I feel dizzy. It feels like I want to throw up but I can’t. Everything is like a blur, faces of numerous people pass by but I can’t see a single one of them. All that’s in my mind are the angry faces of the people at the archery range.

  I didn’t even notice Rayla approaching me until I feel her hug me, “Thoma, are you okay!?”

  “I…I don’t know.”

  Sher Aka approaches me and pulls out a handkerchief to wipe the spit off my face, “How are you feeling?”

  “I don’t know…I…Sniff…I…What did I do wrong?” I ask, tears streaming down my face as I break down.

  Rayla hugs me even tighter, “Oh Thoma…”

  “Why did they do that? Hic Why!? Waaaaaagh…What did I do wrong!?”

  Sher Aka then grabs my hands and looks me straight in my eyes, her eyes are determined but full of compassion, “Listen to me Thoma Ahad, you did nothing wrong.”

  “Then…Sob Why…Why did they do this? They were so kind before! Is it because I’m ugly?”

  “No. Thoma Ahad, sometimes you will just meet bad people. Often there are good reasons why they became bad or maybe they just have a bad phase but I want you to know that it’s not your fault. You did everything right and still these bad people did something bad to you. There was no good reason behind it.”

  “Then…Then what do I do? How can I protect myself?”

  “The best way to protect yourself is just to know that things aren’t always your fault. You won't always be able to protect your body but you can try to protect your heart whenever it does happen. No matter what others say, you have value Thoma Ahad. You’re not lesser than others and you deserve to be yourself just like everyone else.”

  “O-okay, thank you Aneka. I think…I think I feel a little better now. Can we go to the Inn now, ane? I think I want to wash up and go to bed early today.”

  “Of course we can, do you want me to give you a piggyback ride?”

  “Yeah…”

  “Alright, get on. Sorry about that but we’re gonna have to cut our hangout short today.”

  John answers, “Don’t worry about it, just get Thoma Ahad home. Those fuckers really did a number on him. He needs time to recover. See ya tomorrow at seven at the south gate.”

  “Yeah, see ya. Thanks for understanding.”

  Rayla then picks me up and together we go back to the Inn leaving John and Sher Aka to their own.

  —-------------------------------------------

  “He called you sister there.”

  “So it would seem.”

  “It would also seem like you didn’t mind that much.”

  “Well, it is also common to just call older women you like sister.”

  “Do you think that’s how he meant it?”

  She lets out a sigh, “No…”

  “Then did you dislike it?”

  “I’m not sure but I don’t think I did. Though it was certainly unexpected.”

  Seemingly a bit relieved, John continues, “I'm glad you are okay but...Look, I get he’s childish but he’s an adult man, you treat him like a kid.”

  She gives him a slightly glum expression, “No…He isn’t childish, he is childlike. You haven’t grown up around many Elves so maybe that’s why you don’t understand but I feel like I’m talking to a child when I speak to him. Both his mannerisms and his manner of speech scream ‘This is a child!’ to me. Honestly, it’s very jarring for me to witness this disconnect between an adult and capable man and this personality. If it weren’t for his curse bridging that gap for me I would not want to associate with him.”

  “Still, no matter what or who he really is, right now he is a grown ass man and you should treat him like one.”

  “I wonder about that…John, do you think you would have grown up well if I had treated you like an adult when I took you in?”

  “Probably not, but that’s different.”

  “Why? Because you had the appearance of a child?”

  He answers confidently, “No, because I was a child. You can’t know whether he is one or not, you’re acting on a hunch which is very uncharacteristic of you. Right now, he is just an adult human man and I’ll treat him like that until I find reasons not to.”

  “I understand your point of view but I wish to follow this hunch of mine further. You’re right that it’s unlike me but that is exactly why I want to find out why I feel so strongly about this person I have just met that I would not go by my usual principles.”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Do whatever you want, just don’t go crying to me when you get proven wrong. I don't want you to get hurt Sherry.”

  Sher Aka gives him a gentle smile, “Say…John, do you still gamble?”

  “On occasion but I try to keep it as a rare thing.”

  “Would you like to make a bet with me? I bet that when we do lift his curse he’ll be an Elven child.”

  “Fine, then I’ll bet he won’t be. What is the wager?”

  “Hmm, how about a kiss on the cheek? You’ve grown up to be such a grumpy adolescent, so if I win you’ll give me a kiss on the cheek whenever I ask you to and I get to kiss you whenever I want to as well.”

  “Fine, but if I win, you are not allowed to joke about my hair styling for the next thirty years.”

  Seriously thinking about it, Sher Aka answers, “You strike a hard bargain but I accept.”

  —---------------------------------------------------

  The next day, Rayla and I meet in front of the south gate and shortly after John and Sher Aka show up as well, “Yo! Have the clients shown up yet?”

  “Nah, not yet. We came here early,” Rayla answers.

  “Yeah, we wanted to make sure you guys found us okay.”

  John then throws his arm around me, “Gotcha. How’re you holding up Thoma Ahad? Did you manage to sleep it off?”

  “Yeah, haha. I guess I did.”

  “Good, best to think about these guys as just a bunch of dirt not worth remembering anyways.”

  “Well…I’m not sure I can do that yet…”

  “And you don’t have to,” Sher Aka says with a smile, “It takes time, there is no need to feel rushed. You’re allowed to feel vulnerable.”

