[ Hmmmmmm… ] came a long exaggerated sigh, filtering into the mind of a sleeping Alaric. The boy covered his head, only to hear one more, this one longer.

[ Hmmmmmmmmmmmm… ] his guardian went. It now dawned on the boy’s sleepy mind that there was no kind of wall capable of muffling a sound that came from inside his own head.

[ What is it, Alia? ] he grumbled.

[ I didn’t want to disturb your sleep seeing as you seem tired but… ] the knight lingered.

Alaric rolled his eyes knowing he wouldn’t be getting a reason. He did, however, understand that she wouldn’t have done this without a reason. Normally, the guardian really didn’t care what time he woke up. As long as he finished the training he had planned for the day, she had no problem with him.

On some occasions, she would even make him train late into the night just so he wouldn’t miss a day.

[ No, it’s fine. I’m up now. Might as well tell me what’s going on. ]

[ Preparations are nearly complete. What’s left is a few items that are required for the ritual. ] she started.

[ Items? Don’t we just need the Awakening Orbs? ] he wondered.

[ Sometimes I forget just how oblivious you are. There are some clothes for you at the foot of your bed. Finn and Darla are already dressed up and are waiting for you outside ]

Alaric’s eyes shot open, [ WHAT?! ]

[ Finn and Darla are… ]

By this time, the boy was flying out of his small bed, eyes scanning through the dormitory for the clothes she’d just mentioned, [ I HEARD THAT PART! Why didn’t you lead with that? ]

The guardian merely chuckled and went silent, leaving him in quiet silence. The boy grabbed the mess of leather and metal that appeared to be the clothes his guardian was talking about and started searching for where to fit his head.

Ten seconds later, he furrowed his eyebrows and stopped panicking… ‘What is this?’

[ Armour. You’re going hunting. ]

[ Hunting? ] he smiled. Not only was he going hunting… but he also had armour. Real Armour!!! Excitement poured out of every skin pore.

He lifted the mess of metal and leather with a new look in his eye, then frowned once again.

‘What… what am I looking at?’

Laces went in and out at various parts of the complicated outfit. A few metal parts here and there made it even more difficult for him to understand what he was looking at.

Before his little brain could explode from the confusion, a black knight rose from his shadow and sighed, “Amateur.”

She pulled the leather armour from his hands and started helping him fit into it.

[ How come I have armour? ]

[ The Tower sent it over when they received your acceptance. It's another one of their long list of appreciative gestures, I guess. I’ll be happy about it only after I’m sure you don’t look like a doofus ] the guardian replied as she tightened the laces that wrapped behind his calf, fastening a metallic plate to the boy’s shins.

[ It came with a letter too: ‘The best for an aspiring Elite Slayer such as yourself. I personally picked this out, Alaric. Please accept it and know that many more such boons will be awarded to you once this patronage is confirmed.’ ]

[ Once it’s confirmed, didn’t we… Ah, that’s a little tight ] The boy winced when the chest plate pressed into his ribcage a little too hard.

The guardian let the laces loose just a bit, [ Sorry. Either they sent this before they got word of your acceptance or they don’t consider your acceptance before you sign some binding documents. That old man’s knows something we don’t. I can feel it. ]

[ How so? ]

[ I don’t think they’d spend this much money trying to convince someone to join them, ] the guardian explained her thoughts, [ I don’t like it. ]

[ Oh, okay… ] the boy replied, looking up in thought, [ I didn’t feel anything off with him though. ]

The guardian paused at that, [ You mean he’s sincere? ]

[ Sincere is not the way I’d put it. More like Elder Gregory means no harm ] The boy chuckled, [ Are you done back there? ]

[ Yes ]

Alaric walked ahead and turned around so the guardian could see him fully, [ How does it look? ]

Alia stayed frozen for a bit, observing the boy’s outfit. On top of his normal clothes was a set of unique white leather armour.

