Nozomi throws herself onto the soft bed, burying her face into the dark blue pillows. Kaito sits down on the edge of his bed, running his hand against the black covers. Their room was smaller than the one at Rodon, their beds only a couple of feet apart. The floors were wooden, with a light birch color. They splintered at some parts from years of wear. A small window set in the middle of the wall, between their beds, looking out onto the small town. Willowdale was a tiny town, with only twelve houses along with a single inn and a few stores residing within. The town lacks a wall like most of the major cities and is surrounded by trees on every side. A few soldiers, dressed in metal armor and white capes, patrol the streets. The evening sun casts a warm, mellow light over the city.

“I've missed sleeping on a bed,” Nozomi said, muffled through the pillow.

“Me too, I don't understand why Brandon doesn't teleport larger tents and actual beds instead of sleeping bags,” Kaito said, snuggling into his blanket.

“That's a great idea, Kaito! We should talk to him about it, maybe he's just never thought about it.” Nozomi exclaimed with excitement.

After enjoying their beds a little longer, they make their way to the first floor of the inn and begin ordering as much food as they could eat.

Brandon stands before a small wooden gate leading up to a small dojo. The gate was falling apart, it was barely being held by its hinges. Its once dark color had faded over many years of wear. He opens the gate and steps onto a small stone path. The path was cracked, it had grass and small flowers growing through the cracks. The stone was rough underneath his feet, eroded over time, small crumbs of stone stuck to the bottom of his shoes. The roof of the dojo caved inward towards the center on the verge of collapsing.

“He needs to stop living here.” He thought to himself.

As he climbs up the few steps leading to the entrance of the dojo, he sees a woman leaning on the wall next to the door. She was wearing massive, bulky knight armor. Her armor shined and reflected the sun's light. She was just over six feet in height and carried a massive battleaxe on her back. Her hair was long, running down past her shoulders. It was a light blonde color and looked extremely silky.

“Willow? What are you doing here?” He asked, walking up to the woman.

She pushes herself off the wall and smiles at him.

“Long time no see, Brandon, I was just letting master Wu know I finished my training. My student just set out on his own a few months ago.” She explained.

She wraps her arms around him, nearly squeezing the life out of him.

“It's good to see you too, but please don't break my back.” He struggled to say as his breath ran short from her death hug.

“Sorry, it's just been so long since we've seen each other. So did you finish your training too?” She asked, filled with curiosity.

“I did, I took my students to Death's canyon. Spent just under a year there training them. They're here in town with me, they're going to be traveling around with me for the time being.” He explained.

“Students, as in more than one? Now that's a surprise, I wasn't even sure if you were going to get a single student, let alone more than one.” She said.

“Well, technically at first, they were a combo deal. Brother and sister, if I wanted one, the other had to come with. However, I'm glad they both came, this last year wouldn't have been the same without both of them being there every step of the way. I'm curious to see what their future holds for them.” He said.

“Always the curious one, you have a goal to change the world, yet here you are. Training others, rather than focusing on your goal. You send a lot of mixed signals.” She said, letting out a laugh.

“You can never have too many friends, they might even help me, I mean you did.” He said.

“That's true, well anyway, go in and see the old man. I'm heading back to town, I'll see you there.” She said, patting him on the shoulder as she walked by.

Willow makes her way past Brandon and down the stone path, leaving him alone. He grabs the sliding door to the dojo and goes inside. As he enters, the soft, dim lights of hanging lanterns from above illuminate his way. He makes his way toward the center of the dojo. A small, old man was sitting down at a kotatsu. The roof was almost completely open, letting in the sun's light. The walls were covered in decayed wallpaper and were falling off. The wallpaper was beige and heavily faded. Brandon walks up to the old man and sits down with him.

“I was starting to wonder if you were going to return, Brandon. It's been nearly two years since I've heard from you.” Wu said.

“I'm sorry master, I got a little distracted with certain matters,” Brandon explained, bowing his head.

“Ah, your quest to collect God's holy artifacts. Were you able to find another one?” Wu questioned, as he poured Brandon a small cup of tea.

“I was, the Holy Grail to be more exact. It was for sale in an underground auction ring, cost twenty-five million in pure gold.” Brandon explained, taking a sip from his tea.

“So much work, so much money, over something you don't even know will work. Do you honestly think you can kill God, changing the world forever?” Wu questioned.

“I've already changed the world once, why not do it a second time. Magic is a common thing now, and it's thanks to me. I've had the power to change it, and I'll do it again.” Brandon said.

Master Wu lets out a sigh in defeat and gets up from the kotatsu. He walked over to one of the nearby walls and pulled off a small cutout of the wall. Inside resided a small black box, he grabs it and sits back down near Brandon.

