Randale

"This looks like the place," Blake said, looking up from the quest Mordecai I had given him earlier. In front of him and the others was a small settlement similar to Troville. Wooden buildings, some farmlands, and a stone wall surrounding it the only thing it had that Troville didn't was a forest nearby. "Welp, let's get this over with then." Blake declared as the group went into town in search of either townhall or any sign of its Reeve Seth.

"Sir Blake, you sound as if this is a hassle? When in fact this is a great deed to be done for the people of this town," Risabeel commented on as she looked around the town noting that there were burn markings around the farming fields.

"While it is, a bunch of Willo-Wisp isn't much for a quest. I used to fight 'em off before I met you so this should be easy," Blake told Risabeel as the group turned at a building to find a group of people gathered in the center of town with someone at the head of them which the rest of the group was yelling at. "That must be the Reeve trying to keep people calm."

"Please, please, everyone, I know things are getting bad but bear with it for a bit longer; I have sent word to the main city to get us help." A tall Elven man was speaking to the group. He had blue eyes, his light brown hair was tied into a long braid and was dressed in green robes with a thick yellow shawl partly hanging off his shoulders while the rest of it was held in his right hand.

"Yeah!? You said that last week, and nothing happened!" One of the townspeople yelled at their Reeve.

"We're got crops out there burning faster than we can harvest them, Seth!" Another one yelled as well, holding a burnt plant in their hands.

"Do your damn job! Seth!" A few others yelled together with one of them throwing a rock at Seth.

"..." To that, Seth sighed as he held up his hand to catch it with some wind magic. "Please refrain from acts of violence, or else I will be forced to enact my power as Reeve upon you all." He dryly warned to his townspeople, making them die down a little. "If you're not going to take punishment, don't ask for it...hmm?" Seth thought as he dropped the rock then noticed Blake and co coming up. "See! The city has sent over someone to help us!" Using some of his wind-magic, he caused a breeze to blow at the group giving them a bit of an entrance.

"Yo, came to deal with your fireflies and get paid." Which was wasted on Blake simply waving his hands at everyone.

"Sir Blake, please take this more seriously..." Risabeel lectured Blake for his rude manners, but he just waved her off as well. "...*ahem*...to the good people of Randale. We have accepted the quest that your Reeve as tasked and shall be done with it post haste." She did a quick bow after speaking to give a better impression hopefully.

"Good to hear..." Seth walked over to the group with a shot bow thrown their way. "...and is there anything I can help you with before you begin? Such as potions? Extra weapons? Looking after those children?" He held a hand to Bread and Mari.

"Nah, not really, just point me at the things that need to die..." Blake declined the offer, but then a question came to him as he was watching wind flow around Seth. "...but I'm a bit curious why you aren't the one doing this with that magic of yours?"

"Ah? Well, I have many more important tasks to be dealing with than fighting off some fire spirits. My wind magic is not that strong sadly. It's only powerful enough to blow them away or in worse cases causes them to grow larger," Seth explained then pointed at a house that had a lightly burnt off roof. "That is my house after I tried to force them out, but you have yourself a fine witch by my senses, and she should do just fine."

"Witch?" Blake asked, looking around for whoever Seth was talking about the only girls there were Risabeel and Mari.

"Uhm, yes? This one right here." Seth pointed at Risabeel, causing her and Blake to stare at him with widened eyes. "Oh, my? I forgot your kind's code about that, forgive me, I was only a novice mage before I was a reeve." He bowed to towards Risabeel letting her calm down. "Now, if you wish to find those Willo-wisps then I would head to the forest near town, from what my people have been able to find out they seem to be feeding on some of the dead trees in there during the day so you might catch them off guard."

"Hah! Like I'm going to need to be smart around fireflies! Just have our reward ready!" Blake gave Seth a kind and short laugh before he and the others made their into the forest. "Okay!" once he made sure Randale was out of sight, he let out a sigh and turned to Risabeel. "That could've been bad; I forgot spellcasters could sense your mana, good thing he thought you were a witch."

