Blake got his armor and halberd packed and bundled to avoid attention, his walk to Rowin’s was pleasant, the local gossip he hears is about the baron's house being destroyed and that the divine herald had appeared in the city, while others saying it was a demon here to ready the city for invasion, he doesn’t do much or add to the rumors.

As he walked into the shop he overheard a heated argument, and most of it is over the price of what one person was trying to sell. As he walked in he saw the big minotaur looming as menacingly as possible, facing him as a teenager dressed in old armor, he had a shock of gray hair and a well-built form, slapping a sword and shield on the counter.

“Come on this stuff is worth at least a gold piece, they are mostly new and made of good metal.” the teen said back loudly.

Rowin snort out his nose, “No way, I don’t care how new it is, I am not buying your equipment, it would be a waste for a heavy knight to lose his gear.” He growled back.

“I’ll come and buy them back later, or get new ones from you in a few days, just buy it off me.” The teenager said quickly.

Blake walked over and looked over the shield and sword, The sword was a short sword about the length of a gladius, and based on the scabbard it was a single-edge blade that curved backwards at the last three inches. The shield was a slightly oversized kite shield and had nicks and cuts in it from minor battles.

“Why do you need the money so fast, with this you could join the guild and get the money easy.” Blake said as he stepped out of the way of the sudden turn of the teenager.

The teenager stared at Blake in surprise for a second then grit his teeth, “None of your business, no one wants a heavy knight, and I need the money now.” he said with a forced anger.

“So if I were to buy those what would you do after?” Blake asked while placing his own things on the counter.

“None of your business, I just need the money.” The teen partly yelled, but his eyes caught Blake off guard, they carried no anger but desperation, a fear for something important to him.

“So, your family, how much is the buying price?” Blake asked flatly.

“What… how… how do you know that!” The teen freed his sword and hopped away from Blake, “Did that bastard send you to kick me while I am down.”

Blake cocked his brow, but turned away and look at Rowin, “Hey Rowin, I need a stronger Halberd, and a new set of armor, my team and I are going after a blood troll, can you help?” Blake asked as he held the bundles out.

“Yeah, just don’t wreck my shop, he is a good kid.” Rowin said as he took the things into the back.

Blake turned back and looked at the teenager, he had broad wide shoulders and thicker arms than most other’s his age, his eyes were vibrant green and his hair short and held out of his face by a headband. What caught Blake's eyes again was the sword, it had, like the shield, signs of minor battle, and was definitely in need of repair or replacement. Blake straightened out and glared at the young man, and clear displeasure at having a sword pointed at him. “I don’t know much, but I guessed your family owed someone some money and you were trying to raise the money by selling your gear after you found out that most in the guild are idiots, you likely also went to the city guard to see about working for them too, so I asked how much is your family worth to you?”

The teenager grits his teeth harder, “Why do you want to know, maybe you will use them to make me bait for the troll?” he asks as his mind tries to make logical reasons as to why he is being asked.

[Yeah, you are not a good bait, but you are a heavy knight which if I remember correctly is a tanking class.] Blake thought as snorted a laugh then cleared his throat, “No, I hate slavery, I was going to offer you a deal, it is clear that you love your family and if the situation was different, you wouldn’t be willing to be an adventurer.” Blake extended his hand with the palm up as an offering, “I am asking so I can know how much I can demand of you in return, but based on your reactions and expression you care deeply so I am going to demand the most. Join my team as my apprentice, you will be paid fair and will be expected to keep up with the rest of the team. Lastly, you will learn how a class like yours is meant to fight, and how to use your class to protect your family. In return, I will give you both the money to free your family and a bit extra for them to get back on their feet, more over I will actively lend a hand in their protection. That is the deal, do you accept?”

The teenager falters as he hears the deal, his readied stance relaxes and his eyes go a bit wide, but he hardens up a second later, “Why are you offering me this, you look like a Warrior, wouldn’t you be better off getting a warrior or swordsmen, or some other class as an apprentice?”

Blake tilted his head a bit at the question, jogging his mind a bit to think of a answer, “Because my class is not a warrior, however, is close to the heavy knight class, I hope to see you inherit my class with some training, if that happens then great, if not you will still learn everything you need to protect your family.” He said back after a second, “besides, I am one of two guys on my team and I could use someone that me and Block can just chill with.”

