"Are you sure? Sir, I could accom-"

"No. That's final. Go regroup with the others." Reiner replied in a stern voice, a member of his guard hesitantly walking away. A frustrated sigh emerged from the bastard's lips, his hands running through his dark hair. He hated being treated as though he needed protection at every waking moment. Still, that soldier in particular was relatively new to serving him directly. Reiner shouldn't hold it against the lad. Reiner's technologically advanced wheelchair moved forwards on its own, his hands free to fiddle with the devices in his lap.

It was nice to have some downtime like this. Him and his men had settled in a small town in a somewhat rural area of Bosco. They were only going to be here for a day or two. Just stocking up on supplies, making deals with notable merchants and earning the support of the people. Reiner had found that most of the people in the town already had a very high opinion of him. Given that it wouldn't take too much time or energy to sway just about everyone here on his side, Reiner had agreed to give himself a bit of break. Things lately had been so hectic. He had practically forgotten that he had hobbies. Speaking of hobbies, the objects that lay in his lap were his first chance to really do something fun in quite a while.

Reiner had experimented with technology just about all his life. While most of his works were based off of his grand ambitions, he quite enjoyed creating smaller things as well. Inventing little gadgets had been a pastime that never faded from his younger days. Simply thinking of some of the things he created as a young man put a smile on his face as his wheelchair passed through the fountain in the center of town.

Reiner's little gadgets often presented some practical use. He tried to make sure all of the things he made could be useful in some manner or another: not a single one of his past inventions had been made for no reason. Often it began with a question. For example, what was a good way to make chopping things into the tiniest bits possible quicker while cooking? Years ago Reiner had solved that question by creating a lacrima-powered Machine that would slice up any vegetable put into it within a manner of seconds. While something along those lines was usually around the level of things he made on his small time, the question (and answer) that Reiner worked on today was certainly a more complicated one.

Passing by the relatively tall clock tower that lay near the heart of the town, Reiner approached the marketplace. It seemed even busier now then when he and his guard arrived in town. He wouldn't be surprised if his prescience was behind it. Reiner tried his absolutely best to blend into the crowd, but a mix of being both a famous figure and sitting in a mechanized wheelchair didn't exactly lend to that kind of thing. "It's sir Reiner!" A man called out, most of the crowd now looking towards the bastard's direction. A small smile came across Reiner's face. All according to plan. "Good afternoon, everyone. I am glad to see the market so lively today." Reiner's voice effortlessly traveled throughout the marketplace. He had become very good at public speaking over the years. "I do not wish to disturb your shopping trips too long, however. I'm simply looking for a volunteer. I've been working on a device, one that has recently become ready for testing." The "device" that lay in Reiner's lap looked similar to a pair of shoes. "I'll need thrill-seekers for this one. Anyone interested can feel free to step and come talk to me."

Esperia had returned to Bosco after her trip to the outskirts of the country. Although she had plenty of business to attend to, the vampire girl had to admit she was intrigued by the events happening currently within Bosco.

Wandering along the market of a small town in the rural side of Bosco, the vampire girl's gaze shifted along the various market stalls that were peddling their trade. While it was true that she didn't need food or drinks anymore, Esperia still liked to help find Valerie new dishes to make, a simple and innocent desire. Taking a momentary pause Esperia noticed a small crowd gathering nearby, a sight that earned her curiosity. The device around her neck, which somewhat resembled a fashionable collar, ready to turn into a helmet in a moment's notice.

The sight of a familiar face made Esperia's lips curve up briefly, while he might have been the bastard son of the late ruler, Reiner had a certain charm to him that his siblings lacked, and Esperia could appreciate his desire for innovation and technology.

Perhaps it was for that reason that when she heard the man speak, mentioning a volunteer for a device that Esperia stepped forward, a smile lingering on her lips. "Hello Reiner." A light wave of her hand was made by the young vampire who chimed softly. "Made a new invention? If it is as amazing as the one you last made for me, then I believe you have caught my attention~"

Looking at the device on his lap that resembled a pair of shoes, the young woman mused idly. "Shoes? I might not be a cinderella, but they seem to be made for something else than walking and looking pretty while doing so~"

She chimed softly while her gaze drifted around the area, wondering if any other supporters of Reiner would be willing to contribute to the man's little test project. Technological advancement was something she did take a invested interest in, similar to her fondness for gunnery, and as was evident in the fact she still her the device Reiner made for her in the past, the same device which was linked to her prosthetic arms.

