Upon Pier’s return with Reice resting in his arms, a panic spread throughout the local Adventurers of Ivell. This panic soon led to the ostracization of Ross by both the public and his superiors of the Adventurers’ Guild as the head of the Adventurers’ Guild herself came to remove Ross from his position and compile a report on the undead dungeon that had been cleared by underqualified Adventurers. In the end, the two kidnapped individuals were rescued and the casualties counted to three being the Adventurers Lyos, Ser, and Gourd. Among the three casualties, two of them were fatalities.
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The door received two light knocks, but received no response from inside. The hotel room’s wooden shutters were just barely open, allowing the littlest of light through them as Pier walked into the room–his long hair now drawn back into a ponytail–and sat down onto a stool placed next to a bed. Laying on the bed, under the sheets, a familiar face slowly breathed in and out, entirely unaware of Pier’s existence.
“Heya there, Ser.” Pier fiddled with his thumbs as he spoke, “It’s been about a week since we got back. The Guild held a funeral service for Lyos and Gourd, though Reice never attended. Ever since she woke up, she’s been hiding away in Lyos’s room.” Pier’s eyes drifted from Ser’s unconscious face to the bedside table where a bouquet of flowers and a basket of fruit rested. “Looks like Zinc and Dos came by, I’ll have to thank them later,” Pier’s voice petered out as he articulated his words. “I never thanked you, did I? Afterall, you found me stranded in the woods and instead of just leaving me there or killing me thinking I was a monster, you took me in and helped me onto my feet in a world entirely unfamiliar to me. I don’t think any amount of compensation could make up for the help you’ve given me, especially now. So, I’ll do my best to take care of Reice, at least until she’s back up on her feet. After that, who knows.” Pier stood up from the stool and began to walk for the door as he left Ser with his final remarks, “I’ll see you soon, Ser. I’ll try to bring Reice with me later.” Pier gently closed the door as he left. Pier walked two doors over, gently knocking on the door of what was Lyos’s room with the back of his closed fist. Pier received no response from inside, but instead found that the door had slightly opened from Pier’s knocking. Opening the door, Pier found that Reice had left Lyos’s room.
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The sound of bare feet against wet soil skipped across the silent forest as the young girl made her way to her friend’s favorite spot. The lake shone as if it were a sapphire gem, its blue bioluminescence’s origin being unknown by the many that have visited the lake. The girl panted as she ran, only stopping when the lake and her friend came into view. She watched as her friend’s pink & brass hair fluttered in the magic-produced wind. The amber-haired girl watched in awe as her friend commanded the water into the air, producing three pillars of water. The pillars twisted and turned into each other as the pink-haired girl threw her hands back and forth as if the water was responding to her motions. For her final act, the girl raised her hands high in the air, prompting the three pillars of water to disconnect themselves from the lake. The pillars coiled around one another, tightening the distance between the pillars before forming one large bubble of shining water. By bringing her arms back to her side, the bubble was released causing the water to return to the lake. The amber-haired girl called out her name, prompting the pink-haired girl to excitedly turn around to greet her friend. The two both took a seat on the edge of the lake, their thighs submersed in the water, as they chattered away without a care in the world
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“Reice!” Pier’s distant voice called out to the pink-haired girl. Reice was squatted down staring at the lake and its blue radiance. Reice listened as Pier’s wet steps came to a stop and his heavy breaths calmed down.
“I was wondering where you went,” Pier said. Reice’s finger slowly swirled over the water, creating a small whirlpool in the water using magic.
“Not many people know about this spot, did Lyos show you it?” Reice said flatly, without even so much as turning to meet Pier’s gaze.
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“Ser did, Gourd and Lyos were on the other side of the lake fighting over Noskbloom.” Pier could hear a hollow giggle from Reice.
“That does sound like them. Why did you join them?”
“They offered a helping hand, and I accepted. In return, I helped them rescue you.”
“You don’t regret it? Afterall, if you hadn’t joined them, they might still be here.” Pier stayed silent for a moment. Reice’s words may have been true but Pier knew that Ser and the others likely would’ve given up their lives for Reice one way or another.
“What about you then?”
“I… I would’ve been fine.”
“You know you’re wrong. If they never searched for you, if they never gave up their li–”
“I know!” Reice finally turned, meeting Pier’s eyes with tears in her eyes, “But i- if you had never joined them, then maybe… Maybe they might’ve survived.”
“They would’ve gone after you whether I was with them or not, you know that.” Reice’s eyes turned to the ground–she knew Pier was right.
“You’re cruel, you know? You haven’t even shed a tear for them.” Pier stepped closer to Reice as he spoke.
“I know,” Pier offered Reice a hug and she accepted, “I watched them die in front of me, so why is it that instead of being filled with emotion I feel empty more than anything.” Reice’s silent tears merged with Pier’s clothing, staining them in dark shades. The silence of the forest felt more depressing than ever before as Pier and Reice stood in it, embracing each other and comforting each others’ grievances.
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As Reice’s tears dried, the two soon separated, now sitting on the edge of the blue lake. Without exchanging words, the two sat and watched the gentle ripples of the glowing lake, the peace bringing both of them comfort from the recent events that had transpired.
“Hey,” Reice said, “Do you wanna know why this lake is like this?”
“Hm?”
“I was gonna tell Lyos about it when we became successful Adventurers, but…”
“...”
“So?”
“S- Sure.”
“Well, this lake wasn’t always like this, obviously,” As Reice spoke, Pier noticed a tinge of sadness in her eyes. “This lake is full of Beelze Particles, giving it its blue glow. As you might know, Beelzes are extremely small organisms that contain information. This information can be used for all sorts of things, including magic.
“So, the Beelzes make the lake grow?”
“Not necessarily, it’s not like you see glowing trees around here. Instead, the information that these Beelzes contain are what gives the lake its glow. Can you guess what it is?” Reice turned to Pier as offered the question, letting Pier see the tears that had been building in her eyes.
“Um,” Pier hesitated in his answer, his mind still worrying about Reice’s teary-eyed face, “I- Prob-”
“Too slow! When this lake was normal, it had a ton of slimes gathering around it. However, as Adventurers came by to kill off the slimes, the Beelze Particles contained in the slimes started to infect the lake. Throughout the years, the information in the Beelzes would start to influence the lake, causing the lake to eventually adopt traits similar to slimes.” Reice turned away after finishing her lecture, though Pier could still hear her stifling breaths and sniffles.
“Well, shall we head back?” Pier stood and held out his hand, trying to offer even the smallest distraction to Reice. Reice dried off her tears before turning to Pier, taking his hand in acceptance.
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Upon returning to Ivell and the Bronze Flare, Pier was met with an unfamiliar group of people. Accompanied with a triad of knights, a woman dressed in a dress shirt, pants, fanciful shoes, and a bowtie approached Pier. Her hair was short and colored a dark black, her eyes the same color.
“Hello, I am Kye, the current Guildmaster of the Adventurer’s Guild. These knights informed me that you may be a person of interest to the Kingdom of Metridium, and would like to question you.”