Among the buildings that made up Phera's stone jungle, one of them stood out more so than the others. Even more so than the Riser estate.

  A stone brick building over forty feet high with a golden bell at the top. Draped in colorful banners ranging from red, blue, and green. People couldn't help but look in awe at it when they pushed past the massive wooden doors and into the building center. The name of this place was known throughout Ielos as the Golden Scale Guild.

  There were hundreds of tables, many of which were filled with all types of people, from humans, elves, zoophians, dwarves, and draconians. The sound of friendly, boastful yelling echoed with many of them sang, drank, eat, and much of the talk between the adventurers that populated the hall was that of their tales. From rescue efforts, fighting monsters, and even run-ins with bandits.

  In one corner of the guild, other adventurers were giving monster stones, parts, and even herbs to the guild's staff, who were all dressed in suits, in exchange for runix.

  On the upper floor above the guild hall lobby in an office room, Lyn sat across from a bald man and a dark-complexioned completion dressed in green and purple, Alphonse Maldives, the guild master.

  There was a quiet between the two while he looked over the papers she provided. Lyn, on the other hand, was looking at a crystal orb. Flicking her finger up on it, multiple pictures of registered adventures. With each scroll, her eyes took note of a few members. First was Hector, followed by Ash, then Arthur, and finally she stopped when a photo of Re appeared.

  A smile grew while she looked at the smile he had. Ignoring the puzzling look that slowly grew on Alphonse. "I see why you brought this to my attention, your highness. This could cause some issues..."

  "I'm glad you agree, so I would like for you to make some restrictions on the type of jobs that some of the adventurers can go on." Her words were made clear as she continued. "I've looked more in depth at both the recent fatality and injury rates... and what shocks me is that younger adventurers make up the vast majority."

  Alphonse simply leaned back, taking in her words carefully. "Yes, I do see the reports, and while it does bother me, what do you have me do? I can't stop every reckless kid from going out and having an adventure, now can I?"

  "That is why I'm coming to you. Even if I make a decree, the only place I can enforce such a law would be the city, and even then, unless I assign guards to each expedition group, it will be nearly impossible to maintain that law."

  Thinking it over, Alphonse leaned back. "And that explains why you came to me, but what would you have me do? While it's true I run the guild, you know guild master is more of an advisory and maintenance role. I don't have the power to force people to pair up if they don't want to. And travel? Don't even get me started. We can barely get people to meet the required minimum for dungeon exploration."

  "Then how about this?" Lyn retorted. "Let's do this, we'll add a bonus for those who go above group minimum and for each person that comes back alive!" Shooting up from her set, she thought she'd found an answer.

  The guild master simply smirked at the warmth she gave off, but he hated that he had to extinguish it. "You do know that would lead to us increasing the payout we take from completed jobs, along with the reward price to make up the difference."

  "Eh..." She practically fell back into her seat. "Right..." She sounded drained when that part hit her. "... you can't raise the payout and not account for everything else going up in price."

  Alphonse couldn't help but let loose a hardy chuckle at her reaction. "Well, I don't think that would be the only issue." He spoke between laughing fits before returning to a relaxed, serious tone. Lyn's eyes followed his hand as it hovered over a crystal ball. Once he tapped it, Red's face vanished, and in its place, new people flashed one by one.

  "I take it these are some of the new members, right?"

  "Sadly, yes, compared to last year, the decline only seems to be... so many of those youngins just don't want to be a part of the guild system. They would much rather go off on their own, without being associated with the guild or the restrictions."

  Rather than sulk over the low numbers, Lyn tried thinking of a way to fix the situation. "How about—

  "Well, I must say, I know you've gotten soft, but I never expected you to try and control everything."

  The pair turned to the window only to see a black clad heterochromatic eyed woman move from sitting on the windowsill to walking towards the pair.

  "Ah, Maryan, it's been some time. How is the heat treating you?"

  He was completely ignored by Maryan; she seemed to mostly keep her focus on Lyn. "You know, Lyndis, it may be hard for you to understand, but you can't control everything." She spoke with a playful tone to the Phera's current head of family.

  "Forgive me for trying to look out for people, it's not like it's my job." She couldn't help but roll her eyes. "I assume that with you being here means my sons and their friends are back?"

  A simple nod was her answer. "Just some scrapes, bruises, and pride is what they will be returning with. I'm sure that they will be here any moment."

  "Wait... scrapes and bruises? Maryan, what happened? I thought they were just going to look for Lustrous Root? Wait, they're coming here, why would they be coming here, what happened out there?!"

  "Calm down, I told you they're fine. Besides, in order to grow, people often need to be forced to rely on themselves. You can't baby them forever."

  "Maryan, tell me what happened out there, now." There was nothing friendly in her voice as she addressed her friend. "I asked you to keep an eye on them, and you seemingly let them get hurt!?"

