Krin couldn't help but smile at the boy's happiness. With a wave of his hand, he wiped the tears from the boy's face with a gust of wind. Aatazaz and Alessia both were comforting him with relieved smiles, patting his back or putting a hand on his shoulder to let him know they were there.
Krin looked at the scene with warm eyes. It reminded him of a time long past, when he was younger still than these two children. He wouldn't have interrupted the moment if not for the incessant buzzing coming from his pocket. Krin took out a small metal sphere the size of a marble, a frown etched on his face. He knew exactly who was contacting him.
"I apologize, but I am being summoned. Boy, meet me tomorrow morning at dawn at the tall white tower, you can't miss it. Until next time, friends."
As soon as he was finished speaking, Krin bowed to them before tapping his staff on the ground, opening up a rift in space. With a small pop, the rift collapsed on itself and Krin was gone. Aatazaz shook his head in disbelief.
"Silent casting dimensional magic . . . be glad that man calls us friend."
Alessia nodded. Only the boy was clueless.
"Is it really that impressive? I feel like your strength and speed are easily more useful than teleporting around."
Aatazaz chuckled and Alessia looked at him like he was crazy. Aatazaz crossed his arms and looked upwards before he spoke.
"I am no expert, but even I know that dimensional magic is the apex of human magic. The ability to bend space-time to create portals may not be that useful in battle, but it shows his mastery over mana. If a mage can open one rift, he can decimate entire towns on his own. If a mage can silently open a portal, then countries would fight for his allegiance. I am not familiar with the mage ranking system for humans, but they all bowed to him and called him Arch-mage. Even if we scoured the country, I do not know if we could not have found a better man to fix you, boy."
***
As the three of them exited the small church, the world opened up to them. Thornpest and Snowball had been laying right next to the door. As soon as the door opened, Snowball stood excitedly and rubbed its head against Alessia's hand. Thornpest stayed on the ground, but opened its eyes to see them exit.
While Alessia indulged Snowball with lots of pets, Aatazaz and the boy noticed that there were multiple guards surrounding the church, including William. Noticing their presence, William approached them. He saluted them before taking off his helm, allowing his wavy red hair to tumble down to his shoulders. His hazel eyes stared at them with respect and admiration, completely different from the annoyed/hostile look they got at the gate. His sharp features would have given him a devilishly handsome appearance, if not for the fact that he refused to smile.
"Welcome to the city of Krin, friends of the Arch-mage. As much as it pains me ask, I insist that you equip your beasts with these collars. Their presence makes the people nervous. These collars will indicate that they are tamed."
At his words, Alessia realized that dozens of people were staring at them from a safe distance, forming a semi-circle around the beasts. Very few got close. Even so, Alessia opened her mouth to protest, but Aatazaz accepted the collars offered by William. "I understand."
Alessia frowned with pursed lips but reluctantly followed his lead, bringing the strange metallic collar around Snowball's thick neck. Just when she thought it wouldn't fit, the collar suddenly stretched itself, wrapping around the beast's neck with room to spare.
"It doesn't hurt, right?" Alessia said as she stroked Snowball's head softly. Snowball purred in response, seemingly no worse for wear. Once both collars had been put on, William sighed in relief.
"Thank you for cooperating.Enjoy the city." With a bow, William put his helm back on and signaled to the rest of the guards. Immediately, they all got into formation and marched off as one disciplined unit.
The three of them studied their surroundings, trying to ignore the dozens of stares and whispers from those around them. While the shadow of the mountain was dark, the torches and lanterns lining the streets lit it up as if it was daytime. The windows of other buildings glowed with warmth, their doors open and overflowing with laughter and merry music. A few happy drunks stumbled out of a nearby pub, taking a seat in the cold air. Before long, their eyes were glued to the two beasts and two animal-eared people. Their loud obnoxious voices rose above the crowd.
"Holy shit *hic* those things are *hic* huge!"
"I bet you could fit at least five full grown men on the back of that thing."
"Or *hic* one of you!"
"Haha, very funny. Go fuck yourself Howard."
