《She Becomes the Hero in Another World》


 1 What? Not on Earth?

    In a small cubicle, a lone figure sighed as she tapped the stack of papers into order, before setting them aside. It had been a long day, and all she was looking forward to at this point was dinner, and some light reading before bed. She stretched before glancing at the clock. Right on the dot, the minute hand ticked onto the large number twelve: it was 5:00 pm now.


    Quickly, she grabbed her bag and logged out. Her boss didn''t like his workers going overtime, and she wasn''t going to give him an opportunity to scold her. Since the time clock was nearby, she just managed to punch out before it hit 5:01pm.


    It was Friday. Most of the other schedulers had finished their alloted 40 hours earlier that day and left. But, since she was a new scheduler, she had to stick to a strict time clock for one more month. As things were, she was still on a probation period. Thus, she found herself walking down the hall to the door alone.


    As she strode by the boss''s office, she overheard him speaking about her in a loud voice. Her boss, though strict, was good-natured. His only fault was that he had no notion of ''indoor voice'' and spoke loudly no matter where he was.


    This was a cause of embarrassment for many schedulers on her floor, whenever they had the misfortune of having him speaking to someone outside their cubicle. Even his whispers were almost deafening. Thus, she could clearly hear his words through the closed door.


    "What, the rookie? Yeah, I think she''s okay. She''s a bit slow on the uptake, but she''s punctual, and polite. She''s a bit quiet, though, and doesn''t speak unless she has to. She could also use a better wardrobe.


    ...Yeah, I mean it! She has that newsboy haircut. If she wasn''t wearing a skirt at that interview, I''d be almost certain that she was one of those wimpy introverted social-anxiety type of boys. You know, the pale kind without glasses? She wears pants and sneakers to work every day. No, I know there''s no dress code, but still...Haha! Heck, she doesn''t even wear makeup-can you believe that?!" His words at the end were crystal clear.


    The makeup-less girl scrunched up her face. ''Well excuse me for having sensitive skin! It''s better than caking colored mud on my face every day. At least you can be certain that MY face isn''t drawn on me.'' She internally huffed. ''This is a scheduling job, so why look nice when nobody''s going to see it?


    I''d rather use that time to sleep in instead.'' She yawned, remembering the light novel that she had stayed up late the night before to read.


    She turned around to stare at her Boss''s door, a bellyful of fire held inside. ''Nice to know that I''m appreciated, BOSS. Hmmph...more like Mr. BS! Bleeeh!'' She mentally made a face at him before she sighed and let her anger slide away as she continued on her way to the door.


    Holding a grudge against your boss for speaking his thoughts was like holding a grudge against God for having you be born to your parents: it does nothing to change the situation. Thus, she could only discard the useless thing(grudge) to make room in her head for her beloved stories awaiting her at home.


    Watching the ground in front of her as she walked, she thought to herself. ''Maybe I should look for a different job? I know I only took this to pay the bills, but maybe I''ve made some sort of mistake? Or is this just first-job jitters that I''m going through?''


    She was frowning at the ground, so lost in thought that she didn''t notice herself walking straight into a vertical magic circle that formed in the air in front of her as she walked out the door.


    ...


    The first thing that she noticed was the change in the pavement. The usual, cracked concrete sidewalk was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the young woman was surprised to see that the ground was paved with cobblestones.


    ''Cobblestones? I thought these were only used in Europe. I don''t remember hearing anything about them replacing the pavement here. Come to think of it, I didn''t hear any construction noises either!''


    Her vision moved from the cobblestone pavement to eye level as she looked up. In front of her was a quaint village square, paved in cobblestones, with a stone monument in the center. The houses were a mixture of wood and white wall with painted wooden shutters...she remembered that style. It was the Tudor style! She remembered it because she had thought it was quite cute in a storybook picture. People in medieval clothing walked here and there throughout the square, going about their business.


    ''....Eh?''


    She looked behind her. The door that she had walked out of was nowhere to be seen, now replaced by a long narrow alleyway. She reached out behind her to check. Maybe it was just a really well-painted canvas? Or not. Her hand clearly went right through the space where the door had been, earlier.


    ''...Eh!?''


    Mentally willing herself to remain calm, she asked an elderly passerby in a grey tweed who was smoking his pipe, and looked like he might have some time. "Excuse me, is there some sort of event going on? I don''t think my workplace was notified about it."


    The passerby scratched his head. "No. Nothing of the sort. Gee, those are some strange clothes that yer wearing there, what with that kind of get-up. Are you from the North lands? No? Where ye from young-un?"


    "I-I''m from Kansas." She replied weakly.


    "Can''s Ass? What kind of a town is named after someone''s donkey? I''m sorry, young''un. I dunno where that is."


    "It''s in America!" She replied.


    "A Merica?" He asked, tapping the stem of his pipe against his lips as he pondered leisurely. Then shook his head. "Never heard of it. Is it one of those Southern Islands places? I hear tell they''ve got some strange names for their places."


    "Well....can you tell me where I am right now?" She asked, feeling somewhat faint. She might not have gotten an A in every subject, but she was still quite good at her geography. Perhaps she was simply experiencing some sort of temporary amnesia after traveling to a different country?


    "You''re in Kinsward Town of Ekkinshire Kingdom." He replied. "Anyone knows that."


    "...EH?" The girl''s eyes became dots as she asked. "I''m sorry...come again?"


    "Kinsward Town of Ekkinshire Kingdom." The old man replied patiently. "Did ye accidently get off at the wrong stop? The carriage for the Capital left not half an hour ago, so ye''ll be stuck here for another three hours before the next one comes by."


    ''Kinsward Town? Ekkinshire Kingdom? There''s no such place on earth!?'' The girl was shocked, but she gathered herself together enough to thank the kind old man, and go for a walk around the square as she observed it quietly.


    A shop called ''Sundry Magical Knick-Knacks'' drew her attention as a woman walked out of the store, clearly on an errand as three large wooden crates floated out behind her.


    Her eyes widened, then darted about as she noticed a girl from a cleaning service wave her hand and light encompassed her customer, clearing away all signs of the mud he was caked with. A cook at a nearby stall spouted fire out of his mouth as he tossed the ingredients into the air. Even the lady watering flowers had her hands up towards a floating ball of water, as mist gently fell from it onto the blossoms below.


    ''What on earth? I''m...not on Earth!?'' Everything finally clicked with her, as her eyes became round white circles with shock.

 2 She Joins The Guild

    ''Okay, calm down, me! Deep breaths!'' The girl was successfully able to prevent herself from fainting as she leaned against a wall for support.


    ''First: I am in an unknown land which resembles the Middle Ages of Europe. Second, no-one here knows anything about America. Third, there is Magic-honest to goodness real MAGIC about. Conclusion: I am in another world? Highly likely.''


    It was a good thing that she had covered that genre thoroughly in her webnovels.


    ''So, let''s run through the list of things I need to accomplish. First, I need to find, food, shelter, and money-preferably money first, because that makes finding food and shelter that much easier. Second...I probably need to get a change of clothes, one that fits the general style of clothing. Third, I need to find a way to make more money, such as being a handyman of some sort. Fourth, I need to find a way to go home. Fifth, Perhaps I can learn some magic on the way. Okay! Itinerary is all set!"


    GRUMBLE.


    The girl looked down at her rumbling stomach. ''For now, let''s grab something to eat'' Sitting down on a nearby bench, she took her shoulderbag off, and opened it to have a look.


    "Yep! I knew it."


    She grabbed her lunch box and opened it. It was the other half of her sandwich that she hadn''t been able to finish that day due to a call coming in mid-lunch. Even though she was technically off the clock, the receptionist had ruthlessly sent the man to her, causing her to almost choke on her lunch.


    While earlier, she was feeling sort of miffed at the receptionist, now she was feeling quite thankful. It would do her no good to start her venture off with an empty stomach. She bit into the -now somewhat soggy- BLT half-sandwich with apparent great relish.


    Anyone else in her circumstances might have gone through several rounds of hysterical crying accompanied by outbursts of anger and shouting, but not this girl. As a rather practical person, she found that such actions were mostly useless. The only thing they did do was to show other people how childish they were.


    She looked up at the sky. From how high it was, she could assume that it was close to noon.


    ''That''s going to mess with my internal sense of time'' She noted as she thought of ways to get money before sundown. She could sell something to a merchant.


    But, what should she sell? Clothing...was a bad idea to sell unless she intended to stay there forever: rejected!


    Her bag? That might be alright. She had no real attachments to it. As long as she kept her wallet and ID, that might be possible.


    Things in her bag? Aside from pens, pencils, and a few empty sketchbooks, there wasn''t much she could sell...her umbrella? But what would she do if it should suddenly start to rain? ...she''d put that on hold for the time being.


    "Ah." Now that she thought of it, selling off things from her world might be a one way flag to destruction by greedy merchants. For the time being, it would be best to remain low key. Okay then! Plan ''Pawnshop'' was placed on the backburner.


    But, if she couldn''t sell her things, then what could she do? From her experience in reading the Isekai genre, there should be some sort of adventurer''s guild, right? Perhaps she could get some sort of job there.


    ''Okay! Let''s go take a look.''


    And, just as she had thought, after asking for directions a few times, she was able to find the adventurer''s guild. The interior was completely made of wood, with several tables and chairs to the right of the front desk. At this time of day, the place seemed exceedingly empty. Perhaps it was because the adventurers were all outside, adventuring.


    She smiled and walked straight up to the receptionist.


    "Excuse me, I''d like to apply to be an adventurer, please." She asked politely.


    The receptionist--a bespectacled, bored-looking elf-- looked at her with a cursory glance and then nodded, grabbing an application sheet. Dipping a quill pen inside a small bottle of ink, she began filling in the sheet.


    "Name?"


    "Robin."


    "Age?"


    "Seventeen." The reception filled in the age group, and then circled the M for Male. After all, the figure before her was clearly a male, so there was no need to ask for gender. Little did she know that her mistake would be stuck with Robin for the rest of her adventurer''s career.


    "Occupation?"


    Here, Robin paused. "Umm, what do you mean? Are you talking about what I do for a job?"


    The receptionist glanced at Robin to check that she was serious. Fortunately, she was.


    "What I mean by occupation is what kind of weapons are you good at. Sword? Axe? Spear? Attack Magic? Healing? It''s more something to note down what your specialties are."


    "Oh...Then, put me down for sword fighting." Robin replied. Fencing, Kendo, Rennaissance re-enactments: her older brother had been a huge pursuer of the arts of cold weapons. As her legal guardian, he had long since dragged her along with him to actively participate in such lessons. So, she was more familiar with swords than any other weapon.


    The receptionist eyed Robin''s sword-less figure, and raised an eyebrow. "Now that your application is finished, I can give you a guild card. This also doubles as an ID for entering and leaving towns and cities, so don''t lose it." She handed over the card.


    "Thank you!" Robin politely said as she examined her card. Everything seemed to be in order.


    ''Huhu! This is just like how it was in the Isekai books I read!'' She chuckled inwardly. What Robin didn''t know was that the lining around her card was red. Guild cards for females had a blue lining around them, instead. Thus began Robin''s life as a male(?) adventurer.


    "You''re welcome." The receptionist replied before she continued.


    "Also, you will be required to show that you are in possession of a proper weapon within seven days, or else your membership will be put on hold due to the weapon''s unconfirmed status. This makes sure that people don''t use rusted or fragile equipment. Please read all rules and regulations in our provided handbook." The receptionist pointed at a chained book to her left.


    "In short, follow all laws and regulations within the kingdom, and try not to murder your fellow adventurers."


    Robin was impressed at how professionally the elf lady was able to give such a polite and thorough presentation all the while looking completely and utterly bored.


    "So, I can officially accept local requests now?" Robin confirmed.


    "Those which can be accomplished within town, yes. Until your weapon is confirmed, you cannot take requests which lead outside of the town." The receptionist nodded. "The requests are on the Request Board on the left wall over there. Please take note that the in-town quests are all marked with a green star."


    Robin nodded and walked over to the request board, eager to begin.

 3 She Finds a Sword and her First Job

    Robin looked up at the board. For a small town, there was an awful lot of request papers up there. But only the ones with the green stars were the ones she could take. After glancing around the board, she easily found a cluster of green-star request papers, and moved over to take a closer look.


    There was a request to find a lost cat. While Robin was fine with it, it was possible that she wouldn''t finish the job before nightfall. That was no good if she wanted food and shelter by then, so perhaps that was a job for another time.


    There was a request to help reorganize a warehouse. Robin didn''t know what kind of warehouse it was, but she already had the idea that it would include heavy lifting. While she was good with a sword, and could easily lift a proper metal sword, no one would believe that with the way she looked. Moreover, she was tired, and didn''t want to do something too laborious her first day.


    ''Hmmm... fixing the roof... exterminating rats... hold on!'' Robin zeroed in on a request which seemed simple enough. It was a request to weed an old courtyard to prepare for an upcoming ceremony. If it was this, then there should be no problem. Robin was used to weeding her brother''s garden on the weekends, so she was perfecly fine with it. And the reward was five silvers!


    Robin happily picked that one and brought the request sheet to the receptionist''s counter.


    --------


    In Ekkinshire Kingdom''s capital city, two important men were having an audience.


    "But if everything was in order, and the magic circle was activated, then why didn''t the hero appear?" the prince asked.


    "Perhaps he has appeared. With such a long-distanced spell like this, I can think of a few reasons..." The elderly man replied.


    "For example?" The prince asked.


    "Disruption due to pre-planned counter-measures, or distortion due to magic resonance." The old man replied. "Since only you and I know of this undertaking, it''s unlikely that it was a pre-planned distruption. Therefore, it is more likely that this is a distortion due to magic resonance."


    "Magic resonance?" The prince asked.


    "When a person is particularly suited for a magical item, then there will be a small amount of attraction within a certain area.


    However, if the item one resonnated with was very powerful, and contained high amounts of magic power, then it''s likely that the attraction force of the resonnance could easily change the trajectory of a long distance spell.


    Take, for example, when Edgar the Wise found himself in the Forgotten Woods on his was to the Alliance meeting. It was there that he found the Artemis Bow, one which brought him to victory every time." The old man explained patiently.


    "Then, if the hero arrived elsewhere in my kingdom, how am I to find him?" The Prince frowned in thought. The old magician shook his head.


    "Did you not hear what I was saying, Your Highness, Prince Christian? ''Distortion due to magic resonance.'' means that the hero resonnated with a highly-magical item that was most suited for him. Out of all the magic items in the kingdom, which would the hero be most likely to wield?"


    "You mean that one!" Prince Christian stood up from his chair in surprise.


    The magician nodded. "Indeed. It is highly likely that the hero has landed somewhere close by the Hero''s Sword, in Kinsward town. It shouldn''t be more than a few hours carriage ride to get there."


    The prince stood there for a moment in silent thought. Then he nodded his head and looked up at the wisest man in the kingdom, "All right. Make arrangements for me. We leave as soon as possible. I wish to witness this year''s sword ceremony in person. Find me some clothes to disguise in, as well."


    The old magician nodded his head. "And if his Highness, the King, should ask for you?"


    "I shall be in bed with a bad cold and in need of rest." Prince Christian replied. "Even my father, the King, knows that a cold can only be resolved with bed rest."


    "Very well. It shall be as you have said." The old magician replied, before exiting the private audience room. Prince Christian moved to the window to look out across the capital city. Soon, he would see the hero, himself, in person. What would he be like?


    ----------------


    "A-choo!" Robin sneezed loudly. "Haha, maybe someone is talking about me?" She chuckled to herself as she looked down at the map that was drawn for her. While Robin herself was not a Japanese, she had become familiar with the culture. She had even dabbled in a bit of animes of her favorite stories. And, at a certain point, she had learned Japanese simply so that she could read the rest of her favorites books without waiting for the translators.


    "According to this map, the courtyard should be around here....ah, there it is!" She looked at a somewhat large courtyard. It was mostly grass, with a few trees here and there. The problem was that the grassy area was also healthily dotted with dandelion blossoms.


    ''A normal weeding job. Perfect! I should be finished before sundown.'' Robin thought as she examined the courtyard.


    A bench seat under a pavillion was off to her right, and in the center of the courtyard, was a square area marked out by cobblestones. But, what drew her attention was not the cobblestones, so much as the item in the center of those cobblestones.


    She hadn''t noticed it before, when she was examining the weed population. But now that she was looking, it was hard not to notice.


    A large, moss-covered stone stood in the center of the cobblestones. And there, standing upright inside of that stone, was a sword.


    Robin''s eyes grew wide. Anyone who had ever read the story of king arthur would probably be thinking the same thing as her. She itched to touch it and try to pull it out. But, remembering her mission, she turned aside and immediately started weeding, working from the outside edge inwards.


    Robin had remembered that dandelions were edible. So, if she didn''t have enough for food, then she could use these as emergency rations. Several recipes for foods and drinks were stored in her head from when her brother taught her.


    There was dandelion wine, dandelion root coffee, "Dandelion jelly, Kentucky Dandelion Greens, Batter-fried Dandelion blossoms, Dandelion Pesto..." Remembering the taste, Robin couldn''t help but feel hungry again. But, taking into account what she had with her, she would probably only have dandelion salad.


    The others required ingredients that she didn''t have on hand-oh the scourge of becoming poor! It was too bad that most of the dandelions had blossomed. The dandelion leaves tasted best before the flowers bloomed, but the flowers were also edible, so it wasn''t too bad.


    The weeds in this world were indeed similar to simple yellow dandelions. In fact, in terms of appearance, nutritional,and medicinal effects, they were exactly the same as regular dandelions. However, what Robin didn''t know was that there was a hidden danger to these weeds.


    It was fine to pick the yellow dandelions, but there was a certain magical monster plant that disguised itself as a dandelion. The only way to distinguish it was the one red petal in the center of the flower. That''s why weeding always came with an accompanying risk. If you couldn''t recognize the disguised monster plant before you got close to it, the odds were that you''d be severely injured, or even killed due to the ferocity of the monster plant''s counterattack.


    And one of those monster plants was certainly present in the courtyard.

 4 She Runs Away

    Having been naturally distracted by her weeding job, Robin didn''t notice when someone quietly entered the courtyard behind her, and moved over the the pavillion, sitting down on the bench there. Naturally, it was the disguised Prince, in merchant''s attire.


    Of course, it made sense, since Robin had been working away for several hours, and was just about finishing up with her work. There had been plenty of time for the prince to disguise himself, and catch a carriage to Kinsward Town. As soon as he arrived, he hastened his steps to that courtyard to see if he might find the hero. But the sword was still there, it''s golden hilt shining in the sunlight. There was no one there other than him and the local gardener.


    Robin hummed a small song to herself, realizing that she was almost finished. The weeds had all been carefully placed in a sack that had been handed her for her job. While Robin was working away busily on the last few dandelions, the man simply sat there, staring at the sword in the stone, deep in thought.


    ''One more and I''m done!'' Robin thought as she reached for the last dandelion and gave it a tug.


    "UWAAAH!"


    The prince was disrupted from his thoughts to see the gardener beseiged by a Monster Plant.


    It''s stem had suddenly grown as thick as a tree, and Its yellow petals had peeled back, revealing a mouth full of toothy thorns.


    The young man, suprised by it''s sudden growth, had stumbled back into the cobblestone area, his back against the large stone centerpiece. The Monster Plant momentarily ignored him as its attention was drawn to the bagfull of weeds that had been dropped. It began extending its large, thorny tendrils out towards the bag.


    When Robin realized that the Huge Monster Plant was going after the weeds, she felt upset. She had spent all this time harvesting them, only to have all her hard work go down the drain to some plant monster!? She began to see red.


    "Oy! You! Let go of my dinner!" She cried out, grabbing the sword out of it''s stone, and brandishing it menacingly towards the Monster Plant, sucessfully re-routing its attention towards her.


    Unseen by her, the Prince stood up in shock. But, before he could gather his thoughts together, Robin had sliced the thorny tendrils apart. This made the Monster Plant shriek in pain, before its main body was also swiftly diced into oblivion.


    She waved the sword forcefully to dispel the last of the plant juices off the blade, as the pieces of shredded Monster Plant fell to the floor. The pieces quickly withered away to nothing, leaving behind a small clear blue gem.


    "Hmm?" Robin picked it up. "A gem? But why would this be inside a plant? Moreover a plant monster?" Then she remembered something. She looked down at the sword she was holding.


    "Wow, this is a really great sword! Even though it''s a longsword, it''s sharpness and slicing power is even better than a japanese katana." She admired it, swinging it around a few times. Even though it was sizeable, the wind resistance was minimal, making it feel like she was swinging around a foil instead of a longsword.


    She swung out with a few butterflies and reverse butterflies, before turning around quickly at the sound of someone clapping. Noticing there was someone present, she froze.


    "Masterful handling!" The Merchant (*cough* Prince) said. Robin examined him. Perfect blonde hair, mischievous brown eyes, and a handsome masculine face. just the kind of people she couldn''t deal with. Then she thought of something.


    "Um...this sword-I''m not going to become the king or something just because I pulled it out, right?" She asked, remembering King Arthur.


    "Huh? No, nothing like that will happen." The merchant replied.


    "Whew! Great!" She felt relieved. Then she froze again. This courtyard obviously belonged to someone, and everything in it, too. Obviously, this sword belonged to someone too. Perhaps it was even placed there as a decoration, or a remembrance of a great battle.


    "Um, sorry! I used your sword without permission!" She apologized with a bow. "It was in this stone, right? Here you go!" She shoved it right back inside the stone. "Good as new, right? Okay, I''m going-to-go-now-bye!" She grabbed her bag of weeds and fled the scene before the man could understand just what was happening.


    He walked over to the sword, staring at it, hard. Then he grabbed it, trying to pull it out of the stone like the youth had. It didn''t budge a bit, even with the man''s full strength.


    ''So the problem is not the sword...but the person!'' He realized, turning swiftly around, and dashing over to the courtyard entrance. He looked around. But, unfortunately, the strange youth was nowhere in sight.


    "That was the hero?" He muttered under his breath.


    -----------------


    "Your job has been confirmed as finished. Here are your five silver." The receptionist said, after receiving eyesight confirmation from a magic eye. These magic eyes were available due to a local magician''s tower. Robin found it was something similar to a localized, current time Google-maps.


    "Thanks." Robin replied.


    "If you really want to thank me, you can bring your weapon in tomorrow so we can confirm it''s in proper working condition." The receptionist replied with a raised eyebrow.


    "Right. I''ll definitely keep that in mind." Robin smiled politely. Inwardly, she was panicking.


    ''That''s right! I''m going to need to get myself a weapon, too! Oh, how stupid of me!'' Wracking her brains, she realized she also had no idea of the money values in this world.


    "Um...actually, could you help me out with something?" She asked helplessly.


    "As long as it''s within business regulations, I am at your service." The receptionist elf yawned.


    "You see, I''m not from around here."Robin began. "And my guardian, who was usually in charge of handling money, got separated from me. Thus, I have no clue on what the value of money is, here. Could you give me a rundown on what the values of the different coins are?"


    This made the receptionist pause. ''Ho? Interesting...'' She thought to herself."You mean to say that you don''t know how much you currently hold?" She asked.


    "Completely clueless." Robin smiled shyly in embarassment.


    "Understood. Hold on an minute." The receptionist said.

 5 She Gets her First Pay

    "Please wait a moment." The Elf said as she took out a tray and placed several different coins on it. There were three bronze coins, three silver coins, three gold coins, and one made of a kind of white metal.


    "Pay attention to these first three coins." The receptionist pointed to the three bronze coins. "These coins are the most that common citizens use every day. This first coin, the small bronze coin, is worth about five zetu. It is about the price for one half-loaf of bread, or one to two fruits, depending on the size of the fruit."


    ''Hmm, so it''s about 50 cents in USD, which makes each zetu about 10 cents'' Robin noted. "And the next one?"


    "This is a regular bronze coin." The receptionist replied. "It is worth about ten times as much as the small bronze coin. It can be used to buy a cheap meal from a tavern or local food stall."


    ''That''s around 5 USD or 50 zetu'' Robin nodded, glancing over at the large bronze coin hesitantly. Surely, this large bronze coin wouldn''t be ten times the regular bronze coin, right?


    "This is the large bronze coin." The receptionist noticed Robin''s glance. "It is worth about two times the regular bronze coin." Robin inwardly sighed in relief. ''Only twice as much. That makes it worth about 10 USD or 100 zetu''


    "The large bronze coin can be used to pay for a hearty meal from a restaraunt, or for supplies such as meat, flour, eggs, and the like." The receptionist continued. "A regular commoner will most likely receive about five large bronze coins per week as pay."


    "Hmm? That would be about 260 large bronze coins per year per person, right?" Robin asked.


    "Indeed! It seems you are good with numbers. Can you tell me how much zetu 260 large coins is?" The receptionist leaned on her palm, interested.


    "Each large bronze coin is about 100 zetu, so that would mean...26,000 zetu per year?" Robin replied.


    "Correct!" The receptionist smiled. "My you are smart, aren''t you?"


    "Er, Only a little. I can''t handle much larger numbers than this without writing it down." Robin replied, slightly troubled.


    ''But still, if I convert that amount to USD, 26,000 zetu is only about 2,600 USD. I get ten times that much just working at my scheduling job!'' Robin noted. Of course, she had to pay for electricity, appliances, and bills for things like car payments and college, so it wasn''t like she couldn''t get by on $2,600 after cutting all of that out.


    "Next up is the silver, right?" Robin asked. looking at the next group of three.


    "Yes. This small silver coin is worth twice the large copper coin, at 200 zetu. The regular silver coin that I gave you is worth about 500 zetu each." The receptionist smiled delightfully as she asked. "Now, can you tell me exactly how much zetu you received from the quest you turned in?"


    Robin''s eyes widened. 2, 500 zetu! That was a lot.


    "Why such a great amount of pay for a job like weeding?" She asked.


    "Because there is the chance that one can become a magic plant''s food if one isn''t careful. Ah, yes. If you manage to defeat any magic monsters, we do purchase monster cores, so you can exchange them for 1 silver coin each. More dangerous monsters will get a higher price. Profitable, right? That is, if you don''t get killed."


    Robin took out the blue crystal she had picked up earlier, and handed it over. "You mean this?"


    The receptionist''s smile grew slightly bigger. "Yes, it is that. It''s in good condition, and has been freshly gathered, so I''ll give you a bonus of one large copper coin." She quickly retrieved one silver, and one large copper coin, and handed it over to Robin, before continuing to explain the coins.


    "The large silver coin is worth twice as much as the regular silver coin: 1,000 zetu. This is usually used by merchants for large orders like clothing or food for their guards, or as payment for adventurers accomanying them on their merchant''s route, if the road is particularly long. Now, while I could have given you 2 large silver coins instead of four regular silver coins, we usually handle all payments with the regular coins as much as possible."


    Robin nodded. ''I never thought I''d see a coin worth as much as $100'' she thought to herself.


    "And now, we arrive at the last set of three: the gold coins." The elf sighed, pointing to the smallest of the three. "This small gold coin alone is worth 10,000 zetu."


    "T-ten thousand!?" Robin asked, shocked. The price seemed to escalate quickly when it came to gold.


    "Yes. Gold is a currency that only important people use, like the head merchant of a merchant guild, or the King''s Navy General. It is a sign of prestige, and only the nobility or merchants will usually use these. I say ''usually'' because sometimes if it is given out as a reward for great valor or as part of a bounty, or the reward for a highly difficult quest, the commoners will be granted it. But if they wish to convert it into smaller money, then they can only visit the bigger merchants, or the king''s secretary."


    Robin gulped. "T-then, the regular gold coin?"


    The elf''s eyes narrowed with delight as she lowered her voice a bit. "25,000 zetu"


    "A-and the large gold coin?"


    "500,000 zetu."


    Robin was taken aback. "T-there''s one more coin there, on the tray."


    The receptionist put her finger to her lips.


    "Shhh..White gold coin: worth 1,000,000 zetu."


    Robin felt shocked that so much money was spread out on the tray in front of her. it was only ten coins, but it was already worth more than 600x what she held.


    "What are you thinking, now?" The elf asked her.


    "I''m thinking that you''re very confident, otherwise you wouldn''t take so much money out into the open like this." Robin replied, feeling scared. "Aren''t you afraid that someone will try to steal it?"


    The elf tilted her head sideways. "No?" She asked, as she put the coins away. "Unless you were thinking of doing something like that?"


    Robin shook her head vigorously. "No way. I''m a law-abiding citizen, I am! Moreover, it''s much too troublesome."


    "How so?"


    "Well, first off, if I stole from the guild, I''d be breaking the law, thus being automatically ejected from the guild-which is where I get paid for the work I do. Even if I somehow managed to bypass the safeguarding spells and muscled adventurers, I''d probably have a bounty placed on my head, and be on the run from that point on, hunted like a rabbit wherever I went. And I''m not one for cross-country running, so, like I said: It''s just much too troublesome for me." Robin finished.


    The receptionist broke out into laughter. "Refusing a quick trip to riches simply because it''s too troublesome? That''s definitely not something I''ve ever heard before."


    "Putting it a separate way," Robin added. "I want to make money. But I want to make the money, honestly. The other reasons are just for extra good measure. Is there a problem with that?"


    "Hmhm~No, there''s no problem with that." The receptionist chuckled. "Well then, have a nice day~."


    "See you tomorrow!" Robin waved as she left the guild.

 6 She Gets a Bargain

    "Now that I have some money, the first thing I need to do is find a place to stay." Robin said to herself. "And then afterwards see to getting a proper meal."


    What about the bag of dandelions? Well, since she had money, why would she reject a proper meal for a salad of nothing but slightly bitter herbs? That''s like asking if someone wants a salad while eating a big piece of juicy steak in front of them. Can anyone imagine who would refuse the steak?


    (AN: For those of you who are vegetarians, my apologies. Robin does not agree with your ethics towards food.)


    The weeds were placed to the side to be given as feed for the guild''s livestock. As for Robin, she had asked around and found a good inn to stay at for the time being:Magpie Inn. As she entered, a tiny bell rung, notifying the young man at the counter.


    "Welcome to Magpie Inn! Are you here for a meal, or to grab a room?" He asked.


    "...Ah! Both. I''m here for both." Robin replied.


    "I see. And how long will you be staying?" He asked.


    "Before I can answer that, I''ll need to ask about your prices." Robin said sheepishly.


    "One Large Bronze coin per day, and one regular bronze coin per meal. Only breakfast and dinner are provided, though. If you apply to stay for a week, we''ll wave the meal fees and simply charge five large copper coins." He replied.


    "Hmm? Why don''t you just ask for one silver?" Robin asked.


    "That''s cuz most of our customers are commoners and peddlers." He replied. "And not everybody realizes that five large coppers is one silver. It''s only when the occasional adventurer comes through that we can get an influx of silver."


    "Well, I suppose that makes sense." Robin nodded thoughtfully, thinking of how empty the adventurer guild had looked. A small town would Perhaps that was the real reason why there were so many requests up on the board. "But, unfortunately, I''ve only got a few silver on me." She placed one silver on the counter.


    "Just finished a job, huh?" The young man noticed as he accepted the coin. He grabbed a key from underneath the counter. "Here you go. It''s room seven. Up the stairs, and three doors to your right. Dinner will be served in the common room in a quarter hour."


    "Thanks!" Robin replied as she inhaled the smell of cooking food. Hmm. From the smell, it seemed to include chicken. While she wasn''t the best in terms of cooking or baking, she could usually tell the main ingredient by the smell. Unless, of course, it was a cold dish.


    She didn''t really have very many things, so she decided to go to the common room and wait for dinner. Dinner really did have chicken: chicken noodle soup, along with some rye bread and a side salad of both pickled and fresh vegetables mixed together. It reminded Robin slightly of sauerkraut.


    After dinner, Robin headed to her room and thought over what she had accomplished that day.


    "Money, check. Shelter, Check! Food, check!" She muttered to herself.


    "Next on the list is: clothes. Looks like I''ll have to go shopping tomorrow. Also, adding onto the list of things to keep an eye out for, some sort of storage bag or item box would be really helpful."


    And, with that, Robin quickly fell asleep.


    -------The Next Day------


    After asking around, Robin was quickly able to find her next target. There was only one tailors shop in town. But, even so, it was a bit difficult to find it without someone drawing a small map for her. This town had originally been just a small village, so the layout of the buildings was not very well planned. Aside from the village square, business buildings and residences were mixed together, creating a network of alleyways and by-routes.


    Still, Robin was able to find it relatively quickly.


    Tiny bells rang as Robin went inside and looked around. Dust motes floated undisturbed through the beams of sunshine that entered through the shop''s windows. Bolts of cloth lined the walls, in different colors and materials. In the center, a few front-pieces were displayed on wooden and cloth mannequins, while the rest were folded up neatly on the shelves.


    To the side, an elderly man dozed half-spread out on what could only be considered a work bench.


    "Um...hello?" Robin asked. The elderly man jerked awake immediately.


    "Wha-what!? Did I fall asleep again?" He yawned, stretched, and said dismissively. "I tell you it''s the weather. Spring weather always makes me so sleepy."


    When he finally got a good look at Robin, his eyes grew wide. "THIS!" He exclaimed. "Such uniform stitching, such a simple and unique style of clothing, such an interesting texture of cloth! Tell me young''un, who made this?"


    Robin smiled apologetically. "Sorry, everything related to it''s production are a huge trade secret where I come from. I have no idea. But, as you can see, it''s drawing quite the attention, both the good kind, and the bad kind, if you know what I mean."


    She leaned an arm on the desk.


    "So, do you have anything more normal-looking to walk around in? A full set of clothes, preferably something durable and easy to wear."


    The old man was drawn back from his examination of Robin''s clothes.


    "Er, right. I do have something that can be considered so, but I won''t lie to you. The materials to make it were somewhat expensive. Are you sure you can pay for it?"


    Briar took out two silver coins. "Is this enough?"


    He frowned. She added another silver. He wavered it wasn''t every day that he could earn so much silver.


    "I need to buy a magic bag later on, so I can only add this much." Briar said.


    "Hmm? You''re looking for a magic bag?" He asked.


    "Yeah. I was separated from my guardian and he has all my things, so I''m going to need a magic bag if I''m going to travel around to look for him." Briar said.


    "Hmm...tell you what. Add one more silver, and a large copper to the pile, and allow me to examine your odd clothing for a few hours, and I''ll give you a second-hand magic bag that I''ve been using to store a few bolts of special cloth, okay?"


    "For real?" Robin asked.


    "There''s no way you''ll get a magic bag otherwise." The old taylor said. "All the ones in town are occupied by the shops, and there aren''t many who would be willing to part with theirs for a few silver. It''s only because I''m interested in your clothing that I am willing to suffer a loss."


    Robin thought for a moment...a chance to get boththings that she needed at one place? Her hand smacked down on the table, securing the final silver next to the other three.


    "Deal!" she agreed.


    After changing into the new outfit, and waiting for the old taylor to finish studying her clothes, she left the shop happily, having accomplished her objective for that day.


    She had gotten everything except for....

 7 She Becomes a Vendor

    Grrruuummmbbbbllleeee


    "Of all the things to forget to grab, I had to forget food." Robin sat on a bench, feeling quite sorry for herself. The inn only served breakfast and dinner. She was on her own when it came to lunch.


    ''Perhaps I could see if there''s another weeding job?'' She wondered. But, then shook her head. If all the weeding jobs included a large magic plant monster, then she''d need a good sword. But, she didn''t have a sword.


    "Maybe for today, I can just go back to the inn and sleep until dinner?" She wondered. But, then she would lose a day to earn valuable money necessary to get herself a good sword. Her mind drifted back to that sword in the stone. If she could have a sword like that, then there would be no need to worry about magic plant monsters.


    Grrrruummmbbblllle.


    She hugged her stomach, regretting handing over those dandelions she had gathered yesterday. ''If I had kept them for emergency food, I wouldn''t be in this situation right now...'' And, of course, thinking about dandelions got her to thinking about dandelion recipes.


    Gurrrurrrrumbbblllee!


    Even a man at a nearby food stall heard her. Turns out he was the stall owner.


    "Haha, hungry?" He asked.


    "Yes." Robin replied. The stall owner thought for a bit. His stall was a cooking stall where he cooked meat skewers. He took a set of finished skewers and held them out to her.


    "Want some?" He asked.


    Robin looked at the meat skewers. GRUMBLE. her stomach loudly proclaimed.


    "I don''t have any money." She replied.


    "If you don''t have any money, then you can work for them. See here, I can''t man the stall and cook the skewers at the same time, so if you could help me man the stall, I could sell twice as many skewers before dinner!" He said to persuade her. "Besides these ones are slightly burnt, and most of the people around here don''t like burnt foods, so you''ll be doing me a favor."


    "I''ve never manned a stall before, but I''m willing!" Robin replied honestly.


    "Then, here!" The stall owner said. "I can''t have any of my workers starve on the job. That would be bad for business. Consider it your pay in advance."


    Robin thought about it for a moment, then nodded her head in agreement. "Uhn." She reached for the meat skewers, and once she tasted the food, she understood. ''This stall owner is really a nice man. The meat was only slightly burnt on the outside, but inside is just perfect.''


    "Haha, what''s with that face?" The stall owner laughed at Robin''s blissful face, with her eyes somewhat glazed over.


    "Because, this meat is really good!" Robin said, quickly devouring the whole lot.


    "Of course! The beef comes from my cow farm, fed on fresh clover and sweetgrasses, it''s the best around!" The stall owner proclaimed proudly.


    "Oh? I see! It''s tasty because it ate tasty things!" Robin replied, thinking to herself. ''Hmmm sweet grasses... Chickory, Sheep Sorrel, Lamb''s Quarter, Daylilies, Violets, even Milk Thistle is edible with some processing.'' The meat was tasty because good things had been put into it. That was more than could be said for the cow farms back in her world.


    This reminded Robin that nothing was worse than to be out of money.


    --------


    "Delicious meat skewers, five for a copper! Hot, delicious meat skewers! Get them while they''re fresh!" Robin called out cheerfully from the stall. While it didn''t attract a crowd, there was a steady enough stream of people who came to buy that Robin couldn''t remember a time when she had five minutes in between.


    "Ah, over there! Doesn''t that look tasty?" A man said, pointing towards the meat stall.


    "...Indeed it does. Shall we try some, then?" The person who answered was the merchant-disguised prince.


    "I''ll have two servings, keep the change." Someone placed one silver down on the table.


    "Okay-Hey, OY! That''s one silver, don''t you know!? One sil-ver! Even if you''re asking us to keep the change, the change exceeds the original price of the meal!" Robin argued, looking up at the person. Then she froze. It was that merchant fellow she had met during her weeding job.


    "But, I really don''t have any smaller change than this." The merchant said, troubled.


    Robin sighed. "We''re not paupers. As a business that has been going all afternoon, we at least have enough to give you change for your silver."


    Robin quickly calculated, then took out four large coppers for him. "Here. It was two servings, right? Each serving is only a copper, so here is your change." She glanced at him for a brief moment. It seemed he hadn''t recognized her.


    ''Ah. maybe it was because the only thing he remembers of me is my outlandish clothes.'' She thought to herself. ''Then I''m safe! Thank goodness!''


    "So cheap!" The merchant''s companion exclaimed.


    "Mmn!" The Merchant agreed, reaching forward to grab the money, but then he paused. "Tell me, why wouldn''t you accept the extra coin?"


    "Accepting your money today can lead to acceping bribes tomorrow." Robin said. "Taking it creates a debt between us. And I don''t like owing anyone.I would forever feel like I owed you for it. When one is indebted to someone, they are not free."


    She stared the merchant straight in the eyes. "My life and freedom are mine own, and anyone who wants to take away that freedom with money.. will have to fight me for it. Don''t get me wrong. I want to earn money, but I want to do it honestly. Is there a problem with that?" She thrust the coins out at him like they were poison.


    The merchant''s eyes grew slightly wider, then he chuckled and said. "No. Not at all." He accepted the change, and began to walk away with his companion, who had already gathered their food.


    "Hey, you forgot one!" Robin called after him. he waved his hand without looking back.


    "It''s my thanks for your rousing speech~" He replied lazily.


    "But..." Robin looked down at the coin, and made a face. "100 Zetu just for speaking my mind? What a wastrel!"

 8 She Returns to the Scene

    Robin turned to the stall owner. "This is more than I can accept alone." She said. "Won''t you split it with me?"


    The stall owner looked at her and laughed. "Me? But I''ve done nothing to help you earn that. You were the one that gave the speech after all. After such a rousing speech about how money buys freedom, do you want to put me in your debt?" He teased.


    Robin hesitated, but finally placed the coin in her magic bag. In any case, the extra coin was an unexpected windfall. ''I''ll just treat it like a normal tip that a waitress would get for entertaining their guests well.'' She decided.


    Since the stall had run out of skewers, the stall owner decided to close up for the day. Robin quickly calculated the total amount of money and reported it. "57 coppers 32 large coppers...and one silver. Altogether that''s 1,005 Zetu" She said, presenting the money box to the stall owner.


    "Right." He reached into the box and took out the silver. "Here, you take it. It''s your pay."


    Robin looked at the coin, and then looked up at the stall owner, confused. "Um, but I was already payed?"


    "You can''t call a single set of skewers proper pay! Besides, because of you, my profits tripled today. I can at least afford to give my workers a proper salary."


    "But this is practically half of your proceeds! I can''t accept!" Robin shook her head. "At least make it one third!" The stall owner was eventually talked down to giving her 300 Zetu instead. Even then, Robin was reluctant to accept it, until the stall owner huffed.


    "Just look at you! I''ve seen people who raised their wages by self-praising their skills, but I''ve never seens someone who argued with their boss to lower their wage! If you don''t accept this much, then my own heart will not be at peace. As an honest stallsman, I have to give out a living wage, after all."


    Heading back to the Magpie Inn, Robin thought over what had happened that day. The people here were very kind-hearted. Then she made a face as she remembered that merchant. He really needed to learn a lesson on how to save and spend money! Wasting it because they liked what some kid selling meat skewers said to them in passing!


    -----------


    As she was eating dinner in the common room, she happened to overhear the discussion going on at the next table. It was hard not to hear, because they were the loudest table in the inn.


    "You mean it? Whoever pulls that sword out of the stone will be given a gold coin!?" A red-bearded man exclaimed.


    "Yeah! And they get to keep the sword too! Just think of all the meals and ale you could get with that, eh!" His walrus-moustached companion replied. At this point, one of the regulars cut into their conversation.


    "It''s no use. People have been trying to pull that sword out for years, an it hasn''t even budged a speck. Instead of disappointin'' yerselves so early, why not go out and do a bit of real work!" The regular then downed his entire mug of beer in one shot.


    "Meeh! You''re just sour because you can''t do it either!" Red Walrus Moustache jeered.


    "Oy, Green-y! What would you do with a gold coin?"


    "I dunno. Maybe buy myself a mansion and have high tea every day. I hear that''s what the nobles do in the capital."


    "You mean, the noblewomen, ey!?" The entire room burst into laughter as the men began to drink themselves silly.


    ''Sword? Stone? Are they talking about THAT sword in the stone?'' Robin thought to herself, as she listened. Thinking back to her weeding job, that sword...why did they make it seem so hard? Hadn''t she easily pulled it out in one swing?


    She did admit that the gold coin reward was exremely tempting. In a world where she had no background or power to speak of, having a fair amount of capital would be a tremendous help. Moreover, it was a contest open to all, so no one could say that it wasn''t a fair one.


    ''Maybe...I''ll go and check this evening, before I hit the sack.'' She made up her mind, and hungrily tore into her dinner.


    -----------


    The glow of the evening twilight after sundown still gave a fair bit of light to the surroundings. That, coupled with the rising of the full moon, further illuminated the ground around her.


    Re-tracing her steps, she managed to find her way back to the courtyard. Peeking around from the entranceway, she didn''t see anyone around. The raised Pavillion was also empty of people. She glanced around behind her as well. The street itself was empty.


    Feeling somewhat timid, she quietly ran over to the sword in the stone. It hadn''t been moved since the last time she had been there. After examining it by eye, there didn''t seem to be anything about it that could hold it in place. She slowly grasped the hilt, and pulled it out in one quick motion, the moonlight flashing from the blade.


    Examining the blade, there didn''t seem to be any sort of gimmicks either. Robin''s glance slid down the blade. To tell the truth, she really wanted it. As a blade that was light, well-balanced, and well-sharpened, she would need a blade such as this, if she was going to be taking on more requests.


    Her mind went back to the rumor that she heard at the inn. If it was true....


    Her train of thought was interrupted as someone spoke from the nearby treetop.


    "See, I told you he''d come back. He even managed to pull it out again."


    "Shut up! I don''t want to have to chase him if he runs away again!"


    Robin swiftly whirled around to see two men jump down from the nearby tree.


    "Who are you?" She asked, placing the blade in between her and the men. They both raised their arms non-threateningly.

 9 She Has a Talk

    "Calm down, there! We just want to talk." One of the men said.


    "I can hear you just fine from where you are standing, thank you." Robin replied. "Speak."


    "Well, you see-" The man began.


    "It seems we meet again." The other man said.


    Robin swung her sword sideways to face the second man, who had quietly stepped out of the shadows of the tree. The light of the full moon was more than enough to illuminate his face. Robin''s eyes narrowed. It was that prodigal merchant guy! The other one was most likely his cohort from back at the meat stall.


    "Once was a coincidence. Twice was an accident. Now that there''s a third time, it''s definitely no coincidence." Robin said, looking fiercely at the two. "Who are you, and what is your business with me?" her blue eyes seemed to glow in the light of the moon, which was further accentuated by her short-styled black hair.


    "Erm, well it''s difficult to talk with a sword pointed at us." the merchant''s companion said. Robin aimed her sword back at him. "Talk." She said.


    "R-right. You may have noticed that sword you''re holding onto is a really good sword, right? Well, there''s actually something special about that sword-"


    "Wait." Robin interrupted. "Just for future reference, Even if I have pulled out this sword, I refuse to become king. If this sword comes with such a responsibility, then I refuse."


    "No, the sword which indicates who is king is already in the king''s hands, so no problems there." The man replied, quickly, eyes glued to the sword point not far away from him.


    "Then, what is it that is special about this particular sword?" Robin asked.


    "Well, the thing is, there''s only one person in the world right now who can pull that sword out." The man replied.


    "...Which..is?" Robin asked slowly, hoping that this conversation wasn''t going where she thought it was going.


    "The Hero." The Merchant cut into the comversation. "Only the Hero can pull out the Hero''s blade. It has always been this way, ever since the dawn of time. The one who can pull out this blade will be the Hero that can save us all."


    "...Just for future reference, if the Hero was a girl, would you still call her the Hero?" Robin asked.


    "The Hero is the Hero, no matter the gender." The Merchant replied.


    "Got it. So, you''re saying that...I''m the Hero?" She asked, feeling highly conflicted.


    "Yep. As soon as I saw you draw the sword out, and witnessed your beautiful sword form, I realized that you had to be the Hero." The merchant nodded in affirmation. "What I didn''t expect was that you would run away so quickly."


    "Er, well I''m not the kind of person who would steal things is all." Robin felt a bit embarrassed. She was also secretly pleased at his compliment to her sword form. "I''ve had quite a few misunderstandings with people who would rather believe I was stealing than anything else."


    "Those sound like a rather over-suspicious bunch. I can see why you would act that way, now." The Merchant nodded with understanding.


    "I do have one last question, though. Are Heroes here summoned? Or do they simply appear out of nowhere?" Robin asked.


    "Hmm? Why do you want to know that?" He asked.


    Robin grinned, her eyes turning to crescents as she said. "Well, there''s not much I can do if it''s a random event. But, if it''s a summoning, then I''m gonna punch whichever idiot summoned me here in the face!!" She raised a clenched fist, and one-handedly cracked the knuckles on that hand..


    The merchant coughed twice. He decided he was never going to reveal that it was him who had initiated the summoning.


    "Well, the records on that are not entirely clear on that. It could be either way, the way I see it. Now, have we answered all your questions to your satisfaction? Or will you keep pointing that sword at us?"


    Robin considered things, and lowered the sword to her side. "Since I am the only one who can lift the Hero''s sword, then can I consider this to be my own weapon?" She asked.


    "Of course you can!" The merchant''scompanion sighed with relief. He didn''t like the feeling of having that sword pointed at him. "The Hero''s sword can only become the property of the Hero. Thisis the second law of the kingdom."


    "Hmm? Incidentally, what''s the first law?" Robin asked.


    "He who pulls out the king''s sword becomes king, of course!" the man replied. "Well, they use the fiddle-faddle high court way of saying it, but that''s what it means."


    "Ah, that reminds me, I heard that the person who pulls out the sword will get the reward of one gold. Is that true?" She asked.


    "Of course! We can''t have the hero lack for money when it comes down to equipment." the man replied.


    "Ahem! Hold up, Keith. Perhaps we should do introductions sometime soon?" The merchant asked. "My name is Christian, and this is my companion, Keith. Might we ask for your name?"


    Robin paused for a moment. "Robin." She replied.


    "So it is Hero Robin, is it? A good name!" Christian replied. "About the gold coin. That would have been distributed to the person who pulled out the sword out of the stone tomorrow, but, since you''ve pulled it out already-wait, what are you doing!?" He exclaimed as Robin placed the sword back into the stone in the exact place she pulled it out from. She even nodded satified that she had replaced it.


    "What does it look like I''m doing? I''m putting it back until tomorrow." She replied.


    "But, why?" Christian asked.


    "Partially because I need the capital, but also partially because there are a lot of people looking forward to tomorrow''s event. It would be a shame if everything was over before it even began, after all." Robin said. Then she began walking towards the entrance, waving her hand in farewell.


    "Well, good night. I''ll be competing fair and square against everyone else in tomorrow''s ceremony."


    Both watched as she disappeared through the entranceway. Keith suddenly burst out laughing as if he couldn''t hold it in anymore, smacking his hand against the trunk in mirth.


    Christian pinched the skin between his eyebrows, beginning to feel a headache coming on. "If you already know that you''re the only one who can lift it, can this competition even be called fair anymore? I was going to say that I can just give you the money right now!"


    Keith laughed all the harder. "Hahahahaah! AH, We''ve got a real ringer this time. Pahahah! That one''s a smart one, he is!"


    "I don''t see what there is to laugh about, KEITH." Christian''s voice took on a somewhat more threatening tone as he glared at Keith. "Perhaps you can explain it to me?"


    "He doesn''t believe us. Haha! He doesn''t believe that only he can lift that sword. Therefore, -Puhahah!- He''s going to watch as everyone tries to pull out the sword ahead of him! Hee heee heee! Oh, I can''t! I just can''t breathe anymore! Kahahaahaah! The Hero doesn''t believe that he''s the Hero!"


    Christian''s eyes widened with surprise. Then he turned to look at the courtyard entrance. "A Hero that doesn''t believe he''s a Hero?"


    To be sure, the thought had never occured to him. He thought that perhaps, the Hero would be like a great general, comandeering the army, and expelling all the intruding demons and monsters. from the outside. Or perhaps he would be like a Paladin: graceful, strong, protecting everyone like a shield. He hadn''t expected this time''s Hero to be so...hesitant.


    He looked up at the round full moon. Perhaps, he should observe the Hero for a while? The silence in that courtyard was heavy with thought that night.

 10 She Joins the Competition

    Back in her room at the inn, Robin was in full panick mode.


    "Uwaah! I should have known! If it wasn''t being a ruler, then it had to be the hero version of Isekai genre! I''d be lucky enough as it is just to survive, but now, I''ll have to go defeat the Demon King or something! And then there''s usually the part where they can''t return-why didn''t I confirm that part earlier!"


    She paced back and forth muttering to herself, as she hugged her arms. Then she took a deep breath and slapped her cheeks.


    ''Yup! It hurts-ouch!''


    "Focus, Robin! You just received new information. Now you''ve got to consolidate the info and reconfigure your goals for the time being!"


    She took out a small notebook from her magic bag.


    "Let''s see...Money, Food, Shelter-for now-, new clothes, magic bag: I''ve easily gotten ahold of these things. But, just because it''s easy now, that doesn''t mean it won''t get more difficult in the future. Don''t get complacent, just because you finished a few tasks, Robin.


    "Tomorrow, hopefully, I can acquire that amazing sword. Oohoo! Just thinking of holding a Hero''s Sword is sending shivers up my spine. It''s the stuff of fantasy, after all!"


    Then she paused, and looked out the window.


    "Ah, but those magic plant monsters were real too...And they''re probably just cannon fodder compared to the real thing. If I reach out my hand to grab that blade, can I honestly bear the responsibility of what comes behind it? Can I continue through fire and frost, mountains and valleys until my job is done?"


    She wondered, looking at her hand.


    "We''ll put that aside until later. What''s left on the list from yesterday? Hmm....Possibly learning some magic. I also need to test the nobles of this country. If they are good and upright, then all is well. But...if they aren''t...then I feel it isn''t right to face a lion with a pack of hyenas at my back. In that case, I may have to flee."


    She tapped her chin in thought.


    "Well, no matter how much I add on top of the list, at the end will always be ''Finding a way back home.'' I think that should be good for now! All right! Sleep time!"


    She jumped in the bed, hoping to quickly find her way to sleep.


    But that night, many were finding that sleep was very hard to find.


    She frowned, and tossed and turned in bed, but she just could not settle down at all! Finally, she sat up, and glared at the full moon, before giving up on sleep. She took out her sketchbook, and started to draw snippets of the town from her memories.


    Fillling an entire page with small snippets and sketches, the last thing that she drew was the sword, thrust into the stone. For some reason, drawing it came very naturally to her. Instead of the rudimentary shading that she gave her other sketches, this one had detailed shading layered into it, to the point where it almost looked like the real thing.


    When she had finished drawing it, she gave a loud yawn. Finally feeling a bit tired, she returned the book to her magic bag, and went back to bed.


    -----------


    It seemed like she had slept only five minutes when the morning bell rang out that it was 8am. Sitting up limply, Robin felt certain that there were dark circles under her eyes. She rubbed her eye, slowly, gathering her mental strength to jump-start the part of her brain that was in charge of awake-ness.


    She was tempted to just go back to bed. But, breakfast was only served until 9am, and she had no confidence in being able to wake up in time for it. Then she realized that she had money, and could most likely just buy herself something to eat outside. And she was even more tempted than ever to just lie back down, and sleep.


    She sighed. And hoisted herself out of bed all the same. Sleep was for the night. And money was something that should be saved and spent carefully, not splurged upon a lapse of discipline. She splashed cold water on her face to wake herself up and looked out the window. Today was going to be a rather busy day.


    --------------


    As she headed out of the inn, she was surprised to see a line formed down the side of the street.


    "whoah! That''s a long line! I wonder where it leads?" She looked in the direction it was flowing. It was headed towards the courtyard of the sword in the stone.


    "Right. I should have guessed." She tapped her temple, thoughtfully. She had wanted to find a good place to view the sword-pulling event from. Where would that be?


    "Ah! That place should be good!" She decided, running down a few side streets, but still heading in the general area of the Courtyard of the Sword in the Stone.


    --------


    Christian sat in the raised Pavillion, overseeing the rough, rugged men pull their muscles and backs out of alignment, sometimes dislocating bones, in their attempts to pull the sword out. To the side, an expert team of healers was at hand, to reduce and eliminate the damage due to overburdening themselves. But the line of people yet to try their luck had no signs of growing any shorter.


    He watched, feeling mildly impatient. Where was he? When was the Hero going to show up? What he didn''t know was the person he was looking for had found a good vantage point to watch in a nearby tree.


    While those standing in line were starting to sweat from standing out in the sun, Robin was confortably enjoying the shade and the cool breeze from her perch in the tree. She had even gotten bored and dozed off in the middle.


    Thus, the morning gave way to noon. And the food stalls were getting good business, since they had set up across the street from the long line. At that point, everyone was hungry, but no one was willing to leave their spot in line. Luckily, these men didn''t have to leave their spots today.


    Young boys, acting as runners, would take the order of a person in line, receive their coin, then walk up to the corresponding food stall and get the man''s food for him. These youngins earned quite the amount of coin that day.


    They were fetching food and drinks, water-dampened towels, and iced desserts to cool people down. Each time would earn them a small copper coin. 5 zetu wasn''t much. But if one was quick, then that 5 zetu could easily be turned into 500 zetu by the end of the day.


    But, even during the lunch hour, men were attempting to wrench the sword out of the stone, to no avail. The healer team had split into half to eat their lunch in shifts. But, Robin was so tired from last night, that she was still dozing on her perch up in the tree.


    The afternoon slowly gave way to the evening. Finally, a little before sundown, the last man in line tried his hand at pulling the sword out. But, it was useless. The sword would not budge.


    "Is there anyone else willing to try their hand at the sword? ANYONE?" Keith yelled out, hinting at Robin to make an appearance now. The crowd was quiet. Most of the men had gone home, both their hearts and their backs stinging from the slap to their pride. But, in that silence, Keith picked up a soft snore.


    ''Ahah! That''s where you are!'' He grabbed a stone from the ground, and threw it into the tree near the sword.


    THUNK!


    "Ouch-Aaaaah!" Robin was able to save herself from falling to her death by grabbing onto the limb at the last second.


    "What is wrong with you! Didn''t you know that disturbing my sleep is dangerous!" She scolded Keith, as she swung herself down from the branch, landing on the ground, unhurt-aside from a bump on her head from the rock. She rubbed it ruefully.


    The people in the crowd chuckled at this exchange.


    "AHEM! Does anyone ELSE wish to try taking the sword out of the stone!?" He glared at Robin, trying to give her a cue to act.


    Robin frowned at him, begrudgingly, then she looked at how long the line had left to go-wait, there wasn''t anyone left in line! Moreover, the sword still remained in the stone, a testament that no one else had been able to free it.


    ''Fine. If you will accept no one else, then I suppose I will accept you for the time being.'' She gave up.


    "I suppose I would like to give it a try." She spoke up. The remaining crowd broke out into chuckles. This skinny beanpole of a lad was going to attempt pulling a sword that even the most muscled of barbarians could not lift? What kind of joke was this?

 11 She Becomes the Hero

    Robin, rubbed the bump on her head once more. She didn''t mind the crowds being amused, but she wasn''t happy with Keith. He had thrown a rock at her, after all! What if it had caused her head to start bleeding?


    She glanced over at him, then smiled, angelically. Keith was thrown off by that smile. ''What are you up to, now, lad?'' He thought as he felt slightly disturbed.


    "I can see that you don''t think I can pull it out either. What would you do if I DID manage to pull it out?" Keith''s face paled. He clearly knew that if he bet against Robin, that he''d end up losing.


    "If you can pull it out, then you will get a gold coin." He replied.


    "That''s the king''s reward. We already know about that." Robin shook her head. "I''m asking, what are you going to do if I manage to pull the sword out?"


    Keith looked at Christian for help, but Christian was clearly only watching with a mischievous gaze. ''What! You''re on his side, too, Prince!?'' He complained in his heart.


    ''...Fine. I guess it''s allright to suffer a loss at the hands of the Hero...'' He resigned himself.


    "Then, if you manage to pull the sword out of the stone, I will be your follower for a day." He said.


    This was a true honor, since Keith was a member of the Royal Family''s Guard. To have a Royal Guard follow one around was something that not even most nobles had the honor of experencing.


    Of course, none of the crowd realized that he would do such a thing anyways as a matter of course. The Hero was important to the country. Obviously, only the best guards were at a high enough level to act as protectors. Well, nobody noticed-except for Robin, that is.


    She narrowed her eyes. A follower? What was the difference between a follower and a legalized stalker, she''d like to know! But, if he followed her for a day, then she could end up pulling all sorts of pranks on him, so she nodded in agreement. "It''s on!"


    Facing the golden hilt before her, she paused for a moment. Pulling out this blade meant the beginning of a lucid nightmare-one that was very, very real. She could give up. She could walk away, and simply live out her life as an adventurer instead.


    Her hand then reached out, and grasped the hilt, swinging it out in one fluid motion so that the last light of the setting sun flashed from the blade. Lifting it high above her head.


    "I don''t know what all the fuss was about. This thing just slid right out!" Robin said.


    The men in the remaining crowds felt both happy, and unhappy at the same time. They were happy that the sword was out of the stone, but at Robin''s comment, some of them felt like puking blood.


    ''We threw our backs out and it didn''t budge. But now a slip of a lad like you is now the Hero!? How is this fair!?!'' Many of them thought this, but didn''t say it. A few left the area with dark expressions on their faces. Instead, the crowd cheered as the Hero had finally been unearthed.


    "As promised," Keith proclaimed. "The Hero shall be awarded one Gold coin." He passed it to Robin, who easily slipped it into her magic bag, unnoticed.


    It was at that moment, when a bedraggled man staggered out of an alleyway towards the courtyard, blood flowing from his head, and several large wounds on his back.


    "JACK! Jack what happened to you!" A woman rushed out of the crowd, drawing attention to the severely injured man. She was Jack''s wife, Mary.


    The crowd gathered around, as he used the last bit of his strength to speak. "D..emons...they''re heading towards Kelly Village....Hur..ry." Then he fainted.


    "Did you hear what he said?"


    "He said Demons! Demons! And their headed to Kelly Village!"


    "Once they''re finished with the village, it''ll be us who they''ll be after! We''re the next closest town!"


    As Robin heard what they said, She sighed. "It looks like my initiation to Hero-dom will have to be a crash course."


    She pointed towards the healers, who had fully recovered by this time. "Healers! I don''t care if it''s one of you, or all of you at the same time! Heal that man, and be quick about it! He may have vital information about the situation!" She yelled, grabbing everyone''s attention.


    Then she turned to the crowds and gave them instructions. "And you lot! Don''t just run about like a chicken with your heads cut off! Men, gather weapons and shields! Women, gather your children and take them to a safe place, preferably a sturdy stone house if possible! Board up windows and bar the doors! I''ll need men to volunteer to come with me to save Kelly village, and some horses!"


    "Leave Kelly Village be! It''s done for by now!" A voice cried out.


    Robin turned in the voice''s direction and glared. "Oh? Let''s hope that the capital''s army is not as much a coward as you are, then! Don''t want to come along with me, and have no one to protect? Good! I also need men to run to the capital for aid! Time is of the essence, people, let''s move!!"


    Robin waved her sword in a diagonal slash, and everyone knew they were dismissed. In the face of crisis, the people could only do what she said. the healers crowded towards Jack, and soon an oreole of light could be seen encompassing him. The rest quickly followed what Robin had said, running back to their houses to grab whatever weapons and shields that they had to prepare for battle.


    "How did you..?" Christian asked.


    "I didn''t do much. I just gave them a plan of action."


    "That was quite daring. What would you have done if they hadn''t listened?"


    "What people need the most during times like these is a plan of action. Something big and scary has happened close by, and they are afraid. All that fear will eat at them from the inside, unless they find a better use of their time rather than worrying.


    Since I''m the Hero, they now see me as a source of authority, even if I''m new. I simply gave them something better to do. The key is to tell them to do things that they would probably do anyways. That way they agree with your plan of action, even if they don''t particularly like you."Robin replied, heading towards the adventurer''s hall-Christian in tow.


    "But you sounded so experienced with situations like these? Were you a war hero in your world, as well?"


    "Don''t get me wrong: I''ve never been in a real war before. I just know something about people is all. This will be a first for me as well." Robin said, her eyes narrowing in thought. "I''m going to need a horse, and a metal gauntlet. But first...."


    "First, what?" Christian asked.


    Robin smirked, then threw the door to the adventurer''s guild open.

 12 Shes in a Hurry

    The receptionist elf was still at the counter, except her head wasn''t resting in her hands this time. Moreover, Robin noticed a few conspicuous short swords around her waist. The elf''s ears pricked up when Robin entered.


    "Ah, you''re here! And this time, you brought your weapon, I see." She said with a wry smile. But then her smile froze as she noticed the familiar design. of the hilt, and the blue sheen of the blade.


    "Perhaps....is that the Hero''s Blade!?" Her voice grew louder in shock.


    Robin nodded.


    "Th-then you...you''re the...Hero?" The receptionist asked weakly.


    "Fresh out of the factory, but now''s not the time for small talk." Robin replied. "I need you to approve me for quests outside of town."


    "Hero, I don''t see how this is going to help anything." Christian said, confused.


    "A-at once! Can you p-please hand me your card!" The receptionist stuttered enthusiastically.


    Robin handed it over, quickly. The Elf quickly grabbed a stamp and stamped a green checkmark on the card, which faded after about three seconds. Then, she took out a second stamp and stamped a gold star in the corner.


    "What''s that gold star for?" Robin asked.


    "It''s so that people will know you''re the Hero." The elf replied. "If you are either SS rank or a Hero, you will be given a gold star."


    "Good to know." Robin replied.


    "Hey, weren''t you the one who said time is of the essence?" Christian asked again, feeling upset that he had been ignored over a perceived flirting session.


    "Right. As the Hero, I''d like to issue a few quests. Can I?" Robin asked.


    "Be my guest!" The elf replied.


    "Quests that are applicable for three days only. First quest: gather loose lumber over by the gates. One large copper per log. Second quest: gather the leaves of any periwinkle or geranium plants that can be found. One small copper per every bagful. Third quest: aid the healers in creating bandages. One Copper per every ten bandage rolls."


    Robin laid down the gold coin she had received earlier.


    "Take as much as you need out of that. You can return the remainder to me later."


    "I can understand the lumber and the bandages, but why the flowers?" The elf asked.


    "The crushed leaves of Periwinkle and Geranium plants help blood to clot, and can also act as a mild sedative, dulling pain, when applied as a poultice. Even freshly-crushed leaves will have a good effect. Please convey this information to the healers group. You can also take a fee for conveying the information out of that coin."


    Then, turning her back, she walked out of the Guild.


    "Why won''t you tell it to them yourself?" Christian asked.


    "Because I truly am in a hurry right now! Did you find someone to lend me a horse?" She asked.


    "Keith will probably already be at the inn with what you need." Christian said. "But, why didn''t you keep that gold to prepare some good equipment?"


    "What is more important here? A hunk of metal, or a human life!?" Robin replied in frustration, as she picked up the pace, which -maddeningly- Christian was able to keep up with as well.


    At the Inn, a chestnut brown horse was already prepared alongside a metal gauntlet, a plain metal-plated wooden shield, and the sheath for the Hero''s sword, which the town Mayor had quickly sent over. It had graced the town hall for centuries, waiting for whomever managed to pull out the sword.


    Without saying a word, she nodded to Keith, quickly wore the items, then quickly swung up onto the horse. She charged towards the gates, which only barely managed to open in time for her, before she slipped through. Keith and Christian charged after her too, on sturdy stallions.


    It was only after a minute that the other men who were supposed to go with them charged out of the gates after them.


    "Hero! Don''t leave us behind!" They cried out.


    ----------------------


    After charging for a minute or two, Christian pointed out that they going the wrong way. And turned them back on track by cutting across the fields.


    The overwhelming stench of blood assailed Robin''s nose as she entered Kelly''s Village, but the sound of fighting could still be heard nearby.


    "There''s still people alive!" Robin exclaimed. Just then, the rest of the townsfolk arrived. Since Robin had gone off track a bit, their arrival times were not too far apart.


    "Ah, darn it!" Robin charged towards the back of the village. A group of villagers were defending against the demons by hiding inside the old stone chapel that also doubled as a town meeting hall. The people were able to hold them off with the help of the natural stone walls, as well as a generous amount of wooden spears, and shields.


    These Demons were not the kind that could be dispelled with holy water. Instead, Demons were a kind of animal that had gained intelligence, and somewhat human-like features. The majority of them like to keep to themselves in the Demon King''s Forest. But, there were a few kinds of lowly demon that simply loved to pick on those weaker than they were.


    One of these kinds of demons was right in front of her: an orc. In fact, it was a whole squad of orcs in crude armor, with crude weapons like great axes, Sabers, and spiked clubs. Robin jumped down from her horse.


    "Hero!" Christian called. "You''ll be surrounded if you do that!"


    "No worries." Robin replied, expertly dodging several wide swings, bobbing and weaving through the group like a fish in water. "It''s much more efficient this way."


    Every Orc she passed had their hamstrings severed, making them unable to stand. Once she had gone through the lot of them, she looked down at the collapsed pig-faces. Then she slit their throats.through the gaps in their crude armors. Within minutes, all the orcs were dead.


    "Are you all okay?" She asked the people inside the chapel.

 13 She is Surprised

    "The women and children inside here are fine, but many of the men have broken bones and torn limbs." The village chief answered. He was a rather muscular old man sporting a large scar down his nose, as if someone tried to draw on him with a dagger.


    Robin nodded and turned to the group of men on horses behind her. "Are any among you healers!? If so, please come to the front. If you have enough mana, please begin healing the villagers. The rest, please search through the ruins of the village for injured people."


    A few men came forward, and began treating the injured, while the rest started sorting through the debris left by the collapsed houses that had been smashed apart to collapse by the orcs.


    "So much hard work to build-but now it''s so easily destroyed..." She sighed to herself. Wasn''t that the way of things? Building up was always harder than tearing down. Now the village itself was almost completely wrecked.


    Then Robin turned back to her horse. To tell the truth, when the horse had sensed that orcs were around, it had become quite skittish. When it saw the orcs, it was very afraid, and she could see the whites of its eyes.


    So, the main reason why she jumped off her horse at that time was that it would not have gone farther, even if she had whipped it. At that time, Christian had grabbed ahold of the reins to keep it from running away. Because of this, it was still standing nearby, even though it was clearly badly frightened.


    She checked her blade for blood, but found it was just as pristine as when she had pulled it out earlier, and so she sheathed it, and proceeded to pacify the horse, petting its nose and neck while muttering soothing sounds to it. She had learned this from one of the war re-enactment men she had talked to. Christian watched her with a growing sense of admiration.


    ''So this is what a Hero is, huh?'' He thought to himself. "You were so quick back there, that I was quite surprised. Usually it takes a full team of seven men an hour just to take down one Orc, yet you managed to take down over ten in less than a minute."


    Robin glanced at Christian, considering his statement. "Was it really that impressive? Their armor and movements were so slow, even a child would easily be able to outpace them. I don''t see what''s there to make a fuss over."


    Christian shook his head, looking down at the corpses. "The big deal is that an orc''s hide is tough to the point where weapons that aren''t steel-made would quickly wear down and perhaps even shatter. And that with no visible blood-drawing wound in sight. Their hides are so strong that they can rival steel plating. Yet you..."


    He glanced pointedly at Robin. "...Slashed through them as if they were paper dolls. And you still say that it is not something to take note of?"


    Robin turned her eyes elsewhere. There was no need to look at her like she was some kind of monster. It was obviously the work of the sword in her hand.


    "If you say so...Ah look, it''s a tree!" She said, trying to steer the conversation away.


    "Robin, there''s trees all over the place." Christian replied, already knowing he would get nothing out of the Hero that the Hero was not willing to reveal.


    "But those are all broken, and pushed over." Robin pointed out. "Moreover, it''s in the way of the Orcs. Would they allow a mere tree to stand in their way?"


    "Then perhaps it was simply their neglect in their haste to kill off the village?"


    "Then there would still be fresh scars on the wood, or broken branches from when they passed by, but there aren''t. While it could still be a case of neglect on their end, maybe they didn''t touch it because of some other reason."


    Robin drew closer to examine the tree. ''It''s a very good tree with lots of leaves...'' She noted. ''And, are those some kind of cherry? I''ll need to ask the village head about what kind of tree this is.''


    "When the soldiers from the capital arrive, we''ll need to search the surrounding area for any signs of Demon settlements." Christian said.


    "Mmn." Robin replied.


    "Excuse me, but...you''re the Hero, right?" The village chief asked.


    "I am." Robin replied.


    "What are you going to do with these orc corpses?" he asked.


    Robin looked at the dead bodies, then she realized that this was the first time she had ever killed something. Her face paled. As the Hero, she would probably need to do this on a regular basis. She turned her head so that she couldn''t see them anymore.


    "They''re valuable, right?" She asked.


    "Yes. A single orc corpse can range anywhere from a silver to a small gold coin, depending on the size of their magic stone." The village chief replied.


    "Then, take them, sell them, and use the money from them to help rebuild the village and support the families of the disabled or dead." She replied turning her back to the chief.


    "But Hero! What about you? You are the one who killed all of them after all! By all rights these should belong to you!" The somewhat muscular village chief was shocked.


    "And? What does it matter that I''ve killed them? Can killing them rebuild the village? Can killing them replace a shattered limb with a sound one? You are right. Those orc corpses belong to me. And now I''m doing what I want with them." She replied, her back still to the chief.


    Only Christian, who could see the Hero''s face, would know why he said that. The truth was, that the Hero was suddenly feeling violently ill, and was trying to keep her stomach from emptying.


    It was more likely that the Hero wanted nothing to do with the orc corpses.


    He smiled wryly to himself. This Hero... At first he had thought that this young man was too calm for something like this to be his first time killing others. But it turns out that Christian was almost fooled. Even soldiers experienced sudden nausea upon their first battle. It turns out that the Hero was not too different after all.


    "Then, I will thank you in advance on behalf of the entire village." The chief bowed deeply.


    "Ah, yes, that reminds me. What kind of tree is this?" Robin asked, trying to think of something else. "I noticed there are fruits on it. Is it some kind of cherry tree?"


    The village elder shook his head. "Um..no. That is not a cherry tree, but a peppercorn tree."


    After about three seconds, what the elder said got through to her. Surprised, she exclaimed.


    "WHAT!?"

 14 She Recalls A Hidden Bitterness

    Robin suddenly burst out laughing. "So that''s what it was!" She said.


    "Um, what do you mean?" The village chief asked.


    Robin looked up, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. She hadn''t laughed like that in a long time.


    "It''s the peppercorn." She replied. "The orcs didn''t disturb the tree because they don''t like the smell of peppercorn. Puhaaha!" She laughed again. "I just bet that with those rather large noses, they have a very acute sense of smell. So what would happen when the very ticklish scent of fresh peppercorn reached their noses?"


    "They would feel ticklish?"


    "They would most definitely sneeze. And not just once or twice, either. Can you imagine it? A whole army of orcs that couldn''t fight because they were too busy sneezing?" Robin chuckled. "By the time the smell had settled, they''d be already completely routed by their opposing army."


    Christian also chuckled. "Indeed, that would be one of the more unique ways of winning a battle."


    "And if we surrounded the villages with peppercorn trees? Robin waggled her eyebrows. "Might as well make it as hard for them as possible to prey on the normal folks."


    "Why not the towns and the cities?" Christian asked.


    Robin looked at Christian strangely.


    "Towns and cities have walls, and at least a small contingent of soldiers. villages have neither. I didn''t think you had that many peppercorn trees to go round. Moreover, you''re a merchant, right? How come you didn''t know this was a peppercorn?" She smacked the trunk in emphasis.


    "Ahem! I was aware of it. You simply didn''t ask me." he coughed and said off to the side.


    "All right, so I guess it is my fault for not asking. But the reason why it''s best for the villages is because they have the smallest perimeters, which makes it easier and quicker to surround." Robin replied, good-naturedly.


    "Moreover, I''m not too sure if this peppercorn tree can be planted everywhere either. Some trees can only grow in certain environments, after all. It could very well become a gamble if the tree cannot thrive in cold or wet places. If a resilient type was produced, then it may yet be a good tree to line the roads with, too."


    "I see you are considering this carefully." Christian said.


    "If it''s what constitutes the defense of the people, then how can I not consider things carefully?" Robin''s gaze returned to Christian.


    Christian felt a burst of guilt. ''No, originally, that is the job of the Royal Family, as well.'' He thought to himself.


    Robin continued.


    "Even though it''s my first day on the job, as a Hero who is supposed to save people, I must make provisions for the times when I am no longer here. This is what is called ''long-term planning''"


    "You are planning that far into the future? A Hero usually lasts for at least two hundred years, if they are not killed in honorable battle." Christian asked.


    "And that is why you are a prodigal wastrel." Robin replied. "Who waits for disaster to strike before trying to fix things? It is during the times of peace and prosperity that plans for the future should be made first and foremost. Earthquakes, floods, famines, plagues: do you think that these things ring warning bells before they appear? A wise ruler would obviously have ways to deal with these problems prepared ahead of time."


    ''Moreover...I am not planning on staying here that long.''


    Robin kept these words to herself. Perhaps it would be fine if she were only to tell Keith and Christian. But, right now, she was in front of the other men, and the villagers who had lost their homes and family members.


    Now, they all looked up to her as a hero. But they still had to deal with their losses. She couldn''t bring herself to make them lose their hope as well, because of her selfishness.


    Keith, who had heard her earlier words, tensed up, and grit his teeth. The hand resting on his sword handle clenched as well. If this young man wasn''t the Hero-and if Christian wasn''t in disguise, then saying the words ''prodigal waste'' to His Highness, Prince Christian, was asking for a death sentence. Christian glanced over at Keith and shook his head with a smile, before turning back to Robin.


    "I see. You have greatly widened my perspective. If you don''t mind, may I accompany you on your travels to learn more about these things?"


    Robin paused in surprise, then sighed. "It seems I was mistaken earlier. Anyone who is willing to learn from his mistakes is not suited for the title of ''prodigal wastrel''. If you are willing to learn, then I am not unwilling to teach you what I know."


    While Christian was inwardly celebrating, he heard the Hero mutter to himself. "It would probably be better if I were to teach these things to the prince, though, so he could spread good policies throughout the whole kingdom."


    "Hmm...As a matter of fact, I happen to know his Highness, the Prince. If you''d like, I can certainly convey your lessons to him after I gain a proper understanding." Prince Christian said slyly.


    "What, you heard me-I mean, you would do that?" Robin asked.


    "As a merchant''s son, if it helps to stabilize the country, then it would be a great aid in the opening of more opportunities for commerce. Who wouldn''t jump at such an opportunity?" He said, thumping his chest as he continued his act as a merchant.


    "First, you should probably tie a tighter knot onto your wallet. If you can''t know when to save and when to spend, what sort of merchant are you trying to be?" Robin retorted.


    "Hey, this is about me trying to give you that silver isn''t it?" He asked.


    "If you know, then you should fix such a habit." Robin replied.


    "Like how you simply gave away several highly valuable orc corpses to a village?" He asked.


    "I''m different." Robin replied. "I''m a free individual who have next to no subordinates to take care of, as opposed to a merchant''s son who will have a network of products to manage and people working under you to keep clothed and fed. As the Hero, saving these people here just so happens to be my responsibility. Unless, a Hero is not allowed to give aid to the common people?" Her words seemed to carry a sharp tone underneath. She glanced painfully at the dead that had been laid out along the side of the streets. Several villagers had not survived the collapse of their houses.


    "W-well what about me? Can''t a merchant involve himself with giving aid to the common folk?" Christian argued.


    "Within a reasonable amount, yes. Accepting the job means to accept all responsibilities that come with it. This includes what is owed towards those who support you from underneath. If, by sending aid to the common folk, you impoverish your subordinates, then your company will not last very long.


    As the Hero, I can easily find ways to make money. But, these villagers do not have as good an opportunity. They have families to provide for, homes to rebuild, dead to mourn." Those last three words were heavy with emotion as she thought about the funeral of her own parents, and then about the families that had been torn apart by death.


    ''''Nothing is certain but death and taxes.''...


    I know this. But, I can''t help thinking: ''They are just like me.''


    If we were only meant to be selfish creatures, then why does my heart hurt at the sight of another''s pain?


    Even if that pain is a sign that I am alive, can I not seek to reduce it?


    If only just for today, can I not help lift the heavy burdens they bear in their hearts?


    All the money in the world can never fill the empty hole in a human heart.


    All it can do is help to ease the pain.''


    Robin ran her fingers through her hair to pull it up away from her face, as she switched from looking at the cloth-covered bodies lining the road to the brilliant blue and pink sunset sky, that was so cheerful despite the loss of people.


    "The sky is still so cheerful, while the souls of the dead descend into hell."


    She muttered bitterly. She had thought this before, at her parent''s funeral. But only now did she have the courage to say it. Although it had been six years since then, the topic was still a sore one too close to the heart at the moment.


    "What''s that?" Christian asked.


    "...Nothing." Robin turned away. It does no good to resent the sky for being cheerful. She could only swallow that bellyful of bitterness back down, and tightly seal it with a stopper made of reason and truth.


    ''Anger solves nothing.'' She told herself as she closed her eyes, painfully.

 15 She Jumps to the Rescue

    "It''s not your fault." Christian said, noticing Robin''s internal struggle.


    Robin glanced over. "I never said it was."


    "No, but you were thinking it." Christian guessed. "If you hadn''t responded when you did, the village could have been completely wiped out. The fact that you managed to save most of them is already a blessing."


    "Well..." Robin sighed. "Never mind. I was just remembering when something similar happened to me. Perhaps that is why I can empathize more with these people. When I look at then, I can see myself from back then."


    "You lost members of your family?" He asked, surprised. Although he knew that the Hero would come from a different world, he had never thought about what kind of past a Hero would carry along inside of him when crossing between worlds.


    Robin looked down. "My parents. Six years ago, although -right now- it still feels more like yesterday." She smiled painfully. "I can somehow talk about it now, but I couldn''t even say a word back then. I couldn''t even cry. I was just drowning in a nightmare of emptiness, fear, and despair. I spent an entire week hoping against hope that it was all some sort of bad dream."


    "And then?" Christian asked.


    "Then, my older brother happened, that''s what." Robin shook her head. "He chopped open the lock on my door with an ax, burst into my room, and dragged me outside to go to a festival with him."


    "Did it help?" Christian asked.


    Robin snickered. "I hated every moment of it. When I finally decided to tell him to stop, he just turned and said to me ''So you DO still know how to talk, huh?''


    Then he dragged me to a nearby training ground, put a sword in my hand and told me


    ''Whatever you have left to say to Mom and Dad, you can say it right here.''


    Then he pointed to himself and said.


    ''It''s clear that I''m not good enough for you, so you just speak your mind and then run me through. I''ll be listening carefully so that I can be sure to tell them when I catch up to them.''"


    Christian jerked his head in surprise. "What? What did you do?"


    "What do you think I would do? Kill him?" Robin snorted.


    "I dropped that sword quicker than a burning hot potato and sat down on the dirt, bawling my eyes out. The thought of him leaving too was too much for the ten year old me. After that, I decided I had to keep myself together, if only to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn''t kill himself."


    She rolled her eyes. "It was only after a long time that I realized that the sword he gave me hadn''t even been sharpened." Then she sighed, a half smile tugging at the edge of her mouth. "Although I near half-killed him when I realized that fact...still, I am thankful that I had an older brother like him at that time."


    Christian was quiet. He had never had a brother. And so, he could only enviously listen to Robin''s tale. Then he shook his head.


    ''What am I being envious for? If I did have a brother, then he''d probably be endlessly competing with me for the throne... In my case, I could only hope to have as good a brother as his.''


    "That sounds an awful lot like bragging, to me." Christian finally sniffed, having found something to say.


    Robin raised both eyebrows and grinned mischievously. "That''s right. I''m bragging. What are you gonna do about it?"


    At this, Christian could barely hold back the laugh that almost exploded out of him. Now, was neither the time nor the place for merry things, in front of the bodies of the dead. But at least, Robin''s spirit was raised a bit.


    At that moment, Keith waved from a nearby collapsed house. "Oy! I found some survivors! Over here, they''re in the basement!"


    A piece of the cellar''s ceiling had fallen, revealing a young maiden, curled around a small toddler child, both of them unconscious. The young maiden also had blood streaming down her face. She had hugged the child tightly to keep it from being injured when the cellar ceiling started to fall.


    The townspeople gathered, trying their best to unbury the basement. The village chief had hurried over to help, managing to carry out twice as many broken materials as the regular men. Robin quickly ran over.


    "Quickly, remove that wooden beam!"


    They finally managed to clear away the beam, but then A carpenter stopped them from going any farther. "There aren''t any weight-bearing pillars down below. If you take any more from around the hole, the entire cellar could easily collapse!"


    "Well, what do you expect me to do, man! Do you want me to wait until it''s too late!?" Keith exclaimed. "Or is the sight of blood not enough for ye?" He was so agitated that his northern accent slipped back into his speech.


    "No, but someone will have to be lowered down the hole to tie a rope around the woman and the child so we can lift them to safety." The carpenter asserted stubbornly.


    "Are you kidding me!? That hole is too small for a normal man, and ye can hardly expect a child''s knots to be tied tight enough-"


    "I can do it!" Robin interrupted. "If the hole is no wider than a ten-gallon keg, I can do it! It should be easy enough to measure the hole''s width like that, right?"


    "Right you are!" A man said. "I''ve got an empty one over here."


    They lowered the barrel through the hole in a net, the barrel positioned vertically. The opening was about an inch wider than the 10 gallon keg. But it was still wider. Everyone let out a sigh of relief.


    Then Robin instructed the carpenter to set up a simple pulley system by stacking up an extremely sturdy pile of wood on both sides of the hole, this helped to give them a place to stack the reusable lumber as well. Then, they set up a long wooden beam across the two wooden piles. to this beam was firmly attached two metal links for the rope to go through.


    On one of the metal links, the rope was firmly attached, and then fed loosely through the other metal link, to the workers, who would be pulling from an area of sound ground next to the wreckage of the house. Thankfully, after showing then what she wanted, the men followed her request without questioning it. Being the Hero sure did have its perks.


    While they were still setting up, Robin went off to the side with two lengths of rope, and started tying them into loops. She attached the ends of the looped, criss-crossed rope to a metal ring. Originally, she would have had a problem attaching the metal ring to the rope, but thankfully, she also had a solution for that.


    "What are you doing there?" Christian asked.


    Robin didn''t look up. "Making a simple rope harness to keep them stable and upright while they are being lifted."


    "What?" He asked, not understanding.


    Robin glanced at him, then rolled her eyes. "I''m helping." She said simply. Christian sighed and stepped to the side. He could only wait and see what the rope would be used for.


    Everything was finished and ready within five minutes. And Robin stepped in the center of the rope, waiting patiently for the men to slowly lower her down.

 16 She Takes up the Nightwatch

    While they were preparing things, the sun had set, leaving them in an ever deepening twilight. The people began to light torches, and gathered the un-usable wood fragments to burn in a large bonfire. It was still light out, but it wouldn''t be light for long.


    Originally, Robin was aware that there was a problem with this setup: how was she going to attach the metal ring of the harness to the rope? Well, there was a surprisingly easy answer inside her magic bag.


    Having opened it to place bandages and an improvised stretcher with rope harness for the injured maiden, she remembered her shoulderbag from earth, and recalled a certain item that was attached to it. Retrieving that, she quickly attached the item to the metal ring; it was a key clip.


    As they lowered her below, she took note of, and got rid of jagged edges, and places where they would have had to proceed slowly.


    Upon reaching the ground, she quickly got to work, carefully extracting the unconscious child, and slipping his arms and legs into the harness before slipping the straps around his chest, and making sure everything was good and snug. Then she tugged on the rope to signal the townsfolk to start pulling slowly. The child slowly began rising into the air.


    Robin watched until he was about halfway up, then turned and began paying attention to the injured maiden. From the appearance of the surrounding debris, it didn''t seem like any large pieces of ceiling had fallen on her. But, just in case, she carefully rolled her over onto the stretcher, and secured the second harness around her.


    The rope came down again, with the little child''s harness still attached. Robin realized that they had no idea how to use a key clip. So she just slipped the child''s harness off, and clipped the maiden''s stretcher onto the rope with the key clip. Glancing around the basement, she didn''t see anyone else, and waited for them to lower the rope to bring her back up.


    When she emerged from the hole, there was a big cheer.


    The healer had just finished examining them, and asserted that they were both fine, with nothing more than flesh wounds. They had just fainted out of fear. After a short session of healing, the bleeding on the maiden''s head stopped completely.


    The men slapped and patted Robin on the back in thanks. And, although muted in respect for the dead, there was a small amount of laughter amongst the men. Soon enough, all of the destroyed houses had been searched through, and everyone was accounted for.


    She grinned, then detached the key clip from the rope, and returned it to her earthly possessions in her magic bag, unnoticed in the deepening twilight. Now, all they had to do was to wait until reinforcements from the city arrived. Until then, the townsfolk patrolled the perimeter of the village in groups of three, to make sure there were no demons in the surroundings.


    In place of wooden and stone houses, the villagers used some large swathes of cloth to make a small settlement of tents near the bonfire. When Robin asked where they had gotten the cloth, it turned out that the village was a settlement that specialized in making cloth, expecially with the large amounts of Fluffers in the area. Fluffers were a kind of cotton tree, according to what Robin heard from the description.


    The majority of the newly created cloth had been stored in the chapel basement, to await the time when they would dye it. The reason for that was because the chapel basement was the most secure against rats and mice. They also had some sturdy cotton rope made from the bits and pieces that were not enough to make a complete sheet of cloth. at the end of cloth-making season.


    Everything seemed to be settling down in the aftermath of the attack. Many of the villagers, exhausted, retired to their tents as soon as they were put up. But some took out a large cauldron used for feasts, and cooked the townsfolk a dinner of barley and vegetable soup, with bread as thanks for their rescue.


    As they made twice as much as was needed, Robin surmised that the leftovers would be heated up for breakfast the next day. The round moon rose into the sky. And the calm chirping of crickets in the grass called out from the surrounding area. She stared out into the darkness, thinking.


    "Not sleeping?" Christian came up behind her and asked.


    "Is now a time to sleep?" Robin asked.


    "Usually, yes." Christian replied.


    "Mmn....I want to wait up until the soldiers arrive." Robin replied.


    "Ah, right. the soldiers." Christian sat himself down on alarge, flat rock nearby. "Judging from the amount of distance, and the time involved to get them all together, they should arrive sometime near dawn, if we''re lucky."


    "Dawn? Oh well. I''m young. I can put up with a sleepless night or two." Robin replied, thinking of how people her age would go out all night, partying.


    Christian chuckled. "That sounds like something an old person would say."


    Robin laughed and said in a humor-laden voice. "Oh? Didn''t I tell you? I''m over 900 years old, I am~! Youngsters, these days!" She shook her head wryly. "No respect. No respect at all!"


    Christian put her in a headlock and ruffled her hair. "This little mischievous rascal! Why were you chosen to be a Hero!?"


    "Obviously because someone decided the Hero needed a proper sense of humor~!" Robin retorted, using her hand to comb her hair back to some semblance of order.


    "Suit yourself. Call me if anything comes up. I''ll be resting up." he said, before heading back to the tents.


    As she was still brushing her hair, she paused a bit. Her older brother had been in the habit of ruffling her hair. That is, until she started working at her job. At that point, they hardly saw each other until the weekends.


    She sighed, beginning to feel a little homesick, as she absentmindedly stroked her hair back, out of her face.


    ----------------


    Later that night, after the bonfire had burned low, the night watchmen were at their least attentive state. A pair of eyes gleamed as they gazed unblinking upon the wrecked village. every shadow, every open spot was laid bare before it.It breathed slowly, waiting for an opportunity to arrive.


    A cloud, making its way slowly across the star-ridden sky, began to cover the full moon. It chose that opportunity to quickly dart in between the groups of sentries, seeming nothing but a brief shadow as it slipped by. It disappeared into the shadows created by half-demolished houses, and wooden piles.


    For several minutes, all was quiet.


    Then pandemonium broke loose as a shriek tore through the air in the camp.

 17 She Follows the Tracks

    Robin bolted to her feet, drawing her sword out as she ran towards the scream. When she arrived, a crowd had already gathered, staring out into the night.


    "What happened!?" Robin asked a nearby man that she remembered as a townsman.


    "Hero! A demon has made off with one of the village maidens!" He reported.


    "The Hero is here!"


    "Hero! Please save my daughter!" An elderly woman cried out from where she sobbed on the ground.


    "I can only do my best." She replied honestly.


    Robin then glanced around.


    "Who among you is the best tracker?" She asked. "I need someone who can follow that demon through moonlight and shadow, regardless of obstacles."


    The crowd grew silent. No one wanted to face another demon so soon.


    Finally, a small hand was raised up at the edge of the crowd.


    "I-I can help you find the demon." A trembling voice said.


    The crowd parted to reveal a small lad, dressed in worn, dirt-brown clothes.


    "What is your name?" Robin asked.


    "Gerard." The small boy replied.


    "You are such a small boy. How are you going to help me find the demon?" Robin asked, not out of malice, but with genuine honest surprise.


    "Because, I think I know where that demon''s lair is. No matter where he goes in the forest, if he wants to do anything with what he has caught, he always returns to his lair, first." Gerard affirmed.


    "Gerard! Have you been wandering deep in the forest again!" A lady gasped in shock. As everyone knew, the deeper one went into the forest, the more likely one would come face to face with a Demon.


    "But I had to, Big Sis! It''s the brute that''s been snatching up our sheep!" Gerard argued.


    But before the big sister could speak again, Robin held up her hand to silence her.


    "You know where the demon''s lair is?" She asked.


    He nodded. Nobody else in the village supported his desire to explore the unexplored regions of the forest. But now, here was the Hero! If he could show the results of his meanderings as something beneficial, then perhaps the villagers wouldn''t prevent him from travelling anymore.


    After a moment of silence, Robin''s voice once more came out. "Then, come. Lead me there."


    His pale face practically beamed with gladness as he returned to his tent to grab his things.


    At this point, Christian walked onto the scene.


    "Who''s screaming at all hours of the night?" He yawned. "Did someone see a large spider?...Robin? What''s wrong?"


    "A demon has made off with a maiden." Robin stated seriously.


    "...WHAT! We''ve got to go after them then!" Christian was immediately awake and ready to jump into action.


    "I know. One of the villagers knows where its lair is, so he''ll bring us there directly, instead of having us be lead around for half the night on a wild goose chase."


    "So it''s a demonic goose?" Christian asked, confused.


    "...No, that was an expression of speech from my homeland. It means something to the effect of ''putting a lot of work in with nothing to show for it''." Robin replied. "Where''s Keith?"


    "Ah, that''s right! The soldiers just arrived, and he''s meeting with them over there. KEITH!!!" Christian yelled and waved his arms.


    A minute later, Keith appeared on the scene with an army marshall and several commander knights.


    "A village maiden has been kidnapped. I''m going with the hero to save her. Will you stay here, or follow us?" Christian asked seriously.


    "Isn''t that obvious! You''re not leaving my sight!" Keith exclaimed.


    "In that case, we too-" The marshall began.


    "No, you need to stay here and guard the village in case it decides to circle around us and return to grab more villagers."


    Keith shook his head, and pointed at Robin.


    "This is the Hero that killed over ten Orcs in less than a minute. Can your skills ever measure up to such a performance? That being said, a small group of people is enough to handle a single Demon."


    After hearing that, the marshall could not speak any further, and could only helplessly close his mouth. Turning to the commander knights, he said.


    "I am willing to take the men directly under me and guard the south side of the village." The south side was the one closest to the forest. This meant that the returning party would be greeted first by the marshall''s own men.


    The commander knights smiled wryly at this, but each came forward and stated their claims.


    "I am willing to take my men to the east side of the village."


    "I and my men will guard the west side of the village."


    The last one could only sigh. "Do I have a choice in this matter?" He joked. "Be at ease, my men will guard the north side facing the road."


    At that point in time, Gerard reappeared, a mottled cloak about his small frame, a pouch and a sturdy dagger at his waist.


    "Follow me!" He called to Robin, who immediately moved to follow closely behind him.


    In turn, Christian also took off after them. While Keith could only wryly smile and helplessly ran after them as well.


    Thus, the first four members of the Hero''s party had unwittingly gathered together on the eve of the Hero''s first day on the job.


    ----------------------


    The forest at night time was different from the day, but even so, Gerard knew his way like the back of his hand. A shriek sounded off to their right.


    Christian was about to jump out after the sound, but Robin grabbed him by the collar.


    "Stay together!" Robin said. "We''ll do no good bumbling about in the dark. Gerard here said that the demon won''t do anything to her until he arrives at his lair. If we leave the path now, can we guarantee that she will continue to be safe? Besides, that sound...might not have come from the maiden." She glanced at Gerard. "Right?"


    Gerard nodded. "As expected from the Hero! The shrieking sound usually heard in these parts comes from a special kind of tree when the bark is rubbed off. In a different part of the forest, a Panther Demon sometimes makes a similar noise. We can''t believe everything we hear, expecially at night."


    Christian cleared his throat to offset his embarassment. "Well then, shouldn''t we go faster?"


    "I''m trying to get a read on which escape pattern he''s using." Gerard said, as he examined his surroundings. "Each one gives us a different amount of time....ah. It''s the third one! He''ll go and hide in the tornado weasel''s territory for a bit before ambling back home by way of the stinger bee''s territory. Okay. We should have plenty of time! let''s go!"


    With that, the young lad charged forward into the night, but he always made sure to keep the others within sight so as not to lose them. If he wanted to disappear into the forest, he could do so at any time, leaving his followers none-the-wiser. But this time, he had to slow his pace to match with the ones who were clearly not used to stumbling through the forest...namely Christian.


    "You all right?" Robin asked.


    "Yeah, just let me catch my breath." He gasped. "I usually ride through a forest like this!"


    "Don''t worry, you''ll get your forest legs in no time." Robin grinned, cheekily.


    Christian glared. "What I don''t understand is why someone like you is comfortable with a place like this!"


    "I told you, didn''t I? I had to make sure that my brother didn''t kill himself. That being said, I know 108 ways to save a person within a forest setting." Robin replied seriously. "I learned for all kinds of situations. It''s unfortunate that I don''t have my travel kit on hand...well, I could always slowly build up another one, I suppose."


    "Are you serious!?" Christian gasped.


    "Hmm...But I didn''t prepare for being summoned to a different world." Robin nodded.

 18 She Learns About Demons

    Even though they''d arrive at that place with plenty of time to spare, they still kept up a pretty fast pace, despite Christian stumbling into things every now and then due to hidden roots, or dips in the shadows. Even if they were trying to be stealthy at that point, Christian would have revealed long before they reached their destination.


    It was a good thing they didn''t meet with any demons on their way there.


    "Come to think of it...how come we haven''t met with any demons yet?" Robin asked Gerard, puzzled.


    "It''s because I''m walking on the border between the demons'' territories." Gerard replied. "Some demons aren''t hostile, just territorial. So if we avoid them, they won''t seek after us."


    "Hmm? Then what about those orcs that I killed?" Briar asked.


    "Well, not all demons are territorial. Some are nomadic, like orcs." Gerard answered.


    Robin recalled a documentary about locusts in America, and how they would pick an area clean of green, growing plants before moving on to a different area.


    ''So that''s how it is.'' She realized.


    "Then, which kind of demon is the stronger kind? The orcs that the Hero defeated, or the territorial demons?" Keith asked, glancing around behind them with a practiced eye, on the lookout for any strange activity.


    Gerard gave Keith an odd look. " Which is more dangerous: a man that has something to protect, or a man that has nothing left to lose?"


    "The one that has nothing left to lose?" Christian put in his two cents.


    Robin looked up at the stars through the black, leafy canopy overhead.


    "It depends on the man." She lowered her head. "Having or not having land doesn''t change anything. What makes something dangerous is it''s abilities to attack and defend. This goes for an orc as well as a nine-tailed fox."


    "...I see. So that''s how it is." Christian''s eyes glinted with recognition. Comparisons were all very well, but Robin preferred to handle each fight on a case by case basis.


    "Then, could you tell me about this particular demon? Strengths? Weaknesses? Even likes or dislikes would be fine!" Robin asked.


    "Well, it doesn''t capture its victims to eat meat." Gerard said. "It tortures them for entertainment. The only food it does eat is fruit. I can''t tell you how many sheep have been ruined just for its ''entertainment.'' It also seems to dislike water and sunlight. And is very cautious. It took me over a year just to find out where the boundaries of all the Demons were, but that thing manages to dance into and out of whichever demon territory it likes, unharmed."


    Gerard grit his teeth at that.


    "I have a very large grudge to settle with this one. It''s a shadow monkey."


    "Oh? And were you planning on dealing with it alone, if we didn''t show up?" Robin asked.


    Gerard tapped his pouch hanging off of his belt. "I did.I was going to bait a Slasher Bear into its home while it was out, then when it came home-" He swiped a finger across his neck. "Dead faster than it could say ''eep!''"


    "Well isn''t that particularly vicious of you? But I''m afraid to say that it wouldn''t work." Keith replied. "You said that it was exptremely cautious. But Slasher Bears aren''t known for being the most careful of demons.


    How would you get it to enter without leaving any tracks or scent? If any of those are on the scene, that shadow monkey might just decide not to risk it and leave to find some other place tohave him some entertainment."


    Gerard sighed. "Then it''s a good thing that you guys showed up!" He replied, shaking his head. If only he had done so earlier, that shadow monkey might have thought better and run away before any of this had happened. He clenched his fist feeling a little guilty, and apprehensive.


    "Okay, so we know he doesn''t like sunlight or water. I just so happen to have not been trained in the magic arts at all," Robin asserted with a wry smile. "But does anyone here know how to cast light-based magic?"


    Gerard, Christian and Keith all shook their heads.


    "Then, we can only go with water." Robin replied. "Gerard, are there any large bodies of water close by the shadow monkey''s lair?"


    "There''s a small stream that runs past it, why?" Gerard asked.


    "Perfect." Robin smiled slyly. "Then, tell me when we get there. I think I might have a plan."


    Along their fast-paced travelling through the forest, Christian seemed to be getting better at walking through the forest. At least, he was able to keep up with Robin.


    "Incidentally," Christian asked her. "When you said you knew 108 ways to save a person in the forest, those were all physical ways not involving any magic whatsoever?"


    "Yup~!" Came the cheerful reply.


    "...At this point, if you said you weren''t the Hero, no one would believe you." Christian noted seriously.


    "Does it matter if someone is a Hero or not? isn''t it common sense to lend a helping hand to those in trouble?" Robin asked.


    Keith, walking along behind them, had his face spasming in contortions, his shoulders shaking as he laboured to keep from laughing out loud. It had been a long time since he had seen Christian being shocked. To see Christian become perturbed by the Hero was so hilarious that Keith could probably laugh for a week straight, given enough time.


    "We''re here." Gerard said, stopping in the middle of the forest.


    "Okay, we''re here." Christian asserted. "But where''s its den?"


    Robin rolled her eyes. "It''s a shadow monkey. Where do monkey''s usually live?"


    "In caves on the ground?" Christian said. "Isn''t that where all Demon''s live?"


    "Sure! If you can assert that tiny dirt houses are where all nobles live." Robin replied with a snicker. "Don''t make assumptions based upon general information. There are always going to be special cases. This is a monkey, not a mole. Monkeys live in trees!" She looked at Gerard. "Am I right?"


    He nodded. "Uhn! The Hero''s right! Blackey''s den is right here!" He patted a rather large tree. If one only glanced at it, they might think that it''s a conglomeration of several trees, but the circumference of this tree could easily have a diameter of 10 feet.


    "Blackey? You even named the thing?" Keith observed.


    "What do you know! I had to call it something when I didn''t know what it was!" Gerard blushed in embarrasment.


    "But still, Blackey?" Keith teased.


    "The original name was ''Black Devil''." Gerard huffed. " Blackey''s just easier to say."


    "Oh really?" Keith smirked.


    Robin, ignoring the two of them, looked up. "So, does this mean we''ll have to climb?"

 19 She Sets a Trap

    "It lives up on the treetops?" Christian asked.


    "No. The tree is hollow, so he slips inside all the time. He likes to scare the woodland animals away with his screeching." Gerard replied, knocking harder on the tree. Indeed, judging by the sound it made, it was hollow.


    "I think there''s an entrance hole in the top."


    Robin was thinking.


    "I know that no one knows light magic, but you two.." She looked at Keith and Christian. "Do you not know any magic spells at all?"


    Christian shrugged. "I know a small bit of nature magic, only enough to grow a strong sturdy vine and trip someone."


    "Oh? Then when you were tripping through the forest back there, you were actually practicing all this time? How commendable of you." Robin teased. Christian just snorted, unwilling to retort.


    "I''m proficient in earth magic." Keith said. "It''s helpful to create weapons in places where weapons are scarce. I can do ''earth manipulation'' ''molding'' and ''harden''."


    "Harden?" Robin asked, her eyes lighting up. "Can you describe what that spell does?"


    "It does exactly what it means. Even if I used sand, I can still make a competent, sharp dagger." Keith said.


    "Then, could you perhaps harden the ground around the tree to the point of being waterproof?" Robin asked.


    "...Sure? But I fail to see how hardening the soil is going to help things." Keith said.


    "Trust me, this will be a big help in the long run." She reassured him. Then she turned to Christian.


    "You said you know nature magic? Well, could you perhaps be able to use that to make sure there are no holes leading out of the hollow in the tree? Enough so that not even a single drop of water can get through?"


    "...I could. But why would you want that?" Christian asked. "Isn''t it our goal to make sure that he DOESN''T enter his den? Why would I reinforce it?"


    Robin closed one eye, and smirked at the tree. "You''ll know soon enough." Then she turned to Gerard. "So, where is that stream again?" The two walked off, leaving Keith and Christian alone to their jobs.


    Christian and Keith looked at each other and both let out a sigh at the same time.


    "A hard ride to Kelly Village, a night of staying on duty, plus an extended run through a dark forest: does this lad ever sleep?"


    Christian asked, as he placed a hand on the tree. Discernable only to those who were proficient with mana, a green glow radiated from around him.


    Keith sniffed.


    "So you say. But it''s men like that who can pull through in times of difficulty.Moreover, I recall that the lad was snoring away up in that tree for most of the day, so he''s probably fine...Heh! It''s almost like he knew something like this would happen."


    Keith began on the other side of the tree, placing a hand on the ground to strengthen his connection to the earth.


    "So you''re saying he was somehow able to predict this?" Christian asked.


    "It depends on what you mean by the words ''predict''." Keith answered. "I think that our little talk the night before got him to thinking. If he somehow managed to connected the Hero''s job as one that needs a lot of energy, then he may have come to that conclusion naturally."


    "Tell the truth, Keith." Christian''s voice snorted from the other side of the tree.


    "Or, perhaps it was all just a blooming coincidence." Keith muttered. "Doesn''t matter. I''ve been laughed at more than once for my circumstantial ponderings." He inspected the job he had done once more, then stood up and dusted his palms.


    "Well, that''s finished. How about on your end?"


    "Wait a moment, I''m not as proficient as you are. It still needs a bit more time, here." Christian replied.


    Keith stared out into the darkness, thinking for a minute. Then he suddenly asked. "Are you going to tell him?"


    "Tell who, what?" Christian asked.


    "The Hero. Are you going to tell him about who you and I are?" Keith asked.


    "...I''m not sure. Probably...but not right now." Christian said, thinking about it. "I want to observe things a bit more."


    "And how long will this ''a bit more'' take?" Keith asked. "You can only be sick with a cold for so long before the king begins to notice something''s up."


    "As long as it can." Christian replied. "I still have about six days left before my plan falls apart."


    Keith sighed. "You know, you''ll have to tell him. You''ll have to appear before the king to get permission to travel with the Hero, anyways."


    "I know."


    "Then why wait?" He asked.


    "Now''s not a good time." Came Christian''s reply.


    Then silence descended between the two.


    Luckily enough, Robin soon returned to aske Christian a question.


    "Hey, Christian, do you think you could use your nature magic to create a hollow vine?" Robin asked.


    "...I can. Why?" Christian asked.


    Robin grinned mischievously. "Well..."


    ---------------------------


    When the kidnapping had happened, it was the darkest hours of the night. Now, the sky was starting to show signs of growing brighter. Dawn would soon bring the light of the next day to illuminate the forest.


    It was at this time that the Shadow Monkey Demon made its way back to its den.


    It cautiously approached in a circular pattern, eyes out for anything out of the ordinary. The maiden in its claws had fallen into a dead faint earlier when it had dangled her in front of a Stinger Bee Nest, trying to get her to shriek. It climbed onto the branch of its home tree, keeping an eye and an ear out for anything suspicious.


    It sniffed. The air was cool with the early morning scent of dew. It hated dew. it would rather stay holed up in its nice dry den, eliciting frightened screams from its victims. It''s eyes gleamed with a fiendish light as it discovered nothing out of the ordinary.


    It immediately turned around and jumped straight down the hole in the hollow tree, eager to retreat into it''s den.


    SPLASH!


    A thunderous roar sounded from within the tree, as the shadow monkey howled in surprise and fright. Forgetting all about its victim, it scrambled and scratched at the walls of the tree, eager to emerge from the deep watery well that was now its den.


    After trying its hardest for several minutes, it finally managed to climb back out. Scared, sopping wet, and very confused, it could not understand how so much water had appeared within its nice hollow tree. It stared down at the dark waters, as if they could give it an answer.


    "Ahahhahahahah!" Laughter rang out in the surroundings. Robin''s was the loudest one.


    After making sure that the tree was ship-shape and waterproof, she had gotten Christian to make a long hollow vine, and used what she knew to siphon water from the nearby stream on the hill, into the large tree at the foot of it. This was how they managed to fill the huge tree half-way with water. After that, they had removed the vine, and hidden away nearby, according to Gerard''s directions.


    Upon hearing the laughter, the shadow monkey understood. The water had not appeared out of nowhere. In fact, it had been placed there by those hateful humans! The shadow monkey''s eyes turned red as it began to growled.


    Down in the water, the maiden had woken up, due to the shock of the water, but before she could cry out, she heard the menacing growl of the demonic beast. Therefore, she could only stiffly tread water, trying not to attract its attention with sudden movements.


    The three down below were roaring with laughter.


    "Oh! Oh I can''t!" Keith gasped for breath. "It looks like a drowned rat! Hahaha!"


    But, Robin unsheathed her sword, ready for the fighting to begin.


    "Get ready." She said in warning.


    Immediately, although still chuckling, Keith and Christian were at the ready.


    Gerard had not once made an appearance, hiding away to maintain his safety. Otherwise, he would probably have become the first victim of the monkey''s wrath.


    And, like Robin had surmised, the shadow monkey threw itself at the group in a blind rage.

 20 She Fights a Shadow Monkey

    As the one who laughed the loudest, and the one who stood in front, --and, moreover, as the one who appeared the weakest--Robin was the shadow monkey''s first target.


    With full momentum behind it from it''s charge, the enraged shadow monkey swungs out its long arms, sharpened claws gleaming as they approached her. It slammed them down, deeply slashing out gruesome scars on the ground where it landed. But, right in front of its arms, not one foot away from it''s claws, Robin stood, unharmed at all.


    Pivoting on its now-grounded arms, the dark figure struck out again, this time with its legs, slicing the air with the speed of its movements. Each time it kicked out, the legs were most certainly aimed straight at Robin. But, at the peak of it''s swing, each kick ultimately fell short.


    It was almost as if Robin were using space magic to teleport. However, Christian and Keith could both see that there was no sign of any magic being used. This made them glance at each other in shock. How could anyone perform such a feat without magic?


    And, even after exhausting the momentum behind it''s legs for kicking, the monkey still hadn''t given up the attack. It''s tail whipped out, like a black snake, whistling in the wind as it aimed for Robin''s head. But the results of this attack were not the same as the first two. Instead, a flash of silver struck out, a silver snake even faster than the black one, biting through the money''s tail at its base.


    "AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRROOROOOOOOOAAOAAAAAHHH!!!!"


    The shadow monkey roared in agony, as its tail was so easily severed from its body. After the silver snake slowed down, it could be seen that it had actually been the hero Sword in Robin''s hands. She had thrown a perfect counterattack in the small interval between the monkey retracting its legs and swinging out its tail.


    "You''re unbearably slow, do you know that!" Robin scoffed.


    Now, that the monkey was distracted by its pain, it was the perfect time to press the advantage. Keith slashed out with his sword, aiming for the Monkey''s heart. However, due to the chaotic nature of the Demon''s writhing, Keith''s sword slashed out a glancing wound to the shoulder, instead.


    An arrow also flew forwards, towards the creature. But, just like Keith''s attack, the arrow only sliced past the monkey''s neck, drawing a small line of red, before burying itself into the ground. The person who had shot the arrow was Christian.


    Originally, such a wound would have been noticed right away by the beast, but it was so agonized by the pain that it felt on its rear end, that the small wound on its neck didn''t even register to it. Thus, it didn''t even turn to look at the archer, focusing its completely red eyes on the figure before it: Robin.


    As the shadow monkey, it relied upon its stealth, strength, and speed in order to deal with its opponents, but the things it prided itself in were nothing before Robin.


    .


    It launched itself forward, executing another frenzied flurry of attacks at Robin again.


    Up, down, left, right, backwards, and forwards, it swungs its arms and legs akimbo, sharp claws flailing about in a grand acrobatic feat of speedy attacks. But, Robin simply sid-stepped them all, her eyes closed. But, even so, she still managed to minimally repositioning herself so that the strikes couldn''t land on her at all.


    To tell the truth, this shadow monkey''s fighting style was similar to a rudimentary kind of Judo. It focused on grappling with people, holding onto them in a difficult position where it could freely bite them however it wanted. The only flaw was, that it had to come into contact with its opponent first.


    Because Robin was avoiding contact with it, the shadow monkey''s strengths had now become its weaknesses as well. After all, what good was it''s strength if it couldn''t hit anything? Thus the shadow monkey''s main weapon was efficiently neutralized.


    Christian could not help but admire Robin''s dodging skills. If it were Christian, he would probably be dead after the first strike. However, this young lad was able to dodge and weave through the flurry of attacks with a grace and ease more likely found on the dance floor than the battlefield.


    It was almost as if she turned into a ghost sometimes, with the way that each strike was dodged with such pinpoint accuracy. Christian rubbed his eyes in unbelief. Was that ''Teleport''!? No! Even more surprisingly, it WASN''T ''Teleport''!


    ''It''s time to end this.'' Robin decided, and angled her blade diagonally towards the ground, as if she were going to sheath it. The Monkey, mistaking her actions for letting her guard down, launched itself at her, bringing its full body weight forward towards Robin.


    "YOU''RE TOO SLOW!" Robin yelled out.


    Alongside Robin''s yell came a sword swing. As it started out, it seemed slow enough that even a monkey could dodge it. Indeed, one could even say that it was a lazy, half-hearted swing by appearance. However, by the time the monkey recognized the sword was swinging, Robin was already sheathing her sword. Before anyone realized, she had finished her attack.


    Both figures seemed to freeze in that small clearing. Then, a red line appears on the shadow monkey''s neck, and its head tilted over, falling down and bouncing away from the monkey''s body as blood poured out upon the ground.


    Robin checked her sword, again. Once again, there was no sign of blood on it, as she examined it under the light of the growing twilight.


    Then she turned to the others, and smiled. "Well, let''s go rescue that damsel in distress, from inside that old hollow tree."


    -----------------------


    After they pulled the maiden out, Christian chivalrously lent her a cloak. Since the Shadow monkey had absconded her in the middle of the night, she was still wearing her nightclothes, which were already soaked through with water.The small group quickly built a small fire to help her dry off.


    While they were waiting, Robin braided a simply pair of grass sandals, seeing that the maiden was walking with bare feet. For some reason, this ended up interesting Christian immensely. But Robin managed to put off his questioning about it with a promise to show him in detail later.


    "What about the demon''s corpse?" Gerard asked her.


    Robin then glanced at the corpse, cooly, and replied.


    "What about it?" Before turning away, with a pale face and a frown. ''Oh, right. I forgot that Demon corpses are valuable.'' Even though she felt sick just looking at it, she knew that she couldn''t be so prodigal as to waste such a valuable source of income.


    "Aren''t you going to collect your spoils?" He asked.


    "Do you know what needs to be collected?" She asked, glancing at him with one eye.


    "I do. Anyone knows how." Gerard answered.


    "Would you believe me if I said you were looking at someone that doesn''t know a thing about processing demon corpses?" Robin asked.


    "...I suppose that''s possible." Gerard answered. ''But highly unlikely.''


    "Good. Then I''ll make a deal with you. You help me process the corpse, and I''ll give you a share of it when we return. Can you do it?" She asked.


    Gerard looked at her weirdly. "Why would you do that?"


    Robin sighed. "I need to get the corpse processed, but don''t know how. You need capital if you''re going to be travelling, and know how to process a demon. If we co-operate, then it''s a win-win situation for the both of us, right? Just think of it as me trying to find an excuse to repay you for helping to point us in the right direction."


    Gerard stared at her for a bit more, thinking it over. Then he nodded. "All right, you''ve got yourself a deal!" He shook her hand.


    After roughly processing the corpse, everything was shoved unceremoniously into a side-pocket of Robin''s Magic Bag, to separate it from her everyday stuff.


    ------------------------------------


    Not long afterwards, under the light of the rising sun, the four slowly escorted the damsel back through the forest back to Kelly Village.

 21 She Already Knew

    Upon their return to the half-destroyed Kelly Village, everyone present let out a great cheer. The maiden''s mother wept with joy, and the maiden also wept tears of relief upon seeing her mother. The villagers, although still in the beginnings of rebuilding their village, came to gather around, a heartfelt smile upon their faces.


    Looking around, Robin noticed that the townsfolk were nowhere to be seen. Upon asking, she found out that they had returned to Kinsward town to report that the demons had perished. The village chief had also asked them to post a quest up to help rebuild the village, using three of the orc corpses as collateral.


    Christian watched over the smiling faces of the villagers, a similar smile tugging at his mouth. It felt good to finally go out and DO something, as opposed to spending his days inside the capital chatting about empty things at the numerous court functions and balls that were happening at this time of the year.


    "Everything seems to be in order here." Christian observed. "Shall we return to the town, now?" He asked Robin.


    "My apologies, Your Highness. His Highness, King Zephron sent a message to us saying that you must return before the end of today to report to him." The Marshal said, handing Christian a parchment scroll.


    Christian glared at him. "He said that, did he? I wonder how he knew I was here, Hmmm?"


    The Marshall, ignoring Christian''s death glare, easily replied.


    "Oh, that? I told him. You took far too long to finish this up, and so, once everything seemed to be calmed down, I wrote him a report based upon the eyewitnesses of the villagers. The message arrived this morning at dawn."


    Christian''s glare deepened into a frown. "And what if I accidentally didn''t return to the village at all during this time, and ended up missing the message?"


    The Marshall grinned. "That''s no problem. I had a messenger leave at his fastest pace for the capital the moment you arrived. It is now impossible to stop him."


    Christian''s frown turned into a glum expression. "You really do prepare well for these situations. How thorough of you." His last four words were emphasized to express his utmost displeasure.


    "I''m just doing my job, Your Highness." The Marshall waved his arm dismissively, as if there was no need for compliments. "But, you really should get the King''s permission before leaving the capital."


    "What? And have a huge ensemble of knights follow me around wherever I go? You know, I might be royal, but possessing a tail THAT long becomes maddening after a while!" Christian frowned. "I can protect myself without needing a thousand metal-clad infantry marching out behind me every time I step out the gates for a bit, and you know it!"


    The Marshall shrugged. "I know it. You know it. The entire kingdom knows it. But only the king can change that order. I''m afraid you''ll have to take your argument up with him."


    Christian turned his head aside to mutter about stubborn old fogeys. The Marshall pretended that he hadn''t heard a thing.


    Robin, of course, had witnessed the whole exchange, and nodded to herself once, before heading to ready the horse that had been lent to her. Keith followed behind her.


    "What is it?" She asked after entering the loosely-built corral for the horses.


    "You''re not surprised?" He asked.


    Robin paused, then asked. "Honestly? I somewhat guessed it ever since yesterday."


    Keith''s head jerked in surprise. "What!? How did you know about it?"


    "One, you were the person presiding over the sword-pulling event yesterday." Briar reminded him. "Only an official of the kingdom could do such a thing. And a true official would not easily become a guard for the son of a mere merchant. Thus, I presumed that both of you had rather special identities that you wished to keep hidden."


    She continued. "Two, you were familiar with the Marshall, who acted as a loyal subordinate to you, so you should be someone of higher rank than a Marshall...possibly a general.


    In that case, it became quite clear to me that if you were a general, then there were only a limited amount of people who would be in a position over you. I asked myself, ''who would be in a position of authority over a general?'' and there it was: the Royal Family. But, since you didn''t want to tell me, I declined to ask."


    She smiled wryly. "You must have suffered, putting up with the Prince''s antics so far."


    Keith''s heart shuddered. For this young man to pick up that much information only using two circumstantial clues, meant that he was highly intelligent. Dealing with these kinds of people, one could only be up front with them.


    Keith bowed his head. "I heartily apologize for not telling you sooner." He said.


    "No worries. It was probably all that fluff-for-brains, Prince Christian''s fault, anyways." Robin surmised.


    Keith rolled his eyes with apparent agreement. "Well, he does get stubborn about the strangest things."


    "What''s this, what''s this? Are you badmouthing His Highness, the Prince behind his back?" Christian asked upon hearing that last sentence.


    "What? Would you prefer we did it to your face?" Robin raised an eyebrow, her reply doubling as a counter attack.


    "My heart is wounded. My best friend is speaking ill of me! Besmirching my good name!" He shook his head in mock sadness. "I''m not sure if I can ever recover."


    "It''s not slander if it''s the truth." Robin pointed out.


    "I''ve been doubly hit! Et tu, Brute?" Christian raised a hand in mock despair at the sky, before pretending to collapse backwards.


    Robin, ignoring the lump on the ground, turned to Keith. "They have Shakespeare here, too?"


    Keith looked confused. "Who''s Shakespeare? What the Prince was quoting came from a document that recorded a conversation from a famous past Hero. but his name wasn''t Shakespeare. It was Xavier."


    "Ah. that makes sense, then." Robin nodded.


    "What are your plans?" Keith asked.


    "I think I''ll return to town. I need to reclaim the remainder of that gold coin I put up. After that...I might go and see the capital for a bit. Perhaps it''ll help me understand how someone like him-" She aimed a thumb at the lump on the ground.


    "-got to be this way."


    At that point, a small voice behind the two-and the lump on the ground-spoke up. "Hey! What about me!?"

 22 She Agrees to go to the Capital

    Robin turned her head to see Gerard standing behind them.


    "Oh, right! The demon parts, of course. Do you want me to give them to you now?" She asked.


    Gerard felt at a loss. The Hero had appeared in the village and had believed his story, and allowed him to lead the way as an experiences local. But now, this very same hero was going to leave? Well, Gerard knew that the Hero would have to leave, anyways, since the crisis was over. But, still! For the Hero to leave so soon?


    Gerard felt that if he accepted those demon parts that any connection of friendship between him and the Hero would be sliced apart like that Shadow monkey.


    "Y-you can keep them." Gerard mumbled.


    "Eh? What was that?" Robin asked, thinking she hadn''t heard correctly.


    "I said you can keep them!" Gerard spoke louder. "You can have everything, but please, can''t you take me with you!?" He begged Robin. "Big sis always says I can''t go about by myself, because it''s too dangerous. But wouldn''t it be fine if I came with you guys?"


    Robin shook her head.


    "No. the fact is that once you leave this village, you will no longer have an advantage of knowing the terrain. That being said, I''m pretty sure that your big sister would forbid you from coming, even if you said you were leaving with me."


    "But-but!" Gerard''s eyes began to fill with tears, as he stubbornly continued. "I promise I''ll be good! I can carry your things for you!"


    "We have the horse for that."


    "I-I can become your apprentice!"


    "I''m not sure if the Hero''s job is a kind that one can become an apprentice to." Robin pointed out. "Otherwise, I would not have had to come from so far away. Is that everything?"


    "NO! I can process the corpses of the demons you defeat!" Gerard threw out his final trump card. Robin paused with a bit of a shudder. She had forgotten all about that. In the future, she would have to do the processing herself. At this point, just the idea of cutting into a dead corpse....was not the most appealing of ideas.


    Gerard saw that he had caught her interest.


    "I''ll even disassemble them for free as long as you can provide for my food and take me with you!" he threw in.


    Robin stood there for a bit, thinking. Off to the side, Christian, who had recovered from the ''backstabbing'' earlier, held a conversation with Keith within a noise cancellation barrier. It was a necessary thing for a noble, to be able to have private conversations with others.


    "Hey, do you want to bet if he''ll let the kid come?" Christian asked.


    "Nonsense! Of course he won''t! It would be foolhardy at best!" Keith replied with a snort.


    "Oh really? Then I bet that he''ll gladly allow the kid to come with us." Christian smirked. Only Christian presently knew about Robin''s aversion to corpses.


    Keith just rolled his eyes. "You''re on! Get ready to lose some coin!"


    "5 silver to the winner?" Christian asked.


    "Deal!" Keith agreed.


    "Okay then!" Christian removed the noise cancellation barrier just in time for them both to hear Robin speak.


    "All right, then. You can come." Robin sighed. "BUT you need to let your big sis know about this first, and get her permission to come with us before we leave. Got it?"


    Keith''s jaw dropped. he turned to glance at Christian. "How did you-?"


    Christian grinned smugly. "Oh, just a small observation I made."


    Keith closed his jaw, then sighed and shook his head. Between the Prince and the Hero, both were far too observant for their own good! He silently handed over the 5 silver.


    "Hurray! I promise I''ll do my very best!" Gerard promised as he hurried off.


    "Be sure you get your older sister''s permission, you hear!?" Robin called after him.


    Christian chuckled, and broke the seal on the parchment scroll, unrolling it to have a read. Since his father, King Zephron, had sent a scroll along with the message, then surely he wanted Christian to do something for him on the way home.


    Robin proceeded to saddle her horse. ''Perhaps I should buy a horse of my own, soon.'' She thought to herself. It wouldn''t do if she had to walk everywhere.


    Christian finished reading the scroll and suddenly choked. "U-um, Hero Robin?" He asked.


    "Yes? What is it?" She asked.


    "Could you perhaps put off returning to Kinsward town until tomorrow?" Christian asked.


    "I could, but why should I do that?" Robin asked.


    "Well...It''s my father. He wishes for me to bring you along." Christian showed the parchment paper to Robin. At the very bottom, in exquisitely elaborate script, was written:


    "Oh, yes! And bring that Hero Robin along with you. In fact, if you don''t return with Hero Robin, you do know the consequences, right?"


    Robin glared at the page, then looked up at Christian, consequently glaring at him. He backed away a bit. "That is, it''s only the second day of your quests. Even if you go back now, I don''t think that you''d be able to reclaim the remainder yet."


    Robin''s eyes narrowed into a dangerous squint.


    "I-I''ll give you a gold coin if you come along!" Prince Christian added, feeling a mixture of fear and embarassment.


    "Achoo!" Robin opened her mouth to say something, but she suddenly sneezed. That''s right. Her face had been screwed up into a frown because she was trying to stop herself from sneezing.


    "I was trying to say that taking a detour to the capitol is fine with me." Robin said. "But now you''re even paying me to go, so how could I not?"


    Prince Christian then realized that it had all been a misunderstanding. "Can I take that back?" He asked Keith.


    Keith raised an eyebrow and grinned mischievously. "Whatever happened to ''a prince''s words are worth more than gold.''? I don''t think you can wiggle your way out of this one. Hero Robin is right; you DO need to take lessons on managing your money."


    Christian could only sigh and hand over the gold coin.


    The Marshall left about half of his men to protect the village until it had been rebuilt, then took the rest to form a retinue behind the horses of Hero Robin and Prince Christian. Keith rode a horse by himself behind the two, while the rest of the soldiers followed in two long rows behind them.


    As for Gerard? It turned out that he did managed to get his big sister''s permission. And so, Gerard, who did not quite know how to ride a horse, was sitting with one of the soldiers close to the front of the parade that now proceeded down the center of the road.


    Although Robin would have been fine to ride on the side of the road, to let others pass, Keith let her know that any time Prince Christian rode down a highway, he always had the right of way, over others. As Hero Robin was in the company of the Prince, she too was to ride with him down the center of the road.


    Presently, the shaded forest highway slowly wound its way into the farmlands. And the farmlands soon ended in grasslands. These grasslands surrounded the city for at least half a mile in each direction.


    Upon inquiring, Robin found that it was to prevent enemies and demon beasts from sneaking up on the city under the cover of trees and bushes. They even periodically burned the grasslands to prevent the grass from growing too tall. Of course, they also took especially good precautions for the fire to not spread to the farmlands.


    After a leisurely four hour horse ride, Robin was finally able to see the Capital''s walls.

 23 She Hides Her Face

    The stone walls outside were massive, Battle-worn, and sturdy. Even from a distance, Robin was able to see the castle peeking up from behind the walls. As they got closer, Robin thought to herself. ''If even these walls are so tall, then how tall would the castle itself be!?'' When they arrived at the gates, Prince Christian stopped his horse, prompting all the others to stop their horses as well.


    "Why are we stopping?" Robin asked, even though she had also stopped her horse.


    "We need to wait." Prince Christian replied.


    "Wait? Wait for what?" Robin tilted her head, puzzled.


    Trumpets blasted out from the castle walls, announcing the prince''s entrance. Prince Christian grinned in amusement.


    "That." He replied.


    "Oh." Robin said. "Does this happen every time you pass through the castle walls?"


    "Almost." Christian replied.


    "When does it not happen?" Robin asked.


    "When I can slip past the wall guards without them recognizing me." Prince Christian replied.


    Robin glanced sidelong at Christian. ''DOESN''T THAT MEAN IT HAPPENS EVERY TIME THEN!!?!'' She internally yelled at him. Now was not the time to be agitated, she knew. But somehow, she really wanted to punch Christian in the head.


    So much for being low profile...Not! Robin had prepared for a situation such as this earlier. reaching into her bag, she withdrew a brown paper mache mask with white markings around the eye, and a yellow marking down the bridge of the nose. In fact, the mask was modeled after the markings of the local robin bird.


    "What are you doing?" Prince Christian asked.


    "Retaining my identity." Robin replied. "To everyone else, it doesn''t matter who I am, so much as I am the Hero Robin. When I am not on Hero business, do you think that I WANT everyone to recognize me?"


    "I''m surprised you can even separate yourself and ''Hero'' at this point. What are you afraid of?" He asked.


    "Paparazzi, assassins from foreign nations, merchants, black-bellied nobles, possible hero fanatics..." Robin ticked of her growing list of undesirables as she enuerated them on her fingers.


    "Stop, I get it." Prince Christian sighed.


    "In summary," Robin concluded. "The less who know my face, the better."


    "It should be fine for the procession, but you are going to have to show your face to my father." Christian warned.


    "If it is only to him, then gladly." Robin replied. "Otherwise, what is he going to do? Force me?"


    Christian paused. The Hero was right. Even if the king wished to see his face, it was up to the hero''s disgression. For the king to use force on the Hero would reflect badly upon him, as the supposed ''benevolent'' ruler. Moreover, the Hero himself was not a citizen of the king-having come from a foreign land. Therefore, if he wished to maintain a good relationship with the Hero, the king could only allow the Hero his privileges.


    "What about those who have already seen your face?" Christian asked.


    "It can''t be helped. I only finished this mask last night." Robin yawned. At this point, she had gone over twenty hours without sleep, and was almost dozing in the saddle. Despite this, she had managed to come up with a counter to any death flags during the time she was waiting for the guards to arrive from the capital.


    In fact, she had started on the mask as soon as Christian had retired to sleep. Using some fabric glue left over from a different project, and several sheets of paper from a newsprint pad, shredded into strips. The colors she obtained from a few broken jars of dye that she painted on afterwards.


    "How is it staying on your face?" Christian asked.


    Robin rolled her eyes. "It hooks on behind the ears like a pair of spectacles. Any other questions?"


    "Yes, but I''ll ask you later." Christian said as the huge gate doors suddenly began to open.


    Completely according to Robin''s expectations, when they did enter the Capitol city, the citizens, carts, and carriages, had all cleared the center of the road, and the people lined the sides, respectfully cheering. But, most of them there were not there to see Prince Christian. Instead,they were curious about who the Hero was. Therefore, the sides of the streets were much more clogged with people than usual.


    The fact that Robin was wearing a mask did not disappoint the crowds at all. Instead, it made them further excited. What kind of face was underneath Hero Robin''s mask? Why did he need to wear a mask? What kind of secrets are hid underneath? This topic would entertain gossip societies for months on end in the future.


    Prince Christian pretended that he didn''t notice the large crowds and nudged his horse into a walk, beginning the procession to the castle.


    Robin usually preferred to enter inconspicuously. But, inconspicuous would probably be impossible with Prince Christian.


    ''Come to think of it, I''d probably be spotted at the gates just because I am in possession of the Hero''s sword.'' Robin realized.


    ''I''ll have to find some way of covering up the hilt to make it less noticeable.'' Needless to say, she still held out hope for being able to walk around the capital, inconspicuously.


    How else would she know how to help the citizens? If she appeared as the Hero, then people might not answer as honestly. Therefore, having an identity as a nobody was important. Moreover, some things could not be learned from just basic patrolling of soldiers, especially if there was a dark side to this bright city.


    After escorting them to the castle gates, Marshall halted. Gerard''s guard let him climb off the horse before the Marshall led his men off to the guards barracks. He left Prince Christian, Robin, and Keith to dismount and continue on foot.


    They left the horses to a few pages that appeared like clockwork. And so, with Prince Christian and Keith in the lead, they climbed up the flight of steps.


    As they stood at the top of the steps, and gave their names, Robin wondered what sort of person this King Zephron would be.


    "Announcing the arrival of Prince Christian, Hero Robin, and retired General Keith." The announcer cried out.


    "Hey, what about me?" Gerard asked.


    "You just stick with me, little buddy, and don''t wander off." Robin said. "Perhaps he just doesn''t announce those without a prevalent title?" She then turned to Keith. "I didn''t know you were retired!"


    Keith chuckled. "How else would I be promoted to the Prince''s babysitter?"


    "Ah. That makes sense." Robin nodded.


    "Keith, you rascal!" Was all that Christian could say before the opening doors caused him to cut his words short. "I''ll deal with you later." He muttered.


    "Heheh. Gladly." Keith breathed.


    With no more delays, they entered the castle.

 24 She Has an Audience with the King

    Behind the doors was a large audience chamber, with guards standing at attention along the sides. The ceiling was high, with tall, large windows filling the hallway with light. The room reminded Robin of a church, except with no seats-no seats except for one.


    At the end of the hall, upon a marble throne, sat the king.


    By all appearances, while King Zephron had proper looking robes for his job, Robin noticed that he wasn''t a king that liked to wear several bejeweled rings on each hand, or heavy golden chains like a rapper. Instead, the only ornament upon his person was the crown upon his head, and the scepter which rested upon his lap.


    "Prince Christian offers his greetings." Christian placed his palm on his heart, and bowed at a 70 degree angle.


    ''He''s not a greedy king, then.'' Robin noted. But she still wasnt sure about him. Therefore, she decided to test him, as to whether he was sharp enough to read the meaning between the words she said. She put her hand up to her heart and bowed her head similarly to Prince Christian in greeting.


    "Please forgive my lack of manners, King Zephron. As I come from far away, I am unaware of the laws of ettiquette necessary for this meeting."


    Of course, her underlying meaning was this: I don''t give a flick about court manners. If you are worthy of my respect, then I shall respect you. If not, then don''t blame me for being impolite. I am the one who is inconvenienced here, not you.


    A light flashed in King Zephron''s eye ashe grasped onto her underlying meaning.


    "And welcome to you, Hero Robin. Of course, since you are ignorant of court manners, it is fine to dispense with all formalities for the time being."


    "Thank you, Your Highness." Robin nodded, before standing straight. From her earlier probing, it seemed that Zephron was all right, in terms of kings. At least, he wasn''t a stickler for court manners, and didn''t seem to be an ignorant puppet ruler. Nor did he appear to be a tyrant. With just that one sentence she developed a feeling of respect for the man.


    "I am curious, though, as to how you ended up here so far away from your homeland? Why do you wear a mask? Could you tell me your story?" King Zephron asked.


    Robin sighed.


    "Well, there''s not much to tell, quite frankly.


    It should only be the third day since my arrival. I was on my way home from work, when suddenly I looked up and I found myself in Kinsward town with neither prior warning, nor explanation.


    Yesterday evening, I pulled the Hero''s sword out of its stone. Immediately following was the news that Kelly Village was under attack. I rushed there as fast as I could, killed the orcs, and then spent the rest of the night rescuing a damsel in distress with Prince Christian, Keith, and Gerard, here.


    Quite frankly, it''s been a very busy three days, and I still have no idea how I got here."


    "Hmm...but you still haven''t answered why you are wearing a mask. Is it for some secret reason?" King Zephron asked.


    Prince Christian glanced at the Hero. ''Will he actually tell him?'' Christian wondered.


    Robin closed one eye. "Not at all. I hide my face because when I''m not on Hero work, I do not wish to be recognized by people I have no business with. There are quite a few whom I wish to avoid. The paparazzi, assassins, ..." Robin once more enumerated the many kinds of people she did not wish to involve herself with until the king interrupted her with a merry chuckle.


    "Well, of all the Heroes this country has had the pleasure of hosting, you are, by far, the most interesting." King Zephron replied. Although he didn''t quite know what ''paparazzi'' were, he could guess they were an unpleasant sort of people.


    Off to the side, a court scribe was holding onto a small globe, recording the entire conversation. After all, it wasn''t every day that the king met with a Hero. It was similar to taking a photo or a video of a famous foreigner who decided to visit one day.


    "I''ll take that as a compliment, then." Robin replied, inclining her head cordially.


    "In fact, I should very much like to speak with you some more, however..." King Zephron darted a bitter glance at a particularly sour-looking elderly minister, then a pointed glance at Christian. "According to my schedule, I am supposed to be in a very important meeting these next few hours. Thus, I extend an invitation to you to stay overnight in the castle. Do you mind?"


    Christian, having noticed that look, felt his hopes begin to falter. It did not appear that he would be able to wriggle his way out of trouble this time.


    Robin smiled. "Mind? You just offered for me to stay at one of the best rooms in the capital. I should hardly think anyone would be able to refuse such an offer. I gladly accept!"


    ''Not to mention they won''t charge money for the stay.''Robin mentally observed.


    Then Robin felt a tug on her shirt. She glanced behind her, and remembered Gerard. "Ah, this one is Gerard. He''s travelling with me for the time being. May he also stay here?" She asked.


    "But of course!" Zephron agreed. "No Hero''s companions are ever unwelcome inside this castle. I will have someone arrange it. For the time being, let Keith show you around. He''s familiar with the castle, after all."


    "Then, I could also-" Christian began.


    "You are to remain here, Christian." the King said sternly. "I am not done speaking with you."


    With great effort, Keith hide the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.


    "By all means, do come this way." He nodded his head towards Robin and extended an arm towards a side door.


    "Over to the left, you''ll find the castle gardens..." He explained as he led them off.


    Christian watched as his companions left him alone in the throne room with his father. His last spark of hope faded when the door shut behind Gerard.


    Then the question came. "My son, I hope you have a very good explanation for all of this."

 25 She Knows Potatoes

    Robin felt quite at home in the castle.


    She had been a part of several re-enactments of Macbeth within castle walls. But, still, that didn''t mean that she couldn''t admire the architechture and the view. As opposed to centuries old castles, where the very stones themselves seemed weathered and pitted, the castle itself felt almost brand new in comparison. According to Keith, though, it was at least one millenium old, which was older than could be said of most castles.


    Swirling green marble was the floor they stepped on, and the windows opened upon a view of the most fantastic garden she''d ever laid eyes on. There was even a rosebush maze in the center of the garden.


    ''I wonder how many gardeners have gotten lost in there while trimming the flowers?'' Robin pondered with a twinkle in her eye, before turning back to listen to Keith ramble on.


    -----------------


    After dragging the entire story out of Christian, and confirming it with the old magician, King Zephron sat back with a sigh.


    "What on earth am I going to do with you?" He asked Christian, anger making his voice deepen to a gravely growl.


    "Umm...." Christian didn''t know, but he wasn''t going to start suggesting anything. he just stood there, awkwardly. "Yes, this is all my fault. I am sorry." He hung his head.


    "Sorry doesn''t even begin to fix the situation! You probably don''t know the amount of trouble you and the court magician have created for us all, eh?" King Zephron spat out in frustration.


    "Do you even know how this kingdom has been able to remain as stabilized as it is?!"


    "Ah, the treaty fifteen years ago, at Feirn." Christian replied.


    "And who was it who signed that treaty?" King Zephron asked patiently.


    "You did, father." Christian replied.


    "With whom?" Zephron pressed.


    "...erm....I can''t remember, father." Christian began sweating again.


    "The most important step forward in history and he doesn''t know!" King Zephron shook his head. "I signed that treaty with the current Demon King. It was a treaty promoting non-aggression between Demons and Humans, unless, of course, demons were to intrude upon our territories without permission."


    "WHAT!?" Prince Christian exclaimed.


    "How could you not know this!?" Zephron roared.


    "I...maybe...sort of...fell asleep during history class a lot..." Christian admitted.


    "Well, now we''ve got one big problem!" King Zephron explained.


    "I''m not sure how long we can keep the news that the Hero has been summoned a secret. All demons know that the Hero was usually summoned to destroy the demon king in the past. If the current demon king thinks that we''re going back on the treaty of non-aggression..."


    "Then?" Christian gulped.


    King Zephron''s face was grave. "We might have another demon war on our hands." He answered.


    "But, father, surely we can do something about it, right?" Prince Christian asked.


    "Can you send the Hero back to where he came from?" King Zephron asked.


    Christian turned to the court magician, who shook his head.


    "We do know that there is a way for the Hero to return." the old magician said. "But, we don''t know what that is, or even where it is."


    Christian started to understand that he had made a terrible mistake...


    -------------------


    Meanwhile, Keith''s tour had taken him down into the kitchens. It turns out, there were about five different kitchens. The king had his own personal chef, which took up a kitchen. The queen also had her chef, which took up another kitchen. Even Christian had a Personal Chef, which took up another kitchen.


    Then the two remaining kitchens were separated between one shift of workers/knights, and the other shift of workers/knights. This was to help prevent a lack of security in case of a food poisoning incident.


    Keith greeted Christian''s chef. "Oy, Ponzu! What are ye up to today?"


    Ponzu looked up from his work.


    "Oh, Keith! You''ve been a long time not seen! I''m trying to figure out the best way to cook this foreign vegetable that I found in the market today." He said, showing the strange item on his table.


    Robin recognized it right away.


    "Isn''t that...a potato?" Robin asked.


    "Yes. It''s filling, but it''s much too bland to use just by itself. I wanted to use a dish made solely out of potatoes as a highlight to tonight''s dinner."


    "You know I don''t know anything about these strange foods, Ponzu. I''m from the North. We either eat meat, roots, or snow." Keith replied.


    "Um, if it''s just about recipes, then I might have a few." Robin said. She had considered a bit about whether what she said would raise some weird flag or not, but she couldn''t help herself watch the young man ruin potatoes'' potential.


    "You know some recipes!?" Ponzu almost leaped over the counter before he realized his appearance wasn''t very dignified. "Ahem! I mean, my name is Ponshieu. While your mask seems to be quite the accomplishment, you don''t seem to be a familiar face around here. You''re new, right?"


    "Of course I am." Robin replied. "I''m the Hero. I come from far away, which is why I know about these." She picked up a potato and waved it around teasingly. Ponshieu''s eyes followed the potato before what she said registered in his ears.


    "YOU''RE THE HERO?!?" He exclaimed.


    "Yep! Now why don''t you get a pen and some paper so you can write down the recipes I''m going to give you?" Robin said.


    "A-at once!" Ponshieu scrambled away to find the aforementioned items, leaving Robin, Keith, and Gerard standing in the kitchen.


    "You really know about these?" Keith asked.


    "Not only do I know about them, there is an entire food business built up around using them as a main staple food." Robin replied seriously.


    French Fries, hash browns, twice-baked potatoes, home fries, mashed potatoes, potato chips, potato soup, scalloped potatoes: there were plenty of potato recipes out there. The only problem was seeing if the kitchen was stocked with the ingredients they would need.


    The recipe that Robin wanted to give the chef right now was one of her personal favorites: melting potatoes. Brown and crispy on the outside, soft and creamy on the inside: that was melting potatoes. Although it took about an hour to make it, if you add the preparation time in, these potatoes couldn''t be beat!


    Robin''s growling stomach reminded her that she hadn''t had any breakfast that morning.


    ''Looks like I''ll be making a few hash browns as well.'' She decided.


    "Will this take a long time?" Keith asked.


    "Just an hour or so." Robin said. "But since we''re here, I can whip us up a quick lunch in the meantime!"


    She sliced up a few pieces of bacon, as well as a small loaf of bread and a tomato. She also ripped up a large leaf of lettuce into three pieces. Then she fried the bacon on low heat, while she quickly whipped an egg, some vinegar, mustard, salt, and oil together to make mayonnaise.


    When the bacon was finished, she took the pan off the burner, and continued whipping the mayonnaise. When it firmed up, she spread it on the slices of bread, and made the ever-popular BLT. The finishing touch was when she slammed the knife down upon the three sanwiches, and separated them into two pieces.


    "Whoah!" Gerard was impressed. Keith also clapped his hands. The whole ordeal didn''t take more than ten minutes to finish. They all enjoyed their mid-day lunch as they waited for Ponshieu to return.


    "Hmm...I wonder where Ponzu''s gone off to?" Robin wondered. "Is finding paper such a hard thing to do?"


    Keith grinned wryly. "Well, it usually isn''t that hard...unless..." He glanced at the door.


    "''Unless'' What?" Robin asked.


    "Unless he ran into ol'' skinflint." Keith replied. "That old bag of bones is in charge of the treasury, and he does a right good job at it. The only thing is, he can''t stand seeing people waste the castle goods. So, Ponshieu might be in the middle of a scolding right now." Keith replied.


    Everyone had forgotten about Prince Christian. As he stood there in front of King Zephron, he didn''t even notice when his stomach started demanding food.

 26 She Cooks sMelting Potatoess

    "I''m sorry!" Ponshieu exclaimed as he stumbled through the door. "I was caught by the old treasurer on my way here!"


    "See? What did I tell you?" Keith looked at Robin, who had assembled most of what they needed for the potatoes.


    "Ah! Perfect timing! Do you have any chicken broth?" Robin asked.


    "Ah, yes! Wait a moment!" Ponshieu immediately wrote down the list of ingredients on the table before running off to a side pantry. On the table was butter, salt, ground peppercorn, diced thyme leaves, garlic, and potatoes, as well as a long, flat dish for baking fish.


    Robin felt a whiff of cold air emnating from that room when he opened the door.


    ''So they do have refrigerators.'' She thought to herself.


    "Here it is!" Ponzu exclaimed, taking out a large pot, filled almost to the brim.


    "We don''t need that much!" Robin exclaimed to prevent him from wrecking his back, or dropping the pot. "Just scoop out a large bowl-full, and that will be enough!"


    "Ah, got it!" Ponshieu returned the pot to the cold pantry, and brought out a bowl the size of a bundt cake, half-filled with broth. Robin sighed with relief.


    "Okay!" She said, rolling up her sleeves. "The first thing we are going to do is melt the butter!"


    "Huh?" Ponzu paused.


    "What?" Robin asked.


    "Isn''t the butter going to melt inside the oven, anyways? Why melt it now before cooking?" He asked.


    "Because, today, we are going to use butter to make a sauce." Robin replied seriously. "Many foods can have very different flavors depending on the sauce. Please remember that."


    "Got it!" He took out a small saucepan and melted the butter. He also wrote down that step.


    "Then, we add the salt, minced thyme leaves, and pepper and stir it around until it has been evenly distributed through the butter." Robin said. Ponzu did so, and scribbled it down in his notebook.


    "Done! Now what?" he asked.


    "We set the sauce aside. Now is the time to cut up the potatoes." Robin replied, grabbing a potato and a kitchen knife that she had sharpened, she tossed the potato in the air and sliced the top and bottom rounded edges off, displaying it to Ponshieu.


    "Do you see this? When you cut the potato to look like this, it''s called ''squaring the potato''. this will help keep the potato slices uniform." Then Robin sliced the potatoes into rounds about one inch thick.


    "You want to try to keep the slices as close to the same width as possible. This way, they will all finish cooking at the same time, and there won''t be any overcooked or undercooked slices."


    "Yes!" Ponshieu sliced the other potatoes, practicing to make them look as close to Robin''s potato slices as possible.


    "Next, we put the potato slices in a large bowl, and pour the butter sauce onto it. Then we mix the potato slices up to make sure the sauce is evenly distributed on the slices. Ah, that should be good enough." Robin said.


    "By the way, do you have a baking pan?" She asked.


    "Baking pan? What''s that?" Ponshieu asked.


    Robin paused awkwardly. "Er, it''s like a frying pan, except it''s rectangular, and you use it to bake things in the oven. It looks kind of like this." She sketched it out in Ponshieu''s notebook.


    "It can''t be helped since we don''t have the baking pan, we''ll have to make do with the frying pan."


    "You can use that too?" Ponshieu asked.


    "Well, yeah." Robin replied. "The main thing we need it for is to have a flat surface to fry the potatoes on, as well as an instrument to hold the chicken broth after baking it a few times."


    "We don''t just bake this once?" Ponshieu asked, surprised.


    "It can''t be helped. the potatoes need to be baked on both sides, first." Robin replied. "But the baking parts should only take a quarter of an hour each."


    They lined the frying pan with the potato slices, and set it in the oven. After about 15 minutes, they took it out and flipped the slices over, placing it again into the oven for another 15 minutes. At this point, the kitchen was starting to smell wonderful. Robin used this time to efficiently peel the garlic cloves and dice them up.


    "We''ve baked them, but what are we going to do with this chicken broth?" Ponshieu asked as he took the potatoes out.


    "This is the last part." Robin said. "We pour the chicken broth over the potatoes, but only up until just below the top part of the potato. We want to soak them, not drown them. Then we add the garlic cloves, and stick them into the oven for fifteen more minutes, and we''ll be done!"


    The potatoes went back into the oven. But this time, the wonderful smell was even stronger. A few of the chefs from the other kitchens came over to the doorway, drawn by the smell wafting out of the doors.


    "U-um, excuse me?" The chef from the queen''s kitchen asked. "What is it that you are cooking that smells this good?" Ponshieu looked over to Robin for confirmation, to see if it was all right to tell her. Robin simply nodded and gave him a thumbs up.


    "We''re cooking potatoes." He replied.


    "What!"


    "That super bland foreign vegetable?"


    "The one without any taste!?" The other chefs exclaimed.


    "Hmmph! I bet it only SMELLS good. One bite will be enough to confirm that it''s the same old baseless bland vegetable." The first shift personnel chef snorted.


    "But, what if they actually find a way to make that bland potato taste good?" The Queen''s chef asked.


    "Tell me this: can you even imagine what the potato would taste like?" First shift chef laughed derisively. The two other chefs walked away shaking their heads.


    "Such a good smell coming from such a bland vegetable. It would be of more use as incence rather than food."


    At that point, the only chef that remained was the queen''s chef. "Um..I still think that there is no food that cannot taste good if cooked correctly!" She asserted. "May I taste it when it comes out?"


    Ponshieu hesitated and looked at Robin, who shrugged. She didn''t care either way. Anyone who tasted that vegetable would be instantly captured by the flavor -hook, line, and sinker!


    "It''s time." Robin finally said, and Ponshieu opened the oven to take out the dish. The chicken broth seemed to have disappeared, leaving only the browned potato slices in the pan.


    Ponshieu placed half of the potatoes on a large plate, and stored it in a warming chamber to keep the food warm until dinner. Then, he passed out forks to Robin, Keith, Gerard, and the Queen''s chef before they partook of the remaining potato slices.


    Everyone had a moment of silence as they quietly savored the wonderful dish. Ponshieu wiped the tears away from his eyes. "It''s delicious!" He mumbled. "It''s really delicious!"


    "This is potato?" The Queen''s chef asked in amazement. "It tastes completely different! Crunchy on the outside, yet soft and creamy on the inside. Is this even the same vegetable!?"


    Keith''s eyes narrowed in pleasure as he helped himself to a second piece. Robin, seeing that, also grabbed a second piece. Gerard was already on his third. It was as if the three had decided prior to this to ignore any emotional dramatics while they ate.


    "Ponzu, did you come up with this?" The Queen''s chef asked.


    "No, no! I owe this recipe to Hero Robin, over there." Ponshieu explained.


    The queen''s chef looked dubiously at the bird-masked man casually savoring the taste of the melting potatoes. This was the Hero?

 27 She Gains a Chef

    By the time that King Zephron had finished his lecture, Prince Christian was almost staggering out of the audience hall, feeling like he was one of the worst excuses for a prince there ever was.Leaning against a pillar, he covered his face.


    A ways down the hallway, two maids noticed his distress.


    "Um, is that the prince?" One whispered to the other.


    "Him?...Yes, that''s the prince." The maid had paused for a moment to confirm.


    "He looks down about something."


    "He always looks down about something after being scolded by his Highness, the King." The more experienced maid explain.


    "Um, aren''t we going to do something about it?" The new maid asked.


    "No, just leave him alone. He''ll eventually bounce back up." Came the professional reply. "If comfort is applied too early, then he might not understand the gravity of the situation."


    "Wow, you must know everything about the prince!" The new maid admired.


    "Not everything." the other maid shook her head. "Just enough to keep out of everyone''s way. Come, help me bring the tea to the Hero''s guest room."


    Christian, while wallowing in misery, hadn''t heard their earlier conversation. But when he heard the word ''Hero'' he shuddered. Not only had he caused a huge mess in relations between mankind and demonkind. He had also dragged an uninvolved human into this mess as well.


    He had a strong impulse to seek Robin out and beg his forgiveness. But, then he remembered Robin''s earlier words: ''Well, there''s not much I can do if it''s a random event. But, if it''s a summoning, then I''m gonna punch whichever idiot summoned me here in the face!''


    Even though he probably deserved it, he really didn''t want to get punched in the face. But, the Hero had a right to know about the current situation. According to King Zephron''s command, Prince Christian''s punishment would be to try and resolve this mess that he created, working in tandem with the Hero.


    If the misunderstanding could be clarified before things came to blows, then great! But if things could not be straightened out, and escalated into another demon war...then they would need all the help they could get.


    And so, the Prince had orders to travel with the Hero and suppress the general unrest in the populace, as well as trying to get into contact with the demon''s protector diplomats to explain everything. After all, as long as the Hero could allay the Demon King''s fears, then they wouldn''t have to fight.


    But now he had to explain things to Hero Robin...Christian could only hope that Robin''s sharp tongue would be the only thing slashing at him.


    It was at that moment that a delightfully appetizing odor drifted down the corridor from the direction of the kitchen. At that moment, Christian''s stomach produced a noise so loud, that it echoed in the hallway.


    It was then that Christian realized that he had eaten nothing for over half a day. He sighed and turned his footsteps towards the kitchen first.


    -----------------------


    "...Hero Robin, is it?" the Queen''s chef asked.


    Robin replied with a short nod. After all, her mouth was full of the goodness of potatoes. How could she open her mouth to speak at the risk of dropping even a single crumb of it!? She swallowed. Then she remembered the hash browns that she had made while Ponshieu was missing, and grabbed them out of the oven.


    This particular oven had several drawers. The one they had cooked the potatoes in was one drawer, and the hash browns she had been baking were in another drawer-one a bit farther away from the source of the heat. This helped to cook the hash browns slowly at a lower temperature than the melting potatoes.


    As soon as the hash browns came out, a pronounced growling noise sounded from the kitchen door.


    Everyone turned to look at a somewhat embarrased Prince Christian. Prince Christian, in turn, was surprised. He had not expected Robin to be in the kitchens, cooking.


    "Hey, is there any food fit for a man to eat? I haven''t had a bite since yesterday." He chuckled awkwardly, as he caught a particularly delicious smell wafting out of the kitchen.


    "Ah! Yes! Immediately!" Ponshieu scrambled to the pantry to cobble together something that resembled food. The Queen''s chef realized what time it was and hurried into her own kitchen to prepare the food for dinner.


    "What are those?" Christian asked, looking at the golden-brown patties lined up on the pan Robin held.


    "Hash browns." Robin replied. "They''re more of a breakfast food than anything else. I like to eat them crispy and warm with eggs and hollandaise sauce."


    "Ho? I''ve never heard of that particular sauce." Christian tilted his head. "But, then again, I''ve never heard of hash browns either. What are they made of?"


    "The Hash browns are made from potatoes, and the hollandaise sauce is a sauce made fron eggs." Robin replied.


    "Potatoes?" Christian asked, looking closely at the food.


    "What? You can make a sauce using eggs!?" Ponshieu exclaimed, as he almost dropped the assortment of bread, cheese, and fruit that he had in his arms. Didn''t eggs simply solidify when they came into contact with heat? How could they make a sauce?


    "Yes." Robin chuckled. "But it takes patience, and arm stamina. You have to stir carefully to make sure the egg doesn''t firm up. I''ll teach you how to later."


    Prince Christian swallowed his saliva. "Um, are these hash browns done?" He asked. It seemed those golden-brown patties were the source of the wonderful smell.


    "I''ll need to add a bit of salt on top, but other than that, yeah, they''re done." Robin nodded.


    "Then, can I try one of them?" He asked again.


    "What''s with how polite you''re being all of a sudden?" Robin eyed Christian, with a somewhat concerned expression. "If you want some, just say so! It''s not as if things changed just because I know you''re the prince."


    Keith put a hand up to Christian''s forehead. "He doesn''t have a fever. Perhaps it''s a sickness of the mind?" He muttered.


    "Oh lay off, you!" Christian shook Keith off and helped himself to two hash browns, sprinkling some salt on top of them. "How do I eat these?" He asked. They seemed a bit hot for finger food.


    "You can either cut them up and eat them like a steak, or you can wait until they cool a bit and eat them like toast." Robin replied.


    "Either way it''s good to eat. And if you want to prepare them ahead of time, that''s fine too. They can last about a month if you place them in an ice room. And, once you wish to eat them, just heat them up in the oven again, and they''ll be good to go. Not only are they delicious, but they''re convenient."


    Then Robin paused.


    "Hey, why did you stop!?" Ponshieu exclaimed, looking up from where he was writing down every word Robin said.


    Robin scratched her head. "Well, I just thought that cooking isn''t something that sounds very hero-like, does it?"


    When Christian tried a bite of the hash brown, his eyes light up. He looked at Keith, and smirked. Keith smirked in return. Then they both looked at Robin, who saw they were about to say something rubbish.


    "Well, then. According to the assessment of I, Prince Christian-"


    "And I, Retired General Keith."


    "We won''t tell anyone as long as you make something for us periodically." Christian smiled professionally.


    "Every now and then." Keith added.


    Robin snorted and waved her hands dismissively at them.


    "Baaa, I see what you''re doing. You two are trying to blackmail me, aren''t you? Well it won''t work, I say. As soon as you reveal my cooking skills, I''ll be swarmed with requests from everywhere, limiting the amount I can make for you two blaggards to a very small amount."


    "Oh, I see." Keith shrugged helplessly.


    "I did not think of that." Christian noted, as they both looked highly disappointed.


    "Hmmmmm...." The both of them pantomimed being in deep thought.


    "Tell you what." Robin said.


    "You find me some foods that you don''t eat every day, and I''ll try and see if I know a recipe for them. If I do, then I''ll teach Ponshieu here, and he can make them for you whenever you want!"


    Robin shamelessly passed the baton on to Ponshieu. After all, someone would have to make it after she found a way back home. Robin might as well pass it on to an eager learner.


    "WHAT! YOU MEAN IT!!!???"


    Ponshieu exclaimed, ecstatically. He did not see Robin''s offer as her handing off a load of work to him, but as the Hero passing down a legendary cooking technique. In other words, Ponshieu was the one who had most benefitted here, as his dream seemed to literally come true in front of his eyes.


    They didn''t realize at the time. But it was at that point that Ponshieu became the fifth member of their group.

 28 She Gains a Ques

    After Prince Christian had quelled the cries from within his stomach, he sat back in his chair.


    "I never knew that potatoes could be so satisfying." He sighed.


    Keith and Gerard glanced at each other, yet neither one had any inclination to tell Prince Christian that he had missed tasting the most satisfying potato dish to date. In fact, at that moment, they were in perfect agreement even without words being said.


    Ponshieu, on the other hand, was far too busy writing down Robin''s instructions for making hash browns.


    "Ah, but I wouldn''t let them go a day in normal temperatures." Robin instructed. "The oil used to cook them in can easily go rancid if left for too long. Thus, it''s best to eat them the day that they are cooked."


    "But I thought you said they can last for months in an ice room?" Ponshieu asked.


    Robin blinked. "Why, so I did...I forgot to mention that if you are storing them in the ice room, that they have to be uncooked. Otherwise, the solidified oil will definitely mess with the flavor."


    Ponshieu underlined the warning that he wrote at the end of the recipe.


    "But, still," Robin glanced at Ponshieu. "I''m surprised that you know how to write."


    "Are people not well-learned where you come from?" Prince Christian asked.


    "No, but there was a time in my land''s history which was similar to this land." Robin replied. "Yet, during that time, most of the normal populace were illiterate."


    "Ho? Why was that?" Prince Christian asked.


    Robin smiled, wryly. "Because a group of people, known as scribes, were more convenient to hire to do all the writing, rather than bothering everyone else to learn how to read and write. Many of the commoners were land-renters instead of land owners, so they had a responsibility to care for the land they lived on. This left them little time to learn reading and writing. And if you add a child''s reluctance to learn such boring things, after a few generations, many could not even sign their own name."


    She shrugged.


    "Of course, now everyone knows how to read and write, at least rudimentarily. The problem is that many people have no time to read the more important things. I''m concerned that one day, instead of professional scribes, we will, instead, have to employ professional readers."


    At this, Kenmei chuckled. Prince Christian had been one of those who were reluctant to learn reading and writing. Of course, Prince Christian pretended that he was in no way involved in such a group. "So everyone has education in your country? how do you pay for all that?"


    Robin shrugged. "Taxes. The way the government pays for everything else that they own."


    "Ah." Christian knew that was true enough. At least, everything that the king currently owned had been paid for with taxpayers gold. While he was curious about Robin''s world, he also remembered that he had to explain the situation to Robin.


    "Ponshieu, can you be a good man and go bar the door? I have something to discuss with Robin that I don''t want ending up in other people''s ears." Christian felt he ought to get this over as soon as possible.


    "Yes, your highness!" Ponshieu enthusuastically rushed over to the door to bar it shut. That way, he could review the two wonderful recipes he had just acquired from Hero Robin. He had an inkling that if he mastered the way of making potatoes, he would have many more ways to cook food that he previously did. He also secretly noted down to ask for the recipe for hollandaise sauce later on.


    "So, I''m assuming the reason why you wish to talk to me is the result of that little talk you had with the king, today?" Robin asked.


    Christian nodded. "It is. I am here to explain the situation that you have been implicated in."


    "Implications, huh?" Robin mused. "That means this won''t be about pleasant things. All right, let''s hear it."


    Christian explained the situation, about the previous ten-year alliance being in jeopardy due to the Hero''s appearance.


    "It''s that much of a problem?" Robin asked, surprised. "Well, I know that the usual case has the Hero pitted against the demon king, but knowing that this demon king does not desire war, how could I be at odds against him?"


    Keith coughed. "Actually, the current demon king is a female."


    Robin paused. "Fair enough...even so, I would never be at odds with a peace-loving demon! So long as they don''t look for trouble, they won''t find it in me."


    "We know that." Christian sighed. "But they don''t know that. All that they''ll hear, after ten years of silence, is that the kingdom summoned a new Hero. And, knowing what Heroes are summoned for, they''ll probably instantly assume we intend to deal with the demon king."


    "...I see. So that''s why we need to meet the demon protector diplomats?" Robin asked.


    "And we also need to explain things to the population to make sure they don''t skip the starting line." Christian added. "That''s why we need to visit the main cities on the borders near the demon king''s lands."


    Robin thought for a few minutes. "Tell me, are any of those main cities near the ocean?"


    "Huh? Oh! Yes, there is one. It''s our main sea port city, Port Oracle." Christian replied.


    "We''ll go there first." Robin decided.


    "Huh? Why?" Christian asked.


    "Because, after all this time, I want to eat some proper sushi." Robin replied. "It''s best if the ingredients are the freshest."


    "Sushi?" Ponshieu''s eyes sparkled. "What kind of food is this?"


    "It''s somewhat of a controversial food where I come from." Robin replied. "Those who like it, like it. Those who don''t, are usually those who can''t get past its unusual origins. Personally, I have found no problem with it, as long as it is prepared properly."


    "I don''t know what sushi is, but I really want to find out now!" Prince Christian agreed. "It is decided then, I will accompany you to Port Oracle."


    "You can''t forget me, the loyal babysitter!" Keith chimed in.


    "Me neither!" Gerard piped in. "I''m traveling with Robin no matter where he goes!"


    "You still haven''t taught me everything about potatoes!" Ponshieu exclaimed. "As your disciple, it would hardly be good of me to not accompany you to learn how to make this ''sushi'' dish." He added.


    "So, everyone here will come with me?" Robin asked. Everyone nodded with a smile. "Very good, then. How soon can we leave?" She asked Christian.


    "Er..." Prince Christian remembered that he also had a very long writing asignment that he needed to accomplish before he left. "Shall we leave in three days?" He asked.


    '' Writing ''I shall not leave without proper permission'' ten thousand times will take me a bit to finish.'' He thought to himself.


    "Three days? Does anyone else have anything pressing to do? No? All right then. We leave in three days." Robin concluded the meeting. "You may unbar the door, Ponshieu."


    Ponshieu went to unbar the door. Now that he had a teacher to learn under, buth Hero Robin and Prince Christian were people he held in high esteem. Thus, he had no problem with unbarring the door, even though Christian had not told him to.


    Of course, Prince Christian paid no heed to this. Heroes were considered saviors, completely separate from the king''s rule.By all rights, Hero Robin''s authority was on par with the king. Thus, Robin was actually higher that Christian in rank.


    Prince Christian wouldn''t be that much of a dunce to harp on being the one to decide everything. At least, would anyone (who wasn''t obviously stupid) put it into their minds to potentially piss off a sword master that could dice you into meat cubes? Thus, Robin took charge of the group.


    ''Come to think of it...; Robin pondered to herself. ''wouldn''t this kind of journey be labeled as a quest?'' She liked that idea.


    "Urgh." Her head rang a bit as her vision began to swim. "I forgot how tired I was."


    Quests were all fine and dandy, but at this point, Robin was interested in nothing more than a long and peaceful nap before dinner. She had had a long night, and was almost dead on her feet. Thus, she allowed herself to be herded to her guest room, where she promptly fell asleep in her clothes on top of the covers.

 29 She Intends to learn Magic

    Robin slept the whole night, even to the point where she slept through dinner. Prince Christian, knowing her situation, explained things and managed to acquire a pardon from the dinner summons. While King Zephron was disappointed he could not speak with hero Robin, he also understood that what Hero Robin needed more than anything at that time was a good long rest. Thus he gladly gave the orders not to disturb the Hero that night for any reason.


    Of course, several maids within the castle felt disappointed. They were curious about the Hero, and wondered what he looked like underneath that mask. But, orders were orders. Two soldiers standing guard in front of the guest room doors were enough to deter the maids from their intended mischief.


    Robin awoke to find herself completely refreshed the following morning, when sunlight streamed through her window. The first thing that she saw was the red canopy over her bed.


    "An unfamiliar ceiling~" She joked. It was already the fourth day since she had arrived there. If she were to be surprised at this point, then she would be the joke, instead.


    Robin became aware of a slight weight upon her face. She brought a hand up to examine the area around her eyes, and was surprised when she felt something there. But then she realized that is was her mask.


    ''I was so tired that I forgot to even take this off?'' She wondered. But then again, if she wanted to retain her personal identity, it was probably better this way. In case a maid suddenly intruded, or someone burst through the doors....


    Then she sat up.


    ''Come to think of it, how come no one has come to wake me yet?''


    She didn''t recall hearing anyone call her for dinner. Of course, she may have simply slept through the summons completely, but she was usually good at responding to noise, even if she was tired. Otherwise, how else could she rouse herself from sleep after staying up all night reading novels?


    Her stomach growled. "I need food." She decided and got up off the bed.


    Robin ran her fingers through her hair, and noticed that it was starting to feel greasy.


    "But first, I need a bath." She muttered decisively.


    Although she was able to ignore it for the past three days by using her emergency feminine products, It was now the fourth day since she arrived. Being in the King''s castle, Robin felt that she needed to pay attention to her appearance: without a proper bath, she would be unpresentable.


    Luckily, the rooms she was given also had a personal bathroom with a high ceiling. The bathtub itself was rather large, the size of an outdoor swimming pool. Currently, the pool was empty, however.


    Robin looked around for a faucet. There wasn''t one.


    "Where do I get the hot water from?" Robin wondered.


    *Poof* "Hello there, guest!" A small figure came into sight. "I am your assigned bathroom assistant fairy follower, Kransu! Just say what you need and I''ll get it for you."


    "A...fairy?" Robin replied, suddenly remembering. ''That''s right! This is a land of swords and magic! How could there not be fairies in a place like this!?'' her eyes took on an admiring glint.


    "You''re a fairy? Wait, you said your were my bathroom assistant?" She asked to confirm.


    "Yup! Sometimes we are called ''Baff'' service for short!" The fairy giggled, her tiny hand making a ''v'' sign. ''They probably learned that from a previous Hero.'' Robin noted.


    "So, as my...''Baff'' assistant, what do you usually do?" She asked, curiously.


    "I am in charge of providing the hot and cold water, towels, soap, and a change of clothes. As an added service, I''ll even perform a ''clean'' spell on your clothes. Ah, but don''t worry about me seeing anything. Our Baff company has a strict policy of personal secrecy. So the area around the bath is completely shrouded in mist for your personal privacy for the duration of your time here."


    "Ah." Robin nodded. "Good, I would like to take a bath then, Kransu."


    "Do you have any personal preference to scent for the soap?" Kransu asked.


    "Not really...something not too strong and slightly fruity-smelling is good." Robin replied.


    "Okay then! to your left is the area for you to get undressed. I will fill the tub for you."


    ------------------------


    While Robin was enjoying her personal bath, Prince Christian was having trouble using his fork with his cramping right hand. Writing punishments were no joke. Even if the first few hundred lines were fine, the ones after that were part of an ever increasing physical torture. Combining that with Prince Christian''s personal mental anguish had driven the lesson home to him.


    King Zephron observed his muddled actions at the table. He would let Christian suffer for a while longer before he would remove the written punishment. After all, it would do hardly any good for his son to leave unable to wield a sword properly in two days.


    Zephron was also somewhat busy, trying to figure out how what he would give them for the trip. Of course, any aid he gave them in the form of items or money would all be passed to Keith this time. Christian was a bit too rash to trust currently-even though he heard that the Hero also planned to knock some common sense into him.


    Gerard was somewhat intimidated by the number of forks and spoons next to his plate. But he somehow managed to cope by watching and copying Keith, who was also eating next to him. As Keith was definitely part of the Hero''s party now, he had permission to sit and eat breakfast with Prince Christian and the King. The Queen, though, had not risen for breakfast, having little appetite in the mornings, lately.


    Currently, the food being served was the unconventional hash browns with eggs. It was without the hollandaise sauce due to lack of information from the Hero. However, Ponshieu had included some cheese sauce as a temporary substitute, as he felt it would go nicely with the hash browns.


    "Where is Hero Robin? Shouldn''t he be joining us?" Prince Christian finally asked, breaking the awkward silence at the table.


    "I have had confirmation that the Hero has awoken." Keith said. "However, he is currently preparing himself, and it may take a while."


    "Oh..." Christian flinched as his hand twinged in pain again.


    King Zephron didn''t say anything. He just continued eating his food.


    --------------------


    Robin, refreshed after finally having a bath, once more placed her mask upon her face and left her rooms, retracing her steps towards the kitchen. Since they had cut their tour short that day, she had no idea where the dining room was. Therefore, she thought that, if anyone would know, it''d be Ponshieu.


    Upon her arrival at the Prince''s kitchen, Ponshieu was most surprised, but he quickly pointed out the way to the dining room. When he turned back to cook more food, he then remembered that the door he had sent her through was for the chefs, and not for the important guests. Ponshieu turned back around to point her to the guest entrance, but she was already gone.


    "Oh dear..." Ponshieu felt conflicted over whether to run after his new teacher or not. His decision was made when the cheese he was melting overflowed and dripped down into the fire, hissing as it burned.


    "Ah! The cheese!" All thoughts of other things fled from Ponshieu''s head.


    ------------------------


    Upon entering the dining room, at first, no one noticed Robin. This was in part due to the fact that she emerged from the chef''s entrance. However, when she approached the table, the rest of those eating noticed her.


    "Hero Robin? I didn''t hear the court cryer announce your presence." The King frowned.


    "That''s because he probably doesn''t know that I''m here." Robin chuckled. "I entered through the kitchen, since I lost my way a bit."


    "Do sit down and try some of this new dish. ''Hash browns'' I think it was?" The king invited. Robin gratefully agreed. Her stomach had been complaining for the past half hour, and all she wanted right at the moment was to eat something. While she was eating King Zephron began to speak.


    "That chef Ponshieu of yours is getting better and better every day." King Zephron noted to Christian. "Although his appearance is somewhat strange, his food is top notch. Wheredid he ever get the idea for those melting potatoes yesterday?"


    "That would be a recipe he acquired from Robin." Keith mentioned. Robin waved her hand in acknowledgement as she was still intent upon eating her food.


    "Hero Robin?" King Zephron was surprised. "Ah, I suppose that does make some sense. These dishes have pleased me very much. Furthermore, I haven''t rewarded you yet for saving Kelly Village from that small herd of Orcs. Tell me, what would you like as a reward?"


    At this, her fork paused as she thought about it for a moment. Then she placed the fork down, and looked at King Zephron, an expectant glint in her eyes.


    "If it''s all the same to you, King Zephron," Robin said. "I''d like to learn magic."

 30 She Meets with Magi Jasmine

    "Hmmm? You don''t know any magic?" King Zephron asked. "Then how did you defeat those orcs so quickly?"


    Robin tilted her head sideways. "With a sword?" She replied. "Isn''t that the normal way to do it?"


    "Why is that a question?" Christian moaned under his breath. Then he spoke up. "Yes, the normal way to defeat a group of orcs is to use a sword. But that would be with an entire company of soldiers to distract it away. Like I said earlier, killing an orc takes great strength to even break the skin. It takes even more strength to kill it. The fact that you were able to suppress an entire group of them is a feat not usually accomplished except through magic."


    "But you didn''t hear about it from the marshall''s report?" Robin asked. "It should have been in there."


    "Since he didn''t see it first hand, he must have simply used the eyewitness accounts from the villagers." Keith noted. "Things tend to get a bit exaggerated sometimes."


    "...Ah!" Robin understood. It was like the game of telephone. Things tend to get lost or distorted in the retelling. Not to mention the exaggeration due to admiration of the previous Heroes. The ignorant villagers probably felt that it had to be magic for things to end so quickly.


    One of the new maids brought Robin another dish just as the first one was emptied. Robin gave a friendly smile to her. "Thanks." She said.


    The maid bowed her head and retreated to her station.


    ''Wha-wha-wha-wha-wha-what should I do!? He''s so cool with that mask on! I wonder what he''d be like without it?''


    The maid blushed to herself as she imagined the face of a dashing gentleman appearing from under that mask.


    Of course, Robin, having no idea that she had acquired an admirer, continued to chat with the King as she ate.


    "Magic, huh?" The king mused. "If that is your wish, then you''ll have to be tested for aptitudes. I''ll have the court magician do that for you this morning. As for a magic teacher¡­" The king sighed.


    "I''d have gotten the best in the kingdom for you, but sadly, she is not accepting students at the time."


    "Wait, you''re not talking about¡­her, are you?" Christian asked, an expression of pure terror creeping up on his face..


    The king nodded. "The very same. It''s the best magician in the kingdom, the one that my useless son here managed to enrage when he was under her tutelage: Magi Jasmine."


    Prince Christian drooped a bit in his seat, wishing to be anywhere else at that moment. But Robin would not let the matter drop.


    "Ho? And how did you manage to do that?" Robin asked. "You didn''t do something foolish and mention something disparaging about her figure, did you?"


    Prince Christian drooped a bit more. His silence was a blaring confirmation.


    "You did? Well, no wonder she''s mad at you. One of the two things one must never say about a lady, and you just had to hit the nail on its head." Robin shook her head.


    "For future reference, what''s the other unmentionable?" Gerard asked.


    "Naturally, it''s a woman''s age." Robin shook her head. "I don''t have time to clean up after your mess, so today I''ll seek her out personally."


    "In that case, I''''ll have the guards-" King Zephron began, but Robin instantly shook her head.


    "Do you think she won''t know where they came from? She already has a grudge against your son. I''d prefer if that didn''t transfer over to me when I try talking to her. Ah, but if you could provide me with directions to her place, that would be much appreciated." After a bit of consideration, King Zephron agreed not to send guards with her.


    And so with breakfast finished, Robin and friends walked out into the hallway. Prince Christian excused himself as he still had a writing punishment to work on, and hurried off to his quarters with a red face.


    "You sure you don''t need any guards?" Keith asked.


    "Nope. Some of Christian''s bad luck could rub off on me." Robin quipped.


    "Tell the truth." Keith rolled his eyes.


    "An excort is a sure-fire way of telling everyone ''HEY! HELLO! I''M THE FLIPPIN HERO AND THIS IS MY REAL FACE RIGHT HERE!'' Isn''t it?" Robin replied.


    "Keith glanced away. "Maybe so, but you shouldn''t blame it on Prince Christian. He''s got a lot of troubles to worry about."


    "And half of those aren''t of his own making?" Robin pointed out.


    "Hero Robin, um...can I come with you?" Gerard asked.


    Robin looked at Gerard and smiled. "No can do, Gerard. I''m about to meet with a magician who might be in a really bad mood. I''d hate for you to get caught in the crossfire and turned into a frog or something."


    "Oh..." Gerard looked down a bit.


    Robin glanced around and took a small notebook out of her magic bag, lowering her voice. "However, what you can do is to go give this notebook to Ponshieu. It has a few recipes that I''m sure he would love for someone to taste test for him."


    "Do I have to give it to him now?" Gerard asked, feeling somewhat full from breakfast.


    Robin grinned. "Nah, just give it to him whenever you start feeling hungry. Most of these are really quick and easy to make, so it should be fine."


    "Okay!" Gerard''s face broke out into a grin and he headed towards the garden.


    Robin chuckled a bit as she watched Gerard leave.


    "I am wondering when you had the time to write all of those." Keith noted.


    "It''s my fast food book. I wrote down quick and easy recipes that can easily be put together within a quarter of an hour for those days when I didn''t have much time to cook." Robin said. "It should qualify as a starter lesson for Ponshieu."


    "I see. So you''ll be off to Magi Jasmine''s then?"


    "Yep! If I''m not back by tonight, assume I''ve been turned into a frog." Robin joked.


    "That actually might be possible if it''s her..." Keith muttered.


    Robin punched Keith''s arm. "See? And there you go saying bad things about her. You''re as bad as Christian!"


    As Keith watched Robin walk away, he rubbed his arm ruefully. "Heh! No one is as bad as Christian when it comes to tact." Keith corrected under his breath.


    ------------------------------------


    Following the directions, Robin took a carriage to the western edge of the capital, where a small forest of fruit and nut trees were allowed to grow. It was at the end of a path to the center of the woods that Magi Jasmine''s building stood. As Robin stopped at the front door, she was about to knock, when she heard a voice.


    "Oh, knocking''s not necessary. Magi Jasmine has a silence spell on the door, so she can''t hear people knocking."


    Robin turned about, and came face to face with a fairy.


    "You''re not part of the Baff company, are you?" Robin asked.


    "What? No. I am Magi Jasmine''s secretary fairy, Delia. Nice to meet you. Do you have an appointment with Jasmine?" Delia swept out a small curtsey when she introduced herself.


    "Um, no. I just arrived here in the capital, and I was hoping to speak to her, today, if possible."


    "Well, it isn''t impossible." Delia noted, grabbing a small workbook. "We have cancellations all the time, due to time constraints or other such nonsense. Ah, it looks like there is an opening this morning. You''ll have to fill in a questionnaire, though."


    "Beg pardon?" Robin asked. "Questionnaire?"


    "This really is your first time, huh?" Delia noted. Think of it as a way to separate the truly good people from the rabble. She can tell from your writing whether you are telling the truth or not, so she uses this as a test to keep jokers and hoolligans away."


    Robin nodded. "I see." After being handed the questionnaire, Robin read it for a moment, then quickly scribbled down the answer, and handed it to Delia.


    "Please have a seat." Delia said, and some vines grew up out of the ground, forming into a comfey chair. Robin nodded and sat down to wait as Delia flew the questionnaire into the house via the smokestack.


    Upon waiting for about ten minutes, the door to the cottage opened in on itself, and Delia appeared.


    "Magi Jasmine has agreed to meet with you. Please, come inside."


    Robin nodded and stood up from her seat, entering into the cottage.

 31 She Acquires a Magic Teacher

    "Do sit down." Magi Jasmine motioned towards the chair across from her. Robin did so and observed the figure seated across from her.


    She was dressed in a simple white gown, and her head and face were obscured by a veil which flowed down from the large woven hat upon her head. As the top was flat, it resembled the traditional bamboo hat that traveling women wore back in ancient China.


    Another thing that Robin noticed was that the room interior far exceeded the size of the exterior building. Moreover, it appeared that there were more rooms besides the one they were currently in.


    Magic? Or is it that ever popular British technology from that popular tv show...Doctor-wait, now''s not the time for this! Robin realized as she brought her attention back to the present time.


    "Before I begin, can I ask you a question?" Robin queried.


    "It appears you just have." Magi Jasmine noted. "But it seems this question of yours has another one behind it. So why don''t you simply ask and get it over with."


    Robin nodded her head. "Thank you. I was wondering why you wanted to know what I thought of the Prince? Don''t you hate him?"


    "I could very well ask you to expand upon your response." She replied. " ''He''s completely tactless, clueless, and most of the time acts like a buffoon as he delves into things he is not familiar with.'' ''Even merchants sons are better at calculations than he is.'' ''Someone who cannot be trusted to the point where whenever he leaves, he has to be escorted by a small army of soldiers.''" Magi Jasmine''s eyes glanced up, measuring Robin through the cloth veil obscuring her features.


    "''But, he is not without hope, if one can drive the lesson home with him. It is unfortunate that you saw the Prince at his worst, when he could be so much better.''" Jasmine finished, and looked up once more at Robin.


    "Tell me, Hero: what kind of man can you see such a foolish man becoming when he is ''at his best''?" Jasmine asked.


    "Someone who prizes honesty over background, who judges not by appearances, who fits the punishment to the crime, and who is not easily fooled." Robin replied.


    "Hah! You could more easily say he''ll be a blunt, meticulous, exacting, and clever person who is comfortable no matter who he is surrounded by. Do you honestly think that he can become half of what his father is!?" Jasmine shook her head.


    "I do." Robin replied evenly.


    "How?"


    "He is already half of what his father is, including his brain. How he will find the other half, though...that is the real crux of the problem." Robin shrugged.


    "Pfft! Hahaha!" Jasmine''s laughter echoed throughout the somewhat large room. "You hit the center of the bullseye! That man is certainly closer to a halfwit than a whole one!"


    --------------


    Sitting at his desk, Prince Christian suddenly let out an explosively loud sneeze, tearing the page he was working on.


    "No! My work!" He exclaimed in despair. That page had almost been filled.


    -----------------


    Magi Jasmine then dispensed with the formality and lifted the veil from her face. A youthful face framed by wirey auburn curls looked back at Robin, her golden brown eyes twinkling with mirth.


    Robin was surprised at how young she appeared. Her eyes also slightly resembled Prince Christian''s in shape. Perhaps they were related?


    "What? Were you expecting a country-toppling beauty?" She snickered.


    "Quite frankly, it doesn''t matter to me if you look like Munch''s Scream, as long as you can teach me magic." Robin replied with a shrug.


    "Since you look far better than that, I should be relieved, instead. I was just surprised at how the most powerful magician in the kingdom happens to look so young."


    "You imagined the expert to be someone much older?" Jasmine asked.


    "There is a saying where I come from. ''With age comes wisdom''. It means that those who know more are usually older than you are." Robin replied.


    "And? How old do you think I am?" The question came with a mischievous glint in Jasmine''s eyes.


    "...No older than I am." Robin replied, dodging the question. "Iguess I shouldn''t be so surprised after all. I too am a specialist of sorts."


    Is this how others feel when they hear of what I am good at? She wondered.


    "A specialist? Ah, I see." Jasmine glanced down at the sheathed sword placed across Robin''s lap. "Swordsman? Or is it Hero?"


    "...Both? I didn''t think that I was an incompetent swordsman before or after I took up the Hero''s role." Robin answered.


    "Then, as the Hero, do you know what Christian said to me?" She asked.


    "I have a general idea." Robin leaned back in her seat.


    "What kind of punishment would you propose to offset his offense?" Jasmine inclined her head and asked, examining Robin''s face.


    "I wouldn''t do anything to him." Robin replied. Jasmine''s face fell as she felt disappointed by her answer. But what Robin said next made her sit forward, her eyes shining.


    "I would simply stay close by, and let him know you are looking for the perfect opportunity. More than likely, he''ll work himself up worrying about what you''re going to do to him. But I would just sit there and watch him as he feels more and more uncomfortable. And then, when He''s almost forgotten, I''d do something to remind him that I''m still displeased with him. After a few weeks of that, he''ll probably apologize on his own."


    "But what if it doesn''t work?" Jasmine asked.


    "Then do something to remind him that you are a powerful magician that should never be crossed. If he doesn''t get the hint at that point, then he truly does have only half a brain."


    Robin shrugged, then threw out her bait. Her whole conversation to this point had been calculated as soon as she saw that questionnaire.


    "Me? I''m just looking for someone good to teach me magic¡­. But Christian and I are going to be traveling around on a diplomatic mission in a few days to retain the trust of the demon king so that she doesn''t get spooked by news of me. That is why I need the best magic teacher in the kingdom."


    "Leaving with Christian, huh?" Jasmine mused to herself. "All right, then! I agree to become your magic teacher! However, I have a condition¡­." Jasmine warned.


    "What is it?" Robin asked. The fish has taken the bait. She thought to herself with a smile.


    "I get to come along with you!" She proclaimed. Robin raised her eyes to show surprise.


    "You want to come along? Why, I don''t see why not. My orders include my companions, so there shouldn''t be any problems with that¡­" Robin nodded. "All right, then! Welcome to the team, teacher!"


    They both shook hands amicably while concealing behind candid smiles their foxy schemes. Jasmine was in it to get back st Christian, in a non-murdering sort of way. Robin was in it to learn magic, and to use Jasmine''s reputation to drive a few important lessons home for Christian.


    "I think we''ll get along splendidly." Robin chuckled.

 32 She Becomes Angry

    After the two shook hands, they they wrote and signed a magic binding contract, in which Robin promised to allow Jasmine to accompany her as a companion in return for lessons on magic.


    This magic contract would, in future years, be framed and placed in the kingdom''s historical museum as an important piece of history.


    Business finished, Jasmine called Delia in to witness the contract.


    "And, please inform the magicians guild that I shall be out traveling and unavailable starting...in two days?" Jasmine glanced over at Robin to confirm. Robin nodded.


    "It seems that the Prince has something important that he needs to take care of, first." Robin added.


    "So that slowpoke is the one keeping us back." Jasmine muttered. "Well, let''s head to the castle, then! I want to tell my Uncle my decision to accompany you, in person."


    "Uncle?" Robin asked, as Delia flew outside to prepare things.


    "Didn''t I tell you? My uncle is His Highness, King Zephron." Jasmine explained.


    Robin''s eyes widened. "So that means that you and the Prince are-"


    "Yes, we''re cousins." Jasmine rubbed her forehead as if she were smoothinginvisible wrinkles. "Although we''re about as different as cats and dogs, at this point. Just where did the royal bloodline take a wrong turn?"


    Delia returned from outside. "Magi Jasmine, your carriage is ready."


    "Ah, GOOD! Come and ride in my carriage. We can head straight to the castle this way, without being stopped at every checkpoint."


    Jasmine invited, standing up from her chair.


    Robin was surprised to see that Jasmine was almost a head smaller than herself. She hadn''t seemed that small sitting down.


    As they set off for the palace, Delia notified the King that Magi Jasmine was on her way.


    ------------------------


    Thus, Prince Christian was finally excused from his writing punishment in lieu of welcoming the approaching guest. He paced back and forth in front of the castle, worried.


    "If Jasmine''s coming, then it has to be something about me, or about the Hero." He muttered under his breath. Then he jerked a bit.


    "That-She didn''t turn him into a frog did she!? I know that she was angry, but surely she wouldn''t take her anger out on an innocent person, would she?"


    The Prince paced back and forth, now worried over the fate of the Hero. As his mood became darker, his face became paler.


    Finally, when the carriage pulled up to the steps, Prince Christian looked completely terrified.


    And when Jasmine moved to exit the carriage, the whites of his eyes could be seen. He flinched back, and pointed at Jasmine with a panicked squeak.


    "Y-you! W-What did you d-do to R-Robin!" he stammered.


    Jasmine looked serenely at Christian and her face blossomed into an angelic smile. She had just arrived, and already was having so much fun.


    "Robin? Oh yes! I did meet with someone named Robin today. Why, cousin! What''s wrong? You look awfully pale! Are you all right?" She teased.


    "Whoa! What''s going on? Did the demon king declare war already?" Robin asked. She had gotten out of the door on the other side of the carriage and had walked around to where Jasmine and Christian were standing.


    "Robin! You''re all right! She hasn''t done anything to you, has she!?" Christian asked, poking her shoulder to make sure she was really there.


    "How rude!" Jasmine huffed, and continued walking into the castle, headed towards the audience hall. She left Christian behind to continue making a spectacle of himself.


    "I''m fine." Robin said, surprised at how pale Christian looked.


    "There''s no way you can be fine!" He denied. "Not after lasting an entire carriage ride with her in there!"


    At this point, Robin had enough. "Do you think she does injury to everyone she meets? Face it: the things you experience were a result of your own making!


    You were the one to open your mouth. You were the one to anger her. These consequences are yours!


    If I were you, I''d think long and hard on how you are going to make things up with her. Why don''t you just try and think of this as practice for when you become king? It''ll definitely be good experience for you."


    At a certain point, Christian began looking at Robin with surprise, then pity, then sadness.


    "Robin¡­" He said, placing his hands on her shoulders. " Who are you and what have you done with Robin!" He shook her shoulders, not believing his own eyes.


    "Christian¡­" A somewhat low voice escaped from her mouth. "If you don''t stop this immediately, and remove your hands from me, then I will have no choice but to shoulder throw you. Prince or not, this kind of behaviour is unacceptable!"


    "What? What''s a shoulder throw?" He asked.


    " Three.."


    "I''m asking you-"


    "Two¡­"


    "What is a shoulder throw?"


    "One."


    "Wha!"


    Robin grabbed Christian''s arm and a sharp glint shone in her eyes. Then she quickly spun around and bent over, throwing Christian to the ground in front of the castle guards.


    Bending over the now grounded Christian, Robin smirked. "That...is a shoulder throw." She said. The castle guards had their faces turn red from trying to hold back their laughter. Some of the younger ones couldn''t help themselves and let out a snicker or two.


    "Even if you''re not stupid, you should still be able to recognise this, right?" She showed Christian the Hero''s Sword strapped to her side.


    She sniffed. "I think you should take some time to calm the heck down so that we can have a rational conversation. I have no patience for grown up hysterics." She added cooly.


    Then Robin left the bewildered Christian behind on the ground and walked towards the audience hall after Jasmine.


    Christian picked himself up off the ground, very confused.


    "If that was the real Robin, then how¡­" His expression lit up. That''s it! Jasmine has got to have placed her under a hypnotic spell! That''s got to be it!" He took off into the castle, headed for the court magician''s office.


    The palace guards no longer muffled their laughter as they chuckled amongst themselves.


    ------------------------------------


    Robin walked into the audience hall just as King Zephron and Magi Jasmine were finished speaking.


    "Ah, Robin. I heard you''re taking my niece with you on your trip?" King Zephron asked.


    Robin nodded. "If I want to learn magic properly, I still need to take some time. Since we''re in for a long carriage ride, It''s a good opportunity to have lessons as we ride. It''s much better than a paltry two days of cramming."


    "Ahem! I see. I also heard that you had an interesting appendix to the contract you and Jasmine signed. Something about not doing anything that would kill my son?" King Zephron added, an odd expression on his face.


    "Ah, that." Robin sighed. "That was something I added to convince Christian to stop being neurotically biased against his cousin. Or at least, to allow for civil conversation between them."


    "Biased? How so?" King Zephron asked.


    "He can''t seem to fathom me arriving in a carriage with Maagi Jasmine unscathed." Robin raised an eyebrow in mild amusement, and shook her head. "He needs to learn how to clean up the messes that he makes. Either that, or find someone who can...where I come from, that sort of person is known as a Public Relations Specialist."


    "What kind of specialist is that?" Jasmine asked.


    "It''s a person who excels in maintaining good relations between his client and the general public, or to specific people-depending on what''s necessary." Robin explained. "They''re hired to tell the truth, albeit in a way which isn''t going to cause scandalous misconceptions like histerical hearsays."


    "So you don''t hire them to cover up any crimes you may commit?" Jasmine asked.


    "No way." Robin smiled. "At least, when employed correctly, they''re not supposed to."


    At that point, Christian burst into the hallway, panting.


    "Christian? What in the world are you doing?" King Zephron asked.


    "Rest assured, father. I will save everyone today!" Christian said. Then he pointed at Jasmine and announced.


    "I''ll reveal your evil schemes before everyone today! You planned to capture the Hero and have him under your hypnotic spell! But that won''t work because I have THIS!" Christian splashed the contents of the bottle that he had in his hands all over Robin.


    "Hahah! Now your schemes won''t work anymore! That was a holy restoration potion. It counteracts all kinds of evil mind magic that could possibly be working on the Hero! Now, Hero, reveal this woman''s evil schemes!" Christian smiled triumphantly.


    Robin stood there, silently, watching the potion drip down from her hair. She had just taken a bath that day. Annoyance blossomed into frustration. Frustration grew into fury. Robin was like a volcano just waiting to erupt.


    "H-hero?" Christian asked, beginning to feel that something was off.


    "You know, I honestly tried. I really did." Robin began slowly. "I thought that maybe...just maybe, you could see past the imaginings of your immature self and become someone worthy of my admiration..." She took a step towards Christian. Christian took a step back, feeling somewhat intimidated.


    "I convinced Jasmine to try and put the past behind her and to give you another chance..." She took another step. Christian felt frozen in place, shivering under what seemed like an ocean of bloodlust.


    "Heck, I even added a clause in the Magic Contract so that she wouldn''t threaten to beat you within an inch of your life!" Robin took another step, drawing level with Christian. She looked at him, flames smouldering in her eyes for a moment...then she sighed, and the anger slid away like rain off of glass. She was quiet for a moment, which seemed like an eternity, then finally opened her mouth.


    "But...it appears....I was very much mistaken." She then walked quietly out of the room.


    "Huh? He wasn''t under a spell?" Christian asked. Both King Zephron and Magi Jasmine sighed in exasperation at watching Prince Christian get into even deeper trouble.


    "Son, this time, not even I can help you." King Zephron shook his head.


    "I wasn''t even going to start helping him. He can get into trouble well enough on his own." Jasmine huffed. "No need to drag me into it." Then both King Zephron and Jasmine left the hall to prepare for when the Hero would leave.


    "Perhaps it''s better if Christian didn''t come along?" Jasmine asked Zephron as they left.


    Christian stood there in the middle of the hall, an expression of utmost confusion on his face.

 33 She Remakes her Mask

    At this point, someone might have asked the question: where were Keith and Gerard during this time? Ponshieu knew, because Ponshieu was busy whipping up the delicacies in the book into a large tableful of delectable eatables. Gerard and Keith were there in the kitchen, gladly helping Ponshieu taste test all the food to make sure that it tasted good. Suffice to say that they had demolished to dredges many of those dishes.


    Yet, all fun is not meant to last. Robin came striding into the kitchen, her mask on her face as usual. She had placed it on in Jasmine''s carriage earlier. But, now she needed to make a new one, since the dye was starting to drip down due to that potion earlier.


    "Lock the door, Ponshieu." She said with a bit of gloom in her voice.


    "Hero Robin? Puh-! Er... What exactly happened?" Keith asked, holding back his laughter.


    Robin looked at him a pleasant smile on her face, one which Keith knew very well meant that things were not very pleasant. "You might ask that of Prince Christian. He is very much aware of what happened, since he is the sole perpetrator." Robin said, mincing her words to an unequaled clarity.


    Keith, unable to hold in his mirth, left the kitchen in search of Christian. Gerard locked the door behind Keith again.


