Ashton chuckled a bit, finally giving the Backpacker the last of the coins that he enchanted, "I did that? I do not remember any of it."
"I figured you wouldn't, you were so embarrassed about it, so it felt like you wanted to forget. But man, Clementine was all over you after that. I mean, she was already crushing on you so hard before then, but after you basically saved her, she got a lot more straightforward with you. Not that you noticed, even then."
Ashton stopped, and stared over at Sam, "Wait, what? Clementine? Uh... like..." he tried to remember. Well, he knew Clementine, obviously, she was basically his only other friend growing up beside Sam. If he remembered right, they hadn't spoken in a few months before all this started, though he couldn't recall why. More importantly... he didn't know anything about a crush, so he had to make sure he was thinking of the right person, "Red hair? Kind of on the shorter end? Drank energy drinks like they were water?"
Without hesitation, Sam nodded his head, "Mhm, that's the one."
"She had a crush on me?"
"Since like, year 7."
"Huh. I didn't know that."
"Yeah, that was very obvious."
"Did I have a crush on her too?" Ashton asked, genuinely not sure if he could remember those sorts of things. But Sam immediately shook his head.
"Oh, fuck no, you were really into, uh... What's her name, Bonny? She was such a word-I-won't-say-because-I-respect-women-too-much."
Ashton got up from the table, and started stretching. His injuries already felt a lot better, so moving was much more comfortable now. He should be able to fight without restraint by tomorrow.
But seriously, he couldn't remember any 'Bonny' at all. Not that it really mattered, "... Hm. Well, whatever. Do you know where Clementine is right now?"
"Well, her and I still hang out and play games sometimes, so yeah, I do. She's over in London right now, she got a job there a couple months ago."
"Let's hope she's okay..." Ashton sighed a bit. He didn't remember what happened between them, but he still cared for her, even if his memory was really hazy, "Oh, uhm, speaking of 'okay'. I met the dickhead trio yesterday."
"Seriously? Like, after everything started?"
"Yeah, like, right after. Chris got stabbed."
"Wait, what? Is he okay?"
"Uh... it was shoulder. So... maybe? I don't really care."
Sam straightened his back, "You didn't... right?"
"What? Oh, no I didn't stab him, it was a goblin. I gave them a few tips after that, so if they listened to me, they might be fine."
"I guess that's a relief. They suck, but you know... doesn't mean you want them to die, right?"
Ashton just shrugged. Frankly, he didn't really care if those guys died or not. He didn't want anyone to fall victim to this new world, but that wasn't realistic. People have died. People will die. Ashton felt like it was a waste to worry about people he used to hate.
It was clear that Sam could tell what Ashton was thinking. He had gotten a lot more expressive, and that look on his face couldn't fool anyone. Actually, the idea of how Ashton looked at the trio made Sam laugh a bit, "By the way, what are you doing?"
"Just stretching. I'm not really used to sitting and relaxing for super long," he explained, "I'm also using this time to think. I would really like to head out soon and get some things done before the quest ends."
"... It's going to get dark pretty soon, didn't you say you want to take a nap?"
"Yeah, like twenty minutes, wait until the potion kicks in and I sober up, and then head out."
"Wait, what do you mean? Does the potion sober you up?"
Ashton slowly nodded, "Uh... yeah, it's got some basic detoxifying qualities as well, so that it would be useful in the botanical gardens as well."
"And that works for alcohol?"
"In my experience."
"Could I..?"
"It tastes like death, but sure," Ashton replied with a smile on his face, walking over to the bottles of health potions that he had already prepared. He took a sip of the potion and downed it. It tasted bitter and spicy and sour, in all the worst ways. But well, as far as potions were concerned, there were a lot of things that tasted far, far worse than this. There were also potions that tasted a lot better, but they were annoyingly rare.
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Sam followed right after, taking a sip of the potion. The moment it touched his tongue, he held his hand in front of his mouth to try and stop himself from spitting it back out, and slowly forced it down his throat.
"Oh my god, this is horrific, why would you ever do this to yourself?"
Ashton smiled and gave the bottle to the backpacker, thanking them before looking back at Sam, "It helps muscle recovery, wound healing, blood production, and as I said just now, detoxification. The healing works better when applied directly to the wound, though."
"Urgh... you sure this doesn't just sober you up because of the bad taste?" Sam slowly up from his seat as well, but Ashton shrugged.
"As long as it works, I don't care. Now, is there any place I can take a nap?"
"... You can sleep in my office if you want. Those swivel chairs recline really nicely."
"Neat."
Ashton and Sam walked down from the rooftop, getting back to Calibur games. But when they did, a few people were waiting there by the front desk.
"There you are!" one of them yelled out. Ashton recognised him - it was that older investment banker who was helped clear the quest earlier. At first, Ashton thought he was talking to Sam, but no. He came straight at Ashton himself, "You! You can fight, can't you?"
"... Yes?" he replied, not sure where this guy was going, and the man quickly turned around to the others.
"See? So everything is fine! Just have him take my spot!"
