I'm with Saito on this one. Unless gryphons literally shit nitrates this thing can't be worth that much.
The Steep Path Ahead [Familiar of Zero AU]
- Thread starter shadenight123
- Start date
i think its a familiar. maybe even of a certain viscount...
Dragonskyt
Ashen one, hearest thou my voice, still?
- Location
- Kiln of the First Flame
I'm invoking the powers of plot!
This Gryphon ain't no ordinary Gryphon! It's a plot device!
This Gryphon ain't no ordinary Gryphon! It's a plot device!
Silver W. King
King of Adventures
- Location
- The Nasuverse
And why couldn't they wait for the gryphon to leave before stealing its shit?
- Location
- In a stand
Because they wanted its feathers.
And for the shit being actually worthwhile, its for reagents. Potions and stuff, IIRC Rhyme dragons where hunted because some parts of them where powerful magical reagents/ingredients.
Though I think Louise may exaggerating with the whole "holy" thing. Considering they are used as mounts like dragons they are probably just a poster animal.
I'm waiting for the reaction when Louise meets a member of her family for the first time.
If it's Karin, the fact Louise looks almost identical to her at that age might be a very big clue it's her long lost daughter.
If it's Karin, the fact Louise looks almost identical to her at that age might be a very big clue it's her long lost daughter.
Or it might piss her off that here comes someone pretending to be her long lost daughter. "Obviously that's why she looks like her!" Also, never forget that Shade's writing this story
Last edited:
- Location
- Elsewhere
The plot is:
Louise and Saito are about to be eaten by a Gryphon.
Chapter Fourteen
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
Chapter Fourteen
The gryphon was a mixture of lion and eagle. This meant that in addition to vicious lion-like claws, it also had a very sharp beak, rear talons and wings. It was easily one among the strongest magical beasts that could grace the land of Halkeginia, and it wasn't uncommon for a pair of gryphons to empty a countryside.
Normally, they didn't attack humans. They couldn't be easily domesticated, but they hardly aimed at farms or human beings. Of course, this didn't stop them from hunting cows, sheep, and game in the forest, but it was rare for a gryphon to straight-out attack a human.
Unless, of course, the creature was hungry or protecting its young.
If Luise had been just a tiny bit more knowledgeable, she would have known that the gryphon was merely scaring them off with its powerful scream, because while nature had this 'rule of the jungle' thing, it also had the ancient 'don't waste energies for something you don't need'. Unfortunately, Luise didn't know that.
So, when she saw the gryphon shriek an inch away from Saito's face, after having quietly crept all the way towards them, rather than turn tails and run, she whipped her wand out and chanted the briefest spell she knew.
The resounding explosion fueled by fear turned into charred ashes most of the gryphon's plumage, started a wildfire on the plain's fields, and served no other purpose than to piss off the gryphon who stopped caring about 'scaring' the threats away, and began planning his next meal out of their flesh.
Still, that brief instant of blindness was all that Saito needed to roll away from the descending paws and beak of the beast, which dug in the ground on the spot the boy had been but a second before.
The gryphon's eyes were narrow and positively murderous, and with the strength of its powerful limbs, it jumped on Luise next, the beak aimed at her jugular.
Saito had the dagger in hand within an instant, and in the next, he tackled Luise out of the way, the two young adventurers rolling around on the grassy plain for a short while, before Saito decided to hoist Luise on his shoulder and start running.
"Running won't work!" Luise shrieked from Saito's back. "It's coming at us fast!"
"Why did you have to piss it off!?" Saito snapped back, feeling the burning of his legs' muscles as he covered the distance to the end of the field in a flash.
"It was going to chew your face off!" Luise yelled. "Next time, I'll let it!"
Saito took a deep breath as he stumbled on a rock, falling face first on the ground and carrying together with him Luise, the gryphon landing inches away from his face and dragging the dirt across its large paws, the eagle's beak shining angrily. Its face looked like that of a burnt off chicken, which was probably all the more reason for it to be pissed.
"I'll hold it off," Saito said, dagger in hand. "You try with a bigger explosion!"
"You'll hold it off with a dagger?!" Luise exclaimed.
"DO YOU HAVE A BETTER IDEA?!" Saito yelled back, charging ahead, dagger in hand. The creature's beak came down on the flat side of the blade, and with a powerful pull, lifted Saito off his feet before the paws came crushing down on the boy's ribs, taking the air away from his lungs as the claws dug past his clothes and into his flesh.
