A Vulpine Spanner in the Works

Chapter 11: Lizards Walk, Foxes Talk, Wizards Squawk

[Zaryusu]

Awakening this morning was quite an experience for me. For starters, I had found myself covered in sticky saliva as my hydra, Rororo, had felt that I'd been sleeping for too long. It was a surprise to find all of Rororo's heads licking me awake, especially because hydra saliva had a lingering smell that took some time to wash off.

"Really?" I groaned out as I pushed the excited heads of the hydra away from me. Unfortunately, he continued to lather me in his saliva until I actually sat up from my bed. "Rororo, I'm up already." After a bit more licking, Rororo finally seemed satisfied by my lucidity and pulled his heads out from the opening that connected my house and Rororo's living quarters to one another.

It was still odd to consider that this large building was my house. I had been used to living in a simple wooden shack and in comparison, this house was a rich mansion in comparison. It had been created by Kashia using her magic to command the very ground itself to form this building. There were four rooms in this house, with my bedroom, a main room, a kitchen, and a guest room. Connected to my room was a small building that acted as Rororo's hut.

In addition, my new home had been built right next to the lake. I found this to be immensely convenient since I was able to create my fishery right next to my house. Speaking of the fishery, with Kashia's aid, I was able to have a fishery created inside a building that mitigated many of the flaws my original fishery had.

One of the largest flaws of my original fishery was that predators, like birds or bears, could easily steal fish since the netting could be torn and the lack of a roof allowed birds access to the trapped fish. The design that Kashia implemented was quite intriguing since from an outside perspective, the fishery appeared to be a long stone building that had been built on a pier over the lake.

Yet, underneath the building, fencing made of stone and metal was molded between each support pillar that kept the fishery above the water and contained the fish within the building. Currently, 50 fish resided within the fishery and a few of them had already mated with one another. I felt very excited since I could easily see my tribe being fed for an entire year without Kashia's magic with four more of these fisheries constructed and running. The only downside that I could see currently was when winter came and it was something I still had to work out, but I figured that if we created a stockpile of fish and had Kashia use her enlarging magic upon them, then the issue would become a moot point.

My fishery aside, I had also been immensely interested in watching this settlement grow and advance. Before coming here, if I'd been told that goblins could farm then I'd have laughed the idea off as completely absurd. This had been changed after seeing the fields that the goblins had been seeding. Even more incredulous were the ogres and trolls that we're being civil and putting their strength to use, either by acting as guards for the settlement or by aiding the goblins with farming. I even saw a few constructing buildings…with supervision.

With a stretch, I stood up from my bed and traversed through my house until I arrived at my kitchen. I wasn't fully attuned to the idea of a stove as I was used to cooking food over a fire, but I was finding myself growing to the idea of a salting barrel that had been very useful in preserving the fish that I caught two days ago. In my village, salt was hard to acquire and would normally be used on only the largest fish to preserve them for later seasons.

Here though, I had an easy to access barrel filled with salt which would've been like owning a barrel of gold back in my village. This was a luxury that I enjoyed using, especially because I had learned after exploring the village that there were many houses with salting barrels for the inhabitants. I could only assume that Kashia had used her magic to create it, as I had no clue otherwise as to how she may have acquired such an amount of salt.

Opening the lid of the barrel, I pulled out a fish for myself and three for Rororo. Then, I closed the barrel and took the fish with me as I left my house and shut the door behind me. It was outside here that I was greeted to an excitable hydra waiting for me out the door.

I couldn't help but smirk as I tossed three of the fish to Rororo and watched as his heads darted and competed with one another to eat each the fish. "Hungry today, aren't you? Well, you don't need to fight for the food, it's all going to the same stomach." I remarked as I started taking bites out of my breakfast.

While eating, I left Rororo to his breakfast and walked to the fishery building for the daily inspection. When I arrived at the fishery, I opened the door and entered a room lit by lamps that contained magical fire that wouldn't go out. The room itself was mostly a pool with walkways on the edges of the room.

Typically, my daily inspection of the fishery involved checking if the fencing was intact, whether there were any fish that had died, and if they had a healthy appearance. Looking in the water, I couldn't see any corpses floating in the water or skeletons that had sunk to the bottom. In addition, all of the fish had a healthy shade of color.

Feeling satisfied with how the fish looked, I walked to a barrel in the corner of the room and popped it open. Inside was a mixture of grain and corn which I scooped out with my hand and scattered into the water and watched as the once calm movements of fish in the water became fast and erratic as they rushed to eat the grain and corn. I did this a few more times until I felt that there was enough food floating about the water before I closed the barrel and left the fishery.

Completing this daily ritual, I finally walked to the edge of the fishery and jumped into the lake water. Swimming in the water, I began to clean off all the saliva, and the smell that came with it, from my body which took some time. I still haven't been able to discover anything that made cleaning off hydra saliva any easier.

While washing myself, I spotted Rororo from the corner of my vision trotting over to me. I really hoped that Rororo didn't get it into his head to start licking me again, else my efforts to clean myself would become useless. Disappointingly, the hydra seemed very playful today as he charged into the water which created a large splash.

"Okay, you can calm down, big guy." I told the excited hydra as he snaked one of his heads between my legs and lifted me up from the water. "While I know you want to play, it's kind of interfering with my ability to clean the mess you covered me in." I said with a laugh and patted Rororo's heads as they pressed themselves against my body for attention.

"Rororo, you are so greedy for my attention. If someone else saw this, they might almost think that I ignore you all the time." Saying this, I pointed to the shore which caused Rororo to start walking us out of the water. People might think that hydras aren't that smart due to how often their heads can fight with one another, but they tend to forget that hydras have more than one brain to rely on. Teaching Rororo to move to specific places based on hand signals was quite easy.

When we arrived on dry land, I slid off Rororo and patted him on the side. "I'm going to be going into the village for a while. While I'm gone, I want you to stay here," I specifically pointed to the ground while saying this, "play, and don't get into trouble." I remained impassive when the hydra gave me a sad look that was an attempt to guilt me.

"Nope, you aren't convincing me with those eyes. Stay right here." Rororo's heads gave me a sad hiss before the hydra finally laid down on the ground in defeat. With that, I quickly walked away before Rororo finally guilted me into taking him with me.

As I walked to the main hub of the village, I couldn't help but think about the events that occurred yesterday. Kashia had saved a bunch of people from a sex den and brought them here to recover. I was a bit surprised when Kashia had asked me to help bring the new visitors some food, but I was highly willing to aid her. It was the right thing to do and as a representative of my tribe, I needed to make a good impression to everyone here.

In addition to the new guests that were brought here, I had also spotted a few goblins and ogres that had recently joined the village. From what I learned, word was being spread, both near us and in the Forest of Tob, about Kashia's village. It wasn't surprising to see others willing to so easily join this settlement. After all, non-humans were mostly discriminated against in this part of the world.

