Chp.30: Dinner at the inn

It took about an hour to go to the home of the head of the city guard and collect the money owed. Rhaegal took the opportunity to bond with him as much as possible; he knew the man had clear suspicions about him, but he was fine with that. As long as he couldn't legally accuse them of anything, everything was fine. After taking the money and politely saying goodbye to Garo, the group returned to the inn where they were staying and enjoyed their dinner. Or rather, Efren, Carlos and Sarah enjoyed it, while the three dragons, who were used to a much greater sense of taste, any dish seemed bland (not to mention that technically their avatars didn't need food), so they only ate to save appearances.

As they ate their meal, they had noticed that many people were looking at them and talking to each other. Which surprised them a little: they knew that some adventurers in the guild had overheard their discussion with the guildmaster, and that some guards had seen them at their leader's house and had been informed of what had happened, but they didn't expect that the news spread so fast. They were convinced that they should wait at least a day or two for the story to become public knowledge, certainly not an hour. "You humans are really creatures that like to talk about others, mh?" Serengal murmured, feeling a little uncomfortable for all those eyes on her.

"We have very long tongues" Sarah admitted. "But you certainly can't blame people if they talk about you. You have just arrived and you have already accomplished incredible feats. You have also freed the surroundings of the city from a group of dangerous bandits. For ordinary people, you are like the heroes of legends"

"Also, I've never heard of a group of adventurers who earned more than 4,000 gold coins in a single day and also put the guild 8,000 gold coins in debt. I think you broke a record" Carlos added with a half laugh. "I'd be surprised if tonight some thieves don't try to break into our rooms to steal something"

"Pff! Let them try to enter our rooms" Corgorin laughed, then clinging to Carlos. "Besides, don't just speak for us. You're a celebrity too! I remind you that we technically accomplished those feats with your help. Right, my dear boyfriend?"

Carlos felt his blood freeze as Corgorin coiled around him like an octopus. He really wouldn't have minded much if she had used her real body, but the thought that what was touching him was actually a corpse made him want to vomit.

Serengal shook her head, disapproving of her sister wholeheartedly. "How long are you going to go on teasing him?" she whispered to her.

"Only as long as I find it funny" Corgorin answered her grinning like she was crazy.

Rhaegal agreed with Serengal, but he said nothing. If Corgorin wanted to have fun, he didn't see why he should stop her, even if he thought that kind of fun was rather childish. After all, he certainly wasn't afraid of her doing something with Carlos: besides the fact that he was a human and she was a dragon, and therefore they had completely different standards of beauty (it would have been as if a wolf had tried to do something with a cow!), his sister hadn't yet even reached sexual maturity and therefore she didn't yet have the impulses to do 'certain things'. At least for the next ten and a half years sex would be a mystery to him and her and all their siblings. So he knew for sure that Corgorin was just having fun teasing Carlos, but she didn't really want to do anything with him.

Efren coughed, bringing attention back to himself (much to poor Carlos' joy): "Are you sure it's a good idea to attract that much attention? I mean... aren't you afraid you'll generate suspicions?"

"Of course we will generate suspicion. And that is exactly to our advantage" Serengal replied. "Think about it: the more a person suspects another, the more they try to get close to them. Now two important people, the guildmaster and the head of the city guard, have reason to suspect us. And even if they didn't, they'd surely be keeping an eye out people of our caliber. Which means they will try to get close to us to get information about us. And by doing so, we can use them to get the information we want. Since the guildmaster and the chief of the city guard have many connections with other cities, surely they would be the first to know if a dragon has appeared anywhere in the kingdom. Having them always close to us, it will be easy to find out what they know"

"Besides, other people are likely to be interested in us soon" Rhaegal added. "The more people suspect us, the more easily we will have access to a lot of information. It's simple. And we have no reason to worry: even if they suspect us, no one has evidence to claim that we have a different level of strength than the one declared, or that we get help from someone. They can suspect all they want, but without proof they can't do anything about it"

"What's more, now we're also full of money" Corgorin said, stretching with satisfaction. "And from what we understand, among you humans, everything can be bought with money. Even information and the silence of people. As you can see, we have thought of several possible scenarios for the future, and all of them are to our advantage"

Efren nodded, going back to tasting his soup. It sure seemed that the dragons had thought of everything. It was incredible: even though they knew little about human society, they managed the situation and anticipate everyone's moves in a masterly way. Dragons were truly intelligent and cunning creatures, there was no other way to describe them.