As the gryphon's full weight impacted on Saito, the boy's body slammed on the ground hard enough to make his head ring, still his hand still gripped on to the dagger's handle. The only thing keeping him alive by that point had to be the familiar's boost, and if he lost that, then he'd be dead shortly after.
The smell of ozone filled the air, or maybe it was the scent of copper in Saito's nose? Still, what followed next was a thunderous pure white blast of energy that made him reel backwards, just as the gryphon itself collapsed in a boneless heap on the ground near him.
Saito's breathing came out erratically, even as he felt a pair of small hands grip his cheeks and a tear-stained face scream something that he couldn't understand.
"Blood-clotting spell, blood clotting spell, how did that work-" Luise had a hand through her hair and the other clenched tightly her wand, even as the blood didn't seem inclined to stop. "I can only do explosions! Come on-come on Saito," she fervently gripped at the boy's clothing and pulled it aside, to reveal the skin below and the wounds.
Then, she took a small breath. The adventuring plaque had been put into the boy's right pocket, and had apparently dented under the strain of the gryphon's blows and strikes, but had also prevented the attack itself from piercing through the skin. The left paw didn't have as much strength as the right one, but had been responsible for the blood.
She really ought to buy the boy some form of armor, or a bigger sword.
"It's-it's not so bad," Luise sniffled, "A few days of rest and you'll be like new. And then we can carry this carcass to the nearest city and get its weight in gold for magic reagents. Or maybe-maybe I can just get to pluck its feathers and cut its nails. Yeah-" she wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. "First-first I have to stop the blood and bandage the wound. Right, right-nursing nun Luise to the rescue-"
Her fingers twitched slightly as they gripped the gauze inside her backpack. Saito emitted small, shaky hisses as the girl had to pull him up by herself to run the gauze around the wound, before making a knot to hold the bandage steady. "See? Nice and peachy. I'll get a fire started," she added, only to balk when she realized there already was a fire ongoing on the other side of the plain. "Well, maybe I'll get another fire started. Somewhere else, when the wildfire spreading towards us doesn't look like it's going to kill us."
She hoisted Saito up, eliciting a sharp scream from the boy's side. "Don't tell me you broke a rib," Luise whispered. "Please don't tell me you broke a rib."
"I...didn't...break...a rib?"
Luise grabbed a handful of gryphon feathers, and with a quick stab of her pocket knife sliced the gryphon's tail off. "This should be enough to barter with a water mage for some healing and some extra," she quickly pushed the reagents in her backpack, and then began to walk, holding Saito up on her shoulder.
"H-How long..." Saito hissed, "Till we're there?"
"I don't know," Luise muttered under her breath. "Just...right step, left step, right step...left step."
"Next time," Saito said, "No gryphons. Promise?"
"Promise," Luise said with a sharp nod.
But seriously, why was there a wild gryphon in the middle of a field to begin with? Shouldn't there be farmers, or at least guards patrolling the premises?!
Where had everyone gone?
The gryphon was a mixture of lion and eagle. This meant that in addition to vicious lion-like claws, it also had a very sharp beak, rear talons and wings. It was easily one among the strongest magical beasts that could grace the land of Halkeginia, and it wasn't uncommon for a pair of gryphons to empty a countryside.
Normally, they didn't attack humans. They couldn't be easily domesticated, but they hardly aimed at farms or human beings. Of course, this didn't stop them from hunting cows, sheep, and game in the forest, but it was rare for a gryphon to straight-out attack a human.
Unless, of course, the creature was hungry or protecting its young.
If Luise had been just a tiny bit more knowledgeable, she would have known that the gryphon was merely scaring them off with its powerful scream, because while nature had this 'rule of the jungle' thing, it also had the ancient 'don't waste energies for something you don't need'. Unfortunately, Luise didn't know that.
So, when she saw the gryphon shriek an inch away from Saito's face, after having quietly crept all the way towards them, rather than turn tails and run, she whipped her wand out and chanted the briefest spell she knew.
The resounding explosion fueled by fear turned into charred ashes most of the gryphon's plumage, started a wildfire on the plain's fields, and served no other purpose than to piss off the gryphon who stopped caring about 'scaring' the threats away, and began planning his next meal out of their flesh.
Still, that brief instant of blindness was all that Saito needed to roll away from the descending paws and beak of the beast, which dug in the ground on the spot the boy had been but a second before.