Fitted at vital spots like his chest, forearms and shins were metallic fittings that were far lighter than Alaric had initially thought. The armour was complicated but surprisingly comfortable, light but sturdy offering the right amount of protection without robbing him of his mobility.

On top of that, it managed to retain a stylish look to it, bearing the mark of the Tower of Seekers at the right upper corner side of his breastplate.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

[ It suits you well ] the guardian breathed.

Alaric smiled, “I think so too… But where did they manage to get white leather?”

“Some unfortunate Aether Beast probably,” the guardian replied with a shrug.

“You done, Prince Alaric?” a bang on the dormitory door.

Alaric turned to Alia with a small smile, “Thank you.”

The knight nodded, then disappeared without a word, leaving Alaric in an odd silence. Now he looked like he was staring at the space behind him with a goofy expression… ‘That was… odd.’

Another bang on the door shook him from his thoughts. He was out moments later, meeting Darla and Finn who were dressed in similar armour.

Considering Alaric’s patronage came with the condition that his friends would be coming along with him, his ‘special’ treatment extended to them as well.

Finn rushed up to the boy and struck a pose, flicking his sandy hair back. In a thick accent Alaric couldn’t place, he—for lack of a better word—slurred, “How do I look, Lord Alaric?”

“Like an arrogant rich boy,” Alaric responded with an infectious smile.

“Then it’s working,” he puffed out his chest.

“You need a bit more gel to pull it off. Pucker your lips when you see a beautiful girl that’s not Darla. Oh, and don’t forget to wink,” Alaric suggested.

Finn practised for a bit making a face that made him look more constipated than handsome before the pair burst into laughter.

Darla, who’d been watching, facepalmed, “Will you two ever grow up? We’re going hunting… outside the barrier…”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic, Darla. You have a pixie protecting you so you should be fine,” Finn commented, “Care to help me practice my rich boy act?”

A flying man in an elegant tuxedo appeared to defend his honour after being called a pixie, “Not on your life. You keep those lecherous eyes off Lady Darla this instant.”

It was hell from that point onward.

Garin, who’d been watching this groaned as he started walking away, leading the chaotic children alongside LionHeart. The burly man laughed instead, “It’s nice to see them in better moods this morning. Also, shouldn’t you educate them on how Seekers should actually conduct themselves?”

“Don’t start with me, LionHeart. Why couldn’t we just leave them behind? I don’t get the point of this exercise. We can secure the target ourselves. It will be faster,” Garin groaned.

“They need some action before the rituals. You know how those go. We’ll watch out for any demons while they do the hunting. It will be good practice. And besides, you also know they need to cool off. They’ve been on edge ever since Jack’s Fall,” LionHeart reasoned.

“Let’s just get that deer already,” Garin responded. Outside the orphanage, the group was met by a group of orphans more than excited to check out their friends’ outfits, which slowed them down even more.

Sister Marla approached the knights giggling, “You seem to be having fun, Garin.”

“Fun? This is not my ‘fun’ face,” the stingray rider growled, “Where is Gunther anyway?”

“He went out to train. I showed him the way to the Training Grounds the Village Watch uses,” Sister Marla replied. The woman had a basket full of wet clothes resting between her hip and right hand, “Now get going. I postponed breakfast so they wouldn’t go hunting on an empty stomach so get them back quickly.”

“Sure thing. Can you help us with the other kids though?” Garin tried.

The caretaker rolled her eyes and turned away from them, “That’s enough everyone. Let’s let Alaric and his friends go on this important mission.”

With a bit of grumbling and a ton of convincing words to make Cody stay put, the group managed to leave the orphanage and make it to the barrier. It wasn’t long before they reached the translucent wall of the village’s barrier.

On the other side, a tall healthy forest stood tall, inviting any courageous adventurer with more curiosity than caution to test their might against the perils of the untamed wild.

‘See, nothing to fear…’

[ Exactly ] Alia chuckled in response to Alaric’s thoughts. The boy suddenly let out a long yawn, a testament to the sleep he still had stored up.

