After Lie finished her shower, Rion closed the window and went to take his. By the time he stepped out, Lie was already tucked into bed. He did the same, settling in under the covers. For a while, the room was quiet, the only sound being the faint bustle of the city outside. Eventually, Rion broke the silence.
"I forgot to ask—what's Valentine's Day?" he said, turning toward Lie's bed to his left.
Lie turned to face him. "You don't know about Valentine's Day, huh?"
Rion shook his head slightly, "I know some holidays but this isn't one of them."
"Well, about 500 years ago, there was a mage named Edward Valentine. He created the first-ever love potion. At the time, it was a big hit—helping people win over their crushes and whatnot—so they made a holiday in his honor. Of course, once people realized how awful love potions actually were, they got banned, and the recipe has been all but forgotten. The holiday stuck around though."
"Huh. Interesting. You know everything, huh, Lie?"
Lie let out a soft laugh. "Not everything. I just know what I know."
"Huh, is that so? Well, thanks for answering my question. Night, Lie."
Lie pulled her blanket up higher and adjusted her head on the pillow. "Night."
With that, they quickly drifted off to sleep…
—
W-WHERE DO I GO!?
That thought ran through Rion's head over and over as he darted through countless alleyways and side streets, only to come out even more confused each time. Just as he was about to give up hope, something caught his eye—a street vendor selling churros.
Despite still being full from breakfast, there was no way he was passing up a churro. "I'll take one!" he said, approaching the stand. After paying, he grabbed the warm snack and leaned back up against a nearby wall, sighing in frustration.
"Ahhh, how'd it end up like this?" he groaned to himself, as he thought back on his morning up to that point.
A few hours earlier…
Lie and Rion woke up around the same time and changed out of the pajamas provided by the inn. Once they were fully dressed, they grabbed breakfast before stepping outside into the bustling city streets.
"So, where to?" Rion asked.
Lie tapped her chin in thought. "You wanna split up for today?"
"Split up?" Rion repeated.
"Yeah. I'll go look for my book while you head to the guild and accept your quest. We'll meet back here at noon and work from there."
Rion considered it for a moment before nodding. "Sounds good!"
—
Back to present...
"Why'd I say ''sounds good'!?" Rion shouted out.
By now, he had finished his entire churro, leaving only the crumpled paper wrapper in his hand. He stuffed it into his pocket with a sigh. That's when he noticed something tall peeking out from over the city's buildings—the lighthouse. Seeing this a wide grin spread across his face.
"When you're lost, always aim for the high ground…" With renewed determination, he set off toward the lighthouse.
Just as he left, a middle-aged man in a uniform approached the churro stand.
"Oh, if it isn't you, Sam!" the vendor greeted cheerfully. "On your lunch break?"
Sam let out a chuckle. "Haha, pretty much. Your churros are just too good to pass up. And it's convenient since you're literally just around the corner from the guild…"
(And thus, Rion's adventure continues...)