Ch 22-pt.2 23

What the?! What's up with that reaction? Ryou just stood there dumbfounded looking towards the direction the girl had disappeared. After a moment he scratched his head wondering if he should go after her or not, before deciding against it and moving upstairs.

"I never understood the thought process of women in my old world, and apparently the same applies here…" Ryou mumbled to himself before he too disappeared into the darkness.

The following day, Ryou had awoken with a new idea, or maybe not so new but it would be beneficial to Rishia, and for himself. After breakfast, Ryou had questioned Almond if he had any guards to spare, and the man confirmed that he could indeed spare a few guards for a couple of hours at least.

Ryou wanted to hit the Northern Cavern as quickly as possible, however, it would be a bad idea taking something as fragile as an egg to a place that was supposedly filled with strong monsters, so he decided to wait at the very least until the weird thing hatched. He hoped it wouldn't take too long, because then the only alternatives were either go alone without Rishia, or they would leave the egg behind, and none of those options were particularly appealing.

So now Ryou was seated on the porch, as Rishia spared with a guard. The poor man had a hard time keeping up with the smaller girl, the only thing that prevented him from losing outright was experience, and that was exactly what Ryou hoped, Rishia would gain from this.

Watching as she approached the guard far faster than the man could move, a stab aimed at his shoulder with a shout, yet the man quickly deflected the strike sideways, yet he was unable to capitalize on the small opening because she threw a kick that the guard almost failed to avoid. Finally, they separated themselves, to catch their breath…

Increasing attributes is all fine, but it only works well against mobs, anything with more intelligence than rock might be able to cross that gap, even if it's large… Ryou thought as Rishia clashed with the guard again, her rapier meeting his sword in the middle.

Ryou had partly stolen the idea from the Queen, because he had remembered while in bed that even if she was at a much lower level, Eclair had been able to easily surpass Ren with technique alone.

If you take the Spirit Turtle from the equation, then most of our future enemies will be mostly human, so I can't count on attributes, and skills alone… Glass wasn't just strong because her level was higher, although her strength still eclipsed Ryou on that front at the moment, but because she also was an exceptional warrior…

I need to find sparring partners too, and polish my skills even if it will be a pain in the ass… It would be something he would have to add to his schedule when possible, especially after the queen's return.

In reality, most of his fights had been against monsters, with the small clash with the maid being his only true fight.

I could only get a draw, and her specialty isn't even combat, if anything she's the living definition of a spy or saboteur… That was a painful realization to reach. No matter how strong he was, or how high his level was, he could still lose without the necessary experience to use his abilities.

I'm pretty sure I can take Motoyasu, Naofumi and probably Ren now, even with the level gap, but two of those three are hardly high standards to have… Ryou placed his chin on his palm. If the other two heroes applied themselves, they would be a terrifying force to deal with, unfortunately, that wouldn't happen for a long time...if ever...

The guard finally conceded the match, before going to the side, another heavier guard took his place, eyeing Rishia with caution. It was almost hilarious, the man was twice as big as his partner yet he was cowering, under her focused look.

Well then again, Fitoria probably only reaches my chest if that, and she could make me the second coming of Neil Armstrong with a single kick if she tried hard enough… Size truly meant nothing in this world…

Ryou continued to watch, as Rishia took on all four of the knights, getting ready for a second round although she was sweating and panting a little. In an hour Ryou watched as she began to pick a few things, and her stance became a little tighter.

It was at that moment, watching Rishia sparing, that another memory appeared in his mind for some reason… One that filled him with melancholy, but most of all sadness.

Flashback

"Hey, Big Brother look! I can swim now!" A small girl exclaimed, waving one hand, and Ryou could only shake is head.

"You know shrimp… It doesn't count if you have a ball under you…" Ryou interjected prompting a pout from the small girl on the pool.

"Bahhhh, It soooo counts! As long as I'm standing above the water, I'm swimming!" Ryou chuckled at that, shaking his head again, before leaning back to move his head into the shadow, his brain was starting to fry under the sun.

"It doesn't work like that… Icebergs stand above water, yet you can't call that swimming can you?" He watched as his sister, made a move to stand before losing her balance, and fell into the water. Ryou erupted with laughter at her clumsiness. After a moment she appeared again, spitting water before sending him a glare.

"Stop laughing you idiot! Icebergs are made of water, and water can't swim on water so that doesn't work, you idiot of a brother!" Ryou only slapped his face with his hand while he kept chuckling, his sister never stopped to be entertaining…

Flashback End

"Ryou-sama you seem to be lost in thought…" A voice interrupted his thoughts, and Ryou quickly wipped away the traitorous tear that had managed to escape.

"Yeah... Just, you know... Memories…" Lord Almond, hummed in consideration, before taking a seat next to him.

"A sad one was it?" He asked after a beat, and Ryou shook his head lightly.

"No, it was a happy one, about my family, from a long time ago…" Ryou answered, the words coming out before he had time to consider what prompted him to answer honestly.

"That's right… You were summoned from your world, so you have a family out there, as well as a home…" Almond commented, remembering that particular fact.

A small humorless chuckle made its way out of the Bow Hero's mouth, "What's left of it at least… And, I would be hard-pressed to call that place home, it was mostly a place where I lived, filled with painful memories..."

Almond hummed again, and crossed his leg, watching with no small amount of pride as his daughter tore through the poor guards, that were finally running out of steam even when they had been taking turns to rest.

"Then maybe you will be able to make a new home here…" Almond proposed, and Ryou scoffed at the thought. He didn't hate this world, not to the degree that Naofumi appeared too, but he would be hard press to call it his home either.

"It's not that simple Lord Almond…" Almond chucked at the answer even when Ryou sent him a less friendly side glance.

"It probably isn't to you… You, youngsters, like to overthink things, and make everything more complicated than it has to be…" He commented with amusement. Ryou scoffed again, turning to the front even if deep down he knew the man's words had some truth to them.

