Twin Blades

A Rune Factory 2 Fan-fiction

Chapter One: The First Cut

"Wandering...that's all I've been doing...since I can't remember when...not that that's any help, since I can't even remember anything!" The red-haired, brown-eyed male grumbled to himself. Looking up to where he finally stopped, his face changed to a smile. "Wow, this place is nice..." Walking a little farther in, he noticed a tree with pink blossoms on it. "And these flowers are so beautiful..." He was so entranced by the flowers he'd found that he didn't notice a young woman about his age coming up behind him.

The black-haired, purple-eyed female smiled, saying quite cheerfully, "Oh, hello!"

Jumping a bit from nerves, the redheaded boy turned and replied shyly. "Oh, um, hello…"

Looking him over a bit more than necessary, the girl finally said, "Hey, I haven't seen you around here before. Are you just passing through?"

Blinking a bit from confusion, the boy replied, "Passing through? Um, I think so…"

Now it was the girl's time to blink from confusion. "You think so? You mean you're not sure?"

Sweatdropping, the boy smiled sheepishly. "That's…one way to put it." As the girl laughed at that, some more blossoms fell from the tree with a fresh breeze. He turned to get a better look. "Wow…how beautiful…"

The girl, thinking he meant here, blushed. "Oh, you really think so? Hee-hee. Thank you."

The boy looked back with an embarrassed smile before clarifying. "Uh, that tree, I mean. It's really pretty…"

The girl cleared her throat to cover her own embarrassment before saying anything. "Ah, yes it is! It's called a 'cherry tree.' They bloom with pink blossoms this time of year! That's one of the reasons I love coming here…

Nodding to himself, the boy smiled. "Yeah, I think I could get used to this place…

The girl blushed once more. "Really? That's great!"

Before the boy could ask why it was so great, he felt vibrations in the ground. "W-Watch out! It's an earthquake!" Unfortunately, he was off the mark – it wasn't an earthquake; it was an angry giant of a man!

The brown-eyed blonde spoke more to the girl than to the boy. "Mana! I am not going to let you marry him!"

The girl, Mana, was thoroughly embarrassed. "Father?! Marry? What are you talking about?!"

The man suddenly looked teary. "You promised me that you'd stay my little girl forever!"

Now Mana was angry. "Yeah, when I was six! Why are you even talking about this?!"

The man's tears stopped as anger replaced them just as suddenly as they'd appeared. "Don't try to hide it! I overheard you two talking about love and feelings and that sorta stuff!"

Mana calmed a bit, but was still exasperated. "Father, we were talking about how much we love the flowers!"

The man blinked and then laughed a bit. "Oh, you were? Whew, that's a relief! Don't scare me like that, Mana!"

Mana now looked put out by this whole affair. "You're the one who scared US!" With a sigh, she looked back at the boy who hadn't spoken a word during this little exchange. "I'm sorry about that… This is my father. I hope he didn't scare you too much…"

The boy just smiled, even as he sweatdropped. "It-It's okay!"

Mana's father then looked to the boy once more. "Well, Mana, who is this fellow, anyway?"

Mana smiled. "He says he's just passing through town."

The man once more looked menacing. "Just passing through town, eh? Well, you'd better hurry up and GET out of town before you get any funny ideas about marrying my daughter! As long as there's breath in my lungs, I won't let anybody marry my little girl!"

The boy's sweatdrop grew. "R-Right…I kinda gathered that…"

Mana was mortified. "Father! Will you be quiet?"

The man looked a bit chagrined, defended himself saying, "Mana, it's only out of concern that I…"

Mana interrupted him then. "But you're embarrassing me!" Once more, she turned to the redhead. "Listen, I'm really sorry about all this…"

Now he was simply sweating, not wanting the father to get at him anymore than he already had, thinking she was being nice because she liked him or something. "No, don't worry about it…"

Mana sighed. "I don't even know your name! I'm Mana, and this is my father, Douglas. And you are?"

Oh, great…ask me the one major question I can't even answer to myself… The boy shook his head. "I'm…Well, I don't know how to say this, really, but I'm not sure WHO I am…"

Mana looked surprised. "What?! Really? Why not?"

The boy shrugged again. "I don't know! I can't remember who I am, or where I'm from… Nothing! But I felt like something was drawing me to this town…"

Mana smiled at that for some reason. "Really? Well, I'm glad you ended up here! I guess you don't have any plans to go anywhere else, do you?"

He blinked at that. "Um, not really, no…"

Mana looked to her father suddenly. "Hey, Father, do you think we could lend him that farmland?" Farmland?

Douglas thought for a moment. "Hmm… Well, nobody's using it right now, anyway."

