Hey guys! Thanks for the awesome reception on Chapter 1. Not much really to say at the top note here besides I now have up to Chapter 6 finished. Also thanks goes to asdf0789 for reading over this.

Ren felt a stripping sensation throughout his body as the blue mist wrapped around it. As if he was taking his clothes off after a long day of work. The masks he'd known for years were being ripped off leaving him bare save for Raoul's.

It left him feeling the same as when he first awakened his persona. Hopeful and full of potential. Burning with his original drive and ambition. To help a friend.

The same blue butterfly he'd seen in the interrogation room flapped around him bringing comfort in his freefall.

He was feeling good….until he hit the ground.

Ren's face planted on the soft dirt and grass, his backpack hitting the ground above his head. Above him, the sound of the butterfly disappeared.

He pushed his palms into the ground, pulled his head up, and spit out a clod of dirt and grass. He frowned at the Ren-shaped imprint on the ground.

"Not my best of landings. I was going to ask where they were sending me exactly," he murmured as he surveyed his surroundings. He had landed a fair bit off the path and in a small patch of vegetation, no doubt as to not cause a scene with his entrance.

Close by to where he landed was a set of cobblestone stairs leading up a hill and stabilized into what he assumed was some kind of flat. A little further away he saw the grassy field he was in met sand forming a beach.

What hammered home for him that he was in a different time period was that further down the beach he saw an old-fashioned harbor with galleys and sloops tied to the wooden docks. Ships of a bygone era he associated with exploration, piracy, and Ryuji.

Attached to the harbor was a variety of stalls and markets meant to supply the outgoing sailors for their next voyage.

Figuring the stalls were as good a place as any to gather information, Ren picked himself up off the ground and dusted off his cotton shirt and jeans. Grabbing his backpack off the ground, he started his trek to the flea market.

XXXXX

"Long travel? Well, I've got the best fish on the Eastern Continent!"

"I've got the best in the Brightlands!"

"Don't listen to those hacks! They don't even have the best wares in New Delsta Harbor!"

"Rip off in New Delsta? Don't worry I've got the best equipment you can ask for. They cut through monsters like fresh butter!"

"Hey, the fare is thirty leaves if you wanna go down south to Toto'haha. Ninety if you want to go west to Crackridge, Wildlands. One-twenty for Canalbrine, Harborlands."

Just as he did in Tokyo, Ren listened to the various snippets of conversation as he walked through the market. He also noticed that he could actually understand what was being said. He mentally noted to ask Igor about that later.

Eventually, he came to a stop and sat on one of the dock posts in the harbor. He pulled out his journal and a pencil to record his thoughts.

"Okay, I'm in New Delsta Harbor in the Brightlands on the Eastern continent. I assume the city the Harbor is attached to is somewhere nearby."

Ren peered over the tops of the stalls and in the far distance across a bay he could see the edge of a city covered in smog.

"That must be New Delsta going off logic, but I have a bigger concern—No money."

Ren was mentally kicking himself. He felt stupid for bringing along coins and cash from Japan. Maybe he could pawn off the coins, but the paper notes were probably worthless. He'd learned plenty about bean sprouts growth from Yusuke. Maybe he could subsist on that. Monsters apparently existed too; he could always hunt one if he were hurting for protein.

Just to be safe he reached into his bag and pulled out his gun and holster and, confirming it still worked, strapped it to his shoulder. He did the same with his knife strapping it to his waist. He made sure both weapons were concealed properly underneath his weather-beaten leather coat.

*THUD*

A hard dull impact rang out behind him as soon as he finished equipping himself.

Ren turned around following the noise and saw a man struggling to stand up next to one of the ships.

"I told you I can pay!" The man said.

A burley sailor leered from over the ship's railing.

"We don't take IOUs. Come back when you actually have money to pay us!"

"But my bag was stolen!"

"Don't care!" The sailor said, walking out of view.

"Shoot…He's gone."

Ren got up from his post and walked over to the man who remained on one knee. He wore a simple cotton shirt with a green vest over top, and an insignia of a wolf sat on his breast. His hair was neatly combed and his face clean shaven. He had a wiry frame that did nothing to hide the air of regality Ren just couldn't place.

"Did he just…. throw you from the top of the ship?" Ren asked, mystified startling the man and causing him to fumble forward.

"Ah, you scared me, friend." The man said, standing up and facing Ren. "Yes, indeed he did. Right over the bow… I'm just thankful he didn't toss me into the sea." He said, rubbing his rear end. "Knowing my luck, a monster would've eaten me as soon as I touched water."

"You aren't hurt, are you?"

He groaned. "I've survived worse." The man then looked Ren up and down. "I didn't catch your name m by the way."

"I'm Ren," he said, holding out his hand to shake.

"I'm Al." The man said reciprocating the gesture. "You don't look like you're from around here, Ren."

"I'm not, I'm a traveler. I just came here recently,"

Al hung his head in thought momentarily before slamming a fist in his palm. "You know what? That's perfect for what I need." At Ren's curious glance, the man explained. "To travel around this region, one has to be decently strong…or fleet of foot like me."

Ren took out his weapon. "I like to consider myself pretty handy with a knife, yes."

"Perfect. The reason why I tossed off the ship is because some bandits stole my bag which had all my ticket money in it."

Ren could see where this was going. "And you want me to get it back, correct?" He said sarcastically, sheathing his knife.

"If you would?" Al looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Why can't you get it back yourself? You said you're pretty fast at running away," Ren pointed out.

