Chapter 9 – Village

They are taking advantage of me... We haven't even entered the village yet, but they have already started taking advantage of me because of my previous reaction. Mom keeps looking at me and smiling to herself like she's trying not to laugh, luckily she seems to be holding back. At the same time, it feels like she wants to pick me up and hold me in her arms, but that's not going to happen.

Aglaya continues to support me lovingly on her lap, but she also continues to let out some sneaky giggles as she strokes my head and cheek. I have the impression that she won't let me go anytime soon, if I'm to judge by the excessive care she put into supporting me comfortably on her lap. It's even more comfortable than mom's lap, but there's something different between the sensations, it's impossible to say which lap is the best.

And finally, Mahara continues to laugh shamelessly at my reactions, seriously, she doesn't even try to hide it... Luckily, or not, she isn't making her laugh loud enough to distract or bother Mom or Aglaya. But every time she turns and looks at me, she starts laughing, not out of malice, but she just can't hold back the laughter. Almost as if it were a laughing fit.

Shit, this is humiliating and I can't even complain, but I will express my indignation. To do this, I must start screaming and waving my arms and making a bad face... Okay, now the plan is to put it into practice.

*Baaahhh* *Buhhh*

"*hahaha* Apollo doesn't seem to like being laughed at, girls. As much as I'd like us to be having fun together after a while, I think it's best we try not to intimidate Apollo. My baby is quite shy, but he knows how complain."

"Oir, Arkex."

"oir, Arkex. Noaie quity ewiopo mnashie qeirl kior naoe?"

"I knew you would ask for this, but we will need to divide the time. I don't want to leave Apollo all to yourself today when I set aside the day to spend with him. Okay?

"Noiwa, Arkex. Anoasie uyit arteu beoir qpoa nioe turi mlaoe."

Aglaya seems to have asked Mom for something, probably she wants to keep carrying me. And to my surprise, mom agreed, I think Aglaya must have some great reason for this other than simply enjoying taking care of me.

But honestly, aglaya's lap is so comfortable that I don't mind it either. Hehehe, the warm feeling of her hand caressing me is very calming. I think she must have done this several times, probably in the time I wasn't conscious.

"Saioe nao qier pooit qwio naleo bioru tuie nahoe maose amiobe, Arkex."

"Yes, the first thing on today's list is to visit Abigail and resolve some matters with her. She contacted me a few days ago saying that she had some medicine to improve Apollo's body. After that, we will go for a walk around the village, do some shop, visit some people, and then go to the park. If you'd prefer to wait for us in the carriage, that's fine, Mahara, but it would be great to have you accompany us."

"... Nowio... Niue naoq poir loar teia kaie, Arkex... Buie treio asjoi loit ruit..."

Again, I have no idea what Mahara said, but strangely, she seems hesitant to accompany us, at least that's what I think. Mom seems to want this, but I think Mahara will need some extra encouragement. From her behavior, you can see that she is an introverted type, which doesn't go at all with her exuberant and muscular appearance.

"I understand you, I won't bring it up anymore."

Hmm... The atmosphere suddenly became solemn, I think this subject is more delicate than it seems. It wouldn't be so bad if it was just a personality issue, this is a sign of something more complicated. Another clear sign of the complexity of the matter are Aglaya's caresses, she suddenly became tense and her movements became incoherent and shaky.

"Well... Before we enter the village, you might want to put on your masks."

We stopped just before the entrance to give the girls time to grab a mask each. I have no idea why they would wear these masks or what they would be used for. Especially when these masks look more like ghost masks than something more sophisticated.

They are completely white, cover the entire face and only have eye holes. Honestly, they're really ugly, why the hell would they wear that? Wouldn't it be better to leave their beautiful faces exposed just like Mom's?

*Thinmm*

Hmm? What was that sound?

"Now that we're ready, let's continue. Let's go straight to Abigail's house, Mahara."

"Oir, Arkex."

Apparently, these masks are just to cover the girls' faces. But I have the impression that the sound I heard before has something to do with them too. But this subject doesn't concern me for now, my focus is on the town and the various palaces that are around here.

Seriously, calling this place a village is both strangely accurate and incorrect in my opinion. It is correct because there are not only imposing and elegant Palaces, but also simpler and smaller houses in sufficient quantity to almost be a small city. But it is also incorrect because I have the impression that these houses are related to the palaces in some way.

But the nomenclature is what matters least now, what I want to know is why the place seems so 'standardized' and correct. It seems like everything here is made to aesthetic and functional standards, I can't see anything that isn't part of a standard or that has some functional reason for being there.

For starters, the street we entered, and I suspect the entire place, appears almost perfectly flat. If it weren't for the small curvature, which I suspect is for water drainage, I would say it's as straight as a stretched line. The sidewalks are made in the same way and are perfectly aligned, along with the entrances to the houses.

The palaces also follow a type of pattern in terms of spacing. Each is positioned at a certain distance from the others, with several houses between them. It seems to be some sort of logical sequence to keep them from getting too close or too far away.

Trees are strategically placed at equal spacing to cover as much of the streets with their shadows as possible. They are huge trees, of various species, but all well pruned and harmoniously standardized. And iron poles with some kind of lamp on top are also placed at regular intervals.

The only thing that doesn't seem to follow a pattern are the palaces themselves. They are of varying colors and styles, with discrepancies in both style, material and size. But at the same time, they manage to form a kind of intriguing sensation and... I don't know... I feel like I'm looking at a watercolor... It's beautiful, but it's not just that, it's something more... Joyful and conflicting .

As we pass by the houses, I realize that they are not as simple as a small house. They are more like big houses, but because of the palaces around them, they seem much smaller than they really are. This place is very luxurious, but at the same time it is strangely familiar.

If it weren't for the few people walking along the sidewalks, I would say it's a cinematic city. It reminds me of the fact that Mom said she made the village to be nice to walk around in. Did she mean that she designed and managed the construction of this place? Could it be that she chose the standards, norms and styles for the houses?

But why are there so many palaces here? Are all the people here extremely rich? And if they are, why would they choose to live in the same place as so many others? Is this village a kind of place suitable for gathering so many rich people? Seriously, this is getting more interesting the more I think about it. Mom must be someone very, very important.

The carriage continued for a few hundred meters and we passed through about 3 streets until we arrived at what appears to be a shopping area. With some food stores, taverns, restaurants, forges, workshops of various types, stores selling various materials, clothing stores, etc. There are many stores, the entire street is just for commerce, and I think the entire block should be dedicated to the commercial area.

The style of the houses has also changed a lot. Around here the palaces are no longer present at regular intervals, only a few distant signs can be seen. But the standardized style on sidewalks, trees, posts still continues. But the houses gave way to commercial establishments, with different styles, sizes, colors and decorations.

Honestly, just looking at the architecture of the area, it seems disorganized and not harmonious. However, it is much busier compared to the residential area. And I can see Elves, dwarves, half-beasts, tieflings, dragonborn, drow and countless types of different races around here. Various types of fur colors, various types of fur, horns, tails, hair and ears.

AMAZING... Simply incredible.

If there's one thing I like about this area, it's the amount of incredible figures I can see. And I can't help but be excited to imagine my future in a place with such diverse culture. Just imagining it makes me feel happier...

I want to learn more, I want to meet more people, I want to interact with other races. I want to touch a dragonborn's skin, I want to touch a tiefling's horn, I want to stroke a kitsune's tail and stroke an elf's ears...

AAAHHHH I WANT TO GROW UP SOON.

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I hope you can help me correct any spelling errors in the chapters.

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