The Lost Locket [Sidequest: Open to 4 applicants]

Now that they were in their way, Liseran made an inquisition towards everyone's intentions. "Oh! Well, I thought it'd give me a better chance to explore other locations, such as Aldmerrow. I'm doing this in my free time, and in addition, lending someone a hand in need was always good, so I thought 'why not'?" He answered, pretty much indirectly agreeing with Maia. At the very least, she had good intentions.

With that said, he observed the peaceful field they were in, and heard her musing. "Many things are uncertain, such as the future. Maybe we'll get our chance, who knows..." His strongest suit wasn't philosophy, but at least this could work as a small bonding exercise?

Yay! They were officially off on their adventure!

Aleph smiled happily as he followed along with everyone else through the countryside. He looked out at all the nice and pleasant fields and the quaint little houses in the distance and the glistening wheat fields. Oh, it just all reminded him so much of his home in the Enkidu village. Oh, how he was already beginning to miss Hiroko.

Soon, Liseran asked the group of their intentions for taking on the quest. Maia and Goibniu's explanations seemed reasonable enough. Aleph nodded. "I just wanted to help someone. Anyone, really. I don't care about the money, really. Helping someone is its own reward!" He said, then scratched his head. "Although, I actually need some gold so I can buy some food for this really long journey I'm taking. Also, I'm a Walpurgis, so I want to prove to everyone in the world that Walpurgis aren't as bad as they think they are!"

After that, Maia mused about what it was like to have a family. Aleph smiled then looked at Maia. "I kind of have a family, to be honest. I lived with my mom in the village." He said. "But, she's not actually my mom, you see. Which is why I left, so I could look for my real parents."

More or less, everyone's response was the same: to be of help. Liseran wished she could have said the same for herself. She always had ulterior motives to even the smallest things. She would have commented that she admired everyone's selflessness when she heard Aleph say something a taaaaaad different.

Liseran almost knee-jerked at Alep proudly saying he was a Walpurgis. Fortunately, she was behind everyone and no one saw it. She scanned Aleph up and down momentarily. She couldn't really see his hands, but he had no seal on the back of the neck, that much was sure. She warily glanced at Goibniu to see if he would react in anyway to what Aleph said. She decided to be of a little distraction.

"Now, now, Maia, I'm sure you will," she said. "You're still of age and who knows? You just might bump into your match someday. For all you know he could be under your nose or right beside you."

She of course meant right beside you in the future, but that it might have context that she meant the person right next to her now hadn't occurred to her.

Maia's eyes went wide. "N-Next to me?!" She squeaked. The person next to her was of course Goibniu. A part of her thought Liseran just said something and meant something else. She wasn't mean enough to imply such things. "Uh... yeah..." This got a bit awkward. She was more preoccupied with being an idiot than really caring that Aleph shouted out loud that he was a Walpurgis.

"Anyways. I appreciate the optimistic words." Maia said, changing the subject. "But I know I can never have a life like that. Not unless I leave Esterelf. Who knows? Maybe I'll travel around the world, or maybe I'll find a uninhabited island somewhere and decided to live off the land."

Oh no, the (literally) magical W-word.

As soon as Aleph explained his reason, Goibniu quickly turned to him. "Another Walpurgis?" He thought to himself, as he examined the boy. It looked like he was an idealistic happy chappy, which wasn't exactly bad in Goibniu's accord, plus his motive was good enough, right? Altruism tends to be rare, after all.

"Maybe he's a Cartic User." He reassured himself.

"Looking for your parents, eh boy? That's an honorific endeavor, my best wishes for your search!" Would he find documents regarding their fate in the Expiate's archives? Hopefully not, they tend to be grim at times. It was then when he heard something Liseran said, about Maia's match or something like that. Maia squealed something about 'next to her', causing Goibniu to turn to them in confusion. "Pardon me?" Could this perhaps be a matter of ladies? He didn't know.

"Travelling around the world sounds like a delightful dream. Imagine the places one could visit, the things one could learn!" He'd be lying if he said that he didn't fancy such thought every now and then, but he was already rooted in his family and responsabilies for his community, making such a desire not exactly viable.

Aleph smiled as Goibniu wished him luck on finding his parents. Finding his parents shouldn't be too hard. According to the letter they left behind, they headed off to Stahlmin to look for jobs so that they could raise money to survive. Granted, getting to Stahlmin would take a while, considering that Aleph was also taking a detour to Eisleyn, but that was beyond the point!