Mana looked back to the unnamed boy. "There's some farmland just inside the town! Would you like to use it?"

The boy was completely taken aback. Yes, he'd heard right – farmland. And here was this Mana girl just handing it to him. "What? But we only just met, and I couldn't possibly impose…"

Mana just smiled more. "Oh, you wouldn't be! It's just going to waste right now. Really, I'd feel better if someone was living there."

The boy was desperate to get out of this, now! "Well, let me think about…"

Douglas cut him off, angry once more. "There ain't nothin' to think about! Mana's telling you to use it, boy! You'd better listen to what my daughter says!"

The boy was shocked. She wasn't ever going to be his bride, but he had to obey her anyway? What a raw deal. Still…he liked his face where it was. "Y-Yes, sir!"

Mana turned to her father, mad as well. "Father!"

Douglas quieted down. "Sorry…"

Mana sighed and looked to the boy again. "Sorry again about my father…But you really should use the farm! Besides, my father and I run the general store. If you move into town and buy things, you'll be helping us, too!"

The boy smirked, totally defeated. If he said no, Douglas was going to get after him…he only had one option… "Really? Well, if you insist…Sure, I'll use the farm!"

Mana clapped. "Great! Here, let me show you the way… Oh! But first, we really need something to call you…"

As she spoke, the boy was rubbing his arm a bit. Looking at what he was rubbing, he saw marks like that of a knife or sword in his lower arm. They were faded, but still visible to his eye. That was it. "Cutter." He murmured.

Mana blinked, wondering what was up with his arm. She didn't see anything wrong with it. "Cutter, huh? That's a nice name!"

The boy, now named Cutter, nodded with a smile. "Thanks!"

Mana smiled back at him. "All right, let's go! The farm is just to the east of here!"

"Just to the east of here. Got it." Cutter replied to show he'd heard. Mana and Douglas took off before he did, but Cutter wasn't worried. If he stayed going east, he'd find the farmland. Right now, he just looked up at the sunny sky and smiled to who/whatever was watching over him. Some crazy girl and her overprotective father: Not what I would have asked for, if I'd asked for help, but I won't complain…just yet.

Once Cutter reach an area that looked like a farm, he stared. This place was BIG! Mana waved him over. "This will be your farm, Cutter!"

"Wow, this place is huge!"

Mana sweatdropped a bit at that statement, looking over the overgrown fields. "It actually hasn't been used in a while, so it'll need a little work… Hee-hee…"

Cutter just shook his head, smiling. "I think I can handle it. Don't worry."

Mana was relieved to hear that. "Sounds good. Here." She said, holding out a set of farm tools to him. "Take this hoe and watering can. Go ahead and try them out!"

Cutter blinked, taking the items. "Uh, you mean like, right now?"

Douglas looked pissed again. "Mana just told you to try 'em out! What are you waiting for? Be a man!"
One day, I'll be man enough to kick your…ah, forget it. "Y-Yes, sir!" With that, Cutter swung the hoe and the feeling that came with it, surprisingly, was one of experience.

"Wow, you look like a natural!" Mana piped up.

"R-Really?" He'd felt that it felt right, but was it that obvious to others.

"Yep! Now try the watering can."

Cutter also used the can with surprising ease for one just using it now. Was this what I used to do before? …

"Wow! You already water so well!" Mana said.

"Yeah! If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were born to do this! There's a natural farmer somewhere in you, kid!" Douglas complimented.

Cutter was now embarrassed with the praise. How hard is it to swing a hoe and water the ground? Geez… "Well, I…I don't know about that…"

Mana smiled. "We can give you both together for 100 gold coins. It's a special sale price! Take it or leave it!"

Before Cutter could do more than gape, Douglas piped up. "What?! 100 for both?! That's cheap! Too cheap, kiddo!"

So these weren't gifts so he could even start? All he had was 150 coins. But if what Douglas was saying about it being cheap… Cutter fished out the 100-gold coin-piece from his pocket and handed it to Mana. So what if it was a rip-off? It was better than having to buy it for more money!

Mana takes the money and puts it in her apron before bowing. "Thank you! Well, good luck, Cutter! Oh, we also sell seeds at our house, so be sure to stop by sometime!"

Douglas nodded. "Do us proud, kid! Ya don't work, ya don't eat!" He laughed heartily.

Cutter started to sweat just a bit, thinking that he'd just been tricked into working here…

Mana shook her head at her father before looking to Cutter. "Okay! Now, you need to give your farm a name! What would you like to call it?"

Cutter thought for a moment, and the phrase M-Syndicate came to his head. That wasn't the name of a farm, what was that? However… "I think I'll call it M-Syn." A good shorting of this…place that came to mind.

