The captain left Audalis in Makinor's care and departed as lightly as the sea breeze.
Makinor glanced at the boy and let out a short sigh.
"Phew… I'm almost done for the day anyway. Curio, take this kid and show him around the city. You'll be making some deliveries too, so stick to our regular customers."
"Really?" Curio's eyes widened, soon sparkling with excitement.
"Yeah!"
Before Makinor even finished speaking, Curio dashed up to the second-floor quarters, took a quick shower, changed clothes, and grabbed his wallet. Then he took Audalis by the arm and stepped outside with an eager bounce in his step.
"Hmm-hmm~~~ Thanks! Thanks to you, I finally get to go out for the first time. Well, I've been outside a few times for work, but this is totally different! I can finally spend my first paycheck, hehe~"
"Yeah…"
"You don't talk much, do you? And your name's kinda hard to say… Alright! I'll give you a nickname! My full name's Curionis, but everyone just calls me Curio! Audalis… how about Ali? Ali sounds good, right?"
Ali stopped for a moment, turning the sound of his own name—spoken by Curio—over in his mind.
"Al… li?"
"Yeah, Ali! Easy to say, and I like it!"
"I don't mind…"
"Great, Ali~~ Let's hit the grocery street first. I'm starving!"
Ali wasn't really hungry, but he decided not to mention it and simply followed along.
When they reached the food market, the air was filled with sweet and savory scents that tickled Ali's nose. He swallowed unconsciously.