► Discovery ◄

Around noon, Luca and Shoto were at the guild house. They were inspecting it to the last detail and where now standing in front of the door behind the reception desk.

'Do you know where we can find the key?' Shoto asked. 'Not really. Maybe it's somewhere in the reception desk.' Luca wondered. They both searched the whole shelve, but could only find some old blankets.

They stood there, thinking for a moment. When Shoto looked at the door frame, he thought that it was thick enough to lay a key on it. 'Maybe it's up there?' He pointed to the top of the door frame.' Luca agreed, 'Good thinking. Let me try searching for it. I should be able to reach it, since I'm a little taller than you.' The other wanted to pout, but he knew he was right. Some people just don't get to be born tall. After a few seconds of groping the wood, he finally found something. And there it was. The key, they were searching for. 'Pog' Luca exclaimed. 'Pog?' Shoto asked, tilting his head. 'Oh. I say that, when I'm happy about something or something good happens. I just like the word' Luca explained. 'Oh. Alright. Never heard that before. Well, let's see what's behind that door, shall we?' Shoto said. Luca nodded and inserted the key into the keyhole to twist it and opened the door.

What they saw was unexpected. It was a small room, big enough for three book shelves, a chair and a desk. On the desk stood an old lamp, the candle was burned to a crisp and next to it lay a map. The two looked at each other briefly, before walking into the room. When they inspected the map further, they saw a cross that marked something.

Luca was the first to speak, 'This could be something big. We need to tell the others. Maybe this marks some kind of treasure.' He said with anticipation. He looked like a dog that was about to go on a walk. Shoto was a little doubtful, 'Don't you think, this "treasure" could be long gone? I mean, the map seems pretty old, considering the yellow stains. And you can barely read the map, since the colors and lines faded slightly.' Seeing as Luca dropped his head a little disappointed, he sighed, 'Well, I guess, we got nothing to lose. Let's take it with us and see what the others may think about it.' Luca, now happy, grabbed the map gently as to not damage it and said, 'Pog!' which made Shoto chuckle. He really is like a puppy. He thought. 'But first, we need to finish what we came here for.' He added. So they started cleaning and took note of what needed repairing.

After about three hours, they were done with most of the cleaning and called it a day.

It was now the late afternoon and the sun was starting to set. The air was a little chilly as it was already fall. On the way back, they visited a carpenter called Dale. Ike introduced him to them in the morning, so they could get a new door for the guild house. They gave him the measurements they needed and got told to come back in about two days to get the finished door.

When they arrived at the castle and went inside, they could hear voices from the kitchen. Since it was soon time for dinner, someone must have started preparing for it. Apon entering, they saw Mysta and Shu sitting at the table and peeling potatoes. Shu was the first to notice them, 'Eeeey. Welcome home', he grinned. Mysta followed right after. 'Heya', he greeted.

'Hey. You are preparing dinner, I see.' Shoto smiled. 'Yes, we are. I hope, you are hungry.' Shu responded. 'We sure are, right Luca? ' Shoto sang. 'Yeah' he agreed. But then he suddenly frowned and asked, 'Is Mysta cooking?' 'Hey, what do you mean? You make it sound like I'm trying to poison you or something.' The other pouted. 'No, I'm not trying to say that.' Luca whimpered. Shoto interfered, 'Mysta, do you not remember what happened the last time you cooked?' 'Wha- That was a coincidence. I accidentally used too much seasoning. Am I not allowed to mess up once?' He defended. Shu giggled, 'Do you remember that time you cooked for us and Ike and Vox had to stay home for a week?' Mysta retorted, 'But it was only Vox and Ike. You and Luca were fine. Maybe they ate something bad before eating my food.' Shu shook his head. 'Luca has a strong stomach and he didn't eat much of your food. He said, it kinda smelled weird. So I decided not to eat any. You just didn't realize because you were immersed in telling a story about a case you solved.' Mysta surrendered, 'I- Fine. Then I won't cook for you anymore... If you are resisting that much.' He crossed his arms in front of his chest and tilted his head to the side. 'POG' Luca cheered. The other three looked at Luca with a shocked expression. Shu and Shoto then looked at Mysta who frowned and they started laughing. Luca only looked confused while Mysta was now half angry. He knew they were right, but he was still mad. Shu then stated, 'Anyway. I'm cooking today, since I'm stuck at home and Ike and Vox are busy with work. They came back about an hour ago and are now doing paperwork in their offices. Can you go and inform them that dinner should be ready soon?' Shoto and Luca answered at the same time, 'Sure' and went out of the kitchen.

They decided that Luca would go to Ike's office while Shoto went to Vox's. Vox's office was next to his bedroom, just like Ike's was next to his. It was the first time Shoto would see Vox's office, since the door was always closed.