    "Ponshieu." She said. "I need powdered gelatin, water,and-do you have any glycerine?" Ponshieu shook his head. "Then I''ll need white vinegar, coconut oil, salt, and some lye." She also grabbed several pots, pans, and utensils, and moved over to a side counter.


    "What are you making with that?" Gerard asked.


    Robin glanced at Gerard, and sighed. "A new mask. This one will definitely be waterproof!" When Ponshieu arrived with the ingredients, Robin glanced at them, then asked Ponshieu. "I am rather curious, though: how do you acquire powdered gelatin?"


    "We have a castle alchemist who is good at that. We usually pass him animal byproducts which we can''t cook like hoofs and such." Ponshieu said. "In return, he can keep some of whatever he makes for his experiments."


    Robin nodded. "All right, then. Ponshieu, I will show you how to make glycerine." And Robin explained that Glycerine is a natural alcohol that is a byproduct of soap-making.


    "So, we''re going to be making soap?" Ponshieu asked, confused.


    "A vegetable-based soap, yes. That''s why I asked you to grab some lye." Robin nodded.


    "Then, do you mind if I go grab a soap mold?" Ponshieu asked. "I really don''t want to have one of my pans be sacrificed to hold the soap while it cools."


    "Good idea. Oh, and grab a bottle with a cork stopper, too. I''ll need that for the glycerine" She said, as she put on a pair of gloves. Ponshieu did so, and he also put the food he cooked away in warming cabinets to retain their heat until lunch time.


    "One more thing-do you have any way of telling how hot a liquid is?" Robin asked.


    "We have a color-changing scale of the lava-salamander." Ponshieu replied.


    "Oh? Explain to me how it works." Robin said, intrigued.


    ''Well, At room temperature, it is usually a dark blue." Ponshieu explained. "Boiling temperature is Yellow. Half over twice that temperature is Orange, and half-step to Lava is red. That is the normal temperature of those beasts."


    "So, half of boiling temperature is Green?" Robin asked.


    "I would assume so, yes." Ponshieu replied.


    Robin did a few calculations. "Well, it won''t be perfect, but it should still be possible!" She nodded.


    Ponshieu came back with a long dark blue scale, and Robin heated a mixture of one cup of Coconut Oil, and one cup of Olive Oil on the stovetop. She carefully added 2 tablespoons of Lye, and One cup of water, keeping a pot lid in front of her to avoid the splatter. Then she heated the mixture until the scale became a bright shade of chartreuse, stirring it to make sure it was mixed thoroughly (approximately 125 degrees).


    She lowered the temperature once everything was blended together properly. The scale now had darkened to a nice emerald green (approx 100 degrees). She kept it at that heat, stirring until the mixture was thick enough that it would still hold the shape of the spoon''s path for a few seconds after stirring. Then, She poured half a cup of salt into the mixture and stirred it one last time before setting it aside to cool for a bit.


    Once it had cooled a bit, the soapy part congealed at the top, while the glycerine was the byproduct liquid underneath it. All that was left to do was to skim the soap off and stick it into a mold to cool completely. Gerard helped to pack the soap into the mold, making sure that none of it was left in Ponshieu''s pot. Then they stored the glycerine in the air-tight bottle to await its use.


    The glycerine in the bottle would have a shelf life of three weeks to one month if placed in a cool room. Robin wanted to make sure that she had the ingredients in case she needed to make her mask again, so she instructed Ponshieu to place it somewhere the other chefs wouldn''t touch it in the cooling room after they were done with it.


    Once they had done so, Robin moved on to make the glue. She quickly brought six tablespoons of water to a boil and then removed it from heat, adding three tablespoons of gelatin into it and mixing thoroughly. Then she added two tablespoons of white vinegar, and two tablespoon of glycerine into the solution and stirred, mixing thoroughly. And, that was it. The glue was finished.


    She enjoyed learning how to make things like this using natural home products. It wasn''t part of her survival training, but it could be said that her handicrafting for homemade products was the flip side of the coin. The handicraft part made certain that she could live more comfortably wherever she went. Also, knowing how to make waterproof glue was VERY handy. Robin couldn''t tell how many times she had made it before.


    "Could you please get me some dye or some quick-drying paints?" Robin asked. Ponshieu smiled and brought out a few small bottles. "Vegetable dyes." He said. "I sometimes make them when I''m free."


    Then, Robin withdrew the notebook she was using for scrap paper, and tore several sheets out of it. The glue was ready, so there was no reason not to start. She once more drew out the design for the mask and cut it out of the paper This would be the base. She cut out the eye holes and coated the whole thing in glue.


    Then she tore the rest of the paper up into strips, which she took a few moments to fashion into feathers. These feathers were colored with the dye first, then affixed to the mask. the color scheme was the same as the first one: brown with white around the eyes. The beak part was left practically untouched until Robin painted it a bright dandelion yellow.


    With the glue, the dye, and the paper feathers the whole thing soon took shape in Robin''s hands as the new and improved Robin mask. Then Robin coated the whole thing in a top layer of glue, which added a layer of shine to the mask as if it were lacquered wood instead of paper. There was no remaining glue, and half of Ponshieu''s sepia dye had been used.


    All that was left was for it to dry. Robin placed the mask on a tray and brought it back with her to her room, carefully storing it by the bedside. Then she once more went to the bathroom to take a bath.


    The Baff attendant fairy burst out laughing. "Ahahahahaaha! What happened to you!? Did you apply makeup to that mask? Because it''s dripped down your face! Oh! Oh I can''t breath!" She chortled.


    "Do you have any soap that can remove dyes?" Robin sighed and asked.

 34 She Meets the Queen

    By the time Robin had scrubbed the last vestiges of dye off her face, and removed every last trace of that drippy potion from her hair, Keith had managed to find Prince Christian.


    It had taken Keith a while to find Christian, because he had soullessly staggered off, away from the audience hall. Keith had eventually found Christian somewhat drunk, in the center of the Rosebush maze. A half-empty wine cask next to Christian showed how much he had consumed.


    "Well aren''t you a sorry sight?" Keith clicked his tongue and chuckled.


    Christian raised his head from the stone table he was collapsed upon.


    "Keith." He recognized. " I should''ve known you''d come ta find me."


    Keith sat down across from Christian "I''ll take a glass of that." He said, pouring himself a glass into a cup he drew out of his bag.


    Christian nodded, and slumped his head down on the table.


    "I''ve created quite the mess, haven''t I?"


    "Mess?" Keith asked. "How so?"


    "I summoned the Hero, when we didn''t really need him, which could very well become the spark for war with the demon king. I angered my cousin to the point where I''m surprised she doesn''t kill me. And just now, I managed to make an even bigger mess and angered the hero! How is that not a mess?" Christian put a hand to his forehead, in an attempt to reduce the growing headache he was experiencing.


    Keith nodded sympathetically. "Well, I must say that you are one of a kind." He said, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.


    "After all, it''s not every day that you can get on the bad side of both the demon king, and the hero."


    "Ha!" Christian snorted derisively. "You could say I''m downright talented in that area."


    "Why should I say such a thing when you''re already beating yourself up over it, eh?" Keith smirked. "You know you''re extremely lucky."


    "Lucky! How in the kingdom am I supposed to be lucky!" Christian glared at Keith.


    "You''ve managed to anger so many people who are more powerful than you, and still managed to keep your head attached to your neck." Keith pointed out with a chuckle.


    "...True. But how much longer can I keep my head before my luck runs out? With my luck, it''s a blessing the kingdom hasn''t collapsed yet."


    "Don''t underestimate your people." Keith said.


    "It''s not underestimating them that I''m afraid of." Christian put his head back down on his arms.


    "I disappointed him."


    "Who? Your father?" Keith asked.


    "If it were just my father, things would be more simpler." Christian turned his head, tilting it towards the part of the castle which contained the Hero''s quarters.


    "The Hero?" Keith asked. "Well, I should think so. It''s not every day that the Hero gets pelted with a potion from the prince. In fact, before today, it was practically unheard of." He drained his cup and poured another one. Even though he had heard the general story from some of the guards, most of them were merely amused, not angry or upset at him.


    "You know, out of all the insufferable fools there are out there, you happen to be the most tolerable." He noted. "The truly insufferable man is the one who leads others to destruction while not even considering the idea that he might be wrong. You''re better in that you can at least admit your mistakes."


    "So what if I know my mistakes if I don''t know how to fix them!?" Christian exclaimed morbidly as he held his head in his hands. "¡­.What should I do now?"


    "You see, that''s why you''re tolerable, for a Prince. You realize you did something wrong, and you want to do something to right it." Keith said, as he poured himself yet another drink. "Many people take a long time to get to that point."


    Christian rolled his eyes at Keith. "Are you going to help me, or are you going to sit there and drink up all my wine?"


    Keith thought for a moment, then leaned back relaxedly in his chair, a mischievous smile on his face as he crossed his legs.


    "Why not both?" He replied.


    ----------------------------------------------


    When Robin came out for lunch, she wore a spare set of clothes that Kransu, her ''BAFF'' assistant prepared for her. Surprisingly enough, they fit her rather well.


    Robin found the mask was not sufficiently dried yet, but Kransu had her ''dryer'' magic,and so Robin was able to wear the mask that day.


    At lunch, they were served tea and sandwiches in the pavilion outside. Jasmine, the King, and the Queen were there, but Keith and Christian were not. The king had been notified ahead of time that Keith had dragged a drunk Christian back to his rooms. Gerard was also not there, having filled his stomach in the kitchen earlier.


    "Ah, there you are, Hero Robin, I''d like to introduce to you my wife, Emeline." King Zephron said.


    Robin gave a courteous bow. "It''s a pleasure to meet you, Queen Emeline. As you probably know, I am Hero Robin. Do excuse me for any misconduct, I am not familiar with the etiquette in this country."


    "Oh, that''s quite alright. Zeff has already told me that he dispensed with the formalities. Do sit down. Just speak to us normally." Emeline laughed.


    Robin straightened up, and took a seat. "Thank you." She said with a smile, and was served tea and sandwiches by a nearby maid.


    Robin turned to the maid with a kindly smile. "Thanks." She said. The maid blushed. It was the same maid that had served Robin at breakfast. Already, fantasies started to blossom in her head.


    "I hear my child''s been giving you a bit of trouble lately¡­" Emeline raised an inquisitively perfect eyebrow. Like Christian, she also had blonde, wavy hair, and mischievous sea-green eyes.


    "A bit." Robin admitted. Actually, now that her appearance had been fixed, Robin''s initial rage had already cooled down a lot.


    "I''m somewhat curious now. I heard that your mask was ruined, but it seems that now it is perfectly fine? How is this so?"


    "That mask was but a temporary measure until I had the time to make a better one." Robin replied with a sigh. "Your son only forced me to make this a bit a head of schedule."


    She tapped the mask and chuckled. "This one is potion-proofed."


    "So, you''re not mad at him?" Queen Emeline inquired, tentatively.


    "I tend to avoid staying angry at anyone for long. Anger is like a rigged gambling den: it only makes the angered person lose more than he would ever hope to gain. Thus, it''s not a question of being angry, but a question of how to act in a way that will resolve the issue." Robin explained.


    "You can just say it if you''re angry, you know." Emeline said.


    Robin raised an eyebrow. "If I am angry, do you think I would tell you?...But I am not so petty as to seek revenge for every slight I receive. Otherwise, he would also be covered in a potion right now."


    Emeline laughed. "You are far more amusing than I first thought. Tell me, is it possible for me to have a glimpse of you face under that mask?"


    At this, the maid serving Robin slyly glanced Robin''s way, curiosity burning up inside her.


    Robin smiled politely."And have your magic eye capture my image? I may be young, and I may not know how to perform magic, but that doesn''t mean that I''m ignorant of it. Nice try."


    "Tsk! Foiled." Emeline knew she had been found out.


    The maid silently sighed. It really was too bad. Perhaps Hero Robin had a burn or a scar marring his face? Or maybe he was so beautiful that his face could charm the downfall of the nations...


    "Besides, I need to go shopping today. I can''t risk people knowing my face just yet." Robin pointed out. "You might think it''s nothing, but I have no intention of picking up star-crossed stalkers at any point in time."


    "Why not? You''ll be here for a long time. What''s wrong with getting to know a few young ones?" Emeline asked.


    "If there''s one thing I''ve learned, it''s that with fame and fortune comes false friends and frantic fanciers. And I''m not having any of it." Robin shook her head. "I have no need for fostering future betrayals."


    "We''ve got it." Zephron gave his wife a pointed look to stop. "You don''t want anyone to see your face. Very well, we won''t force you."


    Robin sipped at her tea. "Well, it''s not impossible to show you, under certain conditions."

 35 She Was Adopted

    "What?" King Zephron exclaimed.


    "You will!?" Queen Emeline smiled radiantly.


    "Yes, it''s possible." Robin said. "My main objection is to avoid having my face recorded down. If it''s simply showing you, it should be fine."She then glanced sidelong at Emeline. "No sneaking image taking tools in on the sly, either."


    "I got it, I got it!" Emeline nodded her head.


    Jasmine, who up to this point had only been listening, laughed and said to Emeline. "Isn''t it better this way, my dear Aunt? Now you can boast to be one of the only people who know the face behind this mask."


    "But why must you fight so much to keep your identity a secret?" Emeline asked, seeing her matchmaking plans going down the drain.


    "It''s a test." Robin replied.


    "A test? A test of what?" Zephron asked.


    "A test of character." Robin replied. "While people can fake bravado and kind-heartedness in front of the Hero, would they go so far for the common folk? A man''s character is judged, not by how he treats the greatest of us, but by how he treats the least of us. If he is kind only to greatness, then his character can only be small. But, if he is kind to the smallest, then there is no doubt in my mind as to the greatness of his character. It is men like those who are worth befriending."


    Robin then picked up a sandwich and began to eat, as the other three sat there, thinking on what she said.


    "Character is judged by how we treat the least of us...good! That is a good saying!" King Zephron nodded, and he turned to his secretary. "Did you get that?"


    The secretary nodded. "Yes, my king."


    "Have it inscribed upon the official records." Zephron ordered. "In the future, I would hope that all the men we recruit would be men of good character."


    "As you wish, my king." the secretary bowed and left immediately to go and do so.


    "Then, how about we have the big reveal tonight?" Robin said.


    "Tonight? Why?" Emeline asked.


    Robin chuckled. "Because I''ve yet to go shopping for the trip in two days."


    ''And I''ve yet to find a room which doesn''t have large windows or hiding spaces attached'' She thought to herself. ''Perhaps I should ask Keith? He might know of a room...'' Robin stared down at her steaming cup of tea.


    "It seems that you are wise beyond your years." King Zephron noted to Robin, who sighed.


    "I''d like to say that it''s common sense where I come from, but not everyone is so lucky to escape being backstabbed. I had to learn this the hard way."


    ''School can be a cruel place for an orphan.'' Robin recalled as she closed her eyes for a moment.


    ''It is a good thing that brother was there.'' She smiled a bit.


    Then she turned her head to observe the castle view. She had been trying not to think of home too much, but today it seemed everything was conspiring to make her think of it. Her heart ached.


    "Robin? What''s wrong?" Jasmine was the first to notice the change in Robin''s expression.


    "Ah. Nothing...I was just feeling a bit homesick is all." Robin replied with a sigh. "Today is only the fifth day, yet I already miss home, even though I''''ve actually been away for much longer upon other occasions¡­isn''t that odd?"


    Jasmine fell silent. Of course you would be homesick, if you found out you couldn''t go home. Then she opened her mouth.


    "It''s not odd."


    Robin turned to look at her.


    "You have a home to return to." Jasmine continued. "Therefore, wanting to go home is only natural, right?"


    Robin felt her heart clench as a rare emotion seized it. She stared down at the cup of tea in her hands and struggled not to cry. It had been a long time since she had felt this way.


    "Thank you." Her voice came out a bit hoarse. It had been a while since anyone other than her brother had said something like that.


    King Zephron stayed silent throughout this exchange, but he also was feeling a bit emotional looking at this young man. After all, it was his own son that had summoned the Hero here. To arrive in a different world without any explanation or prior warning...must have been very hard on the lad.


    "While I can''t say that we could ever replace your real home," Zephron said. "As things are, can''t you consider us to be family during your stay here? While we don''t currently have a way to send you home, I promise that we will do everything in our power to help find a way for you to return."


    Emeline nodded in agreement. "Yes! Just consider us your family."


    The clenching feeling relaxed as Robin smiled, and exhaled. Then she laughed.


    "Thanks, but wouldn''t that make Prince Christianmy sibling? I''m not entirely sure I''m okay with that." She joked.


    "Then don''t consider him a sibling. After what he''s done, he''s lucky that he''s still alive!" Jasmine snorted. "As for me, I would be delighted to have a cousin like you. Or do you have an objection to me becoming your cousin?"


    "No, not at all!" Robin quickly replied.


    "Then, consider it done!" Jasmine said with an air of finality. But when she saw Robin''s smile fall, she exclaimed. "Ah! Why are you looking like that! You should be happy to gain a good cousin like me!"


    Robin sighed. "I was just thinking...brother would have loved it here¡­"


    Jasmine paused for a bit, unsure of what to say. Fortunately, Emeline suddenly had an idea.


    "Why don''t you tell us about your family back home? Do you have any parents?" She asked.


    "Not for a very long time." Robin replied with a pained smile. They died six years ago. After that, it''s just been me and my brother all this time."


    Emeline paused awkwardly, knowing she''d touched on a painful topic for the Hero. But, thankfully enough, King Zephron asked a question right after that.


    "You mean to say that you''ve been living alone just the two of you? What about your extended family? You didn''t have any aunts or uncles?"


    Robin''s eyes turned cold as she recalled what had happened after the funeral. "None that could be called human." She replied icily.


    At that, the whole conversation came to a halt as no one had the courage to ask Robin what she had been through. But everyone there was wondering how bad Robin''s life must have been with relatives like that. Lunch finally had a bit of progress as they used eating as an excuse to think of something to talk about that wouldn''t trigger foul memories.


    "Ah, that''s right! You want to learn Magic, right?" Jasmine asked, finally having thought of something. "Do you know what your aptitudes are?"


    Robin shook her head. "I was intending to check after speaking to you, but I was distracted by what happened earlier with Prince Christian."


    "Then, before you leave to go shopping, we''ll give you a test." Jasmine said, as she took a sip of her tea.


    "...Pardon me for asking about something so commonplace, but what do you mean by aptitudes?" Robin asked.


    Jasmine almost spit her tea out, but managed to swallow it instead. "You don''t know about aptitudes!?"


    "Well, there really aren''t any magicians where I come from, so anything about magic is pretty novel to me." Robin explained.


    "Wait, there aren''t any magicians where you come from!? You''re only just hearing about magic!? What kind of place do you come from!?" Jasmine exclaimed. "How does anything even function over there!"


    "The United States of America, in the state of Kansas." Robin replied. "As for functioning, if we don''t do it ourselves, a lot of things are handled by mechanical tools that run on a weakened form of lightning."


    Jasmine held her head feeling a headache coming on. "It seems that I need to start everything from the beginning, then."


    "Probably.." Robin acknowledged.


    Well, she knew a little about magic. But, seeing as what she knew about it was mostly gleaned from fairy tales, light novels and myths, she wasn''t one hundred percent certain that they were accurate. Thus, it would be better to start from the beginning and learn things the correct way, as opposed to missing something important due to negligence.


    After lunch was over, Jasmine latched onto Robin and dragged her off by an arm.


    "First things first, we are going to test your aptitude!" Jasmine decided.


    Robin allowed herself to be dragged down several hallways and up three different flights of stairs until they reached the royal magician''s office.


    "Did you finish the preparations, old man!?" Jasmine asked as she slammed the door open, causing the bookcases to shudder.


    The old magician jumped, startled at the sudden noise, but then relaxed.


    "Oh, you''ve finally come!" He replied. "I do wish you''d stop slamming that door. One of these days, my old heart might not be able to take it anymore."


    "Forget about that, give Robin the test!" Jasmine exclaimed.


    "Fine¡­" The old man sighed as a crystal ball suddenly floated out into the room.


    "Please place your hand on it." he instructed Robin.


    Robin reached out her hand.

 36 She Goes Shopping

    When her hand touched the orb, it became completely white, with rainbow patches sparkling inside it here and there, like an opal. Jasmine and the court magician studied it quietly.


    After a while, Robin became somewhat impatient. "Well? Are you finished?"


    The two magicians looked up, and realized Robin was still there.


    "Ah, yes." Jasmine replied. Then she waved her hand in a shoo-ing motion.


    "That''s right, you said you had to shop, right? It''s going to take us a while to calculate the aptitudes, so you can go ahead while we work on it."


    "...well, okay then." Robin went out the door, trying to retrace her steps.


    Once Robin was gone, Jasmine crept to the door to make certain she was truly gone, before she shut and locked the door. She even invoked a noise cancellation barrier. Then she turned back to the Court Magician.


    "I knew that Heroes usually have a good affinity with magic, but all attributes!?" Jasmine eyed the gleaming colors.


    "Moreover, it seems like It''s not just the usual simple all-attributes either. Out of all the attributes, his affinity with Light mana is the highest recorded affinity to date! What kind of monster is this man!"


    "Hmm...it seems the recorded data for the previous Heroes were not as inspiringly high¡­" The court magician noted as he flipped through a few records.


    "Are you kidding me! I spent ten years getting to where I am, now all of a sudden my nominal cousin easily surpasses me!? He''ll learn everything I know in a few weeks, much less a few months! I''ll be a failure of a teacher!"


    "Not necessarily." The wizened court wizard disagreed.


    "He may have a high affinity, but if he can''t sense his mana source then no matter how much affinity he has, it''ll be useless. Moreover, we''ve yet to measure how much mana his source can contain."


    "Right, there''s still his mana source. Affinities, though high, are not so tough if there''s not enough mana to support their more impressive spells." Jasmine nodded, then groaned. "But still! Fifty percent affinity with all attributes, and a hundred percent affinity with light!? This is all kinds of unfair!"


    --------------------------------------------


    Robin eventually found her way back to ground floor, when she bumped into Keith.


    "Keith?...How''s the prince doing?" Robin asked, looking away. Now that she remembered the incident, she realized that she may have been a bit harsh.


    "Him?" Keith laughed. "Never better! I think your scolding did something for him that his father''s punishments never could. Just leave him be for a while longer and He''ll be back better than ever, if he can get over his hangover by tomorrow, that is."


    "I have a recipe for that, too." Robin laughed.


    "It seems that the Prince is more lucky than he supposed. You''re not angry anymore?" Keith asked.


    "No, I''m still contemplating whether I should return the favor or not¡­" Robin frowned in mock seriousness.


    "In other words, there may or may not be a potion-covered Prince in the near future?" Keith asked.


    "Maaaaybe~." Was Robin''s answer.


    "As long as it''s in the harmless category, I won''t stop you." Kenmei grinned.


    "Heh heh~ Nice to know!" Robin grinned back. "I''ll be heading out for shopping now. Is there any other exit that isn''t as noticeable as the front?"


    Kenmei nodded. "There''s the kitchen entrance out back for deliveries. I think Old Mac is about ready to head out on his wagon with the kitchen waste. You could probably hitch a ride with him, If I explained things."


    "Would you? I''m getting tired of people staring at me all the time." Robin replied.


    "What''s wrong? Are you shy?" He asked.


    "No." Robin shook her head. "But I''m not a god. Why do I have to bear with people looking at me like I''m one?"


    "Ah, that is something that even the king cannot help." Keith shrugged. "I''m afraid that you''ll have to put up with it."


    "Either that, or do something to disappoint them." Robin muttered.


    "Not possible." Keith shook his head. "You''re as popular as a newborn babe, and can do no wrong in their eyes, at this point in time."


    "You see, this! This is why I put on a mask! Because if I didn''t, then I just know that I''d go crazy!" Robin growled.


    -----------------------------------------------


    Outside the castle grounds, Robin looked around with interest. If it wasn''t for the lack of neon signs and tourist crowds, she''d have thought it was just a large European town.


    The more affluent businesses had carved marble decorations on their buildings. But, there were also small side shops and restaurants of several different varieties. Old Mac let her off in the shopping district, which was right near the Adventurers Guild headquarters.


    She wanted to take a look at the Adventurers Guild headquarters. However, she decided to save that for last, after she finished shopping. After all, who knew if she would be discovered once her guild card was taken out.


    "First things first!" She told herself as she walked over to an impressive-looking mercenary guild. The gold coin that she currently possessed, courtesy of Prince Christian, needed to be changed to silvers. After all, not all stores and merchants could give her change for a gold coin.


    Thus, the one gold coin became fifty silvers, and Robin continued merrily on her way.


    The first thing she bought was food. Preserved meats, fruits, bread, etc. Those that would last a long time without going bad had priority. Then she bought dry ingredients, seasonings, herbs, barrels of water, and several different varieties of cooking oil.


    But, all of this only took up 15 silver. So, she decided to look for camping and hunting gear. A sturdy cloak, An enchanted unbreakable rope with an attached hook, a lockpick set, a first aid kit, as well as several alchemical solutions and knick knacks later: Robin found herself with just five silver left.


    Passing by the largest blacksmith shop in town, she decided to take a look.


    She had assumed that the blacksmiths would have swords and shields and sturdy armor. But this shop had much more than that. Horseshoes, nails, barrel rails, pots and pans, candlesticks, silverware, chains ranging from very large to extra small, hunting knives, compasses, belt buckles, etc: anything that was made of metal could be found there.


    Robin chuckled at the thought of how this store had so much metal that if a superconducting magnet were waved over the building, It''d probably float.


    There was even a corner for metal statues and jewelry, although of the cheaper sort than could be found at the jewellers.


    "Hello, how can I help you, young''in?" A voice asked from off to her right. Robin turned to see a rather large, bulky man wearing a leather apron.


    "I''m just looking for now, thanks." Robin replied. "I''m going on a trip to Port Oracle, and was wondering if I needed to buy anything here before I left."


    "Port Oracle, huh?" The man nodded. "That''s a fair ways off by horse or carriage. Let me show you a few things and see if you don''t already have them."


    "Okay, sounds good." Robin nodded.


    After looking through the things he brought to the counter, Robin settled on a small steel hunting knife and a cloak pin, which brought her down to four silver.


    "Actually, since you''re headed down to Port Oracle, I have a small order that I need to get sent out to the local blacksmith, there. Would you mind delivering it for me?" The blacksmith asked. "If you receive the request I put up at the Adventurers Guild, you can even get paid extra for it."


    "I don''t mind, but why hasn''t anyone taken up the quest so far?" Robin asked.


    "There aren''t that many people headed that way at this time of year." The blacksmith answered. "The nobles have all just returned from the winter vacationing there, so it somewhat of an off season for tourists."


    "I see." Robin nodded. "Now, do I have to go to the Adventurers Guild to pick up the order, or do I have to accept the request first, then come back here?"


    "Wait here, I''ll get it." The blacksmith went to the backroom behind the counter.


    "Here it is." He brought it out. Although the bundle wasn''t more than two fists large, it weighed more than twenty pounds. Robin felt relieved when the weight disappeared after she placed it in her magic bag.


    "I''m off to the guild, then! Oh, that''s right. What''s your name?" She asked.


    "Fievel." The blacksmith replied.


    "Nice to meet you, Fievel! See you later!" Robin waved. Her shopping mostly finished, she casually accumulated a large bunch of street foods and sweets to try later. She was down to three silvers by the time she reached the Adventurers Guild Headquarters.


    Inside, she walked over to the request board and looked a bit before discovering Blacksmith Fievel''s delivery request. At five silvers, it was quite generous for a simple delivery.


    "I''ll take this request, please." She said to a receptionist at the nearby counter.


    "Then, please show me your guild card." The receptionist said.


    Robin nodded and handed over her guild card.

 37 She Re-encounters the Elf Receptionis

    The receptionist read the guild card, but neglected to see the gold star in the corner.


    "''Robin'', is it?" She asked. "You do realize that this is the Hero''s name, right?"


    Robin realized that the receptionist had mistook her for someone who wasn''t the Hero.


    ''Chance!''


    She latched onto this mistake and shook her head with a morose face and sighed.


    "It can''t be helped. Who asked the Hero to have the same name as I do? We even seemed to register at the same time, I heard. Such a blasted coincidence...To be honest, I''m still not sure whether to laugh or cry right now."


    At that point, the Adventurers in the guild that had overheard this began to chuckle. This young lad had to be one of the most unfortunate young man in the guild. It was from that day that Robin gained the nickname ''The Twin'', as opposed to Robin''s other title, ''The Hero''.


    "Well, can''t be helped...please wait here while I process this for you." The receptionist said as she took both the request and the card to a flat glass surface with an indent for the guild card.


    Looking around, Robin noticed that there were a lot more adventurers in the headquarters than there were in The branch at Kinsward Town.


    ''Hmm?'' She noticed that the elf receptionist from Kinsward Town was here, waiting in a different line.


    "Hey, It''s you!" Robin called out to her.


    When the elf receptionist turned around, she was also surprised.


    "He-" Robin quickly silenced her with a shake of her head. ''Don''t say anything about me being the Hero'' her eyes communicated. The elf receptionist realized her mistake and winked to show her cooperation.


    "Why, Robin, I didn''t expect to see you here!" She exclaimed in pleasant surprise.


    "Me neither." Robin chuckled. "Weren''t you at Kinsward a few days ago?"


    "I was. But the new receptionist arrived yesterday." She replied. "I was doing a request to stand in as the receptionist there until they trained up a replacement."


    "Really?" Robin asked. "What happened to the original receptionist?"


    The elf rolled her eyes. "She eloped and got married."


    "...what?" Robin asked.


    "A traveling adventurer visited the town while passing through a few months ago and saved her from a wild dog on her way home from work." The elf explained.


    "It was love at first sight for the both of them. But her father didn''t approve, because the adventurer had no house or land. So they eloped and got married."


    "I...see." Robin realized that parents played a huge role in the marriage factor in this world. It was quite the contrast to the modern freedom-loving world she came from.


    "Excuse me, your card has been updated." The receptionist at the desk called over to Robin.


    "Ah, thanks!" Robin received her guild card back. Then turned back to the elf.


    "You said you were there due to a request? Does that mean you''re not actually a receptionist?" She asked, confused.


    "Huhu~Wouldn''t you like to know?" The elf twirled her guild card. Robin couldn''t read anything on it, but she did catch the a flash of light reflecting off a gold star in one of the corners.


    ''Gold star...an S-rank?'' She realized.


    "I see. Well then, see you later, miss S-rank adventurer elf~!" Robin teased back as she laughed and jogged towards the entrance.


    "Hey you-, my name isn''t ''elf! It''s Yvonne!" The elf exclaimed at Robin''sretreating back. She would have chased after Robin, but the she''d lose her place in line.


    Robin waved her hand to show she had heard Yvonne. The rest of the adventurers in the Guild felt jealous. It wasn''t every day that one could get on a first name basis with Yvonne the elf.


    Now that Robin was nominally finished for the day, she decided to head back to the castle.


    But, what she didn''t expect was the crowds of people staring at the castle gates, waiting for Robin to come out. There were even a few stalkers hiding in trees and nearby hedges. With her position being behind them all, she could easily see them. But if she had walked out the front gate, she''d have walked right into an ambush of fans.


    ''This...isn''t going to work."


    ''And I don''t have my mask with me!'' She realized, and grabbed a piece of paper and a pen, writing a few words down. She folded the note a few times and sealed it with a dab of glue.* Then she went around to the servants entrance, which was also heavily guarded against tresspassers.


    "Halt! Who goes there?" One of the guards barked, since there had been many seeking a way inside that day.


    " I have a message for Retired general Keith." Robin said, taking out the pristine white paper. "I''ve also been tasked to wait here until I receive a reply." Robin said.


    While they were skeptical, the paper Robin used to write upon was the whitest paper they''d ever seen. The whitest papers were usually used for official documents. Therefore, it seemed this message was considered somewhat important. The guards allowed her to wait outside the gate while one of the guards took the message to Keith.


    He opened it and read it, then asked. "Is the messenger still waiting outside?"


    "Yes, he is." The guard replied.


    "Well, go ahead and let him in." Keith replied. "Also, remember his face from now on. He''s one of my men, so he''ll be coming and going in this castle quite often."


    "Yes, sir!" The guard saluted and returned to the back gate.


    "You may enter. Sir Keith will be by the Hero''s quarters." The guard announced, and they allowed her in. When those who were loitering about the entrancesaw that she was let inside, they swarmed about the gates, trying to see if they could also slip inside. But, sadly, they were stopped at the gates.


    Robin found Keith in a parlor room near the hallway were her rooms were. He showed her the note she wrote.


    ''Help! I left my mask behind in my room. I am the messenger at the gates. Please instruct the guards to let me in. -Robin''


    "You''re lucky I decided this was you." Keith frowned. "Otherwise you''d have been in quite the pickle."


    "How''d you guess?" Robin asked.


    "Not many would notice, but this is the same white shade of paper that can be found on your mask, -you know, that white bit around the eyes. Official papers, although almost as white as cotton, can never get as white as snow."


    "...You have a good eye." Robin nodded.


    "You know, none of this would have happened if you had just decided not to wear a mask." Keith pointed out.


    "And then you would have had to worry about dopplegangers." Robin pointed out, in return.


    "Ah, that reminds me! Keith, do you know of a room in the castle that doesn''t have any windows or hiding places for people to place magic eyes?" She then asked.


    "...the ballroom?" Keith suggested, then remembered something. "Ah, but you can''t use it tonight! There will be a welcoming ball for you tomorrow, organized by the queen. They''re busy waxing the floors right now."


    "And you were going to tell me about this, when!?" Robin asked, feeling a bit upset at being left out of the loop.


    "You would have been informed tonight at dinner." Keith shrugged.


    "But what about clothes!?" Robin grimaced. "I don''t have anything prepared!"


    "Not to worry. You''ll have the appropriate dress clothes sent to your rooms tomorrow." Keith assured her.


    "The Queen is not so cruel as to neglect the Hero''s needs. I heard she said to consider yourself as one of the royal family during afternoon tea, too. Shall I start calling you ''Your Royal Highness''?"


    "Pssh!" Robin guffawed. "Don''t even think about it! I''ll already be ''Hero Robin''d to death at the ball, already. Being called that will caused way too much peripheral damage."


    "...Such as?"


    "Smacking you backside the head in view of everyone." Robin replied seriously.


    "I see...then I shall refrain from using that form of address for my own sake." He laughed.


    "okay, aside from the ballroom, then, are there any other rooms?" Robin asked.


    "Well, if you''re not averse to being heard, there is one room¡­" Keith replied.


    *Please note that the glue mentioned here is the water soluble glue she used for her first mask-not the waterproof glue that she made that morning.

 38 Shes on the Run Again

    While Robin was still speaking with Keith, Christian woke up with a splitting headache, courtesy of the wine he had downed earlier that day. The stench of alcohol no longer felt quite as pleasant now, with his stomach in its current condition.


    He sat up, despite the painful throbbing, and poured himself a glass of water, trying to stabilize his roiling stomach, ending up splashing half of it on the floor.


    But after drinking the water his head just throbbed more painfully. He moaned. And tried to stand up. He needed to find some sort of painkillers, soon, or he''d go crazy.


    He staggered down the hall, forgetting the guards, or even the maids as he made his way to the Court Magician. After all, eating medicine sometimes had unexpected repercussions when combined with the alcohol that was consumed. It was far better to simply ask for a pain reduction spell or an antidote potion to help deal with the headache.


    Of course, Christian really should have just stayed in bed. What happened after this, was his own fault.


    ------------------------------


    Jasmine and Albus, the Court magician had already finished up with studying Robin''s aptitudes, and were now discussing other magical topics.


    "Ah, that''s right, I have a sample of it here." Jasmine said, taking a small glass bottle out and put it on the table.


    "Even after trying to counteract the effects, I still ended up failing without using the waters of the holy spring. The only thing that I managed to do was to switch the intended target''s gender around." Jasmine frowned.


    "Perhaps I''ve taken the wrong approach? What do you think, old man?"


    "I think you''d better not uncork that in here, is what I think." Albus chuckled.


    "Of course not! I''m no dimwit!" Jasmine sniffed. "But, you shouldn''t worry too much. The spell only activates within five feet of the consumer. So some idiot''d have to drink it before it would have any effects on anyone else. I was just wondering if you could let me see the notes of Legendary Doctor Balak. I know you have them hidden away up here."


    Albus sighed. "Very well. Come with me, they''re in the archive room."


    He brought Jasmine into a side room to look through the collection of records that he had accumulated there.


    The substance in question was left behind on the center of the desk.


    ---------------------------------------


    "Okay, thank you. You saved me a lot of time!" Robin said to Keith as she returned to her room. This time, she placed her mask inside her bag. She was never going anywhere without it again. Stalkers were too scary.


    "Oh, that''s right! Jasmine said that she would have my aptitudes mapped out by now. I wonder if she''s done?" Robin then began heading towards the magician''s tower.


    As for Keith, he headed to the kitchen to see if Ponshieu could make the hangover remedy that Robin had passed to him just now. He also wanted to check on Christian to see if he was okay. As someone who had a high alcohol tolerance, Keith would not be bothered by the amount of half a barrel. But Christian was a different story.


    ''He''d probably be waking up around this time.'' Keith surmised.


    -------------------------------------


    Just when the two magicians were in the midst of their search within the archives, with parchment records stacked all around them, Christian arrived.


    "Albus!" He called out. "Are you here?"


    Albus glanced over at Jasmine. Her eyebrows were furrowed into a frown as she was fully concentrated upon reading the record in her hands. She couldn''t be bothered.


    "I''m quite busy at the moment, but what is it that you desire?" Albus called out from the archive room.


    "I have a splitting headache from all that wine I drank earlier. Can you do something about it?" Christian asked.


    "If I can extricate myself, then surely-" The sound of fluttering pages sounded from the archives. "Ah! The records of Jankey Moll fell! No, no! They''ll get mixed with Daruth Ynfael''s Chronicles!"


    Albus felt flustered as he went to separate the scattered pages. He called out to the prince.


    "This will take me too long. Can''t you just use one of my ready made spell potions? I think there''s an antidote potion on my desk somewhere."


    What Albus had forgotten was that he had cleared the table of potions in order to make room for reference documents of heroes in times past, in order to compare them with Robin''s results. Therefore, the only bottle that was on the table was Jasmine''s mystery potion.


    Christian picked it up, and looked at it. It was surprisingly a bright purply-pink color.


    "Albus, are you sure this is an antidote potion?" He asked.


    "That should be the last one from the batch I made last week, yes." Albus replied, as he continued separating the two documents.


    "Okay then." Christian unstopped the cork and downed the whole bottle.


    It was at that moment that Robin came in. "Hey, Christian! I didn''t think you were up yet. Have you seen Jasmine or the other magician anywhere?"


    The first thing Christian realized was that it wasn''t an antidote potion. The second thing he realized was that this was not good. The third thing he realized was that his headache was not only not going down, it was getting worse. He grabbed his head, almost falling to the floor as he yelled in pain, .


    Robin was surprised, but she quickly noticed that something was wrong. She jumped forward to prevent him from banging his head on the desk, then guided him to a nearby couch to sit down.


    Hearing the Prince''s anguished cry, it was at that moment that Albus realized something was not right. He jumped up from his sorting and hurried to the door, along with Magi Jasmine. Stacks of papers fell over left and right in their rush to the door. Upon arriving, he was about to enter, when he tripped and fell over. This invariably saved him from being trapped in the pink cloud that spread out from Prince Christian at that moment.


    Jasmine, who arrived behind him, stepped over Albus and observed the scene. With the pink cloud around the couch and the emptied bottle at the desk, it wasn''t long before she realized what had happened.


    She rushed to the desk and grabbed the empty bottle, aimed it at the cloud, and barked, "Spell Vaccuum!"


    The pink cloud was sucked inside of the bottle, which she then corked properly.


    At this point, Christian stopped moaning from the pain, and sat up.


    "Hold on, there...the headaches going away?" He finally said.


    It was true. His headache was gone. The alcohol had been expelled from his body within that cloud of pink mist that had forced its way out through the Prince''s pores.


    At that moment, Keith ran into the room. "What! Has Jasmine decided to kill the Prince!? I could hear his shriek all the way at the bottom of the tower."


    "I don''t know, but he''s feeling better now." Robin explained.


    "Did you drink the contents of this vial?" Jasmine asked Christian.


    "Yes. Albus told me there was an antidote potion on the desk, this was the only thing there, so I drank it." His eyes then widened.


    "That, it wasn''t poison, was it!?" In his fright, he spoke normally to Jasmine.


    Jasmine shook her head. "No. It isn''t poison per se¡­.but some might say that it is worse than poison."


    "Huh? What do you mean?" Robin asked.


    "This happens to be a tasteless, odorless substance that has been enchanted with a certain property...that causes one to chase after an individual of the opposite gender...its name is ''lovesick''. It began appearing in the city recently, and, seeing that it was enchanted, I was tasked with finding a way to counteract it." Jasmine explained.


    "Have there been many victims?" Robin asked.


    "Several. This was a gender-specific substance. That potion is a failed attempt at removing the effects. The only thing that was changed was the targeted gender. Now, instead of affecting women, it supposedly affects men.


    As the closest woman to you two, you should be feeling an inordinate amount of affection towards me. Well? Robin? Christian? Are you feeling anything towards me?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin shook her head. "No."


    ''Is she confirming that it truly doesn''t affect women?'' She wondered to herself, then turned to look at Christian.


    Christian raised an eyebrow at Jasmine. "Is this some kind of a joke? Because I''m not feeling anythi-" His eyes stopped upon Robin, mesmerized. Badump!


    Why hadn''t he noticed that Robin''s eyelashes were this long?


    "You were saying?" Jasmine asked, breaking him out of his earlier thought.


    "Hmmm¡­" Prince Christian thought about it, then stood up and knelt on one knee down by Robin.


    "I suddenly feel that parting from you would be the worst thing possible. Would you please stay at my side at all times?" Prince Christian asked Robin, taking her hand, and clapping it between his two larger ones.


    Everyone in the room fell over. He had fallen for Hero Robin!? A male!??! Over his own cousin, even! Jasmine was unsure whether to be relieved or insulted.


    Then a terrifying thought occurred to her. What if...the potion now only promoted affection between members of the same gender? Those failures back at her house could never see the light of day.


    The hairs on Robin''s neck stood up as an unpleasant chill trickled up and down her back. While Christian was a fool, she preferred his prior state over his current one.


    Shuddering, she quickly extracted her hand from his, and backflipped behind the couch.


    "Jasmine, what''s going on?" She asked, scared.


    "Now that he''s been struck by the spell, he will only chase you." Jasmine explained. Robin was circling around the couch, making certain to keep it in between her and him.


    "How do we make it stop!" Robin asked, slightly panicky.


    For that, I need the waters of the holy spring." Jasmine replied. "It''s back at my place. I''ll have to go and get it."


    "And how long will that take!?" Robin cried, as she concentrated solely upon keeping the couch in between her and Christian.


    "Approximately an hour." Jasmine said. Christian finally broke the barrier between them by vaulting over the couch. He stood in between Robin and the door.


    "Now you can''t escape me." He chuckled playfully. But Robin simply backed up. Then she turned and jumped, smashing through the stained glass window.


    "This is the thirteenth floor!" Jasmine cried.


    "That was the only remaining original stained glass from the beginning of this country!" Albus cried.


    Everyone ignored Albus as they ran towards the window only to find Robin gaining a head start as she ran across the castle rooftop towards the gates.


    "Hey, wait for me! Robin!" Christian also threw himself out the window, ignoring several cuts gained from the broken glass he landed on. He took off running after Robin.


    "It''s worse than I thought." Jasmine sighed. "Keith, follow them and make sure Christian doesn''t do anything life-threatening."


    Keith nodded, and also jumped out of the window, chasing after them. But it was not to stop Christian. Instead, he took out a recording magic eye.


    He was going to catch every moment of this to show Christian, later, after this was all over. Keith chuckled. How big of a mess would he get into this time?

 39 She Hides in Plain Sigh

    Jasmine hurried to the audience hall to explain what happened earlier to King Zephron and Queen Emeline. After briefly filling them in, Jasmine left the castle, the carriage proceeding at the fastest pace possible.


    Thus, the order soon went out to the castle guards that the Prince was to be detained at all costs, but the order arrived all too late, for the two people had already left the castle.


    Robin, of course, was quite proficient in parkour. She had learned it once when she was asked to join as part of a real life Assassins Cre*d movie created by several rich expert YouTube vloggers.


    So, getting off the castle roof had been merely a matter of jumping and rebounding off the wall onto a nearby flagpole, riding down the long banner to the ground, and rolling to decrease the residual force of the impact.


    She looked up to check the rooftop behind her and blinked in surprise. Prince Christian had just arrived at the edge, staring down at Robin. Not to be deterred by a mere one hundred feet of height, he was determined to follow Robin everywhere.


    "Don''t you dare try it!" She yelled in warning. But, even before she finished, he had leapt.


    Robin kicked the stopper off a wagonload of hay nearby, and it rolled under the Prince at just the right moment to ensure that he didn''t break both his blasted legs, or die. She didn''t want to kill the man, after all.


    But, then again, she wasn''t going to stick around for him to capture her either. She took off in the opposite direction that the hay cart was rolling in.


    Christian struggled against the spongy hay, trying to roll out of the cart. There was no need to struggle, though. He fell out when the carriage smacked into the tower it had been aiming towards. Of course, the tumble didn''t do much to deter Christian from pursuing Robin.


    "He saved my life, so, obviously he cares a lot about me." was Christian''s love-warped thoughts. "He was just probably far too shy to say anything. How overwhelmingly adorable!"


    So, now with cuts on his hands and a bump on his head, Christian continued to doggedly pursue Robin.


    If she stayed within the castle, Christian might use the guards to deter her. Therefore, she placed her mask on her head, and ran to the stables, quickly mounting an already saddled horse.


    "Apologies! I need to borrow this!" She yelled to the nearby stable-boy, as she rode it at a canter towards the side gates.


    "Open the gates! I need to leave immediately!" She told the guards. Since she was the Hero, the guards saw no reason not to comply. She also instructed the guard. "Under no circumstances are you to allow the Prince to follow me. Do you hear? Don''t let him through for any reason whatsoever! And Don''t let him know that I left!"


    Then she yelled, urging her horse to head away from the castle at a quick canter.


    Obviously, her fears were well founded, for only minutes after she rode off, Christian appeared at the gates, riding on his personal white stallion.


    "Did Hero Robin come this way?!" Christian asked, predictably. The guards looked at each other and one of them asked.


    "Sir? Why would the Hero come out the servants entrance? Wouldn''t he be headed for the front gate if he were to go out?"


    It was a smart move, to be sure. While the guard didn''t say yes or no, asking such a question implied that it made no sense for the Hero to head to that gate. Moreover, it redirected the Prince''s attention away from them, towards the front of the castle.


    "That''s a really good question." Christian nodded. "I''ll go ask the men at the front, then." He turned the stallion around and cantered off. The guards at the gates all drew a collective sigh of relief.


    But none of them realized that the guards at the front gates had not yet gotten the message not to let him out.


    Christian didn''t even ask about the hero to the guards at the front gates. He just ordered them to open them, and let him out. In his love-stricken madness, he had already guessed that Robin had gone out the back way.


    Therefore, when he was outside the castle walls, he first paused before the pristine scenery.


    "Let the news go out. Hero Robin has gone forth from the castle. He wears a brown feathered mask, and rides on a brown mare. Whoever finds him first shall be rewarded handsomely."


    At this, the ears of all of Hero Robin''s hidden stalkers were tickled pink. And at that moment, about a hundred people emerged from their hiding places about the front gates, and ran off to spread the news.


    Christian chuckled. "This time, you won''t be able to escape me so easily, Robin~"


    ---------------------


    A cold shiver ran down Robin''s spine.


    "Ugh! It feels like something unpleasant is going to happen." Robin shuddered as she gave the horse to a guard at the front gates.After all, she only had to hide out in the capital for an hour or so. It should be relatively easy.


    Moreover, if she went too far out, it might take longer for them to return to the castle in time for Jasmine to dispell Christian''s ''lovesick'' affliction.


    Thus, she could only bide her time in the capital. The horse would rest at the city gates until it was time to return.


    "Ah, that''s right. Can I borrow an empty room and a mirror? I have been tasked to observe a certain area covertly, so I need to disguise myself." Robin asked.


    "By all means, please use the guard house." The guard nodded.


    Robin raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Without a magic eye?" She asked.


    "Er...the second room to the right should meet your requirements." The guard guiltily looked away. After all, who wouldn''t want to know what the Hero looked like under that mask?


    "I see. I''ll take your word for it." She entered the room.


    After about fifteen minutes, the guard knocked on the door.


    "Hero Robin? Are you done?"


    The door was unlocked, and he opened it a crack to peek into the room. Then he threw the door open fully, as he stared at the curtains fluttering in the breeze from the opened window. Hero Robin had vanished.


    --------------------


    Robin had not done much to disguise herself. All she did was to change her tunic to one that was a blue shade of grey, take her mask off,and comb her hair into a style that mostly covered her face. She also placed the Hero''s sword in her magic bag. That thing was a dead giveaway. Then she left the guards house from the window to prevent her identity leaking.


    Now she strolled leisurely through the streets, as if she were a young nobleman, window shopping. After all, she had only been here for five days. And no one in the city knew her real face. So, she truly was safe at the moment. She also kept to the smaller roads, where it was difficult to ride a horse through.


    While she was ''window shopping'' at a small roadside stall selling jewelry, a large group of men rushed by.


    "Hmm? Hey, what''s going on?" She grabbed one of the trailing men, and asked.


    "It''s the Hero! The Hero''s out hiding around somewhere in the city. Prince Christian is offering a reward for anyone who can find ''em. We are looking for a person wearing a brown feathered mask, and riding a brown mare."


    "Gadzooks, is that true!?" Robin exclaimed with an incredulous expression.


    "If it wasn''t, would money be involved? I''m not sure how much, but I was assured the fee would be quite handsome." The man said.


    "Is that so¡­" Robin said with a frown.


    ''You are very clever, Christian. But it looks like you are not clever enough. It looks like I shall have to teach you a lesson.'' Robin decided with a grin.


    "Then, I have splendid news for you!" She clapped the man on the back.


    "A person bearing that very description rode by on the way to the front gates. Almost ran me over, he did! If you hurry, you might catch him!" Robin said in a friendly manner.


    "What!? Is that true!?"


    "Why, sure it''s true! Anyone on this route can testify it on account of the reckless speed they were riding through. I''m scared stiff of the main roads now, which is why I''m over here."


    "I''ve got to go, then! Thank you!" the runner hurried off.


    "No problem! I hope you find him!" Robin called as she waved at him, then returned to perusing the stall.


    "Now, how much is this one?" She pointed to a pair of glass earrings.


    "That one? It''s two coppers."


    "...do you have any change for a silver?" She sighed.

 40 She Meets Dirk for the First Time

    Robin had to give up on the earrings because the stall-keeper didn''t have enough change. So, she decided to go have something to eat, instead. Along the way, a two story restaurant looked good. It had a nice view of the city and the streets as well. Of course, Robin didn''t go there for the view. Instead, she was happy to sit in a table in the corner, with her back to the tables on the second store veranda.


    But, just when she was about halfway finished with her food, another group came upstairs for dinner.While other groups had come and gone, this one was different in that Prince Christian was among them. Robin caught a glimpse of him through her hair fringe, but she didn''t show any reactions. After all, her hair style was different, her clothes were different, even the way she carried herself was different. There was no way that Prince Christian could identify her.


    As she surmised, Prince Christian did not recognize her at first. Instead, he took a seat out on the veranda, staring down at the passing crowds.


    "You say that the guards affirmed that Robin didn''t leave through the city gates?" He asked one of the other men accompanying him.


    "Not only did the Hero not leave through the gates, the guard said that he left his horse behind as well." The man affirmed.


    "It''s a clue. The Hero didn''t leave the capital, so he must be hiding somewhere." Another man said.


    "But, how are we to find him, then!? The Capital is huge! We don''t even know where to start looking!" Another one sighed.


    "Not quite." Christian chuckled and grinned. "We know the Hero left the mare behind, so that means that we should concentrate upon the quarter of the city that is closest to the city gates. Since a person on foot can''t go as far as a horse, he should be somewhere in the vicinity."


    Robin was listening in on the conversation while calmly finishing her dinner, and sat back with a small sigh. ''Smart, Christian. Really smart. But, not smart enough.'' She surmised, as she waved a waiter over to pay her bill. Now two large copper coins less, Robin headed for the stairs, completing her exit.


    But, when the Prince looked down on the people in the street he noticed Robin''s figure walking leisurely away from the restaurant towards the castle. His eyebrow twitched. The figure obviously looked nothing like Robin. After all, the clothing was different, and the hairstyle was also different...but somehow, Christian couldn''t take his mind off of him.


    He tapped his finger on the table, bothered. Then he decided. If it was going to bug him so much, then he was going to take a look at that young man''s face. He stood up, and started walking towards the stairway.


    "Prince!? But the food hasn''t arrived yet?" One of them exclaimed.


    "No worries. I just saw someone else that I recognized." The Prince assured them, as he tossed a whole silver in their direction. "You go ahead and eat without me. I won''t be gone long." Then he disappeared down the stairway.


    As soon as Robin had pulled a fair distance away, she ducked into a side street and observed the restaraunt. Sure enough, not a minute later, Prince Christian emerged, running off in the direction she had been heading, earlier, as he searched the faces in the crowds.


    But, as soon as Robin glimpsed him, she had already pulled further back into the side street, and around a corner so that he couldn''t see her from the entranceway. Christian ran right past the side street, but Robin wasn''t going to take any chances. She continued ducking down alleyways, and around wooden crates. determined to get as far away as possible before Christian doubled back to that alleyway.


    If he was sharp enough to catch her in a disguise, there''s no way he wouldn''t remember to have someone search the branching alleyways.


    As an added measure, Robin even used parkour to climb over an alleyway wall, at a dead end, thus seemingly disappearing in thin air. She landed on the other side, in a heap of rags.


    "Oy! Tha''s my bed there! Ye can''t jus land in et as ye''d like!" A young lad contested hotly.


    "Ah, my apologies." Robin said, getting up out of the rag pile, and looking around. It looked like orphan lane. There were nests of rags here and there down the way, and young children could be found resting in most of them.


    "Thas okey. Ye probly diden knows it was my bed." The lad nodded, reassuringly. "Yer being chased, aren''t you?"


    "Er...yes." Robin replied, still surprised by the amount of children in this back alley. "But, why are all of you living in an alleyway?"


    "We''re a motley group, we are." The lad puffed up his chest. "Many of us as those as ''aven''t got enny family. Others ''ave family that''s in illegal business or ran away without em. There are some that are the thrown away children of nobles with their lovers. And Billy over there, billy just lost his house and parents to the debt collectors."


    "But, I don''t understand. Isn''t there anybody that takes care of you?" Robin asked. "Aren''t there orphanages?"


    The young lad snorted. " Orphanages? Man, we may have no family, but that don''t mean we ''aven''t enny pride. We don''t need people to look at us with pity as if we''re some sort of sub-human. We don''t need the charety of hippo-crets that spend coins on us like we''re some sort of charety fund, instead of ''uman beans, same as ''em.


    We ken walk and talk same as ''em. We can work hard, same as ''em. We even ''ave a great deal ''o business jus'' gathering gossip an'' informations through the grapevines. There aren''t many as ave our resourcefullness."


    "I see..." Robin noted. "But, what about when one of you gets sick? Are you sure you can survive on your own?"


    "Sure! Raven over there is a descendant of a healer clan, and can heal most sicknesses already. He''s a right genius, he is. It''s too bad that his noble father refuses to acknowlege him. An'' Ellie over here knows cleaning magic, so the alley we live in isn''t dirty at all."


    Robin looked about. Sure enough, although the rags were worn, they were quite clean. And the cobblestoned ground didn''t have any dirt or debris that one would expect in an alleyway. Robin took a long hard look as her eyes were opened.


    Robin saw that she wasn''t going to get anywhere antime soon with these kids. But, she did make a mental map, marking where these kids lived. She would definitely try to find a way to help these little ones without poking their pride. There were children even as young as two years old here, in the alley. While others were fine with leaving the little ones to their own devices, Robin''s sense of ethics wouldn''t allow her to just leave it be.


    "So, like I said earliyer, yer being chased, right? I know somewhere''s as no one can find you for a long time. It''s a place that no one would ever suspect!" The young lad advertised.


    "Ho? What''s your name, lad?" Robin asked.


    "Well, I''ve long forgotten my given name, but most as around here calls me Dirk." Dirk said, as he scratched his head. "Wot''s your name, mister?"


    Robin thought about it. "Maybe I shouldn''t tell you." She replied.


    "Why not!? I told ye mine fair''n square!" Dirk objected.


    "But what if you''re tempted by the rewards and decide to turn me in?" Robin asked helplessly. Actually, if it were these kids, she wouldn''t mind being temporarily captured, just to help them earn an income.


    "Wot! I told you we''s got our own pride! Aint nobody here''d sell anyone out fer money. Unless ye did something horrible? Did you kill a bunch of people?" Dirk asked, backing away a bit.


    Robin laughed. "Nothing of the sort. I''m just being chased at the moment by a very troublesome person that has alot of authority at the moment."


    "Did you do ennything wrong?"


    "No, but he insists upon making himself a nuisance, so I can only run away...all right, I''ll tell you, Dirk. But, you have to keep my name a secret, okay?" Robin chuckled.


    Dirk nodded seriously. "Cross my heart. If I lie, may lightning strike me til I die."


    "You don''t need to go that far, just don''t tell anyone else, okay?" Robin rolled her eyes. "My name is Robin, okay? And I just need to hide out for an hour or so, right now."


    "Robin, like the Hero, huh? All right, follow me." Dirk said. "It''s the last place anyone thinks to look for someone, for some reason. It should be perfect if''n ye just want ta hide out fer an ''our."

 41 She Goes on a Rampage

    But, unfortunately, Dirk''s hiding place was not going to hide Robin for ten minutes, much less an hour. When Dirk brought Robin through the secret door of the dilapidated house, they were confronted with an entire roomful of over forty black masked men.


    "Cripes! It''s the Assassins League!" Dirk jumped almost three feet high, as if he were trying to escape his skin. Of course, this shout brought the attention of the entire room onto Robin and Dirk. Robin, thinking fast on her feet, grabbed Dirk by the back of his shirt and tugged him out of the entranceway, just in time before a throwing knife flashed through the space where his head had been.


    Robin tossed Dirk under a nearby wagon, shielding him from the eyes of others, then brought out the Hero''s Sword.


    She hadn''t even had time to unsheath it before the quickest of the assassins was upon her. She blocked his stab with the sheathed sword, then swiftly kicked him in between the legs. Predictably, the assassin was down, dropping his blade as he curled around the agonized area. When the other assassins saw this, they felt much pity towards the man, and paused, giving Robin another oportunity to attack.


    Robin kicked the weapon, launching it into the air. Then, with another kick, she launched it towards the assassins. It hit one of them in the shoulder, causing him to cry out in anguish. Robin finally unsheathed her blade, sword shining in the light of the sun that was low upon the horizon.


    Dirk almost couldn''t believe his eyes. Robin used both the sword and the sheath to wade into the assassins, incapacitation them with blows that wouldn''t kill them, but would definitely put them out of commission. Concussions, broken bones, and missing teeth were the least of their problems.


    They couldn''t launch throwing knives or needles at her, or else she would use her sword to ricochet them into their fellow assassin members. But, these knives were often coated in poison, so the injured had to retreat in order to give themselves the antidote to the poison before it was too late.


    If they had complained to Robin about it after the fight, she would simply have told them that they reaped what they sowed. Who asked them to coat their knives in poison? Robin was simply fighting in self defense. But, Robin wasn''t afraid of fighting dirty. In fact, this was the first time that the Assassins League had met someone who was probably even more shameless than them at fighting.


    Eye gouges, headbutts, knee-strikes. Any kind of disruptive action that she could take, she did. As such, the area within reach of her sword was her absolute area. No one could intrude in that area for long before they were swiftly dispatched.


    As such, within ten minutes, Robin had incapacitated all forty plus members of the men dressed in black. Of course, the noise brought about by the fight had soon alerted the local guards, and the nearby Prince Christian, to come take a look. When Christian arrived, though, Robin had already fled the scene, Dirk in tow. All that was left was a group of over forty men passed out upon the ground after suffering from a non-lethal, traumatizing event. The guards immediately recognized them by their clothes and arrested them.


    But, Christian was curious about this person who could allegedly incapacitate over forty men of the assassins league. After requesting a recording of what happened in this area from the local magic eye, he was surprised to find a familiar figure appearing in the crystal ball.


    "It''s him!" Christian exclaimed. Even if Robin were disguised as an old goat, she couldn''t disguise the fluid sword style she used. The only difference between the way she handled things here, is that she used a non-lethal approach. Christian didn''t watch anymore after the fight was over. Instead, he took off in the direction in which Robin had run off in.


    In an alleyway far from the scene of carnage, Robin had stopped to regain her stamina. Dirk was besides himself in unbelief, as he stared at Robin.


    "What?" She finally asked, wiping the sweat off her forehead.


    "You''re the Hero!?" Dirk got straight to the point.


    "...Yeah. Don''t tell anyone, though." Robin said, as she cautiously glanced out of the alleyway for any pursuers.


    "I was saved by the Hero!?" Dirk couldn''t seem to believe it, himself. "You''re really the Hero?" He asked again.


    Robin laughed despite her winded state. His dumfound expression was really refreshing. "Yes. I''m the Hero." She replied. "And I''m being chased by Prince Christian, who is currently under a very difficult-to-dispel enchanted potion right now. I''m supposed to keep him busy until Magi Jasmine can come back with the antidote. So, Dirk of the Gossip Chain, are you willing to lend me a hand? Failure may include having Prince Christian''s good name tarnished, or even worse: mine, if I am captured within an hour....make that about forty minutes." Robin realized that by this time, twenty minutes had already gone by.


    Dirk finally managed to get his thoughts back together. "What do you mean, tarnishing your name?" Dirk asked.


    "I can''t guarantee that I won''t smack him hard enough to lanch him all the way back to the castle, if he''s too clingy." Robin grinned wryly.


    "That wouldn''t be good. Queen Emeline is one of my loyal customers!" Dirk exclaimed. "All right, I''m willing to help you. What do I have to do?"


    Robin smiled mischievously.


    ----------------------------------


    Jasmine had reached her house by now, and had swiftly headed towards her work station, where several tens of vials stood.


    "Oh, which one is it!?" She growled in frustration as she checked the labels in the bottom of the vials. After looking through about fifteen of them, she found the one she was looking for, and quickly returned to the carriage.


    "As quick as you can! Back to the castle!" Jasmine ordered the coachman.


    ----------------------------------


    Christian was still searching for Robin when he came across a small group of children. Just as he was about to hurry past, he heard one of the children ask.


    "Are you sure that you saw the Hero around here?"


    "I''m certain! He was wearing a brown feather mask kind of like the one that Hero Robin was wearing in the procession two days ago." The questioned child asserted.


    "It was only kind of like that mask? Sure, and what if it was just someone else with a mask?" The first child jeered.


    "But, would anyone other than the Hero have the Hero''s Sword in his hands?" the second child asked.


    Christian paused, and asked the children.


    "Excuse me, you say you saw the Hero around here? Can you point me in the direction he went in?" He took out a silver coin and played around with it in his hand. The child eyed the silver coin greedily.


    "He took off in that direction!" the child pointed a road leading towards the main road. Christian tossed the silver coin to the child and took off running down the road.


    But he did not see what happened after he left the children behind. Robin came out of one of the side alleyways, and patted the child on the head. "Good job! See? Didn''t I tell you that you could get money for practically free?"


    "Thank you, Hero! Now I can get a really big meal for my little sister." The child said, patting the rather skinny three year old child next to him.Robin felt her heart ache at the sight, and gave him four big coppers.


    "Let me tell you a secret. The person I look up to above everyone else is my big brother. No matter what life threw at us, he was there protecting me until the time I was old enough and strong enough to protect him in return. Always protect your little sister. She will remember everything that you do for her." Robin told the child, as she also gave away a few candied fruits to them.


    "I will, Hero Robin! You can count on me!" The little child said, pounding a fist to his chest as his eyes were glued to the candied fruits.


    "All right then! I''ll see you two later!" Robin laughed as she followed Dirk, who had reappeared from wherever he had gone, down another side alley. It was time for them to begin the plan.

 42 She is Discovered!

    As promised, Dirk had found several strapping young men who resembled Robin in height and hair color. They each prepared their own mask, ready for the performance to start. After all, they only had to run around town with a mask on their face, acting like the hero.


    The masks were readily bought from a nearby mask stall which boasted to have the exact same mask as Hero Robin.


    Of course, they had readily agreed to this prank once Robin withdrew the final silver that she possessed. It was a profitable venture to be payed to perform a prank simply by dressing similarly and running around the capital.


    "All right, no matter what, never appear in two places at the same time, don''t answer to anyone, and don''t get caught. Good luck!" Robin laid out the rules.


    "Question! If we do get caught, do we still get paid?" One of them asked.


    "As long as you manage to lead the pursuers away from me for long enough, then you will get paid. But, if I get caught, then the whole plan fails, which will make it quite difficult or me to pay you. Thus..." Robin gave the silver coin to Dirk.


    "Hey! How come he gets the money?" One of them objected.


    "Dirk here will be the banker. Once A half an hour is up, you need to come and find Dirk for your pay. There are nine of you, so each one will get one copper coin once the job is done." That was an entire day''s wage for a mere half hour''s work, quite profitable for these young lads.


    "Also, don''t think about using my identity to do something criminal, like stealing. You will be carefully watched by others. If I find out you have, there will be no pay. Got it?"


    The ten lads all nodded their heads quickly. Nobody wanted to get their pay taken away. Of course, Robin was simply squashing any devious inclinations from the start.


    "Okay then! Scatter, and wait five minutes before donning your masks!" Robin clapped her hands, and the youths scampered away.


    Then Robin took off her own mask, and placed it in her bag.


    Why''re you doing that!?" Dirk asked.


    "Aside from you and the Prince, do you think that anyone else out there knows what my true face looks like?" Robin asked.


    Dirk paused, thinking about it, then shook his head.


    "So all I need to do is to avoid the Prince, and I should be fine. Why else do you think that I asked you to find me some people who are built similar to me?"


    "So you''ll keep ''im chasin after fakes while you...um, whot will you be doing?" Dirk asked.


    "The one thing Christian won''t expect: I''m returning to the castle." Robin grinned. "You''ve been a real help this time, Dirk. That last copper is for you."


    Dirk rubbed his nose, visibly pleased at the compliment. After all, it wasn''t every day that one helped a Hero out. That was about as rare as rescuing a king.


    "Tweren''t nuthin. What are we waiting for?" He asked, putting on a dignified front.


    A cry rang out. "It''s the Hero! The Hero is in the market!"


    Robin grinned. "That. See you around, Dirk." She patted him on the shoulder, then strode out into the streets and merged with the crowds.


    ---------------


    "The Hero is by the guild!"


    "The Hero is at the fountain!"


    "The Hero is at the merchants guild!"


    "The Hero is at the top of the clock tower!"


    Cries came out in rapid succession, causing much confusion among the populace. Christian was confused as well.


    ''How is he able to move so impossibly fast!? Does he have helpers!? But, if so, how can I tell which is the real Hero Robin!?''


    Christian shook his head. ''We just need to capture them. Which one is Robin will be easily revealed afterwards.''


    Then he addressed the churning mob of Hero Robin''s fans. "As you have probably heard, there are many men scattered about with Hero Robin''s appearance. Capture them all, so that we can discover the location of the true Hero Robin!"


    He waved his arm, like a general ordering his army. Like a magic spell was cast upon them, the boiling crowd broke up into factions, each heading in the location of one of the Hero fakes.


    Despite their heroic appearance, these youths could not escape hundreds of men, women, and children.Thus, twenty minutes had not yet passed before they were all captured.


    Just looking at the men without even removing their masks, Christian could tell that they were not the Hero. "I''m sorry, but until the Hero is found, you men will have to wait here." he told the masked fakes.


    But, where was Robin now?


    She was entering the servants gates of the castle, of course. Using her convenient disguise as one of Keith''s men, she was able to enter without having to wait.


    Just as she returned to her rooms and reattached her mask, Gerard caught sight of her.


    "Hero Robin! Hero Robin! Is it true that because you were so mad at the Prince throwing a potion at you, that you got your revenge by dousing him with a potion in return? Is that the reason why He''s out looking for you, right now!?"


    Gerard''s face was flushed with excitement, eager to know the truth.


    Robin was dumbfounded at how quickly the rumors distorted.


    ''What is up with these people and their ears for gossip!?'' She wondered to herself. Robin could not understand why people were so darned interested in other people''s lives, when she was perfectly happy minding her own business.


    "Where did you here this?" She asked.


    "It''s all over the castle by now." Gerard said. "Me and Ponzu heard it in the kitchens from one of the other chef''s apprentices.By he way, you missed a really great dinner!"


    "Well, then, let''s go to the kitchen to see if there''s anything left. Then I''ll tell you and Ponshieu what really happened." Robin chuckled as she shook her head.


    "Unless, you want to take someone else''s word over my own?" She teased.


    "I wouldn''t dare!" Gerard waved his hands. "That''s why I came to see you first, after all!"


    On their way to the kitchens, a maid that was on her way home managed to catch a glimpse of them.


    ''The Hero is still here? Then why is the Prince out looking for him?'' She wondered to herself. It was only a matter of time before the news would make its way to Christian''s ears.


    ----------------------


    "And so, that''s what happened." Robin finished her tale.


    "So it wasn''t your fault at all?" Gerard asked.


    "Not at all. I was just there to buy soy sauce." Robin asserted.


    "Soy sauce?" Ponzu''s ear twitched.


    "Why would the court magician have soy sauce? Wouldn''t it be more likely for Ponzu to have it? And why would you have to buy it? Is it super expensive or something?" Gerard asked.


    Robin laughed. "It''s an expression of speech. It means I was just an innocent bystander."


    "Oh! Well, why didn''t you just say so, then!" Gerard asked.


    It was then that a voice echoed down the hallways, rapidly approaching. The voice raised goosebumps on Robin''s skin, as she immediately jumped out the nearby open window.


    "Roooooooooobiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnn!" The sound of feet pounding on the hallway floors made a beeline for the kitchen.


    "Is Robin here!?" Christian cried, as he suddenly stood in the doorway.


    "You just missed him." Ponshieu replied. "He left not even over ten minutes ago." ''Much less ten seconds ago.'' Ponshieu kept that last part to himself. As the hero''s student, he needed to give his Teacher a running start.


    "Darn! He must be close by! Hero, why do you run from me so!?" Christian muttered as he ran further off down the hall.


    "Wow, he was right. That Prince has way more than bats stuffed in his belfry." Gerard burst out laughing.


    ------------


    Soon enough, Christian caught sight of Robin.


    "Wait! For me, Hero!" He called out to the Hero. Imagine his surprise when he heard her spitfire answer in return.


    "There''s no way in Hell!" She called over her shoulder as she headed into the rose maze.


    Of course, before today, she wouldn''t even dare to try this. But earlier, when she had been making her way back down, she saw the whole maze from above. Thus, she could easily figure out the route into, and out of the rose maze.


    Unfortunately, she ended up taking a wrong turn, somewhere. Thus, she found herself with her back against a thorny wall, holding her breath in the hopes that Christian would just run past.


    But, he didn''t. By some arcane means of deduction, he turned the bend, walking slowly in Robin''s direction. Having run about the capital for an hour, he was breathing heavily.


    "Give up, Hero. I know you''re there." he finally said.


    "Then, I can only use my last resort¡­" Robin replied darkly, as she drew in a long breath. And leapt into the air, flipping and kicking something right above her head.


    "Oof!" Keith fell off his magic carpet, into a rose bush, his magic cloaking spell coming undone.


    "Ow! What was that for!?" He complained. "And how did you know I was there!?"


    Robin flipped onto the magic carpet, and gained height just as Christian launched himself at her. Too late. Robin flew up fifty feet in the air.


    "It''s not hard to locate a person by the sound of their breath." she said. "That''s punishment for being there the whole time, yet not helping me out at all!"


    "But you had everything under control!" Keith objected.


    "So That''s why you told Christian that I was here?" Came the sharp retort.


    "...uummm...no?" Came a weakened reply. Keith knew he was in trouble.


    "Find your own way out of that. If you can, then I might just forgive you." Robin sniffed coldly at him, before aiming the magic carpet to circle around the castle in search for Jasmine''s carriage.


    Keith''s eyes met with Christian''s. "...A little help, please?" He asked.


    Christian smiled. "Oh no. I''m not doing anything to make Hero Robin any more mad at me than he already is."


    After Christian said that, he swiftly backtracked out of the rose maze. He was still angry at Keith for practically handing Robin an escape route on a silver platter. Now he had to find another magic carpet so that he could go after him.


    Keith sighed. "It''s a good thing that the recording ball is still safe." He schemed how he was going to get back at those two who left him by himself in the middle of a briar bush, as he slowly worked upon extricating himself.

 43 She Learns About Her Magic Aptitudes

    Robin was concerned, after all, the hour was almost up, and Jasmine''s carriage was nowhere in sight. Moreover, Robin couldn''t tell when Christian would get his hands on a flying magic carpet, and come after her, so she couldn''t truly relax until Jasmine arrived.


    How long would it take before Christian absconded with a magic carpet? Five minutes is all it took.


    "Rooooobiiiiin!" The familiar cry caused Robin to jump in her seat upon the magic carpet. She urged it to fly lower, so that she could use the castle as an obstacle to keep Christian at a distance.


    It was during this time, when she wasn''t keeping an eye out that Jasmine arrived, cradling the glass bottle carefully in her arms, as she hurried to find Robin and Christian. But, since they were whizzing about the castle, it was hard to pinpoint where they were, Jasmine asked Gerard, Ponshieu, and several trustworthy servants to spread out about the castle and locate them.


    It was Gerard who found them first, he rushed off to tell Ponshieu and Jasmine. But, by the time he reported the news, the two flying carpets had raced to a different part of the castle.


    In the end, it was Robin herself who ended the chase, as she drop-kicked Christian into a nearby tree. He rebounded off the branches, on his way down, falling into a dead faint when he struck the ground. Somehow, he was still perfectly fine even after smacking his face into the tree branches.


    Robin herself easily swung down the branches to decrease her momentum before landing safe and sound on the ground. She clapped the dust from her hands before checking the pulse in his neck to make sure that Christian wasn''t hurt.


    This was the scene that greeted Jasmine''s eyes when she arrived. Robin turned to glance at her, before opening Christian''s mouth.


    "Antidote." She said, holding out her hand towards Jasmine, who naturally gave it to her. Then, Robin poured over half the bottle down his throat.


    "Would that be enough?" Robin asked Jasmine.


    "That amount was enough to detox fifty people." Jasmine replied, inwardly wailing with grief at the loss of her special water. She took a long breath before she was able to calm down. "But, there is something that I don''t quite understand about all of this. How can you-"


    "Robin!" Jasmine was interrupted by Gerard, as he ran over to the Hero.


    "So is Christian finally free of that spell!? Why is he sleeping under the tree? And why are there twigs in his hair?" Gerard barrages Robin with questions.


    Robin could only quietly hand the quarter-filled bottle back to Jasmine.


    "Ask me later." She told Jasmine as she got to settling down the Gerard Question Gatling Gun.


    Servants came to bring the Prince back to lie on a nearby couch that they moved outdoors. It seemed strangely like they were used to things like this happening.


    Upon seeing Robin''s questioning gaze, Jasmine explained. "They used to do this often when his fighting teacher came to give him lessons. He''s very resilient to damage now, due to that. But, enough about him- I''m sure you''re still eager to hear about what your attributes are, right? Perhaps we can go somewhere private to talk?"


    "Ah." Robin nodded, then turned to Gerard. "Can you keep an eye on the Prince and tell me when he wakes up?"


    "Right! I surely will tell you the moment he wakes up!" Gerard assured her. Nodding in agreement.


    "Thanks. I''ll be talking with Jasmine in the court magician''s office, in case anybody asks." Robin told Gerard, before following Jasmine up to Albus Magnum''s office.


    ---------------------------


    Albus was busy rearranging the many records in the archives, and was completely focused on his work, but Jasmine closed the door anyways, and evoked a soundproof barrier, just in case.


    "Before I begin, I''d like to ask you something that''s been bothering me this past hour¡­" Jasmine said, testing Robin''s reaction.


    "Go ahead? Ask away." Robin said, without a single qualm.


    "Are you a woman?" Jasmine got straight to the point.


    "Yes. What else would I be? Why is that even a question?" Robin was confused.


    "Good!" Jasmine sighed with relief. Now she knew the real reason why Christian was chasing Robin. It was also such a relief knowing that she didn''t lose out to a man.


    After careful consideration on the symptoms and the reactions, this was the only thing that Jasmine could think of. But Jasmine didn''t know if Robin Was simply ignorant of her image, or purposefully hiding her gender.


    "I''m not sure that you realize this, but you don''t actually seem like one. In fact, I''m pretty sure that Christian has no idea about the fact that you''re a girl." Jasmine pointed out.


    "Huh!? No way!! Then, the whole time he was chasing me today, he thought I was a...a.." Robin was shocked to the point where she was tongue tied.


    "Yes. But, Robin, I want you to continue to hide your real gender." Jasmine said.


    "Why?"


    "Do you want what happened earlier today to happen everyday?" Jasmine asked. "You''ll be attending the ball tomorrow night. If the noblemen knew that you were a woman just think of how many would be chasing after you. It would be like hundreds of Christians were surrounding you." Jasmine spoke seriously.


    Robin shuddered. She could barely handle one Christian, much less hundreds. Moreover she wasn''t interested in marrying anyone, as all she wanted to do was return home. After considering things, she nodded.


    "I agree. But, I''m not sure how long I''''ll be able to keep this secret." Robin sighed.


    "Don''t worry! I''ll help you the whole way!" Jasmine encouraged. "I''m your magic teacher, after all!" And thus, what would have probably led to a mass massacre of the kingdom''s bachelor noblemen was averted.


    "That reminds me, you said something about telling me my attributes, earlier?" Robin asked.


    "That''s right." Jasmine nodded. "Even I was very much surprised at the numbers that came out. You have 50% aptitudes with all magic except for light. In light, you have 100% aptitude, something that has not been seen in many millenniums."


    Robin heard, but instantly asked. "Can you give me some concrete examples? I''m not entirely sure just how impressive my aptitudes are just from hearing the numbers."


    Jasmine nodded. She had considered this point once she heard that Robin knew nothing about magic.


    "First off, your aptitudes are not as set in stone as you''d think. With effort and practice, someone can actually raise their aptitudes by constant use of the magic which they wish to gain aptitude in. So, just think of the numbers as a rough outline. Most people have up to three types of magic that they have aptitudes for.


    But, you have All Attributes, which means that you have talent in all the different kinds of magic. The regular all attributes would only make the crystal ball shine with a rainbow color. But when you placed your hand on the ball, the rainbow colors were far outpaced by the white light shining from within. This means that your talent in light magic is truly at the genius level.


    To be honest, if the Hero''s sword had not acknowledged you, you would have been a prime candidate for a sage, or a saint." Jasmine explained.


    "Thus, while normal citizens usually only have aptitudes ranging from 5 to 10 percent, your aptitudes are at 50 percent from the start. Moreover, your light magic is at a hundred percent, which means that you have the highest possible aptitude you can get."


    Robin then asked a question. "So, does that mean I can use magic now?"


    "Not quite." Jasmine shook her head. "in order to use magic, you need to interact with your mana core."


    "My mana core? What''s that?" Robin asked.

 44 She Returns to the Kitchens

    "Your Magic core is where the source of your magic resides." Jasmine explained. "If you can''t connect to your mana source, then any magic, no matter how good the aptitude, is impossible."


    Robin imagined magic like an electric appliance. Even if it were in perfect mint condition, a toaster would be useless if it wasn''t plugged into a power source.


    "Okay then, so I need to locate this mana source of mine, somehow?" Robin asked. "And only after that will I be able to use magic, right?"


    Jasmine nodded.


    "Okay then! What are we waiting for-"


    Robin''s words were interrupted by a very loud growling noise. Jasmine blushed a bit in embarrassment. Why did her stomach have to complain now!?


    "Ahem!" Jasmine tried to salvage what was left of her pride. "While now would be a good time, unfortunately this person has yet to eat dinner. Perhaps tomorrow morning?"


    "Tomorrow? Why not after you eat?" Robin asked.


    "Because, everyone else thinks your a man. While I''m not averse to teaching you, a girl and a man alone together after the sun sets¡­ I''m sure you know how detrimental an effect that has on a girl''s good reputation, right?"


    "Ah, sure! Fine with me!" Robin realized the implications. She was now acting as a man¡­this might take some getting used to. After all, she had dressed up as men in fighting scenes, but actually acting as a man was something that she was not used to.


    "What should I do?" She muttered to herself, but Jasmine heard her.


    "Just act as you always have." Jasmine encouraged. "You''ve been doing a great job so far!"


    Robin sighed. Yet another trouble had landed on her plate, she thought to herself as she walked back down the stairs, heading to her rooms.


    "Ah! I forgot!" She suddenly exclaimed as she rushed down the stairs to the audience hall. The King and Queen were still waiting for her to show her face, after all!


    When she arrived, she immediately began apologizing. "It appears that I am a bit late. My apologies, I have had a lot happen to me in the past few hours."


    "Not at all." Queen Emeline smiled at her. "Actually, we''ve only just arrived a moment ago. Rather, it is we who should be apologizing to you for the troubles our son has caused you today."


    Robin shrugged, and joked. "At least I can''t complain about the lack of liveliness around here. The Prince''s faults are his own. Any anger I may have had for him vanished the moment I got a solid kick on him."


    "If only everyone''s ire could be solved with such a method." Emeline sighed. "Jasmine told me that it was one of her failed potions that did this, so it is entirely our own fault on this matter. I do hope you don''t hold it against her."


    "Not at all! I regard her as my magic teacher, after all." Robin smiled.


    "Well then! On to the main topic, you wish to see my true face, correct?"


    "Yes, but where will that be? The hall is covered in magic eyes for security reasons." Zephron asked.


    "Are my personal guest rooms also covered?" Robin asked.


    "There is only one that covers the doorway, to make sure that unauthorized people don''t go in there." The King replied. After all, who would feel welcome if they knew they were being watched? And who would dare place a magic eye in the Hero''s rooms? That was simply asking for his ire.


    "Then, would it be presumptuous of me to invite just the both of you to my room?" Robin asked. While Keith''s suggestion of the cloak room seemed like a good idea, it was still possible for someone to hide a small magic eye among the cloaks.


    "No, not at all! We''d be delighted." Emeline replied.


    "Good. Then I extend my invitation to the both of you to have an evening chat in my rooms. At...er...what time is it now?" Robin asked somewhat awkwardly.


    "It is five minutes to six." Emeline replied.


    "Thank you, at six thirty this evening, then." Robin finished.


    "Why the wait?" King Zephron asked.


    "It wouldn''t be much of a talk without some drinks and snacks, now, would it? And it is such a shame to have such a nice parlor without using it. So, I was thinking about preparing a few snacks from my homeland for you to sample. If they suit your tastes, then I can pass the recipe on to your chefs." Robin explained.


    "What a lovely idea! I approve!" Emeline clapped her hands at the wonderful idea. "We''''ll be looking forward to them!"


    "With your permission, I''ll be leaving for the kitchens, then!" Robin nodded her head in farewell, before leaving the hall.


    Zephron and Emeline watched as she left.


    "Your Highness, I don''t think that accepting food and drink from a stranger is a good idea." Zephron''s Secretary spoke up after the Hero had left. But Zephron disagreed.


    "While I would normally agree with you, this situation is a bit different. The Hero''s blade would never acknowledge anyone with wicked intentions towards the kingdom. You know that. Furthermore, how many people can claim they had eaten food made personally by the Hero? Even if it were poisonous, Many people would jump for the opportunity."


    If Robin had heard that last sentence, then her opinion about her fans would drop to an all time low. If the food was bad, then obviously you shouldn''t eat it!


    Robin was now in the kitchen, wondering what she could make that would fit well with tea. Jello? No, that needed about two hours to cool. Potato chips? But would those go well with tea? Should she just make some sugar cookies, then? Hmm¡­


    At this point, Ponshieu finished polishing and sharpening his kitchen knives.


    "Teacher, what are you going to make today?" He asked. Hopefully it wasn''t another mask¡­


    Robin glanced around the kitchen, her eyes finally falling upon a small pile of what looked like bread and cake.


    "What is that?" Robin asked. Ponshieu followed her finger tothe pile, and then shook his head. "Teacher, I don''t suggest that you use those. They are all stale cake and bread that has turned hard. I''''ll go throw them out right now."


    "Wait!" Robin stopped him and smiled. "Didn''t you want to learn my recipes? Well I have a few which requires just this kind of cake and bread. Would you like me to teach you?"


    "But, they''re stale! No one will want to eat them¡­" Ponshieu objected. However, his curiousity ended up getting the better of him. He brought the pile of stale cake and bread over to Robin, and helped her separate the cake from the bread.


    "What kind of food can you make with these?" He asked.


    Robin pointed at the cakes. "Biscotti and Cake French Toast." She said. "As for the bread, I''ll tell you later. For now, please help me cut some of this up into strips the width of one finger."


    Ponshieu tried, but the cake was so hard that he had to take out a carving knife in order to cut the stale cake. Robin munched on a crumb in order to test the flavor. It was already sweet enough, so she didn''t need to add any toppings to it.


    But she might sprinkle some vanilla extract on it before sticking it back in the oven to toast. Considering how hard it already was, that shouldn''t take long. The real thing she needed to consider was the French Toast.


    3 Eggs, one and a half cups of Milk, eight slices of cake, and just a smidgen of cinnamon and nutmeg. The spices were optional, but Robin never had it without them. That was all it took to make Cake French Toast. Moreover, this was something that was very quick and easy to make with minimal ingredients. She also didn''t forget about the dab of butter in the pan.


    She quickly whipped together the eggs, milk, and spices in a small bowl while she waited for the pan to warm. When all the ingredients were mixed together, Robin glanced at the pan. The butter was melted and bubbling a bit: just hot enough.


    Then she grabbed two slices of cake and dipped them into the mixture, coating all sides evenly, and placed them in the pan. It was just large enough to hold two slices at a time. The slices sizzles against the bubbling butter, and a tempting aromatic smell wafted from the pan. This was the cinnamon and nutmeg at work.


    After watching it for about a minute, Robin flipped the slices over, revealing a nice golden brown surface with a few dark specks here and there. The dark specks was the spices. After another minute or so, the toast was done, and Robin used a spatula to move it to a plate.


    "Toppings that go well with these are whipped cream, with minimal sweetening, honey, fruits, and sprinkled sugar of any kind." She told Ponshieu, who quickly noted everything down in his notebook as she finished up the other slices. Since it would be just her, the King, and the Queen; she made just enough for everyone to have an extra half serving, just in case.


    They also made the rest of the cake into pieces the size of a finger, sprinkled some vanilla flavored water onto them, and stuck them into the oven to dry it out more. Once it was finished, that would be the biscotti.


    "Now for the bread." Robin said as she turned her eyes to the hard pieces.

 45 She Thwarts the Queens Schemes

    Robin glanced over the pieces in front of her, and picked out a piece that looked like an Italian loaf.


    "This one is good. Cut it in half lengthwise, please." Robin told Ponshieu. Ponshieu once more brandished his carving knife, cutting it into two long pieces.


    "What''s next?" He asked. In reply, Robin placed two items on the cutting board: a tomato, and a lump of fresh cheese that was similar to mozzarella.


    "For now, could you please butter the bread?" Robin asked. "I''m going to slice the cheese and tomato up." She grabbed a knife, and the slicing was neatly done within moments. Ponshieu couldn''t help but watch her knife skills as he absentmindedly buttered the bread he had just cut.


    Robin moved the sliced cheese and tomato to a dish, and glanced over at Ponshieu, who had only finished buttering one of the two halfs."That reminds me, why do the others call you ''Ponzu''?" She asked.


    Ponshieu sighed resignedly. "It''s because my name is really difficult to pronounce for them, and that was the closest they could get, after trying. And, well, rather than my name, I think, I''d like people to remember my food more." he scratched his cheek, shyly.


    "It sounds like a name I would give to a Shiba inu." Robin chuckled. "But, I suppose it would suffice for a nickname." She lifted up a slice of tomato from the center part of the tomato.


    "Do you know how to slice the tomato in order to see this star-like pattern?" She asked, giving Ponzu no time to think about what a ''Shiba inu'' or a ''nickname'' was.


    "Hmm¡­ slice it from the side?" He asked, uncertain. Tomatoes were also a new fruit that had just been introduced to the market. So, no one knew much about how to use it, other than chopping it up into a salad.


    "Nope. In order to get this pattern, you need to slice it parallel to the bottom of the fruit." Robin shook her head. "There are other ways of cutting it, but if you are planning to place the tomato on a flat surface, then this way is best. I''ll show you the other ways, later."


    Then Robin placed the cheese slices on top of the bread, making sure to cover the whole part evenly. Doing the same thing with the tomatoes, she then randomly scattered fresh basil on top.


    "This should do. Having too many sweet things is not good. Some savory things are also needed."


    The breads went into the oven with the biscotti. They would be finished when the cheese was fully melted. The tomato slices, in part, also helped to restore a bit of moisture to the bread, retaining a crunch on the outside, with a slightly softer inside.


    While she was waiting for the rest to finish baking, she instructed Ponshieu, and put some water on to boil for tea.


    "You know, if you turned the rest of the bread into finger strips, like the biscotti, coated them in oil and sprinkled them with salt and herbs before drying then out in the oven, you can get another good savory food. I''m just not certain if it''s good for a tea snack is all."


    Ponshieu was grateful for that. His hands were aching from carving the almost rock-hard cake and bread. If he had to cut anymore bread, he might just pull a muscle in his arm.


    "Um, aren''t you going to add the tea leaves to the boiling water?" He asked.


    Robin smiled. "Did you know? The way to get the freshest and most fragrant tea is not to boil the tea leaves in the water, but to pour boiling water over the tea leaves and let them soak for three to five minutes. Otherwise, the fragrance just gets boiled away." She grabbed 3 teacups, saucers, and spoons, a strainer, a small bowl of sugar, and a small crock of milk. The boiling water from the kettle was transfered into a teapot with tea leaves inside it.


    Robin then checked the time, and pulled the bread and biscotti out of their respective oven doors, loading them onto the serving cart, along with the cake fried toast, as well as the accompanying plates and utensils.


    "Well, that''s it, then! Wish me luck!" She waved her hand at Ponshieu before pushing the cart down the hall to her rooms.


    "Huh." Ponshieu watched her leave. Then he looked at the mess of bread and cake crumbs, the used utensils, and the now-dulled carving knife. He sighed, but began to clean up the mess his teacher left behind for him.


    ------------------


    The king and queen very much liked the snacks. The King especially enjoyed the biscotti. The Queen, on the other hand, liked the flavor of fresh roasted tomato with cheese. The both of them were very also very surprised at how fragrant the tea was.


    Finally, the king set his tea cup down, and got to the point.


    "While these things truly are wonderful, it only makes me more and more curious about what your face looks like." He confessed. "Might we have the opportunity to see it now?"


    Robin looked surprised, then laughed heartily. "To tell you the truth, King Zephron, I had completely forgotten that I was still wearing it." She chuckled a bit and then said. "Very well! But, I hope you are not disappointed."


    She removed the mask. "I have a very ordinary appearance, after all."


    Her appearance was rather ordinary...for a girl. But, for a young man, it was the face of a refreshingly bright-eyed, honest youth. If it weren''t for the fact that Robin''s hair was short, she could easily be mistaken for a girl. Well, that was because she was one, though.


    "What in the world do you mean by ordinary!? Your face counts among the most handsome ones in court!" The Queen exclaimed.


    Robin felt a bit guilty not telling them that she was a girl, but the next thing the Queen said completely wiped that guilt away.


    "If you show that face at the ball tomorrow night, then every girl in the kingdom will be fighting to be your bride!"


    Robin glanced over at Zephron and raised a quizzical eyebrow. He nodded to indicatethat Queen Emeline''s words were accurate.


    Robin sighed. "That''s why I wore this mask in the first place. I''m not looking for a bride, right now, nor do I need one! I want to travel, experience new places and new things. And, if, upon an occasion that I do get married, I want my partner to love me not for my title, nor my appearance, but because they love me for who I am inside,my character." She made sure to tell the two her stance on the subject, to especially prevent Emeline from interfering in things.


    "Stingy! Why can''t you consider showing your face to my friends?"


    "Because I have absolutely no desire for additional trouble. I''m sure you are aware of what your son pulled today? Can you handle an entire kingdom of girls doing the exact same thing?" Robin asked sternly.


    "Kuh! Although I hate to admit it, you are right. It would be a disaster." Emeline frowned.


    Robin sat back in her chair and smiled. "I''m sure that you realize that I am working hard to maintain the peace of this country, and not do something foolish to disrupt my job." She hit the final nail in the coffin.


    Emeline glared at her. "Hateful! Is this something my own son would do!?"


    Robin took a sip from her teacup. "Rather, isn''t it unmotherly of a certain someone to suddenly adopt someone, and then just as suddenly try to marry them off the next day?"


    "Hurk!" The Queen made a face. Now that she thought of it, it was rather sudden. Even Christian didn''t have a fiance yet, after all.


    Robin finally pulled out her ace, as her expression dropped. "Don''t you want me as your son a bit longer? Or are you too going to abandon me?" She asked, skillfully plucking at the queens heart strings with her words.


    Emeline teared up. "I didn''t think you felt that way. You wanted to be my son that badly? I understand! Mama won''t force you to marry. I''ll wait for you to bring back home a beautiful bride of your own." She grabbed her handkerchief and wiped the tears streaming from Her eyes.


    "Don''tworry, mother. If I change my mind, then you''ll be the first to know." Robin reassured her.


    And with that, Hero Robin successfully thwarted the queen''s matchmaking schemes, for the time being.


    Zephron could only look on, stunned at how Robin was able to so easily escape the plans of the famous former royal matchmaker, Emeline. It was at this moment that Zephron developed an admiration for the lad''s diplomatic skills.

 46 She Speaks with King Zephron

    After the tears stopped flowing, Queen Emeline retreated to her rooms out of fatigue, but not before bringing the tea and cheesy tomato toast with her.


    King Zephron remained behind, as he wanted to speak with his ''newly-adopted'' son. As soon as the door closed, Robin''s pleasantly smiling face relaxed, and she sighed a deep breath out.


    "I''m saved! I was almost certain that if I let things to continue that I''d be forced to marry someone before The day was out!" Robin leaned back further in her chair, sinking into the cushions.


    "Emeline may be overly-enthusiastic, but she''s not that insensible." King Zephron chuckled.


    "Really? Because I think that Christian takes after her a lot." Robin replied. Zephron coughed. He couldn''t deny it, of course, because he also felt that way.


    "Ah, that''s right. Since I''m new to this world, perhaps you can help me." Robin remembered something else, and so changed the topic. "Why is it that Christian is so determined that Jasmine is evil incarnate?"


    "Ahem, well, their fight goes back about eight years ago, when they were still children, I believe. Even I''ve forgotten precisely what began it. But those two have refused to reconcile no matter what we''ve tried." Zephron shook his head.


    "Has Christian tried apologizing?" Robin asked. This was a cause of concern for her. If she couldn''t get her companions to at least be civil to each other, then the entire trip down would be one big time-wasting-purgatory-of-no-escape. Robin did NOT want to get caught up in a family quarrel the whole way down. She had enough headaches to deal with.


    "He insists that he has, but who knows whether he added something unnecessary or not." Zephron sighed. Prince Christian did not seem to be in proper shape as the crown prince of the kingdom.


    "Well, you can bet that I''ll get down to the bottom of things, Your Highness. It''s about time that a certain Prince learned that ''to err is human; but to forgive'' is necessary." Her eyelid twitched. as she grimaced. "If not, I may have to take drastic measures and tie the Prince to the baggage roof to keep him out of trouble."


    "The baggage roof?"


    "Well if we set him on a horse, it will look like we''re kidnapping him." Robin pointed out.


    "No, why wouldn''t you just tie him up and gag him inside the carriage?" Zephron pointed out.


    "Good idea!" Robin agreed. "If he asks me why afterwards, I''ll be able to tell him that it was all your idea."


    King Zephron chuckled. "Don''t push it too far, though. He is still my son."


    "If he acts like your son, then of course, he will be treated like your son." Robin replied amiably. "But, if he cannot keep up proper decorum, then for what reason is he even coming? I''m the Hero; not the Prince''s Babysitter. If you''re looking for one, though, I think Keith is in his office."


    The king coughed to cover up the burst of laughter that emerged. It seemed that he had nothing to worry about if Robin was going along. At least, perhaps the Hero could teach the Prince a good lesson in proper decorum.


    "I''m starting to wish that you were the Crown Prince instead." He muttered, half-seriously.


    "No, thank you. I''m busy enough just being the Hero." Robin refused politely. "Besides, politics happen to be one of my worst subjects." Well, that was because one day she had stayed home sick and skipped a test.


    "But you were so good at dealing with my wife, earlier! How could it be your worst subject?" The King asked.


    Robin rolled her eyes. "Because it''s boring. The Hero does not have to sit at a desk and sign documents, nor does he have to meet with tiring individuals who may only be out for their own self-interest. If possible, I''d rather be out helping the farmers bring in their crops, instead. Honest hard work of the common people is what built this country; not the current nobles with superioristic ideals."


    "You may have a point there. But traditions are not always so easy to change." The King sighed. "Sometimes the only progress we can make is just a little at a time."


    "Well, as long as it''s actually progress, then you should be fine, even if it''s a bit slow." Robin noted. "What you need to worry about is actually ''regression'', though. I saw the children outside on the streets, yesterday. Why do they shun the orphanages so much?"


    "It''s because the orphanages are taken care of by the nobles." The king explained. "The royal family would do so, but we have an army and walls to maintain, and that takes an awful lot out of the treasury. Moreover, even though the money in the treasury is technically mine, I can''t do anything I want with it. That''s why the aristocratic families have taken over the orphanages. But..." He sighed. "Even if they give alms, they will find some way to be haughty about it. If it''s not the parents, then it''s the children. And if it''s not the children, it''s the children''s servants. Of course, I''ve warned them about it several times, but they just don''t seem to take a hint."


    "Well, however you think of it, I''ve got an idea for a job that those children will actually be very good at. Perhaps you could employ them for it."


    "We''ve already tried. They simply don''t wish to become one of our servants." Zephron shook his head.


    "Oh? But they''re already pretty darn good at what they''re doing right now. Why can''t we just work off of that?" Robin pointed out.


    "Off of what?" The king asked.


    "Like I said, you should take the street gossipers group, and give it a formal title of information gatherers." Robin finally said it out loud.


    "Isn''t that like spies?" The King asked.


    "Not really. Gossip, and rumors usually have some sort of base in reality. Moreover, to have a centralized location where information is collected helps us to more easily compare similar information and discover hidden problems like corruption, and injustice. And, every piece of information comes with a price. ''Depending on what you want to know, the price will vary.'' How does that sound?"


    "Aren''t they already paid for what they do anyways?"


    "Pssh! That''s just pocket change! These little guys are out there because they have pride in themselves as human beings, and pride themselves in their work. Moreover, for the king to grant them an official position, would be to validate the hard work that they do every day."


    "I got it. But, I know what you''re trying to do. You just want to thank them for helping you out earlier today, don''t you?" Zephron asked.


    "No...You forget, I was also an orphan, living with only my older brother." Robin smiled sadly. "Looking at them is like looking at my past. It makes my heart hurt just looking at it." Her hand clenched her clothes above her heart, as she remembered the little children. "They deserve a better place to stay than an old alleyway."


    "Very well, I see you''re adamant about this." Zephron noted. "I may not be able to make it happen right away, but I will put my utmost into making it happen." He then stood up from his seat, and paused.


    "One more thing..." He said hesitantly.


    "Yes?" Robin answered.


    "Can I have the rest of these biscotti?" He asked, pointing at the half-empty plate.


    "By all means, please take away the rest of them." Robin laughed. "And thank you for speaking with me."


    --------------


    After the king left, Robin opened the curtain, looking out the window at the rising moon.


    "At the moment, this is all I can do for you, Dirk." She said. "BUt, you can bet that I''ll make an honest man of you, yet."

 47 She Prepares Some Sweets

    The next morning, Robin noticed that there were far more maids rushing about, some carrying linens and tableclothes, others armed with feather dusters and rags as they bustled about the castle-making sure everything was clean. Of course, they had done this the day beforehand, but Robin had been too preoccupied to notice. It was the day of the ball, which Robin was both looking forward to, and dreading at the same time.


    It would be nice to see a court ball, which was one of the few events she did not have the pleasure of witnessing. But, already she was dreading her approaching time in the spotlight. As yesterday''s venture revealed, a hero was a very high profile job.


    Robin, though, was quite unused to being high profile. In fact, if everyone around could ignore that she existed, then everything would be fantastic! But, there was no such luck for her. Even the passing maids and servants stole glances at her in passing. Upon the event of a grand ball, how much more stares would be focused upon her? Robin cringed at the idea.


    After breakfast, at which Prince Christian did not make an appearance, Robin quickly vanished into the kitchens to pass on some recipes for foods she thought would be much welcomed at the ball.


    ---------------


    At some point mid-morning, Christian twitched, and finally woke up from his forced sleep. He slowly rose, edging his legs over the edge of the bed, before coming to a sitting position. His sleepy eyes were unfocused as he stared off into the distance. Only after he gave a great yawn did some semblance of consciousness appear.


    "Ugh! What happened?" He moaned as he rubbed his head, where the large lump from yesterday had almost disappeared.


    "Heheh. Do you want to know?" A voice to his left startled him. He turned to see Keith sitting leisurely in a comfey chair by the unlit fireplace. Keith had several bandages plastered on his face and hands.


    "Keith? What happened to you?" He asked. "And why can''t I remember anything from yesterday?"


    "It''s only natural that you can''t remember." Keith sighed. "After what happened yesterday, there are many things that you may not remember. So, I''m asking you again. Do you really want to know?"


    "Do you really know what happened yesterday?" Christian asked. "If you''re trying to pull the wool over my eyes again, I''m not going to listen."


    "Never fear. I not only know what happened yesterday, I even went to the magician''s tower and the specialized Castle Magic Eye Records and recorded all the relevant visual information down that I could." Keith chuckled, as he tapped a glass ball on his lap.


    "Care to take a look?"


    The question hung in the air a moment before Christian shook his head to make sure that it was clear. He didn''t completely believe Keith would so conveniently do such a thing. He may have cut key parts out of the record...but, still, it should mostly be true.


    "All right, let''s see what you''ve got there."


    -------------------


    In the kitchen, Robin was busy showing Ponzu how to make some light party sweets.


    "Since macarons are too much work at this point, I''ll leave it for when we can get more accurate utensils." Robin explained. "For now, we''ll be working on two main sweets: Meringue cookies, and cream puffs. If I have enough time after that to think of a few more recipes, then we''ll work on those, too, but I think this will be more than enough to work on, since we need to bake these in bulk."


    Ponzu nodded, as he stood at ready with his notebook. For today, he had also prepared some greased parchment paper, which Robin had indicated was a good idea before breakfast.


    "For meringue cookies, you only need two ingredients." Robin explained. "While there are many variations of this cookie, we will be working on the original recipe, so don''t worry about it being too complex. I actually like to make this because of how easy it is...well, it''s easy if you have good arm strength."


    Robin then pointed out the two ingredients. "Egg whites and white sugar. the granulated stuff will work, but if you want a smoother texture, you would use powdered sugar, instead." Robin extracted six egg whites and about 1 and a half cups of regular sugar. Then she handed the bowl with the egg whites to Ponzu along with a whisk.


    "Beat them." She ordered. Ponzu sighed. So, this was what Robin had meant by arm strength. His arms were still somewhat sore from yesterday''s venture! He held it in as he whisked those eggs with a vengeance. A professional cook does not run from work because it is hard! he told himself as he kept up a brisk speed.


    When the egg whites were quite stiff, Robin gradually added the sugar, while Ponzu kept beating themixture until all the sugar was added and the mixture formed peaks. Robin spread a greased parchment out onto a baking sheet. Well, it was more or less just a metal sheet than a baking sheet. But, Ponzu had prepared it anyways. One of the sides of the metal sheet was raised slightly, to help make it easier for the chefs to grab it, but that was it.


    Then Robin dropped teaspoon-sized amounts of the mixture about two inches apart from each other onto the greased parchment, and stuck it in the oven, along with the lava salamander scale to make sure that the heat stays at the right tempurature. This time, they needed to make sure that the scale shone yellow like a dandelion.


    Robin had already come up with a convenient color chart to make sure that Ponzu could measure the temperature accurately. The cookies were baked in the oven for about thirty to forty minutes. Robin took them out when it looked like they were about to start browning.


    After letting it stand for ten minutes in a dry location, Robin smacked the pan against the counter. The cookies, leapt off the pan, startling Ponzu, who was worried that they might break. Instead, they landed on a white cloth that Robin had prepared. She gathered up the corners of the cloth and transferred the meringue cookies to a basket.


    "The thing you need to look out for are if the meringues aren''t cooked all the way through." Robin warned. "That''s why you must always make sure that when you are baking these, not to have anything that contains water to be placed in alongside it. So, vegetables, meats, and any non-dry items are forbidden when making Meringue cookies. Got that?"


    Ponzu nodded his head as he scribbled it down into his notebook. With all this writing, Ponzu had gotten much better at noting things down speedily. Then he looked up when Robin handed him one of the cookies. He glanced at Robin, confused.


    "Taste it." Robin said, as she nibbled on one of them in her other hand. "This is the taste of the meringue cookie. Make sure to remember it."


    He nodded and likewise nibbled at his own cookie. After the initial satisfying crunch, Ponzu was surprised when the cookie instantly melted in his mouth. It was sweet, airy, and light, and before he knew it, the cookie in Ponzu''s hand was gone. He looked at the other cookies in a new light.


    Robin laughed. "Don''t go eating up all the rest of these! We still have one confectionary left to create. This one will be a pastry. For this, we''ll need to bring out a saucepan." She brought one cup of water to a boil, before adding a half cup of butter, and stirring until it melted. Then she added one cup of flour, and a half teaspoon of salt, and stirred the mixture until a ball was formed.


    She removed it from the heat, and added one egg, then she beat the mixture and let it stand for five minutes. She repeated this three times until she had added four eggs into the dough. Then she let it stand for ten minutes.


    After that, just like the meringue cookies, they were spooned with heaping tablespoons onto a greased parchment paper-lined baking sheet about two inches apart from each other. By this time, the lava-salamander scale was gleaming a yellow-orange color, placing it around 370 to 375 degrees. It was a good thing that the oven was a magic tool. if the oven were heated with fire, over half the products would have been destroyed due to uneven or too much heat. The shells were baked for about 30 minutes.


    While they waited, Robin and Ponzu whipped up two cups of heavy cream with a teaspoon of vanilla and a quarter cup of sugar for the filling. But then Robin realized that they had no piping bags! Thinking quickly, she cut out a few triangles of parchment paper and quickly rolled out a few cones, cutting off the tips, and folding the uneven edges at the wide part of the mouth down. they would do in a pinch. These, they filled with the cream puff filling.


    By this time, the shells were finished, so Robin took them out to cool a bit. Before adding any kind of frosting or whipped cream product, it is best that the food be completely cooled. Otherwise, your prized confectionary will only have melted, steamed milk, instead of whipped cream. The piping bags were stored in the cooling room until then.


    After the shells had cooled, they then cut off the tops, and piped the filling inside, before covering the white peaks with a puffed shell cap. It was finished! While he felt the sweets definitely had to appear for the ball, Ponzu was determined to get some apprentice chef hands to help him out with the whipping process. Otherwise, the sweets might not all be finished in time for the ball.


    It was at this point that Robin realized it was about almost lunch time. After this, she''d have to get ready for the ball, which started at four, and went late into the night.


    "Unfortunately, it won''t be a Cinderella story this time." Robin chuckled under her breath, as she washed her hands and made her way to the dining room for lunch.

 48 She Has Never Been to a Ball?

    A little bit before lunch, Christian finally finished watching the recording. Keith had enjoyed how his facial expressions had changed colors so quickly. From white to red to green to blue, and then purple until he gasped at how brazenly he had done things. By the end, he had fallen completely silent.


    "Well, I think you''re lucky." Keith grinned. "It''s not every day that you get drop-kicked by the hero."


    The Prince placed his head in his hands, not replying.


    "You''re also lucky that your first target was Robin." Keith replied. "Why, if it had been Jasmine, then she wouldn''t let you forget about it for your whole lif-."


    "I don''t even want to consider that!" The Prince groaned, wanting the ground to open up and swallow hiim. "Why him!? Why did I go chasing after him!?"


    Keith looked at Christian and edged away slightly. "Is it possible that you like-"


    "It isn''t that! By the king''s throne, it most certainly is not that!" Christian interrupted Keith. "I am perfectly normal!"


    "Well, I can''t say much, then. Perhaps, because it was one of Jasmine''s failed antidotes, it ended up having a very large change in your orientation momentarily?" Keith theorized.


    Christian''s face was completely covered by his hands now. "Do I even have the face to apologize for this! I, the prince, who has survived every kind of poison thrown at me, was pulled down by a failed product!?"


    "Just because you have poison immunity due to your nature element doesn''t mean that you have immunity to....boosters." Keith pointed out. "And, since the Hero didn''t kill you for it, you''re most likely still fine."


    "HOW IS THIS FINE!?" Christian stared daggers at Keith, who raised his hands defensively.


    "Hey, don''t look at me! You were the one who drank the darned thing. Sure, it was probably Old Albus who forgot that he cleared the other potions off his desk, but you should know better than to drink a potion that looks that poisonous." Keith said defensively. But, inwardly, he was laughing his head off.


    ''Serves you right for leaving me to climb out of that bush by myself.'' He thought.


    Christian drooped. "You''re right. As someone who has learned how to identify potions, I should have known that it was the wrong one. All my mistakes are my own fault...even if it was Jasmine that left the potion there in the first place, I should have been able to tell that it was the wrong one."


    "Look on the bright side, at least now that he''s seen you at your worst, if you work hard at showing good behavior from now on, he might get a better opinion of you." Keith said some comforting words. But, he and Christian both knew that good first impressions make up more than fifty percent of a person''s opinion of someone.


    Christian rolled his eyes. "Thanks, but I don''t need that kind of a bright side."


    "Then you will live your whole life in the dark? Beware of vampires, then." Keith sniggered.


    Christian glared at Keith. "I''m not entirely convinced that those wounds you bear aren''t entirely your fault!"


    "Even if they''re my fault, they''ll be gone before tonight~" Keith teased. As one of the involved, he managed to snag a free healing potion from guilt-tripping Old Albus.


    "You-!" Christian growled, before quickly standing up and heading to the door, recording ball in hand.


    "Where are you going with that?" Keith asked.


    "To dispose of the evidence." Christian replied cooly.


    "You''re too late. I''ve already made several copies." Keith smirked.


    "Then you don''t mind if I take this one along?" Christian replied evenly as he disappeared out the door. The first thing he would do was to grab some food, while the second thing he would do was look for Robin. If Robin knew that he had been recorded, Christian wondered what would happen to Keith.


    "It''ll do you no good!" Keith called after him from the door.


    "Is that so?" Christian murmured under his breath as he continued walking down the hallway.


    Keith shook his head, grinning at Christian''s seemingly useless gesture. Little did Keith know, he would soon get into very big trouble due to his oversight. But, for now, Keith headed down the hallway to make his report to the king.


    -------------------


    In the kitchens, Christian met Ponzu nibbling on some sort of solid white cookie thing as two assistants were busy whisking things for him.


    "Yo, Ponzu! Got anything to eat?" He asked.


    "Yeah! It''s in the usual place. But, are you not going to attend lunch today? It''s about time for lunch to get served." Ponzu asked.


    "Er, I was going to, yes. It''s that late already?" Christian asked. "I was going to see if I could find Robin to apologize-hey, what is with that expression on your face?" Ponzu''s face had a rather strange expression.


    "Well, the thing is, if it''s Master Robin you were looking for, then he just left not five minutes ago... You are completely cured of that strange spell potion, right?" Ponzu asked, just to make certain.


    "Of course I have! I would never do something so embarassing in my normal state of mind!" Christian exclaimed, his face turning red.


    "Oh, good. You''re really back to normal!" Ponzu sighed. Then stopped and looked around.


    "What are you looking for?" Christian asked.


    "If I''m not mistaken, then that person should not be that far away." Ponzu muttered. "he should be somewhere right...HERE!" Ponzu opened a cupboard to reveal Gerard hiding inside.


    "Heh heh... hello!" Gerard greeted awkwardly. "I smelled something really sweet baking in here, earlier. Hey, Ponzu! Are those cookies what you were baking earlier?" Gerard''s eyes zeroed in on the cookies, which Ponzu possessively covered.


    "No, I wasn''t baking them. Hero Robin was baking this morning."


    "In that case, can I-"


    "No you can''t! Wait until the next batch is done, and you can have some. I need these for comparison so that I make sure I don''t stray from the recipe!" Ponzu affirmed adamantly. No one was going to steal these delectables out from under his nose.


    "But I''m really hungry right now." Gerard complained.


    "If you''re hungry, go have lunch. These are off limits. Shoo shoo!" Ponzu glared at Gerard with an animousity only foodies could comprehend.


    "Stingy!" Gerard pouted as he headed out of the kitchen empty-handed.


    "Freeloader!" Ponzu called right back with impunity.


    "Right, I''ll just go to lunch then." Christian said, feeling a bit awkwardly that his most loyal chef Ponzu had just forgotten about him due to Ponzu''s obsessive possession of Robin''s cookies.


    ---------------------


    Robin was already sitting at the table when Christian arrived. This made things doubly awkward for Christian when he sat down, as he wasn''t quite sure how to face Robin. Robin, on the other hand, had no problem with how to treat Christian. She simply ignored him. In fact, she ignored anything outside of a radius of two feet around her, and concentrated solely upon her lunch.


    The silence was broken about halfway through the meal when Queen Emeline finally spoke up.


    "So, Robin, how are your preparations for the ball going?"


    Robin looked up, and considered the question for a moment before asking. "Do I need to do anything special for the ball? I''ve never been to one, after all, so I just assumed I''d be informed after lunch about ballroom ettiquette."


    "You''ve never been to a ball?" Queen Emeline asked.


    "To be perfectly frank, in my world, I''m just a commoner." Robin admitted.


    "But that can''t be true! How can you know how to sword fight and cook and lead men if you''re just a commoner?" Gerard exclaimed.


    "That was the expensive life insurance at play along with my inheritance after my parents died." Robin explained.


    "Life insurance? What is that?" The king asked, intrigued.


    "It''s a system which was set up for parents to put money aside for their children and close relatives in case they die a sudden death." Robin explained. "You can consider me as one of the children of an affluent merchant."


    "...This is not good. Call the ettiquette teachers to the music room at once after lunch!" Queen Emeline announced.


    "I''ll help too!" Jasmine added. "I can act as Robin''s partner for practice."


    "That...I suppose you have my thanks, then." Robin bowed her head.


    "My, it''s no trouble at all!" Emeline dismissed. "Tutors are meant to teach, this will just help them to earn their pay, instead of living off a pension they don''t work to obtain."


    In all the hubbub, Christian was once more ignored.

 49 She Learns Ballroom Manners

    It was just then that the king''s secretary murmured something into Queen Emeline''s ear.


    "What!? Really?" She exclaimed, looking at the secretary with a shocked expression.


    "None of the ettiquette tutors are available? really?" She asked. The secretary nodded.


    "Let them know that their pay will be docked accordingly." Emeline huffed. It was the Hero, after all! Which tutor wouldn''t jump at the opportunity?


    Emeline turned to Jasmine. "Jasmine, dear, will you be all right teaching by yourself?"


    "I''m not sure. It''s been a while since I last attended a ball, after all." Jasmine sighed. "I know the woman''s ettiquette, but I''m not completely confident that I know that man''s side."


    "Then, what do we do? The ball is tonight!" Emeline sat back.


    "Well, if it''s someone experienced in ballroom manners, aside from me, there''s...." King Zephron''s voice trailed away as he glanced over at Prince Christian. Everyone''s eyes zeroed in on Christian, who was surprised to suddenly be in the spotlight.


    It was at this point that Robin finally looked at Christian, too, which made him all the more uncomfortable.


    "Um...er...if you''re okay with me, I can give you a few pointers on how to act in a ball." he said, unsure how much Robin hated him at the moment.


    "Ho?" Robin uttered as she stared at him closely, examining his expression. Christian felt cold sweat break out on his forehead. Why had he stepped out in that situation? Wasn''t he just asking to get himself in trouble again?


    "Then, I''ll be in your care." Robin replied politely as she returned to eating her food. Christian''s head picked up, as he stared at Robin in shock. Wasn''t he upset?...It looked like he wasn''t upset at all. Christian gathered his bruised ego back together.


    But, something did not feel quite right. The hairs on the back of his neck wriggled as he felt someone else''s eyes on him. His eyes roamed the table until they met with Jasmine''s subtle stare. Guh! That''s right. Jasmine would be there too. Christian looked down at his lunch, wondering if his idea to help tutor Robin was a good idea after all.


    ------------


    After lunch, they moved to the music room, where a quartet was on standby to help play music for them. "Okay, there are three main parts to any Ball." Prince Christian began. "The entrance, the banquet, and the dance. Each part has a few special things added, but generally the same type of manners is expected throughout the event. Do you follow?"


    Robin nodded, while Jasmine stifled a yawn.


    It was about time for Jasmine''s afternoon nap. She glanced up at the sun, then waved her hands and a lounge chair appeared.


    "You two go ahead with the other stuff. I''ll just wait here until we get the the dancing part." She waved her hand dismissively as she instantly fell asleep.


    "Is that okay?" Robin asked.


    Christian sighed and shook his head. "Even if it''s not okay, it has to be. If there''s one thing that I''ve learned, it''s to never wake her up when it''s nap time." He subconsciously rubbed his side as he remembered the painful lesson he had evoked in his past.


    "Right, then let''s begin with the lesson, shall we?"Christian cleared his throat. "Ballroom ettiquette is quite simple, really. Standing, sitting, or dancing: you must keep your back straight through all of it. Keep your voice low unless you are heralding a toast, or it is something of vital importance-such as an assassination. Also, if you wish to approach a lady you are not familiar with, you must have someone close to them introduce you. Almost everyone else is not allowed to wear their swords to the ball, but since you are the Hero, you are naturally exempt from that rule. In fact, since you are the Hero, not many restrictions apply to your behavior, since your status is above the nobles. This can be considered one of the perks of being a Hero. Of course, common decency still needs to be kept, so limit your speech and no vulgarities."


    "What? Vulgarities? Now, would I ever say a thing like that?" Robin asked, play-acting as an upright young man. Although she was slightly inclined to mischief, she rarely used vulgarities.


    "I''m not saying you would, I''m just telling you what the rules are." Christian said. He ran his fingers through his hair as he recalled the lesson and made sure he didn''t forget anything. Did he forget to mention anything...?


    Christian confirmed that he hadn''t forgotten anything and glanced over at Robin. "That''s it for general behavior." He informed. "Now let''s move on to the specialties of the entrance part of the ball.


    "The main part is the order and announcing of the name upon entering the room. The order is from least to greatest in the herarchy of the nobles. Since you''re the Hero, you would be one of the last to be announced. It''s mostly a waiting period.


    "But, when you are announced, upon entering, you should walk straight up the main aisle to the king. Most nobles would grace him with a low bow. But, since you are the Hero, a salute or a nod of the head is acceptable. Did you get that?" He asked.


    "Wait until it''s my turn to enter, walk up the aisle to the king, and show at least a modicum of respect. Got it." Robin replied. "There isn''t anything that needs to be practiced?"


    "Not particularly. The more difficult part is the banquet. Are you familiar with the uses of the different kinds of cutlery?" Christian asked.


    "Not really." Robin felt a headache coming on.


    -------------------------


    The King and Old Albus, the court magician, were in a meeting.


    "So, have the shipments of Holy Spring Water arrived yet?" The King asked. Since the episode that happened yesterday, King Zephron wasn''t going to take any chances. He expended a large amount of money to purchase enough holy spring water to protect all of the female guests from the nefarious plots of unscrupulous men in possession of a ''lovesick'' potion.


    "It arrived just this morning, Your Majesty." Albus replied. "I have had the assistants unload them into a room close by the ballroom."


    "Good. By the crown, I shudder to think of what would happen if we didn''t stock such an antidote." Zephron sighed with relief. If ''Lovesick'' were allowed to run rampant and unchecked throughout the ballroom, all sense of proper decorum would quickly vanish under the mind-altering spell. Jasmine had also defused all of her failed antidotes as well with the remainder of her holy spring water. Therefore, hopefully, any breakouts of ''lovesick'' would be contained as quickly as possible.


    "Let''s just hope that Hero Robin is a quick learner." King Zephron sighed.


    ---------


    "And, finally, we get to the last part: the dance. This is where you come in, cousin." Christian turned to Jasmine, who had already kept her lounge chair back into her magic bag belt.


    "I stand at ready." Jasmine announced.


    Robin put one arm around Jasmine''s waist, and clasped her outstretched hand.


    "Wait, wait, wait! You know how to dance?" Christian asked, looking at Robin''s perfect dance posture. "But I thought you''ve never been to a ball!"


    Robin looked at Christian as if he were silly. "Of course I can. I don''t recall going to a ball being a requirement for learning how to dance. There are dances at weddings and festivals, too, you know."


    Christian opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. Finally, he turned to the quartet and motioned them to start playing. "Let''s see how good your dancing is." Christian said.


    The waltz and the foxtrot were quite simple, even when the tempo was sped up. In the end, Christian found he couldn''t fault Robin on anything.At the end of the last song, he clapped his hands in applause.


    "Well done! Bravo! If you just act like that during the real thing, you''ll be fine. All right, let''s stop right there. Cousin Jasmine needs the time to prepare herself for later. Also... I have something I want to talk to you about... Could you spare me a bit of time?"


    Robin looked at Christian with a measuring gaze, but still nodded her head. She saw no problem with just talking. Most likely, it would be about what happened yesterday.


    Jasmine, though curious, really didn''t have much time to stay. There were the dress fittings and the hair dressing to do alongside finding the perfect accessories to match the ballgown, not to mention the makeup that had to be put on. She really had a full schedule. So she quickly left through an adjoining room. The musicians also chose that time to vacate the room.


    Thus, the two figures stood there alone in the music room, neither one speaking. After a minute or so, Robin finally prompted. "Well? What is it?"


    Christian sighed. "I''m not sure how to say it. As for what happened yesterday, that was entirely my own fault. I give you my most sincere apologies."


    Robin nodded. "All forgiven, even if it can''t be forgotten. You couldn''t exactly help yourself, after all."


    "Yes, well...I-I found that someone had made a recording of tthe events that transpired then. Here." He showed Robin the recording crystal. When she saw it, she immediately recognized it.


    "Was it Keith?" She asked, her face growing dark. How dare he record what transpired without her permission!


    "Yes. Apparently, he''s made several copies. I only managed to grab this one because he wasn''t vigilant about me." Christian replied. "Even if I managed to find most of them, he''s probably still got several more in hiding throughout the capital by now. I thought of all people, you''d know how to handle this better than I."


    Robin stood there for a minute, her face impassive. Then she walked towards the door behind Christian. She she stood abreast of him, she paused, then clapped him lightly on the shoulder. At this point, all resentment against Christian had vanished.


    "Leave him to me." She said quietly, then left.

 50 She Prepares for the Ball

    Several minutes later, a cry rang down the hallway.


    "Save me!"


    Keith was running away from a berserk Robin, who was chasing down the hallway after him with an unsheathed Hero''s sword, a cheerful smile upon her face, which was covered by a mask. Upon seeing such a scene, both the maids and the guards felt goosebumps crawling up their skin and swiftly made themselves scarce.


    "Hold on there! Can''t we talk things through peacefully?" Keith yelped. as he dodged yet another swing from the razor-sharp lethal weapon. Of course, if Robin truly was trying to kill him, he''d be already dead. But she kept up the act. She could be very convincing when she was pretending to be mad.


    Keith needed to learn that there were some people that one should never cross.


    Robin chuckled darkly. "Peacefully, huh? You mean just like how when I was running my butt off yesterday, trying to make sure an incident of national concern didn''t happen, and you were ''peacefully'' just sitting by and doing nothing!? Even worse, you practically filmed the whole darned thing! Do you think that such actions which wreak of scheming against my honor can be solved ''peacefully'' HUH!?"


    "I wasn''t scheming against your honor!" Keith protested.


    "Oh, so you were scheming against the Prince''s honor, then!? I don''t know what you call that here, but back home, we call it treason! I''m sure you know what the price for treason is, right?" Robin grinned wickedly, as she interrupted him.


    "N-no, I wasn''t scheming against anyone! I was just documenting the case to make sure I had video evidence in case things needed to be clarified in the future!" Keith insisted, feeling cold sweat beginning to drip down his forehead.


    "Ho? Somehow I don''t believe you, though?" Robin narrowed her eyes and swung again, narrowly missing him once more.


    "Believe it! I have not shown it to anyone else aside from the king and the prince." Keith felt like crying. ''I''m a loyal man of the king, you know!? I would never disclose such a shocking scandal outside of the castle walls.'' In fact, he had only shown Christian the recording in order to witness his reaction. He would never have shown it to anyone else.


    "But, I heard from Christian that there are more of these out there?" Robin said.


    "Well...I was..simply saying a joke! There''s no way I would put such confidential information in a place outside of my sight, after all!" Keith ducked around the corner as he continued to protest. ''Darn that Christian! He sold me out!''


    Robin also whirled around the corner, stabbing her sword into the wall right before Keith''s nose. She spoke softly into his ear.


    "Oh? A joke is it? I''ve been dealing with a lot of crap ever since I arrived here, and am not in the best of moods. In fact, I was already willing to write off the fact that you didn''t help me yesterday...But, the next time you try any more of these ''jokes'' and involve me, my hand might accidentally ''slip''."


    "What-What do you want?" Keith finally asked, visibly rattled.


    Robin smiled an angelic smile. "Even if there are any copies of this recording, by this evening, there shouldn''t be. Understand?"


    "Cl-clearly." Keith replied, as he looked at his reflection in the Hero''s sword. Robin pulled the sword out of the wall, sliced the recording orb in two halves, and then finally returned the sword back into its sheath.


    "Oh no! Someone has marred this beautiful wall! I must ask the castle artisans to find some way to cover it up. We can''t have the guests see this!" And, just like that, Robin returned to her usual cheerful hero personality. Satisfied that things had been arranged properly.


    At that moment, Keith resolved to never again piss off the Hero. But, right after that, he recieved a summons from the King to explain why the Hero would go on a rampage.


    ''Oh boy.'' He felt a headache coming on.


    ------------------


    Returning to her rooms, Robin found that the clothes for the ball had already arrived, and were sitting in a neat pile on her bed. It was a good thing that Robin was pretending to be a guy. If she hadn''t then there was no way she would have been able to finish getting ready before the ball began. Glancing at the clock, she only had a half an hour to get ready.


    She took a quick bath, and quickly changed into the cotton white shirt, the cotton-lined silk brocade tunic, and matching pants. There were no shoes included. She simply wore her own boots-which fit quite well with the royal-blue and silver color scheme. This color also matched with her blue eyes.


    ''Come to think of it, wasn''t there some sort of saying not to wear brown shoes with a blue suit?'' Robin thought as she looked at herself in the mirror to comb her hair. She had never really understood that rule, because she thought that brown and blue went quite well together. Well, if it became some sort of problem, they''d probably let her know ahead of time.


    Just when she was getting confuse about how to wear the white neck-tie...ascot-thingy, she heard a knock on the door. Robin quickly put on her mask, which she had taken off before changing.


    "Come in!" She called out as she turned to the door, slightly confused over who it could be.


    The door opened.


    "Hello, it''s me~!" Christian said with a cheerful grin as he waved his hand. To be honest, when he had heard of how Robin had handled Keith, he had burst out into a grand fit of laughter. He had only recently been able to contain his mirth.


    "Oh, it''s just you, Christian." Robin sighed in relief. "I was afraid it was someone else."


    "Are you ready?" Christian asked. Looking at Robin in a blue outfit, he seemed more like a blubird than a robin.


    "Almost. I just can''t figure out how to tie this thing..." Robin frowned as she turned back to the mirror.


    "Here, let me do it." Christian offered.


    "Maybe I shouldn''t accept your help. I''d probably earn the ire of all the women attending if they found out it was you who tied it." Robin joked. Of course, that would only happen if they knew she was a a woman, first.


    "You do realize that they are all coming to see you, right!?" Christian pointed out, as he concentrated on the ascot. He didn''t even notice the absense of an adam''s apple. Of course, he was not looking for one, though. "They see me so often it''s like I''m a centerpiece instead of a person. You''re the main attraction this time."


    "Whatever do these young ladies do with their time when they''re not on the lookout for new attractions?" Robin muttered as she allowed Christian to tie it.


    "Gossip, go shopping, daydream, and scheme about how to land themselves a husband, no doubt." Christian replied.Inwardly, he was wondering. ''What kind of perfume is Robin wearing? It smells nice.'' Then he noticed Robin''s damp hair. ''Oh, he took a bath. It''s probably some sort of scented soap, then.''


    "Sounds boring. In that case, I''d rather go hunting." Robin chuckled.


    "Do you want to know a secret?" Christian asked.


    "What is it?" Robin replied.


    "Me too." Christian sighed. "But even to walk out the door I need special permission, and hunting with an army is as dull as a history lesson. Sure, we might get more game, but that''s not the point of hunting!"


    "Actually, I think it is." Robin pointed out. "Nobody has a successful hunt without catching game, after all."


    "Where is the thrill? The long hours of chase? The fated shot? Where is the exhausting hard work that goes into a hunt? Before I even begin a good hunt, it''s already finished! How am I supposed to avoid the ladies that way?" Christian shook his head.


    "Why are you avoiding them, though?" Robin asked, bemused.


    "Why else? Quite frankly, I''m glad you''re the main attraction tonight." Christian shook his head. "At least now I won''t get swarmed."


    "Why are you talking about women as if they were a hive of bees?" Robin snorted.


    "Because they all want to become the queen bee." Christian replied, dourly, as he finished tying the ascot. "All right, it''s done. Does it feel too tight?"


    Robin shook her head. "No, it doesn''t feel that tight."


    "Good. Let''s hope you feel that way before the end. Sometimes I swear these things are meant to strangle a man." Christian joked as he and Robin left for the ball.


    On their way there, Robin remembered something.


    "Oh, right! For the entrance, I don''t have to escort anyone, do I?"


    Christian shook his head."No. I''m the prince, and I don''t need to escort anyone, either."


    "Oh? What was that about not needing to escort anyone?" the Queen said, as she stepped out from a side hallway in a bedazzling green gown. Jasmine, in a shimmery yellow version of the queen''s gown, stood behind her.


    "Mother? What are you doing here?" Christian asked.


    "I''m here to remind you not to forget to escort your cousin, Jasmine, during the entrance." Queen Emeline said. "Or have you truly not been informed?"


    "Mother, I can understand that you want to allay any unfortunate rumors, but why must I go with her!?" Christian pointed at Jasmine, feeling very unfortunate. "She obviously hates me, so why would she agree to my escorting her?"


    Jasmine flashed a dazzling smile and said. "Oh? When did I say that I hated you? I know about how you dislike being approached by the ladies, but entering alone will make you a standing target, regardless of whether Robin is here, or not."


    "Then, I''ll just enter with the Hero, then!" Christian said, not quite getting the point.


    "Normally, that would be fine." Jasmine agreed. "But, considering yesterday''s unfortunate circumstances, the rumor might begin that the Prince has somewhat exotic tastes? Moreover, just like you, I do not enjoy being swarmed by men. Thus, we can kill two birds with one stone, right?"


    Jasmine inwardly chuckled. ''There''s no way I''m going to give you more time to discover Robin''s real gender that easily.'' She thought.


    Christian''s face grew purple as he held in his temper. In his head, the odds were 100 to 1 that if he did not escort Jasmine, then she would spread the rumor herself. Moreover, his mother was nearby giving him an icy stare that claimed hell was not too far away.


    Swallowing his pride, Christian smiled. "Then, it would be my pleasure to escort you to the ball, my lady." He bowed graciously.


    ''Let''s see what kind of horrrible thing you are planning.'' Christian thought to himself. The two scheming royals faced off against each other with polite smiles on their faces.


    ''Yup. They''re related to each other.'' Was what Robin thought to herself, as she observed them.

 51 She Has a Chat with Christian and Jasmine

    "Entering Prince Christian and Magi Jasmine!" The announcement was called out by the royal announcer. Prince Christian and Jasmine walked out, a perfect picture of smiles and nobility. But, nobody knew that underneath their facade, the two were just the same as they were back when they were nine years old: at odds with each other.


    "Well, I suppose I''m up next then." Queen Emeline chuckled as she watched the two walk down the red carpet. She turned to look at Robin. "As I thought, those colors are a perfect match with your eyes. Why don''t you wear blue more often?"


    Robin chuckled. She had been wearing a navy blue sleeveless jacket when she had arrived in this world, but after that, the only colors she wore was green. "Why not? Personally, I like green a lot."


    "Truly?" The Queen asked.


    "I got it at a bargain price, and found it really comfortable." Robin admitted. "Isn''t it a shame to disregard clothing just because it doesn''t match your eye color? Ah, forgive me, I am used to living in this manner. After my parents died, there really wasn''t anyone around to teach me these sort of things, so we just wore what we could afford."


    The Queen felt a bit shocked. "But you had enough to get good sword lessons and go to school? Why did you not have enough for good clothes?"


    "Because there were more important things to do, neither of us wanted to waste our time on clothes shopping." Robin sighed. "We both agreed that if we were going to spend money, we''d rather spend it on food and lessons rather than clothes."


    "Is that...so?" Emeline struggled not to cry and mess up her makeup, but she could still feel her nose turn sour as she completely misunderstood about Robin''s childhood.


    ''So, you were so poor that you chose to gain as many skills as possible, instead of wear nice clothes...how sad!'' Emeline thought, with tender feelings towards the youth.


    In reality, Robin had never really cared about clothes to begin with. As long as they were comfortable and at a bargain price, Robin was fine with almost anything that could reasonably be called ''clothes''.


    Of course, she wasn''t an exhibitionist so certain clothes-which revealed more than they could ever hope to conceal-were avoided by her like the plague.


    "Queen Emeline!" The royal announcer called out.


    "Ah, it appears that it''s my turn now." Emeline quickly put on a professional smile. "Good luck, Robin."


    "Thanks?" Robin replied, confused. Did she need to have good luck? It was just an entrance, after all. Robin had no idea that Emeline had misconstrued what she had said earlier.


    Soon enough, it was her turn to enter.


    "Hero Robin!" THe royal announcer called out. Robin straightened her back, and looked straight ahead as she stepped out onto the red carpet, a bemused smile on her face. Those in attendance began muttering amongst themselves.


    "So this is the Hero? With that shiny black hair, instead of Robin, I would have named him Raven."


    Robin inwardly retorted. ''No thank you. I''d rather not be named after a disney channel visionary who had awkward as her middle name.''


    "He''s so handsome!" A young noblewoman swooned.


    Robin inwardly retorted. ''You''re handsome! Your whole family is handsome!''


    "Hey, why do you think he''s wearing that mask?" another noblewoman asked.


    ''To escape from nosy people like you!'' Was Robin''s inner retort.


    Finally, after what seemed a long time, she arrived before the king''s throne. Placing a hand over her heart, she nodded her head, as a sign of respect. Then she moved over to the right of the king, standing, as she turned to the crowds.


    "Thank you very much, everyone for attending." King Zephron nodded. "I welcome you all to our Royal Ball. As the special guest of tonight''s ball, may I introduce to you, Hero Robin." He waved his hand towards Robin, and the whole room applauded.


    Robin felt dazed as she stared out at the crowds like a deer in the headlights. Then she glanced at Christian. ''Don''t joke with me! You didn''t say anything about a royal introduction!'' She inwardly panicked. Christian, seeing that Robin didn''t know what to do, pantomimed waving at her. Unconsciously following his movements, she waved at the crowd, which only caused them to applaud louder. There were even a few girls that fainted and fell over.


    Seeing this, Robin was much disturbed. But, she managed to hold her smiling face in place as she continued waving to the crowds. ''This isn''t over, Christian....'' She thought to herself.


    Christian felt a sudden cold shudder creep up his back.


    "What''s wrong? Are you catching a cold?" Jasmine asked.


    "No, I''m just feeling very uncomfortable about your current proximity to me." Christian replied in a low voice that only Jasmine could hear.


    "Too bad." Jasmine pursed her lips, cheekily. "And here I thought you would retire early for the night."


    "Tempting though that sounds, Mother would never allow it." Christian returned as he glanced over at Queen Emeline, who was pointedly watching him with a stern expression.


    After several minutes, the applause finally died down and the nobles began to mingle amongst themselves. Since everyone else had entered first, Robin was the last person to arrive. Now everyone would have about half an hour''s time before the banquet began to talk amongst themselves.


    As soon as it seemed that she was allowed to move, Robin nodded her greeting to the King and Queen, and went to go find Christian and Jasmine. In the entire room, those two were the only people she knew at the moment. While she could talk to the king and queen, it didn''t seem proper for a public event like this.


    "Hey, Robin! Did you enjoy your entrance?" Christian chuckled.


    "Chris-ti-an~I wonder who was it who said that I didn''t have to do anything special after entering, hmm?" Robin smiled, but it was not a happy smile. It demanded an explanation.


    "Huh? Er, but that''s normally what happens during the entrance. I didn''t tell you about it?" He asked.


    "You didn''t!" Robin immediately affirmed.


    "Ah, sorry about that, then. I must have forgotten." Christian smiled apologetically. "Please forgive me?" Robin was dazed for a moment as she looked at him, then she shook her head.


    "That''s a no?" Christian chuckled, thinking Robin had a bit of a boyish charm to his actions.


    "Well-." Robin was about to retort.


    "Arah? How mean, cousin! You didn''t even tell poor Robin about the introduction! I thought you''d be a better teacher than that." Jasmine intercepted.


    "You, again! How come you didn''t remind her, then? You were right there in the room, too!" Christian retorted.


    "But, I was asleep. You can''t expect me to pick up on all the mistakes you make when I''m not conscious, can you?" Jasmine raised a quizzical eyebrow.


    "Guh!" Prince Christian had no more excuses. He could only stand there and take the blow to his ego.


    Robin laughed out loud at Christian''s expression. "I suppose I can forgive you for that, then." Robin replied. ''Thank you both for the wonderful entertainment'' Robin thought to herself as she watched the two argue with each other.


    "That reminds me, earlier you said that I would be swarmed, but no one aside from you two have approached me?" Robin asked, cheekily. "Could it be that you were also mistaken about this?"


    Christian stared at her with a look of pity mixed with concern at Robin''s innocence.


    "That''s because it''s just the beginning of the ball. No one wants to look overly ambitious yet. You''ll understand what I mean after the banquet."


    He sighed. This Hero with boyish charms truly was still an innocent youth.


    "Also, don''t promise any of them anything." Christian warned. "If they invite you to their estates, give ambiguous answers. I know you''re shy, but don''t let them pressure you into going anywhere, even if it sounds delightful. Got it?"


    "I know that much!" Robin retorted. It was true. If her parents hadn''t died, she would probably still be a completely brainless idiot. But, with her becoming an orphan, she had to learn a lot of lessons that most people only learn later in life.


    "Looks like our Hero isn''t a forgetful person, unlike a certain someone." Jasmine verbally jabbed at Christian.


    "Yeah, sure! Robin''s quite the upright hero, if a bit unconventional." Christian returned.


    "Hey, you! What do you mean by unconventional?" Robin asked, latching onto Christian''s shoulder with a smile.


    "I mean, how many Heroes have you heard about that can cook as well as our Robin, here?" Christian explained. Robin, satisfied, patted some invisible dust off Christian''s shoulder, a friendlier smile on her face.


    "Actually, they''re quite popular in my world." Robin said. Isekai stories where the main character was good at cooking was on a rising trend at the time she had left.


    "What! Your world has heroes, too?" Christian exclaimed, surprised.

 52 She Finds Nostalgia in a Cup

    "No, but that doesn''t stop stories about heroes from circulating around in my world." Robin replied."Otherwise, I''d have had to ask you what a hero actually is, when I arrived."


    "Robin does have a point, there." Jasmine added. "Like how our stories about wonderful cities where the buildings reach the heavens are only myths, but we still know about them."


    ''Ah. I think she''s talking about skyscrapers...'' Robin realized. But before she could say anything about it, the royal announcer called out.


    "The banquet is ready. Please come in and sit down according to your place card."


    Robin followed Christian and Jasmine inside, looking down the long table set with white and gold porcelain. Everything was set perfectly, and each seat had an ivory place card with the name written in gold ink. Remembering that paper this white was usually used for important business, Robin was impressed.


    "Ah, Robin!" Christian remembered. "Keep ahold of your placecard, and don''t lose it no matter what, got it?"


    "I got it." Robin replied as she searched down the long row of seats and cards.


    "What are you looking for?" Christian asked.


    "My placecard." Robin replied.


    "It''s not going to be down there at the end, Robin. You''re a Hero! You''ll definitely be up here, near the king-"


    "I found it! You''re sitting next to me, Robin!" Jasmine called as she waved at Robin. Jasmine was sitting one seat away from the queen, who sat to the right of the king. Christian sat to the king''s left.


    "What a coincidence, that I''d be able to sit next to you!" Robin greeted cheerfully. She had never really had any friends among girls before, so being able to sit next to someone close to her age, delighted her. She sat down in between the Queen and Jasmine. Christian, who sat across from them, did not look as pleased.


    ''Why are you sitting over there, next to mother?'' he inwardly sulked. ''Are you two going to monopolize him all night!?'' He had finally been able to become friends with the hero, but it felt like Robin was being stolen away from him. Instead, sitting next to Christian was Keith.


    While Christian was obviously not impressed with the seating choice, Keith was relieved. ''Thank goodness I''m not sitting next to that psycho-'' SHING! Robin suddenly glanced at Keith, which made him halt his thoughts for a moment. ''N-next to that bright and upright lad.'' At that point, even Keith''s thoughts were restrained.


    The first course was a potato cheddar soup with a garnish of parsley. Then the dishes that followed were: melting potatoes, Roast deer and potatoes, radish onion soup with potato bread rolls, and lightly tossed salad with a side of small steamed buttered potato. By the end of everything, because of the potatoes, everyone was feeling quite full.


    So, when the dessert dishes came out, no one desired to eat any more. Each dish had a single cream puff surrounded by four meringue cookies in four different colors of green, pink, white, and purple. The green one was flavored with pistacchio. The pink one was flavored with powdered strawberry; the purple one with powdered blueberry. And the white one was the ordinary flavor.


    Ponshieu made an announcement.


    "I know you''re all wondering why I cooked so many filling things for you tonight. You may even think you cannot eat another bite. Well, with this otherwordly confectionary, I will prove you wrong! Even if you are completely full right now, surely everyone can try a nibble of it, right? I would ask you to please try the white meringue cookie."


    "These are cookies!" One of the noblewomen exclaimed. "I thought they were whipped cream!"


    While many of them couldn''t stand to look at the cream puff, the smaller white puff looked possible to nibble on. Many of the noblewomen decided to give it a try.


    "Oh!"


    "My goodness!"


    "This practically melts in your mouth!"


    The others, seeing their reactions, became curious, and also gave it a taste.


    "By the throne! This is ingenious!" A Nobleman said, before he began eating the other cookies.


    Altogether too soon, everyone found their plates empty of the delectable treats. They could only look at the larger cream puff in the center of the plate.


    "Is that...pudding?"


    "I''m much too full for pudding, thank you."


    It seemed like no one wanted to eat any more.


    But, one person did venture to eat again. Robin smiled and picked up the dumpling-sized treat, and popped it into her mouth.


    "You don''t have to force yourself, Robin. Everyone else is refraining from eating this, too, so it''s not a breach of ettiquette." Jasmine said, sympathetically.


    Robin chewed slowly, savoring the flavor, before swallowing the rejected pastry.


    "I''m not forcing myself, Jasmine. These pastries are from my own special recipe book. I guarantee that no one here will feel even a single bite fuller even if they eat five of these." Robin explained.


    The nobles who heard that also became curious about the offending pastry. A pastry introduced by the Hero, himself?


    ''Even if I bust, I''m going to taste it!'' was the now prevalent thought running through the heads of the nobles. Many of them decided to take small bites of it at a time, but after having a bite, they quickly finished off the cream-filled puff pastry. Despite being completely full, nobody felt that they had overeaten at all.


    After the plates had been cleared, good wines were taken out, along with some complementary snacks such as grapes, cheeses, and nuts.


    Robin was also poured a glass of wine from the same bottle that was served to the king. She looked at Jasmine, in surprise. "You can have wine even if you are under twenty-one years of age?" She asked.


    "What are you talking about?" Jasmine chuckled. "Even little children on the streets can drink wine. Don''t tell me there''s a law against drinking in your world?"


    Jasmine''s question was a rhetorical one. However, Robin answered it seriously with a nod.


    "Yeah. It''s the law. No alcohol can be consumed by any one under twenty-one years of age."


    Jasmine was shocked. "Well, auds badlins, Robin! Why is there such a ridiculous law at all?"


    "It''s too long a tale to tell, although I can say it had a lot to do with politics." Robin replied, eyeing the vermillion drink. Then she made a decision and picked it up by the stem.


    "Oh? You''re drinking it?" Jasmine asked.


    "There is a saying where I come from: ''In Rome, do as the Romans do.'' It means to follow the laws and customs of the land you are visiting. Since you have no laws about this, then I''ll have a glass." Robin replied, before taking a sip.


    But that sip was a pandora''s box.


    The flavor was a typical one for red wine, similar to a merlot. But, it was the flavor which reminded Robin of her mother''s home cooking. Her mother didn''t usually use wine in her cooking, but one dish in particular that was the family favorite was her beef stroganoff. In this dish, her mother would usually add more than two cups of wine, which gave it a strong flavor.


    As the nostalgia flooded in, Robin''s eyes began to water. She smiled and sat back in her chair.


    "So? How was your first taste?" Jasmine asked.


    "So, that''s why." Was all that Robin said. But inside her heart, she finally knew the reason why so many people liked to drink such a bitter taste. ''What they drank wasn''t the drink, so much as the nostalgia, the memories, good or bad. They drank feelings in the form of drink.''


    After that, Robin didn''t say much. But she did, from time to time, sip from her glass with a somewhat solemn expression, slowly savoring the cheerful, painful memories of good times in the past.


    Perhaps there was a spell on that glass. Or, perhaps, Robin was the one under a spell. All around her, people chattered and talked, but Robin didn''t hear them. It was as if she were suddenly sitting on a different plane than they. All she did was contemplate that glass of wine. However, the moment she placed her emptied glass back down on the table, her quiet spell was broken.


    When the royal announcer called out the end of the banquet, people headed over to the ballrooms for the main event. Robin''s odd mood had caught Christian''s eye. Before she left the table, Christian asked her.


    "Was it that bad?"


    Robin looked at him, and blinked. Then said. "What?"

 53 She Charms the Ladies

    Christian asked again. "The wine, was it that bad? I saw your mouth pucker up like you had tasted something nasty."


    She raised a quizzical eyebrow. "If it truly was bad, then wouldn''t the king have said something?"


    "I know that." Christian rolled his eyes. "But, did you not like the taste of it? That''s Fathe-ahem! That''s his Highness, the King''s, favorite brew."


    Robin thought about it. "No. It wasn''t the wine."


    "Then it was something?" He asked.


    Robin looked at him with a sad smile. "Memories." She said. "Happy, bitter memories."


    Then she stood up, leaving a puzzled Christian behind. How could happy memories be bitter? How could bitter memories be happy? Unfortunately, he didn''t have much time to dwell on the contradiction. He needed to escort Jasmine that night, after all.


    -----------


    Somehow, Robin felt lighter, as if all of a sudden, a great burden was lifted from her. But, that didn''t stop her from being cautious. Christian''s warnings were accurate. In the ten minutes alone that she had been standing there, she had recieved at least twenty invitations to go visit a noble''s estate for some reason or another. At the beginning, she was mobbed, not by women, but by noblemen.


    Well, the women still had to keep a proper sense of decorum. The noblemen could easily approach her with excuses of business.


    "Our estate has the most delicious berries. You should definitely come over and try them, sometime!"


    "I have a son who is around your age. If you''re ever in our province, feel free to drop by. He could use a good friend to steer him on the right track."


    "I''m the owner of The Noble Merchant Company. If you ever need to buy or sell goods, please do come and see us first!"


    And all of them, before they left, asked her to dance with their sister/cousin/daughter. However, after that glass of wine, Robin was not quite in a dancing mood. After going for a few rounds just for formalities, and when she could stand it no longer, Robin excused herself to go find the loo.


    But she did not actually go to the loo. Instead, she found a quiet balcony where she could stand and look up at the somewhat large moon. The otherworld''s moon was much larger than the one back on earth. Here, out of sight of anyone, she let the tears fall. How long they fell, she did not know, but eventually, they came to a stop. After letting out the waterfall, Robin stayed there on the balcony, enjoying the night air.


    "You know, if you''re gone too long, people are going to mob Christian again." A voice came from behind her. Robin turned to look. It was Jasmine.


    "What? I can''t find a quiet place to be miserable?" Robin asked.


    "Why are you miserable? Isn''t a banquet a happy thing?" Jasmine asked.


    "Not always." Robin answered placidly. Jasmine noticed the trails of teardrops on her face.


    "Are you homesick?" Jasmine asked.


    "Very. But...the home that I wish to return to....can no longer be found." Robin sighed. "And the one that I could possibly return to has the only important person left for me."


    "I wouldn''t say that, if I were you." Jasmine scolded. "Aunt Emmy and Uncle Zeph would be very sad that you don''t consider this place as your home, too."


    Robin sniffed. "I can''t help it. Whether it''s hormones or heartache, I really can''t cry in front of everyone."


    "Well, at least you have some sense of decorum." Jasmine replied. "Christian was afraid that you had run off back to your rooms, after being mobbed by ladies."


    "Hmm? Was I mobbed by ladies?" Robin asked, not remembering feeling crowded.


    "You were. I even saw you smiling at a few of them." Jasmine pointed out.


    "Oh? Was Christian jealous?" Robin asked, venturing a joke.


    "Very!" Jasmine laughed. "If he wasn''t standing nearby out of concern for you, you would have probably been picked up and carried away by your adoring fans."


    "What?" Robin shivvered at the thought.


    "It''s true! He even ignored me several times in order to keep an eye on you."


    "You make it sound like I am the pinnacle of troublemakers." Robin snorted.


    "No, I leave that title up to my cousin." Jasmine giggled. "You will have to suffice being in third place."


    "What!? Why am I not even in second place?" Robin exclaimed.


    "That''s because Keith has solidly claimed second place for his own." Jasmine''s smiling eyes danced in the flickering of a bonfire in the garden for those who wished to take a walk in the fresh air.


    "I suppose I can''t argue against that!" Robin finally laughed, and her strange mood seemed to melt away. Maybe she couldn''t go back to the golden times she remembered. But that didn''t mean she had to be morose all the time.


    "You better go clean that salt off your face, or someone will thing that I''m bullying you." Jasmine warned cheerfully.


    "What? You? Bully me? Everyone knows that you only save that for your dear cousin, Christian." Robin sniggered, as she dampened her handkerchief with some water from her magic bag. After confirming that all traces of tears had disappeared, they returned to the ballroom.


    -------------------


    Once they returned, Robin was startled, when she was immediately surrounded by ladies.


    "Robin! What took you so long?"


    "You were gone for ages!"


    "We had almost given up hope!"


    Robin smiled.


    "Sorry, about that, ladies. I am still a bit unfamiliar with the castle, so I got lost on my way back. If it weren''t for Magi Jasmine, I would probably still be lost out there."


    "Well thank goodness for that!"


    "Shall we dance, now, Robin?"


    "No, please dance with me, this time!"


    "You? You''ve already danced with him once! Make way for those who haven''t!"


    The ladies began to fight amongst themselves over who would dance with the Hero. Robin didn''t know whether to laugh or to cry. So, this is what he meant by ''swarms''....


    Jasmine had retreated back to Prince Christian''s side, as he chatted pleasantly with the more elderly noblemen.


    "You owe me one, now." She murmured at his side, so that only he could hear.


    "Fine, we''ll talk later." Christian replied in a similar low murmur.


    Robin was worried about how to break up the fighting, when suddenly, she had an idea.


    "Ladies, please. If there is any fighting to be done, it must be me against the evils of this world! Don''t marr your beautiful appearances with ugly words and sour faces. After all, a virtuous lady is not quick to offend or to take offense."


    ''Bleck. If it was not necessary, I would never say such sappy words.'' Robin inwardly cringed. It sounded like something that some host from a club would say. But, it was the only way to solve things peacefully among the excited ladies.


    Instantly, all of the ladies present began trying their best to display how good of a lady they could be.


    "After you."


    "No no, after you."


    "Miss Campbel, would you like to accompany me over to the refreshments table to grab a glass of lemon water?"


    "It would be my honor! Thank you very much, Miss Maria."


    The idol phenomenon which Robin had only heard of was unfolding before her eyes, even as she stood there. Robin could only smile and laugh as she thought. ''Robin used cajollery. It''s super effective!''


    "Then, Hero, whom do you wish to dance with?" One of the ladies asked. But, before Robin could answer, she was interrupted by the sound of a scuffle nearby.


    "Wait, what are you-oof!"


    "Yikes, Danny! You just pushed your own sister over!" A young voice exclaimed.


    "It''s her own fault for running at me like that! I just meant to make her stop, not fall over!" A begrudging voice answered.


    Robin approached the voices, and when she saw what had happened, she spoke with a stern repproval.


    "And you think that intentions are all that matters when it comes to your actions?"


    The youth, Danny turned around to argue, but when he realized who was speaking, his face turned white. "H-Hero!" He stuttered. Danny and his friend appeared to be around ten years old, while the younger sister, who was in tears on the ground seemed to be only eight or nine.


    Robin glanced pointedly at Danny, then got down on one knee, to help the young girl stand up.


    "Are you all right?" Robin asked, concerned. "Can you stand?"


    The young girl felt like she was dreaming. The Hero had come to rescue her from her embarassment and misery like a prince on a white horse. The actual Prince Christian was standing not too far away, observing the event. ''You, Robin...you''re even going to charm little girls, now?'' Was what he thought.


    The girl nodded. "I...I''m alright. I was just...just...upset." She took Robin''s hand to get up.


    Robin smiled kindly. "That''s good."


    Then she turned to Danny and his friend. "Well, Danny?" She asked, indicating that she was waiting for something.

 54 She Teaches a Lesson in Cherishing Family

    Danny didn''t understand.


    "Well, what?" He asked, defensively. "She''s the one who fell over."


    Robin sighed, disapointedly. Not everyone could be like her older brother, after all.


    "You don''t know what you should be doing?" She prompted again.


    "I didn''t do anything wrong!" Danny replied. "Why should I do anything?"


    Robin looked at him. "Must you do something wrong, in order to do something right?" She asked as she dried the girl''s tears with her handkerchief. "Regardless of whether it was her fault, or yours, what do you think you should be doing for your younger sister? Can you really just stand by as she is troubled? Are you really her older brother?"


    Robin''s last question was accompanied by her frown. But, soon enough, she smiled slyly.


    "Think about it. Depending on your answer, I may or may not decide to take her away to have as my own younger sister, instead. Come and speak with me, if you wish to give your answer."


    "Wha-" Danny wanted to ask Robin what she meant, when Robin promptly ignored him, and turned towards the little girl.


    "Little sister, what is your name?" She asked with a gentle smile.


    "H-Helen." The girl replied.


    "Well, little sister Helen, crying is such a tiring business, right? Why don''t we leave your foolish brother behind and go get something sweet to drink?" Helen nodded, and smiled. Robin had guessed right that she had a sweet tooth.


    Then Robin turned to the ladies, whose faces had turned red as they imagined themselves being in Helen''s place.


    "I''m sorry, ladies. But I must accompany my new little sister for tonight. I beg your pardon."


    "No, no, that''s fine. We are content just watching." Replied one lady, whose nose threatened to bleed. The other ladies nodded their heads as they settled down to watch the adorable display that was taking place between Robin and the young girl.


    Danny stood there shocked, as Robin led the young girl away towards the sweets table. His little sister could be taken away? He didn''t notice Robin glancing at his parents, Judge Grant and Lady Mena, and winking at them with a hushing motion. While they were concerned at the beginning, they realized what the Hero was trying to do, and nodded, agreeing to play along.


    The surrounding noblemen also figured out what Robin was up to. She was trying to teach the young lad a lesson on cherishing family. They gathered around to watch the show.


    Danny went back to his parents and asked. "Mother? Father? Can a younger sister be stolen away?"


    "Stolen? Why do you ask?" Danny''s mother questioned, in surprise.


    "Because someone said that they were stealing Helen away to be their own little sister instead of mine!" Danny blurted out. "They can''t do that, can they!?"


    "Hmm. Well, it''s uncommon, but you can''t say there isn''t a precedent for it. If a noble of higher rank should agree to adopt a noble of lower rank to become their relative, first there needs to be a good reason." Danny''s father explained.


    "A...good reason?" Danny''s voice faltered.


    "Yes. For instance, if the lower rank did something of vital importance to the higher rank, or if the lower rank experienced neglect from her family members." Danny''s father explained. "Of course, that would never happen with our own family. After all, we have you, her older brother, to help us to look after her when we''re busy, right?"


    "R-right." Danny''s head drooped, as he began to feel guilty, also aware of the many eyes that were on them right then.


    "So? Who was it who wanted to take away our daughter to become their little sister?" Danny''s mother asked.


    "T-the Hero."


    The two parents looked at each other, then nodded.


    "The Hero!? The honest-to-goodness, evil-slaying, pastry-cooking, sword-wielding Hero?" Father exclaimed, looking excited.


    "Oh my! If it''s the Hero, then my little darling will surely be in good hands." Danny''s mother nodded. "Just imagine, if we wanted to get her back, we''d have to fight the Hero over it! I can''t imagine your father winning over the Hero''s superior sword skills. It looks like Helen is going to become Hero Robin''s little sister, after all..."


    Danny''s eyes were filling with tears. "W-what am I gonna do, mother?" He asked.


    Danny''s mother looked at him. "What do you mean, what are you going to do?"


    "I don''t want my little sister to become someone else''s!" Danny exclaimed, red-faced. "Not even if it''s the Hero!"


    "Hmm..." Danny''s father put on a pondering face.


    "What is it, dear?" Danny''s mother asked.


    "There was one case, I recall, where the noble of higher rank was not able to adopt the one of lesser rank..." Danny''s father said.


    "Really!? What happened?" Danny saw a spark of hope in his father''s words. "Why not?"


    "Well, when the family of the one who would be adopted realized that they might lose her, they regretted what they had done, and apologized to her, promising to never again treat her badly. The young lady decided to forgive them. After all, she still dearly loved her family, despite the grief they had caused her. It was only because she had had no other choice that she had almost agreed to become the greater noble''s younger sister."


    "Then, all that I need to do is apologize?" Danny asked.


    "Not so fast. Even after she decided to reject the great noble''s offer, he retreated. But, he left a promise that, if ever the family were to mistreat the young lady again, he would be back again to take her away. In other words, they had to treat the young lady nicely forever after that, or else she might decide to leave." Danny''s father interrrupted.


    Danny''s face fell a bit. He wasn''t sure if he would be able to treat his sister nicely forever. ...But...but..he couldn''t just stand there and let his sister get taken away! He marched over to where Robin had taken little Helen.


    They had moved from the refreshments table to a seated area for tired dancers. Helen was beaming as brilliant as a princess, while Robin had her seated on the most comfortable chair piled with pillows and told her funny stories to make her laugh. Danny felt odd, seeing his sister so happy like that. Had he ever done anything to make her smile? It seemed like he had only done such things back when she was just a little baby.


    He felt ashamed. he regretted not caring for her. Instead of pushing her away, he should have hugged her, to make sure that she didn''t fall and get hurt. Hero Robin was right. But, Danny wasn''t going to let him steal his sister away just because of that.


    Helen grew quiet when she saw Danny nearby. She looked at him, wondering what he was going to do. Danny''s face grew red.


    "Why are you so quiet now?" Robin asked. Then she turned her head to see Danny standing there.


    "Oh. It''s you again." She sniffed disdainfully. "Well, kid? Do you know what you did wrong? You only have one chance to answer, or else I will be getting an adorable new sister."


    Danny stood there for a moment, everyone''s eyes were on him. He ducked his head.


    "I-I was wrong. As the older brother, I''m supposed to protect and take good care of my sister. I''m supposed to make sure that she is happy, and keep her safe from harm. But, not only did I neglect to do that, I even refused to comfort her when she was hurt."


    Danny looked up at Helen, as tears began to fall. "I-I have failed as an older brother. A-and I am really sorry!" He blustered out. "C-can you ever forgive me, little sister?"


    Helen''s eyes were wide in surprise. She had never seen her older brother like this before. Robin was silent for a moment as she stared long and hard at Danny. Then she turned to Helen. "Well? What do you think? Is his answer good enough?"


    Helen was silent for a long moment. But, then she got up out of the soft pillows and stood up from her chair. She walked over to Danny, and took out her handkerchief.


    "Don''t cry, Danny. I forgive you!" She said. Then she walked over to Robin and curtseyed to the best of her abilities.


    "Thank you very much, Hero Robin. But, I think my older brother, Danny, needs me more than you do." Robin smiled and patted the top of Helen''s head.


    "A pity. I''ve never had a little sister before." Then Robin stood up and gave Helen a bow.


    "Thank you, my little lady, for being my little sister for this evening."


    Helen smiled with a blush, and ran back to her older brother Danny.


    Robin looked at Danny, with a frown. "Young man, you better take good care of your sister. If you don''t then I''ll never forgive you!"


    Danny was surprised, but he nodded his head solemnly. "I definitely will, Hero Robin!" He said, finally breaking out into a wonderful smile.


    Robin nodded. "It''s a promise, then."


    At this, the entire room burst out in applause as the red-faced siblings ran off through the crowds back to their parents.

 55 She Performs-Its a Secret-Part 1

    "Haah... I was rejected." Robin slumped back on the couch, feigning heartbreak.


    "Cheer up, Hero Robin! I can be your younger sister!" One of the young ladies said.


    "Me too!"


    "And me~!"


    "Do you have an opening for an older sister?"


    As soon as Helen left, Robin was once more surounded by the ladies. But, this time, instead of it being about who would be dancing with him, it was about who would become his cherished younger sister. Robin shook his head.


    "Nonsense! She was my cherished little sister, after all! How can I even think about replacing her?" While many of the ladies were disappointed, they were also touched at Robin''s display. To become the little sister of the Hero was to become an irreplaceable existence to Him. Many young ladies envied little Helen for her place in Robin''s heart. But, they all agreed that they would keep the touching scenes that night within their hearts to treasure.


    It wasn''t long afterwards that a book began making its way around the group of young noblewomen, containing a detailed, and exaggerated account of that night. Of course, fiction would differ from reality. But, even with the altered ending, it was the best-selling novel within the capitol.


    Nearby, Prince Christian chuckled. "That sly man." Not only had Robin avoided dancing with anymore of the ladies and managed to get away with it; he also managed to fend off the ladies vying for his favor. Robin surely was a man who was full of surprises.


    And here, Christian had worried about him. Now he felt relieved, and also a bit jealous. Robin''s abilities in handling the situation were more skilled than the kingdom''s diplomats.


    "Jealous?" Jasmine asked. "I heard Robin''s family used to be a great merchant family. And here, I thought they were all greedy no-good toads. Now it seems that I''ll have to change my opinion, if they are even half as good as Robin, over there." She sighed and absentmindedly twisted a lock of her coppery red hair.


    "Hmm." Christian didn''t say anything. But, he did notice Keith approaching Robin dodging skillfully through the melee of girls surrounding her. When he finally arrived at the back of Robin''s seat, Robin didn''t even turn back to look at him.


    "Is it done?" She asked, surrounded by colorful hair and blushing cheeks.


    "It''s done." Keith replied.


    "Good." Robin smiled a bit. "You have my thanks."


    Keith was about to say something else, but he was butted out of the womens halo surrounding Robin''s chair quite harshly. As the topic was nothing really important, Keith decided to wait until later. He smiled, ruefully, and made his way away from the whirlwind of skirts, lace and bows.


    By now, the moon had risen to its highest height that night, and was beginning to descend. It was late into the evening at half past eleven. Yet the party was still going on.


    "But, really, Hero! We can all see that you don''t have the heart to dance anymore with anyone, but don''t think, just because you have a broken heart, that we can let you go so easily." One of the more charismatic women announced, while fanning herself. The ladies all agreed. No one wanted to see the hero dancing with anyone else.


    "Oh? Then what would you suggest?" Robin asked.


    "A performance! It can be singing, dancing, reciting poetry, playing an instrument, or telling a story. We won''t let you go if we''re not satisfied, though~." The charismatic woman smiled.


    "A performance?" Robin asked. The ladies all around nodded quite enthusiastically, all in agreement. Robin turned to Christian and raised a quizzical eyebrow to ask if such things were common. Christian nodded, indicating that it was fine.


    "...Very well, then. But, what shall I do?" Robin thought to herself. The typewriter performance was definitely not possible. And Robin hadn''t learned an instrument. Although her voice was okay, she couldn''t think of any songs that seemed appropriate for the current venue.


    "Ah, there was that!" Robin remembered. It was something she and her brother cooked up for a school performance for the talent show night during her senior year in high school. Of course, she needed to change a few parts, but on the whole it should do nicely.


    "All right, I''ll perform something you''ve probably never seen before. But I need to prepare a bit, first." Robin said, as she headed over to the orchestra, to talk to the musicians.


    "Is he going to dance?"


    "I think, rather, that he''s going to sing."


    "He could also be asking to borrow an instrument."


    The girls chattered amongst themselves as they wondered precisely what it was that Robin was going to perform. After speaking with the maestro for a few minutes and looking through some sheets of music, Robin pointed out a few of them, and they agreed upon the arrangement. Then Robin turned around to face the crowd that had gathered about.


    "Hello, there! Can everyone hear me?" Robin asked. The chattering audience applauded, but soon became quiet to hear what she had to say.


    "This being the first ball that I''ve been to, I have had quite the night. Dancing, getting lost in the castle, gaining a new sister...losing said new sister." At this, the audience chuckled. The two children involved earlier had already fallen asleep on a couch, so they were blissfully unaware of anything that was happening.


    Robin shook her head. "And now, I have been told I won''t be let off by the ladies without a performance. Now, I''m quite sure a lot of you still would like to dance the night away." Another echoing round of chuckling rose from the audience.


    "But, I beseech you, for this next twenty minutes, could you lend me the orchestra for my performance? If I have your permission, please give me your applause."


    The sound that rose up in the ballroom was deafening like thunder. But it was not thunder. it was the sound of every single hand in that room applauding.


    Robin waved at them, trying to get them to stop. "Are you trying to sprain all fo your hands? No need to clap so hard, I can hear you loud and clear." Then put a hand to her ear and grimaced. "...Well, I COULD." At this, the audiences laughed.


    "Oh, you think this is funny, don''t you?" Robin looked about, an incredulous expression underneath her mask. "Well, I can say that my ears don''t!" Another round of laughter broke out.


    "Well, let''s just see how this night goes. On to the performance!" Robin announced and turned around.


    However, off to the side, one of the ladies interrupted.


    "But, Hero Robin! What exactly are you performing today? You haven''t given us a name, or even what kind of performance it is!"


    Robin turned back about, and looked at her, then sent a sweeping gaze at the audience.


    "You want to know the name of my performance?" She asked.


    "Yes! Very much so!"


    Robin smiled and leaned forward as if she were going to whisper it.


    "IT''S A SECRET!" Robin''s voice boomed out. Then Robin once more turned around and jumped onto a small raised platform behind the orchestra and turned to face the audience.


    "Now, I am going to tell you a certain story about an entire kingdom that had been put under a spell for one whole day, and one very strange occurence that also happened during that one day." Robin began to narrate. The young ladies in the audience all realized. ''Ah, he''s going to tell us a story!''


    "The king of that kingdom was not as wise as our king. Nor was his son, the prince, even half as beloved as our prince. That prince was very mischievous. How much? If he did not do at least three hundred acts of mischief in a day, the castle guards and maids would think he were falling ill. That was how mischievous this prince was. Everyone learned to beware when they heard the rat-a-tat tapping of his shoes on the floor."


    At this, the orchestra began to play. Everyone in the room knew the song. it was usually played long and slow, like a dirge. But, this time, by kicking the tempo up, it had turned from something boring into something light-hearted and jumpy.


    Alongside the music, Robin started tap-tap-taping her boots, and suddenly broke out into tap-dancing around on the stage. While she danced, she periodically called out in different voices about the things the prince had done that day.


    "Argh! Someone has switched the salt and sugar pots!"


    Aiyaah! What tripped me? What''s this? The linens have been stretched across the dorway like a rope!"


    "The royal horses have escaped the stables!"


    "Who switched my beer out for lemonade?"


    "Hey, who stole my pie-wha! Hey, who THREW my pie at me!"


    She continued to call out. The geese stampeded, the cats ran about with firecrackers tied to their tails; the dogs were herded into the chicken coop, and the chickens went to nest in the soldiers barracks. It was a mess. The audience also had its fair share of chuckling.


    "Prince!"


    "Prince!"


    "Prince!"


    At the last time, she waved at the audience to get them to say it along with her.


    ""PRINCE!"" The audience was only too happy to oblige.


    The song soon ended, and Robin stopped tap dancing, returning to her naration.

 56 She Performs-Its a Secret-Part 2

    "The king was at his wits end, trying to deal with all of the trouble that the little prince caused him. The royal queen had passed away five years before, and there was no one who could stand this child for more than five minutes." Robin explained.


    "Finally, he invited the wisest, most-powerful magician in the country to come and advise him on what he should do. The wise old magician agreed. Even though his old bones creaked, his mind was still sharp, and his experience, deep. But, as soon as he stepped through that door, what did he hear approaching from the distance?"


    The orchestra started up again, playing the little prince''s song, and Robin tap-danced along as she called out the different voices. The Prince had put pepper in the hand-washing water, frogs in the bathtub, the royal treasurer''s glasses on the marble statue of his father, and let loose hundreds of bunny rabbits throughout the entire castle. When the song ended, Robin returned to her naration.


    "As he laughed at the display of the guards and maids chasing the rabbits, he turned around to see whom else he could prank. His eyes soon settled upon the intruding unfamiliar figure, the magician!"


    The ladies all held a hand up to their mouths as they imagined what would happen next.


    "The young prince walked straight up to the magician pretending to be a page boy. ''Hello!'' He said. ''Are you looking for someone?''


    The old magician smiled down at the lad and replied. ''Why, yes I am. Do you know where the king is right now?''


    ''The king?'' The Prince asked, then looked as if he were scared. ''Um...his location is a secret.''


    ''Do you know who would know where he is?'' The magician asked.


    ''That is also a secret.'' The prince replied with a straight face.


    ''What''s your name, boy?'' the magician asked, frowning.


    ''That is also a secret.'' The Prince replied cheerfully.


    The old magician was not a fool. His face grew dark as he soon realized what was going on. Stroking his long white beard, he announced to the Prince.


    ''Very well. Since you cannot answer me in honesty, then that will be all that you can answer. From now on, you cannot speak any other words.'' The old magician uttered as he smote his staff upon the ground." Robin stomped her foot loudly, and the drums in the orchestra sounded like thunder.


    "Then the magician waved his hand, and magical light swirled around the prince.


    ''If pranking''s all that you can do,


    your nose will grow out longer, too!


    The words you spoke mischievously,


    will be the only words you say!


    Until you learn this lesson, true,


    Your people won''t remember you."


    "And, with that, the magician disappeared." Robin said. The rumbling of drums stopped, all was quiet within the room.


    "But he was not gone. He was simply unable to be seen. The prince checked his nose to see if it was longer, but it wasn''t. ''Hmmph! Scare tactics don''t work on me! My father will definitely get you to undo anything you have done to me!'' He thought as he continued on his way to look around and see who else he could prank. The old magician sighed. ''It has begun.'' he muttered as he followed from a distance."


    Once again, Robin detailed the many pranks the young prince set up in advance for all the maids and guards in the castle, whose schedules he knew like the back of his hand. Scattering marbles down the main hallway, setting water buckets atop every door, placing glue on every council room seat, setting loose all the messenger pigeons into the audience hall: the young prince''s pranking efforts did not grow lighter, but heavier.


    When he had finished setting everything up. He moved to the hidden room next to the council room to await the hordes of now gullible maids and servants to encounter his great wave of pranks.


    "Then, the king arrived." Robin said. The trumpets in the orchestra sounded out a royal march as Robin now stood up straight from her crouching on the floor, and put on the persona of the King.


    "''Ahem! Councillors, please sit.'' The King invited. And the councillors all sat down, not knowing that they had already fallen for one of the prince''s pranks." Robin raised a bemused eyebrow at the audience, and some of the young ladies stifled their giggles as they recalled the prince had previously placed glue on all the council room chairs.


    "The Prince placed his eye up to a peephole, which was cleverly disguised as a painting of a Hero of the kingdom. He wanted to see the councilmen''s faces when they found out what had happened. But, the prince didn''t realize that, just as they all sat down, maids and servants throughout the castle began falling for the Prince''s pranks left and right.


    "Starting with the laundry maid, many of the maids servants departing to do their duties ended up slipping on the hallway floor marbles. When they finally managed to find their way to their assigned rooms, the opening of the doors ended up getting them all drenched as the water buckets fell on top of them.


    "Shrieks and yelling came from the main hall, as the knights that just finished shooing the rabbits outside of the castle, discovered the messenger pigeons flying about the audience hall. What the Prince didn''t realize was that his nose was actually growing longer. All at once, it burst out of the painting he had been looking through, and smacked right into the king''s seat from behind."


    "OW!"


    At this, Robin made a shocked expression, and rubbed her nose, and the audience laughed uproariously.


    "''Guards! Grab the eavesdropper hiding behind the royal seat!'' The King announced. And, when they approached the poor prince, he tried to draw away from the painting, but his nose was so long that he could no longer get it out again. Then, when the council men tried to stand up, they realized their breeches had been glued to the chairs,making them unable to move, unless they wanted to bring the heavy council chair around on their back. Even the King was not exempted.


    "However, this only served to make the prince''s plight more pitiful, as his nose once more grew longer, and pinned him to the back wall of the secret room. Thus, suspended between the king''s chair, and the wall, he was unable to escape being caught by the soldiers. But, even they were at a loss for how to extricate the young boy from the wall. For, his nose truly was so long that, even if they did manage to get him out of that room, they wouldn''t be able to get him out the door.


    "Thus, seeing the lad wasn''t going anywhere, the soldiers had no choice but to turn to the councilmen and help them extricate themselves from their predicaments. There were many sets of clothes that were ruined that day, but every councilmen there received a large cloak that covers the entire body. The king, since he was wearing the royal robe, was the only one able to escape the predicament by unclasping it from about his neck.


    "Then, in his second-best royal robe, he finally confronted the child. By this time, they had managed to moved the royal seat, and the hero''s painting, which had been previously pierced through by the poor prince. This enabled everyone to peer into the room that no one had known about before this.


    The king, seeing the child''s predicament, couldn''t help but ask. ''Heavens, child! Why is your nose so long?''


    "''I-It''s a secret!'' The Prince cried out, now scared that he might actually have to spend his whole life in there. But, then he stopped, puzzled. ''It''s a secret?...It''s a secret!? It''s a se-e-e-creeet?''" Robin pantomimed the prince, trying to sound as surprised and confused as possible.


    At this, the audience laughed. Now they finally understood what Robin had meant earlier, when she had answered the young lady''s query. It wasn''t that Robin had wanted to keep the title a secret. It was that the very title of the performance was ''It''s a secret''.


    "The young prince was shocked! He couldn''t say anything but those three words!? The king had sharp eyes. Seeing the young lad''s shocked face, and looking at his long nose that seemingly sprouted out of nowhere, the King held up a hand, motioning the boy to be silent.


    "''It seems that, by all appearances, you are under a spell?'' The king asked. When the prince opened his mouth to answer, The king shook his head. ''No need to try and speak, but, if you could somehow indicate yes or no, that would be appreciated.''


    "The young prince nodded enthusiastically, and his nose smacked down onto the council room''s table, making a loud noise, which caused the prince to tear up as his nose was once more in pain."


    The audience once more chuckled as they imagined just how long the prince''s nose had to be in order to get that far.


    "''I take it that your nose hasn''t always been this way?'' The king asked, but had to duck down when the young prince shook his head, smacking several councilmen on their own heads. Trust me, it is no pleasant expreienced being suddenly smacked on the head by a nose." Robin sighed, and shook her head, which elicited another round of laughter from her audience.

 57 She Performs-Its a Secret-Part 3

    Robin waited until the laughter died down, and the orchestra began playing a soft melody that marched steadily, though quietly, forward.


    "''Let''s keep the head movements to a minimum. If it''s yes, then give us a thumbs up. If it''s no, then give us a thumbs down.'' The king replied. When the prince was about to nod his agreement, he paused, then gave a thumbs up.


    "''But, still, how did you get past the gates? Is there anyone here who brought a child in with them?'' The king asked. Yet, all of the councilors shook their heads. The royal guard also reported in, saying that there were no records of a child entering at the castle gates that day.


    "Did you sneak in?" The king asked.


    The prince gave a thumbs down.


    "Is one of your parents here?" The king asked. The prince gave a thumbs up.


    "Is he in this room?" Thumbs up.


    "Is he one of the guards?" Thumbs down.


    "One of the council members?" Thumbs up. The king ran through the entire list of councilmen, yet, every single one received a thumbs down.


    "That''s all of them! Are you sure your father is here?" the king asked. Thumbs up.


    "Who is he? Point to him!" the king finally ran out of patience. The prince pointed to the king.


    "Me!?! Wouldn''t I already know if that were the case?" The king asked, amused. ''Although...he does resemble my beloved wife¡­''


    "Could it be possible that you are my nephew?" He asked. The prince once more gave a thumbs down.


    "Don''t toy with me, child! There''s no way that you''re my son! How on earth would I forget the child of my own wife!?! Do you know I can have you hung for defamation!" The king began to get angry."


    Robin, who was playing as the prince, paused, as if thinking about how to explain things. She pointed to her nose, and then motioned it growing. Then she pointed to where the ''king'' would be standing, and, using her other hand, pointed to her own head, tilting it to the side as if she couldn''t understand something. Finally, she waved her hand about suggestively, as if she were going to cast magic. After that, she moved back into the king''s spot.


    "Magic? You''re saying that someone used magic to make us forget about you!?" Thumbs up.


    "Nonsense! All the best magicians in the kingdom are protecting this place. There''s no way that an enemy magician can make it past our allies!" The prince simply looked at the king, and raised an encouraging eyebrow.


    "Was it an enemy magician?" the king asked. Thumbs down. "But, it was a magician, right?" Thumbs up. "An allied magician?" Thumbs up.


    "Why would one of our own magicians cast a spell on us?" the king asked.


    The prince paused and placed his thumb behind his back, guiltily.


    "...It''s a secret?" The prince said, looking completely suspicious. The king eyed the prince, then slowly began to form an idea. The audience chuckled already guessing what was going to happen next.


    "Perhaps...you didn''t manage to upset one of them, did you?" The prince flinched. While he was good at pranking folks, he wasn''t that good at telling lies.


    "It''s a secret!" the prince asserted." At this, the audience once more burst out into a hearty round of laughter.


    "So, you angered a magician, and he cast a spell on you, huh?" the king pondered. At that point, one of the guards came in and reported the results of what had happened outside the council room.


    "What!? Could it be that you angered a pixie horde instead?!" He asked the prince. The prince enthusiastically gave a thumbs down.


    "Is this also a part of the spell?"


    The prince was not sure how to answer that, so he tilted his thumb sideways, and jiggled it a bit.


    The pranks did not originate from the spell, so he could not say yes. But, the pranks weren''t uninvolved, either, so he could not say no. Aside from the outrageous pranking, the prince really wasn''t a bad sort of boy, after all.


    The king noticed the prince''s hesitance. "It is not a consequence of the spell? Then, perhaps ¡­.don''t tell me that you angered the wizard as a result of these pranks!?"


    The prince twitch, and wiped the sweat off his forehead, awkwardly not meeting the king''s eyes.


    "It appears that this is the case¡­" The king sighed. The prince did not understand how the king knew what had happened.


    "You don''t understand how I know this?" the king chuckled. "It''s true that I don''t remember you, but you''re the mirror image of your mother when she was your age. She was a cunning trickster, but a horrible liar. It''s only now that I see you, that I remember that side of her..."


    The king stroked his beard in thought. "So, what kind of prank did you play on the magician to make him so made."


    The prince pointed to his mouth. "It''s a secret." he sighed.


    The king raised an eyebrow at that, and pondered. "While I''m not sure exactly what you did, the only thing you can do at this point is to give up and apologize."


    The prince looked at the king, then tilted his head to the side, as if he didn''t quite understand. He pointed to his mouth and said pointedly. "It''s. A. See-cret."


    "I don''t know how you''re going to do so, but you''ll get it done, or you''ll have to live the rest of your life staring at these four walls. But, I can tell you this: if it''s not resolved by the end of the day, i''ll summon the royal executioner to come in and chop your nose right off." the king retorted.


    The prince grabbed his nose, protectively. But it was far too long for his small hands to cover the whole long length of it.


    "Also, after that, you''re going to apologize to all the people here in the castle whom you''ve pranked, one by one. I''m not sure how bad your previous pranks were, but, judging by your most recent ones, they were most likely way over the top!" the king ordered.


    "This you will accomplish diligently, or else you really are no son of mine." he said, before retiring to a nearby parlor.


    The councilmen and guards all left the boy alone in the room, since there was no way he could escape with his current nose length.


    When no one else was in sight, the prince sat down, and pondered over his plight. He didn''t want to apologize to the grumpy old wizard. But he also did not want his nose to be cut off, and disfigure his face. Soon enough, teardrops started to fall as he began to cry.


    "Oh why didn''t I leave things well enough alone? At least, if I had stopped my pranking spree after lunch, then now I wouldn''t be stuck here having to worry about my nose being cut off! How will I ever find that old man again?" the youth thought to himself as he sat there and cried.


    "It''s a secret.." -I''m sorry..


    "It''s a secret." -I''m really sorry.


    "It''s-It''s a secre-het!" - I-I''m really so-ho-rry!


    The old magician, who was still invisible, watched the boy cry. He wanted to know whether this was all an act, or if he was really, truly repentant. When the sobs began to dwindle, the old man silently released his invisibility spell.


    The old man did not speak harshly nor softly, nor warmly nor cooly. Instead, he asked in a slow, measured voice.


    "Well, boy? I''ll give you one chance, and suspend the spell for a minute. What do you have to say for yourself?"


    The youth glanced up, looking somewhat lost. "I...I...I''m sorry! I shouldn''t have made fun of you. A-and I shouldn''t have done all those things to trouble everyone! I guess that even when I''m having fun, that I have to make sure not to have it at everyone''s expense...The truth is, I do know where the king is, and I do know who would know where the king is, because I am his son, the prince! And I definitely do not want to get my nose cut off!"


    All the words that had been bundled up inside of him fell out of his mouth at that moment.


    "Good. See that you remember your answer.


    A small prank here and there is not a problem. But too much of anything is a bad thing.


    For now, I shall accept your apology.


    But, be careful... Should you forget this lesson, your nose might grow much, much longer."


    And, with that, the wizard really did disappear. The prince looked around, then raised his hand up to his nose. What joy he felt when he found that it was right back to it''s lovably small size.


    He nearly jumped for joy. Then he went around to all the servants and knights to apologize. He helped the laundry maid gather the scattered clothing in the hall-picking up every last marble, and helped the knights catch all the messenger pigeons. He carefully removed the glue from the councilroom''s chairs, and placed all the buckets back by the well, where they belonged.


    In fact, that young man found he had a talent for taming animals, and inventing things. He later on became known far and wide as a wise, benevolent ruler, in times of peace,and an absolute terror to his enemies in times of war.


    And some of you may ask the question, ''did he truly learn his lesson''? Well¡­.I''m afraid¡­.that that''s a secret."


    Robin finished her story, with a finger over her smiling lips as she winked mischievously at the audience. After a long moment, everyone broke out into thunderous applause, as Robin''s story received a standing ovation.

 58 She Finally Leaves the Capital

    As the clapping from the audience died down, the clocks began to toll the midnight bell. Robin returned to ground level and was once more surrounded by both ladies and men alike. Although many nobles were fine with staying up all hours of the night, Robin found her eyes drooping, and her attention span waning with every passing minute. Quite frankly, she was exhausted.


    ''Has my internal time clock not caught up yet?'' She thought to herself as she once more started awake, struggling to keep her eyes open. Usually, she was fine staying up until 3 or even 4am in the morning on weekends. But tonight, she couldn''t last much longer than just past midnight.


    Christian only noticed Robin''s plight when he saw her almost fall to the floor as she actually fell asleep standing up. He chuckled, good-naturedly, and made his way over to Robin, grabbing his shoulders before Robin actually did fall over.


    ''Hmm? This young man...'' Christian was surprised. ''He is actually much lighter than I imagined!'' Typical Christian: he didn''t notice a thing, even with the close proximity. Of course, the fact that Jasmine was watching him, mentally wishing for him to remain completely dense on that matter, didn''t aid Christian''s mental capacities in the slightest.


    "Sorry, everyone." The Prince apologized. "It has been a long day, and those of us who are a part of the delegate are in need of proper rest beforehand. Please excuse us from the rest of the party." Robin, who woke up a bit at that point, also nodded in agreement with Christian''s words, allowing him to escort her out, alongside Jasmine-who was leading Robin by her other arm.


    Although Prince Christian asked them to continue without them, since the mvp of the party had retired, it wasn''t long before the other nobles began to withdraw. King Zephron, knowing this would happen, allowed it. Soon enough, everyone had gone home, leaving the ballroom empty once more.


    --------------


    That night, a dark figure eyed the patrolling guards atop the castle walls from the shadow of a rooftop chimney. It was not the first time that he had taken a request. But it was indeed the first time he had taken a request that needed him to infiltrate the castle. Moreover, this was just one out of many such requests about the same target.


    Surely, there were probably several other people like him who would be aiming for the same target, trying to record the hero''s real face under his mask. His hand clenched around the magic eye he had bought for this very occasion. His wallet was still feeling the sting after he forked over so much money. He had to ensure that his mission was completed tonight.


    He waited until the patrolmen had passed this section of the wall, then quickly sent out a grappling rope, that latched onto a nearby tower, and swung over the wall, disappearing into the shadows of the tower, again.


    Unknown to the dark figure, his entrance had already been marked down.


    --------------


    "General, the mana-sphere has detected yet another intruder within the castle walls, should we engage?"


    "It''s probably just another fool investigator being too nosy for his own good. Hmmph! Activate the castle defense mechanism. These nosy brigands need to learn that this castle is not something one can just waltz into." the elderly general replied, grumpily.


    Although such breaches could be solved by the regular crew members, the king had given out orders to triple the personnel in charge of defense. That meant that this old man had to bear the harsh burden of a sleepless night, which he hadn''t encountered for years.


    "Making me lose sleep over this, don''t blame me if you die." the general muttered, a gleeful look entering his eye, as he stared at the central control for the magic eyes.


    "Let''s see if you''re worth my time¡­" he grinned knowingly.


    --------------


    The shadowy figure neared his target''s window. There were far more guards in that area. He carefully aimed for a balcony right over Robin''s balcony. Then he sent his grappling rope out with a strong, near-invisible wire attached to it. That way, even should the guards be alerted, they wouldn''t be able to find it.


    It attached fine, and held up under his hard tugging. But, when he swung up towards the balcony, all of a sudden, the rope detached mid-flight. He landed unceremoniously in the center of the group of guards, and was immediately arrested, his magic ball confiscated.


    Back at the central control, the general snorted. "As I thought. It was only a rookie."


    "Another one has shown up, General." The young man once more warned.


    "Have squad two go take over for squad three until squad one returns from the jail. Sheesh! Let me at least get a nap in." he scolded the intruders, offhandedly.


    --------------------


    Robin didn''t remember how she returned to her rooms, but when she opened her eyes, light was streaming in through the window. The night was over.


    ''It''s the seventh day, since I arrived here.'' Robin observed, as she stared blankly at the curtain. ''That means today is Thursday-that''s right! We''re leaving today!'' Robin sat up, concerned that she might have overslept, as she hopped out of bed.


    "Eh? Where''s my mask?" Robin placed a hand to her face, and realized it wasn''t there. After looking around frantically for a moment, she noticed that it was resting on the nightstand next to the bed, and sighed in relief. Then she checked the thread in front of the door. It had not been moved or broken.


    This was Robin''s way of knowing if her rooms had been intruded upon-unless the offender was a ghost that could walk through walls, of course. Even if Robin had returned dead-drunk last night, she would still have set up the thread by muscle memory. In fact, that was probably exactly what happened last night, because Robin had no idea what happened after leaving the ballroom, as she had most likely sleepwalked back to her rooms.


    As things were, Robin had slept in her ballroom clothes. Looking down at the wrinkled brocade, she sighed. Then she moved to the bathroom, with her magic bag.


    After taking a shower and changing into more travel-worthy attire, Robin once more placed her mask upon her head and made her way down to the dining room. This time, she entered through the main dining room entrance.


    "Hero Robin has arrived!" the royal announcer called.


    Robin smiled politely, all while thinking, "I will never get used to that."


    Breakfast was more extravagant than usual, with several dishes from Robin''s cheat book for easy breakfast foods. There were crepes, pancakes, hash browns with easy hollandaise sauce, grilled sausages, eggs in a basket, egg sandwiches, etc. Everyone was very busy eating these new delicacies.


    Robin nodded a greeting, and took her seat. The table was filled with food. But Robin zeroed in on the egg sandwiches-which she added hollandaise sauce to, berry cream crepes, and the german pancakes-which were more like an apple flan than a pancake.


    It would be a long ride, so she skipped the carbs in favor of sweets and protein. Otherwise, she might get a headache. Besides, she had all she needed to make these things on the way there, so there was no need to act like it was her last good meal.


    After that was the public farewell ceremony. Robin, Christian, Keith, Jasmine, Ponzu, and Gerard knelt before the king for his blessing. After the ceremonial blessing, King Zephron produced the gift of a storage bracer filled with supplies, and a pouch filled with gold coins, which was passed to Jasmine for safe keeping.


    Because it was a public gift, it was near impossible to refuse.


    Robin merely shrugged. Who knew when extra supplies would be necessary? Therefore, she accepted the bracer, after dripping her blood on it to bind it.


    The carriage they rode was also enchanted with space magic, enough to have 2 rooms within. Robin, Christian, and Keith were inone room, while Jasmine and Gerard were in another. Ponzu rode out front with the driver.


    After they set off from the city, Robin found herself staring at the bracer.


    "Are you excited now that you''ve got your hands on an impressive storage device?"Prince Christian asked, chuckling.


    "Hmmm? No, i was wondering why storage devices need blood¡­" Robin replied seriously.


    "Eh? That''s easy! It''s a safety measure against others stealing your things." Christian replied.


    "But couldn''t someone just collect a vial of your blood and open it that way?" Robin asked.


    Christian scratched his head. "But it doesn''t work like that." He stated.


    "Then why the need for blood at all?" Robin asked.


    "Umm, I dunno. I never delved that far into space-time magic, because it''s not my attribute." Christian admitted. "Perhaps Jazmine would know...on second thought, let''s consult a scholar later on." Christian''s face turned a bit green as he looked away.


    "Why? If Jasmine knows, then isn''t it more convenient that way?" Robin asked.


    "It isn''t that, it''s just¡­" he looked away again.


    "What?"Robin asked.


    "Once it begins, it will never end." Christian muttered.


    "What?" Robin asked.


    "Oh? Did someone say my name?" Jasmine asked, peeking her head through the door.


    "Nope! No one said anything!" Christian denied, waving his hands. Jasmine frowned, glaring at Christian. "What do you mean? I clearly heard my name from in here." she smiled foxily, "Unless you are trying to hide something from me?"


    "I''m not!"


    "You are!"


    "I''m not!"


    Robin rolled her eyes, and hummed a tune as she watched the scenery slowly pass by out the window.


    Finally, they were on their way!

 59 She Learns her First Magic Spell

    "Ahem! I suppose I can get down to the bottom of this later." Jasmine glared at Christian one more time before turning to Robin, who had removed her mask, since everyone here already knew her face.


    "Since we are now underways, shall we begin the lessons on Magic?" she asked.


    "We can have them in the other room since SOMEBODY thinks that I''ll just go on and on and never stop."


    "Wait, you heard that?" Christian asked, wondering how good her hearing was.


    Jasmine smiled. "I guessed. But it''s good to hear a confirmation from your mouth."


    "Oh, shoot!" Christian jumped to his feet, but did not have anywhere to go in the carriage room, and was quickly trapped by Jasmine''s magic.


    "You be good and sit there while i give Robin a lesson on the basics of magic." she said, as Christian was magically glued to the seat. Robin raised an eyebrow, but obediently followed Jasmine into the other room. Keith snickered at the Prince, who glared at him.


    "I don''t see you jumping to save me from my predicament." he snorted.


    "That''s because, quite frankly, you deserve it. And, this way is much more easier for me to guard you, so I''m fine with it~!" Keith teased.


    "Why you-!" Christian was suddenly quiet. Keith looked back to the door. Jasmine stood there, pointing at Christian.


    "Hush! We have a class going on here!" she said, before leaving again. Now all that Christian could do was silently glare at Keith as he soundlessly trembled with laughter.


    In the other room, Jasmine shook her head before tapping the wall, which opened to reveal a chalkboard.


    "This here is a remnant magic tool from the time of the hero. Only our kingdom knows how to make these, but we will be using this for our lesson." Jasmine introduce.


    "Um¡­ sure." Robin decided against correcting her. She was impatient enough to get the lesson started. Although, she didn''t look like she was excited, her inner mind was almost bursting with anticipation.


    Jasmine snapped her fingers,and several magic threads quickly drew several diagrams on the board.


    "Do you remember our previous conversation about magic?"Jasmine asked,


    ""To use magic, I need to access my magic core." Robin answered.


    "Correct! In order to use magic, you need to connect to your magic source first. Well, the first thing you need to know is where your magic source is located. Sometimes it is different, but for the most part, the magic core is located around the heart area.


    The first thing you need to do is sense your mana core.Try sensing inside of yourself to see if you can feel it." Jasmine instructed.


    Robin concentrated on the region around her heart, listening as her heart beat steadily. Trying to pick up any foreign energies.


    "There''s nothing there." Robin drooped, disappointed.


    "Were you trying to find something foreign inside you? Jasmine asked.


    Robin looked at Jasmine, surprised. How did you-?" She asked.


    "It happens every time i teach a class." Jasmine sighed. "But enough about that. Magic draws its source from mana. Every living things have mana. Therefore mana is something that we have had since birth. It is a familiar and comforting force. Try again, this time looking for the place around your heart that feels the most comfortable."


    Robin tried again. This time. Trying to find a comforting spot around her heart. But all she could hear was the comforting thump of her own heart.


    "Um...is it possible that I don''t have a mana source?" Robin asked. "There''s nowhere more comfortable than my heart in that area."


    "Impossible. Everyone has a mana source, otherwise we would all waste away and die." Jasmine shook her head, then paused. "Unless...it''s an internal magic source!?" She exclaimed, as she turned to Robin, and grasped Robin''s shoulders, excitement on her face.


    "Robin! Try concentrating inside your heart!"


    Robin was surprised by the sudden contact, but, she immediately concentrated upon her heart again. Then she suddenly felt as if a warm spot inside her heart began to glow, and thousand of tiny lights converged upon and radiated out from that one spot to the rest of her body.


    "Oh? Do you feel it?" Jasmine asked, upon seeing Robin''s change of expression.


