It was another good weather day in the city of Klarrsen, the capital city of the Nekkana Empire. A young man left his home for another day of adventuring. He headed down to the guild in search of something that could make him a lot of money to help fund him. His usual work was some fetch quests and occasional kill quests.

“Ah, hello again Silver,” the young woman at the desk said.

“Good morning, Natalie,” he said. “Anything new on the board today?”

“Well, just the usual small fry. Although, this new kill quest came in, but I fear it might be too much for you. All the stronger guys turned it down.”

“What is it?” he asked, looking at the paper she handed him.

“A Giant Skeleton has apparently appeared outside of town. Luckily it steers away from town, but there is a lot of unrest about it. You can still do your usual work, just be extra careful out there today okay?”

“Okay, I appreciate it,” he said, putting the paper on the board and taking a couple of other ones down. “I can take care of these today.” Silver went out, gathering medicinal herbs and killing some slimes and gathering their loot drops. After awhile, he sat down for a break by a pond. As he washed his face off and took a drink of his own water he stared down into the pond, watching the fish, his cat ears and tail twitching slightly at the thought of lunch. “No, not now,” he told himself. Just then, his reflection in the pond suddenly changed into that of a skull. He cried out and fell back as a Giant Skeleton, sure enough, leapt out of the water. It was nearly three times his size. It swung its sword at him but he dodged it and ran away, the monster running after him. He knew he was running towards the cliffs and he stopped and turned, staring down the skeleton charging at him. He gripped his dagger and dodging at the last second, he jumped and turned to see the monster fall over the cliff, its middle finger up facing him as it fell. He could barely make out the skeleton as it hit the bottom of the cliff and fell apart. Silver slowly made his way down to where the skeleton, now dead for a second time, lay apart. All that was left was the giant skull, nearly thrice the size of his own head, and the giant sword it left. “Does this mean I killed it?” He brought the skull and the sword back to the guild.

“What the hell?!” Natalie cried out, seeing Silver bringing in the giant skull and the big sword. “Silver, did you actually kill it?”

“Um… yeah,” he said with a small laugh. “I guess I got a lucky shot.”

“I’ll say,” one of the stronger adventurers said, taking a closer look at the sword. “Yep, this is a rare drop from a Giant Skeleton.” Some of the guild members congratulated Silver on his kill, even though he didn’t actually kill it.

“Well, even though you didn’t formally accept it, I’ll consider it done,” Natalie said, stamping the quest form about the Skeleton, and marking it as completed. “Here Silver,” she said, handing the boy a bag full of silver and gold coins.

“Damn,” the guy from before said. “What are you gonna do now that you’re loaded, Silver? You gonna treat all of us?”

“Maybe,” he said sheepishly.

“You know,” one of the other guild members spoke up. “I know you normally work alone Silver, but with that kind of coin, maybe you should consider signing up for a party.”

“I don’t know,” Silver shrugged.

“Or maybe,” the guy whispered to him. “You could make a visit to the slave market.”

“W-Why would I go there?”

“Why not? As I said, you could head down to those slums and probably buy yourself a party. Besides, I thought I heard you say you want everyone to be happy?” Silver sighed, torn by his own logic. He went back to his room at his apartment, counting his money. Sure enough, it was 50 silver and 15 gold. Enough to buy his own home and plenty of food for a couple of years. Or… at least 3 people from the slave market. He sighed aloud.

“I should make sure my money can’t be stolen,” he said, as he spread his money amongst his pockets as he left for the slave market. Down in the slums of the black market, he saw many young women and several children of different races. He glanced around before his eyes fell upon a young woman with beautiful blond hair and green eyes. She had cat ears and a tail, much like him. Unlike him though, she was in a cage, her hands bound behind her back with a bit tied in her mouth. She growled and glared at him. He saw anger and sadness in her eyes.

“I’d be careful around that one,” the curator said. “She can be quite violent.”

“Is that why she’s the only one bound and gagged?”

“Perhaps.” Silver thought to himself as he noticed she kept glancing back to another cage that contained a child, a young girl who looked quite similar to her. A younger sister, perhaps daughter, even?

“How much for her?” Silver asked the man, pointing to the child.

