Troubling A Friend With Responsibility
Francis couldn’t shake the knight’s warning.
“Don’t cross Reina… for she walks with the child with a horn.”
So Reina wasn’t alone.
The thought followed her all the way to the guild doors.
When Francis pushed them open, she and Callahan nearly collided with four individuals entering from outside.
“Sorry,” Francis said immediately.
“No, no—it's our fault,” the group answered quickly, almost too politely.
Francis gave a brief nod. “Take care.”
She stepped aside, but her eyes lingered.
Leading the group was a demihuman—dog-blooded, yet… not like any she’d seen before. His features were refined, almost human, as if something had polished him into a new form. Behind him, three human girls walked close together.
It wasn’t every day you saw a demihuman move through a human crowd with that kind of quiet certainty.
Francis watched until the four disappeared into the guild hall.
Then she turned and left with Callahan, her thoughts returning to horns, flame, and the word that kept circling back like a curse:
Reina.
※※※
Inside the guild, the stir in the hall drew the reception staff like moths to light. A receptionist, flustered, hurried to fetch the Guild Master.
By the time Shugal came downstairs, the cloaked people the staff had been worried about were already gone.
“Alright,” Shugal asked, voice steady, “what’s going on?”
“There were people in cloaks interacting with that man over there,” a receptionist said, gesturing nervously, “and it looked like they were about to fight. That’s why I called you.”
Shugal scanned the hall. The cloaked troublemakers had vanished into the city like smoke.
Only the knight remained—alone.
Shugal squinted. A wave of familiarity hit him as he looked at that knight.
He dismissed the thought for now and turned back to the staff, keeping his back to the crowd.
“It looks like they’re gone,” he said. " Everybody, back to work.”
“Guild Master—look,” the receptionist whispered, pointing behind him.
Shugal turned.
His brows lifted.
In the hall, a demihuman with the three human girls behind him—human girls, was approaching the reception desk. He was in front as if he led the girls into the guild as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
It was unprecedented. And all eyes in the hall turned toward them.
They reached the counter and stopped.
“Excuse me,” the demihuman said, voice calm. “I’m looking for Guild Master Shugal.”
“That would be me,” Shugal answered.
The demihuman spoke freely, ignoring the piercing gazes aimed at him. An evolved demihuman—if that was what he truly was—was not something you saw every day.
Some stared out of curiosity.
Some stared out of fear—fear of the unknown.
Shugal, however, was composed. His staff was the one struggling not to gawk.
The group had finally reached the guild. And the lives they’d been handed were about to begin in earnest.
※※※
A short time later, the three girls and the demihuman sat in the Guild Master’s office with Kierra present.
Shugal unfolded the letter they’d been instructed to deliver—the letter meant to grease the wheels of their new lives without too many questions.
He read it once.
Then again, slower.
Curiosity gave way to frustration, and at the end, he let out a long sigh that sounded like surrender.
He placed the letter on the desk and leaned back in his chair.
“Yep,” Shugal muttered. “This is Reina, alright.”
Kierra picked it up, read it, then laughed softly—more amused than surprised—before setting it back down.
The letter read:
------------------------------------------------------------
Hey, Shugal.
I know I said I was going to cause some mayhem at the Count’s manor, but I didn’t expect it to be this huge.
However, I did manage to save all my servants and some of the people the Count had enslaved.
With any luck, you will find documents at his manor that incriminate him in the slave market. But if you arrived too late to claim the evidence, worry not. Some of the people who wished to return home will be arriving.
If they want, they will tell you everything they know.
I imagine they’ll try to pin this whole thing on me, seeing as I’m related to royalty from another country. Don’t worry—cause it'll be the truth.
Anyway, the mess I made there in town—you’ll take care of it, right, my friend?
Although you don’t have a choice. After all, you’re the one who insisted I take that quest to the Zeus Woods, remember?
It’ll be some time before you see me again, so take care.
Oh—and those people have some flame manacytes. Buy them off if you can.
Say hi to Kierra, okay?
------------------------------------------------------------
For a letter asking for help, it was remarkably forceful.
No apology. No “please.” No “thank you.”