    "Those tiny spots of light are mana. Now, try feeling the air outside of yourself to find the mana in the air."


    Robin moved her mental image to pan outside of her body, and was surprised to sense lights of all colors floating in the ambient air about her.


    She opened her eyes to look at them more closely, but was surprised that she couldn''t see them with her eyes.


    "Surprised? Mana is not something that can usually be seen with our eyes, unless it''s concentrated to a certain extent, or light mana. Mana can usually only be seen with the mind''s eye." Jasmine tapped her temple.


    "That''s why you will never see a stupid magician."


    Robin nodded, then asked. "So, I have found my mana source, but how do I connect to it?"


    At that, Jasmine laughed. "Robin, the fact that you could find your mana source, and sense mana for the first time means that you have already connected to your mana source.It''s just that many people can''t get that first hurdle because they aren''t even aware of where their mana core is."


    Robin was surprised.


    "So-so your saying that I can now use magic!?!" Robin''s eyes widened as she tried to contain her excitement. In the end, she failed, and a huge smile beamed fro. Her face.


    Jasmine nodded as she continued chuckling. "Yes, you can now use magic. But! I don''t want you practicing any fire magic or large spells while we''re in the carriage."


    Robin was so happy, she would have agreed to anything at that moment. She nodded her head, eager to begin.


    "Let''s start off with the most basic of light spells, the light ball. This spell barely uses any mana at all, and is useful as illumination inside dark places like dungeons and caves." Jasmine suggested.


    "It''s also the attribute that you are most familiar with: light."


    Robin nodded, showing she understood.


    "Now, after mana, what is the key to any spell?" Robin thought for a moment, then answered. "A wand?"


    "Nope."


    "A magic staff?"


    "Do you see any staffs on me?" Jasmine asked, wryly, rolling her eyes. "Try again."


    " Magic words?"


    "What? Haha, no."


    Robin suddenly had a lightbulb moment.


    "Is it the mental image of the spell?"


    Jasmine was surprised.


    "How did you know?"


    "How else to you convey something without speaking?" Robin replied. She wasn''t quite sure how to let Jasmine know that she had read it once in an isekai web novel. Luckily, Jasmine seemed satisfied by her answer.


    "Correct. The mental image and its functions are the most important part of the spell. Many use words because that makes it easier to imagine what they wish their spell to accomplish. But there are a few hundred people in this kingdom, alone, that can cast voiceless magic." Jasmine said.


    Robin felt a small fluctuation near her, and turned to see Gerard sitting up, his eyes open.


    "Whoah! You see these pretty lights all the time!? Such a nice green! Why are the lights green? Why not red or blue or white?"


    Jasmine smiled, amused. "It seems that I have more than one talented student. You can only see green lights?"


    "Yeah! Is this that mana you were talking about?" Gerard asked.


    "It is." Jasmine replied.


    But now, Robin was confused. "But, why can I see different colors? There''s definitely more than just green that I saw."


    "That''s right. What you saw was also mana." Jasmine acknowledged. "This is something that is affected by your magic aptitudes. The ones that you have the most talent for are the ones you can sense most easily. Gerard, try reaching out with your mind as if you were looking really hard at something."


    Gerard closed his eyes for a minute. "Oh! I saw a blue light just now!"


    "This is why we try to raise our magical aptitudes, so that we can more easily sense the different forms of mana in our surroundings." Jasmine explained.


    "Now, Robin, please try to gather light magic into a round ball the size of an apple."


    Robin nodded, and concentrated upon a mental image of a light ball. Immediately, the idea of a light bulb came to mind. And so, she tried to gather the mana into a round ball that gave off light like a light bulb.


    "Okay, that is enough, Robin. Any more and you might blind someone!" Jasmine admonished. Robin opened her eyes.


    Floating just above her head was a bright glowing ball of light. The intensity caused Robin to subconsciously reel back the strength of the spell, dimming the light ball.


    The results of her very first spell, a light bulb, floated in the space above their heads.

 60 She Hears the Heros History

    Robin looked up at that now pleasantly dimmed ball of light, and smiled.


    "Wow, so this is the light of a person with 100% light aptitude, huh? Usually, the radiance would not be so stable, and would flicker like flames. But yours is like the sun shining through a crystal ball. Very nice!" Jasmine complimented.


    Robin shone a rare genuine smile of delight, unconsciously. Most of the time, when she smiled, it was deliberate. It was only around her older brother that she felt she could smile freely. But, this time, she had forgotten herself in her success in magic.


    "Me too! Ask me to do something!" Gerard asked, wanting to earn some credit as well.


    "Well, first off, do you know what element green mana is connected to?" Jasmine asked.


    "Um¡­nature?" Gerard guessed.


    "Nope! Guess again!" Jasmine replied.


    "Wind?" Gerard asked, after contemplating upon the mana before him.


    "Oh? Good job! Yes, green mana is a sign of the wind attribute. Incidentally, the nature attribute shows up as purple, and the poison attribute is indigo, so it can be easy to confuse the two.


    The other attributes are red mana for fire, orange mana for lava, yellow mana for earth, blue mana for water, and the very rare black mana. Black mana is a bit special, here. It used to be only useable by the demon king, due to its violent and volatile nature.


    However, there was one man who was able to stabilize black magic, and used it to create a magic artifact that can endlessly create the space magic stones used in magic bags. He was the Great Sage of the Beginning, and the same one who created the magic artifacts which our kingdom possesses. Even Robin''s hero sword is one of his proud creations."


    Robin felt her head begin to hurt. ''Why do I get the feeling that this "Great Sage of the Beginning" was a junior high schooler struck with chuunibyou?'' she wondered to herself as she eyed her sword, suspiciously.


    "You doubt it''s authenticity?" Jasmine asked. "This sword will never waver, never break, and can only be carried by those whom it acknowledges."


    "You make it sound like the sword is alive." Robin noticed.


    "Perhaps it is." Jasmine smiled, as she began to once more create images on the magic chalkboard.


    "There was one time where a hero was actually slain by a fearsome bandit king who coveted the blade. But, upon the hero''s death, no one was able to move it, even with the power of a herd of horses. No magic could destroy it, no man could move it. Even the dirt beneath its blade was immovable, and unbreakable."


    "What happened next?" Gerard asked.


    "The bandit king was so incensed that he was determined to make sure that no one else could get the sword. So, he ordered his army to dig all around the sword, until it was so high up from the ground that no one could remove it.


    It took them 3 long years even with earth mages, but the plains for 3 miles around were lowered to the point where the sword stood upon a stone pillar a mile above ground. The pillar was coated in a slipping magic to make it impossible to climb. But, soon after, the bandit king''s army was decimated and destroyed by infighting, and faded into obscurity."


    "Hmm? But, someone must have taken it back, right? Otherwise it would still be up there on that pillar, now."Gerard noticed.


    "You''re right. The earth that was excavated from the plains was piled up into a huge mountain range, upon which a species of large eagles decided to roost. After many years, a roaming nomadic tribe also settled down there, and built a village. They befriended the eagles, becoming hunting partners.


    One such youth became curious about the stone pillar upon the horizon, and convinced his eagle partner to fly over there, and see the strange thing up close. It was this youth who was able to pull the sword up out of the pillar, which then triggered the pillar''s collapse.


    He brought it back to his home, and mystified his village with the sword that only he could lift. After considering if it was a good thing, the villagers gladly left the sword to him, as only he could seem to use it. From that day forth, the youth was inseparable from his sword and his eagle hunting partner.


    Soon after, a huge group of demonic beasts attacked the mountains where the youth''s tribe lived. While, before this, he had not shown any signs of having magic talent, in this desparate time, the youth managed to connect to his mana core.


    That youth used the sword, in unison with rudimentary light magic, to completely destroy the demonic beast horde in a single swing."


    "What? How did he do that?" Gerard asked.


    "The mountain range was right next to the ocean. And the plains were already a mile below sea level, so the hero used a huge blade beam to carve out an inlet. The rushing sea water flowed in and drowned the beasts. After that, the plains became a salt water sea, and the mountain range became a peninsula.


    "That person was the first hero of our Ekkinshire Kingdom."Jasmine finished her story, recalling her mana from the magic chalkboard.


    "Ho? But I don''t see any mountains?" Robin said, looking outside the window.


    "After many long years, the capital was moved to a more central position." Jasmine shrugged.


    "Sounds amazing!" Gerards eyes sparkled in admiration. "I wanna be just like the hero!"


    Jasmine laughed mirthfully. "You forget that the current hero is right next to you?"


    Gerard blinked. "Oops!" Then he turned to Robin. "Can I be the hero after you?"


    Robin chuckled. "Then you need to concentrate on raising your light magic affinity. All the past heroes had very high light affinities. So, if you can raise it, the sword might acknowledge you."


    "All right! I''ll raise it so high, it''ll be even higher than yours!" Gerard replied enthusiastically.


    Robin refrained from bursting Gerard''s bubble while Jasmine smacked him on top of the head.


    "Ow! What was that for!?" the aggrieved youth looked pitifully at his attacker.


    "You can work on raising your light affinity, but not before you master your wind magic, first." Jasmine lectured. "If you don''t, then it will take a longer time to raise your light affinity, and you might become an old man before you are acknowledged by the sword. Then what use will you be? You study wind magic first, you hear?"


    Gerard laughed bashfully, and nodded obediently to Jasmine. "I will!" he nodded.


    "Good! It''s a good thing that Robin''s affinities are high enough. If we needed to find an active volcano to increase her affinity to lava mana, i think I might just scream."


    "wait, lava is an element?" Robin asked.


    "Didn''t I say that earlier?" Jasmine sighed, but continued to explain. "To be more precise, it''s plasma, but people understand it better if we say lava." Jasmine shrugged.


    "If you don''t have a high affinity with a certain elemental mana, then spending your time meditating in an area rich in mana of that type will help you raise your affinity. However, there are accompanying risks involved, as such locations are usually too perilous to meditate within unguarded." She warned.


    "So, with my own affinities¡­" Robin began to ask.


    Jasmine smiled. "Quite frankly, I was very surprised. You have such high affinities, that you can already perform grand spells in every category. This is something that only someone like the hero can accomplish."


    Gerard shrugged. He had figured as much. Someone like the Hero would surely have a magic affinity far larger than his own.


    "But...now, I am rather curious¡­" Jasmine looked at Gerard with interest.


    "To succeed on the first try means that you also have no small amount of affinity for wind magic. She drew a small crystal out of thin air.


    "Here, hold this for a minute." she gave the crystal to Gerard.


    "What is this?" Gerard asked, holding it up.


    Robin, seeing it, felt it looked a tad familiar.


    "Hey, isn''t that-"


    "An affinity testing crystal? Yes." Jasmine replied. "I happen to have a portable one with me."


    "Couldn''t we have just tested me on that, instead of the royal magician''s crystal?" Robin asked.


    "In hindsight, no. This crystal can only test the aptitude of only one aptitude. If we had used this one, not only would we have not seen all your aptitudes, the crystal itself might have overloaded and shattered. Since all those under the title of hero have never had a problem with possessing more than one aptitude, it was safer to use Old Albus''s crystal ball." Jasmine explained.


    When the crystal lit up, the carriage was filled with a breezy green glow. Jasmine''s eyes also lit up as she took the crystal with a hand covered in a velvet cloth. "What a gem! Gerard, your wind affinity is at 76! Your affinity is even higher than the Hero''s at this point!"


    Jasmine trembled at the thought. As soon as the hero appeared, such a rare talent was discovered. Would Robin find more raw talents like this one?


    Gerard''s eyes almost popped out of his head.


    "What!??"


    He couldn''t believe it. He looked at Robin for confirmation. Robin nodded and smiled, giving applause.


    "Congratulations, Gerard. Looks like it won''t be too long before you can start working on raising your light affinity."

 61 She Gets Her Own Room

    Gerard didn''t know what to say, so he nodded his head, sheepishly. After that, he and Robin quickly learned the beginner magics for all except the dangerous magics: breeze, waterball, earth spike-made of sand, and bloom-which was nature magic.


    As for poison, lava, and fire magic: those would be saved to practice in a more open environment. Jasmine didn''t know any spells for dark magic, as that was something only the demon lord knew how to use. Robin was curious but she had enough common sense to know not to experiment with something so dangerous.


    By the time the first lesson had finished, it was almost noon. Even though the carriage was rather comfortable for a carriage, it was still rather bumpy inside. So, they stopped by the road to have their mid-day meal.


    Robin had prepared several sets of sandwiches using soft white bread that ponzu had made under her instructions. Alongside that was a light soup that wouldn''t upset the stomach, even after bouncing around in a carriage all day. The five guards accompanying them also seemed to enjoy the fare.


    While Robin was able to avoid having a long entourage of knights following them, King Zephrem had insisted upon these five guards. In this world, the number of guards was usually a sign of noble status. While Zephrem was okay with Christian going incognito, he also wanted to ward off troubles caused by people thinking he was a mere commoner.


    Even Keith and Jasmine approved of it. After seeing their approval, Robin threw up her hands. She had no choice but to allow them to come along as well.


    The five guards were headed by a large sturdy man called Daniel Lionfist. This man was a typical macho muscles-for-brains man who valued strength above everything.


    While Robin didn''t like his attitude, the attention and care he gave to his duty was somewhat admirable. So, she decided to leave things be for the time being.


    But...if he tried to follow her when she went out to wander around the next town, she would dump him faster than light speed. For this reason, she had to wear her mask outside, even though her comrades were already familiar with her face.


    Christian sat there quietly, a sulky frown upon his face as he ate.


    "Wow, this is the most quiet I''ve ever seen Christian behave!" Robin noted. "Usually he''s so talkative."


    Christian glared her way, pointed to his mouth, then pointed at Jasmine.


    "You''re not talking to Jasmine?" Robin asked, trying to guess what he was trying to say.


    "No. Jasmine hasn''t lifted the silent spell she cast upon him this morning." Keith snickered, breaking out into laughter again as Christian glared red-eyed at him.


    "Oh, that''s right!" Jasmine snapped her fingers. "How about now?"


    "Hmph! I guess I know who I''m not bringing out as a drinking buddy!" Christian turned away from Keith. "You can pay for your own liquor from now on!"


    "Ouch! Hey, what have you got against my liquor!?" Keith winced. Liquor and good food were his bread and butter. To lose Christian''s patronage meant he really was mad.


    "Nothing. I simply have a grudge against you, oh useless guardian of mine." Christian retorted.


    "Maybe before you tout your guard useless, you should place your hand on your heart and ask how you will ever do great things when you offend many powerful people with your unfortunate mouth."


    Keith sarcastically huffed in return. He knew that guilt-tripping the prince would lessen Christian''s anger towards Keith.


    "Hmmph!" Christian turned his head away, ignoring Keith. But, Keith knew that he was somewhat forgiven at this point, even though nothing was said.


    Christian then concentrated on Robin. "So, did you survive the lesson?" he asked her.


    "What? Why are you talking about? Jasmine''s lecture was super interesting!" Robin replied.


    "Urk! Yet another young man has been converted to becoming a reader of dusty scrolls!" Christian lamented with a sigh.


    "Stop being so melodramatic." Robin snorted. "At least you''re lucky your world even has magic. In mine, it''s something only found in fiction and myth."


    "You''re kidding, right?" Christian said with a somewhat disbelieving expression. He had not been at the tea luncheon when Robin had explained the truth about her world.


    "Do I look like I''m kidding?" Robin frowned.


    "...No?"


    "Why is that a question?" Robin threw Christian''s signature phrase right back at him.


    "Because I''m still pondering over whether you are trying to trick me or not." Christian replied.


    "Let me ask you a question, then." Robin sighed. "In the time that you''ve known me, have you ever seen me use magic at all?"


    "Why of cour-" Christian paused. Come to think of it, he really hadn''t seen Robin use magic.


    "Have you?" Robin grinned, knowingly.


    "Ahem! I, uh, I suppose Ihaven''t, come to think of it¡­While I already knew that you didn''t know any magic, it had not occured to me that such a status extended to your whole world as well." Christian admitted reluctantly.


    Jasmine laughed at his plight.


    "See? Now you know why I am necessary on this trip. You could have spared yourself the trouble, cousin, and just stayed home."


    "And miss out on all this excitement? No way! I may be the prince, but even I''d like to stretch my legs eventually." Christian shook his head.


    "Oh? I think Uncle is just hoping you''d learn a bit of disgression and grow up on this trip. He has about given up on you, you know." Jasmine pointed out, poking at Christian''s sore spot.


    "Urk! That''s none of your business!" Christian snapped, feeling the sting in her words.


    "Come to think of it, how long will it take to reach Port Oracle, again?" Robin asked.


    "Two weeks, if all goes well." Christian said. "If we run into trouble, though, it could very well take up to a month."


    "Oh? Looks like you have you have your work cut out for you, then." Jasmine snickered. "It will take a great amount of effort for you to refrain from digging your own funeral hole."


    "Cut it out, cousin!" Christian retorted.


    "That should be my line, though?" Jasmine chuckled. "But, I digress. I will patiently await for you to make your next mistake."


    "You say that as if that is all that I do!" Christian exclaimed.


    At that point, both Jasmine and Keith looked at each other, then turned their head away and laughed.


    "Oy!" Christian objected to their attitude.


    Robin chuckled off to the side. These three were almost as good at smack-talking as a certain tv show...But, jokes aside, it was never boring to be around them.


    Right before sunset, the carriage pulled into a large town named Pingham. It had profited considerably from being on the route to Port Oracle. And several inns lined the main street.


    Christian chose an inn of relatively good standing, according to hearsay, and the carriage occupants entered the inn, while Ponzu and the carriage driver went to go park the carriage, and take care of the horses. Two of the knights went to take care of the horses, while Sir Daniel and two other knights followed the Hero''s group into the inn.


    Jasmine paid for one night''s stay for four rooms. One room was for the knights who were not on guard duty. Even a good inn like this sometimes could not prevent sneak attacks, so the knights would guard in shifts.


    Another room was for Jasmine. After all, one couldn''t expect a lady to sleep in the same room as other men. The third room was for Christian, Keith, and Gerard. The last room was for Ponzu, the driver, and the last of the knights.


    "Oh, that''s right. Robin, which room will you be sleeping in?" Christian asked.


    "There''s not enough room in the knight''s room, the driver''s room, or your room, so Robin will have to stay with me." Jasmine answered smuggly.


    "What!? No way! I don''t allow it! You know it''s scandalous to have a lady sleep with a man in the same room!"


    "There aren''t any other choices!"Jasmine said, they only have 4 rooms open."


    "In that case, I have a solution." Robin interjected.


    "Robin, which room will you sleep in!?"


    "Yeah, what''s your solution!?"


    Christian and Jasmine seemed somewhat enthusiastic about the situation.


    Robin snapped her fingers and two silvers showed up in her hand.


    "I am getting my own room." Robin replied.


    The innkeeper''s eyes twinkled at the sight of money.


    "If it''s a room for one, i do happen to have one last one available. Begging yer pardon, sir. I thought you were looking for a room for more than one, so I didn''t list it."


    "How much for one night?" Robin asked.


    "Two large bronze coin, including a hearty dinner and breakfast, last room down the hallway on yer right." The innkeeper replied.


    "Sounds good. When''s dinner?" Robin asked.


    "Food should be ready in an hour." The innkeeper replied.


    Robin paid up, and walked away twirling the key around her index finger.


    Christian and Jasmine just stood there, speechless until Ponzu and the driver walked in.


    "Well, at least there won''t be any scandals." Christian muttered.


    "I think you should be more worried about that, concerning your recent fiasco." Jasmine retorted.


    They both parted ways to check their respective bedrooms before dinner.

 62 She Introduces Beer Beef Stew

    At dinnertime, the knights sat at one table, while the six companions sat around a nearby table. Prince and Jasmine were also disguised with two simple masks, as their faces were only too well known.


    The food was slightly above average, by this world''s standards. It was a typical thick beef stew with hard crusty rolls to dip into it. The stew was still bubbling and scalding hot, since it was fresh from the soup pot. Some stewed beets to the side and a mug of beer completed the meal.


    Robin stared pointedly at the beer. She had seen her brother guzzled down a cold can or two every so often. She also used it to make beer-battered fried fish. But it never occured to her to try and drink it after her first experience of bitterness.


    Next to her, Christian was already lifting the mug up to his mouth. He had tried a spoonful of the stew, and scalded his tongue, so now he was drinking the beer to cool it. Robin watched his adam''s apple bob as he gulped down half the mug at the start. Then she turned and looked enviously at Jasmine''s apple cider.


    Jasmine, noticing her stare, smiled apologetically. Robin sighed, and glared bitterly at her own drink. Beer: it was a mug filled with room temperature, fermented bread water. According to Robin''s history class, beer had been invented by monks in the 3rd century to replace food, so that the monks could try going 40 days without food. The failing result of that was beer.


    And now Robin had to drink it.


    She picked up a spoon and, blowing carefully on each spoonful, began slowly eating her food. But- even as she hoped it would not- it ended up catching Christian''s attention.


    "Are you not going to drink that? I tried it, myself. It''s better than most local brews." Christian pointed out.


    Robin paused and looked at Christian. While her brain was scrambling to think of a good excuse, Robin''s face was completely deadpan. After a few moments, loaded with silence as she slowly chewed her bread, she finally finished and replied.


    "Do you not have the custom of saving the best for last?"


    It was a bunch of bull. Robin knew that it was a bunch of bull. But, did Christian know that?


    Christian thought about it, then shrugged as he once more lifted his mug to his lips.


    "Suit yourself." He answered, as he also tucked into the food before him, careful to blow upon it to cool it. Robin silently sighed with relief before also returning to eating her food. For the time being, she did not need to worry about drinking the beer.


    Although modern chefs would shudder to serve it due to its unappealing appearance, Robin felt it tasted good, like home-cooking. It was much thicker than usual, but it was also much tastier than the dog-food like canned stews that she had bought occasionally.


    ''It could use a dash more of salt, and some wine might help give it a more savory flavour.'' Robin noted as she dipped the hard bread into the soup, trying to soften it up. ''If only it was less viscous.'' Robin frowned. Then she had an idea.


    She stuck the whole piece of bread into the soup, and let it sit there as she poured half of the beer on top of it, into her hot bowl of stew, taking care not to spill any of it.


    Keith, Christian, and the whole company stared at her in disbelief as she stirred the stew, combining the two together.


    "What are you doing?" Christian asked, clearly confused.


    "I changed my mind. I can''t wait that long." Robin spoke another piece of BS. "Back where I am from, this is a popular dish. And I suddenly felt like eating it." Robin wasn''t actually too sure of whether that was true, but she had a feeling the results wouldn''t be too shabby.


    Already, the warm yeasty scent of beer was rising up from her bowl. Robin took a spoonful. It was as she had thought, the dish tasted so much better. It had also cooled to an appropriate temperature that wouldn''t burn her tongue. Robin tucked into the stew with gusto.


    Christian and Keith looked at Robin doubtfully. How could adding beer to a stew make it taste any better? But the smell of the beer tangled with the stew, and drifted temptingly out towards the rest of the party.


    Ponzu was the first of the others to try it, his eyes opened wide, and he began eating like he was a starved man. Soon Christian, Keith, and the knights couldn''t help their curiosity and also poured part of their beer into their stew. The look on their faces was all it took for observers to know the addition was a good one.


    Jasmine stared, dolefully at her apple cider, wishing it was a half-mug of beer instead, while Gerard had swiped some beer from one of the knight''s mugs, when he wasn''t looking, to add it into the stew. Soon enough, the combined scent of the improved stew drifted out towards rest of the room.


    Gulp. A nearby drinker, the oldest man among them all, swallowed his saliva down as he watched. Earlier, he had been dismissive of the youth that wasted his beer into his stew, but now the old man couldn''t stand the appetizing smell tickling at his nose any longer.


    "Hey, Old Kip! I''ll have me a stew, and another mug of beer, here!" the old man called out. The locals in the room chortled.


    "What? Old Angus is having himself some stew?" One asked, incredulous.


    "What''s the matter, old man? Is the beer not substantial enough for ye?" Another chortled as he teased.


    "I dunno about you blokes..." Old Angus sniffed. "But if''n ye cant tell how good a food is by how it smells, then yer noses are as useless as a wooden dolls!"


    "Hahhah, oh sure! An it only took adding a beer into the stew to make it edible, huh?" came the retorting jeer.


    Straight away, a hot bowl of stew was placed before Old Angus, who dutifully poured half his beer into the brew, despite his aching heart at the sight. Although he had acted so confident before the men, he could only imagine what kind of flavor the stew would acquire.


    ''If this doesn''t taste good, then I''ll only drink cider fer the rest of me life.'' He thought, and placed a spoonful straight into his mouth.


    The bar room was quiet. While Old Angus ruminated upon the soup, a tear fell from his eyes, as they blurred before him.


    "Well? What''s the verdict, old man?" One of the men called out. "Is it good? Is it bad!? We''re all dying to know!"


    "...Good doesn''t describe this." Angus began. "Instead-"


    "So it''s bad?" one of the men interrupted.


    "Hush, you! Let old Angus speak, why don''t you?" Another berated the interruptor.


    Angus cleared his throat, and gave the interruptor a mean glare to shut him up.


    "Instead, I think I need to praise the lad who brought such a delicious way of enjoying both beer, and stew." Angus said, as he nodded his head at Robin, and lifted up his mug.


    "Three Cheers for our benefactor, now!" Angus called out, and the other men, laughingly agreed as they raised their beers.


    "Hip Hip?"


    "Hooray!"


    "Hip Hip?"


    "Hooray!"


    "Hip Hip?"


    "Hooray!"


    Robin, under pressure, now had to drink up the rest of her beer, or else look ungrateful.


    She raised her mug, and tipped her head back, as she finished it in one sitting. To her, instead of drawing out the suffering, it was better to get it over with in one go. After that, she refused another one.


    "Sorry, I still need to be lucid later, so I can''t." She told a man who offered to buy her a beer. Soon the entire room was busy indulging in the new spin on the old meal.


    "Hey, young man, can we use your recipe for this inn?" The innkeeper asked.


    "I don''t see why not-." Robin was about to say, when Jasmine grabbed her arm.


    "There are strict laws about the giving away recipes, Robin. This is to make sure that people don''t steal recipes from restaraunts and leave to begin their own restaraunt without the owner''spermission."


    Robin looked at Jasmine. Then she turned to the innkeeper and smiled.


    "I can''t let you have it normally, it seems. Treat it as an accident. I carelessly spilled my beer into my soup, and discovered how good they taste together. You tried it out, too,and found that it was good. There. no loose ends. you were a co-discoverer, so feel free to serve this recipe as often as you''d like."


    "You-you mean it?!" The innkeeper asked.


    "Robin, you should at least recieve money for it. After all, it is your recipe." Jasmine pointed out.


    "Fine. I will sell you the recipe for one silver." Robin stopped herself from rolling her eyes, as she held up a single finger.


    The Innkeeper''s eyes widened. "But, S-Sir Robin, you could easily sell this recipe for at least a gold coin!" He stammered.


    Robin smiled wryly. "Consider it as me being generous for your honesty."


    "No, no, I can''t accept such a huge discount!" the inkeeper shook his head. Robin frowned and sat up, as they began discussions in earnest, as she continued eating.


    It was a serious bout of haggling, where the buyer was trying to raise the price, and the seller was trying to lower it. Everyone in the room found it downright hilarious, as they watched the impromptu entertainment. Finally, Robin and the Innkeeper settled upon five large silver coins as the price, and the innkeeper happily paid the sum.


    "Congratulations, you just earned half a gold in one sitting." Keith joked.


    Robin smiled mischievously. "Now you make me wonder how much I would earn if I actually tried."


    Christian rolled his eyes. "Now you know how I felt when you were trying to convince me to not give you that silver."


    "That was different. there was already a price set for that food, you just blatantly ignored it." Robin retorted.


    "Says the person who sold a recipe for half price." Christian teased.


    "As the owner, I have the right to set the price." Robin said. "And one gold is too much for a simple alteration of an existing recipe."


    Christian rolled his eyes. "I suppose that''s acceptable, then."


    .....


    Ten years later, the dish that Robin sold to the innkeeper on a whim, became the famous local specialty for that town in the book "The Gourmet''s Map of Foods."

 63 She Goes Out to Play

    After everyone was in the midst of merriment as they enjoyed the stew, Robin excused herself, and retired to her room. There, she changed into different clothes. Then she removed her mask, and adjusted her hairstyle. Making sure to become as unnoticeable as possible, she quietly made her way past the front desk and out the door.


    She had been sitting in a carriage the whole day, and desired nothing more than to stretch her legs. A quick walk around town would do her some good.


    Robin hummed to herself as she glanced around. There should be an adventurers guild around here, somewhere, right? If a guild was available even in a small town like Kinsward, then a larger commercial town wouldn''t be lacking in one.


    The sun was setting on the horizon, painting the sky a blazing red color.


    Robin decided to walk down the main street, in the direction she hadn''t been. She was quite sure that the Guild hadn''t been on the stretch of road they had already passed in the carriage. So, it must be in this direction.


    As a precaution, she had wrapped the pommel and handguard of her sword with some old cloth. She also covered the shiny embellishments on the sheath with a torn sack. It would do no good to be recognized simply by the blade she carried.


    There were still quite a few people here and there, in the street. There were people coming in from working on the fields, as well as shopkeepers going home for dinner. It seemed that, just like in Europe, the people had something closr to a nightlife involved.


    There were also night shops setting up: several bars and brothels, to be exact. Robin steered VERY clear of the brothels. She had no tolerance for such things.


    It was at that point that she felt her sword vibrate and tug.


    -------


    Close to a nearby alleyway, two thugs were quietly advancing upon an unsuspecting young girl who was dumping rubbish in a fire pit. Both were skinny, with hardly a single identifying feature on them, their faces covered by rags. The young girl appeared to be around nine or ten years old, with light brown hair that gleamed golden in the light of the sunset.


    As her load was quite heavy, she had used magic to lighten the load. And,now that the job was finished, she paused, wanting to rest a bit before heading back.


    The hairs on the back of her head all of a sudden stood straight up, right as a hand covered her mouth, and locked her arms behind her back. She tried to yell and kick, but her legs were quickly seized by the other thug. The two chuckled with delight.


    "This is the fifth one we''ve managed to snatch. Trader will be pleased." One of the thugs chuckled.


    The girl''s eyes went wide.


    Slavery was illegal in Ekkinshire kingdom. But, there was a widespread illegal ring of slave kidnappers in the kingdom. Upon several occassions, kidnappers had been caught in action. Yet, the leader''s identity was a complete mystery. However,it was well known that he went by the alias of ''Trader'' in other kingdoms. If the girl was caught by Trader''s men, she would never be seen or heard from again.


    "Hey, she knows magic. Get out the inhibitor potion." The other thug growled.


    "Oh, right." The man took his hand off the girl''s mouth to grab the potion. It was a moment of absentmindedness that the thug would soon regret.


    "HELP ME! KIDNAPPE-" The girl''s mouth was quickly muffled again.


    "I can''t grab it. My hands are full." The thug growled in annoyance.


    "Well my hands are full here, too! You shoulda given it to her before you occupied both yer hands!" the other one snorted.


    Tears began to stream from the girl''s eyes. ''Someone!...Anyone! Please save me!''


    "Perhaps I could be of assisstance?" A voice came from behind them.


    "Sure, just grab the potion, it''s in my pocket." the thug replied. Then both thugs froze as they realized someone else was there.


    "Ah, I wasn''t actually talking to you." Came an explanation.


    Thwack-ud!


    A moment later, they both toppled over sideways with the girl, knocked unconscious by a cloth-wrapped sword inside its sheath.


    "Whoops!" Robin grabbed the girl before she hit the ground. "Are you all right?" The girl wailed loudly, sobbing, as she grabbed a tight hold of Robin.


    Robin could only hold her and pat her head, as she carried the sobbing girl several meters away from the knocked out men.


    "It''s all right, now. You''re okay."


    Robin murmered to the girl who couldn''t manage to stop crying. Finally, after a few minutes, the girl managed to calm down enough to speak between hiccuping sobs.


    "They were going to-hic- to take me to Trader, and -boo hoo- turn me into a slave!" She cried, disolving once more into a mess of tears.


    "Nonsense! Nothing of the sort will happen now that I am here." Robin replied, confidently.


    But, inside her chest, a smouldering hot fire was being stoked. Was there still slavery in Ekkinshire kingdom? If there was, then she really needed to talk to King Zephron... But... If slavery wasn''t allowed, then why were these two men doing such things here?


    It was good that the sun had already set. If the little girl had been able to see her rescuer''s ice cold eyes, then Robin might have frightened her to death. Robin was both disgusted and incenced. She would most definitely get down to the bottom of things.


    Magic lamps began to light up the main streets, and alleyways. flickering lights inside the houses showed that cooking fires and lamps were being lit.


    Robin blinked, and buried the red hot fire under a comforting smile as she took out a handkerchief for the girl to wipe her eyes. "Here, dry your eyes. Is your home close by? Can you see it from here?" She asked.


    The young girl nodded, and pointed at a sturdy-looking house with a back door.


    "I want you to run straight to that house, and get inside. Bar the door until one of your parents gets home. Don''t come out no matter what you hear, okay?" Robin said.


    "...But what about the wheelbarrow?" The girl asked.


    "I''ll return it later. Big Si-Big Brother, here, needs to haul these two bad guys to the jail in a bit. And you can keep that handkerchief for big bro until I return, Okay?" Robin smiled at the little girl.


    "Okay!" The girl sniffed, wiping the tears off her face.


    "Now, go!" Robin urged her, and the young maiden fled to her house as if demons were after her. Robin watched the girl until she disappeared inside, heaving a sigh.


    But then she heard two thwacks behind her. She whirled about just in time to see the two thugs falling down once more. They dropped behind her, knives slipping from their hands.


    Behind the two thugs, Christian and Keith were standing. Their sheathed swords had created quite the concussions for the kidnappers. The thugs wouldn''t be getting up anytime soon.


    "You two? But how-?"Robin asked.


    "You didn''t think your disguise would fool me again, did you, Robin?" Christian laughed smugly. "I knew it was you the moment you passed by us. Simply changing your hairstyle won''t work anymore! But, where were you heading to after sunset?"


    Robin''s clenched hand had slowly unclenched itself as Robin drew in a breath, giving up. "I was just stretching my legs for a bit, and thought to check the adventurers guild for any quests I might be able to finish on the way, like deliveries and such."


    She glanced down at the thugs. "Who would''ve known that I''d hear a call for help, and run into these two in the middle of a kidnapping?"


    "A kidnapping? Why would anyone kidnap a mere villager?" Christian asked.


    Robin paused, then looked seriously at the two. "Let me ask you something: is slavery legal in Ekkinshire Kingdom?"


    "What? No, it''s very much illegal. Ever since my great great grandfather''s time, slavery has been forbidden by law." Christian instantly denied.


    "Well.." Robin glanced down at the two thugs thoughtfully. "The girl said that they were going to take her to some trader person to be sold as a slave."


    "Did you say, Trader?" Keith''s eyes grew sharp as he stared at the shameless brigands. "Looks like we were right not to kill these two. They are in for quite the time with the Royal Interrogator."


    He looked at Robin. "Would you allow us to handle this case? Don''t worry, they will pay exceedingly for their crimes."


    Robin nodded.


    "Of course! You are the local authorities. But..." She glanced at the two thugs. "I would be more relieved to know that they were already completely secured with no chance of being rescued by any brothers."


    "I can assure you that they will reach the capitol by tomorrow morning." Keith said as he secured their arms in metal stocks that he drew from a much smaller pouch.


    ''Keith has a magic bag, too.'' Robin realized.


    Keith then lifted up both men, like they were potato sacks. "Follow me." Keith said. "The soldiers barracks are close by the adventurers guild. We can report everything to the captain there, before you go finish your business."


    "Wait a minute!" Robin quixkly ran the wheelbarrow backnext to the girl''s house. As she ran back, dusting her hands off, she grinned. "Okay, I''m ready!"

 64 She Takes Precautionary Measures

    On the way there, Robin once more donned her mask, since she did not wish to be known by the soldiers.


    At the soldiers barracks, Keith was quickly recognized, along with Christian. They were immediately granted access, and brought to the captain''s office, after the two thugs were checked for any spells, potion effects, or poisons. The inhibitor potion was naturally confiscated. After confirming the negative, the unfortunate unconscious wretches were thrown into a cage to await judgement.


    Robin was surprised at how quickly they worked, and how quickly they allowed Robin''s group access to the captain''s office, but also realized that it was most likely due to the two high profile persons she had arrived with.


    The captain had gone out to patrol the area, and a messenger had run out to inform him about his guests. While they were waiting for the captain to arrive, Robin stared down at the floor, a thoughtful scowl upon her face. Christian, noticing, asked.


    "What are you thinking about?"


    "Well, from the sounds of it, this slave trader person is not any average person. I mean, if it was an average villain, you wouldn''t need the royal inquisitor. You also wouldn''t need to check the perpetrators for speech inhibitor spells, death spells, potions, poisons, and such.


    This means that the person involved is, not your ordinary thug, but a careful and cautious villain. But, the fact that those two ruffians didn''t even have a speech inhibitor spell...perhaps those two aren''t that much of a threat to this trader guy, or..." Robin paused, and did not voice out her other ideas.


    Her next idea was that the Trader might very well have an inside man or several among the soldiers barracks who were there to make sure that any people like the captured thugs were "offed" before any information could be extracted from them.


    In fact, it was indeed probably the case that the Trader had one, or several inside men acting as informants. otherwise, the fact that he had evaded capture for this long, didn''t make any sense.


    The main areas where the informants were likely to be, in the case of an inside job, would be the soldier''s barracks here in town, the bandits and towns on the route to the capitol, and possibly one or several of the soldiers within the capitol as well. In the worst case scenario, even the royal inquisitorscould be involved. If that were indeed the case, then Robin had placed herself in direct opposition to a very powerful and influential villain.


    In the case of inside men within the soldiers barracks, if the two thugs were not killed, then that meant trouble. Because that would mean that Robin''s group would be targeted by the insiders. Although Robin''s outward appearance had not changed, her eyes glinted sharply, before they returned to their normal appearance.


    It was at that moment when a soldier arrived with a tray of tea and tea cookies.


    "I thought I''d bring some refreshments while you wait for the captain to return." He explained as he set the tray down and stood back.


    "Oh tea! Wonderful, I have a raging thirst after all that fighting." Robin smiled brightly as she picked up the teapot, then paused, and looked up.


    "Is there anything else?" She asked the soldier, noting his face details down in her head.


    "No, nothing." The soldier replied.


    Robin nodded "Oh, good then! It''s a bit embarrassing, but I am not in the habit of letting others watch me drink, as my tea manners are horrendous. These two, here, are still helping me learn court manners. So, could you please turn a blind eye as you wait for me to finish outside the door?" She asked.


    While the soldier looked confused, and glanced at Keith for confirmation, Keith only nodded, acknowledging Robin''s claims. Reassured, the soldier stepped out of the room.


    "Robin, what are you-" Christian began asking, but Robin put a finger on his mouth, smiling dangerously.


    "Hush. I need to concentrate in order to pour this correctly, otherwise it might accidentally end up being poured all over your head. Understand?" She said, winking an eye and tilting her head towards the door, hoping Christian would just take the hint for now.


    While Christian didn''t understand why Robin was acting so strangely, he noted that right now he should restrain his speech to about tea.


    "Can I ask why you want to continue learning this right now?" he asked. (Why are you acting so weird?) he wrote magically in the air, out of sight from the door.


    "As a precaution. We can''t have everyone know that the Hero is a brutish commoner without any manners, after all." (because, for several reasons,i have reason to believe that the tea might be drugged) was her air written reply in a corner blocked by Keith.


    "Well, first off, you are holding it all wrong..." Christian began.


    While Christian began speaking about the rules of properly pouring and drinking tea, Robin smelled the fragrance of the tea first, then poured the entire steaming pot bit by bit into a leather flask, she had taken out. After that, she replaced it with a different flask from her magic bag, and interrupted Christian.


    "Oh darnit! We drank all the tea up while I was practicing. I didn''t even get to try the tea snacks yet!" Robin exclaimed, in frustration.


    "Oh? And here I thought that we could end the lesson here. you don''t want to get too bloated to be unable to drink tonight, after all." Christian joked.


    "Just for that, I insist! Here, i have my cold tea that I prepared for the journey in this flask. why don''t we continue our practice? Is there anything I need to know about eating the tea snacks?"


    Robin quietly swept a quarter of the snacks into her magic bag, and crumbled another one placing the crumbs in places where the tea snacks were supposed to be placed.


    When she was finished, she grabbed a few of her own baked cookies out of her bag, and handed them to Keith and Christian, who eagerly munched on them as they waited for the captain to arrive.


    By the time Robin was finished, it hadn''t yet been ten minutes. all the evidence for a potential drugging or potion incident had been stowed away in her bag for evidence later.


    While Robin was busy gathering the tea and snacks, Keith took out a magic instrument, and tested the residue in the teapot, as well as the cup rims and handles. At this point he revealed his findings. (Sleeping drug in the tea, and Inhibitor potion in the snacks) was what he shared via magical writing.


    "Can we put this to rest now?" Christian caught on, and yawned loudly. "Now you know pretty much everything. Wake me up when the captain gets here. I''m gonna grab forty winks."


    "Hey...no fair." Robin also yawned, "I also want to catch forty winks. Have Kenmei keep an eye out."


    Kenmei moaned. "These old bones aren''t what they used to be. And you''re the main witness. No need for my help. You''ll do fine..." His voice trailed off into silence.


    "Kenmei?....Kenmei??" Robin asked in a sleepy voice. A resounding realistic snore echoed in the room.


    "Darned traitor.." Robin grumbled sleepily. "And here I am, unable to keep my eyes open...Stupid Captain, why haven''t you arrived yet? I need my sleep too..." Then her voice, too fell silent as she also slumped over, pretending to fall asleep.


    All was quiet in the room, aside from steady breathing, and Kemnei''s snore. It was at that point when the door was opened. The soldier who had brought the tea, stood over Robin and grinned evilly.


    "That''s because the captain ain''t coming. The messenger we sent out was a fake. He''s still making his rounds about the town, leaving me with plenty of time to deal with you." He answered Robin''s question.


    Keith and Christian were too high profiled to be murdered in the soldier''s barracks. But Robin was fair game. If he silenced Robin, then the main witness would be missing. He could always make up some story about how Robin stumbled out and killed the thugs himself, before running out into the night.


    But, before the soldier could lay a hand on Robin, he paused as a knife appeared in front of his throat. A cold shiver traveled up his spine.


    "Oh? I am very interested in how many people make up this "we" that you are talking about." Keith drawled lazily as Christian shut and locked the door.

 65 She Recognizes The Enemy

    Robin was the last to open her eyes, staring at the man who was tied by Keith to a chair, watching him with clouded eyes. This man had plotted to kill her, just like they had...He was just like them..


    Robin''s eyes sharpened as she regained clarity. No. That time then and this instant now was something different. However, it was similarly horrifying. She clenched her fist and did what she couldn''t do back then. She smiled.


    Such a dazzling smile it was that both Keith and Christian were at a loss. Had an angel come down and possessed Robin? Keith''s eyes glinted as he regained focus.


    No, an angel''s smile would not have this hidden sense of danger behind it. Even the soldier he was restraining was at a loss for words. But Keith knew about the hidden threat behind her smile. Robin was about to do something unexpected.


    Christian was still dazed as he watched Robin approach the failed assassin, drawing her hand lightly along the edge of his jaw as she gazed into his eyes. It was strange. Although Christian was sure that Robin was a man, somehow this womanly action didn''t seem to cause any sort of conflict with Robin''s image.


    Christian blinked and frowned. That line of thinking was dangerous. Was he still under the after effects of Jasmine''s failed remedy potion? As much as he hated talking to Jasmine, he determined to double check with her later.


    Robin looked into the man''s eyes and started talking. "Hello, Trader." she said.


    The man flinched, and tensed up. "No, I''m not-" He began.


    "Shut up you, I know he''s watching." Robin scoffed. "You are watching this, right? Right. Do you know who I am? Well of course, you don''t. There''s no way that you can know without me telling you.


    But I am not going to tell you. I am going to show you what kind of person you tried to kill just now. And once I am done: then, and only then, will you know who you tried to deal with. So have fun snivelling under whatever rocky crag you crawled out of, you sorry excuse for a human being. Because when I find you, you won''t have the nerve to even snivel anymore. Got that!? Good!"


    Keith and Christian watched with confusion as Robin spoke to the man, then looked at each other. Had Robin snapped? But then, Robin used a spell that she hadn''t even learned: high purify.


    "Now get out of this man!"


    Under the white light bathing down upon the man, he suddenly screamed. His voice seemined to be splitting in two. In fact, another voice soon became distinct. While earlier, they hadn''t been able to see any magic, now-under the white light, a clear outline of a person separated itself from the man who was thrashing about in pain. Then the clear outline collapsed in upon itself as if sucked into a black hole, and dissappeared.


    As soon as the man''s outline disappeared, the man collapsed luke a puppet whose strings were cut. The man, though unconscious, was still breathing. Robin kept the spell running until he was sure that the man would be all right, then sat back with a tired sigh.


    ~~~~~~~~~


    In a far off place, a man suddenly grabbed his head and bent over, moaning in pain.


    "Sir, are you all right?" A manservant asked.


    "It''s nothing. I just bumped my head in the carriage, earlier." the man replied as he hissed in pain.


    ''It looks like I''ve hit an iron wall, this time.'' the man thought ruefully. ''But, then again, things wouldn''t be interesting without difficulties.''


    "Huhuhu, Chase me all you want. the moment we meet is the moment I capture you forever. And then, nothing will get in the way of me knowing what pathetic sort of person you are! Ha ha ha ha!" the man muttered to himself.


    his manservant was somewhat concerned about his master, and resolved to make an appointment with a doctor to get his master looked at.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~


    "Gentlemen, is there such a thing as clear mana?" Robin asked.


    Christian blinked there in a daze, not quite sure what had happened. But Keith''s eyes flashed with recognition.


    "Spirit magic?" He asked with a murmur, as if even he couldn''t believe what he was saying.


    "Spirit magic? What are you talking about?" Christian asked.


    Keith rolled his eyes at Christian.


    "Of course, you''ve never heard of it. You''re too far south. But there is a legend in my homeland of a great magic user, Furan Siesa, who could tame any animal, and befriend any man. He was able to accomplish many magical feats, but no one was able to see his mana. But more modern theorists have claimed that perhaps there is a colorless mana that covers the spirit attribute-although research has not been able to prove it. That is, until now."


    Keith raked his fingers through his hair and barked out a bitter laugh. "And to think, the first confirmed user had to be the trader!" He shook his head, then turned to look at Robin.


    "How did you know, lad?"


    Robin sighed. "The distortion." Christian and Keith looked at Robin blankly.


    "Have you ever watched an area where very hot and very cold collides? the air seems to wiggle around a bit, like it''s boiling. That is what I meant by distortion. The air around that man was highly distorted in my eyes. Did you not see it?"


    Keith shook his head, and turned to look at Christian. "You?"


    Christian frowned. "I didn''t. But now I feel that Robin was right."


    Robin closed her eyes. Then she laughed. "So, only I can see it, huh?" She glanced over at Christian. "Do you think the King and queen will be okay?"


    Christian pulled out a paper and a pen. "They''ll have to. It appears that high heal has an effect upon extracting this hidden menace, so the healer magicians will be working overtime for the time being." He wrote, quickly explaining the situation, and sealed the letter with his seal.


    "Now, we need a trustworthy man to go send this back to my father." Christian frowned.


    "As far as trustworthy goes..."Robin looked at the unconscious man in the chair.


    "Him? Robin, you must be joking! He just tried to kill you! No way, what if he was already Trader''s ally?" Christian denied. "It''s not worth the risk!"


    Robin glanced over at Christian, bemused. "I haven''t said anything yet, though?"


    "Although I may only have met you a week ago, do you think I wouldn''t know that look in your eyes?" Christian asked, pointedly. Robin looked away.


    "Ahah! I got you!" Christian grinned triumphantly.


    Robin looked back at him. "Well, go ahead and choose, then. But that is, only if you can ensure he is not also possessed by using a high heal."


    Christian paused, then pointed at himself.


    "Me? perform a high heal? You''re kidding, right?"


    Robin shook her head. "My mana source needs to rest, I almost overdid things as it is with removing that bugger earlier. If it weren''t because I was super mad, I don''t think I''d be able to have pulled it off."


    Christian blushed sheepishly as he recalled that Robin had only just connected to his mana source that day. After all the magic practise that he had done, to be able to perform a single high heal was already a near monumental feat. Christian cleared his throat, awkwardly.


    "What about Jasmine? She should be able to-"


    "Last I saw, Jasmine was sipping a glass of hard apple cider." Keith pointed out. "You know magic and alcohol don''t mix."


    Christian pointed at Robin.


    "Then what about him? He also drank, you saw him!" he asked, frustratedly.


    "Halfa pint, yes. The other half doesn''t count because it was cooked away inside the soup. Not to mention how long it has been since then, the effects on Robin should be minimal."


    Christian put his face in his hand. "Keith, why does it sound like you agree with him? You''re supposed to back me up!"


    Keith put his hands up. "I make it a habit never to vote for the side that is bound to lose. Besides, at the very least, we don''t know if this man truly is the Trader''s ally. If he were Trader''s ally, would he really need to be subjected to possession simply to prove his allegiance?"


    At this point, the man moaned as he began to return back to consciousness.

 66 She Gives Out A Scolding

    When he opened his eyes, Robin''s grinning face was the first thing he saw.


    "Good morning, Sunshine! Time to get up~" She chuckled. He just stared at her blankly, then tried to move. To his surprise, he couldn''t budge an inch. He looked down to see the ropes tying him to the chair.


    "I blacked out again? And right before I was about to hand in my resignation. What happened?" He rasped. Robin couldn''t blame him. After screaming that badly, it was a surprise that he still had a voice at all.


    Robin leaned forward. "You did more than just black out, man. Can you remember anything?"


    The man''s head throbbed as he dizzily shook his head. "No. But who''re you?"


    Robin rolled her eyes. "I may be many things, but right now, I''m your doctor. You had a pretty bad case of possession, I might say."


    "Possession? By what ghost?" the soldier guffawed, then coughed, as his raw throat surprised him.


    "It was no mere ghost. It was a very dangerous man. The worst part is that this particular man is still alive. You wouldn''t happen to have met any interesting foreigners would you?"


    The soldier barked out a laugh. "Young man, this is a town en route to one of the most desirable vacation cities in the kingdom. We meet with thousands of foreigners every year. I''ve lost count how many people with that description I have met."


    "That''s fine. We don''t need a number." Robin smirked. "Do you remember the person you met before your blackouts began?"


    "This has been going on for over five years, young man." The soldier shrugged. "If you can tell me who you met five years ago in detail, then you''d have to be a genius."


    "While I can do so, I''d rather not." Robin''s blue eyes turned slightly frosty at the memory that flashed through her mind. "It wasn''t a pleasant encounter I had that day."


    Robin reached her hand forward and clasped onto his wrist.


    "I am going to ask you a few routine questions to make sure your mind was not affected." She said, watching his eyes.


    "Try to answer to the best of your abilities."


    The soldier nodded.


    "What is your name, soldier?"


    "Dylan."


    "Do you know where we are?"


    "The captain''s office."


    "You have been having these blackouts for five years?"


    "Yes."


    "And you don''t remember anything that happened during those blackouts?"


    "Not a single da-er darned thing." The soldier refrained from cursing, as the captain was very strict about such things.


    "Good." Robin nodded, then cut the knot open, freeing the soldier.


    "Robin! What if he-"


    "I measured his pulse, and watched his eyes. He was telling the truth" Robin said.


    "What does watching someone''s eye have to do with telling you if a person is lying or not?" Christian snorted, not believing it.


    "Then, if I tell you it''s my intuition?" Robin snapped in return.


    "It is as I have said. His eyes are clear, and straight-forward. His speech was neither rehearsed nor hesitant. And his pulse was steady. While many professional liars have managed to fake one of these reactions. These three things put together are something a liar could never control.


    "This is knowledge from my homelands. You may doubt its effectiveness. But do you doubt my character so much that you believe I would use something ineffective?"


    She scolded him.


    Christian turned his head away. "No." He replied reluctantly. "Very well then." He lifted up his hand, and a spark of light landed on the waxen royal seal enclosing Christian''s letter.


    "He has one chance. If the letter does not get delivered by morning, I will know. Then, if that happens, what will you do, Robin?"


    "I will do what I can to ensure that what you fear shall not happen." She replied.


    "Come with me, Keith. Looks like we need to check on how well the men have kept up their training." Christian cracked his knuckles as he strode out of the captain''s office with a grin.


    Even if the soldier''s shrieking hadn''t alerted the other guards, Christian was not going to go easy on them. He needed someone to act as a punching bag, right now.


    And, since he wasn''t sure how many more of the soldiers were like the one Robin had saved, he was just going to knock them all out. It would be a plus if he managed to give them a good reason to recieve a high heal.


    Keith paused in the doorway, and glanced back at Robin.


    "You know, he was only trying to protect you." Keith said.


    "I know. But he forgets that I am no normal youth." Robin replied, tapping her wrapped blade. "I was chosen for this thankless task, so I need to make sure that I at least do my job well. He should know by now that I can take care of myself."


    Keith chuckled. Although it was probably true,only someone like Robin would describe being a hero as ''a thankless task.'' He left the room,hurrying after Christian to make sure he does not do anything rash.


    "What was that all about?" Dylan asked.


    Robin shook her head at him. "Now''s not the best time to ask, I''m afraid. We''re running out of time here."


    She grabbed Christian''s letter and placed it into Dylan''s hand.


    "Right now, I just got you a chance. You''re the only soldier, currently, that we are certain is not possessed. Prince Christian needs you to deliver this urgent message to his Majesty, King Zephron, in person before the morning sun glows upon the horizon. Can you do it?"


    Dylan stared at Robin, wondering just who this strange doctor was, before nodding.


    "Leave it to me." he said.


    ------


    Christian had already begun his surprise assault upon the soldiers, feeling particularly enraged, although he didn''tunderstand why. He took it out on the soldiers. Concussions, broken bones, severed tendons: he really was not going easy on them.


    Robin had never seen Christian in combat before. However, he was the student of one of the strongest men in the kingdom. If he also did not possess an extremely high combat prowess, after all those years of training, then he truly was an idiot.


    While he fought, Christian couldn''t get Robin''s smile, and following coldness out of his head.


    What kind of life had Robin lead to have such cold eyes at a memory of a person from five years ago? What kind of strength did he have to be able to smile so beautifully at his enemy? What kind of heart did he have to forgive the man who had been used by the enemy?


    Christian admired Robin greatly. But now he was curious about what had happened to Robin after Robin''s parents'' deaths. What could have caused Robin to have such cold eyes? Although he was curious, he was also afraid to ask. Such a person must have caused Robin no small amount of anguish and suffering.


    Christian was fighting by reflex against the soldiers, but, didn''t notice the incoming assault behind him until a sword deflected the spear shaft aimed at his head.


    "Oy, what''s got your head in a knot, Christian? You''d usually have already finished halfway by now. And you would never ignore a strike to the head." Keith asked as he stood behind Christian and dealt with the ambush group even more roughly than Christian.


    "Ah...thanks." Christian replied, as he snapped out of his thoughts and focused on fighting the soldiers until there was no man left uninjured. In all the commotion, Dylan was able to saddle a horse and leave through the front gates.


    Christianfinally realized why he needed a punching bag. It was because he felt unnessecary. Any problem that Robin encountered, he could easily overcome.


    So why was Christian even coming along in the first place? To satisfy his ego? To become first rate baggage? The hero didn''t need his meddling, Christian knew. Yet, still, he couldn''t help but meddle.


    Christian''s mind drifted back to Robin''s smile. ''If only he was a girl'' Christian sighed. ''It would have been perfect-no, I am not thinking about this! I need to see Jasmine tonight.''


    At the moment when they had finally taken care of the last soldier, a voice carrying authority boomed out.


    "What is going on here!?"


    Christian and Keith looked towards the barracks entrance. The captain had returned from his patrols.


    "General Keith? What is going on? Why have you treated my men like this?"


    Keith sighed.


    "I told you, I''m retired. I am no longer a general, Captain Toby."

 67 She Meets the Captain

    "General Keith? What is going on? Why have you treated my men like this?"


    Keith sighed.


    "I told you, I''m retired. I am no longer a general, Captain Toby." He replied. "While we were visiting, we were decided to test the level of response we could expect from your soldiers."


    "By injuring them to the point where every one of them is in need of a high heal? Do you want to bankrupt the soldiers barracks?"


    The captain argued fiercely. "And no matter if you are retired or not, you will always be General Keith to me. You know that."


    Keith sighed again, and waved his hand. "All expenses will be paid for by the kingdom. Come to your office. I have something important to tell you."


    While Keith took the captain to the office, Christian quickly took down the soldiers who had arrived with the captain.


    Robin sat in the office, with a personal steaming cup of tea in her hands. While the captain seemed surprised, Keith was not.


    Before the captain could draw his sword, he was stopped by Keith.


    "Don''t. He''s the main witness to what I have to tell you."


    Then Keith turned to Robin. "So, is he clear?" Robin, after observing the captain closely, nodded the affirmative.


    And so, Keith and Robin explained what had happened earlier that day. It began from the time Robin went out for a walk to the time the captain arrived. With each new revelation, the captain''s face grew paler and paler, until he reached deep into a drawer and drew out the strongest liquor he owned. Drinking straight from the flask, he managed to keep himself from a mental breakdown.


    "Have you sent word to the capitol?" he asked.


    "Done as soon as we knew." Robin replied. "The messenger is trustworthy, as well."


    "I suppose I should be thanking you for the carnage outside. Now we can make sure that everyone is cleared of the Trader''s magic." The captain sighed. "Have you sent word to the other towns?"


    Christian walked into the room at that point, and answered.


    "No. If, by chance, an affected captain were to get ahold of the information, our defensive plans would be revealed to the Trader. We can''t take the risk."


    Keith shook his head in agreement. "That''s why it''s better to have such things come from the capitol instead. Send out messengers who can use high heal, and use them upon the captains first, before slowly moving down through the subordinates."


    "You''re right. But, wouldn''t the man begin to catch on when his subordinates begin disappearing?" Captain Toby asked.


    Robin yawned. It had been a full day, and she was beginning to feel tired. Glancing out of the window, the big round moon was already high in the sky.


    "No. After tearing out the implanted spirit, it imploded upon itself. I don''t think its last moments were clear enough for any information about my methods could leak back to the original." She waved a hand dismissively. "Concentrating more upon his spirit''s last moments would only amplify the damage feedback to the original. Due to his cautious nature, the Trader would not risk ruining the health of the original for a mere external spy of his."


    Captain Toby looked at Robin for a moment, then said. "Pardon me, but I don''t believe I managed to catch your name?"


    Robin smirked. "Aye, and that was on purposd. I can''t have the Trader finding out who I am because of a blinking paper trail that even a tortoise could follow. You can call me ''you'', ''hey'', ''lad'' or something. But my name I keep quiet."


    "Fair enough." Captain Toby stood up and shook hands with Keith.


    "I hope you catch the blaggard, this time."


    ----------------


    Robin opened her eyes, finding herself in her old room. Sitting up, she saw her favorite childhood toys sitting on their shelves, and on her bookcase. The sound of children playing outside meant that it was the first day of summer vacation. She was ten years old today.


    Robin got out of bed and pattered down the long hallway that seemed much longer today, and down the wooden staircase. She was going to see her big brother.


    Her big brother''s room was as she remembered it. It was on the ground floor, and filled with sword replicas and posters of famous blade fighters, whether real or fictional. Her brother was practicing his sword swings as she came in through the door.


    "Big Brother! Guess what today is!?" Robin asked excitedly.


    "Ho? Oh, Robin! Down from your ivory tower early today, I see!" Her big brother paused his practice and grabbed a towel. "What day is it today?" He muttered to himself, as if pondering something. "Now have I forgotten anything... Ah! It''s the first day of summer vacation, right?"


    "Not that! Try again!" Robin giggled. Her brother always played this guessing game with her every birthday. It had become a family tradition, by now.


    "Hmmm.... It''s Friday?" Her big bro said, glancing at the calendar on the wall.


    "Noooope, that''s still not it." Robin chuckled, trying not to blurt out the answer.


    "Try again! Last chance!" she laughed. She knew that he already understood what she wanted him to guess. If he didn''t guess this time, he would recieve a penalty forehead flick. Those were painful.


    "...Ah! Is it your birthday!?" Her brother asked.


    "Yes! You got it!"


    Robin jumped in a circle as she did a small happy dance. Her big brother smiled brilliantly.


    "Happy Birthday, Little Sister." He chuckled as he ruffled her hair before giving her a large box-shaped present, wrapped in sky-blue paper.


    "Here! Now I can say that my present is the very first one!" He beamed a dazzling smile.


    "Thank you, Big Brother!" Robin looked at that sky blue package, when, all of as sudden, something felt wrong. This had happened before. What came next after this was...


    The doorbell rang. The hair on the back of Robin''s neck stood up as she began to recall the part that she had almost forgotten. Today was not a happy day....today was the day when-


    "Hmm? I wonder who that is?" Her big brother chuckled as he strode out into the hallway, unsuspecting what would happen next. "Do you think it''s mom and dad with your birthday cake?"


    Robin found her arms and legs became as heavy as lead. She felt herself moving slower than a man stuck in molasses. Her tongue cleaved to the roof of her mouth. But still, she struggled to go after her brother, to catch up to him.


    The present slipped down from her hands, forgotten, as she ran after him in slow motion. She had to warn him!


    ''No! Don''t open that door! It isn''t mom and dad! It''s them! They''re gonna say that mommy and daddy are....are...'' She entered the hallway just in time to watch in horror as her brother reached out to open the door.


    The present touched the ground with a soft thud, which echoed out like the sound of a gun.


    "Don''t!" Robin cried out as she bolted awake, sitting up and panting as her heart raced in her chest. Looking around, it took her a moment to realize that it was all just a dream. She was in the single room at the inn, in Ekkinshire kingdom.


    Her hand clenched the cotton blanket as she tried to calm herself.


    "If only...that day were truly just a simple dream." Robin looked up to the ceiling, to prevent the tears from falling. Dreaming about the day her parents died was like tearing open the wound and pouring salt all over it.


    It hurt.


    It hurt a lot.


    While she was struggling with her emotions, Robin heard a knock at the door.


    "Robin? Are you awake yet? It''s almost time to leave." It was Christian at the door.


    Robin loosened the lump in her throat before responding.


    "Almost. I''ll be out in ten minutes!" She replied as she jumped out of bed, and grabbed the water pitcher. She needed to cool her eyes before they became puffy.


    "Okay then! We''ll be waiting!" Christian replied. Robin listened as the tamp of his boots retreated down the hallway.


    Robin glanced down at the water basin. Today was turning out to be a most horrible birthday. And it had only just begun.

 68 She Introduces Flavors and Jasmine Redirects Christian

    Robin splashed her face with cold water. Then she shoved her pain and homesickness back under the thick skinned mask she had developed over six years.


    ''Perhaps I should be grateful that I was able to see Big Brother''s face here, if only in a dream.'' Robin tried to look at the bright side. She quickly dressed and used a lifestyle magic she had learned earlier.


    "Cleanse."


    It was a basic magic that all nobles knew. This was how they were able to keep up their appearance, even while on the road. It felt odd to suddenly become clean like that. But Robin decided it wasn''t a bad thing for when you were in a hurry.


    She still preferred hot baths, though, since cleanse also neutralized all scents, whether good or bad. Robin was still partial to the scent of soap.


    Making sure she didn''t leave anything behind, Robin emerged from her room. She promptly returned the key to the innkeeper. Then, she looked around for her party.


    "Over here, Robin!" Gerard called out from a table near a window. There, the party was busy eating breakfast. Breakfast today was oatmeal, boiled eggs, dried fruit, and cinnamon tea.


    As Robin sat down and ordered the same, her party members watched as she tried the oatmeal. Robin noticed this, as well as the nearly full bowls around the table. Then she lowered her head to hide her amusement. Now that she had shown her cards the other night, her companions felt that she had more cards to show. Well, in this case, she actually did. So, she decided to put on a show for them.


    Robin scooped a small spoonful. It had a nice mild flavor with just a bit of sweetness. They had probably added a spoonful of honey to help it go down easier. But the oatmeal was so thick that putting her spoon into it, Robin felt she might be able to lift the whole glob of oatmeal.


    "Hmm..." Robin turned her eyes to the fruit and tea. There was even a small pot of honey nearby to sweeten the tea.


    "Well?" Gerard asked.


    "Well, what?" Robin innocently asked Gerard.


    "Aren''t you gonna get any ideas on how to make this oatmeal taste way better?" Gerard asked, eagerly.


    "What? You don''t like how it tastes?" Robin asked.


    "Mmmm, it''s not that I don''t like it..." Gerard struggled to explain. "But, it looked like you felt there was something... perhaps... missing from it?"


    "Oh?" Robin examined Gerard closely, making him blush in embarassment over his bluff. Then Robin grinned, and ruffled Gerard''s head.


    "How observant you are! You are precisely right." Robin nodded. "I did have an idea for some improvements to this simple porridge. In fact, I have two ideas. But, don''t tell the inkeeper, or I''ll have to delay our departure in order to haggle with him all over again, okay?"


    "It''s a deal!" Gerard nodded.


    Robin grabbed an apple, a handful of strawberries, and a banana from the fruit bowl. Then she drew out a dagger and quickly diced up the three fruits into chunks smaller that her pinky nail. Lastly, she separated the fruit into two sides. bananna and strawberry on one side, and apple on the other.


    "Pick a side." Robin told Gerard.


    "Why are the strawberries and bananas on one side, but only the apple is on the other?" Gerard asked, scrutinizing the two sides.


    "Because the strawberries and banana bits can be added to the porridge as they are, and that will already improve the state of the porridge." Robin replied, then added. "But the side with the apple requires one more step."


    Gerard''s eyes twinkled as he instantly decided. "I choose apple!" He said.


    "Very well." Robin divided the apple in between her and Gerard''s bowls of porridge. Then she picked up the cinnamon stick left over from the cinnamon tea. the hot water had already evaporated from the stick, leaving it dry.


    Robin ran her knife up and down the dried bark, scratching miniscule particles of cinnamon dust off it onto the porridge. When there was half a teaspoon''s worth in both bowls, she stopped.


    Then she mixed everything in the bowl thoroughly. The apple softened inside the hot porridge after about a minute, and Robin tasted the results and smiled. Then she added some of the tea and some cream to soften the already congealing glob of oatmeal. The cream was originally intended to soften the bite of the cinnamon tea. But no one was paying attention to that. Altogether, it didn''t take Robin even five minutes to finish her improvements.


    Jasmine chose the strawberry and banana blend instead, since she got hungry watching Robin work. Christian copied Robin''s creation by cutting himself some apple, and using the rest of the cinnamon stick. But he ended up putting too much cinnamon in, so he added much more cream to his porridge than Robin did.


    Ponzu experimented with other fruits like pears and peaches, and ended up liking the second choice. The knights who accompanied them, had already finished their portions, and were regretting letting their stomach get the better of them.


    They quickly finished up their porridge and left after that.


    ---------


    Once they had left the town behind, Robin suddenly remembered.


    "Oh drat!" She placed her head in her hand, exasperated. "Due to all of that darned hullabaloo yesterday, I forgot to visit the adventurer''s guild!!"


    At this, Jasmine and Gerard looked at each other, then burst out laughing.


    "I''m glad SOMEBODY is amused at my plight!" Robin rolled her eyes, which only made the two laugh all the more.


    Jasmine, when she finally managed to calm down, suddenly remembered the conversation she had had with Prince Christian, and began laughing all the more.


    --------


    Upon their return, Robin had headed straight to bed, while Christian had gone to see Jasmine, a strange expression on his face.


    "Cousin, can you check to see if I''ve been placed under a spell again? I''ve been feeling rather strange these past few days."


    Jasmine glanced at him, and raised her eyebrow in surprise. This was the first time in a long time that Christian had addressed her as ''cousin'' instead of ''you''.


    "The spell detector isn''t working?" she asked.


    "I''m not sure if it is a spell or a potion, but I''ve been feeling really strange." Christian could only repeat what he''d said before.


    What seem to be the symptoms?" Jasmine asked.


    At this, Christian''s face rurned red. How could he admit to his cousin that he was starting to notice romantic thoughts about the hero? Wasn''t this just asking to be teased mercilessly? He let out a turbid breath. But, even so, he had to say it. If it was a potion, then allowing it to affect him long term was not a good idea.


    "....I....have been thinking strange thoughts about the hero." Christian finally admitted, his ears almost glowing bright red from embarrassment.


    "I''m afraid you''ll have to be a bit more specific, cousin." Jasmine replied, hiding her amusement behind her large sleeve. "What kind of thoughts?"


    "Things like, ''he''s cute'' or ''he''s adorable'' or ''it''s a shame he''s not a woman''." Christian muttered in a voice that could only be heard if you were right next to him.


    ''Oh my....Oh my! It looks like he''s completely fallen head over heels for her.'' Jasmine immediately realized what was happening.


    Her next thought was ''I need to make sure that he never realises this. Ho ho! He is never going to be able to live this down!''


    Under her calm facade, Jasmine was laughing maniacally. She took a sip of tea.


    "Well, I don''t see what the problem is. Isn''t that normal? Even I find him adorable, after all." Jasmine sighed. "It''s a shame he isn''t a woman. Otherwise, we two would probably be the inseparable best of friends!"


    Then she glanced at Christian.


    "If you''re still worried over what happened three days ago, I wouldn''t be too bothered about it. Unless, Christian you actually are into m-"


    "Nope! I am completely straight, I tell you!!" Christian replied his face becoming red with more than just embarrassment.


    ''So it was because Robin actually looked that way to everyone, hmm? Then I can feel relieved.''


    "But still, thinking of Robin as the opposite gender? cousin, are you sure you aren''t-" Jasmine began her teasing. But Christian fled the room before she could get much further.


    "Ho ho! This is going to be fun~!" Jasmine looked out the nearby window and chuckled under the light of the full moon.


    ----------


    "Okay, I may admit that it was funny, but seriously, it isn''t that funny!" Robin looked at Jasmine wirh concern. "Are you sure you''re all right?"


    "I-I''m fine. I am perfectly-pfft! Fine!" Jasmine wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes.

 69 She Finds Herself in a Flowery Fix

    Farmland soon gave way to pastures, populated by cows, goats, sheep, and horses. Around noon time that day, they arrived on the outskirts of another small town called Gray. True to its name, the buildings were built of rough grey stone, which gave the town a somewhat dull appearance.


    The carriage halted before entering the village, as a large herd of cows was in the process of heading further into the town. Robin leaned her head out the window, admiring the wildflowers growing on the right side of the road.


    "How long until the cow herd clears?" She asked.


    "It will most likely take a while." Jasmine sighed. "Cow herds aren''t hurried, especially when they are heading through the center of town. Otherwise, if there should be a stampede, then many people could get injured. It is one of the pastural laws."


    "Hmm? Hey, Gerard, Ponzu! You two want me to teach you another neat new recipe?" Robin asked.


    "What? Here? Now?" Ponzu askes, his eyes sparkling as he replied from his seat out front.


    "But where''s the food?" Gerard asked. looking around, but all he could see were meadows and cows.


    "You wanna show us how to cook a cow, or make cheese?"


    Robin chuckled. "Nope! This dish, I assure you, is strictly vegetarian. Heheh." For a certain amount of time after her parents death, Robin was unable to eat anything with meat in it. So she had to turn to vegetarian foods, instead. This next dish was something that had peaked her interest in the past.


    "Okay, I''m in!" Ponzu jumped down from the carriage. Everyone else was curious about what she was about to do, and so, they also got down from the carriage.


    While Christian and Keith set up an insect repellant magic barrier, Robin took Gerard and Ponzu to help her out.


    Robin did not have to go far.


    -------------------


    Gerard looked down at the small basketful ofsnapdragon, geranium, dandelion, and clover blossoms in his hands. Then he looked up at Robin, confused.


    "Robin, I thought you were going to teach us a new recipe. Why are we picking all these flowers? Some of these are even weeds!"


    Robin looked up from her larger basket. it was overflowing with blossoms.


    "Oops! I got carried away, since there are so many good choices, here." She laughed sheepishly. "All right, then. Let''s assemble the dish!"


    Gerard''s face was one large picture of confusion. Christian had an inkling of what was going to happen, since he had known that Robin was knowledgable about plants.


    "What are we going to do, then?" Jasmine chuckled. "You can''t expect us to be like fairies and eat flowers!"


    Robin paused.


    "Actually, that''s exactly what we''re going to do!"


    She grinned.


    "Let me teach you the recipe for spring flower salad!"


    ----------


    Back under the barrier, on top of a picnic blanket, Robin was busy showing Ponzu the blooms.


    "Wisteria, although pleasant in flavor, should be consumed in moderation." Robin instructed, as she showed Ponzu the delicate edible blossoms.


    "Redbud are common tree flowers in the spring. Black locust blooms are also a tasty flower. These snapdragons can be bland to slightly bitter, but still edible."


    Each time she named a flower, she lifted it up for Ponzu to see.


    "Primrose blooms and Daylily flowers are also good. The Daylily buds are tasty when fried or fresh. Clover blossoms are nice, too.


    The others that I have here are edible blooms as well: Pansies, Violets, marigold, geraniums, chicory, bachelors buttons, Bee Balm, Chamomile, goldenrod, chrysanthemum-petals only, mind you, for those-, and last of all, the dandelion flower.


    "Unlike the others, where not all of the plant can be eaten, this common weed is actually entirely edible. the flower, stem, leaf, and even the root is consumable. But, the root is better roasted and made into a drink. The majority of greens used in the spring flower salad will be dandelion leaves, for lack of some good lettuce greens."


    Robin then carefully removed the pistils and stamens from all of the flowers except the tiny ones, before storing half of them away in her magic bag.


    "I''ll save some of these for some other recipes later on." Robin explained. Then she mixed all of the flowers together with the dandelion blooms and greens.


    "And, done! Just sprinkle some honey water over it, and you''re all set!" Robin''s eyes curved up as she smiled.


    "These are all edible?" Jasmine asked, somewhat unbelieving.


    "Trust me, there are way more." Robin stretched, as she answered.


    "I just picked the ones that were easiest to recognize."


    Then Robin took out a glass bottle with a watery yellow liquid in it. "Here, try this." She dripped a bit onto a dandelion bloom and stuffed it into Ponzu''s mouth. Ponzu, was surprised at the flavor.


    "Honey?" He asked, after ruminating for a few moments.


    "Honey water." Robin replied. "Boil some water, and wait for it to cool to less than burning hot, then add honey and stir. once the two are completely mixed together, it''s ready to go."


    Buzzzzz.


    Bzzzzzeeeeee.


    Bzzzuuummmmmm.


    Robin, curious about the sound, glanced back at the magic barrier behind her. A veritable swarm of bees and bugswere buzzing around at the edge of the barrier. She could also see a few poisonous moths and monarch butterflies joining into the buzzing crowd.


    Robin turned to Christian. "You didn''t set up a scent barrier?" She asked.


    "I didn''t know I needed one." Christian replied.


    Robin wanted to cry. She retrieved all the salad into her magic bag, then stood up.


    "Here is not the best place to eat this, then. If we don''t leave soon, we will be surrounded by a swarm of bugs that mean business! Christian, is this barrier moveable?" Robin asked.


    "Why the worry? They''re just bugs." Christian shrugged. Robin raised an eyebrow.


    "Then have fun fighting through a gnawing, biting, stinging, hungry crowd of hundreds to thousands of crawly, flying bugs, that don''t care if you''re a prince or a pauper." Robin shrugged in return, as she gathered up the picnic blanket. Then she sighed as she pondered their predicament.


    ''Will a light barrier work? but, no, light usually attracts bugs....wait....''


    "That''s it!" Robin smacked her fist into her palm as an idea came to her.


    "What is it?" Gerard asked, curiously.


    Robin smiled mischievously and placed her hand on Gerard''s shoulder.


    "I''ve got an idea, but I''m gonna need your help, kiddo."


    ---------


    It only took a brief five minutes to set up, butsoon they were ready. The number of bugs trying to get past the barrier had tripled in that time. And so, Robin finally put the finishing touches on her contraption, and places a bright, bug attracting, glow spell on it.


    Then she tossed it out of the barrier.


    "Do it, now, Gerard!" She called.


    Gerard summoned a strong breeze, making it flow from him out towards the glowing object. It glided far away from them over the nearby meadow, a certain perfume exuding from its wings. The smell led the swarm of bugs to circumvent the anti-bug barrier, and hurry to follow after the item.


    "Remind me of what that thing you made was called, again?" Jasmine asked, impressed.


    "A paper airplane?" Robin replied, as she successfully pulled off a group cleanse spell. The airplane would not fly too far, but the scent of honey on the paper would ensure that the bugs would be more interested in the plane.


    "Now, while they are distracted, we should quickly make our way back to the carriage." Robin said, and immediately set off back the way they had come. While 36 feet isn''t that far, Robin didn''t know when the swarm of bugs would return. Even though cleanse can do wonders, it does not affect the items within her magic bag. And so, she was uncertain whether the smell of honey would still be emnating, and attract more bugs.


    The rest of the group followed after her, too, since they had no intentions of standing in a cloud of bugs in the near future.


    Robin opened the carriage door, and playfully gave Jasmine her most courteous bow.


    "After you, milady~." She smiled, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she held out a hand to help Jasmine onto the carriage. Robin had gotten the most wonderful idea from the ball she had attended a few nights ago. Since Prince Christian seemed to have forgotten common courtesy with his cousin, then he needed to relearn by example. She would show this befuddled prince how he ought to treat family.


    Jasmine laughed mirthfully, understanding the roguish smile on Robin''s face. "You have my thanks, Sir Robin." She said, lightly placing her hand upon Robin''s as she got into the carriage.


    "You are only too welcome, milady."


    Robin turned to look at the dumbstruck expression on the faces of the rest of the party. Then she shrugged.


    "Sorry, gents. I don''t offer such services to men~!" She said cheekily as she hopped into the wagon. Christian woke up from his daze and his face turned a bit red as he jumped up after Robin.


    "Why that little rascal!"


    The others started sniggering once he was out of sight, but then they, too, entered the carriage.

 70 She Talks About her Brother

    Inside the carriage, after escaping from Christian''s hair-ruffling hand, Robin sat down on one of the cushioned seats, using her hand to absentmindedly comb her hair back into place.


    "So, about that salad...." Gerard asked hungrily. "Can we eat it now?" He was already looking forward to how it was going to taste. His stomach growled in agreement.


    "Let''s wait until we arrive at the rest stop, first." Robin suggested.


    "Awww. Don''t we still have to wait for the cow herd?" Gerard asked, disappointed.


    "Well, the truth is, the cow herd was pretty much finished a minute ago. By now, we''re probably almost at the town square."


    Robin pointed out the window. Gerard got up to go look outside. But, even standing, he could tell that the scenery outside the window was changing.


    The carriage was so well-spelled that they hadn''t even felt when the carriage had started to move. Since it was a small town, they were already almost at the town square as soon as they entered. Gerard''s face blushed sheepishly.


    "Then, I am okay with waiting."He said, as he sat back down. Robin laughed.


    "If it''s any consolation, the wait shouldn''t be long." She said in encouragement. Although the others didn''t say much, they also were curious as to what the spring flower salad would taste like.


    "Ah, that reminds me, Robin." Gerard looked up. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"


    Jasmine''s heart trembled out of concern. She knew that Robin''s home was a touchy subject, and watched Robin closely, worried that he might get angry or morose.


    Robin simply looked out the window, a faint smile gracing her lips. At that moment, the sunlight falling down upon her face created a soft glow upon her face. In that moment, Gerard almost forgot that Robin was a man.


    "Yes. I have an older brother." She replied quietly.


    "Wow! Is he as good as you are at fighting?" Gerard asked, starry-eyed.


    "Nope." Robin turned to wink at Gerard. "He''s even better than I am. Of course, my master said that, if we had started at the same time, that I''d have surpassed him 3 years ago. For now, I can only fight on equal terms with him for half an hour before being defeated."


    Of course, physique had something to do with it. While Robin was a genius at attack techniques, her brother''s strength lay in defensive techniques.He was someone who had an eight year headstart, and had a chance to develope far more muscle and stamina. For a mere sixteen years old, to contend against her brother who was eight years older than her on a regular basis, and almost draw even? This was actually an impressive feat.


    Keith and Christian were even more impressed, since they knew more about physical battle training than the others. Robin must have trained ceaselessly these past six years. Otherwise, she would not have been so strong and knowledgable.


    At a certain point, Christian wondered how Robin even found the time to sleep. Otherwise, there would be no way the hero could be so strong.


    "Wow! I wonder if your brother is so awesome, I wonder just how strong your parents would be!" Gerard exclaimed. Jasmine could only place her head in her hand.


    ''Kid, could you not touch upon topics that pain Robin so deeply? If I didn''t know you were innocent, I would swear that you were doing this on purpose!''


    At that moment, Robin''s nightmare that morning flitted back to the front of her mind, occupying Robin''sattention. If it wasn''t for her brother, she would probably have...


    Robin shook her head to clear it. Her brother was still alive and well. Robin also was alive and well. That was a good thing. All she needs to do is consult the demon king to find out the way to return.


    At that moment, Robin made a decision. There would be no more gloom today. Today was a day to contemplate happier things.


    "Come to think of it..." She said, slowly. "I recalled another recipe just now..."


    "Does it include flowers?" Gerard asked. Robin grinned. "It can." She replied. "But flowers are usually included only if the dish is meant for a woman. For flowers to bedazzle this dish for a man, it would look quite odd."


    Glancing out the window, Robin grin softened into a faint smile. "It appears we have arrived." She announced, as she stood up and walked to the carriage door.


    The rest area was a house where carriages could stop. It had carved stone tables and chairs for the people to sit in, both on the outside, and on the inside of the building. Although the building itself was nothing special, looking like all the other grey stone houses, it had separate rooms for commoner and noble parties.


    When Ponzu opened the carriage door from the outside, Robin was the first to alight upon the cobblestone ground. Turning around, she courteously held her hand out to help Jasmine down.


    "Are you in need of assistance, milady?" She asked with a cheeky smile.


    Jasmine laughed. "Why, thank you, young man. I''d be delighted to recieve your aid." She placed her hand lightly in Robin''s as she stepped down onto solid ground.


    Christian, seeing this, scowled as he observed the two together. ''Perhaps, could they be...?'' He shook his head quickly to banish the thought into the depths of his mind. ''Impossible! There''s no way that would happen.''


    He took a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm down. For some reason, he did not like seeing Robin together with Jasmine. He jumped down, and moved to subtly stand in between the two.


    Jasmine seeing this, held back a laugh. It seemed that Christian was getting jealous. On the other side, Robin was too busy thinking about what kind of ingredients she would need to notice Christian''s abnormal behavior.


    "Ponzu."


    She turned towards the carriage, where Ponzu was retrieving his luggage.


    "Later on, I have another recipe to show you."


    "Really!?" Ponzu exclaimed. "Hurray!" He jumped for joy, as he eagerly went to reserve them a table inside the rest house.


    "A new recipe?" Christian asked. "More flowers?" Was she going to fry flower blossoms in oil?


    Robin shook her head, smiling secretively. "Nope! You''ll find out later. This recipe is for later on tonight."


    "Tonight? Does it have to be at night?" Christian asked.


    "No, but it''s best to eat this one after dinner." Robin replied, cryptically. Though he was somewhat annoying, Robin found sheenjoyed seeing Christian''s somewhat dumbfound expression.


    Inside the rest area building, the group plus the knights gathered around the table to try Robin''s flowery Spring Salad. Robin was satisfied that there wasn''t a sign of a bug anywhere. But she wouldn''t take it out before her companions set up a scent barrier at the doors and windows. They quickly did so. Once that was done, she pulled out the colorful blooms, liberally sprinkling honey water over the whole large bowl.


    "Lunch is served!" She laughed, as she plated the somewhat exotic eatable.


    Since just a salad was a bit light for a travel meal, Robin also withdrew some boiled eggs and honeyed ham to eat alongside it. The salty sweetness from the pork, and the mild flavor of the eggs went well with the refreshing mild sweetness of the salad.


    While the knights ate the salad, they thought it was a somewhatpleasant change from meat and root vegetables for every now and then. They were also somewhat surprised at the fact that many of the flowers, though sweet-smelling, tasted slightly bitter without the honey water.


    After lunch, everyone agreed to go for a small walk through town to stretch their legs. Robin had Ponzu stay back to help her.


    "Okay, first, I need you to find me three stones" Robin instructed. "No bigger than my palm, and I''d like them to be about 3 inches high. Try to get them as close to the same height as possible when sitting on the ground, okay?"


    Ponzu was confused. "How is this going to help us make the dish?" He asked.


    "I''ll explain later." Robin said, as she pulled out some paper sheets, a small bowl, and some butter. "But, for now, please find me some stones, okay?"


    While Ponzu was rather doubtful, he still dutifully went to gather the stones as asked.

 71 She Creates A Mysterious Desser

    While Ponzu was gone, Robin worked on making some homemade parchment paper on a clean wooden slab. After melting the butter using "Warm" a suplementary heat spell, she spread the butter evenly on both sides of the page using a spatula. Then, she blotted up the excess butter off the page. Voila! Baking paper.


    While it didn''t keep well, as opposed to the modern baker''s parchment paper, it was good if used within a few days. Robin made a few more sheets before putting them all away in a cloth sheet, and stuffing them in her magic bag.


    Ponzu soon came back with the stones. After cleaning them with ''cleanse'', she put them off to the side. They would be important for later.


    Then she retrieved a cake pan from her bag, and measured both the height, and the diameter of the pan. After roughly measuring, she cut a single baking paper in half, and lined the walls so that the paper exceeded the height of the pan by two inches. She also cut out two semi-circles from the other baking sheets, and lined the bottom with them.


    "What are we making?" Ponzu asked.


    "You''ll find out." Robin said brightly. The preparations now complete, Robin was ready to work on the actual food part.


    She assembled the ingredients:


    6 eggs


    1+1/4 cups white sugar


    2+1/2 tablespoons water


    1+1/2 cups cake flour


    1/2 teaspoon baking powder


    1+1/2 teaspoons almond extract


    as well as strawberries, sugar, and cream to the side. Those last three were for the toppings later.


    "Are we baking a cake?" Ponzu asked, seeing the ingredients. Well, the cake flour did seem to be pretty straightforward.


    "Nope. not baking." Robin said.


    "Roasting?" Ponzu asked.


    "Nope."


    "Flambe?"


    "Noope."


    "Cooling?"


    "Nooope." By this time, Robin had a silly grin on her face.


    "I give up. What are we making?" Ponzu had exhausted all his methods for cake making.


    "I told you, you''ll find out." Robin said.


    "It''s going to at least be a dessert, right?" Ponzu asked.


    "Hmmm~Hmmm~!" Robin refrained from commenting as she began the mixing process.


    First, she separated the eggs into yolks and egg whites in two different bowls. Inside the bowl the yolks were in, Robin also added the sugar and water. Then she had Ponzu beat them together until the mixture has increased about three times in volume.


    While Ponzu was beating, Robin whisked together the flour and the baking powder. Then sifted the combination over the -now larger- egg mixture, and had Ponzu fold it in, gently. After that, she also blended the almond extract in.


    It was at this point where Ponzu''s arms needed a break. Robin took over the rest of the preparation as Ponzu watched carfully.


    Robin turned back to the egg whites. She whipped them in a clean bowl until they had stiff, moist peaks. If the peaks were dry, then she would''ve gone too far. She folded the egg whites into the yolk mixture. Then she poured the batter into the round, papered pan she had prepared earlier.


    She smoothed the batter out evenly up to the paper liner. Then she did something unexpected. She rapped the pan on the table they were using.


    "Do you know why I did that?" She asked Ponzu.


    "To settle the batter?" Ponzu said.


    Robin shook her head.


    "To get rid of any large bubbles inside the batter before we begin."


    "Oh? And what exactly are we going to do?" Ponzu was still confused. Surely now, Robin would let him know, right?


    Robin took out the three stones. "We are going to use these." She said.


    "I don''t see how those stones will accomplish anything." Ponzu said, immensely puzzled.


    "Watch." Robin placed the stones in the bottom of a pot wider than the cake pan. She then put water in the bottom of the pot until it was about 2 inches high. Next, she placed the pan on top of the stones. She covered the top of the pot with a thin towel, and placed the lid on top.


    "Um, I still don''t see how you''re going to cook this thing. Are you going to stew it? Please, just tell me!" Ponzu begged.


    Robintapped the bottom of the pot, silently using heat mana to cause the water to start boiling when Ponzu wasn''t looking. The spell would maintain itself for about twenty minutes. The pot was placed on a nearby stone bench in the meantime.


    "Don''t touch." Was all she said about the pot.


    "How am I going to learn anything if you don''t explain it to me?" Ponzu said.


    "For now, I need you to watch closely. the explanations can always come later." Robin replied.


    "Or you''re just pulling my leg." Ponzu mumbled. "You can be as moody as a girl, sometimes!"


    Then Robin turned back with the bowl of cream in hand, and smiled brightly at Ponzu. Although the smile was brilliant, the eyes told him different.


    "Looks like you''ve rested your hands long enough!" She said, handing him the bowl.


    Ponzu''s face fell and his arms throbbed, as he realized what Robin was going to say next.


    "Whip it."


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~


    When everyone had returned, they found Ponzu sitting there, massaging his aching arms.


    "Robin taught you another new recipe, didn''t he?" Gerard asked.


    "Yes, but the stubborn man isn''t telling me what we''ve made!" Ponzu complained with a small wail. "It could be anything from custard pudding to dessert soup, for all I know!"


    Christian patted Ponzu on the shoulder.


    "Cheer up! Robin always has his reasons. He''ll probably tell us tonight after dinner. It''s possible that the dessert you made has some kind of story behind it."


    "Yeah! Robin never said that he wasn''t going to tell you about it, right?" Gerard piped in.


    "Well...come to think of it, no. He never said that. He only mentioned that I would know what it was, later." Ponzu admitted.


    "See? You''re taking this too much to heart. Just relax and wait until after dinner with the rest of us, okay? It won''t be too long until it happens then." Christian chuckled.


    "All right...But I am blasted curious about it, I am, sir!" Ponzu gave in. It was a good thing he did, too.


    "Where I come from, we have the saying: ''curiousity killed the cat''." A voice came from the doorway behind him. Ponzu turned around to see Robin sporting a wry smile as she leaned against the side of the doorway.


    "Badmouthing your teacher, I take it?" She drawled lazily, as Ponzu''s forehead began to collect sweat upon it.


    "No, of course not!" Ponzu shook his head, quickly.


    "Come now, it''ll do you no good to start lying like that." Robin snorted. "I am infamous for being stubborn, after all."


    Ponzu''s tanned complexion blanched for a moment. Robin had heard everything! Then he bowed his head, guiltily.


    "Yes. I''m sorry." He answered honestly.


    "Good. You may not understand many of the things I do until much later, but one of the things I demand from my students is honesty." Robin nodded, satisfied.


    Ponzu looked up.


    "Um, for future reference, what are the other demands?" He asked.


    "Obedience, Attention to details, and moral integrity." Robin answered pointedly.


    "Whoah. Looks like you''re in a short bitt for a long walk, Ponzu~!" Keith teased. "You''ll be hen-pecked even before meeting any hens!"


    Ponzu just rolled his eyes at Keith.


    "It''s better than running for your life through the castle halls!" He retorted.


    "Hey, how did you hear about that!?" Keith exclaimed.


    Ponzu smiled slyly. "The castle maids do love their gossip, after all. Did you really think you could hide that from us?"


    "No." Keith replied. He smacked his fist into his palm demonstratively. "But I know a sure-fire way of making you forget about it! Shall we test it out?" Keith''s white teeth flashed with light as he broke into a rather evil-sounding chuckled.


    Ponzu shook his head and changed his tune. "Master, Keith is bullying me!" Ponzu shamelessly tattled.


    "Hey! You''re not playing fair!" Keith lamented.


    "All is fair in war and food." Ponzu replied.


    "Is that how it went?" Christian frowned in thought.


    "No. It''s the chefs version of the saying." Ponzu replied.


    "All right, that''s enough, the whole lot of you!" Robin scolded.


    "Since we''re all here, let''s board early and try to make it to the next town before dark."

 72 She Meets Tall, Dark, and Scaly

    "Oh? But what about the pot? It''s only been ten minutes since you put the lid on." Ponzu asked.


    "No worries!" Robin grinned. "This is a dish that I decided upon specifically because it is travel safe." She lifted the pot. One could faintly hear a bubbling noise coming from inside.


    "What''s in there?" Gerard asked, approaching the pot.


    "Don''t touch if you don''t want to ruin it." Robin admonished as she carried it to the carriage. "It''s not finished yet."


    "Not even a peek?" Gerard asked.


    "If you wish to permanently damage your eyes, then be my guest." Robin answered. At her words, Gerard paused, then decided to wait. If it were Ponzu, he might have disregarded it as an empty threat, but Robin''s words as the hero still carried a bit of weight.


    They all boarded the carriage and set off forthe next town, the carriage heading into a large section of forest. Robin set the pot on the floor, and began practicing barrier magic. Unlike the elemental magic that she had been learning, barrier magic did not seem to be of any element. It was equally comfortable incorporating wind, earth, fire, water, light, and all the rest.


    Upon Robin''s inquiry, Jasmine could only shake her head. Barrier magic was one of the more common among cantrip spells. Other cantrips, such as ''Float'' ''Slow'' ''Speed'' and ''Telekinesis'' were also somewhat of a mystery, even to the most learned of magicians.


    "Hmmm?" Robin suddenly had a thought.


    "What is it?" Jasmine asked.


    "No, it''s nothing much...." Robin said.


    "I insist. What sort of idea popped into that head of yours?" Jasmine asked.


    "Could these cantrip magics possibly be an application of space magic?" Robin asked.


    "We already know that space magic exists. But, aside from the magic bags, I haven''t really seen any sort of magic similar to it aside from the cantrip spells."


    "Well. It''s a good idea. But, how is ''slow'' an application of space magic?" Jasmine asked.


    "Perhaps it condenses space area around the person, making the amount of area he needs to cover to move larger than anyone else." Robin offered.


    "And fast?"


    "The opposite. It removes space elements in between things around the person, making the amount of ground he needs to cover shorter."


    "Blink?"


    "A better version of ''fast.''" Robin said. "Or, rather, ''fast'' is a degraded version of ''blink''."


    "Telekinesis?"


    "Manipulating the space elements to the point where it is possible to lift physical objects." Robin said.


    Jasmine finally sighed. "You''ve certainly peaked my interest. But, if that is so, then how come no one has thought of this before?"


    "Because everyone keeps calling it ''cantrip magic'' And doesn''t see how the more powerful version of it can become space magic." Robin said.


    "Then, what is the use of space crystals if we can already use space magic? why not make our own magic bags?" Jasmine asked.


    "Simply the convenience of a prepackage bento." Robin said.


    "What?" Jasmine was confused.


    Which would you prefer when you are hungry: an already steaming hot meal, or the ingredients necessary to cook the meal?" Robin asked.


    "The already cooked one, of course! Ah!" Jasmine''s face lit up as she experienced a eureka moment. She muttered to herself.


    "Of course! Why didn''t I think of it! What the crystals contain was not space mana. It was a ready-made spell matrix that sets the parameters and size of the bag, using the surrounding space mana upon activation! We already knew that larger crystals make a bigger space, but to think that it was a spell matrix..." Jasmine fell silent as the gears in her head began whirring at hyper speed.


    Robin let Jasmine think to herself, and looked out the window.


    "Huh? We''ve stopped?" Robin uttered in surprise. She opened the window to call out front. "Hey, Driver! Why are we stopping!?"


    "The horses are spooked! It seems like they sense something dangerous up ahead. I''ve got my hands full just keeping them from turning about and running all the way back." The carriage driver explained, helplessly. Robin''s eyes flashed with a strange light.


    "Something dangerous, huh?" She said slowly. "Looks like we need to proceed cautiously." She shut the window and turned to Gerard.


    "Hey, wanna come with me and try to determine the kind of monsters are in the area?"


    "You mean scouting?" Gerard asked.


    "Yup!" Robin nodded.


    "Anything''s better than being in here with nothing to do!" Gerard agreed immediately. He also had the feeling that if he was left alone with the mystery treat, he might give in to the temptation to peek at it.


    "Hey, where are you two going?" Christian asked.


    "Something''s spooked the horses. While it could be nothing, we''re going to go check." Robin replied.


    "I''m coming, too!" Christian said. Robin chuckled at Christian. They were going into a potentially dangerous situation, and Christian was acting like they were on a trip to the candy store.


    "Do what you want." Robin replied. Behind Christian, Keith also followed silently.


    Getting down from the carriage, the surroundings looked normal. the trees framed the road in a canopy of leafy greens.


    The ground, though moist, was not muddy.There were no large footprints or shredded trees. Gerard checked the tracks.


    "Blue squirrel, Horned Rabbit, ooh a Sapphire serpent! Those go for a lot back in the village... Oh no..." Gerard looked up.


    "It''s direwolves."


    "What? But, don''t direwolves have a..." Christian pointed to her hand. "Special kind of footprint?"


    Keith interjected at this point. "No, they do. But has no one ever told you that they are smart enough to obscure their footprints?" He pointed at some scuff marks on the ground.


    "These brush markings over here are from someone dragging a branch full of leaves over the area. There hasn''t been any rain recently, so It''s not a downed branch. And, over here, they missed a bit, so we can still see the toe. Yup. It''s direwolves. And they''re in some sort of hurry."Keith''s eyes narrowed in thought.


    "What makes you think they''re in a hurry?" Robin asked.


    Gerard piped in. "I know! That''s because, normally they would never have forgotten to completely wipe out all traces. Look, here is a fallen clump of fur that was scraped off by a branch. They would rather eat this than leave it behind because it carries their scent in it."


    Robin nodded. "Wow, you really are pretty knowledgable!"


    Gerard chuckled. "I took advantage of the royal library to read up on the local beasts that I didn''t know about."


    "Good. At least I can''t say you''re not diligent." Robin said with a grin, and looked in the direction opposite the one they had fled in, and paused.


    "Say, Gerard. You''ve brushed up on local monsters, right? What kind of monster looks like a large brown lizard, but has razor sharp teeth, and a horn on its nose?"


    Gerard paused. "Well that would probably be a wyvern. Nasty creatures that like to sneak attack others. Don''t let their eyes fool you, they are generally no more clever than a cat."


    Robin raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And how does one generally defeat said wyvern?"


    "Cutting off its head. Why''d you ask?"He lifted his head to look up at Robin.


    Robin used her eyes to glance into the forest, at a certain spot where the large, ugly mug of a wyvern began to slowly become visible through the trees. Gerard, following her gaze, blinked for a few moments, then his face blanched as he had already realized the answer to his question. Keith and Christian also saw the beast after a few moments.


    Before Gerard could scream or yell, Robin grabbed his shoulder. "No sudden movements, or loud sounds." She spoke evenly as if nothing was wrong. "Slowly get up, and go back to the carriage, have the driver blind the horses, and have Jasmine create a barrier."


    "But, what about you?" Gerard asked.


    "You said it''s as intelligent as a cat, right? I''ve dealt with quite a few in the past. Today will be no different." Robin said in a low voice.


    She turned to Christian and Keith. "It''s best that you go back as well."


    "What are you talking about? We''re staying here with you!" Christian smirked. "You''re not gonna take all the glory to yourself!"


    Robin looked at Keith, an unspoken question in her eyes. Keith nodded.


    "...Do as you like, then?" She finally said.


    "Why is that even a question?" Christian replied, taking up a stance to Robin''s left. Keith stood off to Robin''s right.


    "One last thing, Gerard." She said, as she drew her sword.


    "W-what?" Gerard stuttered.


    "Have them hold the carriage still until I draw it away."


    Gerard was surprised. He wanted to tell Robin that it was too dangerous, that it would be best to have the soldiers come help, that a wyvern was not something one could face with just three men....


    But, he couldn''t. His throat seemed to close up. His mouth went dry. His hands shook by his sides. Even if he had a sword, in this condition, he couldn''t even hold it properly. He couldn''t help even a little bit. Finally, Gerard nodded his head and walked slowly back to the carriage.


    "What''s the problem? Did you figure out what''s spooking the horses?" The wagon driver asked.


    Gerard nodded, and croaked. "Wyvern. Blind the horses, and keep the carriage still. I need to speak to Jasmine too to make a large barrier."


    Ponzu and thw driver''s mouths dropped open. "Wyverns!?"


    But Gerard had already entered the carriage to talk to Jasmine, at that point.

 73 She Defeats a Wyvern

    "So, what''s the plan?" Christian asked.


    "Do you know all the things you''re not supposed to do when confronted with a wyvern?" Robin returned his question with a question.


    "Yeah?" Christian was mildly intrigued.


    "Well, the plan is to do them." Robin replied.


    "That''s a terrible plan." Christian observed.


    "Trust me, this is the basics of gathering aggro." Robin said.


    "Aggro?"


    "It means you have the monster''s full and undivided attention, by means of enraging them."


    "Good to know. So when are we going on the attack?" Keith asked, breaking into the conversation.


    "Christian goes left. Keith goes right. I''ll take center." Robin replied. "Go!" The three leapt into action.


    The wyvern, which had been sneakily hiding was unused to being pre-emptively attacked by its prey, thus for a few moments, it froze, not knowing what to do.


    This gave the three enough time to close the distance on it. Once the wyvern saw how close they had become, it suddenly panicked, and unfurled its wings to take to the skies. But Robin was too quick, and slashed right through a major joint in one of the wings.


    This effectively grounded the wyvern, destroying its inborn advantage of occupying the skies. It cried aloud in pain, which startled the horses. But at that point, the wyvern''s eyes had turned red. It no longer paid any attention to the juicy looking four-leggers nearby. Its eyes focused completely upon the small, antlike creature that had somehow managed to cut apart it''s steel-like skin and bones.


    "Looks like I''ve drawn the aggro! Retreat!" Robin said, as she leapt backwards from the snapping jaws of the wyvern.


    Since she didn''t know if it had a breath or acid attack, she didn''t retreat in a straight line, but in a zig-zag manner. Otherwise, if she was running straight out, she could have easily outpaced the grounded flying lizard. Thus, Robin maintained a distance that was neither too close, nor too far as she retreated farther into the forest.


    Christian also used his nature magic to trap the wyvern''s legs with ground vines, but the wyvern easily tore through the vegetation with its full strength. Even so, it was helpful. Even a moment''s delay gave Robin extra time to maneuver about the unfamiliar forest.


    Keith also made pitfalls and earth spikes whenever possible, although the spikes did nothing against the wyvern''s steel-like skin. At this point, both Keith and Christian realized that it was pointless to attack the beast with any swords other than the hero''s sword. If earth spike couldn''t even make a dent, a steel sword would only make a dent.


    Thus, they resorted to delay tactics and crowd control spells.


    Robin had never tried kiting a monster in real life before, but she knew that she couldn''t let this continue for too long. Unlike a game character, she would become bogged down by fatigue, and prone to making mistakes.


    So, she had to find a way to end this quickly....


    "Keith! Christian! I need you to distract it for a bit. I need to get a clean hit on it!" Robin called out.


    "Got it!"Christian called out.


    "Try this on, for size, big guy!" Keith called out as he channelled an intermediate earth spell. "Stone pillar!"


    The wyvern that was charging forward with its jaw open, was suddenly hit on the jaw from the emerging stone pillar bellow, causing its head to get thrown back.


    Keith then threw out another earth spike, hoping to trip the beast, but the wyvern''s back legs unexpectedly gave out, and it sat down right upon the spike, which poked right up its butt hole.


    Time seemed to stop for a moment, as all four could not believe what had happened. Then a horrifying shrieking roar tore through the air, as the wyvern screamed in pain.


    Christian couldn''t help himself, and burst out laughing. The situation was too funny. Robin had a hint of what was going to happen next as the wyvern''s reddened eyes turned towards the laughing prince, and its shrieks died down.


    Christian looked up at the wyvern upon noticing that it had stopped making noise, and paused, mid-chuckled.


    "...Christian?" Robin said slowly, trying not to agitate the wyvern further.


    "Um...yes?" Christian asked.


    "Run." Was all that Robin could say at this point, upon seeing how incensed the wyvern was, currently. It was enough that one of the ants had made it lose its dignity, but now to be mocked on top of it? Unforgivable.


    Christian swallowed and immediately broke out in his fastest sprint.


    "Why is it me!? Keith was the one who made the earth spike!!" He shouted in complaint.


    "I admit defeat." Keith laughed. "You are far better at drawing aggro than I."


    "Indeed! You now have its full and undivided attention!" Robin agreed, and then muttering, told Keith her plan.


    "You lot are no help!" Christian despaired as the wyvern quickly began to catch up to him.


    "Christian, bring it back around this way!" Robin finally stopped joking, as she readied her sword.


    "Are you sure!?" Christian called out, dodging for his life between the trees, as the wyvern crashed into them, uprooting those that were not sturdy enough.


    "Trust me! We''ve got this!" Robin assured him.


    "Okay!" Christian dodged between two old oaks that stood right next to each other, getting the wyvern''s head stuck between them .


    But it would not be stuck for long. The wyvern''s sharp claws were tearing chunks of wood out of the two trees. Splinters went flying everywhere as it struggled to get loose. Christian was about halfway back, when the dragon finally wrenched its head loose.


    It glared at Christian with a mighty rage, leaping out towards his unprotected back.


    "Now!" Robin yelled.


    Keith once more evoked the intermediate spell, stone pillar. Creating several pillars at once, that surrounded the wyvern on all sides.Then, suddenly, the earth underneath the wyvern gave way, and the wyvern scrabbled for solid footing as it fell down into a pit.


    The pit had been formed when Keith invoked his stone pillar spell, using the ground directly underneath the wyvern. It cried out in anguish as it floundered about in the unstable earth, unable to gain a solid place to set its feet.


    "This was the plan?" Christian asked, stepping back from the edge beyond the pillars. "Congratulations, you''ve trapped the beastly lizard. But now, how are you going to kill it?"


    Robin glanced over at Keith. "Did I say I would kill it?" She asked.


    "I can''t say that I recall hearing you say so." Keith replied.


    "Me neither." Robin said.


    "You can''t be serious!" Christian objected. "It tried to kill me! It has emnities with us, and will stop at nothing to destroy us, once it gets loose! and you''re just going to leave it here, in the hopes that it forgets about us?"


    Robin hushed him. "Quiet! I need to concentrate, otherwise I might miss."


    "Miss? Miss what?" Christian asked.


    The wyvern had finally managed to gain its footing. gazing up at the face of the golden-haired ant that was now its sworn bitter enemy, It tensed it''s hind legs,ready to jump.


    At that point, Robin dashed forward at an angle out of the wyvern''s view. She swung her sword into the air the moment the creature leapt. It was like magic, almost as if the wyvern were leaping into Robin''s sword.


    One stroke was all it took.


    Christian''s face turned pale as he gazed into the wide open maw, ready to bite down upon him. But, he escaped it by a hair, when Keith knocked him to the ground. The wyvern sailed overhead, and smashed against the trees.


    It was at that point when the head separated from the neck, and the blood burst out, seeping into the forest ground.


    Robin stood there, breathing slightly heavily. She had done it. She had killed the wyvern.


    "It''s dead?" Christian asked.


    "It''s dead." Keith confirmed.


    At that point, the knights arrived, having run all the way after dismounting from their spooked horses.


    "Everything''s already over?" Sir Dylan asked, disappointed.


    "Not so! We have much work to do." Christian pointed at the wyvern''s corpse. "We need to collect the horn to prove we killed this beast. Also, we can restock our provisions with fresh meat. I heard wyvern meat is delicious." Christian said, acting as if he hadn''t been running for his life not two minutes ago.


    At this point, Robin left the group to go empty her stomach of everything she had eaten for lunch. Time to leave the dismantling to others, again.

 74 She Reveals The Mysterious Desser

    Due to the scale of the task, they decided to set up camp, as they were not finished processing the beast until almost nightfall.In the meantime, Jasmine had placed up a scent barrier to keep wild animals away.


    Dinner was fresh wyvern meat. Robin followed the reccomendation of the knights and simply roasted the meat over the fire. Half a leg was enough to feed everyone with both second and third helpings.


    Although Robin didn''t let it show, she was also secretly excited that she would be eating something you only heard about in fantasies. The meat didn''t even need any spices. The juice flowing out was good enough. It was salty and tasted kind of like the tasty brown residue that could be found after cooking roast beef. only, the flavour was spread throughout the meat, making it a pleasure to eat.Everyone was more than eager to have seconds and thirds.


    After dinner, Gerard finally asked the question that had been plaguing him all day.


    "So...are you going to show us what you had stewing in that pot, now? It''s after dinner, now!" He reminded Robin.


    Robin laughed.


    "Oh? I can bring it out. But, do you think we here would be able to even eat another bite, in our current condition?" She asked, teasingly. Everyone was indeed pleasantly full, to the point where another bite would most definitely be over-eating.


    Earlier, Robin had already retrieved the dish from the pot, and finished preparing it while everyone else was busy dismantling the wyvern. She could take it out at any time. It was now stored safely within her wristband storage.


    Gerard pouted. "No fair! After all that work we did? We even gave you the majority of the wyvern meat!"


    "Isn''t it obvious that the person who killed it should get the majority?" Robin raised a mischievous eyebrow. "Besides, I do happen to recall a certain someone saying that he was fine with no part of the spoils so long as he could shamelessly tag along." Robin tapped her cheek in thought. "I wonder who that was?"


    Gerard could only speechlessly stand there, with his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Robin laughed at his expression.


    "Very well, then. It''s a good thing that this is a light desert, otherwise, I''m sure that we would all suffer horribly from indigestion."


    Gerard''s eyes lit up, and he crowded closer to be the first one to see, and possibly taste Robin''s newest creation.


    What Robin drew out was very familiar to everyone. In fact, they were all surprised to see something so ordinary show up in Robin''s hands.


    "Cake?" Gerard asked. "You must be joking! How on earth would you be able to make cake in a pot!? Ponzu even told us that you put water in there! There''s no way you were able to make a cake!"


    Robin raised a quizzical eyebrow. "My dear lad, since when did I ever say that this was a normal cake?"


    "It''s not?" Gerard asked. It looked just like ordinary cakes, with white frosting...come to think of it, this frosting was white like snow.


    "This should be your first time trying this kind of cake." Robin chuckled. "After all, it is known as steamed cake, where I come from. It''s very light, I assure you."


    "Steam? So that''s why you added water! Then the stones?" Ponzu felt an immense relief when the mystery was solved.


    "The stones were to suspend the pan above the water so that only the steam would cook it." Robin explained.


    "There''s one last question that''s bothering me." Ponzu said. "Where are the strawberries?"


    Robin grinned. "I was hoping you''d ask that." She cut out a slice of cake. Now everyone could see that the cake had been divided horizontally in half, with thin slices of strawberries and whipped cream acting as filling in between.


    "Such a lovely cake! What''s the occassion?" Jasmine asked.


    "Well..." Robin paused, a bit reluctantly out of embarrassment. "It''s...nothing that special...um....It-today happens to be my birthday, is all." Robin finally said, sheepishly.


    "WHAT!!" Jasmine exclaimed.


    """"WHAAAT!!!????""" The rest of the company shouted in surprise. Robin buried her head in her hands, completely embarrassed.


    "Why didn''t you say anything, this morning! No, why didn''t you say anything about it before this!?" Jasmine demanded.


    "Well, you never asked." Robin replied honestly. "And, it''s honestly not that big of a deal."


    Jasmine frowned. "Robin, how old are you now?"


    "Sixteen, why?"


    "Not that big of a deal, my foot!!" Jasmine scolded, stamping her foot in frustration.


    "Sixteen is the year of coming-of-age here!It is a VERY big deal! Especially when it is the hero''s coming of age! BUT. YOU. SAID. IT''S. NOT. A. BIG. DEAL??!?"


    Jasmine''s face was red from frustration.


    "If we had known earlier, not to mention a week, we''d have been willing to wait a whole month and have the whole kingdom join in the celebration! People would have come from miles away to bring gifts to the hero who was coming of age! If anyone knows that the hero spent his coming of age in an obscure piece of countryside..." Jasmine covered her face with her hand.


    "Our country will become a laughingstock!" She moaned.


    Robin ducked her head. "My apologies. I had no idea that my birthday would become something of such importance, milady. Please forgive this simple commoner."


    "Hmmph! I''ll forgive you if you add a second slice of cake. I''ll need it to forget about the political headache you''ve caused me." Jasmine huffed, shamelessly.


    Robin smiled and nodded in agreement.


    "That is, only if you can finish the first slice." Robin added slyly.


    Jasmine gave Robin the evil eye. "You know we women have a second stomach for sweets! If you don''t believe me, we can test it out!"


    Robin shook her head, and divided the cake into twelve equal portions. Two went to Jasmine, while everyone else had one each. Even the knights had a slice.


    "Give us a speech!" Christian called out in jest before everyone forgot themselves in eating the cake. Robin looked at their expectant faces and smiled, awkwardly.


    "I am not that good at making speeches..." Robin said slowly. "But, I will give it a try."


    She stood up, and glances over the company around her. Some faces were more familiar than others. Then she gathered the thoughts that were present in her heart, and spoke in simplicity.


    "For tonight, let there be no hero, no prince, no grand magician, no general, no knight of high office, no peasant, no royalty, and no commoner. For tonight, let all offices and noble titles be set aside, so that there is nothing to hinder our close companionship." Robin said. "For tonight, there are only comrades, celebrating the birthday of one of their own. I hope you can look back to today with fondness. Rather than glamorous pomp and splendor, by far, I prefer a quiet celebration among friends."


    Finished, she finally removed her mask in front of the company, and sat down. There was no applause. Everyone was still ruminating upon her words, and the knights were examining her face, committing it to memory.


    Finally, Christian opened his mouth. "Good words! And you said you were a poor spokesman! I daresay, the royal speechmaker could take a lesson or two from you!" And with that, the entire company applauded, in agreement.


    "And now, let''s eat cake!" Gerard exclaimed.


    The company laughed at Gerard''s eagerness, but they also quietly agreed as they began to eat. Jasmine was the first to comment.


    "Oh my! It''s so light, but so moist! Not dry at all! Is this the difference between steamed and baked?"


    The others also commented positively. Robin made sure to let Ponzu know that, unless he had a storage item that could maintain the state of the food, it was best to serve the cake fresh.


    That night, they all chuckled and joked, and Robin finally got to know the names of the other four knights under Sir Daniel.


    The second-in-command was a man by the name of Earl Raymond. He wasn''t actually an earl. ''Earl'' Just so happened to be his first name. Everyone just called him Sir Raymond, though.


    The other three, in order of height, were Sir Dylan, Sir Markham, and Sir Grey. Sir Grey was the only one who was an honorary Earl, which meant that he had a title, but no land, due to his meritorious conduct.


    Rather than staying up late into the night, Robin preferred to go to bed soon after they had finished the cake. It had been a long day, after all.


    While Jasmine had set up a barrier about the camp, the knights still set up night watch shifts. The first watch was Dylan and Markham. Those whose turn was later that, quickly retired to their tents to catch as much sleep as possible before their turn.

 75 Shes Out of The Frying Pan, But...

    The night, thankfully, remained uneventful after such an exciting day. But that morning was almost just as exciting. When the sun rose, the people in the camp realized that they had been surrounded by direwolves.


    The wolves stood, or lay down in a circle around the campsite, making sure to keep about 50 feet away from the perimeter. But, Robin noticed that the wolves were showing none of the attitude that indicated they intended to fight. While Robin didn''t exactly understand a wolf''s language, she could tell they were not hostile to them.


    So, when Sir Raymond consulted Sir Daniel about whether they should engage the direwolves in combat, Robin held up a hand to stop them. Then she walked forward towards the largest of the direwolves, who stood six feet tall, and four feet wide.


    The largest came out from the ring of wolves to meet her in between the two camps. Robin tilted her head to the side, expressing her confusion over their presence. The direwolf turned his head towards the pile of bones left over from dismantling the wyvern. When he turned back to her, in an unhurried manner, he dipped his nose down, and back up, like a royal, giving a nod of approval.


    Robin opened her hand, and waved them at the wolves, then at the bones, and nodded.


    Both retreated back to their camps.


    "What was that?" Christian asked, not quite believing Robin''s seeming conversation with the beast.


    "They were thanking us for ridding them of their pursuer. So, they guarded the camp, last night." Robin replied. "Leave the wyvern bones and the offal for them."


    "But those can be made into weapons!" Gerard objected.


    "You know that all the best ones are already packed away in my storage bracer. Besides, if we give them the bones and leftovers, they won''t have reason to follow after us." Robin pointed out.


    "Anyways, it''s best to leave while they are still in a friendly mood. Let''s pack up the camp, we''ve already wasted too much time, here." Robin decided.


    "Let''s do as you say." Christian nodded. They quickly packed up all the tents and utensils, stiring them in Robin''s storage bracer. Then the knights climbed on their horses, and the nobles in their carriage.


    "Ponzu, let me ride up front for a bit." Robin asked. "I want to be ready just in case something unfortunate happens."


    Ponzu happily gave up his seat to Robin, and went inside the wagon.


    "Which way?" the driver asked.


    "The way back to the road." Robin said.


    "But that''s past the leader!" The driver explained.


    "I know. Just drive." Robin said.


    The wolves didn''t move, even when the carriage was almost three feet away. The driver stopped, not daring to draw closer.


    The leader blinked up at them.


    Robin looked into his eyes, them turned to look at the wyvern bones. The great direwolf looked at the bones, too. Then both turned to look at each other again. Robin nodded.


    The direwolf also nodded, and uttered a low howl. The knights, startled, put their hands on their swords, ready to draw them at a moment''s notice. But paused, when they saw the direwolves part in front of the carriage.


    Then, the leader uttered another long howl, which reverberated in Robin''s bones. The wolves retreated away from the carriage, and headed in an unhurried manner towards the pile of bones.


    "It should be fine now." Robin told the driver, who spurred the horses to move their fright-stiffened legs. Once they had reached the road, Robin turned her head to look back as another long howl sounded out in the forest, this time, with all the direwolves joining in.


    Robin chuckled at this. "You''re welcome!" She called back. The carriage followed the road, soon disappearing from that neck of the woodlands.


    Long after they''d gone, hunters would tell tales of a pack of direwolves that would save those in trouble, or lost in the forest, and dissappear soon after leaving them at the roadside.


    And, twenty years from that time, heading into the forest to greet the forest guardian with the first-killed game became a tradition among local hunters. The most prominent among hunters were those who became a wolf''s companion, meeting in the forest, and hunting together. But that is a story for another time.


    A little before noon, Robin''s carriage rode into the next town, a hearty stockade, with walls built of stone. When they arrived, they were surprised to be greeted by a small crowd.


    "A carriage! With knights! We are saved!"


    "Please, sir knight! Please save ny daughter!"


    "Please rescue my Lotty!"


    "My darling Floss was taken away! Please help us!"


    Robin looked at the crowd in confusion, then turned to the soldier who had opened the stockade doors.


    "What is all of this?" She asked.


    "Young girls have begun to disappear in the woods. From the corpses we''ve been able to find...we suspect it''s goblins." The soldier''s face faltered, and he choked a bit as he explained.


    "Why has no one been sent to the capital to inform the guards?"


    "We have, but the person who was sent out, only his horse returned. Did you meet anything on the way here?"


    Robin shook her head. "Nothing that would eat the man and leave the horse to run free. And there has been no word on the way here, or else we''d have probably gone a different route."


    The soldier''s shoulders shuddered at the news. "T-then Finn?"


    "Either dead, or incapable of finding help, currently." Robin surmised. "If he makes it out safely, it would be a miracle."


    "What''s going on?" Christian called out from the carriage door. Robin turned back to the carriage.


    "Milord, it appears that this town is troubled by goblins." Robin explained.


    "Milord? Robin you-" He was about to ask about her changed speech, when he realized Robin was not wearing the hero''s mask. Since Robin was not acting as the hero, of course, she would treat him like a noble.


    "Right, you go see about getting us several rooms at the inn. We''ll need to ask the person in charge about the details." Christian said, after clearing his throat.


    "As you wish, milord." Robin jumped down from the carriage, and headed towards the inn, which was visible from the entrance. The inn was almost completely empty, and heartily welcomed the company of Robin''s group, setting them up with the best rooms in town, even nearly refusing to receive pay for it.


    "Look here, sir. Milord will begin to doubt me, and suspect me of embezzling money if I say that you refused to receive payment for the rooms. How about giving us a discount, and charging the same as your regular rooms? That way, milord will see your kind intentions without taking away from your livelihood?" Robin explained.


    While the innkeeper was about to object, his wife pinched his side hard, causing him to bite back his retort.


    "Of course! In that case, it will be four coppers per room, breakfast and dinner are free." The innkeeper''s wife replied, and Robin quickly handed over the coins, lest the innkeeper refuse once more.


    Then, after inquiring for directions, she made her way to the mayor''s residence. Next to the mayor''s place were the soldiers barracks. And, in front of the soldiers barracks sat the carriage.


    When she was about to enter, she was blocked by two guards.


    "Halt! What business have you in here?" The guards asked.


    "Do you see this carriage? I am one of the men belonging to the owner''s company. If you don''t believe me, someone can go ask Retired General Keith if he knows someone named Robin. I am willing to wait here." Robin said.


    "Robin?" The guards looked at each other, then stepped back. "That is unnecessary. Your company is waiting for you inside. Apologies for having to stop you. Several people have already tried to enter, claiming they were part of the noble''s party."


    "No offense taken. You were simply doing your job." Robin replied as she entered the barracks.


    Little did Robin know that she was being observed. A figure whose face was covered in a talismanic mask gazed into a magic ball, that clearly transmitted Robin''s actions.


    "So? What do you think?" A figure behind a red curtain asked.


    "He does not seem to be completely hostile. Look at how he befriended the Direwolf clan. As a man who is supposed to be the demons worst enemy, shouldn''t he have slaughtered them?"


    "Aye, but remember, he also slaughtered the wyvern, earlier." the voice reminded.


    "That disobedient bullying little prick? He deserved it. If that man hadn''t killed it already, then I would have!" The magic ball holder snorted. "Upsetting the balance and boundaries all for a game of cat and mouse, when he didn''t even need to eat. That blockhead is better off dead!"


    "And what about the goblins?"


    "If he gets scared just because of a few numbers, then he''s not worth our time." the talisman masked figure replied.


    "...Very well, continue observing him." The figure behind the curtain ordered, before echoing footsteps signalled that the superior was leaving.

 76 She Jumped Into the Fire

    In the meeting room, Christian, Keith, and the knights stood around a large map of the local area. The captain circled a spot farther downstream from the town.


    "We''ve tracked them up to this point, but we''ve always managed to lose their tracks. The treants in this area are quit a large amount. In fact, if you hadn''t arrived, we were getting ready to burn the forest to smoke them out."


    "And the children?" Robin asked. "What you would have done was ensure their deaths. Such plans are not worth considering."


    The captain turned towards Robin, displeasure emnating from his face. "Who is this? Why was he allowed in here?"


    "This, dear captain, is the brave adventurer that managed to kill a wyvern with a mere two men''s assistance." Christian explained. "The adventurers guild has assessed him at S-rank, which is why we have the pleasure of his company."


    An S-rank. No wonder even Sir Keith was treating this young lad with respect. If they were to encounter a hoard of goblins, this man''s fighting prowess would most definitely necessary.


    The captain swallowed down his distaste. "You don''t understand, lad. Here, if anyone goes missing for over a day, then they are already presumed dead, especially the children."


    "What a hypocrite you are. You are here to protect the people, yet don''t make an effort to save those who are most in need of your help." Robin muttered, causing the captain''s face to turn red with anger.


    "Oh? And you can just waltz in there, and bring every last child home alive? Don''t be ridiculous!"


    "I can." Robin said.


    "What was that?" the captain seemed to have not heard her well.


    "If they''re alive, I can bring them back alive." Robin said, staring the captain in the eye. "And, if they''re dead, then I can still at least bring back their corpse."


    "Hahahah! Do you hear that, men?! This lad says that he can do by himself what we haven''t been able to do for a whole week! Even without General Keith!" The soldiers laughed.


    "And, if I can?" Robin said, an angelic smile gracing her lips. Christian and Keith tensed up. They knew that Robin was about to cause trouble.


    "If you can, then I will step down as captain, and let you comandeer the men!" The captain smirked. "But if you can''t, then you must become one of my men!"


    Robin shook her head. "A pity. I have no need for incompetents." She said as she walked back towards the room entrance.


    "You''re going to admit your loss now? Then you must bow your head and sincerely apologize to our captain!" One of the soldiers guffawed, angered at her labelling him as an incompetent.


    Robin''s eyes narrowed, as she cheerfully responded. "I said it was a pity that your captain will have to step down before old age or injury have incapacitated him. because it''s a sign that either his head or his heart are already incapable of retaining his office."


    The room was silent as Robin unceremoniously left the barracks.


    "Leave him be." The captain snorted. "It''s nothing but a loser dog''s fart."


    Christian held his tongue. If the captain had shown any bit of respect towards Robin, then he might have warned the captain of her capabilities. But, now that Robin had declared war, Christian could only stand back and watch quietly.


    "Your highness, you saw it, yourself. That man picked a fight with us. While I do not mind his words, so much, please witness this bet so that there will be no reneging once he returns."


    A strange glimmer shone in Christian''s eyes for a moment before he agreed. "All right. I will be witness to this bet. You have my word that, even if it is my own man, I shall remain impartial."


    The captain, satisfied, returned to the map.


    Keith watched the captain, with pity in his eyes before turning away, with a sigh.


    ''He brought destruction down upon himself, The poor man. '' was all that Keith could think of the man who would soon step down as captain. And so, he turned his eyes towards the soldiers.


    Now... Who would make a good replacement captain?


    -------


    Robin, upon leaving the town, once more found herself in the forest, and breathed in the musty air. No matter whether it was Earth or this world, a forest was a forest.


    After confirming that the surounding vegetation was similar, she set out. She only needed to avoid what she didn''t know. From what she had gleaned in her brief time before the large map in the captain''s room, the area she needed to search was to the northest of the city.


    ''Thank you, very much Mr. Soon-to-be-ex-captain~!'' Robin chuckled to herself as she set out across the forest. As a precaution, Robin did not move about on the ground, but jumped from branch to branch up in the trees, scoring every branch she stepped on, and avoiding those which had too many branches.


    Treants were a kind of living tree, that did not like to be disturbed. They could tell the proximity of a person using their sensitive root system underground. The only time one could escape their wrath would be in the winter time, when they entered hibernation.


    Even then, if you wanted to use a treant for firewood, you had better be able to slice through the trunk in one go. Otherwise, you would instantly die being pierced by sharp roots. For this reason, being a lumberjack was a risky business, and was quite lucrative.


    The reason why Robin scored the branches she landed on was a good one. If she accidentally landed on a treant branch, then she was relying upon the treant''s initial reflexive reaction to pain to propel her out of the treant''s range. This lessened the likelihood that she would get caught, as well as informed her of where the treant was. She needed to assure that there was a safe path back to the town for the children, after all.


    Another reason was because goblins were a small demon, the size of a child, yet twice as strong. Being a demon so close to the ground, it was less likely that they''d pay attention to what was over their heads. It was also easier for Robin to spot them from a bird''s eye view.


    Soon enough, Robin found she had reached the area she needed to search. How? Easily enough, almost every tree in the area was a treant. Standing upon a lone unaffected one, Robin looked at the waving tentacle-like roots crawling about on the ground.


    "Now what do I do?" Robin mumbled as she stood still for a moment.


    ----


    In a nearby section of the forest, goblins danced around a burning bonfire. It was the night when their Goblin leader would finally become a goblin king. They had gathered many tasty children for him to devour these past days, to prepare for this day.


    Many goblins stood around underneath a nearby basket-like woven cage hanging from a tree, drool dripping from their toothy maws, yet they dared not touch a finger of their leader''s meal, our of fear of being killed.


    Inside the cage, the young children clung to each other, frightened out of their minds. If anyone started crying out loud, they were ruthlessly beaten. If anyone refused to eat the raw fruits they were given, they were also ruthlessly beaten. Thus, they could only huddle together in the center of the cage, and cry soundlessly.


    "I''m scared, Gertie!" One of them tearfully whispered.


    "I know." The other murmured back. "Don''t cry, Beth. The soldiers will come to save us."


    "Liar. It''s been a week, and the soldiers don''t even know where we are. How could they save us? We''re going to die here, and end up another bundle of bones in the goblin''s dump heap." Beth sobbed soundlessly.


    "Stay calm! If you cry now, they''ll beat you to death!" Gertie whispered.


    "What''s the difference between being beaten to death and being roasted to death, if we''re just going to die anyways!" Beth bitterly hissed.


    Over the sound of drums, and the goblin''s shrieking, other soundS began to steadily become louder.


    Crack...


    THUD.


    BOOM!


    The goblins paused their celebration, fearful of the sudden loud noises drawing closer. The goblin leader looked in the direction of the noises, listening intently. There were no more noises.


    Suddenly, out of the blue, a treant landed right on top of the bonfire, shrieking as it caught afire. It thrashed about, smacking goblins away, and scattering flaming logs about the hidden clearing, which caught the nearby tents afire. It only took a mere five seconds for pandemonium to ensue.


    The goblins fled the treant''s range, retreating from the bonfire''s clearing. With a final screech, the treant collapsed as the flames reached its core.


    After that, the children only heard the roar of the bonfire, and a light tap as someone landed on the unburned portion of the treant, in the center of the flames.


    "So it was here, huh?" Robin said in a relaxed voice, as if everything was perfectly fine.

 77 She Flies Them Home

    The children could not believe their eyes. Someone had found their location, and disrupted the goblin ceremony. Moreover, it was a handsome older brother!


    One of the children finally found her voice and sobbed aloud in relief, causing the others to soon join them in loud crying. Robin would have tried to comfort them, but the goblins had returned with their primitive weapons, despite the surrounding flames burning down their cloth tents.


    Robin jumped out of the bonfire, and landed on the ground in front of the children, standing protectively with her back towards them.


    "While I would enjoy nothing less than to kill off every single one of you, I''m afraid that will have to wait until later." Robin addressed the green, warty demons. "For now, I''ll have to say, farewell!"


    And, with that, Robin created a bright, piercing light in front of her as shestamped the ground. Then a stone platform with a sheer, smooth wall rose up from the ground out of the range of the goblin''s arrows and darts.It encompassed both Robin and the tree with the children within its circumference.


    "Now, let''s get you children out of this before they get smart, and try to climb the pillar." Robin said, lightly to the children, as she cut open the cage with her sword.


    "Big Bro! I know we''re safe now, but...how are we going to get away from here!?" One of the children asked.


    Robin put a hand on the tree behind them. "Naturally, I have a good idea. But, this big bro needs to catch his breath. It isn''t easy to spam intermediate spells so close together. Those treants were stubborn old logs."


    While Robin was surrounded by treants, she recalled Keith''s earth pillar spell. If there were no safe places to put her feet, then she would make them!


    Who knew that the pillars would come up so quickly, or that the treants roots would be so strong that they were lifted up, as well? And who knew that, upon the roots finally disentangling themselves, the treants would be catapulted into other parts of the forest? Upon seeing black smoke rise from one of the locations, Robin had hurried over. Sure enough, it was the location of the goblin''s hidden village, located in a recessed area of ground.


    Still unused to using magic, Robin felt her breath fall short, and her head start to ache. Her mana source needed to rest.


    The children looked over the edge of the stone platform. The goblin leader was jumping up and down with rage. He pointed at the stone pillar. Shrieking at the goblins, he urged them to climb it. But they could not find purchase on the smooth, vertical stone.


    Robin gazed off into the near distance. From this vantage point, she could see the town, a few miles away.


    "I can see the town walls from here!" One of the children shouted.


    "If only we could fly home..." Another one said, bitterly. Robin''s eyes glittered, as an idea came to her. She counted the number of children. There were thirteen of them.


    "Fly? That''s a tall order, but let this big bro grant your wish, then!" Robin said, cryptically. She glanced at the sliced open basket cage, and cut the bottom half completely off. Then she took out a large rain-repellant tent from her storage bracer.


    Quickly tying everything together, Robin asked the children.


    "Do any of you know fire magic?"


    "Gertie does! Her Pa is a baker!" One of them exclaimed, pointing at a girl in a dirt-stained yellow dress.


    Robin turned towards Gertie. "Gertie, I have a very important job for you. How big of a fire can you make?"


    Gertie shyly spoke. "Um...I can make a fire as big as a campfire." She said.


    "Good, good! And how long can you keep it going?" Robin asked, as she continued to tie both the tent, and the basket up securely with ropes.


    "Um...I think five minutes is my limit." Gertie said.


    "Hmm...Well, if you use it all at the beginning, it should be enough. But, is there anyone else that can use fire magic?" She asked. The children shook their heads.


    "...I''ll try to add a tail wind to help speed you along." Robin muttered calculations to herself as she considered both the distance and the magic that would act as fuel.


    "Each is approximately thirty to forty pounds, times twelve....that is approximately three hundred and sixty to four hundred and eighty poundstotal weight, alone... It''s 1 pound of lift per every 65 cubic foot of air...it''s a straight shot to the clearing in front of the town...I need in between 23,400 and 31,200 cubic feet of air....to hold that much air....yup! It was a good idea that I used the mess hall tent! 27,000 cubic feet ought to supply for a slow descent."


    Her calculations finished, Robin made sure the ropes were long enough, and secured the knots.


    "Get in the basket, and this big bro will give you all a wonderful ride~!" Robin cheerfully told the children, who all piled into the basket.


    Then she called a great wind to quickly fill up the makeshift balloon, which unfurled like a windsock at first. Since the ground below still burning, the rising air was hot. It. quickly filled the balloon, and tugged at it, threatening to rise. This all took less than ten minutes to accomplish, despite the goblins unsuccessful attempts to climb the stone pillar.


    However, Robin still stood on the basket, keeping it grounded.


    "Remember what I said, Gertie. When it starts to go descend, I need you to aim your fireplace flame at the center of this hole, and heat up the air inside this balloon for as long as you can, okay? When you get to town, tell them Robin sent you!"


    "Okay, big bro!" Gertie agreed, and the balloon suddenly quickly rose into the air. Robin had stepped off the basket, letting it float up, quickly.


    Gertie called down. "But what about you, Mister Robin!?How will you get back?"


    Robin smiled, but didn''t answer that question as she called back. "Did you forget!? I"ll be giving you a tailwind to push you in the right direction."


    She gathered the wind mana in the area, andaimed it all towards the town.


    "Wind." Robin said, and a stiff breeze blew the balloon quickly out in the direction of the town.


    Gertie looked back at the figure of Robin growing smaller the more distant they got from him. Before he got too small to make out, she saw Robin suddenly stagger back against the tree on the pillar.


    "Mister Robin!" she called out, alarmed.


    "Gertie, the balloon''s starting to go down!" Beth exclaimed. Gertie had no choice but to turn back, and begin using her fire magic like Robin had instructed her.


    Back on the stone pillar, Robin gasped for breath as she clutched at the spot above her heart. "It seems I overdid it." She murmured, struggling to stay awake. For her last act, she put up a barrier that kept out the smoke.


    Boom. Boom. Boom.


    The goblins, failing to climb the stone pillar, were now using a battering ram to strike it down. They ignored the surrounding fires that were spreading out towards the rest of the forest.


    Robin closed her eyes for a bit. After a while, she couldn''t hear the battering ram anymore. She opened them again. Dark smoke was billowing all about her.


    ''Carbon Monoxide poisoning.'' She realized. The goblins were most likely dead by now.


    She lifted her head. The forest was burning. It had reached the treant colony, Robin could hear their shrieking cries as they caught on fire.


    Robin, struggling to move, took out a healing potion from her bracer, bit off the cork, and downed it. Then, when she felt it was working, she struggled to her feet.


    "Jasmine is so gonna scold me for this, later." Robin chuckled, painfully as she once more called the wind mana to her, along with water mana, clouds of smoke and steam gathered overhead. "Rain." She said, right before losing consciousness and falling back against the tree.


    ~~~~~~~


    ''...bin...''


    ''...robin..''


    "Robin! Can you hear me?" A voice called out to her.


    Robin tried to open her eyes, but they felt so heavy. Who is calling? They are so loud! Couldn''t they tell that someone was trying to sleep!? Robin tried to drift back into unconsciousness.


    "Robin! Speak to me! Can you hear my voice!?" Someone loudly yelled next to her ear.

 78 She Gets Visitors

    Robin was so annoyed that a vein began to throb on her forehead.


    ''The next time he yells, I am gonna punch him right on the mouth.'' Robin decided. How rude did someone have to be to wake a person that needed their sleep?


    "Robi-" Whack!


    Robins fist swiftly collided with the offending person''s chin, silencing his useless tirade. She sat up, angrily.


    "What do you think you are doing! Can''t you tell I am trying to sleep!?" She growled menacingly as she brandished her fist. Then paused.


    ...The bed she lay in was unfamiliar. The room around her was unfamiliar....the person she punched...was familiar.


    "Christian, where is this? And what are you doing, lying on the floor?" Robin asked, innocently.


    "Er, we are in the mayor''s house, right now. And I am...searching for the ever elusive Papa Rotsy whom you are trying to avoid. want to join me?" Christian asked, massaging his pained jaw. "He told me you''re not a morning person, by the way."


    Robin burst out laughing, which quickly became coughing. Her mouth was bone dry.


    "Water." She croaked.


    Christian poured a glass from a nearby pitcher. Robin quickly gulped it down. It was only after her third glass that she sighed contentedly.


    "Now I feel a bit more human." She placed the empty glass down on the small table next to her.


    "So, what makes this Papa Rotsy so terrifying?" Christian asked. Robin laughed aloud again, before she explained.


    . "Paparazzi isn''t a person. It''s an organization of professional gossip seekers, that likes to find the most shocking and private dirty secrets of great people, and expose them to the public in order to get more people to buy their daily news papers."


    "Sounds like the worst kind of person. No wonder you are avoiding them." Christian grumbled, rubbing his sore jaw, again. "Remind me never to wake you up again."


    "Noted. Now, if you''ll excuse me, I''ve got some sleeping to do." Robin laid back down, and turned her back to him.


    "But you''ve already slept for three whole days already!" Christian exclaimed.


    "If I can still sleep after this, it means that I need it."Robin replied. Then suddenly sat up in bed.


    She had finally recalled what had happened.


    "The kids! Did they make it back, okay!? Was the forest fire extinguished!? How about the goblins? Were they all killed!?" Robin asked the questions rapid-fire.


    "Hold on, hold on!" Christian raised his hands defensively. "I am going to let Jasmine answer that." Christian said, as he turned to look at. the door.


    It opened showing Jasmine in all her angry glory. ''Angry? Wait...'' Robin had an uneasy feeling. She realized she was right, when Jasmine slapped Robin''s dumbfound face.


    "That is for not listening to my instructions!" A second slap smacked Robin''s other cheek.


    "That is for making a stupid bet with an even stupider man!"


    A third slap smacked Robin.


    "That is for not taking one of us with you to help!"


    Robin, who supposed she was finished, was surprised by another slap.


    "And that last one was interest for making us worry about you!" Jasmine huffed, as she was finally finished venting her anger.


    -------------


    "So? I want your report. What did the Hero choose?" The figure behind the red curtain asked the crystal ball user.


    "Hmm...Well, you could say that He killed them, but you could also say that he couldn''t." The crystal ball user answered in a pondering manner. "He prioritized saving the human younglings. But, in the process, the goblin trash were killed due to ignoring the spread of an accidental fire."


    "Hmmm?...Interesting. Keep me updated on anything new that happens." the figure behind the red curtain once more left the darkened room.


    ----------


    Robin held her hand up to her burning cheek.


    "Yeah. Thanks. I probably needed that." She said with a sigh. "I''m sorry, for making you worry."


    "Hmmph! If it wasn''t for the fact that you saved all of the town''s children, I''d have smacked you even more!" Jasmine huffed.


    "How are they doing?" Robin asked.


    "Completely fine, now that they''re all back home. Much better than a certain someone that can''t take care not to overload their mana source! If you didn''t create that smoke barrier, as an intermediate cool down spell, you would have burst your mana source and died!" Jasmine admonished.


    "Thank goodness." Robin sighed.


    "What is up with you! Please remember that we don''t need a hero, here! What we need is for you to stay safe and in good health so that we can send you home in one piece, got it!?" Jasmine scolded.


    Robin smiled, sheepishly. "Okay, I got it. It won''t happen again."


    ''Next time, I will execute it perfectly, without losing anything. Including consciousness.'' She determined.


    "You aren''t repentant at all, are you!" Jasmine complained.


    "Eh heh heh...." Robin could only chuckle awkwardly. Given the choice, she still probably would''ve gone to save them.


    Jasmine held her hand out to Robin, who looked at her blankly.


    "Hand!" She ordered.


    Robin blinked, then realized Jasmine wanted Robin to extend her hand out. Christian sniggered about how Robin was being heckled by Jasmine for a change. Grasping Robin''s wrist,Jasmine examined Robin''s internal condition again.


    "The effects of the smoke poison are almost gone. But, your mana source is very fragile at this point. You are not allowed to use any spells until it''s all healed." Jasmine prescribed.


    "Can''t you fix it with a health potion?" Robin asked.


    "Well, I would, if some idiot hadn''t used a health potion right before almost shattering their mana source." Jasmine huffed.


    "Now you can only heal the old fashioned way. But, aside from spells, you''ll be perfectly fine. Get yourself plenty of rest, today. We''ll be leaving tomorrow morning."


    Robin nodded. "Okay."


    Christian looked between the two, and began to feel odd. Could it be possible that Jasmine...actually was falling in love with Robin!? And poor Robin had no idea that he was the object of her affections, thank goodness.


    He needed to make sure that Robin keeps more of a distance from Jasmine, so that he doesn''t get deceived into something he cannot get out of. And so, Christian also began scheming to find ways to keep Robin away from Jasmine, or at least make sure that they are never alone together.


    "That being said, I have been quite impressed with your swordsmanship for a while, now! Would you mind if we had a little spar later on, after you are feeling better?" Christian spontaneously spoke, immediately wanting to kick himself inwardly, afterwards.


    ''Why in the king''s throne did I say spar! Stupid! Stupid!'' He mentally berated.


    Robin smiled. "Sure! I don''t mind. I need to keep my skills well-honed, after all."


    Jasmine blinked, and gave Robin a pointed stare. "Not before you rest!"


    Robin nodded. "Of course-" Her grumbling stomach interrupted the conversation.


    "Er....before that, could I possibly have something to eat? Three days of missing meals is no joke!" Robin asked, rubbing her empty stomach.


    "Right. I just knew this would happen." Jasmine chuckled, before turning to face the door.


    "You can come in, now, Ponzu!"


    Ponzu poked his head in.


    "Hello, Teacher! I knew you haven''t eaten for three days, so I brought you some soup. I''ve stewed it for three whole days, so it''s nice and clear. It should be enough to stave off the hunger pangs until you can eat solid foods again."


    Robin''s eyes lit up. "Soup?" She waved him in.


    "Sounds perfect! Now, hurry up and bring it in! I''m starving!"


    While Robin felt that she could eat a whole cow, she knew that someone who had slept for three days wouldn''t necessarily be able to eat solid foods right away. Instead, it was best to jump start the digestive system with soup and light foods.


    Robin obediently played the invalid, and allowed herself to be taken care of. After Robin finished eating, the door opened once more, and Gerard peeked his head in.


    "Um...Robin, you have visitors." he said. "Would you be okay with receiving them?"


    "Oh? Who is it that wants to visit?" Robin asked. If it was that grumpy old fart of an ex-captain, then, Robin would smile and say ''no thank you!''


    "It''s a group of kids led by a girl named Gertie." Gerard said


    "Oh that''s fine! Please let them in!" Robin said, waving her hand.


    The children came into the room, and crowded around the bed. There were actually about twice as many kids present as the number that she''d saved.


    "Oh? To what do I owe this pleasant surprise of a visit?" Robin asked.


    "Mister Robin," Gertie began, then the twelve that she saved came to the front, and bowed deeply.


    "Thank you very much for saving us!" They said, while presenting a large bouquet of flowers.

 79 She is Showered with Gifts

    Robin was surprised at the sudden gift. No one had ever given her a bouquet of flowers before. Christian refrained from laughing at the girl-ish gift.


    "We heard that you liked to eat flowers, so we picked a whole bunch for you!" Beth beamed a smile. All the children watched Robin, interested in seeing such a sight.


    "Eat flowers?" Robin asked, looking at the bouquet. Poisonous....poisonous...bitter...inedible. This beautiful bouquet of flowers...If she actually ate it, she would probably be due for another three day sleep.


    She turned back to the children. "Did you try eating these?" She asked.


    "No!" They enthusiastically said.


    "While they are all perfectly beautiful..." Robin separated four kinds out of the bouquet of flowers: a handful of white violets, a handful of clover blossoms, a handful of goldenrod, and a handful of sheep sorrel blossoms.


    "Look, these are the only flowers here that are safe to eat." Robin pointed out, honestly. The little children''s faces fell. They had given Robin poisonous flowers!


    "But, these other flowers smell so wonderful, and look so colorful, that I just can''t bear to throw them away! Here."


    Robin took out a porcelain vase, and placed the remaining flowers in with some water.


    "They''ll do nicely making me happy with their wonderful smell, and pretty colors." She said cheerfully, trying to brighten up the now gloomy atmosphere. But, the children still seemed somewhat down.


    "I''ll tell you what." Robin said with a smile. "My favorite flowers to eat are dandelions! could you go pick me a bright yellow bouquet to snack on later?"


    "What?" Gertie asked.


    "You mean it?" One of the other children asked.


    "Ah, but I don''t like ones with a red dot in the center. You should stay away from those, okay? Not only do they taste bad, they will hurt your hands." Robin warned, then winked at them. "I always keep my word. I flew you home, didn''t I?"


    "Hurray! Let''s go, let''s go!" The children eagerly headed out of the room to pick the yellow blooms found almost everywhere. Robin stared at the four strangled handfuls of edible flowers on the covers. Then she looked up at Ponzu.


    "Can you use these to make something?" She asked.


    Ponzu, sensing a new recipe, whipped out his notebook, and wrote down her instructions.


    "Boil the flowers in four cups of water, add two cups of sugar, and one cup of gelatin. Then simmer, stirring until the sugar and gelatin dissolve into the liquid. Add it to four cups of cold water in a bowl, while it is still hot. After that, place it in a cold room, and wait four to eight hours for it to firm up. It should make a lovely treat that is light and easy even for me to eat. you can even pour it into multiple small molds and give it out as gifts"


    "Ho? Isn''t this just an adjusted version of jelly?" Ponzu asked.


    "Jelly is sticky, and falls apart easily. Jello can not only hold a shape, but also has a peculiar trait." Robin smiled.


    "What is that?" Christian asked.


    "It likes to dance on the spoon." Robin said.


    "What?" Ponzu gasped, surprised.


    "You heard me. If you want to see it for yourself, go make it." Robin sniggered. "I have some sleep to catch up on."


    As she lay bach down, and closed her eyes, she instantly fell asleep again. She was so deep asleep that she didn''t even hear when the others left the room.


    ------


    Robin awoke that evening to something tickling her nose. She sniffed, and rubbed the spot that itched. Then she heard giggles and the sound of little feet running out of the room.


    ''Huh?'' Robin wondered what that was about. She shifted in bed and something cool rolled down the blanket, and tickled her neck.Robin sat up, wondering what on earth it was, when she blinked. The whole bed top was completely covered with dandelion blossoms.


    Jasmine walked in upon Robin''s dumbfound-ed expression and laughed merrily.


    "The children were so over-zealous, they picked every last dandelion flower in the town." She explained. "They even made you a n edible flower crown."


    "A crown?" Robin put her hand up to her head. A wreath of dandelions sat atop her head, tipped at an angle. Robin took it off to see. Woven into the dandelion crown were clover, sheep sorrel, goldenrod, and violets.


    "How pretty!" Robin reached into her magic bag, and retrieved her camera. To be honest, she had completely forgotten about it until she had the itch to take a picture of this.


    ''I wonder if this is how Mom felt when she kept taking pictures of us, back then?'' Robin wondered in passing.


    "What is that?" Jasmine asked.


    "A digital camera?" Robin replied. "It''s like my world''s version of a magic eye, except without the magic part. I wanna take a picture of this. These flowers may be eaten or wilt with time, but a photo doesn''t change." She snapped pics of the crown and the flowers.


    "I don''t use it too often because it needs batteries-er... a power source. So I only take pictures of things I want to treasure in the future. Here, have a look!"


    Robin showed Jasmine the images she took.


    "And this is made in a world that does not have magic?" Jasmine asked.


    "Well, I actually have no idea whether it has magic or not." Robin sighed. "You said that a person needed to connect to their mana source, right? Well, since no one connected to their mana source in my world, no one is able to sense mana. But, the sky is still blue, and the grass grows, all the same. It could very well be that my home world is filled with mana, and I was merely ignorant of its existence. What we actually lack are magicians."


    Jasmine looked at Robin''s camera for a few moments, then said. "I believe that there is mana in your world." She said at last.


    "What makes you think that?" Robin asked.


    "Disregarding the fact that all living things have mana, how else would you be able to arrive here? If it was a summons, you need mana to construct the summoning circle on your end. If it was a rare, natural connecting portal between our worlds, then even more so, there would need to be mana." Jasmine reasoned it out.


    "Then, why don''t we have things like dragons and wyverns and stuff like that?" Robin asked.


    "Just because they''re magical, doesn''t mean they''re invincible." Jasmine shook her head.


    "While it would take enough firepower to wipe out our current civilization, it is still possible to kill them. But, unless it is on the scale of a natural disaster, you usually can''t generate enough force."


    Robin thought of something..."Perhaps something like a large meteor?" She asked.


    "You mean the starfall rocks?...Yes, if it was a direct hit, it would probably kill them." Jasmine admitted.


    "Well, now we know where the dragons disappeared to..." Robin sighed. "And the remaining magic animals were probably decimated in the ice age."


    "Ice age?" Jasmine asked.


    "A prehistoric time, where ice covered the lands, and mankind had to survive by living in caves underground." Robin replied. Suffice to say, it was over 2,000 years ago at least."


    Robin sighed, and was about to stuff her camera back into her magic bag, when Jasmine stopped her.


    "Can it capture images of people?" She asked.


    "Yup. It can even record videos. Why?" Robin asked.


    "Take a picture of me!" Jasmine said.


    "Sure, but why?" Robin asked.


    "You''re planning on heading back to your home world after this, right?" Jasmine asked. "I want you to take something you can remember me with. We''re cousins now, right?"


    Robin looked surprised.


    "What? You don''t consider us to be cousins?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin looked away, awkwardly. "Er, no...It''s just...I have not had anyone I could call ''Cousin'' for a long time. I''m glad that it is you."


    "Then, as your precious only cousin, you should take a picture of me home with you,don''t you think?" Jasmine smiled warmly.


    Robin smiled beautifully. "I should! Okay then. Form a ''v'' with your fingers, smile, and say ''cheese!''"


    Jasmine did so, but wasn''t ready for the flash.


    "What was that incantation for? Was it necessary to use the camera?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin smiled. "No. It''s more of a family tradition."

 80 She Takes One More Picture

    Robin smiled at the camera, where Jasmine''s smiling face showed signs of squinting from the flash. Then she put the camera away in her magic bag. She also gathered the bright yellow blooms into her magic bracer.


    "Well then, Cousin. I think I''ve slept long enough, don''t you think? Am I excused from bed rest?" Robin asked cheekily.


    Jasmine grinned. "For now, you may. No more magic spells, and don''t push yourself. No heavy lifting, either!"


    Robin rolled her eyes. "You''re almost as overprotecting as my older brother...Almost."


    Jasmine laughed. "Thank you for the compliment~ Do you need help getting up?"


    Robin stood up, testily, waving her arms around. "Oof! So stiff!" She complained, before beginning some stretching exercises.


    Christian walked in upon her stretching her side muscles.


    "A bit more, and you can turn all the way around like an owl!" He joked.


    "That''s not it-" pop. "Ah, there we go!" Robin quickly moved about, causing several pieces of cartilageto emit popping signs as they popped back into place.


    "All done!" She said, contentedly. "Sleeping for three days sure can cause things to get out of sorts. But turning about like an owl is a physical impossibility. So, did you need me for something?" Robin asked Christian.


    "Um, yes. I was asked by Ponzu if you were going to make an appearance at dinner, or if you still needed sleep." Christian replied. Then he turned to Jasmine. "You sure do like to visit Robin a lot. Isn''t he fine aside from no magic spells?"


    Jasmine lifted a quizzical eyebrow. "I could say the same thing to you, actually. Who ever heard of a prince that delivers messages from his chef?" She poked fun at him. "Couldn''t Gerard or Keith have come just as easily?"


    Christian''s face darkened. "Keith is busy reorganizing the soldiers barracks, and Gerard is out in the town on a different errand. I was the only one left that wasn''t a girl ready to swoon over Robin, or try jumping in his bed while he was sleeping."


    Robin was surprised. Were other women actually that brazen? She glanced at Jasmine. "Cousin, it seems that I''ve been saved. What need I do?"


    "Very well, I permit you to acknowledge Christian as your brother." Jasmine snickered.


    "Hey! Why do I get the feeling that was an insult?" Robin frowned.


    "Because you two are just as bad at jumping into trouble head first!" Jasmine announced.


    "I object!" Robin exclaimed, raising her hand. "I may get into trouble, but I can at least get myself out of it on my own!"


    "Why you!" Christian growled, and quickly messed Robin''s hair up, before Robin escaped from under his hand.


    "Bleh! If you ever become my brother, it will be as my younger brother!" Robin teased from the doorway.


    "I am older than you!" Christian objected.


    "Sorry, but the occupation for my father is already filled!" Robin teased, cheekily.


    "Get back here!" Christian called as the two went on a merry chase about the estate. It ended when Christian had to stop in the estate gardens, due to being out of breath.


    "How can you run so fast?" He panted.


    "Hmm...I was in track and field for a bit, until people started pulling cheap soapbox dramas in the background. Then I quit school to go abroad with my older brother and was homeschooled ever since...Maybe it''s my wind affinity?" Robin answered.


    "Soap box? Track and field? What does any of that mean? And what does that have to do with your wind affinity?" Christian asked, confused.


    "Hmm...come to think of it, no it doesn''t. Forget about it, then." Robin said, too lazy to explain, looking out at the sunset.


    "..." For the first time that week, Christian was speechless. In the golden light of the setting sun, Robin looked like a perfect picture one could only find in a painting.


    ''Beautiful...'' Was all that Christian could think, before snapping out of his daze.


    "Are you sure you''re okay?" He finally asked, his cheeks a bit red, both from his run, and from his sudden newfound shyness. He looked away, unable to meet Robin''s eyes for the moment. "Jasmine said not to push yourself, after all."


    Robin was surprised for the third time that day. Then she realized something. This awkward side of the Prince was kind of....cute. She smiled at the sudden thought. The Prince? Cute?


    "Heh heh!" She chuckled, and rubbed her nose before asking. "So does that mean that you''re worried about me?"


    "Ahem! I mean, we can''t have you collapsing on the way again, after all!" He turned his head, avoiding Robin''s observing eyes.


    ''If he knows what I think about him, then I''ll be one hundred percent dead!'' Is what Christian was thinking at the time.


    "Oh?" Robin smiled, feeling warm and fuzzy feelings tickling in her chest. So he did care about her. But he was trying to keep up appearances. And Robin remembered that soon she would be returning to her world. So she took a step back and looked around at the gardens, pretending she hadn''t understood or noticed anything.


    ''Time to be a riajuu.'' Robin thought to herself. (AN: A Riajuu is a main character that is unaware of the beaut[y][ies] that are pining for the mc''s love or attention.)


    "You don''t have to worry about that." Robin said, innocently. "I''m used to not using magic, so I am okay with doing things by hand." She flexed her arm, cheerfully.


    "See? That''s all lean muscle from years of practice. What we did today was hardly a warmup for what I usually do on a normal day. So, rest assured, I''ll be fine!"


    "O-oh? Is that so? I see." Christian responded. ''Whew! Safe!''


    "We-well, It should be almost time for dinner. If you''re hungry, you better head inside before Gerard and Keith finish it off!" Christian said. "I heard that tonight''s dinner will be especially tasty!"


    Robin watched as he headed back towards the house. And, upon sudden impulse, took out her camera, and snapped a photo of Christian.


    ''It''s almost a shame for me to leave...'' She thought to herself, as she returned the camera to her bag.


    ''Just when I finally met a nice guy...'' Robin smiled a bit sadly to herself before heading back inside. Out of sight, Keith had observed the whole scene.


    "Heh heh!" He chuckled. As a former general, how could his sharp eyes not see the change in Christian''s attitude? Now he finally had something else to tease-er ''warn'' Christian about.


    ----------


    Dinner was a nice, hearty beer wyvern stew from the remaining ingredients left in the carriage. Robin was only allowed to eat the stew, even though there were several other tasty tidbits going around the dinner table. Robin looked longingly at the melting potatoes before returning to her stew. Other things, like the baked asparagus fries with hollandaise sauce, deviled eggs, and even thecole slaw, didn''t hold as much of an appeal to her.


    And then came dessert. Everyone received a plate upon which a jiggly golden jello, the size of a fist, gleamed. Robin''s plate, however,was filled with small jello drops the size of a thumb, stacked on top of each other in a small pyramid. While that was impressive enough, Robin''s jello had something else, which made it the centerpiece of the entire table.


    Inside of each jiggly jello drop was a genuine flower head. The ones with goldenrod inside had small clusters of goldenrod blossoms, instead of just one. Ponzu had left out a third of the flowers Robin had given him to accomplish this. And the top jello drop was a bit larger than the others, as it held a bright yellow dandelion blossom inside of it.


    All of the other jellos were a simple transparent gold. Ponzu had filtered out the flowers he had boiled with the gelatin. So, all of the jellos were the same flavor. Robin''s jello simply had more decoration. But, that didn''t stop the others from looking enviously at it.


    Truly, there is no jealousy without comparison. But, that didn''t restrain Robin. She ignored the gazes, since she finally had something else that she could eat! The cool jelly was a delight to her entire mouth.


    Seeing her face light up with delight, the rest turned to their own plates of jello. Among them was the mayor, and his household, as well as the newly-appointed captain of the soldiers. They had wanted to speak to Robin over the course of dinner, but the food was so tasty that they had forgotten all about it.

 81 She Dreams of Her Pas

    In the end, the mayor was only able to have a bit of light conversation, introducing his unmarried daughter to Robin before both Jasmine and Christian intervened.


    "It''s getting late. Robin needs to return to bed rest soon." Jasmine said.


    "We need to leave early to make up for lost time. It''s best if he gets to bed as soon as he can." Christian added. For once, both Christian and Jasmine were in total agreement, which was a rare occasion.


    "But I-" Robin was about to protest.


    "No buts! As your acting physician, I have made perfectly clear that you are not to strain yourself!" Jasmine refuted.


    "She''s right, she''s right!" Christian added. "It''s best to follow her orders even if you feel fine. A strained mana source is not something to take lightly, after all. You''ll need a lot of rest if you want to recover quickly."


    Robin observed them, confused. But, while the two cousins were acting a bit odd, she didn''t sense any falseness or fakeness in their protective attitude. Sighing, she could only bid the mayor and his daughter goodnight, and retire for the evening.


    That night, Robin had another nightmare.


    She was running, endlessly running, through the school halls. It didn''t matter what corners she turned, a hallway stretched out endlessly before her. She weaved through the endless flow of students in the hallway, who ignored her as if she was a simple breath of air.


    Robin didn''t bother to ask them for help. They were as passive as a moving store mannequin, and twice as uncaring. Even the occasional glance of sympathy couldn''t get their rock hard hearts to move in her defense.


    "Why must you make this so difficult, every time?"


    "You know this is only prolonging the inevitable!"


    "Is she an idiot?"


    Behind her, a crowd''s worth of light-hearted laughter and joking sounded harshly in her ears, only a corner away from catching sight of her.


    Gone was her fighting skills, and close combat expertise. Gone was her cool-headed sense of judgement, and perfect protection plan. Now she was just a scared, frightened young girl with no one to rely on.


    "Hey, your older brother is so rich, my older sister is dying to meet him! When are you going to invite us over?"


    "You know this is only going to keep happening until you say yes, you know."


    Robin specifically avoided areas with teachers on patrol. They would do nothing but stop her for running in the halls, and allow her to get caught.


    "Robin, my dad is so sad that you don''t want to live with him.


    Your brother is so busy with the company, there''s no way that he can properly take care of you!


    Come back home to live with your uncle! Aren''t we cousins?


    You''re so rich. Lend me your allowance this week, as well, or else you''re going to be sleeping in the cellar again!"


    A cold shiver travelled up Robin''s spine, as she redoubled her efforts. How had they found out which school she was attending? Was her uncle also here? Did he bring over that terrible old man that he wanted to get her married off to, in the future?


    Panic built up in her as she both strived for, yet dreaded each turning of the corner. Where would her uncle be? Where would she run into him? The only place left that she could escape to was the roof.


    She dashed with all her might up the stairs that suddenly appeared before her. Quickly, she arrived at the top landing, and tugged open the door. Footsteps echoed up the stairs behind her. They were almost in sight! She swiftly pulled the door shut behind her, and stuffed an iron pole through the handle, effectively locking the door.


    "Robin! Open the door!"


    "Someone go get the teacher!"


    "Teacher, something''s wrong with Robin! I think she might be suicidal!"


    "Robin! Open this door! Don''t make us call the fire department again!"


    "Robin!" The voices called out, banging on the heavy metal door.


    Robin backed away from the door. She didn''t want to listen. She didn''t want to hear the fake friendliness and words filled with double meanings. She didn''t want to see the smiles that never reached a person''s eyes, or the hidden smirks of her classmates when they successfully fooled the teachers again.


    The door was closed, and barred. Robin was safe.


    "Robin." A voice said softly behind her. Robin felt her heart descend into her stomach as she heard the voice that she dreaded to hear.


    She whirled about, on high alert as she once again saw the amiable expression of her father''s younger brother. But that smile was just a mask. There was nothing amiable about this uncle. She didn''t say anything. She couldn''t say anything. Her heart had jumped up into her throat, making it hard to speak.


    "Robin, dear, why did you leave me? Didn''t I tell you to come home right after school yesterday? Mr Dawkins was very sad not to see his favorite future bride at home."


    Robin shook her head fiercely.


    "You don''t like him? It doesn''t matter. You will learn to like him. But for now, all you need to do is do what I say. After all, I am your guardian. That silly nephew of mine can''t possibly take proper care of you, now that he''s so busy at the office. Heh heh."


    He stepped closer. Robin stepped back.


    "Come along, Robin. We need to meet Mr. Dawkins today. He might get upset if you''re not there. And, we can''t have you making him upset before the engagement is settled."


    He stepped forward. Robin stepped back. He continued speaking amiably. A wrinkled old man showed up behind her uncle.


    "What''s taking you so long, Harry? I''ve got a schedule to keep!" Dawkins grumbled. "It''s bad enough that she cut her beautiful long hair off, and tore up all the dresses I sent her. Now she doesn''t even want to see me?"


    "Just a minute, Mr. Dawkins. It will only take a few minutes. She''s just in her rebellious stage now." Her uncle pacified the wrinkled old man, as he turned back to Robin.


    "You know that aside from you and your brother, he holds almost all the other stock in the company. If you make him angry, he might do something to, I don''t know, remove your older brother for good...That''s why we need to hurry home."


    Robin shrunk fartherback, and shook her head. She wasn''t going! She mustn''t go! She wouldn''t go! Her shivering back bumped against the railing on the edge of the roof.


    Her uncle''s amiable smile finally disappeared. "You won''t go?" He asked, as his face morphed into a fierce, enraged visage.


    "I am your true guardian! You must listen to me! No one cares about you! The police won''t help you! It doesn''t matter how many times you run away: it''s no use! We''ll just drag you back home! Disobedient niece! If you cannot learn to obey me" He struck out at her, thrusting her over the edge of the railing.


    "Then you shouldn''t be allowed live!" The words rang out in the empty space as Robin could only watch with shock as the edge of the roof got farther and farther away.


    WHAM!


    Robin gasped and bolted upright in bed, cold sweat breaking out all over. Her hand trembled as she checked her surroundings.


    ''That''s right. I''m fine. It didn''t happen like that. Brother had placed a listening bug on me, and arrived in time to stop him. He recorded the whole thing. We already won the court case. Uncle''s in jail. And Mr. Dawkins died of a heart attack. There''s no way they could be here.'' Robin remembered, with a shudder.


    But, the sun rose that morning upon the dark circles under Robin''s eyes. She hadn''t been able to get back to sleep. Even after telling herself that she now had more fighting power than a tank, it still wasn''t enough.


    Surprisingly, when she opened her door, she saw two of the knights guarding her room.


    "What was this about?" Robin asked Jasmine, indicating the two guards.


    "Just preventing any possibilities for bad rumors flying around." Jasmine answered, looking up from her book.


    Upon seeing Robin''s dark circles, she only asked one question. "Nightmares?"


    Robin nodded.


    "They''re always especially bad during the recovery period." Jasmine sighed, having expected it. "I can give you an eight hour sleeping potion, of my own invention.Nightmare free is guaranteed. But you won''t be able to wake up before eight hours is finished." She offered.


    Robin considered it. "Thanks. But I think I can handle it. It''s just some ghosts from my past, haunting me in my dreams." She paused. "But, if I feel I need it, then I''ll take you up othat offer."

 82 She Gives A Cooking Lecture

    Robin made her way down to the kitchen, where Ponzu was almost finished making breakfast for everyone. Egg scramble with sauteed mushrooms and onions, hash browns,as well as apple turnovers were the main breakfast foods.


    "Need any help?" She asked.


    "Teacher! What are you doing here! Aren''t you injured? Ponzu exclaimed when he saw Robin had silently arrived behind him.


    "I strained my mana core, not my heart." Robin snorted. "Besides, I am in the mood for something with cinnamon...what''s left?"


    Ponzu shrugged. "All I have left is the leftover pie crust dough from the turnovers. The kitchen hands made an extra batch by accident when I was working on the hash browns."


    Robin''s eyes lit up as she thought of something. Ponzu immediately caught the gleam in her eyes. He paused as he put the silver tray on the final breakfast dish. These trays had rune spells to keep the food warm and fresh until it was time for breakfast.


    "You''ve thought of something?" He asked.


    "Maybe..." Robin said as she looked around the kitchen, and caught one of the kitchen hands glancing in at the door.


    "You, there! If you''re going to spy on us, you might as well come and openly observe so that you have something to make of yourself later." Robin said.


    "Can I come watch, too?" Gerard peeked his head out of the nearby broom closet room.


    "You again! I knew you were lurking about somewhere. But do you have to hide in such unexpected places?" Ponzu grumbled, eyeing Gerard with a despairing helplessness.


    Gerard''s hiding skills were getting better and better, regardless of his platinum white head of hair. Even Ponzu was now unable to find out where he was until after several tidbits were stolen from the pans.


    Gerard tilted his head. "Isn''t it the best place to hide only because it is unexpected?" He asked innocently.


    "At least, hiding where someone expects me to hide, isn''t that the same way as letting them know where I am?"


    Robin chuckled. "Well, you''re not wrong. But with those cobwebs in your hair, you won''t be able to help us make it. So you can only watch."


    "Okay!" Gerard beamed happily, glad to be allowed to show his face in the kitchen once more.


    "I''ll turn on the oven again. What color?" Ponzu asked.


    "According to the color chart, It should be yellow-orange. Is there any cream cheese? Robin asked, as she slipped an apron on over her clothes.


    "Cream Cheese?" Ponzu asked, curiously.


    "You don''t have it?" Robin asked as she tied the apron strings.


    "Are you talking about sour cream?" He asked, as he touched a spell rune. This would turn on the oven. He also placed the lava beast scale into the oven, so that it would be able to tell him when to stop increasing the heat..


    "So you don''t have it..." Robin sighed. ''All right, butter should do for now. But after this I will also be teaching you how to make cream cheese."


    Ponzu eagerly grabbed the things Robin needed, which only amounted to five things: butter, granulated sugar, cinnamon, powdered sugar, and a cup of water.


    First, Robin rolled the pie crust dough out into a large round pizza shape. She liberally applied the butter, spreading it on the round dough until it was about a quarter of an inch away from the edges. Then she mixed a few spoonfuls of granulated sugar and cinnamon together, and liberally sprinkled it over the butter.


    All that was left was rolling it up, slicing out the rounds, and putting them in the oven to bake. Robin took out one of her last pieces of baking paper, and placed the swirly rounds on top of it, on the pan.


    "What''s that?" Gerard asked.


    "Paper prepped with butter." Robin replied.


    The kitchen aid swallowed hard. A single page as white as that would go for a silver, at least! And now Robin was using high quality paper for baking. As expected of a superior chef! He would not compromise when it came to flavor.


    Actually, Robin was just doing that because she didn''t want the cinnamon rolls getting stuck to the pan, and ripping. The cinnamon rolls were placed in the oven, and the door was shut.


    "So, how long do I need to wait before they''re done?" Ponzu asked.


    "About twenty minutes. Now I can show you how to make the cream cheese." Robin chuckled. "Cuz that also takes about twenty minutes."


    "Eh? But what about the powdered sugar and water?" The kitchen lad asked.


    "Four tablespoons of water to one cup of powdered sugar is enough to make the frosting to drizzle over the rolls." Robin said.


    "But, it''s best to make that a bit before the rolls are done. otherwise, it might dry out and harden by the time the rolls are ready."


    "Oh." The lad nodded.


    "But now, cream cheese!" Robin said with a somewhat earnest glint.


    "Okay, what do I need to do?" Ponzu asked.


    "First off, we need milk." Robin said, as she glanced into the pantry. "Four cups should do, but if we''re prepping for the mayor''s people, too, then we''ll need eight cups."


    After she finished looking about, she ordered the kitchen aid. "No citrus fruits?...Very well then. Go grab the white vinegar. We''ll need a few tablespoons of it. Also, grab a bit of salt, a cheesecloth, a large saucepan, and a large bowl."


    After assembling all the ingredients, Robin smiled. Then she instructed Ponzu. "Place the milk in the saucepan, and heat it on the stove to simmer. Keep stirring the whole time."


    When it began simmering, Robin had Ponzu lower the heat by a third. Then she started to add the white vinegar a spoonful at a time, one every minute. Once six spoonfuls had been added, Robin observed the milk that Ponzu continued stirring until the milk began to curdle, and separate. A clear, greenish liquid could be seen in the bottom of the pan, under the curds.


    At that point, Robin had Ponzu turn off the heat, and pour the contents of the pot onto the cheesecloth secured over the large bowl.


    "So we throw out the contents of the cheesecloth, right?" The kitchen aid asked, looking at the lumpy white curds.


    Robin looked at the lad as if he had gone crazy, and finally couldn''t help but laugh. "Absolutely not! Have you never made cheese before? The contents in the cheesecloth are what we are going to use to make the cream cheese. We''re just waiting for it to cool a bit, before using it." She chuckled.


    "Then, we''re getting rid of the stuff in the bowl, right?" The lad asked.


    "Why do you think we need to discard something when making food?" Robin asked. "The true value of a chef, is in making things delicious. If it''s not poisonous, and not inedible, then it''s a chef''s ingredient, no matter how odd it looks or tastes. A chef''s work is finding out how much of something is good to add to a dish to make it delicious." Robin lectured.


    "Is that so?" The lad replied, feeling enlightened.


    "There are also ingredients that are tasty, but poisonous without being properly processed or over a certain amount, so make sure you are aware of any demerits of an ingredient you wish to use." Robin pointed out as she lifted the cheesecloth and pointed at the whey.


    "Do you see this liquid?" Robin asked.


    "Yes, it looks disgusting." The lad made a face.


    "That''s due to your prejudice after knowing that I made this with milk and vinegar." Robin shook her head. "This here is a perfect flavor enhancer for soups. It helps the stomach to feel full faster, and has a lot of good things in it which promote good health in the body. Throwing it out is such a waste, don''t you agree?"


    "Well, now that you put it that way, it does sound slightly more appealing." The lad replied, somewhat embarrassed.


    "Good things like this liquid are thrown out every day. Isn''t that such a big waste? Just because it is unappealing now, doesn''t mean it can''t be used to cook. Don''t let your eyes deceive you. Cooking isn''t all about sight. Instead, it is mostly about smell, taste, texture, and aftertaste." Robin instructed.


    "I see!" The lad replied, as her words seemed to resonate within him.


    Because of this simple twenty minute lecture, this young kitchen lad would one day grow up to become one of the world''s most famous leading experts on exotic edible foods.

 83 She Makes Cinnamon Rolls

    After checking the curds to see if they''d cooled enough, Robin added the salt. Then she realized that she had forgotten something important.


    "Oh drat! I forgot about the food processor!" Robin smacked her forehead withthe palm of her hand.


    "Oh?" Ponzu asked. "What is the food processor supposed to do?"


    "It''s a tool that''s supposed to shred and mix the curds until they become as smooth as cream again." Robin explained. "It uses two quickly rotating blades at the bottom of a cylindrical bowl with a lid. But, we don''t have one here..."


    Ponzu and Gerard looked at each other in surprise, then smiled.


    "Do you know why Prince Christian made me his personal chef?" Ponzu asked.


    "...Because you like making food?" Robin guessed.


    "Well, that was one of the reasons." Ponzu nodded. "But the other one is that I am a descendant of one of the heroes. And we have a peculiar set of traditional magic spells passed down through my family. One of them happens to be the unique ''pew-ray'', ''bu-rend'' and ''pah-rusu'' spells. But, since you''re a hero as well, you could probably use them if you could use magic."


    But Robin had heard ''puree'', ''blend'', and ''pulse'', which were the most important settings on either blenders or food processors.


    "I think the ''puree'' spell would work for this one. Since I am forbidden, for the time being, from magic, Ponzu, would you do the honors?" Robin asked, with a sigh.


    "Gladly!" Ponzu placed a clear glass plate over the curds. "This is to prevent any flying food." He explained. Then he cast ''Puree'' on the curds.


    "How long do I need to keep this up?"Ponzu asked.


    "Well, we need to stop and check after a few minutes, but it shouldn''t take longer than five." Robin replied. "It''s the first time I''m using magic to puree cream cheese."


    "Well, it''s my first time making cream cheese, period. So you are the only one who can tell if I''m doing this right." Ponzu said as a matter of fact.


    "So, do you know any other magic spells?" Robin asked.


    "Nope! My aptitude for the elements is garbage. Yet, somehow, the spells I can use here don''t use much mana. No one else can seem to get the hang of it." Ponzu explained.


    "Hmm...Stop for a bit. I''m going to test the consistency now." Robin told Ponzu, who dispelled the ''puree'' spell he had been using, and took off the glass plate.


    Robin used a spoon and stirred it,testing for any residual grainy lumps. Seeing none, She smiled happily. "It''s done! Here, grab a spoon and have a taste!"


    The three each grabbed a heaping spoonful, and tasted it.


    "It''s definitely cheese, but it''s so creamy one might mistake it for clotted cream. So this is what you meant!" Ponzu exclaimed, surprised.


    "It''s best used as a spread on toast and crackers, or paired with spicy foods to tone down the bite." Robin said. "It''s my favorite next to fresh mozarella cheese."


    "I can see why!" Gerard said. "Can I have another spoonful?"


    "Get out! You''ll have plenty come breakfast time. Don''t ruin your appetite!" Ponzu uses the stirring spoon to whack Gerard''s encroaching hand holding his spoon away.


    "Don''t worry! I''m always hungry!" Gerard reassured, as he licked the residual cream cheese off the back of his hand.


    "Go wash your hands, Gerard. The cinnamon rolls are almost done. It''s time to make the frosting! But if you dawdle, you''re going to miss it." Robin said, as the scent of cinnamon began to waft through the room.


    "I''ll be back quicker than you can cast blink!"Gerard dashed to the sink, and scrubbed his hands under the faucet with the soap bar.


    Robin grabbed another smaller bowl, and had the kitchen lad help her, this time.


    "So, for the frosting, we''re actually going to use some of the cream cheese in it, but not too much. Just a few spoonfuls. But, we''re also going to add just as much butter. Lightly whisk the two, together. Then add the four cups of powdered sugar. Slowly! Fold in one cup at a time, kid! And then add a tablespoon of water in between each cup. As an added flavor, I like to use vanilla bean extract, but I''m not sure if you have it, here. It''s perfectly fine, without, though." Robin said.


    "I think the rolls are done." Gerard said, smelling the air. Ponzu turned about and opened the oven. The rolls were a nice tan with brown swirls.


    "Okay, yup! These are done! Set them aside to cool for a few minutes. How long until breakfast?" Robin asked.


    "It should be ten minutes." The kitchen lad said.


    "Then, in about five minutes, I want you to drizzle this frosting in a zig-zag pattern over the rolls. can you do it?" Robin asked.


    "Leave it to me!" The lad said, secretly looking forward to licking the remains of the frosting from the bowl afterwards.


    "Good. I''m going to head to the dining room, then. The rolls should be put on a plate or in a pan. They''ll be dripping with melting frosting, which isn''t good for the cloth in the roll basket." Robin told Ponzu.


    "Got it! You head on over. And please, teacher! Take that rascal, Gerard, with you! If not, he''s bound to swipe a roll or two for himself!" Ponzu begged.


    "I wouldn''t dare swipe one now!" Gerard objected cheekily. "They don''t have frosting on them, yet!"


    Ponzu shook his head. "You are a hopeless case, you are."


    Gerard sheepishly scratched his nose. He couldn''t argue. Robin''s recipes were all just too good to resist. Gerard secretly felt that, if he hadn''t seen Robin''s fighting prowess, he would have thought Robin was more the hero of food, than a hero that was as amazing as in the legends.


    Robin raised a bemused eyebrow, and looked at Gerard with a somewhat knowing grin.


    "All right, Gerry. Let''s get outta here before my recipe makes even me lose control of my hands." Robin joked, heading for the door.


    Gerard chuckled, and followed after her. "Well, you''re recipes are just that tasty! You can always come up with something new, can''t you?"


    Robin scratched the back of her head, as she thought for a bit. "Well, I can definitely come up with things, but, whether we have the ingredients or not is the problem..." She admitted as they walked down the wood-panelled hallway.


    "Then, me and Ponzu will go wherever you go, and learn all about the ingredients we need to make all the foods you think of!" Gerard stated, seriously.


    Robin glanced at him, and smiled. "You wanna know the secret to how I remember all these recipes?" Robin asked in a conspiratory whisper.


    "How?" Gerard asked in a return whisper.


    "I only remember my favorites, and recipes that are simple or fun to make." Robin stated. "If I''ve made it many times, I''ll also remember it."


    Gerard nodded. That made sense.


    "There you are, Robin!" A voice called out from behind them. Robin turned to see Christian and Keith heading their way from a side hallway.


    Robin nodded a good morning to them. "Christian. Keith." She grinned. "I had a hand in today''s breakfast preparations."


    That was all the two needed to know to look forward to a new recipe. The expressions on their faces brightened.


    "Oh? What''s this, I hear? You didn''t strain yourself, did you?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin shrugged, pronouncing her innocence. "I only instructed. Most of the actual work was done by Ponzu and the kitchen boy. Don''tworry, I''m behaving..."


    ''For now...'' Robin said in her mind.


    "Is that so?" Jasmine gave Robin a pointed look, then turned towards the dining hall. "Then, that''s good. Shall we go to breakfast, then?"


    No one objected, so the whole group arrived in the hall, and were seated just a few minutes before the mayor walked in, with his family.


    "Oh? It appears I am late!" The mayor said, glancing at the mahic timepiece, which was pointed to five minutes before.


    "Not at all. We also only just arrived a minute ago." Robin replied.


    "No, as the host, for me to be later than my guests is a breach of manners. I beg your apology, your highness." The mayor, and his family bowed.


    Christian waved his hand. "You heard Robin. You may rise. I am not in the habit of punishing people before breakfast, unless it is a more grievous offense."

 84 She Makes Tea

    Soon, the breakfast was served, and everyone was very much glad to taste the foreign recipes.


    Robin disregarded the eggs, and took one hash brown, one turnover, and two cinnamon rolls. There was plenty for everyone to have five each, but Robin didn''t want to grab more than she could eat. Keeping in mind her recovering stomach, Robin limited her food intake.


    One thing she did differently, this time, was to add cream cheese on top of her hash brown, and bite into it, like toast. There''s nothing quite like the taste of warm cream cheese. Its mild flavor was exceedingly comforting to the taste. Yet, despite the warmth, it was also mildly refreshing, to the point where it was slightly addictive.


    As usual, everyone enjoyed the food, especially the new cream cheese, and the cinnamon rolls. Robin only grabbed one more, before they were all gone.


    After breakfast, Robin began to feel a slight ache in her abdomen. Robin was surprised. She didn''t think she had eaten enough to get a stomach ache like that.


    She excused herself to visit the bathroom.


    Believe it or not, the bathroom was also equipped with a magic toilet. It wasn''t as modern looking as the one in the castle, but it functioned almost like a regular toilet. Runeswere responsible for refilling the water tank, and there was a chain you yanked, instead of a lever that you had to push.


    It was during her trip to the bathroom that Robin realized what her stomache ache really was. Robin smacked her forehead. It all made sense now: the cravings, the irritability, the nightmares...Robin''s monthly pains had arrived.


    She still had some toiletries, enough to last her for this month''s episode. But, she needed to consult with Jasmine to see about finding, or making some more, just in case her journey home ended up taking more than a month''s time.


    As for relieving the symptoms, Robin had plenty of flowers stored away in her magic bag. After she left the bathroom, she sat down at a window to go through her collection. She had picked some more woodland flowers while trying to distract herself during the wyvern dismantling. The best portable remedy was probably a floral tea blend of her own making.


    "Let''s see...unbloomed dandelion buds would be sweeter, feverfew, violet, elderflower, honeysuckle, cornflower, a few rose petals, oh, lucky! I have some rose hips, too! Too bad hibiscus is in more tropical zones. It makes a lovely tea. Some mint blossoms will help stabilize the flavor, too."


    Robin sighed, but she gathered the blossoms into a medium large tea bag. Since she couldn''t use magic, she would have to rely upon Jasmine to help her brew the tea. Returning the now-filled tea bag to her magic bag, Robin returned to her company.


    Everyone was still exchanging small pleasantries, but upon Robin''s return, Christian finally drew their stay to a close.


    "The sun is already too high as it is. It is time for us to leave, Mayor Henry." He said.


    "You can''t stay one more day?" Mayor Henry asked, mind still on the delightful breakfast they had eaten.


    "We have already delayed our travels for thre whole days. We must be on our way." Prince Christian refused adamantly. Mayor Henry could only sigh.


    "If that is so, then safe travels, Your Highness." Mayor Henry bid in farewell. "But, do feel free to stop here upon your return!"


    Christian looked suspiciously at the Mayor, then glanced at the mayor''s daughter, whose face was blushing in earnest as she glanced at Robin. Right then and there, Christian decided definitely not to return using the same route.


    "If we are in the area, we will certainly drop by." Christian replied, tactfully, as he entered the carriage. Keith, Robin, Jasmine, and Gerard followed in after him. Upon their ride through the streets, the townsfolk cheered, bidding them good luck and fair travels.


    Once they were inside, Robin had Gerard bring some snacks Ponzu had made to eat with Keith and Christian. Robin also made sure that he knew not to come back for a bit. She had to speak to Jasmine about something important.


    Gerard, of course, got the hint. Curious, though he was, he didn''t want to dissappoint Robin. The biggest factor in his decision, though, was if he made the hero upset, then Robin might not share any more wonderful recipes with them!


    Jasmine waited until Gerard had left before raising a sound barrier and asking her.


    "Well? what is it?"


    Robin felt a bit awkward, but she had to say it.


    "Um, my monthly pains have arrived. I need you to help me brew some herbal tea to relieve the symptoms." Robin said, somewhat embarassed.


    Jasmine blinked, then laughed.


    "So that''s why! I thought it might have been something more serious."


    "Well, there is that, but, for the meantime; tea." Robin smiled slightly, as she brought out the largish bag of flower tea.


    Jasmine''s eyes widened a bit.


    "How much tea do you intend to make!?" She asked, surprised.


    "Enough to outlast my condition." Robin asserted. "But, it doesn''t have to be all made at once. All I really need you to make is hot water." Jasmine chuckled, and waved her hand. The nearby teapot was soon filled with steaming hot water.


    Robin brought out her portable loose tea ball that she brought everywhere with her. A cute little black cat was the anchor of the ball, designed to fit over the edge of the cup. The mesh metal ball was connected to the cat via a fine chain.


    "How cute!" Jasmine could instantly make out the function of this fun little trinket. "It''s too bad you aren''t planning on staying too long. I''d love to have one of these for myself!"


    Robin laughed.


    "If I find a way to send you one from my world, you''ll be the first person to get one." Robin promised.


    "Don''t you forget, now!" You promised, after all!" Jasmine said.


    ~~~~~~~~


    While they were talking, Christian, in the carriage''s other room, was starting to feel anxious.


    "You''re sure that Robin only wanted to talk?" He asked.


    "Positively certain!" Gerard said, munching on the potato chips Robin had handed him. "He said, ''I''ve got something confidential I need to speak with Jasmine'' he did. I already told you that five minutes ago."


    Christian had foregone his share of the potato chips, since his stomach was still stuffed from breakfast. At first, he thought that Robin merely needed to consult with Jasmine about how much longer it would take for his mana source to heal. But they had already taken more than enough time for that. Now he was beginning to get a bad feeling.


    "What do you suppose they''re talking about?" Christian asked.


    Keith shrugged. "Something personal, or something important. Either way, he doesn''t want us to hear it for the time being, or else we''d have already been told."


    Gerard piped in. "He said, ''confidential'', so I guess it''s confidential!"


    Christian grimaced. There was that word again; confidential...meaning something one can only confide with trusted people. But why did Jasmine have to be that person? Was it so private that he, the Prince, was not worthy of trusting?


    Of course, the answer was yes.


    -------


    "So? We''ve had the tea. Can you tell me what''s bugging you?"


    Robin frowned. "It''s that Trader guy. How are we going to prevent him from taking over any of us, without our knowing? By now, he probably knows our faces quite well. Yet we are completely in the dark about his own facial features."


    "Hmm.." Jasmine considered things. "If I were playing chess, I would have to say, the best defense against a pawn is another pawn. The best defense against a queen is another queen. The best defense against a knight, is another knight."


    "So, you think that finding another spirit magic master would help us out in the long run?" Robin asked, doubtfully. "But, isn''t that dangerous? What if he tries to take us over, too?"


    "In that case, I''ll be relying on you to make sure that doesn''t happen." Jasmine laughed.


    "Jasmine, I can''t let you risk it. What if the spirit master is too strong, and I burn out my mana source again?"


    "We are going to get it used to larger mana quantities as soon as you''re healed, so that won''t happen." Jasmine said. "Don''t underestimate the hero''s mana capacity! After conditioning, it can hold up with spells that even ten of me could not handle! You will be no different."


    Robin sighed. "I sure hope you''re right."

 85 She Arrives at Port Oracle

    Robin stood up and stretched a bit, but then paused. She looked in the direction of the door. A mischievous smile twinkled in her eyes, as she walked over and opened the door upon the surprised face of Christian, who was just about to knock.


    "Can I help you?" She asked, almost snickering at his dumbstruck face.


    "Ahem, yes. I um-I was wondering if you were almost finished speaking about that confidential topic of yours." Christian cleared his throat, feeling uncomfortable.


    Robin inclined her head, innocently. "Yes. We just finished." She said, barely holding back a silly smile. "Would you like to speak to Jasmine about something?"


    "Um, N-no..." Christian''s words began to stutter a bit as he somehow couldn''t get the words out without stumbling over them. Keith, who stood behind him, also held in his laughter, but his shoulders were shaking.


    "Oh? Then did you wish to consult me about something?" Robin said, looking as if she was ready and willing to hear him out.


    "Ah, yes." Christian took out a map. "I wanted to show you a map of the kingdom." He said, spreading it on the carriage wall, where it was fastened in place with another cantrip spell.


    "And, so? What is the purpose of showing me this map?" Robin asked.


    "According to this map, we are approximatelyhere." Christian said, pointing to a spot inland from the coast. "Over here is Port Oracle. According to our estimates, we should have arrived thereyesterday, however since we had no choice but to stop for a bit, we''re still on route."


    Several markings on the map all around the demons forest lands caught Robin''s attention. "What are these?" She asked.


    "These?" Christian pointed to a mark.


    Keith explained. "These are all cities run by the demon protectorates of the demon king. I wasn''t part of the diplomatic party, but it was a part of the treaty fifteen years back that there be neutral cities where both man and demon were allowed to live. Unless of course, they were a criminal, then obviously, they would be barred entrance."


    Robin silently counted. "Thirteen cities?" She asked.


    "Yup! And we need to visit each and every one of them to get the protectorates'' approval." Christian nodded.


    "Sounds like it would take much longer than a month, then." Robin glanced over at Jasmine, and a hidden communication passed between them. Jasmine nodded. ''Looks like I''m stuck here for a while.'' Robin thought to herself.


    "A month? You''d be lucky if we finished within a year!" Christian sighed. "If the demon protectorates refuse to meet with you, then there''s nothing you can do but wait."


    Robin began to understand that it was a much more difficult undertaking than just a trip to the thirteen cities. Her head began to throb. "Ugh, politics!" She moaned holding her throbbing head. She loathed politics. It reminded her of her uncle''s insincere smile.


    Christian''s expression fell. As the instigator of all this he really did regret dragging Robin into the middle of such a large mess.


    "I''m sorry, this must be a bit much to take in all at once, right?" He said, delicately.


    "No, it''s fine. If all at once is too much, then break up the information into chunks and focus on one at a time." Robin said, with a sigh, thrusting her distaste to the back of her mind. There was now work that needed to get done.


    "For now, ignoring the other protectorates, let''s focus on the first one, that we''re meeting." She said, putting the rest aside for future meetings.


    Christian nodded, and looked at Keith, who took out a document. "Right. The first protectorate we are going to meet is the Lord Protectorate of Port Oracle, which was taken after the demon''s own name: Oracle. According to the information, it is a kelpie demon, no specified gender.


    Appearance is somewhat feminine, though. Has the ability to foresee future events, to a certain extent. Aside from that, hmm...looks to have a genuine good impression from the inhabitants. No particular favorite things, but going against the Lord Protectorate''s advice soon leads to misfortune. That is why Port Oracle has been thriving up to this point. That is all the information we have on the Lord Protectorate."


    Christian ''hmm''d a bit before asking Robin. "So, that in mind, what do you think we should do?"


    Robin glanced back up at the map, a pondering expression on her face.


    "I think that we should wait, keep our eyes open, be polite, but also completely honest. No subterfuges or rigmaroles would work on someone who can predict the future, after all." Robin said slowly. "I''d like to meet the Lord Protectorate, Oracle in person, if possible."


    Robin then had a thought, and added. "It may be very likely that we''d be given a task to perform, in order to test our character. We are the ones asking for their help. So, even if he acts rudely, don''t take any actions against the Lord Protectorate no matter what! Got it? No one is allowed to be harmed, whether it be demon or human."


    Christian nodded. "Of course!"


    Jasmine snickered. "Instead of acting, Cousin, you''d best try and keep that unfortunate mouth of yours from making yet another mess you can''t get out of."


    "Hey!I''m not that bad!" Christian protested.


    At that point, Robin, Jasmine, and Keith all burst out laughing. The carriage continued peacefully down the dirt-paved road, as Christian protested his treatment.


    ~~~~~~~~


    "They are on the move again." The seer with the crystal ball informed the figure behind the red curtain. "Headed for Port Oracle. I wonder what tasty-looking treat they will make next?"


    "Hmmm...inform the guards, I want these words to spread through the city..." the figurebegan to speak.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~


    Two days later, they arrived in Port Oracle.


    The salty breeze and white-washed walls gave the city a clean appearance. Brightly-colored flags hung from houses and street stalls alike, adding to the beautiful image of the city. The cerulean blue ocean stretched out to the horizon, sparkling in the mid-afternoon sunshine. A long white beach stretched out on the shore, not far from the city gates.


    Robin and the rest took one look at the large, colorful market, and they all had the same idea: sightseeing! Christian sent the knights with the carriage to the inn to get some rest. While the knights were used to getting by on little rest, Port Oracle was a place with a surprisingly good reputation.


    Christian followed Robin and the others as they went about the different sections of the market. Robin found many things she had not been able to find at the capitol. Many different fruits, and foods. Especially rice and sea foods.


    Robin bought a lot that day. Rice, shrimps, squids, salmons, tunas, lobsters, crabs, sea bass, dried bonito, clams, mussels, caviar: many of these foods were so common that they were dirt cheap compared to their prices back in Robin''s world. But that was not all that Robin bought. There were also imports from other countries and outlying islands.


    Robin also bought manytropical foods and products. There were roasted sesame and poppy seeds, soy beans, fresh peppers and chillies, avocados, fresh green olives, lemons, limes, oranges, foreign spices, etc. She enjoyed haggling with the merchants, and joking with the fishmongers, who were also very easy-going.


    Christian could only helplessly follow along. Ponzu and Gerard also watched, wide eyed, as they saw all the different strange foods that Robin had bought, they knew they might soon have their work cut out for them. Since Robin''s magic bag would keep everything fresh, She didn''t have to worry about the food going bad.


    By the time Robin stopped shopping, she had quadrupled the amount of baggage in her magic bag. But, she was very satisfied with everything she had bought. It was just about dinner time by then, and the sore-footed travellers soon made their way to the nearby inn where the knights had arranged rooms for them.


    Jasmine had also bought several trinkets and magic tools that caught her eye, along with a hundred or so blown glass bottles. Her excuse was that transportation almost doubled the cost of the item.


    Gerard had bought a few street foods with some money Robin had given him. He also carried conversations with the local sailor men, and craftspeople, asking as many questions as he encountered new things.


    That night, instead of making some food for everyone, she pointed the company to the inn''s clam chowder.


    "Eat the local cuisine first." She instructed. "Those who''ve lived all their life next to the sea know best how to bring the flavor out of the sea food."


    Upon hearing that, the company all looked a bit disappointed.


    "Okay, the real reason is that I''m tired, and I am curious about the local flavors." Robin laughed. "Don''t worry, though. I will make something for everyone to eat, tomorrow."


    Only after saying that, did everyone''s expressions return to normal.

 86 She Combs the Beaches For Eatables

    sailor, striking up a friendly conversation, asked her. "Oh? Does that mean yer some sorta gourmet chef?"


    Robin closed one eye. "Not quite." She chuckled. "It''s just that cooking is my hobby, and these folk happen to like what I make."


    "Oh? A pity. There be a chefs competition in this here city starting tomorrow. Ifn''s yer food''s as good as they think it is, ye may want to think about entering it fer a go. I hear the winner gets an audience with the Lord Protectorate."


    Robin''s head lifted up at those words.


    "Is that so? I didn''t see any flyers or notices."


    "Yer not likely to. It was announced at the public square nigh ontwo days ago. Now everybody knows all about it. If ye want to hear more details, just ask a local guard. They''ll be happy to tell ye all about it."


    Robin and the others exchanged glances. The whole company was looking at her with expectant gazes. Robin sighed, scratching the back of her head.


    "I suppose I am entering the contest then!" She said with resignation.


    "Don''t worry, Robin! You''ll do great!" Gerard assured her.


    "That remains to be seen." Robin shook her head. "I need to check the rules and limitations, first. I am also still missing a few ingredients. Looks like I''ll have to go gather some, myself, tomorrow."


    "We can help!" Ponzu replied.


    "Yeah! I''ll help you!" Gerard said enthusiastically.


    "All right then, get to bed right after dinner. We need to get up early if we''re going to gather enough ingredients before the contest." Robin said.


    "Okay!" Gerard exclaimed.


    -----


    "Ugh, why did I say I''d help you gather ingredients!" Gerard was regretting the words he said yesterday. His bare feet squelched through the cold, wet sands, and slapped on mossy rocks in the early morning twilight.


    "It can''t be helped. If we don''t gather the seaweed now, we won''t be able to find fresh ones anymore. And right now is low tide." Robin replied right before exclaiming "Oh! It''s a lovely long strain of Kombu!"


