Standing behind the owner was a middle aged guy with brown hair, looking similar to another one that was thrown outside not that much time ago. He tried smiling to look as friendly as possible to the young man.

"I am deeply sorry for what happened last time. I don't usually get that drunk, I just had something that's been bothering me lately."

"The time we threw you outside?" replied Tailor.

"Yeah... the time you threw me outside..."

Miles was overhearing the conversation, and, even if he was preparing a beer for a client, the left side corner of his mouth couldn't stop rising.

"Anyway, that's not relevant to our discussion. I came looking for you because I have an offer for you. You wanted to be a hero, right? And got ambushed on your way here, so you lost that chance."

"That's right. So?" answered Tailor rolling his eyes.

"So... I want to make you an offer. Since actual heroes are pretty expensive to ask for help, I will ask you. I heard from Miles that you came here to go to the 'Hero Academy', am I wrong? Do you still want that?"

"Yes, I still want to go." he replied while looking him in the eyes.

"I... I can pay for your tuition if you help me with this problem our business has been having. See, lately, some monster have started harassing my workers, so I need someone to take care of them. To... exterminate them."

"Sure, why not? I'm used to slaying slimes that were going after the clothes that my mother used to hang to dry outside, so a few monsters should not be hard to deal with. But can you at least provide me with some equipment? Considering what I have now, I can't do that much against them and I already spent the money I got on stuff I needed."

"Well, the best I can do is a sword, so you should be careful when going out there. We don't want another loss." said he while turning his head towards Miles. Miles was also looking in his direction, his eyebrows angled down.

"It's a deal!" replied Tailor, hope shining trough his eyes, ready to burst.

"Good, now let's do some introductions, even if pretty late."

The man grabbed Miles' shoulder, once again, after he gave his client the beer he ordered.

"As you probably realized, this grumpy guy right here is Miles, and I am Gus. Even if it might not look like it, we are brothers, it's just that time hit him differently than it hit me."

Miles wasn't looking that happy around his brother, his shoulder escaped Gus' clutch and he went on to the table in the corner, where someone was requesting his presence.

"Back to our business, I really need this sorted out. I am going to come get you tomorrow and show you the way to the forest. I hope you can do the job, as your tuition is on the line."

"That's a pretty weird way to put it." thought Tailor.

He finally let go of the young man and took his leave, closing the backside door behind him. Miles looked sighed as he was coming towards the counter where the two had their discussion to clean up whatever remained after he finished his schedule.

"About time. So, you're gonna go to the forest?"

"It's not like I have a choice, do I? That's the reason I came all the way here, to go to the Academy, and he is offering me another chance!"

"I see. Take care, kid." replied the old man while going to wash whatever dishes remained. "And go to sleep, it's getting pretty late. You're probably going to need every inch of rest you can grab."

There was no clock in the tavern but educated guess could be make judging from the black summer sky above the city. That and also from the fact that Tailor started yawning and stretching.

He started climbing the stairs towards the room he awakened in this morning. The moon could be seen trough the small, rounded window above his bed, the same window the light woke him up from. Tailor took out the pajamas he bought while in the city from the bag he carried around his shoulder and changed himself. His new look consisted of a simple, light gray shirt with brown embroiderings. His pants were short, until just a bit under his knees, and he had some footwear to use inside.

Tailor laid on his bed, facing upwards with his eyes closed. He needed to catch back his energy as tomorrow was the only chance he had left. Miles wouldn't let him stay here forever, so he had to start earning something, and graduating the hero academy was the best thing he could do towards his objective.

His eyes closed, his breathing got slower, his body stopped moving. He was a little cold because his window was still open, but even so, he fell asleep.

Gus finally showed up in the usual attire, with a backpack on his back, and brought Tailor to the entrance of the forest. Even if the sun was trying its best to shine on the forest, it could still be observed that a shroud of darkness enveilled the place.

He stopped walking and looked straight at him. With a serious look on his face, he reached behind him and grabbed something from there. It was a sword, still in its cheap leather sheath that even had dust on it, looking like it hasn't been used since before the boy was born.

"Well, this is as far as I go. If we were to get attacked, I would only drag you down. Take care and please solve this, it's really putting its mark on my profits."

He took his leave, leaving Tailor all alone in the shade of the place. He advanced all the way into its heart. There was not a single shred of an enemy along the path. It was just him and the crows whose caw could be heard echoing from far away.

Meddling around the forest was not without its issues, even if not that big. When traveling on the silent dirt paths, Tailor tripped, hitting his knee in a stone. 'A stone to the knee', nothing too severe but not something that can be ignored, as the droplets of blood flowing from the wound and the small amounts of pain he felt were enough to irritate him.

It was getting pretty late, and after surveying around the entire forest with no results, he went off the dirty paths, only to find a clearing. In this very spot, the trees were not even close to being as dense as everywhere else, allowing the light reflected from the moon to get to the ground and illuminate the dark green grass.

Sitting right in the center of this area was a regular fountain. The same kind that can be found in the backyards of the city's residents, even though their water has probably been contaminated by all of the magic flowing into its perimeter. This specific one's shape made it look like the stones have naturally formed in this shape, but it had a wood top as to not allow any rain water to pour in, which probably shows that it did not appear here in a natural manner.

Seeing this as an opportunity to finally get rid of the annoying pain, Tailor took the time to get the small piece of stone that penetrated his knee's skin out of its dug hole and wash the now dried blood.

After getting some water from the fountain and cleaning his knee with it, he was astonished by the effects. Any resemblance of pain and blood were gone, and not only that, but his entire leg felt refreshed, even if only his knee had direct contact with the water. Even the most simple but impossible to completely make disappear pain, the one one would get from walking tens of kilometers in circles in a forest for no reason is completely gone.

"This is incredible! Why has no one used this before? This could save so much time and resources it's not even funny."

And right Tailor was, but as he basked in the silence of his small victory, leaves could be heard crunching behind him. Something was approaching, and fast! He turned around only to see a shadow pounce on him from the bushes.

The beast was a big wolf, bigger than any Tailor ever heard of, as it stood at three fifths of his height. It jumped and grabbed his arm, it being the only barrier between its fangs and his face.

With a well aimed kick at the fiend's face, it somehow let his arm go, and so, he grabbed the sword from its sheath with his still uninjured hand.

Some whispers could be heard from nearby and the hound was now waiting in front of the young man, growling. It didn't seem that willing to attack anymore, even if his eyes were still locked on the one in front of it.

Not wasting the chance that has been offered to him, Tailor inserted his other hand in the fountain and pointed the tip of his sword towards the wolf's direction, trying to prevent any further potential attacks.

A small figure appeared from behind the beast...