Mana blinked. "M-Syn Farm, huh? Kind of a sharp ring to it."

Thinking it was a compliment, Cutter grinned. "Thanks!"

Mana looked around and dusted off her apron. "All right, looks like you're all set, then! Well, you should get to work and start making money!"

Cutter smiled to himself. Yeah, so I can spend it in your store, right? He suppressed a chuckle. "Um…y-yeah, I guess you're right…"

"See you later, Cutter!"

"See you later, Mana!"

"Remember to come by our shop if you have any questions! Oh, or if you want to buy something!"

Cutter rolled his eyes. "O-Okay! Will do!"

"Thanks! And good luck!"

Cutter knew what to do with the tools, but as for seeds? "Wait, Mana!" When she stopped and turned to look at him, he continued. "How do a sow any seeds I plant?"

Mana smiled. "Oh, that's simple. First you have to till the soil, then plant them, then water them, but ONLY when it's not raining. If they get too much water, they won't grow right." Thinking for a moment, she takes a small bag of seeds out of her apron. "We got these in stock right now, but this was an extra…since you brought the watering can and hoe, I can give you these Pink Turnip seeds for free."

Douglas smirked. "Feeling generous, eh, Mana? Lucky you, kid! Just make sure you can get those seeds to grow!"

"Y-Yes, sir!" Cutter said with a sweatdrop. Hopefully he would make them grow without issue. Once Mana and Douglas had left the farm, Cutter planted and watered the seeds he'd been given. This hoe and watering can are worth the money I spent!, he thought to himself. They can cover a 3x3 area with only a little rune energy used. Too bad the can only has 30 squirts of water in it…

Entering the house, Cutter looked over the lower area, which contained a fridge, an item shelf, and a bookshelf. In said bookshelf, he spotted something odd. Is this a magic book?! Taking it down from the shelf, he saw it was indeed a magic book: Fireball! I'm not that good with magic, but I can give it a try.

Taking the book with him, Cutter left his farm for a bit to check out the town. He ran into two other young women as he did so: A blonde with purple eyes named Julia, and a blue-haired, green-eyed female named Rosalind De Sainte-Coquille. They seemed to be good friends and that pleased Cutter. Nothing like someone to have your back, right?

As Cutter entered De Sainte-Coquille Park in the center of town, he first noted to himself that Rosalind must come from a wealthy family to have a park with her last name on it. The second thing he noted was a board placed on the fountain in the center. Curious, he went over and saw it was a message board with one note thus far tacked onto it. He was about to investigate the note, when he heard Mana once more.

"Check out town?"

"Yes." Now he was speaking clearer to this girl that had surprised him. Especially since "Father" was nowhere in sight! "What is this board for?"

"Oh, that! It's the town message board. When someone needs help or is just lonely, they'll post a request here. We all try to help each other this way."

"Sounds nice." Cutter nodded to himself. Very neighborly, much?

Mana nodded, pleased. "Who knows? You may get a request from me!" With that and a cheery whistle, she wandered off.

Cutter blinked at that, then looked at the note on the board. Sure enough, it was from Mana. He chuckled. "May as well have just told me the request was from you, Mana… Deliver an Emery Flower to Rosalind…At least I know who that is!" Cutter took the note down and went to find Mana so he could deliver this special flower.

Entering the Pumpkin General Store (Funny name there, Douglas), Cutter heard Mana say welcome before Douglas came forward. "Hey, kiddo. A real man would buy something nice and expensive right now!"

Cutter sweatdropped. "Um, no, I'm not here to buy anything today…" Not when all I have is 50 gold pieces thanks to your earlier sale to me…

Douglas seemed to be upset…as usual. "What?! Do you think you can just waltz right in here and ask for my daughter's hand in marriage? I won't allow it!"

Mana was mortified again as Cutter chuckled to himself. Overprotective much? "Father! I'm sorry about him. Really."

Cutter continued to sweatdrop as he held up his hands to Mana. "N-No, don't worry about it…" PLEASE don't worry, or your father will think he has reason to beat me up!

Mana smiled, oblivious to Cutter's internal pleas. "Don't let him get to you. You're welcome here anytime!"

With that out of the way, Cutter explained he was there to fulfill the message from the message board. "Oh, thank you, Cutter!" Mana exclaimed before handing him a flower that appeared made of gold. "This is the Emery Flower. It's very rare so please be careful with it."

"N-No problem." Cutter stuttered, being trusted with something so valuable was a bit nerve-wracking. "I'll get this to Rosalind real quick!"

"Do you know her already?" Mana asked, curious.