Finally, the last guard, the biggest among the group gave up and offered his hand to Rishia. The green-haired girl was panting and almost tripped on her feet trying to reach the outstretched hand, much to the amusement, and disbelief of the other guards. The guards then formed a semi-circle in front of the girl and started talking, along with hand gestures that indicated they were commenting on her performance.

"Ryou-sama, do you know why I call this place my home?" Almond asked out of the blue, however, the hero remained silent.

Since the Hero offered no response, Almond answered his own question. "Its because this is where the memories of Rishia and my dear wife are… From the moment she was born, until today… So as the man of the family it's my job to make sure, this house... This place remains unchanged, to preserve those memories… That way when they return, they can come to a familiar, and warm place, one full of happiness, and love…"

A place where someone is still thinking about you, that's a place you can call home… Ryou didn't know why that particular phrase had come to mind at that moment, but it got him to consider his situation.

I wonder if you are thinking about me shrimp… I wanted to see you, even if it was just once, just to say goodbye… Since setting foot on Melromarc, Ryou had pushed those thoughts, and feelings to the back of his mind, even keeping himself busy, or hunting monsters… However Northern Village had made him recall long lost memories, and he couldn't stop the thoughts from resurfacing, as well as the pain.

"If a home is a place where memories are, or where people are thinking about you, then… My home is probably forever out of my reach." Ryou whispered, leaning back to look at the blue sky, his hand rising trying to grasp something just out of reach.

"That's why I told you to try and make a new home here… It doesn't have to be now, or even the next month… However as you create new memories, you will find that you might just make a home for yourself even if you don't realize it…" Almond explained, making Ryou release a shaky breath.

I might not ever make it back to my world… Naofumi was sure they could return to their original worlds, but Ryou had serious doubts about that. Unless the summoning ritual could be reversed to a 'T', or they were sent back to their original worlds after the waves were done, then it would probably be all but impossible. The mages from the court did say they could return after the waves were over but Ryou took that information with a grain of salt.

If multiverse Theory rings true, and it does appear that's the case, then there's probably an infinite amount of universes out there...If that's the case, then finding ours is all but impossible… The Bow Hero had already decided to live his life and make the most of his second chance, however, that didn't mean he could ever forget about is first one.

Even then… I suppose I have to start letting go… He would miss his little sister until the day he died… But until then, he had to at least try, and make the most out of it, he wouldn't be able to look his parents in the face, if the other side existed if he didn't do at least that much.

…and I suppose after the waves are cleared, I'll need a place to live… Looking at Rishia who had taken a seat on the ground resting, his eyes met hers, and she waved in his direction. Raising his hand he sent a lazy wave in her direction, yet at that moment another image stacked on top of what he was seeing, one of a little girl in a pool also waving at him.

A sad smile formed in his face, and with watering eyes, Ryou waved at her too… One final time... The image vanished, as quickly as it came leaving only Rishia.

Closing his eyes, Ryou took in another shaky breath…

Maybe one day, I'll be able to call this world mine, and maybe if I keep making memories here, I'll be able to make a new home for myself… With that conclusion, Ryou got up, and stretched himself, before making his way towards his partner, who was, slowly but surely becoming one of the fundamental cornerstones that would make the foundation of his will to defeat the waves, and to defend the world...

After Rishia had her turn sparring with the guards, Ryou decided it was time for his turn. Unfortunately, melee was awkward with a bow, and plain hand-to-hand combat would just be unfair. For one Ryou was even faster than Rishia, and even if the guards had reach going for them, the Bow Hero could see any attack coming almost before it begun.

It was one of the side effects of stacking agility. If Ryou focused enough, time seemed to slow down, yet his body still moved at the same speed, and while it was an amazing feeling it had taken a bit to get used to it. What Ryou could understand, was that his Legendary Weapon had been kicking his perception into overload, however, he had a feeling there might be limits.

There's only so much you can speed up, without messing with the speed at which information travels in your brain, and eyes, though since this world is ruled by game-like mechanics, maybe it already does…

After crossing ideas with the guards they finally met a consensus. Ryou would stay mostly on the defensive against all four at the same time, trying to dodge attacks in a small area or parry them with his bow.

It was a frustrating session, to say the least, but it further proved his point. The guards while much weaker than him had pretty good teamwork, so where one stopped attacking the other was already in mid slash. Weaving, and deflecting sword attacks with a bow wasn't easy at all, but it was certainly something Ryou had to learn.

I already know I can't always stay at range, and there's no proof I will always be the fastest thing on the field… Ryou acknowledged while sidestepping another overhead slash, before using his bow to stop the sword that tried to put a very nasty gash in his hip. The sword was deflected successfully, however, Ryou couldn't completely avoid the third attack that came for his arm, and he gritted his teeth as the tip of the sword, slashed his bicep.

The guards stopped, all of them taking a step back panting heavily, and so did Ryou who was now sporting a collection of light scratches, and a couple of gashes.

"I think that's enough, for now, Yuusha-sama, you are certainly a strong opponent even at such disadvantage, but that's to be expected…" The biggest of the guards commented, and Ryou gave him a small grin.

"Yeah, I think we should call it quits. You guys have pretty good teamwork…" Ryou commented and the four stood a little straighter at the praise.

After waving them goodbye, Ryou turned to walk towards the porch, a little bruised, but overall feeling slightly better after the workout, that had lasted for nearly two hours.

Close quarters are my biggest weakness, sure if its normal monsters then it's fine, but this just further proves my point, even if it's painful… Ryou was lazy, but he knew the value of hard work, especially if it was directly tied to his survival.

"Fuee...Ryou-sa... Ryou are you alright?" Rishia asked worriedly, eyeing his injuries, Ryou gave her a thumbs up, the movement almost instantly accompanied by a small grimace.

"Rish, can you do your thing please?" Ryou asked. There was no need to spend a healing potion on mostly superficial wounds.

"Yes, just take a seat." The green-haired girl patted the place next to her twice, however, she quickly avoided his eyes the moment he met her gaze. Ryou was left slightly puzzled at the action, but before he could question it, Almond made himself heard.

