The knock of death

"BABBO team is the most trusted as it's a family-based team of siblings and cousins. Their reputation is great. Also, other teams prefer to dungeon dive rather than taking quests in the same area." Ben explained.

"It might sound personal, but do you know why they take quests not far from here?" Vincent became curious and Kazumi as well. Even Ester, who was eavesdropping while helping Tula feed the little blue fox, became interested.

"I can tell you since Ollie seemed interested to become your friend. It's not something you see that often as he is selective with people he could call friends. You caught his interest, and that's a great thing. He will help you if you're ever in trouble."

"Their mothers are both twin half-elf sisters. They met with a pair of brothers and married a few years later. A year later, planned or not, the twin sisters gave birth on the same day. One had triplets of two half-elves and one human. The other had twins, one half-elf and the one human."

"Half-elves have a longer lifespan than humans, even if they are half-half. That's why their mothers look like in their forties while their fathers are in their seventies."

"Gahh. Speaking of family made me sober again. Let's go take Tula home." Ben seemed to have touched a subject he didn't like.

Tula quickly perked up and gave Ester the nibbled Ani Banana after she heard the magic words, "Let's go home."

The group followed Ben through the lower class district leading to the beginning of the middle-class district. While Tula was happily petting the blue fox, she heard *pho...*

"Big brother! Big sisters! Little foxy barked!" Tula excitingly announced.

*pho...*

The little blue fox weakly barked again.

"Is that a familiar? Is it perhaps the crippled fox that no one wanted to buy?" Ben asked. He previously thought it was a soft toy before becoming sober.

"Yes, it's the same one. Is there anything wrong? Maybe like a law on familiars?" Vincent responded.

"No, no, no. There are no laws, but only an awakened person can link with the unawakened core of a young familiar before it matures and becomes an untamable Magical Beast. It would be best if you started by naming the familiar. Then anyone with a class can decide to become its master."

"However, remember this. A blood contract can bind only one living beast familiar at a time. Only on a few rare occasions which could happen once every few centuries might a mixed-race individual have two linked beast familiars."

"In other words. I suggest the weakest of the group become the owner of the fox. The power it acquires will be wasted if the strongest of the group becomes its master. Not to be rude, but I don't think it has much combat power to offer." Ben didn't mince his words. He wanted the saviors of Tula to make the best decision for their future safety.

"Thank you for worrying about us, but I will become the master of this blue fox. I will let Tula take care of fox if it can't fight." Vincent decided.

This decesion make Lupa and Tula raise a smile. Lupa didn't seem to like the fox that much, while Tula never had a pet before. A win for both girls.

*pho...*

The little blue fox squinted open its eyes and weakly barked. It had no tail to show its emotions, but its ears were raised on alert.

"You can sleep on my arms, little foxy. I will ask mommy to help me wash you and make your fur soft like big sister Lupa." Tula said.

"Humph. Wash all you want. My fur is the softest." Lupa pouted.

[Soft fur. Blue fur. Small and cute like a soft toy. But also with missing limbs. The fox reminds me of a body pillow.]

"Yes, that's it. A pillow!" Vincent said his thoughts out loud.

"A pillow?" Ester asked with her cheeks slightly red. She remembered the first time they met and when she rushed to stop Vincent after he mentioned it smelled nice. Ester recalled when she fell on him and received her first kiss.

After pondering for a while, Vincent combined its characteristics for its name. "It's small and fluffy. It also says pho. I was thinking of mixing the two and call the little fox Plow. Plow, the little blue fox familiar."

[Hmm. A unique and easy to say name. I like it.]

Kazumi secretly felt happy that her naming suggestion helped with naming the fox. This was her only way to get involved and feel alive.

Ester "Tula, take good care of little Plow. She needs to be loved and cared for."

Lupa "My name is better. Humph."

Tula "I will take care of you, hehe."

Vincent and Ben gazed at the three beauties surrounding the little blue fox Plow.

"Well. Shall we continue? I have other business to attend to." Ben wanted to hurry and do one of his jobs that he hates the most. To tell a family, their loved ones won't return.

The group then followed Ben through a road leading to the housing area. Every house was constructed with detail and better quality wood than the lower class district.

Each house was complemented with a small yard and a few trees. Almost all homes were two to three-story-tall. One or two houses even had a person guarding the door.

