It was not safe to be out at nightfall anymore, so the surroundings were relatively tranquil. The carriage parked outside the tavern was empty, and the horses were left without food. A few droplets of water fell from a nearby faucet and dripped into a bucket.
Caesar squinted his eyes as he ascended the fleet of stairs in the eerily quiet inn. It was usually bustling with drunkards that stayed overnight. However, not a single soul was present today, which was quite strange.
His steady strides caused the brittle wood to creak and resound throughout the building. His conspicuous figure soon reached the front of his door, where he entered without hesitation. Immediately, the sound of loud snoring rang in his ears.
A chunky and stout dwarf was lying on his bed without a care in the world. His feet were hanging off the mattress, and drool fell from his mouth. Caesar frowned and ma.s.saged his forehead as he heaved a sigh of relief.
The cat that was resting on his shoulders hopped off prematurely and snuggled herself into a nearby blanket, going to sleep. Caesar inspected the room and felt as though he worried for nothing; thus, he decided to get some rest himself.
Since Joe had decided to take his bed rudely, he begrudgingly slept on the floor. Who knows what Joe did in his alone time; therefore, Caesar refused to rest on his bunk. Although he could kick Joe out of his own bed, he didn"t feel like creating anymore conflict than necessary tonight.
Slowly, he drifted off to sleep, forgetting about most of the troublesome matters that plagued his mind. He didn"t dwell much on the fact that both Joanna and Richard were missing. In fact, he expected such a development.
…
The next morning, the sound of laughter and cheers abruptly woke both Caesar and Joe. They lifted their upper bodies while rubbing their slumberous eyes. The blanket fell from Caesar"s torso, revealing the small and anorexic kitten.
It was still very tired from its sumptuous feast last night, so Caesar covered it back up and stood up from the ground. He glared at Joe with the corner of his eyes as he dressed in a relatively plain outfit.
"Is there a reason you were sleeping in my bed?" Caesar asked after a moment of silence, causing Joe to scratch the back of his head with a wry smile.
Joe laughed in a skewed manner, "my bed had kept creaking every time I tossed and turned. I figured you weren"t going to be back for the night, so I helped myself," he explained.
Caesar rolled his eyes and kicked the still half-asleep dwarf off of his bed. His corpulent figure soared through the air and landed on his b.u.t.tocks. The ground creaked loudly, and Joe groaned in pain.
"The wedding is starting in four days," Caesar said, "we need to find you a pair of fancy clothes, get you a haircut, and teach you some manners. I will not allow you to embarra.s.s me, nor Rahvin kingdom, at the party."
In response, Joe pouted his lips and looked Caesar with puppy-dog eyes. Such an expression would have worked on him if the beautiful Ahri was initiating it. However, the rough looking dwarf nearly made Caesar barf as he pressed Joe under his foot.
"I will not take no for an answer, you lazy b.a.s.t.a.r.d," Caesar declared with a tinge of irritation, "I have yet to see you dress presentable, let alone act with manners. Ah, I"m beginning to regret bringing you with me."
As he spoke to here, a soft knock rang in his ears. Before he could even turn around, the curvaceous innkeeper walked inside. Her eyes were filled with worry and shock as she observed Caesar grind his feet on the small dwarf.
"M-my apologies for interrupting. I heard a loud bang, and, well, uhm, please continue!" she said hastily and slammed the door behind her. Her face was deeply flushed, and Caesar could only imagine what was going through her head.
Caesar removed his foot from Joe"s back and threw a set of clothes on him. "Get dressed; we"re going shopping today."
Joe grumbled incomprehensibly as he slowly put on the brown robe that Caesar provided him with. It draped over his body and hid most of his muscles and exposed skin, bestowing him a somewhat mysterious look.
Caesar nodded his head in approval and dragged the reluctant Joe down the stairs. If he was completely honest, he never planned for Joe to attend the wedding. However, circ.u.mstances change, and a powerful berserker would be quite useful.
There was no telling if the current king of Limbo kingdom would try to a.s.sa.s.sinate him, so he must prepare himself. On the other hand, he also wanted to check if the tavern possessed an "O" or an "X" on the signboard.
With this in mind, they soon departed from the large tavern under the innkeeper"s scrutinization. Her eyes gazed upon both Caesar and Joe curiously as a red blush appeared on her face. Never in a million years would she have expected an S&M couple to appear in her residence.
Caesar didn"t bother fixing her wild imagination and brought Joe to one of the expensive stores he had found. The doors were made out a beautiful oak and dinged when they were opened. Inside, all sorts of clothes and fabrics displayed themselves.
A middle-aged woman sat behind the desk and didn"t even bat an eye once two customers arrived. Her appearance was rather lack-l.u.s.ter, but she surprisingly possessed a decent amount of mana within her.
Although he was intrigued, Caesar ignored it for the time being. Instead, he picked out a few clothes and fabrics, handing them to Joe to try on. Joe was still tired and reluctant to open his lips, so he put on clothes like a zombie.
Of course, this irked Caesar to no end, but he dealt with it until they found a few pairs of clothes that matched his size. He handed Joe the necessary funds and walked out of the door, bidding him farewell.
Joe stood there stumped as he studied Caesar"s retreating back. This was not at all apart of the deal, and now, he was being eyed by the scary receptionist. A string of curses escaped from his thick lips as he begrudgingly paid for the clothes.
…
Outside of the store, Caesar leisurely walked toward where the tavern him, and the three hooligans decided upon. He whistled a melodious tone as a sharp glint appeared in his eyes. He wasn"t one to kill or injure indiscriminately. However, he required a large amount of blood to evolve.
"I suppose the thugs and gangsters will suffice…" he whispered quietly as he made his way down the street. None of the nearby pedestrians would"ve ever even guessed that a highly lethal vampire was walking amongst them.