5 Chapter 5

Aero's mom blinked in surprise, setting down her coffee mug. "Look around? Haven't you already seen most of it by now?"

"Er, yeah but I'm just gonna go for a walk. Clear my head, you know?"

The woman nervously bit her lip, silent for a moment, her eyes intently studying me. " Just a short walk? You PROMISE you're going to come back?"

"Well yeah." 'What's she so worried about?' "Why wouldn't I return?"

The woman gave me a bemused expression before shaking her head. "Alright Aero go ahead, in the end, the choice is up to you. Just PLEASE come back before 8:30, before the transport leaves for the academy."

"8:30, got it, be right back!"

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"Holy moly..." Endless structures towered above me everywhere I looked, as if they were reaching into the sky.

I've never been in a big city before, only ever having lived in the suburbs. It's not like I've never seen big buildings before, just not so many close to each other like this. Even more impressive was the towering highway bridge that somehow stood even taller than most of the buildings! I mean, that is kind of practical since there's more room for vehicles. There was just an amazing kind of energy to Vale, almost the city had come alive.

"Extra extra! Faunus rallies on the rise, read all about it!"

"Get your piping hot schnitzel here!"

"Departing now for 87th and Brine! Last call for entry!"

Everywhere I looked, it seemed as if there wasn't a single business or person that wasn't already occupied with something. The city that never sleeps.

"I'm just glad I ended up somewhere familiar like Vale..."

Things would be a whole lot different if I was in one of the other kingdoms. The freezing Atlas, the shady Mistral, or ugh...the desolate Vacuo. I shuddered, imagining myself trying to live in the scorching wasteland of Vacuo. I really did kind of luck out when it came to where I was...

*GRRRRRRWWWWWW* A low growl and gnawing sensation came from my stomach interrupting my train of thought.

"Oh...right, I left in such a hurry I didn't get to eat anything before going sightseeing. Let's see..."

Looking around, I spotted an outdoor restaurant. Each table with a large white and orange umbrella above it as well as a vase of colorful flowers adorned on it for decoration. That seems like a pretty good place to start with.

"Hello sir, my name is Taupe~" A cheerful voice greeted me as I entered. A young faunus woman with chestnut-colored dog ears and hair walked right up giving me an engaging smile "Welcome to Outdoor Bistro. Will it be just you dining with us today?"

'My first encounter with a faunus...' Look at those fluffy little ears, I kinda wanna feel them...I wonder if she'd let me tou-

"S-sir?"

"Huh?"

Snapping back to reality, the girl looked at me with a guilty expression, her brown ears flat against her head. Aw shit, she caught me staring...

"I apologize!" Taupe quickly bowed her head. "Would you prefer if another employee assisted you?"

"What?" The heck is she apologizing for?

"I'd understand if you did, whatever makes your dining experience here a better one."

"No look...it's fine, you didn't do anything wrong."

The waitress touched her chest letting out a sigh, visibly relieved. "I apologize for that sir, do you have a preference of which table you'd like to sit at? Would you prefer to eat indoors or outdoors?"

"I would prefer outdoors."

"Right this way then." she led me outside to the tables, before handing me a menu. "I'll be back to check up on you soon, let me know if there is anything else I can do to make your experience here a good one."

"Thank you very much Taupe."

With a brief nod and a smile, she left me alone to look at my menu.

"Well, that was weird..." *GRRRRRROOWWWWWWLLLLL* "Ugh..." I gripped my gut as my stomach once more voiced its displeasure at being ignored. "Alright alright, I get it, shut up."

Let's see, what sounds good right now? Blueberry pancakes sound nice but I don't want something too buttery and sugary this early in the morning. Come to think of it, how much money do I even have?

Digging into Aero's wallet, I found lien of various colors. Light blue, light purple, light pink, light yellow, and light green. "Okay...?" I turned over the various bills in my hand. "Where are the numbers? How much is this shit even worth?"

"E-excuse me, are you ready to order, or is something wrong?" Taupe returned holding a pen and a notepad with an uneasy expression.

"Er, it's nothing. I'll take the hashbrowns and breakfast quiche."

"Of course, good choice sir." Without another word, she took the menu and quickly left not looking back. 'Seriously...what's with her?'

With it being a while until my food arrived, I lazily looked around the city for something of interest. Turning my head, I saw something that immediately made my breath catch in my throat. In a shop ahead, not far from my current position walked a familiar-looking guy. A male with distinctive spiky silver hair, relaxed expression, and a condescending smile on his face appeared. Mercury Black lazily rested against the side of a bookstore waiting for someone. Shortly after, there was a light ringing sound of a bell as the door next to him opened and a dark-skinned female with green hair, reminiscent of a dark elf walked out.

'What's going on?! Why are Emerald and Mercury HERE of all places?! They weren't present in the early episodes, they aren't supposed to show up until later!'

The two of them stood roughly 20 feet from when I was seated outside of the restaurant. Leaning back in my chair, I pretended to be immersed in deciding what to pick from the menu trying to listen in.

"Well, how'd...the old buzzard...generous terms?"

"He's...albeit reluctantly. This...long run...for now."

"Relax, we'll...for now...the job. What do you..."

Sadly the bustling city was anything but quiet, and even when being this close to them, I could only hear bits and pieces of their conversation. Taking a deep breath, I took the risk, carefully turning around to watch the two of them to see if I could find out anything more. At the very least I might be able to see where they were headed to next. Emerald and Mercury continued to talk, oblivious to me watching.

"Cinder...not happy."

With a sigh, Emerald lightly shook her head in response to something Mercury had said when all of the sudden she perked up and glanced in my direction causing our eyes to meet. 'Oh no...' My heart sank in my chest, I casually looked around from left to right as if taking in the sights of the city and turning back to my menu.

"Mercury...watching us..."

"Finally...excitement."

'Shit!'