Fay.

Nobina never thought she’d see her again. The memories of the last time they spoke were burned into her mind, never forgotten. Despite it being a few years since they last saw each other, the way Fay just suddenly disappeared bothered Nobina for months. Even after Nobina had gotten over Fay just ghosting her, she longed to know so many things. Why did she leave without a word? Why did she refuse to make contact? Where did she even go?

And now, years later, she was here in another world.

She was wearing the same outfit Nobina had bought her. A black outfit with a long coat. Belts lined the center of the outfit to hold it together. Long black sleeves lined her arms, going nearly to her hands. On her hands were leather straps that served some purpose she wasn’t exactly sure of. Under her black cloak was a set of black shorts that didn’t cover too much. Lastly were her large, black boots that arguably covered more of her legs than her shorts. All of this was basically an outfit Nobina knew Fay’s character wore in a game Fay loved. It was difficult to make, but it was all worth it.

“Fay,” said Nobina through her tears. “How. Why. When?”

Fay, who was taking it all in, remained silent. As time continued to pass, Immana eventually interrupted their moment.

“Excuse me Nobina, but who is this?” asked Immana, a false smile on her face.

Immediately, Fay relaxed her hug, allowing the two to separate.

“My name is Fay. S-rank adventurer of the Capital Guild,” smiled Fay back. “I’m here to join the dragon hunt Nobina is a part of.”

Immana looked over Fay, trying to get a judge of her character. From her perspective, Fay didn’t look the part of an S-rank. She didn’t exude any sense of strength but rather a sense of some bizarre fashion. Of course, it was very likely that she was telling the truth, but Immana had a bad feeling about Fay. If Fay was close to Nobina, Immana knew it’d cause loads of problems.

“Please excuse me Miss Fay, but Lord Kasanta has asked me to bring Nobina to him. She will no longer be participating in the dragon hunt,” said Immana, trying to exert a bit of her authority.

The guards with Immana took a step forward, trying to intimidate Fay, but it was a hopeless effort. Fay herself was aware of how strong everyone there was, showing no signs of any fear whatsoever.

As she said that, Nobina’s bag glowed. The first to react was Fay, whose eyes opened with surprise.

“What is that bag Nobina?” she asked with a curious look.

When she got closer, Fay’s eyes lit up brightly as she recognized the smell.

“Is that cup noodles! Oh my god. I thought I’d never ever get to try them again. Why do you have them? Can I have some? Please?”

Fay was practically drooling as she stared at the Gaze bag. Nobina, knowing how Fay was, sighed as she took out the multiple sets of cup noodles. They even came with a set of chopsticks. Both Nobina and Fay were accustomed to using them, but there was a bit of concern that no one else could use them.

“Well… I guess we can teach them,” sighed Nobina.

“I got this Nobina,” nodded Fay.

As they removed the set of six cup noodles, Fay handed them to Immana, Mimiki, and the two guards. The guards were reluctant to take them but did so when Immana did. Fay began explaining how chopsticks worked, with all four of them listening intently as she displayed the usage of them. Luckily, the noodles were in an ideal temperature that it wasn’t too hot to eat.

Nobina merely smiled as she listened and enjoyed her own cup noodles. Seeing Fay teach everyone reminded her about their college days. How Fay always took the lead and taught everyone. She was extremely smart and was an inspiration for everyone in the school. It made her proud to be someone Fay considered close.

As she enjoyed her cup noodles, her bag emanated a red glow. An uneasy feeling overcame Nobina as she took a step back, allowing the Gaze bag to fully open up. From the bag came a centipede-like creature with an unsettling humanoid face on its head and human arms for its legs, covered in reflective, eye-like patterns that glowed faintly.

Nobina found the creature had turned immediately towards her. Instinctively, Nobina turned to Fay, who had already stopped talking, and turned in the direction of the creature as well. Not knowing what to do, Nobina saw the creature grow larger and stronger as she started to feel fear. However, Fay’s voice managed to draw her attention.

“Nobina!” yelled Fay. “I’ll handle it. Leave it to me.”

All of her trust was now directed towards Fay, who was now drawing the creature’s attention. It seemed to shrink a bit as Fay dashed towards it. Only a moment passed before Fay’s fist landed dead center on the centipede’s back. The human face on it screamed in agony as it attempted to attack back. All the eye-like patterns seem to focus on Fay, who froze for a mere second before charging once again.

