Well, here's another update. It would've been up earlier, but I've been caught up in game stuff. Playing RO and Disgaea. Stuff like that. Anyway, here we go with the next chapter.

Skye Mihalak: I'm glad you like the humor in this fic…I'm best with humor. Humor is great. And I'd appreciate it if you would teach me.

Tom Valor: Oh…Hmmm, okay, I can use that for Lightning Bolt. And yeah…I kind of neglected describing the sergeant because he probably isn't going to be that important. I might bring him back later and then I'll describe him more then. For a basic description, he's a retired knight with blond-gray hair. And…Hmm…I didn't think about that. I needed something to kill the Poring though. And a PecoPeco is pretty hard to defeat alone.

Kiyoko-chan: Yeah…None of the RO promotion tests make any sense. Except for the merchant one. Which really isn't that merchanty anyway. And…Hmm…Yeah, you're probably right. I'll try to go into more detail with tougher fights from now on.

Chapter 3: A Faerie's Light

Niklason strolled towards the exit of Alberta, whistling a jaunty tune. He didn't notice that people were chuckling at him and pointing at the little faerie perched atop his head. The faerie was humming as well and doing a small dance on top of Niklason's head. Niklason ignored all this, however. He had just become a Swordsman, and he felt like running around and screaming for joy. However, he restrained his urges and calmly walked towards the exit.

From behind him, he heard running and yelling so he spun around, ready for a fight. He was clearly surprised when Radella rushed up to him and threw him in a tight hug, wrapping her arms around his back. The blue-haired youth stumbled backwards, finally tumbling to the ground. "Whoa! Radella! What's up?"

"I became a mage! See?! Look at me!" She leaped off of him and twirled around. Niklason smiled at her enthusiasm and picked himself off of the floor, wiping himself off. Radella proceeded to hug Niklason again and jump around him, chanting, "I'm a mage now! I'm a mage now! Whee!" The faerie decided to join in the fun and began jumping around Niklason's head.

After a while, Radella calmed down and noticed that Niklason was wearing a new sword. She gasped with happiness and hugged him again. Niklason grinned and patted her on the head. "Heh, boy are you happy today. It's nothing, really. The battles were tough, though."

Radella nodded and let go of Niklason. Then she stopped and stared at the faerie that was dancing on top of Niklason's head, making a little bed of blue hair. She started chuckling at the faerie's antics, who was now sitting on his head and waving at her. Radella waved back and giggled.

Niklason looked quizzically at his friend. "Uh…Radella? What are you doing?"

The brown-haired girl stopped and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I was just waving at something on your head."

Niklason felt his hair, but the faerie dodged his hands and fluttered over his head. He moved his hands through his hair faster and found nothing. "Are you sure there's something on my head? It's not a spider, is it? You know how I hate spiders!"

"It's not a spider! Really!" Radella waved her hands, shaking her head. "I don't think the thing on your head is dangerous."

"I don't care! Just as long as it stays off my head! No wonder people were laughing at me as I left the Swordsman guild! Grrr…When I get stronger, I'll show 'em to not laugh at me!" Niklason searched over his head again, but his fingers just missed grasping the faerie. The faerie let out a small chuckle and settled on Niklason's head again.

"Um…Niklas? It's on your head again."

"Well? Get it off! And don't call me Niklas. I hate being called that." The youth tried getting the faerie again, trying not to blush as he head bystanders beginning to laugh again. While they were talking, people had gathered around them, watching their antics. Some of the more experienced people grimaced and spoke about the naïveté of young people. Others smiled and took pictures while one person actually had set up an easel and was painting them.

"Break it up, break it up!" The alchemist that Niklason had run into earlier now appeared again, breaking up the crowd. "You people have work to do, you know! Just because some couple decides to celebrate their promotions in the middle of the street is no reason to gather around and take pictures!" She walked up to the person with the easel. "And no painting!" She swiped the portrait and dropped a small bag of gold on the artist's lap. "Here's 1,000 zeny. Thanks for the painting."