    "Robin! I found something that looks like your drawing! Come look!" Ponzu called from a bit farther away.


    "Really!? I''ll be right there!" Robin hopped from rock to rock, trying to avoid the wet sands as she hurried over.


    "Yes! This is it! We''ve finally found some Nori seaweed!" Robin laughed as she caught sight of the stringy brown algae hanging down off a half-submerged pole of driftwood that was lodged firmly between two rocks.


    "While I really want to take all of it, In order to make sure that it can keep growing, we shouldn''t take more than half." Robin instructed the others. But, even that half turned out to be a lot, as the piece of driftwood was long, and there were many strands hanging down from it.


    Robin happily gathered it into a large waterproof bag, before placing it in her magic bag with the other kinds of algae she had recognized.


    "Okay! We are officially done gathering ingredients!" Robin announced.


    "Thank goodness!" Gerard exclaimed. "It''s so cold I don''t think I can feel my toes!"


    " Hmm, you might want to put on a pair of sandals instead of your shoes, Gerard. You don''t want to have sand rolling around in them, because it is a nightmare to get rid of." Robin warned, before happily adding "Now we just need to take the seaweed back and process it."


    "What! This is a weed too!?" Gerard exclaimed.


    "It''s only a weed to those who are ignorant of how tasty it is." Robin snorted. "Many of the most tasty seafood dishes can be made with seaweed."


    "Really!?" Gerard exclaimed, excited.


    "Have I ever lied to you before, lad?" She asked him bemusedly.


    "Nope! But doesn''t that mean that now your food will be extra tasty?" Gerard grinned happily. He liked it best when there was tasty food to eat.


    "Okay, let''s get back. We all need to warm up a bit and these seaweed need to be prepared." Robin chuckled.


    ~~~~~~~~~


    With Ponzu''s help, Robin made a tasty dashi with seaweed, green onions, and mushrooms to warm them up. It was too bad she couldn''t find tofu. But, she didn''t have the equipment to make it, so she could only put tofu aside for a future project.


    In fact, many fermented products like miso, tofu, and pickled plums weren''t available in the market. There were plenty of pickled vegetables and spices available, though. As it was spring, many local spices were flowering in bright colors from window boxes in the port city.


    For the nori, first, she rinsed all the salt water off it. The seaweed had already absorbed so much salt inside that it really didn''t need any flavor enhancing. With Ponzu''s help she was able toshred it into a pulp. Then she quickly blanched the pulp to get rid of any residual bitterness.


    Draining the nori well, she then pondered how to go about turning it into sheets. The specialized clear baking matts that she was used to were not there.


    Robin scratched her head a bit. She had planned to bake the sheets in the oven, but she still needed to roll them out into sheets, somehow...


    Finally, Robin hit upon an idea. She took out her final pieces of paper baking sheet. She placed the drained nori directly on the pan, and placed the baking sheet on top. After using the rolling pin to smooth it out, she had Ponzu put the pan in the oven for about twenty minutes on a low heat setting.


    When it can out, although it was far more flexible than the store-bought versions, it was a good sheet without holes or empty spots. If processed into regular sheet size, there would probably be six to eight pages of nori present. Robin could definitely use this now.


    As for the kombu, Robin dried several strips in the oven to crinkle into a crumbled seaweed topping. But for the most part, she kept it fresh in her magic bag.


    "Okay, what time is it?" Robin asked.


    "A little bit before noon." Gerard replied.


    "And when does registration end?" Robin asked.


    Ponzu narrowed his eyes in thought. "I think I just heard two ladies passing by the window say it ends at noon."


    Robin abandoned all thoughts as she immediately dashed out the door.


    "Hey! Wait for me!" Ponzu yelped.


    "Me too!" Gerard called after them, but he was soon left behind as his legs were not as long as the other two.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~


    Robin arrived just in time to enter at the last minute.


    "Whew! That was close!" She laughed, as a few passersby gave her some odd looks. She had rushed by them in her haste to get the the contest registry.


    "Okay, the contest is in the afternoon. we''re completely free for the time being. What shall we do while we wait?" Robin asked.


    "Are you sure you''ll be able to do it, Robin?" Gerard asked. "The man at the register said only local food products are allowed, no imports."


    "Heh heh, don''t you worry, kid. I have a plan." Robin said.


    It was a good thing she had opted to buy locally grown products to preserve the freshness. Even if there were less amounts available, she still had some local sesame, poppy seeds, and even some dried sriracha peppers.


    "Oh, that''s right!" Robin recalled her parcel quest, and turned to ask a local girl for directions.


    "Hello! Do you know the way to the local blacksmith?" Robin asked.


    "Eh? Oh! Sure, he''s down this road a ways. You turn left at the adventurers guild, and then right at the marketplace entrance." The girl pointed out.


    "Thank you! Here''s some cookies as a token of my gratitude." Robin gave her a small bag of meringue cookies.


    "Gee thanks, mister!" The girl said, as her eyes lit up. No matter where you went, all girls like sweets.


    This girl was no different. She immediately took out one to try. Upon tasting the melt-in-the-mouth sweetness of the cookie, her eyes opened wide with delight. But when she looked around to ask the big bro what kind of cookie it was, she could no longer see him on the road.


    Now she looked at the remaining cookies, and smiled as an idea came to her. She wanted her friends to try some of them, too. After all, one sweet was good to keep to yourself, but many sweets are definitely for sharing!


    The girl innocently headed down the street, the almost magical bag of sweets clenched in her hands.

 87 She Joins The Cooking Contes

    Robin soon found the blacksmith shop that she was looking for. The inside was almost a carbon copy of what she had seen in Fievel''s store. Except there were more strange parts, like metal tubes or gears with gems embedded in the center.


    "Hello?" She called out.


    A heavy craahing sound ensued from the room behind the front desk as metal clanged out in a melodious avalanche.


    "Dagnabbit!" A frustrated voice leaked out from the back room.


    "Is everything all right?" Robin called out.


    The shiny red face, bulbous nose, and bushy red beard of a dwarf poked his head out from the doorway.


    "Fine, everything''s fine!" The dwarf scowled. "I simply stubbed me toe on a pile of metal scraps is all."


    The scowl lightened a bit as the dwarf introduced himself.


    "I''m the owner of this here store.The name''s Cog. What can I do fer you?" He asked gruffly.


    Robin took out the parcel in her magic bag. "I was tasked to deliver this parcel to you from Fievel in the Ekkinshire kingdom''s capitol. Can you please sign here?"


    She handed over the weighty bundle, as well as asked for his signature on the delivery quest form. Without this signature, Robin couldn''t consider her quest to be finished. The Dwarf scrawled a squiggly line and lifted the parcel from the counter.


    His scowl melted away, and an excited, jolly grin beamed from the face of the dwarf.


    "No way, He found it!? Ahaha! Finally! I had almost thought my search would be fruitless!" He jumped off the stool, and scurried into the backroom, where yet another even louder avalanche of metal sounded out.


    Robin, seeing that her errand was finished, then left the blacksmith shop.


    "Now what?" Gerard asked.


    Robin pointed down the street to the adventurers guild. "Now to turn this in." She said.


    Once a delivery quest was finished, it could be turned in at an adventurers guild in any city to retrieve the reward. If it was a local quest, though, you could only get the reward at the local branch.


    After recieving the reward, Robin, Ponzu, and Gerard, wandered the streets for a bit, buying street food to ease their hunger. Christian, Jasmine, and Keith were left to fend for themselves that day.


    --------


    At that time, Christian, Jasmine, and Keith were eating dinner on the second floor balconey of an open air restaraunt. Beautiful purple flowers grew along the railing, and down the front side of the eatery, making it seem a bit more welcoming than the other ones. But Christian''s face sported an unamused scowl.


    Jasmine and Keith watched him with smiles on their faces. While others would only see a simple smile, these two were positively radiating an aura of layered scheming and mischief. It was too bad that Christian''s thoughts were preoccupied, otherwise he would have been able to detect this radiating aura. Sadly, though, he was unprepared for what happened next.


    "Christian, if you frown for much longer, then the trellis flowers will wilt under your burning gaze." Keith joked.


    "Buzz off, Keith!" Christian growled in a dangerous tone.


    "Come now, Cousin! You''ve been pouting ever since we left the mayor''s house. And don''t you think I haven''t noticed. Gerard and Ponzu have made themselves scarce after seeing your frown. Whatever seems to be the matter?" Jasmine asked, concerned.


    Christian glared at her with a scrutinizing look, wanting to ask her what she and Robin had to talk about ''confidentially'' that Robin couldn''t just tell him. He stared at her, in all his pouting fury, before turning his head to glare out at the scenery.


    "Nothing." He said. While he had kept it off his face when he was around Robin, his ill humor had been noticed in part by the rest of the company.


    "What do you think of Hero Robin, Cousin?"


    He suddenly asked.


    "Hmm? Well, as the hero, Robin makes a wonderful gentleman: strong, brave, cool-headed, and knows how to make the most delicious sweets! I think we''ve become rather good friends in these few days." Jasmine replied with a smile. ''Heh heh, I can see what you''re trying to do here, hoo hoo~!'' She thought. "Why do you ask?"


    Then Jasmine paused, and her eyes widened as if a thought came to her just then.


    "Don''t tell me that, to the Hero, you''re actually still attract-"


    "No it isn''t that!" Christian immediately interrupted Jasmine, afraid that Keith might catch onto Jasmine''s nonsense. But, it was entirely too late.


    Keith frowned as if in serious thought.


    "I can see why you would want to hide it, although it isn''t altogether unheard of. The people would be scandalized, and if the queen were to know, it would probably break her heart. And, the King? He would probably almost murder you after finding out...But, as your best friend, I''d like to support you, even though I''m a straight man myself."


    Christian hadn''t understood what Keith was talking about until that last sentence. But, once he understood, he looked at Keith with afrustrated face.


    "In all this time that you have known me, I haven''t so much as looked at you with such thoughts. But now it has come to this? Keith, you traitor!" Christian glared accusingly.


    "Well, I would have completely believed you if I hadn''t chanced to see you two in the garden when we were staying at the mayor''s estate." Keith shook his head, sadly. "It was as plain as the nose on my face that you''ve fallen head over heels, already."


    "That''s impossible!" Christian denied. "I''m a man. Please don''t let your fantasies and misunderstanding cloud your better judgement."


    "But, you can''t help but think, ''If only he were a woman'' Right?" Keith asked.


    Christian stiffened a bit. How had he-


    "It was as plain as the nose on my face." Keith sighed flatly. " Since it was written all over yours. I''ve seen many unfortunate soldiers falling head over heels for girls in the exact same manner."


    "Then you must have seen wrong. Excuse me." Christian left for the restroom with an exasperated, yet otherwise calm face.


    While he was gone, Keith looked over at Jasmine. "Do you think that got to him? He didn''t seem that concerned." He asked. Yes, in order to thoroughly tease him, Keith had joined forces with Jasmine.


    "No, we royals are taught well how to hide our feelings under duress. He''s probably beginning to panic by now..." Jasmine replied knowingly as she took a sip of tea.


    "It''s a pity that Robin isn''t a girl." Keith sighed. "Otherwise, in my opinion, they would be a perfect match."


    "Hmmm? Ppffft! Cough cough!" Jasmine choked on her tea, as she realized that Keith was right. There was no one better at keeping Christian in line than Robin.


    -------------


    And, as Jasmine had surmised, Christian was pacing back and forth in the washroom, beginning to fear that what they had said was true.


    If it was just one person, he might have disregarded, but having the same thing come from two people at the same time was beginning to erode his confidence.


    "It couldn''t be true, right?" He wondered to himself. "I just like him as a good friend. His character is good, and he doesn''t sugar coat his words or intentions. There''s no way that I''m actually a..."


    A tiny voice in the back of his mind that if it was really was like that, then why was he so panicky about the idea of Robin getting married.


    "Urgh!" He moaned as he put his head in his hands, agonizing over it.


    "It can''t be!"


    -----------


    Soon the time flew by, and it was the time for the contest to begin. Since each chef was allowed to have one assistant in the contest, Robin had chosen Ponzu to assist her. His cooking magic would be quite handy when trying to keep within the time limits.


    "So, what is it that we are going to make this time?" Ponzu asked Robin as they headed over to their assigned work station.


    Robin glanced at Ponzu with a confused expression. "I didn''t tell you?" She asked.


    "I haven''t heard a word since you agreed." Ponzu shook his head.


    Robin rolled her eyes. "And back in the capital I remember explicitly saying that I was in the mood for sushi. Don''t tell me that you don''t remember?" She asked.

 88 She Surprises Everyone I

    Ponzu''s eyes widened. It was that food that Robin had spoken about: the controversial food.


    "So, what is so controversial about sushi?" Ponzu asked.


    "Did you know that fish can be eaten raw?" Robin replied with a hum.


    "What! Wait, so the controversy is..." Ponzu began to get a bad feeling.


    "Yup! There''s no question about the taste. I assure that it is both nutritious and healthy." Robin nodded. "The question is whether the judges have the courage to eat it or not. Worst case scenario, we might even be booted from the contest."


    Ponzu felt his head begin to ache. ''Teacher, if it might get us booted, why not choose a safer dish?'' He cried internally.


    "Ponzu." Robin had noticed his less than enthusiastic face. "Have you ever had anything more delicious than the cream cheese we made a few days ago?"


    "No." Ponzu replied, seriously.


    "What if I were to tell you that not only is this dish more delicious than cream cheese, it even uses cream cheese in the recipe?" Robin said, glancing at Ponzu knowingly.


    At that, Ponzu''s face lit up, beaming brightly.


    "Inthat case, let''s show those judges what delicious really is!" He exclaimed eagerly.


    So what if the fish was raw? As long as it was delicious and safe to eat, it would be well recieved by those who pursued good food.


    "Ah, but it''s best if eaten freshly made. Sushi cannot last long before spoiling. It is best to eat it within three hours of being made. It can maybe last another day or two in the cold room, but after that, it will spoil, even if it doesn''t appear any different, got it?"


    "Unless I have a storage item that can freeze the condition of food, I should definitely notserve it after three hours in room temperature. Chilled conditions can only extend by 1 to 2 days. Best eaten fresh." Ponzu muttered while scribbling furiously in his notebook.


    Robin began laying all the ingredients that she would be using down at the inspection counter. While the poppy seeds were looked upon oddly, they were still permitted in the contest. He didn''t even blink at the kelp. After all, seaweed was all around, and only in the surrounding area could fresh seaweed be found.


    He did ask about the nori sheets, though, and confirmed that they were sheets of dried seaweed. Then he scanned it with a magic item. The item glowed green, which indicated it was at the very least, a local plant.


    After the inspector had confirmed it was all local products, he placed all of the ingredients on a cart, and beckoned them to follow him as he wheeledthe ingredients to their station. the cooking stations were separated by walls to prevent other chefs from seeing the way they prepare the food.


    "You are able to use any utensil you have. But, if you need to take out additional ingredients, then place them on the black strip of the upper counter, and an inspector should drop by to check the new ingredient.


    As a reminder, only local peoducts are accepted. If you need more of one ingredient, or couldn''t find it on the market, it can be ordered for a price using the magic menu over here." He instructed.


    Robin nodded, and glanced through the ingredients list to see if there was any local product she had missed. The final item on the list, though caused her to pause. Cream Cheese was listed down at one small silver coin.


    Robin glanced over at Ponzu, confused. Hadn''t she just taught the recipe to Ponzu? Why was it here? Then a thought came to her.


    "Interesting..." An amused smile tugged at her lips. Well, in the end, all this did was save her the trouble of making her own. She promptly ordered the cream cheese, by pressing the supplied magic wand tool against the item until it lit up. She also bought some fresh vegetables like cucumbers, carrots, and a kind of root that Robin recognized as wasabi. Except here,it was called Sabi.


    A bubble, with the dish enclosed within, floated over to Robin''s table and popped right above Robin''s hand.


    Ponzu''s eyes widened as he recognized the item. "Isn''t that..."


    Robin nodded. "It is. Let''s get started!"


    Ponzu was feeling upset. He hadn''t breathed a word about the recipe to anyone! Could it have been Gerard, or that kitchen lad? But, even then, how had it gotten on the ingredients list?


    Robin ignored Ponzu''s confusion as she started on the sushi rice. While in smaller amounts, local rice was still available. So she was able to find some local glutinous white rice with a bit of difficulty. It was more expensive, though. a single small sack of glutinous white rice cost one small silver, as opposed to one large Copper for the same sized sack of brown rice.


    Ingredients:


    ?2 cups uncooked glutinous white rice (sushi rice)


    ?3 cups water


    ?1/2 cup rice vinegar


    ?1 tablespoon vegetable oil


    ?1/4 cup sugar (Robin could only find local raw sugar which had a brownish tinge)


    ?1 teaspoon salt


    There was a magic item that provided unlimited fresh water. Robin filled a pot halfway with water, then had Ponzu rinse the riceas he stirred it about under the flowing water in a collander until the water draining out from under the collander became clear.


    After that, the rice was transferred to the pot with water, and Ponzu turned up the heat, stirring until the water began to boil. Then, right after, Robin turned the heat down low, and covered the rice with a lid.


    "That should be enough. Let it sit for 20 minutes." Robin told him, and had him slice up the vegetables in even, tiny strips. Those who were watching were confused. Was she trying to make a rice pudding?


    Robin started working on the sauce, combining all the other ingredients together in a saucepan, and stirring over medium heat until the sugar was completely dissolved in the vinegar. After that, she turned off the heat and set the pan aside. It would be sufficiently cooled by the time the rice was done cooking.


    Now, Robin had to cut the fish. She mischievously twirled her knife before it deftly sliced through the already-descaled salmon, separating bone from meat in a manner which seemed more like a performance of art than what the populace was used to seeing. A few of them even clapped in admiration as they watched. The others were wondering if dressing a fish had ever been that easy.


    Robin easily cut the salmon into strips about six inches long, and half an inch wide. As it was a large one, she was able to get about 20 strips all of the same size. The remainder of the fish was cut into 3 inch long strips that were two fingers wide. She would be making sushi rolls and sushi. These strips were then transferred to a tray, and placed in the provided cool box.


    She did the same thing with a large tuna, and a few other fish, placing each on a separate tray and chilling as soon as she was finished cutting it. She then cooked some shrimp until rhey became pink, in preparation. She also threw several crabs in a boiling pot of water and secured the lid.


    By this time, the rice was just about finished. Robin turned off the heat and opened the lid. A cloud of steam flew up, displaying fluffy plump white grains. The rice was almost ready.


    She poured the vinegar solution into the rice, stirring it about until the rice had dried sufficiently. Then she set it aside to cool, and prepared an area for the sushi making.


    "I''m done!" Ponzu called out.


    Placing a damp, clean cloth down on the table, she glanced over at Ponzu''s counter. It seemed he was finished cutting the ingredients, including the thin slices of pickled ginger.


    It was time to make the wasabi paste and the spicy mayo. Robin glanced at the root before her, and got an idea. A mischievous grin surfaced on her face.


    "Ponzu, It''s time for your cooking magic to debut" She said with a grin.


    Ponzu looked at the root Robin handed her. Then looked up at her.


    "Um, what is this?" He asked.


    "The wasabi plant. You are going to puree this into a paste." Robin instructed.


    At this point, many locals had noticed Robin''sroot, and were shaking their heads. Such a talented lad would now ruin his dish in one go. Although the root was edible, not even the livestock would eat it. It was far too spicy. Some, seeing Robin''s calm face, were waiting to see whether the Sabi plant would be a pleasant surprise or ruin Robin''s dish.


    Ponzu frowned. He knew this plant. This ''Wasabi'' root did not taste good at all. "Won''t this ruin the flavor instead?" He asked.

 89 She Surprises Everyone II

    Robin shook her head. "Strange though it may seem, this plant is related to the horseradish plant, even though it tastes unpleasant. It is not meant to act as a main or side dish, but instead as a spice for those who like their food spicy. But, since just a pinch is enough to make a mouthful sufficiently spicy, I''ll make it into a paste, and give everyone a small serving alongside their food, so they can choose whether to have some or not."


    Ponzu looked unconvinced, but he sighed. "So, I just need to grind this into a paste, huh?" He said unenthusiastically, as he cast ''Puree'' on it.


    "Yup!" Robin cheerfully replied as she prepared to make spicy mayo. First, since Robin didn''t have sriracha sauce, she decided simply to use the dried sriracha peppers she had acquired. Of course, she chopped it open, and removed the seeds first. Then, she placed it in a bowl of hot water to rehydrate a bit. She also made a small batch of mayonnaise and set it aside.


    After Ponzu finished turning the root into a paste, Robin tasted a pinch of it to check, and was mildly surprised. While it was spicy, there was no sulfury undertones like the ones she had used in restauraunts. Instead of the mustard-like flavor she was used to, it actually had a refreshing green taste, as if the vibrancy of the green root had translated into a flavor. The spicy part was a numbing warmth similar to what you would get while chewing on a mint leaf, except hotter, and without the minty aftertaste.


    Then she recalled a conversation she''d had long ago with her brother one time.


    --------


    "Is it good?" He asked.


    "Yum! It tastes much better with a pinch of wasabi!" Robin agreed.


    "Haha, what if I told you that this is probably not genuine wasabi?" He asked.


    "What do you mean?" Robin was confused.


    "The genuine wasabi plant is very hard to cultivate, which makes it expensive due to its growing rarity." The young man patiently explained. "Do you think a small restaraunt like this can afford to buy and ship the genuine article all the way here? What about the thousands of japanese stores all over the world? Can they afford it?" He sighed. "That''s why, what you''re eating right now is probably fake wasabi."


    --------


    ''So this is what genuine wasabi tasted like?'' Robin was mildly surprised. In that case, she was confident that she could win this contest even without the spicy mayo! Ah, but since she had already begun making it, of course she would finish it!


    she had Ponzu puree the rehydrated sriracha pepper. Then, Robin added it straight to the mayonnaise, alongside a few tablespoons of sesame seed oil, and stirred it until the familiar light salmon color had spread throughout the mayo. It was finished!


    Robin even felt festive enough to make an omelet for egg sushi, after that. She then retrieved all the fish she had, as well as her stick contraption. This was her replacement for a bamboo mat, as she had not been able to find even a single bamboo shoot anywhere.


    The preparations were now finished. Robin prepped her hands, and then began making the sushi. Molding the now-cooled sushi rice in her hands, Robin quickly and easily connected the cuts of fish to the top, using a dab of wasabi as glue.


    Once she ran out of the two-finger wide cuts of sushi, she spread out the flexible wooden mat. It was time to make the sushi rolls. On top of the mat, she scattered white and black sesame, along with poppy seeds. Then she spread the sushi rice on the mat, on top of which she soon placed a nori sheet.


    "What on earth is she doing? Is she going to make a fish cake?" Christian, who was sitting in the audience, asked.


    "Hush! Just watch!" Jasmine shushed him.


    Robin then meticulously laid down the cucumber strips lengthwise along the bottom edge of the rice rectangle, until there was a strip the size of a finger. Again, she laid a strip of cream cheese along the top edge of the cucumber. She then stacked several strips of salmon on top of both, along the line where the two connected.


    Finally, she did something which surprised everyone. She picked up the bamboo mat, and used it to tightly roll everything up into a dark green tube, and set it off to the side, clearing the bamboo mat up for other rolls to be made.


    By this time, the crab was done boiling, so Robin quickly cracked them open, extracting the meat, and used it to make a pseudo California roll with the shrimp.


    Philadelphia, veggie, salmon, red snapper, sea bass, tuna, pseudo-California, rice inside the nori, and rice outside the nori: she made two of each kind of roll. Each second roll would have spicy mayo on it, to give them a choice. Then she cut them into even segments, and used a spatula to transfer them.


    There were seven judges for this contest, and so, Robin needed to divide the sushi up among seven plates. Robin arranged the sushi rolls and the sushi on each plate in a flower shape. The round sushi rolls were in the center, and the larger sushi pieces became the petals. Ginger slices were skillfully placed in between., making the petals look fuller. Each second piece of the same type of sushi roll then recieved a dab of spicy mustard.


    The colorful plates were very eye catching. The bright pinks of the fish, white rice, black sesame, red shrimp, light green cucumbers, bright orange carrots, and dark green of the nori created a very tempting sight. But many did not understand why Robin was not going to cook the fish. Was she actually expecting the judges to eat raw fish?


    Robin truly was finished, though. And was one of the first ones to be finished, since she didn''t have a long extended cooking time to deal with. After filling each plate with every kind of sushi, there were still several leftovers. Robin then turned to Ponzu, and asked him. "Wanna try some?"


    "Do I ever!" Ponzu replied eagerly. Once he knew the fish was safe for eating, he wondered how it would taste. Robin simply laughed and pushed half of the leftovers to him, along with a small portion of wasabi and pickled ginger.


    "Try it plain, first" She explained.


    Ponzu picked up a bright salmonsushi piece, and bit into it. The salty vinegar and bounciness of the rice, the fresh mild chewiness of the salmon, it was a pleasant experience for Ponzu. Then he tasted the small bit of wasabi in the center, and his eyes opened wide with surprise. It really was delicious!Although it was still spicy, the wasabi''s bite was soothed by the soft, yet firm ingredients surrounding it. The end result left him eager for another piece.


    He sampled each kind of sushi, even the ones with spicy mayo, and found each one more and more delicious. He even started adding a pinch of wasabi to the sushi rolls, as he found he quite liked the flavor now. Of course, the audience, seeing his reaction to the sushi rolls, began to suspect that the food really was finished, and also really delicious.


    But, Ponzu found they were also very filling. After eating the equivalent of four sushi rolls, he was stuffed. The remaining amount was still quite large. Robin only sampled her favorite ones before storing the rest in her magic bag. After all, the other members would probably like to sample it as well.


    At that point, the inspector coughed.


    "When you are finished with your food, please place them atop the food tray, so that the judges may taste them."


    The other chefs only looked at the inspector blankly. They were still busy baking, stewing, or frying their dishes. Did that mean that someone had already finished their dish? The audience was also surprised. Who in their right minds would serve raw fish to the judges?


    Robin nodded and moved the plates to the tray. Everyone was speechless. Apparently, this chef was a person who would do so! Some of the judges looked uncertainly at the dish that was being rolled up to them. Was raw fish really that safe to eat? But, then again, the young chef''s kitchen hand looked pleasantly surprised by the taste as well.

 90 She Surprises Everyone III

    Even before the dishes reached the judges seat,she had Ponzu begin washing out the pots she had used, while she dealt with the scraps. She had not thrown any of the fish bones or remaining pieces away at all, even keeping the fish heads. These, she also kept into her magic bag. Robin planned to make fish head soup with them later.


    While the bracer could hold far more things, the magic bag assured freshness. That was why, when storing things, Robin placed the fresh ingredients into her magic bag, while those which were good for many years were placed in her magic bracer. Some things tasted better with age.


    The first judge was a youthful young lady, with a rather strict, sharp expression. Many chefs had been on the end of her tongue lashing, as she loved to point out their shortcomings. While many chefs dreaded her criticisms, she was a popular judge among the audience. They enjoyed seeing the pompous proud chefs brought down a peg or two back to earth.


    She glared scathingly at the colorful array. There was nothing wrong with the display, but the colors were so bright. Many brightly colored animals and plants were found to be poisonous. Glancing at the alive and kicking chef assistant, Ponzu, helped to allay her fears. If the chefs weren''t afraid to eat it, then why should she?


    The judge picked up a piece of California roll upon her fork, and placed it in her mouth. Her eyes widened, and her frown grew deeper. She glared like a bloodthirsty tiger at the plate before her, but refrain from saying anything. Actually, she couldn''t say anything. From start to finish, her mouth was full of the different flavors of sushi, spicy mayo, pickled ginger, and the ever refreshing spiciness of wasabi. She finished every bite on that plate, including the garnishes.


    By the time she had finished her plate, the audience was silent. Everyone was waiting for her scathing remarks. She opened her mouth.


    "I have tasted many foods, from many different places, but not many have been able to impress me to the point where I have nothing to criticize. My only regret is in not having a stomach big enough to eat more of it! This dish has full score from me!" She declared.


    The audience exclaimed loudly. Full points!? The number of times this judge had given out full points could be counted on the fingers of one hand, it was that scarce!


    Having gotten the first judge''s approval, the other six judges gained the courage to try it out. Each one was surprised by the refreshing, addictive flavor of fresh sushi.Although they couldn''t copy Robin''s feat of using homemade chopsticks to pick up the sushi pieces, they could still use their forks to pick up the bite sized pieces.


    It was only after they finished their plates that they realized that they were too full to sample the rest of the dishes. After discussing the good points among themselves, they came to an agreement. The most revered of judges, a muscleman with a salt and pepper colored beard, stood up to announce their verdict.


    From the pointiness of his ears, and the darkness of his skin, it was apparent to everyone that he was a half-breed between demon and human. The fact that he was still so revered spoke volumes to the lack of racial discrimination in this town. Robin paid attention.


    "For presenting us with such a refreshing twist on a food that is close to all the citizens of Port Oracle, as well as showing us new ways to use familiar ingredients, as well as using what we had previously considered unusable, we judges cannot be more happy. There was no flaw, neither in presentation, plating, taste, condiments, or freshness of ingredients. All of the products were items we are familiar with. Moreover, it even included the hidden ingredient which Protectorate Oracle added to the magic list." The man sighed in contentment.


    "It has certainly been an awfully long time since I have had such a satisfying meal." He continued. "And we are not even sure if among these other chefs, we can find another dish quite like this one. But, at least for this dish, we are unanimous in declaring it the first dish ever to gain full points from all of us!" He finished his declaration, and sat down.


    The other chefs were speechless. Only one dish, and already there was a flawless verdict? Some of the chefs even burned their fish as they were too dazed to pay attention to their cooking. Thus, Robin''s dish, inadvertently effected the quality of the other dishes. Robin twiddled her thumbs as she stood at her station until the inspector came by.


    "Grand Chef Robin." He addressed respectfully. "The judges would like to have a word with you about your dish."


    Robin tilted her head. "Um, Robin is certainly my name," She replied. "But I don''t recall ever becoming a grand chef."


    "It''s a special title given only to those who get a flawless verdict from all seven judges." The inspector explained. "From now on, whenever you are in Port Oracle, you will be addressed as such, since you are the first to ever achieve such an impossible thing."


    "All right." Robin sighed in resignation. ''At least it''s not as bad as being called "Your Highness" everywhere.'' She thought to herself, as she followed the inspector up to the judges seats. Ponzu was left behind to finish scrubbing out the pots.


    When she arrived at the judges seats, another chair was brought out for her to sit in the center of them. When she was about to refuse, they insisted.


    "Please, it''s the least we could do to repay you for such a good meal!" The eldest insisted. "Besides, all of us here are also former winners of the chef''s competition, but none of us have ever been able to get a flawless verdict. As someone who was able to do what we couldn''t, can''t we at least show you our respects?"


    Under their coercion, Robin sat down. But, in reality, it was just so the chefs could wheedle some tips and tricks out of her for making sushi on their own. Unlike in Ekkinshire kingdom, Port Oracle was more lax in the guarding of recipes. In fact, it was encouraged to spread rexipes so that everyone had a chance to enjoy them in their homes. Of course, the best place to taste the original was in the restaraunt of the owner of the recipe.


    "So, is there anything we need to be wary of, when making sushi?" The old man got straight to the point.


    "Always use fresh caught fish." Robin happily instructed them. "Make sure to clean the rice before steaming, and only make the sushi right before you are going to eat it, because sushi easily spoils at room temperature. I wouldn''t eat it after three hours of making it, unless you have a method for keeping it cool. Even then, the raw fish it can only last for about 12 hours, unless you freeze it. But, I warn you, freezing will lower the texture quality of the rice and vegetables used in the food, so don''t freeze unless there is no other way."


    "I am curious, though." One of the judges asked. "As someone who arrived from Ekkinshire kingdom, I had expected you to be more protective of your recipes. Why so open with the advice? You do know that we recorded the whole process with a magic eye, right?"


    Robin smiled. "I suppose that must be because I am not originally from Ekkinshire kingdom. Where I come from, people are much more open with their recipes, especially if it''s a really tasty one. We take pride in our ability to create new and flavorful recipes using local ingredients."


    "So, you must come from another coastal area, right? Otherwise, how would you know such a delicious seafood recipe?" Another one chimed in.


    "Er, while it was not my birth town, I did study under a master for a certain amount of time in a large group of islands." She replied. She refrained from mentioning that this master was not a chef, but a swordsman.


    Well, she had also picked up sushi making while living there, but that was a different thing. She learned how to make sushi from Google sensei. But, as people here were unlikely to understand the internet, she diffused the conversation by talking about something else.


    "So, do you think there will be another flawless verdict appearing in this contest?" She asked.


    The rest of the judges looked chagrined.


    "Um, to be honest that will be really difficult." The sharp eyed lady replied.


    "Oh? Do you only give out one flawless verdict per contest?" Robin asked, curious.


    "It''s not that." Another judge denied. "It''s just that your dish was so tasty that we ate until we are full. Thus, it will be difficult for us to assess the dishes from now on. Currently, we need to request the assistance of the other seven winners to judge in our place."


    At that point, seven other people came over, being led by the inspector.


    "And, here they are!" The seven judges stood up, relinquishing their spots.


    "I look forward to tasting more of such dishes in the future." The sharp eyed lady said, in farewell.

 91 She Wins the Contes

    "Great Chef Robin, is it?" One of the new judges asked.


    "Yes, I suppose that would be me, now." Robin replied.


    "You wouldn''t happen to have any samples of the dish you gave the previous bunch,do you?" he asked. "I''ve never had the chance to taste a perfect dish before, after all."


    Robin smiled. "I might. But, wouldn''t it be better if you learned how. to make it yourself? I do believe the recordings of my cooking will soon be up for sale." She replied wryly.


    "Oh, too bad. I''d have liked to sample your skills." He sighed as he sat down nearby.


    Robin blinked lazily. She somewhat had an inkling of what might happen, but even she would have been surprised had she seen the future of Port Oracle. Because of Robin''sparticipation in this contest, sushi would soon become the prevalent dish among the local restaraunts in Port Oracle, to the point whereit became unofficially known as Sushi City much, much later.


    Robin watched the chefs ply their craft, but none of the dishes looked that interesting, so she soon became bored.


    She took out a nondescript plain silver ring, and began rolling it across her knuckles, to the distraction of the judges.


    "Say, how do you do that?" one of them asked.


    Robin paused, trying to think of how to explain it. "My older brother showed me a long time ago, and I thought it was really neat, so I''ve been practicing ever since." She replied.


    Seriously? Did no one know any sleights of hand? Robin paused, then put away the ring. It wouldn''t do to upstage the main show, after all.


    But Robin was seriously bored. She didn''t know any of the judges, but they were acting pretty reserved after that last comment of hers. This contest didn''t seem like it would be over soon, either...


    In the end, Robin decided to sit back and take a nap.


    "Ponzu, wake me when they''re done." She asked as she leaned back in her seat, and covered her head with her newsboy cap to keep off the sun.


    The rest only stared at her in dumbfound surprise, By all appearances, Robin had immediately fallen asleep. She was still a bit tired after waking up so early, after all.


    "Let him be. It must have taken him quite the effort to create a flawless dish, after all." The new lead judge shook his head.


    Robin had no idea about the exhausting undertaking with which she would soon be burdened.


    -----


    In the end, none of the other dishes even came close to Robin''s score. And so, she and her companions were granted an audience that evening. Robin was handed the official invitation along with a large golden medal.


    Immediately after she left the venue, she was surrounded by her companions, who were looking at her with similar eager expressions. Robin laughed.


    "All right, let''s go back to the inn, then! We''ll have some dinner before we head to the Protectorate''s palace." She announced.


    "Yay! I get to taste Robin''s cooking again!" Gerard cheered. It had been a long torturous day without Robin''s cooking, even after all the stall foods he had eaten.


    Robin opened up the invitation, and sighed. It seemed that the Protectorate also had the same idea. She would have to reserve some of the sushi to present later, when they visited Port Oracle Palace.


    Robin sighed. Hopefully everything would go well...


    -------


    In another part of the continent, A man was looking at a rough sketch of a young man, with a heroic pose, wearing a sword at his side, and a mask upon his face.


    "You''re sure that this is all you could catch of the man''s face?" He asked, with a frown.


    "Absolutely certain, Master. This was all we could gather about the young man traveling with the Prince. Apparently, he is the newly discovered Hero that the whole of Ekkinshire kingdom is raving about."


    "Is there a name?" The man asked.


    "By all accounts, we believe his name is Robin." The man reported.


    "Robin!?" The man''s head jerked a bit, and his eyes narrowed. Impossible. There''s no way that it could be....


    "Master?" the reporter asked, not understanding his actions.


    "Ah, no. It''s the name of a youngling I knew a while back...there''s no way they could be the same person, though." The young man sat back, a harmless amiable smile gracing his handsome face.


    "And, why is that, Sir?" the reporter asked.


    "Well, first off, this person is too old." came the generous answer. "And, the second thing is that, well...the Robin I knew back then was the most adorable little girl I had ever laid eyes on."


    ''Impossible, indeed.'' The young man thought as he looked fixedly at the sketch. Yet, there was something highly familiar about him, as well. He had a somewhat uncomfortable feeling in his gut about that man. Finally, he opened his mouth again.


    "Send the word out. See if you can get a look or a sketch of the man''s face."


    ---------


    Robin suddenly felt a cold shiver run down her back as she sneezed into her elbow. Was someone talking about her? Or was she getting a cold? But wasn''t wasabi good for keeping colds away?


    "Good one!" Gerard laughed, giving Robin a thumbs up.


    "Please excuse my manners." She sniffed.


    "No problem. As long as you weren''t reading from the book of prophecies in a public area, you should be good." Jasmine reassured her. The men couldn''t have cared less about her manners.


    "So this is sushi, huh?" Christian said, surprised at the refreshing feeling he had while eating it. "It sure is filling."


    "You could say that about ten more times, couldn''t you?" Keith patted his satisfied stomach. It had been about half an hour since Robin had won the cooking contest, and already most of the sushi was gone.


    The only reason why there was anything still remaining was due to Robin rationing it for them. Rice was a very filling staple food, after all.


    "Ahem!" Jasmine cleared her throat. "So, is there a specific time mentioned for the audience on the invitation, Robin?Or was it left open?"


    Robin looked up at the clock. "It''s 4:30pm right now. The invitation says 5:30pm."


    "An hour doesn''t leave us much time, does it?" Jasmine clicked her tongue. "And here I was going to drag you to the tailors..."


    Robin blinked. "Tailors? What for?" She asked.


    "Don''t you think I haven''t noticed you wearing the exact same clothes for three days. You need more clothes!" Jasmine exclaimed.


    "Eh?" Robin could not quite understand. "But, why? My regular clothes are still fine, aren''t they?" She looked at the grey blue tunic she was wearing which didn''t have a spot on it. fourteen shirts and seven tunics should be fine? Why would she need more clothes?


    "Because you are going to see the Demon Protectorate, Oracle! You must have a new change of clothes!" Jasmine insisted.


    "Can''t I just wear the blue brocade I wore at the dinner party a few weeks ago?" Robin said, completely puzzled.


    "You don''t understand!" Jasmine said, despairingly. When meeting an important person, wearing a new change of clothes was a must.


    "No. I suppose I don''t, Jasmine." Robin frowned. "This lowly commoner does not understand high society, nor the hidden rules that have built up over the years. I am completely new to this area, so what''s all this fuss about new clothes? Can you explain this to me?"


    Jasmine sighed. "Such a dillema!"


    Christian interjected from the side. "Jasmine, do we even know if Protectorate Oracle even follows court fashions? What if he has different customs? I think you should instead be asking if it''s worth making him wait over Robin getting new clothes. Besides, Robin here isn''t that worried about it. Why are you getting so upset?"


    Everyone paused, surprised. Christian had actually said something logical!? Jasmine stared at Christian and cast a high heal on him.


    "Hey, I''m not possessed!" He protested.


    Keith looked at Robin.


    "What did you put in that sushi stuff again?" he asked.


    Robin sighed. "Jasmine, since we don''t have time, we''ll have to make do with what I have. Rather...Please allow me to choose my own outfit." She looked pointedly at Jasmine.


    "I already know what I am going to wear."


    Jasmine looked at Robin''s clear blue eyes with a measuring gaze, then sighed. "Fine. Do what you want. But, don''t make me regret this."

 92 She Meets with Oracle

    "Why did I let you wear what you wanted? Now everyone is going to look at us strangely!" Jasmine bemoaned Robin''s sense of fashion. Robin was dressed in the clothes she had worn when she arrived.


    "You can''t go back on your words." Robin pointed out, as she adjusted her plaid newsboy cap. "You already agreed to it."


    "And I am already regretting it!" Jasmine sniffed plaintively in the carriage.


    "Oh? If that is the case, then you can just stay in the carriage. No need to come with us." Christian grinned, revelling in Jasmine''s sour expression.


    Jasmine glared icily at Christian. "There''s no way I''m letting two walking trouble magnets enter the palace by yourselves!"


    Robin looked hard in thought as she mischievously said. "I know that Christian is the first troublemaker, but as for the second...is it Keith, perhaps?" She tilted her head to the side, an innocent expression on her face.


    "I was talking about you!" Jasmine raised her hand to playfully smack Robin on the head.


    "Ouch-doesn''t hurt?" Robin said, surprised. Were her pain receptors suddenly deadened by her near death experience several days ago?


    Robin glanced at Jasmine to see the offending hand had been caught fast by Gerard.


    "Stop! There''s a fairy on Robin''s head!" Gerard said, pointing at Robin.


    "Eh?" Robin lifted a hand to reach up to her head. She didn''t feel anything but the hat on her head. Yet, a fluttering sound and a tiny giggle gave away her small, stealthy stowaway.


    "Awww! I was discovered! Heehee! Looks like you found me!" A green-haired tiny beauty fluttered in sight of everyone.


    "Huh?"


    "When did she..." Robin murmured in surprise. She truly hadn''t felt anything extra like a fairy''s weight on her head.


    "Sorry. I didn''t notice until Jasmine started talking about troublemakers." Gerard apologized, releasing Jasmine''s hand. While that hand might have been harmless for Robin, if it had descended upon the fairy, then she might have been seriously injured, or broken a wing.


    "You''re...a wind fairy, right?" Robin asked. Fairies were easily told apart by the color of their hair.


    "Correct!" The fairy replied. "Wind fairy Elise at your service!"


    Robin nodded. "Charmed, I''m sure...but, for what reason were you hiding away on my hat?"


    "That''s because it isn''t fair!" The tiny fairy''s cheeks puffed out as she pouted. "I only wanted to take a peek at this Oracle person everyone''s talking about, but I''m not allowed inside without an invitation! So I tried catching a glimpse once he comes outside, but he doesn''t even so much as peek his head out the window!" The tiny fairy flailing her arms about angrily was very cute.


    "And so, then I thought, if he''s not coming out, then I''ll just go in with someone who does have an invitation!" She smiled gleefully.


    "And here you are!" She said, excitedly.


    "In other words, you stowed away on Robin''s hat just to get inside the palace." Jasmine summarized, bluntly.


    "Geh! Saying it like that sounds illegal!" Elisedisagreed.


    "It IS illegal!" Jasmine pointed out. "Attaching yourself to a party without their consent is very illegal, even if you don''t mean any harm by it!" She said, pointedly.


    "Guh!" The little fairy''s eyes started to tear up.


    "Well, while I can understand malicious entities, why is it illegal to bring a tag along?" Robin asked. "Surely, it''s not that bad, right?"


    Jasmine sighed. "If it were a normal party, then yes. But this is the protectorate''s palace we are talking about. If anything bad happens to one of them, then you are instantly barred from visiting any of the others."


    "And extra people, whose motives are uncertain, are the ones most likely to cause such a fuss!" Jasmine pointed at Elise with a sharp, penetrating stare.


    "Uguuh!" Elise clutched at her heart and drifted down to the tea table behind a tea cup, looking as if she had been pierced through.


    Small sobbing sounds could be heard from the tea set.


    "Bu- sniff- But I diiden meean iiiit! Hic! I jus wanted to see the great Oracle that everyone''s always admiring, Boohoohoohoo!"


    "Jasmine, wouldn''t it be fine-" Robin was interrupted.


    "Don''t! You don''t know if those are fake tears, after all! I don''t believe them!" Jasmine replied adamantly. She had learned all about mischievous fairy tricks from her fairy secretary and close friend, Delia. Thwre was no way she was going to fall for something like fake tears.


    Robin still thought it was going a bit too far, so, she thought for a bit.


    "I know, how about a magic contract?" Robin replied, remembering the deal she had signed with Jasmine.


    "You must be joking, right?" Jasmine replied, looking at Robin in open disbelief.


    "Well, why not? If Elise is only trying to get in to look, then a magic contract should be able to make sure that she''s not entering for more sinister reasons. Moreover, it will make sure that she doesn''t break her word once she''s inside." Robin reasoned.


    Jasmine pinched her forehead, between the eyebrows. "Magic contracts don''t work like that. It has to be a trade of equal exchange!" Jasmine replied, holding back her frustrations. "In order to sign a magic contract, Elise needs to bring out something that you think is worth bringing her inside."


    "Is that how it works?" Robin asked.


    "Yes, that''s how it works! Besides you still need to use magic to form the contract, so a magic contract is out of the question for you, right now!" Jasmine affirmed.


    "Well, that may be true for me, but that doesn''t prevent any of you from signing the contract in my place, does it?" Robin pointed out. She glanced around the carriage room.


    "Gerard, can you sign the contract in my place?" Robin asked.


    "Me?" Gerard asked, incredulously.


    "Well, you ARE a wind magic genius, after all. Don''t think I don''t know about your wind magic training while I was unconscious."


    "Of course he can sign, but the real question is, what can Elise offer that is worth her signing a contract with us?" Jasmine interjected.


    "Hmmm.....Ah! I have an idea!" Robin then explained.


    "We will allow her to accompany us if she..."


    --------


    The palace was situated at the highest point of the hill overlooking Port Oracle. While it wasn''t as big as the castle in Ekkinshire, the size was large enough to be a rather well to do mansion. It was covered from top to bottom in a green coat of ivy leaves, which was impressive in itself. Only the sight of the guards prevented her from thinking she was mistaken or that they had come to the wrong house.


    Elise sat obediently on Robin''s shoulder, having learned her lesson, last time. As they were led into the audience room,Robin was confronted by a voice.


    "That is quite the outfit you are wearing. Is it a new trend of fashion?"


    Robin glanced around.


    "No need to look about, young man, I am right. here." A rather pretty youth with dark green hair sat upon a chair made of coral at the end of the hall. Oddly enough, there was no sign of a nose on his face.


    "Protectorate Oracle?" Robin asked in confirmation.


    "It is I." Came the reply.


    "Please forgive me for not knowing your face." Robin bowed her head.


    "That is fine. I do not normally show my face to my people. But you have not answered my question. Why do you wear these clothes?"


    "I thought it would be rude not to greet you in the clothing of my homeland." Robin replied. "Since I wished to speak truthfully with you concerning a certain delicate circumstance."


    "Oh? And your homeland is? Who are you?" The youth asked. "And what have you come here to speak with me about?"


    Robin took out her winners medal from inside her jacket.


    "During my brief stay here, I have come to be known as ''Grand Chef Robin'', but that is not all who I am..."


    "Robin, what are you thinking about-" Christian asked confused.


    Robin suddenly took a familiar object out of her jacket pocket, and looped it behind the ears, before lifting her face.


    "Robin, don''t be rash!" Jasmine warned, altogether too late.


    "Before that I am also known as Hero Robin, from another world." Robin announced.


    "Oh no, it''s the Hero!"


    "Protect the Protectorate!!"


    "Don''t even think about making a move!"


    The audience hall guards surrounded Robin''s group, aiming their sharp spears at everyone.


    "Eep!" Elise shivered, and shrunk back on Robin''s shoulder, as she eyed the gleaming spear point not even an inch away from Robin''s throat. Robin neither flinched nor moved, looking calmly at the youth upon his coral throne.

 93 She Speaks With Oracle

    "Wait, stand down, captain." Oracle suddenly said.


    "But, Protectorate! It''s the Hero! The nemesis of all Demons!" the captain of the guards objected. "He probably came to kill you, first!"


    "If that is so, then you are probably not his match. This man killed a Wyvern not even a month ago. I would hate to lose a good man, especially when up against an unarmed, peaceful delegate, Bard."


    "Unarmed?" The captain''s eyes lowered to Robin''s sword belt. True enough, the rumored hero''s sword was missing.


    "I said I''m just here to talk." Robin said with a comforting smile at the captain.


    "How do we know it''s not a trick to lower our guard?" the captain sneered in suspicion.


    "True, even injured as I am, I could still probably wipe the floor with all of your men." Robin replied.


    "But, if that were the case, then I wouldn''t need any help in doing it. I am not going to willingly put my comrades in danger, especially since King Zephron is my new adoptive father, and a third of those present happen to be his relatives."


    "Relatives?" The captain glanced over at Robin''s companions. He hadn''t really taken much note of their appearance, since his focus had been on Robin. His eyes widened.


    "This! Isn''t this Prince Christian!? And General Keith!!" He exclaimed.


    "Hello, nice to meet you!" Christian smiled. Truth be told, he was quite confident about protecting himself and escaping, if needed, so he decided not to worry since the beans had been spilled.


    "My, my. I was just tagging along to make sure no misunderstandings arose." Keith clicked his tongue behind Christian, also at ease. "Your men sure are jumpy, Captain Bard...Also, I''m retired now, so you can drop the General."


    Captain Bard''s hands grew sweaty. There was no way that he would be able to best General Keith, the man who trained up half of Port Oracle''s top men. And any assault upon Prince Christian could result in another all out world.


    "Bard. I won''t be telling you again. Please stand down." Oracle replied.


    Elise sighed in relief as the captain reluctantly ordered his men to stand down.


    "You have my thanks." Robin said.


    Oracle sat back in his chair.


    "So, what is this delicate circumstance you wish to speak about?" He asked.


    "Hmm. I''m sure you already know from your observations, but I am not someone of this world."


    "Oh, so you knew we were observing you?" he asked.


    "Well, I wasn''t quite sure, at first." Robin shrugged. "But my cream cheese recipe couldn''t have been copied otherwise, since the first time I instructed anyone on the method was several days ago."


    "Oh. I see." Oracle nodded. "Are you angered at my use of your recipe?"


    Robin shook her head. "It''s fine. In fact, it''s better if that recipe spreads. This was a common recipe where I come from, so it won''t trouble anyone if I give it to you."


    "Ho? Very well, then. Please continue with your story." Oracle waved his hand.


    Robin nodded. "Whether by accident, or by another''s design, I suddenly found myself in this land."


    Oracle leaned forward. "And? Don''t tell me that you became the hero not knowing what kind of path it entailed."


    Robin shook her head. "I knew what it might mean. While the specific circumstances were not present to me at the time, the job of a hero is to bring about peace."


    "Why would you take on the mantle of the monster which has slaughtered so many of my people?" Oracle asked.


    "Because it was convenient." Robin said.


    "Eh?" Oracle was surprised, sitting up.


    "Eh!?" Christian was also surprised.


    "As a normal person, how many would gain the qualifications to speak with the king, or people in power?" Robin asked. "Can any man, who desires it so, gain entrance into the castle? Which do you think would be the quickest route to an audience with the king? A chef? or a hero?"


    "You do have a point." Oracle nodded.


    Robin continued. "The common people would not know about such a complicated mysterious means of moving between worlds. The best way would be to speak with people of great talent and power, with scholars and those who study such phenomenon. And, where would those talented people soon gather?"


    "The capitol, most likely." Oracle answered.


    "Furthermore," Robin pointed out. "As someone that only arrived with what was on my person, I had no assets. Neither food, nor land, nor currency. All I had was myself. Even my first job landed me face to face with a magic beast, something I''d never encountered before. And, just when I was worrying what to do, news of a contest came to my ears."


    "Wait, you don''t mean..." Christian asked in shock.


    "He who pulls the sword from the stone will get a gold coin." Robin said. "I might not have known how much it meant at the time, but I sure knew that it was enough to sustain me for a while as I looked for a way back. I also gained a sharp sword that could cut through steel without a scratch on it. It also gave me a free audience with the king, whom I would need to consult, anyways. Can you imagine my surprise when I found out that they had actually harbored no intentions of summoning a hero? The contest was simply a means of entertainment for the locals."


    "Are you trying to imply that you weren''t summoned?" Oracle raised an eyebrow.


    "If I was, then there sure wasn''t any sort of greeting party to explain anything." Robin sighed. "Wouldn''t there at least have been some sort of person present to explain the situation?"


    Christian felt highly uncomfortable.


    "That would make sense, if your story is true." Oracle said.


    "But, here''s the real crux of the problem." Robin said. "None of the learned people at the capitolhave any idea how I can return to my own world. They only told me that perhaps the demon king would know about it."


    "So, your purpose is..." Oracle began.


    Robin nodded. "Yes. My purpose in speaking with you is, not to fight with you, but to ask your aid, ad the demon king''s aid. Please help me find a way to return to my home world."


    "Well, I can''t say that it''s not appealing." Oracle sat back in his chair.


    "Protectorate, why would you help the hero!?" Bard objected.


    "Didn''t you hear him? He wants to scram back to wherever he came from, and leave us be. Isn''t that better than enslaving our kind, or slaughtering our people?" Oracle said lazily.


    "But, I suppose you know that you will have to meet with the other thirteen and get their approval, as well."


    "I am aware. How am I to display that I have acquired your approval?" Robin asked.


    Oracle tossed a carved jade seal at Robin, which she deftly caught.


    "That seal is the sign of my approval." Oracle said. "I can only get into contact with the demon king after all of the seals are collected. So, once you are finished gathering them, you need to bring them back here."


    "Eh? So easily?" Christian was surprised. "No difficult quests or near impossible undertakings?"


    "We demons like to be more up front about such things. we have no time to deal with human''s crafty schemes. I am not unreasonable. Besides, it is in our best interests to return the hero back where he comes from in order to promote a more peaceful environment. Peace is necessary for prosperity. " Oracle grinned at Christian.


    "But, if you so desire an undertaking...how about handing over that sushi dish you made earlier?" Oracle looked pointedly at Robin''s magic bag.


    "That is only natural." Robin brought out an earthenware tray, upon which were displayed the remaining sushi and sushi rolls.


    "So, that''s why-Protectorate, this food might be poisonous!" Bard pointed at the plate.


    "Ho? That would really be nasty of me to do something like that right after asking for someone''s help." Robin replied, in an ordinary tone of voice.


    "But, well, suit yourself. I''ll prove it''s safety, myself." Robin said. "Go ahead, point to any piece of sushi, and I''ll eat it."


    "Why do you want me to point?" Bard asked suspiciously.


    "Because if I choose, then you will suspect me of mixing poisonous ones in with good ones, to allay your fears. At least, if you choose, you can eliminate the posibility of my manipulation." Robin said evenly.

 94 She Recieves an Oracle

    "How do you know?" Bard asked.


    "It''s your job to be careful, and it''s my job to promote peace. Why would I not cooperate?" Robin asked. "Like I said, I was just here to talk. But, I would prefer if you didn''t take all day about it. Raw fish goes bad after a few hours."


    "Haha, he''s got a point, Bard." Oracle laughed. "Just pick one so I can eat it sooner." As Oracle said that, an invisible pressure was pushing down upon Bard.


    ''He must want me to hurry up and prove the Hero has hidden intentions!'' Bard thought to himself. But,if Oracle could hear his thoughts, he would probably flood the man''s brain with ''Hurry up! I want to eat it it regardless of whether it''s poisoned or not!''


    He pointed to the largest one. ''If the hero really was going to poison him, he would most likely hide it in here!'' Robin struggled to keep from rolling her eyes as she tossed the sushi piece in her mouth.


    Absolutely no signs of even the slightest of poisonings appeared. Bard''s suspicious face soon grew sour as he eyed Robin with a bitter leer.


    "See? Nothing." Robin chuckled.


    "Hmmph! It could be a slow acting poison!" Bard muttered, still unconvinced.


    "Enough of this! Bard. I am done with your willful foolishness. Besides, whether there is poison or not, It won''t be effective on me, so quit whining and let the Hero hand the plate over." Oracle said, his smile slowly disappearing as he stared at Bard, daring him to speak back, if he had the nerve.


    "Guhh!"


    The pressure on Bard then suddenly escalated to the point where he could only watch Robin bring the plate up to Oracle, and place it on the table by his side. Robin then returned to her group, surrounded by guards. But her next actions caused everyone to blink in surprise.


    She pulled out a barstool, and sat down in it, leisurely. Then she took out some cookies and began snacking on them. Keith''s shoulders began vibrating as he struggled to keep a straight face. Robin was, once again, acting outside the bounds of ettiquette. Yet only one person found it offensive. Bard felt a vein begin to throb on his forehead. This disrespectful little-.


    "Bard, might I remind you that you were rude to my guest, first? Since he has no bad intentions let him be." Oracle warned Bard. "Or do you want to be the first of my captains to be dishonorably dismissed from his position?"


    He stared sternly at the man, whose face now paled several shades lighter as the blood drained from his face. One more issue, and Oracle would demote Bard, regardless of the man''s staunch loyalties. Bard looked down at the ground, getting his temper under control. Oracle''s eyes turned back to admire the brightly colored sushi.


    Jasmine, Christian, and Keith simply looked at Robin, who laughed.


    "Want a cookie?" She asked, offering the plate to them. Jasmine''s expression twitched. This was not how diplomacy was supposed to go! Christian and Keith, accepted the offer, and picked one. Gerard was greedy, and took two cookies.


    "He said ''a'' cookie. Not cookies." Ponzu poked Gerard''s cheek in a reprimanding tone.


    "You can never just have ''one'' of anything Robin makes." Gerard hmmphed. "Don''t you think I haven''t seen you sneaking bits out of Robin''s recipes."


    "I taste test all the food I make!" Ponzu protested.


    "But you taste test Robin''s recipes even more!" Gerard pointed out.


    "Oh hush, you two!" Jasmine shushed them.


    Oracle did not mind. That protectorate demon was far too distracted by the glorious taste of a proper sushi. Everything was going fine until he put one pinch too much of wasabi on a sushi roll, and accidentally choked when the burn hit the back of his throat.


    "Ah! There is the evidence! You truly were trying to poison our Protectorate!" Bard had seen enough, once more thrusting his spear towards Robin. Robin deflected it with the empty scabbard hanging at her waist.


    "What a pity." She sighed softly. "You have eyes, yet you cannot see the mountain in front of your face."


    "What are you talking about-?" Bard began, but right then, a huge pressure came from Oracle, to the point where Bard collapsed to the floor.


    "Guards, remove Captain Bard from the hall, and place him in the jail for a bit. He is too hot-headed currently to act as your commanding officer." Oracle said with difficulty as a glass of water appeared in Oracle''s hand.


    "But, sir!" Bard exclaimed. "It was poison-"


    "It was no such thing. I merely choked from eating too quickly." Oracle reprimanded. "Go and contemplate what you did wrong while I speak with the Hero."


    "Wha? No!" Bard objected as he was unceremoniously dragged from the hall by some of the other guardsmen.


    "At ease, soldiers." Oracle told the rest of them. Though reluctant, the guards could only do as he said. After all, if they were also sent away, who would be there to protect Protectorate Oracle?


    "Come closer, Hero." Oracle waved his arm. Robin and her group were finally allowed to approach the coral chair.


    "You are neither afraid of me, nor do you bear malicious intent." Oracle noted. "Why?"


    Robin shrugged. "Why should I be afraid of someone who is not an evil-doer? Even though you may very well be stronger than me, currently, I can see that you care deeply about the citizens, regardless of whether they are human or demon. You have my gratitude for that."


    Oracle''s eyes widened. Then, suddenly, the demon broke out laughing.


    "You really are completely different from the previous hero. Say, would you like me to peer forward in time? I am interested in seeing your future." Oracle motioned Robin to come closer.


    Robin stepped up to the coral throne. "Okay, what do I do?" She asked.


    "Give me your hands, and close your eyes." Oracle instructed. Robin did so. Oracle''s hands were not warm, but cool to the touch. The air about him smelled of the sea.


    Oracle also closed his eyes. Out of nowhere, a breeze sprang up, circling about the two, tugging on clothes, cloaks, and window curtains around them. In the wind, many whispers that couldn''t quite be made out began to murmur under the sound of the breeze.


    Upon Oracle''s forehead, a silver line shone, opening outward into a shining eye. It was too bright for Christian or Jasmine to make out what it was. Then, the light faded as the eye closed. The breeze died down. The voices faded away, and all was quiet again.


    Oracle opened his eyes, and looked closely at Robin''s face. What was said between the two, no one could hear.


    "Why do you hide, Hero?" He asked quietly. Despite his youthful appearance, he spoke softly, like a grandfather."You know they will accept you as you are."


    "I know. But I need to go home. I must." Robin answered, as she opened her eyes, and looked at the deepening twilight out the nearby window. "If I am but a passing dream in this large land, then let me end the dream on a good note. Let them look back upon these days, not with regret or misery. Let them treasure Robin, the Hero." She smiled a bit sadly.


    Oracle sighed. "If home is were you wish to go, then home is where you shall find yourself." He replied. "My advice to you, though, is this: some things don''t have to be either this or that. Hero of an unfortunate past, have hope. Hope in the day when you will be able to keep both friends and family by your side."


    Robin pondered upon his words, and looked Oracle in the eye, trying to understand what he meant. Then she sighed. "I don''t understand it, but I shall remember your words, Oracle."


    Oracle smiled, and suddenly her companions'' words could be heard behind them.


    "Why can''t I hear anything?" muttered Christian.


    "Strange, there isn''t any sort of magic barrier here.." Jasmine looked about, intrigued.


    Oracle cleared his throat.


    "You call me Oracle? Why do you not call me Demon Protectorate Oracle?" He asked.


    Robin grinned. "Why the need to mention our races? Human? Demon? It doesn''t matter. All that matters is whether we are friends or not."


    "Oh? And am I now your friend?" Oracle asked.


    "You know what?" Robin''s grin gave way to a smile. "I think you are."

 95 She Gains a New Companion

    "Heh, friends, huh?" Oracle''s eyes narrowed pleasantly. "I do not object to becoming friends to you. But...although we may be friends, that doesn''t mean you can skip the protocol. You still need to get the approval of the other protectorates, first, if you want to contact the demon king." Oracle explained.


    Robin grinned. "As it should be. Thank you, friend, for maintaining your precepts."


    "And make sure to send me more interesting recipes, if you can. I can offer you food products from our port market at half price, if you do." Oracle slyly added.


    "Oh, a friendly discount?" Robin laughed. "I''ll remember. I have already gathered many food products already. But, how will I send you the recipes?"


    Oracle smiled, and clapped his hands. A lady dressed in white somewhat shyly stepped out of a side door. A white veil with a blue talisman painted on it obscured her facial features. A small crystal ball hung from a delicate black chain upon her neck.


    "Take my assistant, Chelsea, along with you to observe. Although I may not be able to come along with you, due to my duties, she and I share a unique connection. Whatever she sees and hears concerning food will be transmitted to me within the day."


    Robin looked at Chelsea. "The way will be rough. Are you sure you wish to come?"


    "While my fighting abilities are not much, I am skilled in healing using water magic." Chelsea uttered, her voice whispery and small.


    "But, do you wish to come?" Robin asked her again. Robin didn''t see what the big deal was, but Jasmine did. Everyone knew that healing spells were conducted using light mana. To claim to be able to do the same with water, even though it was not heresy, was looked down upon as a lesser form of healing. Jasmine didn''t say anything to Robin, though. This was her way of showing support.


    Chelsea paused, examining Robin''s face through her veil. She saw neither discrimination, nor disgust in Robin''s eyes. To Robin, water healing was no different than light healing.


    Chelsea didn''t speak; she couldn''t speak. Such a comrade was better than she could ever have hoped for.She nodded firmly, despite the lump in her throat.


    "Okay then! Welcome to the crew!" Robin grinned, holding her hand out for a handshake. Chelsea shook Robin''s hand, then curtsied a belated greeting to her new companions.


    "Heeeh? I''m surprised. Most humans would think twice before adding a water healer to their party." Oracle observed with a teasing look on his face. "Are you sure?"


    "Hmm? Isn''t it fine?" Robin said, not quite understanding Oracle''s question.


    "It''s not like I''m forcing her to come. Chelsea decided it on her own, so why do I need to prevent her? Moreover she has healing spells! Isn''t that a great way to balance out the party?


    Rather, it seems like there are almost too many damage dealers, and not enough support. A healer is a perfect addition to this motley crew!"


    Oracle laughed out loud. "Good, good! It looks like you''ve found a set of good companions after all, Chelsea!"


    Chelsea blushed. "Muuu, stop teasing me, big brother!"


    "Eh!?"


    "Big brother!?" Gerard and Christian were surprised.


    "I had no idea!" Jasmine exclaimed.


    "Ah. Chelsea, you weren''t supposed to say anything, yet!" Oracle scolded.


    "Hummph! It''s your fault for eating up all the sushi, and not leaving any for me!" Chelsea huffed.


    "Ho? Somehow that character is not quite according to first impressions..." Kenneth noted.


    "Doesn''t that just mean she came out of her shell?" Robin said, in a matter-of-fact manner.


    "Eh? How did you know I was born from a shell? Do you have an inspection magic?" Chelsea asked, in surprise.


    Robin paused, speechless for a moment, then looked away, awkwardly.


    "You misunderstood me. I didn''t know of your origins. That was just a saying from my homelands. To ''come out of one''s shell'' means to begin acting like a normal person, instead of a shy tongue-tied little child."


    Robin explained.


    "Oh, my-my apologies!" Chelsea stuttered, visibly flustered. Oracle held his head in his hands as he struggled to keep from laughing at this naive little sister of his.


    "No worries. You didn''t know, after all." Robin waved the apology aside. "But, unless it is necessary, it is probably best to keep personal information to yourself."


    "Oh, is that why you are acting like you aren''t a g-"Ahem!""Oracle interrupted Chelsea''s words just in time.


    "My apologies. She can be quite loose with her words at times." Oracle sighed. "As siblings, it is quite hard to hide anything from her."


    Robin understood. "Well, I''d appreciate if you kept my personal information a secret, Chelsea."


    "Muuu...It''s such a waste, though..." Chelsea pouted.


    "One full course buffet of sushi." Robin offered in exchange.


    "You''ve got a deal!" Chelsea cheerfully agreed.


    Jasmine watched, but didn''t say anything. She was already making plans to become good friends with Chelsea. Since Chelsea had also seen Oracle''s vision, then perhaps bribing-er treating Chelsea to some nice goodies and foods would help loosen her lips a bit, as Oracle''s words couldn''t be heard earlier. She also needed to ensure Chelsea doesn''t blurt out Robin''s big secret. That was probably the most important factor.


    Christian''s ears had pricked up. ''Aren''t acting like a g-''? What did Chelsea mean? Guardian? Gourmet? Grandmaster? ... Goody-two-shoes?... Christian couldn''t figure it out. He planned to ask Chelsea about it later, perhaps by offering some tasty foods...


    Robin stood in between the two schemers and chuckled. They were cousins, all right! When they were planning something, they made the exact same face.


    At that point, Christian and Jasmine both looked at Robin and asked.


    ""What?""


    "Huhuhu, nothing~!" Robin answered.


    Gerard began to look a bit sad as he sighed. More people meant even less food for him. He thought to himself as he nibbled on the second cookie. He would have to try harder at swiping samples for himself from now on.


    Ponzu felt a cold shudder run down his back. Had he forgotten to turn off the oven? He rubbed his goosebumps as he tried to figure out what was wrong...


    "I can''t come along with you." Oracle told Robin once more. "But I can give you some advice. No matter who among the other demon protectorates you choose to visit, save Protectorate Camber for last. It doesn''t show when he is governing his town, even though there are many humans under him. But, since many of his friends and family died in a war long ago to the hero at that time, he bears quite the grudge."


    Robin paused, then nodded. "Thanks for the advice. Demon Protectorate Oracle, huh?" Robin ruminated. "That''s somewhat of a mouthful to say."


    "At the time, it was what we called ourselves." Oracle sighed. "If only the diplomatic party had a better naming sense. They simply took it at face value."


    "I agree. Even ''Guardian'' would be better than that. Guardian Oracle sounds kinda cool, don''t you think?" Robin said thoughtlessly.


    "Guardian, huh?..." Oracle considered it, then nodded. "I will consider it, and let you know if we decide to change it."


    "Eh?" Robin didn''t understand.


    "Your suggestion, I will contact the other protectorates to consider changing the title." Oracle explained.


    "Er...okay?" Robin felt a bit awkward. "You don''t have to change it just because I complained."


    "No, we also felt the title was a bit boorish. A new title should be a refreshing change." Oracle smiled.


    "Do as you wish, then." Robin shrugged.


    "I think we have covered everything you wish to consult me about, for now. Shall I extend an invitation to stay the night?" Oracle asked.


    Robin tilted her head to think about it, then turned her head to look at her companions. While, personally, she was fine with it, she also valued her friends'' judgement.


    Chelsea nodded her head, encouragingly. Keith shrugged. He was fine either way. Gerard just watched as he nibbled his cookie. No matter which Robin chose, he would come along. Jasmine pursed her lips, consideringly, then smiled at Robin. Ponzu nodded. he wanted to consult with the mansion''s chefs about local recipes.


    Robin turned back to Oracle, ignoring Christian''s frown.


    "Thank you, friend! We''d be delighted!" She answered.


    "Hey, why did you ignore me!?" Christian objected.


    "Because Robin already knows that you''re a trouble magnet." Jasmine teased. "So not following your advice would be the safest method!"


    "What!?" Christian''s expression was so disturbed, that Robin couldn''t help but burst out laughing.

 96 She plays Clarity

    That evening, Chelsea showed them to the guest rooms. While the soldiers had given Robin''s party a less-than-heartfelt welcome, it seemed the maids took pride in how professionally they did their work, regardless of the guest.


    Each room was just as comfortable as the rooms back in Ekkinshire. However, the furniture was not so embossed and plated in gold. The decoration was on a more streamlined, minimalistic style. In Robin''s room, a large window on one wall made it possible to view the ocean outside.


    After a tiring day, Robin was all set to go to bed. But, not even five minutes after Robin closed the door to turn in for the night, she heard a knock at the door. Robin sighed, then got up to go see who it was.


    Chelsea stood outside the door. Even though the top half of her face was covered in a veil,Robin could tell that she was greatly excited.


    "Chelsea? What''s the matter?" She asked, not quite understanding what was going on.


    "Ah, nothing much! This is just the first time I''ve had friends sleepover at my place. So, I''m a bit excited!" Chelsea honestly replied.


    Robin, observing her, felt that Chelsea was a bit adorable, like a little sister. Robin had never had a little sister before, but the thought softened her expression up a bit.


    "Is that so? Hmm, come to think of it, this is also my first time at a sleepover."


    "Isn''t that right!?" Chelsea nodded. "That''s why, I thought that we could do something special and play a game before bed!"


    "Just the two of us?" Robin asked.


    "Of course not! We need to invite Jasmine, too, and then it''ll be a girls'' party with just us three!" Chelsea said eagerly.


    Robin coughed. There was no guarantee that someone wouldn''t accidentally overhear their conversation. So it was better to be safe than sorry. She asked. "You are okay with me barging in on your girls party?"


    "What?" Chelsea asked, not understanding.


    "If someone overhears this conversation, they might get the wrong impression of you." Robin explained.


    "Oh, you were worried about me? I''m flattered, really, but it''s not necessary." Chelsea waved it off. "After all, although the servants are aware of me, they are under a solemn oath not to reveal my existence. So no rumors will spread."


    ''I''m not worried about that! I''m worried about my reputation! I don''t want word getting around that I''m a lascivious pervert!'' Robin restrained from snapping out.


    Even though Chelsea was most likely older than her, Chelsea''s current appearance was of a young woman around 13 or 14 years old.


    If one made a certain connection between Chelsea, and the cute ''little sister'' that Robin had entertained at the ball...Robin might be mercilessly given the worst of all pervert titles. And, if people tried to attract her by using a honey trap on her...


    It would be the worst. Just as she didn''t want to be pursued by men. Even more so, she did not want to be pursued by women; most of all, by little girls. In any case, rabid fans are scary.


    "Um, wouldn''t it be better to play the game during our travels to relieve boredom?" Robin asked.


    "No way! This is our first sleepover! We must play at least one game!" Chelsea was adamant, and began raising her voice.


    "All right, all right! Fine! You don''t have to yell!" Robin placated her, wearily massaging her forehead. "Just one game, then, okay?"


    -----------


    "How did I get dragged into this, again?" Robin''s eyes drooped as she struggled to stay awake.


    The game they were currently playing was similar to a game of truth or dare, called ''Clarity'' as suggested by Jasmine. A small top with an arrow painted on it was the prop. Whomever the arrow pointed to -after the top stopped spinning- would be allowed to ask one of the others a question. If it could be determined that the answer was false, they faced a penalty. The penalty was limited to small things that could be done inside the room.


    Right now, it was Chelsea''s turn again.


    "Robin, please clarify things for me: is it true that you can use cocoa beans for cooking regular meals?"


    Robin sighed. so far, all of Chelsea''s questions had been about cooking and baking.


    "It is true." Robin replied. "In fact there is a dish called curry which specifically uses chocolate-a processed form of the cocoa bean-in the stew to deepen the undertones and join the spices together. The curry dish has several different types ranging from mild to very spicy."


    "What! Is that true!?" Jasmine asked.


    "It is true." Chelsea asserted. No matter what was asked, or who answered, Chelsea was able to tell if the answer was true or false. Thus, she was currently winning.


    "It''s getting late." Robin yawned. "How about we end the game after nine more questions? if we divide them and go around the table, that''s three questions for all of us."


    "I agree. while the game has been fun, us girls need their beauty sleep." Jasmine nodded. "It''s best not to overdo it."


    "Oh, very well! For the sake of getting to bed faster, let us do away with the top." Chelsea sighed. She had wanted to play a bit longer. "Your turn, Robin! Three questions. You can ask either of us."


    "Then, Chelsea, first question: how did you know about sleepovers?"Robin asked.


    "Obviously, through brother''s vision of your world." Chelsea answered easily.


    "You must have learned a lot about my world, then. Is that where you got the information about cooking that you kept confirming with me?" Robin asked.


    "Yes."Chelsea acknowledged.


    "My last question." Robin began. "Will I be able to defeat the Trader, without losing my comrades?"


    "...Oh, him, huh..." Chelsea replied, the corner of her mouth twitching distastefully. "That depends upon what you mean by ''defeat'', but I can assure you that there will be no casualties during your struggles against him. As for you...it may not be the kind of defeat you wish for, though."


    Robin''s head ached. "Now I''m not so sure I want to know." She rubbed her forehead, ruefully. What other kind of ''defeat'' could there possibly be!?


    Jasmine cleared her throat. "I suppose it is my turn, then." She turned to Chelsea. "Does anyone else among our companions know the truth about Robin''s gender?"


    "There is one who suspects, but is not keen upon confirming." Chelsea replied.


    "Is that person, Christian?" Jasmine asked.


    "It is not."


    "My last question:" Jasmine continued. "Will I ever find my one true love?"


    "Eh?" Robin was surprised. Going by logical progression, wouldn''t Jasmine ask for the identity of the person suspecting her?


    "If he''s not keen upon confirming, then that''s fine. Besides, it''s obvious that at least one of us needs to ask about such things during a game of clarity!" Jasmine justified to Robin. "Uncle and Aunt are getting worried about me."


    "Oh." Robin scratched the back of her head.


    As a girl, Robin felt that she had just been defeated, somehow. While normal girls would be concerned about their marriage, Robin wanted nothing to do with it, for the time being. Did this mean there was something wrong with her?


    ''Now''s not the time for an existential crisis.'' Robin quickly decided, setting her self reflections aside, as she returned her mind to the present.


    "If everything goes as I have seen, then there is a good chance that yes, you will find your so-called one true love." Chelsea answered with a silly smile.


    "Yes! Now I can keep Aunt Emmy from introducing more idiots to me!" Jasmine giggled gleefully.


    "Aunt Emmy?" Robin asked.


    "You know, your foster mother, the Queen?" Jasmine pointed out.


    "Ah." Robin realized. Emmy was short for Emeline. "My condolences." Robin bowed her head, as she had somewhat of an inkling of what Jasmine must be going through.


    "It''s not your fault. Aunt Emmy has always been like this." Jasmine sighed. "She''s tried matchmaking over half the kingdom, already. It''s a matter of pride for her."


    "That much, huh?" Robin said, feeling a small shiver at the thought. It was a good thing she had escaped-er left the kingdom while she still could. Otherwise, things would be somewhat of a nightmare.


    "Ahem! I do believe it is my turn to ask some questions, right?" Chelsea interjected, bringing the topic back to the game.


    "Oh, my apologies, yes it is!" Robin nodded.


    "Do go ahead." Jasmine encouraged.


    Suddenly, the air took on a somewhat heavy feeling, as Chelsea''s smile seemed to change ever so slightly.


    "My first question..." She began.

 97 She Dreams...

    "My first question." Chelsea''s demeanor had changed from her usual cheerfullness to a somewhat pressuring solemnity.


    "If you had a choice between the power to destroy all your enemies before they ever first appeared, and the power to wipe their memories of you, forever: which would you choose, Robin?"


    Robin sat still. Her uncle...her cousin...that old man...all her classmates...She sat there in silence as she honestly considered. Finally she let out a long sigh.


    "Why must you ask me this?" Robin grumbled."I am neither God nor an official."


    "That question, I am not obliged to answer~!" Chelsea replied cheerfully, her smile similar to Oracle''s.


    Robin closed her eyes. She began speaking slowly. "...All life is precious. To treat a life as a mere nothing....sure isn''t my style. Unless they should attack first, I cannot justify extinguishing the blood and lives of so many people. Even though they are wicked, I cannot bear such a burden."


    Robin opened her eyes.


    "There is no good path down the way of slaughter. That''s why, I would rather not choose the first power, unless I had no other choice."


    "So you would rather choose the other one?" Chelsea asked.


    "That path does seem to be the lesser of two evils." Robin began. "But I cannot say that I am such a saint that I can let them get away with murder, even more to allow them to forget their crimes."


    Robin nodded. "Therefore, if given the choice, I would rather choose neither!" She replied as her tired eyes sadly looked down at the table with a soul-felt weariness.


    A rhyme her mother once read to her sprang unbidden to Robin''s lips. As if in a dream, Robin spoke the words that now seemed quite fitting softly:


    "''Excess of mercy over-indulges


    to the rotting of the soul.


    Excess of justice leaves no room


    for the penitent sinner.


    Within such extremes of doom,


    There can be no winner.


    So temper mercy within justice, true.


    Yet temper justice within mercy, too.


    Else, justice be not just;


    Nor mercy be completely merciful.''"


    Her words were quiet, yet they seemed to linger in the air between the three.


    Chelsea nodded. "I see. Thank you. I have recieved your answer."


    Jasmine looked at Robin, surprised. That saying was so good! When had Robin become a poet? "Did you write that?" She asked.


    "My mother read it to me once, a long time ago." Robin sighed. "Not a single word of hers will I ever forget."


    "Nor should you. Your mother must be very dear to you." Chelsea nodded. "We must all keep such good things close to our hearts."


    Robin nodded.


    "Then, my second question:" Chelsea continued. "If your return to your world was at the expense of a life, would you do so?"


    Robin frowned. "I know not how I arrived here, but, surely, there must be a way to return without such a price?"


    "Hypothetically." Chelsea added.


    "I am extremely reluctant." Robin replied, knowing the answer almost immediately. "Though my heart may yearn for home, If I am to trample upon the lives of others to get there, how am I any better than that Trader man? It would be better for me to look for another way."


    "I see..." Chelsea hummed a bit. "Okay then, for my last question, I want to ask you...In the event that you find yourself surrounded with no friends, and there is no way out. What will you do?"


    Robin simply smiled. "It''s not like a situation like that hasn''t happened before." She looked out at the rising moon.


    "If the sun disappears, look for the moon. If the moon disappears, look for the stars. If the stars dissappear, look for the flame. And if the flame disappears..." Robin turned to look at Chelsea.


    "Become the flame that illumines the darkness, sparks the stars, and lights the sun that illuminated the moon. Burn at your brightest, and you will never lose."


    Chelsea''s smile widened. "Oh? And that means?"


    Robin smiled in return. "That question, I am not obliged to answer~!" She cheekily replied.


    "Tch! Foiled~" Chelsea chuckled.


    Robin paused, then added. "But, I will tell you, anyways. A gift between friends."


    "Oh! Lucky me!" Chelsea clapped her hands in delight as she leaned forward to listen.


    "Ahem! In the words of a random quote I read online," Robin began.


    "''Wrong is wrong, even when everyone is doing it;


    And right is right, even when nobody is doing it.''


    In other words,sometimes, it only takes one person doing the right thing that makes all the difference. If there is no flame, become one! Perhaps all it takes is a single spark to set the sun afire again." Robin explained.


    Chelsea nodded, and stood up from the table they had been sitting around.


    "See that you keep those answers in mind." She said, and the air of pressure suddenly disappeared as if it has never happened.


    "My, it has gotten quite late, it seems." Chelsea added, as she swept a deep curtsy.


    "Thank you for keeping me company. I won''t keep you from your sleep anymore."


    "After asking questions that are almost sure to give me nightmares, you kick me out of the room..." Robin shook her head in mock sadness, and sighed.


    "Hmmph! I am still waiting for that full-course sushi buffet that you told me about." Catherine huffed in mock annoyance. "Don''t you forget it, now!"


    "Got it, I got it." Robin replied with a chuckle. "But, I''m warning you. Sushi is best eaten in the afternoon or early evening. Any later, and the metabolism won''t be able to keep up."


    "Eh? What does that mean?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin told her.


    "Eating late night snacks can make you fat. Especially when eating starchy foods or grains. Unless you have a constitution where you don''t get fat no matter how much you eat, all women bear this danger. That''s why I didn''t go and make a buffet right away, despite having all the ingredients."


    "Is that true!?" Jasmine exclaimed, dismayed.


    Chelsea nodded, also somewhat horrified. "I-it''s true, unfortunately..." She said, as her expression drooped.


    "How dangerous. And I almost fell into the fatal trap..." She muttered to herself.


    Robin smiled cheerfully. "Well, as I am excused, I shall retire for the night, then~!" She left the two girls sitting there, still in shock over the information.


    Back in her room, Robin chuckled. Even if one had a late night snack, it would be fine. As long as one took an appropriate amount of excercise before retiring for the night, there would not be an explosive weight gain.


    But Robin was not so generous as to offer such information. Otherwise, she might be awoken at odd hours with food requests. Thus, it was best to nip things in the bud before they went out of control.


    Despite Robin''s spoken worries about nightmares, she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.


    --------


    Robin looked about her. "It is as I suspected." She sighed.


    She was dreaming. She had to be dreaming, because she was standing in the hallway of her high school. There was no way that she was not dreaming.


    This time, the hallways were empty, though.


    However, despite the similarity to her prior nightmare, Robin possessed her full faculties of thought.


    "...Not a nightmare? Then, there''s a chance to rewrite the ending!" Knowing this, Robin was no longer afraid. She stood with her back straight, and reached her hand out, grasping into thin air.


    Her hand closed upon the hilt of the hero''s sword. She quickly attached it to her belt. Robin noticed that this time, she was wearing her hero''s garb, as opposed to the school uniform. Looking in the reflection of a nearby mirror, she also wore her robin mask.


    Her face was always obscured in a memory dream like this. Either a motercycle helmet, or a facemask, or even a large scarf that wrapped around the bottom half of the face...somehow it was always obscured.


    "This is just a memory. It can do me no true harm. Well, even so, let''s end this ahead of time." Robin stepped forward, heading towards the rooftop. A memory was a piece of cake for the current Robin.


    In order to piece her fragile mind back together, she had done this many times in her dreams with different weapons each time.


    No one could be seen anywhere. the hallway was empty of any sign of people. The door to the rooftop was locked, but that didn''t stop Robin. Using the Hero''s blade, Robin cut the door open.

 98 Did She Truly only Dream?

    What confronted her was the rooftop scene from a third person point of view. Her uncle, Mr Dawkins, and a younger Robin. Each spoke their lines, re-enacting the scene before her.


    "You don''t like him? It doesn''t matter. You will learn to like him."


    "What''s taking you so long, Harry!? I''ve got a schedule to keep!"


    "...You won''t go?"


    Robin slowly walked towards her young self And stood in front of her. Finally she spoke.


    "Don''t worry. With me here, no one can cause you any harm." She said.


    "Eh?" Robin''s younger self looked at Robin in surprise.


    As if an invisible wall shattered, the three became aware of Robin.


    "Who are you!? How did you get up here? The door was clearly barred-" Her uncle''s face froze as he saw the door reduced to scrap metal.


    Robin glared piercingly at Dawkins, who stepped back, his face turning pale.


    "Sometimes, looks can kill, but Karma will surely give you a far more fitting fate than I ever could." Robin said.


    Just like how it happened during his trial, Mr Dawkins suddenly clutched at his chest, breathing laboriously. He doubled over, and fell to the ground in the middle of a heart attack.


    Robin''s uncle sniffed. "Who are you? T-this is a family affair! Outsiders shouldn''t butt in!"


    Robin shook her head and chuckled.


    "Why, Uncle, don''t you remember me?" Robin asked. "And here we have such FOND memories between us..." Her voice was heavily laden with a hidden menace.


    "D-don''t be rid-ridiculous! I only have one nephew, and he is most c-certainly not you! W-who are you!? Show yourself!" The man stuttered as he backed away.


    "I never said I was your nephew." Robin chuckled as she took off her mask. "Recognize me now?"


    The man''s eyes widened as his gaze flickered to the shivering girl over by the railing, and back at Robin.


    "H-how?" He stuttered.


    "Karma." Robin shrugged, then tightened her grip on her sword. "If you want to harm her, then you''ll have to get through me!" She brandished her blade, aiming it towards her uncle''s throat.


    "Choose. Your life, or your niece: which do you hold more dear?"


    the uncle''s eyes widened, and he staggered backwards. Then stumbled over himself as he raced through the open rooftop door. Robin''s uncle, though treacherous, was ever the coward.


    Robin placed her mask back upon her face, and turned to face her younger version, and smiled gently. Robin gave her younger self a pat on the back.


    "Be at ease. Your brother is more vigilant than you think. Don''t let fake friends ruin your happiness. They cannot follow where you will go."


    Last of all, she turned towards Mr Dawkins, who had been unable to see her face from the angle he was at. While in the midst of the heart attack,he somehow managed to speak.


    "Who-who are you?" He asked. "You seem familiar.."


    Robin narrowed her eyes.


    "You are the one and only person who will never know. Die, and regret the very thought of laying a hand upon the person under my charge."


    After all, who else would Robin be in charge of protecting if not herself? With her own sword, she pierced straight through the man''s heart.


    ------------


    "Aaah!" A young man sat up in terror, breathing heavily, and clutching at his heart.


    "Young master, are you okay?" A voice came from behind the door.


    "...No, it''s nothing. J-just a nightmare is all." The youth replied as he realized it had only been a dream. "Just a bad dream...." He said, as if trying to convince himself.


    "Why must my past life continue to haunt me?" He muttered as he grabbed his hair in frustration.


    "I have already paid the price for my foolishness! I regretted everything once I realized what I had done...so why must this dream keep haunting me!? And why was the Hero there, as well?"


    After pondering long and hard, he could not figure things out, and so he could only try and return to sleep.


    -------


    The next morning, Robin''s group left early, before many of the villagers were up and about. Because of her previous late night, Robin was still somewhat tired.


    However, even she was somewhat surprised when she woke up and realized she had fallen asleep in her seat. Her companions also had somewhat of an annoyingly cheerful grin on their faces for a while after that.


    Christian''s grin was the brightest. If Robin was a normal person, she might have been somewhat embarassed. But, this was Robin. Instead of allowing herself to be at the mercy of her companions'' teasing, Robin easily turned the situation on its head by acting shameless.


    She glanced around the room once. Then, she turned away from them, took out a pillow, and pretended to go back to sleep again.


    Christian was dumbfounded. If it were before her fight with the goblins, he might have tried to wake Robin up. But he still remembered all too well that straight right fist to his upper jaw. Thus, he could only watch in despair as Robin went back to sleep.


    Chelsea only chuckled. "Let the poor hero sleep a bit more." She pointes out. "I kept the hero up talking late into the night, after all."


    "WHAT!?" Christian exclaimed. "Alone?!"


    "Of course not! It takes 3 people for a good game of clarity, after all." Chelsea giggled. "If you''re curious, you can ask Jasmine."


    Christian looked to Jasmine with a pleading look on his face.


    "Well, we spoke about a certain person''s love chances~" Jasmine teased. "Do you want to hear about their future other half?"


    Christian''s expression froze as he failed to process the information. Love chance? was it about Robin''s love chance!!? Christian sat back in his chair, like the wind had been knocked out of him.


    "Oh..I see..N-no thanks." He muttered as the thought kept echoing through his head.


    That was, of course, as a man, Robin might marry someone someday. In fact, it was highly suspicious for Robin to put in such an effort to return. If it was simply to reunite with his older brother, there was no need for such urgency.


    Thus, it was very likely that Robin already had a significant other back in his world. That being the case, having his love fortune told was probablylooking for confirmation about future actions that he was contemplating taking. In which case, it was likely to currently be at the level of one-sided admiration.


    For a Prince, Christian sure was intelligent in odd areas. But, luckily, he was completely wrong.


    Jasmine was enjoying Christian''s dumbfound, somewhat deflated expression, when Chelsea interrupted.


    "Eh? but wasn''t the question about Jasmine''s love succe-" Chelsea was cut off by Jasmine''s hand.


    "Shush! You''ll ruin it!" Jasmine hissed. But the damage was already undone. Christian''s face went from the abyss of gloom to a beaming golden grin in less than three seconds.


    Keith''s shoulders vibrated violently as he struggled to keep from laughing.


    "Of course! Why didn''t I think of it before!" Christian exclaimed, relieved. Then he glanced at Jasmine, a smug grin on his face.


    "Mom''s pushing you that hard,huh?" He sighed.


    "See? This is why I didn''t want you to say anything. Now he''ll be insufferable the whole trip!" Jasmine sniffed.


    "I promised to keep Robin''s information to myself. nothing was said about yours." Chelsea chuckled.


    "Why of course...you didn''t." Jasmine sighedin defeat. Upon going over her memories of the other day, she realized that Chelsea truly hadn''t said anything about keeping Jasmine''s personal info to herself.


    "I also know that Christian actually likes-Mmmphmphmph"


    "I am begging you, please do not say anything about that to anyone!" He said with a serious expression.


    Chelsea''s eyes rolled. Seriously, what was up with these two people? It''s not like the things she was saying was anything bad, so why such a grand effort to hide things? She held up one finger.


    He let go of her mouth so she could speak.


    "One large medium rare wyvern steak is the price." She named her price.


    "You''ve got a Deal!" Christian said, emphatically. He didn''t even try to bargain, even if the price of wyvern meat was 2 gold coins per pound, as it was somewhat rare in the kingdom.


    Robin could only pretend to remain asleep at that point, as waking up would be very awkward. Even so, Keith could easily tell that Robin was already awake, since her breathing was a bit uneven. His shoulders shook a bit more. But, thankfully, he allowed her to maintain her facade.

 99 She Believes Her

    Due to the earlier conversation, Robin gathered that Christian liked someone. That someone was most likely a girl. In which case, Christian was one of the so-called ''taken'' men. She almost gave the fact that she was awake away to the others when she sighed in relief.


    That was a close call, back then! It was a good thing they had managed to quell that potion problem back inEkkinshire Capitol. Robin had no intentions of tearing apart two love birds.


    ''But...it seems like all the somewhat good guys are either forbidden, or taken...'' Robin thought in passing right before she felt a single small prick in her chest, like it had been poked by a needle.


    ''Hmm? What the-oh! It''s probably just a side effect of my mana source healing...'' Robin surmised, putting Christian''s crush out of her mind. It was fine to just stay as good friends between them.


    But Robin had no idea that the person Christian was crushing on was her...Thus, a very big misunderstanding was created that day.


    They stopped around noon to eat lunch, at which point, Robin ''awoke'' from her slumbers.


    "Buff-et! Buff-et! Su-shi Buff-et~!" Chelsea chanted happily as Robin delivered her promised seafood feast.


    "It''s too bad I don''t have any miso or soy sauce..." Robin muttered in passing, as she took out the wasabi and the pickled ginger.


    "Eh? What''s that?" Gerard asked.


    "A fermented bean product that is used as a savoryflavoring." Robin replied.


    "Beans? How are beans going to taste that good?" Gerard asked.


    "The same way that cheese comes from milk: it tastes better when it''s aged." Robin smiled mischievously and tweaked Gerard''s nose.


    "Hey, ow!" He backed away. "What was that for?"


    "Don''t steal other people''s food, and I wouldn''t have to. What happened to the platter I left with Keith?"


    Gerard made a sour face. "They completely forgot about my portion, and already divided it up. I almost got a fork speared through my hand, you know!"


    "They did, did they?" Robin eyed Gerard bemusingly. "You know, you might have been more convincing if you had wiped the traces of spicy mayo off the corners of your mouth." She pointed out.


    "Urk! I''ve been discovered! Time to make arun for it!" Gerard backed away from Robin''s incoming fist, but was still hit anyways.


    "Ow!"


    "That was for lying. If you need more food, then ask. There''s no need to make up tall tales that smear the good name of others. Otherwise, if I hear you tell another lie again, I''ll limit your food." Robin said sternly.


    "Please, sir! Give me another chance! I won''t ever lie to you again!" Gerard begged.


    If it were anything else, Gerard wouldn''t have cared, but this was Robin''s food that Robin was talking about! For the sake of Robin''s food, Gerard was willing to lower his head no matter how many times.


    "Good boy. Here you go!" Robin handed him several seaweed-wrapped onigiri. "Try these. I made them using leftover ingredients." She said.


    Gerard''s eyes widened at the hand-sized rice balls. while he was still somewhat hungry, he wouldn''t be able to finish half of them.


    "Thanks!" He laughed as he stashed what he wouldn''t be able to eat into his knapsack.


    "Mmm! Dish Shamin flayvud one ish gud!"


    "Don''t talk with your mouth full, kiddo." Robin warned. "You might choke."


    ------


    The carriage ride after lunch was rather uneventful, considering the exciting week they had experienced. Robin was content to have things stay that way. Period.


    If her mana source were healed, then Robin would have been fine practicing basic spells. But Jasmine was too vigilant. She spartanly forbid Robin from using her mana.


    "You keep saying it''s no good, but when will it actually be healed?" Robin grumbled. While it was true that she could do many things without the use of magic, the ability to use magic was still new to her. Thus, she was impatient to be able to start practicing again.


    "Aren''t you already lucky that you didn''t shatter your mana source as it is?" Jasmine pointed out, cooly.


    "Er...that is true..." Robin had no choice but to agree.


    "Oh? What is this about Robin''s mana source?" Chelsea asked.


    "This idiot tried to look cool by going solo against a huge goblin force in the middle of atreant-infested forest to rescue a group of children!" Jasmine complained.


    "She overused her mana source by pulling off outrageous amounts of spells back to back, including raising a pillar with an ancient tree in the middle, and dousing a forest fire while she was at it!"


    "Oh my! That''s the Hero for you! So impressive!" Chelsea clapped her hands together in delight, and nodded. "Mhmm! I can see why Jasmine wants to brag about you."


    "I''m not bragging!" Jasmine corrected.


    "But, don''t you think there''s an easier solution to this problem?" Chelsea asked. "Why not use healing magic?"


    "Because this idiot used a healing potion in the middle of damaging her source. Now she can only recover the old fashioned way." Jasmine grumbled.


    "If it was normal healing mana, then yes. But I think you have quickly forgotten about my specialty." Chelsea prompted. "Water healing magic is actually better at healing such injuries."


    "Is that true!?" Jasmine asked. While she had known about water healing, she had been more interested in alchemy at the time. Thus, for her not to know all the specifics about the obscure rare branch of magic could only be expected.


    Chelsea nodded.


    "It''s true. While instantly closing wounds, and knitting back together muscle and bone is easier for light magic users, when it comes to healing internal injuries that are sensitive, or resistant to light healing magic, water healing is more suitable. Although it is not as swift a remedy as light healing, we can also expel toxins from within the body, if it hasn''t settled into the bones."


    "But this particular case is unique." Jasmine groaned in consideration.


    "Why not let her try?" Robin asked. "At the very least, she can''t make it much worse, can she?"


    "No, it''s a problem of the location of your mana source." Jasmine shook her head. "Since it''s situated inside your heart, there is a limited space for Chelsea to use her water healing."


    "An internal mana source?" Chelsea asked.


    "Yeah. It''s inside my heart." Robin confirmed.


    "What!? Then if Robin had actually shattered his source, then Robin would be..." Christian was shocked. A shattered mana source was a bad thing, but if it was external, then there was a chance of recovery. But, an internal mana source, if shattered, could even possibly kill the person outright.


    Christian grew very silent as he retreated into his thoughts.


    "...Actually, in this case, Perhaps it being an internal source is better." Chelsea said as she pondered. "The heart is one of the few open cavities within the body that accepts liquids inside it, unlike the lungs. It''s better also than having to circumvent muscles, and navigate blood vessels. Thus, it is much easier to work on, especially with an already pre-existing flow established."


    "Eh? Then this might actually work?" Robin asked.


    Jasmine paused in consideration. "If it doesn''t work..."


    "Then you will simply have to wait until the regular healing period is up." Chelsea replied.


    "Water healing, though internal, is the least harshest method, since the body is already over fifty percent water. Given an area where I am not disturbed, after a few treatments, the issue should be resolved. Of course, I would still need to examine the area to determine how many treatments are necessary. Unless, of course, you don''t trust my skill?"


    "I am okay with it." Robin was the first to say something.


    "Robin, we are talking about the heart! It is a very delicate instrument!" Jasmine objected.


    "I think you''ll find that the human body is tougher than you think." Robin replied. "The main question that you want to ask is: do I trust Chelsea enough to allow her to give me medical treatment?"


    The cabin grew quiet as Robin had hit upon the unspoken question hanging in the air.


    "Companionship is not merely travelling together, but a matter of trust." Robin replied. "If I cannot trust a person, then I woukd never allow them to accompany me."


    "But what if it is all just a ruse?" Christian asked. "It is easy enough to fake friendships."


    "Do you think I cannot tell false friends from true ones?" Robin asked. "On the contrary, discovering the false ones are my specialty. But Chelsea is not one of them."


    "How do you know?"he asked.


    Robin smiled. "Call it a gut feeling, but..." She thumped the area over her heart with her fist.


    "I believe her."

 100 She Gets a Water Scan

    Christian looked at Robin with a strangely serious expression on his face.


    The one who had not even turned 17 when he took up his sword....who had already accomplished many amazing feats, even to the point of putting aside his own coming of age....who managed to see what others could not see: the hero was still only just one man. He could neither be everywhere, nor could he right every wrong. But for every wrong he did see, he tried his utmost to right-even the things which he could have allowed others to do in his place.


    Christian clenched his fist, feeling he had never been more angry. He was angry at himself for not noticing the fact that Robin was taking too much on his shoulders. He should have realized such a thing far before Robin almost killed himself.


    "Very well then." He agreed. "But you''ll have to promise me one thing."


    "What?" Robin asked.


    "I want you to rely on us more. Don''t half kill yourself before asking for help. I don''t want one of my good friends to end up dead one day due to carelessness." Christiansaid.


    Robin''s eyes widened a bit, in surprise. Then, after a long moment, she smiled and laughed.


    "Fair enough." Came the reply.


    Robin took another moment to look around the room, quietly, before speaking. "I promise you all here, that, from now on, I will rely on your help."


    Those words, though freely spoken, were not taken lightly by anyone in that carriage.


    "That being the case," Robin turned to Chelsea. "Let''s see how well you know your water healing magic."


    As the carriage room seemed a bit cramped with everyone in that one room, Chelsea, Jasmine, and Robin moved into the other room. An invisible presence also floated after them, undetected.


    "And? What are you doing?" Robin asked Jasmine, who had followed closely behind.


    "Oh come on, this is one of the first opportunities I can get to witness water healing magic in action. Did you think that I''d let this chance slip by?" Jasmine rubbed her hands eagerly. Her excited smile, however, was slightly off-putting to Robin.


    "If you can''t stop smirking like an old man, I''ll throw you out." Robin warned.


    "Understood..." Jasmine''s expression quickly change expression to a polite analogous facade. The corner of Robin''s mouth twitched.


    ''To change expression so quickly, how very much like a noble. That ability is somewhat terrifying though.'' She thought.


    "So, what do I need to do, Doctor Chelsea?"Robin asked.


    "Oh, please, I am not such a learned person that I can be called such a thing." Chelsea blushed, as she used water magic to fill a cup.


    "I''ll need you to drink this. Then I want you to lie down and be quiet a bit so I can concentrate." Chelsea instructed.


    Without a second thought, Robin drank the water and lay down on the carriage seat. Chelsea hesitated. "You''re not going to doubt me?" She asked.


    "If I was going to doubt you, I would have done so back there." Robin replied. "Unless, are you planning to do something that will cause me to doubt you?"


    "Well...if it were any other demon, you would be considered fair game. But, since I and my brother have also placed many interestinghumans under our protection, I cannot cause myself to lose this chance to observe you closely."


    "Good to know~" Robin replied with a chuckle, as she continued to lay still. Perhaps it was due to the warm sunlight shining through the window hitting her face. Or perhaps, it was due to her inner ailment trying to heal itself. Whatever the reason, Robin quickly fell asleep.


    "No way, did you give Robin a sleeping draught?" Jasmine asked, confused.


    Chelsea stumbled a bit over her words. "No, sh-Robin fell asleep on he-his own."


    "Ah. is that so?" Jasmine looked down on Robin. "How envious, to be able to sleep anytime you want..."


    But, Jasmine was wrong. The fact that Robin could let down her guard enough to fall asleep in front of other people was the rarest of occurences.


    Chelsea put on a pair of white gloves, then prepared to invoke her water magic.


    "It should have begun circulating by now. Then, I shall now examine the damaged area to observe the extent of the damage."


    Chelsea held her hand out in open air, and began invoking water magic. The temperature in the carriage dropped by about five degrees.


    "It takes a long time for me to align the magic polarity and get the mana to settle down, but when I concentrate really hard, I can make this!"


    Chelsea showed Jasmine a thin rectangular sheet of what looked like black ice.


    "Ho? What''s this for?" Jasmine asked.


    "To observe the water that Robin drank. That magic water has my mana signature in it. and this sheet acts as a sort of mana signature detector. Let''s see..." Chelsea looked at Robin through the sheet.


    Various small blue lights were beginning to appear on the dark screen. The first thing that showed up was the large intestine. Then the blue lights broke up and began spreading throughout Robin''s body, lighting up the blood vessels until they eventually made their way to Robin''s heart.


    "How do you get the water to stay inside the heart while it''s pumping blood?" Jasmine asked.


    "Nothing much. I just make it hug the walls of the heart, away from the main current. Hmmm...." Chelsea examined the now clear image of Robin''s beating heart.


    "Here it is. Even though it''s damaged, there''s no way her mana source would accept another''s mana." Chelsea pointed to a dark spot along one of the heart''s walls.


    "So?" Jasmine asked. "If it''s just a black dot, how are you going to check the damage?"


    "Like this!" Chelsea made a hand signal, and the magic lights surrounded the mana source in an airtight manner, to the point where the contours of the source were crystal clear.


    "How beautiful..." Jasmine breathed.


    Robin''s mana source, according to the ice plate, was a shining blue mobius strip, slowly turning itself inside out.


    "This ice plate can only show my mana in it." Chelsea explained. "Though I can see it like this, I can only imagine how it would look like with Robin''s mana dying it in her own colors."


    Jasmine recalled the multi-colored brilliant light from when they measured Robin''s mana affinity. If Robin''s mana source were sparkling just like in the crystal ball...


    "You''re right. It would be really pretty." She agreed.


    "Ah, found it. See here?" Chelsea pointed to a spot on Robin''s mana source, where a crack gleamed upon the surface.


    "It was probably much worse than this beforehand." Chelsea muttered, spotting several other hair-thin cracks.


    "So? Can you heal it?" Jasmine asked.


    "Mmm? Ah, It shouldn''t be a problem. All I have to do is stimulate the mana source''s natural restorative powers.


    But, It will take at least five sessions. Since it''s within the heart, we''ll need to restrain each session to three days apart from each other, to make sure things are going well. So, in total, it will probably take me twenty days to finish treatment."


    "Eh? Twenty days!?" Jasmine exclaimed.


    "Why? Is that too long? I''m sorry for not being able to finish things at the drop of a hat-"


    "No, I mean it''s far too short!" Jasmine exclaimed. "Normally, to recover from such a serious injury, would take over a year! Due to the fact that light healing magic can''t be used, it may even take longer. But you wouldn''t even need a full month to heal it." She explained.


    The ice sheet in Chelsea''s hands dissipated. "Very well then. Treatment will begin tomorrow."


    Even with the examination being finished, Robin did not wake up. The two girls looked at each other and laughed a bit. Then they left Robin to rest by herself as they retreated to the other carriage room. It was best to avoid disturbing Robin''s sleep while they discussed water healing magic.


    At this point, the invisible presence drew closer to the sleeping Robin. It floated down from a corner of the room, where it had hidden. Hesitantly, it touched Robin''s forehead.


    While such a touch would usually awaken Robin, she continued to sleep deeply.


    As Robin slept, she began to dream.

 101 She Receives an Oath

    Robin was walking in a dark place. She could hear nothing but the sound of her footsteps echoing. She could feel nothing but the floor beneath her feet.


    "Hello?" She called out.


    No one answered. Robin kept walking forward. If she kept walking, then sooner or later, she would run into an exit or a wall, right?


    Suddenly, the sound of a door opening caught her ear. she turned around to see a doorway filled with light. The light was so bright that Robin couldn''t tell what was on the other side.


    "Hello?" She said.


    The sound of the whistling wind came from the door of light. While she was a bit apprehensive, Robin decided anywhere was better than this dark hallway. She stepped through the threshold into the light.


    She blinked as her eyes adjusted, and found herself standing in a forest grove. Flowers grew in abundance all around, and many wildlife were grazing or lazing about the clearing. The only thing they did was to lift up their heads for a bit to see the newcomer, before going back to chewing on clover.


    Robin walked about the clearing, before she headed for a great oak in the center. Its thick trunk and gnarled branches displayed how ancient it was. Yet, despite its age, the tree had an abundance of foliage gracing its crown.


    "Iyo-to!" Robin exclaimed as she climbed up the old oak to get a better view of the clearing. Once she stood upon a sturdy branch, she looked about for any kind of marker or topography that could indicate her location.


    "You won''t find anything like that. This space here was actually only created for our meeting. It isn''t that large."


    A voice startled her to the point where Robin almost fell off the tree branch.


    "Who''s there!?" She shouted out, putting her back to the tree. "Show yourself!" But, even looking around, she couldn''t find a source for the voice.


    "Gladly." The sound of a breeze drifted past Robin''s ear, and she turned to look at a small figure on the branch in front of her.


    "Eh?" She stared aghast in utter incomprehension. On the branch in front of her sat a siamese cat.


    ''-no, a kitten. It was too small to be an adult cat.'' Robin thought to herself.


    "How rude! I''ll have you know that I am older than that Ekkinshire kingdom of yours!" The Siamese glowered at Robin with its deep blue eyes.


    "Eh?" Robin''s head began to hurt. "You can hear my thoughts?" She asked.


    "Of course I can! It''s the basics of the basics to be able to hear what others think, after all." The siamese said. "Also, I am not a Siamese. Is that some new country thst I am not aware of? Regardless, I am not one. I am, what you humans call, a flying cat."


    "Eh? Flying cat?" Robin asked. "Like, jump, whoosh?"


    "Exactly!" And with that, the cat jumped off the branch. It flew up, down, and round and round the tree before it once more alighted upon the branch.


    "I suppose it''s very nice to meet you, mister...?"Robin hesitated, uncertain how to call the flying cat that had all the cuteness of flying squirrels and cats combined.


    "To be precise, I don''t actually have a name. I was wondering if you''d like to grant me one?" It asked.


    Before Robin began thinking about names, she paused. "Um, this isn''t going to be one of those things that needs mana, right? Because, my mana source is currently damaged right now, and I promised Jasmine that I wouldn''t use any magic before it''s healed."


    The cat simply chuckled, and butted its head against Robin''s hand.


    "Silly girl. A name isn''t something that requires mana from the namer. Your promise will remain intact, I give my word."


    Robin nodded. "But, we''ve only just met. How can you expect me to give you a fitting name if I am not sure what fits?" She asked.


    "Just choose something that fits my appearance and isn''t too childish." The cat''s tail swished about impatiently as it waited for Robin to bestow it a name.


    "Are you a boy or a girl?" She asked.


    "Not telling." The cat grinned mischievously. "Name, please~"


    "Hmmm..." Robin eyed the flying cat. From the tips of it''s blackened ears to the end of its blackened tail, it was a rather cute creature. The highlight of the face was its big blue eyes, kind of like the sky....


    "Ah, what was that name, it''s on the tip of my tongue!" Robin frowned as she tried hard to remember.


    "What is it? You have a name?" The flying cat jumped up, and flew around Robin.


    "Tell me, tell me!" It called, excited.


    "I think I got it...wait, nope!...I got it!" Robin opened her eyes. "''Skye''! Your name will be Skye."


    "Yaay! What does it mean?" Skye asked.


    "It usually means ''adventurous'' but it has come to mean ''free-spirited'' and boundless, like the actual sky." Robin replied. "I think it''s a good name for any flying cat, regardless of gender."


    "Skye, huh?" The cat''s face was beaming withexhilaration. "It''s a good name! I accept it."


    Then Skye did an unexpected thing. He nipped Robin''s finger open and drew out a drop of blood, before licking closed the wound.


    "Ouch-eh? Doesn''t hurt?" Robin said, surprised. "What was that....for?" She began to ask Skye, when she noticed somwthing strange.


    Robin''s drop of blood floated in mid air, defying gravity.


    "Eh?"


    Skye likewise nipped his paw open, drew out a drop of blood, then closed the opening with a lick. The two drops of blood began to circle in the air.


    "I accept Robin as my patron and partner, to follow in times of sun and times of rain, in peace and trouble,with utmost loyalty in return for the great grace of being bestowed a name. The duration of this contract is set until we both agree to separate, or until the death of either of us."


    The two drops of blood merged together, mixed completely, then separated into two drops again, and vanished into the bodies of Robin and Skye.


    "Er...what was that?" Robin asked, still somewhat confused.


    "It was a contract of loyalty. You are one naive person if you believe in the words of a completely strange animal, whom you''ve neither met, or heard of beforehand. Thus, I am accompanying you so that you aren''t completely fooled by more malicious minded creatures." Skye explained, nodding contentedly to itself.


    "You say that, but isn''t it just because I smell like fish that you were attracted to me?" Robin asked.


    "Well, you certainly do have a yummy smell about you, but if we''re talking about tasty smells, then the veiled lady before smells much tastier." Skye explained.


    "Then...why me?" Robin asked.


    "Mostly because you don''t seem the type to randomly pull on my tail, or confine me." Skye said.


    "And you seemed the most powerful, even with your damaged mana source, which is quite rare. It''s also partly because I rather like this name that you''ve bestowed upon me."


    "Oh? What if I gave you a name that you didn''t like?" Robin asked


    "Let''s just say that there was a chance of live mice finding their way into your bed..." Skye smiled sinisterly for a moment before chuckling. "It seems our time is almost up. Remember to call me Skye after you wake up!"


    "What? What do you mean?" Robin asked.


    and then the spirit world shattered as Robin found herself waking up.


    "Hack-choo!" She sneezed. Then opened her eyes, slowly, and blinked a few times.


    "Heavy.." Robin muttered as she felt it somewhat difficult to breath. She looked down. Nestled on her chest was a cute little flying cat, similar to the one in her dream. The cat''s tail had been resting on her nose, which is why Robin had sneezed.


    Robin felt slighrly surprised, but not by much.


    "Wake up, it''s morning!" Robin prodded the flying cat awake. "Good Morning, Skye~!" She chuckled.


    The cat yawned. "Good Morning..." It mewed.


    "Huh? I can still understand you? Am I still dreaming?" Robin asked, pinching her cheek. "Ow!"


    "Silly partner! Once we had formed the bond of loyalty, we can instantly hear each other! Isn''t that great! Praise me, praise me!" It flew around the room, excited.

 102 She Introduces Skye

    "Is that so?" Robin pinched her nose, as it still felt somewhat about to sneeze. When the feeling went away, she sat up, and looked about her. Judging from the angle of the sun,she hadn''t slept for more than half an hour.


    "Mmhm! Yep!" The kitten nodded.


    "This happens with any contract of loyalty?" Robin asked.


    "Nope~!" Skye answered cheerfully. "Only with me,because I''m special!"


    Robin put this information to the back of her head as she stretched, before standing up. After a quick thought, Robin grinned and inclined her head towards the room door.


    "Shall we go introduce you, then?" She asked, leisurely.


    "Uhn!" Skye jumped up from the seat, and drifted over to Robin''s shoulder, where it found it quite liked to perch.


    "You still haven''t answered my question, though." Robin noted.


    "Skye doesn''t know yet. Skye will only know when Skye becomes an adult. That''s what Skye''s mommy told her." Skye said. The flying cat was still revelling in the fact that it now had a name.


    ''Do genders work differently for beasts in this world?'' Robin wondered, before shrugging it off.


    When Robin entered the other carriage room, things went as she expected. First, everyone noticed the cute new additional companion sitting smugly on Robin''s shoulders. Second, the females surrounded Skye, and began exclaiming in delight over its cuteness. Third, the males laughed at how cute the Hero''s new companion looked.


    Christian, especially, had a difficult time holding in his laughter.


    ''I shouldn''t laugh! I know I shouldn''t! But for the Hero to have such a cute, girly little pet, I totally didn''t expect it!''


    His shoulders shuddered as he swallowed down his first bout of laughter, and turned back for a second look. But that was a bad idea. Because after that, he had to swallow down another bout of laughter that threatened to burst out.


    ''But, it really truly doesn''t feel even a bit unfitting for Robin''s pet to be so cute. Ah, if he knew, I might be punched to within an inch of my life.Get it together, me!'' Finally, Christian managed to regain control of his comportment.


    Keith managed to get away with a cough. Ponzu chuckled, and Gerard smiled brightly, then scowled as he realized yet another contender for Robin''s food had appeared on the scene.


    "Where did this cute little kitten come from?"Jasmine asked, eyes sparkling with uninhibited interest.


    "Surely not..." Chelsea glanced at Robin''s storage bracer.


    "I didn''t! Seriously, you know I can''t put living creatures inside a storage bracer!" Robin denied.


    "Well, for most storage bracers, that is true. But there are some with which it is possible." Chelsea replied with a knowing smile. "But, of course, they''re all owned by the most powerful men to prevent misuse."


    Robin frowned. "Even if that is so, I wouldn''t do it." She replied. "While magic is convenient, I am not willing to cross people''s lives with a spacial magic tool. That sort of thing is only considerable in cases of complete hopelessness."


    Chelsea pursed her lips. "I was only guessing~ You don''t need to be that serious..." she chuckled.


    Robin felt a headache as Skye hissed out his indignance at being disregarded.


    "I am not a mere kitten! I am older than before your kingdom was born! Yo u are all infants before me!" It spat, though no one else could hear it but Robin.


    "You say that, but who was the one who said ''Praise me, Praise me!'' back in the other room?" Robin teased.


    ""We-that was...hmmph!" the flying cat found itself unable to refute, so decided to turn his head away, and pretend it hadn''t heard a thing.


    "Robin? You can understand what he''s saying?" Jasmine asked, noticing the interaction between the hero and the cat.


    "Mmn. I can." Robin admitted.


    "So to say, this cat is able to speak?" Jasmine asked, here eyes like two twinkling stars.


    "Yup!" Robin nodded, then paused, and turned to Skye.


    "Can I tell them?" she asked, not wanting to get Skye in trouble.


    "Nothing of mine is a secret. I trust your judgement." Sky''s fluffy tail with the darkened tip slowly curled up, then flattened out leisurely.


    Robin nodded, and told the rest of them.


    "He swore an oath of loyalty to me not ten minutes ago." she said, without reserve.


    "An oath of loyalty?" Jasmine paused, as she recalled a certain matter. "Then, exactly how old is Skye?" she asked.


    "While he may look young, I have it in his own words that he''s older than Ekkinshire kingdom." Robin replied.


    "Mmn! Respect me!" Skye asserted with a nod. But all the others simply heard an adorable kitten''s mew. Even so, they could somewhat tell from the flying cat''s actions that it was asserting what Robin said was true.


    Robin imagined how the others heard Skye. Was it like a certain cute yellow electric rat monster she recalled from a popular anime show? She smiled at the thought, as she glanced at Skye.


    "You! Are you thinking something rude about me?" Skye asked.


    "Hmm? No, not at all." Robin replied, as she sat down next to Gerard.


    "So, Gerard, how is your little friend doing?" she asked.


    "She''s better, but she''s been pretty depressed ever since she found out what was inside Oracle''s palace." Gerard answered.


    "He wasn''t handsome!" A sobbing wail came from the brim of Gerard''s hat. "He took all that trouble to hide his face, and it wasn''t even beautiful! What a waste!"


    "What''s even more of a waste is a wind fairy that attempts to create water." Skye noted.


    "What was that! Who said that! I''ll slice em in half with my wind blad-uh....who?" Fairy Elise asked as she finally notices what all the hullabaloo was about.


    "Why concern yourself over what his face looks like? There are many handsome men that are secretly villains. There are also many ugly faces that hide pure hearts." Skye asked.


    "Hmmph! You''re just saying it because you didn''t see him!" Elise sulked.


    "I didn''t think his face was ugly. But, then again, I didn''t think it was handsome, either." Christian noted, before he asked Keith. "Right?"


    "I also wouldn''t write him down as the ugly sort." Keitb said. "That confidence of his can make even the most ordinary of faces to seem extraordinary, given enough time. That''s probably why the guards are so loyal."


    "No way, no way, NO WAY!!!" Elise squealed in anger.


    "It seems beauty truly is in the eyes of the beholder." Robin chuckled, amused.


    "Just what is that supposed to mean!?" Elise glared at Robin with tears forming in her eyes.


    "It means everyone''s standard of beauty is different." Robin replied, amiably.


    "Or, that someone''s sense of beauty can degenerate."Skye added, looking sidelong at Elise.


    "You! I saw that!" Elise shouted sharply.


    "I don''t remember doing particularly anything, though." Skye said from its perch on Robin''s shoulder. "What particularly did you see?"


    "You looked at me! And said that my sense of beauty has degenerated!" Elise pointed at Skye, as she shouted.


    "I don''t recall naming anyone. I was simply making a general observation." Skye replied, nonchalantly licking the fur on its paw.


    "You were thinking it, though!" Elise persisted.


    "Oh? Do you have a mind reading skill?" Skye asked.


    "No!" Elise replied loudly.


    "Then who are you ro say what I am thinking, and whether I am thinking of you or not?" Skye asked.


    "Ah...I''m going to scout!" Elise found she couldn''t refute, and stomped her feet. A tiny tornado swirled about her, bringing her out the slightly open window.


    "I''m not sure what''s being said here, but I think it''s the cat''s win." Christian observed.


    "FLYING cat!" Skye corrected.


    "Ahem!" Robin acted as a translator. "Skye happens to be a flying cat." She told Christian.


    "That is the truth!" Skye jumped down into Robin''s lap, as there was a patch of sunshine there.


    "Now, I am going to take a nap. Please keep your voices down." He asked.


    "Mmn. We''ll keep quiet. Enjoy your nap." Robin replied.


    Robin used her hand to smooth Skye''s soft and downy fur. She had become an expert at petting cats. Skye flinched at first, in surprise, but soon stretched out in pleasure.


    "Mmm...that feels good. Very well, I, Skye, shall permit it!" Skye announced as it began to purr.

 103 She Finds Something Hidden

    While Robin expertly applied her petting technique on Skye, Jasmine and Chelsea looked on enviously. They also wanted to hold and pet such an adorable little creature! But then again, they didn''t want to disturb Skye, as he was blissfully enjoying being petted. It wouldn''t do if they were to become hated, after all.


    Christian stared at Skye for a different reason. The furry little cat seemed to be enjoying himself so much that Christian felt a bit envious. When was the last time that he had enjoyed something to the point where he could smile like that little cat?


    Both he and Skye agreed, though, that it was more fun when they were with Robin than anywhere else.


    Keith glanced at the cat, then lifted his eyes to examine Robin''s face, looking for something. Robin, noticing his gaze, glanced up, but Keith had already looked away.


    ''Was it my imagination?'' Robin wondered to herself, as she paused.


    Skye patted her hand with his paw.


    "Don''t stop now!" he protested. "Keep going!"


    Robin returned to petting the flying cat until it had fallen fast asleep.


    ----


    Three hours later, they stopped in a clearing to take a break by the roadside to rest the horses, as the road was beginning to get rough. Skye took to the air, to stretch its limbs, and everyone stretched and walked around the clearing.


    "Ho? It seems like there are some ruins over there?" Robin said, looking at the remains of a tower visible from the road.


    "Ah, yes. this was one of the watch towers of Ekkinshire kingdom. As part of the treaty signed with the Demon King, wehave not repaired them as a sign of our goodwill." Christian said.


    Robin looked at Christian with surprise.


    "What?" He asked.


    "I''m surprised." Robin admitted. "I didn''t think you would know the specifics of that treaty, given your temperament."


    "Give me some credit, please." Christian sighed. "Just because I don''t know something doesn''t mean I can''t learn. I''ve been studying the treaty ever since we left the Capitol."


    "Hmm. I guess you''re right. You do deserve some credit." Robin cheekily agreed with a mischievous smile, as she stood up.


    "What?" Christian''s mind became blank as his eyes were captured by Robin''s smile.


    "All this sitting is making me feel rusty. Want to go explore the ruins before we set off again?" She asked innocently, as if she hadn''t just teased him.


    "Ah, yes. I''ll tell Keith to let him know.." Christian turned away awkwardly, as his ears turned red. Internally, his mind was going into overdrive.


    ''Why was I staring at a man!? This is bad... Could it be that I am actually...'' He shuddered. ''No! there''s just no way. Then, maybe it''s something else? That''s it! Robin looks so much like a girl, that I am starting to treat him like one...This is bad...''


    Christian had a serious expression on his face, as he approached Keith, who was talking to Earl, one of the knights.


    "Is something the matter?" Keith asked.


    "Ah..no...Robin and I are going to explore the ruins over there. I wanted to let you know so that you wouldn''t get worried." Christian replied.


    Keith watched Christian''s expression, and sighed.


    "To be honest, I''m more worried about you, at this point, but since Robin will be with you, I can be at ease. Call out if you need something."


    "Mmn. I will." Christian nodded, still preoccupied with his internal crisis.


    ''I need to reinforce the fact that Robin is a man.'' Christian came to the conclusion. ''He is a Hero. As a Hero, he should have my respect.''


    Christian paused, then reached into his bag and pulled out a flask, taking a sip.


    "You know, of all the odd things to do, you really shouldn''t be drinking hard liquor before going exploring." Robin pointed out. As Christian had taken a while, she had come to see what was holding him up. Unfortunately, the monent she caught sight of him was when he was taking a sip from his flask.


    "What? No, I''m not drinking liquor this is...um..." Christian stammered.


    "What kind is it? Bourbon? Whiskey? PerhapsButterscotch or Vodka?" Robin asked.


    "It''s not-" Christian choked. Robin looked at him with an unbelieving stare.


    "Really, it isn''t what you think it is." Christian insisted.


    "I''ll be the judge of that." Robin said cooly as she confiscated his flask. Bringing it up ro her nose, she sniffed. "Eh, it really isn''t alcohol?...There''s no smell...but then again, it could be a flask magicked to not let the smell escape..."


    She took a sip. "It really isn''t alcohol!? Isn''t this just water?" Robin asked. "Why would you put water in a flask when you can just grab some from the water barrel?"


    "That''s because this is no ordinary water." Christian sighed. "It''s Holy Spring Water. I went through a lot of trouble in order to get this before I left. Do you remember when I was caught in that spell that had me -er...chase you all over the Capitol?" He asked.


    "To be honest, I was trying to forget it." Robin replied flatly.


    "Ah..well, this was the antidote that I heard you fed me while I was out." Christian replied somewhat awkwardly.


    "It is highly effective at expelling and cancelling any foreign mana or active spells that affect the body. So, if, per se, there was an illusion spell surrounding the castle, after drinking holy spring water, unless it were a high ranked spell, the odds of being trapped in an illusion are greatly reduced."


    "Really?" Robin asked.


    "Yes, really." Christian nodded. He didn''t tell Robin that he secretly suspected thst he might still be under the effects of that failed potion.


    "Somehow, this water sounds more amazing now. Ah, and I just drank some! Was it expensive?" She asked Christian, a bit worried.


    Christian shook his head. "Not expensive, just troublesome to acquire, since there''s only a certain amount that we take from the spring every year, to preserve its effectiveness. Any additional water must be applied for, and approved by the Spring Guardian.


    Luckily, my father had prepared some for the banquet, to prevent any unfortunate accidents from happening. But, when I filled a flask with it, I was caught by old Skinflint..."


    "Ah, you were scolded?'' Robin chuckled.


    Christian nodded. "For two whole hours after the party ended, I had to listen to him. The more precious something is, the longer the scolding."


    Robin nodded, and patted him on the shoulder, returning his flask. "You have my sympathy." She said solemnly with a straight face, but her trembling shoulders gave it away.


    "What, you''re laughing at me!?" Christian exclaimed.


    "Ahahahaha, Sorry!" Robin burst out into laughter. "I can''t help it! The prince getting lectured by the treasurer, hahah! The mental image is just too funny!" She doubled over laughing, then stepped back, out of reach ofChristian''s hair-ruffling hand.


    "You..." Christian''s expression twitched. "Get back here! I will make sure that not a hair on that head is in its place, when I''m done!"


    "Haha! That''s only if you can catch me~" Robin said, running straight towards the ruins. "I''ll race you there!"


    "Hey, that isn''t fair! You had a head start!" Christia complained, as he followed Robin to the ruins. Robin hid out of sight, when she arrived, planning to play a trick on Christian.


    "Ooy! Get out here, Robin, and face me!" Christian called out.


    "Ho? I won, so I should get a prize, shouldn''t I?" Robin asked. Her voice echoed in the ruins, making it hard to tell where she was hiding.


    "It can''t be called winning if you ran before the race was announced. You cheated!" Christian replied, looking around.


    "So, no prize? How disappointing. I''m afraid I must decline then." Robin teased. "How strange, for someone who is quite willing to throw money away to random strangers, you sure can be stingey about the strangest things."


    "Robin, I''m serious. Although these ruins are small, there are still dangers involved. Please come out where I can see you!" Christian said, more seriously.


    "Then why do I get the feeling that you''re the most dangerous thing here?" Robin replied, leaning against the greenery growing out of a small cliff face behind her.


    Toc! Toc. Tuk...


    The noise echoed out from behind her, as a portion of the cliff opened up to reveal a cavern. Robin, in surprise, turned around swiftly, only to realize that it was probably a secret room she had discovered by accident.


    "Gotcha!" Christian grabbed her from behind, and messing up her hair. "That''s for laughing at me!" He said, before noticing Robin''s attention was elsewhere.


    "It looks like I found something." Robin said, quietly.

 104 She Finds a Piece of the Pas

    Robin stared into the darkness underneath the lush green vines dotted with wisteria flowers. The opening was veiled in shadows. It was difficult to figure out if there was danger within.


    "Master, what are your looking at?" Skye swooped down to ask. Skye had been checking out the surrounding area. But, now that Skye was finished, naturally, the flying squirrel returned to sit on Robin''s shoulder.


    "We found a secret entrance." Robin told the flying kitten, as she scratched behind Skye''s ears. "But, I can''t tell if there are any traps or not."


    "Let Skye go! Skye can see in the dark! Skye can tell you if there are dangers in there!" The cat volunteered.


    "Are you sure?" Robin asked.


    "Leave it to me!" Skye jumped off Robin''s shoulder and glided in through the dark entrance.


    "Where''s he going?" Christian asked.


    "He''s scouting out the area in search of hidden dangers." Robin answered.


    "Is that so?" Christian asked.


    "All clear!" Skye''s voice came back to Robin.


    "It seems I was worried for nothing." Robin said with a sigh, as she stepped through the entrance.


    "Better safe than sorry." Christian chuckled as he followed behind Robin into the hidden room. Robin had Christian light some torches for them as they examined the room.


    It could not be called a small room. The room was more than large enough to hold twenty to thirty guests aside from them. Yet, it also could not be called a large room, as many countless tomes and records lined bookshelves, and made stacks upon the floor.


    Several spells to keep away rodents, snakes, and book worms could be seen painted on the walls in a uniform manner, similar to a rudimentary form of wallpaper. Another spell to keep away the damp could also be seenon the bookshelves.


    From the amount of books, it seemed to be the hideout of a Grand Magician, or Scholar. Robin immediately began storing the books on the ground away in her storage bracer. Christian moved to the desk at the back of the room, but leapt back with a sudden cry.


    "What is it!?" Robin rushed over, asking Christian. Christian pointed to a large black tarantula with sinister red markings climbing on the skull of a skeleton, slumped in its chair. It hissed at them.


    Robin lifted an eyebroy, and looked at Skye.


    "I thought you said it was safe." She scolded Skye.


    "Well, that''s what the spider said!" Skye retorted.


    "Did you try asking the spider if he is venomous?" Robin asked.


    "Oops. I forgot since I''m immune to most poisons." Skye dipped his head, shyly. "I''ll ask him now!"


    After a brief silent exchange, Skye nodded and turned to Robin. "He says yes, but only to noisy people. He likes his sleep, after all."


    Robin nodded.


    "Christian?" She said in a low voice to the prince. "Skye says it bites only people that make loud noises." Christian turned his head, catching her smile that wasn''t a smile.


    "So keep your mouth shut, or else..." She glanced at the spider. Christian swallowed, and nodded fiercely.


    "Skye, can you ask the spider if we can take the books here?" Robin asked.


    "Sure!" After another brief exchange, Skye turned to reply.


    "He says yes, but leave the bookcases behind, and leave the door open. He wants to venture out to eat something good after such a long time."


    Robin nodded. "Will do." She replied.


    Then the sinister looking spider hopped down off the skeleton, and quickly ran out the door.


    "...Huh." Christian uttered curiously, looking in the direction the tarantula had gone. It turned out that there were venomous beasts with such mild tempers? Truly amazing.


    ----


    Outside the cave, the tarantula looked back towards the entrance and shuddered. After such a long time, to see people with such monstrous auras, had shocked it to the core. Even more frightening was their pet, which was as powerful as a beast deity that the tarantula had only heard of in small tales whispered among other beasts on nights of a full moon.


    Surely, if he had tried pulling anything funny, that beast deity would have squashed him flatter than the floor.


    Hopefully, they would finish, and leave soon. that den was now the spider''s safe place. It would hate for that room to be taken away from it...


    ----


    Robin looked at the skeleton''s clothing. The buttons were silver, precious metals had been sewn into the clothes, and there was gold braid along the edges. It was too bad that the cloth was torn in several areas.


    "Do you know who this is?" Robin asked. Christian shook his head.


    "The last time anyone was in this area was over 15 years ago. Since the war, there were a lot of influential people that went missing, sothere''s no way to tell simply from his clothes."


    "Then I shall have to work from what I know." Robin sighed. "Though the man was somewhat affluent, he preferred an efficient lifestyle. Either he like reading, or collecting books may have been his job. Also, his name was Toby."


    "Hmm...wait, what!? How did you know his name?" Christian asked, completely confused.


    Robin tapped the desk in front of the skeleton.


    "Because he signed his name, of course. This is not a book that he was reading, but a book that he was writing, his diary, I think. If you don''t believe me, the remains of a feather quill pen should be loosely grasped in the skeleton''s right hand." Robin replied, as she picked up the diary, flipping through it.


    It seemed the skeleton used to be the son of a famous general in the war. Due to the fact that it was dangerous, he was hidden in that room, in case a demon would use him to force the general to surrender.


    His father had promised him that if he became a great mage, he would be allowed to come out of hiding. So the young man applied himself very hard towards studying. Food came through a fake offerings altar placed upon the hill above his hiding place.


    After a particularly violent battle, the general stopped coming. Toby kept waiting, but the general didn''t visit anymore, nor did food arrive. He had provisions stocked up in case of an emergency, but, as the days grew more, and the food grew less, he began to worry. Just what was keeping his father from visiting?


    Soon enough, Toby ran out of provisions. But, when he tried to open the door, he realised, to his horror, that the inner mechanism to open the door from the inside had somehow broken. He was trapped in there. Poor Toby''s last words that he wrote were: ''Surely, father will come and save me...Father...why didn''t you save me? ''


    "What do you think of this?" Robin asked.


    "Toby, huh?" Christian murmured. "Any tomes from before or during the war are considered priceless. Father would be pleased if you gave them to him or Jasmine for safe keeping. Our scholars are ever eager to unearth new facts about the prewar era. So, if this were known, they might shamelessly


    mob you with requests to borrow with no intention of returning."


    "That bad, huh? Well, this is not a bad treasure to find." Robin finished gathering all the books. "It will give me something to do other than sleeping, cooking, and fighting."


    "Hey, leave some for the historians! You''re gonna make them cry." Christian pointed out,jokingly.


    "No need to bring up past hostilities so soon after its end. That will only stir up discontent. The books will still be here fifty years later, when tempers have completely cooled." Robin replied, sagely.


    "It''s been fifteen years! Surely the people have forgotten by now?" Christian asked.


    Robin sighed. "While I wish that were so, it seems both humans and demons are creatures that are very good at holding a grudge for long periods of time. Until the current generation has become old, the pain of the past will always hover in the back of their minds."


    She turned to Christian, and poked him in the chest. "That''s why, I''m counting on you to make your country a place which can harbor, and protect its people''s smiles. Be productive in peace, and defensive in war. Spread kindness, justice, and prosperity to all its corners. But, be watchful, lest the power-hungry seek to corrupt it to ruin."


    Christian''s eyes widened as he heard Robin''s words. Robin smiled sadly for a moment


    "Perhaps..." She said, before turning to face the sunshine streaming in through the doorway. As she made her way out, her silhouette seemed a bit lonely when cast against the gleaming sunshine.


    "...Perhaps, one day in the future, your kingdom will be able to say, ''There is no need for us to summon heroes anymore.''"


    Christian found himself unable to say anything as he watched Robin, memorizing, and pondering over her words in his heart. Then he also stepped out into the sunshine.

 105 She Enters The Grasslands

    "I was a bit surprised earlier, actually. You seemed quite calm facing the bones of another person." Christian said suddenly, breaking the silence between them as they headed back.


    "Come to think of it, you''re right! Maybe it''s because I hadn''t seen his face when he was alive..." Robin mused.


    ''No, wait, it''s probably because I''m used to all those Halloween decorations, that I unconsciously thought of it as one, in order not to freak out...'' Robin thought to herself. But, she decided not to tell Christian. It would be too troublesome to explainwhy people would decorate their houses with fake skeletons and creepy monsters.


    But, even if Robin didn''t say anything, Christian was watching her face as her expressions changed during her thoughts.


    ''Ah, he''s figured something out, now. But he doesn''t want to explain anything....Somehow, it seems like the explanation would be troublesome.'' Christian smiled.


    He felt he was getting a bit closer to Robin by learning more about him. In fact, Robin generally had a good grip on his facial expressions most of the time. It was only during moments like these where his thoughts somewhat showed on his face.


    "Oooy!" Robin looked up to see the wind fairy, Elise, heading to them.


    "You guys were taking too long! Gerard and the others are getting nervous." Elise said, flying around the two, effortlessly, as she attempted to hurry them back.


    Robin was surprised. Surely, they hadn''t been inside the secret room for that long, had they? She turned to look at Christian,who was gazing up at the sky.


    "She''s right. It''s been an hour already." He said. "If we want to camp out here, then we could probably set up an early camp...but I don''t want to camp out knowing that spider is around here..."


    Robin nodded. "We''re done here. You can tell Gerard that we''re on our way back."


    "I''ll tell him! I''ll tell him!" Skye called, zooming by on his way to camp.


    "Oh no you don''t! Not if I tell him first!" Elisechased after Skye. She flew at top speed to catch up with the flying cat, despite his head start.


    Robin chuckled at seeing Elise''s competitive spirit. Even if Skye DID arrive first, no one other than Robin and Elise could understand what the flying cat was saying. The fact that Elise didn''t realize that she was being teased made it all the more humorous.


    "Ho? A contest is it?" Christian asked.


    "If it''s a contest, then the winner is fixed." Robin said, with a fond expression. "Looks like those two might become good friends..."


    While it had never really happened to her, she had noticed other people becoming friends in that manner. ''Yep. I was just unlucky that I couldn''t find a friend back then. Not many people would willingly cross that group, after all...'' She thought as she gave a small sigh.


    Christian didn''t know why Robin''s eyes stared off into the distance, or why Robin''s smile suddenly seemed melancholy, but he didn''t like this quietly morbid atmosphere.


    "Friends, is it?" He asked. "I see...Then, maybe someday they''ll be as close friends as we are now!"


    Robin stared at him, as if he were speaking a foreign language.


    ''Da heck, who are you, and what have you done with Christian!?'' Was what Robin might have said. Instead...


    "Pfft! Ahahahahah!" Robin suddenly found herself laughing uncontrollably.


    "Did I say something funny?" Christian asked.


    "Yes." Robin chortled, wiping away a tear that had crept out of her eye. "And no..."


    "I don''t understand?" Christian was at a loss.


    "What I''m trying to say is...Thanks for being my friend, even if we''ve only known each other for a month." Robin said, clapping Christian''s shoulder.


    "Likewise." Christian grinned rogue-ishly.


    -------


    "You were taking too long!" Gerard pouted sulkily.


    "My bad. We lost track of the time." Robin replied.


    "Then-" Gerard began to say, but Robin interrupted.


    "BUT! That doesn''t mean you''re getting an extra serving of sweets tonight." Robin said, looking pointedly at Gerard''s gut.


    Gerard was a skinny lad when he set out. Now he could be seen as having a normal weight. But, if he ate any more than the normal portions on a regular basis, then he would probably roll straight towards becoming a big fatty.


    "Tche!" Gerard clicked his tongue as his strategy failed.


    "Lost track of the time? Surely the tower ruins weren''t that extensive?" Jasmine asked.


    "We found a hidden room" Christian replied.


    "Oh? A hidden room? Was there any treasure?" Keith teased.


    "There was a very large poisonous spider on top of the skeleton of a young man." Robin replied straight away, stopping Christian from saying anything.


    "Oh? how could you tell?" Chelsea asked.


    Robin scratched the tip of her nose. How could she explain rudimentary forensics?


    "The skeleton didn''t have any wisdom teeth."She finally said. "Generally people don''t gain wisdom teeth until after they turn 18. This means that he was younger than 18 years old. But judging from the skeleton, he was almost as high as you, Christian, so that means that he shouldn''t have been much younger-most likely a little older than I am."


    "Is that so?" Jasmine asked.


    "While I wouldn''t say this knowledge is that common where I come from, there is a special branch of -shall we say-scholars? These scholars study ways to identify a person based on their bones. I only happened to hear a few pointers from them while I was training my hand-to-hand combat." Robin said, as she attempted to explain.


    "While it is pretty amazing, how is that important?" Gerard asked.


    "Well, you can tell if they used the skeleton of a midget or a dwarf to replace the skeleton of a child." Robin replied. "This might help in case of kidnappings disguised as deaths."


    "That seems to be a very specific case." Gerard noted.


    Robin shrugged. "Like I said, scholar stuff. I''m just a layman compared to them. Given time, they can also reconstruct an image of how the skeleton would have looked before they died."


    "They can bring back the dead?" Christian frowned in confusion.


    "No. the dead remains dead. At best, we can just see what they looked like before they died." Robin shook her head. "That''s why, although you can snatch them from death''s jaws, once they''re dead, that''s it."


    "Ahem! I believe we were going to travel a bit longer before setting up for the night?" Keith politely hinted to the company.


    "Ah, that''s right. We can talk all we want in the carriage." Robin chuckled, and politely bowed to Jasmine and Chelsea.


    "Ladies first~!" She said, with a mischievous smile. Jasmine and Chelsea looked at each other, both struggling not to laugh as they climbed into the carriage with Robin''s help.


    -----


    As the carriage continued, the forested areas gave way to hilly grassland. The trees became fewer and farther between. Here and there, Robin could make out many plants that she recognized: blue flags, cowslip, black locust trees, yarrow, milkweed, bayberries, agrimony, balsamroot, speedwell, meadowsweet, etc.


    "You''ve been muttering something for a while, Robin." Chelsea pointed out. "Please stop making us so concerned and just tell us!"


    "Eh?" Robin looked up in surprise. "I was saying something? I was only thinking of the names for all these plants we are passing by."


    "That''s it?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin nodded. "It''s a game I played with my brother whenever we were in the countryside. We would compete and see who could name the most of the flowering plants we passed by."


    Then a rare blush crept up on Robin''s cheeks.


    "Um, sorry, for playing such a childish game. It''s been a while since I''ve been outside the city, so I couldn''t help but think of it. This place looks similar to the area we used to visit when we left the city."


    "Not a problem~ Seeing that the hero just became an adult only several days ago, I can overlook it~." Christian joked.


    "Oh? And you are the very picture of maturity?" Jasmine raised an eyebrow at Christian.


    "Geh! Give me some credit for staying out of trouble this long!" Christian pleaded with Jasmine. "I''ve been giving it my best efforts!"


    "Oh really? Back in the castle, didn''t you-" Christian hurriedly covered up Chelsea''s mouth.


    "Nope nope! You must be mistaken, that wasn''t me!" he said hurriedly.


    Robin laughed at their exchange.


    "Let me play too!" Gerard added.


    Robin looked at him thoughtfully. "Do you know the names of the flowers?"


    "Ah..."


    Gerard froze as he realized that he only knew forest flowers. Everyone in the carriage laughed.


    Having travelled several miles into the grasslands, the carriage finally stopped at the foot of a hill, where the surroundings were more level and visible than the other places.


    They pitched the tents, and tied the horses to a long lead rope so that they could graze on the natural hay.

 106 She Meets A Traveller

    Robin was swinging her wooden sword, carefully following the master''s instructions. Her brother was swinging a wooden sword alongside her. They were on the last set. Robin practiced just as diligently as when she did the first set.


    Finally, they came to the end, and the master called for a break. Robin reluctantly put away her wooden sword. Then she sat down on the ground to do some stretches before resting.


    "You don''t have to do this." Her brother told her. "You know that most places don''t even allow you to carry swords openly in broad daylight. And the places that do allow it are far too dangerous for you."


    "No, this is something I feel I must do." Robin replied.


    "Why are you pushing yourself like this?" he asked.


    "Why do you think I am pushing myself?" Robin asked, returning her brother''s gaze.


    "Please. Trying to catch up to me, who had a six year head start isn''t pushing yourself?" Her brother scoffed. "If it''s because of what happened with uncle, then-"


    "It''s not that." Robin interrupted. "That matter is already finished. I know that."


    "Then why are you doing this?" her brother asked.


    Robin paused mid-stretch and considered things. "I don''t know. But I''m doing this because I want to. Not because I have no other choice. Besides, even if I don''t use a sword, a cane would also do nicely for self defense."


    Her brother looked at her with a conflicted smile.


    "Robin, sometimes we can know things in our head, but not realize them in our heart. Aren''t I here for you? Don''t overdo it trying to do everything on your own."


    "I''m not overdoing things! I''m perfectly fine! Jeez, bro! You''re such a worrywart!" Robin shrugged him off.


    "If you weren''t becoming such a survival junkie, then I wouldn''t have to worry." Her brother snorted, ruffling her hair. "Until you are satisfied, I suppose I can accompany you."


    "Isn''t that obvious? There''s no way you can survive on your home cooking." Robin sniffed.


    "Heheh, ouch!" Her brother pretended to be sad. "Come on, I followed that recipe exactly! Who knew I would fall asleep so deeply that I wouldn''t hear the alarm?"


    "Can''t even set the oven timer." Robin shook her head. "I am never coming home to the house filled with smoke again, bro."


    "Fine, fine. I can''t do without you anymore. I get it. Older bro here is useless for everything except being a placeholder, huh..." Her brother sighed in mock depression.


    "As long as you realize." Robin brushed her clothes off as she stood up.


    "...Robin..." Her brother hesitantly asked. "What will you do with all of this training you''ve been going through?"


    "Isn''t it obvious?" Robin said. "I''ll become your bodyguard in the future, and protect you from your enemies. That way, you''ll be safe, and I can have a big fat paycheck at the end of the month!"


    "Why, you!" her brother ruffled her hair again. "Are you thinking of leeching off of my good fortune?"


    "Who else would you spend your money on but your cute younger sister, though?" Robin replied jokingly.


    "Mmn. I suppose you''re right. Okay. You can leech off me as much as you want until you find out what you really want to do." He replied seriously, patting Robin on the shoulder.


    "But...perhaps now and then you could wear a skirt or two. I won''t push you to wear a dress, but I don''t like people saying that I''m raising you like a boy."


    "Brother, we''ve already discussed this. besides, skirts will just get in the way if I need to protect you." Robin ended the conversation.


    Her brother looked and her, raising his eyebrow in quizzical disbelief. "You keep saying you''re fine, but then why do you stay away from dresses and cut your hair short? Just what is it are you still afraid of?"


    Robin didn''t answer that question because she didn''t know the answer.


    ---


    Robin awoke to her older brother''s words still echoing in her heart. It was still dark out, but she wasn''t in the mood to sleep anymore. She got up, put on her mask, and moved outside to join the knights on duty guarding the fire.


    Since it was Sir Raymond and Sir Grey on duty, the time was somewhere close to dawn.


    "Wearing that mask again, Hero Robin?" Earl asked, poking fun at her.


    "It can''t be helped. My face is so charming as to cause all the ladies to swoon." Robin answered, unabashedly.


    "Che! With all that confidence, I don''t see why you must take such efforts." Earl grumbled.


    "A gentleman must never do anything that would harm or tarnish the good name of another." Robin said in mock seriousness. "That being said, to sacrifice my face for the sake of the good health of all the fairer gender about me is one of my great honors."


    The two men chuckled.


    "Can''t sleep? Raymond asked, softly, ending the exchange of BS.


    "Mmn." Robin nodded, sitting down near the fire. "I slept a lot this afternoon. Also, there''s a bit too much on my mind to sleep now."


    "That''s all right. I actually like this time of the night. It''s perfect for pondering on things." Raymond nodded as he looked up at the almost full moon.


    "That''s right. While this guy is busy daydreaming, I''m the one who''s stuck with all the actual work of guarding the camp." Sir Grey joked.


    "Sure! As long as you forget the times you''re busy thinking about your lady love back at home~" Scoffed Raymond. "''I think of you every night, until the stars grow dim'' Or so it said in your letter, unless you were lying through your teeth, that is."


    "Wha-how did you..?" Sir Earl stammered.


    "It''s hard not to see when you leave your unfinished letters lying around in your tent." Raymond sniffed. "The smell of damp...It might rain later on today. We may need to unpack the horse blankets. spring rains are known to be chilly."


    "I''ll give Ponzu a heads-up to serve hot food today, then." Robin nodded.


    "What? You''re not cooking?" Earl asked, slightly disappointed.


    "It''s not that. I just need to test how well Ponzu is absorbing my knowledge, in case the company finds itself separated for some reason." Robin stood up.


    She couldn''t tell them that the real reason was because her monthly pains had arrived, and she wasn''t up to it. She stood up, intending to go relieve herself before heading back to her tent. But she paused when Raymond suddenly asked a question.


    "Ah, that reminds me. The others might not have noticed much, but you carry a faint scent of blood on you. Did you get injured?"


    Robin paused. "Ah. I thought I had hidden it well...A cat scratched me a while back, and the wound was a bit deep. It''s a mere flesh wound, so I didn''t want to worry you."


    "A cat? Do you mean the flying one that is your pet?" Sir Earl asked.


    "No, no. It''s different." Robin quickly denied. "It was back in Port Oracle, after the contest. I was careless, and got swiped. But, as it is properly bandaged, it should be fully healed by the end of this week."


    "Is that so?" Raymond said. "Well, if you ever have another sleepless night, our shift welcomes another watcher."


    "Thanks, I appreciate it." Robin nodded. Then her eyes narrowed as she focused on the darkness beyond the circle of the campfire''s light. Footsteps, along with the sound of things bumping together. Someone was approaching.


    "Halt! Who goes there? State your name and business." sir Earl called out.


    The figure paused just outside of the circle of light, and raised his hands.


    "Please forgive me for startling you. The name is Quinn. I am just a lone bard, travelling on the road. As I have lost my way, I came to ask for directions, and wondered if I might spend the night by your fire." The man said.


    Sir Raymond was about to reject his request, when Robin tapped him on his shoulder.


    "Step forward, so that we can see you a bit better." She said.


    The man paused, then stepped into the radius of the firelight. The man wore a broad-brimmed hat and also wore a mask over his eyes.


    "Why do you wear a mask?" Robin asked.


    "I could ask you the same question, actually." The man said.


    "True." Robin laughed, examining the man. He wore light travelling clothes, that were of good quality. While his upper face was obscured by a mask, his well-sculpted lower jaw indicate that he may be quite handsome.


    "Very well then. You say that you''re a bard? Where is your instrument?" Robin asked.


    The man winced. "Well, sadly enough...would you believe that a boar rammed into me and broke it this morning?" He withdrew a lute-like instrument from under his cloak. The bridge was separated from the drum, and several strings had snapped in half. Both pieces now hung from the intact strings, looking pitifully like a dead duck.

 107 She Plays a Song

    "Pfft!" Robin failed to hide the laugh that burst out of her at the pitiful sight of the unlucky instrument.


    "Hey, what''s going on?" Christian yawned as he and Keith came out of his tent. "And who are you?" He asked Quinn.


    Robin waved him over. "It''s a wandering bard whose instrument met its demise bearing the brunt of a charging boar. Which reminds me..." Robin turned back to the masked Quinn. "How did you escape the boar?"


    "Um...This is embarassing, but after that, I fell into the river." Quinn replied, rubbing the bridge of his nose.


    "Is that so? Do you know if there is a town nearby?" Prince Christian asked, giving up on sleep. It seemed that Chelsea, Ponzu, Gerard, and Jasmine were blessed with the ability to sleep through all the noise.


    "There should be one nearby. I was originally going to return to town, but I''m afraid I got turned around, and ended up walking in the wrong direction, which is how I met you." Quinn said honestly.


    "Hmm..." Christian pondered, eyeing Quinn as he contemplated what to do. Robin, meanwhile, was searching in her magic bag for something she had bought a while back in Port Oracle.


    "Nope...that''s not it...now where did I.. ? Ah!"She snapped her fingers as the idea came to her. "Storage bracer, of course!"


    "Robin, what are you doing?" Christian finally asked.


    "Well, he broke his instrument, right? I was in the mood to listen to some music..." She brought out a brand new lute. "...so, I remembered I had this!"


    "Where did you buy a lute?" Christian asked.


    "Back in Port Oracle, in the market." Robin replied.


    "But, why?" Christian''s mind was boggled.


    "Because I can play it?" Robin almost rolled her eyes before her fingers lightly ran across the strings, softly strumming out the intro to the Beatles'' pop song ''Here Comes The Sun''.


    Come to think of it, Robin recalled where she had learned this song. One of her busybody survival teachers had forced an old lute into her hand, and mad her learn this every morning before the martial arts lesson.


    "I''m not against learning how to play, but why a lute?" She had asked at the time.


    "What? And have you possibly wreck my 1957 FT 210 Deluxe Cutaway signed by John Lennon? No way! Besides, the lute is the ancestor of the guitar, so they are similar in execution. Think of it this way, you can play the lute during one of those medieval re-enactments that your brother likes to go to..."


    Robin''s hand shook. She had never told her teacher, but this song was a somewhat painful memory for her. She had always sung along to it on the radio with her mother and father and older brother. But now, here she was, playing it alone, with no one to sing the words.


    All of a sudden, sadness seemed to threaten to overcome her, just like it had seven years ago. While she was sure that no one could tell in the dim light of the fire, her face had grown a bit pale as she struggled to keep her emotions under control.


    The other men had not noticed. However Christian had noted the slight quiver in Robin''s chin, and the furrow in between Robin''s eyebrows. The cheerful tune in Robin''s hands had become more wistful, like the sunlight peering in through a crack in the green roof of a forest glade.


    She stopped after the first chorus with a small sigh. With that, the lump in her throat disappeared. The sadness was now sealed and back under control.


    "Oy, why''d you stop? It''s very good!" Sir Earl objected.


    Robin chuckled, hiding her former mood. "Me playing isn''t the reason I took this out. I''m interested in your playing." She turned to Quinn, who had his mouth open as he watched Robin play.


    "Go on, show me how well you play, and I might just be in a good enough mood to let you keep it!" Robin encouraged with a laugh, handing over the lute to Quinn.


    Quinn did''t immediately play, but ran his finger down the strings, making sure they weren''t out of tune. When he was satisfied, he nodded, and began strumming.


    Surprisingly, his playing was more similar to the asian zither style, rather than the renaissance style of music. It used flat and sharp notes more often than in Robin''s world, and had a certain cadence of its own, causing the listeners to get sleepy.


    Soon enough, a soft, whispery song drifted out, lulling everyone to sleep.


    "On the nights when the moon isn''t quite yet full, and it''s long ''til the sun starts to rise,


    Let me tell you a tale of a kingdom of old,


    and it''s name is Paradise.


    There the old and the young live forever more, and the market place is bright.


    Peering out from the castle walls you see all of the soldier''s gleaming might.


    There the trees bear their fruits all year round without fail, and the wonders never cease.


    And the cheer is shared even to the snail, shared about to all that please.


    There the common folkadore their old king, and they cry out "Hail! Hail!"


    And he greets their cries with the Prince at hand, fearing neither sick nor ill.


    There the mountains'' heights, and the Dragon''s tail is a sturdy shield for all.


    But you won''t expect, no you won''t believe


    the secrets hid in the widened sleeve


    of the mountain tall. Maybe you''ll not leave


    and in Paradise stay forever more..."


    By the end of Quinn''s song, everyone had fallen into a deep sleep. Quinn dipped his head, shading his eyes from the light of the fire.


    "And this one welcomes you too, to Paradise, all." He said cryptically as he stood up, returning the lute to Robin''s side.


    "A pity. I wouldn''t mind listening a bit more to your tunes. But it''s already been too long a time. The curse of Paradise must be broken."


    And, with that, The entire campsite vanished from the grasslands.


    ------


    A butterfly fluttered about, resting for a brief amount of time upon Robin''s nose before once more lifting itself up into the skyin search of wildflowers. The mild disturbance of the air around her face was enough to awaken Robin, whose eyes opened slowly. It felt as if her eyes were covered in lead, she had never felt so tired.


    She sat up slowly, with half-opened eyes, yawning loudly as she stretched in an attempt to rouse herself from her sleepiness. Perhaps there was something different in the air that made Robin paused a moment. Regardless, since she felt something was out of place, she raised her head to look about. As her eyes came into focus, she almost believed that she was dreaming again.


    Robin blinked as she looked about her at the surrounding tall mountain peaks. She could have sworn that they had camped out in the grasslands last night. How could they have simply moved overnight?


    More importantly, where were they?


    Beside here, Christian was also waking up. He shook his head dizzily, as if waking from a drunken sleep. She tapped his shoulder.


    "What is it?" Christian turned to ask. His expression froze as he saw the white-capped mountain peaks. Robin exchanged wide-eyed stares with Prince Christian, who was just as dumbfounded.


    "Good morning, Hero Robin! Good morning, Prince Christian. Isn''t it a good day for travelling?" Chelsea asked as she stepped out of the tent, cheerfully. But, she paused, when she saw the two gazing out of camp with pale faces.


    "What''s the matter?" She asked, as she turned to look. "Ah! Why are there mountains!?" She exclaimed. "Didn''t we set up camp in the grasslands? Where in the world are we?"


    "That''s exactly what I''d like to know." Christian''s expression grew dark. "It looks like we''ve become a victim of sudden teleportation."


    "Sudden teleportation?" Robin asked.


    "Similar to long distance summoning, sudden teleportation is a nasty spell that certain -ahem!- immoral great mages set up. It can happen in completely random locations. Those who are caught in it can be unfortunate enough to be transported in the middle of a raging volcano, or the depths of the ocean." Jasmine explained, as she walked out of the tent. "If this is such a case, then we''re lucky that we''ve landed in a relatively safer position than those."


    "The unlucky part is that we''re clueless about where we are." Keith grumbled, having been awakened by Chelsea''s voice. "Ye can shout quite loudly, can''t ye, lass?" He asked, sarcastically, as his northern accent became more prevalent.


    Chelsea blushed, embarassed. "I''m sorry if I woke you. I was just so surprised!"


    "A person whose eyes see more than most, I''m surprised that anything can still surprise ye!" Keith grinned, teasingly. "Why can''t yer crystal necklace tell us where we are?"


    "I''m only a young seer, not an almighty omniscient deity." Chelsea retorted. "The heavens may show me snippets of the future, but that doesn''t mean I can just search for what I want to see-oh."


    The crystal ball on Chelsea''s chain lit up, glowing blue like the ocean floor. squiggly lines of light moved upon Chelsea''s veil, as if she was staring at water instead of a crystal.


    "It seems we have been noticed. Moreover, they sent us a message." Chelsea said, in surprise.


    Everyone looked at each other, then examined the surrounding area. Right now, the stood at a spot about a third of the way up the mountain''s roots. In the basin formed at the center of the mountain''s circle, there was a large lake visible.


    "Ah! Over there!" Gerard pointed to their left. It was a bit difficult to spot through the trees, but they could see a tower peeking up in the distance.


    "What does the message say?" Christian asked.


    "Welcome...to Paradise."

 108 She Kicks Out Jasmine

    "Well, since we have been welcomed, we should go see where this is, and what this is all about." Prince Christian decided.


    "As it may be a trap, don''t eat or drink anything that wasn''t cooked by either Ponzu or Robin until I give permission. Also, stick together in groups of 2 and 3. Non-fighters should stay with one of the knights. This is an order."


    As the Prince, he had always been sparing with his orders. But, due to the urgent situation, and with Keith''s backing, his words held absolute power among the knights. They saluted Christian with a fist tamped above their hear.


    Chelsea was still surprised at receiving the message through her necklace. Hadn''t it always been a two-way communication between her and her brother? Worried, she silently trying to contact him. But all that she could see was "Welcome to Paradise."


    Robin and the group broke camp and got in their carriage. Then the company made their way forward to the tower, which they realized was connected to an impressively carved wall with a gate in the middle. That wall circled about the city, which was visible through the open gate. At the gate stood several knights in shining, ornate armor.


    Christian opened the carriage window to speak to them.


    "Welcome to Paradise! I assume you received our magic transmission?" The leader of the knights asked.


    "Yes, we did." Prince Christian nodded. "It appears that my company has just been caught in some sort of sudden teleportation, so we''re a bit turned around right now. Is there anywhere where we might be able to take a look at a map of the surrounding areas?"


    "Why sure, a few of the libraries would definitely have some." The man nodded. "But if you are in need of a more detailed map, then you''d have to get permission from the Knight General, Sir Drago. We don''t often get visitors, due to our location, but you''re welcome as long as you don''t cause trouble. If you get bored flipping through texts, there''s also a nearby dungeon you can go to hunt for wild animals."


    "Thank you, sir knight." Christian nodded with a smile. "We''ll check the library first, then."


    "Good luck to you all!" The knight waved them in cheerfully from the gate.


    When they were out of earshot, wind fairy Elise said quietly. "Is it just me, or was he a bit too cheery to be a knight?"


    Robin shook her head. "There was a cask of ale hiding behind the line of knights. They were probably just about to have themselves a drink."


    "While on duty!?" Chelsea gasped.


    "It''s generally more common in protected areas where there''s not much that threatens them." Robin replied. "While the military are there to keep the peace, when they''ve steeped in peace for a long time, they can get a bit complacent and rusty in their skills."


    "Oh? How do you know this?" Keith.


    "Let''s focus on the task at hand." Robin replied, not feeling too talkative.


    "Right, the library." Christian nodded and the carriage driver turned to ask for directions from a friendly-looking chap walking past.


    "Library? Ah, you go down this road a bit until the marketplace plaza, then you turn left, go over the bridge and past five buildings. The library is the one with the dome on it." The young man pointed out.


    "Thank you." the driver nodded before setting off toward the marketplace.


    Robin watched that cheerful person as the carriage passed by, when something in the expression of the man caught her eye. His mouth still smiled cheerfully, but his eyes held a disdainful sneer in them.


    Robin recognized that sneer. Her classmates, cousins, uncles and aunts: they all had that expression on their faces while looking at her. Thus, she had become extremely sensitive to a gaze like that.


    Robin sat for a moment pondering upon the reason for this expression. But, as it didn''t sit well with her, she opened up the small window in the wall and spoke with the driver.


    "When we reach the marketplace, turn left. Do not turn right." She ordered.


    "Yes, sir." The driver replied. While he didn''t know why the hero would say such a thing, his job was to drive, not to ask questions.


    "Do you think he was lying to us?" Christian asked.


    "No. But, regardless, from his expression, he was surely up to no good. Instead of falling into a trap, it''s better to go cautiously on our own terms." Robin replied.


    "We should search for a competent inn first, before seeking out the library. We don''t know how long we''ll be staying, after all. Moreover, we''ve got all day to head to the library,so there''s really no rush."


    "If you say so." Christian gave way, trusting in Robin''s judgement. But Robin''s warning had reminded Christian not to let down his guard.


    There seemed to be a sinister undercurrent within this city called Paradise that they needed to be wary of.


    ----


    Once they had settled in at the inn, everyone gathered in Robin''s room.


    "Now, before we attempt to do anything else, it''s time for breakfast!" Robin declared.


    Since they had been too surprised and preoccupied with their dilemma, they had forgotten to eat until now. As it was inopportune to us the kitchen, currently, Robin brought out some pre-made foods and fruits. During that time, she also distributed food to everyone in case they got separated from her for lunch and dinner.


    "So, now what do we do?" Chelsea asked, after they had eaten. She was feeling highly uncomfortable now that her foresight wasn''t working for her.


    "We gather information." Keith replied, as if it were obvious.


    "Go about the shops to look for anything of interest, find the library, and ascertain our location. If we have to, we can try contacting the higher officials here, and see if we can glean some information from them. Then we meet up in the afternoon to discuss our discoveries, and figure out what we should do from there."


    Keith glanced at Christian as he added. "Also, please go about in groups of two and three. Like Prince Christian said, we don''t know the area. It''s best not to be alone until we''re sure it''s safe. Are we all agreed?"


    Once everyone expressed agreement, Christian ended the meeting. They grouped up in twos and threes and left to go gather information. When the afternoon arrived, everyone had safely made their way back to Robin''s room.


    Upon exchanging information, they realized four key pieces of information. First, the library was located within the castle, which required an invitation for entrance. Second, the Knight General, Sir Drago, was busy guarding the nearby dungeon to prevent the dungeon monsters from attacking the city. Third, there was a strangely super-effective healing potion being sold in the stores. And fourth, the healing potion ingredients could only be found in the dungeon.


    "Well, how should we go about this?" Robin asked.


    "I''m interested in the super healing potion ingredients. It might be effective in helping to accelerate the healing of Robin''s mana source." Jasmine said.


    "That plus the fact that Sir Drago is currently at the dungeon means that it''s possible to meet both our needs in one trip seems to be the best method."


    "Hmm, I wonder about that. He might not be okay with us seeing the military map, considering how many secret spots would be indicated on it." Keith frowned in thought.


    "Ugh! I don''t wanna enter a dark musty cave!" Elise pouted.


    "What''s wrong with caves?" Skye asked, confused. "I think they''re rather nice, though?" The two began arguing with each other in a corner.


    "It might still be better to have some of us stay behind and try to see if we can get an invitation to the castle library. How about we split into two teams?" Christian suggested.


    "If so, you''ll have to be part of the team that stays behind." Jasmine pointed out. "It''s easier for a foreign prince to gain entrance than a lowly commoner."


    "Mmph! That''s right...." Christian admitted ruefully. "I will stay here with Jasmine, Keith, Ponzu, Gerard, and the Driver. Robin, tomorrow morning, you take the knights with you to the dungeon to go speak with Sir Drago, and collect the ingredients for that Super Potion Jasmine is raving about."


    "Hey, why am I staying here?" Jasmine objected.


    "Obviously, I was balancing the fighting power between our two groups." Christian said. But in his eyes was a subtle smile. ''If I''m not going, you don''t get to go either!''


    "Well, now that that is settled, why don''t I begin treatment on Robin''s injury?" Chelsea suggested. "It''s best to make whatever small progress we can before tomorrow."


    "Eh?" Robin asked surprised. "I thought we were discussing that super potion thing?"


    "We still don''t know if it will do your mana source any good. That''s why it''s best to continue with the original treatment until we can confirm its effectiveness." Chelsea said.


    "Well...that does make sense, I suppose" Robin said. "But Jasmine isn''t allowed to watch!" She glanced sharply at Jasmine, whose face was gleaming with a cat-like grin.


    "Ah! Why!?" Jasmine was shoved outside with the rest of the company. She gazed in shock at the door that closed behind Robin and Chelsea. Christian and Keith hid their grins behind their hands as they went about, preparing for tomorrow''s tasks.

 109 She Makes Apple Peel Tea

    Once more, Robin had to drink the cup of magic water, and lie down perfectly still. But this time, she couldn''t seem to feel comfortable. While the bed was fine, and the air was clean, she felt mildly unsettled.


    "Please try and stay as still as possible." Chelsea asked. "As I am stimulating the recovery of your mana source, you may experience a feeling of mild discomfort."


    Robin sighed, and resolved herself to bear with the strange feeling. ''I should look on the bright side. At least, it isn''t extremely painful. To exchange a brief half hour of mild discomfort every few days for a shortened healing period should be considered a medical marvel.''


    She decided to attempt meditation. Slowly breathing in, and slowly breathing out, focusing on breathing as if she were trying to match the tempo of ocean waves. Of course, they were nowhere near the ocean. So Robin had to make do with her memory of the timing.


    As she breathed, she went over her memory of the night before. ''I''m not entirely unconvinced that Bard Quinn had a hand in all this.'' She thought to herself. Since Quinn didn''t show up with them, he was extremely suspicious. Of course, there was a chance that he simply wasn''t in range of the transportation circle, or limit. But, even the campfire was moved. Thus, for Quinn not to be taken along was, as a result, highly suspicious.


    ''All right! The next time I see him, I''ll punch him hard in the face!'' She decided, clenching her fist.


    "Um, Robin, please don''t move." Chelsea pleaded. "This work is very delicate, so I don''t want to mess up and make things worse, okay?"


    ...Ah, right. She was in the middle of being treated. She had actually forgotten herself while thinking. Robin''s cheeks were lightly dusted with pink as she made a positive sound in her throat. For the time being, she could only obey the doctor''s orders.


    The half an hour went by slowly, but eventually, it was finished. When Robin was allowed to move again, she went downstairs with Chelsea, to join her companions.


    "Where''s Christian and Jasmine?" She asked, not seeing them with the others.


    "I know!" Skye replied proudly. "They went to make an appointment with some official for tomorrow. Jasmine muttered something about ''darned beaurocrats'' when she left. What are beaurocrats?" The flying kitten tilted its head sideways. though it might be older than her, there were many words it had never come across.


    "Er, it''s a type of official, I do believe. They aren''t known for being quick to act, so she may have simply been annoyed at how slow the person is being." Robin replied to Skye, skirting over the corruption/red tape/delay tactic issues that most beaurocrats were known for.


    "Hey, somehow, doesn''t it seem to be getting real dark out?" Gerard noted. It was true. Even though it was nearly noon, the ambient light had slowly gotten less and less.


    But, just when they were going to head outside to see what happened, a clap of thunder rumbled overhead, and a sudden downpour of rain pelted the rooftop of the inn.


    The innkeeper clicked his tongue. "Ah, just when we had a spot of good weather. It looks like we''ll be having us another stampede on our hands tomorrow." He told his wife.


    "It looks like we''ll be staying inside for today." Robin noted as she took a seat down by a window. To ward off the rain''s chill, the innkeeper lit a fire in the common room fireplace. In front of the fireplace, Gerard, Skye, and Elise had fun teasing each other with small cantrip magic.


    While she waited for Christian, Jasmine, and Keith to return, Robin busied herself by making some applesauce, borrowing the kitchen for a bit. After making three large jarfuls, however, she got tired and began reading the books she had found in that hidden cave.


    The knights inspected their armor and weapons for any repairs needed. And, in general, the whole company passed the afternoon in relative silence. It had rained the whole time, and there was no sign of it letting up anytime soon.


    Sometime in the late afternoon, Christian stomped in, soaking wet from the outside. Jasmine and Keith followed behind him, completely dry.


    "You''re back." Robin noted, looking up from her book. "How did it go?" She asked as she took in Christian''s sopping wet appearance. ''He looks good even when he''s wet. Is that a prerequisite for being a prince, I wonder?''


    "Go? It went the way most appointment-makings went, unbearably slow. The only reason why we were still able to acquire an appointment was because of this blasted rain!" Christian grumbled in a foul mood. "Since the rain will bring another monster stampede, that plump, puffed-up person was too scared to head out of the city gates anymore, so he used us as an excuse not to head out. It''s a good thing we''re not in Ekkinshire, otherwise he''d have lost his job that instant!"


    Jasmine sighed, and beckoned to Chelsea. "Chelsea, dear, could you please do something about all this water? The carriage wheel broke and we had to walk back. Christian''s been so upset about earlier that he walked out of the range of my water barrier."


    "Sure! No problem!" Chelsea waved her hand and the water gathered from Christian''s hair and clothes into large droplets, floating up in the air, past Keith, and out the door, where it was poured onto the cobblestones.


    Now Christian''s clothes were completely dry, albeit a little wrinkled. He scowled and stomped off to his room.


    "So you did get an appointment, then?" Robin asked, as she marked the place she left off in the book and returned it to her storage bracer.


    "Yes, thank goodness." Jasmine sighed.


    "Then we can consider the trip successful. If you provide the water, I''ll make some hot apple peel tea to warm everyone up. Judging by the radiating chill, this rain must be practically ice cold!" Robin rubbed her hands together.


    "Apple Peel Tea? Do you mean hot apple cider?" Jasmine asked.


    "No, apple peel tea. Have you never had apple peel tea?" Robin asked.


    Jasmine shook her head.


    "Then, let me show you and Ponzu how it''s done~!" She said as she once more borrowed the kitchen. All the kitchen utensils, pots, and pans that she used were all stored in her magic bracer, so all she really needed was some counter space, and a place on the stove for simmering.


    First, she took out the apple cores and peels that she had saved from her earlier applesauce-making venture. she put these in a pot, with some lemon juice, and half a lemon. Then she poured water in until it just covered the apple peels. she added some brown sugar and cinnamon, and simmered it for around 15 minutes. After that, she poured the contents through a strainer cloth.


    The liquid was the tea.


    As for the remains, the lemon and apple cores were tossed, and the hot steaming apple peels were served alongside the tea with a sprinkling of brown sugar and cinnamon on top. Robin had made just enough for her party to each have a cup.


    "Wait, there''s one more cup and serving here!" Gerard pointed out, eyeing the steaming apple peels.


    "That one is for Christian." Robin replied, taking a sip of her tea. Then she stood up and picked up Christian''s plate and teacup, putting them on a tray.


    "Are you going to take him his share?" Jasmine asked.


    "If I don''t, will Gerard simply let it be?" Robin replied with a knowing glance. This brought a chuckle out of the company as Robin left the room.


    "Christian?" She knocked on his door. "I brought some hot tea. Would you like some?"


    After a few moments, the door opened, and Robin entered the room, only to realize that Christian had been in the middle of changing, and was shirtless.


    "Whoops! Should I have waited a little more?" She quipped, as she placed the tray down on the nearby desk.


    "No, it''s fine. I was feeling chilled, and a hot drink will do me good." He replied.


    "I was talking about the state of your clothes. If you''re chilled, then even more so you should put a shirt on!" Robin retorted.


    While she was saying that, she couldn''t help taking in the sight of his well toned, lean muscles. It didn''t show much once he wore a shirt, but Christian was certainly well-built.

 110 She Rescues Skye

    Christian noticed Robin was staring.


    "What?" He asked, feeling somewhat embarrassed as he withdrew a shirt to wear from his magic bag.


    "Hmm...Just trying to figure out your training regimen from the size of your muscles." Robin replied in an interested manner.


    "Oh, that?" Christian laughed. "It wasn''t much. Just getting beat up by my combat instructor, being chased by the instructor''s monster pets, being beat up by the instructor''s obstacle course, and having a good team of healers on standby to make sure that I didn''t die."


    "Is that all?" Robin asked, disappointed.


    "What were you expecting?" Christian asked.


    "I dunno, maybe handicap challenges, speed runs, and melee training." Robin sighed.


    "Handicap challenges?" The prince asked.


    "You know: say, perhaps, that your dominant arm was disabled, dislocated or cut by a sword. In order to be prepared for such an event, you could practice sword fighting with your non-dominant arm." Robin explained.


    "Hmm, and melee training?" Christian asked, pulling his shirt on, over his head.


    "Ah, that''s fighting against multiple people at the same to help train your sense of fighting outside of one on one duels." Robin replied. "Start out with one person, then progressively add more and more throughout the fight, as if you got caught in one great big brawl. Adding people of differing strengths can raise the intensity."


    "Hmm...I might have done something similar, come to think of it." Christian muttered as he mulled over the near deadly training he had received from that spartan muscleman.


    Then he recalled a particular incident.


    "So, is that how you managed to decimate the assassins league?" He asked, recalling the scene of carnage.


    Robin turned her head away. "My teachers didn''t teach me those kinds of techniques." She bashfully admitted.


    "Hmm?" Christian realised something. "Perhaps...you didn''t learn how to fight like that through getting into actual brawl fights, did you?" He asked, a sly grin on his face.


    "Of course not!" Robin replied. "Well...It wasn''t an actual brawl."


    ---


    It was true, it wasn''t a brawl. Robin''s gamer neighbor had roped her into joining a live contest with her to re-enact street fighter II in real life. Her gamer neighbor would give the commands, and she would follow through with the live action combos. Those were fighting moves that the character she played used.


    Admittedly, she had been stupidly foolish in doing so. But, that was the first time someone had asked her to join them, not because of who she was, but because they valued her for the occupation that she had put so much effort into. In hindsight, it was a completely reckless and dangerous thing she had signed up for, even though they had won first place in the competition.


    And, after that, she never saw her neighbor again. It turned out that the whole street fighter re-enactment had been an event created by that neighbor''s family, as she was sick with a terminal illness. The day after the event was the day of her death. Robin hadn''t even realized her gamer neighbor had died until she saw the photo in the daily news obituary notice.


    Robin had wanted to drop by and visit, but upon second thought, what reason did she have to intrude? She couldn''t just say, "Hey, I''m the person who your daughter teamed up with the day before her death." to the bereaved parents.


    Robin was not that insensitive. Instead, out of her own volition, Robin took it upon herself to use her brother''s connections, and have their house mortgage secretly paid off.


    She didn''t even really know that girl''s name that day. But she felt she had learned a valuable lesson. Instead of moping to herself, doing things to help other people out was far more enjoyable. She hadn''t even realised it before then.


    And that was the real beginning of Robin the hero. It didn''t begin with fanfare or pulling a shining sword out of a stone. It didn''t begin with the outrages of war, or even rescuing a cat out of a tree. It began with an impression, and was followed up by action. Without that first impression, there would be no Hero Robin. There would just be a talented, yet scarred young prodigy.


    ----


    "But, in order to practice such things, you would need to have a group of opponents, right?" Christian insisted.


    "Perhaps..." Robin answered vaguely, turning to look out the window at the pouring rain. Christian shook his head. He could read Robin enough to realize that he wouldn''t get any more information out of him for the time being.


    "Do you think they''ll be holding a grudge against me?" Robin asked. "I did take out a lot of their assassins, after all."


    "Oh, I don''t think so. Most of them were bronze grade assassins, the lowest tier of assassin." Christian replied. "Therefore, they wouldn''t have any information about the headquarters location. Now, if it was a group of gold assassins, that might be different."


    "It''s too bad I was in a rush..." Robin murmured. "Else I wouldn''t have merely decimated them."


    "Hey, hey! Leave some of the glory for the city guards to claim!" Christian joked. "It''s their job to rid the city of assassins, not yours."


    "Well, yeah. But a job half-done creates twice the mess, and four times the work." Robin muttered. This caused Christian to laugh.


    "I think that is the truest thing I have heard yet!" He chuckled.


    "Oh? You must be experiences in the art of mess-making." Robin snorted. All of a sudden, the conversation was cut short when Skye called out through their link.


    "Master, please save me!"


    "What''s wrong?" Christian asked, following along as Robin suddenly left the room. Thinking it might be an emergency, Robin was prepared to fight. But, when she arrived in the dining area, she paused, confused.


    Skye was surrounded by a group of young women, who were intent upon thoroughly petting the cute little cat.Even the innkeeper''s wife, who looked to be somewhat in her 30''s, was involved. Being cornered by so many bright-eyed ladies had caused Skye to panic. The look in their eyes seemed predatory to the small flying cat.


    "Master, please help!" Skye begged. "I can''t hold back my strength. If I fight, they''ll die. But, look at their eyes! They surely are having no good thoughts about me, right now!"


    Somehow, Skye managed to extricate itself from the corner, and whizzed over to Robin''s shoulders, in a flash, shivering a bitas it tried to hide behind Robin''s head.


    Robin stood there for a moment, as she witnessed the cat''s antics. finally, she couldn''t hold it in anymore.


    "-Pffft! Ahahahahaha!" She leaned against the wall as her lungs started to ache from laughter and lack of oxygen. Seeing the situation, Jasmine, and Chelsea, and even Christian couldn''t help but chuckle. Wiping a tear from the corner of her eyes, Robin addressed the young ladies who now had their full attention on her.


    "My apologies, ladies. This little cat here is rather shy, and doesn''t like anyone else holding him. In order to protect your fair hands from scared scratches, I would ask that you refrain from petting my cat."


    "So this is your cat? How beautiful she is!" One of the women exclaimed.


    "Is it a foreign breed?" Another one asked. "I do want to have one of them for my own!" All the ladies agreed that cute things like cats are meant for petting.


    "S-stay away from me!" Skye hissed from where he hid. "I''m warning you!"


    Robin asked them. "Have you never seen a flying cat before?"


    "No, never!" They shook their heads.


    "Well, I can''t say much about raising them, since I picked this one up on the road," Robin began. "But if you''ve never seen one before, then it''s highly likely that there aren''t any in the surrounding area."


    At those words, Robin witnessed the hopes of the younger ladies deflate when confronted by reality.


    "Then, we''ll simply have to enjoy only the sight of this lovely thing for the duration of your stay." The innkeeper''s wife sighed.


    "Come on, you two. We''ve yet to wash the dinner dishes." She motioned towards the twogirls that were employed under her, and headed back into the kitchen. The other ladies began crowding in towards Robin, asking more questions about Skye.


    While Skye and Robin were preoccupied dealing with this curious bunch, Christian looked on, with a chuckle. "So, it looks like it''s true that spirit beast companions generally look similar to their owners."


    "Oh? Then I wonder if your spirit beast wiuld be a pixie." Jasmine jabbed.


    "A pixie isn''t a beast, cousin." Christian deftly defended. "I''m surprised. I thought you''d be smarter than make a mistake like that."


    Jasmine frowned. "They ARE little beasts. Brutez, the whole lot of em!"

 111 She Sets Out For The Dungeon

    Chelsea patted Jasmine''s shoulder.


    "There, there. You can''t help that they have the mental attention span of a two year old. Besides, they surely didn''t mean any harm when they mixed those two potions by accident."


    "Hmmph!" Jasmine didn''t say any more, but she let it be known plainly that she was unconvinced.


    Robin paused, warmly watching her group as they interacted. They were all very different from each other. Yet, somehow, they had joined together on her journey to seek her way home.


    Reflecting upon the past six years, Robin realized it had indeed been a very long time since she could laugh so heartily. The days, though they had passed so slowly, seemed like such a short time, now. It was as if, she had arrived only yesterday.


    Robin had begun to feel somewhat reluctant to leave the warm friends she had gained here, in order to return to the cold world she came from. Robin sighed a bit. Yes, she would miss this world, these people. That is why it was especially important to treasure every moment while it lasted.


    ''In the end, I am just a passerby.'' Robin thought, as she added yet another treasure to her memories. ''I can never be as close as those who actually have to live here.''


    She constantly reminded herself of this, because she was also afraid that she might end up giving up, deciding to stay. But, she could not forget her older brother. After all the things he had done to save her, Robin would be torn with guilt for the rest of her life,if she allowed him to believe she was dead, or worse.


    And so, Robin once more put up her mental barrier. She could have fun and enjoy their company, but she mustn''t allow herself to get attached. Robin pet Skye upon the head as she thought to herself.


    "Um, you know, earlier, when you were splitting up the teams, you forgot to mention which team I am in." Chelsea told Christian.


    "Did I? Er...Which team did you want to be on?" Christian asked.


    "Put me in the less-boring team, please?" Chelsea asked.


    "Robin''s team it is." Christian noted.


    "Hey, how come she gets to go!?" Jasmine pouted.


    "Because she''s harmless." Christian replied, thinking. ''There''s no sign that she''s as dim-wittedly head over heels for Robin like you are.'' What Christian didn''t know was that he was wrong on several key details.


    First, Robin was not falling for Jasmine. Second, Jasmine was not falling for Robin. The reason was because Robin was actually female, and keeping mum about it to avoid awkward romantic advances while trying to find her way home. Fourth, Robin was not romantically attracted to anyone at the moment. And, fifth, his actions were entirely unnecessary.


    Chelsea, the only person who knew the entire situation of misunderstandings, could only roll her eyes and chuckle from the sidelines. As both sides had employed her to keep silent, she was faithful to her promise.


    ...At the very least...she would wait until the time was right to ''accidentally'' reveal key information.


    Robin, unaware of Christian''s petty ''friend possessiveness'', assumed he was referring to Jasmine''s desire to study the super health potion''s ingredients.


    "Ah."


    Robin could imagine it. If their group came under attack while Jasmine slowly analyzed whatever local flora/fauna was responsible for the effects of super potion, it would be highly dangerous. She had also heard about the impending monster stampede that would be due to come.


    It was also a bad idea to use large scale spells in the cavern areas, as it might cause tunnel collapse. Thus, she opted to bring the healer in place of the magician.


    "Hmmm...All right, then. But you need to stick close, okay?" She warned Chelsea.


    "Yay! I get to spend more time with Robin~!" Chelsea giggled. Christian immediately regretted his decision to put Chelsea in Robin''s group. At least Jasmine wasn''t openly speaking about her attraction to Robin.


    Jasmine glared at Christian for singling her out and separating her from the girls group. Then she sighed, and passed a water crystal over to Chelsea.


    "If anything happens at all, I want you to contact me. Understood?"


    "Yup! Will do!" Chelsea nodded enthusiastically. She didn''t know if they would need it, but it was a good thing to have just in case. Although, judging from what she had seen of the future, it seemed that none of them would come to great harm, one could never be too sure...


    ---


    The next morning, the group split in two, one to try and access the map in the castle library, and the other to request to see the military map from Sir Drago.


    Christian''s team consisted of Jasmine, Keith, Ponzu, Gerard, Elise, and the carriage driver. Robin''s team, which consisted of her, Chelsea, the knights, and Skye, headed for the caverns dungeon. They were extra alert on their way, having heard of the iminent monster stampede.


    "What kind of monsters do you think there''l be?" Chelsea asked.


    "Well, what kind of monster usually lives in caverns? maybe some kind of reptilian or digging monster?" Robin guessed.


    "Usually. There''s also spider and bug monsters." Chelsea added.


    "Actually, that reminds me. I hope you don''t take this the wrong way, but what is the difference between demonkind and monsters?" Robin asked.


    "No offense taken. I actually get asked that a lot more often than you think~!" Chelsea chuckled.


    "Well, as you may know, there is ambient mana all around us." Chelsea began. "The elemental mana, when it is concentrated enough, can aide a regular animal into slowly changing themselves to adapt to the environment. Those who slowly go through the long process of change eventually end up as an intelligent race. Then they gradually become closer and closer to humankind, until only a few main identifying features are left. These intelligent races are known as demon-kind. They are the ones you can communicate with using speech."


    "I see...Then what about monsters?" Robin asked.


    "Ambient mana is not spread equally across the world. every so often, you run into sudden concentrated pockets full of mana. If there is nothing there, then nothing happens. But if, upon the formation of the pocket, there are animals in the surroundings, the sudden concentration becomes too much for their animal psyche to handle. They go mad trying to expel the concentrated foreign mana."


    "Animals on steroids, huh." Robin noted.


    "The sad part is that they can''t go back once they reach that state. That aside, monster meat is far more delicious than regular meat, and can even be used in alchemical potions, due to its high mana content." Chelsea finished.


    "Wouldn''t that ambient mana stuff make eating monster meat dangerous?" Robin asked.


    "No. Oddly enough, after the monster absorbs it, it becomes completely safe to consume!" Chelsea smacked her lips. "Ah, that monster bull meat I ate once was simply the best!! Hey, if we kill any monsters, let''s cook them!"


    "Let''s see what kind of monsters there are, first." Robin chuckled.


    "Ah, also,keep an eye out for any shiny crystals on the way. Those are called dungeon crystals. Dungeon crystals are the crystalized essence of the ambient mana, and are the best ingredient to add to magic jewelry."


    "Got it. Will do." Robin chuckled. "But, in all honesty, you''ll be the most likely person to be in a situation where you can pick it up if we get besieged."


    "Ara, I hadn''t thought of that. You''re quite right!" Chelsea nodded. "I will grab all opportunities, then."


    Due to the fact that the carriage was being repaired, they had to walk. There also weren''t any carriages going out that day, as people were apprehensive about the impending monster stampede. It wasn''t a short walk to the dungeon, but, then again, it wasn''t too long a walk, either.


    They found themselves drawing near the dungeon entrance in the late afternoon. As they got closer, they began to hear sounds of monster cries, and clashing metal. Aware that a fight was up ahead, they picked up the pace, all the time becoming more and more cautious.


    When they came in sight of the dungeon entrance, they paused in surprise. Indeed, there were soldiers and swordsman at battle against the oncoming horde of dungeon monsters. But, the fight wasn''t what surprised them.


    The monsters that were pouring out of the large cavern mouth was a horde of large wild boars. Robin watched a moment, then turned to Chelsea.


    "Cavern boars? Is that even possible?" She asked, in disbelief.

 112 She Fights in The Monster Stampede

    Indeed, aside from the fact that they were much larger than normal, and their eyes gleamed a bloody red, the monsters pouring out of the cave looked no different from regular boars.


    "They look dangerous." Sir Markham noted.


    "They look delicious!" Chelsea said. Just imagining how they would taste had almost made her drool.


    Just as they were about to snap out of their surprise, a man in black armor with gold trim noticed them. He motioned to two rear guardsmen and pointed at Robin''s group, before returning to observe the battle before him. The guardsmen openly approached Robin''s team. Seeing them approach, Robin judged the best plan of action was to remain where she stood.


    "Greetings, travellers! For what reason do you come here?" One of the guardsmen asked, with a salute.


    "When we arrived in town, we heard about the monster stampede, under the flag of Prince Christian from a far away country. Seeing he was safe behind the city walls, he sent us here to see if we could be of any help." Robin replied, returning the salute. "Once the stampede is over, we would like to meet with Sir Drago, as well as explore the dungeon for a bit."


    "Wait here. I will relay your words to Sir Drago." The guard said, and left the other guard behind with Robin''s crew, while he returned to Sir Drago. After speaking to the black armored knight, presumably Sir Drago, the guard returned with his message.


    "The left flank could use some reinforcement. Please head over to the squadron near the pine trees, and ask the captain for further instructions."Was the reply. "As for the rest, Sir Drago said this: ''We''ll just have to see you ply your skills, first''."


    Robin''s eyebrow twitched. Skills, huh? In that case...she would definitely show him her skills. She politely thanked the guard, and saluted once more, before heading towards the struggling group of soldiers.


    When they arrived, Robin realized that all the soldiers were wearing the same armor. Where was the captain? Robin immediately realized this was another test.


    "Sir Raymond, Sir Dylan, and Sir Grey, please help block the monsters in front of the wounded. Sir Daniel, and Sir Markham, please guard Chelsea as she tends to the wounded." Robin ordered.


    "And, what about you?" Sir Daniel asked.


    "Me?" Robin smirked as she cracked her knuckles. "I haven''t had a good fight in a long time. I will be busy plying my craft."


    For the first time in a while, Robin once more drew the hero''s blade from it''s sheath. The blade seemed to hum with excitement as she held it. It had been a while since she could find some good practice dummies. An excited grin grew on her face as she rushed straight to the frontlines, and dove right into the fight.


    Limbs flew, and tusks were severed as Robin let herself loose. A skilled swordsman with the best blade truly was better than one hundred mediocre swordsmen. The battle lines for the boar stampede was pushed back a whole ten feet within a minute.


    While Christian and Keith had a brief idea of what Robin''s skills entailed, the knights under Robin''s command could only stand there, and watch in amazement while they protected the injured guards. Indeed, when the Hero un-sheathed his blade, nothing could stand before him!


    After ten minutes of a continuous assault on the part of the cave boars, the attacking boars finally came to a halt. But, it wasn''t due to Robin''s skill. Instead, a monster cry similar to a wyvernroared out from the cave, bringing the paunch-ful cave pigs to come to a halt.


    Thud.


    THUD.


    THUD!


    A massive figure emerged from the dungeon entrance, nearly filling it with its great girth. Scars and old wounds littered the bristled skinas it stepped out into the sunlight. Once it was completely out of the dungeon, it roared again, sending sound waves that pushed the militia back.


    "That is one big boss..." Robin muttered in admiration. Standing outside the dungeon entrance was a boar the size of a house.


    "Keep steady!" Sir Drago called out. "It''s just Old Boulder. I''ll deal with him!" He jumped forward, speeding towards the giant beast like rockets were attached to his boots, despite the heavy black armor he was wearing.


    Noticing the figure approaching it, Old Boulder the Boar snorted, and began its headlong charge towards Sir Drago.


    "He''s going to get trampled!" Chelsea gasped.


    "Ye must be newcomers here. Just watch. Sir Drago is not as helpless as ye think." The soldier she was healing chuckled. "After Sir Drago whoops Old Boulder a bit, the entire herd will retreat with him until the next rainstorm."


    And, as the soldier said, when Sir Drago clashed with the huge beast, although the ground around him was torn up and depressed, Sir Drago was perfectly fine. He then jumped atop its head, dealing sword blow after sword blow atop the fat pig''s broad back.


    After being tortured like this, Old Boulder could finally stand it no longer, and turned about, charging back into the dungeon, where his back wouldn''t be savaged. Sir Drago jumped off its back, then turned and looked at the smaller boars still milling around outside.


    This made the smaller boars jump, then quickly, they ran past Sir Drago back into the dungeon. The soldiers cheered again, and Robin sheathed her sword. Thus, the stampede had been impeded.


    After the soldiers settled down, they began to clean up the aftermath. Not long after, Robin was summoned to speak with Sir Drago. She left Chelsea and the knights to help apply first aid to the injured soldiers.


    Sir Drago took off his helmet, and his straight black hair fell smoothly down his shoulders. Robin felt taken aback a bit, since his appearance was similar to that of a prominent immortal swordsman from a chinese wuxia novel.


    ''Did this world suddenly change genres?'' She thought to herself as she blinked.


    "Does my appearance surprise you?" Sir Drago asked, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Indeed, I have been told my face is unlike any other in this kingdom."


    "Mmn. For someone who looks so young to be so accomplished in sword arts, I truly am surprised." Robin nodded.


    "I could say the same thing about you." He shook his head, good-naturedly. "You couldn''t be older than eighteen, right?"


    "Just turned sixteen not even two months ago." Robin replied with a nod.


    "Only just become a man? And already so skilled! You must have had quite the teacher." Sir Drago mused. "Looks like I''ve been supplanted as the genius around here."


    "If all goes well, then not for long." Robin replied. "I came to see you for three reasons. The first, being to help you out with the monster stampede."


    "Oh? and the other two?" Sir Drago asked.


    "Of the other two, the first one would be to explore the dungeon while we''re here, collect the super potion special ingredient for our company''s magician alchemist, who is interested in it.


    And the last reason would be to inquire if we might have a look at your local maps. My company was a victim of random transportation, which caused us to find ourselves nearby. If we could figure out where we are compared to where we were, it might help us figure out where we need to go next." Robin explained.


    "Hmm..." Sir Drago rubbed his jaw in thought."I see....Well, it should do no harm to tell you, then. The super potion ingredient you were looking for can be found he-oh, looks like I was too late." Sir Drago said, as he looked at the battlefield behind Robin.


    "Hmm?" Robin turned around. The dead boars that had littered the ground everywhere were nowhere to be found. Even the grass had been restored to a perfect green as if it had never been trampled.


    "Well, you''ll know once you encounter them in the dungeon. Here, you''ll know what to do with this once you find it." Sir Drago smiled apologetically, and handed her a glass jar that looked very much like a salt shaker.


    It was at that point that Chelsea ran over to Robin, looking very much shaken up and panicky, with a pale face as white as a sheet.


    "What''s the matter, Chelsea?" Robin asked, concerned.


    "Th-the boars! ..B-bugs..! ..G-grass..!" Chelsea exclaimed.


    "Mmn. It''s too bad the boar are gone." Robin agreed. "I remember you wanted to roast a few because monster meat was delicious."


    At this, Chelsea''s face turned green as her eyes rolled back, and she fainted into Robin''s arms.


    "Chelsea! Oy, Chelsea!" Robin called, shaking her shoulder. But Chelsea would not wake up.


    "I don''t understand! What happened?" Robin sighed, puzzled and slightly frustrated.


    Sir Drago coughed politely, and turned to the side. A smile that threatened to turn into laughter was quickly smothered before Robin looked up.


    "We have a few first aid tents in the pine grove. Why don''t you let her rest there for a bit until she wakes up?" He suggested.

 113 She Speaks With Sir Drago

    After bringing Chelsea to the first aid tent, and leaving Sir Raymond to watch over her, Robin returned to Sir Drago.


    "As for your first request, judging by your skills, you should be at a level where you can manage in the dungeon perfectly fine. Your last request, however..." Sir Drago sighed, in difficulty.


    "While I can show you the map, our maps end at the feet of the surrounding mountains. All our more general maps were burned a few years ago in an accidental fire. With just the local area, I''m afraid that your desire to locate yourself in respect to your native country would be impossible."


    "What? Then, is there any way out of the mountains?" Robin asked, in surprise.


    "It is rumored that there is a way out at the end of this dungeon, but...so far, no one has been able to clear it." Sir Drago shook his head. "The further in you go, the more web slimes you will encounter."


    "Excuse me, web slimes?" Robin asked.


    "Are there none in your native lands?" Sir Drago asked. "Web slimes spread themselves out thinly into many tiny gossamer threads. The deeper you walk in, the more threads you accumulate, until finally, you are completely covered in a thin layer of webbing. then the digestion phase begins. It secretes a liquid that causes random burns to appear."


    "Pardon me, but random?" Robin asked.


    "Yes. It''s uncertain why, but there will be random unaffected areas." Sir Drago shook his head, then pointed to a bound pile of wood.


    "Bring torches withyou. It''s the only thing that can defeat the web slimes. Even if we can''t see them, they''ll retract and condense into their original form when they feel pain."


    "I guess I''ll take you up on that, then." Robin nodded in agreement. "I am assuming that, aside from the web slimes and the cave boars, it should be fine?"


    "Mostly. But don''t underestimate the dungeon. it''s easy to get lost in there. I''ll have one of the guardsmen give you a lifesaver whistle that you can blow if you get lost."


    "Oh? How does it work?" Robin asked.