Al put his hands up in a helpless gesture and then leaned in towards Ren conspiratorially. "You see I'm kind of in the situation that if certain people catch me fighting, I'll be in a whole heap of trouble. Better not to risk it."

"What's in it for me?"

"Helping someone out of the kindness of your heart?"

Ren started to walk away, causing Al to grab him by the shoulder.

"Now wait just a minute there. If you can get my bag back…I'll make it worth your while." He rubbed his thumb and two forefingers together.

"Fine," Ren said, removing Al's hand off his shoulder. He couldn't exactly refuse a payday in his current position. "Which way did they go?"

Al pointed to the cobblestone path. "That way. They went into the New Delsta Flats. I think they have some sort of…. camp there or whatnot. But you know how bandits are, the bastards only come out at night."

"What about you? What will you do in the meantime?"

"I'll just stay here and let you manage it," Al said plainly and sat down in the middle of the harbor. "Someone who can't fight like me will just get in the way."

"Who said anything about fighting?" A mischievous grin played on Ren's lips.

Al raised his head in realization. "Oh, you're a thief. That explains a lot." Al paused for a moment and tilted his head "I respect it. Not all problems in this world can be solved by fighting. In the same breadth, not everyone can be trusted immediately. But good luck sneaking up on someone on a flat."

"I have my ways."

"If that's the case I'll be here when you get back." Al then lounged out on the ground rolling over and proving his head up on one arm.

"He certainly is relaxed considering It'll take me a least a day to get the bag,"

"You do know it'll be a day at the minimum right?" Ren said, voicing his thoughts.

"Yep, and I've got time to kill so it's all good," Al said, waving him off.

Ren mentally shrugged before walking towards the stone path. Along the way, the realization started to sink in that he wasn't in Japan anymore. He took deep breaths with every step, remarking on how fresh it felt.

He was from the country; he was used to wide open spaces, but this was different. Instead of smooth asphalt, his boots moved over the unstable cobblestone that was probably hand laid. It had probably been that way for centuries as grass and weeds threatened to reclaim what man had once made.

He passed back through the market and up the stairs. Upon reaching the top of the hill he could see the full tilt of the land almost unimpeded. A smattering of trees, hills, and dilapidated brick structures with flags of assumed to-be-forgotten countries lay scattered across the land.

Five twisting brick roads knit together in the middle of the area. The path that winded south Ren assumed led to New Delsta, though he could no longer see it like he could from the bay.

Its direct opposite was the northern path. It led towards a group of snow-capped mountains and amazingly enough, a snow-covered area that sat right next to the grasslands like a divider as if spring and summer didn't even exist at lower altitudes.

The eastern path also went to a mountain range. The same one as the northern path as far as Ren could tell. The only difference being those mountains were clearly dirt capped.

The path closest to himself went to yet another mountain but this one was way smaller than the others and made completely of stone to boot. It was most likely closer to being classified as a hill. Ren could see the end of the trail clearly which led to some sort of abandoned waterway judging by the busted metal grate in front of it.

If Ren was a betting man, he'd guess that was the place the bandits were holed up at night. Setting his course of destination, Ren took off.

Ren had only gone about five minutes down the road when his intuition kicked in. Kicking backward, he propelled himself out of the way as several blurs jumped from the bushes along the path in ambush.

A branch bounced off the cobblestone where Ren was standing a moment ago. Three upright chubby rats looked at each other confusedly, each clutching a makeshift wooden shield in one claw and tree branches in the other acting as spears.

"They did say monsters earlier…" Ren sighed, unstrapped his backpack, and then pulled out his knife from its sheath.

Ren took a tentative step and then bust into speed. With three simple swings the glowing silver dagger Ren brought with him, cut through the shields like paper taking the hands attached to them as well. He came to a rest behind the trio of monsters on one knee.

The rats squeaked in surprise at the lost limb but weren't able to find the perpetrator as their bodies collapsed onto the ground dead.

"There goes the idea of eating monster meat," Ren said, withstanding the shudder of pain and putting away his weapon. "But I wasn't too on board with eating rat meat, to begin with."

He then made sure to properly dispose of the bodies before going over and picking up his bag. Ren then continued along the path as if nothing had happened, stepping over splinters and debris left in the wake of the monsters.

—X—

Ren looked up at the sky. The sun had entered into the second half of its daily journey across the sky. Despite being able to see where he was going, getting there was another matter entirely, due to monster attacks. By his estimate, he had been walking for a little over two or three hours. There was no point checking his phone or his watch to gauge exactly when it was. Time wasn't synced between worlds, and he didn't have a native clock to match the difference.

He panted and took out his weapon once more, readying his battle stance, his instincts telling him what was coming.

Ren gazed around at his surroundings. Putrid green versions of the bipedal rats were making a beeline for him. In the middle of the pack, he spied a cat carrying a bag on its back. He couldn't catch a break. This was the fourth attack in the last hour, and he hadn't even got to nightfall to deal with the bandits.

He was out of shape in a fighting sense. Either that or Igor and Elizabeth had managed to strip that way too. He had a reduced mana pool that was being shaved away quite quickly adding to the fatigue. Raoul only knew Phantom Show, Cleve, Eiha, Sukunda, and Single Shot, but even casting them himself took a gradual toll on Ren.

"I shouldn't expect anything less from the 'strip you bare' part," Ren thought to himself.

He hadn't had this much of a workout since he spared with Akihiko in the Shadow Operative scouting assessment. Matter of fact he felt as he had during his first forays into the Metaverse.

Ren dodged the first series of attacks. This group of enemies seemed more vicious than any other group he'd fought previously. The cat in particular was raving as it slashed with its claws and Ren parried with his blade. He kicked it in its back to create space.

