That last chapter went on for WAY longer than I thought it would. I can guarantee that this chapter will be much, much shorter than the last one. Everything in the last chapter was necessary though. Ayuma was able to change the rules by making it so she can freely travel with Naofumi without either of their weapons restricting each other. But, it did indeed come at one heck of a cost. And now, we're introduced to her first party member as well. Neela will become a pivotal member to the adventure that Ayuma will set forth on. And I can't wait for you all to meet the rest of her party down the line. Enjoy!

With Neela now at my side, it was time we got to training. But first, I needed to get Neela a weapon. Luckily for me, Naofumi was kind enough to give me some extra copper coins. It wasn't much but it would help us out. Since we were still the village, I decided we would stop at Erhard's blacksmith shop. When we arrived, we saw Naofumi had just left. He had gotten Raphtalia a small knife to wield. He didn't say anything, he just gave me a stern look before the two of them left. Me and Neela then entered and met Erhard. "Hey, it's you! Welcome back!" Erhard said as I walked up to his counter. "Nice to see you again. But this time, i'm not the one shopping." I said as Neela stepped around and stood beside me. "You too, huh? Looks like the shield hero isn't the only one who's a little desperate." Erhard said as I sadly agreed with him. "Yeah, I know. I had no choice though. I gave up everything recently so this was the only option left for me to gain any party members." I explained as Erhard looked at me curiously. "Well, judging by your current choice of clothing, I guess you're not lying. But, i'm not gonna get into what you did. What i'm more curious about, is what are we gonna get this cute little demi-human." Erhard said to Neela in a kind voice. "Like I said before, I gave up everything. So, i'm afraid to say I only have 10 copper coins on me. What's the best you can offer us?" I asked as Erhard let out a sigh. Not much. But, since you were such a good customer the other day, i'll give you a one time special deal. 80% off one item. I'll go and see what's in your price range now." Erhard explained as he went into the back of his shop. It only took him a minute but he returned with four different weapons. There was a small iron sword, a circular iron shield, an iron sai, and a stick? "What's that last one? It looks like an ordinary stick." I asked as Erhard picked it up. "This is no ordinary stick. It was molded from some of the oldest and strongest trees around. They're said to house magic energy. It may look brittle, but it's as tough as steel and it can pack a punch." Erhard explained as he put the stick back on the counter. "Well, go ahead, Neela. You can choose what you want to wield." I said as she stepped forward. She looked at all the weapons for a few seconds and then hovered her hand over the sai. But, she soon changed her mind and picked up the stick. "A fine choice. It'll suit you well." Erhard said as Neela held it straight up in the air. She grew a smile on her face and I did the same. It felt really great to see her happy. "Thanks, Erhard. Here's your payment." I said as I handed him the rest of my money. "Always a pleasure doing business. I hope to see you two again soon." Erhard said as me and Neela left his shop, waving goodbye. 

"Ok, now that we have you a weapon, we can focus on training and gaining more money." I said as Neela kept on waving the stick around. "You really like that thing, don't you?" I asked with a small chuckle. "I do, I do. Thank you, miss Ayuma." Neela said to me with a smile on her face. "I'm glad you do. Now let's go see what it can do. There's a forest just outside of the village. Let's go find some monsters." I said as Neela gave me a nod. She seemed to have a bit of fearlessness. It showed me that she was strong. And hopefully, that strength would come in handy in the future. We quickly exited the village and made our way to the forest. Since it was night, I preferred it that we didn't fight anything. I'd rather have it so we both can see what we're actually fighting. I made us up a roaring fire and the two of us sat around it. "Miss Ayuma, I... I'm just going to say this right now. I'm sorry for anything I do that makes you upset. If anything like that happens, you can do whatever you want to me." Neela said as she put her head down. "Hey, don't say that. I'm not that kind of person. It's fine, i'm really nice, actually. Whatever you do won't make me upset. Sure times will get tough but everyone goes through things like that. I've gone through plenty so far in my life. And lastly, I know i'm technically your owner, but that's not how i'm going to treat you. Think of me more like.... your mother." I explained as Neela perked her head up, her whiskers moving up and down. "Like my mother?" She questioned as I gave her a nod. "That's right. We're family now. We're in this together. We'll grow strong side by side and defend those who cannot defend themselves." I said as Neela scooched her way over and leaned her head against me. "Mommy...." She said as she fell asleep on my right arm. I then patted her head and stroked her long black hair a few times. "Don't worry. I'll be here for you, no matter how tough it gets." I said as I covered her up with a bit of my cloak. I then fell asleep too, eagerly awaiting what lies in store for us tomorrow. 

