Chapter 9 – Purpose

Reina sat with her legs crossed. She tried to empty her mind, much like how Martin first instructed her to forge a contract with her soul. As of yet, she hadn't been able to cast Prestidigitation. It was entirely possible she didn't form the contract properly. She needed to correct that.

"You aren't concentrating." A deep voice said from directly behind her.

Reina repressed a shiver at the voice. Not only did she hear it but she felt it against her back. She was leaned up against Vyrdrun, sitting in the small open area made from him sitting cross-legged as well.

"How the hell did we wind up like this again!?" Reina wondered.

The day had gone by fairly quickly.

They traveled across the plains for a few hours, killing the odd doll here and there that crossed their path. Reina sent out her spirit so Vyrdrun wouldn't need to bother. There was no one around to witness it and it was a safe bet he already knew she was the hero, if he knew about that sort of thing. She just didn't confirm it with him yet.

Vyrdrun did step in to fight when they passed near a small river. Some sort of crab monster was there, huddled in the soft ground. It reminded Reina of something out of a video game, and it died just as easily. Well, it died to Vyrdrun easily. Her spirit attacked it but didn't seem to do much damage against its hard shell, even with her Krindar Athame equipped. A stomp and a couple slams from Vyrdrun was all it took. He really was quite strong.

Such a thing wasn't obvious if she only looked at their levels. Reina got up to level 16 today—thanks to a few crab monsters—but Vyrdrun said he was at 20. She didn't know what his stats were like and it somehow felt rude to ask.

After learning about it earlier, Reina absorbed the monsters in pieces after cutting them up. She got two weapon reveals for her effort.

Muck Crab Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: spirit defense 2

Muck Crab Claw Athame
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: agility 1

The totem had decent defense and the athame basically swapped defense and agility with the Krindar Athame. Since neither had any additional effects, she'd keep the Krindar Athame as her weapon of choice after unlocking them.

They took a break to cook some of the meat from the muck crabs. While she wasn't a great cook, she knew enough. Her plant appraisal ability let her find some herbs to use as spices. Vyrdrun seemed pleased with the meal, so it was a win in her book.

After lunch, they continued on their way. A few hours of travel passed with Reina able to walk beside Vyrdrun, finally over her sickness. There were a few villages, but they didn't stop in any of them. Vyrdrun had nothing he needed from such small places and Reina didn't see any need to stop. The few travelers they came across gave them a wide berth.

Eventually, they reached one of the places Vyrdrun was traveling to. There was a glade that had a spirit dwelling in it. Vyrdrun had sat down shortly after arriving and began meditating. Reina found it a good opportunity to try forging another contract.

The only problem was, she didn't really know how to.

That's how they found themselves in their current positions. At least this time she was clothed, just not in her spell-hampering iron chainmail.

"Breathe in and out." Vyrdrun said. "Try to feel the spirit around you and look for that same feeling within."

She explained her problem to Vyrdrun. That being, she was unable to cast her spell. After a little back and forth, they figured out the problem. Vyrdrun said the spell name should have appeared in her status, something Martin neglected to say. That was probably because neither Martin nor Reina thought to clarify it. That section wasn't immediately visible in her status, so it wasn't immediately obvious. Plus, she had a lot to worry about recently.

So, Reina tried to do as Vyrdrun said.

"Don't think about anything. Don't think about how comfortable you feel. Don't think about his strong hands on your shoulders!"

Needless to say, it was a bit hard to concentrate. He said sitting like this would help to stimulate her magic. She had the contract already, sort of, so it was just a matter of bringing her magic out.

But she'd already done that. Her spirit's Healing Touch used MP, so it wasn't like she never used magic before. She just hadn't cast any spells. Was there a difference? If she brought out her spirit now, then maybe…

"I'm going to try something." Reina said. "Forge Spirit!"

