Chapter 208 Hurry Back to Pol
Jack struggled that night.
In the end, he was able to keep himself from taking advantage of Maura, but he also felt more hallow in the morning when he thought about it. He was honestly happy to have her with him, even if it was only to be there.
Without realizing it, he had embraced her in his sleep, leading to a beautiful scene for Eliza to find in the morning.
When she found out nothing happened, Eliza frowned, but she was glad that Jack had at least made progress. The thing she didn't like the most was that Jack was more willing to act with Maura then he was with her.
Soon, everyone was downstairs early in the morning for a good breakfast before they hit the road.
But it was strange, almost the entire bar was filled, despite it being so early.
They didn't even have to ask why either because everyone was talking and gossiping about the same thing.
"Did you hear about what happened to Magama Summit?"
"Of course! If you go to the south side of town you can see what happened."
"Really?! I've gotta go see it!"
Taking a table due to the lack of seats at the bar, Jack's party paid close attention to the strange news.
"What can I get you this morning?" asked the waiter, who much much busier than normal.
"Breakfast specials for everyone, and by the way," Rydel sudden flicked the waiter a gold coin, "what can you tell us about Magma Summit? We're new here."
Gladly accepting the coin, the waiter smiled. "Everyone's talking about it. Apparently, the top of Magma Summit, the tallest mountain in the Molten Mountains, was blown to smithereens. If you head south, you'll be able to see that a fourth of the mountain is now missing, melted away."
"Seriously?"
It's one thing to hear crazy rumors, but for the waiter to state it so clearly and say that it could be seen from the city meant it was most likely true. But what on earth could do something like that?
"Any idea on a cause?"
"It's hard to say. The issue happened late last night, so few people even heard the distant explosion," explained the waiter. "At first, people thought Magma Summit was gonna erupt, but they soon noticed the top of the summit melting away."
"Hmm… Thanks for the info."
"You're welcome, I'll bring your specials and some drinks right away."
With the waiter gone, Jack's party chatted little about the mountain and more about the sudden trip to Polt.
Maura was excited to go see her father, especially since he should've already been cured of the poison.
Eliza was happy to see her father again, but even more excited to see what kind of a ruckus Jack would cause at the yearly auction. It was clear to her how what would be available at such auctions, and she knew that Jack would always find a way to get what he wanted.
Rydel and Maynard were indifferent, only curious about what the yearly auction would offer this year.
Keela was actually a little worried, hoping that she wouldn't accidentally run into her family while she was there.
Daliea and Lina both enjoyed their meals, just happy to follow Jack along for the adventure. And with Jack opening up more to the girls, Daliea was getting more curious if she would ever get a chance with him.
Within the hour, they had eaten their breakfast and canceled the third night's stay at the inn. Now, they were riding horses through the desert, the same horses they had traded for the snow stallions at the border.
The trip was fairly simple and straightforward. Nothing unexpected happened since it was the most common travel road in the Maltor, the one leading to the Polt Federation. Also, it helped for their entire party to be over lv. 30, it was a good way to keep bandits away.
There were a couple of nights where Maura slept with Jack, allowing them both to feel closer and closer each night.
Eliza had also managed to sleep with Jack along the way. Once, in the middle of the night, she crept into Jack's tent and was mistaken for Maura. Jack only noticed in the morning, when he woke up to groping her chest by accident.
With some luck, they reached Federal City sooner than expected, giving them two weeks till the auction.
The city guards tried to search them, but Eliza flaunted the crest of the Fat Goose and bypassed it altogether.
Though Eliza wanted to visit the Fat Goose first, Jack made it a point to go to the Heavenly Palace Inn first. Since Zariff was better now, he wanted to see for himself.
It was late afternoon when they reached the inn, so they stored their horses in the stables and went straight to the restaurant.
"Maura! Sweetie!" Marisha instantly spotted her daughter while she was waiting for tables. "How come you didn't tell us you were coming?"
"Well, we couldn't miss the yearly auction, so here we are. Can we have one of the big rooms?" asked Maura.
"Of course, in fact, there are a couple of people here who would love to see you all. Follow me." Marisha led the way, but she also glanced at Jack. "So, Jack, how are you treating my daughter?"
"Maura's been amazing. She's also a big sister now!"
Expertly dodging the impending awkward conversation, Jack pushed Lina forward. "This is Lina, my little sister."
"Really?" Marisha was baffled and didn't know what to believe.
"Lina, come and say hi to my mom," laughed Maura, taking Lina by the hand.
"Hello, Maura's mom!"
Marisha chuckled from Lina's impromptu greeting. "So, are you really Jack's little sister? Where did they find such a cute girl like you?"
Maura answered, "We came across her in Frostburn City."
"Frostburn City?! You went to Frostburn City, the land in an eternal blizzard?"
"Yup, and then we crossed over to Scorch City on the way here," Eliza added, not wanting to get left out. "After the auction, I'm not sure where we'll go next, but I'm sure it'll be fun."
Recomposing herself, Marisha knocked on a private room's door. "Please, everyone pile in. There's plenty of room and some people would like to see you."
One by one the party entered. Maura and Eliza immediately showed beaming smiles and ran in.
Inside, Argyle and Zariff were chatting over some wine.
As Jack's party arrived, Zariff laughed, "Leave it to the brat to show up uninvited. Hurry up and sit down so we can order already. Maura, how are you?"
"Mhm, I've been great Papa." Nudging Lina forward, Maura introduced her, "Papa, this is Lina, Jack's new sister. We found her in Frostburn City and she's been with us ever since."
While Lina was admiring Zariff's hulking stature, Eliza ran and hugged her father.
"Eliza, have you been doing okay during your new life of adventure?" asked Argyle with a smile.
"It was very different at first, but now I'm used to it. I'm making lots of progress," chuckled Eliza as she gave a chick glance to Jack.
Marisha went back to work, finishing up her tables so that she could come and join them later.
That night was rather wild for Jack. Split by his two fathers-in-law, who each wanted to know about the progress of the relationships of their daughters, Jack was bombarded with awkward comments, death threats, and blunt warnings.
Worst of all, the pressure only increased after Maura's grandfather finished cooking and joined in the conversation.
After that conversation finally ended, Jack heard of some major news from Marisha.
Apparently, the entire Adventurers Association has been going through a screening process. They've doubled down on the requirements to enter and making sure to squeeze out any possible spies in the association.
Jack never heard about any of that since he had a special role in the association, nor did he bother to learn much else about it.
Also, Jack learned from Martha, Maura's grandmother, that the party was very lucky to be family. If they weren't family and had guessed that Jack's party would return for the yearly auction, then the cost of an inn would've been beyond increased.
With all of the royal families in town and most of the noble families, each of the famous inns were packed and charging extra. This happened every year because all three of the major auction houses would join hands to hold the yearly auction, this year hosted by the Fat Goose.
Once the night came to an end, Jack decided something.
It was the first night where Jack requested for Eliza to join him. Of course, he only wanted it in order to get a full-body massage, but she only agreed if he let her stay all night.
Needing the massage, and knowing that it wasn't the first time, Jack gave in and let her share a bed with him. However, he still gave no consent beyond holding each other, though she did sneak in a couple of kisses on his cheek that he struggled to fight against.