Dead End
The thorns filled with that sticky liquid were inserted into special glass jars. Inside them, a less dense yellowish liquid covered them in full.
One jar after another, that experienced woman soaked the Demon Teeth. Yoichi watched her hands carefully, noting that the jars were carefully stored inside a small wooden cabinet placed behind her.
"Hello!" the woman greeted, looking forward and staring at Yoichi. Without doing it on purpose, he had come so close to the stall that he attracted her attention.
"Good evening, ma'am. Sorry I was gawking at you without saying anything, but I never witnessed the creation of Demon Teeth personally," Yoichi apologized, justifying his ambiguous gaze.
Enatsu stood beside him, looking at the other items displayed on the stall.
"Well, it's very strange. Mine is one of the most common jobs in the world," that sweet-faced woman smiled.
"Let's say I haven't been out of the Bronzeforest in a while. Anyway, I'd like to buy some. How much are they?" Yoichi insisted without wasting any more time.
"A silver coin each. How many do you need?"
"Mmh. Fine. Five of them will be fine," he affirmed. With one hand, he slightly moved Kenji and opened the leather pouch, pulling out a gold coin and handing it to the woman.
"Hey, boys! My hands are dirty, serve our customers, please," she exclaimed, directing her voice to her two helpers.
"Of course!" the only man behind the counter exclaimed eagerly. "I hear you want five, right? Here they are."
When Yoichi handed the gold coin to the man, he stood still and looked at it. "Um... if you want the change, I think you'll need a bigger bag than that," he chuckled, saying something obvious.
"Oh, you're right. How stupid, I hadn't thought about it!" Yoichi responded hastily. "Do you also sell bags? Can I buy it here?"
"Here you are. My sister sewed this one. She is one of the most skilled seamstresses in the whole Bazaar. Although it looks much thinner than ordinary travel backpacks, it is very capacious and comfortable to carry. The leather with which it was made is light and resistant and..."
"How much do I owe you for everything?" Yoichi interrupted, smiling.
"Fifteen silver coins!" the merchant stated, tucking the Demon Teeth inside the bag. He placed it on the stall, moving away a few meters to scrape together the change.
Two coins at a time, the merchant counted 85 silver coins and carefully slipped them into the backpack's inside pocket. "Okay, here we are. Sorry to keep you waiting."
The purchase of Demon Teeth was successful, and Yoichi put his brand new backpack on his shoulders. "Perfect, now I can call myself satisfied," he reported, greeting the merchants with education.
"You still haven't told me yet what the urgency of taming another demon is, but... fine, I'm not going to talk about it," Enatsu mumbled, walking among the people. "Now, let's get out of here. My head can't stop spinning because of all this confusion."
Within minutes, retracing in reverse the same route they entered the ruins, the two adventurers left the Old Bazaar. Although the moon was high in the sky, none of the stalls in the big market seemed intent on being closed.
Fewer and fewer people were walking through the streets of Goldhaven and, finally, the two friends were able to enjoy the free view of the capital.
"I think it's a bit late to get to the Tamer District. It's not very far from here, but it's late at night," Enatsu commented, looking up.
"I was thinking the same. Maybe we should find a place to spend the night," Yoichi acknowledged. "You could use Sora's skill to look for an inn, what do you say?" he asked.
"Of course. Let me sit on that bench."
The crickets continued to play their typical melodies, hidden among the branches of the trees and the atmosphere that was breathed in the street was calm and pleasant. When both of them were sitting on a bench next to flower-filled vases, Enatsu stroked the little head of his feathered demon.
"Okay, Sora. You know what to do. Let's go," he ordered, closing his eyes.
The young merchant's pupils replaced those of the Waromu, and Sora took flight. Its small coloured wings flapped frantically. Within seconds, it disappeared behind two tall buildings.
"This place is fucking huge; it won't be easy" Enatsu gulped. His hands clasped the wooden bars of the bench. His bust moved to trace the movements of his Oracle and, judging by his fearful expression, it seemed that he was living a nightmare.
"You're afraid of heights, don't you?" Yoichi asked, resting his tired feet.
"How... how did you figure it out?" Enatsu answered astonishedly, continuing to look around with his pet's eyes.
"You look scared."
"I know, it's a ridiculous thing. My oracle is a Waromu and I suffer from vertigo. Phew... I'm just hopeless," Enatsu chuckled, showing an innate self-irony.
The two friends sat on the bench for a few minutes and Yoichi closed his eyes, trying to relax.
Suddenly, an unexpected sound frightened him, causing him to jump.
"Screek!" Kenji gasped, jumping to the ground to attention.
"What was it?! Did you hear that too?" Yoichi asked, positioning himself next to his Oracle and looking around.
"Heard what? Wait, Yoichi... I'm trying to focus," Enatsu muttered, whose gaze was facing the ground.
"Aaargh! Help!"
A female scream echoed again among the buildings lining the street. "Again! Now you've heard it, I'm sure! It's a woman's voice; I'm sure she's in danger!" the young tamer gulped, stepping forward.
Enatsu's eyes returned to their normal colour, and he got up from the bench. "Where does it come from? What... where..."
"Help me! Help!" the woman screamed again, desperate.
"That way, quick! Come, Kenji!" – Yoichi began to run in the direction of the yelling, realizing that the road that until recently was teeming with people was now deserted.
In a hurry, the two adventurers circled a large square palace. In front of them, a wall blocked the road.
"It's a dead-end!" Enatsu quaked. "We've got the wrong way!"
Yoichi approached the wall, touching it with the palm of his hand. Meanwhile, Kenji was left behind. The Nekage's ears turned to a narrow alleyway between two houses.