Sebastian lay panting in bed. Beside him, the girl was also trying to catch her breath. Both were covered in a sheen of sweat as they both struggled to get under the covers quickly, to escape the cold air that hung around them. Even though the small house had a fireplace, it had long burned out in the night.
Seeing an opportunity, she laid on his chest as she cuddled him for his warmth. "You're always rough. I feel that you're going to physically break me someday."
"I always lose myself when we do this. You of all people should know why." Sebastian still laid on his back as he tried to fix the pillow with his other hand. He could smell the subtle scent of flowers from her hair and he felt her supple skin on his own bare skin. He thought she maintained herself very well, considering her job. Even though they were having intercourse on a regular basis, he still found it stimulating. Too much it seemed, from the sound of her frequent complaints.
"I know. Let's talk in the morning. I'm exhausted."
"Do you want me to get you a glass of water?" Sebastian tried to sense if she was still sulking as she laid on his chest. However, he was met with silence and snoring.
'You fell asleep that quick. You were really tired.'
In a house in the city with a rare courtyard, the two adventurers slept their way through the cold dawn. They were exhausted enough to be oblivious to the first snowfall, indicating the start of winter. As if to reflect the turmoil within, the world around them started to grow cold and harden.
*
TOK TOK TOK
Mel wiped the sweat off her brow as she walked over to the target and removed the arrows which weren't broken. She had spent the afternoon in the archery range, as shown by the broken arrows scattered around her. Leo quietly walked over to her, carrying a fresh quiver of arrows.
"Mel. How are you?" Leo placed the quiver down beside her as he stood, unwavering alongside her.
With a raised eyebrow she looked at the new quiver beside her.
"I came bearing gifts as a peace offering. Once more, how are you?" Leo returned her gaze as he waited for her response.
"sigh. He's still not recovered if that's what you're asking. He's almost a different person now, as if rough and angry all the time." Mel continued to use the arrows in her own quiver, ignoring the new one brought by the guild master.
"Everyone understands his sentiment. However, it's been an entire season since then. I need to talk to him."
"Then why can't the all-powerful guild master talk to a single adventurer? Why do you have to go through me?" TWENG! The arrow missed its mark as it hit the stone wall behind it instead.
"He thinks it's his fault that Becky died, but there was nothing he could do about it. Even if I was there, the results might have been the same."
Crack! Mel couldn't control her strength as she snapped the arrow in half before she could even nock it into her bow. "Then why do you still want him to be an adventurer! You realise that he's hurt and angry right now but you still want him to continue! You can't even talk to him, you have to go through me. Tch."
It was Leo's turn to sigh now as he waited for her to catch her breath. He didn't want to get into a screaming war with her again. Seeing Mel slow her breathing down, Leo continued. "I'm sure he might have realised it then, but the other person is a Forgotten One. We don't understand what his plan is or what his next move is. We found some journals and drawings of some sort in the cave complex, but that's all. We need his knowledge of this. We think the other person is connected to the mutated wolves and rat imp outbreaks. We desperately need his help."
"So what do you want me to do? Convince him for you?"
"You don't need to go that far. I simply need to talk to him in private. He's not coming out of your house, is he? I don't want to force him so I need to go this roundabout way. Like you said, right now he is unbalanced. He is an unstable sword that can't distinguish between friend and foe. You're acting as his sheath so I need you both right now. Please." With the last word, Leo looked downcast and defeated as he disregarded his pride as a half-elf and as a guild master.
"I'll talk to him once more when we get home. No promises though." Mel packed her quiver and bow as she made her way out of the archery range, leaving Leo and his unused quiver of arrows.
*
"Winter is here." Jin muttered to himself as he held a warm cup of herbal tea with both hands. He was currently in a restaurant in the business district, sitting in a booth alone. With the change in seasons, the street stalls temporarily closed and moved somewhere warmer. Some continued to sell as a small section within restaurants, creating makeshift food courts. Jin quietly sipped his tea while listening to the people around him.
"Yo, you're here." Aima sat opposite Jin as she pulled a chair and started browsing the menu. "What do you want to eat today?" She didn't even look up as she waited for his reply.
"I'll just have the roast pork and some soup. The usual. How about you?"
She was still looking at the menu intently, making him doubt if she actually heard him. "I'll have a sandwich and soup. I'll call them, please wait."
After quickly placing their order to the food server, she then faced Jin who was still sipping on his tea.
"I have your order ready so you can check it if you want now. You're still as keen as ever, aren't you? Here's your upgraded armour. I've reinforced it with iron ores, and had it lined with wolf pelt inside to keep you warm for the coming winter." She handed over a rucksack with ease, betraying the fact that it was heavy.
Jin received it and browsed through his new armour. "Thank you, you're workmanship is always commendable. I'll pay you the agreed amount and some." He tried to hand over a small money pouch to Aima however she gently pushed his hand back.
