NOVEL NEXT 39: Alix’s Room
Back at a certain house in the noble district, while everyone else was busy, Kaitlyn woke up from her nap, an alert light shining in her eyes.
Sitting up in her bed, Kaitlyn took a few deep breaths before taking a long drink from the cup of water beside her bed. While drinking, she drummed her fingers against her thigh, pondering, ‘What am I going to do tonight... it’s around dinner time, I think.’
‘I could go hang out with the otherworlders, I could also go annoy Dexter, or maybe deliver some of this extra treasure I have to Alix...?’
‘I do have a lot of treasure... a lot... Giving one bag away wouldn’t hurt me either...’
Her brows relaxing and a motivated smile on her face, Kaitlyn pushed herself off her bed, turning back for a second before deciding that making her bed was a waste of time. Getting herself dressed, Kaitlyn, walking through her barren house that seemed desolate compared to her bedroom, made her way back to the front door where she had left the bags of treasure.
“Which one is the biggest...” Kaitlyn inquired to an invisible being she hoped would do the work for her.
Waiting for half-a-second, Kaitlyn sighed while kneeling down, hugging each treasure like it was the most valuable baby in the world.
‘... they all feel the same...’
Resting her chin on the bag that she was in the midst of hugging, Kaitlyn squeezed it, wincing for a second as a result before deciding to just give away a random bag. Choosing the one that she was already hugging, Kaitlyn slung it over her shoulder, putting on some shoes before hauling it outside towards the inn that Alix was staying in.
With a large bag of treasure with her, Kaitlyn ignored the gazes and whispers around her, gazes and whispers ranging from greed, to confusion, to judgment.
Walking into the inn, Kaitlyn came to a stop before the front desk, asking the receptionist, a lady with her mouth ajar, “Do you know where I could find Alix?”
“I-... I’m not sure I can tell you...” The receptionist denied, coughing and clearing her expression, “We’ve had a few people already come in to ask for Alix, so unless you can prove your identity or have something saying that you’re looking for Alix, I’ll have to stop you.”
“Oh”
Setting the bag onto the ground with a loud clunk, Kaitlyn went through her pockets looking for something that could prove her identity. A moment later, as the receptionist’s patience was being grinded down, Kaitlyn decided to pull out her adventurer’s card.
“This is... uh... the best I really have. I’m a friend of Alix’s...”
Her eyes almost popping out of her sockets, the receptionist’s mouth once again lost the ability to stay closed, “I-I’m so sorry, I didn’t know who you were, I’m glad to meet you Kaitlyn, one of the heroes that slayed the demon king.”
Shushing the receptionist in a hurry, Kaitlyn looked around, letting out a sigh of relief seeing no one else was around, “I... I prefer to stay a little more low-key. So could you keep your voice down a little? Sorry...”
“Of course!” The receptionist whisper-shouted while nodding, “Yeah, Alix is staying in room 205. They should be in there right now. And if you’re looking for Nao, he’s staying in room 206.”
“Thanks!” Kaitlyn nodded, giving a quiet double thumbs-up, before picking up her bag and ascending the stairs to the second floor.
Walking up the stairs and hearing the slight creak of the well-worn wood, Kaitlyn swore to herself, ‘If I fall through the floor because this bag of treasure is too heavy...’
At the top of the stairs, without having fallen through, Kaitlyn looked around, studying the numbers by each doorway, walking only a few steps before coming to a stop in front of a door.
Knock.
With a single knock, Kaitlyn stood there, hoping that Alix would open the door.
...
Letting out a small nervous sigh, Kaitlyn knocked a few more times until she heard a pair of footsteps running over to the door shouting, “Coming!”
The footsteps coming to a stop, the door was yanked open just as Kaitlyn heard Nao shout “No!”
Stunned, Kaitlyn froze as Alix opened the door with only a shirt and underpants on. A little bit of embarrassment climbing onto both of their faces, Kaitlyn, remembering that Nao just spoke and must also be in there turned away with a cough, “It... It seems I interrupted some of your... uh... y-you know I’ll just come back later...”
Watching Kaitlyn turn away like a robot, each limb moving as if it had 100 years of rust built up, Nao ran forward, pushing Alix aside, “No, no, no nono. You’re fine Kaitlyn!”
Looking back, Kaitlyn tilted her head, relieved but also confused that Nao was fully-clothed. Pausing for a second, she then turned back, a little confused still before Nao explained, “I was just spending time here hanging out and Alix just... has weird dressing habits.”
“I-I... I see...” Kaitlyn nodded, deciding to shelve that thought for another time that would definitely never come, “Anyway, I have a gift for you Alix...”
Offering her bag of treasure forward, Kaitlyn explained, “I uh... I don’t need it so you can take it if you want?”
Pulling Kaitlyn into the room, Alix gave Kaitlyn a tight hug with an ecstatic thank you, “Come in! Come in, hang out with us for a while!”
Walking into the room with Nao while Alix danced around with the bag of treasure, blinded to anything else around them, Kaitlyn looked around marveling at the room.
Well-loved would... put it lightly. Looking a little bit like a whirlwind had torn through the room, clothes were strewn everywhere, some after being worn, some having been washed. In a certain corner of the room was a pile of treasure, Alix’s share from the expedition, still not stored away. Then, in a different corner was a sanctuary of peace and organization.
“That’s my corner, yeah” Nao nodded, answering Kaitlyn’s question before she even asked, “I like things organized...”
“Why don’t you both hang out in your room then?” Kaitlyn asked, watching Alix plop the bag of treasure down with the others before laying on it.
A resigned sigh escaping his mouth, Nao explained, “Well... I like my room to be organized so usually I keep the human whirlwind away from it...”
“I see...”