While elves and dwarves had it slightly easier due to how similar to humans they were in comparison to other races, other races didn't have it that easy. The only places nearby that were good to non-humans was the Dwarf Kingdom, yet that only really applied to dwarves, the Elf Kingdom, same as the Dwarf Kingdom but with elves, and the Argland Council State.

Of these three places, the Dwarf Kingdom was probably the easiest to reach without encountering humans, that didn't necessarily mean that the terrain was easy to cross. Next would be the Argland Council State, yet the hinderance with traveling there was one would need to traverse the Re-Estize Kingdom, and that was full of risk since, while not as racially intolerant as the Slane Theocracy, it still was filled with enough intolerant humans.

Finally, going to the Elf Kingdom was absolute suicide. Getting there would require traversing the Slane Theocracy and they had a policy of either killing or enslaving all non-humans. So, Kashia's settlement being located so close to the Forest of Tob and in the middle of all these hostile places was a safe haven to any demi-human that live nearby.

It also helped that Kashia is a kind ruler who was often involved with the subjects of this village. Her godly power was another factor, but I found her strength as secondary to her personality. Especially because most who had her power would act like tyrants, yet she preferred to give others a choice. Honestly, I'm both worried and relieved that she hasn't tried to take over the Re-Estize Kingdom yet.

As I walked through the village, I heard a voice call out my name, "Hey, Zary! Wait up!" I stopped and looked around until I spotted the small hobgoblin known as Trabgo run up to me. "You're finally awake, didn't expect to see you coming into the village this early." For some odd reason, Trabgo had become a close companion since I arrived here. I think part of it was due to my size and that I was a decent fighter in the arena.

"Greetings, Trabgo. You seem to be in a bit of a rush this morning. Any reason as to why?" The hobgoblin finally slowed down and caught his breath when he reached my side. Then, he finally looked up at me with a frantic energy.

"Just came from spreading the news to everyone else. A lot of things happened this morning that is causing the boys and others to talk! The Fox Lady finally gave the village a name. We're called Haven-Lake now." While it was important to know the new name of this village, I had doubts that it fully warranted the effort it had taken to spread this message around.

"Is that all you wanted to tell me?" I asked with a smirk.

Trabgo shook his head before adding, "There is more, Zary! The Fox Lady has taken in some of the humans, elves, and half-elves that were brought in yesterday! Muap and I have been going around the village all morning to let everyone know."

That was interesting. The addition of humans would very likely cause changes within the power dynamics of the village. Currently, while everyone followed and obeyed Kashia to the best of their abilities, and obeyed any leaders that she appointed, there was still a hierarchy of strength, mainly enforced by the orcs and trolls. Even if only the orcs and trolls followed this hierarchy, it still affected how they interacted with others. With the goblins and hobgoblins being the physically weakest beings here, adding humans and elves would shift the goblins and hobgoblins even lower in the hierarchy that had been implemented.

"How have the others been taking the news?" I asked in interest.

"Some of the boys are nervous about bringing in humans. They've only ever dealt with humans on bad terms, so they have reservations about the whole situation. Others, like Larha, think that the humans will be helpful, especially in giving them an appearance of strength." Trabgo replied as he started walking, causing me to follow after him.

"I doubt that you or they'll have much to worry about. Kashia has been good at keeping everything under control and the addition of humans, elves, and half-elves isn't going to change that." I said in an attempt to reassure the highly-strung hobgoblin.

"What makes you think that I'm worried, Zary? Really, I'm curious about how we've got people to cook now." I couldn't help but give Trabgo a questioning glance.

"Really, there are cooks now?"

"Well, one is a baker, and another is a cook." Trabgo then gave a suspicious glance around the area for potential listeners before adding, "I've never had fresh bread before and I'm interested in trying it." I chuckled at the hobgoblin's curiosity.

"Then it appears that it's your lucky day." I remarked while patting the hobgoblin on the back. "In other news, my fishery has been thriving since its development. No problems with the fish, which means that there will soon be fish on the menu."

"Really? It's only been two days since you started up that fish house. What makes you think that it's thriving?" Trabgo asked in curiosity. His question was understandable since from his point of view I've only started this project two days ago.

"This is the second fishery that I've helped design and run. With my first fishery, there were risks of the fish either being eaten or escaping. On average, I would expect to be missing one or two fish a day to predators. That, or one might find an opening in my fencing that they would use to escape out of. With the new fishery design that is being used, it prevents predators from attacking the fish and the stone fencing has less risks of openings being created. So, I'm proud to say that I haven't noticed any drop in the fish population." I answered with a bit of pride.

"You know better than me about the whole fish stuff." Trabgo said with a shrug, "I wish ya luck on that." Trabgo then tapped his finger on his head as if he was attempting to remember something. Finally, after a few more moments, Trabgo finally remembered what he wanted to say, "By the way, you joining in on the arena today? I've been hearing that the ogre named Dolg has been eyeing you up after your victory yesterday."

Yesterday had been a unique experience for me. I had learned about a small fighting arena that had been set up by the ogres and trolls, so I became interested in seeing it for myself. At first, I hadn't planned to enter as a fighter since I only wanted to spectate. After all, it wasn't every day that one got to watch ogres and trolls fighting one another without being on the receiving end of their massive fists. It was only from some convincing by Trabgo that I fought in one of the matches.

I considered it a learning experience as I rarely fought ogres due to the danger involved, and I have never fought a troll before. While ogres had great strength and size, they didn't compare to a troll. Trolls were typically larger and stronger with the addition of having a healing factor to back it up. An ogre could be taken down with attrition, but a troll couldn't, they'd just regenerate from the damage unless special precautions were used.

My match was against an ogre named Paz. While the fight had been tough, I managed to beat Paz by fighting safely and letting him tire himself out as he tried to attack me while I used my greater speed and smaller size to dodge his strikes. At the right moment, I struck Paz's exposed head which put him down, earning me the win.

While I can't confirm it, I had reason to suspect that the goblins were treating me like I was their warrior defender. I couldn't fully put my finger on it but there were moments where I thought that I could spot a few goblins making flags with my crude likeness. Yet, whenever I tried to investigate, they'd scatter from me with whatever evidence they had.

"Guess I'll keep my eyes out for him." I answered.

"I'll still be rooting for ya. So will the rest of the boys." I smiled at the encouragement. "Fighting aside, where are you heading off to? I'm certain that the lake is from where you just came from."

"I didn't really have a destination in mind. I just felt like exploring since there isn't much else I could do besides stare at fish. In addition, my main reason for being here in the first place is to explore the village and establish diplomatic ties, so I can't just live like a hermet."

