Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem nor any of the characters in the franchise. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of such content. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 3

Traveling with Celica and the others had been a mostly pleasant experience, or at least as pleasant as it gets when traveling through woods infested with the "terrors" or whatever name they gave to the living dead could be. Luckily for the tactician, the terrors here were a bit more tame so long as you didn't go look for them intentionally. The capabilities of Celica and her companions had only been an additional boon as well, their magic easily destroying whatever terror attacked them as soon as they were alerted to their presence.

Thanks to Genny's healing, the fatigue that plagued him earlier was also gone, and he could do what Chrom and the others always said he did best, his actual job as a tactician. In fact, when he was actually given a bit of time to think about his current the situation, it gave him a sense of deja vu.

Waking up in an unfamiliar land, having to fight a battle almost immediately after doing so, and meeting new people in the right place and at the right time, with the mentioned people being almost unnaturally kind and accepting of him. Well maybe not exactly alike, after all, last time he remembered, he was the one who decided to help Chrom and the others out, not the other way around.

Though Celica and the others were seemingly wary of him at first, after a bit of walking and talking, and destroying a few of the terrors that had walked onto the main road, the tensions between them seemed to drop.

And after a few hours of walking, he finally had a grasp on the personalities of those that were before him. Celica was the spearhead of the group, with a neutral but firm approach to all things, though Robin could tell through her eyes, that she had much to worry about despite her actions. Mae was a lot more rash and outspoken, constantly poking fun at Boey, who tried his best to act professional but always left a bit of his concerned and worried self slip out. Genny, the girl who had healed his wounds, seemed kind and sincere enough in her actions, though she was quiet compared to the others and seemed a bit more aloof compared to the others.

Still, it looked as if these four seemed to share a great deal of trust between each other, something that he rarely saw. In a way, the group reminded him of the first people that he had met, with Celica having a similar approach to things as Chrom did, Mae being lively and close to Celica as was Lissa towards Chrom. Robin wondered how Boey would react if he had met Frederick, who had essentially mastered the act that Boey was trying to put on.

Thus, Robin couldn't help but smile just a bit, despite his predicament. As tensions relaxed, he finally decided to ask about their origins. If his theory was correct, he had an idea of who Celica was, or at least who she was going to become, though he had not remembered reading anything about the other three. If he was going to travel with them, he may as well get to know them as best as he could.

From them, he had learned that Celica and the others were essentially part of a Monastery, which served as a place of worship on Novis towards Zofia's patron goddess. Though he was aware from his past readings that Duma and Mila held a role in the origins of Valentia, he was surprised to see the extent of reverence the group before him had for Mila, who they called the Earth Mother.

This was nothing new, as he had seen others who have held a similar reverence towards Naga and Tiki back in Ylisse and later on in Valm. Unfortunately, seeing such feelings couldn't help but irk him just a little. Blind faith towards rather questionable "gods" were one of the catalysts that led to the ruin of at least one future and if it weren't for the intervention of Lucina and the others, then his would have probably suffered a similar fate. Thus, Robin could only hope that something similar wouldn't be present here.

"Hey look, we're almost there!" said Mae, who pointed towards a gate up ahead. Smoke could also be seen rising in the distance, indicating the port was close.

"It took nearly an entire day, but we're lucky to arrive before dusk." sighed Celica with relief. "Hopefully once we make it past the gate, we'll be able to find a place to stay."

"Ah man I can't wait!" Boey held an expression of true bliss. "Only a few more moments and we'll have warm beds, food, and best of all, no more terrors!"

Robin and Genny gave a silent nod to their words, though they were relieved as well. The dangers of these woods would only increase at night due to lack of vision, and the sooner they exited them, the better. Luckily, they had made it into the Port City before the gates closed, and were now headed towards an inn that Mae and Boey knew of on their past travels to the city.

The inn in question was an old one, having been in service before Boey and Mae were even born. Thanks it's location, it was only a short walk from the actually port, which was where Celica and the others planned to go tomorrow. To their pleasant surprise, while the number of ships docked at the port were few compared to the past, there was a particularly large vessel which stood out compared to the other smaller ships.

"Wow, it's been ages since I've seen a ship that big...I wonder what they're here for?" asked Mae excitedly. It had been a while since she and Boey was last on a ship, and pleasant memories flowed into her head when she thought back to those times.

"Good question, although now would hardly be a good time to ask it." replied Celica. "Since we're going to the docks tomorrow anyways, we could find out then."

"Yea, gonna have to agree with milady on this one." added Boey. "I'm honestly more interested in some food and a bed right now than some ship..."

"Hey Robin, what do you think about the ship?" asked Genny suddenly, surprising the tactician and the rest of the group. "Have you ever been on one that big?"

"It looks like a ship of voyagers to be honest." said Robin after looking at the vessel up ahead. "Well, whatever they are here for, it's good news for us I suppose."

At the very least, this hopefully meant that trade was still somewhat possible despite the famine and pirate problem that was present. If luck was on their side and that vessel was going to head to Zofia's mainland, then maybe they could even tag along.

"Yea, I suppose it is. Well lets take things one step at a time, we'll get some rest now and we'll see for ourselves tomorrow." finished Celica, though the moment she did, Boey quickly hurried ahead towards the inn, urging the others to follow him soon after.

When they reached the inn, they were relieved to find it still in business, offering food and lodging to whoever could pay. Luckily, the monastery had gave some coins to Celica and the others when they had left, in addition to ones they had already saved up.

"Hey Robin, I assume you don't have any coins on you right?" asked Celica, remembering the tactican's plight. "If so, I'd be happy to help you pay."

Thank you, but please, do allow me to see if I could pay for it myself." replied Robin, who reached into his robes in an effort to find something.

Luckily the coins that he had on hand back in Ylisse up until his final moments were still there. As Robin held one out however, he found himself hesitant in using them to pay. These were his pay back when he was with the Shepherds, tokens representing the work that he had done back in Ylisse. Now that he was in this world however, these coins were essentially one of the few material links he had of Chrom and the others.

"Hey Robin, you there?" A voice suddenly pulled Robin out of his thoughts. It turned out to be Mae's, who along with Celica, Boey, and Genny had seen him space out when he pulled out some of his coins.

"Ah...yes my bad, sorry." replied Robin embarrassingly. Swallowing his thoughts from earlier, he took one of the gold coins he had, and handed it to the clerk at the table.

"I'm sorry, but unlike the others, I'm not from around here." said Robin, "So unfortunately, I don't have this kingdom's currency. The coin that I gave you though is made of gold, will that do?"

"Uhh...I'm sorry sir, but I'm afraid I cannot accept this." The Clerk's response, surprised Robin, though he felt a tinge of relief in the process. "Due to the number of scams that have been around involving false currency, we can only accept official Zofian coins. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"I see..." muttered Robin slowly as the relief which had filled him earlier now turned to embarrassment. "Looks like I will have to take you up on your offer Celica."

"Don't worry about it, think of it as thanks for the help you gave earlier." replied Celica.

Two rooms were then reserved, one for Celica, Genny, and Mae while the other for Boey and Robin for obvious reasons. With night approaching, everyone ate a bowl of food for dinner, before entering their rooms and wishing each other goodnight.

Inside the room, Boey quickly took out his outer robes before jumping on a bed. Robin couldn't really blame him, as a day of walking in a terror infested path would be tiring for him too as well. Though, he supposed to that he was more used to it now compared to Celica and the others, thanks to his past experiences with similar monsters.

"Hey Robin, mind if I ask you a question?" asked Boey. Robin was surprised, but nodded in return. "How did you get so strong?"

"Why do you ask?"

"When we first saw your fire spell, it wasn't like anything we've ever seen, read about sure, but seeing is believing as they say. You don't look that old either, so if you would allow me to know, how did you gain the power that you have?"

Robin pondered about the question for a bit, due to the implications that it had with his past. He could chalk up a good part of his affinity for magic to his birthright, but everything else couldn't be anything further from that. With a bit more thought on it, Robin finally put some words together to say.

"Well Boey...when the situation calls for it, you need to step up." responded Robin. "It takes hard work, discipline, support, and experience to grow. You've got everything except the latter, but I'm sure that will change in time. Just be patient and do as you've always done, and you'll be fine."

"I see...I guess I shouldn't have been expecting anything amazing huh..." muttered Boey.

"Give it time, there's no such thing as instant proficiency when it comes to anything. Is there a reason why you want strength so badly?"

"I'm currently an apprentice mage that's in milady's service, but I've always felt a bit inadequate compared to milady and Mae. If I'm skillful enough with magic, in time I'll be able to make a living off of it and hopefully help my family out. It's pretty much one of the only ways to get out of poverty honestly..."

"You have a noble goal Boey, especially amidst your current kingdom's plight. Thanks for trusting me enough to tell me that, I think I have a better grasp on your character now, you're quite the hard worker aren't you?"

"Y-Yea...thanks I guess...though this isn't something that I keep that hidden. Mae and the others know about it already." replied Boey embarrassingly.

"And yet they support you in your endeavors, don't they?'

"Although Mae can sometimes be pretty harsh...yea they do."

"Then you're well on your way to your goal." finished Robin. "Just be patient and continue working hard. You have the friends to help you, the motivation to improve, and a situation at hand that demands excellence, keep your goal in sight and it's only a matter of time."

"To be honest Robin, I'm still not really convinced...but thank you, I'll try my best to live up to your expectations." replied Boey after a moment of pondering.

With a nod in return, Boey soon went to sleep while Robin looked out of the inn's window. Looking out, he could see the ship floating gently on the waters against the docks. When he had told Celica and the others about what he thought the ship's purpose to be, he left out information.

