The sun had long since risen, and the two brothers, albeit fake, had set out for the Appletons tailor. The shop sat nearly on the opposite end of the city, brushing against the borders of Ipula—the neighboring city to Harksvell.
"Why... do you... have... so much damn stamina!" Tello said, struggling to keep up with Stephen who ran with perfect form.
Stephen chuckled softly. "I did 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10 kilometer run every day. If you do that to, you can also be like me."
"No you didn't!" Tello screamed, arms flailing at his sides.
That was true.
In the main game, there weren't any ways to actually speed up any process. No fast travel, no skips, and the game didn't have a horse either, so you had to run a lot to get to any destination, even if it was in another country.
That was why Stephen had farmed stamina so early. In hindsight, maybe he'd overdone it. Seeing as he didn't even feel winded after running fifteen miles.
"In any case, we should be there soon," Stephen said, slowing his pace as a shop came into view down the road. "What was the name on the card again?"
"Stargaze Tailors," Tello answered.
Stephen nodded. "That's it."
Then he bolted, sprinting ahead toward the storefront.
Tello watched him disappear through the door. "...Does the workout actually work?" he muttered, forcing his feet forward.
Stargaze; could be defined as the act of staring into a starry sky on a clear night. Where the cosmos gleamed like a magnificent tapestry, where the only logical explanation you could bring yourself was to believe in a higher power.
But in this shop.
The stars were gone, replaced by suits. Racks of them, gleaming, arranged in perfect rows that stretched impossibly far into the distance. The shop felt perfect, like some divine showroom carved out of space itself.
Stephen stood frozen in the doorway, staring.
It might've been the most beautiful thing he'd seen in this world.
Or maybe the second.
His hand instinctively touched his pocket to remind himself of the first.
"This is... beautiful," Tello said as he entered, slightly out of breath.
"That it is," Stephen replied, still caught in the trance of the room.
But time wasn't something they had in abundance. He blinked, shook it off, and stepped forward in search of a shopkeeper.
Near the entrance, where no suits were displayed, the floor shifted to a dark, velvet carpet speckled with stars. The name 'Stargaze' was embroidered into it with shimmering thread.
"Is anyone here?" Tello called out, following alongside him.
"Yes," a voice murmured from somewhere near the receptionist's desk that stretched along the left wall. "What do you want?"
There was no one behind it. Just an empty counter, and the infinite showroom beyond.
"Umm... we want to buy a suit?" Tello offered hesitantly. Then added under his breath, "Is this place owned by a ghost?"
"Ghosts don't exist," Stephen said, already approaching the counter.
"That's not true," Tello said. "There was this one time when I was a kid, and my mom said a ghost stole the money my uncle's had sent over for my birthday—ghosts don't exist."
Stephen chuckled, leaned over the counter, and frowned. There was still no one there.
"Excuse me, ma'am," he said. "We'd like to buy a suit. If you could come out, that'd be appreciated."
"I'm right here!" The voice came again.
Stephen glanced around, still not seeing the woman the voice belonged to.
Then, as if nudged by a passing breeze, he turned slightly and perched on his shoulder was an albino snake. Its scales were pale and smooth like silk, and in its pitch black eyes sparkled constellations, like a slice of the night sky was embedded within.
"What do you want?" the snake asked, tongue flicking in and out.
"Did that snake just talk?" Tello asked, then turned to Stephen. "Why aren't you freaking out?"
Given the fact that he was currently in a world where he had to make fifteen women fall in love with him or die... this didn't seem that weird to him.
Stephen calmly brought the snake into his arm. It coiled around him softly, lifting its head to meet his gaze.
"You're a pretty boy," the snake cooed. Then, turning to Tello: "You're a pretty boy too! Who sent you my way? I have to thank them!"
"How... are you even speaking?" Tello asked, leaning in warily.
"Didn't your parents ever tell you not to ask a snake how she talks?"
"They did not."
"Well, they should've," the snake flicked its head backwards, pouting. Though that was a hard emotion to convey.
"We were sent by Cillian Appleton," Stephen said. "We're here to procure two suits, as we'll be attending the Cascade Isle banquet hall later today."
"C-Cillian? He was here earlier to pick up a suit of his own," the snake said, then slithered across Stephen's arm and back to his shoulder. Her head turned behind them.
"Jorma!" she screamed.
A sudden crash erupted from a room behind the receptionist desk. Boxes clattered, glass shattered, something thudded heavily against wood. Then, out burst a man, disheveled but sharply dressed, his eyes flicking between Stephen and Tello in a panic.
