Chapter 32 (Elaina)

(Elaina’s POV)

The amount of people on the streets had increased now that it was late afternoon. Wherever I walked, I was receiving plenty of gazes, especially from men. Although I had noticed a few women giving me a look of desire.

It wasn’t my clothes that was making them stare. I was only wearing a simple green dress; the same one I had been wearing for the past two weeks. On top of that, I also had the belt strapped around my waist, holding my pack and my sword. That was one thing I did not dare leave behind.

Despite my plain dress, my face was completely obscured face. The contrast between my stunning face and plain dress only increased the stares. It wasn’t that I was narcissistic, this wasn’t even my own body after all. It was just that my face was truly beautiful. And now I had even added [Perfect Skin] to my repertoire. It was no wonder that I was getting so much attention.

But even my appearance was lacking to Kitty’s. She was more cute than sexy, but she still looked stunning nonetheless. It might have been because of her insane charisma stat or maybe she just looked that way.

I had actually wanted to bring Kitty along. As long as she wore the invisibility bracelet, it would have been fine. She would probably be safer with me than at the inn. In fact, I felt much better with her at my side.

I hadn’t noticed it until the night we had sex but I had really fallen for Kitty. It wasn’t honestly quite odd, it was like I was naturally attracted to the girl. But she was also my type. Cute, innocent and submissive. And as a bonus, she was really good in bed.

I shook my head as I tried to move my thoughts to a different topic. Whenever I thought about Kitty now, I started getting a little to excited.

The first task should be new clothing and equipment. My budget was quite high, so I could afford to spend for a couple sets of clothes for myself. As for Kitty, she would have to make do. I didn’t have her size at the moment.

With a map of the town given to me by the innkeeper, crudely written and barely understandable, I navigated through the town with some difficulty before arriving at my destination. The sheer amount of people on the streets only made it harder.

Finally, I found myself before one of Red Peak’s few tailor shops. It wasn’t the most expensive clothing store, but the clothing it sold was designed specifically for humans.

The shop had only a signboard of a shirt and the word’s Magora’s Clothing underneath, both painted in red. There were a few sets of clothing shown in the window, both male and female garments.

“Welcome, young lady. What are you looking for today?”

Right after opening the door, I was greeted by a spry old woman standing behind the counter. Her hair was greying, and some wrinkles were showing on her face, but she was probably still in her sixties at the oldest.

Glancing around the store, I saw that it was full of clothing of all sorts of colours. Other than me, there were no other customers.

“I’m looking for some traveling wear. Shirts, pants and maybe a cloak to keep me warm.”

The woman gave me a look as she rubbed her chin. “Hmm, I should have some clothes that fit you. Even if you are quite thin and slender, plus a little tall for a woman, you’re still pretty close to a human. Quite rare though to see an elf in the northern continent, especially a free one.”

My face paled as I realized she knew my identity. “H-How did you know?”

She pointed to her left eye. “[Discerning Eye]. I usually use it to fit customers. You’re a little too thin to be a human, unless you were starving. Your golden hair and attractive face are also clues, as well as the fact that you’re hiding your ears.” She gave me a friendly smile.

I gulped. If this woman could see that I was an elf…

“Don’t worry too much. Most people haven’t seen your kind up here, but I’ve had to make clothes for a few elven slaves so it was a little easier for me. Besides, only another human or elf would likely be able to guess your identity. Although you would do well buying a cloak to hide your figure and face.” She hummed as she darted around the back of the store, flipping through the shelves.

She pulled out a dark green cloak. “This is one of my better cloaks. Although a little expensive, it is one of my better products. Enchanted with minor toughness and waterproof.”

“How much is it?”

“Two gold and fifty silver for the cloak.”

I didn’t know how expensive that was, but many of the slaves were going for around a few dozen gold at the auction. The inn room had been five silver a night, so this cloak was basically fifty nights at an inn. Of course, I had paid for the least expensive room so it wasn’t the best comparison.

