Book Four – Chapter Five – Part Five – Surrounded by Love

“Momo… When we met at the shopping center, I spoke about the quest my party completed in the sewers… It…didn’t happen like I said it did…” Srassa stared at the cup of water Claire had graciously poured for her. The table full of raw ingredients would have waited just a bit longer before they could turn into a delicious meal. That was fine since some of the items they bought had to be thawed out.

“What do you mean? What happened?” A hint of panic lined Momo’s voice, and she felt her heart veer off course.

“We went into the sewers to test our teamwork…and it went fine for a while. I made far too many mistakes, and I could immediately tell I was the weakest link. Silver and Despi were getting annoyed at how many times I needed to stop to catch my breath… And experiencing the first battle… I stopped and shut down a time or two… Leaving them to fight for me while I cowered in the corner… I was at least truthful when I mentioned throwing my sword to finish off the giant roach, but it wasn’t anything heroic. I used Lucem and ended up blinding my own teammates…

“During the walk out of the sewers, I was…harshly chided for my mistakes. Despi tore into me, saying how my foolishness could have cost him the life of his closest friend. And then Silver pulled me away and said I had better act like I had some sense… He said my snooty status as a noble didn’t mean anything when it came to adventuring. He said money couldn’t stop a blade to the gut, and he said I couldn’t buy my promotions like I could everything else… The quest where we went to the cave for those mushrooms? They said that was my last chance to show my worth as a teammate…”

“How awful… Srassa, how could they treat you like that?!” Momo said. She reached out and grasped Srassa’s trembling hand, the foreword of tears threatening to sprinkle down her cheeks. Claire stood silent, but she offered a reassuring touch.

“The armor I said I bought with my earnings? It’s a lie… I just used my family’s money to purchase it… When I met up with Silver and Despi for the other quest, I tried to apologize for my inaction and uselessness, but they wouldn’t have any of it… We walked and marched to the cave, taking shelter under trees and within other caverns… All the while, my name was being besmirched… They thought I was asleep, but they made fun of me, saying I was only here because of my family’s status… Momo, they were even saying that the people I fought in the tournament were paid to lose… Just so I would look good…

“I just wanted to curl up in a hole and die…but then I thought of you and Servi… I really think of you two as my anchor because I want to be as strong as you both… So I persevered and acted like I hadn’t heard anything. We reached the cave and entered, but any monsters or beasts were gone. It was a lucky break, and we found our mushrooms without any problem… But the walls started to shake. The ceiling rumbled, and rocks began to fall. I was scared, of course, but I wanted to prove my worth.

“Pebbles doused Silverado's head, and I ran to push him out of the way of an imminent collapse, but… The space where I sent him was already collapsing. He couldn’t dodge out of the way, and a large boulder crushed his arm… There was…so much blood… And his screams… It wasn’t like anything I had ever heard... Desperado pulled me away and said I only made things worse, then pushed me to the ground while he helped his friend… I just sat there, stunned by the crimson darkening his silver scales…

“As quickly as it started, the rumbling stopped and the three of us walked out. I tried to help, but they wouldn’t have any of it. They wouldn’t even let me heal Silverado with Remedium because they thought it would make things worse… And I even offered to pay to have someone with the second or third-tier healing skill to remedy his wound, but they just told me money can’t buy everything… The two of them left me at the cave, and they just walked away… I was scared, alone, and afraid, and I didn’t know what I had done wrong… Momo, I swear I did my best! I swear I did!!!!” When her tale had reached an end, Servi couldn’t hold back her emotion. Neither could Momo, for that matter. Claire only remained strong because she had heard of a similar situation happening many times before.

“Where…are they now?” Momo growled through wet eyes.

“I don’t know… They didn’t walk towards Canary, so I guess they went somewhere else… And they had the mushrooms in their bags… I didn’t… So… The quest was failed… Unless the situation is egregious, you cannot register a quest at one city and turn it in at a different town.”

“I’m sorry, Srassa, but there wasn’t anything I could do. Trust me, I tried to fight for you, but my jackass of a boss wouldn’t hear me.” Claire finished the story, proving that she had known all about it and kept quiet for the sake of Srassa. The Elf didn’t want to pry into anyone’s business if she didn’t have to.

“I have the right mind to give them a piece of my mind! How could they do that to you?! When we met them, Silverado and Desperado seemed like good guys!”

“Please don’t, Momo! I’ve already caused them enough trouble as it is!”