People grumbled and made mock insults as they left the area. They didn't like to show it, but they were fond of their First Merchant Division commander, even though she was a bit eccentric. They slowly filed away, leaving a very embarrassed duo. Radella coughed and cleared her throat while Niklason scratched the back of his neck, looking awkward. The faerie finally decided to make its presence known to the swordsman, so it flew down and hovered in front of his face.

"Whoa!" Niklason stumbled backwards, staring in astonishment at the little faerie and the pixie responded by waving and jumping up and down in the air. After he got over his initial astonishment, he leaned in closer to see what the faerie looked like. The faerie had long, green hair and wore a simple dress. The little wings on her back flitted rapidly as the faerie looked at Niklason with red eyes.

"Oh…Hello there." Niklason waved at the creature. "Can you talk?"

The faerie shook her head sadly.

"Well…Do you want to come with us? We're planning on going to Payon to see the militia there."

The faerie nodded energetically and settled back on top of Niklason's head. Now that that issue was settled, the two companions and their little faerie friend left Alberta, the Merchant's Villa and headed for Payon, land of the Archer.

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Not far from the exit, Niklason held up a hand and stopped his friend. "Hey, wait up."

The mage looked at him, and then at the faerie who had secreted herself in one of his pockets. "What's the problem?"

"Didn't you hear? The animals around this area have gotten a lot fiercer ever since the war. There's a big danger that we might be attacked here, and I'm not sure if I'll be able to protect you that well. I'm sure I might be able to take down some of the solo, but I don't know about you." The swordsman unsheathed his new katana as he looked at Radella.

"Thanks for the support. But don't worry, with you at the front, I'm sure we'll be able to do fairly well. And I did pick up some potions while I was at Alberta." Radella opened her pouch and showed Niklason a bunch of bottles stacked together in a container.

"Well, if that's the case…Then come on! Let's go!" Niklason grabbed hold of Radella's hand and dashed into the forest. Crunching sounds erupted as they stepped on dead leaves and branches on the ground. But eventually, Niklason stopped running and began to act more cautious. Radella noticed this, and began readying the main-gauche that she had obtained. Because she was an apprentice mage, she didn't feel like she was able to cast spells in the middle of combat. So, to remedy this, she decided to fight in direct hand-to-hand combat first to experience it. Then, she would be able to focus during a battle the next time.

Hissing sounds erupted from one of the bushes nearby and a boa sprung out and wrapped around Niklason's leg. He yelled in surprise and slashed wildly with his katana, nearly severing his foot. His next swing was more controlled, however, and he managed to create a long gash on the side of the vicious snake.

Radella stood at the side, at a loss of what to do. The snake hadn't started to squeeze his leg yet, but it was close enough that she was afraid that she might accidentally hit Niklason instead. She took a chance, however, and stabbed at it. The main-gauche plunged into the boa's side, sticking in the snake. The snake let out a loud hiss and swung its fangs into Niklason's leg. He screamed in pain and severed the snake's head, instantly killing it.

"Damn snake!" Niklason sat down and began unwrapping the snake's loose form from his leg. He also pulled out the snake's head and flung it away from him, wincing as he saw the blood seep out of the two small wounds.

Radella rushed up to him and began searching for the various potions she kept in her pouch. Niklason shrugged her off and gingerly tested his leg. He found that he would still be able to stand, although it would hurt if he tried to walk. "Nah, it's okay. I don't think it's poisoned. Come on, let's go. We need to head for Payon before nightfall." He limped off, Radella following him.

After a couple of more battles with the animal life in the Payon Forest, the small village was in sight. The battles had severely taxed their strength, however, and Niklason's sword hung tiredly from his hand. Radella was panting and both of them were covered with dust. They had used a lot of their potions coming here, and while a potion might cure wounds and cuts, it couldn't restore energy.

"Phew…We almost there, huh? I told you we'd make it! Just a little longer!" Niklason grinned triumphantly, sweat dripping down his hair. Radella smiled tiredly.

"I can't wait till we can find an inn…I'm pooped."

As they were nearing the entrance of the town, however, a pack of 3 wolves jumped out from behind some trees. They growled at the two travelers and inched forward, spittle flecking out from their bared fangs. Niklason held his sword up defensively and risked a glance over his shoulder. Radella was there, hurriedly reading one of the spellbooks she had saved. Radella had finally decided that she was strong enough to use the spells and had performed admirably in some of the later encounters.

