Aisha stepped into the musty guild hall, placing her hand on the old wooden doors. But as she approached the doors, something felt off. While usually, the hall would turn silent after she would walk in, this time, it was quiet before she had even entered. She poked her head in and looked around.
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"Ugh. It's you. What are you doing here?"
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It was just the clerk. He looked up from cleaning a glass to acknowledge her, and then immediately went back to cleaning it. Aisha walked in.
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"Why is there nobody here?"
"It's the weekend. Don't you know that? A lot of adventurers take breaks on the weekend, so it's difficult to make a party. Eventually everybody just decided to take a break."
"You're here." Aisha pointed out.
"...So what."
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Aisha ignored the clerk and walked up to the contract board, looking at the board. Ordinarily, she just let Celeste pick one out, since there were usually a ton of people crowding around the thing, and she got pushed around by crowds, being so short. Browsing the board was usually something that Aisha thought was pointless, but… there was something that she kept an avid eye on, just in case.
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Drake contract… drake contract… wyrm contract… exorcism…
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Aisha paused. A drake contract was missing.
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"Hey. Who took the drake contract?"
"I have no idea what you're-"
"You have to sign off on all the contracts! Who took it!?" Aisha demanded.
"I don't know."
Aisha's intense gaze locked onto the guild clerk, reading every slight tick in his face, every small body movement.
"That's a lie."
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The clerk just pursed his lips and shrugged. "...I'm still not going to tell you."
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Aisha ran up to the counter and grabbed the man's lapels, lifting him up into the air. He just gave her a bored look.
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"You should probably put him down." A calm voice said.
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Aisha turned to see who had spoken, locking eyes onto a familiar tanned face. She dropped the clerk on his ass, and walked over to Amir.
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"You're here." She said.
Amir nodded. "Yes."
"Why?"
"Probably for the same reason as you." He said. "To see Elerion."
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"Who's that?"
"He's the sapphire adventurer you're looking for."
"Why are you looking for him?"
"For the same reason as you." Amir shrugged.
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"...This is where the parallel is no longer applicable."
"Are you here to ask him for advice?" Amir asked.
…Yeah."
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"Why are you here?" Amir inquired, after a short pause.
"I thought about what you said. And well, there must be a way for me to complete the platinum contracts. I just... I want to see how people better than me do it."
"Ah. Then you were right. We are here for different reasons."
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Amir raised his eyebrow.
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"You think you can compete with the upper-division adventurers?"
"I have to." Aisha struggled out. "Either that, or die trying."
"I outperformed you on that contract, and I'm only a platinum adventurer. Do you really think that you'd be able to beat the best?"
"Yes."
"What makes you think that?"
"I need to." Aisha said resolutely, shaking her head. "I have to."
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"Just wanting is n-"
"Not want. Need." Interrupted Aisha.
"...Needing isn't enough. All the desire in the world isn't good enough, until you turn it into action."
"I know that."
"Then what are you going to do?"
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There was a long pause.
"I don't know."
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Aisha's eyes were downcast, even more than usual. It was a small thing, but Amir was quick to notice.
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"Well, we can start with one thing."
"What?"
"Gear."
Aisha spoke in a low voice. "What difference will gear make?"
"Not much. But it's something."
"Some of the best armor here still got me almost killed."
"That's true, but there are other things that armor can give you."
"I know about the magic boost."
"Yes."
"That won't be any use to me."
"No. It won't."
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An irritated look crept up on Aisha's face.
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"Then why the hell did-"
"There are other types of boosts that equipment can give you."
"..."
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Aisha sat down across from Amir, grabbing the seat and flinging it beneath her.
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"What do you mean?"
"You have an emerald amulet. You must be aware of the other types that are sold in the guild shop."
"Are you saying that equipment can give me similar effects?"
"Yes. The equipment here is designed to boost magical capabilities. Mostly in the elements. But it is possible for them to enhance other things. Some even carry their own spells, like barriers, or even enchantments like Celeste's.
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The enchantments that I'm looking for… are the ones that can infuse their magic into objects. Like my arrows. They are rare, but I know they're out there. I think a skilled enough leatherworker can craft the enchantments right into the armor.
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But magical power is very important in hume culture. We use it for everything, even though sometimes it's unnecessary. So most armorers only craft magic-boosting armor."
"Are you telling me I need to just send in a special order?"
