"Thalen? Was the service not as satisfactory as I had expected it to be?" The green-haired man kept up his forced smile. He acted as if Rani was not sniffing in pain on the floor next to him, forcing her out of his vision.
I looked at him with deep disgust, realising the type of cold and ruthless people they could be. He clearly did not care for the woman who supposedly worked for him, who was obviously suffering. He still did not look at me. I could not help but scoff loudly at his amusing display of forced professionalism.
"The people here are crazy. One treats me like a threat, and the other acts like I do not even exist." I sit back down, tired from leaning on my one good leg, "Is there no other place to go? Do we have to get the clothes here?"
"Well, they have the best fabrics, the only place that holds lotus silk," Thalen explained softly as he held my hand and brought it up to his lips, softly placing a kiss on the back of my hand. "I just want the best for you."
"I am sorry if I can help right any wrongs. I would be happy to help." Suddenly realising my position, the green-haired man swifly turned his attention to me, giving me a little bow of apology. "I get pretty busy, so I may come off as standoffish, but I assure you I will do my best for you, Miss?"
He looked up at me with a sad expression of manufactured pity, then dramatically lowered his eyes and furrowed his brow before maintaining eye contact with me again. A chill went down my spine, instantly releasing the tactic he was playing. He was exploiting his handsome looks to try to sway my anger with them, hoping to gain pity and convince me to get Thalen to overlook this mishap, as well as myself.
"Ughhh!" I could not believe people like this even existed. "Seriously, Thalen, what is so special about lotus silk anyway?"
Hearing this, the green-haired man quickly went up the stairs and returned with two different fabrics, one in white and the other in blue. Without a thought, he draped it over my shoulder and beamed.
"These are the lotus silk fabrics, miss. As you can see, it's definitely worth it to shop from my store." The green-haired Han was desperately trying to change my mind.
The smooth and lightweight touch of the fabric felt comfortable. It shone with a natural lustre as it softly draped on my shoulder. As he smoothed the fabric, pressing it against my skin on my neck, I began to feel swayed.
"Kavian, I suggest you stop touching my mate like that. I am giving you the benefit of the doubt due to our long friendship." He glared at the hand which was pressing the fabric on my neck, "Also, get that girl out of here. Watching her cry is annoying me."
Kavian quickly drew back his hand with an overwhelmed smile, "Of course, I apologise. I will make sure something like this never happens again." he was looking visibly stressed. "Still, we need Rani to measure her Thalen. Let her do that before she leaves, alright?"
Rani was still grabbing onto her neck, sniffling from the trauma. She pieced herself up and slowly tried to get close to me to continue with the measurement. Every movement Thalen made made her flinch. Having had enough of this, Thalen grabbed the rope out of Rani's hands, making her squirm.
"Get out, I will do it myself." Thalen turned to me and held my arm, starting to measure me. Rani took this chance to run out of the door frantically, not wanting to be in the same room as Thalen.
Now, with her gone, Thalen continued with the measurement. First the arms, then the legs, calling out the measurements to Kavian. He then moved onto my waist, kneeling down, and he closed in on me, wrapping his arms around me.
The sudden closeness made me nervous. I didn't know where to look. As his face got closer to mine, I instinctively looked up instead. Then, making his way up to measure my bust, the rope pressed against my breasts as I could feel his breath on my neck as he called out the measurements. I could not help but gulp and then look down at him.
He was looking back at me with the golden eyes, as if he knew I was going to look back down at him. Panicked, I turned away from him again; his time, my face was red in colour. He stared at my cheeks, turning crimson, and felt satisfied with my reaction.
Finally, as he finished the measurements, every single part of my body that he touched felt as if it were burning. Thalen spoke with Kavian for a while longer, choosing different outfits and occasionally glancing over at me.
"Ivy, do you have a colour preference? I will get some basic clothes for now, and the rest will be custom-made." Thalen was holding onto a couple of robes, which looked like hanfu.
"White..." I answered, "But make nothing expensive for the white, since the blood will be stained all over time.
Kavian was shocked to hear such statements come out of my mouth. He looked at my small stature and could not even think of someone like me killing anything.
"Miss Ivy seems to be very enthusiastic about hunting." Kavian raised a brow with doubt in his voice.
"No, she is not a hunter. She is a healer." Thalen proudly stated, grinning.
"Not if I am in this building any longer. I'm not sure about you, but I find the smell unbearable. Please, can we go now? My leg is already throbbing. I don't need to add to the discomfort." I grunt as I shuffle, trying to find a comfortable position. Still, the stitches are pulsating, and the throbs have been getting more intense by the hour.
What I would do to get some painkillers... wait, I got some paracetamol! I will have to wait till I go back to the clinic for some clean water.
Visibly seeing my face scrunch up with pain, Thalen picked up one of the robes and instructed Kavian to leave the room momentarily. He tugged on the fabric belt, letting my robe come loose. I struggled as I tried to remove the clothing without exposing myself. I slipped out of my arms, still holding onto the clothes to cover my bare body underneath.
"If you keep making this longer than it needs to be, Kavian may walk back in." He picked up the fabric rope that held my robe together and then placed it around his eyes. "Is this better for you?"
"Y-yes. Thank you." I sighed with relief, but instantly regretted that thought.
Even with his eyes covered, he faced me as if he could see me. Watching him blindfolded made me feel a bit heated up. The effects intensified as he gently lifted my leg and removed the clothing, then put on the new one, his grip on my bare skin. My heart beat louder the longer he held onto me.
The new robe was made from crude fabric that was slightly coarse and stiff, but felt quite breathable. After a couple of excruciating minutes that felt like hours, I was finally dressed. The clothes fit me properly this time, and as Thalen took off his blindfold, he couldn't help but scan my body like the beast he was.
The way the fabric belt tied around my waist accentuated my breasts, and being shaped for a female, it exposed the figure that the oversized clothes were hiding all along. Thalen could not help but want to devour me with his eyes, wishing to do more.
A wince as I looked down at my thigh got them thinking more rationally. Thalen cleared his throat, pushing down the burning feeling inside him, and lifted me up. "Ok, let's go meet Luman."
Thalen called back Kavian to pay him for all the pieces he had bought and ordered. Seeing me in my new attire, Kavian could not help but look shocked. He had not expected me to be a full-grown adult as he leered at the shape of my body. The women in this world were very tall, even Rani, which made his shock valid.