Alain did not head to the Giantslayer guild right away after leaving the academy. The child may be in danger, but it’d be reckless of me to go out without any preparations first. He reasoned. Instead, he started traveling to the chimney district where most of the industries and blacksmiths were located. The location was chosen, of course, to minimize the amount of pollution that spread into the town. The buildings near the chimney had specialized pipes on top of the roof that leads to the chimney. The pedestrians here were a mix of factory workers with dark ash on their faces and Giantslayers who were out shopping for weapons and equipment. Alain stopped in front of a blacksmith shop with the name “Rostav’s Smithy”.

It was not as big as the other blacksmiths around here as the front of the shop acts as both the display and where the equipment was being built. But it seemed to have its own loyal customer base as Alain saw some people leaving the smithy with new equipment and a smile on their face. Inside, he could see a muscular, bald, bearded man working on a piece of equipment. The furnace seemed to be powered by the nectars as shines of blue mixed with the fire’s yellow illuminated the room.

“Rostav. I’m back,” Alain called out.

Rostav the blacksmith looked up and his eyes went bright. “Alain, my boy! How are you? Have you been eating well?” Rostav stood up and started to pat Alain on his head. Alain did not seem happy about that as he tried to brush off his hands in embarrassment.

Rostav, my savior and godfather. He took me in for an entire year after I arrived here as a refugee. We also built my switch-ax and bone armor together as the present for my admission to the academy. Alain’s face warmed and a slight smile could be seen on his face. His permanent frown loosened up just a tad.

“I am fine. I just finished the final practical exam of the semester and now it’s officially my summer break.” Alain said.

“You haven’t visited me for three months!” Rostav slapped Alain’s head softly.

“I’m sorry, I was busy. I had to study for my finals and of course, trained hard for the practical exam. Has business been good?” Alain asked.

“Well…” Rostav’s scratched his beard. “Kind of. Giantslayers are coming in as always and you know how loyal my customers are. But the price of nectars has been increasing so it’s getting more expensive to power the furnace. Now that you’re here, I’m going to turn it off for a bit and take a little break.” Rostav walked towards the furnace and turned it off. He set up two chairs.

“So…” Rostav turned the chair around to sit in it the wrong way, resting his hands on the back post. “What are you going to do for the summer break? I could use a part-time worker here if you want,”

“I’m sorry Rostav, but I have other plans. I just got my student pass to go out on hunts outside. I’m actually here to buy some equipment.” Alain said.

“Well, that's disappointing but that’s fine too. I am incredibly proud of your achievements in the academy.” Rostav’s face turned melancholic, almost nostalgic.

Rostav lost his wife and son to a giant serpent attack five years ago. I know he thinks of me as a son. And for what it’s worth, I have suffered the same amount of loss as he did. Alain pondered in his mind.

“So, what do you need for your hunts? Here I thought your giant switch-ax we made could kill any giants!” Rostav laughed.

“You're right, it could. But I need other things as well to help me. Ropecasters, smoke bombs, and flash bombs,” Alain answered.

Rostav’s eyes widened. “Wow! Going for the big trophies now are you? You certainly have changed! I remember how skinny you were when I took you three years ago now look at you! I can’t believe you don’t have a girlfriend yet with those big guns you're carrying”

Alain smiled but shook his head. “I don’t have time for relationships. Do you have the Ropecaster? I will probably need some ammo for it as well.”

“I certainly do. This is the last one in stock, actually. I haven’t had time to craft more of them. Rostav walked towards the display and picked up The Ropecaster.

The Ropecaster. I have never tested it out on the field. The Ropecaster was shaped like two crossbows stacked on top of one another. It was designed to shoot a rope arrow with jagged tips to etch itself deep inside a giant’s skin. After shooting once, the shooter then shoots downward to shoot the other end of the rope that was fitted with a hook to anchor itself into the soil. Doing this multiple times will eventually trap the giant to not be able to move. Rostav handed it off to Alain.

“Have you had the training to use this?” Rostav asked.

“I did. It was in last semester’s practical exam.” Alain said.

“Then I trust you with it!” Rostav also picked up some smoke bombs and flash bombs for Alain.

“How much will it be?” Alain inquired.

“Don’t worry about it, boy! Just stay alive out there!”

Alain frowned. “That won’t do. You need the income with the nectar shortage going on.”

“Oh knock that off, boy! Worry about yourself! I need you to stay alive out there. And this will be your first time having the student pass to go out there! This is a cause for celebration! Let’s have dinner tonight!” Rostav laughed.

