Evening has arrived.

The number of guards has increased in that area of town, which passersby noted with uneased glances.

You couldn’t get past the streets without being stopped at least once. Failure to prove one’s identity resulted in a trip to the police station. Failure to find any legal records of that person resulted in jail time and a more thorough search.

This was normal in Astria, or at least cities residing east. Even though their technology was on par with medieval Europe, the way they handled self-identification and other administrative issues resembled far more modernity.

Still, the wonders of magic could not paint away the truth about how the government executed its will. Be it conscious evil or the perversion of goodwill, it made the police force something feared throughout the east.

The smallest hiccups of men were greeted by brutal punishment. You could get caught stealing an apple from the market and the next thing you know is three months of jail time. Those were not just days behind bars but also out on the field, where you’re forced to work 12 hours a day while being baked under the burning sun.

This was the sad truth of this tale. While the heroes’ life might have been equal to paradise, those unfortunate enough to be born in the middle or lower class suffered a life of pain, oppression, and eventual demise.

These became apparent to the two heroes hiding in the old woman’s house, as they looked out from the second store and took hidden glances at the guards outside.

“Just how many are out there?”

Naomi stepped away from the window. He walked back to the guest bed prepared by Echidna and hopped down.

Sinking into the mattress, he felt a comfortable warmth run through his core. He let this warmth breathe with a relieved sigh.

“So?” He asked again.

Gabriel was still standing by the window. Though his wounds had a long way before being fully healed, he could speak quietly, very quietly.

“Nine or ten, I presume. Two have left thirty minutes ago and a new one just arrived.”

Naomi lay silently on the bed. His gaze was fixed upon the ceiling, as the troublesome thoughts did not allow them to rest his eyes.

He had to speak up.

“Oy, Gabriel!”

The demon turned his head slightly, his eyes still fixed upon the guards outside.

“That would be my name, yes. What is it?”

For a moment, Naomi hesitated. He did not want to start a confrontation, not with his only pal.

He had to ask something different.

“Are you sure the old woman won’t rat us out?”

“Pretty much. I made sure that’s not a possibility we’ll have to worry about.”

He did not elaborate any further. As such, silence ensued.

But the room remained filled with tension. Not only because Naomi thought Gabriel might have done something bad to Echidna, but also thanks to something more.

As much as he tried to suppress this emotion, an aching worry has been bothering him since their first adventure.

It was a simple suspicion, something he would not have paid any attention to, be it Gabriel was not so close to him. Both physically and emotionally.

He had to ensure his safety.

“Gabriel.” He said, sitting up from the bed. “I have something more to ask.”

The demon turned away from the window and, sensing Naomi’s discomfort, tried calming him with a small smile.

“You need to see a toilet? Second room on the left. Don’t worry, I preheated the seat.”

“No, that’s not–– Wait, you preheated the seat?”

“I’m a true master when it comes to comfort! After all, I’m not a butler for nothing.”

What Gabriel deemed as proof of his expertise felt rather odd to Naomi. Not only because of how strange of an act that was, but also the way he phrased that.

A butler, he said?

A humble servant of somebody important?

For the longest time, Naomi did not question Gabriel’s abilities, nor his demeanor. But now that he thought about the past of this man, something he said to have forgotten… Holes began to form in his tale.

By now, Naomi had sunk too deep in the ocean of suspicions. He could not see the light above anymore, nor did he want to.

Curiosity led him further down the rabbit hole.

“Say,” Naomi stood up. “I saw you know how to defend yourself, so I thought that perhaps you could show me some moves. You know, so that I can defend myself when spells don’t do the trick!”

“Define what you mean by moves.”

“You know, karate-chops, kung-fu kicks… maybe something with a knife?”

Gabriel’s eyes lit up as he heard him say knife. He was never one to prefer martial arts, but he saw weapon handling as its own kind of art.

He was more than happy to accept this request.

“Alright. I’ll teach you some moves.”

– – –

A storm began forming outside. The wind picked up between the leaves of trees and small splashes of rain hit the ground.

The clouds thundered, and the guards on the street knew it was best to seek shelter.

Soon enough, the streets became empty, then more crowded than before as thousands of raindrops stormed the cobblestone road, washing away the dirt and blood that gathered through hidden corners of the town.

The ground floor of Echidna’s house operated as a pet shop. It bore large windows, showing cages upon cages of differing animals.

Turtles, gibbons, lizards.

These and many more gazed from the comfort of their spacious cages at the two men that stood amidst the shop. One bore a rapier in hand, while the other faced him with a large kitchen knife.

“First lesson!” Gabriel spoke. “When you’re in a fight, always aim to end it as quickly as possible. The longer it goes on, the more chance they’ll get to inflict damage upon you. That means no heroic monologues, no flashy poses, and no unnecessary techniques. If you can end a fight with one punch, do it. Don’t try sugarcoating what doesn’t need to be.”

Naomi looked at the knife in his hand. He remembered fight scenes from movies and video games, and using it to his advantage, he tried recreating those moves.

He slashed through the air, stabbing an imaginary opponent multiple times, before ending it with another huge slash.

Gabriel shook his head and sighed.

“That is what you should try to avoid.”

“What?” Naomi snapped at him. “Do you know the damage a combo like this could deal?”

“No matter the damage you deal, it’s going to be ineffective without a clear purpose. When fighting an opponent, you should always aim for a vital spot. The eyes, throat, heart… choose one and act accordingly.”

Gabriel threw his weapon aside and raised his fists.

“Look at me! Look at one of my weak points and focus! When you’re ready, come and attack!”

“Wait, what?!” Naomi recoiled. “You’re going to get hurt!”

“I’ll take my chances.”

