[S1] Chapter 1: Exposed

What a life, standing around, waiting for the end of the day, and getting paid for it. Maybe it's a bit boring, but so what?

With just under an hour to go until closing time, I can hardly wait to get home, jump in the shower, and wash the smell of cigarettes out of my hair. I don't think I've been doing this job in the pub long enough to be able to ignore it yet. This local is right next to the train station in our small town. I get the feeling that only the same regulars are visiting. Luckily, I get along well with most of them. But I'm unlikely to convince them not to smoke in here.

The store does exude a somewhat intimidating atmosphere that doesn't strictly invite you to drop by for a drink. Sometimes, even I wonder how the store manages to survive with so few customers. Fortunately, I don't have to worry about that; my salary is always on time. I like it here.

Most of the time, I just stand behind the counter and listen to the guests complaining about their lives, mix cocktails, serve beer, hand out snacks, and wipe the tables. It feels like I am just some part of the furniture, and nobody really cares about how I am doing or if something is bothering me, which is exactly what I want and need.

After graduating from high school three years ago, I earned money with various part-time jobs. The one in the pub is the first one that pays well enough to live from. I may not be able to save anything, but my future self can complain about that. I also think the boss pays me more than usual because he seems to like me. Mainly like a daughter, occasionally he might cross boundaries, but only verbally. I can deal with that.

My real father is well and alive, by the way.

Of course, I don't earn as much as someone with a better education. However, the idea of learning a profession and doing it until retirement is so scary that I never considered it. I'm somewhat of a born part-time worker. Yes, I know that I may sound a bit like a brat running away from real life, but I pay my taxes. Despite my young age, I am somewhat experienced in different ways of living.

Some time ago, I even started my own small business with nothing but my hands. One possible new client is sitting in front of me right now, and I can see the struggle on his face as he finishes his sixth drink tonight. I noticed how he often looks at my name tag when ordering. But although he frequently opened his mouth, not a word came out. I think I should help him.

"Can I do something for you?" I ask in a kind-hearted tone.

Looking up, he mumbles, "Your name is Kayla, right?"

"Yep."

He starts fiddling in his pockets until he gets a hold of a leather wallet. This dude's whole appearance screams rich salesman, and the two green 100€ banknotes he put down on the counter confirm that again.

I quickly put my hand on the money to prevent anyone from seeing it.

"You're sure?"

"Ever since I heard about you, I've wanted to experience it myself."

"All right. Meet me in the alley behind the pub in five minutes."

"Thank you."

I look around for my boss and find him sitting at one of the tables with another guest.

"I'll be outside for a minute, okay?"

"Sure," he replies briefly, glancing past me for a moment to look after the guy staggering towards the exit.

My boss is also a customer of mine. After he told me about his worries about me regularly disappearing with random people in this alley, I confessed to him what I was doing. He was surprisingly understanding… almost delighted.

Slowly I make my way into the staff room and put the tip into my purse.

The alley where I will meet Mr. Salesman is just behind a door next to me. The place is packed with large garbage containers, which are suitable for blocking the view of the people walking around outside the pub.

Leaving the room a minute early, I find him leaning back against the wall, seemingly struggling to hold the contents of his stomach inside. I kill him If he pukes on me. Unwillingly, I imagine the scenario and have to gag a little.

As I approach him, he starts to unbutton his shirt. This looks not as sexy or exciting as you may expect because he visibly struggles to get the job done. The sight is so pathetic that I consider helping him for a moment. Despite his above-average looks, he's not my type at all... so I stand aside and keep watching. Hopefully, you don't get the wrong idea. I promise my good-paying side job is nothing naughty.

With his shirt finally opened, I put my right hand on his chest and close my eyes, trying to forget that sad display. I open them again and can scarcely see the green light I had imagined disappearing from my hand into his body.

"Your eyes are beautiful."

His unrequested compliment goes right past me. I swear I have no feelings here. I go total pro while doing this.

"The red suits you," he continues.

"Thanks," he wasn't the first person to say the exact same thing to me. Yes, it's always a bit unpleasant, but I can bear it.

My normally blue eyes turn red when I use magic. I've heard that this is the case among most mages. It doesn't hurt, but I feel a slight tingling sensation in them as my mana flows through my body.

The whole act of sobering him up takes about 20-30 seconds. In return €200 cash on hand. Can't complain about that, can I?

In the beginning, I had trouble using this spell because I had no idea what to do with my mana. However, after gaining experience in healing and drinking, I improved significantly.