"I just met her on the way into the park, she was talking to a girl named Julia."

"Ah!" Mana seemed relieved. Why? "Julia runs the bathhouse. It's closed today, since it's Monday, but it'll be open tomorrow."

Cutter nodded. "Good to know. If you'll excuse me…" With a small bow, he took his leave of the general store and all but ran to where he'd last seen Rosalind and Julia…who were still there. Thank the gods! "Rosalind, I have a delivery for you from Mana."

"Oh, that's very nice of you, Cutter. If we don't use the message board, it might as well be a chunk of wood." With that, Rosalind took the Emery Flower. "Please, give Mana my thanks as well."

"Will do." Cutter saluted, making both girls giggle as he ran off. Once back at the general store, he called out, "Mana! I delivered the flower."

"Thanks, Cutter. Here – this is for the delivery help!" Mana handed him his 100-gold coin-piece back with a wink. "Good?"

"Very." Cutter chuckled. Now I'm back to where I started…very good. I practically did get those tools for free!

With that done, Cutter visited more places and meet more people: The Alvarna Clinic was where he met Natalie the doctor, and mother of aspiring doctor Ray and a fortune-teller named Alicia. While the Mother was kind to her patients, especially the young girl child Cammy who'd came in for a scraped knee, she thought the fortune telling was nonsense and her daughter didn't appreciate that!

Peeking into the Sharper Edge Blacksmith shop, he met Tanya and her son Roy. Tanya was trying, of all things, to get her son interested in a fine sword, while all that the boy wanted was his dinner! Still Roy was a precocious thing, even knowing how to say amnesia in proper context when Cutter said he couldn't remember who he was and such. Tanya, meanwhile, seemed to be – and gladly admitted to being – obsessed with sharp objects!

After thinking for a bit once Cutter introduced himself, she took out a Skill Seal and handed it to him. "That is a Power Wave Skill Seal. It's used with a short-sword. There ARE others, but that's the only one I've got so far. Hopefully you can put it to good use, once you get a sword!" She laughed and so did Cutter. It was funny: He had a Skill Seal but no sword to use it with.

Checking back at the message board, Cutter saw four MORE notes tacked onto it. Since I'm new, I guess people are testing me? Or maybe this is how they initiate people into town? Whatever. Checking out the first note, he saw it was from Douglas. He wanted something called the Fighting Bull's Horns. Taking the note down, he went back to the general store to see what this was about.

Douglas explained it as briefly as possible. "Tanya wants this horn but it's in the Trieste Forest and I'm pretty busy here. You go get it for me and I'll pay you 100 coins. Got it?"

Cutter nodded and started to head out of the town proper. Mana once more caught up to Cutter as he was just about to leave the Falling Star Path, as they called it and head to the Forest. "Yes, Mana?"

"I heard father ask you to get those horns for Tanya. I think you should go buy a sword from her before you do, though! In all four areas outside of town – Trieste Forest, Blessia Island, Messhina Valley and the Padova Mountains – have monsters living in them. It could be dangerous!"

"I'll be careful, Mana. I promise."

That seemed to be enough for Mana and she left. Once she was gone, Cutter did not hesitate to continue on into Trieste Forest and find the horn, which was actually just left on the ground in what was called the Spring Clearing. Cutter scooped it up without the two monsters in the area – which looked like apples to him – being the wiser.

"I got it, Douglas." Cutter announced as he entered the general store once more. Mana looked relieved that he didn't appear hurt and Douglas seemed pleased that the horn was in one piece!

"Thanks, kiddo. A deal's a deal. Here ya go!" With that, Douglas placed another 100-gold coin-piece in Cutter's hand.

"Thank you, sir." With a salute and Douglas' roaring laughter following him, Cutter went back to the board to see to the other 3 notes. The next one was from Alicia, the fortune-teller, asking to let her tell your fortune. Seems harmless enough, he thought, taking the note from the board and heading to the clinic, where he last saw Alicia.

"So, what fortunes are you telling today?"

"Wealth fortunes. Interested?"

"I might be…"
With that, Alicia chanted a bit, then exclaimed. "I see it clearly!"

Now Cutter was hooked. "What do you see?"

"You will have unexpected finances in the near future."

"Really? I'd better be careful then…"

Alicia beamed. "Thank you, Cutter. Here's your payment for letting me tell your fortune." She gave him a 100-gold coin piece. "However, there is the matter of my fee…"

"You're charging me a fee?!" Cutter blurted out. What the…

"I'm a fortune-teller and I just told your fortune. Of course there is a fee. It's 200 coins."

Great…she just conned me out of 100 coins… Cutter thought to himself as he fished the one Douglas have given him before out of his pocket.

