The gunsmithy was in a dark corner of the city, and smoke rose from it high into the air. Inside it were a lot of different objects that I guessed were used for making firearms. Most were fairly simple, but there were a few elaborate mechanisms among them.

  An old man with glasses sat on a chair. Several sets of guns were in front of him, and he was inspecting a musketoon. Janek approached the guy, who spoke.

  "Are you customers or here for instruction?"

  "Master Kalvin," Janek replied. "We are customers. I want to purchase a wheellock repeater."

  The old man turned around. There was a concerned expression on his wrinkled face.

  "You are quite young. Do you have enough coin to afford it? Along with the money to repair it if it breaks?" he asked.

  "Yes," Janek answered.

  He reached into his clothes and pulled out a bag of coins. The noble placed it on the table, and Master Kalvin counted them. After a moment, the gunsmith nodded.

  "Normally, my repeaters are custom-made. Fortunately for you, one of my customers canceled an order. I have a repeater on standby," he said.

  "That is most fortunate luck," Janek replied.

  "For you, at least. I still have three more I need to sell," Kalvin grumbled.

  He stood up.

  "The repeater is in the back. I will be a moment, and then you will have your weapon," the gunsmith stated.

  As Kalvin walked towards the back of the shop, I looked at some of the firearms on display. A shiver went down my spine as I did. There were several, and they all looked extremely expensive.

  The musketoon had gold inlays. There was a gun axe with ornate carvings in it. A musket on a counter had an ivory handle, and there was a pistol with one too.

  Even with the money Dante brought to the academy, I doubted I could have afforded even one of these firearms. These were luxury goods for a warrior elite. They were designed for people who wanted to rub into their enemies' faces that they were being killed by someone much richer than they were.

  Either that, or they were display items that weren't intended to be used in actual battle. I hadn't talked with nobles outside of Augusta and Janek. So, I had no idea what the culture revolving around overpriced weapons was.

  "Dante," Janek's voice caught my attention. "Are you interested in getting a gun?"

  I nodded.

  "Yeah, I am," I said.

  "Why?" he asked.

  That was a weird question from him. I turned to Janek. He had a confused expression on his face.

  "What do you mean?" I wondered.

  "After seeing your magic, I doubt you need a gun," Janek pointed out. "Each of your spells does more damage than my most powerful musket."

  I placed my hand on my forehead, a sudden recollection of pain pulsing through me.

  "About my magic...it is powerful, but using it puts a strain on my mind. I get headaches if I use it too much," I grimaced.

  Janek gave me a single nod.

  "So, when I saw you use magic, you had a headache?" he asked.

  "I probably did. But it was hard to tell. The overwhelming pain from all my other injuries drowned it out," I answered. "Still, I'd like to have some other option than just my magic. That strain on my mind can't be good for me in the long term."

  Augusta's calm voice flowed into my ear.

  "You'll be fine. The headaches don't have long-lasting effects," she said.

  "That's good to know," I replied.

  I took my hand away from my forehead.

  "But I still want to avoid them. They're very painful, and magic's my only ranged option right now," I sighed. "I'll get a gun somewhere else. These all look very expensive."

  Augusta stepped up and gazed at the firearms.

  "Which is your favorite?" she asked.

  "You don't have to buy one for me, Augusta," I answered.

  She nodded.

  "I don't. Now, tell me which is your favorite."

  A grimace crossed my face.

  "Are you going to insist on this?"

  "Yes. I don't want you to get headaches, Dante," Augusta said. "And you deserve the best gun I can get. I won't let you settle for anything less."

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  I let out a deep breath. Then, I shook my head and pointed at a flintlock pistol with an ivory handle. A sense of discomfort flowed through me as I did.

  "This one looks the best, but I don't like that they killed an elephant to make it," I stated.

  With how smart they are, I don't think it's right to kill an elephant for ivory. It'd be like killing a person for their teeth. I'm sure some people do it, but it's weird. Sort of like people who eat octopi. They're too smart for me to consider them food.

  Janek examined the firearm.

  "That's not elephant ivory," he said.

  "It's not?" I asked.

  "No," Janek shook his head. "It's narwhal ivory. It is difficult to tell, but there is a difference."

  I sighed.

  "So, they killed a highly intelligent whale for it instead of an elephant? That isn't much better," I stated.

  Janek raised an eyebrow.

  "I am surprised you know what a narwhal is, Dante. And I thought you weren't against hunting," he said.

  Folding my arms, I responded.

  "Just because I'm a commoner doesn't mean I'm not knowledgeable," I replied. "And I'm not against hunting things like deer or ducks. But when an animal is smart enough, it starts being more like hunting a human."

  Janek shrugged.

  "I suppose that is a good point. But I do not know how smart narwhals are," he said. "Or elephants, for that matter."

  Augusta then spoke up.

  "My parents have an elephant. He's very smart," she stated without emotion. "And I don't agree with Dante's position, but I understand it."

  A sympathetic but also guilty look crossed Augusta's face.

  "So, Dante, you don't want the ivory-handled pistol?"

  Great. Now, I was feeling bad for Augusta. Looking down, I let my own guilty feelings about disappointing her overwhelm my disgust at killing highly intelligent animals.

  "Not really. But it is better than having no pistol," I said. "And it's not like either of us can stop whaling. I'd really appreciate you getting the pistol for me."

  Augusta's face lit up.

  "Then, I'll get you it," she declared.

  "You really don't have to," I sighed.

