A dozen books are stacked on my desk next to my stuffed dragon Reagan. It is a satisfying sight; all the books have been read in a single sitting. I’m trying to go for a record. I had trained with Armstrong earlier in the day and it was painful so this is how I’m making myself feel better. For the past week or so Armstrong has been trying to make me learn special moves but to no avail; he couldn’t find out what special moves exist for my specialization so instead he’s been driving me hard, thinking I’ll just come up with one on the spot. Why do I never learn anything when I train? I swear the only time I develop is when I’m getting my ass beat. Like what special moves can I even do? I punch things, that’s it. I’m like the opposite of Will who has a theoretical infinite set of techniques he could master. Anyway I’m trying to block that out right now, presently reading my 13th book. If I finish this one, it’ll be a personal best.

Right when I was getting into it, I heard a ruckus happening outside.

“We got an intruder!” a voice bellows. “Go get reinforcements! We need more men!”

I close my book, jumping out of my seat. An intruder? We’re under attack? I don’t know who’s dumb enough to fight their way into a heavily fortified castle but they just made a big mistake: they ruined my reading. I exit the room, aura flowing around my body, adrenaline surging through my bloodstream. I encountered a guard in the hallway. He’s running but I put my hands up letting him know I want to talk.

“Second hero! Thank goodness! We need your help!” the guard shouts.

“There’s an intruder right?”

“Yes! A small fiery girl appeared, seeking to enter the castle without authorization. We tried to turn her away but then she started assaulting the personnel. She’s already knocked out 2 dozen guards. I think she may be an assassin.”

“Wait...small fiery girl? Is she like 5’1? Red hair? Cusses almost every time she speaks?”

“Yes that’s it! She had been saying nothing but expletives when she arrived. How do you know?”

“Gosh darn it. She’s not an intruder, she’s-”

“QUINCY!” a voice hollers.

I looked past the guard in front of me, seeing that five other guards had been punched down the hallway.

“Get off me you fucks! I’m here to see somebody! Quincy where you at!? I wanna see you!” the voice yells.

Nerva appears in the hallway, an angry expression on her face. I haven't seen the girl for weeks and this is the first sight I get of her after she returned from her quest with Nazuko and the others. Seems apposite given her personality to be honest.

“Intruder! I won’t let you come any closer!” the guard shouts back, unsheathing his sword.

I pat him on the shoulder and say “Calm down bro she’s part of my party. Go home, forget everything that happened today, second hero’s orders.”

I walk past him to speak to Nerva.

“Girl what are you doing? You know you just assaulted the most guarded place in the country right?”

Nerva’s expression returns to calm as she looks at the unconscious bodies around her, as if she’s just now realizing what she’s done.

“Well if this is the best they got, that's sad. Anyway don’t focus on unimportant shit, I want to see you.”

“What is it?”

“I wanna hang out.”

I pause, taken aback by the statement.

“What do you mean?”

“I need you to do some bad bitch stuff with me.” she elaborates. “I need you to help me train. That tournament thing is soon, so I need to get stronger to kick as much ass as possible. I wanna win that thing.”

“Nerva you’re already strong. You fought dozens of men without breaking a sweat. I don’t think you need to train.”

“I know I’m the letter one badass in the world but I want to go even higher, like higher than 1, like the shit that’s before 1 you know? Only way I can do that is to get stronger by training.”

“D-did you just say the ‘the letter one?’”

I’m trying my hardest not to burst in a fit of laughter right now.

“Yeah the letter 1. Come on Quincy, I thought you were smart.”

I regain my composure and reply “No you’re right, I just didn’t hear you. Anyway, can't you train with Nazuko?”

“Can’t. She’s not gonna be in the tournament and is recovering from having big tits. Says her balance is funky.”

“Oh yeah she told me about that. Sounds like that adventure was quite the imbroglio.”

Nerva’s eyes squinted at me, letting me know she had no idea what I just said. I momentarily forgot I was talking to Nerva, gotta keep things simple.

“What about Akane? Wouldn’t she love to train with you?” I question.

“I can’t find her! She and Warren are gone. I dunno where they’re at.”

“They’re both gone? That’s weird. You think they’re with each other?”

“They better not. If I found out they’ve been doing cool shit without me I’m gonna be pissed. But yeah, are you training with me or not? You’re the only one I can train with now.”

“What about Ada-wait never mind.”

No one wants to train with Adam so there’s no point bringing his name up. I know Nerva trained with him before but that was for his benefit, not hers. I scratch my chin, thinking things over. I’ve already finished training for the day so all I want to do is read. Yet if I want to keep my books I have to do well in the tournament. I’ll get some extra training in, it’s for the best as it’s an investment for future reading.

“Alright I’m down.” I tell her.

Nerva and I begin to make our way out of the castle, bypassing dozens of unconscious guards. Nerva’s not going to face repercussions for this right? I’m pretty sure she broke multiple laws like assault, battery, trespassing, etc. Eh I’m sure it’ll be fine, hero party privilege goes a long way in getting us out of trouble that we probably shouldn’t get out of.

