Once again time seemed to pass relatively quickly with my new training schedule. I had a little over two months before the start of the festival. That was plenty of time, to be honest. Though, it had me wondering when I’d be able to go on a real adventure. So far my travels had been mostly just walking on a trail and staying in towns with occasional forays into combat. I knew I was young yet, but I wanted to get out to see the world.
I mean, who wouldn't dream of seeing the Spine’s - a series of peaks within the titanic dwarvish mountain range called the Hartheim Spires. The spines specifically are rumored to be massive and had once housed dragons. Word said dragons still lived there, hidden behind spellwork from the rest of the world.
Or the floating islands of Crasadil, a nation far to the east and past the Myrid sea. It was a nation of mages well past the edges of Terraan’s border that few had the privilege to visit if only due to the monsters that ravaged the sea below it.
All that said, I found myself often growing bored of the monotony despite acknowledging its necessity. In order to break up this monotony, I asked Adrien and his group when next they’d have time for a meal with me and mine. This was a bit over a week ago, around the time I finished designing a few new enchantments as well as the first of my wind spells. Today would be the day to share our meal so I was preparing some things.
The last two weeks had been quick. I had made three new sets of clothes for myself out of the spider silk, using the same general enchantments that I normally did on the first set. I realized fairly quickly that the spider silk I had gotten from the dungeon was strong enough to handle far far more enchantments, and so I then had to work to create one that would bring out the full potential of the clothes. It wasn’t finished just yet, though.
It took a solid week of designing the new enchantment. I wanted to make something similar to the concept of my first sword, a shape changing garment. I designed a powerful enchantment that, provided sufficient mana, would allow me to change its appearance. I still had to make the clothes, but that would be a task for a later date.
Today, well, today was going to be different. I had convinced Perry and Garth to allow me to cook a meal for the adventurer’s today, and I was both nervous and excited. The kitchen staff would still be helping, doing most of the cooking in fact, but I was the one designing the meal. There was no particular reason for this, but for the fact that Adrien’s party was in town having just returned from another bit of investigation, and that my party was in as well.
And so, I found myself at the market, purchasing some various aromatic spices and other ingredients. There was no chicken here but different poultry that was similar enough. Soon I had a wagon full of white meat, rice, and other ingredients. I figured I’d start with something more tame, two different dishes. Chicken Tikka masala, and saag paneer. I wasn’t Indian in my past life, but whenever I thought of my preferred last meal, Indian food was a part of it.
Growing up I had been lucky enough to live in a place where I could experience all sorts of different cultures, but the most flavorful, in my opinion, was between Mexican and Indian food. I couldn't help but feel a touch nervous about this, making food that meant so much to me for my friends, and to a lesser extent the rest of the adventurers.
Still, soon I was standing in the kitchen and calling out instructions to the folk with the higher level cooking skills. I helped as well, gaining some experience. Both dishes took a bit of time and effort and once they started to come together I couldn’t keep the smile from my face.
It was as they were both nearly done, the tikka masala simmering gently in a large pot, the rice properly fluffed. Discs of freshly seared naan bread, some covered with garlic or pressed with onions, some plain, filling the air with the smell of fresh bread. And the saag paneer, a vegetarian dish with spinach that looked a little bit sloppy but tasted absolutely divine, that I was forced from the kitchen.
“Aye, kid, yer part is done! Let me take over, we'll handle the rest.” Garth said in the voice that didn’t belong to his intimidating figure before physically guiding me to the door.
“Are you sure I can still-”
“Get out of here kiddo!” One of the other cooks called out and laughed. He was a bit younger than the others, maybe a year or two older than me. Over the course of the last few hours I had gotten to know many of the cooks a bit, though not by name.
“Fine fine fine I'll go, no need to twist my arm there Garth.” I said, chuckling as the large man easily pushed me toward the door.
