The two finished eating and began wandering outside.
The morning in Brunello City was far livelier than the Saluzzo estate. Lapland led Texas through several streets, navigating with familiar ease into a commercial district.
"These are the shops under the Saluzzo family's control," she said, gesturing casually. "Grain, cloth, ironware — someone's keeping an eye on all of it."
Texas followed her gaze. The shopkeepers at the storefronts were greeting customers, but their eyes kept drifting over in their direction.
"They're watching you."
"Yeah." Lapland nodded. "Go introduce yourself so they remember your face. When you need to get things done around here, they're who you go to."
"They'll listen to me?"
"They will." Lapland paused. "My father's orders — they wouldn't dare refuse. You're his cash cow now."
"Besides, these aren't even the Saluzzo family's main business. Their main business is the winery."
Texas nodded and went over to chat with each of them one by one.
Su An drifted beside the two of them, looking here and there — leaning toward the fabric shop trying to touch the cloth, then floating over to the blacksmith's forge to stare at the man hammering iron.
Lapland's ears twitched. She glanced sideways.
The guy was crouching at the entrance of the blacksmith's shop, pointing and commenting with great authority, completely forgetting he was a ghost who couldn't touch anything.
"What are you looking at?" Texas noticed her gaze.
"Nothing."
Lapland looked away. Once Texas finished her conversations, they continued walking — another street, another set of shops, another batch of faces to memorize.
Texas walked beside her, quietly logging routes and names in her mind. Su An drifted along on the other side, offering commentary from time to time:
"That bakery smells good… oh right, I can't smell."
"What's that shop selling? Why is there such a long line?"
"Oh hey, someone's arguing over there, let me go see…"
Su An floated over to the scene, listened for a moment, discovered it was just a vendor who'd given the wrong change, decided it wasn't interesting, and drifted back. Lapland had tracked him with her peripheral vision the entire time — watching him float around like an overexcited dog.
Finally, on the third street, Lapland stopped walking.
"Tired?" Texas asked.
"…No."
Lapland walked to an unassuming corner by the street where there was a stone block — just right for sitting down to rest.
Seeing that Lapland wanted to rest, Texas said nothing and instead went to ask the shopkeepers about Brunello City, gathering intelligence to better understand Siracusa.
Su An lagged behind in the distance, slowly drifting over. Lapland watched him, and on some strange impulse, said quietly: "Su An…"
Su An appeared in front of her instantly.
"Present!"
Lapland was startled by how fast he moved. She'd only called out softly — and he was already here? He'd been floating fifteen meters away watching the commotion just a second ago.
"…How are you so fast?"
Su An hovered before her with a smug, self-satisfied air, one leg crossed over the other in midair.
"Of course — always at your service."
Lapland looked at him, momentarily at a loss for words.
She stared at Su An's translucent face for a good while, then suddenly spoke:
"Su An, can you get a body?"
"Uh… why are you asking that?"
Lapland didn't answer. She just kept looking at him — that direct, unflinching, relentless stare. Su An fidgeted under her gaze and scratched his head. "Theoretically… yes."
"Theoretically?"
"It's a matter of Willpower, you know. Interfering with reality on my own takes Willpower, and conjuring a physical body out of nothing — that costs a serious amount."
"How much?"
Su An choked. Why was she suddenly so fixated on this?
"Uh… well…" The truth was, Su An wasn't particularly interested in having a body.
"I mean, having a body isn't all that great. Look at how free I am now — I float wherever I want, pass through walls, don't need to eat or sleep—"
"How much?"
Lapland cut him off.
Su An fell silent. He looked at her — those eyes staring straight at him, steady and unwavering, absolutely not letting it go.
"…A lot."
"Far more than all the wishes you've made before, combined."
Lapland was quiet for a few seconds.
"Then I'll make a wish."
"Huh?! Are you serious? Do you know how much Willpower that would take?!"
"Then first tell me how much it needs."
"Uh… roughly enough to off your dad—"
"Su An!" Lapland snapped, making clear she was in no mood for jokes.
"Okay okay okay, just make wishes to me every day and I'll let you know when there's enough. You'd better be prepared to wait."
Just then, Texas walked over holding two paper-wrapped packages. She watched Lapland talking to empty air, pausing, talking again, and asked:
"Is he talking to you?"
Lapland tilted her head toward her. "Yeah."
"What's he saying?"
Texas handed one of the packages to Lapland, who opened it to find a mille-feuille pastry. She took a small bite.
Su An immediately leaned in, his nose practically pressing against the pastry. "Give me a bite."
Then he opened his mouth toward the mille-feuille and made sounds: nom nom nom nom nom~
Naturally, he licked nothing but air — but it made the corner of Lapland's eye twitch. This guy was being insufferable again.
[illustration: Lapland looking deeply unimpressed]
Texas saw her peculiar expression and looked at the pastry in her hand. "Not good?"
"No, it's fine." Lapland took another bite. She glanced at Texas, then at Su An in the middle of his antics.
"He said your legs look great."
Su An: !!!
Texas: ???
Su An froze in place. "What the hell, Lapland — you're setting me up?!"
Texas's brow furrowed. She glanced down at her own legs, then back at Lapland. "What are you talking about?"
Lapland didn't answer right away. She looked in Su An's direction, and the curve of her lips grew wider and wider.
Funny.
God, this is so funny.
"I mean that ghost only I can see. He said the black stockings on your legs look great. He wants to lick them."
Su An hovered before her, the picture of shock and indignation. "You — you — you… this is slander! Defamation! When did I ever say any of that!"
Texas was silent for two seconds, her gaze sweeping over the empty air near Lapland.
"What is… he doing right now?"
Lapland glanced over at Su An, who was flailing about in midair, furiously denying everything.
"He's acting on it."
Texas went quiet. A distinctly peculiar expression crossed her face — the same one Lapland had worn just moments before.
She looked down at her legs again. Then looked back up at the empty air. Then asked one question:
"Can he actually touch anything?"
"No," Lapland answered.
"Then what's the point of licking?"
"Who knows. Probably just for the psychological comfort."
Su An drifted in midair, looking utterly done with the world.
"You two are something else…"
-------
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