[Name: Caliburn (Vessel), Nora (Former)

  Condition: Mended

  Rarity: Uncommon Sword (16 ATK)

  Skill(s): Spirit Vessel

  Quest 1: Bind yourself to an owner

  -->Status: Complete

  -->Reward: Cimed

  Quest 2: Recover from 'Battered' condition

  -->Status: Complete!

  -->Reward: Cimed

  [A 'mended' bastard sword, useful for its ability to be wielded with both hands or just one. There appears to be more to this bde than meets the eye… Currently owned by Grail Initiate Romeo.]

  ‘Oh,’ Thought Nora to herself, ‘I’m uncommon now!’

  It was something to be expected, after all, she was now a proper magic weapon. A sword capable of conducting mana was, although a rather standard attribute, in fact considered a relic. Furthermore, she was a named bde forged from ‘Dayne smithing techniques. Nora wasn’t too sure what that meant, but the smith Havel had definitely spoken like it was a positive.

  Dropping he train of thought she spoke aloud to Romeo.

  “The captain of the Grail Knights?” Asked Nora, admittedly curious, “Your boss?”

  After the first few story chapters of the game, all of the little world building bits and bobs got overshadowed by new adversaries and allies, so things like knightly orders and noble houses don’t really come up unless part of the main story. Resultantly, Nora knew next to nothing about any of the people in this small territory at the edge of the kingdom.

  “That’s right.” Said Romeo, although his voice seemed to be slightly graver than usual. Then again, his usual tone was rather sullen anyway, “After my father was forced into retirement because of the curse, Lord Arenberg hastily promoted the only suitable knight in the territory, Ramsey Wells.”

  “Tell me more about this Ramsey guy!” Responded Nora, eager to learn about the captain of a knightly order. “Is he strong, handsome, anything like that?”

  “He’s scum.” Hissed Romeo, completely failing to keep the hateful tone from his voice, “When he’s not beating the crap out of the other knights and initiates, Ramsey’s getting himself drunk at the cheapest brothel he can find. He thinks just because he’s young and talented, he can get away with doing anything.”

  Nora was taken aback; this was the first time Romeo had clearly expressed such distaste for someone. She couldn’t help but consider the possibility that Romeo’s anger came from Ramsey repcing Vergon, rather than his ineptitude as a Captain of the knights. After all, it was unlikely that a noble lord would let someone like that represent him.

  “…Really?” Said Nora, following up with, “And why are we meeting this guy in the middle of the night?”

  Romeo did not answer immediately. He continued walking down the dim road, the soft crunch of gravel beneath his boots filling the silence while the ntern light from the vilge slowly thinned behind them. For a few seconds his expression remained unreadable, his gaze fixed somewhere ahead as if repying an unpleasant memory.

  “Because he told me to,” Romeo said at st.

  Nora waited, sensing there was more to the story than that simple expnation.

  Romeo exhaled quietly through his nose. “Earlier today, before the wendigo attack,” he continued, “Ramsey called several initiates to the barracks. Said he had a ‘special assignment’ for anyone who wanted to prove themselves.”

  Nora immediately became suspicious. ‘Special assignment’ sounded like the sort of phrase that usually preceded either danger or stupidity. Often both.

  “And you volunteered,” she guessed.

  Romeo gave a faint shrug as he walked. “Not exactly. I was… encouraged.”

  That wording only made Nora more curious. ‘Encouraged how?’

  Romeo’s jaw tightened slightly, though he kept his voice level. “Ramsey has a habit of singling people out. If he thinks someone’s weak, or slow, or not pulling their weight, he makes sure everyone else knows it.”

  Nora processed that silently. The picture forming in her mind was becoming clearer, and it was not fttering.

  “So, he challenged you,” she said slowly.

  Romeo did not deny it. Instead, he shifted the sword slightly at his side, adjusting the grip so the newly repaired bde rested more comfortably against his hip.

  “He said if I wanted to prove I deserved to stay among the initiates,” Romeo continued, “then I should meet him tonight.”

  Nora frowned internally. ‘Deserved to stay?’ she repeated. ‘You’re already an initiate. That’s not something he can just take away on a whim.’

  “That depends on Lord Arenberg,” Romeo replied. “And Ramsey speaks for him when it comes to the order.”

  The road curved slightly as they reached the edge of the vilge proper. Ahead, the darker shape of a low wooden structure came into view against the night sky. Nora could just make out the outline of a training yard beside it, marked by a rough fence and a few practice posts pnted in the dirt.

  Romeo slowed his pace.

  ‘Let me guess,’ Nora said. ‘The “special assignment” involves you doing something incredibly dangerous while he watches.’

  Romeo’s lips twitched faintly at that.

  “Something like that.”

  They approached the gate to the training yard, the wood creaking softly as Romeo pushed it open. The interior was dimly lit by a single ntern hanging from one of the posts, its weak light casting long shadows across the packed dirt.