  "No, I didn't let them get hurt; I let them grow. Perhaps if you didn't coddle your son, he would be further along than he currently is."

  When it came to the view of growth, the pair were like oil and water. Between the two, it looked like sparks were flying between them as obsidian black locked with lush green and metallic purple.

  "Ladies, please, please let's not argue." They both turned to Alphonse, whom they both forgot was forced to witness their small dispute. Bring their attention back to him. "Perhaps Maryan could provide a different point of view?"

  "You're right, my apologies." Claiming herself down, Lyn addressed Maryan. "Would you like to join us and... give your... input..." Only to see that as quietly as she appeared, she vanished without a trace. "I swear she enjoys popping in and out of situations just to mess with me."

  Seeing the current predicament, Alphonse had an idea. "Say, Lyndis, how about we go down to the main floor before you go. I'm sure that some of them would be willing to heed your words if they came directly from you."

  Taking a deep breath, she followed him out of his office and made their way down the stairs. With each calm step, the rambunctious noise only grew. When the main floor came into view, Lyn couldn't help but feel nostalgic as she watched people who seemed to be enjoying the company of others, while others shared stories of their travels. But through the ruckus, Lyn was able to pick up on a few words of their tales.

  The presence of the two descending didn't go unnoticed because once one pair of eyes spotted the Pheraian royal, it didn't take long for the two to gather an audience. Each person who approached simply tried to talk over the other, trying to shout their accomplishments at Lyn. While Lyn was being bombarded with tales, she was unable to take notice of a new group that had just arrived from their outing.

  —

  The inside of the guild hall left Fir, like so many before her, mesmerized. Walking through, they had a single target, the guild exchange counter.

  "Hey, you guys go take a seat, I'll go make the exchange."

  They barely had enough time to stop Arthur from swiping the bag before he made a beeline for the counter. Leaving the group in silence while he went to get a place in line.

  Red, Ash, and Hector all looked to each other, waiting for one of them to follow him. It only took a moment before Ash spoke up. "Alright, I'll make sure he stays out of trouble this time. Might as well see if anyone else picked up that quest for Lustrous Root."

  Following his brother, the pair split off from the group, leaving them to find a table. Once they found a place to sit, a human woman with brown eyes and hair set down a few mugs of water before walking off. They happily started to drink the cool water. After their ordeal, the fresh water felt like it was the best water they've ever had while it wet their whistles.

  Roy was preoccupied with snacking, pulling out piece after piece of caramel from a bag. "You know, if you keep stuffing your face like that, your teeth will rot."

  "Humph!" The redhead snapped to Hector, puffing out his cheeks at the comment, becoming the group's new, brief source of laughter. This only caused him to double down. He started to purposely chew with his mouth open simply out of spite.

  "Come on, Roy, if you keep eating like that, I'm not gonna carry you home if you get an upset stomach."

  ----

  The line seemed to crawl at a snail's pace. Ash handled the wait better than his older brother, who only grew impatient with each tap of his foot. Soon, there was an opening and a teller called the Cromed brothers over.

  'Man, why couldn't we have gotten one of those cute girls...'

  "What can I do for you boys today?" The teller spoke out, pulling Arthur out of his mind.

  But before he could respond, Ash spoke up, placing their item bag in a tray, and he slid it under the counter. "I was hoping to exchange these, and if possible, could you check to see if anyone took up a quest for us? It should be under Victor Cromed."

  "Ah, the herb request..." he spoke, looking through a listing as he counted out over twenty of the smaller stones and the two larger ones, along with about half a dozen goblin horns. "All right, your total is going to come to 4,800 runix."

  Sliding it back before Ash could grab it, Arthur snatched it and started to go through, counting each coin. "Hey! What's the deal? You said the total was 4800, but there's only 4600 in here!"

  "Look, kid, to keep your request on the board, we needed some compensation. So rather than contacting your family for the monthly payment, under guild policy, I'm subtracting from your earnings."

  "So you're telling me that on top of the fee we already have to pay to get you to take it, we have to pay a monthly one just to keep it on the board? Do you know how idio—

  "Sorry about that, please forgive my brother, we'll be going." Practically dragging his brother away, they were catching stray looks as Ash pulled him aside. Once he knew they were out of earshot. Ash calmly questioned his brother.

  "The hell was that?!" He calmly shouted.

  "Come on, Ash, you know that was a bunch of bull." Still annoyed, Arthur crossed his arms, glaring at the exchange counter.

  "Yeah, I know, but this has been a guild policy for the past few months."

  This did little to calm him. "I swear what the guild is doing is robbery!"

  "You sound a little like Mom, you know that?"

  "Well, maybe she's onto something."

