“You aren't nervous?” Hokuto asked. For all he could see, although Jessica was probably athletic, even with the strange physical upgrade they'd gotten, she would be training with a knight. A knight! He'd been training for years, no doubt, and had much more of an understanding than she ever had. And yet she seemed entirely at ease come the next day. “What if he proves to be particularly strong?”

Her response was blithe, as usual. “Then I'll have a good idea of what I can handle and what I can't. They supposed to be super soldiers, right? Well, there you go. Besides, it's training, right? You're not supposed to beat someone down in TRAINING.” She was between jobs right now, hauling several sacks of grain on her shoulder to the inn. “Besides, kinda loving this super strength a bit too much to worry about that right now. If nothin' else I probably could get by on just running like hell.”

“You say that...but really, I'm worried for you,” Hokuto admitted. “You're strong, but you shouldn't go charging into things so readily.”

She just scoffed. “I don't CHARGE, I make calculated risks! And part of making calculated risks is understanding that said risks might not work out. Don't mean I'mma just take risks for the sake of it, though.”

“So, what if one of those risks doesn't work out for you?” He asked. Really, she almost seemed like she didn't care at all...

“Then I'll deal with it. Didn't get anywhere in life without rolling the dice a few times, so, hey! No reason to stop now.” That didn't help any. He wasn't sure how old she was, but she seemed pretty reckless. 'It might be a good idea to keep an eye on her,' he thought as she pointed out the inn. “Alright, we just need to drop these off and we're about done for the day, right?” she asked to be sure.

“Yep, that's right,” he said. The innkeeper needed this for several of his dishes, according to Charles, so he was more than happy to help provide them, carrying a couple sacks of his own in his arms. True, he could've carried more, but he'd decided that he'd rather not stand out so much- not when it was clear that they were getting more whispers than he was comfortable with. With how Jessica was behaving, he wasn't certain that she noticed, really.

When they both stepped in, the whole inn got surprisingly quiet. There was a moment as they walked up to the innkeeper of discomfort, but even the innkeeper himself seemed a bit more taciturn than they were used to as he directed them to the back. Hokuto was thinking of how to phrase the question when, to his surprise, the man spoke up himself. “Hol' up a moment.” They both stopped, questioning looks on their faces. “Gotta ask, those rumors true?”

Jessica made a strange face as Hokuto registered the words. “...eh? Rumors?” He had noticed the looks, but rumors? Had those angry men the other day said something untrue?

“Word is that the other day you went an' nearly drowned some three kids fer getting' in your way an' mouthin' off,” he huffs. “I don't blame ya if you got needled, but ya can't just run over anyone what talks bad to you...”

“Hey, he started it,” Jessica defended as Hokuto inwardly panicked. “I just finished it. And I didn't try to drown anyone, I just caused a little slip up with my spell, is all.”

'Not that it mattered if it was a grave offense!' Hokuto thought as he stepped forwards and bowed. “We're very sorry if we caused any trouble!” Jessica gave him a glare, but he didn't notice.

Nor did the innkeeper. “Nah, it's fine,” he waved off. “I kinda figured it was somethin' like that, but rumors are rumors. Folks are startin' to talk a bit.”

“What, just from that?” Jessica seemed honestly surprised. “Wasn't nothin' but a little wave of water and they tumbled over.”

“Well, ain't like magic's somethin' anyone can jus' DO,” the Innkeeper noted. “Not 'less you're a demon. Takes training and learnin'. If that tale's even half as true as it sounds, you're something else, miss.”

They both looked at each other in surprise at that. It WASN'T supposed to be easy? That was odd. They'd more or less just willed it into existence, but that wasn't how it was supposed to go? Hokuto spoke up, having been a bit fascinated with this sort of thing already. “Pardon me, but do you mean to say that magic is rare? How is it used normally?”

Innkeeper shrugged. “Eh, I ain't seen too much in my day, but it's all about shapin' it and sayin' the right words, apparently. Somethin' about 'convincing the planet's will' or the sort, I dunno. I'm just half rememberin' stuff folks have said.” Hokuto was shocked. So, they normally had to have a chant or something in order to make magic happen? But they didn't, so...

“Huh. Sounds about right,” Jessica said simply, to Hokuto's surprise. She wasn't going to mention the differences in how they did it? “Well, thanks for lettin' us know. We'll keep an ear out, okay?”