The gryphon's eyes were narrow and positively murderous, and with the strength of its powerful limbs, it jumped on Luise next, the beak aimed at her jugular.
Saito had the dagger in hand within an instant, and in the next, he tackled Luise out of the way, the two young adventurers rolling around on the grassy plain for a short while, before Saito decided to hoist Luise on his shoulder and start running.
"Running won't work!" Luise shrieked from Saito's back. "It's coming at us fast!"
"Why did you have to piss it off!?" Saito snapped back, feeling the burning of his legs' muscles as he covered the distance to the end of the field in a flash.
"It was going to chew your face off!" Luise yelled. "Next time, I'll let it!"
Saito took a deep breath as he stumbled on a rock, falling face first on the ground and carrying together with him Luise, the gryphon landing inches away from his face and dragging the dirt across its large paws, the eagle's beak shining angrily. Its face looked like that of a burnt off chicken, which was probably all the more reason for it to be pissed.
"I'll hold it off," Saito said, dagger in hand. "You try with a bigger explosion!"
"You'll hold it off with a dagger?!" Luise exclaimed.
"DO YOU HAVE A BETTER IDEA?!" Saito yelled back, charging ahead, dagger in hand. The creature's beak came down on the flat side of the blade, and with a powerful pull, lifted Saito off his feet before the paws came crushing down on the boy's ribs, taking the air away from his lungs as the claws dug past his clothes and into his flesh.
As the gryphon's full weight impacted on Saito, the boy's body slammed on the ground hard enough to make his head ring, still his hand still gripped on to the dagger's handle. The only thing keeping him alive by that point had to be the familiar's boost, and if he lost that, then he'd be dead shortly after.
The smell of ozone filled the air, or maybe it was the scent of copper in Saito's nose? Still, what followed next was a thunderous pure white blast of energy that made him reel backwards, just as the gryphon itself collapsed in a boneless heap on the ground near him.
Saito's breathing came out erratically, even as he felt a pair of small hands grip his cheeks and a tear-stained face scream something that he couldn't understand.
"Blood-clotting spell, blood clotting spell, how did that work-" Luise had a hand through her hair and the other clenched tightly her wand, even as the blood didn't seem inclined to stop. "I can only do explosions! Come on-come on Saito," she fervently gripped at the boy's clothing and pulled it aside, to reveal the skin below and the wounds.
Then, she took a small breath. The adventuring plaque had been put into the boy's right pocket, and had apparently dented under the strain of the gryphon's blows and strikes, but had also prevented the attack itself from piercing through the skin. The left paw didn't have as much strength as the right one, but had been responsible for the blood.
She really ought to buy the boy some form of armor, or a bigger sword.
"It's-it's not so bad," Luise sniffled, "A few days of rest and you'll be like new. And then we can carry this carcass to the nearest city and get its weight in gold for magic reagents. Or maybe-maybe I can just get to pluck its feathers and cut its nails. Yeah-" she wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. "First-first I have to stop the blood and bandage the wound. Right, right-nursing nun Luise to the rescue-"
Her fingers twitched slightly as they gripped the gauze inside her backpack. Saito emitted small, shaky hisses as the girl had to pull him up by herself to run the gauze around the wound, before making a knot to hold the bandage steady. "See? Nice and peachy. I'll get a fire started," she added, only to balk when she realized there already was a fire ongoing on the other side of the plain. "Well, maybe I'll get another fire started. Somewhere else, when the wildfire spreading towards us doesn't look like it's going to kill us."
She hoisted Saito up, eliciting a sharp scream from the boy's side. "Don't tell me you broke a rib," Luise whispered. "Please don't tell me you broke a rib."
"I...didn't...break...a rib?"
Luise grabbed a handful of gryphon feathers, and with a quick stab of her pocket knife sliced the gryphon's tail off. "This should be enough to barter with a water mage for some healing and some extra," she quickly pushed the reagents in her backpack, and then began to walk, holding Saito up on her shoulder.
"H-How long..." Saito hissed, "Till we're there?"
"I don't know," Luise muttered under her breath. "Just...right step, left step, right step...left step."
"Next time," Saito said, "No gryphons. Promise?"
"Promise," Luise said with a sharp nod.
But seriously, why was there a wild gryphon in the middle of a field to begin with? Shouldn't there be farmers, or at least guards patrolling the premises?!
