The air was crisp and clean as he tread upon the streets of Nisshoki. Though he had missed the blossoming of the trees following the end of the frost, the trees were now verdant with developing fruit. Having lived within the confines of a forest, the sea was something new to him and he enjoyed the view the coastline had to offer. Banners with the signature blue sun fluttered in the wind, like kites on strings. Cymbel had heard of the silk produced by the empire, as it was a staple of courtly clothing. What he wanted to see today was not fabric, but other crafts famous to the region.

The food stalls were busy preparing for the noontime rush, and the delicious smells made his mouth water. It was tempting not to have dessert before lunch. To take his mind off of food, he browsed the artisan's corner of the market. The local pottery was exquisite, with delicate patterns and fineness of grain. The colors were elegant but simple, not overwhelmingly bright or intricate like others. Depictions of nature were a popular subject in their paintings, and it was amazing how a few strokes of a brush became a bird, a tree, or a mountain. He had put on a new disguise for today; this one being that of an Adelunian commoner. He had made his hair brown instead of blond, as it would make him stand out less and help him blend in from a distance. His eyes fell on a lovely tea set with pink plum blossoms set against a glossy pearl white glaze. It was traditional, but it reminded him of the ink paintings he saw earlier. 

A few stalls away, there was a shout of surprise followed by giggling. A tourist ran out of a shop with a look of fright while a small figure clad in a red kimono peeked out from behind the door holding a sleeve to her mouth. The next sound was of a folded paper fan lightly rapping against the child's head, held by a taller figure dressed as the shopkeeper. "Oi, cut it out Myouga! Quit scaring the customers! What's going to happen if one of them faints and blacks out on the floor or has a heart attack?! Seriously, I swear…" The smaller figure in the red kimono pouted while covering her head with her long sleeves. "Aww… Yabashiraaa–I didn't even scare him that much, I mean I just whispered behind him and blew in his ear. How was I supposed to know he couldn't tell the difference between a kimono mannequin and me? Besides, won't your shop become famous if there's rumors that it's haunted by a ghost? People'll come just to see me scare them silly and you'll get more business!" 

The taller oni furrowed his brow and groaned in frustration as he covered his eyes with a hand. "That's not how it works! I'm trying to run a dry goods shop here–not a tourist attraction! The shop's in the middle of a busy street in the commercial district and there's a school for priests and ascetic monks two blocks down. Nobody would believe the place is haunted if there are exorcists eating lunch at the ramen restaurant right across the street!" After being unceremoniously kicked out of the shop for the day, Myouga wandered around looking for something fun to do while she waited for her friend's anger to simmer down. Passing by a dango stand she bought three skewers of mitarashi dango, then picked up some red bean daifuku at another food stall, and finally ended with a roasted squid on a stick. Within the span of twenty minutes the dango and daifuku were eaten, and she was one third of the way through the savory seasoned squid's chewy goodness.

Seeing what she assumed to be another tourist dithering before some pottery, she stood next to him while munching away loudly on her food. "…You should pick this one." She said, pointing to a white porcelain set with black calligraphy and a mountain landscape. "The details are more delicate and the color is more consistent."

Cymbel had been completely engrossed in thought when a voice suddenly came from beside him. He jolted, looking around until he noticed a small child next to him. Putting a hand over his heart he breathed a sigh of relief. He nervously checked if all of his things were accounted for, worried if he had been pick-pocketed. "Oh, by the gods! I didn't expect someone to show up out of the blue." He examined the tea set the girl pointed out and looked at the details in the glaze carefully. The color was smoother, and the lines more distinct. It was less faded than the other blue glazed designs, and the grain was more consistent too. "You're right, the quality is much finer. How would you normally tell for the lacquer ware sets then?" He gestured to the red and black bowls and trays.

