A simple carriage, closer to a cart stopped in front of the guards, who indicated for them to pay the toll.

9 elves were in the carriage, and only elves, which gave off the feeling of a puritan group, the type that liked to keep to themselves.

Usually trouble if they were bothered too much. Best to get it over with.

An elf exited the carriage, carrying himself in a dignified manner, akin to a noble and yet not repelling, but rather inviting.

Domineering, but not hostile.

His very aura made people want to listen, and to share with him.

His dark blue hair was smoothed and swept back, his piercing green eyes peered out from under the hair, it's clean form a stark contrast to the dirty mercenary uniform he wore.

He was also holding a weird lump under his arm, one that looked like a bowl at first glance..

Walking up to the guards, he greeted them in a friendly manner.

"Morning. Guard duty going well.?" He asked, and the guard responded in a jolly manner.

"It's been good so far. Nothing too exciting, though there were some interesting occurrences." The man chuckled, causing the elf to raise an eyebrow.

"Oh?" he said, eyebrow raised. "Any that you'd be willing to share over a good drink?"

The guard chuckled "Your treat?", curious and enticed by this elf's bold nature. He was friendly, and contrary to his bearing, he was a rather open man.

The elf smiled. "Sure, my treat.", extending his hand out for a handshake, which the guard reciprocated with great strength, that he also returned.

Cleary, the guard liked the elfs friendly attitude, as he roared happily. .

"Very well then, meet me in front of the barracks after 4, hmm? I'll be free by then."

"I look forward to hearing a good tale or two. The names Earl."

The guard raised his eyebrow. "Earl, huh? Rather fancy name."

"Well, my mother was an eccentric one. Couldn't make me a noble, so she named me an earl instead." he said, cracking an awkward smile.

"Hahaha. Well, that's parents. THey always want the best for you. Names Chip, my mother named me after a delicacy. Parents, amiright? Anyway, 9 of you correct?"

"Yes, though I must ask do you count familiars?"

"Nah. Taxing familiars get's difficult at times when considering regulations, so we don't. Why? I don't see one." He said, giving the cart a quick look over.

The elf laughed. "He's right here." the elf opened his burlap sack, revealing a shell instead of a bowl, as two heads popped out of the shell.

It was a purely silver turtle, causing the guard to tut.

"A variant monster huh? I'd be careful with that if I were you. I'd like to tell you the village is safe but-"

"-But one can never be safe enough. Rest assured I intend to register my familiar and to hide my familiar." he said, patting the burlap sack, as the "turtle" rubbed the elf's hand affectionately.

"Okay, thought I'd warn you. Fare is 36 coppers." THe elf nodded, as he dispensed 36 coppers.

"Alright, next!"

Thus Earl and his group passed by smoothly through the gates.

---

And that's done.

I leap into the carriage, as I maintain my human form, at least until we get far away from the gates so they won't notice anything.

My "familiar" on the other hand, disappears as Ore sinks back into the folds of my suit. Thank goodness for him. He manages to play the role of decoy familiar well, though he remains silver throughout, which kind of ruins his disguise a bit. I'll have to waive it off as my /his special status ability. Maybe shifting to metal?

Servante gives me a confused look.

"Did you really need to chat up the guard? We'll only be here a few days before moving on."

I chuckle, finding his ignorance amusing.

Crack!

My body cracks a little as I shift back into my turtle form, to better attract less attention.

I will need the elven form again later when I register myself as a familiar.

'All journeys last longer than initially intended. You may think that this location will merely be a pit stop, but one should be prepared for all circumstances. It doesn't hurt to gain favor with the guards anyway, given the influence guards have in society, especially in small villages like this. Ignoring nobles and particularly powerful merchants, guards have the most power, and can make your life difficult should you find yourself on their bad side. Better to be on their good side. Besides, I don't recommend powering through the villages anyway. We're still being searched for, even if you're presumed dead. Nothing is more suspicious than a group clearly on the run.'

Servante took this in stride, though he had another question.

"Did you have to take a elven form? With all due respect,this could be quite troublesome if they notice you disappearing."

'It could be just as irritating if my elven form appears out of nowhere. My disappearing from locations can be excused, but my appearance out of nowhere in elven form will be harder to explain.'

Servante seems less acceptant of this claim, though he did accept it eventually.

THe kids were far more focused on the town, similarly so were the skarpans, and even Lenore was looking at the town appreciatively.

It was a bustling and lively town, a stark contrast to the quieter and more peaceful snowsberry village.

For the most part, people looked no different from your average citizens, though that did not stop the less experienced Leon from gawking at people, much to the amusement of some, and the annoyance of others,

The skarpans hid it well, but they too found their eyes drawn.

I could see Borsch sneaking glances at stalls with talismans, and Fenil attracted to the stands advertising trinkets and bracelets, whereas Damil seemed indifferent all together.

I'm starting to think Redgar is the only one interested in being a merchant, with him looking at every stall we passed by.

Though, Lenore and Servante found themselves distracted, but for different reasons.

"Isn't that hot?" muttered Servante, while Lenore commented in agreement.

"I can't imagine wearing that!" she exclaimed.

And I could see why.

Certain stands, stalls, and shops had people standing at the forefront, wearing northerner styled clothing.

Of course, most of the people in Skip village weren't, but the few who were only stood out more.

"I don't suppose you know why?" asked Servante, and I responded, not merely for him, but al the curious people on the carriage.

