Emily crested the last hill of the plains and gazed towards civilization.

The town of Vigilfell spread out before her, hugging the banks of the river Ford and the lake Silverfell, from which the town had got its name, both filled with a myriad of ships and barges. The sun stood high and shimmered off the lake’s surface, cascading in rainbows of light, giving the lake its name. At its far shore, great mountains with snow covered peaks rose above a dark forests.

From her vantage point atop the ridge, at least ten miles away from the town, it looked much like a colony of ants, with workers running around aimlessly on the narrow cobbled streets. Beyond the borders of the town lay fields and small villages, all running up against the edge of the plain, an invisible line beyond which nothing but the tall grass grew.

Ann and Yu came up beside her, both panting like dogs. “Finally,” Ann managed to say, and leaned on her knees, panting like a dog, her skin covered in layers of sweat and her hair glued to her skull. The last few miles had been hard going, as the edge of the plains was a constant series of great, rolling hills, through which they had climbed more than walked.

Yu doubled over at Emily’s side. “I hate the edge,” she breathed. She was in much the same state as her sister, though perhaps a little better, as Emily had carried her pack for the last few hills.

“It wasn’t so bad,” Emily said. She was just as sweaty as the twins, a feat, considering how much heavier her clothing was. Though she still felt fine, two nights of good sleep had been good for her, and she was almost back to fighting shape.

“You can’t be a human,” Ann said, and looked up through a cascade of bangs. “It’s not possible.”

Emily gave her a conspiratory smile, and a wink. “I’m just in better shape than you, that’s all.”

“Sure,” Yu sniffed. “Next you’ll tell us that you are actually a grandmother in disguise.”

“That’s right,” Emily smiled. “Though it’s closer to great-grandmother, I suspect.” The twins looked up with some degree of disbelief, but a glint in their eyes showed they weren’t sure if she was joking or not. “Come on,” Emily said and took the first step down the hill. “We are less than ten miles from a bath and a proper meal.” She set off down the hill, following the boys who had already descended and come upon a road that lead to the town. She walked carefully, making sure she wouldn’t slip on the long grass getting underfoot, she had already made that mistake once. The twins groaned, and Yu mumbled something about strange women not needing a moment to rest. But they followed, and soon caught up with Emily, who had set a comfortable pace down the hill.

The road was nothing more than packed dirt, running between the fields and a couple of small villages, but compared to the endless grass, it was truly heaven: for it had not only a beginning, middle, and end, but also a landscape that changed as they traveled towards Vigilfell. Fields of golden wheat and green pastures of short grass and heather, with the occasional willow lined the road, and modest groves of hazel and elm dotted the landscape. And there were people, oh so many people. Men worked the fields or led carts drawn by strange beasts of antlers and fur, women worked in the villages or their yards, and children played wherever their fancy drove them. The land around Vigilfell was alive and well, and Emily couldn’t help but smile at the sight. She hoped the world she had left could be like this, not that the old gods were gone.

As they passed a small village close to the plains, Emily did level a critical gaze upon it, but only to sate her own curiosity. She found them to be quite similar to the ones on Mónvell. Cramped windowless buildings of wood and clay, topped with thatched roofs, but for the rare larger building of square stones and wood with a red-tiled roof. There seemed to be one in each village, and Emily assumed it was the home of the mayor, or a village elder, or maybe they were inns. She shrugged to herself as they passed the first village, it didn’t really matter.

It took them another two hours to reach Vigilfell from the edge of the plains, and their pace hadn’t been helped by the scores of children that seemed to lie in wait like tigers, silent and deadly as they waited for their pray. A pray, that happened to be any passing adventurers, whom the children followed well past their homes, constantly pestering them for demonstrations of skill and tales of adventure.

Emily couldn’t help but smile as a group of five young girls—ranging from one preteen to the toddler whose hand she held—asked her if girls really could be adventurers.