  Distracted by their conversation, the pair ignored an approaching warm presence that was drawn to their conversation. A pair of hands were soon placed on the two.

  "Arthur, Ash. Is something wrong?"

  Abandoning their conversation, they were met by none other than...

  "Miss. Lyn?"

  "Lady Lyndis?"

  —

  "Hmmm." Roy groaned, no longer eating the caramels. Now he had a roll of warm buttered bread. "What's taking them so long?"

  "Come on, Roy, can't you be a little patient? They wouldn't be much longer." But Red's words went ignored by his brother, rather than let his words fall on deaf ears. Red chose to have a little fun. "You know, if you keep eating like that, you'll gain back all that baby weight back."

  He stopped mid-bite, his mouth hovered over yet another buttered roll. Hector and Fir could only try and hold back their laughter, seeing the crumbs that covered his face.

  "Hey!! I'm gonna be nine soon, I'm far from being a baby!" Puffing his cheeks, he went back to eating, putting in the whole time.

  Joining in, Hector and Red both grabbed a roll, but Fir felt her gaze change from the young boy to recalling today's events. "Hey, Red... how are you doing?

  "Eh, I'm fine, just a few bruises and my arms feel a little sore, but other than that I'm fine... Although I do wish I had a spare pair of shoes, these are going to be soaked for a few days."

  "That's not what I mea—

  "Well, look at the bright side..." Hector spoke up. "At least you're not gonna have a head-pounding headache in the morning. I think I got the better end of the deal." The two couldn't help but joke about the situation.

  "Yeah, guess that's true. Fir, how are you faring?"

  "Well, I'm fine, honestly. I think we have to thank your brother for helping us." Roy stopped eating with his royal blue eyes on full display. "I didn't know that he—

  A rough coughing sound stopped the conversation as they all found themselves staring at Roy. Without thinking, Red started patting Roy's back while the redhead slammed his balled fist into his chest. It only took a moment before he reached for the water glass and gulped it down, before sighing in relief.

  But in the moment Hector took the moment, during Red's discretion, to quietly address Fir. "Hey, try not to bring up the magic thing."

  'Wait, why?'

  "So, Fir, what were you saying about Roy helping out earlier? What exactly did he do?"

  Recovering from his incident, he started at Fir, slightly shaking his head as if trying to tell her to make something up.

  "Well... hmm you see..." She did her best not to stutter while she tried to think of a cover-up. Until it came to her. "He was really helpful in making sure that Alder and his family stayed out of the fight with the Spider Ape."

  "Huh, you did that?" Holding their breath, they hoped it worked. Roy didn't waste a second before nodding his head. "I'm just glad you didn't get hurt. I don't even want to know what Mom would have done—

  "What would I have done, son?"

  A single question caused the boys to freeze, as if they were turned into statues. However, one was left unfrozen, curious by the voice. Fir turned to meet the warm obsidian gaze of a redheaded woman. But black was locked with red.

  In her eyes, the woman looked regal with red and golden flames that seemed to glow off her pure white clothing. The way she proudly held herself when addressing the group, nearly making them the entire focus of the guild hall. She even overshadowed her friends and coworkers as Ash and Arthur went almost unnoticed from behind her.

  "Hey Mom, I didn't know you had an appointment with the guild today."

  She didn't say a thing while she looked them over. True to what Maryan told her, she saw that her son was indeed covered in not only lightly bloodied scrapes and bruises, but his clothing was stained green, similar to both the zoophian and the Cromeds' oldest son. Soon her eyes were locked on blue scales, looking down over their injuries. The drained expression that she saw on the young mage just moments before.

  Extending her hand out, she didn't need to even speak a single word before a soft green glow enveloped her hand. And soon, the same glow formed around the group. While the sight left most of the group unfazed at the display of magic mastery, the same couldn't be said for Fir. Watching in awe, the injuries that covered them rapidly faded, and even the blood on them seemed to vanish. But it wasn't just their wounds that faded. Ash's complexion improved and the color returned to his face.

  "I was told that some trouble found you while you were out. Care to tell me what happened?" Her voice was still stern.

  Within a matter of seconds, Red felt all eyes fall on him, expecting him to be the one to speak out.

  "Well... things were going fine at first, but then we ran into some trouble.

  Retelling the events of the day. Lyn didn't react as he spoke; she simply kept her eyes locked on him, only changing to each person as they were brought up.

  Hearing that he led the charge when they heard the cry for help, she couldn't help but smile at the selfless act. But when he mentioned how he chose to fight the goblin leader in single combat and how he was alter blind sided by the Spider Ape, people swore they felt the heat in the building gradually rise.

  "And we got back to the city, we came here."

  There wasn't an immediate response as they all felt her burning gaze, even if her eyes never left Red.

