Chapter 47: Slid Inside Before She Could Yell!
With their shopping list finalized, the group made their way into the heart of the city.
The Crimson Market District buzzed with vibrant life.
Vocal merchants shouting their daily deals, high-tier adventurers hauling rare monster parts, mystical alchemy shops emitting colorful smoke, and crowded restaurants filled with rich aromas.
Everything was packed tightly along sprawling cobblestone streets that shone brilliantly under floating magic-illuminated signage.
The second all four of them stepped onto the main thoroughfare together, immediate attention fell upon them. Heads turned from every direction.
I just wanted to go shopping, Lucien thought to himself, watching the stares follow Aurelia’s stride and Seraphina’s quiet, striking elegance, all while Evelisse immediately made a beeline toward a fragrant roasted meat stall.
’Why does this feel less like a shopping trip and more like escorting three princesses through enemy territory?’
"Is it just me, or is literally everyone staring at us?" Evelisse asked quietly, glancing sideways as she munched on her snack.
"Well, they’ve never seen true beauties like my wives before," Lucien replied smoothly, intentionally raising his voice slightly.
A few eavesdropping passersby instantly looked away in sheer embarrassment at being caught.
"They better watch where their eyes roam," Aurelia grunted under her breath, her expression turning ice-cold. "Or they won’t be needing them much longer."
To emphasize her point, Aurelia released a tiny, deliberate leak of her raw bloodlust. A chilling wave of pressure washed over the immediate radius.
Instantly, nearly everyone around them, including a few lingering succubi who had been hungrily sizing Lucien up from across the street, whipped their heads away, cold sweat dripping down their necks as they hurried their pace to put distance between themselves and the group.
The clothing store they finally decided to visit was absolutely enormous.
Racks of fine silk, enchanted leather, and tailored garments stretched from the polished floor all the way to the ceiling.
The moment they stepped through the heavy double doors, multiple eager staff members began converging on them.
Evelisse’s eyes lit up brightly, looking as though she had just stumbled upon a thrilling new anime.
"Try this on," she commanded, shoving a stylish outfit directly into Lucien’s chest before he could even register the fabric.
"Try this one too," she added a mere thirty seconds later, piling another hanger onto his arms.
"Oh, and definitely this!"
Lucien was pushed back and forth, emerging from the fitting changing room in outfit after outfit.
Evelisse stood outside, critiquing every single combination with the terrifying intensity and razor-sharp focus of a high-ranking gamer.
"Next."
"No."
"Next."
"I’ve been wearing clothes for eighteen years," Lucien said, leaning against the changing room doorframe with an exhausted sigh.
"I promise you, I fully understand the basic concept of putting fabric on my body."
"That is entirely beside the point," Evelisse dismissed his protest with a wave of her hand.
Then, her eyes locked onto a specialized section near the back of the store, the exact area she had clearly been hunting for since they entered.
The next outfit she handed him contained considerably less fabric than the last several choices combined, a fitted, dangerously low-cut shirt that exposed most of his chest, paired with tight pants that left absolutely nothing to the imagination.
He stepped out, raising an eyebrow.
"Really Eve?"
The moment Evelisse looked up, her nose instantly erupted into a sharp bleed.
"...Eve," Lucien said, deadpan.
"I’m FINE!" She wiped her nose hastily with the back of her hand, her eyes still completely locked onto his exposed frame.
"Next one!"
The young female Oni staff member who had been assigned to assist them turned a vivid pink contrasting with her blueish skin.
Lucien noticed she was no longer even pretending to fold the nearby shirts, her eyes darting back and forth while her hands remained frozen in place.
Aurelia leaned lazily against a nearby support pillar, her arms crossed tight beneath her chest as she thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle.
"Keep going," she encouraged Evelisse, her lips twitching with amusement.
"This is purely educational for us wives."
Seraphina was hovering nearby with both hands pressed firmly over her mouth, her cheeks flushed bright red, though her eyes hadn’t strayed from Lucien’s frame for a single second.
By the time Evelisse handed him a fifth, increasingly ridiculous outfit, something involving a leather vest completely devoid of buttons, Lucien drew the line.
If he went any further down this path, it would genuinely be more modest to walk out into the street completely naked.
"Who even buys these kinds of clothes?" he asked the blush-stained staff member hovering nervously beside the rack.
"M-Mostly incubi, sir..." she stammered, pulling her eyes away with immense effort. "Though... a few other specific types of demons buy them as well..."
