"I'm scared."
"Yeah, me too. I'll go without the two of you if you don't want to go."
"No."
"I agree with Josh. We're a party. We should go together." Sakura puts aside her fears, adding to Josh's response."
"Well, alright then. Let's head that way." The class starts in about an hour and a half, so we should have enough time. Jezabel said we had to be there about an hour before class, so we should be fine. "Do you two want to jog that way as a warm-up?"
"You go ahead. I want to talk to Josh."
"Okay." I take off in the direction of the square and get my blood pumping. The town has begun to feel like home, and I wave to a few people I know along the way.
"Are you bringing back any more Punctastars today?" The armor merchant calls out to me as I pass by.
"We'll see. I've got class today, and Jezabel told me to come early."
"She did? I heard she almost killed you."
"Word travels fast around here."
"News of the fastest-growing new adventurer party almost taken out by the Guild Master travels even faster. If anything happens to you, it will hurt my bottom line," he says with a chuckle.
"I suppose that makes sense. Anyway, why do you want more Punctastars? I thought you didn't use very many of them."
"We don't. They're nice for the joints on heavy armor, but we don't make many sets here. That being said, one of the occasional merchants from the capital would love to take the hides off our hands."
"Interesting. Well, I don't want to make Jezabel wait."
"Alright, you run along now."
We wave goodbye to each other, and I continue on my way to the market square. I step inside the guild hall and see Jezabel looking at me from the counter with a bit too big of a smile on her face. A cold chill runs down my back.
"It's good to see that you've arrived. I thought you might not show."
"I went against my better judgment, but I'm here."
"And where are your friends?"
"They're on their way."
"I thought you always traveled together."
"I can see why you'd think that, but I'm actually a bit of a third wheel."
"Fufufu, very well. Let's take a walk. Shelly, inform the other two where to go when they arrive."
"Yes, sir," Shelly says with a smile. I follow Jezabel behind the guild to a small training area. It has targets, dummies for fighting practice, and a handful of primitive training weights. My eyes are drawn to a pile of weights that appear to be made with straps so they can be affixed to your body.
"I didn't know there was this much training equipment at the guild."
"We aren't completely incompetent. This building is designed to help adventurers succeed; unfortunately, most don't take the opportunity."
"Interesting." I meander through the different equipment types until I come upon what looks like small parachutes. "These are used for running, aren't they?"
"Yes, how astute."
"I've seen something like this before." I remember seeing professional athletes use these to create drag while running. If I recall correctly, this helps increase agility, specifically acceleration.
"You're a weird one."
"I get that a lot."
"Sir, the children have arrived." Sakura and Josh walk through the back door with Shelly.
"Hey!" I wave to the kids and smile. I can see how nervous both of them are.
"Well, now that the gang's all here, let's get started." Jezabel grins.
"What are we doing here anyway?"
"Training, of course." I look over at the kids after hearing Jezabel's answer and see the confusion in their eyes. "Before we get started, I need to know your stats."
"Mine are around thirty, and I think they are about the same." The kids nod in agreement.
"That's a good start, but you're really hurting yourself in the long run by investing your points as soon as you get them."
"We haven't invested any of our points."
The air stills.
"How did you get your stats up so high? Most people don't reach that until their mid-twenties without bonus points."
"We train a lot."
"I'd say you were lying, but you have nothing to gain by not telling the truth. Hugo!"
"Yessir." A man appears out of nowhere and stands in front of Jezabel.
"Bring me the reports on the kids' training routine."
"Yes, I've compiled a report here," he says as he hands her a sheet of paper. "Also, the guard you talked to, Sampson, mentioned that they run around the town regularly."
"Hmm... I remember that now," she mutters as she looks over the report. "How did you three raise your strength? Running should only affect endurance and agility."
The kids look at me, and I quickly think up a clever response.
"Um... it's a secret?"
Okay, maybe it wasn't that clever. Jezabel narrows her eyes. I can tell she's debating whether or not to strike me again.
"Whatever. Let's get to work." She says after a moment's pause. My party and I collectively sigh in relief when she drops the topic. Jezabel walks over to the pile of parachutes and retrieves three of them. "Put these on. We don't have a lot of time."
We do as we're told and adorn the equipment. Sakura and Josh need a little help, but all the parachutes are affixed within a minute.
"Now, run to that tree and back." Jezabel points to a tree on the other side of the compound. The backyard of the Adventurer's Guild is only about the size of a football field, so it's not that far. We look at each other momentarily before leaning into a run. I keep a solid pace and arrive at the tree first. I touch the bark with one hand and head back. I didn't notice it on the way there, but the drag from the parachute is really slowing me down. I cross the finish line first and put my hands on my hips to catch my breath. I'm not tired, but the added difficulty of the run certainly increased my heart rate. The other two cross the finish line only about a second behind me.
"Again," Jezabel demands.