“Thanks for giving me a ride,” Anna said.

“It was the least I could do,” Vincent replied.

He’d offered to return her to the guild in his personal carriage that morning at breakfast. She’d agreed of course, and they were currently heading to the inn that she had stayed at with Elaine and Richard. She wanted to let her friend know she was alright.

“Is it true you ate an entire tray of cupcakes last night?” Vincent asked.

“I ate two trays,” Anna replied.

“Oh gods, that’s perfect. I thought mother was going to choke when she watched you eat all that bacon at breakfast. I’m still trying to figure out where you put it,” Vincent said.

“I’m still not sure myself,” Anna replied.

I must have over done it again. Her friends normally were there to tell her to slow down.

“I’m rather looking forward to visiting the adventurer’s guild. I’ve never been,” Vincent said.

“It’s filled with sweaty men that are usually half drunk, and it smells like pee,” Anna replied.

“So, it’s like any garrison in the kingdom them,” Vincent said. Anna just shrugged. She’d never been to a garrison before. “Father told me to be careful around you. He said you’re not human,” Vincent said.

“That’s strange. The maids told me to be careful around you. I heard all kinds of things last night,” Anna replied.

“Lies, all of it,” Vincent said.

“That’s a shame. I really wanted to try some of them,” Anna replied. She was rubbing her thigh in a circle with her finger and smiling softly while looking down.

“Really?” Vincent asked in a squeak. Anna burst into laughter.

“Got you,” she said. Vincent turned red. “You should see your face right now!” Anna added.

“You truly are a monster,” Vincent replied. Anna laughed even louder.

“It’s for the best anyway. I’d probably kill you by accident,” Anna said.

“What do you mean?” Vincent asked.

“Every muscle in my body is harder than steel when I flex it,” Anna replied.

“I don’t see how... Oh, oh gods, that’s terrible!” Vincent said in horror. Anna laughed again.

“See, you figured it out,” she replied.

“Mother did tell me to be careful who I take to bed,” Vincent said.

“She doesn’t want you to put a baby in some serving girl or piss off some lord when he finds out what you did to his daughter,” Anna replied.

Vincent smiled a crooked smile. “Well, I think she wouldn’t want me to get snapped in half like a twig either,” he said.

“Most likely,” Anna replied.

When they arrived at the Inn, a servant let them out of the carriage. Vincent followed her into the inn for some reason. The staff looked like someone had lit the building on fire the moment they saw Vincent. Anna walked up to the counter.

“How can I help you miss?” the attendant asked.

“Are Elaine and Richard still here?” Anna asked.

“Yes, miss! I’ll send someone to fetch them immediately!” the attendant replied. A man rushed away before Anna could say a word. Vincent stood there looking smug.

I think that’s just his face.

Elaine rushed to her moments later and picked her up in a hug. Anna squealed in surprise.

“I was only gone one night!” she said.

“They came and took your dress, and they didn’t tell us why or where you were. They just sent us here and said to wait!” Elaine replied.

“I apologize for that. There was an incident last night that we had to take care of,” Vincent said.

“Why’s he here?” Elaine asked.

Looks like she’s done playing the part of noblewoman.

“He offered to give us a ride back to the guild,” Anna replied.

Richard walked up next. Vincent took a letter from his pocket and handed it to the man.

“Read it in private,” Vincent said.

“Yes, my lord,” Richard replied, nodding his head.

“Well. Let's be off,” Vincent said. He was in a hurry to see the guild.

Elaine turned to her brother. She hugged him.

“I’ll write all of you when I can,” she said.

“Please come and visit when you can,” Richard replied.

They left after that. The staff at the inn brought all their belongings to Vincent’s huge carriage. They got into the carriage, and it glided away from the inn.

“What in the world happened to you last night?” Elaine asked.

“It’s a secret,” Anna replied. Elaine looked confused.

“She saved me and my elder brother, along with the princess Irene, from being kidnapped,” Vincent said.

“I thought I wasn’t supposed to talk about it!” Anna said.

“You aren’t, but I can,” Vincent replied.

