The Achievement Junkie

As the sun rose, so did the party from their beds. Slivia, in particular, was anxious to hurry back and finally join the association.

The two young samurai took turns waking up and preparing for the day. By the time they had exited, Maynard was waiting for them in the hall.

"Are ya two finally ready?" asked the ronin.

"Of course, Master," answered the disciples.

"Good. We need to go find Rydel in the market. He's busy finding us some transportation."

"Where's Slivia?" asked Troni.

"Where do ya think she is?" replied Maynard, pointing to the door to the infirmary down the hall. "Where else would she be?"

"Cheer up man, you can't win them all," said Brunar, trying to encourage Troni.

"Just, let's get going." Troni didn't like to dwell on the topic of his romantic pursuits and changed the subject quickly. "You said we need to hurry, right? Well, let's go already."

"Ya sure are one to talk, considering we were waiting on ya," Maynard joked as he turned and began walking towards the exit of the guildhall.

"Maybe I can find another powerful stallion!" exclaimed Bruner. He ran past the other two and bolted out of the guildhall, excited to find Rydel and ask his help to choose a strong steed.

Troni sighed, surprised by how childish and strait forward Brunar was at times.

"Ya know why he's my favorite disciple, right?" Maynard's question caught Troni off guard, bringing him to shake his head. "It's because he acts like that; he hides nothing from himself or from others. Everyone that meets him knows exactly who he is after a single day."

"Yeah, if he's not busy inflating his ego or fawning over his growing fanbase," mentioned Troni as the two samurai exited the Balt Guildhall and began to walk the streets of Baltwood.

"True, but he'll outgrow that soon enough. He's just not used to people paying him any attention," stated Maynard. "But that's not true for ya. No matter the situation, you're always calm, cool, and collected. That's helpful at times, but no one can say they know the real ya."

Troni didn't reply. Instead, he kept his usual straight face.

"You were raised by your family to be like this, but that doesn't mean ya always need to be so calculating. That's why, despite your efforts, Brunar was and is my favorite disciple," explained Maynard. "If ya ever want to embrace the way of the samurai, you'll have to let go of things holding ya back and live your life as ya wish. Don't hide anything, because there shouldn't be a need to hide your true self."

"I get it, Master. You want me to be more honest with you and everyone else? I can be honest, but I don't need to explain myself to everyone or act like a fool, like him. What I do is reflected on my family; that's not something either of you can understand," said Troni.

"True, ya have a point. Just don't make the wrong choices based on your family's opinions and plans. They aren't ya, so ya shouldn't have to do what they say."

"I think I see the stables up ahead," said Troni. He ran ahead, heading straight for Rydel and Brunar, who were inspecting a large stallion.

Maynard sighed, unhappy that he again failed to get through to his disciple.

The ronin walked up to the others and gave his two cents about the horse they were inspecting.

After they all agreed, Brunar purchased the steed and Rydel purchased horses for himself, Maynard, and Troni. The hunter also bought a covered wagon and two horses to pull it.

Normally Rydel would never drop so much coin for the sake of luxury, but this was a special occasion with the bedridden Jack in mind. That, and they needed to hurry back to the capital before the Royal Court put more pressure on Zariff for not being able to produce the two adventurers in question.

After procuring their needed transportation and some basic supplies, they rode back to the guildhall.

As they neared it, they noticed Slivia exiting the building. She was followed by the goblin queen and captains, who were back under the illusion of the queen. The captains were carrying the unconscious Jack on a soft stretcher.

"Bring him here, it'll be much easier," said Rydel as he hopped off his horse.

The two goblin captains did as he said and carried Jack to the back of the wagon. As they loaded him up, Rydel asked the queen, "How was the discussion with Jard?"

"It went well enough. With a generous offering of azure clusters, we were able to settle everything. They'll come and retrieve the other survivors in a few days, after they prepare to receive them and help them recuperate," answered the queen.

"What are your plans now?" asked Rydel.

"What do you mean? Of course, I'm heading to Reinolt City with your party," stated the queen with a deadpan stare.

"Wait, what?"

"You heard me. We're going with you," repeated the queen.

"We?"

"Yes, my captains will be joining me as security. I know you won't do anything, but what about the Royal Court? I can't guarantee anything," explained the queen. "Besides, you'll be happy to have me in case the association decides to reveal the truth behind the Royal Court, right?"

"Well… You're not wrong, but I was planning to just call you if that happened," said Maynard.

"We won't stay for long, so don't worry. I just want to see the magnificence of the capital for myself; call it inspiration for what my city will become in the future," stated the queen. "I'll ride in the wagon, so it'll be like I'm not even there."

"And what about them?" asked Rydel, motioning toward her goblin captains.

"I'll buy a couple of horses. As part of the trade, we received some coin in case we ever needed to purchase anything from you humans." The queen flipped the palm of her hand up as a small bag appeared. It jingled as she threw toward Shlad. "Go get a couple of horses, we're making a detour to Reinolt City."

Without question, Shlad and the other captain left toward the stables.

Rydel was left up the creek without a paddle, having no way to stop the queen rationally. Sure he could threaten her with the association's name, but they had already promised not to harm them so long as they work together. Going back on that now, he would be no better than the Royal Court.

"Fine, you'll stay in the carriage, but you'll be in charge of watching over Jack," said Rydel, trying to find something for her to do.

"What?" Slivia commented after overhearing most of the conversation. The other had too, but she was the first to say something.

"Don't worry Slivia, she'll take good care of him. You'll drive the wagon, so you can keep an eye on her," explained Rydel. "The guards will ride on the side of the carriage, just in case something happens along the way. Who knows, maybe they'll be useful in the case of an ambush? No one knows what the Royal Court might do, considering the latest developments."

Everyone remained quiet and let that thought sink in. If the Royal Court knew about their invasion of the goblin city, would they try and stop them from returning to the capital?

"That's enough waiting; is everyone ready to go?" shouted Rydel, grabbing everyone's attention.

With only nods for responses, Rydel looked back to the queen. "Very well, please go find your seat. We'll pass the stables on the way out; your captains can join us then."

The queen said nothing as she lifted herself into the wagon and concealed herself within it.

Slivia hurried to the wagon, not waiting for the order. She hopped on and grabbed hold of the reigns. Glancing into the tent, she was startled to see the queen eyeing Jack.

The most shocking thing was the queen's gentle gaze, full of tenderness. By the look of it, the queen was genuinely worried about Jack. Slivia had no clue why, but she couldn't deny the queen's candid desire to care for him.

As the party turned around and neared the town's entrance, the goblin captains, still under the queen's illusions despite the distance, hurried to the wagon's sides. They had already heard the queen's orders through their contact crystals, so they immediately took their posts as the carriage guards.

Their exit was silent and uneventful, as most people were still at home or just barely leaving for the morning errands.

The party was soon on the road, rushing to reach Reinolt City by nightfall. They were all anxious for their own reasons. Some just wanted to rest peacefully in their beds, some looked forward to a new chapter in their life after joining the organization, and some were excited to get their first glimpse at the magnitude of a nation's capital.