3.40 (1/2)

When Ryoka left the Mage’s Guild she found Reynold waiting for her. The young woman was not surprised; she let the [Butler] fall into step beside her as she walked slowly down the street.

Reynold was not smiling. Not that he was usually beaming; but he normally carried himself with professional impartiality. Right now he was not smiling and it was quite clear he was also not happy.

“Miss Ryoka. I trust your visit to the Mage’s Guild was eventful?”

“You tell me.”

“I trust I conveyed Lady Reinhart’s wishes to you earlier? My duty is to accompany you as an escort—”

“Yeah. But I’ll just bet that I had other people watching me while you were busy with Laken. Stop glaring, Reynold. I’m not in a good mood right now.”

Reynold glared, but he decided to shut his mouth after a second of wavering. Ryoka saw him glancing at her face. In truth, she wasn’t angry. She was more tired. No; tired wasn’t the right word.

Valceif Godfrey was dead. It felt like no one in the world knew or cared. But Ryoka did. She cared, but she had to finish her job here. Then she could go back and—tell everyone. Tell Erin, and Hawk, at least.

“How’d it go in the Merchant’s Guild?”

Ryoka frowned at the sky as she spoke. It was quite dark, although it shouldn’t have been so early. The clouds had completely obscured the sun and snow was beginning to fall. A lot of snow.

The [Butler]’s voice was testy as he replied.

“Mister Laken has concluded most of his business to his satisfaction. A shipment of goods and food has been paid for—and two adventuring teams have been contacted. If all goes well, they should be ready to begin transport this very night.”

“Good. Thanks for helping him.”

“It was my pleasure, Miss Ryoka. It is my privilege to serve others in need of my assistance…whether I like it or not, apparently.”

“Hah. You’re a lot more fun when you’re upset, Reynold.”

Ryoka half-smiled as she turned to look at him. Then she looked up again. Ryoka frowned and prodded at her belt pouch.

“Ivolethe? Hey, Ivolethe. What’s with all this crap floating down? We’re already up to our knees in the snow; why do we need more?”

She saw the pouch at her belt rustling, and then Ivolethe poked her head out. The Frost Faerie grinned as she spread her arms wide at the dark, snowy sky.

“Ah, you see it? Do you see your doom, floating down from above? Prepare for wrack and ruin, ye mortals! This snowstorm will be the greatest in a century, nay, in ten thousand years! The snow will cover the earth and leave none alive! This is the dawn of a new age of ice and woe! Alack! Despair!”

Ryoka stared down at Ivolethe with narrowed eyes. The faerie stared back, blinking innocently.

“What does ah, Miss Ivolethe have to say, Miss Ryoka?”

“She says we’re all doomed.”

“Oh.”

“Yep.”

The two Humans didn’t react the way Ivolethe was hoping for. She scowled, and then answered in a sulky tone of voice.

“A blizzard comes. You will see it become strongest by nightfall. It will last two…nay, three days at most. If you hide in your small huts of wood and stone, you should be fine.”

“Thanks for the weather update. Buh-bye.”

Ryoka closed the lid on her belt pouch. Ivolethe made a sound of pure outrage; Ryoka winced as her pouch instantly frosted over. The faerie pushed the lid open as Ryoka turned to Reynold.

“Is Laken still at the Guild? I want to speak with him.”

“I believe he has retired to his lodgings for the moment, Miss Ryoka.”

“Okay. Where are they?”

“I regret to say that he did not inform me.”

“Okay. Where are they?”

Ryoka stopped and turned to face Reynold. She folded her arms and scowled at him.

“Don’t play games, Reynold. I know that someone followed them.”

He just shook his head, stepping to one side to allow a group of laughing Gnolls to pass him by.

“Miss Ryoka, you assume that other servants under Lady Reinhart’s employ would be following you. I regret to inform you that this is not the case. There are a finite number of people who serve her, and it is hardly useful to send a [Maid] or a [Waiter] to follow someone.”