'It's what we call a "mascot". Skip village is most famous as a tourist attraction, so many of the people here have adapted accordingly. The mascot, funny enough, was introduced by a foreigner who came here in the form of his own famous mascot suit to make money. Of course, since it was profitable, many of the shops here copied the technique.'

"OKay, but that should still be hot right? Is it some sort of monster armor then, or a form of magical equipment?" Butted in Lenore as she eyed another weird mascot of a northerner, and was wearing a dragon like costume head. Probably for the kids, since he seemed to run a toy stall.

Before I can respond, BOrsch says it in revelation. "Magic stones." He breathes, as if recognizing the presence of the magic, and I compliment him for it.

'Very good. Yes, ice magic stones are quite the commodity here in Skip village for a number of reasons, one of them being all these mascots, which use ice magic stones to cool off. They're produced here in mass, so they're relatively cheap, being merely a silver coin for a magic stone that will as the day for these magic stones."

"That is very cheap" Servante said thoughtfully, as he considered the price, and I add on.

'Yeah, I was going to suggest we stock up on some while we're here. It'd be great for us to use throughout the rest of the trip, and we could exchange a few in other towns once we leave. They could probably exchange for 10 silver coins out there, considering the quality.'

Servante snorted. "So that's why you wanted to pass by here, profit huh?" he said, clearly amused by the thought, while Lenore looked more interested than anything.

Downright excited even. "Really!" she said, clearly interested in the idea.

'Are you that low on funds?' I scoff, and Lenore laughs awkwardly.

Servante explains. "We have more than enough money for trip expenses and to pay you, but not enough money for more lavish things. She's a heavy drinker, if you'd believe it. Like water even." He said dismissively.

Lenore looked embarrassed, and felt shook. I hadn't even seen her take a sip up to this point.

She drank?

Was she one of those crazy drunks!?

Seeing my stare, Servante grumbles.

"I wish. If she was, at least something entertaining would happen. SHe drinks a lot, but never gets drunk. Horrid habit she gained from her teacher. "

'That bad?'

"No!"

"Yes. After a few days into this trip I had to take away her drinking money before she burned through all of out funds. She's not an addict but horrid with money."

"Nnnnngghhhhh!" She said, covering her ears embarrassed beyond belief.

Redgar chuckled. "Just like the chief! Used to drink 10 cups in a sitting."

"That is nothing compared to what Lenore did. 15 barrels in a night after she challenged a dwarf. And then a lizardman. And then a giant. And then..."

As Servante went on, Lenore's face steamed red, though she didn't stop him. Despite her excitable demeanor, she is very much in control of herself.

Anyway, we have a lot of stuff to do once we park down somewhere.

Register as an adventurer, register Leon and the skarpans, and then register the skarpans at the merchants association, and then get a feel for the town's economy, go meet the guard..."

It was promising to be a busy day.

---

We rented a cheap hotel room, mostly for appearances. In reality, we were living in the carriage. The carriage may have hidden our presence with the illusion, but the spatial magic was very much still in effect, allowing us to to have a very comfortable room for cheap.

Anyway, I shifted back into my elven form again to head out, first choosing to go over to the bar for a drink with the guard.

"I'll be going to gather some information, alright? Be careful while I'm gone, and don't get into any trouble."

"I was already going to do that." said Servante.

Lenore got up. "Wait! If you're going, cam I go too?! I haven't had a drink in ages! And safety lies in numbers!"

"You just want to drink." I retort, and se nods, clearly not embarrassed at all.

Servante rolled his eyes. "Just take her. Better she drinks with you. Never seen her drunk before, but there's always a first, and it should be with friends rather than strangers. The kids should be fine with 2 B ranks and 3 C ranks anyway."

I shrug. It's not bad to have drinking mates when going out anyway.

"Sure, I'll pay, but only 10 drinks." I warn her, and she fist pumps in response.

"Yess!" she says, getting up to go.

So she and I get up and we set out.

The towns rather nice, though rather busy, thanks to it's nature as a tourism based town.

The barrack seems rather lively, with many of the guards talking and laughing together.

That's a northerner's barrack alright. Barracks aren't quiet, but none are ever quite as loud as a northerners barrack, and none drink nearly as much.

Seeing us approach, one guard walks up.

"What's up? " the lizard man asks, and we explain the fact we're waiting for Chip.

"Oh, Chip! Yeah, he's waiting for you. Did you know he's named after a snack."

"So we heard." I say, and Lenore laughs. "A snack..." she mutters.

The lizard man goes back to the barracks, and out comes Chip, in more casual wear.

And he's a beastman, seemingly of the canine variety, with a brown pair of beast airs to go with is brown hair.

HIs canine teeth are also particularly sharp, confirming his identity.

They don't detract from his friendly demeanor, and even add to it, as his ears twitch when he talks.

"Alright, I know a good place around Odin street. It's called the drunken wyrm, and it's known for it's strong snake wine if you're interested."

"How would you say the food is?" I ask, since I'm going to avoid drinking too much. Still not sure about the alcohol tolerance of this newfound body after all.

"Good variety, and taste isn't half bad for the price."

"Alright then, let's go drink!" cheered Lenore.

Chip looked over curiously. "I saw you in the carriage earlier right? "

"Yup! Heard you were going for a drink, and I for one, am thirsty!"

"Wonderful! Then let's go." Said Chip as he confidently lead the way.