Where had everyone gone?
Oh boy, those two are funny as always.
- Pronouns
- she/her
I have a suspicion that either everyone who lives in the area was murdered, or Karin started throwing everyone who crosses the border into a blender.
Has anyone considered that she may be dead?
Welp.
All is not well in the Borderlands.
Given that her death cuts out a number of possible plotlines, I'd doubt it.
The rest of her family though.....
All is not well in the Borderlands.
Possible.
Given that her death cuts out a number of possible plotlines, I'd doubt it.
The rest of her family though.....
Madou Sutegobana
Autocorrupt has been disabled.
- Location
- Twin Realms Mandala
I read a speculation once that for every summoned hero that saves the kingdom, marries the princess, and rules his own empire there should be a million poor souls that died on an alien world fighting an alien conflict never to be heard from again by their friends and family.
Occasionally I wonder if that's going to be Saito's fate, when he runs into trouble like this.
Occasionally I wonder if that's going to be Saito's fate, when he runs into trouble like this.
Truth be told, most would die of disease, perish due to starvation or live in squarol unable to communicate with the locals. In comparison to that, the victims of the Familiar Summoning Ritual don't have it too bad.
- Location
- Montana
Actually you forgot a fun one: Struggled along in the ruins in the aftermath of a civilization destroying disease. We're from a well fed, medically advanced, population dense, immunized civilization with regular exposure to multiple lethal rare diseases like the flu. Not to mention the horrible things that our bodies learned to live with during the industrial revolution. We may face some risk of unexpected diseases in such a setting but the locals are getting the short end of the stick. Put one of us in your average medieval realm and there is a small to minor chance its going to suffer a major plague even if we aren't sick when we show up.
Yup. I toyed with this idea in one of my own Familiar Quests some years ago, the protagonist and the summoner both had their respective immunities due to the ritual, but others didn't.
SolipsistSerpent
Endlessly Devouring
Didn't Saito pick up a sword and shield from a pitying blacksmith a while back? Why is he fighting it with the dagger? Is it just easier to draw quickly?
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
I played with the Gryphon shrieking as a form of 'confuse' ability.
...
Because I'm evil.
- Location
- Germany
*wispering voice*
Hey @SolipsistSerpent I bet shade totally forgot about that until you mentioned it and he just doesn't want to admit it
Mizu
Software Developer
- Location
- Victoria, Australia
head ring, hand still gripped onto the dagger's handle.
Ah, so they survived when the Gryphon rampaged. Congrats to them.
SolipsistSerpent
Endlessly Devouring
Warr maybe? Just when was "Luise" abducted again?
Chapter Fifteen
- Location
- https://discord.gg/z9tBvbh
Chapter Fifteen
Saito's breathing evened out after a few days, and the sharp pain he felt in his sides came less. By the time they reached the nearest village, empty and devoid of life as it was, Luise was starting to get worried.
"It's as if mercenaries ransacked the place," Luise said, furrowing her brows. "They didn't burn down the houses though-maybe Tristain's mercenaries did this?"
"There's...a difference?" Saito asked.
"Of course there is," Luise answered, giving him a worried glance. "Germania is renowned for its fire mages, just like Tristain's famous for its water mages, and Albion for its wind mages and Gallia for its earth mages and Romalia...well, Romalia's famous for the pope, so it's not like they need to have important mages."
"Uh," Saito said. "So...magic's not all about explosions?"
Luise bit her lower lip, and stomped a foot on Saito's own, eliciting a hiss from the boy in question. "Hey!" Saito exclaimed.
"That's what you get for being rude to a lady!" Luise said hotly.
"Rude?" Saito blinked.
"You can't possibly-how much of a sheltered life have you lived!?" Luise blinked in disbelief, her eyes widening suddenly. "Magic! Come on, you might not know Brimir because you're a heathen from another nation, but magic's-you've got mages, right? Fire mages, water mages, earth mages, air mages, line mages, triangle mages, square mages...that sort of thing?"
Saito just stared, and Luise groaned. "Fine," she took a small breath. "Look-magic is normally divided into four elements, with a fifth being the legendary void element. A mage's skill with combining elements determine his rank. If a mage can combine two elements of water, he is a line mage, just as if he were able to combine an element of water and one of air."
"Why can't a mage combine them all?" Saito asked.
