Young Man

[Timid Young Man]

Eh? Wwwaaaah--!

Y-you're--it's-it's--

It's a freakin' Bard!

It's a freakin' Minstrel!

D-don't come any closer!

I... I don't like you guys!

N-no! Don't look at me!

I know what you're trying

to do! Please, I haven't

done anything to you!

J-just s-stay away!

[

Um...

I'm not really trying

to do anything. Why

don't you relax, and--

Relax?! Nobody believes me

when I tell them how dangerous

you guys are. You think you're

so smug with your funny jokes

and lovely songs, but I know

what kind of powers you have!

Look, I don't know what

you've got against me, but

you really need to relax.

Here, have a drink on me.

Oh~! Isn't that

a Tropical Sograt?

That's my favorite

drink in all the world!

Thanks so--waitaminute.

This is some sort

of weird trick, isn't it?

And to think I almost

f-f-fell for it! P-please

j-just leave me alone!

Wait, I've seen you before.

And you brought me a drink

just like this one. You...

You d-didn't learn th-that

w-w-weird skill, d-did you?

Wait, no. You couldn't have...

Oh, please~

You know, I think

that maybe you

worry too much.

*Gulp Gulp*

Ahhhh~ Oh, you don't

understand how long I've

been wanting this drink!

It tastes so good, and

now I feel sooo relaxed...

Hmmm... Maybe.

Maybe all of you Bards

and Minstrels aren't that

bad. But I can never forget

what that Bard did to me...

It all started when I was

traveling through Umbala and

met a strange Bard who was

studying under the tutelage

of Puchuchartan, the Utan

Shaman of the village.

That Bard and I got along fairly well until he took me to Umbala's

Bungee Jump. He insisted that I jump at least once for the ''full

Umbala experience.'' I refused, seeing as they don't use bungees.

The Bard seemed offended

and claimed it was perfectly

safe, and that only a few people

have died by jumping. Then, he

just... He gave me this intense look.

His eyes seemed so full

of rage! I remember him

mumbling something, and

all of a sudden, I lost control

of my body! My arms and legs

were just moving on their own!

Before long, I found myself

struggling to keep myself from

leaping off that Bungee Jump.

But the more I resisted, the

more violently I'd flail toward

the edge. It was horrible!

That was the most terrifying

experience of my life! It was

bad enough that I risked my

life, but that feeling of not

having any control over your

body is so overwhelming!

Wait, you're saying

a Bard did this to you?

I've never heard of a song

or skill with that sort of effect before. That's really strange...

Well, I've never heard

of that sort of power up

until I had to experience

it for myself. Oh, I can still

see that evil smile of his

in my nightmares...

Anyway, thanks for that

drink, it really helped me

settle my nerves. But I must

warn you not to look for that

strange Bard. I'm sure he's really some sort of demon or something...

But... If you really

want to attain that sort

of power, I can't really

stop you. Thankfully, nobody

has any idea of where he is~

Even if you could find that

Bard to get him to teach you

how he did that to me, I'm sure

he mentioned something about

being at least Job Level 40 to

be able to handle that power...

*Sigh* Well, maybe all Bards

and Minstrels aren't terrifying. But any Bard will remind me

of the one that I met during my

travels. Just thinking about

that time gives me goosebumps.

that a few people have died

by jumping. Then, he just...

He gave me this intense look.

Eh...?! Um, th-that's

nice of y-you to offer,

but I'm p-pretty picky

about what I d-drink.

P-plus, I don't k-know

if I can t-trust you.

I don't think there's

much that could get m-me

to ch-change my m-mind!

Well... Maybe if you brought

my favorite drink, Tropical

Sograt, I would reconsider...

Don't worry,

I won't hurt you.

Th-that's what th-they

all say, right before they

get into your mind and then

twist it as hard as they can!

J-just don't t-touch me!

...Ack! And stay away!

E-even if you d-don't have

that p-power, l-leave me alone!

Oh... Oh goodness.

Was that a Bard just

over there? Oh, I'm so

afraid of those guys!

And those Minstrels

are even worse!

Don't get me wrong, I love

songs and entertainment,

but you've got to understand!

Some of them have powers

that you wouldn't believe!

I... I've seen them myself!