Suddenly Serengal asked: "Excuse the question, but I have a curiosity… who is Heloisa? You know, the one that the guildmaster and the chief of the city guard mentioned while they were in a state of amazement"

Sarah, Efren, and Carlos looked at her with wide eyes. "Seriously? Don't you know who Heloisa is? Everyone in this corner of the continent knows her" Carlos exclaimed.

"My dear boyfriend, I don't know if you've noticed it, but my sister, as well as our whole family, hasn't really had many opportunities to talk to the natives of the place" Corgorin told him in an angry voice. "So just answer the question"

Carlos gulped. "Okay, okay, sorry! I was just surprised" he said quickly. "Heloisa is a goddess"

The three dragons suddenly became tense. "A goddess?" Rhaegal asked with a very worried look.

The three humans were quite confused by that reaction. It was the first time they had seen the three dragons lose their temper, at least since using their avatars. Why had they reacted that way when they discovered Heloisa was a goddess? Maybe dragons were afraid of the gods? Well, in tales and songs the heroes chosen by the gods actually fought and slain dragons... maybe there was some enmity between them. "Well, yes. She is a goddess, the most revered goddess in the Jurao Kingdom and some other adjacent kingdoms" Sarah explained. "She is the Goddess of Green Fields, and since the Jurao Kingdom is known to be associated with agriculture, almost everyone worships her. Not to mention that the king of this kingdom is a devoted believer, and so are his predecessors, so clearly that religion was valued"

The three dragons looked at each other with some concern in their eyes, especially Rhaegal, who seemed to be replaying a nightmare before him. But in the end he relaxed. "That doesn't matter" he said. "As far as we know the gods don't physically intervene unless an entire race is at risk of being exterminated. We have no reason to fear this goddess Heloisa"

Sarah almost spat saliva when she heard those words. "Seriously, what happened to you guys?"

"Trust me, it's better that we don't tell you" Rhaegal replied as his grip on his glass tightened. "Enough talking. Let's just eat"

It was clear that Rhaegal wanted to avoid the topic and was trying to divert their attention. Even Corgorin and Serengal didn't seem much inclined to talk about it. Efren, Sarah and Carlos understood that it was better to leave it alone and so, despite their curiosity, they went back to eating their meal.

The dinner went on without further discussion, but the three humans could feel the tension coming from the three dragons. Their previously jovial mood had suddenly darkened. It was clear that, although they had said they weren't worried, there was something deeply troubling them.

When everyone had finished they put their empty plates on the table and started to get up, but suddenly one of the waitresses brought them a strange pudding that seemed to be made of hazelnuts and apples. "Sorry gentlemen, I want to offer you this. My mother and I have prepared it to welcome you to our inn" she said with a smile.

"Oh… thank you" Rhaegal said, taking the pudding. Even though there was enough for everyone, she was especially offering it to him. "Is your mother the owner of this inn?"

"That's right. My name is Ilsya. It's nice to meet you" the waitress replied with a half bow. Oddly, that bow seemed made to particularly highlight her chest, which was quite prosperous.

Rhaegal didn't understand that behavior. It was clear that the woman was intentionally showing her chest. Maybe it was a form of greeting for humans? "It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Rhaegal, and these are my sisters and friends. Please give our thanks to your mother for her hospitality and compliment her on the dinner, it was exquisite. And I am sure that this pudding will also be delicious"

Ilsya's face turned red like a ripe pepper and her smile widened a lot. "You are too kind, sir. Tell me, will you be staying here long?"

'Uh? Why this question? Shouldn't she already know since we paid?' Rhaegal thought confused. "Well, we will definitely stop for the next ten days. As for in the future... we'll see based on the circumstances"

"In that case I will do my best to make your stay pleasant. This way perhaps you will be enticed to stay a little longer" Ilsya said, moving even closer to Rhaegal. But before she could say anything else, the voice of the innkeeper called her back. Reluctantly, the girl excused herself and went back to waiting tables.

As soon as she was far enough away, Efren, Carlos and Sarah couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing. Rhaegal was quite furious. "What's wrong with you?"

"Come on, don't you get it?" Carlos said through laughter. Seeing Rhaegal's stunned expression, he explained how things were: "She was flirting with you! You impressed her!"