“I know you wouldn't stop pestering me until you found this. I'm certain your mother has already found out that I'm possession of the Adam gemstone. You're determined, I don't see anything or anyone stopping you from collecting all the holy artifacts. It'll be easier on me if I just give it to you. Think of this as a reward for completing my training. I may not have made you stronger physically or magically, but I like to think I've left you wiser and more knowledgeable.” Wu said, pouring himself some more tea.

Brandon takes the box and slowly opens the lid. A soft blue hue radiates from the box, lighting up Brandon's face as he examines it. He smiles brightly as he closes the box and shoves it into his pocket.

“You wouldn't happen to have the blueprint to go along with this, would you?” Brandon asked, standing up from the kotatsu.

“No, I never had any intention of using it for its intended purposes. I'm not sure where it could be, either.” Wu said.

“Oh well, at least I'm one step closer. Thank you, not only for the gem but thank you for training me. Teaching students of my own has been educational, to say the least. Plus, every day I've spent here, you've always found a way to challenge my view on something to make sure I could stand the grounds of my views.” Brandon said, holding his hand out to Wu.

They shake hands, then bow to each other before Brandon takes his leave.

“That boy is going to change the world, one way or another. I don't know if he will kill God as he wants, but life as we know it will change again soon, I can feel it.” Wu thought to himself.

Brandon returns to the town and enters the small inn. The inn was small but had a homey atmosphere feeling to it. It was warm inside, lanterns hanging from the roof lighting the tables. Only six tables sat in the inn, and only three were being actively used. Like the rooms rented above, a majority of the inn was wood and wearing out. What it lacked in fancy design, it made up for with amazing food and welcoming employees. He spots Kaito and Nozomi in the corner of the room, eating away at countless plates of food. He walks over to them and sits next to Kaito.

“Enjoying yourselves?” He asked, looking at the stacks of empty plates.

“Yes sir, the food here is great.” They said in unison with their stuffed mouths.

“And, uh, who is going to be paying for all this food?” He asked.

Their eating rampage comes to a stop, and they swallow the food in their mouth. They look at each other, worried.

“You?” Nozomi questioned in a soft voice.

“Uh-huh, just please don't eat everything in one night. They need food for other patrons and tomorrow's breakfast.” Brandon said, letting out a laugh.

They resume their eating and a waitress brings a plate with a steak on it. She hands it to Brandon and points to Willow sitting at another table. Brandon waves her over, and Willow sits down next to Nozomi with a tankard in her hand.

“Thanks for the steak,” Brandon said, cutting his first bite.

“You're welcome, consider it payment for all the times you paid for my food.” She said, smiling at him.

“Ha, it would take a couple of thousand steaks to begin paying me back for the amount of food I've paid for you,” Brandon said.

Kaito and Nozomi watch and listen as they slowly continue eating.

"So these are your students, huh? Glad to see they have an appetite to match your wallet." Willow said, letting out a laugh.

"They keep eating like this, and I'll go broke. However, they've earned it, by training in Death's canyon for a year." Brandon said proudly.

"So, to change topics to more serious matters. I assume Wu gave you the gemstone?" Willow asked.

"Yeah he did, wait, you knew he had it?" He questioned.

"Yeah, I did, I found that wall cutout on the first day." She said, letting out a laugh.

"Why didn't you tell me about it then? You knew I was after it and had been searching all the neighboring cities and lands for it." He exclaimed.

"Because he kept it hidden for a reason, I wasn't going to be disrespectful and tell you about it. Never mind that, what are you going to do now that you have it?" She asked, taking a swing of her ale.

"I understand why you did what you did. For the now, well, now I have to find the blueprint that went along with it. The Adam and Eve gemstone was intended to be used as weapons, swords to be more precise. They can't be used at all without a sword designed a certain way. My mom was looking around for it last year, hopefully, I'll hear back from her soon. In the meantime, we're headed for Galward. About ten years ago, they started a little competition. Blacksmiths from all around the world come and compete to see who is worthy of the title, legendary smith. I heard that the one who won ten years ago opened their own shop there. If I do manage to find the blueprint for the gemstone, I'll need a very talented smith to make the blade." Brandon explained, taking another bite of his steak.

"Ah, you mean Ava, I met her not long after she won that title. You're correct, she opened a shop on the outskirts of Galward, she should still be there, last time I was there, business was booming for her." Willow said in between chugging her ale.

"I'm so lost in this conversation and honestly Kaito looks just as lost." Nozomi thought to herself.

"What about you, have you gotten any lead on the scythe?" Brandon asked.

"I did actually, tomorrow morning I'm heading to the North, where the dwarves call home," Willow explained.

"Make sure to wear many layers, it's freezing up there this time of the year." He explained.

"I will, well I better turn in for the night, I want to leave at the crack of dawn." She said, getting up from the table.

They say their goodbyes and Willow heads upstairs to her room. Brandon, Kaito, and Nozomi finish their meals, and Brandon pays for it. They make their way upstairs and crash once they made it to their rooms.