Then, I was out of the kitchen and into the hall proper. The smell of the cooking dishes wafted through the guild hall, a hall that was already beginning to look packed to the brim. The gentle murmur of conversation crashed into my ears as I looked about for my friends, easily finding them as they gathered ‘round a couple of tables put together. Rose and Eva had the foxes in their laps, and were chatting with Elric and Amelia while Harkan, still a mystery to me, Liana and Leshal seemed to be playing a game of cards. Adrien was nowhere to be seen.
I strode toward them excitedly, nervously, and took a seat between Leshal and Rose, one that seemed to be saved for me. “Where’s Adrien?” I asked as I pulled myself closer to the table, glancing over at the card table and noticing they were playing for copper coins.
“He said he had to go collect a surprise for you, unsure what it is though.” Elric replied before turning back to my companions. “Did Lios tell you folk about the wyrm we fought yet? It was quite somethin!”
“No I don’t believe he has.” Rose flashed a glance in my direction, letting me know this wasn’t the first story Elric had shared with them. Hopefully there was nothing too embarrassing in those tales as I hadn’t spent too long with the quartet. I noticed Harkan and Leshal were also actively listening even as they played their card game.
And so, for the next ten minutes Elric told a story that could have taken half that or less, adding embellishments. His boisterous voice drew attention from some of the nearby tables, including the attention of a blue armored asshat who couldn’t keep the scowl from his face. He was turned slightly away from us a few tables over, his hand reattached and no noticeable scars from our fight weeks before, and trying his best to look like he wasn’t listening. At one point while Elric was boasting about piercing the wyrm's thick scales Liana brought attention to my act of saving her from the acid breath of the creature. She, and all the rest of my group, smirked at me as I grew embarrassed from the attention as dozens of adventurers turned to look at me,
Just as the story ended Adrien slammed open the door to the guild hall dramatically, holding it as a middle aged woman with long blonde hair and a gorgeous white robe sauntered into a building that frankly looked like it was beneath her. Where she was clean and pure in appearance the guild hall was filled with ruffians who fought for a living, the floors were clean but for the dirt left behind from peoples boots. There were several tables with chips in them, some chairs without backs, and the other standard disarray one could expect when encountering a group of fighters in their natural habitats.
As the man and his companion stepped into the building and strode confidently towards our table a susurration fell over the crowd that had grown largely silent. Several people watched with somewhat revenant eyes and I heard them whisper.
“The saintess is here?”
“Isn’t it too soon for her to arrive?”
“Is that really the Saintess of Luma?”
The whispers continued even as she took a seat beside Adrien at our table. “Ah, I’m glad that we did not miss the meal!”
As he said this the hall was again distracted as Garth and those under his purview came out with bowls filled with rice and tikka masala, the flavors gracing the air around us. I smiled wide as they subverted other tables and began to load ours up, also bringing several baskets of naan bread. Eva stared down at her bowl with uncertainty, the appearance of saag paneer wasn’t overly appetizing.
“Hey! Why are you serving them first? We’ve all waited just as long!” One of the guys from Ethan's crew spoke up loudly, over the whispers and gentle din of the room. He stood and waved about a tankard that sloshed and spilled onto the floor.
“Wait yer turn you filthy bramblesprout! We’re servin em first because one of thems made the damn food. Now ya impatient louts, your food will be ready momentarily!” Garth said loud enough for everyone to hear.
This didn’t stop the blue beetle from complaining to his posse, nor did it stop his voice from carrying over to us, but we ignored it as the din of the guild hall, though somewhat subdued, returned to its usual luster. I turned toward Adrien and his companion, cocking an eyebrow questioningly. He chuckled a little bit and turned my way to face me.
“Alexilios! I’d like for you to meet my Aunt Helen, Saintess of Luma.” His voice rumbled and though conversation had begun to flow around us it was somewhat stymied by the introduction.
I smiled and stood up, leaning over the table and being careful not to allow my tunic to drift into my bowl of food. “Aunt Helen, feel free to call me Lios. I hope you enjoy the food!” I said as my hand reached out to shake hers, a not uncommon tradition on Jorial though most would take hers and bring it to their mouths for a kiss. I didn’t have the reach to do so.
