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Episode 4 - My First Mission.

  Please provide the text you would like me to rewrite for improved clarity and flow.L'arc, bubbling with excitement for his new mission, leaps out of bed and rushes to his mother’s room. He bursts in, and his mother, her voice croaky, groans, “L'arc, give me five more minutes, please?” Unable to contain his enthusiasm, L'arc replies, “Mum, stop being lazy. I want to start my adventure!” In response, the Dark Elf hurls her pillow at him and commands, “I said five minutes.” Defeated, L'arc kicks the floor in frustration and retreats to his room.

  Just as he’s about to close his door, he hears the man from the previous day call out, “Hey boy, come here for a sec.” With nothing else to do, L'arc decides to see what the man wants and walks over. Noticing L'arc at the door, the man invites him in, saying, “Come in, boy.” L'arc hesitantly enters, still wary of humans despite being one himself. The man picks up on L'arc's reluctance and asks, “Do I scare you, boy?” L'arc looks down at his feet and replies, “No.” The man smiles, unconvinced, but lets it slide.

  “Are you nervous about your first mission?” he asks. L'arc raises his fists and starts shadow boxing, declaring, “No, bring it on!” The man laughs heartily, saying, “I guess I was worried for nothing. But don’t let your ego get the better of you. You may have beaten that assessor, but he was getting on in years.” He continues, “I’m a C-Rank as well. How do you think you’d fare against me?” L'arc takes a moment to assess the man before responding, “I’d say you’re stronger than me, but my mother would kick your ass.” The man chuckles at L'arc’s honesty and asks, “Is this the mother who is also your supposed master?”

  L'arc, feeling annoyed, shouts, “My master IS my mother!” Realizing the boy has no reason to lie, the man backs off, saying, “Sorry, sorry. I won’t bring it up again. I believe you.”

  At that moment, the ever-protective Dark Elf hears L'arc's voice and quickly jumps out of bed. She strides over to the man's room and sees L'arc talking to him. “L'arc, who is this?” she asks. L'arc hesitates, unsure how to respond, but the man interjects, “I noticed he took the same mission as me, so I called him over to discuss it.”

  The Dark Elf bombards the man with questions: “What is your name? I’d like to know if we're going to travel together.” He answers her inquiries readily, but when it comes to his name, he replies, “Isn't it customary to give your name first where you come from?” The Dark Elf, irritated by his question, retorts, “You’ll learn my name if I deem you worthy.” Sensing her intensity, the man decides not to press further and introduces himself, “I’m Daike.”

  Despite the Dark Elf’s refusal to share her name, L'arc opts to introduce himself to Daike. “Nice to meet you, Daike. I’m L'arc.” Daike, pleased that not everyone is giving him the cold shoulder, responds, “You too, kid.” He then asks, “Are you ready to meet our client?” L'arc replies, “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  The trio heads downstairs, exits the inn, and makes their way toward the city gate.

  The trio arrives at the gate where the merchant is loading his carriage. L’arc approaches the merchant without hesitation, recognizing him as a demi-human. “Hi sir, my name is L’arc. I’m here to escort you to the next city,” he says. The merchant lifts his head, extends his arm for a handshake, and replies, “Oh! Such good manners at such a young age. They will take you far, my boy. But aren’t you a bit young to be an adventurer?” Embarrassed, L’arc kicks his feet and retorts, “I’m 12! I’m not a kid anymore.” The merchant, taken aback, quickly responds, “Oh-ho! I meant no offense.” He follows up with, “Speaking of manners, where are mine? My name is Tenshu Daikane. It’s a pleasure to meet you, young sir.” L’arc, regaining his composure, replies, “Nice to meet you too, sir.” Tenshu continues, “Can you come back in about half an hour? I’m not quite ready to leave yet; I still need to load these boxes and do an inventory check.” L’arc asks, “Do you want me to help you load the boxes?” Tenshu replies, “Absolutely not! I couldn’t ask you to do that. How about you check out the market instead?” Excited at the prospect, L’arc rushes toward the market. Meanwhile, the Dark Elf commands, “Hey you, go with him and make sure he doesn’t get into trouble.” Daike looks at the Dark Elf and asks, “Me? Why am I stuck with babysitting duty?” The Dark Elf simply stares at him. Daike sighs and says, “Fine, I’d like to see their weapon stall anyway.”

