So I think I figured out what happened with my variant of the 6th floor; I went too big. I was playing Breath of the Wild for a significant portion of that time and instead of being a single 10km/~6m area I made it a whole game unto itself. Whoops. Maybe one day I'll come back and fix it up, but for now I think it's actually good that I stepped away from it where I did. Two regions is a pretty good amount of content that I can rework later on.
If you've received a notification of a new chapter, please look at Chapter 1. I've done a full edit and clean up of that and replaced it.
"I always dreaded my leave as much as I looked forward to them. Taking a break from having to operate 110% whenever you were deployed was completely refreshing, but knowing you had to go back to that was just so- so disheartening."
Peace coursed through my entire body, my muscles feeling looser than they had in years. Barely cognite of my surroundings, I pulled the blanket around me tighter, using the warmth to stave off the images branded into my mind. Some time later a full body yawn escaped my mouth, arms and legs splaying out. For a brief moment I swore I was back on Earth, muscles and bones pulled taut through naught but my own efforts. "Morning." I turned towards the body that had slept beside me, nuzzling my head into the crook of where arm met torso.
"Ah, morning, Asasaki."
Grumbling half formed protests, my left hand moved from his shoulder down to his chest. "Pillows should be soft, not hard. Relax."
"Sorry. I'm just a little," Klein took in a deep breath, the two of us melting into the down and feather duvet covering the straw mattress. Slowly, with each word spoken in anticipation of something, "This is something I'm not used to is all."
"Don't get too used to it," I mumbled, guiding his right hand onto my back. "This is probably a one time thing." I let out a content sigh, the temptation of falling back asleep growing stronger with every stroke of my hair.
"Do you remember why you climbed into my bed?" Klein continued his ministrations, his breathing mimicking my meditative four count.
There's still no heartbeat. Why isn't there a heartbeat? "A nightmare." I pursed my lips, the beautiful illusion cracking. "I don't remember what it was about." The lie flowed smoothly from my lips, an unsettlingly familiar coldness nestling in my chest. "Thanks for not putting up a fuss though." I untangled myself from his limbs and moved onto the edge of the bed, materializing my day clothes before summoning a comb and needlessly working through my mercilessly untangled hair.
"You're welcome, I think." The fabric rustled behind me. I imagined that if he himself wasn't getting changed then he was politely staring away. Despite the handful of times his flirtatious nature had reared itself, my guild leader was surprisingly respectful and considerate of my less than modest habits.
"I'm going to go visit someplace before breakfast. Do you mind getting something for me? And maybe a cup of tea?" I sent over a handful of cor along with a few leaves of Asuka's rose tea, my mood brightening at the thought.
"Yeah, no problem." My greeveless boots formed around my feet, the snugness bringing a sense of peace comparable to his arms. "Asa-" I turned around at his pause, searching his face for what prompted him to stop. "Dawn. I don't know what's going through your mind, but I'm here for you. We're all here for you. You're important to all of us, and not just as a trainer or mentor. Never forget that, alright?"
My lip twitched. Even if we had only spent a few months together, there was no doubt at all in my mind about about his words. "Of course. I'll see you at breakfast, Ryoutarou." How long has it been since this exact moment? I stared at the the early morning sun, nostalgia splashing with every footstep at the almost exact scene playing out before me. NPC's walking around with a predetermined cause, my mind a mess from the memories and longing desire to return to some attempt at normalcy pulling me forward. I let out a long breath of partially misted air, realizing I had managed to travel all the way to the orphanage during my reviere. "I'm getting too old for this."
The smell of spiced oats and what passed for apples greeted me as I approached the wooden doors, a figure passing by the opened window alerting me to who was on kitchen duty. "Sasha, open up! It's me!" I closed my eyes at the clinking of dishes, mentally tracking her foot falls on the cobbled flooring right up until the door creaked open.
"AsasakI! You're here rather early. Is everything alright?" The matron stepped to the side and welcomed me in, her purely cosmetic apron making her look more maid than mother.
"Everything's okay on my end. I ended up spending the night here and thought I should drop by and help out a bit before my day started." I sent over a significant portion of my cor, pressing a finger against her lips before her usual protests could be voiced. "We've been through this song and dance before. Just accept the money, alright?"
The brunette's shoulders sank in resignation, her hand finishing the rest of the trade. "While I appreciate your assistance, I still feel bad about taking so much from you. I know you help out on the front lines and the cor you give to us-"
"Will help feed the children and procure resources from Argo or whoever else you decide to go through to get supplies. These steps are familiar, so stop protesting, okay?" I put on her spare apron hanging nearby, lending my assistance where I could. Without a cooking skill the most I could do was prepare fruits and vegetables; Sasha on the other hand could fully synthesize the ingredients into stews, pies, and other finished products. "How are the older kids treating you?"
The woman paused mid tap, her lips curling back in thought. "They're pushing for more and more freedoms. Every other day they ask me for permission to go beyond the walls and I think it's only because of those Fūmaningun members that drop by from time to time that they still listen to me."
"The Fūma Nin are a bit odd, but they're trustworthy." I leaned against one of the counters, setting a pot to boil. "Which kids specifically?"
"Aries, Florida, and Silica. I think Silica is only going along because the other two are her friends, but those boys," She trailed off, shaking her head. "You should talk to them soon. They look up to you, being one of the first fighters that I actually approved of."