“Lios, that is the Saintess, have a little decorum!” Rose hissed by my side, stiffer than I’d ever seen her.
“Yes Lios, decorum! I have an idea. Since you gathered us all for this meal, why don’t you make a toast!” Amelia teased quietly and I shot her a glare.
Still playfully glaring I stood up straight and raised my mead. “Thank you all for joining me for this meal. I haven't a long speech, or anything prepared, so this is all you’ll get, but I wanted to show my appreciation to my friends with a delicious supper, delightful drinks, and a sharing of stories. As well as to share these things with new friends and those around us. Now, let’s not let the food grow cold and the ale warm, aye? Dig in!”
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The folk at my table raised their glasses, even Aunt Helen as she lifted a tankard herself with a bemused smile on her face. Around me, after they had each taken a sip to the toast, they eagerly dug in. I took a piece of naan bread and ripped a piece from it, noticing several of my friends watching what I was doing as I used it to grab a chunk of ‘chicken’ and rice covered in the sauce and brought it to my mouth. A nostalgic groan escaped my lips as I leaned back and enjoyed the bite, uncaring as I was watched doing so.
It was at this moment that I noticed Amelia was simply sipping from a tankard and I remembered making her a waterskin from the silk using the loam my mother gifted me before I embarked on my adventure. It was dangling at my side and had only a few enchantments, the standard self cleaning that I favored for convenience, an active enchant that allowed one to change the internal temperature, one that would prevent leaks, and the last was one that allowed its contents to stay good for longer. I could probably make it better and more efficient, but as it was it would be fine.
I ignored a little bit of teasing around me from my over the top reaction to the food as I pulled the waterskin from my side and passed it over the table to her. “Don’t worry I didn’t forget ya Amelia. Made this one special for you. If you push your mana into the skin you can change the temperature of the contents.”
“What, the rest of us don’t get gifts?” Elric called out from beside her as he eyed the waterskin.
“The rest of you don’t have special diets that require such a gift!” I retorted with a chuckle. “I’ll get you a proper gift when I can craft weapons or armor at your level. Till then, enjoy the food.”
For a little while we were quiet as we ate, Amelia having thanked me after she tasted her beverage. I had bled myself a bit here and there, primarily using the blood that was drawn during my training sessions with Rhosha’s effigy, to make her the drink. She smiled appreciatively at me for it.
About ten minutes passed before we were interrupted. Ethen Penrose, the forever bully and noble’s brat walked past our table with his food in hand. He walked right behind me before “Tripping” and spilling the steaming hot food over my back.
“Oops, sorry Alexilios! My mistake. I must have confused you for a trash bin as I was delivering this garbage food to it. Seriously, who even eats this nonsense.”
I had expected such a petty, idiotic move from him if we’re being honest. The boy seemed to still be upset with me for lopping off his arm even if he was able to recover it. Still I hadn’t expected the attention of the hall to turn toward us as it happened, nor for my friends to all stand up in my defence as I sat still eating, trying to ignore him.
“Ethan. If you would like to lose your hand again, you need only say so. Want another spar?” I asked before anyone could say anything, the entire guild hall slowly quieting.
“Oh what was that? You think just because you got lucky once you will again? I know your tricks, swordsman!” His crew snickered around him, the newest member who replaced Leshal not quite sharing in their mirth.
Slowly I stood, tikka masala ripping down my back as it even burned my skin but I didn’t flinch. I didn’t make a noise as my skin heated up. Instead I turned to him, looked him up and down. “You aren’t worth my time, but if you want to lose your arm so badly let us head down toward the training room. Just you and me this time.”
He seemed a little uncertain at the confidence I was displaying and opened his mouth to speak but I interjected. “Oh, but I won’t hold back this time. I also won’t ask Harkan to act as a referee. Your survival would be dependent on your abilities and my mercy.” I caught Perry approaching from the side but he was moving slowly. Funnily enough, in his hand was a bowl and spoon as he continued to eat, uncaring of the drippages that started to stain his glorious beard.