We stride through the crowded streets of Colonus, trying to get to Dragon’s Descent in the midst of all the preparations for the Grand Skirmish. I thought it was crowded before but with each passing day, it appears more and more people have entered the city. It’s like the lead up to Mardi Gras. Once the tournament starts it’s gonna be a nightmare to get from A to B.

“There’s too many of these assholes!” Nerva complains, shoving people out the way.

I follow behind, taking advantage of the path she’s creating. As Nerva continues to curse up a storm, I realize that we’re not heading towards Dragon’s Descent.

“Hey Nerva, where we goin’?” I holler over the commotion.

“We gotta make a stop first! Gotta pick up some shit!” she yells back, knocking another person out the way.

I follow her until we end up at what appears to be a blacksmith’s shop. It’s located in a shopping area I’ve passed through a few times, specifically the first time I came to Colonus. I feel like it’s been so long since I’ve run through these streets, trying to escape law enforcement. What an awful memory. It looks a bit different now because there are more vendors on the street than ever before. They’re squished next to each other, trying everything they can to draw people’s attention. They’re yelling, shoving against one another, and some look like they’re about to start fighting their neighbors. Looks like a bunch of vendors from out of town set up shop in anticipation of the Grand Skirmish and are competing with the locals. In the midst of all this is Nerva carving a way through the concourse of shoppers. We make our way past the vendor stands to a building. It’s a small nondescript white building that only consists of one floor. It stands apart from all the other buildings in Colonus by how small and boring it looks. All the other buildings I’ve seen are grandiose but this looks so bland. There isn’t even a sign in front, making it impossible to tell what could be inside.

Nerva nonchalantly enters through the front door with me following in tow. Inside I see an office space, filled with cubicles occupied by people in business attire. The floor is covered in white tiles and the ceiling is covered by glass which allows the sunlight to percolate into the room. Directly in front of us is a line leading up to a front desk where a secretary is. Above the secretary is a sign displaying the words “Ulta-tax Services.”

“Ugh Nerva are we at a tax place? Are you trying to make me help you do your taxes?” I ask while the two of us stand in line.

“Hell no. My sis handles my tax shit. They do other things here, you’ll see. It’s kinda dope.” she responds.

We wait in line for about 15 seconds before we start to twitch.

“I can’t handle this shit” Nerva and I curse.

Nerva and I begin to make our way to the front, bumping people out the way. Both of us must have an aversion for lines, knowing that spending all day waiting is the worst thing ever. We make our way to the front and Nerva slams her hand on the desk but kinda flubs because like the desk at Dragon’s Descent, it’s above her height. I slam my hand as well to make sure it made the sound she was going for.

“Hello sir, how can I help you?” the young blonde secretary asks.

“Hey no, you’re dealing with me!” Nerva shouts.

I lift Nerva up so she’s eye-level with the secretary.

“Oh hello ma’am. How can I help you?”

“I’m here to...review my 1040 form with the manager” Nerva says, raising her eyebrow I think in an attempt to be furtive.

“Ah I see. Come with me.”

The woman gets up, motioning for us to follow. We do so, leaving behind a crowd of irate people who wonder what the heck just happened. I faintly hear them cursing about aristocracy so I guess they think we used some rich people's privilege. If only they knew we really used the “I don’t want to wait in a line all day” privilege. We follow the secretary to the back of the room, leading us down a flight of stairs. It begins to get dark but soon I see at the base of the stairs a door with a white light coming from the other side.

“Nerva, where are we going? This is looking shady.” I point out.

“Just watch.”

The secretary stops in front of the door, knocking on it 6 times in quick succession.

“What is this illuminati shit?” I mutter.

The door opens, revealing a man dressed in a white collared shirt and black slacks. A boring brown tie droops down his chest. He has big oval glasses and has gray hair that’s receding.

“We got two customers sir,” the secretary tells him.

He looks down at Nerva.

“I see. Come in Remelli” he says to Nerva.

The secretary leaves and Nerve walks inside with me warily following.

My eyes widen upon seeing this new sight. Before me is a giant blacksmith’s shop. There are giant weapons located on the walls and in glass display cases as if they were jewelry. However I can tell this place is very different from the one I went to with Warren when he got his knives. The weapons here are much different. Many of them are covered in markings, others emitting smoke, and some are weapons I’ve never seen before. In the display case to my left is a massive bolt action rifle that looks like it could blow my arm off just by firing it.

“That’s dwarven.” the manager says, noticing my wandering eyes.

Next to it is a curved bow made out of some dark hazel wood.

“And that’s elven,” he adds.

I look at the weapon placed on the other side of the bow. It’s a weird looking glove that has a blue light coming out of the palm.

“Laser gauntlet from Albium.” he says.

“What is this place?” I question aloud, in awe of what I’m seeing.

“The coolest blacksmith place on the planet!” Nerva hollers. “Ain’t all this shit awesome!?”

“Hell yeah it is!” I yell in return. “Wow look at this one.”

I go up to a massive battle axe that’s not encased in glass. It’s on a stand that has a massive chain connected to it to ensure people can’t steal it.

“Woah that’s badass!” Nerva concurs.

She and I take turns poking it like we’re kids poking a fish tank. The man coughs to get our attention.

“Remelli if we can begin that’d be splendid.” he remarks.

