Before I became aware of the nature of that smooth voice, I was once again standing in the familiar void of nothingness except with yet another familiar shade of blue.
The blue haze swiveled around my sight in a playful manner when I swayed my hands back and forth to drive it away from me.
"Shooooo!!!" I mightily screamed in the nothingness.
Have I been here before? I feel like I already did this from the past days.
A lot of bad things are bound to happen after I hear that cold voice and see this surreal visual in front of me.
I learned about it already. I am a learning girl and capable of simple retention in tragic memories.
Hmmmm…
If I am not mistaken, the last time that this visual showed in front of me, I was actually asleep after receiving the sword from the rite…
The life-threatening and embarrassing rite that still plagues my inner mind and psyche up to this very hour.
Does that mean… I am dreaming right now?
Seriously? Me, in a lucid dream? One in which, I am aware of what is happening around of me?
Alright! I will make sure that I will remember all of the contents of this dream! I will learn from that past mistake of mine!
When I thought of imagining a parchment paper and an ink to write on, the cold and soothing voice spoke once more.
"Astoria…"
Yeah… yeah… Astoria, that is my name! But seriously, cut it out already! This enchanting voice is odd to hear when encountering it for the first time, but after repetitive portions of it while also looping the same words, it is rather stressful aand tiresome instead!
I turned around to see if there is a person who utters that same, monotonous words in the empty void-
I cannot believe what appeared in front of me at that instant.
I saw an image of a woman.
The woman was standing in a prim and proper posture. She had the same height as I am as she was wearing a long, blue ceremonial gown. I cannot properly see though her face due to some reason as it is covered with a thick and invisible foam of haze. Her head is covered with a long and black hair that glistens a bit due to the encircling color of blue around us.
…
I have an initial impression that whenever I am put in a strange situation or place where nobody is around and then suddenly, after I turned my line of sight a bit, a person instantly is facing me; I will immediately shout due to intense fright and worry.
However, due to the aura of gentleness and nobility that I can feel from this woman that I do not even know, she made me feel at ease.
It is a strange case for me, to say the least.
While staring the woman on her next moves, I waited patiently and intently while observing every detail of her image.
Unexpectedly, the lady wordlessly retrieved a long object in the side pockets of her gown and brandished it in front of me.
It was a long sword.
The woman handled the grip of the sword with care and awe and inspected it in every nook and cranny of it. Alike to a cute child that was meticulously peering the insides of its newly-found toy, the woman used her fingers to feel the overall physicality of the blade.
Uncharacteristically for me, I just remained silent from her entire observation. Normally, I would have immediately asked her to be careful in touching such a naturally-sharp object, but…not in this case.
I just curiously watched the woman in front of me while admiring the image of the sword.
As for the blade itself though, alike to the specific image of the woman, the overall details of the sword are also blurred out in my vision.
What could all of these mean?
The image of the woman in front of me…
A woman which- I just met in my dreams… twice now, in fact and surprisingly feels familiar yet looks like a stranger to me at the same time.
The figure of a long sword…
A sword that incredibly looks and feels realistic yet also appears to be ethereal.
I just cannot comprehend all of these! After all, this is a dream.
Everything does not make sense in the majority of them.
Or… is this perhaps an apparition?
Argh. I just do not know myself.
While musing in my confusions, the woman then lifted the sword in her chest and while the tip of the blade was aloft the blue-enshrouded void, the sword itself erupted in a rich glow of light.
Indeed. Yet another familiar blue of light.
The same blue light that exploded in the sword of my possession for every unannounced times of my life.
I closed my eyes due to the ever-increasing glare of the light and after I opened them, I was stunned and dazed…
The nothingness of the void that I was accustomed to see in both of my dreams disappeared.
In expense of it, it changed itself in an empty land of the ocean.
The both of us are now standing in a crisp, clean, and calm waters of the ocean. I vividly saw my expression as I looked downward and truly, it left me stunned seeing the tranquility and oddity of the scenery that unfolded in front of me. The soothing sound of the pitter-patters of water calmed the sensation of the confusion that I felt and made me lower my guard for a bit.