“Can we really?” a younger girl asked, holding the hems of her homespun dress as she walked with Emily and the twins. “Because dad says we can’t. That we are too frail and should stay home and stitch and take care of the animals. But I don’t want to stitch, it’s boring, and the animals stink.”

“Of course you can,” Emily said and stopped. “You can be anything, but you probably shouldn’t.”

“Why not?”

Emily crouched before her. “Because farm work is important. It might not seem it when you live and work on a farm, among the animals or in the fields. But it is important. Much more important than adventuring. Because if not for your work, what would we adventurers eat? Or what would we wear if not for the wool you sheer?”

The girl bit her lip, and one of the younger ones clung to her dress. “But you don’t work on a farm.”

Emily chuckled. “I don’t, no. But I would like to. One day, I would like to settle down in a small house with a garden and a few animals. That’s the dream of most adventurers, I bet. To earn enough where they can have the life you already have. But don’t worry, maybe next time I come by I can tell you a few stories, and teach you how to hold a sword. How does that sound?”

The girls nodded enthusiastically. Emily smiled to as she sent them back.

“Why did you tell them off?” Yu asked when they were out of earshot.

“I doubt an adventurers life is a very stable one,” Emily said as she watched the girls return to their home. “A mercenary’s never is. Besides, you can’t have an economy based around mercenary work, there’s a lot of things that needs done that a mercenary won’t be able to do, and you can’t have town, cities, or kingdoms without an economy. As boring as it might sound, if not for those farmers, you would not be able to adventure on the plain.”

“You haven’t told us off,” Ann said.

“You are already doing it,” Emily said. “And if you are old enough to be considered adults, then you are old enough to make your own decisions.” She turned away from the farms and the returning girls, and once again started down the road, towards the town. Changing the topic, she asked, “Is there anything we have to do in Vigilfell?”

The twins came up beside her. “There is,” Yu said. “We need to go to the guild and check in, so they know we have come back. We also need to tell them the Guardian of the dungeon has been defeated, so they can change its status.”

“And we need to trade in our crystals,” Ann added. “What are you going to do with the Guardian crystal?”

“Trade it in, I suppose. I don’t think I would have much use for it, and it was worth quite a bit, no?”

The twins nodded in unison.

“It is,” Ann said.

“Hundreds of gold,” Yu said.

“As long as it’s enough to live on for a while, I’ll be satisfied. But let us head to the guild then, lead the way.”

***

The guild’s headquarter was easy enough to find. The building itself was unassuming from the outside, not much different from the other buildings of gray stone and wood that surrounded the market square. Yet it had a certain feeling to it, one of importance. Though that might have been because the road that lead straight through the square—and had been kept clear of stalls—terminated before the guild. Emily again found herself looking around as they passed through the market. It didn’t look much different from the ones back on Mónvell, not that she had ever spent much time in open-air markets. She hadn’t been allowed to leave the estates as a child, and when she finally was, it hadn’t been fitting for a young noblewomen to peruse at the peasants’ market. Still, she’d passed through one or two during her long life, and as she looked around she found the similarities comforting.

There were stalls selling everything a resident and an adventurer might need. Be it food, clothes, or weapons. Though from what Emily could see, an adventurer would be better off going into battle with a stick and a few stones, rather than the weapons sold in any of the stalls. There were brittle knifes, heavy swords, and bows made from fir and pine. Nothing she would ever waste money on. Though from the crowd and the lively discussions she overheard, it seemed most could not tell they were being scammed, and she even had to pull Yu away from a stall selling terrible bows.

“We’ll do this later,” she said. “Later.”

