Chapter 35: Chapter 35 – Jack and Sophia

A wide smile could be seen on the face of Mabel, her emerald-colored eyes shining like the jewels they had stolen the color from. The Prinja-Boar furs had made us a fortune, more than enough for a few months of living leisurely. Mabel had lied to the merchant, telling him that it was a rare species of boar that we defeated, and the middle-aged man had paid her handsomely for that tale.

Other than the fur, we also sold the meat and tusks, not knowing what else to do with it. It obviously did not make us as much money as the fur, but we were still handsomely rewarded with a few dozen coins that alone were able to make Mabel gleeful as can be.

Obviously selling the meat and fur meant showing the merchant my inventory magic, but Mabel assured me that it, while highly sought after, wasn’t a magic somebody would kill or enslave somebody else over. If anything, having both that magic and a full citizenship made the merchant give us more money, as he knew that I must be a special existence.

It was only the figurines that we did not sell for various reasons. For one I had promised one each to both Ofris and Mabel, for another I couldn’t handle the thought of somebody carving away Cilia’s ears and tail just to make some more money. Those statues would go to people who knew their value, one of them being Sahria.

It was her that we found the earliest after arriving back at the city. The elven woman had been busy browsing the local market when we met her. I gave her the figurine just then and there, explaining to her that it was an exact copy of Cilia’s appearance. She had treated it like a national treasure knowing that, which somehow warmed my heart.

After visiting the market, we made our way to Mabel’s home, which was near the walls in the somewhat poorer district.

“No wonder she likes money so much…”

Mabel’s home was a house made half of wood, half of gray stones, with the roof being made out of thatch. It had room for four rooms only, one main room with a kitchen and a fireplace, a small bathroom and two bedrooms for Mabel and her parents. All of that together was at most the size of two rooms in the mayor’s apartment that I was residing in for the time being.

“Looks like they aren’t home right now.”
“Your parents?”
“Yes,” she said, before explaining that her parents should be in Siltar at this time. “Maybe they are with Ofris,” she concluded.

After saying that much Mabel hid her money in her bedroom before leading me out of the house again. We quickly made our way to the town hall, where we finally found both Ofris and her parents. It felt like returning home.

“Ofris!” I greeted him, “Nice to see you!”
“Oh, you are back. Why didn’t you tell me you were with Mabel? I have been searching all over the town for you.”
“Sorry…”
A rough hand gently came down on my head. “At least you are safe.”
“Who is your friend?” Mabel’s mother asked.

She was quite beautiful despite her age of around forty. She had curly, blond hair and golden eyes, making her look like a saint. Her black robe seemed to have the sole purpose of denying people from thinking about her like that. A black headband and necklace were doing the rest.

“Looks somehow weird …”

Her father, on the contrary, couldn't possibly be any plainer. He had brown, short hair and eyes in the same color. His vest and shirt were brown and sand-beige. Together with his beard, he looked like a lumberjack.

“This is Rika,” Mabel said. “Rika, these are my parents.”
“I’m Jack.”
“I’m Sophia. It is nice to meet you.”

Before I knew it, we were already in a familiar tavern, talking about this and that. A middle-aged woman came to our table. She carried a tray with five mugs, each of them filled with a seemingly hot alcohol. I knew the mist that rose from the liquid, it had haunted me ever since I had touched it the last time!

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I could only watch in disbelief when the mugs were placed down. Mabel’s parents got one each, another two were placed down in front of Ofris and Mabel, the last one, however, found its way into my hands.

“This isn't a good idea …”
“It is just prinja-juice,” the barwoman replied with a smile. “Don't worry. Nobody will give you alcohol anymore.”
“Prinja?”
A gentle hand was placed on the back of my head. “It is a fruit,” Ofris explained. “Children like it a lot.”
“I know it is a fruit …”

Hesitatingly, I placed my hands around the mug and lifted it towards my lips. Ofris was right. It only took a few drops for me to warm up to this weird juice. This wasn't apple, nor cherry, pear or any fruit I knew about. It was something wholly new, something that was sweet like strawberries but refreshing like peppermint at the same time. I could kind of understand the boars to be crazy about it.

A smile appeared on Ofris' face. “I knew you would like it!” He said, before turning to the waitress. “Thank you, Prim.”

“You are welcome. Please call me if you need something.”

After taking another glance at my gleeful face, the waitress excused herself with a silent nod and made her way back towards the kitchen. Jack’s gaze followed her, he only spoke up when he was sure she couldn't hear us anymore.

“So she is the fox?” The man asked.
“She is kinda cute, don't you think?” His wife added. “She is even purring like a catkin!”

Mabel couldn’t help but laugh. But they were right, I was purring. I couldn't even control it. Having my body warmed up by this sweet and fresh sensation it was obvious I would feel comfortable, but I had never expected it would turn out like this. Why the hell would I purr? Foxes do not purr!

「We do!」Cilia suddenly interjected.「We are purrfect, after all!」
“How I wished that was true …”
「It is true! Who else can use our awesome magic?」
“...”

The faint, vibrating sound stopped as a long sigh left my lips. The couple could only look at me questioningly, but I choose to not tell them. What could I even tell them? It was somehow good that Ofris knew about the goddess, but Risa was already too much and I wouldn't add more to that list. 

I had already finished most of my drink when the topic went to something that was far more interesting to me and Mabel. Ofris had just suggested we form a party together and take a longer job in the Mountains. My tail was already wagging at the idea of facing new opponents, ones that wouldn’t make me look like useless weight. And Mabel? She immediately accepted the offer. I couldn’t help but smile at that.

Our meeting turned a little chaotic later on, as the hellish drink finally kicked in and Sophia got way too excited about random things, such as the white tips on my ears or the way I turned restless when she focused all of her attention on me.

She asked me about my background, my hobbies and even my favorite food, all of which I somehow managed to answer. By now my tail was restlessly brushing against Mabel’s back, desperately searching for help.

“So…” Sophia finally asked, “how long have you been seeing my daughter?”

I immediately froze.

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