The spirit appeared before the pair, hovering a few inches off the ground. With a mental command, the spirit extended its doll-like arm and began applying Healing Touch to her. Her HP was full, so it didn't have any effect beyond slowly draining her MP.

"Hm. I sense something." Vyrdrun said. "Perhaps…"

The hand on her right shoulder shifted. It moved downward and sideways.

"—!" Reina did her best to hold back the noise that threatened to explode out of her mouth. Vyrdrun's firm fingers slid across her collarbone and down to the center of her chest. Her face began to heat up, the feeling racing around her chest, dipping into her stomach and even further. It seemed to go out in all directions.

"This has to be on purpose!" Reina resisted crying out. "There's no way he's doing this without realizing what he's doing to me! If this is some sort of joke for giants, then…wait."

As she took in another breath, Reina felt a tug.

"I really do feel something going out to my arms and legs."

It wasn't body heat or physical contact or…anything else a woman might feel when a man felt around that area. It was a foreign feeling. Starting from her limbs, she tried to follow it back to its source. The tingling in her shoulders and hips grew into a soft burn as she neared her center.

She could practically see it within her mind. With a mental hand outstretched, she reached for the source of the sensation. The moment she grasped it, a popup pulled her from the short vision.

Spirit Contract Acquired! Spell: Prestidigitation.

"I did it." Reina said as Vyrdrun removed his hand.

"You did." He gave her head a quick pat. "Good job."

She might have taken offense to that, but she was quickly learning some of Vyrdrun's quirks, and she'd barely known him a day. They seemed to melt together with his actions that were actually necessary.

Reina started feeling around in her mind what this contract meant. Already, she could almost see lines and patterns, possibilities of what form the spell could take. Martin described it a little before, which seemed to mostly coincide with a spell with the same name from her games.

"Prestidigitation!" She called out, extending her hand. At her fingertips, flames sprung out. They weren't big, about what she's seen come out of lighters, but they were there. They were magic. Her first spell!

And she was about to learn another.

Reina separated from Vyrdrun and, just like before, she meditated. Once her mind was clear, she could feel a presence around her. There was a gentle push in her mind. She tried to interact with it, only for a popup to grab her attention.

Contract: Cutting Edge
Restriction: weapon enchant limit: caskalt blades.
Accept?

"Huh." Reina read over what was given to her. "I thought the contracts would be more…something. Meditating with Martin was way different. Maybe it's the difference between my soul and other spirits?

Regardless, she agreed to the terms.

Contract Forged!

With that second popup, she felt knowledge enter her mind. Just like with Prestidigitation, she understood how to cast the spell Cutting Edge. However, she wasn't given what the spell actually did, aside from enchanting a sword. If not for that lieutenant guy, she'd have to do more guessing.

Though there was a term she didn't recognize. Caskalt. She assumed it was some sort of metal, but wasn't sure. The sword Vyrdrun took from that guard must have met the requirement, since that's what he cast it on.

Reina walked back over to Vyrdrun. "Would you mind if I see that sword for a minute?"

With a nod, he pulled the blade from that metal thing on his thigh and handed it to her. She hadn't noted it before, but there was a slight blue tint to it. She also hadn't really carried any proper weapons other than holding that one mace when she first geared up. If she had to guess, this sword was probably about what a regular iron sword would weigh.

Concentrating, she focused on the spell she wanted to cast. Like Prestidigitation, there was no long incantation, only will.

"Cutting Edge!" She called out.

Just like in town, the blade shimmered with a white light. This close, she could even hear a light hum coming from it.

"Whoa…" Reina marveled at it. Her second spell cast and it was a buff spell. Pretty soon, she'd be slinging fireballs and lightning bolts!

Zip!

The light on the blade went out.

"Huh?" Reina looked it over. "What happened?"

"You stopped concentrating." Vyrdrun said.

"What?" She looked up at him. "It doesn't stay for a while? I have to keep concentrating on it?"

Vyrdrun nodded. "Human mages can make spells last without concentrating on them, but I don't know how that's done."

