It was the early morning on a sunny day. Servi was getting dressed when she heard a knock at the door. Opening it, she saw a cute Singi with beautiful pink hair and dazzling blue eyes.

“Please, please, please promise me you’ll be careful!” That was the first thing Momo said to her that morning.

---

The night before, during dinner, Servi told Momo of her final exam and that they were leaving the very next day. And it was so shocking that she dropped her wooden spoon into her chicken soup.  

“Juncea?! Oh, Servi, those things are bad news! Like, really bad! They have swords attached to them!” She didn’t mean to raise her voice, but it was a tiny bit louder than usual.  

“I know, Momo. But it’s not like I’m fighting them alone. Fisher told us that we need to bring back six stingers, one for each of us. He said that if we do that, we’ll pass his class.” 

The final exam for Fisher Jin’s class was to retrieve a stinger from a juncea, a big Human-sized bee with black and yellow striped bodies.  They had a violent, fright-inducing sword for a stinger, two dagger-like antennae on their heads, and razor-sharp blades at the end of their legs and arms.  These were the same beasts that Servi encountered on her first day.

“But those things are so tough that not even a Rank 8 would face them solo! Just promise me that you’ll be super, super careful? Okay?” 

Servi smiled and took a sip of her drink. “I promise. I won’t do anything more than necessary, or that will put me in danger. But if one of my friends needs help, I’ll help them.” 

“I figured you'd say that. Hey, Dineria told us what our final test would be.” 

“What is it?” 

“Well, it’s in three parts. First is the archery part. We need to get two bull’s-eyes on five targets that vary in distance in 12 arrows. Then we need to copy Dineria's sword style as close as we can. She’s going to perform a small demonstration, and we need to replicate it. The third part is the acrobatic part. She has an obstacle course that we gotta complete within a time limit. I gotta say, I’m a bit nervous...” 

Servi cracked a smile. “You can do it. I believe in you, Momo!!!” though it was much quieter, Servi repeated to Momo what she yelled out when Servi had that duel with Arty.  

Momo’s face went blood red with embarrassment as her furry ears twitched slightly. “Oh jeez, you remember that? I was caught up in the moment…” she lightly touched the tips of her index fingers together.

“I’m just saying, you cheered for me, and I’ll cheer for you. I wish I could be there, but we’re leaving tomorrow morning.” 

“How long?” 

Servi held up three fingers. “One day to get there, one day to hunt, and one day to leave. We’re responsible for our own food. And we can only bring our armor and weapons. Nothing else.” 

“Servi, if I’m being honest, that sounds more like military or guard training.” 

She nodded. “It is. Fisher said that this is something that all of his men have to go through before he considers them a member of the guard.” 

“Wait, does he consider you all to be guards? Because you’re Warden, like me,” she asked.  

God, I hope not. I’m only putting up with this so I can kill him.  

Keeping her internal thoughts hidden, Servi smiled. “I don’t know. He didn’t really say. Though he seems different.” 

“How so?” Momo grabbed her spoon and ate a little bit of her soup. The peas and corn were effortlessly crushed by her teeth.  

Servi took a sip of her milk. “He seemed nicer. And he stopped calling us maggots entirely. Whenever he spoke to Feral, he would sometimes avert his eyes, but now he doesn’t do that anymore.” 

“That’s good, isn’t it?” 

“It is.” 

But still, he needs to die. 

“Can you promise me something?” Momo put her spoon down and stared at her friend.  

“Sure.”

“Please be safe. Those things are super bad news.” 

“Momo, I promise I’ll do all I can to be safe. Besides, Fisher said he wouldn’t let any of us die. He says he can use a Rank 6 healing skill. He also said he’ll jump in if it turns dangerous.” Servi smiled at her friend.

Momo smiled. “Okay. I’m sorry for being pushy, it’s—" 

“It shows you care about your friends. Don’t be sorry,” Servi said, finishing off her drink. 

The two friends talked for ten or so more minutes before Momo let out a yawn.  

“I’m sleepy…” she muttered as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.  

“Then why don’t we call it a night?” 

“Okay. Oh, what time are you leaving?” Momo stood up and pushed her chair in. Servi did the same.  

“8 AM,” her best friend replied. 

“Then is it okay for me to walk with you to the headquarters? I assume that’s where you all are meeting at?” 

Servi smiled again. “Of course, it’s okay. Good night, Momo. I’ll see you in the morning.” 

“Good night, Servi.”  

The two friends went to their respective rooms.  

Momo ended up dreaming that she won the tournament after a hard and intense fight with Servi.  

Servi, meanwhile, had a hard time even getting to sleep. In fact, she did nothing but lay in the bed with her eyes closed.  

Are you still up? 

She responded to Itarr. “Yeah. Can’t sleep.” 

I see. The Goddess said in return.  

No more words were shared between the two until the morning sun came up.  

---

“Oh, I see Feral,” Momo said while stretching her arms above her head. With it being just five days before the tournament, the streets were filled to the brim with people getting everything ready.  

