Blossom Fable

Chapter 8

Juno invites us to his place. Although I guess that his place's nicer than mine, I don't expect him to have the penthouse floor on the top of one of the giant trees. It must be three times the size of my room, with a view that includes every inch of Kara, even the Great Turquoise Forest sparkling in the distance. Unlike my place, his room's decked out with all sorts of furniture that makes this room his. Most strikingly, a few porcelain plates from the Golden City, hanging on the walls, along with gold and red banners dangling beside the large window.

"Something came out in the news today," Avery says, as she shares the couch with me.

"Something related to the intrusion?" Princess asks. She lounges on the opposite side of the bed from Juno, sitting with her legs crossed.

"Worse," Juno says. "A guild fought with another guild near Pyre Harbor. Ten people died in the fight."

Pyre Harbor. The city of warriors.

"How could that happen?" I say. "Guilds have always had rivalries. But I haven't heard of an attack like that in at least a decade."

"They say tensions are at their highest," Avery says. "Guilds have always fought over different regions where they do their hunting. But new monsters have arrived on the scene. So guilds are trying to hunt them while sabotaging other guilds. It just so happens that this sabotage... turned violent."

"We're living in really strange times," Juno says, running his knuckle under his jaw.

"That's why! That's why we have to get stronger and join a guild, so we can put this to right." Princess stands up, in a position as if ready to fight a monster. "This shouldn't be happening."

"I agree," I say. "There's nothing we can do but keep in our lane and learn more skills."

"Off to the hunting grounds then?" Avery suggests.

"Or maybe we should accept a new quest," Juno says.

We decide to head to the questing board, and we take the enchanted lift down together. As we go down, people on the lift talk about the ten people who were slaughtered. There are drawings of the fight in the newspaper, along with captured images from the newly released cameras from Law City.

This is it. We're living in the end times.

Blossom World won't last much longer like this.

What if there's another war? Times of peace don't last forever.

The whispers follow us down, even as we walk to the quest board. In the heart of Kara, the summer solstice disaster quieted even the busiest parts of the city. Instead of bustling vendors, empty space along with bouquets of flowers are set out for the victims of the attack. A pall of distress rests on the people who drift past. It rests even on the trees, which have been here much longer than all of us—and probably wished for eternal peace for the grounds below.

"How are they going to avoid another invasion?" I wonder aloud.

"Nathaniel and the elders have already set up new wards," Avery answers. "Stronger wards. I don't think a monster will come bouncing in any time soon. I just... a Headhunter?"

"One of the deadliest monsters on Halo Island." Juno breathes out through his teeth. "I never thought I'd see one of those until later in my career."

At the quest board, a scattering of parties wait to accept new assignments, but it definitely feels empty compared to last time. Right beside the board, I spot a man who must be around eighty years old, dressed in a magnificent blend of gold and silver robes.