Chapter 13:

The Grand Council

Warpainter: From Office Workers to World Warriors


On the westernmost part of the continent, where the nightly moons bathe the land blood red, a large stone building lay within the central part of the city. The outer parts of the building were adorned with Valmanhyn banners depicting a mighty wolf in black ink. The path leading to the building was lit with torches, and the thick double wooden doors were reinforced with steel hinges. Within the confines of the building, a red carpet traced the path from the entrance to a large, rounded stone table. Within the room were several people shrouded by darkness, conversing.

“The new hero has been invited to attend Valmanhyn.” One man spoke in a confident and heavy voice.

“Good. The news of the hero's coming will raise the morale of the citizens.” Another spoke. “The number of monsters has been increasing lately. Even though she’s been dealt with, she still has an iron grip on the world.”

“Dealt with?” Another man laughed. “That was only a half measure. The real problem is half-assed heroes who don’t get the job done! Rosso was a commoner, same like this new hero. It only serves to undermine our positions of power. Not to mention them not even finishing the job. You can’t trust a commoner to do a noble’s job.”

“Thee gods made thee’ choice. They know who is worthy. Rather than try to turn thees’ into an issue of nobles versus thee commonfolk, we should bee’ thinking on how to rally thee people and support thee’ hero.” Another man spoke with a heavy accent.

“I agree, the whole point of inviting them here is to teach them swordsmanship so they have the skills to carry on their journey.” The first man added.

“Agreed.” The fourth spoke.

The third slammed his hand on the table.

“We don’t have time to wait for when they’re ready. Malady is destroying the land! Monsters are ravaging our countryside! How much longer should we wait until there’s an uprising?! There’s no one suffering more than our people!” The third exclaimed.

“I intend to make full use of our resources to resolve these issues.” The first states.

“For all our sakes, I hope you do,” the fourth added. “Anything can happen in these turbulent times.”

Meanwhile, after their battle with Gigantomothia, they were given time to rest and recover. Leo was given the first use of the bath. The bath was divided into two sections: the main bathing area and the undressing area, which was blocked by frosted glass, making it impossible to see inside. Having already washed his body, Leo was lying in the bathtub, which was made entirely of wood, yet was incredibly smooth and fragrant. Multiple scars on his arms and the lash-like burns on his lower body remained. He was gently resting his body in the warm water and let out a sigh of relief.

Thud.

The door to the undressing area opened, and Arte walked in. Leo could hear the light tap of her footsteps and knew it was her.

“No peeping.” He says nonchalantly.

“As if I wanna see that birthmark on your butt again.” She says before sitting with her back to the bath door. “I wanted to talk about a few things.”

“Sure. What’d you have in mind?” He asks.

“With Gigantomothia down, we’re done with training, so we’ll have full freedom to explore for a bit.” She explained.

“Ah, right. We’re technically done with the prologue.” He added.

Right. I was plotting our travel path. So on the way to Valmanhyn, we can probably fit a dungeon in on the way.” She says.

“But there are two, right?” He asks.

“Yeah. The Siladhi Sanctum and Seabreeze Alcove. Personally, I’d prefer it if we went to Seabreeze. There’s less risk on our end, and the loot isn’t all that bad.” She suggested.

“You’re willing to pass up on skill cards?” Leo questions.

“I’d rather not risk our lives for them.” She admitted.

“But think of how much of a come-up it would be!” He exclaims. “The extra skills would give us a leg up in chapter one.”

“Don’t forget the loot in Seabreeze, its accessories give pretty good effects.” She explained.

“But the boss there is for babies.” Leo groaned, leaning back in the tub.

She clicked her tongue.

“Have any of the bosses we fought gone completely according to script?” She asks.

“Hm… Crap, you’re right. Even so, those skills I can’t afford to pass up on them.” He firmly asserted.

She leans her head back against the glass.

“What skills are they, anyway?” She asks.