“5 gold.” Silver pulled out 5 of his gold coins and handed them to the man. The man pocketed the coins and opened the cage and the girl slowly walked out and looked up at Silver, crying softly.

“Hold onto my hand,” he told her and the child took ahold of his hand. He then turned toward the woman who was crying now. The bit in her mouth garbled anything she tried to say to him. “I see.” He knelt down to the woman. “Do you know her?” The bound woman nodded and tried to say something.

“M…” the little girl spoke up. “Mama…”

“Oh.” He then stood and turned toward the man. “How much for the violent one?”

“Well, since I’ve been unable to sell her as of late, I’ll give you a package discount. 10 gold.” He paid the last of his gold coins and he unlocked the cage, putting a collar with a leash on the woman. He handed the leash to Silver. “I appreciate your business, Son.” Silver sighed and made sure he had both in his sights, before facing the man one last time.

“Never speak to me or these two again.” He led them out of the slums quickly and to an alleyway he knew was clear, before freeing the older woman. She then hugged her daughter and they cried for awhile. Silver smiled.

“Please Master I cannot express my gratitude,” she said to him.

“Hey, it’s okay. I didn’t get that money in a completely honest way myself.”

“What do you mean?”

“It was a kill quest reward, but I just got lucky and raided the monster drops after it… well, fell off a cliff.”

“I see… well, Master, I Leah, and my daughter Lily are forever in your debt.” She bowed to him again.

“T-Thank you, Master,” Lily said, bowing as well.

“Hey hey, you can stop with the Master thing, really.”

“A-Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m not gonna mistreat you or anything. If you want, you can just go.”

“Well Mas-” Leah stopped herself. “Sorry, I don’t know your name, but… Lily and I can’t make it on our own… that’s how we ended up in the market.”

“I see. Oh, my name is Silver.”

“Silver,” Leah said, a small smile forming. “I like that name.”

“Thanks,” he blushed. “Well, it is getting quite late. Come stay with me for the night.”

“Okay,” Leah smiled, crying some happy tears this time. They went with Silver to his room at the guild, where the night shift attendant, Natalya, Natalie’s mother, was working.

“Oh Silver, dear, did Marco talk you into going to the slave market?”

“I guess he did,” he said with a sigh.

“Well, I see you- oh.” She turned and saw Leah holding her child Lily, who by now had fallen asleep. “So you’re into older women huh?” she smirked.

“It’s not like that Miss Natalya,” Silver said with an exasperated tone. “I didn’t know what else to spend the money on, and I wasn’t going to let them suffer in the market.”

“Well, at least you’re doing something nice,” She turned toward Leah. “Honey, don’t let this young man touch you or your daughter, okay?”

“I won’t,” Leah said with a smile. “Believe me, I can hold my own if need be.”

“Well, you best get some proper rest. We’ll have a nice bath and breakfast feast for you and your little one in the morning, okay?”

“We really appreciate that.” Silver brought the two women to his room.

“Here, you both can have the bed, I’ll take the couch.” Leah nodded and tucked Lily into bed, the first proper bed she’d slept on. Leah then went to Silver and hugged him, kissing his cheek. The boy blushed vividly.

“Sorry,” Leah said with a soft giggle. “But Silver… thank you, for buying us. I really mean that.”

“Forgive for asking,” he said softly. “But how old are you, you can’t be much older than me.”

“I’m 24,” she said with a smile, climbing into bed. “I had Lily when I was 17…”

“That must have been rough.”

“You have no idea…”

“But all the pain and sadness is behind you,” he said, wiping the tears from Leah’s eyes.

“Thanks, Silver. I don’t suppose… we could join your party, could we?”

“You most certainly can, but we’ll take care of that tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay.”

“You both have a good night.”

“You too,” she said, as she removed her glasses and set them on the nightstand, lying down next to her daughter in the soft bedsheets. Silver smiled and kept a watch over them until he fell asleep himself.

2: II - Papers for the Clergymen

The next morning, after a big and hearty breakfast followed by a bath and spa day, Leah and Lily were led by Silver to the guild hall so they could join his party. Only then did they run into some unforeseen problems.

"Hey Silver," Natalie asked. "You said you bought both of them from the, market, right?" She chose her words carefully.

