The sound of the quill against the paper was the one thing that Ragnar could hear clearly, the other one was the sound of people outside of the door; a regular day at the Guild although for some it was just a day with extra paperwork.
He had his fair share of documents in front of him along with a small bag of Valis right next to them, on the opposite side of the table was Esther who continued to write down the parchment and then continued to the next.
"So…" He was hushed by the elf who kept writing line after line.
Sooner than later the red haired put down the quill and laid back on the chair. She has been writing documents for what looked to be three hours with no rest whatsoever.
Having a complete and accurate description from Ragnar's story, she wanted to make sure the Guild would have every last detail about it. Fortunately that was the last that she needed to write about this incident.
"That is all." Esther handed the document to Ragnar "I am sorry that I had to keep you in here all this time. Since you were the only survivor of your group we needed a detail account of everything that happened, I know that you are just as tired if not bored but do understand."
"Yeah, I know…" The blond looked at the documents, it was the last part of his story, to the last detail. "So about this…" He left the parchment on the table and grabbed the bag.
"The Guild offers their sincerest apologizes for what happened and they offer you some Valis as a compensation for any equipment or item lost in that expedition given that it was a special case."
"Officially… but your face tells me there's more to it."
The girl sighed "The Guild would appreciate if you don't divulge the events of that expedition until everything is made clear to us."
"Just how common is this? Does the Guild have deals with other Familia or groups here in Orario? "
"Yes, it is not uncommon. Think of it like a contract, sometimes a group or a Familia wants to do something and they request the Guild's permission to do it. Some deals here and there and eventually both parties agree, they get a document and it's stored in a box." Esther looked sad after saying that "Although… I do know that there are some other deals that… perhaps should not be accepted, however most of them are overseen by my higher ups so they know more than I do… I hope."
"Right…" Ragnar grabbed the pouch and weighted it with his hand before putting it in one of the pockets of his jacket "So what now? "
"? It's just a matter of reviewing all of this and then the Guild will act. You already helped us enough by giving this testimony, thanks Ragnar." Esther smiled and took all of the documents again, putting them all together "What will you do now?"
"Unfortunately I will return to Fimbulvetr after this. Skadi grounded me for a few days after that expedition and I am to stay there until tomorrow. If it weren't because the Guild summoned me for official business I would be stuck in the plot."
"That's… quite drastic." She raised a brow "But at least you will be back in the Dungeon fairly soon. " The girl looked at some of the books in the room before she directed her attention back at the adventurer "Ragnar, does the name Evilus mean anything to you? "
"Huh? " It was quite a strange one for him but he shook his head "Can't say I heard it before. Why? "
"Just confirming things." But her vague answer definitely left the blond for more and unfortunately she felt like she needed to answer to quell his curiosity. "If you need to know, Evilus used to be this… let's just call it a faction whose goals threatened the city and its people, there's rumors that they had even bigger goals but it is not something many would talk about in detail. What you should know is that those who were part of Evilus were either killed or exiled from Orario, there is still a possibility that some agents or people associated with them could still be around."
"And you think that the people who did the ambush could be part of this Evilus? " The elf nodded. "Well, sorry that I couldn't interrogate any of them, by the time I found them again they were dead." He remembered the dead bodies of those adventurers, he didn't have the time nor the luxury to do a thorough search at the time, especially since he was with someone else. "Esther, if you don't mind, about the person that escaped with me…"
"Ah yes, this…" She looked through the pages. "Anastasia from the Loki Familia. What about her? "
"I don't know… I was hoping if you could tell me more about her. Maybe something so I can give the brooch back to her."
But Esther lowered her shoulders and put the papers on the table "Ragnar…" She was definitely not happy "You know the rules, I can't disclose any information about other adventurers. And even if I could, she is not someone I supervise. Sorry." The blond looked frustrated and she knew it. "However, I can tell you two things. The first one is that the two birds is definitely not Loki Familia's emblem, it could be something personal though."
"And the other thing? "
"Why are you so curious about her? Are you interested? Fell for her? Or… maybe I misjudged you and you are actually a creep? "
"I'M NOT-…" The adventurer immediately stood up and cleared his throat "I'm just trying to be a good person." He sighed. "In any case, you got everything? " The Guild worker took another look at the documents and nodded. "Then I'll head back." Ragnar moved the chair and headed to grab the doorknob but did not turn it.
