Chapter 653 The Next Day

Liam and Tatiana slowly made their way down the staircase together, and judging from the relaxed expressions on both their faces, neither of them was in any particular hurry to get anywhere. The previous day had turned into something neither of them had originally planned. they had ordered enough food to last most of the afternoon, spent hours talking, teasing each other and generally doing everything except preparing for the next day.

By the time evening came, they had completely forgotten about the outside world for a while. Now it was the second day, however, and reality had finally returned to remind Liam that there was a reason they had come to this city in the first place. The dwarf blacksmith had told them to return today, which meant that today was finally the day they would begin the process of obtaining the weapons the seer had sent them to find. Liam had been thinking about it since waking up, and strangely enough, the thought was already giving him a headache.

The dwarf had managed to irritate him more in a few hours than most people could accomplish in months, and Liam had absolutely no idea what kind of nonsense awaited them when they stepped into that shop again.

Unlike yesterday, however, Liam no longer looked like a man who had crawled out of a chimney.

He was dressed in a pure white robe that fell naturally around his body, the fabric clean and smooth enough to make him look almost completely different from the soot-covered disaster who had walked through the city the previous evening. His dark brown hair rested naturally over his forehead, framing a face that already seemed almost unfairly attractive. His deep blue eyes carried their usual sharpness, while his defined jaw and cheekbones gave him the appearance of someone who had stepped straight out of a painting. The robe only made his features more striking, especially because the simple design allowed his natural appearance to do all the work.

Walking beside him was Tatiana, who was dressed in a beautiful blue robe that complemented her long red hair perfectly. The fabric followed her figure naturally without being overly elaborate, while her pale flawless skin and striking features made her look almost unreal. The two of them descending the staircase together created such a dramatic contrast that people couldn’t help staring.

A merchant coming up the stairs stopped halfway.

A young woman carrying a tray nearly walked into the person in front of her because she was too busy staring at Tatiana.

Two men standing near the landing glanced at Liam, then at Tatiana, then back at Liam with expressions that said they had just witnessed something deeply unfair.

"That’s one lucky son of a bitch."

"I know."

"Look at her."

"I am."

Liam heard them.

His eyebrow twitched.

He kept walking.

A little farther down, two women whispered to each other while looking at Tatiana.

"She’s lucky."

"Very."

"Look at him."

Tatiana heard that one too.

She glanced sideways at Liam.

Liam happened to look at her at the same moment.

For a second they simply looked at each other before Tatiana’s lips curled into a small smile.

Liam rolled his eyes.

"People in this city have no shame."

Tatiana’s smile widened.

"You’re enjoying the attention."

"No."

"You are."

"I’m not."

She looked at him knowingly.

Liam sighed.

"Fine. Maybe a little."

Tatiana laughed softly as they continued downward. The murmurs followed them all the way to the lower floor, and Liam eventually stopped paying attention. He had already learned that trying to stop people from staring at him was pointless. Besides, he had far more important things to worry about. He wanted to know what the dwarf was going to make for them, what kind of weapons the seer had intended them to receive and, perhaps more importantly, what exactly the dwarf had meant when he said Liam would be the most troublesome one.

They finally reached the floor where the rest of the group was waiting.

Leonid, Irina, Gregor, Mary and Agatha were already gathered together, clearly ready to leave. Leonid had his arms folded while leaning against the wall, Irina was standing beside him and Gregor was quietly talking to Mary about something Liam couldn’t hear. Agatha simply stood there with her usual composed expression, though even she seemed to be waiting impatiently.

Liam’s face immediately lit up.

He spread his arms slightly as he approached them.

"Hey, guys."

Nobody responded.

Liam’s smile became wider.

"So, today we’re getting our weapons."

Silence.

Every person in the hallway looked at him.

Not with excitement.

Not with anticipation.

With the completely dead expressions of people who had just witnessed something painful.

Leonid slowly closed his eyes.

