After five minutes as promised, Ancestra and the driver arrive at a large, almost mansion-like building. There was a sign hanging by the building facing the street of a lionhead with a wreath of thorns surrounding it. The driver parks the cart into the stable beside it, undoing the harnesses and leading the horses to rest.
"We're here, missy! Five minutes, I told ya." The driver cackles.
"Thanks mister! Let me just sell these animals I got, then I'll be able to pay you!" Ancestra happily shook the driver's hand with her left.
"You don't look like the type a' girl to say no, do ya?" The driver scratched the back of his head with a smile.
"Yes, I'll pay no matter what you say, now please name your price." asked the female, removing the stack of deflated animals off the cart.
"They made me do this for free, so I don't really mind, but if yer payin' then I'll accept. Just about 500 gold if ya don't mind." said the driver.
'Is that a lot…?' thought Ancestra. She didn't want to get tricked, but if she asked for the value of money then she'd look more innocent than she is. Something about that didn't sit right with her.
"Alright." She nodded, dragging in the animals' dead bodies into the guild, kicking the door open with a leg. The door was seven by four feet large, and with Ancestra's growth spurt only making her one additional feet taller making her very small in comparison.
"Excuse me!" She shouted innocently in the guild, walking inside with the animals casually in tow.
The guild was just like an inn; with its cozy and homey feeling, people of all shapes, sizes, genders, and races. In Ensteris, there was one thing that makes the kingdom flourish with prosperity, and it's the diversity of races and their respective cultures being open and knowledgeable to every other one to avoid misunderstandings and racial conflicts. The kingdom enforces this to uphold the bustling calm peace that it is in. With that in mind, Ancestra barging in made for a peaceful albeit sudden encounter with every entity inside the guild. They all looked at her in curiosity.
"Excuse me!" A prim, refined female voice cuts through the crowd from the back.
"Ex-" The voice once again rings out to be cut off accidentally followed by her grunting to push people apart for her to see.
"-cuse me! Let me through! Gosh, you all are tall!" angrily huffed the female, finally wafting through the tall male patrons in front of her.
"…Can I sell these animals I hunted?" asked Ancestra, raising her hands to lift the stacks of animals she had on both hands effortlessly.
"Of course, of course! But I'm afraid you will have to sign an Adventurer's Contract first. It won't be fair for everyone here who hunts and gets paid to see a Non-Adventurer come in without any pretense and just start selling their spoils without a contract." said the brown haired woman, with her clear and pristine voice with the hint of refined beauty. She wore a pair of rectangular wireframe glasses and a large, flowing, and graceful white-colored piece of oriental clothing called a kimono. She had brown fox ears that sit and twitch adorably on her fine, chocolate brown hair. She had more than one tail, with just about six more accompanying it.
"I mean, I'll sign it because I need money…" Ancestra agreed right away. It didn't seem like this foxgirl that appeared before her was lying, and she seemed to keep these Adventurers in line… despite having to go through them just to greet whoever it was in the door.
"Great! Make way, you idiots. She and I have some talking to do. Hey, Deb! Go take her things to Elspeth so she can appraise them. Miss, you're with me." The foxgirl beckons Ancestra, while a mage sneaks up behind the little girl and glides his hands over hers, removing the animal tails with ease.
"Hyah!" Another sweet moan escaped Ancestra, feeling smooth fingers trace her skin. Weirdly enough, she felt it through her bandaged arm as well. She looked up at the mage who walked beside her, who was just about as tall as her father, maybe a little smaller.
"Ahaha, I'm sorry to surprise you." Deb chuckled, taking the animals off of her. He had long, messy silver hair with purple strands tied with a useless tie due to how messy it is. He had the same baggy clothing as the foxgirl, but his was more befitting of a mage. He had a large cane the same as his size strapped on his back. As far as the little girl could see, he had at least three layers of clothing, two of them being a robe and a coat. He was devilishly handsome with his sleek face, kind expression, and sharp silver eyes.
"N-No…! It's fine, I swear!" Ancestra was guilty of staring at Deb for more than she intended. She couldn't help herself but keep looking at him, being the first ever male to capture her attention ever. The heart and innocence of a young child.