He snapped his fingers and sent an Eiha at the rats. It wasn't effective as they barreled right through it, forcing Ren to sidestep giving him an up close and personal at the rotting flesh and the rancid smell it gave off. He pulled out his gun and charged it with his magic, firing a few experimental shots just to be sure of his theory. The bullets made the beast stagger a bit but otherwise made a minimal difference.

"No wonder curse isn't effective. The thing is basically a zombie," he said, planting his hand on the head of one and flipping over it.

Ren faced down his five adversaries; four green rats and that weird cat-like thing. He twirled his knife and gun and flashed a confident smile. He'd be running on empty in terms of mana, but Phantom Show would allow a guaranteed escape.

"Heads up!"

Obeying the command, Ren ducked as a hatchet flew over his head and embedded itself in the bag the cat had, having been used as a shield.

"No Mercy! Only Pain!"

Geysers of light erupted underneath the whole area. Ren instinctively flipped away to avoid having his weakness hit. He landed next to a quartet of people dressed in blue world war era medic outfits. Two men and two women.

One man was big and burly with jet-black hair. To Ren, he seemed more like a soldier than a medic. His blue jacket was tied around his waist, his black undershirt doing little to hide his bulging muscles. He was also the only one of the four missing a weapon, signaling to Ren that he was the one who threw the ax.

The other man was on the scrawny side with ashen white shoulder-length hair with a bandolier of vials across his chest. His red eyes seemed tired, and his hair disheveled as if he'd spent all night studying for an exam and still failed. His clothes at first glance looked properly done, but upon closer inspection, Ren saw minuscule errors such as a button being skipped, or his arm collar not being folded in areas.

The two women both had their hair up in buns. The taller of the two had jet-black hair just like the man but she also featured a warm skin tone and harsh grey eyes. A sword in its scabbard was strapped to her side. Curiously, Ren saw it was shaped for a sword along the katana line rather than the Zwei handers and Claymores he saw at the harbor. Her hand tentatively rested on the hilt, ready for battle.

Her counterpart had blonde hair tucked under a nurse's hat, and warm sky-blue eyes. The only thing that threw off her image of a helper was the large ax on her back.

Despite the warmness of her eyes, the air around her felt imposing. Ren got the feeling she was a person who could get things done. She was not wholly dissimilar from the feeling he got around Yu Narukami, who Ren had met a handful of times after graduating.

Ren scanned the various weapons with weary eyes. "Battle medics who can throw light around…Great." Raoul flapped irately in his mind. Let it never be said that luck was his innate strong point.

"Sorry about that. Light magic is the most effective way to deal with undead opponents." The woman with blonde hair stepped forward and spoke to him. Ren glanced at her hand which was clenched tightly on something green he could see in the gaps of her knuckles. Her entire fist was glowing with light magic.

Ren took a hesitant half-step back from her which didn't go unnoticed as she furrowed her eyebrows. "I kinda figured that. It just happens to not be a part of my base kit." Ren said.

"Well, it happens to be in ours!" the burly man said, earning him an elbow from the dark-haired woman. After a grunt of pain, he continued. "I mean theirs. But good thing you caused those explosions, we never would have known you were in trouble."

Ren was about to make a witty comment on how he could handle it when the white-haired man cut him off. "Speaking of trouble, the enemies aren't dead yet," he said, pointing to the horde that was charging them.

Ren ran forward disregarding the cries of 'wait' and 'you're hurt'. He flicked his wrist and a black cable shot from under his sleeve, latching onto the shield of one of the rats. Ren zoomed through the air and planted both feet on the shield, He used it as a footrest to flip over the whole crowd.

He landed in a crouch, and he used the cable to yank the shield, staggering the other rats in the process. He finished by retracting the cable back into his sleeve with an audible snap.

Flipping his dagger to a reverse grip and channeling Cleave into it, Ren in the same fit of speed from earlier, slashed through all fives foes. The rats finally succumbed thanks to the previous damage from the light spell. However, the cat nimbly dodged it.

Ignoring the pain shooting through his body, he raised the hand holding his gun and performed a double jump firing four shots each, completely incapacitating the cat and allowing Ren to fire one last Eiha-created shot.

The monster cat let out a yowl as it burned in dark cursed fire and collapsed.

The battle now over, Ren collapsed on one knee. He put his weapons away and then forced his head up to see three awestruck faces and one frown tinged with disappointment.

"That was very reckless of you." The blonde-haired lady chastised as she walked up to him. "Let me see your wounds, you're obviously hurt." she then began prodding him.

"The knife skill….No that wasn't Aber's… but the kills were clean and quick." The white-haired man muttered as he started throwing vials that burst into acidic poison and dissolved the bodies of the defeated.

"What's that weapon?! I've never seen anything like it!" The burly man exclaimed, drowning out his compatriot as he ran up to Ren.

The black-haired lady let go of her sword and shoved her hands into her pockets and spoke. "I guess he had it in order."

Ren tried to wave the medic off of him, but she was having none of it.

"Please it would be best if you stop moving so, I can assess your injuries." The lady said in a firm tone that offered no room for negotiation as she gripped Ren's wrists and pinned him under a hot glare. "Can you tell me how you got them so I can treat them effectively,"

"Yeesh, Castti's gone into 'mom' mode again. I don't envy that guy in the slightest." The burly man commented.

"Everyone knows that last part is a lie." The dark-haired woman countered.

The burly man blushed and spluttered. "C-C'mon you agree with me don't you Trousseau?"

