Smugglers and Dungeons!

Master Tang looked at Ingrid, who was wearing an armor which could only have been her mother's, for it was too big on her.

 Then at Icarus, who now had a mana rich dagger in his pouch.

Then at Basila, who was showing him her loot with a smile on her lips.

"You can't sell any of these," even Ingrid had to pretend to be poor. Even if she was about as rich as Lord Oswel, there was no way for her to showcase that wealth.

"I have land!" Basila proclaimed, as if that was the most natural thing to have. "And with Ingrid's help, we can all be rich!"

"With my help?" Ingrid clicked her tongue. The nerve of that little girl! Wanting her help, but not asking for it first!

Basila had the decency to lower her gaze.

"Well, I have rocky land. In the mountains," Ingrid could already piece together the plan, but she let the lady speak. "And if we plant the gems there, we can sell it to Lord Oswel!"

"Except, dear Basila," Master Tang said. Oh, he was no stranger to making half-cooked plans to get rich.

Most days, he was hard at work trying to come up with one.

 "Lord Oswel won't just let your land sit idle. He will send miners there. And once it is discovered that there are no more gems, well…"

"If Ingrid gives more gems, I can hide them in the rocks," Basila wasn't feeling very sure of herself anymore.

"Basila," Ingrid could smell weakness from afar. She smiled, placing a hand over Basila's delicate shoulder. "Since when haven't you been on your land?"

Basila blinked.

"I… I've never been on it. It's too dangerous…" Basila worried her bottom lip. "But if Lord Oswel thinks that there is profit to be had there, then… then he'll go!"

"Why is it so dangerous?" Icarus took a hold of one of the gems, bringing it to eye level. "Wait a second! Let me just…"

He was a scrap collector. Most people threw away all kinds of things, thinking they were broken.

His father, Isbul, had made his new fortune that way. Something Icarus had squandered, which had led him to become a bullfighter.

But before Isbul had passed away, he had given his son that particular useful skill.

Icarus used his mana to make the different loose parts of the mana stone click back together. He also used it as glue to make sure that the stone was not going to fall apart on them.

The sapphire shone like the sun.

Basila whipped around, staring Ingrid in the eyes.

"Hey! Why did you let me think that the gem I gave for the hilt was just a gem?" The elven lady snarled.

"Well, business is business. Maybe next time you won't put your nose where it doesn't belong. I did hear that Gil told you that whatever Icarus wants from the shop is his!" Ingrid patted Basila on the head.

Basila slapped her hand, ready for a fight.

"Come on, we're family," Icarus placed himself between the two ladies. He knew that it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but he still felt that it was his only option. "Basila, can you please show your land on the map?"

He placed a map of the Region of Upper Forestia between Basila and Ingrid, letting the map take his place as the one thing which was going to stop the fight.

Basila stared at the map, then bit her bottom lip.

"I think," her finger began to point at a plot of land that was near a sign of a rock bird. "Here?"

"You don't even know," Ingrid was not surprised about how some people just wanted to wing their way through life, but if this girl wanted to bring Icarus down with her, she was going to stop her!

"I do know! It's just… I've never been there, ok? It is a family heirloom! The land… it belonged to my mother," Basila balled her fists, ready for the ridicule.

"I see," but Ingrid was not ready to offer any. She was an orphan as well. She was going to dig her nails into Basila, true. She didn't want her in the picture.

But not for this.

"Well," Master Tang said, as he looked at Ingrid. "The Little Mistress is still looking for you."

Ingrid sighed. Oh, she had guessed as much.

"And after his family," Master Tang nodded at Icarus. "Confirmed that he really is the son of Isbul Dulo and Irina Angelic, the Little Mistress is now looking for him as well!"

Icarus smiled.

"Neat! Let's go!"

Both Basila and Ingrid hit him over the head.

"Cheater!" Basila yelled, feeling like she was going to be yelling it a lot throughout her life.

"Donkey!" Ingrid knew what would really hurt.

"Ingrid!" Icarus protested. If she wasn't his wife, he would have challenged her to an honor duel!

"What do you think will happen once you marry the Little Mistress?" Ingrid had no illusions that that was what Icarus wanted to do.

To get them out of poverty.

Oh, in his mind, he was probably already married to all three of them.

But Ingrid had been the Little Mistress' maid for years now. She knew that Mei was a good actress.

One who was her father's heir in all the ways it mattered. So much so in fact that her father, the Lord Oswel, had never pressured her mother, the Lady Isabel, for a male heir.

Icarus must know that as well, Ingrid thought to herself. And yet, he was still grinning!

"What are we going to do then? Sit in the sewers until someone searches for us here?" Icarus asked, clicking his tongue.

"Donkey," Ingrid repeated because she hated it when he did that. Only she had the right to do that in their marriage!

"Wife," he said, knowing that he had insulted her just as much.

Basila looked between the two steaming teenagers and then sighed.

"As much as I hate to admit it," she said, as she slowly made sure that Ingrid's creeping hand did not end up around Icarus' throat. "Icarus is right."

"Basila," Master Tang said, as he looked her dead in the eyes. "Sadiha Sultan knows you are here."

Basila's hand went to her mouth.

 Hua Tang offered her a handkerchief.

Her aunt's…