Ryoka rolled her eyes.

“Look, Reynold. I don’t have to see someone to know they’re there. I know Magnolia’s type. Someone’s following me, and probably Laken as well by now. Now, we can wander around while you pretend you have no idea where Laken is, or we can skip that and just ask your friends.”

“I’m afraid I cannot help you, Miss Griffin.”

“Right. In that case—Ivolethe? Where’s the nearest spy?”

The Frost Faerie, who’s been poking her head out of Ryoka’s belt pouch, brightened up. She smiled wickedly at Reynold. He was shaking his head almost imperceptibly at her. But Ivolethe ignored that as she gleefully pointed a finger into the crowd of pedestrians.

“There!”

Ryoka turned her head and saw an old man with a horrible skin condition—some kind of puffy warts on the right side of his face—slowly moving down the other side of the street. She ignored Reynold as he tried to block her and strode right for the man.

“Hey, you.”

The old man didn’t notice Ryoka at first, but he eventually stopped when she stepped in front of him and blocked his way. He swayed back, staring uncertainly at her—and then avidly at her breasts. He looked confused as Ryoka stared at him.

“Eh? What do you want, Miss?”

The young woman ignored the scrutiny. She stared down at the elderly man as Reynold hurried to her side, looking anxious.

“Where is Laken Godart?”

“Who? I don’t know who that is. What do you want?”

He tried to move past Ryoka. She blocked his way again. Now the old man was looking anxious. He looked exactly like an old guy – he even smelled old, if old was a smell. Nonenal, Ryoka thought it was called. She glanced down at her belt pouch, suddenly not entirely certain.

“Ivolethe, I swear, if you’re messing with me I’ll be really pissed.”

“I’m not!”

“Miss Ryoka, please—”

Ryoka turned to glare at the [Butler].

“Shut up, Reynold. Look, I know you’re in Magnolia Reinhart’s employ. Are you going to give up the act, or do I have to make a scene?”

Ryoka stared down at the old man, not quite making a fist with hers. The old man glanced at Reynold. The [Butler] spread his arms helplessly behind Ryoka’s back. After a second, the old man sighed. He reached for a ring on one of his gnarled fingers and twisted—

A [Maid], wearing a frilled dress and peeved expression on her face, straightened up in the middle of the street where the old man had been standing. The people around her did a double take, but Ryoka just smiled.

“Nice ring.”

The woman was in her late twenties, or early thirties. She had a tight bun of dark brown hair and an expression that naturally lent itself towards severity. Or maybe she just had a Skill that made her look that way. She didn’t quite glare at Ryoka.

“This way, Miss Ryoka. Your friend is staying at the Crag Pig, quite a few streets away from here. If you will follow me…?”

—-

It was a short and uneventful walk to the inn Laken was staying at. Uneventful for Ryoka, that was. Reynold kept his head bowed and shoulders hunched as he and the mysterious [Maid] walked ahead of Ryoka. She could see the [Maid] speaking to Reynold the entire way, and Ryoka was fairly sure what was being said weren’t compliments.

She felt a bit bad for Reynold. But just a bit. Ryoka was grateful for the speed at which both servants walked—they moved fast down the most crowded of streets. Their attire made them stand out, and Ryoka saw them getting a lot of looks as she followed them.

It was funny. Ryoka smiled as she walked. When the two of Magnolia’s servants turned back to look at her, they saw her smiling and staring down at the fat snowflakes swirling down from the sky.

It was a look seldom seen on Ryoka’s face. But Ryoka had just realized the silliness of her situation. She was following a [Butler] and a [Maid] down a street in a city that could have come from her world with a few alterations, carrying a Frost Faerie in her belt pouch.

It was just so silly. And sad. That Ryoka could smile made it a bit better.

She stared up at the inn as the [Maid] led them to it. Ryoka ignored the woman as she stepped away from Reynold and practically vanished into the next crowd of Humans.

