“I missed you!” The cute Cadrian threw open her arms and embraced Rhen. “Ugh, and you’re just as smelly, as usual.”

“He is considerably cleaner than last time, however,” Aki said behind them.

Jakira pulled away from Rhen, her golden freckled cheeks sparkling in a blush. “Oh, Mr. Aki. It’s good that you’re back too.”

“We’re just here for a night, but it’s good to see you.”

“Why such a short visit? Did you find another inn you like better?” Jakira pouted.

“Nothing of the sort.” Rhen couldn’t contain his grin. “I’m a dungeon owner, and tomorrow we’ll head back to Yu City where my plot is.”

Jakira’s eyes sparkled and she embraced him again with a high-pitched squeal. “Really? I knew you’d make it! It must be so nice. You have to tell me all about it—after your bath.” She stepped back and held out her hand for payment.

“This time, I can afford my own.”

“Oh, high roller! Have a tip for me all those times I covered for you?” She winked.

“You know it.” Rhen placed thirty dra in her waiting palm.

Jakira blanched. “Rhen, that’s… that’s too much.” She pushed the money back toward him.

Rhen closed her fingers over the money and held her hand. “You’ve earned this. You work hard and don’t get near enough the respect you should.”

“But I could get in trouble—he might think I’m…”

Rhen put a finger to his lips. “If he calls your honor into question, I will set him straight. I’m a dungeon owner now, after all.”

“Thank you. Uh, yeah come in. I’ll get a bath going for you soon. You too, Mr. Aki?”

“I am not in need of a bath, thank you.”

Jakira nodded. “Right, well, we’re almost full up for the night so you better find a spot quick.”

Rhen and Aki went up to the rickety fifth floor where a few spots remained. Rhen unfurled his bed roll and before he knew it, his bath was drawn. He slumped into the warm water with a deep sigh, letting his muscles relax.

Roughing it in the woods had been worth it for this. Money in his pocket, new boots, a hot bath, decent food, and debts repaid. Jakira played through his mind as he sunk deeper in the tub. Her sparkling cheeks, bright eyes, flowing hair down past her curvy—

Nope.

Rhen dunked himself and shook his head.

There was no time to be thinking of anything of the sort. He had a dungeon to delve and money to make. He’d found a single node, and who knew if there was another in his dungeon? There was a lot still to explore, sure, but it could’ve been dead-ends and blank walls. He couldn’t dream of romance with a dry dungeon.

But if the dungeon wasn’t dry…

No.

He could think of that when he knew there was enough there to support anything more than Aki’s wages and a small cabin in the woods.

He scrubbed himself clean in frustration and donned his old clothes. He’d earned enough to have a second set of under clothes by now, though with limited pack space it’d be hard to keep spares on him while he traveled. He’d figure out clean clothes later… it wasn’t like he had anyone to impress, and he doubted Aki could smell him.

Aki worked in tandem with the bard that night, showing off his psionic Prelusk skills with ease. He pulsed yellows and pinks, his fins fluttering with excitement. It was obvious to Rhen that he liked showing off, or maybe he liked bringing a bit of joy to the Down-N-Outers. Whatever it was, Aki put on a performance like no other.

In the morning, Rhen lingered in the hall with his roll, waiting to see if he’d catch one more glimpse of Jakira, but she didn’t show. It wasn’t uncommon for her to be busy with laundry, or kitchen duty, cleaning the rooms, and various other tasks. She worked too hard for too little. Fennica had said how delvers were underappreciated for their hard work, but Rhen knew Jakira worked twice as hard as him—with a little less danger to life and limb, but still.

“Are you ready to depart for the cobbler?” Aki asked for the second time and Rhen knew he couldn’t linger any longer.

He nodded and they made their way into the morning market. His boots were done, as promised, and Rhen paid the man his second half for a job well done. The boots were far superior than their previous incarnation. The leather shined—which would dissipate after a few good days in the dungeon, but whatever. They shined.

They made their way toward the train station at the edge of town, a somber air about them.

“Is there something wrong with you?” Aki asked.

Rhen shook his head. “Nothing.”

“You have not been the same since last night. You usually talk more and tell jokes.”

“I’m just tired I suppose.”

“You did have a fitful sleep.”

Rhen scowled. “You watched me sleep?”

“I watched our money which was in your bag, under your head.”