Two of the trio howled with laughter, one of them falling onto his side. This was just one of the many conversations that reached Aatazaz's and Alessia's enhanced ears. Most were curious, some were alarmingly rude, and others were indifferent.
Eventually, most people got over their stupor and the flow of traffic returned to normal, heading towards the center of the city where a white tower reached towards the sky. Tens, perhaps hundreds, of people passed by every second, their chatter filling the air making Alessia's ears twitch. A few shopkeepers yelled their daily deals to the crowd, but most ignored them.
All kinds of people dressed in all kinds of clothing walked by, some wearing robes while others wore leather armor or more practical cloth. They were mostly people without magical powers—just everyday people. Eighty percent of the people walking by weren't even awakened, leaving Alessia scratching her head. She barely even remembered awakening as a child, but she knew it hadn't been hard. It was like learning how to walk for her, something that just naturally came to her instinctually. Looking at so many people completely devoid of magic was a strange sight to her.
Aatazaz was thinking something similar as he looked over the crowd. The Zaohin tribes of Felidae and Canidae had shed oceans of blood to increase the strength of their people. The rate of awakened to non-awakened was nine to one. For humans, it was the opposite. Once upon a time, Aatazaz had been proud of his people's strength. Now, the sight of a human city made him wonder if his people had made the right choice.
The boy looked at Krin with neither excitement nor weariness. Unlike Aatazaz and Alessia, he had no memories or ideologies to ponder. With his memories sealed to protect his own sanity, everything was new to him. His whole life before now consisted of endless green plains, but now, he had new stimulus for his mind. He was like a dry sponge in a pool, soaking up all the information around him greedily. The mannerisms of the people, the architectural style, the popular clothes, none of it escaped him. The more he looked, the more things made sense. Everything was clicking into place, his brain slowly reconstructing the common sense it had lost.
Even though the flow of traffic had resumed, people still pointed and whispered. Most were just curious, but for some reason, Alessia suddenly shivered with chills. A pair of eyes was glued to the back of her neck, their murderous intention clear as day. It was so overpowering that she felt a little lightheaded and her skin crawled. Before she could turn around, Aatazaz grabbed Alessia's hand and pulled her forwards.
"Let's go find something to hide ourselves. All this attention is dangerous."
The boy followed them, wondering what he was talking about. How could attention be dangerous?
As they traveled down the street, more and more people looked at them. Alessia could feel her stomach churning under all the gazes. She had never been around so many people before. It almost made it hard to breathe.
Aatazaz's eyes constantly scanned the buildings which lined the streets, looking for a general store that was mostly empty. He had felt that same gaze Alessia had gotten on his neck as well. He wasn't one to just sit around and wait for death to snatch him up in its talons. Eventually, his eyes caught the sight of a small store nestled in-between two abandoned warehouses. Looking through the windows, it was completely empty.
Aatazaz walked in, quickly followed by Alessia and the boy. They left Snowball and Thornpest by the door. Once inside, they were met with a cozy interior. The amount of merchandise stuffed on the shelves made it feel crammed, but in a nice way, like your grandparents' attic filled with memories. All the items on the shelves were laid out with no organization, a dark purple potion sitting right next to a nefarious looking crimson dagger with a black jewel on its hilt. At the back of the store, a man with red hair snored face down on his desk, covered by a green blanket. He had on circular glasses, a black dress shirt, and gray trousers. He could have passed for a minor noble.
Aatazaz walked up to the man. The very moment Aatazaz spoke, the man pushed himself to his feet with crazed blue eyes.
"Are you-"
"I'M AWAKE!" The man yelled with dark circles under his eyes. He panted for a few moments and swallowed hard, rubbing his eyes. After a few seconds, he smiled nervously and spoke as if nothing had happened. His constant stuttering said otherwise.
"Wel- welcome customers, to the R- ro- royal's Trash Yard! Where the noble's trash is the peasants treasure! My name is Jerome, how can I be of service?"
"Were you ju-" Alessia tried to question him, but he interrupted. "No, I was not asleep, I was just resting my eyes! Anyways, what are you looking for? How about a new hammer for the big guy, maybe a comb for the lady, or perhaps a training sword for the lad?"