"No. I think a lot of craftsmen don't know how to do anything else anymore."
"Then-"
"But I think they aren't all gone. Just find one."
"..."
"But that's for the future. You're here for a contract, right? I'm here for one too."
"So?"
"So I propose that we team up."
"I don't need help."
"I'm sure you don't, but with two people, the work will go twice as fast, surely."
"That's not how that works."
"It's just a saying."
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Aisha got up to leave. Amir rolled his eyes.
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"Don't be so hasty." He sighed, clearly resisting the urge to treat Aisha like a petulant child.
"What do I have to gain from teaming up with you?" Aisha demanded. "I can do these contracts on my own!"
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"My knowledge." Amir said simply.
"I don't need it."
"Don't be stubborn. You have a lot to learn."
"I don't."
"Arrogance is an attitude that can only be adopted by the strong."
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Aisha stiffened. It seemed that wherever she went, she could not escape Xelos's teachings. She hated it.
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"Fine."
"Alright."
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Amir got up from his chair, pushing it back under the table. He briskly walked over to the job board and took a random gold contract.
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"Weren't you going to wait for the sapphire adventurer?"
"He already took a contract. Sapphire contracts take multiple days. He won't be back for a while."
"Hm."
"It's a python. I will go get prepared, while you can meet the contractor. We will meet back here in thirty minutes."
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Aisha looked down at the familiar handwriting on the contract. Goddammit.
.
.
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"What are you doing back here!?"
"I didn't pick the contract this time. This is purely by chance."
"I don't believe, for a single second, that you are not lying to me."
"Well, that's irrelevant."
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Korian sighed and sat back down, his chair compressing under his weight. He frowned and pulled on a lever on the side a couple of times, adjusting the chair, until he finally found a satisfactory height. He put his head into his hands, his words coming out smushed.
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"Well, you know the drill. Pythons in the desert. Go have fun contracting."
"Wait."
"No."
"Do you know how to do alternative enchantments?"
"I don't know what that is."
"Can you make enchantments that aren't just magic boosting?"
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Korian paused for a second, thinking for a bit and leaning back into his chair.
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"Yes. No."
"...What?"
"I don't think I can."
"Why not?"
"I forgot how. And it's difficult and expensive."
"Then remember."
"I could… but what would be in it for me?"
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Aisha scanned Korian's desk, full of leather strips, needles, metal latches, but noticeably missing a massive garuda skin.
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"You've sold off the garuda skin."
"That doesn't answer my question. At all."
"You didn't make it into armor? I thought you wanted to work with exotic materials."
"Look, dog." Korian said, irritated. "I don't have infinite money. The only way I make money is off the military, who only buy leather armor in bulk. Nobody bought the werehide chest piece for a long time. I can't afford to tan and spend a ton of time on… personal projects."
"Then why keep the contracts up? They're quite expensive, for a leatherworker."
"..."
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Korian was silent, a long pause drawn out between the two of them.
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Aisha broke the silence.
"You still have hope that you can work on your projects."
"..."
"What's in it for you, if you help me out, is I will get you the materials and buy whatever you make."
"...Fine."
"You know, for all your bluster, you're a smart man."
"Yeah whatever." Korian muttered. "Go jump off a cliff."
.
.
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Aisha walked back into the guild hall, contemplating leaving Amir and just doing the contract herself. But he was right. He was… better than her. No. Not better than her. But there was definitely something she could learn from him. Maybe.
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She didn't know why she felt so uneasy around Amir. Something about his demeanor…
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(He reminds me of Xelos.)
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Aisha shook her head violently.
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"What are you doing?" Amir asked.
"Nothing."
"Thinking about something?"
"No."
"Hm."
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Aisha sighed.
"Let's just go."
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She left the hall, turning on her heel and pushing the large doors aside, prompting Amir to get up from his chair and follow her.
.
.
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The two trudged along the city streets, weaving through busy merchants and passerby. Aisha grunted as she was bumped into by a large man with a helmet, flipping him off and walking by.
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Aisha's eyes were drawn to a large, ornate white building. People filed out in and out of the building by the dozens, and an intense light emitted from the building.
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"That's the church." Amir shouted, over the sound of bustling cityfolk. "That's where you go if you ever get an injury that you can't heal, or if you're cursed or something. The church trains really powerful healers, and sometimes mages."
"Great."
