"Finally, we're free to head into the village! I've been itching for a chance to have a day in town." Deandria skipped ahead of us, clad in a red and brown dress, a dagger resting in a sheath at her right hip.

"We had to learn how to defend ourselves." Baasima defended, her expression oddly playful. She wore her hijab, wrapped around her head and only leaving her face uncovered. She was wearing a light blue dress that faintly hugged her torso and fell to her ankles. She bore no weapons, but like Mitsuki, she didn't need any weapons. Though, it was for a different reason. "Honestly, I feel like they made the right choice."

Amber hummed as she inclined her head towards them, wearing a pair of slim pants and a long-sleeve shirt with a cloak over it. "Yes, we can't all be like Luke and Joey." She scoffed and glared over at us, her gaze playful but pointed. "Both of your Affinities are cheating, I tell you."

"Yes. I just happened to walk into a store and picked up everything on my way out." I said to her. I wore a set of loose-fitting leathers and linen in the form of light-colored leather trousers, a form-fitting long-sleeve shirt and a sleeveless leather vest over top of it. A pair of leather and steel vambraces covered my forearms along with a set of gloves on my hands, and a sheathed sword rested on the left side of my waist.

"Let's not get into this again, please." Tadashi groaned, glaring at the pair of us. "It'll just go into circles until a third party breaks it apart. I'd rather not have our day off in the village ruined by your arguing." He wore what resembled a loose-representation of a haori over a blue vest, with loose-hanging sleeves. His pants fell to his ankles, expanding outwards.

Luke snorted and crossed his arms, not bothering to speak, since he'd only exacerbate the situation. He wore his quilted jacket, a dark blue and black, with a pair of black pants and a sword resting at his waist.

It's been two months since our arrival on Verum, and it's been nothing but continuous training, pushing our bodies further and harder. While we weren't the best or the strongest, we had become rising stars amongst the residents of Veracity. We had trained physically and with our Affinities, though there were some odd exchanges amongst them when we interacted.

As of this moment, though, our respective knight mentors had agreed amongst themselves that with the progress we've made, that a day off in the nearby village merchant center could only be beneficial for our mental health.

Plus, the fact that I felt like I was going stir crazy in the keep only helped me push for it.

We were dropped off at the nearby stables, observed by the various villagers, and sent on our merry way.

An arm fell along my shoulders, and a hand pointed to a close by building. "Look, there's a tavern! Let's go see what's going on inside of it." Guang grinned as he leaned on me. He was wearing a set of form-fitting leather armor and cloth clothing with a cloak over top of it, a pair of daggers at his hips.

"Yeah, yeah, though I doubt it'd be okay for us to get wasted," I answered him with a grin, not caring about the contact. As a group, all of us may have grown closer than we were initially as a class.

Some more than others, though. Unfortunately.

"Killjoy." He said while rolling his eyes, his smiling not falling.

"Yes. Let's not get drunk." Kacee demurred, a faint smile escaping her. She was clad in cloth and leather as well, that hugged her torso and covered her shoulders. She wore leather pants with a half skirt hanging from her waistband and falling behind her and to just above her knees. On her back was a metal pole, almost deceptively short.

Rudy hummed as he crossed his arms, clad in a set of leather armor similar to mine, though he was only wearing a single vambrace on his right arm and a glove on the same hand. Slung across his back was a bow and a covered quiver full of arrows with a single dagger attached to his hip. "I don't know." He said. "I say we should live the cliché. Head to the tavern and ask about side quests." His small smile widened to a grin.

"‘Sidequests'? What are you talking about?" Nailah asked of him, a confused frown on her face. She was wearing a long, dark blue, flowing robe with her long hair tied into a high ponytail. Her hands wore black, cloth gloves.

"It's a video game thing, Nai," Mitsuki explained to her patiently. The girl wore a sleeveless leather vest that hugged her lithe torso firmly. A skirt fell a few inches above her knees as she wore a pair of knee-length boots. Her passive expression curled into a subtly amused smirk. "Rudy's just trying to tease Kacee."

Nailah frowned for a moment but sighed. "Perhaps I should've tried to play a game or two back home… At least that way, I wouldn't be as lost as I am."

"No worries, Nailah," I said to her, shrugging Guang's arm off my shoulders. "I'll give you a few recommendations later. I can think of a few games that'd catch your interest."

