Naia Old Friend

As we took our leave from the back rooms, commotion and cheering filled the entire guild hall.

"It's okay, guys, we're back!" someone said.

"We took down that hydra with no problem," another voice added.

"Congratulations on completing your rank mission. You all will be promoted to A Rank!" stated one of the receptionist. 

Cheers erupted from everyone

Naia grabbed my hand. "Come this way," she whispered, weaving through the crowd as if trying to sneak out.

"Hey! Hey!" a voice echoed from somewhere.

"Naia, I think they're calling you," I said. Her brow furrowed, and I barely heard her mutter, "Dammit."

"Is something wrong, Naia?"

"No, no, nothing's wrong," she replied quickly.

"Hey! Naia! I can see you."

When I looked over, I saw another catkin—a male—rushing towards us.

"Hey Naia, long time no see."

"Hey, Milo. Yeah, long time," she said, her eyes darting everywhere but him.

"Well, as you can see, we're back. We finished our promotion test, so we're going to be A rank adventurers now. Exciting, huh?"

"Yeah, very exciting. Congratulations. I'm sure you have lots to do, so maybe we can meet again later," she said hurriedly, trying to leave, still holding my hand, Milo noticed this.

"Hey, Naia, I didn't know you had a friend now. Must be close if you're holding hands."

Naia stopped and turned back. "Yeah, she's my friend. So what? It's none of your business."

"Wow," he said, smirking. "Friends with a human? Even though they kidnap and slave our people, you want to be friends with one?"

"So? What are you doing? Are you defending our home? Are you even trying to rescue our people? No, you're off having fun on adventures, satisfying your desires with greed and lust. At least I stayed behind, trying to do something."

"And what are you doing?" he yelled. "You've been stuck as a E rank for how long?" he smirked as his crew gathered behind him.

"What's the problem?" a tall female elf asked.

"Oh, it's nothing," he replied. "Just talking to an old friend."

"Old friend? Old friend?!" she yelled. "We were more than just old friends."

"Stop, Naia. We were just kids back then. You're not going to hold me to a promise we made as children."

Naia let go of my hand. This isn't going to end well. I quickly stepped between them.

"Hi, my name is Bunny. I'm Naia's friend," I said, extending my hand to greet him.

He spat on the ground, looking from Naia to me. "I'll never shake hands with a human," he said, his face twisting in anger as his four minions rallied behind him.

"You should just leave. You're not welcome here in the first place."

Tanyai the receptionist yelled, "All humans are welcome here! It's only a few bad seeds, and she's not one of them!"

"Shut up!" Milo yelled back. "How would you know? She could be secretly spying on us for that Hero Kingdom."

Naia lunged at him, stopping a breath away. "She's not like that at all!" she shouted.

He smirked. "And how would you know, huh?" He jumped at her.

I heard footsteps from the second floor and noticed the guild master watching. I was sure he'd intervene if things escalated.

"She's my friend, and I'd trust her with my life," Naia said, her voice trembling with conviction.

"Oh, really?" Milo turned to his crew, smirking. "I'm sure she can get you to a higher rank. Maybe then you can afford to keep your mother from being sold. Like mother, like daughter, huh? Trusting humans."

In a split second, Naia drew her dagger, tears streaming down her face. Before she could lift it, I caught her wrist.

"No, Naia. He's trying to provoke you." She turned to look at me, and after a moment, she put the dagger back in its sheath. I cupped her face and wiped her tears. "Let's go get your mother, okay?"

She nodded. Just as we were about to leave, Milo sneered. "Oh, you have enough gold now to get her out? Did you steal it? Or did you sell your body?"

I grabbed her hand tighter.

"No, no, too weak. You sold your body, didn't you? I'll give you ten coppers if you let me have a go."

"I'll give her fifteen," another one of his crewmates said.

Naia stopped. I couldn't pull her anymore. "Naia, please, if you fight here, you'll lose your adventurer license. Ignore them. We'll deal with them another time."

"Hey, human," Milo sneered. "Bunny, right? Just because that despicable king says you're welcome doesn't mean we like your kind here. Maybe somebody should make him a slave so he knows how it feels. Then maybe he could run this kingdom better—for our kind."

His crew cheered. I let go of Naia's hand, biting my lip until I tasted blood.

"Luna! Luna! Oh, shit," Naia said, looking at me as I smiled, my fangs showing slightly.

"I'll be right back, okay?" I said calmly.

"Luna, it's going to be okay. What did you just tell me? You said ignore them!" Naia tried to grab my hand.

"Well, Naia, you see, you have something to lose if you fight here. I don't."

"Oh, fuck," was the last thing she said before letting go of my hand.

I walked up to Milo, my face inches from his. "What did you say about the king?" I asked, still smiling.

"I said he should be a slave. Maybe then he'd be a decent king."

"I thought that's what you said," I murmured, looking at my right hand. Before he could finish his next sentence, I struck his face with lightning speed, flipping his body upside down, his head crashing into the floor, breaking the boards.

"I'm sorry, Guild Master," I said, looking up. "I'll pay for the damages, okay?"

He stood there unable to move and simply nodded.

I stepped forward, facing Milo's crew. "Don't be shy. Please entertain me!"