When he stood in front of the door, he took a deep breath and knocked. After hearing a muffled 'Come in', he suddenly got a little nervous as he thought of what happened in front of Ike's office the other day. Don't be nervous. He just did what a friend would do. There's nothing strange about two men hugging. He thought, before opening the door. 'Oh. Shoto, my boy. How was your day?' He was greeted by a kind gaze that made his heart skip a beat. 'Hello Vox. The day was a little exhausting, but Luca and I managed to bring some life back into our guild house. How about you? You look tired.' He answered. Vox was now messaging his temples. 'Yeah. There's just so much to do. So many people to settle in. So much paperwork...' Shoto frowned, 'You need a break once in a while. Speaking of, Shu is cooking us some dinner right now. I came to inform you, so you can wrap things up.' Vox's expression lit up, 'Oh, that sounds delightful. Let me just finish this paper and we can go to the others. Come here and sit down. You don't need to stand there.' He patted a chair next to him. Shoto did as he was told and sat down. Vox started reading the paper and wrote a few remarks occasionally. His companion watched his every move and soon got infatuated by his profile. The demon wore a pony tail with his bangs lying softly on his face. His focused expression made him look very mature which Shoto appreciated very much. He looks kind of hot. Wait, what am I thinking? I must be pretty tired, to be thinking like that in a situation like this. He shook his head to get rid of the thought.'Is something wrong?' Vox wondered. He felt Shoto's gaze on him for a while now. 'N-no. N-Nothing's wrong. I just thought, you're working really hard.' Shoto stuttered. This answer was pretty convincing right? He hoped. 'Oh really? Or, did you see something you like?' Vox asked. Or not... Shoto searched for an answer while avoiding eye contact. 'I-I-I' Vox's face was now very close to his, so Shoto was forced to look him in the eyes. With his heart pounding in his chest and his face flushing a deep red, his mind went blank. So he squeezed his eyes shut as a reflex. After a moment of nothing happening, he opened his eyes again, just to get his nose poked by Vox's finger. 'You are so adorable, you know that? Kind of like a puppy.' He stated. The puppy boy was now fully flustered and was barely able to get a sentence out, 'Wha- wha-. S-stop teasing me...' 'Very adorable.' Vox chuckled. 'Vox..' The other pleaded. 'Fine. Fine. I'm sorry.' Vox smiled. 'Let's head down now. The others are probably waiting.' He patted his head, before heading towards the door, before looking back over his shoulder. 'Are you coming?' Shoto finally snapped out of it, before replying, 'Ye-yes. I'm coming.' Then he got up and followed Vox to the kitchen.' When leaving the office he thought. That was dangerous. I thought my heart would jump out of my chest. As he entered the kitchen, he had already calmed down.

Everyone was seated, as the food was already placed on the table. After filling their bellies, Luca gave his guild leader a few glances until he noticed and gave him the OK with a nod.

So Luca began, 'Guys. Shoto and I want to show you something really pog. We found it while cleaning the guild house.' He then put his hand into his pocket as the others expectantly watched him. As he was bathing in their attention he pulled out the folded map and put it on the table. 'What do you think this is?' He asked. 'Ehm. An old piece of paper?' Mysta shrugged. Luca surely knew how to grow tension. 'Not just any old paper. How about you open it?' Mysta took the paper while frowning 'Alright?'

As he opened it, the others watched with anticipation. Now fully unfolded, everyone had a good view of the map. Ike was the first to speak. 'Wow. This could be a big discovery. Maybe this is the main reason why we constantly get attacked.' Vox's curiosity peeked. 'How so?' Ike replied‚ 'Think about it. The map could lead to some kind of big treasure. Our attackers might have tried to get their hands on it, but were never able to enter the castle grounds, since we were in their way. I always wondered, why they would attack us, even though we haven't been here for long and never had any contact with them before. What is there to gain from a rundown castle?' Vox looked like he had a revelation at this point.

'Ike. Did you know that you really are a smart cookie?' Ike blushed, 'Oh you. I just have a wild imagination' Vox laughed, 'Well, that's why you like to write your own stories, right? Maybe you should write some more novels' Ike smiled, 'Maybe, I should.'

'So. What do you think, we should do now? Should we check it out?' Shoto asked. Everyone instantly agreed. 'But, it would be the best to only go in a small group. We don't know if the enemy is waiting for an opportunity to strike or if they will just follow the ones going.' Ike said. 'Yeah. Maybe only the fastest should go.' Shu agreed. Luca excitedly declared, 'Then I should go, too. I'm pretty fast.' Vox stopped him, 'No, Luca. I think you should stay.' Luca was now dejected, 'Why?' The other replied, 'Shoto and I should go. We are the fastest in our group and I have the strongest sense of direction. Besides, our fighting style is better suited for fewer people while you work better as a group. We also need someone that can fight in close combat. Shu is stronger, if he doesn't have to avoid hitting his allies. He needs you and Mysta to have his back, since mages have a hard time in close combat.' As Mysta and Luca looked at Shu, he nodded, 'I would definitely feel safer in case of an enemy attack.' 'And it's obvious that I will stay here, too.' Ike added. Luca finally gave in, 'Alright. I understand. But next time, I wanna join you guys, if there is a chance for an adventure.' Vox chuckled, 'You got it. Thank's for understanding. Then, we should start planning.' Shoto suggested, 'How about, we leave in three days? That should be enough time to get everything ready. Including our new guild door.' He smiled. 'And I will take care of your provisions. It looks like your trip may take a few days. So, I will pack enough healthy supplements. I can also make you something to get energized, in case you get tired. I recently tried mixing some guarana with ginseng. It always helped me through tedious work and it tastes delicious.' Ike suggested. Vox happily agreed, 'Now. That would be wonderful. I should try that out for work, too.' Ike disagreed, 'No. I don't think, you should. You already work too much. Your body might collapse, if you strain it any more.' Vox surrendered, 'Fine, mum' which gave him an angry glare from Ike, but laughter from the others.