[Maria; Her house]

Now that I’ve gotten home from making our report, a wave of mental fatigue hits me like a horse. It’s only mid-afternoon, yet I feel exhausted. Luckily, Mom understands and only asks me to do some cleaning to get my mind off things. As she used to tell me all the time, ‘a clean home is a good home’ or something along those lines.

I get so lost in cleaning that nightfall comes without me noticing it. Only once Leon gets home do I break out of my trance-like state. Doing mindless labor all afternoon really helped me, as I feel satisfied at a job well done. When dinner comes, however, Leon says he has something important to tell us.

“Maria, Mom, I’ve finally been picked to go on an expedition! A mysterious mist has come over a village to the south, and with it came a sudden increase in the number of monsters in the area, so a squadron will be heading out tomorrow to investigate the source of the mist and cull the monster threat. While I’ve not yet officially graduated from recruit, Beatrix decided to take some of us along, seeing it as a good opportunity for us to get some combat experience. I even heard that, if we do well enough, we may even become fully-fledged guards upon our return!”

Hearing the excitement in his voice, I recall when I first became a mercenary five years ago. Having officially just come of age, I went around looking for jobs to support Mom, seeing as Dad recently left us, and we really needed the money. With my lack of domestic skills but talent with a spear, I first went to the guard, seeing as it would be a stable source of income. But I wasn’t accepted because the city lord at the time was a sexist pig who saw women as inferior beings useless for anything but household chores and bearing children, so I went to my second choice, one where my gender wouldn’t get me discriminated against. The sense of freedom that traveling around for a living brought was intoxicating. The city lord has since been replaced, but by that point I couldn’t fathom being tethered down by a chain of command, and so I continued to sate my wanderlust as a mercenary.

“Just don’t get in over your head, okay? And remember that even if you have Beatrix to bail you out now, you’ll never grow stronger if you over-rely on her.” That second part is something I know all too well, seeing as I made that mistake when I was his age. We were ambushed by bandits while guarding a caravan, and I foolishly decided to take some of them on alone. I would have died there had Lucas not saved me at the last second.

“This won’t be a drill, there will be no second chances. Be prepared for anything. But most importantly, prioritize your survival over glory. I had several aqquantances who made that mistake. Let’s just say there’s a reason they aren’t around anymore. Honestly, it might have been a good thing that they died, if only to set an example for the rest of us.”

“You worry too much, sis. Everything will go smoothly, just you wait!”

It’s at this moment that our normally quiet mother decides to interject. “Maria has good reasons to be worried, and you should too! After all, worrying about family members is an older sibling’s job. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be excited about this, but I’m telling you to take at least a modicum of caution with you. We just want you to come home safe, alright?”

Leon gives out a sarcastic “Yes, Mom” before turning back to his food. If I didn’t know better, I’d have been tempted to punch the little brat for that. The rest of the evening meal is eaten in a welcome silence. Seeing as I’m not tired yet, I decide to go for a walk to help process everything that’s happened today.

As I wander around the area under the starry sky, I make small talk with some of the neighbors as I pass. A cool breeze permeates the air, relaxing those still out at this hour, and so I just kind of let go of my worries for the night. This is now “me time,” and nobody can take that away from me. After an hour or so of walking, I decide it’s time to head home, as sleepiness begins to take hold.

When I get back, I hear grunting and yelling coming from the backyard. Before going to bed, I peek around back to see Leon practicing the blade. I guess he couldn't sleep either, though for him it seems to be more from excitement than worry. With my eyes threatening to close on me, I hobble up to my bedroom and quickly fall asleep.

[Leon]

498… 499… Doing 500 practice sword swings have caused me to work up quite the sweat despite the cool evening air. I initially came out to deal with my frustration over what happened during dinner, but self-reflection made me realize that they were only telling me that because they care for me. Maria in particular has firsthand experience when it comes to battlefield arrogance, so she definitely knows what she’s talking about.

The big thing I didn’t tell them is that I’ll be gone for roughly a month and won’t be able to communicate with either of them in the meanwhile. Well, I guess Maria could end up in the area because of her more flexible employment terms, but she prefers spending a week or two around home between long outings, so I doubt I’ll see her before I get back.

Still, I’ll finally be able to fulfill her childhood dream for the both of us. I remember that when she turned twelve, she asked for a practice weapon rather than the toys kids her age usually wanted. She was always the talented kid, be it in academics or athletics, while I feel like I grew up in her shadow at times. To say I never hated her for that would be lying, but I’ve gotten over it, in part because of how much she’s cared for me all these years. I wish she’d stop treating me like a child at this point, but I know that won’t be happening any time soon. Feeling my fatigue catching up to me, I clean off and turn in for the night. Tomorrow cannot come soon enough for me.