Shadow had decided to take her along with him, not because she asked so nicely, but because it just made sense to have his Adventurers membership and drop her off, then get on with his life.
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much" Liora jumped around in a circle, Shadow felt the urge to cover his face in shame.
"You know you're a mage, right?" He said to her with a straight face. Trying his best not to laugh, seeing her this happy wasn't so bad. He was just bothered about his image.
People were already pointing.
"What does that have to do with anything?" She asked.
"Well I'm sure people would know you, same as that woman at the Imperial Arms office, when your father's men come looking for you here, we could be tracked down. I wouldn't want any of that" he finished.
Liora stopped and looked at him with a frown, then shook her head and maintained her composure.
She walked slightly behind him and said nothing, her face, and eyes moved about, darting from left to right out of curiosity. She was barely trying her best to hold in her excitement.
Shadow decided having a little conversation with her didn't seem like a bad idea.
"So tell me, what's it like being locked up all day and not allowed to leave the castle" He asked.
Liora turned her head from a group of children that were playing and looking at him. "How did you know that? It's not like you've seen me before the day you kidnapped me".
"Because you can't keep your excitement in, it's so obvious that you've never been outside into the suburbs before" he smiled at her.
She sighed and pushed a lock of her hair behind her ears. "Well, if you must know them, I'll tell you" she said.
"My father married a mage and gave birth to me, but she died at some point, I can't remember when and why".
"After it was discovered that I was a mage, Father kept me in the house and made me trained like hell. Telling me that I would one day bring glory to the Draven name and all that. But in truth, he was just ashamed of putting me out there".
"A mage coming from a house of swordsmen, a simple disgrace. So I learned other things out of boredom, about the kingdom, beasts and monsters, politics, war and all that. I practically lived in the library" she sighed.
Shadow didn't know what to say, it wasn't exactly a heartfelt story, but it was something he could relate with.
He asked a herb seller he spotted by the side for the Location of the Adventurers guild and came back to her.
"So, what's it like being a mage? Did you go to school and learn magic formulas and all that?" He asked. Those were the kinds of things he read while on earth about Fantasy and all that crap. He should have read for books.
He suddenly remembered his Otaku friend, Sam, who was also an assassin. His dream was always to be reincarnated, hit by a truck or something and get another life. Although he was Asian, maybe his wish was granted.
"Uhh. You really don't know anything, huh?" She mocked him.
"What is it now…"
"Mages are born with all the knowledge of magic at birth" she said with a straight face.
Shadow thought this had to be some sort of joke.
"Stop joking around, what do you mean you're born with all the knowledge of magic?" He seemed genuinely surprised. And so did Liora.
"You really don't know?"
Shadow shook his head admittedly, although his ego was hurt, he didn't let that bother him. Learning was a privilege he had come to respect.
"Well, every mage is born with all the knowledge of magic, the formulas and all that crap. If someone managed to create a new spell in this generation, the next generation of mages would be born with the knowledge of that same spell" she finished.
Shadow stopped in his steps and thought about it for a moment.
"That's unfair" he said finally.
"Yes it is. Although everyone has the ability to use mana so long as they can feel it, mages are born with the principles of it, so we don't have to learn from anyone, we know it all" she smiled at Shadow.
"Feeling smug are we?" He eyed her.
"Smug?"
"Never mind" he continued walking, up ahead he could see another gate wide open.
This one seemed to be made of hardwood, no guards stood at the entrance, if anything, Shadow saw a number of men standing at the entrance and drinking away their lives.
Four of them.
Liora followed behind him in silence, she seemed to understand when to speak and when not too. Thankfully.
Shadow greeted the men and walked past them with Liora in hand. Inside he saw a yard, an open space for sparring. He noticed a few practice dummies with wooden sword marks all over them.
Up ahead was a bar, Shadow calmed himself down and walked inside. The bar was… Just what you'd expect from a bar.
Young girls served drinks, men of all ages sat around and drank themselves to stupor. By the side of the bar was a wall with papers pasted all over the wall.
Shadow stopped and looked at the papers, they were all quests. Some to be taken and others that had been finished.
He nodded to himself and walked over to the counter, a man stood there. Shadow paused for a bit after coming really close to the man.
He was huge. Like seven feet and a little more inches, Shadow wasn't sure. The man made him feel a bit conscious of his height.
"I'm here to apply as an Adventurer" Shadow said.
The man who had been gently shaking a drink in a container turned and looked at him. His arms were as wide as Shadow's head. His beard was nothing so scoff at either.
"Hmmm. You look young" he said.
"I know but…."
"Doesn't matter, what about the girl?" He nodded at her.
"No, no, just me…."
"I also want to become an adventurer" Liora blurted out, stepping forward to meet the bartender. She looked hopeful and did her best to not look at Shadow, who had his jaw dropped.
"Wait wait, you what?" He shouted.
But she ignored him.
"Very well" the man said, he reached for a piece of paper behind him and slammed in on the table.
"Finish the quest and get back here, after you've proven yourself. You could be an adventurer… Or you could give up and home" the man took a swallow from his cup, finishing the whole rum in two gulps.
He wiped his mouth clean and grinned at them.