“But it isn’t right! You only tried your best! And even I broke down during my quest with Servy! She had to do pretty much everything while I whined like a kitten! But she didn't give up on me!"

The atmosphere grew tense and thick, almost to the point where it hurt the three girls who needed to breathe.

“That’s it! Srassa, when Servy’s better, you’re coming with us!” Momo proclaimed. She tapped the table and downed her cup of water. Servi hadn’t even touched hers because she was too busy staring at Srassa. When those words were uttered, she reached out and paid her timid fingers on Srassa’s hand. “See? Servy wants the same thing.”

“That’s…nice, but I can’t. I don’t have enough experience… I can’t do anything at all... And I even lied about everything…”

“Does that have to mean anything? I couldn’t do a single thing until I met Servy. And you’re not the only liar in the world, either…” Momo added that last bit on, but she didn’t explicitly say who she had lied to.

“But what if I freeze up?!”

“That’s fine. I did the same.”

“What if you get hurt protecting me?”

“Hey, getting wounded comes with being a part of the guild, right? And wounds can be healed. We may not know Remedium yet, but we’re going to learn it as soon as possible. Until then, we have potions.”

“What if I fall asleep when I’m supposed to be standing guard?”

“I’ve done the same. And you know what Servy did? She picked me up and put me in my sleeping bag, then closed up my tent so the fire wouldn’t wake me up. She looks out for me, I look out for her, and we’ll look out for you.”

“BUT—“

Momo promptly stood up with Servi, and the two walked around the table until they were centimeters away from the stubborn noble. Srassa stood up, unsure of what was going to happen. And even though Servi and Momo hadn’t said a word, or perhaps it was their unspoken desire to comfort their friend that did the communication for them. They hugged the girl who had less self-worth than even Momo did at her lowest point and reassured her. “It doesn’t matter what kind of excuse you try to make, Srassa… Servy and I are your friends… And we mean that… We truly, truly mean that,” Momo whispered.

“Servy had to look after my weaknesses, and I have to look out for her.  And yes, we’d do the same for you… I don’t know what kind of idiots those Koena were, but they didn’t see or understand just how powerful you are… They didn’t want to work with you to see the brilliance underneath. We both trained with Dineria, and we both came in first and second in the tournament…

“Srassa, you are strong… And those two are jerks for treating you like that…”

“Fr…Frie…Friend…S…Srassa…J…Join…” Srassa and Momo looked to Servi, who had managed to croak out a few words of her own. The strain on her face was as visible as a black splotch on a white horse, and she struggled with all of her might to ease the worries of her friend. Even while she was certainly fighting a war of her own inside her mind, she didn’t forget about those on the outside.

“See? It had to be hard… To act as cheerfully as you did when we met up at the shopping center. But Srassa, you don’t have to do that around us. If you’re sad, don’t hide it. If you’re happy, then don’t try to downplay your joy. I used to do that… When Servy saved me, it made me realize that I had no real need to hide the real me because the real me is just that. It’s me… And I want the real me to experience everything there is without a shell of falseness.” Momo smiled, ending her long-winded advice. Her tail swooshed around as Srassa cried into Momo’s chest. Servi was there, ready to lend her own arms. Even Claire stood up and joined the crying party.

Srassa definitely needed this. A commoner would probably scoff at her problems, even declaring that they’d happily take them on for a slice of her massive fortune. That would mean inheriting her depression and a false sense of happiness because, as a child, she had nothing. No friends until Jony, and after he came along, he was the only one. Srassa didn’t understand why her father and mother were so protective of her for so long, then suddenly decided it was fine for her to join Warden. It did not make any sense at all, and those years of being mostly friendless did damage to her psyche. It was true she had spots of fun, like going to her father’s work and seeing a few dozen plays at the Adenaford theatre, but it was superficial in the grand scheme of things.

More than anything. Srassa wanted the real experience. She wanted real companions, not maids or butlers who had no choice but to answer to her every whim. Her tumultuous mind ran ragged with how she wanted to live her life. As a child, she always tried to play with Jony’s sword, and he always had to lecture her on how dangerous it was. That led to her spending many restless nights wondering why she couldn’t learn to fight like the other noble girls her age.

Sandra was learning how to fence.

Daniyel had an Elf to teach her how to use a scimitar.

Lexi received tutoring from an expert with the spear.

