In the early morning, two days before the tournament was set to start, a cute Singi with pink hair slowly woke up from a well-deserved sleep. Her pink ears twitched, her tail lazily danced while her left arm stretched up high, as if it was trying to reach the ceiling. Her sleeping face slowly curled into a smile as she opened her bright blue eyes and took a deep breath.  

Today’s the day!! Momo thought to herself. She got up off her mattress and performed a series of stretches her mentor had taught her.  

I’m so glad I was able to pass the exam yesterday.  I can’t believe I got a time of 4:54 on the course, and I only needed ten arrows for the archery portion. I should’ve done better on the part where we had to follow Dineria’s combat routine, but she said I was good. Srassa passed too, but I can’t believe she finished in exactly 5 minutes.  

“But I’m super happy for us. We both ended up passing with two days to spare!" Momo said out loud to herself. “And I can’t wait to tell Servi!” 

Momo took off her nightgown, revealing her bare and naked body, and put on white underwear, a pink t-shirt, and black shorts. It wasn’t anything fancy. Then, she got to her stomach, slightly flinching when the cool floor glanced against her smooth legs and began to stretch even more. I missed Servi a lot...and it felt weird having dinner by myself. I wish I could’ve eaten with Srassa, but we both needed to train and focus. Well, at least all that training paid off.  

After doing her second set of stretches, Momo equipped her adventuring gear and made her way to the lobby. A small amount of sweat dripped down her adorable face, so she used a small white cloth she retrieved from a messenger bag that was slung around her shoulders.  It was plain and black, but it was her most prized possession.

She saw Claire sitting behind the signup desk. Figuring she could spare a few minutes, the pink Singi joyfully walked over to her friend.  

It’s not like I have anything to do. Dineria ended up giving us both cookies and said we had officially passed her test.  The only thing I need to do is prepare for the tournament.

Oddly enough, the lobby was kind of empty. Momo thought it was unusual for the vast amount of desks and benches to be vacant, but she figured that could be because the tournament was in a few days. I guess that even those of a lower Rank wanted to come and watch. Maybe they’re taking it slow for a few days? Everyone needs to relax now and then.

“Hey, Momo. How’re you doing this morning?” the red-haired Elf asked, stifling a yawn that desperately wanted to escape.  

“Hi, Claire. I’m doing good,” Momo chirped as Claire motioned for her to sit down in the chair in front of the desk. “But isn’t this bad? What if people need to sign up?” 

“You can move then, but there isn’t a rule that says a friend can’t sit down when there are no people in line. Besides, I wanna hear about your exam,” smiled the Elf.  

“Really?” 

“Yep!” 

Momo smiled and spoke faster than she wanted. The adorable Singi couldn’t help it because she was just excited. “We had to do three things for her to pass one: an archery test, an obstacle course, and mimicking her swordplay. It took a lot of time, but I was finally able to get ten bull’s-eyes on ten arrows on five targets that got further apart! I can’t believe how much I improved. I mean, when we first started, I could barely hit the second target.” 

“Congratulations!” Claire clapped, and it wasn’t sarcastic. She was honestly and happily happy her friend was able to improve at something she lacked. That meant the program worked. “How were the other two parts?”

Momo nodded, her rosy pink hair followed with the movements of her head. “The obstacle course was easier than I thought it would be. Dineria said that most of the Singi she knows are highly agile and athletic. And I was thinking since I’m a Singi, I should be good. But I was slow at first. But when Dineria and Srassa-- oh, she's the other girl who’s learning under Dineria-- cheered for me, I just felt like I could do it!” 

“And I assume you did?” Claire smirked. She already knew the answer since she had to process Momo’s tournament application that she received from Dineria.  

“Yep! The time was 5:00, and I did it in 4:54. It’s kinda funny.” 

“How’s it funny?” Claire took a sip of her coffee, which was in a silver cup with a black handle.  

“Dineria said that I should be able to get a time of exactly 4:54. And I did. Oh, Srassa was able to do it in exactly five minutes. She was so tired and exhausted but happy at the same time, and she cried. I gotta admit, I cried a little bit too. Oh, she also was able to finish the archery exam in eleven arrows. She tried over and over again to finish in ten, but she could never get the 25-meter target right. She would always shoot too high or too low.” 

“It sounds like she improved a lot,” just like with Momo’s, Claire had to process Srassa’s tournament application she got from their mentor. Both Claire and Momo heard the main door opened, but only one looked. Momo was waiting for Servi, and she wasn’t scheduled to return for another few hours. At least, that was what Claire had told her. Since this was a Warden project, all final exam applications had to be approved by Warden. Said applications had the start and finish date, a strenuous detailed account of why and how it was necessary, and the goals that should be accomplished.

