Although she didn't particularly care either way, she ended up stepping behind the forge's curtains to try on her freshly adjusted armor. She didn't think it was necessary, but when the blacksmith saw the state of the armor he practically forced her.
"You didn't have to shove me behind the curtains—this place is as empty as always, you could've just turned around for a second."
She put everything on the way she usually did: first the chest plate, then the thigh guards, the fine gauntlets, and finally the boots. All the pieces with their usual pattern—a flowing, intricate design born from her blacksmith's aesthetic perfectionism. Fine leather covered some of her joints, and slyke hide lining protected everything underneath.
"I can't do that, little one—I've got other things to take care of here. Besides, what do you mean always? Looking for a fight?"
The curtains opened and a small girl with a wild, radiant mane of reddish tones stepped out from behind them, still adjusting her clothes. The blacksmith gave her a quick look before yawning as he polished a breastplate.
The girl looked at him, slightly irritated.
"My name isn't little one—it's Ryo. I earned that name so learn it once and for all. And you know you'd never lay a finger on me."
She paused thoughtfully, one hand on her chin.
"Though you're right, it's not always empty—I forgot Calin comes by sometimes."
At some point during her response she had jumped up onto the blacksmith's shoulders. The blacksmith didn't react to the small girl climbing up onto him, and sighed before answering.
"You want me to call you by your name? Stop calling me Tusky, little one…"
The girl hung from his shoulders with her legs, swinging a little. After a couple of seconds she climbed back down just as easily as she'd gone up and headed toward the weapons area.
"Never! Besides, you don't have a name—I wouldn't like just calling you 'the blacksmith.'"
Ryo gave one of the blades in front of her a quick once-over. The one she'd set down before getting changed.
"It's all I am, kid. I never got to earn a name."
The small girl spun around indignantly.
"Kid? I'm practically an adult already. And I'm technically your boss—show some respect." She huffed with an air of superiority after saying this.
Of course to the blacksmith she was just a kid—the stocky boar-man was a hulking brute on legs, with shoulders that made him look like a wardrobe and the height of one.
The girl picked up her own sword from a nearby table along with her belt and pouches.
"See you later, Tusky the blacksmith—I'm going to patrol the forest." She turned to leave but spun back around immediately. "Oh, and thanks for the armor—you outdid yourself. Though I was hoping for some kind of compliment when I came out from behind the curtains…"
'A kid, huh?'
Maybe she was letting the role get away from her—she'd spent so long playing the part of a child that she hadn't noticed when to stop. She could come across as too childish sometimes. So long there… She'd said it as a joke, but she was practically an adult now, a whole lifetime…
With her sword on the small of her back, she moved toward the door and raised her hand—where a moment later it was met with a collision that left it red. The gauntlets barely covered the back of her hand at all.
"Oh!" Calin brought both hands to his mouth for a moment and moved toward Ryo with visible concern as she shook her hand in the air. "Ryo, I'm so sorry! I was looking for you and figured you'd be here."
The boy grabbed her hand quickly in both of his.
"I came running and—"
Ryo put a hand on his head, cutting him off.
"I'm fine, Calin, don't worry." Ryo ruffled his blonde hair a little and the boy wagged his tail in relief. "What were you looking for me for?"
Calin lifted his head abruptly.
"I want to come on patrol with you! Please—I'm ready. I passed the trial, and Nex helped me memorize the forest." The small boy held a look somewhere between determined and pleading.
Ryo sighed.
"But you haven't even—"
"I have armor too! I asked Tusky for it a few days ago. I was going to show you yesterday but I couldn't find you!"
Ryo looked at him for a few seconds, studying him.
"Alright, no need to shout—I'll allow it. Get ready; we leave as soon as you've got your armor on and Tusky gives you a sword."
Calin looked at her with the wide-eyed excitement of a child on his face. Even so, if he'd already earned a name he was no longer considered one. Age didn't seem to matter in a meritocracy.
Ryo waited at the door watching as Tusky scolded Calin for using that nickname too.
***
Slipping through the bushes at high speed and leaping between trees from branch to branch, Ryo moved through the forest as if it were her own backyard. She kept to a pace Calin could keep up with, of course.
'Is it still okay to call him little? He's almost as tall as me…'
Flying between the trees, Ryo dropped down into a clearing. There she found a slyke—at least she thought it was one. The small fox had soft, ash-colored fur instead of the usual reddish brown, and unlike the rest, its tail split into four instead of three, making the "trident tail" part of the species' name somewhat redundant.
Calin landed beside her and crouched down to greet Nex.
While heading to a bush for some blood berries, Ryo studied the vines above them—they looked… cut. Who would take something like that? And how had they cut them given the acid?