The Crag Pig was an inn with the head of, well, probably a Crag Pig mounted on the front. This skull was quite, quite big, and had a pair of tusks that curved slightly upwards. They were long, jagged—and branched, like the horns of an antler. Ryoka wondered if that was because they were useful in the Crag Pig’s natural habitat, or whether the skull being here was a testament to their qualities.

“Well, I guess I’d better have a chat. Reynold, if you would?”

The [Butler] opened the doors and Ryoka walked in. Her first impression of the inn was that it was definitely not as nice as Erin’s. The Crag Pig’s owner must have thought that the name of his inn excused the dirt, or else the name was a warning.

Still, the room was packed and a fire was taking the chill off. Ryoka looked around and saw a man and a woman waiting the tables, but no [Innkeeper]. She shrugged, found the stairs, and headed towards them.

“Welcome, sir! Let me find you a table. Please—I’ll have a seat for you and a hot drink right away!”

To her amusement, Ryoka saw a big man—a former adventurer perhaps—hurry out of the kitchen and accost Reynold as he tried to follow her. The owner of the inn had scars all over his arms, and he was trying to usher the protesting Reynold into a seat.

There were flaws with being impeccably dressed after all. Not that Reynold’s attire would be so dashing if he sat down in one of the chairs in this inn. Ryoka shook her head as she went up the stairs two at a time.

“Now, where’s Laken…? Ah.”

It was the work of five seconds to find Laken’s room. Not because the door was open or Ryoka spotted anyone coming out; there was simply only one room that could conceivably hold someone of Durene’s size. It was probably the master suite.

Ryoka headed towards the door and knocked twice.

“Laken? It’s me, Ryoka Griffin.”

Someone had been talking inside the room. When Ryoka knocked, the voice stopped abruptly. Ryoka listened for sounds of movement, but heard none.

It was a surprise, then, when the door opened and Ryoka saw Durene staring down at her. For such a big girl, Durene could move quite silently.

“Hi. Durene, right? Is Laken inside? I want to talk with him.”

“He’s inside.”

The young woman nodded and tried to walk inside. But a very thick, grey-skinned arm shot out to block her. Ryoka looked up and saw Durene staring down at her.

“Please move. I’m just going to talk to him.”

“You ran away earlier. And you haven’t said why you’re here.”

“Yeah. I had something to do.”

Ryoka stared up at Durene. The half-Troll girl was hostile, but…Ryoka thought it was more than just wariness around Ryoka.

“I don’t trust you.”

“Okay.”

Possessiveness, that was it. Ryoka remembered how Durene hovered around Laken. She was treating him like…

A few thoughts flashed through Ryoka’s mind. Dependency? Probably. She could imagine what might occur when Laken had come to this world. Blind guy meets half-Troll. A reverse case of Beauty and the Beast. But the beast is actually a girl who was afraid of losing the one person who didn’t fear her.

“I’m not your enemy. And I’m not going to do anything to Laken. I just want to talk with him.”

“Why?”

Ryoka bit her tongue. Durene’s tone told her there was no good answer she could give. She knew that because it was the exact same tone of voice she used to use when talking with her father.

“Look, is Laken in there? Laken—”

“He’s sleeping. You can come back later.”

Durene shifted so more of her body was in the way. Ryoka stared up at her. Well, there were several ways this could go.

“Can you wake him up? I need to talk to him now. I’m sorry if that’s a problem, but it’s urgent.”

“No. He’s tired. You can come back later. If you try to come in, I’ll stop you.”

One of Durene’s hands closed. Ryoka eyed it and put her hands on her belt. She knew Ivolethe was sitting in her belt pouch, but it wasn’t that Ryoka was reaching for. At her belt, there were several potions Octavia had given her. Ryoka put her fingers on one of them, second from the right.

“Look, I understand you’re Laken’s…protector. And girlfriend. I’m not here to do anything to him, but I need to talk with him. And you shouldn’t start a fight here.”

