A Maiden's Tale [that man]

[Urhr93]

Along with you Lola also bolted along, followed by Hana as the three of you resumed your sprint, this time in the right direction and with the right reason to be sprinting. From behind you can hear Revy laugh and she shouts <Don't run too fast and watch where you're goi...> she isn't done talking that Hana trips for no apparent reason, tough like always she turns it into a wheel and soon is up and running again <...take it as i've said nothing...> she murmurs, and this is the last you hear from her.

Soon you've reached the barracks, greeting the few older soldiers while proceeding towards the nearby training field where the all the rookie will be gathered before being sent off to the general supervisor's office.

[that man]

"Yes Guard Revy!" Lass bowed at the last possible moment, turning so that she was just ahead of Hana, knowing that it was going to take more energy from Hana to keep going at this pace than it was going to for them, although she could probably keep a good enough pace up due to the seemingly limitless pool of energy she seemed to draw from.

Either way, she bows out a quick greeting to the older soldiers along the way, never really breaking her pace, as she raced off to the supervisor's office, really hoping that she wasn't going to get mad at them for spending too much time with running to get there.

[Urhr93]

Hana indeed seems to have an unlimited pool of energy, but that's due to her being in a better shape than you. After all, who told her to train so hard in hope to become a captain? Anyway she keep up with you despite her late start and little incident, mostly because you're the one panting now, though you have all the time to rest once you reach the training ground, joining the small group of rookies present.

Luckily the three of you are not late, though only Hana is not panting while the two of you and Lala are breathing somewhat heavily, much to the redhead pleasure as she cross her arms in front of her chest and looks proudly at the two of you... well, now the only thing to do was wait for someone to call for you, though this wait could become somewhat annoying due to a certain someone blatantly looking at you in superiority due to her better physical shape...

[that man]

"Oh come on," Lass panted, really hoping that she would be able to catch her breath before pushing herself into a standing position, knowing that doing anything physical right now would probably result in her getting yelled at by some of the other soldiers, her instead just trying to keep a calm air about her so she could keep herself on the calm side of things.

"Well, at least I remembered my undergarments, right Lala?" Lass smiled, reminding Hana of the one time they had taken swimming lessons, and it turned out that Hana wasn't exactly the best at remembering when it came to that. "It's not like it's something most people would forget to put on, right Hana?"

[Urhr93]

You do regain your breath, while the one who loses it is Hana, who humphs angrily at your comment and turns around, she too unwilling to discuss with you now that you were in a more public and serious setting. Luckily you don't have to wait much as your name is called, an army soldier leading you into a nearby building and along an hallway till you reach a door, knocking before announcing <Milita Lass Roe is here> and successively opening the door, letting you enter the military office before closing it behind, leaving you alone with the mature maiden behind the desk.

She isn't even looking at you, just taking a glance when you came in and then nothing more, evidently having to deal with all the rookies isn't something she's very interested in doing or she's just bored of it after all the ones that came before you <Lass Roe... is it? Let me see> she said while searching for you documents.

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

General Supervisor Hilda:

[that man]

With Hana out of the way, Lass should have felt a little bit easier about all of this, but the realization about who exactly it was that was inspecting her made Lass feel a little bit more on the uncomfortable side of things, General Supervisor Hilda not exactly being known for her approval of the inn. Still, she did visit it from time to time, especially since it kind of was the only place one could visit that didn't involve the Eternal Queen, learning something, having the potential of blowing up, or making more maidens, so Lass tried to stay as quiet as she could so Hilda could get a decent distance into her files.

"It's good to see you, General Supervisor Hilda," Lass smiled weakly, wondering if she remembered any of the service that she had at the Inn. "I hope you do not mind me asking, General Supervisor Hilda, but how has your family been doing? It's been a while since any of you stopped in, and I really hope that everything is still fine, General Supervisor Hilda."

[Urhr93]

Hilda kept his eyes on your files, comparing them with some other or checking for some unknown things, keeping you waiting till you believed she wouldn't answer... and it was exactly then that she open her mouth <My family is not something you have to worry about> she'd reproach <And they are good and fine enough, just because we don't stop by your idle inn doesn't mean we're not fine> was she answering you properly or dissing? Who knows.

<Good, you'll be part of the new Special Squad 1 under the Guard Captain Eris Linariel. It's a new unit we've formed and assigned to the new Guard Captain they've sent from the capital and it'll be active until she gets used to her role around here, then the SS1 will be disbanded and you'll be reassigned elsewhere> after saying so she finally looks up to look at you <This is all private, you're free to go> she might have said that you're free to go, but from her stare it's clear she's practically almost kicking you out.

[that man]

"Well I was mostly worried since I heard about Liz falling out of that tree," Lass tried to offer General Supervisor Hilda, her being more surprised when she told her assignment more than anything else, the look on her face making it clear that she was not in a mood to talk to anyone else at this point...which was understandable, given how some people could act.

