2025-12-27 06:05:30"Myself, Asta, and…"
Flora paused, her eyes moving past the official to where Jabber was now standing, leaning heavily against the pillar, blood still dripping from his nose.
"....and Jabber. He's our fourth member."
Now the official laughed, but it was a harsh, mocking sound with no humor in it.
"Jabber? You're taking the Sun Arising Flame reject into your party? The boy who can't even follow simple instructions about when to show up to a gathering?"
"Yes."
Flora said simply, not rising to the bait.
"We're taking him.”
"Then you're an idiot."
The official said bluntly.
"He'll drag you down. He's got power he can't control, discipline he doesn't have, and a complete inability to follow orders or show proper respect. He'll get you killed on your first real mission."
"That's our choice to make."
Flora replied, her tone still even but with steel underneath.
"Not yours."
The official stared at her for a long moment, then shifted his gaze back to Asta, who still hadn't moved from his protective position. The man's jaw worked, grinding his teeth, clearly wanting to follow through on his threat but calculating the consequences.
Hitting one disobedient laborer was one thing that could be written off as discipline. But if he struck members of an officially forming guild party, especially one that included Flora, who Asta suddenly realized must have some kind of standing or reputation he wasn't aware of, that might cause complications.
Finally, the official stepped back, but his expression promised this wasn't over.
"Fine. Take the useless reject. But when he gets you killed, don't come crying to me about it."
He bent down and snatched up his coat from where he'd dropped it, shaking it out with sharp, angry movements before draping it over his arm. His eyes found Jabber again, who was still leaning against the pillar, watching the exchange with that same blank, unfazed expression.
"And you."
The official said, pointing at Jabber with one thick finger.
"If I ever see that disrespectful attitude again, I don't care what guild you're in. I'll put you in the infirmary for a week. Understood?"
Jabber didn't respond, didn't nod, didn't acknowledge the threat in any way. He just stared at the official with those empty eyes, blood still trickling from his nose.
The official's face flushed again, but he seemed to realize he wasn't going to get a satisfactory response. With one final disgusted look at all three of them, he turned and stalked away, pushing roughly through the crowd.
People scrambled to get out of his way, creating a path that closed behind him as he disappeared toward the exit.
The moment he was gone, the tension broke. The crowd began talking again, voices low and excited, everyone discussing what had just happened. Asta felt his legs go weak, the adrenaline that had been holding him upright suddenly draining away. He stumbled slightly, and Flora's hand caught his elbow, steadying him.
"You okay?"
She asked quietly, her eyes searching his face with concern.
"Yeah."
Asta managed, though his voice was shaky.
"Yeah, I'm... I'm fine. Just... that was..."
"Incredibly stupid."
Flora said, but there was a small smile tugging at her lips.
"Brave, but stupid. You know he could have really hurt you, right?"
"I know."
Asta took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart.
"But I couldn't just stand there and watch him beat on Jabber like that. It wasn't right."
Flora's smile grew a bit.
"No, it wasn't right. Which is why I'm glad you did it, even if it was reckless."
She squeezed his elbow once, then released him.
"Come on. Let's check on our new fourth member."
They turned together to where Jabber was still leaning against the pillar. Up close, the damage was more obvious,his nose was definitely bleeding, already starting to swell, and there was a cut above his left eyebrow that Asta hadn't noticed before.
A bruise was forming on his cheekbone, dark purple spreading under the skin.
"Jabber."
Flora said gently, approaching him carefully like he was a wounded animal that might bolt.
"Let me see that."
She reached out slowly, giving him plenty of time to pull away if he wanted to, but Jabber didn't move. Flora gently tilted his head, examining the damage with a critical eye. She pulled a cloth from her pocket,looked like it might have been a handkerchief and carefully dabbed at the blood on his face.
"Nothing's broken."
She said after a moment, her tone professional, like she'd done this kind of assessment before.
"The nose is swollen but not fractured. The cut's shallow,it'll heal clean. You'll have some impressive bruising for a few days, but you'll be fine."
Jabber still hadn't said anything. He just stood there, letting Flora tend to him with that same distant expression. But his eyes shifted slightly, moving from Flora to Asta, who stood a few feet back, still catching his breath.
For a moment, their eyes met. Asta tried to read what he saw there,gratitude? Resentment? Confusion? But Jabber's expression was so carefully blank that it was impossible to
tell what he was thinking or feeling.
"Why?"
