Harmonia City was bustling, as usual. Players from all around the world were on right now; well, they usually were anyway, but there's sporadic peak periods for the online population and this happened to be one of them. What did an actual time difference mean when time acceleration was a feature, after all? In just a few short in-game hours, people halfway across the globe from one another could be synched up, mentally speaking.

Ariana and I made our way through a corner of the Market Ward we hadn't gotten around to visiting during the Grand Tournament, looking for the place she had suggested going to. It wasn't hard to find it on the map, but actually getting there was tricky because this section of the ward had upper and subterranean levels to it. The main entrance, leading into the tavern and restaurant, was on the upper levels; there was a lower entrance for the baths and spa apparently, but neither of us managed to spot it. And so we headed in the front door.

Mad Dog and some of his guild, the Night Wolves, were at a table in the corner. I saw him grin at me; it wasn't a friendly grin, but it wasn't hostile either. It was the kind of grin that rivals give to each other, and I returned it with equal measure. He seemed to snort in satisfaction, and returned to his drink. Mad Dog might know something too, come to think of it, I reasoned to myself. I nudged Ari, and we headed into a changing room to slip into more casual wear.

“We should've thought of this first! Though I don't tend to notice too much because my armor is so comfy.” she said as she put on a cozy dress-tunic with knee-high boots.

“Ehh, true; mine isn't un-comfy, but it chafes after a while, especially after being in jungles or deserts...” I remarked, looking at my inventory.

“Just put the áo dài on again.” Ariana said as she looked over my shoulder. I obliged her with a small smile, and she grinned back. “I can see that, though... it is leather armor, after all.”

“Hah, yep,” I nodded back as we headed out. As soon as we got back out in the main room, I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder; I looked up. It was one of the Night Wolves.

“Mad Dog says you're in here for a reason. Come on over.” she said to us.

“W-who are you?” I asked her.

“Violet. Violet Fang.” she replied, nodding her head towards the table. We followed her over, and sat down to join them.

“Lady Lana.” Mad Dog said.

“General Mad Dog.” I replied.

“What brings you two all the way over here?” he asked. Ariana signaled one of the waiters and ordered us a couple of drinks as I began answering.

“Just a late stroll after a lucky victory.” I shrugged.

“A lucky victory, hm?” the werewolf grinned back.

“Not quite as shocking as the arena ones, but yes,” I returned with a smirk.

“She got you good there, boss.” another of the Night Wolves remarked with a chuckle.

“Very true, Howler, very true.” Mad Dog nodded. “So? Who did you bust up this time?”

“Just a little spat with the King-Priests of the Demon Sands.” I remarked as our drinks came over. Ariana looked over at me as she took a sip from hers, quietly gauging my expression. She probably figured out just then that I was trying to bait information out of him by playing it off casually. Mad Dog raised an eyebrow.

“You messed around with Rama, hm?” he said with interest. “Interesting. Not many people get one over them.”

“Oh?” I wondered.

“Sure,” Howler broke in, “Most of them that try usually get thwarted in the end by their numbers or by that cheap trick in a bottle they lucked out on.”

“It's a lamp, nitwit, not a bottle,” another quipped with a light smack to his head.

“Hoy, Rarf, you're really askin' for it tonight!” Howler shot back.

“Shut up you two.” Violet sighed.

“Their numbers are incredible, but that lamp is the brakes.” Mad Dog said. “We're too fast and agile for their casters, but when that damned demon comes out it's over for us.”

“I guess Howl of the Void doesn't work on it?” Ariana remarked.

“Hah! We tried. It got reversed to us.” Rarf shook his head.

“That night was humiliating...” Violet grumbled.

“Gyeek!” I exclaimed softly, wondering what that kind of reversal would look like.

“I guess you got one over on them with the dragon's help, though.” Mad Dog then said, and his guildmates suddenly started in realization.

“Ohh, yeahh, they have a dragon to help them out!” Howler said.

“Hah, I bet that was an epic fight to watch.” Rarf grinned.

“I'd pay real money to see that thing thrashed up.” Violet said darkly.

“Did they, though?” Mad Dog wondered.

“We forced them to retreat.” I said with a shrug.

“Hmm!” the other grunted with interest.

“There's a first.” Violet said.

