The catgirl stretched her arms and yawned as they traveled to the main city. Fortunately, they were able to come back to the road after camping in the woods. The boy looked up at the clear blue sky.

"Damn, I can't believe I missed the chance to say goodbye." She lamented out loud to her close companion.

"Don't worry about it. Adventurers come and go like the wind. Not all of them laze until noon." The boy sighed, clearly exhausted from his impromptu star watching.

"Hey! I'm just getting in my beauty sleep! And you take naps all the time!"

"I make sure to schedule it out!"

They continued their incessant ramblings about each other until they saw the gates of the city ahead. Truly, Orario was a big city. Much bigger than the village they were from. A new beginning awaited the both of them. Just then, the girl thought of something.

"Crap, I completely forgot to ask for her name!"

"Did you now? How very unlike you." The brown-haired boy smirked.

"Oh, shut it. She was really intimidating, you know?"

"Right, right." He lackadaisically threw a hand up in response.

And so, the two waited in line for entry into Orario. But that's another story for another time. Let's rewind to this morning…

Soon, the sun started to rise again, and the knight looked over at the boy. It looks like his exhaustion was catching up to him. So, she nudged him on the shoulder, watching as his eyes slowly stopped glazing over.

"...Yeah?"

"I will be departing shortly, as the sun has risen once more. Your company has been… enjoyable."

The boy shined a short smile in return. "My pleasure. Have a safe trip." She nodded, and watched as the boy soon went inside his tent. She packed her things, and slowly retrieved the coiled sword from its perch on the ground. The fire still flickered, but not as brightly, nor as warmly. Looking back at the disappearing stars, she began to walk away from the camp, hoisting her greatsword over her shoulder.

She continued walking towards the tower, before eventually exiting the forest and landing on a road. The road presumably led to the city of… Orario, so she started following its path. And soon, she saw the gates of the city ahead. There were a few guards posted at the entrance, no doubt tired from their night time shift. She sighed. Well, there was only one way to go for now.

Walking towards the entrance, she saw a small line of people leading into the city. It seemed to be mostly early merchants and such. She didn't see anyone else entering, so she simply joined the line. Some people looked at her warily, likely due to the weapon resting on her shoulders. She sighed. The knight really needed to place her things somewhere.

Soon, it was her turn to be checked. One of the members, a young girl with blonde hair, asked her to remove her armor and show her back. It was a bit uncomfortable, but she didn't want to start anything, so she just wordlessly nodded. She heard some badly hidden gasps, likely because of the scars that littered her body. It was really uncomfortable, being outside of her armor, exposed to the world. Fortunately, they did allow her to keep her helm on.

"Could I please get your name as well?"
"...Sera."
"Full name please?"
"Seraphina. I do not possess a family name."

She heard some words being whispered, but soon, the procedure was finished, and she put on her armor.

"Well, you're safe to enter! Welcome to Orario." The girl that checked her smiled at her, while pointing to the gate leading into the main road. She simply took her stuff and walked into the city, thanking the girl. Once the knight was out of earshot, one of the guards near the girl exclaimed:

"I can't believe it. I ain't ever seen someone that scary without a falna."

"Foreigner, probably." Another responded. "Maybe an orphan? Or abandoned…"

"Shut it." The girl glared at the two, and they stopped talking. As she walked away, she slipped a sheet of paper into her pockets, a painting of some other world given to her, somehow.

Walking through the city was an interesting experience, to say the least. To say the most? It was off putting, that was for sure. Seeing so many smiling faces on the streets, people talking to each other, merchants selling on the road… It felt so strange to her, a girl from a place without such things. Well, without many of these things. She simply basked in the atmosphere, trying to ignore the stares from her greatsword.

After a long walk, she looks up at the tower in front of her. Babel, she recalled the name from the adventurer she met. It was magnificent, and even more so up close. It reminded her of…

Lothric Castle.

She looked around, and noticed a place with flags adorned on its walls. Looking away from the tower, she saw other adventurers entering the doors of the building. With nothing else to do, she decided to enter as well.