"I can't wait to see if my fortune comes true!" Alicia giggled.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure it already has…" Cutter murmured, making her clap her hands. What a little witch… He suppressed a chuckle, however. It was kind of funny once the anger left that he'd been conned by a girl who was that ditzy.

Fourth request of the day is from…Ray. The doctor's son and future doctor if he can cut the mustard. Cutter nodded to himself. This should be easy – it was just getting Medicinal Herb to the guy, so before he even went to see Ray at the clinic, he picked some from his own fields. "Hey there, Ray!" Cutter said, entering the building.

"Hey, Cutter. I see you saw my request." Ray nodded to the note in Cutter's hand.

"Yes, I did. Any particular place you wanted that herb from or any will do?"

"Any will do just fine." Ray said, before seeing the said herb in Cutter's hand. He laughed. "I guess I'm not too hard to please, hmm? This isn't much, but please take it as payment."

Cutter happily took the 50-gold piece-coin. "Thanks, Ray, I'll see you around."

"Bye, Cutter!"

Cutter looked over the last request on the board. It was from Rosalind about some type of plant called Lamp Grass. Into flowers, much? Oh, well. Taking the note down, Cutter went to her house, the De Sainte-Coquille Manor on the West side of town – thus far, he'd stuck to the East side. As he entered, he noticed a redhead girl dressed as a maid with blue-green eyes and strangely pointed ears enter.

"Sorry I'm late, sir!" The girl mumbled, bowing to the portly man at the top of a two way set of stairs.

"I've been waiting for you! I'm starving!" The man replied. Evidently not, Cutter thought. You'd be food for monsters for days just in the gut alone! The man continued to speak to the pointed-eared redhead. "I want to eat a chicken omelet on rice, orcish style. And make it a large serving." Of course…

A blonde boy about Cutter's age on the left set of stairs now spoke up. "I'll have some elfish-style escargot, slightly on the tough side, and I'd like some orange tea before the meal." I'll give you a meal if you ever speak to ME like that…a nice, fact knuckle sandwich!

Finally, the girl on the right side of the stairs – Rosalind – spoke up. "I'll have…whatever is easy for you to make, Cecilia." I knew that this was not some spoiled rich girl…Cutter thought with a smirk.

The redhead girl – Cecilia – smiled. "I'll get started right away."

Just then, of all people, Alicia walks through the door. "Do they usually all order separate things? Rice people are such a pain!" Cutter looked at Alicia with new insight. She had said exactly what he was thinking with no shame.

Cecilia lowered her voice, though. "Alicia, they'll hear you!"

Alicia looked to the maid. "I don't care if they do! You must be quite the cook to handle all that at once."

Cecilia sighed. "I've gotten used to it, that's all. Did you need something today, Alicia?"

Alicia grinned. "I have a door-to-door fortune-telling service. Rosalind is one of my best customers, and I go where the money is!" Cutter felt all admiration for Alicia flatten at that comment. Money-hungry with no tact concerning her customer's feelings…shameful.

Turning away from Cecilia and Alicia, Cutter made his way to Rosalind. "I'm here about your request, Miss."

"Thank you, Cutter. Could you please get me a Lamp Grass that is growing in Trieste Forest? When you enter the Forest, there is a path that splits into two. Take the right path and it should be just there, under your feet."

Cutter nodded. "Sure thing." With that, he went once more into the Forest, and without alerting the apple monsters to his whereabouts, Cutter picked the Lamp Grass flower and headed to Rosalind's house again. "Here you are."

Rosalind inhaled deeply from the flower. "Oh what a lovely fragrance! Did you know this flower's scent can help cure insomnia?"

"No, I didn't." Cutter was curious. Did she have trouble sleeping?

"Yes, it's true. Oh, I almost forgot. Here's your payment." She handed him the 2,000 gold coins as if they were merely 20!

"Thanks, Rosalind!" When Cutter smiled wide at her, she blushed. Oops. Better not make her think he was hitting on her. With a shy salute, Cutter all but ran out the door to the message board area…only to find MORE had been placed there. He chuckled. Seems I'm quite the popular messenger boy!

The next request was from the doctor, Natalie. Evidently she had lost her stethoscope and was asking people to look for it, since it was during a house call. Cutter didn't mind helping her out, so he plucked the note down and went to the clinic. "Hey, Natalie. I saw your message. Where do you think you left the thing?"

"I'm very sure I left it at Herman De Sainte-Coquille's house, but I forget where and I'm so busy here that I can't leave. Would you please find it for me?"

"Sure, if he doesn't mind me looking for it!"