“Oh yeah. You got my thing ready?” she questions.

He nods.

“Let me go get it. Don’t take anything while I’m gone.”

He goes into a back room, leaving Nerva and I alone.

“So this place is a half tax assistance/half blacksmith shop?” I question Nerva, pushing the axe so that it falls in her direction.

“Cool right? I heard about this place from an asshole who owed me money. Said this is the best place to get weapons in Colonus”

She pushes the axe back so it leans in my direction. We begin to make the axe totter back and forth as a means to waste time.

“Why’s it all secret tho’? You’d think with such cool stuff they wouldn’t waste their time helping folks file their taxes.”

“Oh that’s just a cover to avoid the guards. All these weapons are illegal.”

I caught the axe, shocked.

“Huh?”

“Yeah it’s illegal to sell or own these weapons. Like you saw that Albium gauntlet. It’s illegal to transport their technology outside of Albium. Same goes for these other non-human weapons.”

“You serious?”

“Yep. Some of these weapons are normal but have had illegal modifications done on them, like illegal enchantments. Stuff that could backfire or some shit.” she states nonchalantly.

“So this axe could hurt us if we keep messing with it?”

“Probably.”

I carefully put the axe back in place, paranoid that it might explode or something.

The manager returns, carrying in his hands what appears to be a small pick axe looking thing. It’s got the blade of a scythe but it’s really small and has a thin black handle attached.

“The reason I came here was because I heard they could modify any weapon, no questions asked. You should feel special Quincy, you get to see my ultimate weapon before everyone else does. Once I reveal this baby during the tournament, everyone will be like ‘woah Nerva you’re so fucking cool. Such a badass. You’re not the letter 1 badass, but that shit that comes before 1.’” she reveals.

Nerva goes up to the manager, looking over her weapon.

“Wait a minute. Did that thing used to be Lancer’s scythe?” I inquire.

“Hell yeah! It was too big for me to use so I had to get it changed. Now it’ll be used by someone who doesn’t have a microdick.”

“Instead it’ll be used by a woman with big figurative balls.”

“Damn straight.”

“Hold on, gotta get the chain.” the manager cuts in, going into the back for a brief moment.

“The chain?” I ask.

“Hehehehehehe” Nerva chuckles.

The man comes back carrying what appears to be a belt that’s connected to a long steel chain. He places it on the counter, picking up the end of it which has a circular hole. He takes the blade from Nerva, putting the base of the handle through it so they are now connected.

“Ok try it on to see if it fits.” he requests.

Nerva takes the belt, putting it on with ease. She eagerly swings the blade as the chains retract so that they too wrap around her waist.

“I put an enchantment on it so that the chain retracts when needed. Think of it like a yo-yo” the manager explains.

“Heh this is so fucking cool” Nerva says to herself.

“Not gonna lie, that is pretty cool, it must cost a lot to make this thing.” I comment.

“You bet. Costs about 19,000 gold.” the man acknowledges. “Speaking of payment, I need my money now, Remelli.”

“Ok sounds good. Quincy go ahead and pay the man.” Nerva says.

“Huh?”

“Oh yeah I forgot to tell ya, I also brought you along so you can pay.”

“With what money?”

“What do you mean what money!? Aren’t you rich living in the castle and shit?! You broke!?”

“Hey I ain’t broke! It’s just...I don’t have any money since I pay 100% income tax. Why are you broke!? Didn’t you just go on an adventure!?”

“That wasn’t an official one! That was for Nazuko! I didn’t get any money from that shit!”

“And you thought you could leech off me!? Even if I had the money I wouldn’t pay, this is your thing.”

“I’m not getting paid?” the manager questions. “Seems we’re going to have a problem.”

I hear a click, like he just flipped a switch under the counter.

The door we entered through is opened as a dozen or so people in business attire flood in. They all appear to have been the people I saw working in cubicles upstairs. They’re not a very threatening bunch. Their arms are all gangly and look like the heaviest thing they can pick up is a pen.

“Are we seriously going to get jumped by a bunch of tax consultants?” I say aloud, confused by what’s about to go down.

“Nah we're about to kick a bunch of ass.” Nerva replies.

“Whelp, if it can’t be helped.”

Nerva and I stand side by side, staring down the group of office workers. I get into my boxing stance which summons my aura. Nerva leans forward, holding onto her blade, eager to try it out.

“Ok let’s-”

“Excuse me!” a voice interrupts.

A man awkwardly shimmies by the tax workers, getting in between us and them. He has a very striking appearance looking like he came straight out of a western. A brown cowboy boot adorns his head and is wearing a long brown leather duster jacket. Underneath the jacket are blue denim jeans and a light blue shirt. On his feet are brown cowboy boots that make a noticeable thump sound with each step. His face has what appears to be a 9 o’clock shadow of black hair. He looks around, realizing what he just walked into.

“Oh is something happening right now? ” he asks.

His bright blue eyes focus on me.

“Are you in line?”

“N-no.” I answer.

“Sir you’ll have to come back later, we’re busy right now.” the manager tells him.

“Ok no problem but if it’s ok with you, I’ll wait here in the corner. Don’t mind me, go about your business.”

“Ok?” I say confusedly.