"I'll only take what we agreed upon. You don't need to add extra."
"But I am grateful for your services and I really like the quality -"
"Is it because you pity me?" Aima's remark hushed Jin as he placed the money pouch on the table and looked down. "sigh. Everyone in our party feels bad for what happened to Becky but that is what being an adventurer is. She is my friend and we have been through so many things together. At the risk of sounding calloused, I have been to many parties which have had more terrible results. Unfortunately, it's a harsh reality in this world we live in. That is what being an adventurer entails."
Jin took a sip of his tea before speaking. "I understand that. That's why I continued to take quests and earn my rank. I don't want that to happen again. I need to get better and be prepared."
"That's really impressive and I commend you for it. You continued to take a step forward when the others took a step back. However, you won't be able to stop the people around you from their deaths. There will always be a situation that will overwhelm you."
Providing some sort of relief, the food came at that time. With the steaming hot food in front of them, the two ate in silence, without even realising what the food tasted like.
After the meal, both placed down their utensils as they wiped their mouths with the table napkin.
Jin took the money pouch again before removing a few silver coins out. "I understand what you're getting at, Aima. Here's the agreed amount - 150 silver coins. You can count it if you want."
With a smile, Aima received the pouch before opening it and counting it. "Thank you. What's your plan now? Are you still going to continue taking quests by yourself? There's only so much you can do by yourself you know."
"I'm only taking simple quests like gathering or hunting simple animals. My guard duties and training take up most of my time."
Aima held a cup of tea in her hand as she swirled it around. She was lost in thought before she continued. "Did you guys ever know why Becky wanted to party up with you?"
With a start, Jin perked up in his chair. He didn't expect her to talk about Becky after the earlier exchange. "No, but I do know that she was extremely harsh with us if we did something wrong or lacking."
"There was also a reason for that you know?" Aima smiled as she closed her eyes as if to recall something. "Her party before you were all killed in Calberry Cave. It was supposed to be a simple quest, however, they didn't expect the number of ice bears and sonic bats in the cave."
"So she was the only one that survived?"
Still closing her eyes, Aima continued. "Yes. She said she continuously used [Shadow Step] to get away from the place. Her other party members had said that she would scout their escape route and they would follow her but they collapsed the cave behind her. They were badly injured so they couldn't make it out even if they tried. It left her traumatised and bitter after that. The smiling and cheerful girl was gone as she devoted herself to training as soon as she was able to wield her daggers again."
Jin's eyes widened. "Wait, she was smiling and cheerful back then?"
"Ahaha. You can't imagine it right? We had similar personalities back then, that's why we got along very well. That's why she wanted you both to get better quick. She was badly itching to go back to Calberry Cave and avenge her party members. Do you still remember our quest back in Korinne Cave?"
"Hmm? Ah yeah, you both wanted me and Sebastian to plan it right? You were also harsh with Mel back then."
Aima finally opened her eyes as she took a sip of the warm tea before continuing. "Becky and I decided that we wanted everyone to have a feel in cave exploration. We both wanted everyone else to train in fighting and managing themselves in a cave setting. She felt frustrated that you and Sebastian's skills were still lacking, but I reminded her that there was a bit of progress."
"I... I didn't know she went through a lot. Even though I feel that she took out a lot of her frustration on us, she had a larger goal in mind." Jin paused as he looked down and stared at the empty cup in his hand.
Aima called the food server's attention as she signalled for her to refill their cups.
"Can I ask you though, was there a time when Becky acknowledged our efforts?" Jin asked as he looked up.
"When we went to investigate Erimead Village and stuff happened, do you remember when Becky and I destroyed the empty rat imp burrows?"
"Ah yeah, when Sebastian and I were recovering in the warehouse right?"
"Yes, that time. I asked her if she thought you were all improving, and she did say that she was pleased. Especially with Sebastian for using hand signals and in using different methods to scout the surroundings. However, by that time everyone was on edge with her and she actually found it hard to compliment you guys. Every time she said something, the rest of you would be tense."
"I... We... We didn't know." For the rest of dinner, they both sat in silence again as they finished off their tea. Aima was the first to stand up as she placed a few coins on the table.
Jin looked at the coins and stood up while opening his own money pouch. "No need Aima, I invited you out here so I'll pay for it."
"You don't need to. You can pay next time if you want. I feel that this dinner was good for me in a lot of ways. Let me know if you need anything else smithed or upgraded." Placing her coat over her shoulders, she went out of the restaurant first.
After making sure that the amount on the table was correct, Jin picked up his upgraded armour as he also went out. Snow continued to blanket Wildecross City, giving the city a dreary and morose look. "Winter has indeed arrived." Jin strapped the bag over his winter coat as he walked into the street.