“Take this,” she yelled, jumping up and delivering a firm kick to the centipede.

In response, the creature fired off black masses towards Fay, who dodged them as if they were barely moving. The creature continued to shrink back to its original size as it felt Fay launch another punch into its center. The centipede-like carapace began to crack, with the creature shrieking as it suddenly made a dash for the bag.

“Oh no you don’t. Heaven Strike,” she yelled.

A blinding light appeared on her fist as she dashed towards it and landed one last hit on its back.

The creature seemed to immediately stop moving, its body mostly torn apart as only the front part remained. The part that was destroyed began fading into a sparking dust that also disappeared.

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Before Fay could deliver the final blow, the creature dashed for the bag, shrinking into a size no bigger than a rat before disappearing back into the Gaze bag. Fay went for the bag, trying to reach for the creature, but the Gaze bag rejected her attempt, creating a powerful pushing force that forced her back.

“What is this bag Nobina?” asked Fay, relaxing as the danger finally passed.

“It’s… complicated,” Nobina responded, moving to grab the bag. Before she could, Fay’s hand stopped her. At first, Nobina instinctively braced for a firm grip, but Fay’s grip was as light as possible, merely there to invite her to stop.

“Be careful,” said Fay. “From what I can tell that creature will come back and it will be extremely tough to deal with. I was being careful not to use too much force with everyone around, but that just means we have something to worry about later.”

Nobina gave a nod. She knew better than to question Fay, so she relaxed as she stared at her bag instead of going for it.

“I can’t just leave it there,” said Nobina.

“I’ll take it for now,” said Fay, wearing the bag instead of Nobina.

As Nobina gave a nod, a voice came from the side.

“Excuse me Nobina,” said Immana, drawing their attention. “What in god’s name was that creature? Why did you summon something so horrific in the middle of the city?”

Immana had dropped any sense of smile as irritation filled her face.

“Nobina. You are far too much of a threat at this present moment. You are to come with us immediately.”

The guards of Immana stepped up to take Nobina, but Fay stood in their way. A cold expression formed in her as she eyed them down, immediately causing them to back off.

“No one lays a hand on Nobina,” said Fay, her voice exuding threat.

“I am the first daughter of Lord Kasanta,” said Immana, resisting Fay’s gaze. “You have no authority to stop me in this matter, S-rank or not.”

Fay’s sharp gaze turned to Immana, with Fay sighing.

“Look. I rather not use my connections to counter you, Miss Immana. However, you are leaving me no choice. Greogory!”

Immediately, the Royal Griffin rider appeared, pulling out a letter.

“By order of Third Princess Elina De Lural, Fay is authorized to use her name to suspend any active order against Fay’s interest so long as Fay believes it’s within the best interest of the nation.”

“What in… how can you even suggest your actions are in this nation’s best interest?” asked Immana, flabbergasted.

“I would do anything to protect Nobina, and my promise to protect this nation under this condition is justification enough. Right Greogory?” asked Fay.

Greogory gave a nod.

Immana shook her head.

“This is ridiculous, but I have no desire to put Lord Kasanta at odds against Princess Elina. Fine. I leave Nobina in your hands, but should she cause destruction on a horrible scale, you shall be held fully responsible,” said Immana, placing a sharp gaze on Fay.

“Fine with me,” she grinned.

As the situation seemed to calm down, Nobina sighed as she looked at the cup noodles she dropped.

“Man… I was enjoying that,” said Nobina sadly.

She looked around and saw that the whole situation had caused all six cups to fall over and spill, leaving the remains of the cup noodles on the ground. Fay, seeing Nobina sad, approached and gave her a hug.

“It’s alright Nobina,” she said, patting her back. “If you desire it, I shall find a way to have more produced.”

“That’s alright Fay,” sighed Nobina. “We have more pressing matters.”

Nobina stepped forward, drawing the attention of Immana, Mimiki, and her guards.

“I apologize for what has happened Immana. I do not fully understand the Gaze bag and what happened falls on my shoulders. If Fay wasn’t here, I have no idea how south this could have gone. I am still willing to explain my Path to you and Lord Kasanta, but now under my own terms.”