  She stayed quiet for minutes. The serious, stern look that stuck to her face slowly started to soften. "Red, Roy, Hector, Ash, Arthur, Fir..." Every part of her being was telling her to scold them for their actions, but... "I'm glad you all got home ok."

  The quiet between the group was in stark contrast to the rambunctious guild. It felt heavy, like someone wanted to say something. It didn't want to be the first to speak.

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  "I found a Lustrous Root." A small laugh, almost like a snort, escaped from Lyn as Roy broke the silence. He naively spoke without much care for the situation.

  "That's great, dear. I hope you kids had some fun while you were out. But I think it's time we all head home. I'm sure your parents are eagerly expecting your return."

  They could only look at each other before staring out the window. Seeing that the sun was starting to bathe the street and buildings in an orange hue as the dark storm clouds approached.

  Hector was the first to speak. "Yeah, it's probably for the best. After all, Ma said she's making kabobs tonight."

  "WHAT!? Kabobs? Mom, I want kabobs!" The thought of a skewer was enough to send Roy into a tangent. Listing off what it could be put on them from beef, pork, chicken, bell peppers, and pineapple.

  "Sorry, but your father had different plans for tonight. He's cooking salmon." Sadly, having to shut down his excitement, she couldn't help but smile at him. "Well, what do you say, boys? Let's get home."

  "Yeah, we'd better get going, my boots are still soaked, and I would like to get home before it rains."

  Giving his friends a wave, Red started to walk off with his mother and brother, only to have someone call out.

  "Hey, don't forget about this!"

  Turning back, he caught a small pouch that tangled with the ring of coins. Looking back, only to be met with a toothy grin from Hector, a cocky smile from Arthur, a laughing Ash, and a calm Fir.

  "You're not leaving without your cut!" The draconian called out.

  Looking over the pouch, he didn't immediately pocket it. Instead, he tossed a couple of times in his hand, feeling the weight. Only to let loose a slight laugh, in a rapid motion, he snatched it from the air and threw it back at his blue-scaled friend.

  "Go ahead, keep it." Leaving the guild hall, Red didn't give Hector a chance to respond as they left the guild.

  —

  The city streets were slowly starting to empty as the day was in its last few hours of sunlight, and the storm was approaching. The few people who remained outside were busy either closing up their stands or just trying to spend a few more moments outside before the storm came.

  However, for one person, it became rather hard to walk, but it wasn't due to sore feet or fatigue. It was because each time Red tried to take a step, Lyn was looking him over, trying to find any other visible injuries on him.

  From the rooftops, the sight made Ielos' Hidden Viper had to stop and roll her eyes at the sight of how protective Lyn was when it came to those boys.

  "Come on, Mom, I'm fine... can you please stop?" He cried out while Lyn held his arm, looking it over.

  "Just let me double check, I want to make sure my baby boy is ok." To the few who saw the family walk by, it was a strange reminder that Lyn was a mother, given how she was acting.

  "Mom...."

  "Don't forget to check his head, I saw him take a nasty hit there as well, Mom." Roy had to prevent himself from laughing while he watched his mother go from inspecting his brother's arms to combing through his hair, trying to find any injury. The way she swarmed him, Roy couldn't help but point and laugh at the embarrassment his brother was going through.

  Even his laughter didn't stop him from enjoying the caramel candies.

  Well, something else could, because the moment he tried to throw one into his mouth, the wind picked up and not only caught it, but flung it across the brickstone floor.

  "Humph"

  His sweet tooth got the better of him as he walked off to retrieve the caramel. Chasing after it, oblivious to his surroundings, he marched on. Reaching the piece of candy, he picked it up, gave it a few blows before he popped it in and started chewing. "5-second rule." Happy now that he retrieved what he was after, Roy took off running, trying to make up the distance that had been made between him and his family.

  Only to run into something that was surprised by Roy's sudden attempted burst of speed.

  Looking down, he could only stare at the sight that sat in front of him. Before him was a girl with silvery-white hair and with matching scales that covered her arms, which looked like shiny coins. She sat on her tail. While her clothing was in good condition, the violets and purples made up the primary colors. But what caught Roy's attention was when she opened her eyes; they were a light violet.

  "I... hmm..." Her voice almost went unnoticed by how quiet it was.

  But it managed to knock Roy out of his stupor. "Oh, right, sorry. I'm sorry about that." He simply extended her hand, something she accepted and he helped pull her up.

  "Thank you."

  "Hehe, sorry about that, I didn't see you there." He couldn't help but laugh a little as he rubbed the back of his head, until he offered her the bag. "Hey, wait here, I have plenty to spare."

  "I shouldn't, I need to get back before—

  "Here, take some, it's my way of saying sorry. By the way, my name's Roy."