"Indeed, I would not want to think what would befall us if my being was found out." Risabeel agreed as she pulled down her hood, letting out her horns and Vas free to snack on some flying bugs around them croaking as he did. "Yes, yes, it must be hot under there, so enjoy this while you can, Vas."

"But why? That useless mage didn't do anything bad when he met Risabeel, right?" Mari asked, thinking back to when they met Nathan.

"Well, that guy's weird, but I'm not sure how people here deal with Demons?" Blake wondered, stretching out a little for the hopefully exciting action to come. "Alright, Risabeel, you're up!" He declared with an open hand.

"Yes!" Risabeel closed her eyes as she turned into a sword and was quickly caught by Blake, giving him his black horns.

"Huh?" Bread's mouth was hanging open at what happened in front of him. "No way?" He blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes to make sure Blake was holding Risabeel and had jet black horns.

"Heh! That dumb look on your face is almost better than when it's twisted in fear." Blake clucked at Bread's face then gave Risabeel a few practice swings. "I'll explain later..."

"?" Vas was doing the same as Bread while looking around for his master. "..." Then stared at Risabeel's blade and shot his tongue at her.

"Hehe! Vas! That tickles!" Risabeel softly giggled as Vas kept shooting his tongue at her.

"Alright, Vas, you can hang out on my head until she turns back, ok?" Blake picked the frog off the ground and dropped him on his head. "Huh?" But the moment he did Vas moved around a bit looking around at his new level of hight a full 2 inches higher, bringing a creepy grin to his mucus covered face. "Risabeel, what's up with your frog?"

"Oh? He's just enjoying the new sight from up there." Risabeel explained in a cheery tone while Vas continued to move around until he came to a rest on Blake's head with a bit of a low croak. "Ah? He says it's too high now, Sir Blake, would you mind putting him on Lad Nobel's head."

"What?" Bread finally came out of his daze in time to see Blake drop Vas on top of his head. "Hey!"

"Careful, anything happens to that frog, and she'll get mad," Blake warned as he held Risabeel up to Bread's face and the boy nodded slowly. "Okay! Let's get to questing!"

Meanwhile in another part of the forest

"Weeee! Let's burn something!" A living ball of orange fire about the size of an apple cheered while throwing itself along with some others at a brush setting it ablaze.

"Oooookay!" Another one followed after it and smacked into a tree a few times leaving behind blacken spot on it.

"I want to play somewhere else?" Another nagged as it just floated around lazily.

"You suck!" A bunch of them yelled at the outlier while they all just continued to burn everything around them in a frightfully playful manner. "Besides, these things are great!" They cheered, eating some floating balls of pink fire that made them bigger and changed their color from orange to pink.

Elemental monster, Willow-wisp: Small balls of living fire that are usually the souls of the dead taking form in the physical world. They are mostly seen at night where they either lead lost travelers to a safe path or down one they will never return from.

Willow-wisps have weak flames when on their own amounting to only a small light when alone; however, if they gather together, they can lead to town-burning fires that are not so easy to put out.

Items forged out of this monster's Ore are low-quality fire impured rings and stones.

"..." Watching all of this mindless pyromania go on was Valac, sitting at an oddly out of place chair meant for a dining room table with a cup of tea in hand. "...are you done yet, Hilda? I do not mean to rush you, but these creatures are becoming..." He paused as one of the Willow-wisps bashed itself into his mana shield with an idiotic look on its fiery face. "...most tiresome."

"Hmm..." Hilda, Valac's Imp maid, was currently the one making the pink fireballs that were being eaten by the Willow-wisps. "...I believe so Master Valac, as far as, I can tell every one of these little embers is here." She answered, conjuring some of her flames in her hands. "Shall I move on to the next part?"

"But of course, my dear Hilda." Valac waved for her to continue while finishing his tea.

"Yes, my master..." Hilda nodded then raised her hands, forming a giant ball of fire to float around the Willow-wisps. "...Gather!" She commanded as she clenched her fists tightly.

"Ooooh! What's that?!" The Willow-wisps all cheered even that one guy who wanted to leave gazed at the sphere that Hilda had made as if hypnotized by it. "I want in!" They all moved closer and closer and closer until one of by one they started to get taken into the now growing fireball until all but none were left.

