37 Uncommon and Delicious

A stem of golden brown and leaves, sharing the same color with glistening white petals. A fragrance of sweetness emits from the Sand Flower the moment it's plucked from the roots.

Nox, escorted with a few guards, visits the garden in the Royal Palace of Aeptian Town to prepare for the Antidote. He needs two flowers, therefore he's spending quite some time getting what he needs.

According to the Beastiary's page, the flower needs to be relatively young in order for the leaves and petals to have the right binding agents for the paste's creation.

The young man walks through the garden until he finally finds what he needs. Without wasting a second more, he returns to the room and starts crafting.

The first dose is for the King's daughter. After finishing the antidote, he heads towards the girl's room at a fast pace. The old king waits by the door and as soon as he sees Nox, a smile appears on his face. "Young Lord, you are here!"

King Gor shows the young man inside the poorly lit room with the bed across the door and the girl swirling under the sheets, drenched in sweat. The old man sits by his daughter's side and holds her hand.

The young man gets near the girl and, in a soft-spoken voice, he utters. "This might get uncomfortable, Princess, but it won't take long!"

Meanwhile, Malia and her sister stand outside, waiting to hear good news. They hold hands, giving each other strength. Malia, being the oldest, is more reserved in these kinds of situations. "Shall we go back to our room? Daddy is waiting!"

Kali nods while trying to keep her tears in. Holding hands, they walk to their room, hoping for the best. They don't say it out loud, but in their hearts, they are rooting for Nox's success.

Their room isn't that far from that of the princess.They are at the door and they are about to go in when a high-pitched scream reaches their ears, making them jump. Kali unconsciously tightens the grip on her sister's hand. "Sis…"

Malia flinches when she feels the squeeze from her sister's little hand. In a calming voice, she pats her sister with the other hand. "I'm sure it'll be ok..."

During this time, Roi is at the market. After having a discussion with Nox the previous night, they thought about staying a little longer in order to gather information about the lost city and the market is the ideal place to start since the merchants travel in and out of the Scorching Desert all the time.

At the plaza, despite the destruction it faced the previous day, it's still as vibrant as ever. People fill the stalls as if nothing has happened. The kiosks are simple by design. They have a tent to protect them from the sun and a table with goods on it spread out.

The ground is of a solid making, paved with stones of different sizes. It offers a cleaner environment than sand. Merchants and customers alike can go about their business without wasting time.

The spacious area hosts a few dozen different kiosks such as clothing which the travelers prefer, food stalls with skewers of native recipes one can eat while visiting the other places and kiosks that have different plants and herbs.

While standing next to a clothing stand, pretending to check the material of a cloth, Roi hears the vendor with a customer speaking.

"I hear the Demon Lord is in Aeptian!"

The merchant scoffs. "Pfft. Right…!"

"You think it's a trick?"

"Definitely! Haven't you heard what happened a few days ago…? The old king needs the sympathy of the people during these times!"

"Are you sure? The Demon Lord, or whoever that guy is, treats the princess for Desert Scorpion poisoning!"

"Ha! We all know that there isn't a cure for that… I'm sure the king wants to own that guy after he kills his daughter…"

Roi, curious about their conversation, jumps in. "What happened…?"

The merchant gazes over and sees Roi holding a piece of cloth. He smiles and claps his hands together. "Oh, customer, welcome! Don't mind that… We had a little coup. Nothing the royal guard can't handle!"

In the meantime, the merchant checks Roi from top to bottom, revealing a smirk. 'Heh! A human. Are they all this nosy?'

He looks around. 'I had a rug around here somewhere. He seems to like those!'

"And you think someone poisoned the princess during that time…?"

The merchant doesn't respond to Roi's question. Instead, he grabs another piece of clothing. "How about this? It's of excellent quality!"

Roi understands that this is all he could get from him, so he grabs the cloth and examines it. He ends up buying it, which leaves the merchant thrilled.

