The town was abustle with bodies and shops. The market square was filled with people and before she knew it, Riza had lost Lefie in the crowd.

She wasn’t worried and half expected it, choosing to just enjoy the wares around her.

It reminded her of home, a little. When she was little, her parents would take her and Ashley to a market in the city centre every Christmas. They couldn’t buy much but seeing all the different things on sale felt magical–even more so when her parents actually bought her something.

Although the lack of a snow-covered ground detracted from the magicalness of her current situation somewhat, the energy and the liveliness brought her back as she wandered between pop-up shops and more permanent institutions.

There was a whole assortment of things for sale. No clothes, but trinkets, pastries, candles, wood carvings, and anything else could be found here. The weird system of food distribution gave many people other outlets for their time and energy, it seemed.

Sad that everything actually costs money. At least she had some built up, the hunting paying her a decent amount. Without needing to buy food, she hadn’t spent any of it.

A bit of wandering, perusing, and awkwardly shuffling past people, Riza found herself in front of a store that caught her attention.

At one of the larger stalls, a large, burly looking man with thick, black sideburns and forearms the size of Riza’s head was conversing with a possible customer. She ignored them as she focused on the items on the table before her.

They were all pieces of metal, intricately detailed and evoking a steampunk aesthetic, Riza felt. There were a few clocks, too large to be considered handheld but small enough to be portable. They were all metal and looked more practical than decorative.

There were also small trinkets like pins, broaches, necklaces and rings. They varied in detail, from the otherwise somewhat plain strips of metal to finely detailed in the way of carvings, etchings, or other adornments.

“Something caught your eye?” The shop owner asked, apparently having finished with the other customer.

“Did you make all of these?”

“Yep. Me and my daughter, whenever she has time to make it down here,” The jovial man chuckled lightly at the end, as if referencing something.

“Could you look at something for me?”

“Let me see first and then I’ll decide.”

Riza gave a small nod and reached behind her slowly, withdrawing her prized dagger from its sheath. She held it sideways, as if presenting a sword, and lifted it up to the man.

“May I?” He asked and, after getting confirmation, took it from her hands.

“Well, I can tell you it’s not a mundane weapon but any more than that, you’ll have to pay for.”

“How much?”

“Just choose something here that takes your fancy. I worked hard on these, you know.” His voice had a playful tone to it and Riza felt like she could convince him to take money directly but thought against it.

She didn’t look for long, landing on a ring that looked the most interesting. Trying it on, it was a nice fit–not too tight and not too loose–and decided to take another one as well.

“Excellent choice. That’d be two coins for the pair of them.”

Riza nodded again, pulling out a small, drawstring bag and selecting two coins from it. She was sure the currency had an actual name with context and history but devoid of that information, she had resorted to translating it as simply ‘coins’.

She didn’t know if the hunting paid well or not. The luxuries she could buy were not ones she was familiar with back in her world and the only one being food was free anyway so she had no frame of reference to compare prices.

These rings were the closest ones she had and judging by how they cost her less than 10% of everything she had made so far, they were probably closer to cheap rings you buy straight from the store rather than ones you had to get sized for you.

Jewellery obtained, Riza returned her bag to where it belonged and the man picked up a small, cylindrical tube. He held it up to his eye as he inspected the weapon, turning it over and over as he scanned the blade and the handle.

He took the tube away but continued turning the dagger over and looking for a few more seconds, even testing by shaving away some hair on his arm.

“How long have you had this?” He asked, voice calm and inquisitive.

“About two months, maybe three,” Riza replied, not actually knowing how long had passed since she woke up in the forest.

At least the calendar didn’t seem too dissimilar to what she was used to. 12 months and each one with 30 days exact. Seasonal durations were what she was familiar with but sooner or later, they’d have to revise their calendar lest winter occurs months earlier than it should.

“Used it much, have you?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.” He twisted it in his hands, running a finger along the edge.

“You’d get more information from a blacksmith with levels but I’ll tell you what I know.

“For one, I’ve never seen something constructed like this before. No deformations, no cracks, no imperfections. Edge is perfect and sharp. The metal isn’t from around here or any of the neighbouring provinces, best that I can tell. Handle seems to be regular wood dyed black. Maybe a something was involved in the process somewhere.

“I’d say it’s likely enchanted–durability and sharpness. Can’t tell much more than that,” The man finished his inspection, handing the weapon back over to Riza.

Damn. No new information. His comment about a blacksmith with levels probably means someone with the discerning eye skill.

