Chapter 174: Notable Foresight (1/2)
Sera woke groggily, stretched, and lethargically rolled out of bed to get dressed. Unlike their previous accommodations, she and Tal were relegated to the small servant quarters inside the cramp residence they shared with the other displaced members of the Lighthouse Dorm. While not exactly uncomfortable, she did miss the feeling of opulence she'd gotten from their spacious room.
While in the process of throwing on a modest dress, just enough for her to get by until she'd fully woken up, she managed to stub her toe against the corner post of her bed. This left her blinking back tears at the sharp, stabbing pain she was completely unprepared for. After a few moments of writhing in mild agony, she mustered the energy to stand and make her way out.
Tal had apparently already gotten up, which was not too unusual for the elf, so Sera walked over to the dining room to scare up some breakfast. As she was shuffling through the door with a sleepy yawn, she was ambushed by an energetic party member with far too much enthusiasm for the early morning.
”Good Morning, Sera! I hope you're ready for a busy day! I have a lot planned.” Her party 'leader' exclaimed in a voice that grated at her tired and fragile psyche.
Summoning the best glare she could manage in the circumstances, she directed every ounce of dissatisfaction she could muster at Mike, before shuffling over to breakfast table to revive herself with her favorite morning beverage.
”Okay…not really the response I was hoping for. Tal didn't seem particularly enthused either, perhaps I need to alter my sales pitch.” Mike muttered to himself as he followed her.
”Mike, whatever you want can wait until after I'm properly awake.” Sera grumbled. The aroma of freshly made coffee was calling to her like a siren song, and she naturally gravitated in that direction.
”Fair enough, but time is getting away from us. Any day now, things are going to change with the war. We need to work quickly to get ahead of the issue.”
Sera rounded on him, ”Will we be attacked in the next five minutes while I drink my coffee?”
He took a slight step back, a wary grin on his face. ”Well no…probably not.”
”Then. It. Can. Wait.” She hissed before resuming her march.
A few moments of savory goodness later, Sera felt prepared to deal with whatever harebrained scheme Mike had come up with now. ”Alright, what do you want to talk about?”
He had sat down across from her and was working his way through a small pile of food in a ravenous manner. Taking a moment to wash his latest forkful down with a glass of water that promptly refilled itself, Mike spoke up, ”So, I've been thinking. Ever since we arrived here, I have been neglecting the party and my responsibilities as a party leader. While I cannot change the past, at the very least I can start taking the appropriate steps now, and resolve this problem for the future.”
Sera gave him a long steady look, trying to read his features.
[He's gotten a little better about hiding his true intentions, but there is still an awkwardness about his approach to certain topics that betrays his uncertainties. Clearly, this sudden shift has been brought on by some factor, and I have a good idea of what.]
”Did you get into a fight with Brenden?” She asked while taking a sip of her coffee.
”I…..may have gotten in a little bit of a disagreement with him, yes.” He replied shamefacedly.
[Figures.]
”I take it he finally aired his grievances. Took him long enough. Alright, so what was your solution?”
”Simple. I'm going to make sure that none of you are left behind.” He replied with a grin.
[Whatever Brenden said must have gotten to him. That's more ridiculous than usual.....Although, he's good at doing the ridiculous.]
”And how are you planning on accomplishing that? Brenden and Tal might be talented at fighting, but, even with all of my training, I can barely function at the level of a Rank 2 adventurer. How do you propose to solve that?”
------------------------------------------------------
Mike used a quick Appraise, wanting to confirm his suspicions.
--------------------------------------------
Seraphina Aquinas
Age: 15
Race: Human (Oracle)
Class: Practitioner of the Third Realm
Title: Companion of the Hero
--------------------------------------------
[Definitely going to need to figure out how that underworld salesman hides from Appraise. As it stands now, everything could be easily revealed.]
After taking a moment to ensure that no one was within earshot, he whispered encouragingly. ”Have you checked your status lately? I think you'll be surprised by what you see.”
She blinked at him, then a slightly glazed expression came over her face as she did what he recommended. ”What.....when... How did this happen?”