"That's crazy. Can I get your number?" He asks in a low voice.

"No way, and off you go," but please keep spending your money on me, I think as I give him a slight push.

He sighs and walks away, somewhat disappointed.

After taking a deep breath before returning to the pub, I cast a routine glance at the end of the alley. I just want to ensure that my customer is gone, but I find someone with bright red eyes walking towards me instead.

I swallow loudly and can't move an inch. Depending on the other person's intentions, I could get into real trouble. That had never happened to me before. I had never been caught before. I felt so safe doing it out here.

But standing behind the containers... could this person actually see what we were doing? Maybe I should just go inside and pretend I'd thrown the garbage away. But my legs don't budge, even if I want them to.

Slightly shaking in fear, I wait until they stand right in front of me. To my surprise, it is a young woman, maybe around my age. This fact relaxes me a little... And red eyes really do look beautiful, especially paired with the black hair and pretty face of hers.

Not that it made the situation any less harmful, but my subconscious imagined a nasty-looking guy approaching me in such a scenario. And it's tough for me to be afraid of someone who looks so gorgeous.

Maybe I should stop staring.

"Good evening," her voice is calm and friendly, but I find it difficult to reply for several reasons.

Breathe in, breathe out.

"H.. How can I help you?"

"I've heard you are a healer."

I've never really been called that before. Where had she heard that? I would like to ask about that, but I can't get a word out. I have to concentrate more on not throwing up.

She knows I'm using magic, but I have no idea who she is or what she wants from me. I feel sick. This feeling of uncertainty is killing me.

Wait. Her eyes are red? She is also a witch, but I didn't see her using any magic. She may be part of some kind of magical police force that arrests mages without a license… people like me? Maybe she's preparing to catch me in case I try to run away.

I stare at the floor like a child caught stealing and shriek when she suddenly touches my shoulder.

"Are you okay? You look kinda pale."

I'm not okay. My brain is overstrained, and my head starts to hurt.

"Alright, I'll help you," I don't even know what kind of service she's asking for. She doesn't seem drunk or injured to me, but in cases like this, it's always intelligent to cooperate.

She chuckles. "Awesome, thank you."

"But as you surely know, this is not exactly legal, so we both could get in trouble," I explain with a shaky voice.

"What makes you think I want to do anything illegal? You basically want to be blackmailed, don't you?" If she wasn't so shamelessly good-looking, this grin of hers would definitely make me angry.

"Haha, yes," my heart is racing, and I look up to make sure she is not already calling the police, but all she is doing is smiling at me, almost as if she feels a little sorry. I'm unsure if she's playing me, but her expression is contagious. My cheeks tighten, and the corners of my mouth pull up. I'm uncertain whether I want to laugh or cry, maybe both.

"Okay, I'll keep this short. I want you to join the guild I work for. It's really the best option you have. We both don't want me to introduce you to any other."

Was the last part necessary? I watch her face slowly change. A shiver runs down my spine.

"Guild? Do you mean one for mages? Clearing dungeons and stuff like that?" Deep down, I suspect the answer, but I would like some confirmation from her.

"Give me your cell phone," she put her hand in front of me, ignoring my question, and without a second thought, I hand it to her after unlocking it. She could have simply asked me for my number, but this also works, I guess.

"You are on my side, right?"

"Here," she gives me my phone back and thinks about her answer for a remarkably long time... "Yes, I am on your side, but you have to contact me tomorrow. Otherwise, I'll reconsider."

"I will," probably not. I don't want to think about the consequences of my illegal healing sessions. Still, it can hardly be worse than going into a dungeon to fight monsters.

"See you, Kayla."

She beckons shortly, turns around, and walks away, leaving me standing here. What just happened? I want to go home.

"Yes, of course. See you," I whisper.

I wanted to ask her for her name and why she wants me, but I felt that I was not in a position to ask any more questions. Nobody will believe that story, not like I got anyone to tell it in the first place.

But I actually handled the conversation quite well, didn't I?

◆

"Kayla? Is everything all right?"

I nod halfheartedly. "Yep. I'm just a bit exhausted."

"Go home, I'll clean up the place."

No, I'll help you. That's what I'm supposed to say, but I'll just take up my boss's offer. "Thank you."

So here I am, walking home, staring at the number that girl gave me. Apparently, her name is Miko. At least, that is what she wrote in the contact info.