He was genuinely interested, as had been considering making this place his new home. In the past he had thought of buying an estate in Adeluna, putting as much distance  between him and his place of his birth, however there was something serene about Ataiyo that made him reconsider. Arri was beautiful, however the strong sun there would make living there difficult. Endapano was mainly inhabited by elves, which were polite towards tourists but had different ideas on those choosing to take permanent residence. Egjora was too cold for him, and stifling. Karith made him feel uneasy with being suspended above the ground, and he personally preferred living close to civilization. Iria would have fit his requirements well, if it weren't directly west of Feeorin. He didn't want to run the risk of 'accidentally' meeting someone from there. 

That reminded him, he needed to see what properties were currently for sale to compile a list of prices and locations. It would be much easier to buy land with preexisting structures built on it, than hire workers to start from scratch. He could always make renovations and additions later once he had ownership. Nisshoki was a bustling city, thus finding work wouldn't be too difficult. He would have to prepare a new pseudonym for himself here as well to use when needed. 'Cielben Lambrey' wasn't exactly going to fit in with the locals.

"Hmmm….I'm no expert but if you want a good dining set it depends on what kind you're buying. Generally it needs to be smooth, shiny with even-coating, and solid color. The more layers painted on, the better. Oh and it has to be waterproof. That's how you tell if it's good or not, but by then you've kinda already wasted your money. Do you want just plain wood, or the black and red ones? Some of those have gold inlay and gold flakes that make it really pretty!" Myouga was quite proud that she was inadvertently boosting another merchant's business. She was proud to be a citizen of Nisshoki, and if it meant introducing a tourist to finding some of the best wares–then so be it.

She put her hands on her hips, beaming a smile of confidence. The buyer would go back happy and the merchant would make a sale. A perfect win-win situation. Resuming her gnawing on the rest of her roasted squid, she looked at the items the man was planning to buy. "You're buying an awful lot of stuff for a visitor. Think you can carry it all back home?" A tea set and a dining set would be a tight squeeze for that backpack of his, even if it was completely empty. Unless it was a magical backpack, then you could put as much as you wanted. She really would love to have one of those. It'd make camping so much easier! She once asked what would happen if you put an enchanted storage box inside another enchanted storage box, but the other scholars shushed her and said not to ask ridiculous questions. She even tried to do it herself, but then that accident happened removing her rights to accessing magical objects.

"Ah, I see. Thank you for your advice. The lacquerware sets are certainly an excellent combination of functionality and beauty. I'll have to make sure I buy one the next time around." Looking over a set with the traditional red and black, he tilted the tray as the flecks of gold glittered in the light. There were so many things that he wanted to buy, but first he should focus on obtaining a home to bring them back to first. It would still be there when he came back to it next time, he told himself. When the child then asked him on whether or not he was capable of carrying his purchases back home, he stopped himself from saying yes. How careless of him to say so; surely then the girl would follow up with a question on where his residence was. He no longer had a place in Feeorin ever since he had stolen away in the night. This place would be his home now.

"…Perhaps it would be too much. The tea set it is then." After exchanging his coin with the vendor, he put his new purchase away safely into his travel bag.  Looking around at the beautiful streets and well-kept cherry trees, he let out a sigh. "This city is certainly beautiful. I wouldn't mind staying here for a while…" Watching the citizens and travelers walk through the streets, the sweet smell of something lingered in the air. Out of the corner of his eye he saw several locals standing in line before a food stall selling soft cakes and fish-shaped bread. "What are those things over there?" He asked the girl, pointing towards the stall in question. "I've never seen anything quite like it."

Myouga was back to eating her squid when the man pointed at the taiyaki stand a few shops down. They had the best red bean filling in all of the stands selling sweets here, and she would know–she bought from every stall in the market at least once a month. Seeing the man take notice of that particular stand was an interesting sight. Perhaps he had a sweet tooth? Not to turn down an opportunity to buy more taiyaki, she enthusiastically explained the finer points of the local desserts. "Oh so you like sweets, do you mister? That place sells taiyaki and daifuku. The daifuku are the squishy white things with fillings inside, and the fish-shaped sweets are called taiyaki. They're both filled with a sweet red-bean paste inside, and they're soooo good! You should get one! You can't visit Nisshoki without at least eating some! Come on!"

