Shura was minding his own business on his off-duty time the way he spent any other day recently – taking in the summer air and watching the world go by around him. It was during such a day when he had heard rumors of some famous Magic Council associate spotted within Era's slums. While he was sure that an individual trusted by the council could keep themselves safe, Shura was admittedly worried regardless. The slums were not a place to be taken lightly in any city, and especially not in Era where it was admittedly distressing for Shura to discover that such a place could even have a district of such low quality.

Tossing ideas around in his head about what could happen if the associate was harmed or went missing, the crimson cleric couldn't stand it anymore. He eagerly hopped up off of the bench he was sitting on within the middle class district of Era, and made his descent towards the area that the associate was last seen.

The man's name was Daragast: an old, short, stocky fellow with the notable trait of being some kind of dragon hybrid. While he was no true dragon, the priest found himself intrigued by the mere notion of somebody with even partial dragon heritage. It wasn't quite the sort of thing one could see on the daily, and so even for novelty's sake Shura had to meet the man at least once. He held great respect for the Magic Council, their servants, and the knights who upheld the country's laws. The way he saw it, they were worlds apart in experience and wisdom, between him and them. There was a vast, bottomless expanse between his power and theirs, but the only way for one as humble as Shura to catch up was to ask questions and pay attention. At the end of his thoughts, the priest had arrived in Era's slums.

---

WC: 319

Contrary to what Shura believed was to be a long and arduous search, finding Daragast took comparatively little time. When one simply asks about dragons and dragon-like beings in a mundane budget-housing complex, one typically finds what they're looking for at a pace of, “instantly” or, “never”. Thankfully, in this case, the devout found Daragast finishing up a conversation with a resident before turning to face the priest himself.

Shura gave a simple wave, and Daragast responded with a frustrated, “Hello.”.

For a moment Shura hesitated with visible confusion, unsure of what he did wrong, before Daragast followed up with clarification and a sigh.

“Er, sorry. It's just that the state of this place is in such shambles. These people can't live normal lives like this, you know. It's no way for anyone under the council's banner to live.”

Daragast's voice was filled with regret. Shura tugged on his shirt slightly to show his Lamia Scale guild marking, which brought recognition into Daragast's reptilian eyes. With a nod in acknowledgement, he smiled and waved a welcoming hand as he walked away.

“Come. If you're a guild wizard, walk with me. We'll talk issues.”

Shura obliged with a nod, following just behind Daragast such that the draconic associate could explain with more focus.

“For example, you see this place? All of these structures? They're incredibly worn down. Sure they're safe from the serious threats, you aren't going to find any demons assaulting this place any time soon. But budgeting? This place has been largely ignored by anyone with the power to change it.”

Daragast went on to talk about the futility of trying to sustain oneself in such a rugged and dirty place. It was shameful in his eyes, especially for it to be located in a place like Era, the headquarters of the Rune Knights themselves. While the knights and high society folk lived in comfort, people were genuinely suffering in this district in contrast. His eyes shone dimly, clearly feeling torn up about the state of it all and how little can be done with the approaching demon invasions being the council's main priority.

“There's not even a school. The people here aren't educated, simply because they have no access to anywhere that they could possibly learn. Those nobles always talk about their superior intelligence, but of course they'd be better about it when you don't even give the less financially stable the same options.”

Shura nodded his head, also taking notes as they walked. The priest realized from Daragast's complaints that he had never thought about the lack of education for the poor. In his church growing up, there was never a need to worry about those sorts of things as all was provided for them simply by being devoted to Illumin. People without that or the wealth of a noble would certainly have an advantage that the poor would simply never be able to catch up to.

“The poor could even surpass any kind of holier-than-thou nobles out there if they just had the same chances as them... that's what I'd like to believe, and what I'd like to provide if I could. What do you think?”

Another nod came from the crimson cleric, stifling a small chuckle from Daragast. He eyed the man curiously, noting the lack of audible agreements or disagreements. Nothing. It stood out to the man, ironically enough.

“Not much of a talker, eh? That's fine. Being a listener is good enough.”, the dragon-hybrid spoke with a warm and welcoming tone of voice.

WC: 909/1000

They walked further, leaving the residential area they had met in. Walking past broken shacks and homes with cracked windows or busted doors, Shura knew that the words Daragast spoke were not mere hyperbole. There was a problem here; and not an easily fixable one with a solution readily available.

Daragast went on to explain to the silent priest the importance of the Rune Knights recruiting capable people from this district to become civil servants. That it would improve the quality of life, income and economy of the area. The moment economics became a topic, Daragast's words went over the priest's head like an eagle in flight. Shura took little in the way of notes from that topic, merely summarizing it on his notepad as, "money makes the world go 'round". He chuckled to himself silently at his writing, but continued to pay attention to Daragast regardless, realizing the man had much insight to impart.

The pair stopped a few blocks further, when Daragast noticed some kids chasing each other around. They seemed to be playing a game of tag, of all things. Shura did crack a smile, noting that a child's innocence could see everyone around them through the darkest of days. Daragast walked another block down, gesturing the priest to follow, and stopped at a noodle shop.

“I'll take ten.”, Daragast spoke plainly, simply handing over the Jewels needed for such an order. The shopkeep was overjoyed, clearly not one receiving much business in the current state of the district, and eagerly nodded.

After paying, the pair went back towards the kids. Daragast approached them, seeming to have wrapped up their game, while Shura stayed back and observed. The children seemed to know Daragast, as they mentioned him by name multiple times through their conversation. As he wrapped it up, the draconic elder pointed down the street.

“I got you all a little bit of food. You guys worked hard out there, so go treat yourselves, okay?”

The kids ran off gleefully towards the noodle shop, clearly not getting treated to such a thing often. Their clothes were in tatters and their faces and hair appeared as if most of them hadn't bathed in weeks. Shura gave a pitiable look towards them as they disappeared off towards the noodle shop, saddened that even kids would grow up in such a state.

“Support the shops, too. If money doesn't go to the businesses around here, it's all for nothing anyway.”

More business talk. This part made more sense to Shura, however, because it was a much more simple concept to grasp: if a business gets money, they can keep being a business. Or at least, to the cleric's sheltered upbringing, that was his interpretation.

The duo rounded off their walk by exiting the district and making their way back towards the more regular, working class area. Daragast turned to face him with a lengthy sigh, replaced by a bright smile afterwards. Shura found it odd to see a dragon smiling, but was glad that such a rare sight would be witnessed anyway. In his happy haze at the reflective walk with Daragast, Shura didn't even notice the bag of money dropped into his hands. Daragast was already walking away by the time the crimson cleric had realized, and the dragon-hybrid gave a dismissive yet friendly wave as he departed.

“You aren't much of a talker, but yeah, you're a good listener. Thanks for taking the time to listen to an old man ramble. Something for your troubles, son. Don't spend it all in one place!”

With that, Shura thanked the man with a small bow, and the two parted ways.

---

WC: 1000/1000

~EXIT~