Business owners were making sure that their stalls were in tip-top shape and had the food ready to be delivered to the arena. If they played their cards right, they stood to make quite a lot of dupla during this long tournament that was set to last the entire day.  

Not to mention that it was the very first time a fighting tournament of any kind was going to be held in Canary. With such an occasion came gambling. It wouldn’t be that surprising to find out that shady banks and other money lenders realized they had the perfect chance to capitalize on the gambling spirit that would soon show itself.  

Bored nobles who lived a safe life would have the chance to experience the thrill and sadness that came with winning or losing an expensive bet. For some, that desire to feel the rush again would ruin them. And the wealth they’ve enjoyed for years would disappear. Other people would end up lucky, becoming rich and wealthy beyond their wildest dreams.

“Yeah, that’s him. I don’t see anyone else," Servi replied. She had her ominous shield on her left hand, still with her sword inside it, and wore cracked and damaged leather armor. She knew she had to get it fixed, but she really didn't care about it.

Servi was ready to ace this test. Even without any skill besides Soul Essence of Primal Combat, she knew there was no chance she would lose against a juncea. Not anymore.  

“Ahh, Servi, Momo. It’s good to see you again. Did you enjoy your meals at the restaurant?” Feral growled. He slammed his tail into the ground as he sat on his shield.

Servi nodded at him. She looked around and only saw him. Neither the two Koena nor the two Dwarves had shown up yet. Even Fisher wasn’t there.  

He looks scary, but he’s a real softy inside. He's kinda like a stuffed animal, isn't he? Thought Momo. She wasn’t afraid of him, not anymore. If anything, Momo was upset at herself because upon seeing Feral for the first time, she was fearful of him. That goes to show just how weak I am. Momo, you need to work harder! 

“I did. It was very delicious!” Momo said with a smile.

“I am glad. What about the chocolate? Did your friend like it?” 

“She did. She enjoyed it a lot!” she added.

“I am glad," his tail slammed the ground again. A few guards walked over to investigate but turned away once they saw it was Feral. They knew he liked to bash his tail into the ground, but it wasn’t hard enough to actually do any damage to the concrete and asphalt. Therefore, they had no real need to do anything, though they would if people started to complain.

Servi looked at Momo, who adjusted her grip on her beloved bag.

“Alright, so I gotta leave if I want to make it to Levadia Woods on time, but I’ll see you in a few days, right?” 

“That’s right. I wish I could be there to support you, but just know I believe in you!” Servi said. 

“I know you do. I believe in you, too. I know you and all the others will pass this test with flying colors!” 

Momo desperately wanted to give Servi a hug, but she fought against it. She waved at Servi and Feral before turning around. She then began to jog all the way over to Levadia Woods. Even if she was going to be late, Momo knew Dineria and Srassa would forgive her once she explained she wanted to see her friend off.  

Servi, I believe in you. And you believe in me. That’s all the strength and motivation I need!!

“That girl, Momo, was she worried when you told her about the exam?” 

Servi turned to Feral as she made her way over to his shield and sat down on it. There was more than enough space. “She was. She told me many times to be careful.” 

“Have you ever fought against these so-called juncea?” Feral asked. For some reason, he was in a really talkative mood.  

Could it be that such a strong Kobold was afraid? 

“I have not." With a straight face, Servi lied.

“I see.” 

After that, the two sat on the large black shield for another ten or minutes before four people walked their way. Two Dwarves and two Koena. Unlike Servi and Feral, they had a rather large bag tied to their backs.  

“I’m surprised,” Riki said through short breaths when he got to over to where Servi and Feral were at. Sweat dripped from his face.  

The sun was just barely in the sky, with it being just a little bit before 8 AM, but it was sweltering. Only Feral and Servi were free of sweat. Even the two Koena had some kind of liquid dripping from their scales.  

“Surprised?” Servi inquired.

“You don’t have a sleeping bag?” Desperado turned around. He had a bright blue bag rolled and tied up on his back. A wooden club hung from his hip, and his kite shied was on his left hand. It was slightly turned in a way where it wouldn’t scratch and slide against the ground while he walked.  

“I don’t have one. I have no problem sleeping on grass or dirt,” Servi plainly said.

I thought he said we can only bring weapons and our armor. Did he say food and sleeping bags as well? Dammit, Servi, you need to remember this! Honestly, Servi was starting to get a little afraid. There were times, just recently, where she had trouble remembering things that were said not even a day ago. 

Whenever she talked to Itarr about it, she just said she didn’t know what was wrong.  

I don’t think she’s lying to me. She wouldn’t, right? I mean, we love each other. So, logically, you wouldn’t lie to someone you love, right? I just have to trust her. That’s the only thing I can do. 

“And what about you?” Rakkire asked Feral. 

“A sleep covering is much too small for me. I’d rather sleep how a Kobold was intended to. I am not afraid of the ground,” Feral growled. Even though the other four didn’t pass his test of picking up his shield like Servi did, he still treated them like they were his friends.  

About this time, Servi just so happened to turn her head. She saw four people walking towards her. One had to be Fisher Jin, but Servi didn’t know who the other three were. She made out two kids and a woman who held hands with Fisher.  