"Darn. Well, that's the drawback of having no chant, I suppose, plus being able to cast it so easily. And it's not like it was difficult to make a contract either." Reina mused.

The other problem she realized was that she couldn't actually use this spell on herself. She could only use her specific weapon and she didn't have any forms that matched it. Vyrdrun could use it, but this called for another test.

"Can I try it with you holding it?" She asked.

He gave her another nod and took the sword back. Reina held her hand against the blade.

"Cutting Edge!"

Once again, the blade glowed. She removed her hand and took a few steps back. It didn't feel like there was a distance requirement to it, nor the need to actually keep hold of it, but she still had to touch it initially for the spell to work. Meaning, if they were in combat, she'd have to come close to Vyrdrun to use it.

"Well, at least I can make your attacks better." She said, letting go of her spell.

"Hm." Vyrdrun hummed before approaching her, offering Reina the hilt. "It's too short of a weapon for me to use properly, and I've never trained with a sword. If needed, I can form a club from my enchanted metal."

"You sure?" She asked as she took the sword again.

Vyrdrun nodded. "Use that however you please. I already have a knife for anything I need to cut."

Reina held the sword in her hands as Vyrdrun walked off. Night was approaching, so he would make a temporary shelter for them, much like his hut from before. That left Reina with a weapon she couldn't use. Perhaps she could sell it in the next town they reached, or she could save it for when she eventually formed a party…

"Right. I'm just traveling with him for now." She didn't want to get ahead of herself with Vyrdrun. They've known each other for barely a day and she hadn't even learned that much about him. He'd answer her questions but didn't talk much about himself.

For example, he didn't give much of a reason for coming to this glade. She asked if he was on a pilgrimage or some other kind of religious traveling, only for him to respond with "of a sort". She wanted to talk more with him, but that was never her strong suit. Small talk was a difficult skill to learn.

That problem would have to wait. For now, she still had this sword. A thought occurred to her. She's absorbed plants, wood, even a bit of iron. Why couldn't she absorb this and get another weapon form? She might as well try. If she couldn't, she could always tuck it away for later.

Reina pulled her athame from her hip and—with Vyrdrun away—held it against the sword. It glowed and pulled the sword into it, giving her a familiar popup.

Caskalt Athame
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: MP recovery (small)
Equip Effect: minor spell amp

Reina grinned as she changed to the new weapon form. Just like the sword, the fancy knife in her hand had a blue tint to the blade.

"Cutting Edge!"

She cast her spell for the third time, watching as her weapon glowed with energy. If it was possible, her grin grew. Just like that, she had a spell and a weapon she could both cast it on and use. Things were starting to look up again.

"Oh yeah. One of my power up methods increases my skills and spells from having contracts with spirits. So Cutting Edge will be stronger. Heh, maybe I'll get enough contracts so I'll be able to light a campfire in an instant. Wait…Forge Spirit is a skill. That means my main way of fighting will get stronger too!" The implications seemed amazing to her.

She stowed her weapon and looked over the stats of her spirit. Unlike when she gained levels, it didn't look like she had to re-forge her spirit for the power up method to take effect, same with the other two. The bonus she got was slightly higher than anything she got from either the tokens or the gacha at the moment—except for the regular doll tokens, since she had so many of them, but they only increased defense against other doll monsters. The best part was the bonus was applied to all her spirit's stats!

"Well, if I can lose these contracts or other spirits' demands conflict with one another, there'll be a limit to how many I can get. Martin mentioned something about that. Still, whenever I come across one, I should give it a try." Reina concluded.

~Forging Legends~

Reina was in good spirits this morning. Not only was the Krindar Athame unlocked before going to bed, but the Red Reed Rod was also unlocked after waking up. It resembled the reed with the cat tail-like appearance, thought it felt like it was made of some sort of wood. It was about the length of her forearm, but about half as thick. With it came the recipes for a few potions. She could already see them without unlocking it, but she couldn't auto-craft them.

