Aren has never been fond of mornings, but the past five years had made it all the more unbearing for him. The reason is Stan’s training sessions, which included training for half a day nonstop while reserving the other half for rest and recovery. With how much shit he has to go through for just one training session, it’s only understandable that he would need that much rest if he’s ever going to be able go at it again for another day.

So just like always, he’s making his way to Stan’s abode along the streets of the town. Many of the townsfolk naturally greets everyone they see every morning, so of course Aren would be included too. Waving his hand and replying everyone else’s greets, he came along a familiar face.

“Oh, Aren. Going to Stan’s house?” asked the patrolling guard.

“Yep.”

“Haha, it must be tough huh?”

“Yeah. Compared to me Kail, you only had a year of treatment from him, lucky you.”

The guard before him none other than the Red Hook bandits leader, Kail. Despite being a bandit years before, he has become a fine guardsman despite his mage job. He’s personality has also become much more bearable thanks to Stan’s guidance, which is something Aren doesn’t want to know judging from how he and his comrades were foaming at the mouth each time he found them outside Stan’s home. If Aren were to be frank, he’s glad that he wasn’t taking the same training as them back then.

“Ugh, don’t remind me of it.” Kail remarked, shivering from the memory of it.

Although Kail clearly hates the suffering he had to go through, he’s actually rather thankful that Stan decided to set his group’s lives straight rather than throw them away because of their disposition. Sure, a few of them lost their lives from none other than the hands of their own mentor, but they have already accepted it as their fault. No hard feelings, and he’s pretty sure Stan wouldn’t have done what he did if they all just didn’t resort to such a cruel method. Right now, he's just grateful that Stan was able to steer them away before it was too late to turn back.

“Well, get going now. You wouldn’t want that man to go hard on you again today." Kail said, giving Aren a pat on the back.

“Aight. See ya Kail!”

Aren walked off with a wave with Kail giving him a wave of his own before going back on patrol. The town streets is not what you would call lonely, but not busy either. There were a lot of people going on about doing their own stuff, but they weren’t enough to crowd the streets. As such, Aren flowed through the street flawlessly before being jumped on by a familiar voice.

“Aren!”

Misha, the red haired sunshine, suddenly rode his back and wrapped her arms around him when he wasn’t looking, prompting the poor boy to try and get her off. Being energetic has its merits, one of them being annoying to a certain person. Although Aren very much appreciate the affection Misha is giving him, he is not the type to deal with meddlesome things such as riding someone on the back without permission then just casually disrupt their balance while doing so.

“Misha! Get off!”

“Nope!”

Misha tightened her grip around Aren, allowing her still developing bosom to squeeze on top of his back. Although Aren very much appreciates the affection Misha is giving him, he is unfortunately choking. Not from breasts, mind you.

“Gchk! M-misha… me… dead… no air… Uhk!”

“Ah!”

Misha immediately let go after, allowing Aren to gasp for air and cough. He dramatically wheezed to emphasize just how suffocating the experience was, making Misha express her regret.

“A-ah, I’m really sorry Aren. I was-”

“No! No…” Aren said, dramatically shedding a single tear as he clutched his chest. “It’s over.”

Aren glanced over Misha’s face to get a look on her expression, only to find her horribly mortified. Before Aren could process what he’s seeing, Misha fell unto her knees seemingly hopeless and limp. Her eyes were devoid of life as they lock unto Aren’s, giving the boy a feeling of discomfort and confusion.

“Misha?”

“It’s over…?” She asked in a hushed voice.

A sudden realization hit him before her eyes started to leak. The panicking Aren looked around to see people silently judging him with their stinging stares. Misha is a well known girl in the town for being a cheerful and helpful girl, so seeing her in such a state would only cause the others to look at the suspect with disdain. Aren thought that maybe, just maybe, he went too far.

“I was just teasing Misha!” he explained frantically.

The life in her eyes began to seep itself back in after hearing those words.

“My god you’re as gullible as always.” Aren said with a sigh.