The woman then pointed the sword at me- the tip of the blade refracting the lights of the scenery while making a swift and metallic sound.
It is a kind of pose that someone gives when they are about to joust in a duel.
However, from the looks of it, it does not look that she wants to have an Adamthryst with me.
While I was dumbfounded on the strange movement of hers, she once again opened her mouth.
This time, she spoke in a voice of warmth and happiness…
"So, it is you!"
…
*GASP*
I heavily panted and tried to calm myself due to that intense climax I have just experienced in my vision.
No… it was not a realistic vision.
It was just a dream. A lucid one at that.
Unlike the previous one, I mostly remember the scenes in my dreams and made a reminder that I must analyze them soon, after some of the important things that I have to do.
Yes, soon…
Because right now, when I opened my eyes, I noticed the sudden silence in my room with the looming darkness in it.
It is already evening, huh?
Aren't I a good sleeper?
I immediately got up from my bed and wore my usual attire from earlier. I also carefully took the sword from our windows and prepared to set off.
Yes, let me now go to our second attempt on the quest!
I will be back for you, oh sweet bed of mine!
I will set aside first that odd dream that I just had and focus in this quest first.
While coming downstairs in my preparations, I forgot a one, crucial thing that I should have already finished when I came back here.
"Sharps! I forgot to tell Pops that I will be back in the village tonight!"
I must have forgotten it when I was overly-drained in exhaustion earlier that my initial thinking was to forget everything and just hurriedly sleep in my bed.
Come to think of it, I also never informed Pops about the nature of the quest and where are we conducting it. Argh! Curse you, missed opportunity!
If I was actually attentive to my surroundings, I would have already told a shocking story to Pops regarding his acquaintance in the past!
But…
From the looks of it, it seems that I cannot do that at this very moment.
Situated in the smithing room, where he was stationed earlier when I came back, Pops snoozed heavily in the wooden chair.
Look at him, sleeping peacefully like that…
It would be a real shame if he woke up in an unfashionable manner like perhaps…
Opening his eyes while his face is covered in black flour? Hehehe~
HAHAHAHA~!
No! Show your restraint, Astoria! You are not a child anymore!
I ignored my childish id after seeing the peaceful slumber of Pops and instead, I grabbed a parchment paper and wrote a small note to him. I attached the parchment paper near the table where he was sleeping, and carefully moved away in his room.
Okay… you got this, Astoria!
I carefully opened the door and exited our house.
As expected, the surroundings outside are covered with serene and familiar darkness that is lightly illuminated by the enchanting yellow glow of the moon. The sound of the piercing silence rang a bit in my ears as I decided to run briskly ahead to the planned place.
After a lot running with heavy panting, I finally reached the center of the plaza.
I surveyed the area a bit if there are other swordsfolk around other than the three of us and laid my eyes on the figure of the two boys, patiently waiting for me.
"You are late, smitha…" a person wearing the silly-looking mask that imitates the image of an onion stalk grunted annoyingly.
Eeeek!
That surprised me!
"He is right, Tori! Really, you are a heavy sleeper, huh?" another person spoke while wearing his cooked chicken mask.
Seriously, you two! One of these days, you two might give me a heart attack!
"Hey… that surprised me! Do not sneak up on me while wearing those creepy masks!" I said to them in a slight astonishment.
"What? We are wearing these mask to keep ourselves incognito, alright? I do not want to raise any suspicions around the city about the three of us suddenly exiting the premises of our own without any permission from Father-… I mean Chief, okay?" the chicken man awkwardly replied.
Huh, you do have a point.
In this city, the Guild and the Infantry branch are imposing a strict rule about the curfew hours when the night comes. It means, other than the patrolling forces, no one is absolutely permitted to go outside in the deepness of the evening for security and surveillance reasons.
I mean, who in their right mind will naively walk around the city on midnight right?
… Ah, right. That is us.