"Thanks, Cutter! You're a lifesaver!" Natalie beamed.

Cutter blushed like, really? "I-I'll bring it to you when I find it." He made a hasty retreat before Natalie could thank him anymore.

Seeing the big man eating his chicken and rice, Cutter cleared his throat so as not to startle him, thinking this is probably Herman. "Hmm? Ah, you must be the new young man about town! My name is Herman De Sainte-Coquille." Bingo.

"My name's Cutter. I'm sorry to interrupt, but Dr. Natalie has lost her stethoscope and thinks it may be in one of your rooms here. Would you mind if I took a look around?"

"Not at all, my dear boy! Feel free, but please no taking anything BUT the stethoscope back to Natalie. No, no, please don't be upset – I wasn't thinking you would steal anything, it's just I recall some young men take the underclothes of females as pranks…"

"I get the idea!" Cutter cut him off, blushing like a tomato. "I won't, I swear!"

"Thank you. Now, if you will excuse me, my rice is getting cold."

"Sure thing…" Cutter said without heat as he left. Yikes! Once his nerves had a chance to calm, Cutter looked in the first room he approached: the one up the far left staircase and in the far left corner. "Hey! What do you know? First guess was right on. Here they are in the dresser!" With that, he went back down to show Herman he had found it. Herman nodded approval and Cutter ran back to the clinic. "Here you go, Natalie."

"Oh, thank you, Cutter. Here, I have some money and an item for you!" Natalie handed him 200 coins and an Empty Bottle. "That bottle is good for storing medicine. You can get it filled up here, but you have to bring the herbs needed and the money for making the potion, okay?" She winked.

"No problem, doc. Sounds fair." Once more, Cutter headed to the board and pulled a random note from it this time. It was from Cecilia and was asking him to find a Ruby for her…and to stay out of trouble? What did that mean? Only one way to find out. Going back to the Manor, Cutter spotted Cecilia cleaning up her pots and pans from cooking. "Hello, Miss. I'm here about the request…"

"Oh, you're Cutter, aren't you? Thank you for doing this for me."
"No problem, but I was curious. What did you mean, Stay out of trouble?"

"Oh, while getting the Ruby, I want to see if you can do it without hurting any monsters!" She smiled.

She's cracked…Cutter thought. How the heck was he supposed to get a Ruby away from monsters without fighting them for it?

"It should just be on the ground in Trieste Forest, around Aegis Falls, so you won't have to beat any monsters to get at it." She continued. OH! That made more sense.

"Okay, let's see how this goes." Cutter replied, giving her a thumbs-up before leaving. Sure enough, the Ruby was resting on the ground in a secluded corner of the Aegis Falls area. Unfortunately, it was below a monster generator, so it was tricky to avoid being shot by these archers that were here, but he did it anyway. "Here you go, Cecilia!" He crowed. "I got the thing without hitting any monsters."

"Oh, that's wonderful! You earned this prize." Cecilia replied, holding out a strange black glove to him. "It's called a Pet Glove, and allows you to tame monsters by showing you care through petting them. However, there are two things to remember. One: They will resist at first and may even attack you, so be careful. Two: You have to have a monster Barn before you can use the glove effectively. If they have no place to live, it doesn't matter if they like you or not. You can talk to Mayor Byron about building one when he's in his office."

"Thanks for the glove and the info, then!" Cutter was just about to leave when she stopped him. "?"

"Come with me. I'm going to help you get ready to build that barn, too!" With that, Cecilia led Cutter to the woodpile behind the manor and gave him a cord of 100 pieces of wood. "Good luck, Cutter."

"Thanks!" Cutter managed to get the wood home without dropping any on his foot or hitting anyone while carrying it. It was heavy, but surprisingly, he seemed at ease lifting it on his own. "Okay, next challenge!" He laughed to himself. The next request was from Herman, which he had titled a Quest for Breakfast. Probably wants something way exotic that I have to hunt in the Forest for…

How wrong Cutter was! "I simply must have some more Rice for Breakfast! It's a staple in this household, you know." Herman said to him once Cutter explained why he was there.

He must have appeared taken aback, and rightfully so. You can't get your fat rear in gear and go to the general store for this?! Or ask Cecilia, who this seems to be her job? Finally Cutter got his bearings and said, "Sure, I can get it for you."

"That's a good lad! Thanks ever so much!"

