Test 2 / 2
Being a hero is all about serving others! :) Let’s have fun and welcome our customers. Get to know people and show some affection. Give someone who likes hugs a hug today! :)
“You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“Ahahaha!” Vi held out the apron, looking delighted. “We do have a job opening. I have this outfit ready for you! Are you ready?”
“F*** you, you’re just messing with me.” Enrique grumbled as he snatched the waiter outfit from Vi. It consisted of a white apron and something resembling a modest brown and white uniform. At least it looked like it was for guys to wear.
“If you don’t like it, I can have you do something else. But being strong requires sacrifice, you know—”
“Shut up.” He felt his face blush despite himself as he caught her teasing tone. “Did you do this with Aurelius, too?”
Vi waved a tail, not nearly as negatively affected as he’d hoped. “Something similar. He liked games. He used to be a champion in your world.”
He couldn’t quite get over the whiplash of being with his new partner. Yesterday she was somber and serious. This morning she was happy-go-lucky. She’s weird.
She read the expression on his face. “There’s no use moping around! It’s a new day today! I want to make people feel happy and fill them with love!”
“You’re embarrassing.”
“I don’t care what others think about me! Never be ashamed of being your true self!” she exclaimed in an upbeat tone.
He noticed she had cleaned up the bathroom and scented it with a floral spray. She had also made him breakfast—a ton of eggs, ham, and pancakes. Those small things took the edge off his anger.
The two walked into the cafe. The bells jingled merrily.
The three waiters from yesterday were busy setting up tables and doing some cleaning. “Looks like everyone’s here. Let me introduce you,” Vi said happily.
Upon hearing this, the waiters looked up. Enrique felt slightly intimidated as they all eyed him, two of them curiously, and one of the blonde women with indifference.
Vi led him first to a brown-haired cat girl with cloud-white fluffy ears and a cute tail, wearing a uniform similar to Enrique’s and Vi’s. She was smoothing out a white and red tablecloth and placing down some utensils.
“The other staff are all part-time. This is Cecelia. She’s a student at Anima Academy. Our pride and our future! Cecilia, this is Enrique.”
“Hello,” Cecilia said, a little shyly. “Oh—thank you.” She sounded slightly surprised as Enrique moved to help her with the tablecloth.
“Good to meet you,” he told her shortly, giving her a friendly smile.
One of the blonde women spoke up cheerfully. “Greetings, Enrique.” The woman had a faint lilting accent. She had luxurious golden curving hair, leaf-green robes, and light skin. Her features seemed to be radiating a faint light. Her green eyes were curious as her hands deftly arranged some menus. “Will you be working with us?”
Enrique shot Vi a sidelong glare. I hope this isn’t permanent.
“He’s a volunteer today,” Vi told the others quickly. “I plan on taking him to meet the Princess later. He’s very new to everything, so please be patient with him.”
“Yes, of course, El Faleen,” the woman said. She extended a hand to him. “My name is Ti’li, or Tilly in the common tongue. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.”
Enrique shook Tilly’s hand. “Hey.” She’s so formal. Is she not from around here?
Vi motioned to the last waitress, the other blonde woman, who had been fastidiously moving plates between the kitchen and the main dining room. She was similar to Tilly but had her hair in a ponytail. “This is De’Vorah. She’s quick and efficient, and also very attentive to the needs of our customers. She’s great!”
De’Vorah ignored her enthused praise. She gave him a single, polite nod, then swept past Enrique with an indifferent look and proceeded with preparing tea in the kitchen. She had a rather serious expression.
“Tilly and De’Vorah are training to be in the Ranger program. They take shifts together,” Vi informed him.
“What’s that?”
“Rangers? They protect a special group of our precious citizens in the forests and mountains,” she said happily.
Her many tails were already moving into action, setting out plates, chopping vegetables, and holding several pans over a fire. “Okay! Let’s go, everyone!”