A ship that big did indeed indicate that it was a ship for voyagers, but there would be only two types of those that were willing to come here. If what Celica said was true, and Zofia was suffering from a famine, he doubted that any sane merchant would travel here to do business. That only left one other option, though whether the latter was for better or for worse, he wouldn't know.

A large vessel indicated a long journey, and if it wasn't merchants who have came from afar to do business, then it had to be explorers of some kind, most likely with either royal or noble backing to be able to afford such a journey. The latter were much more unpredictable compared to the merchants, much to Robin's dismay.

If there was some sort of ulterior motive however, Robin couldn't really see what it was either. He was still mostly unaware of this world's workings, other than magic, which he had managed to get a better grasp of after helping Celica and the others out on the road here.

Unlike his time in Ylisse, it looked like there wouldn't be a large library he could go to either, which meant Robin would have to improvise. Giving off a large yawn, he supposed that the first thing he would do in the morning would probably to go with Celica and the others and talk to the inhabitants here, and perhaps the voyagers as well. Information was crucial at this point, and Robin knew that the sooner he is able to obtain it, the better.

With those final thoughts, Robin finally decided to call it a day and go to sleep. Unfortunately for the tactician, the rather uncomfortable bed ensured that he slept little, being the first one to wake up once the morning bells rang. Thankfully, his time back with the Shepherds had conditioned him to his sleep deprivation, and he hurried down to eat breakfast before waiting for Celica and the others.

"Ahh I haven't had such good sleep for quite a while now! Wouldn't you agree Celica?" asked Mae as she came down the stairs with the former and Genny.

"Hm, yes I suppose you have a point Mae. How about you Genny? Did you sleep well?" replied Celica.

"It was alright. Ah look, Robin's already up!" Genny pointed towards Robin, which surprised the others.

"Huh and I thought we were the early birds..." muttered Mae in response. Celica had to agree as well, their duties as priestesses in training had ensured that they would have early duties, and they could think of few that had reason to wake even earlier than they usually do.

"Oh, I didn't really sleep well." Robin shrugged his shoulders before sighing. "But I'm used to short sleep hours anyways. It seems to come with the job after all."

"Well it's nice to see you awake unlike a certain apprentice mage." replied Mae. "That means you BOEY!"

"Sheesh no need to be so loud Mae, I'm coming." A familiar boy then ran down the stairs, attempting to put on his robes in the process.

"Well now that we're all here, let's eat breakfast and relax a bit before going out. Yay or Nay?" asked Celica, who promptly received a 'yay' from her other friends.

"Ah that reminds me, do any of you happen to know if there's a library, or bookstore of some sort here?" asked Robin in response.

"Oh, there's nothing as big as a library here, but there is a building that contains the archives of some accounts on the island and Zofia's past. It should only be a few buildings away from here."

"That's good enough, thanks."

With that, Celica and the others ate their breakfast while Robin waited, before they went towards the dock in an effort to see if they could talk to the voyagers as well as the inhabitants of the city. When they talked to one of the sailors of the ship, the former had confirmed Robin's thoughts.

The ship in question was from Archanea, and the sailors themselves were here to accompany a few representatives of the kingdoms of Archanea in an effort to establish better connections with the people and kingdoms of Valentia. While few during his time would know what this information meant, Robin was happy when he had heard the information from the sailors.

The continent of Archanea was essentially Ylisse's name in a history that was almost completely lost to the scholars of Robin's time save for the name of the person that had unified the continent at the time, that being the Hero-King, Marth. The only reason he recognized the name of the continent was thanks to his interactions with Tiki.

Unlike the scholars, she had lived through the time of the First Exalt as well as Marth's, and as a result, had a personal history with the Archanea of the past and the Hero-King as well. Despite this, she had only told others the barebones of that history, and it wasn't until Robin had gotten closer to her that she began to talk about more personal accounts of her history.

From Tiki herself, Robin was able to hear about Tiki's trips with her late caretaker Bantu, as well as her later adventures with Marth and Xane, the latter being a "manakete" that held the ability to shapeshift. The information itself was surreal, especially when Tiki had told them of the plights that they faced, from the Dark Pontifex who possessed just as much if not even greater power than his late father in the arcane arts, and the Shadow Dragon Medeus.

Thus, Robin knew that there were two war periods during the Hero-King's time, and if Archanea had enough resources to spare a ship here, that meant that either the war periods themselves were over, or they simply haven't begun yet.

Regardless, this wasn't information that he could freely diverge, though it wasn't as if anyone would believe him anyways. Thinking back to Lucina's unique situation, it was more than likely that this world's history had already strayed from the history of his world.

"Um excuse me, would it be alright if I ask you gentlemen something?" Seeing that the girl before him seemed to be someone out of the ordinary, the sailor nodded.

"Thank you. Me and my friends here, we would like to ask if we could accompany you on your ship." replied Celica.

"Hmm...I'm not exactly sure if I can allow that or not, but where are you planning to head to?"

"We were planning to head to Zofia Harbor. There is a...problem there that we need to address in the mainland."

"Oh Zofia Harbor? We were planning to travel there at first." said the sailor. "But we had found out from the pirates that there is currently something akin to a Civil War in Zofia right now, which is why we opted to travel here instead. Is my previous presumption correct or...?"

Civil War...have things really gone that far...? Mila where are you...? The people, they need your guidance...

"I'm...not too sure myself. I know that things currently aren't great with the current famine and pirate issue, but I don't think there is a full on civil war..."

Though Celica had hoped to reassure herself with her words, she found herself unable to truly deny the sailor's speculations. From what little she knew of her true "father", King Lima IV had done little to help the people during these harsh times. Especially now since her father had officially passed away, the idea of someone attempted to take advantage of the power vacuum that existed wouldn't be out of question.

This conclusion however, hinged on a statement that Celica didn't want to believe, something had happened to Mila. She was sure that if the Earth Mother was present, not even the Reglians would be bold enough to attempt to invade Zofia, much less a zofian attempting to start a coup.

Regardless of what was going on in Zofia, she had to go to Mila's Temple and find out for herself. Praying to the Earth Mother for her strength, Celica resolved herself.

"I see...well by the looks of your clothing, I assume you and your friends are mages of some sort?" asked the sailor again.

"Ah-yes, all of us are able to use magic to some extent. I'm Celica, a priestess, and I'll let everyone else here introduce themselves."

"I'm Mae, and I can assure you though we may seem young, Celica and I are skilled mages. Boey here while still an apprentice mage, has potential and is decent at the craft."

"Ah I-I'm Genny, I can't really use any of the spells that Celica and the others can use as of now, but I'm rather adept when it comes to healing others."

"I'm Robin, though my primary job is a tactician, I'll able to use tomes and the like just fine."

"Hm...well if you five earn your keep and contribute towards the ship's defense I think the captain would let you tag along." relented the sailor after thinking for a bit. "Although you'll probably need our boss's permission first."

"Alright, do you know where he is?" asked Celica eagerly.

"Don't know, the boy went into your town earlier in the morning, said he wanted to look around and explore. I reckon he'll be back at the port by dusk, so maybe come back then?" shrugged the sailor.

"Hm...that's fine. Thank you for your time."

The sailor gave a nod in response before going back to attending his duties, leaving Celica and her group to think about what to do next. At the very least though, it seemed that they had a way to travel to Zofia Port.

"Well...he seemed pretty nice for a foreigner, surprised he knew our language too!" said Mae after they had left the port.

"He was only one person though, we don't know the rest of the crew or his "boss" so we'll have to see." said Boey in response.

"Well you both make good points." added Celica. "Though perhaps you didn't notice, he was speaking an older version of our language. Luckily, we still seemed to be able to understand them fine."

"Yea, I'm not really surprised though...it was a language that the Earth Mother taught us after all..." said Genny. "Anyways, what do you suppose we do now Celica?"

Genny had raised a pretty good point, leaving Celica and the others to ponder on it as well. The "boss" of the ship that they would have to talk to most likely wouldn't be back from his excursion until dusk. Right now, it was still mid-morning, which left nearly an entire day for the group to use.

"I have an idea of what we should do, although I'm not really sure if it would be a good idea..." replied Celica. "Since you're the most experienced here, what do you suppose we do Robin?"

"Well, for one I would probably spent a little bit of time to see if we could look for their boss."

"That doesn't seem like a bad idea, but we don't know what he looks like or even where he went." said Boey in response.

"You have a point Boey, but I reckon that since their boss is a foreigner and an eccentric one as well judging from his willingness to explore the town, his appearance will probably stand out as well."

"That makes sense, still, it would be impolite to confront and ask him during his leisure time don't you think Robin?" countered Mae. "I say, we just use the day to talk to the locals, maybe learn more about what's going on in Zofia, if there is anything to learn that is."

"Hm I didn't think about that..." admitted Robin. It seemed he was taking things too far without consideration of risk, he would have to work on that. "Well what do you suppose we do then?"

"Well, I was thinking that we could do something similar to what Mae suggested." replied Celica. "Though I plan to ask if any of the locals will be willing to accompany us as well. It helps to have strong allies after all, and it wouldn't do if we wholly relied on you and the crew of that ship."

"That sounds fine. If you plan on doing that, then I think I'll go to the Archives that you mentioned. We'll meet up at the inn later in the afternoon and go to the docks to ask the ship's captain about our plight. That okay with you?" asked Robin.

"Yes, that will be fine. Thank you for your help Robin, may Mila look over you."

With that, Celica and her friends departed towards the town square while Robin waved his goodbyes before heading towards the Archives of the town. Though a part of the tactician felt he would not learn much more than what Celica and the others already told him, it would be a waste to not at least try.

