The main streets of the Dominion’s capital were filled with life. Noisy and crowded, the atmosphere reminded Hupo of the city he once lived in. But here, the air was much fresher and the sky was much clearer. People walked in an orderly fashion along the sides of the paved roads, out of the way of horse drawn carriages. Fancy shops were neatly lined up on either side. Their windows were propped open to let the warm spring air in. In a distance, he could see the tall wall that encircled the city.

As Hupo strolled down the street, he noticed that many people were staring at him. Did his samurai armor catch their attention? The Combat Tournament was starting in a few days, so there were many warriors in the capital. It was not uncommon to see someone in the streets dressed in full plate armor. However, unlike him, they wore medieval armor.

There were even more people staring at Alana, who walked beside him. Both men and women alike openly gawked at her. Some men were so distracted by her appearance that they walked into walls or tripped over obstacles. He could understand why they were so entranced by her appearance. Every other woman in sight looked bland in comparison.

Coco held Alana’s hand, swinging it while walking. She didn’t seem surprised at all by the attention he and Alana were getting.

The three of them stopped at the largest building in the neighborhood. Polished marble steps led up to the tall front doors. The words ‘Golden Hotel’ were etched into the building’s pristine stone wall. When they approached the entrance, they were greeted by two men in spotless white uniforms. Smiling, they opened the golden doors with their gloved hands.

The hotel's interior was just as luxurious as its exterior. A sparkling crystal chandelier hung from a high ceiling. The walls were painted gold and decorated with intricate patterns. Lavish sofas, with gold finished wood and dark red cushions, furnished the lobby.

"Wow, this place is amazing!" Coco gawked at her surroundings like a tourist in a foreign country.

Hupo paid no heed to the luxurious lobby. It looked unremarkable compared to the other ones he’d seen. He had once been the CEO of a multinational company, so frequenting five-star hotels was par for the course.

He stopped in the middle of the lobby. “Before going further, let’s decide on the number of rooms to rent.”

“I’m happy with whatever you two decide.” Coco bounced lightly in place.

“Two rooms should be enough.” Alana put her hand on Coco’s shoulder. “Coco and I can share one.”

“Alright, let’s go with your suggestion.” Hupo walked up to one of the receptionists at the front desk. "Two rooms for the night please."

Like the two men outside, the receptionist was dressed in a white uniform. She shifted her gaze to Hupo, then to Alana, and finally to Coco.

Coco pushed a strand of unruly hair behind her ear.

The receptionist sniffed, her upper lip pulled into a sneer.

Coco’s cheeks reddened, and she smoothed the skirt of her stained dress, covering the many rips in the fabric with a grubby hand.

"That'll be two silver coins - one for each room." The receptionist continued staring at Coco.

Hupo tightened his grip around the pouch of money in his hand.

She’s so rude. I can spend my money somewhere else!

He was about to leave, but stopped when he saw Coco.

She was still admiring the hotel lobby.

He let out a deep sigh. Not wanting to disappoint her, he returned to the desk.

There were fifty copper coins in his money pouch. It was the amount of reward money that he had accepted from Erwin. At first, he had refused to take it, but Erwin was insistent. In the end, they compromised and he accepted half of what was initially offered. He had no idea how many copper coins a silver coin was worth, but he thought that the money he had should be more than enough to pay for the rooms.

He emptied the contents of his pouch onto the desk. "For this amount of money, how many nights can we keep the two rooms for?"

The receptionist raised one of her eyebrows. "Are you serious?"

Did I put down too much money? She probably thinks I'm a high roller.

He placed his hands onto the desk and leaned forward. "Do I look like I'm joking?"

The receptionist sighed. "Not even one night. You would need twice as much just for one room."

This is so embarrassing…

His face, ears, and neck felt hot. He couldn’t remember the last time he couldn’t pay for something. Not that long ago, he would have been able to buy the hotels that he stayed at. But now he couldn’t even afford to rent a room for a night. His vast wealth was one of the things he missed the most.

"I see... My apologies, I should have counted my money first."

Sliding the coins back into his money pouch, he turned to leave.

Looks like I’ll have to break the bad news to Coco. I wonder how she’ll react. She seemed so excited at the prospect of staying here, so she’ll probably be very disappointed.

He approached Coco and Alana. “Unfortunately, we don’t have enough money to stay at this hotel.

Alana smiled. “I don’t mind.”

Coco nodded. “Same here.”

Hupo turned toward Coco. “Aren’t you disappointed?”

“Not at all. I don’t care where I stay, as long as I can be with you two.”

Coco’s words warmed Hupo’s heart. In a way, she was wiser than he was. She understood what was truly important. He had placed so much value on material wealth that he’d forgotten about his most meaningful asset – his relationships. Perhaps he was merely projecting his own disappointment and embarrassment onto her.

“I’m happy to hear that. Let’s go find a more affordable hotel.”

As he was leaving the hotel, he overheard the receptionist talking to her colleague. He was able to hear her clearly, despite being quite a distance from the front desk.

"One looks like a dirty rag and the other is so stupid that he can't even count. No wonder they're so poor."

He could tolerate slander directed at him, but he refused to stand idle while someone badmouthed his companion.

He turned around and walked back to the receptionist. "I just wanted you to know that, where I'm from, even the cheapest hotels are better than this place."

The receptionist giggled. "You need to get your eyes checked. Just look around you."

"I did. And guess what? I don't see a single elevator. What kind of hotel doesn't even have an elevator?"

"An elevator? What's that?"

"Looks like someone needs to open their small mind instead of their big mouth." He turned to leave.