"Oh yeah, I forgot that you're supposed to be doing that diplomacy stuff. With the rate that people are joining the village, I kinda figured you to be another joiner."

"I'm not opposed to becoming a permanent resident. There are many ideas that Kashia and I have discussed which I have always wanted to implement with my tribe, but I lacked the resources to do so. With Kashia's assistance, they are actually possible." Speaking of ideas, I couldn't help but be taken back to the first few years that I acted as a traveler for my tribe.

During my travels, I saw many unique technologies utilized by other settlements and civilizations. While I had wanted to try a few of these technologies, my tribe lacked the time, effort or resources required to make them. The fishery was one of the few things I could attempt since it didn't require supplies that my village didn't already have.

"Hopefully you decide to stay here. The arena fights would become boring otherwise, especially when most of the fights end up between the same ogres and trolls."

"At least it's nice to know that I'm appreciated, even if it's for my fighting ability instead of my worldly experience." Trabgo gave my leg a reassuring pat when I admitted this.

"Don't worry, your worldly experience is still appreciated here." Both Trabgo and I jumped in surprised before we quickly turned to see the grinning face of Kashia.

"By the gods, do you really have to startle us like that?" I asked while my heartbeat began slowing down.

"Do I have to? No, no I don't. But, is it really funny? Yes, it really is." The trickster deity answered. "Still, I hope you're having a good morning, no doubt that Trabgo has already alerted you to the changes that have occurred." I nodded, giving the woman reason to continue, "Well, that is what brings me here today since I'll need to borrow Trabgo."

"Wait, you need me? What for?" The curious hobgoblin asked.

"With the influx of people that've joined us today, quite a few need a bit of a helping hand in acclimating to life here. After a bit of thinking, I found that you were the perfect candidate in helping out." Kashia answered confidently.

"While I'm not saying no to your decision, I don't understand why me? Wouldn't Muap be a better choice? He's the better talker than I am."

Kashia simply gave Trabgo a knowing smile before she knelt down to the hobgoblin's eyelevel and said, "You're correct that Muap is a bit more charismatic that you, but that's because he's more practiced in talking to others, which also means that he's already too occupied with his other duties around the village. I've chosen you because we need more conversationalists and you're the best candidate."

Trabgo's unease appeared to lessened with Kashia's answer, and in fact, he looked more confident. "Of course, Fox Lady! I'll get this job done. Just lead the way!" Kashia gave Trabgo a nod and stood up.

"Then, come along." Before she and Trabgo left me, Kashia said over her shoulder to me, "By the way, I've put a bet on you winning in the arena tonight. Good luck!" I didn't even get to answer her statement as she and Trabgo had left me alone to my thoughts once more.

What I found to be very unfortunate with Kashia's sudden appearance was that I had just lost my conversation companion. Guess it was time to go back to exploring the village on my own. Maybe I'll investigate what the newcomers are doing.

[Kashia]

As Ninya and I walked down the street, I could tell that we were receiving many stares, excluding the looks I typically received on a day to day basis. I knew the reason why that was, namely due to the pair of small, black, wooden chests that each of us carried in our arms. While the chests looked very boring in design, the edges of the lid and the lock were covered in a golden metal that made them look valuable. Depending on how much I could get for selling the items inside, then their contents would be worthy of being contained within.

The reason that Ninya and I were traveling about E-Rantel at the moment was because the Swords of Darkness, Tuare, and I had split up after we settled down and made plans. Tuare and Lukrut were going to meet with his cousin about getting Tuare a job, Peter and Dyne headed to the guild to look at any available jobs and to find out more information on that pyrite mission. As for Ninya and myself, I had been interested in getting an idea on the skill level of alchemy in this world.

So, I had a pair of small chests loaded up with an array of potions, most of which were made with easily replaceable ingredients or had been mass produced previously. This meant that there were basic healing potions, potions that temporarily boosted stats, gave magic resistance, toughness, etc. The diverse stock would also allow me to learn which potion effects were more valued in this world than in YGGDRASIL.

Another reason that I brought Ninya with be, besides for having someone to keep me company, was because she knew the location of the best potion-maker in the city. The amusing part about this potion-maker was that she called herself a pharmacist instead of an alchemist. Perhaps the reason for this was that pharmacist sounded like a medical profession while alchemist made one think of a crazy hermit mixing herbs into a boiling cauldron. While both classes existed within YGGDRASIL and had similar abilities to one another, I always thought that alchemist sounded a lot cooler.

"Any idea on how much further we have to travel?" I asked Ninya, who appeared to be struggling with carrying the weight of the chest. I wouldn't blame her for tiring as we'd been walking for about 20 minutes while carrying these chests. Voicing my concern, I asked, "You doing okay, kiddo? I can give you a hand if you need it."

"I wouldn't wish to put more work on you, Kashia. You're already carrying a lot like I am. Besides, we'll be arriving at Bareare Pharmacy in a minute or two." Even though Ninya insisted that I not put more burden on myself, I positioned one of my tails underneath the chest and lifted it to reduce the strain on Ninya's arms.

It took a few moments before the mage noticed how much lighter the chest had become. "Kashia, did you cast a spell on this chest when I wasn't looking?" I simply gave the girl a smile before whistling in a guilty manner. "Come on, don't keep quiet while acting so suspiciously."

"Maybe." Was my only response, causing Ninya to groan. It reminded me of the way a child acted when an adult used the 'you'll understand when you're older' excuse. I was amused regardless, for the rest of the journey.

"We're here. It's the building with the crest above it." Ninya stated, causing my eyes to scan the buildings around us until I spotted the place that she was talking about. The pharmacy was a building made of whitish stone material, and whose pattern was only broken up by the wooden windows along with a pair of doors that stretched across the front of the first floor. Separating the first and second floors of the building was a wooden overhang while above that was a crest that very likely represented a pharmacy in this world.

Looking a bit closer, I was able to tell that the crest was carved out of the stone material of the building. If I recalled my history correctly, shops in medieval ages used signs with images instead of letters so as to inform the illiterate of what service a place performed. While in my world, signs like that were used more for decoration, I always thought that they looked nice and gave places some character.

With renewed effort, Ninya and I marched over to the establishment. "Hey, kiddo, you have any experience dealing with this pharmacy owner?" I asked.

"Most adventurers have had dealings with this place on one occasion or another. This place is owned and run by an older woman named Lizzie, but she also is aided by her grandson, Nfirea. Most adventurers in the city like to use her services since her prices are fair and she gives small discounts to verified adventurers. Another reason that she is preferred is due to her ability to remember the names and faces of her previous customers." Ninya recalled.

Remembering the names and faces of customers is a good business strategy. It causes customers to feel like they're important since the salesperson took the time to memorize who their customers are. This was a strategy that I had learned from a coworker who was once a former car salesman, at least until the company he worked for was bought out and he was fired.