Pushing that thought aside and ignoring the bones in the bushes, Ryo handed some berries to Nex and Calin.
"Question: why do we patrol the forest?"
Calin seemed caught off guard, but answered well.
"To maintain the balance and for safety."
Ryo smiled and ruffled the dog-boy's hair again.
"Very good! There are more berries here—don't eat them too fast."
And indeed they had to maintain the balance. The forest of Aedelia was a dangerous place for any outsider—both because of its creatures and its own inhabitants… Unfortunately money seemed incentive enough for people to take the risk.
Poachers had a kind of fixation with this forest, as if they were going to find some legendary species wandering around in there. And what better time to do it than during that creature's predation cycle?
Calin's voice cut through Ryo's thoughts.
"That's the answer I memorized—but whose safety? What balance needs maintaining?"
The innocent curiosity of a child…
"There's a creature—a monster," Ryo began. "Barely a handful of creatures in this forest could stand up to it, and they wouldn't come out unscathed—the risk isn't worth it. So when it goes out to hunt, every creature takes shelter. There are a few nocturnal ones that keep hunting alongside it, but not many."
Ryo paused while the boy listened intently.
"Well, some people take advantage of that predation cycle to hunt more easily. Something short-circuits in their heads and they think a creature cornered in its own home is defenseless—easy prey. They upset the balance, and by capturing them we protect both them and the forest."
Ryo wasn't particularly happy with the explanation she'd just given, but there wasn't much she could do about it.
That predator made the entire forest go into hiding—why did poachers think they wouldn't become targets themselves? And all of it just to hunt a species to the brink of extinction for a few coins.
Ryo herself was taking quite a risk by patrolling, but she trusted her abilities.
From her position, she could easily send someone to patrol in her place—but what kind of leader would delegate a job like that? She wanted it done properly… and she got quite bored in the village…
If she was competent enough to do the job perfectly herself, why not go herself?
Though she had just brought Calin along…
'Should I send him back?'
Finishing his berries, Nex tapped Ryo.
"What's up, buddy? Find something?"
The little one spun around and gestured for her to follow.
Ryo followed from a distance, still concealed, Calin at her side. Nex was an expert at slipping by unnoticed and, despite his coloring, was easier to overlook than either of them.
Then, mid-run, a blurred figure dove at Nex from above.
Nex dodged it with a single leap without much effort and picked up speed to leave its attacker behind—though it seemed it wouldn't be that easy.
In an instant, the creature took flight again and kept pace with Nex.
Calin, seeing this, shot up into the tree branches after them, just overhead, signaling to Ryo as he went—the speed at which he did it surprised even her, and in a moment both of them disappeared from view.
Ryo didn't know whether to trust Calin and Nex—she knew the latter wouldn't have any trouble, but Calin…
'Nex leads the way and Calin can defend himself and hide if he needs to… Probably.' After all, he passed the trial.
Even so, Ryo decided to go after them. She'd already made clear how dangerous the forest was. On top of that, this time… the cycle had come early. Ryo didn't know the cause, but the predator had already stopped hunting and the creatures were starting to come out that very day.
After a while, she ended up finding both of them panting in some bushes.
"How did the workout treat you? Hit your daily steps?"
The small fox shot her an irritated look and tapped her twice with his paw. Calin, however, wiped his sleeve across his forehead and said just one thing.
"I saw him!" After saying this he jumped to his feet and disappeared back into the branches.
Ryo looked at Nex tiredly.
"Should I have left him in the village after all…?"
***
'I saw him! I saw him!'
Calin flew through the trees, barely touching each branch, weaving between them and swinging underneath in an explosive sequence.
"There was a boy!"
Calin had spotted a boy below him while following Nex and that bird. He had a small blade in his hands and was leaning on a stick.
Finally, a few minutes after taking off, he spotted him again from the trees.
With great effort he managed to hold himself back and study him. His clothes were torn and he moved strangely—putting too much of his weight on the stick. He looked tired.
Without warning, while he was watching, the boy turned around and looked toward the trees. Calin spun around sharply, looking the other way.
'Did he see me?' he thought, holding his breath.
He turned back slowly and shook his head when he saw the boy walking on.
'I'll pin him down and bring him to Ryo—she'll see that bringing me was a good call and she'll do it again.' Calin wagged his tail a little before settling into a state of calm focus.
With that thought, he launched himself at the boy from above at high speed, intending to finish it as quickly as possible.
But suddenly and without warning, the boy stepped to one side at the last moment, sending Calin sliding erratically across the ground for a couple of meters before getting back to his feet.
In the middle of the cloud of dust he'd kicked up, he tensed his ears.
If he'd been able to sense him, he couldn't underestimate his opponent.