"She won't stop until she knows he's okay," The white-haired man now named Trousseau laughed lightly, agreeing and nodding his head.

Ren finally relented under Castti's intense gaze and sat down. He knew there wasn't a point in trying to get away from her. "The wounds were self-inflicted," he admitted.

Shock and awe leaked into her expression. "Now why in the world would you do that?"

"That's just how my physical-based magic works," Ren said trying to assuage her. "In compensation, it saps some of my vitality. If I can avoid taking a blow in the meantime, I'll regenerate on my own."

"How peculiar," The dark-haired woman said causing Ren to arch an eyebrow.

"I don't think I've ever come across magic that requires one to use their own body as a medium. Regeneration, yes. This…No. It is brand new to me," Castti said. She then reached into the brown satchel on her side and produced a fat grape and a strangely round plum. "Either way, chew on this, it'll help speed up the regenerative process, and please don't move around until I've made sure you've fully recovered."

Ren gratefully accepted the offer and popped the fruits in his mouth. As he chewed, a refreshing feeling circulated throughout his body. "What is this?" He asked, unable to stop his words.

"That's a Healing Grape and an Inspiriting Plum, it's pretty standard. You're not from around here, are you? Most natives wouldn't ask a question like that." Castti asked, sitting next to him.

He shook his head. "I just recently came to the Solistia region."

"That…...certainly explains the strange weaponry and techniques," Trousseau said, sitting down next.

"Also, why he didn't claim his loot from the Cait." The dark-haired woman snarked, setting down the bag the Cait once had next to Ren and then giving the burly man his hatchet back.

Castti tilted her head expectantly. Her eyes shined with curiosity and her smile was kind and inviting. "Where are you from, traveler?" Her voice was full of hope as she started with an ice-breaker.

"Somewhere far away from here." Ren swallowed his food and then instantly replied, having been prepared for that question to pop up eventually.

"...Very helpful," Ren noted that she sounded oddly disappointed.

"Don't be like that, leader. We all have our secrets. Right, Andy?"

Andy pulled up a log and sat on it completing the circle. "Ha-ha-ha, Malaya."

"They just made themselves comfortable around me." Ren thought as he pawed through the small bag Malaya gave him.

The burly man then set his eyes on Ren. "Back to my question." He said in a booming voice, drawing Ren's attention to him. "I used to be a soldier until Castti here recruited me to her cause, but I've never even heard of a weapon that can cause explosions." he gestured to the gun Ren had concealed in his coat.

"They must not have guns here, which is strange considering that in this era in my world, sidearms were a common thing. I'd wager that magic is probably the cause. Yukari-senpai showed me some frightening things you can do with a little wind magic and a bow."

Ren let go of the bag, letting it fall to the ground. Reaching into his coat he pulled his pistol from its holster. The silver metal of Nataraja glinted in the afternoon sun. Some would describe it as angelic, others–demonic. Ren reveled in the irony that the holy weapon was being used to fire curse element spells.

The unknown weapon had the full undivided attention of the four medics. Their faces ranged from giddy to cautious.

Smirking, Ren aimed the weapon down at the ground. "This? It's a weapon from my homeland. It's called a pistol." he pulled and racked the slide, dispelling any of his magic still remaining in it. The metallic sound caused the medics to flinch from the foreign noise.

"Think of it like a crossbow. I funnel my magic into it, and it comes out as a concise projectile meant for piercing." He emphasized his point by aiming at a spot in the ground not too far away and fired. The noise of the gunshot made Trousseau and Malaya jump in surprise.

"Could you give us a little warning next time?" Malaya asked, her voice shaky and a hand on her chest.

Castti looked at the weapon appraisingly "It's like a miniature cannon…"

Ren flashed her a snarky smile. "The Medic knows her weapons, eh?"

The woman returned his smile though it was half-sad in nature. "A lot of work for us inevitably has to be done on the battlefield. Thankfully the war ended shortly after I met Andy all those years ago." Her words had a remarkable amount of age to them.

Ren bit his lip and succumbed to his curiosity "How old are you if you don't mind me asking?"

"Twenty-eight." She replied. "And yourself?"

"Twenty, Twenty-one in two months." He replied back to her. At least he hoped it was two months. He didn't bother checking the month and date before leaving the harbor. For all he knew it could be winter or spring and he accidentally skipped over his September birthday.

"Young," Malaya commented. "You would have been a teenager when the war ended."

Trousseau snorted. "Don't listen to them. They like to sound older than they are. The war only ended about 5 years ago—At least on an international scale. Even to this day Ku still dyes the sands around them in blood." His voice then took on a dark timbre. "It's only a matter of time until they turn their attention back outwards—You can't expect any less of them."

His words made him the target of two separate but equally harsh glares. Castti opened her mouth, no doubt to refute his claim or start an argument but was beaten to the punch by Andy whose attention was still on the pistol in Ren's hands.

"Is it possible for me to see that weapon for a second?" Andy asked hesitantly.

Ren paused for a moment at the sudden shift in conversation and then shook his head. "I'm sorry, but no. This weapon was crafted personally for me. I'd rather not let others touch it." he said while reholstering the firearm.

While it was technically true. Ren wasn't too keen on the idea of a gun in anyone's hands but his if they weren't a known weapon in this world.

Malaya slapped Andy on the arm. "Are you crazy? We just met the guy and you're asking something like that? We haven't even introduced ourselves properly yet."

"I think I've gotten all your names over the course of the conversation," Ren interjected.

"Oh?"

"The big guy is Andy." Ren then pointed to the white-haired man. "Go figure. A medical type named Trousseau."