  “Thank you Sher Aka, for yesterday too. The things you said helped me feel a lot better the more I thought about them.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  Rayla interrupts, “Looks like our clients are here…Geez, they look like trouble.”

  A handsome human with blonde curly hair, who looks like he is in his early fifties, wearing expensive looking clothing approaches the meeting spot with a wagon full of live pigs crammed into a space way too small for them. He is surrounded by two shabby looking Orcs.

  After looking around, he gets a bright smile on his face and walks right towards me, “You must be Mr. Ahad.”

  “Uhm, yes. I’m surprised you know of me.”

  “Oh don’t worry, I have heard a lot about you.”

  Rayla then walks up to the merchant, “Hello, you’re Mr. Jones, right?”

  “Actually, no. I’m Mr. Jones’ employer. There were some last minute changes and as such I’d like you to send these wares to Rostock instead. I have the paperwork for the changes right here, it has all been approved by the guild.”

  Rayla takes a look through the paperwork, “Alright this seems in order. So, you want us to bring these pigs to Rostock?”

  “That is correct. Don’t worry, it’s not going to be much of a change, the two farmers I hired will take care of the livestock on the way.”

  “Hmm…Sir, are you aware that the Forestorcs are currently in their mating season? Having two Orcs with us on the path might provoke them. I doubt they’ll know the difference between regular Orc males and their own species when they’re in heat like that.”

  Answering gently in a kind tone, he says, “I know it might be a bit more difficult but these pigs were raised by them, I doubt they’d stay calm on the trip without them. If you don’t feel confident enough though, I can just repost the quest for a higher rank and cancel this one. That would cause it to be counted as a failure for you though.”

  “Hmm…No it’s fine, we’ll take it. We have double the adventurers now after all so we should be fine.”

  “Is that so…Either way, I wish you luck.”

  “Thanks.”

  The rich looking merchant then leaves and Rayla tells us, “Alright guys. Seems like we have a slight change of plans. We’re going to escort these pigs instead of the original caravan because our client's boss needed to do some reorganizing. I have the paperwork here and it's been approved by the guild so we should be fine even if it is a bit more difficult than anticipated. Now, originally I wanted to do this yesterday but let's do a bit of a strategy meeting. In case a fight breaks out I think it might be good for Thoma to take on his role as an archer for the first time in live combat. We have you as our shield now Sher Aka so you should be able to distract them while I rip out their throats. John, you specialize in support magic, right? What can you do specifically?”

  “I know Minor Heal, Minor Cure, Light, Blinding Light, Shadow Trip, Dark Cloud and Life Transfer. Minor Heal allows me to heal small wounds and assist in the healing of bigger ones, Minor Cure lessens toxins and disease in the body, Light creates a ball of light, Blinding Light creates a flash of light to blind multiple people, Shadow Trip uses the targets shadow to form a string that makes them trip, Dark Cloud functions like a magical smoke bomb and Life Transfer allows me to transfer vitality from one target to the other but I need to be close to do it as an attack.”

  Rayla thinks for a bit then answers, “Okay, so John, we’ll keep you in the back near the wagon. In case of an attack I want you to use Shadow trip when the enemy is charging at us. If there are multiple, I’d like you to focus on the one that looks the strongest. When you use Blinding Light, I’d like you to loudly yell ‘Cake!’ before you cast it. That way we know to close our eyes and the enemy will be confused and hopefully look at you, increasing the effectiveness of your spell. In case of any of us being struck unconscious I’d like you to retrieve the body but unless the wounds are life threatening or you’re able to quickly get us back to fighting, I don’t want you to spend your time healing until the end of the fight. We will need the utility from your spells. In case of us needing to retreat, I’d like you to cast Blinding Light followed by Dark Cloud. Any objections or questions?”

  “No…You’re surprisingly good at this Rayla.”

  “You can flatter me after we’re done with the strategy meeting. Sher Aka come with me, let’s make sure the wagon is without any major damage.”

  Taking me to the side, John seems impressed as he says, “Woah, hey Thoma Ahad, does your sister become a different person on the job or something?”

  “Nope, she’s still herself, this is just another side of her. She’s actually pretty good at planning ahead and takes adventuring very seriously. She always makes sure everything goes extra smoothly after what happened at our first quest.”

  “What happened during your first quest?”

  “I nearly burned to death, thankfully Rayla carried me on her back and ran for almost an hour straight to get me back to the guild where a water mage saved my life.”

  “Huh…Was it really that close?”

  “Yep, that’s why in Rostock they call me Charcoal, apparently I was burned down to my muscles when I arrived.”

  “Fuck man…How did that happen?”

  Looking away from John towards Rayla, I recall, “Well, I was very inexperienced and we went hunting for an injured Ruby Gnome. I got caught off guard and ended up in its fire tornado. I then used my last strength to hold it down while Rayla finished it.”

  “Aren’t those guys extremely hot to the touch?”

  “Yeah, like a hot stove.”

  “That’s hardcore, man. And you decided to keep adventuring after that?”

  “Yeah, I wouldn’t be able to make Rayla’s dream come true if I stopped there, also I was fully healed so there was nothing holding me back from getting back into it.”

  “You are surprisingly cool, you know that?”

  “Pfft, you think so?”

  “Yeah, I wish I had that sort of determination.”

  “Guys! It’s time to go.”

  “Coming! Come on John, it’s time to go.”

  “Yeah.”