“You girls need to stop overthinking.
Look out,” the coachman shouted from the outside.
He heard the commotion inside the carriage as their voices were high enough to be heard.
Both Mary and Athissa froze and looked at one another.
“Oop, he heard us,” Mary whispered.
She didn’t know if she wanted to laugh or be scared.
Athissa giggled and immediately opened the window.
She looked outside and saw the town far away.
Their lights flickered through the night.
“Oh my, we’re here!” Athissa exclaimed and sighed in relief.
She thought they would be doomed that night.
“Really!?
I want to lie on a soft bed!” Mary said, dreaming of a soft blanket wrapped around her body.
“It might take another thirty minutes to reach town.
You’ll be paying for the toll and accommodation if you aren’t informed again,” the coachman reminded her.
Athissa’s smile immediately vanished from her face.
“Okay,” she replied.
She went back inside and took her pouch to see how much money she had left.
She had only carried a little amount of copper and silver coins.
Athissa stared at the coins in her palm.
Then stared at Mary.
“What?” Mary asked.
Athissa slowly closed her pouch.
“Nothing.”
Mary narrowed her eyes.
“That ‘nothing’ sounded expensive.”
Athissa sighed.
“It is.”
Mary immediately sat up straighter.
“How expensive?”
“I don’t know.”
“That’s not a reassuring answer.”
Athissa looked down at her pouch again as if more coins would magically appear if she stared at it long enough.
Unfortunately, they did not.
Her money remained just as poor as before.
Mary leaned closer.
“Let me see.”
Athissa reluctantly handed her the pouch.
Mary looked inside.
Her face slowly became serious.
Then she turned the pouch upside down and shook it.
Athissa immediately grabbed it back.
“Hey!
What are you doing?”
“I’m checking if there’s a hidden compartment.”
“There’s no hidden compartment.”
Mary looked disappointed.
“Have you not asked for funds from the alpha?”
“I did, but I’m just worried that’s all we’re going to have.
We don’t know if the Ravenfort pack can even pay for our service,” Athissa explained.
“Then we might actually be poor.”
“We are not poor.”
Mary raised an eyebrow.
Athissa paused.
“We are temporarily experiencing a shortage of financial resources.”
Mary’s eyes widened.
“That is the longest way anyone has ever said they are poor.”
Athissa frowned.
“You’re overthinking this, and we still have money.”
Athissa didn’t want to disclose her additional funds since she wanted to save them for emergencies.
“Coachman!” Mary yelled.
Athissa immediately grabbed her arm.
“What are you doing!?”
Mary ignored her.
“How much is the toll and accommodation?”
There was a brief silence from outside.
Then the coachman answered.
“The toll isn’t much.
Accommodation depends on where you decide to stay.”
Mary slowly turned toward Athissa.
“Do they have a free option?”
Athissa stared at Mary.
“No,” the coachman replied.
“A cheap option?”
“Probably.”
“A barn?”
“MARY!” Athissa yelled.
She was flabbergasted that Mary even thought of a barn in the first place.
“What?” Mary asked innocently.
“I have standards too, but those standards become flexible when I am tired.”
Athissa covered her face with both hands.
She had spent their entire journey worrying that someone would attack them or go hungry.
But now, her greatest concern was whether they would be sleeping beside a horse.
“Let’s think about this when we reach town,” Athissa said as she closed her eyes for a second.
The carriage continued down the road.
The lights of the town gradually became clearer as they approached.
What had once appeared as tiny flickering dots in the distance slowly transformed into lanterns hanging outside the houses and shops.
Athissa pressed her face closer to the window, wanting to see the town.
Despite her exhaustion, curiosity filled her eyes.
The town was much smaller than the places she had visited before.
The stone houses lined the streets, and their windows glowed warmly against the night.
A few shops remained open while several people walked along the road.
For the first time in hours, Athissa felt her shoulders relax.
“There are inns!” Mary suddenly exclaimed.
Athissa immediately looked at her.
“You’re more excited about the inn than eating food.”
“Because food is temporary.”
Athissa blinked in confusion.
Mary pointed toward the town.
“But sleeping on a soft mattress is eternal happiness.”
“That absolutely makes no sense.”
“It makes sense when your back hurts.”
Athissa chuckled as she couldn’t argue with that.
Her back did hurt.
The carriage finally entered town.
The wheels no longer struck uneven forest road, and the smooth stone path felt like heaven compared to the journey they had endured.
Mary sighed dramatically.
“Oh… this feels so good.”
Athissa looked at her.
“What?”
“I think I just felt my soul returned to my body.”
The carriage eventually slowed down.
Athissa immediately straightened her posture.
The coachman pulled the horses to the side of the road.
Then a man wearing a dark uniform approached the carriage.
“Toll’s total is three silver coins.
One silver for each person.”
Athissa quickly opened her pouch and watched with a pained expression as a few of her precious coins disappeared.
Mary noticed it.
“You look like you’re attending a funeral.”
“I am.”
Mary blinked.
Surprised that Athissa agreed with her.
“Whose funeral?”
“My money.”
Mary burst out laughing.
Once the toll was paid, the carriage continued deeper into town.
Most of the shops were already closed, and only a handful of establishments remained open.
Athissa looked outside nervously.
“What if there are no rooms available?”
Mary immediately looked horrified.
“Don’t say such things.
You’ll jinx it.”
“I’m just asking.”
The coachman suddenly stopped the carriage in front of an inn.
Before them stood a modest three-story building.
A wooden sign hung above the entrance, swinging slightly in the cold night breeze.
THE SILVER MOON INN
Athissa stared at the sign and at Mary, who was already looking at her.
“Silver Moon?” Mary mumbled.
“Yes, this town might be owned by the Silver Moon pack.
They’re peaceful, but too much peace can sometimes bring trouble,” Mary explained, clutching her pouch tightly.
Isn’t it beautiful?
The characters are happy.
The atmosphere is calm.
Everything is perfect.
Which is exactly why you should be worried.