As he spoke to them, he didn't even seem to notice the fact that his customers had animal ears. He kept glancing at them with a worried expression but wouldn't say anything.
"We just need something to cover these ears." Aatazaz said, pointing to his own animal ears.
Jerome sighed with relief. "Oh thank the gods those are real. I thought I was going crazy again. . . but yes, I have just what you need! One moment."
He stood up before opening a door behind him and scurrying off. He returned out of breath and set two necklaces down.
"Th- these should do the trick. Just im- im- imprint them with your magic power and when they activate, they'll c- change your looks! The one on the right will m- make you look like a chiseled, blonde handsome man and the one on the l- le- left will make you look like a flawless black haired b- beauty. Don't worry, I got t- these from a Hypodian friend of mine. They can use runic, mana, or spirit! P- please, try them out!"
Aatazaz and Alessia tentatively picked up the necklaces and channeled their spirit through them. As soon as they did, the necklaces began to shine, wrapping them both in a blinding light. When it faded, Aatazaz had turned into a muscular woman with short hair and Alessia had turned into a feminine man with a handsome face.
It was a strange sight. Alessia almost died with laughter as she held her stomach, nearly crying. She was unable to look at Aatazaz with a straight face.
"Pfft, You look beautiful, Aatazaz!"
"Ha." Aatazaz was not amused. Jerome stammered as he apologized.
"Oh, uh, s- sorry about that! I seem to have, um, m- mixed them up. Here, that should be right."
The bright light enveloped them again, this time turning Aatazaz into a handsome blonde muscled warrior and Alessia into a gorgeous black haired woman, both without their animal ears. After they looked at themselves with a hand held mirror provided by Jerome, Aatazaz nodded in approval and spoke.
"We'll take them. How much?"
"Tw- twenty five aureus for each, f- fifty in total."
Aatazaz suddenly froze as a thought occurred to him. They didn't have any human currency. "Do you take airgead?"
"Airgead? W- w- what's that, a type of carbonated mead?"
Aatazaz reached into his pocket, taking out a handful of silver coins and put them on the table. "In the Zaohin jungles, you could eat for a year on this much."
Jerome looked at the pile of coins and took one, examining it. It was a simple silver coin stamped with the image of some beast he couldn't recognize. After a few minutes, he nodded. "Yup, I have no cl- clue what the hell these are."
Aatazaz took off his necklace with a sigh, but Jerome held up his hand and looked up at Aatazaz. "H- hold on now, we c- can cut ourselves a deal here. You look pretty strong, big g- guy, you a member of the F- freelance Association?"
Aatazaz shook his head. "No."
Jerome rubbed his hands nervously together. "Well, no store in Krin will accept these coins, I'll te- te- tell you that much. Someone like you could make a fortune as h- hi- hired muscle, though."
Aatazaz raised an eyebrow and beckoned Jerome to continue, his interest piqued.
Jerome adjusted his glasses as he spoke, his tone almost begging them to agree. "I'll g- give you the necklaces for those coins under two conditions. One, y- you'll join the Freelance Association near the white tower at the center of town. T- tw- two, once you become famous and every n- n- n noble in Krin wants to hire you, you'll tell everyone ab- b- b- bout my shop. It's a good deal, fifty aureus is more than the av- ve- verage citizen makes in a year!"
Aatazaz narrowed his eyes, suspicious. Jerome sighed and sat down in his chair, looking exhausted. "I wo- won't lie to you, you're the first customers I've h- had in days. I even stayed open all n- nig- ight, and still nothing. If things keep going like this, I'll be forced to se- sell my store! I worked all my youth to save up for this pla- pla- place, so I beg of you, take the necklaces and t- tell the world about the Royal's Trash Yard!"
Alessia had to hold in her laughter as he said the name. Jerome looked up at Aatazaz with begging eyes. Aatazaz studied the man's face for a couple tense moments before nodding and extending his hand, satisfied. "Deal."