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(The church, huh. There's something familiar about that...)
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(I'm sure it's nothing.)
.
.
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The path underneath them slowly turned sandy, and the bustle of the city began to dim into a dull hum, as Amir and Aisha reached the desert, bright yellow dunes in all directions. Aisha squinted, trying to make out… anything.
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"How are we going to find the pythons?" Aisha turned to Amir.
"What were you planning on doing if I wasn't here, and you couldn't find them?"
"Ask someone else."
"The pythons live below the sand. There's no way for us to get to them, so we're going to lure them out with wolf meat."
"How are they going to smell the meat from below the sand?"
"...I don't know."
"You don't know?"
"I just know that this is the best way."
"How do you know that?"
"I just know."
"..."
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Aisha took out her crossbow and lined it up with an orange blob on the horizon, kneeling down. It seemed strange, but Aisha didn't really have any ideas that she could think of, so she might as well just follow Amir.
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The bolt hit its mark, flying miles away to pierce the little orange blob on the horizon. Amir whistled, surprised.
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"That was a good shot! How powerful is that crossbow? That's almost a kilometer away!"
"I dunno."
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Aisha put her crossbow back on her back and began to run to the corpse, her boots. sinking into the sand as she ran.
.
.
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"Hey." Aisha said.
"Yes?" Amir replied.
"It's been an hour."
"I know that."
"There's no snakes."
"I know that!" Amir snapped.
"Your method sucks."
"It's not supposed to work instantly. There aren't pythons in every square meter of the desert."
"...There's got to be a better way."
"Well, if you want to try to find one, be my guest."
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Amir squinted and shaded his eyes with his right hand, as Aisha sat up and started running across the desert in zig-zags.
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"What are you doing?" He shouted.
"Testing." Aisha mumbled.
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Amir returned to watching the now flea covered corpse.
It was strange… their current contract only called for one python, so he had decided to only leave one bait, but usually it didn't take this long. On his other contracts, they would kill tons of wolves, moving all over the desert, and the serpents would just… pop out of the sand. Maybe they should leave more bait..?
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"CRACK!"
"AAARGHHH!!"
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He instantly shot up, turning around and looking behind him.
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There were two things of note.
One, there was a massive snake with a bolt piercing all the way through it's belly, and two, Aisha was clutching her right arm, which was covered in a purple goo and was quickly being eaten away by the acid.
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He quickly picked up his bag and ran over, sliding down the dunes one handed. The snake writhed in the air, shooting more acid into the sand, but thankfully, the pools missed Aisha.
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Amir reached Aisha's prone body and quickly loaded an arrow into his bow, shooting the python through the head and killing it, it's thrashing stopped. He knelt over Aisha, removing her left hand and taking a look at her damaged arm. He quickly covered it back up.
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"Your hand is fucked."
Aisha's voice came out strained from intense pain. "I know that! Did you kill it?"
"I did."
"Then… god… Ahhh…FUCK! Just drag the thing back!"
"We're going to have to bandage your hand."
"With what!?"
"You've got that scarf o-"
"NO!" Aisha screamed. Amir took a step back, and was visibly stunned.
"...Ok then. Well, it looks like you're going to bleed out and die here."
"...AHhh!… use your shirt."
"I'm not going to use my shirt."
"THEN USE MINE! I DON'T CARE!"
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Amir sighed and took out a small white crystal from his bag hesitantly. After a pained choke from Aisha, he made up his mind and he infused a bit of his mana into the crystal, which began to glow a bright white. Wisps of energy emitted from the crystal, which began to flow into Aisha's arm, seeking out the purple acid and cleansing it from her body.
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"That was it?" Aisha asked incredulously. "It didn't even heal me!
"Yes, but healing you with the acid still on would defeat the purpose. The cleansing crystal is expensive. I expect you to pay me back."
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Aisha groaned. Her arm was still bleeding, and her vision was growing faint. Amir, alarmed, quickly cut a strip of cloth from the bottom of his shirt and wrapped up her arm. He rummaged around in his backpack again and withdrew a flask, pouring a small trickle of water into her mouth.
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"Stay awake..." He muttered.
"Aughhh... "
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Eventually Aisha's breathing went calm, and Amir wiped a bit of sweat on his forehead. He didn't exactly WANT Aisha to die… But he shuddered at the thought of what Celeste would do to him if he let her die.