  At that point, the gunsmith returned from the back room. In his arms was a Kalthoff Repeater. Though I suppose it wasn't called that in this world.

  "Here you are," the gunsmith said.

  He handed it to Janek with incredible gentleness. The noble started to look through and examine the weapon, making sure everything was working right. Janek's touch was gentler with this weapon than with his other firearms. It was as if he was terrified to do even the slightest bit of damage to the gun. Then again, considering how expensive this wheellock was, that probably wasn't far from the truth.

  "Do you have a place where I can test it out?" Janek asked.

  "I'm afraid not. But if you test it and bring it back within a week, I'll make any repairs for free," the gunsmith answered.

  The noble nodded.

  "I doubt I will need it, but I will take you up on the offer. Judging from your reputation, the weapon should be fine," Janek said.

  Then, Augusta spoke up.

  "Gunsmith, I want to buy my lover a gun," she stated without emotion.

  The old man turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

  "You're getting a gun for your lover? Well, I doubt a lady would want a gun...but you have a sword on your hip," he said.

  "Do you know who I am?" Augusta asked.

  The gunsmith shrugged.

  "Not a clue. Some noble, I'd guess," he answered.

  While most of her face was stoic, I could see relief flow through Augusta's eyes. Everyone in her home kingdom probably knew who she was. A few people here recognized her, but it wasn't as many as she likely thought.

  Come to think of it, Augusta is probably the only noble who's happy that people aren't recognizing her. And the fact that even her eyes were showing it told me a lot.

  "I am a noble. I want the pistol with the narwhal ivory grip," Augusta said. "I can afford it."

  The noble nodded.

  "You're definitely a noble," he replied. "This far south, every commoner can tell the difference between narwhal ivory and unicorn ivory."

  A shiver went down his spine.

  "Well, I must say that narwhals are easier to kill than those vicious monsters are."

  Well, that was ominous. But at least they didn't kill a narwhal to make this gun.

  Augusta bought me the pistol, and the three of us left the building. I observed the weapon. Even someone like me, who didn't have much experience with firearms, could tell it was of the highest quality.

  At least, I think I didn't deal with guns much. Not having my memories didn't exactly make things clear.

  "Thank you, Augusta," I spoke from my heart. "Even if I have some doubts, I really appreciate this."

  "You're welcome, Dante," my girlfriend said.

  A group of five thugs approached us. They were carrying clubs, short swords, and even a few pistols. Grins were clear on their malevolent faces.

  "That gunsmith don't sell cheap guns," the thug in front, a club in both hands, spoke. "That means you must be rich folk! Ripe for the robbin'! You've got a unicorn horn gun and everythin'!"

  The others chuckled. Then, one of the punks behind their presumed leader saw Augusta. He turned pale with fear. As for the others, they didn't seem to know who she was.

  "Robbing three people who just left a weapon shop is not a good idea," Janek pointed out.

  The head thug scoffed.

  "So what if it ain't? There'z five of us and only three of you! And one of you'z a woman!" he declared.

  As that guy spoke those words, the thug who was terrified tapped his shoulder.

  "Umm...boss?"

  The leader swerved around to him. Anger radiated from his entire body.

  "What'z it now? I'z intimidatin' these rich marks!" he almost shouted.

  "That's not any woman," the fearful thug said. "That's the Bloodbath Princess."

  Now, all of the punks looked like they were about to shit themselves. I was certain, at that moment, that you fought them in the Duke's Duplicity. But I was also sure that I would not fight them.

  The head thug turned back to us. He was trembling, and his eyes were as wide as dinner plates. Tilting his head, the guy's eyes locked on Augusta's flamberge rapier.

  "Oh, fuck, it'z her," he held up his hands. "That was a joke, ya' get it?"

  "A joke?" Janek asked.

  "Yes, a joke! We'z weren't gonna really rob you! That'd just be silly!"

  "Are you sure?" Augusta asked.

  The thugs all dropped their weapons and held their hands up.

  "Alright, we were!" the head punk admitted. "But we'll turn ourselves in, go clean after that! Just don't burn us alive!"

  "I won't if you turn yourselves in," Augusta said.

  "We will! We will! We swear it, to all the gods!"

  The thugs ran away, almost screaming in terror. I turned to my girlfriend and gave her a thumbs-up.

  "Good job, Augusta. You resolved that situation without violence," I stated.

  She looked away.

  "I'm not sure how I feel about it," her calm voice had the faintest hint of sadness. "They were terrified of me."

  Janek shrugged.

  "They were going to try to rob us. They were criminal scum. Don't feel sorry for them," he said.

  Augusta shook her head.

  "I don't. But I didn't do anything. They ran off because I'm the Bloodbath Princess," she pointed out.

  My girlfriend clenched one of her fists. I placed my hand on her own, and I could feel her muscles relax under my grasp.

  "The important part is that we're all safe," I said. "And that those thugs might turn over a new leaf. We'd probably have had to kill them if you weren't here. You gave them a second chance."

  Augusta took a deep breath. Then, she turned her head to face me.

  "Thank you, Dante," she stated.

  "You're welcome, Augusta," I replied.

  After that, I turned my attention back to Janek.

  "You said we were meeting old friends of yours next, right?" I asked. "Are you sure we won't interrupt anything?"

  Janek shook his head.

  "You will not. I want them to meet you. Augusta, too."

  He started walking. Augusta and I joined him. I found it strange that he wanted Augusta to meet his friends, but then I realized where we were going.

  Janek was leading us to a large church, and we weren't heading to the front entrance.

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