“Mmhm. Keep safe,” were his parting words as they left, everyone's eyes still on them.

“Well...that was news,” she said as they continued down the road- Jessica was intent on keeping her promise to practice with Adrian. “Good to know we're breaking a couple rules here before anyone else called us out on it.”

Hokuto was deep in thought about such a fact. “We'll have to be careful if we don't want any undue attention...”

“Or we just make sure the people who know are the right people,” Jessica added. “Don't want just anyone rollin' up on us because they're stupid.” Hokuto wasn't sure what she meant by that, but the issue was fairly moot as they saw a certain Frontier Knight in the distance, finishing a conversation with a shopkeep. When he turned to them, almost as though he was expecting them, Jessica gave another grin, cracking her knuckles and walking a bit faster. “Alrighty. Lemme see if I can't get medieval on a knight's ass.”

“H-hey! Just remember to be careful!” Hokuto warned as he sped up to keep pace.

--------------------

Two wooden swords clashed in a dirt ring; although one was nearly cracked through due to hard and relentless swings. One immediately let the other give way while still trailing it, forcing the blade along the path it had set. Into a wide circle it went, and when well away from the user's hand? The body attached thrust forwards, an attempt to disarm and move in for the kill.

Unfortunately, the affected saw this coming and stepped back quickly, batting the blade aside and forcing another stalemate. “I'm impressed,” Adrian admitted after a moment of staredown. “I thought you'd be all power, no form or technique. But you seem to have at least the basics down, though I can't understand your stances...not to say they don't work, but they seem a bit risky...”

“Mmmm, not as much as they look, actually,” Jessica admitted. “The Full Iron Guard's whole thing is that sure, it looks like I'm not guarding, but with how I'm holding this, I can put up a defense anywhere you swing with a literally a flick of the wrist- and move into a counter attack all in one motion. Like I just did, so if you'd kindly get HIT by it...” the remark was grumbled, but she had a smile on her face all the same.

Adrian just snorted. “I think that would be removing the point of this exercise, don't you? Nonetheless, I think I've seen enough. You should be fine enough on the road to at least hold out against an average bandit or ruffian or the sort. It's obvious your strength is prodigious, and you don't strike me as the sort to hold back in a fight. A style like that'll get you some snide looks around the capital, but it's good to have out here.” With that, the swords came to rest, though he kept an eye on hers. “Besides, should we continue this much more, I suspect that wood's going to shatter.”

“Prob'ly,” Jessica admitted. Although she certainly wasn't going to admit that she WAS holding back- considerably. Not like he wasn't doing similar though, she was sure. “Thanks, though. Haven't had a chance to practice swording in a hot minute!” She looked over to Hokuto, who's jaw was dropped in sheer surprise. “Hey! Your turn, kiddo.” She walked up to him casually, shaking her head slightly as she leaned down to him. “Don't get too worried, he's not going close to full blast. You did that kendo stuff in school, right?”

That seemed to shake him out of it. “Y-yes...but I didn't know there were classes in America, too!”

She shook her head. “There aren't. But there's clubs and stuff out there for folks that wanna learn historical European martial arts. HEMA, they call it.” She shrugged, thinking back to her active practicing years. “I did some years of it in college, before I really went full bore into the whole MMA thing. Was a fun hobby. Never thought I'd actually USE it, though,” she grimaced. “Either way, point is you're probably gonna be fine. Hell, probably better than me. Just keep your training in mind, swing fast, and you'll impress him enough- he just don't want dead weight.”

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

“R-right...” he flushed at the advice. He was skilled at Kendo...at least, for his club, but it wasn't like he ever won any championships or anything. How would he...? Well, no. 'I'll just have to try my hardest,' he thought as he took up his own practice sword.

Adrian nodded as he walked up. “Right. I don't expect such power from you, but I hope you have some knowledge of the way of the sword.”

Hokuto nodded as well. “Yes...I'll try my best!” The fact that he was nervous beyond belief was apparently well hidden- Adrian didn't say anything to his expression or countenance. Maybe he HAD noticed and just chose not to say anything? Maybe he was silently disgusted? These thoughts and more ran through his head as he bowed in respect. Then again, he was supposed to have some sort of extra power here, right? Well...he wasn't sure how strong he was compared to Jessica, or Adrian for that matter. He'd just have to hope for the best, he supposed.

