[913] – Y04.013 – Red Oak II

[913] – Y04.013 – Red Oak II

The Adventurer’s Guild stood tall. The ground floor made of sturdy, smooth stone, the next three floors of imposing wood, each smaller than the previous, like a tiered cake. A handful of adventurers relaxed in the field to one side, some shooting their bows towards the targets at the back, while the other side held a smaller field, and another stone building connected to the side.

As Adam pushed open the heavy red wood doors, the smell of the meal filled his heart, that of a stew made of something an adventurer had slain recently no doubt, as well as potatoes and vegetables. To his right, adventurers drunk eagerly to relax, and to his left, adventurers played dice and card games, the wall of overflowing requests awaiting beyond them with told and untold riches.

“Good evening,” the tall, young woman called, with long red hair which draped past her shoulders and down her back. Her red shirt disappeared under the counter. Her freckled face smiled politely towards the oncoming adventurers.

“It’s good to see you again, Emma,” Adam said, nodding his head towards her. “Any rooms?”

“For adventurers, of course.”

Adam nodded. “I’d like to get...” Adam glanced over his shoulders, counting how many companions he had. “Three rooms, two doubles, if you don’t mind.”

“Would you like your room?”

“My room?”

“The room as part of our deal.”

‘Our deal?’ Adam replied. “Ah, well, I guess if Jaygak wants to stay in it?”

“We do require your services.”

‘My services?’ “Oh! Yes, of course, absolutely.” Adam smiled awkwardly towards the beautiful receptionist. ‘I really should review everything before I come out.’

Emma glanced between the five who had returned, noting how many looks the demons were gathering. ‘...’ Her eyes then fell to the corner, where a young Aswadian adventurer sat, a blade at his side. He reached for it and stood, his companions also standing.

A figure intercepted them, heavily armoured as she was, a mace at her side. She removed her helmet, revealing her tender smile. “Good evening.”

“Step aside, miss, we-,”

“I am Ray Vonda, of Life’s Rose,” Vonda said.

The adventurer, his face flashing with annoyance at first, paused. “You are a Ray?”

“I am.”

“You are too young.”

“I am blessed to have been considered for the position, and my task is to watch over my companions,” Vonda replied, noting the bronze trim along his clothing. “I hope you are willing to step back for the sake of the relationship between our orders.”

The Aswadians eyes glanced towards the pair of demons, before his eyes fell to the Ray once more. He glanced towards his Aldish companions, who motioned their heads back, and the Aswadian bowed his head, stepping away.

‘...’ Lucy let out a small sigh.

‘How annoying,’ Adam thought, recalling how he was in the same place a few years ago. ‘We should try and pass them off as devilkin, but I guess they can feel it due to their abilities?’

An older man with pale bronze skin, short salt and pepper hair, and dark eyes stepped into the guild from behind the receptionist. He wore a breastplate, stamped with the symbol of the Adventurer’s Guild, overlapping initials, and he carried a blade at his side. He noted the appearance of familiar faces within the guild, and he nodded towards them all.

“Vice Master Paul,” Adam called, reaching out to his forearm.

“Adam,” Paul replied, his eyes scanning across the others, greeting them politely.

“What a shame you couldn’t come to our wedding.”

“Unfortunately, the Guild required me here,” Paul said, letting out a familiar tired sigh.

“It’s always the Vice Master who needs to work the hardest, eh?” Adam joked.

A small smirk appeared across Paul’s lips. “The Guild Master works the hardest.”

Adam flashed a small smile. “Unfortunately, we’ll be unable to assist this year?”

“Why is that?” Paul asked, as though he didn’t know the answer.

“We’re escorting a very special guest.”

“Yes?”

Adam smiled wide, before shrugging his shoulders. “Well, I’ll leave you to your work.”

"They do not understand your majesty."

"What majesty?" Lucy glanced around their small room. "I'm just a dirty demon here."

"Only a few years and they shall know."

"Know what? This land is full of great towns and cities, a hundred thousand in each town at least. The armies I would need..." Lucy stared at the ceiling. ‘Even if I start a cult, just how much death will I have to bring? I’m no Iyrman.’ “I just want to live peacefully.”

“I will endeavour to allow you to live peacefully.”

“You should live peacefully too.”

“I will strive to live peacefully too.”

“Stop talking like that,” Lucy reached out to poke Mara in the side. “Talk like a normal person! You’re not the attendant of royalty any more.”

“You are from a long line of-,”

“I know, Mara, but that’s a different life. Here I’m no one. Here I’m just Lucy. I’m Lucy, a demon, who should just die.”

“I won’t allow anyone to kill you.”

“I won’t allow anyone to kill you either.” Lucy reached out to hold Mara’s hand. “We can’t be beholden to our past life any more.”

Mara squeezed Lucy’s hand reassuringly, the pair laying down beside one another in the large bed. ‘We can’t be beholden to our past life any more?’

Once they had spent their time in Red Oak, the group gathered themselves, resupplying for their journey eastward, deciding to follow the northern path through Aldland.

“I hope your journey is full of blood and wonder,” Amokan said, shaking Adam’s forearm.

“I hope your journey is full of peace and calm,” Adam replied, chuckling lightly.

“We eagerly await your stories,” Timojin said, shaking Jurot’s forearm.

“We eagerly await your stories too,” Jurot replied, shaking the young man’s forearm.

“I wonder if I’ll fight the Blade of the Tide again,” Jaygak pondered aloud, her hands on her hips, standing casually as though she wasn’t picking a fight with the pair.

“Perhaps I will defeat her before you?” Amokan joked.

“You should stick with battling Experts.”

Amokan grinned wide towards Jaygak. “You are so courageous, standing beside Adam.”

“I’m courageous standing beside Kitool,” Jaygak replied, her lips twitching into a smirk.

Kitool bowed her head towards the pair of Iyrmen, who she had defeated in the tournament.

The group made their way out of the town, while Amokan and Timojin waited at the gates to watch them leave, the pair of guards glancing towards the Iyrmen.

“What will they fight this year?” Amokan asked in their tongue.

“A dragon?” Timojin replied, only half joking.

“Jaygak will kill a Gryn eagerly.”

Timojin slowly nodded his head. “She has such rights.”

The pair of Iyrmen watched the party move towards the horizon, with each passing moments their bodies grew warmer and their hearts began to pound with anticipation.

‘We will need to work hard to match them.’

At noon, the part took a break to eat, and while Adam mourned the loss of Korin in their party, he checked his book over lunch.

‘I’m so glad you’re this smart, Jurot.’ Adam wrote down in his book the additional coin they had made as the upfront fee of taking in the order for the Countess of Red Oak. ‘Should we have ripped her off a little more? I feel like four thousand for each Basic Enhanced weapon is fine, but she’s a noble, right? We can probably ask for at least a few hundred, if not a thousand more? The Iyr doesn’t pay quite as much, but it is the Iyr too, so it’s not like I can charge them any more than that. Still, it’s pretty good. It takes twice as long to make Basic Enhanced than Basic weapons, but they sell of for about three to six times as much...’

Adam slipped his book into his robes once more, before he sipped away at his flavoured water. ‘We need to be careful now that we’re down two Iyrmen.’ His eyes fell towards Lucy and Mara, who were eating their food silently, each deep in thought. ‘We should be fine going through all those forts, right?’

Poor Lucy and Mara.