I rubbed my head with my pointer and middle finger, recalling a boy in yellow that had said something remarkably similar. "Next time I have a chance then. I have some things I need to take care of up north. Was there anything you wanted me to get from Tolbana?"
"Maybe another chicken or two," she said after a moment. "Eggs are always a nice ingredient, and the children might enjoy having another pet around the place."
I nodded, returning my decorative apron to its rack. "If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to message me, alright? Children are our future-"
"They deserve to be protected, this is a topic we've traversed well." Sasha smiled and pulled me into a hug. "You're a wonderful woman, Asasaki. Make sure you're taking care of yourself, alright? The kids have me, and the guilds have each other." Her eyes crinkled in unspoken words, their significance not lost upon me.
I pulled away slowly, not letting myself break away from her gaze until I had to. "I'll see you later today."
{ } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { }
Sparkling red traced the path of my blade, health plummeting with every second my weapon stayed embedded within. The hushed war cries of Klein reached my ears, muffled by the large petals of the «Slumbering Lily» surrounding me. In a few vicious moments replete with wide arced strikes the beast shattered like the rest of its kin, an assortment of materials depositing into my inventory as I fell. "Still alive and kicking, Klein?" I slipped my sword into its sheath, warily eyeing the red bar of my companion.
"Yup, all green over here!" He swiped his nose with a thumb, grinning cheerily. "This was a pretty good idea, if I do say so myself, acting as your tank and all. These things barely cause me any damage so I can grind up my Battle Healing without any worry."
"If you're sure you're fine with it." I shook my head and continued pressing onward. "You know I'm actually a little jealous of you guys. Was the dungeon that difficult?" I made my stat screen visible to him, pointing out my paltry level of 23 compared to his 25.
A deflective chuckle was all I received as an answer, the red head running a hand through his hair. "Let's just say we were forced to do the same thing as Asuna back during that first month. That party was something we really needed to try and unwind from all the stress."
"We don't need to go back to that sort of thing, not unless we really need to." I dug a small line in the ground with my now armored boot, the green tinted metal shining unblemished after a somewhat costly NPC repair. Don't let him dwell on it. Not right now. "Hey, let's keep going. I've been putting off this visit to Hilde off for far too long. I wanna see what stuff she managed to make after I visited last last week."
"Right, Hilde. Potions." Klein continually nodded, slowly breaking out of whatever memory had taken hold of him. "Do you think it'll be worthwhile for everybody to make use of those poisons you've talked about from time to time?"
I hummed, dancing along an exposed root at the side of the path that went on for several feet. "Probably not. Maybe in certain cases we can, but for constant use I think only Choryu and I can take advantage of them. We get away from the front lines enough that we can apply them whenever we want, but the rest of you will have to juggle between potions or poisons if you ever retreat and even with practice it still takes a good three seconds or so to chug one down." I turned to the side, noticing a lone «Giant Wasp» flying nearby. "Gimme a sec. Pest control." Without much fuss I returned with a few stingers and several wing fragments, making a mental note to see what I could trade them for in the player markets. When I returned, my companion was once again staring off into the distance.
What happened to you guys? "Klein." I tapped his forearm, waiting for him blink out of his nightmare. When he finally returned I tugged on his wrist, pulling him forward a little. "C'mon. Hilde's waiting for us, remember?" I clinked my nail against Asuka's badge, the medal delicately slotted into carved wood from the forests west of Karluin in order to function as a necklace.
After several moments passed by without any comment, I took it upon myself to prattle on about idle things, using my nieces and nephews as a grounding. "...but it got so frustrating sometimes," I groused. "If the three of us did our makeup, unless I purposely worked to highlight my facial structure I always ended up looking like the youngest out of us." I gave an exaggerated groan, walking backwards a few steps to meet his amused gaze. "I swear they took pride in looking like they were in their twenties while I still appeared like a teen." I brought a free hand up to my lips and chuckled. "Although it was pretty nifty sometimes, especially when people started trying to get grabby and big strong men in college or university got completely floored by a girl half a foot- I mean, some fifteen centimeters smaller than them." You're worrying me, Klein. You shouldn't be acting like this.
I turned around and continued guiding my slightly unresponsive friend forward, the curved blade user only recovering when enemies were around. "Klein, I know everybody deals with everything differently, but you need to try and pull yourself together. At least a little bit." I stopped and stared up at the sky hidden by intertwined branches, hands resting on my hips. "You can't let whatever's bothering you keep you down this badly. Let it linger, but not drown you." I spun around and leaned towards him, a sly grin on my face. "I'm a horrible example, but look at me!" I gestured at my body sensually, quietly barking when he looked away. "Sure, I make some pretty questionable decisions from time to time, but for the most part I can still function in society." I ignored the clinking armor of the two «Tolbanian Militia Members» walking past us, moving onto the tips of my feet to forcefully push Klein's lips into a smile. "We'll talk about this later, but for now, we're just enjoying our day, alright? Just hold out until tonight."
He merely nodded, lost in thoughts for another moment before literally slapping himself out of it. "Right, I'm sorry. Today's about you. You're taking care of things you've been meaning to for awhile."
"Today's about us," I corrected. "Two friends enjoying some time off." After a second I removed my equipment, leaving me in the somewhat loose, durable clothing I had picked up from the sixth floor. "No more fighting for now. Just enjoying the scenery, maybe a brisk jog at most."