"Esther… can I ask you something, or rather a simple request? "
"Oh? If it is information about someone else I'm afraid you already know the answer."
"It's… slightly different. The other girl that I was in my group. I still have the axe that she had, I don't know if it has any value to her or her Familia but…" Ragnar shrugged "I don't know, I just want to return it to her Familia, at least so they have something to remember."
Esther remained quiet and looked at the documents. It was a difficult choice for her since it was still within the rules of the Guild.
However…
"I can't promise anything, whether because there is anything I can find or because the rules prohibit it but… I can send a courier to deliver a note, but do not expect anything, understood? "
"Thanks Esther." Ragnar turned the doorknob but was called by the red haired one last time.
"Ragnar… how are you feeling? "
The adventurer stopped to think. The recent events at that expedition left him exhausted, not just physical but also mentally, even is his wounds were healed the images of the brutal massacre were still lingering. It all echoed back, seeing the supporter die, the innocent miners and then he thought about it even further. What if those people could've been him or Noel? The news of their deaths would reach Skadi and then?
"I'm tired, still recovering. But thanks for asking." He gave a weak smile before opening the door and leaving that room.
He returned to the main hall of the Guild building that was bustling with many adventurers and workers but none minded him. Ragnar then left the building and found Noel outside sitting by a bench.
"Hey captain."
"Let me guess… the goddess? " The silver haired nodded and Ragnar sighed in response "She wants to keep a close eye on me, doesn't she? "
"She's worried about you. Well… both of us but technically you were the one who got in that mess" The blond groaned and Noel stood up "Is everything solved?"
"For the most part… I told Esther everything that happened during that expedition, tried to even get information on the two girls that were there but she can't say anything because rules this and rules that."
"Well, she just wants to keep her job at the Guild." Ragnar knew that the elf girl would go the extra distance to help him, even if it cost her place at assisting adventurers, but then she was not willing to cross certain lines. That girl was still a box of mystery to him. "What about the brooch? "
"Take a guess, " neither of the boys were happy about that answer. Without much to do, they left the area and headed towards Fimbulvetr. "Noel… do you think there is something off about all of this? "
"You mean this girl Anastasia? "
"No… well, yes but everything as a whole. Why was I spared while everyone else was killed? Why was she spared as well? I'm just a level one with nothing special… right? "
Ragnar did not have any high estimations of himself but he knew the truth; he is a level 1 adventurer with no magic to his name nor a title or anything that would make him stand out. Perhaps being the captain of a Familia would make him somewhat important but it wasn't a big Familia, much less one that was that important in the city.
"I'm afraid I don't know the answer, captain. Perhaps it was just a coincidence, maybe bad luck could be a good response too."
"Oh yeah, Esther did mention something about Evilus, know anything about it? "
Noel stopped in his tracks when he heard the name, his eyes showed fear like never seen before, a chill ran down his spine and grabbed the blond's arm "Cap… Captain, please tell me that is not true…"
Ragnar looked back at his fellow adventurer and was surprised at the reaction, unlike Esther whose mention about Evilus was somewhat sad, Noel was distressed, fearful even.
"I…" He moved his arm away "I don't know. She asked me about these people but I never heard their name, didn't even knew who or what they were until today. I can tell they are a bigger deal for you."
But the boy did not answer, he clenched his fists instead. "Never mind, it's just that I never thought I'd hear that name, especially in these circumstances." He shook his head "Let's just head back, yes? "
The rest of the day went by pretty quickly. Ragnar told the goddess about what happened at the Guild but did not want to mention Evilus; if Noel reacted that way then he only imagined that maybe Skadi would feel the same way. He preferred not to worry her.
It was uneventful to say the least. He spent the rest of the day training with Noel or just wandering around Fimbulvetr. He was bored but there was nothing else he could do, only to reflect on the expedition, his conversation with Esther and that group called Evilus.
Perhaps it would be a good idea to look into it at some other point, or that's what he thought. For now it was best to enjoy the new day.
His plan was simple: Wake up, have breakfast, prepare himself and then go to the Dungeon. He already lost a few days of proper training but disobeying Skadi could lead to some unwanted punishment, something he did not want to figure out.
The first part was going well, he got up early and got his breakfast. However it was the next part that got to him.