Grabbing the man's arm, she pulled him towards the growing line in front of the stall. There were several stacks of freshly-made taiyaki waiting to be eaten, and soft daifuku sitting next to them. The man looked a bit embarrassed, but she didn't see why he should be. There were some young women buying a box of daifuku at the front of the line, and even a farmer was standing in line too. Everybody loved daifuku and taiyaki. And there were even more sweets that could be found in the other parts of the market too. Myouga eagerly waited as the line went forward, with coin purse in hand. She wanted to eat an entire box, but she'd already had too much sugar for the day. But if she split it with the tourist she had dragged with her, it should be alright. 

"Wait I-" His words were cut off as he was being dragged over towards the food stall he had looked at moments ago. The little girl was determined to have him taste one, despite his protests and struggling. Feeling incredibly self-conscious from her antics, he ended up going along in hopes that people would stop looking in his direction. If it weren't for the fact he was under a glamour spell right now his entire face would be red as a rose from embarrassment. While waiting in line in front of the stand, he saw the man behind the counter pour batter into fish-shaped metal molds over a fire. He then scooped a a large handful of cooked sweetened red beans with a ladle and placed it in the middle of the batter, then covered the pile with another dousing of batter until the entire shape of the tail fin was filled. Covering the baking pastries with the other half of the mold, the food stand owner flipped the mold over the fire a few times until it was fully cooked. Once they were golden brown, he lifted the freshly-baked taiyaki into a piece of clean cheese cloth to cool. He then took out several of the small, soft rice cakes called 'daifuku' and put them in a box for the pair of women at the front of the line.

The smell of the sugar of the red beans and the baked pastry batter made his mouth water, but he resisted. He didn't know how the girl had assumed that he would like this, but indeed they were his weakness. He was surprised to see other adults in line to purchase the confections too. It seemed that enjoying sweets was something culturally acceptable for adults here, not just exclusively for children. Once it was their turn, he watched the stand owner take a piece of steamed sticky rice and fold it around a ball of sweet red bean paste. They came in different colors, from plain white to green to even pink. Lightly powdered on top, they looked as soft as pillows. When asked what he would like to buy, he was interrupted by the girl who wanted two plain daifuku and two taiyaki. Before he could speak his mind, the man was already preparing two taiyaki in the molds with batter and red bean filling ready. Cymbel hoped that the girl wasn't planning on having him pay for something he didn't ask for.  

"Two taiyaki and two plain daifuku please!" Myouga was getting impatient, her eagerness being expressed though her fidgeting. She had ordered two of each so she could split it with the tourist–one for her and one for him. Initially she had thought of just buying only one of both, but eating only half wouldn't do the desserts justice. Besides, she'd probably inhale the whole daifuku in a single bite anyway. "Two taiyaki and daifuku, plain–coming right up." The little arcanist's eyes shone with delight as she watched the process of baking the taiyaki, one she had seen a thousand times before. She could taste the soft, fluffy texture of the breading and the sweetness of the red beans just before they melted on her tongue. As the stand owner wrapped the taiyaki and boxed two plump, white daifuku she only thought about taking a bite into the soft and chewy texture of the mochi. When her items were ready, she fished out money for the entire thing and set the coins on the far side of the counter as she took the warm packaged pastries in her other.

"Ahh I can't wait! Let's dig in! Think of it as my treat for your first time visiting!" Leading the visitor over to a nice shady spot beneath a tree, she took one daifuku from the box and stuffed it into her mouth. As she savored the sticky sweet her eyes were closed in utter bliss. "Mmmmm! It'sh sho' good…" It took a while for her to get the rest of the mochi off some of her teeth before moving on to the taiyaki. Taking a large bite out of the fish pastry's head, steam came out from within as the bite revealed the delicious red bean filling inside. Eating tasty food in the shade of a tree in good weather was the best.