Jerome smiled with relief, clasping Aatazaz's hand with his own. Then, he swiftly took out a square piece of metal, the same kind that was embedded into the walls and roads of Krin. He gave it to Aatazaz. "Alright, is e- ever- everything you just said true?"
"I have spoken no lie."
Jerome stared at the square stone in Aatazaz's hand for a few seconds, before taking it back and breaking out into a large smile. "Pleasure do- doing business with you!"
Aatazaz nodded and turned around, heading towards the door. Alessia and the boy followed. Jerome yelled at them from behind as they left his store. "Tell ev- every- everyone! Okay, it's pa- part of the deal! You ha-have too! P- p- please don't run off and for- forget about me!"
Aatazaz waved with the back of his hand, not bothering to turn around as he exited. While walking backwards out the door, Alessia smiled at Jermone and thanked him. "We will! Thank you so much!" The boy was the last one left. He gave Jermone a nod before following Alessia.
Once again alone, Jermone sat back down at his desk and let out a tired sigh. "I really h- h- hope they don't just ru- ru- run off . . ."
Before long, Jermone had fallen back asleep. Unfortunately for him, he wouldn't get to sleep for long..
"I'M AWAKE MOM I SWE- Ahem! Hello, v- v- valued customer! I was just um . . . W- what are you d- d- doing with that s- s- sword?"
***
As the group of three entered the street, Aatazaz immediately began walking as he scanned their surroundings. Alessia followed Aatazaz while the boy followed Alessia, resulting in a single file line as they made their way through the crowds. It would have been a pain to push through all the people, but luckily, Thornpest and Snowball's presence did the pushing for them. Everyone kept a good five meters away from them. Only a few were brave enough to come within touching distance of the two Uthar.
Alessia tugged on Aatazaz's sleeve and spoke loud enough to overcome Krin's natural ambience. "We aren't we using the necklaces?"
Aatazaz kept swiveling his head left and right as he searched for something. "Snowball and Thornpest stick out too much. Everyone would still recognize us. Once we find a temporary place for the two of them, we can activate the necklaces."
Alessia suddenly felt like an oaf. The boy, having overheard the conversation, finally let his curiosity get the best of him. "Why do you guys hate attention so much? It can be that bad."
Alessia looked back at him with her eyebrows raised like she had just remembered something important. "We never told you! We-"
Aatazaz interrupted them. "That's a story for later. Right now, I need both of you looking out for the Freelance Guild. We won't be able to find a place for these two without aureus."
Alessia and the boy nodded, joining Aatazaz in his search. After half an hour, they arrived at the center of town. It was a large circular clearing, about fifty meters in diameter. In the middle, the white tower they had seen from a distance rose high into the sky, looking like it was going to fall over from up close.
This was the heart of the city, the central marketplace. Hundreds of stalls were set up, each selling a different kind of merchandise. From food to clothing to weapons, it seemed to cover every kind of trade the mountain city had to offer. Thousands of people mingled in and out of the shops like some kind of urban jungle. Aatazaz's eyebrows seemed to be trying to escape from his forehead. Alessia unconsciously took a step backwards.
"There's more people in this one clearing than the biggest village in all of Clan Felidae . . ." Aatazaz muttered to himself, unable to hide his amazement.
"I'm gonna be sick." Alessia said, holding her stomach. The sight alone made her feel claustrophobic. Compared to the glorious open plains, this place was hell on earth.
While Aatazaz and Alessia were wrapped up in surprise, the boy suddenly pointed to their right. "Found it."
A few dozen meters to their right, a huge two story building stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of quality and size. It was made from pristine white marble, looking similar to the pantheon of Greece. It had no windows or doors, only an open archway as an entrance. Above the gateway was a large picture of a Sword and Shield, under which were words 'Freelance Guild'.
"Good eye." Aatazaz complimented the boy while slapping him on the back. Thornpest and Snowball's menacing auras instantly created a safe zone around them as the three of them began walking. As a consequence, thousands of eyes were drawn to them. Just like before, Alessia could feel all the eyes studying her like she was some sort of endangered species, only this time it was ten times stronger than before. Alessia closed her eyes, bordering on an anxiety attack when she heard the boy speak.