"Ah, finally that in insufferable racket has stopped." Valac got off his chair as it turned to pink flames going up into the fireball. "Turley some fine work you have done, my dear Hilda." He said, noting the size and mana coming off the fireball. "Now wake it up and send if after Lady Risabeel."

"Yea, my master," Hilda obeyed as she held a hand out to the huge fireball. "Awaken!" She commanded, and with her words, the fireball bulged out and twisted as it made a pair of eyes and a grinning mouth in its flames.

"Hihihihi!" It playfully cackled with a sound similar to burning wood coming out of its mouth.

"Now! Go!" Hilda pointed into the forest, and without any more words, the fireball shot itself forward in search of Risabeel with its haunting laugh echoing from a trail of flames and ash it left in its wake. "It is done my master, anything else that you require?" She asked after giving Valac a low curtsy and took his empty teacup from him.

Valac smiled at the offer. "Why yes, indeed, my dear Hilda, I wish to go there." He turned to point at Mt. Nyth. "There is someone inside that mortal's so-called castle, a tiny thing really, but besides that point, I would like to have a word with an old friend living there."

"An old friend...?" Hilda whispered as she tried to guess who her master knew that could be living under the same roof as a mortal even if said mortal was a king in this realm. "Ah?" But a more critical matter came to her as she turned to the path left by her living fireball. "But what of lady Risabeel, master?"

"That creature you made is likely to fail, and you need not worry about it," Valac calmly answered as he kept looking at Mt. Nyth. "So that's where you've been all this time...?" He wondered out loud and brought a hand to his chin to think on it.

"But master? If you knew the come out already, then why not ask me to use more power? Know that I do not see your actions as wrong; your servant is merely...confused by your greatness?" Hilda explained as she was thinking of a reason why Valac would order her to do something that would fail.

"Well, you see, my dear Hilda, currently within this city are a number of spellcasters that are able to detect the mana of many beings including we Demons, and as I am not at my full power at the moment, gaining the attention of these mortals would be problematic for me. However, I still wish to take Lady Risabeel back. Which is why I had you send a lower leveled being to at least loosen that boy's hold on her if at all," Vala explained to his servant while walking up to her then held out his hand. "Now, if that has satisfied your curiosity? Please take me to that mountain."

"As you wish my master," Hilda nodded as she took Valac's hand and in a ring of pink flames, they disappeared.

With Blake and co

"Blake, this is boooorrrring!" Mari whined from Nash's back as nothing happened in the last half-hour other than Vas hoping around on Nash's back and playing with Os sometimes.

"Welp, not much I can do about that, Mari," Blake muttered keeping his eyes forward and to the sides of the group in case anything came after them. "Hmm...?" But what Mari said was starting to get to him now, even if it was still light out, the fact that they were so deep into the forest and had not seen a single thing was a bit worry. "...I have a bad feeling about this." He gripped Risabeel a little tighter.

"As do I, Sir Blake, I felt as if a great power was used some time ago and since then the forest has given off a more dangerous feeling," Risabeel commented on the current happenings or lack thereof.

"I don't care if something happens or not; it's just freaking hot in here, geez!" Bread nagged as he pulled at his shirt and was using his hat to fan himself as beads of sweat went down his face.

"Ugh! Yea, you're right, I know its summer and all, but still, this is..." Blake was feeling the heat too, it was like they had walked into an on-going fire, but not an ember was seen inside the baking air. "Hey, Mari? How are you taking this?"

"Hmm? I'm fine!" Mair answered not a bit of discomfort in her voice or face and not a drop of sweat was on her. "But the air is weird...?"

"Well, that's normal for her, but that proves this isn't natural..." Blake thought as they marched onward and took a look at the sky to check how high up the sun was, it looked about noon as the sun was in the middle of the sky with a twice as big pink sun next to it that was getting bigger and bigger. "Wait? What!?" Blake's eyes snapped to the other fireball that was falling on them.

"Hihihihi!" The fake sun cackled as it formed its face warped in a firey grin.

"Fuck! Nash! Get back!" Blake yelled, ducking out of the way with Nash moving back right when the fireball slammed into the ground, resting inside a smoldering crater.