The inside of the guild put Emily in mind of an inn, with tables strewn across the floor and a couple of counters along the far wall. A grand fireplace took up most of one of the walls, but it stood empty, though its bricks, blackened with soot, told her it had been used liberally. Light streamed through the open shutters that lined the front front wall, letting in a soft breeze and the sound and smells of the marketplace. A motley collection made up the clientèle, dressed in leather and heavy cloth, despite the heat, they all played the part of the rugged mercenary—or adventurer. But Emily could see most of them did it for show. Be it the lack of scars or the way they held themselves, she could clearly see only a handful were capable with whatever weapon they held.

“What a sorry lot,” she mumbled to herself before passing through to the counter. She got quite a few strange looks, and a whistle, which she ignored after having memorized the mans face. The clientèle, she noted, was heavily favored towards men. That did not surprise her, what did surprise her—now that she thought about it—was that she had managed to meet not one, but two female adventurers on her first try. Maybe fate had a stronger grip on her than she realized, or maybe it was just pure chance. She pushed the thoughts aside as she reached the counter.

It was unstaffed as Emily and the twins reached it, and she leaned on the dark wood as she waited for someone to appear. She didn’t have to wait long, for mere moments later, a leijon entered through the door that lead deeper into the building. Her skin was sun-kissed, just like the twins, but there the similarities stopped. Her head was covered in long curly locks of reddish hair, and her ears were long and pointy, where the twins were short and squat, and her tail was slimmer and not as fluffy. But she was dressed—like the twins—in clothes that showed a little more skin than was strictly necessary, a soft-green summer dress, in her case.

“Good afternoon,” the leijon said and bowed her head. “How can I be of service?”

Emily straightened from the counter. “We are here to report on a dungeon and trade in some crystals.”

“Certainly,” she said and pulled a large book from under the counter. “If I could just get your names?”

“Yulann and Annelle Ionaka,” Yu said, then hesitated for a moment. “This is Emily, she helped us in the dungeon but isn’t registered with the guild,” she said finally, and sent Emily a questioning gaze.

“That’s right,” Emily said, and gave Yu a reassuring smile. “I ran across them and couldn’t just leave them there.”

The receptionist gave them a curios look before thumbing through a few pages. Emily scanned the pages and found it to be a record of parties and names of what she could only assume was dungeons. Names such as: ‘The Spider infested hellhole’ and ‘Dark and muddy, with little treasure’. Then the leijon hummed and looked up. “Your other party members, Louie and Rory, have already reported your dungeon cleared. But they refused to tell us what happened with the Guardian crystal, or how a three star dungeon was cleared by a one star party. Ms. Leyla is still speaking with them, but if you could tell us what happened, that would be quite helpful.”

“Ah,” Ann said. “You see—”

Emily held up a hand to interrupt the girl. “I killed the Guardian,” she then said simply and pulled the pouch from her belt then placed it on the counter. “Here’s the crystal. I’ll be glad to be rid of it, the magic can be quite irritating at times.”

“That’s the Guardian crystal?” the leijon asked, disbelief written across her face. But true to her duties, she reached under the counter and pulled out a small metallic tool with a crystal set into its top. As she held it over the pouch, careful to not touch the soft leather, the crystal began to glow a bright white. “Oh great huntress,” she breathed. “It is.”

There was a rush of sound as chairs were pushed back and people got to their feet. “That’s impossible,” a rough voice said from behind. “No one can kill a Guardian on their own, or carry their crystal in a normal pouch.”

Emily looked over her shoulder and found that the room had turned frosty. The man that had spoken was the same that had whistled when she had walked in, and now stood blocking the exit. He was tall, perhaps two inches over her own five foot ten, and much wider over the shoulders, as was natural for men. His head was shaved, but a bushy black beard covered the lower half of his face, except for where a large scar stretched from his chin to his forehead. His clothes were simple, but not cheap, and his tunic stopped just below his shoulders, revealing muscular arms he had crossed over his chest.

“The crystal is right here,” Emily said, and nodded towards the pouch. “You are free to try and prove its not from a Guardian.”

“There’s no need,” the man said as a couple more gathered behind him. “Even if it is, you probably stole it from another group.”

