Four monster spirits stood in a lonely hallway, watching as a young man passed instructions to them, their gazes hard.
"Did you get what I said, Shifu? I’ll go over it again."
Stark grabbed his shirt and tugged on it, the spirits turning their gaze to his shirt.
"S-H-I-R-T. Get a shirt, understand?"
He did not like the stares they were giving him...
It was like trying to train a goat to bark.
Next, he grabbed his trousers. "Get a good pair as well, P-A-N-T-S," he said, slowing down his words to make it easier for them to understand.
Shifu’s face hardened even further, his long beard swaying in the wind.
"I like that, you look really serious. Now this is the last one okay?"
Then Stark tried describing a scarf to them by waving a hand above his head. "A cloth, S-C-A-R-F."
"Good goat, now go."
They all turned at once, about to dash away, holding their axes like a pair of butchers when Stark called them back.
"My God, dismiss your axes, don’t kill anyone okay?"
Shifu glanced at the axe, the permanent glare on his face intensifying slightly before the axe disappeared.
Stark waved them away. "Be quick."
He couldn’t move around in the clothes he died in... there was a slight chance soone would recognize those garnts.
Not to ntion that they were bloodied and torn...
As the spirits sprinted away from the alley, Stark relaxed his back against the alley wall and heaved a sigh.
"So you are turning them into petty thieves..." ca a stern voice from beside him.
"Why not? They are perfect for the job."
As long as they were not hostile to anyone, they could turn invisible to the normal human eye.
"..."
He glanced at Jade and looked at her clothes.
"Do you also need so clothes? Your military uniform is a bit... conspicuous."
Without turning to face him, Jade’s clothes shimred, the outline of her body appearing just for a fraction of a second before her military uniform disappeared.
In place of the clothes were clothing well suited for traveling, or adventuring.
It was a short sleeve blouse with a simple pattern, coupled with high-waist shorts and black tights.
There were thigh straps around her legs, adding character to the dressing and on her feet were sturdy boots.
"Being a spirit has its perks..." Stark comnted.
Her eyes narrowed slightly and Stark realized how insensitive his comnt must have been. Thankfully, she did not comnt on it.
"How long before your little goats co back?"
"Hopefully soon, they are quite capable."
Just like he said, they did not have to wait for long...
Two goats arrived first, carrying a variety of clothes along with them.
The fist spirit jogged up to him with its stubby legs and showcased its treasure for him to see.
"Let’s see what you have..."
Stark frowned.
It was a bra it had tired around its head.
Jade squatted and glanced at Stark from the side, a mischievous smile on her face. "Very capable indeed."
"Next," Stark instructed, ignoring her.
The second goat walked forward, this ti with a shirt in hand.
Stark took the shirt and observed it, before slling it to make sure it was clean.
"Just as I said, very capable."
He tapped the spirits head, its glare never leaving its face as he did.
Shortly after, Shifu and the last spirit arrived.
The first one brought a pair of underwear to Stark’s disappointnt, but thankfully Shifu ca in clutch—bringing not just a pair of trousers but a hat as well.
As he began to change, Stark placed the hat on Jade’s head.
She blinked, looking slightly confused. "What is this for?"
"It’s for your horns..."
"But—" Jade seed like she was about to say sothing but stopped halfway. "Okay..."
When he finished dressing up, he dismissed the spirits and walked out of the alley.
"It’s ti we hitch a ride."
•
The town they were in was a small town but was still rather busy because of how much traffic passed through it.
It was a rest point for people going to Sandhill, and the way point person there only went on to increase its popularity, because people leaving Sandhill often ca here to teleport away.
As Stark and Jade strolled past the streets, Jade glanced at him and asked:
"How do you plan on getting a carriage?"
"The ideal way would have been paying to join a caravan, but we are broke." Stark said.
"That is why we will find a rchant to tag along with."
As he was speaking, they arrived at an imposing building with a large compound, the rchants guild.
"If we are lucky, we will find soone who is still awake. rchants set out very early, if we don’t make a deal today we likely won’t find any of them tomorrow."
And even if they did, the rchants would likely reject them since it would be a last minute arrangent.
Their chances were already slim as it was.
He entered the compound, moving towards the back, while Jade gave the building one long glance before following him.
Luckily, when they arrived at the stables, there was an old man there, jotting down sothing on a parchnt as he observed his cart.
When he noticed them, he stopped writing, his aged eyes staring at them waringly as they got closer.
"Do I have business with you?"
Stark pulled out his most polite tone. "Good evening sir, sorry to disturb you so late. We are actually adventurers looking for work."
The man glanced at them cautiously.
"I don’t see any weapons on you. Mages?"
Stark nodded and glanced at Jade who summoned a crystal shard.
The man nodded, his guard dropping slightly.
"We don’t need much pay, our main aim is to reach Sandhill. We went a little overboard at the tavern here."
There was a period of silence as the man stared at them.
"Hahaha!" The man suddenly laughed, his eyebrows crinkling at the sides. "I get what you an, their booze is sothing else!"
He walked up to his carriage and pulled one out. "I almost went broke myself."
Stark joined him, laughing slightly as he awaited the man’s answer, but the man responded with another question.
"Who is she to you though?" He asked, rubbing his bare chin.
Without missing a beat, Stark grabbed Jade by the shoulder and pulled her to his side. "She’s my wife of course!"
Jade froze, her eyes widening slightly.
Then from behind, where the old man could not see, she grabbed a finger full of his skin and twisted it.
Stark blinked, swallowing the pain and maintaining the bright smile on his face.
The old man’s eyes narrowed, his gaze alternating between them.
"Haha. A young frivolous couple, I was like you two once. You’re hired!"
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