"Hopefully, this Lizzie can live up to her fair prices." I remarked as the pair of us arrived at the door to the pharmacy. Freeing up one of my hands, I pulled the door open and motioned for Ninya to enter. When she did, I followed in and shut the door behind us. What I first noticed was the multitudes of scents engrained into the building that could only come from years of potion making.

In addition, while there was store counter with a wall of shelving filled with potions, it wasn't as eye-catching as the massive copper tank that seemed like it would be better suited in a meadery. Aside from this contraption, there were multiple devices that wouldn't look out of place in a science lab. I quickly ended my observations and focused my attention at a boy with blond hair that hung low enough to cover his eyes. He stood behind the wooden counter with a friendly expression on his face.

"Hello there, my name's Nfirea. How can I help you two today?" The boy asked as Ninya and I approached the counter and set the chests down upon it.

"We're here to get an appraisal on a couple of potions, and if possible, sell them. Would you be able to do that?" I asked teen as I popped open one of the chests to reveal the corked tops of multiple potion bottles that were divided from one another by dark velvet cloth. A look of surprise appeared on the blond's face at the number of bottles there were within.

"Uh, may I look?" He asked me hesitantly. I gave him a nod and watched as he pulled out a basic healing potion from the chest. First, he looked at the bottle in his hand, then back to me, then back at the bottle, again in rapid succession. "What kind of potion is this?"

"It's a healing potion. One of a couple I brought with me. Why do you ask?" The moment I said this, both Nfirea and Ninya looked incredulously at the item. I even noticed that Nfirea's had changed his grip on the bottle like it was a delicate egg. "Could you come with me, my grandma is in the other room? Also, bring the chests as well." He asked quickly which I answered with a nod.

I watched as he half-walked and half-jogged to a door behind him with the potion in hand. Closing the lid of the chest before Ninya and I picked up both, I leaned over and asked, "Is there any reason that both you and Nfirea are acting like I brought the Holy Grail to this shop?"

"The what? Actually, never mind. I've seen healing potions before, and they've always been blue. Never before have I ever seen a red healing potion until now. I can't imagine what Nfirea must be thinking right now." That gave me reason to ponder. So, healing potions in this world were blue? Was there a difference that made one better than the other or was this just a quirk about this new world compared to YGGDRASIL?

Well, my questions would likely be answered soon enough by either Nfirea or Lizzie. So, Ninya and I quickly made our way to the next room to see the blond teen speaking quickly with an elderly woman wearing a green bandanna. Their conversation was broken up when the sound of my heels clicking against the floorboards alerted them to my presence.

Nfirea was the first to speak, "Just a moment, miss. My grandma is about to appraise your potion." As he said this, the older woman held her hand out.

"[Appraisal Magic Item], [Detect Enchant]." She spoke as a green light shined in her hand before covering the potion. After a few moments, the light faded and she began laughing for a reason that I couldn't understand. For a moment, I was worried that Lizzie had just gone senile, at least until she looked to me with a pair of intelligent blue eyes.

"Is everything alright?" I asked.

"It's better than that. Do you understand what it is that you've brought to my shop?" She asked excitedly.

Raising a questioning eyebrow at how this woman was acting, I answered unsurely, "A basic healing potion. What's so special about it?"

"In legend, it is said that all alchemists and pharmacists learned the art of making potions from the gods themselves. Yet, even with these teachings, mortals could only make flawed copies that were only a shadow of the originals and were colored blue to mark them as such." She answered before pointing to the healing potion on her table, "A true potion of healing is colored like the blood of the gods, and for time uncounted, none have ever been able to produce a potion of this quality. If one were to drink this, it'd be like utilizing a 2nd Tier healing spell." What quickly dawned on me as she said this was that potions of this world were only equivalent to healing of the 0 Tier or 1st Tier.

"Please, dear girl, would you tell me where you acquired this potion?" Lizzie desperately asked.

I also felt an uncomfortable number of eyes just fixated on me, especially when I set the chest in my arms down, opened it, and pulled another basic healing potion out. This caused Lizzie's eyes to almost bulge out of her skull and me to force down the laughter from seeing such an expression. "I have a couple more that I brought in this chest and a bunch more stored elsewhere. Both I and a colleague of mine made them." The second those words left my lips, Lizzie immediately shouted out.

"I will pay you 30,000 gold if you were to teach me the method to make these potions!" I didn't know what surprised me more, the energy that she was displaying for her age or that she had so much gold available to her. Still, whatever I said next would either make or break this conversation.

In addition, while I knew how healing potions were made, namely by combining three specific ingredients named ryunks stone, vievul dragon stone, and gold nostrum, I had limited stock. Of the three ingredients, I could only restock up on the gold nostrum since it was derived from pulping the nostrum rose which was a plant that I had stocked in my garden.

Unfortunately, the ryunks stone was only attained from mining deposits of ryunks, while the vievul dragon stone was gained from item drops by a vievul dragon. I highly doubted that both resources existed in this world, the dragon specifically because it was only found in the realm of Muspelheim in YGGDRASIL.

"Lizzie, you don't need to pay me so much to learn how to make these potions since I'd be very willing to teach you for free." Everyone in the room was astounded that I would so easily turn down such a large offer of money.

The only thing that I'm questioning is why Ninya wouldn't expect me to do so. From the way that Lizzie was so eager to offer a king's ransom, I believed that she had the money available. But I was also willing to bet that all of that money was set aside for supplies, alchemical and pharmaceutical instruments, and living expenses. I wasn't going to jeopardize her life and business for money.

"But your knowledge is worth a kingdom. Why would you turn down all that money so easily? Anyone else would immediately take this offer!" Lizzie asked incredulously. I smiled at the elderly pharmacist and shrugged.

"I don't need the money and you want to learn, besides, it's a simple recipe made up of three ingredients," I held up three of my fingers for emphasis, "What you need to do is mix together a ryunks stone, a vievul dragon stone, and gold nostrum."

"A-Amazing…" Lizzie stated as she rushed over to a table with a leather book next to an inkpot and quill before flipping through the book to find an empty page. As she did so, I noticed that the pages were full of potion recipes. Finally, she found a page and wrote down the ingredients that I told her, then the manic energy within her faded as she read the names of each ingredient. "Would you be willing to tell me what these ingredients are? I've never heard of them before until now."

"That's part of the problem." I said with a slight grimace, "From what I've seen, none of the ingredients can be found in these lands except for one; the gold nostrum. The ryunks stone is found by mining a specific substance while the vievul dragon can only be found in a specific land within my home country." Even though I broke the bad news to Lizzie, she didn't look as disappointed as I expected her to. Either that or she was good at hiding it.