The bell tolled beside the train heading west, going past Yu City, and Rhen dismissed the oddity. Of course Aki wanted to ensure the safety of their money, and Aki didn’t sleep for more than a few minutes at a time, so this made enough sense for him to drop it.

“We better find a spot before the passenger cart is full.”

They purchased their return tickets and boarded the train, which was already bursting. Morning trains were always packed with traveling merchants returning to their dungeon cities, pockets loaded and trunks emptied if they were lucky. Rhen and Aki had been that fortunate, this time.

With every private box taken, Rhen and Aki made their way to the back of the train with the rest of the overflow.

“Need anything—oh, it’s you!” It was the busty fifties-something woman from Rhen’s first train ride.

“Yes, I managed not to die,” Rhen said with a curt smile. He stepped past her and her overflowing cart of tools toward the open-air boxcar at the back of the train. The door opened with a clank, and Rhen sighed a breath of relief that there was still a good amount of space left.

“Was it not rude to leave her that way?” Aki asked.

Rhen shrugged. “She laughed at me when I told her I was delving my own dungeon, pretty much told me I was going to die.”

“Should we not try to make as many connections as we can?”

“Pft, not connections like her. She’s not in it for the love of the delve, just here for a profit. She tried to sell me a broken anima gauge on my ride to Yu, then when I told her it was broken, she tried to insult me to cover her hasty retreat.”

The train shuddered, then blasted its departure horn.

“I see. You are right. We must be very selective with whom we allow into your circle.”

“Wait! Don’t leave without me!” A distant, desperate voice reached Rhen over the noise of the grinding train wheels.

Rhen leaned out the open boxcar door to see a flustered, red-haired Cadrian chasing after them.

“Jakira?”

She grinned and waved. “Rhen! I want to come work for you!”

“But… uh…” Rhen stammered, his head swimming with a hundred thoughts for her safety.

Not only that, but there was also nowhere for her to stay, and his tent was messy.

But he wanted her to come.

She reached in her bag while she ran, then waved around a thin bit of paper. “I already got my work order!”

So that’s where she’d been all morning. She’d spent the extra coin he’d paid her on a work order to join his dungeon.

Her eyes sparkled with excitement and melted away Rhen’s hesitation. He reached out the door for her hand. “Come on, then. We’ll figure it out on the way.”

She grabbed onto him, and he pulled her into the train car.

“You purchased a ticket, too, correct?” Aki asked.

Jakira panted, smiling. “I threw some money at the teller as I ran by.”

Rhen helped slide her heavy pack off her shoulders. “What’s in here, bricks?”

“Thank you.” She sighed with relief and slumped to the ground, leaning her back against the wall.

Rhen took a seat too, excited to have Jakira beside him. She wanted to delve his dungeon, with him.

Aki squished his watery body down so he was eye to eye with both of them. “Why do you want to join us?”

“Do you not want me?” She looked at Rhen, apprehension in her eyes.

“Of course I want you—I mean, I want your help delving the dungeon.”

Aki turned yellow and fluttered his fins. “I seek to uncover your intentions. Is this for the love of the delve, or something else?”

She looked back to Rhen, the same fear in her eyes. Then something surrendered in her. “You told me never to change, but I want to. I’m tired of being an inn hostess, like you were tired of being a dungeon delver. I want to be an inn owner.”

“I think you would make an amazing inn owner.”

She blushed, gold sparkling in her cheeks. “I think you make an amazing dungeon owner, which is why I wanted to come delve with you. I’ll do whatever you tell me to do; carry ore to the surface, fight monsters, fix your boots—oh, they’re fixed. They look nice.”

“Yeah, I kept stubbing my toes.”

“Rhen, do you find this to be an acceptable purpose to join us? It is not for the love of the delve.” Aki asked, all back to business.

Rhen looked at Aki and shrugged. “It’s for the love of something. What is it?” He looked back to Jakira.

Her blush sparkled brighter, and she looked away. “I really, um, really love helping people, and I’m good at doing everything in an inn. I like cooking too, but I don’t get to cook often. It’s nice to help people get a good night’s rest after a hard day of work. And it’s nice to see them smile and relax, to see that they feel safe and comfortable. And… I really want to help you.”

Aki fluttered, his color shifting to green. “Oh, I understand. She is in love with you, Rhen.”