"Gimme that girl!" The fireball reformed itself into a humanoid form with long gangly arms that it whipped out at Blake.

"Back off!" Blake swung at the blazing hand, slashing it off, sending it flying into a tree. "Why is there a Fire Elemental here?!" He groaned readying Risabeel for another swing at this thing.

Elemental monsters: Living masses of the elements that come from either the use of magic or the gathering of weaker beings of the elements. The most common ones are made of fire, wind, earth, and water.

Elementals are usually kind-hearted protectors of their homes only enraged when one disturbs them; however, if an Elemental is created with magic, then they act at the whim of its maker.

Items made from this monster's Ore are items impured with high elemental power.

"Gimme the girl and burn!" The Fire Elemental threw fireballs at Blake while it stayed in its crater.

"Where's the or?!" Blake rolled out of the way then charged Risabeel. "Hah!" To send a Demon Slash at it.

"Hihihihi! Bring it!" The Fire Elemental laughed as it met Blake's attack with a blast of fire, canceling eachother out. "Nice try! Here I come!" It started to claw its way towards Blake, and with each slam of its hands, it caught something on fire.

"Shit!" Blake moved back as the Fire Elemental got closer at a frighting pace while adding to the heat that was already messing with him. "*Coughs* Dammit!" Along with the growing haze of smoke that was filling his lungs and covering his vision.

"Having trouble?" The Fire Elemental asked as it rose up above the smoke to look down at Blake. "Just give the girl to me, and I'll leave your skin still on your body!"

"Demon Stab!" Blake turned to face the living fire and shot a beam of dark mana, hitting its target dead on. "Grrr!" But to little effect, as it just closed up the hole, Blake put in it.

"Ooooh? You're actually trying! That's cute!" The Fire Elemental gave Blake a wide grin as it whipped one of its arms at him, burning through the trees in its paths.

"Aguh!" Blake quickly ducked down as the long limb went over him. "Whoa!" Then he rolled out of the way as the Fire Elemental came down with an enlarged fist, kicking up fire and smoke as it slammed into the spot Blake was a moment ago. "That was *Coughs* close." He gasped, trying to get some clean air in his lungs.

"You look like you need some air? Here!" The Fire Elemental breathed a stream of smoke on Blake, leaving him to heck up his inside. "Oh? It sounds like that went down the wrong hole! Say, ah!" It uprooted a tree and swung it at the smoke cloud.

"AHHH!" Which sent Blake smashing into some trees and left rolling on the ground for a few meters. "Ugh! This is hard!" He picked himself up covered in soot and put out a small fire on his chest.

"Still alive, huh!?" The Fire Elemental tossed the now burning tree away then made its way to Blake. "Not for long, hihihi!" It flung a fireball at Blake the next moment.

"Huh?!" Blake's eyes widened as a 'him' size fireball was tossed his way. "Demon Slash!" Thinking fast, he threw himself forward to cut the fireball in half.

"Hihihi! Right, at my feet!" But in doing so, Blake was right in front of the Fire Elemental as it brought its arm up. "Rah!" It roared with a blazing fist coming down on Blake.

"OOOO!" Then out of nowhere, Os jumped in to take the hit for Blake it getting splattered on the forest floor.

"The hell was that?!" The Fire Elemental was confused for a moment before it raised its arm to check if it got Blake just then. "What!?" But oozing down its arm was something pink and slimy.

"Oooo!" Os screamed as it was sucking the Fire Elemental's arm into itself and growing bigger by the second.

"Get off, me!" The Fire Elemental tried flinging Os off itself, but the Slime held on strong. "If you want my arm?! You can have it!" It blasted its arm off in a weak explosion. "And give it to him!" That it aimed at Blake.

"Oh, shit!" Blake dodged behind a tree as Os, and the Fire Elemental's arm slammed into it splitter the tree in half with the top half falling on top of Blake. "Wah!" He braced himself for the hit to come. "Huh?" But it never did as the tree was hanging in the air him being held up by Os now a giant pink Slime that was on fire.

