As the local town guard was left to deal with the cleanup of the bazaar and taking the crazed man into custody once his strength magics wore off, Lina, Naga, and their generous benefactor had made their way to a local restaurant to fulfill their impromptu contract. After settling down at a table and ordering drinks, the girl’s eyes shot open in disbelief as the sorceresses ordered plate after plate of expensive food, knowing that the eventual bill would cost her a hefty sum. Apprehensive that saying “No” to the magic users would be out of the question, the girl simply let out another sigh of defeat and ordered herself the cheapest item on the menu - a children’s lunch set - hoping to offset the overall cost somewhat by lowering her impact towards the final check. 

“Man, I can’t believe how many great types of food you guys have here in Riesenfalle!” Lina exclaimed, her words garbled as she gnawed on a large slab of grilled meat. 

“I can’t say it’s the best I’ve ever had, but it’s not the worst either,” Naga complimented in her own way, feasting upon a similar dish as both women stuffed their faces with as much food as they possibly could. “Still, it certainly is rather delicious.” 

“Ehehe…” the girl blushed, unsure of how to respond without possibly drawing the ire of the powerful women while in the midst of their food binging. “Eat as much as you like. It’s… on… me…” she continued, barely able to get the last words out of her mouth, practically choking on her own voice. These two are going to empty my bank account at this rate! 

“Will do!” the traveling duo affirmed simultaneously, voraciously consuming everything in front of them without a moment’s hesitation. 

The young girl was left to helplessly watch Lina and Naga devour plate after plate of food with no signs of stopping, their stomachs seemingly bottomless as they ordered second and third helpings of meals without skipping a beat. As the amount of dishes at the table continued to pile higher and higher, the girl’s fears of bankruptcy grew all the more real as she mentally calculated the rising cost of the bill - they had already eaten enough to feed a modest family for a week in a single visit! A satisfied belch from the younger magus seemed to be a sign from the heavens that some divine figure had taken mercy upon her; Naga, too, had slowed her consumption pace down to a crawl as both women’s hunger seemed to now be mostly sated. Oh thank goodness! she mentally cheered, hoping that her nightmare would soon come to an end. Maybe I might actually have a few coins left over if they don’t order anything else… 

“Ahhh! I’m feeling stuffed!” Lina proudly touted, patting her belly with a satisfied grin. “Thanks for the meal there, uh… Hey, what was your name again?” 

“You know, I don’t believe we asked,” Naga corrected, looking towards the young girl. 

“Oh, right. I didn’t tell you, did I?” the girl meekly confirmed. “With everything going on, it kinda just slipped my mind, you know? Anyway, my name is Erinn Vastonia. I really can’t thank the both of you enough for-” Erinn paused mid-sentence as she looked over towards Lina, the young sorceress suddenly choking on her food, giving her cause for alarm. “Oh my! Miss Lina, are you alright?” 

Pounding on her chest to make sure her airway would be properly cleared, the fiery-haired sorceress managed to free the obstruction in her throat with a hard swallow, wasting no time in voicing her surprise. “Wait, you can’t be serious. You said your name’s Erinn Vastonia, right?” Lina inquired. “Which means you’re the daughter of Linus Vastonia? The Linus Vastonia?!” 

“Who is that? I’ve certainly never heard about them before in my life,” Naga blinked, becoming more invested in their client’s family history. 

“Are you kidding, Naga? Linus Vastonia is a living legend!” 

“Well, I don’t know about the whole ‘living legend’ part, but yes, that is indeed my father,” Erinn admitted, confirming Lina’s assumption. “He’s one of the-” 

“He practically wrote the book on modern-day body-altering magics!” Lina interjected. “How could you not tell us you were related to one of the greatest mages of our time?!” 

“Oh, um, well… I guess because, to me, he’s just my father. You really don’t think about the whole popularity aspect of it when you’ve lived with them all your life.” 

The revelation that a random stranger they had saved from certain doom was related to such a renowned figure was quite the stroke of serendipity for the wandering pair. While Naga still seemed to be somewhat oblivious as to the breadth of his talents and the feats of magecraft that had made him known across several circles in the magical community, Lina saw this as a chance to profit for her own personal gain. 

I can’t believe it! Who’da thought we’d end up rescuing Linus Vastonia’s daughter while we were just passing through his home turf?! Hmmm… I have a great idea! the feisty magician thought as she began to scheme. Erinn still owes us for saving her life and all that, so the way I figure it is that the least she can do is let us spend the night at her place too. We meet up with the guy while he’s doing… whatever it is he’s up to these days, and while Naga’s off doing whatever, I’ll get him to teach me one of his super-secret spells as thanks for saving his kid’s life! I wonder if he knows any sorta spells that could make my chest larger? Maybe even permanently too, even bigger than Naga! I can just see it now: standing over Naga’s bed as she wakes up and showing off a chest that’s bigger than hers... 

“Heeeeeeeeey Errrrrr-inn! Buddy!” Lina smiled, her tone suddenly changing to sound much more amicable as she stood up from her chair and walked over to her new friend, draping her right arm around the young woman’s shoulder once she was close enough to her. “So I was thinkin’... We did pretty much save ya from getting turned into mincemeat and all earlier today, and I don’t think a meal is really thanks enough, don’t you think? Since Naga and I don’t really have a place to stay tonight, how about we stay the night at your place, huh? You do that and we’ll call ourselves even.” 

“Hmmm… Yes, I approve of that plan, Lina Inverse,” Naga nodded in agreement to the proposed arrangement. “We’ll stay the night at Erinn’s and consider it done. To be honest, I’m rather curious about meeting this supposedly famous father of yours,” she admitted, turning towards the Riesenfalle native and looking her square in the eyes. “If he’s even a fraction of the man he’s being made out to be, then it certainly could be quite the interesting experience.” 

“Well, I-” 

“Then it’s settled!” Lina immediately chimed in, confirming the accord without the third party’s consent. “Heh, thanks for the generous offer there, Erinn. Who knew you locals were so kind-hearted when it came to paying off your debts?” 

Someone please kill me… Erinn mentally lamented, letting out a depressed sigh at her current lot in life. “I… I guess it’s alright. But, well… my father really hasn’t been himself for the past few years,” she explained. “He’s perfectly fine, really, but… He just really hasn’t been practicing his magics as much as he used to. It’s… kinda hard to explain, but maybe it’s better to just see it for yourself. If you both are done eating, we can go there now if you wish.” 

“I’m sure it’s not as bad as you say it is,” Naga spoke, crossing her legs in her chair in the meanwhile. 

“Yeah, I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Lina nodded, letting go of Erinn and dismissing her worries. “Anyway, I think we’re good to go, so Naga and I will wait outside while you handle the check.” 

“The… The check?” Erinn froze as she watched Naga rise from her seat, the two sorceresses exiting the restaurant together and leaving her to fend for herself. “Oh, that’s right… The… check…“ A waiter soon approached the young girl and handed her a small slip of white paper, causing her eyes to broaden in complete shock as she took in the cost of all the food her saviors had consumed in a single meal. How… How did they eat all this?! Did they practically order everything on the menu?! she panicked, clutching her coin purse tightly in her other hand, knowing she would have to reluctantly pay the exorbitant bill from her own coffers. Why must my life be so terrible…? 

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