6 Angry Customer

[I don't like this place] Fallios said, resting his chin on Ria's shell. They were currently curled up in the middle of their shared enclosure, basking in the 'sun'. In reality, it was more like they were basking in the light of a lightbulb, except that lightbulb wasn't powered by electricity.

The 'lights' were more like stones which lit up than actual lightbulbs, in her opinion. As of now, she still hasn't figured out how they worked or which mechanism is used to turn them on and off.

Ria didn't actually know what it was. Maybe it was the power of this world. She never actually questioned it before.

[Why? I think our enclosure is pretty nice though] Ria asked confusedly. Their enclosure was like an enlarged version of her old enclosure.

There was a pond in the far left corner, a pile of rocks in the far right, and an open patch of grass everywhere else. There even was a little cave in the rock pile which could fit both of them.

[Not this enclosure, but this place. We're like zoo animals in here]

Fallios looked at the barred window with disgust. Although the only people who looked at them were the people who worked here, he knew he and Ria would soon be put on display for customers as well.

Fallios put his head back down on Ria's black and white shell with a huff.

They've been in this enclosure for almost two days now. Thankfully, Ria had Fallios to talk to now, so she wasn't bored anymore. Although, when thinking of what he had to go through to get here, she felt sad for him and angry at the group who killed his parents.

She let out a sigh. Ria finally knew how stressful it was to live in a pet shop. It was horrible not being able to communicate for three whole months. It got so bad that her emotions became imbalanced.

Ria suddenly thought of something. [How did you know I was a reincarnate?] It was a question she had forgotten since it wasn't very important at the time.

[I didn't. It was a gamble, actually. A small tortoise speaking with spirit speech, something that only very powerful creatures use, is odd] Fallios revealed.

Ria glared at Fallios. [Hey, I might actually be a powerful creature too, you know] She angrily said.

Fallios snorted and rolled his eyes. [Like I said, it was a gamble]

Ria sighed. Whatever, she wasn't advanced enough in the language of this world to know how special she was anyways.

Ria started to absorb water from the air- a trick she learned to do in the past month. Before that, trying to attempt to absorb water out of the air was like trying to suck a straw which led to a dry and empty cup, so she could only absorb it with direct to water.

Now though, it was like trying to drink from a straw out of an empty cup filled with ice. Although it was tedious, the ice would eventually melt and she would get some scraps.

Actually, it was less like she was absorbing moisture and more like she was absorbing the cold from the air, making the temperature around her hot.

[What are you doing?] Fallios asked.

[I'm not sure how to describe it. It's like I'm absorbing the cold and letting off the heat from my body] Ria replied as she lied down in the grass.

Fallios's eyes went wide and he grinned. [My ability is to breath fire. I do that by absorbing the heat in the air and letting off coldness]

Ria's eyes went wide and suddenly, they both had the same expression on their face. She suspiciously eyed the collar on Fallios's neck.

[Can you absorb heat with that thing on?] Ria asked suspiciously, Gesturing with her head towards the collar.

Fallios nodded and lied down next to her. Suddenly, the air became lukewarm. Their temperatures clashed as both of them frantically absorbed as much as possible.

[I can, I just can't release it though]

They both became hot and cold respectively, their bodies constantly rising and lowering in temperature with the support of the other. Ria became so hot that the grass around her started burning before instantly being put out by Fallios.

It was strange. Ria had the ability to breathe water, yet she was the one setting things on fire with the temperature she released, even though her insides were freezing cold.

But there was a problem, her capacity was reaching its limit and she had to release the water inside her body. Ria's body began to feel like she ate too much food and could no longer move properly.

But when she looked at Fallios, he looked fine to her. Ria looked at Fallios jealously. [I'm reaching my limit, how are you still fine?]

Fallios gave her a quick look. [You should circulate your ability around and not just keep it in one place, like cultivation] He said.

Because he was wearing the collar, he couldn't release his ability, but he could 'cultivate'. Of course, there was no such thing as dao or martial arts though. Cultivation was just the best way to explain this unfamiliar phenomenon.

