"Please wait for a moment, miss. Your order will be here soon."

"Thanks." Lena thanked the waitress after giving the order before turning to Mom. "Anything you'd like to add, Mother?"

"Eh? Ah, no, I don't." Mom seemed to have been interrupted during her thoughts as she replied in a hurry.

"What's up?" Lena was curious as she followed Mom's gaze before chuckling. "Hmm, Mother. It seems like you don't like the dressing style of people here in Darkfire City."

"It's not that I don't like it." Mom took a glance at the other customers and made sure no one was listening as she whispered, "I'm just not used to it."

Lena almost laughed out loud but controlled herself in time.

The whole restaurant was filled with customers, many of whom were locals. The differentiation was quite easy, as most of the outsiders were adventurers and hence wore their protective outfits even within the city.

On the other hand, the locals were dressed more casually, as most of them were descendants of the settlers from when the city was first established. They had a unique tanned skin tone, and the clothes they wore were also designed for maximum comfort and cooling.

Because it was a completely different scene from the conservative style practiced in the border towns and cities, Mom was not familiar with it.

At this moment, a few people suddenly walked over to their table.

"Hello, ladies." The one in the lead was a bald man with a scar on his chin. "Can we sit here?"

Mom's brows furrowed as she looked at the thug-like man. He was wearing armor made of leather with metal pieces at crucial places. Behind him were two more men who looked like his underlings, and they were looking at Lena and her in a vulgar manner.

"Sorry, we already have company," Mom replied plainly while pointing at the empty table nearby. "You can sit elsewhere."

"But it's currently empty, right?" The bald man didn't seem to have the intention to leave as he began to pull an empty chair.

Clink!

"Huh?" The bald man felt something and looked down. There, he found a part of his pauldron had dropped to the ground. His scalp tingled as he observed the smooth cut at the edge.

"This seat is a bit too sharp; be careful with your hands," Lena remarked lightly while already digging into her food.

The bald man gulped with difficulty as he let out an ugly smile, as if crying.

"Y-Yes, miss. You're right," he hurriedly nodded. "I should sit somewhere else." So he said, but hurriedly retreated out of the place with his goons.

Just as Mom was about to say something, an amused chuckle entered her ears.

She turned her head and saw me smiling at them while holding a paper bag in my hand.

"What are you laughing at, little rascal?" Mom was a bit embarrassed, but she spoke harshly. "Good thing Lena's a strong girl; otherwise, who knows what trouble could have come?"

"Don't worry, Mom." As I took a seat beside Mom, Lena assured her. "This is a lawful city. Those hooligans wouldn't have dared to go too far."

"That's right," I agreed. "Good thing this is a lawful place, or else who knows if the guy would have left with his neck intact?"

Mom was left speechless.

"What's that?" At this moment, Lena, who was stuffing her face with the food, asked while pointing at the paper bag in my hand.

"Guess," I smiled before opening the bag.

"Wow!" Lena exclaimed. "Is that the famous ice cream from Darkfire City that's always sold out?"

"Yeah, it's that one." I almost laughed as I remembered Lena grumbling to me about her bad luck and how she never had the chance to taste the famous dessert, even after coming to Darkfire City so many times.

"Hey, hey! Finish your food before eating the ice cream." Watching her almost snatch the bag out of my hands, I couldn't help but feel helpless.

"What if it melts?" Giving her an excuse, Lena then ignored me and began to focus on eating the dessert along with her food.

I also gave some to Mom and began to eat my food.

"It's so good!" Mom was surprised. Even though she herself knew how to make ice cream, it was her first time eating something like this.

"That's for sure," Lena mumbled while licking the spoon. "It is famous for a reason. But the limited supply makes it even more irresistible."

She was right. It was quite delicious. But that was a given considering it was prepared with special ingredients infused with cold mana.

After finishing our lunch, we left the place and began to take a walk around the city.

Since Lena and I had been here before, we weren't very interested, but Mom was fascinated by everything. What amused me more was that she was observing all the ladies that passed by, as what most of them wore was quite provocative for her liking.

"Do you like this style, Mom?" I teased her. "If you'd like, we can go shopping for some clothes."

"Oh?" Mom didn't turn embarrassed as I had thought; instead, she raised a brow at me before asking, "Would you like to see your mother wear them?"

My smile stiffened as I realized that my mother was back in her savage mode. The sweet and vulnerable side of her that was pulled out due to the tense atmosphere of our journey was locked back in.

"Why not?" But I decided not to back down. "I think you'd look quite pretty in that style."

This time, her expression wavered a bit, but before she could say anything, Lena interrupted.

