It was a relief that Raine had the tendency to be a little scatterbrained, because they found extra money carpeting the bottom of their bag.

‘Extra’ money in the sense that it hadn’t been stolen by a certain beggar, anyway. While they were still on the ship, Raine put half of Navi’s gift money in their wallet and stashed the other half. It was less driven by paranoia — unlike Nikolay would have done — and more in anticipation that he would lose the wallet somewhere. As usual, when it came to hiding stuff, Raine quickly forgot about the other cache of money and didn’t even realise until his hand touched it.

Despite the crumpled and dismal state of the paper notes, Nikolay made a grunt of approval when Raine pulled out a handful of loose bills.

Good to know that we won’t be dying of starvation within the first week of being here. The gods wouldn’t be happy about that.

A shame, really. I thought you hated being in this vessel with me? We’d be separated in death.

No, we’d probably be suffering together in eternal damnation for fucking up that horribly. At least that would teach the gods to stop worshipping the idea of fate, Nikolay made an intrigued sound. Huh, maybe dying wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all.

Please don’t get any ideas, Raine sighed. Just being alive is difficult, let alone trying to avoid your suicide attempts.

It was hard to discern Nikolay’s joking tone due to his flat voice, which made Raine worry about his last remark. What concerned him even more was the fact that Nikolay only hummed in response.

Nikolay?

Yes? was the innocent response.

...Nevermind.

Raine rubbed Nikorai’s temples in a futile attempt to stave off the growing worry that was sparked by Nikolay’s words.

They headed back into the shop with their newfound money, albeit a little dishevelled, and counted out the correct amount of money to pay for their items. The owner dubiously scrutinised the wad of notes through squinted eyes. It was hardly uncalled for, given that the bills looked as if they had gone through a washing machine. Raine considered whether lying about having a dog would make their condition believable. However, the owner had already shoved the money under the counter before Raine could muster the courage to speak. It didn’t go unnoticed that the owner hadn’t put it in the cash register, and kept it separate from the other crisp notes.

Raine waited for the owner to say something to affirm the transaction, but the gruff man simply turned around to work on another project. Not wanting to annoy the owner, Raine hastily stuffed their new possessions into the bag that they had bought earlier and left as soon as possible.

Nikorai stepped out of the store and back onto the wide street. On their left was the market and the docks, while on their right was a line of towering buildings. Colourful banners and signs indicated that these buildings were various shops, each with their own unique style of decoration.

For example, a flower seller had placed pots of large sunflowers in front of their door and drawn smiley faces on them. Creepy in hindsight, but the idea was endearing. The vibrant personality in each shop was a jarring offset from the rest of the bleak town and provided a pleasant reprieve from the grimness of it all.

Overwhelmed by the multitude of different shops on display, Raine asked, Where should we go next?

Towards the nearest bridge. No reason, just curious.

I’m beginning to think that you weren’t kidding about dying earlier.

Only joking, Nikolay said in a serious tone. We should go find a place to sleep for the night.

Raine was highly doubtful about Nikolay’s capacity to joke around, but he brushed it aside in favour of progressing.

This looks like a shopping district, so walking down this road is probably our best bet.

Good job stating the obvious.

Ignoring Nikolay’s jab, Raine stalked his way down the street with the determination to complete a task without Nikolay’s help.

The rest of their stroll down the street quickly revealed that they wouldn’t find a car rental anywhere nearby. Almost all the shops that they passed were either retail shops or supermarkets.

Once they reached the end of the main road, it split into a roundabout with several branching paths. Raine brought Nikorai to a stop and peered at the different roads. They all looked similar enough, with the same gloomy architecture that the rest of Marque harboured. There was the odd pocket of greenery here and there, but nothing in particular stood out to him. At least, not enough to make a quick decision on which street was best.

What do you reckon?

You should be the one leading, not me.

Raine rolled his eyes at the lack of help he was receiving. Anyone would have thought that Nikolay was deathly allergic to being straightforward in his help.

We’ll start with the left-most street, then.

It really doesn’t matter where we go. I’d rather you to be the one to choose, instead of you blaming me for picking the wrong path later on.

Nikolay was sorely mistaken for thinking that Raine would blame him for blindly guessing a street when they had no other information. Though, on second thought, Raine wouldn’t pass up on the chance to tease Nikolay. The tight-strung man was so painfully serious that it would be a marvel if he showed any emotions other than resigned disappointment. What jokes would make him laugh? Better yet- what comments would make him swoon?

Just the thought of Nikolay blushing like an innocent maiden was enough for a smile to wrestle itself onto Nikorai’s face. Raine had to fight the urge to break out into laughter, lest the judgemental citizens of Marque call the mental asylum on him.

What are you smiling about?

...Nothing.

Their best bet was asking a local for a nearby hotel, but all the patrons at the city centre hadn’t been very approachable. Raine’s reasoning was that they would find a friendly enough patron to ask for directions somewhere in this city.

Sure enough, he quickly spotted a lone old woman making her way down the street in the opposite direction to them.

If she noticed the sound of approaching footsteps, she must have assumed that it was something else, because the elderly woman didn’t seem too alarmed.

A particular crack in the tarmac proved to be the poor woman’s downfall, however, as the end of her mobility cane got caught in the cavity. She stumbled at the sudden shock, unintentionally allowing her grocery bags to slip from her grasp. Vegetables, grains and meat tumbled out of her grocery bags, causing a haphazard tsunami of rolling food to spill out.

Raine belatedly realised the situation after it had already transpired, and only succeeded in awkwardly pausing half-way through his stride.

Did we do that?

How on earth would we have caused that?

Still, it looks mighty suspicious that we veered towards her direction and she coincidentally trips.

You know what? I agree. It was probably the shock of having a bumbling fool approach her.

Shut up.

Raine rushed over and helped the woman recover her groceries to the best of his ability, though some fruit was bruised beyond saving.

A pair of black sunglasses hid her eyes, but the lenses weren’t dark enough to hide the scarred eye sockets at such a close distance.

“Thank you very much, young man,” the old woman wheezed. “I’m afraid this happens quite frequently.”

What a good samaritan, Nikolay scoffed. This is the second time that somebody has thanked you today. Might I remind you what happened the first time?

Raine clenched his jaw to hide his disapproval of Nikolay’s sentiments. I’ll keep a tighter hold on my money this time. One person’s actions shouldn’t dictate how I treat everyone else.

With a forced smile, Raine turned to the woman and said, “No problem. Do you know where the nearest hotel is?”

“Of course, dear,” she crowed. “Just go down this street and take the next right.”

Once Raine confirmed that she was alright enough to continue walking, they continued down the street according to the woman’s helpful directions.

(Part 2 of this chapter is uploaded simulataneously)