This feels like we are wanted criminals with a big warrant in our heads out of a sudden.
"Well? Let us go." with a haste, the chicken man told us to move in our destination.
Hmmm… this plan to go outside the city in the deepness of the evening, might be difficult even for us, Myrmidons…
We reached the entrance of the twin-metal gates of the city and we laid our eyes in the sight of a lonely guard standing in the center of the gates.
The man is wearing the usual crest of white armor by the Infantry branch as he stood steadily in the dark, moving in his posture ever so slowly due to the probable stiffness he is feeling.
From his posture, I saw that his head is drooping slowly for some reason…
When we appeared in front of him, the guard shot up in his posture and gave us a halt by placing his five-fingered hand in front of us.
"… AH! Halt! What business do you have in this deep evening night?" he coldly said while trying his best to hide his slight astonishment.
I just realized it by now, but talking to a guard while wearing these creepy mask is not a good idea.
I lightly elbowed the onion-stalk man and proceeded to point my own face in order to signal the reality in front of them saying: "take off those creepy mask."
When the two of the boys understood my plight, they hastily removed the odd-looking masks in their faces and faced the guard once more.
"I am sorry for raising your guard up like that, may I just request to permit us of exiting the bounds of the city due to our myrmidon duties…"
Roy, after removing his mask, spoke while sighing heavily.
"WHA!- The three Myrmidons are here! But… what are the three of you doing here in the deepness of the midnight? I apologize for this query but, shouldn't you be in your respective warm beds right now?"
The guard was lightly startled upon the unveiling of our faces and asked us an important question.
You are right there… we should be sleeping in an hour such as this.
"Forgive us since we did not have the time to ask for permission beforehand, but the quest that we are about to embark outside the city is really urgent so we are in a hurry right now!" Roy explained with a respective air on him.
"Ahhhh. I see. An important quest, I take it? Sounds troublesome indeed…" the guard mumbled to himself.
"Indeed. You understand, right? If you do, please let us exit the city." Roy further requested.
"I refuse…"
Out of nowhere, the guard expressed his sturdy words in front of us. I cannot tell whether he is stern in his expression since his face is covered in a metal helm, but hearing his voice spells out his reply on us.
"B-But…"
"I sincerely apologize Sir Roy, but the three of you are out in the bounds of our duties. Sure, you three are Myrmidons proclaimed by the Grandseer of Estocia as well by the Guild but… you must understand that in our part- the Infantry branch, the three of you are nothing but regular citizens for us."
He said in front of us with clear resolve and firmness.
I see.
This is the matter of the 'branches' in the city.
In Estocia, the city is bounded by a one and unified government. The leadership of the government is dictated by blood, which means that naturally, nobles who belongs to noble blood have the birthright to lead the entire city. Under the government, the city is divided by two branches that has a sole purpose of protecting the well-being of the city while imposing the rules.
The first one is the Guildia or simply known as the Guild association, and the other one is the Infantry branch.
While the both of them are similar on their structure and goal in imposing peace and order, the manner of imposing the said rule gives them their difference.
For the Guild, they impose the peace and orderliness of the city by posing quests, requests, or hunts in the city and upon it, various swordsmen/women, adventurers, mercenaries will get the said quests. In return, the takers of the quest will be rewarded with Evees upon the successful clearance of their deeds. If you observe its overall association up to its structure, the Guild is rooted from various adventurers and swordsfolk that makes their missions possible.
On the other side of the coin, the Infantry branch is normally rooted for providing peace and order for the swordsfolk. Usually, they watch over the people, maintain the tranquility of the city, and arrests any violators of the rules that threatens the security of everyone.
From their manner of doing things in upholding peace, up to their own image of their crests and organizations, these two branches are not even safe in comparison among of the cityfolk.
Aspirants in various academies tend to pursue their careers in the Guild, rather than work in the Infantry. Sure, there are still minority mass of students who aspire to work in the Infantry, but they are overshadowed by a wide margin of pursuers in the Guild.
