Everything ached when Raine got to his feet. He supported himself with the wall as he went to the bathroom. He splashed cold water onto his face and ran a hand through his hair to get the sweat off it.

Damn, I didn’t want to overdo it, but I actually might have. The BMW-horse combo was too effective as a motivator. He grabbed a clean towel, and while he patted his face dry with it, he heard a knock on his door.

“Hellooo?” Ava said. “We’re going to Kingswood in a minute.”

Shit, already? “Alright,” he said. He hung the towel on the rack and went to the living room. All of his teammates were there, most of them on the couch and armchairs.

“Congrats on the magic. How was your training?” Ava asked. “It must have been a blast.”

“It was about as fun as low-level clerical work.” He headed straight for an empty armchair and plopped onto it. “So what are we doing today?”

“We’ll first get what we need from L. Kingswood,” June said. “Then we’ll go to the practice hall.”

“Will we practice with the people we’ll work with for the request?”

“Nope. It won’t be necessary either.”

“And not even possible,” Ava said. “Two teams aren’t in Rialis yet. The third is too busy taking requests moronically often.”

After a few minutes, they left the apartment—too soon for Raine’s liking, with his exhaustion—and went to L. Kingswood, where they bought daggers, shields, bows, and arrows.

Raine patted the new dagger at his hip. Its blade was ten inches long, and above the hilt was a small crossguard to keep an enemy sword from slicing his fingers if it slid down the blade. The mere thought of fighting a goblin with such a short weapon disturbed him. Let’s hope I’ll never have to rely on this thing.

He’d wanted to get a sword, but Ava had said that with his skills, he was more likely to cut himself in a fight than a goblin.

They dropped off their new equipment at the residences, had a quick lunch at the cafeteria, and went to the practice hall. At a counter to the side, June wrote her name and their team ID on a form. Then they grabbed wooden swords and round-tip spears from baskets and went to an empty space in the hall.

Raine’s teammates sparred for the first time. For safety, neither hits to the head nor thrusts at any target were allowed. And Ava told them to move extremely slowly. The sluggish pace kept them from compensating for sloppy technique with strength and speed.

“This isn’t about winning,” Ava said. “If you’re moving fast enough that you have no time to think, you’re doing it wrong. Go slow.”

Since Raine started training with the sword and spear later than the rest, he could only repeat the basic footwork drills in front of a mirror while the rest did the far more interesting slow-sparring.

This thing sure feels a hell of a lot heavier when you’re tired, Raine thought, looking at the wooden sword in his hands. Maybe a real sword will feel like a fucking brick to me right now.

Over and over again, he moved forward and backward, left and right without breaking his stance. The movements had to be ingrained in him so that even if he were scared out of his wits, he would have some semblance of decent footwork. He had no plans to trip over himself while trying to kill a goblin.

Forward, backward, left, right. Forward, backward, left, right. Raine quickly lost count of how many times he repeated the drills. He only stopped for a break when his quads burned and calves ached like hell.

“Slow down,” Ava said. Raine’s gaze went to her. She was sparring with Cecily, who groaned in frustration.

“I know,” Cecily said, wiping sweat off her chin. “Let’s go again.”

Ava nodded and entered her stance. Cecily slowly swung her sword at Ava’s chest. Ava parried the strike and retreated. Her steps were measured. Cecily threw another cut, but she was out of range, and Ava just watched the sword pass by. Then both of them moved forward. Cecily raised her sword to throw a downward cut. At the same time, Ava took one more step closer. Her wooden blade touched Cecily’s wrists.

“Fuck,” Cecily said.

“Super telegraphed,” Ava said. “And you stepped in too deeply.”

“One more time.”

“Nope. You need to drill your footwork. It keeps falling apart when I attack.”

“Argh. Shit.” Cecily sighed. “Okay, fine.”

Well, that’s enough of a break for me. Raine resumed his own practice. He wanted his footwork to be at least half-decent by the time he started sparring.

They trained for three hours, practicing with swords, spears, and daggers. They repeated the same basic techniques dozens of times each. Raine managed to stay motivated by telling himself that on Wednesday, all the mind-numbing drilling would be worth it.

. . . .

“So you didn’t hold a grudge?” Song Hyun-woo asked.

“I would be lying if I said I didn’t hate Shields initially,” Elwood said. “But I eventually learned about what kind of people my parents were.” He leaned back in the sofa and sighed lightly. “Their fate was well-deserved.”

“I imagine it took a while for you to change your mind.”

“Years. It was a long process for me to accept that the good resulting from Shields’ actions far outweighed the bad. I needed even more time to let go of whatever anger I felt toward Shields.”

“I see,” Song Hyun-woo said, nodding. “This is unrelated, but Shields is dealing with dragons now, and Iurisia is providing it with some support. Do you think that could cause any issues?”

“How so?”

“Iurisia will have fewer men to send aid to you if you need it.”

“I don’t expect an army of orcs to come at us,” Elwood said with a smile. “I think we’ll be fine on our own.”

