Hey guys! Yes… I know I have a problem… I should update everything else, but I mean this is good for now? Anyway this is a collab with Snowflower so yeah! :)
Standing in front of a weapons stall in the middle of the town, a man with brown hair, green eyes, tan skin and a long independant curl stood looking over the wares, scowling as he did so.
"Lovi! This man's been to Senamtri too! Remember when we went?" Lovino's scowl deepened as his companion, the ever cheerful Antonio, bounced beside him talking happily with the man that ran the stall, occasionally trying to get him to join into the conversation.
"Yes… I remember. We got banned from the tavern there after you got drunk and caused a huge fight to break out." Lovino replied through gritted teeth.
The man running the shop blinked with wide eyes before he let out a hearty laugh. "You two are a crack up! I'm Gilbert by the way."
That caught Lovino's attention. Gilbert, if this was indeed the same man he was thinking of, then he was the King's brother and head knight, one of the strongest in the known region, next to Lovino that is.
"Like King Ludwig's elder brother?" Antonio asked, wondering the same thing Lovino was.
"The one and only!" Gilbert grinned proudly.
Lovino blinked, the head knight and brother to the king was casually selling weapons? "Why are you out here selling weapons anyway?"
"Hey even knights need to make extra money sometimes! Plus I'm doing this as a recon job, we've been hearing reports of villages being turned to ash and families being brutally murdered." Gilbert told them, lowering his voice so people nearby couldn't hear.
"Why are you telling two strangers this?" Lovino asked.
"Easy! You two are travelers right? Surely you might have seen something in your travels!" Gilbert responded with a grin.
Antonio who had been silently listening to them spoke up, "Oh! We have! The last village we stopped in was attacked! We couldn't see who did it because we were too busy evacuating people and helping those injured!"
"Antonio shut up!" Lovi hissed at his companion.
"I see… can you two possibly come with back to the castle?" Gilbert asked, backing away from the stall he was running.
Lovino was tempted on running with Antonio and hide out someplace far from this town at those words, thinking the worst of the situation.
"You're not in trouble, I just wish to get your stories in the reports." Gilbert added as he saw Lovino tense up.
"Not like we have a choice here," Lovino sighed. "Come on Toni, let's get this over with." he told the other man.
Gilbert smiled, his red eyes shining. "Thank you."
Lovino huffed in response, following the albino man out of the marketplace and toward the large towering castle.
As they entered the castle grounds the pair saw large groups of soldiers sparring and training, Lovino self-consciously keeping his head down as Gilbert greeted soldiers that passed by them.
"Lord Gilbert." A tall burly man in a tight fitted suited and a long flowy scarf greeted with a bow.
"Ivan! I found travelers that can explain what's been happening lately!" Gilbert exclaimed proudly, gesturing to the pair behind him.
Ivan looked Lovino and Antonio over long and hard before he smiled brightly. "Excellent sir! I'll let Arthur know of this discovery right away."
Gilbert frowned at this. "Why does that nerd have to know?"
Lovino racked his brain in trying to recall who they might be talking about.
"He will be interested, sire." Ivan replied before he bowed and left, making it so Gilbert couldn't coming up with a reply.
"Damn… I was hoping to avoid him today." Gilbert swore before he turned to face Lovino and Antonio.
"Sorry about that! That was Ivan, he's my retainer and personal assistant." Gilbert explained with a nervous laugh.
"Who was he talking about?" Antonio asked.
"And if he's your personal assistant why did he ignore you and blatantly go against your wishes?" Lovino added with a frown.
"He was talking about Arthur Kirkland, the castle's resident mage. He keeps to himself and is always muttering nonsense! I don't get how Lud could keep him around." Gilbert explained bitterly.
Before Antonio or Lovino could reply the sound of someone clearing their throat echoed around them. "I see you're filling our guests with false words again." a voice that seemed to travel around the pair stated.
The pair looked around before a man with short blond hair, thick eyebrows and strange clothes appeared before them. "I am Arthur Kirkland, mage and consultant for his highness." the man said bowing dramatically.
"You're barely a mage." Gilbert muttered, looking away from Arthur, his arms crossed over his chest.
"How dare you! I am the best mage in the region!" Arthur argued, glaring at Gilbert.
"Hi! I'm Antonio! This is Lovi! We're travelers as you can see!" Antonio greeted happily.
"It's Lovino! And as he said we're travelers. That's all. Nothing else." Lovino cut in quickly.
Arthur's eyes grew larger, gaping at the pair. "My word! Antonio and Lovino! Please I ask you for your help!"
"No." Lovino deadpanned the same time Antonio loudly said "Yes!"
"Stupid! We can't go around helping every random person that asks us!" Lovino scolded, hitting his friend in the back of the head.
"Lovi! This is not a random person! This is the king's consultant! We have to do this!" Antonio replied, unphased by Lovino's hits.
"Please! This is of grave importance that could very well help the entire kingdom!" Arthur begged.
"Look I've never seen eyebrows like this. And if his errand can help the kingdom, I ask you to please consider it." Gilbert said, now adding into the begging.
