The Last Day of Childhood

Now standing outside of Rose's house, Velk could already see the sun starting to set. It was early spring, and the snow had just melted not that long ago. Many things needed to be repaired in the city after the long winter season, and the denizens were still very active at this time of day. Velk reasoned that it was around six in the afternoon. He had not expected the recruitment to take as long as it did.

Rose's place was located in one of the larger residential districts of the city. While most lived in tiny one-bedroom apartments or small houses, Rose's house was far the biggest in the neighborhood. The house was only a two-story building, typical of large houses, but the overall perimeter was more extensive than the surrounding residences.

Most of the houses were made of stone and wood with brown or red slanted rooftops. Rose's home was no exception, but the roof was recently whitewashed by hired workers in preparation for new paint. There was also a chimney poking out and letting out a light layer of smoke. It appeared like Rose was either cooking something or just warming up the house as she often does for some time at night.

Just thinking about food made Velk's stomach complain. It had been an awfully long day, and he had not eaten all that much while he was at the rally. He hoped that Rose was still cooking the meal, as it was always better fresh than even a few minutes left out, but there was a chance that they had already eaten while Velk and Ash were out.

Velk entered the house with Ash and announced his presence out loud. "I'm home!" He dropped his bag off by the entrance and quickly charged into the dining room to find Rose and Maeve sitting around a small table with five chairs.

"Welcome home! Come. I just made it." Rose gestured for Velk to sit at the table. On the table were four bowls of steaming hot aptonoth stew. Inside the meat-rich meal were some vegetables to go along with it, like tomatoes, onions, and celery.

Velk gladly seated himself at the table, happy that he did not miss out on the food while it was still hot. Before he was able to start with the delicious stew, though, Maeve instantly started to barrage him with questions. "Did you make it in? Did you make it in? How was it? What did they say? Will you be able to visit us often? How was it? Did you make it in?"

Velk furrowed his brows as Maeve struck him with the questions, some of them having been repeated more than twice. "Yes, I passed the test..." He took some time to think of what to continue with. "It went okay. I didn't even have to write anything down. I looked prepared, and that was enough for the guild master to accept me. Ash was also accepted into the guild. We have already been bonded together as palico and master." Velk shuddered at that thought of the bonding process.

"You were accepted by the guild master herself? Hmm... That's... good, that's good..." Rose was surprised to hear the news about the guild master as she finally sat down at the table with Velk, Ash, and Maeve.

"Do you know where you will be staying? It should still be within the guild." Rose had already told Velk that the guild would offer him housing, but she felt the need to make sure he knew where to stay. If it turned out her information was wrong, she wouldn't be opposed to allowing him to stay with them as a family. She's just worried that extending his stay would negatively affect his growth in maturity.

"Yeah, I was shown where my quarters were, and I was told that I would share it with three others." Velk had been shown where he would be boarding until he had his own place by Abigail while he was on his tour of the guild's grounds.

"Do you know who they are?" Maeve asked excitedly.

"No, I didn't meet them yet. Maybe I will tomorrow when I go back?" The three hunters Velk would be staying with were not in the room when he toured it. This meant they were either out participating in the race or would also be new recruits like him.

"Oh..." Maeve seemed saddened by the news. "How often will you be able to come back?"

Velk was confused at first by her words before coming to an understanding. "There shouldn't be anything stopping me from visiting whenever I want?" Velk turned to Rose with a questioning gaze as he looked for confirmation to his words.

Rose just nodded her head before explaining, "Velk should be able to visit us whenever he wants. The guild does not restrict such things. So you're fine." She then sent a wayward glance towards Maeve as if trying to tell her something with her eyes.

Velk didn't bear Rose's antics any mind, so he just continued talking. "Basically, I can come back whenever I'm not out of the city. I don't know how often I will be hunting, but I don't assume it should be too much. Anyhow, I will make sure to pay a visit whenever I am here."

"Meow, meow!" Ash voiced his thoughts.

Rose answered with, "Thanks, Ash, I appreciate it."

"What did he say?" Velk asked Rose curiously.

"Ash said that he will make sure of it."

Velk looked towards Ash, surprised, and Ash just gave a thumbs-up back with his paw. Ash then started to dig into the stew by bringing the bowl to his mouth and drinking. Everyone else started to do the same, and the rest of the meal was passed in relative silence.

(...)

"Ahh! That was good! Thank you!" Velk shouted out his praise towards Rose as he slammed the bowl back onto the table. He had just finished drinking the rest of its contents after having fished out all the chunky pieces with his spoon.

"Yup. Always happy to feed." Rose snatched the wooden bowl away from Velk while replying and brought it along with her towards the other nearby dishes. She had already started washing everything used for dinner as Velk was the last to finish his stew.

Maeve was lying off to the side in the living room on the floor with Ash on her stomach. She was tired after the long day of work and play, so now was the time to relax with a fuzzy ash-colored furball.

Ash was already sound asleep, and a loud purr could be heard rumbling from his throat as he was softly petted by the blonde-haired girl.