“Do you know where I could find someone with levels to take a look at this?” Riza asked.

The man scratched at the back of his head, eyes looking around discreetly.

“Best bet would be the Chosen. Anyone like that gets picked up pretty quickly.”

“Well, thanks anyway.”

The greatsword darted through the air like a spear, bouncing off the robust shield as the wielder took a step back out of reach.

The man hunkering behind the large shield had a tense look on his face, sword pointing outwards, showing off his aggression.

The greatsword wielder took a few steps to the right, the shield bearer rotating to follow.

Meren watched on from the side lines, sitting on the ground and leaning against the wall, spear standing beside her. Although they weren’t her weapons of choice, you could never go wrong by being familiar with them.

“I expected more from Riza,” She said, not looking at the girl sitting beside her.

“Well… maybe I exaggerated a bit,” Lefie replied without conviction.

“She was surprisingly strong for someone so small,” Meren said, watching the girl out of the corner of her eye.

“You have to be, to survive,” Lefie said.

Meren sighed quietly, contemplating what to say. The pair watched in silence at the sparing duo, one of them analysing and interpreting their actions while the other merely appreciated their skill.

“She’s got quite the reputation already,” Meren suddenly said, drawing a smile from Lefie.

“Riza is pretty damn amazing.”

Again, the same idolisation from Lefie. Sure, she was a teenager and a lack of life experience was to be expected but Meren couldn’t help but think there was a discrepancy between the way Lefie viewed Riza and who Riza actually was.

Even when Meren showed off her spear work, Lefie remained wholly unimpressed. Something was niggling at her.

“Showed up the hunters on her second day of work. Do you know how she does it?” Meren asked, trying to inject a hint of admiration into her tone. Something to coax Lefie.

“Er… no. I don’t,” Lefie said awkwardly.

This was the problem. Praise and unadulterated admiration but when questioned on concrete specifics, Lefie floundered. Was she really this shallow or was she hiding something?

Meren thought back to her little match with Riza. The woman was pretty terrible. She had no form, no training. Her best advantage was the physical conditioning of her body; she was strong, she was fast, and she was sturdy.

A perplexing combination.

As well, no one had ever seen her use a bow and daggers were her weapon of choice. Wholly inadequate for hunting.

Meren’s suspicions were strong but she didn’t want to be too quick in addressing them.

How to go about it, then?

“Do you think you can get Riza to agree to another spar with me? I quite enjoyed our last one.”

“Er, sure. I’ll ask her.”

The cafeteria was busy today. Half the tables were full (which meant most of everyone was here) and Meren had to wait a bit to receive her food.

She sat down beside Lefie, who had managed to arrive a bit earlier than everyone else–easy to do considering she practically live there.

Riza didn’t take long to show up, predictably choosing to eat with her sister rather than with the hunters. She had become a somewhat common sight here for Meren, seeing each other every day. Still, to some of the other patrolmen, she was a fresh face.

She collected her bowl, joined the line, received her food, and then joined the group at one of the lesser crowded tables.

“Hello,” Riza greeted like she did every day. Her tone lacked emotion but that was easily made up by Lefie’s enthusiastic greeting in response.

“Nice to see you again,” Meren said. Riza simply nodded before starting to eat.

The next few minutes passed in silent consumption until a bowl abruptly plopped down on the table next to Riza, making her visibly freeze up as the large form of a man sat down on the seat beside her.

“Good afternoon, ladies,” The man Meren knew as Brander said loudly and, in what she suspected, was an imitation of her way of speaking.

She didn’t know him well but made no effort to hide her dislike of this situation. Lefie just looked confused while Riza clearly didn’t want anyone to look at her.

“How are you Meren? Still learning how to drive off any man that looks at you funny?” Brander said with a grossly unflattering smile.

“Would you like to find out?” Meren said with a slightly threatening tone. She was confident she could beat Brander; she actually spent her time training and conditioning her body, like they were supposed to.

“I see that you are,” He said, turning his gaze to the shrunken form of Riza. “And how do you do? I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Brander.” It was like it was a game to him.

“Riza,” Riza said quietly, not looking anywhere but at her bowl.

“What a lovely name. So, Riza, what do you do around here?” He leaned in a bit closer.

“Uhm. Hunt,” She answered quietly, her supreme discomfort evident to everyone except Brander, it seemed.

His smile faltered for just a second.

