“Go ahead and have a seat. It’s hot out, so I got us some water.” I set the glasses down on the table as we all sat down.
“Ahh, that hits the spot!” Lynn must have been thirsty, because she drank half her glass in one gulp. “Now, let’s get down to business.”
She set her bag on her lap and pulled out the fourteen finished rings, just like we’d discussed. Each one was elegantly and beautifully carved with a pattern of winding vines around the sides.
“They’ll automatically resize to fit any finger,” she said with a proud smile.
Guardian Ring
Classification: Accessory
Quality: Supreme
Status: Protects against all status ailments and gradually restores the wearer’s health over time. Uniquely enchanted not to function if worn by anyone with malicious intent.
Feeling: I hope a good person will wear me!
We’d really made something extraordinary together. Since everyone here already knew about my Appraisal skill, I told them exactly what I’d seen.
“Wow, that’s amazing!” Ana looked delighted. “Mark and Letia will be so thrilled. I’d better let them know.”
“Hey, Ana? Won’t the other adventurers say it’s unfair if only those two get to buy them?” I asked. It was something that had been bothering me.
“Oh, you must not know those two very well then, Daisy,” Lynn asked. “They’re basically the kingdom’s guardians.”
She explained that adventurers were ranked based on their abilities and accomplishments, from F-rank to S-rank at the very top, and there were only three S-rank adventurers in the entire world. They spent most of their time handling high-level missions assigned by their monarchs or the central guild itself. No one ever knew exactly where they were at a given time. They were like legendary figures to ordinary people, a type of person you’d never expect to meet in your lifetime.
Letia and Mark were both A-rank, one tier down from S. They took personal requests from the king, local nobles, and the kingdom’s adventurers’ guild. They dealt with dangerous monsters that couldn’t be handled by anyone else, so in that sense they really were the guardians of this kingdom. They also took on smaller quests when they had the time.
I found myself wondering if, as guardians of the kingdom, they were even stronger than my father. That was a strange thought, because I’d always respected my father so much, but I suppose it was only natural of me.
“Does that mean they’re stronger than the Order of Mages and Knights?” I asked.
“It’s not really a matter of who’s stronger,” Lynn answered. “It’s more about putting the right people in the right situations, and sometimes it just depends on what they’re up against. But I’ve heard that the top knights and mages in the kingdom are about the same rank—that is, A-rank.”
I let out a relieved sigh.
“Anyway, what should we do about price?” I continued. “The gemstone was a gift from the Nature Spirit King, and the silver was something Ana already had. We pretty much made these at no cost.” I crossed my arms and tipped my head to the side.
“Well, I thought we could offer them to the royal family as a gift,” Lynn said. “I don’t think we need to charge each other for the ones we made for our friends and families since we created them together.” She paused for a moment, then said in a panicked voice, “Oh, wait…that makes it sound like I’m trying to get them for free, but that’s not what I meant!”
“Don’t worry about it.” I shook my head firmly. “Ana’s my mentor and you’re going to be my partner. That means your grandfather is important to me too; you’re all people I care about. Besides, if you and the others were captured by your former kingdom, someone might try to use your abilities for war or something else as awful. I don’t want that; it could mean total disaster.”
And it was only thanks to Lynn’s special enchantments that I even considered making accessories for everyone out of this ingot in the first place.
“That just leaves Mark and Letia,” I continued.
It felt strange to charge only them and not everyone else, especially since they were protectors of the kingdom just like Father was. That made me hesitate to put a price on them.
“Actually, I’ve got an idea,” Lynn said. “You know how we have to gather our own materials sometimes? What if, instead of charging for the rings, we had them agree to accompany us for however long we needed, anytime we needed it? Their rates are pretty steep otherwise, so I think that would be fair. The rings would be their payment instead of money.”
“You’re so smart, Lynn!” I grabbed her hand and clasped it tightly. “All right, then. Why don’t the three of us try them on?”
Lynn, Ana, and I each picked up a ring and slipped them onto the middle fingers of our left hands. Suddenly, bright green and golden lights flared behind us.
Talk about déjà vu…
“Daisy, that ring was made from the gemstones I gave you. Shouldn’t you wear it on your ring finger?” It was the familiar voice of the Nature Spirit King.
“He’s right, Lynn!” boomed the Earth Spirit King. “Those are the spirit kings’ guardian rings! Naturally our beloved children should wear them on their left ring fingers!”
A month had passed since their last nonsense, and here they were again.
But…wasn’t the left ring finger where my parents wore their matching wedding bands? Why in the world should I put it there?
“Spirit Kings! Please!” Lynn yelled, jumping to her feet and glaring at them. “That would make them look like engagement or wedding rings!” Her face was bright red with fury. Honestly, I was impressed that she could sass them so easily.
“Daisy, won’t you wear it on your left ring finger for me?” the Nature Spirit King pleaded.
“Sorry, but I don’t really understand what you mean!” I replied, tipping my head to the side to give him my most innocent, childlike smile. I knew that wearing a ring on that finger meant something very important, but maybe if I just pretended I was too much of a kid to know, I could get away with it.
“Lynn,” the Earth Spirit King said, turning toward her.
“Absolutely not,” she shot back.
The two spirit kings exchanged a glance, then smiled at each other and shrugged like children caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
“Honestly, it would be worth it to wear them there just to deter strange men from our beloved children. But maybe we did go a little too far,” the Nature Spirit King said.
“True, true!” The Earth Spirit King laughed heartily.
Now that they were done fighting over which of us was the cutest, they were on the same team?
I guess they did seem to get along in their own way.
They both gave a resigned nod, took the rings from our hands, and slipped them onto the middle fingers of our left hands themselves.
Ana smiled fondly as she watched us, then quietly put her own ring onto her middle finger.
“Since you’ve gone to the trouble of crafting the rings, allow us to bless them as well,” the Nature Spirit King said.
“That’s a fine idea!” the Earth Spirit King agreed.
They each placed a fingertip onto our rings and murmured something under their breath. Then a green gem appeared in my ring and a golden one in Lynn’s.
With that, they both vanished, looking thoroughly pleased with themselves.
Guardian Ring of the Nature Spirit King
Classification: Accessory (Daisy only)
Quality: Ultra Supreme
Status: Protects against all status ailments and gradually restores the wearer’s health over time. Uniquely enchanted not to function if worn by anyone with malicious intent. In addition, the gemstone automatically applies physical and magical barriers when attacked.
Feeling?: If you dare to lay a hand on my beloved child, face the wrath of her guardian—the Nature Spirit King himself!
Guardian Ring of the Earth Spirit King
Classification: Accessory (Lynn only)
Quality: Ultra Supreme
Status: Protects against all status ailments and gradually restores the wearer’s health over time. Uniquely enchanted not to function if worn by anyone with malicious intent. In addition, the gemstone automatically applies physical and magical barriers when attacked.
Feeling?: If you dare to lay a hand on my beloved child, face the wrath of her guardian—the Earth Spirit King himself!
I’d been granted an unbelievable blessing. Was it just me, or did the Nature Spirit King take over the Feeling entry? I mean, it said “Feeling?” with a question mark!
I wondered if I should tell Lynn about the message. I hesitated, but I had a feeling it would be too much for Lynn, who was eighteen and at a marriageable age. It would be a lot to deal with even from a normal parent, but this was a spirit king! The bar was absurdly high for any romance or marriage. In the end, I decided I’d just keep it to myself for now.
Oh, right! I couldn’t just stand around spacing out all day. There were people to deliver rings to! I had to contact my family and gather everyone together, and I also needed to formally request an audience with His Majesty!