"That's not- Everybody is supposed to do their part!" one of the guys in the party from earlier, the ones that helped guide Ashton here and helped this guy through the quest, quickly replied. He looked over at Sam, "That's what you said, right? That, if we want to get through this, nobody can sit on their ass!"
"Sitting on my- I'll have you know, I'm a very important man!"
Ashton looked over at Sam, raising a brow, "You know what this is about?"
Sam sighed, scrunching up his nose, "Mhm. Some people think they're too good to help out. We barely managed to get them to do something once their lives were on the line with the second quest."
"Huh. Well, I think it's fine if they do whatever they want," Ashton replied with a shrug, and Sam stared at him confused.
"What? But why..."
"Even he agrees!" the investment banker yelled out, "So I don't understand why you are being so difficult about this, I simply-"
"The people that just sit on their ass are going to die in the next quest anyway."
Sam was startled by Ashton's response, "They're going to... What do you mean?"
"The next quest isn't one that you can get help for," Ashton glanced down the hallway, wanting to just head to Sam's office to sleep, "You're going to need to get your class. If you can't, you die. And other people can't attain classes for you."
The people gathered here in the room stared at Ashton, startled. But he was pretty unbothered by that. He just said the truth.
"And... And how would you know what the next quest is?" the investor asked, "What even is a 'Class' supposed to be, this isn't school!"
Some of the others, mostly the employees of Calibur Games, let out quiet groans, "Obviously, it's not that kind of class... though I also want to know how you heard about that. Have you met anyone with a class?"
"I guess so."
Ashton just silently stared at the one that asked, and Sam sighed, stepping forward. With how tall he was, he was pretty effective at blocking out everyone's stares, "Ashton already has a class. And as for how he knows about the next quest, he... has a super power. Ashton can see the future."
"H-He can?" one of the people in the room asked, surprised, and even Ashton was a bit confused.
"I can?" Seeing Sam's deep glare as he turned around briefly, Ashton got what he was doing, "Right, yes, I can see the future. But it's very limited, so uh... don't ask me if you survive or whatever."
Sam closed his eyes for a moment, wondering how it was possible that Ashton got even more brash than in the past, "Right. Anyway, that's why he knows some of the future quests."
The investor scoffed, crossing his arms. Some of the other folk here, who seemed to be that man's coworkers or employees, didn't seem to believe it either, "He can see the future? Do you really think we're in some kind of fantasy story?"
Ashton slightly tilted his head to the side, "Are you stupid?"
"H-Huh?!"
"I mean, come on, after seeing literal monsters out there, you're shocked at the existence of magic?" Ashton snapped his finger, and the Backpacker appeared right next to him, walking out from behind the front desk with the smartphone in hand, playing some games, "Magic is real, and so is the ability to see the future. You'll see, some of you guys will probably develop a few special abilities as well over the next few weeks. The important part right now is that classes are something personal. Though, it's not too hard to get your first class, either, if you just keep at it."
Ashton yawned a bit, looking up at Sam, "Can I go take my nap now? I don't want to linger around here too long."
"... Go ahead," Sam replied, and Ashton smiled and started walking down the hallway, quickly turning around to his friend before fully leaving. He, of course, also just ignored the messages of the Observer bothering him after that 'revelation' about his 'future sight'.
"Oh, and Sam. You got this. Don't let these guys push you around, and don't be the 'shadow'," he said, and then continued walking down the hallway with the Backpacker trotting along beside him.
Ashton woke up to the sun in his eyes, and squinted as he pushed himself upright in the chair, "But... that direction is east, why is the sun going down there?"
With a groan, Ashton looked down at his wrist, quickly figuring out what time it really was, "Oh fuck you, 6 in the morning? Why do I keep sleeping so much?"
He leaned forward, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. This space was quiet. Sam was laying on the ground in front of his desk, in a sleeping bag.
"Urgh..." Ashton slowly stood up and stretched. Surprisingly, he actually felt pretty good. The potion must have done its job, so at least he was recovered well enough now. And so, Ashton quickly started stripping to take off the bandages. They would just be an unnecessary bother if he didn't need them. Under the bandages, some slight gunk was left behind, and Ashton would love to clean himself up, but... the undine's summon had run out while Ashton was sleeping. And he didn't think it was worth it to call on them again just yet.
"Fuuuck," he said loudly. But with that, he seemed to have woken up Sam, who got up with a groan.
"Ash? You up already?" he reached up onto the desk and grabbed his glasses. He usually wore contacts throughout the day, though that would also change with time. Then again, Ashton did know a potion that could help with bad eyesight, so he could fix that soon enough.
"Yeah, I way overslept."
"Hah, yeah you were completely knocked out. I even tried waking you, but the Backpacker stopped me."
"... They did?"
"Yeah, they seemed concerned for you. They're a pretty cute little fellow," Sam smiled, properly sitting up while looking at his friend, "But, uh, could I ask you a question really quick?"
"Hm? Sure, what's up?"
Sam cleared his throat a for a moment, making sure to continue staring right at Ashton's face, and just his face, "Why exactly are you naked again?"
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