She gave me a searching look, before she sighed gently, smiling thankfully. "I appreciate that, Joseph. Though, I'd prefer it if we kept the special jargon to a minimum for a bit."

Colette released a heavy sigh. "You nerds should stop teasing poor Nai. We can only take so much." She was wearing a white dress that hugged her slim waist and fell just a bit below her knees. Her hair tied to the side with a piece of twine. A sword and shield were on her back.

A clapping sound pulled our attention to Luke, who had his hands held against each other. "Alright children. Mr. Lethe isn't here to hold our hands, so let's take our time today and have some fun."

As we said that, I looked forward and caught sight of what had led to the princess scheduling a day out for us. Several stalls trailed along the open streets of the village. Various food stalls full of unique cuisines that we could try out, souvenir and game stands with a variety of simple things to buy and do, and a sea of curious people who were all either taking part in the festivities or studying us with a hint of excited caution. The cloudless sky above us and the bright shining sun told us that we had an entire beautiful day ahead of us. Lights filtered out the open window of the tavern as music, from both instruments and people singing, reverberated outwards in revelry.

"Alrighty then," I started us off, catching everyone's attention. "Let's do this in groups. No smaller than two, but no bigger than five." I grinned at everyone's deadpan gaze. "Don't want to scare off the people who want to speak with us, after all. We're ‘Heroes,' so they have to be curious about us."

"Sure. Whatever Hero." Kacee rolled her eyes at me but looked around at us. "One last thing before we split. The stalls with games of skill? No Affinity use." She looked to each of us with stern gazes. "Our Affinities afford us major advantages that the average person doesn't have, so we shouldn't ruin another's chance to win. Agreed?"

We all agreed without difficulty, going about our separate ways to join the festivities.

There was no rhyme or reason to the pairs we broke into, but I ended up walking with Mitsuki as we approached a stall with cards faced down. Various little boys and girls dressed in a cloth and linen tunics and dresses were staring at them with adorably pinched faces. The stall was head by an amused looked older woman in a clean, but a worn dark brown tunic and a long skirt. Dark hair tied into a bun, she leaned against the table on her stand as she watched one the girls reach forward and flip one of the cards, getting a strange symbol. There was a slight tickle down my spine before the logo shifted into a 7. I pinched the bridge of my nose to fight off a small migraine before I heard a soft groan.

"Not bad, dearie. You nearly got it." She reached forward and ruffled the girl's dark red hair before she looked around and caught sight of Mitsuki and me. "Well, well, do our resident Heroes want to try a round of the game?" She smiled kindly at us even as the kids twisted around and gaped up at us. "Well?"

Mitsuki and I looked to each other, then she regarded her and nodded stoically. "Just once. Don't want to take anything from the kids." She offered them a minute smile, before stepping forward and examining the facedown cards. Her stoic expression regarded them with the utmost seriousness, the kids around her staring up to her as if she held the answers to the universe.

As she did that, I looked to the kids around us and froze as I noticed a young girl with short black hair and felt a bit of melancholy settle in the bottom of my stomach. Maggie… I blinked away tears as I was unable to look away from the girl as she watched Mitsuki.

What was she doing right now? Was she worried about me? Is she okay? These thoughts raced through my tumultuous thoughts as I fought back the tears that nearly broke free. Most importantly, though, I couldn't help but wonder…did her production go well? She looked forward to it so much, I could tell from how she spoke of it. That excitement, the nerves, I could remember seeing them so clearly when she first told me of it. I hope…I hope my abduction didn't ruin things for her…

The girl paused and turned to look towards me, curiosity in her baby blue eyes. She looked up to me, a small smudge of dirt on her left cheek. Then she grinned up at me, showing me that she was missing her left canine.

Seeing that smile dispelled what melancholy I felt, even as I lost myself in memories of my sister. Returning a smile just as wide, I allowed my eyes to close as I let myself hope that Maggie was doing well despite my absence.

"Too bad, missy, it seems you've missed the match too." I turned my attention to the stand, seeing Mitsuki straighten her posture and stare at the two flipped cards with a look of hidden disappointment. The two cards flipped themselves back over, and the woman looked at me. "What of you, Sir Hero? Would you like a chance as well?"