“Then...thank you. Really. But I’m sorry Rostav, I need to go now. I need to do something after this.” Alain said.

“Well alright but you owe me a dinner in the near future! Take care of yourself boy!”

“You too.” Alain smiled and headed off.

Alain arrived at the Giantslayer guild building later. The building was not so much tall than it was wide. It was made out of wood and the skeleton of an absolutely gigantic canine-type skull was placed on the roof of the building, one of the crowning achievements of the late Giantslayer Cloud a few decades ago. Alain walked inside to see full-fledged Giantslayers wearing their impressive-looking equipment crowding the hall. Some were inspecting the various jobs that were available on the board while some just sat around with their friends enjoying lunch. Alain felt quite out of place with his civilian clothing, despite being an obvious fledgling Giantslayer with his freshly-obtained Ropecaster on his back.

“Greetings, apprentice Giantslayer. How can I help you?” A polite-looking man acting as one of the receptionists called out.

“Ah yes. I am here on behalf of the academy.” Alain handed his document. “I was told there was a request for a search-and-find here. Can I ask the address of this missing child’s parents?”

“Ah yes. That thing.” The receptionist frowned. His face showed a slight discomfort.

Hmm? Why is he reacting that way? Alain eyed the receptionist.

“I apologize but the receptionist responsible for taking this request clocked off his shift this morning as he had the night shift. As we did not plan to take this request officially, we did not record the parents’ address. Are you in a hurry?” The receptionist asked.

“Well yes. The child is missing so it would better if I find him sooner. Is there no way to contact him? Can I go to the receptionist’s residence to ask him directly?” Alain said.

“That...I apologize but that would be a breach to his privacy. Maybe you can try the Public Order Bureau building across the street? I heard the parents’ also reported their case there.”

Alain sighed. It seems I need to do that, but I really don’t want to.

The receptionist looked apologetic. “Good luck” He knew what Alain was thinking.

Alain stood in front of the Public Order Bureau, or the P.O.B building. It was certainly less impressive when juxtaposed with the guild building across the street. What’s unique was that the entire building was painted black, a rare paint that required many rare ingredients to make. The officers wore blue uniforms and carried wooden batons on their sides and wore a cap. Alain took a deep breath and stepped forward.

“Stop!” The P.O.B officer guarding the door said. The officer eyed the Ropecaster on Alain’s back.

“Yes?” Alain looked tired but responded.

“What business do you have here?”The officer's face was angry despite Alain not having done anything wrong.

“I have some official business with the P.O.B. Any other citizen could also enter to file reports, yes?” Alain responded in a slightly annoyed tone.

The officer frowned at the answer. “Show me the documents!”

“Can you let me in, first?”

“I will need to see the document before I let you in. I will also need to confiscate that equipment on your back” The officer crossed his arms.

"I don't think that will happen, Officer"

"You!—" Something cut off the officer's anger.

“What’s going on here?” Another presence approached from the open door. This man looked older and dignified, sporting a handlebar mustache.

“Captain!” The officer shouted in surprise.

“This officer is stopping me to enter for official business. I believe any citizen can enter to ask for assistance right? So I, with my official documents to prove my business, should be escorted in, is that right?” Alain said sarcastically.

The P.O.B captain frowned at the officer. “That’s right. I apologize for the inconvenience. Come in.” He motioned to Alain to enter. “You. go to the chimney district and patrol the area. I’ll replace you with another officer here.”

“Y-yes, Captain!” The officer gave a venomous look to Alain before storming off.

“Follow me.” The captain nodded to Alain and showed him to his office. They both sat down with the captain being in front of his desk.

“Can I see the document?” The captain asked. Alain handed him the document and he took the time to examine it.

I expected this treatment. He did not even introduce himself to me. Not everyone can use the power of the nectars. When one consumes the nectar for the first time, their body can reject it and go sick for three months or sometimes even die. That’s the sign that they can’t use the nectars’ powers. If one dreamt of being a Giantslayer before, that dream was now gone. The P.O.B was the only option left for these failures. They’re jealous of us. Alain pondered in his mind.

“I see. Yes. A boy by the name of Renald Moonshade, twelve years old, went missing yesterday. The parents’ reported it this morning. But tell me, why does the academy need to be involved? I am sure this is not Giantslayer business. Any cases inside The Sanctuary is our jurisdiction.” The Captain rested his arm on the table and looked straight towards Alain.