"Hey Celica, were you serious about the whole recruiting locals thing?" asked Mae after they had walked for a bit. "Cause I don't know if it will be a good idea or not."

"Yes, I was quite serious Mae." replied Celica. "While I truly do appreciate Robin's help, I can tell that he has his own goal here. I don't think it's a malicious one, but I have a feeling that our paths will separate soon. If we are to be able to face the pirate problem head on, we'll need more allies."

"With all due respect Milady, where are we going to find someone like that?" questioned Boey hesitatingly. "I don't think the locals here will be willing to face the pirates, much less with anything beyond that."

"Um...we could just ask the townspeople if they know anyone who fits that criteria. Then we could just go to that person directly and ask if they are willing to help." suggested Genny after overhearing the issue.

"Yep, Genny has a good point there. Anyways, we should hurry up though, we don't have too much time left after all." said Celica in response.

Mae and the others nodded at Celica's suggestion, and they did what Genny had suggested. Unfortunately, most of the townspeople they had ended up asking didn't have any notable suggestions. It seemed that even most sellswords had decided to stay wary of the pirates at sea, which only made Celica and the others hold the voyagers that had managed to travel here on ship in an even higher regard. If they were able to fend off these pirates, it meant that the crew were truly something exceptional.

The few sellswords that would have been willing to help her, had already left the island to face the pirates, whether it be due to promises of wealth or a personal vendetta they had against the pirates. Rarely did they ever come back, and the few that did were usually crippled and no longer able to fight. The most notable one among these sellswords, a knight, had already left right with a group before the foreigners had arrived. Apparently the pirates had sacked his town earlier on and ended up killing his entire family, stripping the man of everything that he had.

Celica could only pray for his success and if not that, then a quick and painless end that would reunite him with his family again.

It wasn't until after around an hour of asking around did they finally find a sellsword of notable reputation that seemed to at least be open to the idea of journeying out to sea. According to a few people that they had asked, the man's name was Saber, and he was among the best that one could hire. In addition, the man apparently wouldn't do any job either, only those that he found to be worth his time in gold. Though the last bit of info worried Celica and the others, it still wouldn't hurt to ask the man if he could help.

Asking for Saber's location, one of the townspeople pointed towards a popular tavern that the sellsword apparently frequented. With a nod and a bow in return, Celica and her friends headed towards the tavern. Though their next course of action was clear, the concerns that the previous townsperson had raised over Saber's personality however, still worried Mae and Boey.

"Celica, are you sure this guy's going to be willing to help us? Going by what the townspeople say, he seems to just be your run in the mill arrogant knight. The kind that's only a few steps away from their grave, if you know what I mean." asked Mae.

"If he wasn't a notable swordsman, I doubt the townspeople would tolerate his apparent attitude." responded Celica in return. "A sellsword that can back up their arrogance are few in number, but from the way they had spoken about him, I believe Saber's a veteran of some sort."

"Though...we won't know until we see for ourselves right? Initial perceptions are not always what they seem to be at first after all."

Boey and Genny nodded with acceptance while Mae sighed before agreeing to Celica's plan as well. Though they knew that Celica's actions were a bit rash to the point where even Celica herself was a bit nervous, there wasn't really much of an alternative either.

They soon made it to the tavern and after walking, there was only a single person sitting at the tables. He had reddish hair with a rather muscular build, but the most notable aspect about him was his eyepatch. The man had noticed their entrance as well, and let out a sigh of annoyance in response.

"I take it you're here for me?" asked the man menacingly.

"Well that depends, are you the one the townspeople call Saber?" replied Celica

"You've got some spunk lass, I'll give you that." said Saber smiling. "So what's someone like you doing in a dump like this?"

"I...would like to request your services as a protector."

"Hm...guard duty huh...where are you headed to?"

"We plan to be departing on the ship that had recently landed shore here. We'll be making way to Zofia's mainland after that, towards Mila's Temple."

"Alright I'll bite, I think you've already heard of the ship's prowess right?" asked Saber, receiving a nod from Celica in return. "Then I'll have to ask, why would you need my presence as a guard? Surely the people on that ship would be more effective regarding your request compared to someone like me."

"It's for reassurance. Your services will be for me and my friends first before anyone else. I also plan for you to accompany us after we reach our destination too as well."

"I see...well that's just fine." chuckled Saber lightly. "Alright, so what do you plan to at Mila's Temple? Last time I heard, she wasn't accepting visitors."

"We plan to ask Mila for her help...Zofia is amidst a civil war, famine and terrors wreak havoc on our people's wellbeing. Surely the Earth Mother would be willing to help us in such dire straits."

"Hm, well I don't know about that. You would think that if she wanted to help, she would've done something already! Ah but who am I kidding, not my business to judge." replied Saber starkly. "I'll just ask up front then, do you have the goods to pay me?"

"How much will it be?" asked Celica nervously. She had already known that the question would be raised, but hoped the justification of their goals would perhaps result in Saber waiving the fee, or at least reducing it.

"Thirty-Five gold coins. These are desperate times after all, so you won't mind if I ask for that much right?"

'Hey what's the big idea!? That price of yours is absurd! Sellswords usually are willing to do the job for only half that price!" Mae was the first to react to Saber's request, her expression seething with anger.

"Now now...let's not look for any trouble Mae..." muttered Boey as he desperately attempted to hold Mae back. Truth be told though, he was just as outraged as she was. Thirty-Five gold coins was a great sum of money, an amount that his family would only be able to meet in a years time, if the season was generous.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask for a lower price then that..." replied Celica, having been just as surprised as her friends when Saber spoke his price. "As you said yourself, these are desperate times, surely you wouldn't expect us to have that kind of money with us at hand?"

"Hey I'm just stating a price, and may I mind you it is for a job that I would have to risk my own life for, you can take it or leave it."

"Celica I don't have as much money as you do, but I'll do what I can to help..." said Genny who reached into her pocket, taking out 4 gold coins in return.

"Tch, the price you're asking for is completely out of line...but we don't have much of a choice...take this Celica." added Mae reluctantly, taking out some of the coins she had, Boey soon deciding to do the same thing.

"I...I don't think I can accept these. You guys really don't have to..." muttered Celica in response. She was immensely grateful that her friends were willing to help her out like this, but she felt that she could not simply accept the coins from them like this.

"Celica please, don't say that. When we asked to come with you, we were serious. You're a good friend to us, and if we ask to tag along, this is the least we could do." replied Genny in return. Mae and Boey both felt inclined to agree with her.

"I see...I can't thank you guys enough..."

Reluctantly taking the coins that her friends had offered her, Celica hoped that their coins combined with hers would be enough to meet the fee that Saber was asking for. Unfortunately, it seemed that even that wasn't enough, as she was still five coins short.

The feeling of not having enough despite the assistance that her friends had provided crushed Celica's heart. Thinking on a compromise, Celica reached into her belongings to see if there was a way to make up for the missing amount. The only thing she had however, was something that she had cherished greatly.

It was a Golden Dagger, one of the few momentos that she had of her past with Conrad long ago. It was apparently a gift from her father towards all those within the royal family, though he never saw it fit to give it to any of them personally. Thus, Conrad had been the one to handed Celica the dagger and from then on, it served as a way for her to always remember her brother, even after all these years.

Despite the importance of her dagger however, she knew how much the coins that her friends had given her mattered to them, as well as how important it would be to gather allies. If the people of Novis had spoken so highly of Saber, she knew he would follow his end of the bargain, so long as he was adequately paid for the job. Seeing the sacrifices her friends were willing to make, Celica resolved herself as well.

"Unfortunately...I am five coins short of your fee Saber. If I may ask, will this dagger suffice to make up for it?" asked Celica as confidently as she could.

"Milady, that dagger looks quite valuable, are you sure about this? If he isn't willing to help us we could always find another person..." muttered Boey as he and the others realized the implications of Celica's actions.

"No it's fine, you guys already know that there isn't really anyone left that can help us other than Saber here. Besides, you three were willing to help me, it certainly won't do if I don't return the favor."

"Tch, I can't believe you lot are making me out to be the bad guy...fine, I can't earnestly charge you guys if you're just gonna act all sappy about it..." uttered Saber with annoyance after a moment of pondering. "I'll lower my price to Twenty gold coins, you can keep your dagger lass."

"Huh...? Are you serious Saber...? Please, we don't really have time for any fooling around..." exclaimed Celica, her surprise shared by her friends as well.

"I won't be if you keep questioning me. And you just had to remind me of something I didn't want to remember...anyways do we have a deal or not lass?"

"Yes...Yes I think we do Saber." muttered Celica, her expression giving away her delight. "Also please stop calling me lass, just Celica will do."

"Nah, perhaps be a day where I'll refer to you by your real name, but for now, you're still a lass in my eyes, even if you're my employer."

Towards Saber's response, Celica's friends frowned at the sellsword's attitude, but Celica particularly was a bit disturbed. Still, she kept her best to maintain her cool, after all, it could have just been a coincidence. Grandpapa had made sure that any loose ends regarding her past was eliminated, which was the primary reason why she was here at Novis in the first place rather than the villages that still held some of her fondest memories.

"I-I see...well with that out of the way, I intend to have a talk with the voyagers that have recently come later in the afternoon. I suppose I'll start by introducing you to the rest of my friends."

With that, Celica had let the sellsword know the gist of who her friends were as well as let him know of Robin's departure from the group prior to meeting the sellsword. Saber's carefree demeanor frowned a bit when he heard Celica describe the tactician that had been accompanying her to town.

