The southern parts of the country flourished during the spring season and summer months, the weather was warmer and friendlier here, and Marigold Town’s picturesque scenery was the complete opposite to Dahlia’s grim landscape and ghastly weather. Nuala Nazari was resting beneath a tree, on top of a wooden bench. If she opened her eyes, she could see the endless farmlands surrounding Marigold, the forests that led home and the little splashes of sunlight that fell past the tree crown and sizzled down on her pale skin. But she wasn’t opening her eyes; the thief had fallen into a slumber, and was now comfortably dozing off under the midday sun.

There were no sounds except for the occasional breeze and the silence that surrounded her was very much appreciated. The Voidling’s travels had led her far across the lands, and the little peace of mind she now experienced made the long journey seem worth it. It was quiet in the realm and Nuala was finally resting easy. The heat increased by the time the sun reached its solar apex, but the warmth was no issue to the savannan-born woman. If anything, she missed the high temperatures, dry air and amber skies of her home country and was looking forward to summer.

Nuala was still napping when a gust of air carried a single piece of paper her way and smacked it into the woman’s face. Startled by the sudden attack, the rogue squealed and reached under her dress to grab both her daggers, only to facepalm at the fact that she had been spooked by basically nothing. Even when there was no need for her to be armed, she never left the house without her weapons, regardless of how safe she felt. Nuala wasn’t in Marigold for work or a quest, but rather on some sort of vacation from her otherwise busy life. Her attire, a cutesy flower dress and the long hair she wore in a braid revealed nothing of the thief’s true profession – and it hid her knives well.

She fetched the paper and began inspecting it. Nothing ever happened in Marigold, so its contents greatly surprised her. As if, she thought to herself while inspecting the bounty letter she was now holding in her hands. Kenzo Valens’ face graced its front page and beneath his picture stood an impressive (and ridiculously high) amount of jewels – the prize for his head.

2,000,000+ Jewels. The Advent World mercenary had racked up a sizable amount of cash in his career as–well, whatever it was that he did for a living–and Nuala read the paper over and over again, for she was in complete disbelief at what the man had allegedly done. Kenzo clearly wasn’t a hitman–their last encounter, which she remembered fondly, had proven as much–and the things he was being charged with and accused of were far more ridiculous than she could have ever imagined.

Observe everything, admire nothing, Nuala told herself.

Kenzo Valens was (partially) to blame for the extinction of one of the country’s rarest species of fish. And he was here, in Marigold. Nuala’s cheeks visibly reddened at the mere thought of him getting caught doing something forbidden to a bunch of poor fish and while she was entirely clueless as to what exactly had gone down, the fact that he had gotten caught while breaking the law put the woman in a delightful mood.

Without hesitation the Voidling was up on her feet and running back towards the town. If he was truly here, then she would find him and perhaps teach him a thing or two about staying hidden during crimes and getting rid of witnesses afterwards. Nuala held on to the bounty letter as well, for there was a lot of money involved and the mischievous woman had already constructed a plan so they could both benefit from this alluring sum of money.

Finding Kenzo proved harder than the last time they had met (perhaps the blue haired male had learned his lesson after all) and it was only thanks to his noticeable blade–a fine piece of otherworldly craftsmanship–that she was able to spot and follow him amidst the crowd. He was more or less cloaked, but his sword left no doubt in Nuala’s mind. When he turned into an empty alley, the soundless Voidling chased him down and reached out with her hands to cover both of his eyes from behind him.

“You have committed crimes against Fiore and all of its fish! What can you say in your defense?”

It was yet another relaxing afternoon in Marigold Town. The place was almost brought out from one of those fantasy mountainside child storybooks so plentiful in the market. Peace and tranquility were the words he could best use to describe it and yet, there was something eerie about such perfection. In his mind, Kenzo started to wonder if all of what surrounded him was actually a machination by some new order group trying their hardest to keep appearances. Whatever the case though, the male still had to admit that he was grateful for the quiet. After all, his plans in Marigold town revolved around a single purpose: Lay low.

Some idiotic jackass from Astera had decided to place a bounty on his head for killing a score of extremely dangerous overgrown fish. For all he cared, he should have left the beasts reach shore and eat the stupid town. Maybe Kazimir would have been placed the bounty instead of him. Nevertheless, Kenzo learned his lesson. ”Better mind your own business”. Next time a group of hysterical and fearful fishermen came his way flashing huge amounts of money in exchange for killing some supposedly unknown in-danger-of-extinction species, he’d make sure to charge double at the least. Alas, what was done was done, and Kenzo held now one of the biggest bounties of the country.

