The next morning, Lear woke up, seeing Riga rummaging through a closet cluttered with oddities and some of his belongs that caught his curiosity. Noticing, Riga greeted him and resumed his rummaging, talking to Lear while he was at it.

"So, feeling any better?" he asked.

Strangely enough, as Lear rose from his bed, he didn't feel any sort of pain from his sides. He tried touching it, but felt nothing that would incite pain. It was as if the wound wasn't even there in the first place.

"Yeah," he answered. "What did you do? It's already healed... but how?"

"Well, a little magic goes a long way. Oh, and don't thank me. I just helped out. Someone else did all the work. It's her that you can thank instead, though I don't mind the compliment."

"Her?" he pondered. "I don't think I know who you're talking about. I recall seeing someone, but I couldn't make out her face. That was probably her, but I'm not entirely sure."

"You never got to see her clearly, huh? Well, don't worry about it. She's here. But just a little piece of advice, she can get really cranky from time to time, so be a bit patient with her. Alright? She might look like she's always uptight and frustrated, but having been with her for a long time, I figured that she's just finding it hard to express herself. Looks can be deceiving," he winked as a sign of a hint.

"I can say the same to you. And who is this person that we're talking about?" asked a voice that seemed mildly annoyed.

A young girl stood by the door with her arms crossed. To Lear, she looked to be at least sixteen years old or so. Her mature demeanor and mannerisms stood out, but he didn't want to point it out for some reason. She wore a white skirt that was until her knees and a beige top with short sleeves. She wore her long, braided hair of gold by over her left shoulder down her left chest.

"Ah, well, speaking of her, here she is. His name is Lear, and he wanted to thank you himself. I'll just be in the living room if you need me."

Riga picked up a stack of thick and ornately designed books and left the room, leaving the two of them.

"Wait, we've met before, right? You're the girl with the hood. But then, the one that night... That was also you?!" he asked in surprise, seeing the uncanny resemblance between the two. The only thing that separated them was the fact that he was seeing two personalities: One that was kind and benevolent, and the other being admonishing and bored.

"Yes, I am that same person."

"Well, that's a great coincidence! I didn't know that you lived on the very place I was trying find. But why did you help me? I'm grateful for it, but I'm wondering."

"It's not a coincidence. I happened upon you that night and simply returned the favor. And I think it is what you humans call sympathy. Now I have done that, I owe you nothing. But onto more important matters."

"Important matters? What do you mean?"

"I assume that you're feeling better, judging from your face lacking pained expressions. Do you feel dizzy, or feel anything out of the ordinary?" she came up to the side of the bed and examined Lear closer, her eyes.

The sight felt all too familiar for Lear, solidifying an idea in his mind. Was she really the same person he saw that night? There was no trace of that faint halo on her head, nor was her gleaming yellow eyes present. Instead, they were blue and clear as the sky.

"Thank you for saving me," he said. "I don't know how you did it, but I'm really grateful. I thought that was it for me."

"I wonder where the skill you used against the ones who assaulted me go? To be taken down by a bunch of thugs seemed unlikely with the way you handled things, not saying that it was enough. I thought you to be quite skilled, but I am unimpressed."

She kept speaking, poking gently at Lear's sides, forcing him to jerk every time as he felt sensitive there.

But his pride had still been hurt, and her continued rambling kept shattering it more and more. The ruthless way she picked out such flaws with him on their first meeting seemed enough to break Lear's confidence entirely, but his acceptance was the only thing that kept him holding on to what he thought and firmly believed.

"But, it's not as to say there's no room for growth."

Lear looked back at her, curious about what she was getting to.

"You might learn properly from Riga, even though he the last person you would want to learn from. That irresponsible man is far more suited to a life of danger and thrill rather than with living normally. Quite a strange being if you ask me, an anomaly even I cannotcomprehend," she sighed, looking disappointed. At that point, she started heading towards the door.

"But wait, I never got your name. Mine is Lear," he stood up and offered his hand to her, in which she stared back at him stoically.

"You may call me Mikael. That is my given name. Come, I assume that he is fussing this early because of something." She then left the room and left Lear hanging with a dazed expression.

"Not much of a people person?" he asked himself. But what he wondered more about were Riga's words from earlier. He knew that the two personalities he had met on the same day were the same person, but for some reason, he felt that there was something more to it than that.

To his eyes, however, she seemed responsible for her age. He found it odd as she was only that young, but he merely took it at face value. Anyone can be responsible if they put their minds to it. But she was more different than he first thought. His first impression of her were worlds apart now. Maybe refined was one word to say.

"Was she really the one that saved me?" he asked himself, trying his best to remember the kind smile that greeted him when he was on the brink of death. There was no trace of that on the one in front of him, yet they were the same person.

He followed Mikael and entered a small living room where a rectangular table sat in the middle. On it were dozens of dusty books and creased parchments. Riga stared at the mess in front of him perplexedly but woke from his daze once they entered the room.