'I don't understand why wolves would be out here, but I'm going to kill them all!' Niklason gripped his sword a little bit tighter and then rushed at the wolves. "Nothing's going to stop me from getting into that town! Prepare for oblivion!" Niklason swung his sword at the first wolf, which had dodged to the side, receiving only a small cut.

"Wait!" Radella shouted at him. "Boys!" She then began repeating the words of the spells in her head and formed her hands into the lightning bolt symbol. Light flashed and the wolf that Niklason had tried attacking yelped. Some of its fur had been burned off and some patches had caught on fire. It whimpered and backed off for a while before closing in again. 'Damn it! Still not strong enough!' Radella readied another spell as the wolves went on the offensive.

Niklason's sudden rush had caught all of them off-guard and afforded his side a couple of extra hits. However, the wolves retaliated fiercely. One of the wolves ran at the Radella while the other two ganged up on the swordsman. Niklason grunted as one of the wolves swiped at his chest. He quickly swung his sword to block the blow and succeeded in slicing the wolf's paw off, blood spurting onto his armor. He swung his katana again, this time killing the wolf as the sharp blade plunged into the wolf's body and cutting it in half. Some of the blood landed in his eyes, and he frantically started wiping it off. He had just finished when the second wolf leaped at him and knocked him down on the ground. His breath left him in a whoosh as he toppled to the ground, his sword landing a few feet from him.

He swung his foot and connected with the wolf's rib cage before it was able to hit him. He leaped up and searched for his sword. He found his katana nestled in a bunch of plants and was going to get it when the wolf leaped up again and sank its fangs into Niklason's sword-arm.

"Shit!" Niklason yelled in anger before picking up his sword with his off hand and swinging it at the wolf. He managed to hit, but the blow was so weak that the wolf barely noticed it. The wolf bit harder and Niklason got his revenge by dropping his sword and punching it in one of the eyes. The wolf let go of his arm and stumbled to the ground, whimpering. With his sword arm out of commission, the swordsman resorted to wrestling and street fighting. He landed another kick on the wolf and sprung at it.

While Niklason was fighting, Radella was having a couple of problems of her own. She had tried launching a Fire Bolt at the wolf, but it dodged the lance and leapt for the girl's throat. She dodged to the side and tried a lightning bolt. It succeeded, barely. The electricity had only shocked the wolf for a few seconds, and it had leaped do the attack again, this time slashing her leg with its claws. She winced before drawing out her main-gauche and swinging it at the beast. It clacked off of one of the wolf's fangs and cut it off. The wolf cried out and struck out at Radella again, clawing deep marks across her chest.

She screamed and threw an ice bolt at the wolf. The solid block of ice landed directly on the beast, crushing its spine and killing it. Blood slowly pooled around the mage and she looked for a potion in her pack. She located one and drank it, feeling the potion do its work. Her wounds were closing a little, but she was extremely tired and could only watch as Niklason fought against the last wolf. She watched as he dealt the killing blow against the wolf as he threw it against a tree. He panted as he stood up. He grinned tiredly at Radella before falling on one knee, coughing.

She nodded but then noticed something creeping up behind her friend. She was about to shout out a warning before something knocked her to the floor. Niklason sprung to his feet and rushed at the wolf that had knocked down Radella but he also fell down as another wolf leaped on top of him. He rolled to the side, but the wolf was on top of him before he could get up. He smelled the wolf's putrid breath and wrinkled his nose, even though he knew that there wouldn't be a way to get out of this.

'Sigh…This is so lame! I'm so going to yell at God if I get to heaven! But still…How did these wolves get so smart? They don't hide if they can just rush out…When did they learn these tactics?' Niklason winced as he saw the wolf's paw swipe towards his neck…

Eh, I'm ending it here….Well, because I feel like it. You'll find out what happens to them later. And it's a comedy chapter next. Well, mostly comedy chapter. Review if you wish. I would have a more cheerful ending A/N, but I'm tried and sick. Drat.