“Hmm... but it'd really help us out in the competition of you guys knew a bit more about them, or if you knew someone who might... we'd owe you a favor,” I then said with a soft smile, winking as I took a sip of my drink.

O-oy... what the heck am I doing right now?? I could see Ariana giving me a subtle look that said much the same thing.

“Hmm... we don't really go toe-to-toe with them since that night...” Howler said. “I think Chaneyson beat a couple of them on his own, but other than that...”

“We avoid them.” Mad Dog nodded. “A mutual friend of sorts, however, might give you more than you bargain for.” he said, and I looked at him attentively. “Rayna's probably around here somewhere.”

“Hm? Rayna's battled with them?” Ariana asked.

“Rayna was one of them, before Rama and Hathisis took over that guild.” Violet told us, and Ariana and I exchanged glances.

“She loves that bathhouse bar down there, doesn't she?” Howler remarked with a grin. “Ahh, she's the only one for a lonely dog like me--yeowch!!” he cried out as Violet punched his shoulder.

“Two-timing mutt.” she glowered at him.

“Hrrgh... hah-hem!” he innocently coughed in recovery.

“Howler's lechery aside,” Rarf began, earning a glare from his friend, “She really might be down there now. Probably relaxing from her nightly killing spree in the Borderlands.”

“Oh yeah, she's into that,” I recalled.

“Before you do, let's talk about favors...” Mad Dog said with a sly grin.

“Eh?”

“You promised one just now, remember?” Ariana poked me.

“Ahh... right, well... what kind of favor?” I asked him, suddenly feeling hesitant.

“In this upcoming competition, I will ask you for one, only one throw of a fight in the Wildlands. Give that to us, and we'll call the matter closed.” he said to me.

Heh. Clever. I wouldn't do exactly the same thing, but I'd do something similar, I guess, to benefit us in the competition. Still, that's a *huge* favor considering he's only pointed us to a source of information... which means he's confident that Rayna's intel will be just that valuable. Throw a dog a bone, I guess...

“If the information's really that good, sure, I'll do it.” I said to him. He raised an eyebrow. “But if it's more old news I might renege.”

“Heh, heh-heh-heh... you won't be reneging, Lana Windstrider, I promise you that.” Mad Dog said to me, raising his glass. Ariana and I did the same, as did the rest of the Night Wolves, and we toasted each other's success in the upcoming competition before parting ways.

“At least you didn't bet the guild this time.” Ariana gently scolded me as we headed downstairs.

“A-Ari... y-you're still mad about that?” I nervously laughed.

“May-be.” she quipped, flicking my ear.

“Hrrmm.”

“And you were almost too good at that flirt earlier.”

“Gyeck!?” I stopped in my tracks.

Oh. Oh right. I did that. I acted flirty. W-w-w-what the heck came over me?! I slapped my cheeks a couple times and vigorously shook my head. I've never done that, not even once! Not once!! Never! Never never never!! Uuughhh!! I actually creeped myself out back there and blacked it out... I continued rambling internally as Ariana looked over at me with concern.

“C-could it be that you didn't know what you were doing...?” she asked me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

“Ahh... I dunno... maybe... ugh,” I sighed again, and she slipped her arm into mine.

“Come on.” she smiled, and we continued on our way downstairs.

“How did we miss this place...” I sighed in relief as we sank blissfully into the water.

“Right??” Ariana agreed.

There was a spacious central bath in an oval shape with four smaller ones surrounding it; two drink and snack bars were on opposite sides of the room; on the third side there was a changing room which was also adjacent to the spa, and on the fourth side was a stage for musicians. A group of NPC musicians were there right now, playing a gentle series of melodies to help ease those of us lounging around.

“I can't believe you two only found this spot now.” a familiar voice said. There was the sound of someone settling into the bath near us; we looked over, and there was Rayna.

“We were more focused on the tournament then,” Ariana smiled back.

“As was I.” she smiled in reply. “It is good to see you both again. Just now I was hearing a certain story that I wanted to make sure of... something about a dragon and demon fighting in Memphani?” Rayna said to us with a knowing look in her eyes. After all, there were no dragons in Memphani, so the only one likely to be there was our friend Dracuoatlax.

“Some-thing like that.” I nodded.

“You got into it with the King-Priests, then?”

“We did.” Ariana said.

“And?” Rayna asked.

