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1314 Words
Matt gasped in mock horror. “It most certainly does! It had trees and lights together. That’s the ingredients for a light garden!”
“Light gardens don’t try to eat you.”
“Only the boring ones. Ah, what if it’s a haunted light garden. Then eating you would be part of the fun.”
“No way. That definitely doesn’t count. Oh, an ice skating rink. Now that sounds different. We should get Aster and Susanne to come with us to a rink in the next few days. That could be really fun.”
Matt snorted. “I wonder if Aster still remembers that time she flooded the hotel bathroom trying to make herself an ice rink after she found out what they were.”
“I bet…she does, but she denies it wholeheartedly.”
“I am not taking that bet.”
“Oh really,” Liz assessed him, then tapped her lip with her fingers, “Even if the stakes are…”
She pulled him close and whispered in his ear.
“You know what, I think I will take that bet,” he shot back. He was pretty sure he could force the truth out of his bond one way or another.
Liz winked at him. “Hmm. Oh, I wonder if we can get Susanne to try and do her sword peg-leg while on the ice rink?”
“…What?” Matt c****d his head as he asked, feeling like Aster.
“Well remember at the end of…our last delve? When she replaced her lower leg with her sword?”
“Where are you going with this?”
“Well, I wonder if she can change the angle of the blade she sticks out of her. Think she could make herself Concept ice-skates?”
As Matt thought about it he asked, “Would that even work with her prosthetic?”
“Hmmm. Well, if it doesn’t, that just means she needs to take it off for a few minutes.”
“Liz, that will definitely get us kicked out.” He paused before he grinned and added, “We have to get her to do it right before we leave.”
Their conversation flowed from one topic to the next until they reached the city center and entered the bustling heart of the city. Matt knew he shouldn’t be, but he was always surprised at how cities could look so different but feel so similar.
The city he grew up in had the same atmosphere as this one did, hundreds of planets away, several Tiers lower, a different architectural style, and decades newer. Despite all those differences, it felt the same.
Liz leaned in and whispered, “You know, I almost feel bad for this planet. It’s not a rough Tier to be at, but with its location…”
Matt agreed.
Normally, a Tier 15 planet would be packed to the brim with people wanting to break through to immortality, and by all accounts, this one should have been the same way. It almost had been as well. This region of the Empire was fairly new, having only been settled a few thousand years ago, and this planet had been the highest Tier one found in the expansion. But right as the place was starting to be settled, another Tier 18 planet had been found and tethered to this one, rendering it a forgotten backwater to the much more desirable neighbor.
That didn’t mean the planet wasn’t good or desirable. After all, it had dozens of times more people than his homeworld Lilly had, last he checked, but it was clearly outshone and nearly forgotten.
For all those faults, it was an idyllic planet for mortals who weren’t in a rush to advance, which resulted in all three transport cities being as built up as any other city. Higher Tiers had a relative abundance of wealth and no need to spend it on anything but what they truly wanted, which inevitably brought in the mortals looking for opportunities and advantages.
After walking through the city, they stopped at a jewelry store to look around, where Liz ended up getting a new pair of earrings that she felt fit better with her dress.
As she did so, Matt looked over the ‘exchange’ gifts. Rings, bracelets, earrings, daggers, and more lined the shelves in every color, metal, and shape imaginable.
There were as many customs in the Empire as there were planets, but most modern weddings involved the exchange of something between spouses, or multiple things. Daggers had been coming back into favor over the past few centuries, but many couples who did so also included some form of shared mark to signify their bond that was less likely to be lost than weapons. Besides, mundane weapons would be out-Tiered eventually, and an insignia would be worn more often than a dagger. A matching lock of hair, tattoos, birthmarks, rings, necklaces, even eye colors had all been used as a way to signify one’s marital status.
Matt was inspecting the design of a silver, gold, and platinum weave ring when Liz came up to him and butt bumped him.
“See anything you like?”
Her smirk told him she knew what he was looking at, but he wasn’t embarrassed. It wasn’t like they’d avoided the topic of marriage, and this was all part of the process.
“I did, in fact, see something I liked.” He pulled her in for a kiss. “You.”
She returned the kiss, then pulled away. “Okay, but seriously.”
“Well, those earrings look good on you. They do match your dress.”
Liz tucked a lock of her hair behind an ear and struck a pose for a moment before laughing and heading for the door.
“We’ve talked a lot about getting married, but we never really discussed getting a wearable for it.”
Liz looked at her hand, its slightly flushed hue the only sign it had been regrown just a few days prior and sighed. “Speaking of which, we need to get my ring regrown sooner rather than later, which means a trip to the next world over.”
Matt hooked her arm and only nodded. They had already tried to see if they could find the item their paired rings needed to regrow from the chipped bits of his own, to no avail. He’d already repaired his mana-aspecting ring and upgraded it to Tier 12, thanks to a higher Tier Liquid Obsidian Drop a local auction house had in stock, which had helped put a part of his mind to rest.
Liz continued, “I’ve been thinking about that anyway. I think our rings are perfect for our daily wear and act as a good set of engagement rings. I already know the dagger I’m getting you.” Her smile was evil and made Matt start to wonder. He personally had no idea on what to give her for a dagger. Its shape wasn’t a problem, but the material most certainly was.
He didn’t even know what Liz would be getting for himself, let alone have an idea for her.
“I don’t have a clue. Everything seems too cliché or impractical.”
“Oh, you don’t?” Liz mock gasped and leaned back as if she was swooning. “I’m heartbroken and devastated. How ever shall I recover?”
Matt smirked and offered, “A box seat to see The Bird?”
Liz popped back upright and laughed. “All better! Oh, did you get the charcuterie board package? I know we mentioned it, but I don’t remember if you got it or not.”
“Of course I got it. I wanted to try it as well. They said they even have a few imported wines from East Flower itself.”
- Writer
