At the mention of putting on Glenn’s new armor, every last one of the Town Guards in the barracks sobered. This was obviously important to them. He didn’t dare ruin the moment.

“Follow me,” Logain said.

Glenn followed as Logain led him to a rack of armor dummies along the wall. One stood at the end, and a set of dark and deadly-looking [God Armor] waited upon it. The dark polished metal all but absorbed light, and the sunburst of Celes sat in the center of the armor. The whole suit was larger than Glenn, but Glenn knew Adventurer armor resized itself to fit the wearer. [God Armor] did the same.

“Slip off your boots,” Logain suggested. “We can put the armor on over your clothes, this time. Tomorrow, I’ll commission Ziva to make you a proper guard uniform. She’ll come by the barracks to get your measurements just after breakfast, so don’t be late.”

Glenn nodded as he slipped off first one boot, then another. The stone floor of the barracks felt rough beneath his feet, but not cold. It felt sturdy.

“The last owner of this armor was Captain Jacob Graybreaker,” Logain said reverently. “He led the Wolfpine Guard before me. Jacob retired four years ago, and this armor has remained on this dummy since, waiting for one the Gods judged worthy to don it again. The Gods chose you to wear the armor worn by our former captain.”

Glenn stared in fresh awe. The Pantheon themselves had not only blessed him with Their power and five fresh Levels. They’d also blessed him with Their armor and weapons.

Joanne, who seemed to be Logain’s second-in-command, walked past Glenn. Together, Joanne and Logain undid the straps and clasps on the side of the armor with expert fingers. They lifted it off the dummy, together, and then carried it to Glenn.

They lifted the armor as if weighed nothing and lowered it over Glenn’s head. Once it was set upon his shoulders, a weight that was reassuring and tolerable, both began snapping clasps. As they did so, Glenn felt a tingle across his skin. He gasped as the armor literally shrunk upon his body.

By the time Joanne and Logain finished the straps and secured it, his new [God Armor] fit even better than his old [Ring-Mail Armor]. And despite its weight, it was almost as comfortable as a warm shirt. The crafting materials used to create this armor truly were from a realm beyond Balarel.

More pieces came after the cuirass, which wrapped around his chest. Sabatons to protect his feet. Cuisses to protest his legs. Vambraces to protect his arms, gloves for his hands, and even an armored skirt—a fauld—to protect his waist below the chest piece.

Finally, Joanne lifted the helm, a large full-face helmet that looked both sturdy and powerful. She carried it with reverence and then raised it above Glenn’s head. She lowered it onto his armor, and then it, too, shrank, securing itself snugly yet comfortably. Like everything else, it changed for him.

“Captain Graybreaker’s armor suits him,” Logain said. “I think the old man would be pleased.”

“It’s so light,” Glenn whispered. “How is armor this strong so light?”

Yet Glenn already knew the answer, which made the question rhetorical. This armor, unlike all the Adventurer armor in Balarel, had not been crafted by any mortal Blacksmith. It had been created by the Gods Themselves. Not to mention he had 19 Strength now ... or 29 with a shield.

“Wait until you feel this,” Scott said.

He offered Glenn the largest mace he’d ever seen, almost big enough to wield with two hands. Glenn knew it was intended for one. This [Guardian Mace] was black and powerful-looking, with a grid of raised gold smashers that gleamed almost like gold. Glenn took it reverently.

Another tingle traveled up his arm, invigorating his muscles. The mace, too, had a reassuring weight to it, yet felt impossibly light. When Glenn swung it experimentally, he sensed a dreadful weight behind what should have been a light blow. This mace really could crush a wagon.

Linda presented him with a round, dark-colored shield that also bore the sun crest of Celes. “And your [Guardian Shield]. You know how this works.”

Glenn offered his left arm, now armored, and spread his fingers. Linda slid one strap of the shield over his hand and up his arm, then let him grab the second. The straps adjusted themselves the moment Glenn did so, and then the shield felt welded to his arm.

[+Statue’s Grip+] at work. He wouldn’t drop this shield unless he fully intended it. And his armor and mace, which had already been light, became all the lighter. Glenn needed to see if it was true. He opened his Status Sheet for the first time since the Gods had chosen this path for him.

Name: Glenn Redwood ==== Age: 16 Strength: 19 (29) Level: 10 (Locked) Divinity: 8 Class: Town Guard Luck: 0 HP: 270/270 Vitality: 17 (27) Blood: 60/60 Wisdom: 6 Experience: 61000/70000 (Locked) Prowess: 10

...

Glenn breathed. He was strong now, as strong as three burly men, and had almost three times as much Vitality as he’d had when he entered the Chapel of Celes. As much as the Gods had hurt him, and as much as he desperately longed to travel the world with Becka, there was comfort to be found in this armor. This power. His new Party of Town Guards.

People with whom he could actually become friends.

“At least now we know he wasn’t lying!” Scott said merrily. “Gods would have turned him to salt the moment he put that armor on.”

Linda chuckled. “I’d have to sweep.”