Aleph listened as Liseran talked about Maia finding her match and eventually raising her own family. Aleph smiled excitedly and looked at Maia. "Yeah, Maia! Liseran's right! As long as you have hope, you should eventually find your special one! And start a family too!" He said, then blushed. "I don't know much about raising a family, but I've always wondered who my special one could be. Plus, Maia looks like she could be good with kids! So, it'll all work out great!"

He looked at Maia and Goibniu for a moment, then smiled. They seemed like they would go great together, although that could just be him. However, the topic of travelling the world immediately came up, and Aleph became even more excited. He grinned enthusiastically. "I want to travel the world too! I want to see all the sights, and meet lots of people." He said. "I also want to find an empty island so I can start my own country and be a king!"

These people are far too enthusiastic, Liseran thought to herself as they continued walking.

As they did, they four would hear rustling among the tall grass that laid at both sides of their path. It was coupled with low growls.

"Quiet for a moment," Liseran said in a hushed tone.

They'd hear the stomping of hooves, digging into the ground before they raised and pressed onto it again. Followed by it were heavier thuds that seemed to be in pursuit of it. If one of them looked to their left, the figure of a deer would come into sight and it would soon try to cross the road in front of them. However, just as it did, a dark figure leaped onto it and pinned it down. Dark, matted fur that stood on it covered it like a blanket while sharp claws dug into the deer's hide. Sharp white teeth gnawed at its neck as it gasped before a pair of red eyes glared at the four.

"Everyone, stand back!" Liseran called out as the creature got on its hind legs. "It's a corrupted wolf!"

The creature stood almost half more the size of any of them standing and growled with such force that it would push the four back slightly.

"You need subjects to be a king, silly!" Maia laughed. "Or you'll just look like a crazy man!" The idea was actually quite amusing. Imagine some guy asking you to move to an island that he claims to be his kingdom. It would be a weird conversation on the street, that's for sure.

Maia looked at Liseran. A serious look crept on her face. "Aleph, Goibniu, shush." She whispered to her other companions. She heard the running, her heart-quickened. The deer jumped out and was quickly killed by the corrupted wolf. Maia fought the urge to puke.

Now, she had encountered corrupted wolves before. They were terrifying. They were big. And she tended to run away from them. They were the second worst corrupted beasts she ever seen. Right after those corrupted squirrels in Saoirse. She doesn't talk about the Corrupted Squirrels.

"Maybe he's still hungry, and he spotted another deer." Maia said while looking at Goibniu. It was probably very rude, but she didn't care. She thought of it as payback for the genocide comment in Stahlmin. (Which she took the wrong way)

"Anyways, I'm assuming there's no avoiding this fight." Maia said to Liseran. "So what's your plan?"

When Aleph made the mention of Maia being good with kids, Goibniu couldn't help but glance to a side. Yeah, they might need to be careful not to make her mad... However, his thoughts were interrupted when she hushed them. Sounds from around them alerted him of someone's presence, and as it made it's appearence... It turned out to be a deer.

Goibniu didn't get the chance to say something, as the deer was quickly assaulted by a Corrupted Wolf. It'd be too late for the deer to be saved, it's remnants made Goibniu gulp in surprise. He looked at Maia with an incredulous look at her joke(?) before setting his eyes back to the wolf.

"No worries, I read a bit about these creatures." He said, as his hand slowly went to his hip. "This won't kill it, but it'd be enough to stun it." But what would it be enough to stun it? Quickly, he drew his firearm and pressed the trigger, aiming to the wolf's head.

"Well, maybe you guys can be my subjects! At least, until I find more people." Aleph said, smiling. Although, he was aware that to run a kingdom, it required a lot of things. A stable economy, a strong standing army, lots of walls, and a vibrant culture to keep the populace happy and sane. And also, taxes. Those were also important.

Of course, Aleph's thoughts were interrupted as Liseran hushed everyone. He looked around and heard the sounds of rustling and watched as a cute little deer walked out from the tall grass. Aleph gasped and smiled as he saw the adorable creature. Sadly, the deer was quickly pounced on and brutally murdered by a wolf. Aleph watched in horror as the wolf tore into the deer like it was just some piece of meat.

Granted, that's basically what most creatures were, technically. But that wasn't the point!

Aleph gulped and sniffled sadly, then took off his hat and plucked the feather from it. With a quick glow, the hat and feather became a sword and shield. He raised the shield in case the wolf felt like pouncing anyone else.