After Luna opens the door to the basement, she sighs in relief. "Well, that was something else. But now that the monster's dead, there aren't going to be more of them just roaming around, right?"
Sunny simply shrugs. "Who knows? What I'm more worried about is how the corpse and tomb flower managed to survive for so long down there." She lets out a sigh before making her way to the kitchen, with Luna following close behind.
"So, umm, you said this place was going to be our 'HQ,' right?" Luna asks.
Sunny tilts her head. "Yes, that's what I said earlier. But after that fight, you just awakened your Will. What we need to focus on now is getting this place up and running and figuring out more about your funny ability!"
Sunny raises an eyebrow. "So, your Will technique—what exactly happened, other than you 'unraveling' your arm and all that?"
Luna pauses to think. "Well, I mean, the monster was trying to stab me through the chest—or at least, I assume that's what it was aiming for. Then, I guess I unraveled my chest or something to avoid getting seriously hurt or, ya know, killed!"
Sunny tilts her head. "I see. Well, shit, we need to give it a name. Since it's threads and strings... how about Unravel?"
Luna's eyes light up. "Yeah, that's a great name! Unravel!"
Then Luna pauses. "Wait, so your Will is the Eye of Talent or something, you said?"
Sunny gives an awkward laugh. "Well, my actual Will technique is called Karma!"
"Wait, wait, wait. You have two? People can have multiple Will powers and not just one?" Luna's face now has an even more puzzled look.
"Well, yes, they can. Most people only have one, though. My Eye of Talent, in a sense, was given to me by a friend through a ritual."
Sunny grabs a thermos and pours herself and Luna a drink.
"So, you can gain Will techniques through different means?" Luna asks.
Sunny pauses for a second. "Kinda. But most of the time, people aren't going to just hand you a technique or give up their own. There are risks with that."
"Well, I figured transferring one ability to another person would be tricky. But what if someone had the ability to steal other people's Will? And what if they could steal their magic or psychic abilities too?"
Sunny pauses again to think. "I mean, theoretically it's possible. But stealing magic or psychic abilities? That I don't know about. Mana siphoning and psychic siphoning techniques exist, but outright stealing? I'm not sure about that one chief."
Luna pauses. "So, my technique, Unravel... w-what else do you think it can do?"
Sunny shrugs. "Who knows, partner? Only time will tell. So let's train it and find out!"
Luna quickly jumps up. "W-wait, when am I supposed to get my Hunter's License?"
Sunny raises an eyebrow. "That's why we're training you, partner—so you can pass your test. It's not exactly like you go into a classroom and take a paper test with multiple-choice questions."
Luna lets out an extremely exaggerated sigh. "Ughhh, that's right. A test... that's right!" She slumps onto the table. "Wait, so it's going to be a physical test? Will it be like the FitnessGram Pacer Test?"
Sunny smirks. "The FitnessGram Pacer Test is a multistage aerobic—"
Luna quickly puts a finger on Sunny's lips. "Not another word about it!"
Sunny bursts out laughing. "Sorry, partner, I couldn't help myself!"
Luna lets out a grunt. "Yep, totally couldn't help yourself." She rolls her eyes before getting up. "Unfortunately, this place isn't going to fix itself!" Sunny pops her back "Yep your right about that!"
Sunny walks out of the kitchen, and she and Luna go their separate ways—Luna focuses on cleaning while Sunny works on the wiring of the place.
Occasionally, the sound of machinery from Sunny's end is interrupted by loud crashes as Luna struggles to clean using magic.
Crash after crash, Luna continues her efforts. But after almost a full day, the crashes gradually become less frequent. By the final few hours of the day, Luna manages to go without a single mishap while casting spells.
Luna walks to the bathroom and turns on the faucet. To her surprise, water flows smoothly. She sits and ponders for a moment. "Did Sunny fix the water as well, or did it always work?" She decides not to question it too much and cleans herself up.
Exiting the bathroom, Luna goes to look for Sunny. She finds her sitting in a mostly empty room, apart from a few chairs and a table. Sunny is quietly reading a book.
Luna sneaks up behind her, but before she can scare her, Sunny flicks a peanut shell at her forehead.
"Ow!" Luna yelps, rubbing her forehead.
Sunny smirks. "You're gonna have to try harder than that, partner, to scare me!" she chuckles.
"I guess so," Luna replies with a sheepish grin. "Well, uh, how livable is this place?" She sits on one of the chairs in the room, and the cat quickly hops onto her lap.
Sunny leans back in her chair. "Well, partner, the good news is that there isn't too much electrical work left. I checked the plumbing, and it seems solid as well. However, we'll need to head into town. While we're there, I'll look for a Sanctum hiding spot. Once we've got that, we can start working on getting you ready for your test. Since you've already got decent control over your mana, they might let you skip the basics and go straight to the advanced stuff. If that's the case, you should be able to get your license in a little less than a week!"
Sunny tosses Luna the bag of peanuts she's been snacking on. "However, keep in mind there'll most likely be three tests: a hunting test, some sort of game, and probably a fight. You might have to fight another monster, or they could make you duel someone to see if you're worthy of a license. How well you perform will determine if you get your license and how many stars you start with.
