Fired for Romance

Three days had passed since the funeral of the Priestess of the Flame, Shula, and Flambell City had yet to regain its usual composure.

"In the end... what exactly happened at that moment?"

"The guards are still looking for the cause..."

"But no one has found the answer yet."

The citizens spoke in whispers about that night when the sky caught fire with impossible lights and the volcanic rocks were covered in vibrant petals.

"Perhaps it was a blessing from the Flame."

"Don't be stupid! That was clearly a provocation!"

For many, it was a farewell miracle; for others, a sign that the world was changing irreversibly.

"I still don't understand it..."

And amidst the confusion, Shija walked through the cobbled streets, feeling the weight of the new reality upon his shoulders.

"What the hell are you thinking about now?"

Beside him, Boudica kept a steady pace, observing the flower sprouts that still persisted between the cracks in the stone.

"The flowers, the lights... Everyone says it was Shula's final blessing, but something tells me there is a much more chaotic hand behind all of this."

In response to the question posed by Boudica, Shija broke the silence, looking up at the sky where the glow of that night was last seen.

"If you're talking about that... only one culprit comes to mind..."

In reaction to his words, Boudica nodded slightly, her bikini armor clinking softly with every step.

"But now the important thing is to find her."

Then, sighing, Boudica turned, looking at Shija with exasperation.

"I find it hard to believe that, after all the scandal she supposedly caused just to get here, she simply 'vanished'."

Hearing that, Shija sighed, recalling the conversation he had to catch up on recent events.

"Knowing her, she didn't disappear just because."

According to the reports, as soon as Melioris set foot in the city, she mysteriously vanished after speaking with the Baron.

"Melioris isn't the type to hide; she's the type to wait until the stage is ready. But where could she be, or for what reason would she do all this?"

Shija nodded, stopping in front of an alley.

"It's frustrating. We've scoured half the city and no one knows where she is."

At those words, Boudica looked up toward the heights, where the smoke from the great bonfire still drifted.

"You know she loves to see how we react. If we want to find her, we have to think about which place in this city would be the most entertaining for 'something' like her."

But barely had Boudica's words finished floating in the air when the silence of the alley was broken in the most unexpected way possible.

"Booooooo~!"

A childish and mocking shout echoed behind them both.

"¡?! "

"What the hell?!"

Both Shija and Boudica jumped, instinctively turning with their guard up to find the one responsible for all their recent migraines.

"You dropped your guaaaaard~!"

Melioris was there, floating just a few centimeters off the ground, but in a completely relaxed position: reclining in mid-air, with her hands interlaced behind her head and one leg crossed over the other, as if the void were the most comfortable couch in the world.

"How careless of you. If I were a monster or something else, right now you'd be nothing but a couple of meat stains wasted on the ground."

Melioris exclaimed in a musical and playful tone, bobbing up and down as a mischievous smile spread across her face.

"Fuff... Melioris."

Shija finally let out a long sigh, trying to calm his pulse as he lowered his guard, though his eyes remained fixed on the "girl" with a mixture of relief and irritation.

"I should have known you'd be stalking us. Where the hell have you been all this time?"

Boudica, for her part, didn't even try to hide her frown.

"You didn't scare us! We just didn't expect you to appear out of thin air... again."

Thanks to the constant abuse courtesy of Melioris that Boudica had received throughout their journey, she was now capable of snapping back, even if the slight trembling in her hand betrayed the shock that her soul and body still harbored.

"Explain yourself. The entire city believes a miracle occurred, and we know you have something to do with it."

However, ignoring the demand, Melioris let out a giggle, spinning in mid-air until she was in a seated position, looking at them both with shimmering eyes.

"It was just a small, dignified farewell. And as for where I was... let’s just say I was closing a very boring deal with a very rude lady."

At that moment, upon hearing the word "deal," the atmosphere shifted drastically for the two companions.

"....."

Shija maintained a deathly silence, closing his eyes as he brought a hand to his chin. His mind began to work at full speed, reflecting on the implications of Melioris having been negotiating with someone in the shadows for days.

(I'm sorry, Guild Master... I failed you...)

His suspicions were grave. He apologized internally to the Guild Master, to whom he had promised to keep the chaos under control, and felt he had failed miserably as his instinct told him that the worst was yet to come.

"A DEAL?! ANOTHER DEAL?!"

In contrast, Boudica completely lost her composure.

"Tell me you didn't use our gold! Tell me you haven't bought another 'invaluable curiosity'!"

Boudica shouted, falling into a frantic panic while waving her arms as if trying to ward off a ghost. She remembered with painful clarity the last time Melioris had drained every last cent of their savings to make an "interesting acquisition" from her chaotic perspective, leaving them literally on the street.

"Melioris, for the love of all that is holy!"

