The first thing I did was go check up on Elena. The second thing I did was get lost. The town was not built well. There was no map. Navigating it was a pin I had not anticipated. There did not seem to be a single main road like I was used to. I was soon so lost that I did not seem to have any hope of coming back.


    Thankfully she found me.  Elena was walking through streets with Miss Emily when I spotted her. If it was a coincidence, it was a very suspicious one.


    “Elena!” I called out. The girl in question rolled her eyes.


    “Aphra.” Miss Emily interrupted. “I did not know that Miss Elena was had awakened her mana.”


    I stopped in my tracks, looking at her with confusion that had to be apparent. “I did not know it was relevant.”


    “Well it was. I can use techniques on an awakened person that I could not imagine others surviving.”


    That made me frown. I wasn’t sure using such techniques was a good idea. Elena’s condition had not been life-threatening, or even threatening at that point. If she hadn’t woken up for days, then it might be something to consider. But a few extra hours did not justify such things.


    “Thankfully, the Head of the Alchemist Guild was kind enough to drop by and tell me about it.” Miss Emily continued. Now I understood what she was trying to say. The techniques were not what she wanted to talk about.


    The Head of the Alchemist Guild was. And I suppose she had to go on such a roundabout way because others were watching. Or perhaps she just felt like it. The more I discovered about her, the more mysterious I found her. There were far more questions than there were answers.


    “I thought that particular head was injured. But come, we should have this conversation in private. ”


    “Yes, I was just telling Elena about your new house.” Miss Emily said. “I am sure you will let her stay with you, yes? The houses are just so dirty, who knows what kind of pests are in there.”


    Well, my house was pretty dirty too. But that wasn’t the kind of pests Miss Emily was talking about. The healer was worried that someone would target Elena because of me. I had a suspicion she was correct.


    “Oh yes, it is quite a worry.” I told her. “Thankfully, the Head of the Adventurer Guild was kind enough to drop by. I am sure the pests ran away in his presence.”


    That was bad. I had not played hidden meanings in so long that I had forgotten how to do it. The situation I described didn’t even make sense. Oh, it was possible. I doubted there were many pests that wouldn’t run away from a Rank 3. But I should have been able to frame it better. I was way too out of practice.


    Father would not have been happy about that. I winced at the thought of it. Then I remembered that he wasn’t here to correct me.


    Why was I doing it anyway? I guess Miss Emily probably had a reason. But talking this was annoying in so many different ways.


    The three of us were silent until we reached the house. Miss Emily stepped inside in a hurry.  A cloud of dust rushed up to greet her.


    “This place really is dusty.” she complained.


    I shrugged. “So I was saying -”


    “Oh we shall want to be a bit more comfortable.” she said. “Perhaps make sure there ain’t any pests around.”


    I froze. “There might be pests here? I admit, that is surprising.”


    I said it lightly, but I had caught her meaning. There were people listening in.  And here I thought the politics of this little town would be easy to deal with.


    “Of course. The bedroom was cleaned.” I told her. “Perhaps we can sit there.”


    I led them up the stairs and into my bedroom, feeling strangely nervous. No, it wasn’t strange. There were people listening in, people who might decide to kill me if they didn’t like what I did.


    I didn’t like it. And I wasn’t going to live with it. I called upon my mana as soon as we got into the bedroom, conjuring a shield with my fear. A shield to block people from looking in or hearing what we were saying.


    “Not very quiet.” Miss Emily complained. “I doubt there’s a person on this street that won’t notice the difference. But I suppose it made a statement.”


    I shrugged. I hadn’t intended to make a statement, but it was a good thing I had made one. A Rank 3 wasn’t supposed to just give in so easily.


    “What happened?” I asked.


    “Another person reached Rank 2 and awakened his magic yesterday.” she said. “A healer in the awakened quarter.”


    “There’s a healer there?” I asked. “A Light magic one?”


    “There is now. This one is apparently quite young, and not from a big family. There is also the question of where he got the mana from. The boy apparently hadn’t left his home in months. But somehow he reached Rank 2.”


    I frowned. “What does that have to do with me?”


    “Well, you are a Rank 3 of the Darkness element. If there is someone that could have snuck him out to hunt some monsters, then it is you.” she pointed out. “The Adventurer’s Guild seems to think you did it because you are out for them.”


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    That would explain the visit I had this morning.


    “The Alchemist Guild Head’s illness left them in an advantageous position. Then you come in. A few hours later, a random boy awakens the light element and manages to heal the old man.”


    “I don’t see why I have to be connected.” I protested. “But I suppose I can see why they would at least be suspicious.” Getting a few people to watch me just in case I was up to something did seem like a good idea from their point of view. A new Rank 3 was already a danger to them.


    “Will this have further consequences?” Elena asked, speaking for the first time since I had met her on the street.


    Miss Emily shrugged. “I don’t think so. Even if Aphra did this, he wouldn’t be in the wrong in the matter. But I expect that tensions will be a bit high.”


    “The Head of the Adventurer’s Guild seems to think I am here to replace him.” I pointed out.