“Oh yeah? Why not? I could stop you.”

“No, you couldn’t.”

Ryoka sighed. She yanked the potion free from her belt in one move. Durene blinked down at it. Ryoka put her thumb on the cork—

And handed it to Durene.

“Here.”

The huge girl stared dumbfounded at the potion. She peered at Ryoka suspiciously.

“What’s this?”

“A pepper potion. Toss it at your opponent and they’ll go blind. Be careful—if it gets in your eyes you’ll be screaming about it all day. If you’re going to go around picking fights, at least get some magical items and a weapon.”

Durene looked uneasy as she held the potion.

“Were you going to hit me with this?”

“No, I’d use a spell and blind you first and then I’d hit you with the potion. Actually, I’d probably just blow up this entire corridor and run downstairs while everything burns down.”

Ryoka had two bags of compressed flour and the blaze potions. She didn’t know if it would actually hurt Durene that badly; she had a feeling that would only piss the girl off. But it made Durene stop and think.

“Keep the potion. You’ll probably need it. If it’s you—you could probably pour it on your hands and just punch people in the face. Not that they’re likely to get up after you hit them, but it’s a thought. Just don’t touch your eyes until after you’ve washed them thoroughly—with soap. Can I talk to Laken now?”

Durene just stared at Ryoka. She hesitated, looked down at the potion with bits of red pepper floating in it, and over her shoulder.

“Wait here. I’ll wake him up.”

Ryoka waited patiently. She heard Reynold come up the stairs—the [Butler] looked as though he’d had to tear himself physically away from the innkeeper.

A few voices muttered inside, and then the door opened. Durene let Ryoka walk in, but blocked Reynold.

“Ryoka can talk. Everyone else stays outside.”

Reynold protested, but Ryoka didn’t hear his conversation with Durene. The first thing she saw when entering Laken’s room made her stop in place. Because she’d seen Frostwing.

The baby bird was snoozing on a little platform made into a nest for him. He was surrounded by a warm blanket, and his ‘nest’ was more ripped-up shreds of fabric than actual cloth. It was also stained quite badly with his droppings. But the bird shone in Ryoka’s gaze.

“Wow.”

He looked like an eagle. Well, vaguely like an eagle. Ryoka had never studied bird species, but she knew only one kind of bird grew that big.

No—if size was the comparison, than Frostwing was more like an albatross than an eagle. Because he was clearly young, still a nestling, but he was almost the size of a full-grown chicken already.

And he was blue. That was the important thing. Frostwing’s feathers glittered in the light as he opened and flapped his wings, protesting this stranger’s intrusion into his home. Ryoka saw each feather glittering like a jewel; they had a subtle gradient that made the dark oxford blue of the inner part of each feather fade to a brilliant sky blue on the tips.

A blue bird. But not any bird. For a second, Ryoka was lost to the world. She was in another place, sitting on the balcony in her home, ten years old, holding a Gameboy and playing the video game that had defined her life at that time—

“Ryoka? Is that you?”

She looked up. Laken was sitting on the large bed, yawning and turning his head around the room. A young man was standing by his side, offering him assistance that Laken clearly didn’t need.

Laken, and…Gamel, was it?

“I’m here, Laken.”

Ryoka approached the bed. That was a bad move. She was still staring at Frostwing—too long. The bird may have been a child, but it had instincts that made it wary of anything that stared at it.

Frostwing shrieked his displeasure. Durene backed away, covering her ears as Gamel tried unsuccessfully to sooth the agitated young bird. Ryoka just stared as Frostwing spread his wings, shedding brilliant blue feathers onto the ground.

“Oh for the love of—here!”

Laken turned, frowning, and fumbled his way towards Frostwing. He reached out and the bird shut up as one of his hands found a piece of dried meat and offered it to the bird.

“Shh, Frostwing. Shut up. There’s a good bird.”

