Sea Story (15)
"Saintess! Get up already! It's an expensive door, so we can't just break it... damn it!"
"Can't you Blink inside the room...?"
"Blink is different from spatial teleportation. Don't you know that, even as a black mage?"
The commotion outside the room continued unabated. Celereja sat there with a hollow, defeated expression, as if she'd given up on everything. I tossed a towel from the nightstand onto her lap.
"Saintess. Snap out of it. They say even if you wander into a dragon's lair, keep your wits and you'll avoid becoming half a corpse."
Celereja caught the towel and shot me a look that screamed what's the use?
"Dry off. Get dressed."
"What about you, Bertrand...?"
"I've got a way out. First, use your holy power to erase those marks on your body."
I threw on my pants haphazardly and eyed the open window. Celereja followed my gaze and clapped a hand over her mouth.
"Gasp... no way...!"
"See you later!"
I sprinted across the room and hurled myself out the window. The horizon of Grace Bay from five stories up in midair was truly spectacular.
I landed from the fifth-floor window and sauntered back to the suite like I'd spent the night partying elsewhere.
"Oh, Boss?"
Della spotted me first and came trotting over. She hesitated mid-hug and stepped back—probably because she'd lost money at the casino last night.
"Bertrand...? When'd you get back...?"
Idwild approached with a goofy grin. No sign of guilt from the one who'd blown the cash, though. Had she stolen back what Marim lost?
"Boss is here! How wild was your night that you're only showing up now?"
Marim pranced around me, checking every angle like she was hunting for breakup lingerie or some parting gift from a one-night stand. I shooed them all away and headed inside.
Francois, packing her things, smiled at me. "Finally back? I was starting to worry we'd have to hunt you down before checkout."
I met Francois's eyes for a lingering moment. She had a knack for reading emotions and intentions—that's why she'd picked up on Celereja's vibes last night and dragged Pelle away. She probably knew everything about what went down... but asking felt awkward. Eh, Francois would get it and keep her mouth shut anyway.
Celereja sat primly on the sofa, looking a tad anxious. The traces of last night had vanished under her holy healing. Beside her, Pelle stood with arms crossed, glaring coldly down at the saintess—likely chewing her out for the holy seal on the door handle that had given them hell.
Normally, Celereja would've snapped back with some "evil demon bitch" retort, but she was playing it safe right now.
"Uh... shall we head out, then?"
The staff, already packed and ready, glanced around the suite wistfully as they filed out slowly. I grabbed Marim's wrist as she passed.
"Ow! That hurts!"
"Hand it over. Now."
"Hand over what?!"
"This!"
I squeezed, and Marim yelped, pulling a gold-plated fork from her bosom. I snatched it and tossed it on the suite's kitchenette table.
"Ow, that stings... How'd you know? I hid it real good."
"Figured it'd be just like you."
"Grr...!"
Marim huffed and Blinked out of sight. I approached Celereja on the sofa and offered my hand.
"Let's go, Celereja."
"Ah, yes..."
Gone was last night's wild maniac; she took my hand delicately with her usual prim-and-proper lady face. Yeah... she was pent up bad.
"No injuries...? You jumped so suddenly, I thought maybe you'd rather die than let the staff see you and be humiliated..."
"As if. I'd take getting caught over dying any day."
"I guess for you, Bertrand... but I'd be totally excommunicated. If the Church kicks me out, how am I supposed to eat...?"
Celereja gazed up at me with those subtle, expectant eyes. She wanted a specific answer, and I knew it.
"Then I'll just keep you around and take care of you."
She squirmed delightedly at the response, whispering, "Then I should've just flung the door open... let everyone see me stripped bare like a whore on the bed..."
Crude words spilling from the mouth of this pure, chaste saintess... I could only shake my head. This was a saintess...?
I returned the bracelets at the desk. Idwild sweated bullets, terrified her casino losses would leak out. She nearly fainted when I not only skipped extra charges but got ten gold coins back.
"Wha...? Why're we getting a refund...? Didn't we owe more...?"
"It worked out that way."
"Phewww..."
Idwild sighed like the earth had caved in. She thought I hadn't overheard their chat last night at all.
As we exited the hotel, Marim emerged from the club across the street, bulging pouch in hand and grinning ear to ear. Spotting me, she hid it behind her back—probably coins from yesterday's haul, cashed in. Sigh, such simple girls. Did they really think I was clueless? I'd confiscate that later for inn funds.
The entrance attendant approached. "Mr. Bertrand? The marquis has prepared carriages for you."
Two luxurious six-horse coaches stood side by side—made entirely of exorbitantly pricey Bubinga wood. Passersby whispered and pointed. Even these well-off folks rarely saw two at once. I'd only glimpsed them once or twice at royal events myself.
"Bertrand, who the hell did you spend last night with? Some marquis's daughter maybe?"
Della hung her head at Francois's question. "A marquis's daughter...? Someone lowly like me..."
"Whoa! What is this?! We riding these?!"
Marim bounced around excitedly. But I shook my head.
"Nah. Sorry, but we're taking the Hell Horses."
The mood plummeted. No helping it—coaches would've taken over a week to Rosens. I wanted to pamper my girls with those rides, but I couldn't leave the inn unmanned that long.
Regretfully, we crossed the beach toward the palm grove where we'd entered.
"Wonder if we can come back..."
Idwild kept glancing back, mumbling. Della shot her a look.
"Idwild... you're not thinking about the casino, are you...?"
"Hehe... no... but this is my first time at a place like this..."
"Same here."
Even Marim, hyped on her secret cash earlier, seemed deflated. Like a summer night's dream slipping away too fast...
"Let's come back next summer."
"Eek?! For real?!"
"Yeah. Then we'll really close the inn for a week, ride in style..."
"Yay!"
Della and Marim leaped in unison. Idwild's heavy chest just jiggled; Francois smiled softly. Pelle couldn't care less about next year, and Celereja blushed furiously, sneaking peeks at me.
We reached the Hell Horses and luggage—tucked away in a secluded spot, all intact. Pelle opened the Asenaris box, unleashing a torrent of shrill cries. Peering in, I saw the little spirit flailing its tiny fists at the air.
"What's it yapping about?"
"Something like, 'You drag me all the way here and this is how you treat me?'"
"Ha, that little shit... Hey! Idwild! Come soothe it!"
"Me...?"
Idwild tilted her head but crouched by the box, gently petting Asenaris's head.
"Hehe... good girl..."
Like magic, it calmed, wriggling and mumbling softly. I glanced at Pelle, but she said nothing.
"What'd it say?"
"Something about big tits meaning big heart—"
"Got it."
I waved her off, clamping her mouth shut. We loaded everything onto the Hell Horses and retraced our path. The palm trail narrowed Grace Bay's brilliant horizon bit by bit.
"Bye! See you soon!"
Della waved tearfully at the sea.
The roadside checkpoint was still there, manned by the same soldiers. One recognized us and blocked the path like before.
"What now?"
"You paid to enter, so pay to exit."
Celereja flinched behind me and started forward, but I blocked her with an arm, asking mildly, "How much, then?"
"Thirty silver coins. Entry and exit fees are the same."
"Ah, makes sense."
I hopped off the Hell Horse and approached. The soldier, grinning at the easy shakedown, extended his hand. I grabbed it instead.
As my grip tightened instead of coins appearing, he scowled and glared.
"What the hell're you doing?"