Perfect imperfection

The two arrived at the Mystic just after the sun had set. They had gone out to check the town out after they exited the adventures guild since they had not done what they set out to do that morning.

They were hungry as they had only ate a lizard-looking creature that was roasted over the fire. Falgur had dared Sheyken to try it and not wanting to mock the town's eating culture, he took a big bite out of it and he was surprised as it tested like chicken. Falgur had followed suit after seeing him finish it whole.

The Mystic was buzzing. They walked in and Lasore was not there. Since they could not wait for him, they sat down at their reserved table and Sali came to serve them. Just like the night before, they asked for the expensive stuff without batting an eye. Sazi came by to greet them and was surprised to see Sheyken smiling and freely talking to her.

A girl that looked like a grown Sali stepped in the dining hall and the whole place went silent.

"Ahhhh!"

A man screamed in a girlish voice after he was late in seeing who had got in. The crowd tensed up and if you were close to one of them you would hear their heart beating. The girl looked for a while and after seeing Sheyken and Falgur's table, she went straight for them. One of the people there started praying.

"Sheyken, Falgur, good to see you again."

The girl said with a smile and making the crowd gasp. A person who was about to jump over the window to get to safety stopped his actions. The two boys looked confused as they did not know who it was that greeted them. The lady noticing this spoke again.

"It is me, Salina, from the guild."

She said with a smile. Sheyken and Falgur both spat out what was in their mouth in surprise. The lady in front of them looked nothing like the berserker ninja they had come to admire in just the first time watching her work.

The girl in front of them was the embodiment of the word innocence and her smile made you just want to be by her side and do anything for her. For the boys, it was a crash at first sight of her face and posture. The girl was just confident in herself and she walked like she knew what she wanted but gracefully. With the long white dress and a crop top that still showed her toned sexy stomach making Sheyken's third leg yell out to him to put a ring on it.

Picturing such a girl beat up two guys just for them sealed the deal. She went straight up to second in the beauty scale with Ningal to never be dethroned. She was just the right kind of opposite from Ningal for Sheyken. While Ningal was perfection, Salina was the perfect imperfection as he pictured her soul to be bright white with a tinge of darkness. Ningal could protect herself but you just could not help but want to protect her while he pictured having to stop Salina from killing anyone who touched him.

Falgur did not know what to think. He was still on guard for a frying pan coming and hitting his head again.

"Big sister! you are here. I missed you so much."

Sali said as she jumped into Salina's arms.

"You not doing your research today?"

She continued. The people around put out sighs of relief as it looked like the berserker had just come to see the Finis boys. The man who was about to jump through the window acted like he knew all along and sat down to continue eating with his friends with one of them still shaking as he held a spoon in his hand.

Sheyken still could not say anything as he watched Salina talk to Sali for a moment.

"I will go see mom after I chat with the boys, ok."

Those were the words Sheyken heard as he come back to Uros. He saw Sali leaving and Salina now looking at him. Falgur, being the kid that he was had stopped admiring her and started eating again.

"You look beautiful."

There it was again. The words that made a Lich question if he was sane after he said them for the first time in Uros. Falgur again spat out what he was eating. The way he said the words were like Salina was the love of his life. The room went quiet again as everyone there was still paying attention to their table.

The man who was visibly shaking while holding a spoon could not take it anymore as his stomach turned. He thought he would see a kid be killed by either the owner of the place or the girl those words were directed at. He vomited with the vomit coming out like water from a hosepipe. Sheyken had a meltdown as he did not understand how his words would make someone vomit.

First, it was a Lich that asked if he was insane or not and now someone vomited when he said those words. At that point, he felt his whole world crashing down and for the first time in Uros he thought of his earthly father. That all ended when he saw the girl the words were intended for.

Salina was looking at him with her face turning red and her hands on her sides playing with her dress.

That was it, the reaction he had missed for what seemed to be centuries to him. His sad face turned to a smile that managed to make the girl blush more. His heart did jumping jacks as her red cheeks confirmed that he still had it.

"Thank you."

Salina said and then left. The crowd gasped as they saw her go to the kitchen. Sali had stopped to see her reaction when she heard Sheyken complimenting her sister. Salina passed her only to stop walking away when a big broad figure appeared from the kitchen.