Laken stroked the crest on Frostwing’s head and the bird stopped shrieking. It tore greedily at the bit of meat and Laken turned to Ryoka, looking sheepish.

“Sorry. Pet bird. I’ve had to apologize to the innkeeper already. At least he wasn’t doing this in the middle of the night this time. It is daytime, right?”

“That’s right. I’m here to talk some more. Sorry about dropping in unexpectedly.”

“No it’s no problem—”

Laken rubbed at his face. He looked tired.

“Ah…Gamel?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Can you…get me something to drink? And a snack, maybe? Durene, did I hear someone else was here?”

“Yes. It’s that [Butler]. Reynold.”

“Mister Laken, I apologize for the intrusion. But—”

“Yes, yes. Okay, Gamel, I’ll handle Frostwing. He doesn’t need food—he just needs to take another nap. Durene, please guard the door? I think I need to talk to Ryoka. Alone.”

“Okay, Laken.”

There was something about Laken. When he spoke, things got done. Ryoka watched the protesting Reynold get slowly pushed out the door. She waved at him before Durene closed the door. Laken sat on the edge of his bed, slowly petting Frostwing as the bird rubbed its head against his palm.

“You have a bird.”

“Yes. Ryoka, meet Frostwing. Frostwing—don’t nip my fingers.”

Ryoka stared at Frostwing. Her eyes turned back to Laken.

“You have a bird. It’s blue.”

He frowned.

“Yes—yes I do. I found Frostwing near Durene’s cottage. I think his mother died of starvation or—something else. I took Frostwing in. I actually have a class from raising him. [Beast Tamer].”

“Oh?”

Ryoka stared at Frostwing. She felt like she had to repeat herself.

“It’s blue. I—excuse me.”

She reached for her pocket as Laken frowned. She knew it was stupid, but Ryoka had to do this. She pulled her iPhone out of her pocket and turned it on.

—-

Laken was still a bit bleary from waking up, but he was trying to get his thoughts together quickly. Ryoka was here. That was good. He had so many questions he wanted to ask her, but he had to be careful, didn’t he? He wasn’t sure of her. Not yet. But she was from his world. Or—and here his cautious self spoke up—she was pretending to be. Could this all be a ploy? Her knowing German meant someone had come from another world, but maybe she was using a Skill? Was that possible?

Ryoka wasn’t saying much. She seemed to be fixated on Frostwing. Was it really that special that he was blue? Laken tried to remember if there were other blue birds back home. Obviously he’d never seen any, but…blue birds, what about them? What made Frostwing stand out that much?

Then he heard something. It was faint, muffled, and familiar. Laken frowned.

“Ryoka? Are you there?”

No response. Laken hesitated, and then leaned towards the source of the muted music. His eyes widened.

“Is that…is that the Pokemon theme song?”

Ryoka pulled the earbuds out.

“No.”

“It is!”

Laken smiled and laughed.

“You’re a Pokemon fan!”

“I was. Once. A long time ago.”

Ryoka shifted, coughed. Laken couldn’t see, but she’d turned bright red. Laken grinned.

“Does Frostwing remind you of a Pokemon that much?”

“Yeah. He looks like Articuno, you know?”

“That’s a Pokemon?”

“A legendary. One of the legendary birds from the original one hundred and fifty.”

“Ah. I never actually played Pokemon growing up. Sort of hard when you can’t see anything.”

“Oh. Right.”

Ryoka coughed again, clearly embarrassed. Laken was smiling so hard it hurt. For just a few moments, he felt like he was back home, back in his world.

“You’re a fan. I had no idea. Did you play that new thing coming out? Pokemon Go?”

“I uh, a bit. It was a long time ago. Or it feels like it. I…was teleported here a few days after I downloaded the app, actually.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

The conversation fell flat in an instant. Ryoka shifted as she glanced at Frostwing again. Laken blinked and gestured with his other hand.

“I’m so sorry. Please, sit. I don’t know where the chair is, but I’m assured we have at least two.”