Misha responded by pounding on him with ridiculous strength after standing straight up. By ridiculous, it means almost too weak to even notice. It’s probably because how much Aren has to endure just to see another day in Stan’s training sessions, so this kind of harmless attack almost feels like being repeatedly hit by pillows.

“You shouldn’t have said that seriously!”

“Well maybe you shouldn’t have taken it seriously.” he responded in a sarcastic tone “Honestly, how long do we have to know each other for you to recognize my sense of humor?”

“Until you know how to make it sound like a joke!”

Aren could feel his heart shatter a bit, remembering all the time he had cracked jokes that were met with pity laughs. Although he knew what Misha meant, he was still reminded of it which made his face express an emotion in the most lifeless, straight, poker face he could do; the emotion known as sadness. A normal person would never know what he’s thinking of if one were to look at his face, but Misha knows better. She knew she hit a nerve.

“Wait! Aren, I’m sorry!”

Misha began apologizing before Aren turned around to continue towards his destination.

“Come on Misha. Stan wouldn’t want me to be late.”

“Look, Aren! I’m really sorry!”

They spent the rest of the way doing more or less the same routine, just like they always had.

They arrived at Stan’s house, arguably the largest two-storey house out of all the others in the town. Aside from having a house, it is also sided with a just-as-large walled training ground that both Aren and Stan had used for the sessions. It was spacious enough to allow magic and spars to happen without anyone having to worry about going over to the wall. The training ground’s flooring does not even have a proper flooring, and is instead bared with original down to earth dirty soil. Seto knows how much Aren has hit his face on the dirt, though he still questions the fact that his face is still intact after all those times.

The size of Stan’s property speaks for his position as the town elder and chief. Despite his senile tendencies, he has never actually rusted in terms of skill, mind, and experience. The town most needed his wisdom, and with his grace did the town become self-sustaining and a frequent spot for visitors as well. Of course, it’s not recent news as Stan has been the town elder and chief for almost 23 years, the 12th one to succeed to the position. So even though Aren hates him to the bone, there is no reason for him to not respect the ability and position this person has.

“Oh, welcome back.” greeted Stan on the training ground.

He was currently sweeping up the leaves that have made its way unto the training ground by a nearby tree that was outside walls. Aren doesn’t exactly know what month it is currently, but he can tell from the yellow and orange leaves the tree sports that it is currently autumn. The wind is also starting to get chilly, so it’s safe to say that they are nearing winter. Stan continued to use his long broom to sweep, focusing his eyes on his task rather than the approaching Aren and Misha.

“I’m here. What’s the agenda?”

Aren habitually took off his sling bag and hanged it at a nearby protruding nail. Misha on the other hand took her seat on a nearby bench, something she requested to be made after finding out that Aren trained here. Of course, Stan agreed, then made Aren do all the work. Even though his carpenting skills is just from videos he watched in the past and a little bit of childhood wood ‘n nail tinkering, he made the bench pretty sturdy despite its shoddy appearance. It’s a little uncomfortable, but Misha got used to it after a while as well as she didn’t want to put Aren’s effort in vain. That, and that Aren would’ve turned into a rampaging entity of rage if she didn’t use it after the stuff he has to go through just to make one bench.

To prepare for today, it was necessary for Aren to stretch and warm-up. As for Misha, she is just a visitor and has never participated in any of the sessions, save for one that made her understand that she should never ask Stan to teach her magic enchantment. On the bright side, at least now she knows how to enchant walking canes.

“Today…”

Stan finishes up with a pile of dry leaves on the side of the wall, using the broom to lean on and act as a walking cane. Aren continues his warm-up, ears focused on what the old twig is about to say.

“...you graduate.”

Aren almost immediately kneeled down, fists in the air as he let out a triumphant cry. The day has finally come for the suffering under Stan to end, a day that he thought would never come. Misha, instead of being shocked at the sudden reaction, hugged Aren in pure joy. Both of them then jumped in circles while in each other’s arms, chanting how Aren is finally free.

“But before you graduate, you have one more final task to do.”

