The beautiful midday sun protruded from the clouds. Excitement filled the air as Ryuji walked down a brick path leading to a bridge. Waterways filled with boats entered his sight. Some vessels were being driven by men with oars. Others were being dragged by things that reminded him of an iconic mythical sea monster.

"Ooooo, look, Ryu! It's Nessy!" A certain strange looking and sounding girl violated his mind.

"I guess it's not the called the river city for nothing. This place is like super Venice." The veins of Priscillaca spread out before his very eyes. Each one connected to another, forming a system of complicated canal ways. The architecture showed the ingenuity of whoever designed this city. "I've never seen a place quite like this, even from where I'm from!"

The girl beside him raised her eyebrows in bewilderment. "Oh? Where exactly are you from, Ryu?"

Her honest question had a hint of suspicion as Ryuji had just realized he never explained his origins. He firmly thought that no one would ever believe him if he did tell the truth. In fact, telling the truth would only hinder him as everyone already had the idea that he was insane. Although now that he thought about the situations he's been in recently and the things happening to him, their diagnosis might not be too far off. "Well, you know... wasn't it rude how Nyanjo just left us the second we got here? Not even a single thank you out of her lips. How ungrateful!" With sweat dripping down his neck, he hoped the insane little gremlin next to him would take the bait so he could escape this terrible conversation.

"I told you she was suspicious pardner, but did you believe little ol me? Nope, no, you did not." A country accent he assumed was fake came from his right. A short woman armed to the teeth and wearing her signature cowboy hat walked up to him. With a flick of her finger, she raised the brim of her hat so she could look up into his eyes. There he saw a look of irritation.

"Well, I'm sorry. I'll listen to you next time, okay?" With a tone that definitely suggested that he was in no way sorry and that he did not intend to listen to her, Ryuji spoke. The irritated gunslinger moved in front of him muttering and fiddling with the hammer of her revolver while it sat in its holster. "By the way, how close are we to the guildhall? I'm getting a little hungry."

A cold irked woman behind him spoke up for the first time since they entered the city. It always seemed to him that she never spoke unless she was spoken to. Or if it in some way gave her a chance to bully Ryuji. "The hall is within walking distance of here. Did you make sure of the meeting place with the Sword Saint? Or did you just assume that she would be there?"

"..."

"Your silence speaks volumes, and your idiocy rears its ugly head. How could you forget something so basic and important? Simpleton, Hero."

A pat of reassurance came from his left. "It's okay, Ryu! One of these days you'll melt that cold heart. I mean... maybe. You know what? Upon further reflection, I'd say no dice."

"Dot, if you were attempting to make me feel better, then you have failed marvelously." The fact that he knew Dot wasn't attempting to be mean just made it hurt worse. Ryuji sullenly stared at the ground as they walked forward and onward.

"Is that the hall? It looks more like one of them elaborate banks. Or maybe like a really fancy restaurant." Ryuji looked up from the ground at the praises of the cowboy. In front of him stood a gigantic building that looked ten times fancier than any other guildhall he had ever seen. Even the one in the capital was an outhouse compared to this marvel of architecture.

"This is definitely the place a Sword Saint would visit! We need to get inside now!"

"Wow, Ryu got over that whole fake being depressed thing real quick."

Without looking back, he placed a finger on her mouth. "Shhhhh. You be quiet now and follow me into this grand cathedral!" His voice reminded him of overly dramatic people from highschool.

"The Hero suddenly has a big personality shift? Oh, is it because you're about to meet your precious lady friend again, so you want to impress her with your Personality."

"The quotation marks with your hands are duly noted. Now can we please enter this fine establishment?" Ryuji marched forward without waiting for a reply. They entered a lobby with loads of people waiting for something. He ignored them all and walked towards the desk with excitement. "Hello, my goodman! Can we be let in real quick?"

The man running the desk seemed unamused and on the verge of psychosis. "Sir, we have a strict policy on attendance in the grand guildhall. If you want to become a member of the grand guildhall you will have to attend an interview and at least be ranked S. If you meet those criteria, wait for your interview. If not, then there are plenty of other guildhalls for adventurers in Priscillaca."