    "The whistle has a small magic stone in it. when you blow the whistle, it activates the magic stone to send our guardsmen a signal asking for help." Sir Drago said.


    "This is all very nice, I''m sure." Robin nodded, getting straight to the point. "But, what''s the catch?" A person she just met being this nice all of a sudden: if there wasn''t a catch, Robin would run the length of the Great Wall of China when she returned.


    "So you noticed?" Sir Drago sighed.


    "It''s harder not to notice, unless you''re a natural airhead." Robin replied. "Moreover, we just arrived today, and are complete strangers. If you weren''t a bit wary of us, then you wouldn''t be a very good general."


    "Not much, really." Sir Drago shook his head with a laugh. "It''s just that it has been a while since I last encountered anyone with a swordskill of a high rank like yours. If possible, after you''ve finished your errands, might I ask that you have a spar with me?"


    "A spar?" Robin asked, thinking those words sounded familiar...ah, Christian had also wanted a spar. Well, it was a good chance to observe the sword play of another world, so why not?


    "I don''t see why not. But you''ll have to supply me a good practice sword. I only draw this sword when necessary." She finally said, patting the hero''s blade. It was too sharp. If Robin used the hero''s blade in a spar, it''d probably slice right through Sir Drago''s sword.


    But, yes. A brief spar shouldn''t take too long to finish up. Robin nodded as she tapped the pommel of the hero''s sword in thought. Sir Drago, content that he had accomplished his goal, went back about his business.


    "You know, for all that carnage, your clothes are pretty clean, now." Christian''s knight, Sir Daniel said. By now, the surrounding areas had all been put back into order, and so the knights had returned to stand by Robin.


    "Hmm...I think the person I bought it from said it has a self-cleaning function." Robin said, as she looked at her now-white sleeve.


    "Wait, you have enchanted clothing!? So that''s why you wear it all the time!" Sir Grey exclaimed.


    "Is enchanted clothing not common?" Robin asked.


    "What are you talking about? Enchanted clothing is highly uncommon, to the point where there is much demand, but little source." Sir Markham shook his head. "Firstly, one would need to find a thread capable of storing magic. The only kind of thread known to have such an effect is from that of high-ranked demons. Unless you managed to get one to be in your debt, or have something they really want, it is near impossible to acquire it."


    "Second, you need to create the clothing before enchanting. cutting the cloth after enchantment will ruin the magic.


    Third, you need to know a special magic technique to imbue the magic into the clothing. So far, only enchanters can assure that the magic will stably attach without ruining the durability of the clothes."


    "So, how much money is enchanted clothing worth?" Robin asked, curious about how much of a discount she had gotten from that old taylor.


    "At least one million gold coins per clothing set, and that doesn''t cover auction prices, which get even higher."


    ''One million gold coins? In US currency that would be....'' Robin calculated it out in her head.


    "Hurgh!" Robin felt like she was punched in the gut. ''Too much! That''s too much of a discount, Old Man! How can simply observing my clothes generate that much of a discount!''


    To Robin, the clothes were normal. But, to the old taylor, who had an appraiser skill, the chance to observe otherworldly clothes was priceless. Though Robin did feel bad at getting the enchanted clothes for basically free, since she didn''t have the capital, she couldn''t pay him back the full price either.


    On a side note, Christian was demoted to 2nd money waster, which was a good thing for him.


    "Are you all right, Robin?" Sir Raymond asked.


    "Nothing, really. I just realized that I am wearing a fortune." Robin replied sourly. "How would you feel if you discovered that sword at your side was actually a divine weapon in disguise?"


    "My weapon?" He glanced at it thoughtfully, before his expression warped. "Oof. You''re right. It does feel a bit like getting the wind knocked out of you. I can only imagine the chaos that would break out."


    "It''s decided." Robin said, resolutely. "We will never speak about these clothes again."


    The knights all nodded. If it were anyone else, they might have thought something wasn''t right. But, since it was Robin who was wearing the clothes, it felt a bit fitting to them. After all, why should the hero wear shabby clothes?


    It was around this time that Chelsea woke up. Robin, noticing signs of movement, entered the tent.


    "Ugh! Where am I?" Chelsea asked, sitting up slowly. "I get the feeling I just witnessed the worst dream ever!"


    "We are in the pine grove near the dungeon''s entrance." Robin replied. "You fainted after the battle, and Sir Drago let us use one of the tents here until you awoke."


    "Ugh. So it was all a dream?" Chelsea asked. "That''s right! It had to have been a dream! There''s no way such a thing is possible, even with magic." She nodded to herself, before sighing a bit in relief.


    "Thank goodness! I thought I''d never be able to eat meat again!"


    Robin decided not to ask.


    "Um..." Chelsea tapped her head in thought. "How long was I unconscious?"


    "Not long. Only about 15 minutes or so." Robinreplied. "Are you feeling well enough to explore the dungeon? Or shall I leave one of the knights with you, while we go ahead?"


    "No, I''m fine now!" Chelsea shook her head. "I''m coming with you!"


    "Okay, but don''t force yourself. If you really aren''t feeling well, I can have Sir Markham escort you back to town."


    "I said I''m fine!" Chelsea''s cheeks puffed out as she waved her hands around in annoyance. "Stop treating me like a spoiled little kid!"


    "That, dear Chelsea, entirely depends upon whether you act like one or not." Robin teased with a chuckle as she ducked out of the tent.

 114 She Enters the Dungeon

    "You!" A muffled cry of frustration followed Robin out of the tent, as her eyes twinkled in mischief. She would probably have to placate Chelsea with a meal later. But for now, Robin eagerly looked forward to exploring the dungeon.


    After all, this was a dungeon! The rumored dungeon one can explore in isekai novels, where with danger comes opportunity was right in front of her! Even though she knew it was dangerous, Robin couldn''t contain her rising enthusiasm, as she hummed a tune to herself.


    ''Ah, wait. I''m getting way too excited about this, aren''t I?'' She thought to herself as she tried to calm herself down.


    ''It''s probably just the residual adrenaline from the battle.'' She told herself as she took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. ''Calm down! It''s not going to run off on me.''


    While there was some effect in restoring her calm, Robin still felt like she might suddenly break out into a grin if she wasn''t paying attention. She sat down on a nearby rock, visibly calm, if it weren''t for the fact that her right heel was tapping the ground like a woodpecker.


    Finally, Chelsea came out of the tent with a scowl on her face.


    "Oh? It seems Robin is really looking forward to this dungeon exploration." Sir Raymond noted as he witnessed a rare moment of Robin forgetting herself as her expressions showed on her face.


    "Oh? Isn''t it just a dungeon?" Sir Gray asked, confused. "As I recall, there''s one near the Capitol as well."


    "And? Do you think Robin would have the time to enter the Capitol''s dungeon?" Sir Raymond pointed out. "He hadn''t even been there two weeks before he left."


    "So, what you''re saying is, this will be his first dungeon run?" Sir Gray asked, surprised. "No wonder he''s excited like a school boy before playtime."


    Chelsea listened quietly to the two knight''s conversation, as she observed Robin. Indeed, it seemed that Robin was unusually fidgety today. It was like how she had felt when leaving Port Oracle for the first time.


    Witnessing Robin''s excitement, Chelsea only sighed. It seemed she couldn''t really stay mad at Robin. But, that didn''t mean she wouldn''t extort a meal from her later on, heheh.


    But, Chelsea had no idea about the things that she would encounter within the dungeon. But, then again, neither did Robin. In that respect, only the knights had an inkling of what was in store for them.


    ----


    After gathering the torches and the whistle from the guards, Robin''s company stepped into the dungeon.


    "This is just like a regular cave! How is this a dungeon?" Chelsea asked, sulkily. "Aren''t all dungeons built upon ancient ruins?"


    "But, doesn''t the fact that it''s cave-like make it seem more like a dungeon?" Robin said with an unstoppable smile on her face. "Besides, we are only more likely to find the ancient ruins if we go farther in?" Robin asked.


    "You are surprisingly astute about such things, huh?" Sir Daniel noted. "Indeed, most dungeons only have signs of ancient ruins in the lower levels. That is why historians will often hire the aid of strong adventurers to help them reach the point where they can study the ancient ruins."


    "Ho?" Robin mused. ''If the skyscrapers on earth were to become ancient ruins, then the most common signs would be building logos, bathroom signs, and emergency evacuation notices. We hardly leave things like ancient writings on our walls, after all.'' Then Robin laughed as she imagined someone trying to decipher the restroom symbols as an ancient language.


    "What''s so funny?" Chelsea asked. "Perhaps...are you laughing at me!?"


    "Ah, it''s nothing!" Robin shook her hands. "I just had a funny image pop into my head. I assure you, it has nothing to do with you."


    "Hmph! It''s a good thing that you are speaking the truth. If you weren''t, then I would have to punish you!" Chelsea huffed.


    ---


    Back in town, since the people hadn''t yet heard the news of the stampede being successfully repelled, Christian, Jasmine, and Keith found themselves facing the pig-faced beaurocrat that they had made an appointment with the day before.


    "...And for that reason, we would like to have a look at the maps residing in the castle library." Christian replied.


    The Pig Beaurocrat considered things as he stroked his bearded chin. He squinted his eyes, which were already quite small and beady.


    "It isn''t impossible...But..." The pig-ocrat glanced pointedly at Jasmine. "Only one among your party would currently be allowed to enter the castle, currently."


    "What do you mean, Sir Diplomat?" Christian''s face grew stern.


    If this pig was going to try and take advantage of Jasmine....then negotiations might break down very quickly. After all, Jasmine was the kingdom''s greatest wizard. She was not someone that would allow such a thing. It was more likely that she would beat the man''s brains out.


    "Not meaning any disrespect, of course." The Pig-lomat replied, delicately. "It''s just that one of our past kings once caught a servant boy with his queen. Since then, all men aside from the current royal family are banished from within the castle. even the soldiers barracks have been moved outside the castle gates. Since then, everything within the castle, from guarding to cleaning, has been done by women."


    "Is that so?" Christian asked. "How convenient." All the time, he was internally sweating. ''This is not good! She''s gonna blow her top!'' Christian glanced over at Jasmine, whose smiling face seemed like the buddha''s mask on an asura.


    "How interesting..." was all that she said, in a bemused voice. Her gloved hands poised delicately under her chin, as she leaned forward a bit.


    ''Oh no...her rage is approaching dangerous levels!'' Christian silently said a prayer for the soon to be dead porcine aristocrat. But, strangely enough, Jasmine did not explode this time.


    "And, if I should apply to enter the castle, then?" She asked.


    "By all means, you would definitely be allowed passage." The pudgy man nodded, handing her a plaque with an elaborate seal pressed upon it. "Just show this plaque to the guards at the gates."


    Jasmine glanced at the plaque. It seemed rather obvious that this might very well be a trap. Then she noticed something about the seal. She smiled as she accepted the plaque from the diplomat''s pudgy hands.


    "Thank you very much for your help." She smiled brilliantly.


    Christian could only offer up a prayer for the foolish stuck up pigs that decided to invite a wolf into their home of brick.


    ---


    "Ugh! Not another one!" Chelsea frowned, as the webs before then gathered themselves together quickly, rolling in upon themselves until out popped a colorless, clear slime.


    "When are we going to run into any of those cave boars!?" Chelsea groaned, as she used her water magic to extract the water content from the slime, instantly turning it into nothing more than a pile of dust.


    "Hmm? Isn''t it obvious? they were terrified by Sir Drago. I have no doubt that we won''t run into one until we reach the lower levels." Robin pointed out. A frightened person wouldnever hide behind an open door. Instead, they would run as far as they could from the terrifying person.


    Chelsea sighed. "But, we''ve been all over the third level, and there''s no sign of a way down !"


    "Hush. We''re probably just missing something." Robin replied. "There''s no way a cave boar as big as Old Boulder can just up and vanish into thin air! There''s gotta be a way down from here: a large way down. Let''s look again."


    They once more looked around the cleared out third floor.


    It''s no use!" Chelsea sighed. "The only thing we found was this piece of wall made from ancient stone bricks. But, It''s completely solid. There''s no chance of it being the stairway entrance."


    "Hmmn..." Robin wasn''t giving up just yet. She stared thoughtfully at the stone wall, walking back and forth in front of it.


    "There''s got to be a way down. The only way that we can''t find it is if it''s got a hidden entrance, or...it was blocked off by something..." Robin looked around.


    Oddly enough, her eyes were drawn to a nearby wall. While the walls were all naturally damp due to the aid of the prior rainstorm seeping down through the ground, not all the walls were as dark as this one. As opposed to a somewhat shiny dark grey green, this wall was somewhat closer to the color of obsidian.


    Robin''s eyes followed the dark color up the wall to the ceiling, where they paused.


    "Um...I think I found the reason why we can''t find the entrance, people." Robin suddenly said. Everyone looked up, following Robin''s eyes to stare at the ceiling.


    "No way!"


    "Is that even possible!?"

 115 She Discovers...

    "No way!"


    "Is that even possible!?"


    Robin''s group stared up at the ceiling, shocked. A giant web slime, suspended upon countless tiny threads, hung from the ceiling. Due to the bad lighting, no one had seen it during their initial search.


    "I can''t believe it." Chelsea breathed. "A slime king! I thought they were all killed off!"


    "Hmm? This isn''t just a really large slime, or a group combined into one?" Robin asked.


    "No! This is a slime king! An honest to goodness slime king!" Chelsea spoke, excitedly. The rest were looking at her with strange looks.


    "Chelsea, while I know it''s somewhat exciting for you, can you tell us about why you are so excited about a larger than usual blob of ooze?" Robin asked, still not quite understanding what they were facing. Chelsea stammered out a string of nonsense words.


    "...Didn''t understand a bit of that. Should we go kill it, now?" Robin lifted her sword arm, as if about to charge into the thing.


    "DON''T!!" Chelsea smacked Robin on the head, in a rare fit of anger.


    Robin laughed. "Finally found your tongue, huh? All right. Convince me. Tell me why I mustn''t kill this slime king."


    "That''s because." Chelsea lectured. "The slime king is the only known creature that can heal others instantly using water magic! A water mage once spent a year living near a slime king, and after that, she became known as the Water Saint for being able to heal others swiftly using water magic! Isn''t that amazing!?" Chelsea''s eyes sparkled crazily.


    "But, since then, the slime kings were sought out by the nobility, and brought out of the forest. Losing their source of food and protection, they were also fought over, and killed, due to jealous nobles of other houses. That''s why, since then, we water mages have never had a second water saint."


    Then Chelsea looked up at the Slime king, again, and laughed.


    "But this? This changes everything! If I stay near this slime king for a year, then my healing skills can definitely become much much better!"


    "Is that so?" Robin scratched her head in thought. "But, Chelsea, we can''t stay here for a year. No, even before that, are you confident that you can safely avoid all the web slimes, and cave boar stampedes?"


    "Urk! But it''s a slime king! A slime king!" Chelsea repeated,looking heartbroken.


    "It''s not like it''ll move away. You can come back and find it after we figure out where this kingdom is." Robin patted her shoulder, sympathetically.


    "Right now, we need to find the way down..."


    Robin walked over to the black rock, observing it. it was smooth, like a polished obsidian mirror. Robin reached out to push it, and was surprised when her hand went through it, practically unimpeded. Her mind blanked in surprise. A ripple began to spread around her hand until she snatched it back out.


    "Uwooh! Is this the rumored healing circle!?!" Chelsea exclaimed, drawing close to the mirror.


    "You know this?" Robin asked.


    "Of course I do! It''s the slime king''s specialty: healing portal. It can''t heal if it doesn''t come into contact with others. So it stretches a thin membrane over a well-used passageway, and heals the injured passers-through."


    "So it is harmless, right?" Robin confirmed.


    "Yup! As long as you don''t breath while going through the membrane, you''ll be fine." Chelsea replied. "I guess the only reason we could see it was because it''s digesting."


    "Is that so.."


    "Yup. Parasites, small bugs, dirt, sweat and scar tissues are what it''s favorite foods are. The healing process after that would leave the skin flawless. The healing portal turns black when the slime king is digesting these things. During that time, it will no longer heal. After people discovered this, slime kings were hunted twice as fervently." Chelsea sighed.


    "Originally, they should be able to co-exist with mankind. But a slime king cannot live without a well-travelled doorway. shutting its body up in a sealed box or a hidden inner room easily starves it to death. They don''t usually move around, either."


    "Is that so?" Robin asked.


    "Unfortunately, it''s true." Sir Grey shook his head and sighed. "While healers may be able to heal wounds, the majority of them cannot remove scars. So the saying ''unless you find a slime king'' has become popular among healers."


    During their conversation, the black had faded away until they could see through the membrane once more. The passage appeared,heading down at a somewhat steep incline.


    "Be careful on your way down." Robin warned before she walked through the membrane.


    It was a strange feeling, like walking through a wet curtain, but Robin came out clean and dry on the other side. She was soon joined by Chelsea and the knights.


    "It''s a shame I can''t observe it a bit longer, but I still have a duty to take care of you all. slime king, or no slime king." Chelsea sighed.


    Robin didn''t say very much, but at that point, she was wondering if perhaps she should have had Jasmine come, instead.


    -----------


    And, speaking of Jasmine, she was currently reading books in the castle library. Entry was easy enough. There were even a lot of pre-demon-war textsand books. Using telekinesis, and several magic eyes, she was greedily scanning these priceless books to bring back with her. If only she had thought to bring more magic eyes with her! As things are, she could only put up with the slow process of acquisition.


    In her hands was a secret small leather journal that was hidden behind the books. She was flipping through it leasurely, somewhat curious about why someone would hid a regular travel journal. When suddenly, she paused, and her eyes widened. She then quickly read, flipping through the book at a faster pace.


    When she reached the end, she sat back with a sigh, then quickly incinerated the journal. She waited until the magic eyes finished recording their books, then collected them back, placing all the books back upon their shelves.


    She needed to go warn Christian and the others not to use the super potions.


    "Hello! Who are you?"


    Jasmine jumped, as she had originally been the only person in the library. She hadn''t expected to meet anyone. She turned about to see a light brown-haired boy looking at her from a nearby lounge couch, with several books next to him.


    "How did you get in here?" She asked.


    "The same way everyone else does?" the boy answered.


    "No, I mean, aren''t men aside from the royal family not allowed in the castle?" Jasmine asked, confused.


    The boy nodded. "It''s true."


    "Then, wouldn''t you be in trouble-" Jasmine paused as the idea suddenly hit her.


    "You must not be from around here." The boy smiled, his hazel eyes glinting in amusement. "Hello, I am Prince Wilbur. May I have the pleasure of knowing your name?"


    "That depends entirely upon what you are going to do with it." Jasmine said, bringing her guard up. She remembered the contents of that journal, and resisted the urge to shudder. For now, she must be careful not to let anyone know that she is aware.


    The prince blinked. "Isn''t it natural that I would wish to know the name of my future bride?"


    "...what did you say? I think I misheard." Jasmine asked, looking at the lad who was clearly only 9 years old.


    "You will become my future bride!" Prince Wilbur said, emphatically.


    Jasmine laughed. "Wait until you are older, then asked me again." she turned about, heading towards the library exit.


    "Okay." A man''s voice came from behind her.


    Jasmine whirled about swiftly, in alarm. The boy was nowhere to be seen. in his place, a handsome young man sat, his hair and eyes the same color as the prince. He stood up.


    "Let me change my request. Become my bride!" He said. Jasmine looked around for signs of the prince.


    "...Where is Prince Wilbur?" she asked, confused.


    "Can you not see me right in front of you, woman?" The young man asked, chuckling.


    "Impossible. There''s no such way to grow up so quickly. You must be Prince Wilbur''s older brother!" Jasmine scoffed. "I am not so easily fooled!"


    "Be that as it may, I am Prince Wilbur. Everyone in the castle knows it."


    "Unfortunately, that is not my decision to make." Jasmine said. "I must speak with my Cousin, Prince Christian, before I can give you an answer. And so, for today, I''m afraid I must bid you farewell."


    "He''s royalty? Oh, then there''s no need to go back. I will have someone sent to invite your cousin into the castle." Prince Wilbur said.


    "While we may be foreign royalty, we still wish to abide by the rules." Jasmine said, feeling thoroughly creeped out.


    "Royalty from other countries are also acceptable. the rules never specified which royal family is, allowed.Moreover, if you marry me, he will become my future brother in law. How can I not meet him?" Prince Wilbur pointed out.


    "If. That is the key point. What if he should refuse?" Jasmine replied. "I am not so familiar with you that I can ignore the difference between men and women. I will come back tomorrow." She turned back to the exit, only to be blocked by two spears.


    "I insist that you stay." Prince Wilbur chuckled behind her. Jasmine turned around, her signature smile upon her face, the sign that she was mad.

 116 She Uncovers A Clue

    Entering the second level of the dungeon, it seemed like they had begun seeing more signs on ancient civilization: broken, moss-covered statues, shattered bricks, the occasional worn out relief carved into stone. These things littered the caves. Robin also noticed there were a lot more web slimes down here, where the damp was much more prevalent.


    "Hmm...It makes you wonder how those cave boar managed to climb so high." Robin muttered. "One can almost slide down the path, all the way to the bottom, wherever that is. And, with all this damp, they must be perpetually wet year round."


    "Don''t forget, it rained heavily yesterday. It''s possible it''s only damp when it rains." Sir Raymond pointed out.


    "Then, what were they running from to the point where they would desperately seek higher ground?" Sir Gray asked.


    "Perhaps flash flooding? If it only happens after rainstorms, then that might be the case." Sir Markham pointed out.


    "Regardless, keep on your toes. We only need to find that special ingredient, collect it, and leave." Sir Daniel growled, keeping an eye out.


    Skye had taken a cat nap on Robin''s shoulder. Neither the loud noises, nor the movement could wake or dislodge the sleeping cat. But going through that healing doorway had halfway roused it from sleep. Now, it yawned and stood up, asking sleepily.


    "Are we there yet?"


    Robin pet the little one. "We''re there. But for some reason, we can''t find the cave boars. I was told the ingredients would be with them."


    Skye put his ears up, listening.


    "There''s sound of movement off to your left. I''ll go check it out!" He jumped off Robin''s shoulder and glided over.


    "I found one!" He called back. It was an injured boar, whose hind leg dragged behind it. Due to its slow pace, it had fallen far behind the herd.


    "Hmmm?" Robin couldn''t help but think something was wrong when she saw the boar.


    "Hey, this boar..." She said thoughtfully. "It went through the healing door, too, right? How can we find it here, injured?"


    "Perhaps it was injured after going through the door?" Chelsea asked. The boar was bleeding excessively from long tears scattered randomly all over its body. It staggered to the center of the room before its legs gave out underneath it.


    The group cautiously approached the corpse, defeating web slimes on their way.


    "But, what could cause such serious wounds?" Robin wondered.


    "Was it rejected by the herd?" Sir Gray asked.


    "That doesn''t look like a tooth or a tusk gouge. It''s also too wide and shallow to be a claw mark." Sir Markham pointed out.


    "It almost looks like the wounds were melted, as if they had been capped in wax." Sir Raymond noted.


    "Some kind of corrosive substance? but, if it is corrosive, it sure isn''t following what corrosives usually act like..." Sir Daniel noticed. "It''s almost as if the wounds were deliberate. it''s not bleeding from any other wounds, and there aren''t any splash wounds, like what can be seen with regular corrosives. So, the wounds should be deliberate. But, quite frankly, the random haphazard distribution is baffling."


    Robin paused. Random...now where had she heard that word before...


    "Maybe it ended up that way in its struggle to get away from whatever wounded it?"Chelsea asked.


    "You''d think that, but there should at least a few tears going in the same direction. the fact that the directions are completely different, it''s like someone carved it out of the boar''s flesh slowly and directly." Sir Daniel shook his head.


    ''These knights...are strangely talkative about matters concerning death.'' Robin thought as she half-listened to their conversation. Random...random...random...


    "Ah." Robin smacked a fist on her palm as she finally recalled. "Web slimes." She said. "We''ve been defeating them this whole time by gathering them together through torch flames. The poor thing must''ve run through a bunch of them when it ran back down here."


    "Huh? But what do web slimes have to do with the boar and these wounds?" Chelsea asked.


    "I heard from Sir Drago that these web slimes can cause random burns to appear if we ignore them and let their webs accumulate on us. We have torches, but...the boar..." Obviously didn''t have a torch.


    While they were thinking about it, the corpse suddenly began to move again. Pieces of it broke off and dropped to the ground. When she saw this, Chelsea had a very bad feeling for what was coming next.


    The separated pieces began to change color, turning a bright blue, even beginning to glow. Then Robin noticed that these pieces had turned into long centipede-like caterpillars, that moved slowly away from the boar carcass, which crumbled in upon itself into dust.


    "Ah, here it is. The Soldiers were collecting these in bottles. Once the glow is gone, we won''t be able to find them! Hurry up!" Sir Grey exclaimed.


    "What is this? It wasn''t a dream? Then that time, too..." Chelsea''s voice quivered at the end. She gagged and ran behind a pillar, where she instantly relieved herself of her lunch.


    Meanwhile, Robin caught about four of them, by snatching them off the ground with the bottle. She was also a bit uncomfortable with catching these things, so she quickly screwed the cap on to make sure they wouldn''t escape.


    "All right. This should be enough. Let''s head back!" She said to the others.


    "Wha! Help Robin!" Skye cried out. it had been flying about the cave, and had suddenly been caught in a web slime''s web. The surrounding threads had begun wrapping around it as it called out to her.


    Robin sighed. "Don''t move. I''ll help you out-"


    "No!" Chelsea interrupted.


    "Chelsea? Wait, don''t tell me..." Robin looked up.


    "It''s another slime king~!" Chelsea exclaimed, excitedly.


    Robin suddenly had a headache.


    -----


    Prince Christian tapped the floor with his foot, as he watched the castle in the distance. Jasmine was taking too long in there, and it was already almost time for dinner. Where was she? Had she even forgotten to eat?


    "Calm down. As long as she hasn''t burned down the castle, then everything is still okay." Keith patted his shoulder.


    Suddenly, fireworks exploded from a lower castle window, startling Christian and Keith.


    "It appears I spoke too soon." Keith sighed.


    --------


    Jasmine had escaped the library by blasting a hole in a wall not covered by library books. Regardless of how much she wanted to blast a hole in this prince, she was not willing to burn those precious tomes up.


    "First rule of thumb: never bring cold weapons to a magician''s fight!" Jasmine bid farewell as she jumped out the hole, sealing it up again with ice behind her.


    "I''ll keep that in mind." Prince Wilbur chuckled as heunhurriedly walked out of the room to follow after her.


    ----------


    "Chelsea, I''m not going to kill it. I just want to free my cat." Robin pointed out.


    "Flying cat!" Skye corrected.


    "...my flying cat." Robin added.


    "Slime kings don''t eat cats! It eats parasites, sweat, dirt, disease, and scars. I told you before. Whatever it''s doing right now should be good for it!" Chelsea exclaimed.


    "But, look, Skye is starting to panic. Also, doesn''t it heal using the healing portal? Where is it?" Robin asked.


    "Upon occasions where it is forced to move, it takes time to set up another doorway. Perhaps it just moved up here!" Chelsea blustered.


    "If it just moved, I wonder for what reason?" Robin wondered.


    "No, you people, stop discussing this and help me out!" Skye interjected.


    Robin glanced up. "No, actually, thinking about it, you haven''t had a bath yet. It''s a good idea for you to play with that a bit."


    Skye''s hopeful glance turned to one of despair. "Master-eh?" Skye looked in surprise at the slime king, which had extended a thin tendril to Skye''s forehead.


    "Master, this slime king is sentient." Skye told her.


    "Really? What is it saying?" Robin asked.


    "''Where is the four-legger with yummy food?'' is what it''s asking." Skye said.


    Suddenly, a light went off in Robin''s head. She pointed to the dust pile of the deceased boar. "Tell him, ''the four-leggercollapsed over here''." Robin instructed.


    Skye conveyed it to the slime king, which unraveled its threads from about Skye, and moved slowly over to the boar''s remains.


    "Hey, it just turned to dust. Are you sure it''s okay?" Sir Gray asked.


    "It will be fine. Its target wasn''t the boar, after all." Robin replied.


    "What do you mean?" Sir Raymond did not understand.


    "Just watch." Robin instructed.


    Once the slime king got near the boar remains, a shrill scream pierced the air as one of the blue caterpillars was revealed, as it was torn up from the moss patch it had been hiding in, and dissolved into black particles. The slime king moved around the area, picking up caterpillar after caterpillar.


    "Gentleman, please observe the ground underneath where these blue caterpillars were discovered." Robin asked.


    "How could this be!?" Sir Raymond exclaimed.


    "Then, the boar before...it all makes sense!" Sir Markham finally understood.


    "Yes." Robin nodded. " It should be exceedingly obvious. These blue caterpillars..."

 117 She Returns From The Dungeon

    Jasmine stood with her back against the window, surrounded on all sides by guardswomen bearing magic resistant shields. Prince Wilbur stood behind the first row, with his carefree smile.


    "H-how could you find me so quickly!?" She asked, panting for breath.


    "Oh? You don''t know? Everyone here wears a plaque to allow them entrance. You didn''t think that the plaque you were given could be so easily emulated, could you?" Prince Wilbur pursed his lips. "But, that clueless face of yours is priceless. I really shouldn''t have said anything."


    Suddenly, Jasmine stood straight and laughed, her breath no longer ragged.


    "That''s right. you really shouldn''t have." She said. "Now I have confirmed my suspicions."


    "Apprehend her, but do not cause her harm!" The Prince ordered.


    But then, Jasmine disappeared in a puff of smoke, the identification plaque falling noisily to the floor.


    "A body double!" Prince Wilbur''s smile grew wider. "She''s becoming more and more excellent the more I know her." He turned to the guard women. "Quick! Search the castle! She must be here somewhere!"


    The guards scattered, and the Prince leisurely walked down the hallway. Such a long chase it was. He hadn''t had such fun in years.


    ----


    Christian and Keith were stopped at the castle gates.


    "But my cousin is in there! If I don''t stop her, it''s likely that she''ll bring down the whole castle with her!" Christian argued.


    "Even so, you are a man. All men aside from the royal family are not allowed in." The guard woman replied. "If you insist upon entering, then I will have no choice but to stop you, even if I must kill you."


    Keith shook his head and grabbed Christian''s shoulder, preventing him from moving forward.


    "If there is no way to enter, then we will take our leave. But, if that which you protect should be destroyed, I wonder...just what use are you as guards?" With those sharp words, he began to drag Christian away.


    "Keith, what are you doing? Can''t you see that these people are in danger?" Christian asked.


    "If they can act like that while their castle is being torn to pieces, then they are probably not worth saving. You know that Jasmine can''t stand for any kind of injustice." Keith reminded him, and added.


    "We''ve already been marked as hostiles now. It''s natural that they will try to capture us. Jasmine can take care of things by herself. Besides, Ponzu and Gerard have no idea how to fight. We need to return to the inn and make sure they aren''t taken as hostages."


    Christian clicked his tongue and set his back to the castle. If their company was taken as hostages, then Jasmine truly would be in trouble. They needed to hurry up and join up with Robin''s group to make sure everyone stayed safe. "Then, what are we waiting for? Let''s hurry!"


    -----


    Robin''s group emerged from the dungeon, eager to see the sunlight again.


    "You''re out quickly." A guard noticed.


    "One of my comrades is not feeling well, so we kept the trip short." Robin explained.


    "Mighty sorry to hear that. Sir Drago left a message for you. He''s sorry, but the spar will have to be postponed. something has happened back at the castle, so he had no choice but to return."


    "No problem." Robin nodded. "We''ll be heading back to town as well, then, so my companion can have a proper rest."


    "Stay safe!" The old guard bid them farewell with a salute.


    Once they were out of sight, Robin began to pick up the pace.


    "Why are we running?" Chelsea asked. "Hey, why are we running?"


    "It''s highly likely that the cause of the commotion at the castle is either Christian, or Jasmine. Sir Drago is very skilled. If Sir Drago is on his way there, our group will be in trouble." Robin explained. "I do hope it''s my imagination, though."


    "Well, a little exercise never hurt anyone." Chelsea nodded. "But I want an all-vegetable meal tonight! No meat allowed."


    "Noted." Robin laughed.


    "Master, shall I fly ahead and scout out the situation?" Skye asked.


    "That would be helpful, thanks. Be careful not to be seen." Robin nodded.


    "Got it!" Skye flew away ahead of them towards town.


    -----


    Jasmine clicked her tongue as she observed the entrance way being blocked by guard women in a solid wall. Even if she were suddenly able to turn invisible, there was no way she could squeeze through that mob. She had tried to quietly cut a window open, but they were all magic proofed to the point where it was ridiculous.


    Having no other choice, Jasmine returned to the one place they didn''t expect her to go: the library. She had noticed that there was an entrance to the 2nd floor from there, and decided to try her luck. But, before that....Jasmine collected a lot of the valuable tomes into her magic bag, impudently.


    Since they weren''t being cordial anymore, there was no longer any need to be polite. The price for insulting a master magician wasn''t cheap. She patted her magic bag in satisfaction before heading up to the second story.


    -------


    "Your Highness, we have checked all the rooms on the first floor, and have yet to findthe escapee." A guard woman reported.


    "Your highness, the library has just been found ransacked!" Another guard woman hurriedlyreported upon arrival.


    "Expand your search to the upper levels, and continue searching." Prince Wilbur ordered.


    "Understood, Your Highness." The guards saluted before returning to spread the new orders to the other search parties.


    "Heh heh. The more you run, the more I want to chase you." He laughed as he leisurely headed up the stairs.


    -------


    Sir Drago reached the city gates. "Make sure not to allow anyone to leave." he ordered the guards.


    "Yessir!" The guard captain saluted. Unbeknownst to them, Skye had observed this conversation from a nearby tree, and contacted Robin.


    "Robin, he''s having the soldiers keep anyone from leaving."


    "Perfect. We''re almost there!" Robin answered. "Stay hidden."


    ------


    Christian and Keith were relieved to find that the people back at the inn were safe and sound. "Pack your bags." Christian ordered, as he quickly burned some green leaves to fill the room with a thick smoke. "Jasmine''s temper has appeared once again. The situation may go south very easily."


    Ponzu and the carriage driver nodded, and began gathering their things in a manner which seemed to be very practised as they were ready to leave within five minutes. Gerard was impressed.


    "Now, get in the closet, and cover your mouths with a cloth." Christian ordered, taking out a pipe for camouflage. "Don''t breathe in too much smoke."


    It was a good thing they were ready, because not two minutes later, a messenger arrived from the castle with an invitation from Prince Wilbur. He stepped into the smoke-filled room without hesitation.


    "Heh? Is that so...Let me tell you something: I was just there at the castle. The guard woman very adamantly not allow me entrance." Prince Christian replied, acting . "And only now do you arrive with an invitation!? Isn''t it rude to refuse entrance and then invite us back as soon as we leave?"


    "You have been granted a special dispensation due to your status as a fellow member of royalty. The guard woman has since been informed, and will let you pass." Came the reply.


    "Hmmph! You can tell him that he is lucky if I decide to come at all with how I was insulted." Christian snorted.


    "Forgive me, but this is an invitation that you are not allowed to refuse." The messenger replied. Soldiers filed into the room, surrounding them.


    "I suggest you think about the consequences of trying to take me anywhere by force." Christian gave his last warning.


    "His Highness, Prince Wilbur is willing to shoulder any consequences necessary. You still wish for your cousin to remain in one piece, right?"The messenger replied.


    "Are you threatening royalty!?" Christian slammed his fist down.


    "I wouldn''t dare. I am merely a messenger. These words came from His Highness, Prince Wilbur, himself." The messenger said.


    "Hmmph. My cousin can handle things on her own. You, on the other hand, do not have the authority to order this prince around." Christian shook his head.


    The messenger staggered. "What did you...do..." he fell to the floor, along with the knights, unconscious.


    "Just a harmless little sleeping smoke is all." Christian chuckled, as Keith had Ponzu, Gerard, and the carriage driver quickly evacuate the closet and leave the inn with him.


    "It''s no use trying to leave the city. They''ve sollidly blocked the exit. Since Christian is still here, then it must mean that Jasmine''s the one in trouble." A voice came from behind them.


    Christian turned about.


    "Oh, thank goodness it''s you, Robin!" He sighed in relief.


    "Yup. I''m back." She replied. "Now where''s Jasmine?"

 118 She Enters The Castle

    "Jasmine is still at the castle. There''s a law making it so that men aside from the royal family aren''t allowed in. Even so, I was just about to be forcefully escorted to the castle, a little while ago."


    "Ho? In that case, I have an idea..." Robin grinned, mischievously.


    -----


    "I can''t believe you convinced me to do this!"Christian harrumphed.


    "Calm down. It''s much better than having her face everything alone. Ponzu and Gerard will be safe with Keith and the knights." Robin said, for the umpteenth time.


    "That isn''t what I was worried about." Christian shook his head. Robin sure didn''t have a good sense of self awareness. If Robin were to be killed in the mess, then the whole journey would have been for naught.


    "What?" Robin asked.


    "...Nothing." Christian turned his head to look out the window of the carriage.


    "This had better work." Christian grumbled.


    ------


    By now, Jasmine had snuck up to the fourth floor, ahead of the searching guard women. She had managed to stall them by knocking out a lone guard woman, and stripping her of her armor, to make it look like she was blending in with the guards. Now everyone was checking to see that she was not hiding among them.


    This had earned her the distraction necessary to allow her to sneak up into the fourth floor, unseen. While busy double-checking the guards, a report came that Sir Drago had arrived. This further delayed the search, as Prince Wilbur had to descend to the first floor to receive him.


    "My lord, I received reports of explosions in the castle, and came back to help." Sir Drago said.


    "The dungeon stampede?" The prince asked.


    "Completely subjugated." Sir Drago replied.


    "Good. You can help me find my little escaping bride, then. She likes hiding away from me." The prince smiled. Sir Drago stood up to go, but then a guard woman arrived.


    "Your Highness, Prince Christian has arrived at the castle with his brother, Prince Robin." she reported with a salute.


    "Two princes? I thought there was only one." Prince Wilbur tilted his head, pondering the meaning of things.


    "Well, no matter. Come with me, Sir Drago. I am going to meet my future brothers-in-law."


    "Understood." Sir Drago saluted, and followed behind Prince Wilbur. When they arrived, Sir Drago''s eyes flickered in surprise.


    "Hmm? It''s you!" He uttered in surprise.


    Prince Wilbur glanced back at Sir Drago.


    "You know them?" He asked.


    "Answering Your Highness, this general has met the black-haired prince before. It is mainly because of That Prince''s aid that this general was able to finish subjugation of the stampede so early. This general had wished to spar with him, but had to rush back, instead." Sir Drago explained.


    Robin twitched an eyebrow. ''This general'' this, and ''this general'' that: was it so difficult to say ''I''? What wuxia novel did this general jump out of?


    "Oh? A spar was it?" Prince Wilbur took interest. "Good! I am Prince Wilbur. May I ask which of the princes I am addressing?" He asked Robin.


    Robin nodded politely. "Certainly. My name is Robin, and this one here is Prince Christian." She introduced.


    "Prince Robin, huh? I''m afraid I''ve only heard about your brother. May I ask where you are in the line of succession?"


    "Not sure what Prince Wilbur means?" Robin shrugged. "I am the eldest, but I am not interested in the throne. My younger brother is more talented in that area."


    Christian wanted to refute. Who''s your younger brother! But he had to suffer this injustice in order to maintain a united front before Prince Wilbur.


    "But, how come...the younger brother seems taller?" Prince Wilbur asked.


    "Uhn. This is an oddity of our royal family." Robin nodded in agreement. "The younger ones will always be taller than the older ones. In this way, my younger brother has more charisma as a prince."


    "I see." Prince Wilbur had drawn his own conclusions. His bride must not like people without ambition. This Prince Robin was also an odd one. After all, which prince would willingly hand over the crown to their younger brother?


    "Well, a pleasure to meet you both." Prince Wilbur nodded a greeting. "It seems I dragged my general here for something inconsequential. For Sir Drago to desire a spar with you, I take it that your swordsmanship must be quite impressive. I''m not sure if you are still interested in sparring with my general?"


    Robin calmly replied. "What I have said. I have said. Should I say I shall not do something, no one can convince me otherwise. And, should I agree to do something, it shall always be done. To this day, I have never retracted my words. Why should I begin now?"


    Prince Wilbur''s smile widened. "Good, good! Iwill have the guards clear out a place for the two of you. What better time to have a spar than now?"


    Robin pretended she didn''t know Prince Wilbur''s hidden schemes. Having lead the conversation, if Wilbur wasn''t scheming against them right now, then he was disqualified as a member of a royal family.


    "I don''t mind. But I have a somewhat bad habit. I don''t like sparring without staking something. I''m not sure if Prince Wilbur is interested?" She asked.


    "I''m listening." Wilbur replied.


    "Since it''s a friendly match, then I''ll make it something inconsequential. How about if I win, I bring Cousin Jasmine back with me for the day?" Robin asked.


    "So her name is Jasmine! Splendid! But, if you lose, I''m not sure if you will accept the stakes..." Prince Wilbur pretended he was worried.


    "Just say it. I have already given the condition for if I win. It would be unfair for me to also give the condition for if I lose." Robin encouraged.


    "Well, I''ll say it, then. I fell in love with Jasmine at first sight. If Prince Robin were to lose, I ask that you not interfere in my pursuit of her hand." Prince Wilbur lay it out on the table.


    "This is my cousin you are talking about. If she should hate you, I will not allow a forced marriage." Robin replied, in warning.


    "I know." Prince Wilbur replied. "I''m just asking Prince Robin not to interfere in my pursuit."


    Robin was silent for a moment, then nodded. She originally didn''t have any say in Jasmine''s marriage anyways, so it was not like she lost a layer of skin. Moreover, it was only Robin that promised she would not interfere. Christian had not promised anything.


    "I give you my word." Robin said. Inwardly she was smirking at how the delay tactics had worked. Keeping Prince Wilbur and Sir Drago occupied would give Christian extra time to find Jasmine.


    Soon a place was cleared out in the inner courtyard. As it had been a long time since any man other than his highness who was allowed in the castle, many of the guards were curious, peeking into the courtyard from the upper windows.


    "The rules are simple. Whoever defeats the other in swordsmanship skills wins. You are not allowed to take their life. Other than that, anything goes." The referee said.


    Prince Wilbur smiled at Sir Drago. "You are not allowed to lose." He had told the general earlier. The show promised to be good.


    Robin accepted a practice blade, but then Sir Drago suddenly spoke up.


    "Practice blades are for practice, and are naturally more brittle than the real thing. This general doesn''t like winning because of an accident. Moreover, using a sword you are unfamiliar with, I am afraid of you not bringing out your full strength. Why don''t we just use our own blades for the fight?"


    Robin paused. "Blades for polishing skills are indeed different from tools of war. However, Sir Drago, it seems you forget that we are not at war? What need have we for tools of war in a friendly spar?"


    "No matter the tool, This general is serious in my desire to fight you at your best. Not sure if Prince is willing to oblige?" Sir Drago asked.


    Robin sighed. She knew all too well what kind of a cheat blade her sword was. In all likelihood, the match would end very quickly.


    "Very well.." She drew her sword, which seemed to humm for a second.


    "Don''t sever his blade. I want to fight fairly against him." Robin asked the sword under her breath. Once again, the sword seemed to vibrate, giving off a subtle humm.


    "This spar...begins!"

 119 She Spars With Sir Drago Part 1

    Sir Drago''s eyes took on a sharp glint as he leapt forward, testing Robin''s defense. Robin also was quick to defend, inclining her sword at an angle to deflect his blade. Robin didn''t speak, but quickly counter attacked with a practiced ease, causing Sir Drago to jump back to dodge.


    Once more, their swords clashed, but neither drew the advantage. Both Robin and Sir Drago grinned. This was going to be fun.


    ------------


    Jasmine was suspicious. It seemed that half of her pursuers were suddenly gone. She felt that they were gathering somewhere to give her a nasty surprise later on. Hopefully, her preparations had not been noticed.


    Naturally, she soon retreated up to the fifth floor, attempting to gain distance from the perceived threat. Passing by a window, Jasmine noticed something happening in the courtyard below.


    She paused to glance down, only to see Robin going up against the general in a spar. Her mouth turned downwards as she muttered.


    "What is that idiot doing!"


    "I heard something over here!" One of the guards called nearby.


    Jasmine could only sigh before hurrying off to hide again.


    -------


    Prince Christian was watching from the side, but in reality, he was using the castle greenery as a hub to extend his search for Jasmine. At the beginning, it seemed like Jasmine had used magic in a variety of places, as there were still traces of her mana signature.


    But then Christian remembered a certain incident in his past, and sweat began to gather on his back. It seemed that Jasmine truly was pissed. If his suspicions were correct...


    Christian glanced at Prince Wilbur, a shred of pity in his eyes. It was only a shred, though. This proud prince really had brought this upon himself. He turned his eyes back to the fight as he continued searching for traces of Jasmine through the grapevine.


    ---------


    Robin was having fun. While her strength was naturally less than Sir Drago''s, considering age and physique, she was able to balance out against him using highly skilled redirection techniques.


    To be honest, she had practiced these skills the most, trying to even out the distance between her and her older brother. What use was great power if it could not land accurately? Thus, the power would be diffused around, and to the side. The more strikes she redirected, the more it seemed like there was an impregnable bubble around Robin.


    Of course, those strikes she could clearly not redirect, she avoided with light steps. She was actually using two different techniques together. The aikido-like sword where the opponent''s strength becomes your own was used for defense and counter attack. The light airy footsteps were used for dodging like a feather in the breeze.


    Christian noticed that Robin''s sword style was somewhat different from when she was dealing with the orcs or the assassins. It seemed more skilled. There was none of the incumbent sharp swiftness of when she dispatched the orcs. Neither did she use cheap brawling techniques or incapacitating jabs that he saw when she fought the assassins. But, despite all of this, Robin was still holding her own.


    Of course, if Robin knew what Christian was thinking, she would have snorted. Obviously, she was acting like a prince right now. Cheap moves, while they would win, would not be accepted by the opponent.


    More importantly, if she used the hero''s incredibly sharp blade to cut through Sir Drago''s blade, things would be over in a moment. Right now, as she was buying time, cutting the spar short early was the epitome of foolishness. Lastly, it had been a while since her last formal spar. She was having fun exercising her skills, as the carriage had become a bit stuffy after a long journey.


    In all this time, it seemed neither had gained advantage over the other. It was mainly Sir Drago attacking, and Robin dodging and counter-attacking. But, then again, if one disregarded the counter-attacks, Robin hadn''t performed a single attack during the entire spar. Thus, it seemed that Robin was on the losing end.


    But Robin and Christian both knew that if she attacked for real, the spar might end very quickly. The courtyard cobblestones were already mostly shattered by Sir Drago''s great might.But, despite Sir Drago''s great strength, he still could not hit Robin.


    But Sir Drago was not willing to let things continue as they were. He was feeling unsatisfied by Robin''s light avoidance, as if she did not take the spar seriously. She even began to hum a tune to herself as she fought. Finally, his temper reached its point.


    "Feh! How can you call yourself a man if you use such a cowardly way of swordplay? Where did the rampant slaughtering blade you used get to!? I want to fight you at your best! Put away your mercy and fight me for real!"


    Robin sidestepped as Sir Drago swung his blade, and missed.


    "Well, I would, but it seemed you were not willing to use your own full strength, so I obliged as well to match you." She replied easily. "I give sincerity to the sincere."


    This surprised Sir Drago, who suddenly laughed.


    "How could you tell?" He asked.


    "I would expect nothing less of someone who claims to be my equal." She replied.


    "Fair enough." Sir Drago said as he stepped back. "I suppose that was a good warm-up. Now it''s time for me to get serious."


    "Eh?" Christian was startled. The entire match had seemed fairly serious already, though? The swordplay displayed was more than enough to be considered at the level of a knight general. Now each side claimed that it was a simple warm up?


    Then...what would the serious swordplay look like? Christian was distracted from his searching for Jasmine as his curiosity got the better of him. He watched the two as they stood on opposite ends of the courtyard, each gripping their swords.


    They stood there, neither one moving an inch as they stared each other down.


    "Why are they not moving?" Christian wondered aloud.


    "No, they are already fighting." Prince Wilbur said, pointing things out. "As experts, they are determining which course of action to take. Which way the opponent may move, or how they will react, using the data collected beforehand to come up with both a flawless defense, and an invincible offense: that is what expert sword play is..."


    Christian looked at Prince Wilbur, surprised at his uncharacteristic insight-


    "But of course, Sir Drago will win anyways." Wilbur finished, which caused Christian to put away all good thoughts about Prince Wilbur''s character. It was obvious that he was a slimy snake trying to rile him up. But, Christian felt angry that Wilbur disregarded Robin so quickly, so he decided to play along.


    "No way! Robin will definitely win! He''s a hundred times better than your Sir Drago!" Christian snorted.


    "You must not know Sir Drago then." Prince Wilbur glared at Christian. Inwardly, Wilbur was laughing. It seemed someone had taken the bait.


    "That''s my line! You know nothing about how amazing Robin is!" Christian glared right back.


    "In that case, how about we make a bet?" Prince Wilbur asked slyly in the heat of the moment.


    "That''s fine with me!" Christian crossed his arms, confidently. So, this was what he had been aiming for. "What are the conditions?"


    "Winner gets to claim one favor from the other, that they absolutely can''t go against. The favor is limited to commands that are not life threatening." Wilbur said with a smirk. This way, he could claim two rewards with one win, and both princes would have their hands tied.


    "Deal!" Christian shook hands with Prince Wilbur.


    Then Prince Wilbur turned to the match. "Hurry up and finish the match, General! You can''t stand around all day!" He cheered


    for Sir Drago.


    "What! Those are my lines! Don''t show any mercy, Robin! Show that Drago person whose the true swordsman here!" Christian called out, cheering for Robin.


    Both Robin and Sir Drago paused, feeling annoyed and embarrassed due to their shameless cheerleaders. Robin internally rolled her eyes at Christian. If she did that, then what about the plan of rescuing Jasmine? She also suspected that Christian wasn''t doing his job...


    Although Robin didn''t look in Christian''s direction, he felt a cold shudder run down his back. He quickly returned to searching for Jasmine, all while calling out cheers to Robin.


    Soon enough, both Robin and Sir Drago leapt into action...

 120 She Finds Out Sir Drago is....

    Sparks flew like fireworks as both swords clashed against each other in a flurry of blows too quick for the eye to follow. In the flashing light of swords, Robin''s absolute area was much more visible.


    Suddenly, Sir Drago''s sword lit up in flames as it blasted towards Robin, intent upon winning. But it was equally stopped when Robin''s sword suddenly was covered in ice, and countered the flames.


    "WHAT!?" Christian exclaimed.


    "Hmmph! What''s so surprising about fighting with magic blades?" Wilbur sneered.


    "It''s not that." Christian shook his head. "Robin injured his mana source a short while ago. He should be unable to use magic."


    Both princes fell silent as they watched the exchange of fire and ice.


    "He seems pretty stable enough to me." Prince Wilbur noted. "Are you sure his mana source is injured?"


    "I''m certain. He was just checked by Jasmine this morning." Christian replied. Prince Wilbur might be proud, but even he could recognize that Jasmine, as an experienced magician, could easily determine the severity of the injury.


    But the exchange of fire and ice kept going. Robin blocked off the raging flames with an equivalent glacial ice. Her face showed no signs of any kind of internal struggle.


    "Then, how?" Prince Wilbur scratched hishead. "Healing magic doesn''t work on mana source injuries. So, how?"


    Prince Christian shook his head. "I have no idea." He said, watching the bright red flames and sparkling blue ice clash again.


    ---------


    A few hours beforehand, Robin was watching the Slime King search for and devour the blue caterpillars surrounding the boar''s remains.Suddenly, she had an idea.


    "HeyChelsea." She said. "Slime kings can instantly heal people, right?"


    "Yup!" Chelsea nodded, a big grin on her face. She was enjoying seeing the creatures that had caused her such distress being destroyed under the power of the object of her admirations. They were both sitting in an area that had already been cleared of blue catterpillar worms.


    "Then, do you think it''s possible to heal my mana source?" Robin asked.


    Chelsea paused, then turned to look at Robin,a thoughtful expression on her face. "I don''t know." She replied. "I''ve never heard of any attempts to do so."


    "Then, shall we ask?" Robin turned to Skye, who nodded and carefully approached the slime king. This time, it surely wouldn''t get caught.


    It tapped the Slime King. But, it''s paws were then stuck. Skye froze in surprise before it was once again wrapped in sticky threads.


    "Not again!" Skye wailed, flailing about, until it was badly tangled up. Once more, a tendril was pressed against Skye''s forehead. Since Skye wanted to escape as soon as it could, it quickly conveyed Robin''s question.


    The Slime King paused a bit in consideration, before the answer came back.


    ''Can.''


    Chelsea''s eyes lit up. "He can!?"


    But the Slime King wasn''t finished talking.


    ''Me Eat Yummy Food. Can Heal.''


    Robin nodded. It was only fair to provide a payment for treatment. "How much?" She asked.


    The Slime King considered again for a bit, before lifting up a certain number of tendrils.


    ''This many. Can Heal.''


    Robin took out the glass jar with the blue caterpillars."We only have this much right now. We can give this to you now. We don''t have enough, though. Can you wait here while we go hunt for more?"


    The King Slime seemed to brighten up at the sight of the blue caterpillars. A tendril took the glass jar, unscrewed the lid, and upended the caterpillars into it''s clear ooze. Then it returned the jar with the lid.


    ''Can. Will Wait.'' It promised. The tendrils were lifted up again, this time four less.


    ''This many. Can Heal.'' It said again, before releasing Skye.


    "Ugh! Isn''t there another way of doing that!?" Skye made a face. "You don''t have to capture me every time!"


    The slime wobbled and jiggled noiselessly. Robin realized it was laughing. "I think he finds your reaction to be funny." Robin let Skye know. "If you stop reacting to it, it will probably get bored with you."


    "Ugh. Lies! That never works with human children!" Skye protested.


    "That''s because, to human children, they consider it a great honor to hold a great one such as you in their arms." Robin teased with a straight face. She would not let Skye know that they probably thought Skye was an adorably cute creature.


    "Well, isn''t that to be expected? I am impressive, after all." Skye lifted his nose up, as it jumped up onto Robin''s shoulder again.


    Robin laughed. "Yes, very impressive!" She agreed.


    They quickly found several more boar with the aid of Skye''s good sense of hearing, and were quickly able to return with a jar full of blue caterpillars.


    The knights guarded Chelsea and Robin, facing outwards in case monsters were attracted to the site. After eating, the Slime King agreed to perform the treatment. The Slime king tapped a dry patch of stone floor


    ''Lie Here. Will Heal.'' It said, having once more captured Skye to act as an interpreter. Robin lay down, and the Slime King said one last thing.


    ''Grit teeth. May Hurt.''


    Chelsea watched from the side, intent upon observing the Slime King''s healing process, while the slime king extended itself over Robin, and engulfed everything but her face, like a sleeping bag. Then the slime king turned an opaque white as it began treating Robin.


    Robin closed her eyes, and her awareness delved down into herself, observing her mana source as she watched the slime king treat it.


    ''All-magic source? Good. More Easy Heal.''


    Robin could somehow sense what the Slime King was saying. Perhaps it had forgotten to release Skye.


    Like a doctor popping back in a dislocated limb, the separated edges of the smallest crack were pressed back together, and seamlessly joined, as if they had never broken.But like a dislocated limb,it was not a painless process. Each time they were pressed back together, it felt like an electric shock burst out from the heart area, followed by an unbearable tingling feeling in all four limbs.


    Robin grit her teeth against this sensation. She had to endure this feeling until they were all joined together. But, working from the smallest crack to the largest one, each time had a more painful reaction. The tingling feeling became a crawling, almost burning feeling. But, through it all, Robin didn''t make a sound.


    Even though it only took five minutes to finish all but the largest crack, Robin''s awareness was stretched due to the pain until it seemed like half an hour. The last crack was then joined together. The pain made her reflexively curl up upon herself, and breathe quickly through her mouth as the Slime King withdrew.


    ''All Done.''It said.


    "Good." Robin''s voice was a bit raw as she picked herself up off the ground. "I have a deal to make with you."


    --------


    Robin and Sir Drago were still evenly matched, despite the disparity between Robin''s and Sir Drago''s raw muscle power. As Christian watched, he suddenly spoke.


    "That reminds me. Isn''t there a law that men aside from the royal family not allowed into the palace under pain of death?" Christian asked.


    Prince Wilbur nodded. "There is."


    "Then....how come Sir Drago is allowed inside the castle?" Christian turned, looking Prince Wilbur in the eye.


    "That''s because naturally..." Prince Wilbur smirked. "Sir Drago is not a man."


    Christian paused in thought. "...A eunuch?" He asked, which almost caused Sir Drago to stumble, as he grit his teeth. ''I can hear you two!'' He grumbled in his heart as his sword strikes became heavier.


    "Heavens, no! Such a barbaric custom has long been banned from the kingdom."


    "Then He''s a woman!?" Christian asked, shocked. At this, both Robin and Sir Drago stumbled. Sir Drago stumbled from the implied insult. Robin stumbled because for a moment, she felt she had been discovered, and her heart jumped up into her throat.


    "Heck no! Where are you getting these unconventional ideas from! Does Sir Drago even look like a woman!!" Prince Wilbur scolded.


    "Well, if he''s not a man, and he''s not a woman, and he''s not a eunuch, then what is he?" Prince Christian asked.


    "Haha! Feast your eyes upon this sight! Sir Drago, I give you permission to return to your original form!" Prince Wilbur called out.


    Sir Drago blinked, and then did a strange thing. He swallowed his flaming sword. This caused both Christian and Robin to blink and stare in surprise.


    Sir Drago groaned; hisirises became slits. His armor began to change as his figure rapidly grew taller. His neck grew longer and a scaly tail extended behind him. Robin looked up as Sir Drago grew fangs and scales, turning into a familiar obsidian figure.


    "A dragon! Sir Drago is a dragon!?" Christian exclaimed.

 121 She Spars With Sir Drago Part 2

    Robin sighed. Then she looked up at the large black reptile.


    "Just look at you, huh! You have no sword, so we can''t cross blades anymore. Moreover, with this ridiculously big body of yours, You''re more likely to knock down the castle than defeat me. How am I going to spar with you now!" She scolded.


    "Moreover, you lied! You said you were only 18 years old! As a dragon that big, I refuse to believe that you are a mere 18 years old!" Robin continued.


    "Urgh. That was how long I''ve been in that human form. I can''t very well tell everyone that I''m almost a millenium, can I?" the dragon answered, being unable to meet Robin''s eyes.


    Christian''s jaw had dropped to the point you could stick an egg in it. Robin was scolding a dragon!?


    Sir Drago bent his head to look down at Robin. "You are right. It seems we can no longer continue our spar as things are. Such a pity. but I can''t go against my master."


    "Master?" Robin asked, then noticed a collar on Sir Drago. As it had been obsidian black as well, it had blended in with the scales. The collar was a smooth metal band except for the circular medallion at the base of the neck. It looked like there needles radiating from behind the medalion. No, it was not a medallion. The smooth pearl white stone was actually a scale.


    ''A dragon''s reverse scale'' Robin realized. This was probably a slave collar created specifically for dragons, as it targeted the dragon''s only weak spot. Robin''s eyes narrowed. Why was it slavery again!


    "Come on, general! I don''t have all day! Win this match so that I can end this farce!" Prince Wilbur called out. Sir Drago''s eyes shuddered as he reluctantly had to continue fighting.


    "I am sorry, little one. I have no choice." Sir Drago sighed as he swung his tail at Robin.


    "Robin be careful!!" Christian called out shocked, about to run in and help.


    "STAY THERE, CHRISTIAN!" Robin called out, her voice sharp. Christian paused in surprise at Robin''s sudden ferocity.


    She explained. "Here, hold on to Skye. If you interfere, then that will invalidate this spar!"


    Skye looked reluctant to leave Robin''s side, but even if he was a spirit beast, he couldn''t stop a dragon under the influence of a slavery collar, so he flew over to Christian.


    "You can beat him, Robin! I''m rooting for you!" Skye told Robin encouragingly through their mind link, as it landed on Christian''s shoulder.


    Prince Wilbur, watched on with a pleased grin, allowing Sir Drago to halt for a moment as he watched this exchange.


    "That''s right. If you rush in to help, I win by default." Prince Wilbur smirked.


    "You!" Christian was so enraged that he grabbed Prince Wilbur, lifting him up by his lapels.


    "Striking me will also make me win. What a shame. Such a poor loser." Wilbur said, his smiling face asking to be struck. While Christian''s face was black, he had no choice but to put Wilbur back down, and turn back to the fight.


    "But Robin, you can''t fight alone! That''s a dragon! It''s not some stupid wyvern!" Christian called out, worried.


    "Yeah, it''s not some stupid wyvern." Wilbur laughed. "Hey, dragon! You may damage the flagstones, but you''re not allowed to destroy this castle! I still haven''t given you permission to use your flame breath, either. Remember that!"


    "I''ll be fine! Just who do you think I am!?" Robin called back. Instead of frowning, or crying, or looking solemn, a smile had bloomed on Robin''s face. She had truly been angered.


    ''This kingdom is rotten through.'' Robin realized. ''Then, the things that will happen next are of its own making.''


    She tightened her grip on her blade, bringing it up before her. "You know what I said about not cutting things?" She muttered to it. "I''ve changed my mind. Help me cut off the roots of this worthless kingdom."


    The hero blade hummed. Robin jumped away as Sir Drago''s tail crushed the courtyard where she had stood. She continued to dodge, using the limited space to hamper the dragon''s movements.


    ''Robin, why? Why do you continue to fight like this?'' Christian watched from the side, anguished. He had no choice but to retreat until he stoodjust outside the courtyard. He stood in the doorway, watching Robin''s seeming one-sided fight. He felt utterly useless, only being able to stand and watch from the side.


    ''No, in this situation, there is something that I can do.'' Christian realized. ''I need to find Jasmine.'' He concentrated on searching for Jasmine.


    -------


    Jasmine climbed up the last flight of steps, setting foot upon the rooftop, and glancing around. What soldiers there were up there, were intent upon watching the fight. They took no notice of Jasmine as she smiled mischievously.


    She waved her hand, swiftly setting up yet another chain of magic circles, before allowing the circles to disappear as they seeped into the stone roof. Then she found a good spot to observe the fight as well, brushing against a strand of ivy.


    ----------


    Christian''s eyes widened. ''The Roof? Then...'' His eyes darted around, searching the rooftops until he glanced a head peeking out from behind a group of guards.


    Turning his eyes back to inside the courtyard, Christian suddenly realised that Wilbur was nowhere to be seen.


    "Eh? Where did he go?" Christian looked around. When he looked back up to the roof, he saw Jasmine wave a hand towards him, with a magic symbol. It was a request for mana communication. Only if Christian allowed the linkage of magic power could they communicate via magic. Christian instantly nodded.


    Usually, he would hesitate before allowing such a thing. Jasmine had played horrible pranks on him before. But, this time, he was so angered at Wilbur that he was willing to put aside his differences with Jasmine. The two scheming cousins had joined forces.


    "Christian, if you don''t give me a good reason for why Robin is fighting a dragon, I''m not sure how terrible a punishment I may come up with." Was the first thing she said when their mana linked together. A cold shiver ran up Christian''s spine.


    "I''ll talk! I''ll talk!" Christian quickly explained what had happened while she was busy.


    "Ho? So that dead man walking is trying to tie your hands up, huh?" Jasmine''s words grew sharper. "It seems I''ll have to peel more than several layers off his thick skin to get things through his worm-ridden skull."


    "Now that we''ve found you, I''ll tell Robin, so she can stop the fight." Christian said, relieved.


    "No. Don''t stop it. magic link me to Skye." Jasmine ordered. Christian did so quickly.


    Skye''s hair rose when it felt someone trying to use magic on him, but it relaxed when it realized the magic user was Jasmine. While cautious, it still allowed the magic link.


    "What is it?" Skye asked.


    "Skye, can you transfer my words to Robin?" Jasmine asked. Skye sighed. Why was everyone using him as a message hub today?


    "Can." Skye nodded, as it linked Jasmine''s voice up with Robin.


    --------


    After fifteen minutes of fighting, Robin was starting to breathe heavier. While usually she had a good amount of stamina, it was more rapidly depleted when going up against a dragon.


    "Robin?" Jasmine''s voice came through, startling Robin into almost getting hit. She pinwheeled her arms to regain balance after narrowly dodging another tail swipe.


    "Eh? Jasmine? Is that you?" She asked.


    "If you want to defeat the dragon without hurting it, then I''ve got a way." Jasmine said.


    "I know, it''s the slave collar, right? I need to destroy it, but I can''t get close enough!" Robin replied, frustrated.


    "That''s the self-defense order that is built into the collar." Jasmine explained. "If you want to save your friend, then there''s only one way."


    "I''m listening..." Robin said, as she dodged a triple claw swipe.


    ------


    Jasmine only spoke one sentence when Christian suddenly called out.


    "Jasmine, look out behind you!"


    Jasmine leapt away from her hiding spot, and turned about to come face to face with Prince Wilbur.


    "Now, while those two cousins of yours are occupied, I will definitely hear your answer!" Prince Wilbur said, with his gentleman''s smile.


    If Jasmine had been an ordinary girl, she might have already broken down by now. But she wasn''t. Jasmine was the greatest magician in Ekkinshire Kingdom, the niece of King Zephron, and cousin to Prince Christian. She had seen more than her fair share of nobleman''s plots and marriage schemes.


    Jasmine swept her eyes about the rooftop. She was surrounded by guards. She looked Prince Wilbur in the eyes and said.


    "Has anyone ever told you that women hate persistent men?" Then she triggered a single magic circle.


    In the next moment, Prince Wilbur was at the epicenter of a huge explosion.

 122 She Brings About A Resolution

    The guards gasped.


    "Your Highness!" One of them called out, worried.


    But, Jasmine frowned. When the smoke cleared away, she sighed.


    "I had hoped there was just a smidgen of humanity left in you. But....as expected. There isn''t a single wound. You''ve fully become a monster, huh..."


    Prince Wilbur stood there, his signature smile still on his face.


    "Surprised? The royal family is invincible against magic attacks."


    "If that is so, what happened to your parents?" Jasmine asked. "You say ''Royal Family'' this, and ''Royal Family'' that. But I have been throughout the entire castle and have seen no signs of them."


    At her words, Prince Wilbur frowned. "My parents are...huh? Where are my parents?" He looked around, confused.


    "They went away on a trip." Jasmine spoke. "A trip to a neighboring country. There was a royal wedding, and they were invited."


    "That''s right! But that was a long time ago when I was a child. They didn''t let me go with them because I was too young." Prince Wilbur entered a strange frame of mind as he seemed to shrink down from his adult shape to his child shape before their eyes.


    "What happened next?" The child Wilbur asked curiously.


    "While the king and queen were away, you played with your new pet, a dragon hatchling." Jasmine spoke slowly.


    "It was a windy day. The sun was shining, and the big puffy clouds were so inviting that you skipped out on your lessons and decided to play outside." Jasmine continued.


    "It was a beautiful day." Wilbur nodded.


    "It truly was a beautiful day." Jasmine nodded. "Until the neighboring kingdom attacked during the king''s absence. Arrows flew, magic explosions racked the castle walls. Many soldiers died that day, protecting the castle where they thought the prince was."


    "No! Don''t! I''m not-don''t come near me! Stay away!" Wilbur began to see things play out in his head. His eyes darted about him, as he saw the horrifying scenes of war.


    "And that''s when it happened. A stray magic exploded nearby, fatally injuring you." Jasmine said. Prince Wilbur clutched at his side, falling down to the ground.


    "There was no one around but your pet, the newly bought dragon hatchling, wearing the black collar. Its scales hadn''t changed color yet. It was completely white."


    "That''s right. He licked my face." Wilbur recalled.


    "Do you remember what you told that hatchling?" Jasmine asked.


    "''I don''t want to die. Don''t let me die.''" Wilbur said, as if in a trance.


    "Indeed. Words spoken out of fear, but those very words caused an irreparable pain to that hatchling." Jasmine sighed. "The collar it wore was a slave collar: a slave collar that forced that tiny hatchling to obey its master. Even before it was grown, it was forced to forego all other routes and to create a means so that you wouldn''t die. It was that day thata new creature was discovered: a new ingredient that made it possible to create the super potion." Jasmine explained. "That hatchling used all of its power, and fell into a deep sleep. When it awoke, its scales had turned black, never more to gain its color as a member of the fire dragons."


    "No, I didn''t mean it!" Prince Wilbur cried. "I didn''t know!"


    Jasmine mercilessly continued. "And your parents? There was a rebellion in that neighboring kingdom, and assassins killed everyone at the wedding with a deadly poison.They never returned."


    "No! Who told you this!?" Wilbur frowned. "Why do you remember the things I don''t!?"


    "Don''t you remember? The small leather notebook you wrote everything in. The hiding place you placed it in. After you hid it last, how many fights have you gotten into? How many super potions have you consumed?" Jasmine asked.


    "Huh?" Wilbur frowned, his hands going up to his head. "How many?"


    "Those super potions had one crucial ingredient to them, the creature birthed by a hatchling''s first magic. A glowing bright blue caterpillar." Jasmine prompted.


    "How long has it been since you were able to use magic, Prince? How long has it been since you were able to change form?" Jasmine asked.


    "How long has it been...since you lost the last shred of humanity?"


    The prince suddenly started shrieking. With the shock, a crack broke in the Prince''s face. More cracks opened up, all along his skin. His flesh squirmed as it seemed to separate into long, flesh-colored strips. Maintaining the prince''s general shape, it was apparent that the prince was made up ofmany caterpillars. It was a gruesome, nightmarish sight.


    Jasmine glanced at all the guards around her. They too began shrieking, as they dropped their weapons and also transformed into caterpillar swarms shaped like humans.


    Then she sighed. There really was no such thing as a super potion. Each healing took place at the cost of a bit of the person''s humanity. There was no living person left in the entire city: it was only a remnant of the past.


    "General! You have my permission! Use your flame breath! Eradicate them!" The Wilbur swarm ordered.


    But the flame breath did not come.


    "What are you waiting for! Destroy them! Why should they be human while I am not! I can''t stand these who have seen the pitiful existence I''ve become. Destroy them!"


    But all was silent behind the Wilbur Swarm.


    "What is the meaning of this!?" The swarm turned about, to witness the dragon silently staring at the prince.


    "I told you to destroy them!" The Wilbur swarm ordered.


    The dragon sighed, then lifted Robin up onto the roof.


    "I ask of you, please help me put him to rest." the dragon asked Robin. "I cannot bear to."


    Then he turned his back, and shrunk back down into his human form of Sir Drago. But this time, he was not wearing the obsidian armor. His robes were white, and there was no black collar around his throat. a single white scale gleamed upon his neck. He stood there, his back turned to the prince


    "Where is your slave collar! You, human! How did you free him!?" The Wilbur swarm addressed Robin.


    Robin glanced at a certain appendage resting on the ground next to Sir Drago. Jasmine''s words came back to mind. ''Dragons can regrow their tails.''


    Robin opened up the storage bracer, and spoke. "You can come out now. All of you."


    It seemed that webs spurted out from the bracer, spreading in the air out into a huge dome which surrounded all the people on the roof. Layer upon layer were quickly formed until they were completely surrounded by a solid clear wall.


    "What is this?" The Wilbur swarm asked. A guard swarm poked a spear through the clear wall. Robin took this chance to grab Jasmine and hurriedly retreat through the liquid, walking to the other side.


    "It''s a bluff! They''re just trying to stall us! After them!" The Wilbur swarm ordered.


    "There''s no resistance! We can just walk through it!" The guard swarms did not hesitate as they plunged into the liquid wall.


    "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!"


    The swarms were separated from one another and swiftly dissolved into nothing. As only a few guard swarms had stayed behind to guard the Wilbur swarm, the majority of the guards were gone.


    "What is this? What have you done with my guards!? How come you are fine!?" The Wilbur swarm asked, apprehensive.


    "King Slimes, the evolved form of web slimes, don''t eat the living aside from one type of creature." Robin said. "They eat parasites. As your species is an invasive one born of magic that is not your own, you are considered to be magic parasites."


    "What! King Slimes!" The Wilbur swarm shrieked. "But, if that is so, why was no one able to get out? Doesn''t the slime stop capturing once it starts digesting?"


    Did I say this dome was made of only one King Slime?" Robin asked. The King Slime had known other King Slimes. Robin had employed their help in order to possibly help remove theparasites from the citizens before it was too late. But, she had no idea that in the entire city of paradise, not a single human remained aside from her company.


    This was also what had interfered with Chelsea''s ability to peer into the future. Seeing required a single target. Yet, all of these ''people'' were actually swarms.


    The dome began to shrink in upon itself.


    "Wait, we can talk this out!" the Wilbur swarm began to panic. "I''ll let you go free, if you don''t kill me!"


    "You''ve been using someone else''s form and someone else''s stolen memories for a while now." Robin said. "Prince Wilbur has long since died. It is time to lay his bones to rest."


    "I''ll change! I won''t be the prince anymore!"the caterpillars moved around, agitated, assuming a different face. "See? I''ll throw out his memories!"


    "Is that one of the ''wives'' you devoured?" Jasmine asked, stepping back a bit in disgust."It doesn''t matter whose memory you use, they are all stolen."


    One of the guards shrieked as it was engulfed by the wall.


    "P-please! I beg of you!" the Swarm pleaded.


    "When you devoured those people, and they asked you the same thing, what did you do?" Jasmine asked.


    The other guard shrieked as it was engulfed and consumed, leaving the prince swarm alone by itself.


    "I-I-I." The swarm shrunk in upon itself. But it was no use. Soon enough the wall captured the prince swarm.


    "I don''t want to die!" that shriek tore through the air, making Sir Drago flinch with a pained look upon his face. And then...Wilbur was gone.

 123 She Bids Farewell to Paradise

    Sir Drago sighed. The little master it had accompanied for almost a millennium had finally been laid to rest. He blinked as he stared up into the painfully blue sky. But, in the end, he kept his silence.


    ''Farewell, young master.''


    Christian hesitated, but decided to let Sir Drago mourn in peace. Instead, he used his nature magic to have the ivy bring him up to the rooftop. Jasmine was watching Robin, who had a somewhat conflicted, bitter expression on her face.


    "Do you regret it?" Jasmine asked. "Do you regret ending their twisted, unnatural lives?"


    "No. The dead should remain dead. Those who sin will eventually face their judgment. I don''t regret it." Then Robin sighed. "But, that doesn''t mean I can''t sympathize with the Wilbur who once lived. No matter what manner of life, everyone wishes to continue to live under the bright sun in freedom."


    Jasmine and Christian listened quietly.


    "Do you know, before I came here, I had not killed a single person?" Robin told them. "I know that in this world mercy is considered a weakness. But...I can''t help but wish that there had been a way which didn''t require killing." She sighed, and placed her head in her hand, covering her eyes.


    "I can see your heart is pained. Do you need to stop and rest?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin gave a cheerless laugh. "You know, I once read these words in my world: ''Life is pain, Highness. Whoever tells you any different is trying to sell you something.'' It was around that time when I decided. If I am to suffer pain anyways, I might as well make something of myself."


    Robin''s expression softened into a quiet, lonely smile. "For the dead to be put to rest, it is enough for me to remember that they once lived."


    Christian and Jasmine saw that Robin was unwilling to say any more, so they discreetly pretended they were convinced.


    During this time, the dome had spread out again, this time, covering the entire castle. Shrieks of pain began echoing out of the hallways. Christian didn''t want to see Robin continue to hurt her heart by listening to the spectors of the past.


    "Come on Robin." Christian put his hand on Robin''s shoulder, which seemed as if it bore a great weight. "Let us leave this giant tomb."


    Robin nodded, allowing Christian to lower her into the courtyard again. Once they touched the ground, she paused, seeing Sir Drago standing there.


    Then she looked at Christian an unspoken question in her eyes. Christian glanced at Sir Drago and understood. He nodded, and backed away, going over to stand by Jasmine.


    Robin approached Sir Drago, stopping when she stood next to him, looking up into the blue sky alongside him quietly. After a long silence, Sir Drago spoke.


    "I didn''t save him because the collar forced me to." His voice sounded a bit hoarse. "I saved him because I wanted to. He was...like a brother to me."


    Robin nodded. "I know." There was another long silence.


    "How do you humans accept this?" Sir Drago asked, in a hoarse whisper. "Your lives are so short. The people who you wish to see,soon enough, you cannot see anymore. Why does the world that once seemed so full now suddenly seem an empty shell?"


    Robin listened quietly. After another period of silent thought, she spoke.


    "That''s probably because, even though they are gone, we still treasure them in our hearts. The things they gave us, the things we shared, the happy times we spent together: even if it''s painful, we can''t help but look back upon those things fondly."


    She tapped a fist to her heart. "Look into your heart. What are the words you treasure from him? What are the things he gave you? If you keep treasuring those things, then, even if you can no longer see him anymore, you might one day be able to smile once again."


    There was another long pause before Sir Drago sighed. "You''ll be leaving soon, I''ll take it?"


    "Yes. But there''s one thing left to do before we leave." Robin said, looking out at the late afternoon sky.


    "What''s that?" Sir Drago asked.


    "I''m going to hold a funeral for the dearly departed." Robin said, walking away. "Even though I did not know them, they deserve this much."


    -------


    That night, the whole city was put to rest by the army of web slimes that had made their way there from the dungeon. When there was nothing more to devour, they returned back to their dungeon.


    Robin sat before the fireplace of the now-empty inn, staring quietly into the flames. She did not move from that spot, even when the sky began to brighten once again, and the new day arrived.


    Christian didn''t say anything, but his heart began to hurt, seeing Robin like that. Even so, he was not sure how to ease Robin''s pain. Finally, when the sunrise shone through the window, Robin heaved a sigh, and stood up.


    Despite being pained, Robin had not shed a single tear. All her tears had been cried out six years ago. They had long since dried up.


    "It should be about time." Robin said. The company, which had already packed up yesterday followed her out of the inn, and down the silent streets that were filled with smiling people only yesterday.


    Even the greenery had disappeared. The long dead trees, after losing the parasites'' vitalsupport, disintegrated into dust. Now all that was left were empty stone houses and broken flagstones.


    Robin led the company out of the town gates, and looked up. There stood Sir Drago, waiting for them. A single strip of black hair had turned white. She nodded, then turned around, staring at the town in silence.


    Then she opened her mouth to speak.


    "Paradise...


    The land where the young and the old lived side by side without fear of death...


    Your battle-worn walls,


    And paved cobblestones,


    Will be remembered, to my last breath.


    Your faces, to memory, I will recall;


    Your sins, unforgiven, forgive.


    Your name I''ll remember in memories halls,


    for the people within you, who once chanced to live.


    As the one who brought you to unfortunate end,


    I will tell to the living your tale of legend.


    So, rest in peace, city of Paradise.


    No more will blood pour here, no more here will die."


    Robin finished, and silence once more fell. Then Sir Drago returned to his dragon form once more, and unleashed a firey breath upon the city. The wooden houses collapsed to ash. The stones melted. Everything was reduced to ash and dust within those walls.


    Robin looked at the dragon with surprise.


    Sir Drago returned to his human form, and watched the flames destroy it all. This empty place, this was not his treasured Paradise. The only Paradise that needed to exist was the one within his heart. He turned his back on the city.


    "A tomb is no place for the living." He finally said, in answer to Robin''s unasked question. Looking up to the sky, he stretched his arms.


    "I suddenly feel like travelling. You wouldn''t happen to have any need for a dragon to come along, would you?" He asked, as if a weight had fallen from his shoulders.


    Robin blinked. As if the solemn mood had never happened, a smile crept up on her face. "Of course we do! Always glad to have the company of a good friend."


    "Friend, is it?" Sir Drago asked. "Very well, then. As your friend, I shall accompany you for a while."


    "Glad to have you!" Robin clapped his back, in a friendly manner.


    In a nearby copse of trees, the carriage stood. It''s wheel had been replaced good as new. The horses grazed upon grass that had already been cleared by the web slimes last night.


    Robin patted a horse''s nose, as she felt the last vestiges of gloom slip away for a bit.


    "How was your stay?" a voice sounded out behind her. Robin whirled about, and the knights un-sheathed their swords at the familiar bard. He stood there in the middle of the clearing, the same silly smile upon his face.


    Robin waved at the guards, telling them to put down their blades. She looked at Quinn, and a smile grew on her face as she stepped forward. Then she punched Quinn in the face as hard as she could, causing him to lift up in the air and fly backwards about five feet, before landing heavily on the ground.


    "Of all the things you could have said, that one was the worst." She said, holding her throbbing hand.

 124 She Hears Some Rather Shocking News

    "Ack! I think you broke my nose!" Quinn exclaimed, as he covered his bloodied nose. He sat there on the ground, looking up at the irate hero.


    Everyone else was shocked. Had Robin snapped? The Hero was usually so kind. Why now did he look like he wanted to murder someone?


    Only Christian realized that Robin had no intentions to kill. After all, the hero hadn''t drawn his blade on the man. Thus, whatever he did could only be considered venting. Another thing to note down was that Robin''s fists indeed packed quite a punch. Christian made the resolution to never anger Robin if he could help it.


    Robin brandished her fists at the bard on the floor. "What do you mean, ''How was your stay?''! Where the hell are we!? Explain everything right now before I punch you halfway to Ekkinshire!"


    "Hey, hold on! Hold on! I''ll talk, really I will!" Quinn immediately answered. Robin crossed her arms.


    "I''m listening." She said.


    "Right. So, the truth is, if I had to give you a location, then you all are still in the grasslands." Quinn replied, as he straightened his nose.


    Robin raised a quizzical eyebrow as she looked at the mountain behind Quinn.


    "And how is that even possible?" She asked.


    "Think of it. Those magic parasites grew so quickly. Isn''t it strange that they haven''t become widespread?" Quinn pointed out, then patted his chest.


    "That was all a result of my own efforts. Without me quarantining them, they would have destroyed the circle of life surrounding them. Rather, you could say the grasslands is a result of my quarantining them."


    Robin paused. "A spatial device?" She asked with a frown. "Is there a spatial device that can hold this much land? Then the sky and the sun....how?"


    "Well, you could say it''s related..." Quinn chuckled. "Or, rather, it''s a spatial skill that correlates with a size reduction skill."


    "Wait, did you say ''size reduction''?" Chelsea asked, recalling something. Her eyes began to sparkle.


    "Um...yep. That I did." Quinn nodded, trying to fix his broken nose back into place.


    "You know something?" Robin asked Chelsea.


    "Then, you wouldn''t happen to know the King of Slimes, Tarquinn, would you?" Chelsea asked the bard.


    "Er...you could say that, I suppose." Quinn replied, rubbing the back of his head, where it had hit the ground.


    "Wait, what does size reduction have to do with this Slime King?" Robin asked.


    "Not ''Slime King'', Robin, it''s ''King of Slimes''."Chelsea corrected.


    "Isn''t that the same thing?" Robin tilted her head, not understanding.


    "''Slime King'' is the name of an evolutionary branch of slimes." Chelsea explained.


    "''King of Slimes'' is a title granted to Demon Protectorate Tarquinn. He''s the only slime who was able to grow to the size of a mountain in a hundred thousand years. But, I heard that after that, he slowly shrunk back down to the size of a regular slime. Since then, he''s been able to control his size to the point where we suspected he had a rare size reduction skill."


    "Okay? And what does this Tarquinn have to do with our situation?" Robin asked, not understanding.


    "Size reduction skills don''t only work on yourself." Jasmine interjected, beginning to understand. "What if, this entire mountain range, here, was shrunk to the size of a hand?"


    "Eh?" Robin was surprised. "But, then, shouldn''t it have been destroyed, being stepped on by some beast, or overshadowed by giant plants?"


    "Normally, yes. But what if Tarquinn was protecting it, as well?" Jasmine pointed out.


    "He''s a slime. How would he protect things?" Christian asked.


    "The same way slimes protect anything!" Chelsea said without thinking, then froze. "No way..."


    "And how do they protect things?" Christian asked.


    "They protect things....by swallowing them." Chelsea said with difficulty.


    """...Eh!?""" The entire company felt they had misheard.


    "She''s right, you know." Quinn stood up. "The only method available at the time was to swallow everything and isolate it from its surroundings. That great big plain you were crossing used to bear up these very mountains." Quinn replied.


    Robin glanced at Quinn, and her eyebrow twitched as an idea came to her. ''Quinn....Tarquinn....surely not, right?'' She paused. ''Should I test it out?''


    "What?" Quinn asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable under Robin''s stare.


    "Not much. Just wondering how you are able to take human form inside of your own stomach is all." Robin said.


    "Yup. This was something which troubled me for a long time." Quinn nodded. "I could observe things using a small clone of mine, but it would always be mistaken for a web slime or a king slime. Then one day, I found it: the magic mimic spellbook-wait...." Quinn paused feeling something was not right.


    Robin grinned mischievously. "A pleasure to make your aquaintance, Mr. Tarquinn, King of Slimes. Now that I have solved your problem here, would you be so good as to please return us to the grasslands?"


    "Eheheh, it seems I was discovered." Quinn sighed, as his form liquefied, and he returned to his slime form. It was smaller than,a king slime, yet larger than a normal slime.


    "Nice to meet you all. As you already know, I''m Tarquinn, one of the Demon Protectorates. I''ll be returning you to the outer world, presently, but before that, I''d like to have a nice chat with the Hero." Quinn said.


    "What''s a Demon Protectorate?" Sir Drago asked.


    "I''ll explain later." Chelsea replied.


    Robin eyed Quinn skeptically. "And? What do you want to chat about?"


    "Now don''t you look at me like that! Ahem! I''m not a bad slime, you know!" And, just like that, the top of the slime was raised into a point, making Quinn look somewhat like a fat raindrop.


    "Hmm? Is that so?" Robin said, not really understanding Quinn''s gimmicks. But, somehow, that line sounded somewhat familiar.


    "Oh you! I was told you were from another world. Haven''t you ever played Dragon Quest, before? My one hundred year old joke in the making: ruined!" Quinn wiggled in aggravation.


    "A video game? Ah, in that case, no, I haven''t." Robin replied. "I''m a book reader, not a videogame player. But, for you to know about videogames...Don''t tell me..."


    "Yup! I''m a transmigrated person. My previous name was Andrew. Nice to meet you! Actually, it''s nice to meet anybody, really, after these hundred years."


    "So...Andy, is it?" Robin asked.


    "I got used to Quinn, so please call me Quinn, now." Quinn waved a tendril.


    "Okay, Quinn? How long have you been here like this? And how did you get here?" Robin asked, thinking. ''For some reason, this Quinn character sounds really familiar...''


    "Ah, you really want to know? I''ll never forgetthat day, really." Quinn settled down a bit.


    "It was a rather sunny day, really. I was on my way to the store to buy the latest new latest game, ''Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors''.When all of a sudden, a huge truck went barreling through during a red light!"


    "You got hit by Truck-san?" Robin asked.


    "Of course, not! Even if it was a red light, I always made sure to look both ways before crossing, so luckily, I didn''t get hit. But, that''s when it happened!"


    "You got hit by a car?" Robin asked.


    "No."


    "Smashed on the head by a falling vase?"


    "No."


    "Stabbed while protecting a friend from a murderer?"


    "No!"


    "Struck by Lightning or electricity?"


    "No!!"


    "Got hit by a derailed metro train?"


    "I said NO!!" Quinn frowned.


    "Then, how did you die?" Robin asked,running out of the common tropes she usually found in isekai novels.


    "If you would just listen, for a bit, then I''ll tell you!" Quinn exclaimed.


    "Ah, sorry. I''m listening." Robin apologized.


    "Ahem! The truck crashed into a fire hydrant, breaking it off the ground. Then the water blew it high up into the air. It got bigger, and bigger...and then it hit me. Death by fire hydrant. When I woke up, I was like this."


    "No way, a hydrant!? People can die like that?" Robin exclaimed, surprised.


    "Yup. You don''t remember seeing it on the news?"Quinn asked


    "Wait, so your Humberto Hernandez?" Robin asked, confused.


    "What? No! I died by fire hydrant, surely it turned up on the news?" Quinn asked, shocked. "How does a story like that not end up on the news!"


    Robin shook her head. "Sorry. I''m not too sure if it was. I only saw that first piece of news when I went out to eat at a pizza joint. My older brother nearly choked when he saw it."


    "No way..." Quinn slumped to the ground in shock.

 125 She Creates a Small Revolution

    "Um...I am not quite following this well, but...you two are from the same place?" Christian asked.


    Robin looked up. "Ah. Well, you could say that. Same world, I suppose. But, judging from his accent, He''s from England. I''ve only ever been there for war re-enactments, so I''m pretty sure we''ve never met before."


    "Ah, that''s for sure." Quinn nodded. "I was a genuine NEET. There''s no way I wouldn''t recognize someone I knew. But, out of curiosity, where were you located, Robin?"


    "Me? Hmm...Well, on paper, I am an American citizen. But, somehow, I ended up spending most of my time everywhere else? I mean, there aren''t really any localized sword arts in a country that''s barely 300 years old." Robin replied, somewhat at a loss.


    "Ah. True." Quinn nodded. "Out of curiosity, what made you become a swordsman in the first place?"


    "Hmm? To be honest, my older brother dragged me into it. Why?" Robin asked.


    "Nothing really, it''s just that, all the heroes have been swordsmen, so I was wondering if that was somewhat of a pre-requisite for hero summoning. The last hero was a kendo prodigy." Quinn answered.


    "Wait, how long have you been here?" Robin asked.


    "About 12o years or so, since I left in 2007." Quinn said.


    "Um...hate to break it to you, Quinn, but it''s only 2019 back on earth." Robin said. "If it truly is the case, where 12 years becomes 120 years...Then there might be a time discrepancy between worlds."


    "Oh? Be sure to check the date when you return, then." Quinn replied.


    "Now I''m curious." Robin said. "Haven''t you ever thought of going back?"


    "Of course I have, plenty of times! Just the idea of how many new games there probably are to play gets me excited. But, then again, why would I return to play video games, when I can live in one?" Quinn pointed out.


    "I see." At that point, Robin completely forgot why she felt Quinn''s backstory sounded familiar.


    "When are you going to send us out?" Gerard asked.


    "You want to leave that badly, huh..." Quinn noted. "Okay then! everyone into the carriage!"


    "But, it''s so small. How are we all going to fit in it?" Sir Drago asked.


    "You could very well ask how we can fit in a slime''s stomach, as well." Chelsea quipped.


    "True." Robin laughed. "Come on in, Sir Drago. I assure you, it''s bigger on the inside."


    "Eh?" Sir Drago did not understand. While everyone filed into the carriage, enjoying Sir Drago''s surprise at how much space was inside, Quinn stayed outside until everyone had entered. Then he grew larger, like a bubble, and engulfed the entire carriage before returning to regular size. After that, he disappeared.


    -----


    In the grasslands, near the road, a slime spat out another slime. The second slime blew up into a big bubble, before it broke apart, Revealing the carriage from its center. The second slime was then absorbed back into the first slime, leaving the carriage behind. Quinn cleared his throat, then tapped on the carriage door.


    The door opened. "Oh? did we forget to let you in, Quinn- eh..."


    Robin made a strange face as she looked out at the surroundings. After a few moments, she managed to pull her expression back together.


    "That was...Quick." She said, awkwardly.


    "Heheh." Quinn used his mimic magic to return to his human appearance. "It''s actually a lot easier to speak this way. But, now that you''re out, I heard from Oracle that your looking for demon protectorates?"


    "Yes. I''m trying to find a way back home, and I heard the Demon King knows a way."


    Robin said.


    "Well, I can''t vouch for the others, but in respect of the fact that we were once in the same world, I can give you my approval." Quinn said, taking out a carved jade seal from his pocket that was slightly different from Oracle''s.


    "You''re going to need this, I think."


    "Oh, well, thank you very much!" Robin said while reaching out to take the seal. But Quinn moved his hand back, keeping the seal out of reach.


    "In exchange, I want you to give me an update on what happened in the past twelve years. What new gadgets are out? What new games have been released?"


    "Um, I''m not exactly well versed on those subjects, but I''ll answer what I know." Robin replied.


    "Fair enough." Quinn placed the seal in Robin''s hand. "For the time being, I suppose I''ll also tag along with you to the next town. I need to find an open place to unload the mountain range in my stomach where it''s not going to kill the surrounding wildlife."


    "You''re welcome, I suppose." Robin said. "But I''m curious... This demon protectorate thing. Was it all your idea?"


    "Guilty as charged." Quinn struck a pose. "As King of Slimes, I was one of the diplomatic delegates fifteen years ago. You could say I took advantage of the fact that our demon side hadn''t come up with a good idea for the checks and ballances, yet."


    Robin laughed. "It did seem a bit like something straight out of a game."


    "And yet it has worked quite well for these 15 years. No one has been able to bother or infiltrate the demon lord''s domains. Well...This is also partially due to my aid as well. My clones are guarding the border very well. And they''re all connected to me through my internal storage. Any intruders are forcefully evicted elsewhere. Hehe." Quinn laughed mischievously.


    "So you''re the reason behind the random teleportations!" Jasmine exclaimed, pointing at Quinn in surprise.


    "Oh come off it. Those people were hardly innocent. They were given plenty of warning beforehand, but they decided to stick their uninvited noses in through someone''s doorway. You can''t blame me if their nose gets struck when the door gets slammed in their face. If they didn''t stick their face there to begin with, they wouldn''t have gottentheir noses jammed." Quinn snorted in a rare display of annoyance.


    "Did anyone die?" Robin asked.


    "No. I put most of them down near cities and towns. Only the truly belligerent folk who keep coming back do I send somewhere troublesome." Quinn said.


    "Keep that up, and you could create a magic transportation system~" Robin chuckled.


    "Eh?" Quinn froze.


    ""Eh?!"" The rest of the company also froze.


    Robin looked around her. "What?"


    "You said transportation?" Christian was the first to unfreeze.


    "Yeah. Since it sounds quicker than horseback, it would be super convenient for quick travelling is what I thought, even if it cost a fee." Robin nodded.


    "One hundred and twenty years...all this time, I was wasting so much potential!?" Quinn put his head in his hands before laughing uncontrollably.


    "Yes! Why didn''t I think of it before!? Sounds super interesting! I''ll do it!" Quinn shook Robin''s hand.


    "Thank you very much for that brilliant idea! I''ll have to discuss things with the other demon protectorates before I set up relay clones in their cities, but this may revolutionize transportation for everyone!"


    Quinn was suddenly super excited.


    "You''re just excited over adding a warp function to your real life magic game world." Robin said, pointing out Quinn''s hidden agenda.


    "Eheheh...Was it that obvious?" Quinn was found out.


    "I would expect nothing less from a former Neet." Robin said. "I know someone back on earth, who is quite similar. But, enough about all this. Your face is getting too loose. Your Bard disguise is slipping, Quinn~" She teased.


    "Oh! Well that won''t do!" Quinn slapped his cheeks and pulled out a lute. "Ahem! As my identity of King of Slimes is far too high profile, please think of me as Quinn, a mere travelling Bard...Coincidentally, I new Robin was from my world because of the song she played."


    "Oof. Well, I suppose I deserved that one." Robin chuckled. "But that''s one of the only modern ones I know.-GURGLE"


    Her stomach suddenly let out a large growl.


    "And with that, I believe it''s time for breakfast!" Robin suddenly changed tune.


    "What? You didn''t eat anything, Robin?" Jasmine asked. "We already ate before we left. Ponzu even made egg tartlets."


    "I...may have been a bit preoccupied." Robin admitted, with a laugh. But, Christian noticed the tips of her ears were turning red.


    "Come to think of it, I also have not eaten." Sir Drago admitted. As a dragon, he could subsist off the mana particles in the air. But he said so in order not to let Robin be the odd one out.

 126 She Makes Breakfas

    Skye flew back over from where he had been teasing Elise the fairy.


    "Did I hear food being mentioned!?" He asked, eyes sparkling.


    Robin looked at Skye, and raised an eyebrow. "Didn''t you eat breakfast with the others?"


    "I had one breakfast. There''s always room for second breakfast!" Skye replied cheerfully, landing on Robin''s shoulder.


    "Pfft! What are you, a hobbit?!" Robin chortled, tapping it on its nose.


    "How forgetful can you be? I''ve told you many times, I am a flying cat!" Skye sighed good-naturedly, as it rubbed a paw over its nose to remove the ticklish feeling.


    "What are you going to make this time?" Gerard asked.


    "Actually, I was just going to eat leftovers." Robin said. "We made all that food, and haven''t even gotten through it all yet-" She paused. Everyone, with the exception of Quinn and Sir Drago, looked disappointed.


    "Hmm...well, I suppose I could whip up a quick something." Robin conceded. The sight of everyone''s eyes sparkling


    "Great!" Ponzu''s eyes lit up as he grabbed his notebook. "I''m ready!"


    Robin pondered what to make, as she looked at the ingredients. Then she smiled when she remembered she had cream cheese. That was a reasonably quick meal. Right after the first one, another meal idea came to her.


    ''Perfect! I''ll make both at once.'' Robin decided. As the cooking method was similar, she would make them all at the same time.


    She took out a rather large frying pan. But instead of starting a fire, she decided to use magic to heat the pan. She placed the pan on a relatively flat rock and prepared the spell.


    She held her mental image of a hot plate, with its self-heating function. She also added the conditions of hand-signaled temperature control, and that the spell would end after ten minutes, returning the pan to normal.


    Then she cast the magic spell.


    "Don''t touch the pan. It''s hot now." She warned.


    "What? without fire?" Ponzu asked, surprised. "How do we know that it''s hot?"


    Robin responded with action. Taking out a pat of butter, she dropped about two tablespoons worth onto the hot metal, and watched as the butter instantly sizzled in the pan. She turned down the heat a bit because she didn''t want the butter to burn, and made sure the whole flat surface of the pan was greased.


    She then brought out three bagels and three blueberry muffins, and cut them in half. She buttered the muffin halves because they were more absorbent. She didn''t butter the bagels because she already had other plans for them.


    "How do you usually eat bagels?" Robin asked.


    "Just like muffins, I suppose. It''s a conveniently shaped bread. We just eat them." Ponzu replied.


    "Then, allow me to expand your horizons." Robin smiled as she put both the bagels and the muffins in the pan, cut side down. Using a spatula to keep them moving, she kept them in the pan for about five minutes. Then she took them out, revealing the nicely browned surfaces.


    For the muffins, she just added another bit of butter on top of the fried muffin parts and gave Sir Drago and Quinn a serving on a plate, with a fork.


    "And done with these. Here, try some." She said.


    At this point, she was so hungry that she picked up her own muffin in her hand and took a large bite. Yep. Nothing like a pan-fried blueberry muffin with melting butter to set one in a good mood. She quickly finished the first half, and was about to start on the second half when she was caught by Skye''s large-eyed begging face.


    With a sigh, Robin returned the muffin half to her plate, and put it down nearby.


    "Here. I suppose you can have some too." She said. After all, pan-fried blueberry muffins, though tasty, were very fattening. So, it was not a good idea to have too many of them. And there were still the bagels left to eat.


    By this time, everyone felt their mouths water at the smell that resulted from Robin''s cooking. They regretted having breakfast that morning. If they hadn''t been so hasty, wouldn''t they also have been able to enjoy the spread?


    Quinn, who didn''t eat much, had been good-natured enough to share half his muffin with Ponzu, who Robin had not given a share to. Ponzu''s eyes widened when he tasted the muffin. How could merely frying and adding butter give this pastry such a depth of flavor?


    While the others were eating, Robin took out cream cheese and spread it on the bagel halves. Then she retreated with her bagel to the side, before someone else decided to beg from her. As she was quite famished, she ignored the eyes of others as she enjoyed her bagel.


    Ponzu looked at the bagel halves. and reached out for one. But before he could grab one, a hand had already reached out and snatched it. Ponzu stared in disbelief at Christian, who shamelessly smiled.


    "Ah, suddenly I am feeling quite hungry now. I think I''ll give this new way of eating bagels a try." He said. Ponzu sighed, then reached for another, only to find the plate was empty.Sir Drago, Quinn, and Gerard had snatched the other three while Ponzu was distracted.


    "Wha-! You!" Ponzu scowled, upset.


    "You''ve already had the muffin. And you weren''t that hungry to begin with." Gerard ''helpfully'' pointed out. "Besides, can''t you just make your own?"


    "Don''t get greedy." Sir Drago nodded.


    "I may be willing to share, but I''m not giving everything away." Quinn nodded. It had been a long time since he had tasted a bagel with cream cheese. He would never pass up the opportunity.


    "Fine. I can understand why you would want to taste the flavours of your homeland." Ponzu grumpily admitted. "But, couldn''t you have simply made these on your own?" He asked Quinn.


    Everyone paused, then looked at Quinn. That''s right. Quinn had also come from Robin''s homeworld, so to speak. Couldn''t he also have brought some recipes along?


    Quinn brought up his hands defensively. "Hey hey! I''m a disaster in the kitchen that can even burn water. How on earth am I gonna be able to bring recipes when I can''t even use them?"


    "Is that so?" Gerard asked, them ignored Quinn to concentrated on the bagel he was eating. So not everyone on Robin''s planet could make good food.


    "Actually, I''ve been meaning to ask this for a while,but aren''t you a bit too much of a cheat!?" Quinn pointed at Robin.


    "How so?" Robin asked, having just finished her bagel.


    "You''re sharp in mind and sword, you''ve got looks that won''t lose to any girl, you''re a Hero, and now you can even cook! It''s abnormal that you''re so good at everything! Is there anything you can''t do at this point?"


    Robin considered things for a moment. "I can''t cook Mongolian food." She replied truthfully. Quinn facepalmed.


    "Ah, Robin, you didn''t mention you specialized in survival and wilderness rescues." Christian reminded her. "The fact that you know over 100 methods to rescue someone in a forest really impressed me."


    Quinn glared at Robin. "You are way too OP. If you''re not careful, then you''re gonna get nerfed."


    Robin nodded. "And for this reason, I wear this." She pulled out her mask. Since they hadentered Paradise, she had put off wearing her mask due to the fact that no one knew who she was.


    "What!" Quinn laughed. "Do you think yourself some kind of superhero?"


    "No. Everyone else does. That''s why I will be wearing a mask in the future. I still enjoy walking around like a normal human being every now and then." She replied evenly.


    "Fair enough." After a few more minutezs, they packed away the now cooled frying pan and plates and got onto the carriage.


    Now that they were finally on their way to the next town, Robin brought out a book to read, but was distracted when Quill sat down next to her.


    "So, Robin what new games have come out since I''ve been gone?" Quinn cut to the chase.


    Robin nodded. "Well, just recalling from what I''ve seen on the internet, there have been more than a few Legend of zelda games, Supermario, Dragon Quest, Pokemon, and others. A few ones I remember are Tales of Vesparia, Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, and Persona V...."


    She never did managed to get to read that book as Quinn kept asking questions for the rest of the ride until lunch time.

 127 She Encounters Fox-Kin

    When they stopped for lunch, Robin turned to Christian. "Hey, which of the demon protectorates are we heading to now?"


    "Hmm? I didn''t tell you?" Christian asked.


    "I don''t believe you have." Robin replied.


    "...Oh, I suppose I haven''t. I was going to tell you earlier. But, because we were side-tracked, it completely slipped my mind." Christian said with an embarrassed chuckle.


    "Assuming that running into Quinn was just a coincidence, you must have had one of the other demon protectorates in mind, yes?"


    Robin observed the group as she talked. Instead of Robin cooking, the company was having Ponzu cook the dishes she had made earlier for them.Quinn and Sir Drago were with them. But, while Quinn was very chatty and talkative, Sir Drago was very quiet and solemn. But, neither of them was allowing their food to be snatched away anymore.


    "Yes. The one we''re headed for is Demon Protectorate Argon. He''s known for his polite speech and peculiar clothes. He''s part of the Nine-tailtribe. Known as the Demon King''s Strategist, his is the closest city to Port Oracle."


    ''Well, duh. Keep the strategist close to the person who sees the future. The synergy between someone who knows the future, and someone who can plan around it, would be able to accomplish many great things.'' Robin noticed.


    "Visit, get the seal, and move on to the next one. This will be easier than I thought!" Christian nodded.


    "What part of strategist did you not understand?" Robin asked, smacking the back of Christian''s head.


    "Hey! As a strategist, wouldn''t he see that it''s better to help us get you back home?" Christian asked.


    "More like he would see it as something too good to be true. We could be smiling faces with hidden poisonous blades for all he knows." Robin scowled. "Worst case scenario, we end up with a Mexican standoff."


    "What''s a Mexican standoff?" Christian asked.


    "It''s something only schemers like that strategist can pull off. The explanation would only become more and more confusing the further things get. I''ll need to adjust my mentality to face the challenge." Robin made a face. In some ways, strategizing was similar to politics. Both were equally bothersome.


    "A Mexican Standoff!? Do you need my help? " Quinn asked. He had overheard their talk when he approached after finishing his food.


    "Wouldn''t that require you to double cross us?" Robin asked.


    "I think you''ll find that I am a very good actor." Quinn said with a wry smile.


    "No thank you. Let''s not complicate things. Hopefully, it doesn''t need to get to that point at all." Robin sighed, before joining the rest for lunch.


    Fairy Elise looked up from the muffin top she was sharing with Skye.


    "There are five fox-kins approaching from down the road." She said.


    "Hmm? How do you know?" Robin asked. Even so, she still quickly put on her mask.


    "I''m a wind fairy!" Elise said smugly. "You can''t sneak up on a wind fairy!"


    Skye''s ears twitched. "She''s right. I can hear their approach now."


    "Ugh. Fox-kin! Why did it have to be fox-kin!?" Quinn hid his face in his hands.


    "Oh? Is something wrong with foxkin?" Robin asked.


    "They always like to play pranks on unsuspecting folks." Quinn said. "If I didn''t have my slime storage I''d be robbed of everything and still help them count the money."


    "Mini strategists, eh?" Robin grinned wickedly. "In that case, I have an idea..."


    She whispered a few things to the company.


    "I have just the things for that! Hohoho! This is going to be brilliant!" Quinn chortled.


    ----


    "Are you sure there''s someone over here?" A fox-kin with pink fur asked, skeptically.


    "Of course there is! I saw their campfire last night near the border. They should be somewhere along this road. Look, see? Aren''t there fairly new wagon tracks here? We should be getting close." The lead fox-kin with golden orange fur assured them.


    "Oh, I see it! I see it! There''s a carriage up front!" Another fox-kin with a red coat exclaimed, as it jumped up and down.


    "Hush! Do you want them to know we''re here ahead of time!" A grey-blue fox-kin hissed.


    "Hmmph. And since when has that stopped any of us?" the last foxkin asked. His coat was a shiny obsidian black.


    "Easy for you to say, Shadow. You''re the best at stealth." The pink foxkin snorted. "We other foxes need the element of surprise in order to work our magic."


    "Now-now, don''t start arguing again!" The orange leader fox-kinsaid. "Remember the plan? We''re going to scare those humans out of their pants!"


    "But what if we run into...one of those?" The Blue-grey foxkin asked, timidly.


    "Come on, Misty! You can''t seriously expect ghosts to appear in broad daylight! They only come out at night! You''re a man, you''ve gotta buck up a bit!" The orange leader scolded.


    "I''m so excited! What''s the plan again, Manda?" The red fox-kin asked the orange leader.


    "Rin...we''ve been over this. The plan to scare the humans? We talked about it the whole way here. Didn''t you hear it?" Manda sighed.


    "Of course he heard it." The pink one rolled her eyes. "In one big ear, and out the other. He never listens to the plan!"


    "Sharp-tongued as ever, huh, Piper?" Misty sighed.


    "It''s not my fault that someone only has half his wits about him. He better not mess things up like last time!" Piper hmmphed.


    "Of course he won''t! Rin, little bro, you''ll just wait until we give you the sign, okay?" Manda asked.


    "Okay!" Rin nodded, his tongue lolling out as he gave a happy grin.


    But when they approached the camp, the sunlight began to dim as the camp was shrouded in a lingering mist. This caused the fox-kins to pause, but since they could still see the whole camp, they decided to use the mist to their advantage. But as they approached, more and more things,began to feel off.


    Instead of a lively camp that they were expecting, there was dead silence. The figures sat still about the campfire, as if they were all in deep though. If it weren''t for the fact that the fire was still going, they might have been mistaken for statues.


    Then they noticed the figures were all wearing strange masks with grotesque faces on them. This made the fox-kin stop for a few moments. Mask-wearing humans? This was something new.


    Already, Misty was starting to shiver as the hair on his back stood up. There was something creepy about this camp. He followed behind at the back, his heart rate beginning to speed up.


    The moment the five fox-kin set foot in the camp, they were startled when all of a sudden, the still masked man holding a lyre began playing, strumming loud and hard. Misty jumped with a yip, and almost ran away with his tail between his legs.


    It wasn''t the usual method of playing. In fact, Robin recognized it as the Spanish music for bull fights. It heightened tensions, and set the mood to be suddenly very provocative, yet mysterious at the same time.


    All the masked people suddenly turned their heads to look at the fox-kin group. This startled and frightened all the fox-kin. As they didn''t know what to do. Something like this had never happened before.


    "Manda, this doesn''t feel right." Piper said, here ears flat against her head.


    "I agree. These humans are a bit more than just weird." Shadow said, shrinking back. Misty didn''t say anything, his heart had already leapt up into his throat. The fox-kin group retreated a bit.


    Every time the musician played, the people moved in a jerking tempo. Every time he stopped playing, they stopped. They stood up, and began to approach the fox-kin group.


    Finally, Mondo couldn''t take it anymore.


    "Who''s scared of you!" He shouted at them. "You all are just humans wearing weird masks! I''ll show you!" He growled at them fiercely, and sent out a wind ball, knocking a mask off the foremost human.


    It hit the mask squarely, knocking it flying off the human''s head. But the moment they caught a glimpse of the face underneath, the entire group turned tail and ran away as fast as they could.


    "Ghosts!!!" They shrieked as they sped away.


    Because, under the mask, there was no face.

 128 She Enters Nine Tails City

    The group stood there for a good long moment, as they watched the fleeing fox-kin. Then the entire company broke out into laughter. They removed their masks, displaying the same faceless features. Now that the trick was done, the faceless part separated from their actual faces. The lumpsof white skin dropped to the floor, reforming into Quinn''s slime clones.


    Among them, Quinn was doubled over with laughter, banging the ground as he gasped for breath. It was only once he had re-absorbed his slime clones that he was able to stop laughing enough to speak.


    "That was the most satisfying encounter I have ever had with those wretched creatures!" Quinn said, chortling.


    Soon enough, he was able to recover from his near uncontrollable laughing fit. Yet, for the rest of the day, he would still break into laughter. The thought of those fox-kin fleeing as if their tails were on fire was just so satisfying.


    "That was a mere child''s play." Robin chuckled. Then her expression became somewhat more serious. "I''m afraid we can''t use such an elementary tactic when we''re up against the strategist."


    "Isn''t it our objective not to go up against him?" Christian asked, confused.


    "Let me answer that." Quinn interjected. "Our Strategist is a highly intellectual person. As an intellectual, there are only three different kinds of people to him: those he considers his superiors, those he considers his equal, and those he considers inferior to him. Each different kind of person gets different treatment." Quinn shrugged as he shook his head and sighed.


    "To those superior to him,he shows deference. But, those inferior to him aren''t even qualified to meet him on speaking terms. They can only be manipulated as pawns on his chessboard. It is only when we can prove to be his equal that he will hear us out."


    Robin grumbled. "I thought as much. As an intellectual, he sure does have no small amount of pride."


    Quinn nodded. "Tell me about it. I was lucky enough to accidentally be considered his equal by a misunderstanding due to him overanalyzing my actions alongside a well-placed bluff. I cannot actually beat him in a battle of wits."


    "Then, can''t you talk to him for us?" Christian asked.


    "In order to obtain his seal, you must gain his approval." Quinn shook his head. "He will definitely not approve of you if he does not meet you."


    "And that is why I said I need to adjust my mentality." Robin said, frowning as she stared into the flames. "There are two main things I want everyone to try their utmost to do during our stay in the city."


    "What are they?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin held up one finger. "First, don''t promise anyone anything-gold or otherwise. Say nothing without fully considering the consequences of your words to anyone. Since it is the Strategist''s city, there will most likely be like-minded swindlers."


    Chelsea, and everyone else nodded. Jasmine laughed.


    "Doesn''t that mean that we should sew Christian''s mouth closed? He''s more likely to get himself caught in every net he encounters."


    Robin smiled, looking at Christian. "No need." She didn''t explain her reasons, but simply continued her instructions. "Second, I hope that you will co-operate with me in following all orders that I will demand of you, down to the very last detail."


    "We''ll do our best!" Gerard saluted. The others were a step behind, but they also agreed.


    And with that, they once more piled into the carriage. Robin stared silently out the window, calculating situations in her head. It was similar to the scenario planning she had gone through during guard training for protecting her older brother. Quinn sat up front with the driver.


    When the fox-eared soldiers at the city gates saw Quinn, they smiled and called out to him.


    "Hey, I haven''t seen your mug around in a while. How are you doing?"


    "Fine. I met someone from my homeland along the way, out travelling, and they were on their way here, so I hitched a ride with them. Since they''re new to the area, would you give them a rundown of the rules?" Quinn said.


    "Sure! No problem!" the guard said. "There are only three rules in this city. One, do not kill. Two, do not lie. Three, keep your word. And remember that the law is magically enforced, here."


    "Don''t I know it!" Quinn chuckled. "I won''t forget the time you swindled me out of two gold coins when the entrance was free."


    "Yer fault for getting duped, Quinn. You know the rules say nothing about stealing." The guard smirked. "Although we here wouldn''t mind another extra gold coin for drinks after hours."


    "Aishh...take it as me being soft-hearted then, and get you and your guard mates something good with this." Quinn flicked a silver coin at them.


    "Will do, heheh. Welcome to Nine Tails City. You should enter the city more often, Quinn."


    "Nah. I get the feeling that my pockets would be emptied much faster, should I do so." Quinn chuckled.


    "Ye''d be right, ye''d be right. But we''d be much better off for it." The guard snickered as the carriage began to move again.


    "See you later, Braum." Quinn winked.


    Inside the city, Quinn made it clear to the locals that this carriage was under his protection. The word games the common folk used were of no use against him.


    Before they reached the inner walls, Quinn explained to them.


    "Past the inner walls there''s a restriction that folks are not allowed to swindle anyone under the roofs of the inns. The ironic part was that the innkeepers were swindled into making it a rule." He chuckled. "So now they can''t go back on it."


    "Hey, I''ve been meaning to ask this for a while, but what did the guard mean back their when he said that the laws are magically enforced?" Gerard asked.


    Robin looked at Chelsea and Jasmine. If anyone would know about it, it would be one of those two. Surprisingly, though, it Was Keith who spoke up.


    "Well, it actually is rare enough for the regular people not to know about, so Allow me to explain." He stood up and used the magic chalkboard.


    "There are certain demons who are better at using mana than others, to the point where they can also manipulate their surroundings to a great deal." Keith drew a stick figure with squiggly lines radiating out from it.


    "These demons have a surrounding area of influence called a domain." Keith circled the stick figure. Then he drew another stick figure outside the circle.


    "If you are outside that domain, nothing happens. But, if you enter into that domain..." He drew another stick figure inside the circle. "Then, unless you have a high willpower you can''t avoid being affected by the domain. This is one of the reasons why the strategist is a formidable opponent."


    "So, for the laws to be magically enforced, doesn''t that mean that Mr. Argon Nine Tails has a domain that covers the whole city?" Robin asked.


    "You''re pretty sharp." Keith noted. "Yes. The fact that the rules are magically enforced means that the range of Argon''s domain can cover at the very least the entire city. This kind of ability was a nightmare for our troops fifteen years ago."


    Christian hissed as he drew in a sharp breath. He could already imagine the ordered troops suddenly falling apart due to confusion.


    "I can understand Gerard not knowing about it." Robin nodded. "But, Christian, how come you don''t know about this stuff?"


    Christian made a face. "It''s because of my fighting instructor. He would beat me into shape in the mornings, but I was usually so tired that I would fall asleep during my history lessons."


    "Oh? So you weren''t just skipping out to have fun?" Jasmine asked.


    "D you honestly think I had any schedule leeway to waste my time in the town? Especially during the times when the instructor was at the castle, I would have no energy after the morning." Christian made a bitter face.


    "Hmmm...But, then how did you get to know that group of friends of yours?" Jasmine asked.


    "I snuck out on days when the instructor wasn''t in the capital." Christian explained. "That''s another reason why it''s just so blasted difficult for me to leave the citadel. They caught on to my methods from my youth."


    Jasmine rolled her eyes, and Keith sighed. Christian had grown from a small troublemaker into a bigger troublemaker. Who had said that the wild and troublesome becomes wiser with age? They had obviously never met Christian.


    "Oh. It seems we''ve arrived." Sir Drago commented, looking out the window.

 129 She Explores Nine Tails City

    When they entered the inn, Quinn gave them another quick explanation in front of the innkeeper.


    "When requesting for things, you must be careful about your words. There are ways of saying things that can be interpreted two different ways. For example..." Quinn took out two gold and placed them on the check in counter.


    "Give us four rooms: two large, two regular size."


    The innkeeper smiled at him, then pushed the coins back. "Apologies. I cannot give you any room."


    Quinn nodded. "Words must not be said or agreed upon casually. The innkeeper was right to refuse. Even a single word can cause you to be denied purchase or agreement."


    Then Quinn pushed the two gold coins back towards the innkeeper. "I am willing to give you two gold coins in exchange that you lend us the exclusive use of two bedrooms for groups, as well as two regular bedrooms, for the duration of one month, starting today. Do you accept?"


    "I do." The innkeeper nodded, pocketing the gold coins. Then he handed over four keys. "Welcome to Honest Inn. I hope you enjoy your stay." The innkeeper smiled.


    Quinn turned back to the group. "Let this be a lesson for you. In the case of temporary acquisition, you must always include a time limit, and method of payment. In the case of permanent acquisitions, you must include a method of payment, as well as the fact that the transfer will be permanent. This prevents them from using the loopholes in thedeal to steal it back."


    "So any trades must be phrased like a legal contract, huh?" Robin mused. "Interesting..."


    "It''s not interesting. It''s a nightmare." Christian shook his head. "What difference was there in what he said to the inkeeper, aside from more words?"


    "Actually, what he said was, in face value, completely different." Robin pointed out.


    "The first time, he asked the innkeeper to ''give'' him those rooms-not adding a time limit. This could mean two different things. The first interpretation is to transfer ownership, literally ''giving'' a room away for free, seeing that there was no payment mentioned. The second interpretation is that the inkeeper could give him the room for one second, and then take it back, since permanent ownership was not specified. Either way, Quinn would not be able to rent those rooms like how he intended." She explained.


    "In the outer ring, I suspect the inns there would have accepted Quinn''s dubious first contract in order to gain profit. But, since the inns here cannot swindle, they cannot accept the contract."


    Realization dawned upon the group. So that is how it was.


    "For the duration of our stay, you cannot accept or agree to anything before consulting me, Quinn, or Jasmine. Do you accept this restriction?" Robin asked the group.


    "Yes!" everyone else immediately agreed,but Christian asked a question, instead.


    "What about Jasmine? Wouldn''t that mean she would be able to get away with consulting herself?"


    "It''s not Jasmine''s wits that I am concerned about." Robin rolled her eyes, causing the company to laugh.


    "No-No need to laugh!" Christian exclaimed with a rare stutter. Robin blinked, but said no more on the subject. Quinn left to see about getting an audience with the strategist that afternoon, and the company settled down in their rooms.


    But, at a certain point in the afternoon, the girls decided to go out shopping.


    "Come on, Robin. We need a strong man to be there to prevent trouble." Jasmine winked as she and Chelsea dragged Robin out with them.


    There were many commodities in abundance in this town: ornate mirrors, colored smoke, makeup and costumes, as well as various food stalls lining the streets. Robin even found a stall selling ramen.


    Seeing that there were a lot of fox-kin around, and that those that looked human still sported fox ears and a tail, Robin felt that their group of mostly humans stood out.


    It wasn''t long before they ran into trouble.


    --------


    "They''ve been gone for a while now." Sir Drago observed.


    "Don''t worry about it. Women''s shopping lasts hours. They probably pulled Robin along to carry the bags." Christian waved his hand dismissively.


    "Bard Quinn has also not returned." Sir Drago noted.


    "He''s probably catching up with his old friend, or going through legal procedures right now. If they decide to start drinking, he may even stay there overnight." Keith replied.


    "But..." Sir Drago fidgited. "I want to go out and look around."


    "Why didn''t you accompany Robin''s group?" Christian asked.


    "I thought Bard Quinn would be back soon. And I....wasn''t invited." He replied, sadly.


    "Wait a minute. If you''re just looking around, it shouldn''t be a problem, right?" Sir Raymond pointed out. "We only have to consult them for purchases and agreements. If we don''t say anything while we''re out, it shouldn''t be a problem to take a quick stroll about the city."


    "He''s right. He''s right!" Sir Gray clapped Sir Drago on the shoulder.


    "Just looking around isn''t a problem! I''ll come with you. My sister is a big fan of the fox-kin''s superior cosmetics, so I know a few things about this town."


    "Oy, and you never told us? I''m hurt." Sir Raymond teased.


    "While you''re here, how about you get some face powder as well for your dar-ling fiancee." Grey returned the favor.


    "Urk! my wallet." Sir Raymond looked pitiful.


    "Will my life savings survive this trip, I wonder?"


    Sir Gray laughed aloud as he, Sir Raymond, and Sir Drago left the inn.


    Sir Drago wasn''t a talkative person, so he was content just looking at things, and occasionally asking questions. At that point, only Keith, Christian and the rest of the knights were still in the inn.


    "It shouldn''t be a problem just going out for a look, right?" Christian muttered.


    "I disagree. You would immediately attract misfortune." Keith was adamant this time. "What if you annoy the strategist to the point where he magically manipulates you into cutting off your own head? You''ve been lucky enough so far, but who knows when your lucky streak will end?"


    "Che! But still, it isn''t fair that everyone else gets to go out!" Christian made a face.


    "If it''s going out to take a look, then tomorrow is just as good as today." Keith replied evenly. "You know this is an important period of time for Robin. Let''s not make things more difficult for him."


    "...Fine." Christian growled with a black face. Keith had hit upon his weak spot. He really did feel guilty towards Robin for all the trouble he had caused the young man.


    "I will wait one day, and not a moment more!" Christian declared.


    -----


    "Hey hey, pretty lady, why don''t you come play with us?" A sleazy-looking humanoid with fox ears crooned.


    Chelsea turned about, and smiled lightly.


    "I''m wearing a veil. How surprising is it that you think I am beautiful without even seeing my face. If I were actually ugly, then I wonder what your friends will think about your sense of beauty."


    "That''s something that can easily be fixed." The fox reached his hand out, only to snatch it back when a sharp icicle fell from the sky.


    "I suppose it might,but your hand wouldn''t. Your legs as well would be difficult to treat..." Chelsea chuckled darkly. "Keep your hands to yourself, or I don''t mind using your three legs for target practice."


    The sleaze-ball shrunk back away from Chelsea. "Ooh we''ve got a nice cold one here." he chuckled.


    "No you don''t." Robin replied, stepping forward. "My companions will never become acquainted with you, or any cheap tricksters like you, right girls?" She asked them. This effectively cut off any chance of the foxes kidnapping the two women.


    "Right!" They answered emphatically.


    "You!" The sleazy fox scowled darkly.


    "What you?" Robin asked. "If you got something to say, then finish it! Provocations are not allowed though. You can keep those to yourself."


    The fox man clicked his tongue and continued on his way. Robin watched him leave before she turned to the two behind her. "I get the feeling he went to go call his friends to come out and play." She said.


    "Who wants to play with those scoundrels!" Jasmine scolded. "I was this close to blasting them outside the city! Hmmmph! Making moves on our Good Chelsea!" Jasmine hugged Chelsea''s arm.


    "I''m flattered that you''d say that, but I can''t show you my water healing arts without an injury." Chelsea replied.


    "Tch!" Jasmine clicked her tongue.

 130 She Unexpectedly Meets...

    "Even so, we''ve already purchased a lot of things." Robin pointed out. "It''s best not to cause any trouble while we''re here." She said.


    "Well, if you say so, Robin." Chelsea pouted. "But you''re definitely coming out with us next time, too!"


    "If circumstances permit." Robin chuckled. On their way back to the inn, they stopped at a group of food stalls to eat the ramen that Robin had discovered earlier.


    "Whoah, you are right, Robin! This dish is really good!" Chelsea exclaimed. But Robin wasn''t really listening. Her attention was focused on the conversation of a raucous group in a nearby stall.


    "...and after I said I wouldn''t kill him, he completely lets down his guard and I knocked him out with my club. Hahaha!"


    "Hey, I hear that elf brats cost a high sum in certain places. In that case, wouldn''t this be a truly profitable venture?" Another one asked, eagerly.


    "Sure! Seems like I''m gonna soon be a rich person, so this round is on me!" The first one agreed drunkenly.


    "But, aren''t you afraid that he''ll escape during this time?" Another one asked.


    "Of course not!" the speaker chortled. "I tricked him into saying that he can''t leave that derelict warehouse without at least three people with him. Even if I left the door unlocked, he wouldn''t be able to leave!"


    "That''s our boss! So clever and crafty! Three cheers for boss!" the others raised their glasses.


    The light Robin''s eyes took on a cold glint as she heard the story. Then she took a slow breath, and the frostiness was hidden. She exchanged glances with the other two, who had also heard the story by now.


    "So?" Robin asked, inclining her head in the drunk foxes'' direction.


    "What do you think?"


    Jasmine and Chelsea exchanged glances. Robin obviously wanted to help the poor elf child that had been captured by those sneakyfoxes. But she would need their help.


    "It''s great! I would definitely regret not bringing such an incredible find back to the inn we are staying in!" Jasmine nodded enthusiastically, making the conversation seem to be about the ramen.


    "Me too! I can''t believe we hadn''t discovered this earlier, but now that we know about it, who would ignore it!" Chelsea also got the hint and laughed.


    The Ramen stall owner puffed its fur up in pride. It seemed that his food was really tasty to humans. But of course, that wouldn''t affect his business.


    "If you wish, our stall has a takeout option." He said slyly, not wanting to miss the opportunity to swindle these two ladies and their guard.


    Robin looked at him with a piercing stare. "It has been a while since anyone claimed they could take me out." She said slowly. "Are you up for the challenge?"


    The stall owner felt sweat dampen his fur. He had been seen through! "What are you talking about? This is a normal regular stall. please don''t claim us capable of threatening you."


    "Oh? But if the ladies had agreed to be taken out, then the only happy person would have been you." Robin said, bringing his dark thoughts out into the light.


    "There is no need to patronize this stall anymore." Robin said, turning away.


    "But what about the ramen!?" Chelsea asked, playing reluctant to part with it.


    "I can make a better one. You can ask me for it when we return." Robin replied.


    "Yay! You''re the best!" Chelsea cheered as they left the venue, and the dumbfounded stall owner behind.


    -----


    "Where do you think the elf child is?" Jasmine asked.


    Robin turned towards Chelsea with a grin. "Oh Chelsea, could you do us a favor and help us find the elf kid?"


    "Why should I?" Chelsea pretended to be reluctant in order to get greater profits.


    "Because, while I did say that you can request it, I never said my ramen was free." Robin''s grin widened wickedly.


    "Oh, you!" Chelsea realized she had been check-mated. "Fine. Let me see if I can get a read..." She paused a bit as she tapped her crystal ball pendant.


    "It seems we''re in luck. You have met this person before." Chelsea said, taking them through several side streets and alleyways, even balancing atop a wall along their route.


    "Hmm? I''m pretty sure I would remember meeting an elf, though." Robin said. "I wonder who it could be?"


    "I''m not sure. Could it be someone you met back in Port Oracle?" Jasmine asked.


    "I haven''t a clue." Robin shrugged. "I suppose I''ll know when I see him."


    They finally arrived at a small abandoned warehouse rotting away in the corner of an overgrown estate. When they opened the door, Robin paused as she saw the figure within.


    -------------


    "Dirk, what in the world are you doing here?" She asked.


    "Hero!? Izzat really you!?" Dirk asked.


    "If I was a fake, do you think I''d throw my weight around in a city like this? I''m not a glutton for punishment, I can assure you." Robin chuckled.


    "It really is you! Great!" Dirk brightened up considerably.


    "Your speech has cleared up tremendously, but you still haven''t answered my question, kid." Robin pointed out.


    "Me mother''s relatives were in the capitol. They saw and recognized me, so they were taking me back to meet me gran''pa. I didn'' really wanna come,but all my pals told me that I''d regret if I didn''. They''re holdin'' down tha fort until I come back, they are."


    "You still had relatives?" Robin asked.


    Dirk frowned. "Yeah. I was upset fer the longest time cuz they never came to see me. Turns out, mum had run away from home. They had no idea mum was even alive, but had been looking fer her a long time. When my bloodline resonated with theirs, they recognized me as her son."


    "So you''re on a trip to see your grandfather, huh?" Robin replied, nodding. "Then, what are you doing here?"


    "I lost sight of my relatives, and these fox people told me they would help me find them if I followed their orders." Dirk replied, frustrated. "I had no idea that they were leading me into a trap."


    "Apparently, in this city, elf slaves are considered a priceless commodity." Jasmine inspected the invisible dirt under her fingernails.


    "You are naive for trusting a fox-kin. There''s not a single honest bone in their body. You would be happily sold away, even helping them count the money before you knew it."


    "But, that don''t make sense!" Dirk exclaimed. "Aren''t we supposed to speak the truth?"


    "Yes, that is true. But the rules never said you had to tell the whole truth." Robin pointed out. "There are many ways of twisting the truth around by cutting a sentence short. That, and we met the three hooligans who brought you here bragging about how they were going to become filthy rich."


    "Um, hate to interrupt, but why don''t we talk about this back at the inn?" Chelsea asked. "Those so-called ''hooligans'' could be back any moment,you know."


    Robin realized Chelsea was right. "Come on Dirk. If you need someone to find your family, I don''t think they would be around here. If you follow me, you''ll be sure to find them quickly." She held out a hand.


    "All right. It''s terribly dull here, anyways. Even though there are enough cracks for whispers, there aren''t anyone her to whisper through the cracks." Dirk agreed as he grabbed Robin''s hand.


    --------


    "Ugh!" Gerard frowned.


    "What''s the matter?" Elise the fairy asked.


    "Robin must have picked up another black hole. Now my food portions will be even less!" Gerard rumbled through gritted teeth.


    "How do you know?" Elise asked.


    "My gut instinct." Gerard asserted. "It has never failed me before!"


    "But, what if your gut instinct is wrong?" Elise asked.


    "It''s never wrong!" Gerard declared. "Robin has surely picked up some other hard-luck life. He attracts them like a magnet!"


    -----------


    On their way back, Dirk finally asked the question that was bothering him.


    "But Hero, what you doin'' in demonkind territory?" Dirk asked.


    "Ara? Do you have something against us demons?" Chelsea asked pointedly. While her smile was still just as lovely, the hidden undertone warned Dirk to be cautious of his words.


    "No ma''am! I''m part demon, meself." Dirk hastily answered.


    "Elves are considered demons?" Robin asked, scratching her head.


    "Yeah. They are good in nature magic. How come ye don''t know that?" Dirk asked.


    Robin patted Dirk''s shoulder. "I grew up in a place that had little to no mention of such things."


    "Is that so...Then, ask away! I learned a lot about demons while on our way here. And this information is completely free!" Dirk said confidently.

 131 She Returns to The Inn

    "I''m uncomfortable with that phrase." Robin chuckled awkwardly. "The only thing that is completely free is your heart and soul, your thoughts and actions. Everything else takes effort, whether it is my own effort, or someone else''s."


    "Tha''s true enough!" Dirk chuckled. "Then, think of et as my thanks fer yer help."


    "Gladly~!" Robin smiled.


    "Robin, why are you asking for information from him, when I can tell you everything already?" Chelsea asked.


    "And what''ll it cost me?" Robin asked.


    "Two-no three! Three bowls of Ramen!" Chelsea replied greedily.


    "That''s why." Robin replied. "Who would pay for something when they can acquire it free of charge? That''s like selling sea water next to the ocean."


    "Wha! Kuuh! Don''t forget, you owe me a bowl already for helping you this time!"


    "I remember." Robin laughed. They headed back to the inn, but just when they were about to enter, their attention was drawn to a familiar oily voice.


    "I''m telling you, my merchandise was ruined on account of you, so you have to pay for it!"


    "That''s right, if you didn''t walk so close, it wouldn''t have fallen down. You need to compensate the owner!" Another fox-kin agreed. a group of miscreants had surrounded three figures.


    "And I''m telling you, we had done nothing to make it fall, therefore, we don''t need to pay a single copper! Who asked the owner to be so careless with his merchandise?" one of them argued.


    Robin paused, recognizing the three figures.


    "Grey, Raymond, Sir Drake....what are you doing here?" She asked.


    "We decided to take a look around, since it Sir Drago wanted to see the sights. But just when we were on our way back, these miscreants are trying to pin the blame for this accident upon us!" Sir Grey informed.


    "No, it was definitely not an accident! It''s these people''s fault that the merchandise fell!" The sleazy fox argued, turning about in anger, before his eyes blazed even redder.


    "It''s You three!!"


    "Oh? What a coincidence." Robin smiled coldly at the sleazy fox they had encountered earlier. "It seems you''ve upgraded from pimp to scammer in the matter of a few hours." She said, pointedly.


    "Oh? Shall I give this fox a greeting?" Chelsea asked, forming three large icicles. The fox gulped under his bad disguise. He shrunk back as he remembered the threat to his limbs.


    "Why give a greeting to a complete stranger? People might shamelessly claim that you actually know this wretch." Robin shook her head, stopping him.


    "So? What are you going to do?" She asked her companions. "It''a definitely not an accident that the owner decides to tumble his merchandise in order to snag three innocents. How does one ''repay'' such scammers?"


    "We aren''t allowed to kill..." Sir Grey sighed.


    "Isn''t anything fine, so long as they don''t die?" Sir Drago said, his irises narrowing into slits. "To dare try and scam this dragon general, aren''t they looking to be beaten?"


    "Dragon General!? Hah! No way! Dragons are a proud race. There''s no way that a dragon would lower himself to travel with a group of stinking humans! Such a scare tactic, did ya think we were born yesterday!?"


    The group of fox-kin collectively laughed.


    "You brought this on yourself." Robin shook her head. "Sir Drago, I leave their ''repayment'' up to your group. I''ll be at the inn. Make sure not to kill anyone."


    She brought her group into the inn.


    "Ya hear that?" Sir Grey asked. "That''s as good an okay to let loose as I''ll get. It''s been a while since I''ve encountered any good brawls, after all."


    Sir Raymond cracked his knuckles as Sir Drago nodded, scales growing around his eyes, and along his arms as his breath began to smoke, smelling of fire and brimstone.


    "Let''s begin then. The repayment." Sir Drago agreed. The fox group stopped laughing as they realized that perhaps they had gotten themselves in a great deal of trouble.


    The inn walls must have been magically sound insulated, because the screams of the foxkinsoutside were not heard by anyone within.


    -------


    When Sir Drago, Sir Gray, and Sir Raymond entered the inn, the company had completely gathered, aside from Quinn. Gerard''s face was exceptionally sour when he saw Dirk.


    "How refreshing! I haven''t routed a brawl like that in six months." Gray stretched. His messy hair the only indication that he had been in a fight.


    "Hmmph! So you say, but what if my fiance''s present had been broken, huh? I would have taken the damages out of your pocket." Sir Raymond jabbed verbally.


    "Come on! We had grand General Sir Drago on our side. But, I had never thought you were so skilled in non-lethal punishment!" Sir Grey turned to Sir Drago, whose appearance was the same as usual.


    "Ho? Now I''m curious. How did you manage topunish those furry rats?" Chelsea asked.


    "I was genuinely syrprised. I never thought that dragons had such a huge control over fire like that. He burned all the fur off their tails, not a hair more or less.The tail itself was also completely unburned!" Sir Grey laughed.


    Chelsea''s smile distorted as she imagined those foxes fleeing back home with their rat-like tails. Finally, she could hold back no longer as she burst out in a bout of uncontrollable laughter. The others also smiled and chuckled a bit at the thought of those foxes getting what they deserved.


    "I can''t-hahahah!" She gasped for breath. "I can''t breathe! Hahahahhahah!"


    When her laughter had dwindled to a more controlled giggling fit, she showed her appreciation of Sir Drago''s deed. "You, Sir-heheh- are the best! Good job!"She said as she saluted mid-giggle.


    Sir Drago stared at Chelsea, his eyes widening in open surprise. After a few moments, he recovered to his normal expression, and turned modestly away.


    "It was nothing, really." Unbeknownst to anyone, the corner of his mouth had momentarily tugged up into a smile, before returning to normal.


    Once Chelsea''s fits of laughter were over, she turned to Robin.


    "Aren''t you forgetting something?" Chelsea asked.


    "Hmm? Forgetting what?" Robin blinked as she looked at Chelsea.


    "What do you mean ''what?''! You owe me a bowl of Rah-min noodles!" Chelsea pouted. In all other things, Chelsea was highly reliable, but whenever it came to food, she acted like a spoiled child.


    "Hahah, okay, fine. I have not forgotten. Why don''t you introduce Dirk, while I''m gone, and explain everything." Robin delegated the task to Jasmine.


    "In that case, I want a bowl, too!" Jasmine negotiated.Robin only laughed as she headed to the inn''s kitchens with Ponzu. Sighing, Jasmine could only explain to the others what she knew about the situation.


    "So that''s what it was!" Christian realized. "No wonder you looked familiar. Aren''t you the leader of that popular gossip chain?"


    "Guilty as charged. But now we been given an official post from the king. We''re now designated information gatherers." Dirk explained.


    "Father did that?" Christian''s eyes widened in surprise.


    "According to my information, it was all the fault of Hero Robin." Dirk nodded proudly. "If it weren''t fer his meddlin'', we orphins wouldna been taken seriously."


    "When did..." Christian wondered when Robin had had the time to meddle in things. He shook his head. He could ask Robin later. But, still, for Robin to pay attention even to these orphans, he was a truly impressive individual.


    After about half an hour, Robin emerged from the kitchen with a large bowl of ramen. Ponzu followed with an unpleasant expression on his face.


    "What''s wrong, Ponzu? You look like you swallowed a lemon!" Christian teased.


    "Prince, the hero..." Ponzu turned sorrowfully towards Christian, his eyes full of grief. "The hero just gave away the ramen recipe!"


    "What?" Jasmine raised an eyebrow.


    "Oh, knock it off, Ponzu. I just told them that if they can steal my recipe from simply watching, then they have my permission to use it." Robin snorted. "Unfortunately, some of the ingredients are a bit more difficult than usual to acquire. After all, nobody realizes the possibilities of konbu for soups!"


    Jasmine smiled. "See? You worried for nothing, Ponzu. Robin isn''t so easily cheated of things like recipes." Ponzu''s expression eased up a bit.


    "Smells so good...." Dirk''s stomach growled loudly in agreement. As he had been stuck in a warehouse for most of the day, he was very hungry by now.


    Chelsea protectively guarded her food. "You can''t have it. This is mine!"


    Robin nodded. "I knew this would be the case. so I made a second bowl." She brought it out of her storage, and set it before Dirk.


    "Go ahead and eat up. Then we can work on finding your relatives."

 132 She Arrives At An Impasse-Part 1

    As Dirk eagerly set to work on demolishing the large bowl of noodles, Robin noticed the rest of the company staring pointedly at her.


    "Heheh. Can I help you?" She asked them cheekily.


    "Do you perhaps have any more of that Rah-min noodles dish in your storage device?" Sir Drago asked.


    "I do not." Robin shook her head. Everyone''s expressions drooped.


    "That''s because I handed the rest over to Ponzu to take care of." Robin grinned mischievously. Everyone''s eyes instantly focused upon Ponzu, who flinched from the sudden attention. But, once they confirmed the fact that Ponzu was not holding anything , they turned back to Robin.


    "Don''t look at me! Ponzu really has it. Ponzu, you can take them out now." Robin said, smiling brightly.


    Ponzu sighed and pulled a cord around his neck out, displaying a small leather satchet with designs painted on the front.


    "Hey, isn''t that one of the satchets we bought earlier today?" Jasmine asked.


    "Yep!" Robin nodded. "Ponzu, you can use it. There''s no one else here."


    Ponzu nodded, and opened it, aiming at an empty part of the room. "Dinner Time!" He called out, and a beam of light burst out of the satchet onto that spot. When the light disappeared, a table appeared, with multiple bowls of Ramen on top.


    "So? Do you like it, Jasmine?" Robin asked, a sly grin on her face.


    "What is this? Is it an illusion?" Jasmine reached out, and was surprised to find the table was solid. Then a light glinted in her eyes as she immediately grabbed a bowl of noodles for herself.


    "Hmm..." She sampled the soup for herself. "You''re right. This is way better than the one we sampled earlier."


    "I was talking about the food storage." Robin indicated, pointing at the satchet around Ponzu''s neck.


    "Oh! That...Does that mean that all the other satchets are food storage bags as well?" Jasmine suddenly had a thought.


    "No! That was my first try at enchanting."Robin explained.


    Jasmine almost spit her food out. "Enchanting!?" She exclaimed after swallowing that mouthful down. "Where did you get a spacial crystal!? Don''t tell me you apprenticed yourself to those conceited fogeys back in the capital!" She exclaimed worriedly. "Don''t be fooled! They can only create small charms without a crystal matrix."


    "Okay, First: you need to calm down." Robin pointed out. "And second: actually, according to this book I read, you don''t need a crystal in order to create a spacial bag." Robin said, pulling out a rather old looking book.


    "Oh! Isn''t that-" Christian recognized it as one of the books from the ruins they had explored. But he was interrupted when Jasmine squealed.


    "Isn''t that ''Millin''s guide to Spacial Storage Enchanting''! That book was completely lost after the great magic library was half-burned down due to an idiot practicing fire magic during the war 15 years ago! How on earth did you manage to find this!?"


    But when Jasmine reached out to touch it, it disappeared back into Robin''s bracer.


    "I''m not done reading it, so you can''t look at it right now." Robin said.


    Jasmine glared at Robin furiously. "I''m your teacher! I have a right to see what magic books you are reading."


    "I''m not denying that,but why are you acting so upset? All of my books here will go to you when this quest is finished. You will have plenty of time in the future to pore over them then. Why do you begrudge your student expanding her magic knowledge?" Robin reasoned.


    Jasmine''s face fell. That''s right. If they succeeded in their quest, Robin would be leaving.


    "Hmmph! Fine." Jasmine grumbled as she returned to eating her ramen in order to placate her bad mood.


    Dinner suddenly became a rather quiet affair, as even Skye and Elise were quietly eating their portions. Everyone in the company except Sir Drago and Dirk knew that Robin was searching for a way back home. And once she found it, she would definitely leave them.


    Robin sighed lightly. She would have to get them accustomed to the idea that she would be leaving. If they grew too attached, then it would only be more painful when it was time for her to leave.


    But she had to return. She couldn''t let her boss, annoying though he is, get implicated due to her disappearance. Not to mention how worried her brother probably is.


    If she knew her brother, he might have torn down her work''s building brick by brick by now, looking for her. He wouldn''t believe anything until he saw her face to face, not after what happened with her uncle.


    While they ate, Robin reorganized her itinerary:


    1. Find Dirk''s family.


    2. Gain The Strategist''s Approval-continue gathering demon guardians approvals.


    3. Learn more magic


    4. Gather Foodstuffs


    5. Find a way home


    Hopefully nothing screwy would happen. But, Newton''s third law indicated that if things can go wrong, they usually will. Robin sighed, and planned out contingency strategies for the remainder of that evening, in order to minimize any potential chaos.


    Since it was too dark out to look for Dirk''s family, that task would have to wait until tomorrow. Thus, everyone soon turned in for sleep. As usual, Robin managed to get a room all to herself, which no one was allowed to enter.


    Quinn didn''t return until the next morning, when it was discovered that Christian had disappeared.


    "Did anyone see him leave, or know where he''s going?" Robin asked.


    "No, but yesterday, he wanted to sightsee around town. I didn''t let him because we all know his mouth is his greatest liability."


    "Are you sure it wasn''t his lack of intelligence?" Jasmine snickered.


    Keith, remembering yesterday''s conversation, felt a headache coming on. That disaster prince had left him behind and gone out sightseeing in a foreign demon city. Either he was very brave, or very stupid. But, Keith was inclined towards the latter.


    "In any case, we need to find him before he gets into trouble!" Robin said, and everyone else left the room to prepare to search the city.


    Robin turned to Quinn. "Apologies, but I''ll have to wait until we find Christian."


    Quinn scratched his head, apologetically. "Er, uh, actually...I know where he is."


    "What?" Robin''s eyes suddenly flashed with understanding.


    -----


    A half hour earlier, Christian had been walking the streets carefreely, taking in the sights when he was called out to from a nearby stall.


    "Come play for a chance to win riches untold. Our motto is, yer not a man if ye don''t try!" the fox-kin goaded.


    Christian disdainfully snorted and muttered something, continuing on his way.


    "Whazzat? I couldna hear you!" The fox-kinsmirked, stepping in front of Christian, blocking his way.


    "Speak up, or yer a coward!"


    Christian stood still and shook his head, then stared the fox-kin straight in the eye.


    "I disagree! There must be something wrong with your motto. You say we''re not a man if we don''t try? Ho? Then why aren''t there any men among the people playing? It would be more accurate to say that if I do actually play, then I''m not a man!" Christian called out each word clearly so that all the surrounding fox-kin could hear it.


    The stall owner''s breath hissed through his teeth as he felt his face burning under his fur. He had always been on the giving end of the insults. It was true that women here were easier to snag than men, but his method had always been foolproof against men. How did this smart one extricate himself so easily?


    Instead of jumping to that stall-owner''s aid, the surrounding fox-kin nodded their heads and chortled.


    "True, true! He''s swindled so much from tha folks as couldn''t refute his motto. Now he''s getting his comeuppances! Good fortune and luck come to those who don''t bring misfortune upon themselves." An elderly grey fox nodded to his neighbor. "Who you gonna bet will win?"


    "You mean before the secret guards arrive? Hmm...yanno what? I hate that fox so much, imma bet on the human this time." The neighbor fox with greying brown hair said.


    But his bet was bound to fail, because a third party had butted in between the two glaring individuals.


    "Now now now now now, what seems to be the problem?" A middle-aged man with glasses and a Colonel Muster moustache waved his cane about, to gain their attention.


    "This hu-man insulted my shop motto!"


    "I was merely pointing out that his motto is clearly false!" Christian replied icily.


    "Oh? what''s the motto?" The gentleman asked.


    "The motto was: you''re not a man if you don''t try." Christian replied. "I simply told him that clearly isn''t the case because his clients are all females."


    The gentleman instantly burst out into laughter. "Ahahahaha! You hit him right where it hurts, huh?" The man


    "I don''t understand. I have not even begun to hit him." Christian replied.


    "Never mind that, I have something I need your help for. And only a sharp bloke like you will I be satisfied with." The gentleman asked, smiling jovially at Christian. Christian could sense no ill will from the man, so he didn''t immediately refuse.


    Perhaps helping him out would gain them an ally.


    "At the very least, I can hear you out, but I definitely won''t agree to do anything without understanding fully what you are asking me to do." Christian replied. "If it''s perilous, then I''ll immediately refused right now."


    "No no no no, perish the thought! I assure you that you won''t have to do much of anything, and it isn''t harmful at all!" The gentleman nodded his head emphatically.


    "In that case, I''ll hear you out." Christian said.


    "Good! Good! Come! Let''s go discuss things over at my place." The gentleman said, leading Christian out of the crowd. As they walked away, unseen by Christian, the bottom flap of the gentleman''s long coat tilted up. Everyone else caught a glimpse of bright crimson fox tails hidden underneath. The area suddenly fell silent until the two had completely disappeared from sight.


    "Mommy, how many tails did he have?" A small fox-cub asked.


    "Nine. Landsakes! It''s the Strategist!" the mother fox gasped.


    The old brown fox sighed and passed his gold to the old grey fox. "You win. That kid has already been captured."

 133 She Arrives At An Impasse-Part 2

    Robin stood there for a moment, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out.


    "And so?" She asked, non-plussed. "Where is he now?"


    Quinn''s face had a trace of pity on it as he answered.


    "I don''t really know. He told me to hand this to you." Quinn handed over a letter sealed in wax. Robin tore open the seal, reading the contents of the letter.


    ''Good Morning, Young Hero!


    This morning, I chanced to find a young man with blonde hair wandering the streets. As it is quite dangerous to wander around at this time, I took him with me to the tower of meetings. Don''t worry, he is perfectly fine.


    For now, that is.


    But, might I say, the Tower of Meetings does have one slight quirk to it. As it is an artifact from before the hero wars, it cannot hold humans in it for too long. If you do not come before noon time, I''m afraid his memory of everything will be systematically wiped.


    I would extricate him, myself, but he accidentally locked himself in the room of lovers, which we call because only one of each gender can enter. Only when two opposite genders are present can you leave. Ah, blood relatives or different races don''t work, either.


    As this is time sensitive, I encourage you to try your utmost to extricate him.


    Sincerely,


    The Strategist.''


    "Hey, Quinn...Do you know where the Tower of Meetings is?" Robin asked.


    Quinn nodded. "Yeah. It''s visible from the city square. Why?...wait. He took him there!?" Quinn exclaimed in surprise.


    "Mmn. The penthouse suite, apparently." Robin said cooly. It appeared the Strategist had seemingly set up an impossible game. It was too bad he hadn''t accounted for one thing: Robin was a girl.


    "Suite?" Jasmine asked, confused at the unfamiliar word. Robin passed the letter to her.


    "Robin." Jasmine looked at Robin, solemnly. "You can''t be serious! If you go, then you know what''ll happen."


    "You read it. Do you possibly think we have any better option right now?" Robin said. "Besides, this happening to him is because of me in the first place. If I didn''t want to go home, he wouldn''t be there! As the reason for this journey, I bear a responsibility towards this company, him included."


    "Okay, calm down!" Chelsea interjected. What is this about?" The note was passed to Chelsea. When she read it, the corner of her mouth twitched.


    "Well, looks like now''s your chance, Robin! Just waltz in there and take a good look at that blank face of his when you show up. It''ll be like a coming-out party!" She laughed.


    "No. Chelsea, the point is that Robin doesn''t want to give him any ideas." Jasmine pointed out.


    "But why not? They''d be the perfect duo!" Chelsea pointed out.


    Robin snorted. "If I didn''t know you knew about my situation, I might have tagged you as a fujoshi."


    "Hmm? What''s that?" Chelsea asked.


    "Well it''s a..." Robin paused as she realized the rest of the company was also listening. "Um...I''ll tell you later."


    "What''s the letter say?" Dirk asked. Chelsea was about to hand the letter over when Jasmine snatched it from her hand and instantly burned it into ash.


    "This involves the Hero''s personal information. I''m afraid it can''t be revealed to anyone in the information circulation business." Jasmine said, quickly salvaging the situation.


    "Aww. I wanted to read it." Fairy Elise sulked.


    "Sorry. I can''t say anything. But, it''s definitely not a bad thing, okay?" Robin smiled politely at the nosey winger.


    "Basically, the letter said that Prince Christian is being held captive in the tower of meetings, and if I want to save him, I''ll have to go alone, otherwise his memory will be wiped."Robin summarized.


    "That''s a fairly obvious trap, don''t you think?" Dirk scoffed.


    "Right? So the obvious thing is to go." Robin replied nonchallantly.


    "What? Your just gonna waltz in there?" Dirk asked, surprised at the hero''s seeming lack of planning.


    "Why not? It''s only obvious. But, rest assured, I will be in disguise." Robin reassured Dirk.


    "That being said, Jasmine, Quinn, I am going to need your help." Robin turned to the two. "I''ll also need a floor-length cloak, if anyone has one."


    "Got it. I think Sir Daniel has a spare cloak, but it might be a bit large." Keith said.


    "That''s great! the larger, the better!" Robin replied as she brought Jasmine and Quinn to her room.


    "So, what can I help you with?" Quinn asked.


    ....When Robin came out of her room with Jasmine and Quinn, her figure was completely covered under the hood. one couldn''t see her face, as it was covered by a fox mask.


    Quinn was desperately trying to hold back his laughter. "You sure that''s all you need my help with, Robin?" He asked, his face slightly contorting.


    "Certain." Robin replied in a deadpan voice. But, before she left, she paused and told Quinn "You do know that, if you leak any of this, you''ll be banned from my cooking forever, right?"


    With that, Quinn''s contorted face froze stiffly. "I will never reveal it. you have my word." He quickly promised.


    "Good." And, with that, Robin quickly left.


    Gerard watched Robin leave the hotel until he couldn''t see the hero anymore. "He''s gone. What was he disguised as?"


    Quinn couldn''t hold it in any longer and burst out laughing. He patted Gerard on the shoulder.


    "Sorry, I''m afraid my lips are sealed. But I can tell you this: the Strategist thinks that he is bringing the hero into a trap. But it is the Hero, himself, that is bringing the trap to the Strategist. I wonder what kind of face he''ll make when he finds out he''s been brilliantly countered?"


    ------


    Robin stopped in a dark corner. She took off the cloak and fake mask. Then, she stored the cloak in her magic bag.


    "Once again, if you breathe a word of this, I will never give you food ever again." She said the the mask, which returned into it''s original slime shape.


    "Understood!" It said, before bouncing off.


    "It''s been a while since I''ve done this..." Robin looked at her clothes, an uncomfortable expression on her face.


    "Uuugh, I don''t wanna wear this! No, I can do this... I''ll just pretend it''s cosplay! Yeah....pretend it''s cosplay."


    Robin let out a small sigh.


    "I really didn''t expect to have to wear this ever again."


    Then she stepped out into the light.


    --------


    Up in the tower, Christian sat there on the bed, and sighed in frustration at himself. He had been such a fool! When they had entered the tower, Christian hadn''t even thought twice when that foxy gentleman had opened the door for him.


    Thinking back, he was used to the servants opening the doors. But why would someone who was trying to employ him act like a servant? Even when Robin acted the perfect gentleman, he wasn''t so humble as to extend such niceties to other men.


    Christian heard his stomach growl. How long had he been here? the sky was already bright through the hand-sized window. They probably had figured out that he wasn''t at the inn, and had gone to look for him.


    No...The odds were that they would come here, first. Christian rested his chin upon his clasped hands, thinking.


    Even if Christian hadn''t been tricked so soon, to be able to bring him into this guarded tower meant that that gentleman had some kind of high status. It wasn''t a stretch to say that the Strategist himself might be behind this incident. In which case, Christian had unwittingly become a pawn to use against Robin.


    Christian once again looked around the room for any sign of a way out. He had to get out of there. The door was covered in some kind of barrier that he couldn''t break.


    "Hmm?" Christian paused, listening carefully. Footsteps clicked down the hallway, growing closer to the room. When it reached Christian''s room, it stopped.


    Christian stood up. Was it that scheming gentleman again? He looked around. there was nothing he could use as a blunt weapon, and the table was fused to the floor.


    The door slowly opened.


    Christian''s eyes widened as a beautiful youngwoman with cat ears entered the room. His jaw dropped.


    "....Robin!?"

 134 She Enters the Tower

    "Shhhh! You idiot! Do you want to let everyone in the tower know I''m here?!" Robin hissed, her ears folded themselves back like a real cat.


    "How did you get in here? There''s guards everywhere!" Christian asked.


    "Through the side gate, like everyone else. Did you think that everyone waltzes through the main entrance?" Robin scolded.


    "But, wouldn''t they-why are you wearing a dress?" Christian asked. "And how did you get cat ears?"


    "Do you think they''d let me in dressed in normal clothes as a man? Obviously it''s so they don''t realize it''s me!" Robin didn''t mention the fact that she had to say her gender before entering.


    Christian''s eyes glanced up at the ears. "But those ears..."


    "Quinn helped me out with the ears and the hair. The only ears he knew well enough were cat''s ears" Robin said, briefly, an ear flicking. "Jasmine did the makeup."


    Christian understood. Quinn had a mimicking ability that would make replicating such things easy.


    "So Quinn helped you out with your chest, too?"He asked.


    Robin''s ears went back, and she scowled. "Are you coming with me to leave, or not? I''d like to get out of the clothing of my childhood nightmares as soon as possible, thank you very much."


    Christian knew he had stepped on a landmine. "I can''t. There''s a barrier in place over the door. I can''t leave."


    "The door?" Robin turned around, her ears posing quizzically.


    The door had silently shut behind her. She reached out to the handle, but was also repelled.


    "Eh!?" Robin exclaimed, her ears standing up straight. Suddenly, she felt like a fool. This was called the room of lovers. What if, in order to leave, they had to act like...A cold shivver ran down her spine as the hair on theback of her neck stood up. She began to panic.


    "So we''re both trapped in here, huh." Christian sighed, sitting back down on the bed. He glanced over at Robin''s attire.


    It was an ankle-length periwinkle blue gown trimmed with lace. Robin''s black hair, which had been short, was now long, falling in curly waves down to her waist. It was tied with a matching blue ribbon in a half-up half-down style. Dressed like that, it was impossible to tell that Robin was a man.


    Christian''s face flushed, but he didn''t say anything. It probably hadn''t been easy for Robin, growing up. But....right now Robin looked so adorable, Christian wanted to laugh.


    Strangely, nothing felt odd about Robin wearing women''s clothes. Looking like a girl, but being a boy, he probably had been teased quite a lot.


    "I tried using magic attacks, but this thing only absorbs them, so I stopped." Christian explained, trying to get his thoughts back under control.


    Then he noticed something was wrong with Robin''s behavior. Robin had brought out her hero''s blade.


    "Wait, Robin, what are you doing?" Christian asked, cautiously. What if he had noticed Christian''s thoughts and was going to try killing him?


    "I need to get out of this room, even if I need to break this blasted pervert tower into pieces!" Robin said. As she struck against the barrier in a panic-induced frenzy. But the sword which had cut like butter through a wyvern''s scales failed to even scratch the barrier at the door.


    Robin narrowed her eyes and struck the wall next to the door. Then she tried to cut the walls of the room, to no avail. The barrier covered the entire room.


    Finally, she slumped to the floor across from Christian, to catch her breath.


    "If you had waited a moment, I would''ve told you that I had already tried." Christian sighed. Robin scowled menacingly,as she sat up, hugging her knees. Her hair flowed down her shoulders like a dark veil.


    "Are you sure you want to sit there? The floor is probably covered in dust." Christian asked.


    "I am fine right here." Robin replied, looking like a cat with hackles raised. It was almost as if she would start emitting sparks. Christian forced his face not to smile. After all, it was not good to anger a swordsman, and Robin had not yet put away her sword.


    Trying to diffuse the situation, he brought out an intricately-carved bow.


    "This bow is a famous magic weapon, only second to the hero''s blade: the Artemis Bow. Legend says that this bow was once wielded by the Hero''s companion, Artemis, who was the queen of the elves at the time. It has only accepted five other masters before me, including my country''s founder. I am the seventh." Christian explained.


    "You tried to shoot through the barrier, didn''t you." She guessed, calming down a bit.


    "That''s right. The power was so great that even the arrow head was shattered into dust, but the barrier remained intact. I guess we can only wait until someone lets us out."


    Robin regained a bit more calm. That''s right. Christian wouldn''t act differently just because she dressed differently. ''Besides, he already has someone that he likes. So why would he even look at me?'' She remembered.


    That was another reason why they needed to leave. Robin would never forgive herself if she was the reason why he forgot the person he liked. For some reason, the sour feeling resulting from that thought calmed her down the most.


    In reality, Christian was trying his hardest to suppress his face from showing how cute Robin looked to him right now. After all, it was an insult to think a man was cute.


    "That bow is so impressive, huh?" Robin mused. "Then, why didn''t you use it when we were facing that wyvern?"


    "Er- that...It was too close to safely try and shoot. Remember, I was kind of busy running for my life?" Christian pointed out.


    Robin laughed. "That''s true enough!" She agreed, relaxing completely.


    "Welcome back to normal." Christian said, relieved that Robin didn''t seem likely to snap now. "I think this is the second time I have seen you in a panic since that potion incident. What made you so panicked all of a sudden?" He asked


    Robin looked at Christian pointedly. "Do you realize just what your situation is, right now? This tower is an artifact from before the hero wars."


    "How do you know that?" Christian asked. "No, wait." He raised his hand to stop her. "I can guess. The Strategist, right?"


    "Yup. He also said that if we don''t get out before noon, yours-well now probably both our memories are going to be wiped cleaner than a sheet of paper." Robin frowned thoughtfully.


    "What!? We need to get out!" Christian exclaimed, standing up. "Didn''t he give you a hint or a clue to get out?"


    "Well, I think he did give me a clue, actually, but it''s pretty bogus. At this point, I''m even doubting its validity." Robin sighed.


    "Come on, Robin, do you want to just give up and forget everything about your brother!?" Christian encouraged.


    Robin glared at him. "I never said I was giving up. I''m just uncertain how to interpret it."


    "Oh." Christian sat back down on the bed. "So what was the clue?"


    "The name of this room....is the Room of Lovers." Robin finally said.


    ''Lovers?'' Christian pondered, then glanced at Robin''s face before shaking his head to clear it. Robin was a man. There was no way itwas possible.


    "I was thinking there might be some sort of trigger or switch to dispel the barrier within the room." Robin said, as she looked about. Her ears turned this way and that, in curiosity.


    "Trigger?" Christian waved his hand, trying to banish the strange thoughts of Robin as a girl. "There''s no way. The walls are completely solid, and there''s nothing even remotely like a trigger here.


    "True, there''s nothing in here aside from the table....and the bed. So the trigger has to be on one of these things." Robin noted.


    "Let''s try it out. Christian, why don''t you sit here at the table with me and check around for a trigger popping up." Robin approached everything logically.


    "O-okay." Christian sat down across from Robin, feeling a bit nervous for some reason. It was a very strange thing, but, even though they were a normal distance apart, Christian became highly aware of how close they were.


    After a long moment, Robin asked him. "Well? Find anything different?"


    "Oh! Um, no. Nothing seems different. There are no protrusions or raised wood pieces. No gaps or buttons." Christian replied, realizing he had been looking at Robin in a daze.


    It was a good thing Robin had been busy looking down at the table and hadn''t noticed his stare. Christian took in a deep breath, hoping to calm himself that way.

 135 She Finds The Way Ou

    "There''s nothing on this side, either." Robin said. Then she tried pushing down on knotholes on the table surface. After fiddling around with the table, she hadn''t found anything. "I guess the trigger really isn''t here, then."


    "So, that means the trigger must be...." Christian looked at the bed. Robin felt a headache coming on. her ears drooped a bit.


    Then she stood up, and approached the bed. She looked around it, tried jumping on it, prodding the headboard, and moving it. As it was also fused with the floor, she couldn''t moved it. It was also impervious to her sword. Not even the blankets were cut.


    "Ugh! I''m all out of ideas! What in the world could it possibly mean!?" Robin complained as she flopped down on the bed, tired. When she opened her eyes, she suddenly blinked.


    "Hey, Christian?" She asked, startling him, who had once again just blindly stared at Robin this whole time.


    "Y-yes, what is it?" He asked.


    "Come here." She said.


    "..." Christian could not believe his ears. Had Robin''s brain gone out on a picnic?


    "Here? As in, on the bed?" He asked, hesitantly, still not sure how to interpret Robin''s words.


    "Yes. On the bed." Robin patted the bed next to her. Christian conscientiously sat on the edge of the bed next to Robin, not quite sure what he intended.


    "What now?" Christian asked.


    "Lie down, and look up." Robin said.


    Christian lay down, and looked up. Then he blinked. "There''s a ....pattern on the ceiling?" He squinted.


    "I think there are words hidden in that pattern." Robin said. "But I can''t seem to read them. You''re more familiar with the characters, So I need your help."


    "What can I do?" Christian asked.


    "Stay there, and don''t move. Tell me when the pattern starts to look like words." Robin said.


    "What do you mean-Robin!?" Christian stiffened when Robin rolled over on top of him. Robin wasn''t touching him at all. Her weight was distributed along her arms and feet in a kind of planking crouch.But that made it all the more unreal like some sort of dream. Christian''s eyes swam as he wasn''t sure what to think.


    "Eyes on the pattern." Robin scolded. "Tell me when you start seeing words."


    Christian then realized that Robin was trying to make the words more visible for him. Robin''s face began to incrementally get closer to his as he looked at the ceiling behind Robin''s head.


    "Stop!" He quickly said just when their noses were about to touch. Robin paused, relieved.


    "What does it say?" Robin asked.


    "It says don''t move. Why would it say that?" Christian asked. Then the bed suddenly began to lower into the floor.


    "It was the bed after all!" Robin exclaimed, with a beautiful smile. Christian didn''t reply. He was enchanted by Robin''s face. Robin glanced down at Christian, and accidentally locked eyes with him. She had never really observed his face up close, but now she realized that it wasn''t just his muscles that were eye candy.


    She suddenly felt extremely self conscious. "What?" She scowled at Christian.


    "What about the tail?" Christian asked, distracting himself from his thoughts.


    "What tail?" Robin didn''t understand.


    "You have cat ears, but no tail. Isn''t that a bit suspicious?" Christian asked.


    Robin''s face turned red. In actuality, Quinn had suggested adding a tail, but she wasn''t going to let him get that close in proximity to her butt, so she had refused.


    "It''s not suspicious. I was wearing a cloak earlier." She replied. "Also, it is considered quite rude to ask to see someone''s tail here, so such a practice is frowned upon."


    It would have been a perfect cover up, but her ears quickly let Christian know that Robin was blustering around the answer.


    "Is that so?" Christian asked


    "...It''s too embarrassing." Robin admitted, looking away with a red face. "Ears I can dismiss as a hat, but a tail is...just too much for me."


    Christian wanted to ask why wearing a dress wasn''t embarassing when they arrived at the bottom. The bed had descended down into a passageway lit by magic runes.


    "Whoah, and this is in the tower?" She asked, looking up, then she noticed Christian lookingat her with a waiting expression.


    "What?"


    "Oh nothing. I was just wondering how long you are still going to stay on top of me." Christian smirked. He was beginning to think of convincing Quinn to leave the cat ears on Robin. It was easier to tell what he was thinking that way.


    Robin froze for a moment, then jumped off the bed in one fluid motion.


    "Hmmph. Hurry up or I''ll ditch you!" Robin scolded, her face turning beet red as she faced away from Christian. That was almost dangerous! Christian shouldn''t smile at her like that.


    Now that the near-compromising situation had passed, both had loosened up enough to joke about it.


    "Oho? This is the first time this prince has been ditched, before. You are quite brazen." Christian joked with a grin. "That would have been the perfect opportunity to lay claim to the throne had you been the opposite gender."


    Robin raised an eyebrow. "Unfortunately for you, I am not gay." she said as she walked down the passage staircase.


    Once she was out of sight, she covered her face in embarrassment.


    ''Dammit, Christian! You should say these things to your girl! That smile is way too destructive!''


    She almost banged the wall next to her, but stopped herself. She would be leaving eventually. It would do no good to get overly attached to anyone.


    ---


    When Robin disappeared around the bend, Christian sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.


    It was true. He really did like Robin. In fact, he could probably confirm that he loved Robin. Whether Robin was a male or female didn''t really matter to him.


    Every word, every motion Robin made, seemed inscribed into his brain like a permanent stain. He hadn''t forgotten a single moment of his time with Robin. It wasn''t that way for him with any other person.


    That''s why...he could never let Robin know.


    Christian was dense, but not that dense. He hastened his steps to catch up to Robin.


    ---


    The passage steps led down for a while until it came to a long, hallway.


    "Ho? I wonder where this leads?" Robin muttered.


    "You know, for someone who doesn''t like wearing dresses, why are you still wearing this?" Christian tugged lightly on Robin''s skirt. "Don''t you have a change of clothes, or something in your storage bracer?"


    Robin frowned. "I do. but since I''m not an exhibitionist, I''ll wait until we get back."


    Christian smirked. "And?" he prompted.


    Robin glared at him. "And I can''t take the dress or makeup off without help."


    "I can help you." Christian offered.


    "No thanks. Where could the prince have learned how to undo women''s garments, I wonder?" Robin shrugged off his help.


    Christian stopped walking. After walking a short distance, Robin realized he was behind and turned around.


    "Christian?" She asked.


    "Robin, tell me....are you....with Jasmine?" He asked in a low voice.


    "What? I couldn''t quite hear. Say that again?" Robin drew closer to Christian.


    "What is your relationship with Jasmine?" He asked a bit louder.


    "Relationship?" Robin thought about it. "Definitely friends. Good friends. Possibly even best friends. Why?"


    "Could you possibly have fallen for her?" Christian asked.


    "...What!?" The question finally got through to Robin. "No way, no way, no way! She''s like the sister I never had! I cherish her, it''s true. But she can never take that place in my heart."


    Robin looked away. "There''s probably no one that can take that place now."


    "Then...you have someone you''re seeing back in your world?" Christian pursued.


    "Why are you asking me this? If you''re trying to play matchmaker, then please stop. I have no need of such things right now." Robin sighed. "If your asking if I like someone..."


    She glanced at Christian, and paused in consideration.


    "Yes. But... it''s impossible between us. The person I like already loves someone else. A shame, really. They were one of the few decent people I met aside from my brother." Robin continued down the passageway, with Christian following behind.


    "Why not tell them?" Christian asked.


    "And, what would that accomplish?" Robin shook her head. "Instead of making things awkward between us, I''d rather just stay as friends. At least that way, I won''t be grasping at someone who wasn''t mine to begin with."


    She looked down at her hand. "You know. It''s entirely possible that I might never marry anyone...and I''m okay with that." She close her hand into fist.


    "But...why Robin? I think out of all of us, at least you should be happy." Christian said. Although, initially, Christian had felt relieved that Robin didn''t have anyone, he didn''t want Robin to grow miserable.


    "Heh. For some people, being alone is better than being with someone you don''t love." Robin said. "But you might not understand that." She said as she walked further ahead.


    Christian watched Robin from behind.


    ''No, Robin...I think I might understand that more than you think...'' He thought, before moving to catch up with Robin.

 136 She Makes Egg Sandwiches

    Finally, they got to the end of the hallway, where there was a ladder leading to a manhole cover up above. At this point, Robin got fed up with her skirts and tied them to one side. Underneath the skirt, she was still wearing the pants from her hero''s outfit.


    "Why are you wearing pants?" Christian asked.


    Robin rolled her eyes at Christian. "Tell me then, should I show my manly legs to the public? It''s too breezy just wearing a dress. Besides, only perverts would look under a woman''s skirt for no good reason."


    "Ah. Right." Christian agreed sheepishly.


    Robin went up the ladder first and lifted the manhole cover a bit. Then she completely opened it, climbing out of the manhole. They were in a secluded alleyway just out of sight of the town square.


    "Hurry up, no one''s here." She called down to Christian, who quickly climbed out as well.


    After that, Robin quickly pulled her long hair extensions and cat ears off, which then fused together and created the fox mask she had worn earlier. Placing it over her face, she draped the oversized cloak about her body again, completely enshrouding her figure.


    "Follow me." She told Christian. The walk back was strangely quiet. Each one lost in their thoughts.


    When they returned to the inn, Robin immediately pushed Christian over to Keith and hurried Jasmine into her room. Removing the mask, she had Jasmine hand it back to Quinn, who re-absorbed it into himself.


    "So, how did you enjoy Robin''s disguise?" Quinn grinned cheerfully.


    "Makeup is a scary thing." Christian replied. "It almost made me forget Robin is a man."


    "Isn''t that right? But, I''d like to correct one misconception." Quinn grinned wickedly as he whispered to Christian.


    "I didn''t help Robin with the chest area."


    Christian''s eyes widened as Quinn cheerfully headed to the pub part of the inn. Quinn had somehow heard their entire conversation.


    "How-of course, the ears!" Christian realized. But then he became confused. If Quinn hadn''t helped Robin then who?


    "...Jasmine. It must have been Jasmine " He decided to have a talk with Jasmine in the near future, concerning where she got her disguising skills.


    At that point, the company gathered around him, relieved that Christian was back safe and sound. Keith unreservedly punched him in the side of the head.


    "That''s for not bringing me along!" He said, genuinely angry.


    "Ow! You don''t have to treat me like a child. I''m a grown man, Keith. Doesn''t that count for something?" Christian asked.


    "Yeah. Your body is that of a grown man, I''ll admit. But, when will your mental growth catch up with your physical one, I wonder?" Keith said seriously.


    The whole company laughed.


    -----


    While Jasmine was helping her take off the dress, she had a conversation with Robin.


    "So, does he know about you now?" Jasmine asked first.


    "I don''t think so. I didn''t say anything about it."Robin said, as Jasmine helped her pull the dress over her head.


    "That''s probably a blessing in itself." Jasmine sighed, putting the dress in her storage item. "Thank goodness that he''s dense as a rock."


    "He also asked if I was in love with you, so I''m pretty sure he still thinks I''m a guy." Robin added.


    "Pfft! That rockhead! That''s completely ridiculous!" Jasmine chuckled, as she took out the makeup remover.


    "Right? I told him that you''re like a sister to me." Robin nodded.


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    "Am I really?" Jasmine asked, her eyes lighting up. "Then it''s settled! From now on, we''re sisters!" Jasmine rubbed the makeup remover gently around Robin''s eyes.


    "Don''t slip up and talk about it in front of the others, now." Robin chuckled.


    "Not a single word!" Jasmine agreed.


    -----


    Quinn sat down at the bar, and ordered a drink, grinning to himself. He had already known that Robin was a female. As a slime, he had the ability to analyze anything that he consumed without breaking it down. Of course, he thought everyone already knew until this evening.


    A veiled woman sat down next to him. It was Chelsea. She had silently slipped away from the crowd around Christian.


    "That''s as far as you are allowed to hint, sir Quinn." Chelsea said.


    "Hint? Oh, about Robin, huh. Did she send you after me?" Quinn asked.


    "No, but I have a vested interest in protecting her identity." Chelsea smiled. "An entire sushi course shouldn''t be taken lightly."


    "Oh, so you were bribed with food, huh?" Quinn muttered before taking lifting his mug to drink.


    "More or less, but, think of it this way: if Christian finds out Robin is a female, do you think he would give up the opportunity to make her his?" Chelsea asked.


    Chelsea was definitely looking forward to the moment when all the misunderstandings were cleared up. But, now was not the right time. Even she could understand that much.


    Quinn flinched. He had always been a loner back on earth, and his existence in this world was so unique that it was highly doubtful that he would ever find anything like a mate. Thus, this word triggered a long-unprovoked reflex.


    "I see what your point is." Quinn nodded. "All right. You have my word. My lips are sealed."


    ---------


    Five minutes later, when Robin emerged dressed in green as usual, Christian looked closely at Robin''s face. It was definitely back to normal. He sighed in relief.


    Jasmine snickered. "What? Do you prefer the disguise to the genuine article?"


    "No, but you and I need to have a talk later on." Christian said, uncharacteristically stern.


    "Anytime~ But not before lunch!" Jasmine chirruped. Right after that, Christian''s stomach growled.


    "Come to think of it, I haven''t had breakfast either." Robin noted. "Hey, Ponzu, did you save any breakfast for us?"


    At that, Ponzu''s face paled a bit. "Er...I''m sorry, I forgot. By the time I remembered, everything had been eaten, and I couldn''t use the kitchens again."


    "Oh, that''s fine. I''ll see if I can make something quick for a brunch." Robin replied, heading off to the kitchens.


    After acquiring the use of the kitchen, Robin took out English muffins, eggs, butter, and cheddar cheese. That was all that was needed to make egg sandwiches. Robin began by preheating the pan and slicing the english muffins in half then toasting them in the oven.


    She could have used any kind of cheese, but she preferred cheddar. Unlike in America, the cheddar here was not the noticeably bright orange hue she was familiar with. Instead, it was a nice creamy white, like mozzarella. She sliced it thinly while waiting for the pan to warm.


    When the pan was heated to where the butter smoothly melted without sizzling, Robin made sure the pan was fully greased, then cracked the eggs into the pan. She also sprinkled a pinch of salt and pepper over the eggs before checking on the muffin toast.


    By this point, the toast was a lovely golden brown. She removed them from the oven, distributing two halves per serving, and liberally applied butter to them. she also added a slice of cheese to the top half-muffins.


    She checked the eggs, which were done on one side. The key to avoiding crispy eggs was to flip them easy over right after the egg white solid turns from clear to white throughout the whole egg. She flipped them over and fried them on their top half for about a minute or two before using a spatula to transfer them to the bottom muffin-halves.


    Finally, she took the top muffin-halves and placed them atop the egg. The cheese would melt from the residual heat into a gooey delicious topping for the egg. She placed them in her storage bracer to retain deliciousness.


    Before Robin left the kitchen, she cleaned up the knife, spatula, cutting board, and frying pan that she used, dried them, and put them away. The egg shell fragments were discarded, and any spillage was wiped up from the counters. Only after that did she leave the kitchen.


    Even though everyone else had already eaten breakfast, the smell of melted cheese, butter,and cooked eggs was particularly mouth-watering today. But Robin had only made enough for her and Christian. Thus, she ignored the stares of those around her. After all, Ponzu knew the recipe now, too, so they could just ask him.


    She bit into her sandwich with relish, enjoying the crunch of the toast, which wasn''t dry at all, due to the butter. The cheese was warmed enough to stretch like mozzarella sticks The eggs were oozing yolk out into the sandwich after her first bite. But, that was intended. The thick yolk added flavor to the sandwich as well, like a mild warm dipping sauce. Everything was perfect. With the good food, Robin''s earlier bad mood almost disappeared.


    She laughed at Christian''s surprised, and flustered face when the yolk started to ooze out. As she held her sandwich vertically, instead of horizontally. This way, the yolk oozed back into the sandwich, instead of dripping out onto the plate, or clothing.


    Robin had made this comfort food to calm her nerves. But, like most comfort foods, a butter-saturated dish like this was not suitable for everyday consumption, otherwise one was in danger of growing fat.


    Just after they finished brunch, a fox-kin came in with a letter for Robin.


    "Who is it from?" Gerard asked.


    "Who else? The Strategist." Robin said, without even needing to glance at it. "Might as well see what he''s up to now." She took the letter and read it.

 137 She Meets The Strategis

    "What does it say?" Gerard asked. Robin didn''t answer before she fully read through the letter. Then she handed the letter to Keith.


    "It appears we''ve been invited to a welcoming party." Robin smiled slyly, patting Skye, who was sitting on her shoulder. "But, even though he''s probably prepared quite the surprise, I believe that we''re bringing an even bigger surprise with us."


    "A party!? I love parties!" Elise exclaimedjoyously a bit too closely to Skye''s ears.


    "No one asked you." Skye scowled, annoyed at how many decibels this tiny person could make.


    "What was that!?" Elise started chasing Skye furiously around the room again.


    "Dirk, how important are your relatives?" Robin asked, ignoring their quarrel. Dirk had stayed in the inn to prevent himself from being tricked again.


    "Um, I dunno. But they were always given a grand reception at every place we stopped, so they otta be important. Why?" Dirk asked.


    "It''s highly likely that we might find your relatives at the party." Robin explained. "So I was wondering if you wanted to come along as well."


    Dirk''s ears quivered happily. "Do I ever! The best place to pick up gossip is parties, it is! But we were never the kind as would be allowed to join."


    Robin winked. "Well, I''m pretty sure that as long as you can pick up the noble way of speaking, you''ll be allowed to attend any banquet hosted by King Zephron. Information gatherers Are best placed where they are most useful."


    "You mean it!?" Dirk''s face lit up in happiness.


    "I don''t see why not." Robin replied. "I''ll speak to foster father about it when I get back-come to think of it, Christian might have the better opportunity. Would you speak to him for me?" Robin asked Christian. She didn''t know if she would be able to return after seeing the demon king. Perhaps she would leave right away.


    In a rare moment of princely comportment, Christian placed his hand over his heart and nodded his head in a respectful salute.


    "You have my word."


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    Robin blinked in surprise. When Christian acted like this, it almost seemed like he was someone different.


    "Who are you, and what have you done with Christian?" Robin asked half-seriously.


    "What!? How did you get to that conclusion!? I''m one hundred percent real live Christian!" Christian exclaimed in dismay.


    "But, you were acting strange." Robin said, jokingly. "For a second, I thought I rescued the wrong man."


    "Just what kind of person do you see me as?" Christian asked, frazzled.


    "Didn''t I say it before?" Robin asked, turning to Jasmine.


    "Right, I remember!" Jasmine and Robin smiled at each other.


    "He''s-"


    "You''re-"


    ""The comic relief."" They both spoke at the same time.


    "Urk!" Christian leaned against a nearby wall. "Reduced to a mere court jester!"


    "A fitting punishment for one so troublesome." Keith nodded in agreement.


    "Your beer funds seem to need some reductions." Christian said, glaring at Keith, who coughed.


    "But, still, I think perhaps as a Prince, we shouldn''t go too far with such jokes." Keith added seriously.


    Robin chuckled as she took the letter back from Keith, and read it over once more. What could the Strategist be trying to accomplish?


    -------


    "I assure you, if you can help us with this small problem, I will do all I can to search for your little elf-kin." A gentlemanly fox reassured a group of five elves.


    "Let me tell you: if you are cheating us in any way, there will be harsh consequences." A stern-faced elf asserted. "That boy is the grandson of the Great Elder. If you cannot find him, I cannot guarantee what the Great Elder will do."


    "Of course, there''s not a doubt in my mind. If he''s still in this city, then we can definitely find him! Even though I have my mischief, even a rogue would think twice before trying to trick or cheat the great elder." The strategist nodded, brushing its whiskers with its paw.


    He hadn''t checked the tower of meetings since he had left, but according to his captain''s report, there had been no human females or even males seen attempting to enter the tower. His plan was going along swimmingly.


    Of course, what happened next might not have flopped so badly if he had only gone and checked the situation with his own eyes. But, it seems that this time, the strategist was truly doomed to become a victim of his own schemes.


    ---


    Robin arrived just around the time that the sun was beginning to set. As usual, she wore her Hero mask. Aside from her, every member of her party also wore an ornate silver mask that obscured the top part of their faces.


    The group made their way into the ornate palace after showing their invitation to the guards, who reluctantly let them pass through.


    The ceilings and walls were draped with fine near-transparent red silk curtains, which drifted about gently in the breeze. At this point, Robin wouldn''t be surprised if smoke started drifting across the ground. Curtains separated the rooms instead of doors, creating a layer of inviting intrigue. The light came from the warm glow of cylindrical paper lanterns. Large potted plants were also tastefully arranged throughout the palace.


    Many fox-people, which looked like people if not for the fox ears and tail showing, formed small groups and circles. They chattered, laughed, joked, and traded tricks back and forth. But the venue fell silent when they noticed Robin''s group. Hushed whispers were traded back and forth as they saw the Hero''s mask.


    It was quite obvious to everyone that the Hero had been invited by the Strategist. If not, then they wouldn''t be allowed into the palace. Many were eagerly looking forward to how badly the Strategist was going to trick the Hero.


    15 years ago, this city had been bustling with lots of humans. However, due to the Strategist''s tricks, they had all gratefully left the city. The only humans that came now were merchants trading for specialties, and the occasional travelling tourist. Each one had been terribly tricked their entire stay.


    Dirk, Gerard, and Ponzu were feeling a bit uncomfortable with all the attention they were getting. Elise was silently fuming at the words she overheard about fairies being worth a lot. Robin paid them no mind. A bunch of grinning fools like these had no need for her to pay attention.


    The fox-people crowds followed behind them, eager to see the show.


    As she passed through yet another curtained doorway, she came into the largest room of the palace: the throne room. Christian stiffened slightly when he saw the gentleman seated on the throne.


    It was this person who had cheated him! True, he came to no real bodily harm, but the fact that he had malicious plans on Christian remained. He clenched his fist, yet held his tongue. Right now, the best thing he could do was to remain silent.


    "Greetings, Demon Protectorate strategist. I am Hero Robin. Thank you very much for your delightful invitation!" Robin said with a small bow.


    ''You will regret ever attempting to lay hands upon my companions.'' She thought, her expression calm. She even had a faint smile upon her face.


    ''Oho? Pretending everything is fine, are you?'' The Strategist thought, a gleam in his eyes. ''I wonder just how long you will be able to keep that fake grin on your face.''


    "Hero Robin. It is indeed a pleasure to see you." The Strategist nodded. "I called you here to apologize for the immense blunder that took place earlier today. It was entirely our oversight on the matter. I hope you don''t hold it against us."


    ''Indeed, I oversaw everything from start to finish. Even should you actually hold it against me, there''s nothing you can do about it.'' He snickered in his heart.


    Robin nodded her head. "Not at all. With such a rare circumstance, you wouldn''t have the ability to help the situation unless you were fully prepared beforehand."


    Robin''s wit was sharp, she had already picked up on the Strategist''s mocking tone. Her eyes narrowed, slightly. ''Even should you have had the opportunity to help, I would be more grateful that you did not involve yourself any more than you have. Otherwise, the results may have been even more disastrous. It is a good thing I made it in time.''


    "I am glad you are so understanding." The Strategist smiled, smugly.

 138 She Proposes a A Be

    Robin was about to say something else when she paused. She had noticed the small group of elves coming out from behind the curtains.She glanced at Dirk, to confirm whether they were his kin. He nodded ever so minimally, but he didn''t move to join his relatives. This was due to Robin''s instruction prior to their arrival.


    The Strategist was mildly annoyed at the early entrance of the elves, because it meant he needed to bring his plans forward. "My guests, may I introduce to you the Hero, Robin. Hero Robin, may I introduce to you the delegate from the Great Elder of the Elven Forest. They have chanced to stay here on their way back to the Elven forest."


    The Strategist paused, and his expression changed as an idea seemed to come to him.


    "Actually, perhaps they might be able to help you out with your situation. I hear that their Great Elder was able to break an amnesia spell once. It could very well be that he can help your friend with his current problem."


    The Strategist turned to the elves. "Isn''t that right?"


    The elves didn''t answer as they were scanning the crowds. This caused the old fox''s question to hang in midair.


    "Ahumph! Might I know what has distracted our esteemed guests so?" The Strategist asked.


    One of the elves glanced at him and reluctantly volunteered the information. "We can sense our youngest is among the crowd somewhere nearby."


    ''Yeah, no kidding.'' Dirk smirked and chuckled inwardly. ''You can''t see that he is right in front of you!''


    "Oh?" The Strategist stood up. While he was visibly calm, he was inwardly panicking. If the half-elf were to be discovered now, then all his schemes would be for naught.


    "Might I ask if your youngest is this high, has dark hair, speaks with a street accent, and goes by the name of ''Dirk''?" Robin suddenly asked, drawing the elves attention towards her.


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    "That is him. But, how-?" The elf leader asked.


    "I was acquainted with him back in the capital." Robin explained. "Regardless of his upbringing, his features are somewhat similar to yours. Unless I am mistaken?"


    "No, you are not mistaken. I am his mother''s sister, Dewtre." The female elf replied.


    Robin nodded. "You can imagine I was quite surprised to see a familiar face in an unexpected location. He has been under my care since yesterday evening."


    With that, Dirk took his silver face mask off, exposing his face.


    "Dirk!"Dewtre gasped, somewhat surprised. "Why are you standing over there?"


    "Hello, Aunt. Robin had a feeling you''d be here, and I wanted to give you a surprise!" Dirk said, then scowled. "But the blood link ruined it." Dirk''s accent had cleared up considerably, despite his somewhat slower speech. He was really trying hard to maintaina noble-ish accent.


    "Why did you not return to us earlier?" A male elf asked sternly. "Do you truly enjoy the company of humans to your mother''s kind?"


    Dirk''s face become solemn. "Actually, if not for Hero Robin, I might not have been able to return to you at all. I am indebted to him for his aid." He said.


    The male elf snorted. "So you ditched your true family because of some human you are indebted to?"


    Dewtre frowned. With such a grand show of arrogance on display from him, she was beginning to regret allowing this elf to accompany her on the journey. Clearly, Dirk''s cousin was still too young to maintain a clear head and sound judgement.


    Dirk looked at that elf and smirked, but said nothing. This ticked off the male elf.


    "What are you thinking of? I demand you give me an answer!" He growled. The Strategist sat back, his brain making emergency calculations.


    "Fine. But I''m warning you: you asked for it." Dirk replied, having had enough of the elf''s arrogance.


    "You know, out of all the elves I''ve met, you seem to hate humans the most. But, now I wonder! How is it, that out of all the elves I have met so far, you also happen to be the closest in behavior to the very humans you despise?"


    At that point, the fox-people around exclaimed in admiration. It wasn''t every day that such a fitting rebuttal came to light. Dirk''s cousin was infuriated. His face turned purple, and his veins popped out as he almost completely lost it. But, he suddenly fell to the ground.


    Dewtre sighed, standing over the elf from behind. She had swiftly knocked him out to prevent any more disasters from happening.


    "Apologies for such an ugly display. Please, Dirk, do continue your story. What kept you from returning to us?" As an elf delegate,being fair and listening to all the details was an important part of her job.


    "When I realized I had lost you, I asked for help from some nearby foxes, thinking they would help me find you." Dirk began. "But they didn''t. They trapped me in an abandoned warehouse, and tricked me into not being able to leave without being accompanied by others. They were going to sell me as a slave."


    "And that is when the hero came along?" Dewtre asked, inwardly incensed that fox-kin would have designs upon her nephew.


    Dirk shook his head. "No. Hero Robin came much later that day, overhearing the foxes bragging about their riches after being drunk."


    "Interesting..." The Strategist said, a gleam in his eyes. He had found a loophole. He needed to move quickly before Dewtre formed a good opinion of Robin.


    "Is there something wrong, Sir Strategist?" Dirk asked.


    "Nothing much, but...Isn''t it too coincidental that the Hero just so happened to know where to find you? It isn''t often for such an abandoned place to be frequented by tourists, after all."


    "He came after hearing about my situation." Dirk answered.


    "But how did he know where to go?" The Strategist pointed out. "It is a large city, and there are more than one derelict warehouse within these walls. How did he know which one to get to? If there is no good explanation...Then, this may be an elaborately executed plot."


    The tension in the room mounted as Dewtre''s eyes took on a thoughtful glint. It wasn''t impossible for that to happen. Dirk was still young and impressionable. He could easily be tricked into having good will towards the humans.


    "That would be my expertise." Chelsea stepped forward.


    "You? Your attribute is water magic, isn''t it? How would that help the Hero in locating this elf youngling?" The Strategist frowned.


    "I''m surprised you still do not recognize me, Sir Strategist. After all, my brother Oracle surely must have contacted you recently. I share his ability to see beyond the normal amount of things." Chelsea replied evenly. "It was through my aid that Hero Robin was able to find Dirk."


    "You''re Chelsea!?" The Strategist was shocked. Had Oracle been tricked so badly that he even allowed his treasured sister to accompany the hero? But Oracle would not easily be tricked with his ability to discern lies. Did Oracle send her to monitor the hero and make sure of the hero''s intentions? The Strategist sunk into deep thought.


    But Robin was not going to let his accusation slide, just like that. She could see that she had wrecked a few of the Strategist''s plans already. Why not wreck a few more? At this point, Robin went on the offensive.


    "Pardon my question." Robin interjected. "But, hypothetically, what would I even hope to gain from Dirk?"


    "Information, the good will of him and his family...you could also be after his person." Dewtre replied, considering all the options. "After all, it is common knowledge that elves are highly valued by humans."


    Robin looked at Keith. "Slavery is allowed here?" She asked, a foul expression upon her face. Keith sighed. "As the protectorate cities are under the dominion of the demon protectorates, if they allow slavery, then, according to the treaty, Ekkinshire Kingdom can do nothing about it." Robin understood. Slavery was not forbidden, therefore it was allowed.


    Robin glanced at the Strategist. "In that case, this is a bit more interesting. I''m not too sure if Sir Strategist is willing to agree to a bet?"


    The Strategist tilted his head, a playful smile upon his face. "What are the conditions?" He asked.


    "If I am able to prove that this was not staged, and that My intentions were only to help, then I can ask one favor of you." Robin said.


    "And, if you cannot prove it?" The Strategist asked.


    "Then, you can ask one favor of me." Robin replied.

 139 She...

    "Hah hah hah! Interesting! I like it!" The Strategist slapped his knee. "I accept your bet! Who will be the judge?"


    Robin nodded. "As we two are in a bet, we cannot choose our members. As Dirk is involved, and is partial to me, he cannot be a judge. I propose that we let Dirk''s Aunt be the judge, as the elves are known for their logical thought and wise judgement."


    "Agreed!" The Strategist nodded. ''Heh! This will be easy enough. I can''t wait to blacken your face, Hero Robin.''


    Robin''s eyes secretly flashed with a smile. He had taken the bait.


    "Here is how this will go." Robin said. "Dirk, as the witness, will give his testimony. And tell the whole story from the time he lost his relatives to the time I arrived at the Inn with him. The witnesses and involved people will not be harmed. However, should they become violent, they will be restrained. Any witnesses of these events are allowed to step forward and give their testimony." Robin raised her voice so that the crowd could hear.


    "After that, you and I shall take turns asking the witnesses questions about their testimony. After each turn, there will be a ten minute break to collect our thoughts."


    "Why ten minutes?" The Strategist asked.


    "This allows for time to think and compile the information we believe is relevant to the case." Robin replied.


    "Continue." The Strategist leaned forward, slightly intrigued at this.


    "At the end of questioning the witnesses, we will each present our narrative of the events which transpired using the witnesses'' testimony to prove every point of our argument. Then, we will both be given the opportunity to use the witnesses'' testimony totry and disprove the other''s narrative. Finally, the judge, Diplomat Dewtre, will be left to decide which narrative to believe. Do you have any objections to this arrangement?" Robin asked.


    "None. Let it happen as you have instructed." The Strategist smirked. He loved beating others at their own game.


    Dewtre, on the other hand, was surprised by this new form of inquiry. It was orderly, and allowed for conversation, and interpretation based upon established facts, instead of personal worth. And, finally, the crux of this structure was that it favored no side, but was intent upon discovering the truth. As an elf that valued logical reasoning and thought, this structure was highly desirable. Dewtre was highly impressed


    For this human to come up with something like this, perhaps humans weren''t as bad as rumored. But, then again, Robin could simply be trying to tempt her with this logical invention. Dewtre reaffirmed her decision to remain impartial.


    Robin, unaware of Dewtre''s fascination with her simplified version of America''s legal system, was instructing the foxkin on how to layout the room for the ''game''. Chairs and three large tables were brought out, and set up in a ''U'' formation. The judge, and each side had one table, upon which paper and writing instruments were provided.


    Another elf, off to the side of Dewtre, who was skilled in her swift writing, was the note-taker for the session. She would write down everything that was spoken. She was also excited by the new system, and was taking notes before the session even began.


    ''I never expected I''d play lawyer in another world.'' Robin mused as she waited for any other witnesses to report in. Out of all the plans she could think of, this was the only one that took the least amount of time. As Robin was eager to get back home, she could only bring something from her own world to gain the advantage.


    After a half an hour, the courtroom was set up. Chairs were brought out so that everyone could be seated properly. Paper and ink was liberally distributed to the three tables.


    Dewtre stood up and cleared her throat. "Let the examination of the events concerning my nephew, yesterday, formally begin! Now, will the witnesses come forward to give theirtestimony? Dirk, you are the main witness. Please tell us everything that you saw and heard from the time you left my sight to the time you arrived at the inn."


    ....


    -------


    -------


    Walking away from the palace, Robin''s group-minus one Dirk-was completely quiet. It was already late evening, and The stars twinkled overhead as the light from the different storefronts lit their way back. When the group arrived back in the inn, Jasmine sank down into a chair.


    "It can''t have happened that easily, can it?" She asked in disbelief.


    "It did. It really did, though...Robin, I''m concerned about you." Quinn put a hand on her shoulder.


    "You didn''t get some sort of cheat ability on your way here, did you?" He asked seriously.


    "My existence is enough of a cheat as it is." Robin joked. But everyone else nodded their heads, convinced.


    "Hey, you all, that was a joke." Robin pointed out.