"You said that gold nostrum could be found here?" Nfirea asked with interest. I nodded in reply, "Grandma, do you think that we could possibly substitute the missing ingredients from this woman's land with what we have here?" This caused both Lizzie and I to think about this idea with interest. Especially since it'd be very helpful for Haven-Lake to have a method of healing besides me. I know that I won't always be available, and my healing potions from YGGDRASIL were in a limited supply, so another version of a healing potion using ingredients from this world would certainly ease my worries about the village.

"It's certainly a possibility, my boy." Suddenly, Lizzie turned to me and looked like she was about to speak when I interrupted her.

"If you're going to asked about the gold nostrum, I can tell you that the substance is acquired from the nostrum rose. The plant and seeds of which are located in my lodgings in the city, so you're lucky in that regard." I took note of how strangely smug I sounded when I told the pharmacist this. "I think we could come to an arrangement since I, too, am interesting in seeing if Nfirea's idea is possible."

Lizzie's brow was furrowed in contemplation, then she answered, "I believe that we can make an agreement…" She fumbled for a moment, as if trying to recall who I was before giving up, "what's your name?"

"Kashia Blanc. I just arrived in E-Rantel and joined the Adventurer's Guild a few days ago." As I said this, her eyes were filled with recognition before she gave the copper tag hanging around my neck a curious look.

"Strange…" Lizzie muttered to herself before speaking up once more, "Still, we can settle those matters after the rest of our business. It seems that you brought more potions that you'd like me to inspect." The woman gave a nod to the opened chest on the ground, causing me to pick it up and bring it over to her. Both Ninya and Nfirea were silent as Lizzie cast spells to appraise and detect individual potions.

Even though Lizzie was hiding her astonishment at my stock, the sweat beading down the sides of her forehead said otherwise. Yet, that didn't deter her from writing down the estimated price and effect of each potion. It was actually quite professional work as she wrote the list in an organized fashion based on where the potions were located in the chests, yet when she was done, it seemed like she had just finished running a marathon.

Finally, she turned to me and said, "I'll buy up your entire stock. Nfirea," She commanded hastily, causing the boy to nervously stand at attention, "take Ninya with you and pay her the money owed. I need to speak with Kashia privately." Wow, Ninya was correct about Lizzie remembering names and faces. Still, both teens picked up the chest, and Nfirea grabbed the piece of parchment that Lizzie had written the information down on and left the room.

With only the two of us together, the older woman sighed before leaning against the table. "All of those potions you brought were either stronger than anything that potion-makers could craft or had effects that even I had never heard of before except in legends dating back to when gods roamed the world. Who and or what are you?"

I snapped my finger and caused a chair to appear out of thin air which I sat in. If Lizzie had any opinion on this display of magic, then she did well at hiding it. "I'm Kashia Blanc of which my current titles from many are as an adventurer, traveler, sorceress, and teacher. Who do you think that I am?" It was hard to deny that I was extremely intrigued by whatever conclusion that Lizzie might arrive at.

"You may not know this, but I've heard talk about you stirring up within the city. Talk of which has claimed that you can cast 3rd Tier spells. And yet, you've come here with secrets about potions known only to the gods which is beyond the ability of a simple 3rd Tier caster. My first guess would be that you're from the Slane Theocracy and are on the run from them for one reason or another, and yet, your clothing style and terminology do not hail from that country. Another is that you're somehow related to the gods, either through blood or worship…"

"I'll let you know now, I'm from a land that's completely uncharted by any country in this part of the world. But I'll give you one hint; you're on the right track for some aspects." I said with amusement. Even though I knew that I should keep my identity as a human intact, I couldn't help but amuse myself with this little guessing game. It was a little worrying.

Lizzie was silent for a bit longer until she finally gasped and looked at me in a new light. Before she could voice her guess, I held my hand up to stop her, "How about you keep your guess to yourself, otherwise it might ruin the surprise. Besides, we never know who might be listening." As I said this, my ears picked up on the noise of footsteps quickly scurrying away from the door. "Identity aside, I have an offer that I think could benefit both of our parties."

"W-What is it?"

"I'll give you a few nostrum rose seeds and a bottle of gold nostrum. In return, I'd like to know about any of the findings that your research gives you. In addition, you can keep all profits of the end product for yourself, since I don't want them. But I'd like some stock of the potions if you finish them." With this offer, I was giving her everything while asking for very little in return.

A less honorable person might just take everything and run, yet Lizzie didn't seem the type to dishonor her agreements. In addition, the guessing game that we played earlier had the benefit of making Lizzie see me as someone to not upset. Her blue eyes met my orange, as if trying to look for something in my gaze.

"I accept." With a smirk, I nodded and got up from my chair, causing it to disperse as I did so.

Waling over to the elder pharmacist, I held my hand out and Lizzie shook it with her own, "Then I'm pleased to start this wonderful partnership with you. I'll bring the seeds and ingredients to your shop tomorrow." I said before breaking our handshake and walking to the door of the main shop. Before I left, I turned back and added, "Also, try to keep our guessing game private." I left before she could say anything.

In the front room of the pharmacy, Ninya could be seen collecting a small chest of gold from Nfirea. "-and that's 327. Are you sure that you'll be able to carry this?" The boy asked uncertainly. Ninya gave a grunt of effort as she tried to lift the chest, but she quickly gave up after the chest showed no sign of budging.

"Having a bit of trouble, kiddo?" I asked, causing both teens to jump at my arrival and also gave me reason to question how those two didn't hear the noise my shoes made on the floorboards. "By the way, the pair of you need to work on your sneaking skills." Saying this, I walked up to the counter with the chest and shocked both of the teens with the way that I easily deadlifted the heavy container.

Truthfully, I was cheating by using my tails to lift the chest, not that I was going to let Ninya know anytime soon. "Hey, kiddo, did the transaction go without a hitch?"

"Uh…Yes, Kashia. Nfirea and I got everything taken care of." Ninya answered.

"Excellent work, kiddo! Nfirea, it was a pleasure meeting and doing business with you. Your grandmother can explain a bit more about what we discussed. Until then, have a good day." Nfirea quickly nodded.

"Same as well, Lady Kashia." The formality that Nfirea was showing me was because either he and Ninya listened to quite a bit of Lizzie and my conversation or Ninya had told him something. Still, both Lizzie and Nfirea would be helpful in getting my name spread throughout the city and I wasn't opposed to it.

Proceeding this, both Ninya and I left the store much richer than before, well, rich with this world's currency. The items of mine which were stored away would probably be worth an entire kingdom based upon how my most basic items were exceptionally stronger than this world's. Still, I was pleased at the way that my business with the pharmacy went, especially because there could be a way to create potions using the substances of this world as a substitute. If the experiments that Lizzie and Nfirea were going to perform bared fruit, I'd have to set up a grow-op in Haven's Lake. It could also be a potential export, though the product would need to be sold to cities other than E-Rantel since I had no wish to compete with Lizzie's business. I also felt that doing so would be dishonorable since Lizzie was helping me just as much as I was helping her.