It was that bankruptcy that had forced them to humiliate themselves by accepting the Adventurers' Guild mission to escort the now-traumatized merchant, Glutt.

"We're barely catching our breath after the journey with that greasy baron! If you've left us in misery again, I swear this time I'll retire and become a farmer, even if you kill me!"

Faced with that cathartic reaction of stress-induced madness from Boudica, Melioris, far from feeling guilty, tilted her head with an innocent smile, enjoying the warrior's nervous breakdown.

"Oh, dear, what little faith you have in my business skills. For this time, I didn't buy anything with money!"

Faced with Shija’s intensely questioning look and the frown of a Boudica who still didn't know whether to cry or scream, Melioris was not intimidated.

"But monetary concerns aside, I have been very productive. During these days, I have been 'chatting' with my good friend Glutt and gathering information from other very interesting sources."

On the contrary, she straightened up in mid-air, puffing out her chest with a childish and triumphant pride.

"Your 'good friend' Glutt?"

Both Shija and Boudica were left in confusion, arching their eyebrows.

"Ufufu~"

Watching their reactions, Melioris let out a mysterious giggle and, with a swift movement, reached into her pocket—which seemed to have a space much larger than its size suggested—extracting an ancient parchment map and two strange artifacts.

"Tada~!"

The first was a Smoked Crystal Compass: instead of a needle, it had a tiny blue flame suspended inside that spun erratically, searching for something that did not belong to the magnetic north.

"Say hello to these little guys."

The second was the Tracker’s Eye, a lens of brass and obsidian that vibrated rhythmically, emitting a pulse of warm light whenever it pointed in a specific direction.

"Well, now..."

With a calmness that was almost unsettling, Melioris floated toward Shija.

"?"

Without a word, she took the Smoked Crystal Compass and delicately placed it in his hands.

"This belongs to you~"

After handing the artifact to the bewildered Shija, Melioris spoke with unusual softness, closing Shija's fingers over the cold object.

"Shija, Boudica..."

Then, the air around them seemed to shift. Melioris's playful expression vanished; her posture became rigid and elegant, and her voice... her voice transformed. She was no longer the mischievous girl; now she spoke with the tone of a mature, refined woman of crushing authority—the voice of someone who has commanded empires or destinies.

"We have shared a long and, I admit, highly entertaining path. Your services have been... adequate, and your patience with my particularities has exceeded my initial expectations. However, the threads of fate are fickle, and the routes we must take from this point forward no longer converge on the same horizon."

Thus, she began a speech, interlacing her fingers in front of her as she slowly descended until her feet touched the ground. She continued for several minutes with an impeccable and extensive oratory, filled with corporate-style words of gratitude and reflections on personal growth during the journey.

"Therefore..."

Until finally...

"Considering that the objectives of this travel unit have been satisfactorily met... you are fired."

She performed a perfect bow, bending at the waist with the grace of a high-born noble, decreeing the end of their adventure.

"I thank you deeply for this unforgettable journey. May fortune smile upon you in your future endeavors."

She turned around, about to leave.

""Hold it right there!!""

"?"

Upon hearing the strident shout, Melioris spun on her heels, wearing an expression of genuine confusion, as if she didn't understand why anyone would want to stop such a perfect farewell.

"What does this mean?!"

Ignorando tal reacción, Shija exclamó, dando un paso adelante con la brújula en la mano.

"We had a deal where you promised to help me!"

In the face of Shija's heated shouting as he approached her, Melioris...

"And I have fulfilled it."

She responded matter-of-factly, blinking innocently.

"My part of the deal was to train you in what was necessary to become stronger so you could survive, while also giving you the destination to set out for. Your teacher is under the control of an otherworldly being, right? That compass is tuned to that essence. It will lead you straight to her. I have fulfilled my part to perfection."

"¡¡?!!"

Hearing the answer, Shija fell silent, clutching the compass as he processed that Melioris knew much more about his teacher than she had let on.

"And what about me?!"

But before he could reply, Boudica intervened, her voice trembling with a mixture of indignation and bewilderment.

"I swore loyalty to you! Why are you firing me too, as if I were a nuisance?!"

"Have you seriously not realized it yet?"

"What...?"

"Haahhh..."

At that moment Melioris sighed, walking toward them again, but this time she looked at them with a spark of mischievous amusement in her eyes...

"Oh, Boudica... I've been listening."

With growing theatricality, she pointed at them both.

"I've listened to the dynamics you have, the rhythm of your conversations, the silences... things that even you yourselves aren't aware of yet. And I have my own rules."

Thus revealing a truth that neither of them was publicly aware of.

"Under no circumstances am I going to interfere in an external romantic comedy!"

Shouting an uncomfortable truth for the whole world to hear.