Chapter 4 - Dunbarton

The forest opened up to a large field that stretched out in all directions. Off in the distance, the intimidating stone walls of the city of Dunbarton contrasted with the green of the surrounding grassland. Thin, well-trimmed trees lined the pathway that lead from the forest to the city.

The pair slowed to a casual walk as they mixed into the crowed that was out looking at the wide variety of kiosks that sat along the outer walls. The Demon Slayer was forced to pull his wings in close to his body as he pushed his way through the throng of humans. Even Henesys is never this busy, he thought to himself as he skirted around a dual that had broken out. "This place is a mess how do you deal with this…" but when he looked around he realized that he had lost sight of Josh. "Great…" he looked all over the crowed but couldn't see his guide anywhere.

What did catch his eye was a head of long blonde flowing hair, the sharp ears of an elf stuck out between the strands. The Demon Slayer's eyes opened wide, "Mercedes..?" His mind went blank as he reached out for the elf. He grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her around so he could see her face. The poor girl was so startled that she dropped the bag of cooking ingredients she'd been carrying. She stared at him with her bright amber eyes.

The Demon Slayer looked into her eyes and knew this was not the elf queen he had often fought with. He promptly released her and muttered an awkward apology. He left the girl standing there startled and confused while he walked away. He had shocked himself as well; he had been so desperate to see someone from Maple World that he would have even been happy if it were the most annoying elf in existence.

He wondered off to a side street and up some stairs. The crowd was thinner here and was mostly congregated around a large stall; its shelves lined with a surprising number of books. A girl in her late teens with big thick glasses stood talking with some of the shoppers naming off different composition books and discussing the accuracies of famous campfire stories.

Up another set of stairs, the Demon Slayer stopped to watch a lady decked out in shining armor as she yelled out instructions to a group of children practicing using their weapons on training dummies. When doing a demonstration her moves seemed delicate and elegant, unlike a typical swordswoman. Her long silver hair is woven tightly into braids, leaving her unsympathetic eyes fixed on her students. One of the children received a harsh yell when he stopped and stared at the new onlooker. The female Trainer turned to face the Demon Slayer; her face was stern as she looked him over.

"If you're not here to train I'd appreciate you Not distract my charges," she said.

The Demon Slayer smirked at her serious attitude, thinking how she seemed like someone he could get along with, before apologizing, "You'll have to forgive me. I am not from around here. Perhaps you could help me find the one I'm looking for, a man called Stewart?"

The woman raised her eyebrow, "Stewart is the magic teacher for the school, which is the building right behind you. Go through the doors and take the stairs to the right to get to his classroom. If he's not there then try the library which is off to the left." She turned her back on him and barked some commands, startling some of the children. The Demon Slayer gave a polite 'Thanks' and turned to push open the heavy wooden doors of the school.

As he entered the school building, some mage Apprentices paused to gawk at him. Judging from the panicked look on one of their faces, the Demon Slayer felt it safe to assume they believed he was an Incubus. He thought it best to avoid confrontation, since it would be hard to explain their dead bodies; he turned to the stairs on the right and hurried up them.

Josh turned and smiled with relief as the Demon Slayer entered the room, "Glad to see you found your way here. I was a little bit worried when we got separated in the crowd." The Demon Slayer was about to respond when a face popped up only inches away from his own.

"Fascinating! So this is the one you were telling me about? He truly does look like an Incubus, but this energy of his. It's like Mana but yet different in its very core." The strange man adjusted his glasses and circled the Demon Slayer like a cat circling a shiny new toy. "Tell me," he said brining his face right up in front of the Demon Slayer's, "what is this energy of yours called?"

The Demon Slayer was so startled by the man's forth coming attitude that all he could do was answer, "Demon Fury…"

"Oh Wonderful! Fury… yes I do feel an aura of rage emanating from you. Emotions become your strength… fascinating." The man seemed off in his own little world as he pulled a notebook seemingly out of nowhere and began jotting down his observations. The Demon Slayer glanced over at Josh with a questioning look. Josh laughed.

"Hey professor, you can get acquainted later… so about Heart?"