"I—I'm so sorry! I was arranging things in the back and—" Then his gaze landed on the snake. "Madame Starr! You know you're not supposed to show yourself to new customers!"
He rushed over, gently lifting the snake from Stephen's shoulder and placing her onto his own.
"I sincerely apologize," he said, trying to catch his breath. "I'll take her away and return shortly."
"You don't need to do that," Stephen replied. "It's almost noon. The sooner we're fitted, the better it is for everyone."
Jorma, the shop clerk, was dressed in a refined brown suit, albeit now slightly dusted from whatever collapsed in the back. He turned to Stephen, uncertain.
"Are you sure? My lady can be... quite eccentric sometimes."
"You've got balls to say that in front of me, Jorma!" Starr shrieked.
"Shut up, woman!" Jorma barked back.
"Alright, baby," Starr said sweetly, slithering into his hands. Her pale cheeks seemed to blush a light pink.
Sometimes? Tello thought, side eyeing Stephen, who didn't return the glance. They had a mission. Enduring the weirdness had to be done.
The four of them walked deeper into the vast expanse of suits, with Jorma weaving between racks and handpicking the ones he thought might fit.
It was here the illusion broke. At the end of the room, they found not more suits, but a two-way mirror reflecting light inward, which was what created the infinite hallway effect.
"Still," Starr said from a plush seat in the corner, head swaying softly in the air, "aren't you boys a bit young to be going to a banquet?"
Stephen and Tello began removing their clothes for the fitting.
"Should she really be watching this happen?" Tello whispered, glancing at the snake.
Jorma sighed softly. "I've studied the craft for years, but Madame Starr is the original creator of Stargaze. She's the only one who can perfect the final fit. Her presence is... required. Unless you'd rather your garment sizes be slightly off."
"Stop talking, Jorma," Starr interrupted, her eyes fixed on Stephen, who had already undressed. "My show is on."
"This is why no one married you when you were still human," Jorma muttered. "Your perverted nature ruined what could've been a fine woman."
"That's not true!" she cried, a line of drool slipping from her mouth as she turned to Tello, now hesitantly undressing. "The white one is my type."
"I have a wife," Tello said flatly.
"He doesn't," Stephen interjected calmly.
"Ack—!" Tello glanced at him in disbelief and Stephen chuckled under his breath. Even though he was still playing that deceitful character, with his overly polite voice and charm, moments like these broke through and perhaps that was enough.
"Still, you didn't measure us." Stephen grabbed the first of four suits Jorma had picked out for him. "Are you sure these would even fit."
"Jorma," Starr said from her perch, her eyes sparkling like galaxies, "is the sole inheritor of my power."
"Power?" Tello glanced over. "Is it appropriate if I ask what it is?"
"Yes," Starr replied solemnly, her tone low and ominous. "It's a power so great... so devastating... that if it fell into the wrong hands, the world itself would tremble."
Tello gulped. "What... is it?"
"The power... to accurately gauge a person's body proportions... by glance!" Starr then turned to him. "Six and a half inches... flaccid... oh my goodness!"
Tello's face froze as he figured out what she'd measured, then he scrambled behind Stephen. "I think I've had it with the snake woman."
"Starr..." Came Jorma's voice, as he walked toward her. "what have I told you about using your powers to perversely measure people?"
"That I should only do that to you," she said, smirking.
Jorma picked her up gently, lifting her to his face. "Correct. Now give me a kiss."
And so they did.
Jorma's tongue left his mouth, meeting the snake's as they kissed passionately.
Tello shut his eyes.
If he could use magic, he would've cast a spell right now—anything to erase this entire scene from memory.
"What a peculiar... relationship you guys have," Tello muttered as he slipped on the waistcoat.
"Try the other one, white boy," Starr said, giving him a side glance. "That suit's an inch too big."
"My name is Tello," he corrected, glancing down. It looked perfect to him... but then again, she was the shop's owner. Arguing didn't seem wise.
A few more rounds of trying on suits, swapping them out, and waiting for Jorma to return with new options finally brought them to the perfect fits, entirely accurate in size, length, and cut. It fit like a cosmic glove, tailor made by fate itself.
But it wasn't just the suits.
They were outfitted with gold Stargaze watches, alligator print shoes, and subtle but flashy accessories. Jorma even slicked Tello's hair back and fitted him with a pair of transparent-chrome box glasses.
"That's the one," Starr said, admiring the results from her corner. "Since C-Cillian sent you here, we'll be putting it on his tab."