"I don't know if I can-"
"Please. I want to be a civilian. At least for a couple hours." I smiled softly, hoping that the conneciton of our hands would commune just how much I wanted this.
"You're so weird, Asasaki."
"I'm a foreigner," I whispered back, my heart aching at the familiar weariness in his eyes. "I'm allowed to be weird." The pregnant silence that I had so desperately tried to fill earlier now turned comfortable, the two of us meandering along the detritus that would never turn into fertilizer. It was during this time that I realized Klein's choice in clothing hadn't really changed since the first time I met him; thick brown pants capable of several weeks if not months of field work with a simple sleeveless red shirt resting atop an off white long sleeved cotton one. The ever present red bandana with sparse diagonal yellow lines tied snugly to his head completed the ensemble, giving his essential bed hair a significantly more clean look. Aside from myself, everybody in the guild had taken to placing red somewhere on their outfits. Even Haru had adopted a red cloth with the guild's symbol tried to his waist, the material significantly more ornate than the simple white I refused to do away with.
"I don't suppose you've noticed them?" I asked suddenly. When he asked for clarification, "There are goblins lurking around the woods. Instead of red indicators they have yellow. Call me crazy, but I'd wager our actions here made them become NPC's." I glanced down at the medallion of the Shukechuun resting beside the gourd from the second floor I had replaced my original waterskin with, wondering if it was that item specifically that was granting us a different relation or if Gherlec had truly convinced his tribe not to antagonize any more players.
"We should visit them at some point," Klein mused. "Let them know what's going on."
"That wouldn't be a bad idea. Hopefully it doesn't end up as us just saying that and keep forgetting to do it." As we entered the outpost, something about it struck me as different. Perhaps it was how long it had been, or maybe it was having gone up against a literal dragon, but the construction of the buildings here just felt so relaxing. Wait, no. I closed my eyes, wondering how long I would have been able to endure the simplistic percussion and woodwind background music that hadn't been there before. "And now I can't stop paying attention to it," I muttered to myself.
"There are other players here now." Klein gestured towards a group of people exiting the diner, not noticing my internal struggle. "Looks like they just did that leather armor quest recently."
I glanced at the people in question, wondering if I had come across them before. "It being a while and a lot of stuff happening, did there use to be an instance marker for this area? I swore that we were the only people here and not just because of the difficulty in arriving." I started towards the steaming flask sign, grateful that a duo had just exited Hilde's shop.
"The only marker I can think of was the ruins in the east, though I'm pretty sure we had one leading into the plains south of Tolbana when we first escorted Mitsui back." Klein moved to tap open the door. After a brief pause he instead reached out and pulled it open, incomprehensibly mumbling as he shook his head. "You know this is actually my first time being back down on this floor?"
"Really? Madame Inheritor's had me come down here all the time for deliveries and pick ups." A wave of odors crashed over me as we walked in, the scents enveloping me in their pungence. Once upon a time I had crinkled my nose in distaste, but I was willing to bet a decent amount of cor that the reason I was able to appreciative it now was because of the thick undercurrent of «Slumbering Lily Petals» in the air, the smell overpowering everything else. "Hilde, I'm back!" I strode up to the wooden desk, eyeing a distinct blue block of shining crystal decorating in weaving lines of silver resting among a pile of glistening potions under a focused lantern.
The potion maker shuffled out from behind the curtain of beads, pleasure spread across her face. "Asasaki, welcome back, welcome back. Might it be too hopeful of this old woman to ask if you have reached Collinia yet?"
"Sorry, we've haven't heard about a word of the place." I disguised opening my quest log with a few gestures, closing the window after reaffirming that the 'Herbalist's Reunion' side quest was still sitting at the bottom of the screen. "I do have quite a bit of materials for you to mess around though." I pulled out the small collection of the various botanical and monstrous materials I had gathered since my last visit, the majority of them having been confirmed by the locals in their relevant areas for alleged medicinal properties. Whether or not a tarragon lizard fang could actually be used for this sort of work I wasn't sure, but the way the potion maker's face lit up with every new ingredient generously rewarded my efforts.
"Of these items," she gestured towards the plants and insect materials, pushing aside the carapace and various fragments that I had supposed were meant for armor and weapons. "Do you have more?" Without a word I summoned forth the rest I had tucked away in my inventory, making an appreciative sound at the small reduction in weight I felt without all the items. "Come back in a day or two. My journals are laying around somewhere and it will take some time to jostle this old mind of mine about the recipes." She looked up, suddenly realizing that Klein was also in the room.
"You two have met quite the interesting individuals, haven't you?" She looked the two of us over, cackling softly. "Yes, yes you have. I recognize that jewelry on you." Klein and I simultaneously glanced at the few trinkets we hadn't removed, examining them in closer detail. "Go on, then, return to your friends from the other kingdoms. When you come back from the lands beyond, bring me a few potions and perhaps a sample of poison if you've met the tribe I think you have. I may have been a prodigy of my craft when I left, but it has been a good few decades since I have had contact with my peers. I need to see if their standards have faded with over the ages." Without further conversation Hilde shooed us out, somehow managing to physically slip me a handful of potions and preventatives amidst the confusion.
"Were you expecting that to happen?"