Ryuji cockily pulled out a pendant. The very same pendant that got him into the exclusive academy, no questions asked. "How about now? Oh! Would it help if I said I was here to meet the Sword Saint? The very one who bestowed this pendant onto me."

The man's eyes widened. He hesitated for a second before putting up a small sign that read 'Be back soon!' He then directed Ryuji with a bow. "Right this way, sir. She is waiting on the top floor."

"W-waiting? Really?" He had hoped she would be, but to be told so seemed too good to be true.

A hard push almost sent him sprawled across the floor. "You spent so much time on our journey telling us how this meeting would operate. Where did all your confidence from before go? I find it quite sad and abhorrent for you to come so far only for you to hesitate right before the finish line."

An arm came around his neck and pulled him down to her level. The girl gave her signature smile. "What Marie is trying to tell you is that you gotta have some faith in yourself and just go there."

"What if she's not there? What if she changed her mind?" His doubts that you kept in until this moment spilled out.

The raspy voice he had relied on so many times spoke to him. "If she doesn't want you anymore, then that's fine. It's not like we're all with you because of her. We're here because of you, and I'm confident we can have a great time without her."

He could feel some measure of confidence coming back to him. "Yeah, yeah! You know what? I'm just going to march up there! Who cares if something bad happens? Let's go, Reginald!"

"My name is, Giovanni sir."

A laughing Dot passed by and started dragging both of the men forward. "Is that so, Reginald? I'll try to remember!"

"That is quite all right, ma'am."

From behind, the two onlookers kept their distance as they followed. "You see that? Gal has the insane act down."

"I don't think it's really much of an act."

After an awkward ride in an elevator, the group arrived at what Ryuji always imagined high-class casinos to look like. The floor was as spacious as could be. Only a few tables were laid out, and in each corner were bars with staff waiting. Almost nobody was sitting at the tables. In fact, there were only three people seated. One was a woman with a face akin to a raging demon. Another looked to be a rich businessman he wanted nothing to do with. In the back corner was the woman he was looking for. She sat with a disheveled look. Her crimson hair was pulled back into a ponytail while her bangs were left out. The ever-present swords were beside her.

He practically bolted to the table. "H-hey Rhea, it's me! If you um remember I-"

She practically jumped out of her seat and grabbed him into a hug. "Ryuji! You came! I was getting so worried that you wouldn't."

"W-well, we didn't set a date or a place to meet sooooo."

Her visage matched her hair while she placed a hand over her mouth. "Oh... I am so stupid! I cannot believe that in my haste, I forgot such basic planning. Will you forgive me?"

Ryuji couldn't bear to see those puppy-like eyes. It was as if she truly believed he would yell at her for it, which made his heartache a little. "I-it's totally fine. Really! I mean we're all here now, so no hard feelings. Plus, I had some responsibility for it as well. Can we just call it even?"

She seemed fixated on his smile, taking it in. Then as if she were snapped out of a trance, she answered. "Of course." A warm smile radiated from her melting Ryuji's heart with her cuteness.

He had completely forgotten about the people he brought with him. He turned around and saw three girls waiting impatiently to be introduced. "Rhea, these three are the friends I picked up who will be joining us." Rhea's eyes lit up with the same joy a child might have on Christmas morning.

Dot jumped forward and shot Rhea a toothy grin before bowing with the hat off in her hand. "Hiya there! We're the people who weren't quite sure if you existed or not! Nice to meet you I'm Ryu's bestest buddy Patricia." She leaned in and covered her mouth with the back of her hand like she was about to exchange a great secret. "But you can call me Dot." With her stupid joke out of the way, Dot laughed and returned to Ryuji's side, seemingly uninterested in the rest of what would unfold here.

"Hello, Dot. You have a lovely dress. Oh! And gloves." The awkwardness that spilled out of her made everyone who heard cringe inside. They all held back from saying anything besides Dot, who wholeheartedly laughed her ass off while barely being able to say the words thank you.