Velk got up from the table and stretched out. The stew had sated his hunger for now, but that won't be the case for long; he is a growing boy, after all. After stretching, Velk was left with a couple decisions. He could either join Maeve and Ash in the living room and just sit, he could go back to his room, or he could help Rose with the washing. Since the third option didn't sound appealing, and the second option took more work than the first, he decided to move to the living room.

After grabbing his bag from near the entrance, Velk silently joined the duo in the living room and sat on a rustic wooden couch with blue cushions. He sat around just watching Maeve and Ash for a while before growing bored, so he decided to start reading the new manuals given to him by Abigail. There wasn't much to entertain oneself with other than books and other people unless you were rich enough to have a music player or something similar, and despite being affluent herself, Rose never invested the money into getting one.

The first book he took out was titled "Hunter's Guild." It was the book with all the rules and regulations given to him shortly after joining. Velk decided that the book would probably be the most important out of the six he took, so it should be the first to read. He started to read the book in silence as the sounds of water squishing around, Ash's purr, and the occasional grunt, cough, or sneeze from Maeve played out in the background.

It wasn't long after he began reading that Rose finished washing the dishes and came to join the children in the living room. She sat on the opposite side of the couch from Velk and just stretched out before closing her eyes. Velk wasn't bothered at all by Rose's presence and just kept his mind on reading, but he did notice that at some point, probably while he was distracted, Maeve had turned on her side towards him and now had Ash lying next to her.

Maeve was just staring at him absentmindedly while she was resting. She looked tired and distracted but didn't seem to want to fall asleep yet. Velk felt that it was always slightly unnerving to just be watched like that while he was doing something alone with himself, but after years of dealing with the girl, he had grown somewhat used to it. It's not like he can say that he had never done so himself.

Velk simply ignored Maeve and continued reading. So far, the book had only explained what the Hunter's Guild was and its public history. The guild's primary purpose, as Velk already knew, was to protect the ecosystem and preserve balance but to also protect burgeoning young communities and reconnect humanity with nature. As is recorded in the book, the guild can't do this alone, so they will train and employs hunters to honor these practices and ensure peace.

Frequently, hunters are recruited amongst the young upstart populations of humans and wyverians with the express purpose of slowly guiding them to becoming elite mercenaries loyal to the guild. This much is evident to Velk, but the guild will also take known and practiced criminals as they could be valuable assets and are useless dead, which has caused problems amongst some of the stronger-willed government bodies worldwide.

The book further details why many decide to become hunters in the first place and the benefits that come with joining. Many do so in search of fame and fortune, but others may register simply to become helpful community members or for other more personal reasons. Velk is of the latter two for joining, as while he surely wouldn't mind being rich and famous, his drive for hunting could mainly be attributed to familial ties and genuine curiosity for the unknown.

More time passes as Velk continues to study in the living room. Rose, who was still on the couch, would occasionally shift around, trying to maintain comfort as she lay there. Still, nothing broke Velk from his newfound concentration as he was deeply invested in his reading. Currently, the book was detailing the different hunter ranks and what was expected from them in turn.

The hunters were split into three separate categories: Low-rank, High-rank, and G-rank, or Master-rank, as some will call it. Low-rank hunters are expected to do the menial but necessary jobs needed for the community, such as low-risk collect missions and pest control. It would be unbecoming of the guild to send High-rank or, better yet, G-rank hunters who are always in extremely short supply on fetch missions when they could be better utilized for the more pressing issues. All hunters, with few exceptions, are placed into Low-rank upon joining the Hunter's Guild.

To become a High-rank hunter, you must prove yourself to the guild that you are capable of what would be requested of you at such a level. The most common way Low-rank hunters advance is by legally hunting a dangerous wyvern that would be categorized as a High-rank threat, but, to avoid undeserved promotions, the guild has implemented restrictions requiring a minimum number of Low-ranked missions, varying in difficulty, to have been completed by said hunter before advancement. Only once a hunter becomes High-rank can they accept high-ranking commissions, with yet again, a few exceptions.

G rank hunters are some of the rarest and most prestigious hunters you can ever come across. To even become a G-rank hunter, one must first capture or slay an elder dragon, and those are also few and far between, not to mention some of the most dangerous creatures that walk the planet. Since G-rank hunters are so few in number, they are often shared across multiple districts and will sometimes be required to travel long distances just to complete their mission. Reaching G-rank, in most cases, requires a lifetime of servitude to the guild and a substantial amount of commitment and practice. One doesn't just become a G-rank hunter, but ultimately, that is one of Velk's long-term goals, and he won't stop until he is either becomes what he seeks or is dead and buried.

Further in-depth, the book also describes how each rank is determined and how the guild grades the commissions using a system comprised of stars. Low-rank missions are graded one-five stars, while High-rank commissions are four-nine. The grading becomes a little muddled between four and six stars due to unknowns in the ecosystem and variations amongst wyverns of the same species. When a mission is graded higher or lower than the average for the type of hunt, it's due to the guild deeming that there might be unknown variables afoot that may cause difficulties for inexperienced hunters or might make things easier for amateur hunters to complete.