----------------------------------------
This isn’t so bad, Enrique thought to himself. He was in the kitchen helping Cecilia with some dishes. She reminded him of Maria back home. She looked maybe twelve, with grayish eyes, and bustled around with studious energy. She kept staring at him in silent fascination.
“Uh…do you need something?” he asked, gathering some plates to deliver to an Anima pair.
Cecilia flushed with embarrassment as she stacked some small pastries onto a plate. She quickly diverted her eyes. “N—no! I was just—you seem kind of cool.”
“Thanks. You’re cool too.”
“Thanks,” she said, seeming to relax a little. “How long have you been in the Anima Kingdom?”
“One day.” And it’s been f***ing crazy.
She looked curious. “You’re not from the Unplaced kingdoms, right?”
“The what-now?”
“The lesser kingdoms. Outside of the main ones…I guess not,” she said, seeing his blank expression.
Enrique motioned to the ceiling. “I just dropped.”
Cecilia’s eyes widened. She placed some sliced fruits into a bowl. “Mwhoa! Neat. Are you still looking for your partner?”
“She’s—” Enrique stopped himself. This is awkward. If I tell her it’s Vi, will she start treating me differently? She’s Cecelia’s employer, after all. “Um—yeah,” he improvised wildly. “I think I’m close to finding her.”
He tried to find a different subject. The waitress with the blond ponytail, De’Vorah, passed by him. He was pretty sure by now she was ignoring him on purpose. She hadn’t spoken a word to him. Now that’s weird. And awkward. Did I do something wrong?
“Hey—” he motioned quietly to De’Vorah. “She’s not a human or Anima, right?”
“Uh-huh.” Cecelia nodded. “She’s one of the High Race. They call themselves Elarrians.”
“Oh.” Ee-law-ree-uns, he tried to pronounce in his head. “Then there’s other kinds of beings here, right? Different…” He tried to remember his conversation with Morgan. “Different races? Five nations?”
“Yeah.” Cecelia looked pleased to be able to help him. “Oh!” Her eyes went wide again. “That reminds me! I was going to have Auntie Vi help me with my homework during break.”
Cecelia scrambled towards the back of the cafe and returned with a pink backpack. She unzipped it and took out several sheets of paper and a pen.
“Look at this garbage. Math. History. Geography. Ugh!” She showed him a map. “I’ve gotta label the countries here. Then I need to write an essay on the Five Kingdoms War. Ms. Starfall said it’s ‘cuz there’s a big ball coming up celebrating the end of it.”
Enrique looked on as she spread the map on a table. She took the pen and drew circles on the paper. “Yeah. So we’ve got the Anima and humans in the center. We live mostly in cities. The Elarrians, which we call the High Race, are in the north. They live in forests and hills.” She drew some little trees and mounds. “The Stone Lords are out west. The Knurlkin. Guess where they live?”
“In a bunch of rocks,” he guessed sarcastically.
“Yeah, pretty much. In caves and fortress villages. They do mining and forging. That’s why. Okay, the High Race and the Stone Lords are closest to us.” Cecelia scribbled the two names on the map. “You humans have your own names for those two.”
“We do?” he asked.
She nodded. “That’s what my teacher said. So she says when I get a partner I should know about the human names too.”
“I see.” He made a mental note to ask Vi, if only to satisfy his curiosity.
She began circling again. “Then there’s the Fae, in the northeast. They’re weirdos. The Nocturne are in the south. Vi told me Anima and Nocturne used to fight a lot, but that’s not what my textbook says. Finally there’s the Saul—Sa—stars, I never pronounce it right. The Saukallians, something like that. The big guys in the Red Kingdom. In the far east, by the sea. Outside the Red Kingdom you can see a bunch of Unplaced kingdoms.”
Enrique furrowed his brows as he tried to memorize the regions and the flood of information. “I got it. I think. Thanks.”
“One assignment down!” Cecelia smiled as she hurriedly stuffed her things away. “Come on, let’s get back to serving.”