“They were forced to retreat.” I told her. I saw her eyes subtly gleam with delight.

“Good.” she whispered softly.

“Hm...?” I returned innocently. “Do you have something against them?”

“Just a little bit.” she nodded in answer. There was a bittersweet smile that came to her face as she said those words. Suddenly, I wondered if I could get her to talk a different way than just straight out asking her about the guild.

“S-say, Rayna... what brought you here? To the game, that is, to Panarena?” I asked her.

“What brought you?” she returned with a brighter smile.

“Hmm... adventure, I guess.” I said with a grin.

“Such a -- it's 'tomboy' you say, yes?” Rayna replied.

“Ah-heh,” I gently laughed as Ariana grinned at me.

“It's an escape for me.” my partner remarked.

“Ahh. Yes... it is an escape.” Rayna agreed, a sad look in her eyes. “That is why I love it here; I can express myself, be less what they want and more what I want to be.” she said with a quiet passion.

“It's hard where you live?” I wondered.

“The Neo-Caliphate.” she replied. Ariana and I both looked at her in surprise.

“W-whoa...” I remarked, uncertain of how to reply.

“H-how did you even get a Dream Machine?” Ariana wondered.

“My family has strong market ties, and we are one of those families who get slaps on the wrist for things we do in private, so long as we maintain a good appearance in public.” Rayna said with a sad shrug.

“So it's more than an escape for you; it's an ideal life, pretty much,” I realized.

“Very true!” she nodded. “I can dress the way I want, talk the way I want, be the way I want; ahh, when the King-Priests were first formed, it was not that guild. It was the Queens of the Desert Skies. And we were queens, I tell you.”

“I remember reading about them on the forums!” I exclaimed as the name rang a bell. “Huh... you can rename guilds?”

“And take them over by force.” Rayna nodded.

“Rama and Hathisis.” Ariana said, and she nodded once more.

“They were my officers. They are still among the greatest magic-wielders in this game; the tournament attracted many players, but some kept well out of it to just watch, as I'm sure you know. They are Ariana's equal, at least.”

“How did they take over your guild?” I wondered.

“About one real month before the tournament, Rama and Hathisis underwent a quest together deep in Memphani. I don't know what they endured, but when they came back, they had the lamp, the one that beckons Djaziim the Unholy to their side. I didn't think much of it at the time; I didn't think much of it at all until it was too late.” Rayna told us. We waited for her to go on as she took a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh.

“That bad, huh?” I softly remarked. She nodded.

“The two of them got the guild to vote me out of leadership, some by blackmail, some by force, and inevitably, others who supported them from the start. But that doesn't transfer leadership right away. The officers then have to battle it out, and whomever comes out on top wins the guild. Of course, that way was just one of many ways to take over, but for them it was the most effective. My own supporters, of course, were forced to stand down in that battle, and Rama's supporters were all too eager to let him to the work.” she continued, her eyes flashing with anger. “I was always stronger than Rama; I counted on that. I did not count on Djaziim. He wasted no time in getting that demon out, rendering my Shadow skills ineffective and forcing me down to one-percent health over a long battle. The timer ran out, and I lost.” Rayna told us, clenching her fist.

“Rayna...” Ariana said with sympathy.

“I left the guild that same day, along with several friends who still keep in touch. A day later, the guild we had worked so hard to build was rebranded by that jaanavar, and I have refused to be part of a guild since that time.” she finished, and then shook her head. “You're going to challenge them over the guild competition, aren't you?”

“Considering we kind of broke in and snatched up all their precious ore... I guess we're in for it either way.” I shrugged. She looked at us with surprise.

“So not just an idle hello, hm?” Rayna said curiously. “But if you really want to stop them... then you'll have to find a way to free Djaziim.”

“F-free him?” the two of us exclaimed at once.

“Of course!” she told us. “I am sure your dragon can hold him down fight after fight, but eventually you will of course want to do away with the problem itself, no?” she added.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Hmm...” I returned, frowning thoughtfully.

“We'd probably have to seek out the place they went to if we want to undermine their hold on him,” Ariana said to me.

“Definitely.” I agreed.

“There I cannot help you.” Rayna shrugged. “But I promise to show up if you get into it with them and I am around.” she said with a smirk.

“I'll make sure it's the finishing blow.” I grinned back.