Were it not for that, it would be a far stretch to ever find the mercenary walking through the Marigold streets. Half-hidden beneath a cloak, Kenzo made sure to not gather too much attention to his persona. Even if the people he crossed by took a look at him and recognized him, the people of Marigold knew better than to look for trouble. Furthermore, the blue haired warrior had bought a nifty little trinket in one of Baska City’s seasonal festivals. A silver ring rested on his finger while it allowed him to store all of his equipment in his own pocket dimension. Naturally, since he was trying to keep a low profile, he would store all of his gear using the ring’s powers. Specially a certain 2-meter-long golden sword that hung from his waist most of the time. Yet! Considering sometimes the Modding made by God found its way to reality, the male somehow forgot to place Masamune inside too. Either way, it also helped as a threat to keep unwanted company away.

Luckily for the swordsman, it would attract exactly the opposite. Suddenly taking a turn at a street, Kenzo’s right eye’s new ability caught a glimpse of quite an interesting person. A smile formed on his lips as he felt a warm feeling rushing through his body. Perhaps Marigold wasn’t as bad as he thought, right? Hiding any external reaction, the male decided to enter an empty alley slowly. Even if he could see her perfectly using his eye’s perception, the swordsman was still surprised at the lack of sound tracing from behind. The owner of both hands that covered his eyes was definitely quite masterful at her job.

The following sentence brought an audible chuckle out of the male. Word certainly spread fast. Grabbing both of Nuala’s palms, the male gently pulled them downwards and in a cross towards his chest to bring the woman closer to him. With his usual playful tone, Kenzo shifted his face to his side as he answered. ”Arrest me officer?”

The Voidling’s scheme had been a success, and Nuala’s silent approach carried her all the way towards the man, until she came to a halt behind him. Nuala was a sneak thief; she knew that humans couldn’t tell apart scents that well, nor could they see behind their backs, and Kenzo’s lack of a startled reaction surprised her perhaps even more than her sudden arrival had surprised him. She expected him to be at least a little bit taken aback by her movements, but instead he simply took her hands and pulled her forward, calmly responding to her challenge. He laughed and she knew then that he’d immediately recognized her. That’s odd, she thought to herself, but knowing that he didn’t see her as a threat whatsoever brought relief to the rogue. “You noticed me coming? I guess you’re more perceptive than I thought,” she said and gave his body a gentle squeeze from behind. Like all humans, Kenzo was warm.

Aside from the fact that the Advent World warrior was now a wanted criminal, Nuala had always felt as though they had a lot of things in common, and that their lifestyles were (to an extend) similar. That’s why his bounty didn’t bother her, although she wasn’t going to let this one slip away. “You are far away from home,” the woman concluded and slipped under his arm to stand in front of him instead. His face was the same, and the white jawbone still clung to his right cheek; she wondered if he ever thought of ways to get rid of it, even though it added to his personal charm. Nuala’s eyes fell on Masamune, the golden blade he carried so openly around with him. She fiddled out the bounty letter with his picture printed all over it and pressed it against his chest. “That is a lot of money on your head,” – a snarky remark with a hint of envy, although the clever thief strongly believed that if she wanted to, she could produce an even higher bounty than this.

With the way Kenzo was dressed it became hilariously obvious that he was out of place in Marigold and it has made him appear all the more suspicious. Besides, the townsfolk clearly knew he was around and it didn’t seem as though he could go anywhere anymore without being noticed. The Voidling had learned her lesson however, and armed with a tacky flower dress and a sunny disposition, the girl fit right into the picturesque scenery of Marigold Town. Her fingers tipped against the hilt of his blade and she looked up at the male.

“I think without this it you would be much harder to identify,” she explained and a mischievous grin had found its way onto her lips. “You could give it to me for a while, just until they forget about that silly fish incident,” of course she didn’t expect him to actually hand over his legendary weapon, and so the woman’s words were spoken in a playful manner. “I take good care of swords, I promise.” Still, the thief’s amethyst eyes shimmered with fascination everytime they caught a glimpse of his shiny, golden sword. Nuala had no idea what Kenzo was thinking, walking around in broad daylight in a town that was now governed by a military guild, but she knew better than to unnecessarily chastise the mercenary.

The Voidling’s keen ears picked up on a sound just around the corner shortly after, and before anyone could walk in on them, Nuala took Kenzo’s arm and pulled him further down the streets, away from prying eyes. She made sure to pick up his bounty letter as well, since they wouldn’t want it to be needlessly lying around for god knows who to find it. Once they were out of sight (as far as Nuala could tell), she lowered his hood just a little bit to let the sun into his face. In the few times she’d met him, his expression had always been different and she thought that compared to other races, humans often carried their emotions on their face. It was off putting how quickly he could change moods from happy to cold blooded and even now the woman had a difficult time reading into him. Maybe the whole fish situation had affected him more than he was willing to admit?

“Have you been well?”

