45 – Plans? End of Arc 3.

When morning came, I woke up earlier than usual and silently got out of bed. Kneeling down on the bedroom, I faced the three sleeping women and put my hands together.

“Thank you for blessing me with your love,” I prayed to them.

I had found a new religion. In my eyes, only they were Goddesses. After performing my daily prayer, I left the room and went to the living room, where I sat down and updated my journal.

A lot happened in only three days. I could only imagine what would happen in the following year.

Taking out a sketchbook, I occupied myself with drawing while eating some fruit for breakfast. I sketched the town, the lake, the fish we ate, the people who tried to kill me, and the many animals and monsters I had seen, including those from the dungeon.

I draw Pokora's blank face, and realized I couldn't show my journal to people who didn't know she was from Earth. I am a firm believer that people should tell their own stories, especially if that includes secrets they're not ready to reveal to just anyone.

I hummed as I draw Sonya running along the shore of the lake, and closed the sketchbook when I was done.

Next I pulled out my spear and checked it for a while. The bright orange blade was spotless and had no chipping even though I had used the thing quite a lot. I had no real knowledge of how to maintain equipment or weapons, but I could tell it was in top form. It's weight was nice, and the balance was perfect for me.

Holding it on a stretched finger, I noticed it didn't wobble in the slightest.

A door opened, and I turned to look at the source.

Lapia came out of the room freshly showered, wearing her daily clothes and approached me with a smile on her face.

“Morning, sunshine.”

“Good morning,” I greeted back. Then, I nodded at the spear and raised it a little, “Hey, can you lift this?”

The Elf's eyebrows rose and she gave me a cocky smirk.

“It's just a spear,” she replied, wrapping a hand around it. “Why couldn't I... lift... huff! This...?!”

Her brows knitted together and she glared at my weapon. Then, she used two hands to try and lift it.

“Hnngg!” she groaned and her shoulder muscles strained, thickening a few veins on her neck. “Haaa...” she sighed and let go of it. “I can't...”

“I see,” I muttered, moving it up and down with a single finger. “How much would you say this weighs?”

“A tonne at the very least,” she gave me a tentative calculation, squinting at the spear. “I bet Yolin could lift it no problem. And you swing it around at shocking speeds... damn!”

I chuckled and stored the weapon. She sat down next to me on the sofa and leaned her head on my shoulder.

“Last night was pretty intense,” she muttered with a yawn.

“It was,” I replied with a nod, feeling my cheeks heat up.

“Haha,” she let out a quiet laugh. “You're so cute when you blush.”

I turned to her with a small smile.

“And you're always cute,” I replied.

Her eyebrows went up and a big smile formed on her face.

“Wow,” she whispered, giving me a few nods. “Did you sleep well?”

“Actually, I did,” I confessed with a big smile. “It was only running through caves last night.”

She stared at me for a few seconds.

“It's amazing you haven't developed some trauma,” her voice was a little concerned, and her face showed worry.

I laughed. “Lapia, I was the traumatic event.”

She bit her lips, fighting a smile.

“I bet,” she replied, shaking her head. “Natasha, I've been thinking.”

“About?” I faced her, looking into her green eyes.

“It's about time for a test,” she ruthlessly declared. “I need to know if you've learned what I've been teaching you the last few weeks.”

I winced. I was not prepared for that. Letting out a long sigh, I gave her a nod.

“Fine,” I grumbled. “Did you prepare a test sheet?”

“A what?” she asked, leaning back a little. “Not at all. Oral interrogation is best.”

“Well, you're the teacher,” I shrugged. “You know more about that.”

“That's right.” she stood up and went to the small kitchen, where she fetched some fruit. “I'll be having breakfast in the meantime. Did you eat already?”

“I did,” I replied.

“Good.” she nodded, then walked back to the sofa and sat down facing me. “First question: What is the name of the field of study that deals with the construction of objects with E'er that is used as base by a wide variety of classes?”

Holy shit, I whined in my mind. Straight into the thick of it.

I thought for a few seconds, recalling our lessons.

She ate a purple tomato-looking fruit and hummed at the taste, licking her lips.

“Conjuration,” I replied after remembering.

“Correct,” she clapped two times. “Next: Tell me the six states of matter.”

Easy, I chuckled.

“Liquid, Solid, Gas, Plasma, E'er-charged matter, and E'er-starved matter.”

She nodded. “Good. Next: What do we use to measure temperature?”

“Yiama Degrees.”

She gave me a thumbs up.

“Tell me the twelve Laws of E'er.”

Holy fucking shit, this woman is out for blood. I felt a shiver run up my spine. I'm dating a psychopath!

I definitely wasn't ready for a test.

***

“You barely passed,” Lapia announced after twenty questions.

A few were trick questions, and I disliked those. A few others were questions I had to expand the subject on, I liked those.

I sighed and leaned back on the sofa. Relaxing my shoulders I noticed I had tensed up, and a slight anger was rising.

Why am I getting angry for? I wondered. It's not something to get mad about.

I stood up and walked to the door.

“I'm taking a stroll,” even my voice was lower than usual.

“Take care,” the Elf's voice somehow made me angrier.

Yeah, I need to cool down, I concluded.

Leaving the cabin, I followed the cobblestone path that connected the resort with the town. I had chosen a blouse and some shorts for the day.

I never liked shorts that much, pants even less. It wasn't that I hated them, but I preferred skirts. Adding the funny and mysterious storage I had, pockets were simply useless so a skirt's value increased in my eyes. It had nothing to do with the fact I could rip the fabric around my thighs apart if I flexed them.