I was about to refuse but stopped myself. Looking amongst the kids, who were staring up at me in hope, I allowed myself a small laugh. "Alright, but not on my own." That got a confused look from the woman, Mitsuki, and the kids. I smiled faintly. "Whose turn was next before Mitsuki and I walked by?" As if by some quirk of chance, the girl who caught my attention meekly raised her hand. A soft, rounded face with shoulder length black hair and blue eyes. I was reminded of Maggie when she was her age but forced that thought out of my mind. My smile widened despite myself as I crouched down until my height was level with hers. "How about we be a team and pick one together? I'd hate to skip someone who's waited for so long."

"Okay." She shyly muttered as we turned towards the stall, the woman regarding us with a gentle expression.

I grinned playfully at her answer. "Alright. Nice working with you…" I paused and furrowed my brow exaggeratedly. Then I scoffed at myself, rolling my eyes widely. "How could I forget something so important? I never introduced myself." I looked over to the giggling girl and bowed my head. "My name is Joseph." I then winked at her. "My best friends call me Joey, though. So call me Joey." I grinned at her. "What's your name?"

"Livvi." The newly named Livvi mumbled as she blushed cutely.

"Alright then, Livvi. Let's win this." I gently bumped her shoulder with mine. She pouted at me and did the same back. I made my body follow her impact as I rebounded from her, giving her a shocked look, before grinning playfully, causing her blush to return with a passion. "Definitely best friend material." I then looked to the cards and narrowed my eyes at them, placing a hand on my chin in thought. Then I allowed myself a smirk and looked over to Livvi, who was also staring at the card with intensity.

Leaning over, I whispered something into her ear. Her eyes widened as she gasped cutely. She nodded quickly, her short hair whipping around her head. "Okay." Livvi lifted her hand and pointed at one of the cards that Mitsuki had flipped over. The woman smiled indulgently and flipped it over, revealing a ‘3'.

"Now, here's a trick that's helped me a few times," I said to her with whimsy. Lifting a hand, I waved over the cards. "I'm not going to touch them, but I want you to stop me over the card you want to pick. Kay?" She nodded firmly to me and watched my hand as it hovered over the facedown cards. I moved slowly, but deliberately and allowed her to take her time.

"Stop!" She said quickly, and I did as she asked. I pointed at the card she wanted to pick, and she nodded. "That one, please!"

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Are you sure?" The woman leading the stall smiled playfully at her.

"We pick that one!" Livvi said with determination.

"You heard her," I said with pride, pointing to the card as I pulled my hand away.

The woman arched her brow at me but nodded nonetheless. She reached down and flipped the card.

‘3'

Livvi let out an excited squeal as she threw her hands into the air and jumped in victory. "We did it! We did it! Yay!"

The woman did not look surprised, quietly proud as she smiled at us.

I laughed in success as I held out a hand. The girl paused and looked at my palm in confusion. I merely smiled and looked over to Mitsuki, who was studying me with an intense look, curiosity in her face. I held out a hand, and she paused before a small, exasperated smile grew on her face. She glanced over to Livvi and said, "Watch me." Mitsuki then slapped her hand against mine, eliciting an echoing clap.

Feeling a clap on my other hand, I gave a sheepish Livvi a proud grin. "Nice work." I stood and brushed my knees off. Looking down at Livvi, I placed my hand on her head and ruffled her hair with a wide grin. "My work here is done. Can I leave the rest to you, Livvi?"

She pushed my hand away with a pout. Then she paused, turning her head downwards. "Will I see you again…Joey?"

My smile softened as I heard her say my name. Looking to the side so that she wouldn't see the tears gathering in my eyes, I nodded to her. "Of course. I'll be here all day." I then paused, looking to her to see that she was still looking to me. "Afterwards…" I straightened my shoulders and rested a hand on the sheath of my sword. "Well, haven't you heard? I'm a Hero. Call my name, and I'll come running." I allowed my smile to shrink until it was a secretive one. "And Heroes always arrive when they're needed the most."

With that, I ruffled her hair one last time, waved to the other kids and nodded to the woman at the stall, then turned and walked away. Mitsuki followed my steps, glancing over her shoulder. "You're pretty good with kids, Joey."

"I had to look after Maggie when it was just the two of us," I explained, my voice soft.

