[Iuvenis Story] Pre-Game: Setting Out

Here's some pre-game stuff. Just for fun. The girl in picture is the main character of this narration. Her name is Iuvenis, she's a Blacksmith. Credits to CheeseWheel for the picture.

The forge was as hot as always. The girl, who, if not for her feminine features, can pass off as a pretty boy was hard at work placing grips over the tang of the multiple heated swords laid in front of her. Her apprenticeship was over, and she was ready to start her own forge, but out of the goodwill in her heart, she decided that this was going to be the last day she works for her master. The thought of freedom of her own forge excites her but parting with the good people of Scirocco will leave her with a tiny regret.

"That's enough forging for you, Iuvie" said the master, examining her exceptional dedication to just placing grips.

"Could you go to the front and mind some customers? I'll be doing the finshing touch on these," he requested with an air of authority. As long as she was in his forge, he's the master. Even if she's no longer an apprentice.

Iuvenis nods and hurry to the front shop, wondering if she can sell some weapons as well as she can make them. She thought of her packed luggage, ready to leave Scirocco for a new adventure by tomorrow, and grins to herself.

She couldn't manage to call out to passerby to come and inspect the wares so she did the inspection all by her lonesome. It was at this point that her eyes locked with a man much taller than herself, whose expression she couldn't read, but with a crest sewn to his armcloth that she recognize all too well. Before she could manage to think, the man beams her an unreadable smile.

"Fancy meeting you here."

Iuvenis drops the sword she was inspecting back on the table. The noise escapes her attention as her thoughts were filled with this man's possible motives. Her life was over. Or so she thought. He was gonna drag her back to that wretched place most would call home.

"No," she said firmly. She was not going to go back.

"I don't think I'd forget a face like yours, my lady."

"You're still cheeky with your words," she said, certain that he only pretended not to understand her, "but no. I'm not going back."

The man gave Iuvenis a slight nod and responded, "Well, I'm staying with you, then."

The response caught Iuvens by surprise.

"Wha-? You're serious? Aren't you gonna get in trouble for ditching your post?"

She wasn't asking out of concern for him, but more out of disbelief that he would readily ignore a possible order to bring her back. It made her wonder if there was such an order. She shrugged off the thought. There must be such an order, it wouldn't make sense that they're not searching her. Prodigium for instance must want her dead.

"Would you prefer I tell your family of your whereabouts, then, my lady?" asked the man. His voice was calm, with no hint of threat to the common ears.

Iuvenis felt differently though. Everything sounds like a threat to her right now. His very existence being there is threatening her future plans.

"NO! Wait, I mean, you can stay....... not in my lodgings, I hope?" she asked naively assuming that the butler of hers was there solely for her hence have not secured any other means for himself.

"Where would a butler be if not by my lady's side, then?"

"Uh... it's small, cramped, and I was actually planning on leaving this place since my apprenticeship is over."

Iuvenis halted her speech for a while. She had felt the ominous feeling of something bound to go wrong in her journey especially since her stay in Scirocco was a bit too peaceful.

"The Master kindly let me stay for a bit, but there's trouble brewing here.... you're gonna follow me out too?" she said, suddenly thinking of the benefit of this arrangement, "You.......... really not gonna report me back?"

She tried her best to observe the buttler, but she has known him since she was a baby (or the other way around) and she never could tell what he's thinking. For a mere buttler, his intentions are often well hidden. She suppose it makes sense, given how they shouldn't show any disagreeable opinion of their masters if they have any.

"If my lady would allow me to, I shall not report my lady's whereabouts." The butler then sigh. "After all, I would like to keep out of trouble as well."

He smiles at Iuvenis.

Iuvenis eyes sparkles at the thought of a companion who is not only reliable but best of all, knows the kind of secret she keeps and wouldn't report it to both authority and family. Perhaps it was naive of her to think so, but Iuvenis were swayed easily by the butler's words.

"Well Nil," she said, "I'm not my lady if you want to travel together,.."

She paused and looks around. Gesturing to Nil to arch himself to her height, she then whispers, "And... I'm also not that."

Nil clasped his own hands, his smile still etched on his lips.

"What would my lady prefer to be addressed as, then?"

"I still go by Iuvenis. You can call me any-" she stops. Her face twitches as she recalls some unpleasant memories. Prodigium verbal abuse still fresh in her memories despite not seeing him for more than 3 years.

"Just Iuvenis will do. Master calls me...." Iuvenis laughs midway. "I have a master now, Nil. How the tables have turned."

"Temporarily though. If you don't serve me now, we're just two free companions, no?" she grins at Nil.

Nil takes it all in without queries, as all butlers do.

"If my..." he stops himself before continuing. "...please forgive me...Iuvenis. I'd have to get use to this, I suppose."

"That you do."

After they have established some kind of informal companionship contract, Iuvenis noticed that Nil was not alone the whole time.

Iuvenis glanced at the man slightly taller than Nil, in a strange outfit, with an instrument hanging on his side. The man was just listening silently that for an instance, it gave Iuvenis the creeps.

"Who's he?"