You’re here precisely because this Expansion isn’t normal. It’s possible something completely unexpected will happen, Song Hyun-woo thought. “From what I know, all but one of the Followers of Air earned their titles in the last four years.”

Elwood nodded with a slight frown. “That’s true. But they’re still highly capable fighters.”

“So I’ve heard,” Song Hyun-wood said. He asked Elwood several more questions and looked at the clock. It was almost noon, meaning they’d spoken for over two hours. He decided to wrap up the conversation. He really couldn’t take up much more of a Follower’s time. It was obvious at this point that Elwood hadn’t been the one to open the portal for the Duke. To be sure, however, Song Hyun-woo planned to request that someone else question Elwood the next day to check for any inconsistencies.

“That’s all. Thank you, Follower Elwood,” Song Hyun-woo said. “I apologize for taking so much of your time.”

“Not a problem,” Elwood said. “Your caution is justified. I would do the same thing in your position.”

They got up and shook hands. Then Song Hyun-woo went to the door and opened it for Elwood, who smiled at him and walked out.

. . . .

On Tuesday, Raine woke up feeling like trash—everything hurt. To his relief, Ava was no demon, and training wasn’t as intense that day. The team bought helmets at the armor store and trained for just an hour. Then over dinner, they talked about the request. Ava went over the worst-case scenarios, and one in particular stuck in Raine’s head.

“So it’s the Expansion,” she said. “And in the Expansion, crazy shit happens. So it’s possible—not likely, remember, just possible—that at some point in the request, six or more elite goblins will come at us. Three will be fine. Four too. Five will be...eh. But six? June and I could kill them in a few minutes, but that’s plenty of time for two of them to dodge us and kill you guys. So remember that if I tell you to fucking run, it’s probably because half a dozen elites are about to try to kill us. Just one elite can kill any of you in under a minute, by the way. Their attacks actually have some semblance of technique.”

After dinner, Raine had hours of free time. He briefly considered taking a translation job, but he decided to spend the evening relaxing and doing nothing but reading an Ephrian novel.

Then came Wednesday.

They left Rialis City in the morning. Raine felt less nervous than he’d been the first time, even though this request would be more dangerous. He now knew what it was like to fight a goblin, and more importantly, he knew how easily Ava could kill one.

Once they reached Orinbeck, they took their equipment from Guard and Myu. June then led the horses into the stable.

Raine strapped closed the front of his gambeson. Then he slung his shield over his back, put on his belt, and picked up his sheathed spear and his helmet.

“So are those our friends?” Kayden asked, looking at a group of about fifteen people near the northern gate.

“Yeah,” Ava said.

Edgar squinted as he looked at the other teams. Most of their members had yet to put on their helmets, so their faces were clearly visible.

“Fuck,” he said.

Raine followed his gaze. He saw a handful of familiar faces, among them Max, Lukas, and Stanbury. Marco, too.

This must be fate, Raine thought, glancing at Edgar. Well, either that or they’re both ambitious and don’t give a shit about danger. They were bound to meet with a request like this.

“Let’s just stay focused on our own work,” Raine said to Edgar. “We’ll get things done faster.”

“I know,” Edgar said, frowning. “But if the prick causes trouble, I’m going to kick his ass.”

June came out of the stables in a few minutes. Raine and his teammates approached the other teams.

While Raine greeted his friends and acquaintances, June spoke with the other team leaders. The one in charge of the request seemed to be the leader of Max and Lukas’ team, Jared Engel. He was a fit man of average height, with shoulder-length black hair and a Van Dyke beard.

“Everyone, I’m sure you’ve already heard it, but as a reminder, I’ll go over everything briefly,” Jared said to everyone in the four teams. “What we’ll do is simple: watch the forest and kill any goblins that approach. Most of you are new, so it’s important for the teams to not get too close to each other. Ranged attackers in particular need to be careful of hitting allies. Also, look out for falling trees. The loggers will shout ‘timber’ when a tree is falling. Don’t get crushed. And they dug a ditch about sixty feet from the edge of the forest. It’s supposed to trip goblins, not you, so be aware that it’s there. That’s it. Any questions?”

“I have one,” Marco said. “How many trees are they going to cut down?”

“Who knows? Probably twenty or so. What really matters is how long it’ll take. We’re not going to spend more than an hour there.”

“Will we face any elite goblins?” someone asked.

“If we’re unlucky. But don’t worry, your team leaders will take care of it.” He looked around. “Any more questions?” There weren’t any. “Alright. Let’s go.”

They left Orinbeck. On the way to the forest, Raine noticed how easy it was to tell whether or not someone was new by their level of relaxation. The team leaders were smiling and laughing while they talked freely with their teammates. Ava walked in silence, but that was because she was looking through a small notebook in her hands.

In contrast, the new members usually looked somewhat nervous. Many rested their palms on the pommels of their swords or daggers, and more than a handful already had their shields in their hands.

When they reached the Irin Forest, they saw five thick men on the road, standing beside two carts, one empty and the other full of axes. A draft horse stood nearby and stared boredly at the approaching Hopkins members.

The five loggers wore gambesons and carried bascinets under their arms. Leaning against the cart were pavises: large, oblong shields that could be stuck into the ground and used as portable cover.