If there was a word to describe what Kenzo was feeling, it was joy. After their departure from Astera, the blue haired mercenary would be lying if he didn’t admit he’d thought about the mysterious rogue a couple of times. For whatever reason, she had caused quite an impression on him, to the point where he was actually unsure as to his own feelings. Whatever the case, he never expected to meet her so soon again.

”I promised myself I wouldn’t let a thief sneak up on me again. They might not always be so charming” Kenzo replied at her initial question with a playful smile. As she squeezed him from behind, he noticed the lack of warmth from her body. He found it odd, but nonetheless non-important. ”So are you” Kenzo answered next, just as she finally slipped around and stood in front of him.

Even if he had seen her with his right eye, looking at her properly brought him at a loss of words. ”I…uh..” Stumbled the blue haired man, uncharacteristically for him. After struggling for a moment, he couldn’t help but flash a genuine smile upon innerly admitting his defeat. Sigh ”You look beautiful…” He finally said. ”That dress kinda suits you better than your usual cloaks” He’d never expect her to dress in such a manner given her personality, but it was very cute, nonetheless.

However, it would seem their meeting was not entirely a coincidence after all. As she passed a letter at him with a snarky remark, Kenzo turned the piece of paper around to see his all too familiar bounty poster. A little bit irritated by the reminder, the merc shook it off as he held it next to his face for a quick comparison. ”They actually chose a flattering picture, don’t you think?” Crumpling it up at last, he let the wanted poster go. ”I just hope you’re not having second thoughts over not stabbing me back then” The male felt the most comfortable when in an exchange of witty, playful remarks.

The attention was quickly brought towards his golden blade though. As the rogue playfully entertained the idea of taking care of Masamune for Kenzo, the man couldn’t help but find himself amused by the kind of reactions she was able to bring out of him. With each gaze at the woman’s amethyst eyes, Kenzo got slowly dragged in more by her words. Like an alluring siren’s call, he had to slap himself mentally to break free from the urge of agreeing. Playing the part, the warrior crossed his arms as he rested his chin with his right index and thumb. ”You’re right… Perhaps it’s not such a bad idea” His tone was devoid of any sarcasm or joke, and seemed rather contemplative instead. Taking a pause for a second, as if he were actually considering the proposal, Kenzo suddenly shook his head. ”Yeah, you’re definitely right.”

Instantly after, Kenzo unstrapped the golden blade’s scabbard that hung from his waist. Prying it free from its hold, the warrior grabbed the legendary blade with his hand as he looked back at Nuala. Extending his arm with a straight face, he made a motion as if handing Masamune at her. However, just before she could grab it, a spatial storage portal would engulf his hand before the sword instantly disappeared. A devilish smile appeared through his face before laughing a bit. ”Yeah, as if.”

Shortly after, it seemed that Nuala noticed a sound in the distance, dragging the merc out of the alley and into a more private spot. Lowering his hood, the two of them locked gazes for a moment. Kenzo had tried to settle what his thoughts about the rogue were, but the end result left him worse than before. On one side, the undeniable resemblance she had with a long-forgotten person from his past made his heart race. Yet, the differences in their personalities were enough to calm him back again. The fact that his mind was sent into a constant spiral of confusion was still a mystery to him. Upon hearing her question, a weak smile came out of him.

”Why do I feel like telling you all of my secrets?” He said with a chuckle. ”I’ve definitely been better. But I’m hanging there.”

”How about you? What brings you here?”

Surprised at his choice of words, she studied him, and her head tilted. The Voidling put her arms behind her back and lifted her gaze. He was flustered, and his smile seemed genuine. His compliments didn’t catch her off guard like the first time, but Nuala still found it quite curious that men considered her to be beautiful, when she had never thought of her own appearance as anything but alien – but perhaps it was that aspect of hers that enticed them. Nuala disagreed silently with his statement; the trained thief felt most comfortable in an all black attire, cloaked from head to toe and armed to the teeth. By the looks of it, Kenzo was the same. To respond to his words, she merely took a step backwards and lifted up the skirt of her dress until he could see the the two daggers that were strapped to her upper thighs. “Dressed to kill,” she said and flaunted her most wicked smile.

Mischief sparked in Nuala’s eyes when he saw the bounty poster and annoyance tinted his expression – getting caught did bother him after all, how amusing. “I would never betray you,” she said earnestly and the sincerity of her own words made the woman wonder why she was so loyal to him, when they barely knew each other. Kenzo’s eyes sometimes gave away a hint of sadness she thought was too much for someone so young and in her mind, it made his mortal life worthy of protection and care.