The teenager loses all his will to fight and drops his guard completely but clinches his teeth hard, trying to keep tears out of his eyes, before reaching up and shaking Blake’s hand. “I accept, I will do my best, but please save my family.”

Blake smiled wide, “Great, I am Blake Winters, Paladin of Juad, Jal, and Geie, the vanguard of Raven’s Wing.”

The teenager wiped his eyes, and shakenly smiled back, “I am William Trancer, Heavy Knight, I’ll be in your care.”

“Great, now how much do you need to free your parents, also bring them here right after you leave.” Blake said as he let go.

“It's my mother and sisters, they can be bought by me today for a gold piece, but I have to hurry before…” Blake slaps three gold pieces into his hand before he can finish, going a bit wide-eyed at the amount of gold he has been given.

“Bring them here right after and don’t let them out of your sight, take your gear with you.” Blake said and watched the young man run off a second later.

Rowin walked back up, “You are really something else, you have bought his loyalty by doing something no one would do, just because it would be beneficial to him regardless of the outcome.” He said as he handed out a halberd. “Here give this a test, and if you like it you can have it at a discount, Also I know a good armorer that you can go to.”

Blake took the halberd, and it felt different, the head was made of what looked like good steel, but was a bit oversized, however, the weight was no different from his last one, and the overall design was similar too. The shaft was well made too, and had been reinforced a bit more than his last one. Blake gave it a few swings and thrusts, the balance was good and the leather on the grip was new too. looking back to the smith with a smile, “It’s perfect for me, how much?”

“One gold” Rowin said back.

Blake rested the halberd on his shoulder, and fetched the coin, and handed it over, “That was discounted?” Blake said as he held the coin from being taken

“Yeah, silver steel weapons normally go for two gold” Rowin said back with honesty and pocketed the coin after Blake let go. “So, as for armor, there is a shop two doors down. The owner is a dwarf called Riagan, don’t let the name fool you, he is a great smith, he is just a bit loud.”

“Yeah, I am looking for good armor, and if he can make something good, I'll take it, I don’t care what he is or where he comes from.” Blake said back and looked about the shop, “About my new apprentice, can you tell me anything?”

Rowin thought it over as he stroked his chin, “His father was a town guard and raised him to be protective of his family, he, unfortunately, died four winters ago, his mother was working in the leather worker's shop a few doors down, his older sister is an enchantress but she never got a job even after she advanced to that class, his younger sister has the class of songstress and used to work at one of the inns. However, his father and mother were borrowing money from one of the local lords to pay for their rent, I guess that lord got sick of waiting for them to pay him back.” He said then looked at Blake with one eye, “So what will you do?”

Blake rubbed his chin, “How about getting the mother and sister to work here, it would improve your product lineup. Think about it, you can sell weapons that have enchantments, and then also enchant the sheath with something to protect the weapons too. Plus adventurers need good boots and bags, if you can sell those too, get the mother to make boots, then have the sister to enchant them with strengthening magic, and boom, the perfect boots for an adventurer.” Blake said with a sly grin as the smith thought it over.

“If they want to, I am not going to use them against their will.” Rowin said back.

The door opened to William walking in followed by two women with silvered hair and blue eyes, and a girl around seven or eight with green eyes and brown hair. All of them were dressed in dirty clothes that had rips and tears, it looked like they had been wearing them when they were taken, The mother and older sister had signs of bruises and scabs from whip lashes, and the older sister had visible black eye, while her other one was swollen closed for the most part. He could also see the slave marks that were placed on the left sides of their necks.

Blake gave off an apologetic smile and raised his hand towards them “Dispel magic, Dispel Curse, Greater Heal, Angel’s song.” he chanted off aloud and willed the magic to remove all the pain and damage to them while mending their clothes and undoing the slave mark so that the lingering scar that it made was gone too. They stood in silence, but Blake extended his hand to the mother, “I am Blake Winters, your son’s master, I plan to make him a Paladin like me, please trust me with his care.”

The mother took a step forward, and took Blake’s hand, “Yes, thank you, Master Winters, we can never truly repay you for all you have done, so I am willing to pay anything you ask.” she said and came to a knee, “I am at your service, I can’t do much but will do anything.” she was joined by her eldest daughter.

“I will do anything too, I will even give you my body if that is your request.” She said while looking away sheepishly.