"That's a good idea!" She exclaimed. "Let's go! I know a good shop for this stuff."

Then, while we were bewildered, Lena simply grabbed our hands and brought us to a famous clothing store.

It was a large building with many floors. Actually, the store was made up of two buildings connected together. One side was for adventurers, where they could purchase quality armor and such. On the other side was the store for casual clothes, and, as one would expect, it was more popular among women.

"Let's go and upgrade your wardrobe, Mother!" Lena seemed fired up as she led us within the store. Not even stopping at any of the lower floors, Lena directly took us to the third floor.

The entire floor was filled with clothes for women. There were many unique designs and styles to choose from.

Mom was also amazed and felt a bit of excitement she had not felt in a long time.

Smiling at their shopping spirit, I simply followed them while they browsed the large variety of clothes.

Similar to them, there were also many other ladies sharing the same enthusiasm as they dragged their helpless partners or friends along to shop. Soft exclamations and giggles filled the place, and if you ignored the pain of your wallet lightening up, the atmosphere was quite relaxing there.

After about an hour of selection, Lena and Mom finally decided upon some clothes and took them for a trial.

"Come on, Mother. I'll help you dress up." Lena grinned as she grabbed my dumbfounded mother and dragged her into a changing room.

From there came the helpless echoes of my mother, followed by Lena's laugh that almost sounded evil.

After a short while, the door opened as Lena came out wearing a long dress that highlighted her toned figure quite nicely. The slit at the bottom revealed her smooth leg until her thigh, while the low cut at the top made her smooth peaks stand out.

"How is it?" Lena raised her brows, then waved her hands without waiting for my reply. "Never mind. Your dirty gaze told me everything."

As I looked at her speechlessly, she called out, "Mother, please come out already."

There was a short pause before the door opened again as my mother came out, wearing the same dress as Lena. Though, even though the size was the same, her mature figure stood out a bit more in the dress.

Lena also seemed to have changed Mom's hairstyle a bit, as her wavy hair swung down her shoulders and revealed her delicate neck.

"Does it look good?" Mother looked up while trying to cover her shyness.

"It's good." I nodded. "You both look beautiful." That was what I really felt, as it was my first time seeing my mother in such clothes.

She looked mesmerizing.

"Okay. Let's try out the next outfit." Without giving me more time to savor their beauty, Lena took Mom back in before closing the door.

As I waited in anticipation, guessing what the next style would be, the door opened again.

This time, they both exited the changing room together.

No one said anything, as the first sound made was of me gulping my saliva.

"See?" Lena, standing beside my mother, grinned cheekily. "I told you he would like it, didn't I?"

Currently, they are both dressed in the local attire of Darkfire City, consisting of a skirt and a crop top. Their fair legs and well-toned midriffs were exposed fully.

Mom squirmed a bit as she tried to escape Lena's grasp and go back, but was held down by the latter. Helplessly, she could only raise her watery eyes as she looked at me.

But my expression was not the least comforting, as I was a bit dazed after looking at them.

While I was used to Lena wearing such clothes in my presence, seeing my mother wear such clothes was a first.

When worn by the local women, the clothes, combined with their tanned skin, gave a wild sense of beauty. But when my mother wore them, her fair and delicate skin formed a unique charm that drowned out my gaze.

"Are you buying that?" My voice sounded a bit hoarse, so I hurriedly cleared my throat before speaking. "I mean, you should, if you like it. It looks good on you."

"I can't wear clothes like this." Mom looked down at her clothes while her hands were trying to cover herself. But she also appeared a bit happy from the praise but still expressed her stand. Although she likes the clothes, she herself prefers a more modest style.

"Of course not, Mother." Lena suddenly spoke. "What he meant was wearing them when it's only the three of us. Right, Dan?"

"Oh." I nodded a bit foolishly, as what Lena said sounded a bit weird, but on second thought, there was nothing wrong with her words.

"…alright." Mom also agreed after a brief thought.

After deciding on the second purchase, they both tried out a dozen more outfits. It took us another two hours before we finally finished our shopping.

"Haa… that was fun!" Lena stretched her slender body, exposing her curves as she savored the mental comfort after shopping to her full.

It was already evening, and the streets were crowded as the street lights began to light up.

"It was, really." Mom also appeared happy, as she enjoyed shopping with Lena a lot. It was her first time relaxing like this in many long years.

"Let's go book an inn first." I spoke at this moment. "Any later, and we'll miss the good ones."

"Wait." Lena suddenly stopped and smiled. "I suddenly remembered a good place."

"Which one?" I asked curiously, as there were too many places in the city to be considered good.

"He-he, just follow me." Lena looked excited as she led the way for us.