Chapter Five: Silver Vine City

The train rolled out of the station in Rust Bern town heading for the interchange at West Gate City where, Grymalkin will leave towards Central city to eventually land in Ever Night, where he's been scouted to go join the treasure hunter guild, while Aura and I are heading to Silver Vine where the Silver Vine guild has this continent's branch and where her parents are staying, and I will be a guest with them for as long as Aura wants me around, or until she becomes strong enough to leave the continent and join her family in their organization. I on the other hand have no clue what to do other than get stronger, so I can join the 'eternal' fight whatever that is. two hours pass, and the food cart comes along asking us if we want anything, I hold up my packed lunch and the others follow suit. after another hour we get to the exchange and move to the next train saying good bye to Grim and his black cat.

the next rain ride is going to be even longer so Aura and I finally open our lunches, and dig in, I laugh a little, her monster is an elf and it has begun to alter her diet making her eat more vegetables while, mine will eventually consist of raw meat almost exclusively., then after disposing of the paper bags we just sit and look out the window for a couple of peaceful hours, Then Aura leans her head into me and falls asleep, I let her nap. about an hour away from Silver Vine city though, a group of brigands board and try to hijack the train, when they see Aura it dawns on me that they are not normal thieves, but kidnappers trying to ransom her, they come towards us and I wake her up, telling her to stay put, then I turn to face the criminals.

"Hey boy why don't you just keep out of it, I promise we won't rough her up too much, but if you get in our way we have no problem killing you." the man I guess to be their leader jeers at me

"Not going to happen, I won't let you touch a single hair on her head!" I roar back, and cover myself with my scales, letting my full salamander transformation out as I draw my sword, hoping he will back down. He doesn't

"Oh so you're a fused too, here kid I'll show you what a real fused looks like" the boss shoots back and all of his boys transform, two tigers, a salamander, and three rat types while the leader looks like an ape. I begin making my battle strategy, knowing that they are all peak of knight realm with the boss being in the Iron rank of master realm, and I can use my black fire three times even though I don't want to because it will be uncontrollable, then the three rats attack all at once, and I just let my instincts take over stabbing, one in the eye with my sword then grabbing the other two by the throats with my claws and crushing their necks, but the guy I blinded rakes his own claw over my scales, it doesn't hurt, but judging by the blood I see he definitely injured me, I ignore it for now, and plunge the sword in his skull deeper then twist killing him too, the tigers and salamander both come at me like their friends in a set of three, I make an attack at the tiger aiming for is soft spot, but the salamander blocks and my claws can't get purchase so I lunge forward and grab the salamander infusing mana into my hands, to break his neck, then the tiger men come at me together having lost their shield, but instead of being overwhelmed, I just rake both of their bellies open and face the leader, I notice that I'm starting to feel groggy, damn those claws must have been poisoned, so then I look down at the wound and breathe fire, the black flame bathes my abdomen and burns the poison out, then I face the leader and let out an almighty roar, bathing him in Black fire, his body is strong enough that he isn't burned entirely up but just killed, then I return to my seat, as the train has been stopped the conductor is waiting for assistance from the city I realize how much that fight took out of me, Aura takes my head and puts it in her lap, like when we were little kids, and she makes me rest, She begins singing softly, and I start to feel rested.

Two hours later the city guard as well as a representative from the Silver Vine Family arrives, and they are surprised to see the assailants dead, the unknown heiress not just safe, but unharmed with a sleeping young man's head resting on her lap. "Who is he?" the representative asks the food cart lady pointing to the sleeping Hunter

"I don't know, I thought they were a couple as they were talking and brought the same packed lunch, and when she fell asleep it was on his shoulder, then when those bandits attacked, he protected her, their tickets were from the Rust Bern station." the woman said quickly

"Hey you, ruffian do you have any idea whose lap it is you are sleeping on!?" the rep yells at the boy who keeps on sleeping.

"Don't yell he's faking it, and yes he knows who I am that's why he didn't try to fight it, he's learned that I'll hold him down for hours, until he sleeps" Aura says shushing the man "and why don't you try to find out why I was attacked on the way here instead of trying to pick on my boyfriend who protected me."

"yes milady and we'll get right on that, is there anything else we can do for you?" the man replies recoiling at Aura's words

"There is, you can get this train moving again, some people have to get home from work or to work from home and we have no business slowing down life just because of a couple of these bugs." Aura gestures to the corpses. The train gets moving again, the corpses were pulled into a storage ring, and the car was turned into a crime scene, as soon as the Silver family Rep calmed down I sat up and gave him my Report.

"How is that possible a mere Page Realm Could defeat Six steel rank knights and an iron master realm?" one of the City guards asks.

"My sword is a steel saint realm weapon, and I'm not a salamander, I'm a winged drake." I reply like it explains everything which it does "Even in the page realm a salamander form winged drake can have the strength of a grandmaster for enough stamina drain, that's why I was tired on top of being poisoned." I am looking out the windows of the train with Aura as Silver Vine City comes into view.

"Welcome home Lady Aura Silver Vine" the family Rep says as he comes up behind us, his name is August. "After we depart the train a Private car will be waiting to drive us to the estate. There is also a dinner in your honor, and even though he said he wouldn't be able to make it your grandfather is going to be there, I would suggest that your 'friend' doesn't make an appearance, but you may do as you wish." I smile as he sneers the word friend like I'm beneath her stature I look over and see her smiling too, then I squeeze her hand, as the train rolls to a stop.

five minutes later we are being driven through a beautiful City filled with magnificent houses and colorful gardens up to the top of a hill where a ginormous mansion stood towering above the city below, I laugh and Aura looks "What evil deed were you just planning to do?"

"I was thinking, why don't we see about getting the orphanage's annual week long field trip to be here, where big sis Aura's family lives, as a way for the Silver Vine family to Show support for their orphanage, but I'm pretty sure it would be a race to see if the kids or August's head would explode first from the stress or excitement." I chuckle again before August has me escorted to my room to change for dinner.