“My survival huh? You think yourself so powerful?” Where before he looked uncertain, now he looked furious at the insinuation that he couldn’t fight me. I felt a tickle that perhaps something was wrong but I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. At least nothing obvious. “Fine. Let's go then. To the death this time Alexilios? Or are you too much of coward?”
I sighed heavily and simply started making my way to the training center, ignoring his taunt. One the way I passed Perry who turned with me and followed me down. “Don’t worry I won’t kill him. He does not deserve the honor of my blade removing his head.”
“Good. See that you don’t. His father would rain hellfire on you.” Perry nodded beside me. I noticed my companions were all following along with a number of other adventurers. Some stayed behind scarfing their food down, others brought the food with them. Most followed for the free entertainment.
Soon I found myself in the familiar sand circle, impatiently tapping my foot as Ethan and his group filed in. He stood on the other edge, opposite me, while others slowly filled the area around the circle where the barrier would be erected. With a deep sigh I drew my sword and faced my opponent.
“Do you have any words you’d like me to bring to your father? Perhaps ‘I was felled due to my petty grudge with a better adventurer’ or something of the like?” I tilted my head eager to get this done with. Surely, I could have refused his challenge but I was growing sick of the entitled brats behavior. He was impulsive and prideful, to a point he’d challenge someone he had lost to already to a duel to the death. But I would not have his death on my hands, even if it meant I would continue to face him. At the very least he had yet to go to an extreme, hadn’t hired anyone to deal with me.
“I’m much stronger than the last time we met Alexilios! Worry not, I'll ensure your body be brought back to your mother before I slaughter them too.” The man before me taunted.
A surge of fire flowed through me and I growled at his words but calmed myself. I will not kill him. I can’t handle his family's retribution. Don’t kill him, Lios. I repeated to myself in my head as I readied the crane kata. My sword was pointed at the greatsword wielder as he took a pose as well. Perry, prepared as always, activated the barrier surrounding us. He called out for us to begin but neither of us moved just yet.
I wouldn’t kill him but... I could always cripple him, remove him as a threat overall. With that thought I activated the flaming aura, a shroud of fire engulfing me. The red fire turned my deep purple tunic into a shade closer to lavender beneath it. I saw Ethan smirk as he stepped forward, an aura beginning to coat his own weapon. I sensed water mana from him. Some ice as well, it felt like, though I was not as familiar with the element. There seemed to be another type of mana around him but I couldn’t place it. My eyes narrowed as I attempted to figure out what type it was. It was a strange shade of purple, not quite violet but close.
Without another word he leapt at me, approaching me haphazardly as his blade cleaved downward. I sidestepped it, getting a feel for his style again. It seemed he had been training, his movements were more sure than they were before, but he was still slow. His weapon was heavy and so was his armor, I was far too agile to allow him to hit me. That's what I thought before a wave of water shot out of the ground when his blade carved into the sand, the water exploding around the strike point.
I glowered at him as the water created steam around us, colliding with my aura. As I moved I, of course, began a dance. I was unsure if the barrier would be enough for it, but It felt like the right time to assert some dominance, and so I started to cast my new fireball spell. Phoenix flower would have to wait as that one required range but fireball I could point to the floor and hit anything within the barrier. Hopefully it didn’t kill the brat. If it did, though, I wouldn’t be too heartbroken.
I dodged a second swipe of his sword, ducking under the blade of water that followed it. Water was beginning to swirl around him, the antithesis to my flames, but it didn’t touch me. I felt my mana take a small hit each time it clashed with my shroud, but otherwise it was inconsequential.
I continued my dance, ten seconds having passed. I saw a bit of strain in the lads face, or perhaps it was frustration at being unable to harm me. With a yell, mana began to pour from him fusing with his stamina. His skin took on an icy hue, different from the red rage that Elric took on. He was going berserk, making me wonder which class dealt with ice or if it was both. Doubling down on one's elemental affinity could be a great way to grow more powerful, but limited one's abilities.
