It had been over three hours since the humans had left to save Gimdo and Bush from Celtic Hoard, and the tension in Sterland village had been high. A lot of people, including those within the anti-human faction were outraged by Dorion's decision to just abandon the chief, which in turn crumbled his support amongst the village, many of them calling him a coward for doing nothing.

Then there was the elder's decision to allow the humans to attempt to rescue the captives, and a lot of people were unsure that just a handful of them could infiltrate Celtic Hoard on their own.

"Still here," Welma said as she approached Dorian, who was sitting on the edge of the walls overlooking the valley. He hadn't moved since his meeting with Junbi.

"Did you need something?" He asked.

"Just looking for my son." She said.

"I haven't seen anyone leave if that's what you're asking."

"I see." She took a seat next to him. "He's not the only one. Rodger and Dora are also missing."

"You don't sound too worried."

"It's not the first time," Welma exhaled a deep sigh. "I have a feeling that they've followed the humans."

"Again, you don't sound too concerned."

"Of course I'm concerned. But getting worked up isn't going to solve anything." She said. "So the best I can do is believe in those humans to keep them safe."

Dorian looked downwards.

"I know you don't have a good experience dealing with humans, but you have to admit, these humans are different," Welma said as she chuckled to herself. "I don't think I've met anyone foolish enough to get involved in our affairs."

"You mean that girl Junbi's interested in?" Dorian sighed. "I suppose I can give her the benefit of the doubt." He couldn't forget how she spoke up against him that morning. "... She has guts, I'll give her that. I still have my doubts that just the five of them could pull this rescue mission off."

"And we're gonna prove to you that not all humans are bad."

An amused smile then appeared on Dorian's face as he remembered what the human said to him. Speaking up to me like that, she's a wonder.

His thoughts were then interrupted by the sound of thunderous footsteps coming from the other side of the valley.

"Do you hear that?" He said as he stood up.

"Yes." Welma said as she shot up with him." And that doesn't sound good."

It was then when it came to view, a sight that made both of them quiver.

"I-It can't be?" Welma muttered.

"Why is that here?" Dorian asked.

Striving towards the village was none other than the most feared monster in all Sterland forest, a monster that has claimed the Berkwara ruins to the west. The King of the forest.

"Damn it! Why now when the barriers till incomplete?" Dorian hissed as he turned. "I'll gather the warriors!"

"Wait!!" Welma grabbed his shoulder.

"What is it?! We don't have time!"

"Something's wrong..." She pointed to the approaching beast. "See that?"

Dorian squinted to where she was pointing and just made out about 14 small figures on top of the fearsome beast, and two standing on its head waving at them, a human and a Samiet by the looks of it.

"I.... I don't believe it...." Dorian as his jaw dropped.

Triumphant return

"Hey!!" Max called out as they approached the village walls. "We made it back alive!!"

"And we destroyed Celtic Hoard!!" Rodger added.

"Don't you think they'll be more freaked out that we're riding on top of a giant monster?" Cliff asked.

"It's called arriving in style," Rodger said to him. "We just triumphed over Celtic Hoard, so we gotta arrive in the most spectacular way ta leave a lasting impression."

"Don't you think riding atop of a monster your people are terrified of is going a bit too far?"

"It will leave a lasting impression though," Nel said.

"I don't doubt that,"

Following the defeat of Celtic Hoard, the group, which included Allisa's party, the Walloping Willows, Gimdo and Bush, and the three defectors, Max had insisted that they ride on 'Dug's' back, something only accepted because nearly all of them were exhausted and simply didn't have the energy required to walk all the way back through the monster-infested forest.

Max and Rodger road close to its neck with Nel, Cliff, Gimdo and Bush behind them followed by the defectors, Faust, Shay and May, and lastly was the terrified Allisa, Dora, Fred and Melvin, clinging on its fur for dear life.

A large crowd then began to form at the gates, warriors infront getting ready to fight in case, and several people wanting to see what was going on.

Among them was a bewildered Steve and Dorion as well as Hellina, Van and Fraya, seeing Rodger and the others riding atop the monster.

"Th-That's impossible..." Dorian mouthed.

Max then walked back and picked up a large cylinder of rock. "We brought ya a souvenir!!" He announced as he lunged the stone over the king's head, and buried itself in front of the crowd. Everyone stood in stun silence as they gazed on what was before them.

Sticking out of the top was a broken Dolton, the leader of Celtic Hoard, encased up to his neck in rock, and seemingly unconscious.

"Th-that's...." Welma was astonished.

"Y-You mean... those humans....?" Dorian's mouth flapped like a fish.

