Chisson woke up in his bed. The covers wrapped around him reminding him at some instinctive level of a cocoon, it was immensely comfortable. His thoughts felt fuzzy and distant, drifting just on the edge of consciousness. There was a moment where he considered going back to sleep. Drowsy as he was though, he still habitually checked the clock on his wall.

12:15

Noon? Noon. NOON!? It was already past noon!

Chisson looked out his window hoping he had just woken up in the middle of the night and could just close his eyes again but the sun was high in the sky. Just like that, his sleepiness was gone. He tore himself out of the blankets, struggling as he tangled his limbs in his haste and felt his wings flutter as he literally flung himself towards his dresser. His shift started at nine! How had he slept in for three hours! Even if he didn't get up Tay would usually knock on his door before she left to make sure he was up? Had he slept through that as well?

Chisson thew on the black work shirt he'd worn yesterday and was in the middle of sniffing a pair of wool pants for cleanliness, as he was interrupted by the creak of the door to his room cracking open slightly,

"You decent?" Tay's voice called from the hallway.

Chisson quickly slipped on the pants before giving an affirmative.

Tay pushed open the door the rest of the way immediately giving him a glare as she took him in.

"Nu-uh, oh no you don't!"

There was a moment of panic where Chisson quickly ran through everything he might have done wrong in the past five years, before he settled on just asking "What...?"

"You are not going to work today"

"W-what? Why? Today isn't one of my off days I don't think" Maybe he had the date wrong.

"Why?! You were almost murdered for the second day in a row yesterday! If you think I'm letting you out of my sight the very next day you clearly haven't been paying much attention"

"Murde-" Chisson started, but then it all came rushing back to him,the gym, the fight, the foot, the memory… " wait Bensen! What happened after I passed out? Are you okay?" He had the urge to run over and check on her but there was a part of him that felt like it would be like checking on an death-bear after it fought a house cat.

Tay smirked "I'm fine, Chis. I put that bastard on his place and looked fabulous doing it. I'm more worried about you. I made sure your physical injuries are healed but I still don't want you to be alone for a while. I went by the bar and told Resh you wouldn't be coming in today."

"That's coming out of my pay." Chisson muttered under his breath.

"Yeah he made that abundantly clear. Anyway you're coming to work with me today."

" you don't need to babysit me."

Tay feigned shock, clutching her chest as if her heart was paining her "Really!? You'd think that someone who didn't need babysitting could go a whole month without coming home with their bones broken."

Chisson pointed at her, "That's…" before dropping it, "fair."

"You're acting like I'm dragging you off to a manure factory" Tay laughed, "it's the library you are probably going to go there soon eventually"

"Its just I was hoping that I could go to the gym and…"

"No. No no no no NONONO" Tay crossed her arms under her chest giving him an 'are you stupid' look, " let me nix that out right, you are not allowed to go near that gym especially not alone I'm sorry but for now it is off limits I mean think what would have happened if I wasn't there yesterday if I hear about you going anywhere near there we are through. Girlfriend, best friend, or otherwise you would hear nothing else from me. Got it."

"but I need to…"

"We can find somewhere else to train. the gym is not safe" though she left the words unspoken he could see the 'it's not like training there helped you' in her face.

Chisson sighed "fine. But this is a one-time thing I need to go to work tomorrow if I'm going to help with rent."

"You think I want you unemployed" Tay scoffed "a house husband would be nice but our generation can't afford it. Plus, as much as I enjoy your company being around you 24/7 would be exhausting"

Most people would be surprised that someone like Tay would work in a library. Most people didn't know about her obsession with mystery novels though that wasn't the main reason she worked here. From what she had told Chisson it was more the relaxing environment and the flexible schedule due to the ease of the work in her position which was more or less being an assistant to the qualified librarians, finding books they directed her to get, putting away returns that were left on the desk that kind of thing. On the other hand the work did tend to require quite a bit of moving from place to place and so Chisson found himself alone in the library for a majority of his time spent there.

Other people milled about, a sea of different races and soul-types looking for their own selections.

The library it wasn't huge by any means; it was after all in a small town, but it was most likely tied for the second biggest building in town with the Lord's home after the coliseum itself. There was definitely enough room for people to coexist without being forced to squeeze together too much.

Chisson was at a shelf, picking out a small pile of books he planed to start reading today.

The Essential Natural of Maou

Thertieen Flavors of Power: The Soul Types and Their Uses

Getting started, Common: Ten simple common techniques for beginners

A Breif History of The Selino Reigion and the Deulists that built it

Coldmetal: Crib, book 8

That last one, while not strictly educational, was a definite necessity. He sat down in the nearest seat and flipped open a random book which happens to be the history.

Selino was the 12th of the modern regions to be settled and started its life as an vassal state of Kental. This changed during the champion War, Selinos siding with Koron and Rellu against Kental and its allies declaring themselves as a separate region in the process, this was firmly cemented by the evolution of Selino herself to Apex granting our region her name and Leadership. It would be more than a decade until her reign was made official but for the purposes of independent it was more than enough to-

Chisson read a large chunk of the book in the next few hours. Dry as it was he enjoyed the actual information enough to power through, he was only interrupted by the thump of somebody putting down their own pile of books on his table, he looked up expecting to see Tay on a break or something, instead he saw a familiar stranger opening up a book just an informational and dry as the one he had been reading. The oddly Normal Man from the bar last afternoon had sat down only a seat away from Chisson, his brown eyes running over the pages of a book on geology of all things.

'Maybe he's a stone-soul?'

There was a long minute where Chisson just waited for the man to say something. He expected some acknowledgement but the guy just sat there turning the pages of his book in silence.

With an internal shrug Chisson looked down at his own page to continue readi-

"How did it go?"

