Low tolerance

Adelia's cheeks turned a delicate shade of pink.

Never before in her life had she experienced such a terrible embarrassment—maybe, except for that one time—and never before had her stomach growled so loudly!

So why did it happen today of all days and especially in front of this... this...? She would rather leave that sentence incomplete

But then!

Adelia seemed to want to enter inside herself as she observed him. "I've burdened you too much today," she confessed. "I... I didn't want to bother you any further."

"You shouldn't have concerned yourself with that, milady," he responded with a grin. "If you're hungry, it isn't me you're bothering, but rather the inn itself."

Adelia couldn't help but scoff at his statement, and he chuckled softly. His eyes shifted toward the window beside his bed. The sun had begun to go beyond the horizon.

"You've endured quite a lot today," he reassured her. "It's only natural to feel hungry."

Then he looked back at her, his golden eyes seemed to take on a different gleam in the evening light. "Dinner will be served soon. Just hold on until then."

*~*~*~*~*~*

The sun had completely disappeared beneath the horizon, casting the surroundings into darkness when Azel suggested they make their way downstairs for dinner.

He was halfway to the door when Adelia stopped him in his tracks with a question. "Do you think it'll be possible to save some food for him?" She pointed to the bed where Edward lay.

Azel's eyebrows twitched slightly as his eyes fell on the spot she indicated. "Probably," he responded. "But how much money do you have?"

Adelia's breath caught at the question. "I... have to pay for it?"

Azel stared at her as if he had just seen a ghost, though he considered the question was reasonable, since she was a noble and a sheltered one at that, he was sure.

"Of course you'll have to pay," he affirmed. "...What did you think?"

Adelia furrowed her brows at him, then planted her hands on her waist, "How was I supposed to know? I've never been to a place like this!"

She was sure they had paid for their accommodation here. Wasn't it only natural for the food to be included in the payment?

The man in front of her almost seemed to read her mind, answering her question before she could voice it.

"Sometimes accommodation payments don't include food." He told her. "Some travelers can't afford all that at once."

"Oh…" Adelia said in a small voice as she cast her gaze downward. "I… I didn't consider that…"

Azel gave her one of his usual smiles. "There'll be a lot of things you'll see tonight that you didn't consider, milady."

Adelia didn't understand what he meant until they reached the inn's dining room. Her eyes widened as she studied the place, almost reeling at the strong smell of alcohol mixed with food, sweat, and smoke.

The noise was so much she could hardly hear herself think.

Well, he was probably right. She hadn't considered... this.

She tried not to wrinkle her nose in irritation. "Is this… really where we're going to eat?"

Azel folded his arms beside her, a faint smile on his lips as he watched the scene in front of them. "Do you perhaps have any other place in mind, milady?"

"What about your room?" She asked quickly, raising her voice over the sounds of rowdy laughter. "We can always eat there."

Azel looked down at her leisurely. "Have you ever sat on the floor to eat, milady?" He inquired.

Adelia's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I have not… Why do you ask?"

"Because that is exactly what you will do if we left here for the room," he explained. "After all, I will be the one to use the only table we have there."

Adelia inhaled sharply, glaring up at him. "Then I'll just make use of your bed."

"I won't let you."

"You… you're being unreasonable!"

"I assure you that I am not," Azel responded. "So, if you would rather sit on chairs rather than a cold, hard floor, then you should come with me."

He then took her wrist, she jerked at first, but soon relaxed as he led her through the common room, weaving through people and tables to get to a free one at a corner.

Azel tried not to dwell on the delicate feel of her wrist beneath his palm. He was aware that his strides were long, so he made an effort to keep them shorter so she could keep up and not stumble.

The inn was more crowded than he had initially thought. Probably at the time when he and Fabian arrived, most visitors seemed to be in their rooms.

Since neither of them had come down to eat last night, Azel hadn't realized the place was still bustling.

"What about your... friend?" Adelia asked suddenly. "Won't he be joining us?"

Azel suppressed the urge to look back and see her expression. Why was she suddenly inquiring about Fabian?

"No, he won't," he replied firmly. "He's not a fan of the inn's food."

"And you are?"

"No, not really."

"Why do you eat it then?"

Azel shot her a quick glance. "Because I don't like to stay hungry"

After a few more seconds of walking, they finally reached the table he had set his eyes on. He offered Adelia a seat before taking one for himself.

Adelia studied him after a moment. "How do we get our food if we just sit here?"

Azel gave her a lopsided smile. "We wait for one of the workers to notice our empty table."

Adelia blinked, her gaze scanning the common hall properly. So many unruly men, too much loud laughter and a lot of people shouting over each other to place their orders.

In this chaotic situation, she couldn't see how they would ever get the attention of any of the servers. In fact, it seemed nearly impossible that they would manage to get anything to eat that night.

"Is it going to take long?" she asked, eyeing the bustling crowd. "There are so many people here."

"Not too long," Azel assured her.

If he remembered correctly, Fabian had handed the inn manager a fairly large sum of money—large for a commoner, at least—when they arrived yesterday.

If the man had any sense then he would know to treat them differently from the rest.

Almost as if in response to his thoughts, someone finally approached their table. The young man looked stressed, as if he had to go through a difficult maze to reach them.

His eyes fell first on Adelia and lingered for a moment too long—to Azel's irritation—before turning to face him.

"What can I get for you, sir?" the server asked, he had heard that the man at this table had paid generously when he and his companion arrived yesterday and he was to be treated with respect.

But what he didn't know was that there would be a woman with him, but that hardly mattered. The wealthy always seemed to have the luxury to fool around.

Azel's lips twitched, unamused by the server's thoughts. But he ignored it, as he always did. People would think him mad if he reacted without the man doing anything physical to provoke him.

"Two mugs of cider," Azel began, "Two bowls of pottage, and three loaves of maslin bread."

"Ci—cider, sir?" The young man appeared taken aback.

Azel raised an eyebrow at him, "Did I stutter?"

"Not at all," the man relented. He had assumed someone like Azel would want nothing but liquor. "I'll return with your order in a few minutes, sir," he said with a slight bow before he left.

With the server gone, Adelia turned her attention to Azel. "Everyone here seems to be ordering alcohol," she began. "Do you not drink it?"

Azel remained silent for a moment. "...I'm not particularly fond of alcohol."

"Why?" she inquired. "Is it because you can't handle it well?"