Vanessa walked into the visitor centre of the royal magic academy mid-morning. Kyle followed behind as she walked to the receptionist, the same one from yesterday.

“Hello, I came by yesterday to leave a letter. Is there a reply by chance?”

“Hello, Madam, Sir. Let me take a look.”

Soon, the couple walked out of the building with Vanessa clutching a letter in her hands.

Kyle pulled the girl and pointed to a nearby bench seat, under a shade.

“Wife, let’s go sit over there.”

Vanessa sat down, and slowly opened the letter.

Kyle sat next to her and peeked at the contents.

“Dear Big Sis and Kyle,

I’m so happy that you came so far to visit me. I can’t wait to see you both. I have so much to tell that I won’t be able to fit it onto a single letter! I have a surprise for you when we meet, hehe.

I have a day off in two days. I will be waiting at the entrance of the academy in the morning.

Sincerely,

Alex”

It was a very short letter. Alex probably felt that he wanted to leave all the good things to say in person.

“I wonder how excited he’ll be once we surprise him with the news.” Vanessa leaned on Kyle’s shoulder.

“Well, my love, we have two days without anything to do. How would you like to spend the time?”

“Shopping!” Vanessa seemed to have forgetten about Alex in that very instance. Kyle silently sent his regards to Alex with a wry smile.

“Well, alright. But I was thinking that I should look for a job of some kind as well. Let’s go visit the employment office.”

Kyle gave a peculiar glance back towards the academy as he left with Vanessa towards the city square.

***

That man came again today. He’s scary. Too scary. I’ve seen magical beasts before. Those seem like puppies before that man. I want to go home.

“……ber four. Wake up! Number four!” She was jolted out of her thoughts by her mentor and superior.

She turned to look at him. He was an old man. Although he still looked middle-aged, he was old enough for her to call him ‘Grandpa’. Of course, his mask hid any details but she as one of his pupils, knew what he looked like.

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‘Ah. Mentor is also sweating like a waterfall.’

She had reported the man’s existence to her mentor yesterday. Of course, the idea of a human being on the same level as a magical beast was absurd. But her mentor decided to tag along to confirm her suspicion.

“T-that man! Is he a grandmaster?! No! He’s far stronger……I must report this to his majesty!” Her mentor was a peak master rank warrior. He had met the royal court mage many times. She’d thought he’d be used to this kind of pressure.

“Mas……Number zero. What should I do?”

Number zero fell into deep thought.

“Do nothing for now. They seem to be related to one of the new kids. Just keep an eye on that kid. I’ll take a trip to the palace.”

Number zero swiftly left the spot. Number four looked on with admiration for her mentor’s skills. She decided to shake her thoughts away from that scary man. She felt so powerless before him.

‘I’m pretty sure he met my gaze……’ The agent shuddered and patted herself to get rid of her fear.

***

The employment office was bustling. Kyle was very surprised upon the discovery of such a service when he first arrived. After coming from a brutal, strength above everything world, this was a fresh experience. It was nice to see humans caring for others, without trying to take advantage of each other.

“Dear, should I get a job too?”

“Haha, no need my love. Your job is to wait my return each day like a good little wife you are.” Kyle grinned and squeezed Vanessa’s nose as they stood amongst the crowd. Their act earned them a few smirks from the surroundings.

Vanessa was too embarrassed to respond and tried to hide her blush.

Kyle led her to a que and waited patiently. There were a great many counters, reflecting the large population of the city.

Soon, it was their turn and they were greeted by a gruff man.

“What can I help you with?”

“Hi, this is our first time in this city. Looking for a job.” Kyle didn’t want to add unnecessary information.

“Place your hand on this stone. I’ll ask you a few questions.”

“Name?” “Kyle.”

“Age?” “Twenty-one.”

“Where are you from?” “Drant village, to the north.”

“What did you do before coming here?” “Hunter.”

“Any other experience?” “Fishing, butcher, farmer.”

The man looked at the stone during each question and failed to comment after noticing that there were no fluctuations visible.

Vanessa was amused by the two’s short question and answer session. She could guess that Kyle was doing it on purpose to somewhat make fun of the man as she hid her smile behind her hand.

The gruff man gave Vanessa a quick glare. “Wait here.”

Soon, the man came back with a few documents in hand.

“This one here is a hunting team. They go out once a week. They need a general hand. It’s on a permanent basis if you pass the trial. The others are short term employment for farm work and at a local butcher.”

The man handed Kyle the documents. Kyle didn’t take long to decide and chose to go see the hunting team to see if he can get the job. The pay was low but it was stable employment.

He wrote down the details on a spare parchment and left employment office. The meeting place was a nearby tavern at dinner time.

“Well, my love, that’s taken care of. Let’s go shopping like you wanted to.”

“Hmm, what if you don’t pass, dear?”

“Well, that’s ok, I can always go hunting by myself. I just have to find a buyer for any game I get.”

“Oh, and let’s get some seeds so we can grow vegetables in our yard. It’s why we bought this smaller house after all.”

Vanessa’s face loosened at hearing Kyle say ‘our yard’. She still hadn’t gotten over the changes that had taken to her life recently. It all came so fast that she had trouble coming to terms with it.

In the evening, Kyle got acquainted with the hunting team. He would join them on a trip next week. He had to take care of the house and get their lives set up at a new place. He also had to wait for Alex so he couldn’t leave with them immediately.

Two days passed by with Kyle and Vanessa running around to get various things. They had gotten a letter sent to their inn to inform them of their new home being ready, the night before the meeting with Alex.