The laughter echoed in the dead of night. Æthelflæd's first alchemy was complete. The other two friends hugged and slept peacefully. This was the end of the bad mood, the awaited return of joy.
SWORD COAST
Æthelflæd was being watched by a sulking, embarrassed Cwenburg:
— Do you have to do that there? — Æthelflæd was sniffing powder in a line right on top of Cwenburg's horn. This was part of the alchemies made in the last five days.
— Certainly. — the smile beneath the alchemist's dark circles no longer faded. And she used her own invention, made of leaves, to inject more substances extracted from flowers into her vein, which made her delirious, nibbling on the unicorn girl's calf. — Cwenburg, don't you see this world is perfect? Why question me? Come, dance with me.
And she would have danced, if she weren't among the clouds flying in the serpentarium, and being held by the other two.
Falling into Leofwynn's lap, the two averted their gazes, until the alchemist mustered courage:
— I'm sorry for what I said, I didn't want us to get killed, I, I just thought everything would be better without the Demon King.
— It's alright, I've gotten used to you. You can say whatever you want, always. A friend is someone who allows you to be yourself.
— Would you really kill me to kill the Demon King?
— Of course not, Æthelflæd. — Leofwynn was Lawful Good, lived deprived of her own power, and sacrificed herself for those she barely knew. It wouldn't be different for that strange human whose bad mood and good mood were so striking.
— You won't date me. I like manly men, like the Demon King type. — far away, in the Demon King's Castle, he himself was listening to the lolis talking, and he cut off the connection with the communication magic, turning to the maid, who now worked almost an hour every day. He seemed satisfied looking at the throne room without so much dust.
Cynethryth had long golden hair that fell in two long strands above her ears, and was tied in a ponytail that went down to the loli's knee height. She had an upturned nose, her eyes almost always close to shutting. And something the Demon King loved, she even hated him, but she hated having to work much more.
Back to the trio, a new city was found, Sword Coast.
With long streets and bridges, with houses that never saw daylight. The proud buildings up to six stories tall. Many carriages arriving and leaving the port taken by large caravels. Even on the ocean, vessels could be seen waiting their turn to dock to leave or take barrels and sacks.
Almost thirty thousand people lived there. Mostly humans, even though other lineages were seen occasionally, with top hats and tailcoats in the center, or in worn clothes in the port districts.
The number of tritons and mermaids was higher among the non-humans, because the port of Sword Coast was the first stop, south, on the continent, of the entire sea route coming from the kingdom of Great Pearl, on the island of Sunset, that one, four days' journey distant eastward into the sea.
— That friend of yours would go crazy with these mermaids. — Cwenburg remembered the old man, but even Æthelflæd didn't care about that anymore, she needed to sell the alchemies and buy resources to produce more potent recipes.
— We'll meet in a few hours, in the main square.
— Don't you need help? — Leofwynn asked, worried about the delirious Æthelflæd. Hearing from the smiling girl who kissed her on the cheek:
— For your own good, it's better not. And, I almost forgot, I have a plan. Try to find some famous restaurants and note down the names of their cooks. When I get back I'll explain better.
And they separated.
Cwenburg and Leofwynn went to the bustling avenues taken by carriages, and they weren't allowed into the best restaurants, because they dressed like adventurers, and Cwenburg was still all vomited with blood.
So they visited remote districts, tasting, and with the unicorn girl vomiting, many of the local recipes.
They ate for most of the day and wrote down the names of the three best chefs.
If the two could see Æthelflæd, they would see the black cloak in the dark alleys of the port and in the poorest parts of Sword Coast.
The alchemist sold the alchemies to all kinds of lineages and sometimes stopped a noble carriage, buying a lot of powder and injectable liquids. The herbs also sold well, however, the drinks were ignored.
In between, Æthelflæd smoked quietly in an abandoned building, along with other users of illegal alchemies. No one said anything, just enjoyed the moment and the reveries, letting out occasional laughs.
Thus, the human bought new clothes, and bags, and vials, and felt free. When she met her friends again, they were also in a good mood.
And they would have left together, if not for the gathering of beggars catching the trio's attention.
— Look, it's the loli Haerdas! — said the homeless man, smelling of shit and piss, covered in debris, next to others in worse condition.
Haerdas was a mermaid. Out of water, she left her tail transformed into common feet and differed little from a human, if not for the long greenish-blue hair, which against the twilight light seemed to shimmer:
— Ten will dine, and I will prepare, and nine will return with full bellies! — everyone celebrated. The toothless, the rotten-toothed, the naked. It was like a procession of old and thin people, dirty and smelly, and among them went the trio of lolis.
— By the way, Æthelflæd, what is your plan?
— Leofwynn, how didn't we think of this before? We just need to kidnap someone.
— Wait, I can't accept that, it's crazy. We're not kidnapping anyone! — Leofwynn asserted herself.
The alley was narrow between walls of reddish bricks, with more than thirty men and women beggars, and the house with the chimney in the back, that was Haerdas's home.
— Cwenburg, help me convince her.
— I don't think that's a good idea, Æthelflæd.
The three disagreed, and, little by little, they noticed.
Ten entered, and nine came out satisfied.
Then ten more entered, and nine came out again. Finally, this repeated with the others leaving one less, and Leofwynn questioned one of the men stinking of shit, who hummed satisfied after dinner:
— And when will the others come out of the mermaid's house? Those who stayed inside?
The rotten and kind man was filled with joy and a certain childishness:
— It's the mermaid's magic. Of those who enter, one is always sent to Candyland, where he lives happily. In return, the Queen of Candyland sends us good dinners.
Leofwynn's eyes shone, lit up.
And Cwenburg begged:
— Please, let's have dinner with the mermaid Haerdas!
In turn, Æthelflæd immediately understood what was obvious and misled her friends:
— Get Godwyna and wait for me in the square again, in the same place as before. I'm going to order takeout food, and then we'll eat together.
— And why can't we go with you?
— Because I want to ask for the mermaid's recipe, and she won't give it if more people are with me.
Leofwynn was suspicious but chose to believe her smiling friend, drinking more from the canteen.
The two left flying with the serpentarium.
And Æthelflæd peered through the window, seeing a human arm being cut with a sharp cleaver. That meat was mixed into the pie taken to the oven by the mermaid.
— Are you there, Demon King? — the human said, touching the mark on her own body, and he answered:
— I am.
— Did you understand what's happening? Or do I need to explain?
— I understood. — he used the magic "teleport" and took the mermaid who was never seen in that region again. Thus, the Demon King got his new cook.