A potion for HP, a basic medicine for minor illnesses, two different oils, an antitoxin and—very important—soap. One of the oils was for lanterns while the other was for cleaning weapons. Hers was self-repairing so the latter wasn't needed, but she could always sell it if she had the ingredients. Currently, she only had ingredients for one, but fortunately is was for the best out of them: HP potions.

The blue caps she collected two days ago were the main ingredient for one of the recipes. A little bit of aloe was needed, but that wasn't hard to collect for the quantity of blue caps that would use it. Another stroke of luck was something she learned after making the first potion. The blue caps had degraded in quality after getting soaked in the rain, though she didn't know if it was from the water or the magical part of the rain. Either way, after using her auto-crafting feature, she got an average quality potion from the poor quality mushrooms. She'd have to see what happened when she used better ingredients.

That was one of Reina's activities this morning. The second was practicing with her Prestidigitation spell. She didn't need to say the name out loud, it only helped with casting and increased its power. Celia had done something similar, throwing around sparks without a word. Of course, that seemed to be the only spell with that quirk. Cutting Edge couldn't be cast without saying the name no matter how hard she tried. Still, she was able to have a bit of fun with her first spell. The remaining crab meat got an extra little flavor added in because of it.

It only took a couple hours to reach the next town. Unlike the last one, this town had a wall around it, indicating its greater importance or size. Vyrdrun didn't need anything and didn't want to chance another fight, so Reina went in alone. She wanted a proper traveling pack, some emergency rations, and a few others. Sharing Vyrdrun's waterskin wasn't something she wanted to continue doing. She also didn't want to keep using the blanket he offered, and certainly not repeat her first night with him.

Reina entered the open gates without a fuss. The path led straight to the market area of the town. Many traveling merchants were set up in the center with their wares on display. From clothes to strange fruits, there seemed to be no shortage of items for sale. She only wished she had more money to spend, possibly revealing a lot of weapon forms.

"Did you hear the news? The capital was sacked!"

"Didn't the prince summon the Spirit Forger? Do you think they died?"

"I heard the prince summoned the Spirit Forger to fight a new Demon Lord."

"He must have caught the Demon Lord's attention with that. Where will it strike next?"

It seemed word was starting to get around about the capital. Now that she looked around, there were a lot more guards about. From this side, she could see many more stationed on the walls and tall towers. Most of them wore either iron or steel, with a good amount in bronze. Fewer still wore a shinier metal, similar to the demon girl's from the capital. They seemed to be a higher rank, if their lack of polearm and wearing decorative swords and cloaks were any indication.

The ones in bronze didn't have any amulets as far as she could tell. That did bring up the question of whether or not they were part of any churches. Mages didn't seem to be trusted as much, but maybe there were exceptions. The lieutenant before used a spell from a lone spirit, so maybe it was people who contracted with a lot of spirits.

Regardless, she needed to complete her business and leave. Fighting the Demon Lord was important, but she wasn't anywhere strong enough. Hopefully this town wouldn't be attacked.

The adventurers' shop wasn't hard to find. It was next to a building that had a similar emblem as the Adventurers Guild in the capital, a straight path from the gate. There were mostly the same items as in the capital, but what caught her eye were the maps on display. The price was well beyond her, so she simply looked them over to get an idea. She sold her potions, got as much gear as she could afford—with copies of as many things as she could to absorb later—and made her way back out of the town.

On the way, she noticed a merchant to the side with a crowd around him. He was set up against the wall a little further away with his…merchandise on display.

"This next one is a giant from the hills east of the capital! Strong, fierce, guaranteed loyalty! The bidding starts at 20 geld!"

"Twenty-one!"

"Twenty-five!"

"Thirty!"