Confusion was visible on Trousseau's face "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh. There was a famous father-son doctor duo back in my homeland named Armand Trousseau and Georges Trousseau. Armand coined the term 'use new drugs quickly while they still work' "

Trousseau's face turned positive as he nodded his head. "They sound quite wise if you ask me. I hope to help heal half as many people as they did if they got that famous." The others looked at Trousseau with faces filled with pride.

Ren then focused on the black-haired woman "Anyways, the wonderful lady who brought me the spoils of war is Malaya." The lady in question smiled a faint blush highlighting her face. Ren then locked eyes with the woman next to him "That makes you Castti the leader of this group."

"Correct," she said in the same tone a teacher would praise their student. "My name is Castti Florenz and I'm the leader of Eir's Apothecaries,"

"I'm Ren, Ren Amamiya," he said, extending his hand to Castti. "Traveler and thief,"

"Nice to meet you," she said and took his hand shaking it.

Castti shivered a bit before letting go and Ren frowned in response.

"Are you okay?"

"You should take it easy yourself. You've been working the hardest out of all of us, boss." Andy said

The woman put a hand on her forehead. "I'm sorry….I'm fine….It's nothing, I promise." She shook her head and her eyes refocused on Ren. "Please tell me, what are you out here in the flats?"

"A request. Someone I met back at the harbor had his bag stolen by bandits and he wanted me to get it back for him. I figure they might be in that waterway further in the area,"

Andy let out a groan "Why can't people ever do an honest day's work?"

Trousseau pulled out a canteen and drank from it. "Asking that is like asking why people get sick. It just happens. The only thing we can do is cure it."

"You know what? That's a good idea Trousseau," Castti said. "Ren, we'll go along with you."

Trousseau spit out his drink in a mixture of surprise and nervousness. "Bandit hunting? Now? We're running low on supplies as it is, chief."

"I have to agree with Trousseau on this one. We were heading back to Healeaks to restock after being in New Delsta for so long."

"That's exactly why we will go with him, Malaya. The abandoned waterway has tons of rare and uncommon plants we can use for concoctions. Besides, he's now a friend in need, and as Eir's Apothecaries, we will never fail to lend a hand."

Andy loudly cracked his knuckles in response to Castti's speech. "Ah, what the hell, I was up for a fight anyway."

"You always are Andy, but I guess there's no helping it," Trousseau finished with a sigh and put his canteen back in his bag.

"Thank you, I really appreciate the company,"

"Don't mention it, Ren." Malaya then turned to Castti. "When do we leave?"

Ren let out a sharp gasp as Castti forcefully pressed his sides and back with an open palm. "I'd still give him another thirty minutes at least. However, it's probably best to wait until nightfall to make sure the bandits are there."

"Am I dinner or a patient?"

A short while after sunset, Ren sat on the branch of a tree just outside of the Abandoned Waterway. Castti sat on the branch next to him, kicking her legs in the open air. The other Apothecaries were in their own hiding spots surrounding the waterway.

"You didn't have to follow me up here, you know," Ren said to his impromptu partner.

"With the way your magic works, you'll get hurt again. That makes you my personal patient, so I need to keep an eye on you." She said with an impish smile.

A bead of sweat ran down his neck "Call me crazy, but I sense an ulterior motive."

"Solistia is a very closed-off region. It's rare if not almost unheard of to see someone come from outside of it, so I'm interested. Not to mention a thief at that."

"Got some back alley deals going on?" Ren teased.

Castti's kicks slowed to a stop. "Run in the right circles and you might hear an unsavory thing or two about my group,"

"Heh, I didn't peg you for a rebel. That seems more like your friend Andy's job,"

"Andy is a free thinker, that's true. It's part of why he left the military, he didn't necessarily agree with orders during the war with Ku on the Western Continent." Castti pulled out a mortar and pestle from her bag and started absently mixing something. "As for me….I believe that if the medicine I make with these hands can save someone, then I don't care if the ingredients I use happen to be 'illegal'. That's part of why I set up the base of our operations in Healeaks. It's close to the black market. Although the New Delsta police can raid the area at any moment, it's worth it if I can save more lives in the end."

Castti paused for a moment and looked at Ren. "I don't know why, I'm opening up to you like this. You just seem….easy to talk to despite us meeting only hours ago."

"Actually, I get that a lot. People find it easier to talk to a stranger."

"That is true, we're living proof right now," Castti chuckled, still fixated on whatever she was making.

An idea formed in his head and Ren came to a snap decision. "Let me share a story of my own to make us even,"

"Oh, you don't have t–"

"-A close friend of mine thought the same way as you," sensing Castti's gaze on him he continued " A patient of hers was diagnosed with a very rare disease that was considered fatal. She didn't give up. She actually got very close to making a cure when her superior stole her notes and rushed to the final stage of the cure's manufacturing. He wanted a feather in his cap but ended up committing a medical error in the process and putting the patient in critical condition."

Castti scoffed. "The nerve of some people."

"Trust me it gets worse. He framed her to cover up his mistake." At Castti's gasp, Ren continued. "She was blacklisted from the medical community and any sort of medical practice."

The sound of rock-on-rock grinding against each other became more intense as the pestle moved more forcefully under Castti's ministrations. "You said she was like me. It's not hard to assume to continue her work. That's what I would do, and try to properly finish the cure for the disease."

"And that's what she did," Ren said with a nod of his head. "I was her under-the-table test subject for the trial runs. All the way until completion. She said my body type lent itself well to testing, and I had no qualms about it if it was to help another person."