“Ready?” Adrian says, as he eases into his fighting stance. “And...begin!”

'He who strikes first, wins!' Hokuto didn't have any real thought beyond that; he'd simply darted forwards, hoping to surprise his opponent.

He wasn't sure it'd work, but to his gratification, Adrian seemed to not expect the tactic, barely putting up his sword to prevent a strike- and resulting in him nearly toppling over the man in plate. “What-?!” The words barely got out before he barely had time to get out of the way before Hokuto followed up with a horizontal strike. That, he couldn't get entirely out of the way of. “Graahh!”

“Whoa now!” Jessica had gotten up immediately. “You okay, man?” She started to go over to his side, but what he said-

“Such power...” -caused Jessica to stop. “Astounding...”

“I-is it really so much?” Hokuto asked simply. He didn't notice the incredulous look Jessica had given him. “I just pushed as best I could...”

“...I think you'll be fine,” Adrian said briskly. “I think that'll do for now.”

Jessica scoffs. “Shit, no kiddin'- thought you were gonna just tap him a bit like I did!”

“...but I did...? At least, I thought it did...” he admitted. Perhaps he'd misunderstood?

Jessica just sighed, abandoning her concern. “Look, just...I mean, you don't need to haul off like that in front of...gah, nevermind, can't even explain it right."

----------------------

The capital of the Kingdom, Halidorn, was a place of peace. With its powerful mage-corps, its devout priest healers, and steadfast knights, it was a true city of stability and promise for a better tomorrow. Many races, from the rare and reclusive centauri kind, to the humble and proud Salamandra called the human-founded city Halidorn home, confident in the knowledge that, throughout the worst that history had managed to offer, they and the kingdom had endured, and would endure no matter what.

However, were one to look into the royal castle at the time, their opinion might have wavered, if only due to the sheer amount of TENSION that was palpable throughout the corridors. Maids, normally amicable and prone to occasional gossip walked briskly and with their heads down, not sparing a glance at anything save their work. The cooks had been up for hours, experts of their craft wiling away all hours, designing and divining the most succulent dishes for their lords in what one might call a desperate attempt at appeasement. Everywhere you looked, there was silence where there would be discussion, discomfort where there would be ease. And it all stemmed from the discussion happening in a single chamber.

The room was, at first glance, fairly typical. All major buildings hosted by someone even remotely religious held a prayer room- the richer folk often having larger, of course. The King's, accordingly, was as though it were its own chambers. There were no windows- rich, marble stone were the construct of all the walls, cleaned and polished to give an ethereal sheen and form an otherworldly atmosphere. Resting against the walls were various statues, each twice as large as a full grown man, and laden in gold. They totaled seven in all- three against the east and west...and against the back, larger and easily the first sight to see when entering, the last. And yet, the most important. For this was a full body depiction of the Great Goddess, their chief and most high god. Clad in fitting robes and wreathed with a halo of two kinds- on one half, the crafted wisps and uneven appearance evoked the sun. The other half? Pockmarked and smooth, like the earth it self. Her even, calm expression made the statue look as though she were holding her gaze across both god and man that crossed that threshhold.

And it was those eyes that King Dariel, Ruler of the Shrombell Kingdom, and High Lord of the Allied Armies were trying his best to avoid. Though he had fought in many a battle, witnessed many an atrocity, and been the recipient of many a hated stare, it was in this moment that he felt most powerless as he focused himself on the verbal report that his Chief Mage had given him. “You say WHAT happened?”

“I- there was some sort of...freak occurrence, milord.” Hagan, Chief Mage and Head Minister of the Academy was the best in the Kingdom at complicated magecraft; his body was mousey, his skin pale, and he looked like a scrawny teenager next to King Dariel's wide frame, but his ability to craft spellwork beyond the norm was beyond compare, or until recently, reproach. “The spell was ideal, and upon careful review of the energies output, we have determined that it was a late-stage variance that caused the spell to misfire.”

“Late-stage variance?” the King questioned gruffly. He was getting in on years now, and mage work had well advanced beyond what he knew as a youth. His hair- specifically his bushy brown beard now beginning to show signs of grey- informed him of that every morning when he snorted at it in the mirror. “Speak plainly, if you can. I know not what that means.”