Lucien chuckled, turning back to face his wives with a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Alright, now that we’re finally done with my clothes, it’s your guy’s turn," he declared, grinning broadly.
Ignoring their sudden chorus of protests, Lucien gathered an absolute armful of stunning dresses and forcefully steered all three of his wives toward the private changing rooms.
Aurelia emerged first. She wore a sharp, incredibly elegant dress of deep crimson that hugged her toned frame perfectly, emphasizing her sleek curves while maintaining a deadly aura.
Lucien let out a low, appreciative whistle, Aurelia rolled her eyes at his reaction, but she didn’t say a word of complaint as he immediately tossed the dress onto the guaranteed purchase pile.
Seraphina stepped out next, wearing a soft, flowing gown that was practical for movement yet undeniably flattering to her gentle features. When Lucien walked up and directly complimented how radiant she looked, her entire face went vibrant scarlet, her fingers fidgeting nervously with the hem of the skirt.
Then, it was Evelisse’s turn.
Lucien waited outside her stall, listening to the soft rustle of heavy fabric from behind the curtain.
Driven mostly by a desire for pure revenge mostly, he casually slid inside the changing room before she could even yell out that she wasn’t ready.
"Lucien—!"
He caught her mid-protest, sliding one hand firmly around her waist to pull her flush against him.
He captured her lips in a deep, slow, and thoroughly intoxicating kiss, melting whatever vocal complaint she had been building up into silent submission.
By the time he finally pulled back, Evelisse was entirely breathless. Her cheeks were deeply flushed, her clothes were only half-fastened, and her legs wobbled so visibly she had to lean against him for support. She tried to glare up at him, but there was zero actual heat behind it.
"That was payback," Lucien whispered smoothly against her ear, "for the vest."
"You awful husband..." she managed to huff out, her chest heaving.
"You’re very welcome."
She playfully shoved him out of the stall, her face still burning pink. A minute later, she emerged wearing a brilliant dress that fit her so impeccably that even Aurelia nodded in sincere admiration.
They finalized their purchase with a staggering mountain of clothes, including plenty of fine undergarments, a detail that caused Seraphina’s face to turn bright red all over again at the register.
The counter staff, a succubus demon with sharp horns and curves, rang up their vast total with the frozen, hyper-professional smile of a person who had witnessed far too much chaotic dynamic energy in a single afternoon.
’I really should have figured out what kind of store this was from the start,’ Lucien thought, finally glancing up at the store’s sign as they exited into the street.
Midnight Allure.
With all their heavy bags safely stowed away inside their dimensional storage ring, the group decided it was time to search for the specific manuals Lucien needed.
They browsed through various high-end shops along the main street.
While Lucien and Seraphina were inside a quiet bookstore reviewing some alchemy manuals, a young human man dressed in expensive looking silk robes sauntered over from the street outside, eyeing Aurelia and Evelisse with blatant, unfiltered intent.
Following closely behind the young noble was a young woman dressed in sharp black-and-white maid attire that clung to her a bit to tight, along with a lightly armored knight acting as personal bodyguard.
"Ladies," the young noble purred, puffing out his chest and attempting to drop his voice into a deep, seductive tone.
"Perhaps you would enjoy some truly noble company? I can assure you, I have the status and wealth to satisfy every single need you could ever have."
"No. Get lost," Aurelia stated bluntly, not even bothering to look at him.
The man flinched slightly at the cold rejection, but pushed forward, undeterred. "Come now, surely a delicate beauty such as yourself—"
"She already answered you, and in what way does she look delicate to you?" Evelisse chimed in, offering him a sweet, utterly fake smile.
"You should definitely get your eyes checked, maybe your brain too." Evelisse followed up.
His face tightened with irritation flickering across his eyes right up until Aurelia snapped her gaze toward him.
She allowed her bloodlust to leak out for a mere fraction of a second, a cold, heavy, and unmistakably lethal pressure that made the surrounding air feel instantly suffocating.
The armored knight behind the noble froze, his hand instinctively flying to the hilt of his sword in pure survival reaction.
Recognizing the terrifying depth of the threat, the knight instantly stepped forward, leaning down to whisper something frantically into his master’s ear.
The young noble’s face paled instantly. As if he suddenly remembered a vital, life-or-death appointment somewhere else, he turned on his heel and beat an extremely urgent retreat down the street, his maid and guard scrambling to keep up.
