Page 179 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

“Fucking hell!” Mine continues to grumble as he gets to his feet and notices the stains on his clothes. “I’ve dealt with plenty of bodily fluids in my time but never without protective gear. Never mind that this is gross, but can you imagine the diseases?” He lets out a shudder. “What if I catch something? What if it’s something native to Aperion and it ends up killing me for good? We must find a way to get clean, Minnie. As soon as possible.”

“I’ll get us out,” I assure him as I reach into my pocket for the pin.

Mine might have a propensity for drama, but in this instance, I can’t say I blame him. He survived a terrible illness in his childhood, which is why he’s probably always so concerned about cleanliness and disease.

Even to my battle-hardened senses, this corpse landfill is not only unhygienic but also disrespectful and profane. Though all souls who die in Aperion head directly to the House of Psyche, I can’t shake the feeling that there’s a lot of bad energy tied to this place. The sooner we’re out of here, the better.

My brows furrow in concern when I can’t find the pin.

“Uhm… Mine?” I start nervously.

“Here.” He extends his hand toward me and gives me the pin. “You dropped it,” he adds nonchalantly.

I blink. Then I release a sigh of relief.

“That was very sharp of you,” I murmur. Just thinking of losing the pin among hundreds if not thousands of corpses was already making me spiral.

“I have my moments.” He shrugs, though I can see he warms at the compliment.

Drawing energy from the pin, I transport us up on the cliff and I remove most of the stench clinging to our clothes. The stains, however, are out of my control.

“We can head into the Capital, get some fresh clothes, and grab a shower at an inn,” I offer.

“I hope it’s not far,” he grumbles as he starts walking.

I keep up with his aggressive stride. “You were bragging about getting us free transportation just a while ago. Seems like we still need to walk.”

I expect a smart comeback from him, but he surprises me when he pulls me by the shoulders to his side.

“At least I have great company along the way.”

“You…you think I’m great company?” I ask, taken aback. That’s yet another thing no one’s ever said to me. If anything, it’s usually the opposite because I never live up to people’s expectations.

“Of course,” he replies instantly. “There’s no one else in the entire universe I’d rather walk with for miles on end.” He winks at me.

The two Aperite suns are blazing from both east and west, making the heat unbearable. Still, the flush climbing up my neck has nothing to do with the sweltering heat.

“Thank you…” I whisper shyly. “You too.”

He gives me a dazzling smile. He doesn’t let go of me as we march forward, keeping me close as he tells me all about Dracula and Bram Stoker, a classic tale in his world. I listen attentively, surprised by the way vampires are portrayed in this story. The ones I have heard of, some of which happen to make their home in Anthropa, cannot turn into bats, nor do they sleep in coffins. Although the latter I haven’t personally verified and cannot say for sure. Still, it makes for an interesting story to pass the time.

It’s almost the end of the day when we reach the outer district of the Capital.

There are very few shops still open, but we manage to secure clean clothes and a room at a nondescript inn for the night. Although I insisted on getting separate rooms, Mine managed to convince me that it would be a bad idea since I’m the only protection he has, therefore I must be with him at all times.

I agreed.

It might not be the most proper arrangement, but I think it’s a little late to worry about propriety at this point.

The room consists of a small bedroom and an even smaller wet area. Due to the fact that this is a rather poor part of the Capital, the amenities aren’t that great and we are warned that warm water would only run for fifteen minutes.

All wet areas in Aperion are operated by magical runes, for which people who lack abilities must pay a premium to use.

As soon as we walk through the door, Mine dashes toward the shower and locks himself inside.

“Don’t use up all the water,” I call out as I head to the window and pull the curtains aside to inspect the street. Although I don’t think anyone’s recognized me so far, I don’t want to take any chances, especially in the Capital since it’s not the same as a small village in the middle of nowhere. Fellow soldiers and courtiers could be walking around, and if they see me…

I shake my head. It’s better not to think of the worst outcome just yet.

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