The duo’s celebration was cut short with Aren dramatically turning around to look at Stan with disappointment, shock, and frustration. Misha backed away to offer Aren a prayer of peace, hoping that he would have a safe trip to the realm of souls. Aren took a deep breath, and sighed. He should’ve expected that something like this would happen, so there was no point in moping around it now.

“So? What do?”

Aren is much too disappointed to use proper grammar at this point, so he stuck with something relatively simple but understandable. Stan pointed at a stand at the side of his house, where a long sleeved shirt, padded tunic, plated gauntlets and leather boots were presented. Seeing that the stand has some protective items for show, Aren already knows where this is going.

“Give weapon, tell beast, I go.”

This task is going to be a monster extermination. It’s not something unfamiliar for him, since this has been part of his training. The target monster changes from time to time, as well as the difficulty of the extermination. Numerous times he had a lot of near death experience against monsters that he has already developed immunity against it, as well as a proportional hate for Stan. Despite this, it wasn’t as bad since it means he can more effectively fight the same type of monsters in the future. Gaining combat experience through monsters was also a huge plus, since he knows his life won’t be just sitting in his house all day. Eventually, he’ll have to fight if he ever needs to achieve whatever he had in mind.

“Do you remember that time when you almost died?” Stan asked.

“Can you specify? I have, like, a hundred times where I almost died.”

“Are those times related in someway to me?”

“You should ask me what times did not relate to you.”

“Well, I finally found out why there were so much monsters that you had to deal with.”

Aren arched his eyebrow in suspicion.

“Are you sure that it wasn’t because of you?”

“I wouldn’t dare risk the town, Aren.” he replied. “Even if those two are around.”

Stan paced around the training ground as he starts explaining.

“For five years I’ve been observing the local monsters in the forest. As you can tell, deep-dwelling monsters began to appear at the shallower areas after that incident with the wolves when you were still 5.” He then paused, putting his broom next to another stand where his cane rested before picking it up. “One culprit I have guessed was the sudden decrease of food. However, the corpses that you have brought me showed no sign of malnutrition whatsoever.”

Aren had already started donning the long sleeves and tunic at this point to prepare as he listens to what Stan has to say. Likewise, Misha was intrigued by the reason why the monsters has been moving near the shallows.

“Mind control is out of the picture, since I have confirmed that their minds were clear. We also didn’t disturb the society inside it in any way, so there was absolutely no reason for them to move.”

Hanging on the stand near Stan were a sheathed shortsword and a dagger, and where promptly thrown to Aren. Aren caught them with ease, equipping the dagger behind his lower back and the shortsword on his left hip.

“So the only reason is... hierarchy. I suspect that somewhere in the forest, there is something or someone that is ordering these monsters to move closer to the town. Not with powers or abilities, but the power given by position.”

It was then when Aren realized what will Stan make him do.

“No, no no no no. You have my parents for that!” he argued.

“What are you talking about?”

Aren blinked.

“Weren’t you going to make me hunt down a high level monster?”

“Yes. However, they haven’t noticed the increase of monster activity because of your efforts. So why should you involve them in your endeavor? Keep the unnoticed streak going.”

Stan ended his words with a smile, irritating Aren even more.

“You fucking twig…”

Aren sighs, before drawing his dagger to check it.

“So, what’s the monster?” he asked.

“I don’t know. That’s why I’m sending you in.”

Aren immediately threw the dagger to the ground in silent rage. He spent a few minutes silently gesturing towards Stan, mostly trying to convey how everything he does is bullshit. Of course, Stan knew completely what he was trying to tell him, but chose to smugly grin against his protests.

“The monster you’ll face will be unlike the others before. This time, it’s a real threat.”

“Yeah, it is unless you do something about it rather than ME!” Aren retorted, yelling the last part at Stan.

“Aren, are you forgetting the fact that you are about to graduate?”

Aren immediately quickly did a 180 and turned to leave.

“Aight boss, see ya around. I’ll handle this task easy peasy.”