Can this guy not read the room? A fight is about to happen. Hope the cowboy doesn’t get hurt in the crossfire. In my peripheral vision I see Nerva staring at the man with squinted eyes.

“Where have I seen that guy before?” she utters to herself.

“Nerva focus!”

“Huh? Oh right. Let’s kick some ass! Time to test this baby out!”

Nerva takes her weapon and chucks it towards the group. It completely misses the mark, veering to the far left, missing everyone. The blade slowly recedes back.

“Well that didn’t work.” I note.

“Yeah yeah shut up.”

The tax workers charge at us, taking me by surprise. One worker appears in front of me, throwing a punch. In the nick of time I put my guard up to block it. However the blow sends my feet sliding back. Ok these guys are tougher than they look. Another appears in front of Nerva kicking her to the side so that she rolls, colliding with a weapon’s display case. I try to get to her but my assailant isn’t done with me yet. He steps in front of me, throwing more punches. Now that I’m not caught off guard I’m able to dodge each attack. Seeing his tie dangling as he fights, I grab it with my left hand. I yank it back, causing him to choke and stumble forward. With my right I unleash a hook to the dome of his head, sending him flying across the room, over a few weapon cases.

“That’s the best you got bitch!?” Nerva yells, rushing towards the one who hit her.

She punches them in the stomach with a fire punch, then another, then another until it becomes a torrent. Eventually Nerva hits them hard enough they unceremoniously collapse. As soon as they fell, two more workers appeared behind her, seeking to attack. Before their attacks could land, Nerva propels herself back by aiming her hands ahead of her to get to safety. In the midst of their confusion as to where she went, I dash in, punching one across the room while a fireball hits the other one, sending them to a nearby wall.

“Ooooh you guys aren’t bad.” The cowboy compliments as Nerva and I regroup.

“Ok where the fuck do I know you from!?” Nerva exclaims, pointing a finger at the cowboy.

“Ha! I guess it has been a while. We’ll talk later, you two seem busy.”

The cowboy points ahead, drawing our attention back to the tax consultants. They’re taking weapons off the walls and out of display cases. That can’t be good. Each weapon they wield gives off this threatening aura. As if I didn’t have enough reason not to get hit.

They charge at us, half of them coming to me and the other half to Nerva. Knowing what to expect this time I jump to the side, missing the swing of a worker wielding a giant axe. The axe hits the ground, creating a huge hole, leaving behind frozen ice in its place. That must be one of the enchantments. I stepped in before he could raise the axe, hitting him away from the weapon. Not giving me a chance to breathe, two more surround me. The one ahead of me has a bright golden sword while the one behind me has dark blue nun-chucks. The sword user attacks first, seeking to cut my head off. I duck and uppercut them in the stomach. Sensing an attack from behind I sidestep to the left. The nun-chuck user throws the weapon down, hitting their ally on the head. The nun-chucks start to glow, letting me know I better step back. Blue hands emerge from the weapons as a deep voice says “Your soul is mine!”

The hands reach into the body of the tax worker, tearing out what appears to be them but transparent. It reminds me of Remi’s wolf in terms of appearance. The blue hands pull what I guess is the soul into the weapon before resuming its original appearance.

“I’m taking that out of your next paycheck” the manager indifferently announces to the worker.

“God damn it” the worker curses.

With their guard down I leap to them and punch their head into the ground. I look across the room to see how Nerva’s faring. She’s a ball of energy, jumping over and under attacks as her opponents struggle to keep up. One tries to shoot her with a bow and arrow but when the arrow zoomed to her, she deflected it with her new weapon and shot back with a fireball, hitting her target. Another goes in, seeking to impale her with a spear but Nerva dodges, cutting the spear in half with her blade and finishes the guy off with a good ole nut punch. Nerva barely had that weapon for ten minutes and she’s already adept at using it. She learns fast.

I run to Nerva so that we can regroup, joining back to back as the rest of the consultants surround us.

“This turned into quite the shitshow hasn’t it?” I comment.

“Yeah but it’s fun tho’ ain’t it?” Nerva points out.

“...A bit.”

We split up, taking on the rest of the workers. We make quick work of them, realizing that if you can avoid the freaky weapons, these guys are pushovers compared to everything we fought in Ayana. I guess if anything good happened putting down a peasant rebellion, it’s that it was so tough that anything we fight now is a cakewalk in comparison. I knock out the final worker, ending the fight. Nerva and I look around, seeing that the place that was so cool to me earlier has been destroyed all because Nerva was stupid and didn’t bring money. There are holes all over the place, unconscious bodies strewn about, remnants of elemental effects here and there. I can’t feel too bad, this was an illegal operation after all so if anyone asks, Nerva and I were like Warren and carried out some vigilante justice. The cowboy starts to applaud, having seen the whole thing.

“Woooo good job. That was fun. As expected of the second hero’s party.” he congratulates.

“Thanks? Who are you?” I interrogate.

“Yeah who are you!? Why do you look so familiar?” Nerva adds.

“Aw you can’t see the resemblance? Not even in the eyes? My wife says we have the same eyes so I was hoping you’d notice. I’m-”

“Seems I’m going to have to post a wanted sign on the front door.” the manager interrupts, climbing over the counter, stretching his neck.