The sound of Castti's mixing stopped momentarily. "Oh, really? I think you have what it takes to be an apothecary then, Ren. We often have to test mixtures and concoctions on ourselves before deeming them fit for patient consumption."

"It's a profession that takes a lot of courage," Ren admitted.

"Indeed, it does," Castti then looked at him with that same warm smile and almost motherly gaze. Ren found himself unable to look away. "After you finish your request….Would you like to join Eir's Apothecaries? We could use a thief in our group. You could surely help us in procuring some more…Guarded material."

He blinked at the offer.

"While I would love to," Ren wrung his hands in sorrow upon seeing her face fall a bit. "I came to Solistia for a reason. I'm looking for answers, dangerous answers. Healing others is a noble cause but it's not one I can fixate myself on right now."

"Are you sure? I can teach you everything I know. I'm confident you'll make a fine apothecary,"

A rueful smile crossed Ren's face. "I'm sure. I made the deal of a lifetime and I intend to carry it out."

"I can't stop you then. But the least I ask is that you come to visit Healeaks sometime so I can impart some of my knowledge."

"You're very determined to recruit me, aren't you?" his tone was deeply laced with the underlying respect he had for her. She was a woman who knew what she wanted and stayed focused until she achieved her goal.

"What can I say? I see potential in you, Ren." Castti's tone matched his own

Ren rubbed the back of his neck, relenting to her for the second time that day. "Fine twist my arm….I promise I'll come to Heakleaks one day."

Castti touched his hand gently. "And I promise to make it worth your while," she let out a breath then pulled a couple of vials from her satchel and transferred the contents of her mortar into them. "Now then shall we deal with those nasty bandits?" she said pointing to the entrance of the waterway where a bunch of hooded figures were now standing guard. "The others are waiting on our signal after all."

"That was what you were mixing this whole time? Something to take care of the mobs?"

Castti stood up on her branch and Ren mirrored her. "Correct again. I mixed some Slumber Sage and Dreamy Flowers. It should put them out long enough to raid the hideout."

"Pardon me, but I don't think that's flashy enough," Ren said as his old Phantom Thief ways kicked in. "Would you allow me the honor of making the first move?"

"Are you going to knock them out? As long as you don't kill them, be my guest."

"Oh, I don't intend to hurt them a single bit."

Not giving Castti an opportunity to respond, Ren snapped his fingers and a large red cloth appeared in front of the confused bandits obscuring them from Ren and Castti's view. The surroundings grew darker, but the moon seemed to glow even brighter in response.

"Catch a nap!"

The cloth pulled itself away and vanished, restoring the area to normal and revealing five fast-asleep ne'er-do-wells.

"My," Castti stuffed the vials in her bag and put a hand to her cheek. "I don't know whether I should be insulted that you did the same thing I was going to do or amazed at the strange magic you demonstrated."

Ren leaped down from the tree and Castti followed a moment later. "Don't be. Thieves steal. Money, food, hearts, ideas, you name it; we steal it." he finished with a wink causing her to blush a bit.

"Mind telling us what you just did?" Malaya said as she popped up from a nearby bush. Andy and Trousseau shortly followed from a bush on the opposite side of the road.

"That was my signature skill. It's called Phantom Show, it instantly puts all targets to sleep." Ren couldn't help the smug expression that crept on his face.

Trousseau gave him a look of wonder as if he had finally solved a puzzle. "From above before they know…"

Ren heard him whisper to himself but decided to let it go.

Castti walked past the knocked-out guards and into the grate. "Remember, we have a job to do." She then disappeared into the waterway while the others followed.

—X—

The sounds of combat echoed off the cavern-like walls of the waterway. Despite being technically a sewer, it didn't smell as such. Only the smell of brimstone from fire spells wafted through the area.

Unconscious bandits and defeated monster bodies littered the various stairways and docks.

Ren's boots squelched in the mud of the underground riverbank as he forced his blade through the body of a lizard man.

"Cleaving Blow!"

Behind him, he heard Andy's deep grunt followed by a sharp snap as his ax bisected his own lizardman's spear and the lizardman along with it. The two men then returned to being back-to-back.

Ren was grateful Eir's Apothecaries had joined him on his endeavor.

The hideout invasion had quickly turned into a three-way battle.

The moment they passed through the threshold they found the monsters were already attacking the group of bandits, having been attracted by the smell of gathered food. The leader had immediately taken off further and higher into the area with the bag, forcing Ren and the Apothecaries to simultaneously push through the bandits and hold off the monsters.

The group of 5 quickly got split up among the horde, Ren found himself working in tandem with Andy down below near a dock. While the others fought on the bridge above them.

Ren didn't have any qualms with that, he found they complemented each rather well. His precise strikes stunned the enemy long enough for Andy to land a devastating finishing blow. Ren's gun made quick work of the giant wasps and ravens that were too fast for Andy to hit.

He also made a nice springboard for Ren to vault himself behind an enemy and sandwich it between them. For example, the ice elemental that put up Ice Walls between them and their current attacker.

"Hey, Andy?"

Andy peeked over his shoulder at Ren. "What is it, kid?"

"How strong are you?"

"Enough to get by. Why? What do you have in mind?"

Ren gave Andy a devilish smirk. "How do you feel about throwing things?"

—-

Castti dodged the spear sweep and tossed the vial, blasting the lizard man back with the torrential wind that came when the glass broke.

The flailing lizardman was sent right into the blade of Malaya. Pulling upwards and out through the shoulder, the reptile monster's life was put to a swift end and the medic sent its body over the bridge they were standing on.

Trousseau threw his vial and hit a bandit right behind her with a dose of Slumber Sage. The bandit fell to the ground fast asleep, his sword slipping out of his hand.