"Ryou-sama wasn't four at the same time a little too much?" The Noble questioned with a small frown from his place on the porch.

Taking a seat next to Rishia, Ryou closed his eyes enjoying the feeling of warmth that coursed through his body for a few moments before answering, "Not really… I need to get used to this kind of skirmish if I am to grow stronger…"

Ryou heard the noble hummed in acknowledgment before he got up, and dust himself.

"If you think this is the correct path, then don't let me deter you, however, do exercise some moderation." The noble advised, making his way into the house.

After Almond left, both Ryou and Rishia stayed in silence for a little while, the Bow Hero enjoying the sun, and the feeling of healing magic, until he decided to break the silence.

"So, how was it?" Ryou asked.

"I-It was very productive, and I learned a lot!" Rishia exclaimed, and he could almost detect a very small hint of pride in her voice, as he felt her magic dispersed from his body, leaving no trace of the previous gashes.

Finally finished, Ryou opened his eyes to inspect himself, before laying down on the wooden floor, with his hands behind his head. "Yeah, I noticed you were picking up things pretty quickly... Those poor guards never stood a chance."

The girl flushed a little before shaking her head, "That's not true, they were very proficient."

Ryou turned his head to look at the girl, who was seated on her knees next to him.

"Never said they weren't Rish, there was no point if that was the case, however, you can't deny that by the end of it you were running circles around them." Ryou pointed out.

Once again his partner lowered her head and shrunk a little, something that annoyed Ryou.

There's being humble, and there's this… While there was nothing wrong with being shy, Rishia, however, doubted her abilities when there was no reason for it. In battle, she turned into a very competent warrior, however outside of it she immediately returned to her shell, even if she was getting a little bolder.

Taking in a breath, Ryou decided to address the issue, "You know Rish, there's a problem when one overestimates himself, but it's equally as bad when someone underestimates his abilities. I don't know why you put yourself down like that, but take this as the word of The Yumi-no Yuusha… Your strong, and both of us will only get stronger. Okay?"

Her head shot up, and her eyes widened a little, but finally, a determined if small smile appeared on her face.

"O-Okay, if the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama says so." There was no mocking in that statement yet Ryou couldn't help but to feel she was making fun of him.

She is definitely getting cheekier that's for sure...Ryou acknowledged with amusement, before shaking his head.

"Unto a different subject… How good are you with a pair of scissors Rish?"

"Fuee..?"

The next five days passed mostly the same, during the mornings they would spar with the guards, sometimes even going for a full battle royal. After lunch Ryou and Rishia would move to the woods, to grind. The area around the Northern Village was mostly peaceful much to Ryou's annoyance, however, they did come across some wild-life, mostly consisting of wolves (At this point Ryou was seriously pondering if it was the work of karma, and if in a past life he had been some kind of wolf hunter), Northern Spiders, (Once again Ryou had to consider if it wasn't karma), and a few sloth monsters aptly named Giant Sloth, since they were the size of a fully grown man.

[Giant Sloth Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 4 to Attack, Stamina Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Attack bonus (Small), Agility penalty (Small)]

Ryou had mixed feelings about that bow in particular, the stats weren't spectacular but it was worth mastering, especially since the ability allowed him to last longer in battle even if levels by themselves were doing miracles as far as his physical conditioning went, and he didn't know if it was him being paranoid or not since Rishia's face had hardly changed when he mentioned his new bow, but he had a feeling deep down she felt amused at him having a sloth themed bow.

Another positive of having access to the information from Motoyasu, and Ren, was that monsters now dropped items. He couldn't understand how a wolf could produce a piece of armor, but it happened from time to time. From swords, to daggers even spears, along with other miscellaneous items, the range of drops he now got from monsters became much bigger.

The one thing that they dropped in great amounts were herbs, some of them somewhat uncommon, but almost all of them were used in the production of potions, like the Soul-Healing Water that recovered SP, and the Magic-Recovering Potion that as the name implied recovered MP.

I have to start thinking about dipping my hand in Blending, especially now that we are venturing into the wilds, and there isn't an Apothecary a few streets away...

Unfortunately, ores, just like Motoyasu had explained were a rare commodity. The power-up items only dropped every once in a while and weren't of particularly high quality. That was something Ryou had begun to understand, while there was no indicator showing the chances of successful tempering, some ores had better odds of raising a weapon's level.

Souls from monsters, however, were much more common, but the Enhancements they provided were minimal at best, which was to be expected since they were hunting for mostly normal monsters. Ryou did decide to strap a Wolf Soul to his main weapon.

[Great Fang Bow + 4 - Uncommon - Awaken - Soul of the Northern Wolf(+8 Agility) - Equipment Bonus - + 12 Attack, Rapid Shot - Special Effect - Attack Speed Bonus (Medium), Projectile Speed Bonus (Small), Piercing Bonus (Small) ]

During the nights Ryou spent most of his time studying Melromarc's language while he watched over the egg. Sometimes, he would try to study while passing back and forth on the ceiling, courtesy of his gripping skill. The Bow Hero was determined to turn a skill that took conscious effort to use, into something that he could use in battle subconsciously, and the only way to do it, would be through repetition. Although he acknowledged that falling on his neck numerous times was an annoying affair, even if he suffered no damage from it. In the first couple of nights, both Almond and Rishia had come down to investigate the crashing noises happening on the ground floor, but after a few times, they decided to ignore it.

Rishia, however, spend her time brushing on her magic knowledge, something that Ryou couldn't help that much for the time being, he did became curious on what she had been working on specifically, only getting worse when she had closed herself, only replying that the old lady from the magic shop in Castle Town had given her advice on a new magic spell.

Women, and their mysterious ways! Ryou had cursed one night when the curiosity got the best of him.

On his six day in Northern Village, monotony was broken courtesy of Rishia who had awoken him at dawn feverishly knocking on his door.

Knock...Knock...Knock…

"Ryou, Ryou w-wake up!"

