The ashes before Strife

Episode 6 : Typical hoodlums ; 3 : Season 1 End

Cayde Barbaten POV:
As I walked down the dark wood staircase with the buff and domineeringly built Albert all I could do was think about my fight with Ulter.

He was beyond impressive with how he could do both close and ranged combat and even if I used corruption, fire, or lightning magic I might've still lost "Shelia! This is the kid I told you about!" Albert waved his hand calling over a young beautiful lady in the formal attire of the guild with long flowing auburn brown hair tied up into a ponytail.

She leaned down shaking my hand exposing her chest to me as she whispered "so you the demon Albert told me about. It's my first time meeting one so is there anything I should know?"

"Just treating me as a normal person is enough" her hands were smooth but calloused showing she took her job seriously "papa blushing! No cheat on mommy!" Wait. Lupra who is mommy your talking about?

"Mommy is mommy stupid papa!" I got pierced by her words as I had finally accepted being her dad and as her parent getting called stupid was depriving. Though I have no clues to who "mommy" is so that's annoying.

"Are you ok? You seem a little out of it Incursik?" Shelia leaned in closer moving her hand up to my mask revealing her chest to me, I grabbed her wrist harshly out of instinct to stop her

"I'm fine. It's nothing to worry about just something crossed my mind is all."

I let go of her wrist and she chuckled slightly as she stepped back "okay ill take over now Albert, I'll make sure to educate him on how things work here." He nodded staying silent and headed back to the desk I first met him at, at the back of the large hall.

"Come over to the desk newbie. I need to do a small test to make sure you understand what the do's and don'ts are." She led the way towards a semi-circular desk where other attendants speaking to another group of adventurers stood, she quickly walked around it as I waited on the other side for her "okay! Now then. I'm going to ask you a few questions to check that you understand how things work here understand?"

I nodded and awaited her questions as she pulled out a clipboard from a drawer.

"Okay, question one: what do you do when you see another adventurer's party injured?"

"Assess the situation and save them if possible."

She ticked a small box "Very good, next question: should you kill other adventurers for revenge or self-interest?"

"For vengeance... maybe kill them unless I can think of good humiliation for them, but self-interest like profit though is a no."

"Hm Okay, final question: what would you do against an impossible opponent?

"I'd fight it so I could get stronger if I somehow survived or to buy time for my teammates if I ever get any." She looked at me in surprise at my answer and laid the clipboard down with a bunch of scribbles but read at the top of it "mental evaluation" and I saw it said I passed at the bottom.

Well, the good news is I'm not crazy right lupra? "Papa only has fighting in his mind instead of me your definitely crazy." I got stabbed by the realization of what she said, I really have become a battle junkie... Oh, gods.

"Okay~ everything is in order. Do you have any last questions before you start out?"

I looked around behind me seeing multiple gazes upon me "what happens if fellow adventurers try to capture me and sell me off as a slave?" As I turned back to her I could see she thought highly of me as she looked behind me at the people I just peeked at

"if they do, do such a thing they'll be branded as slaves themselves and forced to become searigan miners or frontline troops for the army if war ever occurs and the detainee gets a reward for each one captured."