When Raiden and Iri began to head toward the town, they had a lot of eyes on them. The warriors from the village shouldn’t have any reason to go there, but soon they heard the sound of the coins, so they could understand that they were going to buy something important.

"Try to look as calm and unconcerned as possible," Iri said. "Dad taught me a few tricks to realize when people are tailing me, so you can leave that to me."

"You should listen to your own advice, big sis," Raiden said. "You can’t just gawk every time you see a good-looking elf."

"It is a bit too soon for you to become a rebellious teenager, but you are getting quite cheeky as of late," Iri said while pulling Raiden’s left cheek.

When they reached the town, they got the eyes of the guards for a while, but soon, they looked away when Raiden looked at them. Those guys sure were bad at looking unsuspected.

As Raiden watched the town, he recalled that his imagination painted a picture of what he expected to see based on stories and legends about elves and dwarves. For the elves, he anticipated treehouses nestled among the branches, seamlessly integrated with nature. At the same time, he imagined the dwarves living underground, with stout stone structures carved into the earth.

However, reality presented a different scene. The town’s buildings were practical and ordinary, constructed from brick and wood. The wooden buildings, adorned with intricate designs and natural motifs, appealed more to the elves’ aesthetic sensibilities. In contrast, the sturdy brick buildings, with their robust architecture and functional layouts, resonated with the dwarves’ preferences for durability and security.

This discovery showed the cultural nuances that persisted among different races, even in a shared environment. It showed Raiden how deeply ingrained these preferences were, shaping not just architectural choices but also reflecting broader cultural identities and values.

Raiden was able to see the tension in the eyes of the people living there... they looked at him and Iri with suspicion. While they were pretty far away from the coast, some of them looked like they hadn’t slept well in a while.

"I guess this will be a lot harder than expected," Iri said while looking around.

"Saying it out loud certainly won’t help," Raiden said and then Iri pulled his cheek again.

People got silent when they saw those two, they really stood out, after all since the elves and dwarves society was truly homogenous. In any case, Raiden ignored that when he saw some shops along the way... he saw some creations of the dwarves, and they looked pretty sick.

As Raiden observed the weaponry favored by the dwarves, he noticed maces and hammers that gleamed with a golden-like hue. These weapons weren’t made of traditional gold but rather crafted from an unknown mineral that mimicked its lustrous appearance. The material’s precise composition remained a mystery, adding an aura of fascination and mystique to the weapons.

The maces were hefty and adorned with simple engravings, their surfaces reflecting light with a warm, metallic glow that hinted at their durability and craftsmanship. Similarly, the hammers boasted stout handles and formidable heads, and their edges sharpened for both combat and practical smithing tasks.

In Raiden’s eyes, these weapons represented more than mere tools of war. They symbolized the dwarves’ metallurgy expertise and reverence for sturdy, reliable craftsmanship. Each weapon bore not just physical weight but also cultural significance, embodying the dwarves’ resilience and determination in the face of challenges.

Raiden wondered if he could touch them without risking making them disappear... they weren’t money per se, but he still was a bit cautious. When Iri grabbed one and swung it, he could feel their weight thanks to the movement of the wind alone. It seemed that the dwarves were naturally strong in spite of their size.

Raiden looked around for the weapons that the elves used, and he found bows and crossbows. They were all made of wood, though. Not simple wood, some of them also emitted a colorful hue, as if they had magic properties. They probably didn’t come from ordinary trees...

The owners of the elves shop had a really hard time holding back their eyes from showing their displeasure with the idea of Iri and Raiden touching them. Still, since they came to fight for them, they couldn’t be that unreasonable.

"Big sis, is their mix of disgust and suspicion on their faces suiting your tastes as well?" Raiden asked. "Imagine Cailu showing the same kind of expression as these guys."

"When are you going to forget about that?" Iri asked and then sighed. "Here it is, the first shop that sells some herbs. You are up, Raiden."

That was a bit troublesome since Raiden didn’t know the herbs cultivated in that area. The terrain was a bit different, so it was the soil, it seemed pretty fertile, though. In any case, Raiden chose two of each while Iri was paying attention to their surroundings.

Raiden tried to buy as much time as possible since money wasn’t a problem for them, but he could only look so thoughtful and guess how much they should buy. Eventually, Iri stepped up and then paid for the stuff.

"It is no good. We won’t find anything out of the norm in an open place like this," Iri said when they left the shop. "We probably need to look lost and go to more deserted areas."

"Anyone sane enough won’t try anything to us since it will be a huge deal for some of the visitors to suddenly disappear," Raiden said.

"Yeah, but it will be easy to guess if we are being followed," Iri explained.

As Iri and Raiden considered things in their investigation, they realized the inherent issues of their task. Their ability to gather information covertly was hindered by the natural response of people to alter their behavior when under suspicion. Suspicious individuals, upon sensing attention or suspicion directed towards them, would often become more guarded or adjust their actions to avoid detection.

This adaptation posed a significant obstacle to Iri and Raiden’s efforts. It meant that any attempts to observe or interact discreetly with potential suspects could potentially backfire, either by alerting them to scrutiny or by prompting them to conceal incriminating behavior more effectively.

Faced with these limitations, Iri and Raiden thought over the wisdom of continuing their investigations. They questioned whether the risks involved in pushing further outweighed the potential benefits. They recognized that their current approach relied heavily on subtle cues and indirect observations, which might not yield definitive results without risking exposure or suspicion.

In any case, it seemed that things wouldn’t be as complicated as they thought... when they reached another shop with some potions. A random elf that looked way too rough around the edges bumped into Raiden and then glared at him.

"Hey! Look where you are walking to!" The elf said.

Iri looked at man with murderous intent when he turned around, but Raiden stopped her with his hands and then she felt a piece of paper on it.