The almost shout penetrated his room, and Ryou was on his feet in an instant, fearing the worst. Quickly getting to the door he found Rishia in middle knock, her face a mixture of trepidation, and excitement.

"What's going on Rish?" He questioned with a trace of worry. She looked alright for the most part, even if she was still in her pajamas.

"Fuee! It's the egg! I think its hatching!" She exclaimed with all the excitement of a small child, making Ryou's eyes widen just a fraction. Not even bothering to put on his armor, he was out of his room, both quickly making their way to the living room.

His eyes immediately found the egg, and indeed the Black Monstrosity of an egg was shaking and had a small crack on it. Taking a seat in front of it, Ryou paid no attention, to his partner who was almost shaking from either excitement or apprehension and took out the glass dome.

They both waited breathlessly as more cracks appeared from the egg, and a white light escaped from them.

Finally, a small white-clawed paw, made a hole in the egg, before returning inside, a beam of light now exiting from where the hole was.

A few moments passed, and the egg burst in a flash so bright that forced both to cover their eyes. When the light died downed, Ryou could only watch in disbelief at what came out of the egg, an incredulous small smile making his way to his face.

No Freaking Way… Ryou thought completely breathless, and Rishia covered her mouth with both her hands, even if a very feminine if muffled squeal erupted from them.

"Grrryyyuuuuu!" The small creature squeaked, and Rishia finally lost it.

"Fuee..! It's so cute!" She squealed, and Ryou couldn't help but agree, even if he still felt breathless. He had known that whatever would hatch from the egg wouldn't be normal, and this might have crossed his mind, but he had never actually considered it.

Finally getting back into reality, Ryou smile widened, and he reached with his fingers, gently scratching the creatures white if slightly rugged neck.

"Hi there little guy…" The creature just purred in delight at the ministrations, before climbing through his arm, and taking a perch on his shoulder.

Mostly covered with white scales, with a turquoise underbelly, four small clawed paws gripped his shirt, a long tail for its size, waving lazily in front of his chest. The creature finally rested its snout against Ryou's face, licking his cheek a couple of times, making the Bow Hero chuckle at the adorable reptile.

Can it even be considered a reptile though? Ryou questioned, taking note of the appendages on its back, however instead of being membrane-like as he had expected, they were mostly covered in white feathers.

"Fuee! I have never seen a white dragon before!" Rishia was over the moon with their new member, petting it softly on the head, and the small dragon just purred, enjoying the attention.

I have, and it's normally a bad-ass, even if it comes out of a card… Although there were no similarities between the two. From Ryou's understanding, it looked mostly like a western dragon, and it certainly didn't have blue eyes.

"Well, it appears this little guy was quick to claim a spot for the reminder of the morning," Ryou commented amusedly. The creature in question seemed to take a liking at the Bow Hero's shoulders perched there, almost like a scarf.

"Ryou... I think its a she," Rishia interjected, and Ryou tilted his head, before releasing a small hiss. The action had moved their new party member a little, and it had sunk its small claws on his shoulder to get a better grip.

"Easy with the claws buddy, or my shirts won't last long…" Ryou warned lightly, however to his chagrin the dragon just closed its eyes, and almost appeared to release a yawn.

"How do you know it's a she Rish?" Ryou questioned.

Rishia just shifted a little, clapping her hands, before explaining. "It doesn't have horns… Female dragons, either have small horns, or they don't have them at all…"

Ryou made a noise of acknowledgement. Dragon biology wasn't his thing for obvious reasons. After moving slowly he took a seat on the couch gently since the Bow Hero didn't want any more holes on his shirt, or on his shoulders.

"What are you going to name it?" Rishia asked, and Ryou scratched his chin in thought, slightly slouching from the additional weight.

She's almost completely white so...Tsuki? Nah… Tskukihime..? That's a mouthful... At this rate, I'll end up calling her Kaguya, and that's a no-no...Hmmm, Tatsu..? Okay, now I'm just being lazy like Naofumi… It was at that particular moment that the Bow Hero decided if he ever had a child, he wouldn't pick the name.

"Rish, my naming sense is complete crap, so why don't you pick?" Ryou almost pleaded to the girl, who pointed at herself.

"M-Me?"

Ryou nodded, and she also took on a thoughtful expression taking a seat on the couch.

Unknown to the little reptile, for the next half an hour, names were thrown, and rejected between the two, until finally...

"What about Quartz..?" Rishia asked, and Ryou pondered on the name, before asking for clarification.

"Quartz as in the mineral?"

However, the girl shook her head lightly,"I was thinking of the gemstone, It's mother's favorite," Rishia added lightly. Ryou for his part couldn't help but draw parallels with a touch of melancholy, his mother had loved quartz jewelry too.

"Your mother's favorite, huh? It's a good name... Well, welcome to the team, Quartz!" Ryou exclaimed yet the dragon gave no sign of approving, too busy sleeping on his shoulder.

"Ryou it already takes after you!" Rishia chirped happily.

"Rish I swear…" Ryou threatened in a mumble. However, the threat went completely over her head.

"B-But it's just like father, and daughter!" She continued, her expression one of complete happiness and her eyes appeared to be almost shining.

"Goddammit, Rish stop saying I'm lazy!" Ryou, almost shouted, but was interrupted by a stinging pain in his shoulder.

"Grrryyyuuuuu!" Quartz growled almost sounding annoyed, and Ryou turned his glare towards her.

"Goddammit Quartz, that's my skin your poking holes in!"

Ryou spent the rest of the day with a new accessory, namely a draconian one on his shoulder. Thankfully Rishia being the bookworm she was, quickly found out what baby dragons ate, and ate the small thing did… Almost ten times her weight.

Ryou was horrified, the small reptile was a miniature black hole, from cow meat to deer meat, she even ate vegetables and berries. The only saving grace had been the fact that since Ryou had unlocked the upgrade systems, monsters now dropped items but more importantly equipment, and since Gentlewood was gone there were merchants coming in once again, and he could sell some of the leftover items for money.

