The demon opened her eyes wide so abruptly that it startled Ryder.

  "You almost gave me a heart attack, jeez." The human patted his chest and gestured to Brown to get a doctor. "How are you feeling right now?"

  "Like I'm half-digested by an Oxiada." Estria chuckled weakly. Her eyes squinted at the afternoon sunlight blasting across her face.

  Ryder noticed and closed the curtains. "Purple told me everything. If I were there, I would've forced that asshole to fly you there."

  "But then he'd have to wait for me to complete the legs even longer."

  "Ha! That's true." He hovered his hand above her shiny legs. "Can I touch it?"

  "Go ahead!"

  Ryder's hand caressed the smooth plates and gave it a gentle knock. "So, how does it feel to have legs? I'm amazed you're able to run in a blizzard for kilometers before you even know how to walk."

  "It was either that or watch Mrs. Leim die. And I've been studying how people walk when I started designing my first pair of legs. I didn't expect I was able to apply that knowledge so intuitively though."

  "I see. Say, did it feel awesome to run through the blizzard while racing against time to save your dear friend from death?"

  "No!" She cackled. "It was awful! The neural connection was miscalibrated, and the heat shield was, well, hot! If there wasn't a blizzard, everyone would hear me screaming at the top of my lungs as I ran through the street. Although, I guess it's still a little awesome when you put it that way, heh."

  "Are your legs fine after all that?"

  "Of course they are! It'll take way more than a little blizzard and some miscalibration to destroy my work."

  A knock on the door was followed by the appearance of Brown and a doctor. Ryder stepped away for the doc to examine Estria. A few questions were asked, a few assessments were conducted, and the conclusion was that she was ultimately fine after suffering extreme exhaustion. Due to her demonic biology, a good night's sleep was all she needed to recover by the next day.

  After the doctor left, Mrs. Leim, in a patient gown, showed up with her son.

  "Your legs look amazing, Estria. Phastus will be so proud." The middle-aged woman was beaming with pride.

  "Thank you, Mrs. Leim. How's your condition?"

  "Much better, thanks to you. I'll never forget your kindness, my dear. It must be dreadful running back and forth in the middle of a blizzard." The older woman held the younger woman's hand.

  "Anything for a friend, Mrs. Leim." She smiled.

  "My son over here also has something he wants to say."

  The fidgeting punk took his mother's glare as his cue and stepped forward. "I'm... sorry for threatening you before, Estria. I have reflected on my actions, and I hope you can forgive me. I won't do it again. And, thank you, for saving my mom."

  "You're welcome. As for forgiving you..." The demon gave him a sly side-glance. "That depends on how much you know about my stolen Camptosium."

  "W-What? I-I didn't-"

  "You even stole from her?!" Mrs. Leim pinched her son's cheek until it turned red.

  "I... I-I had no choice! The boss was going to beat me up if I didn't-"

  "And I'm going to give you a beating if you don't return it to Estria!"

  "It's already gone! I can't take it back!"

  "Estria!" The middle-aged woman turned to the blacksmith. "How do you want this brat to pay you back?"

  "Welllll, now that the blizzard is gone, and the avalanche has been cleared up, once my master returns tomorrow, the shop will get quite busy. We can certainly use an extra hand."

  "You hear her? You'll be doing whatever she asks of you at the shop until she forgives you! And if you try to run away," she whispers next to her son's ear, "I'll tell everyone about your crossd-"

  "I swear I won't run away! I swear!" The punk raised his trembling thumbs. "I'll do whatever you want, Estria!"

  "Meet me at the shop tomorrow afternoon. Don't be late." The blacksmith flashed a devilish smile.

   "I'll return to my room now. Talk to you later, deary."

  "See you later, Mrs. Leim!"

  Both of them waved goodbye before the middle-aged woman left the room, her son following behind with a drooping head.

  "How did you know it was him?" Ryder sat on the chair next to her once more. "I guess it was kind of obvious, but-"

  "I didn't. I was only testing my suspicions, and he just confessed!" Estria snickered. "He was always an idiot, but I didn't expect him to be that stupid. Anyway, I assume you'll be leaving tomorrow?"

  "Yep, after lunch. It'll be great if I can hang out with you for a few more days, but, you know, Purple."

  "I can't imagine how annoying it is to travel with that giant lizard. How can you stand his constant snark?"

  "It becomes less annoying each time he saves me. I'm numb to it at this point." Rider chuckled weakly.

  "My condolences." She uttered in fake austerity before snickering again. Once their laughter faded, she asked, "So, about your reward. Did anything in the shop catch your eye? I would offer to make you custom gadgets, but there's not enough time."

  "I hadn't examined all the gadgets and weapons on display yet, so..."

  "If that's the case, then how about this - I'll pick out a collection of items that I think will be greatly beneficial on your journey. If you like 'em, you can just take 'em. If not, you can still browse our catalog and pick 'em yourself."

  "Sounds good. I trust your judgment."

  "I'll return to the shop early tomorrow morning, so swing by when you're on your way out of the city. Oh, and don't forget to tell the lodging to put the bill on my tab." The demon yawned.

  "I guess that's my cue to leave." He chuckled and nodded. "Have a good rest, and I'll see you tomorrow."

  "Until... tomorrow..." Estria's eyes slowly shut.

  Ryder stood, made his exit with Brown as quietly as possible, and closed the door.