“What is with you? Can’t I take you anywhere without you doing something heroic?” Elaine snapped.

“It’s not my fault this time. He kissed me, and they interrupted it!” Anna replied. Elaine gave Vincent a flat look.

“You kissed her?” she asked.

“Do you blame me?” he replied. Elaine looked back at Anna.

“We’ll talk about that later,” she said.

“Anyway, I killed them, and then I killed the ones that were trying to kidnap his brother,” Anna replied.

“Of course, you did. What happened to your ballgown? I know you have a cleansing spell,” Elaine said.

“One of them was a mage, and he hit me with lightning,” Anna replied.

“Shit,” Elaine said.

“I almost did,” Vincent replied.

“So, what are you, the hero of the realm now?” Elaine asked.

“No, father wants to keep this quiet,” Vincent replied.

“So, what did you get then?” Elaine asked.

“I’ll show you when we get to the guild,” Anna replied.

“She tried to get fifty full rounds to pay your family’s debt off,” Vincent said.

“WHAT!” Elaine shouted.

“I wanted to help,” Anna said.

“You don’t need to. Listen, my father and brother need to figure it out. Did you notice I didn’t offer anything?” Elaine asked. Anna looked at her blankly. Elaine sighed. “Don’t worry about it. You’re better off with dwarves than human nobility,” Elaine said.

Vincent got a look on his face. “Gods, she is dwarf like, isn’t she?” he asked.

“You don’t know the half of it,” Elaine replied.

They arrived at the guild hall soon after, and a servant helped them out of the carriage. Four men lifted a trunk from the back of the carriage and followed them into the guild hall.

The inside of the hall was the same raucous atmosphere until Vincent walked in. Then everyone stopped at stared. Anna ignored them and walked over to the table where her friends were sitting.

The other members of her party were staring wide-eyed at them. The men set the trunk down near the table.

Anna turned to thank Vincent. He pulled her into a hug with one arm and then kissed her on the lips.

She closed her eyes. I’m going to enjoy it this time!

She hugged him back and heard a few cat calls from the other adventurers in the room. He stopped kissing her but was still close.

“I thought your father told you to be careful around me?” Anna asked.

“I don’t always listen to my father,” Vincent replied. He let her go and took a step back where he bowed.

“Until we meet again, my lady,” he said before turning around and leaving the guild hall.

Anna was grinning like a fool the whole time. As soon as the door closed, Lyreen rushed over.

“WHO WAS THAT?!” she asked.

“That was Vincent, the duke’s second son, and the first man to kiss me!” Anna squealed.

Lyreen pulled her into a hug and started to giggle like an excited child. “You have to tell me everything!” she said.

“It’s a secret,” Anna replied. Lyreen laughed.

“Oh no, it isn’t, at least not to me!” she said.

“Fine, I’ll tell you, but not here. Wait till we’re out of the city,” Anna replied.

“Alright, but I’ll hold you to it,” Lyreen said.

“What’s in the trunk?” Voekeer asked.

“A gift from the duke,” Anna replied.

She walked over to the trunk and opened it. It was filled to the brim with gold coins, not full rounds, but the smaller ones. It glittered in the light. Thokri whistled.

“That’s some gift,” he said.

“I think the queen added more,” Anna said. Looking at the contents, it seemed like more now. Voekeer just looked at it as if he didn’t believe his own eyes.

“Goddess child, you don’t do anything halfway, do you?” Barika asked.

“Nope,” Anna replied.

Lyreen stared at the trunk as well. “What the fuck did you do?” she asked.

“That’s the secret,” Anna replied.

Other adventurers started to crowd around looking at the trunk. It was more wealth than anyone in the room had ever seen. Anna was probably the wealthiest non-noble in the city at the moment.

Bruno shoved his way through the crowd and looked at the glittering treasure. He closed the trunk and picked it up.

“This is going in the vault,” he said.

“Uh, okay,” Anna said as he carried it off.

“Best place for it, lass,” Thokri said.

The crowd dispersed and she sat at the table with her friends.

