Sitting down at the table, Owen laughed as Vesper closed the door behind her.

“What do you mean you are fine? There was so much blood. Of course, I would freak out. I thought you had to flee the Dungeon because you were injured.”

“Yeah, one of them got me,” Owen said as he touched his scar, “After I healed up, I went ahead and destroyed it.”

“Oh, you used a potion? Well, I guess your life is definitely worth a few silver.” Vesper said as she sat at the table, placing a basket and small bowl onto the table. Looking into the basket, Owen saw loose cloth, needle, and thread.

“Wait,” Vesper continued, “You destroyed it? Was it really that easy? We’ve always been told by the Count that anyone, besides one of his chosen Knights, was sure to fail.”

“It’s definitely not easy, at least by yourself. The monsters were simple at first, but then it got more difficult. There were even a few simple traps.” As Owen told her an edited story, she handed him a wet cloth, and using it, he began to clean off the dried blood. “Well, I’m happy you’re not hurt,” Vesper said as she touched his hand, grabbing the stained cloth and returning it to the bowl.

“I’ll be right back with some food. Do you need a set of trousers?”

“Huh, oh no, I have another pair.”

“I’ll be right back then,” Vesper smiled as she stood up and gathered the bowl and basket. Reaching the door, she turned and looked at Owen. With a wave, she left, leaving Owen alone in the house.

“I really need to think more,” Owen said as he tossed his stained trousers to the ground. Grabbing his other uniform out of his pack, he quickly changed. “Should I have been able to destroy the Dungeon? Was this just some kinda hazing rite? If I wouldn’t have had my Disinfectant, I would have been fucked. I have no med kit, no gauze, nothing. Now that I think about it, seeing someone just enter what you’ve been told is a deathtrap, then coming back out all bloody. Yeah, her reaction makes much more sense. But was it? A pair of Gobbo’s and a shitty trap. Definitely do-able. A pair of Warriors, hard but not impossible. Hell, if you would go in there with a full party, it would be a cakewalk. So why were they told it’s the opposite. Ugh.” Owen stood up and began pacing in frustration.

“Is this even my problem? Do I get involved in the local politics? Should I, I don’t fucking know. Dammit, I can’t even read the language. I’m so fucking lost. Is this normal or not? I have no reference to compare it with.” Taking a deep breath, Owen tried to calm down. I’m here, mission completed. Maybe I need to talk to the Captain when I get back. I just need something, some kinda baseline. Sitting back down at the table, Owen laid his head down on it. “Yeah, I’ll ask the Captain, see what that gets me. If I don’t get any straight answers, I’ll just leave.” Owen mumbled under his breath. Just then, the door opened again, and Vesper walked in smiling.

“I brought some food, Owen!” She said cheerfully as she walked over to the table. Setting the food down, she grabbed the other chair and sat beside Owen. “Are you okay?”

“I look that bad, huh,” Owen weakly responded, turning his head to face her. “I guess the adrenaline is running out, and I just feel so stupid.”

“Adrenaline?” Vesper asked, “Is that what the Potions are called? Is this some kinda after-effect? Are you okay?” Seeing her genuine concern, Owen couldn’t help but smile.

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“No. No. Adrenaline is the feeling you get when doing something exciting or stressful. Tell me, Vesper, you’ve hunted Gobbos before, right? What else do you do here as a Ranger?”

“Oh, well, if you sit up and eat some stew, I’ll tell you,” Vesper said, returning the smile. Before he could answer, Owen’s stomach answered for him with a loud growl.

“Yeah, you’re right. Thank you, Vesper.” Owen said as he lifted his head and slowly began to eat.

“Well, it’s easy to answer your question, Owen. My main job is to use my class to hunt down any game I can find. Around here, we usually see Deer as well as Bunny’s. Thanks to my Class, I can track them, and normally, I can get an arrow or two in them before they fire off their Magic.”

“Yeah, I killed a Gust Deer before. Scared me when it shot off a blade of wind.”

“Exactly,” Vesper agreed while taking another bite of her food before continuing. “While I’m out, I’ll kill any Gobbo’s I find so we can sell their cores to a merchant. It also increases the chance I’ll find a Deer. We don’t have much farmable land, so the meat helps keep everyone fed.” She said as she stared into her bowl.

“Are you the only fighter here then?”

“Yeah, everyone else is either unclassed or a crafter.”

“Aren’t you scared? What if monsters attacked the village?”

“Always…” Vesper softly answered, “It’s why we close the gates so early and I hunt so often. It wouldn’t be this hard if it weren’t for the Church’s Laws.”

“What Law?” Owen asked, “I know they have lots of them, but I don’t know which one we’re talking about.”

“Why? Why do you have to be handsome and dumb.”

“Oh, you think I’m handsome, huh?” he said, making a dumb face.

“Anyway,” she blurted out, trying to change the subject, “A few Season’s ago, the Church announced that small villages like ours are only allowed a single Classer.”

“What, that’s so stupid.”

“You are so lucky we are out in a village. If anyone from the Church heard that, you would be jailed,” she said while laughing. “We had another Classer before, a short man named Leo. You either have to move to the city and work there, or the Church sends you on a Pilgrimage. Since I was the Elder’s daughter, Leo left for the Capital. He was such a gentleman for a Brawler. I hope he’s doing okay.”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Owen tried to reassure her, “If you ever need help, just come to the town; our chapter will always help out.”

“I will, Owen. Hopefully, I never have to. Anyway, enough about that, tell me about your travels? Have you seen the Ocean before? I’ve only heard about it since the Merchants love to talk.” Glad for the topic shift, Owen told her about the places he’d seen. The Pacific Ocean, the Redwoods, the enormous mountains. Everything from California to Afghanistan. While Owen ranted on and on about things, Vesper just looked at him. Noticing for the first time since they’d met, he had a genuine smile.

“You really liked those memories, huh, Owen? Did you do all that traveling with your family? What was it like using the Warp Gates?” Caught off guard by the comment, Owen blushed slightly before he responded.

“Well, yeah,” trying to come up with a plausible answer, he continued, “My family was a Mercenary family. We traveled the whole world and saw the good and the bad. I just try remembering the happy times since I’ve lost most of them.”

“I’m sorry, Owen,” Vesper said, reaching across the table to hold his hand, “I lost my mother a few seasons after Valari was born. Since we don’t have a Church, there’s no local Cleric. Mom thought it would be fine since she had no issues with me. Something went wrong, though, and she got sick. A few years later, she just didn’t wake up.”

“It’s okay. As long as you never forget them, they’re never really gone.”

“That’s a perfect way to look at it, Owen. You’ve gotten to see so much. I’ve never been further than Moonkeep. Part of me hopes Valari will take me as a guard when she gets Merchant. That leaves Dad here all alone, though, and I just don’t know what to do.”

“Well, the best thing to do would be to talk to them. They can’t read your mind, Vesper.” Owen laughed, “Besides, it’s late, shouldn’t you head home?”

“Well, I told Dad you were injured, and I was treating you. So I don’t think we have to worry about anything.”

“Oh,” Owen responded, slightly confused. Looking at her face, it finally clicked. “Ohhhhhh.”