The roundabout trip to the faraway shop was fine.

No one had tried to mug him off the fur roll or when he was a few coins richer. No drunkard who tried to best him while he was distracted.

The coins were added into the dead man’s sack who now had around fifteen slates and a few bits in them. He might be rich but he had no idea what to spend on at the time.

The old man in the shop was just a normal grumpy old man who had only needed some respect from the young. Not a secret master of magical arts that would elevate him to greatness just because he was polite. The trinket shop also had nothing notable magical in it, just another regular trinket shop that sold random stuff to random people.

Everything was boring and normal, well, for a magical world, but just the way he liked it.

He saw Brad and Chad talking to some local girls along the way back, but he didn’t want to spoil their effort. Artus knew how it felt when a handsome friend suddenly joined the talk and took all the girls' attention away.

It would ruin their day.

The two nodded at him when he looked back, probably thanking him for not being an asshole who stole the girls’ attention. They owed him one for all he cared.

Artus chuckled. He looked forward to talking to them again. The gusto of Brad and the cunningness of Chad made them an interesting pair. Who knows, they might become his rare friends.

The only other thing he had learned was the dungeon was closed off during the long night, and all who were able to fight were expected to help with the defense. Stern guards with royal emblems on their shield stood like a statue until someone approached them or the dungeon.

They weren’t rude or haughty but professionals trained to talk people away. The guards or the Templars had reminded him of the police, but he imagined, with better pay.

The first sign of a problem was the eerie quiet when he got back to the inn. He had taken a very long way back and a few hours should have passed. He wasn’t surprised to see the two girls were already up, but the surprise came from the company they had.

The lady mage who had walked like she was demanding attention was sitting at the same table Cindy and Jane were at. Other patrons had vacated the place like a plague.

He walked to the bar while acting like he hadn’t seen or noticed anything at all.

Hearty gasps escaped their mouths as the two noticed him. He wondered if they did believe he had left them for good. As if he got any else to go right now.

Cindy and Jane approached him as he was walking towards the counter. They hesitated for a moment as they had gotten close before they dove in for a hug.

“Hey, what’s going on?” he said. “I was just out to sell the damned fur.”

“Nothing,” said Cindy before she pushed herself away and patted her dress.

Jane, however, planted his cheek a kiss before she ran off up the stairs offering no explanation. Cindy continued to stare at the floor before she too walked towards the stairs.

She was stopped by the mage lady’s voice.

“Cindy,” the lady said.

“We’ll think about it, my lady,” the girl replied in a hurry. She spared him a worried glance before continuing back to the room.

Artus ignored them and sat on a stool he had been regular with. A glass of milk was there before he could say anything.

“A piece of advice, young man,” said the barmaid. “Every girl’s first man would always have a special place in their heart. Especially if they had enjoyed it.”

“Oh, really? That explains a lot,” he downed the milk in that thought.

It should have been obvious, but he had never been in this situation before. Virgins hadn’t been throwing themselves at him. Not like it was important but every man would have felt special because of it.

Clicks of shoes coming towards him made him feel unpleasant inside. The sorry look on Tilma’s face had him guessing what the mage lady wanted with him. The bar fight he supposed, his unique shield might have earned her interest.

Tilma disappeared to the back after a glance to his side where the sounds had stopped.

“Can we talk?” asked the mage. “I’ve asked the dining room to be cleared just for this. No one else should hear us.”

“What I can do for you, my lady,” he replied as politely as possible.

The lady hesitated before she asked, “is that you, Theodore?”

Artus sprayed the milk in his mouth, thankfully, not at anyone in particular.

It was really unbelievable. Hearing his old name being said by a stranger in this world was the last thing he would have expected. His reaction had given the answer that the lady needed but now he got a question of his own.

“How, what?”

“Just a wild guess, really,” she quipped a little proud. “I know only one person who tried his best to be nice, love classic rock, and doesn’t drink at all.”

“That’s awfully specific but it still could have been anyone.”

“Yes, it was a shot in the dark, but I hit home, didn’t I? You did have taught them math, Earth’s math, to be exact.”

Artus groaned, “but who the heck are you?”

“You can’t tell?” She twirled around on her toes. “It’s me, Jesicca, but I’m named Verona here. But to think that I would meet my dear Teddy here.”

Artus breathed in relief. It was just silly Jessy. All kinds of theories came to his mind, but nothing seems to make any sense. There was no valid reason why the woman would try to fool him, a nobody from nowhere.

Maybe this lady Verona really is the Jessy he knew.

Another look at her body language and the image of old silly Jessy easily overlapped the lady mage. What are the chances? He took another drink and cleared his throat.

Something in him didn’t want to believe it or her.

“Well, Lady Verona,” he emphasized. “It’s very nice to meet you and all that, but please excuse me if there is nothing else.”

He was already walking towards the stairs before the lady broke out from her shock and went after him. She caught him by the arm as she tried to make sense of things. The darting eyes and the look on her face told him everything.

He could already read Jessy like a book, and Verona was not any better at hiding them.

“Hey, why don’t we sit down and catch up a little?” She said perhaps to buy time.

“There is nothing to catch up, you looked very fine in the brilliant dress like you always had wanted, and I’m happy for you,” he couldn’t help it to bleed a little sarcasm there.

“But I need you,” lady Verona got to the point rather quickly.