"I see." Mitsuki's answer was brief and went no farther, though I could hear the understanding in her tone. I looked over to her, to see her kind gaze. When I looked away from her, I blinked away a few tears. "Let's go see if we find some of the others. I'm sure they're causing some trouble." Her change in subject was something I appreciated.

"Yeah. The others probably are." We both ignored the slight crack in my voice and continued. We strode through the crowd, searching for others from our class. As we made our way, though, there was a loud crash. Mitsuki and I looked at each other and nodded. Racing ahead, we managed to slip through the crowd and happen upon the source of the commotion in front of the tavern, with the front door having been broken down. Baasima and Rudy stood in front of a woman who was sprawled out on the ground, Colette at her side and gently treating a bruised cheek.

In front of them was a group of four scruffy men, one of whom looked like he had drunk a few too many. They wore an assortment of leather and cloth, carrying weapons from swords to daggers.

As Mitsuki and I raced over, Baasima glared at the lead man, who had his hand hovering over the hilt of his sword. "…to hit her like that?!" We reached them just in time to hear the last bit of her snarl; her hands clenched tight enough for her knuckles to crack.

The man had dull brown hair and ruddy complexion as if he had been drinking, though there was an undeniable red mark on his cheek. His reddish-brown eyes twinkled in amusement as he sneered at her, spitting blood to the ground at his side. "She's my woman, damn brat. That's all the reason I need."

Rudy narrowed his eyes, anger sparking in his stoic expression, though he did throw a glance my way. Baasima didn't pay either of us any mind; her face was a rictus of rage. "Baasima, calm down." He said sternly.

"Calm down?!" She snarled at him, her eyes turning towards him in disbelief. "Did you not see what this jerk did?"

"Yes. I did. But doesn't mean we should lose our heads." He controlled his tone, but the anger was an undercurrent in it.

"Ha. You should listen to your friend, little girl. I’ll forgive a hit once since you’re young. But not a second."

Ever since we came here, we've all been on edge. We were torn from our families, as small as they were and that chafed. That pushed and prodded our patience. It was only the constant, nonstop physical activity that prevented us from lashing out in anger. Could our Affinities have aggravated it? A shift in our understanding of the world as we know it and who we are as individuals would no doubt push the average person over the edge.

Dealing with this? It'd piss someone off on a good day, and that'd be back home. Here? Well, I can understand lashing out at someone like this.

Fury flared in her eyes as Baasima's glare darkened. “You wouldn’t have a choice.” There was a slight shift in her posture as she pulled her arm back. A small, almost unnoticeable aura came over her body. Then, with a twist of her shoulders, she threw a punch that could bend steel.

I threw a hand out and caught her by the wrist. I grunted at the sudden shift in momentum. A faint tingle trailed along my arm, and I narrowed my eyes. "Sima, this filth isn't worth the effort." I murmured to her soothingly, kindly, but firmly, pushing her arm downwards.

She turned an angry gaze at me. "Joseph, you don't know what he did." Her words came out as a hiss.

"I heard you say it, but doesn't mean you should waste the breath."

The man scoffed at me, but he flinched when I turned a blank stare onto him. "You're all just a bunch of children given special handling by the royal family." He glared back at me, meeting my gaze defiantly. "I'm sure you haven't fought for anything in your life."

"Walk away, wife-beater." I declared, causing him to blink in surprise. "I don't care what you say, or what you believe…" I let Baasima's hand go and turned to face the man directly. "But if you don't get out of our sight right this very minute, I'll help Baasima cave in your skull and not lose a second of sleep over it." I clenched my fists and willed a faint aura to encompass them. At my side, Baasima let out a hitched breath.

The man shuddered as he looked from me to Baasima, then scoffed. "Children." He turned and walked off. "Let's go. We don't need to deal with this anymore." His group, appearing almost unsure, followed after him, but not without giving us suspicious glares.

As they disappeared into the crowd, I allowed my shoulders to fall ever so lightly and closed my eyes. "Sorry about stepping in like that. It's just…" I'd rather any kids nearby not see that. But I was unable to finish.

"No… I get it." I turned to her to see that she was looking off to the side, where a small crowd had begun watching. No kids among them, thankfully. "I nearly lost my temper."