“Well, makes sense that you’re friends with dusty ol’ Meren here, then. You know, if-” Before he could finish his sentence, Lefie’s fists banging on the wooden table jolted from the conversation and slapped away his smug smile.

“She clearly doesn’t want you talking to her so why don’t you just fuck off!” She practically shouted, the rest of the cafeteria pausing to listen in on the commotion.

Brander looked between the two for a second before the smile returned.

“Well, I can see that I’m not wanted here. I hope you ladies have a lovely day,” He said, voice not having lost any confidence, as he stood up with his bowl and finally left.

The volume of the room gradually increased back to normal once it was clear everything was over.

Riza heaved out a massive sigh, slumped back into her chair, and closed her eyes.

“Are you okay?” Meren asked, genuinely concerned. Lefie reached out for Riza’s hand, slipping hers within it.

“Yeah. It’s fine,” Riza said, not opening her eyes.

“You get used to it after a while.”

“So glad I'm not interested, otherwise I’d be perpetually disappointed,” She said quietly, as if not caring if they heard.

A minute or so passed in silence before Riza shuffled back up to the table, pushing her bowl slightly away from her, no longer hungry. Meren also felt like she had lost her appetite.

“Why. Why is this world like this,” Riza complained. “It’s tiring.”

“I know,” Meren said, relating to what Riza was feeling. “I didn’t think it could get worse than being a blacksmith.”

“It doesn’t even make sense! Levels matter more than everything else.”

“I’ve heard it’s not as bad in the Dominion and Skaldur’s Chosen,” Meren said. “They just care that you’re competent.”

Riza finally looked at Meren, visibly struggling with whether to say something.

“I’m gonna go,” Riza said, abruptly standing up and walking off.

Lefie gave Meren a shy look before quickly following her sister.

Now alone, Meren didn’t wait to tidy up the bowls and leave.

The air was brisk and cool, the dried, fallen leaves crunchy underfoot. Critters danced around a little patch in the forest, a fluffy rabbit calmly sitting on Riza’s lap as she stroked her hand through its fur, luxuriating in the cuteness of the creature.

Lefie wasn’t far behind and as soon as she came close, Riza turned away, smiling a gentle smile at her.

“Hey,” Lefie said, gingerly walking through the bushes and plants the dotted the forest floor as she came to crouch down beside her friend.

“It’s funny. Even though we’re in a village, I have a job, there’s free food, and we can sleep in a bed, in some ways, it feels harder than when I woke up in a forest.”

Lefie wrapped her arms around Riza, hugging her close.

“Thank you for saying what you did.”

“Always. You’re the most important person in the world,” Lefie replied, smushing her face against Riza’s back.

Riza laughed lightly, appreciating Lefie’s earnestness.

“Why didn’t you say something, though?”

Riza didn’t know how to answer.

“I don’t know,” She finally said, not wanting to think about what she was feeling at that moment.

Neither said anything for a good while, merely basking in the atmosphere.

The trees had mostly lost their leaves by now, the branches fully visible and vulnerable.

Riza shifted in Lefie’s arms, wrapping her own around the small girl and returning the hug.

“Thank you,” She said, giving Lefie a soft kiss on the head.

“I feel like I should be paying you,” Riza said, walking over to the stash of training weapons and picking up a lone dagger once again. Best to use what she was familiar with so any experience here would actually be useful.

“I certainly wouldn’t object,” Meren replied, dual daggers in hand, waiting for Riza to take position.

Lefie, as always, was guarding the sacred, black dagger, watching from the side lines.

Riza wasn’t just sparring with Meren as a kind gesture; she hoped she could get something out of this. Her power had already reached 12 and would only go up from here. It was becoming a viable method of attack.

Even more viable if she elected to take the dagger-related skills but she didn’t want to spend to consider that just yet.

Finally in position, Riza raised her hands like she always did.

“One again?” Meren commented, raising her own weapons.

“I only own one.”

Meren shook her head, throwing away all unnecessary thoughts. Her face hardened as she steadied her stance, ready to fight.

Riza, less smoothly, did the same.

And thus, it began.

Although her physical stats had grown by so much, truthfully, Riza didn’t feel that much difference. Her strength felt the same, and maybe some actions made her less tired than they did before, but she still felt eminently human.

This clearly didn’t apply to Meren. Her attacks, regardless of the weapon, were always fast and precise, striking the target right where she aimed, too swift to block or deflect. She had stopped going easy on Riza and was actually serious, both a positive and a negative.