"Because it's difficult," Luise snorted. "This doesn't mean a triangle mage can't use a dot fire spell, just...it will be more difficult and take more time, but anyone is capable of using any type of spell...if they have time and wish to expend more willpower than normal."
"Expend willpower?" Saito frowned. "Like...mana?"
"I have no idea what you just said," Luise said, "And I think I will hold on to my sanity and the purity of my mind by not asking what you meant," Luise nodded wisely to herself. "But what I meant to say is that if this was the work of Germanian mercenary, there would be a lot more fire around. It's like everyone just upped and left, so it could be the work of water mages."
Saito just shrugged at that information, "Maybe the village was abandoned?"
"If that's what happened, then there would be signs, unless they left it just a week ago or something."
"Isn't there that Germanian thing?"
"You mean the 'harass the Valliere' festival?" Luise hummed thoughtfully. "It might be that. What a bother anyway-well, let's keep moving. The sooner we find a city, the sooner a water mage can take a look at you."
"Aye, aye," Saito said.
It took five more days before they saw the walls of a city, and three hours to get inside after convincing the guards by the top of the walls that no, they weren't Germanian spies in disguise looking for hot ladies.
Luise's face was red enough that when the guards opened the gates to let them in, Saito was sure she would spontaneously burst into flames given time.
"Sorry, sorry," a guard said, looking right and left as he ushered them in. "We've got enough troubles without the Germanians getting smart."
Luise bristled, and then stopped at the sight of a horde of refugees taking up nearly every available spot on the main road of the city itself. "Welcome to Valier," the guard said. "City could be in better shape, but it's that time of the year again," here the man sighed, "so just try to bear it, mister and miss adventurers."
"Why are all these people here?" Saito asked.
"I shouldn't say, especially to foreigners," the guard grumbled, "But better you hear it from me than from an uppity loyal guard. Years ago, they kidnapped the duchess' third daughter and the criminals managed to escape. So, whenever that day rolls around, the duchess refuses to as much as take a single step out of her mansion. The Germanian got wind of it, and so they take that as a chance to get some payback from the last war when the duchess singlehandedly ripped to shred an entire army of theirs."
Luise swallowed noisily."You mean...the 'Heavy Wind' is the one in charge of these lands?"
"The one and only," the guard tapped his helmet. "Proud to serve the duchess and all, but she really should think about us common folks too. I get it that losing a daughter might be hard, but what about all of us who have to suffer at the hand of those Germanian swines year after year?" he spat to the side. "But don't let word of these catch the ears of some of the most hardcore loyalists of the duchess -they don't take kindly to foreigners and whatnot."
He then waved them goodbye, "If you need a place to crash and have money for it, there's the Flaming Stallion down the road. My cousin's the owner," he grinned broadly. "Just tell him Burgeac sends you and he'll make you a deal on accommodations."
With a wink, the guard returned to his post after closing the gates, leaving Luise and Saito upon the main road of the city.
"So," Luise said, "Water mage."
"I'm feeling fine-"
"Saito, we're seeing a water mage and that's final."
"I'm not good with doctors," Saito mumbled.
"And that's why I said water mage," Luise grumbled back. "Why would anyone go see a doctor unless they want a limb amputated?" she blinked. "You want to lose a leg? I'm not carrying you on my back just because you lose a limb, Saito."
Saito blinked. "That's not what I-forget it," he groaned. "And water mage it is."
With a satisfied nod from Luise, the duo boldly stepped through the city only to be assaulted, ten steps later, by the horde of hungry beggars pleading for scraps and coin to eat.
Far fiercer than any gryphon, the hunger in the eyes of the beggars was a beast of its own.
Saito's breathing evened out after a few days, and the sharp pain he felt in his sides came less. By the time they reached the nearest village, empty and devoid of life as it was, Luise was starting to get worried.
"It's as if mercenaries ransacked the place," Luise said, furrowing her brows. "They didn't burn down the houses though-maybe Tristain's mercenaries did this?"
"There's...a difference?" Saito asked.
"Of course there is," Luise answered, giving him a worried glance. "Germania is renowned for its fire mages, just like Tristain's famous for its water mages, and Albion for its wind mages and Gallia for its earth mages and Romalia...well, Romalia's famous for the pope, so it's not like they need to have important mages."
"Uh," Saito said. "So...magic's not all about explosions?"
Luise bit her lower lip, and stomped a foot on Saito's own, eliciting a hiss from the boy in question. "Hey!" Saito exclaimed.