"Go, go! Haruka's waiting for you." Deb ushered the female, pushing her small back with his large hand.
"O-O-Okay!" Ancestra stuttered, her cheeks stained a flush of pink as she rushed to Haruka's side, the foxgirl walking to the corridor beside the counter to a small room.
"We'll conduct a small interview and test for you in here. Is that alright?" asked Haruka, opening the door to the room before Ancestra.
The little girl entered the room. It looked like a secretary's office, complete with shelves full of books with things young Ancestra couldn't comprehend yet. There was a small coffee table in between two large couches in front of it, facing the moderately large desk. The carpet was gilded and had the same sigil as the one in the sign outside the guild. Haruka enters first, and sits down on the large couch. The cushions were a nice blue green color, the dark oak carved with intricacy and great craft. Ancestra followed and Haruka gestured her to sit in front of her.
"First things first. Name, age, origin, and a short background of yourself." Haruka straightened her back, her posture full of grace and professionalism. She emitted an aura of a mature woman, something Ancestra might not be able to have. In the immediate future, anyway. Ancestra felt nervous, straightening her back as well.
'She's very powerful… in more ways than one.' Ancestra thought, sighing. She looked down on her recently developed body. For some reason, they looked a little larger. Her body was a little thicker in the right places. Her eyes widened in further surprise. She looked back up at Ruka, who was waiting for the girl's answer.
"I-I'm Ancestra Elena Enicillis, 14 years old. I recently came from the boundary. I was born in Man's Last Bastion, now wiped off by Liuth Iluma Sinsear. My parents are Zanien Esentaria and Armaros Gennaha, whom Sinsear labelled as the Archangel of Light and the Power Grudge Archdemon." Ancestra spoke, her nervousness dissipating as she went on. Haruka's expression became stern as she learned about the truth about what happened there recently.
"So that's what happened…" Haruka leaned on the backrest of the luxurious couch, her chin cupped between her hands. She intertwined her legs on top of each other, a whole lot of leg skin being exposed.
"Also, archangels and archdemons…? That's Christian mythology… Lia hasn't created anything like that, so why does it exist here?" Haruka mumbled to herself. She closed her sharp amber eyes.
"And Liuth Iluma Sinsear…"
"Ancestra. Did she say anything else? Maybe a declaration of collecting bounty?" Haruka asked the girl before her.
"If I remember correctly… "As per the Contractor's bounty on the Archangel of Light and the Power Grudge Archdemon, I will be collecting your heads~"" Ancestra recalled Sinsear's words as clear as summer day.
"I knew it…" Haruka sighed, massaging her temples. She looked at Ancestra after a brief moment.
"Sinsear likes giving people "presents" if she can't kill them. Is that bandaged arm her present?" Haruka pointed at the girl's arm.
"Yes. And I want to take my revenge by killing her." Ancestra spoke with strong determination, looking directly into Haruka's amber eyes.
"Your tone doesn't match with your eyes, Ancestra." Haruka glared at the girl, finding her goal laughable.
"If I'm not calm, I might very well die. I might as well play the fool, right?" Ancestra met the foxgirl's glare with her own, smiling nonchalantly with a sarcastic tone. They had a stare down that went for a few minutes at end. The girl didn't break eye contact to show her conviction.
"There's better purpose than to live in pursuit of vengeance." Haruka scoffed.
"I'm confident I'll find my purpose while seeking vengeance." Ancestra retorted.
"What makes you say that?" asked the foxgirl with a harsh tone.
"My intuition." answered Ancestra briskly.
"I doubt the intuition of a child is tempered enough for the life ahead of them." Haruka riposted.
"My mom told me that life is always unexpected, for better or worse." Ancestra recalled one of her mother's wise teachings.
"You're far too innocent." Haruka crossed her arms underneath her chest.
"I think seeing my mother beheaded and my father cut in half while being bathed in their blood doesn't make me less innocent than the people here." Ancestra leaned on the couch, putting her arms on the backrest while crossing her legs.
"…" Haruka glared at her again.
"…" So did Ancestra.
Another few minutes pass. The two sigh at the same time, caving in each other's words. Haruka's expression became softer, while Ancestra's was tired.