Irina looked away.

Mary pressed her lips together.

Gregor lowered his head.

Agatha sighed.

Liam’s smile remained frozen.

"What?"

Leonid turned around.

He walked toward the entrance without saying anything.

As he passed Liam, he muttered one word.

"Cringe."

Then he walked outside.

Liam’s smile twitched.

"What?"

Gregor followed Leonid.

"Cringe."

Mary shook her head as she walked past.

"Very cringe."

Irina followed them.

"Extremely."

Agatha was the last one.

She looked at Liam for a moment before giving him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

"Maybe don’t do that again."

Then she walked outside.

Liam remained standing in the middle of the hallway.

His smile disappeared.

He slowly turned toward Tatiana.

"What the hell is wrong with these people?"

Tatiana was trying very hard not to laugh.

She scratched the side of her head.

"Nothing is wrong with them."

"Then why did everyone just insult me?"

Tatiana looked at him.

"You have a very cringe smile on your face right now."

Liam frowned.

"My smile?"

"Yes."

"What is wrong with my smile?"

Tatiana hesitated.

"It’s just..."

She struggled to find the right words.

"You look like someone who just discovered that he has teeth."

Liam stared at her.

"That doesn’t make any sense."

"It does."

"No, it doesn’t."

Tatiana smiled.

"You should look in the mirror."

Liam frowned but walked toward one of the large decorative mirrors positioned along the wall. He had barely glanced at his reflection before his entire expression froze.

There he was.

Clean.

Handsome.

Confident.

And wearing the most ridiculous smile he had ever seen in his life.

His lips were stretched slightly too wide, his eyebrows were raised, and his expression had the exact appearance of someone who had just been told that he was about to receive a prize.

Liam stared at himself.

His reflection stared back.

He slowly repeated the smile.

His eyes widened.

"Holy fuck."

Tatiana immediately started laughing.

Liam wiped the smile off his face as though physically removing it from his mouth.

"What the hell was that?"

Tatiana was laughing harder now.

"I told you."

"I thought I looked good!"

"You did."

"Then why did I look like that?"

"I don’t know."

Liam stared at his reflection again.

He tried another smile.

It looked worse.

He immediately stopped.

"No."

Tatiana covered her mouth.

Liam turned toward her.

"Don’t laugh."

That only made her laugh harder.

He shook his head and hurried after her as she began walking toward the entrance.

"Tatiana."

She ignored him.

"Tatiana."

Still nothing.

"You could have told me sooner."

She finally glanced back at him with a mischievous smile.

"You seemed so happy."

Liam narrowed his eyes.

"I hate you."

"No, you don’t."

"No, I don’t."

He caught up to her just as they reached the entrance.

But before Liam could step outside, someone suddenly moved into his path.

He stopped.

His eyes immediately landed on the familiar young woman from yesterday.

The receptionist.

The same woman who had looked at him while he was covered in soot and casually ordered someone to throw him out because she thought he was a beggar.

Liam’s expression instantly hardened.

His shoulders straightened.

The embarrassment of yesterday returned in a flash.

He remembered the woman’s disgusted expression.

Someone get this beggar out of here.

The words had been burned into his memory.

Liam stared at her.

The woman looked back at him.

For a moment neither spoke.

Tatiana, who had already stepped outside, noticed that Liam had stopped and turned around.

"What is it?"

Liam didn’t answer.

His eyes remained fixed on the woman.

He was already preparing himself for another unpleasant encounter. Perhaps she had finally recognized him now that he was clean. Maybe she would apologize. Maybe she would simply ignore him.

Instead, the woman’s expression suddenly changed.

She looked at Liam from head to toe.

Then she smiled.

Not the disgusted smile from yesterday.

A completely different one.

She stepped slightly closer.

"Excuse me..."

Liam’s brows slowly furrowed.

Something about her tone was strange.

Then she said something that left him completely stunned.