Vi was in the front, greeting customers enthusiastically. “Hello, Gallian! Hi, Abbie!” She waved to a man and his leopard Anima as they walked in. “Rorian! Need more tea?” She poured some black tea in a cup for a man with wolf ears. “Here’s your meal, Lavender. Enjoy!” She placed a beef combo set down for a girl with purple horns and wings like a dragon. She wrapped a tail around her in a casual manner, then went to another table. “Ms. Steelsong, Mr. Steelsong, how’s business? Don’t worry, everything will be all right. Little Deli! Oh my goodness, you’re so big now!” She hugged a small Anima with puppy ears and beamed at the family.
Enrique placed some dishes on some other customers’ tables. Tilly was nearby, taking an order from two beings who looked like her. The three were chattering in a lilting foreign language. He sidled up next to her as they both went towards the back again. “Hey, Tilly, am I doing anything wrong? I don’t think De’Vorah likes me.”
“Oh!” Tilly glanced towards De’Vorah, who was carrying some glasses of water and a coffee. “Do not worry about it. She and El Faleen have a strange history. De’Vorah must not be comfortable with you because she senses you have some importance to Vi.”
“I see.” He furrowed his brows. “What’s that other word you said?”
“El Faleen? It is merely a term of respect in Elarri. It is like…ah, like ‘great lady’ in your tongue. I was raised as a highborn. Therefore I speak in this way. I hope you do not mind.”
“No, not at all,” he said quickly.
“Tilly!” Vi called out as she bounced towards the two. “The bread in the oven is ready! There’s also the strawberry cake and the chocolate…”
She trailed off as if she had remembered something. Her pace slowed to a walk. “Please fetch the chocolate cake,” she said in a quieter voice.
“Yes, I will do so,” Tilly said. She cocked her head. “Are you doing all right, Vi?”
“Ah…” Vi poured some coffee into a cup and used her long tails to place some finished plates in the sink. “I suppose not, but I do have an appointment with Morgan today. I always look forward to that.”
As Tilly left, Cecelia headed to the front to take more orders. Vi turned to Enrique and handed him her phone. “Well? You’re doing fine so far, but do you think you can pass? The last part is a requirement.”
Shoot. He looked at the screen. Test 2/2…Give someone who likes hugs a hug today! :) Enrique fingered the blue-black pistol hidden beneath his uniform, which he found could be conveniently tucked between the waist straps. Stupid fox. I’ve never even liked foxes.
“How would I even know who likes hugs? This is stupid.”
“You can ask!” She smiled brightly.
“I don’t even like hugs. I’m sure a lot of people are like me.”
You do like hugs. You just won’t admit it. “If you don’t want to do it, I support that too! I understand it’s uncomfortable. That’s the point. Think about it over lunch break.”
When the break arrived, the cafe staff settled on chairs in the back. Vi poured everyone tea.
Enrique swiped away Vi’s message on her phone, feeling irritated. He noticed a white app on the screen reading, “My Profile.” He tapped it. The menu about Vi he’d seen before showed up. Vivian Azurelane. Registered Anima. “Biography” in green, “Accounts” in yellow, “Role” in blue, “Titles” in dark green, and “Stats” in red.
He tapped the blue rounded “Role”.
Roles: Waitress. Maid
Partner: Enrique Dominguez
Rank: 130,558
He felt his heart drop as he attempted to recall his previous rank. Did my rank go down?
He swiped around a few times, wondering if there was more to the profile. A small pop-up slid out from the side of the screen.
Scale: 1st-Ranked Hero.
He fiddled with the screen, tapping “Stats”.
Abilities: All-Seeing Eye, Soul Paralyzation, Power Transfer, Extremespeed, Healing.
…
Intelligence: 5, Attack: 5, Defense: 5, Speed: 5, Agility: 5, Magical Attack: 5, Magical Defense: 5.
He tapped “All-Seeing Eye”. A description popped up:
Allows the user to predict the outcome of events, calculating their probability of success, see through obstacles, discern intentions, and other abilities.
It allows one to view a situation and enact scenes of the future in one’s mind, with the percentage each will occur. It can also show visions of events from the past.