"Yeah why, is there a problem?" Silver asked.

"Well, in order for them to join your party, they need to be guild registered. And well, I hate to say this, but even with their purchased freedom, slaves can't register. At least not immediately."

"So what's stopping us?" Leah asked, holding Lily's hand.

"Well, technically, you'd have to re-register for citizenship."

"And that's going to take a while, isn't it?"

"Yeah, and not to mention, it's 1 gold per person."

"I guess Silver's gonna have to work hard for us."

"Well, there is one loophole I know of."

"And what's that?" Silver asked.

"Well, you've only known each other for a day but," Natalie sighed. "The easiest way would be marriage."

"Marriage!?" Silver and Leah exclaimed, looking at each other and blushing.

"Even if you were a slave, if Silver marries you, you get granted automatic citizenship. Plus, since Silver's a guild member, you and Lily will get automatic memberships. Well, Lily will get hers when she's 10."

"I mean... I'm not opposed to that," Leah said, her red face steaming.

"Mama, what's wrong?" Lily asked, not understanding everything being said. "Can Mr. Silver help us?"

"I mean, he can," she said, picking Lily up. "But it means that Silver is going to become your Papa. Would that be okay with you Lily?" Lily looked at her mother, then over at Silver who smiled at her. "It'll make our lives a lot easier Lily, would that be alright?"

"I promise I'll take good care of you and your Mama," Silver said to her.

"So... you'll be Papa?" Lily asked Silver.

"Yep. If you say so Lily, I can be your Papa," he said, gently petting her and Lily purred.

"Okay. Mama, I want Mr. Silver to be my Papa." Leah giggled.

"Okay, Lily. We'll get married."

"Silver will still need the 1 silver for the marriage form from the Clergy, and it may take a few days before they can ready a ceremony," Natalie said, writing out a paper.

"That's fine," Silver said, grabbing a coin from his pouch.

"Well alright then," Natalie smiled. "Leah, if you could sign here."

"I'll try, it's been a while since I was writing," she said, grabbing the quill and writing her name out. "Does Lily need to sign it? She can't write."

"She shouldn't need to, but I'd asked the Clergy when you get there just in case."

"Thank you, Natalie," Silver said.

"Not a problem, you'd best get going." They nodded and left for the Clergy. When they arrived, the man in the church took the letter that Natalie had written out.

"Oho, so you're finally marrying, Silver?" the Clergyman had asked, also knowing Silver.

"Yeah," he said. "I had saved them from the market."

"Oh, I see now. And you're taking the shortcut to get their rights?"

"I know it's not the most, honest of methods, I admit," Silver said with a sigh and the Clergyman laughed.

"It's quite alright. Personally, I think those in the state offices take too much of their own time, It is a wonder anything gets done in this town. I see your ceremony budget is limited, but I also take it, you're not having guests?"

"Just her daughter I suppose."

"Alright. Do you have your payment?" Silver nodded and gave the man the silver coin. "Perfect, just come on up here and you can fill out the form." He led them to the alter and Silver and Leah signed the form.

"Forgive me, Clergyman, my writing isn't the best," Leah said.

"It's quite alright. Given how long you and your daughter were in the slave system it doesn't surprise me. I am glad a kind soul was able to help you."

"Does Lily need to sign the form too?"

"Not unless she wants to be listed as a witness."

"What's that?" Lily asked her mother.

"It means you saw it because you were here," Leah said. "But she doesn't know how to write."

"Can I try though?"

"Let me show you," the Clergyman said, grabbing the quill and Leah lifted Lily up to the altar. "Your name is Lily, right?" Lily nodded and gently took ahold of the quill. The Clergyman carefully held her hand and guided her through the writing. "L-I-L-Y. There you go."

"Yay, I wrote my name!" Lily said happily.

"Congratulations," the Clergyman said. "Now Lily, it shows that you were here on the day of your new parents' wedding."

"Wait, it's today?" Leah asked.

"Sure thing. I can get this stamped after your ceremony. Would you like to do it right now? I'm not appointed elsewhere until another 40 minutes or so." Silver looked at Leah.

"You want to go ahead and get it done?" he asked her.

"Don't I need like a dress or something?" Leah asked.