  Demi-Human -Demi-humans are any living beings of humanoid stature that are not human, such as Dark Elves, Dwarves, and Beastmen.

  L’arc and Daike walk toward the market stalls. Having led a sheltered life, L’arc is easily impressed by everything he sees. He hops from stall to stall, marveling at the sights, especially the food stalls. Eventually, he reaches a stall selling weapons and is captivated by an impressive sword on display. Curious, he asks the price, only to be met with an outrageous figure.

  Daike interjects, “50,000 for that hunk of junk? Sure, it looks impressive, but I bet it would fall apart after a few swings.” He turns to L'arc and adds, “Just because it looks good and has a high price doesn’t mean it’s worth it. That man is a con artist selling replicas of famous swords.” His ability to spot such deceptions also sharpens his recognition of L'arc's swordsmanship.

  Just as he finishes speaking, Daike notices that L'arc is missing. While the merchant showcased his “masterpieces,” an accomplice had stolen L'arc's sword. L'arc chases after the thief, who darts down an alley. Unfortunately, he runs into a group of thugs. Without his sword and being relatively small, he is quickly overpowered by them, who plan to sell him to a slaver. L'arc cries out, alerting Daike to his predicament.

  Daike rushes to L'arc's rescue, brandishing his own sword and displaying impressive swordsmanship. He swiftly defeats the thugs and hands them over to the authorities. Grateful, L'arc asks, “Mister, your skills are impressive. Why do you want to learn from my Master?” Daike replies, “A true swordsman always seeks to improve. Pride comes before a fall; I’ll never stop pursuing my goal of becoming the strongest swordsman who ever lived. But enough about me—what were you doing here?”

  L'arc explains, “A thief stole my sword, the one my mother gave me.” Daike exclaims, “Unforgivable! Which way did he go?” L'arc points toward the back of the alley, and they both proceed. They find the thief hiding behind a barrel, discovering that the thugs were in cahoots with the merchant. After retrieving the sword, L'arc and Daike exit the alley, where they are met by L'arc’s mother.

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  She asks what they were doing in the alley, and Daike leans closer to whisper in her ear, “The weapon merchant is running a front for a slave business and is trying to capture your boy.” She instructs them to return to Tenshu, promising to catch up with them soon. A shiver runs down Daike's spine as he realizes there is no wrath like that of a woman scorned. The boy and the man head back to Tenshu.

  L'arc’s mother approaches the weapon merchant and drags him into a nearby alley. She pins him against the wall, pressing her sword against his groin. “If you ever want to have children of your own, never try to take another mother’s child again. If I have to come back here, I’ll take more than your manhood.” After a brief pause, she adds, “Understood?” The merchant soils himself and, with an apologetic tone, replies, “Yes, yes! I’ll never do it again, I swear. Please accept any weapon from my stall as a sign of goodwill.”

  The Dark Elf scoffs. “Those weapons aren’t worth the metal they’re made from. Keep your pathetic gesture.” She releases him, and he falls onto his backside as she walks away, heading back to Tenshu.

  Upon her arrival, Tenshu asks, “Is there anything I should be concerned about?” She replies, “Hardly.” Reassured, Tenshu then asks, “Are we ready to set off?”

  The trio heads to the establishment that Tenshu pointed out and orders tea and scones. About half an hour later, they return to the city gate.

  “Oh-ho, great timing! We’re just about ready to set off. How were the scones?” Confused by how Tenshu knew they had scones, L'arc asks, “How did you know we had scones?” Tenshu lets out a hooty laugh and replies, “I’m an Owlen, dear boy. We have amazing eyesight.”

  Owlen -Owlens are humanoid owls known for their high intelligence and exceptional eyesight. They often wear spectacles, mostly as a fashion statement rather than out of necessity. Most Owlens become merchants, as they are typically non-aggressive.

  Narrator: Thus, the boy begins his first mission to escort a merchant to the next city, heading toward his mother’s village. In a world plagued by poverty, having a magical affinity does not guarantee the means to cast magic, leading many to resort to banditry.