Naomi hesitated at first. He made a lackluster approach, then a held-back attack.

Gabriel was dissatisfied. He easily dodged the attack and taunted Naomi.

“Is that all you got?” He said, before reaching under Naomi’s wrist and throwing him over his shoulder.

“Gahh!” Naomi gasped as his back landed on the ground.

“Hesitance is weakness! Abandon all restrains!”

Naomi stood up and scratched his head.

“I just don’t want to hurt you, dude!”

“This! This is what I’m talking about!” Gabriel pointed at him. “Your reluctance to harm is behind your ineffectiveness!”

Naomi gritted his teeth. He tightened his grip on the knife and attacked, though still holding back, but putting more force behind his steps.

Of course, Gabriel easily evaded the attack, grabbed Naomi’s wrist, and threw him over his shoulder.

“Useless! You still lack a thirst for blood!”

Naomi hit the ground, then rather quickly recollected himself. Cursing under his nose, he tried the same attack again but failed horribly.

“Dip your feet into the ocean of red! Quench the thirst that’s in your heart!”

The animals around them noticed their display. The turtles hid in their shells, the lizards watched from the safety of their nest, while the gibbons laughed mockingly whenever Naomi hit the ground.

“Fucking monkeys…” Naomi whispered and wiped the blood off of his mouth. Despite Gabriel being on the defensive, he was still fine after all this time while Naomi bled from the wounds of his fall.

Suddenly, Gabriel lowered his guard. He put both hands aside and approached Naomi with a smile.

“I know how you feel. When I first learned how to use a weapon, my master had also asked me to try and hurt him. His name was Lazar, and I loved him dearly. When he asked me that, I was hesitant and held back my attacks. After all, how could I hurt someone so important to me?”

He stopped in front of Naomi and leaned forward, lending him a helping hand.

“I was punished severely for disobeying his command, which led to my eventual growth. I acted this rough in hopes of passing on my knowledge. Please excuse me if I went overboard.”

This.

This is what Naomi was waiting for.

Ever since they first arrived in this world, Gabriel said he did not remember anything from his past. Naomi blindly accepted this at first, but seeing how well Gabriel fought, he grew a sneaking suspicion that perhaps there was more to him than meets the eye.

And now, unbeknownst to Gabriel, he had proven this hunch.

“So now you remember your past, huh?” Naomi thought, tightening his grip on the knife.

This man, whom he deemed a friend and let so close to himself was nothing more than a fraud. He lied about his past, he lied about his abilities, and who knows how much more he had lied about.

Only one thing was sure: Gabriel has betrayed his trust.

“He killed that man in the alley without a flinch. Who says he did not kill more people before?”

“Why did he need to lie about his past? Did he do something horrible?”

“A murderer. A terrorist. Just who is this man I treated as a friend?”

Worst of all, Naomi thought, is that he had opened up about himself. He opened up to Gabriel about his secrets, he let him know his greatest flaws and everything that could be detrimental to him if gone public.

At that moment, as Gabriel revealed the truth, he viewed him no more as a friend, but as a threat.

And at that moment, as his heart raced with anger and grief... He snapped.

"Waah!" He roared and charged Gabriel with the knife.

He was furious, putting insane force behind his attack that aimed precisely for Gabriel's heart.

"Die, you fucking bastard!"

Lightning struck outside.

Gabriel easily evaded his attack and threw him to the ground.

"Gahh!" Naomi gasped as his back met the cold floor.

Gabriel stepped close and leaned above him. He bore a warm and proud smile.

"See?" He asked. "I knew you had it in you, someone just needed to bring out that beast within!"

Naomi was speechless.

He was both horrified by the blind rage that made him almost commit something horrible, but also because of Gabriel.

Despite the fact he just tried to kill him, Gabriel smiled. He was left unphased by his attack.

"Just what is this man?" Naomi thought as he gazed at the man above.

Putting on a warm facade, he accepted Gabriel's hand and stood up. It was best to hide his emotions now, or at least until he escapes the lion's den.

"Good job, Naomi! Just remember what you learned today when you get into a real fight."

"Yeah, I sure will!" He fake laughed.

The rain picked up outside. The clock was close to striking midnight and since everyone went to sleep by now, their only real source of light were the occasional bolts of lightning and a small candle.

In between two loud claps of thunder, Gabriel yawned.

"It's getting late. I can be groggy if I don't get at least 8 hours of sleep, so I think we should go get a nap."

He grabbed his candle from the counter and approached the stairs leading into the living area.

He went halfway up before he realized Naomi was not coming along. When he shone his candle downstairs, he could only see Naomi’s outline in the dark.

He did not move. Not even an inch.

"Naomi?"

"What's up, pal?" He said with an audible, but not visible smile.

"You're not coming?"

"Oh, heh! No, go ahead, friend!"

"I thought you were afraid of the dark."

"Really? Oh, well, maybe there are more important things to be afraid of."

Gabriel looked unconcerned. He questioned Naomi's strange behavior but shrugged it off as something related to his bladder.

"If you're fast enough, that seat might still be preheated!" Gabriel winked.

"Hehe, okay pal!"

He lingered there for a bit more, gazing at Naomi's still. Only his legs could be made out from the dark, while his face was shrouded by a veil.

"Alright..." Gabriel walked up the stairs. "Goodnight, Naomi."

"Heh! Goodnight, friend!"

Gabriel walked to their room and left the door open. He waited for Naomi, making sure to leave his side of the bed untouched.

He went and brushed his teeth, his face, his ears, and lay down still oozing from the smell of dog shampoo.

But that did not bother him as much as something different.

That being how despite all the time that has passed, he still has not heard a creak or any proof that Naomi has moved downstairs.

He went to sleep without hearing him move once.