The Innkeeper

What Lex had in mind was a little expensive, but that was alright. He could earn money again in the future, but if there was an issue with his cultivation then that was not really something he could easily overcome.

Moreover, once he was done with the wedding, he was intending on focusing on retrieving that special treasure on the rogue planet that the mysterious person had told him about in the Suera Galaxy. Treasure hunting was bound to be a profitable endeavor, right? With his many advantages, he did not expect so much trouble.

He walked into the emporium and was welcomed by the familiar presence of Powell. He seriously hoped that his guests found the Inn as helpful as he found the emporium, because it had helped him out of quite a few troubles.

"Ah, Lex, it's good to see you," Powell said enthusiastically. Oddly enough, he was not completely in his traditional uniform for the emporium. Instead, he was wearing a cardigan and had a pipe sticking out of his mouth, the smell of tobacco strong on him.

"It's good to see you too," Lex responded fondly. "I see life has been good for you recently. You've picked up a new hobby."

"Oh this?" he asked, pulling out the pipe and raising it proudly. "I recently got my hands on grade four Cookies and Cream flavored tobacco from Dunya. It's absolutely phenomenal, I highly recommend it. As for me, life is naturally very good. It has been that way for a while now, all thanks to you of course."

"Haha, I'm glad my spendthrift ways have benefited you. In that case, today should be a good day for you as well. I need a recommendation from you. I'm about to attend a wedding, but I don't have a gift yet. A lot of Earth Immortals will be there, but I want my gift to completely outclass anything they give, and make them envious to boot. But I'm not so good at gift giving. Any suggestions?"

"Suggestions? I have more than just a few," Powell said, suddenly sitting up straight. How convenient it was that his passion was to help his customers. It made him a good employee.

"Before I give you suggestions though, let me ask you a few questions. What is the race of the guest? And cultivation? If its a race with genders, then what's the gender? Does the recipient have a profession? Is this their first wedding? Do they have the ability to procreate, and if so, do they already have any kids? What kind of life expectancy are we looking at? Are there any food allergies that I should know about? What are the recipients' top three hobbies? During the wedding, is the recipient expected to complete any feats of great courage or honor? Does the recipient have an aversion to edible underwear? Does the…"

The questions Powell had were plentiful and quite thorough. Lex was not able to answer many questions, for example any that were pertaining to undergarments, but he at least knew that he did not intend on giving any kind gift of that nature!

It was at the end that he asked possibly the most important question of all: the budget! Placing a hand on his heart, Lex decided to go all out, as far as willing to trade even the teacup containing the law of femininity! Upon hearing this, even Powell was startled. This was no ordinary wedding present. The high cost Lex was willing to pay suddenly disqualified all the options Powell was considering.

At this price range, there were actually very few items they had at all worthy of exchange. But just because they were expensive did not mean they would make great wedding gifts, as a gift had to be suitable.

Wearing a serious expression Powell said, "Please allow me a moment to compile a list for you of suitable presents. Do you have a time restriction on delivery?"

"Yes, unfortunately I do not have long before the wedding begins. It will begin in approximately twenty hours."

"Another tough condition," Powell lamented before he diverted his attention to his tablet. Using his special access he had been given to be able to cater to Lex, he began looking through all their most precious items to see what was suitable.

Just as he started, his eyes fell onto a specific item the description of which startled him! Unable to restrain himself, he immediately showed the item to Lex whose eyes began to gleam.

"Yes, this will do quite nicely!"

*****

There was no dawn or dusk in the Crystal realm, and the hues of the sky all depended on the mood of the Sol birds. Yet as the day of the wedding dawned, the sky was painted with a brilliant orange and gold in the far horizon, as if a magnificent sun were rising!

Such an auspicious sight mesmerized even Lex, who was previously wishing his domain extended to the skies as well so that he may create a wonderful display. Yet, through some fortunate encounter, it happened on its own.

Lex quickly learned of the reasons: this was a rare occasion where a new flock of Sol birds was entering the territory of the ones who currently inhabited these lands. Moreover, the incoming flock was clearly more mature which could be seen by the brilliant display.

Lex, the Noel family, the Phillip family and all the others who had gathered for any reason at all considered this a sign of tremendously good luck, for anything associated with light in the Crystal realm was given great significance. After all, where there was light, there was life, and where there was darkness, there were monsters!

Taking one last glance at the sky, Lex crossed his fingers before returning to the matters at hand. While he himself had to focus on the impending meeting, he also had to ensure the wedding procedures would go along smoothly. To ensure everything would be perfect, he had one last meeting with Ash, the wedding expert he had sent here from the Midnight Inn.

As this was a union of two immortal families, especially two families subordinated to the royal family, there was a long sequence of traditional ceremonies that needed to be fulfilled.

The two families, and the bride and groom especially would be heavily involved at each step, though each family would have separate ceremonies.

Then a procession would begin where both families departed from separate locations, but met together at the final destination at the same time, which in this case would be the tavern. Then, a few more ceremonies would follow after which the two would officially be considered wed.

On this day, there would be no dancing or fighting or plays or fabulous displays until the wedding was concluded, and the town would adorn a solemn feel. Only after the two were wed would the celebrations begin!

During all this time, however, Lex would be busy with the meeting, which would start very soon.

"Rick, has Edward arrived?" he asked, referring to the representative of the monsters.

"Yes," Rick responded seriously. "To avoid any unnecessary troubles, he is staying deep within the sea for now. I will have to send the catfish to get him."

"Well send the fish. It's almost time."

According to what he had informed the two families, the meeting will begin the same time as the ceremonies which will be taking place in their respective residences. Every time one of the royal family members appeared, the same information was shared with them.

Edward was the first to arrive, since he was the only one who had directly contacted the Inn. He appeared in the same human form he took so long ago when he immersed himself in human civilization to increase his exposure and learn more about the realm.

He was extremely fair, to the point that he almost appeared pale, though that did not detract from his handsome appearance. He had crystal clear, bright blue eyes that mesmerized Naki, Nami and Nani when they saw him, and a gentle smile on his lips that made him seem mischievous.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Edward said politely when he finally met Lex, giving a soft bow instead of shaking hands.

"The pleasure is mine," Lex reciprocated. "I'm glad that you could make it. I'm sure your presence will add greatly to the meeting that we are about to have."

"I hope so, though I admit my being here might invite some trouble for you. The other races don't take fondly to monsters, though I do not blame them."

"The matter we are here to discuss is greater than individual interests. When they learn of the magnitude of what we face, they will be forced to set aside their personal grudges and work together."

"I sincerely hope that you are right," said a third voice, as a newcomer entered the room. Lex had, of course, already sensed his arrival inside the tavern.

"Cornelius," Lex acknowledged with a simple nod.

"Lex," the king of the Hum nation similarly simply nodded. "I have been looking forward to meeting you."