"You okay, Alessia? You look like you're going to throw up."
Alessia's eyes snapped open as she turned her head to see the boy by her side, looking at her with worry in his dark eyes.
"No, I'm fine!" She replied in a strangled voice, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. "It's just . . . I've never been around so many people."
"And that makes you want to throw up?" He said, confused.
Alessia sighed, realizing she was being silly. It wasn't like everyone in the crowd was out to get her. Only a few of them. That thought didn't help.
"Yeah, it's just . . . I don't like crowds. All the people and noise make me nervous."
The boy looked at her quizzically. "Why don't you just tune them out? If listening to all the voices makes you nervous, just focus on your own thoughts or actions."
Alessia shook her head. If only it was that easy. "I can't just let my guard down. What if one of them decides to attack us?"
"I don't think you need to worry about that. You have Aatazaz, Thornpest, and Snowball." The boy said, not sounding convinced.
Alessia opened her mouth to reply but stopped halfway through. She looked around her. Aatazaz, who was leading from the front, was constantly turning his head and ears, analyzing anyone who even got remotely close to them and listening to various conversations. To their left and right, Thornpest and Snowball acted as ginormous shields against most of the prying eyes of the crowd. With the realization that she was surrounded by friends, Alessia could feel the tension in her muscles ease out, slowly but surely.
"I guess you're right." She said with a small smile. "Thanks."
"Ye- yeah." The boy looked away from her quickly, not allowing Alessia to see him blush. Alessia was just about to continue their conversation when Aatazaz stopped. They arrived at their destination.
The Freelance guild.
The huge white marble structure was built upon a foundation elevated a few feet above the ground with steps to reach it. They climbed the steps and arrived at the entrance archway, which was large enough to allow both Thornpest and Snowball to enter at the same time. Two guards were posted at the door, bearing the same armor of William's personal troop. As Aatazaz approached, one of the guards bowed to him.
"I apologize, sir, but tamed beasts are not allowed inside the guild."
Alessia frowned and Aatazaz's eyebrow twitched.
"If you wish, there is a temporary stable-"
Aatazaz interrupted him. "That won't be necessary. Thornpest, Snowball, Stay here until we come back out."
Immediately, both Uthar sat obediently. The guard paled under the intimidating aura of the two creatures. Aatazaz patted the man on the shoulder as he walked by.
"They don't bite unless provoked." Aatazaz said that as if it would give the many any peace of mind. The guard began questioning his career choice as the three of them entered the guild.
Inside, it was just as grand, only larger. Though there were no windows, bright lamps illuminated everything as if it was a cloudless day. The layout of the building was like a giant T, with one long hallway and two shorter ones branching off to the left and right.
The main hallway's walls were completely covered with bulletin boards, each filled with advertisements for various jobs and requests. The amount of writing made Alessia's brain hurt just from looking at it. All around them, warriors of all kinds moved back and forth between the rows of job openings. Knights in plate armor with swords, mages in robes with staffs, archers in leather armor with bows, and everything in-between. Compared to outside, almost everyone in this building was awakened and capable of using magic.
Aatazaz headed down the hall, ignoring all the looks they were getting.
At the center of the building, where the branches split off to form a T, there was a circular desk ten meters in diameter. Ten or fifteen people manned this desk, each busy with their own long line of Freelancers. Aatazaz, Alessia, and the boy wordlessly got in line to speak to an employee. It would be a long twenty minutes before they could speak to someone.
Alessia constantly fidgeted, tapping her feet or fingers as she tried to take her mind off all the stare's. Ever since she had stepped foot outside that church, she had been subjected to the scrutiny of the entire populace of the city, and it was wearing thin. Remembering the boy's words, she reluctantly shut her eyes and tried to imagine the endless green ocean that was the plains. It was hard at first, she could think of nothing but all the people who must have been staring at her. Even if she couldn't see them, she could still feel them. It felt like every eye that fell upon her was burning into her.
But then, she remembered who was in front and behind her. Aatazaz, the closest thing to a father she had. Her first friend, the nameless boy.
