Jax returned to the booth like nothing had happened.
The Neon Moon buzzed around them—music rolling through packed tables while servers rushed between crowds carrying trays overloaded with food and drink. Lanternlight reflected off polished mugs, laughter echoed from nearly every corner, and the entire restaurant smelled like butter, garlic, grilled meat, and fresh bread.
The place felt alive.
It should have improved his mood immediately.
Instead—
irritation lingered quietly beneath the surface.
Nyxian noticed first.
Of course she did.
"You're annoyed," she said casually before he'd even sat down.
Bunny's ears perked.
"Oh. He is."
Jax blinked.
"You can both tell?"
"You have an annoyed face," Nyxian replied.
"I absolutely do not."
"You absolutely do."
Zee tilted her head slightly.
"You also walk louder when irritated."
Jax looked mildly betrayed.
"I hate how observant all of you are."
Llandra calmly sipped her drink.
"You brought four women with heightened senses into your life. This outcome was inevitable."
That earned a reluctant laugh from him.
Barely.
Nyxian leaned back comfortably.
"So," she asked lightly, "what happened?"
Jax exhaled once.
"Five off-duty soldiers. Human."
Bunny frowned immediately.
"Oh."
"They didn't like waiting in line," he continued. "Apparently they thought the rules didn't apply to them."
Nyxian rolled her eyes dramatically.
"How exhausting."
"They used the word beastlover," Jax added.
The table quieted slightly after that.
Not awkward.
Just still.
Llandra's expression cooled immediately.
Zee looked more sad than angry.
Nyxian simply smirked.
"That means they noticed."
Bunny crossed her arms.
"They meant it as an insult."
"I know."
Jax leaned back slightly, gaze drifting toward the crowded restaurant around them.
Humans.
Beastkin.
Dwarves.
Demonfolk.
All eating together.
Laughing together.
No separation.
No tension.
Just people.
"I hated that mindset back home too," he admitted quietly.
The Vixens looked toward him.
"People always searching for reasons to put themselves above someone else."
His eyes moved slowly between them.
An elf.
A succubus.
A bunny girl.
A healer glowing softly from restored mana.
And somehow—
they already felt essential to him.
"I genuinely can't imagine this world without you four in it," he said softly.
For once—
Nyxian didn't joke immediately.
Zee quietly rested her hand over his beneath the table.
"Then keep proving them wrong," she said gently.
"That's what you do."
Before Jax could respond—
Stevano appeared beside the booth looking like he might explode from excitement.
"Sir," the young demonkin said quickly, trying and failing to sound professional, "we just broke every profit record we've ever had."
Bunny gasped.
Nyxian grinned immediately.
Jax blinked once.
"By how much?"
Stevano named the number.
Even Llandra looked surprised.
Jax smiled genuinely this time.
"That's incredible."
Stevano nodded enthusiastically.
"The kitchens are going insane right now."
"Good," Jax replied.
"Tell them I said they're doing amazing."
Stevano nodded quickly—
but Jax wasn't done.
"And tell them this."
The young manager straightened immediately.
"If we quadruple last year's festival profits," Jax said calmly, "then after the festival ends…"
A grin slowly formed on Stevano's face.
"…we close the restaurant for one full day."
The nearby staff immediately started listening.
"Employee-only celebration," Jax continued.
"Friends and family included. Food covered. Drinks covered."
Bunny gasped happily.
Nyxian raised a finger.
"Excluding the expensive liquor."
"Correct," Jax agreed.
Stevano looked ready to sprint through a wall.
"And if that doesn't motivate them," Nyxian added sweetly, "replace them."
Stevano laughed nervously.
"You got it, boss."
Then he practically ran back toward the kitchen.
Moments later—
cheering erupted somewhere behind the walls.
The Vixens stared at Jax afterward.
"What?" he asked.
Nyxian shook her head slowly.
"You really don't understand what you're doing to this town."
Jax frowned slightly.
"I'm running restaurants."
"No," Llandra said quietly.
"You're giving people something to believe in."
That silenced him for a moment.
Thankfully—
Bunny immediately ruined the emotional atmosphere.
"I believe in garlic bread."
Jax snorted into his drink.
"Reasonable."
The next morning, the Festival of Summer was somehow even busier.
Music echoed through nearly every district while colorful banners stretched overhead between buildings. Merchants shouted prices from crowded stalls while children ran through the streets chasing floating lanterns.
Solmere no longer looked like a dying border town.
It looked alive.
Jax spent the morning making rounds through the city with the Vixens following nearby.
Not guarding him.
Simply accompanying him.
That distinction mattered.
Their first major stop was Brannic and Merriweather's forge.
The moment they entered, they walked directly into an argument.
"This dagger is overpriced," a human warrior snapped.
"It's underpriced," Brannic shot back instantly.
The dwarf crossed his thick arms stubbornly while Merriweather hovered nearby looking mildly offended on his behalf.
