Ow. That kid almost crushed my hand. Isen thought as he was wrapping his hand with cloth. And those moves… Hells, I mean, I’m still quicker – duh – but still… Impressive… Annoying, but impressive. It’s clear someone’s been hitting the karate lessons hard… Wait…. What’s karate? Ow! His thoughts broke as he grazed his hand on one of his sore fingers.

“Ok, I think that should be fine, I guess I’ll just go see Oren to see if he needs something.” Isen mutters to himself, as he stands up and disappears into the crowd.

….

“Hey Max! You alright? What’s with that gaze?” Charlie asked while running a hand over his short silver hair.

“He got away.” Max utters to himself with a look of disbelief that someone had gotten away from him.

“Who got away?” Charlie asked confused.

“A kid. He got away when I grabbed him. He was trying to mug me, but he wasn’t successful. When I tried to throw him to the ground, he did a flip and disappeared into the crowd.” Max explained.

Charlie let’s out a chuckle, “Well little brother, you win some you lose some best to just let it go. Here, I got this for you,” as he tosses something out of his pocket to Max. “I know I shouldn’t give this to you before lunch, but this always cheers you up.”

“Gummy bears!” Max exclaims as he catches the candy and quickly eats it.

“I knew that would do it,” Charlie grins smugly. “How about we get some lunch over at Ronald’s? I hear he’s making a new dish made from fried potato strips,” as he pats his little brother’s head, he put his arms around his shoulders, and they set off.

…

The Golden Spire Inn is a peculiar establishment. It has become the talk of the realm due to its unique offerings and services. Its proprietor, Ronald Spudwell, had brought it up to be the premier establishment for travelers across the kingdoms. This four-star establishment emanates a novel experience for its clientele.

Darn it, Oren. This isn’t quite what I had in mind when I asked if you needed something. Isen thought to himself while scrubbing some pots and pans.

As Isen was thinking about how Oren “pulled a fast one” on him, a voice from behind startled him. “Isen, my boy, so glad you could join us today. Oren told me such wonderful things about you.” The voice was melodious and refined, with a playful, theatrical quality. He grinned. It was Ronald, the owner of the Golden Spire Inn.

I couldn’t hear him from come from behind… How’d he do that? Isen thought.

“As you see, we are currently very, very busy, and I do appreciate the help you are rendering us. I do wish that you could be here more often. Such talent like yours would be a shame to go to waste,” Ronald added.

What’s this clown talking about? Isen’s thoughts filled with frustration. He felt something off about the proprietor, yet he could not point out what it was. But one thing for sure, he was a dangerous man.

“Ah, look at the time. It’s been a pleasure chatting, but unfortunately, I must leave. I will talk to you soon, my dear boy.” Ronald said with a warm smile as he left Isen to do the rest of his chores.

…

“Order what you want, my treat.” Charlie said as they settled on an empty table.

Not long after getting situated, Ronald, the inn’s flamboyant proprietor came in next to them and greeted them. “Ah Charles, always a pleasure to see you. How is the King and Queen?”

Charlie looked up and saw Ronald. “Thank you, Ronald, good to see you too. They’re doing great. Father had been busy meeting with the nobles and raising Tristan to be the next ruler, while mother spends a lot of her time with Mari on some secret magical research.”

“Ah yes, that is good to know. Send my regards to them, it’s been ages since we have sat down together for tea like before.” He said with a smile while maintaining his melodious tone. Ronald then turned to Max, “My, my, my, and little Maximilian, how are you my dear boy?” He flashed a warm smile and looked at Maximillian.

“Hi Ronald,” Max greeted. “It’s so nice to see you! I’m great! Thanks for asking. Charlie and I were just walking around town, and we decided to eat at your place. We heard you have a new dish coming out?” He added.

“My good lad you are not wrong in the news that you have heard. We have developed a dish that is of the utmost simplicity yet very complex and extravagant. This culinary masterpiece could as well be my very own magnus opus.” Ronald exclaimed with such animated excitement and enthusiasm.

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Charlie and Max looked puzzled.

“Imagine crispy golden strips of potato, perfectly seasoned, and served hot. The wonderful crispness on the outside contrasted by the pillowy, soft, and fluffy texture of the inside. They are served with a delectable sweet and tangy tomato puree that complements the dish in a very delectable way,” He added. “But don’t just take my word for it, try it for yourself.” He called one of the servers, “Oh Halet, could you have Isen bring a plate of our most luxurious, piping hot Spud Fritters.”

“Yes sir,” Halet replied.

Max’s silvery blue eyes glimmered with anticipation.

He then turns over to Charlie. “While we wait, oh Charles, do tell me what you have been up to. You seemed positively brimming with excitement as of late.”

Charlie chuckled, “We’ve discovered some old ruins East of our lands. There seems to be evidence of a hidden passage underneath. We don’t know what’s inside so far, as we have not fully explored the area. But it’s rumored to be an ancient dungeon as told by the villagers in the area. However, we gotta make sure it’s safe to explore first.”