    "No, I''m afraid it wasn''t." Christian said seriously. He walked over, and also put a hand on Robin''s shoulder.


    "You went up against the Strategist. And you won a complete and total victory. Indeed, the Hero cannot be an ordinary sort of man." He laughed and clapped Robin''s shoulder a couple of times.


    "Did you see his face at the end there?" Chelsea chortled. "When Dewtre announced that she believed Robin? It was like he couldn''t believe what he was hearing! Ahahahah!"


    The company relaxed as they also let out the laughter they had been holding in.


    "No, I think the part where Robin called in her favor was even more funny! He completely thought she was going to ask for the seal, he did! And then the blank look on his face when she asked him-pfft hahaha- to-to banish slavery from his kingdom!" Gerard was rolling on the floor, laughing.


    "What? I think it was a great request." Robin replied seriously. "A magically-enforced banishment of slavery will prevent stuff like that from continuing to happen."


    "But, that look of his when he said ''What? Are you sure you don''t want my seal?'' was definitely the best!" Quinn agreed.


    "Like I said, I wanted to earn things fair and square; not force it. Forced approval is the same as no approval." Robin replied.


    "So you did, so you did!" Keith''s merrily shook his head. "You messed with his head to the point where he gave it to you anyways! From now on, I don''t think anything else amazing you do can impress me. I''m beginning to expect the miracles you create."


    "Please don''t. I''m surprised things went well enough as it is." Robin replied.


    "Robin, if things hadn''t gone so well, and he didn''t give you the seal, what would you have done?" Jasmine asked.


    "Obviously, I''d stay here until I received his approval. Besides, the longer I stay, the heavier my presence will weigh upon his mind." Robin said.


    "I will remember not to make you mad in the future." Sir Drago said seriously.


    To him, Robin''s feat had revealed an internal cunning that was not inferior to that of dragons. Everyone in the room near doubled over in a second round of laughter.


    "Thanks, Sir Drago. That would be appreciated." Robin replied.


    "Wrong, wrong!"Chelsea clicked her teeth disaprovingly. "What ''sir'' is there among friends? Everyone should be on a first name basis, outside of social functions, of course."


    "That''s right. I never did ask for your first name." Robin realized.


    "It''s ''Sir''" Sir Drago replied. "My full name is Sir Drago. It has always been Sir Drago."


    "What! Were you named by a kid!?" Chelsea exclaimed.


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    Sir Drago nodded. This flabbergasted Chelsea, as she realized it was true. As a captured hatchling, his name was at the mercy of his captor.


    "W-well that''s definitely not okay!" She continued, recovering from her surprise. "We need come up with a good first name for you. Because I refuse to keep calling you ''sir''!"


    Sir Drago stared at Chelsea blankly. Although her eyes were covered by a veil, the stubborn set of her mouth clearly expressed her intent.


    "I leave it to you." He nodded. It was best to get things over with so that he wouldn''t call out the stubbornness of Chelsea. Besides, maybe a new name would be a good thing.


    "If you think those other ones were the funniest, then you''re all wrong!" Jasmine finally spoke. "The highlight of this evening was when the strategist asked Robin what was under his mask."


    "Oh my-how could I have forgotten that!" Chelsea re-enacted the scene.


    "The foxy guy said, ''I do wonder just what is under that mask of yours.''


    And Robin just asks ''You want to see under my mask? All right.''


    And everyone starts to look over.


    Then reaching up to the mask, sh-Robin says,''What''s under my mask is....another mask!''"


    Quinn glanced over at Robin. "You stole that quote from Kakashi, didn''t you?"


    Robin grimaced. "Actually, it was a complete coincidence.The words just popped out of my mouth like that."


    Quinn stared at Robin unconvinced. She shrugged. "Not everyone is affected by chunnibyou, Quinn. Get over it."


    Both Jasmine and Chelsea had already devolved into yet a third fit of giggles as another round of laughter descended upon the group.

 140 She Leaves Nine Tails City

    That night, the Strategist did not get a wink of rest. He had given the hero his seal in order to give him the highest euphoria before bringing him to the deepest depths of despair.


    It didn''t matter if the hero had the seal. He couldn''t leave town as long as their prince was still trapped within the tower. Moreover, the only other human female in town happened to reside in the palace here. Thus, the hero would only be able to approach him to find a solution to this dilemma.


    At that point, the strategist would reclaim the seal in return for helping the hero recover their trapped companion. Then he would delay their party there over a long time. It would take months, or perhaps even years, before he would once more let go of the seal.


    His plan was foolproof! But, as the time became later and later, Robin had still not sought him out. Finally, his bloodshot eyes blinked in disbelief when the morning sun came up over the horizon.


    Then he smiled. They didn''t come last night, which means he would be approached this morning. He yawned and retired to his room. Under the excuse of being "unavailable", he decided to rest off his night''s fatigue. After all, a ruler needs their beauty rest. That might teach them to have a sense of urgency.


    But it was due to the strategist''s actions here, that Robin was able to leave town unscathed.


    --------


    At breakfast, Robin was surprised to see Dewtre and Dirk approach her table.


    "I didn''t know that you were staying here." Robin greeted them, pleasantly surprised.


    "Well that''s of course because we aren''t staying here." Dewtre replied. "But, as I was uncertain about how long you would stay, I asked Dirk here to lead me to your inn so that I could once more thank you in person."


    At that point, she gave Robin''s company a formal bow. "Thank you for finding and helping out my nephew."


    "Always glad to help a friend." Robin replied. She was uncomfortable with being bowed to, but she didn''t want to offend by refusing.


    "I also came for another reason." Dewtre straightened up and handed Robin what appeared to be a golden leaf.


    "What''s this?" Robin asked.


    "As you said that you consider yourself a friend of Dirk''s, I''m giving you this token. This is our proof of friendship for elves. They can only be plucked under the moonlightduring the vernal and autumnal equinoxes." Dewtre replied. "If you show this to the guards at the border of the elven kingdom, they will allow you and your friends passage to my residence."


    Jasmine''s eyes widened. "The legendary elven friendship? Robin, this is something that has not been given to any human for over a century!"


    "Is it rare?" Robin asked.


    "The trees themselves are not rare. But each family has grown the tree with their own mana. Therefore, a bit of our life signature can be felt within it." Dewtre explained.


    "That makes it near impossible to copy or forge." Jasmine nodded, looking at the leaf, a curious glint in her eye. Robin nodded, and stowed the leaf away in her bracer.


    "Good to know." Robin smiled. "Thank you for your vote of confidence in my character."


    "As we are in a hurry at the moment, we will be leaving in a few minutes. But, please stop by if you are ever in the area." Dewtre added, before bidding them farewell.


    "See you later, hero!" Dirk added, following Dewtre out the door.


    "Well...That was somewhat sudden." Christian noted as they ate the breakfast prepared by Ponzu.


    Ever since Robin had made ramen the other night, the kitchens were available to use at any time, under the watchful eyes of the fox-kin cook and kitchen hands. Thus, today''s breakfast was a simple one of egg sandwiches, as requested by the entire group.


    It seemed like egg sandwiches would be popular for a while. Robin had also shown Ponzu a less buttery way to cook eggs using steam for the more weight-conscious in the group.


    "I feel like I could just eat this until I become a big round ball " Quinn sighed in contentment.


    "Isn''t a king slime a big round ball?" Robin joked.


    "Oh, you''re right!" Quinn replied cheerfully. "You made me forget for a minute that I''m not really human anymore." He said light-light-heartedly, as if that fact was unrelated to him.


    At that moment, it seemed that dust had gotten into the eyes of a few members of the company. That''s right. This Quinn person was also human at one point in time.


    "That''s not really an issue." Robin replied, just as lightly with a knowing smirk. She pointed at her heart with a thumb.


    "As long as you still believe that you''re a human, then you''re a human. You''ve just got a special situation is all."


    Quinn''s eyes widened a bit. "Is that so? Is it really that simple, I wonder?"


    "You can sit, stand, think, and speak the same as us. What does it matter if you have weird abilities? From my point of view, it may simply only make you more unique."


    This made Quinn pause a moment.


    "The real question," Robin added. "Is do you want to continue being a human? or are you telling me you''d rather be considered a monster?"


    "...." At that point, the ever-joking Quinn''s smile had disappeared for the first time as he stared at his hand, slowly opening and closing it in thought.


    "That''s a good question....I''m...not sure." he replied, bluntly.


    "Well then, let me ask you." Robin nodded. "If you could have all the same abilities you do now, but as a human being. Would you prefer that to now?"


    "..." Quinn did not answer, but the smile returned to his face. He nodded, and sat back in his seat. "I see...That...is an even better question."


    "So, what are we going to do today?" Gerard asked.


    Robin glanced at him and went over her list. "Well, We rescued Christian and Dirk; avoided all the word traps; bested the Strategist in fair combat; we also got what we came for-the seal....Yeah. I''d say we should be on our way to the next place today. Have we stocked up on goods? Food?"


    "Yes." "Already done." Quinn and Ponzu replied at the same time.


    Robin, having finished breakfast, nodded and stood up from her seat at the table. "Good. Shall we be off, then?" She asked, glancing around at the company to see if everyone was finished. They all stood up, already prepared to leave.


    They climbed aboard the carriage, and aimed the horses down the road leading to the city gates. No one stopped them. There was no unusual amount of guards at the gate. They were all uncommonly quiet until the city gates had long disappeared.


    "Somehow, doesn''t it seem a bit...odd that we''re not being chased or stopped?" Jasmine asked.


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    "Why? Have we done anything wrong?" Robin asked.


    "No, it just seems weird, cuz the Strategist really doesn''tlike you, so I thought it was a matte of course that we would have trouble leaving." Jasmine explained.


    "It does seem odd...but, then again, he does still think that Christian is locked up in that tower."Robin pointed out.


    "You know, I kind of wanted to see what his face would look like when he finds his trump card has been absconded with." Chelsea piped up. Robin laughed as she imagined how the Strategist would look.


    "Indeed. He probably has no idea that Christian is with us. Which reminds me." Jasmine turned to Christian. "You''ve got to buckle down hard to keep yourself out of trouble. Poor Robin, here, has saved you at least twice from very compromising situations." She scolded.


    "I''m not trying to get into trouble." Christian grumbled.


    "Yet, trouble has never failed to latch on. How''s that for a reverse damsel in distress?" Robin joked. Everyone in the carriage failed to hold back their laughter.


    Christian tried to turn the joke back on Robin. "And what does that make you? The heroic warrior princess?"


    "Hmm....I''ll have to think on that. Are there any girls as handsomely skilled as I am?" Robin asked, a sly smile on her face. Those who knew, grinned, because Christian had no idea that he had hit the nail on the head. Those who did not know laughed at Robin''s witty reply.


    The carriage continued unimpeded down the dirt road to their next destination.

 141 She Discovers a Stowaway

    "What was that!?" The old fox sat straight up in his chair when he heard the guard captain''s report.


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    "You said they left already!?" He asked again, not believing what he had just heard. That was not possible. After all, Ekinshire Kingdom''s Prince Christian was held captive in the tower of meetings. No hero would simply up and leave him behind!


    The strategist frowned, and rubbed his brow in thought. "Did their entire party leave? they didn''t leave anyone behindto keep in contact with the prince?"


    "I have news from the inn that the whole party checked out this morning." The captain informed him.


    The strategist paused. Perhaps the prince had sacrificed himself to send them on their way? The strategist stood up, and made his way to the palace entrance.


    "My lord, where are you heading?" The head servant asked.


    "The Tower of Meetings." He said. He wanted to try and pry some information from the naive prince-ling. But, instead, he was met with the sight of an empty room. He stared at the room, completely bare of any sort of cover to hide behind.


    There was a teleportation barrier, so it was impossible for him to leave. It was as if the prince had up and disappeared in a puff of smoke. In a daze, the Strategist walked into the room, looking around for any sign of the vanished prince.


    Then he froze and realized he was inside the room. That meant... Turning his head, he was just in time to see the door shut by itself. He yelled and banged on the door.


    And that was the beginning of the Strategist''s worst bumbles since his childhood. In the history books, he was reportedly stuck inside for two days before he was found.


    ------


    "So, where are we going to next?" Robin asked, looking to Christian, who had the map.


    "Right!" Christian un-rolled the map. "This here is around where we are now. Where we''re headed is this way, towards the great dwarven city of Ragnock, where demon protectorate Throm is."


    "Wait, it''s a dwarven city, but there''s a demon protectorate?" Robin asked, mildly confused.


    Quinn cleared his throat, and explained. "Yes. Dwarves aren''t usually considered demons, but protectorate Throm is of half dwarven, half dragon descent, and he was strong enough to defeat at least half of the protectorates. So he earned his right to be be included amongst us as part of the dwarven-demon trade agreement. The actual dwarven territory is close to the demon territory."


    Robin looked at him. "He probably made some kick-ass armor for you, didn''t he?" She said, seeing right through him.


    "The most kick-ass armor! It''s too bad that dragon war ended up scrapping it." Quinn agreed, before pausing, as he noticed the others looking at him strangely.


    "Ahem! Perhaps I should request another set of armor. Oh, that reminds me. His father, Dragon Ra''oru, is also one of the demon protectorates." Quinn said, recalling something.


    "Wait, I knew the names of the protectorate members, but Ra''oru is Throm''s father!?" Christian asked, feeling a bit overwhelmed.


    "You didn''t know? I thought it was obvious given they bear scales of the same hue." Quinn replied bemused.


    "Er...no we did not know that." Christian replied, feeling slightly miffed at Quinn for looking more knowledgeable in front of Robin.


    Keith smiled. Although Christian knew how to conceal his emotions, Keith could tell Christian was slightly annoyed.


    "Perhaps we could get back to the topic, please?" Keith suggested.


    "If you''re talking about dwarves, they are quite reclusive craftsman. But as Throm is also part dragon, he has an ever-burning thirst for golden things of beauty. If you could offer him something like that, it would probably be much easier to have a conversation with him, without him blasting a flame breath at you, of course." Quinn suggested.


    "Do we have a golden thing of beauty?" Robin asked the crew, as she started going through her storage bracer.


    "Not on me." Gerard shrugged.


    "Nope!" Elise shook her head.


    "I''m just a healer, so, not really." Chelsea replied.


    "Um, I think we have gold and jewels in case we needed to bribe someone, but golden things of beauty are more a jeweler''s area of expertise." Jasmine said, thinking about the things placed within the bracer.


    Robin sighed. "We have the raw materials, but not the skill..."


    "It will be interesting indeed to meet someone half my kind." Sir Drago noted. "If you don''t mind leaving it up to me, I think I might be able to make something of interest."


    Robin paused a moment as she gave a look at Jasmine.


    "They should be inside your bracer." Jasmine pointed out.


    Robin nodded, then looked inside. She pulled out a few gold bars, and handed them to Sir Drago, along with a pouchful of precious gems.


    "Here. Might as well give it a try." She replied. "Shall we stop and take a break?" Robin asked. "It''s almost noon. time to take a lunch break."


    "Might as well. I''ll let the driver know to look for somewhere to pull over." Keith nodded, before heading to the other carriage room, where a communication window was.


    "Thank you." Sir Drago nodded his head towards Robin.


    "We would have stopped soon anyways."Robin replied. "But, now that I''ve gotten my mana source fixed, what do you say to teaching me some more spells after lunch, Jasmine?" She asked Jasmine.


    "That''s right! In all the hubbub of that Paradise incident, I had completely forgotten! How did your mana source get healed so quickly?" Jasmine asked.


    "I met a friendly king slime." Robin replied.


    "Oh. I was wondering why you had a tag-along with you." Quinn nodded. "You became friends, huh. Good for you!"


    "Wait. What tagalong?" Robin asked.


    "Since it wasn''t trying to eat you, I assumed you already knew. You can come out now." Quinn poked Robin''s belt, where a thinfilm detached itself, and gathered into a palm-sized familiar blob, that hopped onto her hand.


    "A web slime?" Robin asked, confused.


    "No, it''s a king slime!" Chelsea exclaimed. Skye''s fur bristled up as it backed away from the tiny blob warily.


    "Quinn, can you translate for me? I don''t speak slime." Robin asked.


    "I am proficient, yes. But what precisely did you want to ask it?" Quinn queried.


    "Let''s start with why it decided to travel along with us. I heard king slimes do not move often. Why attach yourself to someone that''s moving all the time?" Robin pointed out.


    Quinn''s hand turned clear as it moved to touch the top of the slime. After several long moments, he withdrew the hand.


    "He heard that king slimes are rare in your area. That means, that, in their absence, a lot of what they consider to be food may havebuilt up in the area. And king slimes need a lot of food if they are going to divide themselves." Quinn answered.


    "Is that so?" Robin mused, glancing over at Chelsea.


    "Looks like I have been volunteer-obligated to repopulate the local king slime popuation." Chelsea''s face was not fully visible, but Robin could tell she was highly excited.


    Robin stood up, walking over to Quinn, who sat by the door. "Let it know it''s welcome to join, but as we can''t communicate with it, if it needs to communicate with us, to contact you." She clapped Quinn on the shoulder. "Congratulations. you are now our king slime translator."


    "Am I getting paid for this?" Quinn asked.


    "You will be paid in the food of planet earth." Robin replied, half-joking.


    "You have yourself a slime translator!" Quinn saluted immediately.


    "Good. Glad to see you''re on board~!" Robin chuckled, as she walked out into the hallway.


    "Is the food of this...planet earth that good?" Gerard asked.


    "It should be. You''ve been eating itthis whole time. it''s not necessarily foodstuffs, so much as recipes and cuisines, though. So she''s trading some nostalgia for his cooperation." Chelsea noted.


    "I am right here, people. You can just ask me, all right?" Quinn pointed out. "No need to act like I''m not really here, just because I am a slime translator~" He half-jokingly scolded.


    "Okay...But, why did Robin need to go out into the hallway?"


    It took everyone in the room a few moments to realize that the carriage had already stopped. Robin was ten steps ahead of them, and already outside, enjoying the nice weather.

 142 She Enters the Jungle

    Now that they were in an outside area, Jasmine thought it was a good idea to teach Robin some of the more dangerous basic spells. So, during the time before lunch, Robin diligently studied. She learned Fireball, Thorn spike, Poison Ball, and Thunder Ball.


    She also learned the manipulation of light to change colors, like hair, eye, or skin color. Robin teasingly made Skye rainbow colored until he noticed something was off. She and Jasmine laughed heartily while they were being chased by Skye in circles.


    Gerard was also using his new mastery of wind in order to scout the area for hidden creatures or dangers, under the direction of Fairy Elise. The winds connected to him would relay back information about the places they breezed through. He could also use it to hear things which were farther away than normal earshot.


    While all this was going on, Sir Drago was off to one side, carefully molding the softened gold like clay in his hands. The others didn''t see what he was making, but they knew enough not to bother him. When he was finished, he rejoined everyone for lunch.


    Lunch was grilled cheese sandwiches and soup. Even though Ponzu made enough for fifty men, it was soon decimated by Robin''s company.


    "I''ve decided." Chelsea suddenly spoke up.


    "...Decided upon what, exactly?" Robin asked.


    "I''ve decided what Sir Drago''s first name should be!" Chelsea replied, with a winning smile. Sir Drago looked up from his food.


    "Let''s hear it." He said calmly.


    "Liam." Chelsea sat back, a proud look on her face. "Your name will be Sir Liam Drago. Liam for short."


    "Liam..." Sir Drago pondered it for a while. "What does it mean?" He asked.


    "It means ''Strong-willed warrior, or protector.''" Keith explained. "One of the heroes of legend was named Liam, so it is considered a highly respected name."


    "Hmm..." Sir Drago didn''t say anything, but the sharpness in his eyes softened a bit, and the corner of his mouth curled up in the ghost of a smile.


    "So I will be calling you Liam from now on!" Chelsea said, before ladle-ing herself a third bowl of soup.


    "Isn''t that great, Liam? You finally have a first name!" Sir Daniel laughed, patting him on the back. "I can see it now in future storybooks. Liam, the Great Protector Dragon: children''s eyes will glow when they hear your name."


    Gerard''s eyes lit up as he heard that. What a great idea. It was from this moment that Gerard harbored thoughts of writing stories about their travels.


    After lunch, Robin asked Sir Drago-now just ''Liam'', "Any luck on shaping out a golden thing of beauty?"


    Liam paused, then brought out the now cooled metal. "See for yourself." He responded.


    Anyone could tell what Liam made. The curles and tongues of gold above were like a flickering golden flame suspended above brightly colored coals-jewels unaffected by heat. The circlet in Liam''s hand did not entirely join in the back, but dwindled down into two golden teardrops. Liam had made a crown, the likes of which had not been formerly seen anywhere.


    Everyone was stunned. He truly had made a thing of beauty. The metal obviously didn''t move. But under the sunlight, turning it this way and that, the tongues of flame seemed to flicker. Robin recognized it as an optical illusion.


    "I left the back open to make it more adjustable." He explained. "After all, it wouldn''t do to give him an uncomfortable crown." He looked at the people who were flabbergasted by this sudden unexpected delight.


    "This''ll do." Robin nodded. "Good job, Liam." She patted his shoulder. "A really good job! If you should ever feel the need to settle down, becoming a metal sculptor might be a truly lucrative occupation for you."


    After Robin spoke, the others were snapped out of their stupor, and began complementing Liam.


    "Aye, You''ve got quite the talent here." Keith nodded.


    "Is it hot to touch?" Elise asked.


    "Really impressive! Entirely unexpected!" Chelsea exclaimed delightedly.


    "It looks like real flames! Cool!" Gerard was impressed.


    The usually quiet dragon had suddenly become the center of the group as everyone admired the circlet in his hands.


    Future historians would write of the goldenflames that flickered from gleaming jewel coals encircling Throm''s brow. And thus, the future famous war crown of Dwarf Guardian Throm was created.


    -----


    One Week Later....


    -----


    As they approached the next city, the surroundings became very different. The air became warmer, almost to an uncomfortable degree. The trees had changed to those of a more tropical nature. The wildlife became predominantly amphibian. Even the road was starting to get a little rough, due to the overhanging vines snagging on the carriage.


    With the gradual increase of overhanging vines, It became evident that they would need to proceed forward on foot. Surprisingly, the road itself was still perfectly smooth, which surprised Robin.


    "It''s Dwarven-made." Quinn explained. "They always build things that are meant to last an awfully long time. I hear tell of underground cities that have remained indestructible despite being half-submerged in water, or over-run with magma."


    "It''s too bad the surrounding area isn''t also dwarven-made." Christian grumbled. "Why couldn''t they make a roof or something?"


    "Because killer wasps love nothing more than shaded dry roof areas to build their nest." Quinn pointed out. "You could say that this is for your own good. Besides, we''re not that far away from town. I estimate half a day''s travel will get us therebefore dinner."


    "And speaking of bugs..." Jasmine quickly created a barrier around them to ward off the potentially lethal swarms.The carriage horses were unhitched, and tied to each other in a small caravan. The knight''s horses were also dismounted, with the knights leading them down the road.


    Robin glanced back at the carriage. "It''s too bad we can''t bring this along.." She sighed.


    "Who says we can''t?" Jasmine asked. "This is a magic artifact, after all."


    "But, wouldn''t the space function on the carriage mess with the spacial function of the bracer?" Robin asked.


    "Heheheh. Didn''t I tell you? The carriage and bracer are a set, created by the same magic artisan for just these types of situation." Jasmine chuckled as she instructed.


    "Wave your bracer in front of the the carriage."


    Robin did so. Then she was surprised to see it shrink down into a coin. It jumped and attach itself to the bracer via a coin-shaped depression.


    "Sure, it can''t go inside the bracer." Jasmine nodded. "But there''s nothing preventing it from attaching itself to the bracer. To take it out, just remove the coin and toss it in a sufficiently large enough space. This is a royal treasury secret, so don''t take the carriage out where others can see it, please."


    "It seems I still have much to learn when it comes to magic." Robin said as she realized.


    "Thank goodness for that!" Jasmine chuckled. "If over a millennium of learning could be overcome in the matter of a year, what have we magicians dedicated our entire lives to?"


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    "Says the youngest magi in the kingdom." Christian added with a nod.


    "Even so, I was learning from the time I learned how to read. Even then, it took me about ten years to get to where I am!" Jasmine retorted, and added.


    "What I mean is, you can''tget overconfident just because you know a few spells. Not even I am aware of how many spells there are in existence. And because youhave a high affinity with all the elements, you have just that much more to learn."


    "So it would seem." Robin agreed, then had an idea. "So, theoretically, couldn''t I use my nature affinity to move all these vines out of the way?"


    "Oh? Why not give it a try then?" Jasmine requested.


    Robin quickly obliged.The vines began to move, reeling themselves up into the trees. For about one hundred feet, the path was clear, mostly. Mostly, because there was a few vines that still hung down, despite Robin''s attempt.


    "So? Do you know why, now?" Jasmine asked.


    "Yeah. It''s far too tiring." Robin agreed. "Just once was enough to make me tired, not to mention how many hundreds of feet we have left to go."


    "Hey, Robin! Looks like you missed a few vines~!" Christian chuckled, as he tugged on one of them.


    "That''s because those aren''t vines." Robin replied, evenly.


    "They''re not? Heheh, don''t be a sore loser." Christian joked.


    "I wasn''t joking." Robin replied. "And you might want to take a few steps back."


    Christian, with a cheeky grin, leisurely backed up towards the party right before the vine shook. A huge tangled bundle fell down upon the spot where Christian once stood.


    Christian looked at the bundle curiously, then jumped backwards before his legs were restrained. The bundle was actually a 30 foot vine python.


    "See? Didn''t I tell you? Those aren''t vines." Robin repeated.

 143 She Barbecues....

    Skye perked up at the sight of the vine python, watching intently as it moved here and there.


    "Hey, Robin." Skye spoke up. "Do you know any good snake recipes?"


    "Snake recipes? I can recall a few. Why?" Robin asked.


    But Skye had already taked off towards the python, slicing its head off in passing. The body kept wriggling on the ground for a while after the head was gone. Skye landed on it after it had stopped moving. Then Skye patted the dead snake.


    "Cook this, please!" Skye licked its paw. "I wanna know what this tastes like cooked!"


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    "All right, sure!" Robin agreed.


    "So we are going to ignore the fact that a cat just downed a 30-foot snake?" Christian asked. Skye looked at him sharply.


    "I know, I know, flying cat, right?" Christian said, realizing his mistake.


    "Don''t you forget it!" Skye turned its head away with a humph.


    "So, when were you going to tell me that you knew how to fight?" Robin asked, as she gathered the dead snake.


    "Well, first, you never asked. And second, it must have slipped my mind." Skye replied. "I''ve eaten these things before. They''re pretty yummy, but I prefer cooked food."


    "So I see." Robin sighed.


    "You''re not really going to cook that, right Robin?" Gerard asked. He had overheard her conversation with Skye earlier.


    "Why not? It''s non-venomous, and there''s a lot of meat on it. I don''t see why not." Robin replied.


    "But think of all the people it might have eaten!" Jasmine looked at it in distaste.


    "As I recall, that wyvern we killed had probably eaten far more, yet you were fine with it." Robin pointed out.


    "Hear me out. If you don''t want to eat it, that''s fine. Not everyone is good at eating certain animals. But hold off on your decisions before I finish cooking it. Ponzu will make something else for those that don''t want to try it."


    After a certain amount of grumbling, the company agreed. Coincidentally, Keith, Liam, Elise, and Chelsea were fine with it. Skye enthusiastically guillotined every python they came across until Robin decided she had gathered enough.


    "If you kill them all, there won''t be enough to eat later. Let some of them live to make more pythons for later." She pointed out.


    Skye reluctantly agreed, halting it''s bloody massacre of the vine pythons.


    After that, Robin cast cleanse upon the company to get rid of the scent of python blood. As they drew closer to the city, most of the company began to sweat in the steamy heat. Liam was normal, as expected. However,surprisingly, Quinn was also fine.


    "Aren''t you like 97 percent water?" Robin asked. "How are you still fine?"


    "Insulation." He replied smugly, at which Robin rolled her eyes. She changed the subject.


    "So, any reason why it''s getting hotter the closer we get to the city?" Jasmine wiped the sweat off her forehead.


    "That''s because, the dwarf country is situated above a semi-active volcano. They use the heat to forge, and are naturally lava resistant." Quinn explained.


    At this, Robin''s eyes twinkled with a strange light, as she suddenly became serious. "I just have one question then."


    "Ask away." Quinn permitted, feeling strangely pressured in a sense. He prepared himself to answer a difficult question.


    "Are there hot springs!?" Robin bluntly queried.


    Quinn paused, feeling somewhat overcome by a feeling of ''Wait, that''s all?'' before opening his mouth.


    "There are."


    "Wait, you mean the legendary hot springs that would rejuvenate and beautify your skin? Those hot springs!?" Jasmine interjected.


    "I have heard as such, yes." Quinn replied.


    "What are we waiting for, let''s go!!" Jasmine continued forward with a renewed energy, surprising the others.


    Soon they came to an unnatural clearing in the dense jungle area, where it was hotter than usual. In the center of that clearing was a cone-like hillock, from which smoke continued to rise. The scent of sulphur was in the air.


    "Either that''s a volcanic vent, or we are about to encounter a devil." Robin joked.


    "Heavens no! Devils are stuck in their own continent, due to their requirements to live. The devil continent has a poisonous air that can''t be found anywhere else. It''s fatal for humans but vital for devils. Thus, finding a devil out here is like finding someone that''s okay with not breathing. And those things are usually dead." Quinn explained.


    "Oh, so there actually are devils here? What about angels?" Robin asked.


    "Well I''ve never met an angel before, so I can''t tell you. Perhaps they live atop the Solar Plateau? No one has been able to get up there, due to the perilous climb." Quinn pondered.


    "No worries then. But now I have an idea..." Robin stepped into the hot area.


    "What are you doing?" Chelsea asked.


    "It''s about lunch time, so I thought it''s the best time to take a break and eat some lunch." Robin pointed out.


    "But what does that have to do with the volcanic vent?" Christian asked.


    "I just got a whole pile of fresh ingredients. Why not take advantage of this natural oven and cook something?" Robin hinted.


    "Snake barbecue?" Quinn asked.


    "Among other things, yes." Robin admitted.


    "Moreover, with this clearing, we can be assured that nothing''s going to sneak up on us. So we can enjoy our food, worry free."


    "Barbecues usually take hours though. I thought we wanted to get to the city before dark?" Quinn asked.


    "Do you honestly expect the dwarves to let me use an oven to barbecue a bunch of snakes?" Robin pointed out. "Besides, this will only take one hour at most, I promise."


    "...You promise?" Quinn asked.


    "I''d cross my heart and hope to die, but I''m much more afraid of the wrath of these guys." Robin indicated the company. "So let''s just say I haven''t broken my word, yet-and I''m not planning to."


    "Fine." Quinn sighed. "But only one hour."


    "Thanks for that~" Robin immediately got to work casting several barriers.


    The first barrier was at the mouth of the vent, blocking any sulphur or poisonous fumes from coming out, but allowing for heat and non-harmful smoke to emerge.The second barrier was set above the vent to hold the food. It was similar to the first barrier.


    Robin quickly prepared the pythons, setting them atop of the barrier skewered in sections. She also added vegetables like mushrooms, peppers, onions, and tomatoes. The third barrier she cast was around the vent and food, trapping the heat in, yet allowing the smell to diseminate.


    Instantly, the surrounding area seemed at least twenty degrees cooler, like entering the shade of a cloud on a blazing hot day. Finally, Robin cast a barrier around the perimeter of the clearing to prevent the smell from disseminating through the forest. She didn''t want to attract trouble, after all.


    After that, she used a cantrip magic hand to flip the barbecue remotely. Ponzu just glared at Robin. "How could you! You know I can only do kitchen magic!" He sniffled.


    "Chill your curly head, Ponzu. There''s nothing special about this except for the barbecue technique. This could be done just as well atop a metal grate suspended over hot coals." Robin flipped a vegetable skewer over to toast it on the other side.


    "The important thing you need to know is the burning point of the ingredients you are working with. If you''re good enough, everything will have a lovely caramelized exterior. we want to brown the food, not burn it-although some might prefer their food burnt." She flipped the meat skewers.


    "And how are you expecting us to eat all this food?" Ponzu asked.


    "Stick what we don''t eat into the food storage for later. If no one is partial to snake meat, then we can just keep it for Skye." Robin replied.


    "...Does snake meat really taste that good?" Ponzu asked. The smell was disseminating through the camp, making mouths water.


    "Well, those who like chicken and those who like fish generally like it." Robin replied.


    "The thing is, if it''s a poisonous snake, then you need to make sure to carefully remove the poison glands without puncturing them. Or you could just cut the head off..."


    She checked the food again. "Oh! This one''s done! Care to try a bite?" She smiled holding the skewer of browned meat out to Ponzu.


    Ponzu hesitated, but convinced himself to give it a try. "One bite." He said.


    Robin used another skewer to slide a small bite-sized piece off, and handed it to him.


    "Careful. It''s hot." She warned.


    Ponzu blew carefully on it, then took a bite.

 144 She Enters Ragnok, City of Dwarves

    ''What is this depth of flavor!'' Ponzu exclaimed inwardly. He had watched Robin carefully, and he was sure the only thing she had added to the meat was a sprinkle of salt. But the meat had a flavor as if it had been marinated in gravy. Moreover, the meat was so tender...Ponzu began to wonder why he had never tried snake meat before.


    The others had begun to smell the tempting aroma coming from the heat vent, and were glancing Robin''s way from time to time. They especially paid attention to Ponzu''s expression as he tried a small piece of python meat. Was snake meat really that good?


    Of course, right after Robin passed Ponzu a piece, Skye began clamoring for the rest of the meat on the skewer in Robin''s hand. She chuckled and gave it to Skye.


    "Careful, it''s hot!" She warned. But Skye didn''t seem to have any problems with eating the steaming meat.


    "It''s okay. As you are my master, I am privy to the same resistances you have, including heat resistance." Skye told her.


    "You rascal! So you chose me because of my affinities?" Robin playfully scolded.


    "It''s a good bonus. But, even if your affinities were all at 100 percent, if I did not approve of you, I would not choose you." Skye said, as it finished its skewer. "We flying cats take our oaths seriously, after all, and no one wants a foolish master."


    "So you prefer a master that can feed you delicious food, huh?" Robin asked.


    Skye licked its lips, and stared hungrily at the other skewers. "Are there any more finished ones?" It asked, eagerly.


    "Hold on...Ah, here we go. This one should be done." Robin took one out.


    To be exact, Robin had to dismantle and barbecue twenty-seven pythons of various sizes from 15 to 40 feet long. With her swordsmanship skills, the dismantling was done quickly. But, the vent was only so big, and they only had an hour.


    Thus, it wasn''t just one layer of snake meat sizzling on top of the vent, but several layers, each layer placed atop a barrier. Currently, it sort of looked like a large jenga tower of snake meat. Each layer was added atop the last as soon as Robin had strung together enough skewers.


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    The heat barrier would ensure that it would be just as hot at the top of the tower as it was on the bottom of the tower. But Robin wanted to ensure that the skewers wouldn''t only cook on one side, as heat was prone to rise.


    She decided to add another barrier around the layers. This one made the skewers magically spin in place, slowly. Robin stepped back a bit and surveyed her magic contraption. It might be a bit crude, according to Jasmine, but Robin was having fun working with magic again.


    She turned around to be greeted by an entire company of hungry eyes.


    -----


    "I can''t believe you people ate half of the snake meat in one sitting!" Robin exclaimed, frowning.


    "Tch! We would''ve eaten more if you hadn''t stored the rest away in your bracer." Gerard grumbled.


    "What happened to your ''It might have eaten people'' distaste?" Robin rolled her eyes, as she retracted all the barriers except one.


    "Food prejudice is just as bad as people prejudice~." Quinn replied cheerily.


    "You would say that." Robin sighed. "Well! We''ve rested for an hour. It''s time to move on, I suppose."


    "What!? It''s been an hour already? But I''m too stuffed to move!" Gerard complained.


    "I thought you said you could still eat more?" Robin recalled.


    "Too stuffed to move, but there''s always more room in my stomach for good food!" Gerard asserted.


    "I see. Then for your punishment, we are walking at double pace the rest of the way." Robin grinned angrily. The entire company groaned.


    --------


    As they got closer to the city, the smell of sulphur became more prominent. Soon the Jungle gave way to a bit more rough, rocky terrain, with steep rocky cliffs and climbing vines.


    Finally, the city came into view in the distance. It was a city with many layers, kind of like Minas Tirith. Walls separated each circle, securely fortifying the center towering section of the city. They arrived at the city gates a half hour before sunset, almost collapsing on the ground.


    "Halt! State yer name and bizness!" The guard at the gate barked.


    "My name is Robin, and I wish to acquire an audience with Protectorate Throm. However, my main issue currently is finding a place of rest that is not surrounded by pythons." Robin replied.


    The guard burst out laughing. "Oh, Ye''ll find that here, aye! But as for acquiring an audience with tha Protectorate...well, that might be a bit difficult, considering he''s out on one of his patrols."


    "Any idea when he''ll return?" Robin asked.


    "If yer lucky, a week. If yer unlucky, a month." The guard shrugged.


    "I''ll settle for finding lodging, then, I guess. Do you have any place you recommend?" She asked, handing him two silvers.


    The dwarf grinned, pleased. "Sure! Just look fer The Kicking Mule. Best Tavern in town."


    The other dwarf glanced over Robin''s company. "From the looks of yer party, yer from Ekkinshire?"


    "That is correct." Robin replied.


    "Then, I suppose ye know about this new hero fellow tha''s popped up agin?"


    Robin nodded. "I do."


    "What''s he like? Have you seen ''im? Did he seem like a shifty character to you?"


    Robin''s eyebrows rose in amusement, and she turned to Christian with a twinkle in her eye.


    "I''m not too sure. I didn''t see when the hero arrived. Hey, Christian. You saw the hero, right? What''s he like?" Robin asked mischievously.


    Christian looked at Robin, noticing the mischief he was involving him in.


    "He wasn''t what I expected." Christian said. "Not shifty or false. But he was very different than regular folk. Unprejudiced, honest to a fault, oddly wise for one so young, unassuming, and rather quiet: in addition...he had a strange sort of calm. He was calm to the point where, despite his commoner background, he could comfortably hold audiences with princes and kings as if it were normal."


    "As expected of a hero. Does he have a prejudice against dwarves, ye think?"


    "So far, I have not seen him have a prejudice against anyone. This has my admiration." Christian''s eyes were on Robin the whole time.


    ''Huh? Is this what he really thinks about me?'' Robin thought, unwittingly locking eyes with Christian.


    This was the first time she had asked for someone''s opinion on her. Now she knew that he thought highly favorably about her. This both pleased, and slightly terrified her at the same time.


    Robin broke eye contact first, turning her head so that Christian couldn''t see her blush. It didn''t work. Christian could clearly see Robin''s ears turning red.


    "Robin, are you okay?" Jasmine teased. "You''re face is turning red."


    "It''s hot. I''d be more surprised if my face wasn''t red." Robin replied, frowning at Jasmine. Jasmine covered up her mouth, but could do nothing to hide the smile in her eyes.


    "Hmmm. Well, thank ye fer tha information. Ye can enter. Remember, look for the Kicking Mule. Welcome to Ragnok!" The guard nodded. Humans arriving for the first time were indeed strangely delicate. He didn''t want another scolding for having another human fainting at the gates.


    The walls outside were tall, thick, and sturdy. The city inside was an even more impressive display of grandeur. Carved statues and reliefs could be seen upon every building,


    Made of stone and polished wood, the normal buildings were only one or two stories high. A giant, barrel-like structure sat off to their left. It was most likely a tavern of some sort. But, out of all the more prominent structures, the tallest were the forges.


    These goliaths towered over the regular houses, three times taller. Such that Robin almost mistook them for chapels. Marble statues and golden bejeweled reliefs decorated every inch of the outside of the forges, displaying the image of the ancestor blacksmiths whose families still plied their crafts within.


    "Lodging. Food. Then, hot springs." Robin warned Jasmine, who was looking about with a purpose.


    "Haaah...Got it." Jasmine resigned herself.


    "I thought you were too hot for hot springs." Christian noted.


    Robin cheekily replied. "I made some ice to cool down, and now feel a bit chilled. A nice soak in a hot spring might do me some good."


    "You..." Christian uttered, shocked at Robin''sdisplay of utter shamelessness.


    "What ''me''?"Robin looked at him and blinked innocently.


    "...Nothing." Christian looked away, unable toface Robin''s innocent expression without feeling butterflies in his stomach.


    Behind the two, Chelsea smiled expectantly, looking up at the city. Many things would happen here. Many good things.

 145 She Meets Ayva

    Before they could even begin searching for the Kicking Mule, several small dwarf children rushed past, intent upon their game. Because they weren''t paying attention, Robin''s eyes followed them, slightly concerned. Then, what she was worried about happened.


    They knocked into a passing dwarf, causing the bag of apples to fall and scatter. As the children were scared that they would get yelled at, they also scattered.


    "Oy! You lot get back here and help me pick these up!" The dwarf yelled after them. But that only spurred them on to disappear even faster than usual.


    Robin sighed, and moved to help the dwarf that was busy picking up the scattered fruits.


    "Oh, thank ye, deary, ye didn''t have to." The dwarf said, grateful for the help.


    Upon hearing the higher timber of her voice,Robin looked at the dwarf in surprise. After closer inspection, Robin realized this was a dwarf woman. She hadn''t expected it, since the scarf about her neck had looked like a beard from a distance.


    "Not at all." She replied, dusting her hands off. "I was actually about to ask for directions. Me and my companions are a bit new to the city. The guard at the gate referred us to the Kicking Mule. I don''t suppose you could point us in the right direction?"


    The dwarf lady''s eyes widened. "Well, I''ll be!" She chuckled. "Your luck is on point today. I was just headed there meself! I''d be happy ta show ye the way there! Please, follow me~!" The dwarf lady asserted, with a bemused smile.


    "Much obliged. Nice to meet you. My name is Robin." Robin introduced herself with a slight nod of her head.


    "Ayva." The lady said, shifting the bag of apples to one arm as she extended the other for a handshake. When Robin shook her hand, Ayva laughed.


    "Still, It''s rare to see a human that doesn''t look down on us dwarves."


    Robin tilted her head, confused. If one was taller, then wouldn''t they need to lower their gaze to look others in the eyes? Ayva chuckled at Robin''s confusion.


    "You really are a good bunch, huh. All right, this way!" She led them through the streets to a building the size of a manor. Inside, the entire bottom floor was completely open to view, with a window into the kitchen at the back. The air inside was much cooler than that of outside, maintaining the perfect temperature.


    The receptionist desk stood at the front, its counter curving around in a complete circle. Ayva placed the bag of apples on the counter, and pushed up a section, to let herself in.


    "Now, from the looks of ye newcomers, ye''ll be wanting rooms, yes? How many will ye need?" Ayva asked, flipping through a ledger.


    "You work here?" Robin asked.


    "Sure, ye might say that. I''m usually here if our tavern beauty is not. Looks like she stepped out while I was gone. How many rooms?" Ayva asked again, dipping a quill pen into some ink.


    "Enough for ten men, two girls, as well as a separate room for me." Robin replied.


    "So...that''ll be five rooms, then, of the human-sized variety...three quads, one double, and one single....at a hundred zetu per head..that''ll be 1,600 zetu per night, including dinner. For how long will ye be staying?" Ayva asked.


    "Put us down for a week." Robin replied, placing down eleven large silver coins ans two large coppers.


    "A pleasure doing business with ye~ All the rooms are on the second floor. I''ll have someone send ye to yer rooms. Dinner''ll be out before the half hour, so don''t forget, okay?" She said with a grin, after writing it down in the ledger. Then she grabbed Five keys off a key rack behind her and handed them over.


    "The brass keys are for the quads. Iron are for the doubles,and the steel one is for the single. Room numbers are on the keys,and don''t lose them I don''t want to have Goorda bust down another door and have to change locks again."


    "Understood." Robin agreed.


    Obviously, Robin took the single. Jasmine and Chelsea took a double. Christian and Keith were in a room with Gerard and Liam. And Quinn had to squeeze into one of the other two rooms with the knights and the driver.


    After signing them in, Ayva picked up the bag of apples and headed straight for the kitchen. Not even a minute later, a dwarf came out and led them upstairs. Everyone retired to their rooms to settle in and refresh themselves. After that, they all met once again, downstairs. The room was already almost full of dwarves, with only a few emptytables left.


    Dinner was then served. It was thick steaks with stewed root vegetables on the side, and a free ale from the local tap. Gerard was more than eager to start drinking from his mug. But Robin stopped him by pushing his mug over to Keith.


    "This is better for you." She said, withdrawing a cup and a pitcher from her storage.


    "Water?" Gerard pouted.


    "Oh? you think it''s water, do you?" Robin smirked. "That''s no mere water, kid."


    Gerard, curious, decided to try it. It was really good, despite its bland appearance.


    "Why does this taste like fruits?" He asked.


    Robin smiled. "Well, you could say it''s water...but then again, it isn''t merely water." She took out some glasses for her, Jasmine, and Chelsea, and poured the fruit infused water into them.


    "Here. After a long day''s travel, this will be better for you." Robin handed them over. After trying it, Jasmine and Chelsea''s eyes lit up, and passed their untouched ales over to Ponzu and Liam.


    Robin''s Ale still sat in front of her, as she also decided to drink water that evening.


    "Are you going to drink that?" Christian asked, having eaten half his steak and downed his own mug already.


    Robin looked at the mug and shifted it over his way. She didn''t really care for it. "Have at it." She replied.


    Christian accepted it with a smile, happy to have gotten it before anyone else claimed Robin''s mug.


    "Oh, so ye don''t like the local tap, do ye? I see ye''ve got some drink of yer own here." A familiar voice came from behind Robin. She turned around to see Ayva, who held an apple pie in one hand. The room suddenly became rather quiet for one so popular.


    "It''s pretty good, despite the lack of alcohol." Robin replied, taking out a cup. "Care to try?"


    Ayva looked at the cup, and then called out to the barkeep. "Toss me an empty quaff!"


    An empty mug flew across the room, and into Ayva''s hand. It was twice as large as Robin''s cup. "Let''s see how yer drink measures up." Ayva smirked.


    Robin chuckled and poured the water into the mug. "Cheers~!" She said, lifting her cup and knocking it against Ayva''s mug. Both downed the drink to the bottom.


    Ayva smacked her mug down on the table, ruminating upon the flavor. Then she nodded. "Aye, that''s something new...I like it!"


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    "In that case, you can have another." Robin refilled her mug. "I just arrived, so I''m not too sure about local customs. Care to give us some advice on how not to accidentally insult a dwarf?"


    Ayva nodded, And placed the pie on the table. Then she pulled a chair over, and sat with them as she drank her second mug more slowly.


    "In that case, the first thing you should know is that bringing drink to a tavern is considered an insult, unless it is approved by the owner..."


    Robin''s company looked at each other, with a somewhat worried expression. Everyone''s expression was pretty much the same: ''Oh snap, did we just...?''


    "...but yer lucky I''m the owner here, so it''s all good." Ayva finished her sentence with a big grin.


    "It''s not every day that I can taste water that''s completely clean of the tang of sulphur, with foreign fruits to boot. If I said I didn''t like it, it''d be an insult to my own tongue. Ye got any more of that stuff?"


    "In that case, I can leave you with a small barrel, but it''s easy enough to make if you have fruit and a water mage." Robin replied. Jasmine sighed. It seemed Robin was going to give away yet another recipe.

 147 She Captures All Of I

    Unaware that they were being watched, the four dwarves crept deeper into the alleyway. Robin suddenly hada great idea to use her cell phone to record all of this for later.


    It had just been sitting in her bag this whole time. She didn''t want to waste the battery in a place obviously not covered by her cell phone service, with no power sockets. It was one of the special models her brother gave her that had enhanced night vision mode. Now was the perfect time to use it.


    Since she was in the dwarves'' blind spot no one noticed the brief illumination from her screen. A mischievous grin could be seen for a split second. And, soon enough, she found out she was right to record them.


    "Are ye sure we shad be doing this? If Protectorate Throm returns early, we''ll definitely be the first to suffer." The most nervous dwarf asked.


    "Protectorate Throm will nae be back tonight. I have word from the highers that he''ll be fighting a horde of goblins on the southern side. Ifn''s we want ta be taken seriously, we need a bargaining chip." The leader convinced.


    "Sounds more like a meat shield." One of the quieter ones muttered.


    "Shush! Are ye gowin ta be quiet, or are ye trying ta fail tha mission?" The lead dwarf growled.


    At that point, Robin had heard just about enough. She didn''t know who Ayva was to Throm, but she wasn''t going to allow something to happen that would piss him off.


    She hung the phone from a nearby net filled with fruit, aimed at her chosen place of ambush. Then she waited forthem to get close enough to her stack of crates.


    Tamp. Th-Th-Thwack! Th-Th-Thud.


    The lead dwarf turned around to see Robin''s dark figure brandishing her sheathed blade, three dwarves lying on the ground around her.


    "Who-Who''re you!?" He exclaimed, forgetting to stay quiet.


    Robin didn''t say anything, but attacked the surprised dwarf. During their brief encounter, she swiftly overcame him and knocked him out as well.


    "I''m Ayva''s new friend, you fool." She growled.


    She tied them all up, and searched the bodies for weapons or dangerous objects. Four small mounds of hidden daggers soon grew on the floor. She even found a few vials of questionable liquid on the lead dwarf.


    Then Robin looked about. In the alleyway, aside from the stacks of crates, were a few sturdy beams of wood that were not in use. She grinned.


    ~~~~~~~


    Gerard was just going to mention that Robin had been gone an awfully long time, when he saw Robin come in through the front door. This made him pout. Now he couldn''t take the last slice of apple pie.


    But Robin didn''t approach the table. Instead, she looked around. Not seeing her out on the floor, she sought Ayva out in the kitchen.


    "Hello, is Ayva here?" She asked one of the cooks.


    "Aye, sure! An'' who''re you ta be askin?" a feisty one asked with a sour face, as she turned away from her cooking.


    "One of the new friends who helped her save her apples earlier today." Robin shrugged. "Well, it''s not too important, I suppose, if she''s that busy. I just thought she might want to see a good performance."


    "What''s this?" A familiar voice came from off to the side. Robin turned her head to see Ayva come out, drying off a mug.


    "A performance, ye say?" Ayva asked, interested.


    "Yup. I caught it on this recorder here." Robin brought out her phone. Ayva''s eyes widened.


    "It works similar to a recording orb-" Robin started to explain, but was interrupted by Ayva.


    "Yes, I know. May I?" She asked, a bit more seriously.


    Robin handed her phone to Ayva, who expertly tapped upon the play sign, causing what was recorded to begin playing. The cooks gathered around to watch as well, when they heard people speaking from the small rectangular tablet.


    Ayva''s expression grew dark as she heard what was being said. Although Robin didn''t know it, there was a secret entrance to the kitchens in that alleyway. She was also somewhat surprised when she saw Robin overcome them so easily. When the video finished, Ayva fell silent.


    "So? What exactly is the purpose of you showing me this?" She asked, cautiously, handing the phone back.


    "They are still outside in the alleyway, as we speak. As you can see, I took nothing from them. All the evidence is there. I didn''t want to cause a scene dragging them inside, in case of misunderstandings." Robin sighed a bit.


    "Which I am somewhat grateful fer, thank you." Ayva nodded.


    " But, you saw everything. I don''t know your circumstance, here. But, I can guess. As the person who is most involved, how do you want to deal with this?" Robin asked.


    Ayva scanned Robin''s face, then made a strange sign with her hand. "Are you trying to use me to cozy up to Throm?" She asked.


    "While I can''t say I don''t want to meet him...I don''t think my actions would have been any different if you weren''t related to him." Robin replied. "I can''t stand people that use underhanded means like that." Her hand shuddered slightly, and her eyes narrowed in pain.


    "What do ye think about us dwarves? Are we lesser beings to you humans?" Ayva asked.


    "I don''t really understand what this superiority complex is that everyone has. I''ve met good and bad humans, just as I''ve met good and bad dwarves. It doesn''t matter what race you are. What matters is that you make effort to be a good person. Those who disregard an entire race due to the actions of only one of them....I can only call them foolhardy." Robin shook her head.


    "And do you consider me to be a good person?" Ayva asked.


    Robin smiled. "You are." She replied.


    "How do ye know? We''ve only just met today!" Ayva asked.


    "It''s because we''ve only just met that I know you are a good person." Robin replied. "You never met me, but wasn''t afraid to help despite that. I''m a different race, but you didn''t act as if there was any difference between us. You were thankful for my help, and didn''t look down on me and my company. You were honest in all that you told me. And, there''s a whole roomful of dwarves out there that are willing to jump a group of possibly dangerous strangers for you."


    Robin chuckled. "You were good to me, a member of the very race that claims the so-called ''superiority of races'' nonsense. And that''s all I need."


    Ayva''s hand stopped making the strange sign, and she sighed. "What is it with you heroes? Ye can always figure us out so quickly."


    "Hmm?" Robin didn''t quite understand. But she knew that the moment Ayva saw Robin''s phone, Ayva knew that Robin was the hero.


    "Heroes?...Wait! You''re the Hero!?" The cook that had snapped at Robin exclaimed.


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    Robin nodded.


    "Ayva, what do we do?" The cook asked, hesitantly. "What if the demons hear of this?"


    "I know what I''m going to do." Ayva replied, stoutly. "Inside issues before outside issues. I have some dwarves that I need to deal with. Angus, I need you to grab four large tubs of the dirtiest dishwater ye can find. Calliope, Mowgrun: you bring your kitchen hands and follow me."


    And with that, Ayva marched out of the kitchen. With Robin, the two cooks, and a bundle of kitchen aids following behind. Out on the main floor, the motley group easily grabbed the attention of the floor.


    "Oy, Ayva! Where ye off to, so late?" one of the dwarves called.


    "Off to pick up some bumbling fools that someone packaged up nice an pretty for me. I''d ready yer ears for a tale that''ll make you madder than Marcus''s Mead Bees, and twice as angry ta boot!" Ayva replied.


    Robin returned to her own table.


    "Are you the cause of that?" Keith asked, tentatively.


    "Nope. Although you could call me a middleman of a sorts. I was the package wrapper." Robin joked.


    "And you guys call me a trouble-maker!" Christian sighed.


    "Oh there is trouble that was made, but not for our party." Robin shook her head. "It truly was a group of idiots dropping a boulder on their own foot."

 148 She Explained Herself

    Jasmine looked closely at Robin''s face.


    "Truly?" She asked.


    "Have I ever lied to you?" Robin asked.


    "Well, no. But then again, you don''t always tell the full truth." Jasmine pointed out.


    "But telling it all now would ruin the show." Robin shrugged. "Wait a bit, and you''ll know everything." She picked up a fork and dug into the last slice of Ayva''s Apple pie.


    "Whoah! This is seriously delicious!" Robin exclaimed in surprise. "As I thought, real homemade food is the best~!"


    "What other kind of food can there be?" Gerard asked. "Fake food?"


    "Well, how to explain..." Robin tapped her fork against her lip. "It''s more like food not made by human hands. Have you heard of robots? Mechas? Machines?" Robin asked.


    "Mech-Ah! You mean the Mecha Knights!? Guardian Golems born of metal and lightning?"


    "What, that sounds so cool..." Robin muttered in surprise, before getting back to the point.


    "It''s similar to that. But, instead, there''s food which is made by creations born of metal and lightning with the sole purpose of cooking food. We call it ''processed food''."


    "But, doesn''t that mean that food which is delicious will get even more delicious?" Gerard asked.


    "If the machines had an intelligence of their own, and the objective to make things tastier, then perhaps." Robin replied.


    "But we found that food made this way can only preserve a recipe flavor. It actually has something missing that we never even realized was important to flavor."


    "What is it?" Ponzu asked, getting his notebook out.


    Robin turned to look at Ponzu.


    "Call it the personal touch." She replied, with a grin. "Food not made by human hands also can''t truly touch the human heart." She pointed a thumb at her own heart.


    "There is no intent to please behind the slight differences in the preparation of the food, no care for the ingredients, no love added to the craft. Food that was made mechanically, would only taste of the mechanical. It didn''t bear the warmth of the human heart within it."


    "That''s why you make all the food you eat?" Ponzu asked.


    "That''s one of the reasons." Robin nodded, taking another bite of pie.


    Before they could ask Robin any more questions, there was a disturbance towards the tavern entrance. Several dwarf kitchen hands carried four still-unconscious dwarves in, lashed to wooden beams. The beams were propped up onto the performance stage on the right wall.


    "Angus, How dirty is that dishwater?" Ayva asked.


    "The dirtiest. I even dipped a ladle or two from the compost heap into it." Angus replied, setting down the last of four almost black tubs that smelled terrible. The surrounding dwarves moved back a bit to escape the stench.


    "All, right, you rascals, are you ready to hear a story?" Ayva called out.


    "YEAH" The crowd cheered unanimously.


    "To tell this story, I need the help of one other person involved. Robin, would ye be a dear and come up on stage?" Ayva asked.


    Robin pointed to herself, as she couldn''t speak with her mouth full of pie.


    "Yes, you! Get over here!" Ayva laughed.


    Robin swallowed her mouthful down, and regretfully left the half-eaten slice of pie on the table. She stepped up onto the stage, and Ayva grabbed her hand.


    "The only reason why nothing bad happened to me today, is all because of this person, here!" Ayva began.


    "This lad here was just outside, when he noticed these four dwarves suspiciously entering the alleyway. Feeling something wasn''t right, he climbed up on the great big pile of crates, and started recording them."


    "What did they say?" Called a dwarf.


    "They said they wanted me to become a meat shield fer them so that Throm dinnae cut off their heads." Ayva replied. "You know, Throm, the greatest dwarf warrior in all the land, and my husband."


    Robin was actually slightly surprised at that bit of news. She knew Ayva was special to Throm, but not that Ayva was Throm''s wife. The crowd of dwarves booed at the four unconscious dwarves.


    "But this lad here, when he heard that they were after me, with bad intentions, he was very mad. Why he jumped down and knocked three unconscious before they even realized it!"


    The crowd collectively raised their mugs in a cheer.


    "An'' when the last one turned around an'' squeaked. ''Who-who''re you!?'' This''n just knocked em out cold." Ayva pantomimed a startled, scared little dwarf.


    That drew out a round of laughter.


    "After his head had cooled a bit, he dinnae know just what to do with these four brigands, so he tied em up, an made sure they had nae weapons on them. But, would ye lookit what he found!"


    At Ayva''s command, four kitchen aids opened the bags they were holding, and placed them on the stage in front of the four dwarves, just as they had been when they were found. The many small blades just perfect for hiding caused many a dwarf''s eyes to ice over with a somewhat steely gaze.


    "This one here, even had a vial of Klarguns Brew. So you can easily understand just what sort of things they had planned fer me."


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    Ayva let that sink in with the crowd. The room fell silent. Klargun''s Brew was a concoction in which even a single drop in a barrel can knock you out for a week. An entire vial was enough the make you sleep for five years. Then she let go of Robin''s hand, and stepped forward to drive the point home.


    "And because this lad dinnae want to cause any alarm, he came ta me. He showed me what he had recorded, an he asked me what I wanted to do with em. WELL LADS? WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO WITH EM?"


    The crowd roared out a mixture of ideas that no one could fully hear or understand.


    "I''LL TELL YE WHAT WE''RE GONNA DO! WE''RE GONNA GIVE THESE FOUR A BLOODY WELCOME! THAT''S WHAT WE''RE GONNA DO!" Ayva called out over the roaring of the crowds, which only got louder after that.


    Robin took this chance to step off stage, and returned to her table, to finish up her apple pie.


    "See? What did I tell you?" Robin said. "It was trouble, but not for us." She then bit into another forkful of pie. Christian laughed seeing Robin''s blissful expression.


    "No trouble for us is no trouble at all." Quinn agreed, cheekily.


    The group turned their attention back to the stage, where the kitchen hands, two to a tub, now pitched the gag-worthy liquid down upon the four unsuspecting dwarves.


    They awakened sputtering, and gagging at the stench to loud cheers of a job well done.


    ------------


    ------------


    After the dwarves were completely mocked in a manner similar to a pillory, Ayva force fed them each a drop of Klarguns Brew, and sent the besotted, stinking piles of sleeping dwarves to be locked up somewhere, until Throm returned.


    Then she called Robin back up to praise her again, which nearly caused Robin to blush.


    "I have one last question fer ye, lad." Ayva chuckled. "What were ye doin'' outside at a time like that, when ye coulda been drinking in here?"


    At this, the dwarves, some of whom were already very drunk, raised a cheer in agreement to the good drink.


    Robin scratched the back of her head, unsure what to say. "Must I tell?" She asked, in a somewhat muted voice.


    "Aye! That ye must!" the dwarves roared with laughter.


    "Very well." Robin sighed. "I was trying to calm myself down. In human lands, going outside the taverns is usually cooler than inside, so out of habit, I stepped outside. But, to my surprise, it was much much warmer!"


    The dwarves chuckled to themselves at Robin''s blunder.


    "Then I thought that maybe it''d be cooler in the alleyway, so I took a step in to check, but I was sorely mistaken, because it was an oven in there!" Robin shook her head, fanning her face.


    The dwarves laughed loudly.


    "And, just when I was about to leave, my exit was blocked by those four sorry lumps for a dwarf. I didn''t want to be seen because that''d probably cause them to misunderstand me. I mean, what kinda person do you expect to find in a dark alleyway, right?"


    Several dwarves nodded in understanding.


    "But, then again, there were four dwarves entering an alleyway, and that is also somewhat suspicious, you know. So I took out my recorder just in case, and what happened next is what you all know." Robin shrugged.


    "I was almost baked brown back there."


    The dwarves laughter went on throughout the night. Long afterwards, it was always a popular joke among dwarves when they were heading outside to say they were going out "to cool off".

 149 She Was Discovered!

    After that, the dwarves in the tavern behaved much more friendly to Robin. This would have been all right if it weren''t for the fact that they kept buying Robin beers.


    Robin, out of courtesy, accepted them. But whenever the gifting dwarf''s back was turned, she would switch it with an empty mug from another nearby dwarf. In that manner, many beers passed through her hands. Yet, she remained completely sober.


    The surrounding dwarves found it to be a great lot of fun. And so, Robin was stuck surounded by the rambunctious dwarves until well after midnight. She then managed to slip through a gap caused by three drunken dwarves falling prone.


    The morning sunshine came through the window far too early that morning for Robin''s liking. However, before Robin could turn over and catch up on lost sleep, there was a knock at the door. Robin opened the door a crack. It was Ayva.


    "Are ye decent? Is now a good time?" She asked.


    Robin didn''t say anything, but opened the door wider to let her into the room.


    "Oh, yer awake! Good! Good!" Ayva smiled. "I just wanted to tell you that I got an okay from Marlgurn. You and your people can use the hot springs tonight after dinner."


    Then Ayva fidgeted a bit.


    "Um, beg pardon, but...Robin...Are you actually a girl?"She asked.


    There was a long pause as Robin froze, trying to processed what she had said.


    "What makes you say that?" Robin asked slowly.


    "Well...We dwarves aren''t ones to judge by appearance as-often as not- there are bearded women among our kind. I just thought that...you might be like that."


    Robin sighed. She wanted to maintain her disguise. But she also didn''t want to lie to Ayva. Then, she made a decision.


    Robin opened her door and made sure no one was in the hallway. Closing the door again, she turned around to face Ayva, and shyly nodded.


    "Was I that obvious?" Robin asked, a bit flustered.


    "Oh no no!" Ayva assured. "It''s only because I''ve a sister of my own that er...likes ta pretend she''s a man. Most folks wouldna be able ta tell the difference. Ah, but ye might want ta hide those rabbits next time ye let someone in."


    Ayva glanced at Robin''s chest pointedly, which was barely noticeable under her loose shirt.


    "I took off the band last night. Must have slipped my mind." Robin sighed.


    But, even so, Robin felt relieved. She did not want to consider the outcome of what would happen should a dwarf accidentally belt out her secret in front of Christian.


    "Just don''t tell anyone." Robin warned.


    "Wouldn''t dream of it, dear!" Ayva said with a bright grin. "But, do all of yer companions know?"


    "Only the girls. And I''d rather keep it that way." Robin said.


    "In that case, there''s a secret spot hidden away from the main hot springs that is just perfect for you to enjoy away from the main group." Ayva clapped her hands in excitement. "I''ll show ye the way there when you head over."


    "What? Wouldn''t you be busy here at the tavern?" Robin asked, surprised.


    "The tavern can basically run itself." Ayva chuckled. "I just like helping it along here an there. Don''t worry about me, dear. I needed a soak to take the aches outta me bones, anyways."


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    And with that, Ayva waved goodbye, and left the room. Robin slumped back onto the bed. With the early morning shock, there was no way she''d be getting any more sleep, so Robin wore the band again, and got dressed.


    The tavern was rather empty this morning, outside of a pile of dead drunk unconscious dwarves that were laid against a side wall.


    "Pay no attention to them, sir. This happens all the time." The dwarf girl said, as she set out a huge breakfast spread in front of her.


    "Are your breakfasts always this large?" Robin asked, mildly curious.


    "No, but everyone in the kitchen wanted to cook ye a little something as thanks fer keeping our Ayva safe. My name''s Copper, by the way." Copper giggled. "The burnt toast over there is Eddie''s attempt at cooking."


    "Indeed. Toast should always be well burnt." Robin joked with a laugh. "I''m not sure I''ll be able to eat all this, but you can tell them that I''ve received their thanks."


    "Will do!" The girl curtseyed, then returned to the kitchen. Through the open window, Robin glanced the peering faces of the cooking staff, watching her. She smiled and nodded in their direction. This caused several to retreat back into the kitchens.


    Robin chuckled as she turned her attention back to the food. Then she had an idea. She tried a small sample from each of the dishes, first. If it tasted bad, she didn''t let it show on her face. Instead, she continued until she had tried all the dishes.


    Robin separated a quarter of them out, and transferred them into separate containers, storing them into her bracer. Three super spicy dishes, one soggy dish, two garlic saturated dishes, and one dish of near mass destruction: Robin smiled brightly at the possibilities. Then she tucked into the more delicious dishes, alongside a serving of burnt toast.


    When the others came downstairs, Robin was just finishing up. They quickly noticed the stack of empty dishes on the table in front of her.


    "Whoah, do you usually eat this much?" Christian asked, in mock seriousness. "Have we been accidentally underfeeding you?"


    Robin laughed. "I must be undergoing a growth spurt. Soon enough, I''ll be taller than you!" She teased.


    "Impossible." Christian replied, with a shake of his head.


    "Why not?" Robin asked.


    "Because I''m also undergoing a growth spurt. You''ll always be shorter than me!" He said with a smug face. Robin rolled her eyes.


    "You can''t indefinitely undergo growth spurts, otherwise 6 feet would be the bottom end of the human height scale. You''ll run out soon, and then it''ll be my turn to overtake you!" She smirked. Christian ruffled her hair.


    "We''ll see about that!" He replied jokingly.


    "Ah, that reminds me!" Robin paused, immediately switching mental gears, and turned to Jasmine.


    "Ayva said that she got a reservation at a nearby hot spring for us."


    "When!?" Jasmine asked, grabbing Robin''s shoulders.


    "Tonight. 7pm." Robin replied. "Also, can you stop grabbing me?"


    "Right right, sorry about that." Jasmine stepped back, and cleared her throat. For Jasmine to latch onto a man like how she had grabbed Robin was considered scandal-worthy in Ekkinshire Kingdom. She had forgotten herself due to how Robin treated everyone with a somewhat laid-back attitude.


    "Not a problem. Ayva said she''ll be showing us the way there, so I''m assuming she''ll be joining us." Robin noted. "So it appears we have some time on our hands. What would you like to do until evening?"


    After discussing amongst the group during breakfast, it was decided they would be doing two main things: touring the city, and window shopping. Robin handed each person what she believed was a reasonable amount of money. They told Ayva their plans on the way out.


    "Have fun touring tha city, Dearies!" She waved as they left the building.


    The citadel itsef had seven layers. The tavern they were staying in was on the seventh level. The main street was wide, and wound upward at a slight incline towards the gateway into the sixth circle. This particular circle was mainly for travellers, shipments, processing hunted kills, and the adventurers guild.


    The Sixth layer was where the common folk lived. This was also where the public bathouses were found. The Fifth Layer was the Marketplace. This was where generally most all goods were sold. The Fourth layer was where the tinkerers, jewelers, and appraisers set up their workshops.This ring also housed the extensive city library. And you would also find many merchants homes in this circle, as it was close to the market.


    From the third level onwards, you needed some form of identification. The third level was the residence ring of noble or distinguished families of high lineage. This ring had mansions with large rock gardens, greenhouses, artistic reliefs, venues and parks.


    The second level was where the dignitaries, ambassadors, advisors and politicians lived. you needed both identification and permission to enter this place.


    And the first level''s entire floor was taken up by Throm''s Mansion and Forge, the largest structures that could easily be seen. You needed permission from Throm himself to enter.


    Moreover, each circle had a main forge the size of a temple, as well as a guards barracks. Each circle''s guards wore a uniform starting from the outer circle: iron red, copper orange, golden yellow, jade green, saphire blue, starmetal indigo, chromium violet.


    After seeing the first four circles, they all returned back to the fifth circle for window shopping.

 150 She Gets Noticed

    At this point, Chelsea was looking tired. She was used to the mild weather of the coast, not the hot sulfuric climate around the volcano. Liam Drago volunteered to stay with Chelsea while she sat inside a cafe to cool off and rest.


    Once the rest of the group left, Chelsea sat up straighter, and her tired look was gone. This completely confused Liam.


    "You can recover that quickly?" He asked.


    "Nope. I''m completely spent. Will most likely stay here the rest of the day~!" Chelsea replied cheerfully.


    "That''s why, you should follow me!" She grabbed Liam by the hand and headed outside, a mischievous smile peeking out from below her veil.


    Liam could have stood still, and no matter how hard she tugged, she would not be able to bring him anywhere. However, he allowed this strange willful woman with a bright smile to drag him out with her. He was curious about Chelsea. This capricious girl always managed to surprise him in the short time he had known her.


    Perhaps if things were to happen like this every day...it wouldn''t be so bad. A ghost of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as Chelsea dragged him through a series of backroads to their destination.


    "An empty warehouse?" Liam asked, confused.


    "No." Chelsea shook her head, and laughed. "A filled to near bursting empty warehouse." She replied. "Filled to near bursting with fake ores and cheap blades to swindle others with."


    Liam tilted his head. "I don''t understand. Why would you want to see these fake goods?"


    "It''s not the goods I''m after." Chelsea layghed at Liam. "It''s the people behind the goods."


    "Oy! What are you lot dewin'' poking yer noses around here? Get lost!" An angry-looking dwarf yelled.


    "How strange. This warehouse is supposed to be empty. How come it''s filled up all of a sudden?" Chelsea pointedly asked.


    "What daya mean? Warehouses fill and empty every day. It''s not like an empty warehouse will always stay empty. Shoo! If yer looking for an empty warehouse, ye''d best look elsewhere!"


    "How mean. To have all those indentical fake antiques together next to the fake ores, isn''t he afraid of getting dirt on them?" Chelsea turned around in a huff.


    "Hold on there!" The dwarf called out.


    "You tell us go, and we are going. Do not expect us to stay just because you want us to stay. We aren''t your lapdogs." Chelsea sneered. But then, the two were suddenly surrounded by a large group of dwarves.


    "I insist. The both of you have seen far too much." The dwarf said, menacingly.


    "Do you wish to leave?" Liam asked Chelsea. She nodded.


    "All right then..." Liam stepped forward, and changed to a martial stance.


    "This General shall clear the way for you." He declared.


    At this, all the surrounding dwarves began to laugh uproariously.


    "Haha, General!? You and what army!?" One jeered.


    "I think you are somewhat mistaken." Liam stepped forward, and inclined his head, condescendingly. Then scales grew along his arms, like a pair of gauntlets.


    "I am the army." He said, his dragon eyes beginning to glow.


    -------------------------


    -------------------------


    Robin and the gang were busy window shopping at the various stalls and shops. A lot of them sold weapons or metal creations. Looking around, Robin soon found a very interesting shop on its own.


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    "Appraiser shop?" Robin asked.


    "Ah...that..." Quinn chuckled. "It''s a shop that makes money by identifying things magically."


    "But, wouldn''t it be more accurate to call it a business, then?" Robin asked.


    "Somewhat. But the shop has a rather interesting collection of knick-knacks which are items they aren''t able to identify." Quinn replied. "Items from earth, to be precise."


    "Eh!? Earth, you say?" Robin was surprised.


    "Yes. They pay anyone who can accurately appraise these items, as magic cannot seem to help them figure out the purpose. Earth people don''t infuse mana into their works, after all." Quinn grinned wickedly. "Can you imagine their surprise when they learned that an item they had placed upon a pedestal was actually a toilet seat?"


    "What!? You''re serious!?" Robin burst out in chuckles at the thought. Quinn nodded.


    "I was able to make quite the coin from that shop, until the owner begged me to let him off. It''s been around 20 years, or so. Perhaps I should pay another visit?" He laughed as he imagined the shopkeeper''s face.


    "From your expression, it seems you bullied them terribly." Robin wryly pointed out, with a somewhat mischievous grin. "Why not be a bit merciful and wait for a few generations to go by?"


    "Fine, but if we''re in need of any gold, then it''s something to consider." Quinn laughed.


    Behind them, Christian''s frown was surprisingly prominent. He didn''t like seeing Robin get along with this reborn human monster from Robin''s world. There was absolutely no telling at this point whether he was a friend or a foe, yet he had latched himself securely onto Robin. Moreover, there was a sort of visible harmony between them which was causing him to feel highly uncomfortable.


    Jasmine, seeing Christian''s visage, laughed to herself. Seeing Christian at a loss against his feelings was really refreshing. During this time, she forgot a bit of her resentment.


    "Jealous?" She murmured near Christian, so that the others couldn''t hear.


    "Why would I be jealous?" Christian asked through grit teeth.


    "Then why the need to frown?" She poked the visible wrinkle between his eyebrows. "It might feel like Robin is being stolen from you, but Robin isn''t one to forget a friendship."


    "Until he has so many friendships that he forgets us entirely." Christian muttered, rubbing the spot she had poked.


    "Isn''t the ability to make friends even among demonkind a good thing during this period? At the very least, this way we don''t enter another war. And that''s a good thing." Jasmine asserted.


    "Then why do I feel so..." Christian sighed.


    "What? Are you not feeling well?" Jasmine asked, with an innocent expression. Christian, upon seeing this expression, raised an eyebrow.


    "You''re messing with me, aren''t you?" He guessed. Jasmine beamed an angelic smile at him. That was all he needed to know that Jasmine truly was making fun of him. He turned his head away, refusing to speak further with his sadistic cousin.


    At this point, unbeknownst to Christian, Robin had turned her head to watch his exchange with Jasmine. As she was too far away, she couldn''t hear what was being said. However, from their expressions, she could tell that Jasmine was teasing Christian.


    ''How nice, being able to play happily like this...'' Robin thought to herself. Suddenly, she was overcome with a sudden bout of homesickness.


    Was her brother all right? She hoped he wasn''t suffering. She touched the top of her head, absentmindedly. It had been a long time since he had ruffled her hair, and spoken with her.


    Speaking of people who like to ruffle hair... Robin absentmindedly glanced over to Christian''s hand. When she realized what she was doing, she immediately looked elsewhere. ''No no no! It''s not like I want him to ruffle my hair. He''s a prince! He''s already in love with someone! Why did I even...?''


    She looked down at her hand, very confused. ''What am I doing?'' She sighed, before looking about the marketplace again.


    Jasmine, however, had noticed Robin''s subtle actions, and suddenly had a thought. She knew that Christian loved Robin. But was Robin beginning to fall for Christian? Her eyes widened slightly at the thought. Then they returned to normal.


    ''While that would certainly be interesting, it is up to Robin, herself, to decide. Whether she wishes to leave or decides to stay, I will support her either way.'' Jasmine smiled.


    --------------


    --------------


    "Didn''t I tell you to go easy on them!?" Chelsea scolded Liam as she poked an unconscious dwarf with a stick. "Now that they''re all out cold, we''ll never find the mastermind behind all this."


    "I apologize. Next time, I''ll try harder to hold back." Liam replied.


    "No need, I suppose." Chelsea stood up, dusting her skirts off. "The main villain is already here. Isn''t that right, Boss Traughn?"


    A somewhat chiselled-looking dwarf stepped out of an alleyway into the clearing. "It''s true that I am Boss Traughn. But, that doesn''t mean you can slander me as you please."


    "Oh? But these dwarves were busy telling us to ''Wait until our Boss Traughn gets here'' so many times, that I slapped them all unconscious." Jasmine slyly fibbed.


    "That''s a bold-faced lie! Who is it that is trying to frame me!?" Traughn punched a nearby old wall, collapsing it.

 151 She Decides To Stone Gamble

    "Indeed, that very well might be the case." Chelsea nodded, sympathetically. "If it weren''t for the fact that this is your only warehouse."


    Traughn''s eyes narrowed, and his square jaw seemed even more square.


    "Who sent ye?" He asked, discarding all fakeness and courtesy.


    Chelsea chuckled. "Poor, poor Boss Traughn. Did you think the council of Nobles didn''t know what you''ve been up to? Did you think that your strength is truly waning due to age? Did you think that they would willingly hand over the antidote after making you the front dwarf for all their dirty funds collection work?"


    Traughn''s breath became hitched. "What are you here for?" He asked again, a vein visibly throbbing on his forehead.


    "Are ye here ta pity me? Ta mock me?" He grimaced bitterly. "I know they have no intention of lettin me leave alive. But my hands are tied fast to those dung beetle bums on their high horses."


    "Do you really think they would leave your son alone after you''re gone?" Chelsea asked.


    Traughn barked out a laugh, seeming on the brink of madness. "True enough. I underestimated ''em. There''s no way they''d have tha word ''compassion'' in their cores. That''s why I can only bring them down with me."


    "What if I were to tell you that you can do that as well as save yourself and your son without them knowing any better?" Chelsea asked.


    "Then I''d sign a lifetime contract with any devil that could folla threw." Traughn spat out immediately. "But who are ye ta ask me this?"


    "Good morning." Chelsea beamed a brilliant smile. "I''m that devil you spoke of."


    ------------


    ------------


    Robin''s attention was drawn by a large crowd to a platform area with lots of shelves. upon these shelves were stones and rocks that dwarves were walking up and down, looking at. Quite a few would point at one to a nearby attendant and exchange coins in return for the stone. Another platform off to the side was reserved for cutting the stones.


    "What''s that?" She asked curiously.


    "Stone gambling." Quinn replied. "While dwarves do have a greater affinity with earth and metal, only the most skilled among them can determine whether any of those stones contain gems, magic or otherwise. That''s why, if you don''t have a gem mine in one of your family''s businesses, stone gambling can help you get an edge in the door."


    Robin paused, glancing over the stones. ''You mean they can''t see that?'' She thought to herself.


    There were an awful lot of stones. Yet, even so, Robin could easily glowing auras of differing degrees surrounding quite a few stones. One of the stones with a bright blue aura, which was being cut open, revealed a large uncut sapphire within it. Robin smiled.


    "I wanna try it." She said, a mischievous grin growing on her face.


    "Don''t do it. Unless you can guarantee you''ll get a hit every time, you''ll just be wasting money." Quinn shook his head. "Well, if we were allowed to examine them by hand, then things might get easier, I could help you out. but, unfortunately, we can''t touch them unless we buy them."


    Robin nodded. It was as she expected. "Still, I''d like to try." She persisted.


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    "All right." Quinn sighed. "Looks like you''ll need to lose a few coins before you realize it''s a fruitless venture."


    "I can afford to lose once or twice upon something trivial." Robin laughed. "But today I''m feeling extra lucky." Noticing Christian looking at her, Robin winked at him. The wink was an invitation to join her conspiracy.


    Christian''s heart fluttered in shock. Robin was doubly adorable today. It was only a moment later that he realized the meaning behind that wink. He walked up to join Quinn and Robin.


    "What''s going on here?" Christian asked.


    "Robin wants to try a hand at stone gambling." Quinn rolled his eyes. "It has about as much chance of winning as a lottery."


    "Ho? Interesting...Why don''t you try it, then? I''m interested in how lucky you might be." Christian realized that this is what Robin wanted him to join in on.


    "You can''t be serious!" Quinn exclaimed.


    "Just let him buy one or two stones. What''s the worst that could happen? But...if you''re so certain that he''ll lose, why don''t we wager on the outcome?" Christian smiled, as he took out a gold coin. "I wager that Robin will find something valuable in every stone he buys."


    "You''re on!" Quinn snorted, taking out a gold coin of his own. "It''s impossible to score a hit every time. If Robin doesn''t find something of value in even one stone that she buys, I''ll win by default!"


    "And I will be the banker." Jasmine plucked the gold coins out of Quinn and Christian''s hands. She had walked up behind just in time to hear the wager. While this surprised the two, they didn''t disagree to it. Thus the three turned to watch Robin.


    "Well now it looks like I''ll have to do my best...Wish me luck~!" Robin smiled brightly as she headed for the platform.


    The first stone she picked was a stone which radiated only a faint aura. As it was rather small, instead of cutting the stone, she chose to have it sanded down instead. The dwarf working on it suddenly stopped and grabbed a cup of water, pouring it on the stone to wash the rock dust away. a glimpse of a deep purple stone peeked through.


    "It''s an amethyst!" One of the onlookers gasped. This drew a small crowd of potential buyers over to Robin''s area. They watched while the stone rubber expertly extracted the amethyst without damaging it at all. The amethyst was an oval stone no larger than a silver piece.


    "Young man, are ye willing ta part with that there stone?" A jeweler asked. It was a good quality amethyst. And this jeweler had been looking for an amethyst of just this size for a piece he was working on.


    "Unfortunately, I would like to keep this one." Robin politely refused. "I need it as evidence when I go and brag to my friends on winning first try. However, if I do find another amethyst, I''ll be sure to let you know." She replied.


    "All right then..." The jeweler sighed. he knew himself how difficult it was to find another stone after the first one.


    Robin eyed him with amusement, and then proceeded to buy the brightly glowing stones she found. Those with smaller glows she left for others to find. After all, it would not do to be too greedy.


    By the time she finished, she had bought a small pile of stones. Each time she purchased one, she kept it away in her storage bracer. Eventually, someone noticed her actions.


    "Hey, whatayah doin hiding those stones away like that? Why not open them up fer us all ta see?" a dwarf jeered.


    Robin turned to the dwarves, a troubled expression on her face.


    "Seniors, I am somewhat at a loss. Having opened a stone on first try, if my next stone were to be empty, then I will be very embarrassed." Robin apologized.


    "There''s nothing to be embarrassed about." An elderly dwarf shook his head kindly. "We old folks gamble all the time and only rarely manage to find something now and then."


    Robin paused, but then finally relented. "Fine. I will open one up, for your sake. But, please don''t laugh at me when it comes up empty."


    The surrounding dwarves agreed as Robin handed this stone over to the dwarf worker she had been to earlier.


    "Cut it this time." Robin said, looking somewhat unenthusiastic.


    The dwarf nodded and began shaving off layer after layer of stone, carefully. Robin looked at the rock inquisitively, as if she were wondering about the possibility of carving out a gem. Then she sighed and shook her head. Anyone watching would think that Robin absolutely didn''t expect a repeat to happen so soon.


    The dwarf suddenly stopped carving.


    "What''s the matter?" Robin asked. "Are you giving up, too?"


    The dwarf quietly grabbed a cup of water and carefully washed the rock dust away. A dark hint of purple with what seemed like purple flame inside, drew his attention. His hand shuddered a bit in delight.


    "A-a magic amethyst." He stammered. "It''s a magic amethyst!"

 152 She Admires Ayva

    Robin nodded her head sadly, pretending she hadn''t heard. "As I thought. Is there truly no way to pick out another amethyst without being able to see into the stone? I''m sorry for upsetting you all with my incompetence." She sighed.


    The stone cutter slapped her back in annoyance.


    "No, you fool! I''m saying you managed to pick out another gem! You''ve got a magic amethyst this time!" He said, excitedly. He had only ever cut out normal gems. But to cut out a magic gem, now he could brag with his head held high to the other stone cutters.


    Robin''s eyes widened.


    "Eh? What?!" She turned and looked at the stone cutter.


    "I got another amethyst? For real!?" Robin asked, incredulously.


    "Here, let me clean my ears out. I must have heard you wrong." Robin opened her bag as if looking for something.


    "Ow! Hey what was that for!" Robin scowled at the dwarf that had punched her in the arm.


    "Listen you onyx-haired bean pole! I''m telling you, you picked out another amethyst!" The stone cutter said angrily, shoving the partially cut ore before her face. "This one''s a magic one this time!" He said.


    "This isn''t a joke?" Robin blinked incredulously. "I-I really got one?"


    ""YES YE REALLY GOT ONE!!"" The surrounding crowd called out. Then everyone broke into laughter at Robin''s foolish display.


    "I''d say, you might have a gift fer this!" The stone cutter nodded as he sat back down, carefully rubbing off the stone around the magic amethyst.


    Robin burst out laughing, as if it just got through to her.


    "Why, so I might. So I might! Right, amethyst..." She peered into the crowd, then pointed. "earlier, you wanted an amethyst, right?"


    The jeweler pointed at himself. "Me?"


    "Yes you! Do you want this amethyst?" Robin asked.


    "Why, anyone would want that amethyst! It''s a magic gem! You could craft a magic item using a good gem like that!" The jeweler nodded, trying to subtly warn Robin not to get cheated.


    "That''s not what I was asking." Robin shook her head. "Do YOU want this amethyst?"


    "I do. But I dare not take it." The jeweler replied.


    "Why not?" Robin asked.


    "I can''t afford it." The jeweler said regretfully looking with longing at the emerging stone.


    "It''s yours." Robin replied.


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    "Wait, what?" The jeweler blinked. "Are you just giving away a magic gem?" All the dwarves present paused and began cleaning their ears, afraid they hadn''t heard correctly.


    "Yup." Robin nodded. "I just did this for fun. To actually have a magic gem on my hands, not only would I not be able to use it, I''d be terrified lest I should lose it to thieves or bandits. That''s why I''m giving it to you, who can put it to better use."


    "What about yer trophy amethyst? Are ye so certain thieves an'' bandits wouldnae go for that there shiny?" A dwarf joked.


    "Of course not." Robin replied. "My amethyst is only ordinary, nothing special, a bauble-if you will. Amethysts come and go in this kingdom like water flowing under a bridge. If you want an amethyst, you can find them anywheres in this kingdom. But a magic amethyst? These don''t come out often. Even should you have the gold to buy, there might not be the gem to sell."


    "Then isn''t that more of a reason to keep it to yerself?" The jeweler asked.


    "You dwarves are so stubborn." Robin sighed. "I wish to give, and you wish to have, but dare not receive. How can I make you accept it? If for nothing else, please take it as a token of my esteem for Innkeeper Ayva."


    That shut up all the questions. Anyone asking questions after that would look like they were questioning whether Ayva was worth giving away a magic gem. Instead, a warm glow of pride spread out among the dwarves. Yes, the Dwarf Kingdom''s Ayva was most certainly worth more than a magic gem.


    The jeweler looked at Robin closely. He hadn''t spoken a single word to anyone. Was it possible this human knew that he had been secretly commissioned to fix Ayva''s coronet? He paused for a moment, then solemnly pocketed the magic gemstone.


    "This here means more to me than ye know." He said, his voice shaking with emotion.


    "I don''t doubt it." Robin chuckled. "While I am rather curious about what you make with that, I hope it''s something good!" With that, Robin hopped off the platform and trotted back to her group.


    "I''m back" She smiled.


    Quinn glared at her with a sour face. "You cheated." He replied.


    "Why, whatever do you mean?" Robin chuckled.


    "Don''t you give me that! You knew which stones had gems in them all along. I''m not sure how, but somehow you just knew!" Quinn pointed at Robin getting ready to scold her.


    "And you!" He pointed at Christian. "You also knew all about this, somehow!"


    Christian glanced at Robin, a bemused smile on his face before shaking his head.


    "I didn''t know beforehand about this." He said. "Robin hasn''t breathed a single word to me outside of your hearing. But his confidence was what clued me in. Robin never does anything that he isn''t certain of. But, now that I do know, this is most definitely a good thing!"


    "Hmmph! Are you trying to scam me?" Quinn eyed Christian disdainfully.


    "I merely made a wager based upon an educated guess. Your lack of faith in Robin''s abilities is your own loss." Christian shook his head.


    "Ara? Are you trying to renege upon your deal?" Jasmine asked.


    "Th-they were bullying me!" Quinn said, looking hurt, pointing at Robin. "That person already knew which stones had gems in them!"


    "Hmm...well, did the bet ever stipulate that Robin couldn''t use his full abilities? I''m pretty sure that you bet upon the outcome of the treasure hunt, nothing was said about the method. I now declare, by default, Christian wins. You should know better than to make bets with a confident Christian."


    Jasmine smiled, businesslike, as she handed Quinn''s gold coin over to Christian. Christian put the gold coin away, then held out his hand towards Jasmine again.


    "What is it?" Jasmine beamed her sweet smile at him.


    "Where is my gold coin?" Christian asked.


    "I just gave it to you." Jasmine pointed out.


    "No, not that one. The coin I put down to bet in the first place. I should get two gold coins back now. I know my basic arithmetic." Christian smiled businesslike.


    "Why, so you do! What a surprise~!" Jasmine chuckled. "That gold coin was taken as a gambling tax. It''s mine now. ''The worker is worth their wages'' after all~"


    Christian scowled. "What kind of witness takes half the earnings for their wages, hmm?"


    "The rich kind." Jasmine smirked back at him, visibly daring him to go against her. Robin laughed out loud.


    "You two really are cousins!" She chortled.


    ""Who would want to be cousins with him/her!!"" They both denied at the same time. At that, the entire company burst out into laughter.


    Nobody noticed that the conversation had steered far away from Robin, all the stones she had bought, and her ability to find gems.


    ----------------


    ----------------


    "...Remember to bring your kid, and ask for Robin at the inn." Chelsea finished instructing, before she left Traughn with Liam.


    "Is this what you were after all along?" Liam asked, puzzled by Chelsea''s almost flippant change of attitude towards the dwarf, even healing up his men before she left.


    "Trust me, this will all make sense later." Chelsea laughed.


    "If you say so." Liam replied, still puzzled. They soon returned to the cafe Chelsea had been ''recuperating'' at, and not,a moment too soon. Not two minutes later, Robin''s group returned to see how Chelsea was doing.


    "Much better, thank you!" She laughed. "How did your day go? Did you manage to gain quite the haul?" Chelsea winked over at Robin.


    "Hear me out, Chelsea! This dunderhead gave away a Magic Amethyst!" Jasmine joked as she pointed at Robin.


    "Well done! You couldn''t have chosen a better time!" Chelsea chuckled.


    "I didn''t tell you so you''d approve of it! Tell Robin that sh...HE needs to stop wasting resources upon random people!" Jasmine almost let the cat out of the bag, but managed to stop herself in time.


    "You''re right." Chelsea looked at Robin in mock seriousness. "Robin, you need to stop wasting resources upon random people. Make sure you chose carefully next time you bestow fortune upon them. Even so, this time I really do approve. You did well." Chelsea nodded. Everyone aside from a confused Liam burst out into laughter.

 153 She Reveals Her Little Friend

    That night, as they were coming down to dinner, Robin was approached by a rather nervous-looking dwarf.


    "E-excuse me, ye wouldnae happen ta be Robin, would ye?" He asked.


    "I am. Why do you ask?" Robin replied, curious.


    "There''s a dwarf by the name of Traughn who wants ta see ye." The dwarf informed. "I''d be careful though. Traughn is one o'' tha council''s cronies. He might do somethin bad to ye."


    "No one can do anything bad to me without my permission." Robin replied confidently. "Does he have anyone else with him?"


    "E''s got his boy with ''im, a sickly little thing. Poor lad ''as probably been terribly mistreated." The dwarf informed.


    "I''ll be the judge of that. Thank you for informing me." Robin flipped him a copper, before heading to the front of the inn.


    "Where are you going, Robin?" Chelsea asked, noticing that Robin was not headed to the tables.


    "Someone is looking for me. I''m going to see what he wants." Robin replied.


    "Oh, that might be someone I know! Is his name Traughn?" Chelsea asked.


    "...Actually....it appears his name is Traughn." Robin nodded after recalling that the name seemed to match up.


    "I''ll come with you, then, since I''m the one who referred him to you." Chelsea excused herself from the rest of the company.


    "Remember to order us something while we''re gone!" She told Jasmine before dashing after Robin. Christian watched them leave with a visible frown upon his face.


    "You know you''ve become quite easy to read ever since Robin appeared" Jasmine noted, poking Christian in the forehead. "Whatever happened to your poker mask-like face?"


    "It was shattered the first time I tried to wake Robin up in the morning." Christian replied.


    "That long ago?" Jasmine was surprised. "Regardless, you need to get it back together soon. Otherwise, what are you going to do when Robin returns to the other world?"


    Christian looked at Jasmine, who was examining his expression.


    "Hmm, come to think of it, a crybaby face on Christian doesn''t sound too bad either."


    Christian snorted. "Who''s the real crybaby, I wonder?"


    "Who indeed?" Jasmine smiled.


    ------


    ------


    When Robin showed up with Chelsea, Traughn looked visibly relieved. The dwarves that passed by on their way to dinner didn''t say anything, but they all gave him a somewhat searching stare. It was understandable, given last night''s unwelcome visitors, that the regulars were somewhat on guard against the council and its members. But, being on the end of that sort of stare was far from comfortable.


    "Ye''re Robin, right?" Traughn asked.


    "I am." Robin nodded. "What can I do for you, Mr. Traughn?"


    Traughn looked down at his son, and choked up, unable to get past the lump in his throat. Robin, seeing his somewhat anguished expression noticed he did not hate his child. Ergo, the bruises and pallor on the child''s face and hands might not be a result of mistreatment. In conclusion, Traughn''s visit most definitely had something to do with his son.


    "Perhaps we could take this discussion to somewhere with a more private setting?" Chelsea asked, glancing over at Ayva, who had walked over once she saw Robin.


    "Is it about your child, Mr. Traughn?" Robin asked, prompting him for an answer. Traughn nodded, his eyes turning red, a precursor to tears.


    "...Very well. I will see him in private. Ayva, do you have a room I could borrow?" Robin asked.


    Ayva paused, cautious, but once she saw the child, her heart softened.


    "There''s a waiting room to the left, past the coat racks." She sighed, leading the way.


    "Chelsea, I may need your help. Come, this way, Mr Traughn." Robin ordered, following Ayva.


    Traughn watched them leading the way, then looked down at his boy. Nearly overwhelmed, he hugged his child to himself, picking him up.


    "Ye''re gonna be alright, lad. Ye''re gonna be alright" He murmured, as he hurried after them.


    The waiting room had a window seat, which Robin took advantage of to sit the child down.


    "Chelsea, have you taken a look at him yet?" Robin asked.


    "I haven''t. But, from what I see, it''s not something my water healing can help with." Chelsea responsed. "I''ve seen something like this before, but I was helpless against fighting it."


    "Got it. Then we might need to call Quinn in hear." Robin muttered, her expression serious. She looked about the room.


    "Close the curtains, and bar the door for a bit." She instructed while calling out to Skye through their bond. ''Skye, can you hear me? come to the waiting room beyond the coat hall.''


    Soon enough, a muffled thump thump thump sounded at the door. Robin nodded, and Chelsea opened the door, letting the cat inside.


    "Is that a cat?" The boy asked, weakly, his eyes brightening a bit.


    "Not exactly." Robin replied. "It''s a flying cat. But this time, Skye here is gonna help me talk to someone who can help you out."


    ''I knew it might be something like this...'' Skye sighed. and prodded Robin''s belt with his nose. ''Wake up. You might have a patient.''


    Then the belt seemed to have clear strands separate from it, like water running over a polished stone. The king slime gathered itself up on the counter in all its miniaturized glory. It separated a tendril to touch Skye''s forehead.


    "A slime!? What in the world is a slime gonna do ta help tha situation?" Traughn asked, baffled. "Ifn''s yer pulling my leg, there won''t be a single stone ye can hide behind, mark my words!" He added, somewhat fearful.


    "Noted. Hmm, it has already been so short a time, yet people have forgotten this world''s best healers, huh." Robin noted. "Little king slime, do you know what is wrong with this child?"


    The king reached a tendril out to the child, and placed it on the wrist, as if feeling the pulse. Then it jiggled excitedly.


    ''New food! Offshoot is infected with food...'' It explained the situation through Skye to Robin.


    "As I thought." Robin looked serious. "Your child has been infected with a parasite. It''s a type that reproduces inside the child. The colonies attach themselves about the blood vessels, which results in a slow internal bleeding that creates vibrant bruises under the skin."


    "And yer expecting me ta believe that?" Traughn asked shakily.


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    "This flying cat here can communicate with monsters and beasts alike. As I have a telepathic bond with it, I can hear its voice. In this way, I am able to communicate with the king slime."


    ''How long would it take to extract the colonies?'' Robin asked the slime.


    ''Two ways. different time.'' came the reply. ''First way, quickest, but painful. Offshoot will leak much blood. Takes five minutes. Second way, slow. Two hours.''


    Robin turned to Traughn.


    "There are two methods to extract these things." Robin told him. "The first method is the quickest one. it will purge all the worms from the boy within five minutes. The only thing is, in the process, he will also lose a lot of blood."


    Traughn''s face paled a bit. His child was so weak already, wouldn''t losing a lot of blood only kill the poor lad?


    "And, the second method?" He asked, his voice trembling with anxiety.


    Robin nodded. "The second method, although a bit slower, should also be able to purge them within two hours. But it would minimize the bleeding."


    "The second method, please." Traughn instantly replied. He didn''t want any more harm to come to his child. Robin nodded, and informed the king slime, which engulfed the child like a sleeping bag. Under the slime''s care, the little boy almost instantly fell asleep.


    "What are you doing?" Traughn asked, alarmed.


    "This is what is necessary for the treatment." Robin replied. "It''s best for his mind that he does not see how the parasites will be removed. But, if you are worried about it..."


    Robin received permission from the king slime first, then placed her hand upon the king slime, who engulfed her hand up to the wrist.


    "I am willing to lose my hand, should it not be successful." Robin replied, calmly.


    Ayva looked shocked, and worried. She glanced over at Chelsea, to see what she thought. But, upon seeing Chelsea''s confident smile, Ayva relaxed. Robin was only doing this to comfort a worried parent. Nodding to Robin as she left, she stood guard before the door. She would protect the room from any interruptions for these next two hours.

 154 She Treats and Gets Treated

    *Quick warning: the details of the medical treatment will be somewhat graphic. for those who are not good with it, please skip past the double bars with stars in between.*


    Though it was barely visible, soon enough, tiny white worms emerged through the child''s pores around the bruised areas. It looked similar to pus emerging from a pimple. These were then collected, and placed into a ball, which grew slowly over the course of two hours. By the time treatment was finished, there was a ball the size of a fist separated within the king slime''s body.


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    The king slime made sure that all had emerged, then emitted a peculiar vibration, that caused a strange sound for over a minute, before separating from both the child, and Robin. Its usually clear slime body turned obsidian black as it digested the parasites.


    "What wazzat sound earlier?" Traughn asked, after seeing his child had a peaceful expression, and his face was a healthier color than before.


    "Egg killing." Robin responded. "The parasites can move, but the eggs were left behind. If they were not destroyed, your child would have just had the same problem come back again."


    Traughn reached out his hand, intending to hold his child. But, before his hand could touch the lad, Robin''s voice stopped him.


    "I would not do that if I were you." She said.


    "What? Ah''m not allowed ta hold mah own son?" Traughn glared at Robin.


    "Of course you can hold him." Robin replied. "But not right now. You are also in need of treatment."


    Traughn recovered his hand, shakily.


    "How did ye know?"


    "Your beard and clothes can cover up a lot of it, but it cannot cover up the vivid bruising on the back of your hand."


    "Heh. Looks like ye got me." Traughn sighed. "Ah was originally only gwing ta owe you fer saving mah son. Tha ones as responsible fer this i''n''t tha type as can be brought down by tha law."


    "So you were going to go on a suicide mission?" Robin asked. "Leave your wife and child behind to mourn your death as a criminal? Even worse, leaving them to face the results of your selfish actions?"


    "Mah wife..." Traughn looked down at a knot in the wood grain of the floor. "She''s no longer alive."


    "Even worse then." Robin replied. "Your son has already lost one parent. For the health of his mind and heart, I cannot allow him to lose the other, from a professional point of view."


    "But what am Ah ta do then!?" Traughn clenched his fist painfully. "Ah cannae allow them ta continue this! Ta use poor folks as Ah was!"


    "Leave this to the professionals, obviously." Robin smiled. "And take the time you have been given to raise your son in peace."


    "All tha folks as can do somethin about et are under their blasted payroll." Traughn grit his teeth.


    "Am I not in front of you?" Robin asked with a playful sigh. "All right. Since you cannot recognize me, surely you would recognize this, right?" Robin brought out the hero''s blade.


    "...You!-you-you-you''re tha!" Traughn''s eyes widened.


    Robin brought a finger up to her lips. "That''s right. But in exchange for this secret, I''m going to need your full cooperation, okay?"


    Traughn''s face turned black as he considered things. He indeed owed the hero.


    "Before Ah give ye my answer, kin Ah ask ye a question?" He finally opened his mouth.


    "Ask away." Robin nodded.


    "Are ye hear ta get rid of our king because he''s a demon protecto-I mean a guardian now?" Traughn stared at Robin.


    Robin shook her head. "Nope! I actually came here to acquire his approval."


    "...Good. Ye''ll have mah help then. But ifn''s yer lying tah me, there''s not a place as can hide ye round here." Traughn sighed.


    "Ah''ll take tha treatmint then." He said. By this time, the king slime had finished digesting the parasites.


    "Which method?" Robin asked upon being prompted by the king slime.


    "Get em out quick as ye can!" Traughn replied, gritting his teeth. "Ahm naht efreed uv a little pain!"


    The slime king engulfed Traughn but for the area around his nose and mouth. This time, it was near instantaneous. Traughn couldn''t help but groan a bit, despite his clenched teeth, the pain was so much. The skin around the bruises boiled like water as the parasites sought to leave as quickly as possible, tearing his skin open in the process.


    Robin was unsure how Traughn managed to bear this for five whole minutes, but she was very much impressed. He was quiet even through the egg removal process, which would have been very painful for him. When the king slime had closed up all his wounds and separated in order to digest its feast, Traughn didn''t move a muscle.


    -----------------------


    *****End of Treatment*****


    -----------------------


    Robin came closer to see what was wrong. His eyes seemed glazed over as he stared off into space. She wave her hand around in front of his eyes. Then chuckled to herself as she realized what had happened. Traughn had been in a dead faint the whole time.


    Off to the side, Chelsea had watched attentively with a somewhat admiring gaze. Robin felt that if Chelsea were in Japan, it would be the kind of gaze a kohai gave towards their sempai. She could almost imagine Chelsea saying, ''As expected of Slime-Sempai! A perfect execution of water healing once again! How wonderful! *blush*'' At that thought, Robin fought hard to keep a straight face. Now was not the time for laughter.


    Ayva came in soon afterwards.


    "Is it finished?" She asked.


    Robin nodded.


    "The little one should be waking up soon."


    While they were talking, the king slime once again disguised itself by latching onto Robin''s belt.


    "And what about the big one?" Ayva asked.


    Robin smirked and brought out one of the failed food creations she had been given earlier by the kitchen staff. This one smelled particularly nasty. She waved it around, close to Traughn''s nose. She just managed to jerk the dish back before Traughn sneezed.


    "Is et over?" He asked, his voice more gravely than usual.


    "It''s finished." Robin nodded.


    "....Papa?" A weak voice called from the window seat. Traughn jumped up off the floor and quickly went over to the small lad that had finally woken up. Already his complexion was much better than earlier.


    "Papa''s here." Traughn replied, clasping his son''s hand.


    "I had a nightmare." The small lad spoke, then paused. surprisingly, he didn''t ache all over.


    "There''s no nightmares as kinna be beaten back by you''re papa. You''re safe." Traughn brushed some hair gently out of his son''s face.


    "I dreamed that you were running after bad guys and you disappeared, and I was all alone..." The boy clenched and unclenched his hand in wonder.


    "It doesn''t hurt anymore! papa, am I in heaven? Auntie said that only going to heaven would make it not hurt anymore."


    Traughn sniffed disdainfully. "Well tha next time ye see Auntie, ye can tell her tha she kin nae be more wrong. You were healed by the doctor here, right as rain."


    He turned to Robin. "How kin Ah ever thank ye?"


    "I am relatively new here, so we''ll start with information." Robin smiled.


    -----------


    Half an hour later, Robin and Chelsea came out of the room.


    "Now that that''s over, I''m famished! time to get dinner." She joined her companions at the table. most of them had already eaten and were sippin their 2nd beers.


    "Hey, Robin! What took you so long?" Jasmine pouted. "It''s been almost three hours!"


    "Sorry! This was something I couldn''t overlook. I''ll tell you after I eat. I''m famished!" Robin sat down at the table.


    "Ah, sorry about that. Since it had something to do with my own people, let me treat you for your pains." Ayva motioned to one of the kitchen hands, and several dishes were brought out.


    There was lamb steak cooked with garlic cloves, lamb pie, stewed vegetables, and some sort of flat pancake like bread. For dessert there was even apple pudding. It was not the kind of pudding that looks like mayonnaise and has the consistency of custard. It was of a solid bready kind, like christmas pudding.


    Robin, curious about the pancake-like bread, sampled a taste.


    "Potatoes?" She asked, surprised.

 155 She Arrives At The Ryokan

    "Aye, that it is~! There''s nothin'' better than potato bread ta sop up tha meat gravy. Our Patsy here makes the best potato bread in the kingdom!" Ayva said proudly.


    "In that case, I must try this then!" Robin said before digging into her food with an enthusiasm that only hunger could bring out. Her fork didn''t stop moving until she finished dessert.


    "Ah, that was delightful!" Robin sighed in satisfaction, sitting back in her chair.


    "I can''t believe it. You finished all that in just ten minutes!?" Jasmine noted, incredulously.


    "It''s amazing how fast you can eat when you aren''t talking." Robin nodded.


    "We aren''t in any hurry. You could have taken your time." Jasmine grumbled, worried about Robin getting indigestion.


    "You say that, but if I didn''t hurry, you''d have less time to enjoy the hot springs." Robin pointed out.


    "You''re absolutely right. When are we heading over?" Jasmine asked eagerly, a bright smile lighting up her face. Chelsea chuckled as Jasmine''s sudden change of tune. Robin thought Jasmine''s current expression suited her much better.


    "It should be soon. Ayva said she would take us over after dinner." Robin replied, as she took out her fruit water to drink.


    "Wait, what is that?" Quinn asked.


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    "Fruit water." Robin said as a matter of fact.


    "No, why is it bubling?" Quinn asked.


    "Ah. I thought it was a bit flat, so I tried carbonizing it using a concentrated air stream. As I thought, sparkling is the way to go! Wanna try some?" She asked, offering him the pitcher.


    "It looks like ye''ve thought of something interesting, Deary." A voice came out from behind Robin. It was Ayva. "Is that a new kind of drink ye''ve got there?"


    "Not really. More like an improvement upon the drink you approved of earlier. Wanna try the new improved version?" Robin asked. Quinn was already pouring himself a glass.


    "I would. I''m not sure how much adding bubbles would improve upon the taste, though." Ayva had the barkeep toss her another mug.


    "Here you go." Robin poured the mug as tall as the fizz would allow her to. She paused five seconds to let the fizz disseminate. Then she topped it off.


    "Try sipping it first." Robin advised.


    Ayva sipped. "Oh my! OH MY!" She sipped again. "Why that''s a wonderful thing you''ve managed to create there, Deary. How did you manage to make it bubble like that, I can''t possibly imagine!"


    "Robin, this..." Quinn was taken aback after trying the drink. "This is Spr*te, isn''t it?"


    "Well, if you''re talking about the version before they added an ungodly amount of sugar to the recipe and ruined it? Yes. It does taste a bit like that." Robin replied.


    "This... is someone else''s recipe?" Ayva asked, feeling a bit put out that she couldn''t buy the method to make the drink.


    "You could say that." Robin replied.


    "But where I come from, drink recipes are not as regulated as food recipes. Take this drink here, for instance." Robin lifted her glass.


    "There is a rather famous mixed drink made using this as an ingredient. You don''t happen to have any grenadine, do you?"


    "Whazzat?" Ayva tilted her head.


    "No, the dwarves don''t have pomegranates here." Quinn shook his head. "Besides, it''s spring now. Pomegranate is an autumn fruit. Good thing I have this." He brought out a glass decanter half-filled with red liquid.


    "You made it?" Robin asked.


    "No. I received it. The elves like to make concentrated fruit syrups to add to their tea. This is a mixture of strawberry and pomegranate syrup. You can have some if you make me one as well." Quinn replied.


    "Great! we can make it here, then!" Robin smiled. She uncapped the decanter and poured a small stream of red into all three cups, stirring it once to make the syrup mix.


    Then she brought out some preserved cherries, and dropped two into each glass via a spoon.


    "Done! Enjoy your Shirley Temple!" Robin smiled as she pushed the mug towards Ayva, and the glass back towards Quinn.


    "A what? Surely...Tample?" Ayva asked, confused.


    "It was named after a popular delightful bubbly little dancer girl who became quite famous where I''m from." Robin replied.


    "Oh! Shirley! Not surely...I get it now!" Ayva realized.


    "That''s right." Robin smiled. Then she glanced over at Quinn, and noticed that he hadn''t tasted the drink yet.


    "What''s the matter? Is it not sweet enough for you?"


    "Aren''t you giving me back the grenadine?" Quinn asked.


    "Do you want a ready-made barrel of Shirley Temple or not?" Robin asked.


    "Ah. Fine then!" Quinn sat back in his chair and brought his glass up to his lips, enjoying the nostalgic taste.


    Ayva''s face positively beamed with delight. "I don''t usually enjoy it if it isn''t alcohol, but this is definitely the best drink outside of beer that I ever did taste!"She said, enjoying the rare treat slowly.


    Robin also sat back enjoying her glass.


    --------


    "This way, this way!" Ayva lead them down the well lit pathway to a beautiful wrought-iron gate. There was no keyhole, but it was clearly locked.


    "How are we gonna get in?" Gerard asked.


    "Hold the stampede. If Ye''d just be patient, I''ll let ye in." Ayva chuckled and lifted her hand. She touched a carved piece of quartz to the decorative-looking stone in the center of the gate.


    Click. The door swung open, revealing a path lined with glowing stones, and flowering trees.


    "This way, it''s not too far now. just down this pathway." Ayva eagerly led them forward down the path.


    "An don''t dawdle about if''n ye dinna want ta get lost!" She warned, leading them past several branching lit pathways. Soon, they came upon what Robin recognized as a Ryokan.


    "Hmm?...This building..." Robin muttered just loud enough for Ayva to hear it.


    "Aye, it''s a bit strange innit?" Ayva nodded. "I hear tell that the plans for this building were bestowed upon mah grandad by the hero himself a little over a hundred years ago. The water around here isn''t suitable fer drinking. But the hero somehow found out that et was just perfect fer soakin. He even left a sacred tome with lots of pictures, showing us how ta properly behave. The strange thing is, the images are backwards instead. Unfortunately, the writing is hopelessly unreadable."


    ''Sounds like he left a manga on onsens then...'' Robin thought as she nodded, continuing the conversation. "Ho? I see...So there was a hero in these parts around a hundred years ago, huh?"


    Quinn rolled his eyes. ''Didn''t I tell you as much earlier!?'' He thought dourly.


    "Yes. That''s around the same time the hero cut open the great mountain rift." Ayva explained. "While we dinna know what ta do with et at tha time, it has become our main source for magic stones, currently, due to the long lasting effects of the hero''s magic. It''s even so powerful that the land on the other side has a completely different climate, being able ta grow potatoes, corn, and wheat. Due to that, the land over there is called the Hearthlands."


    Impressive indeed!" Robin nodded, amiably.


    "Ah, I do need to warn ye, shoes are nae allowed in tha building. Ye''ll need ta remove them at tha entrance. An'' since a lot of tha hot springs are outdoors, ye''ll be issued some special footwear for the pathways. But! Ye will not wear them in the buildings. Understand?" Ayva looked sternly at the group. Aparently, she had had to say this many times to tourists.


    "We understand, Ayva." Robin waved her hand to placate the dwarf woman''s frustration. "Seriously, how many people have ignored the rules for you to be so distraught?"


    "Too many! I kinna tell ye how many tatame I''ve had ta replace because of it!" Ayva sighed begrudgingly.


    "Hmm? You? I thought this place was run by your cousin?" Robin asked.


    "Before I started mah tavern, I used ta work here. Well, tha truth is, Ah''m actually allergic ta rice wine. So, I branched off inta makin beer instead. Then the tavern did so well, it quickly became an inn. So, I only come here fer ol time''s sake." Ayva chatted. When they reached the building, Ayva slid the door open.


    "Whoah!? That''s a door? It totally looked like a large frame of windows! How surprising!" Jasmine exclaimed in delight. "A sliding door, huh? it''s like a secret entrance~! How novel!"


    Robin lowered her eyes as they stepped into the entrance way. The wooden area for them to remove their shoes...the familiar scent of sulphur, the well-preserved tatami mats...it was quite nostalgic. Robin lifted her head up to look around.

 156 She Enters the Room

    "Yer here! Ahem! Walcom to Ragnok Hot Springs! Tha best private resort in tha city!"


    A bearded dwarf bowed politely to them in a uniform that was loosely based off a kimono. Robin could see a buttonless jacket with wide sleeves. The lapels were loosely crossed over each other and secured with a wide heavily decorated leather belt.


    ''Ah, it''s crossed backwards...'' Robin noticed.


    "Landsakes! Why are ye greeting us dressed like this? I thought ye were gowin ta do things seriously this time!" Ayva scolded the dwarf with a shake of her head.


    "Hmmm. I didn''t realize it was customary to cross-dress in this ryokan, waka-okami-san." Robin noted.


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    "Eh?" Christian did not understand.


    "So that means..." Quinn looked more closely at the bearded figure before them.


    "Eeeehhh!?" Jasmine and Chelsea exclaimed. Gerard''s eyes nearly popped out of his head.


    Keith shook his head. He was used to seeing dwarves, due to the mountains in the north having rich mines.


    The guards remained silent, but they looked at each other, unsure how to react to such a revelation. Liam was also silent. He already knew the dwarf was a female by smell.


    "Ach! Ye realized so soon? How? Ah thought mah actin was perfect!" The bearded dwarf exclaimed in surprise. "Ah even sent Marlgurn away fer a bit ta try an trick ye."


    "Your kimono is crossed incorrectly." Robin pointed out to the lady. "And your posture gave you away."


    "Tch! Old habits truly do die hard." The dwarf sighed.


    "Sister, if ye wanted ta pull this off, ye should''ve warned me first!" Ayva shook her head with a sigh.


    "Bleh! Ye''d never let me if''n I told ye I wanted to! That''s why I decided it on mah own!" Ayva''s sister replied sulkily.


    "Good that ye know. Now, shoo shoo! Go an get changed." Ayva shooed her sister away.


    "Aye an now ye shoo me away again! Ahm tha waka-okame, not ye!" The sister complained.


    ''Okami'' Robin mentally corrected.


    "Ah''ll treat ye like yer tha okame when ye begin ta act like tha okame!" Ayva jeered. "Now go make yerself presentable!"


    "Tch! Alway''s ruining mah fun." The bearded dwarf grumbled as she strode off down the left-hand hallway.


    "That was...Ayva''s sister?" Christian and Keith looked at each other with odd expressions. It was indeed quite strange to meet a bearded dwarf woman.


    "All right!" Ayva, clapped her hands to get the group''s attention.


    "Tha benches over there are fer ye ta take off yer shoes. In tha drawers, ye''ll find slippers fer wandering tha building. And in tha cabinet over here, ye''ll find our special stilted sandals called gaita."


    ''Geta.'' Robin mentally corrected. She removed her knee-high boots.


    ''As expected of a magic clothing set, there''s no stench at all, despite the near constant use.'' She noted, as she slipped into a pair of slippers her size.


    "Is everyone wearin slippers?" Ayva asked. "Okay! Ah will lead ye to yer rooms before mah sister tries enny other mischief." Ayva walked with a knowing gait down the wooden hallway to their right.


    "Tha walls are quite thin, so if ye wish ta speak, please hold yer yells and yer yelps in until ye go outside." Ayva stopped at what seemed to be a dead end. Then she slid open the door to her right.


    "This room is fer tha girls." Ayva said. She then opened the door across from the girls room. In comparison, it was much larger.


    "This room is fer tha men." Ayva pointed out.


    "Do note, ye''ll all find proper hot springs clothes in tha chest of drawers in each room." Ayva notified the whole group.


    "Robin, you''ll be joining us in the men''s room this time, right?" Christian asked, tugging at Robin''s sleeve. Quinn, seeing this, nearly spurted out into laughter. Christian wanted Robin to join them in the men''s room? It was a good thing Quinn had a darned good poker face.


    Robin glanced down at the hand. Then she looked up at the prince, about to refuse. But then she was stuck in difficulty. His gaze which innocently beamed ''There''s no way that Robin wouldn''t join us, right?'' caused Robin to blank on how to refuse him.


    Jasmine and Chelsea also looked like they suddenly realized Robin''s dilemma. They looked at each other. They had been looking forward to the hot springs so much that they forgot to plan how to prevent revealing Robin''s gender.


    "Um..." ''Can you stop looking at me like that!'' Robin inwardly complained. She was in a bind. She had to refuse him. But how?


    At this point, Ayva came to the rescue.


    "Ah, wait, wait. Marlgurn wants ta have a good talk with tha young master, here, first. If''n ye dinna mind, o'' course?" She cued Robin.


    "Oh? Then it would be rude of me to refuse, I suppose." Robin retrieved her sleeve from Christian''s grasp, and turned away, not daring to look at his crestfallen expression.


    "Then I''ll also go-" Christian began.


    "No need." Robin replied. "You go and enjoy the hot springs. This shouldn''t take too long."


    Jasmine smiled behind her hand at Christian''s obvious frustration. "Come on, Chelsea. You and I are going to have a good soak in the hot springs!"


    "Ah! Ah''ll help show ye how ta do things properly." Ayva volunteered. "Tha office is back down the hallway to yer left, and down tha other side in tha new section. ye kinnae miss et!" She told Robin.


    "I understand." Robin nodded. Then she smiled cheekily at the group, with a wave of her hand.


    "Have fun! I''ll be back soon." Before turning around and heading back down the hallway.


    ''Why is everything working against me right now!'' Christian inwardly cried. Yet, his determination only grew stronger.


    ''No, it''s not over yet! I will get him to spend time together with me in the hot springs and deepen our bonds of friendship!''


    The poor foolish prince had no idea what kind of trouble he was asking for. What a pity. Everyone who actually did know Robin''s situation was determined not to tell him.


    -----------


    "She said I couldn''t miss it..." Robin muttered, meandering down the hallway at a leisurely pace. A set of open doors up ahead drew her attention, as the decoration was clearly more elaborate than others.


    ''Is that what she meant?'' Robin thought as she approached the open doorway.


    Glancing inside, the first thing she saw was Ayva''s sister, with her kimono hung about her waist, and nothing covering her upper half but her chest binding and voluptuous chestnut beard.


    Robin''s eyes widened when she realized what she was seeing, and she quickly settled her gaze elsewhere, an embarassed blush creeping on her face.


    "Hmm?" Ayva''s sister suddenly looked over at the door, seeing Robin there.


    "...Ah...pervert~! What on earth are you doing, looking at me in this state of undress!" Ayva chirped playfully, striking a pose. Robin rigidly stared up at the ceiling.


    "Um...You''re Ayva''s Sister, right?" She asked slowly.


    "That I am~! Meredith at yer service~!" The dwarf lady replied flirtily.


    "Um...well then, Meredith...do you always have the habit of undressing with the doors wide open?" She asked, twiddling her thumbs awkwardly.


    "Why do you want to know?" Meredith drew closer, and winked at Robin.


    "Because I am seriously concerned about your mental health." Robin replied stoically.


    At that, Meredith burst out into a fit of laughing. "Don''t be alarmed, deary. Et was just an honest prank. Ayva told me about yer...condition, ye see."


    Robin sighed in relief. "Oh, thank goodness! But, I beg of you, put on some proper clothes before someone here misunderstands."


    Ayva laughed and donned another kimono, this one with a stripped pattern running down the lower half of it.


    "Yeah, all that flowery stuff dinna suit me very well. Ah''ve always looked better in men''s clothes. So, now we must get to business!" Meredith closed the sliding doors and sat down at the table.


    "Business?" Robin sat down opposite her.


    "Yes. Business." Meredith nodded. "Ah''ve noticed there are a lot of strapping young men among yer group-"


    "Hold on." Robin raised her hand. "Before we continue, you aren''t going to ask my help in getting you together with any of them, right?"


    "Lansakes, no! I would''n think of et!" Meredith chuckled. "What I''m talkin about is gossip."


    "Gossip?" Robin asked, confused.


    "Aye, gossip!" Meredith nodded, then leaned in and whispered near Robin''s ear. "Mainly, which one of them lads is tha one ye dinna want ta know yer a girl?"

 157 She Discovers Her Budding Affections

    "Er...all of them, I suppose. But, I''m pretty sure all the girls already know." Robin replied.


    "Boo! Yer not being honest here." Meredith pursed her lips. "Okay, how about this, then. Out of all the lads here, which one do ye want ta know aboot ye last?"


    Immediately, Christian''s face came to the front of Robin''s mind. She blinked.


    "I see ye''ve got someone, than." Meredith leaned back, a roguish smile upon her face.


    "Ye know, the person you usually want least ta know ye''re not being honest, is usually the one ye care about the most. An those are tha ones ye end up falling in love with." Meredith pointed out, pouring herself a cup of tea.


    Robin opened her mouth, intending to refute, but couldn''t. She considered the situation carefully. Did she really care about Christian...to the point of love? She certainly didn''t hate him...but...


    Going over her memories, Robin found she truly did care about Christian. The time they spent together had unnoticeably become the times she treasured. She had caught a glimmer of an idea back at the tower. But she had been denying it all this time. Because...


    Finally, Robin opened her mouth.


    "It would never work out. He already has someone he loves. I won''t break up a happy couple out of selfishness."


    "One-sided love is still love, deary." Meredith pointed out.


    "So what if I do? So what if I don''t? He and I live in two different worlds. I am bound to leave him...It would never work." Robin shook her head.


    "Ah, me. Ya can lead a horse ta water..." Meredith shook her head and clucked to herself.


    "Hello?, Merry? I can''t find Robin. Have ye seen the dear?" Ayva''s voice can from the other side of the sliding doors.


    "Don worry, Sister, Robin''s in here with me!" Meredith winked at Robin conspiratorily.


    "Ah, ye scared me fer a moment. Merry didn''t do anything too bad to ye, did she?" Ayva asked as she opened the door.


    Robin glanced at Merry.


    "If she didn''t know my secret..." She began slowly. "Then I''d have thought she was trying to pull a marriage scam."


    "Pppft! Hahahah! Marriage scam!? That''s a good ''un!" Merry chortled.


    "Ye didn''t!" Ayva gasped disapprovingly.


    "I''m afraid she already has. But she owned up to her prank before things truly became awkward." Robin poured herself a cup of tea.


    "And so? I believe I was supposed to have a good talk with your cousin, Marlburn, was it?" Robin asked.


    ""Marlgurn."" The two sisters corrected.


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    "Ah, yes. Marlgurn." Robin nodded, sipping at the tea. "I''m afraid I didn''t quite make it to the office. Is he waiting for me?"


    Ayva smiled bashfully. "Actually..." She glanced at Merry. "That was just a ruse. Tha real reason Ah sent ye away is cuz there''s actually a secret hidden hot spring on tha property, which would be perfect fer helping ye ta keep yer gender hidden. Ye can soak there in peace, an then just tell the others that yer already overheated when ye return."


    "So thorough!" Robin exclaimed. ''Unlike a certain duo'' She thought to herself.


    -----


    ""Achoo!"" Jasmine and Chelsea both sneezed at the same time. They were in the middle of washing up before entering the hot spring.


    "Am I catching a cold?" Jasmine wondered.


    "No, I think it''s the smell of the sulphur. It''s tickling my nose." Chelsea said as she made a face and wrinkled her nose.


    "Well, I suppose we can''t avoid it for now..." Jasmine sighed. "So we need to make sure to enjoy this experience to our utmost! Right?!"


    "Yessiree!" Chelsea fake saluted. "Ack! I got soap in my eyes!"


    --------


    Robin was led down a secret pathway that was unlit by luminescent stones. Ayva held a dark lantern with her to light the way. They walked straight up to the gargantuan stone boulder in the center of the property. To be honest, it looked like an egg-shaped volcano, easily four, if not five stories tall.


    Robin looked up at it in admiration of its size, until she heard a familiar click. She glanced down to see a stone door detach itself from the boulder, swinging open silently. She had honestly thought the boulder was there for mere decoration as part of the landscape. But, in reality, she found out it was not.


    After following Ayva inside, she found it was the secret hot springs room. The spring itself was an opaque blue. A circle had been cut out of the ceiling to release the steam and let the moonlight shine in.


    "This is our secret hot spring." Ayva replied. "Ah''ve already had Merry grab ye some clothes, so ye can relax and have a good undisturbed soak in here."


    "Thank you for everything, Ayva." Robin replied. "You''re a lifesaver."


    "I dinna about that, but if''n ye like, I kin show ye the sacred tome we have preserved in the study once yer done here."


    "Oh? That would be lovely, thank you." Robin replied with a warm smile.


    "Have a good soak then!" Ayva waved a farewell as she left the room.


    Robin placed all her clothes within her bracer, and placed it off to the side with her magic bag, where she could keep an eye on it. Why didn''t Robin place her magic bag into her storage bracer as well?


    Well...


    Robin didn''t know what would happen if she put a spacial storage bag inside another spacial storage. But, she was not willing to risk anything bad happening. For all she knew, she would be accidentally sent to an astral plane, or have all her items be destroyed or lost in a spacial rift. And so, for the time being, the two remained separate.


    After she had washed and entered the hot springs, the earlier conversation with Merry came to mind. Her cheeks blushed as she lowered herself in the water and blew bubbles.


    ------------


    "Ah~Why didn''t I ever think about trying this sooner? I feel like all my fatigue is just melting away..." Grey relaxed into the pool until only his head was above water.


    Christian sat in the water, too. But, he was not quite relaxed. He was sitting where he had a clear view of the entrance, so he would know when Robin arrived. Every now and then he would glance at the exit.


    "Give it up. The dwarf is probably going on a long gaff about his great grand-uncle or something." Quinn shook his head, and patted Christian''s shoulder.


    "Robin said he''d be here later." Christian replied evenly.


    "Oh? You trust Robin''s word that much, huh?" a nearby Keith noted. ''Even though it was pretty clear that he wasn''t interested in joining us, earlier.''


    Keith looked at Christian, pondering Robin''s reaction. Originally, he thought that Robin might be mysophobic, but now...


    ''If I''m not wrong...Robin probably...No, this kind of thing should be confirmed directly. I won''t say anything unless I know for certain.''


    "He''s taking too long. What is keeping him?" Christian grumbled.


    "Hey, you think he went and took a dip in the public mixed bath?" Earl wondered.


    "Mixed bath? Heh! What''s the difference between the mixed bath and the women''s bath?" Daniel jeered.


    "I dunno. Would you be confident enough to enter the mixed bath and have the ladies stare at you?" Grey snorted. The noblemen shuddered. While they were confident in their appearance, such a thing would be the exact opposite of relaxing.


    "Robin''s not the type to do something like that." Christian shook his head.


    "Why not? He''s a natural lady killer. You remember the ball a few months ago." Earl pointed out.


    "That was because of his status. If he wasn''t the hero, would they have paid him any attention?" Christian replied, a bit heated.


    """Yes.""" The men replied.


    "Ooh, is the prince jealous? Or don''t you realize that Robin is naturally good-looking? Seriously, he looks almost like a doll!" Grey teased.


    "I''m not-!" Christian denied.


    "He can swordfight, has insane stamina, is all attribute with magic, smart, can cook amazing foreign dishes, and can do handy craft? Seriously? Someone that freakishly perfect shouldn''t be a man~" Earl counted off the things they had learned about Robin, ending it with a joke.


    "Well, too bad then! Robin just so happens to be a man." Christian chuckled. "Feeling insignificant yet? I''m surprised you haven''t bowed to his obvious superiority, yet!"


    "Ooh! We should, we should!" Grey laughed. "The next time we see him, we should all bow to his superiority. Nobody say anything about why we''re bowing, okay?"


    The guards jokingly agreed.


    "But still, it''s been almost an hour. Is he even coming? I''m gonna need to get out soon." Daniel noted.

 158 She Gets Heat Exhaustion.

    After another 10 minutes, Quinn luckily got everyone out of the bath to keep them from getting overheated. He showed them how to wear the kimono and they soon returned to their room. Liam, who was fine with the temperature, remained behind to continue enjoying the bath.


    In the hallway outside, they saw a familiar figure lying down on a bench. Her wrist on the forehead also covered her eyes. She was being fanned by Merry with a paper fan. Luckily, Robin''s kimono covered her entire figure, and she was wearing her bindings, so nothing looked out of place.


    "That''s why I told ye, ye need to get out when ye start ta feel dizzy, deary. Why dinna ye know yer limits?" Mery was clicking her tongue at Robin''s stubborness.


    "Robin?" Christian asked. What happened to you?"


    "Ah, tha la-lad was clearly overheated after sharing the hot spring with mah cousin during their talk. But he insisted on coming over here, even though he could barely walk. He collapsed on tha bench here not five minutes ago."


    "Will he be all right?" Christian asked.


    "He''ll be right healthy in a bit. But he needs someone ta fan his head ta cool it down." Merry replied, then blinked coquettishly. "I actually have something I need ta do right now. One of ye lads wouldna be willing ta help out, would ye?"


    ''Mind your own business, Merry.'' Robin inwardly retorted. Robin was heat-fatigued, not deaf. Although she didn''t have the energy to move, she could still hear things just fine.


    "Sure. I''ll do it." Christian volunteered. Robin inwardly stiffened.


    ''Why does it have to be you!?'' She despaired, as her face blushed red again. It was a good thing her arm was covering her eyes.


    "See? His face is so flushed right now. Even his ears are all red. You need to fan him until he returns to a normal color." Merry pointed out with a smile as she handed the fan to Christian.


    "Well then, I''m counting on you." Merry winked before hurrying off somewhere.


    The guards all looked at each other, and smirked. Then they all bowed in respect to Robin''s stubborness. Unfortunately, since Robin had covered her eyes, she hadn''t seen any of it.


    The guards then returned to the men''s room, leaving Christian and Robin alone. There, Quinn helped pull out the futons to prepare for bed.


    It was pretty quiet in the hallway. But for the subtle sound of the fan, it would be completely silent. Neither Christian nor Robin were eager to say anything.


    Robin, however, was now keenly aware of Christian''s presence.


    ''That meddling Merry! This is all her fault!'' Robin grumbled in her heart as she tried to calm her heartbeat back down to normal levels.


    It was indeed Merry''s fault. If that crossdresser hadn''t said anything, Robin wouldn''t have been pondering it, and wouldn''t have missed the warning signs of overheating. As things were, she barely managed to make it back to this bench.


    And the first thing Merry had said when she had found Robin?


    "Very good. Now you don''t even need an excuse. It actually happened~!"


    Perhaps it was just the heat exaustion, but, suddenly, Robin couldn''t take it anymore. Her chest felt stuffy, and her throat closed up as she despaired at the situation.


    ''Christian, I''m not the one you should be this nice to. And I hate myself for wanting to be that one, if only for a while. You''re really too nice. Nice to the point that I hate myself for enjoying your care.'' Robin kept in her heart.


    She managed to regulate her breath so that she didn''t sob, but she couldn''t stop the hot tears from running dow her face.


    Christian, who was watching Robin''s complexion carefully, couldn''t help but notice when they dripped out from under Robin''s arm. Robin, at this point looked especially frail.


    "Robin? What''s wrong?" Christian asked, worried.


    "...orry....I''m sorry..." Robin choked out.


    Christian, pondering over this, mistook that Robin''s tears were on account of him not being able to keep his word that he would join them later.


    "...No need to apologize." Christian patted Robin''s shoulder. "It couldn''t be helped this time, right? You tried your hardest, and that''s all that matters. No need to injure your health just to keep a promise with me."


    But, Robin''s tears fell even more. She felt guilty about hiding things from Christian. She felt homesick due to the familiar decor. She felt tired and drained, frustrated and despairing all at once.


    ''Might as well just let it all out, then.'' She decided.


    "I''m sorry. Just...let me stay like this for a bit." She murmured.


    "Got it." Christian replied as he continued to fan Robin. Instead, he felt somewhat elated. Robin was relying upon him for something. In a way, this could also be considered deepening one''s friendship.


    They stayed that way for a whole hour. During that time, Christian noticed how incredibly skinny Robin was. His shoulders were small, his figure was somewhat dwarfed. Heck, the guards were right: he even kind of looked like a doll. It amazed Christian that such a small figure could bear so much.


    ''Cry all you need to, Robin. I won''t allow anyone to say anything about it.'' Christian determined.


    ----------


    Of course, there was a big misunderstanding when Jasmine and Chelsea emerged from the hot springs later on. Because Chelsea was a water mage, she had been able to conjure ice to cool their heads down so they could continue to enjoy the hot springs.


    Yet, upon emerging, they saw Robin collapsed on a bench, crying, while Christian fanned her. With such a picture, the girls definitely got the wrong idea. It got really noisy for a bit, until Christian managed to explain what happened.


    At that point, Chelsea took over, conjuring some ice to stave off the heat. After that, it wasn''t long before Robin fell asleep.


    But, it turns out the ice treatment had gone too far. Robin woke the next morning with a high fever and a bad cough.


    "Do ye even know how ta take care of a person?" Ayva scolded Chelsea. "All Robin needed was to cool his head down to normal temperatures. Then change out of his damp clothes. What ye did was to chill the damp too so that it gave The poor dear a fever."


    Chelsea could only take the tongue lashing from Ayva. It had indeed been her oversight upon the matter. the king slime was more interested in the hot springs than Robin''s fever.


    Thus, their hot springs stay was extended until Robin was well enough to leave.


    But, then, while Jasmine was enjoying the hot springs again, she got overheated. Then Gerard got overheated. Then Grey got overheated. Every day, someone experienced overheating. In taking care of cooling down the three of them, Chelsea could only leave Robin in the care of Christian once again....


    But was it truly an accident? Liam looked at Chelsea''s expert care of the three. It didn''t seem likely that someone who was so good at taking care of the team could fail in taking care of Robin. Moreover, Chelsea had a glowing smile upon her face that turned smug whenever she glanced at Robin''s room.


    In that case, Chelsea definitely had something to do with it. But Liam did not detect any malicious intent. And so, he was quite puzzled. He could only watch Chelsea and wonder what it was she was trying to do.


    Christian took over the duty of helping Robin, faithfully. He didn''t allow anyone else to help. He became Robin''s hands and feet during this time.


    Poor Robin could only allow Christian to take care of her in everything except changing clothes. Even then, she had to do it on the sly, sending christian out for soup, or a glass of water, or a cup of tea. Then she would quickly switch out kimonos from the chest of drawers in the room.


    Surprisingly, Christian never asked why Robin didn''t just grab things from her storage bracer. He was happy simply doing things for Robin. If she shooed him out for her to rest, he would sit outside the door, in case she needed something.


    After three days, Robin still had a fever, but she had had enough of the hot springs. She was determined to head back to the inn for the rest of her recovery period.


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 159 She Suffers A Cold

    "You''re still sick. Be obedient, and rest." Christian said firmly.


    "The fever is gone now! All I have left is a bad cough. I don''t see why we can''t go back to the inn!" Robin argued. But her argument was undermined by the coughing fit she had right after.


    "See? Rest up. There''s no need to put undue stress upon yourself." These past three days, Christian had been very firm about Robin resting.


    Robin glared at him. "I can handle a bit of stress. It''s not like we''d be doing anything but walking." She grumbled.


    "Wow. Already at tha fighting stage, I see~" An annoyingly cheerful voice spoke up from the doorway.


    Robin glared over at Merry. "You''d be arguing too if you weren''t allowed to do anything. I''m already going crazy from boredom."


    "Better boredom than you getting worse." Christian returned easily.


    "What are you? My Mom?" Robin scoffed.


    Christian smirked. "Be obedient and go to sleep, my child."


    "You say that, but I''m clearly the older brother!" Robin argued.


    "I''ll believe that when you act like a responsible older brother." Christian retorted.


    When have I not acted responsibly!?" Robin exclaimed, flustered.


    "Since three days ago. We''ll have to simply agree to disagree upon that matter." Christian laughed.


    "Gee, nice to see that one of us is amused!" Robin growled, before having another coughing fit. It was because Christian was the caretaker that her fever hadn''t gone down until last night.


    "Man! I have had enough of this cold!" Robin groaned in frustration.


    "Time to use my secret weapon: Home remedy number twenty two and home remedy number three." She took out three items and two cups.


    "Honey?" Merry said, pleasantly surprised.


    "Cinnamon?" Christian was mildly confused.


    "Don''t forget the lemon!" Robin smirked. "With these three, I can defeat any cold now that my fever is gone!"


    Christian felt Robin''s forehead, honestly concerned that her fever had come back.


    "Hey, I''m sick! Not delusional!" Robin objected.


    "So? How are these things supposed to help you?" Merry asked.


    "First, I need hot water for tea." Robin gave Merry one of the cups.


    "I''ll be right back, then!" Merry went on her merry way to grab a fresh teapot.


    Robin took out a knife and started to scrape the cinnamon bark.


    "Let me do that for you." Christian took over. Robin rolled her eyes, but busied herself by pouring the honey into the remaining cup.


    "Isn''t that a bit much for tea?" Christian asked glancing at the half-filled cup.


    "This one isn''t for tea. It''s for a syrup." Robin replied. "I need a lot of cinnamon dust, so work hard~!" She smiled cheekily.


    "I walked right into this, I suppose." Christian sighed as he observed the pitifully small pile of cinnamon dust.


    "I''m back~ Now what?" Merry asked. She had brought not only a cup full of hot water, she had also brought a teapot.


    Robin took out another dagger and sliced open the lemon, squeezing the juice into the cup. Applying a liberal amount of honey, Robin stirred it in with a spoon until the honey dissolved.


    "Honey lemon tea is finished!" She replied.


    "How is this s''posed ta help?" Merry asked.


    "Do you have another cup? I''ll give you a taste." Robin told her.


    "I thought this might happen, so Ah''ve already grabbed me a cup~!" Merry brought a cup out from her sleeve.


    Robin rolled her eyes, but tilted a few sips of her drink into Merry''s cup.


    "Stingy!" Merry complained, looking at the two sips in the bottom of her cup.


    "You''re not sick are you? I only said I''d give you a taste. Not the whole thing!" Robin scolded.


    "Okay, fine. Landsakes, sick people can be so prickly." Merry rolled her eyes.


    "Can I have a taste as well?" Christian asked.


    "Fine, I suppose you can. Merry, a cup, please." Robin asked.


    "Hmm Hmm~ I only managed ta grab this one cup. all tha others are being polished. it isn''t advised ta use them right naow." Merry said cheekily, winking at Robin.


    "You-!" Robin''s face blackened as she glared at Merry.


    "It''s just a sip, right? no need to dirty another cup." Christian said, as he picked up Robin''s cup and took a sip.


    "There. All yours." He handed it back to Robin, and went back to scraping the cinnamon stick.


    "Heh heh heh, Well isn''t that good fer you? One less dish dirtied~!" Merry smirked at Robin.


    Robin glared at Merry.


    "Ah, my, look at tha time! I''ll go help mah cousin with tha polishing!" Merry quickly made her exit.


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    "I regret saying anything to her." Robin sighed.


    "She is rather a character, isn''t she? But, don''t mind her flirting. She''s probably only doing it for fun." Christian said.


    Robin looked at him, incredulously.


    "You think she''s flirting?"


    "What else would it be?" Christian asked.


    "...Regardless, she''s seriously getting on my nerves." Robin looked away, not answering Christian''s question.


    "Drink your tea before it cools." Christian ignored Robin''s complaint. "They aren''t charging us any money during our stay here, despite it costing quite the sum, normally. Rather, if we did have to pay, we can''t really afford it unless we disassemble Liam''s statue."


    Robin recalled the source stones in her bracer. "Not necessarily." She said, with a slight smile, as she took a sip of her tea.


    Then she remembered that that was the side of the cup Christian had drunk from. She blushed lightly as she deliberately turned the cup around. The mistake would not be made again. Robin was determined to maintain her mental boundary.


    ----


    "So, what are you going to do with all this cinnamon dust?" Christian asked as he looked at the date-sized pile of cinnamon dust on the medicine paper.


    "Add it directly to the honey, of course. This is a cough syrup. Not tea." Robin dumped the whole paper in, and carefully folded it into the honey to avoid the cinnamon dust flying up into the air in a cloud.


    "All done." Robin said, when the cinnamon had been fully mixed into the honey.


    "It looks more like wet clay now. Are you sure this will help your cough?" Christian asked.


    "The tea was to help unstuff my nose. The syrup is to keep it out of my lungs." Robin explained, tasting the golden brown morass with a spoon.


    "But, still...I was surprised that such a bitter fruit had such a taste when paired with honey." Christian nodded. "If you sold the tea as a drink, it might unexpectedly become popular."


    Robin shrugged.


    "That''s nothing compared to chocolate."


    "What''s that?" Christian asked.


    "Chocolate? The universal must-have best sweet of all time? You''ve never heard of chocolate before?" Robin asked, incredulously.


    "Nope. Never heard of it." Christian shook his head.


    "Ah...Remind me to make it for you later. I might find the ingredients in the jungle area." Robin felt the need to lie down and rest.


    "Lie down and sleep." Christian said, noticing Robin''s eyes beginning to droop. This time, she didn''t argue. She lay back down to rest, and quickly drifted off to sleep.


    Christian sat at the table, nearby, and sighed, glancing over at Robin.


    ''You really shouldn''t show me any signs of weakness.'' He thought. ''If you become any more adorable, how on earth am I gonna let you go?''


    ---------


    That evening, the king slime finally enjoyed enough of the hot springs. It straightaway returned to Robin''s side. After diagnosing Robin''s issue, it was swiftly dealt with as she slept. Therefore, on the fifth day of their stay, Robin finally convinced Christian that she was completely cured.


    "Bye bye, Dearies and Darlings! Oh, an Robin! Thank ye fer translating tha sacred tome for us!" Merry waved goodbye.


    "You know, she could suspect your identity just based upon your knowledge of the Hero''s language." Quinn pointed out.


    "What? There''s no way~!" Robin waved her hand dismissively. "The hero really did have insanely bad handwriting. But, still...it''s a good thing I could read it." Robin sighed.


    "But...it really sucked as a manga. At that point, its only function is as an instruction booklet."


    "Perhaps that was its intended use? You''re especially cheerful right now, aren''t you?" Quinn noticed.


    "See? What did I tell you? The home remedies did their work, didn''t they?" Robin bragged as they walked out of the ryokan.


    "It isn''t certain that''s what caused it." Chelsea interjected.


    "Why? Did you see something?" Robin asked.


    "I simply think that it requires more research before we can ascertain whether the remedy worked or not." Chelsea said, defensively.


    "Well, I''m not getting sick again." Robin rolled her eyes, then looked wickedly at Christian. It was only fair he receive the same treatment she had.


    "I vote it''s Christian''s turn!"


    "Sure! I volunteer as long as I get an unlimited supply of your home remedy." Christian joked.


    "Sure~! I''ll make you home remedy number 666" Robin grinned wickedly. Home remedy number 666 was ginger-turmeric tea. Very spicy and bitter.


    "Hey! That wasn''t what you used earlier!" Christian complained.


    "Ara, You never specified which remedy to supply, now did you?" Robin smiled cheekily as she skipped backwards, dodging out of reach of his hair-ruffling hand.


    "Why you-! Get back here!" Christian chased after a fleeing, laughing Robin.


    Jasmine and Chelsea both smiled. Robin was finally back to her normal self.

 160 She Searches For Cacao

    When they returned to the inn, they were blocked by a standoff. Two groups of dwarves were facing off against each other.


    "Like I said, ye brigands! Release the four ye absconded with last week!" A dwarf with a rather bulbous beak of a nose called out.


    "Like I said, we dinna abscond with ''em! After we gave ''em our warm welcome, they were warmly escorted out tha back of tha tavern. They''re no longer here, so shove off with yer crew! Stop obstructing Ayva''s bizzness!" A dwarf leading the crowd in front of the inn called back. He had a particularly well-groomed beard.


    "We''ll be the judge ''o that! Let us in so that we can search fer them ourselves!" Bulbous nose sneered.


    "I''ll not allow ye ta trash Lady Ayva''s inn an obstruct business here!" Beardy replied.


    "Excuse me!" Robin interjected from the side.


    ""Shove off, human! This doesn''t concern you!"" they both yelled at her.


    "Actually it does." Robin replied, calmly. "You''re all blocking the way in between me and my room. As a paying customer, I am somewhat effected by all this."


    "Heh! Yer not getting in before we do!" Bulbous Nose sneered.


    "Yer not allowed ta obstruct bizness, here!" Beardy roared at Bulby.


    Robin clapped her hand to get their attention.


    "All right, all right then. I have an idea. The ones protecting the business can escort the seekers, two to one, since you look to have more than enough numbers. If a seeker does begin to wreck the place, stealing things and causing trouble, you can escort them out. Fair enough?"


    "So you say! But what if''n they stop us before we can check everywhere?" One of the seekers called out.


    "Then come complain to me, and I''ll look into it as a neutral third party." Robin replied.


    Some of the dwarves in front of the tavern recognized Robin and ducked their heads to hide their smiles. What neutral third party? This man was the one responsible for this whole rigmarole! Seeing Robin as their ally, they trusted he wouldn''t betray Ayva. Robin Begrudgingly, both parties agreed to the terms.


    Christian looked at Robin, barely keeping his face straight. But inside, he was laughing uncontrollably at Robin''s mischief. When did this lad end up being so two faced?


    If Robin had heard what he was thinking, she would have knocked him sideways the head. She wasn''t under any dwarf''s payroll, and she wasn''t related to them, so of course she was a neutral third party!


    She trusted Ayva wouldn''t be foolish enough to keep the four slumbering bumps-for-logs inside the inn. Thus an hour went by in relative peace as the inn was searched top to bottom.


    Meanwhile, Robin and company sat at a table and discussed what their plan was for the day.


    "We could go window shopping again!" Gerard suggested.


    "Oh, I know! Remember yesterday? You said you could make a sweet called chalk-let. Why don''t you show us today?" Christian suggested.


    "That''s right! For the sake of Jasmine ans Chelsea, I must bring chocolate into existance!" Robin stood up, determined.


    "Ponzu! I''m gonna need your kitchen magic to help out!"


    "Thank goodness!" Ponzu let out, as tears of joy shone in his eyes. "I thought I had been forgotten these days!"


    [author: (¡ð_¡ð'') Right...totally didn''t forget you, man. (^_^'')Heheh...]


    "Well this time, I really can''t make it without you. So, now you will learn the ever troublesome recipe to make chocolate." Robin chuckled.


    "Troublesome?" Ponzu asked, pausing.


    "Be warned, my disciple. Once women know you can make this, you will be mobbed with requests to the point where your health might be in jeopardy. So, until it''s safe, or you have an army of chocolate makers to help you, you cannot let anyone know that you can make this recipe. It is that popular in my home world. Understand?" Robin set the matter straight.


    "I got it! Not a word will escape my lips!" Ponzu promised.


    "First, we need to find the cocoa beans. But, because they''re bitter, they wouldn''t be as popular as coffee. We may need to head out into the jungle to collect raw ingredients." Robin said, sitting back down.


    "About that, couldn''t you find what you need in town?" Chelsea asked.


    "We can definitely check. If possible, I''d like to find already fermented beans. Waiting up to two weeks would take far too long. So, we''ll look about in town this morning. If necessary, we can head out into the jungle this afternoon."


    At this point, Skye appeared, sitting on Robin''s shoulders.


    ''Thank goodness! You''re back! I''m sorry. I couldn''t stand the stench of sulphur, so I came back here while you were away. But, thank goodness you''re back! Now I don''t have to keep running from the kitchen girls...''


    "Glad to see you too, Skye~!" Robin laughed.


    "Okay then. Now that we know what we''re going to do, let''s go shopping!"


    "Yay~!" Chelsea cheered.


    Out of the corner of her eye, Robin saw Beak Nose heading to the door, flanked by two dwarves.


    "Did you find the people you were looking for?" Robin called out to him.


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    "...No." Beak Nose spat out, looking sour.


    "That really is too bad. Well, I hope you can find them soon! You''re a good guy to worry about your friends so much." Robin said.


    On the surface, it was just something innocent that an uninvolved tourist would say. But the guarding dwarves knew that she was secretly rubbing their mistake in their face. The smiles on their faces were apparent for Beak Nose and his followers to see.


    Beak Nose acted like it didn''t bother him. "Uh...Ah. Yeah. We''ll keep a''lookin fer ''im! Thanks fer yer help." The group left with sour faces, glaring at the tavern dwarves.


    "Such a shame they couldn''t find him." Robin shook her head.


    "Robin, since when did you become so two-faced?" Quinn shook his head, and muttered out of earshot.


    "I am genuine to those who are genuine to me." Robin replied. "...And ingenuine to those who are ingenuine to me. No need to give face to the double-faced."


    "That dwarf..." Liam broke his silence. "He has the stench of blood upon him."


    "Ah, good for you to recognize." Robin nodded. "I''m afraid if that dwarf actually did find his friend, that friend would not last long."


    "An assassin?" Jasmine asked.


    "More like hired cut-throat." Robin shook her head. "Assassins would never directly confront their opponent in public."


    "And you would know this, how?" Jasmine asked as they stepped outside.


    "I...may have...taken a few self-defense classes from a former expert." Robin cleared her throat.


    "Remind me never to get on your bad side, anymore." Christian muttered under his breath.


    "I shouldn''t need to remind you about it." Robin grimaced at him.


    "Right, so what is it we''re looking for?" Christian changed topic.


    "We are looking for a bean. about this large, dark brown, very bitter, and possibly sometimes used in cooking." Robin replied.


    After searching for almost the entire morning, they finally managed to snag a lead.


    "I think I''ve seen somethin'' like that over at Old Vin''s place down at tha corner, there. He likes making incense an scented candles. Roastin'' certain nuts an beans creates a lovely smell. It''s too bad they''re too bitter ta eat." A stall-girl said.


    "Thank you very much!" Robin said, tossing her a silver.


    "Ey, now yer speaking true dwarvish~ Thanks fer yer patronage!" The stall-girl amiably bid them farewell.


    "You think those might be it?" Christian asked.


    "Well, we''re about to find out." Robin made her way down to the aforementioned corner, and entered the small candle shop. A tiny door above the door rang out upon her entrance.


    "Wait a moment, please! I''m in tha middle of pouring tha candle molds. Be there in a minute!" Rang out from the back room.


    Robin patiently waited while looking about the shop. The smell of beeswax and incense as well as the several quaint old fashioned tools such as candle-snuffers and lantern boxes gave the store a neat charm. If this quaint sort of store were to appear in modern England, Robin could only imagine that it would be heavily patroned by Renfair Actors.


    After about half a minute, a rather thin old dwarf came to the counter.


    "Thank ye very kindly fer yer waiting. What is it that I can help you out with?" He asked.

 162 She Dashes To Another Rescue

    Robin held the small clear slime in her hand. The old man peered through his glasses at it.


    "A slime? Don''t slimes usually attack people?But this one is so docile...A tamed slime?"


    At those words, Quinn felt a bit resentful. His kind were not pets!


    "No, this one has an intelligence and language of its own. So it''s a friend of mine." Robin replied. "It''s just a bit difficult to understand is all."


    "Is that so?...But, how is a slime supposed to help me?" The old man asked.


    "A famous slime....that can heal anything....even scars can be removed without a problem...." Robin hinted.


    "Oh! So this is a king slime!?" The old man asked in surprise, finally understanding. "Perhaps this really is my lucky day! If anyone can tell what''s wrong with me, surely a king slime can! What do I need to do?"


    "Nothing. Just sit still and breathe as normally as you can." Robin replied. Unfortunately, something must have caught in his throat, because he had a coughing fit right after that.


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    The king slime grew larger, and hopped over to the old man''s shoulders, in an easy manner. It was as if it were saying ''This is fine, too.''


    As Robin watched, the old man seemed to overlap with her memory of her grandma. She had always been a talker, but always seemed to have a persistent cough that followed her around. She always insisted it was just a cold.


    Even her parents weren''t aware of how bad her situation was. But they were genuine in their concern for her. Her father had even put her on a tropical cruise during the cold winter months to help her avoid the chill.


    When her parents had died in the accident, Robin''s grandmother had also keeled over in a heart attack from the shock. But, even if her parent''s deaths hadn''t happened, she would not have lived long. The autopsy her brother insisted on showed that she was in the 2nd stage of lung cancer.


    Robin blinked and returned to the present. She really hoped she was wrong.


    ----


    "FOOLS!! THE WHOLE LOT OF YOU!!" An entire tableful of food was dashed to the ground in front of a familiar bulgy-nosed dwarf, and his companions.


    "How is it that you can''t even find four dwarves, huh!?" Their employer, a dark-bearded dwarf decked in fineries scolded. "Traughn''s group was mysteriously taken out, and now four dwarves have disappeared under your very noses! Aren''t you ashamed of yourself!? You call yourself experts!?"


    "Experts at throat-cutting? Yes. Experts at sniffing out long gone tracks? no." Bulby-Nose harrumphed, clearly unsatisfied with how he was being treated.


    "You''re not getting paid to stand around and gripe about what you can''t do. You''re being paid to do your work! If you can''t finish your job, then you will never get paid!" The gold-decked dwarf sniffed. Bulby-nose winced. But he had no other choice but to bear the insult, as he needed the coin.


    "Don''t come back to report until you finish your job!" The shrill voice of the opulent dwarf shooed the group out of the room.


    Once they had left the house, one of them spit on the ground. "If I were offered a single copper ta take that fat plague out, than I''d do it."


    "Why a copper? He isna worth even a smallsy." Another sneered. "If it weren''t fer Boss''s little girl needing a cure, We''d be quitting this thankless job inna heartbeat!"


    Bulby-nose turned to a dwarf that approached him.


    "How is she?" He asked.


    "Not good. The bruises are spread to tha point where it''s painful for her to even breathe. She may not last the night." The dwarf shook his head, tears in his eye. "She keeps calling fer ye. She wants to see ye."


    Bulby-nose was silent. "Help me take care of her. I''ll come back with tha cure in these next few days."


    "But Boss Rahm! She may not even last a few days at this rate!" The dwarf said, hid voice choked up by the lump in his throat.


    "...Tomorrow. Regardless of what happens, I''ll go an see her tomorrow." Bulby-I mean Boss Rahm replied quietly with his back turned.


    "Thank you, Boss! I''ll go and tell her right now!" The dwarf replied looking relieved.


    Rahm stood there in the dark alley alone for a long minute. Then he looked up at the starry sky.


    "Why must the heavens force my hand? I never wanted any of this."He sighed at length.


    Then, his shoulders shook as he leaned against a wall, and crouched down. For a moment, it looked as if a falling star slid down his cheek. But it was just the moon''s reflection upon his tears.


    --------


    "I can''t tell you how much younger I feel now!" the old dwarf laughed merrily. "It''s like I''m a new dwarf! I can''t thank ye enough!"


    "Then, if you see anyone with bruises like I described, you can pay me back by having them come see me at the tavern." Robin said seriously. "And please do spread the word, okay?"


    "Sure! Ah, young master, what name should they ask for?" The old dwarf asked.


    "Tell them to look for Robin!" Came the reply.


    After leaving the shop, Robin headed back to the inn. Now she had all that she needed to make chocolate. However, that day, she was destined not to return until nightfall.


    A dwarven child dashed out of a nearby alleyway, tears blinding her eyes. With Robin''s sharp senses, how could she not have seen her? But a familiar brilliant bruise on the girl''s arm made her change her decission to dodge. Thus the girl crashed headfirst into Robin, who caught her before she fell to the ground.


    "Oof! Hey, little girl, are you okay? Hey, what''s the matter? " Robin asked, concerned.


    The girl looked up at Robin, and began bawling her eyes out. In between her sobs, Robin gently managed to extract that all her friends were very sick, some were even near death. That this morning she noticed the same bruises that they had. And her mom just collapsed.


    "Little girl, I happen to know something about your bruises. If you take me to those people you know who are the most sick, I''ll be able to save everyone, and no one has to die." Robin told her.


    "Ye-hic-Ye mean it?" The little girl stopped crying as she looked up at Robin.


    "I''m positive." Robin nodded. "I''ve already helped two people get rid of their bruises for good."


    "Than come an'' heal mah ma!" The little girl tugged on Robin''s clothes. "An'' mah friends, an'' their ma''s!"


    "Hold on. What is you''re mother''s name, little one?" Robin asked.


    "Her name is Patty! Oh hurry!" The girl tugged, eager to drag her off.


    Robin turned to Gerard. "Go tell Ayva I''m visiting a sick woman by the name of Patty. And, as there may be an infestation spreading, I''ll need some helping hands."


    "Got it. I''ll go right away!" Gerard ran back to the inn.


    "All right, little one. show me where your mother is." Robin said, as she hurried with the little girl into the alleyway. Luckily the girl didn''t go anywhere she couldn''t fit through. Christian and the knights on the other hand, were stuck at a rather narrow spot between two buildings.


    "Find a more open location, and I''ll send Skye to lead the way later!" Robin called back to them as she disappeared down the alleyways.


    -----


    "Ma! Ma!" The girl cried out as she dashed over to an unconscious woman on the floor of a rather low-ceiling home. Robin had to continuously duck her head. She swiftly knelt down next to the woman, and tapped her belt, summoning the king slime.


    Upon coming into contact with the woman, it immediately realized the situation and got to work. As the situation was serious, it could only swiftly expel the parasites, and heal as it expelled to minimize the blood loss.


    "What''s going on! what are ye doing to mah ma?!" The little girl asked.


    "Hush, girl! This is a king slime. If no one else can heal your mother, it can." Robin soothed the girl. Then she explained her mother''s situation.


    "Your mother, has some bad bugs inside her which are making her sick, and giving her those bruises. If the king slime doesn''t get them out quickly, they''ll hurt your mom from the inside to the point where she''ll die. I promise that once the slime is done, there won''t even be a single scar on her. ok?"

 163 She Tests Their Mettle

    "...Does this mean there are bad bugs in me? and in my friends?" The little girl asked, starting to understand.


    Robin nodded. "That''s right. there are some bad bugs in you and your friends, too. There''s not much in you now. But if we don''t do anything, the bad bugs will grow more and hurt you from the inside just like they hurt your mom."


    "And the bad bugs are hurting my friends, too?" The little girl asked. Robin nodded.


    "That''s right. This is why I need you to be a very brave little girl, and to get your friends to gather everyone who has bruises like yours into one spot. Especially those who can no longer move on their own. If they doubt you, you can tell them to come and see your mother. Look, see? The king slime is almost finished."


    The king slime was vibrating to destroy all the parasite eggs. Although the treatment had been short, the mother had been fully healed not moments before. Then it separated from the woman, and began to digest the parasites.


    "Ma-" The little girl called out, wanting to run to her, but was stopped by Robin, who shook her head kindly.


    "Wait a bit longer please, little one. We just got the bad bugs out of your mother, but we still need to get rid of the bad bugs in you. Otherwise, they''ll hop over to your mother, and make her sick again. okay?"


    The little girl looked up at Robin, then looked down at Robin''s hand on her shoulder.


    "Aren''t you afraid of the bad bugs making you sick?" The little girl asked.


    "Why need I be afraid when I''ve got a wonderful friend over there who can help me deal with them? Instead, I am more afraid of not being able to reach everyone in time to heal them." Robin replied, ruffling the girl''s hair.


    "That''s why I need you and your friends to help me find the ones who are like your mom was earlier, so that I can help them, okay?"


    The little girl glanced over at her mother. The vivid purple and blue bruising on her face had completely disappeared. She looked like she was resting peacefully, having a wonderful dream. With that, the girl felt relieved.


    "Okay! If you can get the bad bugs out of me and my friends, I''m not afraid of them either!" The girl said, determination growing on her face.


    Despite the near constant presence of steam and smoke about the city, at that moment, the sun broke through the clouds, shining upon the girl''s dull hair, making it gleam red it the light.


    Robin broke into a wide grin. "Good! With you and your friends helping me out, we can heal the whole city together!"


    The king slime that finished digesting waved a tendril in the air, agreeing with Robin''s words. Robin looked at the slime, surprised.


    "You can understand me?" She asked.


    The king slime paused, then nodded slowly.


    "Can you speak?" Robin asked. The king slime shook horizontally.


    "That''s a no, then...well, I''m sure we can figure something out. From what I hear, there are a lot of these bugs out there for you to eat. Probably even too many."


    The king slime shook in a strange pattern.


    "What is it doing?" The little girl asked.


    "Maybe it''s excited? Those bad bugs I told you about are its food, after all." Robin replied, uncertainly. But that wasn''t the reason.


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    After shaking about, the king slime separated into two king slimes.


    "Ah! There''s another one!" The girl exclaimed.


    "Can you both understand me?" Robin asked. One nodded, while the other moved a tendril into a simplified thumbs up.


    "There''s two of you now. I''ll need to call you something to tell you apart...You''re Nodd." She pointed to the first one. It jiggled in delight.


    "And you''re Hiker" Robin pointed to the other. It had reminded her of the hitchhikers she had sometimes seen on the side of the road. Hiker seemed to puff up proudly.


    "Hop on, I''ll take you to find food." She told them. The two shrunk in size and bounced up to land on her shoulders.


    "All right, let''s go see your friends, little girl." Robin said, turning to the door.


    "Hey, mah name isnae ''little girl''! It''s Gretel!" the little girl said, running out ahead of Robin.


    "Got it. Let''s go, Gretel." Robin replied with a bemused smile.


    ------


    "First things, first, I suppose." Robin looked over the group of children with various numbers of bruises on them.


    "I just healed Gretel''s mother." Robin said seriously. "If you have any relatives or friends, or neighbors that have the same bruises as you do, then I will need your help."


    "What? Izzat true, Gretel?" One of them asked.


    "It''s true! Mister Pretty Guy here helped me out!" Gretel nodded. Robin almost burst out laughing at what Gretel had decided to call her.


    "Mister Pretty guy?" One of the boys glared sharply at Robin with a scrutinizing gaze.


    "Is that what he told you to call him, or what you decided to call him on your own?"


    ''Ah...Even disguised as a man, I can''t help but attract jealousy, huh.'' Robin sighed inwardly.


    "Nice to meet you." Robin bowed towards the children in introduction. "You may call me, Robin."


    "Tch!" The boy turned to the side. "It can''t be helped that he knows the cure, but I don''t like him! Not one month ago, ya wouldn''t see this bruise anywhere! And now that even we''ve got it, a miracle doctor comes around? Sounds mighty suspicious if''ns ya ask me."


    ''Wow, so honest...'' Robin held back a smile. She knew smiling would not do any good here.


    "All right. The sooner we can gather the sick ones, the better! Do you all know of a large place where we can gather them all?" Robin asked.


    "Iffits a large place inside tha walls...than..."


    "It''s that, right?"


    "But, we aren''t allowed ta go there alone..."


    "But, since it''s an emergency, it should be all right?" The children discussed among themselves.


    "Mmmn." The sharp-eyed boy nodded. "I can''t think of any place larger than the Companions Green!"


    "Companion''s Green?" Robin asked, not understanding.


    "It''s a ground covered in green moss that was built fer tha nobles'' pets ta run around and play in. We aren''t allowed ta enter without a pet unless there''s an emergency." Gretel explained to Robin.


    "All right. If worst comes to worst, I''ll take responsibility for it, so bring them there!" Robin nodded.


    "Wait! If we go looking like this, we won''t be able to get anyone to come. They won''t believe us if you don''t heal us first!" The sharp-eyed boy explained.


    Robin smiled. "Oh? I didn''t tell you? I was going to heal you all at once."


    And with that, Hiker jumped off Robin''s shoulder, and expanded, sweeping out, and catching all the children within it''s large body. Before they could even so much as squeak, they were submerged, and rendered unconscious.


    Skye glided over and landed on Robin''s shoulder as she heard footsteps running up behind her.


    ''I brought them'' Skye said, licking its paw.


    "Whoah! What is this!?? A king slime!? Robin? What is it doing??!" Christian exclaimed in panic, seeing it had swallowed a group of children.


    Robin stopped him from moving forward. "They''ve been infested with a truly nasty parasite. They''re being extracted right now. Please don''t interrupt the process." Robin said.


    "Is that true!?" Keith asked, seriously. Robin gave a brusk nod.


    "I''m afraid so. It''s not just them. There''s probably at the very least a small crowd that will need my attention. And at worst...this might not be a problem only within the city. We may need to create a long-term treatment plan." Robin looked at her companions.


    "That''s why I need your help. We need to gather all the sick people to make sure this doesn''t spread any further. This means you too might be at risk, but don''t worry. We have the world''s best doctor here." Robin glanced with appreciation at the king slime, although her expression still remained solemn.


    "Sure, this has nothing to do with us. These aren''t your subjects or your people...I got involved in this, of my own volition. So if you are reluctant to help, or don''t want to get involved, I can understand." The group stood there, astonished at what Robin said.


    "What do you mean?" Christian said, a strange light streaking across his eyes.


    "I won''t force you to help if you are squeamish at the sight of blood, or think this is something gross. But I need compassionate hearts willing to help those who can not help themselves." She said, slowly.


    "What are you talking about?" Christian asked, an angry smile had taken over on his face. "Do you think we are so faint-hearted that we fail at basic compassion? Do you think so little of us, Robin!?"

 165 She Gets Scolded

    The guard stiffened as he looked over at the person behind Robin.


    "W-w-w-why, Her Majesty, Queen Ayva! W-w-w-what a surprise!" The stunned guard quickly crossed his arm over his chest in a salute.


    "I don''t recall hearing tha answer ta my question?" Ayva inclined her head and tapped her foot patiently.


    "...Ah! Yes, o''course ye are!" Malcolm''s face stiffened awkwardly. If even Her Majesty Queen Ayva was not a high enough authority, Malcolm wouldn''t have been stuck guarding this pets play area for ten years.


    "Good. Open tha gates to all who would come, and have the animals returned to their homes for now." Ayva ordered.


    "Right away, Yer Majesty!" Malcolm bowed, then hurried off to do Ayva''s bidding.


    "Hohoh. The queen, huh? What a prestigious position~" Robin teased.


    "Ach! Hush ye!" Ayva laughed. "S''just a title. Ah''m jus'' ''Ayva'' tah mah friends. But, Ah admit, titles are pretty useful in situations like this."


    "I assume Gerard brought you here?" Robin nodded.


    "Aye, him and his little friend there. Yer a motley crew, aren''t ye?" Ayva laughed.


    "Indeed. Sometimes I can''t help but wonder at it." Robin shook her head. She glanced up, her eyes following her companions, pausing on Christian last of all.


    "They''re all incredibly good people." Robin sighed. "How they came to follow me like this, I kinda wish I knew."


    ''Is this the isekai plot armor in effect? Or the mc halo, perhaps? Ah, that''s why I suddenly became popular! It was the halo effect!So it was onlt thanks to the halo that I was able to become friends with them...'' Robin pondered internally. The idea that her companions had gathered because of Robin herself, never even crossed her mind.


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    Ayva chuckled for a length of time, thinking it was a great joke. But her laughter petered out when she observed Robin''s expression.


    "Wait...yer serious!? Ya weren''t joking?" Ayva asked dumbfounded. Her eyes widened as she looked at Robin like seeing a rare creature.


    "How mean! I was completely serious." Robin hmmphed as she sent Hiker to heal up the first batch of people.


    Ayva pinched the spot in between her forehead. "...How can this be! Are ya not even aware of yerself!?" She suddenly started scolding.


    "Eh?" Robin recoiled a bit, surprised at Ayva''s sudden outburst. "What are you talking about?" She asked.


    "Listen closely..." Ayva scowled at Robin as she began her lecture.


    "What do ya think attracts someone ta someone else, huh?"


    "A force of attraction which neither can control." Robin replied, thinking of the halo effect.


    "Is that how it is in yer world? Ya can''t choose ta follow someone on yer own?" Ayva scowled. "Don''t speak nonsense!"


    "...Sorry.." Robin lowered her head.


    "Is there no concept of friendship or comrades? Sure, ya mighta been forced together by circumstances, but that dinnae mean that ya''d get together as well as ya do! The fact that they''re helping here means they are sincere in cooperatin, despite there being no visible or logical benefit ta them. They aren''t asking fer gold or favors are they?"


    "...No." Robin replied.


    "That kinda cooperation means they approve of somethin in ye. They see something that they like or look up ta in ya. That''s a bond not between allies, but friends." Ayva pointed out.


    "So, what made ''em decide ta take that extra step?" Ayva asked.


    "I don''t know!" Robin replied bluntly.


    "Did ya do something for them that was above and beyond the call of duty? Something that no one would consider a person of your stature being able to do? Something that might be common enough in your world that you''ve overlooked it entirely?" Ayva asked, stepping up closer to Robin, whose face was getting more and more awkward.


    "Umm..." Robin shyly scratched at her jawline. "Something a hero wouldn''t usually do...no way, it was that!?"Her eyes widened in shock.


    "Yah''ve gotten somethin?" Ayva grinned.


    "Yeah...I cooked recipes from my world." Robin replied, a strange expression on her face. "I also showed them how to cook them..." Internally, Robin was panicking.


    ''Da Heeeck!??? Was that the reason!?? Craaaap! I know the saying goes that the best way to a man''s heart is his stomach, but daaang! Earth''s food must be poisonously good to be able to make friends with everybody like that!''


    Once again, Robin had missed the point entirely. But she felt slightly relieved that this wasn''t due to some otherworlder halo effect.


    "But, isn''t that what anyone would do? Like nice aunts swapping cookie recipes at the market or something...?" Robin asked.


    "A natural airhead." Ayva facepalmed in despair. "See here, you: nobody shares recipes like that unless they''re sellin or they want somethin''! Recipes are protected by law, so if they share anythin, it would be tha cookie itself, not tha recipe....I kinda get tha feeling I understand now why ya have so many friends..."


    Ayva was now certain: Robin was an absolute darling. I f Robin''s friends didn''t follow along to guard her, Robin would be wholly taken advantage of by a devious individual!


    ''She''d probably help tha kidnapper count tha money from selling her, without even realizing it.'' Ayva shook her head.


    "Robin...never go off alone without yer friends, okay? If not, I''ll be very worried about ya..." Ayva requested earnestly.


    "Hmm? But I can take care of myself. Is it that dangerous to walk around alone here?" Robin asked, thinking of cut-throats in darkened alleyways.


    "Fer others, no. But, fer ya it''s definitely a yes!" Ayva announced, imagining some unscrupulous villain tricking her to losing all her belongings.


    "...Ah! Okay then!" Robin nodded.


    ''It probably has something to do with me being the hero. Is the hero not welcome here now?''


    With Nodd and Hiker, the two king slimes, dealing with the parasites en mass, the number of cured people began to skyrocket. The healed, in turn, also joined in on helping to gather the ill. After all, it wouldn''t do to leave a hidden source for the parasites to return from again.


    As Nodd and Hiker kept eating parasites, Nodd once again split off into another slime. This one Robin decided to call Wave, because it liked to wave at people. It waved people over. It waved at them to stop. It waved in farewell, and so on...


    With the three large king slimes here, everyone could be assured of getting healed without a scratch or scar. Things actually got a bit tense for a while because a dwarf who was proud of his battle scars didn''t want then removed. In the end, though, Robin found that the king slimes would leave the scars alone if they were requested.


    ---------


    The last place Chelsea and Liam visited was a roadside food stall, where they sat to eat a kind of funnel cake drizzled with honey. A nearby carriage blocked their sight of the road behind them as they ate.


    This time, Liam was confused. the stall owner looked healthy with not a bruise on him. Were they stopping just for Chelsea to have a snack? But, his conjectures were shattered soon afterward.


    Once again, Chelsea brought up the topic of the miracle doctor. And Liam, though confused, still played along. After leaving the stall, Liam asked her.


    "Why did you speak like that back there? I''m pretty sure the stall owner was in no need of healing."


    "Oh no, that wasn''t for the stall owner!" Chelsea laughed. "It was for...someone else who likewise is in no need of healing." The corners of her mouth turned up into a slightly bitter smile.


    Liam did not understand. Back across from the booth, the curtain of the carriage window was slightly raised to let the occupant watch them leave. ''A Miracle Doctor, huh?...This is not good.''


    "Here you go, sir! The last box of cakes from Turleys Bakery." A servant announced after returning to the carriage. "Where do you wish to go next, sir? Do you wish to return home?"


    "...No...."


    "...Sir?" That was strange. This person always returned home after acquiring cakes from Turleys Bakery. There had never been a time when he hadn''t done so.


    "Head to the Companions green." The voice inside the carriage ordered. "I wish to see what faker has decided to arrive upon my turf!"


    "Right away, sir!" The servant whipped the carriage horses to get them moving, and turned the carriage about.

 166 She Meets Noble Scum

    Gazing about on the green, there were now five king slimes working amongst those who came to be healed.the two newcomers were named Wiggle and Bobble. Quinn, upon arriving, noticed the king slimes. He paused, then looked over at Robin.


    "Did you name them?" He asked.


    "Yes? I needed some way to tell them apart." Robin replied.


    "These are not merely king slimes anymore. They are now unique elite king slimes." Quinn frowned. "You didn''t feel tired at all from naming them?"


    "No?...ought I be?" Robin asked.


    Quinn shook his head and explained. "Naming someone requires mana. The more resistant to a name the creature is, the more mana you''d need. That is why most people are named as babies, when they have little to no resistance. The fact that you''re not tired must mean that they like the names you''ve given them."


    "Huh. Is that so?" Robin asked, glancing at the five king slime. "They don''t look any different to me."


    "I can tell. All right?" Quinn rolled his eyes. "I also heard that you were given a Royal scolding, earlier. Who''d have thought that the queen of the dwarf country was working as a tavern owner, huh?"


    "Well, judging from her reaction, at least the dwarves themselves don''t hold anything against the hero, although certain factions might." Robin mused, as she recalled the topic of the scolding.


    "Say, if the hero were someone other than me, would you still have decided to join me on this crazy journey?" Robin suddenly asked.


    Quinn rolled his eyes again. "Obviously, you little dimwit. I didn''t follow you because you were the hero. I''m accompanying you because...well partly due to nostalgia. No one here understands me fully. And that is on account of our shared home world."


    Robin nodded. She could understand the bit about nostalgia. 120 years was a long time, after all.


    "...But, I am a bit envious of you, hero." Quinn continued. "Unlike me, earth is not merely your past, but also possibly your future, too."


    Robin grinned mischievously. "Want me to send back a care package with all the games you missed?"


    "Do I ever!-Ahem! I mean, How would I even power the darned things? We don''t have charging ports in this magic world, you know. It would also require a television." Quinn quickly regained control of his expression. Robin almost rolled her eyes.


    ''It''s too late to hide it, now that you''ve let your inner voice slip!'' She chuckled in her heart.


    Off to the side, Christian was helping carry an old lady over to the healing area. But glancing over, he could see Robin joking about something with Quinn. He looked to the ground as he felt something prick at his heart.


    Carefully placing the old woman dwarf down, he stood up straight and looked over at the two. His eyes narrowed. While he wanted to approach, something in him made him maintain his distance.


    His thoughts were interrupted by little Hans tugging at his shirt.


    "Mister, there''s more people tha needs help over here!" Hans reminded.


    "Right, sorry about that." Christian apologized, following little Hans over to the next group. But before turning his back, he glanced one more time at Robin''s cheerful face. Christian sighed, his now-solemn expression rearranging itself into something more neutral.


    "I dunno." Robin tilted her head. "If there are no charge ports, can''t we just make some?"


    "...never mind." Quinn said after thinking it over.


    "I don''t want to ruin this magical world with black tech from earth."


    "Black tech?" Robin raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Don''t you have a great mountain range in your stomach that can hold all sorts of dangerous things?"


    "Not all the life parasites have been dealt with yet. I may be the slime king, but even I''m not stupid enough to create living tech." Quinn snorted.


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    "I see...so you''ve seen that tv series too." Robin laughed.


    "I too was once a child, yes. Thank you." Quinn rolled his eyes.


    "And let that be a lesson to you. So far, all you''ve shared are recipes, which aren''t much in terms of revolutionary. But, if you introduce something that will ruin my fantasy world, we can no longer be friends."


    "Noted. I have no intention of doing anything that will destroy this world or its inhabitants." Robin agreed.


    "Good!" Quinn glanced at the park entrance and smirked. "It looks like we are about to have a bit of rather pretentious company come to visit."


    "Pretentious?" Robin asked, following his gaze. At the park entranceway, a carriage was stopped. However, it was not a normal carriage. gold and jewels decorated the outside, as well as precious stones like jade and marble.


    "Ah. Indeed." Robin agreed. "I''d best go see what this is all about. Later!" She waved before jogging over to the entrance to see what was happening. Ayva had been distracted by a different matter, and hadn''t yet seen the carriage. By this time, a crowd had gathered, and were murmuring about themselves.


    "That carriage..."


    "There''s no mistaken et. It be THAT ''un."


    "Aish! There goes my hope of any good being done today."


    "Who in the devil''s territory let it slip to that pilgering bandit of a fool, I''d like to know!" Another dwarf scolded harshly under his breath, before spitting off to the side out of disgust.


    With this, Robin had somewhat of an idea who she was about to face. At that moment, two dwarf attendants moved to either side of the carriage door, and blew on their trumpets. A blue carpet rolled out from the bottom of the carriage, splitting the crowd in two. After the serenade was complete, the carriage door opened by itself. But, what came out of it was something Robin found hard to recognize as a dwarf.


    In size, he was a perfect round bowling ball with arms, legs, and a head sticking out. The dwarf was also so decked out in rings, bracelets, necklaces, and the like, that he looked like a disco ball. Indeed, under the sunlight, he would have been so bright that others would be blinded.


    This individual stepped down out of the carriage. And took three steps before stopping to take a look around. Robin was impressed that he hadn''t fallen over.


    "What." He asked in a gravely voice. "Is going on here?"


    Everyone fell silent.


    "As I recall, no one shall enter the Companion''s Green without a pedigreed companion. I do not see any pets of pedigree with any of you? In fact, I don''t see any pets around here at all."


    "The Companion''s Green has been opened to the public due to an urgent need to treat the people who are carrying a highly infectious parasite. To prevent accidentally infecting them, the pets have been sent to their homes." Robin stood out and said.


    The man lazily trained his eyes upon Robin.


    "Oh? And who are you? What do you have to do with all this?"


    Robin inclined her head, acknowledging the question. "I am the person responsible for this happening." She replied. "The cure to the parasites was in my hands, but I needed a space to gather those involved."


    "Ho?" The round dwarf looked robin up and down. "Just a mere human was able to bypass laws passed down from this dwarf''s noble seat? Who allowed this!?" His harsh rebuke flung through the air. Robin tried her hardest not to laugh as his rotund figure threatened to fall over in faked rage.


    "To call Robin a mere human....that dwarf certainly has some guts, I daresay." Quinn sighed.


    At this point, Hiker, Wave, Wiggle, and Bobble were in their small black rock-like appearance as they digested the parasites. Only Nodd was visible from the entrance. It took that moment to swallowed up another batch of waiting dwarves, to begin the extraction process.


    Unfortunately, such a thing was too eye-catching, and the round dwarf noble saw it. First, his face paled in fright. But he quickly recovered when he thought of a single possibility.


    "How dare you!" The dwarf noble spat at Robin, smacking his cane on the ground. His greedy eyes were fixed upon the king slime in front of him. "To steal my clan''s most prized possession and use it on these commoners so freely! You''ve got a lot of nerve, human thief! Guards! Come arrest this human and all his companions!"


    "How utterly ridiculous!" Robin snorted. "Where is your due process of law? Do I not have the right to deny these false charges?"


    "Regardless of who you are, or whether they are false or not, you have no choice but to follow or be branded a criminal of the state. Even the king himself can''t help you get out of these charges!" The noble boasted with a wicked smile on his face.


    "Is that so?" Robin ignored the noble, and glanced at someone behind him. This total disregard enraged the dwarf, but Robin couldn''t care less. No one could stop her if she wanted to leave.


    "Is this how your dwarven nobles treat royal guests, Ayva?" She asked at ease.


    The bejeweled dwarf''s face paled as he spun around to find himself face to face with Queen Ayva, who wore a rather black expression.

 167 She Gives One Last Chance

    "Indeed, I too am surprised at how our nobles suddenly became so powerful that they can disregard tha king." Ayva nodded with an enraged smile, as she watched this round noble''s mouth open and close like a dying fish.


    "Care ta explain? Raymond?"


    Nobleman Raymond''s face broke out in cold sweat as he realized the bloody queen of hearts was behind him. That smile was her signature smile that she used when she was about to beat someone to a bloody pulp. All of her victims never died, but were bed-ridden for life.


    The current king had fallen in love with her when he encountered her one day beating a band of orcs into a bloody pulp. And now he was on the receiving end of that smile. He gulped, nervously.


    "L-like I said, t-that king slime belongs ta mah f-family. It has been a prized possession of ours fer a long time." He did not forget to stick to his story, otherwise he would be in even greater trouble.


    "So that medicine ya gifted mah husband was not yer most prized possession? Yer telling me yer family lied ta mah husband?" Ayva asked.


    "N-not at all!" Raymond used his handkerchief to wipe away some of the sweat. "What we gave ta yah was our newest prized possession which we had accomplished with tha help of that there king slime. Surely yah know that we pride ourselves in our medical recipes."


    Then he pointed towards Robin. "But that''s not tha point, Yer Majesty! This human disregarded tha rules ta open up tha park without permission. He also dared ta steal away our king slime ta treat tha masses free o'' charge, causing mah family ta have colossal damages ta income. I''m afraid we won''t even be able ta eat fer several months at this rate."


    "Oh? Isn''t that good fer you, though, Raymond?" She poked his paunchy side. "After all ya could stand ta lose a few pounds. Being overweight is bad fer yer health, yah know?"


    Then her expression became somewhat more solemn. "And who said this human did not have permission? I myself ordered fer tha park ta be opened up to tha public. After all, an infestation in such a warm, humid place like this, can kill off tha entire city if not dealt with swiftly and properly. Even ye should know that. So what if ya lose money? Can yer money buy a life? Coming from a doctor''s family, yet only concerning yerself with money, yer a disgrace ta all doctors!"She scolded him viciously.


    "Regardless, that is mah property! I would like et returned immediately!" Raymond insisted.


    "And? Wouldn''t et be far more useful if''n I should claim et fer tha good of tha country?" Ayva noted sarcastically.


    "Ye-ye can''t do that! Stealing from yer subjects like that, ye''d lose tha respect of yer people that way!" Raymond spoke in a panic. If Ayva had also set her sights upon the king slime, then he would definitely never be able to even lay a finger on it.


    "Shouldn''t I be sayin this ta ye?" Was Ayva''s reply. "If''n I didn''t come an check out this area mahself, I woulda never guessed where all tha development fees had gone ta. Tha city houses were supposed ta be made from sturdy stone. Why are all the houses in this section made with brittle wood and crumbling mud? All that gold we had allocated to yer family in order to help out tha poor..."


    Raymond''s sweat began pouring out of him.


    "Where did et go?" Ayva asked, with her killing smile. This time, Raymond could not answer. Anything he said would be a lie.


    "I see yer wearing a lot of gold and jewels. Yer cart also boasts tha most bedazzled one I''ve seen so far. Where did ya get tha money ta wear such fine things?" Ayva asked again.


    Raymond still couldn''t answer, but his body began to shake, wobbling like a blob of jello.


    "Also, that human over there is tha adopted son of King Zephron. Are ye telling me that ya can disregard tha king''s law, an refuse ta give even a prince a fair trial?"


    At this point, Raymond was shaking so badly, that he almost appeared epileptic. He was done for. Just why did that human have to be a prince!? And just why did Ayva have to come and check things out! Now he would be bed-ridden for life!


    "You are indeed quite brave to lie before your queen." Robin shook her head. "But I shall ask you a question. If you answer truthfully, I may ask this king slime to follow you for a bit, to ensure that you don''t lose your life."


    At this, Raymond saw a way out. If he had the king slime in his hands, then regardless of the beatings, at the very least, he had hopes of not remaining bed-ridden. His shaking subsided as he once again found his voice.


    "Ask away, human prince."


    Robin nodded. "Then, why don''t I ask you..." The other four king slimes had finished their digestion, and returned to their prior appearance.


    "All these are named king slimes, and considered elite. If you truly own one of these slimes, you should know its name. What is the name of the king slime that your family supposedly owns? You have five chances." Robin asked.


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    Named king slimes!? There are thousands of possible names, how on earth could he pick the right one? His confidence waned a bit as he felt despair creep back into his heart.


    "...Doc." he said. Robin shook her head.


    "...King." got another head shake.


    "...Shaker." also was a no.


    "Wibble!" So close, but also a no.


    "Wobble!" His last chance was also incorrect.


    "See? So many names you have for your king slime, yet none of these king slimes responded. They must not be yours, then!" Robin shook her head. Then she explained.


    "Truthfully, you didn''t have to hazard a guess at their names at all. If you had been honest from the start, I would have asked to mitigate your punishment . But you just had to call my little friend here your possession. I really couldn''t stand it, you know."


    Nodd nodded all the fiercer in response to Robin''s words. The reason why they had attached to Robin so easily was that she treated them as equals, and not possessions. The king slimes gathered around Robin, affectionately hopping about her.


    "Indeed. if you actually did have a king slime as a pet, then I might have had to ask your king whether he was still a Demon Guardian or not." Quinn finally spoke up, as he smirked and displayed his hand becoming slime-like.


    "As king of all slimes, I''d take great offense, ya know?" he said, landing the killer blow. Raymond toppled over. He truly was completely finished with no way out. Raymond fell into a dead faint.


    "Guards, come take this dwarf away. From henceforth, he is ta be stripped of his nobility, and his possessions shall be sold ta give proper recompense to tha families from which he has withheld Our Royal monetary aid."


    It took four guards to be able to carry away the fainted rotund form of Raymond, and that was only after they took off his golden ring, bracelets, and chains, which formed a small mountain next to Raymond''s carriage. After they left, Ayva poked fun at Robin.


    "So, a prince, ey? A right prestigious position, I daresay" She joked.


    "A mere title." Robin said. "I''m just Robin to my friends. But, I do admit, titles are pretty useful in situations like these."


    Robin and Ayva both nodded together, then broke out into laughter.


    "Does tha king know?" Ayva asked.


    "For the time being? No. I wasn''t in a position to tell him before I left. You know his wife is that sort of person, after all." Robin said, recalling Queen Emeline.


    "Ah. I get yer point. I too have heard rumors" Ayva laughed, patting Robin on the back. "Well, dinna worry about tha so much. Ah''m not worried fer Ekkinshire kingdom so long as they''re alive."


    "Oh, you''ve been there?" Robin asked.


    "That I have, aye!" Ayva agreed. "I followed mah father down there when King Zephron requested an expert ta come examine a set of old dwarf armor that was found at an archaeological dig site. Turns out ''twas tha best discovery in tha century: A full set of Dragonscale armor from tha ancient Red Dwarves." Ayva''s eyes twinkled as she remembered. " Yer king, even after knowing ets value still gave et ta us. Do yah know what he told us?"


    "Oh? What?" Robin asked.

 168 She Finds Herself Deep in Though

    "''Dwarf armor belongs ta dwarves. Of what use is et in human hands? Likewise, if''n ye should find anything o'' ours on yer end, I would hope ye ta be willing ta return et ta us. But even then, it''s understandable if''n ya don''t.''" Ayva recited as best she could. Robin kept her face deadpan as she imagined King Zephron speaking in a dwarven accent.


    "Indeed. That must have been quite generous of him." Robin nodded. "But why does that make you rest assured?"


    "Back then Ah was naught but a regular dwarf. No titles, no betrothals: considered one of tha lowest tier of dwarves." Ayva said. "If he, the very king o'' the kingdom, could treat me an my kind with honest-ta-goodness respect, then he isnae a bad sort, humanly speakin'' o'' course." Ayva shrugged.


    "At least it''s preferrable ta have him instead o'' one with a chip on ''is shoulders, too proud ta speak with us lowly dwarvenkind, an'' conquest on his mind."


    "Mmn." Robin agreed.


    "Well, if ye''ll excuse me, I have ta go get ma mitts on. Been a while since I had a reason ta go all out!" Ayva said cheerfully.


    "Okay, see you later, then!" Robin saw her off.


    Robin assumed she was going back to the inn to grab her oven mitts and bake something to celebrate the occasion. But the dwarves knew different.


    Ayva was definitely on a search for her specialized punching mitts. Raymond would soon become a bloody mess. His minions would most likely soon follow along.


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    The dwarves milled about, family members waiting off to the side for their loved ones, admiring the king slimes, and talking about what just happened. Yet, not ten minutes later, another commotion happened at the gate near Robin.


    "Well, look who we have here? Isn''t et Ole Rahm? I wonder why ye decided ta drop in?" One of the dwarves that had blocked entrance into the tavern said, grudgingly.


    "If''n yer looking fer Ayva, then I''m afraid ye just missed her dragging away yer lord Raymond."


    This got the surrounding dwarves attention. As Rahm was one of Raymond''s men, wouldn''t he soon become bedridden just like Raymond? They began murmuring among themselves.


    "Perhaps we should hold him here, ta make sure he don''t run off and hide." One suggested.


    "How dare ye!" Reg exploded. "S''not like Boss Rahm wanted ta work under that stuck up noble either! Why he-" Reg was stopped by Rahm. No matter what was said, those who thought the worst of him were reluctant to change their opinions.


    "I don''t mind keeping ye all company. But please allow me through. This girl here needs treatment badly." Rahm said.


    "Sure an'' she was probably beaten up by yer very hand. Trying ta get closer eh? We know better than ta trust to that!" A dwarf jeered.


    "Then, please, someone please take her over. She hasn''t got much time left." Rahm''s throat choked up, as he drifted closer and closer to despair.


    "We''re a bit busy at tha moment." That snide dwarf sneered.


    "Please, someone! Anyone! Save my little girl!" Rahm called out in anguish.


    "Hold on, what''s going on here? Move aside and let me see." A voice called out from the back of the crowd. The dwarves split to make way for Robin, who was under Ayva''s orders.


    "You!?" Rahm exclaimed.


    "Yes? Me? Do I know you- wait, you''re bulb- I mean you''re that dwarf from the standoff in front of the inn, right?" Robin''s eyes lit up in memory.


    "What are you doing here-" Robin''s eyes flit over to the stretcher and understood. "A patient, huh?" She drew closer.


    "This looks serious! She needs immediate help! Hurry, follow me!" Robin waived him in.


    "But he''s one of Raymond''s men!" A dwarf complained.


    "It doesn''t matter whose man he is, I have my orders to heal every last citizen. is this girl not one of Ayva''s subjects?" Robin asked sharply. "Are you just going to let her die?"


    The dwarves stood silently, unsure what to say.


    "Shame on you! A life is beyond measure, and not something you can give back once taken away. No matter what quarrels you have with this dwarf, to use it as an excuse to allow this girl to suffer and die? I see now, the fellowship among dwarves. Their minds are sharp and their grudges have long fingers." Robin mocked, pointing out their blatant hypocrisy.


    "Either help me gather more injured and sick, or scram and let me do my job!" She gave her final verdict, shooing away the onlookers.


    Rahm''s heart warmed a bit, as he rushed his little girl, unimpeded to the treatment area, where Wiggle was ready for another batch.


    "Wiggle, we''ve got a serious case here! Please prioritize!" She said, having the girl close to death cut the cue. The patients in line weren''t in immediate danger, which is why she jumped the cue for the girl.


    Wiggle jiggled in response, engulfing the small girl and giving such an attentive careful treatment that it was done without causing too much bloodshed.


    "How can I ever thank ye?" Rahm asked.


    "Get in line. you yourself are in need of treatment." Robin replied, wiping the cold sweat off her brow.


    "..How?" he asked.


    I saw it peeking out on your collarbone whilst you were carrying the little one. have your man get in line, too. just in case." Robin replied. "And pass the word around, that those with bruises should make it their utmost priority to come and see me."


    "Aye. That I''ll do." Boss Rahm said, as he walked down to the end of the line.


    "But what if Ayva finds out that Robin healed Rahm up?" one of the dwarves whispered.


    "She''ll probably be happy that she can pummel him a bit longer, in that case..." came the thoughtful answer from another dwarf, who recalled Ayva''s bloody mary grin.


    ----


    ...In a hidden room....


    A hooded dwarf sat in contemplation, swirling a goblet containing a dark wine. His eddying thoughts were disturbed by the rushing sound of a single pair of footsteps. Without even looking up, the dwarf uttered hoarsely.


    "What news bring you?"


    The footsteps halted just before the doorway, as the messenger dare not step into the eerie lighting of the mana lamps.


    "Raymond was arrested." A whisper hissed across the room. "Queen Ayva has confiscated his estate. They discovered the plants, and are eliminating them speedily. She has enlisted the help of a traveling human who hails from Ekkinshire to clean up the aftermath. What are your orders? Shall we silence the fool? Shall we trouble the foreigner?"


    "Silence? Heh. That bumbling fool doesn''t know anything... Let him be. If we move too hastily we could leave opening for someone to suspect us. I also think that perhaps he will be of far better use to us in jail than he was while out and about."


    The seated dwarf swirled his drink in thought, then paused. "As for the foreigner...don''t do anything yet. It''s better to sound him out first. After all, he could merely be a passerby. No need to involve any ...external variables, yet."


    The messenger bowed within the shadows where he stood and hurried back the way he had come. When the footsteps could no longer be heard, the dwarf heaved a long, slow sigh.


    "Ekkinshire, eh?" The words echoed softly in the room. "Then it very well might be a certain famed individual..."


    After another long pause of thought, the dwarf muttered to himself.


    "Just in case it is, perhaps I should inform that person...." After swirling his drink so long in thought, the dwarf seemed to come to some sort of decision and lifted up the goblet, draining it in one move.


    "Regardless, the plans need revising. I must come up with counter measures immediately." At that, his own footsteps echoed as he too left the secret chamber.


    ---------


    The sun had fully set, and the magic lanterns in the park were illuminating the surroundings by the time the last patient of the day had been taken care of. Robin told those who were healed to spread the word.


    For the sake of convenience, Bobble was stationed in a lean-to at the inn in case any urgent patients were rushed there in the middle of the night. A sign was posted at the entrance with this information. As the word spread within the city, a new stream of folks flowed in after the evening meal time.


    While some gazed enviously at the king slimes, seeing a mountain of promised treasure, no one dared to have any designs upon the king slime that Ayva had employed for the people. Instead, they felt rather touched that she would employ such a rare creature to heal both commoner and noble alike free of charge. Oddly, not only did Liam and Chelsea not show up for dinner, Quinn also disappeared soon after that.


    Robin, who was in the middle of all this didn''t look the slightest bit worried. However, she was deep in thought all through dinner to the point where Christian had to call several times before Robin responded.

 169 She Is The Hero

    Robin blinked. "I''m sorry, what?" She asked, having not heard anything that Christian had said before.


    "Where do you think the infestation came from?" Christian asked.


    "That''s the real question, isn''t it?" Robin nodded. "Closest I can guess is that Roley Poley Raymond fellow was where it started. But, I suspect that he had a supplier from somewhere..."


    "A supplier?" Christian asked. "Who in the world would supply something gruesome like that!?"


    "The darker side of humanity." Robin replied with a sigh. "But, even though we''ve cleaned the people up, they''ll just get sick all over again if we can''t cover all the sources of infestation. If needs be, I may need to employ a slime here full-time."