With her, it was clear the stats amplified her body. Her arms and legs were thick with muscle, toned with definition. All her movements were effortless and graceful, like a choreographed dance. With her height conferring both reach and intimidation, Riza felt like she was battling a bastion of defence.

It was good practice, sparring. Meren was smart and fast, so getting close was a struggle. Whenever Riza instinctively resorted to hurting herself–by taking an errant stab or slash to close in, for instance–Meren would criticise and not afford her the benefit of the hit. It forced Riza to be more defensive, have more preservation over her own life.

Of course, such was not necessary but the impact it had on her form, the way she engaged with a dangerous enemy, was beneficial. Rather than cutting straight to the heart of the matter, her mind was being trained in deception, in seeing weak points, in improving her speed and strength.

Another benefit there, too. The sparring kept her body limber and strong, much more than hunting did where her critters did most of the word for her.

So, again and again, Riza would join Meren in sparring. In training. Sometimes she’d even join Lefie who, rather embarrassingly, was much better than her at fighting. She took to it like a duck to water while Riza was still trying to rid herself of useless instincts and reactions.

This time, Meren seemed to be going harder than before. Trying to tire Riza out. They fought for long enough and without break for Riza’s stamina to dwindle from its resting point of 400 all the way day to 100 before calling it a day.

“You did good,” Meren commented, putting away her gear. “You’re improving.”

“Good.”

Meren wasn’t here today–something about helping out her father again–so Lefie was just languishing about, not knowing what to do.

She used to train by herself but Meren quickly took over for her and so, without her, it felt almost hollow. Not worth it.

She did go to the training room, anyway, because what else could she have done? It’s not like there were places for her to go.

As it happened, there were already a pair of men training away with each other. One wielding a greatsword while the other had a sword of shield combo. It was the same pair from the other day.

Not wanting to disturb them, Lefie picked up her own sword and shield and retreated to the corner of the room where the stationary dummies resided.

Worse than the real one but better than nothing so she got to practising.

Footwork, stances, specific cuts, trying to keep her shield in front of her, none of it was instinct training but more on form, so they could be perfect when instinct required of her.

“Hey, Lefie,” One of the men suddenly called, taking a brief respite from their training.

The teen looked over, recognising who had called out to her.

“Hi Daven!” She said, injecting her usual cheer. Most of the people seemed far more amenable than the general populace, she discovered. Of course, there were exceptions, she thought with dismay.

“No Meren today?” He said, walking over while his partner left the room for something. His helmet obscured his face enough for Lefie to not know who he was at a glance, though most likely Scallan, she guessed.

“No. She’s not with me every day,” Lefie harrumphed.

“But most days. Her and your sister.”

Lefie turned more towards him, crossing her arms.

“Good that you’re still training. Any idea what skills you’ll take once you gain some levels?” Daven said, leaning against the wall, training helmet dangling from his fingertips.”

“Er, not yet,” Lefie replied uncertainly. “Still seeing what I like.”

“Sword and shield is always a solid choice,” He said with a smile, his own sword and shield on the ground nearby. “Bit annoying that you have to specialise in two trees but it’s worth it, I think.”

“There’s separate sword and shield trees?” Lefie asked, maintaining the appearance of someone without levels.

“Yeah. They work together a bit so you’re not losing out by not taking higher tiered skills.”

Lefie hummed with a nod of her head, taking in the information. Probably not that useful for her but still good to know.

Daven’s partner had returned by now, helmet off so Lefie could recognise him as Molty. As she suspected.

He came walking over with two full waterskins and handing one off to Daven who thanked his friend and took large, grateful gulps of fresh water.

“Hey,” Molty greeted, getting a greeting in return from Lefie.

“Ah. Thanks,” Daven said after drinking what must’ve been the whole waterskin, bumping the shorter Molty on the shoulder in appreciation.

The small trio got to talking a little bit, catching up, discussing their skills (a topic Lefie felt very awkward during) and, eventually, the conversation drifted onto the topic of demons.

“Apparently, it was right close,” Molty said, retelling a story of how a hunter encountered a lone demon in the forest a good few weeks before Lefie and Riza had arrived.

“That must’ve been terrifying!” Daven commented.

“Poor ol’ Jannek almost shit himself!” Molty laughed. “Good thing he had holed ‘imself up a tree.” He chuckled.

“What kind of demon was it?” Lefie inquired.

“What? Er, just a regular one. But it was a big fucker,”

“Glad I wasn’t in his situation. Imagine if it was a greater demon,” Daven whistled.

“The only thing we’d find is his foot!” Molty chuckled.