Walking through the barrier, they headed straight into the forest. Alaric and his friends were silent by the time they reached the forest, keeping their eyes and ears peeled for any danger.

Garin observed them for a bit before sighing. It was hard to stay bored when watching children try their best. His curiosity climbed even higher when he caught Alaric yawning. Unlike his two friends, he didn’t seem to be on edge at all.

The stingray rider cleared his voice and spoke, “The three of you have one mission. Capture a Silver deer. LionHeart and I will help in case any demons show up so just focus on hunting the Silver deer.”

Alaric nodded only to see the two slayers leap up into the trees and vanish above the canopies. The stingray rider’s voice came a second later, “Try to be done before sunset.”

…silence…

“Oh… and there won’t be any breakfast or lunch for you before you finish this mission,” the man responded nonchalantly.

…silence…

“Wait, that’s it? They’re leaving us to do this on our own without any clues. They didn’t even show us the Silver deer,” Finn screamed.

Alaric chuckled, “It shouldn’t be that hard if they think we can do it.”

“They gave us… A WHOLE DAY!” Finn argued.

“It’s a big forest?!” the green-eyed boy tried.

“Alaric, have you ever seen a Silver Deer? What kind of deer is Silver?” Finn asked.

“It’s not called a Silver Deer because of its hide but its antlers. According to what I’ve read, they cast a soft silver glow. They also like eucalyptus trees so we should try looking for those,” Alaric tried.

“Eupaliptus… Great!”

“Eucalyptus,” Alaric corrected.

“Whatever. All I see is trees. Knowing the name of some random tree doesn’t mean you know what it looks like,” Finn threw his hands in the air.

Alaric smiled, then raised his nose in the air and inhaled deeply, “Luckily for us, we don’t need to know what it looks like. Eucalyptus is used to make sweets.

It’s responsible for the cold feeling you get when you lick mints. I read that if you have a sensitive nose, you can pick up on the scent of an Eucalyptus tree from two kilometres away.

With the increase in demand for Silver deer, eucalyptus trees have been grown close to settlements to attract them and have them breed close by.”

Darla snickered, “Is there anything you forgot, Alaric? You read that book when you were like… nine.”

Alaric’s eyes snapped open as he felt his lungs go colder… ‘There…’

A smirk brightened up the boy’s face, a rush taking over him, “I’m still waiting to find out. Let’s go.”

The three children broke into a measured run that was neither slow nor needlessly fast, somewhere between a jog and a sprint. LionHeart and Garin, who were nestled on the backs of their guardians high above stared in awe as the children suddenly dashed deeper into the forest.

“That was fast,” Garin gasped, “Do they even know where they’re… Never mind.”

In the distance, the man could already see a grove of eucalyptus trees, telling him they’d figured out where they needed to go.

“I’m not surprised when it comes to Alaric,” LionHeart chuckled, watching the children dash through the forest with no signs of tiring.

“Beginner’s luck.”

“Of course! Let’s go with that,” LionHeart shook his head, scanning the surrounding areas. His eyes latched onto various figures down in the forest.

Squinting, he ascertained their nature before his shoulders relaxed. Since there were no demons among them, he chose to stay out of it. He could always swoop in if things didn’t go according to plan.

“I’ve been meaning to ask. Since when are you so chummy about helping Alaric? I remember a grumpy man who wouldn’t stop complaining about escorting some orphan around,” Garin poked at the elephant in the room.

“I’m just serving my punishment,” LionHeart replied with a sigh.

“Punishment? What punishment?” Garin chuckled, “You look happier than I’ve ever seen you.”

“How do I put this? On one hand, I get to protect Alaric until he’s finished this stage of Body Tempering. On the other hand, I can’t opt out,” the man responded indifferently.

Garin’s smile faded… and after a pause, he asked, “You’re not joking, are you?”

LionHeart shook his head, “I’m Alaric’s bodyguard until he makes it to at least the fifth level of the Glass Temper Rank.”