Just Reina tossing the burden like a snowball and expecting Shugal to catch it with his face.
It exhausted Shugal. It amused Kierra.
Shugal looked up from the letter, eyes settling on the demihuman and the girls.
“So…” he began, choosing his words carefully, “…you’re the people the letter mentions.”
Alois nodded, posture polite. “Yes. We were enslaved. Then we were saved by the Young Master.”
He swallowed, then introduced himself as if the name mattered more now that he was free.
“My name is Alois by the way. Alois Fugger.” He gestured to the girls beside him. “And these girls are—”
“I’m Callie!” the first said brightly, lifting her hand with a cheerful smile.
“Hi. My name is Oliva,” the second said, confident in a calm, nonchalant way.
The third hesitated, shrinking slightly behind her hair.
“Ah… I’m Serina,” she said softly. “N-Nice to meet you.”
Shugal’s gaze was intimidating without him trying. Serina’s eyes flicked up by accident and she stuttered. She was protected by her long black hair falling forward like a curtain.
Young Master…? Shugal thought.
He kept the question to himself.
“A pleasure to meet you, Alois Fugger, Callie, Oliva, and Serina,” Shugal said. “I’m the Guild Master here—Shugal. And this is my secretary, Kierra.”
Then Shugal straightened. "Now. If you want to open a case against the count, we can help you with that."
"I would rather not see that man again, thank you." Alois said, annoyed.
"Same," Callie added.
Oliva and Serina just look displeased with the thought.
They all hated Count Juliq Herlon, but they didn't want to associate with that man ever again at all cost.
"I see." Shugal blinked.
Then he diverged from that topic and added while picking up the letter as if he didn't understand the context.
“The letter also says you have flame manacytes I should buy from you…” Shugal said, eyes narrowing slightly. “May I see them?”
“Oh—right.” Alois reached down for a bag resting near his feet. “Here.”
He placed it on the table.
The wood vibrated from the weight.
Shugal flinched. Kierra did too.
“Alois,” Shugal said carefully, “next time… treat those with care, alright?”
“Oh. Right. Sorry.”
Shugal opened the bag.
Crimson light spilled into the office like embers. Flame manacytes—packed full, their red tint so pure it painted the room in a warm glow and reflected off Shugal’s shiny bald head.
Everyone stared.
Shugal reached in, plucked one out, and turned it between his fingers. It was long and wide.
“Such purity,” he murmured. “These are valuable… How can she just give them away like this?”
“Actually,” Callie said, leaning forward like she couldn’t hold it in, “they gave us those as a parting gift. There are a lot where those came from.”
She said it like it was normal.
Like wealth that would change lives was something you handed out with a smile.
Shugal’s gaze sharpened. “You don’t say…”
Then he straightened, business returning to his voice.
“We’ll be happy to purchase these from you.”
“Really?!” Callie beamed. “Thank you so much, Guild Master!”
Shugal was about to speak terms—
“Wait.” Alois stepped in, suddenly firm.
The shift was immediate.
A minute ago he’d been humble, careful, grateful. Now the merchant in him surfaced, eyes measuring Shugal like a scale.
The girls blinked, confused.
“Alois…?” Callie started, not understanding why he was stopping what looked like easy money.
Shugal paused. “Is something the matter?”
Alois held the guild master’s gaze without flinching.
“Forgive me,” he said politely, “but I am a merchant. And I know how valuable these crystals are.”
He gestured toward the bag as if it were a chest of gems.
“So I hope you won’t swindle us out of our fortune.”
Silence.
Shugal stared back, surprised by the sudden spine in the man’s posture.
Kierra broke it with a soft laugh.
“Fufufu… Don’t worry,” she said.
Alois blinked. “Hm?”
“Reina requested we buy them from you,” Kierra continued, smile easy. “There won’t be any swindling.”
Then she patted Shugal’s shoulder lightly, like she was presenting him as evidence.
“Even this mountain of muscle wouldn’t do that.”
“Heh…” Alois rubbed the back of his head, sheepish now that the tension had passed. “Apologies. My merchant’s intuition got the better of me.”
It wasn’t paranoia. It was survival.