“My oh my, that does sound exciting, doesn’t it? And yes, safety most definitely should come as the prio-”

Before Ronald could finish his sentence, Maximillian slams his hands on the wooden table, points, and yells, “YOU!?” Ronald and Charlie look to their side, “Why are you here?!” Max added with a slight note of anger and a tinge of frustration in his voice.

The individual Max was pointing at was Isen, who had brought them the plate of spuds. He was also the same individual that had a slight altercation with Max earlier that day. Without warning, Max sprang from his seat with every intention of attacking, but Charlie quickly grabbed hold of Max’s shoulders. “Let’s not cause a scene here Max.”

Before Charlie could continue, a rather large man took advantage of the commotion. He flipped the table and yelled “Everyone down!” the man demanded, “this is a robbery!” Soon after, twelve other men stood up all in different locations of the room. The patrons shrieked and scrambled on the floor. Some tried running outside, but they were caught and were ruthlessly cut down by the bandits.

Ronald sighed, “That’s the fifth one this month. These miscreants are becoming a real nuisance.” He turned to Charlie and said, “Charles, could you perhaps be a dear and do me a favor by handling things here? I have business that I need to attend to.”

Charlie nodded, “Yeah, we’ll take care of this.”

“My, you’re such a delight,” Ronald said. “Oh, and please do take care of little ‘ole Isen here a bit. He’s rough around the edges but he’s a good child.” He grinned and left for the kitchen. “Halet, Grim, come. We have work to do.”

Charlie glanced at Isen and saw no fear in the lad’s eyes. Only a focused look of determination in analyzing the situation. “Isen, right?” He called out.

“Yeah?” He looked at Charlie.

“Come behind me so I could keep you safe.” Charlie declared.

Isen smirked, “Oh sure, cause nothing screams ‘safe’ like hiding behind a guy who’s about to look like he’s ready to take on the entire horde. But who’s keeping track, really.”

Charlie chuckled, “I’m surprise your still alive with that kind of mouth on you.”

Isen shrugged. “Well, what can I say? My charm is bulletproof.” He catches a puzzled look on Charlie’s face. What’s bulletproof? What’s wrong with me? Why do I keep saying weird things? “I meant… sword-proof. Sorry, tongue twisters.” Then, Isen changes the look on his face. “Besides, I’ve been waiting for a chance against these guys. They’ve been harassing our camp for quite some time now.”

Charlie smiled, “Very well, you take the one on the right. The closest to your right.” He looked at Max, “Max! You take the one on your left. Also, now might be a good time to practice that move I taught you.”

Max glanced at Charlie, then at Isen, then back at Charlie. “Fine, but if that kid becomes a burden to us-”

Charlie cut him off. “It’s fine Max. Go do what I told you. This is part of your training.” He looks at Isen, “and you mister, don’t die.” He wears his heavy gauntlets and adjusts them, securing them on his arms. He then starts walking to the behemoth of a man, which could possibly be the leader of the group.

Max pulls out his training sword, closes his eyes, and breathes out. Ok. Remember what Charlie taught you. As he breathed out, Max opened his eyes and with a shimmering glint of his blue eyes, launched an attack on one of the bandits. The bandit grinned thinking this was going to be easy as he was about to attack a child. He raised his dagger lunging forward in a thrusting motion, trying to stab Max in the neck.

…

Isen, stared down at the man standing in front of him. “Oh, look at you, that grin is almost as annoying as your face. I mean, both are about to get ugly, so it doesn’t really matter.” He smirked.

Then, the bandit quickly attacked him with the knife he was wielding. Isen dodged the flurry of attacks the man brought him.

“Stop moving brat!” shouted the bandit.

Isen kept moving around until he reached a spot close to the bar counter. The man grinned as he thought he had cornered the boy. As the man lunged one last time, Isen laughed as the wire trap that he had set up tripped the bandit and sent the bandit crashing on the floor, face first. Isen then picked up a glass bottle of wine and hit the bottle on the bandit’s head, breaking the bottle and knocking him out.

Max was surprised that the bandit launched an attack. He was not surprised by the attack itself, but rather, how slow the attack was coming. He stepped to his right, avoiding the knife, dropped his sword stance down and slashed upward, hitting the man’s jaw. He slashed again, but this time, it was in a downward horizontal motion breaking the man’s collarbone. As he was about to ready his third slash, Max realized that the man had been unconscious from his second attack. He then pulled back his attack and sheathed his sword. Good thing I only brought my dull practice sword. Or it would’ve been an awful time for this man. Max thought, staring at the unconscious bandit sprawled on the floor.

Charlie asked, “You two done yet?” while brushing his silver hair up. He glanced at the boys in the back as they wrapped up their assignments.

They nodded over to him.

“Good,” he said as he took off his gauntlets and walked over to the huge bandit on the floor. “Mhm. Red Scythe Syndicate,” he muttered, taking notes for himself, then directing his attention to the boy. “Now, you boys, let’s talk.” He grinned slyly.