The two bulls continue gliding steadily through the many canals of Water 7, their path winding and ascending via nearly vertical water routes. At one point, they even pass through the famous water gate elevator, which allows them to climb to a higher tier of the city, after they enter it, and the water level rises.
Eventually, they reach the very center of Water 7—Shipbuilding Island, the luxurious heart of the city, fad for its high-class stores, mansions, offices, and, of course, the city's docks.
Surrounded by towering stone buildings, so rising five stories tall, they enter a circular network of smaller canals where boats, carried by the bulls, move in a circle around the periter. In the middle lies a dense cluster of various imposing buildings, along with the city’s iconic docks—easily recognizable by their massive iron cranes that stretch into the sky like tal trees, even larger than the buildings.
“It looks incredible!” Alex says, marveling at the scene. “These buildings are insane. For this kind of world, without heavy machinery, this is impressive. It looks so much grander in person than I imagined. The guide wasn’t kidding—this is definitely a place for the rich. I feel right at ho.”
“Do you think material possessions elevate you above others, Alex?” Benezia asks dryly. “That’s rather disappointing to hear.”
“Yes, of course they do,” Alex replies with a grin. “The more money soone has, the more valuable they are. I’m rich in the real world, I own items worth millions of FC—which obviously makes better than these poor Peasants.”
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Princess Jewel is in love, despite already loving Soulmate as much as possible before!
Alex sighs. “I was obviously kidding.”
Imitating you, in fact....
Benezia, nchi, and Tereza all stare at Alex—or rather, they stare at his head. To be precise, at the tiny spider perched proudly on top of it, which is now looking confused.
“Anyway...” Alex mutters. “Where exactly were we supposed to go again? Between the bank and the... I forgot, whatever chamber. The small shop with dotted curtains, right? And the codeword was... Utopia?”
“It’s been less than an hour, Alex,” Benezia says, raising an eyebrow but still smiling—genuinely, and with amusent. “You got maybe half of that right. It’s between a large bank and the municipal comrce chamber. The shop doesn’t have dotted curtains—it has yellow and blue striped curtains. At least you rembered the codeword. It’s actually kind of entertaining watching you fumble through the details. I’m having way more fun than I expected.”
“...”
“I have trouble rembering garbage information,” Alex admits without sha.
“How about you, Tereza?” he calls out.
“To be honest, I forgot a few of the details too,” Tereza answers cheerfully. “Though not as many as you!”
Princess Jewel rembered every detail!
“Liar!” Alex mutters. “Anyway... how do you even spot a bank or this whatever comrce chamber? Do they have signs? I doubt it, and even if they do, we need to look around for a while. We could be wandering around for hours. We might as well ask soone before these bulls keep swimming in a loop until the sun sets.”
“You are correct indeed,” Benezia replies, still smiling.
Seeing Benezia smile makes my heart flutter... it also gives the strange feeling that sowhere in the world, a few animals just got sacrificed to an evil god. I’m not sure why... it just doesn’t suit her... but sohow it does. It’s confusing.
With growing irritation, Alex also notices Tereza and nchi whispering to each other as they secretly watch Benezia as well.
No ti for bullshit... heh.
“Mr. Bull!” Alex yells, tapping the side of the bull gently. “Please stop for a mont, okay?”
The bull, much to Alex’s surprise, actually stops, nodding at him. The bull pulling Tereza’s and nchi’s boat also halts, and both of them end up parked neatly on the right side of the canal.
Alex hops out of the canal and lands on the luxurious stone pavent.
“Excuse , madam!” he calls out to a random older woman he spots nearby, making his way toward her. “I’m looking for the chamber of... comrce...”
“Which one, sonny?” the woman replies. “We’ve got quite a few of those.”
Jewel! What was the full na again? You said you rembered?
The Municipal Comrce Chamber, Soulmate.
Nice! I owe you a cookie.
❤️
Princess Jewel prefers gems, gold, or chicken!
“The municipal comrce chamber,” Alex responds, acting as if it had just co back to him.
“Take about a 90-degree turn counterclockwise, and you’ll reach it,” the woman instructs, nodding once. “The buildings are quite impressive, and both have giant na plates, you won’t miss them.”
“Thank you, Madam! Have a nice day,” Alex responds, satisfied with the response, quickly leaping back into the boat. “Did you hear that? Ninety-degree turn counterclockwise.”
Benezia takes the reins and smoothly guides the bull into a precise ninety-degree turn onto a smaller canal, the other bull obediently following behind.
A few minutes later, they spot a cluster of particularly grand buildings. The group parks the bulls in a small designated area and climbs out.
It doesn’t take long for nchi to point to one especially imposing structure. “That’s the comrce chamber,” she announces.
She can read... nice.