I hope her appetite doesn't grow along with her, I'm not sure if I'll be able to break even if it happens... Ryou realized while in bed at night, eying the dragon, that had stolen his pillow, and was now sleeping beside his head curled.

Unfortunately, for the Bow Hero, his prayers went mostly unheard…

This is Filo all over again, isn't it? I already saw this crap happen once… Now once again on the porch with his chin resting on his palm, Ryou watched as Rishia played with the not so small dragon. Two days had passed, and it had grown from the size of a cat to that of a medium-sized dog, her appetite growing with her.

I wonder if it as something to do with this… He wondered looking at the new bow in question.

[Dragon Tamer Bow II - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Medium), Dragon Maturation Correction(Medium)]

Rishia had collected the fragments of the egg, and since it was such a weird thing Ryou had gone ahead and absorbed it. The ability unlocked from such a bow was the Grow Correction, afterward, Ryou decided to also absorb some of the feathers Quartz kept leaving behind, and much to his surprise it unlocked what appeared to be a higher variation of the bow. The Bow Hero had thought about the meaning behind the ability since the help menu showed nothing on the subject, and the only thing he had was the literal meaning of it.

Its correcting Quartz's growth, but what determines correct from incorrect growth..? Ryou had spent some time mulling over the topic, and the answer had been quite obvious. His status as hero determined that, and since the bonus was medium, it meant that it was slightly correcting her grow to be a companion of a Hero.

Quartz was now rolling on her side as Rishia who was crouched near her patted and poked her belly. Initially, Ryou had been slightly worried about raising what was supposed to be a fearsome beast, but now looking at the two he couldn't help but compare Quartz to a common household dog. The dragon had taken both Rishia, and Ryou as her owners, or family, it was the only reason he could think of as to why it was so friendly, and tame around them. That could also have been attributed to the fact that he and Rishia had taken turns taking care of it, and watching over her while she was an egg, and maybe Quartz had imprinted them even before hatching.

The most obvious way of seeing her growth, it's both in her size and in her attributes… The day before Ryou had taken the small dragon along on a grinding trip, and her level had increased quite nicely, however it was her attributes that shock him, each level they skyrocketed in a way that made his improvement seem mild in comparison.

I thought Rishia base stats were mostly average, but looking at Quartz, it just makes her seem bad in comparison… Heck, it almost makes me look bad, and I'm supposed to be a freaking hero with four different Strengthening Methods! Ryou had eventually written it off as her being a dragon, such a creature had been bond to have very good base stats from the get-go, and she had been absorbing magic from the environment even before hatching, that probably had also played a role, along with the Growth Correction Ability.

If she grows, as she levels in a few days she won't fit in the house...That wasn't the only problem, according to Rishia adult dragons could get very big, sometimes even to a size comparable to that of an Airbus. While having such an ally was Ryou's almost wet dream, the problem was that he wouldn't be able to feed such a beast, nor would he be able to fit her anywhere.

There was also another thing that kept bothering the Bow Hero. With a side glance, he opened the party menu and eyed it with suspicion for what was now the third time.

[Quartz - Level - 6 - ? Dragon]

I still can't figure out why part of her classification is hidden from me… It had turn like that since she had hatched, and Ryou for the life of him could not understand why his legendary weapon was hiding her classification from him.

It might be the same as with the Skill Tree… There are a lot of nodes there that I can't figure out since I don't possess the necessary knowledge… Well at least I know she's a dragon, just not what type she his… Ryou admitted silently to himself, before closing the window.

Returning to his thoughts about the Growth Correction, Ryou suddenly had a strange idea, one that needed testing.

If gathering things related to Quartz, gives me an ability that increases her status, then... Getting up, he stealthily made his way towards the two, before crouching behind Rishia without the girl noticing, his hand inching towards her hair.

Pluck…

"Ouch! Fuee..! Ryou, w-why?!" Cried out the girl in shock, hands flying towards her head, grabbing her hair.

"This is for all the times you called me lazy!" He replied before turning around and bringing the hair to the yellow jewel in his wrist.

Plink…

A single bow appeared in the tree, however, it needed five hairs to unlocked. Turning around once more, his grin grew a tiny little more malicious, one that made Rishia take a step back.

"No! You have the same smile as Naofumi-sama!" His smile grew a little bit more at the comparison, and the girl let out "mep!" before turning, and bolting, leaving a very confused dragon behind, whose head tilted to the side watching the interaction.

"Come on Rish, it's for science and magic!" Ryou shouted, running after her, at a mild pace, he was enjoying the entire thing a little bit too much.

"Fuuee! I don't care about science and the only magic that uses people's hair is dark magic and curses!" She shouted back, before continuing her escape, not that it would amount to much.

Eventually, Ryou caught up with her and explained the situation to the girl, who put a few strands of her hair on his hand still looking slightly suspicious. Gripping the few strands of green hair, Ryou brought them once again to the yellow jewel.

[Comrade Bow - Common - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Small)]

Well, it was a stretch but apparently it works… Wait! If absorbing her hair gives me this, what would happen if I absorb something else from her..? Ryou considered taking a side-glance to his partner.

"Hey Rish, can you give me a little of your blood?" He asked offhandedly.

"Fuee! B-Blood?! What kind of bow are you trying to unlock exactly?!"

"Ryou-sama no matter how you look at it, this is not normal…" Almond trailed off. Ryou released a sigh placing a hand on his forehead.

"Fuee… The village is better now, but it won't have cattle anymore if this keeps up." The girl on his left stated, a little of trepidation on her eyes, looking at what was in front of her.

"Rish, she is already bigger than cattle as it is…" Ryou commented before making his way towards his new party member, that was sprawled on the front of the house, before petting her on the snout. Even lying on the ground, Quartz already had him beat in height, and after measuring her with steps, Ryou concluded the dragon was somewhere around nine meters in length, from the tip of her nose to the end of her tail.

"Well, she doesn't fit inside the house anymore that's for sure…" He commented airily. The snout of the dragon felt leathery, if almost uncomfortably warm. Quartz just opened one yellow slitted eye half-way, before exhaling and closing it again.