"I'm pretty sure you already did." Rudy demurred with a faint smile, walking over to Colette and the woman. She was wearing a cloth dress as well, though hers was a dirtied light blue, speckled with dirt and the blood dripping from her nose and a wound around her eye. He crouched before her, frowning as he took in the already swollen flesh around her eye. "Let's get you inside, away from the crowd. I'm sure we can find something for that in the tavern."

"Hm." She nodded with a sigh, grimacing as Colette offered her a shoulder to help her.

A breath escaped me as I glared at the sky. "Today was supposed to be relaxing…" A hand fell onto my back, between my shoulder blades. I looked over my shoulder to see Mitsuki giving me a soft smile in a show of support. "Thanks." With that, we walked with Baasima into the tavern.

Lowly dimmed lights greeted us as Mitsuki, and I walked inside onto the wooden floor. Several round wooden tables with three chairs each filled the building. The building itself was spacious, enough so that there was plenty of room for people to walk around with lots of wiggle room. People were already milling about, no doubt from having watched the previous scuffle. The bartender was an older man with a pronounced mustache, dressed in a pair of cloth pants, a rope belt, and a sleeveless white vest. As I leaned down and lifted his broken door, he nodded to me in thanks as I set it to the side.

"I'm going to get something to drink," I said with an exhale as I approached the bar, Mitsuki following after me.

"Don't get too much." She said in a gentle monotone, pointed in its delivery.

I snorted at that as I reached the bar. Off to the side, another bartender, a younger girl with short brown hair and in a pair of cloth pants and a long sleeve tunic was gentle tapping the bruised woman's eye with a wet rag. "What'll you have, Hero?" The man asked me, his gaze studying.

"Something light. Doesn't matter what." I answered, not bothering to correct his words. Mitsuki sat at my left, peering carefully at the wall of drinks behind the bar. Rows of glasses and mugs covered the back wall.

"You?" He asked her.

"Nothing alcoholic." She stated.

He nodded to us and silently went to work. Not a few moments later, the bartender placed a pair of mugs in front of us. Mitsuki had a dark brown drink that fizzed ever so lightly, while I had a light-yellow liquid with white foam atop it. "First drink's on the house." At my confused look, he motioned to the open doorway. "He may've deserved it, but I don't like drama. You stopped a fight." With that, he stepped away, picking up an empty glass from in front of a vacant seat, and began to wipe it down with a rag.

I lifted my drink and took a sip. It was sweet but tickled my throat on the way down.

Someone dropped into the seat next to me. "Joseph," Baasima said as she called for a drink. "Thank you." She paused. "For both helping me and holding me back."

"You don't need to thank me," I said to her, though I did offer her a smile.

She shook her head. "No, I do. I…I would've regretted killing him if I went too far. Not because he was a horrible person, but…"

"It's more important to be the better person," Mitsuki said as she sipped at her drink.

"Yeah." She whispered as she leaned against the bar. Her eyes closed. "Did…you know?" She had changed to subject.

I knew what to which she was referring. "No. But now that I did, I think I can help you with your Affinity."

"How so?"

I paused and furrowed my brow. "When my Affinity grants me instincts over weaponry, it also gives me some knowledge on how to leverage it. With yours, it feels like…I can direct my will to strengthen portions of my body as well as how to use it properly." I then smirked over to her. "Thanks to your Affinity, I Know Kung Fu."

She furrowed her brow at my joke, though I heard Mitsuki snort in surprise behind me. "What? I don't get it, what does Kung Fu do with my Affinity?"

I let out a small laugh. "It was…just a reference. I guess you didn't see that movie." I then sighed. "The closest thing I can say your Affinity does is that it doesn't give you anything. It just allows you to use what's already there." I lifted my left hand, opening it as I willed it to strengthen. A faint glow overtook it, almost unnoticed in the dim lighting of the tavern. "Ki or chi, interchangeable names really, are concepts originating from Eastern Mysticism. It's essentially the Life Force that someone has and it grows with training."

"So…my Affinity is…a shortcut, then?" She asked me, a frown on her face as she took a sip of her water.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure that if you tried to learn martial arts, it'd allow you to do it far easier compared to others." I paused, then shrugged my shoulders. “My Affinity’s a shortcut, too. It normally takes years to learn the skills to wield weapons properly.”