“I see it.”

Ryoka dragged the chair over as Laken tried to make Frostwing go to sleep. He thought it worked, or at least, the bird had given up moving. He turned and sat cross-legged on his bed as he faced in Ryoka’s direction.

“I think Durene gave you some trouble as I was sleeping. Is that right?”

“Just a bit. She’s protective of you.”

Laken smiled wryly.

“She is. Thank you for not hitting her with that potion.”

Ryoka shrugged, and then remembered Laken couldn’t see any of her gestures.

“It’s nothing. Good thing we didn’t meet a month or two ago or I’d have gotten my head pushed through a wall.”

“Really?”

“I picked a fight with a Minotaur one time. That was one of the dumber things I’ve ever done.”

“Minotaurs exist in this world?”

“Yup. They’re touchy and prideful. And fairly rude, but they are honorable.”

“Fascinating. I’ve heard this continent has mainly…Gnolls, is it? And Drakes?”

“They inhabit the southern parts, yes. Invrisil is sort of an exception—it’s a major city so a lot of races come here. But you’ll generally find only Humans in the north.”

“I understand. Durene’s village is totally Human save for her.”

“Hm.”

The two sat in silence for another second. Ryoka sat still in her chair; Laken wiggled around, wondering if there was something that he was sitting on. A fork, maybe? Whatever it was, it was poking into his butt.

Unnoticed by the two of them, a third being was present in the room, listening. Ivolethe sat in Ryoka’s pouch, listening carefully. The Frost Faerie considered that her sisters would have hated the conversation between Ryoka and Laken. It wasn’t a thing of majesty or destiny. But it was important.

“I guess we should talk.”

“Yes, I guess we should.”

The boy and girl sat across from each other. They were old, but still young by the way the faerie reckoned such things. They had gone through sorrows, gone through trials. But they were still young. So young.

It was the girl who spoke first. She hesitated as she chewed at a lip, glancing towards the closed doors. Durene and Gamel stood behind it, but Ryoka knew the danger wasn’t something she could see.

“It’s complicated, you know? I want to say what’s on my mind but—”

“You did mention. Watchers and such.”

“Yeah. But if we assume we lost them or they can’t hear us—which I don’t—I’m fairly certain someone’s using magic to listen in.”

Laken raised his eyebrows calmly.

“Well, it’s not like we have anything to hide.”

“Hah.”

“Okay, fine. But how are you proposing we solve this problem? I have something I need to say which will clarify things.”

“I’m in the same boat. I can say that I have a friend—Erin Solstice who’s from our world straight off, but the rest is harder.”

“Someone else? You mentioned that—what’s she like?”

“Age wise? She’s twenty. Besides that, she’s…a normal girl. Sort of. She’s American, like me.”

“Interesting. I’m twenty-four. Not American. Can I assume you’re around that age?”

“Twenty one. You don’t look that old. You’re part German. Is there another half?”

Laken smiled.

“My mom’s German, but she married my dad in France. I’ve grown up all over Europe, though. As to my face—I’m told I have a youthful complexion.”

Ryoka had to smile. She glanced at the door and frowned.

“Good to know. I don’t think any of this is too bad to mention, but the rest…damn, I don’t know. Erin would probably come up with some special way of figuring this out. Flush out the spies with a crazy scheme and dispel the enchantments with an insane trick or just luck.”

“She sounds quite interesting.”

“She’s an [Innkeeper]. Look, I’m getting annoyed. Maybe we should just go for broke. What do you think? I doubt anyone knows German.”

“Wahrscheinlich. But can you speak it? I don’t want to be rude, but your pronunciation—”

“I know. But I’ve got a dictionary-encyclopedia. It’s an app—I might have to ask for spelling, but I can translate short sentences.”

“That’s…amazingly useful. In that case, translate this. Ich bin ein [Kaiser].”

