Johnny Appleseed… Johnny fucking Appleseed. The man, the legend, and for some reason this guy looks like an actual apple. Bastard even got a 'stem' coming out of the top of his head, what cartoon did this guy get kicked out off?!

He spoke with the group, mostly about Beatrice, and would joke around about Beatrice being the best and whatnot. Vita only bothered to pay attention when Johnny started talking about wendigos.

“Y'know, I am actually writing a paper on different types of legendary monsters and with one right here I was if it would be alright for both you and Vita to answer some questions of mine?” He asked Diana, already with a notebook out ready to write away at a moment's notice. Beatrice was already ready with a fist, but Johnny was surprisingly agile and dodged every strike coming his way. Clearly, this is proof of them being siblings.

After Diana agreed, and Beatrice stopped trying to attack her brother, Johnny started with a simple question; “So, how did you find Vita? I imagine that it wasn't just looking at a pet store and BAM, there Vita is.” He dramatically waved his hand around, but stopped to let Diana speak.

She was quiet for a moment, rubbing her shoulder while thinking, before deciding to speak up.

“Well, I was actually looking for a direwolf in the World's Tongue. But then I- well, I was more or less saved by Vita.” She continued fiddling with the rim of her sleeve as she spoke the first week or so of living with Vita. Johnny on the other hand would ask questions about 'wendigo-physique' and other habits that Vita has shown during its time with her. Beatrice, Heracles, and Earl would make a couple of comments based on when they fought, which Johnny would note down. And he didn't use a pencil or a pen to write down the notes, no. He used an elongated apple seed to write down his notes.

A couple of minutes later, Johnny seemed to be satisfied and put away his stuff with a small smile on his face. But right as he turned around to leave, he seemed to remember something and pulled out a strange flat device.

“Oh, and before I leave, is it alright if I take a photo of all of you? It's sweet Beatrice's first official day here in the University after all.” Smiling, he held up the device. It reminded Vita, strangely enough, of a camera.

“You managed to afford a camera?! Why'd you waste so much money on something like that?” Beatrice walked up to him and harshly grabbed it out of Johnny's hand, examining it and tilting it around in the little sunlight that managed to get through the clouds.

“A camera? What does that do?” Heracles got closer to it and took it from her hands. Apparently, everyone except for Diana reacted when they saw the camera. Guess that's what it is like to be rich.

—

“Alright, here it is.” Johnny showed the picture to the group. Beatrice in the middle and Diana, Heracles, Earl, and Vita to the sides and back. Honestly, everyone other than Beatrice were out of frame. But none got to complain, as Johnny ran away while waving his hand and yelling about; “Gotta go! Time is running out!”

So, everyone simply sat back down and relaxed for the hour of free time they had for the day. The sky was gray with clouds that the sunlight still managed to pierce, the light itself was spreading a spring-like warmth over the land. Everyone was sitting on a bench and enjoying the sunlight. The day wasn't over, there were still a couple more classes they had to attend to. But for now they simply sat there.

And they got bored quickly, so they started sharing notes.

“Heracles, what language did you write your notes in?” Earl looked over Heracles notes with a hint of curiosity in his eyes. The notes were scribbled down in such a way that none understood it. Even expert level linguists would have problems understanding these notes. Heracles looked over his own notes, traced the letters, and answered;

“Well, I don't understand how you guys don't understand it. It's clearly written here about the nature of mana and how it covers everything.” Earl went over the notes again, but gave up on trying to understand it and simply shook his head.

They were… Having fun. They were laughing and making jokes. And Vita didn't like that. Not in an evil kinda way where you need to stop their fun, but in a bored kinda way.

Ugh, when will this torment end! They are giggling like a bunch of kids! Well, they are technically kids to some degree, but it's still so boring. Oh, my oldest friend. Do you mind if I cry on your shoulder for a while? Only for so long these kids continue smiling.

Vita held onto the old plant-cell that had far outlived its natural lifespan, and fake-cried. Streams of molecules streamed out from two holes on the Vita-cell, spilling all over the plant-cell.

For but a moment, it felt emotion. But it was for but a moment, that quickly went away.

—Somewhere else-

Two figures landed in a clearance inside the World Tongue. They were covered from head to toe with tight-fitting fabrics that were dark red, a symbol of a dragon biting a sword stitched to their shoulder. One was tall, the other short, and both had daggers at their sides ready in case something were to happen.

The tall one looked around, their eyes covered up by tinted googles. The short one went down to a knee and examined the ground. With a faint glow, markings all over the area lit up.

There were traces. Traces of a fight. Footprints belonging to multiple people who seemed to have been in formation, but something had clearly gone wrong, considering that there were also traces of blood on the ground.

Multiple spots further away had multiple charred spots and others effected by a large combination of different offensive and defensive spells. Using some mana, the short one relayed this information to their partner. Shortly after, an answer came.

“Burns; crippling level. Stay alert.”

“Copy that.” They started to move, with weapons drawn.