The atmosphere changed when Nuala put her attention on Masamune and for a moment there, the human had her completely fooled. He extended the sword towards her with a straight face, but just as the thief was about to snatch the golden blade from his grasp, it disappeared into thin air. Nuala’s mouth was left slightly ajar and confused by this obvious act of magic, she took a step backwards and blinked a few times. His devilish smile said it all, and the woman pressed her lips together in a thin line before gently punching him against the chest. “You humans and your fancy magic,” she huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

It was the middle of the day in Marigold, and townsfolk was out and about. The cautious Voidling was visibly distracted by the fact that Kenzo just walked around seemingly unprotected, and when she heard someone approaching she nudged him further down the road and motioned the mercenary towards the farmlands surrounding the town, where it was much quieter and more peaceful. “Because you know they are safe with me,” she responded and noticed the weak smile he gave her. “Go right ahead, I’ll be back in a second.” Nuala disappeared around the corner and did something that was incredibly uncharacteristic for the rogue: she bought snacks. The Voidling returned to Kenzo’s side with canned lemonade and dumplings from a bakery.

“I came to get my mind off things and to explore the lands,” the woman continued walking up the hills until they had reached one of the wooden benches she had been napping on prior to meeting him. It was quite the walk, but once they were up on the hills they could see all of Marigold Town and it's beautiful landscape. “Currently staying because of this,” she pulled out the bounty poster he had crumpled up and pointed at his picture. “There’s rumours of another guild somewhere around here, but I haven’t gotten a glimpse yet.” Most of the time Nuala was reporting back to Kaiser and Daeva Eye via telepathy, but it seemed that things had quieted down in Dahlia. Nuala sat down on the bench and passed Kenzo a lemonade and something to eat. She wanted to know what was on the mercenaries mind, and so she made him an offer.

“If you tell me one of your secrets, I’ll tell you one of mine.”

Kenzo merely let out an amused chuckle. ”Why doesn’t this surprise me?” The pair of daggers the warrior was all too familiar with were perfectly strapped to her thighs, concealed from sight by the dress she was wearing. Nuala was definitely an expert on what she did, so it came as no surprise for the mercenary. The mood quickly changed once the attention was shifted to his bounty poster. To say the least, Kenzo was more annoyed than anything at the whole thing. Knowing that he had now such a huge bounty to his head, the male couldn’t help but be suspicious from everyone now. Even if Nuala told him she would never betray him, Kenzo couldn’t help but half smile at the idea, as if he’d actually believe it. However, something in the voidling’s voice told him she was being earnest.

Whatever the case, he was not naïve enough to become so trusting of people yet. For years, his survival had depended on always watching his back to avoid being betrayed. Yet, deep down he yearned for an opportunity to do so. Alas, today was not the day. As he saw the thief’s expression after Masamune dematerialized, Kenzo received the punch with a laugh. As the two of them walked to a safer place, Nuala told him to keep going. Even if he carried on with a carefree attitude most of the time, there was something weighing on his mind at the moment. The last interaction he had with Finn had plunged him into a pool of confusion. He didn’t know what to do, or how to proceed. Absentmindedly nodding his head trying his best to pay attention to Nuala’s explanation, he failed miserably in processing what she’d said. Waking up from his trance after being offered lemonade and some snacks, Kenzo quickly shook out of his state as he smiled at the woman.

”I’ll take you up on your offer… but there’s somewhere else I’ll tell you about it.” Kenzo stood up from the bench waiting for Nuala to follow. ”Since you’re a friend of Finn, I hope you can help me figuring out something…”

Leading the way, Kenzo walked towards their new destination. Though he could use a lighthearted chat at the moment, the clouds in his mind wouldn’t allow it to him. Instead, the mercenary would bet on that feeling he had whenever he was next to the woman. For once in his life, he’d place his trust in someone else.

To be continued….
-EXIT-

The blue-haired human was lost in thoughts, so much that Nuala had to be the one on the look out–luckily, the mercenary and the thief had no natural enemies in a town like Marigold and their little trip through the city and to a cozier spot went without any interruptions, even in spite of the massive bounty on his head. Kenzo had dipped out of their conversation mentally almost as soon as they started walking, and the Voidling could see that he had a lot on his mind. She decided not to pry and went on her merry way, handing him the snacks and waiting for him to snap out of it. When he finally did, his following words surprised her. “Is something wrong with Finn?” She asked, and a frown crossed her face. She had been friends with the warrior in the past, but it’s been a long time since they’d last met.

“I haven’t spoken to him in a while, if I’m being honest, but I figured he just went on another one of his adventures,” the woman explained and put on a thoughtful expression.

She didn’t like what she was hearing, but she was also intrigued by what Kenzo was going to tell her. Nuala shrugged the strange feeling she had off for now, stood up and followed after the mercenary. He made everything look more mysterious and ominous than it had to be and she couldn’t help but laugh at an idea that crossed her mind. “Is this the part where you lead me into the woods to murder me?” The Voidling broke into laughter, shook her head and followed after him with quick steps. It’s not like he could actually kill her, even if he really tired. She was immortal after all.

But Kenzo didn’t know that yet.