Night had fallen.
Old Buck and Martha firmly moved into the back courtyard's ramshackle storage shed, giving them the largest and most intact main room in the smithy.
The room was tiny. In the middle stood only a battered wide-plank bed, covered by a thick old cotton quilt.
There was not even an extra magic lamp to be found in the room; only half a cheap candle burned from the corner of the table.
Saina was utterly unceremonious. She kicked off her cloth shoes onto the floor, climbed onto the bed, and rolled into the innermost side.
She pressed herself tightly against the earthen wall on the left, taking up all the space on Su Li's left.
The broken plank bed could not bear the weight of four fourth-tier knights. It let out an awful creak, nearly falling apart on the spot.
Elena undid the clasps of her leather armor and casually tossed it onto a rotten chair beside her. Then she strode over and lay down directly on the outermost right side of the bed.
Only a narrow gap, barely enough for someone to lie straight, remained in the middle.
Su Li lay down in it cleanly and decisively, and the bed was immediately packed without a single inch to spare.
Elonore, dressed in a long white silk gown, stood uneasily at the foot of the bed.
The room was dark. The elf girl's face had flushed crimson, and both hands clutched the hem of her dress tightly. There was simply nowhere for her to lie down.
"I'll go sleep leaning against the firewood pile outside the courtyard," Elonore stammered, turning to head for the door.
"The wind is strong at night. If you catch a chill and collapse sick out there, we'll still have to spend our money