I am unsure if that whole guild stuff would lead to anything good, I definitely should delete her number, but something keeps me from doing so. However, join a mages' guild? Even without knowing precisely what they do, I know that this is not part of my future plans. There was a general idea in the public about what they do.

They are the ones who clean the dungeons before the creatures living in them can escape. Clearing means fighting and killing, in my case, probably dying. I don't know exactly what dungeons are, but you can enter them through portals that seem to pop up at random.

Many people believed that this was pure scaremongering. There hasn't been a single monster outbreak for over fifty years. The existence of these gates to these worlds has been clearly proven, but only the mages who are allowed to enter them learn what lies within.

Everything is too convenient. All this secrecy makes the taxpayers, who finance a large part of the mages' work, anything but happy.

As the daughter of a witch, I find it all rather exciting. But more as a spectator. Just because I can use magic doesn't mean I have to join a guild. The compulsory dungeon defense service for people like me was also abolished over ten years ago. Now, mostly one thing drove the mages into the dungeons.

Money.

I won't start turning my life upside down because of that. There's a reason why I never took the license exam. I don't want to have more to do with magic than I do now. Sure, I feel special because I have this ability, but why should I join a guild because of this?

There are active mages in my family, which must be enough. Not everyone has to use their talents for other people. I am no real witch. I am not even sure if I am allowed to call myself one. I never properly learned to use magic in the first place.

The idea of using my magic to heal random people without a license was born out of a lack of money and pure curiosity. And I blame my mother, who taught me the basics of healing when I was a small child.

At least my father insisted that I should enjoy a normal life, so I wasn't sent to a school for mages. And amid my friends, I could use my little magic without worrying. No one would have believed that I was a witch anyway.

Even now, it wasn't written on my forehead that I could use magic, but somehow, Miko found out about it. Of course, she found out, just like the guy from earlier had heard about me from someone else.

It's all totally fucked up. Why do I have to worry about all this? I've been so good at ignoring all these things my whole life.

But her guild is asking for my services. They want me for my healing. But why me? Aren't there any registered witches? Someone with experience?

Where am I actually? I'm not paying any attention to my surroundings. It's good that my subconscious knows where I live.

If I join a guild, I must stop helping drunk people in dark alleys. It does not sound that bad, but it is not that I dislike it, even though it's scary from time to time. I suppose I could always stop, but I wouldn't want to miss out on the money right now.

Am I really thinking about joining a guild?

The only nice thing tonight was Miko herself. She's unbelievably pretty, but I'm not so desperate that I'd join a killing squad just to befriend a hot girl. Okay, killing Squad might be a bit of an exaggeration. Although I wouldn't say I'm familiar with how guilds work, as far as I know, they're a pretty violent business.

How I am being recruited for this one seems a tad shady, but somehow it suits me. My illegal activities in an alley behind a pub don't exactly make me look unsuspicious.

Before I realize it, I stand in front of the apartment complex where I have lived for two years already. It is one of those unsightly gray blocks that make up a large part of most cities. Ugly, but serving its purpose.

Since the elevator has been broken for ages, I take the stairs that lead up to the outside of the building. Luckily, my apartment is on the second floor, which makes the climb bearable.

Within my four walls, my first destination is the kitchen. I'm not super hungry, but I want to shove one of those sweet, chocolate-filled croissants wrapped in far too much plastic into my mouth.

Nibbling on one of them while holding a second one, I walk into the bedroom, which is also my living room, and let myself collapse onto the bed.

I should take time to think about today again. But I can't wrap my head around what happened. In my defense, I just noticed that my heart is beating so loud and fast that it is hard to focus on anything else. According to Google, I definitely have a heart attack right now.

It would be lovely to talk about everything with anyone.

I'm curious what Mom would have told me, probably that I should do it and take this chance. She loved magic almost as much as she loved me, so it seems apparent that she would have talked me into doing it.

I could ask my Dad, but I'm unsure how he would react to a call in the middle of the night from his only daughter, who contacts him only once or twice a year after leaving him.

These thoughts are depressing. I'm pretty much alone in this, aren't I?

MIKO

She is completely lost. I've been secretly following Kayla for ten minutes, but I don't have to make much effort to avoid being spotted. Not once has she turned or looked around.

It was my guild leader's plan to recruit her, and it was my idea to do it this way. I thought it was more exciting to ambush and catch her using magic. But in the end, I almost feel bad for her. After all, she seemed pretty obedient. I never wanted anyone to join our guild in the first place, but I could probably work with someone like her.