"Thanks for helping us." Stephen gave a light bow. "We hope you'll still help us, even if we're not sent by the Appletons next time."
"No problem," Starr said, a twinkle in her voice. "Pretty boys like you are always welcome in my establishment. Anytime of the day... if you catch my drift..."
"I do not, but I will accept the offer that I am always welcome here." Stephen replied, and with that, the two turned and exited the shop.
Only after stepping outside did it hit them, that they'd have to run all the way back to Harksvell to a banquet that started in just under an hour.
"...Let's start running," Stephen said, already stretching by the door.
"I'm not running," Tello said, leaning casually against the wall, perfectly positioned under the sun. His jewelry glimmered with every breath. "Do you see what's on my body right now?... it's gold, it's chrome, it's expensive. Go find me a chariot or something."
That's what new clothes would do a man, Stephen thought, scanning the street. Truthfully, Tello had a point, they couldn't show up to a high-class banquet drenched in sweat.
Was there another way?
The door behind them creaked open. Jorma poked his head out. "Is something wrong?"
"Get me a chariot, boy," Tello said without moving, still basking in sunlight like royalty.
"Don't mind him," Stephen stepped forward. "Is there any chance we could get a ride to the banquet? Running there would kind of ruin the whole point of looking good."
Jorma shook his head. "Unfortunately, our last rider just took the Harrietsons to the same banquet, just before you arrived. He won't be back for—"
[Lucked Out]
His passive skill activated and before Stephen could even notice, the sound of hooves clopping against the ground echoed behind him. A wooden carriage pulled up at their side with a gentle creak, its door swinging slightly open.
"Wirtz?" Jorma blinked, stepping forward. "You're back already?"
The driver, a sturdy man with deep lines around his eyes, glanced over his shoulder. "Harrietsons had to stop by their restaurant. Some kind of distress call. They won't be attending the banquet anymore, so I was told to return."
"I see... in that case, would you be willing to give these two men a ride?" Jorma asked.
Wirtz glanced over, his eyes settling on Tello, still posing in the sun like some gilded statue. "How much are they paying?"
"It'll be on the Appleton's tab," Stephen said, walking forward and yanking Tello away from the door by the ear. "Cillian to be exact."
Truthfully, Stephen had no real idea how important the Appletons were. They weren't major nobles in the main storyline. But right now? He just had to bank on the name carrying enough weight to do the trick.
"Lord Cillian has been so kind to me..." Wirtz closed his eyes. A single tear trailed down his cheek. "Please. Feel free to enter."
Would you look at that.
They climbed into the carriage and began their journey to the banquet, cutting their travel time nearly in half. As the carriage rolled to a stop in front of the grand Cascade Isle Banquet Hall, both brothers peered out the window.
Dozens of carriages were arriving, opulent and polished. Well dressed guests stepped down in waves, wearing the most elegant of dresses, the most expensive of suits. Diamonds, sapphires, rubies, every stone you could think of.
Tello gulped audibly.
"Now I'm even more nervous," he said, watching a noblewoman exit with a literal veil of gold threads flowing behind her.
Guess it took seeing people better dressed than him to snap him out of it, Stephen thought.
"You'll be fine," he said, pulling away from the window and toward his side of the door. "I'll handle everything else. You just focus on crunching the numbers."
"Right... right. Crunch the numbers. I can do that. Of course I can do that." Tello nodded, psyching himself up.
"That's the spirit." Stephen stepped out from the right, landing lightly on the stone pavement that graced the entrance of Cascade Isle. Tello exited from the other side. Now shoulder to shoulder, the brothers stared at the final hurdle of their con—the banquet.
"After you, Tello Willows," Stephen said.
"Alright—"
Tello took a single confident step—
—and the entire entrance exploded in noise. Screams. Gasps. Wails. It was as if a jet engine had fired through the hall.
Stephen blinked. Women on the steps were shrieking, pointing wildly in their direction.
"Umm... what's happening?" Tello muttered, retreating to Stephen's side. "Why are they pointing at us?"
"There has to be some kind of mistake—"
And there was.
The pointing wasn't at them... it was behind them.
A new carriage had just pulled up, sleek and dark, its door opening with ceremonial grace, like the world itself was giving way to royalty.
Stephen turned, and his throat tightened.
Out stepped a man.
Jet black hair. Piercing grey eyes. Regal as a lion in a court of sheep.
The cheers, the cries, they weren't for Tello or Stephen.
They were for him.
The first prince of Eldoria.
And Stephen's older brother.
Lucien Eldoria.