Cutter went to the general store and bought the one Rice Bowl that Herman requested. 270 gold pieces, eh? I guess that's acceptable considering seeds are even more expensive…

Herman took a hold of the bowl as if it were full of gold rather than rice. Cutter almost laughed, it was funny. What wasn't funny was the amount of money Herman gave Cutter for this simple errand: 3,000 gold pieces! "Oh, you should have this, too, Cutter!" Herman said as Cutter stood like a statue with the money in his hands. It was a black device of some kind. "This is a Milker and you use it on Buffamoo you've tamed to get milk from. Thanks again, Cutter. If you will excuse me…" Herman went to the kitchen, probably to scarf down his food. Cutter, confused but in a happy way, left and put the milker away before heading for his next assignment.

"Now I got one from that girl with the strange dress who's a merchant. Said her name was Yue." Cutter said to himself. Yue was just a few feet away from him, so he talked to himself in a low voice. "She needs something for her skin, hmm? Okay, let's see what the deal is… Hey, Yue!"

The girl jumped a bit, then called back. "Yes, Cutter? You taking my request?"

Cutter smiled. She certainly wasn't shy. "Yeah – what did you need?"

"I wanted some Honey from Trieste Forest. Eating a little every day is supposed to do wonders for dried-up skin. Do you think you can get it for me?"

"I think I can manage that." Cutter said, blushing a bit at Yue's wide smile. "I'll be back soon." He had to go deep into the Forest to get the honey – all the way to the Grassy Path, near a monster generator and some odd crystal to be precise. "Yikes – if she'd told me it was this dangerous to get the honey, I might have bought a sword beforehand…" Coming up behind Yue, still in the park, he held up the honey for her. "Here you go."

"Thanks, Cutter! Here, you can have these for your payment." Yue replied, giving Cutter a bag of Daikon Seeds, a large type of turnip that grew in the winter. "I love these, but I'm no farmer, so I can't grow them myself. Maybe you can give it a shot?" She smirked. All these scheming women… Cutter chuckled to himself.

"We'll see." Done with the board for now, Cutter started in on the West side of town to see what there was there other than the Manor. First he went into Eagle Inn, right next door to the De Sainte-Coquille's home. There he saw Jake, a proud young man that seemed to think humans were beneath him for some reason…he also had pointed ears like Cecilia and the Innkeeper, who turned out to be Jake's father and an Elf! Did that mean that Cecilia and Jake were elves too, or just half-breeds? Not wanting to be rude to Jake's father – whose name was Egan – Cutter just introduced himself and left.

Across the way from the Inn was an impressive church – the Alvarna Chapel. Inside, he overheard another young man speaking to the priest of the church about whether or not there was a god. He seemed upset with the priest's flippant answer about if this man, Barrett, was as strong as he acted why doesn't he just save the weaker people himself? With a huff, he turned to leave and bumped into a young lady who had a hood over her eyes. She seemed to stutter when speaking, perhaps from shyness. Barrett was just as curt with her as he had been with the priest – guess it was his personality all over. After saying hi to the priest Gordon and his oldest daughter Dorothy, the girl in the hood who was incredibly shy with boys, he left to see the last house on the street.

As Cutter entered the house, he noticed that boy again – the one with the red bandana from the church, Barrett. An older gentleman was calling the boy's name and asked where he was going, to which Barrett firmly said it was none of his business. That was pretty cold, man… Cutter thought to himself. More so when the older man in question turned out to be Barrett's father and the Mayor! Cutter clumsily excused himself after being noticed by the mayor, who actually apologized for his son's behavior, saying Cutter shouldn't have had to see that. Poor guy…

Finally Cutter found himself back in the park, but looking down towards the docks. What the hey, it's the one place I haven't visited yet! Walking around the port area, he saw an empty boat and went over to investigate who's it was when Mana showed up, yet again. This girl really gets around town! Cutter thought to himself, before blushing at his own double meaning.

Mana didn't even acknowledge that she noticed his blush as she smiled at him. "Hey, Cutter! I see you found the port. You can take this boat to Blessia Island from here – feel free to use the boat whenever you like, but be careful! Remember, there are monsters there, so get a weapon from Tanya before you head out. OH! And if you want to sleep outside of town, you'll need to buy some sleeping bags – which we just happen to carry!"

Cutter smirked. Of course you do…

"Have fun out there, and try not to get hurt, hmm?" Mana said before leaving Cutter alone on the docks once more. He decided to forego going to the island right now and rechecked the board in the park…and found even more notes once again!

"This is getting a bit old…every time I met someone here, they post something for me to do. Oh, well…at least I'm not being ignored, and while some of these requests are a bit boring, they sure pay well!" Cutter grinned to himself before taking the first one he reached for. Egan, the elf from the Inn, wanted him to taste a new dish he'd made. "Cool, free eats!" The fish dish was pretty good, but needed a bit more salt and wine to increase the flavor, or so Cutter thought and told Egan when he asked for his opinion. For his critique, Cutter got a pair of Clippers for whenever he started keeping Wooly monsters.