Hearing that, Immana gave a smile.

“I’m glad you are a voice of reason Nobina. Please name your conditions,” said Immana.

“Once this matter is settled, I shall be leaving for Agora with Fay. My priority right now is defeating the dragon threatening this city and then explaining my Path.”

Hearing that, Immana gave it only a second of thought before nodding.

“Acceptable. Do you wish to suspend your test or continue it? Regardless, we will give no punishment.”

“Suspend this test,” said Nobina. “I have no need for it anymore.”

“Deal,” smiled Immana. “Let’s discuss everything in private with Aunai. Then we can get this dragon hunt on the way.”

With the matter resolved, all of them began making their way back to the guild. As they walked, Mimiki joined Nobina’s side. Fay’s eyes were on Mimiki like a hawk, but they relaxed as soon as Nobina gave a gentle smile towards Mimiki.

“So, who is she Nobina?” asked Mimiki. “Someone from your homeland?”

“Yeah,” she smiled back. “Fay and I are best friends. We have such a strong bond that you would be a fool trying to separate us.”

As she said that, a hint of a frown formed on Fay’s face, but it disappeared quickly to avoid Nobina’s sight.

“Nobina is someone I care deeply about,” said Fay. “We have a lot to talk about, but for now know I’m here to help with the dragon hunt.”

“That’s fantastic,” nodded Mimiki. “Considering how well you took out that insanely scary creature, I have no doubt about your abilities.

Mimiki could tell that Fay was a full-fledged S-rank adventurer. Compared to Lila, Fay seemed way more well-rounded, displaying a sense of both combat and non-combat intelligence. Not to mention that she was one of the many people seeing Fay basically announce herself as the right-hand of Princess Elina. Someone with that level of connection was not to be messed with, even if Princess Elina was fourth in line for the throne.

Beyond that, Mimiki could also tell Fay and Nobina really did have a strong bond. They gave each other looks that only true friends could give. Mimiki saw that look from Nobina last night when Nobina spoke her heart to her. Mimiki knew that Nobina would only do that to someone she truly trusted.

“When will we get a chance to talk?” asked Nobina to Fay.

“When everything is resolved,” she smiled back. “Do you really want to discuss the more sensitive stuff here? Especially with someone watching you from the shadows.”

“What?” asked Nobina. “Someone’s watching us?”

Fay pointed to their left, having both Nobina and Mimiki turned. From behind one of the people in the crowd appeared Nia, who approached the two.

“Oh Nia,” said Mimiki. “Are you watching over Nobina still?”

Nia gave a nod.

“She’s good,” replied Nia, her hood still on. “I shall leave it to Fay to continue watch as I search for the other shadow.”

With that, Nia stepped away and disappeared into the crowd.

“So did you ask her to watch me Mimiki?” asked Nobina.

“No. I was just assuming that was the case. It’s likely someone else in the shadows is watching you. I suspected she was keeping an eye on you just in case something happens,” replied Mimiki.

Nobina turned to Fay, who shook her head.

“I sense nothing else, but if someone else is watching, I’ll know,” smiled Fay.

The reassurance was nice, but it made Nobina wonder how strong Fay truly was. She seemed like her normal self, but the ability Heaven Strike seemed powerful. She had a feeling Fay had much more in her arsenal that was yet to be revealed.

There were a lot of questions Nobina honestly had, but those could wait for another time. For now, she wanted to merely enjoy the fact she had succeeded in one of her goals. It might have required almost no effort on her part, but she knew part of her actions did lead to this. If Aunai never sent out that letter, Nobina had no idea what would have happened to her. She could very well be in some cell rotting away as Lord Kasanta, and Immana consider her too dangerous. Even Nobina herself felt she was a danger to those around her.

However, that was no longer the case.

Fay was there to help her finally resolve all the chaos that surrounded her. While she knew people like Lila and Mimiki were strong and dependable, they weren’t on Fay’s level. Fay was someone who would resolve any issue you had with a sheer level of determination that many would consider admirable. At least if it was something troubling a friend.

“Nobina,” called Fay, snapping her out of her thoughts. “Come on.”

“Coming,” smiled Nobina, running to catch up with Fay.