Unlike the inn in Solmere, this one did not provide room service.
Jax noticed that immediately upon waking.
He lay still for a moment, staring at the ceiling while the slow rhythm of breathing surrounded him.
An arm draped across his chest.
A leg hooked over his waist.
Soft hair tickled his jaw.
Bodies pressed close—not in passion now, but in exhaustion earned the hard way.
The Crystal Cave was conquered.
The celebration afterward had lasted deep into the night.
And somewhere between victory and sleep, personal space had ceased to exist.
Carefully, deliberately, Jax began the delicate process of escape.
He moved like a thief breaking out of prison.
One arm at a time.
One leg at a time.
A blanket shifted.
Someone mumbled.
Jax froze.
Nobody woke.
He continued.
Several minutes later, he finally stood free.
Victorious.
For the second time in two days.
The Vixens remained completely unconscious.
Bunny was sprawled across nearly half the bed.
Nyxian somehow occupied the other half.
Zee and Llandra had become tangled together somewhere in the middle.
Jax wasn't entirely sure how.
He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know.
He dressed quietly and slipped downstairs.
The inn was already awake.
The receptionist looked up the moment he approached.
A gray-haired woman with sharp eyes and the expression of someone who had endured much and forgiven little.
She opened a ledger.
"Room 401."
Jax paused.
"Noise complaint."
She turned a page.
"Room 402."
Another page.
"Noise complaint."
Another.
"Room 403."
Jax winced.
"Noise complaint."
The receptionist flipped three more pages.
"The kitchen."
"...Noise complaint?"
"The kitchen."
She continued.
"The stable."
Jax blinked.
"The stable?"
"The stable."
She turned another page.
"One traveling merchant."
"..."
"Two guards."
"..."
"And someone who was walking past the building."
Jax rubbed his forehead.
The receptionist finally closed the ledger.
"We've received more complaints from your suite than we've received from the rest of the inn combined over the last six months."
Jax nodded solemnly.
"That's fair."
He slid four gold coins across the counter.
"We were tired."
The receptionist stared at him.
Then at the coins.
Then back at him.
Tired.
Her mind supplied several theories.
None of them were appropriate for professional discussion.
She pocketed the gold.
"Enjoy your stay."
Jax smiled.
"I intend to."
Outside, Crystalshire was already awake.
Workers moved through the streets.
Merchants prepared stalls.
Caravans arrived and departed.
And overhead, the mountain stood silent.
Its greatest challenge already conquered.
Jax wandered toward a nearby tavern and ordered breakfast.
A lot of breakfast.
Enough breakfast to feed a small army.
The cook took one look at the order and simply nodded.
As he waited, Jax listened.
The city was talking.
Not quietly.
"Those shadows worked all night."
"I saw them carrying crystal at dawn."
"I always thought necromancy was evil."
"So did I."
A pause.
"Still kind of do."
Another pause.
"But have you seen the warehouse?"
"Fair point."
Further down the counter, another conversation caught his attention.
"They cleared it in less than two days."
"My cousin says the Adventurer's Guild is sending someone to investigate."
"I heard a noble from Alexandria requested a copy of the raid report."
"Really?"
"That's what I heard."
Interesting.
News traveled fast.
Apparently faster than he'd expected.
By the time Jax returned to the inn carrying enough food to collapse a table, Crystalshire had already started turning the Vixens into local legends.
He opened the suite door.
Silence.
The women were still asleep.
Impressive.
Jax set the food down quietly.
Then walked over and opened the curtains.
Sunlight flooded the room.
Bunny groaned.
Nyxian hissed dramatically.
Llandra buried her face in a pillow.
Zee made a noise that suggested she wanted to negotiate with the sun.
Then Bunny accidentally looked outside.
And froze.
"...Jax."
"What?"
"There are people outside."
Jax walked over.
Looked down.
And immediately understood.
Children.
Dozens of them.
Standing across the street.
Watching the inn.
Waiting.
One of them spotted movement.
His eyes widened.
"THEY'RE AWAKE!"
Panic erupted.
The curtains slammed shut.
Bunny dove behind the couch.
Nyxian burst out laughing.
Llandra covered her face.
Zee looked genuinely confused.
"Why are there children outside?"
"Because you're famous," Jax replied.
That earned four identical looks of horror.
Half an hour later, they ventured outside.
The children immediately swarmed them.
Apparently, Crystalshire had developed something overnight.
The Vixen Effect.
One girl carried a toy bow and proudly announced she was Llandra.
Another had a wooden hammer nearly bigger than herself and insisted she was Bunny.
A third dramatically twirled a stick and declared herself Nyxian the Terrifying.
Nyxian nearly cried from happiness.
A fourth spent her time running around healing everyone.
She claimed to be Zee.
Several adults quietly thanked her for her service.
The entire thing was absurd.
And strangely heartwarming.
The rest of the day passed peacefully.
Pophov hadn't wasted a single moment.
The warehouse already operated in shifts.
Workers were being hired.
Teams were forming.
Processes were being established.
Crystalshire wasn't simply celebrating.
It was growing.
That pleased Jax more than any applause ever could.
By afternoon, he stood outside the warehouse watching shadows and workers move side by side.
No fear.
No resentment.
No exploitation.
Just people building something together.
This.
This was what he lived for.
Not glory.
Not fame.
Not being the strongest person in the room.
Building things.
Creating opportunities.
Giving people a chance to become more than they were yesterday.
Behind him, the Vixens approached.
Refreshed.
Smiling.
Happy.
The Crystal Cave was conquered.
The city was thriving.
And for the first time in a long while, everything felt calm.
Almost peaceful.
Almost.
Across town, Eldrich had not slept.
Three broken cups sat beside his workbench.
Twenty-seven pages of calculations covered the walls.
The giant Temporal Crystal Jax had gifted him glowed in the center of the room like a captured star.
The scientist stared at it.
Then at his equations.
Then back at the crystal.
A slow smile spread across his face.
The dimensional gateway was no longer a theory.
It was becoming a blueprint.
And if he was right...
The world was about to get much, much smaller.