A few weeks passes and Ryuji was currently getting himself dressed as he and his parents were going out today. The sun looked like it was getting pretty low in the sky, but everyone was getting dressed in fancy clothes.
Jhene wore a beautiful style of clothing. She wore a white robe with patterns of black colored roses. Around her waist was a black sash, wrapped neatly around her.
While her clothes gave her a majestic and noble beauty, the curvature or rather maturity of her body couldn't be hidden. She looked like a sultry queen, but her icy blue eyes were sharp and nobody would look into them more than once.
On the other hand, Andrew simply looked like a menace. A pure black robe with navy blue branches reaching up from the bottom. He too wore a black sash across his waist and on his feet, he wore some wooden shoes with stubs at the bottom.
'I look like I'm in a family of Yakuza…' Ryuji thought as his mother placed the same shoes onto his feet.
"Mom, were did you guys get these clothes again?" He asked as he got up and straightened out his own navy blue robe.
"I know an elf that's good with this type of stuff." Jhena answered as she rubbed some butter over Ryuji's face.
She stood up and looked at him with a face that couldn't hold in her excitement. Ryuji was just too cute! His front locs was wrapped into a ponytail, showing off his sharp, yellow eyes.
His face still had baby fat, but you could tell he'd be handsome once he grew up. The robe he wore along with his features gave him a sharp look, just like the rest of his family.
"Oh, the rides here." Andrew said as he stepped to the side so the two can leave. He locked the door behind himself and turned towards the black and gold carriage that had stopped to pick them up.
Of course they caught the attention of the neighbors and those outside, but they never said much and only looked on in envy.
The carriage guide, opened the door for the family and Andrew tossed him a shiny coin as he got into the vehicle.
Taking a seat on the cushions, he sighed in relaxation.
"You guys still haven't told me what we're doing tonight." Ryuji huffed as he crossed his arms.
"Aww, even when you're mad, you're cute~" Jhene sad rubbing his face.
"C'mon mom…" He muttered.
"We're going to this Elven restaurant that just opened up. After that, we were just going to go sky gazing, near the edge of the city. It's usually nice around the time of night." Andrew explained.
"Ohh, Chase did say that it looked like there was going to be some big restrictions lifted on Elves and Dwarves in the near future." Ryuji mentioned.
"Well it's about time, honestly. The elves have so much that we can learn from! Their culture is so interesting!" Jhene added as she reminisced on the past.
For the rest of the ride, they quietly waited to reach their destination. Once they passed through the gate, they could tell that the new restaurant was pulling in lots of attention.
The roads were packed and there were many people on the sidewalks and in shops. Not wanting to get caught up in all the traffic, Andrew notified the driver that they would walk the rest of the way.
It wasn't too far and it felt good out tonight.
The family moved along the sidewalk as the restaurant was just up ahead.
"Who are they?"
"Are those elven clothes?"
"What house do they lead?"
"Doing all of that just to please the elves? Disgusting."
"I knew that kid was a noble!"
"Anyone know the parents?"
They walked, ignoring the words and stares of those around them and just as they were going past a corner, another group bumped into them from the other side.
Rubbing their heads with a pained expression, Arthur and Ryuji looked up and paused once they saw each other.
"I didn't think I'd run into you here tonight." Arthur said as he put his hand out.
"I didn't think I'd run into you at all." Ryuji joked as he grabbed his hand and shook it.
"Oh, let me introduce my family! These are my mom and dad." Ryuji said as he pointed to the two behind him.
Andrew and Jhene introduced themselves with Arthur's parents introducing themselves and their daughter.
"You guys headed to the opening today? I heard it's supposed to be quite good with a lot of different dishes." Arthur tuned.
"Yeah, I hope so. I can just tell it's gonna be crowded though." Ryuji replied, rubbing his neck.
"Right, then I won't hold you guys up. Cya around, Ryuji."
"Same to you."
…..
After parting ways with Arthur and his family, the Gardener family made it to the restaurant. It was a lavish building made of white marble and quartz. The design looked to be a mix of Roman and Indian architecture, with a domed roof and marbel support beams at the door.
"El Rosa Gardenia", was the name of this newly opened restaurant and at the door, an elven woman greeted them.
"May I get the name of your reservation?" She asked with a polite smile. Her eyes looked over their clothing and she couldn't help, but be envious for the high quality robes.
"The Gardeners." Flipping through her list, the woman drew something on the paper and let them pass the door.
As soon as they walked in, the smell of the food hit their noses more than the music going into their ears. The floor was covered in a red carpet with golden lining around its edges.
The tables and seats were made from trees deep within the Elshir forest. Looking around the restaurant, you'd be able to see the different mixes of culture it put together.
Along the walls and table cloths, dwarven styled inscriptions were seen on the edges. The instrumental that was being played, was composed from a human musician and played in front of the old king.
"Since everyone said it was an elven restaurant, I thought it'd be more 'elfish'." Ryuji voiced as he looked around.
"Hey there, I'm your waitress, Ellenora! You can follow me to your table and tell me what beverage you'd like!" The blonde-haired elf brimmed with passion as she sat the family down with menus.