  "My name is Kor—

  "ROY REGULUS RISER!" A loud voice caused both him and the draconian girl to jump. They turned to a woman with hair matching his, yelling at him. "What on earth are you doing? We need to get home before the rain hits. Do you want to catch a cold?"

  He could only look at his mother and brother. They stood back, waiting for him to catch up.

  Looking back between his family and the draconian, he pushed the bag into her hands and ran to catch up. "Sorry, gotta go, hope we meet again. Hope you can get home before it rains!"

  "Thank you." Was all she could get out before watching Roy wave to her as he ran off to catch up with his family on their way home.

  —

  It didn't take long for the black clouds to soon cover Phera, and before long, rain started to fall. At first, it started out light only to rapidly turn to a heavy downpour, but like the vast majority of its citizens, a young group barely avoided the downpour as they practically rolled through the apothecary door, rolling across the floor.

  "SAFE!!" Arthur shouted as he sprang up from the group, arms held high.

  The moment he cried out, the downpour got harder. going from a light drizzle to pouring cats and dgos. The sound of rain hitting the roof rumbled throughout the home.

  Looking out the window, Ash watched as the window was facing a rapid assault from the rain. "Sorry, Hector. Looks like you couldn't get home in time."

  "Eh, don't worry about it."

  "You can stay here for the night. I'm sure Mom and Dad wouldn't have a problem with that."

  "Yeah, I know there's a sleeping bag here somewhere." Fir joined Ash's solution.

  "Thanks, guys."

  "Just so you know, I call dibs on the shower first."

  "Then I call dibs on the second." Fir followed Ash's example, not even giving Arthur a chance to speak up.

  "Wait, what!?" Arthur was left baffled. "Why do you guys get to go before me?"

  "Because you take forever and use up all the hot water."

  "Hey, I like to get a nice hot soak in when I shower, I don't see a problem."

  "Well then, if there isn't a problem, then I'm third."

  "What!? Oh come on, there isn't gonna be any hot water left!"

  Arthur's complaints were answered with laughter. "You know if you want to be the first to shower, you could just take the shampoo and go to the backyard."

  Noises from the three struggled to escape, only to sneak by as muffled chuckling. Until, like the storm outside, Fir and Hector all broke out in wild laughter from Ash's suggestion.

  The only one who didn't find the situation amusing was Arthur.

  Fir's laughter slowly grew quiet as she grew intrigued by a new aroma that made its way down to the apothecary. She didn't linger in place, leaving the boys, she made her way upstairs.

  At the dining table, there was Victor, looking over and sorting papers. They were likely the receipts of what was sold today and what needed to be restocked, but he did take a moment to smile and wave at her return.

  But she didn't stay long; the smell that brought her up soon drew her attention to the kitchen. Met with the sight of garlic bread, a boiling pot of pasta, and a vegetable salad.

  "Welcome home, you must be Noble's daughter. It's Fir, right?"

  Turning to meet a blue-scaled draconian woman.

  "Ah... yes, ma'am."

  "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Tastu, Hector's mother. If it isn't too much trouble, do you think you can help set the table ?"

  Simply nodding, the two made their way into the kitchen to find Shauna working away over a hot stove, while her father was cutting up peppers and pineapple before searing them in a cast-iron skillet next to a plate of pork that had just finished cooking.

  "Welcome back, dear. How was your escapade?"

  Seeing her father, Fir ran to hug him. "It felt good to go out into the woods again, Dad. The weather was nice while it lasted, although we did run into some trouble."

  "Well then, I guess it's a good thing I gave that knife. I hope it was useful."

  She didn't need to give a verbal answer because her smile told him everything he needed to know.

  "Trouble, huh?" Shauna spoke up as she poured the boiling water down the sink, separating it from the pasta. "Guess we'll have a fun tale to hear during dinner, I hope Arthur wasn't the cause of any of it."

  "No, Mis. Shauna."

  "Hey, come on." Arthur's voice arrived on the second floor before the others did. "I'll have you know that in Red's absence, I held the group together."

  They were intrigued by his statement, now looking forward to dinner to hear all about what happened. In the meantime, Ash went to help Fir set the table, carrying plates and silverware, and Hector took the salad bowl and followed suit.

  Arthur, however, reached for the garlic bread, grinning the whole time.

  In a blur, faster than any eye could track. A wooden wack and a yelp echoed from the kitchen. The bread was left untouched by Arthur's now red-marked hand, trying to shake the pain away before looking to his blue-scaled attacker.

  "You can wait until everything is set up and we are all ready to eat."

  "But, I'm hungry."

  "You. Can. Wait. Did I make myself clear?" Her strict tone completed her kind smile, forcing Arthur to nod, understanding that he did indeed understand what she was saying. "Good, now go sit, dinner will be ready shortly."