"Yep!" Rodger slid down the head of the kind and landed alongside Dolton. "We just destroyed Celtic Hoard!" He said triumphantly as the others began to disembark.

"G-Girl, what is the meaning of this?" Dorian demanded to Allisa, who had just dismounted badly, trying to get off the side and ended up falling off.

"Ow...." She groaned as she sat up to look at Dorian. "Uh... well.... things kinda got out of hand." She said with an innocent smile.

Melvin then landed on top of her. "Ow..." he groaned, his face was buried in Allisa's chest. "Good thing I landed on something soft."

"YAAAA!!!" Allisa shrieked and smacked Melvin off of her, hard enough to send him landed on top of Rodger.

"It's been a while since something like that happened," Nel said, sounding slightly amused.

"Shut up!" Allisa snapped, crossing her arms over her chest in embarrassment.

After everyone had dismounted, Hellina then burst through the crowd, tearing up when she saw both Bush and Rodger, and how injured they had got.

"H-Hey gran," Rodger waved after pushing Melvin off.

Gimdo stood beside him, shyly scratching his head. "Looks like I have some explaining to do."

Without saying anything, she charged over and hugged both of them, catching them by surprise.

"You two are gonna be the death of me...." She whimpered as she held her husband and grandson close. "Don't scare me like that ever again."

Both Gimdo and Rodger smiled as they embraced Hellina.

"I think I'm too old for this anymore," Gimdo said.

"I can't make any promises," Rodger said.

The others stood behind the reunion, not wanting to interrupt the reunion. Welma then came up to them, causing Fred to gulp as she approached him.

"Uh.... H-Hi mom." He whimpered.

Welma simply sighed. "You idiot," She then looked at Fred and smiled. "Glad to see you make it back in one piece." She then flicked his forehead before turning to Allisa. "I suppose we owe you a great debt of gratitude, all of you." She bowed her head. "Thank you for all you've done."

"No problem," Allisa said. "We were glad to help."

"Would've happened one way or the other," Melvin said to himself.

"I get what you mean." Cliff sighed in agreement.

"And thank you so much for bringing these two idiots back alive," Hellina said to them as she released Rodger and Gimdo.

Dorian approached the restrained Dolton, and then looked towards Allisa, who noticed him staring at her. "I still don't like humans," He said with a very reluctant sigh. "But.... I suppose you're not too bad." He then departed, leaving most of the village stunned that he acknowledged a group of humans.

"Even someone as stubborn as him has to swallow his pride sometimes," Nel said to herself.

Allisa then called out to him. "We kept our promise! We rescued Gimdo, so that means he remains chief!"

"That was the agreement," Dorian said, keeping his back turned. "And I don't go back on my word."

Allisa smiled at Gimdo, who nodded at her. It seemed things were finally resolved.

"Oh, I just remembered!" Hellina suddenly said. "That swordsman you were with,"

"Swordsman? You mean Yuki?" Allisa asked, slightly surprised at the mention of his name. So much had happened in the last few hours that she almost forgot that Yuki was incapacitated. She wasn't alone.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that sword bastard," Max said.

"Definitely a lot quieter without him," Melvin commented.

"Can't say I've completely missed his company," Cliff added honestly.

"What about Yuki?" Nel asked, trying to get back on topic.

"He woke up about an hour ago."

Broken Pride

"231, 232, 233,"

Yuki swings his sword up and down as much as he could. It was the very first thing he did since finally regaining consciousness, not even bothering to ask where his comrades had disappeared to, he went into the garden area of the chief's hut (Ignoring Hellina demanding he not do any strenuous activity) to train.

"234, 235, 236,"

There was something far more pressing weighing on his mind to worry about where the others had disappeared.

"237, 238, 239,"

"You're still no match for me."

Yuki's grip tightened as he continued his swings. I need to get stronger!

"You've lost."

Shut up!

"Give up. You cannot defeat me."

"I SAID SHUT UP!!!!"

Yuki then collapsed, using his sword to keep himself from falling completely. No matter how stubborn he was, he hadn't completely recovered. His wounds were closed, but all of them acted. Sweat drenched his entire body due to the added effort he needed to put in.

And of course, his fight with Gai played out again and again in his head. He'd been searching for that man for 5 years, 5 long years, and not once had he ever been able to successfully track him down. In preparation, he sought out strong opponents and battled powerful monsters all to make his stronger. Then, not too long ago, he was given the job of joining Allisa and her party, and following her, he fought against both a knight and a demon, and something no ordinary swordsman should ever be able to do. And then, yesterday, at long last, he found him, the man he'd been searching for.