The colorful tiled floor made a distinct clank from her bandaged boots as she stepped inside. There were green couches spread out in one corner, and people talking to the clerks and tellers standing in their own respective areas. Some were even exchanging strange crystals for profit in a drawer. She stood by the entrance, idly glancing at the scenery, before one of the members waved at her.

"Hey! I'm ready for the next person!" The worker, a boy with short black hair and a uniform worn by the rest of the staff, ushered the unknown knight towards her, and the girl simply walked towards him, slightly confused.

"Yes…?"

"Haven't seen you around here before. Are you here to become an adventurer?" The boy looked at her helm, before looking back at his paperwork laid on the desk. The girl thought about it for a while.

"Yes." In fact, she already considered herself an adventurer, right? Why not officialize it?
"Great." He shifted the papers on his desk, before grabbing a specific one, along with a pen. "Here, just fill in this sheet and hand it back to me once completed. Ask me if you have any questions!" The girl nodded, before sitting down at one of the couches, looking over the form. It contained a few questions: Name, age, Familia, and background information, as well as some other ones. She scribbled down her name, but was stuck at the next few.

Name: Seraphina

Age:

Background Information:

Familia/God:

With nothing else to do, she asked the worker about the form.

"Regarding my age, I am not completely aware how old I am."

"That's fine, just leave it blank and I'll worry about it." The boy tried to give a comforting smile. Another small pause ensued.

"I do not recall much about my past either."

"Same thing as before then." He looked back down at his desk, swiftly writing down some lines before gazing back at the knight in front of him. "Anything else?"

"I do not know what a Familia is." The teller's expression morphed into one of surprise. He gave the fallen knight a look of incredulity, before trying not to react too much.

"A-ah. You do understand the importance of having a falna while dungeoning, right?" He subconsciously lowered the volume of the conversation.

"No."

"Well, a Familia is basically a group you enter when a god blesses you with their falna, which boosts the capabilities of adventurers. Almost all adventurers have it in the dungeon, and the ones who don't are usually low level supporters." He looked over at the knight, who did not particularly fit the image of a supporter.

"Oh. Do I need a 'falna' to become an adventurer?"

"You would be suicidal to be an adventurer without a falna. Do you at least have a party?"
"No."

The boy took a deep breath, looking at the gruesome armor the knight wore.

"Look, maybe you should come back once a Familia has accepted you. Then, you can start adventuring with a proper status. I honestly don't think you would have trouble getting into one…"

"I do not want to." Gods… She doesn't really want to ally with a god. It felt wrong, with all her past experiences with deities.

"..." The boy scratched his head, staring at the unknown knight in thought. Everything he knew told him to deny the paperwork, but he didn't know her situation at all. So, leading with a gut feeling, he replied.

"If you have the combat experience, stay on the first floor of the dungeon, and make sure to have an escape plan, as well as the necessary safety equipment. Then, I'll accept this paperwork." He already started to regret this. But it seemed like the knight could hold her own, so he decided to trust her. "I will have to warn you, if you are doing this for money, the returns really aren't worth it."

"I see. And the dungeon is?"
"Located below Babel. You really aren't from here, are you?"

"No." The boy sighed in response, as the girl stayed silent.

"Well, you're mostly set. Call me Benjamin, I'll be your personal advisor. Call me over if anything happens, and tell me when you're going in the dungeon beforehand."

"Thank you, I will be heading to the dungeon shortly, and I do have supplies."

"Take care. No really, do take care…" The boy waved her off, and Sera exited the building. Looking down, he made up some answers before turning it in. The background information and the age aren't really too important, but the Familia question was. What a headache. Even still, it was a little interesting, he had to admit. Hopefully that knight wouldn't get herself killed too easily.

Name: Seraphina

Familia/God: N/A

Walking towards the dungeon, she looked around at the busy city around her. People were rushing from area to area, and others were simply chatting in the middle of the streets. Adventurers compared their equipment and experiences while workers talked about the newest gossip. It was all so lived-in. And she felt so out-of-place. She looked up at the sky, with the sun at the highest point in the sky once more. A silent prayer echoed through her mind.