  He didn't have to be told twice as he dashed, taking his seat at the table next to his father, leaving both Shauna and Noble to laugh at how the scene transpired.

  Hector returned and, without a single word needing to be spoken, he washed his hands before making his way to the stove. He started to stick each piece of pork, pepper, and pineapple onto the skewer.

  It didn't take long until over a dozen kabobs were made, and they brought out the food, placing it all in the center. Shauna and Victor both took their places at the heads of the table, with Nobel sitting between Ash and Fir on one side and on the other side, Tastu sat between Hector and Arthur.

  The first to make a move was Arthur again. At first, his eyes darted between garlic bread and a kabob, but soon his mind and eyes locked onto the kabobs. Reaching out, he wanted to claim the biggest one.

  Only to be wacked in the hand again.

  "OW! Miss. Tastu, what was that for?"

  Smiling at him, her voice was calm. "We haven't said grace yet."

  Noble was quick to follow. "You know that sounds nice."

  Looking at each other, they all followed Tastu's lead as she grasped her hands together, slightly bowing her head.

  "Dear heaven above," Her voice was soothing. "Thank you for the food that has been provided for us tonight. I would like to personally thank you for keeping our children safe when they went out on their own. Amen."

  ""Amen.""

  The quiet that followed didn't last as Arthur immediately started filling his plate, grabbing two kabobs and garlic bread. Following Arthur's lead, everyone seated, filling their plates as well, eating now that they were all together.

  "So, kids," Victor was the first to speak. "How did it go? Did you guys find any Lustrous Root?"

  "For the most part, it was a good day, but we only found one." Ash was the one to answer, and there was a slight disappointment in his voice when he admitted the results.

  "Well, one is better than none, so good job, guys."

  Tastu and Noble all nodded in agreement, but Shauna recalled what Fir mentioned earlier. "I do agree, but Fir what kind of trouble did you all run into?"

  "Oh, right that..." She perked up when she was mentioned, but when it came to retelling the events. She became reserved. "Well, after we found the Root, we heard someone cry for help, and Red led us towards the call for help."

  "And we found a group being attacked by goblins, and we fought them off!"

  "Don't forget the fact, you tried to hit on the girls at the first chance you got."

  Arthur nearly choked on his bread as Victor gave his son a sly smile, but Shauna and Tastu held a sharp, disappointed gaze on him.

  Rolling his eyes, Hector joined in, making fun of the situation. "Geez, Arthur, your chivalry knows no bounds."

  "Hey, I'll have you know I fought alongside Red to protect those people!"

  "Sure, and afterwards you tried to slide your way in."

  "He did." Fir made a quick follow-up up trying to hold back her laughter.

  Ash finished what Fir started. The two couldn't stop laughing, recalling what happened next. "And got completely rejected."

  Even Hector couldn't fight back a combination of a laugh and a groan as he muttered under his breath. "Why am I not surprised?"

  Shauna was still giving her son the stink eye for his actions. However, one parent was more concerned. "Hey, Fir... were you ok when this happened?"

  "Yeah, I was fine." And with a simple smile, that was all her father needed to calm his nerves... that was until.

  "Fine? You were more than fine, Fir!" Ash exclaimed. "You not only saved me from getting jumped by goblins but also Arthur from being squashed by a Spider Ape."

  At the mention of a Spider Ape, their parents all stopped eating, looked at each other, and stared down their respective children. The storm and mixture of chewing and clanging of silverware against plates was the only noise that could be heard as the minutes went by.

  They didn't need to utter a single word or even look back at each other. They wanted to hear the full story.

  Looking to each other to see who would speak up first. First was Ash, retelling how the conflict first started. How Red was caught by surprise. Recounting how even in the middle of panic, Arthur was the first and his Fir came to his aid, stopping the creature from squashing him, and how they ultimately bought enough time for Ash to finish off the beast.

  That explained the first, but just when Tastu was about to ask, Hector spoke up. Explaining how he didn't know how the battle played out before his arrival, but once his battle started. He told his side of the story; unlike the others, Tastu didn't flinch and kept her focus on her son. Finally explaining how he conquered the beast, his mother smiled.

  Reaching out, Tastu ran her hand through Hector's spiky hair. "At least you boys got home in one piece. Although I wish you were more careful and didn't fight that thing alone."

  Unlike Tastu, Shauna didn't share her happy sentiment. She saw a problem, and she had a solution. "You know, Hector, Fir. I don't mind having both of you join my training regimen with Ash and Arthur."

  The two thought about the offer, Fir more so than Hector. It didn't take long for one of them to answer. "I'd love to, that is, if it isn't too much trouble."

  "Trouble?" She couldn't help but giggle slightly." If I can get Arthur to focus on something just as much as he does girls...