He wasn't the same as he was 5 years ago, he was far stronger, stronger than he ever was. But, even so, despite everything he'd been through, Gai beat him so easily again.

After all that.... I still wasn't strong enough.... Yuki's grip on his hilt tightened. Then what the hell was the past 5 years all for?

"Sure you should be moving?"

Yuki froze and slowly tilted his head to the source of the voice. Standing there were all five of his comrades.

"You gave us quite a scare back then," Cliff said with a sigh.

Yuki should be relieved to see them again, but that was the very last emotion. What he felt at the sight of them was anger, specifically directed at one person in particular.

He slowly released his grip on his sword and strode over to them.

"Yuki..." Allisa took a step forward with a look of relief. "I'm glad you're-"

Suddenly and without warning, Yuki shoved her to the ground, lunged forward and grabbed Nel by the collar of her tunic. "Why did you stop me?!!" He yelled.

Cliff and Melvin looked stunned while Max helped Allisa who was on the ground. Nel, however, remained calm, and gently put a hand on the arm Yuki held her with while giving him a very deadly gaze. "You didn't honestly believe you could win?"

Yuki twitched, grinding his teeth in anger.

"If I hadn't stepped in, you'd be dead."

Cliff then spoke up. "While we're on the subject, what the hell was that?" He asked in a very serious tone. "Even for you that was dumb."

Yuki slowly released his grip on Nel and took a step back. "Where is he?"

"He disappeared shortly after," Nel answered Yuki.

Clenching his fists he walked to the wall of the chief's hut. "DAMN IT!!!!!" he screamed as he punched into the wall, hard enough to break the rock. "Not again.... He got away again...." He muttered as he bashed his head against the wall, his entire body shaking.

Melvin, Allisa and Max were all stunned by Yuki's behavior. This was a side of him they had never seen before.

Nel and Cliff still had very serious looks. "So, are you going to explain?" Nel pressed, crossing her arms.

Yuki then seemed to calm down and turned to face the others. "You all look like shit." He commented.

"That's cause we just beat Celtic Hoard," Max said. "No thanks to you."

Yuki simply grunted and walked back to his sword. "Sorry I missed it." He apologized sarcastically.

"Are you going to answer us?" Nel pressed.

"It's none of your business," he grunted as he pulled his sword out from the ground and sheathed it. "We got one more day here right? So you try to recover before then." He said as he walked through the group.

"Aren't you gonna tell us anything?" Allisa spoke up.

Yuki stopped. "And why should I do that?" He spat.

Allisa took a step back on instinct, feeling a little stab from Yuki. "Cause.... We're friends aren't we?" She said as sincerely as she could.

There was a short silence before Yuki turned around slowly, glaring at Allisa. "I don't recall ever saying any of you were my friends." He replied coldly, making Allisa wince. "My whole reason for being here is to get stronger so I can kill that bastard. I don't give a damn about any of you." His eyes narrowed at Allisa. "Especially some silly little girl who wants to play hero."

Max then rushed Yuki and grabbed his tunic. "Apologies now you bastard!!" He demanded.

Yuki knocked his arm away and head-butted him. "And you I hate the most!" As Max fell to the floor holding his nose, Yuki turned to walk away. "Let me know when we're going. Till then, pretend I'm dead." And with that he walked off, leaving the five alone.

"Damn that sword bastard!!" Max exclaimed as he shot up, rubbing his nose. He looked back at Allisa, who looked a bit down. "You ok?"

"Huh? Oh yeah... I, fine." Allisa said with a small smile. "That did kinda sting a bit." She added quietly.

"Never seen him act like that," Melvin said. "Sure he's grumpy but that's a new for him."

"He's probably taking that defeat pretty hard," Nel said. "Best to leave him alone for now."

"I'll have a word with him," Cliff announced as he set off after him. "You guys get some rest, and," He looked back at Allisa. "Don't take it personally, ok." He said with a smile.

Allisa didn't know how to respond, and held her hand to her chest and nodded, even though it was difficult not to take what Yuki had said personally.

****

"Come on, you're not done yet are you?" She stood over me with a large grin, resting her bokken on her shoulder. "If you can't beat, there's no way you can beat Gai."

Yuki immediately snapped out of the memory he had sitting alone on top the walls of the village. "...Why'd I gotta think about that now?" He said as he healed his sword, Sakura, out in front of him. "..... Ayami,"

He heaved a big sigh as he lowered his sword as he noticed a familiar presence behind him. "How'd you find me?"

