Nearly a week had passed since Shango had awoken in this new world and 14 days since they had summoned him. The sun had just risen, and morning dew could still be seen dripping from the nearby plants.

Ave and Rolla made their way to Shango’s room as soon as they had woken up after quickly bathing and dressing. The two spent most of the night preparing for the days event. Just like Shango, they also were excited to find out what his element was and which path he would walk. Would he become a Knight who inspires his allies and strike fear in the heart of his enemies or become a fearsome mage with abilities to influence the outcome of a battle significantly? No matter what path he walked, they knew he was bound for greatness. Where this unfaltering faith came from, even they didn’t know.

As the two women approached Shango’s room, they notice that four guards, one woman, and three men stood outside of his door. The woman wore a silver chain mail, silver gloves and matching leg protectors. Her slick black hair was shoulder-length, and one of her eyes was a stunning moonlight color while the other was covered with a white eyepatch. She was in her late 20s and had a cold businesswoman aura about her.

The man beside her wore a plain white robe, and had brown eyes and a head full of gray hair that reached below his waist. He was an older fellow about 40 and his face would have been considered handsome if it was not for the large scar that went across his face.

Across from them were two men. One was large with an overly big battle ax scraped to his back, and the other was about two heads shorter with several daggers hanging around his waist. Both of them wore black hoods that covered their faces and they gave off a strong, deadly atmosphere.

As Ave and Rolla approached the room, the four guards’ eyes rested on them. Walking closer, Ave greeted two of them.

“Good Morning, Dame Aldusa and Sir Bertram.”

Aldusa gave her a small nod while Bertram gave her smile full of teeth. “Morning Princess, I see you’re still as beautiful as a rose covered in morning dew.” Both Ave and Rolla let out a small sigh, and even Aldusa beside him showed an annoyed expression.

“I see you don’t stop with the flattery, Sir Bertram,” she said with a little smile on her face. These were two that Ave trusted the most after Rolla. Aldusa was the most skilled knight in her family, surpassing all other males by a considerable margin. For some unknown reason, she was banished from her family when her older brother became the head of the family after her father passed.

Bertram was a well-respected Mage within the Mage community but was ousted due to rumors concerning his personal life. No one knew the full story about the rumors, but whatever it was, it was enough to get him to expelled from the Mage community and ostracized by many nobles.

Even without knowing their full back story, the loyalty these two had shown over the years of serving underneath her was enough to earn her trust.

“Did he try to leave the room?”

“No, Princess, the hero has been fast asleep since you two last left.” Bertram said, still smiling from ear to ear.

“Okay then, you four may go. Rolla and I will look after him now.”

“Yes, princess.”

“We can’t, princess!”

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Hearing the two men behind her, Ave turned around and faced the two. She was planning on just ignoring the them since she knew they were sent by her father.

“And why can’t you follow that order?”

“We are under orders from King Mortimer to monitor the person in this room.”

Ave knew that it would be impossible to get rid of these men, so she chose to compromise with them.

“You may stay, but guard from the shadows. It may be a bit too much for too many unknown individuals to accompany the hero.”

The two men gave each other a look, the taller one giving his partner a dagger a nod.

“As you wish, princess.”

With that, the two disappeared as if they were only a mirage. With that done, Ave gave a nod to Rolla.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

A few seconds passed and there was still no answer, so Rolla continued to knock.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

“Do you think he is still asleep?” Ave asked Rolla. She knocked a few more times. If Shango were still injured, she would have walked in like before, but now since he was not wounded, it would have been rather rude to walk in.

After knocking a few more times, Rolla opened the door just wide enough to look in, only to find Shango spread out on the bed, pants half off and covers all over the floor while steadily asleep.

Rolla’s cheeks turned red. Even though she acted the part of a mature older sister, she was just as inexperienced as Ave when it came to the matters between men and women.

Wondering why Rolla was standing looking into the room, Ave looked over her shoulder to see the sight of Shango spread out on the bed with his little hero ready for combat, waving from left and right as if it was greeting her.

A gasp escaped Ave’s mouth. Rolla quickly pulled herself together before opening the door and walking towards Shango.

She first put his pants back on and then gently began nudging him. After a few seconds passed, Shango still did not wake up, so she put more strength into. If Yuki was here, she would have looked at Rolla with pity.

Since childhood, she had always been tasked with waking Shango. She was late numerous times due to trying to wake him, but he was good as dead when sleeping. There was also the fact that he would sleep naked from time to time.

After a while of Shango not waking up, Rolla and Ave became a bit worried.

“I have an idea!” Ave said and hurriedly left the room while Rolla continued to try to wake Shango.

About 10 minutes later, Ave returned with Aldusa in tow.

She had a questioning look on her face, wondering why Princess Ave was dragging her away from her sleeping quarters after she had just arrived there.

“Could you lend a hand in waking the hero?” Ave asked Aldusa.

“Such a simple task, Princess Ave. Sure I’ll help you.” She then walked over to the sleeping Shango. She lifted Shango by his armpits like a baby and give him a gentle shake at first.

Pausing for a moment, she looked at Ave and asked, “Princess Ave, can I be a little rough with him?”

“Sure.”

With that, she mustered up more of her strength and tossed Shango get into the air. At that, Shango woke up.

When he looked down, all he saw was a woman with her arms wide open like a husband readying himself to catch his wife in his arms. Her face showed no sign of emotion, but her one eye contains a hint of playfulness.

Looking around, he realized he was still in the same room that he had first woken up in, but something was different, something felt off. Suddenly, a familiar feeling hit Shango. A feeling he had only felt once, and that was when Yuki had begged him to get on the free fall ride at Six Flags. To Shango, who already had a dreadful fear of heights, rides like that were terrifying to him. The only reason he even agreed to get on that ride that one time was because he had lost a small bet to her earlier. Otherwise, there would have been no way in hell he would have gotten on such thing; he firmly believed people who enjoyed such things were nutcases.

Finally, fully awake and realizing his situation, Shango panicked and swung his arms and legs all about, trying to grab on to anything but only grabbing a handful of air each time.

Watching the scene before them unravel, Rolla and Ave nearly died from laughing. Rolla, who was usually composed, had her hand on her stomach, laughing to the point of being unable to breathe. Similarly, Ave was almost in tears from laughing so much.

Before he was about to hit the floor, he was caught. For a while, the room was silent. The only thing that could be heard was Shango’s rough breathing.

Soon, Ave and Rolla were no longer able to contain their laughter; they let it all out. Even Aldusa had a little small on her face. Seeing everyone laughing at him, Shango became utterly embarrassed.