CHAPTER 36: "MEET AGAIN"

“A Familiar Appraiser?” Ai tilted his head in confusion. From the term, he could get a rough idea of what the profession was for, but he’d never heard about it before in [World Symphony]. 

That meant that it was mostly likely an NPC only profession, something that a player can’t learn. A player could definitely learn the basic skills for it but they just couldn’t select the profession as their main one since that slot is filled by their class. For example, a player could learn the basic [Cooking Skill] but they can never replace their class with that of a [Chef Profession] nor could their [Cooking Skill] overtake that of an NPC chef’s. 

Naeya nodded and poured more tea into each of their cups. She looked much better than the last time Ai had seen her, with Nebule on her back as they made their way out of Oceanus. She looked much more refreshed, calm and finally out of the rags she was wearing. Her new look reflected more of the harpy style with tribal esque ornaments on her dress, woven into her little hair braids and as accessories. She looked like a completely different person.

“I believe that your owl is a familiar and not a pet.” Naeya stirred her tea and sipped it carefully. “A Familiar Appraiser would be able to properly measure your familiar’s abilities and bond. I can give you directions and what you need to do to employ the appraiser’s services.”

Ai thought about it for a brief moment. He admitted that it was tempting to go and visit one. He’d been so curious about the owl, and that curiosity had all but grown the more time they spent together. From when Athens killed the wolf, Ai started to realize that Athens was different from the regular pets that [World Symphony] offered.

The owl was much more fickle and indecisive compared to other normal pets. It didn’t fight all battles like other combat classed pets, it had no other special use like carrying items or giving extra EXP, and it surely wasn’t decorative. Its purpose seemed to vary accordingly to what Ai needed at the moment. A damage dealer, a warm furry companion and even a pillow.

Right now, it was even acting as a mental support for Nebule. Ai looked outside to the window and saw the siren gently brushing over the owl’s feathers while it obediently stayed put. 

After he’d finished the main quest, he had two options. Any normal person would move on to the next area they wanted to explore. The quest was over and completely finished so there was no reason to go and try to look for the two lovers who hopefully had managed to escape. Any other player wouldn’t try and see if they were okay or not since the game didn’t tell them to. The no guarantee of reward also put players off doing so, but Ai being Ai had picked the chosen option and went to search for the two after he left Oceanus. 

Really, he had nothing to be worried about in the end. Naeya had prepared a place for them to go to after Nebule had been freed. The harpy had planned many many things like a small house just past the woods for them to at least rest and recover before they decide if they want to travel anywhere else.

Once he and Athens managed to track their whereabouts, they had welcomed him warmly and invited him inside their little home where he managed to grasp their situation. It hadn’t been too long since they left Oceanus, it only took a few days for him to find and catch up to the two. But during that brief time, the lovers had made themselves a comfortable little nest just for the two of them.

When Ai told them about what happened to Nerea, both had different reactions. Naeya had looked incredibly angry but Ai liked to think that she understood at least a little bit while Nebule had looked as if she was going to burst into tears. Ai had tried not to look too closely at Nebule's throat scar so as to not make her feel bad.

The siren looked happy enough yet Ai was still quite sad to know that she probably wouldn’t be able to speak much or sing anymore. He didn’t know if she minded losing the voice that caused her so much pain, but he knew what it was like to part from something that had been a part of you for so long, no matter how much pain it seemed to bring you.

Still, it seemed that they were going to be just fine. They had each other after all, which did make Ai feel just a tiny bit lonely. The owl was a great companion and he wouldn’t trade him for anything but it wasn’t quite the same as having a humanoid companion to talk with.

“I’ll take the offer.”

***

Ai stared at the map confusedly. He spun the paper around to see if he could figure out where he was if he did that. He thought for sure he’d gone the right way but now he didn’t know anymore.

Naeya had given him a map with a sport marked on it. The spot was an area which contained the item he needed for the Appraiser to do his service. The area was a long abandoned place that not a lot of people knew about. Naeya certainly knew of the place since she gave him the map, but even she didn’t know what laid there to be precise. She simply told him to take extra care then bid him farewell.

Should’ve asked more questions, Ai thought to himself.

He finally found a spot on the map that seemed to be where he was at the moment and traced the path with his finger. If he went left then took a few more twists and turns, then he would arrive at the area, hopefully?

Ai sighed and put down the map. The area in the forest was getting a lot more mist, a lot colder and the trees were even starting to rot and decay the further he ventured. 

What kind of object did the Appraiser even need here? What could you even get from a dark, dank and dead looking forest? Maybe the area was different than Naeya remembered and it wasn’t the area he was meant to be in? Maybe the object was somewhere else?

Stopping once more, Ai looked around to gauge where he was again. His eyes scanned his surroundings then double checked the map.

What…? 

He placed the map in front of his face again, his nose almost touching the paper. He seemed to be lost again...he was so sure that he followed the path in the map exactly. 

He could take a break from all of this, but his surroundings weren’t exactly the most comfortable of areas. It was darker than when he’d first entered the forest, sunlight barely filtered through the dead trees and the dark looking trees with its equally dark leaves.

Yeah, sitting down in this place wasn’t something he wanted to do.

Frustrated, he tucked the map back to his pocket and continued walking. If he couldn’t find where to go with the map, then the only way was forward even though deep down he knew that doing that was probably a bad idea.

Ai took another step forward, but a sudden hand on his shoulder pulled him back and stopped him. 

His breath slightly hitched and his heart almost jumped but he didn’t flinch as he turned around to look at the person who had stopped him. If it was an NPC then he was either very close to the right destination or he was too far into the wrong direction. If it was a player...he didn’t really know.

His eyes landed on a familiar sight. Long dark hair tied into a single ponytail, dark eyes that looked like midnight under the dim lighting of the forest and a distinct sword with a dark colored blade and a single red gem embedded on its hilt.

“You’re looking for the Village of Tua dan Rungkuh?”

Ai blinked as he gaped up at Morion. He even rubbed his eyes to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming or anything. Who knows maybe the forest was capable of causing hallucination?

Ai wasn’t sure how to answer Morion’s question. He pushed the map to Morion and pointed to the one spot that he couldn’t seem to get to. He took the map from Ai’s smaller hands then examined it closely for a brief moment before giving the map back. 

“We’re going to the same place.” Morion said, the slight smile on his face making his gentle features even more princely, even with his dark attire. “Let’s go there together. We won’t get lost that way.”

Ai tried not to feel embarrassed as Morion turned to face a completely different direction to where Ai was heading. The other player chuckled gently as he saw the red blush that formed on the Ai’s cheeks from embarrassment.