“Here, wear this and keep out of sight, but be sure to help us if something unexpected happens.”

She accepted it with a hesitant hand.

“May, I think you should change your appearance like you did before.”

“You mean when I was ‘Avril?’”

He nodded. “Even though you looked kind of similar, it’ll still make you harder to recognize.”

“I looked similar to how I do now because that’s how I looked when I was seventeen.” Seeing the looks of surprise that the others—save for Delia—sent her, she explained, “Once you reach the Genesis stage, you can reverse your age so long as it doesn’t change your bone structure. That pervert Tems did it often when he played around with my disciples.”

“So you’re saying if I reach the Genesis stage I can look like I did in my twenties?” said Sean, who was clearly interested in the idea. Coughing, he added, “I’m not saying I’d do it or anything, it just sounds pretty cool.”

As Sean finished speaking, May’s physique lost a bit of the full bodied characteristics that came with maturation. Her hips weren’t as wide as before, her well-endowed chest losing a bit of substance, though rather than take away from her beauty it only converted it to a more innocent yet captivating sort. Her heart-shaped face gained more attention as her long, almond hair shortened to shoulder length and began to curl, brightening by a few shades as it gained the colour of blended sands.

“Why did you make yourself fat before?” asked Ian. “I kept calling you dumpling for nothing.”

“Fat?” May’s thin eyebrows tilted as she put on an offended glare. “That’s how I looked for a few months.”

“Well, you weren’t exactly skinny—” When his sister smacked him in the back of the head while giving her own a slight shake of disapproval, he held his arms out and complained, “What? It’s not like I told a lie. Besides, she’s gorgeous now, so what does it matter?”

“Anyway,” coughed Nolan, who conjured a simple shack for the girls to change in by converting some of the surrounding branches that had fallen to the ground with age. “It’s not the end of the world if we get recognized, but I don’t think we should be out here advertising who we are. Let’s get changed into some casual clothes and then head into town.”

“I like these robes,” sighed Lyra, who brushed a long strand of slightly curled hair away from her equally golden eyes. “They’re perfect for fighting. But if you think we should change clothes then it’s no big deal.”

“Oh, I can’t wait to wear something other than this uniform,” smiled Alicia, who quickly added, “not that I don’t like them. It’s just been so long since I’ve worn anything else.”

Aine agreed with a bit too much eagerness and pulled her friend into the cabin by the hand. The other girls quickly followed, with the exception of Delia who was already wearing a set of cottony white robes. Speaking of the intimidating woman, the moment that she laid eyes on the little cabin-like building that Nolan had just created, her face gained a bit of colour and she abruptly turned her back to them and walked around to the other side of the cabin.

The guys changed outside, all of them wearing fine trousers and silk tunics of similar colour schemes, white shirts contrasting with dark leggings and embroidered vests of the same shade. The girls took a bit longer, all of them coming out wearing clothes of different colours and designs. Lyra wore a simple set of black robes that were secured at the waist with a soft belt of fabric that was the same gilded shade as her hair. Nyla was also dressed in black, though she wore a thin dress that drew heavy focus toward the enticing contours of her body, with thin straps that showcased her slightly tanned shoulders and a generous dip at her healthy neckline. Combined with the blackness of her eyes and hair, she was quite the sight to see. May wore a set of purple robes that were cut short so that they barely tickled the skin above her knees, similarly ending at her elbows but completely covering her chest and torso. Still, her body was impressively outlined by the close-clinging fabric, owing her just as much beauty as Nyla and making it difficult for Nolan to decide on where to settle his gaze.

Aine shuffled her feet, which rested comfortably within a set of chestnut sandles. “Standing next to you two, I suddenly feel like a weed in a field of flowers…”

Alicia gave a light nod of agreement, wearing an oak-coloured dress that was a few degrees lighter than Aine’s.

“Don’t worry,” said Ian, who gave shot them a confident thumbs up. “You two are quite pretty as well. If I wasn’t already beholden to Shery, I’d have long since tried to—”

Another smack from his sister had him rolling his eyes and setting off in the direction of the town while grumbling about how ridiculous it was that he wasn’t able to speak his mind these days without risk of ridicule. Sean, Esteban and the others followed after him, while Nolan reiterated to Delia that her role would be to remain hidden, keep in contact via sound transmissions, and to look out for the rest of them in the event that any undesirable events happened to unfold.

Noting her consistent and uncharacteristic blush, Nolan recalled the white, teddy bear faced panties that she had been wearing back when he’d caught a glimpse of them during the conflict on the Grand Isle of Weston, and shook his head as he followed after his friends. He firmly believed that she was a complete wierdo, a complicated person that he would never come understand.

***

“How can there be no rooms left?” said Nolan, who was growing impatient with their current predicament. “There’s hardly anyone here.”

This was the fifteenth and final inn in the city, for he and his friends had already tried all of this others without seeing the slightest bit of luck in attempting to make a booking. Apparently the city was bustling with far too many people than it could accommodate—which, to be fair, seemed to be true—but he was running really low on patience at this point. The snivelling little snake of a man behind the counter kept ogling the girls in their group so openly that he was ready to slap the guy unconscious and just leave the stupid city behind, but he knew that doing something like that wouldn’t be good for their safety. Like all of Tallgate’s other inns, this one was owned and run by the Continental Merchant Association, which he had learned was far more intimidating than he had initially estimated.

“I’m sorry, sir,” said the man, who didn’t sound sorry at all as he slid the spatial bag that Nolan had just dropped onto the front desk of the building’s lobby back in his direction. “But 1,000 spirit stones isn’t enough to stay in one of our rooms.”

“Are you kidding?” He’d dropped the bag down in an exasperated attempt to flex on the blue-robed man, but the receptionist didn’t bat an eyelid. “How much does one of your rooms go for, then?”

“The cheapest room runs for 1,250 spirit stones per night, though all we have left is the luxury villa, which costs 8,500 stones per night.”

“Eight—how can you even…” Sean wasn’t able to finish his disbelieving words, so frustrated was he at the unexpected situation.

“I’m sorry, gentlemen, but I don’t make the rules. If you don’t want to stay here, then nobody is forcing you.”

The man looked down at a stack of papers that he had been analyzing when they had walked into the grand and luxurious lobby that was decked out with rugs of fine fur and wonderful paintings with golden framing. Everything from the chairs to the window frames to the smallest and most insignificant stool was made entirely of solid gold.

Nolan mastered his temper. “Do you know of anywhere else where we can stay?”

“I’m sorry, young man, but the CMA is pulling many of its assets out of the Easterly Kingdoms due to what’s happening there—ah, I shouldn’t make any assumptions. Are you aware of the situation in the lower lands?”

Nolan handed the man a spatial bag that contained the belongings of thousands of the Bloodhand Sect’s disciples, which almost immediately humbled the man. “Yeah, we’re aware.” He made sure to retrieve the bag with a tendril of spiritual energy.

“I…honestly, sir, there’s nothing I can do to help you. The luxury suit is the only accommodation we have left—probably the only lodgings left in all of the city.” He nodded towards some of the dozens of guests that were lounging around the lobby, all of which were wearing extremely extravagant clothing. “It isn’t just people from the CMA that are leaving the lowlands. Dukes, counts, cultivators and kings—anyone capable of making the journey through the Dragon’s Tail and across the Northern Wilderness is doing so.”