He studied the screen. “That explains a lot. Hmm…there’s statistics, powers, and ranks. Things are like a video game here, basically.”
“It’s not a game,” Vi corrected him, sitting beside Enrique and stretching. “The System has two parts. Destiny magic to make pairs, and profiles of citizens which are constantly updated. They’re designed to look like a game because that makes transitioning to our world easier for humans.”
“How do you know that?” He was annoyed at her eavesdropping.
“My father helped design the System. Valos Azurelane. Though there were many things about it he didn’t agree with.”
Cecilia jerked up from her chair. “Wha? Your dad helped make it? I thought the System’s always been around.”
Tilly also looked interested. “Yes, I have heard this as well. Isn’t that why your race uses the phrase, ‘Stars and skies’?”
Vi sipped her tea. “Mm-hm. Our aid and our defense comes from the skies, in the form of our partners. That’s what that means. In the old days, we swore by the King, or not at all.”
“Vi, you’ve gotta stop making up stories!” Cecelia exclaimed, as she unzipped her pink backpack and took out some papers. “Last time I gave Ms. Starfall that history essay on the Siege of Mirith and she said half of it was wrong!”
“Haha!” Vi laughed. “Well, maybe she knows more than me. She’s a trained teacher and I’m just a waiter.”
Vi had been in the siege.
Cecelia waved her math homework, full of equations and blank lines, at Vi’s face. “Auntie Vi, help me out! I hate math! When am I gonna use it? What if I just want to be a doctor or something? I wish someone could just give me the answers!”
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
Vi barely even glanced at the paper and started rattling off answers. “15, -6, 32, 4.5, 4.9, 1, true, false, 7 meters—”
“Mwhoa! Slow down!” Cecelia cried, grabbing a pen and scribbling madly on the paper.
“—30, 5 cups, 3 cups, -2, square root of 54, 21%, 25%, 42.”
“Say it again!” Cecelia hollered. “What’s question 6?”
Vi peered at Cecelia’s paper. “One. How about you work backwards from the answers you already have? That way you learn the material.”
Cecelia pouted. “I guess. Ms. Starfall wouldn’t want me to cheat anyways.”
“How do you even know Vi got anything right?” Enrique countered. “She didn’t even see the problems.”
Cecelia looked at him blankly. “Vi’s always right when it comes to math. She has her All-Seeing Eye and photographic memory.”
“Math was my favorite subject in school. I studied a lot,” Vi explained happily.
“Okay, fine, whatever,” Enrique huffed. He watched Cecelia bite her pen as she stared at a homework problem, reminded again of Maria, a young girl from his old gang. That prompted another question, one that had been lingering in his mind for a while. “Hey, Vi, can I go back to my world?”
Vi drank her tea and didn’t reply for a moment. “What do you have to go back to?”
“Huh?” He glared at her. “I told you, right? I’m the leader of a—group. The Red Dragons. There’s a lot of smaller kids there. They probably need my help.”
Cecelia glanced over, curious.
Vi took another sip of tea. She looked like she was thinking. “I don’t like saying anything’s impossible. But you should know there are three conditions for partners to be sent to the Anima Kingdom.”
“What’s that?”
“First, you need to have a strong desire that couldn’t be fulfilled in your old world, but could be here. Second, you need a personality that can work with an existing Anima. Third, you must not be needed by your old world.”
She paused. “I’m sorry, Enrique. It’s likely everyone in the Red Dragons has simply moved on without you. Do you remember how things were right before you came here?”
“I…uh…I was on Seventh Street—” After getting chased by Henricks and the rest of the Black Wolves. They were going to kill me. I was leading them away from my guys. I had Jackson start taking charge. He was going to lead Maria, Joacquim, and Alex to get food and then back to the house.
“I…I was separated from my group because of some bad guys.”
Vi looked at him. She seemed sympathetic. “Enrique, this may be hard to hear, but if you’re in the kingdom then your gang is doing fine. They assume you’re dead and they had someone else take over your place. The streets are a difficult place no matter where you’re from. I’m sure they will remember how you took care of them.”