“Second hero’s party huh? I Thought my workers were tougher than some demon worshipping rebels. Guess what they say is true, if you want something done right, do it yourself.” he continues.

The manager stops, rips off his shirt, revealing he’s wearing chainmail underneath. He strides to an undamaged display case, reaches into his pocket, and takes out a key. Using it he opens the display, grabbing the weapon inside. It’s a large black and gold bow staff, covered in golden writing.

“I suppose killing the second hero will bring me more business, so it’ll be worth it in the end.” he says to himself.

He slams one end of the staff into the ground which somehow causes rock spikes to erupt in front of Nerva and I. Before I could react I felt myself get pulled back as the spikes went all the way up, piercing the ceiling.

“Holy shit.” Nerva cusses, realizing that those things almost went through our heads.

I look back, realizing that the cowboy was the one who pulled us back, saving our lives. The cowboy walks past us, standing a dozen feet away from the manager.

“Hey you two, think I can beat this guy with three kicks? I bet it’ll take no more than three kicks.”

Nerva and I exchange confused looks, not really sure how to answer.

“You intend to fight? I have no quarrel with you. I thought you were a customer.” the manager voices, as nonplussed as Nerva and I are.

“Is that what you thought? Sorry pal, didn’t mean to give the wrong impression. I’m here to kick your ass.” the cowboy reveals. “Guards wanted to raid this place but I told them ‘nah it’s fine let me do it, sounds like fun’ so here I am.”

The manager sighs, twirling the staff in his hands.

“Today is not a good day” he grumbles. “First the hero, now an overzealous adventurer.”

The cowboy tilts his head back to Nerva and I, saying “You two did good work, let the old man handle it from here. Keep track of the kicks. I said no more than three right? I always lose track mid-fight.”

The manager slams an end of the staff into the ground once again. This time instead of coming from the ground it comes from the wall, zooming towards the cowboy like a bullet. The cowboy tilts his head, narrowly missing the spike. Another descends from the ceiling but he dodges that one as well.

“Staff helps manipulate earth huh? How fortunate we’re underground, giving you more options. Won’t help though.” the cowboy taunts.

Three spikes come out from the ground, forcing the cowboy to jump back. Then bursting through the spikes is the manager, hoping to catch the cowboy off guard. He begins to swing wildly but-with hands in his pockets-the cowboy jumps back each time, ducking and weaving through each attack. After a horizontal swing that whiffs, the cowboy performs a sidekick into the manager’s side, making him cough. The manager falls to the ground, gasping for air.

“That’s one.” the cowboy says.

The manager quickly recovers, swinging his staff upward but misses. The staff hits the ceiling, making the manager smile. Suddenly a dozen spikes come from the wall behind us. Nerva and I whirl around, thinking we’ll have to destroy the spikes since there are too many to dodge. Before we could attack however, the cowboy gets in front of us and, only using one leg, kicks the spikes apart before they could get near us as the other spikes from the wall shoot past us.

“Don’t worry you two, I told you I got it from here.” the cowboy assures. “I got it all under control. Nothing this guy can do will-”

The manager dashes in behind him, swinging his staff, hoping to cave his skull in. The cowboy ducks and after standing up, performs a back kick, hitting the manager in the gut, sending him to the wall.

I don’t know who this guy is but he’s strong. The confidence this guy’s exuding is letting me know he’s not fighting seriously. It’s the same smug confidence I got from Archer but luckily this guy’s on my side so I’m not annoyed by it.

“That’s two” the cowboy states.

The manager gets up, looking very very pissed as blood drips down his chin.

“Enough! I’m ending this now, clearly this place is too far gone. Fine by me, I’ll open up a shop somewhere else, simple as that. Means I can destroy this one.” he claims.

“Think this place is already destroyed, don’t you think?” the cowboy retorts.

Without saying another word, the manager hits the ground with his staff, which causes the ground to shake. It doesn’t take me long to realize that the entire ground is being raised; the ceiling coming closer and closer. This guy is trying to turn us into pancakes. I wind up a punch, hoping I can make a hole so we won’t get squished.

“Don’t worry I got this” the cowboy tells me.

He gets between Nerva and I, preparing an upward kick. Right before I think we’re about to become the middle of a concrete sandwich, the cowboy kicks with enough force that it feels like a jet broke the sound barrier next to me. Dust and debris encompasses my vision, forcing me to close my eyes.

I open them to see that I’m now in the streets of Colonus. Examining my surroundings I notice that the building I was in is now gone. In its place is a giant hole where the building used to be. Around me are pieces of rubble and unconscious people: the poor saps who Nerva and I shoved out the way not even half an hour ago.

“I think I used too much power” a voice to my right concludes.

It’s the cowboy, holding a very bewildered Nerva in his arms. He puts her down and I stand up.

“Sorry about that young lady, you would’ve been crushed by rocks if I didn’t pick you up. And second hero, sorry if you got jealous.” he jokes. “I knew you’d be safe given where I kicked in all seriousness.”

“No problem….is it over?” I respond.