It wasn't hard to figure out what was happening. The crowd wasn't made up of ordinary townsfolk or adventurers, but of men and women in expensive-looking clothes. And the Gromnar in the cage before them wasn't in the best condition. His face looked horribly burned, going up his head and down to his shoulders. Strange metal collars were on his wrists and ankles with a thicker one on his neck.

"Slaves. This world has slaves." Reina wasn't sure what to make of it. She knew it existed for a long time in her world, and even in the worlds of games she's played, but seeing it in front of her was something else.

The Gromnar wasn't the only slave, but he appeared to be the only giant among them. In the cages near his were about a dozen men and women, and a few more cages containing monsters. She didn't recognize half of them outside of her gaming experience, and none with firsthand experience. Still, the Gromnar appeared to be the prize of the bunch.

The price for the giant kept increasing, but Reina hurried along. She couldn't help but worry for Vyrdrun if someone caught him outside.

"That's why he didn't want to come in." She realized.

Before she knew it, she saw Vyrdrun hidden away from town near the road, sitting right where he was before. Her mind was preoccupied with what she saw.

"Something wrong?" He asked as he looked at her.

She quickly debated whether or not she should mention what happened in town. Surely he must have known what humans did to his people if he was wary of them. But maybe he didn't. The guards before only tried to drive him out or kill him, not enslave him.

"In town…" she began, deciding what to do, "I saw a Gromnar in a cage. He was being sold…as a slave."

"Hm." Vyrdrun glanced toward the town for a moment before turning back. "What did he look like?"

Reina winced. "His face and head were burned. I'm not sure…"

Vyrdrun hummed. "How big was he?"

She paused. That wasn't the sort of question she was expecting at all. "He was big? Bigger than you by a few feet."

"Ah." With that noise, he rose to his feet. "Okay then."

"Okay?" Reina watched him walk on the road leading away from town. "Don't you care that another Gromnar is being sold as a slave?"

"Why would I? Tribes fight one another, sometimes until one or the other is wiped out. We haven't been united in any real sense for a long time."

Reina walked after him, waiting for him to continue speaking, but he didn't. Was that really all there was to it? He asked how big the other one was. Was it something about a stronger giant being beneath him now? She really didn't understand his culture.

Even more, she wasn't sure how to ask. The odd question here and there was fine, but this seemed deeper. That was the excuse she told herself. Really, she was afraid he might not continue traveling with her if she asked too probing of questions.

"Why do you care?" Vyrdrun broke her from her thoughts with his question.

"No one deserves that." She answered. "Not even criminals."

"Hm."

That said, she knew there wasn't much either of them could do about it. Even revealing she was the Spirit Forger probably wouldn't do much. That giant was a slave, and worth quite a lot by the time she left the town. The slaver wasn't just going to release something so valuable for nothing.

The next few minutes passed by in silence. Reina went ahead and started auto-crafting the next potion from her absorbed ingredients. It was handy she could keep the crafted potions in her weapon, even putting them back in if she took one out.

An approaching cart drew her attention. A pair of those horse-like creatures—'nipeigh' as her status told her—pulled the cart. They looked basically like a horse, but with a longer, thinner neck and a face that was more squashed. The young driver of the cart pulled back on the reins, coming to a stop. He cautiously watched as Reina and Vyrdrun approached.

"Hello!" Reina cheerfully called out, hoping to ease the man's tensions.

The man regarded her for a moment before continuing to look at Vyrdrun.

"What's the holdup?" Another man asked, pulling back the drape that obscured the back of the cart from view. He was a well-rounded man, to put it nicely. His clothes were a bit nicer than the driver's, and if the second cart attached to the first was any indication, he was a merchant.

The well-dressed man looked up after taking a single step from the back, looking at Vyrdrun as they were about to pass.

"Oh, a Gromnar. Don't see many walking about these parts." He commented.

"You aren't afraid of him?" Reina asked, stopping.

The merchant smiled at her. "Why would I be? Gromnar who casually walk down the road probably aren't looking for a fight."