Lefie couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward with this topic of conversation but didn’t want to show that.

“Have you ever seen a greater demon?” She asked once the pair had calmed down a little.

“A greater? Thank fuck no! Ain't anyone surviving meeting one,” Molty enthused.

Lefie looked a bit confused so Daven carried on talking.

“They’re practically a death sentence if you see. I don’t think there’s anyone in this entire village that has encountered one and lived.”

“Why are they so dangerous?”

“They’re as big as a house! You try fighting something that can eat ya whole.”

“They’re not common?”

“Thankfully not. The beast demons may stray but greater demons stay close to fog. Don’t know how anyone can survive with demons on their doorstep,” Daven chimed in.

“Well… if you ever see one, don’t fight it alone. Make sure you’re in a large group,” Lefie said cautiously. This talk of demons and greater demons reminded her of the sight of waking up to Artiv taking down a greater demon while she and Riza slept.

They may have left on unfavourable terms but she realised she harboured a bit of respect for him.

“If I ever see one, I’m running away. Fuck fighting that thing,” Molty exclaimed, Daven matching him in silent agreement.

Lefie hid her disappointment, the conversation quickly turning to other tracks, Lefie soon excusing herself from it and getting back to training.

The air was crisp and chilly, Riza’s thick coat doing a good job at insulating against the cold.

Lefie had accompanied her to the forest, a couple of hours after the day’s hunting had finished.

It was a relaxing atmosphere in the quiet of the forest, away from prying eyes.

Riza walked along the barely trodden path through the trees with Lefie by her side, their feet crunching on the dry leaves beneath them as they went. The wind rustled the branches overhead. A squirrel scampered up one tree and then another before disappearing into its hole.

“It’s odd, how much homelier this place feels than the house we’re staying in,” Riza said suddenly, looking around curiously.

“I can imagine,” Lefie replied, a bit dismally. “It’s just… so different, here.”

“It’s not what I was expecting, that’s for sure,” Riza scoffed.

“Yeah.”

Silence reigned for a good few second as the pair was subsumed in a sombre atmosphere until Lefie broke it.

“I overheard a couple of guys talking. They were talking about demons and- and it’s crazy; they’ve never even seen a greater demon!” Lefie walked around exasperated.

“One even said they’d run away if they saw one,” She grumbled.

Riza took that in, not saying anything. There was a swirl of thoughts in her head and she was trying to work through them.

Lefie sat down dramatically on a stump before Riza, having worked herself up.

“I hate all this lying. How different I feel to everyone else. Barely anyone’s seen a demon and no one acts like they’re a threat! There’s an entire underground army of demons just waiting to invade and no one even cares!” Lefie huffed.

“They leave all that to the Dominion and the Chosen,” Riza said calmly, not injecting her opinion but merely stating a fact.

“Well, yeah, but what if a demon shows up here? People will die. Many people will die if it’s a greater demon! It’s like no one understands how dangerous they are.”

“It’s just not a fact of their reality for them,” Riza replied, wondering where Lefie was going.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about it.” Lefie had been wandering, looking around, focused on her own head, but now, she looked directly at Riza, catching her eyes. “I want to use my skills if a demon attacks,” She said, her voice a sudden calm and seriousness compared to earlier.

“What? No! We agreed on this,” Riza said.

“We could save so many people if something bad happens. We’ve killed demons. We’ve killed beast, greater, and even humanoid demons. Am I meant to just sit back?”

“Yes! We can’t give away who we are otherwise the Dominion will come and back to slavery we go. I don’t want that. You can’t give away who we are,” Riza replied, tone firm.

“I-I-I’m just meant to sit by?”

“You don’t even know if something will happen. The Dominion is right close by. We can see the quarry from here. Litchendorf is safe and we’re not.” Riza struggled to keep herself calm. She was the adult here.

“And that means letting people die? When I could save them?”

Riza took a deep breath before responding, not catching Lefie’s eyes.

“Yes.”

The teenager was speechless, starting errant sentences but not managing to say anything. She turned on her heel and walked away, unable to even look back in her emotional turmoil.

Once out of sight and out of earshot, Riza released a massive sigh as she fell back lazily, laying on the dirty ground. Her whole body was shaking as she lifted her hand into the air, as wobbly as jelly.

Her hand dropped to her side as she saw a squirrel watching her from high up in a tree. Was it hers or just a wild one? She didn’t know.

The silence felt deafening and isolating.

What’s wrong with me?