Cliff walked up to him. "We stick out like sore thumbs here, remember." He said. "All I had to ask was if they saw some jerk with a sword walk past."

Yuki clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Here to scold me?"

Cliff walked up alongside him, looking over the valley. ".... We'll see how it goes."

Yuki didn't look up at him.

"Believe it or not, I get where you're coming from."

Yuki snorted. "Like you could possibly know what it's like,"

"Oh yeah? Gai, he was important to you wasn't he?" Cliff looked down on Yuki's reaction. "Best friend maybe? Rival? Brother even?"

"Shut up!!" Yuki snapped. "Like I said, how could you possibly know about it?!"

"Because Zentas was more than just a fellow hunter, he was also my teacher!"

Yuki then quickly looked up in surprise at Cliff, who wasn't making eye contact but had a look Yuki hadn't seen on him before.

"So yeah, I know exactly what it feels like." Cliff then glanced over to Yuki. "And like I said, that path will either get you, or one of the others killed." He said in a very serious tone.

Yuki looked away from Cliff, letting out a small grunt. "And I said they won't die-"

"But you very nearly did." Cliff interrupted. "In fact, if they didn't have that Phoenix Dust they make here, you most certainly would've bled to death." He said sternly. "Even then Hellina said it was still a miracle you were still breathing."

Yuki didn't say anything.

"And don't you think you were being a little unfair towards Allisa?" Cliff continued. "She was generally concerned about you."

Yuki clenched his fists. "I just can't stand that naive nature of hers," He hissed, grinding his teeth. "Ever since we meet, she keeps acting like she's in some lame fantasy novel."

"That's really how you see it?" Cliff said with a sigh. "You really are a muscle and no brains."

"What was that?!"

"How long have you known her?"

Yuki scratched his head as she thought. "Three months I think."

"And what has she been through since then?"

Yuki's eyes began to narrow. "... A lot I guess," He said with a little reluctance.

"She never held a gun before, let alone a magical sword. She never chose this, it was literally forced upon her."

"Yeah, I get it!" Yuki snapped, getting impatient.

"She may act like she's accepted all this, but deep down, I bet she's dealing with a lot of stress. But she doesn't want any of us to worry about her, especially with all that's going on with her. That's why she's trying to act stronger than she actually is."

Yuki looked back out into the valley. "So you want me to apologize to her?" He asked, not sounding very sincere.

"Not really," Cliff shook his head. "It is you after all."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Just cut her a bit of slack. That's all I'm asking." Cliff then took his leave.

Yuki waited until he had left before holding out his sword. A sorrow overcame him quickly. "..... There's another reason why I can't stand her..." He muttered quietly to himself. The image of a ginger-haired girl came to mind.

"It's cause we're friends, you idiot."

His grip tightened. "She's way too much like her."

With a big sigh, he put down his sword and leaned back to stare up at the sky, if he could see the thick tree line blocked out the sky completely. No matter how he looked at it, the situation between him and Allisa would be a little awkward for a while.

Pure Heart and Soul

"Um.. H-Hello," Allisa slowly creaked open the door to the council room. "Is anyone in?" She looked around, seeing it deserted. "I'm coming in." She announced as she walked in, looking around. "No one's here?"

It had only been a few hours since the group had returned, and a large celebration held over the return of Gimdo and Celtic Hoards destruction. Dorian had kept true to his word and allowed him to remain chief.

Allisa and her friends weren't a part of it since what they wanted more than anything was rest and recovery from their rescue mission. There were also several things that weren't resolved yet, such as the fate of Faust, Shay and May, the defective members of Celtic Hoard that surrendered to the village without a fight.

Then there was the King of the Forest that Max tamed. He wanted to keep him but was outright refused by her and the others. And on a personal note, there was Yuki's outburst. When Cliff came back, he simply told them to leave him alone for a while, even having to deal with an enraged Max. She still couldn't get what he said to her out of her head.

What was decided was what to do with Dolton. On Nel's suggestion, a party made up of Dorian and several warriors would take him to the nearby Soma Rand, the village on the border with Cataka and surrender him to the empire in exchange for his bounty.

A short while ago, however, Gimdo told Allisa that Junbi, the village Elder, wanted to talk to her. He didn't say why though, which made Allisa slightly nervous.

"Wonder what he wants to talk to me about," Allisa thought out loud as she looked around the cramped room. Since she wasn't the tallest person in the world, but being in a village where people's height was about 3 feet tall, everything was much smaller compared to what she considered normal size. Luckily the room wasn't so small that she had to crouch down.