As soon as the two enemies went down, two more lizard men took their place.

"We're getting nowhere fast, Chief. And I'm all out of Slumber Sage," Trousseau said.

Trousseau's words triggered an idea in Castti's head. "Malaya, can you make an icicle? And make it slanted?"

"I can, but I don't see what you're going for."

"Don't matter, just trust me," came her snappy reply. "Trousseau I need wind!"

Trousseau's eyes widened as he connected the dots "And you called Ren reckless, Chief! Lucky for you I still have some Bluster Bloom left."

"Thanks, you two, I'll hold them off in the meantime."

Castti readied her ax and with a mighty swing, a thin blue blade of magic came from it.

"Sweeping Cleave!"

The wide-ranging attack forced the lizardmen to raise their makeshift spears in defense to block the attack. A horizontal slash mark appeared on their bodies wherever they couldn't block. It wasn't enough to kill them in the slightest, but it was enough to give Malaya the time to finish chanting.

An Icicle ramp appeared in the middle of their section of the battlefield, freezing some ravens in the process. Wasting no time Castti dashed up the ramp, feeling the gust of wind on her back increasing her speed. Once she got to the edge, she put all her strength in her legs and jumped as high as she could.

"Go, Kid!" came Andy's rough voice from below.

Castti felt a second presence nearby her in the air but disregarded it as she reached into her bag and grabbed the sleeping vials she had made earlier.

"Time for your medicine!"

"Phantom Show!"

Her vials were joined by the now-familiar red cloth as both she and Ren dragged enemies down into dreamland from above. Everyone in the cavern–human and monster alike succumbed to the need for sleep. Even the other apothecaries were fast asleep-not from her concoctions, but Ren's spell.

"Wonderful night for a stroll in a dark hazardous cave don't you think?" Ren called from above her as they sailed through the air.

"You really know how to show a lady a good time, don't you?"

Castti felt a tug on the sleeve of her cloak as Ren spun her around. The next thing she knew, she was somehow in his arms princess-carry style. It was definitely romantic in a chaotic battlefield sort of way. She looked into his silver eyes and saw them alight with mischief.

"Let's say I like to sweep them off their feet."

She giggled. "Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure I'm the one who swept me off my feet."

"Details; who needs 'em?" He said uncaringly as he landed on both feet atop a landing and skidded to a stop.

"Certainly you, if you plan to take any woman on a date," Castti said as Ren gently put her down.

"Shall we wake the others?" Ren suggested, sweeping his bangs and sweat from his face.

"No, Ren. Let them sleep. We need to go after the leader; I have a bad feeling about this."

Ren nodded and together they dashed up the nearest staircase. Castti grew worried as the area became eerily quiet the higher, they ascended. No sign of the leader whatsoever which was a bad sign. She looked over at Ren and saw his face flashing through similar emotions. She had an inkling of what they were walking or rather running into as they crossed over a vine.

"I hope you didn't mind me grabbing you like that, Ren said, trying to break the tension.

Castti gave him a light laugh in return. "Andy would have a fit if he saw that you were carrying me like that."

The man furrowed his eyebrows, a hint of regret in his eyes. "Are you two…together? I remember hearing something about me and envy."

Castti stopped laughing in response to the question "No…. I am aware of how he feels; have been for a while now….I just don't view him in that way. Yet he still follows me regardless."

"Probably because he believes in not just you but your cause. He seems like an honest kinda guy. I wouldn't put it past him that he likes helping people instead of hurting them."

"Maybe you're right. He's probably seen enough death and destruction to last a lifetime during the war. We've all have on the Western continent."

Ren looked like he was about to ask a question when a dull shriek and the sound of something swallowing came from the platform above them.

"That didn't sound good…" Ren said, wincing.

Castti pumped her legs faster up the stairs. "If it is what I think it is, we have to hurry, Ren!"

"Right beside you!"

The sounds of his footsteps got faster and…higher up? Castti looked next to her and saw that Ren had resorted to running on top of the railing, his dagger in hand.

Suddenly two green appendages shot from above, one targeting each of them.

Castti brought out her ax and parried hers while she watched Ren flip over his, land on top of it, and start running on it as if nothing had happened. Another vine came at him in response, this time at an angle. Amazingly, he side-flipped onto it and using the heel of his boots grinded on it as if he was sliding down the rails of a staircase. Or in his case: Up. He looked completely at home as he used the appendage to slide his way out into the open air and then up to the top of the area.

If there was one thing she had to give him, his acrobatic skills were top-notch.

With another flashy leap and dive, Ren quickly disappeared from view head first like some sort of strange sky dancer. Castti then heard that mysterious weapon of his called a pistol go off multiple times which was immediately followed by a chorus of beastly shrieks.

Thankfully the frizzy-haired man's preemptive assault on whatever monster at the top had the added effect of causing the appendage that was harassing her to retreat.

Not wasting the opportunity, Castti climbed the remaining stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. When she made it to the top platform, she realized her theories had come true both good and bad.

Ren was currently dancing around and dodging strikes from a huge plant-like monster. A mass of writhing green tentacles connected together by three pulsating flowers whose pistil's were snapping open and close like gigantic mouth-beaks. In the middle between the sets of petals, a sickly blue knob throbbed and pulsated. Underneath it, thick roots anchored it to the dirt like a tree.

"Careful, Ren. That's a Carnivore Plant, a subset of the Devourer Man plant. They attempt to eat any living being that gets close."