I quietly stepped to the side, allowing the same boisterous group of teens from earlier to enter the building. "I was expecting something more friendly, close. Like meeting a grandfather or grandmother. What happened there," I trailed off, holding up a health potion whose description was spot on for the quality we could purchase from the third or fourth floors. "What happened there was an old lady rekindling her passion after years of not having it," I decided. "It's only natural she got excited like that, she acted fairly similar after I gave her the first batch of materials when I visited before New Years. Now come on, I wanna go visit the lodge. There's the third group of militia men I've seen since we entered this forest and I just know there's a story I missed out on."
{ } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { }
I nudged around one of the small figures representing the Tolbanian forces stationed around the western forest path. The last time I had seen this map was in Asuka's study and the amount of models still placed on there had been less than half, so seeing the amount of activity occurring was worrying. "And you say the Swordsmen in the area have been helping out?"
"That is correct."
I tapped the statue slowly, moving it back into position. Unlike the Tolbanians that traveled with us, the NPC's here spoke according to a fairly recognizable script, and the way they implemented their responses was extremely true to their station. 'Sorry, I'd love to chat more but I'm on break. I want to make the most of it' was one of the most common ones, right alongside 'That's above my pay grade. Why don't you look for one of the Sergeants? I'm sure they could help you out'.
"Since when has this started?" Klein asked. I quietly turned up the volume for my background music, realizing that the theme was a variation of the very calming and rustic orchestra that played whenever I was chatting with Mitsui.
"Some time in the past month or so. After the umpteenth Swordsmen barged into our headquarters back in Tolbana asking for anything they could help us with we decided to put them to work. Far be it from us to turn away willing volunteers." The Explorer shook his head, placing another handful of fairly ornate wooden figurines wielding claymore and other two handed weapons of the region alongside a wagon exiting the swamp lands along the eastern portion of the floor.
I sent Klein a message, my inputs hidden among the rest of my fidgeting. #Remind me to ask Rat if she's heard about any new quests.# "Have they been giving you much trouble? The majority of the Swordsmen here are still trainees, so if anything goes wrong we can try and help solve the issues."
"Your kind are strange I will admit, but they get the job done. I only wish they wouldn't talk amongst themselves so much. It's quite unnerving to ask them something and then have to wait several minutes before getting a response." Klein coughed at the Sergeant's words, sending me a meaningful look. "It's why any sort of task handling is given to the leaders of each units and not just any Explorer."
"By the way, what's going on with the goblins? I remember the first month we were here they were a significant problem, but during our travel today they seemed almost non-existent." I fiddled with the Shukechuun sigil, thumbing the design embedded into its face.
"The goblins? Aside from the ruins in the mountains and the more dangerous parts of the swamps, they've been exactly as you've said. We've seen neither hide nor hair of them. Not that the newbies would be complaining, but it has logistics stressed out."
Sir Scruffles cleared his throat, straightening from his crouched posture. "We'll see what we can do about the situation. We actually dealt with the goblins a few times before," the Sergeant gave a small respectful nod at that, "and between Asasaki and me we should have no problems figuring out what happened."
That's a misdirection if I've ever heard one. #What ever happened to chivalry and being honest?# I sniffed, swinging my legs off the arm rest and onto the floor. #Sorry, bushido.# "I noticed this map has a new drawing of a campsite near Horunka. What's going on over there?"
"The swordsmen seem to congregate there on an almost ritualistic basis. It's easier for us to send messages and handle these so called 'quests' there instead of here not to mention it's much more quieter for the men on break without all those boots trampling around." The middle aged man shook his head in disapproval. "Trainees indeed. But enough about our situation. Where is it that you intend on going after this?"
That last line's out of place.
Truly inner me, thank you for such insightful commentary. "After this we're going to head off to Tolbana. Mitsui wants me to pick up some supplies for her."
"Ah yes. We were told that Lady Mitsui had gone with a few Swordsmen to lands beyond the mountains." The man stood and tousled around a drawer in his desk, head angled to easily project his voice towards us. "Tell me, how does she fair these days?"
"Quite well, actually. She and Asahi are getting quite a kick out of all the new places we've been to." I accepted the few rolls of parchment the sergeant handed over, belatedly realizing that the man had had a quest indicator floating over his head the past few minutes.
"That's good to hear. I'm glad that she has this opportunity to see the lands of our forefathers. Growing up, all we've had of other pastures is that of our books and stories passed through the ages."
"Speaking of which," I pulled out a few sacks of meat I had acquired from the 6th floor, the system preventing the still fresh items from oozing non existent blood. "I think your men might enjoy this. It's a bit tough, but definitely different from the standard meats around here."
"Thank you." The head of the outpost gave a quick nod, calling for one of the men stationed outside his door to collect the items. "I'll be sure to let the men know who to thank for tonight's meal."
"We're grateful for your time, Sergeant Takahashi. Take care." Klein led the way out the building, exchanging a few nods with the Explorers milling about. "Did you really have to give him all that meat?" he asked once we left.
"What? It's called net working. Next time we drop by they might remember us. Or word will get passed on. Whatever. My point is," I paused, reverting the change I had done to my audio settings now that it had changed to the looping ambiance of the Horunka forest, "simple stuff like this is how you get in the good graces of people."
Klein gave an uncharacteristically ambiguous grunt, falling silent for several minutes. "Asasaki, you know they're NPC's, right?"
