares than I already was getting; especially not over having no manners.
I paid the innkeeper before excusing myself for a moment of relief. Then I left the inn to go about my day.
It had been three days since I went to the hat shop. The young woman— who I assumed was the milliner— told me to come back in a few days, without giving me a specific timeframe. So I assumed today would have been fine to just come in and check the progress.
I casually entered the hat shop, pushing the door open as I went.
"Greetings," I spoke politely.
"Oh, it’s the little girl!" A head popped over the counter, followed by a cheerful voice. "Here to check on your pointy hat?"
"Yes. Is now a good time?"
"Of course!" she exclaimed, setting something aside underneath the desk. Then she faced me. "Oh, nice cape by the way. Is that new? Looks expensive."
I adjusted the mantle around my shoulders slightly, and smiled. "Thank you. I can afford it."
But that did not mean I should have bought it— not that I regretted buying it. I only spent a total of five gold the day I left the Free Lands. Which was quite a lot; it was almost half of what I had spent in the few months traveling alone.
I did it because I wanted to relax, even for a single day.
However I knew I was not necessarily being smart with my money, even at that moment. There was no retrospective realization; I stood by my decision, despite knowing it was slightly foolish. I simply treated this as a sort of pseudo vacation— and what vacations did not have a bit of expenses?
Of course, I had no reason to explain all that to the young woman. So I quickly changed the subject to what I came here to talk about, not to waste any time.
"Do you know when my hat will be ready?"
"Yes," she said, clasping her hands together. "It’ll be ready in three days. Your design is pretty simple, even if it’s quite big. But I have a few other orders, so I’m busy with those. Honestly though, since my grandpa retired, I’ve been doing this solo for the past year. I might just get an apprentice to help me out, even though I’m no expert yet..." The young woman rambled on for a while longer.
I waited until she finished before replying. "I see, so come back in three days?"
"Yep," she confirmed. "Come back in three days."
I thanked her, bowing my head slightly, before I took my leave. She called out after me as I left the shop.
"Take care, little girl! Don’t go into an alley with a stranger! Even— no, especially if they have candy!"
I smiled slightly in response, but otherwise I did not reply; I was grateful for her concerns, just exhausted at hearing similar sentiments all the time.
I was not an idiot: traveling alone as a kid through the Free Lands was not exactly the safest journey, yet I made it out unscathed... relatively speaking. Not just because of my magic either— I made sure to always err on the side of caution unless it was necessary.
What ‘necessary’ meant, of course, was wholly dependent on the context. I might have found it necessary to intervene if I saw someone getting murdered, but stayed back if it was a simple robbery…
Well maybe if their entire life savings were being stolen from them, then I probably would help them too.
But no magic. I could not risk using magic, unless I was going full scorched earth— leaving no one alive.
Which was a grim thought. And something I wanted to avoid