"Hm I wouldn't say I'm an expert when it comes to judging people, but let me get this straight lass. So you meet a strange man wielding magic you've never seen before, you help him out despite the dangers that man could pose towards you, and then not only do you get your friend to heal said man, but allow him to tag along with you despite the previous points. stated Saber inquisitively. "That's pretty reckless if I do say so myself, and don't you think the circumstances surrounding this Robin figure seems a bit suspicious?"

"Although what happened isn't as straightforward as you've put it...I can't exactly disagree with your words Saber...but he did help us out on our way here. While he feels a bit...distant at times, I'm sure that if he had any ill intent, he could've done it back in the forest."

"Well, you're the employer, so in the end, it's your call lass. Don't say I didn't warn you though." sighed Saber. Though the girl before him was naive, that was still better than some of the other selfish and narcissistic nobles he had dealt with in his past.

"Very well...anyways we still haven't had lunch yet and we intend to before departing the island. Would you like to join us Saber?"

"Nah, I've already eaten my fill." quickly replied Saber. "Though instead of a meal, how about you treat me to a bottle of booze? Now that would be a whole different story!"

Hearing the laughter of the sellsword before them, Celica could only sigh while Mae and the rest of Celica's friends watched on, still surprised at the casual display before them. They knew better now however, as the expression that Saber had when Celica had introduced them and the others was one that didn't belong to some inexperienced sellsword or town drunk.

The closest person that Mae and Genny had seen with that sort of look was the knight that had dropped Celica off at the Monastery. Their eyes often gave away their experience, the sort that only veterans who have gone through periods of conflict, and lived to tell the tale. When Celica had introduced them to Saber, the man shifted his focus towards them, sizing them up in the process.

While it was simply a first impression, that in itself would often determine one's course of action towards another. For Saber's case, he was open to changing his views if proven wrong, but his intuition at first glance usually ended up being correct. Luckily, while the lass's friends were anything but subtle, showing their reactions quite clearly to the man as he analyzed them, they were intuitive towards their environment. That in itself, already made them better than many of their age he had seen in the past.

Saber's attempt at diffusing the situation paid off however, and Celica along with her friends were able to put aside their worries for now. With that, Celica's group along with the newly recruited Saber went out to get lunch. Though not many words were shared, they all hoped that the journey up ahead would be a safe and uneventful one.

Robin did not know when the observer in question had started watching them, but he knew that it had to be recent. While it was simply a gut feeling at first, Robin had decided to see if it would remain after he parted ways with Celica and the others. When it hadn't despite his departure from the group, Robin decided to forgo his original intentions.

Wandering around the unfamiliar city, Robin walked and turned across various city blocks while looking over his shoulder every now and then in an effort to see what would happen next. While he was walking however, he had neglected to pay much attention to his surroundings as there wasn't much people on the streets in the first place despite it being near noon. And so inevitably, Robin had accidently bumped into someone, making the latter's belongings scatter across the floor.

"Ah...s-sorry about that, I wasn't paying much attention to my surroundings." apologized Robin embarrassingly. "Here let me pick up your belongings for you."

Looking at just what had scattered onto the floor, Robin realized that the person was carrying a bunch of scrolls and books. This had piqued Robin's curiosity despite the situation he was in. As he picked the materials up, he felt tempted to unroll one of those scrolls or open one of the books in an effort to see what they held.

"Hm...don't worry about it, you did seem pretty frantic after all." replied the figure, now revealed to be a young boy. "I presume some of the stuff that I dropped interests you?"

"Y-Yea, though this probably isn't the right time or place for that. Here, let me give these back to you." Robin quickly handed the materials back to the boy, much to his further embarrassment. He couldn't believe that he had let his immediate curiosity get the better of him right after an accident.

"Once again, don't worry about it. If you want to know where I got them, go to the Archives of this city. They've got a lot more records than I had expected, so I'm sure if you go there now, you'll be able to read some copies of the materials that I have here."

"Alright...still though, thank you for your suggestion." replied Robin. In situations like these back in Ylisse, he would've treated the boy to lunch or something similar. Unfortunately, as he had essentially no money at the moment, all he could offer was his gratitude.

"Well, I'm glad I was able to help." said the boy as he prepared to leave. "And allow me to give you one more piece of advice before we part ways."

The next phrase that the boy said was a whisper, holding none of the enthusiasm that he previously held.

"You should look behind your right."

With that, the boy quickly waved goodbye before running off in the opposite direction. Heeding the boy's instructions, Robin shifted his eyes towards his right in a discreet manner. To his misfortune, his previous suspicions of a stalker had been proven true, as he saw a figure hiding behind one of the buildings to his right. It seemed that the boy he had encountered was more receptive than he thought, though Robin now had to think on what to do next.

Figuring that the figure most likely didn't want to confront him due to the people around him, Robin had decided to take a gamble. Remembering the way that he had walked with Celica into the city, he slowly made his way towards the gates gone through to enter the city. Since it was around noon, the security around the gates were rather low, and the city guards dozed off while he made himself out of the city.

Walking down the road and further away from the city, the presence that had been following him disappeared initially, and returned after a bit of time, most likely leaving the city through another gate. Robin took a few more steps before he abruptly stopped, deciding that now was the time to act.

"I don't know who you are or what you want, but I know you're here". declared the tactician. "Whatever you're planning to do, you might as well do it now, it's the best chance you'll get."

"Hmph...how did you know I was there?" replied a rash voice.

Following that, the figure that had followed Robin revealed himself, stepping out from behind the trees he had hid behind. Taking off the hood that he had worn earlier, what laid beneath was a decrepit appearance more befitting of a dried corpse than any living being.

"Then again...I suppose it doesn't really matter since you'll die here." sneered the figure. "Still, allow me to thank you for making this such an easy job, it looks like I was too cautious in my approach. Once I get rid of you, retrieving the girl from her little friends should be easy."

Hearing those words, a few possible candidates for who the figure was referring to quickly came to Robin's mind. Unless there was someone about Mae or Genny that they had neglected to tell him, the most likely candidate that this thing planned to go after is Celica. The de-facto "leader" of her group, Celica seemed to stand out particularly compared to her friends when they had first met.

In addition, after a bit of thinking from yesterday, he had finally remembered why Celica's name seemed familiar to him. The woman in question that King Alm would marry after he unified the continent of Valentia would be Anthiese. While nearly all of the records he had read confirmed this, there was a particularly old account that he had read during his spare time in Valm, which had instead referred to King Alm's wife as Celica. This particular account was much more in depth compared to the others that he had seen, claiming that Anthiese and Alm had shared a childhood together long before Alm had ascended to the throne. It was during this time that Anthiese had used the name "Celica", and it later stuck with Alm, choosing to refer to his wife by the latter rather than Anthiese in all but official records.

As the account itself seemed incomplete, almost as if it fell out of a journal in addition to be the only one of it's kind that held such claims, the information itself was questionable. By all records that he had known of however, King Alm was monogamous despite his status as the king, and this was no different for the particular account he was referring to either. In addition, as the account's information on Alm and Anthiese was positive, Robin could not discount it as a malicious piece against the royal family at the time either.

What had intrigued Robin was not only the account's unique take on what happened between Alm and Celica, but the writer's style of writing too, almost as if they themselves were close to the family. While the writings themselves could have just been the ravings of a lunatic, the fact that he had found the account within the archives of what was arguably the oldest castle on the continent made Robin suspect that the account had more credibility than it had first let on.

If that account was true, then why was the pseudonym "Celica" used? That name was had absolutely no similarities to Anthiese, though if the man before him truly was after Celica, perhaps the pseudonym was established in an effort to protect her. Regardless, all of this was speculation, and he would have to confirm it with Celica later in a discreet manner, as he risked falling out with her and her friends if he wasn't careful with his words. For now though, he hoped to be able to bait the figure before him into revealing more of what they knew.

"Hm, if you're going to kill me here, may I so much as ask why you are trying to retrieve one of my companions?" asked Robin cautiously, his face expressing a sort of hesitation in an effort to get the figure to lower his guard. His hand was already on the hilt of his Levin Sword, ready to act at a moments notice.

"Haha nice try, but it's nothing a dead man needs to know." laughed the figure in return, much to Robin's disappointment. "Just know that you were simply in the wrong place, at the wrong time."

With that, the figure attempted to do something, but before he could, Robin quickly unleashed a bolt of lightning with the drawn Levin Sword, momentarily stunning the figure out whatever he was planning to do. Quickly taking advantage of the situation, the tactician quickly closed the distance between him and the figure and in the next moment, his blade was at the latter's neck.

"I've faced enough mages to know when one is about to use a spell, so if you try anything, you'll be bleeding out before you even finish uttering a single verse."

Of course, the former was simply a bluff that Robin had thought of on the spot. From what little he had observed of the mages here, they did not need tomes to cast their spells. In addition, instead of drawing energy as a catalyst to cast the spell from the tomes, the mages here had somehow managed to do so without using that catalyst but instead relied on their lifeforce.

Robin still did not know if that was universally the case, but if he judged the figure he was threatening based on his looks, he doubted that this figure had the lifeforce to use any conventional magic. At the same time, the previous confidence that the figure held must have came from somewhere, meaning that he most likely had some way of using some type of magic.

Seeing the decrepit figure and the strange purple light that he exuded brought back memories that he wouldn't mind forgetting. Of course, he was referring to the Dark Magics that those of the Grimleal favored, their magic specifically stemming from their worship and connection to Grima, except for a select few whom held a natural talent for such magic

If the implications of Dark Magic were true in his timeline, Robin held the suspicion that it would most likely be true here as well. Conventional Magic is common among mages, but he knew that it took a great deal of discipline and some talent to be able to use the tomes that contained these spells effectively. Judging by the respect that the populace had towards Celica and her friends, mages here are perhaps a lot more rarer than they are in his time, most likely because the mages here did not use nor require tomes to use magic, owing to their natural talent and prowess to do so.