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He sighed and sat down, sending sand flying into his clothes and boots. He supposed the best course of action was to wait for Aisha to recover, since he had neither the desire nor the strength to carry the massive serpent's corpse.
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Amir glanced over at Aisha to see that her eyes were open, staring directly into the blazing sun.
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"What are you doing." He asked.
"..."
"I think I figured it out." He said.
"The snakes are attracted by movement, not smell." Aisha interrupted.
"You figured it out?"
"Stupid…" Aisha muttered.
"My bad."
"..."
"Something wrong?"
"Nothing. Let's just get going."
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Aisha braced herself with her left arm, rising into a kneeling position and then standing up. She grabbed a fistful of dead snake, slung her crossbow over her good shoulder, and then began to walk back into the town silently, her bandaged arm hanging uselessly at her side.
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"Something wrong?" Amir asked. "Other than your arm?"
"No."
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Amir could tell there was something wrong, from the silent and deathly look she was giving towards the horizon. But it was not his business to pry.
.
.
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"Oh my god! What happened???"
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Celeste ran over to Aisha, horrified, taking Aisha's right arm in her hands and hastily taking off the deep red cloth. She cupped her mouth over her mouth and looked away, gagging at the sight of the mutilated flesh and tendons, exposed by acid.
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"...What the hell happened!? You did this! You did this, didn't you!"
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Celeste stormed over to Amir furiously and slapped him in the face, sending him staggering back.
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"Ueck! It wasn't me!"
"Liar! You're responsible for this! I know it!" She screamed, striking Amir again.
"What reason would I have to do this!?"
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"Celeste." Aisha said softly.
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Celeste whirled around to see Aisha wrapping up her arm again with the same bloody cloth. Her expression softened at the sight of her injured girlfriend.
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"It was my fault. I was weak." Aisha said.
"Aisha, darling…"
"I'm sorry."
"What are you sorry for?"
"...Everything." She muttered under her breath. "Can you heal me?"
"I can try, but I think I need to take you to the church…"
"...Ok."
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Amir was beginning to feel uncomfortable standing in Celeste's apartment, watching the intimate moment between the two women. He turned to leave.
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"I'm going to turn in the contract. I'll see you later."
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Before he left, Amir turned back to look at Aisha, and he got a good look at the completely defeated, dead expression in her eyes.
.
.
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Aisha ran her hand over her now fully healed arm, trapped in Celeste's embrace. It was nightfall now, the healing process at the church taking a few hours. She sighed, for what seemed like the hundredth time that day.
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"What's wrong, Aisha?" Celeste asked, prompted by the sound.
"Aren't you ever going to get tired of asking that question?" Aisha muttered.
"No. Because I'll always care about you." Celeste replied sweetly.
"...I don't think I can do it." Aisha said quietly.
"Do what?"
"I don't think I can make it to diamond."
"W-well… " Celeste started, picking her words carefully. "People don't even know if diamond rank is possible. I've never seen even a ruby contract come off that board."
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She pet Aisha affectionately, feeling the soft, velvety fur on her ears.
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Aisha's voice came out shaky.
"I'm so weak… I… trained… But I'm still so weak… What was the point?"
"You're a gold adventurer… you've already proven yourself! I think you're amazing!"
"No!" She yelled, muffled by Celeste's chest. "It's not enough!"
"I'm not good enough for you?" Celeste said, hurt.
"No I-I… I… I…" Her breath hitched. "What's the point… if I can't even be better than average? Of everything that I've done…"
"...Everything you've done?"
"All that… training. All that time I lost... with..." Aisha trailed off.
"...Well, I don't know what time you've lost, but why don't you train some more?"
"Train… more?"
"Yeah! Training! I don't really like to train, but there are plenty of master swordsmen and mages around the capital. Or you could… I dunno... train your muscles!" She said, cheerfully.
"What good is training going to do… No amount of training is going to let me compete with magic users..." She said, depressingly.
"Your training's already made you as good as a gold adventurer! Just try it out!"
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The words of that man echoed in Aisha's mind.
[You can either curse your weakness, or do something about it. Those are your only choices.]
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Aisha sighed, lifting her arms up and wrapping then around Celeste's neck, nuzzling her nose into Celeste's silky skin. Celeste smiled and hugged her tightly, nuzzling her ears back.
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"Just stay safe, ok."