Cymbel was thankful that he wasn't going to be left hanging to foot the bill. He watched the man repeat the same methodical process of making the taiyaki and noticed how fixated the girl was while waiting for the order. By now he had realized that her motivation for the sudden act of generosity was because she wanted to eat some herself. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about that. Again he was strung along as she led them to the shade of a large cherry tree with its branches a glossy green. By the size of the trunk, he estimated it was at least fifty years old. Nisshoki was well-known for their famous cherry trees, especially when they were full of beautiful delicate blossoms after Glaciem's chill. Taking one of the fish-shaped pastries, he held it in his hands while he watched the girl shove an entire mochi-covered red bean ball into her mouth chewing vigorously. It was amusing how she made it seem like the most delectable treat in the world–with eyes closed as if she were in rapture. He briefly wondered if she had an arrangement with that particular food stand, where she would help the man bring in more customers and advertise his wares in exchange for special deals. Even if that were not the case, she certainly knew how to make something so ordinary extremely appealing.

Taking a bite from the top of the fish's 'head' he tasted the softness of the red beans and the sweet sugar they were cooked in. The breading wasn't oily, and surprisingly fluffy. For something so simple it was a taste one wouldn't get tired of having. No wonder it was so popular among the locals. Halfway through his taiyaki he saw the girl was already finished with the daifuku and tearing into her own pastry. It was almost incredible how quickly she devoured them all. He swore he saw her glance at the single remaining daifuku in the box as the last piece of the taiyaki's breaded tail disappeared into her mouth, but she didn't try to eat any more. He took his time in enjoying the desserts, and found the daifuku to be a bit difficult to eat. The outside was sticky and stretched when he tried to bite into it. Pulling and tugging, a piece finally broke free and now it was stuck to the roof of his mouth. Eventually, he finished it and rinsed his mouth with a sip from his canteen. He could get used to flavors like this. "They're delicious. Very unique, but still every bit as enjoyable as the flaky honey pastries I've had in Endapano. Thank you for sharing with me."

"Not a problem! After all what would a vacation in another city be without trying the food? There's tons of other sweets and candies too, but if I tried to show you all of them it'd take the whole day. If you're planning on staying for a few more days, why not go look around the districts? There's lots of fun things to do everywhere. Oh don't worry, I'm not gonna drag you around again." Myouga grinned, poking fun at the man's unease when she mentioned sightseeing. "Say, do you wanna know what daifuku are made of? Bet they don't have stuff like this where you come from. The sticky outer part is made of rice that's pulverized and steamed until it turns into paste. It's called 'mochi'! Mochi's an ingredient in looots of snacks here. You can even flavor it by itself. There's pink ones, plain ones, green tea ones… Anyway, I better stop talking before I get hungry again."

The position of the sun in the sky made the tree's shade change direction, so Myouga scooted closer. The temperature was starting to heat up lately, as Terra was moving into Ignius. She couldn't wait to go out in straw sandals without socks and eat ice-cold watermelon under the shade of an awning. Cold jelly desserts and flavored ice made from fresh fruit were the highlights of Ignius' seasonal delicacies. Her favorite flavored ice was the cherry and mango with sweet red beans and matcha tea jelly cubes. "…Jelly cubes…Whoops, almost went to candy-land again. I'm going to let you go now, I think you've had enough of me for one day! I know my friend says he's had enough of me for a lifetime. Have a good day mister, and watch your purse carefully!"

Jumping up, she dusted her kimono off and waved before skittering off into the marketplace again. Today was a fun day, even after Yabashira threw her out of his store for the fifth time this month. She found somebody nice to talk to and bug while waiting for her childhood friend's temper to cool down. Myouga almost walked back in his store to tell him about her day when she remembered she was supposed be avoiding him. Silly her, eating sweets with somebody had been so fun that she had nearly forgotten. Stopping by the stalls selling goldfish, she skipped away when she failed to see any new breeds in stock. It was the same old common ones, lionheads, Tosakins, and fantails. Opening a portal she returned to her house hidden in the bamboo thickets, ready for a relaxing bath.