Chapter 37: Being watched
Nox woke up. His body actually felt decent, way better than it had in days. That whole mana thing, even though it had almost killed him, seemed to have kickstarted something. He sat up and stretched, a few joints popping.
He glanced over. Serian was already sitting on the edge of the bed, her back to him. She looked... well, she looked like she hadn’t slept a wink.
"Morning," he said. "You, uh, get any sleep?"
She turned, just enough to look at him. "I am sufficiently rested, Human Nox. We should prepare to depart." Her voice was steady, but he wasn’t buying it.
’Yeah, right,’ he thought. But he wasn’t going to push it. If she wanted to pretend she was fine, whatever.
They didn’t say much else. He splashed some water on his face in the tiny bathroom. It wasn’t exactly a shower, but it was better than nothing. He still felt grimy, but his new clothes were a definite improvement over the trashed ones. Serian just stood by the window, looking out at the street.
When he was done, he nodded towards the door. "Alright, let’s bounce."
They walked out of the room and down the stairs. The old guy was still at the counter, looking just as bored as before. Nox just gave him a nod as they passed through the lobby and out onto the street. The city was already waking up. Cars were moving, people were walking around. It was almost normal.
’Normal,’ he thought. ’What a joke.’ He also remembered his wallet was completely empty now. ’Hope this princess-saving gig pays off, or I’m gonna be seriously broke.’
They walked a block or two, the plan still to head north. Nox was thinking about the route, how to avoid any obvious trouble spots, when it hit him.
’Shit. The girls.’