Point-of-View: Ilex Sarralot

———————————————————————————

"Okay, here we are. I’m going back to Arcadia now, what time do you two want me to come pick you up?" Inquired Prysm, as she teleported us to the outskirts of Kaygee Town, in Obsidian.

"Hm...maybe in around five hours or so? I’m just going to go to Guild and see if there’s any new information available that’d be useful to us. And I might go drinking with a few of my friends, they haven’t seen much of me after I quit my job as a receptionist in the Guild, so it’ll probably be good to spend some time with them," Replied Rosary after mulling it over.

"Yeah, five hours works for me too, that should be more than enough time. I’m gonna go check things out with the Knight Order, I’m well acquainted with the Knight Captain stationed in this town, so I’ll see if I can glean any information from her," I added with a nod.

"Wow, you’ve really changed, huh? When we first met you, you could barely get two words out without falling apart," Remarked Prysm in bemusement.

"W-well, I still have trouble talking to strangers, but yeah, I guess I have gotten better at holding conversations with people I know, at least," I responded awkwardly.

"In any case, it’ll be good to spend some time with the people we’re friendly with in Obsidian. With the situation in Arcadia steadily stabilizing, it probably won’t be long before we stop coming to Obsidian entirely," Pointed out Rosary objectively.

Oh...yeah, she’s right, I didn’t even think about that. Well, I mean, it’s not like there are all that many people in Obsidian with whom I’m genuinely close to. Actually, I can only think of one, the very person I’m going to go see today...

"Okay, I’ll be back in five hours, which’ll be at...8 PM tonight. Be back at this spot on time, I’d rather not stand around waiting for you," Frowned Prysm, as she stretched her arms up with a sigh.

"Just call us if we aren’t here by the time you come back," Shrugged Rosary, as she began to head for the town.

"Or you could just be here on time! Well, whatever, I’m going now...see you later," Sighed Prysm, before teleporting back to Arcadia.

As Rosary headed into town, I waited a few minutes...it might be suspicious if we both enter the town at the exact same time, so I’ll give myself a bit of a buffer.

After about ten minutes had passed since she left, I began making my way to the town as well, a mix of emotions welling up inside me.

I honestly didn’t think about it, the fact that, one of these days, I’ll end up saying goodbye to the nation of Obsidian for good.

I don’t really have all that many good memories in this place...my parents constantly yelled at me and beat me when I was a kid, to the point where I was relieved when they finally died.

I can’t remember exactly how that happened, I think they had a bad encounter with some Noble or something...I don’t know, my memories of my childhood are kinda fuzzy at best, and then I became an Adventurer to support myself and earn a living.

I was just kinda meandering through life before I met Larrk and the others...and then I happened to form a friendly relationship with the Knight Order too.

So much has happened lately, so much has changed...it hasn’t been all that long, but it’s all been happening so fast that the person I used to be and the life I led before I met Larrk and everyone else seems like a distant memory now.

Anyway, as I then entered the town, I headed for the outpost where the Knights stationed here were staying in, looking around as I made my way there.

The familiarity of this place...how long before it becomes a distant memory? There’s no doubt in my mind that, when the time comes, I’ll choose Arcadia over Obsidian without hesitation.

But...despite that, I can’t help but feel a bit sad at the thought of never coming here again. Despite all the bad memories I have of this place, I did make a lot of good memories here lately, and it’s where I grew up. Yeah...I’m gonna miss this place.

"Hm? Oh, it’s you, Ilex...how’s it going?" A Knight greeted me, as I arrived at the outpost.

"It’s going alright, I guess...so, um, is Mysst here?" I responded with a slightly awkward smile.

I’ve still got a whole lot of room for improvement, but my social skills have definitely come a long way.

"Oh, the Captain’s lazing about somewhere inside, as usual," He sighed in exasperation, before opening the door to let me in.

Yeah, that sounds like her, alright.

I headed into the building and looked around, before roaming through the place...a few other Knights greeted me as I walked past them, they’ve gotten pretty friendly towards me since I come here often.

"That you, Ilex? What’s up?" Suddenly came Mysst’s voice, as she walked out of the kitchen with a bag of chips in her hands.

"Oh, nothing, I just had some free time and figured I’d drop by," I replied, as she let out a yawn, looking like she’d just woken up from a nap, her hair all messy and a drowsy look on her face.

It’s the middle of the day...

"Cool. I was gonna go watch a movie in my room, you can join me if you want," She responded, as she yawned again.

"Sure, sounds good...although, you should probably carry out your duties at least once in a while, you know. Your Commander is gonna scold you again if you keep this up," I pointed out with a wry smile.

"Yeah, whatever...I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it."

Yeah, and then complain to me about getting yelled at. Well, I guess I don’t mind that too much...

_____________________________________________

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this Chapter! Don’t forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

Also, check out my Insta account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.

Join the Discord server, I plan to tease upcoming Chapters and future story arcs here, and you can also discuss or ask me any questions about the story and characters. Use the invite link to join:

https://discord.gg/sRbx9VbTVP