Probably due to that, there is this unspoken tension between the two branches that is rooted from rivalry…
Hmmm. That is more likely the reason from that comment of his.
"Hoi, guard! We are really running out of time in our quest! If we will arrive in the late time, things will be dire for our clients!" Malthur rudely shouted in front of the guard.
Hmm… you are really this invested already for our quest, huh?
"I really apologize, oh Sir Malthur of Silvos, but I will be strict here and stand in my ground about the rules!" the guard further insisted.
This is not good. If we stayed here for too long, we will miss the monster once again!
We definitely do not want to have that ever again!
Let me try…
"Excuse me, sir… You do not understand the necessity for the completion of this quest! Literal lives are at stake here and if we will be late to arrive in the location, our clients will be troubled once again!!!" I said pleadingly.
"For the third time, Lady Astoria… I simply cannot allow your request! Even if you talked to me about it earlier in the afternoon or now, I will not change my answer!"
This time, I can feel a slight irritation from his voice.
Wait-
He mentioned the terms 'earlier' and 'afternoon'… did I hear him right?
Could it be that…
"Pardon me to the change of my query sir but… are you by chance, the same person that welcomed us in the gate earlier this afternoon?"
I cannot tell at first glance since his face is covered with a thick plate of armor helm, but I think I have to give this a shot…
"Well… yes! I am the sentry that made a small talk with you! Really Lady Astoria, it saddens me that you already forgot about me even if me made a meaningful conversation earlier!"
Ah… so it was you!
Now that I think about it, I sensed a bit of familiarity from your voice.
If that is the case… this is good! Perfect, even!
I leaned forward in his front and talked in a varied emotion…
"That is not the case! I was just musing to myself if I will decide in pointing the fact that you were actually sleeping in your duties…"
Upon meeting him with the aid of the lampshade amidst the darkness of the night, I clearly saw that he was indeed asleep before we approached him.
The sentry flinched a bit after hearing my words.
"Eh? W-What are you talking about, Lady Astoria? Surely, you are just gravely mistaken!" he said while stuttering nervously.
"~Oh! Forgive me for my bold words, but I am surely not mistaken from what I have observed. Well… it would be a shame if I reported to the head of the Infantry that one of their sentries are openly snoozing amidst their duties, wouldn't it? Hmmm… truly, a shameful future indeed!"
The Infantry is generally strict on their guidelines and aims, especially for their members.
If someone in the Infantry commits even a tiny mistake, the head will not have any other choice but to let go their members.
I do not know much about their guidelines, but this is the only tidbit of information that proved useful to me upon reading that small book about Estocian associations.
Perhaps that is one of the best reasons why the Infantry has a small member size compared to the Guild…
"N-No… you are wrong! You are terribly wrong, Lady Astoria! B-Besides… you have n-no p-proof!!!" the sentry stuttered even further in my terrifying words.
"~Ho? Is that so? Well even if I am proved to be mistaking your actions, will the Infantry still see you in your outmost best after that? After all, I heard that clientele service is a huge factor in your promotion and it practically decides your fate in the association…"
The sentry stopped in his posture after hearing my words and did not even utter a single sound after that.
We waited him to reply in my comment and afterwards, he wordlessly moved his body towards the large roller lever in the gate and with a forceful yet silent effort, the sentry opened the twin-metal gates.
F-Forgive me for this, sentryman…
While waiting for the gate to be finally opened, I can feel the looming stares of disbelief and disgust from my back.
Come on! I was just desperate to finish the quest! That is all!
The sentry then returned to face us then spoke in a spiritless manner.
"Tis I, your humble sentry… and… you can go now…"
Wah. Sorry… I am terribly sorry.
I will make it up to you… in the future days!
The three of us bowed apologetically in front of the sentry and proceeded to walk outside of the gate.
When he was about to close the twin-metal gates once again, the sentry shouted with utmost anger:
"You better make it up to me, next time we meet!!!"
Yes… yes I will.
I said to myself, wanting to shed a tear of empathy.