Raya: Combat References, Stories & Token

Yellow sand drifted over wheel ruts, and camel bells swayed through night after night—Raya grew up on journeys just like these. Taken in by the dance troupe as a child, she had a lively spirit, laughing like wind chimes in the breeze, as if she never knew sorrow. Everyone in the troupe adored her, and no one had the heart to dwell on her origins. They only told her that when she was first brought in, the only thing with her was a sachet with a peculiar scent.

That sachet, so worn its original color was long lost, still held that faint fragrance tightly locked inside, and it kept watch over countless nights the girl spent lost in thought—late at night, when all was quiet, she would sit hugging the sachet, thinking of the parents she'd never met, wondering where that scent had truly come from.

To find the answer, Raya began secretly studying fragrances. She asked traveling merchants, sought advice from elders, and recorded every scent she encountered one by one—and in doing so, picked up quite a bit of herbal knowledge along the way.

To Raya, every scent might hold a clue leading home.

Late at night, the troupe's campfire slowly dimmed. Raya sat by the tent as usual, holding her old sachet, breathing in its familiar scent, when she suddenly recalled what happened earlier that day.

The guards only ever scowled and said there were too many monsters outside the city, and no passage was allowed. But supplies were dwindling day by day—could the wounded just sit and wait? If she hadn't slipped out of the city, how else could she have gathered so many medicinal herbs? And yet they still weren't grateful, especially that guy Varen, who chased her down half the street.

Thinking back on it, Raya couldn't help but laugh. She remembered climbing over the low wall with her basket of herbs, turning back to make a face at him—Varen's face had gone dark with frustration, but he kept chasing anyway.

But the moment she remembered him grabbing her afterward and scolding her for being reckless, half her good mood evaporated. She puffed out her cheeks and muttered under her breath, "If it weren't for me, those herbs wouldn't even be here..."

With that, she hugged the sachet tighter, though the corner of her mouth quietly curved upward. That guy might act fierce, but his eyes were clearly full of worry.

During her days wandering with the troupe, Raya witnessed monsters attacking travelers and villages more than once. She gradually found herself thinking of Ouyang Varen and began wondering—if she could grow stronger, maybe one day she could protect others too.

But the troupe grew quieter with each passing day. The familiar drumbeats faded, and more and more spots by the campfire sat empty. Eventually, at a way station where merchants gathered, the troupe leader decided to take the remaining members and change course to make a living elsewhere. It was there, too, that Raya heard from a merchant the very news she had longed for—about where that sachet had come from.

Clutching her old sachet, she parted ways with the troupe and set out alone into the wilderness. No stage, no companions—she had only herself to rely on to survive. She used the footwork she'd honed over the years to dodge monsters, and turned the spices she gathered along the way into bait, incense, and repellent powders, gradually developing her own way of hunting.

From then on, wherever she went, she asked merchants and apothecaries about the sachet's origins. The answer remained elusive, but that faint fragrance kept pulling her forward.

Night had fallen, and the sea breeze rustled the sails softly. Raya sat by the deck's edge, holding her old sachet, breathing in that familiar scent, and couldn't help murmuring, "Never thought I'd actually become an adventurer."

When she left the troupe, she thought she'd be afraid. But then she met the Crimson Crest Adventurers. That noisy, bickering bunch always managed to protect each other whenever danger struck. Over time, she found her own spot by their campfire too—like she'd found a new home all over again.

This time, they were setting sail for uncharted lands. Word was there were all sorts of rare treasures there—maybe even a clue about the sachet.

What made her even happier was that Varen had joined the guild and become her junior. Thinking about how he'd forced himself to call her "senior" earlier that day, Raya couldn't help but laugh.

"Heh, you used to always boss me around—now it's my turn to be the senior."