'Now, where should I go next? That guy earlier didn't give me much, but that's understandable. Maybe the tavern?'

The moment the idea of visiting the tavern crosses his mind, his stomach growls. 'I guess that decides it!'

The shops are in the stone paved plaza, which is the first thing one sees once they enter the town. From there, there are three major streets. The middle one leads to the palace, all the way to the other side. The second leads to the arena where the games and competitions happen and the third leads to the housing area with all the restaurants and homes.

There are houses along the other two roads, but those belong to the nobles and military of the town, whereas the esteemed guests, such as Malia and her family, stay at the palace. The same goes for Roi, but since his arrival, he hasn't been to his room yet.

Like the plaza, they paved the roads with stones. As he gets closer towards the centre of the town, the structural differences are visible. There're more details and care on the stonework. Also, the owners seem to have raised the tavern from the rest of the buildings with a base of solid stone.

Wood then becomes the prime material with a porch, slightly elevated and a view of the palace. A place out of bounds for Roi, who walked in solo. A girl with fluffy ears welcomes him and shows him to a table close to the bar.

She hands him a paper with a list of food that Roi doesn't understand. He ponders for a while. He sees the girl waiting to get his order, which makes him feel more anxious. After letting out a cough, he utters in a shy manner. "I'd like to have the specialty please!"

The girl shows a warm and kind smile, making him blush. "Certainly, sir!"

"Oh, can I have some alcohol to go with it as well?"

"Of course…"

Roi waits patiently, all the while looking around, observing the other guests. What strikes him as strange in this part of town is the lack of patrols, when the plaza had quite a few loitering around. 'This is odd'

Not before long, the girl carrying the plates arrives. After naming them, she puts them on the table in front of Roi. "A bowl of Vhlec root with soup, a bowl of cacti broth with root bread for a crunch, and finally the star of our Restaurant…"

The girl puts in front of him a large plate of many and different sizes of chunks of meat sliced up with garnishes and sauce. "Tail from a Desert Lizard!"

Roi lets out a sigh after the initial shock of the plates in front of him. "I kind of wish i didn't know the name from which this tail came from!"

Moments later, the girl sets on his table a wooden jug as big as a human head. "This is our famous root alcohol. It's a favorite in our shop!"

The young man looks at the dishes again and again, taking in deep breaths, unsure what he's about to eat. "Dwelling on it too much will not change it… Here it goes!"

He takes the first bite of the tail, and his eyes widen. He gulps it down and tries the sides as well, which had the same effect. "These are delicious!"

The girl smiles and claps her hands together. "Really? I'm glad you like it!"

While gulping down a mouthful, he tries to talk. "I really do…"

"Hey, miss, can we get another jug?"

"Coming…"

She turns to Roi, who's enjoying his food and smilingly utters. "I'll be over there. Let me know if you need anything!"

Roi simply nods and focuses on the meal in front of him.

After finishing his food and resting his utensils on the plates, he looks at the enormous wooden jug on his table. "It's your turn now…"

He takes the first sip and pulls back. "Cough! This is really strong!"

The girl returns to his table with a smile on her face and picks up the plates, cleaning his table. "How was it, sir?"

"Oh, it was fantastic, thank you!"

Her fluffy tail wiggles upon hearing Roi's response. She said nothing back and continued her job in silence.

While carrying the dishes, another customer grabs her by the waist and pulls her onto his lap. With a swift motion of his hand, he smacks the plates out of the girl's hands. "Here, keep me company!"

Even though she tries to smile, her fluffy ears tense and her eyes emit a glint. She fights to get off the man who holds her. "Let go of me, you brute!"

"Heh Heh! Come now, don't be like that!", without warning, he puts his tongue on her cheek and licks her up to her ear. "We'll have some fun!"

Right when he finished saying that, a Shing sound puts them to silence, when the blade of a dagger is at his throat. "I believe she asked you to let her go. I suggest you do that!"