    “That…does sound like him. The man is the weakest of the Rank 3s here. And he is older than even the Alchemist Guild Head, though I expect he will manage to outlive him. With your actions, I could see him thinking you are out to replace him.”


    “What should we do about that?” I asked, but I already suspected the answer.


    “There isn’t really much you can do. Try not to cause any big waves, perhaps. If you don’t cause trouble for a bit, they won’t be as worried about you.”


    I would like that. But I didn’t think I could do it. Story magic wouldn’t let me. This seemed very much like something it would do.


    I would have to think of a plan. I did have information now, and a general understanding of how things stood in the city. Thinking up a plan should not be that hard. I even had a couple ideas.


    “What if I took a few jobs from him?” I asked.


    “What?”


    “The Adventurer’s Guild offers jobs. Alice told me that there were jobs for Rank 3s among them. I imagine there aren’t many takers for such things.”


    “There is but one Rank 3 in the Guild.” Miss Emily agreed.


    “If I made it look like I was working for him, wouldn’t it make him think better of me?”


    “Or he might think you are trying to steal his work.” Elena interrupted.


    Miss Emily shook her head. “Not this one. Rom isn’t that kind of person. The less work he has to do, the better he will feel. In fact, he might actually be grateful.”


    Rom huh. So that was his name. I had not known that. I wonder how Miss Emily knew.


    “Then it is settled.” I said. “I will take a couple jobs from him, and that should get him off my back.”


    “Not today.” Miss Emily protested. “There’s a party, and you’ve already slept through most of the day.”


    I raised an eyebrow, looking at the light outside. I hadn’t expected that it was already evening. Was there even a difference?


    “Did Rom happen to leave any coin?” Miss Emily said.


    I pointed at the pouch that lay on my bedside table.


    “Oh good, cause the party has already started. Alice was getting worried that you wouldn’t show up.”


    “What?”


    sc


    The party really had started without me. I couldn’t even blame Alice. The girl looked like she was panicking.


    “I’m so sorry.” she said as we entered the training ground. There apparently wasn’t even a bar in this place. This ground was apparently the only place that seemed to be available to hold such a party.


    “I thought I would bring the beer early, since these things are heavy, and you don’t really want to wait for them to come, and -”


    “No Alice, it is fine.”


    “I really tried to stop them! But they just started drinking, and then it turned into, well, this.” the girl pointed to the people dancing around the training hall. Connor was looking very sad in a corner, sipping on his drink. No, not sipping. The man was drinking far too quickly. So were his students.


    The music was shit. I admit, I did not like the overly loud beats of it. The food, well, it didn’t look good. Perhaps it tasted better. But people seemed to be enjoying it.


    “I’m sure it will be fine Alice.” Miss Emily said. “This lot isn’t known for their self-control. Go enjoy your party. There’s a big giant that might like to dance with you.”


    Alice looked at the sad figure of Connor, who was the only one left in his corner by now. “Oh, him? That man isn’t interested. But I suppose I shall go have a drink.”


    The girl walked away, leaving me wondering what had happened between her and Connor.


    “Alice has only been here a month. So she’s very excited about going to a ‘real’ party.” Miss Emily explained.


    I raised an eyebrow at her. Why was she saying this?


    “Don’t be too angry with her, it really wasn’t her fault.”


    “I really don’t care.” I told her. Why would I care? “This party wasn’t my idea anyway. Heck, they look more interested in this than me.”


    “Of course they are. A party like this is almost the only time they get to really enjoy themselves. The poisonous fish have been a problem for so long that they are just happy that it is over. I am sure they will find the time to thank you eventually. Not many are saying it, but they are grateful that you dealt with it.” Miss Emily said.


    “The fish was easy enough to kill. I don’t see why the Guilds didn’t do it.” I replied, frowning.


    “Oh, they could have.” she agreed. “But why would they? The Guilds are far more interested in dealing with the problems that come up near the mines. The poisonous fish were the City Lord’s job.”


    “Then why wasn’t he doing something?”


    Miss Emily looked at me with a worried expression on her face. “I don’t know. There have been other problems before, but he usually deals with them before they get this bad. But for some reason he has been silent. I wonder what has him so occupied.”


    That sounded like a quest waiting to happen. I also didn’t want to do it. I did not have the time. Now that Elena was awake, perhaps I should ask her to teach me the stealth spell. That was a useful one.


    I looked at the former maid, only to find her looking at people dancing with a dazed look on her face.


    “Elena, are you ok?” I asked.


    “I’m fine.” she replied. “Just looking.”


    “Well you don’t look fine.”


    The girl looked at me with an annoyed expression on her face. “I really am fine. Just…surprised. I hadn’t expected it to be like this.”


    “Have you not been to a party before?” I asked.


    “I have seen balls.” she defended herself. “The Viscount asked me to serve in a few.”


    “That does not sound like it’s the same thing as attending one.” I pointed out.


    “This isn’t like a ball either. This is…it’s different.”


    I looked at it. Elena was right. This was different. And I didn’t know what to do with it.


    This was my first time at a party like this too.