"That's what you get for being rude to a lady!" Luise said hotly.
"Rude?" Saito blinked.
"You can't possibly-how much of a sheltered life have you lived!?" Luise blinked in disbelief, her eyes widening suddenly. "Magic! Come on, you might not know Brimir because you're a heathen from another nation, but magic's-you've got mages, right? Fire mages, water mages, earth mages, air mages, line mages, triangle mages, square mages...that sort of thing?"
Saito just stared, and Luise groaned. "Fine," she took a small breath. "Look-magic is normally divided into four elements, with a fifth being the legendary void element. A mage's skill with combining elements determine his rank. If a mage can combine two elements of water, he is a line mage, just as if he were able to combine an element of water and one of air."
"Why can't a mage combine them all?" Saito asked.
"Because it's difficult," Luise snorted. "This doesn't mean a triangle mage can't use a dot fire spell, just...it will be more difficult and take more time, but anyone is capable of using any type of spell...if they have time and wish to expend more willpower than normal."
"Expend willpower?" Saito frowned. "Like...mana?"
"I have no idea what you just said," Luise said, "And I think I will hold on to my sanity and the purity of my mind by not asking what you meant," Luise nodded wisely to herself. "But what I meant to say is that if this was the work of Germanian mercenary, there would be a lot more fire around. It's like everyone just upped and left, so it could be the work of water mages."
Saito just shrugged at that information, "Maybe the village was abandoned?"
"If that's what happened, then there would be signs, unless they left it just a week ago or something."
"Isn't there that Germanian thing?"
"You mean the 'harass the Valliere' festival?" Luise hummed thoughtfully. "It might be that. What a bother anyway-well, let's keep moving. The sooner we find a city, the sooner a water mage can take a look at you."
"Aye, aye," Saito said.
It took five more days before they saw the walls of a city, and three hours to get inside after convincing the guards by the top of the walls that no, they weren't Germanian spies in disguise looking for hot ladies.
Luise's face was red enough that when the guards opened the gates to let them in, Saito was sure she would spontaneously burst into flames given time.
"Sorry, sorry," a guard said, looking right and left as he ushered them in. "We've got enough troubles without the Germanians getting smart."
Luise bristled, and then stopped at the sight of a horde of refugees taking up nearly every available spot on the main road of the city itself. "Welcome to Valier," the guard said. "City could be in better shape, but it's that time of the year again," here the man sighed, "so just try to bear it, mister and miss adventurers."
"Why are all these people here?" Saito asked.
"I shouldn't say, especially to foreigners," the guard grumbled, "But better you hear it from me than from an uppity loyal guard. Years ago, they kidnapped the duchess' third daughter and the criminals managed to escape. So, whenever that day rolls around, the duchess refuses to as much as take a single step out of her mansion. The Germanian got wind of it, and so they take that as a chance to get some payback from the last war when the duchess singlehandedly ripped to shred an entire army of theirs."
Luise swallowed noisily."You mean...the 'Heavy Wind' is the one in charge of these lands?"
"The one and only," the guard tapped his helmet. "Proud to serve the duchess and all, but she really should think about us common folks too. I get it that losing a daughter might be hard, but what about all of us who have to suffer at the hand of those Germanian swines year after year?" he spat to the side. "But don't let word of these catch the ears of some of the most hardcore loyalists of the duchess -they don't take kindly to foreigners and whatnot."
He then waved them goodbye, "If you need a place to crash and have money for it, there's the Flaming Stallion down the road. My cousin's the owner," he grinned broadly. "Just tell him Burgeac sends you and he'll make you a deal on accommodations."
With a wink, the guard returned to his post after closing the gates, leaving Luise and Saito upon the main road of the city.
"So," Luise said, "Water mage."
"I'm feeling fine-"
"Saito, we're seeing a water mage and that's final."
"I'm not good with doctors," Saito mumbled.
"And that's why I said water mage," Luise grumbled back. "Why would anyone go see a doctor unless they want a limb amputated?" she blinked. "You want to lose a leg? I'm not carrying you on my back just because you lose a limb, Saito."
Saito blinked. "That's not what I-forget it," he groaned. "And water mage it is."
With a satisfied nod from Luise, the duo boldly stepped through the city only to be assaulted, ten steps later, by the horde of hungry beggars pleading for scraps and coin to eat.
Far fiercer than any gryphon, the hunger in the eyes of the beggars was a beast of its own.