“Don’t listen to them,” Logain said gravely. “If I truly believed you were going to turn to salt, I’d have put down a tarp.”

“He’s a thoughtful man, our captain,” Joanne said. “Now, let’s get all this off him, shall we?”

Glenn looked between them, confused. “But I just put it on.”

“Your first shift isn’t until tomorrow morning,” Logain said calmly. “I pulled you from the crowd because you appeared uncomfortable, and since we were speaking anyway, I figured we could take the time to fit your armor before you snuck off to meet your woman. Was I wrong?”

Glenn chose to trust the man he’d instinctively trusted since they first met. “You were right. I was dying out there. Everyone seemed so happy for me, yet no one seemed to understand how I really felt. It was just so—”

“Disappointing,” Joanne said, and thumped his arm. “We know. Trust me, Glenn. We all know. We all started exactly where you are, staring down this path with our hopes and dreams ripped away. It gets better the first time you crack a Gloamwolf across the face and disintegrate it.” She smiled. “Or, today, a Shaitan. That’s the first time I’ve ever gotten to kill one of those.”

Glenn could almost imagine what that must be like. To take one swing and wreck a Level 12 Demon attempting to escape into shimmer. He could almost imagine the power.

Joanne smiled, and Glenn found nothing but real, warm sympathy in her smile. “You’ll miss her desperately, but eventually, it’ll get better. It did for us.”

Glenn didn’t need to ask which her Joanne was talking about. That would be obvious to everyone, given how fervently they’d kissed each other on stage. The woman he’d lose tomorrow. The woman he needed to meet in the park tonight.

Fresh melancholy threatened to overwhelm him, but he refused to let it do so. Not here. Not in front of his new Party members. And they were right. He did need to get this armor off.

He had an appointment he couldn’t miss.

“I won’t lie,” Glenn said softly. “I am disappointed in what’s happened tonight, but not in any of you. Just in ... you know. The general direction of life.”

“We know,” Logain said quietly. “Now, let’s get your armor settled again. No other guard will don it so long as you garrison Wolfpine. It is yours until you retire or meet the forever death.”

Glenn stared as Joanne and Logain once again helped him out of his armor. “That can happen?” At least in Grassea, Glenn couldn’t imagine anything powerful enough to kill a Town Guard.

“Theoretically,” Logain said, with a shrug. “No Town Guard has died so long as I’ve been a guard, and none in Captain Graybreaker’s time, either. Further back than that, I don’t know.”

“Where is Captain Graybreaker now?” Glenn asked. “I never met him.”

“Off laying waste to the Monsters of Cullfield, and likely boning every Adventurer lass who will Consent,” Joanne said, offering a wistful smirk. “Our old captain always was a bit of a showboat. I bet he’s still telling everyone he’s a twenty-five year-old prodigy from Lakebrooke.”

“Are you saying I’m not a showboat?” Logain asked.

“Never, captain. You’re the epitome of stern, unyielding leadership.”

“I’m not sure that’s a compliment,” Logain said mildly.

Glenn took it all in as they helped him out of his armor. Everyone here had always seemed so stiff and formal at the gates, but here alone, in the Town Guard barracks—in their sanctuary, Glenn’s sanctuary, now—they were just people. People he already liked. People he could trust.

He wouldn’t be alone in his new duty. He had these kind people to stand watch with him. It was a comfort.

Soon enough, again, he wore no armor, just the shirt and pants. Linda offered a chair—how thoughtful of her—and Glenn sat, then pulled on his boots. Once he rose again, Logain beckoned ... yet he did not lead Glenn to the door they’d used to enter the barracks.

“Give your Becka a kiss for me!” Scott shouted from behind him.

“Don’t you dare!” Linda added. “She’ll never speak to you again!”

Logain led him into another room and then to another door, one that was smaller than the one through which they’d entered and which Glenn had never seen from the outside. He’d passed the Town Guard barracks many times on this side, the side opposite the square, yet never seen a door.

This door must be hidden from the outside. That was the only thing that made sense.

“We need to resume our patrols until the mayor’s festivities end,” Logain said calmly. “Give it ten minutes after we head out, then slip out through this door. We’ll ensure no one’s around to see you. What you do after that is none of our concern, so long as you report for duty tomorrow just after sunup. I care nothing for what you do when not on duty, but what I do not allow is tardiness.”

“I understand,” Glenn said softly. “And I won’t disappoint you. I might not have asked for this job, but I’m going to pull my weight and help you all I can. I know I have much to learn, and I know I’ll make mistakes, but I won’t give up.”

“I know you won’t,” Logain said. He gripped Glenn’s arm, a gesture that felt both welcoming and comforting. It felt like Logain was already his friend.

Despite looking only eight years older, still in his twenties, Logain felt like a much older man. He had the gravitas of a man who was almost Karl Coldbreaker’s age. It was a strange contradiction, but not one Glenn found unpleasant. He’d certainly get used to it in time.

After all, he had twenty-four years to get used to it ... before he left Wolfpine to become a legend like his childhood heroes. A legend of Balarel.