That was the single most sensible thing she's heard about giants. True, she didn't get much from Vyrdrun besides a few tidbits of information, but the reactions of the last town—or last two towns at this point—painted a different picture. They also didn't spend that much time on the road, mostly sticking to the plains. A few travelers saw them but went on their way pretty quickly.

"Bit small for a giant, I think." The merchant stroked his chin as he gazed at Vyrdrun. The driver never looked away, staying completely still. "Are you one of those wandering types?"

"Yes." Vyrdrun said.

The merchant nodded. "Where are you off to?"

"West for now." Vyrdrun added.

"Hm. Well, I hope you aren't going too far west." The merchant said. "A Wave of Destruction happened over in Lespax about a week ago. Decimated the village it was near."

"A Wave…" Reina remembered reading the small bit about it. She hadn't thought to ask more, especially with everything going on. "What happens in a Wave?"

"From what I heard, a crack opens up in the sky and monsters start pouring out of it. They didn't stop until the strongest monster from it was killed. If it was farther away from a town, the damage would have been much worse before the knights and adventurers rode out." The merchant said. "Legends say the three heroes can travel to a Wave in an instant through the Dragon Hourglasses to fight the monsters. Unfortunately, none of them were in Lespax then."

"Heroes…" She murmured. No one mentioned there being others like her. Were they already summoned or was she the only one for now?

"How far is Lespax?" Vyrdrun asked. "My journey will take me far."

"Do you have a map?" Both Reina and Vyrdrun shook their heads at the question. "Well, if you follow the roads west, it should be about two weeks by carriage. Though I'm sure someone of your size could get there just as quick. From what I hear, the Waves can happen anywhere close to the Dragon Hourglass, so you may come across the one that's due a little over two weeks from now."

Two weeks. The time to reach Lespax and the time until more monsters poured from the sky. Reina didn't like that one bit. It reminded her too much of the capital. But then, it didn't sound nearly as dangerous. A village getting destroyed was terrible, but she could understand a less defended area getting hit hard. If knights and adventurers from a town could handle it, surely she could be of help. That was especially true if she could go directly to the Wave, and maybe take people with her.

A quick look at her help menu confirmed that idea.

"Wait." Reina spoke up. "You said Lespax is two weeks away, but the Wave happened a week ago. How do you know about it?"

"I heard about it a few days ago in town. An orator sent a message to the local Adventurers Guild."

"Orator?" Reina repeated the word.

"You aren't from around here, are you, girly?" Reina was a bit worried she let something slip she shouldn't have. She was also torn between not liking her description and being pleased about being seen as a girl. "The Adventurers Guild hires orators to send messages far and wide in an instant with magic."

That would explain how the Demon Lord heard about her summoning so quickly. Maybe whoever was watching her sent a coded message. She doubted such a thing could be said freely. That magic also sounded incredibly useful. Maybe she'd find a spirit to grant her a spell like that.

The merchant clapped his hands with a smile. "Well, I best be on my way, before the boy here passes out from fright." He gestured to the driver, who didn't look to have relaxed at all.

The driver didn't need more instruction. He quickly whipped the reins and the nipeigh began pulling the two carts once more.

Reina watched as the carts went down the road to the town they just left. She knew what she needed to do, or what she probably should do. It would help her get stronger, fighting monsters to reveal weapon forms, and gather corpses and tokens to improve her weapons. Even on the way, she'd likely find a few spirits to contract with. Everything would help her prepare to defeat the Demon Lord.

And these Waves of Destruction! They were happening at the same time the Demon Lord appeared. That couldn't be a coincidence. Was he responsible for it? Or, did he time his appearance with them. Her help menu mentioned the Dragon Hourglasses counted down to the next Wave, so it was possible.

But all of that came second after this.

"Hey, Vyrdrun…"

The giant looked down at her.

"You know…I'm a hero, right?" She questioned as she gazed up at him.

"I guessed as much." He gave her a light nod.

