Inflame (The Completionist Chronicles Book 6) by Dakota Krout (best romantic novels in english TXT) 📕

The roof slammed shut, and a mail slot appeared in the door. A small envelope popped through, with an address and shop name on it. Joe opened the envelope and found a receipt for pickup inside. He looked at the door, then the sky somewhat guiltily, turned, and started on his way toward the shop’s address. “No rest today, it seems. Wouldn’t want a break after four hours of being squeezed by a golem, after all. Abyssal Dwarf, shouting at the sky.”

Joe grumbled the whole way to the shop, not even noticing how much attention he had gained in his exchange with Havoc. It had taken almost fifteen minutes for the city to get back to normal after the thunder and Havoc’s announcement that had followed. He stopped in front of the address that was on the paper, in front of what had to be the shabbiest shop in the District. “Odds and Ends? That was a franchise?”

He pushed the door open, surprised to be greeted by an older human lady who looked similar to the ancient woman that ran the shop down on Midgard. “Hello there, young man! Welcome to the Odds and Ends; are you browsing, or do you have a goal in mind?”

“I’m here for a pickup.” Joe held up the receipt, and it whisked out of his hand into hers. She read the paper and nodded serenely. Before she could say anything more, Joe had to ask, “By any chance, do you know the owner of the Odds and Ends on Midgard? You look very similar. I also didn’t realize there would be human shop owners here.”

She looked surprised for a moment, and then a smile washed over her face. “Just me, so far. Yes, I know her very well. She’s me, after all. Well… sort of. You can call me Minya, and let’s not get into the details too much. With enough reputation, you can own anything you want as a human, and the Bifrost has never held me back. I’m an Arcane Loot Lord, after all. As to this order… how well would you say you treat your enchanted gear?”

Joe met her level stare, and was pleased that he was able to use his knowledge of her from the previous Zone to get ahead in life here. Or, at least enough to avoid a serious blunder. “Well, it’s alive, so if it’s new, I treat it like I would a pet. Otherwise, if it’s older equipment, I try to treat it like a full-grown person.”

All of this was false; he had never treated his clothes as anything but clothes. Still, he resolved to try to do that going forward. Maybe if he met a ‘Minya’ in yet another Zone, she would be able to see if he was telling the truth. She clapped her hands a single time, and a wide smile appeared on her face. “Perfect! I was going to give you a warning, but it seems you had more than just a casual interaction with my… sister. She must have sold you something?”

“Repaired something!” Joe answered too fast, not technically lying. He didn’t want to try to explain that he had accidentally destroyed all of his previous enchanted gear.

“Is that so…? Well, this was a very odd order from sweet little Havoc, but there aren’t many cloth enchanters in the city. Or perhaps he thought you’d have an easier time with a human enchanter?” Minya looked at him sharply.

“Never even crossed my mind.” Joe’s brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what she was talking about. He didn’t even really dislike the Elves; he just needed to destroy them utterly and in every conceivable way. “Can I see what Havoc ordered? I need to get out and do some training as soon as possible.”

“Certainly.” She pulled out several boxes with a bright smile on her face. “Two rings, shirt, pants, socks, belt, gloves, and a facemask. It was a very… strange order. I’m happy to let you know that I was able to get all the requested options on them. Also, for this set, both socks count as a single item when worn together.”

“In what way was it strange?” Joe pulled the first box open and tried to look at what was inside, but Minya’s words caused him to curse Havoc out.

“First off, everything is a bright white. I thought that you might not want to be as visible in the wilderness, but Havoc told me that you needed to stop being so dark and… a word that means eight-grader syndrome? I forget the original word he used, but I remember the explanation.” She shook her head as Joe’s face flushed a bright red. “Then I asked, ‘why a facemask and not a hat’? Havoc insisted that the less often people could see your face, the better, so I assumed you were trying for a stealth build, but then we come back to the issue of it all being white…?”

Joe took a deep breath and resolved to attack Havoc the next time he saw the Dwarf. “It’s… fine. I actually can’t wear hats; I have a title that makes them burst into flames and destroys them. Can I look at the items real quick?”

She waved at him to go for it, so Joe opened the ring boxes first.

Illusion Breaker (Ring): adds a 20% chance every five seconds to break out of an illusion you are trapped in.

Exotic Ring (Ring): Adds 10% damage dealt when using an exotic weapon.

“He must have known that McPoundy wouldn’t just let me use a regular weapon, then?”Joe nodded excitedly as he put the rings on. They fit perfectly. Excited for what else the Dwarf had ordered, he pulled open the first clothing box and stared at the blindingly white shirt, then each piece in order as his teeth started to grind together.

Henley shirt of the Silkpants Mage. (Set Item). This fine shirt is intended to be worn as a