She found herself drawn to a statue at the back of the room. It was something she recognized from Riser and Triest. "The goddess?" She leaned in to take a closer look.

"I see you're making yourself at home."

Allisa jumped at the sound of a voice behind her. "I-I wasn't gonna touch it!" She said quickly as she turned, seeing no one there.

"It's alright child."

She then looked downwards to see the source of the voice, who bowed to her.

"I am Junbi, the village Elder." He said. "It's good to properly meet you, Allisa Reed."

"Uh... h-hi..." Allisa muttered. "How do you know my name?"

"You told me this morning."

"Huh? Oh!"

Junbi nodded. "Yes, after you spoke out against Dorian and announced you would rescue Gimdo. That did make my day, I must admit. Besides Rodger, no one ever actively speaks out against that man in public."

"R-Right..." Allisa said awkwardly while stroking the back of her head. "Sorry."

Junbi waved a hand. "No need to apologize, after all, it is you who we should be grateful. Not only did you and your comrades save our chief, but you also destroyed Celtic Hoard single handedly."

"N-No problem.... But," Allisa looked a little sad. "Truth is I didn't really do much." Thinking back, the only thing she did of note was fighting the woman, Ellie, in the waterway to allow Cliff, Rodger, Fred and Dora to pass through, and she didn't even win.

"Don't be so modest," Junbi said as he took a seat. "The children actually spoke quite highly of you," He then chuckled. "Not to mention you forced Dorian to acknowledge what you did, despite his prejudice to your kind. That in itself is a feat no other human could ever achieve."

Allisa then sat down cross-legged in front of Junbi. "Um.... So what did you want to see me about?" She asked, wanting to change the current subject.

"Oh yes," Junbi took in a deep breath, "there's something I want to ask you,"

Allisa nodded, indicating him to continue.

"Are you," Junbi took a long pause before continuing. "The Goddess' Chosen?"

Allisa gave him a blank stare. "...... Sorry, the what?"

"You don't know of the prophecy?"

"What prophecy?"

Junbi sighed heavily and stroked his long beard. "Well... There is one way to find out," He muttered to himself. "You have a spirit weapon, correct?" He asked.

"Uh, y-yeah, my sword."

"Would you mind showing it to me."

Allisa nodded and extended her right hand, summoning her sword in front of her.

Junbi however, didn't react at all. Taking a closer look, she saw his eyelids were sealed shut.

Is he.... Blind?

Junbi then moved, putting a hand to Allisa's blade. "Do not concern yourself. I may be blind but I can still see clearly."

Allisa was a little surprised he knew what she thought, almost as though he read her mind. "Hmmm..... Interesting," He took his hand of the sword.

"....What's interesting?"

Junbi stroke his beard. "When did you receive that weapon?"

Allisa unequipped her sword and thought. "About.... Three months ago?" She was amazed that it had so short. It felt as though years had passed.

"And where did you find it?"

".... Uh.... In a rock in my hometown, though it just appeared out of nowhere."

"Hmmm.... Very interesting," Junbi muttered again.

Allisa was completely lost at what he was getting at. And then there was that title that was also bothering her. "Uh.... What's the Goddess' Chosen?" She asked, seeming to break Junbi's line of thought. "It's the first I've heard of it."

Junbi nodded. "I suppose it wouldn't be too surprising that you haven't heard that title before." He stroked his long beard again, which for some reason reminded Allisa of the Elder. "The Goddess' Chosen, as its name suggests, refers to a warrior chosen by the goddess of Harmony herself to bring balance to the worlds. A warrior possessing both a pure heart and a pure soul."

Allisa flinched. Dran had said that exact same thing when she first came to Avalon. "But what does that even mean?" She asked in a very quiet voice.

"I'm afraid, my dear I can't answer that for you," Junbi responded shaking his head.

"Thought so," Allisa sighed. "Dran said the same thing when I asked him."

".... Dran? You don't mean Arch Sage Dran?"

"Yeah, do you know him?"

Allisa then noticed the expression Junbi had, full of concern. ".... By reputation only." He said with a concerned voice. He then shook his head. "But that's not relevant, we're here to talk about you."

"O-ok," Allisa was a little concerned about his reaction when she spoke about Dran.

"So..." Junbi continued. "What brings you to our village?"

"Huh?"

"A bit late of asking I know, but humor me." Junbi chuckled.

"Well..." Allisa told him of Dran sending them to meet with the Arch Sage of Cataka, then the attack of the Kraken that wrecked the boat they were traveling on, and then the border closing meaning they had to find another way into Cataka, which leads them to take the detour through the forest.