I twirled around to look at him, wanting to make note of his expression. There was a hint of pity mingling among the concern, the way he spoke reaffirming my fears about my attitude towards Mitsui and the others. "I know. But if I don't think of them as proper sentient humans, it's going to ruin me. I can't handle that kind of thinking. That sort of logic," I turned back around, bemoaning our failure to acquire a horse or two to travel back to Tolbana upon. "That sort of logic is the sort of thing that should only be applied to enemies. Allies and bystanders need to be treated like you'd treat everybody else. Fairly, gently, and equally."
Klein simply shook his head. "If that's what you want to do, I won't stop you. Just be careful about how attached you're getting. We're going to get out of here one day after all."
Eyeing the boughs above us, I mulled his words around, paying idle attention to the birdsong of avians we'd never see. "I see what you're getting at, but don't you think that's an incredibly sad outlook? So what if they're just artificial intelligence governed by ones and zeros?" I stared at the hill leading to the southern plains of Tolbana, the short break Harry, Dale, Choryu and I had taken a little north of here playing through my mind. "That doesn't make their existence any less real to us. It doesn't mean that the emotions they show don't have any value." I looked away, fingers grasping for a blade that had been stowed away. "Or maybe I'm just being crazy and just trying to humanize one of the rare connections I've made with somebody since being discharged."
"Asasaki,"
My left hand snapped up, a split thought stopping me from shoving his arm off my shoulder. "Life is important, Klein." I closed my eyes, slowly breathing out the extremes. "I can't- I'm still damaged. If I don't make this distinction that all friendlies need to be protected, I don't know how I'll be able to cope."
His arms settled around me, gentle, hesitant hands turning me around to face him. "If this is what you need to do, then that's okay. I'm not going to make fun of you for trying to stay sane." His stomach buckled, a short laugh escaping his mouth. "Actually, I can't help but think that you're incredibly smart for that sort of thinking."
"You're just trying to make me feel better," I mumbled into him, letting his warmth surround me once again.
"But I'm also speaking the truth. After what happened on the third floor and then on the fourth, it's really scary, you know? The Floor Bosses become so clinical and practiced, even if they get hectic. But diving into these dungeons? I feel like that's where the true horror is. Realizing that you willingly walked into such a dangerous situation and you can only rely on yourself to get out of it." One of Klein's hands moved up to my head, slowly combing through my untied hair. "How did you do it, Dawn? How did you stay out there after having lost so many people?"
I looked up at him, suddenly placing that far off look he held. "I reminded myself every day that there were still people surrounding that that looked to me for guidance." I reached up and slowly redirected his gaze towards me. "Every day when I woke up and ate with my unit, I told myself that even if I couldn't find the strength to stay strong for those under my command, I could always look to them. That I could borrow the strength they believed I had because to them, I was their sword, their tank, the promise that we would make it out of everything alive." I took a step back, steeling my resolve.
"Klein, let's promise each other something." He stared at me brokenly, my other self quietly questioning whether or not what I was doing was the right choice. "If anything ever happens, we look to each other for strength. I'm damaged, you're hurting. Alone we can't stand up, but together we can keep each other strong." I held my hand out, my forearm reaching well into his personal space. "Promise me, Ryoutarou. Your friends, our friends, need people to look to for guidance. So be the sword at my side, and I'll be the wind at your back, okay?"
His strained expression cracked slightly, the significantly taller man reaching down and grasping my extended limb by the forearm in return. "You're so incredibly weird, Dawn."
"I'm a foreigner. I'm allowed to be."
{ } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { }
"Afternoon." The usual guard (who the system still called 'Tolbanian Guard') standing at the base of the stairs in the Mitsui Trading Guild headquarters returned my nod and greeting with a crisp snap to attention, only returning to his previous position when we passed.
"Is that normal for you?" Klein asked once we passed.
"It only started around last week or so. Before then he only treated me with the usual suspicious looks he gives everybody who walks in hoping for a quest." I scoffed, shaking my head at yet another piece of equipment built from the blueprints Asuka had procured decorating the plinths leading to her room/office. "He never actually says anything to me. Only salutes, moving to attention, and returning my nods when I give him something casual on the way out." I pulled the key to my first Contracted partner out of my pocket, the door unlocking with a frankly needless click.
"God, are they seriously not touching her room?" I walking around and fluffed several of the cushions, adjusting the curtains and opening the windows that had not been moved since my last visit a few days prior.
Klein awkwardly stood at the side of the door, watching me go about the room. "Not going to lie, Asasaki. I actually feel a little weird being in here with you."
"What, this morning still bothering you?" I moved a pile of encased scrolls to the side, uselessly dusting her desk with my hand and breath before placing them back.
"No, not that. Well okay, a little. But it's more like I'm in somebody's room for the first time. Seriously, you're moving around really comfortably."
I chuckled and sat down in Asuka's seat, giving a quick once over for anything out of place. "You forget, Klein. While you guys were out and about killing monsters and exploring, I was the middle man for any time we needed to talk with Mitsui. She was our primary quest giver while we were in the area, remember?" After a moment I sent off a message to Argo asking about the whereabouts of 'Lisbeth', promising to pay her when next we met.
"I remember." Klein sat down on the couch farthest from the desk, a pair of shields with crossed blades resting on the wall behind him framing him perfectly.