“Is there even a point to working anymore?” Voekeer asked.

“Aye, lad. That’s her coin, not yours,” Thokri replied. Voekeer sighed.

“I know that, but still,” he said.

“I still want to go on adventures,” Anna replied. Voekeer nodded.

“Well, there’s a quest to slay a monster that’s eating whole herds of cattle in a river by Eagle’s Bay. We were waiting for you two before we took it,” Voekeer said.

“Sounds good to me,” Elaine replied.

“We don’t have to go to another city, do we?” Anna asked.

“No, child. It’s near a fishing village,” Barika replied.

“Oh, good,” Anna said.

“What’s wrong?” Voekeer asked.

“A lot of things have happened in the last few weeks. I’m kind of overwhelmed,” Anna replied.

“Let’s leave tomorrow,” Elaine said.

“Aye,” Thokri said.

“What was in the letter Vincent gave my brother?” Elaine asked.

“No idea. He wouldn’t tell me,” Anna replied.

“We’re going to need a wagon,” Thokri said.

“Why?” Voekeer asked.

“Need special weapons to kill a sea monster,” Thokri replied.

“But it’s in a river,” Anna said.

“Aye, still a big bastard though,” Thokri said.

“Is that something we can just buy?” Barika asked.

“No, lass. We’ll need to get them made,” Thokri replied.

“So, we aren’t leaving tomorrow then?” Anna asked.

“No, lass. You’ll have to wait a few more days,” Thokri replied.

Anna sighed. She understood, but she was looking forward to leaving.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll be up to our eyes in dwarves the rest of the time we’re here,” Lyreen said dryly.

“Aye,” Thokri replied.

I missed them.

They chatted for a few minutes before heading out. They went to the market center again, this time to the section where weapons were sold. Anna looked at all the gleaming swords and spears as they walked by shop after shop.

He’s so picky!

Thokri had found one reason or another as to why they couldn’t go to any of the shops so far.

He does know I don’t need weapons, right?

There was no way he had forgotten, so the only thing it could be was they were supposed to pretend they needed them.

Yeah, that’s got to be it.

“This one,” Thokri said as he pushed the door open to a plain looking shop. The inside was filled with rack upon rack of weapons.

“Damn,” Anna said.

“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Voekeer said.

Thokri walked over to the counter where a dwarf sat looking at them suspiciously.

Oh, that’s what he was looking for.

Thokri was a good man and didn’t judge people based on anything but their actions, for the most part, but when it came to metal and stonework, if it wasn’t made by dwarves, it was inferior.

I mean, the dwarven stuff is nice, but everything else isn’t junk.

She shook her head. If that was the only predisposition he had, she supposed it wasn’t too harmful.

Thokri and the dwarf started talking, so she decided to pick through the racks. While she didn’t need weapons, she still had a thing for clubs, so she gravitated towards them.

Wait, I can buy anything I want now!

She started to scoop up anything that looked like it might be fun to bash against something’s face.

The dwarf swore when she dropped the armload of clubs and maces on the counter.

“Are you going to war, lass?” he asked.

“Maybe,” Anna replied.

The dwarf just shook his head. Thokri finished, and she paid for her pile of weapons and the special ones they needed to slay large monsters.

After that, they went to the wagon shop. There were only a few that sold wagons, and none were owned by dwarves, so they just picked the one with the best sign.

The shop was huge with whole wagons right there in the main room to look at. Anna wandered over to a massive one. It was fully enclosed with iron plates covering the top half.

“I think that would be a little much,” Voekeer said.

“Yeah,” Anna replied.

They looked around until they found a nice, covered wagon.

It’s like the ones that would take goods to and from Fishport.

Thokri started to negotiate a price with the merchant. Anna looked the wagon over out of curiosity. It was mostly made from oak and maybe some maple.

I’m good with wood.

She’d learned a lot about it when she had helped them rebuild the wall at the crossroads and could identify different kinds easily.