Dark Magic was much different and did not rely on the usage of tomes, but mainly through the caster's interactions with unspeakable entities that were the stuff of legends in his time. Though there were still some tomes that had contained the magic, only those that seemingly had an affinity for the dark arts could use them. Dark Magic is often considered to be stronger than Conventional Magic so if the figure had access to the former, then his confidence would be somewhat justified.

"You wretched...! Well then how about this?!" At the figure's words, Robin quickly tried to act on his threat, a black misma quickly emerged from the figure, forcing Robin back.

"Curse your little tricks boy, but I won't fall for them again!"

The figure distanced himself from Robin and within moments of uttering another spell, Robin watched as risen or "terrors" as Celica and the others referred to them as, manifested themselves around the figure. Once the summoning was complete, the five of them glared at Robin, their eyes exuding the same purple color of their summoner.

"Well now, let's see how you handle this?! Now go, show this boy his place!"

The terrors then attacked in unison, charging towards Robin as he readied his Levin Sword. The blade of lightning that he had on hand was one of his most trusted weapons, and it would serve him best, no matter the circumstances.

With a swing of the sword, arcs of lightning were sent out, electrocuting two of the terrors, the sizzling of burnt flesh following soon after. Stabbing his blade into another terror that had approached, the zig-zag design of the Levin Sword stabbed its way into the terror's flesh. With the blade firmly within the terror, Robin swung the blade along with the now impaled terror towards two more that were heading his way.

With a hard kick, Robin sent the terror that he had stabbed straight into another one, and with another swing of the blade, both of them met the same fate as the first two. While normal humans would have most likely fled the scene after witnessing this, terrors possessed no such emotions. Thus, the final terror lunged at Robin in an effort to obey it's summoner's orders, only to be meet dirt as Robin sidestepped the attack.

The figure after seeing that his terrors held little effect against the tactician, sought to take manners into his own hands. Wording another spell just as the final terror that he had summoned lunged at the tactician, he hoped that the latter would be distracting ending the the last of his summons before he would send one of his offensive spells towards the tactican's way.

Unfortunately, Robin having now fully understood the capabilities of the figure, decided to counterattack in his own way. Dodging the desperate attack that the final terror attempted, Robin could see the expression that the figure held. Robin smiled as the figure proved time and time again that his ill conceived superiority was to be his downfall. Dark Magic was powerful, but at the same time, it wasn't exactly the quickest of spells either. Robin had been caught off guard the first time the figure had used Flux, but that was only because of his uncertainty and the fact that the figure was using the spell hastifully in an act of defense.

Dark Magic when used offensively however, wouldn't be so subtle. Taking this chance, Robin quickly swung the Levin Sword once more, and before the figure could enact his spell, lightning struck him. Unlike the terrors that he had summoned, the figure still held a sense of pain, and his cries sent crows flying off into the distance before he finally fell along with his summons.

"And that's a wrap." sighed Robin with relief. For a moment, Robin worried if his efforts had been lethal against the figure as he had wanted to ask them some questions while they were conscious, but incapacitated. Luckily, the figure was still moving, now attempting to crawl away in an effort to flee.

"Hey where do you think you're going?" said Robin, stepping on one of the figure's hands in retaliation. "So not only did you stalked me and the others, but you also tried to kill me even though I just wanted to ask you some questions. I think I have some right to be just a tad bit angry, no?"

Robin only received a few groans of pain in response.

"So how about we start from where we left off? You tell me who you're after and why, as well as whatever group you're from, and I may just let you live."

"I...I'm not going to tell you anything...!" uttered the figure after a bit of consideration. "You can either let me go...or you can kill me...and if you do...there will be others that will come in my place...!"

"Might I ask why? Just tell me what you know and run away from your organization...or cult...or whatever you're from." replied Robin, only to receive a laugh in return.

"Well aren't you naive...as if they would allow any loose ends go...just choose and get this over with...!"

Robin sighed once he heard the figure's response. He could see the fear and resignation that was in the figure's expression, and he knew that there were few things in the world that could bind someone so tightly. The fact that the figure was so unwilling to tell him anything despite facing death showed that most likely an even worser fate awaited him should those that the figure works for realize his failure.

If this was to be the case, then there would be nothing gained from letting the figure go.

"I see...are you sure you're not willing to say anything?"

"I've already made my answer clear, boy."

"Very well then...you've made your choice."

Taking the tip of the Levin Sword, Robin stabbed the blade down onto the figure's back, the the latter letting out one last cry of pain before going limp. All in all, Robin had gained absolutely nothing despite his apparent "victory" over the figure, much to his irritation.

"Wow...well that was anticlimactic...shame you didn't learn anything."

"Who's there!?" shouted Robin, surprised at the fact that there had been a spectator, but even more so that he recognized the voice.

"Now now, no need to get so uppity, you were just defending yourself after all." A few seconds later, the same boy that warned him of the figure came out of the bushes. "Besides, it's not like there's any evidence of your wrongdoing either. Take a look."

To Robin's surprise, the corpse of the figure whose life he had ended was gone, all that was left was some sort of black dirt and the clothes that the figure wore. That however, was below the priority of concerns that Robin had compared to the boy that was in front of him.

"Hey, I'm not here for trouble. I was just curious, that's all." chuckled the boy. "And maybe get some information relating to the figure you killed in the process."

"I see...so what happens now?"

"Hm...those friends of yours that the figure was after, could you perhaps tell me about them?"

"I could, but what do you have to offer me?"

Robin felt that he should refrain from telling the boy anything even if he had only known Celica and the others for a day or so. They had helped him greatly back in the forest, offering information and lodging despite his circumstances. Regardless, he knew little about them anyways, and so the only thing Robin could do was bluff his way through for now.

"Well, I've got gold I guess, but I don't think that would be valuable to you..." the boy pondered for a bit but quickly came up with something he felt would be worthwhile. "How about this? Do you know about the ship that landed here not too long ago?"

"You're talking about the large vessel that's at the harbor right?" the boy nodded. "Okay, what about it?"

"I'm the boss of that ship...well sorta anyways. I guess I'm more like the advisor."

"Well that's a pretty big claim if I ever heard one." critiqued Robin.

While the ship's sailor did mention that their "boss" was currently exploring the town, the boy's claims were dubious at best. The only reason Robin did not outright dismiss his claim was what the position that the boy claimed to have. As far as Robin knew, the fact that the ship specifically had a "boss" other than the captain was not widespread knowledge. This fact alone gave the boy a bit of credit but it could just be a lucky guess.

"It's true though!" rebutted the boy. "If you don't believe me, why don't you follow me back to the ship? If I can get you onto the ship completely legitimately, will that be enough for you to believe me?"

"Oh? Yes that would be more than enough, but are you sure you're willing to let a "murderer" onto your ship like that?"

"Pff whatever that thing was, it stopped being human long ago and like I said before, your actions were in self defense as far as I'm concerned. Besides, you seem pretty interesting yourself. Your clothes and mannerisms are different from the townspeople, you're not from around here either are you?"

Tch, the kid is perceptive...!

"I'll neither confirm nor decline that." answered Robin after recomposing himself. "But I will take you up on your offer. I do hope you'll excuse me for having my doubts though until you actually go through with your claims."

"Haha well that's fine I suppose. Anyways though, mind telling me your name? If not, I can make one up for you now on the spot!" asked the boy curiously.

"I'd rather you not do that. As for my name, it's Robin."

"Robin huh, well that's an uncommon name...I think I'll call you Robs instead! Well then, please refer to me as Xane alright?" replied Xane cheerily, much to Robin's displeasure. "I do hope that this will be the start of a great partnership."

"I certainly hope so Xane, I certainly hope so..."

Noon had soon passed and it was currently around mid to late afternoon, prompting Celica and the others to head back to their rooms at the inn. While bringing Saber along with them usually meant that they would have to pay for another person, they were anticipating to leave before the evening, leading to no extra charges unless circumstances change.

"Well now lass, shouldn't we be going to the ship at the docks to meet this "boss" of theirs first instead of coming here?" asked Saber.

"While that would be a good decision normally, we promised Robin that we would meet up with him here at around now..."

"Somehow, that isn't very reassuring..." sighed Saber. "Just to be clear, you didn't give him anything of yours before you left right? For example, the dagger that you tried to trade with me?"

"No I didn't...but I did pay for his stay here last night." replied Celica. "I think we should at least wait for a bit before we jump to any forgone conclusions, wouldn't you agree Saber?"

"Your call lass, your call..." shrugged Saber.

And so, they waited for around an hour or so yet no one showed up. As Robin had not left any belongings at the inn before he left, Celica and the others found themselves aligning more and more towards Saber's perspective. It was after an additional hour of waiting that Celica and the others finally decided that they needed to go.

"Y'know, I never thought that Robin would be the type of guy that would ditch us like that. Think something happened to him?" asked Mae as she and the group left the inn.

"I honestly don't know Mae...but regardless of his reasons, he hasn't shown up. I hope he's okay..." muttered Celica.

"With all due respect milady, I think Saber's scenario is more likely." replied Boey, his disappointment just as apparent as it was for Celica and the others. "Like you said, the guy seemed pretty nice and he was a good mage too, but these are hard times. He probably found another employer or something with a sweeter deal than ours I guess..."

Regardless of their feelings on the subject however, they were on a tight schedule and with how big the city was and how little time they had left, all they could do was just accept the situation at hand.