“For what more!?” Artus yanked his hand and walked away as the lady gasped.

Artus stopped after taking a few steps.

‘Why I’m acting childish again. I think I’ve grown out of this. I already forgave her inside my head. She had found a better man. That was it. Nothing more, nothing less.’

He closed his eyes and groaned. Artus pinched the bridge of his nose as he turned around.

“I’m sure there is a better man in your ranks that could help you with your problem, lady Verona,” he said calmly to her eyes. “I’m sure-”

A loud screech filled the air just outside the dining room.

“Fliers!” yelled someone from the outside. “It’s the hags!”

“Take cover!” screamed another.

He had long suspected that the walls could only stop the ones crawling on the ground. Artus rushed towards and up the stairs, ignoring everything else. His heart almost jumped out of its cage when screams echoed from the room.

He burst into the room, ready for the worst. A big relief escaped his chest when the girls were fine and had only fallen to their buts out of shock.

Another loud monstrous shriek echoed.

The glass window shattered, surprising the two, but his hand was already out to react to the situation. The sharp glasses bounced harmlessly on his shield rather than plunged into their soft skins. That would have been very awful to look at otherwise.

Artus rushed to their side while grabbing the crossbow. The terrified girls huddled at him when they noticed him. He gave them a few precious seconds to recover as he himself was shaking all over. Only his confidence on the shell had avoided him from pissing himself.

Another loud shriek directed at them forced him to grab both of them and pull them away from the window. A few thuds marked the sound of stray arrows that had missed their target as he got them out of the door.

His mana dipped a few points as it deflected a few arrows that somehow redirected at them.

A weird mix of crows and shrieking women were behind them as he pulled them towards the stairs. He didn’t know if going down would improve their situation but there was no other option he could think of.

He winced when his shield was hit again as they arrived at the stairs. Feather darts bounced off the spinning shell and stabbed the wooden wall. He wasted no time to flee down the stairs.

That was the second time he saw them, broken glasses and feathers were directed somehow to cause harm. His efforts improving the shield had been paid with interest. They would have been littered with cuts or worse if not for the [Arcane Shell].

“Watch your head!” cried out a familiar voice.

Artus ducked a little before a blue flamed fireball flew over him. A mix of woman’s scream and crows’ cry echoed right after that.

He turned for a moment to witness the crow headed monster turned into ash by a fierce blue flame. The flame blackened the wood but never spread for whatever reason.

He pushed forward towards the counter and found Tilma hiding behind it. He pushed both of the girls at her before he noticed the huge body covering the door to the kitchen.

Dran nodded at him as the front window burst.

He had just enough time to stand up, and cover the mage lady in his shield.

A human body littered with sharp broken glass bounced off of his shell. Verona stood there in a daze for a few seconds.

He recognized the face even when it was full of broken glasses. The unlucky guy was Brad with his large axe.

Artus cursed inside. He turned toward the Lady and she gave the wanting look he knew all too well. The dead man hadn’t made her flinch at all.

The reappearance of two guards gave Artus the breather he needed. Their action to check for injuries on Verona had prompted him to do the same.

“Are you hurt anywhere?” he asked the girls in a calm steady voice.

The girls’ frantic head-shake gave him another massive relief as he checked at the places they couldn’t see. He kissed both of their foreheads to calm them down as he kept the two shields active. They were not lovers at the back of his head, more like young girls who needed someone to lean on. He had only realized that now.

They are not on the same boat as Jessy who was now protected by his shell. Artus had long thought of this double activation while Nusia was still around, but he had never thought he would use it on someone he had just met. His instinct had taken over before any thought came to his mind.

He stood up to look at the three who were still gawking at the half-sphere covering her. They were knocking at and slipping their hand through the shell as their faces had the look of disbelief. He could never hide them now.

“Go and kill those things, the shield would stay active as long as I have mana,” he said to lady Verona.

Silly Jessy gave her signature smile as she handed him a bottle of blue potion. The girl gave him a 'thank you' kiss before she walked out to the open with fireballs in both of her hands. Her confidence in herself and his shell was unnerving.

Watching the woman gleefully burning crow-hag monsters with her blue flames might threaten his poor heart once again. The lady was quite sick in the head herself.

She was really at home dancing at one spot while fireballs shot out from her hands. The flying monsters with a woman's naked chest dropped down from the skies one by one in bright blue flames. Their corpses burned to ashes in the intense flame.

All feather darts, broken glasses or any sharp objects hurled at her had all but gathered around in a large circle. Artus didn’t hesitate to drink the potion when his mana got dangerously low. Her death might mean his own demise.

If not the monsters, the two twitchy guards would have used him as scapegoat without any hesitation. They twitched at every projectile coming towards her.

The cold tasteless liquid wetted his throat but the feeling disappeared right after that. He didn’t feel like it had entered his stomach but who could know for sure.

Lady Verona began to laugh out loud when all of the returned attacks couldn’t even get anywhere close to her. She was enjoying it too much. He wondered if others' opinions about defensive spells would change after this.

The last of the screech ended with a loud cheer from everyone watching. Verona bathed herself in the limelight as she had always dreamed to be.

He had to remind himself that Lady Verona wasn’t really silly Jessy. She’s another person awakened with Jessica’s spirit, just like he had.

It’s hard to tell the difference but that is the fact.