"Well, how can you blame her. Now you are a handsome and rich man with two arms as huge as trunks and a six pecs, who is already famous in half the city... I'm surprised she didn't come here sooner" Efren said, amused. "Get ready, because I'm sure within a couple of days she won't be your only fan"

The three dragons were somewhat confused by the situation. "So, for humans, showing the chest is a mating ritual?" Serengal asked as she touched her boobs curiously.

Luckily Sarah stopped her before someone else noticed it. "It's more complicated than that, but yes, for girls it's a sign of attraction, since the chest...". She stopped, suddenly realizing something: "Excuse me, do you know what sex is?"

"Of course, our mother explained it to us when we were three weeks old" Serengal replied.

The smiles of the three humans faded. "Did she explain it to you when you were three weeks old?" they asked dumbfounded.

"Obviously! We were curious about how we were born, and so she explained everything to us in detail" Serengal replied. "First the female dragon calls the male dragon, then he brings her food and shows off his body, especially his horns, and if she considers him a suitable partner they mate. Then they continue to do it for about eighteen hours a day..."

"Wait, what!? Eighteen hours a day!?" Carlos's eyes bulged. "What kind of endurance do male dragons have?"

"Why, isn't it like that for you?" Serengal murmured. "For dragons this is normal. When the females are in heat they don't stop unless they are tired or pregnant. And if the male tries to stop the female bites his tail until he agrees to continue"

Carlos nearly melted in his chair. "This is an affront to my manhood" he murmured. "To think dragons are so energetic... I feel low right now"

"Stop it, Carlos" Sarah grumbled with a disapproving look. "Let's leave this topic alone. Rather, Rhaegal, it is clear that the girl has a crush on you, but it is indeed just a crush. Don't give her false hope and everything will be fine"

"All clear" Rhaegal said as he began to cut into the pudding. "Anyway, she was nice to prepare this for us..."

"Oh, come on, he did it for you! Didn't you really buy that story that she did it to welcome us?" Sarah exclaimed. "It was a clear attempt to get close to you. Do you see anyone else around here who's had pudding?"

Rhaegal looked at the other tables. Indeed there was no sign of pudding. "So humans too use food to attract their partners..." he murmured, then he tasted some of it. "Mh, good. Did she really do it with her mother?"

"What's wrong? It's normal for a mother to help her daughter" Sarah said, crossing her arms. "I suppose your mother wasn't a good cook, huh? Well, she must have had other ways to show affection. She probably taught you to hunt, or made you fly on her wings, or maybe played with you at..."

"Sarah"

"Yes, Efren?"

"Close your mouth"

Sarah stopped in confusion, but then looked at the three dragons and understood. Their faces were still calm and smiling, but the light in their eyes seemed to have gone dull and dull. "Oh... I guess. Yours wasn't exactly a mother who played with her children, right?"

"Nah, she was the classic mother dragon" Corgorin said still smiling, but with no emotion in her voice and her eyes blank. "She went out early in the morning and came back late at night, and as soon as she got back she fed us and went to sleep. If we had any questions, she answered us and explained everything we asked, and then she went back to sleep. Like any other mother dragon"

"And she nearly starved some of our sisters" Serengal added.

"And she chased us away by threatening to eat us as soon as her maternal instincts wore off" Rhaegal concluded as he lightly swung a teaspoon. "Yes, well, just like any mother dragon"

The three humans looked confused and a little uneasy. They already knew that the father of their 'comrade' dragons wasn't exactly a model father, but apparently their mother wasn't even joking around. "Wow…guys, don't get me wrong, I still think you're cruel crazy psychopaths who play with people's lives… but I also think you need a good mind healer" Carlos muttered.

Corgorin raised an eyebrow. "A what?"

"A mind healer. He is a doctor who specializes in curing curses and magic that affect people's minds, but can also deal with non-magical problems if necessary, such as trauma and... all right, I understand, I'm shutting up" Carlos said noticing that Corgorin's gaze became more and more threatening.

For a moment there was silence, which felt oppressive as if the air had become solid. Eventually Efren broke it off saying: "Okay, I think it would be better for everyone if we pretend to be sleepy and all go to our rooms"

In response, the others gave the most fake yawn in the world and got up almost simultaneously, heading towards the stairs to go up to their rooms and go to sleep.