    "It won''t do any good if that darker side kidnaps the king slime though." Christian pointed out.


    "Which is why it will be entrusted with someone trustworthy." Robin replied. "I don''t believe that we can''t find a worthy guardian in the city full of blacksmiths."


    At that moment, she noticed a crowd of dwarves gathering near the entrance.


    "It appears something has happened." Robin said, getting up to go take a look outside.


    Once she emerged, she found several dwarves, sitting outside on the ground, back to back. They were tied up in what appeared to be a thick translucent spider thread. Robin immediately recognized it as a larger version of the webs she had encountered in the boar caves. Immediately, she realized this was the work of Bobble. However, the slime was now nowhere to be seen.


    "Help! That blasted monster attacked us outta nowhere!"


    "Tied us all up like this et did!"


    "Thar''s no good thing as comes from monsters o'' any kind! Et shouldnae be allowed ta act freely like this!" Several of the tied up dwarves were making a racket, asking to be released.


    "Should we let them go?" One of the dwarves asked Robin.


    "Hold on. I prefer getting the whole story out, first. We''ve only heard one side, as of yet." Robin shook her head.


    "One side? And who would be the other?" The dwarf asked, confused.


    "Obviously, the real victim of all this." Robin sighed and entered the shed to look around.


    "Bobble? It''s okay, you can come out now. Thanks to you, the mean dwarves were captured. You''re safe!" She called softly.


    Bobble emerged from behind the woodpile, visibly shaking. It hesitated, as if reluctant to leave the sparse protection that a pile of wood gave it.


    "It''s all right, come here." Robin opened her arms, and Bobble leapt into them like a frightened child.


    "There, there! Was it that scary?" Robin asked gently. Bobble nodded emphatically.


    "Then there''s no need to continue treatment for tonight. you can stay with me, all right?" Robin pat the top of Bobble''s round body as she emerged from the shed.


    "Eek! Take it away! That monster tried to eat me!" One particularly red-nosed, drunken tied up dwarf shrieked.


    "Is that what you truly believe?" Robin smiled. But her smile was not warm.


    The dwarves on the ground shivered. Despite the hot, steaming climate, they felt a truly frigid wind brush through them. But several were quite stubborn. One of them adamantly piped up.


    "Monsters and us have never gotten along! Are ye telling us that one day we''ll become friends with the goblins and orcs that our great king fights off fer our kingdom!? I''ll never agree to it, over my dead body!"


    "Indeed, yours may very well be the only body that actually dies." Robin said, her cold smile beaming wider. "You have a bruise, don''t you? A bright blue and purple hue?"


    "What is et to ye?" The dwarf spat.


    "Nothing to me, but everything to you." Robin nodded amiably. "After all, they''re inside you now. There''s no escaping it."


    "Wha-what are inside o me?" The dwarf gulped.


    "Worms. Teeny tiny parasitic worms. The bruises are their colonies. And if left to fester, in the course of a month, they will pick your bones clean from the inside out." Robin''s smile widened.


    "So you see, if you don''t receive treatment from this healer slime, whom you so rudely called a ''monster'' the only ones who survive this infestation will be the ones who befriended it. It really would be over your dead body, don''t you think?" Robin asked the restrained group with a bright smile.


    "Yer-yer kidding me!" The dwarf cried out as his face turned pale.


    "I never joke when it comes to life and death." Robin replied. "That would be an insult to those I know who are alive, and those I remember after death. Why else would I be under Her Majesty, Queen Ayva''s orders? Do I look like her royal subject?"


    "Ye''ve done this, all o'' this! Ye were probably tha ones ta set this plague upon us, an'' then ye''d show up like a hero just ta get in Ayva''s good books! Et''s too coincidental fer someone ta just be walkin''through with tha cure just when things start ta come to a head! I willnae have yer insidious monster pets anywhere near her!" The dwarf called out.


    "Robin hasn''t done anything. From the time of he-HIS arrival, he has been under mah express supervision, Ruddy." A familiar voice warned.


    "Queen Ayva!" A dwarf gasped as everyone fell silent.


    "Ye''ve been brainwashed! Don''t forget tha orc attack that killed yer mum and da! Will ye ferget yer hatred simply because a monster is useful?" Ruddy insisted.


    "I have nae forgotten mah hatred, Ruddy...of tha orcs, that is. Just because a dog bit me, must I also despise a bird? Yer too biased against a great many things all mashed up under tha word ''monster'', that I''m afraid yer forgetting that exceptions do exist. Or did ye also ferget that et was Flaming Apes as saved mah life at tha time?" Ayva shook her head.


    "What''ll ye do with these fools?" Ayva asked Robin.


    "They''re all restrained?" Robin mused, then her cold smile melted as a mischievous one took its place . "I think, for their punishment, they''ll have to suffer a healing from one of my slimes. What say you?" She asked Ayva.


    "Aye, there''s no punishment greater than gettin yer nose rubbed up against tha very thing ye swear ta hate." Ayva''s eyes also smiled as she agreed.


    "So, is it true? Did Raymond really start the spread of all this?" Robin asked, allowing Wiggle to go heal them.


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    "No, s-stay away! Murder! MURDER!" Shrieked the dwarf as the healer slime bounced up to it. Wiggle jumped upon the screaming dwarves, engulfing them all within. It wasn''t gentle in extracting the parasites either, as it avenged Bobble''s fright.


    "Hmmph! I didn''t even lay a hand on him before he spilled everything he knew!" Ayva sniffed in disappointment. "Ah still gave him a good beating afterwards though. Et''s light enough that he willnae be crippled. His real punishment will be ta eat prison meals and work hard until such time as he can repay all that he wrongfully took from mah people. He said he got et with a letter from some fellow called ''T'' but that''s all he knew about et. Tha fool didn''t even properly prepare any worm-killing medicine!"


    Robin stiffened. T...could it possibly have been the Trader? Her gaze grew somewhat solemn as she filed this information away to ponder later.


    "But, still, if there''s more out there like Ruddy, then it may become more and more difficult to heal those in need of it. Wouldn''t that affect you as the queen?"


    "Pshaww! People like Ruddy are few and far between. But, indeed, there might be a bit of trouble coming after this. An not from tha common folk, neither." Ayva grinned, madly.


    "Ayva, I''m afraid I may cause you some trouble from now on, but please do forgive me for it." Robin sighed, as she began to unwrap the handle of her sword. Ayva immediately understood what Robin was going to do.


    "Pshh! Sure! ''Tis nae problem at all! In fact, et should be quite tha honor, instead, isn''t that right?" Ayva chuckled.


    Robin finished unwrapping the hilt and placed her mask upon her face.


    "You got one thing very wrong, Ruddy." Robin said, addressing the newly-healed dwarf, as she displayed her sword for all to see. "I''m not ''like a hero'' at all. I AM the hero."

 170 She Visits the Upper Levels

    Within the crowds, a solitary dwarf girl of black hair clicked her tongue in annoyance. She had been so close! A bit closer and surely she''d have caught Robin''s true appearance within the range of the memory crystal. For now, she could only bide her time and wait for the next fleeting opportunity. The dwarf girl pocketed the magic sphere, and disappeared within the crowds once more.


    "Pfft! Ahahahah! Good one! And I''m tha blacksmith king!" A nearby dwarf guffawed. Robin smiled and drew her sword.


    "Wait, hold on there! Ah was just joking! No need ta resort ta violence, laddy!" The dwarf exclaimed in surprise.


    Robin rolled her eyes and walked over to an open stretch of cobblestone. Then she stuck the sword point down into the ground.


    "If you really do doubt whether I''m the real deal, I dare you to pick up this blade. If anyone can do so, then take it that I''m a fake. But until then~ Have fun pulling~ my king slimes can reset bones, so don''t worry about throwing out your back at all~"


    Robin easily walked back to the tavern, leaving the sword sticking up out of the ground. At this point, many were already half-convinced, due to the sword and the method described. But as dwarves, they couldn''t pass up a chance to closely examine a legendary blade. Thus, a crowd easily gathered about the sword, and would not be dispersed.


    "Yer all right leaving tha blade out in tha open like that?" Ayva asked, impressed.


    "Those who would steal aren''t those whom the sword would choose." Robin replied. "I''m not worried. Why should you be?"


    "Indeed, it seems as you really trust your bond with that blade." Ayva noted. "You''re not even the slightest bit doubtful are you?"


    "That blade has waited thousands of years for one worthy of it, without giving in to elements or any man. And after all that time, it chose me. For me to doubt it at this point would be to doubt my own character." Robin sniffed.


    "Besides, if someone else really could claim it other than me, then I''d feel somewhat relieved." She added.


    "What? Why?" Christian asked.


    "How else will it get back to Ekkinshire?" Robin pointed out. "To leave the holy blade in demon territory would make me feel like I had failed to fully complete my duty."


    "Ah...so ye think us as demons, too?" Ayva asked, half-joking, half-serious.


    "No. Demons are demons. Dwarves are dwarves. It''s more like..like finding that dwarven dragon armor in human territory." Robin pointed out. "You''d have to admit, it was pretty far out of the current dwarf territory, to the point where it was an oddity. But, if it were the dwarven king''s crown, instead...."


    "Ah...Ah get what ya mean." Ayva smiled cheerfully again. "''T''wouldnae sit well with me if''n such an important thing to our kingdom was placed outside of et, amirite?"


    "Mmmn." Robin nodded. "While I am the only one who can wield it, currently, I have not forgotten that it is an important cultural artifact from Ekkinshire Kingdom."


    "Ah can understand that ye''d want et returned," Ayva nodded. "But, why does et sound like yer not intending to return et yerself? Are ye bound ta stay in tha demon''s lands? Or do ye not expect ta survive yer venture? Izzet that dangerous?"


    Christian glanced at Robin. "Well, if we were to say it wasn''t dangerous, we''d be lying to ourselves. But...well..." His eyes asked Robin an unspoken question. Robin nodded, and answered on her own.


    "I''m not a local hero." She answered. "In fact, I came from another world, whether by accident or by summons. It''s because I wish to return that I am seeking the help of the demon king."


    "Oh deary dear! Ye poor thing, you!" Ayva sighed. "No wonder why ye''ve got ta hide yerself like that. If tha nobles caught wind of yer true appearance, than ye''d be sludged down in quite the morass, wouldn''t ye?"


    "Mmmn." Robin nodded. "That''s why I''d like to go back as soon as I can before this trip becomes too well known. I need to gather the seals of the demon guardians as a sign of their approval so that I can seek audience with the demon king."


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    "Ah, in which case, ye''d be wantin'' ta speak with me husband, Ah understand." Ayva smiled sympathetically.


    "From what I hear, he won''t be back for a bit, but...as the hero, it doesn''t seem right to twiddle my thumbs while evil''s afoot. In that case, you don''t mind me helping you out while I wait?" Robin asked lightly.


    "Why, no, not at all!" Ayva chuckled. "It seems this ground nest of wasps has been building fer a long time while we''ve neglected to look fer et. What are ye planning ta do?"


    "Funny thing you should mention, actually, but yes. Did you know there''s a form of art in my world that is created by pouring molten metal like aluminum or copper into an ant''s nest? What do you think would happen if we did the same thing with a wasps nest, hmm?"


    "Whal....Ah''d surely love ta see et, deary. It sounds like somethin''right up our dwarven alleyways~" Ayva chuckled.


    Christian felt more than slightly intimidated. It was almost as if it were not Robin and Ayva that he was seeing. The bright smiles over hidden conversations seemed to be more fitted to an old fox and a young fox conversing over tea...Surely...Robin wasn''t planning a bloodbath?


    ...Right?


    --------


    Familiar steps once more echoed down the hallway, stopping at the edge of the light.


    "My lord-" The voice from the shadows began hesitantly.


    "What news is there that you need to run here?" The hooded dwarf asked, looking up from an ancient tome. His goblet was no longer filled with wine, but cleaned, and gleaming from a nearby shelf.


    "It has been confirmed. The troublemaker from Ekkinshire is t-the Hero, my lord." the voice conferred through a voice slightly out of breath.


    "As I suspected. I will need to send a message to our benefactor, and ask how he wishes us to deal with this person." The dwarf mumbled to himself.


    "Also, my lord, our benefactor has chartered a carriage out of the city, with no return charter. Methinks he has left with no intention of returning."


    "So saying, he is fleeing the city?" The dwarf hmmphed grumpily. "Then we must not leave behind any evidence of our connections with him. Have my ledgers brought here, quickly!"


    "As you wish, my lord." The shadowed servant bowed and rushed back down the hallway.


    A heavy sigh drifted out into the following silence.


    "Things are getting out of hand...but still within salvageable limits." the dwarf muttered to himself as he reluctantly closed the ancient tome in his hands.


    --------


    Within Ayva''s carriage, Robin was allowed entry into the third level, where the nobles homes were. Passing by the sapphire blue uniforms, the carriage came out into the open, again. Robin had to reassess which level she was on, by glancing back at the blue-clothed guardsmen.


    Although the 3rd circle had less area than the other circles, it didn''t seem that way. The buildings were larger, and spaced further apart, with decorations on a grand scale. not to mention the magic stone gates. Each gate was an intricate design with magic stones shining from the coat of arms in its center.


    "Ah can take ye through to tha second level as well, but fer tha first, even Ah need ta get permission ta come an go, so, ye''ll still hafta wait fer a bit." Ayva sighed, feeling a bit frustrated.


    "But, once ya do get there, I have tha loveliest garden A''d like ta show ye~!" She began to describe it in detail as they rode.


    As they rode up the steady incline, a carriage passed them on the way back. It was a rather small carriage, for a noble. More likely, with the lack of a crest, it was a merchant''s carriage.


    Merchants were often enough called up to the noble circle. But, they were only allowed entrance if they bore a letter with the nobleman''s seal upon it. Otherwise, they''d be refused entrance.


    Inside, the shaded sillouette of a man could be seen through the curtains. Robin didn''t think much of it until it had already passed them and gone a ways. When she did think of something, she glanced back at the carriage.


    "Is something wrong, deary?" Ayva asked.


    "...No, it''s probably nothing too serious..." Robin replied with a smile.


    "In that case, do ya remember tha yellow garden I told ya about? There''s actually a hidden swing among tha...." Robin had found that Ayva was a garden otaku.


    But, as the carriage moved forward, Robin kept the thought in the back of her head.


    ''...Was that a human that had been in the carriage?''


    Robin closed her eyes in thought before deciding to put it from her mind for now.

 171 She Accompanies Ayva

    The click of Ayva''s shoes and the tamp of Robin''s boots echoed down the marbled hallway.


    \"Impressive, isn''t et?\" Ayva asked as Robin observed the wall-length murals they encountered in passing. \"We dwarves have our ways with stone, and have an inborn intuition fer how ta bring its beauties inta light.\"


    \"Indeed. I am genuinely surprised. That you could build such a large structure as this...\" Robin agreed, gazing up at the gilded paintings that were plastered even on the ceilings that were 20 feet high.


    \"It''s actually a ploy our artesans built ta show off. No matter how tall humans can be, they''ll still be dwarfed compared ta these halls. Makes et a bit harder fer others ta look down upon us.\" Ayva laughed.


    \"Dwarves with spunk on top of pride, huh. Well, I admit, I am pretty impressed.\" Robin smiled. \"Even we humans ever rarely create wonders like these.\"


    \"Rarely? So Ye''ve seen something similar then?\" Ayva asked, curious.


    \"Hmmm...not anything half as impressive around here, but there are a rare few that come to mind back home.\" Robin replied. \"I''ve only ever visited two of them. But they were sort of on opposite ends of the world, so..\"


    \"Ah see! Well, now ye can add this''n to yer memories.\" Ayva chuckled.


    \"No need. I''m recording this all down as we go.\" Robin smiled, holding up her phone. She had been taking pictures for a while.


    \"Well, I thought you didnae want ta waste tha power source?\" Ayva replied.


    \"I didn''t. But now I can do this...\" Robin touched the charge port of her phone with her index finger, and the phone brightened a bit as the phone indicated it was charging.


    \"Now the only thing I need to worry about is if my phone has enough space to store all these photos...\" Robin chuckled, before moving on to a more serious topic.


    \"More importantly, Queen Ayva, I do want to ask you: When was this mural put up?\" Robin asked, stopping before a large portrait of the king in traditional Japanese-style clothing. It was like seeing a very muscular shrunken bearded Hercules dressed up like a yakuza, painted in traditional Rennaissance style.


    \"This? Quite recently....Ah think et was about five years ago. Why?\"Ayva asked.


    \"No reason, really. I just find it quite lifelike...especially the eyes. They almost seem real.\" Robin smirked pointedly at the portrait''s face. The eyes visibly blinked.


    \"I''ve thought so as well upon occasion, but it''s just the lighting. Come now, let me show you to the music room.\" Ayva smiled brilliantly as she rounded a corner with Robin. The hallway guards saw her hand motions from behind her fan, and two of them quickly moved to inspect the mural they had just passed.


    Three halls away, A dwarf maiden slipped out from behind a tapestry. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead and the back of her neck. She had been trying to get a good look at Robin, but she had instantly been discovered. Even worse, now the hidden passageway would be discovered. And it would be traced back to....the dwarf maiden quickly hurried off to report what happened.


    ---


    \"So, how many countries are you in a diplomatic relationship with?\" Robin asked.


    \"Well, o''course there''s the humans, an'' then the elves. After that, there''s the neighboring demon kingdom, and the beastman kingdom on th''other side.\"


    \"Beastman?\" Robin asked, curious.


    \"Aye.\" Ayva nodded. \"Ye''ve heard tell about how demonkin have a natural grasp on magic, right? Well the beastmen can be considered of the same line, if''n ye go back far enough. But beastmen only have one kind of magic. To transform between their human form and their animal form. Even now sometimes Ah kinnae tell one from th''other. But don''t make the mistake of calling a demon a beastman. They consider it a grave insult.\"


    \"Any reason why that is so?\" Robin asked.


    \"Because they are unable to use other kinds of magic, the beastmen are looked down on by the demonkin. Just know this: If''n ye see a beastman and a demonkin in tha same room together, odds are they''ll end up fighting before an hour is up.\" Ayva sighed.


    \"Noted.\" Robin acknowledged. \"But, why didn''t I hear anything about this in Ekkinshire?\"


    \"That''s cuz humans consider them to be demons too, which has caused quite the squabbling, as beastmen think being called a demon is saying you''re a vain, disdainful sort of creature.\"


    \"Aishh! And this is why politics was my worst subject.\" Robin grumbled. \"So many squabbles!\"


    \"Aye, that there are.\" Ayva nodded in agreement, as both let out a sigh.


    \"Well, let''s look on the bright side.\" Robin said, with a grin. \"After this is over, we can have a nice cold drink of fruit water and forget these quarrels in place of food and good cheer.\"


    \"Aye, Deary! I''ll drink ta that!\" Ayva laughed. They soon came to a large stone door, intricately decorated with many small carved scenes.


    \"The door of history, carrying the tales of our ancestors.\" Ayva indroduced, as she touched her ring to a gemstone in the center. The doors soundlessly swung open.


    Inside was a long stone table, at which sat at least a hundred individuals, who all started talking at the same time.


    \"Queen Ayva, I fail to see why ye would impound the heir to our city''s most prestigious doctors over a paltry sum of money-\"


    \"I heard there was an outbreak of parasites within the city! How horrifying!-\"


    \"Why haven''t you appropriated those Slime Kings for the crown, yet!? We are uneasy, seeing that the cure for our predicament lies in the hands of this foreigner-\"


    Each was talking over the other, but what could be heard was enough to turn Ayva''s expression black with anger.


    \"Shut yer gobb! If yer such chums then ye have no problem covering such ''a paltry sum fer yer pal there. He stole millions of gold from what we''ve given to the citizens, and we haven''t even fully accounted how much he''s stolen!\"Ayva smashed her fist upon the table, ending the discussion.


    Then Ayva smiled. \"But if''n ye can''t, then don''t provoke my anger or ye''ll be the first ta accompany him in his cell.\"


    After those words, there was an immediate pindrop silence.


    \"No one wishes to bail out that roly poly rascal anymore, huh?\" Ayva sniffed. Her heels began to click once more, as she headed towards the dais at the head of the long table. \"Then don''t let me hear any more aboot him again. We have more important things ta discuss.\"


    \"Yer Majesty, why is this foreigner here? He has no business in our affairs.\" A grumpy-looking dwarf pointed and scowled.


    \"Whoever said that tha very Hero himself wasn''t welcome in these here halls can pack up and leave, or else take back yer words and yer pointer. Mah husband might not be here, but that dinnae mean ye can break the rules or be rude to guests of the kingdom.\" Ayva scolded. The grumpy old dwarf sat down and withdrew his hand, chagrined.


    \"What if He''s a fake?\" Another asked.


    \"As everydwarf can, yer welcome ta try liftin'' his sword in the commoner''s square.\" Ayva answered bruskly. Everyone was aware that once her words became short, she was close to her bottom line, and shut up.


    \"Now, in answer to a completely ridiculous statement provided earlier, mainly why I have not absconded with a rare king slime. First, it dinnae belong to me or any dwarf. Second, While they are under Hero Robin''s care, they are neither pets nor slaves nor belongings. They are her companions, and are also accompanied and protected by Guardian Lord Tarquinn. Those who think themselves a wise old donkey can discuss the ownership of king slimes with him.\"


    There was an outburst of surprise before Ayva raised her hand, making them be quiet.


    \"Moreover, I have reason to suspect that the recent infestation--not plague, mind ya. In-fes-ta-tion.-- was brought here and spread on purpose. Seeing that it ought ta be someone of high influence, I believe the fiendish devil ta have originated from one of our oh-so-noble families.\"


    Ayva smiled sweetly, but all those present began sweating buckets. Queen Ayva truly was angry this time. At this point there was no escaping it: someone was going to have the living daylights struck from them.


    \"...So, tell me why Ah should trust enny o'' you squabbling, nickering nanny goats over the hero? Hmmm? Who''s ta say that yer not all in cahoots against the people and tha crown?\"


    \"H-how can we prove our loyalty?\" A stammering red-bearded dwarf spoke up, catching on to what Ayva was hinting at.


    \"Any destroyed records is considered grounds fer treason. Every family''s books are ta be cross-referenced by ten others of different factions. If''n ye even TRY ta frame someone, Ah swear ye''ll be hanged from the city walls as an example!\"Ayva ordered emphatically.


    \"Also, send out an inquisition to the place where tha worst cases were, and ask them about their food, drink, and places they''d gone. No violence against the common folk will be tolerated. We will find tha source o'' this plague, and with tha source, we will find tha black dwarf that needs die a thousand deaths.\" Ayva grit her teeth into a grimace.

 172 She Find De Way

    Ayva squinted her eyes at the delegates. "Next, all those entering or leaving tha city must be examined by a king slime, or be barred from entering. Any action against the slime will be considered as grave as an assault against the king''s guard." Ayva emphasized.


    "Meanwhile, as this is happening, Robin and her companion slimes will scour every last cobblestone o'' this city clean o'' any last mite of a bedbug, so ifn'' ye don''t wish ta face mah wrath, ye''d best make sure yer men behave." Ayva warned.


    "But what of the First circle?" One dwarf asked.


    "What of et? Only me an my husband live there, an'' he''s not even home. we''ll worry about tha first circle once he returns." Ayva shrugged. "Ah''m not worried aboot et. Why should ye be?"


    "With that, this meeting is dismissed. Proclaim my decree. And may the dwarven ancestors have mercy on whichever repugnant pustile should go against et." Ayva stood up, and raised her fist. The other dwarves stood and saluted her.


    Ayva smacked her fist upon the table, creating another resounding, echoing boom. The chamber was designed in such a way that the sound could be heard throughout the city, so all the people were aware that a decision had been made. With that, the room was emptied in a hurried, yet ordered fashion, as all were intent upon proving themselves loyal.


    "How long will it take before they realize you just gave them paperwork to keep them out of your hair?" Robin asked.


    "Long enough, an'' that''s all that matters." Ayva grinned, a twinkle in her eye. "Yer sure et''ll wark?"


    "It already has." Robin smiled. "Now on to more important things..."


    ----------


    "How goes matters in the dwarf kingdom?" A beautiful masked girl with black hair asked through a communication sphere. The mask, though thorough in covering the upper face, was an ornate piece of work with black lattice over a white background. Only the head was visible, currently.


    "Ah, that place? No good, no good! The Hero arrived too quickly. moreover, he brought Demon Protecto-I mean Guardian Tarquinn. The plan had to be scrapped, cuz the Slime Guardian brought King Slimes along." The human in the carriage quickly conveyed. He wore a similar, completely black mask.


    "As things were, I had to scram before I was discovered! It''s a good thing I was wearing the fake face that old geezer came up with. Now even if they wanted to, they won''t discover a single trace." The man sighed in disappointment.


    "No, you did well. A man that can even injure the Master is someone you are absolutely no match for. I''ll convey this information and apply for your reward."The face in the Com-ball reassured.


    "That is all I could ask for. As usual, I will wait at the usual place for further instructions, then." The man sighed.


    "Roger. Signing out." The Com-ball became white once more, like a brilliant pearl.


    The figure sighed, then sat back in his seat as he tossed a cloth over the thing.


    "Blast. They left me out of the loop again. Did the original stop memory-looping because he was injured?" The spirit clone sighed as it returned to the location its host usually frequented. Now was certainly a time to be extremely cautious so as not to rouse suspicion.


    -----


    Chelsea dragged Liam out with her again, pretending not to notice that they had an interested tag-along.


    "Aren''t we going to wait up for-" Liam began to ask, having already notice the tailing figure.


    "Oh, kids always like to do stuff like this." Chelsea chuckled. "We''ll discover him soon enough as things are. It''s better than letting him run off elsewhere and get into trouble."


    "...Will it be more business like yesterday?" Liam asked. They had gone throughout the city advertising the king slimes to those who hadn''t known about it, yet sorely needed healing.


    "Nope!" Chelsea replied.


    "...Then, what ARE we doing?" Liam asked.


    "Sightseeing!" Chelsea laughed.


    "What sights have we not seen?" Liam asked, naively.


    Chelsea chuckled. "You''ll see."


    And, once more, Liam was dragged off by Chelsea, a curious Gerard tailing them from behind.


    -----------


    Christian rolled his eyes at Jasmine and glanced over at Keith.


    "Tell me once again why we let the hero go off with another kingdom''s nobility without a companion, a guard, or even his own weapon?" He asked, in a voice oozing with sarcasm.


    "Well, first off, unless you can strong-arm your way through a crowd of dwarven metal workers who''ve forged their bodies in the residual heat of volcanic flame, you''re unlikely to reach the weapon. Second, Ayva has been nothing but helpful for us, so being suspicious about her character now could be seen as an insult. Thirdly, And most importantly, if we all scatter, then the hero will be hard put to find us if and when he needs our help." Keith smirked as he downed his third pint of ale.


    "And, fourth....dwarven ale is good stuff. and it''s much cheaper here than back in the kingdom. might as well get as much under your belt as possible-BRAAAP!" He let out a hearty belch.


    Christian snorted. "I do believe I recall cutting your alcohol allowance for....was it a week?"


    "Erk! Your Highnes-I mean, Young Master, you wouldn''t do that, surely? You were joking earlier, right?" Keith asked, cold sweat starting to form on his forehead and the back of his hand.


    "Who knows." Christian sniffed petulantly as he looked out the window with a bored expression. "Any idea of what that ''choklat''stuff Robin was talking about will taste like?"


    "Do you think it''ll taste like tea?" Jasmine asked.


    "It''s quite the bitter nut. Perhaps he''ll make alcohol with it?" Keith surmised.


    "No, he said he''ll let us eat it, so it''s definitely going to be food. I was speaking about the flavor." Jaamine denied.


    "As for me, anything Robin makes will surely be tasty!" A voice broke in from the side. The two royals and the babysitter turned to see Fairy Elise.


    "You''re still here? Weren''t you gonna scram once we arrived here?" Jasmine asked. The contract had only bound her temporarily to the party for a certain time.


    "I was, but I decided against it!" Elise landed on the table. "It has nothing to do with the fact that the jungle is full of giant spiders, snakes, and creepy crawlies that can fly. I-I''m not scared of t-those. I was simply interested in trying out this ''chocolate'' thing you were talking about."


    Jasmine laughed. Elise was an open book to her.


    "So you''re really not scared, huh." She asked with a twinkle in her eyes.


    "No, I''m not!" Elise affirmed, puffing her small chest out. "It might be smelly here, but at least there''s good food!" The people sitting at the table laughed at her display.


    "What are you laughing at?" Elise stomped her tiny feet in frustration.


    ---------


    A figure walked down a dark hallway. The calm tamp of boots echoing at a measured pace. Finally, it grew close to the lit room at the end of the hallway.


    The boots paused for just a moment at the flickering edge of the light streaming out from the doorway. Then they continued into the light as the figure stood in the doorway. It looked towards the dwarf who was sitting in a large chair, swirling wine in a goblet.


    "Ye took yer time coming here. I was expecting ye to arrive much earlier." The dwarf pointed out. "If someone were being murdered, ye''d have arrived much too late, Hero Robin."


    Robin stayed in the doorway, leaning up against the side, in a slightly roguish fashion. "It''s a very good thing no one was murdered, yet, then." She agreed. "You hid the entrance quite well. It took me a while to find it, Mister Nightsteel-oh, excuse me, I mean Thorn. I must say, for a brother of Throm, you don''t look very similar."


    "We''re half-brothers." Thorn growled. "I was tha elder of us two." He scowled into his goblet before downing the wine in it. "But, I am quite curious, right now. You didn''t bring sister-in-law, or yer weapon with ye. Could it be that ye came here merely to talk?"


    "You could say that. Currently, Ayva is unaware of this location, but I doubt it''ll be for long. I want his name." Robin got to the point.


    "Whose name?"


    "The one behind all this."


    "That would be me." Thorn smirked.


    "It could not be you." Robin denied.


    "Why not?"


    "Because, one, you are paralyzed from the waist down. Two, you haven''t travelled anywhere by carriage. And, three, you hosted a strange merchant in your home around the time of the outbreak."


    "The other two, I can understand, but how did you know I was paralyzed?" Thorn asked.

 173 She Gets Trapped

    Robin blinked in no hurry as she raised a quizzical eyebrow.


    "You mean to say that you thought your paralysis is natural?"


    A shocked silence came in between them like a thunderbolt. Finally, Thorn stroked his black beard with a shaking hand. Then he opened his mouth.


    "You mean to tell me that it isn''t?"


    His gravely voice became lower as he now openly stared at Robin with an intense gaze. No one, neither doctors, nor magicians who specialize in curses could even discover that he could not walk. Each gave him a complete bill of health. How could this newcomer know so easily what he had spent five years trying to secretly resolve?


    "I''m sure you''ve heard of my actions at the stone gambling market." Robin hinted. She could see that from the knees down, a familiar clear mana had locked the legs in place.


    "So, fer some fiendish reason, Ye can see et clear as day, huh..." Thorn sat back in his chair. As a strange emotion washed over him, his dwarvish accent came through that much thicker.


    "There were only three people who knew of et before ya. The first was tha culprit, tha second be tha one ''as taken care of me all this time....an tha third ''un be mah father. An'' now you...." A piercing gaze fell upon Robin as he fixed his pale blue eyes on her.


    "An it was on account of these worthless legs o'' mine that that blaggard of a half-breed was made king instead of me."


    "So to get back at your half-brother, whom you suspect of poisoning you, you sacrifice the innocents of the city for the ''noble cause of revenge'' huh." Robin rolled her eyes.


    "If I wasn''t certain that it wasn''t poison you had that was locking down your legs, I''d have feared it had gotten to your head instead."


    "Ya don''t know anythin-"


    "I KNOW ENOUGH!" Robin cut him off. "I know enough to see that you are the daftest fool of a half-wit I have ever seen. But you are too caught up in your revenge game, your racism, and your blasted self pity to even care! The burden and honor, the very glory of a king- itself- lies NOT in how many foes he defeats, but in how many of his people he protects!"


    Thorn''s face twisted. No one had ever scolded at him like that for a long time. Even Ayva had long given up scolding him after he had lost feeling in his legs. Of course, that was because he had stopped seeing anyone after losing feeling in his legs.


    Robin narrowed her eyes at him through her mask. It had been a long time since she had been so angry. But this proud dwarf''s pitiful excuse of a reason had brought out her inner fire.


    Then she smiled. If Christian or Keith had seen her, they''d have recognized that smile. It was the same one she gave when she spoken with the Trader.


    Then she spat out the words that she knew would silence his nonsense.


    "Your father did not overlook you for the lack of feeling in your legs, but for the lack of brotherhood in your heart. A dwarf that can abandon his people in a moment, cannot become the heart of the dwarven people. For all of dwarven stubbornness, their hearts are not made of cold stone. Yet in you, it seems there is found an exception."


    Indeed, Thorn did fall silent after that. Robin stood in the doorway, while Thorn sat in his chair. A fire crackled in the hearth, despite the well-heated underground.


    "...Well then. Aren''t you here to arrest me?" Thorn asked.


    "You can''t use your legs now. where would you go?" Robin replied. "Wouldn''t you hate for your little caretaker to die when she ambushes me from above? or are you truly so cold-hearted as to care nothing about her?"


    Thorn''s eyebrow twitched.


    "I have two eyes. Perhaps you should have thought twice before placing a mirror above the mantle. She is entirely visible from where I stand." Robin chuckled, remaining in the doorway.


    "What a pity. And I had such high hopes. But it appears our conversation is at an end." Thorn sighed, as he pressed down upon the gem in his ring. "I suppose I will see you later. That is, if you don''t get squashed of course."


    At that, the very room itself, walls and all, vanished into a point in space and disappeared, leaving Robin in darkness. She snapped her fingers, creating a floating light to examine the area. It was as if someone had chiselled the room out of the very granite itself. All the furnishings, even the fireplace was gone.


    At that point, Robin started hearing a rumbling sound down the hallway behind her. She paused and looked back, when she noticed the sound was getting louder, and closer.


    Her eyes widened. And she quickly threw herself forward into the empty box as the stone passageway behind her collapsed. It seemed she was trapped.


    Robin coughed, and covered her nose and mouth with her arm as a cloud of dust filled the room. She stood up, and used a spell to gather all the dust into a pile at the center of the floor.


    "It seems we will meet again. Though next time, poisoned or not, I will still punch you on your pretentious face." Robin sighed as she examined her stoney prison.


    --------


    The entire city could hear the stones beneath the ground shifting, as a nearby stone maze collapsed in upon itself. Luckily no dwarf was inside when it did happen. The residents of the 2nd circle, though, were all somewhat alarmed, as they lived near it.


    Ayva had been nearby, and rushed over to see the long maze reduced to rubble, and fallen twenty feet under ground level. However, Ayva felt suspicious about the collapse. It was too neat to be a normal cave-in. Almost as if it were done on purpose.


    She also began to feel a sense of mild alarm as Robin was nowhere to be seen.


    "Get me the map of these grounds! including the underbelly now!" She yelled out. "And get some workers to start excavating. There might be a person trapped down there!"


    ''Robin, girl, I hope yer okay.'' Ayva worried.


    --------


    Robin frowned. She had been down here for a while already, and the air didn''t seem to be getting any thinner. She eyed the collapsed rock where the doorway had once stood. Then she lifted her hand and tried to draw air through any possibly hidden air pathways. But there was no airflow coming from the collapsed doorway.


    Robin eyed the walls around her. There was airflow, yet not from the way she had come in. That meant there was possibly a hidden exit somewhere. She closed her eyes and opened her magic sense.


    --------


    --------


    "What was that?" Christian asked, standing up in alert.


    "By all indications, it seems like it came from the direction of the 2nd circle, where Ayva and Robin went." The four at the table turned to see Quinn also sitting at the table, drinking from a mug of ale.


    "Can you get us over there?" Christian asked, recalling Robin''s talk with him.


    "Physically? Yes. Legally? no. Regardless, wouldn''t you be arrested the moment you stepped foot up there?" Quinn pointed out.


    "Are you allowed up there?" Christian asked.


    "..Yes."Quinn said after thinking about it.


    "And isn''t Robin the one paying you with food? If he''s in trouble then who will pay you?" Christian pointed out.


    "That is indeed a good reason for me to go, though I fail to see why I should bring you along?" Quinn calmly said, watching Christian stare at him. Despite his noble upbringing, Christian had strangely dropped his noble mask of feelings completely, and was like an open book.


    "What do you want?" Christian asked, his determination outweighing his suspicion at this point.


    "What can you give me?" Quinn asked with a smile. It was rather fun to see the suave prince charming to completely lose his cool.


    "...My portion of the choklat when Robin makes it." Christian offered across the table, "Do we have a deal?" He held his hand out for a handshake.


    "I think....." Quinn paused, then leaned in a bit closer. "...that you have yourself a deal."


    Quinn took Christian''s hand in a firm handshake. Then Quinn''s hand melted into a slime blob which sucked both in at such a quick speed that none of the dwarves noticed. What remained, landing on the table, was a round slime that slipped a tendril into Kenneth''s pint, emptying it when he wasn''t looking.


    "You didn''t go with them?" Fairy Elise asked Jasmine.


    "Of course not! Someone needs to keep an eye on this drunkard." She pointed to Kenneth. "And I''m not giving up even a bite before I get a taste of that choklat."

 174 She Sends Her Little Messenger

    Robin slowly walked over to a spot near the center of the wall. The air seemed to be...coming down from above? Then it clicked inside her head. Right. The fireplace. There had to be a chimney connected to the outside.


    She looked up and saw a small hole in the ceiling. It was too small for a person to fit through, although it was perfect for a chimney. Well, at least the air problem was solved. As for how to get out without accidentally hitting the sewers, hot steam, or volcanic vents: Robin would need to carefully consider things.


    "Hmmm..." Robin frowned.


    ------------


    Behind a line of carriages in the shop for repairs, Christian appeared, being spat out of a solitary slime. It then transformed into Quinn. Christian landed on his feet, but almost fell over, as he had landed on a wooden dowel meant to become a wheel spoke. Christian quickly hopped onto solid ground.


    "Where are we?" Christian asked.


    "The second circle. This was the closest one to the earthquake site. If we follow the stonemasons, we should be able to reach there quick enough." Quinn replied.


    "Right." Christian nodded. At that point, a crowd of dwarves carrying large hammers and chisels hurried past the entranceway.


    "See? What did I say?" Quinn smirked.


    "Don''t just stand there! Let''s go!" Christian called back as he ran out the door.


    Quinn sighed. "So hasty. Does he not have confidence in the hero''s plot armor?" Then he laughed. "What am I saying? Even if Robin doesn''t have plot armor, she''s skilled enough that she can probably deal with it on her own."


    Shaking his head, Quinn followed after Christian at a more leisurely pace.


    ----


    Ayva scowled at the stonemason who had reported to her. "Yer saying this was designed this way? Ta just cave in like that?"


    "The rubble is too orderly ta think otherwise." The stonemason said. "Look at how level et is. if''n et were an accident, then there''d be an uneven-ness where some parts''d be deeper, an som part''s be higher. Also, the edges around the collapse are too clean. Not ta mention the signs of pickaxes on the walls there. If''n et isn''t a collapsible tunnel, then Ah''ll eat me own boots."


    Ayva was quiet for a moment. Then she asked in a somewhat less confident voice.


    "Say...What are the odds of a body being buried under all of this?"


    "Well-" The stonemason was interrupted by Christian arriving upon the scene, rushing up to the site.


    "Ayva, please don''t tell me that Robin is underneath that. He''s just helping out somewhere else in the second circle, right?" Christian asked, trying to reign in his growing sense of panic.


    "Alright..." Ayva replied slowly. "Ah won''t tell Ye. Ta be honest, Ah''m not too sure where Robin be right now. As fer that there rubble..." She turned to the stonemason. "About what Ah asked ye earlier?"


    The stonemason shook his head. "If there was a body then there''d still be a sign of uneven-ness. Collapsed tunnels are meant ta interlock in a way as ta completely fill the area underneath. a body would mess with the equilibrium of the interlocking. If''n he be down there, then he''s not in tha tunnel."


    "So, at tha very least, we can rule out death by collapsed tunnel." Ayva sighed. "Where are the plans fer this area?"


    "According ta my records, this stretch of land be under King Throm''s brother, Lord Thorn." The stonemason scratched his head. "All of the areas under his lands are handled by mah second cousin''s company. So I''m not in possession of tha blueprints."


    "Oh, by the king''s crown!" Ayva scowled.


    Christian felt relieved, though still somewhat worried.


    "Perhaps he isn''t even under there?" Christian asked, hoping that was the case.


    "Nonsense! Robin comes up here for the first time ever, and all of a sudden there''s a coincidental cave-in? Robin''s definitely involved in this." Quinn quickly shot down Christian''s false hope. "But, odds are, sh-he''s probably still alive."


    Ayva''s scowl deepened as she glanced over at Quinn. Was he also aware of Robin''s situation? She narrowed here eyes.


    "H-hold on!" The stonemason waved his arms hoping to stave off Ayva''s displeasure. "Ah said Ah don''t know what be underneath, but Ah reckon if''n there be a passageway, then there be somewhere the hallway be leadin'' to. There''s bound ta be a room or something at tha end of et!"


    Ayva''s scowl lightened as she turned back to the stonemason. "Yer sure?"


    "Positive! No lord would only make a passageway without even a room at tha end! No stonemason''d join in making such an obviously flawed design. We take safety seriously." The stonemason asserted.


    "The only question be, which end be the entrance, and which be the end where the room be?"


    ------------


    Robin then got an idea. She brought out a bobbin of tent repair string and a couple of brass horns. She didn''t know what they were supposed to actually be used for, but necessity is the origin of invention.


    She invoked fire and magma shaping spells. The two horns were quickly fashioned into two daffodil-shaped metal cups. There were tiny holes in the bottom of these cups. Robin threaded the tent threads through, and double knotted it to make sure the thread stayed attached.


    If someone from earth saw them, they''d look like the speaker piece to an old fashioned wall phone. Now all that was left was to safely get it up to ground level. Robin looked up.


    Then she had an idea. She tapped her belt. Bobble, who had stuck with her like glue ever since being attacked, popped up onto her shoulder.


    "Bobble, Can I ask you to deliver the other end of this up through that hole to ground level?" Robin asked, showing it the metal daffodil. "I''d be grateful if you could make sure the string doesn''t snap either."


    Bobble thought about it for a moment before bobbing out a yes. It reached out its tendrils, engulfing the metal bauble before shooting out a transparent thread up towards the hole in the ceiling. It then shot upwards. It disappeared up the hole, the thread trailing behind it.


    "I hope I have enough thread." Robin mumbled, glancing at the dwindling pile that she had unravelled from the bobbin.


    --------


    "You''re dwarves! You''re acknowledged to be the fastest stoneworkers in the land. Why can''t you just dig him out?" Christian asked.


    "Et''s not that simple. Before we even start digging, we need ta be assured o'' where everything is. Otherwise, if''n we should accidentally block off an air vent, that Robin o'' yours might suffocate." The stonemason shook his head.


    "We could also end up accidentally opening tha sewers or even worse. We could open a steam vent and release poisoned gas. Not only will et endanger us dwarves, but yer friend wilnae be able ta escape et neither. Tha''s why we need ta be extra careful." He explained carefully.


    "Where is that cousin of yours?" Ayva asked impatiently.


    "Second cousin." The stonemason corrected. "An'' he should be here in tha next five minutes as tha special blueprints as always placed in a secure place as needs time ta unlock."


    -----


    While Christian and Ayva were busy badgering the head stonemason, Quinn was walking around the perimeter of the collapsed area. After a while, he heard a strange sound like metal striking onto something.


    Glancing about, he soon noticed movement outside the perimeter. It was in the area opposite Ayva and Christian. A clear tendril was extending out of a metal grate, as if trying to get through, yet held back by something.


    "Ho?" Quinn felt his interest was struck as he walked up to it. The slime had a strangely shaped metal object nestled within it. This object was connected to a string that vanished down into the darkness behind it.


    The slime could easily get through the grate if it only let go of the metal daffodil. But it refused to let go of the bauble. Quinn recognized the shape of the item.


    "You are one of Robin''s charges, aren''t you? Bobble, was it? Move away. I shall remove this obstacle for you." Quinn smiled as the slime removed itself from the grate. Then his arm turned transparent as it stretched and engulfed the offending grate.


    It vanished as if it had never been.


    "It is okay now. You can come out." Quinn moved aside as Bobble hopped out of the hole, still holding the brass cup.


    ------


    Robin looked up at the other end of the makeshift telephone dangling two feet above her head. "Turns out it was a little short, huh." She sighed.

 175 She is Indeed Stuck

    Bobble offered up the metal cup to Quinn, straining a bit. Quinn bent down to accept it. At this point, Christian and Ayva clearly saw his action, and began making their way around the perimeter.


    Quinn nodded his thanks to Bobble as he began speaking into the metal cup.


    "Hello? Robin? Are you there? Is that you?"


    "Wait...-ld on...The ph....-it far away..." Came back through the receiver. Quinn understood, and waited a bit.


    "Okay! Can you hear me now? Over." Robin''s voice came through the transceiver.


    "Roger. I can hear you loud and clear. Over." Quinn replied.


    "Oh thank goodness!" Came back.


    Quinn glanced over at Christian, who was running headlong down the length of the perimeter. Then he spoke.


    "You''re going to want to hold the phone away from you after a minute or two because Christian is on his way. For the sake of brevity, I shall ask the important questions first. over."


    "Understood. Over." Robin rolled her eyes at the worrywart.


    "Are you all right? Over."


    "Never better. just trapped in a stone room. Over."


    "Who did it? Over."


    "The Poisoned Paralytic Idiot Lord Thorn. Over."


    "Did you capture him? Over."


    "He got away via a spacial device disguised as a ring. Took the whole room with him, walls and all. Over." Robin replied.


    "And here he is now...." Quinn smirked as Christian arrived, and took over the phone. He had noticed Quinn talking into the phone with someone and began a lifelike imitation of Gerard''s machine gun questioning over the phone.


    "Hello? Is that Robin? Are you all right? Did you get hurt? How did the ground collapse? You''re not injured are you? Do you know how worried we were!?...."


    Quinn shrugged helplessly at Ayva. Then relayed what he had gathered before Christian took over the phone.


    -------


    "Did You know how worried we were!?" The voice called from the cup in Robin''s hand. She currently sat down upon a stone pillar that had lifted her high enough to reach the other side of the phone.


    Despite Christian being over-exaggerated about everything, Robin still listened to his frantic ramblings. She felt warm, as if light had begun to glow from within. It reminded her of how her brother had sometimes scolded her for doing things he considered dangerous.


    "....Hello? Why aren''t you answering me!?" The cup which Robin was holding away from her ear was almost ringing from the vibration. She smiled a bit helplessly. How could she answer if he continued to ask questions?


    "Calm down-" She tried to speak into the phone.


    -----------


    Chelsea and Liam with the stalking Gerard trailing behind, had travelled to the Fourth Level of the city, where the craftsmen plied their trades. Chelsea led the way the entire time. Finally, she stopped in front of a busy construction company.


    "Why are we here, again?" Liam asked.


    "We''re not here specifically to go in" Chelsea chirped with a knowing smile. She dragged Liam off to the side, around the building. Behind the large sturdy stone tradehouse was a derelict shed made of rotting wood.


    "We''re going in that?" Liam asked.


    "No, hush! I need to orient myself..." Chelsea walked about the shed before she seemed to find the right direction.


    "Come along! This way!" She called, as she stepped into the small grove of trees behind the shed. Liam shook his head, but followed after her. Gerard picked up his pace so that he wouldn''t lose them.


    "Ah, found it!" Chelsea called out as she stood in front of a recently caved in pile of rock and mud.


    "And what are you planning to do here?" Liam asked.


    "I''m not going to do anything." Chelsea shook her head. "But you are going to dig this cave out."


    "You mean you brought me here to dig?" Liam asked, feeling even more confused than before. Chelsea nodded her head, smiling.


    "Yup! You better get started soon, or we''ll be too late." She prodded.


    "While I am inexperienced in digging, I''ll do my best." Liam said as scales formed along his fore-arms and his fingers became dragon claws. He immediately got to work.


    Gerard was watching from the cover of the trees. He didn''t notice that a large furry creature slowly descended next to him on a gossamer string. But for some reason, he shifted his eyes to his side. A large, tarantula -like spider hissed at him.


    "Aaaah!" He screamed, leaping away from the spider, and out into the open. Regular spiders were fine, but this one was as big as his face! He shuddered, and edged away from the trees.


    "Oh come now! It''s only a giant singing spider! They''re harmless. Now you''ve gone and scared it off. Probably frightened the poor dear half to death." Chelsea clicked her tongue.


    Gerard didn''t say anything. But he spoke within his heart. I wanna see you encounter one of these sneaking up on you and not have your heart jump up into your throat.


    "Well, now that you''re here, you might as well be helpful." Chelsea smiled.


    Gerard didn''t like that smile at all.


    ------------


    Finally, Christian had calmed down enough for Robin to get a word in edgewise.


    "Like I said before, I''m fine." Robin rolled her eyes. "At the very least, I don''t lack air."


    "Robin, can you tell me how far down ye are?" Ayva called from behind Christian.


    "I used an entire new bobbin of tent repair string, and the phone is still fourteen feet short of the ground." Robin replied.


    Earlier, when Bobble had reached the grate, it had stopped at nine feet high.In order to reach it, Robin had created a stone pillar. But after Quinn picked it up, the phone reeled up once more, five more feet. So Robin had to make the pillar taller before she could reach the phone.


    "How long do ye fathom that length of string is, roughly?" Ayva asked, snatching the phone from Christian outright. Robin considered.


    "I''d say it''s about...at least a hundred dwarves in length. Robin said.


    "Aish! Thar be three hunderd feet deep!'' Yer practically back on the third level, me dear!" Ayva exclaimed.


    "I''m not certain how deep it really is." Robin said. "But you can have Quinn ask Bobble if there are any twists and turns in the air vent."


    -------


    Chelsea looked up at the sun.


    "We''re cutting it kinda close..." She muttered, glancing over at Liam. He had already dug a sizeable hole in the loosened dirt and rocks, and there were still no signs of reaching even a small pocket of air.


    She looked around, and saw a recently-made pile of bamboo poles. It was probably from clearing out the underbrush. But the shape of them gave her an idea. She looked down the middle of a few of them, and soon found one to her liking.


    "Out of the way, Liam!" Chelsea called. Liam looked up just in time to dodge out of the way as Chelsea speared a bamboo pole into the area he was digging.


    "Come on, help me push it through!" She strained to pierce through the dirt. Liam was still confused, but he put a hand on the end behind her, and pushed. It went in about three feet before the resistance suddenly gave way.


    "Now, blow on this end to make sure there''s no dirt blocking the insides." Chelsea instructed. Liam followed the instruction, still confused.


    When he was done, wind whooshed into the pipe, as if sucked into a vacuum.


    "Now, even if we''re late, at least he won''t suffocate." Chelsea sighed.


    "He? Chelsea, is there someone trapped under all of this?" Liam asked.


    "You could say that." Chelsea nodded.


    "In that case, even if there''s an airway, he might still suffocate if he''s trapped under a heavy piece of debris. Why didn''t you tell me?" Liam asked.


    "If you had hurried, you might have triggered another avalanche." Chelsea looked sidelong at him. "I know you''re stronger in your other form, but this sort of operation requires delicacy."


    "I''ve brought them, Chelsea!" Gerard called, as he led a crowd of dwarven builders to the area. Diong so, he subconsciously skirted around the area where he had met that large spider.


    "Well it''s about time!" Chelsea sniffed. "What took you so long?"


    "The Assist Manager wouldn''t believe me. I had to grab a group that was just returning." Gerard explained.

 176 She Gains an Aun

    "As long as you avoid hitting the airway, you can do what you usually do when dealing with this." Chelsea nodded, indicating the bamboo. The dwarves got to work, right away. Shoring up the sides of Liam''s amateur digging.


    "Move aside, amateur! Let us professionals do our job!" A cheeky dwarf joked as he prodded Liam to make room for them. Liam returned to Chelsea''s side. He glanced down at his dirt-covered appearance and flicked an arm. Instantly, the dirt slid off him, onto the ground.


    "Oh? What sort of trick was that?" Chelsea asked, interested.


    "The kind that is built on years of practice." Liam replied. "Is this the whole reason for our outing? Or is there something more you wanted to surprise me with?"


    "Yup! Now that we''re done here, let''s go visit the food stall market and get something to eat! You helped too, so you can come as well." Chelsea grinned at Gerard.


    "You mean it!?" He asked.


    "''The worker is worth his wages, after all.''" Chelsea chuckled. "Besides, even if we didn''t invite you, wouldn''t you have come along anyways?" Gerard thought that this made sense, and nodded. While the dwarves worked to dig out the cave, the trio made their way to the markets.


    -----


    Robin got bored of juggling light spheres while waiting for the dwarves to dig her out. She had been practicing her magic for the past half hour. But, all that she managed to do was light the rough stone room up like it was a disco.


    Then she remembered the camera she had in her magic bag. She took it out, and caressed the familiar piece of home. But, it wasn''t the camera, itself, that was the important part. It was the memories contained within it.


    Robin hesitated. She knew that what she was going to do would open up old wounds in her heart. But, she couldn''t help herself. The screen lit up when she pushed the button. And she started to go through the memories surrounding the photos contained within.


    In the dark stone room, there was nothing to distract her from the screen''s bright images. A little girl energetically playing at the park with her family on a late spring picnic...the imbalanced flower crowns the girl''s mother helped her make...the little girl beaming down at the camera from up in a tree...the older brother trying to sneak some of the food out of the picnic basket, and getting caught....all those memories were re-lived in her mind, both cherished and painful.


    Those golden days could never return. Like the sand in an hour glass, it slipped through the fingers like air. She paused at what she knew was the last memory.


    It was taken shortly before her tenth birthday. Robin remembered clearly her mom asking her what sort of cake she wanted. She couldn''t decide. So, they had gone through the family recipe book together. Her father had snapped a picture of them from the doorway while Her older brother was grabbing a snack. And she could see her dad in the picture from the reflection of a nearby wall mirror.


    Robin stared long and hard at that picture, and whispered. "Many would be so happy just to come to another world like this... But, I would have preferred to start my whole life over from the beginning, just to see you again..." She blinked away the tears that caused her vision to blur, and pressed the button. It was the end of her memories.


    But instead of coming back to the starting photo, Robin was confused to see pictures of a manor garden that looked vaguely familiar. She continued looking through the new pictures. A butterfly on a flower...A green trellis arching over the garden entrance...and finally, a wide shot, with a familiar figure heading towards a vaguely familiar mansion.


    Robin blinked, in confusion. Wasn''t that Christian? When did she...ah. Robin recalled the time she damaged her mana core. ''It was around then, wasn''t it?'' She mused, thinking over the journey so far.


    She stared at the photo before deciding not to delete it. It was already there. She might as well keep it as a souvenir. Robin sighed and tapped the screen, bringing it back to the first image before turning the camera off.


    The old memories cannot be returned to, that was an unfortunate certainty. But, because of Christian''s photo, Robin realized that she had more moments that she had come to treasure in addition to the old memories. She could smile and laugh now, as she had done six years ago. It seemed that she would be leaving in a better state than she had arrived.


    A pin seemed to prick her heart at the thought that, she would eventually have to leave this world.


    ''Huh?'' Robin frowned as she quickly examined her mana core.


    ''...Everything seemed fine, then where did that pain come from?''


    Robin didn''t make the connection. She could smile back then because she loved and depended on her family. The reason why she could smile now was because she had friends. They were good friends, and were becoming closer as her time with them lengthened. That''s why, she didn''t notice that the idea of parting with them was just beginning to become something painful.


    ---------


    At the city gates, the guards, though doubled, were rubbing their eyes. The hot tropical sun that could only burn away the jungle mists in the afternoon felt like a warm spring day to them. Many of them were originally supposed to be off duty on their rest day. Even the king slime, Nodd, was taking refuge under the shelter of the large stone gateway. The warm sun, and lack of travelers bored them to the point where they were falling asleep standing up. The heat from the sun that collected in the air over the road created a blurry mirage-like haze.


    One of the guards shook himself, and lifted his head in an attempt to clear his head of the urge to sleep. He blinked as he slowly brought his eyes to focus once more. Then he noticed something was different about the afternoon haze. There was a disconnected wobbly patch in the distance, which slowly grew larger.


    It took the guard a moment, but them he Patted his fellow guard on the shoulder, waking him from his standing doze. The guard pointed at the spot in the distance. The other guard glanced at it and nodded back at the first guard.


    Someone was coming. He patted the other guards awake as well, and they straightened themselves up to stand at attention once more. Only, who was it that was bold enough to be travelling in the afternoon heat?


    --------


    "By tha king''s crown, where is that second cousin o'' yers?" Ayva frowned at the stonemason boss. He turned his head away from a dwarf that was whispering something in his ear.


    "Ah...about that...ya see, I just heard that he was caught up in a landslide, and they''re busy diggin'' im out."


    "Oh? was he injured?" Ayva asked, concerned.


    "No, no, we don''t know yet. But seeing that it was merely topsoil, he wouldn''t be too badly injured." The stonemason felt cold sweat gathering on his brow. "By my reckonings, he should be here within tha hour. But...Seeing what happened here, I suspect that landslide t''were no coincidence."


    "We''ll have ta look into et ta be sure." Ayva nodded, picking up the makeshift phone again.


    "You all right down there, deary? Not feeling faint or short of breath, are ye?" She asked.


    "....Ah, no, I-..*sniff*..I''m fine." The voice came faintly back. Ayva paused, hearing Robin trying to cover up the fact that she had cried.


    "Yer sure?" She asked, trying not to alarm the nearby Christian, who was glowering at the phone.


    "Yes, of course I''m sure! It''s just there''s a lot of dust down here. I got something in my eye is all. Now the tears won''t stop." Robin said, using the small pile of dust down below her as a scapegoat.


    "I hear that salt water is good fer getting dust out o'' tha eyes. Don''t rub ''em or it''ll make it worse. D''you hear me?" Ayva asked.


    Robin laughed. "Yes, Aunt Ayva~." She joked. In all truth, Ayva was a comforting dwarf to be around. Robin had called her that because a part of her wished that she had been her aunt. If only Ayva had been there when Robin''s life had taken a turn for the worse, then she might not have fallen into her uncle''s cruel scheme.


    "Aunt Ayva, huh? I like it. Good, from now on, you call me Aunt. Ah''ve always wanted a niece- or a nephew." Ayva ordered.

 177 She Hangs Up The Phone

    "Er, okay, but that was actually a joke earlier?" Robin said, confused. She wasn''t against it, but it was entirely too sudden for her brain to process.


    "It''s settled. No talking back to your Aunt, deary." Ayva chuckled.


    "Alright." Robin sighed. An orphan being the adopted prince of one kingdom, and the adopted niece/nephew of another kingdom at the same time...such a situation was indeed unprecedented on earth. Robin decided to send a letter back to Ekkinshire Kingdom.


    She''d leave the diplomatic ramifications of this situation to King Zephron and his advisors. With any luck, this situation would only serve to restore ties of friendship with the dwarven kingdom. After all, Robin had already accepted it. And the actions of a hero are never taken lightly.


    Robin blinked as she suddenly realized something. "Please hand the phone over to Quinn, Aunt Ayva." She asked.


    "Eh? All right! Anything for my nie-phew" She said, recovering her words instantly before it accidentally revealed the truth. Turning to a nonchalant Quinn, she offered the metal cup.


    "The hero wants ta talk to ye." She said.


    Quinn picked up the receiver.


    "Hello?" He asked.


    "I suppose you think you were terribly clever, sitting back and watching me being stuck down here, weren''t you?" Robin said.


    "Whatever do you mean?" Quinn asked.


    "What I mean is, that Bobble made it up there safely. Ergo, there is nothing stopping you from dropping one of your slime clones down here and instantaneously transporting me out. That is what I mean." Robin said. She had been having this nagging feeling in the back of her head that she was forgetting something. turns out, she was right.


    "Why that is indeed a brilliant idea. But you''re forgetting one thing: why should I? You''re already going to be rescued soon enough, after all." Quinn smirked.


    "Ah, but you are forgetting. I am the one who is paying you. If I don''t get out soon, there will be no chocolate tonight." Robin replied.


    Quinn''s smirk faltered. He hadn''t thought of that. Christian smiled, seeing his expression. Christian didn''t know what they were talking about, but he didn''t need to know. Quinn had obviously lost in a battle of wits against Robin.


    "Fine, but only for the food." Quinn gave in.


    "Thank goodness! If you had said you were doin it for my sake, I''d think there''s something wrong with your head!" Robin chuckled.


    "Don''t you heroes all harp on ''for friendship!'' or ''for justice'' or something like that? While Food is definitely most important, why are you throwing friendship under the rug so quickly?" Quinn quipped, as he sent a small slime that came out of his hand, down the air vent.


    "Because food is definitely most important for you. Should the day come where I am more important to you than food, then I''d be very worried that you were possessed by a spirit master."Robin replied cheekily.


    "That remains to be seen." Quinn snorted. Then he cheekily ended the call by handing the receiver to Christian.


    "It''s for you." He said, before walking off, in a sour mood.


    Christian squinted his eyes happily. From what he had heard on Quinn''s side, Robin was rejecting a friendship with Quinn, who was probably getting too close for comfort to the hero. But what made him truly happy is that Robin wanted to talk to him after rejecting Quinn. He felt like he had gained an advantage over the Slime King.


    "Hello? Robin? What is it? Quinn said you had something to tell me?" Christian asked.


    Robin paused awkwardly. She had not intended to talk to anyone before returning to the surface. But that little sneak Quinn had gone and tossed the phone over to Christian. Robin narrowed her eyes with intentions of mischievous returns. But she didn''t explain Quinn''s trick. Instead she went along with the setting.


    "Ah, yes. Please tell Aunt Ayva that she doesn''t need to dig me out. I found a way out." Robin replied.


    "You''re sure? If it''s a secret passageway, don''t enter unless you''re certain it is heading up. I heard that sometimes, the more malicious type are prone to add poisonous gass or insects inside to turn it into a death trap." Christian warned.


    "Just let her know, alright?" Robin rolled her eyes. "I don''t want her to start panicking just because I''m not answering the phone."


    "Is that what this is? a phone?" Christian asked, looking at the contraption in his hands.


    "Of a sorts, I suppose you could say it''s the most basic form of one." Robin replied. "The newest type can speak to others over a very long distance wirelessly. It can play music and access the internet, make payments distantly, save images, and a lot of other things."


    "That is a very impressive array of abilities." Christian nodded. "Are you sure it isn''t the latest form of magic crystal ball?"


    "No." Robin chuckled. "Technology here and technology in my world have developed very differently. Your people have developed the magic device route. Instead of circuits, you use spell models. Instead of electricity, you use magic. In terms of convenience, I''d say that, unless the latest crystal ball is the size of a marble, smartphones are probably more convenient."


    "What makes you say that?" Christian asked.


    "It''s the shape. But, then again, you probably don''t have to worry about the lack of signal in certain areas." Robin replied. Then she frowned. She was talking a lot more than she usually did. "Anyways, go tell Ayva." She finished, cutting off the conversation.


    "But Wai-" Robin removed the receiver from the thread, effectively cutting off the sound.


    ''What is up with me? Usually I am not so open about such things. I don''t want this land to develope like earth.'' She involuntarily shivered. Earth...She could honestly say that if it weren''t for her brother, she would never return. The place had already lost all semblance of warmth for her. A dead rock full of dead hearts except for one.


    Robin shook her head. ''No, no. Get that negativity out of your head, Robin! It isn''t as bad as you think it is, and you know it. There are still good people there.''


    It didn''t take too long before Quinn''s slime arrived, ending her internal back and forth. It quickly teleported her out.


    "Yoto!" Robin muttered as she landed only an inch away from the wooden dowel Christian had almost slipped on. She patted the non-existant dust off her clothes and then looked about.


    "This is...still the second level, huh. Thanks, Quinn!" She smiled at the small slime.


    "The original is over here, actually." A hand waved from the alley entrance. "And, just so you know, I am expecting the best chocolate ever made."


    "You have yourself a deal. Now let''s go meet Ayva and Christian before he has a meltdown. I kinda hung up the phone on him." Robin said.


    "You can hang up that kind of phone?" Quinn asked.


    Robin grinned mischievously, showing the metal cup in her hand.


    "Ah." Quinn nodded. "That explains it."


    ---------------


    Dwarves still milled about the square in front of Ayva''s tavern, effectively blocking traffic as dwarves tugged, flicked, and examined the Holy Sword''s workmanship.


    Jasmine''s eyes wandered over the scene with a wry smile. Dwarves will be dwarves, after all. The best blade was like the most beautiful woman to them-or at least, that is how it had been described to her a while back.


    "What is going on here!?" A loud voice called out over the crowd. Everyone turned to look at the person who spoke.


    "Hmm?" Keith turned to look, his eyes a bit bleary due to the alcohol. "Whozzat?" He slurred.


    "By the king''s crown!" A nearby dwarf gasped. "It''s..."


    -----------------


    Robin had just finished reuniting with her New Aunt, and now frantic companion, when a dwarf ran up to Ayva and whispered something in her ear.


    Christian was about to give Robin a pat down to check for injuries, until Robin slapped his hand away. "Enough! Don''t you think if I had been injured that I would have left it to fester all this time? Don''t worry about me. I have Bobble, after all." She said outwardly confident.


    But, inwardly, she was sighing with relief. ''Phew! That was a bit too close for comfort!'' She thought to herself.


    "Um...Robin, la-addy?" Ayva said, quickly covering her almost slip-up.


    "Yes? What is it, Aunty?"


    "Well, I happen ta have a bit of good news fer ya." Ayva began.


    -------------


    In the square, every dwarf was kneeling under the pressure of that figure''s presence. Red scales gleamed in the sun. And a somewhat taller than usual dwarf stood there, surveying the now silent crowd.


    ----------


    "Mah husband, King Throm has just returned." Queen Ayva announced.

 178 She Makes Chocolate

    Robin blinked. "He''s back? Already? Didn''t you say..."


    "Ah said anywayer from two weeks to a month, Deary. It must''ve been uneventful, as it''s only been a week, but isn''t that good news?" Queen Ayva asked.


    "Hmmm, well, I suppose now is as good a time as ever." Robin sighed. She had almost forgotten why she had come, these last seven days had been so eventful.


    "What do ya mean? Do you think I''d allow him to cause any harm to mah new nephew?"Ayva asked.


    Robin shook her head.


    "It''s not that....It''s just....how is he gonna handle the news about his brother?...Not everyone can take....such news...well." Robin''s darkest memories began to surface.


    The betrayal of her uncle''s family...


    The greed of her cousins...


    The indifference of those she once considered her friends....


    Robin''s breath shuddered as she clutched at the clothing above her heart. Her eyes stared emptily at the ground. She once again felt as if she were drowning in emotions, and unable to breathe.


    "Oy! Robin!" A hand smacked her flat on back, startling her out of the shadows of her mind.


    "Ow! What was that for!?" Robin glared at Christian, who then ruffled her hair.


    "The past is in the past." Christian said.


    "Thorn was foolish enough to be poisoned, played around, and petty enough to chose his own route. It''s not your fault. That kind of person, even if it''s you that''s meddling, he will stubbornly follow his own path. Unless they require our help, we have no real reason to butt in. Leave the dwarves'' matters up to the dwarves, okay?" He smiled at Robin, and patted her shoulder.


    "Trust me, they''re a stubborn lot. And it''s gonna take more than a betrayal to shake the mighty Throm, that''s for sure!"


    "Aye, he be right about that, he be." Ayva laughed, patting Robin''s hand. "More importantly, Ah''m glad yer safe, deary."


    "You two..." Robin sighed and smiled again. "Okay then! To celebrate a special occasion, I''m gonna go all out to make the best chocolate ever! Count on it!"


    Christian just smiled, watching Robin cheer up again.


    "About that, you should probably get started on that chocolate as soon as possible. I don''t think you can be late to the king''s summons, after all." Quinn pointed out.


    "Ah! You''re right! See you later, Aunty! I''ll come by later with some snacks!" Robin raised her hand in farewell while Quinn transported the both of them back to the tavern.


    Ayva chuckled as she watched them leave.


    "Queen Ayva?" The stonemason boss asked.


    She turned to look at him. "The work here is nae so urgent now. Ya kin go an'' check on yer second cousin if''n ya want."


    "Thank you, Queen Ayva!" The dwarf boss bowed before hurrying off.


    By this time, the hot noon day sun had burned a hole in the steam, showing a patch of blue sky overhead. Ayva looked up at that patch and sighed.


    ''Robin, I hope you can find some way to open up to yer friends. Otherwise, that darkness you carry might destroy you one day.'' She sighed, and continued towards her carriage. It waa time to meet with her husband to talk about their new niece-er....nephew for now. She chuckled.


    -------


    Robin knew that Christian wanted to ask about earlier. But, she didn''t give him that opportunity. Instead, she dragged Ponzu off to the kitchen to get started on making chocolate.


    "Do you know what is necessary to make a good chocolate?" Robin asked Ponzu.


    "Well, I honestly don''t understand what chocolate is, so, no." Ponzu replied.


    Robin smiled. "Actually, chocolate only uses two ingredients to make."


    "What? Really?" Ponzu asked.


    "Mhmm! But, it takes a lot of work. Here, try tasting a raw one." Robin smiled.


    Ponzu nodded and tasted it. His back shuddered, as his mouth puckered.


    "It''s bitter, right?" Robin asked.


    "Um, I think this is better off as a spice than a sweet, to be honest." Ponzu softly suggested.


    "Yet, making a sweet out of that is exactly what we are going to do." Robin replied. "It''ll take a few processes, but after we''re done, you will agree that it is one of the best ingredients for a sweet."


    "So, how are we going to do that?" Ponzu asked.


    "First, we''re gonna separate the good ones from the bad ones. if it looks shriveled or bug-bitten, we''re tossing it. If it looks good and whole, we''re keeping it. The rejects get thrown in the trash. The keepers we''ll put in this bowl."


    It took them about half an hour to finish going through the beans.


    "Next, we''re gonna roast them. Do you want to know why?" Robin asked.


    "Why?" Ponzu clenched his pen.


    "There''s a very interesting phenomenon called the Maillard reaction, which will stave off the acridness of the beans and give it a more complex flavor." Robin said, as she poured the beans into an already heated pan.


    I like to think that it''s similar to caramelization. This can also be done to the coffee beans I grabbed earlier, but those are better used in a drink, as they are a bit more acrid than cacao beans.


    So, what we are going to do is roast these, and stir them until they become a nice dark brown, but not burnt, okay?" She asked, waiting for Ponzu''s pen to catch up.


    "Er, got it. What was that reaction called again? Male-urd?" Ponzu asked.


    "Maillard. Spelt M-A-I-L-L-A-R-D. It''s basically the reason why browned things taste good, like toast or roasted steaks or the skin of roast chicken, even caramel. Due to prolonged exposure to low yet constant heat, it triggers a natural change in the food that makes it taste better. It''s called that because a guy named Maillard was the person to find out why."


    "So, we''re basically caramelizing the beans?" Ponzu asked.


    "Of a sort, I suppose. The end product will act somewhat similar to caramel." Robin replied as she stirred the beans about in the pan.


    "I get that the first ingredient is this bean, but, what is the other ingredient?" Ponzu asked. Robin looked at him, a pitying expression on her face.


    "Ponzu, what are we making right now?" she asked.


    "A sweet." He replied.


    "That''s right, a sweet. And what do sweet things have in them?" She asked.


    "...It''s sugar, isn''t it." Ponzu felt like smacking himself in the face when he realized.


    "Mnn! It''s good that you know." Robin smiled.


    It took an hour to fully roast the beans. And Robin explained that it could take more or less time depending on how fresh they were, and how long they''d been drying. Then they removed the shells from the beans.


    "And this is the part where your kitchen magic comes to play!" Robin grinned.


    "Oh? How?" Ponzu asked.


    "We''re gonna use your kitchen magic to grind the beans down until it liquifies." Robin explained.


    "Huh? Um...Teacher, we just spent an hour toasting all liquid out of these beans. How on earth are they gonna liquify?" Ponzu asked.


    "Huhuhu~ I guess you''ll just have to see it, won''t you?" Robin replied as she stuck the hot beans and sugar together in a bowl.


    "We need to work quick before it cools down too much!" She warned.


    "In that case...time to use supplementary kitchen spell number 5: Gari gari grinder!" Ponzu called playfully as the cacao beans were ground together with the sugar into a somewhat granulated coffee ground texture.


    "Again!" Robin ordered.


    The coffee grounds seemed to stick together a bit.


    "Again!" Robin ordered.


    .....


    "Again!"


    .....


    After several more grindings, the beans had indeed become like melted chocolate. Moreover, Pedro was exhausted.


    ''So this is why it can be detrimental to my health, huh?'' He wondered as he rested nearby, watching Robin conch the chocolate.


    "Hey, I already grinded it up into a liquid. Why are you putting it through a heated mortar and pestle?" He asked.


    "This is called conching." Robin explained. "While the chocolate could already be eaten after the first grinding, I said I''ll make the best batch that I can, so I will. Conching is a process which further helps to mellow the flavor of the chocolate."


    After about fifteen minutes she stopped. "While I could do this for hours, I don''t have too much time. I need to finish up the last step." She sighed.


    "Last step? You mean it''s still not done?" Pedro asked, in surprise.


    "See? Troublesome, right? But the pursuit of the best flavor isn''t that troublesome, especially for the people who are special to you. To be honest, this is mostly a step to make sure that this sweet stores well."


    Robin chuckled as she brought the mortar over to the stone slab countertop that had been warmed with a hot pan. Then she began the long process of folding, chopping, and spreading the chocolate around-a process known as tempering.


    After yet another half-hour, the chocolate was finally ready. Robin poured the sludgy liquid into some molds and put them in the cold room to cool while she cleaned up.


    And by ''clean up'' obviously she was tasting the remains of the product.


    "Here, Ponzu, try tasting these in sequence." She told him. Ponzu tried the scraps from the bowl where he ground the chocolate into liquid. Then he tried the scraps from the mortar. Then he tried the remaining bits from the stone slab.


    "See? It might not seem like much in exchange for all that work, but it surely tastes the best after that last process, right?" Robin laughed, seeing a smudge of chocolate on Pozu''s face.


    "Come on, let''s finish cleaning up. the chocolate should have cooled enough by the time we''re done." She patted him on the back, slyly leaving a smudged chocolate hand print on him.

 179 She Arrives At the First Level

    Once the chocolates were cooled enough to maintain their shape, Robin separated the chocolate up. Pedro saw that she kept the majority of the batch to herself. She only put aside three pieces per person. Each serving was packaged in a bamboo leaf, tied up with string.


    "Why so little?" Pedro asked.


    "The first reason is that these taste so good that it''s easy to get addicted to it. But, just like all sweets, eating too much on a regular basis can make you fat. So it''s good to limit the portions." Robin looked down at Quinn''s portion thoughtfully.


    "As for the second reason...Do you think we both have the energy to keep doing this regularly?" Robin asked wryly. She slipped an extra piece into Quinn''s bag for his help earlier.


    Pedro realized. She was saving the rest for future demand. He recalled how she saved the extra sushi, which smoothly paved their way in Port Oracle.


    "So those extra two portions are for King Throm and Queen Ayva?" He asked.


    "Mmmn. The invitation should be arriving soon. They''ve had enough time to speak of everything that happened this week." Robin noted.


    "Wait, so this was just a way for you to waste time?" Pedro looked oddly at Robin.


    "How rude! Cooking is never a waste of time!" Robin shook her head. "If I didn''t finish this now, I''d not have the time to later. I like to keep my word. Be genuine to those who are genuine, after all. There''s no need to give face to the double faced."


    "What does that mean?" Pedro asked. "...that giving face thingumy.."


    "It''s a concept from a certain culture that places heavy emphasis upon honor-or at least external honor." Robin mused.


    "If someone did something dishonorable, and it was found out, he would have ''lost face'' for his clan, and more importantly his ancestors. To honor a person, or to show them respect, would be considered ''giving them face''. This respect or honor was also sometimes used to call in favors from subordinates, or equals."


    "And do you agree with them?"


    "Honestly? I think it''s a bit ridiculous. Instead of focusing on outward displays of honor, I am more concerned with being genuinely honorable. If the inner substance isn''t solid, the gilded exterior can only become as singing brass. Or like an empty drum that can only make a lot of noise. Always clamoring about honor and respect doesn''t make one respectable, after all." Robin replied thoughtfully.


    "Words don''t make the man. Actions do. But a man should be careful to keep his word, and not bluster."


    She patted Ponzu''s other shoulder. "Remember this, Ponzu. There are many people who speak well. They can even pantomime respectability. But when it comes time they ought to step up, they will be the first to run. That''s why truly honorable people who care about their companions and keep their word are treasures."


    Then Robin swept up the two servings for Ayva and Throm, leaving Ponzu in the kitchen with two identical chocolate handprints on his shoulders, as well as the rest of the chocolates to distribute. Robin hummed to herself as she walked away. That bit of mischief managed to restore her good mood.


    "Robin.." Christian called, once he saw her emerge from the kitchen. "Are you finally finished?"


    "Mmn! I left your portions with Ponzu. I think a messenger should be summoning me to the castle, soon. So, don''t expect me to be back in time for dinner." Robin replied.


    "Dinner? Did you even have lunch yet?" Christian asked with a somewhat pointed look.


    "Did you?" Robin asked.


    "We had tavern fare. But don''t change the subject. Did you eat lunch today?" Christian pressed the question.


    "Why of course I-wait...." Robin thought back. "Huh. Seems like I forgot. I guess I just wasn''t that hungry today."


    Christian flicked her forehead.


    "Hey! What was that for?" Robin rubbed her forehead.


    Christian growled. "Robin, I won''t say not to bake things, but we''ll get very worried if you end up skipping meals like this. You just got over a cold, so it''s not good for your health. I know you have a backup supply in your magic bag. So, even if there''s no time to cook, there''s no excuse!"


    "All right! Fine, I''ll eat something. Okay?" Robin waved her hands placatingly, although she felt a bit aggravated at Christian''s overexaggeration. Missing a meal wasn''t that important.


    "Right now, where I can see you." Christian emphasized.


    "Now? But the summons might come any minute-" Robin began.


    "If not, then I''ll have Jasmine magic you to a seat and hand feed you in front of the messenger." Christian narrowed his eyes. "And I am pretty sure Queen Ayva would have a good laugh at your expense once she hears of it."


    "...You drive a hard bargain." Robin sighed, as she sat down at a nearby table in defeat.


    "I learned from the Hero after all." He smiled as he sat down across from Robin.


    "Hmm..." Robin was originally going to only grab something light to eat, but now that she was looking, she found that she was famished. She ended up eating three wyvern bacon sandwiches and a side of hash browns.


    "Huh...I guess I really was hungry." Robin tilted her head in pondering the mystery that is hunger. Sometimes one can feel it poignantly; other times, not at all.


    Christian''s prior frown had melted away into a knowing smile.


    "See? You need to eat properly. Some people can get irritable if they don''t eat." Christian prompted.


    "And some people can get irritable even when other people don''t eat."Robin muttered under her breath. With a practiced ease, she ducked away from his hair-ruffling hand, and danced away towards the door.


    "Why you!-" Christian called, pretending to be offended.


    "No thanks, maybe later~!" Robin laughed cheekily before stepping outside.


    "...Heh! That Robin." Christian smirked as he shook his head fondly.


    ---


    "Oh? Robin, just in time! The carriage arrived with the invitation to meet with King Throm and Queen Ayva." Chelsea pointed out.


    "Oh great! I see you and Liam are back from your little disappearing act." Robin said.


    "Eheheh. At least we didn''t get stuck down a rabbit hole." Chelsea teased.


    "What rabbit? It was clearly a grumpy old badger''s burrow!" Robin shot back as she headed to the carriage.


    "You aren''t going to take the Hero''s blade with you?" The coachman asked.


    "Need I? I''m going to talk, not to spar-unless you feel like it might become something like that?" Robin said.


    "Oh, don''t go mindin'' li''l ole me. It''s just usually heroes are inseparable from their blades. It isn''t often that we can examine them."The coachman replied.


    The stagecoach made its way up through all the city levels, only coming to a stop in front of the gates to the first level.


    "I''m afraid ye''ll hafta get down and walk. Carriages aren''t allowed past this point." The coach driver told Robin, handing her the invitation token, which had a hammer emblazoned with a flying dragon on the front.


    "Oh? All right then. Thanks for the ride!" Robin said as she hopped off the carriage.


    "Wha-Pshaw! Twas jus doing mah job, Hero!" He shook his head with a smile.


    "Yes, you were: which I am very thankful for." Robin nodded with a twinkle in her eyes. But, before he could answer, she had waved a farewell, and walked up to the gate.


    ----


    The First Level was large. Though it had the same amount of square mileage/meters in it as the other levels, it seemed larger than the others due to the fact that there were pretty much only two large buildings here: The King''s castle, and the King''s Forge. Also, the area wasn''t limited to the shape of an outer ring. Instead, all the area was condensed into a solid circle. This is what made it seem larger than the other levels.


    The road to the castle was made of a somewhat reflective polished quartz. One thing Robin did notice, though, was the absence of the violet guards she had seen dutifully guarding the gate. Wouldn''t there usually be more guards around the castle in case of intruders?

 180 She Enters the Castle

    Robin then had a thought. She picked up a pebble, and tossed it into an open area. The ground opened up, heat and steam emanating from the hole, before it closed up again to look like normal ground.


    "Right. Noted: no entering without an invitation." Robin nodded to herself. The suspiciously empty walkway was a highway to hell for would-be intruders. Oddly enough, this though calmed her down.


    She walked slowly down the path until she came to the double doors of the castle. She stopped in front of the doors with no visible handles. Then she looked up. There was a magic eye set above the door frame. It detached itself and floated down to Robin''s level.


    "Hi! I''m here to see the Dwarf King about a summons?" She said in a friendly tone.


    "Present....token." The eye warbled. If it were anyone else, they might have shrieked ''It spoke!'' before considering what was said. Robin merely nodded and showed the token she had been given.


    "Access Granted. Enter, Please." The eye glowed green, before the doors swung in upon themselves.


    "Thank you!" Robin waved at it. Then she entered the castle. The magic eye blinked, before returning to its nested alcove above the door.


    After Robin entered the castle, the double doors closed slowly behind her. At first it was a bit dark, but then Crystalline Pillars began to glow in greens, blues and purples, sunny yellows and firey oranges. The rainbow of light brightened the whole corridor. There were carved pillars of multiple hues, as well as those of just a single hue. Inside of each pillar, an artifact could be seen.


    "Walcome, to the Hall of Myriad Hues!" A familiar comfortable voice called from the back of the hall, where a group of glowing slightly-yellow pillars surrounded a throne set up on a dais.


    The throne itself was made of metal, very squarish, but it shone in various rainbow hues...In fact, it looked very much like a large chunk of bismuth turned on its side. A patterned gold mesh embellished it here and there like a metallic lace. To the side, Queen Ayva sat off to the side inside a chair made from a large natural geode that shifted in hue from periwinkle blue to lavender purple.


    And, sitting upon the rainbow throne was a dwarf that was somewhat taller than normal. Well, he was not so much taller, as larger, really. A normal dwarf''s height would be around 3 ft and 6 inches high. He, on the other hand, was about a foot taller, and built twice as sturdy. The fingers of his hands were as thick as two of Robin''s put together. Red scales glistened from the area about his temples, and on the back of his hands. His eyes, were a kind of hazel-golden hue, with a weather-beaten, wizened appearance. Other than that, he looked like a normal dwarf.


    Robin approached the throne, stopping three feet away from the steps leading up to it. Then she bowed politely. "Robin adopted son of the King of Ekkinshire, adventurer, apprentice magician, and Hero at large" She introduced herself.


    "You forgot to mention my adoption." Ayva pointed out.


    Robin gave a rather conflicted expression. "Well, I was uncertain how to introduce myself, considering my...situation."


    Ayva chuckled. "You can trust mah husband, deary. After all, Ah''m tha one as chose him. He''s aware of your situation."


    "Oh, thank goodness!" Robin sighed in relief. "I hate lying to good folk."


    "So, you''d lie to evil folk?" A familiar voice asked from the side of the hall opposite Ayva''s throne. Robin turned her head to see Quinn, holding two packets of chocolate in his hand.


    "No. I wouldn''t lie. But, I would certainly leave out a lot of things they are not qualified to know." Robin replied. "And speaking of knowledge, how came you by that extra serving? Ponzu only had enough for one each."


    "It was a trade for my services." Quinn replied. "Speaking of which, why is there one less in this one? Do you hate Christian that much?"


    "No, I gave you one more because of your help, earlier." Robin replied raising a quizzical eyebrow. "So, you got it from Christian, huh."


    "Oops." Quinn replied nonchalantly. "You can''t take it back. I earned it fair and square." He said, as christian''s sample disappeared.


    "Ahem! Quinn, you''re lucky I knew that it was you. Otherwise, the new defensive magic array would have been triggered." King Throm pointed out.


    "Ah, yes that. It has gotten quite large, hasn''t it?" Quinn noted.


    "Isn''t it your fault for all those visits without prior warning?" Throm growled.


    "Hmm....You''re welcome?" Quinn replied. "And it''s not like you didn''t get anything good out of it. I gave you all those ideas for improvements, didn''t I?"


    "Hmmph! Next time, use the door." Throm pinched the space between his eyebrows, feeling a headache beginning to develope.


    "Ah, that reminds me! Aunt Ayva, I brought those sweets that I promised!" Robin smiled, bringing out the two packages she had packed away in her magic bag.


    "Oh? What is it, deary?" Ayva asked.


    "Chocolate truffles!" Robin replied.


    "Truffles? Can mushrooms be turned into sweets?" Ayva asked, puzzled.


    "Er, no, It''s called that because it''s brown and shaped like a truffle." Robin said, remembering that chocolate did not exist here before today.


    Ayva accepted it, and tried one of them.


    "Oh my!" Here eyes widened in delight. "This is just lovely, deary!"


    Robin smiled. "I''ll gift you the recipe then. But on one condition: please remember not to eat too many."


    "Why not? Is it poisonous?" Ayva asked.


    "No. Those who eat too much of it will get fat." Robin replied. Ayva reluctantly agreed, handing King Throm''s chocolate over to him.


    "So, getting back to topic, how would you have introduced yourself, Robin? Now that King Throm is aware of your situation?" Quinn asked pointedly.


    "...Wouldn''t you like to know?" Robin rolled her eyes at him.


    "I am somewhat aware of this situation, myself." Quinn nodded sagely. "There is not much that escapes my detection, especially for those who use my method of transport. You could say that my analytical ability is second to none~"


    The hair on the back of Robin''s neck stood up, which puzzled her. Could the thought of him possibly actually knowing her secret be seriously creeping her out? No, wait. It wasn''t that. She began to look around. It felt like something unpleasant was watching her.


    "Hmm? what is it, Robin?" Ayva asked, noticing her distraction.


    "Ah. you don''t have anyone watching this place through magic eyes, do you?" Robin asked.


    "No. Despite the magic array, there shouldn''t be any magic eyes in here." Throm replied. "We are such as enjoys our privacy... uninterrupted." He glanced over at Quinn with an annoyed expression.


    "Strange...It feels like....someone....Ahah!" Robin suddenly smacked the air next to a pillar. Instantly, a small chameleon gecko was revealed as it fell to the ground. The resulting thud dropped open a trap door of steam. It instantly closed back up after the gecko had fallen to its doom underneath.


    "Right. I forgot that does that." Robin said as she stepped away from the now steamy area.


    "Oh deary dear! By the king''s crown, Robin, how''d ya find that thing so quickly?" Ayva asked.


    Robin sighed. "I didn''t find it so much as, well...do you know of the Trader?" She asked.


    Ayva and Throm nodded.


    "He''s a lot more dangerous than most would think, as I have reason to believe he is a wielder of spirit magic." Robin replied. There was a sharp intake of breath from Ayva.


    "Though spirit magic is a colorless mana, I can somewhat see it as distortions in the air. That chameleon gecko there was surrounded in spirit mana, which is how I could find it. This has happened once before during my travels-."


    "This Trader is sounding increasingly more and more troublesome." Ayva grumbled.


    "Indeed, if he can magic a gecko, then there''s no telling how many dwarves he''s possessed." Throm considered.


    "Mmmn! That''s right. Also, I''ve confirmed that High Heal can remove spirit mana completely, so you might want to get all your most important officials high healed soon." Robin pointed out.


    "What, say that sooner!" Throm interjected.


    "Right. I''ll keep that in mind next time. No promises if I get interrupted again, though." Robin said with a wry grimace.

 181 She Comes Bearing Gifts

    Throm coughed, changing the subject. "So, you were about to say, earlier?"


    "Before I answer, I would like to request that not one word of this gets spread to the others." Robin narrowed her eyes at Quinn.


    He held up his hands in defeat. "Hey, you''re the boss. I know better than to piss off my employer. Especially when it involves food. I''ve known this all along and haven''t breathed a word yet. Can''t you trust me?" Quinn protested.


    "Hmmm. But, you are only in it for the food, after all. There''s a chance you might try to blackmail me." Robin joked.


    "I would never!" Quinn exclaimed indignantly. "That is an insult to the food!"


    "Good that you know." Robin turned back to King Throm, removing her mask. "I suppose reintroductions are in order. Robin, adopted niece of Queen Ayva, at your service." She bowed again.


    "No need to bow anymore. A niece of Ayva''s is a niece of mine." Throm waved his hand. "Though, I noticed ye said adopted son earlier...does King Zephron not know?"


    "Two words." Robin replied, holding up two fingers. "Queen Emeline."


    "Ah." Throm nodded. That was all that needed to be said for him to understand. Queen Emeline had even been the matchmaker between him and Ayva, so he understood how meddlesome she could be.


    "I heard that you saved my Darling Ayva, and the whole city while I was gone? You even dug out Thorn as the perpetrator, while you were at it" He asked, examining Robin''s face.


    "I only did what I felt was right. Most of the credit goes to the king slimes, and to the quick response of your subjects in dealing with the infestation. Queen Ayva also did quite a lot to keep then from getting interrupted. So, really, the only thing you could probably commend me for is being in the right place, at the right time, with the right companions who had the proper skills to deal with the problem." Robin replied.


    "That in itself is something to be commended for." Throm pointed out. "There are not many who can fulfill all such conditions in times of crisis. Even less that would willingly lend a hand without asking for anything in return."


    "Not at all. As the hero, I find it only natural to do so, as a part of my job. Anyone who sees such a situation and chooses to ignore it is not qualified to be a hero. I''m just glad everyone is all right now." Robin counter-argued.


    "Don''t try to offer a grand reward or something. Robin is particularly stubborn about this sort of thing." Quinn pointed out. "In fact, she''d much rather you got to the point instead of dancing around the subject."


    "Ahem! I hear from Ayva that you wanted to meet me, even before all of this happened?" Throm finally began "Is there anything that you would like to request of me?"


    Robin grinned. "I thought you''d never ask. Though I am the hero, it''s true, my presence here is somewhat of an accidental problem. Rather, it''s an accident I ended up here at all. Mainly, it puts a strain on the relationship between humans and demons. Even though I don''t want to cause any trouble, both sides might take my appearance as a sign that war is brewing again, which would be a disaster."


    "Indeed. That could very likely happen, considering..." Throm mused.


    "After consulting the top experts in Ekkinshire, they are not aware of any way to return me to my home. But, they think the demon lord may be aware of a method. So, I am trying to meet with the demon lord to discuss whether she may know of a way for me to return home...only..."


    "To even speak with Her Highness, the Demon Lord, ye''ll be needing my approval, isn''t that right?" Throm finished.


    "That is indeed so." Robin nodded.


    "Hmm...while I personally have no problem with et, mah dad is tha real problem. Ah''ll need a good reason as can satisfy tha pride of a dragon, or else he''ll stomp himself in here, right as rain, and trouble me ta no end." Throm laid out his only issue.


    "Understandable." Robin nodded. "Originally, one of my companions had prepared a gift for you, as we hear that any dragon or dwarf is not opposed to collecting golden things of beauty."


    She brought out the golden flame crown. "I''m not sure if this would be a good enough reason?" She asked.


    "Oh my!" Ayva gasped. It was indeed a lovely piece. It was even more beautiful when seen under the soft yellow light of the glowing crystals. It was as if the gold flames had come alive. Throm''s eyes widened in pleasant surprise.


    "Ta have such skill with metal and gems, which dwarven genius did yah commission?" He asked.


    "Twas no dwarf, but a dragon." Robin replied.


    "Yah slayed a dragon fer this?" Throm frowned. If this was from a dead dragon''s hoard, it might incense instead of pacify his father.


    "No, no! He is very much alive!" Robin explained. "He made this when he heard that you liked golden things of beauty."


    "Ho? May I?" He asked, wanting to examine the crown.


    "But of course!" Robin agreed, handing it over for him to examine.


    "Hmmn. Adjustable size...not too heavy...and just tha perfect color ta match with mah war armor. And tha crux of it all is this here flame pattern which almost looks alive. Most impressive!" Throm nodded.


    Ayva prodded him. "Dear? Is it good enough?"


    Throm lifted his head, having forgotten Robin as he examined the crown.


    "-Ah. Yes. This''ll be sufficient. But, A quick word of warning: now that yah''ve given me a treasure like this, ye''ll need something twice as impressive if''n ye want ta win over mah dad. He''s got his reputation ta hold among dragons, ya see..."


    Robin thought of the magic gems in her storage bracer. "I think that can be arranged." She nodded.


    "Ho? Now Ah''m curious. What sorta beauty will that dragon friend of yers make next, Ah wonder..." Throm smiled in anticipation, as he took out his seal and tossed it over.


    "Thank you! And, from what you''ve told me, a certain red-scaled dragon might just stomp over here just to brag about it. After all, he has a reputation to uphold." Robin pointed out.


    "Aye....that he might." Throm chuckled. "In that case, business is over now. Would yah mind joining us fer dinner? Ayva kin show ye the castle sights while we wait."


    "Not at all. Always a pleasure to spend time with family." Robin said with a genuine smile.


    "Yes indeed! Come with me, you''ll absolutely love the garden we have here." Ayva dragged Robin off down a side hall.


    "You''ve been keeping an eye on her?" Throm asked. "Is she always like this?"


    "Well, so far as I''ve observed." Quinn replied. "Her creed is to respect those who respect her in kind."


    "And those who oppose?" Throm asked.


    "Funny you should mention that." Quinn nodded. "Just disagreeing with her won''t fluff her dander, as she treats it a discussion between equals. When dealing with petty nasties, she doesn''t blow things out of proportion, but she might resort to mischief in order to shut them up. The only person I''ve witnessed her being truly angry with is this Trader fellow. And he''s a downright plague in himself. She speaks first, and will not resort to violence unless there is no other choice...As opposed to the earlier hero, I rather prefer this one, actually."


    "This isn''t because she''s tamed you with food, right?" Throm asked.


    "She''s treated my fellow King Slimes as comrades and not pets or conquests. Did you know? They chose to accompany her of their own volition. She didn''t even realize thry had tagged along until I pointed it out."


    "So I''ve heard." Throm''s wrinkled brow relaxed a bit. "In that case, I can feel relieved leaving her with Ayva."


    "Mmn. That you can." Quinn replied. "Now, are you going to eat those?" He asked, looking at the small satchel of truffles in Throm''s lap.


    "Shove off! Yah''ve got twice as much as I do!" Throm growled.


    "I''ve got a separate stomach for sweets." Quinn smirked.


    "An'' I''ve got me a hammer as can do away with yer clone. Off with ye, afore I decide ta use et!" Throm threatened.


    "Sigh, my dear Throm, must you always resort to violence?" Quinn joked as he disappeared.


    "Hmmph!" Throm ignored the slime''s parting jab. He turned his attention towards the truffles in his lap.


    .....


    "By mah firey golden crown! These are delicious!" His voice rang out in the empty hall.


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 182 She Visits Ayvas Garden

    The garden Ayva took her to was at the very center of the castle, and also at the very top. They rode a rising stone pillar up to the marvel. There, tropical flowers and plants created a much brighter atmosphere than Robin had encountered in the steam shrouded city. Surrounded by the refreshing fragrance, Robin felt as if a hidden tension had eased.


    "Isn''t et lovely? because of all tha steam and smoke, it''s difficult ta find plants as can survive in little sunlight. With all tha water in the air, it''s also easy fer mold and mushrooms ta pop up. We''ve tried ta draw the water out of the air, but we can only do so much..." Ayva sighed and shook her head.


    "So, we can''t have too many places in tha city where they can grow, otherwise we''d be overwhelmed."


    Robin could understand that. In order to keep the citizens healthy, they had to keep the city as dirt-free as possible. Seeing only wood grains and stone all the time, one would inevitable get bored of it.


    "There''s just something in a person that longs ta see green an'' growing things after a while. Even tha blue sky can''t help. It can near drive a person crazy without them realizing what''s wrong." Ayva shrugged.


    "Mmn. That''s true enough!" Robin agreed.


    Ayva brought Robin over to the area of the garden where the most green was concentrated. Passing through a set of ivy, they came to an open place, where a crystalline table and chairs greeted them. Robin looked about the small space.


    The walls and the ceiling were formed of ivys twined and woven loosely about a somewhat dome-like framework. A circular hole in the top let in the natural light. A glowing crystal on the table supplied more light in the somewhat darkened area. The sound of a breeze brushing through the greenery further served to relax those within. Birds chirped from the bamboo.


    Robin sat down in a chair across from Ayva, and just closed her eyes for a bit, enjoying the sounds of the surroundings. "Mmmn. This is a really good place." She said, opening her eyes.


    "Of course et is. Mah husband made et hisself." Ayva smiled as she took out a couple mugs, and a flagon.


    "Beer?" Robin asked, feeling somewhat conflicted.


    "Hoho, Ah kin see that yer not partial to tha flaver o'' normal beers. But please! They''re nuthin'' compared to a dwarven ale. Wouldnae it be a shame ta travel to dwarven lands without tryin'' our specialty? This''n be mah own special brew." Ayva prodded.


    "Normally, I wouldn''t drink such a thing." Robin sighed, then looked over at Ayva with a wry smile. "But, perhaps such drinks depend upon the people you drink them with. Since it''s a cup that you poured for me, Aunt, I''ll drink it."


    This brought a bright smile to Ayva''s face as she pushed a full mug over to Robin. Robin stared down at the foamy brew. She braced herself, and took a sip. Her eyes widened as she quickly glanced over at Ayva.


    "Auntie!" She chided. "It''s not nice to make fun of me!" She swallowed another mouthful. It was sweet, but not too sweet. And it reminded her of root beer, but with a sort of minty aftertaste, like a menthol cough drop. The scent was vaguely familiar.


    Ayva laughed. "Aye, Ah told ye, ye might like et. Ah never said et was normal tavern fare though. This be a drink of mah own invention."


    "It smells of birch." Robin pointed out.


    "Funny you be mentioning that, heheh. It''s called Birch Beer!" Ayva chuckled. "Made using the boiled sap of birch roots."


    Robin mildly remembered seeing a product like that back on earth, next to root beer soda. But, she had never thought to try it before. She kept the memory to herself.


    "Hmm. Well, I must admit, this does taste much better to me. But where did you find the birch trees?" Robin tilted her head. "Isn''t this place pretty much tropical due to the heat of the volcano?"


    "Yer forgetting the Hero''s Great Mountain Rift in between." Ayva pointed out. "The Birch be from the Hearthlands on th'' other side, Mah Dear Niece. Et''s a much more temperate climate over there."


    "If this drink gets popular, you might be in trouble. All the birch forests might be cut down for it." Robin pointed out.


    "Pshaw! Et''s only me that knows tha recipe. The birch forests are safe enough." Ayva rolled her eyes. "In fact, they be takin'' over the farmlands, if''n we don''t cut ''em down every year. Those birch grow almost faster than bamboo, they do!"


    "Huh. Well it looks like your birch trees have something that mine don''t." Robin gave a heartfelt smile. "It''s good."


    "Glad ye like et, Lass." Ayva''s eyes curved up as she looked quite pleased with herself.


    "So, about this world that yer goin'' back to...is there anything good back there?" Ayva asked.


    Robin raised an eyebrow. "Are you talking about things or people, here?" She asked.


    "Oh, anything you want to tell me about is fine." Ayva waved her hand. "How ''bout we start with that there smartphone device?"


    "Mmn. As far as products and items go...it''s different. We''re more focused on the technical and material application of things, rather than the magical aspect. Although, we do have quite the number of stories and fairy tales-most don''t believe magic exists." Robin pointed out.


    "Ah''m aware." Ayva nodded.


    "As far as the people are...I don''t think it''s best you ask me about them. I cannot give an unbiased opinion on the matter." Robin replied with somewhat glazed eyes.


    "But Ah want ta know what ye think. " Ayva pursued. "Did the people treat ye well? Did ye have some good friends ye grew up with? What about yer relatives?..."


    While Robin knew that Ayva meant no harm, each question she asked felt like a stab in the chest. Yet, Robin kept a tight grip on her reactions. She would not lash out at Ayva for things other people did.


    What had happened was a fact. It couldn''t be changed. But Robin didn''t want to see Ayva''s smile disappear. Nor did she want her pity. She''d much rather deal with the present than dwell upon the past.


    "I..." Robin hesitated, then made her decision. She smiled gently and spoke twice as softly. "Aunt..." She began, halting Ayva''s line of questioning. Ayva paused, awaiting her words.


    "....I''d rather not talk about it." Robin''s eyes lowered, focusing on her drink. Her smile remained gentle. But the slight wincing at the corners of her eyes and the subtlest wrinkle between her eyebrows gave away a hint of the pain that she was feeling.


    Ayva noticed, but didn''t point it out. She just heaved a sigh, and downed her drink.


    "All right, Robin. Ah won''t ask anymore. But... wouldnae it be nice if''n ya kin find someone as you kin speak with, someone who ye wilnae need ta hold in or hold back with. If ye find someone ye kin talk with like that, Ah better be the first ''un ta know, ya hear!?" She poured herself another mug full.


    "All right." Robin agreed. "If I can find someone like that, you''ll be the first to know. I promise." Then Robin downed her mug as well.


    "Drinkin'' like a true niece o'' mine!" Ayva laughed.


    Robin frowned. "How strong is this, again?" She asked, feeling slightly dizzy.


    "Hmmm..." Ayva contemplated the dregs at the bottom of her mug. "Should be about as strong as a regular wine. Why?"


    "I''ve had wine." Robin said. "But this doesn''t....something ...don''t ...feel.....right." And with that, Robin collapsed sideways onto the ground, quickly falling unconscious.


    "Robin!!" Ayva exclaimed, shocked. And that was the last thing Robin heard before she fell into the darkness of unconsciousness.


    As soon as possible, an investigation was made. Quinn quickly discovered traces in the cups. The beer had been tampered with, holding a rather large dose of Klargun''s Brew. As it is odorless and tasteless, Ayva hadn''t noticed it.


    Ayva''s newly-fixed coronet was fitted with an anti-poison spell that neutralizes all toxins, poisons, or sleeping draughts....at least, while it is worn. As such, Throm forbid Ayva from removing her coronet until all traces had disappeared from her body.


    But as for when Robin would awaken...


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 183 She Sleeps While Keith Tells a Story

    As there was no one else in the castle but Throm, Ayva, Quinn, and Robin, nobody knew how such a large dose had ended up inside the castle. If Robin''s condition were known, then the dwarves themselves might cast shadows upon the monarchs, spreading rumors of foul play. Thus, Throm did the only thing he could do. Early the next morning, he invited Robin''s company to enter the castle.


    "What do you mean, he can''t wake up!?" Christian exclaimed. "What did you do to him!?"


    Quinn placed a hand on Christian''s shoulder, and restrained him. "Listen. There are not many places in this castle that have magic eyes within them. But Ayva''s garden is the one place that is under watch 24/7. If Klargun''s brew is not consumed within 24 hours of it leaving its preservative vial, the properties become ineffective. Do you understand?"


    Quinn looked Christian in the eyes until he was certain the prince wouldn''t do something rash. "Now, I just finished going through the entire recording from start to finish. Not even a fly so much as flew into that space, much less a dwarf. And that flagon had been sitting there for over a week. I am as much baffled at this as you are. If you don''t trust me, you can have Keith or Jasmine look it over."


    "This is as much a concern to you as it is to me. For someone to be able to slip Klargun''s brew into my castle is unthinkable, and highly alarming." Throm finally spoke. "I am being open with you because. Reluctantly, I find that even my own people seem to be unreliable. Before Robin fell asleep, he told us of the dangers of the man you call Trader. Until I can be assured none of my people are under his control, my hands are tied. I truly need your help."


    Christian was silent, a bitter expression on his face. Finally, he looked up. "How long will he sleep?" He asked Quinn.


    "It depends upon how much Robin consumed." Quinn replied. "If we''re lucky, it''ll only be a week. If not, then it might be several months, or even half a year."


    "Is there no antidote?"


    "No. For Klargun''s Brew, the only antidote that exists is time."


    "I want to see him." Christian said. It was not a request.


    "This way." Quinn sighed. Throm, understanding their feelings, allowed them to go see Robin. The answer to his request could wait until later.


    Robin''s room was the closest to the throne room. Ayva was already there, waiting by the bedside. The dark circles under her eyes, red eyes, and traces of tears down her face told the whole story.


    "Ah..Yer here." She said, looking up.


    Christian didn''t see Ayva. He walked over to the bedside, eyes only on Robin. Robin''s eyes were closed. The slow rising and falling of her hands above the covers showed that Robin was breathing. Not a single hair was out of place.


    ''Robin...once again, it seems you''re not able to move.'' Christian clenched his hand. ''We let our guard down. One of us should have gone with you. Or, at the very least, you should have taken your sword along! But now, you...''


    He stood there a long time, and everyone else respectively kept silent. Even when Chelsea performed a magic checkup on Robin, they remained silent. Finally, he turned to Ayva with a blank face.


    "Why are you still awake?"


    Ayva sighed. "Ah''m wearing an anti-poison protective gem. Ah hafta keep wearing et, or I''ll also be asleep like her."


    "Can''t we get another one made for Robin?" Christian asked.


    Jasmine shook her head. "The most Ayva''s gem can do is to segregate the poison until it passes out of the system. Robin''s poison has already affected Robin, merging into the bloodstream. Not even the Slime Kings can separate it out at this point."


    "Can''t they at least try and get as much unassimilated poison out as possible?" Christian asked.


    "That was the first thing I had Bobble do." Quinn stated. "Now Bobble is also asleep because he allowed it to affect to his core."


    "Then, we''ll do what we can. At the very least, we can try and find the culprit before Robin wakes up." Christian replied, turning around.


    "How are you so calm about this?" Chelsea asked. Christian paused. But ignored Chelsea''s question as he stepped out of the room. Keith excused himself, and followed behind, just in time to see Christian lean up against a stone wall, and slam his clenched fist into it. Christian heard approaching footsteps.


    "Keith?" He asked.


    "I am here." Keith replied, stopping three feet away from Christian. Keith didn''t need to say much more. He simply waited.


    "...You know....she''s wrong...I''m not really calm at all about this." Christian finally said.


    "I know."


    "I have actually never been more angry in my entire life. I want to find the person responsible and tear him to pieces, if I can." Christian growled as he turned his back to the wall, and slid down it until he was sitting on the floor, despondent.


    "This entire mess is all my idiotic fault. This spot, right here, is for the stupidest fool loser in history."


    Keith thought for a moment, then joined him on the ground, groaning a bit as he sat down beside the prince. After settling himself down comfortable enough, he looked at the floor with Christian as well.


    "What are you doing?" Christian finally asked.


    "Well, you said this spot was for the stupidest fool in history. And...after thinking about it, I figured my place is here as well." Keith said as a matter of fact.


    "You? You learned perfect sword form in a year. You became a general; AND you retired with one of the greatest honors of mankind. You''ve managed to help me keep my head on my shoulders, I don''t recall how many times. What part of that story makes you a fool loser?" Christian asked bitterly.


    Keith glanced over at Christian. "I never did tell you exactly where I was from, did I?" he mused, glancing to his left at the light coming from the hall of colorful glowing crystals.


    "In that case, let this fool loser inform you of just how much of a loser he is." Keith barked a bitter laugh.


    "Though I can''t quite tell how accurately the records are, the people in my village claimed they were descended from the lineage of Ekkinshire''s founding king. Naturally, they told us stories, and encouraged us to grow big and strong." Kevin sneered.


    "And I was the biggest and strongest lad in the entire village. Everyone expected me to become to person who would be the great hero leading everyone to victory. I was the one they expected to pull the sword out of the stone."


    "You? Well, what happened?" Christian asked.


    "Someone else picked it up first. We were at war, at the time. I was just a lad of twelve years old when I ran off to try my hand at it, but the lad just in front of me pulled it out like a knife cutting through butter."


    "Ouch."


    "Indeed. I was furious at the time." Kevin chuckled. "I was not convinced that I was any less of a hero than that boy in front of me. So I was determined to prove it. I would prove on the battlefield that I was a better hero than he could ever be."


    "Well, what happened?" Christian asked.


    "I became the General. Not the Hero, just the General. And then the war ended. When we returned, I asked the Hero a favor, to return the sword into the stone so that I could try my hand...but...." Keith sighed.


    "It wouldn''t budge. Can you imagine that? All my life, I thought I was meant to be the hero, and that just hit the nail in the coffin. They were all mistaken, and I was never meant to be one in the first place. So, I did what I thought was for the best. I retired. And the Hero went home."


    "Wait, didn''t the hero die in battle against the previous demon lord?" Christian asked.


    "He disappeared right in front of my face, lad. How else do you think the sword returned to the stone? You think a deity magicked it over?" Keith chuckled.


    "Yes...He went home, as did I..."


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 184 She Slumbers, and Keiths Discovery

    Keith then paused, trying to work past the lump in his throat. "It really was...such a small village. I almost couldn''t recognize it, if it weren''t for the half burned sign telling me otherwise."


    "Your village burned down?" Christian asked.


    "Raided." Keith spat out. "And not by stinking goblins, neither. Bandits. Raided. Ransacked. Burned. Now? It''s no more than a graveyard that I personally built by hand. Everyone I grew up with is buried there."


    "What happened then?" Christian asked.


    "After that, I became an adventurer. I took down every bandit camp I could find, burying them in their sleep, whenever possible. Finally, I had tracked down the group that had done it, and ended their miserable lives." Keith clenched his hand in front of him, then relaxed it, waving as if scattering dust.


    "But it was all an empty rage. I couldn''t bring them back." His voice became hoarse. "I saved the country. But I couldn''t save those who were important to me."


    "So I did the only thing left that I could do. I took to drinking. And that''s where your father found me: dead drunk in a nameless tavern." Keith sighed.


    "My father? No, that''s impossible. He would never go to such a place." Christian denied.


    "Oh? As I recall, he sat down right next to me, and ordered a drink as well. Then he started talking about you. He talked about how smart you were, and the foolish little scraps you got into with Jasmine, even as a five-year old."


    "Wait, I was fighting with her even back then?" Christian frowned.


    "Hahah, that you were. He also told me about how he worried about you. He didn''t know what he would do if he were to lose you. So, dead drunk as I was, and fifteen to boot, I agreed to help out. I dunno what I was thinking at the time. But....perhaps I was trying to redeem myself. If the me who lost everything could protect a friend''s most important person, then perhaps....just perhaps I''d be a little less of a loser."


    Keith grimaced. "Obviously, it isn''t working out too well."


    "A loser indeed." Christian nodded in agreement. Then he turned his head towards Keith. "Now that we know how much a loser we are, we should probably get to work before we lose any important evidence."


    "Much as I''d hate to admit it, you''re right." Keight grimaced again, patting Christian''s shoulder twice. "Well, let''s not lose track of the time, I suppose. I''ll scour the magic eyes again, and you can go question the royalty."


    "Wait, why me? Aren''t I the last person who should be doing that?" Christian asked.


    "I might be thinking they deserve whatever petty annoyances you can incur upon them...But, then again, I''m only a retired general, and a commoner ta boot." Keith stood back up.


    "Oh? But weren''t you descended from the first king of Ekkinshire? What happened to your noble lineage?" Christian quipped, also standing up. He was still upset, but for some reason, he felt just a bit lighter.


    Keith snorted. "That? Those records were not confirmed, and were all burned up in the fire. You can''t pin that on me. There''s no proof of anything." He snickered. "Have fun talking to the royals~!"


    "Have fun not sleeping!" Christian retorted as he headed for the glowing hallway to have a chat.


    --------------


    "So it was after your conversation with Robin that he agreed to stay for dinner, and went to pass the time in the garden?" Christian asked.


    "Yes. That''s right." Throm nodded.


    "Can you tell me what you talked about?" Christian asked.


    "Hmmm an awful lot of it was about Quinn''s bad habits of sneaking in past all my security measures, then there were the chocolates, the Trader....And, quite frankly, we did discuss one other, but Robin is uncomfortable with that topic becoming known to others, and had expressly asked me not to tell it to anyone else."


    "...You''re sure?" Christian asked.


    "You can double check with Quinn, but it will generally be the same answer." Throm indicated. Christian clicked his tongue in annoyance. He didn''t like talking to Quinn.


    "...While I am rather curious about that last part, how did the topic swing from chocolates to the Trader, if you don''t mind my asking?" Christian said, looking at the conversation topics he had written down on a piece of parchment.


    "Ah, that. Well, all of a sudden, Robin started looking around. Sh- sa he asked us if we had any magic eyes in the hall, and I told he-im that we don''t. The magic eyes are clustered outside the castle and in the garden. We like our privacy, after all." Throm nodded. He frowned. He was beginning to see why Ayva found it so difficult to keep Robin''s secret.


    "Then HE up and smacks a chameleon-gecko off a crystal banister. Didn''t even see tha little thing well afore the castle defenses kicked in and fried it to a crisp."


    "Indigestion?" Christian asked, picking up on the oddities in his words.


    "Partially..." Throm answered, with a grimace.


    "A chameleon gecko, huh? It''s impressive that he could find one. But what does that have to do with the Trader?" Christian asked, getting back to the topic.


    "About that, Robin said that sh-ure as grass is green, there was spirit mana on the gecko. Mmmn. Said that tha last time you folks encountered it, ya were up against that Trader man." Throm decided to not say he or she, to remove the chances of mixing them up.


    "You think it might be hiccups?" Christian asked, referring to his frequent pauses.


    "Trust me, lad. Hiccups from a half-dragon dwarf ain''t nothin'' ta sneeze at." Throm shook his head sternly.


    "If you say so." Christian shrugged. "So, Robin connected the chameleon gecko to the Trader, did he? Any chances of it being a natural spirit beast?" He asked, recalling Skye, Robin''s sworn companion.


    "Well, no. Chameleon Geckos are known for their natural disguise abilities. They don''t have a speck of magic talent." Throm replied.


    Christian paused, as a thought came to him. "Say, what are the odds of an invisible assassin coming in?" He asked.


    Throm snorted. "Unlikely. Any living thing over ten pounds without a permission token would get fried tha moment they stepped past the gates."


    "What about magic invisibility?" Christian asked.


    "My magic eyes are set to detect invisibility magic, so it''s impossible to be sneaked up on." Throm shook his head.


    "Then, if the thing that dropped off the poison was one that wasn''t using a spell, and was under ten pounds?" Christian asked.


    "...If yer thinking what I think yer thinking, then it may indeed be possible. But are they even smart enough to be trained to pull something like that off?" Throm asked, beginning to understand.


    "Maybe not. But, if they were controlled by a spirit master, then...." Christian trailed off. Both were smart enough to grasp the end of his sentence without him finishing it.


    Both began to head towards the room with the magic eyes.


    -------


    Keith had decided to focus only on the flagon of beer left out in the open. Whoever the culprit might be, in the end, they had to place the poison in beforehand, within a 24 hour window. Thus, he was slowly working backwards from the moment Robin fell unconscious.


    The first time he had watched it he had played the video forward through Robin''s visit. This was to make sure Ayva was not deceiving them. But, listening to their conversation, his eyes widened. He muttered to himself.


    "As I suspected..."


    Out of caution, should Christian decide to check the records, he then asked Ayva to remove the sound recordings, and hold onto them for safekeeping. It was a good idea that he had done so, for not half an hour after he started, Christian and Throm showed up.


    "Hey, Keith, did you see anything strange happening to the flagon-!" Christian began to ask, when he paused, his eyes drawn to the image Keith had paused on.


    "Well, funny thing you should mention it, but yes. I did just capture something strange." Keith nodded.


    The magic eye was paused upon a closeup of the flagon. A spot the shape of a jelly bean could be seen next to the lid. From far away, it might look just like a flaw in the recording. But now that it was closed in upon, it was apparent that this spot was actually a partially closed chameleon eye.


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 185 She Meets Someone While Dreaming

    Christian clenched his fists. "I knew it. It had to be that Trader pet!"


    "I never thought that little lizard would cause so much trouble. Please excuse me. I need to go add chameleon geckos to the list of forbidden creatures." Throm quickly hurried off. It would obviously be a tragedy should any more of his food and drink fall prey to any other invisible lizards.


    "So? What do you think? How much did that thing dump in Robin''s drink?" Christian asked.


    "Hmm, considering its carrying capacity, I''d cap it at half a bottle at most. Any more than that, and that gecko wouldn''t be able to lift, or hide it away." Keith said.


    There was a small thought-filled silence before Christian once again opened his mouth.


    "I am curious, though." Christian looked pointedly at Keith. "What happened to the voice records? Ekkinshire''s magic eyes might not have sound, but I''m pretty sure dwarven magic eyes do."


    "Ah that? I asked about it, too. Ayva took them away, protecting Robin''s secret." Keith replied. "It most likely has something to do with the Hero''s past that he doesn''t want us knowing about."


    "Don''t you give me that. I know that you can read lips." Christian snorted.


    Keith rolled his eyes. "And? Do you think I''d dare to anger the Hero a second time? You remember what happened the first time I did that? I''ve learned my lesson. If you wish to know so badly, go ask him yourself when he wakes up."


    The video played forward again, this time too quickly to catch what wad being said. When it got to the end, it turned off.


    "And that''s the end of my limited access..." Keith replied, standing up. "If you want to look through the records again, you''ll have to ask King Throm or Queen Ayva." He began to head out the door.


    "So you do know his secret. Otherwise, you wouldn''t be trying to hide it." Christian said pointedly. Keith paused.


    "Well, I would tell you, but unfortunately, Robin has a higher authority than you. Please don''t hate me for following the law." Keith replied. "I may be just a stupid loser, but I don''t want to lose a good friend over this."


    Christian scanned Keith''s expression, then sighed. "Fine. But at the very least, please try to get permission for me? When this hateful situation is all over, that is."


    "You have my word." Keith bowed his head for a second before leaving the room.


    Christian did the math in his head. A dwarven flagon held about 2 liters of drink. A full vial of Klargon''s brew would make one sleep for five years. Given that half a vial of Klargun''s brew was dumped inside, then the flagon altogether had a dose of about two and a half years, or thirty months. That''s 15 months per liter. There was about half a liter remaining in the flagon when Robin fell.


    So, assuming the 1.5 liters was evenly distributed....Then the latest Robin would sleep was 11 months, plus a week, almost a whole year. Assuming that Bobble managed to get rid of at least half the potion, it would still be around half a year. Quinn''s estimate was about right. But, that didn''t make Christian any happier.


    They had to wait half a year before Robin woke up? Seriously? But, there was nothing that could be done. Robin wouldn''t awaken any time soon. Christian returned to Robin''s room. Skye had curled up on the bed with Robin, seemingly waiting for her to wake up.


    But, what no one had realized was that they were all wrong. They were forgetting about Robin''s magic aptitudes. Not only did she have a 50 percent nature aptitude, which gave her poison resistance, she was blood contracted to Skye, who was fully resistant to many poisons.


    Thus, the amount of time she''d sleep would be much much less.


    In fact, Skye had also realized this. Except, Skye was too busy actively working towards expelling the poison through the blood contract to point it out to the others. There was actually a 36 hour window before the poison was fully integrated into the bloodstream. Skye was taking advantage of this window to slowly gather the miniscule bits of foreign matter to expel them.


    In any case, only Elise would understand him and be able to speak, unless he was able to use magic link. But, that would take away too much of his attention, and effort. Once the window of opportunity was gone, they would truly have to wait.


    And, where was Elise? She had chosen to remain behind, and slowly finish her chocolate. Robin had forgotten about her size, and left her three whole truffles. That was the equivalent of two of Elise placed together. It was no surprise, then, that she remained behind.


    And while Robin slept, she dreamed.


    --------


    But this time was different. In this dream, she was herself, dressed up as Robin the Hero. But she was an invisible observer. She could see her younger self dashing through the hallways. But the grotesquely twisted images of her former friends/bullies couldn''t see Robin the Hero.


    Robin ignored the normal route, and immediately climbed up to the roof of the school building. But when she got there, she stopped in the doorway. An unfamiliar figure stood there, leaning up against the balcony.


    "Huh. That''s strangely new." The figure said as it turned to face her. His face was concealed in a hood; the darkness within, unbreachable. the only thing that could be seen was a slightly mocking smile.


    "Hero Robin, is it? It is not often that others enter my dreams...Are you also here to be my judge?"


    "You are?" Robin asked, cautiously.


    "Oh? I''m surprised. You didn''t forget your promise, did you?" The figure said.


    "I''m quite sure that you and I have never met." Robin replied. "But, in order to be certain, why don''t you put that hood down?"


    "Heh. That is right, I suppose. We have never really met...in person." The figure leisurely leaned his back against the balcony. "But, I specifically remember a very interesting fellow getting enraged at me."


    "If that was me, then you definitely deserved it. I don''t get mad at good people." Robin replied evenly, walking onto the balcony.


    "Mister Trader, I take it?" She asked.


    "Heh. You catch on too quickly." The man smirked.


    "I really haven''t gotten angry at anyone else. So it had to be you." She shrugged.


    "Aren''t you going to try and cut me down?" the Trader asked.


    Robin glanced over, speaking in a matter-of-fact tone. "And interrupt the show? Even I am not foolish enough to pioneer someone else''s dream. Our battle can wait until afterwards."


    Robin was actually quite surprised at how calm she felt right now. If it were real life, she would probably have challenged him right away. But, she was curious about why the Trader would be so familiar with her dream area, as if it were his own.


    ...


    -----------


    "So, what do we do now?" Sir Daniel asked. Christian frowned. They were all sitting or standing around Robin''s bed.


    "The way I see it, we have two options. Both have their perks and demerits, but I think it''s best to place them on the table while we still had cards." He looked around the room.


    "The first option is that we could all stay here and watch over Robin until he wakes up. The Perk is, we are all together in case something unexpected happens. The demerit is that we lose the amount of time we spend waiting."


    "...And the second option?" Sir Dylan asked.


    "We split up. Half the party stays to keep watch over Robin. Half the party goes to gather the jade seals." Keith spoke from the side.


    Christian nodded. "The perks are that we save time by splitting up. The demerits are in that dividing the team will weaken the altogether strength of the group. What if we need water healing, and Chelsea isn''t around? Or what if we need Jasmine''s magical knowledge, and she''s back here? This can be a somewhat dangerous solution."


    "And what about the third option?" Jasmine asked.


    "What third option?" Christian raised an eyebrow at Jasmine.


    "We take Robin along, even if the poor dear is still asleep. That way, the party doesn''t split up, and we can all protect Robin while the hero rests."


    "We''d still need to split up when it comes to protecting Robin versus getting things done. And are you okay with leaving the hero''s blade behind here in Ragnok?" Christian shook his head and pointed out.


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 186 She Hears A Different Story

    Young Robin burst out onto the roof, quickly securing the door with a metal bar. Sounds of pounding began on the door.


    "Robin, open the door!"


    "There''s no escape."


    "Teacher, I think something''s wrong with Robin! She''s on the roof and has blocked off the door!"


    "Is she suicidal?"


    "Don''t make us call the fire department again!"


    Young Robin backed away from the door, unwilling to listen any further. Hero Robin saw the long shadow behind her stretch up and take form as her uncle.


    "Robin." He called. Hero Robin watched as slowly, Young Robin was cornered by her uncle, and Mr Dawkins. But, right as her uncle blew up, Robin stepped forward, and caught that uncle''s arm.


    "Who are you!?" The uncle finally saw Hero Robin.


    "Me? Hmm...You could say that I was on very good terms with this girl''s father." Robin replied.


    "Hah! You? Go back to your cosplay convention! This is family business-Ack! Let go! Let go of me!" The uncle yelled out in pain as Robin began to tighten her grip.


    "Oh, I am not a cosplayer. I am something far, far stronger than that." Robin replied. "This girl is under my protection. Should you enact any violence upon her, I may need to take precautionary actions in her defense, don''t you think?"


    "Let go!"


    "Choose which you would like to retain. Her fortune, or your life?" Robin spat out, almost breaking the man''s bones. To the side, Mr. Dawkins was already starting to fall to the ground in a heart attack.


    "I-I won''t bother her again, just let go!" The uncle was scared stiff by the sharp glare in Robin''s eyes. Robin let go, and the uncle stumbled over himself as he ran towards the now open stairwell.


    Robin looked about. The Trader had disappeared. She then turned towards Young Robin.


    "W-who are you?" She asked.


    Robin smiled. "Little Robin, don''t worry. Your brother is on his way with the police. That uncle will not get far."


    Hero Robin patted Young Robin on the head.


    "Don''t let this incident traumatize you. You''ll grow up and find true friends. You''ll even find people whom you''ll regard as important as your parents. I have it on good faith that you''ll be adopted as a niece by a lovely couple in the future. That''s why, you need not pay any respect to these villains in the future, okay?"


    "Are-are you gonna become my new uncle?" Young Robin asked. "Aren''t you just here to go after my fortune, like all the others?"


    "No? I have a fortune of my own, you see. I do not need yours." Robin replied.


    "You...who are you?" A voice rasped from the ground behind them. Mr. Dawkins gasped, looking in Robin''s direction.


    "You weren''t here on that day. Were you someone who regretted not being able to protect her? Are you one of her brother''s men?" Mr Dawkins asked.


    "Is it that important?" Robin asked, walking towards him, and crouching down with a cheerful grin. "I should think there''d be more important things to ask, at least for a dying man."


    "What happened to her uncle?" Dawkins asked.


    "Jailed for 10 years on attempted murder. Fined most of what he owned for mistreatment of a minor. Oh, and in addition, as a trafficker of minors, he was given an additional sentence of forty years." Robin replied.


    "Don''t you hate me?" Dawkins asked.


    "Why should I hate a dead man? It is enough as long as Little Robin never sees him again."


    " ...Perhaps it is a clarity brought about by the last moments of death, but somehow... I want her to know that I was not myself these past few months."


    "If you were not yourself, then who else could you be?" Robin sneered.


    "No, actually, this all started to happen after I was struck on the head by a strange black ball, that vanished. I would black out at times, say things I had no intention to, I''d even act completely different than usual. The one time I managed to wake up properly was the moment the judge''s hammer fell. But, even then, I ended up dying there on the floor. Who would have thought that I would still have to live through all this over and over again. Even now, I have no control over my actions until the moment of death. But, I understand that for my actions, I truly deserve to die."


    Robin stayed there, silent through it all. These symptoms...it was almost as if the Trader was involved in this. But, that was ridiculous, right? There''s no way someone like the Trader could have appeared on earth, right?


    This had never come up in previous run throughs. Was it a result of her recent run in with the Trader''s pet? Did she subconsciously pity, or wish to exonerate the terrifying Mr. Dawkins?


    Robin stared at the dying figure. Just the addition of a small story like that, was it enough to allow her to forget all the terror she had felt because of him? Was it enough to resolve the mental trauma that she had buried in her heart?


    "If only I could know if it were true." She murmured. There had been an autopsy, but nothing had been said about blunt force trauma to the head. She shook her head. That was a question to ask the Trader at a later point.


    "There was no evidence of you being hit by a ball-" She paused, suddenly recalling a piece of news she had overheard from her brother talking to a co-worker over the phone.


    "Hello? Oh, it''s you! Good timing! I was actually just about to call you. Is everything all set for the upcoming meeting?.....What? Cancelled? Why?...Uhmhum....No way! Dawkins did? Tch! Just because he got hit by a ball, and went to the hospital, we''ve got to postpone?" Her Brother''s voice echoed to the front of her mind.


    "But, I do seem to recall your hospital visit." Robin admitted. After all, it was a dream. She was getting a bit tired of seeing the same ending. Perhaps, if she made it go a different route, she would be able to dream of something else.


    ''Come to think of it, Mr Dawkins was a man that father trusted and respected before his death. I thought it might have been a well-constructed mask, but would father really not be able to see through such a thing?'' Robin stood up.


    "Perhaps this is something I should ask the Trader." She said.


    Mr Dawkins shuddered, then said with a firm conviction.


    "Boy, if you don''t want to become an eternal toy, then I beg of you, please do not go anywhere near the Trader. Anyone who meets with him become entrapped in his terrible magic."


    Robin looked down on Mr. Dawkins. "Of course, I already know this." Robin replied. "But, Mr. Dawkins, how do you know this? Did you perhaps meet the Trader before you died?"


    "Even worse....even worse....I am-" But, before Dawkins could give the answer, the light died from his eyes and he died.


    Robin looked at the dead man''s body, and sighed. She would have to ask next time they met. She turned towards young Robin.


    "Shall we go?" She asked.


    "D-do you honestly think that he was telling the truth?" Little Robin asked, looking at the dead man in fear and disgust.


    "Who knows? I have heard that sometimes, old sinners can have a moment of clarity upon their deathbed. Perhaps this was a token of his desire to atone for all the wrongs he''d done to you." Robin replied. "But, regardless, it''s all over, for now."


    The sound of police sirens approached the building. Robin waited. It was around this time when she would usually awaken from her dream. But, this time was not like other times. This time, the dream did not end.


    Robin waited until the police had arrived at the school. Finally, she realized that she was not waking up just yet. Perhaps was this a continuation of her dream? A break in the nightmare spirals?


    "Shall we go?" Hero Robin asked little Robin. "Your Brother should be here by now."


    "Mmn." Little Robin placed her hand in Hero Robin''s as they walked down the now-normal sized steps and ordinary hallways of the school.


    ------


    "Hmmm?" Skye glanced up, and looked around. It felt as if an invisible presence had left the area.


    ''Odd...'' It thought to itself before returning to its task.


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 187 She Sleeps As The City Heals

    "Well, we need to come to a decision soon. We can''t just sit around here in Throm''s castle as guests. This will cause all sorts of problems, diplomatically." Jasmine sighed.


    "I''m not saying we don''t decide, but perhaps we should take some time and consider our options today? We don''t have to leave right away, after all." Chelsea replied.


    "And, king Throm needs to be assured the Trader doesn''t have his claws in Throm''s men. He said he needs our help." Gerard pointed out.


    "That, too. If we were to leave Teacher here, we can''t have anyone possessed by the Trader anywhere near my teacher!" Ponzu nodded emphatically.


    Christian sighed. "All right. For now, we secure the perimeter, and clean up the city. We''ll hold off deciding what we should do until after that. Jasmine, can I leave it to you?"


    "As long as they''re all together, and with the right aiding materials and magic circles, I can invoke a mass high heal spell that covers the city." Jasmine agreed.


    And so, Chelsea remained behind with Liam to watch over Robin, while the others left to help King Throm. In order to pull the wool over the eyes of any spies, it was announced that Lady Ayva had been the one to fall prey to Klargun''s Brew.


    By executive order, absolutely everyone was to gather around the plaza where the Hero''s blade rested. King Throm would be giving an address, there. Jasmine was given full access to what resources she needed. Christian used his nature magic to tie up any belligerent or quarrelsome dwarves.


    And, lastly, Quinn used his instant transportation system to move the stubborn or immovable to the plaza area. While he wouldn''t usually be so cooperative, the Trader had touched his bottom line. He had cut off Quinn''s earth food supply. While Ponzu could bake a lot of earth recipes, there would be no new ones until Robin awoke. Thus, Quinn was the one who moved around the most during this time.


    ----------


    Skye stretched, and looked about. The time period was almost up. He had to expel the poison he had gathered from Robin soon. He tapped Chelsea''s hand.


    "Skye? What is it?" Chelsea asked.


    Skye meowed.


    Chelsea tilted her head. "Are you hungry?"


    Skye shook his head. "Meaaaow." He said, trying to tell her it was something important.


    Liam interjected. "No. He wants to tell you something important."


    Skye tilted his head at Liam. "Bbggrrreaow?" It meowed at Liam.


    "I did spend ten thousand years in a city. If I hadn''t learned cat language, by today, then I''m the most unobservant dragon in history." Liam replied.


    Skye''s eyes lit up as it started meaowing at Liam.


    "...Your sure?" Liam asked.


    Skye nodded, emphatically.


    "What is it?" Chelsea asked.


    Liam turned to Chelsea. "Skye, here, was using his blood contract connection to gather as much of the Klargun''s brew from within the bloodstream as possible. He needs to know where to extract it from."


    "Where is it now?" Chelsea asked.


    Skye meowed again.


    "Currently, it is gathered around the back, near the navel." Liam said. Chelsea realized where it was. She turned to Liam.


    "Thank you for the help, but I''ll need you to leave the room." She said.


    "Are you sure? You don''t need me to translate anymore?" Liam asked, not understanding.


    "It''s fine. I need you to stand guard at the door to make sure no one walks in and interrupts the second extraction." Chelsea said, shooing him out.


    "Okay." Liam stepped outside, closing the door. He didn''t question Chelsea''s reasons anymore. That was because dragons were notably best at guarding things.


    Chelsea waited until Liam had closed the door before hissing a whisper at Skye. "Really? The kidneys!? You couldn''t store it anywhere else?" Skye shook its head. The kidneys were one of the main organs that filtered the blood. If he had attempted to gather it anywhere else, he might not have succeeded.


    "I''ll help, but I''ll need to rely upon you to let me know if I manage to get it all." Chelsea sighed. She determined never to speak of this situation ever.


    ------


    King Throm stood upon the small stage constructed next to the Hero''s Blade. He looked out over the crowd. Quinn had even transported a few of them on top of the roofs of the buildings, to make sure they were all close enough.


    Throm glanced over at Jasmine, who was waiting nearby. Unlike usual, she held an impressive-looking staff in her hand. She nodded at him, indicating that she was ready to begin. He raised his hand to quiet the somewhat chaotic crowds.


    "My dear subjects..." Throm began. "Something terrible has happened yesterday. My dear wife, Ayva, was tha subject of a terrible plot...."


    The dwarves began to murmur. The rumor had flown through the city that Queen Ayva had been slipped Klargun''s Brew.


    "Somehow, though she were drinking her own home-brewed drink, the dear girl collapsed, and we found Klargun''s brew in tha drink." Throm announced. At this, a great many people were alarmed. Throm waved his hand, and they quieted down.


    "We don''t know who is responsible for this incident." Throm said. "But I have gathered you here ta ask for ideas. Is there any way we might be able to mitigate or neutralize tha foul potion as would send mah wife ta sleep?"


    Jasmine began activating the large magic circle around them. However, she had forgotten a key instrument that stood at the center of the circle. In this case, it was probably a good thing. The Hero''s blade began to hum as it gave out a very bright light. Magical resonation enhanced Jasmine''s spell to the point where it covered the entire city in a mass high heal.


    Within the light, certain people, animals, and creatures began to scream like they were witnessing a bloody murder. Birds from Ayva''s garden, rodents in the city, more than several chameleon lizards even fell to the ground, dead-unable to bear the pain. This unsettled the dwarves about them, as they saw a figure of a human being drawn up out of the dwarves. Once Jasmine confirmed that all the Trader shadows were destroyed, she ended the spell.


    Throm nodded. "I suppose you saw those as did not experience a high heal painlessly. That is because I have now been made aware that there is an invisible infiltrator in our midst, a spirit master the likes of which hasn''t been seen since almost a millennium ago. And this spirit magic user can latch onto you, undetected, making you do things which you would not even think of doing. Please forgive me for not warning you beforehand. I could not take the chance of allowing a single affected person to escape and endanger my city once again."


    At this, Throm, the proud half-dragon dwarf, actually bowed in apology to his subjects. This startled them all into a dazed silence. Since the dawn of dwarvenkind, the king had never bowed his head before his subjects before.


    "Ah also want to institute a new rule from now on. In concordance with Ayva''s temporary measures, I will install a permanent office at the gate for a king slime. Those as enter must endure a checkup by said King Slime, including a high heal at the end. This be fer as long as said King Slime would grace us with its presence."


    This greatly delighted the poor folk who would be able to receive free healing just by leaving and coming back through the gates. Those who were dwarven doctors, though, could only sigh with resignation. It seemed their business would be taking a hit in the near future.


    "As for those among you who are doctors, do not be worried. Ah''m not gonna be leaving you ta twiddle yer thumbs. But Ah will be announcing an opportunity fer you at a later date. Ye may all return ta yer homes now. Ah may huv left the Hero with Ayva, but that dinnae mean Ah like being away fer too long." Throm dismissed.


    With that, Quinn quickly whisked those he had transported back to where he found them.


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 188 She Doesnt Exis

    "Is that the last of it?" Chelsea asked Skye. Skye nodded, then curled up into a circle to rest. With all that concentrating he had to do earlier, he had missed a dozen cat naps. It was time to make up for lost sleep.


    Chelsea firmly capped the bottle, and placed it into her magic pocket to dispose of at a later date. Then she slumped into the chair by the bed.


    "Robiin, when are you going to wake up?" She asked, poking the sleeping girl''s cheeks. Then a vision came to her.


    ''Robin''s eyes flicked open as she grabbed Chelsea''s hand and sat up.


    "What time is it?" Robin asked.


    "Hold on there! You''ve slept for a week, so you''ll be a bit dizzy. Lie down and let me finish up the treatment I did to prevent the muscles from the weakness of atrophy." Chelsea said.


    Robin looked at her, slightly disoriented.''


    The vision ended as Chelsea came back to the present, where Robin still lay on the bed, asleep.


    "A week, huh?" Chelsea smiled. "I think we can wait for a week."


    -----


    The flashing police lights ahead, reminded her of something important. Hero Robin looked down at her hero''s blade. If she came out like this, her weapon would be confiscated. Finally, she made a decision.


    "Little Robin, you go ahead. Even if you can''t see me, I''ll be right behind you, okay?" Hero Robin told her. Then she stepped out of sight of the girl, to test a theory of hers.


    "Huh?" Robin looked around. "Where did he go?" She then saw her brother outside with the police. He hadn''t even changed out of his office clothes, having come here straight from his work. Pinned against one of the cars, being handcuffed, was the girl''s uncle.


    "Brother!" Little Robin called as she ran outside, and tackled Her brother. He hugged her tightly.


    "Robin, thank God! I came as soon as I could. Are you all right? Your uncle didn''t hurt you, did he?" Her Brother looked back towards the school, scanning around for a sight of the person who had saved his little sister.


    Hero Robin was actually right next to him, in something she was beginning to call ghost mode. Soon enough, the siblings had their statements taken down and were free to go. As they climbed into her brother''s car, Robin slipped through the door into the back seat.


    When they arrived home, Robin was surprised. It looked different than how it looked in her previous dreams, but then again, it was surprisingly accurate. Even certain details Robin had forgotten about were present. She followed them into the house, looking around and nodding to herself. Yes, this was exactly how it looked at that time.


    Her brother checked something on his phone and asked Little Robin. "You''re certain that he disappeared?"


    Little Robin nodded. "Mmmn! It was like magic!" She smiled.


    Hero Robin blinked and stared blankly. She did not remember smiling at all during the time period up until the trial. In fact, she could not remember smiling like that for at least two years after the fact.


    "And he said that he''d be right behind you?" Her brother asked again.


    "Mmmhmm!"


    "Then, is he right behind you now?"


    Little Robin turned to look. "I can''t see him if he is."


    Robin waited until Little Robin had settled down that night in bed.


    "Are you really here?" Little Robin whispered.


    Hero Robin smiled mischievously.


    "Nope~!" She spoke from the direction of the closet.


    Little Robin giggled and turned over, relieved enough to finally get some sleep. Hero Robin waited until she was sure Lil Robin was truly asleep, then she phased through the bedroom door and sought out the older brother.


    Her older brother sat at the desk in their father''s office, watching something on his computer. As Hero Robin phased through the door, he spoke up.


    "I''m not too certain exactly who or what you are. Because you saved my sister, I am thankful. But, don''t you think that intruding on our privacy is going a bit too far?"


    Robin was taken aback. She asked.


    "How did you know I was here?"


    "It''s really strange. People can''t really see you at all. But for some reason..." He turned his computer around, showing a video feed.


    "The cameras picks you up just fine. What I can''t understand is why the dna scanner can''t pick you up."


    Robin sighed and eased out of ghost mode.


    "You always were good at the technical stuff, weren''t you?"


    "Who are you?" He asked.


    "I am one who should not exist here. Let''s just say that my identity is a problem." Robin replied.


    "Who do you work for? What is your objective?" He asked.


    "Funny you should ask that. I''m a firm believer in the phrase ''God helps those who help themselves.'' But...you could say that I knew your father. I was in combat training to protect you in the future. When I recognized little Robin, and saw what was about to happen, I had no choice but to interfere." Robin replied.


    "So you heard?" he sighed.


    "A year is enough time to reach even the most remote places, especially if it''s a person of your father''s fame." Robin replied. "...he...was a good man."


    "Hmmm....Let''s just say that I believe you, for now. What are you going to do?" He asked.


    "I have no place to go." Robin replied. "Your father housed me for a time, but there is no record of my existence. If I were to be revealed as I am, I might be hunted down by scientists, authorities, villains...If possible, I''d rather spend my time here fulfilling what I trained for: protecting you, and your sister."


    "How did you meet my father?"


    "Believe it or not, we are related by blood." Robin replied. "He was there the day I was born."


    "So, if I die, will I end up like you?" he asked.


    "I never said I am dead. Just...not awake." Robin replied.


    "So you want me to believe you are some sort of astral projection or living spirit?" He asked, raising a quizzical eyebrow.


    Robin remained silent. She did not know what she was, here.


    He sighed. "The sad thing is that, that''s probably the closest thing to an answer that I can get out of this. The police are looking for you, to try and get a statement. While I gave them the video footage, as evidence, they are still going to want to meet you."


    Robin nodded. "That is certainly a problem."


    "Can''t you meet them?"


    "I told you. I don''t exist. No papers, no identity. Do you think they would let me go once I met with them? The worse thing is that, once they know I am protecting you two, they might go after you in order to get to me."


    "What if I could give you an identity?" He asked.


    ---------


    "So, you''re saying that Robin will wake up in a week? How is that possible?" Jasmine asked.


    "Regardless of how, my brother''s visions never fail." Chelsea asserted. "We can figure out the how afterwards. Skye who is bound by blood contract helped me to filter out a bit more of the poison earlier, but by now, the remainder has fully integrated into the bloodstream."


    "And, where did you put the extract?" Jasmine asked.


    "Flushed down the toilet, where it belongs." Chelsea told Jasmine coldly.


    "A shame...I could have tried reverse-engineering a cure for that." Jasmine sighed.


    "You''ve got the remains of Ayva''s beer for that." Chelsea said.


    "No I don''t. It''s been over 24 hours. There''s no trace left in there. You think I haven''t tried?" Jasmine waved a dismissive hand.


    "I guess you''ll have to wait until we can get a fresh supply then." Chelsea smiled.


    "Um...if it''s Klargun''s Brew....then Ah have some." Ayva said softly from the doorway. "Remember tha vial Ah took from those four? Ah kept et safe as evidence. Are ye in need of et?" She asked. She had just arrived, and wanted to do anything she could to help.


    "Ah! Yes! Now we are getting somewhere!" Jasmine smiled.


    "So many have tried before you to discover an antidote. Why do you think you''ll succeed?" Chelsea asked.


    "Because, dear Chelsea, those were doctors and Alchemists, while I am a Magi." Jasmine replied, taking Chelsea''s words as an open challenge. "Or have you forgotten?


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 189 She Speaks To the Police

    "Are you sure, you cannot take that mask off?" Her brother asked again. "We need a photo for your ID."


    "I''ve told you, I have tried my hardest, it''s not coming off!" Robin replied, annoyed. This was the first time she realized that her appearance was so fixed that she couldn''t remove anything.


    "If you think you can take it off, I can stand right here, and let you try and pull it off!" She growled.


    "If you insist!" He rolled up his sleeves. After a very interesting series of experiments, both of them gave up any more attempts.


    "Fine. I''ll have to come up with a convincing fake appearance..." He sighed. "You sure are a troublesome thing."


    "So I''ve heard." Robin chuckled, slightly out of breath.


    "What name should I put on the id?" Her brother asked. "It''ll have to be from Japan, as the record security here is far too difficult.


    "....put....Hiiro...Akamune Hiiro."


    "Red Chest Hero, huh." he muttered, glancing up at Robin''s green attire. "Wouldn''t Aomune be a more apt description?"


    Robin only smiled. The japanese name for Robin is Akahige, which means ''red beard''. But, Robin preferred the description given in the Mother Goose rhyme: little Robin, red breast. So, she had always called them Akamune, after she learned Japanese.


    "Gender is male; hair..." He glanced up. "Black. Eyes..." He had to look up again. "Blue....say, if I didn''t know any better, I''d say that you look closer to being my sister''s brother than I do, just based off appearances."


    "Unfortunately, that is not possible." Robin denied.


    "And? In what way are you related to my family?" He asked.


    "Huh?" Robin asked.


    "Despite your last name, on the records, you will be related to us by blood. Otherwise, it''s too strange for us to house you here."


    "Un...you can put me down as the son of your father''s long lost brother."


    "So you know about that, too, huh." He noted.


    "I originally encountered your father in the middle of looking for him." Robin nodded.


    "So you met him near the Philippines?"


    "...his brother....is dead." Robin said. "So is your uncle''s wife. He survived the crash, but that tsunami ten years ago...there were no survivors." She had seen the report that would arrive in a couple years. This was the reason she chose that particular uncle.


    "But, then, how did you survive?"


    "Does it matter?"


    "What if they ask you?"


    "Maybe I had amnesia. Maybe I only just found out I was related to you. Maybe I''m-" Robin stopped, looked down at her hands, and sighed. "Meh...whatever. Why am I even doing this?"


    "No, that''s a good setting. A bit typical for those who would bluff in order to try and cheat money out of us, but I''ll make it look convincing." He said. "Age?"


    "Seventeen"


    "Oh? just a bit younger than me. Wanna spar later on?"


    "I don''t do spars." Robin replied.


    -------


    "I don''t understand. Why are you steaming a cage of rats over a boiling pot of diluted Klargun''s brew? And why do I have to wear this cloth over my mouth?"


    "It''s an experiment. I have to note down all the methods where Klargun''s Brew is effective. If it works as a steam, then it could narrow down the number of active magic ingredients I am dealing with."


    "By steaming rats?"


    "If you want to find some insomniac dwarves that only want a good sleep, then be my guest. otherwise, yes. rats." Jasmine replied, a bandana wrapped around her lower face.


    --------


    "Only a week?" Throm asked.


    "Hmmm....well, this is the Hero we''re talking about here. Inevitably, she is bound to have better luck than most." Quinn said, only loud enough for Throm to hear.


    "What does Christian think of it all?" Throm asked.


    "He''s probably ecstatic he doesn''t have to wait a whole year for Robin to wake up." Quinn shrugged."But, at this point, I think I deserve a bit of credit here."


    "Credit? For what?" Throm asked.


    "If I didn''t pop in at random every now and then, you two would have definitely fallen to the Trader''s schemes much much earlier." Quinn pointed out.


    Throm snorted. "Sure, an'' if you had only come through tha door, I''d be willing ta give you another ass-kicking set of armor. unfortunately, all of my precious armor resources have been rerouted into castle defenses. Unfortunate, but I am plumb out."


    "Oh that''s no problem at all. I ate an adamantine mine earlier. I can provide you with the ores you need." Quinn waved his hand, and a small pile of adamantine ores appeared.


    Throm''s eyes glinted as he and Quinn set down to a right proper bout of diplomatic haggling: both trying to outsmart the other.


    --------


    "So you jumped in when you recognized the girl as the daughter of your benefactor?" The Policeman asked.


    "That''s right."Robin replied, with a highly convincing Japanese accent.


    "Could you tell us what you were doing on the roof of a grade school?"


    "I''ve actually never been to this part of the city, before, and lost my way. When I tried to call someone, the signal was too weak. I happen to know a bit of parkour, so I chose a tall building where I might get enough service to figure out where I was. Originally, I was just going to ask for directions, but when i saw...I couldn''t stand still. The fact that it was actually a grade school...I am sorry I did not realize." Robin bowed her head in apology.


    "Can you tell us why you are wearing a bird mask?"


    "I was at a cosplay convention earlier. My mask kept slipping off my face. A fellow cosplayer told me that glue would help secure it...I suspect he used super glue, as it is impossible to take off, currently."


    "And you just...believed him?"


    "He looked like the spitting image of Son Goku from Dragonball Z! I never expected such a blackhearted fan." Robin sighed.


    "Why did you not come make your statement earlier?"


    "Well I was standing right there, but no one asked me anything." Robin pointed out. "So I assumed you''d ask me to come in later. I also didn''t want to be left behind by the only people I could recognize."


    "Thank you very much for your cooperation, mister Akamune. I hear that you issued a change of address to those siblings'' home?"


    "Mnn! They are hiring me as a live-in bodyguard. I am extremely grateful for their kindness."


    The policeman''s eyes turned cold. "Listen here. Everything checks out so far, but if you have designs upon those two....then you''d best move out. I knew those kids'' father."


    "What a surprise! To meet a like-minded gentleman, here." Robin smiled. "Please understand, I wouldn''t harm a hair of my benefactor''s children, because...." She trailed off.


    "Because what?" the policeman asked.


    Robin rubbed her forehead, wearily. "Because I haven''t yet confirmed, but we might be cousins. As the only living kin left of my family...I wouldn''t think of it."


    "Pssh! Aren''t you just after their fortune?" The cop rolled his eyes.


    "Looks like you haven''t dug up much about my adoptive family, have you, mister policeman?" Robin grinned cheekily, as she stood up from her chair. "Otherwise, you wouldn''t think so."


    "Just don''t leave the country anytime soon." The policeman warned.


    "Wouldn''t dream of it." Robin replied, a twinkle in her eye.


    "You okay?" Her brother asked, when she got in the car.


    "I''m alright. I''ll be returning to hiding in plain sight, if you don''t mind." Robin told him, before ghosting out of sight.


    "Just don''t go too far away." He joked.


    On the drive home, Robin moved from inside the car, to up on top of the car. As she was in observation mode, there was no air resistance . The wind itself felt like a light breeze. Looking around at the familiar sights, Robin suddenly noticed something up ahead.


    She saw a man, jumping out of a speeding gas truck heading towards them. Immediately, she sprang into action, ghosting back into the car as she quickly took over the wheel.


    "Hey, what the-!" "Sorry, just gotta...." She shifted gear, and expertly maneuvered around the uncontrollable truck. It crashed through the guard rail, and fell down a short cliff, exploding at the bottom.


    "Head to Robin''s location." Hero Robin said, seriously, giving back the wheel. Her brother nodded, and sped off towards the school.


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 190 She Can Shoo

    Christian looked down at the sealed envelope he had been given. Although transmitting messages between kingdoms was possible, it was expensive. Each use required a large amount of magic, which could send a magician unconscious if his magic aptitude wasn''t high enough. A small slip was pasted under the seal with the words, "You''re Welcome" pasted on it.


    Regardless, the royal seal of Ekkinshire was attached to the letter. It was probably from his father. Christian sighed as he let a bit of his mana seep into the seal.


    It immediately detached itself from the paper, allowing him to open the envelope. Coincidentally, if he hadn''t unlocked, and tried to open it another way, it would have instantly caught ablaze, alerting the person who sealed it. Such was the nature of this seal.


    He pulled out a bundle of papers. Yes, the inside of the envelope was bigger than the outside. Half of the letters were addressed to him, and the others were for Jasmine, Keith, and Robin. Those he set aside, and glanced over his own letters.


    One was from his father, which was about two pages. One was from his mother, which was ten pages long. Christian chuckled. She had probably fit half the kingdom''s gossip in there. And the last one was from old Albus, the court magician.


    This intrigued him, as it wasn''t often that old Albus would have time to even pick up a pen, much less write him a letter. He began skimming through, to see what Albus had to tell him.


    ''I suppose by the time you get this letter, several things will have come to pass. But, regardless, I feel it necessary to tell you this, as it may be incredibly important.


    I was reorganizing the historical records that had fallen over in the archives room. And I came across a peculiar account from a previous historian. I believe I discovered a long-forgotten prophecy the Lady of the Forgotten Wood told Edgar the Wise.


    ''The Hero sleeps once to save the young,


    and sleeps again to save the mountain.


    Where the Dipper meets the Spine,


    The hero''s foe you shall find


    And the past emerging truth fountain.


    From foe''s mouth, a companion shall leap,


    To harbor from darkness the hero''s sleep. And maiden''s heart, though hidden, true, Shall be cleared of all errs of view,


    Though heavy trials, love be wrung.


    In leaving, one more lesson learned,


    Companion gained, and worldview spurned,


    Bidding goodbye through fire and war,


    Erasing emnities, two score


    Before the hero''s grand return.''


    I included this mostly because it is about the hero. If this doesn''t make any sense to you, please forget this as the ramblings of an old man who is reading too far into things. But, if it does help, then please humor this old man so that I can affirm this prophecy has come to pass. Sincerely yours, Old Albus.''


    If this letter had reached him earlier, then Christian would have disregarded it. But the beginning phrase caught him off guard.


    ''The Hero sleeps once to save the young, and sleeps again to save the mountain'' This... Wasn''t this clearly pointing at Robin?


    The first time Robin fell into an unwakeable sleep was when he saved those children from the goblins and burned the treant forest. And now, Robin had also fallen into a long sleep after rescuing the dwarven city, which was built into a volcanic mountainside.


    "Where the Dipper meets the Spine?" Christian muttered. It sounded familiar, but he couldn''t recall what it was. He put the letter safely into his magic bag, to show the others later. If they could figure out where that was, then perhaps they''d be able to find that wretched Trader.


    He then turned his attention to his father''s letter.


    ''To my first son, Christian: I know you''re headed to Port Oracle, so hopefully this letter reaches you in time. I received your message, and, thanks to you, several individuals have been freed from the Trader''s control. So, rest assured, the castle has been purged.


    After ensuring the church was not infiltrated, I''ve joined forces with the local healers in order to purge the city, which is still going, under the disguise of a hidden plague having been discovered.


    Please pass my thanks on to the Hero for me. And, lastly, by the king''s crown, please stop getting into trouble. By all accounts, The Trader is not someone you can go against. Sincerely, King Zephron''


    Christian was glad that everything was all right. But he was also slightly confused. If the letter had been sent to Port Oracle, then how had it ended up here? Port Oracle...


    "Ah, of course!" He realized. There was only one person in Port Oracle who could probably pinpoint their location: Chelsea''s older brother, Oracle. That would also explain the little ''You''re Welcome'' pasted onto the letter.


    But...for this to arrive only now...It appeared things were going to happen which required this very message. Christian sighed as he burned the letter. With this, his father will know that he had read it.


    Lastly, he turned towards the ten pages his mother had sent him. It was as he surmised: gossip. A certain noble was discovered to have secretly enslaved a royal elf and caused her subsequent demise, and thus had his title removed, and was executed. The rest was mere rumors and hearsay.


    ''My lovely chef, Cherry, has seemed a bit despondent of late. Though the food is still good, she has been utterly distracted thinking of someone. I hope you can bring that boy Ponzu back safe and sound, otherwise, I may be in need of a new chef.''


    Christian chuckled. His mother was definitely up to her old tricks again. Well, he didn''t mind it as long as Ponzu remained his chef. But, did his mother ever think about the fact that she would need a replacement regardless, should Ponzu and Cherry get together? ...Probably not.


    He burned his mother''s letter as well, and stood up. The remaining letters need to be distributed. Robin''s letter, he kept to himself to safeguard until the time Robin would awaken.


    ------


    The school windows had been shattered by bullets, causing many people to bleed. It was only by miracle that no one had died, yet. Shrieking and frightened children and adults hid behind whatever cover they could find.


    Due to the recent incident, a couple of police had remained to keep the roof site secure. They had immediately called for backup, and taken down those with machine guns who tried to approach the building. But, they were almost out of bullets.


    The smell of blood and gunpowder made the familiar halls seems strange and foreign. Robin had been lucky in that she had gone to visit the restroom, and wasn''t caught in the initial assault. But the commotion had utterly frightened her.


    "Hero! Where are you!?" She called.


    -----


    Robin twitched.


    "What is it?" Her brother asked.


    "I am being called." She replied simply. "It was a strange feeling as if she knew what was happening on the other end, yet also did not know.


    "Who''s calling you?" He asked.


    "Little Robin." She replied. "I can get there quickly, but that means I''ll need to leave you behind."


    "Then what are you waiting for?" Her brother grit his teeth. "Go!-Wait, can you shoot?"


    "I can."


    "Take the gun in the glovebox. I''ll be fine!" He ordered. "Also, here. I got you a phone. I''ll call you when I get there."


    Hero Robin took out the pistol, as well as several loaded magazines, which vanished into her storage bracer. "Be careful." She said, before vanishing from the car.


    Her brother frowned, concentrating on


    speeding towards the school.


    ------------


    Robin appeared above a nearby water tower, surveying the area around the school. several individuals were spraying cover fire at the building while their companions closed in.


    Robin''s eyes narrowed. This was not the tactics of an ordinary terrorist group, but of a specialist operative, such as an FBI or SWAT team.


    She disappeared from the water tower. Four gunshots, that was all it took to destroy the cover fire of the intruding party.


    "We''re under attack!" A member yelled in Japanese as he turned about to face the new enemy. Only, he could not see anyone there. The wailing of police sirens could be heard approaching.


    It didn''t take long for a decision to be made.


    "Retreat!" The leader called out, and the terrorists swiftly ran away, but not before Robin downed one more.


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 191 She Has Mail

    Robin stored her gun away in her storage bracer and entered the school building, heading for a certain location.


    Little Robin had shut herself up in an empty metal locker that she knew couldn''t be opened except from the inside. Her eyes were clenched tightly closed as she could hear someone walking down the hallway. The footsteps stopped in front of her locker. Frightened, she held her breath.


    "It''s all over, little Robin. You can come out now." A familiar voice spoke.


    "Hiiro!" Little Robin sobbed in relief. She slammed the locker open and hugged Robin about the waist. Robin patted her head absentmindedly.


    ''Could this be considered comforting myself'' She mused absentmindedly.


    "You''re brother is on his way, little Robin. Now, shall we go help out?" Hero Robin asked.


    "...They were after me, right? Then why did they go after the school?" Little Robin asked. She didn''t care anymore about her fake friends, but that didn''t mean she wanted them to die.


    Robin paused, troubled. "Little Robin, what makes you think they were after you?" She patted Little Robin''s head. "That was an invitation."


    "An invitation?" Little Robin asked.


    "Mmn. Someone troublesome has got his eyes on us now." Hero Robin replied. If she weren''t mistaken, this sort of calling card could only be the work of that person.


    "How troublesome." Robin sighed. Then she looked down at the broken glass on the floor. Somehow, she felt like she could do something about it. She waved her hand, and the shattered glass flew back together, becoming a whole unbroken window once again.


    "Huh..." Robin blinked, and suddenly all the shattered glass in the school had returned into whole windows. But, the students and teachers were still injured.


    Suddenly, a wave of light swept through the building, removing bullets from gunshot wounds, and healing everyone back to normal.


    "Whoah! Did you do that?" Little Robin asked.


    "I''m not sure." Hero Robin replied, dubiously. Had it been her?


    ------


    "How is he?" Christian asked as he came into the room. Chelsea and Jasmine were there, as well as Keith. Chelsea was using her water magic to prevent atrophy.


    "The same as He''s been for over three whole days now." Jasmine sighed. "At least I got some progress on a cure. In the future, this won''t happen again."


    "Hmm." Christian shrugged. Hethen passed out the letters. "This is for you, Jasmine. And Keith, this one here is for you. Guardian Oracle forwarded them here."


    "Hmmm? I wonder what it''s about?" Jasmine opened hers. After reading a few lines, Jasmine''s face screwed up in frustration.


    "That meddlesome mother of yours!" She exclaimed, almost burning her letter without reading the rest of it. But, she stopped at the last moment, in case there really was something important hidden later on. Once she had read through it once, she immediately burned it.


    "What was that about?" Chelsea asked.


    "She''s trying to match me up with that stuck up prig of an idiot, Rudolph!" Jasmine fumed.


    "Well, aren''t you glad that your true partner isn''t him, then?" Chelsea chuckled.


    "Hmmph! It''s insulting to even name him in the same sentence as me. I''m saving some of this klargun''s brew. Maybe it can help keep Auntie Em from sticking her nose where it don''t belong!" Jasmine snorted.


    "Ho? Hey, Keith, what''s you''re letter about?" Christian teased. "Is my mother setting you up with a perfect match as well?"


    "Even worse." Keith sighed. "She''s already matched twenty of my subordinates while I was gone. They''ll be looking for a pay raise for their new family once we''ve returned, and a lot of them will be looking to retire from the more dangerous operations."


    "On second thought, perhaps you should feed her a quarter of that bottle, Jasmine." Christian said seriously. "I''m not sure letting her run around unattended is worth the scolding we''ll get from Ol'' Skinflint."


    "The scolding is nothing." Keith shook his head. "She''s making me lose my work force. This is a direct assault on the operability of my men''s organization. If she keeps going, they''ll all be asking for paternity leave at the same time."


    "Upon reconsideration, once you''re done coming up with the antidote, maybe you should look into making more of that Klargun''s brew." Christian added. "I''m not sure if half a bottle will be enough."


    "Well, first things first, I''ll need to make the antidote." Jasmine rolled her eyes.


    Christian paused. "Say, I have one last letter here for Robin....You don''t think that she..." Everyone in the room laughed, but then paused.


    "No, if it''s Auntie Em, then it''s definitely possible! Her hobby is forming couples 24/7." Jasmine rubbed her forehead, suddenly feeling a headache forming.


    "But, the question is, who did she choose for Robin?"Keith asked, glancing at Christian.


    ....Now everyone in the room was curious about what was in Robin''s letter. Christian felt as if the letter was burning a hole in his magic bag.


    --------


    Robin dialed her brother''s phone number. It had been the same one for ten years. She wanted to let him know Little Robin was safe.


    "Hello?" He answered.


    "I hope you''re not driving one-handed." Robin said.


    "Nope. I''m wearing ear pods right now. How''d you get my number?" He asked.


    "Little Robin is safe now. You can stop speeding." Hero Robin ignored his question and got to the point.


    "...Actually....that isn''t possible right now." came the reply.


    "Why not?"


    "The accelerator is stuck. I can''t slow down." He replied in an even tone.


    "Wait a moment, I''ll be right there." Hero Robin said.


    "Don''t-"Robin hung up the phone, ignoring her brother''s reason to refuse.


    "Hide yourself, again, Little Robin. Stay safe. I need to go save your brother, okay?" She patted Little Robin''s head. Before she disappeared again.


    "What''s the problem?" Robin said, as she popped up in the driver''s seat.


    "Dash it all, Hiiro! I told you not to come!" Her Brother snapped.


    "Well I couldn''t hear you." Robin replied, looking under the driver''s seat. Her Brother''s foot wasn''t even on the pedal, and it wasn''t even depressed.


    She whistled. "An internal job, huh. That''s some calling card!"


    "What!? What do you mean?" Her brother asked.


    "Keep steering. I''ll tell you later. She''s a nasty old villain." Robin replied as she observed the engine.


    "It''s no good. Hey, turn right, up here." Robin said.


    "Are you kidding!? That way leads towards a-"


    "I know what I''m doing. It''s this way, or you die!" Robin interrupted him.


    "..." He shut up, and entered the off ramp.


    "Now what?" He asked.


    "Now, we keep going." Robin said.


    ---------


    Gerard and Ponzu distributed the dinner to everyone. Until the crisis was over, they ate from the premade food stored in Ponzu''s food storage. After Jasmine finished eating, she immediately returned to the room she had turned into her laboratory, intent upon finishing a cure.


    Soon enough, the others had returned to their own business, leaving Chelsea and Liam in the room alone, but for a napping Skye.


    "So..." Liam began. "How''d you remove the poison from Robin, at that time?" He finally asked.


    Chelsea''s head jerked, in surprise. "What?" She asked.


    "I''ve considered all the usual medical methods outside of an antidote potion for extracting poison: acupuncture, blood-letting, counter poisoning, inducing vomit...but there was no stench of blood or bile, so that isn''t it. So, how did you get the poison out?" He asked.


    Chelsea''s mouth squirmed as she said. "I used my water magic."


    "But how? Did you make Robin sweat out the poison?" Liam pursued. Chelsea''s face turned an interesting shade of red, blue, and white. Actually, with his exceptional sense of hearing, he could definitely hear Chelsea through the door. After that, it wasn''t hard to figure out, based on the conversation. But he found he liked seeing Chelsea''s reactions when she encounters things she''s squeamish about.


    "Listen, you...there are some things which it''s best not to speak about. It can create a lot of unnecessary trouble if someone overheard pieces of the conversation and drew some rather outlandish assumptions." Chelsea coughed.


    "Liam." He said.


    "What?" Chelsea asked, confused.


    "You gave me a name, right? Call me Liam." He didn''t budge.


    "Okay, fine, Liam..." Chelsea acknowledged, turning away, with a small shudder. "But please don''t ask me again. It makes me feel uncomfortable just thinking about it."


    Liam nodded. Unbeknownst to him, a smile had crept up the corners of his mouth.


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 192 She Is Running Out Of Time

    Robin slashed the ceiling open, and unbuckled her brother from his seat. Ahead of them, a sharp turn at a cliff side had just come into view. The ocean could be seen past the cliff.


    "Hiiro, what are you doing?" Her Brother yelled over the wind barrage.


    "Hold your breath!" Robin called back. Before placing him in her storage bracer, and jumping out of the car, in the direction of the turn. Right before she landed, she returned to observation mode for a split-second. This removed all the momentum she had built up in the car. Then she immediately returned, landing lightly on the ground, as she pulled out her brother.


    "What on earth was that!?" He yelled at her.


    Robin pointed at the still airborne car shooting over the edge, down the cliff, and hitting the water.


    "Saving your ass." She replied. "But we need to leave soon...they''ll be here in a minute."


    She pondered as she glanced at her brother, who was still quite shocked by what had happened.


    "Say, do you mind getting back in my storage for a moment?" She asked.


    "Storage!? That was your storage? That was a freaking rabbit hole from Alice in Wonderland, that''s what it was, and now you want me to go back in there?" He asked.


    "Yes. I''ll take you to see Little Robin." She replied.


    "What are we waiting for? Let''s go!" Her brother thumped Robin on the back as he urged her to hurry up. And with that, the both of them disappeared from that location.


    As soon as Robin arrived on the roof, she brought her brother out again.


    "That space....you must never show it to anyone." He said, looking clearly nauseous.


    "Noted." Robin replied. "Now shall we go find Little Robin?"


    They walked down the hallway to the lockers where she had been hiding.


    "Little Robin, I''m back. Are you in there?" Hero Robin asked, knocking on the locker Robin had come out of earlier.


    There was no reply.


    "Little Robin?" She tried pulling the door open. But, she heard a familiar clicking sound, and jumped out of the way, knocking Her brother to the ground.


    BAM!!! The gun trap in the locker fired, spraying buckshot into the lockers opposite it. If Robin had not dropped to the ground, she would have been peppered full of holes.


    "Heheheheheheheheheh.." A slow cackling laughter echoed through the hallways.


    "Oh so smart you are....but oh how foolish. If you had only left Robin''s brother to die, you wouldn''t have fallen into my trap."


    -------


    Skye flicked his ears and woke up from his nap, looking around. He had felt that presence again. Only, it was almost like it was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Like the buzzing of an annoying fly, he could sense its presense in the room, but couldn''t see it.


    He felt troubled.


    -------------


    "Who are you!?" Her brother shouted. "Where''s Little Robin!?"


    A shadow briefly appeared at the end of the hallway, roughly shaped like a man, flitting here and there down the different hallways about them.


    "No worries. Soon enough, I will be the one in control. Ah, just thinking of all that I will be able to do, and you will only be able to watch it all happen. Kekeheheheh."


    The voice suddenly came from behind Robin. "And then, maybe we will see who exactly is the person behind that mask of yours, huhuhu...."


    Robin spun, unsheathing her sword and cutting apart a swirling dark mist that instantly vanished.


    "Ah. ah. ah! It isn''t time yet for our grand fight. No need to rush into a world of suffering. But, if you wish to find me, you must be quick about it. After all, you haven''t much time left...kukuku, no. You haven''t much time left at all." The voice echoed about the two of them.


    "Hiiro, did you recognize that voice?" Her brother asked.


    Robin narrowed her eyes. She felt like she had heard it once....no more than once. Its manner of speech was similar to Mr Dawkins, but the voice seemed more similar to...


    here eyes widened.


    "The Trader!"


    "What!?" Her brother reacted. "That Trader, really!!?"


    "Yes. but, what did he mean be running out of time?" Robin felt puzzled.


    "Hiiro...What does this Trader person do?" Her brother asked her, concerned.


    Robin suddenly realized. He has Little Robin. Maybe.....he''s trying to possess me?


    "He wants to usurp little Robin." Hero Robin replied.


    "What!? How are we gonna get her back?" Her brother asked.


    Robin suddenly felt as if the hallway was spinning, and a huge weight had fallen upon her, as she fell to the ground.


    "Hiiro! What''s wrong? Did he do something to you?" Her brother asked, beginning to sound far away.


    "No....I''m...waking up..." She replied.


    Before her vision went fully dark, she clearly heard the cackle of the Trader. "Hurry up little Hero. You''re running out of time...."


    ----------


    Robin''s eyes flicked open as she grabbed Chelsea''s hand and sat up.


    "What time is it?" Robin asked.


    "Hold on there! You''ve slept for a week, so you''ll be a bit dizzy." Chelsea warned. "Lie down and let me finish up the treatment I did to prevent the muscles from the weakness of atrophy."


    Robin looked at her, slightly dazed. Had it all merely been just a dream? Then why did she feel like there wasn''t much time left? She forced herself to remain calm, despite her rapid heartbeat.


    "Chelsea, when this is over, please have Jasmine come see me." She said, feeling worried.


    Skye''s ears suddenly stood up, and swivelled about, as if listening for something. The annoying fly had gone silent. That meant, either it had left, or had quieted down.


    Happy that Robin was okay, Skye nudged Robin''s hand.


    ''It''s good that you''re awake.'' He mewed.


    When Chelsea brought Jasmine into the room, she noticed Robin was looking worried about something.


    "Robin? What is the matter?" Jasmine asked.


    "Jasmine, I''m going to ask you something a bit odd, but please bear with me." Robin said.


    "All right, let''s hear it." Jasmine said. Though she wasn''t sure why, she trusted Robin wouldn''t ask her to do anything foolhardy.


    "I want you to cast High Heal on me." Robin said.


    "Of...course...." Jasmine wasn''t sure why Robin asked that, but she was happy to oblige. Light mana washed over Robin, soothing the hairs raised along the back of her neck.


    There was no screaming, or pain. Robin felt completely fine. Then why...Robin''s frown deepened.


    "Robin..? Are you all right?" Jasmine asked her slowly, feeling Robin''s behavior was odd.


    Looking up at Jasmine, Robin pondered what to say, her face expressing a mixture of bewilderment, uncertainty, fear, and dread.


    "I''m not entirely sure I am." She replied, frankly.


    "Can you talk about it?" Jasmine asked.


    "...Even if I can''t, the repercussions of keeping this a secret cannot be ignored." Robin came to a decision.


    "Call in the others, too. They have a right to hear about it."


    ----------------


    "So, what you''re saying is that you met this Trader person in your dreamscape?" Christian asked. "Are you sure it wasn''t just a dream?"


    Robin recalled what her brother had once asked her. ''What are you afraid of? What are you running from?''


    "...Let me ask you, Christian, when you fall asleep every night, do you have the same dream every time?" Robin asked.


    "No? Isn''t that impossible?" Christian asked.


    "It''s possible." Robin asserted. "Ever since five years ago, I''ve had the exact same dream night after night. Sometimes the middle happenings were slightly different, but it was always with a pronounced beginning and a definite end. I know that place like the back of my hand. But this time, this time the ending was much much different. And that''s never happened before."


    "What did you see?" Chelsea asked.


    "I was wearing my mask, standing next to my younger self. Both my younger self and my brother were in horrible danger, so I saved them, but I couldn''t take my mask off. Then the Trader came and kidnapped me, the younger me. He said that soon he would be in control, that...soon I would only be able to spectate. And that there wasn''t much time left."


    "And that''s why you wanted me to cast a high heal on you?" Jasmine asked.


    "That is...one of the more prevalent reasons." Robin admitted. "Honestly, I''d like to think that this was all just a bad dream, but..." She sighed.


    "In that case, I think I have something here that can help you out." Christian said.


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 193 She Snapped

    Everyone looked at Christian in disbelief.


    "You?" Jasmine asked.


    "Yes me. I''ve got a letter here from old Albus who managed to dig something up out of those old records in the archives. It came with the other letters." Christian defended.


    "Oh, if it''s from old Albus, then it might actually help." Jasmine''s eyes lit up. "Read it, please?"


    Christian gave Jasmine a princely stink eye before begrudgingly obliging.


    "The Hero sleeps once to save the young,


    and sleeps again to save the mountain.


    Where the Dipper meets the Spine,


    The Hero''s foe you shall find


    And the past emerging truth fountain.


    From foe''s mouth, a companion shall leap


    To harbor from darkness the hero''s sleep.


    And maiden''s heart, though hidden, true,


    Shall be cleared of all errs of view,


    Though heavy trials, love be wrung.


    In leaving, one more lesson learned,


    Companion gained, and worldview spurned,


    Bidding goodbye through fire and war,


    Erasing emnities, two score


    Before the hero''s grand return."


    Christian, finished, sighed. "The problem is, what kind of dipper and spine are they talking about?"


    "Obviously, it is a kind of location." Robin replied. But then an idea came to her. "...Hey...can I take a look at that map you have?"


    "Huh? Um, sure, but there''s no city called dipper or spine, I already checked." Christian warned.


    "It isn''t a city we are looking for." Robin replied, opening the map on a nearby table.


    "Then what are we looking for?" Christian asked.


    "Possibly...a landmark?" Jasmine asked.


    "Mmmn....what kind of landmark looks like a spine?" Robin asked.


    "I know, I know!" Gerard raised his hand. "A mountain range!"


    "Then the dipper should be some sort of large lake or huge pit." Robin said, looking at the map. There were several mountain ranges on the map. Incidentally, the mountain they were on was also on the tail end of a mountain range.


    At that moment, Ayva walked in with a tray of food.


    "Oh, thank goodness, ye''r awake!" She exclaimed, in relief. "Ah almost couldnae believe mah ears." Then she noticed Robin poring over a map.


    "What''re ye looking for, deary?" She asked, curious.


    "A round lake that touches on a mountain range." Robin replied.


    "Now where have Ah heard that ''afore?" Ayva murmured, placing down the tray. Then she snapped her fingers.


    "Aren''t you talkin'' about Peg Lake, down by Peg Lake City?"


    "Peg Lake?" Robin asked.


    "Aye, tha lake is sa round, and tha walls so smooth that et looks like some giant as with a peg leg stepped there. It''s nearby, bordering between tha elves and tha dragon lands. But some think it looks more like a ladle, as tha lake is fed by a wide stream." Ayva happily spilled everything she knew.


    "Are ya going ta go there fer sight-seeing?" She asked.


    "Of a sorts." Robin said, not wanting to worry her. "I think there might be an acquaintance of mine near there." Since it was near the elves territory, where Dirk was, then technically, she wasn''t lying.


    "Is there anything special to see in Peg Leg City?" She asked.


    "Well funny ye should mention that!" Ayva nodded. "Et''s practically the trade center between us dwarves, elves, and dragons. But there''s a substantial amount of merchants from other races as can be found there as well. Ye should drop by tha merchant''s guild ta see if''n ye kin find any rare ingredients."


    Robin''s eyes narrowed. Of course. Where would you look to find a trader? If following the phrase ''To hide a tree in a forest'' Obviously, the largest amount of traders would be in a merchant''s guild.


    She glanced over to Christian, who had also noticed. He nodded lightly. Chelsea answered in Robin''s stead.


    "Oh ho~ Sounds like it''s gonna be a lot of fun! We''ll be sure to bring back lots of goodies, Queen Ayva." Chelsea smiled.


    Robin frowned. "I want to go, but Aunt, how far away is it? I still need to go visit the other guardians, so I''m worried we won''t have the time to go."


    "Not an issue." Quinn piped up from the corner of the room. "I happen to have a clone over there." He was looking particularly pleased with himself.


    Robin shrugged. "Okay, so looks like we''re going-" Suddenly, a very pronounced growling sounded out.


    "-In a bit." Robin replied, sheepishly. In her initial panic, she had completely forgotten the fact that she had been sleeping for over a week, without eating anything. "But first, I need to eat something. I''m starving!"


    The whole group laughed as Robin began taking food out of her storage bracer.


    ------------


    "But why are you cutting off connections with your duplicates? Aren''t you afraid one of us will become strong enough to overtake you?" The masked woman asked through the magic eye.


    "We''re all me anyways, so it doesn''t matter. This is merely a precaution. I feel the presence of a rather powerful spirit master nearby. He''s already purged Ekkinshire Capitol and Ragnok City. It''s best not to call upon their aid unless necessary, at least until the danger period is past." A young man wearing a golden mask replied.


    "Well, if you need our help, you know what to do." The woman replied.


    "I know." He replied, ending the conversation.


    In an unknown city, the masked lady grit her teeth.


    "You think we don''t know that you''re trying to take over that spirit master? You think we don''t know that you''re trying to regain your power!? We''ll just see which of us becomes in charge!" With that, the lady quickly got busy contacting others through her magic eye.


    -------


    The young man had just put away his golden mask when his butler knocked on the door.


    "What is it?" He asked. Of all the people he had been able to take over, only this butler had been un-possessable. It was as if there were an impenetrable shield around his soul.


    Thus, despite all his machinations, he had to exercise caution about the old butler.


    "Young Master, I''ve received word that a new shipment has arrived from Ragnok City. The special ores you were looking for might be among them."


    "All right, prepare the carriage, then! I''ll go and have a look." The young man replied, thoughtfully. Why was that little girl from the other world in the Hero''s dream? And why did that spirit remnant he had absorbed in there seem so familiar?


    ----------


    "There''s one thing I don''t understand about all of this..." Christian frowned, as he once more read through the prophecy, and pointed at the passage.


    "This hidden maiden''s heart part, what does it have anything to do with the hero?" He asked. Robin suddenly descended into a coughing fit as she accidentally almost sent food into her lungs.


    Chelsea smiled secretly. "Who knows?"


    Jasmine rolled her eyes at Christian. "Dummy! What was written in the section before?" she teased.


    "So, the new companion will be a girl?" Christian narrowed his eyes. "And this girl...will suddenly see things clearly and through trials discover her one true love?"


    Were they going to meet Robin''s one true love in the future? The thought pained him deeply.


    "You said it, not me." Jasmine snorted.


    "My brother once said ''don''t try to interpret prophecies. They have their own method of coming about that does not depend upon the understanding of the uninformed.''" Chelsea warned. This was the only way she could keep herself from saying ''That''s incorrect''.


    Robin, finally recovering, exclaimed. "You guys! Stop talking about this! And Christian, you outta know better. I told you before. I''ve made up my mind. And no pretty girl''s face is gonna change it!"


    "But, Robin," Christian counter-argued. "What if it''s the maiden who falls in love with you? What then?"


    Robin suddenly felt really annoyed. "What does that have to do with me, huh!? What love!?" She snapped. "Can one-sided love ever amount to anything? I''ll destroy it, if I have to!"


    With that, she hopped out of bed, and made her way out of the room. Everyone was shocked at Robin''s sudden outburst. Christian followed Robin out.


    "Robin..." He called softly. Robin paused, waiting for his question.


    "Why?" He asked.


    Robin''s resulting painful smile seemed to sear itself into Christian''s brain.


    "There''s no need to have another idiot walking around like me." She said, before continuing down the hallway.


    All was silent but for the sound of her footsteps.


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 194 She Snapped -Part 2

    Christian returned to the room, crest-fallen, and looking pale as a ghost.


    "Oh deary dear! Perhaps Robin just needs a bit of time alone, eh? Don''t take it to heart, lad." Ayva sighed as she brought away her tray.


    "So, what happened?" Chelsea asked.


    "I should have realized it. I should have seen it coming. In the end, I can only blame myself." He sighed. "He already told me before that he likes someone."


    "What!? Who!!?" Jasmine asked, alert.


    Christian looked at Jasmine pointedly. "He said the person he likes is in love with someone else. So it''s a one-sided thing."


    "Chelsea, is it?" Jasmine asked.


    "What Christian said was accurate, but if so, then that''s really strange." Chelsea replied. She didn''t recall seeing any rivals in Oracle''s visions. Had Robin lied to throw him off?


    "He doesn''t like talking about it, but he told me that he''d rather be alone than marry the wrong person." Christian said. He then added. "But...what if that new companion is the right person for him to marry?"


    "That idiot!" Jasmine growled, rushing out the door after Robin.


    Chelsea looked at Christian with an odd expression playing at the corners of her mouth. "You two...are quite the pair. Both of you are such airheads." She sighed.


    Liam nodded in agreement.


    -----------


    "Robin!" Jasmine finally found Robin moping about in Ayva''s garden.


    "Hey, what''s this I hear about a one-sided love?" Jasmine asked. "Do you really like someone back in your world?"


    "The only person back there that I cherish is my older brother." Robin replied blandly.


    "What!? Is it a case of the rumored sibling lovers?" Jasmine muttered to herself, shocked.


    At that, Robin, who had been hiding her head in her arms, popped up immediately. "Not in a million years! Just where did you even get that unhealthy idea!?" Robin scolded.


    "That''s because Christian-" Jasmine began.


    "Christian? Just what crazed assumptions did he tell you?" Robin snorted.


    "He said that you are in a one-sided love with someone." Jasmine replied.


    "I am." Robin replied, feeling her heart clench.


    "He says the person that you like loves someone else." Jasmine continued.


    "Ain''t that the truth of it." Robin sighed.


    "He also said that..." Jasmine paused. "That you said you''d rather stay single than marry the wrong person."


    "And? What''s wrong with that?" Robin asked.


    "Huh?" Jasmine asked.


    Jasmine sunk into her own thoughts, hearing Robin''s opinion. It seemed to resonate with her, and open her up to an option that had been obscured by Auntie Em''s badgering.


    "Yeah! Why do I have to marry?" Jasmine agreed. "If I can''t find anyone good enough for me, then I can choose to abstain entirely!"


    "You say that, but aren''t you supposed to find your other half on our journey?" Robin wryly pointed out.


    "Wait, that''s not what I wanted to-" Jasmine was going to continue, but was interrupted.


    "Robiiiin!" A blur barreled into an unprepared hero.


    "Ooof! Gerard? Where have you been?" Robin asked, holding Gerard away from her body. Come to think of it, Gerard hadn''t been present at the meeting, earlier.


    "I went to go check on Elise, because she didn''t show up for a long time!" Gerard told her.


    "Eh? is she all right?" Robin asked.


    "She''s fine. Say, when did you wake up? Was it just after I left? Weren''t you supposed to wake up tomorrow? Have you eaten yet?" Gerard let loose his gattling question barrage.


    "''I don''t know'' to all the others. And yes, to that last question." Robin answered. "And, no, I''m not going to make food right now."


    "Che!" Gerard clicked his tongue. Jasmine held her tongue, but looked pointedly at Robin. She would get an answer later on about who Robin had a crush on.


    "So, what happened to fairy Elise?" Robin asked.


    "Ah, that''s right! Elise-"


    "How about I answer that question, hmm?" Gerard was interrupted by a beautiful green fairy, who looked like she could be Elise''s older sister.


    "Oh? Who might you be?" Jasmine asked.


    "Hello Elise." Robin greeted with a smile. "I''m glad to see you''re all right."


    "What?" Jasmine''s brain blanked.


    "Boooh! You ruined the surprise!" Elise pouted. "Aren''t I more beautiful now?" She asked, fluttering her wings.


    "Yes. Much more beautiful. But thank goodness, the inside is still Elise." Robin joked.


    "Hey, what''s that supposed to mean!?" Elise pouted at Robin.


    "A cool, collected beauty like yourself wouldn''t begrudge me for not believing my eyes, would you?" Robin said, tickling Elise''s fancy.


    "That''s right. A cool, collected beauty like myself is far too mature to be annoyed at you for not believing your eyes. I have changed so much that even that flying marshmallow won''t be able to tell it''s me." Elise preened, as she fluttered off to find Skye.


    "See you later, then!" Gerard waved goodbye, and followed after Elise to see how the others reacted to her new appearance.


    Jasmine then opened her mouth, but was cut down by Robin''s pre-emptive words.


    "I know what you want to find out. But, please, don''t ask. I''ll be leaving this world anyways. There''s no need for them to consider me as anything more than a good friend." Robin sighed.


    "But, Robin...can''t you trust me? I''ve kept your secret this whole time. Can''t you confide in me?" Jasmine asked.


    "...Right now, I can''t even determine if I''ll still be me after a time has passed." Robin said. "I am already spinning all the cogs in my brain just trying to survive. please understand, Jasmine, now is not the time for girl talk."


    "If not now, then when?" Jasmine huffed.


    "If I get possessed, then it doesn''t matter anymore what I think. What I''ll do will be horrifying. And I will most likely be targeting you first." Robin warned. "You need to think up ways to make sure I can''t harm anyone, in the case where I can''t make it."


    "You know what I think, Robin?" Jasmine said in exasperation. "I think the maiden''s heart refers to you! I think deep down, you''re still denying that you have feelings for that person. And I think the only person holding you back is you."


    "Not everyone is going to like the hero, Jasmine." Robin growled. "Deal with it."


    "Have you even told him?..." Jasmine asked, then scoffed. "Have you even told him?...You haven''t told him, have you?"


    "Jasmine-" Robin warned.


    "I''m just trying to open your eyes a bit. Because, if it''s someone I know, then I can help you out-"


    "JASMINE!...Enough!" Robin raised her voice. Jasmine fell into a stunned silence. Robin, realizing she had lost her temper, sighed.


    "Please...I''m sorry, I shouldn''t have yelled. I don''t need a matchmaker, and I don''t need your help in this matter. What I need right now is a teammate who can help me solve my more pressing issues, okay?"


    Jasmine shook her head. "No, I''m sorry. I shouldn''t have been so pushy. You''re right. This talk can wait until later."


    "If an opportune time can''t be found," Robin offered, "You can ask me before I leave."


    "Promise?" Jasmine asked, holding out her hand.


    "Promise." Robin grasped Jasmine''s hand and shook it.


    "All right! Time to go defeat that Trader guy once and for all!" Jasmine changed subjects, tactfully.


    Robin laughed. "Once and for all!" She agreed.


    At the edge of the garden, Ayva tactfully retreated back down the hallway. It seemed like the Aunt Ayva chat wasn''t necessary anymore.


    ------------


    Elise was chasing Skye around the room, all signs of the cool and collected fairy Primadonna dissipated into air by Skye''s playful prods.


    "Jasmine''s been gone an awfully long time...you don''t think-." Christian began,but was interrupted by the door slamming open. Robin and Jasmine entered the scene.


    "Oh? You don''t think what, Christian?" Robin aimed her devilishly angelic smile of danger at him. "You don''t think that I wouldn''t know that you were talking about me behind my back?"


    Christian bearing the full brunt of Robin''s smile, found himself speechless.

 195 She Prepares For a Figh

    Finally, Christian uttered the first thing he could think of. "Would you prefer that I said it to your face?" He asked, remembering the day he met Robin.


    Robin slowly walked up to Christian and heavily patted him on the shoulder. Then she took off her mask.


    "Yes." She answered seriously. This, in turn, only managed to baffle Christian even more, as he had an utterly lost look on his face that wouldn''t lose to Martin Freeman. As things were, Robin was finding it hard to keep from laughing as she watched Christian trying to process her answer.


    "And don''t any of you forget it." She announced. "If you''re saying something about me, say it to my face. If it''s not important, then save it for later, ''cuz we''re on a time crunch here. We don''t have time to waste on side quests and chatter."


    With that opening phrase, everyone stood a little straighter, and felt a little bit more pressure was being placed on them.


    Robin addressed her companions.


    "As you have probably realized, my current situation is rather....not normal, at least by my standards. Thus, I am only leaving with key people whom I believe can help me out. Knights, Ponzu, the carriage driver, and Gerard: please stay here. I cannot guarantee your well being on this trip. And I cannot allow the trader to have the opportunity to prey upon you."


    "Chelsea, I trust your brother''s divination magic can keep you safe?" She turned to Chelsea.


    "It can. But it can only cover five feet in all directions. I''ve never tested the duration before." Chelsea replied.


    "Good." She turned towards the remaining four.


    "Keith?" She asked.


    "I go wherever Christian goes." He said.


    Christian snorted. "Well I go wherever Robin goes!"


    Jasmine tilted her head imperially. "I''m already going. You can''t change my mind." She dared Robin.


    "Liam?" She asked.


    "Do you perhaps have need of a dragon in your little troop?" He asked, stepping up next to Chelsea.


    Robin turned her eyes back to Christian.


    "You should know that there is a chance that you will die." She said gravely.


    "What? Me?" Christian was about to snort, but he looked at the team going along. There was a dragon, a semi-diviner, a magi, an expert swordsman, and the king of the slimes.


    "...Right. It seems I AM the weakest link here, aren''t I?" He smiled. "That''s why you should still take me along."


    Robin''s heart sank, as she could see what he was about to say.


    "In order to shake you up, in order to make you lose your mettle, he''s going to try and use me. So, take me along. I''ll be the bait." He said calmly. "I told you to rely on us more, right?"


    Robin''s heart faltered for a moment. There was no need for Christian to walk straight into the jaws of death. He was a prince, for goodness sake!


    "I said I would rely on you. I never said that I would allow you to go somewhere where you will most definitely be killed." Robin said sternly. "What makes you think I''ll allow it?"


    "You won''t. I trust you." He replied peacefully.


    "...As you wish." was all Robin could say. She looked around. Now that the players were established, a course of action needed to be decided upon.


    She closed her eyes, and let out a slow breath. With that breath, flowed out all distractions and inner noise as her mind went into overdrive, considering all their options. Five seconds later, she snapped her eyes open.


    "All right. Here''s the plan." She told them.


    "Wait, we have a plan?" Keith muttered.


    "Focus, here!" Robin scolded.


    ----------


    While the old butler was taking care of an errand he had been sent away on, the young man walked down the secret passageway. He turned aside to a door, the entrance of the dark merchants guild that was his domain. As usual, he was here to inspect his ''new shipment''.


    Inside, everything was orderly and welcoming. There was even a professional reception crew. But everyone wore masks over their faces. The golden-masked youth silently headed towards a back room.


    He opened the door. Hundreds of young children who were affirmed to have magic were lying in the room, sleeping soundly. He smiled, pleased.


    Then something made him pause. He turned his head away from the room, hesitating. Then with a somewhat reluctant expression, he closed the door, and left the dark merchant''s guild.


    ---------


    "We''re here. Just like I said, see?" Quinn said, as everyone stared at the perfect round lake that was in front of them.


    "This seems so surreal, just looking at it." Robin chuckled.


    "There goes that buzzing feeling again. It sounds like it''s coming closer!" Skye flicked his ear in annoyance.


    "Buzzing?" Robin asked.


    "Mmmn!" Skye nodded. "There was this annoying presence that felt like how a fly buzzes around food. I''ve felt it twice before."


    "When?" Robin asked.


    "When you were asleep earlier, but I couldn''t sense it as clearly as I can now." Skye said.


    "Presence, huh." Robin frowned. Could it be that the buzzing presence Skye could sense be the Trader?


    "It''s getting nearer, you say?" Robin asked.


    "Yup! Heading straight here." Skye nodded.


    "Headsup!" She told the others. "Someone, most likely the trader, is headed this way. Everyone stick around Chelsea. If anything goes wrong, I''m entrusting Quinn to get you all to safety."


    Jasmine murmured something to the crowd around Chelsea, while Robin glanced down at Skye.


    "How long until you think it''ll arrive?" She asked.


    "Not long. You''ll probably be able to hear it too in about five minutes." Skye licked a paw.


    "Do you think you can help us fight him off?" Robin asked.


    "I''m not sure." Skye tilted its head. "I mean, I am,a spirit beast, so technically, this should be my area of expertise, but...it depends."


    "Depends on what?" Robin asked.


    "It depends on how strong his spirit is, and who among us has a stronger will." Skye replied. "Spirit Masters Don''t rank the same as ordinary magicians because they work on strengthening and growing the soul. But, this trader fellow may have cheated in that regard."


    "Cheated?" Robin frowned.


    "It''s easy enough to do, although it''s considered a forbidden technique." Skye explained. "You just need to absorb the soul strength of others. But, usually, you can''t obtain much, even if you try. A soul is naturally resilient to outside influences like that, so it''d take a long time to get a worthwhile amount."


    "Have you done this?" Robin asked.


    Skye sniffed disdainfully. "I didn''t need to. I have never met a creature that could contend with my will. That is why I am alive, and the others are not. Growing through conflict is much faster, anyways."


    "Then why did you form a contract with me?" Robin asked.


    Skye blinked. "... Intuition. We flying cats can sense our masters. It''s something similar to the feeling that you humans call...-er- ''Love at first sight'' was it? One look and we just know it. You are my master, and no one else has that privilege."


    "Have you ever thought of becoming your own master?" Robin asked.


    "That''s not how it works." Skye''s tail thrashed impatiently. "It''s a beneficial relationship wherein we help each other accomplish what cannot be done individually."


    "Then, I hope you can go stand with Chelsea as well." Robin replied.


    "We''re stronger together, though?" Skye was confused.


    "We''re still together. I know that you can do everything just as well within fifty feet." Robin chuckled. Skye looked at her sourly. When had she measured his range? But, the flying cat obediently hopped off Robin''s shoulder, and glided back to land in front of Chelsea.


    "Happy?" Skye asked.


    "Yes. Very!" Robin smiled.


    "Well headsup, then. It''s almost here." Skye pointed out. "You should be able to see it soon."


    "We''ll soon have visuals. Chelsea, ready that barrier." Robin said. She placed her mask back on her face. Glancing up, she saw an approaching figure, seated on a horse.


    "Chelsea, get that barrier up!" Robin hurried.


    "It''s been up ever since you said visuals. Calm down, Robin. Haste makes waste, after all."


    Robin drew in a long breath, and slowly let it out. ''All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.'' she quoted to herself. This phrase had never failed to help her regain her inner calm.


    She drew out her sword, and planted it firmly in the ground in front of her. Her sword hummed, and seemed to glow for a moment before settling down. It was time.

 196 She Accepts Traders Challenge.

    Robin''s gaze was stern as she gazed upon the approaching figure on horseback. As he drew closer, Robin was able to make out from his features that it was a young man. Yet, since he wore a golden mask upon his face, it was not easy to discern much else.


    She smiled. Ironically, the two main figures present both were wearing masks.


    "...Robin?" Christian asked. He wanted to make sure everything was all right.


    Robin didn''t look behind her. Instead, she nodded her head minimally to let him know all was still fine. She felt her current calm and collected heart might waver if she looked back now. Instead, she focused her attention on the approaching youth.


    He had honey-blonde wavy hair, tanned skin, and a notable height of almost 2 meters. There was no doubt this youth was probably a handsome individual. Robin, however, was unfazed.


    From his stature and size, he was an athletic type, similar to how her brother was about six years ago. But she would not forget. She would never forget that within this man was the Trader.


    Robin waited until he approached to about thirty feet away before calling out.


    "That is close enough, thank you!" His horse came to a stop. He paused, scanning the group. From their placement, it appeared they had prepared in advance, with time to spare.


    "It appears you were expecting me." He noted, an odd glint flashing in his eyes. "How could you tell I was coming?"


    "Does it matter?" Robin replied, tilting her head with a playful smirk. "At the very least, we are confident that our information was correct. After all, here you are."


    "Indeed. Here I am." His horse walked a few steps further.