Jabber finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, so quiet that Asta had to lean in to hear him…
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Chapter 45
Flora reached out and squeezed Asta's shoulder, then did the same to Jabber. "...whoever gets called first, remember we've got your back. You're not alone out there. You're representing Ember Watch, and we believe in you.""Hell yeah." Mira added with a fierce grin. "Go out there and kick ass."With that, they split up. Flora and Mira heading down one corridor, Asta and Jabber heading down another. The walk back to their room was quiet, both of them lost in their own thoughts, the earlier excitement giving way to a more contemplative mood.When they reached their door, Asta pushed it open and stepped inside. The room looked exactly as they'd left it this morning,unmade bunks, his practice sword leaning against the wall, the small window letting in weak afternoon light. Nothing special, nothing fancy, but it was theirs.He'd barely had time to sit down on the edge of Jabber's lower bunk when there was a sharp knock at the door."Come in." Asta called.The door opened and a higher o
Chapter 44
Old Man Kael stood on the platform, his weathered hands still resting on his walking stick, waiting for the excited chatter to die down enough that he could continue. The crowd was buzzing with energy, a tournament meant action, meant proving themselves, meant finally having something concrete to strive for instead of endless days of repetitive labor and training.When the noise level dropped to something manageable, Kael spoke again, his voice cutting through the remaining murmurs with that authoritative calm that demanded attention."Now, let me explain how this tournament will work." He said, his cloudy eyes sweeping across the assembled laborers. "You all will have the chance to see how strong your squad members truly are. How well you work together when pressure is applied. How you adapt when plans fall apart. And perhaps most importantly, you'll see how strong your opponents are,what strategies they use, what flames they wield, what weaknesses they possess."He paused, letting
Chapter 43
The gathering quarters continued to fill. More and more laborers streaming in, the noise level rising as hundreds of conversations overlapped. Asta recognized some faces from training sessions or work details. Others were complete strangers,the labor section was large enough that you couldn't possibly know everyone.Finally, when the space was packed nearly to capacity, Old Man Kael raised one hand. The gesture was small, but somehow it cut through the noise like a blade. Conversations died down in ripples, starting near the front and spreading backward until the entire room had fallen into expectant silence.Kael let the silence hold for a moment longer, his cloudy eyes seeming to see through and past the assembled laborers to something beyond. Then he spoke, his voice carrying clearly despite not being particularly loud. There was something about his tone,the weight of experience, the authority of someone who'd earned respect rather than demanded it,that made people want to listen
Chapter 42
Flora asked once the laughter had died down a bit. "You said you got letters from your butler? That's nice that they wrote.""Yeah." Asta said, touching the pocket where he'd stored the letters, feeling their slight weight against his chest. "Gregor was my family's butler for decades," he wrote about what's happening at the mansion. My half-brother Cassian officially became clan leader a few nights ago. There was this whole ceremony with all the major clans."He tried to keep his voice neutral, but some bitterness must have leaked through because Flora's expression softened with sympathy."They also wrote about how they're doing." Asta continued quickly, not wanting to dwell on Cassian. "They got dismissed from the mansion after I was sent here,Cassian didn't want anyone loyal to me staying around, I guess. So now they're working as day laborers. Gregor , Helena, and Marcus,they're all doing hard physical work despite being older, despite having given decades of service to my fam
Chapter 41
“P.P.S. Marcus, I'm holding you to that promise about the sword techniques. Start preparing your best teaching voice.”“P.P.P.S. Gregor , please tell me honestly how bad your back is. If you need money for a healer, I'll find a way to send some. The labor section pays a pittance, but I've been saving every copper.”He read through what he'd written one more time, checking for anything he'd forgotten or wanted to add. Then he carefully folded the letter, sealed it with the basic wax provided at the portal station, and addressed it with their names and the return address they'd included in their letters.Asta placed his reply into the outgoing section of his portal,a separate small compartment meant for letters to be sent out,then locked everything back up. His hands were steadier now, the act of writing having helped him process some of the overwhelming emotions.He gathered Gregor 's, Helena's, and Marcus's letters carefully, tucking them into the inner pocket of his tunic where they
Chapter 40
“Also, I'm enclosing a recipe in case you ever get access to cooking facilities. It's your favorite,the honey cakes I used to make for your birthday. The ingredients are simple enough that you might be able to acquire them, and the process isn't too complicated. Something sweet to remind you of better days.”Asta looked at the bottom of the letter where Helena had indeed written out the recipe in careful detail, each step numbered and explained as if she were standing beside him in a kitchen, guiding his hands. His vision blurred again.“Write back to us, dear boy. Even a short note would mean the world.”“With love,Helena”“P.S Marcus says to tell you he's been practicing some new knife techniques and when you visit “notice I said 'when,' not 'if',I'm an optimist”, he'll teach them to you. They're quite impressive, if I do say so myself.”The third letter was from Marcus, and it was much shorter.Marcus had never been much for writing, preferring to express himself through his cookin
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