The only thing she does is eat, sleep, and want attention, almost like a baby, but it's hard to treat her as one with this size…

"Ryou-sama, what my beautiful daughter is saying is true. If it keeps going like this, the villagers are going to have a hard time… Again..." Taking a look at the sky, Ryou noted it was a nice day, it was rare to rain in Melromarc.

"Come on Quartz, get up! You're going to start working for your food," Ryou ordered, and the dragon released another breath that sounded suspiciously like a scoff from another hero he knew, however, it did raise itself from the ground, opening her wings sending a gust of wind around her.

"She truly is a magnificent creature."

Ryou had to agree, Quartz looked like the very definition of intimidating yet beautiful, "Yeah… Now if she wasn't so expensive to maintain I would be happy," Ryou complained before making his way out of the village, a dragon, and a green-haired girl following behind.

Thankfully the woods were not very densely forested, so Quartz could maneuver in them, through trees, and bushes.

Eventually, they finally found a deer, feeding on berries, near a bush in the deepest parts of the forest, the poor animal didn't even acknowledge their presence or the imminent danger that had just arrived.

The moment Quartz laid eyes on the deer, she pounced on it, sending a small tremor through the ground, her maw separating the head, and neck from the rest of the body before the deer had time to react, leaving only a headless body, that remained standing for a few moments squirting blood everywhere before it tumbled to the ground.

Crunch...

Crunch...

Crunch…

With each crunching sound, Ryou's body twitched, and he winced, seeing the dragon feasting on the herbivore, her fangs crushing the bones into nothing.

This is not rated for children… He thought, watching as the blood dripped from the dragon's mouth, and unto the green forest floor. A moment later the experience window appeared, along with the item one.

"At least it's free experience and items…" Ryou mumble taking his eyes from the gruesome sight.

"…i-it also takes care of the food problem…" Rishia added weakly. He realized then there was a limit to how much gore she could watch before it affected her.

The dragon finished the rest of the deer, before licking herself, however, her pristine scales were now tainted in dark red.

A small screech was then heard, and everyone turned to look upwards where a Northern spider had made its web in the trees and was now looking at them, in a posture that seemed to indicate hostility. Movement in the corner of his eyes had Ryou shouting.

"Quartz wait don't! That's…" Crunch! "...poisonous…" Ryou lowered his head and covered it with his arms as green fluids rained on them. A moment later the ground shook when the dragon landed, having jumped almost ten meters off the ground like the laws of gravity didn't apply to her.

Cleaning his face with his arm, Ryou opened the status window quickly and released a breath when he observed, that the dragon was not poisoned. Raising his head, he took in the far too pleased look his dragon was now sporting along with the green blood she now had on her scales.

"Fuee… She's going to need a bath after this." Rishia commented, rubbing her arm against the corner of her armor in an effort to clean herself from the remains of the spider.

Faster than the normal eye could follow Ryou raised his hand in the air, and shouted, "Not it!".

For the next couple of hours Ryou, watched with an equal amount of disgust, and amazement has their new party member feasted on the wildlife, not even wolves were spared much to Ryou's secret delight. Even the Giant Sloths were torn to shreds with violent impunity, despite being at a higher level than the dragon.

When the dragon was satisfied they returned home, and Ryou couldn't help but notice he had almost gain a quarter of the experience required for a level, without doing anything at all.

The problem came during dusk, Ryou had to leave Quartz sleeping in a barn much to the dragon displesure. She had tried and failed to fit her head through the doorway. The Ivyred's would be needing a new door for sure, and maybe a new doorway too.

Taking one last look towards the barn where, Quartz was resting, Ryou let his thoughts wander.

If she's anything like Filo then the next step in all of this will probably be…

The first thing he noticed was that it was hot, far too hot, and it was also wet. Opening his eyes he was greeted with the sight of the dark ceiling in his room. His second realization was that he was completely drenched in sweat. The third realization was that he wasn't alone in his bed and that something had an octopus-like grip around his body.

Grabbing the sheet he lowered it slightly, revealing a mop of white hair. Lowering it a little more, the hair gave away to the face of a small girl sleeping. Her face almost melted with his chest, snoring slightly, and a stain of drool clear in his sleeping shirt.

Ryou lowered his head into the pillow without even batting an eye at the sight.

"Called it…", Ryou commented without feeling, before raising his hand with two outstretched fingers, and nudging the girl on the forehead.

Nothing happened, so he applied a little more force, and this time there was a reaction. The girl shook her head slightly trying to get rid of whatever was pestering her, and Ryou nudged her again twice.

Finally, a pair of unfocused yellow slitted eyes opened halfway. With a small yawn, the girl took in her surroundings, head moving from side to side before stopping on his face.

"Good morning," Ryou greeted dryly. The girl released another yawn, rubbing her eyes, with two small fists.

"Onii-shama it's too early…" She mumbled, her voice soft, despise the slight slur, what he hadn't expected was the way she had addressed him, however, he let it slide since there were far more pressing matters to attend.

"Quartz, what are you doing in my bed?" Ryou asked, turning his eyes to look at the ceiling again.

"It was cold outside," She answered, before dropping her head back on his chest.

That, was a far better, and logical answer then I was expecting… Ryou admitted to himself, nonetheless, he knew he couldn't let his mind wander since there was still another problem to solve, one that he could feel even through his clothes.

"Quartz can you let go, please? I'm kind of melting here…" He requested. The Dragon girl let out an unintelligible mumble, but did has asked, even removing the third appendage that had been around his midsection with an almost iron grip.

"Stay under the covers..." For my sanity, and peace of mind, "…I'll be right back…" Ryou ordered, receiving another unintelligible murmur in return. Finally free, he quickly made his way out of the bed, and proceeded to exit his room, moving through the darkness, until he reached his destination.

Knock…

Knock…

Nothing happen so he repeated the action, with a little more vigor, after what seemed like an eternity, he heard some shuffling from the other side, and a few seconds later a specter that he could identify as his partner opened the door.

