"Let go of me!" a voice yelled within earshot of Jax.
"That sounds like Mira. Oh no, what has she gotten herself into?" he murmured to himself.
Jax took off in the direction of the voice, rushing past pedestrians with a clear focus.
Find Mira.
He broke into the central area and saw Mira being grabbed by what looked like a very large ogre.
"What's a monster doing inside the town limits?" he asked, readying a spell to attack the beast.
As he was about to fire off an earth-element spike, he heard her say something and lowered his hand.
"I didn't mean to break it," Mira said as she struggled to break free of the man's hold. "Let me go. I promise I can pay for it!"
"I warned you when you came here not to touch anything," the man said, his voice becoming more clear as Jax got closer. "This is a shop, not a playhouse."
"People count on my supplies. What if that had been something meant for the King?" the man continued.
"Let her go," Jax declared. "Let my friend go. Whatever she's done, I can handle it."
He finished walking closer, his voice shaking almost uncontrollably. He was picturing what would have happened if he hadn't found her.
"You have two thousand shards?" the man asked. "She broke a glass chalice that was meant for another buyer. I won't have another one for two months."
The man let out a deep sigh.
Jax relaxed slightly after hearing the price. "Yes, we have that kind of coin. I will pay you out proper. Please let her go, and we can talk."
"Well why didn't you say so?" the man said as he let go of Mira, a clear shift in his mood. "I'm Takeo. I own the armor shop in this town. I also mingle in wares. Bartering too."
He continued while rubbing his hands together.
They walked inside together and met up at the counter. The large man taking a seat behind it after. The chair audibly groaning under his size.
"So, how long are you in town for?" Takeo asked. "I noticed you two are new faces." "Guild work." He asked.
"Only the one night, and then we have a two-day journey back home," Jax replied. "We came here on an escort mission. We're heading to the guild when we finish."
"Does that mean the doctor's back?" Takeo asked. "He's been gone a week. It's always a bit more lonely when he's not here."
"You're definitely sure that cup was worth two thousand shards?" Mira cut in as she looked the large man in the eyes. "It's just a pretty cup. What was so special about it?"
"It was a healing chalice," he replied. "It's an item meant to help dungeon divers heal up quickly in emergencies."
Mira had heard of items that helped teams in emergencies. She had also skimmed over the explanation in favor of looking at the equipment section of the guild guide.
"So it was important." Jax exhaled. "Mira, you have to be more careful." "This could have had drastic consequences."
A look of gloom was apparent on his face. "I guess you get your way now, though."
"My way?" she asked, her eyes twinkling. "What's my way, Jax?"
"We only have enough coin left for one room," he explained. "Maybe, if we're lucky, some food. We should really get to the guild hall. Alexander is probably waiting."
As the group left, they said their goodbyes. Mira took note of the gem-crusted blade in the back and the jewel-embedded armor hung in the windows.
"You sure we can't buy something I didn't break?" she said with a chuckle, walking ahead of Jax, alternating the times she would glance back at him. Noting his hair had gotten a tad longer.
As she walked, her heart raced. Her mind flooded with ideas of how she would enjoy yet another window of forced proximity. How she would tease Jax the morning after.
She thought to herself that maybe she had done it on purpose.
Then she thought about it clearer. If it had been something even more expensive...
She shuddered slightly.
"Thanks for your help," Mira whispered. "That man was scary at first, but you jumped right in with no hesitation."
"It's what anyone would have done," Jax replied, his hands slowly creeping up toward his face. "I just acted in the moment."
"Nobody else stepped in. You did," she argued, looking him dead in the eyes like she could see his soul. "You saved me, Jax. Whether he meant harm or not, you stepped in."
"Don't mention it," Jax said. "Now can we please head to the guild and find out what these pillars are."
He picked up his pace slightly.
"So, one room tonight," Mira said, a grin bright on her face. "You sleeping on the floor?"
Jax covered his face fully at those words and smiled behind his hands.
His walk became almost a run as he tried to evade Mira's gaze.
"To the guild, now," Jax said.
The duo almost ran toward the guild like the world was gold again.
Nothing was wrong yet.
What news did the guild have here?
They arrived at the guild hall minutes later, breath heavy and legs shaking.
"We made it, finally," Jax said between heavy breaths. "Mira, let's head inside."
He continued after catching his breath.
Jax looked behind him, and Mira was not there.
He looked around in panic.
Finally, he saw a glimpse of her silver hair and heard the sound of her laughter rising.
"You better catch up!" she yelled, already almost to the top step. "We got a guy waiting on us, don't we?" "We can't keep him waiting too long." She continued turning around and heading inside.
Jax followed her up the steps and thought for a second that everything may be normal.
Hopefully the guild had answers.
For now, the duo was unfazed by the world, yet to be properly initiated into a very cruel one.