Money always attracted people who wanted much and gave little, regardless of the emotions involved. Trust was part of trade—but trust only lasted when it benefited both sides.
“You almost cost us our deal!” Callie snapped, cheeks puffing.
“Calm down, Callie,” Oliva said, tone calm enough to be lazy. “It’s resolved. No need to blow your fuse.”
“Oliva, don’t tell me not to blow my fuse,” Callie shot back, stepping into her space. “What if we had lost our money?”
Oliva leaned back slightly, unbothered. “But we didn’t.”
While the two argued, Kierra returned with payment.
She placed four heavy bags on the table.
Clink. Clink. Clink. Clink.
“A hundred Ormsford gold coins per bag,” Kierra said.
Callie froze mid-argument, eyes going wide at the sound alone.
She snatched one bag, opened it just enough to see the glittering coins, then held it high like she was holding the sun.
Oliva accepted hers quietly and bowed once, respectful and composed.
Alois opened his bag, letting the gold’s reflection wash across his face, then closed it with a careful hand.
Then he cleared his throat.
“I appreciate doing business with you,” he said, voice steady again. A merchant to the core.
Serina held her bag with both hands like it might vanish if she blinked.
“Th-Thank you—very much,” she whispered.
Shugal waited until the excitement settled.
Then he leaned forward, elbows on his desk.
“Now that the money is settled… I have one final question.”
The room quieted.
His gaze fixed on Alois.
“What are you, exactly?”
Alois answered quickly. “I'm a demihuman of course.”
Shugal nodded once, accepting his words but not the mystery.
“Let me rephrase,” he said. “What kind of demihuman? I haven’t seen your kind before.”
His eyes shifted briefly to the girls, then back to Alois. “And you mentioned being saved by a ‘Young Master.’ What is that about?”
The question wasn’t rude. But it was sharp.
Alois didn’t answer immediately.
Callie, Oliva, and Serina fell silent too, watching him in order—each waiting for the same thing:
What do we tell him?
Alois’s throat tightened.
He had expected someone to ask eventually. He had even prepared a response. But not this soon.
“Wasn’t it mentioned in the letter?” he asked cautiously.
“No,” Shugal said simply.
He didn’t elaborate, didn’t offer a softer opening, as if he feared giving Alois a loophole to slip through. He wanted a straight answer to sate his curiosity.
Alois studied him.
I don’t know the depth of Miss Reina’s relationship with this man, he thought. So I have to choose what I reveal carefully.
If Reina didn’t write it in the letter, she must've had a reason. Letters could be intercepted. Copied. And exploited for leverage if it falls into the wrong hands.
Either way… the place we came from. The Young Master who saved us—should remain a secret for now.
Alois held Shugal’s gaze a moment longer.
Then he inhaled—ready to answer, but only with what was safe reveal.
“Sorry about that,” he said calmly. “As I said, I’m a demihuman—but as you can see, I’m not like the demihumans you normally see today.”
Shugal straightened in his chair. “I don’t understand…”
“What I’m saying is…” Alois took a breath, then continued carefully, “…I was granted the family name ‘Fugger’ by the Young Master. And after receiving it… I evolved. Now I'm a Cynari.”
Shugal and Kierra both froze.
They were the only ones truly shocked. The girls had already lived through it. They had already watched the impossible become real.
“…Evolution?!” Kierra blurted, unable to stop herself.
"Cynari?" Shugal also blurted.
Callie, Oliva, and Serina didn’t answer. They simply let Kierra process the weight of what she’d heard.
Shugal’s eyes narrowed, curiosity sharpening into something heavier.
“Are you telling me,” he said slowly, “that receiving a family name made you evolve into a—Cynari, you said?”
His hand moved to his chin, gaze dropping as if he were turning the idea over like a coin.
“Now that I think about it… you’re the first beastfolk I know with a last name.”
“Yes,” Alois said softly. He closed his eyes for a moment. “And for that… I’m truly grateful to the young master.”
Shugal raised his head from thinking. He kept his tone controlled, but the hunger for an answer slipped through.
“So this ‘Young Master’ you speak of… he’s the one who gave you that name?”
Alois nodded once.
“Can you tell me more?” Shugal pressed. “What happened exactly?”