“Such a cute little tomboy.” Rayna quipped, coming over to gently pinch my cheek. I blushed, and she smiled.

“Isn't she?” Ari beamed back, doing the same to my other cheek.

Hahh...

“I will let up on you now.” Rayna said, patting my head. “I have a friend calling for me in the spa; good luck to you both!” she then said, and the three of us shared a hug before she departed for the spa, stalking out like a proud lioness.

“The Neo-Caliphate... I bet she really loves this world, even more than I do,” I said as Ari and I gazed after her.

“Definitely.” my partner agreed. “Hmm... now we just have to figure out where Djaziim came from... oh, I wonder if Dracuoatlax knows,” Ariana said, snapping her fingers in realization.

“Did you always snap your fingers like that?” I wondered.

“Hm? I caught it from you!” she returned, flicking my nose.

“Oh yeah,” I said, unconsciously snapping my fingers as well.

“Pffft!” Ari giggled, and a bemused smile crossed my face as I realized what I had done.

“Hahh... this is a nice spot, though...” I then remarked.

“It is. And it's peaceful without you-know-who around.” she smiled, snuggling in next to me.

“Def.” I nodded.

“Hee-hee! Now you're catching our tics.” she giggled.

“Th-that doesn't sound so bad,” I replied. She turned my face towards hers for a kiss, then laid her head on my chest.

“La-na.”

“A-ri.”

“Stay here for the rest of the night?”

“In the bath?”

“Or in the spa.”

“Sure.” I agreed.

“Since we can't go to one together for real.” she grinned at me.

“Ah-heh...”

***

After lounging around in the baths for a while longer, we put on the complementary robes the place offered and went to have a snack, along with some drinks. I resumed pondering Rayna's story once we had settled in to these.

So there's a potential way to mess up the King-Priests' gambits in the upcoming competition... but it'll be hard to pin down exactly how to do that. Maybe it's even impossible by now. But let's say we manage it. What happens if that demon is out of the equation? That'd definitely get Rayna's attention. She might even join us for a direct assault, maybe to try and win her guild back. Still... they must've had a pretty complex guild-type for that sort of thing to happen... ours is basic, I can't imagine dealing with something more complicated. Officers can make a vote to demote the leader? I'm surprised it didn't get out of hand earlier for her...

“Why exactly was their guild set up that way to begin with...” Ariana remarked as she sipped from her drink, apparently thinking much the same as I was.

“Maybe she picked it for the cosmetic titles instead of actually thinking about the actual guild-type,” I said, leaning back in the chair a bit.

“Ahh, there you go.” she nodded. “Some of the vanity titles for leaders are pretty neat!”

“Oh definitely.” I agreed. “But I like ours. It's simple.”

“Def.” she smiled back. “This place is popular, huh?” she then remarked, looking around. I did the same.

There was a laid-back bustle about the place; that sounds strange to say but I can't find a better way of putting it. Everyone was lounging around as they pleased, and not a soul had a sad look or melancholy appearance about them. Closer to the spa entrance there were some massage tables and even a yogini leading some people in exercise routines. Up on the second floor, which was a wraparound indoor balcony, there were several tables and kitchenettes that were an extension of the restaurant and tavern. The two of us became so fixated on people-watching that I jumped a bit when I felt someone's hand on my shoulder.

“Ah! Sorry!” another familiar voice said as I looked up, sighing in relief as I saw the face. It was Barbarianne, and she had some friends with her. The redhead smiled at me.

“No worries! I just got a little lazy,” I replied.

“Not hard to do here!” one of her friends remarked. This one had blonde hair and blue eyes, and she was just a bit taller than Barbarianne. “I'm Kiana, guild leader of the Northern Warriors, and this is Nightwing.” she said to me, placing a hand on the third girl.

“H-hey,” the dark-haired woman said with a shy smile.

“Don't be like that now, Night, we're all girls here!” Barbarianne smirked as they sat with us.

“Good to meet you all!” Ariana smiled as I signaled a waiter to come over.

“Likewise!” Kiana beamed. They placed their orders, and the five of us lazed about in companionable silence for a few minutes while their drinks were prepared. They were then promptly delivered, and we shared a quiet toast with one another.

“Ahh, that hits the spot!” Barbarianne smiled as she finished her first sip. “So what are the Silvernight Twins up to tonight?” she then asked us.