Jared greeted the loggers and asked, “Is everything ready?”

“Yeah, we even set up some of the guiding rope,” one of them said. He pointed at a rope connecting a thick branch of one tree to the trunk of another. There were several more ropes on other trees.

“Great,” Jared said. His gaze went to everyone behind him. “We’ll start in ten minutes, everyone. String your bows, put on your helmets, check on your teammates, and do whatever else you have to.”

While Jared and the other team leaders discussed which team would watch which part of the forest (Raine saw it was quickly settled with coin flips), Raine spoke with Ava.

“You nervous?” she asked him.

“A little,” he said. “But far less than I was for the first request.”

“You know that’s probably going to change when we start, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Just keep your eyes open, and remember to keep things simple. If you see a goblin head, you stab it. If you see a goblin leg, you stab it. If a sword is coming at you, use your shield. No fancy shit.”

“What happens if I end up having to fight three goblins at once or something?”

“First, you back up and throw your spear at the nearest goblin.”

“Okay. Then?”

“Then, you turn around and run.”

“Wait, that’s it?”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

“Uh...okay.”

“Normally the best thing to do when fighting multiple opponents is to be as aggressive as possible. At the same time, you have to move so that you make one enemy block another’s path. But that needs practice.”

“That makes sense,” Raine said.

“Hey, you won’t have to fight three goblins at once, though,” Kayden said. “Two will be shot dead before they reach you.”

“I’m sure they will be,” Raine said with a smile.

He glanced at his other teammates. Edgar was sitting on a rock, staring at the forest with a frown on his face. Cecily was walking along the edge of the forest with her fingers drumming the pommel of her longsword.

When it was almost time to start, Raine put on his helmet. It was a visorless bascinet with an aventail, a curtain of chainmail that covered his neck and shoulders.

He saw the loggers stick their pavises into the ground next to the trees they were going to fell. One of them pulled the cart of axes closer to the forest.

Jared clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. “Okay, let’s go.”

“We’re taking the leftmost quarter,” June said to her teammates. They entered the forest and went until they were about twenty feet from the ditch.

Kayden and Cecily were in the middle of the group. The rest flanked them.

“I assume we're all in place by now,” Jared said loudly. "Everyone ready?"

June and the other two team leaders said yes.

"Then we start now.”

Raine took a deep breath. The loggers raised their axes.

Steel met wood. The loggers swung again and again. Raine’s grip on his spear tightened. The sound of their hacking was the only thing he heard for several tense minutes.

Then from somewhere in the forest, they heard a cry of anger.

It was just one at first. Then several more joined in quick succession.

Raine’s heartbeat quickened. He heard the voices of half a dozen more goblins.

“Here they come,” Ava said. She snapped her fingers, and two spheres of metal appeared in front of her. Each elongated into a rectangular shield, and a spike formed at the bottom. Ava grabbed them and drove them into the ground in front of Cecily and Kayden.

“That’s pretty damn convenient,” Kayden said, nocking an arrow.

“And effective. This is why metal magic is the best,” Ava said. “Anyway, take cover, people. They’re coming.”

Let’s not die from flying spears. Raine went behind a tree. There was minimal undergrowth in the area, so he saw the goblins even when they were a good distance away. They were running at Raine’s team with spears and shields in their hands.

Kayden and Cecily drew their bows and fired. They aimed at the goblins without shields. Kayden’s arrow landed square on the chest of one goblin, while Cecily’s hit another one’s shoulder.

The goblins came closer and started using the trees as cover. Kayden still shot one goblin dead with an arrow to the eye. Another shrieked in pain and lowered its shield after an arrow hit its leg. Kayden quickly loosed another arrow, hitting the monster’s now vulnerable face. Cecily found far less success with the bow, but she still managed to wound a few goblins.

There were only eight or nine at first, but while they approached, another ten appeared behind them.

The fastest of the goblins was close enough to throw its spear and hit the metal shield in front of Kayden. Another goblin threw a spear that nicked the tree Raine was hiding behind. He stared at the damaged wood with wide eyes.

“Okay, swords out,” Ava said, drawing her longsword. “Kayden, only fire when you have a clear shot.”

“Got it,” he said. He nocked another arrow.

“Cecily, go left. Raine, go right. Edgar, throw some javelins and help Cecily afterward. June and I will take the center. Don’t try to fight more than one goblin at a time. Just ask for help if you need it.”

Cecily gave Kayden her quiver of arrows and unsheathed her sword. Edgar pulled out a javelin and hurled it at a goblin that tripped at the ditch. June approached the monsters with her shield raised.

Here we go. Raine put his spear down and grabbed the one that had nicked his cover. It wasn’t a crude wooden spear, but instead something a lot like one of Edgar’s javelins. I should be nice. I’ll return this.

With all his strength, he flung the spear at a random goblin.

Raine watched the spear fly through the air. It punched through the edge of the goblin’s wooden shield and stabbed the monster’s neck. The goblin fell backward onto the ground and died.

Raine blinked. Well...that was a lucky start.