“Well, it’s random. B-but it does have a chance of giving up to a tier four skill!” He explains.

“So you were hoping to gamble with our lives…” Arte groaned. “We’ll never agree on this.”

“Then, let's just do both. We have to make it to Valmanhyn in ten days. It takes 5 days to get there, right?” He questioned while getting out of the bath.

“That's if we kept going with no breaks, but sure. Technically speaking, it’s possible to make it.” She says.

“See, there’s the answer right there. Boom, signed and sealed.” He spoke while drying off.

“Geez… Just hurry up and get out of the bath, you’re gonna use up all the firewood being in there.”

“I’m already out.” He says.

He opens the door, and she falls backwards onto the bathroom floor. She sees Leo wrapped with a towel around his waist, but being on the floor allows her a glimpse underneath. Her face gradually turns red as steam escapes her ears.

“Leo! I don’t wanna see your junk!” Her voice lowers to a very low whisper before speaking again. “Right now.

“I told you not to peep...” He shot back teasingly. “How was I supposed to know you were so close to the door? It was completely foggy in here.”

She raised her finger in protest, lowering it as she realized he raised a valid point. The steam in the room filtered out as she sighed.

“Just finish up in here.” She said and left the bathroom. She stood with her back to the door for a few seconds, taking a deep breath to compose herself.

"I'm taking a cold shower tonight..." She thought.

After finishing up their baths and using the pajamas that Sky lent them, they came downstairs into the dining room.

“Alright, I’ve set you both up with some supplies for the trip. Also, some funds.” Sky presented.

On the dining room table sat a pair of long knapsacks with large carrying capacity and two modestly-sized bags of crownes, the universal currency of Crystal Quest.

“Thanks, Sky! But are you sure you wanna give us so much money?” He asks.

“Yeah, this is the average commoner’s yearly spending amount.” Arte calculated.

Leo looked over at her and nodded in agreement immediately.

“Yeah, that too.” He pointed.

“It’s nothing. This is money from the processed materials of monsters you’ve slain. Also, here. I fished up that spider you killed and found this on it.” Sky explained. “Pretty clever way to take it down despite the difference in strength.”

She tossed them a pair of rings, which they each caught.

“As long as you both have those rings on, you’ll be able to communicate mentally,” Sky explained.

Leo’s expression beamed as he looked over at Arte. She smiled widely back at him.

“Thanks! It was practically tearing me up inside that it’d go to waste down there.” Leo says.

“Yeah. I honestly never expected it to come back like this. Thank you.” She thanked.

“I wasn’t the best teacher, but I wanted to at least do something for you both.” She admitted.

Leo grabbed her hands.

“Don’t say that. Rather than hold our hands the whole time, you threw us straight into the fire. It's much better to experience directly and learn for ourselves how it is. You’re the best!” He smiled.

Sky’s eyes widened, and her mouth was left agape. It took her a few seconds to regain her composure.

“Leo, you shouldn’t get so close to women you don’t plan to court. They might get the wrong idea.” She says.

Leo released her hands.

“Whoops, sorry!” He says.

“Don’t be, you could get away with more, with me at least.” She winked. “If I were a few hundred years younger….”

“Why would that matter?” He questioned honestly. “You look pretty enough as you are.”

Sky glanced at Arte and grinned, holding back a snicker.

“Alright, Leo, we get it.” Arte pouted.

“C’mon, I was just thanking her,” Leo responded.

“Tell her you’ll blow her back out while you’re at it.” She muttered to herself.

While Leo and Arte conversed, Sky recalled her days within the hero’s party. Lively conversations like this were the norm. She looked at Arte and Leo, seeing the previous hero transfixed over Arte and her over Leo.

“Rosso, your legacy lives on through these two.” She thought.

“There’s one more thing I want to give you,” Sky says.

She steps out of the room for a moment and walks in carrying an item wrapped in a dusty, white cloth.

Arte and Leo look at one another.