“No not yet. Have to do one more kick. I’ll be right back. ”

He points to the other side of the massive hole he made, where the manager is trying to escape from the destruction. The cowboy leaps across the chasm effortlessly, landing in front of the manager, startling him. He’s scared now, seeing what his opponent had been able to accomplish this whole time. He tries to swing his staff to hit the ground but the cowboy kicks it out of his hands and follows up with a swift kick to the head, making the manager stand still. The guy looks like a statue from where I’m standing. The cowboy pushes the guy over, making him fall. I don’t know if I should find the cowboy awesome or terrifying. I think it’s a mix of both.

“Hey Nerva you good?” I question.

“Ughhhhhhh yeah.” she eventually reacts, still trying to process what happened.

Guards converge on the scene, trying to restore order.

“Second hero, are you alright?” one of them asks me.

“I think so.”

“Amazing. We had no idea you were working with Jack. Didn’t think you’d care about local law enforcement.”

“Well you know how it is….gotta help the people. Definitely wasn’t there to buy from the illegal weapons seller that’s for sure.” I lie.

“That’s great, so selfless.”

“Yep.”

The cowboy who’s name is apparently Jack joins us, stretching his arms.

“You guys got it from here right? Sorry about all the destruction.” he apologizes to the guard. “Don’t worry, I made sure to move everyone while the debris was still in the air so no one’s dead. I haven’t needed to move that fast in quite awhile.”

“Understood, we’ll request the imperial wizard to clean things up and this place should be back to normal by tomorrow.”

The guard departs, leaving the three of us alone.

“What fun. Were you guys watching? I beat him in three kicks right?” Jack questions.

“Yeah. You’re good...Jack.”

We stand there as an awkwardness ensues. What now? Do we leave? We should leave right? I don’t want to be here anymore.

“Ugh so I guess we should-”

“Oh wait.” Jack interrupts. “I have to thank you two. Thanks for taking care of my son, it means a lot to me. Especially for protecting him during his time in Ayana. I heard things got quite dangerous.”

Dad? Nerva and I exchange confused looks once again. Clearly he’s talking about someone in our party.

“You’re Warren’s dad?” I guess.

“Hah no. Guess again.”

“...You’re Akane’s old man?” Nerva supposes.

“I said ‘son’ so no.”

“I got it, you’re Ryder’s dad. Sorry, but he’s part of Will’s party, not mine.”

“Hehehe you guys are funny. I’m-”

“Holy shit! You’re Adam’s dad! I can tell by the eyes!” Nerva yells in realization.

“Wait what?” I sputter.

“There we go! How’re you doing Nerva? Haven’t seen you in awhile. Guess you didn’t recognize me because of this beard thing I got going on. I should shave once I get home.” Jack says.

“No way. There’s no way you’re Adam’s dad. That makes no sense.” I deny.

“Look he may take more after his mother than me but I swear that boy is mine. Check this out.”

He reaches into his pocket, taking out a wallet. He takes out a small photo, shows it to Nerva and I. It’s an old photo consisting of three people at a park. On the left is a young looking Jack, on the right is a woman who is clearly Adam’s mom, and in the middle is a little pudgy boy with curly blonde hair and blue eyes.

“We had this taken when he was six, the day we took him on his first adventure. Look at him, he’s so cute. Look at his little face. Awww” Jack gushes.

That definitely looks like Adam all right. A small little fat Adam. Guess Jack is his dad but it’s still jarring. Jack is clearly a cool badass adventurer and Adam is Adam so it’s hard to comprehend. Nerva’s staring at the picture intently, like she’s trying to burn the image into her head.

“Hey, how about you guys come with me? I’ve only been back in town for a few hours so how about we go surprise my family together.” Jack proposes.

I don’t want to see Adam, yet I feel like I want to hang out with Jack. This man seems chill.

“Wait, we were supposed to train today” Nerva brings up.

“You still want to train after all that?” I ask her.

“Yeah! That shit’s got me fired up!”

“Hell no. We can train tomorrow. I’ve done enough for today.”

“Training eh? You two are participating in the tournament?” Jack prods.

“Yeah unfortunately.” I answer.

“Hmmm Adam’s entering the tournament too, so I was planning on training him. How about this, you two come to my house, and from tomorrow on to the day of the tournament, I’ll train all three of you.”

“Hell yeah! Can you teach me to kick so hard I make giant ass holes!?” Nerva exclaims, jumping up and down in excitement.

“I can try. What about you, Second Hero?”

“Man I guess. Getting trained by you and Armstrong can only help me in the end.”

“Armstrong's training you? Oh that’s great. This means I can show him how much of a better mentor I am.”

“How well do you know Armstrong?”

“Pretty well, since he’s my best friend and Adam’s godfather. Now let’s go. My son is going to be ecstatic. His father and his best friends are coming to visit him. I can see the look of excitement on his face now. ”

Woah. I assumed Jack was a high ranking adventurer but from the way he’s acting he appears to be Armstrong’s equal. How in the world did this man make Adam? A part of me is still incredulous that this man is Adam’s father. I need to follow this man home to see this for myself.