He clenched his fists under the table. What sort of c*** is that? I’m supposed to believe this? I’m suddenly cut off from my past, just like that?
Vi was idly looking down at her teacup. “The magic is one-way. Most partners are quite happy to start a new life here.”
“No, I need to go back there. I should check they’re all safe, just in case. You never said it’s impossible.” His voice grew louder as he spoke.
Vi looked over and replied in a relaxed fashion. “If you make an attempt now, say through an unstable portal, you have a 99.8% chance of dying. At least wait until you’re strong enough to make that journey.”
“And how would you know that?” he snapped.
Vi gave him an amused look, as if to gently remind him, I’ve had other partners.
Cecelia piped up, a little hesitantly, “My teacher said that too. Once a partner comes here, you can’t go back and visit anyone.”
He nodded, tightly. He felt a little empty by the abruptness of it.
He noticed De’Vorah watching him. She had not spoken a word in the entire conversation.
“You were close to them. It’s hard to be left behind.” De’Vorah’s voice was matter-of-fact, with a stronger accent than Tilly, but Enrique felt she had understood him very quickly. He nodded.
“De’Vorah!” Vi looped her tails around the blond woman. “How’s Ranger class? Tilly told me you were first in the climbing exercise and got high marks in forest navigation!”
De’Vorah nodded. Her expression remained serious, even a little cold towards her.
Vi responded warmly. “That’s great! Have some more tea! Do you want another cake, Ela? How about some bread? Let me bring you some so you can take them home!”
Vi poured her some more green tea and set a small plate with a chocolate slice on it, beaming. Enrique was reminded strongly of a parent doting on her favorite child.
Cecelia rolled her eyes. “Vi, it’s Elar, not Ela. Tilly and De’Vorah are grown-ups, so that makes them Elar. Stars, even I know that.”
Vi swished a tail, “Ela, Elar, tomato, potato. It’s the same for me.”
Tilly laughed. “Vi, please do not give us too much food again. You should save money for yourself.”
“You’re already broke,” Cecelia added.
“But I want to!” Vi protested. De’Vorah ate the cake but did not react to Vi’s affection.
Ugh, this is stupid. I’m not learning anything that can help me defend myself, Enrique thought to himself.
After break and some more serving, Cecelia went to the back and took her backpack.
“I’ve got to get home. Mom’s gonna worry. Bye guys!”
“Bye-bye!” Vi said. Enrique waved at the cat girl as she grabbed some extra fruit and hurried out the door.
Then Tilly and De’Vorah left together.
“Goodbye, Enrique. It was a pleasure to meet you. I hope we can see each other later,” Tilly said. She carried a bag of pastries Vi had given to them.
“Yeah, same,” he said.
“Goodbye!” Vi called to the duo, waving as they departed.
Finally, the steady trickle of customers stopped. Vi put a couple tails around Enrique. “I think you did great! The only thing is—”
“Yeah. I know. There’s no way I was going to hug someone.” He felt frustration bubbling up inside him.
“It’s no problem!” Vi said cheerily. “You know you can always hug me—”
Enrique seized a nearby spoon and hurled it at her face.
“Uwah!” Vi ducked and it sailed over her head. She caught the utensil with a tail. “Enrique! That’s mean!”
He started shouting at her. “I know you’re not going to train me, okay? Why did I waste my time spending a whole day doing nothing with you? I could have found someone else to make me stronger already! I bet there’s tons of people who rank higher than me on that stupid System!”
“Enrique, relax,” Vi said in a calm and soothing tone. “I’m sorry you’re upset. It’s true you didn’t do well on my tests, but I still want to help. How about I teach you some magic later? You can practice using your element. I’m okay with training you in self-defense.”
He considered it. “Fine,” he grumbled.
“I’ll buy you your own phone too! Please don’t be angry! I love you!” Vi gave him a big smile.
Isn’t she broke?
