A small gust of wind blew through the mountains, causing a small echoing howl that carried throughout the valley below and the village nestled within the natural protective walls of the mountains. Small plumes of grey and white smoke rose, the telltale signs of life and activity. The closer one got; the chorus of voices could be heard either hollering, shouting, chatting, or laughing. Still, only one subject seemed to be of any similarity, and that was rumours of growing political instability within the Empire they were apart of. 

  “Did you hear? The Princess has gone missing! Word has it she was kidnapped on her way to the capital,” 

  “I heard the Emperor and Empress have secluded themselves in the palace due to their daughter's disappearance, and that the leaders of the Nobles faction are pushing for more control in their place using threats of violence, the royalists are barely able to hold onto power because of it!” rumours and bit of news carried across the small village's busy streets. 

  Yet, despite the rumours, there was a single point of focus… the disappearance of the Imperial Princess. The news of the Crown Princess’ going missing was seemingly on the lips of all citizens of the empire – save two, it seemed. On the far-off edge of the village was a small home with a thatched roof, sitting proudly atop a small hill surrounded by a tiny stone wall and trees. A small dirt trail snaked up to the front door. Behind the door, two voices were locked in debate. Their muffled voices showing that neither bore any anger for the other but instead tried to argue the different options presented to the young men. 

  Inside was a cozy lived-in home of six, yet only two currently dwelling within, discussing their futures. The decor and style of the home is the current style of the Rovian Empire with familial touches. A wooden home with white wallpaper and wood trim carved to look similar to marble, with the furnishings within being rather well made and put together, with some having cushions, showing that the family who lived here had some degree of money to afford some comforts – or were more a way to appear as such to those within the village. 

  “No… that’s a terrible idea, Léonce! There’s no way Rovia University would admit us, let alone humour our attempts to attend. Hell, our family barely has enough as it is to afford what we have here, so how could they afford us going to some fancy school for nobles, hmm?” Voiced one of the brothers, a young, handsome man with short brown hair styled more for efficiency, with deep emerald green eyes and pale skin, similar to his brother.The parts of his arms and face tanned by hours out in the sun and a stockier build were a stark contrast however with his brother, showcasing the notion that he was the type prone to hard work and craftsmanship.

  The other brother, Léonce, was a tall, equally handsome young man who looked more like the skinny, bookish type. His sandy, medium-length blond hair was tied into a neat ponytail, a style popular in the capital, but unlike his brother, he had none of the tan, showing he was indeed a match for his appearance.

  “Dammit Loup! Money spent now will give us untold prestige, grandeur and most important... vaults of money~” Leonce retorted.

 Loup frowned, folding his arms over his chest as he leaned back, “No. While there is merit to getting a degree, the cost isn’t worth it. Plus… we’re far too stupid for such a place.”

“True… but we’ll at least be the first and only ones of our family to attend! So, there’s that.”

Loup rolled his eyes, “regardless, we’ll have to find something else.”

“Fine… what do you have then, hmm? Doing as our parents wish, and farming like the rest of this boring ass town?” Léonce asked, plopping down onto a chair near the kitchen table.

 He shook his head again, “Of course not. The whole reason we’re discussing options is to avoid that hell.”

“So? Have any suggestions, then? Thus far, it’s just been me shooting ideas out, and you just slapping each down with logic,” Léonce noted with a fake shiver at the mention of logic, as though making fun of the word. 

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“Sometimes I wonder who the older sibling is…” Loup sighed.

“Easy! I’m better looking~” Léonce gives a triumphant grin.

Loup facepalmed and shook his head, “Whatever. Anyway, I do have something. One I think even you might like.”

“Oh? You’ve poked my curiosity, dear brother of mine,” The blond replied, leaning forward and resting the weight of his head on his hands.

Loup finally smiled, “Adventuring.”

Léonce looked confused, “And? What about it?”

“What if we become adventurers? You’ve seen the posters around town hall asking for new recruits at the guild. This could be our chance to escape this place and make some real money while getting actually to see the world.”

