Tolling bells echo throughout the town. The townsfolk flood the open space of the Church of Naiomi. They stand there, looking up in anticipation like fish in a pond waiting to be fed. All except for Leor, who is leaning against a wall with his arms crossed and a distasteful look on his face. He thinks to himself, “Why did the client make this the meeting spot? I hate listening to this nonsense”.

A sudden outburst of screams interrupts Leor’s thoughts. His gaze is directed to the cause of the unusually loud uproar. A mature, well-aged man, in his 40’s, dressed in fancy, religious robes steps up to the balcony of the church that protrudes out like a stage. The crowd’s cheers of joy feel like sharp pricks in Leor’s ears.

The man raises his hand and on command, the audience falls silent. He pulls out a golden staff with bladed wings on the tip and taps the ground two times with the base. A large translucent gold magic circle forms in the sky above the people.

The man speaks into his staff and a firm, yet soothing voice projects from the circle. To the people, it’s as if the heavens were speaking down directly to them. To Leor, it makes him want to jab his eardrums with pins.

“People of Thálassa, let us begin our day by honoring the Gods who have gifted us these peaceful times that we live in. Let us thank your town’s savior, Lady Naiomi of the Sea. She has blessed this town with prosperity through trade and clean water. You must make sure to continue to offer your soul and pray to her. Those who do so will undoubtedly be rewarded for their loyalty. But heed my warning, do not abuse the powers of the Gods. We, mere mortals, can only show gratitude for these gifts, and abuse will surely lead to our demise.”

He pauses for the audience to absorb his words and thank their god.

“And, let us not forget the one who brought unity amongst humankind and even the Gods themselves, Lord Ludwig. Without him, we may have not survived the Great Calamity many decades ago. As Lord Ludwig once said, 'We have to accept everyone, even if they are unjustly different.’

He lifts his staff and points to the sky. The crowd can feel the warmth from his smile like the sun rays above.

“We all think we are doing the right thing because we believe it to be so. We all have our own way of living. What you decide to sacrifice for your own beliefs is of your own choosing.….”

Leor scoffs at the so-called motivational speech, and drowns out the remainder of it. As the event comes to an end, Leor intensely watches the crowd as they disperse, and overhears a conversation between two sailors.

“Let’s hurry and make our way to the shrine. We need to beat the line and ask for a safe and bountiful catch today.”

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“Yeah, we definitely don’t want to end up on Lady Naiomi’s bad side.”

The two sailors with worried looks on their faces briskly walk to the southern shrine near the harbor.

Leor rolls his eyes. “Tsk. We need to beg to fish now?” spits Leor.

A familiar voice catches Leor’s attention.

“Hey, are you Leor?”

Leor turns to look at the person as they slightly lift their hood to reveal their face.

“Y-you’re -”

The man quickly puts his finger on his lips. “Shhhh! We don’t need a hoard of people rushing at us. Let’s go somewhere more private to talk. Follow me.”

Leor regains his composure. “I don’t know what you want, but I’m waiting for a client.”

The man rolls his eyes. “You blockhead. I am the client. Now, follow me.” He pulls Leor along into an alleyway.

“YOU’RE the client!? You’re the priest who just gave the speech, right!?”

The priest chuckles a bit, clears his throat, and speaks softly. “You saw that? It’s quite embarrassing to give dramatic speeches like that, especially in front of large groups of people.”

Once they are completely out of sight, the priest pauses for a moment and turns to Leor.

“Anyway, yes, I am the client. Call me, Alden. Alden Ainsworth of the Ouranós Family. Pleased to meet you, Sir Mercena-".

“Wait, wait, wait”, interrupts Leor. “Let’s backtrack. You need to answer my questions. First off, how’d you know I was the one you hired?”

“Well, I didn’t hire you. I had a secret third party hire you and they gave me a description of what you look like. Once I saw you in the crowd, I knew it was you. I mean the description they gave was pretty spot-on: he’s dressed in all black and is of Eastern descent. Since you’re one of the few Eastern residents in this country and you look like you’re going to a funeral, you were pretty easy to spot”, laughs Alden.

Leor looks away in slight embarrassment. “And here I thought I looked discreet.“

He rubs his chin as he thinks. “Alright, next question, why’d the capital hire me? Couldn’t you get a royal envoy to escort you or whatever fancy entourage?”

“I could’ve, but those guys are no fun. They’re all business and never let me do anything. Hiring you would let me see what normal life is like!”

Leor stares blankly at Alden who, despite being an older fellow, has a youthful look in his eyes.

“Then, how abou-”

Alden lifts his hand to Leor. “That’s enough questions for now. We should get a move on.”

“Hold up. I’m not about to escort you. I don’t know if the Church told you anything, but I don’t get along with your people.”

“That’s exactly why you’d be my best disguise. No one will expect me to travel with a non-believer outcast, such as yourself!”, chuckles Alden. Whether intentional or not, the subtle dig makes blood rush to Leor’s head.

Alden scrambles through his garbs and tosses a small leather pouch at Leor. “Here’s a small advance to get the journey to Lightendale started.”

Leor pries the bag open and his eyes blow up at the sight of gold coins. Comparing the contents of his pouch to this one, it’s night and day in every way, the weight, the engravings, and the fact that it’s made of gold.

“H-how much is this?” His voice cracks.

“A hundred gold coins. The remaining nine hundred will be given at the end.”

He clears his throat and tucks the pouch into a hidden pocket inside his cloak. “V-very well. Let’s hurry and get this over with. By the way, I’m not going to call you ‘lord’ or anything like that.”

“That’s fine! I want you to treat me like a normal person. I’m tired of all those stuffy honorifics anyway.” smiles Alden. He walks out of the alley with Leor quietly following behind. “Oh, and we need to meet up with one of my associates. She’s waiting by the bell tower and has a horse and a cart ready to go.”