----------------------------------------
Enrique was tapping on his new black phone as he followed Vi. “Where are we going now?”
“Morgan’s house. I have a therapy session with her. I sent you the location.”
“Oh. Got it.” His phone beeped and he opened up a map on the screen.
As they walked, his mind returned to what he had seen on the silver disc in her house. “Hey…Vi?” He suddenly felt awkward.
“Yes?” She turned to him.
“Well—you said you have a curse on you. What if we find a way to break that curse? Then you wouldn’t have to worry about me being a Hero.”
Vi continued walking. “You’re not the first to think of that. I already know at least three ways to break it.”
“What?” Enrique stared at her. “What are they? Why don’t you try those then?”
“The first way is I murder you. It can’t be an accident or self-defense.”
“What? M—murder?”
Vi kept walking. “The reason that would work is it would prevent Destiny magic from assigning me another partner. The second way is I become the ruler of the Anima Kingdom. Doing so would give me a limited amount of control over the System.”
He scratched his head. “Okay, that one doesn’t sound too hard. Aren’t you close to the queen?”
She replied calmly. “If I do that, I will almost certainly become insane later on.”
“Insane?” He looked disturbed. “What do you mean? How?”
Vi turned a corner, steering him beside her with her tails. “You saw my main ability, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.” He sounded hesitant.
“My father once said, ‘Great power always comes with a price.’ The All-Seeing Eye has been passed down in my family for generations. If I use it too much, its side effects include increased likelihood of insanity and nightmares.”
“Oh.” He fell quiet. He felt guilty. “That would be bad for you, yeah.”
Vi smiled at him in a reassuring way. “It’s not me I’m concerned about. My mental instability would lead to extreme violence and innumerable deaths around the world. In some ways, I would become worse than even Allblades.”
“Allblades?” The name sounded familiar. It seemed to make a chill run down his spine.
“The man who killed my previous partner. I suppose by then he was more monster than man.”
Enrique was silent after this.
“The third way is the simplest, but you could argue the hardest. Don’t be a Hero.”
He nodded his understanding, and looked at the map to Morgan’s house with a little red pin on it.
----------------------------------------
Vi dialed a number she knew by heart. A female servant spoke. “Hello?”
“Hello, Maria. Can you please schedule a meeting with Their Majesties for me? Please tell Her Majesty to select two extra pairs for the anniversary ball’s honor guard.”
“Certainly, Vi.” There was the sound of heels tapping on the floor. “Queen Isandril, King Malgus! An appointment with your advisor, please? The usual time.”
There was a short pause. Vi could faintly hear the Queen say, “Of course,” and the shriek of a little girl in the background. Maria spoke again. “Yes, they both will be happy to see you.”
“Great! Thank you!” With a beep, the call ended.
----------------------------------------
“Why are you meeting the king and queen?” Enrique asked.
“It’s my other job. I’m their personal advisor. I’ve been doing that for the royal family ever since my parents died a long time ago.”
“Okay.” How old is she, anyways? I guess it would be useful to have someone like her to get help from. “Are we going to train soon?”
“After my appointment with Morgan. Take it easy. The last major war was decades ago, and this city is quite safe. No one’s going to hurt you here.” There’s no need to scare him. Still, I need to give him a reason to stay with me, or he’ll likely run off.
Enrique didn’t want to be patient. He looked around.
There were a couple Anima-human pairs walking around in groups. “Can we buy some snacks?” He pointed to a small convenience stand with some sweet potato-like treats on sticks.
“Sure thing!” Vi headed over. “What would you like—”
Psyche! He turned and fled with his phone in hand.
“—Huh? Enrique!”
Vi turned and watched him slip into a crowd and dash into a corner out of sight.
At least he’s predictable.
Enrique ran as hard as he could, shooting glances over his shoulder. He was surprised to see Vi was not pursuing him. He glanced at the map on his phone, made a sharp left turn, and arrived at Morgan’s house, gasping for breath. It was a two-story white and red building that had green plants and hanging vines in the front. He banged on the oak door. “Hey! Open up!”