"Care for a drink while we're here? Asuka gave me permission to finish whatever opened bottles she has laying around." I stepped into the back room and glanced around for the items I needed, leaving the door open to hear Klein's response.
"Why would Asuna have given you permission- Wait, did you just say Asuka? And didn't you just get on my case for drinking?" Klein blinked rapidly and shook his head in confusion. "Hold, have you been finishing her bottles? Even at the party last night you basically kept to the juices and water instead of any alcohol!"
"I've had a glass or two when I come here, yes." I called out, remaking her bed. It was quite frankly disturbing how close her resting quarters were to the wine rack. "What can I say, her place is amazing for thinking about stuff, and a flavored drink is the perfect way to keep my hands busy. The table's great for looking at maps or reviewing texts like Argo's books or quest logs so my mind's able to do whatever it needs to do." I sauntered out of the room, dropping a trio of bottles into my inventory which were allegedly aged ten years according to the few journals the leader of the trading guild had laying around.
"You-" Klein shook his head once again, accidentally nudging the table with his knee and moving a few of the figurines laying atop the map around. "Is that everything then?"
"Just about. I still need to peek into the armory next door to get some reports on how they're dealing with the new smithing methods." As we exited the main building the wind suddenly picked up and blew my unclipped bangs around, almost annoyingly at the same time a thought popped into my mind. "Wait a minute, do the others even know we're down here?"
"I'm actually pretty disappointed in you." Klein bapped his knuckles gently against my head. "We've been up for almost five hours and only now you ask about them?"
"Hey, my day started off sharing a bed with you." I stared at him teasingly. "I think I deserve a little slack."
"Is that supposed to be an insult or?"
"It's a neutral statement, don't read into like that. It's been a while since I've shared a bed with anything other than a dog or horse, so it was a strange thing." I glared at a passerby that had heard what I said, his snickering replaced by a joy inducing fear.
"Look at us, spending the day together, learning all sorts of things about each other." Klein repeated my line about sleeping with animals back to me, a sing song lilt adding to his amusement. "You know, I bet the guys would absolutely love to know this stuff about you. Seriously, the next time we spend a night out in the fields, you gotta tell us more stories about your life."
I gave him a queer look, flashing Asuka's emblem and asking the questioning worker that approached us for Ferghus. "Maybe. Provided that means we actually camp out and not be forced to rest after a fight with near 90% casualties." I glanced away when he flinched, realizing my mistake when he began laughing awkwardly. "Since we're here, when was the last time you upgraded your equipment?"
"Just last night, actually. While you were resting near that violin player,"
"I'm not quite sure that was a violin," I interjected, recalling the vaguely archaic design of the instrument.
"I found a Player smith near the portal. He managed to upgrade the «Tide Ripper» sword I picked up from one of the sahuagin to usable levels. I haven't tried it out yet, but I will once we return to the upper levels."
"You should equip it now, in all honesty." I quirked my lip, suddenly realizing that particular ending tic had been learned from Klein. "Better to get used to the feel of it down here where we basically have no need to worry than in actual combat."
Whatever Klein's response was became lost under Ferghus' booming voice. "Asasaki! How's my favorite supplier doing these days?"
My knees buckled slightly under the lead blacksmith's pat, the impact having significantly more weight behind it even if it didn't send me stumbling as badly as Agil's. "Ferghus, I'm not exactly a supplier, you know this. I'm just the-"
"Delivery girl, aye, as you've said every single time you drop bye. And my response, without fail, will always be-"
I let out a breath, joining him in unison. "'You drop by supplies and equipment for my men to work with, that makes you a supplier.' Really Ferghus, I don't think that means what you think it means."
"It means you blabber on far too much about the specifics of the language, girl. Come now, what sort of toys have you brought for this old man to play with?" He placed a hand on my back, guiding me towards the back room where several of the forges meant for the more experiences smiths were located.
"A few weapons and metals from a land of sprawling canyons lush with greenery, floating islands, and a tree covered spiraling mountain filled with dragons of both the winged and flying serpentine kind." I pulled out the materials in question, wondering for not the first time if all these minor 'quests' I incidentally completed while playing messager was the reason why the level gap between me and the rest of Fūrinkazan was so minor.
"Lady, you've got to lay off the liquor that Lady Mitsui keeps having you fetch." He bellowed out for a few apprentices to take the equipment off me, the mixture of teens and young adults scrambling to obey the orders of what was probably their boss' boss.
I simply quirked a brow in response, letting his laughter speak for me. "Speaking of Mitsui, you happen to have any reports she can look over?" Ferghus yelled once again for one of the apprentices to grab the records from his office, the man himself disappearing behind one of the various racks in the warehouse and returning with a pair of weapons sheathed within wood decorated with shining grey metals.
"Reports, and some new playthings. One for Lady Mitsui herself and one for you. I heard how satisfied you were with that Dao you picked up so I took the liberty of having another model crafted with some of the materials you brought back from that 'Karluin' place." He held out the distinct rapier for one of the soot covered teens to hold. Now able to use both hands, he pulled out the curved blade that looked sized for me, the replica of my old level 10 «Ceremonial Dao» complete with a frivolous baby blue ribbon that danced through the air with every testing swing. "It holds a sharper edge than the metals we've been using, and it's a hell of a lot more durable than anything we've made before. You'll be doing us proud if you use this."