Queen was the next one to step forward and speak. "I will be completely honest with you right now. I did not believe that the day would come where I met you. I firmly had faith in the idea that he just found this pendant on a dead person or thrown away at the side of the road."

The cold attitude made Rhea wince. "I-I see. Nice to meet you, Marie."

"The feeling is mutual. I trust that you will be more useful."

"Useful? People call me that all the time."

Ryuji asked the obvious question. "When?"

"Ah well, you know. When I'm guarding them or when I'm dealing with monsters in their kingdom. Oh, they also say it when I do my job for free."

'So only when it's sword related or free?!' Ryuji attempted to be impressed by her image. "O-oh really? That's... amazing. Jessy, can you please introduce yourself." For the second time today, Ryuji decided to avoid the issue and make it someone else's problem.

Jessy sauntered forward and raised her hand for a shake. Rhea obliged, and Jessy gave her a sunshine smile. "Hi, my name is Jessy! I am a certified gunslinger and will be one of your compadres from now on. Also, Marie, when am I getting my one million ISH?"

For the second time, Rhea seemed stunned. "I've never had a compadre before..."

"No, no, no, that's not a word normal people use, okay? Don't be fooled by her."

"Then it's my turn to introduce myself." Rhea stood and straightened out her clothes. "I am Rhea Aloisa, The Sword Saint. I will be in your care from now on. I look forward to our many future adventures together and becoming f-friends."

"Hey, Saint lady." Dot raised her hand like a good student.

"Y-yes. Although I do prefer you use my name."

"Yeah, okay. Anyway, how come you're the Saint and not somebody else?"

Ryuji mentally slapped himself for not thinking of that before. HE didn't really know how this whole saint thing worked. Rhea answered thoughtfully. "Well, I think it is because of the inherent skills I know."

Queen asked the same question that just went through everyone's minds. "You make it sound like you have more than one. Is that even possible?"

Rhea seemed puzzled by the question as if the answer was common knowledge. "Yes. Inheritent skills are exceedingly rare because of the coincidences that have to coincide to make it possible. I mean, we are talking about skills that you're just born with the knowledge of using. Even still, you can be born with more than one. Although this is next to impossibly rare. I, for example, was born with three skills. Each one of these skills is a long-lost sword art. This is why I believe I was chosen as the Sword Saint."

"Ehhhhh? Three sword skills? Ryu, this girl you picked up is a cheater. Actually, scratch that, at least cheaters know not to take it too far. This girl is a super cheater." Dot laid into their new friend without a moment to spare.

Ryuji was feeling a little bad for her, but his own jealousy made him do a 180. "I know what you mean. I get one blessing that only works when I'm half dead, not to mention a curse that gets me into trouble all the time. Miss Saint over here, on the other hand, is born with three skills and has a one-in-a-million blessing!"

"Actually, I have three blessings, not just the one." Rhea spoke up with the volume of a mouse.

"THREE?!!!" Ryuji unsurprisingly made everyone on the top floor stop what they were doing and look their way.

"Hero, I see that the type of woman you like to keep around is braggadocious and has zero class." Marie's comment seemed to have pricked the young Saints heart.

She walked forward, clutching her chest with one hand. "N-no, that's not it!"

"Now what do we have here, little Saint, a gathering of friends? Never thought I would see the day." A husky voice that sounded manly but at the same time still held a womanly charm came from behind him. The woman he saw when he walked in was now within inches of him. Ryuji had a knee jerk reaction to jump away from this dangerous feeling woman. "Ah, what are you afraid of little ol me? Pffft, then at least you're a little smart." The look of anger she had when he walked in was gone. Now replaced by a smug smile that made his skin crawl.

"I think I liked you better when you were upset."