“Not much at the moment; just killing time, I guess.” I shrugged.

“Relaxing after your little raid down in Memphani?” Kiana said with a subtle grin.

“Hyeck?!” I sat upright at once, looking at her in surprise.

Ho-boy. The story's already made the rounds, I guess...

“Forums are not good for nothing.” Nightwing remarked. “One of the King-Priests' members ranted about how much time, resources, and money they'd lost thanks to your attack.”

“Hahh...” I sighed, leaning back in the chair.

“You should know by now, Lana; everything we do gets reported within about a Panarena day -- especially with Dracuoatlax!” Ariana grinned over at me.

“I'd like to hope everything doesn't quite make the rounds,” I said, my cheeks coloring. She giggled, taking my hand in hers.

“Something you don't want getting out?” Kiana said, her expression unchanged.

“One or two things...” I softly replied with a wry grin.

“Probably the hotspring and beach shenanigans,” Barbarianne smirked.

“Y-yeah...”

“Pffft!” the blonde girl chuckled.

“What about you three?” Ariana then asked.

“We're celebrating the clearing of a dungeon!” Kiana said proudly.

“After our fifth try,” Nightwing sighed. “That last boss is such a cheat!”

“We managed it somehow, but maybe we should try recruiting people like Lana next time... that would've made it so much easier.” Barbarianne nodded.

“It's true, all those traps and devices were rough; but it was fun smashing them up!” Kiana grinned to her friends.

“I bet we would have gotten the rare reward for doing it properly.” Nightwing gazed at her with a bemused grin.

“Rare reward, huh?” I wondered as I sipped on my drink.

“Ohh,” Kiana turned back to me, “It's a dungeon up in Evergrim called the Wraithwail Well. You can find it southwest of Spruceward, the central hub of the area.”

“We'll focus on getting the reward next time. I was just happy to beat it for once.” Barbarianne said to Nightwing.

“Notice they avoided saying what the reward was,” I said to Ari, who nodded.

“Must be something they want for their guild.” she returned.

“Hmm? Oh,” Barbarianne looked over at us with a smile, “It's a cache of ultra-rare ore that'll allow our smith to forge draigod armor.”

“Nyeah?!”

“Huh?!” Ariana and I both exclaimed at once.

D-draigod ore?! No way!!

Okay. Explanation time. Draigod ore is one of the ten most rare ores in the game, and the stuff people can make from it tops nearly anything in terms of power or defense. Nearly everything, but not quite everything. This particular ore's name is a shortening of 'draig god'--or rather, 'dragon god'. Supposedly, the weapons made from it can do massive damage to things like world bosses or dragons, and its defensive properties against those creatures are supposed to be equally impressive.

“Sure, there's other, tougher ores that are said to be hidden in places like Dragonholt or the Untold Deeps, but we know that this one is for real. We just couldn't clear the requirements to get it.” Kiana said, a longing sigh wafting from her lips.

“Say... the next time you try that dungeon... we'll go with you.” I said, and Kiana smiled.

“I didn't even have to ask.” she said happily.

“I told you.” Barbarianne grinned.

“In exchange...” I smiled back, and Kiana nodded.

“We'll help you snag something like it in the future.” she finished, and I nodded back.

“Or another cache of the same.” I added.

“Agreed.” my fellow guild-leader said.

“Hmm? Couldn't we just do the same dungeon again to get a second one?” Ariana wondered.

“It should be possible, but the ultra-rare caches are named that way for a reason, and they don't always appear in the same dungeon twice.” Nightwing said. “We're lucky this one hasn't been snatched up.”

“It takes a full real day for a dungeon to reset up there, doesn't it?” I pondered.

“It really will be a short list for us tomorrow night,” Ariana reminded me.

“For members, you mean?” I said, and she nodded.

“Lizzy'll be working, and Derwydd also. Heali wants to get some studying in for a quiz she has, and the older girls are going out on a date.” she told me.

“Ahh...” I said, my face drooping a bit.

“We'll be fine even if it's just you two joining us.” Kiana said. “All we really need is a good shadow warrior, maybe even two.”

“Two, huh...” I remarked softly. Ariana gazed over at me knowingly.

“Think you can round someone else up?” Barbarianne asked me.

“If you promise to trust me.” I said to her with a soft shrug.

