Chapter 246 – Clothes
I gave the owner the three coins, and he couldn’t help checking that they were real.
“All right. Follow me.”
He headed toward the stairs with us right behind him. On the way, Aren kept tugging at my shirt, trying to get my attention. I knew what he wanted to say and only quietly responded.
“Let’s talk later.”
He looked down and didn’t insist. After moving to the first floor, we arrived in front of the chosen room soon enough. The man unlocked it, allowing us to see the interior. As expected, it was quite decent. There were three separate beds, all covered with clean sheets. A single window gave enough light to brighten the room, with a view of the street behind the building. On top of that, there was a closet, a chest, a table, and three chairs, with one painting on the side wall. A door led to a bathing area, large enough for the three children to use together, with a bathtub and a toilet.
These same kids were admiring the room, their heads moving left and right, unbelieving that they would live in such a nice place.
“How’s the room?”
“It’s great. We’ll take it.”
“All right. One of my employees will bring water for the bath. Feel free to tell me if there’s… anything you need.”
He handed me the key to the room and left to go back to the ground floor. Knowing what was coming, I closed the door, just in time for Erin to shout in dismay.
“You’re insane, mister! Three golds? Three? For a week? We could live a whole year with that money!”
I put my hands over my ears, waiting for the storm to pass. Next to Erin, Aren was nodding with approval, while Orun had already jumped on a bed to roll on it.
The girl seemed irritated by my action and forcefully removed my hands from my ears.
“Listen to me! I’m talking seriously!”
I smiled reassuringly.
“Okay, okay, calm down. I told you, right? This is the sort of money you’ll be handling when you work for me. Better get used to it now.”
“No way! Ask for a refund. We can find a cheaper place and keep the change!”
I shook my head.
“Wrong. This price is fair.”
“What fair? It’s three golds for a week!”
“It’s expensive, true. Of course, the room is nice and clean. I also heard they have delicious food, and that the service is nice. But the real reason why it’s worth it is because it’s safe. You understand, right? We live in a dangerous world.”
This shut them up, and I went on.
“This place is hiring a rank 6 fighter as a guard. The three golds are the price for that, and the peace of mind that comes with it. As long as you stay here, nothing should happen to you. This is the sort of place this inn is. I don’t mind paying three golds for this.”
“Still…”
“Consider it as an investment for the future.”
They didn’t seem that convinced yet, but they would understand when using the place. Someone knocked on the door at that time.
“Water for the bath!”
I opened the door and let the employee do their thing. They had large buckets of water in each hand and quickly moved to the bathroom to fill the tub. They came back two more times and then used fire magic to heat the water.
“Good job.”
I gave them a silver, which annoyed the children once again, even though I didn’t let them complain this time.
“I’ll leave you to clean yourselves up. One hour should be enough, right? Rub everything well, we’re going out to buy clothes after that.”
Without waiting for their answer, I gave the key to Erin and left the room. I took care of some of my usual business for the next hour and came back after that, knocking on the door.
“It’s me.”
Erin carefully opened it, letting me enter once she verified it really was me. The three of them already looked much better. Their dirty fur was much shinier, ruffled here and there after an intensive cleaning session. Bathing in hot water had a positive effect on them since they seemed a lot more relaxed now. They were still wearing their old rags, but that would change soon.
“Ready to go out?”
“Yes.”
“Yes!”
Only Aren and Orun responded, which was good enough for me.
“Okay, let’s go.”
We left the inn under the owner’s already slightly softened gaze and went out to the streets again. We didn’t have to walk far, however. The clothing shop I had in mind was close by, in the same district, only a few turns away.
I entered the place without hesitation, unlike the children who were still a bit intimidated by everything. The place was manned by several women, who all looked shocked as they witnessed the children’s appearance. One of them rushed to us, panicked.
“Sir! This is a high-class shop! You can’t come in here looking like this!”
This time, even I was included in the batch. I was wearing normal clothes that were comfortable but not too expensive. The clerk might have said nothing if I were just by myself, but the combination with the three small panthers was too much for her.
I knew how to handle a situation like this. I took out a bunch of gold coins and shoved them straight under her eyes.
“It’s a place for buying clothes, right? That’s what we’re here for.”
The woman ogled the gold coins and instantly changed her tune.
“Welcome, sir and children. How may we help you today?”
I turned toward the kids with a large smile.
“See? That’s one way to use money.”
The three black furred little ones stared at me with both wonder and bewilderment while the woman clerk frowned at my gesture.
There was no need to take pity on someone who judged people by appearance, though.
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