It took Ryoka only a second to figure out what Laken had said. She didn’t need to use her iPhone. Instead, she dropped it. She fumbled around on the ground, heart beating wildly. When she sat back up she stared at Laken’s face.

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not. I know it’s surprising, but it’s true. What about you?”

“I don’t have a class. I’m a Runner without the class. But you—get out.”

“It’s true!”

Laken smiled. He had no way of seeing Ryoka’s face, but her tone made her feelings clear.

“No, seriously, get out. Run away as far as you can. Do you have any idea how bad that is?”

“Bad? Why? Because of your—your Daenerys-like friend?”

“Yes! Not just her—Ivolethe!”

Ryoka shouted the faerie’s name. Laken jumped, and then gaped as the faerie floated upwards and spoke.

“What do ye want, Ryoka?”

“Go downstairs and flush out the spies. Please? And if there are enchantments, dispel them. Please. This is important.”

The faerie considered the request. Then she reluctantly nodded.

“I shall bring havoc! From the outside.”

She flew out the window as Laken tried to find words.

“Was that—a Frost Faerie?”

“You’ve met them?”

“Yes! Hell, I knighted a few of them. But they helped save Durene’s cottage from an avalanche—or caused it and spared her home. I’m not sure of which.”

“Well, I’m friends with one. Look, sit down. I’ll explain as much as I can—but the Frost Faeries probably didn’t cause the avalanche. They don’t kill, although they do pull horrible pranks.”

Ryoka and Laken sat down as, below them, they heard confused shouting. Ivolethe’s laugher was drowned out as she buzzed by the inn outside, but Ryoka could just imagine her hurling snow and ice into the building.

“Okay, let me begin from the start. The first thing you need to know is that I got here a few months ago. I’d say around…September? A while back. But Erin arrived before me. We don’t know how we got here, but I know there are other people in this world. I also know that not a lot of people know we exist. That woman I told you about—Lady Magnolia Reinhart. She employs Reynold and a bunch of other servants, and she’s one of the most powerful people on the continent…”

Laken listened intently as Ryoka whispered to him amid the sounds of the inn clearing out. He turned to tell Durene everything was fine when she told him the bottom half of the inn was covered with snow, but he mainly just listened as Ryoka gave him an abridged version of what had happened when she entered this world.

And then it was his turn. Ryoka didn’t just listen—she had her iPhone held in her lap, recording Laken’s every word as he spoke. She didn’t mention this fact, and neither did Laken or Ryoka ever mention certain key words aloud.

Words like [Emperor], gunpowder, iPhone, dragon, or a thousand other words from home. Ryoka was glad that Laken understood, and he picked up what she feared from what Ryoka never said.

“It sounds like you’ve had a rough time without a class. I can’t say I understand that bit.”

“I don’t like conformity.”

“You think that’s an issue—wait. I think I get it. Game system, right? But is there a puppet master?”

“Probably, yes.”

“Oh, really? How do you know?”

Laken sat forwards. Ryoka hesitated, and then leaned forwards as well. Though she knew Reynold and the other spies in the building were probably gone, she whispered to him in German.

“Ein Gott…lebt.”

A slow frown was her only reply. Laken sat back carefully.

“How?”

“I don’t know. But I talked with someone who assures me it’s true. And I believe him.”

“In that case—that is concerning. But still, as far as I understand it, the system is essential. You can’t fight a…a monster without Skills.”

“Yeah. But do we lose anything if we have a class?”

Laken’s voice was thoughtful.

“I don’t know. And honestly, I’m not sure I’d be willing to try and find out, if it were me. But if you want to be the test subject…I’m glad. It’s good to have someone who might be impartial. Especially if what you say is true.”

“I don’t know if they’re connected, but it seems so.”

“Oh, I agree. But really…alive?”

“Yes. And apparently talking about them gives them strength.”

Laken shivered.

“That’s horrific. Terrifying. But it sounds like this—person—isn’t too active?”

“No. I shouldn’t say lebt. More like…hold on. Schlafen. Aufwachen.”