Lovino sighed. "Fine! We'll help. What do we need to do?" he asked crossing his arms over his chest.
"I need you to travel north and escort the lady Oracle back to the palace, I've communicated with her a few times, she told me about a vision she saw, one I believe involves you two." Arthur told them.
"The lady oracle?! She's protected by four of the strongest men in the country! You can't possibly be thinking of sending these two there? They'll be killed!" Gilbert argued.
"That's why you'll be going with them Sir Gilbert." Arthur said smirking at Gilbert. "I do wish for you three to leave as soon as possible, the sooner the oracle is here, the better."
Lovino sighed at the thought of escorting someone they didn't even know. To top it all off, they had only just arrived to Lorluxa. He had been hoping for a few days of relaxation and maybe some time with the local ladies, some of which had already asked to see him again. But no, thanks to Antonio he now had to escort some oracle.
Speaking of Antonio, the man was currently riding on a brown horse to his left, riding with a goofy grin while mumbling to himself about saving the world and spending time with his best friend. Gilbert, meanwhile rode on a white steed to Lovino's right, wearing an ever serious expression on his face.
"So, what's the deal with that Arthur guy?" Lovino asked. "He seems to be an annoyance to you."
"Oh, that nerd? He's a nuisance, he fills my brother's head up with falsities and seems to always be hiding something." Gilbert explained with a long drawn out sigh, choosing to focus on his task at hand.
"He seemed kind enough. Plus he's doing this for the kingdom. That's something, right?" Antonio asked kindly, being one to never find ill will in anyone.
"Come on, Toni," Lovino said. "You can't tell me you didn't notice that the air about him was a little off." Lovino had sensed the atmosphere had shifted ever so slightly.
"...No? He seemed so genuine!" Antonio replied not understanding what they were talking about.
No one had a response to this, instead Gilbert chose to change the subject. "Wish that nerd gave us directions to the Oracle's home…. You two wouldn't happen to know would you?"
"From the legends I've heard, she lives deep within the Folaxi forest. Since Arthur said it was to the north of Lorluxa, the only major forest just happens to be Folaxi. Lucky for us there is a town just on the outskirts of the forest, so we can ask around to get any information," Antonio said, proud of his knowledge of the region.
"Right. Next stop Heldori. We'll stick together there and gather all the intel we can about this oracle woman." Gilbert told them.
"This lady better be worth all of this hassle." Lovino muttered under his breath.
"She will be if she can save the kingdom." Gilbert replied stiffly.
They continued riding their horses for a while, Lovino becoming tired and annoyed of the trip already. Antonio was beside him, fully energized and singing a random song while Gilbert on Lovino's other side was ignoring them. Lovino stared at the heavy armor Gilbert wore and couldn't help but wonder if Gilbert was going to be alright like that. It had to be getting hot and uncomfortable by now.
"So what's the plan when we get there?" Lovino asked Gilbert.
"We stick close and ask around. The tavern and places like that are good places to start." Gilbert told them.
"Ooh! Let's spend the night in the inn there! I heard Heldori has the best inn in the region! They serve excellent food too! People call the food "to die for!" Antonio chirped beside the other two, grinning happily at them.
"Well that sounds promising. What do you say captain?" Lovino asked, turning to Gilbert, the man having halted his horse, the three now overlooking Heldori.
"The inn is our new target location. We will head there first and foremost before we focus on anywhere else." Gilbert told them.
"We're here." Gilbert told them as he got off his horse, his companions following suit. Gilbert's shiny silver armor, the one only those in the royal army wore shone like a beacon, nearly blinding Lovino, his white cape that held the royal insignia flew freely behind him.
"Maybe you should take the armor off? At least during the mission." Antonio suggested, wondering if the people in Heldori would react negatively to the head knight of the royal army entering the village freely.
Gilbert frowned at the thought before he remembered what had recently happened to Heldori as the result of his brother's decree. "Very well, give me a few minutes, I will meet up with the two of you inside."
Lovino shrugged to Antonio and dragged him deeper into town, their goal being to look for the inn and rent a room for the three of them.
They wandered about for a small while, desperate to find this inn with food that was rumored to be "to die for", it was their mission, they just felt the inn was the best spot to go for information on the oracle.
"Ugh, I'm not finding it, let's just head back to Gilbert." Lovino groaned as they made it to what felt like their fourth deadend.
"Look! Lovi! It was right in front of us! Come on!" Antonio exclaimed, pointing at the large sign that read: "Inn".
Lovino cursed and sighed. "Let's hope Gilbert has and easier time finding this place than we did."
As the pair entered the inn they found a young man with blond hair, pale skin, and odd violet eyes hidden behind large round glasses, like Lovino he had an odd curl, one that sprouted on the top of his head and drooped in front of his face slightly.
"Hello and welcome! I am Matthew and I am the owner of this fine inn!" the man said in an almost whispery voice.
Lovino frowned slightly. Something seemed off about this man, and his inn that he swore wasn't here before. He shrugged it off at being tired and turned to the entrance, wondering if he could leave Antonio alone long enough to guide Gilbert here.
"Hi! I'm Antonio and this is Lovi! We're travelers but after Sir Gilbert found us we got sent on an important mission for the kingdom!" Antonio introduced.