  "Hey!"

  ...there's nothing I can't do." Her grin was soon turned to Hector, waiting for his answer."

  "Shauna dear, we can talk more about this in the morning. After we've all filled our bellies and have a good night's sleep."

  "Yeah, cause in the morning, prepare for the workout of your life!" Shauna cried out, gulping down an ale.

  While laughter once again joined in the storm rainfall, the only ones that weren't laughing were Ash and Arthur.

  "Hey, Fir," Ash drew her attention, as she slurped down her pasta. "I'd recommend a light breakfast tomorrow morning, just in case."

  —

  Long into the night, storm raged on, the flashing lightning followed by booming thunder, painting the dark rainy sky in electrical lights.

  The clouds looked as if they were growing roots. For those who had yet fallen asleep to the rain's melody. But the sky wasn't the one light source tonight.

  A dull light escaped from the window.

  Its origin?

  A lamp on the desk illuminated the corner of the room, shining its light over the pages of a drawing book. A hand was carefully drawing out designs for a sword, unfazed by the crashing thunder that could only try to steal his focus. With Breaker as a reference, he kept adding more images to the pages.

  There were many similar yet unique designs to them. Some blades were straight, some were curved. Many had two edges, while a few had only one. The cross guards and pommels all followed a similar trend, while the pommels were simple flat circles with a small stone, the crossguards ranged from simple to complex.

  But even with the different measurements and looks, they shared a few key aspects with their design. The blades all shared the same shade of red that was found on both his mother's ring, FlameHeart, and her dagger, Sunset Ember, along with his grandfather's sword, Defiant Flame.

  However, late into the night, after looking through the many stories he owned. Family photos. Even using Breaker as a reference, Red found himself lost. None of what he drew felt right

  "Ahhh..." He couldn't fight back the yawn, stretching his arms up before shaking himself. "Well, guess it's getting late, time for bed. Today felt like a long day, longer than usual." Closing his journal, turning off the lamp, and returning Breaker to its sheath, he made his way to bed.

  Sinking into his mattress, he didn't immediately fall into a deep slumber. The events of today are still fresh in his mind.

  As if it had a mind of its own, his hand rose as he found himself staring into his palm. Despite the dark room, he narrowed his vision and a calm breath escaped.

  His right hand grew warm. Not trying to make a fireball, he simply wanted to set his hand on fire.

  'I need to get stronger... But how?'

  It only took a moment before his hand gave off a little light. Slowly, the light from his hand sparked. There was little heat, with tired focus combined with the dark of his room and the melody of the rain. His vision slowly gave out.

  —

  It was strange, the sun was high in the sky, and the low crashing of waves replaced the rainfall. He was no longer covered by a blanket, but sinking into sun-baked sand that oddly wasn't hot. The blue sky was painted white with clouds.

  "Why am I at the beach?"

  And for some reason...

  "Why do I feel shorter?"

  "Red, what are you doing here? Your dad has the grill going, so come on." Walking towards him was his swimsuit-clad mother. It was white and gold with a flame-like pattern on it and a black sash wrapped around her waist.

  As Lyn got closer, something became odd. She looked a little taller than he was used to.

  "Hey, Mom, what's goin–

  Before he could finish, Lyn reached out, grabbing his hands and turning them to her. A tired groan came from her, but it quickly turned to a soft smile.

  "Maybe it's my fault for not sending you back to bed when you were a kid first thing in the morning."

  Once she released his hands and turned them over, he found his hands were covered in burns. They were bright pink and covered in blisters.

  "Wait, when did—

  "Well, I can only blame myself for raising such a hard worker. But I do wish you wouldn't go so far, you're still little, so how about you just take a few days off and have some fun at the beach. After all, I practically had to beg my father to take over the royal duties for a few days."

  As she spoke, a chant started, and she gained a green glow as she cupped his hands. His hands healed, and the blisters and fresh pink look started to fade.

  'Wait, I remember this. This is —- Beach, and I got to see that.' Looking up at the memory of he had of Lyn, he grew giddy, remembering what she would do next.

  "How about I show you a little something of what you're trying to reach, since you're so determined."

  Watching her walk past him and towards the ocean. Her body heated up to a degree that even in his memories, he still felt the heat.

  "I call upon fire. I summon forth a Crimson Blaze. There are those who cry out in their time of need, let the fury of hellfire be their saving grace."

  He could only remember the heat that came off with each word Lyn spoke.

  "So hear the roar of a wild, unmatched blaze. Use my courage, my wrath, my will, as fuel for those flames."

  His excitement only grew, watching as Lyn extended her flame-covered hand out towards the sea.

  "Blast—

  "Hey, Red." A new voice called out and the world started to shake. The voice was a strange mix of quotes and trying to speak up. The shaking got rougher.