"If you're so keen on revenge, surely you have a plan?" asked Haruka.
"Nothing concrete, but I have to train and learn about everything I can first." Ancestra shrugs her shoulders.
"If you're from the boundary, you haven't gone to a school have you?" Haruka inquired. She stood up, grabbing two parchments before sitting back down.
"The most I've learned is magic and combat from my parents. They aren't humans, after all." said Ancestra, eyeing the foxgirl as she moved about.
'Her stride was something fierce.' she thought.
"Yeah, and you're a Nephilim, correct?" asked Haruka, writing details down both the parchments.
"What does being a Nephilim mean?" asked the girl, raising an eyebrow.
"In Christian mythology, its referred to as being a "fallen angel", but more precisely being the child of an angel and a man or demon." Haruka informed Ancestra, finishing one parchment and moving on to the other.
"What is the Christian mythology?" asked Ancestra, having no clue of what religion is.
"I'm surprised your mother didn't teach you Christianity. Anyway, it's the belief of having only one God and sculpting man and woman in his image. As far as I'm told, anyway. It's a touchy subject to cover." Haruka sighed, clearly reluctant to discuss the topic.
"I guess I won't press it then." Ancestra shrugged.
"Were you taught how to read or write?" asked Haruka, her slender hand stopping along with her pen.
"Yeah."
"The common tongue?" asked Haruka again, just to be sure.
"What's the common tongue?" asked Ancestra, confused.
"You're speaking in Divine Tongue, so it shouldn't be a problem unless you're speaking to demons. Thank your mother for that."
"Does it break the language barrier?" asked Ancestra.
"More than. Since you grew up with it, you can basically communicate with any living thing but demons. Unless your father taught you how to speak Demon Tongue."
"He did." Ancestra nodded.
"Then you can communicate with everything. The Divine Tongue lets you communicate with gods, spirits, mythical beings and animals. The Demon Tongue lets you communicate with lost souls, curses and hexes, demons, and detect lies."
"…My parents are amazing." Ancestra covered her mouth in reverence.
"Detecting lies will still takes some experience, but everything above that you can already do, granted your father taught you extensively."
"He taught me the basics, at least. Mom taught me more since she was more often home than Dad." Ancestra said.
"Mmm. You're really not as childish as you look, don't you?" Haruka chuckled, waving her hand, an invisible force pulling a small decorative box from the desk to her. She caught it with gentleness and put it down on the table. She opened it and revealed a silver-balled chain with a pair of copper dogtags on it.
"Trauma helps everyone forcibly grow up." Ancestra chuckles wryly. That really isn't something a normal child would say.
"Can you hold the copper tags in your hand and squeeze it?" Haruka hanged the necklace in front of Ancestra. The girl wordlessly obeyed and reached for the tags with her left, human hand.
"Is your left your dominant hand?" asked Haruka.
"My right hand is an unknown entity for the time being. I don't want to risk it." Ancestra chuckled awkwardly, scratching her head with said right hand. A curious and dangerously creepy glint shone in Haruka's eyes.
"Interesting… I can help you learn about your right hand if you want." Haruka grinned mischievously, staring at her bandaged arm. Until it stared back at her.
"I might take your help on that, Miss Haruka." Ancestra smiled.
"For now, you said you wanted to learn, right?" Haruka ushered Ancestra to grip the copper tags.
"Yes." Ancestra nodded and gripped it for a moment. A searing hot pain registered to her, but soon dissipated.
"Alright, now you're registered as an Adventurer. That's one. Wear this tag at all times, so that people know you're an Adventurer. I'll explain how it works after this." Haruka clapped her hands, rolling one of the two parchments. Ancestra wore the necklace as instructed.
"Collect your gold down by Elspeth. Deb can show you the way. This piece of paper is a travel permit and acts as library access to the Sanctum, the grand library here in Ensteris. Second is…" Haruka rolled the second parchment and handed both of them to her.
"This one is your admission into the Blazing Magic Academy, under my name as your acting guardian." She smiled.
"Wait… what?" Ancestra was confused.
"You wanted to learn, right?" Haruka repeated her question.
"…yes?" warily answered Ancestra.
"Well, where better to learn than a school?" Haruka smiled at her.