Blake lifted the mother back up to her feet. “Nothing to repay, I need you to be here and ready to take care of your son, his missions and training will be hard, and he needs the support of his family.” Blake said with a smile, “Also to help you along that path to getting on your feet, i have asked Rowin to hire both of you to work here and produce products to sell. If you want to, this is also the Raven’s Wing exclusive shop so I and William will be coming back here between missions.”

The Family looked a bit shocked, “but why?” the elder sister asked.

Rowin leaned down and answered “Because Blake here is a mastermind of business, and he pointed out that if you make boots and bags while enchanting them my shop can grow, so I am happy to hire you. Plus I plan to pay a fair wage too for your work, so you won’t need to worry about rent again.”

The family looked stunned, but they agreed, then a tug on Blake’s tunic drew his attention, and his eyes landed on the younger sister, “What is it?”

“What about me, what can I do to help?” She asked.

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Blake squatted and patted her hair, “I was thinking you could go and sing at The Guild, it is normally filled with adventurers that need a break, and having someone sing beautiful songs will cheer them up. So after William and I are done here you can come with us and we will talk with the guild to get them to agree to you performing there.” he said with a smile which got her eyes to widen and she nodded.

Blake stood back up and turned to William, “I need to get new armor, you and your sister will follow close.” He turned to the mother, “I am sorry, I didn’t ask if it is ok for her to come with me.”

The mother smiles, and she says “Yes that is alright, I will ask her for details later, I am curious about who you are.”

Blake smiled with a nervous laugh, “Yeah, sure, umm, so we will be going, good luck.” he said as he waved and pushed William and his sister to the door.

As soon as they were out the door, they started to the armorer that Rowin suggested. During their walk, Blake found out that William’s younger sister was named Jill, his other sister was named Jan, and their mother was called Wendy. Apparently, they had been living in a small house a bit away as the crafter district is cheaper, but there are not a lot of inns.

They finally found the armor smith’s shop and stepped inside, the shop had armor lining most of the walls and had good sets of shields hanging from different points off the ceiling. The sounds of hammering coming from the back stopped. They were joined a few seconds later by a stout and thick-muscled man about half of Blake’s height, with a short beard that was singed at the ends.

He looks over at Blake and William, then looks to Jill, sighs to himself, and speaks to himself. “gawask wiaol qyaum” (this will be interesting)

Blake stepped up and smiled, “Hello, I am Blake Winters, I am a Paladin of Juad, Jal, and Geie.” he said with a light bow, then gestured to William and Jill, “This is William Trancer, my apprentice, and his younger sister Jill Trancer. We are looking to get some armor at the suggestion of Rowin.”

The smith shifted a bit, and turned his head a bit more to look at them, “And what would you do if I decided not to sell you anything?” The Smith asked.

[yeah, he is a prideful one.] Blake smiled and stood, “I would thank you for your time and leave to find armor somewhere else.” he said in a refined and respectful tone.

The dwarf turned a bit more, “Oh, you think you can get better armor elsewhere?” he asked.

“No, I can see you are as skilled as Rowin said, but I don’t want to keep you from your work.” Blake said back. “But should you want to help us then we will pay you of course.”

The dwarf chuckled, “I see why Rowin sent you to me, you aren’t like other humans. So, what do you need.” he said with a wide smile.

“I need some armor suitable for a knight however I need it to be lightweight but durable, I would like a similar set for my apprentice, lastly, I need a lightweight chain shirt suitable for Jill to wear under her clothes.” Blake said back calmly, getting a stunned stare from William and Jill, then Blake thought it over, [William’s armor is old and ill-fitting, could it be] Blake turned to William “Hey, Will, is that armor your father’s?”

William blinked twice, “Oh, yeah, it is…”

Blake turned back to the smith, “Actually change that, I would like you to refit the armor and refine it so that it is lighter, just say your price.” he said with a warm tone.

The dwarf walked out from behind the counter and looked over the armor that William was wearing, patting it on some spots and lifting it up here and there. He walked over to Blake looking him over, then let out a sigh “I can get the work on your armors done in two days,” The smith said as he started to walk back behind the counter “As for the chain shirt, I have one that should fit the lass, it's made of sky steel and should work fine. In all, I will need five gold for all of it. But I understand…”

Blake slapped five gold coins down on the counter, to a stunned shock of the smith, along with William and Jill. Blake, however, smiled wide, “I said name your price and I planned to do just that.” he said with a respectful tone and expression, “I wouldn’t sully your skills by haggling over the price you asked for, it would be an insult to my honor and your pride as a smith.”