She leaned heavily on the counter as she felt the prospects of a peaceful solution slipping through her fingers. Then she stood and turned to face the man. “I did, as a matter of fact, not steal it, but I suppose you wont listen to reason.”

The man grunted and stepped forward, straightening his back as much as he could. Emily couldn’t help but smile; it wasn’t the first time a man had been intimidated by her height. He seemed to take the smile as a threat and stepped closer, balling his fists.

“Sir,” the leijon said from behind the counter. “There is no need to get violent, if anything uncouth has occurred, guild officials will get to the bottom of it.”

“Listen to the girl,” Emily said with a short bout of deja vu. “She knows what she is talking about.”

The man snorted, as if what she said had been a hilarious joke, and then he stepped ever closer. “In Vigilfell,” he grunted, his breath smelling of beer and garlic. “Thieves dangle at the end of ropes.”

Emily sighed. “Are we really doing this?”

The man didn’t answer, instead he stepped up and wound his arm back to strike. Emily curled up on the spot, dodging the mans fist as it flew overhead, she rolled on the balls of her feet and pushed upwards. Drawing strength from her legs as she planted her right fist in the man’s stomach, right below the ribs. She felt something crack as it struck a couple of inches into his relaxed muscles and unprotected organs, compressing his lungs as the punch lifted him a few inches off the ground. When he fell back he did so without regaining his footing, and continued down until his ass and finally head hit the floor with a thud. He didn’t move immediately, and for a moment Emily feared the floor had killed him, but then a drew a long ragged breath, and groaned.

Emily—ever gracious in her victories—turned away from the scene whilst straightening her makeshift hair band, and—ignoring Ann and Yu’s expressions, which were a mix of shock and awe—focused on the new woman who had appeared behind the counter. She held herself with an air of authority, and Emily could only assume this was Ms. Leyla.

Her hair was a luxurious dark—almost black—brown and framed her sharp features as it fell in soft curls down her shoulders. Her eyes were slanted and their copper like color shone with a metallic gleam in the dim light. Elegantly swept eyebrows and full lashes gave her a noble appearance. The silky white blouse she wore contrasted against her almond skin and accentuated her beauty with its tailored curves and princess seams. A large amulet of gold and silver held the blouse’s frilly collar, and identical but smaller ones held the folded up cuffs. A wide belt of dark leather slashed with cream ran around her waist, hiding the transition from her blouse to her fitted black pants.

“I was going to call the guard,” she said as Emily again leaned on the counter. “But it seems you have it under control.”

“Of course,” Emily smiled. “I led an army for two decades, rowdy men are nothing new.”

Leyla raised one of her eyebrows. “Still, I would prefer if any and all fighting is kept outside of the guild’s premises. Do you hear that, Larfsson? Any more of your vigilante justice and I’ll be removing you from the guild’s registry.”

Larfsson rose from the floor, slowly and aided by two others. “But—” he began in a shaky drawl.

“No buts,” Leyla interrupted crossly. “Even if the crystal was stolen, which I doubt since we have no planned operations of that scale for another three months minimum. That would be a guild matter, and would be dealt with internally and in cooperation with the count’s forces. Not by angry adventures taking on the role of judge, jury, and executioner. Now leave, you are banned from the guild for a month, pray I don’t lengthen it.”

Emily didn’t bother looking back, but there was a hesitation before three pairs of boots echoed across the floor. When the door closed behind them, the atmosphere inside the guild relaxed.

Leyla kept her eyes on the door for a moment longer, before turning to Emily. “Now then,” she said. “Are you this stranger two of my adventurers, Rory and Louie, are speaking of?”

“That would be me.”

Leyla looked her over, and then looked to Ann and Yu. They nodded, and said in unison, “She is.”

Emily let the distrust slide.

“Did she really kill a Guardian on her own?”

“She did.”

“She definitely did.”