Thinking back on people bursting watermelons with their legs made me smile, but it soon vanished.

The path was lined with bushes and tall trees. Their leaves were deep green, and the stems and trunks were a healthy color. The bark had no cracks and a few bugs made noise and flied around.

A few bugs resembled the blood-sucking kind that keeps people up at night. I couldn't remember the name for the life of me. At least in English.

“It's комар,” I spoke the name in Russian, staring at one that was the size of my hand. “Pretty big.”

I appraised it and saw it was a level 32 Bod'en. A little scary, but people are higher level than that around these parts, except for the kids.

“Bod'en, Ijir'en, Vok'ren, Ur'en,” I recalled as I walked the path. “All bugs that end with 'en'. The Ir'ek were caterpillars, though. Would they turn into butterflies or something? Do all caterpillars turn into one?”

I sighed. I didn't know that. I did know all about Monet, Picasso, van Gogh, Dali, Pollock, and others like them. I also knew everything, or most, about the renaissance period that had to do with art. I could draw in four different styles at a level that allowed me to live a fulfilling life and earn enough money to buy a house during the pandecade. I worked for a big name company, worked on projects millions of fans enjoyed and praised. I even earned a generous salary.

I gave it a good thinking.

Is that what makes me angry? I wondered after a while, enjoying the scenery. The gap of knowledge? The fact I can't focus on the arts because I'm a Halve? But I'm alright with that. I even welcome it. It's exciting. The challenge, the danger, the chance for a worthy opponent. Even people trying to kill me didn't get to me this much.

I reached the town, and walked for a while.

A stall was selling juice and ice cream, where I bought a cup of apple-flavored smoothy for ninety copper coins from a male Shishi Tigea.

After a few minutes, I arrived at a plaza with some greenery and sat down on a wooden bench as I sucked on the paper straw.

A few children were playing on the fountain in the center of it, laughing while chasing each other and splashing water.

Watchers were paying close attention to them, far enough to not get in the way of their games, but close enough so they could reach them if anything happened.

Among them, I noticed Lorena, and she noticed me at the same time.

Her blue eyes widened a little and she gave me a nod, then walked towards me.

Please, don't.

“Lady Natasha,” she greeted me with a nod. “Good day to you.”

“Good day,” I replied in Kator, then took a sip of my drink. I nodded to the kids, “Busy already?”

“A Watcher never rests,” she gave me a smile. “Do you mind if I sit next to you?”

I moved to the side and gestured at the empty spot.

She fixed the saber at her waist and took a seat next to me.

The smell of peaches tickled my nose.

“What's going to happen to Elena?” I crossed my legs and leaned on the back rest.

“She'll be escorted to Paarjo, to the Faeton Elven Embassy,” her voice was energetic despite the events of last night. “They'll make sure she finds whatever relatives she has left. She's pretty advanced in her age.”

“I was thinking of letting Yulianna know,” I chuckled. “But she's nowhere to be found.”

“It's a problem when the only known contact a person has is a Halve,” she nodded a few times.

“Yeah, I can see that,” I gave my drink another sip. It was pretty damn good.

The wind rustled the tree leaves, and Lorena's hair fluttered a little.

“Where are you heading next?” she asked as she looked around.

“Paarjo,” I drank a little more, glancing around. The day was pretty calm. “I'll meet with the Royals. Maybe I can get a word in your name. You've been pretty helpful.”

She chuckled. “Please don't. It can be seen as me asking that favor. Besides, Royalty has no connection to Watchers.”

I nodded in understanding.

“I could escort the two to Paarjo,” I began, turning to her. “We'll be leaving tomorrow.”

She looked into my eyes for a few seconds.

“That would be much appreciated,” she smiled, and an ear twitched a little.

“How old are you?” I inquired.

The woman didn't look a day past her twenties.

“I turned eight hundred two months ago.”

Holy shit.

“Mhm,” I nodded. “You look pretty young.”

“Thank you very much,” she laughed. “I make sure to be on top shape. It's scary what time does.”

I completely agreed with her. Though I understood time differently, aging is a scary thing no matter how long one lives.

“Can't imagine what Elena is going through,” she added, gesturing to the kids. “If I suddenly forget everything and turn into a child, it would scar me for life. She's a strong woman that one.”

“And yet she did all that stupid shit,” I chuckled. “Ironic, in a way.”

“It's always stupid to commit a crime,” she nodded. “Sussanna doesn't have the luxury of being under the same circumstances. She threw her life away, the moron.”

I laughed. “That, she did.”

We were silent for a few seconds, enjoying the late morning suns. I finished my drink and stored the empty cup. Then, I stood up and offered her a hand.

She shook it with an appreciative smile.

“It was good meeting you, Lorena,” I nodded. “I hope we don't see each other again unless it's for different reasons.”

She blushed a little. “Oh, my.”

“No,” I quickly corrected. “I didn't mean it like that. Like, you know, peacefully.”

“Ah, I see,” she chuckled. “It was an honor meeting you, Lady Natasha. The escort departs tomorrow at eight in the morning. Ten Watchers will bring them to Paarjo. If you wish to see Sussanna's hanging, you just have to ask Ranulf, the man that accompanied me to the Sharp Paw. He will join them for the trip.”

“Good to know,” I gave her a thankful nod. “Take care and be safe.”

“Same, I wish you plentiful spoils of war.”

I turned around and went back to the cabin. A new journey awaited, and I was admittedly excited about it. I smiled as I realized I was no longer angry. A walk does wonders, indeed.