As soon as he finished his scream he rushed at me twice as fast as before. I was still just fast enough to defend as I dodged or was forced to parry his blade. He came at me furiously, his blade lashing out at every opportunity. One strike even pushed me back, making me imbed my sword in the sand to slow my movement as he pushed me into the center of the circle. It was at this time that I completed my spell, the last rune clicking into place.
He approached me unknowingly, getting close. I ducked under his flailing greatsword and thrust my pommel into his gut as my mana surged, flowing through my pathways and into my sword. I formed a small bead of flaming mana on my pommel as it jabbed against his armor, then leapt back leaving the bead in front of him. It pushed him back, his eyes widening and water flowing to his front. The fireball, unfortunately, still took a few moments to detonate.
Then, then it exploded. The fireball went off like a bomb directly against his stomach. The world around me turned white, flames filling every crevice within the barrier. I panted slightly at the brief moments of exertion as I felt in my sphere of perception that the man was still alive, having formed a wall of ice around himself and backing up at the same time as me, but his ice was cracked and broken. I couldn’t see him and [Portent] didn’t necessarily share fine details so I couldn’t tell the level of his injuries but I did see him flailing about as heat covered him. As the sand beneath his feet boiled and began to turn to glass. My own feet were not immune to this either and I had to hop from foot to foot in the seconds while the flame dissipated.
Finally it faded away, the barrier was still intact and the watchers silent, some mouths agape. Ethan’s group was staring in awe and fear. Ethan himself was writhing on the ground, his cold flesh having been superheated in a moment and his armor charred, the armor near his gut broken to pieces with metal pushing into his stomach. I leveled my blade to his neck as he squirmed and cried out, the blast even breaking his rage.
“Yield.” I growled in a low voice. “Yield and leave this city. Twice you have challenged me and twice you have failed. Do not force me to end your life.”
He glowered at me, having the pride to stop himself from crying out as my foot pressed down on his steaming blue chest. He spat out blood, his face, arms and legs covered in burns as his armor cooked him. “To the death!” He retorted through gritted teeth.
My aura still active, a frown on my lips, I pressed my burning blade into his left shoulder eliciting a scream. I severed the arm, the veins and capillaries searing shut, then proceeded to burn the arm itself. My shroud kept his armor from cooling himself as I sensed his mana begin to circulate again. “Yield!”
“I will never yield to a peasant!” He seemed to be losing his will to keep going, his voice cracking. It could have been the heat draining his throat of moisture, but I didn't think so.
“Why? Why is this vendetta against me worth your life? What is the point? Because the girl who rejected you joined up with me?” I felt my rage begin to bubble over. Today was supposed to be a happy meal with my friends, but this asshole decided to ruin it. I growled as the flames of my aura began to heat even more, my foot pressing him deeper into the sand. “You want to throw your life away? Be my guest, but I will not have the death of a fucking idiot on my conscience.”
I sighed and moved back a step, lazily lopping off his right leg as I moved back. “Then I shall yield. This fight is over. I really should end your life, but I can’t see myself wasting so much energy on a worthless noble brat.” I walked toward the barrier, my body not even marred with a scratch, as the boy behind me struggled to move. With two fewer limbs, and those same limbs being burned to the point of being unable to be reattached, I had hopes that he would leave me alone for a time. That or he’d come back again for revenge.
As I was walking away from him my hold over the third type of mana, the deep purple cloud surrounding him faded, the mana seemed to vanish though I could have been imagining things. I heard the sound of the boy weeping behind me and glanced over my shoulder at him. The temptation to remove him as a threat was high, but my desire to save my conscience was stronger.
Stepping over the circle as the barrier fell I turned to my friends and Aunt Helen, who was looking at Ethan with pity, I said, “Shall we continue our meal?”