“Isn’t the crystal proof enough?” Emily sighed and brushed a strand of hair from her face. People talking around her was something she hadn’t experienced in a long time, not since her father had died, and she didn’t like it one bit.

“It is, I suppose,” Leyla said and gave Emily another appraising look. “But it never hurts to be prudent in these matters. A Guardian crystal, as I’m sure you’ve heard, is a valuable commodity, and one prone to being targeted by thieves and bandits.”

“I’m sure it is. But you’ll be glad to hear that I am neither.”

“Then what are you, exactly? For not even in Avania or Sojia is there a person capable of killing a two star Guardian on their own, much less a three star.”

“I’m a knight,” Emily said simply.

“A knight? Not a magician, I know of a few of those who could at least kill a one star, though only with extensive preparation.”

“My husband is a magician,” Emily said dismissively. “I may dabble in the arts, but I leave any complicated spell-casting to him. I am a fighter, and a knight, not a magician.”

“And the boys’ story of you falling from the sky? Is there any truth to that?”

“I didn’t literally fall from the sky, if that’s what you are asking. I did come through a magical rift though, and from a different star at that.”

Leyla hummed, her eyes lingering on Emily’s, searching within them for the truth. Emily stared back with an even gaze, and eventually Leyla continued. “I’d like to hear more details on that story one day, but perhaps not today. No, I think I’ll have to believe you, since I have no evidence to the contrary. So, what do you want to do with the crystal?”

“Trade it in. I didn’t exactly fall through with a lot of money, and I reckon I’ll need some.”

Leyla hummed again. “I’m afraid we don’t have the currency on hand to pay out a full reward. Seeing as killing a Guardian is usually something that's planned for months in advance, we usually have enough time to send for the extra gold needed from our main branches in Avania and Sojia."

“How much’s the difference?”

“Normally,” Leyla said and motioned for the leijon that had shrunk into the wall behind her, and took the tool she had held clutched in her hand. “This crystal would go for two-hundred and thirty-four gold. That would of course be split over six to ten people, depending on the party, as that is usually how many are needed to guarantee a kill without a substantial loss of life. We do, however, only have one-hundred and sixty-two gold on hand to be traded out, and that is only because we very recently received our second quarterly delivery.” She looked at Emily. “Can you see where I’m going with this?”

“I have no intentions of collapsing your business,” Emily said and shifted her weight onto her other leg. “And I don’t need all of it at once, just enough to cover my needs. You can take your time contacting your superiors and obtaining the funds.”

Leyla looked at her for a moment, then she relaxed, and smiled. “Thank you,” she said. “To be honest, I don’t doubt that you did vanquish the Guardian on your own. You have an air about you, and aura, if you will. But I have to be careful, running a guild of mercenaries is a dangerous business, after all.”

Emily smiled back. “I don’t doubt it.” Then she stood up and let go of the counter. “Now, I do need some funds immediately, preferably enough for a few weeks lodging and food, as well as new clothes and a weapon, and I have no idea how much that might cost.”

Leyla hummed. “Velice, put a special fund under the name…?”

“Emily Blackwood.”

“Under Emily Blackwood, for the full worth of the Guardian crystal, and draw twenty gold from it. That should be more than enough for a few months at the town’s best inn, and anything else you might fancy.”

The leijon nodded in understanding and vanished into the back. When she was gone Leyla turned to Emily again.

“What would you say about signing up as an adventurer and joining the guild? With your talents I’m sure you could become a very rich woman.”

At the question Emily felt a faint tug on her heart, a suggestion she was compelled to follow. She chuckled. “I’m afraid I have to refuse,” she said, as much to fate as to Leyla. “I finally have a chance for a nice, quiet life, and I’m not about to let is slip through my fingers. Besides, I’ve already been a mercenary once, and I didn’t much care for it.”