This was it. The man who wanted to escape earlier wished he had at that point. The figure passed Salina, then Sali. Falgur lifted his hands to protect his head from any concussion he might receive because of Sheyken trying to be an adult and whoa someone out of his league. He watched as the figure passed their table as he heard Sheyken swallowing his saliva and with it his brave front.

She stopped when she reached the table of the man who vomited.

"Pang!!"

You could almost hear the skull of the mean cracking.

"This, is, not, a, place, to, be, vomiting, in. Are you saying my food is horrible?"

The man tried to answer but could not find the words.

"Pang!!!"

"No! Mom!"

He quickly found the words as the second pan on his head adjusted his brain.

"Quickly clean that up and order more food."

"Yes! Mom!"

The man said without hesitation this time. The big broad figure went back to the kitchen, passing Sheyken on the way and giving him a glare. His mouth was dry and he swallowed nothing but air this time around.

Sali smiled like she wanted to tease someone and ran to her sister's side. The crowd let out a sigh of relief again.

"Man, who is the being looking after you so I can pray to them to look after my head too?"

Falgur asked. Sheyken just looked at Salina and again started to hate his child-like body. At the same time the man from the guild that they saw helping the women after they saved them come in. He saw them and went to sit with them. He looked to be in his twenties and looked like an ordinary person with the magic robe he was wearing betraying him as it told everyone he was a mage.

"Hey boys, I am Lariote. I hard I could get some free beer here if I am lucky."

The man said as he sat down without even asking.

"What are you talking about?"

Falgur asked as he did not know what he was talking about. At that moment, Lasore came down the steps and everyone on the dining room screamed out.

"Lasore, Lasore, Lasore!"

Lasore who had been sleeping the whole day did not know what was going on. He sat by Sheyken as everyone touched his shoulders as he passed through.

"I see, you are a popular old man here."

He said, surprised.

"I do not know who any of these people are. I have a killer headache. Don't you know any healing spell?"

"No healing magic can help you with what you have old man. I and you both know what takes care of the sickness you've got."

Lasore smiled as he had found someone who talked his language. He looked at Lariote and introduced himself.

Sazi came to take his order while looking at Sheyken and lightly laughing like she knew a secret. Thereafter the night went by fast as the two men exchanged stories with Lariote having not to buy any beer but Lasore ordering for him. They also talked about the incident and the boys got to learn more about how the guild worked.

Sheyken was starting to understand why the old man was so popular and why they had amassed such a large bill in one night. He did not stop him as he thought the old man would learn his lesson sooner or later as he put his trust in Seduralto.

"Lariote, you have been in the guild for some time right. Can you tell us why Salina hides her face when she is at the guild?"

Sheyken asked.

"Awe... I heard what happened. Are you not too young to be interested in grown women? I mean she is 17 and one of the few mages to reach the stage she is in by that age, but still."

Sheyken was starring daggers at the man when he said that.

"Damn little guy, you do not have to kill me with that stare of yours. I wouldn't want to be your enemy after what I've heard about you two from just the second day you spent with us."

The man said as he came close so to whisper in his ears.

"The rumor is that she does not like the way she looks when she is in her berserk state."

He whispered and then sat back. Sheyken just smiled and looked at Falgur who was looking at Sali.

"You know, no one had ever heard someone tell her she was beautiful before or even approached her like that. Every guy is scared of her. Young man, you have just made history. You even looked at the mighty frying pan as it went past you twice without batting an eye. You are now a legend in our little town."

Lariote said as the night got louder.

"What, I knew you were a legend the day I saw you!"

Lasore said as he picked Sheyken up and put him on his shoulders.

"Legend, legend, legend!"

The whole crowd shouted as Lasore danced with him on his shoulders. From up there, he saw the two young girls teasing Salina as she looked embarrassed. You could swear she was a different girl from when she was wearing the ninja outfit.

The rest of the night passed with them not able to talk since he thought she had come there to talk to them about something. Lasore was the center of attention throughout the night as the old man looked like her knew how to entertain.

Falgur and Sheyken called it a night with him having to carry Falgur on his back as the fight from the morning had drained all his energy. He laid him on his bed and went to bathe. He thereafter but more of his oil on the wrist that had been hurt.

"What an eventful second day here that was."

He said as he held a mana stone in his hand and a mana crystal in the other.

"I forgot to ask what the difference is between these two."

He said as he put them back into Ruby and closed his eyes.

"Unique.... armor...weapon .... Base .... core."

He heard Falgur talking in his sleep.