When Zepar returned from the room, Orin arched an eyebrow. He was certain appeasing the four women couldn't have been so quickly handled.
"That was quick," Orin commented.
"I'm just that good," Zepar said with a smirk.
"Come on, seriously," Orin pressed.
"They're asleep," Zepar replied with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"Already?" Orin said incredulously.
"I told you. I'm just that good," Zepar said with a snicker.
"Zepar," Orin said sternly.
"Alright, alright," Zepar conceded, raising his hands in surrender. "I used a spell to give them all…a very good dream featuring yours truly."
"That is…an insane way to use magic," Orin said hoarsely.
"I think the word you're looking for is creative," Zepar argued.
"No," Orin refuted. "No it is not."
The two then burst out laughing at the absurdity of it all before embracing. They would be parting soon, and while Zepar hated to say farewell, he understood that this was a step he needed to take on his own as much as he needed to begin his journey alone.
Later that morning, Zepar met Orin by the city gate. It was finally time for him to return to Gilramore. Orin was joined by Captain Vance, a few of the knights, and surprisingly, Jasmine.
The knights all saluted Zepar while Vance stepped up and clasped forearms with him.
"You will always be welcome here, my friend," Vance said with a smile. "May fortune smile upon you."
After Vance stepped aside, Jasmine stepped forward. "I hear there's a woman waiting for an answer back where you're going," she began. "I can't say what your feelings toward her are, but…" She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek before whispering in his ear. "...If nothing else, you definitely have what it takes to keep her happy."
Zepar felt his cheeks warm slightly from the kiss and the comment, but he smiled back at her as she pulled away. "I'm not going to be cliche or lie and say I fell for you or anything," he said quietly to her so that only she would hear. "But you helped me in ways you may never understand…and I will never forget you, Jasmine."
"Oh I know you'll never forget me," she whispered teasingly.
"Don't make it cheesy," Zepar said with a chuckle. He then turned to face Orin, who was smiling softly while holding out two items. The first was a silver ring that Zepar immediately recognized as a storage ring, capable of storing large amounts of items within a sort of pocket dimension. The second item was a staff. The shaft was dark-stained oak, polished to a high shine. The staff was topped with a fist-sized, spherical emerald held by the wood shaped into a grasping, four-toed dragon's talon.
"F-for me?" Zepar asked, accepting the two gifts as Orin thrust them into his hands.
"Parting gifts, brother," Orin replied. "It's the errand I had to run last night. I had sent a messenger hawk to deliver the specifications while we traveled."
"Sneaky," Zepar said with a grin.
"Grip just below the top and pull up," Orin instructed.
Zepar arched an eyebrow but did as Orin said. The top shifted beneath his hand, and as he pulled, a polished blade slid smoothly from within the hollow shaft of the staff. His eyes widened as more and more steel emerged, until he was holding a full-length sword. The dragon's talon and emerald that had topped the staff now formed the sword's pommel, while the remaining shaft doubled as its sheath.
"A staff that is also a sword," Zepar murmured.
"Yes. It's called Magician's Edge. The perfect equipment…" Orin began, stepping closer and placing a hand on Zepar's shoulder. "...For the mage who is now also a warrior."
Zepar shuddered slightly, treacherous tears falling down his face. "Nobody—" he sucked in a shaky breath. "Nobody's ever given me a gift before."
"Even when you were a child?" Orin asked, aghast.
"Never," Zepar said.
"Then shame on every adult who crossed your path when you were a child," Orin said gruffly. "By the way, you haven't even seen the best feature of your new staff."
"There's more?" Zepar asked in shock.
"Oh yes," Orin replied smugly. "Hold it in your dominant hand and imagine storing it, kind of like with a storage ring."
Zepar sheathed the sword back into its staff form and held it in his right hand and focused on 'storing' it. As soon as he considered storing it, the staff vanished.
"W-where did it go?" Zepar stammered.
"Check your arm," Orin said proudly.
Zepar looked down at his right forearm and saw it. A small, tattoo-like mark that almost looked like a drawing of his new staff.
"Also, the storage ring has a few things in it already, including some supplies for the little one," Orin explained as he reached out and scratched under Nyx's chin. The little furball was currently resting on Zepar's left shoulder and meowed his complaints at being woken up by Orin's chin scratches.