“I understand,” Leyla smiled. “But I won’t deny I’m sad to hear it. Here’s your money in a mix of gold, silver, and copper. The conversion rate is simple enough, twenty copper on a silver and twelve silver on a gold.”

“Thank you,” Emily said and accepted the pouch from Velice. “I guess that’s all then. Unless you need something more from me I’ll be going. You two can do whatever it is you need without me, no?”

“We can,” Ann said.

“Where can we find you after?” Yu asked.

“I don’t know,” Emily said. “Outside somewhere, I saw a few stalls I’d like to check out, and then I’ll find a bathhouse. This town has one, right?”

“The big building to the east,” Leyla smiled. “You can’t miss it.”

“Perfect,” Emily said and made for the door, waving back and saying to the twins “I’ll see you later.”

They echoed a goodbye as Emily approached the door, but as she did she could feel the pull of fate growing ever stronger, a force tugging at the very core of her being, pulling her backwards towards the counter and the form. For every step she took it became more difficult, but she was not about to give up. I’ve fought your war, she told fate through clenched teeth, I’ve given you everything but my life. Is that not enough? Can I not be allowed to live in peace? Apparently not, for as she stood on the threshold the grasp of fate took over her being, and she found her legs did no longer obey her. As frozen as a statue, all she could do was stand there. Really, she thought, you really want me to become a mercenary again, a sell-sword fighting for nothing but gold and glory? I know my ideals aren't as firm as Alex', but come on. But the pleading didn’t help, she hadn’t expected it to, it never had before. Fine, but you better bring me back to Alex, and quick at that.

She turned on her heel and stalked back in, ignoring everyone’s stares as she resigned herself to fate. “It seems I am going to become an adventurer after all,” she said as she pressed her palms against the counter, interrupting Velice who had begun counting and measuring the crystals the twins had brought back.

“What made you change your mind,” Leyla said with a raised eyebrow, “if I may ask?”

“I’m bound by fate,” Emily said harshly, “and fate has its own plans for me so lets get this over with. What do I have to do?”

“Velice, get her a form and a pen.”

A piece of parchment and a black feather pen soon lay before Emily, and she picked it up as she looked through the form. It was easy enough to fill out, she thought. Her name—Emily Blackwood—her titles—she left that field empty—her age and her profession. The last gave her a moments pause before she settled for knight.

“Are you sure you wrote your age correctly?” Leyla asked after having read through the form.

“Unless I spent three months or more in the rift that brought me here, then I would be a year older.”

Leyla gave her a suspicious look, but placed the parchment back on the counter and nodded to Velice. The leijon pulled of the gloves she had been using to count the twins’ crystals, and pulled another magical tool from under the counter, placing it on the form. The crystal embedded within the metal shone for a moment, blinking between green and yellow, before growing dull. Leyla looked over the girl’s shoulder.

“There seems to be a problem,” she said. “Did you provide the right name and titles? We need your given name and any titles you may have officially earned.”

Emily bowed her head in exasperation. “Seriously?”

“I’m afraid so,” Leyla said and placed a new form before Emily. “It’s to protect against stolen identities and the like.”

Emily sighed. They wanted her given name did they? She’d rather have forgotten she’d ever worn it, but if they insisted. “Well then,” she said and lifted her head, her eyes burning. “My ‘true’ name and titles—if they are so important—are Lady Charlie Elizabeth Louise Vertone the third, first knight commander and second lady of The Empire of the Seven Stars, wielder of Excalibur, slayer of gods, and warrior of fate. Wife of Alexander Blackwood, Archmage of The Empire of the Seven Stars and keeper of the forgotten halls of The Hidden City, wielder of Bifrost, slayer of gods, and warrior of fate.”