"I see... That's quite an ordeal thus far," He said, with a bit more concern than before. "and all to meet the Arch sage of Cataka of all people.... Dear me...."

"Y-Yeah," Allisa noticed his reaction was similar to Rowin and Dran when they mentioned her. "Do you know her?"

"Yes... I'm afraid so," Junbi replied in a very strained voice, "and I do wish you luck, a lot of it..."

Allisa slumped a little. "What kind of person is she?" She asked, a little scared to know the answer.

"She's.... Difficult," He responded, stroking his beard, "you'll find out when you meet her."

With that, Allisa was a little more put off meeting her.

"Don't look so disheartened child," Junbi said. "If you managed to win over someone as stubborn as Dorian, I'm sure you'll win over Elaina, I think."

That's not very encouraging. Allisa thought.

"Well, I don't think we have much left to talk about," Junbi said. "I suppose you wish to recover from your ordeal."

"Oh no, it's fine. Like I said, I didn't really do much." Allisa said, shaking her hands.

"Still so modest." Junbi chuckled. "Before you go, do you mind doing this old man a favor?"

"A favor."

Junbi nodded. "My reason for meeting you was to see what kind of person you are." He then extended his hand. "As you are probably aware, us Samiets have unique magic compared to humans. Mine is called 'Soul Read.' Through touch, I can read the mana of an individual." He continued with a gentle smile. "Before I managed to read the mana of your spirit weapon, but for living beings, it requires the other's consensus."

"Oh," Allisa looked at her right hand. "Sure, I don't mind." She then extended it towards Junbi.

"Your glove," He stopped her. "I need to touch the skin."

"Oh, right," Allisa said as she withdrew her hand and took her glove off. She was about to offer it to him again when she stopped herself. "It's not gonna hurt, is it?"

"No no." Junbi shook his head. "I assure you, It won't affect you in any way."

Allisa extended her hand slowly. Junbi gently cupped it in on hand gently while placing his other gently on her palm. He then opened his eyes, almost causing Allisa to jump when she saw his eyes, which were literally just white orbs in his eyes.

There was an uncomfortable silence, as Junbi seemed to be frozen in place, not moving at all. Although she didn't feel anything, Allisa gradually starting to feel more and more uncomfortable.

After about 10 minutes of silence, Junbi finally moved, closing his eyes and gently releasing her hand. "Thank you, my dear." He bowed.

"... Was that it?" Allisa asked as she retracted her hand.

Junbi nodded. "You may leave now."

"Ok," Allisa got back to her feet. "Well, nice seeing you again." She waved and walked past Junbi.

"Before you go," He called out and stopped her. He looked at her with a very serious expression. "Be very careful around Arch Sage Dran."

Allisa turned round in surprise. "Wh-What?"

"I'm not asking you to completely distrust the man," Junbi said quickly. "Just bear in mind that there is a reason why he, and the other Arch Sages, has taken you under their wing. No one in his position would do things out of the kindness of his heart, especially someone as crafty as he."

Not completely sure how to take the news, Allisa exited as fast as she could. When she was completely gone, Junbi let out a big sigh. "Poor child. To be given such a burden at that age."

Soul touch had shown him glances of her past, her childhood, when she was chosen by the goddess, when she finally revised the sword Excalibur, her first experience in Avalon, her encounter with the bandit group, the Rats, the Cult of Dorstera and the knight Garlahad, the Alchemist and the Homunculi, and what stood out most in her mind at that moment, the fight with the silver-haired woman with the bandaged left arm. And in each of those encounters, the feeling that something was deliberately shaping it, and the worst was yet to occur. And from what he's seen, Dran seems to be playing a part in how her story’s shaping out.

He looked up at the statue of the Goddess. "Allisa Reed, I'm afraid, from here on out, things will only get harder."

The Strange Girl and the Mechanical Owl

"... Damn, damn damn this hurts!"

Waze groaned as he rested on a tree, a small vile dropping down, joining three others at his feet.

"... Shit.... It's still not working," He hissed in pain. "That's all the Phoenix Dust I have and it still isn't enough..."

Phoenix Dust was a special healing potion that could heal any wounds no matter how grave the injury. Its key ingredient was Mythril, a stone that was native to Sterland Forest. Thanks to Dolton's deal with the village chief they were able to acquire a large amount, most of which he sold to the highest bidder while keeping some aside to make their own Phoenix Dust. All the officers had about three vials on the potion for emergencies.

After being beaten and launched into far far away, he lost consciousness for almost the rest of the day. When he finally came to, he was in absolutely excruciating pain, so much so he had to consume all his vials of Phoenix Dust, and while he could say it probably saved his life, it didn't get rid of the pain assaulting his body.