"Well, it's not in your budget," the Clergyman said. "Plus, the white dresses mark a virgin woman being wed, and it's obvious that isn't the case."

"I suppose you're right," Leah sighed.

"What about a ring?" Lily asked. "Don't you need those too?" Silver fished through his pockets, finding some basic equipment rings.

"I mean I have these two Strength Rubies," he said and Leah giggled.

"That's fine. Those'll work until you can afford me something more appropriate," she said with a slight smirk.

"Alright then," The Clergyman smiled and gave the rings to Lily. "Give those to your parents when I say so, okay?" Lily nodded with a smile. "Alright, Leah, you stand here, and Silver you stand here," he said, putting them in a proper standing by the altar. He grabbed his hat and put it on. "Alright then. Silver, you come to me and our house of blessings to wed this woman by the name of Leah. Do you choose to proceed?"

"I do," he said.

"Leah, my dear child, being rescued by this man do you accept his hand in this marriage?"

"I do," Leah nodded.

"Lily, young one, give your parents their rings." Lily nodded and gave the rings to Leah and Silver, who put them on each other's fingers. "Is there anyone who objects?" he asked the empty hall. "Well, I do have to ask it. Then as the Clergyman of the house today, I, Ardman, announce the marriage of Silver and Leah." He clapped as Silver and Leah hugged and kissed.

"We thank you, Clergyman," Leah said, picking up Lily.

"You're very welcome," he said, stamping their marriage form. "Bring this to the city office posthaste and your citizenship can be restored. Lily, be sure you remember how to write your name. You'll need to do it on their paper next, okay?"

"Okay," Lily smiled

"Right then, let's go," Silver said and Leah nodded, bowing to the Clergyman before they left. They went to the city office and turned in their marriage form. Once it was notarized, Leah filled out her citizenship form and she helped Lily fill out hers. Once the papers were filed, they were given a final copy, their official family seal. They thanked the city employee and went back to the guild. Leah showed them her new citizenship paper and they gave her a guild ID. Once Leah held it, it magically filled out all of her information.

"It's like magic," Lily said with an awed expression.

"Yes," Natalie said with a giggle. "You never know Lily, when you grow up, you may have an affinity for magic." Leah was looking at her ID. She had a slight affinity for the magical elements, but nothing specific.

"Hey, it's a better affinity than me," Silver said, showing her his ID.

"I guess that's why you use the short sword, huh?" Leah asked.

"Yeah."

"Enough about that," Natalie said with a smile. "Let's get the new family a meal."

3: III - Shopping for Room

After the meal, Silver and Leah went to the job board and found some easy jobs that they could do, some more material gathering and labor work. But before they left they stopped by an equipment shop and Silver had enough coins to buy Leah and Lily some more hardwearing clothes. Leah decided to arm herself with two daggers for now. Since the guild wasn't able to just babysit Lily they had to bring her, hence why they chose jobs without any sort of danger from monsters. They went out into the fields to gather herbs and other materials some requests were asking for. And some other requests were labor jobs in the town. Leah always made sure that Lily stayed within sight, but out of the way if she needed to be. It got to the point where they were making some decent money and Leah could afford to spend half of the day teaching Lily how to read, write, and do mathematics. After about a year and Lily was now 8, Leah was talking to Silver one night, after Lily had gone to bed. They were down at the tavern, drinking and talking. Silver had a mug of mead while Leah just had half a glass of wine, but that was enough for Leah to start turning rosey.

"Hey Silver," she asked him, snacking on some meat jerky they had also ordered. "I was thinking, we should be able to afford our own home here in town soon right?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?" he asked her, sipping from his mug. Leah sighed and just looked over at him.

"I want a three bedroom house."

"Why three?"

"I want another child." Silver nearly spit out his drink.

"You want another kitten?"

"Yes!" Leah said, her face red, but determined.

"Honey, you're drunk."

"No I'm not," she lied, biting into her portion of the jerky. Silver sighed, knowing that Leah was bound to have her heat cycle here soon, but having never had any special time with Leah since their marriage, he was looking forward to getting to mate with her.

"If it means that much to you," he said before taking another drink. "We can see what sort of living arrangements we can find first."

"Well make it quick," Leah said, her voice more slurred. "I wanna have those kittens with you."