"Kashia, why didn't you mention earlier that your potions were so powerful? I've never seen a potion that gives one a resistance to the elements until today, and that's just one example." Giving Ninya a raised eyebrow, I could only shrug in answer.

"Truthfully, most of the potions that I sold today were the weakest variations that I had. For instance, that potion to resist elements just makes one resistant to extreme heat and cold for two minutes. The stronger version I have makes you immune and lasts eight hours." As I said this, Ninya's jaw dropped.

"Please, don't tell me that you can make an even stronger version of that healing potion."

"Sorry to disappoint you but I can. So can Meepo." Ninya sighed in exasperation. "You've seen a bit of what I can do, at this point you should be getting used to my ridiculous ability to defy conventional logic and power. Which also reminds me," Opening up the small black portal to my inventory, I shoved the chest inside to free up my hands.

Ninya looked like she was about to say something, but gave up midway and changed the subject, "Guess that our next stop is to the guild. Do you think that the others managed to finish up their tasks as well?"

"For Peter and Dyne, I'd be completely surprised if they hadn't finished up by now. With Lukrut and your sister, it's a fifty-fifty wager since getting Tuare setup with a job will take a while longer." I reasoned with a giggle.

"I could see that happening," Ninya remarked with a smirk, "Also, when do you think we'll train today?"

"I'd like to do so after we meet the others at the guild as I highly doubt that we'll be performing a job today since we have to get everything arranged for Tuare. But, as I said before, we'll be stress-testing your abilities since I want to see what I'm working with. From there, I'll figure out which spells you should learn to expand your spell portfolio." Aside from just learning spells, I also wanted to teach Ninya in ways to be creative with her spell use.

You could cast a fireball, yet that would cost a lot of mana at lower levels or you could cast [Oil Slick] which was a 1st Tier spell that covered a decent area and add a [Firebolt] to light the oil on fire which would perform the same action as a [Fireball] but at a considerably reduced cost. What distinguished a good mage character in YGGDRASIL was their ability to creatively use weak spells to perform powerful effects.

At least, that was true for the lower-tier and middle-tier players. At higher-tier, your skill was determined by your ability to use delayed spells with [Time Stop]. Mastering these skills were fundamental in PvP combat since high-level caster battles were determined by skill and attrition.

It was easy to avoid a high tiered spell by countering it, blocking it or teleporting out of the way. The mage casting the high tiered spell would use up more mana than the one avoiding it. But that could be countered by synergizing a multitude of weaker spells together since their overall mana cost was much lesser than teleporting out of the way. Summed up, fights between a pair of good casters tended to be a more explosive version of a chess.

Even I used to fight like this until my racial classes made the strategy suboptimal due to my mana regeneration and ludicrous mana limit. It was far easier to overwhelm opponents with high tier spells since they'd run out of mana eventually while I would've barely dipped.

"Then I'll see what I can do to impress you." She hesitantly boasted, causing me to playfully tousle her hair.

"We'll see, kiddo."

After a bit of walking, Ninya and I finally made it to the Adventurer's Guild and noticed that it was still fairly packed with people. "Any reason that there are so many people at the guild today?" Ninya asked with interest as we pushed past a few people and entered the building.

"From what the others told me earlier, a pyrite mission was handed out today. It's to escort a few members of the Magician's Guild through the Great Forest of Tob. Apparently, the pay is pretty good, so there have been a lot of low ranked adventurers that are desperate for the job." I answered as I looked around the guild for the others.

"That's interesting. The Magician's Guild doesn't offer that many jobs to our guild, so this is a rare occurrence." Ninya remarked. While I hadn't thought that much about the pyrite mission today, hearing Ninya mention this tidbit made me curious. What was so interesting to the Magician's Guild that they'd wish for an escort into Tob? It also slightly worried me because of the way that I'd established my presence in lake since it could make trouble for the Greenclaw tribe if the mission took them near that area.

Before I could think more on this, both mine and Ninya's names were called by Peter as he and Dyne approached us. The first thing I noticed about the two men were their expressions. While Peter did well in concealing his emotions, Dyne's face was filled with worry. "Glad to see you two finally finished your task. Did everything go smoothly or did anything happen?" Peter greeted.

"Oh, nothing that Ninya and I couldn't handle. What about the two of you? The both of you look like someone just kicked you in the balls." I answered, causing Peter to nervously laugh while scratching the back of his head.

"That obvious, huh? Well, thing is…Guildmaster Pluton approached both Dyne and I earlier and asked us to do something. Specifically, to have us ask you to meet him in his office when you finally arrived at the guild." Ninya let out a small gasp at hearing this.

"But…Pluton Ainzach almost never asks anyone to meet him unless it's really important. He only ever does so if he's banishing someone from the guild, promoting them to ranks above platinum or because a person with high standing asked him to meet with a guildmember." Ninya nervously stated as she looked at me.

"If he wants to meet with me, I don't see an issue with it. I've only been here a few days so I'm positive that I haven't gotten into trouble for something that I might've done." I said in an attempt to reassure the three adventurers while also giving Ninya a wink. "I'll be back before anyone starts to miss me. Now, mind pointing me to the man's office?"

"His office is upstairs on the left." Dyne answered before adding, "Good luck with the meeting, and try to avoid upsetting Pluton. I know stories of adventurers that angered him and ended up stuck at a low rank for years." I acknowledged the concern with a nod and left the three to head upstairs.

I wouldn't say that I was worried as I made my way to Pluton's office, also I couldn't help but get a small chuckle at how close the guildmaster's name was to the dwarf planet Pluto. At the very least, the man's name was something unique in comparison to those of the kingdom's cities. A bit more walking and I eventually found myself standing before the office door of Pluton.

The door itself was quite bare, lacking anything ornate to distinguish itself as the barrier to a guildmaster's office if not for the words 'Guildmaster' that looked like it'd been carved into the door with a knife. With a shrug, I turned the brass handle of the door and opened it to reveal a room containing only a desk, an armor and weapons stand, and a crude map of the kingdom that was nailed into the back wall.

Sitting at the desk was a large man with the body of a forty-year-old but the hair color of someone in their sixties. My first thought upon seeing him was that he looked like he belonged on a battlefield, not at a desk. Even the weapon resting on its stand looked well-polished and ready to decapitate any fool that challenged this man.

The clothing he wore looked well-tailored and clean, yet the man's musculature was still able to stretch those clothes. With his well-combed mustache and hair, I half expected this man to rip his shirt off by flexing his muscles before challenging me to three rounds in a boxing ring. I had no doubt that when he was younger, Pluton was easily able to woe women with his looks.