Despite his complaints, he is actually willing to put up with it if it meant for the suffering to end. He feels like he have already done and learned enough to deserve being free. Even though he has some deep grudge on Stan’s antics and personality, he’s still thankful for Stan’s tutelage. The great thing about these five years is that he actually learned a lot from Stan, and by a lot, he means a lot. He has a knack for roundabout ways when it comes to teaching, but once you got to the point, everything just clicks and it’s like a whole new world.

It is especially true when it came for him to learn about magic. It was frustrating at first and actually made Aren get discouraged and thought about giving up on magic, but Stan’s guidance made the effort all the more rewarding once Aren finally got a good grasp in the arcane arts. Stan’s a good teacher, it’s just that his usual methods that made it feel like attending an efficient school while it’s burning down in the depths of hell.

“But before that, a piece of advice.”

Aren stopped on his tracks and directed his attention to Stan. The advices Stan gives are especially useful, so useful that Aren literally memorized all the advices that were given to him by Stan. After all, he didn’t become the town elder and chief as well as his teacher if he didn’t even have the wisdom to turn the town into a successful one, or generate an efficient student. Granted that the student complains a lot, but that’s besides the point. Even so, the advices are usually general and forgoes helpful bits and pieces that could make his task easier. It’s nothing more than a guide, not a walkthrough, like an advice should be.

“Be sure to know where you look at. Preparation comes first when facing adversaries.”

“Of course, I know that.” Aren replied.

“But how can you prepare against something you do not know?” Stan asked.

“Are you telling me to scout first before doing anything?”

Stan said nothing but gave a smile. Before Aren could say anything else, he caught a pouch that was suddenly thrown to him by Stan, containing three pieces of Gails and full of Vins. Vins are silver circular coins that are the second unit of currency of the Gailan Kingdom, the kingdom where Rosenvolt and the town is seated at. It has the Gailan kingdom symbol on one side, with a sword on the other side. A few pieces is usually enough to get you through the day with food, and a few more is enough to buy average equipment. Gails are gold circular coins, slightly larger than a vin, and has the symbol of the Gailan kingdom on one side and the face of what seems to be a lion engraved on the other side.

The budget he has been given seems a little bit too excessive for just an extermination of one monster, but he knows better than to run short on preparations because of the lack of money. He graciously accepted the pouch, making his way over to his sling bag to put it inside and wear it.

“I’ll come with you.”

Both Aren and Stan looked at Misha who just demanded something completely out of the sky.

“No.”

Wanting to keep Misha out of harm’s way, his reply of course was a hard no. She may have helped him numerous times as a supporting hand and thus have just as much, if not less, combat experience than him. However, the situation is clearly in steeps in terms of difficulty and there’s no telling whether she could hold herself out enough. Aren is certainly strong by this time, but he isn’t strong enough to protect himself and Misha at the same time. Misha is capable, but she isn’t as enduring as him.

Misha’s mood naturally went down, this being the first time he ever rejected her participation. It’s not like she doesn’t understand where he’s coming from, but she would like it if she could come along with Aren task. She had already made the decision to help him in anyway she can after being saved by him that one time, and it seems like the only way she could help him in Aren's eyes is to stay out of the way.

“Of course. Spare equipment is in the back. Go fetch it, and you’re all set to go with him.”

Misha quickly sprang and went inside the house without hesitating in haste, clearly eager. Aren gave Stan the glare of disbelief as if he just made the worst decision possible.

“You are going to need extra help if you are going to accomplish this task. It’s not as if she is useless. You’ll thank her after, believe me.”

Aren can argue with him, but knowing Stan, it might be best if she does come with him. Just thinking about her going with him has already kickstarted his mild paranoia, thinking about the numerous possible events that could happen while they are out on an extermination. Needless to say, death was taken into account and how much it would affect him if she died. After all, he treats her like his little sister, precious and innocent, not to mention breaking the news to her mother Cecil would most definitely take a toll both on him and her.

“I’m back!”

Misha came back a while later leaning on the door with rapid breaths and forming sweat. It was clear that she rushed donning her equipment since she’s still braiding her long hair when she arrived. Her outfit looks completely reasonable, but the silhouette seems oddly too feminine to be just some “spare” equipment. The sleeveless padded tunic does not expose it, but the thigh high boots were obviously not something a man would wear, and would only work if one were to wear shorts as short as Misha’s. Aren give Stan a questioning look, silently pointing at Misha to get his point across.