I know that a healer is something very rare. Healing was scary for most magic users since you interfere with another human's body, somehow changing and speeding up biological processes.

The magic we use is mostly based on imagination; nobody knew exactly how it worked or what could go wrong, but the basis of healing magic was built more on the healer's feeling, which sounds absolutely nuts.

Our guild would profit massively to get someone like her in our rows. The whole strategy I worked out a week ago was a huge success if you ask me. I practically forced her to join us or at least talk to my leader, which was equivalent to joining. And with her choice of words, she played into my hands so much that I briefly got the feeling that she was trying to get blackmailed by me.

But honestly, this last week was the first time I wished to dive into a dungeon again. Killing monsters feels better and more relaxing than stalking someone. I consider truly apologizing to Kayla someday. If she manages to reach her home without getting hit by a car.

Oh, it looks like we've arrived at her apartment. It would be fun to see how far I could follow her before she discovers me, but I think she has enough to digest for one night.

I open the maps app and save in my current coordinates, just in case she doesn't contact me. Wait, I act pretty creepy, don't I? Cornering her in some dead end, following her home, saving her location… the next step would be to search through her trash.

I know why I was doing all of this, but the police wouldn't really care. And I know how much the cops hate us witches. They'd love to get one over on me. That's why I'm going home now. I'm not so eager for problems, but what an exciting day. I can't wait to see her silly face again.

◆

Ah, screw you, Kayla!

After only sleeping for around seven hours, blurry-eyed, I checked my phone's display only to see that Kayla hadn't contacted me yet. I have no patience for that. Nothing was on my agenda for today except dragging her here, and I wanted to get that done as quickly as possible. I got ready, had a relaxed breakfast, and checked occasionally to see if she had messaged me.

With quick steps, I run down the stairs, searching for my lovely guild leader. I need some reassurance before I force Kayla out of her apartment.

"Good morning, Miko. How was yesterday?"

"…Great, do you know where Lilith is?"

"In her office."

"Thanks."

Determined, I enter the den of the person who had given me this annoying task.

"Good morning, Miko. How was yesterday?"

"What are you? Twins?" I grumble.

"Hm?" Her confused face is just as silly as Kayla's.

"Forget it. Your healer isn't responding. I told her to message me, but she didn't. Now I want to drag her here."

"How did she react to the offer in general?"

Good question... How did she react? Relatively positively, I would say. But I can't really remember what she said. The only thing that comes to mind is those strange faces she made.

"She may or may not want to work with us."

"What makes you say that?"

"You told me yourself that she's not registered. She doesn't have a license at that age. There must be a reason why she prefers to work in a pub."

"You just have to make her realize how special she is. If that doesn't work, try to make her realize how special you are. I would have done it myself if I wasn't convinced you could get her to join us."

I wish she had done it herself. I know first-hand how good she is at buttering someone up.

"Go now, I'm sure you will find the right words."

Yes, for sure, it's nice how much she trusts me to do her job.

"I want to meet her today. So, try your best, and don't scare her away."

I sigh and set off. Kayla lives about twenty minutes' walk away. I could take the bus, but maybe it's better to take the time to create some sort of plan. I should be careful not to tell her what I really think. Otherwise, I might have to start looking for a new healer.

Not that I'm seriously angry or that I'm that disgusted by the thought of a complete newbie joining us. But if she decides to become a witch, it will be painful for her and me.

Arriving at her apartment block, I take the stairs up and stop in front of the door she entered yesterday. I ring the bell and wait a terribly long time, but what's even more terrible is the face of the girl who opens the door, only to close it again immediately.

She reacted fast, and I only caught a glimpse of her. Oh boy, she looked really bad, as if she hadn't slept a single second bad.

So, I start talking to the closed door, "I'm sorry for just showing up. I want to apologize for yesterday and start all over again. Could we speak face to face, please?"

Man, I have no idea what's going on in her head, and I don't really feel like asking, but when I saw that tired face, I felt sorry for her.

And we need her, so I must make the best of it. I can convince her how much fun it is to be a witch. I can be the one to open up a new world for her and shape her into someone who can make a difference.

It's not that I want to take care of her, but I feel like I must.

Absorbed in my thoughts, I almost miss the part where Kayla opens the door and looks at me judgmentally as if she knows exactly what I've just been thinking.

"Come in," she says in a pained voice, and so I do.