Robes

The first thing Azra thought about when he woke up was how he missed the days when he could sleep all day without a care in the world since he didn't have any obligations. However, since he knew that the only reason he didn't do anything was that he couldn't do anything without risking his life or being in the way, Azra fought away his sleepiness and got out of bed.

Soon after Azra woke up, Erlo opened his door and entered the room. Azra was surprised at that, but he didn't let it bother him too much and greeted Erlo before following him to the kitchen, where the others sat and ate breakfast.

After eating, Azra decided to go and meet Gus, hoping that Mahenny would have already let them know about their deal.

Azra followed Mirabelle's and Lo's directions, but even without help, he doubted that he would have missed the shop. The Village of Thorns was pretty small, and most of the boutiques and shops were close to the village square where Lo had washed Erlo the previous day.

Azra saw the signboard almost immediately after arriving at the square.

'Gus' Tailoring'

The shop was pretty nice, but it looked like it was out of use and almost deserted. It wasn't weird, considering the war and how it reduced the traffic through the village to zero. Most other shops and places also looked like they hadn't seen proper use in quite a while.

Azra knocked on the door before opening it to the ringing of a bell.

"Ah! You're here."

Azra saw unruly grey hair sticking out from behind a desk or maybe a worktable. As Gus stood up, he brought along several rolls of fabric.

"It's been a while since I needed to make clothes, so I was just checking through the fabric. See anything you like?"

"Oh, I don't really know much about fabrics. Something simple will do."

"Well. Alright. Ol' 'Henny only said you wanted clothes, but what did you have in mind?"

"Did you happen to see the robes I wore yesterday and the day I arrived here?"

"Can't say I did. Do you have the robes with you?"

"They're currently at Granny Nem's place, but she told me to visit her today. Should I come back later with the robes?"

"Nevermind that. Just take a look at these while I take your measurements."

Gus handed Azra a collection of design drafts from behind him before grabbing a measuring tape and guiding Azra to the center of the store.

Azra looked through the ideas and designs for various clothes while Gus began taking his measurements. It was difficult to look at the bundle when Gus kept moving his arms around into proper postures, but Azra managed to scan through them by the time Gus finished measuring and noting down Azra's measurements in a notebook.

"Find anything you like?"

Gus kept looking in his notebook while asking his question.

"Not any one thing. The sleeves on this one look nice, and the hood on this one. And I would prefer something simple but airy, easy to move in, and with pockets for the body."

"Mhmm. And in a simple color?"

"Yes."

Gus continued sketching on his notepad without saying anything for a few minutes. But it didn't seem like he wanted Azra to leave, so Azra waited patiently while looking around the shop.

It was noticeable that Gus hadn't had many customers lately, but the store was still well-cared for, and there wasn't any dust piled on the floor or the clothes-wearing mannequins.

A few mannequins wore simpler clothes and had several sets of similar clothes stacked next to the mannequins. Other mannequins held other more exquisite clothes that were probably a showcase of what kind of clothes Gus could make.

"How about something like this?"

Gus held up his notebook and showed a few sketches that he drew according to the description Azra gave him.

Since Azra asked for something simple, there wasn't a lot of difference between the different sketches. A decently sized hood that would be able to hide Azra's face and airy sleeves that had enough space for Azra to tuck his hands into, as well as eventual weapons for self-defense.

"It looks perfect!"

Azra gave Gus a radiant smile since he was indeed satisfied with the designs he had drawn up.

"Great! Come back tomorrow, and we'll do some primary fitting."

Since his business with Gus finished, Azra began leaving the shop. However, before he stepped through the open door, he turned around and spoke to Gus.

"I don't have any money on me, and I know Mahenny is paying for it, but if you need help with something, just let me know."

Azra didn't wait for an answer as he left the boutique and let the door close behind him.

The business with Gus had finished pretty quickly and without delay, but Azra thought it would still be late enough in the morning to visit Nem, so that was where he headed.

Azra knocked on Nem's door, and it opened after a bit of noise from inside the house.

Nem didn't show much change in facial expression as she opened the door.

"You're here."

Nem led Azra into the living room, where she picked up a bundle of clothes from the armchair. Azra realized that they were his robes. He hadn't recognized them at first since they were in much better shape than the time he last saw them. Azra only noticed the stitches if he looked closely, and there wasn't even a faint trace of the stench left.

"Thank you, madam Nem."

"What nonsense. If you don't have anything to do here, you can get lost."

It seemed like nem still had trouble seeing Azra in the clothes of her child, so she quickly chased Azra out of her house.

Azra didn't put up any resistance as he left Nem alone.

"Mahenny is preparing dinner for me and the Thorns family tonight. You're more than welcome to join us."

Azra didn't get an answer before he was pushed out of the door. And considering Nem's attitude, it wouldn't be weird if she chose not to come. But just inviting Nem was all Azra needed to do to sow some goodwill in her heart.

With his most urgent business done, Azra decided to go look for Lo since he would be an important piece in his plan to get the village to begin worshipping him. Interacting more with Erlo might also give Azra a clue about what happened last night.

Azra found Lo and Erlo playing in the fields outside the village, with Mirabelle and Melly watching them.

The family noticed Azra's arrival thanks to Erlo, who ran over to greet him excitedly with a stick in his mouth.

Azra rubbed Erlo's cheeks a bit before sending him back to Lo, who was walking toward Azra and his mother and sister.

"How'd it go?"

"Pretty good. Everyone in the village is so nice. I actually wanted to talk to you about a way to repay everyone's hospitality."

Lo looked slightly confused at Azra's words, and he struggled not to let it show on his face.

"What did you have in mind?"