I nodded in response, deciding to buy it anyway. My decision might have been swayed by the fact that the cloak was green, my favourite colour.

Along with cloak, I bought three pairs of pants and shirts as well as a tank-top and shorts.

Eventually, after a little hesitation, I added a dark red cloak for Kitty as well as some undergarments and socks for the both of us. I didn’t purchase any actual clothing for her though. While I could make a good guess for her cup-size, estimating the size of outer clothing she needed was a little harder.

Finally, I added in a storage bag to hold it all. The shop only sold lesser storage bags, mainly for leisure purposes. But it suited my needs well enough.

The total came to Eight gold and seventy-six silver, but I paid the old woman six gold. Most of the amount was spent on the storage bag as well as the two cloaks. Kitty’s cloak was only a tad less expensive than mine.

After buying the clothing, I switched into a new shirt and pants, as well as slipping on the cloak. Hopefully, I would get fewer gazes in the streets.

“Do you mind if I ask some questions? I’m quite new to the town.”

“Of course not dear. I have plenty of time. Ask away.”

“Why is the Red Peak path so popular? There are other ways to get to the southern continent so why is this one so popular.”

I had been thinking about this for a while. Why was this place so full of people? Wasn’t it just one of many paths through the mountain range?

“Odd. You’re an elf but you’ve never been to the southern continent, have you Miss?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m from up north.”

“There are only three ways to get between the two halves of the continent. The first is through the main pass, but you wouldn’t take that unless you want to die. Every so often, the Anos Empire sends an expedition up north, but they never get through the pass. The Demon Lord of Wrath herself defends exit after all. Only every hundred years when they send their crusade do they get through. I was still a kid during the last crusade ninety years ago, so I didn’t participate in the defense, but the south didn’t get very far before the demon lords put a stop to their nonsense.”

“The second method would be by boat. While it is probably the safest of the three routes, it is still more dangerous than you might think. Pirates, storms, sea monsters…any one of them could put an end to your trip. The sea between the northern and southern continent is rife with dangers.”

“Of course, this leads us to the third method. There are many paths threw the mountains, but most of them are far too dangerous for ordinary men. Everything from collapsing tunnels and rockslides to bandits and monsters. Red Peak pass is one of the safest of the routes and is also wide enough to allow for smaller caravans and wagons to traverse across. Not only that, the pass exits at the Revilon Empire not the Anos Empire. If you are suspected of traveling the Chaos Peaks in the Anos Empire, at best you’ll be imprisoned. And that’s for humans. If you’re any other race, you’ll be executed.”

“And anyone can use the pass?”

“Of course. The city charges a tax of ten silver to use it though. Not much, but that’s per person, including slaves. You’ll also need to hire an escort team to protect you from monsters and bandits. The more expensive the better.”

“I see. Do you have any suggestions?”

“Hmmmm, let me think…The Crescent Moon Warriors would be your best option. They are a smaller group but composed entirely of elites. Never failed a single mission since they formed. But they take platinum, not gold. A cheaper option would be the Red Peak Mercenaries, the largest escort group here. They do regular runs once a month, taking a bunch of people through the pass. Except you just missed them as they set out only a few days ago, so you’ll have to wait another month to go through.”

“Is there anyone else?”

“Not that I can remember at the moment. Of course, I’m not traveling through the pass so you might be better off asking someone else. You might be able to pay a merchant caravan to take you as well. They have their own hired guards. Just remember to make sure you find an escort group you can trust. You’re a young, human woman after all and a beauty to boot.”

“Thank you, ma’am. You’ve helped me quite a bit.”

She waved her hand in the air as she gave me a toothy smile. “No need. It’s so rare to meet a polite young lady like you after all. If you ever need more clothes, please come again.”

“Of course,” I said as I waved goodbye.

After leaving the clothing store, I left to my next destination. What I needed was some light armour as well as a better weapon. Then perhaps a trip to the mercenary guild.

However, before reaching the blacksmith, I found another store that wasn’t on my list. However, it was something that caught my eye.

A sex shop.