"Navy blue it is, then," Lucian decided. As he changed, he continued the earlier conversation with the voice but asked what was bugging him. "Why are you telling me all this?"
The voice didn't reply at first, so he continued what he was doing. After a while, he heard the voice say, "I want to patch up how we started earlier."
He didn't reply. Instead, he already knew what he would do. Since the voice was inside him, he just had to think of how to do things, and the voice would see through it. But during the time the voice was asleep and the time in the forest, he had made a double consciousness of himself—like a split mind. It was mostly people who were mentally ill and wanted to escape reality who did it the most, turning themselves into a girl or boy mindset. Well, he created something like that—a split mind where his thoughts couldn't be pinpointed.
More like one part of his mind would be awake while the other part was asleep, so when he wanted to think about personal thoughts, he just shut his brain down and opted for that new mindset. It happened in 1-5 seconds of time. So while he heard the voice reply, he did that before saying to himself, "Well, if you want to use me, I will just use you too. It's a win-win."
He didn't reply to the voice aloud, instead asking, "Do you know if there are other people with the same power level as the one up there?"
The voice replied, "Yes, but I—"
Suddenly, he felt a piercing gaze on him from below. It was probably Aurora, so he asked, "What is it?"
She replied, "Daddy, you've been staring up at the top of the ceiling and also muttering something to yourself."
He just stared at her. Even if he didn't show it, he was starting to get annoyed with the way she kept asking questions, but he just kept quiet. After a while, he told her, "I want to change."
She replied with a giggle before saying, "Hehehe, okay."
He stood up. Seeing that she didn't move from where she stood, he shrugged his shoulders before taking off his clothes. Since he had already confirmed from the voice that she was older than she looked and probably using a shapeshifting spell, he didn't bother to send her out. If she didn't move, then he just changed his clothes. Even if it was a bit hard for him, he still changed and put everything on properly without much help. Since the clothes were in front of him, he could feel rapid breathing and a fully focused gaze on him.
Then she giggled before saying, "Daddy shouldn't play with fire like that. Who knows how hot it will burn? Hehehe."
Aurora, who had been staring at Lucian, was glad he couldn't see her. She looked like she wanted to eat him up. Even if his age was 12, he looked more like a child of 15, and his body build was very well shaped, probably due to how he looked or the way he smelled. She knew that if she stayed long with him, she might not be able to control herself. She wanted to find out more about what he was before pushing forward. She was already attracted to him—who knows, he might end up being one of her concubines. And watching him change was like a low blow to her, like asking her what she was waiting for.
After calming herself, she changed into the clothes they had brought for her in less than a minute.
He didn't reply to her comment. Instead, he asked, "Are you dressed yet?"
"Yes," she replied.
"Let's go," he said.
Once dressed, they made their way back downstairs. The others were already waiting, all in new attire. Aria looked particularly striking in a deep crimson dress that complemented her fierce demeanor, while Julia had chosen something more modest in pale blue. The twins wore matching outfits in forest green, and Jake sported a simple but well-made tunic and breeches.
"We should split up now," Lucian instructed. "Remember your tasks, and we'll meet back here before sunset. Be observant, but don't draw attention to yourselves."
Before leaving, Julia gave Lucian one last look, then looked at the twins who were beside him. She bit her lips, looking around like she was searching for something, but then didn't say anything and turned around and left with Aria.
Lucian noticed the gaze and frowned but didn't say anything. He turned to the twins beside him before asking, "Where is Damian? I didn't hear him among them."
Lirien replied, "He said he wanted to check something at the entrance. He said you would understand once we told you."
Lucian understood right away—Damian was probably wanting to check if those from earlier, or whoever sent the warning sign to him, was watching the inn.
Lucian sat in the inn's common room with Aurora and the twins, waiting for Sarah. The sounds of the festival were already beginning to filter in from outside—music, laughter, the calls of merchants setting up stalls.
"It sounds exciting," Aurora commented, swinging her legs as she sat on his lap.
"Indeed," Lirielle agreed. "And full of opportunities."
When Sarah finally arrived, she had clearly taken pains with her appearance. Her hair was elaborately braided with silver ornaments, and she wore what Aurora whispered was a magnificent blue-silver sash across her centaur body.
"You look beautiful, big sister Sarah!" Aurora exclaimed with perfect childish enthusiasm.
Sarah seemed taken aback by the compliment, twirling her braid to the side. Then she stared at Lucian, always forgetting he was blind and couldn't see. "Thank you, little one," she replied. Then, to Lucian, she added, "The festival has begun. Shall we go?"
Lucian stood, offering his hand to Aurora, who took it without much hesitation. "Indeed. Lead the way, Lady Sarah. Show us what wonders your city has to offer."
Sarah, looking at the two of them, started to doubt their story. From the way they acted, they looked like a real father and daughter. Not thinking much of it, she led the way out.
As they stepped outside into the sun-drenched streets, the sounds and smells of the festival enveloped them. For a brief moment, Lucian allowed himself to enjoy the sensations—the warmth on his skin, the cacophony of music and voices, the tantalizing aromas of festival food.
After a while, he heard Sarah ask him, "There's a lot of places to visit here. Where do you want to go?"
Lucian looked at her. He really didn't have much experience on how to appreciate a girl. He had already watched enough romance movies and anime, even read books, knowing the start and end of things. His last girlfriend from Earth was basically never in love with him—he knew that from their interactions, but he played along. The reason why it hurt then was because of what the bastard said, but now that he was gone, Lucian didn't need to think much about it. He just had to play most of the lines he knew on how to make a girl feel extremely special so she would open up.
Since he was going to be manipulating her, he had to make it a bit genuine. All in all, he didn't see her as anything more than a tool for his plans. Since those twins were essential tools for him, he had to keep them alive, and Sarah would be the key in doing that.
So he replied, "Take me wherever you like. As long as you are there, I'm okay with that."
Sarah had a blush on her face. She didn't know why she was feeling this way, but she still replied, "Okay. I know the perfect place. It's more like my favorite place to spend time, mostly during festivals like this."
Lucian nodded, and they moved along. He turned to her. He could feel her gaze on him, probably wanting to clear things up or come up with an excuse to justify what happened yesterday in his room. He wanted her to hold the guilt. He wanted to make her feel like he was a victim, like she had forced herself on someone innocent like him.
So before she could speak, he said, "You know, I can't really see you, but if my daughter can comment on your dressing, that means you really do look beautiful. My daughter doesn't compliment just anyone, you know. Besides, you smell kind of nice, and I like it."
By now, Sarah was blushing in embarrassment, not bothering to look his way or at the twins who were simply staring at them, wondering what happened last night. They did hear the moans but couldn't tell it was Sarah because they were too faint.