[i]So there was to be a duel then, was there?[/i] Kenshin thought to himself. [i]And Fitch won’t take any help.[/i] This wasn’t going to end well. Fitch was clearly not in his right mind at the moment, making him liable to make mistakes. Doku, on the other hand, was pretty calm for someone about to fight another human here in this world. The crowd began filtering out to watch the fight, Kenshin overheard a passerby noting that Doku had made a name for himself here as a duelist of some renown. “Great. This keeps getting better and better by the minute,” he muttered. 

Alphard pressed up against his side, fitting her body neatly against his and rested her head on his shoulder. Kenshin reflexively put his arm around her and held her against him, but was slightly surprised. They [i]were[/i] close, and this was completely natural for them when they were out hunting or just spending time together in the wilds, but she never showed this kind of intimacy in public before. Kenshin leaned his head down and landed a soft kiss on Alphard’s cheek. Quick as a flash, she caught his face in her hands and brought his ear down to her lips, whispering softly, “How’s your Tracking Skill?”

A slow grin filled the blonde boy’s face and he nodded. “It’s pretty good by now. Got something you wanna track down hon?” He slid his hand down to the small of her back and guided her gently out the door. “I was thinking that that ogre we saw over in the field outside Tarbinal’s ‘Haunted Forest’ might be worth our time. If it turns out to be a miniboss, a Field Boss, or Event Quest, we can at least log it in the Atlas before gathering the rest of the team and taking it out. If you want, we can head out right after this duel. I’m kinda worried about Fitch. He’s not thinking straight and he might get into some trouble here.”

His lover returned his grin and nodded. “Yeah, I was considering the ogre myself, but I really wanted to keep track of Yari. If she’s still on our friend list, then we can find her at any time if your Tracking Skill is high enough. I just want to make sure she’s OK every now and again. As long as she doesn’t remove us from her friend list, we’re all good.” Kenshin reluctantly agreed to Track Yari at a later date and the pair settled in to watch the duel.