The merchants' Caravanserai

Julio led the almost naked trio around the village gates and toward an open field to the south. Covered wagons and carriages filled the area, and beyond them were merchant stalls lining the road leading all the way to the south gate of Pilla.

"Welcome to the new village Caravanserai." Julio led them to the edge of the row of carriages. Eyes lingered on the dirty forest nymphs that had entered their midst, but Tina ignored their gazes and her family did their best to follow her lead. "It's recent, but, people have really taken to it. It's bringing more merchants and allowing our people to have a greater standard of living.

"Huh, why didn't I think of that?" Hilda pondered. Julio looked back at her quizzically. "I mean, I would never have thought of that. What a great idea." She smiled awkwardly.

Julio smiled back, resisting the urge to laugh. "Well, Lady Hilda Brandt didn't think of it either, hence why we had to do it ourselves. Between you and me, she's not exactly the sharpest sword in her armory"

Tina giggled, and Hilda shot her a dirty look. "I'm sure she's just... preoccupied, that's all."

"Yeah, getting fucked six ways from Sunday in that brothel she calls her keep."

Hilda groaned, making a mental note to request this guard be reassigned when she made it back home. She didn't want such flagrant disrespect to go unpunished. "Weren't you showing us a way to pay for entry."

"Ah, yes, Ms. Sugarbuns. You see, the town treasury has no interest in what you have to offer for barter, but the merchants here are another story. Whether you want to sell your clothes or your..." He eyed Tina, "services, someone here will be willing to pay for it."

"Do you really think we'll be able to make up the money?" L'abbee asked.

"You only need three gold to enter the town. It shouldn't be that hard." Julio patted L'abbee's bare backside, almost causing the slim elf to fall over. "Anyway, I'll leave you all to it. Good luck!"

As he walked away, Julio leaned over to one of the merchants and whispered, "You've got some easy marks over there. They don't have gold, but they're pretty ****. Spread the word: take them for all they're worth."

Meanwhile, the naked family watched him as he left and L'abbee asked, "I wonder if he's talking about us."

"He's probably just introducing them to us." Tina replied dismissively. "He's such a nice guy."

Hilda huffed at this. "We should get working. We want to get inside the city before sundown."

"Well, a lot of these merchants seem like they could be easily persuaded to help us." Tina shot her best pair of "fuck me" eyes to a young merchant carrying a large crate. He didn't look like he noticed her, but that didn't hurt Tina's confidence. "If we go fast we might even get enough money for housing and a bath, too."

As much as a bath sounded fantastic to Hilda after a whole day of trudging naked through the woods, she wasn't about to whore herself out to strangers for money, as **** as she was. "No way, we're better than that. We don't have to sell our bodies when we have other things we can sell."

"And what might that be?"

Hilda gestured to her dress. "I'm sure this is worth at least 3 gold."

Tina scoffed. "Okay, first, that's debatable." Hilda gasped, crestfallen at her daughter's opinion of her seamstress work, but Tina continued. "Second, I'm not taking handouts from you, mom. You made that 'dress,' so I'm not taking any money from you selling it. I told you I'm going to be independent from now on. And third, can you put your exhibitionism aside for, like, one minute? Please?"

"Oh, like you're one to talk. You were so stubborn to stick it to your father that you refused to go back to put any clothes on! We wouldn't even be in this situation if you weren't so impulsive."

Tina looked back at her mother defiantly for a moment, her lower lip quivering slightly. As Hilda started to think she'd gone too far, Tina turned on her heels and started walking away. "If you want to sell your clothes, fine, but you can keep the money for yourself. I don't need your pity."

Hilda, supremely hurt by her daughter's defiance, yelled after her, "Fine," before walking in the opposite direction, flipping up the hem of her dress to briefly moon her nude daughter.

Both women in their frustration had seemingly forgotten their third companion, who was left standing alone in the crowd, feeling suddenly much more exposed being the most naked person in the area. Being naked with others had at least made him feel less exposed than being alone in a crowd.

All three adventurers were about to feel much more naked very soon.