The next request was simple enough. Barrett was looking for a big book he'd misplaced – which he only told Cutter once he'd spoken with him; the note itself was pretty vague. Barrett even told him the two places he thought it might be: the grocery store or the church. Checking the church first was a good hunch on Cutter's part – it was just sitting in one of the pew aisles. For doing this, Barrett gave him a fishing pole…and a word of caution to not wonder too much on what Barrett was studying. Geez…do a guy a favor…but I guess that was my fault. I shouldn't have asked.

Looking over the board again, Cutter saw a request from the priest, Gordon. It was asking for an Amethyst gem. Now where the heck do I get one of those? He thought on his way to the church. "Hi, Gordon. You needed some help?" Cutter asked, holding up the note.

"That's right. I need an Amethyst gem from Blessia Island. There are so many monsters there, if I were to be attacked, I couldn't defend myself, what with being a priest now and all." Gordon had once been a fighter, but that was before his priesthood. Cutter often wondered if being a priest was a calculated move to simply not have to fight, but let it go.

"Is it just on the ground, I pick the thing up and bring it back to you?"

"Oh, no! This is not a simple request like that. You have to smash up some of the ore stones on the island to find one. Here – you can have this hammer, for keeps, so you can do so. Just watch out for those beasts, hmm?" Gordon laughed.

I guess I really have to buy that sword now… Cutter had enough money for one, so it seemed about time anyways. Looking over Tanya's wares, he selected the broadsword: a one-handed short sword. It looked simple to use, and actually felt right in his hand. Was I a swordsman before I came here? He wondered.

Cutter really didn't need to use the sword, it turned out. He was fast enough to dodge the monsters' attacks and still smash the rocks fast enough to pick up an Amethyst eventually without being hit. I have the footwork of a swordsman. Maybe I was trained this way before? "Here you are, Gordon." He held up the gem once he returned to the village church.

"Oh, thank you, Cutter. It's even in one whole piece! Great! Here's for your troubles." Gordon handed Cutter four 100-gold coin-pieces, equaling 400 coins. Not too shabby.

Cutter was very surprised to see a note from Jake on the board. I thought he didn't like humans from the way he spoke to me at the Inn…why would he ask one for help? A request was a request, however, so he took down the note and went to speak with the half-elf at the weapon-shop where he worked with Tanya. "You were needing some help?"

"Ceci lost something and seems quite upset about it. I want you to find it for her."

"Um…do you know what she lost?"

"Go ask her, human."

"Right…" You snobby little… Cutter didn't like this guy's attitude, but he wasn't going to turn down the request, knowing that it was for a girl's sake he was going through this grief. At the manor, he found Cecilia still working. "Hey, Cecilia. Jake said you lost something and told me to find it for you. He also told me to stop bugging him and ask you what it was."

"He didn't have to be so rude about it, but thank you for doing this. I lost my Pendant in Trieste Forest."

"Don't worry, I'll get it for you."

"Thank you, Cutter."

It was quite simple to once more go around the monsters and grab the Pendant – she hadn't gone too far into the forest it seemed. It was on the ground near where those apple-looking monsters, which he had by now learned were called Pomme Pomme, were in the Spring Clearing. "Here you go, Cecilia. Safe and sound."

"Thank you for going to all the trouble. And please, thank Jake for me, too."

"Sure thing." Well, I guess he does deserve some thanks. It was his request that made me go get this thing… Back at the weapon-shop, Jake was busy at the forge. "I found the Pendant she lost and gave it back to her."

"Good, you helped Ceci. You should be proud, human. I didn't want to give you anything, but I guess you earned this. Here." Jake held out a Sickle for Cutter, which the latter barely restrained from using on the half-elf in anger. "You can use it to clear out weeds and such, but be careful not to just swing it around wildly or you'll cut your own crops down. I know that sounds like something you would do." Cutter gave an abrupt nod and left. It was getting really hard to not attack this guy right now…

I seriously need to beat something up… Cutter thought to himself as he checked the time. It was a little after 5pm and he'd found out that today was the second day of the spring season. Don't have much time for more requests and I really need to calm down a bit…guess I'll go beat up on some monsters in the forest! Although the sword still felt right in his hands, he found he was pretty weak right now when it came to the actual fighting against the Pomme Pomme, some sheep animals that he guessed were the Wooly he could tame later, and some giant Ants. Cutter didn't return home until about 10pm and promptly fell asleep, sore but calmer than before. Be glad it wasn't you, Jake…I don't care I'm not as strong as I think I should be…It still could have been you…