My (Monster?) Hero Life

Chapter 254: Secret Wealth

The familiar voice stirred something deep within Kace. The best way he could describe it was that he felt like he only just realised that he had missed the sound of that voice. Kace turned his head towards the source, only for his heart to skip a beat. 'Sophia.' The vampire princess was not currently wearing her usual armour.

Instead, Sophia wore a light blue outfit that looked to be made of soft, thin fabric. The top half of the outfit cut off before her belly, exposing its flat surface to all. The top also left her shoulders and arms revealed while being thicker around her chest. The baggy trousers were thicker around her waist and upper thighs, before becoming so thin, Kace could easily see her long, slender legs through the material.

Her silver hair had been tied into a low hanging braided ponytail that reached her waist. Kace had to admit that the contrast of the dress against her pale skin made her look stunning. She had the widest smile on her face as she raced towards him, making it evident that she was glad to see him. Kace was so taken in by her appearance that he almost failed to react when she threw herself into his arms to give him a hug.

"What took you so long!" She pouted as she pulled herself away from him.

"Sorry about that. There were a few things I had to deal with." Kace managed to sound calm despite the furious thumping of his heart. "Have you seen the others?"

"Hm? Be that way then. Others?" Her eyes turned to Shadow beside him. "Isn't it just Grugda?"

Kace silently swore to himself. Of course, she would only be expecting the three of them to come. He was also confident that one of them would spill the beans that he had been laid up recovering without receiving any visitors. Only to appear with the innocent yet seductive Dryad in tow. 'Let's hope they can get along.'

"Ah, no. We have a new addition for now. Elderbeard's granddaughter, Lilly, has been assigned to accompany us." 

"Oh. Well, I haven't run into them yet. I only just found out that you had arrive3d and rushed straight over. Apparently, it's the mating season of the Sandworms'. Usually, they stick below ground but become territorial when they're about to give birth. Or so I've been told." Sophia looked dejected while tapping her lips with her finger. 'It'll be pretty handy to have a Treant around for the battles.'

Kace digested this information, completely unaware that Sophia was expecting something else from what Lilly actually was. 'If we're in the Sandworms' territory, are we meant to wait till the situation calms down? They should have a way for us to mobilise without disturbing them, right?' Kace was more concerned with dealing with the remaining holdouts in the North as soon as possible.

As long as they took control of the rest of the North, they would have an entire monsters nation. It would go a long way in attracting others to their cause. Though, if Kace had to guess, he assumed that many weaker monsters would flock to the new nation seeking protection. 'The stronger races should still see some benefits, though.'

"Come on, I'll show you around." Sophia gently tugged on his arm, leading him into the city.

Shadow felt like a third wheel as he trudged along behind them. However, it was his sacred duty to make sure nothing sinister befell his Lord. All he could do was go with it for now. 'At least she's better than Lilly.' Shadow was determined to not let go of his grudge against the Dryad at any cost. In his mind, she was the worst possible candidate for Kace's companion.

Kace noted that the city was vivacious despite the disaster going on above their heads on the surface right now. 'They must be used to it.' Kace noticed that there appeared to be no anxiety present in the natives. He was particularly shocked to see that they did not bother to cover their faces either. He had assumed that it was typical for their species due to his first impression with their guide.

Kace could not call them pretty by any means when he glanced at them. They had no ears. Instead, there was a small hole on the sides of their heads that must have served a similar purpose. Their noses were flat and stretched down to their pointed chins. The corners of their mouth reached all the way up to their cheekbones while sporting pitch-black eyes.

Kace also noted how every single one of them was bald. Everywhere that Kace looked, the natives all wore clothes that looked to be made of expensive materials. There was no one else like their guide that wore leathery garments. 'I wonder if he was one of the poorer ones.' Kace was beginning to realise how profound the disparity was between the social classes of this race.

In a way, it was even worse than the difference between the nobles and commoners of the vampires. Kace wondered where the poor from the surface were relegated to in this city. Sure it looked like a splendid jewel, but the cultural aspect was as good as dirt in his eyes. Still, he would not disparage another race's culture openly. 

Just because it was not for him, that did not mean that it was wrong. If it worked for them and they were happy with it, who was he to judge? Sophia dragged him around several, well-furnished stores of the locals. She bartered for some clothes and street food as they made their way around the city. Kace suddenly realised that he had a burning question in his mind.

"Sophia?"

"Yeah? What's up? Did you see somewhere you want to check out?" She replied with a questioning gaze.

"No, it's nothing like that. I was just wondering. How can you understand what they're saying?" Kace realised what had been bugging him as they went around the different establishments. It was the fact that all he could hear were unintelligible screeches from the natives. Yet Sophia conversed with them as though it was completely normal.

"Oh! Right! I forgot!" Sophia slapped her forehead as her face went red in embarrassment. "We need to get you jewellery enchanted with Translation for their language!"

Kace's eyes went wide at this revelation. He kind of figured that she had to have cheated somehow. She had not been here long enough to pick up a new language fluently. 'Still, that means the further from Stonefall I travel the more likely it will be I'll run into language difficulties.' Kace wondered if there was such a thing as a universal translation enchantment.

Sophia had explicitly said that he had to get one for this race's language. Which probably meant that they did not cater to any other languages. Kace made a mental note to ask about it when he returned to Stonefall in the future. For now, he let Sophia guide him to a reputable store where he could get his hands on what he needed right now. 

"Ah. Sophia." Kace's gaze became complicated as another problem jumped to the forefront of his mind. 

"What now?" Sophia huffed. Clearly, she was upset about something, but Kace had no idea what it was.

"I don't have any money," Kace replied sheepishly. The only time he had seen money being used was by humans. Since then, he had never needed anything of the sort. Perhaps he had taken it for granted that everything just seemed to be given to him so far.

Sophia halted in her tracks as she stared at him incredulously. Clearly, this information had gone off like a bombshell to her. 'He's fucking poor! No way! Are they not paying him anything! Those shitty Goblins! They've been taking advantage of him!' Sophia let out a long sigh as she thought about her own funds. She was unsure if she could afford to spare any since it would not be topped up by her mother anymore. She had to make her own fortune in life just like everyone else now.

"Sir, if I may." Shadow interrupted just as Sophia was about to offer to buy it for him as a gift. His untimely interruption drew a sharp look from Sophia. "You are the Lord of the Tu'Thrag tribe. You are the inheritor of all of the wealth that we have accumulated throughout the years."

"Are you kidding me! Why was this never mentioned before!" Kace stared at his bodyguard in disbelief. This was the first that he had heard of hidden treasures that he owned. 

"Ah. It didn't seem necessary. Everyone seemed to give you tribute wherever you walked. There was no point in spending funds if you could get everything for free." The goblin shrugged his shoulders, utterly shameless at allowing his Lord to claim stuff for free without paying their craftsmen.

"So, what's the value of what I own?" Kace's face looked tired as if he had just dealt with something too troublesome