“Ehh?” the redhead gazed at me with scrutiny. “W-well, it's you, so I doubt you'd pick someone you didn't trust, which means we can trust them, too.” she said after a moment.

“But anyway; Nightwing, you're not a shadow-user?” I suddenly asked.

“Nope.” she smiled back. “I'm a magic-user; a wereraven.” she told us.

“Oh, cool!” I exclaimed.

“Wow!” Ariana said with excitement.

“Ah--!! Does that mean you shrink when you transform...?” I wondered. Nightwing winked at me, and stood up, taking off her bathrobe to shift into her animal-form. She did shrink, but not to the size of an actual raven; it was more like a raven the size of a turkey.

“Hence the name!” she squawkingly exclaimed, a grin on her features.

“Neat!” I said with a smile, and then she shifted back to human-form, Barbarianne picking up her robe to place it back on her.

“Hahh, shrinking and growing back to size is such a hassle in this game.” she grinned.

“T-tell me about it,” I remarked. “Though Belle and Lysandra deal with it more.”

“Pfft!” Ariana snickered beside me.

“Hmm? Lana, when did you have shrinking problems?” Barbarianne asked as she and Nightwing sat back down.

“R-recently...” I sighed, and Ariana enthusiastically took up recounting the story when it became clear that I wasn't going to. The other three laughed merrily, and Ari took out the ring itself to show them, putting it on. She shrunk to child size, and I felt my cheeks getting hot as I took in how cute she was. Ari herself giggled at me, and took off the ring, donning the robe again.

“You should have tried calling me! I would've come to help!” Barbarianne smiled.

“I think poor Lana had enough people embarrassing her that night,” Ariana grinned as she looked over at me.

“Awww. It would only have been for a moment!” the other girl giggled back.

“You can take it off safely now, so why not show us?” Kiana smirked.

“Nope. Nope, nope, nope.” I shook my head.

“Hm? I wonder if being child-sized would have gotten us into that one part of the dungeon we noticed this time...” Nightwing wondered.

“You're child-sized in bird form, why didn't you try?!” Kiana quipped back at once.

“I was going to before you and Hillman brought that swarm of horned-yetis our way! And then after that fight you had us rush to the third boss!” her guildie retorted with a miffed pout.

“Ahh -- I did do that... sorry!” Kiana bashfully apologized.

“Hahh, you're a crazy sister-in-law, you know that?” Nightwing sighed.

“Sister-in-law, huh?” Ariana smiled.

“This dope married my dopier brother,” Nightwing grinned.

“Pfft! Aw, poor Henry.” Kiana chuckled.

“'Poor Henry' nothing. He locked himself out of our house for a full night and didn't realize his keys were in his pocket until he woke up on the front porch with a pain in his side.” Nightwing said with a roll of her eyes. Ariana and I burst out laughing, and Barbarianne shook her head in amusement. “And you -- who accidentally goes to work in their nightgown?!”

“I was recovering from a super-bad hang-over, thank you very much.” Kiana returned, softly jabbed her with an elbow.

“See what I deal with?” the dark-haired girl looked over at us with a bemused expression.

“Ah-heh-heh-heh,” I grinned back sympathetically.

Anyway, it seems like we're racking up a lot of favors tonight-- and I guess I'm about to go and pledge another one soon, I mused to myself.

“Anyway, we'll count on you tomorrow after the reset!” Kiana beamed happily.

“Definitely!” I nodded back.

“You two better hurry up with your play-time; aren't you students?” Barbarianne asked us with a knowing glance.

“Ahh, we'll be fine.” I returned.

“We've done this a few times now, though I can imagine the fuss if we ever got caught!” Ariana said with a sneaky smile.

“De-fi-nete-ly.” I agreed.

“Good luck on that,” our friend grinned back at us.

“Though we're basically doing the same thing they are for different reasons...” Nightwing quipped.

“Almost different.” Kiana smiled.

We spent another in-game hour chatting with the other girls about various escapades that our groups had been through, and then Ariana and I hopped out to redress and (reluctantly) leave the baths for the time being. The two of us headed out with a parting wave and a promise to meet them at a wayport when the dungeon reset, and then made our way casually through the streets of Harmonia City. We stopped near a house for sale in the residential district; it wasn't too flashy, but it was definitely eye-catching.

“Think we can get it as our 'city-home'?” Ariana wondered.

