CHAPTER 526: CHAPTER 526 - EXPLORING CERYNEIA (PART 8)

Since I finally have some money on me from my transaction with Levi, I bid my goodbyes to him right after buying the things that I wanted from his auction house as well. I used barter for most of the items I bought since I don’t want to have less Ceryneia pearls on me which was totally fine with him.

I told Levi that I won’t be attending the auction for privacy reasons and trust him to do well on his own. I simply left him the name of the inn that me and Lir will be staying at just in case he needs to get a hold of me for any problems or questions about the items I entrusted to him. As for the sales from the auction, I asked him to keep it for me until I claim it on the next day when I come by at the auction house again.

Before leaving, I left huge sacks and boxes of the items up for sale. He has a lot of people so I trust that they should all be able to arrange it in time for the auction later. I also reminded him that I do not mind if he needed two days to auction out everything since I know I dumped a lot of items on hjm. He appreciated the leeway I gave him and thanked me profusely.

As I was about to leave the warehouse, this time openly and through the main door of the auction house, I saw one of Levi’s staff sneakily eye me then the same guy also went out the warehouse right behind me and Lir. Instead of following us though, he quickly went and turned towards the other end of the hallway.

He looked quite shady in mg opinion so I decided to follow him stealthily instead. At the end of the corridor, I saw him take out a small glass ball that lit up almost immediate with a dim blue light. Once it was lit up, he started reporting to it like it was an everyday thing.

I simply heard him say, "Prince, an auction for several items from the surface will happen in an hour. Food, Cloth and Skin products. Cobalt City Auction House. Please come if you can."

He then placed the ball back to his pocket and went back to the direction of the warehouse to help out in the preparations again. From this, I have confirmed that he was either a spy or simply just an informant for the royal family. I don’t know exactly how many princes or which prince he was reporting to but as long as they don’t hinder my business or that of Levi’s, we’re all in good terms.

Lir and I then went out of the auction house to find a room at the most expensive inn here in Cobalt City which was named "Waves". I immediately picked out the most expensive room from the price list. The receptionist then asked if I would be getting a same type of room for my companion but I teasingly replied, "Nope, this one is staying with me. He’s in charge of warming my bed."

My short remark made not only Lir blush but even the receptionist of the inn and other staff nearby that heard what I said. I looked at Lir with a naughty smirk and he simply looked down, refusing to look into my eyes out of embarrassment.

He did not complain or contradict what I said. I kind of expected a stronger or an angrier reaction than this. Why did he suddenly react in a weird way?

After the booking of the room was confirmed, we were then ushered by two attendants of the inn to our room which was on the highest floor. There are only four rooms in this floor since it had the more expensive accommodations for privacy compared to the other floors that had ten rooms each.

As I went inside the room, I felt like "Ariel", that mermaid from the fairy tales being in her room and singing that popular song she had. Everywhere I looked of course followed the underwater theme but at least the bed was wide and looked soft, not made of shell, bubbles or seaweed. I wonder what they used to cushion it though.

I walked straight inside while Lir simply stood still at the door looking rattled. I looked back at him and smiled. I then asked him in a teasing manner once again, "Still want to stay with me or do you prefer to go home?"

He looked at me with surprise in his eyes which quickly changed to some form of annoyance then conviction after a few seconds. He then walked inside the room, closed the door behind him loudly and then walked across the bedroom floor with large strides till he reached the bed. He slumped his butt haphazardly and sat on one side of the bed but I saw his hands and legs were shaking from all his nervousness.

I did not want to stress him more than he is now so with a tinge of laughter in my voice, I gave him instructions saying, "You can take your time and have your shower. Here are some clothes you could use to change to. These are new and my gift to you so you can use it well. I will go down to find some food for our dinner."

I left some clothes on the bed for him to use while I was giving the earlier instructions. They were clothes that I always have extra in my storage which were made in bulk by my favorite tailor in Hoffen City.

With that resolved, I went out the room but made sure that he was safe inside it by placing a seal on the door. Only me and him can get inside the room while everybody else won’t be able to open it no matter what they do, even with keys.

Once I was outside, I went to the best restaurant in Cobalt City which they conveniently named, "Fresh" to get our food for dinner on take away. I placed the dishes in my storage to keep them warm since I can’t go back to the inn to quickly. If I come back while he is still taking a bath, he might never come out from the bathroom due to paranoia.

To give the anxious man time to freshen up in private, I went around the night market first to hunt for interesting things that I can buy. I passed by the front of the auction house on purpose and saw that there was already tons of people going inside to join the upcoming auction. I was quite excitedly because those merfolks looked like they were the type that definitely have the money and resources to splurge on my stuff.

Hopefully, this auction will get me a lot of Ceryneian currency and merfolk-made items that I can sell on land. I don’t really want to take advantage of the market here but I had 6 husbands who are about to give birth as well as 6 orbs about to hatch into my adorable babies so it won’t hurt to have more money as early as possible.

After about an hour of going around the stalls around the night market and having a little peek at the auction hall, I finally went back to the inn to bring my companion his long overdue dinner. When I got back to our room, what welcomed me was Lir lying on his back, totally covered by the blankets with only his eyes peeking out looking at the door.

I saw the moment his eyes showed a bit of fear as he saw me enter through the door. I laughed a bit at his current look but did not point it out. I simply continued going inside the room. I avoided the bed and focused on going to the small dining table provided on one corner of the room and place all of our dinner on top of it.

As I was preparing the table, I invited him to come over and eat dinner with me. He did not reply for a while but I still heard some rustling sounds from behind me as he slowly got out of the bed to walk towards the dining area.

I sat comfortably on one of the dining chairs after I am done placing all our food on the table. When I turned to look at his direction, I saw him pulling down on the clothes that he was wearing as if he was very uncomfortable with them. I don’t think there was anything wrong with the clothes though. The color, length and even the thickness of the cloth are presentable enough even to wear outside for a stroll so why does he looked so stressed out.

He sat quietly on the dining chair across from where I am and looked eagerly at all the food on the table at first. It was only at first because I eventually saw him inhale the scent of the different dishes but then squint as if he did not like them. He then looked at me and murmured, "Your food smells better. I bet they taste better than these too."