“It doesn’t matter where I got it from, no? Run along now, the sooner this ends the sooner you’ll graduate.”

Stan gave a dismissive wave, before Aren sighed and prompted Misha to follow him outside the house. Aren gave himself time to think before moving on, staying just outside Stan’s house to put himself in thought. Misha, being familiar with Aren’s methods, started to check her own equipment while leaving him in his own mind.

She isn’t the combative type and is rather an auxiliary type of person during combat. She mostly stays behind Aren knowing that her endurance stat is too low for frontal combat. Furthermore, most of her skills granted to her by her two jobs are supportive and does little to no damage to enemies. Because of this, she understands Aren’s worries the most, but at the same time she doesn’t want to stay back when she could help Aren do his job faster and more efficiently. It honestly disappointed her when Aren decided based on his concern over her rather than the efficiency gained from working together. Granted that Aren is often dramatic and emotional, he never forgets to put logic above all else before resorting to purely following his heart. Thankfully, Stan saw her capability and allowed her to join Aren in his task, but Aren’s side on this matter is uncertain yet. Even now, she thinks that Aren is thinking of ways to make her not go with him for her sake.

“You want a staff?”

Aren’s sudden words surprised Misha a bit, looking at him with a confused expression.

“No? Well you do prefer being mobile and nimble while you do magic rather than standing still. So mana stabilizer gloves maybe?”

“So you do know what I’m capable of! So why did you not want me with you earlier?” Misha complained.

“Okay, first of all, we are going to fight something unknown. All the previous monsters that both of us have faced were all defeated with the help of Stan’s experience and prior knowledge.” he said as a matter of factly. “We both know that.”

“But I’m acting as support. I am never interfere with the frontline battles.”

“But you are not immune to targeting.”

Misha stiffened.

“We do not know what this monster will be, and I’m not even sure scouting will help us know what it’s capable of. What I do know is that its intelligence is higher than the rest because of its supposed ranking among the monsters in the forest.”

“Because it commands monsters?” Misha asked.

“Exactly. Instead of focusing on me, it might try to get you out of the picture with all its might and using any strategies and tactics it might have come up with before trying to bring me down. In other words, I’ll have to direct all of my moves on defense and would be unable to fight back. A stalemate.”

“But you don’t know that.”

“Exactly. That’s why I caved in on Stan’s decision.”

Misha looked at Aren dumbfounded.

“Your train of thought catches me off guard sometimes.” She remarked.

“It was with deeper insight that I finally found out why Stan let you in.”

Aren wrapped an arm around her and sided his face with hers, squishing their cheeks together. Misha knew what gesture this was, and expected some corny answer along with a hand sweeping action to go with his usual dramatization of his own acts. She expectantly looked at the sky, the same spot in the sky Aren’s eyes locked their vision at.

“Our bond is stronger than the monster’s might.” he said, exactly in the same way Misha has predicted.

Misha laughed, making Aren let go in an unamused manner. The truth was far from that, Misha knew that Aren knew too. However, this answer doesn’t seem so bad that it actually felt like the right one.

“That’s so cheesy!”

Misha felt a little lighter now that she finally knows Aren isn’t against her company. Aren also felt somewhat the same now that he has reassured her on his side on bringing her with him. Unfortunately for Misha, a lighthearted moment with her isn’t the same without a little bit of teasing. She took a while to realize that Aren was looking at her with disappointment clear in his eyes.

“Wait, you weren’t joking?”

Aren nonchalantly tapped her shoulder as he headed down the street.

“Come on. We’ll get you that mana stabilizer gloves.”

“W-wait! Aren, I’m sorry for laughing! I didn’t know!”

Before she could reach to him and explain, Aren turned around to give Misha a smug grin, before running down ahead. Misha, realizing that she was once again bamboozled, responded in pursuit and constant yelling of the perpetrator’s name. Aren’s final task, is now in motion.