Velk already possessed a good amount of knowledge concerning rankings, but the information about the star systems is new, so he's pleased to have learned something different. After moving through the ranking segment of the book, he started to quickly skim through the book, looking for the rules and regulations. He can go back and read the book at any time, but he must know the guild's rules before going tomorrow unless he wants to embarrass himself.

A bit of time passes as Velk reads through the rules. Most of them are just common sense, like, "You are not allowed to claim or unknowingly borrow from the guild, and it's personal without express permission." or, "The non-defensive slaughter of any and all guild personal is strictly prohibited." but some rules are a little strange, like, "Under no circumstances shall a drunk bullfango be ridden in guild sanctioned property." Velk couldn't help but wonder what possibly could have happened to cause such a rule to be created.

Now, having gone through all that he feels like he needs to read today, Velk closes and puts the book down on the ground below before closing his eyes and resting on the couch. Besides Ash's purring and the crackle of the firewood slowly burning, the entire room is silent as everyone relaxes in their respective places. Today had been a long day indeed for everyone here. Velk and Ash have finally joined the hunter's guild after long years of dreaming and training about it, while Rose and Maeve had spent most of the day attending to household chores or talking with friends.

Usually, Rose would have attended to her garden with Maeve or engaged in "business," as she calls it, with other affluent folks during the day, often she would bring Maeve along if it wasn't just outright at their house. Velk wasn't sure what rose did during her meetings, and Maeve would not divulge the information either, but he suspected that whatever it was, it either maintained or increased her net worth; after all, she wouldn't be able to maintain such large housing with her tiny farm.

Eventually, after a bit of rest, Velk decided that he was tired and was going to his bed. Velk rose up the couch and stretched before yawning and saying, "I'm tired. Goodnight, Maeve, Rose. Ash, are you coming?"

Ash lifted his furry head from Maeve's grasp and looked towards Velk with a drowsy expression before saying, "Meeow..." He then started to attempt to wrestle control over his body away from Maeve as she continued to hold onto him tightly, and he would have succeeded if Rose didn't groan audibly from the sofa.

After groaning, Rose spoke up, demanding, "Stay here. We still need to discuss your punishment." Velk looked towards Rose, dismay plastered upon his face as he remembered that he would be punished.

"Okay..." Velk obviously did not want his punishment, but what could he do? Say no? He knew that Rose would never allow that, lest he wants an earful in the coming future.

Rose looked towards Maeve and said, "Maeve, get the things."

"I will!" Maeve suddenly jumps up from the ground in a burst of energy and instantly sped up the stairs towards the second floor. Ash, who was previously being held, was flung into the air and landed a couple decimeters away from where they were laying just before Maeve's sudden departure.

"Things?" Velk asked Rose, concern apparent in his voice.

Rose turned towards Velk with a devious smile and stated, "Just wait."

Velks mind started racing through all the possibilities as he tried to figure out what his punishment could possibly be, but all that he thought of seemed implausible given the circumstances. It wasn't long after Maeve ran up the stairs that Velk heard a loud bang and a crash come from above. A worried frown abruptly adorns his face as he becomes slightly anxious in his wait, but he also saw that Rose grew a confused expression as well.

Only fifty-two seconds after the crash, Velk noticed a singular pillow fall down the flight of stairs and onto the ground. His eyebrows widened in surprise before a veritable accumulation of pillows, blankets, and sheets would soon follow and make a sizable pile at the foot of the steps.

Turning towards Rose with a surprised expression on his face, Velk could swear that he saw a proud grin flash before his eyes before Rose exclaimed, "Slumber Party!"

(...)

It was now sometime after midnight, and Rose and Maeve were sound asleep in the dark room while Velk secretly read some of the new books he had gotten from Abigail. Previously, Velk had learned that his 'punishment' was an impromptu slumber party, in which both he and Ash would share a giant collection of blankets with Rose and Maeve on the floor. In the end, both Velk and Ash were made to sleep in between the two girls. Not too long after, Ash was quickly catnapped by Rose, who turned him into a snuggle buddy; not that either Velk or Ash minded all too much.

After Both Rose and Maeve fell asleep, Velk managed to wiggle out of the pile and secured a couple of his books. He had been so excited after becoming a hunter and now can't bring himself to sleep, so instead, he utilized his time by reading up as much as he could before slumber could inevitably take him. Currently, he was reading the book on the native wild and plant life of the Rak-Al-Faar District, but it was a little hard to see due to the low light coming from the fireplace and the lack of reading room; still, he made do with what he had.

After some time reading, Velk's tiredness eventually started to catch up with him, so he closed the book and placed it off to the side where it would not bother anyone. Velk looked over past Rose, who had her back to him, and whispered out, "Ash, are you awake?"

It took a couple of seconds, but eventually, Velk heard Ash respond with a quiet, "Meow..." Luckily, neither Maeve nor Rose was awakened by the two's antics, so Velk felt confident saying the next part in a whisper.

"Tomorrow, buddy. Tomorrow we finally become the hunters we always wanted to be."

"Meow..."

And with that, both Velk and Ash fell asleep, thereby ending their last day of childhood. Tomorrow, they become hunters!