Oddly enough, it was Claire who had to process both Dineria's and Fisher’s applications.   

“And for—Oh Gods above!” Claire's face became pale, and she dropped her coffee cup on her desk.  A sea of brown liquid utterly stained her messy stack of papers. Momo flinched and wondered what was wrong. She slowly turned around and saw something that didn’t make sense.  

“Servi…?” she muttered with a face frozen in worry. Why is she being held by Feral? And why do they look like that? Why isn’t she walking on her own? Why…. 

“Servi!!!” Momo hollered out and ran out of her chair. She tripped on the ground, but she didn’t feel the pain. Getting right back up, she floored it over to her friend.

“What—” before she could even start to ask, tears formed in her eyes, choking her voice. Claire came running up behind and put a hand on Momo’s trembling shoulder.  

 “Fisher, what the hell happened to Servi?!” Claire angrily barked. She was totally against his final exam, citing it was too punishing and stressful for Rank 10 members. Unfortunately, caring Elf was overruled by her boss.   

“First of all, she’s fine, and she’s not in any danger. Sh—" 

“Then why is she covered in vomit?” Claire demanded. Momo struggled to say something, but every time she did, it was like she lost her voice. Claire noticed this and did the only thing she could. 

Wrapping her arms around the Singi, Momo turned and cried into her friend’s chest.  

“You’re Momo, right?” Fisher stared at the crying Singi, who whimpered in between short breaths of air.

Momo tearfully nodded.

Now I probably see why Servi attacked me. Her friend’s a Singi. The pieces are coming together.  

“I promise you that Servi is fine. She has no cuts, no bruises, and no physical damage. We need to get her to her room, and I need to go get a doctor just to make sure. And I don’t want to intrude on her privacy. Can you try to find her keys to her room?” 

She rubbed her tear-stained eyes and nodded. Momo was afraid that she would immediately break down if she had to speak, so she stayed silent.  

It's this one, right? Momo went to remove one of the two pouches attached to her friend's waist.  

Zipping it open, she started digging and found it mostly empty. The only thing inside was a single brass key. 

She showed it to Fisher, who nodded. “Alright. Feral, follow Momo and take Servi to her room."

“What’re you going to do?” Claire glared at the man in black armor.

“I’m going to get a doctor. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Fisher ran out of Warden and made his way to a particular doctor that he trusted. However, it would take a while because she lived on the other side of town.

Meanwhile, Momo led Feral up the stairs. All the while, they were getting stares from the few people lounging around.  

They need to mind their own dang business!! Momo internally yelled. She was angry at herself for being unable to do anything but cry.  

It’s just like back then… Dang it, Momo, I thought we got stronger?! I thought we did, but clearly not! What the heck have you been doing this past month!!!

“Is this her room?” Desperado said when they stopped in front of a door.

Momo nodded while wiping the tears from her eyes. Putting the key in, she unlocked the door and held it open for Feral. He had to duck to get in.  

“It’s a small bed,” growled Feral, who laid Servi down on the terrible mattress.  

Momo started crying even harder at watching her friend’s body. She seriously looked like she was dead.

It’s like she’s asleep, but I…. Momo felt warm tears fall from her eyes. The Singi walked over to the mattress and sat down.  

“Momo?” Silverado muttered her name, but Momo only stared at her friend.

“I can’t do anything for her. I can’t heal her. I can’t wake her up. I can’t do anything. But she could. Heck, she could probably heal herself if she was awake.  She saved me many times and taught me a lot, and here I am, unable to do anything,” her eyes became filled with even more tears. “Servi…”  

Feral growled, tapped Silverado’s shoulder, and pointed to the door. He instantly understood. Once the others saw that they were leaving, they followed, leaving Momo alone with her friend. With a timid motion, the crying Singi reached out and took hold of her best friend’s hand. It was warm and not at all cold, which was proof she was alive. But that wasn’t enough. Momo wouldn’t be satisfied until she heard Servi’s voice with her own ears.  

“Please…. Please wake up…” the terrified Singi was left alone with her unconscious friend for quite some time. All the while, she held her hand.  

“I’m right here. Servi, can you feel my hand? I don’t wanna be alone again, so please…..don’t leave me…” 

In a soul-wrenching voice, she called out for the one person she trusted more than anything. “Grandpa, what do I do?”