I woke up pretty early. The sun was starting to rise into the sky. Neela was still sound asleep but she was now laying on my right leg. I gently lifted her head and placed her on the ground while I stood up. "Ok, with her asleep, that gives me time to start my own training. I had no choice but to do extra training since it's harder for me to gain levels now. I walked a few meters away from where Neela slept, but just far enough so I could still see her. I could feel a presence around me, and it was moving. I removed my axe from the strap on my back and I held it with both of my hands. And then, what was making the presence jumped out of a bush. It looked like a medium sized wolf. My status opened up and labelled it as a level 3 monster. "Level 3, huh? It might be tough to take down since i'm level 1. But, hopefully it'll give me a good amount of experience!" I said as I swung my axe at the wolf. I jumped back, making me miss it. The wolf then jumped forward, baring its fangs at me. I dropped to my knees as the wolf leaped right over me. I then swung my axe over my head, slashing the back of the wolf as it jumped over me. I managed to injure it but it wasn't done yet. It let out a loud howl before rushing me again. I swung my axe as it got close but the wolf bit down on the blade. "What the? Hey! Get off!" I yelled as I swung my axe around with the wold on it. It seemed determined to not let go, so I slammed it against a large tree. The wold let out a whimper and it removed my weapon from its mouth. It then tried to rush me again but it couldn't. It had begun to limp now. "It's getting weak! Now's my chance!" I thought as I leaped at the wolf. It tried to escape but it couldn't. It could barely move now. I landed a strike and slashed the side of the wolf's body. Blood spewed from the wolf and it let out a wail of pain. But it soon stopped and slumped over. The wolf was dead. 

"Yes! Woohoo!'' I cheered as I walked up to the dead wolf. My status opened up and I saw my level bar go up. However, it did not reach level 2. It was just short, actually. "Damn. This going to be harder than I thought. Having to work three times as hard is going to become a real bitch." I thought as I heard some bushes rustling nearby. I turned off my status and readied my weapon. Out from the bushes came two more wolves of the same level. "Two of them? They must've heard the other one when it did that loud roar. This isn't good. Just one of these things was pretty tough. How am I supposed to beat two of them?" I thought as I felt something grab the back of my cloak. I quickly turned my head and saw Neela hiding behind me. "Miss Ayuma, what are those?" She asked me. "They're monsters. And we have to fight them. Will you lend me your aid, Neela?" I asked her. She looked frightened at first but she tried her best to give me a look of determination. She gave me a nod and then took out her magic stick. "That's what I like to see. Now let's do this!" I said as Neela stepped over to my side. She raised her stick up and held it straight out in front of her with both her hands. "Go Neela! Attack them!" I cried as she grew a fierce expression. "Here goes! Fire!" Neela yelled as the end of her stick glowed with a red aura. From it, she fired a fast red projectile that struck one of the wolves. She hit it in the chest and it seemed to pierce right through, almost like a bullet. The wolf stayed standing though and the two of them began to charge us. I picked Neela up by the back of her clothing and I moved her out of the way before she could be attacked. I swung my axe at the same time. I struck one of the wolves, slashing its head and making it drop to the ground. The second, which was the one Neela attacked before, was able to dodge my axe and it bit down on my arm. I let out a scream of pain as I let go of Neela to try and get the wolf off of me. 