Adam’s dad leads us back to his home, making his way through the crowded streets. As we travel I notice that we’ve been getting a lot of stares which is surprising because given how crowded it is, you wouldn’t think anyone would be able to stand out. Yet this cowboy seems to be able to, even in the midst of preparations for a major event. Either Jack is popular in Colonus, or people are really drawn to his cowboy hat; could be both. We head through a portal and to my surprise, it works perfectly. Will must’ve gotten his portal thing under control which is about damn time. We stride up Adam’s house, his father looking like he’s about to explode due to the happiness building up inside of him.

“This may be a bit late to ask, but why did you want us to come? Aren’t we ruining a family reunion?” I ask as he takes out keys from his wallet.

“Of course not, I invited you two. My son doesn’t have friends over often so I thought it’d be fun for you two to come along.”

“Hell yeah, means I get to drink more of Julie’s tea.” Nerva adds.

“I know right! My wife makes the best tea!” Jack concurs.

I shrug as Jack opens the front door to his house.

“Daddy’s home!” he yells.

“Jack!” a voice echoes back. “Is that you!?”

“You know it honey!”

He heads inside while Nerva and I follow. Inside Adam’s house for what feels like the first time in forever I see that the layout is pretty much the same. I think there’s been a few adjustments, a new carpet, photos have been rearranged, stuff of that nature. From down the stairs comes a blonde woman wearing a very baggy blue t-shirt and blue pajama pants with white stripes.

“And who’s this sexy woman doing in my house?” he jokes.

“Oh you” she responds, embracing him in a hug while Nerva and I stand awkwardly in the back, not knowing what to do.

They kiss which makes us wince.

“Hey it’s Nerva and the second hero!” she exclaims in joy, just now noticing us.

“Sup Julie” Nerva greets.

“Ugh hello” I meekly say, still feeling a bit awkward.

“What are you two doing here?” she asks.

“They’re here to celebrate with us. Encountered them on the way home and thought it’d be fun if they came with” Jack informs.

“Oh that’s nice. How long have you been back?”

“A few hours. Would’ve been here sooner but got caught up helping some guards.”

“Shouldn’t you report to Armstrong?”

“Armstrong’s not going anywhere, he can wait. Where’s my baby boy at?”

“Your fully grown son is in his room. He’s been nothing but a hermit since he came back from Ayana. Can’t wait until the Grand Skirmish starts so he can go outside.”

“Hey be nice, I’m sure he’s been training in his room. Doing hundreds of push ups a day. Hundreds of sit ups. ”

I doubt that very much.

“I doubt that very much,” Adam’s mom quips.

“I’ll go get him. Mind making our guests feel at home?” Jack requests.

“Oh of course. Love it when we have visitors.”

Jack lets his wife go, stomping his way up the stairs.

“Guess who’s home!” he gleefully asks.

“Nerva, second hero, go ahead and sit down, I’ll make you two some tea.” Julie tells us.

“Hell yeah tea!” Nerva exclaims in joy.

She plops herself onto the couch while I sit in a chair.

“You two haven’t been here in awhile. I believe the last time you were here was before you all set off on your first adventure is that right?” Julie brings up from the kitchen.

“Ugh yeah.” I affirm. “Lot’s happened since then. Fought the emperor, put down a peasant rebellion, got shot through the head.”

“You got shot through the head?”

“He did; pretty fucking dope. I wish I got shot.” Nerva comments. “He’s not the only one who’s done cool shit. After we got back from Ayana I went to Oclana and did a bunch of dope shit like fighting some weird mother fuckers wearing animal masks.”

“That’s nice Nerva, good to hear you’ve been keeping busy.”

She comes back from the kitchen, handing Nerva and I cups of tea, sitting in a chair across from me.

“How did Adam do in Ayana?” she questions, looking straight into my eyes.

“He didn’t tell you?”

“No he’s been real quiet ever since he’s come back. He told me it was the worst thing he’s ever experienced but won’t divulge the details. Now he refuses to leave his room, saying something about ‘the 2D world is the only world worth living in’”

I scratch my chin, thinking about what Adam did in Ayana. Images of the fights against that electric guy and Reapers come to mind. Oh my god...Adam actually did stuff didn’t he?

“He did better than nothing.” I confess.

“I did most of the work, kicked the most ass” Nerva claims, as if this is a competition.

“That’s good to hear. Heard things got dangerous. I read in the news that the rebels were connected to demon worship so I got worried. How’s Warren doing? He looked worse for wear the last time I saw him.” Julie inquires.

“To be honest I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since we came back.” I admit. “He’s apparently not in Colonus so I guess he’s out doing his own thing.”

Julie slowly nods her head, clearly in deep thought. I guess she’s worried about Warren and to be honest, I am too.

“D-dad stop! Let me go!” I hear a familiar voice beg.

“Nope! Gotta give my son a big hug! How else will he know I’ve missed him so much?” Jack replies.

Jack stomps down the stairs, holding Adam in a bear hug that makes it look like Adam might explode.

“Honey stop doting on our son, you might kill him.” Julie mentions.

“Ah nonsense! My son can take it, he put down a rebellion after all!”

Adam is able to pry himself free, almost falling over in the process. He notices us.

“Quincy? Nerva? W-why are you guys here?” he asks, probably feeling a bit embarrassed.

“Your old man invited us. Now I’m gonna drink all your tea.” Nerva declares, chugging her cup.