    "I wouldn''t suggest you bring your horse any further." Robin warned lightly, hinting that she was aware of the trick he was trying to pull. "Rabbits may be harmless, but their holes can still fell creatures many times their own size."


    "Oh? My apologies. I must have loosened the reins." He flashed a smile before he stopped his horse, and decisively dismounted. He examined Robin with an appraising look.


    "You are Robin of Ekkinshire, the Hero?"


    "I am indeed called that." Robin replied, examining his micro-expressions through half-lidded eyes. Appearances aside, there was something about his mannerisms that seemed almost jarringly familiar.


    "You are the Trader? Or are you merely another copy?...Ah, so you are the original. Good to know." The others looked at Robin in surprise. How could she ascertain it?


    "It seems you are a man of many talents." The Trader said slowly. Robin''s smirk widened into a mischievous grin.


    "You could say that." She agreed. It seemed that even the Trader couldn''t see through her disguise. Robin felt the situation somewhat laughable.


    Robin recalled for a moment that she had yet to give Christian his promised spar. But now was not the proper time for it. And so, she could only set the thought aside for later.


    "You wish to spar with me?" She asked.


    "Any proper youth would cherish such an opportunity to spar with the Hero himself!" The Trader asserted with a grin.


    "It seems even the improper ones are stumbling over themselves to spar with me." Robin noted, removing her sword from its planted spot on the ground. Her observation sent Chelsea and Jasmine into muffled chortles, as she had hit the nail on the head.


    Then Robin raised her head. "But, coincidentally, it seems that you and I are in agreement on this matter."


    She walked forward to a midpoint area, and waved her sword about. A wind blade shot forth, drawing a circle about her that was about 15 feet in diameter. Then, standing in the center, she pointed her sword at him.


    "Do you dare spar with me?" Her voice rang out. Even though her voice was rather low for a woman, as it was higher than a man''s, it made it hard to discern her exact age. Thus, those who encountered her, simply thought of her as a lad at first impressions.


    Yet this time, Robin had used air mana to change the frequency of her voice. So now her voice had a low timbre to it, like the rumble of thunder. This caused the Trader to pause a moment. However, it seemed his desire was enough to overcome any feelings of fear or prohibition.


    He unsheathed his sword.


    "I dare." He said, stepping into the ring.


    ----


    Back in Port Oracle, a lone figure sat in a darkened room, gazing at the images transmitted through the crystal ball.


    "So it has begun...." Oracle sighed. He then began to exert his power, reinforcing Chelsea''s shield through the connection between the two crystals.


    ---------


    "...Older Brother" Chelsea murmured in surprise as she felt her brother''s power begin to course through the shield.


    "Hmm? What was that?" Liam asked, looking at Chelsea.


    "My brother is watching this fight." Chelsea told Liam. "That means its significance is great, and the result could change the fate of the whole country, if not the whole world."


    "Your brother?" Liam asked.


    "Mmn. He gained human form first, and is far more powerful than I." Chelsea explained.


    "How envious.... I have no idea whether I even have a family or not." Liam replied with a sigh.


    "This fight will determine the fate of the entire world, and here you are sighing in envy over my family?" Chelsea chuckled. "You are an odd one aren''t you?"


    "What is the world, that I should care?" Liam asked. "The world doesn''t matter to me as much as friends and family. It is because we are friends, that I am watching Robin''s fight. If it were anyone else, then I would not care for it."


    "What if it were me up there?" Chelsea asked with a cheeky smile.


    "Then I would not be watching..." Liam said, after considering seriously.


    "Hey!" Chelsea reacted, feeling slighted. Did he really not consider her as even a friend?


    "...I would be standing in front of you as your sword and shield." Liam finished, with a lazy smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, satisfied after having teased her.


    "Robin can naturally defend against swords, but you are far too lacking in martial experience and hand-to-hand combat." He explained.


    "Oh, you!...Hmmph!" Chelsea turned her head, feeling miffed when she realized that he was teasing her.


    Oracle, seeing this, felt a bit dumbfounded. ''I''m here to watch the fight of the century. Not to watch you two getting cozy!'' He turned his attention back to the ring.


    ------


    Both Robin and the Trader silently stood in the ring. Keith could see they were sizing each other up. Surprisingly, the Trader seemed to have lost in the exchange. Robin had no openings. Thus, he could only hazard forward and seize the initiative of attack to test her defenses.


    He suddenly leapt forward, a hacking slash aimed at her mask. She perfectly blocked his strike, diverting it harmlessly off to the side. Then he followed up with a flurry of quick blows, all aimed towards the mask on her head.


    All of a sudden, he switched targets to her legs, hoping to take her off guard. But she blocked it all the same. Then she followed with a counterswipe towards his own mask, causing him to leap back to avoid the blow.


    This was the first time Robin had struck out, and she did not come up empty. A small scratch had appeared on his chin, and a few strands of honey-brown hair gleamed as it drifted down to the ground in the mild breeze.


    Silence descended for a moment. The ringing from the clash of swords still resounded in everyone''s ears. But it did not last long.


    Robin and the Trader both leapt at each other, striking out, dodging, deflecting, clashing. Yet neither intended to retreat.


    "You are indeed a brilliant swordsman!" the Trader said in admiration.


    "You aren''t bad yourself." Robin replied bluntly. She was aware that he was not using all of his abilities. Even though they seemed to be seriously fighting each other, he was still probing, and she was limiting her movements to match him.


    "You seem quite calm." He noted.


    "We are sparring after all, right?" Robin smirked, and her eyes narrowed slyly. She knew full well that this was anything but a spar.

 197 She Is That Persons Descendant?!

    Regardless of the angle or location, Robin could read his attacks as clear as day. When they had fought for around 5 minutes, finally a somewhat more serious light glinted in his eyes.


    Seeing this, Robin realized he was going to start attacking in earnest.


    ''Skye!'' She warned through their link. Skye jumped up onto Chelsea''s shoulder, which was their pre-arranged sign that the Trader would start his assault.


    Keith was busy recording everything on his magic eye. A historic moment such as this: it would be a sacrilege not to record. Of course, he had gotten permission from Robin beforehand. He had learned his lesson, after all.


    Initially, nothing seemed to be happening. But then Oracle''s power surged off to the side. An invisible force smashed itself against the shield that Chelsea had raised. The force of the confrontation blew dust up in the air, as it was unable to breach Oracle''s protection.


    For a moment, the shield became visible, looking like a water bubble as it rippled from the attack. Oracle had blocked the first strike, as Chelsea was distracted.


    Robin''s pupils shrank to pinholes as her expression became stern. He really had attacked her friends. Instead of aiming his attacks at her, he was attacking her friends in an attempt to distract her.


    "So...this really isn''t a spar, after all?" She said resentfully, as if she only just noticed.


    "I never agreed that it was." He replied. "But it seemed that you really had a lot of time to prepare in advance. Even this wasn''t enough to shake you."


    "Luck favors the prepared, after all." Robin replied evenly. "I wouldn''t have prepared against it if you were deserving of honorable combat."


    He laughed. "Let''s see how long this shield of yours can hold. I refuse to believe there''s a shield in existence that can block me for long."


    "We shall see." Robin replied. His attacks began to speed up in tempo, and she began speeding up as well to match.


    The attacks upon the shield barrier began in earnest as well. But, because each attack was telegraphed by the swirling dust, Chelsea and Oracle were able to hold it back.


    Liam, Keith, and Quinn could only watch on as the barrier was pummeled all around, as the force attempted to gain entrance.


    Christian had his eyes trained on the battlefield, despite the flying dust that occasionally blocked his vision. He watched Robin fight head to head against the Trader, easily matching his tempo as they grew faster. He realized that Robin was more skilled than he had thought.


    Every time that Robin had pulled out her sword, the fight had been far too short for him to truly ascertain Robin''s skill level. But now, he could see clearly that her level was above even his own swordmaster teacher.


    It rendered him spellbound with its beauty.


    At this point, the Trader''s eyes shifted from Robin towards her comrades. And he lost concentration enough for Robin to cut through his sword, and his mask split into two pieces. But before she could continue, something seemed to warn her.


    She acted immediately with her fully speed, and it was as if she had teleported. She arrived just in time to block the blow intended for Christian, with her sword.


    Her sword, gleamed with a brilliance that did not lose to that of a star. It fully blocked the force that was aiming for the side of Christian''s head. But, the force of the blow knocked her back.


    The flat of her blade knocked into her mask, sending it flying in one direction, while she was blown in another direction. Her feet and sword carved out three deep ruts in the ground as she attempted to stabilize her stance.


    Keith dragged Christian back from the edge, by the back of his shirt, in case another shot was aimed at him.


    A silence fell as the two unmasked figures took their first good look at each other. The Trader was, as previously assumed, a handsome young man.


    Jasmine gasped. "Bastian Lave!? Son of Lave Mercantiles!? It''s you!?"


    But he didn''t answer her. He was staring dumbfounded in honest shock at Robin. Everyone assumed he was surprised that Robin had blocked his blow....until he closed his open mouth, swallowed, then exclaimed.


    "Somehow I seem to know your face...." He said, utterly baffled.


    "....It''s you!?How did you come here?"


    "It''s me? I arrived like all the heroes do, though, right?" Robin tilted her head confused. They had obviously never met before. Could he have confused her with someone else?


    "Hahahah, of course, it had to be you! The black hair, those eyes, and your name is Robin."


    Glancing back and forth from Robin to her friends, he sneered. "Oh, Your hair is still short, I see...Originally, I thought you were going for a Robin Hood sort of Hero...Robin of Ekkinshire? Hah! More like Robin of Earth!"


    Robin''s eyes widened in shock as she realized something. Her eyes flicked to glance over at Quinn, and then flicked back to the Trader.


    "Earth, you say? Funny. I have no recollection of ever having met you, though that accent seems to ring a bell somewhere."


    "It''s me! Me!" He pointed at himself, as if expecting her to recall.


    "Hmmm...No, can''t quite place your face, sorry." Robin shrugged.


    "Ah, that''s right. I have changed a lot since then, haven''t I? This brings back old memories." He chuckled. "You might remember me by the person whom I had taken over back there, a Mister Dawkins, if I recall-yes."


    "Dawkins!?" Robin exclaimed, horrified.


    "Yes. Dawkins. That stubborn old man. He was a tough nut to crack, I''ll say. But crack him I did, when his only daughter died in a freak accident. Che! If I had latched on to that uncle of yours, it wouldn''t even have taken a day, much less ten years." The Trader growled.


    "You were the only child with promising prospects for spirit magic. But turns out you were even harder to crack than that old man. His only redeeming feature was to open up a way for me to return to this plane."


    "Return? You came from here originally?" Christian asked, shocked.


    "Mr Dawkins died of congestive heart failure. What has that got to do with you?" Robin scoffed.


    "The same way as in the books, I got a free ride when that dolt reincarnated. heh! Didn''t even realize I was there with him. Even now, he still doesn''t, the fool! And that hero that came before you, he teamed up with my daughter to banish me from this plane. Heheh, but he left the back door open to his own world, the fool! I waited ten years for my revenge, but then he had to go and get into a car crash all on his own!"


    "You''re daughter is?" Robin asked.


    "Well funny you should mention it. Isn''t the person you''re trying to meet my own flesh and blood, the demon king herself?"


    "What!? So you were the previous demon king?" Christian''s face paled. Children had nightmares based upon the last war''s demon king.


    "Eh. I was. It''s too bad my own daughter went and set me up like that, but, she learned from the best, I suppose." He chuckled half-proud.


    "It seems the very heavens themselves are on my side today. At last, I''ll be able to have my revenge!" He grinned wickedly, looking at Robin. "And you were the last piece of the puzzle!"


    "Me? What do I have to do with the mess you''ve made?" Robin scowled.


    "Oho? So he didn''t tell you, huh. The reason why your older brother and you are so good at swords...it''s certainly hereditary. For the Prior Hero''s own child not to know about his past....how pitiful."


    "What? -Prior hero? My father was the prior hero!?" Robin exclaimed.


    "And your mother was the saintess of Ekkinshire, Bluebell, of the Raven-Haired folk. Your striking blue eyes are the proof." The Trader nodded, beginning to sound more and more like old man Dawkins.


    Robin began to look more and more cautious. "That may be so, but what have I to do with your revenge?"


    "Hehehehheheh. Kek!" He coughed, sounding exactly like Dawkins. "What better method of revenge than to have the traitor in my family to be killed by the very hand of the Hero''s bloodline?"


    Robin''s grip tightened on her sword.


    "You couldn''t control me back then. What makes you think you can do it now!" She said.


    "Ah, but back then, I didn''t have enough time. After six years, the tiny copy I left has been slowly digging away at your subconscious. Tell me, how much resistence is left in a wall that''s been chipped away at, piece by piece? Eh? Robin?" He asked.


    "How does it feel to constantly have to reinforce a crumbling bulwark?"

 198 She Falls Asleep a Third Time

    Robin fell silent for a long moment.


    "....six years." She breathed. Her words began slowly, but gained in speed and volume as she continued.


    "For six entire years, I have had this feeling that couldn''t be shaken, no matter what I did. I tried medicine, psychiatrists, meditation, self-hypnosis, diets, acupuncture....I''ve been to doctors in the east and doctors in the west. They all said it was nothing. They couldn''t find anything wrong. They said it was all inside my head."


    She took a deep breath. "SO IT WAS YOUR BLASTED MINION THIS WHOLE TIME!?" She yelled out, both furious and relieved.


    "THE NIGHTMARES, THE EVER HEIGHTENING SENSE OF DANGER, THE DAMNABLE FEELING OF URGENCY: THAT WAS ALL YOU!!??"


    She laughed, breaking out into a fit of enraged ironic laughter, to the point where she had to lean on her sword for support.


    Everyone stared at her in a stunned silence.


    Finally, she drew in a ragged breath, and slowly let it out, as she stood back up straight. "I finally have a face to put to this feeling, and a name to call it by. Trader, your years of spirit predation will end today!"


    "Oh? And how are you going to accomplish that?" He asked, bemused.


    "Easily enough." Robin said, glancing at the broken sword in the Trader''s hand. He looked down at it.


    "It seems I''ll need to commission another blade in the future." He shrugged tossing the handle away.


    "But, then again...I never did need a blade." He said, as he looked at Robin, eyes glowing. Robin''s body jerked for a moment, and slumped over, leaning on the sword.


    Then Robin began to chuckle with a familiar laugh. But, was it Robin? She straightened up, looking down at the sword in her hand, and tugged at it.


    The sword that had been her companion this entire time, refused to budge. She frowned ignoring the approaching Trader as she tugged again at the sword, which remained rooted in the ground.


    At this moment, Jasmine took action. Muttering words in the ancient language of the elves, she tossed out a potion that fell in between Robin and the trader. It shattered, releasing a cloud of gas, that enveloped the two before they could react. Both fell to the ground, unconscious.


    "Jasmine, what in the Firey Planes of Vul''kan do you think you are doing!?" Christian exclaimed.


    "Distilled Klargun''s Brew-fog form. It''s obviously the backup plan." Jasmine snorted. "Don''t worry, I didn''t kill them. The Trader seems to be able to switch easily between the conscious and the subconscious mind. So if Robin is awake, then the two will never meet, and Robin will truly become his little puppet. Do you want the Trader to win? Because if I let Robin be, he would have won." This silenced Christian.


    Christian gritted his teeth, then punched himself hard in the jaw.


    "What are you doing!?" Jasmine asked.


    "You''re right. I shouldn''t have doubted him." Christian said. "I...this is all my fault. If I hadn''t summoned Robin here...then this..." His eyes swept painfully over Robin''s fallen form, as guilt tore at his insides. "This would have never..."


    "If you hadn''t summoned Robin, then we would have never known about the Trader, or about how dangerous he is." Chelsea interrupted. "We would have been taken over one by one, being none-the-wiser. The lives that Robin saved, the foods Robin made, the friendships enkindled, the dangers destroyed: are you going to deny all the good that Robin has done? Would Robin''s world be a better place, if the Trader had attacked while Robin was unaware of the dangers?"


    Christian recalled all those whom Robin had helped along the way: Gerard''s village, the Capital''s orphans, The kingdom of Ekkinshire, the direwolves that were chased by the wyvern, the children from the village near where they slew the wyvern, Chelsea, Liam, Quinn, Dirk, Elise, Skye, Ayva, the dwarves of Ragnok. So many people were helped and saved along the way.


    If Robin had not arrived, their lives would not have changed for the better. If he did not know about them, it wouldn''t matter to him. But, after knowing them, to want them to return to how things were before...


    Christian couldn''t do it.


    "You cannot undo what has been done in the past." Chelsea continued, as Christian was silent in contemplation.


    "But you can take responsibility for what has happened, and do all that you can to ensure that it will come to a good end. This is the duty of all who would be considered just, righteous, and upright. So says my brother Oracle, who is inevitably always right."


    "...He''s always right, huh. That very well may be." Christian sighed, looking at Robin.


    "I just don''t like it. Robin''s fighting in there for all of us, and we can''t even tell if he''s winning or not!" He complained bitterly.


    Skye meowed.


    "Actually, it is possible." Liam translated. "Skye can sense who is winning through his link, but unless Robin calls out to him, he can''t tell much else at the moment."


    Skye turned and looked unblinkingly at Robin, and his eyes widened ever so slightly. Then he tilted his head and mewed.


    "Hmm? Your sure?" Liam asked Skye. Who nodded.


    "What is it?" Christian asked.


    Liam looked puzzled. "Skye says that he can sense not two, but three different spirit signatures, though the last one is being surrounded by one of them, and is much smaller compared to the two."


    "Since one is Robin, and one is the Trader..."Jasmine mused.


    "Then, who is the third one?" Christian asked.


    --------


    Robin sat up from the concrete pavement, and looked around. It was the city in her dreamscape. Except, instead of the bright sunshine, or twilight grey sky that usually greeted her, the cityscape was shrouded under the darkness of night. She stood up, and realized she was standing on the school roof.


    "Hiiro!" A voice called out from nearby. Robin turned to look. It was her older brother.


    "You suddenly vanished. I looked everywhere for you, where did you go-" He stopped as Robin pointed her blade at him, halting his approach.


    "Come out. I know you''re there." She stated.


    "Keheheheh. How did you know?" A shadow separated from the figure, drawing itself together into a dark, ghostly form.


    "I trust my brother completely. For me to wear a mask in his presence means that there is something about him in this dreamscape that is making me keep my guard up." She noted "No wonder I couldn''t take my mask off the last time. With you piggybacking along, there''s no way I''d willingly do so."


    Robin looked down upon the collapsed figure of her older brother, and frowned. "But who are you?" She asked.


    Her elder brother sat up from his spot on the ground. "Er um...hello? Nice to meet you, Robin. My name is Dawkins."


    "It''s YOU!?" Robin scowled.


    "No, wait wait! I know what you are talking about, but I realize now that that Dawkins wasn''t actually me!" Dawkins explained. His image shifted from that of Robin''s older brother to that of a midground between the image of old Dawkins and Sebastian Lave.


    "He was the one in control the whole time after your parent''s death." Dawkins pointed at The ghostly figure, who wasn''t paying attention. He was distracted by the feeling of somebody watching them.


    "Why would he suddenly gain control after my parents died?" Robin asked, her eyes narrowed.


    "B-because the same accident that killed your parents...also killed my daughter." Dawkins revealed, despite his grief.


    ----------


    Skye meowed again, relying on Liam to translate.


    "The small spirit has separated from the one that surrounded it." Liam conveyed.


    "Should we consider it an enemy?" Jasmine wondered.


    At that, something in Christian''s head clicked.


    "No, it''s an ally." He said.


    "Oh? You can''t see it, so how do you know?" Jasmine asked, annoyed.


    "''The Hero sleeps once to save the young, and sleeps again to save the mountain.


    Where the dipper meets the spine, the Hero''s foe you shall find, and the past emerging truth fountain.'' This has already come to pass even right before our eyes." Christian pointed out.


    "And the next line is ''From foe''s mouth, a companion shall leap, to harbor from darkness the Hero''s sleep.'' The Trader is clearly indicated to be the foe, here. And Jasmine''s modified sleeping potion has put both the Trader, and Robin to sleep. So, as the Hero sleeps, the spirit that emerges from within the Trader can only be the companion that ''from the foe''s mouth'' leaps!"


    Everyone present was flabbergasted at the sound logic behind Christian''s explanation.


    Oracle chuckled to himself. ''Not bad young''un. Not bad.'' He thought, before turning his attention back to Robin.

 199 She Calls Forth Ligh

    Robin didn''t know what to say. They had both lost those dear to them. But, while she was lucky, Dawkins had gotten the short end of the stick, being possessed by an evil demon king.


    What could she say? That he shouldn''t have cared about his daughter? That he should have stayed strong anyways? But even Robin hadn''t been able to stand strong in the face of such a loss. So she couldn''t say that.


    It was becoming more and more clear that they were all victims of circumstance here. Robin was, of course, excluding the Trader, as he went looking for trouble.


    The Trader was looking about. He couldn''t seem to find the location of the observer. Finally, he snorted. "It is no matter. Observe all that you like, you cannot stop me from taking control!"


    He floated up above the school building.


    "A city full of lights, huh." He sneered. "And? What will you do now, Robin? When I drudge up all your grudges and nightmares-when you even begin to doubt if you were ever a good person at all, can you still bring out goodness and light?"


    He pointed at Robin. "Can you maintain yourself in a realm bereft of all falsehoods of light and affection? When all pleasures become as mist, when all blue sky is painted over, when your wings are clipped and you are trapped by yourself, can you still be a hero? Can you overcome the darkness within yourself?" He waved his arm out at the surroundings.


    "Pay good attention to the city about you! When the last light goes out, and your final hope is extinguished, then I will truly gain control!" The Trader announced, before dissipating in a bout of resounding cackles.


    Robin looked out upon the city, and noticed. a light on the edge had disappeared. From the edges of the city, creeping slowly closer, was the impending darkness. How could she stop this?


    Dawson looked out over the city scape. "You know, for the longest time, I feel like I''ve been surrounded by a lot of books. Each book would have many different stories, all vibrant, and full of life. Each book I opened I could enter into it, and live as one of the characters. But they all ended the same way. ''until the Trader took over'': that was all the book ended with."


    "Did anyone ever escape?" Robin asked.


    "If they had, it was never recorded. I had originally thought that it was just stories...but...looking back on things, they might have been records of the lives he had devoured." Dawkins sighed in solemn chagrin.


    "I''m sorry...To think that my moment of weakness would drag you into this. I am utterly ashamed." He said.


    "The one who should know shame is not you." Robin replied. "I don''t blame you. If it had been me in your place, I wouldn''t have been able to hold out half as long as you did."


    "So, my brother saved me in more ways than one, huh." Robin smiled. An entire skyscraper went dark. "It seems that this time, I''m on my own. There''s no Hero to save me this time."


    "What do you mean?" Dawkins asked.


    "''Hero'' That word is what I''ve been called ever since I arrived. And I willingly took up the role, hoping to make something of myself-to apply my talents in bringing about good. But...." She looked down at the shrinking circle of lights.


    "...I''m not a hero." She finally said what she had kept inside her heart.


    "My whole life, I''ve only ever been saved by others to the point where I can never fully return all that I owe in gratitude. Heh. Chelsea once asked me about a situation like this." Robin waved her hand out at the light circle.


    "''In the event that you find yourself surrounded with no friends, and there is no way out: what will you do?'' is what she asked me."


    "And? What did you say?" Dawkins asked, curious.


    "''Sometimes, it only takes one person doing the right thing that makes all the difference. If there is no flame, become one! Perhaps a single spark is all it takes to set the sun afire again.''"


    "Good words!" Dawkins admired.


    "No, they were fool words." Robin clenched the metal link barrier near the edge. "I cannot become my own spark. A spark is only formed when flint strikes steel. Even should I be the steel, I would still need a flint."


    Dawkins observed the distraught girl, sympathetically. Then he patted her on the shoulder.


    "This very well may be the last moments of my life." He suddenly said. "I was only ever his anchor to this realm. If I die again, he loses his grip here. If he takes you over, then I have no more value to him, no more reason to exist."


    Robin lifted her head to look at him.


    "What do you mean?" She asked.


    "What I mean is that I''ve lived long enough. If you kill me now, then all of your problems are solved. He cannot remain in you if he''s struggling against the buoyancy of spiritual banishment." Dawkins explained.


    Robin looked at him, then shook her head. "No. Chelsea said that there won''t be any casualties during our fight. Put that thought out of your head, old man. I''m not going to kill a victim. I''ll confront that foul Trader on my own, if I have to!"


    She looked out at the city. the darkness had quickly covered the landscape. only a single block''s worth of lights were still shining.


    "...Even if it''s just me alone." She asserted.


    Dawkins paused, then cleared his throat.


    "My dear Robin..." He began.


    "Oohuwhoah! Cut that out, old man, the way you''re addressing me is giving me the creeps." Robin shivered, recalling how the trader used to say her name ''affectionately''.


    "Ahem! What I''m trying to say is that, who ever said that heroes had to be alone?" Dawkins pointed out.


    "....Not alone?" Robin''s eyes widened. "Skye! Patch me through to the sword!" She called out.


    Skye''s ear flicked. ''You do realize I can only patch you through to living things, right?'' He replied.


    "Never mind that, just try it! Trust me!" Robin yelled. The darkness closed in. There were three lights left.


    Then there were two...


    Then there was one.


    As the last city light vanished, a pillar of light appeared from a spotlight in the sky, shining down on Robin and Dawkins.


    "What!? What is this?" The Trader''s voice echoed all around. The pillar grew in width, and small tendrils of smoke began to drift out of Dawkins, here and there, from the shadows of his clothing. Robin watched at bit by bit, the Trader''s claws were extracted from Dawkin''s soul.


    "No! You can''t do this!" The Trader exclaimed, fearfully. "This is-this is impossible! Get out of there! Get away from that light!" He ordered. But Dawkins, grit his teeth as the extraction removed every deep-seated root that the Trader had dug into him. He was clearly pained, but his eyes shone with a resolve that could only be acquired through years of long-suffering.


    The light began to spill over, rushing through the city, a luminous river of light, until it had drawn out an ancient rune. Tatters of shadow moved to the only spot not bathed in light, forming the vaguest shape of a human.


    "You may have bought yourself some time, but don''t think that I''ve been defeated." He snarled.


    "Ohoh? Aren''t you forgetting something?" Robin asked, as the last tendril of shadow was removed from Dawkins. "I can''t see how you can come back for round two, now that your anchor has been removed."


    "What?" The Trader had forgotten. Silver words, like chains, appeared around his wrists, neck, and legs, lifting him up into the night sky. The darkness folded in around him, like a crumpling piece of fabric suddenly being drawn through a tiny pin hole, revealing the dawn sky.


    When the last line of the city-wide rune was complete, the entire rune, lit up in a golden glow as light swept outwards in a shockwave.Showering every location with sparkling golden light, like fairy dust.


    "It took you long enough." A voice sounded from Robin''s right.

 200 She Cant Move

    The Trader may have been pulled out of Robin and Dawkins, but he was not willing to be thrown back out into the darkness of space again. As he rose, he grabbed out, strengthening his ties to the wisps of himself that he had planted in others. And they all endeavored through their connections to anchor him in this realm.


    And for a moment, the Trader''s ascension halted.


    But not for long.


    Silver chains appeared even upon his copies, dragging them out of their victims as easily as he had been booted out of Robin. Any soul they had devoured, they were forced to spit out. They too were forced to leave, being acknowledged as part of the Trader.


    If he were smart, he would not have connected to all of his copies. But, in his panic, he had grasped at all of them.


    That day, across many lands, hundreds upon thousands of people, animals, and demons fell unconscious. And when they awoke, some would recall their past. Some would not. Regardless, they would all speak of the pillar of light and the silver chains that shut away the darkness.


    But the Hero that saved them wouldn''t hear about it until much much later....


    -------


    Cast out into the darkness between realms, Trader, the Demon King, surrounded by his copy wisps glared with red eyes at the bright realm he had once again been banished from.


    "This isn''t over, Robin! Not by a long shot!" He roared before heading off in a certain direction.


    -------


    Within her dreamscape, Robin turned her head to look at the guest that had been invited. She was beautiful. Her clothes were all white, like rays of purest light. The armor she wore had the same symbol upon them as the sword, inscribed in gold. Her golden-blonde hair fell in waves that had a touch of curl at the ends. She gazed at Robin with silver-grey eyes that harbored a somewhat golden warmth within.


    "The spirit of the sword, I take it?" Robin asked. "My apologies, I was not informed of your name?" Dawkins'' brain had already shut down as he gazed at the ethereal beauty, slackjawed.


    She smile, her eyes curving up into mirthful crescents."I have been called many names. But I prefer the name your father bestowed upon me. You may call me Hikaru."


    "...So it really was my father who came here..." Robin sighed, brushing her hair away from her eyes. "Then, this whole big mess is my own family''s fault, huh?"


    "So my appearance here was on your account?" Robin asked.


    "Not exactly." Hikaru smiled kindly. "I felt a familiar presence in you, and brought you to my side out of nostalgia''s sake. Who the person was who ignited your invitation, I do not know. Unlike your father, both you and your brother can more easily pass between your world and this one. They may have called you using a personal effect of your parents, such as a strand of hair."


    "And, since they''ve been long since dead, I was called in their place?" Robin was quick on the uptake.


    "The bloodline of the hero is thicker than water, after all." Hikaru nodded her head, pleased at Robin''s intelligence.


    Dawkins finally managed to get his brain starting to the point where he could close his gaping mouth.


    "A person? In a sword?" He muttered.


    "And? What''s so strange about that?" Robin asked. "Haven''t you ever heard of the Japanese tsukumogami?"


    "I have. But those are demons!" Dawkins blustered, with a somewhat red face. "None of them even come close to this eminent spirit of holy light!"


    "You could say that I am..." Hikaru said playfully. "But then again, you can also say that I am not. I am one upon whom the laws of the heavens was passed down. I am a weapon of law, a pruning tool to cut away from what is good all that would senselessly destroy it. And, because of my purpose, it is my honor to have been bestowed an intellect and will that brought about the creation of my soul."


    "Have you ever met your creator?" Robin asked.


    "The day I was born, he held me in his hands. And bestowed upon me my mission. We have not met since then." Hikaru replied.


    "Oh? Did he give you a name?" Dawkins asked, curious.


    Hikaru smiled, cheerfully ignoring his question.


    "It appears our time is almost up." She noted. "Let me help send you back to your rightful place." And with that, she grabbed Dawkins by the collar, before he realised what was happening.


    "I''ll contact Skye when it is time we speak again." She waved a farewell and flew up into a golden circle of light that appeared above her, dragging Dawkins out of Robin''s dreamscape.


    -----------


    Outside, Robin''s friends looked at her, worried.


    "Why isn''t Robin waking up? we already made him drink the antidote." Christian mumbled.


    "Hush! Even antidotes take time to work their magic." Jasmine scolded. "Robin should be waking up soon..."


    Unseen by the crew, a tiny mote of light flowed out from the space between Robin''s brow, floating over to Bastian Lave''s sleeping form. It entere him for a moment before floating back and merhing once more into the sword.


    No one but Oracle managed to even notice its existence. He smiled, and whispered something in Chelsea''s ear, before returning to himself in Port Oracle.


    "Brother has left." Chelsea noted, turning to Jasmine. "The fight is over. Feed Young Mister Lave the Antidote as well."


    "But..." Jasmine felt reluctance.


    "Don''t worry. He is no longer our enemy." Chelsea assured.


    "If you say so." Jasmine frowned, looking down at the youth who had plunged face down into the dirt. She used her foot to turn him about, before pouring a portion down his throat.


    "Ahem! Does anyone have any water?" A weak voice croaked out, turning everyone''s attention back to Robin.


    "Robin, you rascal, you! Why did you do that!?" Christian was both happy and angry at the same time. Robin looked dazedly up at a scolding Christian.


    ''This sort of thing....isn''t bad.'' She noted, with a smile that only tugged at the corners of her mouth. She felt completely drained of all her energy, both physical and magical.


    "...you''re very good at getting yourself into trouble." Robin croaked. "As am I." Her friends all laughed at that.


    "But," Robin continued. "I am better at getting out of it than you...I thought...as your older brother, at the very least, I can show you how getting you out of trouble is done."


    This brought a somewhat touching end to their laughter, although they all grinned at Christian much brighter than before.


    Christian ruffled Robin''s head.


    "What older brother!? I am older than you!"


    "I do recall letting you know that the role for my father and older brother have already been taken." Robin replied impudently, despite her dilemma. At this, everyone laughed again as Christian rolled his eyes.


    "I can''t win against you." He lamented.


    "Don''t fight the hero. They always win. Also, you were never cut out to make a good villain." Robin pointed out, then coughed again.


    She tried to clear her throat. "Chelsea, help me out here. I hurt all over to the point where I can''t move." She asked, sincerely.


    "If you wanted my help, then you shouldn''t have gotten to this point in the first place!" Chelsea harrumphed, but still gathered together a sphere of water out of the air for Robin.


    After she cleared the dust out of her throat, Robin sighed.


    "We might need to set up camp." She sighed in resignation.


    "Why''s that?" Keith asked.


    "I really can''t move." Robin admitted.

 201 She Cant Move-Part 2

    "Chelsea?" Christian asked.


    "I''m on it." Chelsea began using her water magic to examine Robin for any health issues.


    "Aside from extreme fatigue, there is nothing wrong." Chelsea gave her verdict. "Proper rest, food, and drink will have Robin back up and running in a few days."


    "Well you can''t just lie there on the ground." Christian objected. "You''ll get eaten up by bugs." Jasmine refrained from telling him that she had set up a bug ward in the surroundings.


    "I shall have to resign myself to the fact that tonight, the mosquitoes will be able to find a meal that can''t fight back." Robin joked.


    "Seriously, Robin, you can''t keep running yourself ragged all the time." Jasmine scolded, lifting Robin up with a levitation spell.


    "I can only run myself ragged because I know I have you people to help me clean up the mess." Robin grinned. "Though I may be an advocate for peace, that doesn''t mean I trust my back to just anyone."


    "You could have fooled me with how honest you''ve been this whole time." Jasmine grumbled, rolling her eyes.


    "Allow me." Keith stepped in, taking out a bedroll for Jasmine to place Robin down on.


    "I knew it. You have a spacial item too, huh!" Robin noted.


    Keith looked at Robin with a strange expression. "You could say that." He said.


    Robin narrowed her eyes at Keith.


    "Spill it. What''s on your mind to make you look at me so strangely?"


    Keith''s head jerked a bit. "Was I that obvious?" He asked.


    "You''re Christian''s nanny. Not mine." She pointed out.


    "Hey!" Christian voiced his objection.


    "Therefore, when you start acting like you''re my nanny, it is indeed obvious." Robin finished her observation.


    Keith nodded. "I suppose there''s no harm in saying it-" But at that point, he was interrupted by the groan Sebastian made when he woke up. Robin narrowed her eyes at Jeith, but allowed the topic to be derailed, for the time being.


    "Ughh, I never thought waking up to the worst headache in existence was something I''d find so welcoming!" Sebastian moaned from his place on the ground.


    "That''s the sedatives getting flushed out." Jasmine grinned wickedly. "What a coincidence that Bastian Lave is involved in all of this, huh?"


    While they were speaking, Robin did her utmost to twitch her finger to the point where she could touch the sword next to her hand. After several failed attempts, Robin finally managed to withdraw it into her storage bracer.


    "That depends upon your definition of who Bastian Lave is." Sebastian replied, frowning. "And this has nothing to do with sedatives."


    He glanced over at Robin. "When I returned, there was a new book. About the Trader."


    "Hmm?" Robin was surprised. "The Trader?"


    "Anything I should be aware of?" She asked.


    "Well, yes, I suppose. If the fact that there are three demon guardians in the Peg Lake City is something important to you, that is." Sebastian replied, dropping an information bombshell.


    This unexpected piece of news surprised everyone.


    "Three!? Three guardians are in the city?" Jasmine''s voice rose in pitch.


    "Yes. But, before we continue with the conversation..." Sebastian struggled to his feet. He then bowed with the highest formality.


    "I heartily apologize for everything that happened. I know you might not believe me based on mere words, but-"


    "What are you going on about?" Robin cut him off. "I told you before, it wasn''t your fault. Nobody here will blame you, as we are all aware of the situation."


    Sebastian paused, before straightening up again.


    "That doesn''t excuse the fact that my hands were used for evil schemes." He said, regretfully. "The truth is, I need your help."


    "Well, as long as it isn''t against the law, there shouldn''t be a problem." Jasmine sighed. "But really, though! You''re Bastian Lave of Lave Mercantiles! If you''re asking us to do grunt work, then you should just order your subordinates!"


    "No, the truth is, there is also a Dark Guild headquarters in town." Bastian explained. "While I am..." He glanced ruefully at the perfectly halved golden mask nearby.


    " While I WAS a gold member due to the Trader''s frequent purchases, I never really found out who the head was. In order to uproot this cancer from beneath my city, I can only ask newcomers like you to help."


    Robin groaned from the ground. "I''m out." She joked. "But, while I''m out, I don''t mind if you all stretch your legs for a bit. Haha~ I can''t even move my arm to tap out." Robin chuckled listlessly.


    "No need to spend the night out here! It''s a simple enough matter to get transportation. I invite everyone to come stay at my mansion as guests!" Bastian instantly offered. While others might think Bastian seemed a bit obsequious, Robin could tell he was merely trying to express his gratitude.


    "We''ll take you up on that offer, then." Christian nodded. While Robin usually didn''t like people answering for her, she didn''t object to it when Christian did so. Chelsea blinked, and glanced between Christian and Robin, a smile slowly spreading on her face.


    "And, speaking of which, isn''t that carriage headed our way?" Liam pointed to a cloud of dust that was gradually drawing closer.


    "....young masTEEEEERRRR!!!!" As it drew closer, it was apparent that the driver was a venerable old butler. The carriage stopped not ten feet from where Bastian stood.


    "Ah~ You caught up, huh?" Bastian chuckled.


    "Young Master, I won''t say not to venture outside the city, but please, tell me when you intend to do so! Look, your outfit is caked with dust and dirt now! Did you get swallowed by that dust devil that blew through?"


    Everyone looked at each other''s dust-covered clothes, and laughed.


    "You could say that..." Sebastian admitted, before introducing Robin''s group. "The reason I left was because these are some acquaintances of mine, and they just arrived here. I have invited them to be our guests during their stay in Peg Lake City."


    "And what of the youth lying on the ground?" The old butler inquired.


    "We had a contest of skills, just now, but due to a hardworking personality, that one overdid things, and ended up like that." Bastian explained. At that, everyone in the party nodded vigorously.


    "I plead the fifth." Robin joked.


    "Those rules don''t apply here." Bastian grinned nostalgically.


    "You do realize you are the reason why I am in this situation, right!?" Robin jokingly growled.


    "Right, right. I am the one at fault. Please allow me to bow to your truly hardworking spirit." Bastian joked, ducking his head in playful imitation of a Eunuch before an Emperor.


    At this point, Robin sniffed, and turned her attention back to her party.


    "And don''t you think I didn''t see those heads of yours wag in agreement, earlier! Hmmph!" Robin could only harrumph, as she couldn''t even find the energy to turn her neck.


    "Oh no, Robin is mad!"


    "Whatever shall we do?"


    "Ah. You''re right. This is a serious matter." Quinn nodded solemnly. "Ponzu is still back at Ragnok. So the only other food would be..." He glanced at Robin, who was ignoring them all.


    "What?"


    "Oh no!"


    "Oy, Quinn, can''t you bring Ponzu over with your...method?" Christian asked, seriously uninterested in any food that had not been invented by Robin.


    As the group was discussing things, Robin drifted off into a natural sleep. It was free of nightmares, and dreams alike. However, it was filled with a sense of peace and security that she hadn''t felt in the longest time.


    When she awoke, her surroundings had completely changed. Skye was purring on the bed next to her hand. She glanced around, with a somewhat blank look at the room, before it came to her.


    ''Ah...We''re in Dawkin''s mansion. I suppose I should be calling him Bastian now.''


    She glanced at the figure sitting next to her bed, and was mildly surprised. The figure mildly reading a book while seated by her side wasn''t Christian.


    "Keith?" She said.


    "Mmn. It appears you have awakened normally this time." Keith said, marking the book with a bookmark before closing it. Robin blinked.


    "This is about the topic we were discussing earlier, wasn''t it?"


    "Mmn." Keith nodded.

 Chapter 202 - She Finds out that Keith is...

    "Yesterday, that Demon Lord Trader spoke about your parents." Keith stated.


    Robin tilted her head. It was already the next day, huh.


    "Oh. That''s right, you probably knew my father fifteen years ago. Is this about that?" She asked.


    "Well...you could say it''s involved." Keith surmised, an odd expression on his face. "But... it''s not so much about your father, so much as your mother."


    "My mother?" Robin asked, surprised.


    "Mmn." Keith nodded. "The person known as Bluebell of the Raven-haired folk could only be one person."


    "Who?" Robin asked.


    Keith looked at Robin, amused. "My aunt''s daughter. In other words, she''s my cousin."


    "...What!?" Robin asked, feeling completely blindsided. "So that means that you..."


    "Mmn. You could consider me your relative." Keith smiled.


    Robin stared at Keith, searching for some form of resemblance. His hair was dark brown and his eyes were green, but his smile did to a certain extent resemble her mother''s smile.


    "So, you are my grand-aunt''s son...what sort of relationship is that?" Robin asked, somewhat confused.


    "Putting it simply, you can call me uncle." Keith said. "On the family tree, however, I''m your first cousin, once removed."


    "...Is that so?" Robin mused, coming to a decision. "Then, I have something I think you should know, but..." She glanced at the door.


    "Oh? Is it a secret? If so, don''t worry, the room is magically soundproofed." Keith reassured.


    "In that case, you ought to know...I''m actually a girl." Robin said, quietly.


    "Ah." Keith nodded.


    "You aren''t surprised?" Robin asked.


    "Well, I had suspected, but I only knew for sure about a week ago, when I went through the garden''s magic surveillance." Keith said.


    "Ah..." Robin realized. "Then...Christian?"


    "Doesn''t know." Keith shook his head. "The magic surveillance didn''t capture sound, and I read lips, which is how I could tell. I figured if you wanted him to know, then you''d have told him already."


    ''Also, I figured, you''d still be a bit spooked on account of what happened with that potion thing that happened back at the Capitol.'' Kenmei thought, but kept it to himself. Robin had reacted violently to his recording at the time, and made it clear to him that such an incident was not to be recalled.


    "Ahem! Well, since you''re ranked higher than I am, your information is considered a confidential matter, not to be disclosed without your permission. But...if you don''t mind, ...may I...?" Keith asked.


    Robin emphatically shook her head.


    "I''d be extremely relieved and grateful if you did no such thing!" She exclaimed.


    "B-besides, doesn''t he already have a fiancee? Noble families, especially royalty, don''t they tend to marry only within nobility?" Robin stuttered.


    Keith mused. "Well, technically speaking, the hero is considered above the king, in terms of noble rank. And, yes, generally, Royals tend to marry other royals to strengthen alliances. But, there''s no rule or tradition like that in Ekkinshire."


    "I-is that so..." Robin said, feeling highly awkward.


    "Mmn. Marrying out of mutual love is encouraged. Though Queen Emmeline does tend to scheme a bit, she doesn''t disregard the feelings of those she tries to match. Though...I agree, she can go a bit overboard." Keith chuckled.


    "Then, as I thought, Christian has someone he already likes?" Robin''s gaze lowered to her hand that was resting atop the covers.


    Keith raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Have you perhaps fallen for his rogue-ish charms?"


    Robin snorted. "As if!" She rolled her eyes. "Since he''s my younger brother, I was curious about who he''s set his sights on."


    ''There''s no way he''ll set his eyes on me. He thinks I''m a man after all.'' She thought to herself. But, instead of feeling relieved, she felt conflicted. Her heart suddenly felt as if it had been pricked again.


    Keith, seeing her change expressions realized something. ''Perhaps...'' He thought to himself as a sharp light briefly shone in his eyes.


    "Actually..."Keith said, casually observing Robin''s expression. "He does have someone he set his eyes on."


    "Wha-Really!?" Robin exclaimed. "I hadn''t confirmed, but I really thought that might be the case."


    "Mhmm! He met her in Kinsward Town: the same place where you pulled the hero''s blade out of the stone." He nodded, clearly hinting at Robin. But, the hint went right over Robin''s head. Robin''s expression fell.


    "What''s the matter, Robin?" He asked. "Aren''t you happy?"


    Robin was startled from her thoughts. "Ah, no, that''s not-I was just wondering who it might be is all." She denied. "I don''t recall seeing any girl specifically that he paid much attention to."


    Keith had all it took to keep from laughing. "Well, I''m pretty sure that you already know her." Keith said.


    "Hmmm....Oh! Was it perhaps Yvonne?" Robin asked, suddenly recalling.


    "Who?" Keith''s mind went blank.


    "You know, the elf who was the receptionist at the Adventurers Guild at the time." Robin said, but then realized. "Oh, that''s right! You were out grabbing the horses, so you didn''t meet her."


    "..." Keith stared at Robin, flabbergasted.


    "She''s amazing, right? I''ve got a gold star on my adventurer''s card because I''m the Hero, but Yvonne became an S-rank all on her own hard work!" Robin smiled.


    "W-well, the girl he likes does indeed have a gold star on her card." Keith said, his voice shuddering both in suppressed laughter, and in baffled amazement at how dense Robin could get.


    "But, she''s not an elf." He placed his book down on the nearby nightstand.


    "Not an elf? Hmm...Was it perhaps the girl we rescued from the shadow monkey demon? Gerard''s older sister? Ah, no, those two lived in the town I saved from the orcs, not Kinsward. Hmm...but, other than them, I really haven''t a clue." Robin sighed, and shook her head.


    "What makes you think it''s not you?" Keith asked.


    Robin tilted her head to look up at Keith, with an expression of ''What do you mean why? it''s just common sense''.


    "Let me ask you something." She said as she began to lay out her reasons.


    "Christian likes girls, right?"


    "Right." Keith agreed.


    "And he''s not bi, or gay, so he wouldn''t like guys, right?"She asked.


    "R-right." Keith replied, beginning to see where this was going.


    "And he doesn''t know that i''m a girl, right? He thinks I''m a guy, right?" Robin pursued.


    "Rriight." Keith, felt his mouth beginning to cramp up.


    "Therefore, I, who am -in his views- a guy, would never even enter into the sights of him, who only likes girls!" Robin pointed at herself and declared with utmost confidence.


    ''No, Robin. Even if you are a guy to him, he likes you so much that he thinks you turned him gay!'' Keith was absolutely certain of it. He covered the top part of his face with his hand to hide his expression while he tried to regain his calm expression.


    "And, how do you feel about him?" Keith asked. "Do you like him?"


    "Of course I like him!" Robin asserted.


    "What?" Keith was surprised at how Robin was so frank about it.


    "Of course I like him..." Robin repeated, somewhat crestfallen. "But...I''m leaving, after all. And he already likes someone, so..."


    She shut her eyes. "He likes someone already. I don''t...I''m not..." She struggled with her words, before summarizing her feelings.


    "It''s best to remain as friends, if I''m just gonna leave."


    "I see..." Keith sighed. "You''ve never considered staying, have you?"


    "Yeah...Oh, it''s not that I hate it here, though. Here, I have you, Uncle Keith, but back on Earth..."Robin said, realizing it might have sounded like she was ungrateful or dissatisfied with something. She smiled, ruefully.


    "Back on earth, I''m all my older brother''s got, that he knows of. If I leave him be, he''s definitely going to flip the entire world on its head looking for me. I really can''t leave him alone like that. That''s why...I''ve got to go back."


    "You really do love that older brother of yours, don''t you?" Keith noted.


    "I guess it runs in the blood," Robin joked. "But he is my hero, so I can''t keep worrying him like this. That''s why. So, don''t tell Christian anything, okay?" She pleaded.


    "You''re sure you don''t want him to know?" Keith asked.


    "Would he let me leave if he knew?" Robin asked in return.


    ''Ah. He most likely.....wouldn''t.'' Keith sighed. "All right. I give you my word."


    "Thank you." Robin smiled, relieved.

 Chapter 203 - She Cant Forget

    "Who else knows?" Keith asked.


    "Jasmine and Chelsea, Ayva, Meredith, Throm, Quinn has an analyze skill, Skye,...and Bastian. He knows me from before...oh! And Liam should be able to guess."


    "How?" Keith asked.


    "Dragons can detect metals through smell, so genders shouldn''t be an issue." Robin replied. "But, I''m fairly certain it doesn''t matter to him what gender I am."


    "I see. Is that all? You didn''t tell King Zephron or...Oh." He chuckled. "I see..."


    "Indeed. While I''m sure it might be fine to let King Zephrom know, I just couldn''t find the right opportunity." Robin sighed. At that point, her stomach growled.


    "It seems I should inform the kitchens to deliver your brunch." Keith stood up, and paused for a moment. He looked at Robin. "Other things aside, will you allow me to reveal how you are related to me?" Keith asked, standing


    Robin thought about it, then nodded. "Ah! But, about my feelings for Christian.... I haven''t even told Jasmine about it yet, so don''t tell anyone."


    "I promise." Keith smiled, before leaving the room.


    "Hmmm.." Robin sat there, feeling something was not quite right. Why had she so easily given away the information that she had been safeguarding all this time?


    Upon reflecting, Robin realized that, despite her muscle pains, she felt peaceful. It felt as if a heavy load had been lifted off her spirit, as if everything suddenly was bursting at the seams with color, as if each new breath were fresher than the last.


    The sense of urgency and danger that had plagued her all this time wasn''t there. In its place was a euphoric comforting calm which was somewhat dreamlike. With her spirits soaring like never before, she hadn''t been able to find the time to balance out her mindset yet. But, she also hadn''t sensed anything wrong. And, due to that, she hadn''t thought to exercise caution with her words. This was, in essence, the reason why she had all of a sudden become so talkative about the things close to her heart.


    ''Indeed, it is the times you let down your guard that you slip up.'' She mused. ''I need to be doubly dilligent in making sure I don''t lose track of my priorities!'' She felt her determination rising to the challenge.


    But, the rising willpower was suddenly distracted by a knock at the door.


    "Who is it?" Robin asked.


    "It''s me." Came the answer.


    Robin blinked as the door opened.


    "Dawki-no, you''re Bastian now, huh." She corrected herself.


    "Mmn. That I am. Um...how are you feeling?" Bastian asked, awkwardly.


    "Like I got hit by truck-san and sent to another world." Robin rolled her eyes. "I''m surprised nothing''s broken, considering yesterday''s incident."


    "...Sorry..." Bastian, seemed to slip into depression.


    "Why are you apologizing? I already said it''s not your fault." Robin chuckled, then sighed.


    "''To err is human'' after all." She said. "Being human, myself, I''ve learned the truth in those words many times. Frankly, it''s a miracle we got away with our lives despite how dangerous it was."


    "Um, then...there''s something I''d like to ask you..." Bastian began, twiddling his thumbs nervously.


    "What?" Robin asked, pouring herself a glass of water, she took a sip as she watched Bastian struggle with his question.


    "Were you able to move past all that happened back then?" He asked.


    Robin choked, descending into a coughing fit. That question had hit her straight out of left field.


    "What makes you ask that?" Robin wheezed, as she finally got the water out of her airway.


    "Well, you still have your hair short, after all, and you''re clothing is still that of a man''s. Somehow I just felt that, despite the fact that you''ve forgiven me...as I thought, the trauma must still be there..." Bastian visibly seemed to wilt in guilt and self-deprecation.


    Robin examined Bastian with a searching gaze for several long moments. Then she opened her mouth.


    "You''re right....Though I have forgiven you, I cannot seem to forget everything so easily." She murmured, the words emerging as heavy as lead.


    "But, hair cannot grow out in a day, and I got so used to short hair and dressing like a boy that I can no longer recall the last time I wore a dress-" Robin paused as she remembered the time she wore a cat-girl costume to rescue Christian. She cleared her throat, in an attempt to gloss over that moment.


    "Ahem! Anyways, what I''m saying right now is, that while I have forgiven you, and while I know that you might very well be trustworthy...I''m sorry. While I pity your former situation, I cannot say that I can fully put my trust in you again." Robin apologized. Even to this point, she was clenching her trembling hand.


    Trauma was a strange thing. Even after the physical pain of something had long since disappeared, the physical reaction to avoid the cause stubbornly remain. Robin''s senses were screaming at her to flee. Despite the fact that she knew that Bastian wasn''t the Trader, she couldn''t help but remain cautious around him.


    Although Robin was aware of the cause, there was nothing she could do to fix it at the moment. She had been through such a huge rollercoaster of emotions in such a short span of time, that she still needed time to process everything properly.


    "No need to apologize. It''s natural for you to feel that way." Bastian smiled painfully. "I can only hope that with time, the wounds will fade...And that I can prove myself worthy of your faith once more."


    Robin blinked. "That might be more difficult than you''d think." She warned.


    "It isn''t a penance if it isn''t difficult." Bastian replied. "Someone''s gotta do the damage control, after all. As part of the problem, it is only right for me to be part of the solution as well."


    Robin puffed out a laugh. "Then, I wish you well." She replied airily.


    "That sounds very much like a ''good morning'' that wouldn''t lose to Tolkien''s Hobbit." Bastian said, rolling his eyes.


    "Oh? I don''t recall saying ''good morning''though." Robin pointed out.


    "All right! I can take a hint. I''ll let you rest again..." Bastian laughed, "Good morning, Robin~" He said cheekily on his way out.


    Robin scowled. "Smart alec!" She muttered under her breath.


    The door that had been left ajar suddenly opened a little as Skye walked into the room.


    "Robin!" Skye jumped up onto the side table near the bed.


    "It seems like I''m getting a stream of visitors today, aren''t I?" Robin noted as she scratched behind Skye''s ears.


    "And what can I do for you, little Skye?" She chuckled.


    "Everyone''s gone out except for Keith today." Skye said.


    "Which means?" Robin asked.


    "Which means, I''m hungry!" Skye declared. "I want to eat some of that grilled snake you made back in the jungle."


    "Oh? ...Oh! Right! One moment...." Robin quickly took out several skewers, and placed them atop a ceramic plate. She placed it on the table in front of Skye. "Here you go!"


    "Yaay! Meat!" Skye meowed before digging into the food.


    "It seems you''ve had a visitor in my absence." Keith noted, looking pointedly at Skye as he walked in with the tray of food. Robin nodded.


    "Bastian came by as well, earlier." She said.


    "Anything I should know about?" Keith asked, setting the tray to float above Robin''s l.a.p in a fixed position.


    "It was about what happened before I met you." Robin replied briefly. "After my parents died."


    "Do you want to talk about it?" Keith asked.


    "I''m not sure... Partly yes, and partly no, I guess." Robin replied. "I don''t think there''s anything wrong with talking about it... but part of me...well." Robin sighed, and looked out the window at the blue sky.


    "...I spent six years reliving it all in my nightmares, you know." She told him. "And, now that it''s all over, part of me doesn''t want to remember the bad things any more."


    "I see....Sometimes, talking about such things is a way of ending it as well." Keith said. "Call it my curiousity about you now that I know you''re family."


    Robin considered it, as she ate her breakfast. When she had finished, Keith stood up to take her tray.


    "...It was hard." Robin said.


    "What?" Keith asked.


    "It was hard." Robin repeated. Keith realized that she was going to talk. He set the tray down on a nearby table and sat down to listen.


    "After my parents died...I soon found out that there was no one I could rely upon, other than my brother. Relatives were merely after my inheritance. People I once thought I knew, trying to use me to cozy up to my brother." Robin shuddered, disgusted.

 Chapter 204 - She Speaks of Her Past

    "The teachers just watched it all happen. It felt like a thousand hands were grasping at me, not because they wanted me, but because they wanted the things my brother and I had. And they were willing to stain their hands to get it. Cold-hearted, calculating, manipulative, and selfish, every single one of them."


    "That certainly sounds quite difficult." Keith agreed.


    "Brother had to work, so he couldn''t take care of me as much as he wanted to." Robin continued. "And that was something my uncle-" She shivered. "- he used that fact to get legal custody over me. But he was the worst in the lot..."


    Kenmei listened quietly as Robin slowly narrated what had happened. She had been locked in the cellar, berated and extorted by her cousins, harangued by classmates. There was nowhere she could go to find peace, either in her schoolbooks, or in her bedroom, or even in a bathroom.


    Everything came to a head once she had entered her teenage years. Her uncle got the idea to sell her off as a bride to Dawkins, who had been taken over by the Trader, at that point.


    Every day after school, Dawkins came to visit. He brought over dresses and complimented her long hair. And he talked about how he looked forward to when she was old enough to marry. There was no one she could turn to for help. There was no one she could rely on.


    Robin could bear it no longer. She tore up the dresses. She cut off her long hair, and she ran away that night, to her brother''s house. When he heard of what had happened, he hatched a plan to get custody back from her uncle.


    He had her wear a hidden microphone and placed a hidden camera on her school uniform button. He also used some connections and got some cameras placed with a clear view of the top of the school building. Robin went to school the next morning, while her brother watched everything happen from his desk at work.


    "And then?" Keith asked. At this point, neither Robin, nor Keith realized Christian had halted just outside the room door.


    "Then... my brother began taking vacations often." Robin replied. "I threw myself into self defense training and learned how to fight. I travelled to distant lands learning the different ways of the sword. I learned how to cook, how to make things, how to draw and craft and rescue people. I learned from the best of them."


    "And then?" Keith asked.


    "And then I became friends with this one girl for a single day." Robin smiled warmly. "She was terminally ill, but she still did her very best even up to her last moments, doing what she always dreamed of doing. And that day, whether by chance or by miracle, I was there to help her. After that, I wanted to try living normally, like that girl whose eyes sparkled when she talked about the things she treasured. I felt like I had lost something important, something that could light up my eyes the way that hers had. So, I got a job of my own. I was all ready to get started on it but then...."


    Robin chuckled. "Then, I found myself here."


    ''A girl? Could it possibly be....the one Robin fell in love with?'' Christian wondered.


    Keith sat forward in his chair. "Sounds like you''ve had a rather rough time of it." He said.


    "It''s in the past." Robin replied. "I guess you were right. Somehow, it doesn''t bother me anymore."


    "You don''t have to call me uncle. I understand that, after all that happened, that word might be somewhat distasteful to you." Keith said, trying to be considerate.


    ''Uncle!? Oy, Keith, what are you trying to do?'' Christian thought in surprise.


    "You know..." Robin looked at Keith. "I kind of WANT to call you uncle, now. That person wasn''t human. But, you..." Robin smirked mischievously


    "I guess you''re all right, for an uncle." She joked. "At the very least, you''re human."


    "Thank goodness for that, then!" Keith chuckled. He felt relieved that Robin''s personality hadn''t been twisted by what she had gone through.


    "So, when are you going to tell them?" Robin asked.


    "As soon as I can find a good opportunity." Keith replied. Christian realized Keith was almost done talking with Robin, and took the opportunity to silently retreat before he was caught eavesdropping.


    "I suppose I''ll leave you to rest up, Dear Nephew of mine." Keith said, emphasizing the ''nephew'' part.


    "I''ll see you later, Dear Uncle of mine~!" Robin laughed.


    "Dear dear! Where do you get that cheeky side from?" Keith shook his head in mock surprise.


    "I believe it, came from your side of the family, uncle~!" Robin teased.


    "No way! Unbelievable!" Keith jokingly denied as he left the room with the tray-full of dishes.


    ----


    Out in the hallway, Keith encountered Christian heading towards Robin''s room.


    "Hmm? You''re looking particularly cheerful right now, Keith." Christian said, pretending like he had just arrived. "Did something good happen?"


    "Oh? You could tell, huh?" Keith asked with a bright smile. "Here, follow me to the kitchens and I''ll tell you all about it."


    Christian paused, before eventually deciding to follow Keith down the hallway away from Robin.


    ''I''m not letting you have alone time with Robin that easily.'' Keith thought, pleased at his own genius, with a flicker of mischief gleaming in his eyes for a moment.


    ----------


    Robin waited until Keith had left, then looked down at Skye.


    "Any word from Hikaru?" She asked.


    "Nope. Nothing!" Skye shoot its tail. "I''ll definitely let you know once she says anything though!"


    "How is everyone? Are they okay?" Robin asked.


    "They''re fine, but...it seems like there''s a lot of people that collapsed after you beat the demon king yesterday. Many of them have woken up, but it seems like they''ve lost their memories." Skye informed, scratching at his ear.


    "...The victims?" Robin surmised.


    "Most likely-ah~ that hits the spot!." Skye arched its back pleasantly. Robin had found the itchy spot behind Skye''s ears.


    "Thank you for letting me know." Robin smiled down at Skye. Skye looked up at Robin''s smile, which was tinged with sadness.


    "It''s not your fault." Skye said, lifting its head to lick Robin''s hand.


    "I know. But, those people are gonna have a difficult time after this." Robin sighed. "Despite, logically, I know that it''s not my fault, I still can''t help but sympathise."


    "Oh! That''s a new word! What does sympathize mean?" Skye asked.


    "That....is a bit difficult to describe." Robin leaned back against her pillows, looking up at the bed curtains as she thought.


    "It means seeing someone in pain or difficulty, and thinking ''you are just like me''. Since you see that person as the same as you, imagine yourself being in that situation. It makes you want to help make things better, at least for them."


    "Why?" Skye asked.


    "Because you would want someone to do the same thing for you if you were in their place." Robin replied.


    "There are so many people that pray for help. There are so many who d.e.s.i.r.e to be saved. Sure, we can''t save all of them. But I would still want to answer, even if they are only calling out in their hearts."


    "Sympathy, huh...Robin, your heart is really kind." Skye noted.


    "Huh? Where did that come from?" Robin asked.


    Skye''s eyes narrowed pleasantly. "You care about so many people that you don''t even know, just because seeing them in pain is like seeing yourself in pain. That''s really kind. Nobody in the forest lives like that."


    Robin recalled what she had told Keith earlier. "No....I am not kind." She denied. "There are people that even I can''t forgive-people whom I never wish to see myself becoming. If I was truly kind, I would be able to care even for those people. But I can''t."


    "You really are strange. isn''t it obvious to care for your friends and hate your enemies?" Skye asked.


    "But true kindness goes beyond friends and enemies." Robin looked out the window at the nice day.


    "I don''t understand, but if you say so." Skye said, as it jumped off the bed and left the room.


    Robin sat there silently, once more lost in thought.

 Chapter 205 - She Recalls the Heros Blade

    She was so lost in thought that she almost ignored the signals her body was sending her until it was too late. She had slept an entire day; she had eaten; and now she was met with her third impending physical need: the need to use the bathroom.


    Despite her muscle pain, she jumped up from her bed and dashed out of the room, making it just in time.


    ''Phew! That was close!'' Robin thought as she walked the way she believed led back to her room. But the room she opened up on wasn''t hers. The walls, blankets, and bedcurtains were all completely different.


    "Huh? I was certain it was around here?" Robin muttered to herself, as she decided to check the rooms around her. But none of them were the one she had left.


    "I suppose I''m lost?" Robin mumbled, before making the decision to look for someone who knew where her room was. The only problem was that...she couldn''t find anyone. It was like everyone had disappeared.


    "Hmmm...." Robin glared at the hallway which didn''t seem to end. It was like she was stuck in a dream. But, was it a dream? An illusion? Or possibly...


    Coming to a decision, Robin withdrew a small trinket she had been given by the dwarf children back in Ragnok. It was a wooden carving of Skye. Robin placed it on a nearby cabinet, then dashed headlong down the hallway.


    She came to a stop at the next cabinet.


    "As I suspected." She murmured. On that cabinet, placed exactly like how she had left it, stood the trinket. Picking it up, she looked at the bottom of the trinket. It had the same carver''s mark, down to the last letter.


    "It appears I''ve been caught in some sort of loop." Robin scratched her head, wondering what to do...


    ------


    "Ha!? So Robin is actually..." Christian said, in genuine surprise.


    "Yeah. Robin is my relative: the only one left alive." Keith nodded.


    "Unbelievable." Christian muttered, before patting Keith on the shoulder. "Hey, isn''t that great? You finally found one of your family! I guess you''re not as much of a loser as you thought you were, huh?" He smiled, genuinely glad.


    "Even I''m beginning to feel that I am incredibly lucky." Keith said, his voice quivering with overflowing emotion. Relief, joy, thankfullness: they all had filled his heart to the point that now they threatened to overflow as tears from his eyes.


    "I''m glad for you." Christian patted him on the back. "So, are you going to tell the others? Should I have Ponzu make something special to celebrate?"


    "Should we?" Keith asked. "I mean, I was going to tell the rest of the party, but is that okay?"


    "From what I''ve seen, although I have my reserves, Bastian Lave would not be so petty as to begrudge you for it." Christian pointed out. "I''ll let him know later."


    "Thank you for that, but we''re already at the kitchens, so I can tell him myself." Keith replied, walking ahead. But he paused and turned back when he realized Christian''s pace slowed to a stop.


    "Hey, Christian? What''s wrong?" He asked.


    "..So..." Christian began. "About that secret..." He stopped. "How did Robin respond?"


    Keith''s smile diminished for a moment before a mischievous grin lit up his face.


    "Oh ho~ So you really want to know, huh? Heh heh heh~" He said, with an imitation of a wicked chuckle.


    "Well, sorry about that~ An imm.a.t.u.r.e person like you grasping ahold of the hero''s weakness...Nope! It cannot be done." Keith shook his head, playfully.


    "Wait, weakness? That Robin''s-?" Christian exclaimed, in surprise.


    "While I can say it''s nothing you should worry about, Yer gonna hafta ask my cute little nephew about that yourself~ For the time being, my lips are sealed." Keith replied, as he continued down the hallway.


    Christian thought back to what he had overheard Robin saying earlier. ''So...that girl who died...his first love? Was that his secret?''


    "Ah, but you would do best not to push the issue too much. Persistent men are not always well received. If you do things too forcefully, you will be hated~" Keith joked as he disappeared around the corner.


    "It''s not like that, get your head out of the gutter!" Christian called after him in annoyance. But Keith''s playful joke confirmed it in his mind.


    For some reason, Robin didn''t want Christian to know about the girl who was his first love. Or, at least, Robin didn''t want Christian to know that she''s dead...But why?


    (AN: While he is right about Robin''s first love, he is also mistaken. *sigh* what am I gonna do about that boy...)


    ------


    "S-so speed isn''t the key."


    Robin bent over, gasping for breath. Her overworked muscles were screaming in pain at her sudden abuse of them. Even though Chelsea had healed them the day before, they still required a period of complete rest. Robin sat down in the hallway. No one was there to see her, anyways, so it didn''t matter what she did.


    Suddenly, an idea came to her, and she took out the hero''s blade from her storage bracer.


    "What were you thinking, shoving me in there!" Hikari''s voice immediately sounded out from the sword, which shook in her grasp.


    "You can talk?" Robin said, surprised.


    "Of course I can talk!" Hikari hmmphed. "But no one can hear me unless I''ve been inside their mindscape. You remember that rune, right? That''s my way of establishing a connection."


    "Huh? Oh right. That did happen, didn''t it?" Robin recalled.


    "But, you...Didn''t you know that placing me in that space immobilizes me? While I couldn''t move, I had to wait all that time in that dark space...I couldn''t see a thing; couldn''t tell what was happening outside; and couldn''t tell how long I spent in there....at least leave a night light in there." The voice tapered out towards the end.


    "Ah...I''m sorry about that." Robin apologized. "It''s just that I also couldn''t move, and No one can lift you without your consent. I didn''t want to leave you behind, so I had no choice. I''ve been passed out and only woke up a small while ago. I promise it won''t happen again unless I have your permission."


    "That...well...Hmph! I suppose it couldn''t be helped." Hikari seemed to forgive her. "So? What made you remember me?"


    "Ah, about that..." Robin sighed. "It seems I''m stuck inside some sort of spacial loop?"


    "What? What do you mean?"


    "Yeah, I keep walking and walking, but I always end up where I started from." Robin explained.


    "...Sounds an awful lot like a trap from a certain trickster I know..." Hikaru muttered.


    "Anyways, I was wondering if you might know a way to get out of it." Robin said.


    "As for that, of course I know a way out! You can count on me!" Hikaru replied.


    "Great! So? How are we gonna get out?" Robin asked.


    "Pure Brute force." Hikaru replied.


    "Eh? W''re not gonna destroy the manor or anything, right?" Robin asked cautiously. She didn''t want to damage such a nice mansion. Paying for the damages would be such a pain, after all.


    "Nothing of the sort! We''re just gonna break open the trap is all." Hikaru reassured. "Hold me out in front of you until the front end starts to disappear."


    Robin did so, and was surprised to find the scabbard fading away into nothing not even one foot away from where she was standing.


    "Now what?" Robin asked.


    "Now, you need to supply me with a great burst of energy. We''re gonna blow this spacial recall gate wide open." Hikaru instructed.


    Robin readied herself, standing still for a moment before something shattered in the space before her.


    -------


    "Hmm? What''s wrong?" Bastian asked, looking at his ever faithful butler, who had suddenly jumped and looked a bit pale. The two were in the master study, poring over a map of the city.


    "Ah. I just recalled that I was supposed to meet an old friend, earlier. I forgot to give that one his key." The old man said.


    "An old friend? You still have one or two living, huh? If it''s important, you don''t have to stay with me. I''ll just be here for the time being." Bastian said.


    "While usually I would do my utmost to refuse, this time I''m afraid I must thank you." The butler bowed and hurried quickly out of the room.


    "Dash it all. How many of these are in between me and my room?" Robin g.r.o.a.n.e.d as she sat on a nearby ornamental chair to regain her stamina.


    "Not much longer. He should show up soon." Hikaru noted.


    "He?" Robin asked.


    "Tha-that would be me."

 Chapter 206 - She Meets Fest

    "Hmm?" Robin glanced back to see a figure behind her.


    "...Another person! Ah- ouch!" She jumped a bit, wincing as the muscle pain became more apparent. As it was dangerous holding an unsheathed blade, she sheathed Hikaru for the time being.


    But...She examined the man who was still catching his breath. This person did seem to be somewhat familiar... Robin hit her fist into her open palm as she remembered.


    "Ah! I remember now! You''re Bastian''s butler, right?" She declared.


    "Hah- in-indeed. Among other things, I am considered his butler." The man replied, standing up straighter as he seemed to catch his breath again. Dark Hair and eyes, if it weren''t for how tall he was, Robin might have placed him as a transmigrated Japanese person from earth. But, something in his eyes flashed golden for a moment.


    ''Hmm, that''s some recovery. Is this perhaps the kind of talent true professional butlers cultivate?'' Robin noted. The man who had to lean against the wall was now acting perfectly fine, as if he had not become winded from his obviously long sprint.


    He adjusted his glasses and glanced down at the sheathed blade on Robin''s belt."Indeed, now that I see it, it certainly is the Hero''s blade. It has been a while, Cla¨ªomh Solais." The man said.


    "Please, no one can properly pronounce that archaic name. Call me Hikaru." Hikaru said.


    "Hikaru, huh. very well." the old man said.


    "Um, I believe I am not mistaken, but just in case, Hikaru, you know him?" Robin interjected to ask.


    "Christian, what are you doing spacing out again?" Jasmine smacked him on the shoulder, bringing him out of his daze.


    "Hmm? Ah! Uh, sorry. I can''t seem to concentrate right now." Christian honestly admitted.


    "I can see that! You''ve got something on your mind, don''t you? Well out with it!" Jasmine ordered.


    "Ah, it''s not-" Christian began to deny.


    "What. Did. I. Say?" Jasmine narrowed her eyes at Christian. "Spill everything before I pour a truth serum down your throat again."


    Christian shuddered, and relented.


    "I can''t stop thinking about yesterday''s event." He admitted. "Robin ran himself ragged right in front of my eyes. And I couldn''t do anything..."


    "Would you have preferred to stay back in the dwarf kingdom?" Jasmine asked.


    "What-no! Absolutely not! " Christian immediately denied.


    "We were all there, Christian. I, as well, could do nothing but watch." Jasmine pointed out, then added a jab at the end. "So don''t think that you''re special just because you couldn''t do anything."


    "I wasn''t saying that." Christian shook his head. "It''s just....why did Robin have to go and do that?"


    "Do what?" Jasmine asked.


    "Why did he have to save me?" Christian asked with a bitter expression. "We had already pre-established that I was going to be the bait, so then why-"


    "Did Robin ever say he agreed to that?" Jasmine asked, cutting him off.


    "Heeh?" Christian tilted his head in confusion.


    "I said did Robin ever agree that you would be the bait" Jasmine asked again. Christian thought back for a moment.


    "Well, no, but I thought that it was implied that I was allowed to come along because I offered to-" Christian was cut off.


    "Robin specifically said: ''Do as you like'', didn''t he?" Jasmine said. "While I''m not sure what made him change his mind, he had also said that he wouldn''t take you anywhere where you would die."


    "So he...why would he do that?" Christian asked, even more confused at this point.


    "Thinking of it from his perspective, yesterday could very well have been the day of his death." Jasmine said, pouring herself and Christian a cup of tea.


    "Here is what I think." She said, handing Christian a cup. "I think that Robin had already prepared for the occasion, in case he were to die."


    "What?" Christian asked, dumbfounded.


    "As someone who might very well die, Robin allowed you to come along, not because you''d make a good bait. But, because, no matter what cost, he had decided to ensure that you would live through it."


    Christian stared into his cup of tea, with a somewhat lost expression. Robin had already decided it back then?


    "That is why he said, ''do as you like.'' He had already made up his mind to shoulder all of the consequences." Jasmine finished, sipping her tea.


    "But, why? Why would he go so far?" Christian asked.


    "Do you not consider yourself one of his friends?" Jasmine asked.


    "Why, of course I do-" he began.


    "Then what is the problem?" Jasmine asked, with a scowl. "Perhaps, he thought that dying while saving one of his dear friends wasn''t a bad way to end things. At the very least, if Robin died then, he would not have to worry about you dying by his own hands were the Trader to take over."


    "But....that''s..."


    ''That''s too sad.'' Christian''s jaw clenched, and his voice grew hoarse as he tried to get past the lump in his throat.


    "Does he think so little of himself?" Christian finally spoke, "Didn''t he take us seriously, when we told him to rely on us? Didn''t he think we''d be sad if he were to die as well?"


    Why else do you think Robin is still alive?" Jasmine asked. "Robin is a person well-grounded in reality. He doesn''t think little of himself. But because we are probably the only friends he has, we are much more dear to him."


    Jasmine glanced over at Christian. "Back in Ekkinshire, your parents and I gathered that he did not have an easy life growing up. In his perspective, he could only trust his older brother. Yet, he''s still struggling to make the world before his eyes an even slightly better place, despite all that." Christian had fallen silent in contemplation.


    "That''s why it is probably very difficult for him to have friends that he can open up to, and place his trust upon." Jasmine stood up and stretched her arms. "Perhaps I am overthinking things, but that''s my take on it. You don''t need to spend brainpower to figure out why he did it. It''s not as if he doesn''t know you now that we''ve been together for this long." She walked to the door. "But I think that Robin...when he blocked that blow for you, he showed just how much he treasures even the least of his friends."


    And she left the room, congratulating herself for jabbing at all of Christian''s sore spots, and labelling him the least of Robin''s friends. But, she didn''t realize that Christian had taken her talk very differently.


    "I see....so that''s what it was." Christian closed his eyes and sighed. "Robin, why is it that only I can''t seem to understand you?" Even Jasmine had been able to figure it out.


    "I guess I''ll have to thank her later." Christian muttered as he attacked the stack of paperwork before him, with a renewed energy. If Robin did not want to tell him yet, it was fine. Christian would wait no matter how long it took...


    ------


    "Yes, I know him. Allow me to introduce him to you. This is Phaestu, originator of traps, trapping magic, games and entertainment, who, for some reason, is working as a butler for Lave Mercantiles'' family." Hikaru said.


    "Please, call me Fest." the butler asked.


    "Oh? So is he live some sort of deity?" Robin asked, thinking of the greek gods.


    "I am no such thing!" Fest instantly denied. "Please, don''t even insinuate that sort of idea. I am not worthy of being even God''s shoe-shiner."


    "Huh...so you''ve met him, then?" Robin asked.


    "Indeed I have. He is fully deserving of his title. And I am fully aware of my place." Fest nodded. "Are you trying to meet him?"


    "Hmm...not right now." Robin said. "But, if our current business doesn''t end well, I may indeed wish to seek him out. I am curious though...if you are not a god, then what are you?"


    "It seems nothing can escape you. Indeed, I cam be considered a being of a higher soul than you." Fest replied.


    "Higher soul?" Robin asked.


    "Have you ever heard of the term, ''mind over matter''?" Fest asked. "As a reward for my contributions to this world, I was raised to this state. Thus, I cannot die of poisons, or illness, My life span is greatly increased, and my soul cannot be taken over by the likes of lesser beings such as the Trader."


    "Oh, so you were aware." Robin replied.


    "I had caught as much in an information trap." Fest indicated.

 Chapter 207 - She Wakes Up-

    "Then, I''m sure you are aware of the person behind this...black market, shall we call it?" Robin asked, tilting her head. "Seeing that your information traps have managed to grasp such an obscured information as a parasitic soul, identifying a mastermind should be quite easy in comparison, yes?"


    Fest lowered his sight. "To be honest, I am well aware, indeed. However my hands have been tied. I cannot break my own words." he admitted. "But that is not the reason I am here."


    "Oh? There was a reason?" Robin asked.


    "You! Burning through over a hundred of my trap cards to summon me here, aren''t you the wasteful one, Hikaru!" Fest scolded.


    "It was your oversight that got my owner stuck in one of your horrible traps to begin with, Fest." Hikaru answered. "You should have granted my wielder a key the moment we entered this place."


    "Guh! That is certainly so, but it couldn''t be helped this time!" Fest sighed. "You need to be awake to receive the key in the first place, otherwise, it won''t work!"


    "Then do so!" Hikaru ordered. "And be quick about it. My wielder''s body has already been overburdened by this useless space trap you''ve put us through."


    "Yes, yes, I''ll do so immediately. Excuse me, hero-san? Could you please look me in the eyes for a moment?"


    "Hmm?" Robin glanced at his eyes. She realized they were a light golden color. ''Wait, didn''t I already realize this earlier? How-'' Robin began to think before a light shone from them, causing her to blink at it.


    "It''s done. Now please don''t go about breaking my protective tools again." Fest sighed as he walked towards a nearby stairway.


    "Hmm? Did Fest always have white hair?" Robin muttered.


    "Give it up. As a higher spirit, he has truly encompassed the phrase, ''mind over matter.'' If he wishes to appear young, he will look young. If he wishes to look old, he will look old." Hikaru advised. "Even his eyes and hair color can be fully changed around."


    "...Doesn''t that sound like he''d make a great ninja?" Robin asked.


    "Normal folks would have thought of a master spy or an assassin. You sure are an odd one." Hikaru chuckled.


    "I''m the hero. By definition it appears we are not allowed to be normal." Robin rebutted, walking down the hallway to her open bedroom door.


    "Mmn! That''s true enough!" Hikaru instantly agreed.


    "Besides, spy or assassin alike, he''d need a compelling reason to become one." Robin added. "He seems more like the kind of fellow that makes secret passages for fun, or just in case, rather than out of necessity."


    "Well, he always did like to tinker with things." Hikaru said thoughtfully.


    "Ah, finally.... I''m back..." Robin sighed, as she recognized the room she had stayed in.


    But, before she got back into bed, she frowned. All that exercise had made her sweat. Moreover, to move from exercising to instant rest was not a good idea. So, painful though it was, she did a simple round of stretching to prevent cramps.


    "Cleanse!" She uttered, getting rid of all evidences of her small trip, aside from her aching muscles. Satisfied, she slipped back into the bed for another well-earned rest.


    -----


    "So? When is our benefactor going to come out?" One of three figures asked, confronting Bastian Lave. His visible transition from man to horse made it obvious that He was a centaur. Of the other two, one was a beautiful woman dressed in what appeared to be a feathered cloak, and the other was an introverted cloaked child with red eyes.


    "Even you couldn''t defeat the Trader, right? Don''t be unreasonable. Even that person needs some time to recover from the battle." Bastian replied, with a sigh. "While healing magic can fix injuries, it can''t do anything about exhaustion, you know that."


    "Hmmph! We know. Otherwise we''d have gone to look for that person earlier." The beautiful woman responded. "We do want to know how long we need to wait, however, since one of us is about to enter her hunger state."


    "If you''re hungry, then our Lave mercantiles has more than enough warehouses dedicated to food." Bastian said.


    "No...human food has no life...I need live prey...." The third one said quietly.


    "Ah. Livestock, huh...." Bastian winced. Lave Mercantiles did buy food, but most of it was already processed food, meat from slaughtered animals and the like. While they had an agreement with certain ranches, it was not like they would agree to sacrifice their livestock to an Arachnes, guardian or not. He would have to purchase them, himself.


    "How many beasts the size of a cow would work?" He asked, trying to determine the size of the Arachnes'' appetite. If he could, he would rather settle things with money.


    The second figure, patted the Araches on the shoulder.


    "Looks like you don''t know much about Arachnes like Ruby." The woman smiled proudly, as she patted the head of the childlike figure. "Unlike we birdfolk, Arachnes live off the blood of living creatures. During their hunger period, any creature they see will become their food until they themselves are satisfied. I''ve known entire herds to have disppeared due to the feeding frenzy of a single Arachne."


    "Any idea on what size of herd there needs to be?" Bastian asked again, trying to figure out if they needed to use a magic transport to fly Ruby out into the wilderness so that she didn''t resort to preying upon the citizens.


    "No idea." The Birdwoman replied. "As my kind eats three square meals a day like yours, we have never needed to slip into a feeding frenzy. And Ruby, here, has no idea of anything like numbers when she''s feeding."


    "Well, it was worth a try..." Bastian frowned. "How long do you think before you''d need to go look for food?" He asked Ruby.


    "....Um...At most, one week. Any longer, and I won''t be able to resist." Ruby replied, her voice barely audible.


    "...I would prefer if our Savior were to emerge soon. Though we three were all captives, I do not enjoy being away from my clan." The Centaur wrinkled his nose in distaste.


    "Oya~ I''ll second that one, Marcus!" The bird woman agreed. "It is somewhat nerve-wracking being separated from the flock."


    "A debt of honor is a debt of honor, though." Marcus the centaur sighed. "We''ll come back tomorrow. Come along Ruby...Flit."


    "Roger that, Capitan! Time to go sightseeing for souvenires before we leave~." The Bird-woman''s smooth voice, though pleasant, carried a somewhat jumpy tone within it.


    "Hmph!" The Centaur snorted. "With what money? As I recall, just earlier today we were still slaves. If not for Bastian Lave, we would all still be under someone''s thumb." He said. Then he turned his head away, disdaining to speak further with this flighty female.


    "Eeeh! But, then how are we going to sample the local food!?" Flit complained.


    "Weren''t you going to buy souvenires?" Marcus asked pointedly.


    Bastian clutched his hand to his forehead as he felt a migraine beginning to emerge.


    "Here. Enough for food, lodging, AND souvenires, if spent well. Don''t stuff yourselves on street stall foods." He pushed out three identical small sacks of coins.


    "Now, off with you three. Come back tomorrow."


    --------


    The next morning, Robin woke up rather early, and stretched her arms. After resting for two whole days, she had slept long enough.


    ''Gurgle''


    ...And she was hungry.


    Robin got dressed and peeked out of her room. As there was no one around, she headed downstairs, looking for the location of the kitchens. However, she did not get too far before she was discovered...


    "Teacher? You''re up?!" A voice exclaimed from behind her.


    "SHH!!" Robin glared at the surprised Ponzu, who stood in the middle of the hallway. "Don''t wake anyone up!"


    "Ah! Sorry!" Ponzu lowered his voice. "But, teacher, why are you up? Aren''t you supposed to be resting?"


    Robin sighed. "It can''t be helped if I get hungry..." Then she realized. "Wait, if you''ve arrived here, then you must know where the kitchens are, right?"


    "Um...sure. But, even so, teacher, please allow me to make you breakfast. If Magi Jasmine knows I let you help in the kitchens, she might turn me into a frog! She gets scary when she''s angry!" Ponzu begged.


    Robin thought about how Jasmine might look if she got angry...


    "It can''t be helped. In order to protect my only student, I will back off." She conceded and then added. "But, please hurry it up. After two days of sleeping, I''m starving!"


    As if to confirm her statement, Robin''s stomach chose that moment to give a pronounced growl.


    "At once, teacher!" Ponzu saluted, grinning cheerfully.

 Chapter 208 - She Buys Meat Skewers

    Ponzu easily cobbled together a satisfying spread, which Robin was happy enough to eat standing right in the kitchens. Ponzu finished cleaning up before joining Robin to eat an early breakfast. Before he tucked in, however, he glanced up at Robin with a gauging, hesitant expression.


    "Out with it. Anyone with half a brain can see you''ve got something you want to ask." Robin ordered dryly.


    "I''ve been seen through..." Ponzu chuckled, slightly embarassed. "It''s nothing important."


    "Obviously, or else you''d have already asked by now." Robin smirked.


    "Then...are there many more recipes in your world?" Ponzu asked.


    "...Of course there are! But, I wasn''t training to be a chef, so I only know the more common recipes." Robin replied.


    "These godly recipes are only common recipes!?" Ponzu exclaimed in surprise.


    "Mmn. If it uses rare or expensive


    ingredients then I didn''t learn it. I wasn''t aiming to be a chef, after all. Cooking is more of a hobby to me, you see. I enjoy it, but I''m not going to go out of my way to learn recipes that I won''t even use." Robin replied.


    "Then, comparing the ingredients from this world and yours, which do you think is better?" Ponzu asked.


    "This world for sure." Robin replied in a heartbeat.


    "Huh? Why?" Ponzu asked.


    "While cooking is indeed leaps and bounds away from here, the quality of the food has dropped considerably. There are not many places where the food supply hasn''t been tampered with, either using genetic modifications or covering the crops in pesticides that cause harm when built up inside the body." Robin sighed.


    "This world, on the other hand, is more pure. Instead of using poison, you use magic wards to keep harmful insects away. Instead of tampering with nature, you work with it instead. This has helped you to preserve and even improve the taste of the foods you eat. They are strong due to that, and will not easily die to plant disease or rot." She explained.


    "If that''s so, then doesn''t that mean that all this time, Teacher has been eating poisoned food!?" Ponzu asked.


    "It''s only dangerous when allowed to build up." Robin replied. "In fact, among my brother''s belongings, there''s probably the only natural plot of farming land left. But who knows how long it will last. The poisons used for centuries have already penetrated the earth''s crust, poisoning once-pure springs, and corrupting the water table..."


    Robin stared off into space, a serious, somewhat helpless expression on her face. "Yet no one sees that the food supply gradually being poisoned. The water supply is no good...at a certain point, even the air will become too hazardous to breathe. But no one wishes to address these problems.."


    "Why?" Ponzu asked. "Isn''t poisoned food a very serious matter?"


    "Because those who own the food are only looking for profit. How to grow more, cheaper, faster, and how to cheaply prevent damages: that is what they are concerned with. They have no concern over whether their produce will be good for others in the end." Robin sighed, despondent, as she looked morosely at her plate. For a moment, she appeared like a weather-beaten adventurer staring dazedly into his mug of beer after a long arduous journey


    "Listen, Ponzu. A Hero can protect a country from outside enemies. But it cannot save a people consumed by greed. Until they see the value in a clean food supply, they will not put any effort into changing the status quo."


    "Such a shame..." Ponzu sighed.


    Robin considered something for a long moment, then looked up. "You wanted to stand neck to neck with the top chefs in my world?" She asked.


    "At the very least, I''d like to receive their guidance." Ponzu replied.


    "Then..." Robin thought for a moment. She reached over and patted Ponzu on the shoulder. "Once I return, I''ll find a way of sending you a professional''s recipe book."


    "What? you mean it!?" Ponzu exclaimed.


    "Yeah. I mean it." Robin replied, smiling fondly before heading out of the kitchen.


    Ponzu''s face beamed as he danced about in delight for a moment. But his smile faded as the reality set in.


    "Once he returns...which means...teacher will not be here then?" He said, in the empty kitchen as he looked in the direction Robin had left.


    -----------


    Robin slipped out of the house, intending on going for a look around town. So far, she hadn''t seen anyone else out and about. So, she was pretty confident in not being noticed...that is, until...


    "Ahem! Going somewhere, Young Hero?" A voice sounded from behind her. Robin sighed and turned around.


    "Fest, you know you really should stop startling people like that. Those with weak hearts might die of shock, you know." She scolded lightheartedly.


    "I am aware. However, aren''t you going to go see young master Bastian before you leave?" He prodded, pointedly.


    "I''m not leaving. I just wanted to take a look around town for a bit." Robin defended. "Besides, it''s really early. It won''t be too late to see him after he''s had his breakfast." She reasoned.


    "You''re still avoiding him?" Fest asked, noting Robin''s expression.


    Robin stood silent, then sighed. "I guess it does look that way, huh..." She muttered, before looking up at Fest.


    "You probably already know, but I knew him before. But, I only knew the him that was held captive. While I can''t blame him, I also can''t ignore my own feelings. For the time being, I want some time alone to come to terms with everything. I am not avoiding him. When I''m ready, I''ll come and see him on my own. You can tell him that."


    "Then, perhaps while you''re out, you could go and see the three who''ve been waiting for you to recover." Fest suggested, accepting her answer for the time being. Might as well have her reduce the number of headaches Bastian needed to face.


    "Three? ...Who?" Robin asked.


    Fest smiled. "The Demon guardians, of course."


    --------


    "Yum~! There is something about cooked food that I just can''t seem to get enough of!" Flit gushed as she took another bite out of her meat skewer.


    "Weren''t you going to go buy souvenires?" Marcus asked. "If you keep eating those, you won''t have enough money for even a single toy."


    "But I can''t help it! They taste so good!" Flit protested.


    "Dead food is ...unappetizing." Ruby gave her opinion.


    "Geez! All right, fine! This next one will be the last one, okay?" Flit exhaled in exasperation.


    "You said that ten skewers ago." Marcus pointed out.


    "Et tu, Marcus?" Flit replied with tears in her eyes. Marcus sighed.


    "Hurry it up. We''ve still got to head to Lave Mercantiles after this." He urged. "We''ve already given you enough time. Any more skewers and you won''t be able to fly back to your flock''s nesting grounds."


    "Fine, fine! I got it..." Flit replied, looking heartbroken. As they were about to leave, a new customer wearing a hat came up to the food stall.


    "One set of skewers for me." The person said before turning to look at the three demon guardians. "And three more sets for these three."


    "What! Seriously!?" Flit replied, brightening up again. "You''re treating us!? Yay~! You''re a really good guy, mister!" She said, grabbing onto the person''s hands happily into a handshake.


    Marcus looked at the person with a somewhat cautious gaze. "Who are you?" He asked. His hand involuntarily drew near to the sword hanging from his human waist.


    "Marcus, right?" The person asked. "And you must be Flit and Ruby." The other two widened their eyes in surprise. Ruby shyly shrank back behind Marcus.


    "Certainly, those are our names. But, how do you know them?" Marcus admitted, frowning. He did not like the other person seeming so familiar with them while they were left in the dark.


    "Now calm down. You and i have certainly never met before. However, I was given your names and description by someone else. I''m glad that my guess was correct and that I didn''t get the wrong people."


    Marcus put his hand upon his blade. "Do not dodge my question. Speak. Who. Are. You?" He said once again. He had no interest in getting caught up in the foolishness that humanity was known to create.


    "Haha, how refreshingly straightforward." The person chuckled, lifting her head. "Hello. I''m Robin. I heard you are looking to meet me?"

 Chapter 209 - She Parts on Good Terms

    Marcus, Flit, and Ruby all paused, wondering what Robin had meant.


    "The person we are looking for is our savior." Marcus replied cautiously. "If what you say is true, then you''re saying that you''re our savior?"


    "If you''re looking for the one who defeated the Trader, then, yes. That would be me." Robin replied, nonchalantly, leaning up against a nearby wall.


    "So? Why are you looking for me?" She asked bluntly, tilting her head. "As I recall, a hero is not too welcome amongst demonkind."


    "A grossly exagerrated generalization." Marcus snorted. "Do you think we would renege on a life debt merely because you are the hero? Our tribes are honourable, repaying kindness and injury in kind as they come. If you truly are our savior, then do you have any proof?"


    "Proof, huh..." Robin replied, pondering. She lifted her sword to show them the design upon the hilt. "Would this count as proof, I wonder?" She asked.


    "The symbol of the just one!" Flit gasped. Inside the silver beam of light, this very symbol had shone with a golden light. The three demon guardians looked at each other, then nodded.


    "We will accept your proof." Marcus replied, removing his hand from his sword.


    After receiving the skewers, Robin and the three found a nearby place where they could sit down and talk without being overheard. When she passed out the skewers, however, Marcus and Ruby unanimously passed theirs over to Flit, who was only too happy to indulge in the treat.


    "Not a fan of skewers, I take it?" Robin noted.


    "Dead meat is ...unappealing." Ruby replied.


    "Such food does not agree with my stomach." Marcus replied. Robin instantly realized. ''That''s right. Horses do not have a constitution that can handle meat. Centaurs would probably need a similar diet.''


    "Don''t get me wrong." Marcus interrupted her thoughts. "We centaurs have two stomachs, and are perfectly able to eat meat. It''s just that I personally have an aversion to it."


    "Oh? Would you prefer I get you something else?" Robin asked.


    "No, it''s fine. Rather, I''d feel guilty being any more indebted to you than I already am." Marcus replied.


    "If it''s about the Trader incident, then you don''t need to worry about that." Robin replied. "I didn''t meet with you three because I wanted to call in any accidental debts. Rather, I wanted to ask you three about something unrelated to that incident."


    "Ho?" Marcus replied, interested.


    "Oya? Is that for real?" Flit asked, a twinkle in her eyes. Next to her, All of Ruby''s eyes widened in surprise.


    "You three are Demon Protectorates of the Demon Lord, is that correct?" Robin asked.


    "Mnn. That is indeed the case." Marcus nodded.


    "Then I''ll be frank." Robin began. "I am trying to find my way back to my world, but none of the magicians in the human kingdom know how to return me. That is why I would like to speak with the current Demon Lord to see if she might know of a way to return me. But, in order to speak with the Demon Lord, I need your seals of approval. I understand that this might be a difficult request. I am not asking this of you as a form of repayment. If you truly do not approve of me, then I will work hard to earn your approval. I only ask that you give me a chance to prove myself."


    The three demon guardians looked at each other and nodded.


    "There''s no need to do such a thing, Hero. We are more than willing to give you our seals of approval." Marcus said, reaching out his hand.


    "We have no doubts about your character. Daughter of the Former Hero." Marcus said, handing his seal over. "I myself fought beside him against the Trader fifteen years ago. We centaurs value honor and honesty the most. Therefore, we bear no ill will towards the Hero who helped free us from the Trader''s clutches."


    Robin froze. Her identity had been revealed. "H-how did you know?" She asked, surprised.


    "Ara? Daughter you say? How surprising! You looked the spitting image of the Hero''s son!" Flit exclaimed in surprise.


    "We Centaurs have a good sense of smell." Marcus replied, placing his fist over his heart in apology. "Please forgive me for my previous attitude, I was overly cautious earlier."


    "It''s fine...But, I''d appreciate it if you didn''t spread that information around." Robin sighed. "I don''t want to be chased by suitors everywhere I go. It would be troublesome to have to deal with such things when all I want to do is go home."


    "Understood. Your secret is safe with me." Marcus replied. Then he glanced over at Flit, sternly in warning as he continued. "Your secret is safe with all of us."


    Flit froze. It was such a juicy piece of gossip, but from what Marcus said, it was apparent he would hunt her down if she even breathed a word of it. She sighed.


    "Aish! Chalk it up to bad luck." She clucked her tongue. "Since I am in your debt, I understand. I won''t say anything." While Flit was a bit flighty in temperament, once she promised to do something, she would see it through.


    "Entering hunger period...even if I wanted to...won''t be able to speak..." Ruby replied, showing her good will. Thus, the three handed over their seals, and promised not to breath a word of Robin''s secret.


    "What''s the matter? Do you think that they''re fake?" Flit asked, inquiring about Robin''s expression.


    "No...It''s just...I''ve spent so long trying to get each of the former seals, that now that I''ve gotten three at once, it feels a bit unreal." Robin replied. "Everything is going so well that now I''m starting to fear it''s going too well, and that something horrible is about to happen soon that''ll bring me back down to ground again."


    Marcus and Flit laughed, while Ruby faintly smiled.


    "We birdfolk have a saying we teach our hatchlings." Flit smiled. "It''s ''If you know how to land, you need not fear the fall. Often enough, the dive will lift you higher than you could ever have flown merely gliding.'' If it''s easy now, accept it. If it becomes difficult later, accept it as well. Only once you accept it, can you adjust your feathers for the winds to carry you aloft."


    "Wise words. Who did you steal them from?" Marcus asked.


    "My grandmother pfft-te-te! Wait, why did you instantly assume they weren''t mine?" Flit asked, aggrieved by Marcus'' lack of faith.


    "We centaurs are realists, not optimists. Your temperament is not grounded enough to see things so objectively yet." Marcus replied bluntly.


    "Flit...not smart." Ruby agreed.


    "No way..." Flit fell to the ground defeated in spirit.


    "Ignore her. She likes to over-exaggerate things." Marcus told Robin. Robin was silent for a moment.


    "Pfft!" She burst out laughing. It was such a jolly round of laughter that Ruby smiled and even Flit couldn''t keep her morose act up any longer, laughing along with Robin.


    "Thank you!" She said, wiping away the tears in her eyes. "I needed that."


    "No, thank you, Hero Robin. For saving us three, we are eternally grateful." Marcus said, with a bow. "It seems we must be on our way. Ruby needs to eat. Flit needs to fly home. And I myself need to go and seek out my herd. Fare you well, Robin. If you are ever near my herd, you are always welcome to come and visit."


    "Aye, my flocks eeries will welcome you.!" Flit agreed.


    "My younglings...will not eat you." Ruby added. "You will be granted safe passage in our lands."


    "Farewell!" Flit waved as the three of them headed for the city gates.


    "Safe travels!" Robin wished them well, waving until she couldn''t see them anymore.


    "Now that that is done," Robin did a round of stretching. "It''s about time...shall we do a little bit of shopping, I wonder?" She grinned as she set her sights upon the nearby marketplace, eyes gleaming.

 Chapter 210 - She Detains the Beasts I

    Robin''s shopping trip was going well, and she had nearly toured the entire shopping district. But her fun was cut short by the sound of thunder. The ground shook. People could be seen fleeing from around the corner, while knights were seen heading towards the epicenter.


    ''Hoh. That''s quite the ruckus!'' Robin noted, overlooking the scene from a doorway. ''...Should I go take a look?'' She pondered.


    -------


    "Quick! Where are the water mages!?"


    "Is anyone proficient in earth magic?! We need to clear the rubble to search for any victims!"


    A large warehouse made of stone and wood had suddenly exploded. Flames were quickly beginning to spread among the newly wrecked storage place.


    ''Hmmm? Why does it smell like somebody burned their toast?''


    "Can anyone use earth magic? Please, we need help!" A soldier called out to the surrounding crowds that were watching from a safe distance.


    "Um...If you''re okay with me, then I do know a bit of earth magic." A voice sounded from behind the soldier.


    "Ah, thank goodness-Wait, who the heck are you!?" The soldier exclaimed, seeing a young man dressed in green with a peculiar brown feathered mask upon his face.


    "What, you haven''t heard?" Robin asked. "I''m Hero Robin. If you have any questions about my background then you can ask Bastian Lave of Lave Mercantiles. He can vouch for my identity. But for now, there is not much time for talk. Shall we begin moving the debris out of the way, for now?"


    "Eh-right. I''d be grateful for the help!" The soldier replied, embarrassed at his improper display. Robin began by spreading her mana over the area, to examine the damage.


    "It looks like there''s no need to be alarmed. There are no victims within the rubble.... Huh?" Robin tilted her head, trying to understand what her mana was sensing. Her eyes widened as she shouted to the other mages.


    "Get away from the building! Quick!"


    "What is it?" The soldier asked.


    "Something''s coming from below!" Robin called out, beginning to deploy a barrier in front of the ruins. Hikaru had taught it to her in passing that morning, while she was shopping, but Robin had never made one larger than a hand before this.


    The earth began shaking once again. The surrounding mages took the hint, and began to move away.


    "Hurry! Get out of there!" Robin urged, as the water mages ran towards her. When the last mage passed her, she finished the last part of the spell.


    "[Spatial Barrier]" She said, her voice echoing with imbued mana. Underneath Robin''s voice, Hikaru muttered. ''[Light Shield]''. This spread out visibly, covering Robin''s spatial barrier so that the people could see where it was.


    ''Hikaru...What is this?'' Robin muttered, looking at the glowing symbol that was the same design as the one on Hikaru.


    ''What? It''s not bad to do a bit of advertising now and then. The Hero should be given credit where it is due. This is also part of justice.'' Hikaru replied.


    ''You and I should have a talk after this.'' Robin sighed, before strengthening her barrier with magic. It was none too soon. A second explosion burst from the ground of the warehouse, scattering earth and flames into the surroundings. Due to Robin''s barrier there were no casualties, but everyone was shocked to see a great magic beast in the center of town.


    It stood 18 ft high, with heavy armored segments, like an armadillo. Yet its face and horns resembled a rhinoceros. Steam billowed from its nose as it stood there, to recover from breaking through the stone ground.


    "It''s a Rhyllos! Run!"


    "What''s a Rhyllos doing here!?"


    "The city is doomed!"


    "Which insane idiot thought to drag a Rhyllos here!?"


    "Hikaru, I have a question..." Robin asked slowly.


    ''Yes, what is it?'' Hikaru asked.


    "What''s a Rhyllos?" Robin asked. The people in the surroundings almost unanimously felt like collapsing to the ground.


    "What the heck! You''re the Hero, but you don''t even know what a Rhyllos is!?" The soldier exclaimed.


    "Is it tasty?" Robin asked, pretending to be stupid.


    "No one''s ever been able to kill one, so no one knows!" The soldier replied, feeling disillusioned.


    "I see..." Robin nodded. "Then, I''ll take this one down so we can find out once and for all. But I''ll have to leave the smaller magic beasts up to you while I''m dealing with it."


    "What? What do you mean smaller magic beasts?" The soldier asked.


    WHAM!


    The Rhyllos bashed into the spatial barrier that Robin had set up, causing the soldier to yell in surprise. Several magic beasts filed out from the hole in the shattered ground.


    "Those ones." Robin replied.


    -----


    A little bit earlier, in another underground part of the city, Keith and Christian were tying up the men they had knocked unconscious.


    "Did we get all of them?" Christian asked Keith.


    "Looks like it. If you want to be sure, maybe you should just camp down here for a few weeks or so." Keith joked.


    "Um, no. While I''m sure the underground is quite lovely for rats, I''m pretty sure I''m not included amongst indigenous underground species." Christian shot back, as he tightened the rope bindings. "Do you think Jasmine''s got the other end already finished up?"


    "If she hasn''t blown the sewers sky-high, then probably." Keith surmised.


    "You don''t think..." The question remained unasked, but that didn''t stop the other from understanding it.


    "...At this point, I wouldn''t put it past her." Keith had no choice but to reply. "Let''s hurry up and move these brigands out before we''re burried alive."


    ---------------


    "Hurry up and bring the children out!" Jasmine told the illegally enslaved people that she was rescuing. Her expression was dark. Those who were strongest had been given weapons to protect the weakest while they escaped.


    The blasted dark guild had even kidnapped children of different races. Every single one of them had been branded with an illegal slave crest that had taken the majority of her mana capacity to remove. Even after draining an entire box-full of mana potions, there were still several left whom she had yet to erase the crest on.


    Even so, how wicked the dark guild was! All sorts of binding spells were prevailent among the soldiers and peacekeeper brigades. But slavery crests were a forbidden magic that only the magi were allowed to know about.


    At this point, she couldn''t guarantee that a magi wasn''t involved in this. That meant that a bunch of other forbidden spells might very well be secretly circulating about, under the very nose of the Magi Circle. Just thinking about it was enough to drench Jasmine''s back in cold sweat. A thorough investigation would need to take place on how much the dark guild had gotten ahold of.


    "Dash it all!" She glared at the few remaining crests left to release. ''The magic beasts I released from the forbidden beast pens should be enough to keep the dark guild on its toes, but I''m not sure how long it will be before they turn back around and head towards this place.''


    "Savior, please hurry!" A freed slave begged.


    "Savior, please! One of our scouts says he caught sight of a magic beast not far away from us!" Another one informed.


    In Jasmine''s defense, she hadn''t checked inside all of the pens, before releasing them. She had merely unravelled the magic binding circles that were placed upon the beast pen doors. Then she had used magic to conceal the path to the slave dungeons.


    In other words, if there weren''t innocent people that she had to worry about, she would have razed the very foundations of the dark guild to below sea level.


    "Dash it all!" Jasmine''s frown deepened as she grit her teeth in frustration.


    ------------


    "So? Why are we in an abandoned warehouse?" Liam asked Chelsea, baffled at her need to bring him to strange locations.


    "We''re here to rescue people!" Chelsea announced.


    Liam looked pointedly around at the sight of the empty building. "And how are we going to do that?" He asked, bemused.


    "The same way we did last time." Chelsea''s mysterious smile deepened. "You are going to dig."

 Chapter 211 - She Defeats the Rhyllos

    "Dig?" Liam asked, tilting his head. "Do people have a habit of burying their victims alive?"


    "Not anybody good, at any rate." Chelsea said, sighing a bit. "And yet,,I can assure you, these folk are very much alive."


    "I never said I was reluctant. Just...curious, I suppose." Liam mused as his hand morphed into a dragon claw. "Digging it is, then."


    ------


    Robin unsheathed her sword as the Rhyllos once more charged into the shield, attempting to charge the crowd of folks before it. After communicating silently with Hikaru, she eyed the beast, making calculations.


    Robin glanced to her left and her right. Already, the smaller magic beasts who were smart enough were making their way around the spatial barrier. Only the Rhyllos continued to charge at the shield, as if it couldn''t believe there was something that it could not break through.


    "Mister Soldier, I will take care of the Rhyllos." Robin said, drawing a line in the cobblestone with her blade as if she were drawing in the mud with a stick. "Do not let the others cross this line. Understand?" Her last word was barked out military style.


    "Yes sir!" The soldier barked back out of habit, before realizing what he had done.


    "Good. It''ll only be a minute." Robin replied as she dashed over to a nearby wall. After ninja-walking up the side to gain height, she pushed away from the wall, stepping on some small barriers that she created in the air in order to slip over the wall she had made.


    The soldier stared dazedly at Robin''s dramatic exit, or was it entrance? Either way, the growling of the magical beasts soon brought him back to the present.


    "You heard the man! we need to hold this place for one whole minute!" He called out to the soldiers under him. "We have our orders. Charge!"


    ------


    Jasmine felt bloated. Even though a mana potion was a mere mouthful per dose, after going through two cases of them, even she would find it hard to keep drinking.


    ''One more. Just one more left!'' She persisted, sending her mana into the slave crest.


    "Miss, I am just a nobody. Please go now. I would hate to see you hurt for my sake." The old man said, feeling anxious for her.


    "I refuse. If I can save all of you, why would I settle for one less?" Jasmine said with a frown. As a magi, abandoning even one person was out of the question. With a final spurt, she managed to unlock the slave crest, causing it to scatter into magic particle in the air.


    "Come on then! Let''s get out of here!" Jasmine said to the brave group of freed slaves.


    This group had remained behind to help guard her, even though they knew that if a magic beast came, they could not defeat it as they were. Even those who were used to fighting had lost most of their strength with the minimal food they had been given, and the lack of exercise.


    ''If we hurry, we can make it out before the beasts find their way here-''


    Grrrarrrgh.


    A low growl sounded from down the hallway. Jasmine took one look, then called out.


    "Run! Head to the surface!"


    "But what about you?" The freed slaves asked.


    "Now that I don''t need to free anyone, I can fight just fine!" She said, as magic light swirled about her hand. "Hurry up! I''ll hold it off!"


    "...Umm...savior?" one of the slaves said. "We''d like to, but....it''s been cut off." Another low growl sounded from the way to the exit. Jasmine frowned. ''Blast these brigands and their need for secret hidden escape passages!'' She fumed.


    "Retreat back into the room." She ordered, coming to a decision. Not only did she shut the door, she also cast an illusion, the door faded from sight, appearing just like the rest of the hallway walls.


    And it was none too soon, for the two beasts came about their respective corners right after that.


    "Now what do we do?" One of the slaves whispered.


    "For now, we wait..." Jasmine replied, monitoring the situation outside. While she could probably handle one such beast, two were a bit much for her mana at the moment.


    --------


    Robin swiftly descended, landing on the only thing in the area yet left standing: the Rhyllos. This caused it to buck and jump about as it tried to dislodge Robin from its back. A normal Rhino might have found it difficult to jump. But a Rhyllos was far more flexible, as its defense came not from a thick, heavy hide. Instead, it came from the segmented natural armor that covered its back.


    In one fell swoop, Robin struck out with her blade. Ching! And, just like that, the Rhyllos''s prided retractable horns fell to the ground, severed from its head.


    The Rhyllos paused, feeling its nose was somehow lighter.then its eyes widened as it realized what had happened. But, before it could do anything, silver and gold flashed, then Robin jumped down to the ground.


    The Rhyllos wondered why it couldn''t move anymore. but when it did move, its vision began to lower as its head fell to the ground, severed, like its horn. Robin stored it away before setting her eyes on the now wary magic beasts. She smiled.


    "One minute exactly!" She chuckled before snapping her finger. several wind blades appeared, shooting towards the magic beasts.


    "Come one then!" She laughed.


    ---------


    Keith and Christian finished dragging all the men outside, finally escaping from the underground sewer.


    "Remind me to get myself a new pair of boots." Christian wrinkled his nose.


    "Heheh." Keith snickered. "Ye can find anything here in the merchant city. However, ye''ll probably hafta buy from a stall as no one will want you entering their store smelling like shit."


    Grrrrrroooowl.


    "Calm your stomach, Keith. We''ll eat when we''re done!" Christian snickered back.


    "That wasn''t me." Keith replied, seriously.


    "Eh, sure it wasn''t. And magic beasts grow in the city like rabbits, instead of the forests~." Christian rolled his eyes.


    "I''m serious, that wasn''t me. Do you honestly expect me to feel hungry after walking through the sewers?" Keith replied.


    "Eh? Then who was it?" Christian asked, looking at the captured men.


    Grrrroooowwl.


    The noise echoed from the sewer opening behind them.


    "Well, what do you know? Looks like you''re right, Prince." Keith un-sheathed his sword. "It seems like magic beasts do grow in the cities, after all."


    "Magic beasts!? Then, Robin?" Christian asked.


    "My family can hold their own." Keith replied. "Focus on the beast in front of us."


    -------


    Jasmine frowned. Those two beasts had been pacing back and forth down the hall, as if they were patrolling the hallway. Then she realized. Of course. They had just stood out in the hallway earlier. The magic beasts already knew they were there. They just didn''t know exactly where.


    As soon as Jasmine began gathering mana for a magic spell, they''d be able to locate her. And Jasmine''s mana source couldn''t support a head on battle against two magic beasts, currently. She frowned, pensively. The situation was not good.


    Everyone else held their breath, wishing for the beasts to go away. All they heard was the tread of the beasts upon the stone floor outside. No one noticed a pin making its way through the rough dirt wall behind them, slowly widening a small circle. Then water, came through, noiselessly covering the wall in a certain radius.


    A hole collapsed behind them, near startling the hearts out of everyone''s c.h.e.s.t, as they turned in alarm to see the hole. Chelsea, standing there with Liam, who had already transformed his hand back into a human''s.


    Chelsea waved, then beckoned them all to quietly move over to the tunnel behind her. The freed slaves didn''t move before they turned to Jasmine. Jasmine nodded, and shooed them towards the hole with a wave of her hand.


    Thus the group quickly left as silently as possible. Chelsea and Liam remained behind with Jasmine.


    "Now that that''s done, you can relax. Leave everything up to me." Chelsea said in a normal voice.


    "Chelsea? How are you here?" Jasmine asked. "And, wait, did you use magic to open the hole?"


    "I did." She nodded.


    "Didn''t you know? There are magic beasts here!" Jasmine hissed.


    "I knew." Chelsea replied.


    "Then why did you do that!?" Jasmine asked, her anger on the verge of exploding.


    "There are no magic beasts that can contend with the mighty aura of a Dragon." Chelsea replied. "Those magic beasts outside are already trembling where they stand."

 Chapter 212 - She Runs Into A Familiar Face

    Jasmine glanced at Liam, whose eyes stared off into the distance. He seemed deep in thought, as if pondering something.


    "Liam?" Chelsea asked.


    He blinked as he was brought back to the present. "Yes? What is it?" He asked.


    "What''s got your mind so occupied?" Chelsea chuckled. It wasn''t every day that you could catch Liam being distracted.


    "It''s nothing much." Liam glanced in a certain direction, then lowered his eyes to look at Chelsea. "It''s just I sensed something familiar is down here."


    "Familiar?" Chelsea asked. "What is it?"


    "Mmmn." Liam replied. "If I''m not mistaken... There''s a dragon pearl nearby."


    ------


    Robin used her sword to block a magic beast from killing a wounded soldier.


    After her performance with the Rhyllos, the magic beasts had run away, preferring to tackle the weaker, easier prey in the surroundings. This meant that Robin had to run here and there. If there was a hole in the defense line, she would plug it. If there was an opportunity to cut down a monster, she took it. Under Robin''s leadership, the magicians supported the line from behind, and the magic beasts were finally beginning to thin out.


    "Robin!" She heard a voice from off to the side. Robin slew the beast in front of her before turning to look. It was Christian and Keith.


    "What happened?" Robin called out to the two, whilst keeping an eye on the magic beasts around her.


    "The magic beasts are in the sewers. They can break out anywhere in the city!" Christian informed.


    Robin clicked her tongue. If the magic beasts did indeed spread out through the sewer network, then there would be no way to limit the amount of damage taking place throughout the city.


    "Hey, you!" She called to a magican bearing a magic tower insignia.


    "Busy right now-oh, Hero! How can I help?" The magician asked, shooting off a salvo of fireballs into a condensed crowd of magic beasts.


    "I have a question..." Robin began.


    -----------


    "A dragon pearl!? Are you sure?" Chelsea asked, surprised. "No way, why did I not see-"


    "Um, excuse me, What is a dragon pearl?" Jasmine asked, unable to resist her curiosity.


    Chelsea paused, remembering that Jasmine was a human magi, and not a demon like them. "It''s not like it''s forbidden knowledge..." She said, glancing at Liam. Liam shrugged. He was okay either way.


    Chelsea began, as they walked towards the door. "A dragon pearl is a gem that is born with a dragon when they are born. It carries within it the inheritance of the dragon until such time as the dragon is old enough to extract said inheritance. It is only after a dragon has its inheritance that you could say it has become an a.d.u.l.t. But a dragon can only sense the inheritance of its own kind. The fact that Liam can sense this dragon pearl means that either that pearl belongs to one of his kin...or it is his own pearl."


    "His own?" Jasmine asked. "But, wouldn''t anyone who knows about this be able to extract the inheritance for themselves?"


    "They can certainly try. That is, if they know that it''s a dragon pearl. Since only a dragon of their own kind can sense it, often enough, dragon pearls are mistaken for ordinary gems of great worth. While they are still a target of theft, they are easily retrievable." Chelsea smiled.


    "What do you mean?" Jasmine asked.


    "Not many wish to cross blows with a dragon. They would much rather buy peace and good impression with a gift. It doesn''t take much nudging for them to offer up the pearl of their own volition." Chelsea replied.


    "Ah. Is that so?" Jasmine asked. "What if they aren''t willing?"


    Chelsea smiled. "Well, you see...there''s this invincible thief that is known to go around. No one has ever seen him, but he goes by the name of Nemo. He happens to have an inordinate attachment to pearls, as well."


    "Ah. A pseudonym, I presume?" Jasmine nodded in understanding.


    "No, there actually is a thief. He takes requests from anyone, and dragons are known to be rich, so he''s friends with all the dragons in this way." Chelsea shook her head.


    ------


    "AA-Chhoooo!" A figure sneezed explosively mid-sentence.


    "Are you all right? That was quite the noise for your small stature." His drinking mate asked in concern.


    "No issues." The figure replied as he rubbed his nose. "Perhaps my fame is spreading once more?"


    "Fame? Hahahah! That''s a good one! More like infamy!" The drinking mate laughed.


    "Fame or infamy is all the same," the figure grumbled. "Both gives free publicity."


    "Yeah, you keep thinking that." His drinking mate said in dismissal. "Bartender! Another ale over here!"


    -------------


    Chelsea''s grin widened a tad. "He even published his own book, I hear." She added.


    "Wait...you mean...the Fantastical Tales of the Adventurous Thief Nemo were all true" Jasmine gasped. That book had been a classic of her childhood.


    Liam had already dispatched the magic beasts in their path.


    "Mmmnn...More or less." Chelsea admitted.


    "Unbelievable!" Jasmine was flabbergasted.


    "It''s this way." Liam let the two deeper into the compound.


    -----------


    After they had subjugated all the magic beasts at ground zero, Robin''s group made their way quickly to the nearest magic tower. As expected, things were hectic: magic messages flying in every direction, magicians heading out on missions to subjugate beasts within the city, wounded magicians being brought to the healing sector.


    "[Area High Heal]!" She called out, as a shockwave of light expanded from where she stood.


    "Well, that''d be Robin fer ye." Keith chuckled, as he oversaw the scene.


    "Nothing wrong with that." Christian nodded. The more magicians that were healed, the more that could be sent out on the field. Some Mana Potions would bring them back up to snuff.


    "What''s going on- My arm! My arm is healed!"


    "My wounds are gone!"


    "My nose is re-attached!"


    The crowd of magicians exclaimed in wonder. No healing had ever been done so quickly for such a large group before. Robin pulled Hikaru up out of the ground, and once more sheathed her blade.


    "Now that this is settled, take me to see the person in charge of magic surveillance." Robin urged the magician who had brought them there.


    Without further questions, Robin was given access to the magic tower unimpeded. After all, who would dare to stand in the way of a genuine hero? Within minutes, Robin was brought up to the observation room.


    Christian and Keith could only sigh in their hearts on the way there. Robin had never been inside a magic tower, so she wouldn''t understand. This magic tower was far more lavish than the tower in Ekkinshire capital.


    Since the tower oversaw this great merchant city, they had countless opportunities and first access to many resources that were scarce elsewhere. Not to mention the fact that the merchant companies saw it within their best interests to keep a good relationship with the magic tower powerhouses. There were many rare and precious metals and arts decorating the walls and hallways.


    If Jasmine had been with them, she would have been bitten by the extremes of jealousy, as many rare magic and alchemical ingredients were sitting out on display. The magic circles inscribed upon the walls and floors were also worth many fortunes. If magicians were considered a religion, instead of an occupation, then this place was worthy of being the prime cathedral of said religion.


    To Robin, though, It was merely another impressively decorated building. She entered to see a man consulting a very familiar figure. Rather, it appeared more like he was asking Fest about something.


    "Fest? What are you doing here?" She asked.


    This surprised the man speaking to Fest. He looked at Robin with curiosity, and asked.


    "And who might this young man be?"

 Chapter 213 - She Discovers The Origin Of The Black Merchants Guild

    Fest blinked in surprise, then sighed in resignation. "This is Robin, the Hero that emerged in Ekkinshire kingdom, recently."


    "The Hero! That''s great!" The man exclaimed in relief.


    "Ahem! Hero Robin, this man is Marin, the wizard in charge of overseeing us wizards during this disaster." The magician who led Robin''s group introduced.


    Robin was surprised. After seeing all the decadence and art on the way here, Marin''s robes were not similarly bedecked in affluence. The only difference was an extra gold stripe around the neckline of the robe.


    "I''m not the owner of the tower, here. I''m just the overseer." Marin explained, seeing Robin''s expression. "The owner and most powerful of us are busy protecting the important merchants in town."


    "Ah. That makes sense." Robin nodded, then noticed something odd. "A wizard, you say? Are wizards different from magicians?"


    "Not really, no." Marin shook his head. "I can cast magic just as well, but my mana capacity is smaller than normal. A lack of mana can be a fatal flaw in spellcasting. So, in order to make sure I have enough, I rely on enchanted items to store the different types of mana that I need."


    "So, if all your items run out of mana, you''re toast?" Robin asked.


    "Basically, yes." Marin admitted.


    "Ahem!" Keith interjected their conversation, seeing that time was short.


    "Ah, right. Wizard Marin, All the monsters at the explosion site have been subjugated, however, there are still magic beasts running around in the sewers below the city. Do you have any kind of magic surveillance that can detect their locations?" Robin asked, getting back to topic.


    "Well..." Marin glanced at Fest, then frowned, looking away. "No. I don''t. But there is someone who does. And he''s being a right stubborn man, too."


    "Badmouthing me in front of my face is it?" Fest rolled his eyes.


    "Better than behind your back, I say." Marin replied, making a sour face at Fest.


    "Fest, you have surveillance, down there?" Robin asked.


    "Mmn. But I can''t use it." Fest replied.


    "Why not?" Robin asked.


    "Because I had an agreement with the creator of the black market." Fest replied, morosely.


    "At the time, people were dying from a certain illness, and the only known cure was being monopolized by the nobles. By law, it was forbidden for merchants to sell the cure, or to give it to anyone other than a noble, punishable by death."


    "That''s a stupid law." Robin scoffed.


    Fest adjusted his glasses. "I agree with you. But a law, it was. And my old friend couldn''t wait until the next lawmaking meeting for it to be overturned."


    "Why not?" Christian asked.


    "His wife and child had caught the illness. Many of our neighbors had also fallen ill." Fest sighed."That was when he came to me for help."


    "You?" Robin asked.


    Fest nodded. "He knew that I had placed surveillance in the sewer systems. But if he could use the sewers to circ.u.mvent the soldiers''checkpoints, he could save not only his wife and child, but also many of our friends and neighbors. All he asked was that I say nothing about what his group did from then on. At the time, I agreed not to use the surveillance, nor to speak about them to the city authorities until the group was disbanded."


    "But...?" Robin noticed.


    "But even though he died, the group didn''t disband. It grew larger and was passed down to less moral descendants until it became what you see now. ''Obtaining the illegal, yet neccessary'' turned into ''obtaining the necessarily illegal''. Its upright beginning is now being trampled under the dirt by its unworthy descendants."


    "Wait. If you can''t say anything to the city authorities, how come you''re being so chatty with Robin, here?" Christian asked.


    Fest smirked. "I said ''city authorities'', didn''t I? For a prince, you''re not too bright on the uptake."


    "But Marin''s here. Doesn''t he count as a city authority?" Christian asked.


    "Was I speaking to Marin?" Fest asked, raising a quizzical eyebrow. "Anyways, I can''t turn the surveillance back on until the entire group has been caught, or removed from the sewers."


    Christian thought for a bit. "How many people did we tie up, Keith?"


    "74." Keith replied.


    "And how many people are in the dark guild group?" Christian asked.


    "The original number was 12. However, it has grown to 75 in this city." Fest replied.


    "So we are missing one." Christian sighed bitterly.


    --------


    Liam had easily dispatched every Magic beast they encountered on their way there. They had already almost breached through to the central area of the Dark guild''s base. All that was left was the main hall, ahead, and the treasure room behind.


    "Urp! I am suddenly regretting deciding to come with you." Jasmine, said, feeling somewhat nauseous at the stench wafting from a nearby tunnel.


    "That''s the way to the sewers. Don''t go there." Chelsea warned cheerfully.


    "So we''re just here to grab the dragon pearl and leave?" Jasmine confirmed.


    "Partly." Chelsea replied.


    "Oh? We rescued the people, and the dragon pearl is just ahead of us. What other reason do we have to be down here?" Liam asked, wondering what else they had to do.


    "You see, there''s one person left that we need to bring along." Chelsea informed.


    "We didn''t rescue everybody?" Jasmine asked, confused.


    "Well...This one is a bit reluctant to leave..." Chelsea shrugged. It was no use telling them ahead of time. It was better just to do it, and learn about everything after the fact.


    "Ah, the main hall!" Jasmine noticed, after they turned a corner.


    "Well, it seems they left in a hurry." Liam noted.


    An overturned brazier had scattered coals across the stone floor. A few coals were still glowing a dull reddish brown at their core. Various items were also strewn on the floor: art pieces torn by claws, broken emergency magic defense items, Severed staff and spear bits. The weapons rack by the door was empty, as was the throne that sat at the back of the long room.


    "And I can see why." Jasmine noted. What was thought to be a piled of furs had gotten to its feet upon hearing their voices.


    Thick, sinewy limbs, Snow white fur scored regularly by ebony black stripes, eyes reddened in bloodl.u.s.t and madness: it was clear to all that this was a Greater White Tiger. And it stood between them and the throne.


    "Wait, shouldn''t it be shaking in terror from your Dragon Might, Liam?" Jasmine asked.


    "It would, if it had even a small bit of sanity remaining." Liam sighed in pity. "It''s a shame. This descendant has lost his mind completely. The only thing it can do now is kill and seek blood. In respect to its ancestor, I have no choice but to put it down."


    He unsheathed his blade and stepped forward.


    --------


    Several minutes later....


    --------


    Jasmine gazed at the surrounding mess. "So...where is this pearl we need to get?" She asked.


    Liam pointed to the throne at the back of the room.


    "Ah. Of course..." Jasmine facepalmed.


    They made their way through the mess. Shattered porcelains, and broken crystal showed just how much wealth these rogues had amassed. Instead of the dark merchant guild, it should have been called the thieves guild. There were no side rooms or doors along the way. When they stood before the throne, Jasmine examined it.


    It was a carved throne made of expensive green jade. Burnished gold lined its edges like what could sometimes be found upon the lips of exquisite porcelain tea cups. However, there was one thing wrong; there were no pearls on it.


    "Where is that Dragon Pearl?" Jasmine asked, once again. Liam pointed at the throne.


    "There''s clearly no pearls on that throne. Are you sure?" Jasmine asked. Did they have to break apart the chair to get to the pearl?


    "Not on the throne. Behind it." Liam said.


    "Behind it?" Jasmine asked.


    "Think, Jasmine." Chelsea pointed out. "We''ve come through all the rest of this place, and we still haven''t come across the treasure room, right? Obviously, they wouldn''t keeo their true wealth outside in plain sight. Therefore, there must be a hidden room somewhere. And what safer place is there than behind the head honcho''s chair?"


    "So, all this time, the leader''s been sitting in the doorway?" Jasmine asked.


    "Basically." Chelsea said. "There should be a mechanism on the chair somewhere..." She sat down in the seat and started exploring the carvings on the throne. Liam and Jasmine stepped up to help her.


    Eventually, a curlique on the left hand side was pushed in, and the throne spun around, taking the three with it into the room beyond.

 Chapter 214 - She Leaves Via the Window

    Robin scowled. "So we can only wait until tragedy has already struck?" She asked. If they did not get rid of all the magic beasts in the sewers, then it would be like a ticking time bomb threatening the safety of the city.


    "I''m afraid so." Marin replied. "My magic tower surveillance only covers the streets and common areas, as well as the areas that are off limits. It doesn''t cover the insides of the buildings aside from those of historical or monumental worth."


    "Urgh...Sheesh!" Robin ruffled her hair in frustration. Then she had an idea.


    "Do you have an item enchanted with magic communication?" She asked.


    "Unfortunately, no. We usually send missives via a familiar." Marin shook his head.


    "Urgh this is a world of swords and magic, for goodness sake! There''s gotta be something!" Robin paced back and forth. "Think, Robin, think!" Her mind travelled back to the light novels she''d read. Wait, hadn''t there been something....


    Robin blinked. "Hey...I''m a bit new to this magic stuff, but, have you ever heard of..."


    ------


    "Impressive. That you could discover such a structure so quickly is highly praiseworthy." Jasmine admitted, seeing the narrow passageway ahead of them. From then on, they could only travel through one at a time.


    "Liam, if you would?" Chelsea asked.


    "Got it." Liam stepped forward, shielding the two behind him from possible attacks from the front. They then travelled single file down the narrow passageway.


    Due to the somewhat stifling air of the place, none of them really felt like talking for a bit. Rather, they were watching out and listening. Surely the black Merchants guild must have placed some traps for safety precautions, right?


    But after several minutes, nothing happened. In fact, soon enough, they could see a light up ahead past the passageway exit. This caused them to slow down cautiously. If they hadn''t encountered traps in the passage, then would they be in the room beyond?


    Liam finally stepped out into the room, keeping alert for possible ambush or traps. However, he was unable to anticipate what happened next. Chelsea suddenly tugged Jasmine back with her, and just in time, too.


    A stone door slammed down right where Jasmine had been standing. If Chelsea hadn''t tugged her, Jasmine would have been killed, or seriously injured. Liam instantly tried to break the door open, to no avail.


    "Chelsea! Are you all right?" He called.


    "We''re fine. But the path behind us has been blocked off as well!" Chelsea called back. "Looks like we''ll be trapped here for a while!"


    "Hold on, I''ll get you out of there." Liam called.


    "It''s no use! Not even a dragon could break down that door." A voice called out from behind him. Liam turned to see a strange sight. A young boy sat in a silver bird cage suspended over an immense pile of treasure. He leaned against the bars with a smile.


    "The door is not really made of stone. But no one knows how it was made, or what it is made of. It was taken from an ancient ruin. The only thing we can determine is that it is nigh on indestructible, which is why father placed it there as the door."


    "Tch! So I really can''t break it, huh? There must be a way to open it, somewhere..." Liam looked about for a switch of some sort.


    "It''s no use. Anyone caught in that trap will first be cut off from the rest of the place, then the gate will open, and flood the room with water. Unless your friends can last for 3 hours without air, it is practically impossible to survive."


    "Three hours, you say?" Liam asked.


    "Yes. 3 hours." The lad said.


    "I see..." Liam trailed off as he headed towards the treasure mound.


    "Huh? You''re a rather cold-blooded one. Aren''t you worried about your friends?" The lad asked.


    "Need I be worried about them? I''ll see them again in 3 hours, won''t I?" Liam asked.


    "Like I said, they''ll be dead by that time." The lad repeated. "You''re not worried now that you won''t ever be able to talk to them again?"


    "No. I am not worried." Liam replied. "They can take care of themselves." He strode closer.


    "W-what are you gonna do now?" The boy stammered a bit in surprise.


    Liam examined the contraption.


    "Well, for starters, how about we get you out of that cage?"


    ---------------


    "Impressive! How did you even think of applying such a thing in this manner?" Marin asked, surprised.


    "Oh, just something I''d read a while back." Robin replied.


    "But to think of something like using gemini stones for communication...Quite frankly, it''s amazing!" Marin exclaimed, looking at the brass contraption.


    Gemini stones were a unique product found in the area. If one stone was rocked, vibrated, or pushed, the other stone would rock in the same way. Robin had just modified her little telephone a bit, and made a couple of smaller versions with the help of a few wizards. Embedded in the bottom of each brass cup was a gemini stone. Robin also placed a cloth over the cup which was intended to be spoken into so the two weren''t mixed up.


    The only issue was, these phones only worked in pairs, and required 4 gemini stones to make. The twin stone to the one in the mouthpiece was placed in the earpiece cup, and vice versa. This way, each could speak and hear what the other was speaking. Robin took one of them for her own, and left the other one with Marin.


    "You can make more later. For now, I need you to tell me where these outbreaks are happening throughout the city so that we can quickly take care of them." Robin instructed. "I''ll do my best to make sure that the casualties are limited."


    "That''s all I could ask for, at this point." Marin sighed.


    "Wizard, Marin! There''s a sewer breach on south circle 27!" On of the monitoring magicians called out.


    "Looks like that''s my cue." Robin nodded, and jumped right out of the top window.


    "What in the blazes- We''re on the 13th floor!!" Marin cried out, as he rushed over to the window. Thankfully, after not catching sight of a dead body, he saw Robin waving from a building across from them.


    She raised her gemini phone to her ear and mouthpiece. Marin did so as well.


    "I''ll be going ahead~ Let me know where you need me to be!" She said cheerfully, before speeding off over the rooftops towards the trouble location.


    "Wha-Hero Robin!!? Hero Robin-... Haah." Marin let out a long breath as he realized Robin was no longer listening.


    "Well~ I guess that''s Robin for you." Keith said with a smirk.


    "Okay, stop it already. We all know that you''re super proud of your long-lost nephew." Christian narrowed his eyes at Keith. "But you''re beginning to act insufferable."


    Keith glanced over at Christian with a pitying smile. "You don''t understand. You probably won''t ever understand unless you have kids of your own one day."


    Christian rolled his eyes and smirked. "You say that, but Robin isn''t even your kid, but your sister''s kid, right? Regardless, He''s already considered adopted by my parents."


    "What are you trying to say here?" Keith scowled at him.


    "What I''m trying to say is: Good luck convincing my mother to give him back." Christian laughed before also jumping out the window.


    Keith''s eyes widened. "You Young Rascal! Get back here! I promise I won''t half-kill you!" He jumped out after him. Both of them easily used the momentum from falling to launch themselves out to the rooftops after changing directions via the resident wizard tower flag pole.


    Marin could only stand there, feeling somewhat weakened in his heart.


    "Mr Fest...when you leave, I would be ever so grateful if you left via the door instead of the window..." His voice shuddered.


    "Ah. If there''s nothing else, I''ll be returning to young master''s side. Send word to the mansion if my presence is needed again." Fest paused. "Also...if you''re so scared of heights, you shouldn''t have come here." He chuckled as he walked to the doorway.


    "....I had no choice in this matter. The magician''s tower is where all the wizard resources can be found. After all, I couldn''t give up my dream just because I am afraid to fall." Marin muttered.


    "And that is why we''re still friends~" Fest said as he left through the doorway.

 Chapter 215 - She Detects a Change of Air

    Robin jumped from rooftop to rooftop. Whenever the distance was too far, she would use air platforms to breach the gap. Finally, she arrived at the area where the magic beast had reportedly emerged. But, there was no sign of one. She jumped down to the street and paused, listening for any sounds that might give away its location.


    ''Ah, that''s right...I could probably just use that.'' She realized.


    Christian and Keith caught up at that point, looking down from the top of the building. Noticing that Robin was busy trying to sense the beast''s wherabouts, Christian and Keith also began to look about.


    Hidden away in a dark nook, the magic beast could see all three of them searching about the area. It grinned maliciously as it turned its eyes to the most colorful person there...


    "Ah! It''s there!" Christian called out.


    Crash!


    He had immediately thrown a roof tile at a second story window, shattering the glass.


    "Er..Ahem! It''s in there. I saw its toothy grin." Christian explained, feeling somewhat embarrassed at not noticing the window pane had been still intact.


    "Well, if it wasn''t aware of us before, then it is now." Robin rolled her eyes as Keith patted Cbristian''s back.


    "Good job, Prince Aggro Attracter." Keith quipped, giving him a menacing grin.


    "This is about what I said earlier, isn''t it?" Christian suspected.


    "Good that you know." Keith nodded. "Now let''s hurry up and beat this beast."


    They waited several moments.


    "You sure it''s in there?" Robin asked.


    "Saw it with my own two eyes." Christian replied.


    "Well, if it''s not coming out, then I guess we''ll have to go in after it." Robin declared, unsheathing her sword. The trio stepped towards the derelect house.


    -----------------


    -----------------


    "I can''t leave! I won''t leave! I refuse!" The youth yelled out, struggling despite Liam''s iron grip on his collar.


    "Why are you so insistent upon staying?" Liam asked. "Your fellow men have been captured. Your base of operations is in ruins. The underground is teeming with magic beasts that will eventually discover this place. Moreover-"


    Liam paused as the weight in his hand had grown noticeably lighted. He glanced at it only to see an empty shirt in his grasp. Looking around, Liam sighed. The lad had crawled right back into his cage, bent bars or no bent bars, and put the chains back about his own wrists.


    One minute later, the lad found himself rubbing a large bump on his head with Liam''s iron grip about his wrist. Needless to say, he was still shirtless.


    "Ahem! Moreover, there''s no steady food supply, so you would just end up killing yourself of starvation in two months time." Liam finished calmly.


    "I don''t care! I''m not leaving!" The lad pouted stubbornly. "Boukki will get me all that I need. I don''t need to leave!"


    "Boukki?" Liam looked about the room. Was there someone else in the room with them?


    After scanning over the organized piles and compartments, he came to a conclusion. Unless the person in question was hidden under the floor, there was nowhere that could hid even a child, much less an a.d.u.l.t. He raised an eyebrow.


    "This ''Boukki'' of yours, he wouldn''t have a penchant for walking through walls, would he?" Liam asked.


    The boy made a face. "Yer just like all the others." He declared before falling silent and refusing to speak to Liam. Liam sighed and released his hold on the pouting lad. Clearly, they were at an impasse.


    It wasn''t that he didn''t believe the lad. He knew very well that there are many creatures and existences with rare talents. But he felt the childling had somehow misunderstood him. And he was not experienced in pacifying children. While serving under the prince, he had never had to deal with the young. He worked with fellow soldiers, and grownups, but children kept their distance from him for some reason.


    "Hah! I knew it!" The lad sniffed. "Going straight for the gold! You''re obviously a thief!"


    Liam looked flatly at the lad,then began rummaging through a pile of trinkets. He had obviously been trying to convince the lad to leave first. Besides, he was only looking for what was originally his. Was it stealing to take back his own possessions?


    "H-hey, be careful!" The lad warned. "My dad said that those are all antiques, which are probably hundreds, if not thousands of years old!"


    Liam finally let out a chuckle. "Well, you''re not wrong." He replied in a rare playful mood. Long forgotten memories were returning to him along with the familiar presence. Finally, he picked up an ancient hairpin. Embedded within it was a large pearl.


    "A hairpin?" The lad snorted. "You looking for something for yer lady friends back there?" Then a thought came to him. He skooched to the back of the cage. "Y-yer not gonna stab me with that, are you?" The lad squeaked.


    Liam stared blankly at the child. The boy swallowed, visibly shaken.


    Snap!


    Just like that, the hairpin was broken, and the pearl was retrieved.


    The lad was speechless for a long breath. "Did you...did you just destroy an antique!?" His voice grew higher with each word.


    "I freed a natural treasure from its shackled of stone." Liam replied.


    "Stone, my ass! That was King''s Emerald Jade!" The lad forgot himself as he grabbed the bars and snarled at Liam. "That was a priceless artifact, and you just up and broke it!?"


    "If it has no price, doesn''t that mean it is worthless?" Liam asked.


    "You-you''re joking, right?" The lad was dumbstruck at how stupidly blunt this man was.


    "Well, you could probably get quite the sum from the right person. However, a treasure that is hidden away underground can only be a hidden treasure." Liam mused. "And hidden treasures can do nothing but rot when they are not used or on display."


    "What do you know of these things?" The lad sneered.


    "Other treasures I can only estimate their worth." Liam looked down at the pearl in his hands. "But this? Yes. I am aware. To me, this is the third greatest treasure I had ever wanted."


    "What''s so great about a pearl?" The lad scoffed.


    "Not much to most everyone else." Liam admitted. "It is only I, and my clan who finds this so valuable."


    "...Then, what was the first greatest treasure you had ever wanted?" The lad asked.


    "Freedom." He answered.


    "What about the second?" The lad changed topic.


    "Friendship." Liam replied stoically.


    "That''s it?" The lad asked.


    "You might never understand their worth considering how you so adamantly shun the idea of them." Liam shook his head. "No matter what race, it seems there are self-destructive ones."


    "Hey! Those aren''t even things, how can they be treasures!?" The lad objected.


    "A treasure is formed by three things: rarity, use, and sentimental value. What does it matter to you if I consider these a treasure?" Liam snorted, and held up the pearl. "At the very least, I find value in this where you do not."


    "Then how about we strike a deal?" The lad proposed, opportunistically.


    "A deal?" Liam asked, looking over at the lad. "...I''m listening."


    ----------


    "Of all the places it had to go, why did it have to be a mirror store!?" Christian muttered. They had been through the entire store with no sign of the aforementioned monster. Instead, all the mirrors made it hard to navigate the place. Christian had almost planted his face in more than a few.


    "Are you sure it was in here?" Robin asked.


    "I''m certain!" Christian declared. "There''s no way I imagined it."


    Somewhere nearby, a toothy grin flashed as it was about time for the hunt to begin.


    Robin paused.


    "What is it?" Christian asked.


    "The air has changed." Robin replied. After taking a moment to confirm, she pointed at a really large mirror. "Do you feel a draft coming from there?" she asked.

 Chapter 216 - She Jumps Through the Looking Glass

    "A draft?" Christian asked as he walked towards the large mirror. "Come to think of it-oop!" Christian tripped right in front of the mirror, and threw his hands up defensively as he expected a full on collision that would result in shattered glass everywhere. However, that did not happen.


    "Christian!" Robin yelled as she saw him vanish into the mirror. Not even thinking, she immediately jumped into the mirror after him.


    Keith, alarmed by the noise, peeked his head behind him at the two. But could only look around in alarm and confusion, for the two were nowhere to be found.


    ---------


    ---------


    "I''ll give you that pearl, but in exchange, I want you to leave me alone!" The boy bartered.


    Liam felt amused. This youngling was trying to negotiate with him? Glancing at the closed door, he had time. It wouldn''t hurt to play along just for a bit.


    "So, you''re giving me this pearl in exchange for leaving you alone?" he asked slowly.


    "That''s right!" The youth nodded. "You get what you want, and I get what I want. It''s a win-win situation!" He smiled, looking pleased with himself.


    "Certainly, in the case of negotiations, striking a deal that benefits both sides would surely be preferable." Liam noted. "...That is why I cannot accept this deal."


    "Mhmmm mhmmm-wait WHAAAT!? I THOUGHT WE HAD A DEAL!" The youth exclaimed.


    "I said I''d listen. I never said that I''d agree. Unless you can one-sidedly initiate a binding magic contract, I am not bound to this proposed deal of yours." Liam pointed out. "Moreover, the terms you have stated are unfair in terms of exchange. Such a contract would benefit only me, which is unacceptable."


    "What do you mean!!??" The teen grimaced at Liam. "We''d both get exactly what we wish for. How is that not beneficial to me!?"


    "Getting what you wish for, and getting what is beneficial are not the same thing." Liam said sternly. "Children wish to eat sweet things, but that which benefits them most are the bitter herbs and medicines that they despise. Not to mention that I don''t need your permission to take this pearl, as the pearl is already no longer in your hands. Negotiations can only commence before the goods are handed over."


    "Why you!" The youth fumed. "Give that back! It''s not yours!"


    "I think not. What are you gonna do? Leave your cage to take it from me?" Liam teased.


    "Why must you do this? It''s not like I''m anyone special or necessary. I don''t recall crossing you or your friends in any way, so why must you meddle in my affairs so much!?" The lad asked.


    Liam rolled the pearl around in his fingers. "Personally, I once felt that if someone was bound to ruin themselves, then that''s their choice... But, now I don''t think that way anymore."


    "Why?"


    Liam''s expression softened slightly. "Because I met a very meddlesome friend who refuses to leave people alone. Seeing all that she has done, I am more and more convinced that I was wrong."


    "Ha! Sure you are. And that''s why you had to go an'' bother me, is it? Why can''t you just leave me be." The lad sat back in his cage, woefully.


    "Because sometimes the one we most need to save ourselves from, happens to be ourself. And the only one who can do that is someone else." Liam replied. "Can you guarantee that you will always be right? That you can''t make mistakes?"


    "Heh. Goody two shoes never helped me worth a darn." The lad snorted, turning his back towards Liam. "You don''t know anything."


    "I have lived far longer than you, youngling. And I can bet that I''ve seen far more than a mere chick in a cage could even imagine." Liam replied evenly.


    The lad wrapped his arms about his knees. "You don''t understand..."


    "That depends. Even I haven''t seen everything, after all." Liam said. "But I certainly can''t understand anything if you refuse to explain your circ.u.mstances to me."


    The lad shook his head, refusing to speak. Liam waited patiently, until he was certain the lad wasn''t gonna talk. Then he sighed.


    "Well it looks like neither of us are getting anywheres. Perhaps if I knew what you know, then I would change my mind again. Perhaps I''d also agree that you deserve to spend the rest of your life in that broken cage. But I can''t make that sort of decision if there''s something your keeping to yourself."


    Silence pervaded the room once again. Finally, the lad opened his mouth to speak.


    "You see...."


    -------


    "Christian!? Robin!? Where are you? Please, if this is some sort of joke, then it''s not funny!" Keith called, once again, beginning to feel alarmed.


    "We''re right here, Keith! Turn around, you idiot! We''re here!" Christian banged on the window that had suddenly become solid and impenetrable. All around them were windows showing all the different angles of the mirror shop. Other than that, the area was a completely white space.


    "It seems that we cannot return the way we came in." Robin noted, calmly. "This must be the work of that magic beast you saw."


    "Blast!" Christian once more hammered his fist onto the unbreakable pane. He slumped down to the floor.


    "Are we going to be stuck here forever?" He asked, vexed at the current situation.


    "Not really." A voice sounded out.


    Robin could only watch on in surprise as Hikaru''s form glowed, reshaping itself into the human form that Robin had seen in her dreamscape.


    "I thought you could only do that in my dreams?" Robin said, eyes wide in surprise. Christian turned his head, and also became speechless at the sight.


    "Whoah! Who are you!?" He exclaimed.


    "I suppose I should make the introductions?" Robin said bemusedly.


    "Hero sword Hikaru, Christian; Christian, Hero Sword Hikaru."


    "A p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e." Only Hikaru''s eyes smiled. "But as for my form, it can only appear this way in dreams or in a mindscape. This is a very perilous place you have entered. The world behind the looking glass is full of danger."


    "So we''re trapped in the world of mirrors, huh..." Robin mused.


    "Time is short, and I have a lot of information to run through." Hikaru pointed out. "The main one is this: Never stand in front of a mirror which can only be seen by one other mirror."


    "Why?" Christian asked.


    "Because that place is the most dangerous. the number of mirrors you are standing in front of is the number of shields standing between you and your death." Hikaru said.


    "Why?"


    "This magic beast pulled you into this domain because if it can trap you in a mirror and shatter it, then it can feed upon your shattered remains and grow more powerful. In that respect, every step you take here could be your last." Hikaru replied. "The less amount of mirrors there are, the more likely it is that the magic beat can break the mirror."


    "What kind of fool would keep such a dangerous pet?" Robin asked, feeling a headache.


    "In all likelihood, they probably captured an imm.a.t.u.r.e youngling before it had come into its powers." Hikaru surmised. "Such beasts are exceptionally rare, given their need of mirrors in order to survive."


    "What if we managed to shatter the mirror the magic beast was hiding in?" Robin asked.


    "Obviously, your stay here would end and you''d be returned to the mirror shop." Hikaru replied. "But that would mean that you''d need to pierce the area between dimensions again."


    "Well? Are you up for it?" Robin asked Hikaru.


    Hikaru smiled. "I thought you''d never ask. Ah, keep track of your friend Keith, as well. if he stands in front of a mirror, he could end up blocking a mirror. This is the same as losing a mirror because you are not reflected in it." Hikaru''s form glowed with light as she returned to her sword form.


    "Good luck."


    Robin closed her eyes for several moments before opening them. "Are you ready?" She asked.


    Christian stood up, sweat dotting his brow. "Do I have a choice?" He asked.


    "No. but you don''t need to worry too much. I have a plan." Robin replied.


    "Plan? What kind of plan are you talking about?" Christian asked.


    "The plan to defeat the mirror beast, of course!" Robin replied.


    "When did you come up with a plan?" Christian asked, surprised.


    "Just now, of course!" Robin said. Didn''t you hear Hikaru?"

 Chapter 217 - She Cuts Through the Looking Glass

    Christian''s eyes widened. "You don''t mean..."


    "The longer we stay here, the more likely Keith will do something that we won''t be able to counter." Robin pointed out. "From our prior look around, I got a sense of where everything is, including the mirrors and angles. So leave the calculations to me."


    Christian nodded. time was of the essence. He listened carefully as Robin explained the details of the plan.


    ----------------


    ----------------


    "You people.... You can enjoy the one thing that I could never have. My father hoped that I''d be like him. He taught me ever since I was a baby, even before we could check my attributes. He hoped that I could be a strong leader that would bring the black merchants guild back from the lawless organization that it is now. If I was strong, then I could stand in the light, unafraid of anything.


    But....when the results came in...I could only disappoint him." The lad struggled past the lump in his throat. "My attributes being poor could be fixed with practice. But the amount of mana I could use at any given time...they had never seen such a small amount before. You may as well have said that I couldn''t use magic at all..."


    "And? What happened then?" Keith said.


    The lad looked up at the light "My father lost all hope. He took to drinking. He stopped talking to me. He even avoided me like the plague. But, one day, he finally spoke to me." Tears gathered in the lad''s eyes. "He told me that I could be useful to him by staying in this cage. He said that it was a rare treasure that could increase my mana capacity simply by staying here for ten years."


    "When did you last see him?" Liam asked.


    "...I don''t know. The days have all blurred together down here. It has been a long time since I last saw father. If it weren''t for Boukki, then I wouldn''t be able to last this long alone."


    "...I see...." Liam sighed. "Your aptitudes and capacity may be terrible, but have you done anything to increase them?"


    "What are you talking about?" The lad asked.


    "You''re father didn''t teach you a method to practice the small amount that you could control?" Liam asked.


    "No?" The lad looked at Liam in confusion.


    Liam explained. "As a matter of fact, just like any other organ, if you don''t regularly practice to increase your mana flow, then it will inevitably atrophy. When was the last time you even attempted magic?"


    "....you''re lying..." The lad began to shake. "YOU''RE LYING!! THERE''S NO WAY THAT MY DAD WOULD LIE TO ME!" He grabbed the bars of the cage he was in, enraged.


    "He could ignore you, his own son, for so long. What is lying after that?" Liam pointed out. "If he blamed you for ruining his plans, what is a little lie to keep you out of his hair?"


    "DO YOU THINK I LIKE BEING THIS WAY!?" The lad forgot himself as he roared out the words he had kept hidden inside his heart. "Do you think I enjoy seeing what should be as easy as breathing to me ending in failure!? Do you think I enjoy seeing myself reflected in their eyes as an utter disappointment? A jinx? A mere trash? If a baby crawls on the ground, then it''s an achievment, but if a grown man does so, then he''s less than a worm!"


    The lad panted, and then slumped to the floor of the cave. "But me? ...heh. I can''t even crawl. And now...what can I do?....Being a magician was the only thing I ever wanted...and now all that I''ve done to get there, you''re telling me....you''re saying that it''s all.....pointless?"


    The question hung heavily in the air.


    Liam remained silent for a long breath before he once more opened his mouth. "I don''t think so."


    The lad glanced at him, unconvinced.


    "There are many who don''t even know the extent of what they can do, or what they want to do in their life. You may have gone about it the wrong way, but no one can deny the intensity of your wish. You wanted to be a magician so much that you confined yourself for so long. There are not many that have such a tenacity of will, or a diligence of the soul." Liam pointed out. "This wish, I will acknowledge it."


    "What good is wishing? And what''s the use of acknowledgement?" The lad retorted despondently. "Can it make my wish come true?"


    "I cannot say that all wishes come true... But, perhaps it depends upon the wish." Liam replied. "Regardless, you will not find what you seek being stuck underground. That being the case, why don''t you leave this place? It is possible that the key to fulfilling your wish can be found elsewhere."


    "..."


    "Do not worry, little one, you can bring your Boukki with you." Liam reassured.


    "...do you really think it''s out there?" The kid asked. "Do you really think I have any hope left?"


    "I''ve seen bugs that can turn into grass, and boars that live in caves. I''ve seen men that lived over a hundred years, and slimes that can heal wounds. I''ve even seen someone turn the most bitter nut I ever tasted into the most delicious sweet. If there are such mysterious things that happen all the time, what''s to say that there isn''t a way for you to become a magician?" Liam pointed out.


    "You are still young. You are still alive. As long as you live and breathe and hope, whose to say you won''t find what you''re looking for?"


    The lad widened his eyes in surprise. Liam''s words seemed to penetrate to his inmost core, and nestle there, becoming a warm glow. He nodded.


    "All right. I''ll come with you."


    ---------


    ---------


    After searching the entire house from top to bottom, Keith had to admit he had no idea where Robin and Christian had gone. But, there was also no blood or signs of any sort of a struggle. He had already checked out the front and back doors, too, with no sign of them. Keith slammed his fist against a wooden beam out of frustration.


    The vibration reached a nearby mirror, toppling it off its balance as it fell backwards. But then the oddest thing happened. A sword seemed to pierce out from the glass, causing it to shatter to bits as Robin and Christian jumped out of the now-empty frame.


    "You are either the all time craziest person I''ve ever encountered, or you are the most brilliant one!" Christian gasped for breath. "At this point, I can''t tell which it is."


    Robin shrugged. "Seeing as how the plan worked, I''d say that it was a success, don''t you think?"


    "Just barely a success though! What if the mirror hadn''t fallen over?" Christian pointed out.


    "Then we''d have had to run around a bit longer, but the end would have been the same." Robin replied, sheathing her sword.


    "We''re back, Uncle." She smiled at Keith.


    "Robin, I can''t tell if I want to hug you or hit you, but don''t ever do that again!" Keith said, feeling relieved at the sight of the two.


    "If it''s something I know about beforehand, then of course I''ll let you know." She replied. "Even I was taken by surprise, this time, though."


    "Do you have any idea how worried I was?!" Keith asked.


    "I can imagine." Robin replied. "Thank you."


    "Why are you thanking me?" Keith asked, both confused and mildly amused at her words.


    "What I mean is, ''Thank you for worrying about me.'' There aren''t many that would do that, among those I know." Robin explained.


    "Well now you''ve got a whole group of folks as''d worry about ye if ye were to vanish all of a sudden." Keith said, playfully knocking on Robin''s head. "Don''t forget it. Also don''t make us worry for too long."


    Robin rubbed her head. "I''ll keep that in mind, uncle." She replied. Suddenly, a voice rang out from the contraption hanging at her belt.


    "Hello? Hero Robin? Hello!?"


    Robin picked up her magic phone and spoke into the mouthpiece. "Yes? What is it?"


    "Did you find the magic beast?" Marin asked


    "Yes. It''s been dealt with. How about on your end?"

 Chapter 218 - She Takes a Break

    Robin heard a sigh of relief. "Yes, well, there have been a few incidents, but because you healed up a lot of our injured men, we were able to prevent any casualties."


    "Are there any sections that need reinforcement?" Robin asked, gazing up at the sun, which was dipping low on the horizon.


    "Not for the time being, no." Came the answer.


    "Thank goodness!" Robin sat on a nearby chair. To be honest, after that close shave, her legs felt like they were going to give out from all the running and recent tension.


    ''And I have to sort things out about Bastian before I get back...'' She remembered with a sigh, feeling worn out. ''Suddenly being so busy....I should take the chance to sleep for another 3 days next chance I get, at this rate.''


    "Are you sure they''ll be okay?" Christian asked.


    "Breaks are as important as work is." Robin replied. "Enjoy it while it lasts. Because if they actually need our help, then they''ll probably need us at full power."


    The three looked at each other, then Keith and Christian sighed. "Fair enough. Though I feel I haven''t done much today..." Keith replied.


    "Good that you know." Robin smiled, her eyes glinting with mischief. "How does it feel, being carried by the hero?"


    "Carried?" Keith asked. "I don''t recall you picking me up."


    "...Oh. It''s a term from my world." Robin said, realizing she had used gamer slang. "It refers to when the strongest member charges through everything, to the point where the other members don''t have much to do in comparison."


    "I''d say it feels uncomfortable. If you were anyone else, I''d ask to be placed somewhere where I would be more useful. But, since it''s you, I can''t help but worry." Keith grumped.


    "Hey, what does that mean? I''m perfectly competent in getting out of any trouble that comes my way." Robin snorted. "It''s the ones who can''t that you need to worry about."


    "But if it''s you, then Christian won''t be far behind." Keith pointed out. "Which means that in the end, I still have to worry about you." That caused Robin to pause.


    "Hey, I object to that." Christian interjected.


    "Object to what? That you wouldn''t be far behind? Or that I have any need to worry?" Keith asked.


    "Obviously the second one!" Christian declared. That made Robin pause. Surely, she''d have been able to tell by now. But the thought suddenly emerged. What if...what if Christian was only following her around because she was the hero? Her memories of her high school bullies came to mind. Hadn''t they also called her ''Friend''?


    Christian didn''t know what Robin was thinking of, but he noticed a thought had come to mind.


    "Hey, what if....never mind." Robin stopped. Then she shook her head with a somewhat self-deprecating smile. She didn''t want to doubt her friends. It was probably just a baseless worry. Christian wasn''t like them. He was genuine.


    "No, what is it?" Christian asked.


    "It''s nothing." Robin replied, shoving that thought to the side. She felt somewhat guilty for even thinking about it now. Christian might be rogue-ish, but he wasn''t a rogue.


    "I insist, please tell me." Christian asked, drawing closer. He wanted to know what had made Robin make that expression.


    "I was going to say, ''what if Christian finally stopped being someone we had to worry about?'' But this is you we were talking about, so I-I can''t really imagine it well!" As soon as the words left her mouth, Robin realized she had said something hurtful, and regretted it.


    She glanced at Christian, hoping he hadn''t taken her words to heart. But, it appeared that she had hit the bullseye. Christian sat there, speechless. Keith was unable to hold in his laughter anymore, and was cackling off to the side, which made it worse.


    "...Sorry. It wasn''t something pleasant, so I didn''t want to say it." Robin apologized.


    She had actually wanted to ask what if she weren''t the hero...would they still have become friends? In all likelihood, the chances of that happening was not high. With no social standing like a noble title, or wealth, would there be any reason for their paths to cross? But, dwelling on a ''what if'' was for those who had nothing better to do. As for Robin, she was just grateful that they were friends.


    Christian''s face was stiff, for a moment longer, but then he sighed. "Don''t worry me like that. From your expression earlier, I thought it was something more serious."


    Christian knew that expression. Robin wasn''t being completely honest, but it seemed that poisonous jab was more of a reflexive protective measure. Robin was sincere in not intending to hurt him.


    But Robin''s expressions didn''t match the explanation. Therefore, Robin must be hiding something. Honestly, Christian was curious. He wanted to know the reason why Robin had made such an expression. But, since Robin wouldn''t share it, he decided not to pursue the matter further.


    "Hmm? Isn''t the fact that a kingdom''s prince is always getting into trouble not a serious matter?" Robin asked, in a joking manner, hoping he didn''t ask again.


    After all, no one liked to know their good intentions had been doubted.


    Christian sighed in defeat. "I''m really not that much of a troublemaker." He muttered in protest.


    ---------


    After the 3 hour time limit passed, the stone door finally opened. To the lad''s surprise, two ladies walked out, completely dry from head to toe. In fact, the boy next to Liam was watching with his jaw dropped, he was so surprised. At this point, he had put his discarded shirt back on.


    "Whew! Finally! I was thinking this might last forever, and was getting worried." Chelsea sighed feeling a bit worn out from holding the water back for so long.


    "Aren''t you glad I had those wind gems with me, then?" Jasmine asked. "You''d have had twice the burden if you had to extract air from water."


    "Ugh, don''t mention it." Chelsea made a face. "This was my fault for not looking ahead more carefully."


    "Welcome back. I found both the pearl and the one we needed to find. He has agreed to leave with us." Liam said.


    "What!? Already?" Chelsea exclaimed, surprised for the second time that day.


    "Yes. We came to an agreement while you were indisposed." Liam nodded. The boy hid himself behind Liam.


    Jasmine smiled "So, kid. Any idea of a way out aside from the one we came in? I kinda don''t feel like waiting in a swirling dome of water for three more hours, after all."


    The lad shook his head. "I don''t. But Boukki here knows!" He said.


    "Boukki?" Jasmine asked looking around. "Who''s Boukki? Is there someone else down here?" There was a fluttering sound as a pitch black raven flew down from the skylight, and perched on the cage. It had a half-sandwich in its beak. It flew over to the lad and sat on his shoulder, offering the food.


    "This is Boukki! N-nice to meet you." The lad said, sheepishly. The raven dropped the sandwich into the lad''s hand.


    "Boukki, Boukki" It cried.


    "Oh? It speaks?" Jasmine asked, surprised, trying to get a closer look.


    "That''s all it says." The lad pointed out.


    "Well, it''s nice to meet you, Boukki!" Chelsea smiled. "And what is your name, young man?"


    "F-felix." The lad stuttered.


    "Fuffelix, huh." Chelsea teased.


    "No, just Felix!" The lad exclaimed. "We can leave through the skylight, but my dad always left using a rope ladder, so it''s still up there."


    "Perhaps we could ask Boukki to retrieve it for us?" Chelsea said, turning to Liam.


    "Don''t look at me. I speak cat, not bird." Liam replied.


    "Why not?" Jasmime asked.


    "Because most birds I encountered became dinner. I don''t have a habit of speaking to my food." Liam replied seriously. "Also, considering how much they twittered, it would probably end up more annoying than the women''s gossip chain salons."


    "So basically, ''It''s a pain, don''t wanna?''" Jasmine summarized.


    "More like, I had no patience listening to bird brains." Liam snorted. This brought a round of giggles from the two girls.


    Felix chuckled along with them. "Boukki isn''t just any bird, though! Boukki is smart!"


    "Boukki!" The raven nodded asserting it understood the compliment at least.

 Chapter 219 - She Makes Coffee

    Soon, Christian and Keith had already recovered to an extent. However, after seeing that Robin was still tired, they had silently agreed via eye contact to wait until Robin had properly taken a break.


    Christian, who would usually be the first to forge ahead, now felt that slowing down every now and then wasn''t a bad thing. At the very least, now he could enjoy seeing a different side of Robin. The Robin whose head was nodding in weariness was adorable. It reminded Christian of a kid trying to stay up past their bedtime. Subconsciously, a warm smile crept up on his face.


    Keith sighed off to the side. All of a sudden, he had begun to feel the weight and burden of knowing secrets. How much more of a burden had Robin have to bear? A glass in the hand adds weight with time. She had been holding onto this secret this whole time. How had it not crushed her?


    "Uuugh..." Robin sat up and shook her head. Not good. She had almost fallen asleep just sitting there. She wasn''t used to the loss of her sense of danger.


    ''What I need is a little pick-me-up to jumpstart my energy levels again. Do I have anything like that?'' She pondered as she began to look through her storage bracer and magic bag. It was then that she rediscovered the sack of coffee beans she had purchased back in Ragnok. ''Perfect!'' She smiled.


    The coffee beans had already been roasted, as the ship owner described, they were ''at the height of their fragrance''. Robin snickered. Using coffee as a fragrance, how impressive. She grabbed the beans, a kettle, a jar, and 3 glass mugs.


    "Hmm? Are you perhaps going to make some tea?" Keith asked.


    "Tea? No. This''ll be a drink that I think you''ll like, uncle. It''s called coffee." Robin replied.


    First, she prepared. Filling the kettle with water, and heating it up via magic. Robin tied some cloth squares to the top of the mugs, making sure that there was enough give for a depression to form in the middle.Then Robin poured the beans into the jar until it was 1/3rd full.


    "Beans? You''re going to make us a drink out of beans?" Christian asked, confused, yet mildly intrigued.


    "Mhmm!" Robin replied. "Watch this."


    The beans within the enclosed jar were ground into powder. She had managed to recreate Ponzu''s kitchen magic using a strong mental image, with magic to supply for what was missing. Her use of kitchen magic was quite a bit rougher, but in this case, it got the job done. Robin then opened the jar, and poured the resulting powder on top the cloth, covered mugs.


    "Hmm? Isn''t that-!?" Christian was so surprised he nearly stood up from shock.


    "Ah, this?" Robin looked down at the jar, then up at Christian. "You know...just because Ponzu can only use this magic, doesn''t mean it''s an exclusive spell." Robin pointed out. "If you know the principles behind it, and have a bit of wind aptitude, then you can also pick it up."


    Robin poured Hot water onto the ground piles, which gained weight, causing the center of the cloth to sag downwards as a rudimentary coffee drip funnel was formed. Robin did so a bit at a time, keeping the water piping hot.


    "But, you know, it''s probably best that you took Ponzu in when you did." She told Christian.


    "Why''s that?" Christian asked.


    If someone threw a large scale version of Ponzu''s kitchen magic into the battlefield, I''d feel sorry for the dead." Robin replied. "Anyone with advanced wind aptitude would be able to figure it out, I think."


    "Advanced wind aptitude-wait, isn''t that Gerard?" Keith suddenly asked.


    Robin nodded. "Right. Didn''t you know? Little Gerry''s been helping Ponzu out in the kitchens lately."


    "So you knew all about this?" Keith said.


    "I encouraged it." Robin replied. "That lad is travelling with the Hero, after all. We''ve been lucky so far, but who knows how much longer our luck will hold? He needs a method to defend himself with in case he finds himself in trouble when we''re not around."


    "Aren''t you more concerned of him being kidnapped because he knows this magic?" Christian asked.


    "Why would I be concerned?" Robin asked, pouring a bit more water into the cups. "Currently, it''s but a mere lowly kitchen magic. Only you and I am aware of its potentially destructive nature. In the future, you can take Gerard as one of your own men."


    "So you planned this all out?" Christian asked. "Gerard''s got quite the glorious future ahead of him, now."


    "I''ve only made it possible for him to lay claim to a role which suits his talents." Robin replied. "Where he goes with it is his business. However..." Robin paused. "He''s a kind lad, so I have faith in his character. He won''t allow for good people to suffer."


    "You mean, like you?" Christian asked. Robin did not answer. Instead, she removed the cloths with the coffee grounds wrapped up inside, tied them closed, then stored them in her magic bag. After that, she added 2 spoons of sugar to each of the mugs, and stirred.


    Usually, Robin would add cream, but since she wanted to wake up, she opted not to add it this time. She handed Keith his mug, and shoved one into Christian''s hands.


    "Ah, ouch!" Christian quickly moved to grasp the handle, as the sides of the mug were still hot.


    Robin sat down on the chair with her own mug, leaning back in a brazenly relaxed position. She took a good long sip of coffee. Due to her high fire aptitudes, she didn''t scald her throat in the process. Instead the warmth settled in her c.h.e.s.t, like a soft warm ball of light.


    "That''s the stuff!" She smiled a bit, still savoring the lingering flavor. From the looks of it, both Keith and Christian liked it as well.


    Robin stared off into the distance, Christian''s words echoing in her head. Finally, she braced herself, and opened her mouth.


    "Christian. I don''t know what else you think I am, but I want you to get one thing straight: I am not kind." She finally said.


    "You meddle so much, and have saved so many people, how can you not be kind?" Christian asked.


    "All of that was merely for self-satisfaction." She replied.


    "Complete and utter bull." Christian replied promptly, not believing a word of it.


    "I''m serious." Robin scowled, shushing him. "Until I was ten, I was an ignorant little fool. After my parents died, I wasn''t much better. But it was then that my eyes were opened to the ugliness of mankind. We are all, in the end, merely selfish creatures." Robin sighed.


    "Ever since then, I''ve always wondered. Why would people do things that hurt others? Why would people ignore a cry for help? Why would people find joy in watching someone be brought to their lowest point? Why does evil and wrong exist?" Robin paused, and took another long sip from her mug, ending with a grimace.


    "In the end, it''s because mankind is selfish. We only seek our own benefits, whether if that comes through hoarding or giving, it''s all the same. We just want to feel good about ourselves. And in my case, I didn''t do it for them. I did it for myself."


    "''I don''t want to be like those who caused me to suffer.'' ''I don''t want to be bullied.'' ''I don''t want to be like those who just sat by and watched without doing anything.'' Hero? hah. I''m far from. I''m just rebelling. Who set such ugliness within men''s hearts? Who planted such an infernal seed? No matter how many times I cut it down, this damnable weed keeps coming back."


    "But, kindness?...Kindness is something far greater than I." Robin''s chin quivered. "My mother and father had kindness. No matter who it was, they were all treated well. If I made a mistake, it would be forgiven and forgotten. Even those snakes of a blood relation received their good will. Kindness is such an indescriminately blinding thing, shining down on good and bad men alike. So that''s why, I am not kind." She said.


    "There''s probably something wrong with me..." She frowned. "I can''t be kind, because I can neither forgive nor forget. Someone like me who bears such a massive rage against my enemies, someone who can''t forgive...Don''t be mistaken: I am not kind." Robin finally said, looking down at her palm, clenching it into a fist. "Even today, was just for my self-satisfaction. I threw myself into a fight, because I can''t forget this rage. Nor can I allow myself to, for the time being."

 Chapter 220 - She Meets Felix

    "Even today, was just for my self-satisfaction. I threw myself into a fight, because I can''t forget this rage. Nor am I allowed to, for the time being."


    With that, Robin tilted her head back, and finished her mug, then stood up.


    "When will you be able to forget it?" Christian asked. He had listened quietly. But what he heard had made his heart ache. Had Robin been quietly suffering this whole time? How could anyone live like that?


    Hearing his question, Robin paused. "...I don''t know. But, ever since I came here, I have a feeling, that maybe the answer to that is back home." She replied, as she stepped out into the light of the setting sun.


    Christian, lost in thought, looked down into his mug of coffee. Perhaps, Robin''s reasons were not the best, but...in the end, Christian couldn''t think of Robin as being bad or selfish.


    "Even so, I still believe that you are kind." Christian chuckled, and drank his coffee.


    "Aye. Kind by nature. But, Christian, even kind creatures will fight when backed into a corner." Keith agreed. "Robin''s been cornered and fighting for so long. I''ll reckon that there''d be a lot of hidden wounds still bleeding. scratches can heal, but wounds to the heart can sometimes take years to resolve."


    "What can I do to help?" Christian asked.


    "Just being someone Robin can open the heart to is more than enough." Keith replied, clapping the prince''s shoulder. "It looks like you''re of use after all. Robin only told me what happened, yesterday. I was never shown where the wounds were hidden."


    "Such a person..." Christian laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. "He''s been through hell and back again. I can only imagine what he''s been through. How in the blazes has he been able to hide it for so long?"


    "Indeed, even I was fooled until just yesterday." Keith nodded. ''Boy, if only you knew....'' He thought to himself with a smile, as they followed Robin out into the golden twilight.


    ---------------


    "You seem out of sorts." A voice sounded from behind Wizard Marin. At the moment, Marin''s hair was untidy, and his forehead was furrowed. He turned his head to glare at Fest and grumpily harrumphed.


    "No thanks to you. Didn''t you leave already?" Marin jabbed.


    "I did. But I came back to give you some news I know you''ve been waiting to hear." Fest replied with a smirk. "The black merchants guild has fully abandoned their hideout, and been disbanded. I am now free to allow you to view the sewer systems."


    "Eh?....Wait, you mean it!?" Marin was dumbfounded for a moment. But when the words were finally processed in his brain, he stood up with a beaming grin on his face.


    "You of all know that I keep my words carefully." Fest pointed out. "I always mean what I say. The credit this time is all due to a certain Hero''s good friend, and his intervention."


    "By the Tower, that Hero Robin and his men have finally done it!" Marin was so beside himself that he clapped Fest on the shoulder.


    "Don''t get carried away." Fest reminded. "This incident still isn''t over before the sewers have been cleared out."


    "Right, right, of course!" Marin replied, as he motioned for Fest to reveal the trouble spots.


    "Should we tell Hero Robin the good news?" Marin asked.


    "It appears Hero Robin is currently occupied. Perhaps at a later time." Fest suggested.


    ------


    Liam stood outside next to an abandoned dry well, lending his arm to support Chelsea as she climbed out of the hole.


    "I never knew the skylight led to this." Felix looked at the well, surprised. It was a good thing that the sun had gone down, or else Felix would have had to tie a blindfold about his head. His eyes that had grown accustomed to the dark needed time to readjust to daylight.


    Jasmine, who was standing nearby, shrugged.


    "I suppose it was a preventative measure, as a last resort." She mused, looking knowingly at Liam''s blatant care of Chelsea. Perhaps there was yet another incident developing which Chelsea had not foreseen.


    "Liam? Chelsea? Jasmine?" A familiar voice sounded from a nearby street. They turned to see Robin walking towards them.


    "What in the world were you doing down a well?" Robin asked, with interest.


    "The usual." Chelsea replied. "Jasmine found a roomful of slaves branded with illegal magic slave crests, and had to take a lot of trouble to remove them. You might want to let Marin know that he''ll find the rest of the victims we rescued at the fourth warehouse in the East sector. This one, Felix, is our last rescue."


    Robin''s expression darkened with anger when she heard about the slaves. As someone who had barely escaped a fate worse than a slave, she had no tolerance for those who promote it. But her expression relaxed to a more neutral one, when she heard they''d been rescued. She nodded at Jasmine.


    "Well done. It appears I am not the only hero of Peg Leg City." Robin said with a hint of mischief.


    "No. I only did what I ought to do." Jasmine replied, hesitantly. "This...might be our magi council''s oversight. And I have my own suspicions on the matter..."


    "Is that so?" Robin asked. "Well, if there''s anything I can do to help, just let me know."


    "So, Felix, is it?" Robin asked the small boy, who decided to hide behind Liam. "Who''s your little friend?"


    "...Boukki." Felix replied.


    "Bookie? He must be quite the intelligent little friend then." Robin joked. Skye took that moment to fly down and land on Robin''s shoulder. He looked curiously at the raven perched on the boy''s shoulder, then blinked in surprise.


    "Boukki! Boukki!" Boukki said to Skye, who mewed back to it. After a short conversation, Skye turned to Robin.


    "Robin," He mewed. "That raven is someone''s familiar."


    "You''re sure?" Robin asked, surprised.


    "His owner is related to this boy." Skye replied. "But he''s trapped, and in need of a rescue."


    Robin was still weary from the day''s events. No one would blame her were she to put off the rescue until the next day. However, Robin simply sighed with a shrug. "I''ve already rescued so many today. What is one more, in comparison?"


    Then she quickly informed the group about Felix''s relative.


    "It appears I was wrong about earlier. Perhaps the situation isn''t as bad as I had previously thought."


    "What does that mean?" Felix asked.


    "Perhaps your father did not abandon you, but was only treating you that way to protect you." Liam replied. "As the head of the black merchants guild, there were sure to be others eyeing his position. If you had shown any signs of there being hope of you gaining power, then your life would be endangered."


    Boukki nodded emphatically. "Boukki! Boukki!" It agreed.


    "Then you mean...?" Felix''s eyes widened.


    "Mmmn. I can only think that your father was trapped somewhere while trying to help you." Liam replied. Off to the side, Chelsea unconsciously nodded in approval.


    Robin raised an eyebrow. Then she turned to the others and pointed at the Raven. "Is this how you feel whenever I''m speaking with Skye?" She asked. They all instantly nodded, aside from Liam, of course. Seeing Robin talk to a mewing flying cat was something they''d gotten used to, though.


    "You guys..." She exhaled in exasperation, before turning back to the topic at hand. "While I''m sure there''s a story here that I am not currently aware of, the issue remains. Someone is trapped and in need of our help. Our answer?"


    Liam looked at Felix. "Well?" He asked.


    Felix forgot his shyness in the heat of the moment. "What are we all waiting for? Isn''t it obvious? Let''s go save him, immediately!" He exclaimed.


    Robin nodded. "Right then. You''ll have to lead the way, Boukki. Otherwise, I''m not sure we''ll be able to find him."


    "Boukki!" The raven saluted, before taking off and landing on a nearby fence.


    "That direction then!" Robin acknowledged, and the whole group took off through the streets, following the tail feathers of a raven with a strange cry.

 Chapter 221 - She Rescues One More

    The group was led to a deserted location in a derelict part of town. Nearby could be seen an abandoned cemetery that was in dire need of repair. A small chapel stood, partially collapsed in on itself.


    "Ugh. No wonder why no one rescued him. Even if someone heard a cry for help here, they would instantly suspect it to be a ghost or a ghoul." Jasmine shuddered.


    "Wait, these things actually exist?" Robin asked, surprised.


    "Well, considering that spirit magic is at least semi-confirmed, my own personal opinion is that ghosts are made of the spirits of those who either were or had potential to be spirit masters." Jasmine replied, semi-interested.


    "Ghouls, however, are a cause for concern, as they are a source of deadly poison that only holy water can dispel. They take little damage from magic unless it is light magic. So, unless one has a healer or light magic user, the only other option is to completely burn their remains in a furnace. Otherwise, they''ll continue to regenerate."


    "Is that so?" Robin asked, looking about the graveyard.


    "Mmmn. That''s right." Keith agreed. "I''ve had to deal with a few of them myself. In the end, we managed to completely eradicate them with kilns made of earth, and ground fire."


    "Ground fire? ....you mean lava?" Robin asked, confused for a moment.


    "Lava is what the heroes referred to it as, so that is also a name for it." Keith nodded.


    The raven flew right up to the half-collapsed chapel, calling loudly back to the group.


    "Boukki! Boukki!"


    "It seems he is stuck in here..." Robin noted.


    "...is anyone out there..?" a voice faintly called through a small opening.


    "We''re here to rescue you. Are you all right?" Robin asked.


    "There is water and moss here, so I am not in any danger." Came the reply. "More importantly, what news is there of the city? I heard sounds of fighting and beasts in the distance?"


    "Yes. It seems the black merchants guild was keeping magic beasts below the city, but for some reason they escaped into the sewers." Christian replied.


    "The sewers?! Those blasted fools! I told them not to take on such a double-edged risk!"The voice exclaimed. "Did they manage to escape?...is there any news of rescuing a child?" At the sharp scolding tone, Felix''s eyes started to water. It was definitely his father. He opened his mouth to speak, but Robin held up her hand, shushing him.


    "There were many that have been rescued." Robin said, her eyes narrowed cautiously. "And all of them were found bearing an illegal slave crest on them. Mister, did your family get kidnapped by those brigands?"


    "...." The voice paused. "What ...did you say? I believe I misheard that they had illegal slaves. What has happened in the six years I''ve been buried here?"


    "You did not hear wrong." Jasmine declared. "I personally saw every single one of them branded with a forbidden slave crest."


    "I see..." the person sounded crestfallen. "I know it''s probably an unworthy question of mine, but among those slaves, did you perhaps find a young boy named Felix? It has been six years since I''ve last seen him."


    "There were no lads named Felix among the slaves." Jasmine replied. "All of the black merchant guild members have been captured. the guild is no more."


    "What! Then, benefactor, It doesn''t matter if you let me out now or later, but can you please find someone to check the underground hideout!? This is very important, there''s someone still down there!" The man begged.


    "There are magic beasts roaming about the city, and you want us to dive down to the root of the source? How bold of you!" Robin replied.


    "It''s my son! My son is still down there!" He pleaded. "I''m begging you! You can have all that I own, if only you rescue my poor son!"


    Felix felt surprised. He remembered his father saying that if a single one of his treasures was broken, he would not be able to make up for it even with his life. And now his father was trading these very things in exchange for the life of his worthless son?


    "You''ve already been here for six years. How much property do you think you''d have left?" Jasmine saw what Robin was doing and played along. Felix once more opened his mouth to speak, but Chelsea patted his shoulder, hushing him with a smile.


    Felix wated to tell his dad that he was here, that he was alive. But, seeing this person ask him to be quiet, he decided to wait just a little bit longer.


    "There is a secret room! No one knows aside from me and him." The man said. "All of my belongings are secured there as well. I was trying to build up enough wealth to be able to fund a way to accomplish my son''s dream...but if he''s dead, then all that wealth is useless....I can always earn more money, but a man only has one life, which is priceless. That''s why, please...I am begging you..." The man''s voice cracked with emotion.


    "...old man...." Felix finally managed to work around the sudden lump in his throat. "Old man, I''m right here! It''s me, your son!" He called out hoarsely, tears streaming freely down his face.


    "I suppose we don''t need to return any of this, now..." Chelsea mused, as she looked at the rare storage bag that they had found to stuff all the goods into from the underground room.


    "F-felix? But....how?" The shock in his voice was clear.


    "Honestly, do you think we''d have known to come and rescue you if it weren''t for your son asking us?" Robin replied, a wide grin on her face. "But, now that I have seen your character for myself, I can somewhat rest assured. If you had been a vile character, I''d have thrown you straight to jail from here."


    Christian noticed Robin''s hand was shuddering. Despite Robin''s words being harsh, he noted that not once since Robin had arrived had he killed a single person. Assassins, Kidnappers, the Trader...none of them had perished. Even if Felix''s dad was the worst kind of sc.u.m, Robin had no intention of killing him. At worst it would be a lifetime of imprisonment.


    The only ones Robin had killed were....Ogres, a wyvern, treants, a few goblins by association, and some magic beasts. All of them were killed, not because they were after the hero. They were killed due to being a direct and immediate threat to the lives of innocent people.


    How could Robin not see how kind he was? In a world where death was a common enough experience in foreign lands, leaving an opponent with their lives was considered being extremely generous. Christian''s opinion of Robin became much more firmly entrenched. Robin was kind. He just somehow couldn''t see it, right now.


    "Please stand back, sir. We need to open up a way through these stones." Robin warned as she unsheathed her sword.


    Under Chelsea''s guidance, the stone rubble was cut through like a hot knife through butter. An opening large enough for a man to crawl through was quickly opened up. Already the last purple pink glimmers of twilight were beginning to fade. Robin had let a light ball float up to illuminate the area.


    The man who crawled out was almost skin and bones. If it weren''t for the light of emotion in his eyes, he might have been mistaken for a ghoul by other men. Instead, he just clasped Felix in his embrace, murmuring.


    "My son...my son..."


    "Dad! Dad!" Felix cried in his arms.


    It was a very touching scene to everyone who saw it. However, along with the happiness Robin felt at witnessing the reunion, she also felt bitterness. Because such a happy scene was something she could never experience for herself. These two in front of her had merely lost sight of each other for a time, but as for her? Her parents were gone forever.


    "A graveyard is no place for a party," She suddenly said. "Especially not in the darkness of night before the moon has risen. Let''s go. I''ll treat."

 Chapter 222 - She Awakens to Find out...

    In the end, Robin only took half of the man''s treasure, and returned the other half to Felix''s dad.


    When he tried to refuse, Robin convinced him to keep it for Felix''s sake. She felt that with that treasure, and her recommendation to Marin, the boy might be able to at least become a wizard if he tried hard enough. The remainder of the treasure was split three ways among Chelsea, Liam, and Jasmine. They did the work; they got the prize.


    Robin finished up by secretly paying for both the party, and the father-son''s stay at the inn, before herding her group out. If they stayed any longer, the father might have discovered her deed and tried to repay her. As it was late when they arrived back at the mansion, everyone opted to head straight to bed. Any further business was set aside until the morning.


    ------


    Birds chirruped outside the window. Sunlight shone onto Robin''s face, slowly rousing her from her sleep. But, just as she was about to wake up, she turned over on her side, away from the sun, and continued sleeping.


    Considering her workload yesterday, Robin saw no good reason not to sleep longer. No one would fault the hero for taking a good rest. Also, the blanket and pillows were just too comfortable that morning. Once more wrapped up in fluffy dreams, she descended into the oblivion of sleep.


    She might have slept a bit longer, too. Yet, perhaps she heard something move. Or, perhaps, she felt a presence. Either way, she surfaced from sleep so quickly that she had to blink away the afterimages. Sitting up, she realized that everyone was sitting quietly in the room, waiting for her to wake up.


    As it had been late when she arrived, Robin had slept in her clothes, minus the boots and the belt. Brushing her fingers through her hair, Robin felt thankful that she hadn''t changed. Next time, she would definitely check that the door was locked.


    "...What''s the occasion?" Robin asked, yawning a bit.


    "We all came to wake you up, but..." Keith shrugged. "You looked like you were enjoying it, so we didn''t want to ruin your fun."


    "Oh? How thoughtful. But, if it''s something important, next time, you can just wake me up, okay?" Robin permitted.


    "It wasn''t urgent, so we decided to wait until you wake up." Christian added. "You don''t usually show how tired you are. But you were sleeping on your feet yesterday. And proper work requires proper rest."


    "Hmmm..." Robin glanced at the group in thought. "Then, good morning, I suppose? Is it even still morning?"


    "It''s half til noon, technically still morning." Jasmine replied, taking the opportunity to step out. "I''ll let Sebastian know to set out the brunch." She waved in passing.


    "That''s good then." Robin nodded, her eyes sparkling with an intelligent gleam. "So? What''s the situation?" She asked.


    "One word: Dragon." Keith replied.


    "...Liam?" Robin asked, looking at Liam in confusion.


    "No. Ra''oru. Throm''s paternal guardian." Liam replied.


    "You mean his dad?"


    Liam shook his head. "A guardian is different. Not a dad."


    "Isn''t Throm Ra''oru''s son?" Robin asked, confused.


    "It''s a long story." Keith interrupted. "But, long story short, a certain ''dwarven king'' couldnae help but show off to a certain ''dragon'', and now said dragon is throwing a fit. He wants something even better looking than what we gave Throm."


    "This is a problem, why?" Robin asked.


    "It has to be something completely new: something no one has ever seen before." Keith sighed. "He even added that he wants it to be enchanted. while we have Liam as an artisan, we don''t have something like that in our current company."


    Robin pondered for a moment, then her stomach rumbled. "Well, I may not be an expert on enchanted items, but I happen to know a certain wizard who might know a thing or two. How about we consider this issue after brunch?" She set the issue aside.


    "But Robin," Christian began, "If we don''t deal with this-"


    "We''d be meeting him eventually. Consider it an opportunity to get on his good side. I have made it a habit never to back down from a good challenge. I don''t intend to start now." Robin smirked and shrugged roguishly. "Whatever we need to do, if we neglect our own self-care, then we will inevitably lose the strength to shoulder now what we could shoulder yesterday. Food first."


    Robin swung her legs over the side of the bed. "At the very least, we will merely be troubled, instead of troubled and hungry on top of that."


    Christian raised his hands in defeat. "Fine you win. The Hero is always right, after all."


    "Thank you for your empty words of praise." Robin laughed.


    "It wasn''t empty; I''m serious!" Christian insisted, feeling disregarded.


    "I''m suddenly very curious about how I appear in your eyes." Robin raised a quizzical eyebrow. She couldn''t understand just how Christian could see her in such a positive...near-omnipotent light.


    "Isn''t it obvious? You''re the Hero, after all!" Christian replied.


    "That is exactly why I don''t understand." Robin said with a self deprecating smile. "I too am a human being just like you or anyone else. I am prone to the same strengths and weaknesses alike. The fact that you''re placing me up on such a high pedestal is baffling. The Hero is still human regardless of whether he is a hero or not."


    "But you''re different, though!" Christian insisted. "You''re a good man, which is more than I can say of most."


    Robin rubbed the bridge of her nose, feeling a prick in her heart. "Well I can only say that I don''t see myself in that light." She replied. After all, how could she be a good man when she wasn''t even a man? Moreover, right now she was hiding her gender, so she also felt a tinge of guilt every time sweet words popped out of Christian''s mouth.


    "Why not?" Christian asked, feeling annoyed at Robin''s lack of self confidence.


    "Let me ask you..." Robin sat back on the bed, and tilted her head to look up at Christian. "If a dog were to kill his own master, and then another dog comes along and kills the first one, does that make the second dog good?"


    "What?" Christian asked, taken aback by the sudden question.


    "It doesn''t." Robin gave the answer. "Rather, it merely makes it another dog who kills-moreover, one who kills it''s own kind: just another murderer."


    "I... don''t understand." Christian frowned.


    "What if the man who the first dog killed was a psychopath who was brutally torturing the dog? Does that justify it killing him? Wouldn''t that make the second dog a villain for killing the victim of a criminal?"


    Christian remained silent.


    "That''s why, just because I fight evil, doesn''t mean I''m good. It just means I know whom I ought to fight...." Robin sighed, and muttered half to herself. "Is a hero''s goodness dependent upon if they fight? If so, then a hero is rightfully a terrible and miserable existence, but....I find comfort in that heroes emerge to protect. Yes..."


    "''Heroes emerge to protect'' huh. A good saying." Christian noted.


    "It is, but why do I find it so familiar?"; Keith agreed, pondering on the words.


    "Hmmm?" Robin looked up, "It should be. My dad liked saying such things a lot to us."


    Her dad had always followed up by chiding her brother to look out for her and protect her. ''As an older brother, if you can''t even protect your sister, then you can kiss your dreams of being even a normal hero goodbye.'' was what usually followed.


    Robin wasn''t sure she would have been able to pick up her blade if she were required to go and fight a war as the hero. She had learned most how to protect herself and others. She had neither the skills nor to d.e.s.i.r.e to commandeer an army. You could say that, instead of leading an army, she had forged herself into a one man tank.


    "Ah, that''s why it''s familiar!" Keith realized. But at that point, Robin had slipped ahead with Christian to go eat.


    ---


    After brunch, they sought out Marin at the magic tower, dragging Felix and his dad along. After testing him, Marin agreed to become his teacher. This had Felix and his dad overjoyed. But, as for enchanters...


    "If you''re looking for skilled enchanters, then I do know of some." Marin said, troubled. "However... currently, they''re in a bit of a bind."


    "What do you mean?" Robin asked.

 Chapter 223 - She Wants to Build A....

    "Currently, they''ve barricaded themselves in their city. No humans are allowed inside." Marin shrugged. "That''s their rule, so, unless you can convince them from the outside, or have someone they know negotiate for you, then you probably won''t be able to get in."


    "Huh...an entire city of enchanters, hmmm..." Robin pondered.


    "Ah, no. Only the gnomes are enchanters. There''s two other factions which are a part of the city. Don''t get me wrong." Marin corrected.


    "Is that so?" Robin scratched her head. "Well, we''ve got Chelsea, Liam, and Quinn, so it isn''t like we don''t have any negotiators."


    "Wait, they''re not human?" Marin asked, mildly surprised. "Huh. Usually I can tell them apart, but I guess their technique is near perfect."


    "Well, I guess we know where we need to go next, then~!" Robin decided. "Do you, by any chance, have a general map of the area?"


    "The city isn''t on any official maps as they don''t like bothersome fools fumbling about in their area. As for a more detailed map, they''re all local and confidential, so I can''t help you there." Marin shook his head.


    "So we''re out of options now?" Robin looked at Jasmine, hopefully. Perhaps she might know something about enchanting? Jasmine shook her head imperceptibly.


    Enchanting required extensive knowledge of the runic language. Gnomes kept their runic tomes, jealously. Moreover, all enchanted items had a failsafe in place to prevent observation of the original runes.


    "Not quite..." Marin thought of something. "You''re staying at Lave Mercantiles, right? They sometimes have dealings with the gnomes, so they might have a more detailed map of the route with them."


    "Bastian does?" Robin asked, surprised.


    "If it''s young master Sebastian Lave, then he is indeed the person I am referring to." Marin agreed.


    "Ho. Looks like we need to have a chat with Young Master Sebastian, then." Keith noted. Robin blinked. She didn''t like the idea of talking to Bastian again so soon. But she didn''t let it show on her face.


    "Haha. Looks like we''re heading back now~" She joked, before ruffling Felix''s hair. "You be good and learn from Marin, okay? I look forward to the time when you''re a full fledged wizard."


    "Mmn! I will!" Felix was still beaming with happiness at being accepted as Marin''s student.


    Robin nodded a farewell and turned to leave.


    "Ah! Use the front door, this time, Hero Robin!" Marin cautioned.


    "Eh? Oh! Ahahaha~" Robin was startled by the request. But then she recalled the last time she left was via the window. She could only laugh sheepishly.


    "It couldn''t be helped last time, I didn''t have time to use the door." She tried to explain. "Normally, I always use the door, okay?"


    "Riiiight." Marin looked at her with a neutral expression, unconvinced. Christian and Keith smirked. The rest could only chuckle at Robin''s antics.


    Robin sighed.


    It seemed she had to resign herself to being the comic relief for a time.


    "In any case, farewell!" Robin waved a goodbye, before walking down the stairs probably. A group of snickering companions followed along behind her.


    ___


    However, his mindscape''s library of books was already very big. And he was destined not to finish for a long time...


    "Master Lave? Are you awake?" Fest knocked on the door to the study, causing Bastian to open his eyes out of reflex. The librarian mindscape vanished away, replaced by the study.


    "Yes, I''m awake. What is it, Fest?" Bastian asked.


    "Robin and the others have returned, and would like to discuss something with you." Fest announced.


    "Oh?" Bastian felt surprised, but after a moment he answered. "All right. Where are they? I''ll go see them."


    It was a rare moment for Bastian. After all, as the owner of Lave Mercantiles, usually it was people who came to see him in his study. It was once in a blue moon that he would be the one receiving others by going to them.


    But, this was one of those times.


    "Good Morning to you all." Bastian greeted the group, a pleasant expression on his face as he was curious what they had come to see him for. "It''s not every day that I see you all together... and awake. What can I help you with?"


    Robin''s hand shivered before she consciously willed it to stop. ''It wasn''t his fault. Just think of him as another travelling soul like...like Quinn.'' Surprisingly, that method actually worked.


    "Yes, the thing is," Robin began. "We need to commission an enchantment on an item. And we heard you had some contact with the gnomes who were best at that sort of thing."


    "I do. But unfortunately, the contract I have with the gnomes is a magic one. I am bound by that contract not to reveal their location to anyone." Bastian replied, with a sigh.


    "So, no maps, huh?" Christian inferred.


    "None aside from memory." Bastian replied. "However, if you''re willing to entrust the item to me, I can send it to them for an enchantment through my own channels."


    Robin paused. "Can you assure that it won''t be seen by anyone?" She asked.


    "I can only do so while it remains in my hands." He replied. "After that, it''s merely conjecture."


    "The thing we''ve been volunteer-obligated to do is to make and deliver an enchanted golden thing of beauty that no one has ever seen before to a dragon we''ve never met." Robin explained.


    "The ramifications should you fail?" Bastian asked.


    "Said Dragon possibly breaking the Geneva convention and sparking yet another war between mankind and demonkind, making this place a war zone on the front lines." Robin explained.


    "Geneva convention? what- I don''t understand..." Christian suddenly felt confused.


    "It''s a famous treaty back in the hero''s world." Bastian explained. "Used probably due to not knowing what the name of our current treaty is."


    "..Ah." Christian nodded.


    "And as for breaking the treaty....That will not do. That will not do at all! Fest!" He called.


    "Yes, young master?" Fest replied.


    "Can you check with our contact if anyone''s willing to take up the task?" Bastian asked.


    "I will send the message out immediately, sir." Fest bowed, heading out of the room. Bastian nodded.


    "We''ll see what we can do. What did ya have in mind?"


    Robin considered things. "I was considering a Rubik''s cube of magic, but I''d need to consult if putting fragmented runes together would be a good idea."


    "Rubik''s cube of magic? How come I''ve never come up with these things?" Bastian smirked. "If you can actually create one, I''d love to see it...of course, not before that dragon does, obviously."


    "I was thinking about making a special one for him, then creating a lesser cube that has runic parlor tricks for others." Robin nodded.


    "Bahahahah!" Bastian burst out into laughter. "I can just imagine it now! Oh this is just too good not to invest in. May I have the honor of being the main merchant for that lesser cube?"


    "Sure. It was mainly an afterthought, so feel free." Robin shrugged.


    "Pardon my asking, but what is a Rubik''s cube?" Jasmine interjected, curious.


    "Ah. It''s a bit difficult to explain, so let me draw a normal one for you." Robin replied. She turned to Bastian.


    "May I?" She gestured towards some blank paper and a quill.


    "By all means, go ahead." Bastian waved her over.


    Robin drew a cube, and divided each side into thirds from left to right, then again from up to down.


    "This is a Rubik''s cube. At least the most common one. Each of these smaller cubes is attached to a round base at the center, and each side on the cube has an attributed color. It''s a small tinker toy. so the cubes can only move up and down, or left and right, spinning on that spheric base. The objective is to match up all the smaller cubes so that each side only has one color on it."


    "Which is an interesting thing in itself, but we''re we to be able to, say, place a rune on one of those sides, and assembling it would set off a spell, then that would probably be one of the most interesting tinker toys imaginable." Bastian added.


    "But, now that we''ve seen it, won''t that mean that you can''t make it anymore?" Jasmine asked.


    "No. After all, this is only in theory. Have any of you ever seen a magic Rubik''s cube?" Robin asked. The rest shook their heads.