Lovino gaped before he smacked Antonio in the back of the head. "Stupid! We shouldn't just tell some random innkeep our reasons for coming here!" he scolded before he cleared his throat. "He is right, we are travelers. We came here on our own accord."
"Oh? So why do you have a knight from the kingdom with you?" Matthew asked, peeking behind Lovino.
This caused the man to jolt, turning to see Gilbert standing in the doorway, he wore a white long sleeved button up shirt with black jeans, his armored boots he had on before, with his sword strapped to the side of his belt, much like Lovino did. As Lovino stared the man over he couldn't figure out how he had deduced that he was part of the army.
"Hm? Me? Nah i'm not part of the army. Anyway we need a room and information." Gilbert said cutting straight to the chase.
"I see. I thought you were Sir Gilbert the Bloody, my apologies…." Matthew muttered, cupping his chin in his fingers as he looked away in thought.
"Right, we'll pay whatever it costs for a room and food." Gilbert said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Of course! The room is 100 gold per night, the food is provided for free, as for the information… that depends on what it is." Matthew told the group, putting his broom up.
"Here." Gilbert said handing the required gold over to the innkeeper, his red eyes focused on the innkeeper with such intensity it caused even Lovino to feel slightly fearful of Gilbert.
To Lovino's surprise however, Matthew ignored the intense stare and simply thanked the group before he led them to a rather large room with two large beds, a separate bathroom, and a table able to fit up to four people.
"This room is nice!" Lovino couldn't help commenting on this. He sat down on one of the beds, finding it to be far better than the inns he and Antonio had resided in before.
"I'm glad you enjoy! I'll come back soon with your meal." Matthew said with a bow as he let the group get situated in their rented room.
When Matthew returned he was carrying a tray filled with three plates of delicious looking foods. "Dinner time." he said in the same whispery voice that slightly freaked Lovino out.
"Ooh!" Antonio cheered, eagerly sitting at the table.
Matthew smiled and set the plates down, waiting for everyone to sit and eat before he sat at the table beside them.
"Right, innkeep, we're looking for information on the Oracle." Gilbert said first, pointing his fork at Matthew.
Matthew smiled, unphased by the fork in his face. "The lady oracle? What kind of information were you looking for?"
"Any information you can provide." Lovino told him.
"Well she lives with four bodyguards deep in the Folaxi forest on the top of the highest hill there. Her bodyguards never let her be alone and are overly powerful individuals. I'm. afraid that's all I know however." Matthew informed them.
"What about her bodyguards? What are they like?" Lovino asked with a frown.
"Two of them are large mercenaries with heavily armored bodies and legendary weapons. The other two are mages, both powerful in their own ways." Matthew answered.
"Wow thank you Matthew! You have been so helpful and generous!" Antonio stated with a grin.
"And I guess Toni was right, this food was to die for." Lovino added, enjoying his dinner.
"Yeah… thanks." Gilbert joined in, eating his food slower than his friends, his gaze once more focused on Matthew.
After the meals and after the innkeeper had left, Lovino and Antonio had gone to bed, both with filled stomachs. Gilbert sighed as he looked over at them from the bed he sat on. He couldn't help but feel as if something bad was going to happen. He knew he should go to bed soon, since before bed the trio had agreed to leave at dawn to travel through the forest, but for some reason he couldn't fall asleep.
He stepped onto the attached balcony the room had and looked out at the dimly lit streets. He let out a tired sigh, about ready to head back inside when something caught his eye, a young girl with long blond hair, pale skin and wearing an overly formal white dress staring back at him with large deep blue eyes.
"What the hell?" he muttered to himself as the girl continued to stare at him.
He turned back to his companions wondering if he should wake them up before he turned back to the girl who, to his surprise and horror had wandered off.
"Crap!" he cursed and woke his friends up, determined to find the child and bring her home.
"Wake up! There's a girl outside wandering around!" he informed them.
"So? Handle it yourself captain." Lovino muttered tiredly, turning away from Gilbert and burrowing deeper into the blankets.
"It's late…" Antonio joined in, going back to snoring.
Gilbert huffed and went back to the balcony, hoping to spot the girl from where he was. "There you… oh gods!" he yelled as the girl walked into the deep forest that bordered Heldori, the Folaxi forest.
"Seriously wake up! The kid just ran into the forest!" He yelled shoving the pair he was traveling with out of their bed, both landing on the hardwood floor with a loud thud.
"What's the big idea!" Lovino growled out, glaring at Gilbert.
"There's a child running through the forest. We need to rescue her." Gilbert deadpanned.
Lovino huffed, displeased as to having been woken up so abruptly, right when he was in the middle of dreaming about the lovely ladies from Lorluxa. "Fine. if it'll get you to shut up, you owe us for this."
Gilbert was about to argue that he had bought the room for them but held the words back, all that mattered at the moment was finding the child and bringing her home. "Fine let's go."
And… THAT's Chapter 1! Whoo! So long lol! Anyway as I mentioned Snowflower and I are working on this beautiful piece so have fun, enjoy and please leave reviews!