The smith turned to look at him and narrowed his eyes, a clear effort to figure Blake out, but then started laughing, as he took three of the coins, “You are truly a weird human, I only need three to recover the material cost while making a bit of profit.” The smith looked over to William, “See how your master treats me, that is how you deal with dwarfs. Learn this lesson well and you will never be left wanting for armor and weapons, you too lass.”

Blake smiled back [Yeah, dwarfs are hella prideful, thankfully he is not going to rip me off because I didn’t want to haggle.] he thought then turned to William, “Right let's get that armor off so he can work it, okay.” Blake stepped up and started on one of the pauldron buckles.

“Right, Jill can you help me too?” William said a second after, while he started on the other pauldron.

Jill let out a soft hum as she reached up and helped with the back buckle of the pauldron William was working on. The overall process was smooth, and they got the armor to the smith in no time at all. Once the smith had everything, he needed he turned to Blake, “What kind of armor are you looking for?”

“Well, I am an adventurer, and I am the front line of my team, so I would like something that protects my primary areas, like torso, head, and legs. If you can fit some arm protection then that would be great, I also use a Halberd as my main weapon, but my backup is a sword and shield, so you can go a bit lighter on my right side.” Blake rambled off a bit. “I guess my main focus is something that I can wear for a few days on end.”

The smith let out a hearty laugh then smiled wide, “Right come back tomorrow for a fitting, you too apprentice. As for the lass,” He said and got a chain shirt made of a pale white metal out and held it out for the girl, “Skysteel chain shirt, put it on before you put on your outer layers, and no one will ever know it's there.”

Blake smiled as she took it slowly, handling it with ease, he couldn’t help but lean over and feel the weight and was a bit surprised by its non-existent weight. “Wow that is light, Does Sky Steel have a similar level of durability?” Blake wondered a bit aloud.

“Harder actually, good for making things for younglings, or classes that normally don’t have armor.” The smith said in response to Blake’s musings.

“I’ll have to bring my team here soon, I would like to get armor for all of them.” Blake said with a smile and bowed a bit to the smith “For now we will leave you to your works, Master Smith.” getting the other two to join in his bow before they left the shop.

The rest of their shopping trip was easy, and they finally made their way to the guild, as they stepped in Blake spotted his team, and walked over to the table where the whole team had gathered. “Hey guys, sorry for this bomb but I want to introduce someone.” Blake said and stepped a bit aside to show William and Jill to the party, “These are William and Jill Trancer, William has agreed to be my apprentice, I hope that with help and guidance, he will become a paladin. Jill is his younger sister. I am hoping to get the guild to allow her to sing here as entertainment.”

William bowed a bit, “I am William Trancer, I will be in your care.” he said a bit red-faced.

Jill followed suit, “I am Jill Trancer, please take care of my big brothers.” she requested in a sweet and sisterly voice.

The team greeted them back in quick fashion, and then Claira looked up to Blake, “So, brothers?” she asked pointedly.

But Jill cut him off. “My sister thinks he is a good man and plans to marry him so he will be my big brother too.” She said with all the innocence she had. “She even offered to stay a night with him, so they are definitely getting married soon.”

Blake felt a cold shiver race down his spine and slowly looked back to the death glares from his team.

“Blake, do I need to pen a notice to your mistresses.” Jessica said with an aura of dread.

“Maybe we should tie him up and take him to them, they may reward us.” Claira added.

“Not looking right now…., I don’t like liars Blake, I really don’t” Winry spoke up a second later.

Blake took a step back and raised his hands a bit. “It is not like that, I helped their family out of a bind in return William agreed to be my apprentice, that is it” Blake said calmly, a vain hope to soothe the ladies.

“I apologize for my sister, Blake had paid for my family’s freedom and even used high-tier holy magic to remove any sign that they had been enslaved, when my mother thanked him, she offered to work for him, and my older sister offered to serve him too, even on a physical level.” William said as he stepped between Blake and the table.

“So, what did he say?” Claira asked after him.

And the three looked thought about it, [I didn’t really answer her did I] Blake thought about it.

“He didn’t say no. so that means, yes?” Jill said absentmindedly.

Blake turned slowly to her, stunned in shock, [Why Jill do you want me to die.] he then got hit in the face by Claire and he fell to the ground.