It was time for an adventure.

*.

Sera tapped on the blue-colored rock walls as she made her way through the cavernous area. She walked past a few other adventurers on her way here. They seemed like adventurers just starting out. Most of them were in a group, with around 3-5 people in each. It was no matter to her. Her steps echoed across the corridor, and accompanied the silent knight.

Soon, she noticed a few creatures in front of her. They brandished their weapons at her, and she returned the favor. Now, it was time for battle. She admitted to herself that this was the first battle she had since she was snatched from Firelink Shrine, and the fact gave her a little anxiety. Still, this is something she would have to do. She exhaled and focused.

"Ready." Usually, she would not say anything, but she felt a little inspired by her new situations.

As the monsters neared her, she thought of her plan. There was a group of 3, and they all had sharp daggers in their hands. She had her new Farron greatsword, and its dagger. So, don't get surrounded, use her range, and don't overextend a swing. Alright.

Two creatures launched themselves at her, and she retaliated with a light swing from her greatsword, sweeping in a horizontal motion. She stepped forward, ready to press on the attack… Just to watch the monsters cut in half like butter. They immediately fell to the floor, and she saw a stone inside the body she just cut. The same stones she saw at the guild building.

"...What?" Sera couldn't contain her surprise. She stared at the remaining one, who looked at her with its red eyes. Still out of it, she saw the angered mob throw its dagger at her. She used her dagger to deflect the attack to the side as she decapitated the final enemy.

"..."

Were monsters that weak? The small ones she fought before took a few mighty swings to fall, and their swarm tactics were difficult to counter at times. It was… Disappointing was the wrong word, but she couldn't think of anything else. She shook her head and collected the stones into her satchel. For one stone, it wasn't visible, so she had to get gory and try to find the stone in its body. Once it was removed, the monster disappeared in black dust. Sera continued down the corridor, taking some stairs down to a lower level.

More of them appeared, and in greater numbers, but still, her simple swings were able to fall the foes in front of her. Sometimes, she would run up to the monsters in a feint before sticking her dagger into the ground, swinging herself across the floor while her greatsword would carve into the monster's bodies. A move she saw from a wielder of the Farron greatsword. More particularly, an Abyss Watcher. She did want to test it, and it seemed to work well enough. She continued down the dungeon.

Her satchel accumulated more and more stones as she continued her impromptu wandering session, almost completely ignoring Benjamin's warnings. Another floor was descended.

This time, she saw another type of creature. A dog-like one. She raised her guard once more. This time, she would need to focus, as perhaps the lone monster had more strength than the previous creature… Nevermind. It died to another probing swing.

She deadpanned as she walked over to the stone dropped on the floor. It was around the same size.

Sera looked at the ceiling of the corridor. Which floor was this? She remembered taking… 3 stairs down, after the first fight. So this should be floor 4.

Benjamin's warning flashed across her head. She scoffed. With no motivation to continue, she starts tracing her steps back.

Benjamin sighed as he looked outside the window of the guild building, watching the general hustle-and-bustle of the city. His monotonous life was one of comfort, and its boredom. The gray-eyed staff member sighed as he remembered his dreams of becoming an adventurer once. Of course, he was too lazy and weak for such a thing, and besides, no Familia would ever take him. So, he stood, waiting for the time to tick down for his shift.

He thinks back to the girl that just signed up to become an adventurer. Her cloaked and old armor was quite unique. But still, without a falna… Hopefully she's not dead.

As he was about to leave, he saw the same knight enter back into the guild building. No big scratches on her armor, which was a bit surprising. He was expecting a chip at least. She walked over to the magic stone exchange drawer and brought out…

His eyes widened. The stones were traded, and the knight put the money in the pouch, walking back over to him. He couldn't see her expression as her helm stared at him.

"A-a successful venture?"

"I believe one could say that. And to think you would underestimate me so."

He believed his life would get just a little more interesting now.