“Good morning,” their mentor said when he was within speaking range. The six mentees all said their good mornings back, even Servi. 

“My family wanted to see us off. This is my wife, Marissa, and my daughters, Mari and Meri.”  

Marissa, his wife, was gorgeous. Brown hair and blue eyes, soft skin, and a supple body, she was absolutely divine. She wore a beige apron that came to her knees. Servi could see a little bit of a white shirt peeking out from up top. She had on a long brown skirt that came to below her knees.  The end of that was peeking out just a little bit to give her the appeal of a housewife who went out for a quick errand as she made breakfast.

Standing in front of her were two kids. Both also had brown hair, but Mari, aged 4, had brown eyes while her older sister, Meri, aged 5, had blue eyes. They wore matching yellow sundresses.  

Marissa smiled at the six students as a mother would. “It’s so nice to meet you all. Fisher has told us all about you.” 

Mari turned to look at Feral. Surely his large body and alligator-like face would scare her, but it didn’t.  

“Mommy, he’s big!” the first thing Mari noticed was his size.  

“Yeah! I bet he's super strong!” Meri added on.   

“My name is Feral. It’s good to meet you," Feral said without the growling.  He didn't want to scare the children. 

“I’m Silverado.” 

“And I’m Desperado. I didn’t know our dear mentor was married.” 

Uncharacteristically, Fisher went a bit red in the face. He had a black helmet in his left hand that hugged his side. The black armor still had the word ‘Justice’ scratched out. He came up with a regular old excuse when people asked about it. He swore to his wife that he would only have it fixed when he was worthy of the Justice Captain nickname. She thought it was a marvelous declaration of self-improvement and was behind him all the way.

“I’m Riki, and this is Rakkire." Riki promptly got smacked in the back of the head by his cousin.  

“You fool, I think I’m old enough to introduce myself.” 

The two girls laughed at such a comedic move. Servi couldn’t help but smile.  

“And you must be Servi. Fisher told us how you climbed Feral’s shield. That’s very impressive,” Marissa emitted an aura of motherly energy as she complimented the girl with black hair and red eyes.  

Servi became embarrassed. “Oh, umm...Thank you.” 

“Wow, she's feawless!” 

“Mommy, I wanna be that bwave!” Like her sister, Meri couldn't correctly pronounce certain sounds.

“And it’s possible. You just have to work hard.” The two girls' mother smiled at Servi before realizing something. “Do you not have a sleeping bag?” 

She shook her head. “I don’t need one.” 

“Are you scared of the bugs?” Meri asked.  Her child-like eyes stared up at Servi with wonder.

Servi crouched down and spoke. “Nope! I’m not scared of them,” then she gave the little girl a bright smile.

Meri looked up at Feral, then to Servi, then to her father. “Th-Th-Then I’m not s-s-scared of the b-b-bugs, e-e-either.” The child did her best, but she wasn't convincing anyone.  

Servi stared at the scene in front of her. Silverado, Desperado, Riki, and Rakkire all put down their bags and walked over to the two kids. They played with them for a minute or two. As they did, Servi began to think. So he’s married with children. And I need to kill him. But if I do, then these children will be without a dad. But Fisher deserves to die, doesn’t he? He brutally tortured and beat Seka and Seko. That bastard has to die, right? He doesn’t deserve a second chance...

“Now then, I have something to say,” said Fisher. Everyone, including Servi, turned to look at him. “When we all get back, I’m taking all of you to Madam Canary's Sweetie Tweety as a reward!” 

“YAYYY!” Mari raised her little hands up to the sky. Marissa took Mari’s left hand into her own.  

“I like that place!!!” Meri did the same, and Marissa took her right hand.  

“That’s sweet of you, dear. Now. Mari, Meri, say goodbye to your father. He’ll be gone for three days, okay?” 

The two ran up to Fisher, who crouched down. He gave them a big hug.  

“Bye, daddy. I love you.” 

“I love you, daddy. Beat the bad things!” 

“Daddy loves you two very much. Be good for your mother, okay? And don’t cause any trouble." Fisher teared up a little bit but hid it well.  

“We will, daddy.” 

“Yeah, we will be good.” 

Marissa stood off to the side and smiled. The six mentees did the same.  

All of their thoughts were filled with happiness at the sight of a father hugging his daughters before leaving. Well, all except one.  

He needs to die for what he did. Itarr said. Remember Seka and Seko? According to you, he was with the silver armored man who cut them. He even laughed, remember? 

Servi just sighed and forced herself to keep smiling while nodding so subtly no one picked up on it.

But if I kill him, his wife would have no husband and his children no father. But… Servi was fighting her own battle inside her mind, but she didn’t know which side would emerge victoriously.

“Now, girls, it’s time for us to leave. Feral, Silverado, Desperado, Riki, Rakkire, and Servi: I wish you the best of luck and a safe return. Fisher, please be sure to keep them safe. They aren’t members of the guard.” 

He walked up to his wife and kissed her lightly on the lips. “I promise. Now, we have to get going,” after waving to his wife as she walked away with their daughters, he turned around to face his students.