I accepted the weapon with grace, noting that I was two levels away from being able to equip it. Swinging it around was something I could do easily do, but if I were to actually use it in combat it would throw off my accuracy so far it wouldn't even be funny. "Thank you. The weight's a little different than what I'm used to." I materialized «Tormenting Reaver» to my side and patted it. "I'll have to train with this blade for some time before I can use it properly."
"Just think of us folk back in here in Tolbana when you do. Lady Mitsui doesn't say much in her letters about what you're doing beyond those Heavenly Pillars, but she keeps talking about a hope to return the lands back to the way our ancestors knew them."
A chill ran down my spine at his words. "I'll make sure she gets these." I did my best to ignore the pressing questions that arose within, a quest notification briefly flaring when I took the reports and experimental rapier from the two teens before they scurried off to do whatever.
"I know you will, lass. And you!" Ferghus pointed towards Klein, the redhead taking a step back in surprise. "Take care of her, alright? Those of us within the Trading Guild and Lady Mitsui herself would be terribly upset if something happened."
"Of course. We'd be upset too if something happened to her."
"'Her' is right here, thank you very much." I nudged Klein in the side with my elbow. Not enough to hurt more than a sting if the Safe Zone allowed for pain, but enough to push him aside a bit. "Now come on. I still need to find a cage or two to bring back the animals Sasha wanted. Until next time, Ferghus."
"See you then, Lady Asasaki."
{ } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { }
"Two chickens, four sacks of wheat, a crate of sun dried fruits, and a set of knives made from metals found on the fourth floor, just because it's you." I jerked my head towards the old knife block resting on the kitchen counter, the aforementioned newer set resting on the table Sasha and I commonly used for our discussions.
"But why the knives?"
"Higher quality materials leads to higher quality products, right?" I shrugged. "Honestly, it was a splurge. I was walking through the Tolbana NPC markets and I found it on sale. Apparently my being a glorified transport is having an effect down here, so I thought I might as well share the benefits."
"Pardon me," Sasha habitually reached up and made to adjust a pair of glasses that weren't there, the purely cosmetic item being far too expensive for the time being to acquire. "But did you just insinuate that you're changing the NPC markets? The things that are supposed to be stagnate and unique to each floor?"
"Err, yeah?" I tried and failed to pet one of the caged chickens with a finger, the bird still holding a grudge over the amount of jostling it had been subjected to during the run back. "Mitsui, the person in charge of the local trade group, basically has me collecting materials from each floor I bring her to and delivering them to the relevant workshop back in Tolbana alongside a note or order." Something in my thoughts clicked. "Wait, backing up a sec." I met Sasha's eyes, synapses firing rapidly. "Holy shit. I'm influencing the base stock of the first floor."
"Be glad there aren't any kids around. I know they don't adhere to all the rules I set for them while I'm not around, but that's no excuse to not mind your verbiage."
"Sorry. But I'm just," I pulled out my chair and sat down, the reality of my situation hitting me full force. "I'm influencing the base stock of this region." I looked up, wide eyed.
"Asasaki, you just said that." Klein stared at me amusedly, arms crossed and a concerned smirk on his face.
"But I mean," my mouth formed several aborted words, each accompanied by their relevant starting sounds. "This shouldn't be happening, right? It's not like this is a single player game or anything. This is an MMO, quests are supposed to be an individual experience but everybody should be able to have the same general storyline, right?"
"Third floor," Klein coughed out.
"Right, third floor."
Sasha looked at the two of us, utterly lost. "What happened on the third floor?"
"We don't like to talk about. Not yet," I deflected. "Anyway!" I clapped my hands once, the resonating sound perfectly resembling the echoing quality of Klein's. "I've still got some people I need to meet today, and if I remember your schedule right, you should be holding a class in like ten minutes or so, right?"
"Oh gosh, you're right! I should have been looking over my notes. Asasaki, Klein, thank you for visiting. Please, be safe when you go back out."
"Of course. We always make sure to stay within acceptable margins." Klein grinned and winked at me. "Even her."
"It's not my fault you guys aren't confident enough in your martial abilities to be as courageous as me," I returned.
"Hey, didn't you once say that the difference between courage and stupidity is what the results turn out to be?"
I cleared my thought loudly, purposely ignoring his words. "Ah-hem! Be seeing you, Sasha. Tell the kids I said hi." Leaving the matron to her last minute preparations, I tugged Klein towards the exit, reflexively waving at the children playing around in the courtyard.
"They seem to like you," Klein remarked.
"It's only because I'm one of the few other adults that drop by that Sasha approves of." My eyelid twitched at the impish grin Silica shot me, the teen rushing off to share whatever unfounded gossip she had likely created. Not even a week and that girl's decided I should be the focus of 'Teen Girl's Weekly'
"Asasaki, I can walk you know."
I let go of his wrist, realizing that yet once again I had stopped by the eternally playing harpist. "Sasha does a lot of work, you know?" I clasped my hands at the small of my back, taking a few measured steps. "The job of a educator is a pretty thankless one, don't you think?"
"Sometimes," he said slowly. "But sometimes the students realize what's going on and decide to show a bit of gratitude. I think that makes it worthwhile in the end.
"Maybe." I turned around carefully, observing hi posture. "Children really don't belong here." I gently shoved him with a hand, instantly retreating. "C'mon, slowpoke! There's things to do and people to see, and the Rat says I've got a lady somewhere on the fifth floor waiting for me!"