'Wow, even the menus have such high quality drawings and paintings.' Ryuji thought as he flipped through the pages.
The family went on to order their drinks with Jhene requesting their Mojang tea, Andrew ordered a smooth wine called Zinfandel and Ryuji just ordered some grape juice.
As Ryuji looked around, he noticed the amount of looks his family was getting from others. Maybe it was their clothes and people thought they were catering to the elves.
Ryuji didn't care, but it was quite clear that there was some jelousy and simply spiteful energy in the air.
"Yuji, you can't just go glaring around like that~" Jhene said.
'Eh? Can you really be saying that right now?' He wondered as he looked upon his mother's cold smile.
"Yeah Yuji, sometimes you have to let people be jelousy so they know their place. There's some things they can have and some things that just aren't within their reach. They'll get over it." Andrew didn't try to lower his tone at all and let those that heard him listen.
It was clear that he had just insulted a select few people even if it was indirect. At the same time, those that felt offended knew they couldn't act out and risk losing face.
After all this is a restaurant, not a social gathering. Walking around to different tables would immediately get you kicked out if a ruckus is caused.
Time passed as the family enjoyed themselves and the food that was served to them. They chatted amongst themselves and even had a few glasses of wine while Ryuji seemed to have his mind somewhere else.
Once the time came for them to leave, the family was surprised to hear someone calling for them once they stepped outside.
Turning around, a man with a slim physique, brown parted hair and glasses was just behind them.
Looking at the man, Andrew hummed as he looked fairly recognizable.
"You're Vincent Helstea, right? It's a pleasure meeting you again." Andrew smiled as he shook Vincent's hand. He looked at Andrew with a strange expression, but his eyes suddenly widened once he looked between Andrew and Jhene.
"Ah, you guys sold me those old time relics back in the day! How have you been? It's been so long since then. What, about 23 years or so?" He beamed with interest and nostalgia.
He glanced down at Ryuji and his eyes seemed to light up.
"He looks just like you guys! So cute, just like my little Lilia~" He lulled with a blissful expression.
"This is our son, Ryuji. Say hi to my old friend Vincent. He's a very competent merchant here in Xyrus." Andrew expressed.
Ryuji looked up at Vincent, but rather than a salesman, he just looked like a doting father. Just like Jhene was a doting mother.
"Hey there, I'm Ryuji Gardener, but you can call me Yuji." He said as he stuck out his hand for a handshake, but he was simply too small and it looked quite comical.
Vincent laughed as he got to one knee. "So mature for your age! I wish my Lilia wasn't so shy~" he mentioned as he looked behind him.
A few tables back from the door, the rest of his family sat at a table.
"Oh, how did you guys like it here? I'm sponsoring the restaurant for the time being, but eventually they won't need it." Vincent smiled.
Ryuji could tell that he was a good man and it seemed like he was rather happy that the races were beginning to integrate more.
"The food and beverages were amazing, especially the elvish wines. Jhene may have wanted to buy a bottle for the house." Andrew jokes.
"Heh, I thought I saw you nudge her to ask the waitress though…" Vincent chuckled.
Andrew could only avert his eyes as Jhene laughed with Vincent.
"Oh, I meant to ask. The tailor for your clothes today did an amazing job! Me and my family wanted to know if we could get the information on that person?" He asked with eager eyes.
"Unfortunately, this was a gift to us before she left the business behind for her health. Although these are clothes of Elf fashion, the tailor was a very sickly human." Jhene said with a pitiful expression.
"I see, it's rather unfortunate considering how amazing you guys look. Ah, I won't hold you guys up any longer! It was nice seeing you guys again! You should come to the Auction being held in a few months, it's sure to be a grand event!" He voiced as he went back inside the restaurant.
With that, the family began to walk away from the restaurant and continue with their evening.
….
"See, most people don't like looking over the edge, but it's not so bad." Jhene noted as she leaned against the rail and smiled.
Ryuji looked at the clouds passing below them and down at the continent, thinking of how small everything is.
'It's similar to the view from a plane.' He thought, reaching his hand past the rail, it stopped as it came in contact with the magical wall setup along the edges of the city.
"If the wall wasn't there, people would fall off left and right. Although it is possible to simply jump over it." Andrew mentioned as he looked up to where he thought the edge was.
"Hey don't go trying to get him to follow in your shoes!" Jhene shouted.
"There's no way dad actually jumped the wall." Ryuji said in disbelief.
"He did and if it weren't for me, he'd be in a Frost Giant's stomach! Maybe I should've just let him fall into that ravine after all." Jhene sighed.
"Eh? I'd be dead though…" Realizing what she said, Jhene hugged Ryuji, claiming he was the only good thing Andrew gave her in life.
While it seemed harsh to Ryuji, he peeked at his dad and saw him smiling away them.
"Hey there, mind if I take a picture?" A random man asked as he set up his camera.
There was a flash of light from the crystal implanted into the object and moments later, the man carefully removed some paper from the machine.
A picture of Ryuj sitting on Andrew's shoulder while he also had Jhene pulled closely to him was handed to them.