Chapter 395 It Follows (2)
"Zechen Empire is as new as Cresundia. It hasn't done anything, but given its recent development, you can't help but think it wants to expand its territory. Although in my opinion, they don't need to do that. Each of the former Kingdoms is, after all, at least three times the size of Antares."
After hearing what I heard from the locals, Valeria came to the same conclusion that I have. Zechen didn't send its representative for a conquest, but it won't be an ordinary visit. It gets me wondering what treasure Guatencia is hiding. Naturally, my hands are itching to snatch whatever it is from their hands.
"We are not going to have a normal vacation, aren't we?" Millonia asks rhetorically, looking at my face wearily.
"Not after what you did to the forest," I affirm sardonically.
"I did the world a favor."
"Sure, Hon."
Millonia clicks her tongue but doesn't say anything. She has gotten more docile these days. I wonder what causes it. Hopefully, it is not the beating that she received from me, because it will be weird. On second thought, it doesn't seem so weird in this world.
It is the thirty-second hour of our flight and we haven't stopped since twelve hours ago. Normally, the human body needs to urinate every six to seven hours, but none of us is human—at least, not fully. From personal experience, I can hold the liquid in my bladder for two weeks straight without feeling a thing.
That may not be the case with the girls, though, since they have done a number one twice within thirty-two hours which is not enough by any chance. I will feel like a creep for asking why they need to pee that often, so I don't. It may have something to do with feeling more alive—doing what a living creature does—or they don't like having their bladder full.
Now that I think about it, there is a certain technique that utilizes Mana to help with excretion. This technique will greatly reduce the frequency of defecation and urination as it allows you to excrete the byproducts of your metabolism as impure Mana. It takes quite a lot of effort to do it, though, so it may not be worth the benefit.
"Ah, Guatencia is already 30 Absitan away from here," I remark upon looking at the map. "We are going to arrive at the land of springs soon."
"About time! I need to pee," Millonia exclaims, receiving agreeing hums from Valeria and Aurelia.
I think they just like to pee. Quite a strange hobby, but I won't judge. 'Or maybe, my body is weird.' Throwing the thought to the back of my head, I chat with Luxia. It sounds quite stupid, but I only recently found out that she could dematerialize herself and reside in my subconscious. All of this time, I thought she simply concealed herself with Magic.
Luxia said I would have noticed it sooner if I wasn't so detached from my heart. I asked her how to engage more with my heart and, to be fair, she didn't know either, so I was not entirely stupid for not realizing what had been happening. Moreover, the trait is also exclusive to Luxia. I have asked Teanosvera about it and he says that he resides in his Subdimension and not my subconscious.
I know why it is only exclusive to Luxia, though. Her corrupted Spiritual Heart is bound to me, making her part of my soul. Now that I think about it, it is pretty stupid of me not to realize she had been hiding in my subconscious until now. She helped me during my past fights. She wouldn't have been able to hold on to my head during all of the aggressive movements.
'Given my current control over my Demonic Essence, how much do you think you can help me draw?'
Luxia hums before answering, 'At least, twice the amount of how much you can control. However, I don't suggest you draw that much since it may corrupt me. At least, not until I regain my strength.'
'I know how corruptive Demonic Essence is, but don't you think you are being excessive?'
'Your Origin is troublesome, Layland.'
'Touché.'
I need to feed Luxia more Earth Essence. I can easily achieve that by going to the Forest of Spirits, but I am quite unsure if I can visit that place without a fight. Spirits stay neutral, but the guardians of the forest where they stay, Druids, are not on the best terms with Demons. I will be quite hard-pressed to fight an entire forest of angry Druids.
Putting the matter aside for the moment, I look ahead. We are less than 5 Absitan away from Guatencia, so we are going down. We want to have an enjoyable vacation, so we can't just show up in the middle of the city riding a Dragon of Aurelia caliber. We land in the forest 1.5 Absitan away from the city. We cast a disguise on us before rushing to the city.
We are stopped by the guard when we are in front of the gate, but a coin of gold saves us from the hassle of being asked questions like what our purpose of the visit is. Upon entering the city, we are greeted by a bustling road. Living up to its reputation, it is indeed the place where you want to spend your holiday.
The decorations and the buildings surrounding the place make it look like a capital city. This city relies solely on tourism, but it thrives better than most territories inside a kingdom do. Since the purpose of our visit is the hot springs, we stop looking around, and then look for a hotel. We walk through the road for a few minutes until we find one.
Since the city is filled with hot springs, of course, the hotel has a hot spring. Upon entering, we find out that the hotel is not very popular despite its looks. Turns out, the price is quite astronomical. I have a lot of money and like privacy, so it is like heaven for me, even though I don't believe in it.
"I would like to order two—"
"Give us your biggest suite," Valeria interjects me.
I thought Valeria wanted to have some private time with me, so I am quite baffled. My eyes express my bafflement when I look at her, but she merely quirks an eyebrow as if she can't believe what I am baffled about.
"That will be 32,000 Peculia for a night. How many nights will you be staying?" The receptionist asks.
"Four days," I answer.
"Then, it will be 128,000 Peculia."
"Can I pay in Gold?"
"Of course. It will be 256 Gold."
$256,000 for four nights is crazy. It is no wonder this city thrives so well. I bet the tax is also crazy. It truly is the place to spend your money. Then again, no ordinary people come here. The street is filled with Nobles or rich merchants. The only people who dress modestly are locals.
"Here is your key and Monika here is going to guide you to your room, sir."
Taking the key from the receptionist, I take note of the hint of misery and envy he is exuding as he looks at me. I am already used to it, so I don't pay him any mind. The staff named Monika asks us to follow her and then professionally escorts us to our suite. She takes us into a room with a Magic Circle carved on the ground, activates it, and then takes us to the top floor.
Using [Teleportation] to replace an elevator is as amusing as it is obnoxious, but it is worth the price. Our room is at the end of the top floor. Upon opening the door, we are greeted by a room befitting of a king. The decorations are not over the top but look expensive and the bed is more than big enough for us to sleep on.
The room has two bathrooms and one toilet. It has direct access to the beautiful garden outside, which can only be visited by those who stay in the room. All in all, it is worth the price. Monika leaves us after telling us that we will get three meals every day and they will be delivered to our room.
Plop!
"Keuh! I think I am going to spend my afternoon here!" Millonia exclaims as she falls unceremoniously onto the bed. "Over thirty-two hours of flight without a single rest on the land is exhausting."
"We could have rested if you weren't so stubborn on how uninteresting our stops were," I remind.
"Whatever, Hon," Millonia scoffs.
I shake my head faintly and then think about how I should spend the afternoon. Millonia has begun snoring and Aurelia also plops down beside her. My eyes find their way to Valeria who is looking at the two sleeping women in faint amusement. She meets my gaze and then quirks an eyebrow.
"Wanna have a date?"
"I do."
"Let's go."
We exit the hotel and walk in the street, looking around and taking in all of the scenery. Guatencia is a developed city but hasn't lost its nature's beauty. Although shaved, the mountains surrounding the city are preserved. Some of the buildings are even merged with part of the mountain, reminiscent of buildings that Dwarves build.
A savory smell caresses my nose, causing me to turn in the direction where it comes from. Valeria also does the same, so both of us meet the curious girl garbed in Priestess attire at the same time. We stop walking and stare at the Priestess silently. The Priestess narrows her eyes.
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