When I entered, Pluton stopped writing on a sheet of parchment and looked up at me with full attention and a friendly demeanor. "You must be Kashia Blanc, I presume?"

"I am. And you're Pluton Ainzach, I hope. Otherwise I'm afraid that I've entered the wrong room." I joked as I approached the man's desk. He gave a good-natured laugh and set his quill into an inkpot.

"No, you are not wrong. This is my office, even if it isn't as impressive as one might believe a guildmaster's office should be." He replied, "At least you're one of the few to come here that hasn't shit their britches upon speaking with me, I like that."

"Same couldn't be said about my team. They all acted like the Grim Reaper was coming for my soul when they heard you wanted to meet me." I replied. "Not that I could blame them, you're pretty intimidating from what I've heard."

"Only when I need to be. I've heard many rumors about myself during my tenure as guildmaster. The most amusing one was about how I forced a man that angered me to climb a tree for a week to scare away the birds."

"And why would you have someone climb a tree for a week in the first place?"

Pluton looked at me with all seriousness before answering, "Because I didn't want to hear the woodpeckers." I snorted in amusement when I heard this. "Woodpeckers aside, how much do you know about the Magician's Guild?"

"Just that they perform magic and made a job request for our guild today."

"While that very broad, it's understandable considering that you're new to this country. The Magician's Guild involves itself with anything pertaining to magic in the country, that would also include casters such as yourself. I'm surprised that no one told you but there's a rule that all new magic casters must be registered to the guild." I raised a questioning eyebrow at this statement. "But, considering that you appear to be a competent mage, said requirement is lessened."

"And why do all the new magic casters need to be registered with the Magician's Guild? Seems like a way piss off a lot of people that can create fire at will."

"Officially, the Magician's Guild does so to safely train new magic casters and prevent accidents such as creating a forest fire or flooding a farm. It's reasonable since more than one forest and village has been burned to the ground because a new mage didn't know how to control their magically conjured fire." From the matter-of-fact way that Pluton said this, it seemed like this has happened way too often.

But it was understandable to see something like this in a world where anyone with the ability could learn how to cast spells. It was like giving a kid a gun without training and expecting them not to accidentally shoot someone. I had no idea how old one had to be to cast spells in this world, but if a five-year-old could cast [Firebolt], then I'd be shitting myself if someone wasn't there to teach and monitor them.

Still though, I couldn't just see the Magician's Guild doing this out of the kindness of their hearts, "What's the unofficial reason?" I asked.

"It's a way for them to monitor mages in the kingdom, learn whatever spells they know how to cast, and indoctrinate those young enough to be loyal. The Adventurer's Guild differ from the Magician's in the way that we treat our members. For us, due to our organization being established in multiple different countries, we are neutral in country politics and very hands-off with our members, otherwise other countries might suspect us to be creating an army."

"With the Magician's Guild, they are only in the Re-Estize, making them involved in the kingdom's politics and given approval by the royal family to perform actions that our guild would never be allowed. That includes making a fighting force from the members of their guild." And that's what it comes to, doesn't it? Living weapons, an intelligent idea that I saw utilized back home with cybernetically enhanced soldiers.

"What does all of this have to do with me?" I decided to skip the reach-around and just jump to the true meat of this discussion.

"The guildmaster of E-Rantel, Theo Rakheshir, has personally asked for you to be part of the escort mission for the Magician's Guild. The fact that he's asking for you specifically means that you've attracted his interest." I didn't know whether to be worried about this news or not, especially because I didn't have enough knowledge about the Magician's Guild or Theo Rakheshir to make an opinion.

"From the way this discussion is going, I'm getting the feeling that there isn't a choice in this matter. Is there?"

"There is certainly a choice, Miss Blanc. You could say no, but that also means that you'd be drawing the ire of a politically strong guild with multiple connections upon yourself." Pluton answered with a sympathetic expression, "While I'd like to say that the Adventurer's Guild is here to help its members, we cannot afford to be dragged into a political dispute with their guild."

"So, I'm alone in this?"

"Yes, you very much are. The sole comfort that I can give you is the promise that you won't be kicked out of the guild for whatever decision you choose to make. That said, I'll need your answer now since there is only one spot left in the mission that needs to be filled and it's not a good idea to keep the Magician's Guild waiting."

"I'll join the mission then. But," I added with a small smirk, "I should be made a silver-plate if I'm being required to work this mission as a copper-plate." Pluton didn't even seem fazed by my request.

"Before I answer that, I would like you to answer a question." I crossed my arms under my chest and confidently nodded, "I've been hearing rumors about you, specifically about your ability to cast a 3rd Tier spell. Mind enlightening me about whether there is some truth to said rumors?"

"You're the second person today to tell me this. Though, the rumor is correct. I can cast 3rd Tier spells. Why do you ask?" Pluton gave a cocky smirk as he pulled open a drawer on his desk and pulled out a necklace before tossing it to me on the table. Picking up the item I looked down to see a silver adventurer's plate.

"Consider that silver-plate to be a placeholder for you. If you come back from the job, there'll be a platinum-plate waiting for you." I gave him a questioning stare as I took off the copper-plate necklace and replaced it with the silver-plate.

"Any reason for why I'm being elevated to the rank of a platinum-plate so quickly?"

"An unspoken rule about the ranking system is this; if a member performs a feat that belongs to a specific rank, then they'll be promoted to said rank unless they demonstrate that they're unworthy of it. For platinum-plates, a method to skip the grind to that rank is to display an ability to cast 3rd Tier spells. While normally, a test would be performed, the fact that the Magician's Guild is interested in you give credence that you are a powerful mage."

If casting a known 3rd Tier spell got me to the rank of platinum-plate, I wonder what might happen if I performed an obvious 4th Tier spell, since it seemed like the guards that had seen me cast a 6th Tier spell didn't understand how powerful the spell I cast was. Now, I just had to figure out which 4th Tier spell would be the best for the job…

"I see. Anything I should know about the mission that wasn't said before?"

"The mission is in three days and leaves the Magician's Guild at dawn. It'll take two to three days to get there and back, so pack appropriately. Everyone is on their own for supplies. If you aren't aware of it now, the Forest is a wild and dangerous place, so don't let your guard down in there. Good luck, Miss Blanc."

"Thanks, Guildmaster Ainzach. I'll see you again when I come back for the platinum-plate." I replied before I walked out of the office with multiple thoughts running through my mind.

Before I closed the door, I heard Pluton say to himself when he thought I was out of earshot, "Why the hell did women not look like that when I was younger?" It took all my self-control to not burst out laughing when pulled the door shut.

[Two Hours Later]

To say the others were shocked at hearing the news was an understatement. There had been a lot of questions asked, most of which I had been unable to answer. It actually got even worse when Lukrut and Tuare arrived since Lukrut didn't stop talking until Peter smacked him upside the head. Like an alarm clock, the archer stopped asking questions and things settled down.