The sudden voice made Chisson jump, and he looked up to find the man now staring at him intently.

"Uh...Excuse me?"

" you are excused my young arthropod-esque friend. But I would like it if you answered my question. How did it go?" The man gazed at Chisson like he was withholding the secrets of the universe, continuing to turn the pages of his book despite obviously not looking at them.

" I'm sorry? What are you talking about" Chisson was starting to decide that this guy was a few spoonfuls free of the cake.

" your training day with your lady love. How did that go?"

Chission wasn't sure if he should blush at the use of the term 'lady love,' him and Tay weren't quite at that point yet, or curl in on himself at the thought of trying to explain yesterday's events but before he could do either the man spoke instead "could I make a guess at what occurred?"

There was a beat of silence until Chisson realized the question wasn't rhetorical and the nodded.

"I posit that none of your techniques worked, or in fact have worked, ever." He turned another page in his book then held up a finger to stop Chisson from interrupting "I would say everything you have tried has only resulted, and I am only guessing, an assumption here, an uncomfortable crawling sensation?"

Chisson's eyes widened, he had never exactly kept his maou' issues secret due to how many fights he got in but he didn't think there was anyone outside of Tay that he had told the details to. It was possible that the man was a mind-soul, but Chisson had heard you could feel when your thoughts were being read and the guy didn't look like any mind-soul race Chisson knew of and he was pretty sure he knew a bit about every race in town.

Except apparently this one.

The man smiled, a predatory grin that showed all of his flat teeth, "you are wondering how I know? Or will you deny it?"

"No… i mean it's true.. I guess… I'm just wondering how you heard or did someone tell youuu?"

"Originally it was a rumor that piqued my interest, 'a young man that couldn't use a simple technique'. But scanning you was what truly tipped me off'

Scanning him? He hadn't thought that would reveal his issues did that mean everyone over birth-stage could tell? He felt a bit laid bare.

"Are you telling me that everyone knows?"

" is that what I seemed to imply? I apologize that is not what I mean." He touched the space between his heart and his belly button, the exact center of his torso where his core would be, "most people would not be able to tell the difference between your core in the average common-soul's it takes years of personal experience to see the signs. But I get ahead of myself I should introduce myself before we get into the details. I am Kamel"

Chisson frowned, the name sounded familiar even if vaguely so.

The man, Kamel, looked at him with expectation "You may have seen some ads from my services around recently."

"Oh, yeah the poster! Kamel's personal dojo or something."

"Kamel's personal training center, located down the street from the colosseum.

Come become your best self." Kamel recited like someone who had said the same word the thousand times before

"Yeah… that…"

"I am glad you are informed of my work. It should make the following conversation a bit easier."

" what would that conversation be?"

"Well now, it is this conversation but I will answer your question nonetheless." Kamel leaned in, over the table, knocking over both his and Chisson's pile of books in the process "What if I told you I knew what's wrong with your maou?"

"I probably wouldn't believe you"

" interesting response to the hypothetical, let us try it then" He pulled back sitting straight in his chair " I know what's wrong with your maou."

"I don't believe you"

Kamel clapped, slowly as if he had just seen something extraordinary "Just as predicted. May I ask why you do not believe me?"

" because…" because no book he had ever read had given him an answer? Because he wanted there to be nothing wrong so he could just overcome it with effort? Because he didn't want to stumble upon a hope only for it to be wrong? "you're a personal trainer you have incentive to make me want to come train with you. Your goal here is probably too get me to sign up for a session or more and then fleece me for everything I have. I also have no idea if you're actually who you say you are since the posters were hung up everywhere and you could just be repeating them to scam me."

For the first time Kamel looked, mildly surprised, then his smile returned even wider still "good point, fair point. Point made. But pointless." Kamel wave the finger back and fourth as if telling off a naughty child " why would I need to scam you when you're so weak. In this context your weakness and condition would easily allow me to overpower you and remove you from the premises if not rob you out right. On that note my knowledge of your condition adds more Credence to the argument that I am in fact a personal trainer or at least something similar enough to have such information. The only point I cannot fully dispute is the idea that I am trying to get you to pay for lessons that may not help you as a way of making easy money. Would you agree with everything I have said so far?"

Chisson hesitated, is pride a bit hurt by the comments on his weakness, but nodded

"Okay then, that can be mitigated. What if I gave you one lesson for free? Training for you, a test to see if you are worth my effort and/or worth my time, for me. If you succeed and of course are convinced then we can begin the process of fixing your sou- ehem, maou. All lessons free from that point on. If you fail then we will never speak again. What about that?"

Chisson took a second trying to find the trick or the lie, there had to be one this was way too good to be true "what about Tay?"

"Oh, your lady friend? If you succeed her lessons will be free as well, if she wants them. Call it a two for none special."

Way too good to be true, yet he didn't want to say no, " is there anyway I could get some time to think about it?"

"Indubitably, of course. I am not trying to force you." Kamel stopped, seeming to think for a second, before snapping his fingers "how is this? Do you know the forest by the edge of town"

Chisson shrugged "yeah. The North woods."

"Good, here is what I propose. I will be at the entrance to those woods from five to… let us say, eight, evey evening for the next two weeks. If you meet me there we will begin immediately. If you do not appear during that time I will take it as a no in this conversation will have never happened. Deal?"

Chisson couldn't see a problem with that "I guess we've got a deal… um… Kamel."

Awkwardly, Chisson looked back down at his book, it wasn't yet time for him to leave and he felt like moving to another table would be rude.

A quick glance revealed that Kamel was gone. And he sighed in relief, putting the book down. He wouldn't be able to focus on it anymore. He apparently had some thinking to do.