  For a moment, the world went black. The sound of waves was replaced by rain, and the feeling of sand turned to cloth.

  The darkness gave way to a new, lighter darkness, and turning to the shaking, crimson eyes were able to find scarlet hair.

  "Roy... what are you doing? Shouldn't you be in bed?"

  Watching red hair pop out from the white blanket almost made him laugh. "Well... do I need a reason to spend the night with my big brother?"

  "Are you sure it has nothing to do with the storm?"

  "No, absolutely not. I'm not a baby, a little storm isn't gonna—

  A flash of light, followed by a cracking boom, caused a shriek to fill the room. It didn't take long for a failed attempt at halted laughter came from Red, unable to hold it back. Roy only grew angry and pouted.

  "I thought you said you weren't afraid of a little storm?"

  "I'm not! I... just don't like thunder."

  Watching Roy crawl into his bed, he made himself at home, not leaving Red any choice but to accept. "Alright, fine, but you better not hog the space."

  An excited smile grew on Roy as he got himself situated in bed. Red made his return to bed and got under the covers.

  The thunder didn't relent. The sound of a shattering boom bellowed and lit up the sky.

  He could hear his brother hold back a yelp, so without thinking, Red pulled him in closer and, before long, the pair surrendered to the night, letting themselves fall asleep to the rain's lullaby.

  —

  However, Roy wasn't the only redhead unable to fall asleep. For who knows how many hours, Lyn just lay in bed staring at the ceiling.

  "You can't baby them forever."

  "If you didn't coddle your son, he would be further along than he currently is."

  A growl escaped when Maryan's voice echoed in her mind.

  "Is something bothering you, Lyn? You were quiet at dinner."

  "It's nothing, Achilles, I'm fine." With her answer, she rolled to her side. Whether she meant it or not, her tone was agitated.

  Only to feel the bed shift as Lyn soon found herself being pulled into Achilles' grasp as her back was pressed against his chest.

  "You can't fool me. What's the problem?"

  Still, she didn't talk; it was like she locked her lips and threw away the key. But a sly grin grew on Achilles... because he knew how to get past his wife's barriers.

  "Come on, Achilles, I said it's nothing."

  Holding her closer, he moved his other arm under her arm. Only then did his grin grow as he began his assault.

  Targeting her sides and under her arms, he mercilessly tickled her.

  "Hehe— hey qui— I said quit it." All she could do was try to prevent her laughter from escaping as Achilles continued his assault.

  "I'll only quit once you fess up!" Laughing to himself, he made it his goal for the night to find out and try to fix it. "Come on, Lyndis, spill it!"

  Despite her efforts, laughter continued to escape as their room was starting to make more noise than the storm outside.

  "Haha, ok, gah, I give, I'll tell you!" She could barely get the words out between fits of laughter.

  While Achilles stopped his assault, he didn't let her go from his embrace as he heard her breathing become deep.

  "Do you think I've been stunting Red's growth?"

  "No, I think you've been doing great teaching him. What brought this up?

  He could feel her almost go limp as she spoke. "Apparently, when he and his friends were out, they ran into not only a Goblin horde but a pair of Spider Apes."

  "Well, that doesn't sound too bad, sounds like the trouble we used to get into." He didn't understand what caused this. "I mean, they came basically unharmed, and Maryan was watching over them."

  "But that's the point!" She shot out of his grip, standing on top of their bed. "When she told me about what happened, I snapped at her, demanding why she didn't do anything, and she told me if I didn't coddle him... would he be further along?"

  "Who knows? I can't say, but I think he'll get the hang of it, just give him time. I think the moment he makes that breakthrough, he'll be looking to you for more guidance; it's just gonna take time."

  She sank back to her knees. "You really think that? Cause it feels like he's made more progress when Lucina was here." Pouting slightly at the thought of someone else being the cause of the small breakthrough

  "Well..." He pulled her back down with a smile on his face. "That's the main reason I got better, I wanted to show you up."

  "Oh, is that now... well, maybe I should remind you who the stronger of the two of us was back then." There was a slight tease to her voice as she moved to sit on his lap.

  Their smiles mirrored each other; not even the heavy storm was able to distract them from one another. In this moment, they were oblivious to the world. Leaning in, a pair of lips connected for a moment, their foreheads touching as they separated.

  "Better?"

  "Better."

  "You know, I could take him to a dungeon that might help him. What do you say?"

  Giving him a blank, Achilles was met with a chop to the head. "Really? Now of all times?"

  "Come on. It could be good for him." Pulling her closer, he tried to stay on her good side.

  "Hmm, I'll think about it, but don't expect a yes. Now go to sleep, I'm tired." Turning her back to him, she left his arm wrapped around her again as the pair fell asleep.