The door opened. Morgan stood there, looking mildly surprised in a purple witch hat with her bunny ears, brown purse, and a dark formal suit. “Um? Hello? Enrique, was it?”
“Listen, Morgan, I don’t have much time. Train me to be a Hero. I’ll give you money or do stuff for you or whatever. Just get me away from Vi!”
“You do realize I’m her friend—”
Enrique barged into the house. “Yeah, but you also do stuff for money. Think of it like another job. I know you’re strong, and Vi doesn’t even want to train me.”
“Hm…true.” Morgan cupped a hand to her chin. “Tempting. I think she’d be upset though.”
If she can really predict the future, she’ll be here any minute. I’ve got to lose her! He stepped through the room, looking through doorways and spotting a staircase. “You got somewhere I can hide?”
Morgan, still caught off-guard by his sudden intrusion, glanced over. “Um, she usually doesn’t go into my bedroom—Hey! Don’t go there!”
Enrique ran up the stairs, passing by rooms until he saw one with the leg of a large bed. He raced inside.
“What the heck?”
He froze as he gazed at the interior of the bedroom. The walls were a vivid polka-dot pink and plastered with posters of young Anima women.
There were women in dresses with cat ears and tails, bunny women with tights and shorts, wolf women in casual wear, and one or two who had horns.
The ones that stood out to him, however, were a cluster of photos in the center that all showed Vi. In most of them she wore the black top and shorts he had seen before, but in others she wore a black and white servant’s uniform.
The door flew open and Morgan entered. “This is my room! Are you always this nosy?” She looked flustered and her face was bright red.
“What’s all this stuff?” He motioned to the posters.
She looked a little frightened. “It’s—um. They’re models. They pose for me sometimes. I like fashion.” She gestured to a large closet beside her bed, full of brightly colored hats, robes, and cloaks.
“Oh. I thought you were a therapist and an adventurer.”
“I’m a woman of many talents,” the witch bragged.
“But why’s Vi there? She didn’t say anything about modeling.”
She looked at the photos with him. “Well…um…” Morgan blushed. “Sometimes I take photos, but I don’t pay her or anything like that. Oh…look at that. Wow.”
His eyes flickered to the witch. Morgan stared rather hungrily at the pictures. She was practically drooling.
He eyed the photos. “Um…if they’re models, why is Vi wearing the same clothes in half the pictures?”
“Ack!” Morgan blinked. “Well! Humph!” She put her hands on her hips. “I wouldn’t expect you to understand! It doesn’t matter if your kind are Anima or humans, you’re always the same!”
He frowned. “What does that mean?”
“I…ugh! Fine! Do I have to spell it out loud for you, you dunce?”
Morgan glared at him. She looked less scared and embarrassed now, and more like she was about to erupt in flame and roast him. “I’m gay.”
He stared at her. “Oh. All right.”
“Well? You’ve got a problem with that?” she asked angrily.
Enrique thought for a moment. “No. Not really. It’s got nothing to do with me.”
He went to the closet and inspected some of the clothes.
Morgan’s furious facade faded. “Oh. Geez. You don’t seem that bad. Here, let me help you out a little.”
She went to the closet and rummaged around, sliding hangers to the side. “I wasn’t totally lying about the fashion part. Every adventurer needs a protective outfit, to start with. I got a few sizes that could fit you. Hm…purple robe—nope! Pink robe, black suit—nah, orange cloak, green cloak. Here, let’s try this.”
She took out the orange cloak. “This one’s a good deal. A layer of defensive spells, armored fibers—not as strong as armor, but good against magic and projectiles. People who want to move fast like jackets and cloaks. Cool, eh?”
She draped it around Enrique, and he was surprised at how snugly it fit. It was a bit loose, sure, but he felt he could grow into it. She moved him towards the bedroom mirror.
“Yeah. That’s cool.” He felt himself grinning.
