Chapter 3:

The Quiet One

A True Hero's form

The mercenary board sat behind the Guild building, nestled between two worn-down walls and surrounded by crates that smelled vaguely of fish and regret. It wasn’t exactly inspiring. A crooked wooden board held slips of parchment, most of them faded, curled at the edges, or half torn. A few names were scribbled in bold ink beside “NEEDS PARTNER.” Most of the jobs were vague.

Rat extermination. Escort duty. Cave scouting.

Nothing glorious. Nothing clean.

Lian stood there for a while, arms crossed, trying to look like someone who belonged. He didn’t. His clothes were still stained from the stables, and he hadn’t exactly learned how to walk like someone important.

But he had one thing going for him.

Determination.

“Looking for someone too?” said a voice.

It was so soft he almost thought he imagined it. When he turned, he saw a girl standing a few steps away, close enough to be heard but just far enough to stay out of reach. She was holding a slip of parchment, fingers clutched tight around the edges. Her hair was dark and unevenly cut, as if she’d trimmed it herself. Her eyes kept flicking down toward the ground, but she didn’t seem like she was going to run away.

“Yeah,” Lian said. “Trying to find someone who won’t get me killed.”

That made her lips twitch into something like a smile. Tiny, brief.

“Same.”

There was a silence. She wasn’t moving. Neither was he.

“…So,” Lian said, glancing at her parchment. “Need a partner?”

She nodded once.

“What’s the job?”

She held the paper out. It read:

Request: Escort a cargo cart to the village of Morten.
Threat level: low.
Reward: 5 silver.
Requires two or more people.

It didn’t seem too dangerous. Probably a test run for people like them.

“You don’t have anyone to go with?” Lian asked.

She shook her head.

“You been here long?”

“No.”

“New too?”

“…Yeah.”

Lian frowned. “You’re not Gifted?”

“I am.”

That gave him pause. “Really?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she looked at him, her eyes hesitant but not afraid. More like she was waiting to see what he’d do with the information.

“Huh,” he said. “Then why are you alone?”

“…People don’t like working with me.”

“Why not?”

She hesitated. “They say I’m too quiet. And too strange.”

He couldn’t tell if she agreed with them.

“Well,” he said, after a pause, “I’m not picky. Want to team up?”

“…Okay.”

He waited for her to say something more, but she didn’t.

“…What’s your name?”

She looked down, as if she’d forgotten to introduce herself.

“Mira.”

“I’m Lian.”

Another short pause. This girl didn’t waste words.

They went to register the request at the back desk. Mira did all the talking, brief and efficient. The clerk didn’t even blink at her presence, though he did give Lian a curious glance, like he was surprised someone had chosen to pair with her.

They met the cargo driver at dawn the next day. He was a round man with a hat that seemed too small for his head and a nervous twitch in his left eye. The cart was loaded with barrels, the kind that smelled faintly of pickled fish and old fruit.

“Just keep watch,” the driver said, tossing a rusty dagger onto the seat next to Lian. “Bandits sometimes try their luck on this road.”

Lian picked up the dagger and weighed it in his hand. It was heavier than he expected. Mira, standing beside him, had no visible weapon.

“Where’s yours?” he asked.

She looked at him, then opened her satchel just enough to show a small silver orb resting inside. Smooth, polished, not much bigger than a peach.

“That’s your weapon?”

She nodded.

“…What does it do?”

“You’ll see.”

That was either comforting or terrifying.

They set off down the dusty road, the wheels of the cart creaking under the weight. Mira walked slightly behind Lian, her eyes scanning the trees that lined the path. She didn’t talk, but she wasn’t exactly distant. Just quiet in a way that felt intentional.

After a while, Lian broke the silence.

“You’re not what I expected.”

Mira tilted her head.

“You said people thought you were strange. But you seem… normal.”

She didn’t respond.

“I mean,” he added quickly, “you’re not loud or flashy. But that’s fine. Honestly, kind of refreshing.”

Still nothing.

“…Unless your orb explodes or talks or something weird.”

That got the faintest laugh out of her. Just a breath through her nose. But he counted it as a win.

The road stretched for hours. A few merchants passed in the other direction, carts piled high with grain and cloth. No bandits. No monsters. Just dust and wind and the occasional birdcall.

Eventually, they rounded a bend and found three figures blocking the road.

All wore dark cloaks and mismatched armor. One had a mace slung over his shoulder. Another held a bow. The third, a woman with greasy hair and too many knives strapped to her chest, stepped forward.

“This road’s taxed,” she said. “One silver per wheel.”

Lian stepped down from the cart.

“We don’t want trouble.”

The woman grinned. “Good. Then you’ll pay.”

Mira stepped forward too. Quiet. Calm. Her hand hovered near her satchel.

The bandits didn’t seem impressed.

“What’s she going to do?” the one with the bow laughed. “Stare us to death?”

Lian’s stomach tightened. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do. He’d never fought anyone before. Never even punched someone.

Mira opened her satchel.

The silver orb floated up, slowly, spinning in the air. It emitted a faint hum.

The air shifted.

One of the bandits took a step back. “What the hell is that?”

The orb pulsed once. A beam of light shot forward, slicing clean through a nearby tree. The trunk cracked, splintered, and collapsed in a shower of leaves and dust.

No one spoke.

The bandits ran.

The orb floated back into Mira’s hand. She placed it gently into her bag and closed it.

Lian stared at her, wide-eyed.

“Okay,” he said slowly. “That was... not normal.”

Mira looked at him, almost apologetic. “That’s why people don’t team up with me.”

Lian blinked. “Because you cut trees in half?”

“No. Because they think the orb is cursed. Or haunted.”

“…Is it?”

She hesitated.

“…I don’t know.”

Lian opened his mouth, then closed it again. Then nodded.