Capítulo 13: Stunts, tricks, and a... Reunion?

A month passed since I came into town. Between adventuring and working with Edward and his wife, I was both exhausted and mentally drained. I decided to bet everything on this couple's abilities, and it finally paid off.

"Er, Mr. Smarus, what is this thing called again?" He handed me an oddly shaped wooden board.

It was slightly curved upwards on the sides, and the ends flared up about 45 degrees. On the bottom end were two pairs of hardened wheels. Plastic didn't exist in this world, so we had to brainstorm on what was a good substitute for the material.

"It's called a skateboard. The paved streets were perfect for it," I couldn't help but grin. I hadn't touched a board in what felt like ages.

"And why did you want me to get candle wax?" Austria asked.

"Just watch."

I took the wax and rubbed it all over the underbelly of the board. Placing the skateboard on the floor, I rolled it ahead of me before I jumped on. Almost like clockwork, I placed my right foot on the front end and positioned my left foot onto the tongue of the board on the back. I crouched low before I popped the board in the air. With a fluid motion, I flicked my right foot forward at an angle, causing the board to rotate in mid-air. After a full rotation, I placed my feet back on the board and landed perfectly. A kickflip. It felt so good!

The couple were shocked to see me skate for the first time. It was like I just opened a whole new world to them, but I didn't stop there. Pop shove-its, ollies, grind, hospital flips, I did everything I knew how. In a way, my new skateboard was like an extension of my body. I rolled back to Edward.

"This is amazing! And you were able to replicate it almost perfectly!" I was excited that one of my hobbies was resurrected.

"I'm just as amazed, Mr. Smarus! How did you do that?" He looked at me.

"I used to have one as a kid, but it was an original design by a friend," I explained.

I technically didn't lie since my first board was specially customized for me, but I left out basically everything else about me being from another world. I could see the wonder in Edward's eyes. Austria wasn't as excited, but she seemed to be more lost in thought.

"And this is only the first idea of yours too, Mr. Smarus. We also drew blueprints for some of your other ideas. Honey, let's start on the bicycle!" He turned his head to his wife.

"I was thinking the same thing, but that has a lot more moving parts. We should make more skateboards and sell them first. That way, we will have funds for the next project," She looked up at her husband.

He wasn't excited about the idea, but he remembered about their financial struggle. I understood his pain. It sucked when you have to put your hobby and interests on hold because of life circumstances. They walked back into their store, leaving me by myself. They had work to do as well as I did. These boards weren't gonna sell themselves.

I skated all around town, showing off tricks and the product itself. Naturally, a crowd began to form, so I decided to stay in the town square. That way, as many people as possible could see the skateboard. Everyone was in awe, but my target audience, young adults and kids, were the most interested. I let a few people try, but most of them couldn't do much. Like in everything, there were a few people that had talent.

Unfortunately, this world's equivalent to the authorities, the city guards, broke up the crowd and sent me home. I couldn't show off any more of my tricks, but my job was done. I walked back to my small apartment when it dawned on me. I haven't talked to Luna since the Awakening! It didn't help that I was disowned and had to fend for myself, but that wasn't an excuse. There was always time for things that mattered. By now, I was sure that Ace and Luna knew I was banished… Wait, wouldn't they have come to look for me? Or at the very least checked to see if I was ok?

I stopped in the middle of the street, raking my brain for answers. In the game, all three characters were close until they joined the academy. Then their relationship got rocky, Luna had an affair with Ace, and the villain well, became the villain. Luna was depressed because of the abnormal standards and even mental abuse of her father… wait! Luna was depressed after the Awakening! Since Ace liked her, he would use the chance to comfort and then seduce her.

I slowly became enraged about what could have happened, so I forced myself to calm down. It was only noon, so I could pay an unexpected visit. But I broke off the engagement, why would I care? I thought about it as I began walking. Perhaps it was because Ace was self-absorbed and didn't actually care for Luna past the surface level. Or maybe because my inner nerd hated losing party members. However, these were real people who had real feelings. Also, since this variation of the world was already veering to a different future, things will progressively become more unpredictable. I sighed.

I felt like I had so much to worry about. I had to level up, earn money, study, and worry about friendships all at once. It was a massive pain. I mentally apologized to Luna since I doubted I could be her so-called knight in shining armor. She was now considered an adult, but in reality, she was still a 15-year-old kid.

I opened the door to my apartment just to be met with two familiar faces.