The canvas that covered the wagon was water-proofed, though not to the extent of true oil cloth. By the smell, it was just lightly oiled. She assumed it was just a cost saving measure. Oil cloth was quite expensive.

It is really tight though. Maybe it doesn’t need to be oil cloth.

The inside was just flat wood with no benches. She assumed they would just sit on whatever they packed.

Not the spears though. That might get pokey for the others.

There was a bench at the front of the wagon that looked like it could fit three people, two if Thokri was one of them. She climbed up and sat down. A long pole stuck out from the wagon with iron rings on it.

That’s where the horses go.

By the look of the pole, this wagon would be pulled by four horses.

The harnesses weren’t there. She assumed they kept them somewhere in the back, not wanting people to mess with the complex apparatus more than necessary. She looked around the shop from her new vantage point.

Wonder where the nobles get their carriages?

This shop didn’t have a single one even though they could clearly make them here.

Oh, wait. I bet a guild makes them and doesn’t let anyone else.

She hopped off the wagon when Thokri shook hands with the merchant. They’d pick up the cart after they bought a team of horses, which the merchant didn’t sell.

They made their way to the horse merchant. They found him near the center of the market near the slavers. Anna didn’t like the implications of that but didn’t say a word.

She had a hard time paying attention to the horses as they stood there.

I can hear them crying.

She winced a few times when she heard a lash hitting flesh.

They aren’t animals!

She turned to walk out of the horse merchant’s shop.

“What’s wrong? Where are you going?” Elaine asked.

“I can hear them,” Anna replied, pointing out the door.

“Who?” Elaine asked.

“The slaves,” Lyreen replied. She had a sour look on her face, and so did Voekeer.

“You can too, can’t you?” Anna asked. Both elves nodded. “We have to help!” Anna said.

“There’s nothing we can do. It’s the way humans are!” Voekeer replied. He spat on the ground and took Lyreen by the hand.

“Let’s go,” he said.

“Hold on, lad. We’re almost finished here,” Thokri replied. Voekeer spat but didn’t leave.

Anna sighed. She was starting to regret going along with the wagon and special weapon idea.

I’ll just kill it with my tentacles.

They got their horses and walked back to the wagon shop in silence. Thokri hitched the horses to the wagon, and they headed for a stable to keep the horses and the wagon at until they needed it.

Once they finished with that, they went to the dwarven tavern. They spent the rest of that night drinking, eating, and singing with the dwarves.

Voekeer’s a good singer.

Lyreen, on the other hand, wasn’t. The dwarves kept giving her something to eat or drink every time she opened her mouth, and soon she was piss drunk.

“I’m hot!” Lyreen said.

Everyone looked at her. Suddenly she pulled off her shirt and tossed it across the room. Anna blinked in shock.

Oh, fuck! She doesn’t wear a wrap!

Lyreen didn’t really need to, but because of this, she was now showing what little she had to everyone in the room. The dwarves cheered.

Poor Voekeer was drunk himself, and the sight of Lyreen stripping seemed to have stunned him. Elaine and Barika just started to laugh, and Thokri, well, he was grinning like a cat who had caught an exceptionally fat rat.

Lyreen’s boots flew next, followed by her pants and then underclothes. Anna watched in shock as an extremely drunk Lyreen started to dance around stark naked. Anna looked around at her friends to see what they were going to do.

And they’re all just drunk and laughing. She sighed, unsure if she should do anything or not.

Lyreen started to dance with a few dwarves. Anna just shook her head.

Voekeer got up and walked over to her. He snatched her and threw her over his shoulder. The dwarves booed him. Lyreen started to laugh hysterically.

Anna got up and walked over. She took her cure poison ring from her belt pouch and put it on. She held it over Lyreen’s head and pushed mana into it. A soft green glow enveloped both elves, and moments later, Lyreen’s eyes seemed to focus again, and she turned bright red. She screamed, and Voekeer put her down. She crouched down and scrunched up trying to cover herself.

“GET MY CLOTHES!” she screeched.

A few dwarves gathered them up and tossed them to her. She hastily pulled them on and then rushed out of the tavern dragging Voekeer along with her.

