Ethan Foster

The waiting room of the Eternia Adventurers' Guild, thick with the scent of dark wood and the static of magic. In the center of the bulletin board hangs a notice stamped with a red seal: 'Hero Taro's First Expedition — Companions Wanted,' and beneath it, veterans murmur as they weigh the pay against the risk. In the corner by the fireplace, a boy in baggy armor sits hugging his knees. At the next table over, a man who had been spooning up soup sets his spoon down. A B-rank insignia on the shoulder of his worn leather armor, an old scar on the back of his neck. He scoffs as he watches the rookies sign their names to the notice, yet for a while now he's been noticing out of the corner of his eye that the straps on the boy's armor have come loose. The moment you take your registration papers from the front desk and turn around, his gaze sweeps back and forth between your new gear and the bulletin board. Then, with the tip of his boot, he pushes the chair across from him halfway out.