Léonce tilted his head, “Ah, yes… well, you forgot one small cavoite dear brother… the life-threatening aspect of the job description.”

“And when has that stopped us?” 

“Uh… always? You do remember I’m a coward, correct?” Léonce said, leaning back and folding his arms over his chest.

Loup knew that was a lie. Léonce was considered the village’s greatest swordsman; despite his appearance and mannerisms, his older brother was considered by most to be an incredibly talented fighter, but he always seemed to choose the mask of the fool. Most had forgotten his talents, and had instead opted to see him as the fool he acted like. It bothered him, but he didn’t bother to voice such thoughts.

Léonce could see his brother’s discomfort as his green eyes narrowed on his own blue. Loup was the only one who know his capabilities just as he knew of his, but Loup was considered the better brother primarily due to how much he had done for the village. Often crafting works of art for the village, but that was never his passion. Forging and building were his real passion, but like himself, Loup was a talented fighter. They both were. Loup was more focused on range, while Léonce the blade. Give the wolf a musket, and he’ll shoot a coin from a man’s hand from 600 yards. Give the lion a blade, and he’ll cut through a thick-trunked tree: the wolf and lion, Loup and Léonce. 

To many, they looked opposite their names but were, in fact, very much deserving of their namesakes. Both brothers chose to keep this from their family however; they believed it better to avoid the attention of others when possible regarding their martial talents, which was partially the reason for Léonce’s dislike of his brother’s suggestion. 

“Listen, Leo, you, and I both know the only way we’re getting out of here is if we take the opportunity presented via the Guild. Plus, it’s not like we have to do any actual mercenary work. Adventuring means travelling, exploring, and searching abandoned ruins,” Loup started, pausing to take a sip of water, “You never know; we might make enough coin to buy a title and surname for our family.” 

Léonce sighed, defeated. He wanted to argue against it but knew it was pointless. The only other options presented to them all cost money they didn’t have or military service, and there was no way in hell he was going to join the Imperial Army if he could help it. Not with all these rumours of civil war brewing up across town. 

“Fine! We’ll do your thing then… I suppose. But don’t expect me to be happy about it, Lou. I’m not exactly thrilled at the idea, but… you’ve never been wrong before, so, fuck it~ Let’s become damned adventurers… but if this gets me killed, I’m going to be very upset.” 

Loup grinned, “You’ll be dead,”

“As if death would stop me from giving you one swift kick in the ass~” He quipped back.

Both brothers laughed, happy to have finally narrowed down something of an idea for their potential future. 

After gathering together a few personal items, the two brothers wrote up a note to their parents stating they were going off to find their fortune in the world and gave their love before leaving. The first steps they took were filled with a mixture of fear and apprehension as their feeling of dread washed over both. The fear of failure hung over them like a fly to dung. Yet, they pushed through their fear and mustered up their courage and excitement and made for the Guild. 

The Adventurer’s Guild, or simply the Guild, had branches across the known world and while the size of each branch varied, there was always a place for one to find work or put up a request for aid. In this case, the village of Oakenhart branch was a tiny brick building near the town centre. Given the safe nature of Oakenhart, there wasn’t a lot of work for adventurers, so the branch served more as an employment center, sending prospective recruits off to the larger branches that had stuff for one to do, which was the reason for the brother's choice this day. 

Standing in front of the two large hardwood doors, the brothers scanned the spartan façade of the building, as though picturing the start of their grand future like the building before them. A blank slate, one with limitless potential.

“I’m not actually thinking that by the way,” Noted Léonce as he looked to Loup, who was confused.

“Thinking what?”

“You know what. Don’t assume you weren’t staring up at the building like it was some deep meaningful thing like the start of our careers.”

Loup smiled, shaking his head, raising his hands in defeat, before turning to face his brother, “So you were too.”

Groaning at the cheesiness of it all, Léonce was the first to open the doors, “Come on then, this was your idea after all.”