One of them, a red orc, pulled out his great axe. "I don't like hurting little girls, but I'll make an exception," he said, growing in size.

I pointed at him. "Ah, I've read about your kind. Very strong but extremely slow." I chuckled as he swung his axe down with brute force, only to find it in my hand. "This is quite a well-made axe," I said, twirling it before slamming it into the ground next to Milo.

The red orc stared at his empty hands. "You... you're not human," he stammered, stepping back and falling over.

As I felt a wave of heat coming toward me, I held up my left hand, absorbing the fireball aimed at me. "Oh, I see. Quite bold to try a sneak attack." I smiled. "Let me show you a little magic of my own." I formed a square shape with my fingers, trapping the attacker inside an invisible box.

"What are you doing? Let me out!" she screamed, trying to run in every direction, only to hit invisible walls. Her breathing grew frantic. "What kind of magic is this?"

I walked over to her. "You didn't have to attack. I was going to leave you alone, but I guess seeing your boyfriend's head smashed into the floorboards set you off. He is your boyfriend, right?"

Tears filled her eyes as the box shrank around her. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! He's not my boyfriend, but I do love him."

I tapped my chin. "Fine. I can be kind," I said, dispelling the box.

She fell to her knees, thanking me profusely.

"Now be a good girl and go sit over there, okay?" I said, nodding toward a table. She obeyed.

I turned to Milo's remaining crew. "Anyone else want to attack me?"

The two others shaken their heads vigorously.

"Good, good." I picked Milo up by his collar, using levitation magic to bring over a chair, and set him down in it.

"Milo, you know I have every right to kill you for what you said," as I paced around him. "But to my knowledge, the kingdom has thrived since the king took the crown. Isn't that right?" I yelled, and the entire adventurer guild agreed. "So, for you to speak ill of him, I could consider it treason."

He spat blood on the ground, blood dripping from his head. 

"Who the fuck are you to cast judgment on me?" Milo spat.

I smiled, turning to face him. "I'm glad you asked." I walked closer. "I am the First Princess of this Kingdom, Lunara Vel Skyldris. And under kingdom law, I should put you to death. See, I can tolerate you speaking ill of me but threatening my father? That's another matter."

The entire adventurer guild fell silent. I glanced around, amused by their shock. "Oh, I forgot," removing my illusion. As soon as everyone saw the truth, the commotion began.

"It really is the First Princess!" someone whispered.

"I can't believe it," another voice said.

"I've been serving the First Princess this whole time." Tanyai muttered before fainting.

I looked up at the guild master, giving him a nod to come down. He slowly approached and kneeled before me. "What can I do for the First Princess to make amends for this fool's mistake?"

I placed my hand on his shoulder. "This isn't your fault. I don't hold you responsible for his actions."

I turned back to Milo, whose face was still frozen in shock, unable to grasp the gravity of the situation. The red orc from earlier was practically foaming at the mouth, while the high-elf wizard looked like her eyes might pop out at any moment.

"Milo," I said firmly, "I won't be sentencing you to death, but there's someone here you owe an apology to."

He looked at me and nodded. I raised my hand, calling Naia over.

"First Princess, what can I do for you?" she asked.

Bonk. I playfully thumped her head. "Stop that! We're friends. Don't start changing on me now."

She smiled. "Okay, okay, Luna."

"I'll leave him in your hands for judgment. Is that alright?"

"Yeah, I got it," she replied.

I turned back to Milo. "So, Milo, I think you owe Naia an apology."

He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Naia."

Naia looked at him and kicked his foot. "That doesn't sound sincere."

He lifted his head, locking eyes with her. "I apologize, Naia, for the things I said. I hope you can forgive me." His voice wavered as his eyes began to water.

Naia sighed. "I accept your apology, Milo. I don't know what changed in you after you left, but I know my best friend is still in there somewhere. It wasn't about our promise—I just wanted my best friend back."

He looked down before meeting her gaze again. "I'm sorry. I was stupid and let greed take over. I stopped caring about home and only thought about myself."

"Well, Naia, is that good enough?" I asked. She nodded, but then added, "There's one more thing. 

After a few moments of silence, she walked back over to Milo, who was still sitting in the chair. "Milo, I want you to use half of your earnings to help our village. You'll also go back home and protect it until everything is resolved, and you'll be the one to help rebuild."

"I'll go too!" someone shouted. It was the elf wizard girl. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Do you accept, Milo?" I asked.

"Yes, First Princess. I accept my punishment."

"Good." As he was about to get up, I leaned in and whispered, "By the way, that cute elf girl is in love with you."

"Really?" he asked in surprise.

I thumped his head. "Yes, really, you dimwit."

He looked over at her and smiled. Naia, confused, asked, "What's going on between those two?"

I smirked. "Just a couple of lovebirds."

Naia shrugged, not fully understanding what that meant. I then said, "I need to meet my father first, and then we can go save your mother. Is that okay?"

She nodded, but then hesitated. "Wait, we're going to see the King—your father?"

"Yes, we are. Is that okay?"

She stumbled back a few steps, wide-eyed. "Oh gosh, is it going to be like this every time?" she muttered, causing me to giggle to myself.