The group soon arrived at the docks and luckily for them, they were able to find the sailor that Celica had talked to earlier. It seemed that the sailor had not forgotten their request, and had communicated their offer to the captain.

The captain had no complaints with the conditions that Celica and the others had set. They had enough food for the crew and a bit more, so having a few more people on board, especially if they could help with the ship was a non issue.

"So now that you've arrived, I'll go get my boss and see if he approves as well." said the sailor after recapping on his activities earlier. "I'll be back in a bit and if he does, we'll let you board the ship. Is that acceptable?"

'Yes that would be great, thank you." replied Celica politely.

The sailor then left the group, leaving Celica and the others by themselves along with other sailors of the ship who stared at her group for a moment before getting back to work.

"Looks like everything's going smoothly so far..." said Celica with relief.

"I'd agree lass, but things are going a bit too smoothly no?" questioned Saber, which caught the attention of Celica and her friends.

"And why do you say that Saber?"

"Well for one, the crew members barely vetted us, and they seem fine with letting us on. It makes me think that our foreign friends here are a bit ignorant on Zofia's current situation." stated Saber in return. "Either that, or they're just that cocky to the point where they think they are above worrying over such issues."

"Saber let's not judge our potential partners so soon alright?" responded Celica, annoyed at Saber's negativity.

"I certainly hope so lass. Then again, we'll know soon enough."

Robin had decidedly held his scepticism towards the Xane's claims, even as the boy led him towards the docks. Though he would have to admit, he was growing more and more unsure as they got closer to the ship.

There was not a hint of hesitation or worry on the Xane's expression. The direction that Xane was leading him to was correct, he had made sure of that. If the boy truly did not hold any connections to the foreign ship and was only leading him on for other reasons, this situation might as well be checkmate. The fact that Xane was acting as calm as he was meant that there had to be some form of merit to his claims.

This would be proven once Xane had done as Robin asked, and led him straight to the entrance of the ship. Though some of the ship's workers immediately confronted them, they bowed to the boy before stepping aside once Xane announced his attentions. It was only arriving onto the ship that Robin could truly how big it really was.

Due to the ship's height, they had to walk up a platform which led directly to the main deck. The ship itself reminded Robin of some of the ones that they had used back in Ylisse, the cannons mounted at the ship's hull, the latter concealing much of the manpower that was needed to fire the cannons themselves.

On the main deck were a few sailors scrubbing the floors of the ship and others managing one of the many ropes. The area itself was rather wide with steps leading to an upper platform towards the front containing one of the masts that seemingly stretched to the skies. This along with the numerous entrances that seemed to lead into below the ship showed just how many people were needed to keep the ship up and running.

"Judging from your impression, it's not your first time seeing a ship like this, now is it Robs?" asked Xane.

"It's an impressive vessel. I've only seen a select few others that can compare to this ship. How long did it take to build this?"

"Would you believe me if I said it took about a year? We already had the designs for the ship on hand which speeded the process up by quite a lot."

"That's...I'm honestly surprised. Could you perhaps tell me some of the methods you used?" responded an astonished Robin.

"It's a trade-secret so no can do. And honestly even if I could, I can't say. Never really bothered with the details after all."

Robin held back his inquiries once Xane had dismissed them, but he knew that ship building was no easy task. When it came down to some of the bigger, militarized vessels like these, it would take at least a year and a half due to the sheer size of the ship and amount of manpower and materials needed for the job. If the ship's design was particularly different it could take even longer. This was by the standards of his time period, which was Robin estimated to be in the hundreds of years ahead.

Though there was little chance of him being able to go back to his original world, the memories and knowledge that he had obtained there were here to stay. Thus, he doubted that he would be able to adjust himself to the achievements and norms of this lost period anytime soon.

"I see...that's a pity then. So where are we going now Xane?" asked Robin.

"Ah we'll be heading to the Stern of course. Gotta let the captain know that I'm letting you onto the ship after all."

Nodding in return, Xane and Robin soon arrived at the captain's office. Judging by the rather casual remarks that Xane and the Captain had shared with each other, it seemed that Xane's points were on point.

"So yea, this here is Robs. He'll probably be joining us on the ship." explained Xane as he conversed with the captain.

"Alright, I suppose it would be best to ask you now." said the captain as he turned his attention to Robin. "Do you intend to travel with us?"

"What...? While I'll admit, that was one of my intentions, I would say Xane is jumping the gun a little bit. But yes, I did intend on asking if I may journey with you and your crewmen."

Robin then explained the deal that he had made with Xane back in the forest followed by his current goal of accompanying Celica and her friends to the location they referred to as Mila's Temple. Following that, Robin then added that Celica and the others had already informed one of the ship's crewmen about their intentions earlier on in the morning.

"Ah...yes! I'm assuming you're one of the people that he spoke to me about. Hm, then the terms that my subordinate spoke to you about should apply. So long as you contribute towards the maintenance of the ship, you're welcome to travel with us."

"I see...then I'll have to offer my most sincere gratitude Captain...?"

"It's Captain Darros to you, but just Captain will do. Since Xane was the one that brought you here, I'm assuming you have his approval?" Xane nodded in return. "Then we're all set. Welcome aboard Robs."

"I'd prefer if you'd call me Robin. Robs was a nickname that Xane came up with after all."

After receiving the Captain's approval, Xane then took the tacitican to one of the quarters that were free. As Robin had intended to travel with Celica and the others, he luckily didn't have to share a room with some of the other crewmates. Following that, Xane explained some of the other duties that Robin and the others would be expected to do.

As they were temporary crewmates for the ship, most likely having little knowledge on some of the more complex manners of the ship, they would start off as Swabbies. The occupation contained a few duties, the most prominent being the cleaning of the ship. As Robin and the others were combat capable, they were exempt from some of the other duties, but would be expected to help with their magic should a fight break out at sea.

Following that, Xane then essentially gave Robin a quick tour of the ship before finally heading back up to the ship's main deck. Since Robin had already opted to travel with the ship's crew, Xane had decided to leave the tactician to his own devices. Where the ship would depart next was still up in the air and so for now, Robin's duties were few.

Understanding that he would most likely be on the ship for a while, Robin quickly took advantage of the opportunity, and opted to more closely explore the ship. There was still some time left as it was still around mid afternoon. If he hurried, he would be able to meet with Celica and the others before dusk.

Well might as well have a look around I suppose...

There were few rooms of particular interest to Robin, thus he opted to just quickly look over whatever areas that would pertain to his duties on the ship first. Finishing that quickly, he then decided to head to the only room that had caught his interest somewhat. Due to the size of the ship, there was the room that contained the ship's archives, a library of sorts, though it would be too small to be considered the latter.

When he opened the door, he found that the room was occupied. Sitting at one of the few tables was an elderly man who seemed to be showing a book to a girl, the latter's face hidden behind the book. While Robin did not understand why these two would be traveling to a location such as this, he held back his words. Appearances often told little of a person's character, and if someone that looked still be in his teens was essentially the second captain of the ship, then there was likely something special about these two as well.

"Ah, good sir, I didn't see you there. Did you need something?"

The elderly man was the first to notice Robin's appearance, and turned his attention away from the girl and towards the tactician. Upon closer inspection, Robin could tell that there was something off about the man. From the man's distinct expression despite his age and eyes that reflected a sort of intuition that was rare even in those that appeared his age.

"My apologies, I'm sort of a new recruit." explained Robin nervously. "Xane had given me permission to explore the ship which is why I'm here. If you two are busy I'll gladly leave you two to your own devices."

"No, it's alright. Thank you for your consideration though. Could I perhaps get your name?" asked the elderly man.

"My name is Robin. If you will permit it, could I get yours?"

"You may call me Bantu. Tiki if you may, could you greet our guest here?" replied Bantu as he got the girl's attention.

"Aww I was in the middle of something good." the girl seemed a bit saddened but soon listened, putting the book down. "I've never seen you before! My name's Tiki!"

When the girl had revealed her face to the part where she greeted him, Robin was stunned. While the clothing she wore was mostly different from when he had known her, the headpiece and hairstyle that she wore were one and the same. The fact that the girl had the same distinct name as his beloved had all but eliminated any doubts that he had.

"Hm...? Mister, your expression is sorta weird. Ban-Ban, does he need help?" asked Tiki as she tugged on Bantu's robes.

So stunned was he that he did not notice the expression freeze into one of shock. That along with the tears that seemed to drip from his eyes were things that he cared nothing about at that moment.

"Robin, is something wrong? Robin?"

Bantu's words snapped Robin out of his shock, and he hastily wiped his face of his tears. He then took a deep breath and calmed himself as best as he could.

"How unsightly of me, my apologies..." muttered the tactician. "I-It's alright...I was just surprised is all..."

"I see...are you sure you're alright?" asked Bantu, concerned. There were few things that could elicit that sort of emotion from a man. That in addition to implications suggested by the shift of emotions occurring right after Tiki introduced herself worried the old manakete.

With Robin's rationale slowly returning to him, he thought about what he could say next. If Tiki was here, then Bantu here was the caretaker that the Tiki he knew spoke fondly about. The old manakete had a kind heart, but at the same time he wasn't naive either. Thus, Robin decided that he would explain his situation as sensibly as he could.

I shouldn't have reacted the way I did...

"Yes I'll be fine... Tiki here just reminded me of someone that I was very close with." explained Robin. "As a result, my emotions got the better of me. I'm sorry for troubling you and young Tiki here."

"I see...that makes sense. This someone you speak of, they must be highly important to you right? asked Bantu.

"Yes...they were. Anyways, once again, I'm sorry for disturbing you two like this. I'll be taking my leave now, hopefully we can talk again some other time."