Didn't we promise ourselves to be truthful in everything we do?
Even as the laughter and giggles danced through my lips, my eyes narrowed. Klein's going through a lot right now. Everybody's going through a lot right now. I can handle Sasha's issues on my own, there's no reason to bring the rest of the guild in.
{ } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { } - { }
I cackled and threw my hands in the air, spinning forward a short distance as I waited for Klein to pass through the portal. "And the two time champion of the 50m dash wins yet again! Can nobody stop her reign of terror?!." I grinned mischievously, lowering my voice for only the two of us to hear. "Slow at races, always letting me go first in battle, does letting the woman go ahead of you extend to something else as well?"
"Oi!" Klein held a scolding finger out, his taller height and expression briefly reminding me of the few times I had been reprimanded as a child. "Don't joke about that! I'm still having a hard time trying to deal with this morning, I don't need your innuendos in the mix!"
I chuckled and waved my hand dismissively. "Fine, fine. If you say so. So, what else is on the-" I glanced downwards, blinking at the rapidly pulsating notifications that until now had been easy to ignore. "Klein, I think I'm needed back at Mitsui's."
"Yeah, I just got a message." My fellow curved sword user turned to look at me. "You know they've been trying to contact you for the past hour or so, right?"
I started jogging beside him, marveling at how slow a non-Sprint run felt. "Nope. This is the first I've properly looked at my notifications aside from Argo's message about where Lisbeth was. I turn off all non-essential information before bed. Since today was a rest day I didn't bother to turn it back on. Totally my bad, now that I think on it. The UI's basically a phone or radio in here and we're on the metaphorical front lines if not the rear support." I leapt down onto a passing gondola, giving the occupants of the boat a wink and two fingered salute before launching myself back onto the walkway and catching up to Klein as he continued jogging down the path.
"We really need to have a sit down one of these days and get everybody up to speed on each other. You have issues keeping your health in check and apparently now communicating with the rest of the team, our shield and spear users are far too in sync with each other that Dale, Choryu, and I mess up their attacks from time to time, and you've been out of the loop for so many days it isn't even funny anymore."
"Working on that health thing, by the way." I leaned forward slightly, my legs certainly blurring to those not used to the speed that Sprint granted. In less than two seconds I traversed along the upper edge of a building, completely bypassing the gaggle of heavily armored Dragon Knights walking past. "It'd be remiss of me not to take care of myself better, especially after everything the Sergeant's done for me." To his barely heard one word inquiry, "I'll tell you about it another time. For now, I've got some people to answer to."
Marching up to the door of Mitsui's temporary residence, a repeat of last night's performance was the last thing I expected. "You're late!" Issin pulled me in once again, Klein (the irritating bastard) following after in a significantly more composed manner. "Seriously, if it wasn't for Ryoutar- Klein, we would've started reaching out to others to try and find you."
"Sorry about that, it was my fault." Klein protectively eased my wrist out of Issin's grip, bringing the both of us towards our usual spots at the table. "So what's this about?"
"It's about the Fallen Elves, Swordsmen." My head immediately thunked against the table at Iseyer's words, the only recently repressed memories of the aftermath and the associated real life events resurfacing. "My men, who have thankfully 'recovered' from their former states, managed to meet with the local Forest Elves the night before."
"Please ignore me for the time being," I told the imagined questioning gazes. "Just remembering a particularly irksome problem I've yet to deal with."
When we get out of here, you are playing Knights and Dragon with your cousins. And you will love it.
That's childish and I hate that I'm longing for the ability to relax like that.
"This actually coincides with our own plans." Asuka stood up, her entire posture in business mode. "We've done as much business as possible in the region, but with the knowledge that there are other species in the region we'd like to meet them and see what sort of deals we can make." My two Contracts shared a brief nod, both sitting down and giving the floor over to Harry.
"While you two were off on your little date," Choryu and Issin twitched at the teen's words, one more subdued than the other, "I was working with Sergeant Iseyer's contacts to try and get passage to their base of operations. It's down river, fairly close to that village we had the Tower strategy meeting in, so we'll need to take the Gondolas again. The short of everything is, be on your best behavior lady and gentlemen. We're going along as protection and moral support, so just let Mitsui and the Sergeant handle everything for the time being."
"By the way, where are the Ol'dekhaan at?"
Iseyer opened his eyes, Klein's question breaking him from his thoughts. "They're over in the eastern forests with my men. We'll pick them up along the shoreline down the river. Like myself, they don't care too much for the buildings of humanity. We're much more at home in caves or a campsite, someplace much more connected to nature than here."
"Sounds like we get to go on another boating trip." I dragged my armor from my inventory onto my person, rolling my limbs to settle into the returned weight. "The waters south of Rovia have monsters in them, so I'm going to ask Swordsmen and Natives alike to be ready to strike down anything that gets near us. Our gondolas are equipped with a metal plated ram, but since they're on the front the drivers won't be able to get everything, so keep an eye out."
"Your ship's where you last parked it, Asasaki." Issin smiled at me, the edges of his grin appearing slightly forced. "You're the farthest from us, so you might as well get going first. Meet us over by the portal, alright?"
I gave him a nod as I backed towards the door, wondering whether or not Harry's remark had bothered him as much as I was imagining. "Catch you all in a bit."
Next chapter should be released on June 15th.