“I kinda got dragged along” I admit.

“Isn’t this great son? Getting to see your dad and your friends?” Jack asks. “Now we can celebrate. Honey, get the good champagne and let’s get dinner started. Son, go play with your friends upstairs until we get everything set up.”

“Dad, we don't play. That’s for kids.” Adam contends.

“Oh then go….honey what do they do nowadays?” Jack asks.

“They ‘hang out’” Julie replies, using air quotes.

“Yeah go do that son; go show off your room.”

Adam’s eyes widened like he realized what’s about to happen.

“Wait no, let’s not go into my room. We can-”

Nerva springs to her feet, running past Adam up the stairs.

“Too late! I’m gonna look at all your shit!”

“Oh no.” Adam mutterrs, drooping his head.

“Ah he’s embarrassed to have a girl in his room” Jack observes.

“That’s not it!”

I get up, walking past Adam to head up the stairs.

“It can’t be that bad, come on Adam.”

Adam doesn’t respond, instead sluggishly follows.

We enter Adam’s room and only one thing comes to mind: otaku. It’s a small room that’s covered with memorabilia. There’s anime-like posters on the walls, figurines on a shelf, and what appears to be a stack of comics in a corner of the room. There’s a bed placed to my right and there’s a small circular table in front of it with a purple crystal placed in a stand. It’s projecting an image onto the opposite wall. On said wall appears to be a vtuber? It’s an anime-like avatar girl projected in the lower right hand side of the display. In the center of the display is a canvas being slowly filled in. Looks like she’s drawing a garden or something. She has light red hair that extends to her back and her eyes are bright yellow.

“Ugh nice place Adam.” I remark. “I kinda expected this. Surprised you don’t have a body pillow on your bed.”

“N-no I wouldn’t have that. That’s embarrassing.” he replies, glaring at his closet for some reason.

“So ugh, what’s with the crystal? And the girl?”

“T-that’s a projection crystal. It allows me to see streams from Albium. The girl on screen is a streamer using an avatar. Her name’s Makima and she’s my favorite out of all of the streamers.”

“Ah ok. I have something like that back home. You watching this doesn’t surprise me at all. As long as you don’t donate way too much money to her or something I can’t judge.”

“Thank you for the 400 gold donation Adam-kun!!!” the streamer cheers.

I look at Adam with a look of disappointment.

“I-it’s money well spent,” he argues.

“Is it? What do you get out of it?”

“She said my name.”

I facepalm.

“Shit I fucked up, accidentally went into your bathroom.” Nerva says, entering the room.

“Wow look at all this shit.” she comments, taking it all in.

She heads to the shelf with figurines on it, picking one up. It’s a figure of a scantily clad woman, I think from that one comic Adam got back in Ayana. She’s in some battle pose, wielding two swords, looking like she’s running towards battle.

“I knew you were a pervert, but damn.”

“I like her character ok? Not because of how she looks.”

“Uh huh” Nerva and I say.

“I’m not lying! Ugh forget it.”

Adam sits on his bed in defeat while Nerva goes through all his comics.

“How did you guys meet my dad?” he questions.

“We were picking up this dope weapon when shit went down because Quincy’s broke” Nerva claims.

“Don’t start with me Nerva; that was all your fault. But yeah that’s when we encountered your dad. He saved our butts and invited us to come over. He’s also promised to train all three of us for the tournament.”

Adam picks his head up, looking at me with an intense look of worry.

“Really?”

“Yeah your dad is strong as hell. Why the worried face?”

“This means I actually have to participate in the tournament. I know my mom signed me up but I was hoping I could skip it. I’m done with the outside world guys, it’s too painful. This is where I belong, among everything 2D.”

“So you just wanna live among this shit for the rest of your life? Watching fake bitches?” Nerva angrily asks, pointing at the vtuber.

“I think it’s a good plan. I-I’m not like my dad. Going to Ayana taught me I can’t do what he can. It’s better for everyone if I live like this. Besides it’s fun, I lay in bed all day, read comics, watch Makima, and don’t get hurt.”

Nerva scowls at Adam, striding over to the projection crystal. She picks it up and chucks it at the wall.

“No! Makima!” Adam cries.

“Fuck staying inside for the rest of your life! That ain’t fun! How are you gonna see people if you do that!?”

“I won't, that's the good part!”

“Too bad! You’re seeing people! Your dad is gonna train us and it’s gonna be fucking dope!”

She walks to Adam, grabbing his ankles, pulling him off his bed.

“Noooo!! Makima save me!” Adam wails as Nerva proceeds to drag him out the room.

I follow them into the hallway where I see Nerva bypass Adam’s parents, taking Adam down the stairs against his will.

“See? I told you.” his mom says.

“Ohhh I see it. I like Nerva. I’d be happy with her.” his father replies.

“See what?” I ask.

They exchange glances and chuckle.

“Don’t worry about it second hero, let’s go have some fun.”

I shrug my shoulders, not thinking any more about it. With that Adam’s time as a neet is over. Like me, he’s going to participate in the tournament against his will and will probably find it a painful experience. But perhaps with Adam’s dad back in town, we’ll be prepared enough to minimize said pain.