Ria did as she was told, swirling the water around her body until she formed a whirlpool, which made the water flow on its own.

[I just made a whirlpool!] She excitedly said. The bloated feeling completely went away and she felt energetic again.

[That normally isn't supposed to happen. Maybe it's because our absorption abilities are enhanced when we cultivate together] Even Fallios sounded a bit surprised on how well he absorbed heat from the air.

Ria nodded in agreement. [Did your parents teach you these things?] She asked.

Fallios's eyes became gloomy. [Yes. They taught me a few things, but there still were many things they didn't teach me. I thought spirit speech was exclusive to dragons until now, for example] He said in a somber tone.

Ria felt sorry for him. She remembered her first impression of him. At first, he seemed angry and wild, just like a rabid animal.

But he wasn't like that in reality at all. Actually, he was a very calm person and easy to talk to, that is as long as you don't anger him.

Ria scooted closer to Fallios until their sides were touching. His scales were extremely hot compared to the cold steam he was letting off. It felt comforting to her.

She sighed for the millionth time in the past three months. When will the good days come?

And, as if the world was mocking her, she heard a key being inserted into the lock of the door. Both Fallios and her quickly stopped cultivating, but the evidence of their handiwork couldn't be erased from the charred and frozen grass surrounding them.

Soon after, they heard a click and the door opened. It was Connie and another man, who Ria was unfamiliar with. But based on their black clothes which covered their entire body, it was pretty clear who this person was.

A customer.

Ria gave Fallios a side-eye. They both had a very tacit understanding. If they didn't like the customer, they would do whatever it took to not be adopted by them.

"Why is a turtle in the dragon enclosure?" The black-hooded customer said in an unfriendly voice while pointing his finger at Ria.

Immediately, Ria gave Connie a pitying look even though she didn't like him.

She had inherited her hatred for the workers from Fallios, but she could relate to Connie in terms of customer service experiences, apparently.

Connie glanced at the two wary reptiles, ignoring the mess they made on the ground. "The dragon likes the turtle, and will cause trouble if they're apart. Therefore, it's easier to keep them in one place." He said in a timid voice.

Ria secretly gave a thumbs up in her mind. Although this was a black market, this was a big pet shop which required professional people, although she had to take points off for his timidness.

The customer didn't seem to like that answer, but kept it inside. "Alright, I'll buy the dragon. It's fifty-million Cons, correct?" The customer grumbled under his breath about how pricey it was.

"That is correct. Though I'm not sure if the dragon will accept being away from the turtle.." Connie hesitantly added as he slightly furrowed his brows.

"That's fine. How much for the turtle and the dragon?" The customer asked. Just paying a little more money to keep the dragon happy was worth it in his book.

"Eighty-five million for both." Connie instantly responded. The hooded customer was about to nod in agreement for a moment before his head snapped sideways.

"Thirty-five million Cons for one turtle?! What is that turtle made of, platinum?!" The customer instantly flew into an outrage. For context, the entire imperial family's yearly budget was two-hundred fifty million Cons.

It might seem like many people could buy a dragon with that price, but the imperial family actually had to give most away to the various kingdoms it had.

Connie put his hands in front of himself in a calming gesture. "This tortoise's egg was found in the great crater dug by a massive extinct tortoise thousands of years ago. Based on this baby tortoise's patterns and abilities, it's highly likely that this is the offspring of the biggest recorded extinct tortoise, Eiga."

He tried to calm the customer with facts, because his anger was reasonable if he wasn't given proper context for the price first.

The customer still wasn't having it. "You purposefully put these two creatures together so that you could get the money! I know your scheme!" He angrily wagged his finger in front of Connie's face.

Ria and Fallios looked at each other. It looks like they didn't need to put on a show to get rid of this customer after all.

Connie's face turned cold. He already explained his side of things. Although he was timid, this was the black market they were in right now. He wasn't an employee in the largest underground pet shop for nothing.

But, just as he was about to open his mouth to retort, an unfamiliar voice sounded.

"I'll buy them both."