"Ooo?" Part of Os turned orange with an eye looking at Blake. "Ooo!" That it wiggled up and down once it knew he was okay. "OOOGRAAH!!" Then Os turned to the Fire Elemental and threw the tree at it.

"Hihihi! Yeah, right!" The Fire Elemental regrew its arm and batted the tree into ashes. "I'm gonna turn you into steam!" It clapped its claws together a fired a blast of fire at Os.

"OORAAH!" Os took the blast and grew even larger. "OOGAAAH!" Then made its way over to the Fire Elemental, leaving a thick trail of itself behind it.

"Get 'em! Os!" Mari's voice called out from behind a haze of smoke and fire as Bread's own was coughing and wheezing.

"Nash! Get those two out of here!" Blake ordered and saw a large figure dash away from the fight. "Alright! Os, let's get him" He gripped Risabeel tightly and ran up to help Os.

"GRRR! Stop eating me!" The Fire Elemental dragged itself back as Os tried to eat it despite the number of fireballs, blast of flame, trees and smoke it threw at the ever-growing Slime. "Forget this! I'll just get the girl!" It shot itself up into the air then turned into a massive fireball that went right for Blake.

"Not this again!" Blake sent out a Demon Slash to split the Fire Elemental in half. "What the?" But as the two halves fell on either side of him, they started to fuse back together with Blake in the middle.

"Got you! Hihihi!" The Fire Elemental laughed as it slammed back together, trapping Blake in a living inferno. "Hihihi! Now I just have to get away from that Slime thing...What?!" But when it turned to see where Os was, it was gone.

"Nah, we got you!" Blake smirked from inside of Os after it covered him just before the Fire Elemental tried to trap him. "Good thing, Os likes to wrap around me and do...that." He was for once thankful about Os' loveable side already feeling it doing stuff to him.

"I don't know what you're doing in me! But I'll just burn you both!" The Fire Elemental yelled as it raised its heat, turning its pink flames red hot and its presence alone was causing everything around it to burst into flames.

"Ooo?" Which caused Os to start bubbling up from the inside and lose some of its mass.

"Ugh! Can't take this much longer!" Blake was starting to feel the heat too, even with Os covering him from head to toe, which also meant he didn't have air to breathe.

"Sir Blake, I believe it may be time to try that." Risabeel offered some help to the current situation.

"Right! I hope Os doesn't get mad at me for this one!" Blake held Risabeel high and charged her up with dark mana, but instead of it going to her blade, it went to the pommel of her handle.

"What are you doing?!" The Fire Elemental roared as it kept turning up the heat while a ball of purple was forming inside of itself.

"Demon Strike!" Blake brought Risabeel down in a two-handed strike hitting the ground to unleash a blast of dark mana.

"Ooo?" With Os suddenly starting to balloon out taking in the Fire Elemental along it even as it was burning away with everything it had.

"The hell did you do!?" The Fire Elemental watched as it was being swallowed up by Os still growing even after it was all but gone.

Back at Randale

"Hmm...?" Seth was looking at the forest which had been burning like a campfire sometime after Blake had gone in there. "...Maybe I should have been more forceful about giving him help?" He asked himself as something was moving towards him.

"Ah! Air! Fresh air! Fresh! AAAIIIRRR!" Bread gasped as Nash jumped out of the forest taking some smoke with him, but the young boy was too busy breathing in and out for dear life.

"Geez, a little fire and smoke got you like that." Mari turned around to pat Bread on his back before he choked on the air he was trying to take in.

"Ah, you children are fine...ish? But what of that boy and the witch?" Seth came up to them, blowing away the smoke.

"That thing." Mari pointed at a growing dome of purple that was taller than some of the trees.

It got bigger and bigger until it finally popped with an explosion that swiped across the trees and rattled some of the buildings near the edge of the forest.

"WAAAAH!" Came from the sky as Blake and Risabeel were falling a few moments after the blast. "Help!" Blake screamed as they neared the ground.

"Oh dear! Ugh, Gale Nest!" Seth quickly rolled up his sleeves to cast a spell that made a gust of wind shaped like a birdnest in time to catch Risabeel safely.