Jax stepped closer.
"Mind if I see it?"
The warrior hesitated before handing it over.
Jax's appraisal activated automatically.
Flamefang Dagger
+10% Strength
+10% Speed
Heat Resistance
Double Damage to Ice-Based Creatures
Minor Heat Exhaustion Build-Up
Crafted through Dragon-Scale Transmutation
Quality: Exceptional
Jax whistled softly.
"That's absurdly good."
The warrior frowned.
"It's still too expensive."
Jax looked up calmly.
"How much is your life worth?"
The warrior stiffened immediately.
"…Is that a threat?"
Jax blinked.
"No. Sorry. You misunderstood me."
He held up the dagger carefully.
"I'm asking if you think your life has value."
The adventurer looked confused now.
"I'm… quite attached to it."
"Good," Jax replied.
"Then why are you arguing over equipment designed to keep you alive longer?"
The warrior frowned slightly.
Jax pointed toward the dagger.
"That blade increases your physical ability by ten percent."
He pointed toward the warrior's armor.
"That means less stamina lost in combat. Faster kills. Faster reactions. Less damage taken."
His tone remained calm and conversational.
"You defeat enemies faster. Protect allies easier. Survive encounters that would've killed you otherwise."
The forge had gone completely quiet now.
Jax handed the dagger back.
"You're not buying metal," he said.
"You're buying margin for error."
The wolfkin thief in the adventuring party activated his own appraisal skill.
Then froze.
"…Wait," he muttered.
"You can actually SEE the stats?"
Jax nodded once.
The thief looked toward the warrior immediately.
"Buy the dagger."
Brannic puffed up proudly.
"I've been saying that the whole damn conversation."
Moments later—
coin changed hands.
Not just for the dagger.
For armor too.
And several enchanted accessories from Merriweather.
The fairy practically vibrated afterward.
Brannic just stared at the final transaction total.
"…That's more than we made last year."
Merriweather looked moments away from fainting.
Nyxian leaned toward Jax smugly.
"You're infecting people with capitalism."
"I'm improving circulation of commerce."
"That sounded even more evil somehow."
As they continued through town afterward—
something else became obvious.
People knew him now.
Not as the dragon killer.
Not as the rich outsider.
As Jax.
"Karthic!" Jax called toward one merchant.
"How's your daughter recovering?"
The older beastkin looked genuinely startled.
"She's… actually much better."
"Good. Tell her I expect to see her causing problems again soon."
The man laughed immediately.
A few streets later:
"Susaana! How's your hip?"
The elderly seamstress blinked in surprise.
"…Less painful."
"Then the stretches are working."
"You were right."
"I usually am."
The Vixens watched all of this quietly.
He remembered names.
Families.
Conversations.
Problems.
Not because he had to.
Because he cared enough to.
By midday—
people openly waved when he passed.
Children followed briefly before scattering again.
Whispers moved through the streets.
"That's him."
"The restaurant owner?"
"The dragon hunter."
"The Vixens are with him."
And through all of it—
Jax remained completely unchanged.
Grounded.
Relaxed.
Intentional.
Late in the afternoon, he finally led the Vixens beyond the busier districts toward the outskirts of Solmere.
Nyxian narrowed her eyes.
"Where are we going?"
"You'll see."
The roads became rougher.
The buildings thinner.
Eventually they reached the cliffside overlooking the lake beyond town.
Then Jax stopped.
The Vixens stepped beside him—
and froze.
The view was breathtaking.
The massive lake reflected golden sunlight while endless forest stretched beyond the horizon in rolling waves of green.
Wind moved softly across the cliffs.
The entire world felt open from here.
Jax looked outward quietly for several moments before finally speaking.
"I bought this land."
The Vixens looked toward him immediately.
Bunny blinked.
"All of it?"
"Most of it."
Nyxian stared outward slowly.
"…Why?"
Jax smiled faintly.
"Because this town is going to outgrow itself."
He pointed outward.
"Roads."
Toward the lake.
"Trade."
Toward the forest.
"Resources."
Then finally—
toward Solmere itself.
"And eventually… safety."
Llandra watched him carefully.
Not the land.
Him.
"You already know what you want to build here," she realized.
Jax nodded once.
"I do."
"What?"
He looked back toward the city below.
A town rejected by the Empire.
A place filled with outsiders.
People surviving instead of living.
Then he answered quietly:
"A place where everyone is welcome."
Silence followed.
Warm.
Meaningful.
Certain.
Then Bunny wrapped both arms around him first.
Llandra followed immediately afterward.
Zee smiled softly while leaning against his shoulder.
Nyxian took his hand quietly.
"Isn't that the lake we first saw you naked?"
The smirked and laughed.
Because they understood now.
Jax didn't just see what Solmere was.
He saw what it could become.
And somehow—
that made them believe in it too.