"Handsome misters and beautiful missus, come! See what you want and I'll give you the best price!"
"High-quality Grade 3 turmerics, anyone? A gram for 5 Ethers! Take ten, get an extra gram as a bonus!"
The day was still quite early when Riize caught the sight of the fleeting market from afar. When she reached the perimeter of the market, rows after rows of temporarily-set stalls started to line as far as her eyes could reach, vigorous shouts of the vendors coming from her left and right.
Her eyes swept over the area with certain familiarity, twinkling as she studied the goods in each stall with interest.
Although most of the towns and settlements were dominated by humans, it didn't stop the Demon Realm's only-existing currency, Ethers, to be widely used in the border's areas, noting that most of the customers the locals dealt with were people who frequently went back and forth from the Demon Realm.
And the fleeting market, a popular district that was located in neither surrounding towns and settlements, was naturally of no exception.
Like a fish in water, Riize navigated the chaotic place with ease, reaching her destination spot in no time.
…
Going back and forth from the fleeting market had nearly become a daily occurrence for Riize, who was rarely hired as a guide.
This happened because in this ruined world where there's not a day when humans and demons could peacefully live under the same sky without wishing to tear each other apart, no ordinary human would dare to hire a demon guide and trust the demon to merely and obediently act as one.
Thus, Riize needed to work extra hard to earn enough for a living. After completing her ongoing errands for the day, she would usually roam around the market to find herself more opportunities, offering her services to each stall.
Riize wasn't picky by nature. She tended to take as many jobs as possible as long as they were within her capabilities, but business hadn't been good lately. It was especially so today, where she had earned merely an additional dozen of ethers aside from the profit she received from selling the plates.
Riize sighed as she counted the short string of metal coins in her hand.
After roaming about without much results, she finally allowed herself some rest. She plopped herself on a nearby log, the entire fiber of her body slagging down from the mental fatigue like a deflated balloon.
Riize was just about to close her eyes to sneak a short nap, when her ears picked up some vivid hushings leaking from the nearby stalls.
The gossiping vendors huddling together seemed to have been embroiled in a heated discussion amongst themselves, the excitement and thrill surging through their body so immense that they would lose control of their voices from time to time.
Simultaneously, she saw them directing their heated gazes at a group of trained men dressed in uniformed cloaks, supposedly belonging to the same faction, as they whispered to themselves with hushed voices.
"Hey, have you heard? It is said that the house of Zephirre will be welcoming the new mistress of the house in a month's time."
Riize's heavy eyes were untrained at first. However, her slouched back instantly straightened as if all tiredness had been washed away by the single mention of that name.
Zephirre. Not even in death would she be able to forget that name.
Afterall, that was the house where she used to belong and the place where he certainly stood.
Her ex-lover, Mikhael Zephirre… is getting married? Riize simply couldn't believe her ears.
The idea of marriage.
Not even after the passing of their ten years of relationship had the man brought up the matter with her and yet, when it comes to that woman…
Her fingers tightened into stone-hard fists.
How dare they!
The face hidden behind the devil mask became frighteningly rigid as Riize's scowl turned for the worse. Spontaneously, her figure shifted closer to not miss a word.
"What? Haven't they just appointed the new head half a month ago? What's with the hurry? I reckon that the young head hasn't even properly stabilized his newly-attained position yet. To think of wedding his lover at this time, wouldn't it be too much of a rush?"
Standing out of the group, a younger female tenant expressed her doubt, to which another more knowledgeable male tenant responded whilst shaking his head.
"This is where you get it wrong, Lizzy. It is only thanks to the Ferdinan household that the heir was able to be crowned this soon. Now that the task is done, the heir will be expected to fulfill his own side of the deal by marrying Lady Calis, lest the house gets uneasy with their collaboration."
"Oh, it's the Ferdinan's Lady Calis? But, hasn't the heir kept a demon lover by his side for years? What will be of the demon if he were to bring in another woman, and to be his official wife at that? Won't that cause a bloody massacre?"
The younger tenant named Lizzy questioned with a frown, seemingly expressing her worry for the poor demon.
"Fortunately, that massacre wouldn't happen for the demon had long been dealt with even before the wedding news came to be known. Is it half a year ago? I'm not that sure. It is said that it was the heir himself who had claimed her life, breaking her two demonic horns with his own two hands to be kept as an achievement and drinking her blood till her corpse ran dry."
"What is it, Lizzy? Are you pitying the demon right now?"
Contempt flooded the knowledgeable tenant's sniggers when he recognized the glimmer in the female tenant's eyes.
"Silly Lizzy. Those demons were but trouble-making savages who can only bring more ruins than good to this damnable world. Even if they were to meet unjust ends, it was only right for them to be served such bitterness of life when taking account of their numerous sinful deeds!"
"Now, now. Let's not delve into this gruesome subject any further than enough." The knowledgeable tenant abruptly clapped his hands as if announcing the end of the topic, before shifting the subject back to their initial discussion.
"So, about the wedding, I heard that the Zephirres just sent their men to hunt for some precious ores from the Demon Realm. The specific types aren't told, but I heard that they're raising their requests to surrounding merchants and tenants as well. What do you say we—"
As his voice trailed off with a suspenseful grip, the knowledgeable tenant revealed a crafty smile akin to that of a fox, his voice barely audible as Riize distanced herself away.
She lowered her eyes to the ground beneath her feet, her surroundings morphing to a state of absolute silence as the gears in her mind revolved without stop.
"They're heading to the Demon Realm?" Riize muttered to herself, dark eyes glinting with ominous lights.
"Wouldn't they need a capable guide for that?"
As a wicked idea gradually materialized in her mind, her lips curled to form a devious grin.
No matter what, not even in their dreams would she let that dog pair of a man and a woman get their happily ever after this easily!