“Damn it Blake, what about those you love, you going to be a hound dog?” She roared with a clenched fist. “How the helgan did you not learn anything, you have to be clear and hard on some things. You didn’t give her a clear answer and now she will wait for you, and if you don’t, she will get depressed, I should kill you for making someone cry.” She raised her hand and summoned an icicle, but her hand was stopped by Block.

“Not here.” he said while shaking his head, “Go talk to her, Blake, make clear.”

“Yeah, I guess I have too. I plan to guide them back to their mother soon and I’ll have a chat with her then.” Blake said as he stood up. “Come on William let's see your score. Jill come along we need to talk with a receptionist.” getting the two to follow as they walked over.

“Your team seems… nice.” William said as they walked.

“Yeah, really lively.” Jill added after him.

“Yeah, they are good people, and they all have a plan for their future, something I hope to see.” Blake said back then looked to Quni as they got up to the counter, “Hey Quni, can we please register William here as an apprentice under me and into Raven’s wing’s roster?”

Quni nodded and gestured to a small mirror, speaking as she did, “For youngsters we do a private screening, that way they don’t get targeted by others for their skill if they are not of age. You are under sixteen right William?”

“Umm yes,” William said nervously while staring at Quni. “I am thirteen.”

“Adorable, just place your hand on this mirror.” She said back to him while turning the mirror.

William placed his hand and a page came out the bottom, Quni looked it over, “Ok, looks like to a rank E, but you are at the upper edge, you can go with Blake on his missions and will be allowed to dive dungeons, however, you will not be allowed to take on a mission on your own.” she said and handed the page over to William, then pulled out the tablet, “Now place your hand on this to get your guild card.” she gestured, and William did as told, getting a guild card a second after.

“William, can I see your score?” Blake asked and got the page with a nod from the teen.

Name: William Trancer. Class: Heavy knight. Race: human. Current power rank: 19

Health points: 100/100, Spell Points: 25/25, Spell Power: 10. Energy points: 100/100

Strength: 19, Dexterity: 16, Constitution: 20,

Intelligence: 13, Wisdom: 14, Charisma: 12,

Trust: 15, Faith: 24, Honor: 0.

Skills: short sword proficiency (skilled), Mace proficiency (aware), hammer proficiency (aware), shield proficiency (trained), heavy armor proficiency (trained).

Abilities: Power Strike, Rend, Shield Slam, Heavy Guard.

Blessings: Blessing of the Brave Heart.

[not bad, but this is just what he is capable of with the bullshit this world uses.] Blake thought and handed the teen the page back, then looked up to Quni, “Quni, I have a question, I know that the guild may not do much, but can you allow Jill to sing here for money, she is a songstress.”

Quni looked over and smiled, “Yes, that is fine, but we can’t do much to ensure her safety when she leaves the guild, so how about we hire her to work in the guild, that way if someone tries anything we can intervene.”

“That works for me as long as I get paid fair.” Jill said with a finger pointed, “Also stop flirting with my brothers.” getting a hand chop from William.

“Sorry about that Quni, she is a bit rambunctious.” Blake said with a tired smile.

“I don’t mind, but now that she mentioned it, are you free before your team leaves, I have a request for you personally.” Quni said and intently leaned on the counter, showing off her cleavage from under her uniform.

Blake glanced down for a second then back up to her eyes, “And what might this request be?”

“I want to have dinner with you, say at my place tomorrow night?” she said while taking his hand, “It would make me really happy.”

Blake smiled nervously, “While I appreciate the offer, I am currently not ready to pursue anything, if the dinner invitation is to share a meal between friends, then I think my wives will not hold it against me.” Blake said slowly and calmly while scratching the back of his neck.

Quni looked a bit sheepish as she pulled back and straightened out, mumbling some things to herself under her hand. Then she looked up at him “You have a blessing of the long breath, right?” she asked a bit nervously.

Blake nodded, “Yeah…” he answered a bit unsure of why that would matter.

Quni shifted back to her recent expression of infatuation, “Right then my request will be to have dinner with me one hundred years from today, that is my condition.” she said as she pulled her hair back a bit revealing long ears that pulled back, while she smiled, “Besides, we both have the life span to wait, this way I know you will need someone.”

Blake stared a bit dumbfounded, then shook his head and smiled, “You are guessing that by then my wives would have passed on…, a bit grim of you to say, I will consider it Quni.” and turned to Jill, “now can you please help her get enrolled as a part of the staff.”

Quni smiled, “For you absolutely. Come on darling, let's get you set up with a staff card.” Quni said.