"Lord Dragonborne!" The Mystia sisters both fell on one knee. "We were worried about you," Aurora added.

"I'm too exhausted to ask why you're here, but how did you find me?" I was shocked but mostly annoyed about the home intrusion.

"When we came to visit you, Anne explained what happened," Aurora explained.

"And when we asked the landlord, he let us in without a problem!" Myra added.

"I should have gutted that fat pervert," Aurora commented.

I wasn't sure what happened, but they seemed like they could handle themselves.

"As you can see, I'm ok. Thank you for checking up on me… er… and you don't have to bow down."

"You are the future head of the Dragonborn clan, it's only natural to pay our respects," Aurora said with a bit too much determination. "But more importantly, why didn't you tell us you were banished!?"

Now she was up in my face, scolding me. Myra crossed her arms and pouted.

"We would have let you stay at our…"

I raised my hand to stop her.

"Then you would have had to face the wrath of my father. A fate neither of us wants to deal with. As for why I didn't inform you, that's for me to know," I explained.

It was actually because I can't level up in a party, but I didn't feel like explaining that. Instead, a vague answer should do. They backed off and frowned a bit at my answer, but they stopped pestering me.

"Fine, that is acceptable for now," Aurora said.

I sighed in relief. This may be my lucky break. If the sisters were here, then they must have used a carriage to get here. It was a risky move, but I had to ask a favor.

"Lady Aurora, Lady Myra, did you two take a carriage here?" I politely asked them. Myra smiled and nodded her head.

"Yup!"

"In that case, could you transport me somewhere? I planned to see my friends, and your assistance would be much appreciated," I smiled at them.

They were both a bit surprised, reluctant even, but they agreed. I felt a sting of guilt since one of my friends was my former fiance. I wasn't sure how they saw me, but in the off chance that they found me attractive at all, it would be like telling someone that had a crush on you that you planned to see an ex. I followed them to their carriage.

______________________________________________________________________________________

It has been a month since the Awakening. The month before, Smarus broke off our engagement, basically predicting that Ace will be a hero and I a saint. Ace and I were now in an open field that served as a play area for us when we were kids. Since Smarus was disowned by his father, there was no point in going to the training fields. It would have been awkward.

However, how much did Smarus know about the future? I doubted his comment about our classes was a mishaps or happy accident. Was I destined to be Ace's wife? Did I not truly loved Smarus? Come think of it, his entire personality suddenly shifted over a period of a day. Ace kept making advances on me. At first it was annoying, but they slowly grew on me.

"Luna, I'm not sure why Smarus up and left us. He didn't even say goodbye," Ace moved a bit closer to me. "I actually value our friendship, unlike him. I won't leave you, ever."

Ace placed his hand over mine. Despite his advances, he actually helped me a lot this past month. He supported me when I was hurt by my father. He always wanted me to improve my magic and pushed me too hard, but Ace was there to support me.

"But I'm sure Smarus had his reasons. Everything he does is typically calculated…" I tried convincing myself more than anything.

"That's must have been why he broke off the engagement. He was planning to leave from the getgo. That piece of…"

"He's our friend Ace! You shouldn't speek ill of him, and I still deeply care for him," I narrowed my brow,

"But does he feel the same!?" He shot back. "He have never even so much soften his expression for you. Unlike me, he only sees you as a means to an end."

"But… you don't mean that…" I looked down at my knees.

"Luna, trust me," Now he spoke softly.

Ace held my hand and with his other hand, gently lifted my chin. I was completely shocked, so I blushed a little. It was uncomfortable, but I couldn't find the strength to resist him. My eyes widened as I stared into his dark, gentle eyes.

"I care for you, Luna. It's just us against the world," He whispered as he slowly leaned in.

I gasped, but I didn't move. On the contrary, I closed my eyes and waited for impact. Was this okay? It felt wrong, but right at the same time. Ace, in this last month, showed that he care for me than Smarus ever had. Maybe… just maybe I may… actually lo…

"Just you against the world eh? I didn't know losing my noble status also meant forfeiting my friendship!" A familiar, calm yet piercing voice filled the air.

I immediately opened my eyes and turned around just to see the man I once considered my love. I was torn between both Smarus and Ace, but something was different. Smarus was… smiling. And his purple eyes were glowing. A chill shot down my spine.

"Hello Ace and Luna, it's been a while. Hope you didn't miss me too much."