“Maybe.” I nodded back, taking note of the price. “Four-hundred thousand gold,” I read aloud, pondering.

“We can make that in about three nights or so if we try.” she shrugged.

“Heh,” I smiled wearily at the thought. “We probably could.”

“Anyway,” she grinned as we continued on, “I bet you're thinking about asking Myanihia to join us, huh?”

“If she wants to.” I said.

“Think we'll find her tonight?”

“Hmm... she might be at her home, come to think of it, if she's still on.”

“Hmm.” my partner remarked.

We made our way back to the Market Ward of the city, where we started idly window-shopping to pass the time. There were a couple of in-game hours before the night-cycle began again, and then we would take our final in-game sleep for the night before getting up for school tomorrow. That thought was obliterated by the sight of a hobby-shop along the lane; we headed inside to look for ourselves at the objects within, thoroughly enchanted by the myriad collection of toys, decorations, and knick-knacks that players could buy for their homes and such.

“Hmm...? I guess if you can't do it in real life, here you go!” Ariana smiled as we looked at a train-set complete with small village.

“That's neat!” I remarked, completely distracted by it as Ariana smiled over at me.

“We should get a real one for holidays and such when we move in together.” she remarked.

“We really -- eh?” I looked over at her, my attention reclaimed and my cheeks reddening. She giggled at me and gave me a hug. “Hrm... I mean, definitely.” I smiled back, hugging her in reply. “This thing would look neat in our Bethelia homestead, though...”

“Ooh, yes!” Ari quickly agreed. “We'll get it, then!” she smiled, and thus we walked out of that shop with said purchase several moments later.

After walking around some more, we eventually found ourselves at a plaza with an ornate fountain in the center. We sat upon a bench nearby, quietly watching the sky change colors from afternoon to twilight.

“It's almost peaceful.” Ariana said softly.

“Yeah.” I agreed.

“It certainly is.” a familiar voice said. Myanihia then sat down on a second bench a few paces away, gazing over towards the west as well.

“You always turn up so mysteriously,” Ari remarked.

“It... is a thing.” the other replied.

“I guess so,” I smiled back.

“Lana.” the Snow Elf assassin looked over at me, a softness in her eyes.

“Hey there.” I said.

“You... need something. It's, not common, to see you here.” she noted at once.

“Hrrmm... we got a dungeon offer from Northern Warriors... I was wondering if you wanted to join us.” I told her.

“The others, your guild, will not be on?”

“Most of them are stuck doing real-life stuff tomorrow, though I'm sure some will sneak on later anyway.” I shrugged.

“I see.” she returned, gazing back towards the sinking sunset. “I know, what they're after. It, would be possible, with you, and me. But, you'll owe me, a favor as well.”

“What kind of favor?” I wondered.

“There is, a two-person dungeon, in Yucu Plains... and, a special gem, for completing it, in a certain time.” Myanihia said.

“That doesn't sound too bad.” Ariana remarked.

“No, it doesn't. But, it needs, two shadows, or the correct gem, won't show up.” she told us.

“I can probably do that with you before we meet up with Kiana and the others,” I noted.

“I agree. An advanced payment, then.” Myanihia nodded as she stood up. “Meet me, at the wayport, near my home, tomorrow, when you get on.” she said, and I nodded back.

“Gotcha.” I told her, and she came over, placing a hand on both of us.

“There's, something else, in that dungeon. Something, that can help you, against that demon.” she said to me. I looked back at her intently.

“Against... Djaziim?” I asked, and she nodded back to me.

“I, don't know, exactly what; but, it's from, one of the bonus rooms.” Myanihia told me. “But, this thing, it's supposedly, only the first item, in a long list of items, you'll need to gather, to sever their bond.”

“Hahh... one of those quests...” I sighed. She patted my shoulder as Ari smiled at me sympathetically.

“You'll manage.” Myanihia said softly, and then melted into the twilight shadows as she took her leave.

“Well, that's a list of chores for tomorrow...” I said as we began heading out ourselves.

“Don't forget real life stuff.” Ari winked at me.

“Gyeck!”

“More importantly, let's sleep at Bethelia tonight,” she then suggested.

“Oh definitely,” I agreed, and when we reached the wayport we headed for our newest estate, falling asleep together on a couch as we listened to the night-time ambiance around us.