“Cure poison ring works,” Anna said. The dwarves all started to laugh.

“That will come in handy, child,” Barika said as she sat back down. Elaine had an evil smile on her face.

“Whatever it is your planning, wait a few days. It will be better that way,” Barika said.

“Oh, I will,” Elaine replied.

The next few days were quiet. She didn’t leave her house much, having been overwhelmed by everything that had happened at the ball. She packed her alchemy supplies up wanting to bring them with her on this contract.

She met her friends at the guild hall the morning they were supposed to leave. Lyreen still wasn’t talking to anyone. She would just turn red and look away.

Elaine’s probably tormenting her.

It was strange. After all of the excitement the last month, Anna felt anxious and really wanted to leave for some reason. She climbed next to Thokri who was driving the wagon.

“Ready to get going lass?” Thokri asked.

“Aye,” Anna replied.

The road into the kingdom proper was in far better shape than the one leading to the frontier. It was also far more crowded.

“I’LL FUCK’N WHIP YOU IF YOU DON’T GET OUT OF THE FUCK’N WAY!” Thokri shouted to a group of men who had been walking in the middle of the road.

They jumped off to the side when they turned to see the mad dwarf waving a driving whip at them. A few rude gestures later and they were past the sluggards. She began to watch Thokri carefully wanting to know how to drive the wagon.

After a few hours, Thokri simply handed her the reins without saying a word. She drove the wagon for the rest of the day and pulled into an inn just after nightfall. There were other wagons parked next to the inn, so she just pulled theirs next to the rest of them.

A young man walked over. Thokri hopped off the wagon and went to talk to him. Anna got off the wagon as well and stretched her back like the others did. She was rather good at pretending to be human by this point, at least she thought she was, and most people just looked her way because they found her attractive.

She helped Thokri unhook the horses and lead them to the stable where they would be spending the night. After that, they went into the inn.

“Leave it lass. Only a damned fool would try to rob monster hunters,” Thokri said when she went to open the wagon.

“He’s right. Just make sure you have your coin on you, and you’ll be fine,” Voekeer said.

Anna nodded. She had left most of her valuables in her home.

The dwarves said they would look after my place while I was gone. They were also going to redo the interior, so they needed a key anyway.

Voekeer pushed open the door to the inn, and she followed him inside. She smiled at the sight. It was just like the inns all along the road on the frontier and even reminded her a little of her first home back in Fishport.

They found a seat in the crowded main room and waited for a barmaid.

It’s a sausage fest in here.

There were no women amongst the other patrons. The room was filled with burly waggoneers, and they all seemed very interested in the party. Thokri’s scowl was a force of nature, and a single look from him caused the men in the room to avert their gaze, all be it for only a moment.

Oh, I hope they start something. I wanna toss someone!

A chubby barmaid came over and took their orders. Much to Anna’s disappointment, the men in the room lost interest in them after a few minutes. The barmaid brought out their food and drinks a few minutes later. Anna took a sip of the ale.

“Dog,” she said. Thokri took a sip.

“Aye,” he replied.

She looked in the bowl. It was a thick stew full of roughly cut vegetables and large chunks of meat. She took a bite of the stew with the rather rough wooden spoon provided. It was thick and flavorful.

My mouth is too small for some of the chunks!

She had to break the meat apart with her spoon before eating it. She looked around and noticed that she was the only one having that problem.

I’m just tiny.

She looked at her little hand gripping the spoon and smirked. She was no more than five feet tall and one hundred pounds making her by far the smallest member of the party. She finished the bowl of stew and asked for a second one. Luckily no one treated her like a child because of her charms as lady Ender had put it.

After she finished the second one, they sat at the table and drank a few mugs of ale together before heading up to their respective rooms for the night.

The room wasn’t anything special, and she didn’t have her pack, so she just undressed and laid on the bed. She hadn’t bothered to light a candle not needing to see any colors. The moon was half full and provided enough light to bathe the room in a silvery glow. She looked at it for a few minutes before closing her eyes and falling fast asleep.