“Now the finishing touch!” Morgan picked out an orange pointed hat from the closet with a flourish. “This is a battle mage hat. It’s for both guys and girls. Got it at a secondhand sale. It comes in handy sometimes. Need to protect your head at least a little, you know?”
He adjusted the hat as she placed it on. The conical piece had a curved point at the top. He expected it to look silly, but he kind of liked the appearance.
The outfit had a sharp, serious feel to it. He also wouldn’t stand out much compared to people in the pairs he’d seen walking around him.
Morgan gave him a once-over and a thumbs-up in approval. “Not bad, not bad. ‘Course, you won’t compare to my partner whenever I get her.”
He glanced over. “It’s harder to get paired because of your preference, right?”
“Destiny’s discriminatory,” she sniffed. “It’s already hard enough filtering humans to be sent to our world, but the magic also needs compatible partners. I need a girl who at least likes girls. Otherwise she wouldn’t get me, you get me?”
“Uh-huh. Are you and Vi—”
“Argh! I wish! She keeps rejecting me. Something about us not being a natural fit. Load of baloney, I say!” She shook a fist in indignation.
Enrique raised his eyebrows at this. He swished his cloak a bit, feeling the gun Vi had given him underneath.
I wonder, do equipment have stats too? He took out his phone and pointed it at his cloak. A screen with text popped up.
Mage cloak. A standard wizard or witch’s uniform customized for combat and channeling the fire element.
Physical defense: 100
Magical defense: 300
Magical attack boost: 50
Grade: B
“Those are basically advertisements,” Morgan informed him with a grin. “Not an official thing like profiles. But I can vouch for my clothes. I’ve checked them over and made some enhancements on them.”
“Ah. Okay.”
He couldn’t help himself. He tried the hat:
Battle mage hat. Traditional hat worn by apprentices following the order of the Giant Killer.
Physical defense: 20
Magical defense: 30
Magical attack boost: 10
Grade: C
“Now if only you had a weapon,” the witch mused, looking thoughtful.
“I got one.” He pulled out his aqua-black pistol.
“Wowza! Moon and stars!” Morgan jumped a little. “Where’d you get that? That’s a high-tier double-grade weapon, at least!”
“Vi gave me it.”
Morgan peered at the weapon. “I’m jealous,” she muttered. “Custom lettering, solid metal. Looks like a really capable Stone Lord forged it. There’s an amplifier, like on my scepter, but way more high-caliber. Even if you have weak magic it’ll boost you like crazy.”
“Whoa. Cool.” He gazed at the blue-black sheen, wondering how she had figured that out by looking at it.
“Not to mention, it’s already been dumped with a huge load of Anima mana. You channel your spirit magic in there, it’ll mix with the mana, and elemental bullets will blow out like a miniature cannon. Must’ve cost the King’s gold to make this crazy item.”
“Spirit magic?”
“Yeah, plain old magic. The one we Anima use all the time. Makes you glow with an aura. Like a—like a holiday tree.”
Morgan cocked her head at him as he just stared at her blankly.
“But how do I use that? The magic, I mean?”
“What?” Morgan blinked at him, uncomprehending. She held out a hand and a small flame appeared in front of it, like a candle. “Just use it. It’s already inside you.” The flame vanished just as quickly.
“What—”
“Oh, stars! I need to get ready! Vi’s going to come soon.” Morgan checked her phone and brushed her suit nervously. She picked up her brown purse.
He tried to listen for any suspicious noises, but couldn’t hear anything outside the closed door. “How did you two meet, anyways?”
Morgan’s eyes lit up. “It was amazing! Changed my life. Let me tell you the story.”
“No thanks. I should get going—”
“Hang on! Here.” Morgan strode to her table, which had several pens, papers, and strange accessories scattered wildly over it. The items included amulets with markings on them, like bracelets, rings, and necklaces. She found a star-shaped charm necklace and hung it on the doorknob. It glowed with green light.
“Soundproof spell,” she explained. “Now nobody outside can hear us. Got to make sure I don’t leak any state secrets.”
He let her speak.