"Neela.... you've got to do something!" I said as I tried to pry the wolf's mouth open. Neela looked utterly scared about what she was witnessing. "I... I... I don't know what to do!" She screamed as she began to step away. The slave crest on her body then began to glow and an electric shock began to course through her body. She screamed in pain as she fell to her knees. "Listen, if you stay strong, then all the pain will go away! Just believe in yourself, the same way that I believe in you! You can do this! I know you're strong! Now.... stand and fight!" I yelled as Neela stopped screaming. She had begun to cry and the slave crest stopped shocking her. "Believe in... myself?" She questioned as she stood up. She held her stick in her hands with a firm grip and took aim. "Right! Fire! Bullet magic: Piercing shot!" Neela cried as she fired another projectile from her stick. It hit the wolf in the eye this time and it let go of my arm. I then took this chance to capitalize and I swung my axe down on the wolf's head. I embedded my blade into the wolf's skull and it slumped over like those before. The fight was over. We had won. 

"Mommy!" Neela said as she ran up to me, hugging me tightly. I crouched and hugged her back as she cried into my cloak. "It's ok, it's ok. You did great!" I said as my status opened up again. It showed Neela's level bar going up, all the way to level three for defeating two enemies. "Two enemies defeated? But, she only slayed one? Do we share experience after we kill something?" I thought as my level bar went up too. It was able to reach level two and make it to a third of the way to level three. "Well, it's slow but if we do share experience, that may speed things up for me. Even if I don't kill anything, i'll still gain experience." I thought as I looked at the bite marks on my arm. The wolf bit me hard but the wound wasn't deep. I'm sure I could heal it in no time. I wiped off the blood on my arm and I shook it off my hand. However, some of the blood landed on the gem in my axe and it seemed to absorb the blood. And then, my status opened up again, showing me what looked like a web of upgrades. The centre was labelled "standard axe" and emerging from the left of it, a web opened up, revealing the "strike wolf" axe class. "So this is how I upgrade my weapon, huh? I slay something and then I use its materials to unlock new skills and abilities." I thought as I held my axe with one of my hands. "Now, strike wolf axe!" I said as my axe began to glow. It did it for only a second but it emerged in my hand, looking different than before. The blades on my axe were now black and dark fur went along the sides of the blades. My status then showed me the boosts from this type of axe. "Increase in attack and stamina." It said. "That'll come in handy, seeing as this is a very offensive weapon." I thought as me and Neela let go of each other. 

"Are you hurt, miss Ayuma?" She asked me, looking at the wound on my arm. "I'll be fine. It's nothing I can't take care of. Now, shall we continue?" I asked her as she gave me that determined expression I was looking for. Neela then shouted "Yes!" and I patted her head. "Look at how much you've grown already. Such a brave young girl." I said as we held hands and walked deeper into the forest. We came across even more monsters, some even tougher than the last. But the two of us remained strong and emerged triumphant every single time. Neela kept on gaining levels, eventually reaching level eight in just a few hours. Myself however.... it was much harder for me. The level gain was agonizingly slow. I was only able to reach level five before the night arrived. And while I managed to unlock a few more new abilities, I was still behind. When Neela fell asleep, I had no choice but to keep on training. It was all I could do to keep up with the other heroes. I had to do it so I would be prepared for the next wave which would hit soon. I didn't get any sleep at all that night. I kept on fighting until the morning arrived. I was utterly exhausted but I had managed to make it all the way up to level ten. I was able to gain some experience for Neela too. She was now at level eleven. I walked back over to where Neela and laid down next to her. She was still asleep, not even realizing that I was fighting all night. It was only ten minutes later when she began to wake up. She let out a huge yawn before slowly opening up her eyes. "Good morning, sleepyhead. Ready to start the day?" I asked her as she gave me a smile and a nod. "It's gonna be hard, but I know we can accomplish anything. So let's get out there and show the world what we're made of!" I said as Neela agreed with me. We then got up and headed even deeper into the forest, not knowing what awaits us. But to be honest, we didn't care. No matter what we faced, as long as we had each other, we would come out victorious.