“Of course, sire,” Hagan nodded, adjusting his glasses. “It means that, during the ritual, something interfered on the receiving end. It threw the spell off-track. But the excellent news, milord...is that it WAS completed!” This was said with a proud smile. “We can confirm that we DID summon a great, venerable warrior! Someone worthy of being called 'hero!'”

A moment of quiet passed as the King absorbed that information. To finally have to resort to such a risky spell...well, he'd considered it his biggest mark of shame. Indeed, the demons seemed to be stilled right now- but it was clearly out of tactical choice. They'd already taken much of the land over, draping various villages and environs underneath their dark magic- such was its power that it prevented scrying of any sort, and some villages and towns, like the Town of Crossway, had been blinded to even the naked eye. Slatternight, the most cursed Faerie, had seen to that one in particular, and none, even Hagan, could break the dome of sheer darkness that enveloped the area. Considering that few who ventured beyond the border came back- and those that did lost their memory of what they saw or heard in totality- it was bleak times, only delayed by the fact that for whatever reason the demons had stopped. It also gave the Kingdom time to regroup, and, in the worst case scenario, begin to settle further lands in the opposite direction. Indeed, though several years had passed, it was no comfort to have such a reminder of what loomed so close. And no adventurer nor knight yet had been able to prove different. So it'd lead to this.

Magic that would've been banned under any other circumstance. Ripping someone away from all they knew, in a desperate plea for aid that could come from nowhere else, brought to bear for this desperate situation...only to fail. Or so they believed at first. But now... “Can't you tell where it went?”

“Only somewhat. We barely managed to identify where it went wrong, much less get any exact trace of where the transported hero ended up,” Hagan admitted. “However, we DID get a very vague direction...and the best we can tell is that it's somewhere west. Likely very far...in the frontier lands, is our best guess.”

“And those are wild, expansive...and dangerous,” the King finished, sighing. That was the WORST place they could've ended up, save for perhaps the Demon realms themselves. “Meaning they'll be lost, confused, and questioning much, provided they stay alive for long.”

“True, milord, but we DID specify in the spell that it was to be someone of powerful mind and spirit. Capable of great magics.” Hagan took a moment to think. “Perhaps we should make an attempt to look around the Frontier?”

“Indeed, that seems the most prudent course of action,” the King agreed. “I will send an order to the Frontier Knights in all ways possible; to be on the lookout of an individual of abnormal countenance and great power. The whys shall be held to us alone, of course. You and your corp shall continue your research- any possibilities to track down the hero faster should be explored. Understood?” He wanted no stone unturned, and no lead unfollowed.

“Absolutely, sire!” Hagan saluted.

“Then you are dismissed,” he gave, turning away as the conversation ended. Hagan left without another word.

Dariel, for his part, could only pray that they would find this individual before anything befell him- or that his impression of the Kingdom was warped.

And yet he still couldn't meet the eyes of the Goddess.

As he left the room in his private shame, it was only his mutterings that allowed him to breathe deeply, and present himself like the king he was.

“Thus and more for the Kingdom...”

However, he was not the only member of the royal house to be concerned. For another privy to the attempt was currently in her room; pouring over various tomes that she'd never before taken an interest in, but now found quite fascinating- if only because they might be the key to salvation. However, this was no prince, seeking to take matters into his own hands- no, the fair Prince Lorain was preoccupied with matters of state and being- that is to say, dealing with his own issues regarding his attempts to the alluring Lady Winela. He had been after her for some time, but as of now, little progress besides neutral meetings and the occasional walk through the palace gardens.

But the individual currently hard at work studying the book of ancient spellcraft (that her brother had surreptitiously loaned her and begged for back before the next day) cared little for that. Indeed, Olivia may have been little more than a castle maid for now, but she quite cared about her Kingdom, and if asking her half-haggard and rundown brother for a favor in his moment of weakness was what was needed, so be it. The spell hadn't failed; she and her brother had determined that. Someone had come through. The matter now was WHERE they had been brought to during the spell's transportation. And finding a way to track that was her goal.

After all, she had to reach him before the King, and get in the hero's ear first if they truly wanted to save their Kingdom from the threats that plagued it. If he got to the hero first?

They'd all just die a slower death.