“What?” Reya asked, the corner of her lip twitching preemptively into a faint smile, waiting for Arwin to finish the second half of his joke. He didn’t add anything else, and the grin fell away. “You’re serious?” “Yes,” Arwin said. “I was the Hero, up until just a short time ago.” He could practically see the gears spinning in Reya’s head as she tried to determine whether to believe him or not. Slowly, her expression changed from disbelief to wide-eyed shock. “They canceled the funeral,” Reya muttered. “I saw it on the flyers. You mean you survived the explosion? I thought you killed the demon queen but died in the process!” “Someone certainly tried to make it look that way. There was a bomb in my armor, and it’s one that I believe the adventurer’s guild planted. I was betrayed, but the Mesh saved me. I don’t know why, but it took my class and gave me the one I have now instead.” “That’s why you know so much about monsters and fighting,” Reya said, pulling at her hair. “You’re literally the greatest warrior alive. And you’re saying the guild betrayed you? Why? What’s the point?” “I don’t know,” Arwin replied with a shrug. “I haven’t figured that out yet, and something tells me I wasn’t the greatest warrior either. I think the guild intentionally kept me in the dark, but that’s a story for a different time. The point is, I used to be the Hero, but I’m not the Hero anymore.” “That’s why you’re so deadset on protecting everyone?” Reya asked. “I used to think that, yeah. Because it was my duty.” A short, bitter laugh slipped from Arwin’s mouth and he shook his head. “Not anymore. I don’t think I give a shit about duty or any of that. I just don’t want to see my friends die anymore. When I realized I survived the explosion, I had just planned to lock myself away and never deal with people again. It would have been easier.” Reya noticed Arwin’s distraction and turned to follow his gaze. “Oh. They’re back.” “If you’ve got more questions, you can ask later,” Arwin said. “Don’t share what we talked about with them yet. It’s not the right time, and I don’t want to put undue stress on either of them.” “Okay,” Reya said, giving him a final nod. Arwin took his hand off her shoulder just as Rodrick and Anna came to a stop by the open door. “Not interrupting, are we?” Rodrick asked. Arwin shook his head. “No. We’ve just finished up. You’ve got good timing. Did you run the whole way over and back from the market?” “No comment,” Rodrick replied, stepping through the doorway and setting the pot of grout down on the ground beside Arwin. He then held out the pouch of gold. “Here. Got what you needed.” “Thank you,” Arwin said. “I can get started, then.” “How can we help?” Reya asked. “You said I could help forge, right?” “I need stone to make a hearth before I can do anything,” Arwin said. “If you could look for stones from the smithy that weren’t completely destroyed in its collapse, that would be really useful.” “We can do that,” Rodrick said. They all started for the smithy, but Rodrick paused in the doorway, blocking Arwin from leaving. “You’re going to have to move for me to squeeze by you,” Arwin said. “I’m not that thin.” “I was just thinking – wouldn’t it be better if you generally stayed inside?” Rodrick asked. “I haven’t noticed anyone spying on us, but it might be safest if the Iron Hounds have absolutely no reason to believe you might still be alive. The less prying eyes can figure out you’re here, the better it is.” Arwin grimaced. As much as he wanted to dismiss Rodrick’s concerns, the warrior brought up a good point. He let out a sigh and took a step back. “Damn it. You’re probably right, but I’m not happy about it. I’ll stay here, then.” “We won’t take long,” Rodrick promised, following after Anna and Reya. Arwin watched him leave, then walked back over to his anvil and sat down, drumming his foot on the ground. The last thing he wanted to do right now was be left alone with his thoughts. They weren’t going anywhere that he wanted them to, but it didn’t look like he was going to have a choice. Fortunately, he didn’t have to wait too long. It only took the trio around an hour to gather all the stone that they’d need and bring it into the room, stacking it in a pile beside Arwin. Once they got enough to start working with, Arwin began layering stones on the ground and spreading grout onto them. Reya joined him some time later, and by the time evening rolled around, the group had a fully built, albeit slightly sloppy, stone dome. It vaguely resembled an oven and was nowhere near what an actual hearth should have looked like, but it would work for Arwin’s purposes once the grout hardened. “Now what?” Reya asked, wiping her dirty hands off on her clothes. “What else can we do?” “For today? Eat dinner,” Arwin replied. “One step at a time. I can’t do anything until the grout sets. Tomorrow, I think the main thing I’ll need is supplies. That means either gold or hunting monsters, and I’m not sure hunting is safe right now.” “We can do it,” Reya said. “I’m sure we can find a way.” “What’s more important is not getting killed,” Arwin said gently. “I know you want to help, Reya. But don’t make me have to avenge two people instead of just one. For now, we’ve got gold. We can use that. When I run out – that’s when we can look at alternative ways to get money.” Reya nodded reluctantly. “Fine. Just make sure you think of something. I’m not just going to sit around.” “And neither will we,” Rodrick put in. “I will,” Arwin promised. “For now, just go get dinner. Lillia will be disappointed if nobody eats her food, and you aren’t going to do anything on empty stomachs.” “What about you?” Anna asked. “You need food as well.” “Not that kind of food,” Arwin replied, turning to his makeshift forge. “And I’ve got something else to do.” “Like what?” Reya frowned. “I thought you couldn’t do anything until the hearth was ready to work with.” “I’m not going to forge,” Arwin said, picking the helmet Zeke had been working on up and running his hand over the burnt surface of the metal. Deep within it, a faint shimmer of intent spoke back to him. The helmet hungered to be more, and Arwin planned to give it exactly what it wanted. “I’m going to plan. It’s not something you can help me with.”