With that, Robin recomposed himself and left the book room hastily. The composure that he had was temporary, and he knew that if he stayed in there longer, he would no doubt embarrass himself again.

Right as he left, Bantu retained a look of concern, but Tiki felt different. While she was a bit confused before, now she seemed to be caught up in her thoughts.

Hm...that mister smelled a bit weird...

Hurrying back to the room that was meant for him and the others, Robin closed the door behind him before removing his typical robes and sat on one of the bunker beds that were available. Right now, he would have to rethink his strategy.

So Tiki's here huh...I guess Ashunera wasn't kidding after all...

Musing over the meaning that was behind the cryptic words of that goddess, Robin let out a sigh. The shock from before was wearing off now as his mind and body relaxed themselves gradually. In times like these, the best thing to do would be to lie down and think things over.

Right now, there was a single question that encompassed all the thoughts that he had.

Why was she here?

While the Tiki he knew was sometimes forgetful in regards to her past adventures, there were many events that that she fondly remembered. Among those were the journeys that she had went on along with her caretaker Ban-Ban. While her talks may have seemed boring to some, her vivid descriptions of the past landmarks and traditions that she had seen on those journeys were fascinating to the tactician.

In fact, he had stayed and listened until there was a point when Tiki had literally told him that she had no more travels that she could speak of that would be of interest to the tactician. Considering that the continent he was on was most certainly not the Archanea that Tiki stated was her home, she must have journeyed with Bantu all the way here.

Thus, if Tiki had indeed travelled here all the way from another continent, he was doubtful that she wouldn't speak about it. There was only one other instance that Tiki spoke of which involved a journey like this, but that took place long after Bantu had passed. If this was to be the case, then it was likely that the Tiki he knew did not embark on a journey here.

Regardless, all of this made Robin questioned what he would do now. The woman that he had loved and was looking for was so close yet so far. With Archanea having sent a ship here this early on despite no records indicating such, it was likely that this world had and would progress differently compared to the history of his world.

The possibilities of what could happen next was essentially endless, much to the tactician's frustration. As Robin pondered on this, the fatigue that he had accumulated throughout the day caught up to him, and he slowly found himself drifting into a dreamless sleep.

It wasn't until there was a loud knock on the door did he wake up. Quickly getting out of bed, Robin hurried and clothed himself with his signature robes before opening the door.

"Hey Robs and wow...you don't look so good. You just got out of bed or something?" greeted Darros who was at the door. "Anyways, glad you're up. One of my men told me that your friends from earlier are here."

Hearing the captain speak about his friends, Robin suddenly remembered that he was supposed to meet with Celica and the others. Unfortunately, due to the incident with Tiki, he had forgotten all about that and ended up sleeping here. Robin quickly cursed at himself for his negligence before turning his attention back to the captain.

"I see...and I was supposed to bring them here too...Do you mind if I go greet them? I owe them an apology at the very least."

"Sure thing lad, I was coming to get you for just that. Gotta have you confirm that they are who they claim to be after all. Anyways, I'll be going on ahead, just follow me when you're ready.

With that, Robin and the Captain walked back up to the main deck. They soon approached the ladder that led up to the deck where the sailor from earlier waited for them. Sure enough, the people that the captain mentioned were Celica and the others, only now they had one more additional member.

"Yea that's definitely them. You can let them on." confirmed Robin as he looked down at them nervously.

From what he saw, the expressions that Celica and the others had were a mix of concern and anger. With his and the captain's approval, the sailor allowed them to board the ship, and it was Mae who was the first to speak up.

"Wow Robin what gives? If you were going to meet us here, you could've said something!" complained the girl.

"I'm surprised myself too. You didn't seem like the forgetful type. Anyways though, I'm glad you're here at the very least." sighed Celica.

"Yea I'm sorry, I was meaning to tell you guys but then something came up. After that I kinda just forgot and then fell asleep. If it wasn't for the Captain here, I most likely wouldn't even be here to greet you."

'Well that's that. See what I mean Saber? This is why you shouldn't jump to conclusions so quickly." said Celica, much to Saber's displeasure.

"Can't blame me for assuming the worst lass, it's gotten me out of bad situations more than once after all." uttered Saber in return, though a part of him was a bit relieved at the fact.

"Anyways though, since I've arrived early, they've already designated a room for us to stay in. I'll lead you guys there."

With that, Robin led Celica and the others back to the room, though with the amount of people that were currently in the group, another room had to be used. Robin hastily informed everyone on their duties while Saber in return, introduced himself to the tactician. More than anything though, as the day slowly drew towards the evening, the group along with the rest of the ship's crewmen soon had dinner.

After dinner, a few duties had to be performed and following after that, it was finally time to rest. Before they could though, Xane had arrived and asked to borrow Celica for a bit, leaving Mae and Genny together in their room, while Robin and the others conversed in theirs.

"Hm...you said your name was Xane right? I did not get the chance to do so earlier, so let me thank you for your generosity." said Celica first, as she and Xane walked towards the Captain's room.

"Don't mention it, you guys are going to help us out too after all. Think of it as a trade of sorts if anything." replied Xane.

"I take it that our little walk here has something to do with that?"

"Yep. Gotta talk about it with the Captain too as well, which is why I couldn't just ask you about it with your friends. Just to be clear though, are you what we could call leader of your little group right?" asked Xane in return.

"I wouldn't say I'm a leader or anything like that. We all just have a common goal is all."

"And you're modest about it too. That's fine I suppose, it actually reminds me of the Princy back home. Anyways, I'll ask you more once we arrive I suppose."

A short walk later, and the two arrived at the Stern. After knocking on the door a few times, they were quickly let into the captain's office once Xane had announced himself.

"Ah welcome, welcome! My apologies for calling you out so late uh...wait what was your name again?" said the captain with a nonchalant manner as he greeted the two guests.

"My name's Celica, captain. It's nice to meet you. As I said to Xane here earlier, I would like to offer you my thanks for your generosity. If it weren't for you, we would've been in a pretty tight situation."

"No need to thank me, I'm just doing what's best for our situation. If you insist on expressing your gratitude, I'd like you to answer a few of my concerns as best as you can." replied Darros, now more seriously. "While I would've waited until morning to do this under normal circumstances, what I need to ask is quite important. Anyways, just for confirmation, you are a native to this continent right Celica?"

"Yes I am. Is there anything else you need?"

"That makes things easier then. If you may, can you think of a reason why we Archaneans are here?"

"I...honestly don't know. Right now, while I can't speak for all of Zofia, the majority of us are in dire straits. As a result, if your reason here was to trade, much like those before you, I have little doubt that you would've left our harbor a while ago. The fact that you haven't means your goal lies elsewhere, though beyond that, I'm just speculating."

"A good enough guess as any lass. One of the reasons we came was to establish better connections with the royalty of the kingdoms that exist on this continent. We've heard...unsavory things about what is currently going on, hence why we stopped at your port rather than the main Zofian Port." explained the captain.

"I'm sorry sir, but I'm afraid your intentions are impossible at the moment." replied Celica. "Our previous king, Lima IV, he passed only a few days ago. As far as I know, there aren't any surviving family members either. As for Rigel...there isn't much that I can say."

"Hm we already knew that." added Xane. "But you see, I don't really care about the members of royalty or whatnot. What's done is done. What I am concerned about right now though, are your "deities". Would you happen to know anything about them?"

"You're looking for the Earth Mother as well?" asked Celica, now curious.

"If you are, that is also our goal. Other than the threat that Rigel poses, we've also been suffering from droughts and an ever growing threat of terrors. Yet despite this...the Earth Mother hasn't done anything yet. Something like this is unprecedented...thus, me and my friends, we decided to travel to her temple ourselves in order to see what has happened to her. "

Celica's words and zealotry made Xane winced a little but he quickly regained his composure. While the concept of humans worshipping dragons was not a new one, the way that the girl and the other natives that he had met so far regarded the Divine Dragons irked Xane. One of the original things that made him like humans was their persistence, and he suspected that it was likely this that had garnered the late Naga's attention and her later decision to entrust humans with their knowledge back in Archanea.

There was a clear difference between a reverence that focused on respect and self worth, and a reverence that fostered dependence. The former he respected while the latter was something he considered foolish. Of course, assisting humans at times, especially when they were threatened by those that were beyond them was logical, there was a clear line that shouldn't be crossed.

Naga and other Divine Dragons had assisted humans in ancient times through teaching them a variety of subjects. After that, they would stay at the sidelines and watched as humans made use of said knowledge in order to better themselves, opting only to interfere should they face a threat that outclassed them greatly. It seems the Divine Dragons siblings that were sent here, or Mila specifically, decided to go beyond that.

While there were flaws with the way Naga had approached the problem, the result of the alternative methods that Mila had employed reared its ugly head during a time of crisis like this. The people here were dependant on Mila, and without her, they were completely clueless on what to do.

Xane did not know what Duma's approach was, but he had a feeling that it was similarly extreme with its own set of flaws. These issues of course, were disregarding the creeping threat of insanity that Dragons faced, and if the powers that Mila and Duma had apparently used were any indication, he speculated that their minds had already degraded to some extent.

Regardless, all of this was speculation. There was little he could confirm until he saw one of the two siblings for himself and the girl here seemed to be the ticket to do so.

Thus, he would hold off on expressing any of his views, for now anyways.

"Hmm that's all and well, but what do you suggest we do now?" asked Xane inquisitively. "We're at a loss here after all."

"I...I think it would be a good idea to tackle the pirate issue that currently plagues Zofia." replied Celica after a bit of pondering. "I take it that you already had your encounters with them?"

"Yes we did, and there were quite a bunch of them too. Still we managed to get through somehow." replied Xane, omitting some of the details that the girl didn't need to know.

