Chapter 428 428 Kira In The Market
Wolfe made his way through the market square, adding spells to each of the vendors that he passed by while Kira explained what she had in mind.
He had upgraded a whole stall full of backpacks already, and that seemed to take the sense of urgency out of the Witch's escort. The rest of the night was likely just going to be routine spellcraft, Wolfe hoped.
"Mostly, we need a very fancy set of robes or dresses with a layer of inscriptions drawn into the layers of cloth. That way, we will be able to use all the essential magic that we need without it being incredibly obvious that we are carrying a heavy bag of amulets with us. n//O/)V(.E((l(-b-.I-.n
Sorting through the amulets in a bag takes time, but if they're on the cloth, we can memorize where they are, so we can activate them easily from memory.
But other than that, a few more spells around the village would be great.
We were thinking of getting some marker poles made as well so that we could create tents in an instant for days when we get an influx of visitors. It would go over well as a premium service, so they didn't have to set up their own camps.
There is a lot of room inside the village for that right now, but eventually, we will have to add more layers to the housing complexes. The Fae Forest has been letting more and more people in over the last week.
They're just showing up at the border, saying that they were compelled to come here, and they don't get lost, even if they're just following behind you all the way back, according to the scouts.
That's the scouts' sorting method for who belongs here and who is lying. If the Forest didn't bring them, then the first time they lose sight of their guide, they will be completely lost. But if it brought them, they will have no problem following them." The Rank Three Kitsune Demon explained, with her ears flickering in excitement at the news.
"And where are all these new people ending up?" Wolfe asked.
"The individual ones seem drawn here to us, but there have been whole groups pulled here, and they set up villages in the woods. Strangely, they all seem to have either a Witch or a Fae with them. It's mostly mutants from the Wastes, but they're all led by something else.
The Fae-led groups make sense. This is a Fae Forest, but the groups led by a witch are surprising. I didn't know that so many of them existed, and some have come from quite a distance to settle here."
That shocked Wolfe as well. Relations between the groups were normally very strained. A witch might live in the village, but since they couldn't talk to each other, the witch wouldn't normally be in a leadership position.
"Have we been keeping track of where they all settle?" Wolfe asked as he added a [Preservation] spell to a spice vendor's stall.
All the goods came from the underground farms, but separating them into various stalls made life much easier for everyone. They were growing so many different things now that it was nearly impossible to keep track of them if you mixed them into one store.
"Yes, we've got them all mapped, and they're all getting regular deliveries or coming here to pick up supplies. We left it to Cassie and the others to make the call on whether they were friendly, and they all signed the agreement, bound by a Witch Oath, instead of your skills.
My suspicion is that the Witches are being chosen because the new villages need to be dug out. They're all below ground if they're Witch-run, but the Fae prefer to make them in the upper levels of the trees. Speaking of which, there are a lot of Faeries here in town lately for some reason.
Nobody really knows where they came from, but they're settling in the branches of the trees on the north side of town. You'll see them when the sun goes down because their little village is very sparkly." The Demoness explained.
Wolfe shrugged. "If they're not causing issues, I guess that's fine. Are they trading with the locals or just hanging around in the trees?"
Kira smiled at him. "They're very enthusiastic allies. They have been making Fae Steel weapons for us to enchant. It's not actually steel since most Fae don't react well to that, but it has proven to be exceptionally lightweight and durable, so it is popular with the scouts and Hunters.
They take payment in sugary treats, which is part of the reason there are so many candy vendors here."
"And the second half of the reason is that the Bunnies love candy." The Witch escorting Wolfe added.
"That is true. We're going to have to do a dental hygiene awareness campaign if they keep up like that. But it's not a huge deal. There are worse things than a hyper child." Kira laughed.
The Witch looked like she disagreed on that point, but she decided to keep it to herself in front of the Rank Three Demoness.
They were nearly done with the shops when Wolfe realized that there was an ulterior motive for Kira staying so close to him this whole time. She had a [Detect Hidden] charm active, and she had been examining his Inheritance tattoo for more ideas on what she wanted to add to her robes.
"Oh, you've got a good thing hiding in your pants." She declared just as they were finishing.
The witch they were with flicked the back of the Demoness's ear and nearly got herself bitten for her trouble before Kira explained herself.
"Wolfe has got a knowledge crystal in his pants pocket. What is on it? It looks like it's complete and undamaged." She asked.
"Honestly, I haven't even had the chance to check it yet. I traded for it and then got busy, so it's just been in my pocket all day." Wolfe replied.
"Well, bring it out and let's find a good spot to sit and learn. That thing seems like a valuable one." She pleaded while already dragging Wolfe toward a bench along the stream that ran through town.
The witch waved goodbye to them as Kira pulled Wolfe down the path. "You two have fun. We can deal with everything else tomorrow. The vendors have what they need for the morning, so the rest can wait."