"Ah, you're here. Alright then, let's get started. I think the first of today's agenda is welcoming the new addition to the group, Lear! Glad to have you with us."

He clapped, trying his best to urge the disinterested Mikael to clap along, which she half-heartedly did.

Lear looked around the room awkwardly and simply scratched the back of his head.

"Thanks, it's nice to be here. But just one thing though," he asked Riga.

"Go ahead."

"What's happening? I think I'm in the middle of something that I don't know about."

"Well, true enough, and to get you caught up, I'll be doing the explanations. I'm sure there's no need for me to introduce Mikael to you since you both seem acquainted already, but here's the motley band forming the Eveningtide, plus you. Impressive isn't it?"

Lear wasn't sure whether it was a joke or a form of sarcasm. He simple replied with a yes and allowed Riga to continue on.

"Well, secondly, we're still in the middle of finding new members for the guild, but let's worry about that next time. I think I've already posted more than enough posters around the place. Thirdly, we have here two requests," he said, presenting three parchments with neat handwriting.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"Oh, well that's new. Last time it was zero requests.I wonder who you solicited for these requests from?" asked Mikael.

"Just means that luck favors us today. And I'll take anything luck gives my way."

"Hmph, I'm sure lady luck is sick of you by now, literally. I don't think she'd like anything to do with you after what you did to her domain."

"What do you mean?" asked Lear in curiosity, taking the vacant seat beside Mikael, who sat with a dignified manner.

"Don't worry about that, Lear. Let's worry about what's in front of us and focus on it. I'm sure she's already forgiven me," he said confidently. "We're still lacking some basic and important things for the guild, namely money to improve our base of operations. These rewards from the requests are sure to be able to help with that. But the thing is they're both due on the same day, so I propose that we take them both and divvy up the work."

"I'd rather know what they're about first, rather than plunging into it without knowing anything as you usually do," Mikael retorted.

"Right, right, I forgot, ahaha. Well, the first one is a rescue mission."

Lear's eyes and attention perked at the word. It was a surreal beginning, but he was already being put to work, or is about to be, he assumed. It all seemed serious, so his attention was focused. What he had in mind were cases of kidnappings, considering the commotion in Furahm, there was sure to be one of those eventually.

"Well go on. What are you building suspense up for? You writing a novel or something?" she urged impatiently.

"Don't be too excited, Mika. I know you're all up and eager to get to work."

"Oh, I sure am. You might not see it from the face I'm making, but I'm just bursting at the seams with joy and anticipation," she said rather sarcastically, not changing her stoic and deadpan expression.

"Well don't worry, Mika, here it goes." Riga continued, either not realizing Mikael's wordplay, or ignoring it, thought Lear.

"It's a request from one of the residents in Furahm, and we're tasked with finding the young child's pet."

At that moment, Lear stared at Riga, dumbfoundedly trying to make sure he didn't mishear it. Yet no matter how many times he ran the words over in his head, it was reality, and the expectations he had were immediately shot down.

"Less work, the better," said Mikael, standing and taking the letter of request from the table. "You two go do whatever it is guilds and its members do. I'll be back when I'm finished. Please don't, by some form of miracle, destroy this place, Riga. I'd like a roof to sleep under, and leaving you by yourself is sure to welcome misfortune," she said, disappearing from the door, leaving Riga and Lear without a say.

"Well, it's no surprise that she's eager given the circumstance that you joined. I'm sure that she wants to show off."

"No, Riga, I don't think you're getting it," interjected Lear, trying his best to understand and to make Riga understand the message behind the words which the man didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, don't worry, I've known her for a long while, so there's nothing not to know about. For now, how about I answer any question that you have? You must be pretty confused at how fast everything is going, but we're always hectic with the way everything is currently. No doubt you'll get used to it soon enough," he beamed.

"Well, getting questions out of the way will help me out a lot. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't overwhelmed."

Lear scratched his head. "Sorry in advance, but my first question is, is this really a guild? Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't believe you, but it's just that, well, It's in a bit of a shamble, don't you think?"

True to his description, Lear looked up and saw a couple of holes adorning the ceiling. Parts of the living room looked like the place was being vacated and the entire building going to be demolished soon. There wasn't a lot to call new, or old. In fact, it seemed like everything inside it, except for the belongings of the people living in there, had been left to accumulate dust and age out.

"Hmm, I thought about that too, but I assure you that this is indeed a fully functioning guild, or it'll soon be. It's new, so this is where we have to start. It isn't so bad. With a bit fixing and renovation, this'll turn into a proper guild soon enough, I guarantee it. Plus, I'll get around it soon enough. I'm in charge of making sure that the place doesn't collapse on us, so you can just leave that to me, alright?"

"I can help out as well. You don't have to do it alone. I'm... a part of the guild now, after all, right?"

"That's the spirit! I like the way you think, Lear. You're already contributing on your first day! But I'll hold you to that. Got anything else to ask me?"

"Right now, nothing much. I don't have any complaints. Maybe some questions will pop up on along the way."

