Xavier gazed at me intensely and asked, "Do you understand what asking a single male to join you for a meal means?"
"I do…." I answered, fidgeting with my hands. Freya had given me some guidance about customs earlier so I wouldn't get myself into trouble with desperate males. "However, that isn't my intention. We have a lot of food and it'll just go to waste… And I actually wanted to ask you about Grasslands City over dinner. I'm sure you know that Ahi and I are interested in going there."
"Yes, I know." Xavier nodded, still eyeing me with suspicion. "So, this isn't because you're interested in me?"
"It isn't… Well, I might be interested in the future, but right now is totally pure." I rambled on. "I just want to talk about Grasslands City over dinner. It gets awkward for me to eat alone when others are around. That's why I'm inviting you to eat with us. I swear on the Beast God this isn't some trap or anything bad."
Xavier's shoulders relaxed and he sighed, "Alright guess I'll join you then."
"Great." I gave him a small smile before turning away and heading into the kitchen area of the hut. "The stew should be done by now. Oh yeah Ahi, we found some eggs so I tried to make you omelettes, but it came out more like scrambled eggs with meat in it."
"It's fine." Ahi murmured, suddenly appearing by my side and nearly making me jump out of my skin with how quiet he was. "Anything you make is good."
I blushed at his words and handed him the plate of eggs. "Sorry if it's a little cold…."
Before Ahi could reply, Xavier exclaimed, "This stew barely feeds one male. I thought you said it was a lot."
"It is a lot for me to eat and Ahi won't have it because it's spicy." I replied, handing the male a bowl. "You'll be fine with a few chills right?"
"Oh…." Xavier murmured, taking the bowl from me. "Spicy food doesn't bother me."
I couldn't help but feel a sense of relief go through me. When the stew was being made I had wondered about adding the chills or not since Ahi didn't like strong flavors.
I didn't want the food to go to waste nor have Ahi force himself to eat the food. Freya had known about me craving spicy food because I asked her about chills and she had made the decision for me by adding the chills in.
It had made me worried, but I guess that headache was not a problem now that Xavier was joining us. It also worked out because I did really want to ask him about Grasslands City.
Learning everything I could about the place was vital, especially with them hating ferals. I wanted to see if I could exploit some loophole that would allow Ahi and I inside.
At least until we came up with some more permanent solution and planned things out. Maybe find a few more males for me.
The thought made me blush. Here I was thinking about other males and I hadn't even tied the knot with Ahi. Beastworld females made this whole getting multiple mates easier than it looked. Of course, I could just be the weird one for having to take things snail 's pace slow.
Fear was an interesting thing….
"Hey Elisa!" A voice called out, bringing me back to reality. "Are we going to eat or not?"
I glanced up to see Xavier holding out a bowl to me with a questioning look on his face. Ahi was also gazing at me with a curious look, clearing more used to me spacing out.
"R-right." I muttered. "We can sit over there so the fire will keep us warm."
The jungle did get cooler in the evenings after all. Still humid, but it was much cooler with the wind around. Perhaps a storm was brewing.
We made our way to the table in the corner, Ahi pulling me to his lap so as not to sit on the hard floor. Normally, I would have resisted, but a part of me felt guilty for kind of ignoring him.
He hadn't said a word about it, but I could sense something simmering off him and decided to indulge him for once. It could be discussed tonight once Xavier was gone.
Xavier sat opposite us and after thanking us for the meal, immediately dug into the stew like he hadn't eaten for weeks. Ahi ate with a bit more grace, but it was still clear they were both quite hungry.
We ate in silence with either male only speaking to check if I wanted any more stew or water. Once everyone was basically done eating, Xavier finally spoke up, "So, what did you want to know about Grasslands City?"
"Well, I guess the first thing would be what are the protocols for entering Grasslands City." I asked. "I take it that not just anyone can enter the city."
"You're right." Xavier nodded. "There are a few rules you need to follow in order to enter the city. First being that you need to pay a toll to enter. And if you plan to stay for a while, you and your mates have to visit the king to gain permission to stay and get a token that states you're a resident."
"A token?" I asked, quite curious about it.
"It's a special stone that shows you belong to the city." Xavier explained. "And it's a way for everyone to travel easily in and out the city without guards having to remember who lives within the city. That would be impossible."
So it was basically like a passport for beastmen. Still the idea was not a bad one. It made for easy control of the city and prevented possible enemies from entering the city and causing havoc.
"I see…" I mused. "And how much would you say housing and the toll costs?"
"It depends on how big of a territory you want and where the piece of land is located. Cheapest house you'll get is fifteen clear crystals and that's for a single beastmen house." Xavier answered. "Tolls cost five clear crystals."
My jaw clenched. I only had enough crystals for the toll and did not know of a way to get more crystals for housing. Plus I had to think about things like food, clothing and other things we may need to get in the city.
It was beginning to seem clear as to why many beastmen didn't move to the city despite it being safer. The cost was too great especially considering how Freya reacted to getting twenty clear crystals, the bare minimum I needed.
Ahi seemed to sense my worry because he whispered into my ear, "Don't worry about the cost. I have enough crystals to support us."
"Your mate's right." Xavier chimed in. "Your concern should be on the fact you have a feral mate rather than the costs of moving to the city. The guards are unlikely to let Ahi close to the city outskirts, nevermind letting him meet with the king."
Right, how could I forget that important factor. It seemed like going to the city was becoming more unlikely as we spoke.
"I may have a suggestion though." Xavier suddenly stated before my hopes could completely die.