That wasn't so hard to say, especially since she practically announced it to him before. She wasn't always subtle either. This next part…might be the end of things.

"My help menu said registering my weapon to an hourglass will let me teleport to the Wave of Destruction; the same thing that guy was talking about. I think…I'm supposed to fight them."

Her level wasn't that high yet, but she'd been getting stronger. The more monsters she fought, the more tokens she'd get and the more gacha rolls she could make, not to mention all the weapon forms she'd unlock. Even though that merchant said there was a lot of damage, she could probably do something to help. Besides, the Demon Lord was far too strong for her to fight, let alone his children. This could help her get strong enough to fight him, too.

Those were all good reasons, in addition to saving people. But, she couldn't do it alone. She needed a party. And Vyrdrun…

"Would you…consider coming with me? To fight in the Wave?" She asked the question that would likely end things between them.

She didn't know Vyrdrun that long, not even as long as her old party. There was no reason for him to join her. It would be dangerous, not only from the monsters but the humans as well. How grateful would they truly be? Would they even let him near the Dragon Hourglass? Would he be allowed in the town or city it was in? He would probably just—

"I will."

Reina's eyes widened at his sudden answer. "You will?"

Vyrdrun nodded. "I've come to see more of the world. I've never been to that country, or even heard of it, so I would like to see it too. And I don't think you'd get very far without me."

She'd take that as more of an insult if she didn't see the small smile on his face. That was the first time she'd seen him smile at anything. He always seemed serious, so she didn't know if he really enjoyed her company.

Reina gave him a large smile in return. "Thank you! I look forward to traveling with you more."

"Same here."

She now officially had a party member that wasn't just for convenience. She didn't know what the future held, but she wasn't going to face it alone.

~Forging Legends~

It was strange to be traveling with this tiny hero. The tales of heroes were passed down to him from his predecessor, and from his before. Rarely did they deal with any tribes of Gromnar, and the Totem Hero was no exception.

It was obvious Reina was the Totem Hero. She all but admitted it when she first woke up during her treatment. The fact that the littling guards understood what she said at the same time he did was just more proof. It was a bit strange she didn't tell him before, and stranger that the people in that town didn't seem to know. Vyrdrun didn't know the exact details, but there was always the default explanation.

Humans as a whole were an untrustworthy people. If you don't give them what they want, they take it by force. If they can't, they use tricks. That was often the case. Littlings with their weapons and armor and magic were strong, but Gromnar were stronger.

And yet, here he was, traveling with a human hero, carrying her at times no less. The same human he saved from the mystic rain storm two nights before. Vyrdrun didn't really understand why he did it. He didn't know why he stepped in when she was about to be attacked by those krindar. Any other human wouldn't have done the same for him, so why bother?

Except, it turned out she wasn't just any other human. She was a hero brought from another world. She wasn't raised in the dreaded empire that hated his kind, the one that was brought down 20 years ago. That was part of the reason he was traveling west, away from what was the heartland of the now-fractured empire. Perhaps humans would be better to him, like the one he saved.

But she was a hero. The heroes of humans cared little for the Gromnar. That was especially true of the Totem Hero. After all, her predecessor was the one who killed the Great Unifier. Who's to say she would be any different in the end? Perhaps that's what led to their encounter. The spirits may have guided their paths to intersect.

Was he to not despise humans? He already didn't, he just understood their nature. Was he supposed to aid her in her journey? She was a rather pleasant human, and he already saved her life once. It wouldn't do to let that go to waste.

And truthfully, he wished to have friends again.

Author's Notes:

On an unrelated note, anyone ever use the mod to make the Mud Crabs from Skyrim look and sound like Doctor Zoidberg from Futurama? Funniest mod I've seen in the game.

So, Reina is set on the path to fight the Waves. About time. If you're worried about taking a long time to get there, worry not! I imagine they'll get there in a couple chapters, maybe 3, unless my muse conjures up something big. She also officially has a party member now.