"Oh, that? I had just gotten some upsetting news that cut my vacation a little short. By the way, speaking of vacations." She strode forward with an elegant walk that one might see on a model runway. Ryuji's eyes became focused on her long black hair that swayed back and forth, as well as the suave red flower that rested on top. Her hand grasped his chin and pulled him close to her mouth. "Would you like to come on my next vacation?"

"Yuri!" An unexpected outburst from Rhea left a weird feeling in the air that Ryuji didn't particularly like. He felt as though at any moment there would be a catastrophic event taking place right in front of him. The look in Yuri's eyes was enough to make Ryuji seriously reconsider whether or not he should have come here. The others standing around looked as if they felt the same way. Jessy held firm onto her holster. Marie clenched her fists.

Only Dot seemed as if she was worried about something else. "Hey, ya, hussy! Can you please stop sexually assaulting Ryu?"

The weird tension disappeared, and Yuri's expression relaxed once more into its smug form. "I'm sorry I didn't know he was taken. Oh."

An irate Dot took the bait. "Never said he was. And why in the hell are you looking at me like that, lady?"

Yuri stepped away from Ryuji to look down on her. "It's just that now that I look at you, I can't begin to see just what he likes about you. Your personality, maybe? Definitely isn't your looks. Well, unless he has some handicap fetish."

Dot could barely get the words out through her grit teeth. "Listen here, lady." Her voice was a low growl. "Ryu and I are just good buddies. Although I could understand why you might get the impression that we're closer than that. Unfortunately for you, even though he is single, he doesn't have any interest in old hags with foul mouths!"

The last remark seemed to have gotten to Yuri. "Hag!? Listen here-"

"YURI!" Rhea screamed once more. "Will, you just give it a rest?"

The aggravation disappeared, but her presence still seemed just as wild and dangerous as before. A thought ran through his mind. 'Why are all the hot girls scary?'

"Fine, fine. I was just joking a little!" A playful hand rested on his shoulder. "I cannot believe my cute little sister doesn't like my jokes." Her voice took a mocking tone that made Rhea's eyes sharpen.

"Wait, sister!?" Jessy seemed just as shocked as Ryuji. "I didn't know the Sword Saint had a sister."

Rhea sighed before answering. "She's not my sister at all. She just likes to say that. If anything going by her age, she would only qualify as my great-great-grandmother."

A disheveled dangerous woman rushed over to Rhea and put her in a headlock. "Is this the mouth spewing falsehoods? Huh? Is it!?"

"I-I'm sorry! Let me... go!"

"It's not very nice to leak a girl's age when there are boys around, is it?" Yuri released the blue in the face god slayer before beginning to walk away. "See ya at the meeting, little sis." With a wave, she walked towards the exit, not once looking back.

"What meeting? And who is she?" Marie hit Rhea with two quick questions, not allowing her to catch her breath.

"The meeting is the world delegation. We're leaving for it as soon as I finish up business in this city. And that woman is Yuri. I suppose if you consider Raeg to be the strongest man, then Yuri is the strongest woman. No one is quite sure how old she is or if she's even human anymore, but her power is the real deal."

"Yeah, and she has a wonderful personality to boot." Dot interjected sourly.

Ryuji had enough of the interrogation. This was not what he imagined or wanted for a reunion. He wanted to do something more fun. "Hey, leave Rhea alone for a while, okay? We're in a city of dreams right now, and I'm sure that Rhea has enough money to treat us all to something spectacular. So how about we go out and do something fun?" Rhea looked at him with eyes that seemed to be projecting her thanks.

"I am always up for someone footing the bill." Dot answered with a knowing smile that she was helping out Ryuji big time.

"Can we go to a show saloon?" Jessy proposed an idea that Ryuji was fully behind.

"Of course we can. Right, Rhea?"

"Y-yeah, of course!"

"How about you, Marie?" Ryuji turned to the quiet princess.

"I do not particularly care where we go. I've already decided a long time ago that I would follow you." With a roundabout answer that Ryuji took to mean 'sure', they left the guildhall. The best show bar in the city was their destination. Surrounded by friends, Ryuji couldn't have been more excited about what awaited him.