"Thank you General Supervisor Hilda for the assignment," Lass bowed deeply, hoping that she would at least respond to the bow before turning around to leave, her mind only now racing that she had done something to end up being directly under the Black Guard, not being able to fill in how she had managed to get a role like that one.

[Urhr93]

You notice Hilda sightly frowning when you mention Liz, but she doesn't say anything else and just shoos you away with her hand. Awaiting you outside is a different maiden from the one that leaded you here before, that one probably going to get another recruit while you're brought away towards the outside, to be precise another training camp, though a different one compared to before.

In the spacious field there are already some maidens gathered, to be precise a fellow rookie whose name you know is Yulia but with which you aren't really familiar, as well as two somewhat “famous” people from the army, Aria and Cilia.
Famous because, well, they've been sent to the army despite having never seen a wild man.

Aria was and is the equivalent of a previous generation Hana, at least for fighting talent, but it is said that while drunk she went to the fertilization rooms to fulfill a bet... the perfect way to ruin a militia's future career. Some say it was some other jealous maiden that plotted for such to happen, some other just jeer at Aria's stupidity, but what was done was done.

As for Cilia, the girl has always been mischievous and to hide after doing one of her pranks to a superior she went into the men's pen, where it's said she got passed around by all the males here. A few say she hadn't planned it, most of the others are sure it was intentional, but fact is that after her lewd act she got sent to the army.

Now both girls were there along that new rookie, most likely meaning they'll be part of your SS1 unit... as well as the fact that this so called special squad seems more like a mocking taunt to the new Guard Captain than a proper group.

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Yulia:


Aria:


Cilia:

[that man]

Seeing as General Supervisor Hilda was clearly in a bad mood, Lass really hoped that she would get something to calm down, her feeling even more on the nervous side of things about the special squad she had been placed with, wondering about which of the other girls she would actually be with. To Lass's total surprise, it was Yulia, a girl who she swore her mother was the one who ran something in town, but she had no idea what exactly it was, and Cilia and Aria, the both of them being...well, to be perfectly honest, regular customers who were a bit too loud about what they had done in the past, Lass slowing down slightly as she couldn't actually figure out why they were here.

"Um, Hi Cilia, Aria," Lass saluted them weakly as she approached, what she hoped wasn't a clear look on confusion as she got closer to them, wondering slightly about what it was she had done to actually end up with them. "And it's also nice to see you too, Yulia...and...I guess we are in a unit together now?"

[Urhr93]

The three of them notice you as you come, the two army maidens happily replying while Yulia appears more composed, maybe because you haven't had many interaction until now? <Nice to see you, Lass> she replies, then adds <So you ended up here too, uh? Though luck...> while shaking her head. Just when you may want to ask what is the problem with this unit Cilia steps in, holding her palm in front of you as if asking to stop asking for more <We've already gone through this explanation once and we'll most likely have to do it again until all the members are there, so don't make us repeat it over and over and let's wait for the others... okay?>

[that man]

"Oh, I didn't realize that you were told more," Lass nodded, wondering what exactly it was that they had been told they were going to do, her looking around at the other girls as she didn't really seem to know that well, her not really being able to do anything else than wonder what exactly it was that they could be doing here with all of these girls.

If it was supposed to be a punishment, then it would seem like Hana would probably be here if it really was about them being punished, but it also didn't seem like it would be a good idea for using the only two real army personal for a unit like this one. And if it was supposed to be an elite unit, it wasn't actual on the clear side of the things about why she would be here in that case, since she didn't think she had done all too well to end up in something like this one.

[Urhr93]

<Rather than told more...> Cilia beings, her eyes wandering to Aria who promptly continues in a somewhat dissatisfied tone <...it's our guesses about what our unit is all about. Oh, here comes another...> as she says so she points with her chin to an approaching figure, who you recognize as Lala.

<Fancy seeing you there!> she greets you exuberantly, evidently happy for being in your same squad <Hello to you all too!> she continues to greet the others, exchanging a talk much like your own while waiting for the remaining members of the squad.

[that man]

"Well if it's speculation more than anything else, I guess we are all in the same boat then," Lass tried to reason, knowing that Cilia and Aria probably had a better idea about what was going on then she did, the realization that Lala was in this unit too making her feel even better about what exactly it was the unit was supposed to be for, especially since that would mean that at least there was someone she was familiar with when it came to actually training.

"Nice to see you again Lala," Lass bowed, being glad that she was here, although it did look like she was going to be talking to everyone about everything that came to her mind, her not actually being sure if she would be able to keep up, even as she offered, "So, how have you been doing recently, Cilia and Aria?"