Stewart turned around and pressed his glasses up on his nose. "Oh yes, Katherine." He walked over to a cabinet and slid open a drawer. He pulled out a thick wooden wand, its simple design split into two equal branches at the top, a single feather pinned to one branch; a long strip of leather wrapped around the base creating a smooth and sturdy grip. "She stopped in last week and left her Carpinus with me. When she left it she told me she would go do some shopping while I worked and be back before nightfall, but she never showed." He returned the wand to the drawer.

Josh's brow furrowed. "That's her favorite wand… She would never leave without it."

Stewart nodded, "Yes, I also thought it strange when she didn't stay to watch the repairs. She seemed distracted as we talked."

"Perhaps she knew something was going to happen?" the Demon Slayer suggested. Josh and Stewart looked at him worried by the thought.

"If that were true," Stewart pointed out, "Would she really have left her Healing Wand behind? For a Master of Party Heal magic… it's the greatest tool she has. Especially with all the upgrades she's had done on it."

Josh stared intently at the drawer. "Mind if I take a look at it?"

"Oh, of course." Stewart turned and pulled the wand back out and handed it to Josh.

Josh ran his hands over the smooth finish on the wood. He was no mage but he could feel the care and devotion that his friend had put into the weapon. He turned the wand over in his hands and held the grip out as if it were a sword. He felt the grip in his hand and noticed something odd. The leather was not evenly wrapped, it would be hard to hold onto during a fight with the sloppiness.

"Hey! What are you..!?" Stewart yelled out as Josh began unwrapping the grip. He laid the leather strap out on the table. There were black lines written on the inner side, strange magically burnt lines. They seemed to have a pattern to them, but they made no sense. He stared at them for a moment before being pushed out of the way.

"I have seen this before," the Demon Slayer said as he began coiling the strap around itself, "this was a method of delivering hidden messages among the Heros long ago." He continued coiling the writing. About halfway up Josh's eyes opened wide; there was something written with the burn marks.

"Hang on a sec! Move it like this…" He reached in and matched the lines up

Mend…

That was the word written on the strap; Stewart read it aloud, shocked. "Mend what?" The Demon Slayer smirked and glanced up at him; his terrifying ruby eyes filled with excitement.

"Perhaps the rest of the lines reveal more," he suggested and then moved back in to continue wrapping the writing. It was only a minute before it was completed.

Mend the wall between the worlds.

"Mend the wall… Between the Worlds!? This is it! This proves it. Heart is somehow involved with whatever brought you here." Josh turned excitedly toward the Demon Slayer but saw a deathly serious look on his face. "What?"

The Demon Slayer reached down and pointed at some burn marks that didn't seem to be anything more than squiggles. "This is writing from my world," he explained. "How could she have known there would be someone who could read it? And how does she know it to begin with?" He stared intently at the writing as he spoke.

"What's it say?" Josh asked, leaning over the table to get a better look at the writing.

The Demon Slayer glanced up at him then looked back at the writing. "It's no word from Maple World that I've ever heard of, but it would be pronounced Renes."

"The volcano in Iria?" Stewart asked sounding surprised. The Demon Slayer looked up at him.

"You've heard of this?"

Stewart nodded. "Renes is…" He was cut off by a voice from the open doorway.

"Is No place for weaklings like yourselves." The three men turned around to see local swordsman trainer standing at the door. "You would be killed by the monsters there in minutes," she informed them harshly.

"Aranwen… I didn't hear you come in," Stewart said nervously.

"and it's a good thing to. Else I might not have heard enough to put an end to the idea forming in that childish brain of yours." Aranwen looked coldly upon the magic teacher who seemed to shrink from her gaze.

"Idea…?... I don't know what you're t-talking about."

The Demon Slayer watched, amused, as the swordswoman's commanding presence filled the room. "I know that look in your eye," she told him. "A hidden message… a stranger with an unknown type of energy… You can't resist the chance to learn more." Stewart dropped his gaze away from the older woman. Turning to the others she said, "It would cause the Dunbarton School much trouble should our magic instructor get himself killed. Take what information you need then leave. I'll not have you filling his head with any more curiosities."

The three men talked cautiously while Stewart rewound the leather strap around the wand and gave it to Josh, who stowed it in his bag. "I'll return it to Heart as soon as we find her," he promised the depressed professor. Stewart merely nodded. The Town Guard slung his bag over his shoulder and nodded to the Demon Slayer; they headed out the door into the city.