After a few minutes, she stopped tapping her foot and fingers. The whispers and chatter about her faded away, replaced by the wind on her face, the sound of the grass shifting, and the clean smell of fresh air. Alessia passed the rest of the time relaxed.
When it was finally their turn, the receptionist spoke without looking up at them. It was an old man with a scar over his eye. His voice was dead, probably having repeated this phrase hundreds of times today alone.
"Welcome to the Freelance Guild of Krin, what can I do for you today." The receptionist tapped a pen against the dell of parchment on his desk.
"We would like to join the Guild." Aatazaz said calmly.
"How many is we?" The man reached into a drawer, retrieving a pile of papers.
"Three."
"Please fill these out and take them to the left branch reception desk. Thank you and have a nice day." The man took three papers and three pens from the pile and handed them their forms without so much as a glance.
Aatazaz took the papers and pens, walking a few feet away before distributing them. The boy looked over his form with an endless number of blanks and questions.
Name:
Age:
Race:
Occupation:
Awakened Status:
Have you been convicted of any crimes?
Do you consent to a MANDATORY and REQUIRED test to access your strength level?
Have you read the Freelance Handbook?
Do you agree to abide by the rules of the guild?
By joining the Freelance guild, you agree that if you are found to have lied on any of the above questions, you will be dishonorably discharged from the Freelance guild WITHOUT EXCEPTION.
All of the above were just a few of the questions and blanks the boy had to fill out. It was particularly annoying since he had no idea how to answer some of them. He had no idea how old he was or if he had ever committed any crimes. The boy didn't want Aatazaz and Alessia to wait on him, so he quickly filled it out as best he could.
Once the three of them had each filled out their own forms, they made their way to the left branch reception desk. It was smaller than the circular one with less people, resulting in a much shorter wait.
This time, the receptionist was a bubbly young man. "Welcome! Zaohin's are a rarity on this side of the mountain. What can the Freelance guild do for you?" The receptionist flashed his wide smile to the three new members.
"We were going to join the guild." Aatazaz said, handing over their papers. The man nodded as he looked over Aatazaz's and Alessia's, but when it came to the boy's, he just stared blankly at the paper for a moment.
"Unfortunately, sir, these questions aren't optional. If you wish to join, you must fill them out." The receptionist looked at the boy apologetically.
The boy shook his head. "I have amnesia. I don't remember anything about my past. My answer's wouldn't mean anything."
The receptionist nodded in understanding. "I see. In that case, if you are found to be truthful, I'll void the requirement for you." The receptionist then pulled out a stone from his pocket and spoke into it.
"This is receptionist Dean, employee number 392131, requesting a truth stone to the right wing desk, section 2."
There were a few seconds of silence before a voice responded. "Request accepted. Receptionist Rebecca has been dispatched to your location with the stone."
Dean's face flashed with panic a split second, but he quickly hid it and smiled at them. "Please wait a few minutes for the truth stone to arrive. Thank you for your patience."
"Mhm." Aatazaz replied with a grunt. All the formalities were slowly getting to him.
After a few minutes, a woman appeared and walked up to Dean with a large square piece of metal in her hand, just like the one Jerome had. She appeared to be the same age as Dean, wearing the same receptionist uniform Dean had on. She placed it down on the desk and crossed her arms over her chest with a frown. When she spoke, her voice was shaking with anger.
"Truth stone, as requested." Then, she looked over at the three of them. "Once you are holding it, any lie you speak will instantly make it glow. For instance, if Dean held it and told me there was no one else for him but me, it would glow."
Dean suddenly found his shoes very interesting. When he spoke, his voice was meek. "Let's try to stay professional, Receptionist Rebecca."
Rebecca narrowed her eyes with anger, making Dean shrink back into his chair. After a few seconds of awkward silence, Rebecca gave it to each of them, making them repeat the same sentence. "Have you filled out the form to the best of your abilities, truthfully?"
It didn't glow or make any noise for all three of them. Rebecca nodded, taking a step back to let Dean take over. He tried to smile, but it was extremely challenging under Rebecca's glare. "Congratulations, you have passed! If you follow me to the training arena, one of our instructors will assess your strength."