"Ragnar, Noel, may I ask you for a small favor." Skadi called out to the two of them, they of course accepted and she handed the blond a small note. "Could you please go to the market and buy these? Heimdall is busy at the moment and can't send anyone to get the groceries. Buy them, bring them back and then you are free for the day."
"Ugh, Skadi do we really have to do it? It's a great day to go to the Dungeon! "
"And you'll have the rest of the day free. It's just a small errand. Think you can do it? "
"Of course, goddess." Noel took the note from Ragnar's hand and had a quick peek. "We'll do it."
"Thank you." The hooded woman smiled at them as she continued to wipe the table clean.
In spite of Ragnar's opinion, the two adventurer left Fimbulvetr and headed for the market. The captain was already seeing a lot of adventurers heading for Babel, meanwhile he was stuck doing some quick errands along with Noel.
And it was certainly quick, stopping by some shops, getting all the groceries and returning home was certainly easier, most of the shops were empty since it was still early in the morning and the captain couldn't stop feeling a little bit of pride after being able to spend his hard-earned money.
Usually it is the goddess who gives them money to cover any expenditure but this time it was different, it felt different and for the captain that was a great feeling.
His plans were still simple: Return to Fimbulvetr, leave the groceries and then head to the Dungeon.
He was eager to return, to keep fulfilling his own goals and for the most part that worked. They went back to the mead hall, left the bags, grabbed their equipment and then headed towards the Dungeon.
However, again, his plans were thwarted or rather something unexpected came up, an opportunity as they were
Some people were talking on the streets about a certain person that was walking around. It didn't take long for him to notice that the person they were talking about was no other than the Sword Princess who was walking around the main street.
This was an opportunity, he did not have the chance to talk to the Sword Princess back at the party at Freya's home so this was his best moment. To make some idle chat or even to talk about the one thing that was bugging him for days.
"Noel, wait a moment, I need to talk to someone."
"W-Wait, captain! " Despite the order from the blond, the young one followed him.
Given the popularity of the high-level adventurer he expected a crowd full of fans, admirers or just followers around her but the reality was different. Even if Loki wanted to present her as the star in her Familia or if she was labelled in some circles as a rising star due to her talents and abilities the fact that she was just wandering around like a normal person felt strange, at least for Ragnar.
He approached the golden haired girl who was focused at one of the food stalls and did not notice Ragnar at first. She was wearing a strange armored dress with long blue boots and to the side was her weapon, a rapier with a blue sheath and impressive design.
"Hey, Sword Princess." The captain introduced himself and Ais turned towards him. "You probably don't remind me but I was at Freya's party some time ago." The girl tilted her head in confusion. "I'm Ragnar, the captain of the Skadi Familia." But he did not receive a response either.
The blond let a mixture of sigh and grunt after not hearing Ais talk at all "Look, there is something that I need to talk about or rather hoping that you could help me with." From one of his pockets he pulled the brooch with the two birds. "I was hoping if you could give this to the rightful owner, her name is-"
"Ais! " A voice called the girl from behind her.
Soon the adventurer was joined by three more people. A High Elf and two Amazonesses.
"There you are Ais, I thought you were still in the store." The tan girl with short hair was the first one to speak. Unlike the Sword Princess, this one was wearing little clothing and many accessories, her demeanor was one of curiosity when she approached Ragnar if not a happy one "Eh? Who is he? "
"I'm sorry but I was talking to Miss Wallen-"
"Are you bothering her?" The other Amazoness had quite the resemblance to the girl that was in front of the blond albeit with a noticeable size difference between the two and of course just a different attitude.
"What? No, no I was just asking about this brooch which belonged to one of your Familia!" He raised his hand with the black object which caught the attention of the last of the newcomers.
The High Elf's attire was definitely more regal compared to the others. "May I see it? " Her voice was soft and collected, as expected of someone of her class.
Ragnar nodded his head and handed the object to the jade-haired elf who inspected it closely. "You said it belongs to one of ours? "
"Yeah, Anastasia. Brown hair, uses a spear and has a cloak."
"Anastasia? " Ais was the one who spoke up but the reactions from all the members of the Loki Familia seemed to be the same. They were confused, as if it was the first time they heard it.
"I'm afraid you must be mistaken, there is no one in our Familia with that name or description whatsoever."
"So you're saying that I've been lied to? " The captain chuckled.