Baasima hummed as she frowned in thought. "Thanks, I suppose." She then turned that frown to me. "I'm still unsure how I feel about you copying my Affinity, though."

"Neither do I." I deadpanned. Leaning back, I caught sight of Rudy and Colette walking over to us. Looking at Baasima and Mitsuki, I said, "Let's find a table. Don't want to crowd the bar." I nodded towards the bartender and pushed myself away from the bar with my drink. We then found a table and sat around it. "What happened that led to the situation earlier?"

Rudy scowled at that, glaring at the open door. "We minded our business when I heard the man yelling at the woman."

"I'm pretty sure we all heard him," Colette said with an eye roll, though the disgust was pretty clear in her blue eyes. "The ‘reason' he did it wasn't something I felt important, all things considered."

Mitsuki nodded at that, but asked, "Where is she?"

"I flagged down a knight to escort her to the Chapel. Gave him orders that no one was harm or threaten her." She allowed herself a dark smile. "Have I mentioned that I love the fact that Emmie has given us the right to order around the knights."

Baasima gave her a deadpan look. "I'm not sure whether to be more shocked at your nickname for a princess or your flippancy to that responsibility." She wasn't displeased with her; if anything, she seemed more flustered and uncomfortable with the idea.

Colette grinned, showing off her perfect teeth, as she leaned forward in her seat. "No worries, Sima. Emmie knows and loves the nickname." Her mischievous gaze fell onto my drink, which sat in front of me. "Let me see what you ordered, Joey." With a ‘yoink,' she took my mug and took a drink.

"Yes, Colette, you can taste my drink. No, Colette, I don't leave backwash." I said to her, my tone drier than the Sahara.

She didn't reply to my words even as the mood around us rose, just putting my mug down in front of her. Colette smacked her lips and smiled. "Mm, sweet. I like! Be right back." She slid it back to me and hopped out of her seat to skip over to the bar.

"What she forgot to mention is that Welton nearly had a coronary after hearing that name." Rudy offered the retreating girl an amused smirk.

"Why am I not surprised?" I said, my tone still dry as I grabbed my mug, looking into the drink with a searching gaze. Shrugging, I took a drink and hummed at the tingle as I drank it. "Any idea what the others are doing?"

"Last I saw Amber, she was looking over the blacksmith forge," Baasima explained, shaking her head. "When her Affinity awakened, it's like she saw the light."

Mitsuki hummed into her drink, placing the mug back onto the table. "Our Affinities affected all of us." She held out a hand, and it was like her skin shifted. Fur, followed by scales, to spines, to feathers, before ending back on her original skin.

Rudy hummed as he shrugged. "At least you all have combat abilities. I can experience nature." He then rubbed the side of his temple. "Before a migraine sits in."

"The perfect hunter." Mitsuki shook her head at him, her gaze very pointed. "I'm restricted by what I shift into; your senses are always aware."

He exhaled through his nose, a small smile escaping him as he shrugged again.

Mitsuki nodded once, having grabbed her victory.

"It's just sooo good!" Colette said as she dropped into her seat, a grin on her face as she placed her mug on the table. "I'm only getting the one, but I know my regular drink now." She had the happiest smile on her face, a faint blush on her cheeks, no doubt from the alcohol.

I was about to speak up when I noticed a stiffening in Rudy's posture. Seconds before he said anything, an ear-splitting scream tore through the pleasant silence. It came from outside. The five of us shot to our feet, and I turned around to see the bartender and the other patrons looking to us, hesitation in their gazes. For the longest seconds of my life, no one said anything. Steeling myself, I spoke to the civilians. "Stay calm and stay low. We're going to see what's happening. Regardless of what’s next, one of us will return, and I want you to listen to exactly what they tell you. Am I understood?" I received several shaky nods and turned my friends as we walked away from the table. "Rudy."

He frowned severely, glancing over his shoulder discretely. "A single cloaked woman, with a pair of dead bodies at her feet."

"Get yourselves ready," I said with resolve, feeling my heart rate pick up as my hand brushed against the hilt of my sword. Excitement bubbled in the pit of my stomach as I fought off the smile that threatened to appear on my face. "Because we're about to introduce ourselves."

Finally, I now had a chance to cut loose.