Jakira gasped, her cheeks practically glowing. “What? No! That’s not it. Rhen is just my friend.”

Rhen’s heart sank a hair, but he recovered, quickly moving on as not to embarrass Jakira further. “It’s for the love of helping people who delve. I think that’s close enough to the love of the delve, don’t you, Aki?”

“Yes, a very acceptable reason to join us. I am glad we understand your motives because now we can trust you not to take all our money in the night.”

Jakira crossed her arms and nodded. “Yeah, good. Great. Happy to be understood.”

The trio remained quiet for a while, listening to the rattles of the boxcar as the train chugged along. Rhen looked out across the shifting landscape as the towering buildings of Desedra disappeared into a smoggy haze. He liked the trees and how they made the air smell. It was a crisp bitterness that enlivened his senses.

He focused on the scent instead of thinking about Jakira and how she was just his friend.

No, that was fine. It was better that way. Mixing love and business was never a good idea. She would be running an inn for him—if the dungeon wasn’t dry.

Oh gods, what if the dungeon was dry?

Anxious thoughts ran circles in Rhen’s head until Aki broke the silence to discuss the current state of the dungeon. They filled Jakira in on their progress and what they were hoping to do when they got back. After a while, they started reminiscing. Rhen smiled, forgetting all the issues that had once battled in his mind.

They arrived in Yu and found a few supplies for Jakira, namely her own tent, simple leather gear to protect her, and some bread with sweet cream—something Rhen loved but could never justify buying for himself. When they had everything they needed, they began the hike into the forest.

Jakira was used to walking up and down many flights of stairs, lifting heavy equipment, scrubbing dirty pots, and even chopping wood, so the trek through the forest was easy for her, though she wanted to stop and admire the scenery several times. They made it to the dungeon by midafternoon and got to work setting her tent set up not far from Rhen’s.

“Where’s yours Mr. Aki?” Jakira asked.

“I do not sleep much.”

“Oh, but you stayed at the inn?”

“I… do not like to be alone.”

“You’re scared of the dark, you mean?” Jakira asked, a devious smile on her face. She was trying to get him back for embarrassing her earlier.

Aki pulsed orange and his voice vibrated strongly in Rhen’s chest. “My home is the crushing black depths of Cla’ketre Whri. I am not afraid of the dark.”

“Okay, sorry,” Jakira offered and returned to hammering the stakes of her tent corners down.

Rhen didn’t have to see the irritated, swift flick of Aki’s tentacles to know he was still bothered, he could feel the tension in the air around him. It was as if Aki was speaking, but there were no words, only frustration. Finally, Aki spoke up.

“I come from a clutch of sixty-eight siblings. I have not seen them in many months. The elders told me I would grow accustomed to the independence, but I have not.”

Jakira stopped hammering and smiled kindly. “Well, you don’t have to with us here.”

Rhen remembered when Aki had asked to work with him in Desedra dungeon. He’d been a bit cold to Aki, and thought he was being weird when the poor Prelusk just wanted a friend.

They finished with Jakira’s tent, and though there was ample time to get in the dungeon, at least for some mining, Rhen wanted Jakira to be properly rested for exploring the other tunnel in case they encountered monsters. So, they spent a few hours showing Jakira how to use the hand drill while Rhen practiced tempering his tremor blast ability.

Tremor blast was usually destructive, but when Rhen actively tried to withhold his anima, he was able to make smaller and smaller tremors, or target them to specific areas of his palm. He was able to take out chunks of the wall at a time without cracking the surrounding stone, which led him to a sizable gemstone.

They broke for the night, heading back to the surface to inspect the fist-sized gemstone by the light of the fire. It was another celinom of very good quality.

“Something this large could be installed in a building.” Aki said with wonder.

Jakira gasped. “Like our inn! We could create anima restorative baths by channeling the stream water down here, then make a few pools around this stone.”

“That’s brilliant.” Rhen patted her shoulder.

She grinned. “See, I’ll be a great inn owner.”

“Never had a doubt.”

They enjoyed more roasted fish with their creamy rolls, and then settled in for the night.

“Goodnight guys! Can’t wait to fight some monsters in the morning!” Jakira waved and entered her tent.

Rhen smiled back. “Same. G’night.”

“Have good sleeps, my friends.”