It was more than those three, but since they all lived in the same neighborhood, Srassa was able to watch the fruits of their hard work from her window. She was like a caged bird who had freedom in the most limited sense. Every time she would ask her parents why she couldn’t be like the other girls, they always told her it was too precarious for someone like her. What made it worse was when they shared her uncles’ and aunts’ heroic tales of adventure, which only spurred her little heart into action. Day and night, she wanted nothing more. Even when she was young, she knew pestering her parents wouldn’t bring her dream alive.

Perhaps that was why they suddenly softened their strict rules. Was her father getting his wife pregnant was the key to giving Srassa her dream? If she had a sibling, they could be groomed to take over the family business. Srassa had the education and schooling to do it, but giving her a chance to live her life freely might be a way of apologizing. Unfortunately, Srassa had a long road ahead of her because she was severely restricted from using any skills at all. When she practiced with Dineria a month or two ago was the right time she had ever used Lucem or Thunder Snap.

The girl just didn’t know why her parents were so restrictive about all aspects of her life.

Then again, Srassa had never met her uncles or aunts. She hadn’t even met her grandparents or cousins, and she only knew of them from the stories her parents had told her. That was when she learned her family seemed to specialize in support roles. When she was born north of Adenaford, she just had her mother, Evie—the Singi slave Srassa saw as a grandmother—and a few other servants. Then came Jony. From that time to when they moved to a bustling Canary, not a single thing had changed. Much like Momo, Srassa was a naïve girl who didn’t know much beyond academic knowledge.

One wouldn’t be wrong to claim that she knew even less than Momo did when she left her village amid the flames of destruction and the suffocation of a fog that declared the end of her innocence.

After a few minutes, the embrace came to a tearful end. Claire was the only one to return to her seat. Momo whispered a few words of encouragement before sitting back down. Servi joined her, and the noble was left with a red face. Tears had ruined her makeup, leaving behind twin parallel streams of water. She wiped her eyes, destroying the hard work her mother had done, but the look on her face was a glimpse of the real Srassa.

She was still upset—that much was entirely understandable. But she stared at her closest friends with a smile. Itarr took out a small cloth and alerted Momo, and she passed it over. Srassa took it with her thanks and did her best to tidy up her unsightly appearance. Even if she was a mess, her natural beauty pulled through her ruined makeup. Those green eyes sparkled like natural emeralds, and her blond hair still retained its natural softness.

“Now… Srassa, would you like to join Servy and me on our next adventure?” Momo asked. She held out a hand.

“Yes… If you two would have me, I’d… I’d like nothing more… I may be inexperienced… Or even clumsy and perhaps a bit frightened… But I’ll do my best…” Her hand was so slender—so feminine, even when not disregarding the growing, coarse callouses that was proof of her intense devotion to training and self-improvement. The two girls shook hands, sharing a smile and a confident nod while marking the beginning of a genuine friendship.

Well, that settles it… Servy, we’re going to have to tell Srassa about you and Itarr... I don’t think we have to say anything about Arcton or the slave markets... But that's just me talking because the ultimate choice is up to you. I guess it is hypocritical of me to want to keep that a secret… Wouldn’t that be lying? This isn’t a ‘one answer fits all’ type of situation…

Claire looked at the handshake not as the end of something potentially harmful to Srassa’s future but as the birth of what the girl needed more than ever. It did her long-living heart well to see the formation of a new party. It did hurt her quite a bit to know what Srassa’s former companions did to her, but the Elf couldn’t pick favorites. If a situation occurs within a party, someone in her position had to be impartial until she had heard both sides of the story.

Though that was the law, it wasn’t always followed to a tee. There would always be stories of guild receptionists choosing to stick up for their favorite members no matter how damning the accusations were.

Claire? She didn’t want to blindly believe, but she had lived a long life. She naturally experienced far more than what Srassa could dream of in her years of life on this planet. At the same time, she knew just how impressive the Flinn name was. Someone like Srassa wouldn’t make such baseless claims lest it caused her family’s name harm.

“Now, I believe I know just what to do to celebrate this joyous occasion… The stew will take a while to cook, so let’s get started first. Once it’s on the stove, we can go ahead with the stuffed mushrooms since they don’t take that long. And while we’re doing this, I can talk to you two about another service Warden offers.” After saying this, Claire realized she had forgotten the Drip Stone. She rushed up the stairs to the bathroom and snagged it off the post, then came back down.

The very first thing they had to do was wash the veggies. The sink wasn’t that big, so Claire instructed Momo to do it since she needed all the practice she could get.

