Jamtara, Kingdom of Divinium, Eastern region of Rohana Federation, 2051 S.C. 156th day
"So, what time do you leave tomorrow?" Marcus asked.
"I don't know, Richard said we'll see each other today, so I'm assuming he'll drop by at some point," Heron said as he was finishing up breakfast.
"Well, your stay was short, but it was nice having you around, kid. You've been a good customer." Marcus smiled.
"Thank you," Heron smiled back.
"Though I think you should also say your goodbyes to Emilia. I think she is fine now after your talk, and who knows, if you come back one day, she may be the new owner, or at least it will be good to have someone around."
"You say that as if you won't be here, Marcus," Heron said curiously.
"Yes, it is silly of me. But you never know. Things change, and it depends on how long you'll be away. Maybe you even meet someone in another country and stay there. I guess it is a roundabout way of me saying that it's just good to have friends in various places. You never know when you may need them."
"You are right. I was planning to speak with her anyway."
Emilia arrived at her afternoon shift, and Heron was sitting at a table with Richard, who had arrived a few minutes before her.
"So, we should be at the gate at eight o'clock. From there, we'll have a steam truck take us to the nearest village, and we'll see if there are any local quests. I think it is a good way to start with your training."
"Sounds good to me," Heron nodded.
"Alright, so today you should get some supplies. Here are some coins you can spend," Richard passed a pouch with coins. "So, find vacuumed foods, two flasks, spare boots, and new clothes. See that at least one of them is more presentable. Since in the cities we may need to have official business with authorities, and well, you can't look like you are from the slums."
"I'll keep this in mind. Thank you!"
Richard stood up from the table and left, leaving Heron alone with Emilia.
"So you are leaving tomorrow? Sorry, I overheard you speaking." Emilia said.
"Yes, tomorrow morning. We will start our journey through Divinium to the Tuska border." Heron replied.
"You must be excited, you are getting your wish granted," Emilia said, though there was a bit of insecurity in her voice.
"Yeah," Heron replied, though he was a bit lost on what to say to her. He wanted to say everything at once, but the words struggled to come out.
"Let's keep in touch," he finally said.
"Why?" Emilia looked at him with confusion. "Once you are out there, you'll probably forget about Jamtara." She didn't say aloud, "You'll probably forget about me".
"Because I consider you a friend." Heron was piecing his thoughts together. "And we had a misunderstanding, I was dense, and you got hurt. But that doesn't mean I didn't like spending time with you."
"Yeah, still stings a little," Emilia blushed with shame. She took a long breath. "But it was not your fault. I overreacted, and I'm fine now. So we can be friends."
"I'm so glad to hear it. I am going to write to you from every city that has a post service, I promise." Heron was excited. Emilia laughed.
"Ok, I'll hold you to that promise then."
Heron took his fist and bumped his chest. "Creators are my witnesses, this is my promise to you."
Emilia just smiled back.
"So, instead of standing around talking to me, I think you should get prepared."
"Right, right. I honestly still have no idea where the good stores are."
"Well, why don't you ask your new comrades. I think at least one of them will help you out."
"Good idea. Thank you!" Heron nodded and smiled. But part of him wanted to ask her for help. But he knew he had no right, and it wouldn't be the same as before.
"Hikki, how nice to take me shopping," May cheered as they went down the street.
"Thanks for coming with me, May," Heron grinned.
Why was everyone else out but her? He was annoyed, but he didn't let it show.
"Happy to help the comrade out," May said joyfully. "Though, if I need a coin or two, will you pitch in?"
Of course, she'd ask. Not at least surprised.
"Yeah, sure. You are helping me out, so I can at least repay you in kind. Though you did steal my coins…" Heron scratched his chin, pondering.
"Yeah, sorry about that. I was drunk. I wasn't thinking straight. Richard should have given you some extra coins for that."
"Oh, I didn't know that!"
"Yeah, I asked him not to say anything. I wanted to mention it tomorrow, but here we are!" She acted so positively.
"Hey May, can I ask you something?" Heron stopped in the street. "How come you are so positive? Every time I see you, you have this aura like there is no problem in the world."
May locked eyes with him and stared expressionlessly. Then she burst out laughing.
"That is what interests you? Oh, Hikki. I mean, I am not always positive."
She then composed herself, and the aura Heron had spoken of suddenly disappeared.
"It is my shield. I want to be happy and to make others happy. But we don't live in such a world where that is a given. So I try to make it, at least when I am with friends."
Heron was surprised by how sincere that sounded.
"You consider me a friend?" He asked, puzzled.
"Well, sure. We are in the same party. We should be more than friends. Umm… I meant comrades. Comrade is more than a friend. We can't be lovers. Romance is out of the question in a party." She stumbled over her words.
"I didn't expect us to be. But good to know," Heron said, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
"What, are you saying I'm not pretty?" May pouted.
"No… No, that was not what I'm saying at all," Heron stuttered as he tried to defend himself. "I just… I just wanted to respect your decision."
May started to laugh. "Oh, Hikki. Don't worry, I'm just messing with you a bit."
"Well, please don't. Last girl got hurt because I didn't get the clue," Heron said solemnly.
"Ooh, we got ourselves a charmer," May continued to tease. "Well, Mr. Charmer, secret to my heart is through my belly," she said, grinning.
Heron looked at her with both confusion and disgust.
"What I meant to say is that you are buying lunch," she said with her white teeth sparkling from the grin.
"Ugh, fine." Heron shuddered. "But afterwards, we are doing some serious shopping. Richard will kill us both if we fail."
"Fine, fine. Let's get moving. There is a nice place for pasta just around the corner."
"What is a pasta?"
"You don't know? Well, my friend, you are in for an adventure then," May said, smiling as they turned the corner.