Ren ducked under a vine and cleaved it in two, his dagger glowing eerily. "I hate to state the obvious but I kinda figured that out, doc. I would send some fire down one of its mouths, but clearly this overgrown weed ate someone."

Castti reached into her bag and took inventory. She sighed in relief seeing that she had the right herbs on her.

She looked up in time to see Ren fire his ranged weapon again, the dark fire keeping the grabby vines at bay.

"Not to impose on you, but I have some herbs that are emetic in nature. If you can keep it busy, I can mix something to make it eject our target," she said, already pulling the ingredients out of her bag.

"Is it too much to ask to just say 'throw up'?"

"Just do it."

"Decoy duty. Got it."

The man had enough wherewithal to nod in agreement at her forceful tone and nonsense glare. It seems she would have to keep him on a short leash. He was a bit too snarky at times.

"Sukunda,"

The plant was engulfed in a sickly green light and started moving slowly.

"Curious. I'm sure thieves didn't have a speed reduction spell. Seems like different regions have different techniques to go with strange weapons. Oh well, I'll just have to trust in Ren and focus on my work."

Red sparks poured off Castti's body as she channeled her magic into the boosted state. She needed to mix more than two ingredients in a short amount of time.

Bayberry from the Leaflands.

Blessed Thistle leaves from the Harborlands.

Strengthening Serum to make it act faster and more potent.

Castti put them all into her mortar and mixed. She spared a glance upward to see how Ren was faring.

He had pulled something from his own bag and all of a sudden, a stage spotlight centered on him from out of nowhere.

The effect was immediate as the monster plant slowly attacked him with every available tentacle vine. Even the ones pointed her way changed course towards the frizzy-haired man.

Ren remained unphased as he lopped off every appendage in reach. However, it didn't matter as more instantly grew to replace them. Castti saw the subtle shake of his body as he pushed through the pain after every swing of the glowing silver blade. He was tough but toughness could only get one so far.

Castti reluctantly tore her eyes away from him. She thought only the Warriors could achieve a taunt status.

Every action he took made her more intrigued by the man named Ren Amamiya.

She pushed away her many questions and busied her hands, mixing as fast as she could. The moment she finished, with a practiced ease she poured the mixture into a translucent vial and corked it.

"Ren!" She yelled, getting his attention. "It's ready!"

With a wordless glance of confirmation, Ren jumped and grabbed one of the vines. Using it as a high bar he launched himself onto the body of the plant at the highest set of petals. He found a foothold and with a strength not belied by his lithe frame, stuck his hands straight into the maw of the monster and kept it pried open.

Recognizing his plan, Castti got closer and took aim at the wide-open mouth. She then threw the vial in a tight spiral right into its throat.

When she did, everything seemed to pause for a split second then the sound of wet gagging filled the area. Castti had barely enough time to get out of the way as green vomit came from all three mouths of the plant. The unconscious bandit leader also spewed forth in the bile, covered in fluid and clutching the bag Ren was looking for.

Wasting no time, Ren did something that scared her out of her mind.

He jumped in the plant's mouth himself.

The fool let himself be eaten.

Without thinking, Castti rushed to the staggered monster only to be blasted back by the force of the fire that came from all visible orifices.

Black hellfire poured out of the mouths like a faucet someone forgot to turn off. A bulge unnaturally formed in its belly.

The monster screamed and thrashed as it was burned from the inside out.

Castti watched with morbid curiosity as the monster moved slower and slower until it stopped moving completely. She could've sworn she heard demonic laughter throughout the whole spectacle but wrote it off as a figment of her imagination.

Eventually, the fire petered out and a hand appeared from the lower mouth.

Relief flooded over her as she went over and grasped the hand and pulled with all her might.

"You damn fool!" She cried as Ren emerged from the belly of the beast. He was exhausted, beat up, and covered in mucus—but he was alive.

And that was what mattered to Castti.

It didn't matter how badly he was hurt, she could heal him. Of course, she had that motto for everyone in need she met, but this frizzy-haired man with silver eyes was fundamentally different.

In a few short hours, she felt she needed to help him no matter what. Was it fate or destiny that ordained that they meet? When did he become so important to her? And so fast too!

"I'm sorry I scared the hell out of you," he said weakly, grasping her arms as if he could pass out any second.

She shook out of his grasp and hugged him tight. Uncaring of the plant matter that covered him. "You're damn right you did! Please don't do reckless stuff like that."

"What's life without a little thrill I say?" He replied, lazily wrapping his arms around her and hugging her back like she was a lifeline.

"You dummy…." She murmured into his soft hair.

AN:

I figured that was a good place to end the chapter. We'll do the falling action of Ren's first quest in the next chapter.

You might(read probably) have plenty of questions about Castti's character.

Here's the way I see it:

Of the four main girls, Castti actually has the most impish personality. In her banter with Partitio, she's very much the type that when you flirt with her; she flirts back if not outright starting it herself sometimes. She is just as snarky as Ren on occasion, which I decided to play on. Will it lead to a relationship? Well, you have to stick with me and find out.

Also wanted to feature the main three of Eir's Apothecaries aside from Castti.

Anyways, New Delsta Harbor is our starting location. There was a couple I thought about. Frigit Isle and Ku were the two big ones. The issue I saw is that I wanted to start Ren during the pregame. The story's first arc takes place for the most part before the real meat of anybody's chapter 1.

Fun Fact: If you leave Canalbrine and go to Toto'haha immediately as Castti, the Al sidequest automatically triggers there instead at the anchorage. So Al appearing at the harbor for Ren is totally possible!

Those who've played OTII probably noticed that I wanted Ren to have a rapport with two certain characters before an event happens.