"... Probably wasn't a good idea to use two of those.... C-Can't believe I had to use that many and still lost."

Those bullets he used was a special Fira invention for mana users, a bullet that forces the user into 'Limit break' a state where a mana user increases their mana level for a brief period of time, a state that only a few could ever hope to achieve. The drawback of forcing the state was a serious strain on the body, to the point that one could never recover from.

Using one-shot was risky. Using two was borderline suicidal.

"Where the hell did that bastard even get that stuff from?" Waze winced as he tried to stand up. Celtic Hoard was finished, no doubt about that, so the best thing he could do at this point was to leave the forest as fast as he could. In his condition though, hurting all over, both weapons destroyed, he would be lucky if he even made it back to where the camp was, let alone actually make his way out of the forest.

He had seen Dolton and two others peruse the hostages and three children from the village. Meaning that once he dealt with them, he would try to gather what he could before leaving the forest.

"Ok..." Waze panted as he pushed himself from the tree he was resting against. "... Think, it was this way," He struggled towards the general direction he thought he'd been launched.

"Freeze!"

A voice called out when he walked, causing him to skid and pivot at the source.

"... Oh, it's you," the source of the voice said, lowering her crossbow. "Almost blew your fucking brains out."

Waze fell to one knee, gritting his teeth in pain from the sudden move he performed. "Wha- Doc?"

The woman he was addressing, leaning against a tree was none other than 'Doc,' the chief medic of Celtic Hoard, a miracle he even recognized her due to the horrific burns she had all over her body, looking as though she'd been deep-fried.

"You look like shit," Waze commented as he slowly crawled over to a nearby tree.

"So do you," Doc retorted back.

"I got Faust, those two idiots, and that wizard and freak to thank for this," Waze granted. "You?"

Doc’s face was filled with shame. "A droopy looking kid did this to me."

"Droopy...?" Waze tried to think who she meant, and it didn't take long for him to recall one that fit that description. "You mean you lost to that kid?!" Waze exclaimed as he burst into laughter, which he tried his hardest not due to his condition.

"Aw shut up!" Doc snapped pointing her crossbow at him. "That shithead just caught me off guard, that's all."

"... S-Still no excuse to lose to a kid...HAHAHA!" Waze continued laughing.

"I said shut-"

Just then someone walked past the two casually, dragging something that looked like a body.

Both Waze and Doc stared at each other a little confused, since neither even noticed the approach, before turning to the person that had passed.

"H-Hey hold it!"

The figure stopped and turned in response. To both their surprise, it was a girl, about 14 or 15 by their guesses, wearing a dark hoodie, with locks of turquoise hair flowing down the sides, and most striking, an eye patch that covered her right eye. Not much could be seen about the man she had over her shoulders, but whoever it was, he looked incredibly beaten up. She looked at the two with a very emotionless look, before turning around and continued to drag what was on her shoulders.

"H-Hold it!!" Waze said as he shot up. "You're just gonna ignore us?"

The girl stopped and looked back. Waze was a little on edge by the very distant look she gave him with her one eye. Without saying anything, she turned around and continued to walk again.

Waze, feeling particularly irritated by being blatantly ignored, looked to Doc, who looked equally baffled. He then turned back to the girl and called out again. "Hey! You can at least tell us what you're doing here?" He said, causing the girl to stop. "No way you're just passing through this shithole."

The girl turned around again. "Ethel was ordered to bring Garus Volhelm to her master." The girl replied in a quiet and almost robotic voice.

"Garus?" Waze looked to the man on her shoulders. "You mean that bastard?"

"Uh huh," The girl, Ethel, nodded.

"Wait," Doc then supported herself against the tree as she got back to her feet. "Isn't that Gil?"

Waze looked more closely at the person slung unconscious over her shoulders. It was indeed Gil, noticeable because of the knuckle engrave he had on his face, and Gáe Bolg tucked into his shirt.

"What do you want with that piece of shit?" Waze asked.

"Master Yensin ordered Ethel to bring Garus Volhelm to him," Ethel responded before turning ignoring Waze as his eyes widened at the mention of something she said.

"Wait," Waze stopped her again, his voice sounding more threatening than before. She said Yensin? Which means, "You're with those bitches that just sat aside and let us get our asses kicked, aren't you?!" He demanded.

"Bitches?" Ethel looked back. "Ethel does not know who you are referring to."

"Don't give me that Crap!" Waze yelled. "That girl with the bandaged arm and those two lunatic twins with masks!"