"Fueeeeeee… Ryou, what is it? It's too early…" Somehow Rishia was able to mix her verbal tic with a yawn. Shifting from one foot to the other, Ryou scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry about waking you Rish, but do you have some clothes from when you were little, or even something smaller than what you are wearing?" Ryou asked, and the girl just stood there blinking a few times, for a couple of seconds.

"Give me a second…" She took a step back and closed the door much to Ryou's astonishment.

She didn't even question why I wanted the clothes?

There was some more shuffling for a couple of minutes, and then she opened the door, her arms filled with clothes.

"Why?" She questioned still seventy percent asleep, and Ryou took the clothes into his arms before turning around.

"Come with me, you'll see…"He motioned for the girl, who followed him wordlessly.

Arriving in his room, Ryou deposited the clothes on the feet of the bed, before shaking a bump under the sheets slightly. From under the covers, the small girl appeared, once again rubbing her eyes, the sheets falling to her waist, and her hair cascaded to her lower back, turquoise highlights shinning in the moonlight that came from the window.

Moving his attention to his partner, Ryou watched as Rishia looked slightly confused, then blinked three times, proceeding to rub her eyes, and blinked again. Realization slowly spread across her face that she was in fact not dreaming, and was seeing things right.

"Fuee! W-W-Why is there a g-girl in y-you're b-bed!" She all but shrieked, and Ryou had to rub his ear at the high pitch sound.

"Onee-shama is really loud when she wants to be…" Quartz commented monotonously, and Ryou snorted at the double meaning.

"That's Quartz, Rish…" Ryou explained, moving to take a seat near the clothes.

"W-What? W-Why? How?!" Her voice was still high-pitched, and her eyes were looking from the small girl to the Bow Hero.

"As I said, it's Quartz. Because it's cold outside, and transformation Magic if I'm guessing right…" Ryou answered each question, while inspecting the clothes Rishia had gave him.

"W-Why is she naked?!" Rishia almost demanded.

"Because she didn't have clothes when in dragon form…" Ryou continued to look through the clothes, trying to find something appropriate.

"Why are you acting like this i-is a normal thing?!" Ryou finally saw something he thought would fit the small girl and handed it to her before replying.

"Because I have foreseen it…"He replied offhandedly, as Quartz inspected the pajama shirt, from various sides, and Ryou reached forward to correct her on where to fit her head.

"W-What?" Rishia just felt incredibly confused, both at what was happening and at the sheer disregard for the situation.

Ryou then handed Quartz a pair of pajama pants, before turning to the front, "Yes Rish, I have used my amazing ability to peer into the events that have not yet come to pass, to foresee this…" Ryou explained with a deadpan, and the green-haired girl just stood there mouth slightly opened.

"Onii-shama, it's itchy, and my tail doesn't fit..."The small girl commented waving her arms. Ryou took a look at Quartz who was swimming inside the pajamas, her hands had all but disappeared under the sleeves, and a tail was poking out of her pants pants. A white scaled tail, almost as long, as the girl was high and twice as thick as her arm.

Well, that answers what was griping my waist so tightly... Whatever for now it works… Making a shooing motion he ushered the girl to the far corner of the bed, before moving to lay down.

"No griping, and stay on that side, you're like a living furnace, Quartz." Ryou requested, and the girl nodded before laying back down and nesting under the covers.

"Y-Y-You are letting her sleep in you're bed?!" Another almost shriek, and Ryou laid down on his bed, before throwing an annoyed glance in her direction.

"Yes Rish, she as been sleeping here since she hatched, besides it's too early to consider anything else. Go back to bed…" He finished laying his head on the pillow and turning to face the other way, leaving Rishia completely lost in the middle of his room.

Eventually the green-haired girl exited th room, feeling both confused, and suspicious, before stopping and throwing one last glance at the door to the Bow Hero's room, even when his words keep repeating inside her head.

"Yes Rish, I have used my amazing ability to peer into the events that have not yet come to pass, to foresee this…" The green-haired girl shook her head one last and returned to her room also disappearing into the darkness.

The only sound that echoed around the table were two different sets of munching. Two other pairs of eyes were locked on the new guest, who continued to eat her breakfast completely unperturbed by the gazes on her person.

A cough broke the atmosphere, "Ryou-sama… I stand by what I said before. This is not normal." Ryou wiped his mouth with a napkin and swallowed before replying.

"Rish said that monsters raised by Heroes grow up differently than others, besides I have seen stranger things." Almond just shook his head and decided food was more important at the moment then the insanity that was dealing with one of the heroes.

Turning to look at the mentioned girl, Ryou noted she had a pout on her face and was eying Quartz. She had been giving him the silent treatment all morning too.

"Rishia what's your deal?" He didn't intend for his voice to come out so sharp but he was starting to get annoyed.

Rishia jumped a little at being addressed, before turning to him, and if Ryou didn't know any better he would almost swear she was giving him the stink eye.

"You let her sleep on your bed…" She muttered.

Ohh for god's sake, Ryou face-palm, lowering his head in exasperation.

"Rishia, it was three in the morning! It was far too early to deal with this shape-shifting crap, or to question the morals behind such a thing. Also, I would like to add she is far from being the first female that as shared a bed with me ." It wasn't like he had done anything even remotely questionable, it was just too early to deal with something, that could easily be dealt with in the morning.

If anything his logic only seemed to aggravate Rishia further, who looked even more upset at the whole situation since she was now crossing her arms.

"If you have such a big problem, she can sleep with you from now on…" Ryou proposed. Quartz only shrugged her shoulders, apparently, the dragon was fine as long as she was warm.

The green-haired girl considered it for a moment before agreeing, and Ryou released a small breath of relief. Quartz even from half a bed away still emitted heat like an oven, and since Rishia was very resistant to high temperatures, it would work out just fine.

"Sounds like a plan then..." Ryou concluded, before shifting to a different topic that had been bothering him.