[Urhr93]

<You're right about the speculations> Aria nods, while Cilia continues <it's just that should be more right than we think... probably> she grins, before continuing <You know what I like doing, so why ask? Rather, are you really not interested in visiting the fertilization rooms? I assure you it's worth being in the army if you can visit them whenever you want... as a regular i'll even recommend the right man for your first visit...> she isn't able to finish that Aria bonks her from behind, reproaching <Don't try to swindle other people into joining your little games, it's already shameful enough for the two of us to be stuck there without having ever seen a wild man...> this time it's Aria that doesn't have time to conclude as Cilia interrupts with a <Oh? Who was the one moaning like a bitch in heat last time with the redhead of room 3...> another bonks interrupts Cilia.
They are arguing, yet as usual you can see how they got know as Cilia the slut and Aria the tag-along...

Before long however Yulia calls out <Here's another> and turning towards where she's pointing you can see Hana approaching, though from the look on her face it seems as if she ate a frog...

[that man]

"I see," Lass nodded to the both of them, really knowing that it was going to be on the weird side of things when it came to talking to them in the down time, her even taking in a couple of deep breaths since it would definitely be on the hard side of things if they really did want to actually get her to one of the fertilization room, especially since she didn't want to go there.

At the same time, Lass felt a bound of joy and confusion when she saw Hana approaching her, the joy coming from the look on Hana's face as she approached her, but the confusion coming more from the fact that she actually was approaching her as she got closer to the whole group, her looking back at Yulia to see if there was going to be a reaction out of her too.

"So Hana, did they tell you about your new assignment?" Lass asked, looking at her knowing that they were going to be on the same level, and that she was actually going to have to deal with them on the same level now. "I know it isn't actually all that much for you to think about what you've done but..."

[Urhr93]

That Aria and Cilia were on the weird side of things, this was common knowledge in Mikko where they were know as two oddballs, but at least you knew they never forced people who didn't want it into the fertilization rooms, or anywhere else by that matter... though what was strange, was that some maidens did follow them there sometimes. Someone even told you they saw your mothers following them there, though the person that told you that wasn't that trustworthy and was likely to be just messing with you.

On both Lala and Yulia's face an expression of enjoyment appears when Hana approaches looking like that, among those of your age Hana's manners were well know and so it wasn't a surprise even Yulia got amused by the situation. Lala joins you into mocking the girl, calling with a <Captain sir! Oh, are you the new Guard Captain we're supposed to be under?! Oh my maiden! You sure went up the ranks quickly>

Hana's already foul mood is further worsened by the antagonism showed by your childhood friend, but before she can answer either you or Lala the maiden that brought her here interrupts the three of you <Stop bickering and stand in line. The new Guard Captain will be here soon> before going away, leaving the five of you alone.

[that man]

While Lass really did want to do something more fun with Hana then just tease her, the fact that the soldier was shouting at them to order up for the new Captain was enough to make her sigh, somewhat sad that the opportunity had passed without her getting a chance to really do anything about it, but the fact that Hana wasn't even able to get a word in just made the whole thing more enjoyable for her, in a weird sense of her being denied the chance to even defend herself.

"Yes ma'am!" Lass lined up, making sure to stand near Hana so that the whole thing would be even more embarrassing for her, especially if they were forced to do one of the calmer team exorcises together. "I guess that means that you are going to have to line up to show how good of a soldier you are, oh great Hana."

[Urhr93]

Your group gets in line, with Aria first followed by Cilia and then Hana, Lala, you and finally Yulia.
Two soldiers and four maidens, ordered in alphabetical ordered and ready to greet your new superior which doesn't fail to appear soon after, walking from the far end of the training field you're on.

The girl is far younger than any of you expected, or to be precise is as young as the rumors told, and has an elegant gait as she advances toward your group before stopping after reaching your general front. With a slightly critical gaze she stares at all of you one by one, and you could almost believe to hear her sound a <Tch!> before giving a bad stare at building not too far away, the one you were in not too long ago due to the meeting with the supervisor.

Her action is easy to miss as she immediately regains her composure, turning again towards the group while introducing herself <My name is Eris Linariel, black guard and new guard captain of this town. Pleased to meet you> before looking at Yulia, prompting her to introduce herself which she does so immediately, also mentioning how her mothers run the blacksmith shop in town before concluding.

Now it was your turn...

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Eris:

[that man]

The moment where that woman actually looked like she was on the angered side of things about her assignment, making Lass feel like it was something that she was actually going to be punished for, even if it was kind of strange overall that she wouldn't be happy being assigned here. Still, listening to the other girls as they barked back their own introductions to the honored Black Guard, her actually standing up straighter when it was her turn.

"Honored Black Guard and Guard Captain Eris Linariel, it is an honor to meet you," Lass replied, not actually being able to keep herself calm when she finally did ramble onto the part where she introduced herself, coming back with, "My name is Lass, Lass Roe Honored Black Guard and Guard Captain Eris Linariel, and it is wonderful to be in your service!"