  A figure was already standing there.

  He leaned casually against one of the posts with the rexed posture of someone completely comfortable with the hour. Even at a distance Nora could see the glint of metal from the sword at his hip and the broad silhouette of a man built like a fighter rather than a noble.

  The man straightened slightly as Romeo stepped inside the yard.

  “Well,” the figure said, his voice carrying easily across the quiet space. “Look who actually showed up.”

  Romeo stopped a few paces from the ntern light.

  “Captain Wells.”

  The man pushed himself away from the post and stepped forward into the glow. He was younger than Nora had expected, perhaps in his mid-twenties, with sharp features and a confident smile that did not quite reach his eyes. A faint scent of alcohol drifted through the air as he approached.

  Ramsey Wells looked Romeo up and down slowly.

  Then his gaze settled on the sword at Romeo’s side.

  “…You finally repced that practice toy?” he asked.

  Romeo’s grip tightened slightly around the hilt.

  “This will do.”

  Ramsey chuckled under his breath.

  “Good,” he said. “You’ll need a real bde for what I have pnned tonight.”

  “And what, Sir, exactly would that be.” Asked Romeo, forcing out the ‘Sir’ like it was poison.

  Ramsey’s smile widened slightly at the tone, though there was nothing friendly in it. He stopped a few steps away from Romeo, the ntern light casting a dull sheen across the metal fittings of his armour while his eyes lingered on the newly repaired sword.

  “Well now,” he said, rolling the word sir around in his mouth like a joke he appreciated, “someone’s feeling brave tonight.”

  Romeo did not respond.

  Ramsey studied him for another moment before letting out a small sigh and running a hand through his hair. “You know what the real problem is?” he said casually. “Your father.”

  Romeo’s posture stiffened almost immediately.

  Nora felt the change through the way his grip tightened on the hilt.

  Ramsey noticed it too.

  “Ah,” the captain said, chuckling quietly. “Still a sore spot, is it?”

  Romeo’s voice came out controlled, though the tension behind it was obvious. “My father has nothing to do with this.”

  Ramsey tilted his head slightly. “Oh, he has everything to do with this.” The captain began pacing slowly across the dirt yard as he spoke, his boots scraping softly against the ground.

  “See, when Lord Arenberg’s daughter fell ill, the household started getting desperate. Physicians, priests, travelling alchemists… Every one of them had some new theory about how to fix her.” He gave a short, dismissive ugh. “And wouldn’t you know it, one of them mentioned that powdered wendigo horn might help, something about regenerative attributes.”

  Romeo remained silent.

  Ramsey stopped pacing and looked back at him.

  “Now normally,” he continued, “when a noble needs something dangerous fetched from the wilderness, they send knights. That’s what the order exists for.” His smile thinned slightly. “Except before anyone could organise a proper hunt, your dear father decided to take matters into his own hands.”

  Nora felt Romeo’s hand tighten further.

  “He’s not a knight anymore,” Romeo said quietly.

  Ramsey nodded. “Exactly.” He spread his hands as if presenting the obvious. “That’s the problem.”

  For a moment the captain simply watched Romeo, enjoying the reaction.

  “A retired Captain,” Ramsey went on, “a man who supposedly can’t even use mana anymore… goes out into the forest alone and comes back dragging a wendigo horn behind him like it’s nothing.” He clicked his tongue in irritation. “Do you have any idea what that does to my reputation?”

  Romeo’s eyes narrowed.

  Ramsey pointed a finger toward his own chest. “I’m the captain of the Grail Knights. I’m the one who’s supposed to be protecting this territory. When something like a wendigo appears, I should be the one dealing with it.” His expression darkened slightly. “Instead, the story spreading through the town is that an old, half-cursed knight handled the problem while the captain sat around doing nothing.”

  The silence that followed was thick with tension.

  Nora began to understand exactly where this was going.

  Ramsey let out another sigh and rolled his shoulders as if the entire situation had become an inconvenience he was forced to deal with. “So,” he said finally, “I’ve got a bit of an image problem.”

  Romeo’s voice remained ft. “And you think I can fix it.”

  Ramsey grinned.

  “Now you’re getting it.”

  He stepped closer again, stopping just inside the ntern light where the expression on his face became clearer. Nora admitted, if it wasn’t for that mad grin on his face, Ramsey would be considered very handsome. His wavy golden hair was neatly combed backwards into a middle part, and the way the ntern light caught on his strands certainly matched his fiery orange eyes.

  “Word’s already spreading that a wendigo was spotted in the forest,” Ramsey continued. “Which means people are nervous. They’re expecting their brave Grail Knights to do something about it.” He tapped the pommel of his own sword lightly. “So, tomorrow morning I pn to announce that we’re unching a hunt. Captain Wells leading the charge.”

  Romeo folded his arms.

  “And tonight?”

  Ramsey’s grin widened.

  “Tonight,” he said, “we make sure there’s actually something for us to hunt.”