  The rest of the party introduces themselves, and then they set off toward Fuyu City.L’arc curiously asks Tenshu, “Are attacks common during escort missions?” Tenshu replies, “No, this is just a precaution.” Daike then leans in and whispers to L’arc, “Hey boy, don’t jinx it.” The Dark Elf overhears and takes a stern tone with Daike: “He gave you his name; I suggest you use it.” Sensing her bloodlust, Daike quickly responds, “Yes, ma’am!”

  Narrator:The merchant and his company are about halfway to their destination, and so far there have been no incidents. However, that is about to change.

  Tenshu, with his keen owlen eyesight, spots a blockade in the distance and alerts the party. “I think things are about to take a turn for the worse. Looks like I’ll be giving you a bonus if we make it through this,” he says with a nervous smile. L’arc rises from his seat and moves to the front of the carriage for a better view. Not having owlen vision, he asks, “I can’t see anything; what’s the matter?” Tenshu replies, “There’s a blockade ahead; it might be bandits.” The party readies their blades and prepares for battle.

  The carriage halts at the impending blockade, and one of the bandits shouts, “Leave your goods, and we may spare your lives.” Tenshu, who is non-aggressive by nature, reluctantly agrees, responding, “Very well, if you let us go, the loss of my goods is a small price to pay.” Daike leans in and whispers to Tenshu, “They’re lying; they’ll never let us go.” A Dark Elf adds, “He’s right; they’ll assume you’ll inform the guards.” Frightened, Tenshu asks, “Then what do you suggest we do?” Daike replies, “Isn’t it obvious? We do what you paid us to do.” Tenshu abruptly retorts, “I paid you to escort me, not to take lives.” Daike chastises him, shouting, “Don’t be naive; you’re smarter than that.” Meanwhile, L’arc has been assessing the bandits and sees no one who could threaten him or the group. He interrupts Daike, saying, “I think I can take them on my own.” Intrigued, Daike sees no reason to refuse. Their mother, unable to deny L’arc’s request, offers words of encouragement: “Make me proud.” Daike glances at the Dark Elf with keen interest.

  L’arc jumps out of the carriage and shouts at the bandits, “Cowards, you’ll take nothing!” as he unsheathes the blade his mother gave him. A bandit steps out from cover, noticing the mark on L’arc's eye, and yells, “Freak! Die!” The bandit’s words trigger a long-buried memory, sending L’arc into a frenzy. (We see L’arc’s anger rise, the mark glowing as he recalls the moment his friend was slain before him, powerless to intervene. He vows never to let that happen again and to protect those he cares about. Consumed by rage at the bandit’s taunt, L’arc envisions the killer of his friend before him, ready to confront his tormentor.)

  Fight sequence

  With a roar, L’arc leaps forward, landing among the bandits as his blade flashes in the dim light. The first bandit barely has time to raise his weapon before L’arc's blade slices through his chest. Blood sprays, and the bandit crumples to the ground.

  L’arc pivots, his blade a blur as he deflects a strike from an attacking bandit. He steps in close, driving his sword into the bandit's gut. With a wrenching twist, he pulls the blade free, letting the body drop.

  Another bandit lunges at him from behind, but L’arc spins and dodges, bringing his sword down in a lethal arc that severs the bandit's arm. The bandit screams and collapses, clutching the stump.

  Two bandits rush at L’arc together, but he meets them head-on. His blade dances between them, slashing with deadly precision. One bandit falls with a gurgling cry, his throat cut open, while the other stumbles back, clutching a deep wound in his side.

  L’arc advances on the remaining bandits, his eyes blazing with fury. The mark on his eye pulses with a sinister light. He swiftly cuts down another bandit with a strike to the neck, then kicks a second bandit to the ground and drives his blade through his heart.

  The last three bandits attempt to flee, but L’arc is relentless. He chases them down, cutting them down one by one. Each strike of his blade is fueled by rage and his vow to protect.

  Finally, the last bandit falls, his body crumpling to the ground. L’arc stands amidst the carnage, his chest heaving with exertion, his blade dripping with blood. He takes a deep breath and calms himself as the glow of the mark on his eye fades.

  Turning back to the carriage, L’arc calls out to the rest of the group, “The bandits have been dealt with.”

  Suddenly, a man dressed in black hooded attire, with loose threading on his chest suggesting something once attached, steps forward and slashes L’arc's back. “You missed one… boy,” he yells.

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