"It's not surprising," the short haired Amazoness added, "if it was another adventurer they are not obligated to tell you the truth, but if I were you I would look around the city, maybe you can find the owner."
"Excuse me ma'am." Noel joined the conversation, despite the orders from Ragnar from earlier. All of the eyes went to the silver haired "Do you know anything about the brooch that you can tell us? "
"What you are looking at is two ravens, the eyes have little rubies. I am inclining to believe this is the sigil of a Familia rather than some form of heirloom or random accessory." The High Elf gave the brooch back to Ragnar. "I may have my theories as to which Familia it is though."
"So? Which one is it? "
The words came out of the jade haired girl and both Ragnar and Noel understood. The captain's next plan was to find someone from that Familia and return the item.
"I appreciate the help, even if it means just searching more." He was not happy with the result, he wanted something more concrete or even more information but at the very least he got a lead that could help him pinpoint her whereabouts. "Thank you, Loki Familia."
The short haired girl patted the blond's head and smiled "Don't be discouraged, I am sure that if you follow the thread you will find the way out of this labyrinth and reunite with your beloved."
"Wait, this girl is not my beloved or anything just someone I met-…" The Amazoness laughed at his reaction.
"Tiona, leave him alone. Come on, we need to meet up with the others! " The twin sister pulled Tiona by the arm and the members of Loki Familia walked away and then towards Babel.
Ragnar looked at the brooch in his hand. The two ravens with rubies on their eyes, definitely something that stood out to him but the real question is why being so secretive in the first place? Why lie about her Familia? Was the name Anastasia even real? He knew that she was quite wary of him back when they were trying to return to the surface but why give him the name in the first place then?
So many questions with little to no answers. The captain sighed and turned to his fellow adventurer. "Come on Noel, let's go training already."
But the silver haired was still focused on the girls who left the scene. His eyes were full of excitement and happiness.
"Noel? " He nudged at him to get his attention again.
"Huh? Sorry captain, I was looking at the girls from Loki Familia. I didn't know you were friends with the Sword Princess. And all the other girls were so pretty and cool and-…"
"Hey, since when you became part of their Familia? You're playing for the wrong team! " Ragnar smiled as Noel felt embarrassed for his attitude. "But no, I met that girl Wallenstein at the party I went with Skadi, that is all. But enough about her, ready for the Dungeon? " The boy nodded and the two of them continued on their way to Babel.
They had some more idle talk with Ragnar asking some things about the Familia of `Anastasia´ but his friend did not know much about them; guess that meant doing some more investigation about it.
But at long last, after so many interruptions, an almost wasted morning and a big itch to get right back into training.
Right before he was going to step inside of the tower, his eyes caught a glimpse of someone. Brown hair flowing with the wind, a long cloak and hiding underneath it was a black spear, something that he would definitely remember as it was lodged in his mind for the last few days.
The way this girl walked, how she was dressed and even every movement reminded him of that cave he was trapped in. If this wasn't her then it had to be someone very similar. A sibling? Or perhaps it was common fashion among the members of her Familia?
Rather than thinking about possibilities, he decided to reach for an answer. Ragnar strutted at this woman who was going to Babel and grabbed her arm. "Hey." He called her out. "We need to talk."
The girl slowly turned her head at the captain; her eyes were filled with contempt at the person who was holding her. Ragnar could see and feel as if there was untapped rage focused at him as she was turning, like a threat to anyone who got close to her or even a death sentence.
Like a monster ready to attack its prey and unfortunately it was Ragnar who got to be the latter.
He was ready to receive the hit but as soon as her eyes meet his that sense of danger slowly disappeared. The eyes that showed an imminent threat soon calmed and Anastasia was pacified, or rather quite wary of the person who grabbed her arm.
"Oh, it's you…" She muttered and looked at Ragnar's side as Noel approached him.
"Captain… who is she? "
"That's what I wonder as well." He tried to keep the grip on the girl's arm. "I was looking for you, Anastasia of the Loki Familia… or should I say Odin Familia? " The moment he mentioned that she pushed him; that sense of danger returned and both noticed that she gripped the spear tighter.