“Ah.”

It was as if he’d taken a drink of water after being dehydrated. Laken felt everything snap more into place.

“I think I get it. Or at least, I have a hypothesis.”

“So do I. Either way? It’s bad news.”

“But from what you say, it doesn’t seem like that’s the reason we’re here. It’s probably a spell?”

“Someone said that there was a summoning spell. In Rhir.”

“Something to look into. I guess.”

Laken frowned and scrubbed at his hair.

“This is all so complex! How are we supposed to figure this out? It’s not as if we can just ask, and we don’t have people we can trust to find out. I don’t, at any rate. You have your [Lady] friend, but I don’t trust her further than I can throw her either.”

“Yeah, I’m not too keen on asking. But those angry ant people I told you about? Their entire race is scared spitless of this one person.”

Ryoka chewed her lip, feeling the same urgent panic rising in her chest when she thought about—

A God. A real God, sleeping under the earth.

She expected Laken to share at least a bit of her concern. But the blind man refused to panic.

“I get the issue. But they’re on another continent, right? There’s not much we can do right now—except spread the word, I guess, and find someone who can do something.”

“So you’re saying we don’t even think about it?”

It was impossible to glare at a blind man successfully. Laken smiled.

“Look, if we’re talking about this—person as a threat, then all we need is a devil, right? Anyone tried blood summoning, chanting in Latin, or hooded robes? Or we could get a few angry atheists. Who knows? It could work.”

Ryoka stared at Laken and then burst out laughing.

“You cocky bastard.”

He raised his hands, smiling and laughing with her.

“Hey, it’s a problem. But it’s not immediate, is it? If I panicked over all of the big things, I’d never get to sleep at night.”

“Fine. I get it. Back to you, then. You’re in a bind. Assuming no one catches wind of what you do, you’re going to need help for that village of yours.”

Laken nodded. He wove his fingers together and tightened his grip.

“I think we’ve got food and protection, but if you know anything about…anything, I’d love to have some help.”

Ryoka had to confess her knowledge was limited.

“I’ve got some information, but it’s all scattered. Ruling a village—good luck. Other than that, technology’s tricky. I’m not giving you the recipe for…well, firearms.”

“Perish the thought.”

“—And I can’t tell you how to make anything too useful. Steam engines, light bulbs…not exactly stuff your village needs right now.”

“No.”

Ryoka frowned as she tapped a finger on her leg, letting it bounce against the floorboards. Laken found the sound slightly annoying, but he waited patiently for Ryoka to finish thinking.

“Greenhouses might help. If you can get sheets of glass, you can build the rest of the structure without it. That would extend your growing season—let you get a head start on growing.”

“Really?”

“There’s glass in this world. If you can get panes, or one large sheet—could be tricky, could be worth it. I see some parchment over there. I’ll use that, okay?”

“Feel free.”

Laken heard Ryoka rustling about and then her fiddling with the inkpot.

“Let me do a sketch. It’s all about keeping the heat in, more than letting it out—on that note, what about agricultural implements? I’d have to do more thinking, but the heavy plough is a good invention to check on.”

“I’m familiar with a plough—sort of. What’s the heavy one do?”

“It’s really just a way to make it better. You have wheels and…nah, it’s really just the wheels that change it. It lets a farmer move faster, reduces the burden, etc. see?”

“No, I don’t. But go ahead.”

He heard a chuckle.

“Okay…I’m drawing a diagram, but just ask whether the [Farmers] in your village use wheels on their ploughs. I’ll write down what I know about crop rotation too—”

They continued in that vein for a few more minutes. Then Laken switched the issue over to protection.

“I don’t think a palisade’s going to stop a monster, do you?”

“It’s worth a shot. A wall would be better.”

Ryoka raised her eyebrows as she sketched out the cross section of a wall. Laken had another thought.

“If we’re talking about walls, then what about trebuchets? You wouldn’t happen to know—”