“Didn’t the parents’ say this boy might have gone outside? Then it would certainly be our business.” Alain rebutted.

“There’s no proof of that. The parents’ made that assumption because the boy has been telling the parents that he had gone outside multiple times. Not only would that be impossible, one should not really trust the fairytales of children.” The captain snickered.

Alain rested his back on the chair and crossed his arms. “I don’t believe our two sides’ politics should get in the way of the investigation for this child’s disappearance, don’t you agree? With our help, we can cover the possibility of the child going outside, while your officers can still investigate inside. It’s a win-win. Besides, I just need the parents’ address so I can ask for information from them directly. Are you going to risk the P.O.B's reputation if you can't find him here but we later find the boy's dead body outside?” He said adamantly.

“You sure have nerves, kid.” Veins were showing on the captain’s forehead. “But I don’t want to cause any more unnecessary drama about this. You’re right about that.”

You already did that. Alain thought.

“Here. The address.” The captain handed Alain the address. “Now get the fuck out of my office. And good luck dealing with the parents.” The captain showed an uncharacteristic smile at the last comment.

What? The captain’s smile was stuck inside his head as Alain left the P.O.B station.

---

Floor 2, district 4, building number 23. It’s here. Alain stood in front of a two-stories wooden house inside a rather nice neighborhood. It was certainly a little more luxurious than those of normal citizens. Alain knocked on the door but no one answered. He knocked a few more times.

“Who is it!?” An alarmed voice sounded on the other side of the door.

“I am from the Giantslayer academy. I am here to help with the investigation of your missing son.” Alain raised his voice so the person inside can hear him.

After a while, the locks were opened and the door. A pale-looking woman with parched lips answered the door. While her appearance struck him as odd, there was also another thing that shocked Alain.

This smell...nectar rocks. She’s an addict. While non-Giantslayers who consume the nectars will be extremely sick, that was only the case for pure nectars. It was a different story if one were to grind down the nectars and mix it with other ingredients as the cut. Nectar rocks would be created, an extremely addictive drug that produces euphoric effects but terrifying consequences.

“Are you going to find our son? You have to find him soon!” The woman seemed delirious.

“Can I enter first?” Alain said.

The woman scratched her head and nodded. Alain entered. The floor seemed as if it had not been cleaned for a while as it was filled with dust.

I’m starting to suspect the kid ran away instead. Alain thought. They arrived in the living room and Alain sat down on the dusty sofa. On the kitchen next to the living room, a man sat in front of the dining table motionless, staring at nothing.

“I’m Sara Moonshade. That’s my husband Valak. Can you find our son? We need him soon!” The woman said.

“Calm down. I need to know more information, and why do you say you need him soon?” Alain asked.

“That kid Renald, he’s a performer at the grand theater. He’s a real star, that kid! People pay a lot of money to go to his current show. Do you see? We need him back soon! The theater needs him!”

Does this woman not care that his son disappeared? She just wants him to make more money to fuel her drug habits. Alain frowned deeply. He did not think himself to be overly sympathetic but this boy’s parents truly disgusted him. But if the child was truly outside, he knew he needed to find him before anything happens to him.

“I understand, ma’am. But I need to know the information about his disappearance. Why do you think he might be outside?” He asked.

“The child always rant to us that he runs away outside every time we scold him! Says he always go meet his giant friend to get away from us! That scoundrel, I swear. We don’t believe any of it of course but he might actually have run away outside this time! We need to find him quick! He can’t die now!” The woman’s scratching of her head started to become more intense. A small part of her hair even started falling off.

“And you don’t know how he might have gone outside?” Alain asked again.

“How would we know about that? The gate and the farming district is the only way out! He sure as hell can’t fall off the height of the farming district!”

This woman… Alain looked at the unresponsive husband staring at nothing. And her husband is perhaps even worse than her.

“Can I see your son’s room? I may find clues there.” Alain did not even bother waiting for her answers as he already started walking away from the living room.

“Go ahead! First room up the stairs!” The woman shouted behind him.

Alain went upstairs into the son’s bedroom. The room was full of personality and unlike the rest of the house, clean. It was decorated with toys and drawings of giants on the wall. There was one particular figure that stood out as the boy drew it repeatedly, a feline-type giant known as Kashik.

That’s interesting. Alain searched trough the room for anything of note. Where would a boy hide his prized possessions? Alain knew the answer right away. Looking under the bed, he found a box full of items. On top of those items, he found what seems to be a diary.

Right on. Alain thought. He opened the boy’s diary.