"Just this once!"
I said to Roq, hopeful that he would consider it as I did not want to resort to other means.
"Ughhh!!! The only reason why I will trust you is that regardless of me giving it to you or not, I will not be able to pay the fees."
Roq reluctantly agreed as he stated his reason for accepting my request.
"Wonderful!! let's go shopping, my friend!"
We hurriedly tidied up as we prepared to leave, aiming to visit the shopping district.
"Roq, since you are more familiar with the city, I would like you to take the lead."
I said, being logical as it was, I would be strolling in circles all day long, never to reach one of our several destinations.
"Sure thing, but I need to ask, exactly what type of shops are we aiming for?"
"Shops that sell materials for crafting!"
And so we took off to our first shop, headed to buy materials I would use to craft an Item or items we could sell and make our money back.
I was wearing a taka outfit without the top, a skin-tight white long sleeve shirt underneath, a scarlet-coloured silk waist-covering, black pants and wooden slippers.
I received several stares along the way, a majority of them being stares of admiration and the minority being a mixture of shock, surprise, and amazement.
Be it from either my height or 6"5', my incredibly unique hair, outfit, or even my presence, someone was staring.
This was something out of what I am used to as I lived isolated and away from the discrimination of others, making me feel heavily aware but not enough to make me uncomfortable.
Soon enough, we got to our first location, a metalworks shop. I slowly began strolling around the store, looking for anything of interest to forge with, and I found one.
The item I found was an ore that went by the name "mirror steel," and a rather large chunk of it at that, albeit some impurities in it. The name is derived from its glass-like appearance and its mana reflecting properties.
I took it to the counter with Roq in tow and placed it on the counter as I said, "We would like just this for today."
"That will be 2000 CC." The man at the counter stated as I turned towards Roq, who had a look as though he had just been stabbed in the heart.
Roq quietly but painfully took out the funds required and reluctantly placed them on the counter before grabbing his receipt and myself, taking the ore.
As we walked out of the store, following which I stored the ore discretely and soon met the gazes of bystanders on the streets, I looked towards Roq as I asked him,
"What do you want to do once you're in Dawn academy?"
He looked surprised for a moment at the sudden question and seemed to ponder for a moment before he said,
"I want to be a shield, a wall... one that scares those who threaten so much to the point that they would not bother attacking it, and strong enough for those behind me never to fear the danger the wall protects them from."
I looked at him in shock at his answer as he gave an outer picture of someone who didn't care all too much about those around him.
'He will be my wall.' I thought, as his resolve was firm and unquestioned.
"Interesting..."
"Why the sudden question??" He asked after regaining his composure.
"Curiosity," I said.
"Whatever you say, man, we got quite a distance to cover, so let's get back to it."
"Mhm."
We covered the other shops, picking up an item ever here and there if I deemed it useful for our endgame.
Roq noticed the absence of the items we had purchased and had questioned where the materials we purchased had gone; I just smiled softly without saying a word, and he seemed to understand instantly.
Before we knew it, the day had swiftly gone by, and we were at our last stop, the slums. I was heavily angered for some reason as we stepped in, causing the atmosphere to grow heavy.
Roq slowly held my shoulders, bringing me back to my senses as the pressure slowly lifted and my anger subsided.
"What was that?" Roq asked, his face filled with unquestionable confusion as anyone would be, seeing someone become angered from nothing.
"I apologize; I don't know what happened."
This was the first time this situation had presented itself, causing me to be incredibly concerned as many dangers arise with not controlling your emotions, especially if they switch on their own like what just happened.
I had calmed down now, but something bothered me heavily as I thought, 'Why does it feel like I have been here before??'
But with no one to answer my questions, I just chose not to think too much about it and figure it out later, as this was not the place nor the time to be thinking about this.
We quickly cleared things up here, getting a few more materials before retiring back home for the day.
Roq informed Maryl of the situation that happened earlier, causing her to grow a little worried and just asked me to go take a rest but not before dinner. Dinner was wonderful as one would hope, and shortly after I finished my meal, I called out Whishmae.
I questioned her about what happened, and she herself was at a loss and could only say it's a part of the sudden memories that arise in my head from time to time.
I knew that it was hopeless once she reached that conclusion, as nothing myself and my parents and tried gave any results when it came to my memories, so I just laid tired on the bed retiring for the night as I slowly fell into a deep sleep.