As she spoke the crystal began to glow, its inner shine increasing in strength for every name and title she rattled off. When she finally reached the end it had grown to be brighter than the sun shining through the open shutters and lay like a green star upon the counter. Everyone but Emily shaded their eyes as the magic reacted with the shards of Excalibur within her, throwing wide the gates for a burst of magic stronger even than the guardian crystal she had carried across two days worth of plain. The magic connected her with the crystal and the contract, searing her name onto the parchment in bold letters glowing with the same magical light. Then the crystal faded, but her name kept shining matching Emily’s eyes with its emerald glow.

“That’s new,” Leyla muttered as she peeked through her fingers. “You really are quite special, aren’t you?”

“I thought that was clear from the start.”

“Perhaps it was.” Leyla took up the pen and spun the form to face her. “What name did you want to be called?”

Emily placed her hands on the counter and leaned in. “Emily. Blackwood.”

“Right,” Leyla mumbled and scribbled the name in the next field. The black ink looked strange underneath the still faintly glowing letters of Emily’s full name and titles. “Is this going to stop glowing, or is it going to always light up my office?”

“I have no idea,” Emily said truthfully.

Leyla hummed, and stashed away the form after filling in Emily’s age and stamping with her signet, which held the same mark as her amulets: a fox wrapped around the trunk of a cherry tree. “Guess we’ll just have to wait and see,” she mumbled, then she straightened and smoothed out her blouse. Clearing her throat, she said, “Now that you have filled out the form, I’d like to officially welcome you, Emily Blackwood, to the adventurers guild. I hope our cooperation will be long and profitable. For the both of us.”

Emily bowed her head. She didn’t voice her wish that it would not be long nor profitable. “Indeed,” she said instead, and turned to the twins. “I might as well stick around till you are done now, since we are in the same boat. Ah, Leyla, could you bring out the other two, the boys you were speaking with? I need to have a word with one of them.”

Layla nodded and vanished into the back, and Velice returned to counting the twins’ crystals. Emily waited patiently, consciously ignoring the stares from the adventurers in the room, and the twins.

“What…” Yu began, her voice so soft it could barely be heard over the din of the market square outside. “What does slayer of gods mean?”

Emily smiled when she was Velice’s ears angle towards her, though the leijon didn’t give any other hints of listening. “Exactly what it sounds like. But let’s save it for later. Later,” she repeated when Ann began asking another question, “we’ll have time to speak. Save your questions until then.”

Then there was no more time for speaking as three people emerged from the back of the guild, with Leyla at the front. “Everything has been cleared up,” she said to the two boys following her. “You can hand in your crystals like normal and be on your way.”

Leyla stopped behind the counter, and motioned for the boys to pass. They did, pointedly keeping their eyes turned away from Emily.

“Rory,” Emily said with a smile, forcing the boy to look up and meet her eyes. “I never thanked you for lending me your weapon, or compensated you for breaking it. How much did you pay for it?”

Rory looked taken aback for a moment, before collecting himself. “Four silver,” he muttered, his face growing a soft shade of red. “It was all I could afford.”

Emily nodded in understanding. “Here,” she then said, and held out a gold coin she had taken from her pouch. It was heavy, despite its small size, and cold as it lay in her palm. “Use this and buy a better weapon, and not a spear, for your own sake. Not when its to be used in an place like that dungeon.”

“T-thank you,” he stammered, his eyes bugging as they flicked between her and the coin in his hand.

“No need to thank me,” she said with a broad smile. “I wouldn’t have made it out without your help. But be careful out there, you won’t have me saving you the next time you fall into a trap, and I would hate to hear of your demise.” She said it with a wink and turned back to the counter as the two boys turned to Leyla to trade in their crystals.

“Are you two almost finished?”

“We are, look!” Ann said and hoisted her pouch into the air, causing the coins inside to clink softly.

“Six silver and fourteen copper,” Yu said happily. “Our biggest haul yet!”

“Congratulations,” Emily said, first then realizing that she might be quite rich, again. “Shall we leave then? There’s still a lot I would like to do today.”

“Let’s!” the twins said in unison, and followed Emily out the door to a still bewildered audience.