Vincent could feel that he had entered a higher class area, but it wasn't the living quarters of nobles. Vincent wondered how large Lusterfall city was if the nobles' properties are more extravagant than the houses currently in his sights.

Ben stopped after arriving at a nice-looking house. There was a small one-meter-tall iron gate to enter and knock on the door.

Vincent noticed a small golden lion's head emblem in the middle of the iron gate. It was unmistakable to be Tula's home not only by her joyous expression but also the proof on the gate that the Lionhearts sponsored this house.

"Heh... I hate this part of my job, but someone has to do it." Ben let out a long, somber sigh.

"Is something wrong?" Vincent became perplexed as to what was the part Ben hated the most.

"I'm about to do the knock of death... "

"It seems you don't understand by your expression..."

"As a Vice-Captain of the City Guards, I have to deliver the message of passing. I have to tell families waiting for their loved ones that they will never return by their side."

Ben and a few other respectable Vice Captains had the job of telling such devastating news. There aren't many wars, but the City Guard Vice Captains would have a nightmare with the knocks of death whenever an incident with many deaths occurred.

So if a City Guard Vice Captain knocked when soldiers were deployed for a bandit raid or a Demonic Beast extermination, it would be a foregone conclusion to be the knock of death.

*Knock, knock*

Ben knocked on the door. It took a few minutes for the door to unlock and slightly open. Shortly a pair of eyes peeked to see who it was and noticed Ben.

The person behind the door was afraid. Ben knocked on the door to check on his friend's family and inform if there was any news about the missing Kass, Koss, and Tula every day in the evening.

The door opened, and a woman in her mid-forties stepped outside. The woman then noticed a group of people behind Ben. As the woman tried to understand why Ben was with people she never saw, she noticed the back of a familiar woman doing something. It was Tula giving Plow to Ester.

"Yula." Ben raised a smile. "Your daughter has returned." Ben then tried to mention the best possible news first.

Ben moved to the side. Promptly, Tula rushed and embracing her mother as if she didn't see her mother in years. "Mommy. I'm home."

"My dear, thank the dragon gods you're back." Yula became so happy she didn't know what else to say or do. The lasting hug and Tula's bright smile washed away her sadness in an instant.

As seconds passed and time flowed, Yula began noticing strange behavior from her daughter. Tula wasn't acting like her usual self since she wanted to imitate her father as she grew older and stopped acting feminine.

Tula was a strong woman both mentally and physically after recently passing to becoming an official soldier. Because such emotional acts could be caused by what happened, her mother didn't mind Tula's behavior that much.

"Did your father return? or is he filling a report?" Yula asked Tula while caressing her head.

Tula, however, didn't respond. She shoved her head in her mother's bosom and then shook her head after hearing this question.

"Yula... can we talk inside?" Ben asked with a concerned expression.

For Ben to speak such words meant only one thing. The possibility of terrible news became exceedingly high. A piece of information that no wife would want to hear when their husband is serving the army.

Yula's legs lost their strength. She slowly fell on her knees because Tula was still hugging her mother tightly.

"Mother!"

"Mother!"

Suddenly, two teenagers with a face similar to each other rushed outside from behind Yula. They were twins, and the pair had a familiar face. It was as if Koss and Kass were reborn in their younger years.

"Elder sister, you're back!" Both then simultaneously exclaimed.

"Boys, could you help your mother go inside? I have some news to say." Ben tried his best to resist the sadness piling up.

"Understood, Uncle Ben, but who might these people with you be?" One of the twins asked.

"Will father, uncle, and his fiancee return soon?" The other twin asked.

"We have something to say. Let's head inside first." Ben didn't want to announce the devastating news outside.

The twins understood that something was amiss, but they knew of their father's and uncle's strength. Both believed they would return shortly, even if their guts told them otherwise.

The twins and Tula helped their mother walk inside into the kitchen. However, after Yula was carefully sat on the chair, the twins became so shocked that they didn't know what to say.

"Who are you? Why are you with mommy? Big brother will teach you a lesson if you give my mommy an owwie!" Tula spoke, and the time in the room momentarily froze. Some were surprised, while others became too confused to understand her behavior and manner of speech.

[Poor Tula... it's a no-brainer to say that they are Tula's brothers by how the twins look, the fact that they are twins and their face is similar to Koss and Kass.]