"Alright then, so, since you've just woken up, how about you sit here and wait for us to come back? Mikael's made breakfast already, and I think you'll like it. To get to the dining room, just keep going down from that hall and it should be there."

Riga picked up a backpack nearby and took a piece of paper that was on the table.

"Where are you going?" Lear asked.

"Oh, I'm going to do a request, then another top secret mission after that. That's roughly how we get by with being a guild and all. I'll be quick, so just relax or take a tour of the place. Just be careful not to fall into a hole, alright?"

"W-wait!"

And without waiting for Lear's response, Riga hurriedly left the the room with a great gust and a smile on his face, giving Lear a thumb's up.

"Take me with you..." he finished his sentence even if there wasn't anyone there to hear it.

His shoulders slumped along with his sigh. He looked out the door but didn't find Riga anywhere. He was unable to believe that someone could run that fast, but it seemed like he was a man of various surprises.

But without anything else to do, Lear made his way into the kitchen and ate the food served on the table. It still emitted steam, and the scent of cooked meat and eggs wafted to his nose, waking his stomach. Without much hesitation, Lear scarfed down on the meal before him and emptied the plate within seconds, leaving him wanting more by the end.

By then he was unable to ignore the mess around the table. It was a long, rectangular one that has seen better days. A worn, dusty cloth had been used to adorn it, but the other decorations such as dusty, tattered books, weird looking ornaments, small statues, and other knick-knacks cluttered the rest. The entire dining area was a mess, and most of the items around it seemed to have been bundled up for a move. Though it was tidy, their presence didn't sit well with Lear.

He cleaned up what he had eaten and started to look around the house, roaming the various rooms of the ground floor. There wasn't anything that he hadn't seen yet for it was all the same. Bundles of scraped materials strung up and placed to the side, ready to be disposed. Still, even with those, dust dominated the domain.

Lear then made his way upstairs where the flooring was rickety. Every step made him conscious that he might eventually fall down and plummet to his doom. Upon reaching the the second floor, it was dim. Little light made its way through the planks barred on the windows. The hall was decorated with old table-stands which held vases, and in them, withered flowers. It was rather ghastly to the point where Lear had trouble navigating his path. He was slightly convinced that the palce was haunted as the scene fit like a puzzle piece.

After he was finished with the second floor, which had no point of interest other than more vacant rooms, Lear made his way outside to survey the area which he had no idea of.

He took a few steps back and looked at the small mansion in its entirety from the front.

It was a wide, small, rickety mansion spanning two stories, built with sturdy wood. It needed a hard renovation, but it didn't look like it was immediately going to collapse. It had some holes on the roof, and the windows were barred off with planks. The area around it was also littered with bundled up wood and some salvaged items from the small mansion. It needed some improvements to not make it look like a haunted house, and the sign crudely worded the 'Eveningtide' didn't help it in any way.

"It's even worse from the outside!" cried out Lear in shock. "This is bad, I can't picture the place being a fully functioning guild at all."

He went around to the back, but not before finding an odd path where a sign crudely saying 'water' stood. He followed it, leading him to a quiet and peaceful river where the water flowed calmly. The atmosphere and the sound of gushing water put Lear at ease. It was clear, clean, and refreshing, Lear thought to himself. But he continued with the tour, having an idea in mind for later.

At the back was a small, fenced-off garden where the assumed 'dead crops' have been uprooted, and what remained were rows of dug up soil. A small shack was a few walks away from it where the basic materials of gardening and farming were stored. Lear thought of re-cultivating the garden and the land by it, giving them the purpose they were made for. That, and the need for a bit of color. The supposed garden looked dreary and dull, which didn't quite do its best to stand out. Another idea popped into Lear's mind, and along with that was a puzzled look of how he was going to put his plans into action.

"Is this really a guild house?" he asked himself again.

Lear finally sat down after the tour. He was exhausted and quite surprised at the size of the place. It was true what Riga had told Lear that it had the potential to be a true guild, but Lear wanted to somehow help in that aspect, being a member all that.

At that moment, Lear rummaged through the closest of the small mansion and found a couple of brooms and some other cleaning materials, taking a bucket lying around the kitchen and filling it with water from the river earlier. He found a slightly clean apron and wore it, completing his attire as a house cleaner.

He started placing all the important looking things in one room, sorting them out and labeling them just in case any of them belonged to either Riga or Mikael. One by one, he cleared most of the rooms on the first floor, allowing him to clean without much trouble.

The meticulous ways of cleaning he had learned from Alice and Duncan had been put to use, and Lear thanked them silently as he continued to tidy the guild house which was starting to lose its dreary, gray color. He didn't want to make it permanent, but in the meantime, Lear was glad to have grown used to doing such things. Though it wasn't the most exciting thing to start with in his new guild, he wore a smile as he cleaned. He opted not to clean Riga's room without his permission, as well as with Mikael's, which Lear found locked on the same floor as Riga's.