"Unfortunately, many other Zofian ships weren't as lucky as you. As a result, the livelihood of our people have been steadily decreasing. If we were to eliminate the threats these pirates posed, the waters would be safer."

"You have a point. Now tell me, how will that benefit us?"

"Defeating the pirates...that would be an effective and neutral way of earning the support of the Zofians, which is especially important since the royalty that you currently seek are missing." replied Celica after a bit of thinking. "And if we were to meet the Earth Mother at the temple, I am sure that she would reward you for your efforts as well."

"Besides...a ship like yours is big, unlike most of the ones we have here in Zofia. I have no doubt that you'll continue to be a target so long as you travel in these waters. It would be best to deal with the problem now and reap the benefits in doing so."

Celica disliked the fact that she was proposing her ideas in the way she was doing, but the concerns of Xane and the others were a valid one. They were foreigners, and thus, they would normally have no real reason to shed their blood in order to help alleviate the people of Zofia's burdens. She doubted that even with Robin's help, she and the others would be able to take down the pirate forces in their entirety.

The people here however, that was a different story. The fact that had managed to transverse those waters and arrive at the docks while suffering no losses meant that they had some way of effectively dealing with the pirates that had targeted their ship. If she could perhaps garner their support, then eliminating the pirates altogether wouldn't be out of the question.

"Your plan seems sound but these are all just hypothetical scenarios." replied Xane. "Besides, if things are as bad as you say, shouldn't Mil- I mean the Earth Mother be helping you lot out?"

"I'm...I'm not sure why she hasn't done anything about the problem yet, but that's what we're hoping to find out once we reach the temple..."

"Hm...well alright. Helping you lot out seems like it will be better compared to just sitting around here." relented Xane after a bit of thinking. "On the condition that you and your friends will be doing the majority of the fighting."

"That's...reasonable. Will I be able to count on you for support?" asked Celica.

Of course, it would be unreasonable if we didn't help you at all right? My point is, as the pirates are mainly your concern, we expect you to take to the front lines. Besides, I've got a few people on the ship that have just as much of a vendetta against the pirates as you do, and they'll probably be glad to help."

"I see...very well then. Then how will we plan the attack? The locals talked about an individual called Garth who's in charge of the pirates in this area. Will we start by attacking his base of operations or?"

"That is acceptable for now, but we're after an individual that is managing the entire operation. His name is Grieth, have you heard of him?" asked Xane in return.

"No I haven't...Could you explain?"

In response, Xane took out a map of the sea which they had obtained from the pirates that they had captured earlier on. From the map, it showed some of the islands that appeared to be the various bases that the pirates used. In addition, there were also a few other islands that were marked in red. These were most likely some of the areas that the pirates deemed unsafe.

"The person that you spoke about, Garth, he should be in charge of the base here." said Xane as he pointed to the closest island to mainland Novis. "See how his base acts as a buffer for the land that follow after it? Grieth's base should be up ahead. I've heard these two bases are where the majority of their goods and men are placed, if we eliminate them, it should be enough to cripple their operation."

"So now I'll ask you once again. If we are to take on the pirates, then we are expecting to not only take out Garth, but the head of the entire pirate operation, Grieth as well."

"Basically you're saying that we'll have to risk our lives during both of these assaults right? If so, we're ready. These pirates have threatened the people of Novis and Zofia long enough. All I ask is that you lend your support while we do so. Do we have a deal?"

"Hey, the lass's got spunk. She's not half bad eh Xane?" admitted the Captain. Having seen the girl's conviction despite her age, he was impressed.

"Well, they do say that the line is between bravery and recklessness is razor thin. Let's hope it's the former. Luckily for you, we agree with your proposal and will give you our support."

"I see...then that is enough. On behalf of the people of Novis and perhaps Zofia as a whole, I thank you for your support." said Celica in return, and with a handshake between her and Xane under the captain's watch, the deal was set.

"Ah well good thing we got that out of the way lass. Anyways, it is getting late. You should probably get back to your friends to let them know." replied the Captain in return. "As things are now, we'll probably set sail tomorrow."

"Thank you captain, and you as well Xane. Well, I'll be going now."

With that, Celica said her farewells before leaving for her cabin. She opted to tell Mae and Genny and then head straight to bed, afterall, it was going to be a busy day tomorrow.

While Mae and Genny were worried for Celica's sake, Robin, Boey, and Saber took to their own business within their shared room. Thankfully, the room's size was meant to be occupied by a group of four, so there were no problems.

When Saber and Boey had entered the room, the latter was exhausted, and quickly jumped onto the bed. Meanwhile, Saber had entered and was finally able to get his first clear look at the man that Celica had such a high opinion of.

According to Celica, the man was supposed to be an exceptional mage. Thus, Saber had assumed that he would be of mid to old age with a rather meek physique, much like some of the other capable mages he had seen. When he had saw the boy's ashen hair earlier, he felt that his guess was correct.

Now that he was up close, it seemed that his intuition had failed him twice today. Robin was currently reading a book and wore a plain light yellow shirt of sorts with the tactician robes lying at the side of his bed. Looking at the man, he seemed to still be in his early twenties despite the hair, and while his physique was nothing too exceptional, it wasn't one that Saber would have thought a mage would have.

Looking over at his belongings, there were multiple books of sorts but more importantly, there was also a sword as well. Recognizing the blade as a Levin Sword from it's shape, Saber wondered how he had obtained such a rare sword. More important than the boy's equipment however, were his eyes.

They were eyes that were worn and distant, reminiscent of eyes that have been through a great deal of hardships. At the same time, they held a glint to them, a purpose, that superseded his pains. It seemed that despite Robin's apparent age, he was someone that was far from the initial perceptions that Saber had drawn up.

Never thought my intuition would be wrong twice in one day, I wonder if I'm getting a bit old for this...

"Hey, your name's Robin right? Nice to finally meet you." greeted Saber first, which got the tactican's attention.

"Hm? I don't recognize you. I assume you're someone that Celica got to join her cause?"

"I would say it was more of a business transaction than anything. Name's Saber by the way."

"Ah a sellsword then. Just to be sure, Celica told you where we would be going right?" asked Robin, receiving a nod in return. "I see, well it's nice to have additional help I suppose."

"Wish I could agree, but an easier job for me would be better." admitted Saber. "Anyways, I look forward to working with you. Let's see if you'll live up to what the lass said you're capable of."

"Hopefully."

"Hey I know you guys are getting to know each other and all but could you quiet down please?" interrupted Boey who turned towards the two. "It's been a long day and I need my sleep."

"Well...he is right." laughed Robin. "It is getting a bit late. "I think I'm gonna hit the sack as well."

With a nod from Saber, the room of males soon fell silent.

The girls' room however, was the opposite as Mae and Genny worried for Celica's sake. They were wide awake and eagerly awaited their friend's return. Luckily, the discussion that Celica had with the Captain and Xane lasted no more than half an hour, and she was back in her room shortly after that.

"Ah Celica, you're back!" Mae was the first to react, and though her expression was of worry at first, that changed once she saw the pleasant expression that Celica held.

"You seem pretty happy, what happened Celica?" asked Genny who noticed the same thing Mae did.

"Yea, it's nice to be back. As for what happened, the Captain of the shipand Xane have agreed to support us for the time being."

"I see! Well knowing you Celica, it sure must have been easy to convince them right?"

"Actually...I don't think I really convinced them or anything like that. When I went to talk with them about the pirates, it turned out that they knew more on the situation than I did. Most likely, they were already intending on facing them, even before we met them."

"Hm...so what you're saying is that they're helping us out of convenience right Celica?" concluded Genny.

"Yea, that's most likely the case. That brings me to my next point. It looks like we'll be attacking two of the pirate bases, and we'll most likely be serving as part of the main attacking force. I'm sure Robin and Saber will be fine with this, but are you two and Boey willing to do this?"

"So we'll be fighting...Honestly Celica, I'm averse to the idea. Still, when I decided to come with you, I already expected that we would have to fight eventually." answered Genny. "Though I may not be a really good fighter, I am good at healing and I should be able to defend myself somewhat...I think."

"Anyways...I'll help however I can Celica. I was the one who asked you if I could come, so I'll put in my best effort, even if it's for scarier situations like this..."

"Wow that was actually pretty cool Genny." said Mae, surprised. "Anyways, you can count on me and Boey. Though he may act like a scaredy cat at times, he should have little trouble with something like pirates. As for me well, it feels weird to actually be using magic on others...regardless though, we'll help you out Celica, you can count on us."

"I...I honestly sound like a broken record at times, but thank you." responded Celica. "With your support, hopefully we'll be able to get through all of this quickly and meet with Mila soon."

With that, the three decided to call it a day and get what little rest they could. Though the candles were blown out and they now rested in darkness exhausted, their eyes were still open.

It was a confirmation of their conviction, something they've done a few times before already. They had already imagined some of the things that they would do, but tonight was particularly tense. Within a few days, they would most likely be facing those that had been a scourge upon the seas, thugs who's very livelihoods were based on murder, pillaging, and rape.

Still, they held onto their convictions as best as they could for if they managed to pull through, they would be able to reach Mila's Temple. Though they had their questions as to why the Earth Mother hadn't helped them as of yet, they nonetheless believed that the answers to such questions would be there.

Though there would likely be many dangers up ahead, Celica and her friends did what little they could to face the situation at the moment, and that was to relax and rest.

Author's Note

I thought I could get this out earlier, but life had other plans. I'm not amazing at writing certain scenes so my apologies in advance if they sound a bit corny or forced. Anyways, enjoy the chapter and hopefully I'll be back soon.