“Yes, even something as simple as washing your ingredients can be something you need to master. The faster you do it, the less water you waste,” Claire said, offering her first lesson of the day. She stood right beside Srassa, who was holding Servi’s hand after Momo asked her to. The Singi said that the support of her friends was what the red-eyed Human needed the most, so the young noble powered through the embarrassment to support the one she cared about.

As for Momo’s jealousy? There wasn't any at all. In fact, she was happy Srassa agreed to it because it meant Servi’s soul would have someone to communicate with.

When the veggies were washed, it was time for Claire to take the lead. Momo and Srassa watched with fierce intensity while their hands gave Servi the support she needed.

Sitting at the table, the Elf diced a few onions and celery, sliced a couple of carrots, and halved the potatoes they had purchased. As it was a store mainly befitting nobles and their wealth, the ingredients were of the highest quality. That extended to the chicken thighs, which were so fresh Claire joked that she could still hear them clucking.

She wanted Momo to get some experience, so she swapped, exchanging the knife for Servi’s hand. While it did seem odd for them to all be holding hands, they unanimously agreed that it was for Servi’s benefit. Besides, if Claire just preached about souls communicating when holding hands and she didn’t practice herself, she’d be admitting to not believing in something her favorite grandparent had told her.

Claire instructed Momo to chop the chicken into 3-centimeter chunks. She also made sure to mention the proper cutting technique she had taught her student the last time, and Momo said she had been practicing in her dreams. And that wasn’t a lie at all. It really did seem like the Singi had a fair bit of control over her nightly adventurers within a realm of imagination.

Once the meat was cubed into equal pieces, it was time to toss them in a bowl of flour. They moved on to the next step, which was to add butter and olive oil to a large pot. Claire took over from here, and she grabbed a kitchen utensil with a long handle.

“Now, over medium-high heat, melt the butter and continue to stir until it is sizzling. That will take a moment, so I’ll use the time to talk about something the guild offers. If you pay a fee, you can effectively trademark a name and have it apply to your party. It also gets applied to your ID and dog-tags,” Claire said. She added just a little bit more  butter since she had misjudged.

“A name for our party?” Momo asked.

“Yep. It’s just a little extra flair to distinguish you and your group from the others, but it isn’t required. If anything, it can add legitimacy to your party’s successes. For example, let’s say you have two groups to pick from to complete a quest. Would you choose group a, which has a perfect record, or would you choose Sanctity, a named group that also has a perfect record?”

“Oh, I see what you mean… Having a declared name makes you seem more professional, right?” Srassa queried.

“It does. You can declare a name with only one person. And while there technically isn’t a limit to the number of people you can have in a party, it’s rare for one to have more than ten members. There is an exception to that. There’s a group called the Wind Zeppelins. Though it started as something affiliated with Warden, it has since grown into a rather famous mercenary group that’s branched off into its thing. I’m not too sure of the details, but there has been word of a small group splintering off and returning to the guild.” Claire stirred a little bit more, and it was time to toss in the chicken Momo had expertly sliced. The Singi ferried them over on the chopping board she had used, then used a knife to slide them in.

Wind Zeppelins? Servy…she told me she fought against them in Arcton… She didn’t leave any…survivors… There has to be some still alive, right? All of them couldn’t have gone there… We're bound to run into them at some point... If we do, what do we do? Should we do anything at all?

A sharp sizzle erupted from the pot, distracting Momo from her darkening thoughts. “Okay, so we just want to give them a little bit of color. It’s fine if they aren’t cooked all the way since that will come later. Oh, but you don’t want to stir. Not yet, at least. Wait until the bottom is brown, then you start.” It didn’t take long for the smell to circulate around the room. Momo’s sensitive nose passed along a message to her mouth to start drooling just a little.

The Singi was certainly a little glutton. That was fine since she had a lot on her plate, and she needed the energy to deal with it all.

“So what happens if we have more than ten? How many people can go on a quest at once?” Srassa asked. She timidly peeked her head into the pot, watching the chicken bounce around as Claire expertly handled the wooden serving spoon. It wasn’t the best tool for the job, but if she just needed to stir around some meat, it was more than serviceable.

“That’s hard to say because there isn’t a limit at all. But if you have twelve people go on a quest, then expect the reward to be divvied up a dozen different ways. And if that happens, you’re better off splitting off into three groups of four and taking your own quest. Anyway, the cost to declare a name for your party isn’t that expensive, and it’s only a one-time payment of 300 dupla for the entire party. I did hear my boss talk about how the higher-ups want to make it something like an annual thing, where you have to pay to keep the name… Let’s hope that doesn’t come to pass.”