Alois lifted both hands, palms out.
“I’m afraid I must stop there.” His tone remained polite, but firm. “Information is a merchant’s greatest asset.”
Shugal’s brow furrowed. “So you want payment.”
Alois shook his head immediately.
“No amount of money in the world would make me sell out the Young Master,” he said, sharp enough to end the thought. “Even a merchant knows when to speak—and when to keep his mouth shut.”
The refusal was non-negotiable. It was loyalty.
Shugal’s gaze shifted to the others. “Is it the same for you ladies?”
“I’m afraid so,” Oliva said first, calm and certain.
“The Young Master is our savior,” Callie added, bright voice turning serious for once. “Unless he tells us to speak, we won’t betray his kindness.”
Shugal watched them for a moment longer, then exhaled and leaned back.
“I see…”
He didn’t push. Not because he wasn’t curious—but because he understood that forcing it would only make them close up tighter.
“Well,” he said at last, “it seems we’re done here.”
“Thank you so much, Guild Master,” Alois said, standing and bowing lightly.
“No problem,” Shugal replied, rising as well.
Alois turned to go after shaking hands, but Shugal stopped him with a quiet call.
“Alois.”
“…Hm?”
Shugal’s tone lowered. Not threatening—warning.
“I won’t be the only one curious about you. So be careful.”
Alois paused.
“If you ever run into trouble,” Shugal added, “the Adventurers’ Guild is here to help.”
“I will,” Alois said. “Miss Reina said the same thing.”
Shugal blinked. “Oh?”
Alois gave a small smile. “Goodbye, Guild Master.”
And he left.
His last words only deepened the feeling in Shugal’s chest that this was another one of Reina’s storms—something she’d reveal only when she decided it was time.
Shugal stared at the closed door.
“I can’t believe there’s someone with the power to name and evolve a demihuman,” he murmured.
“I can,” Kierra said lightly. “Reina is involved.”
Shugal let out a slow breath. “Yeah. Reina…”
His eyes drifted as if he were looking into the future—and not liking what he saw.
“Let’s prepare for the worst,” he said quietly. “Trouble loves that girl.”
The meeting ended.
The guild gained a heavy supply of flame manacytes, and the group gained enough gold to restart their lives.
But Shugal was left with something heavier than curiosity. Questions that felt dangerous.
※
Outside, the street sunlight hit different.
Alois stood as if he were anxious to start walking—impatient to get home and show his wife the new cooking ingredients he had. The girls—also carrying their bags of raw food—lingered by the guild doors, suddenly unsure of what “freedom” was supposed to look like tomorrow.
“I guess it’s time for us to part ways,” Alois said.
“Yep…” Callie answered, but her voice carried the sting of it.
“So what are you going to do now?” Alois asked.
Callie thought for half a second. “We’re thinking of becoming adventurers. I heard the guild offers training too.”
“I won’t be doing any of that,” Oliva said flatly.
Callie turned on her immediately like a puppy with teeth.
“Oliva!”
Oliva sighed, already tired.
Callie wrapped her arms around Oliva’s shoulders and squeezed, talking fast and bright, applying pressure the way only cheerful people knew how—until Oliva finally gave up with the expression of someone surrendering to weather.
Callie spun toward Serina.
“You’ll join us, right, Serina?”
“I-I don’t know…” Serina hesitated, shrinking under the spotlight.
Even after everything they’d survived together, Callie’s energy was overwhelming—like sunlight in the eyes of someone used to darkness.
Alois stepped in gently.
“Why don’t you come work at my wife’s diner?” he offered. “I think you’ll like it. It can be a little loud sometimes. But it's a safer option than being an adventurer.”
Serina blinked.
Then, slowly, she nodded.
“…O-Okay.”
Relief softened the group at once.
“Great!” Alois said warmly.
With that decision made, the tension melted into something lighter. Serina would be with someone they trusted. And Callie and Oliva would have each other—even if Oliva complained about it the entire time.
Alois and Serina turned to leave. Callie and Oliva remained by the guild doors.
They waved to each other.
It wasn’t a goodbye forever—just a pause. A short cutting of paths, for now.