"What about me?!" Blake yelled as he went by Risabeel, who tried to hold out her hand for him, but he missed it.

"OOOOO!" But then Os came rushing in from out of the forest and quickly moved into the spot where Blake would land partly turning into what looked like the Fire Elemental but as a Slime. "Oooo!" It cheered, turning red which made Blake more worried about it than hitting the ground.

"Not you!" Blake cried as he got caught by Os and immediately got pressed into it. "Help m-mmmgh!" His muffled screams and thrashing only made Os sink him in deeper.

"Hmm? Everything went well, I guess?" Seth asked as he brought Risabeel down and ignored what was happening to Blake. "That's probably this girl's familiar best not to ask about it." He thought while turning to Risabeel who had the time to pull up her hood unnoticed by the reeve.

"Somewhat, Reeve Seth, although the Willo-wisp you wanted to be dealt with had turned into a great Elemental by the time we had arrived and a large amount of the forest has been set ablaze in our resulting battle with it..." Risabeel explained what happened against the Fire Elemental while Seth listened to her.

"Hmm? They turned into a Fire Elemental, you say? That would have gotten far more out of hand than I thought? Do not worry about the forest; trees can be replanted and blacken earth can be green again, I'll just have to call one of the druidic guilds to get that done..." Seth said to Risabeel, wondering then turned to Blake now free from Os. "...Well? Given that your target was upped I believe your reward should be as well."

"You got that right, reeve," Blake muttered while wiping some slime off his face.

"Indeed, I'll be right with you in a moment," Seth said as he walked back to what looked like townhall.

"Are you well, Sir Blake?" Risabeel asked, coming over to check on Blake.

"Yeah, just some burns and bruises but nothing to get worried about," Blake answered, patting himself down a little. "But that was crazier than I thought...still don't know where that Fire Elemental came from? There'd need to be a whole more than a few little wisps to make that thing...?" He wondered to himself then felt something poking his leg. "What?"

"Ooo!" A yellow Os back to its normal size cheered as it was poking Blake with a pink Ore with red flames over it.

"Nice! You got the Ore from that thing!" Blake leaned down to pet Os a little. "Noooo! We just got done with that!" But Os being Os just went up his arm. "Get the fuck off!"

"Os! That's enough of that!" Mari yelled at the Slime, making it slid off Blake and back into its jar.

"Why can't that thing listen to me!" Blake nagged, wiping slime off himself again then looked at his prize. "Guess that thief was good for something? This should make something good to show up, Deller,"

"And there you were about to reject this quest," Risabeel pointed out in a matter of fact kind of tone with her hands on her hips.

"Okay, okay, you were right, but next time can I be the one to pick the quest?" Blake admitted with a smile as Seth got back with a chest. "Whoa! Is that for us?"

"Well, not the whole thing, boy," Seth explained as he opened the chest and pulled out a bag. "Here quest competed with a reward of 250 gold."

"Nice! Way better than the silver you were offering before." Blake gladly took the bag and gave it a shake. "Hehe!"

"But, of course! From that explosion earlier that Elemental could have burnt my town to the ground! So you have my and the rest of the town's deepest thanks for your work," Seth gave Blake a bow on behave of Randale.

"You're welcome! And if you pay this well, then you should get in trouble again!" Blake joked as he went over to hold Nash's reins and pulled him along as the group started to move out of Randale. "Alright! Time to see if the others haven't gotten into any trouble!"

"Heh, such a strange lot..." Seth mused as he watched them leave.

"Hey! What are you doing staring at nothing, Seth!" One of the townspeople yelled after that forest fire and blast earlier most of them had hidden inside of their homes.

"Yeah! You're supposed to be checking to see what damages there are around town!" Another shouted as a small mod of them were surrounding Seth from all sides.

"And that gold you gave him! That part of the taxes, right!? Which means we have to pay up more to fill in for that!" Yet another hissed as the others joined in on giving their two copper on how Seth should run things.

"..." To which the Elf deeply sighed and walked back to townhall while either ignoring what his people were telling him or telling them, yes, okay, you're right, and I'm sorry.' "Why do I have this job? I should have been a bard like my brother."

Chapter end