"Quartz, when you're in dragon form your wings are feathered, so why are they like this in human form?" Unlike in dragon form, in her current form, her wings were while still white, mostly bat-like.

The girl looked at him with a blank expression in her face, and shrugged, returning to her food.

"Can you fly with them looking like that?" Ryou inquired and frowned when the girl's shoulders dropped a little.

"Onii-shama, Quartz doesn't know how to fly…" She replied with a small hint of disappointment in her voice.

Shouldn't it be instinct? Or are dragons like birds, and they need to fall off the nest..? Ryou questioned, before coming to a decision.

"Okay, finish your meal Quartz, after that you're going to have some flight lessons, we can't have a dragon that doesn't fly, that's just silly…" Ryou ordered, and her head perked up a little.

After they were done with breakfast, Ryou, along with Quartz and Rishia made their way out of the village, through the main gate where there was a big open field.

"First thing first! Quartz, take off your clothes and turn into a dragon," Ryou requested.

"Fuuee! R-Ryou!" Rishia complained fully scandalized. Ryou turned to look at her before the full weight of his statement hit him.

Turning around he covered his eyes with his palms, "Genius, pure genius Ryou... Ahh... If you're old friends could see you now, you would have the cops on your ass so fast you wouldn't even know what hit you." Ryou commented humorlessly. He just racked it up to having to deal with so much daily, it was probably beginning to fry his brain.

A sound of displaced air echoed, and Ryou turned around to the sight of Quartz standing once again taller than anyone present, a bundle of clothes lying next to the dragon.

Half the shit we pull here would get all four of us arrested, or at least in a very interesting list of people to watch out for… It was a depressing realization to reach, the fact that the only Hero who had yet to commit any crimes, moral or legal ones, was Ren, the youngest of them all…

"Okay Quartz, try to run, then when you gain speed, try to take off by flapping your wings."The dragon just bobbed her head in acknowledgment, before going on her way.

Ryou watched as she went galloping along the field, and finally, with a mighty flap of her wings, she was off, although her movements seemed somewhat awkward. He was about to congratulate her on getting it on the first try when the dragon appeared to lose her balance in the air and came crashing down like a bomb.

The earth shook with the crash, kicking up dust everywhere. Ryou and Rishia quickly made their way to the crash zone.

"Quartz-chan are you alright?" Rishia questioned into the dust cloud worried, another flap of wings sent a gust that cleared the vision.

Quartz looked no worse to wear, and she raised herself wobbling a little, then her visage appeared to scrunch up a little, and she sniffed, her head rearing back, and she sniffed once more

Ryou's eyes went completely wide recognizing the action, an action that anyone who understood anything about dragons, fantasy or otherwise would recognize. In an instant the Bow Hero hooked his arms around Rishia's waist and dived under the dragon.

Fhroooosssshh!

Accompanying the roar, the heatwave hit Ryou in the back, and he felt his arms sting a little, as he tried to cover his partner from the flames that were expelled. The entire thing only lasted three seconds at most, before it died down and the dragon shifted carefully, moving to the side, trying to not stump her adopted older siblings.

Ryou raised himself, heaving Rishia back into a standing position before they looked wide-eyed at the destruction before them.

Everything in a twenty meters cone in the front of Quartz had either been burned to a crisp or was still on fire.

Well if there was any doubt left about her being a dragon it's gone now…

"Rish, I'm sorry, but could you do your thing before this spreads any further?" Ryou asked, and the girl nodded, a second later she was chanting, a blue magic formation materializing in front of her.

"Onii-shama I sneezed..." Ryou almost jumped in fright as a voice that certainly wasn't his, appeared in his mind. Looking towards the dragon, he locked gazes with it, and it almost seemed she was peering into his very being.

"Quartz... Was that you?" Ryou asked in amazement, and the dragon inclined her head.

Telepathy… She can't fly, but she can use telepathy on instinct? He had to wonder what was wrong with the current situation.

"Onii-shama, I'm hungry…" Quartz's voice echoed in his head, as he continued to watch Rishia conjure up the magical equivalent of a fire hose, swinging it around to extinguish the flames.

"I bet you are..." Ryou replied after a moment, his tone completely bland. He noted that the dragon had even incinerated a poor lonesome tree.

"Onii-shama, you smell tasty…"

Ryou just face-palmed, for what was probably the third time, and it was still morning.

"Quartz, just… Just be quiet for a moment." Ryou replied, taking a look at his arm. The hairs there were mostly burned, so it was normal he smelled like roasted pork.

"Fuee... That's everything…" Rishia affirmed, cleaning her forehead of sweat, as she eyed the area in front of her to see if she missed anything.

"Sorry about this Rish," Ryou mumbled an apology. No matter how much fun he made at the girl's expense for her usage of fire-magic, that wasn't an excuse to always have her on fire-fighting duty.

"Quartz from here on out your only allowed to sneeze on monsters, or bad guys." The Dragon tilted her massive head to the side for a moment, then she bobbed it.

"Only monsters, and bad guys…", Ryou also nodded just to confirm, before another far less pleasant memory appeared in his head, his face twisting in disgust.

"Let me add another clause to that. If you see a guy around this height…" Ryou reached with his hand raising it into the air as an example, before continuing "...with blonde hair, a stupid smile on his face, and wielding a spear, you can and will set him on fire on sight." Ryou declared with conviction. He knew what kind of disgusting shit Motoyasu was into, and there was no way he was going to let that creep anywhere near Quartz.

"Fuuee! W-What are you saying Ryou! She might kill Motoyasu-sama!"

Ryou pondered on that for a second before releasing a "tsk" sound.

"Shit your right, Rish…" He paused before raising two fingers towards the dragon,"...Quartz if you see him, you have to sneeze on him twice, one should always double-tap, you can never be too careful!" Ryou declared, crossing his arms with a serious nod.

"Tall, blond and stupid looking... Quartz understands." The Dragon agreed easily.

"Fueee!" Rishia only hid her face in her hands, trying not to cry.