"Based on your current skill range, I'd say you're likely to start off with one or two stars." Sunny gives Luna a thumbs up with a smile "So, you won't be their to long!"
Luna lets out a sigh of relief, then her eyes widen. "W-wait, I might have to fight a person!? Will it be to the death or something? It won't be to the death, will it? Tell me, tell me!" she shouts, shaking Sunny's shoulders.
Sunny gently grabs her wrists to stop her. "Calm down, partner. You're not going to have to kill anybody, so don't worry!"
Luna sits down, catching her breath. "Okay, good!" She lets out a nervous laugh.
"Well, that's a relief. But wait, what's your star rating?" Luna tilts her head curiously.
"Oh, it's three stars! Though I should be four stars, but I got screwed over. I'll try again for it later," Sunny replies with a disgruntled look on her face. There's a hint of anger in her eyes as she speaks.
Luna glances at Sunny's watch and stands up quickly. "Well, it's almost eleven, so we should get some shut-eye, shouldn't we?"
Sunny gets up as well. "Yeah, I agree. We probably should. We'll sleep in the RV, alright."
Both women let out a synchronized yawn before heading toward the front door.
As they open it, they notice a figure standing in front of the RV. It's a man in priest clothes, but he's wearing a cloak similar to Sunny's. The man is massive, almost six foot ten, and Luna feels a hint of fear setting in.
Sunny, on the other hand, forces a smile. "Uh, howdy there. Can I get your name?"
The man takes off his hood, revealing perfectly combed black hair that doesn't go past his ears. His emerald-colored eyes gleam, with pupils that emit a golden light. His beard, the same color as his hair, is well-groomed. He wears a standard priest's cassock, and in his left hand is a glowing Bible. In his right hand is a cross—the exact one Luna saw in the basement.
The man steps closer to the two women. "My name is Father Fredrick. I'm a five-star hunter from the Priest Corp of the Sanctum organization. Pleasure to meet you, young ladies. Might I inquire why you're here? There was a foul creature in that basement. I originally sent two of my helpers to deal with it. I take it they failed?" His words are soft-spoken, not intimidating in the slightest—actually, quite comforting.
"Y-yes, there was a monster down there, but, uh, w-we killed it," Luna confesses, still slightly trembling in fear.
Father Fredrick crouches down slightly. "What are your names?"
Luna, still shaking, glances at Sunny, who remains steadfast. "Luna D. Gold," she stammers.
"Sunny A. Jean," Sunny adds firmly.
The man smiles warmly. "What lovely names. You two are blessed to have such wonderful names. Don't worry—you're not in trouble. I can tell one of you is a hunter, while the other is an aspiring hunter." He reaches into his bag and pulls out a wad of cash, handing them each two grand.
"I believe you two deserve to be compensated for completing the job that was originally given to me. I hope this makes up for it!"
"Oh, thank you, Father!" Sunny smiles ear to ear while eagerly counting the money. Luna's jaw drops—she's never held this much money in her hands. "I-I, uh, t-t-thank y-you," Luna stammers rapidly.
The man stands up and begins to enter the house, most likely to check on the monster's corpse.
"Uh, F-Father, why are you here exactly? How did you know about the monster?" Luna blurts out, her hands still trembling as she clutches the money.
He pauses in his tracks and turns slightly. "I was here giving some poor souls their rites of passage. As for how I knew about this place, it's because of the cross. Once it activated, it would fade away after being used. When it disappeared, I was alerted to this location immediately. I would have arrived sooner, but I wasn't about to leave a final confession half-finished. I'm happy you two are fine." He gives them both a gentle smile. "So, may I enter this place?"
Sunny lets out a sigh. "Go ahead. The basement is done. In the hallway, take two rights, and you'll see a door with fifty locks lying on the floor."
As Father Fredrick enters the house, Luna exhales in relief. "Well, he was nice—not that scary!" She lets out an awkward laugh.
"Yeah, he seems like a nice fellow," Sunny replies with a nod, "though what's terrifying is knowing that, if he wanted to, he could've killed us in an instant."
Luna grabs her right arm. "Yeah, his presence is a bit intense... I could feel it, his mana..."
Sunny smiles. "Yeah, I agree. But don't worry—I'd prioritize our safety. If it came down to it, I'd get us out of dodge and as far away as possible!" She starts making her way to the RV, with Luna following close behind. "So, the plan is to go into town tomorrow?"
"Yep, we'll look for a Sanctum hiding spot and—" Sunny is abruptly cut off by Father Fredrick.
"There's a Sanctum hiding spot near a fake insurance firm called Life Giver. It's next to a coffee shop called 'Cool Beans.'"
Luna lets out a shriek.
"My apologies. I've already confirmed the monster is dead. Well, I'll be on my way."
In an instant, Father Fredrick vanishes.
Luna clutches her chest, trying to catch her breath. "Fuck, he's quiet as well!?"
Sunny raises an eyebrow. "Yeah, I guess he is." She continues, "Anyway, like I was saying, we'll visit the Sanctum hiding spot, pick up some furniture for the house, other goods, and maybe some new clothes as well!"
Luna smiles from ear to ear. "Yeah, I could use some new fits!" She quickly runs into the RV. "Well, let's get some shut-eye!" she says, hopping onto the couch for some much-needed sleep.