“Next to it is the bank,” Alex adds. “Kinda gives off Glimrwhisk’s hellhouse vibes, only way more boring.”
“Better not go inside then,” Tereza says with a smirk. “Or you might feel the urge to surrender yourself... again.”
“Haha, shut up! It all worked out in the end, didn’t it? I have great intuition, no need to be jealous,” Alex snaps back. “Anyway, it should be between those two buildings, but I’m not seeing our destination. For starters, only large buildings are allowed in this district. You won’t find any tiny, tacky little shops here in the first place. Maybe we need to call her... but if we miss sothing obvious, we’ll look foolish. Maybe we should look around?”
“I agree,” Tereza mutters, scanning the area. “Still, I don’t get it. Did Miss I wish it were Sunday get it wrong?”
“Heh, I’m jobless, so Sunday doesn’t matter to ,” Alex says, his mood improving knowing he won’t ever have to work a boring office job again.
“Doesn’t look like it,” Benezia says, ignoring Alex’s comnts, pointing toward a narrow staircase descending underground.
Below, a few small shops are nestled between the foundations of the larger buildings. One in particular stands out, matching the earlier description—with its yellow and blue striped curtains. The whole row looks rundown, nearly abandoned, and almost entirely buried beneath the street.
“Looks shady,” Alex mutters.
This is one of the older sections of Water 7 that’s partially sunken. The buildings above were built more recently, so these shops down here will probably sink in a few years. I guess that makes them a perfect spot for a shady operation. They are cheap, hidden away, and invisible to anyone not actively searching for them. Everyone else, especially tourists, would walk right past.
“Which is exactly the kind of place we’re looking for!” nchi says, flashing a bright grin. “Let’s move it already—I’m ready to shop!”
“I guess...” Alex mutters. “Not like we have a choice.”
The group steps into the narrow storefront.
“Hello?” Alex calls out, glancing around. “There’s nothing in here. Just... a bare floor and a counter.”
“What do you want?!” a middle-aged woman clad in vivid yellow and blue snaps at them. “Get out! We’re closed... permanently!”
Alex gives a lazy shrug and eyes her briefly. Aside from her outfit, she’s sporting yellow and blue nails, lipstick that’s a weird blend of both colors, and even her black hair is streaked with bold yellow and blue highlights. The effect is almost cartoonish. But he doesn’t judge her too harshly, as people in this world are generally a bit unhinged, making her comparatively harmless. He simply walks up to the counter, stopping in front of the woman behind it.
He then pretends to duck and pulls the two heads out of his inventory, straightening up and placing them neatly on the counter in front of him.
With a smile, Alex begins to talk, “I’ve got two heads—if you don’t want to donate yours to make it three, I suggest you listen carefully... Utopia.”
“Welco, Mr. 6,” the woman replies instantly, the mood shifting imdiately.
“Thank you,” Alex says, satisfied with her response. “I like your dress. You look cool, but sohow the curtains are terrible,” Alex remarks. “You need to get new ones.”
“Oy, get to the point!” nchi complains. “Forget the damn curtains.”
“I don’t know, nchi,” Tereza chis in. “They really do look awful. The color is fine, but everything else....”
“My beloved curtains... I rather like them,” the woman says, looking torn. “Please, call Miss Leap Day. I’ve been inford about your arrival. Allow to take these heads off your hands—they’re in surprisingly good condition, which will make the process easier.”
Miss Leap Day disappears for a few minutes, taking the heads with her, before returning with exactly ten large wads of money.
10 million, huh?
“We usually pay agents ten percent of the bounty... I’ve been told that you’re injured and should receive a little extra. Big Knife Sarquiss, bounty of 38 million Belly. Bellamy the Hyena, bounty of 55 million Belly. That totals 93 million. So, your share is 9.3 million. Since I’m expected to be generous, I’ve rounded it up and prepared exactly 10 million for you.”
“That’s... not very generous at all,” Alex remarks with a frown. “Surely you can do better.”
“I wish I could,” Miss Leap Day responds. “However, I’ve received detailed instructions. I’m sorry, Mr. 6—I can’t give you more.”
“Fine!” Alex snaps, grabbing the money.
“Now... I have a business suggestion for you. I wonder if you might be interested. Before we talk about that... tell your na,” Alex says.
“I’m Miss Leap Da—” The woman tries to respond, repeating her agent na, before Alex interrupts her.
“Your na... How about I start? Call Alex. I am proposing a business... to you and not to Miss Leap Day,” Alex says.
Understanding the woman produces a calculating business smile.
“Pleasure doing business with you. I am Calli.”
“Likewise,” a voice behind Alex echoes. “I’ll be your contact...”
Alex then steps aside and sees Benezia approach her with confidence.
Ti to let her do her thing... we will get rich!
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