After the questioned was finished, the group moved onto congratulating me and planned to take me out for drinks at a tavern as a way to celebrate. While they didn't take no for an answer, I was able to move the date for drinking to tomorrow since I wanted to finally take a crack at training Ninya.

That was what brought me here in one of the fields outside E-Rantel with Ninya. And let me tell you, I had been running the little mage ragged. Currently, she was breathing heavily while sweat caked her brow. She'd gotten so overheated that she even took off the cloak the she always wore.

In front of both Ninya and I was a patch of earth that was sliced apart, charred, and frozen. "I-I can't cast [Acid Arrow] any-anymore." She gasped out as she tried to catch her breath. I hadn't been lying when I said I'd be stress testing her. For the past two hours, I'd been taking note of the spells she knew, how often she could cast them, and the speed at which she could do so. Anytime she ran out of mana, I'd just use [Mana Font] to charge her back up.

For the spell [Acid Arrow] her maximum amount of casts for it was 4. Even without using spells to detect it, with YGGDRASIL logic, that meant that her MP bar would be at 8 since 2nd Tier spells cost 2 mana. I was fairly impressed with her ability to use the 2nd Tier spell since, of what I learned from Ninya, only one in five to ten thousand could cast them. But, what I also learned with testing Ninya was when I used [Discern Enemy] and [Mana Essence] to keep track of Ninya's stats, I was excited to see that when we started, Ninya was at level 8. Yet, at this point she had reached level 9, alerting me that it was possible for beings in this world to level up just like in YGGDRASIL.

Still, Ninya had been working hard, so it was only fair to give her a break. Quickly refilling her mana back up with mine, Ninya looked ready to cast some more until I interrupted, "Relax, kiddo. Time to take a break." The young mage sighed in relief as she collapsed to the ground and laid on her back breathing heavily.

"I've n-never had t-to work that hard be-before." The teen gasped out while I took a seat right next to her.

"That's because you've never had a way to quickly recover your mana until you met me." I answered. "Still, how do you feel after all of that hard work?"

"Like someone sucked th-the life out of me a-and shoved it back in." Not exactly untrue. Laying my back on the ground and propping my head up with my arms, I couldn't help but gaze at the blue sky. It felt greedy to constantly take glances at the sky, expecting it to turn into the polluted grays and black that I was used to.

"That just means that you're getting stronger. Training is hard work, and hard work is never easy. Else it'd be called easy work. But if you tough out the pain and push through it all, you'll keep getting better."

For a while, the pair of us were silent until Ninya asked a question that threw me off-guard. "Hey, Kashia? Who was it that taught you magic?" Referring to my backstory, I went with Inari being the one since it was the most logical.

"My mother." I answered.

"What's she like?" Now that one was going to be a bit harder. Just when I was in the middle of trying to conjure up a story, words began to flow out of my mouth and I couldn't tell if they were mine or something else.

"She's kind, a bit of a trickster, but also very wise. While she could easily use her power to conquer, she preferred peace and instead used her abilities and magic to aid her people. I've no doubt that she'd love to meet you if she could." When I finally stopped talking, I just remained speechless and worried. Then, I tried to picture my mother's face, my mother back home from Earth…Yet, I couldn't.

Her face was a blur. Maybe she had dark hair or red hair, I couldn't tell. I felt my breath almost hitch in my chest, but I pushed my thoughts down so that Ninya wouldn't worry. She's worried about her sister for years; she didn't need something else to become upset about.

"She sounds nice. I wish that I could remember my mother better, but both her and dad died when I was very young. What's sad is that when I think about my mother, I picture Tuare because she's always been there." I looked at Ninya with a saddened gaze.

"Oh, kiddo…"

"But it's not all bad. Even though it's hard to remember her face, I still can recall her voice. She was a kind person, like you." I lightly patted Ninya on the shoulder and caused her to meet my gaze.

"I think she'd be happy to see the person you are today. Even if it's hard to remember what she looks like, remember the person that she was, and then you'll never lose her." She smiled at this and gazed back at the sky while I did the same.

After a while, the sound of snoring filled my ears, followed by a new warmth at my side. Gazing out the corner of my eye, I saw Ninya sleeping against my side. "Guess training could end a bit early today." I muttered before gazing back at the blue sky.

[Zaryusu]

Ducking under a swing from the massive fist of an ogre, I cracked my tail like a whip against the exposed heel of my opponent. This elicited a scream of pain from the ogre, Dolg, as he fell to his knee and I back away to reassess my situation. The cheering of ogres and goblins around me filled my ears as I began circling Dolg, watching for the perfect moment to strike.

Tonight was something special as Kashia had renovated the arena for the fights. The arena was sunk into the ground while angled walls 20 feet high prevented fighters from accidentally flung into the stands or those in the stands from dying if they fell over the walls. Instead, they'd simply slide to the bottom of the arena. To exit the arena, multiple large handholds had been carved into the rock, allowing finished fighters the ability to climb out.

Multiple benches surrounded the edges of the arena walls, where multiple goblins, ogres, trolls, and some of the new visitors were watching with interest. Yet, sitting in a chair overseeing the entire event was Kashia in all her glory. Well, her and her clone who sat in a similar chair next to her.

"You may have fat tail, but I have biggah' hands!" Dolg shouted before charging at me. I took note of the way he limped that my hit from earlier was taking its toll. Staying still until Dolg was only a few feet away from me, I finally rolled out of the way and kicked out Dolg's ankle, causing the massive ogre's face to impact the wall with a meaty smack before finally falling onto his back.

"Just because you have bigger hands doesn't mean that you have a bigger brain." I taunted to the groaning ogre as he rolled onto his hands and pushed himself back up to his feet, one hand holding his bleeding head. "You still going to keep coming?" I asked while bouncing from one foot to the next.

"I'm strong! I'm tough! I'm…I'm…" Dolg's boast soon died down as he started to become woozy until finally, with a great thud, the ogre fell onto his face and began snoring. For a moment, the entire audience was completely silent.

"Dolg's been rendered unconscious! Zaryusu wins!" Kashia announced, breaking the tense silence. Following this declaration, cheers rang out, namely from the goblins and hobgoblins seated together in the stands. In triumph, I raised my fists in the air, eliciting more cheers.

You know, I'm really enjoying my time here.

And that's the newest one, folks. Managed to finish this before Revenge of the Fifth was over. Major headache, but what the hell? Still, hope you enjoyed that one since I plan to crunch Days 7 and 8 together for next chapter. I'm also thinking of doing of Lukrut POV soon enough, so it might be seen in next chapter.

Stay safe out there and good luck during the indoor apocalypse.

Stay frosty my friends.