"Were you investigating me? I told the Guild everything about the kidnapping, they were not supposed to disclose any information to anyone, not even you. Are you really with them? Or are you some sort of creep? " But rather than defending those accusations he pulled the brooch from his pocket and presented it to her "Huh? I thought I lost it down there. "
"Nope, found it right in this exact spot after you left. Tried to find a way to give it back to you as well but it didn't help that the Guild refused to even say anything or that you lied to me."
"Wait, so you are Miss Anastasia? " Noel asked "Now I can see it, you don't belong to the Loki Familia, it is said that only pretty boys and girls belong there." The moment the young one finished that sentence, the tip of the black spear was aimed right between his eyes. He didn't even react at first until he noticed it was too late. "Eh? "
"Hey, quit it, we're here because of you." Ragnar pushed the spear away and stepped in front of Noel.
"Alright then, give me back my brooch and we can continue with our lives." The adventurer from the Odin Familia moved her free hand to grab the object but the blond moved his hand away instead. This prompted the girl to frown "What? Is this because I didn't say thank you the other day? We were even, you helped me get out and I saved you from those wolves."
"I would appreciate if you didn't lie to me."
"So am I supposed to say sorry? I told you that I was wary about you but I get it, you are no pervert or allied with those who kidnapped us, you are just a jerk. "
"Oh? Then I'm sure I can fetch a good price for your brooch on the market, those rubies might not be worth a lot but it's some extra Valis in my pocket…" If that girl was going to was accusing him of being a jerk then he might as well act like one, even if it was just to mock her.
"Ma'am, we are no threats. We are just two adventurers who are trying to get by, we have our goals, nothing nefarious or dark about it." But the intervention of the silver haired caught the attention of the other two. "My captain always had the intention of giving you back the brooch, complete honesty."
After a moment of silence, Ragnar offered her the brooch and she took it, removing the placeholder she had and replaced it with the mark of the two ravens. "Hmph… thank you."
"See? That wasn't so hard." The blond smiled while she pouted.
"Miss, we were going down to train, would you like to come with us? "
"Excuse me? " The request from Noel came unexpected, even more so for Ragnar who quickly turned his head at him. "I appreciate that you went through to give back what is mine, but we are not friends, is that clear? "
"Well… I hate to say it but she is right, we are not friends, even more so when we don't know if Anastasia is your real name."
"Why do you care? "
"I don't, but at least I'd rather put a name to your face. Better that than to go around with a fake name."
She was ready to counter her argument but closed her mouth to think. After a few moments of silence she crossed her arms, as if being angry for giving up on what the captain said. "Brynhildr Vasa, though most people call me Bryn."
"That's it, that's your name? No fake ones like Anastasia or anything else? "
"You expecting me to give you the story of my life?! Yes, that's my name and yes I belong to the Odin Familia. You happy? "
There was clear tension between Ragnar and Bryn, whether it was some form of game or an actual clash between the two, it was uncertain, even more so for Noel whose eyes kept going between the adventurers.
After that, there was silence where neither of them wanted to talk.
"So… Miss Bryn, would you like to come with us? " The innocent one spoke to calm down the situation. "I know that you might not be too interested, but we could all benefit from training together. "
She took into consideration the options, being three people while fighting the monsters was not a bad idea, however…
"There is only way I can accept your offer." She pointed at Ragnar. "He better not be acting as some group leader."
"What?! Oh, excuse me but I'm a captain and from what I can tell, you are as much of a level one, same as both of us."
"The main difference is that I have more experience in combat than. You. Do." She kept pointing and tapping at Ragnar's shoulder with her index at each word.
Noel on the other hand sighed, feeling that trying to pacify the situation between two stubborn adventurers was going to be a difficult job.
Even if he tried to give them some words to calm each other, both of them kept yapping at each other as they went into the Dungeon. For now, he hoped that the attitude that his captain and the girl had would translate to combat.
Things have been quite rough at a personal level so I couldn't get out a chapter quickly, but here it is.
Finally I get to introduce Brynhildr as a character, a level 1 of Odin Familia who is definitely at odds with Ragnar despite him giving her back the brooch and Noel trying to de-escalate the situation.
Also more familiar characters! I can say that more familiar characters will show up in due time but as always this is the story of Ragnar and the Skadi Familia.
That being said, thanks to everyone leaving reviews, follows and favs, they all inspire me to continue with the story, even though I said it's more of a personal project of mine.
In any case, hope you have a great week and as always: See you in the next chapter.