"Wow," Evelisse remarked, watching the trio practically sprint around the corner. "That was one fast turnaround."
"Aurelia’s social skills are downright terrifying," Lucien said, emerging from the shop doorway with Seraphina right at his side.
"It worked," Aurelia replied smoothly, adjusting her collar, completely unbothered.
"Yeah, you should teach me that sometime, Aurelia." Evelisse said.
Their next destination was a weapon arts shop. Inside, endless rows of dark shelves were lined with martial manuals ranging from Common tier all the way to a Epic-ranked books locked securely behind reinforced, anti-theft glass.
Lucien casually picked up a sleek leather book, checked the golden price tag affixed to the back, and nearly dropped it straight onto the floor.
[Berserker Weapon Art — Rare] Price: 5,000 Gold
"...Five thousand?!" Lucien yelled, staring at the numbers in disbelief.
The shopkeeper looked up from behind the counter, looking mildly offended. "It’s Rare rank, young man."
"Does it swing the weapon for me at that price?"
"No."
"Then it’s ridiculously overpriced."
Lucien set the book back down and continued browsing through the more reasonable sections.
After twenty minutes of searching, he eventually found several solid manuals he could use with the scythe.
While none of them were world-shattering, they offered a solid foundation to build his skills upon. He settled on one priced far more reasonably.
While he was finalizing his choice, Aurelia wandered off toward the dusty, neglected bargain bins near the back corner.
She returned carrying a battered looking book. Its leather cover was half-destroyed, and its inner pages were heavily faded, almost worn past the point of easy reading.
??? Weapon Manual
Rank: ???
Condition: Severely Damaged
"What’s that?" Evelisse asked, leaning over to inspect the book.
"A weapon art," Aurelia explained simply. "It was stored in the back bargain shelves. It looks quite old, and most of the core content has eroded away over time. But... it’s still quite interesting."
Lucien took one look at it and immediately bought it without a single argument as it cost almost nothing.
"Sounds exactly like something a protagonist finds in a dusty shop that leads to a future mysterious power-up," Lucien said with a chuckle as he handed over the coins.
"Rare or damaged, why not take the gamble?"
Evelisse nodded solemnly beside him. "Classic protagonist move."
The Adventurer’s Guild was their final stop of the day. The moment they stepped through the grand doors, Luna offered her standard, polished professional smile, which instantly flickered into visible, wide-eyed surprise the second she spotted the three gorgeous women walking right behind Lucien.
"Back again," Luna said, recovering her composure quickly, though her eyes kept darting curiously toward Aurelia and Seraphina.
Aurelia noticed the receptionist’s lingering gaze and subtly stepped closer to Lucien’s side, placing a firm, possessive hand on his forearm.
’Oh,’ Lucien thought, hiding a smirk as he felt her grip tighten.
’She’s jealous... or maybe not, considering it’s Aurelia.’
He wisely chose to say absolutely nothing aloud.
"Any word on Rika’s party?" Lucien asked, leaning against the wooden counter.
Luna quickly pulled up her official records.
"They are alive, but they’re currently recovering from that emergency mission. They took one hell of a beating out there, but the medical team expects them to be back to full strength within the week."
A heavy wave of genuine relief settled into Lucien’s chest as they never responded to his messages.
Hearing that it was nothing life-threatening, he nodded in thanks and headed over to the official selling counter.
He summoned the remaining materials from the wolves he had slain previously, dumping the massive pile onto the heavy scales.
The appraiser’s eyes shone slightly at the impressive haul, rapidly tallying up the weight and calculating a final total at double the standard market rate thanks to the active emergency bonus.
"That comes out to about 420 gold," the appraiser announced, pushing a heavy pouch across the counter.
’Worth every single second of that awful smell,’ Lucien thought, pocketing the heavy bag of gold.
He walked back over to the main desk where his wives were standing, currently engaged in a conversation with Luna.
Luna looked surprisingly tense, almost frightened as they spoke to her, though Lucien couldn’t be entirely sure why.
"Oh, one more thing, Luna," Lucien added, leaning over the desk. "I need my official license updated. I’ve reached C-Rank."
Luna froze, blinking rapidly at him. "...Already?"
Lucien grinned, giving a casual shrug. "Yep. What can I say?"
Luna shook her head with a weary sigh, clearly giving up on trying to make any sense of his cultivation speed.
She pulled out a stamped document and pointed him directly toward the back hallway. "Head straight down to the same evaluation room as before."