Ethel looked up while she thought. "Oh, you mean Ellie?"

"Yeah, her! They just stood by and allowed our entire organization to be destroyed." Waze slowly moved his arm to his back, gripping hold of a small, two-shot pistol he had hidden in his pants in case he lost his two main weapons. "You, your boss... you were just using us, weren't you?!"

Ethel ignored him and continued to walk away. That was the final straw. Waze snapped, pulled out his weapon and fired at Ethel. And then, In a split second, Gal's body was thrown out of the way, hitting a tree, as the girl disappeared within a mile-second.

"Wha- quickst-"

Suddenly, a glowing projectile of light hit Waze in the left shoulder, burning through it and landing on the ground behind him. Waze yelled in pain as he collapsed to the ground while the girl landed behind him, a strange silver bow with a glowing blue string in her right hand.

Doc stood in shock as she looked at the girl crouching low to the ground. She barely took her eye's of her and here she was with a large weapon at hand right before her.

Where was she hiding that?

Gritting her teeth, she pulled out her crossbow and yelled, "DON'T SCREW WITH US!!" as she fired.

Ethel, however, jumped sideways, narrowly avoiding the shot while pulling back on the blue string, where a glowing light projectile quickly formed and loosed it at Doc. She then skidded across the ground and pivoted around before Doc's headless body hit the ground.

"D-Damn it..." Waze grunted as he crawled on the ground, holding the hole he had been given in his shoulder. He could still move his left arm, and he intended to at least die with some dignity. He then squirmed quickly to where he had dropped his pistol, which still had one shot, thinking as he extended a hand towards it. I'm gonna put one right in that bitches hea-

He then froze completely, just as he was about to reach the pistol.

His entire body had gone completely numb. No matter how hard he willed himself, he couldn't move an inch. His arm then began to shake uncontrollably as he broke out into a cold sweat.

It was nothing he had ever experienced before. It was a feeling of when the prey fell victim to their predator, just before it's eaten.

This was fear.

Slowly, he tilted his head around to look up at the girl, standing over him, aiming her bow at him, with a glowing projectile pointing directly at him.

"Eliminating hostiles."

It was then when he saw it, a sight that will long stay with him even in hell, a sight that made him lose his sanity, the most horrible thing he had ever seen in his life.

At that moment, before she killed him, a sinister grin appeared on the girl's emotionless face.

All he could do now was scream before the world went black.

****

Meanwhile, far, far to the west, in a snow-covered mountain range, laid a massive factory covering the entire center of a large valley. The sky around it blackened with polluting smog emanating from the hundreds of industrial chimneys.

It was here where the mechanical owl that had flown, thousands of miles, after leaving Sterland Forest, returned.

Within the factory was an elegantly designed office, overlooking the unspoiled part of the valley, the owl sitting on its perch on a large wooden desk, sitting at it was the silhouette of a slender man with a cigar in his mouth, his body turned sideways. "So Dolton has been defeated?" The man said. "Such a shame. He was useful." He then took the cigar out of his mouth, tapping the embers off against the ashtray at his desk. "What of the Prototypes?"

His address was towards a smartly dressed man, standing at attention. Middle-aged with neatly combed hair and a monocle in his left eye. "Unfortunately, they were all destroyed when the Ragnarok bomb was detonated by that woman." He said in a posh voice.

"And the bomb itself?"

"Unfortunately, even for a controlled explosion, it was well below our predicted specifications."

A chuckle came from the man at the desk. "I see." He then waved his cigar at his servant, the light catching on the white of his sleeve. "Send Minerva's data to R&D, and have the modifications made."

"Already done my lord." The servant bowed.

"Good." The man at the desk put the cigar back him his mouth. "We can hardly call them Magitek if it can be destroyed by a handful of adventures." He chuckled, waving another hand at the servant. "You're excused."

The servant bowed and left the man alone with the mechanical owl, which was staring at him with his camera eyes. "Minerva," he addressed the owl. "Show me again."

The head of the owl turned suddenly while a light emanated between its eyes, projecting a clear image above him. It's time stamp put it about three days ago, showing a group of six adventurers in total; Two women, one with scarlet hair while another a blond haired teenager. Three men, one noticeably larger than the others, another carrying a katana, and another more curious boy with a large x shaped scar. And finally two children, one a Samiet youth, and another, who had some resemblance to someone he once knew.

The man chuckled as he turned on his chair, locking his fingers. The light descending on the lower half of his face, showing a spiked Goatee and mustache, a wide grin on his face. "I don't know why, but I feel I should keep a close eye on this group."