Jane's Story

Chapter 3

Upon entering the artisan district, Anna was overwhelmed by the smell of iron and the heat the whole area was giving off.

She stopped for a second, stunned by the difference. The red-eyed woman knew a barrier was erected between the districts and there was a reason for that, but she didn't expect it to be so overwhelming.

   [ - I can understand and accept that barrier more than the one between the noble districts and the others.]

Eliza, still being dragged by Anna by the hand, was a bit blushing but still answered with a relatively calm voice.

    - Yes, it wasn't here before. But a number of visitors from other countries, and even the rest of the country, complained about it. So the same mage who did the other barrier made this one. But the sounds still go through. It's just less loud.

Anna nodded at that. She could hear a lot more now that they had traversed and had to agree that the noise was pretty loud now. It was as expected, so not really bothering. But she could understand not everyone could handle that. They were still walking when Jane made herself known with a little voice inside Anna's spirit.

    [{ - Hm... How long do you intend to hold her hand? Look at her, she's struggling not to blush too much! It's obvious she never had that kind of contact before! }]

    { - Eh, if she wasn't interested, why would she blush at all? Aren't we two women? Isn't it a normal thing to do? }

    [{ - Not like that! Interlocking your fingers and all? I'm only eighteen, but I obviously know not every friend does that! Let me take back my body now. }]

Jane didn't wait for Anna's green light and forcefully retook control of her body. It was actually pretty easy; after all, she was the original owner. So of course her body would welcome her back easily. Her eyes changed color to their original blue. She looked for a second at their hands, then at Eliza's face, which was blushing more and more, before letting go with an embarrassed smile.

    - I'm sorry. I... Well, it's a bit complicated. I'll explain to you later, okay? So, this is the artisan district, right? It feels really warm here. Didn't you say there were all kinds of artisans? Even wood-using ones? Fire is a hazard then?

Eliza couldn't answer immediately. She was looking at her hand that still had some warmth coming from Jane's. It took her a few seconds before she shook her head and lifted it to look at Jane, avoiding her gaze a bit.

    - Y-yeah, but those have workshops built to protect them from the warmth and fire. So fire problems aren't that common at all. Well, before we built those, of course, we had problems.

Jane nodded at that. It made sense to protect them. Nobody would like to see their work go up in flames, especially after so much time and effort on them.

The duo continued to walk side by side, Eliza showing her the various shops some artisans set up. Based on the white-haired woman's explanation, these had a few scuffles with the merchants and were banned from selling their products over there.

The redhead looked at a few swords and daggers, weighing them in her hands to check the balance, before placing them back with a disappointed shake of her head. Eliza observed that curiously.

    - They aren't good enough? I find them pretty well made, no? I'm no expert on them, of course, but a lot of weapons coming from the district are quite popular.

    - That's the thing, they are popular. It doesn't mean they are good enough. Well, they are to protect yourself from a robber. But not for real combat, not at all. If you took any of the daggers I used in my village, you would find them totally intact even after they shattered skulls and bones. These ones? No way they would survive a real fight. They would break after a few uses. And they definitely won't bear the momentum I can give them with my gift.