Her crimson-colored eyes gazed once more at the man and his invention. "If you wish, I would gladly volunteer to help you test out your new invention,"

She was genuinely curious to find out what the man had been working on.

So this was the place, Shichiro had thought to himself. The land where he was sent in order to choose which of the five siblings he supported, eh? Shichiro didn't know much about any of them and wanted to take a good look for himself on what side he should end up on in the long run. Not only that, this was a good time to start making connections and assets while he was in a new, foreign land. He hadn't felt this out of place since he first went to the Fioran country almost three years ago. He figured his usual fashion sense would keep him out of trouble for the most part.

It probably won't win him any awards but at least he was presentable to some degree. Disregarding his standard attire, Shichiro placed his hats into his pockets, exhaling aggressively from his nose in a bit of irritation and decided he would press forward. Wandering around for a little bit, he came across a market area in the capital city, wondering what he should do from here. He had a hefty amount of jewels from his previous jobs and he figured maybe there was something rare, exotic, powerful or even all of the above that he might be able to search for and purchase, something that he probably couldn't find in Fiore at least. As a blacksmith himself, he was mostly interested in how other countries forged their weapons and craft their armor.

He thought this might serve as a way to learn different ways of the trade if he could just observe the smith at work. Even being able to window shop and hold some of the weapons would be more than enough information to get a good idea of how they might think one should go about making these items. With this in mind, Shichiro went around the marketplace looking at as many of the shops that sold weapons and armor as he could find. He took some interest in jewelers as well but not too much as he wasn't well versed in that kind of trade. He'd like to pick it up one of these days but could never find time.

While he browsed to his heart's content, a commotion had begun to arise. Shichiro wasn't interested at first until somebody had exclaimed, "It's Reiner." This immediately demanded Shichiro's attention as he put down whatever wares he was holding in order to go take a look at who he thought might be his future employer one of these days. A crowd had gathered between his path and his destination of Reiner. As he began to wade through the crowd in order to get closer, Reiner had said something about needing volunteers for a device that happened to be sitting on his lap. At this current point in time, Shichiro couldn't see them as his vision was cut off by the crowd he was in.

Eventually, Shichiro had made it to the front of the crowd to where the one known as, 'The Bastard' would be in his line of sight. Visibly panting from fighting to get through the waves of the crowd, Shichiro raised his right arm while he stepped forward shortly after Reiner inquired about risk-takers to test out his device. "Me, I volunteer to be one of those risk takers you seek," Shichiro proclaimed confidently. He was unsure what the device in his lap did but to him they just looked like some kind of footwear.

Keita had been in the market that day to sample some of the delicacies that one could only find in Bosco, as people had recommended him to go to the eateries and the market area so that he could experience the rare and exotic things there, at least that was what was said to him when he was visiting from Fiore. Still, he had not expected that as he was walking around, leisurely experiencing the lively marketplace, Keita would stumble upon a big commotion. He had heard that someone had shouted out a name, and the crowd all turned and surrounded a man, before the man started speaking after a few moments. Keita was unsure who the man was, as he was not paying enough attention when the original person who screeched the man's name was yelling, and so he turned his head, just like a large sum of other people in the area.

Keita got closer, and it seemed that he would need to push through the crowd to actually see anything, but he did not due to his careful and courteous nature, and so he simply went on his tippy toes so that he could see over the majority of the crowd. The people were speaking and it was a bit loud, but it quieted down when the man in the center, someone that Keita could not se eover the small ocean of people, said that he needed some sort of thrill seeker to test something for him. Keita was always willing to help out, even if it seemed a bit dangerous, but he had no idea who this person was, as he could not recognize him from voice alone. He did recognize someone out of the crowd, however, which was another Rune Knight in his guild, one that he had heard of before, and he had heard that this man, Shichiro if he was not mistaken, volunteer, and so he was perfectly willing to volunteer as well.

"Excuse me sir, I would also like to volunteer." Keita said, able to be heard over the crowd that had quieted down due to the man speaking. Keita would then walk over there to see who it was and see what he had to do.